Sylvia was being carried along by the Doomsday Beast like she was on a rollercoaster, the violent jolts giving her a pounding headache.
The threads strained taut—Sylvia was using every ounce of her strength, barely managing to keep the beast subdued.
All she could do was steer its flight path a little; she couldn't even force it to come to a full stop.
"ROOOAR—!!!"
The Doomsday Beast thrashed wildly in fury, its wings shuddering, limbs yanking and pulling.
It even began slamming its body repeatedly against the space station's protective barrier.
Each impact from its massive form was merciless, and it deliberately twisted around, aiming its back and neck straight at the shield—all just to shake Sylvia off.
Thankfully, Himeko's drones and March 7th's arrows never let up, providing constant support.
Frost-veined Six-Phase Ice steadily accumulated across the Doomsday Beast's body, while the drones, with their terrifying cutting power and performance far beyond expectation, also demanded much of the beast's attention.
"Damn it… how is it this strong?!"
Sylvia was starting to feel the strain, dodging awkwardly across the beast's body using her threads.
But the threads in her left hand never slackened.
She pulled with all her might, the searing flames radiating a dense aura of Destruction that furiously corroded the Doomsday Beast's form.
And this was after the beast had already been badly scorched by her flames, its condition severely weakened.
Even so, Sylvia was being tossed around pretty badly.
She had underestimated the raw power contained within a creature of this size—a being that could traverse the cosmos with its bare flesh.
In a straightforward fight, Sylvia wouldn't have feared the Doomsday Beast.
The agility granted by her marionette threads, combined with the power of the Heliobi, meant she could hold her own against its assaults.
But trying to tame it like this turned the battle into a pure contest of strength, and her slender arms and legs were really struggling to keep up.
Still, the reason Sylvia persisted was that the Doomsday Beast couldn't resist the assimilation brought by the [Riding EX] skill.
Though slower than with Mount No. 1, her flames were visibly, steadily eating away at the beast.
As long as it couldn't shake her off, it wouldn't be long before this Doomsday Beast became entirely her thrall.
On the platform, the members of the Express crew watched Sylvia and the Doomsday Beast putting on a chaotic aerial show outside, feeling both worry and awe.
"The Doomsday Beast's presence dropped significantly after Sylvia made her move. She must have done something," Himeko, as the main attacker, had keenly noticed the change in the beast.
The drop was drastic—you could say it was nearly halved.
If this ability worked even on Emanators, then Himeko could roughly guess how Sylvia had participated in that battle on the Xianzhou.
Dan Heng, having not engaged directly, only vaguely sensed something off about the Doomsday Beast's state but couldn't be sure.
"Wow, is that how Sylvia got her mount too? That's way too intense," March 7th remarked after firing another arrow, relaxing slightly as she nocked the next one.
Though she kept shooting, layering Six-Phase Ice to disrupt the enemy, it didn't stop her from admiring Sylvia's 'daring feat' with a hint of envy:
"But if I had skills like that, I'd probably be tempted to do the same, right?"
Nearby, Stelle—whose reach was limited like Dan Heng's—was mainly providing defensive support.
Hearing March's comment, she couldn't help but nod.
It really was cool.
But if it meant being… infused like that…
Stelle thought it might not be out of the question.
Just then—
The Doomsday Beast twisted again, crashing toward the space station. This time, whether from exhaustion or misjudgment, it dove straight toward the platform where the Express crew was gathered.
Sylvia pulled hard on the threads, trying to divert its path, but it had little effect.
Seeing this, Himeko immediately recalled her drones, sending them smashing toward the beast's head as she shouted,
"Brace for impact!"
"C'mon then—!"
March 7th drew her bowstring taut, and this time, a shower of Six-Phase Ice arrows poured forth like a blade storm.
Stelle and Dan Heng raised their weapons, charging with everything they had toward where the beast was descending!
BOOM-BOOM-BOOM—!!
First came March's arrow shower, sheets of Six-Phase Ice freezing the Doomsday Beast's head solid.
Then Himeko's drones screamed in—shattering both the ice and the armored plating on the beast's face.
Blazing flames erupted from the wounds.
KABOOM—!
Vision gone dark, the Doomsday Beast smashed hard onto the platform. As violent tremors rocked the area, the pained beast let out a horrific wail!
"ROOOAR—!!!"
Instinctively, it beat its wings and tossed its head, trying to retreat, but Stelle and Dan Heng were already upon it, weapons slamming into its face.
Seeing the crew's assist, Sylvia mustered her strength again, wrenching the beast's head and neck completely sideways.
Using the Doomsday Beast's own momentum, she dragged it scraping along the platform and away.
Once steady, Himeko glanced at the others—Stelle and Dan Heng had also pulled back safely.
"Whew… that scared me! Why'd it suddenly pounce like that? Good thing this girl reacted fast," March 7th exhaled in relief; her timely shot had managed to lock the beast down.
Himeko smiled at her, then reminded, "Stay alert. That Doomsday Beast won't last much longer."
Sylvia didn't know about Himeko's assessment from the platform. From her own perception, the erosion of the Doomsday Beast was gradually speeding up.
If her senses were right, this beast really was nearing its limit.
And perhaps the Doomsday Beast sensed it too—or maybe Sylvia's assimilation had gotten too close to its mind—because its struggles grew even more frenzied and reckless.
The antimatter engine in its chest seemed to disregard self-harm entirely, wildly unleashing Annihilation in both directions, attacking Sylvia in what felt like a suicidal frenzy.
Then, with a sweep of its wings, dozens of golden beams materialized from the void and erupted violently—all aimed squarely at Sylvia's position!
Seeing this, Sylvia dared not take the hit head-on.
While pulling hard with her left hand, she drew her blade with the right, flipping over to bring it down with full force on the beast's head!
KABOOOM—!!!
The terrifying flames, upon the greatsword's impact, triggered a vicious explosion and violent concussive damage.
It forcefully wrenched the Doomsday Beast off course, throwing its control over the beams askew!
As a result, two of the powerful beams shot straight toward March 7th on the platform.
'Oh, come on—!'
Sylvia truly couldn't hold back the curse in her heart at the sight.
Even after all she'd done—with the Doomsday Beast moments from becoming her underling—was March 7th still destined to take a hit according to the script, just to trigger Stelle's Path of Destruction?
Was Elio's script really that unshakable?
No wonder the Stellaron Hunters had let her run wild without interference.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.