'The Thorn Knight, huh? Now we've really entered D-grade territory,' Icard thought, his muscles tensing instinctively, as did many other incarnations who could sense this spawns level clearly.
'But this is just one. And a lower-tier one at that.'
It was a humanoid warrior clad in dense, interlocking thorn-armor, where every barb curved backward like a wicked hook.
Its face was a featureless mask of layered bark-helms, and a jagged root-blade grew directly from its forearm.
As it shifted its weight, the ground beneath its feet cracked under its sheer density, and its wooden joints emitted a faint, ominous creaking sound.
Then it leaped down, landing on the ground in a loud thud that startled some people there.
The pressure it exerted was heavy, but not enough to pressure these incarnations too much.
Several of them lunged simultaneously, and an explosion of elemental streaks and other energies slammed into the Knight's armored chest, forcing it back.
