Agent of Seraphim-Chapter 54: Time Attack
Brand saw it then, the entrance to the ruin. The target destination of the mission is to end his misery.
—RUMBLE
The entire demon realm started to shake at the same time. Brand felt like he was in the middle of an earthquake.
The demon worms that had been unaffected by his earlier energy blast had also grown restless. However, he had a feeling that it was not because they were afraid of his skill.
The reason lies in the demon realm itself. It was getting sealed. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂
"They must have cleared the raid..." He muttered in a low voice, at the same time thinking. Why did his teammates have to clear the raid now?
It was only now that the System notified him with a timer with a countdown of the time before the realm forcefully ejected him.
[Den of Worm - Raid has been completed, return rift will soon be opened.]
[Timer: 1 minute.]
In the past expeditions, the teams would collect resources and caracasses before breaking the Worm Statue. They would even seek out rare equipment, weapons, and artifacts.
Brand had browsed through the earlier records of the past expedition teams. There were still regions that had not been explored yet, and they would fully utilize the precious time to explore the den.
If they were to fully utilise the time, they would have half a day before returning to the village to clean the remnant demons that leaked from the outer region.
However, the raid this time was ended far sooner than he had learnt from the earlier briefings. Im
’They’re unsure of our status so they want to complete the raid quickly...’
He did not know if Karl’s sense of smell could reach that deep. But he was sure that Karl must be trying his best to rescue him.
That was the impression he had on Karl as a capable leader of the young warriors.
Though he was now in a tight situation because of it...
The demon worms had started to go into a frenzy of unrest.
’Is it because they sensed the demon realm will be sealed soon?’
He knew it at the moment. This was his only chance. He had to take advantage of this straight path before either the demon worms filled it back, or the demon realm ejected him.
He canceled his Scarab Form to avoid the distractions from the tremor. His only path was to storm past the gap before the timer went out.
Things were just getting harder, as the demon worms began to wiggle around, pushing the gap left by the Energy Blast narrower.
He dashed past the collapsing worms, headed straight to the ancient structure at the end of the path.
"5 points into AGI."
[STR: 30 → 35]
"Haste."
With fifty-something seconds left, every second was precious.
He made a huge leap, leaving a crack in the ground. Full speed ahead.
"Not yet, Brand." Seraphine was flying beside him, reminding him that it was not the time to use GHOST Mode yet.
He would only use it in the last ten seconds.
He gritted his teeth, squeezing out every strength he had to run. Adrenaline surged through him as he was in deep focus, fully concentrated on running.
[You have gained a new skill.]
[Rush - Movement speed + 20% when running in a straight line.]
He felt his body become lighter, as if the wind was carrying him. His steps became wider and faster.
Dust and debris swirled in the air with each step he made. The distance between him and the ruin was getting closer.
However, he also heard the rumble grow louder, and the demon worms started to thrash around. As if they were in pain, they curled themselves up.
The demon worms no longer attack him, but the gap is closing!
Every muscle in his body tensed with urgency, as the narrow path was tightening fast. There were occasionally bodies of demon worms rolled over from the higher stack of stampede, obstructing him.
He felt immense pressure, as the window of escape shrank with each unexpected hiccup.
"Almost, Brand!" Seraphine cheered. "Keep it up!"
The ancient structure at the end of the gap was getting closer into view. The only motivation Brand had in mind was...
’My skill... Don’t you dare take away my skill!’
Right then, Seraphine’s voice reached him.
"Now!!!" Seraphine yelled.
He grinned as jet-black shells began to crawl over his body, forming a seamless exoskeleton.
"GHOST." This was it. The last resort.
With both GHOST AND Haste activated, his AGI was increased by 50%. He had a temporary AGI of 53, boosting his speed to two tiers above.
His final chance, before his entire existence was rejected by the demon realm, was forcibly returned to the human world.
’Brace through the last distance ahead...’
’Remember what dad said?’
’Preserverance.’
"The one who persists, was the strongest." He told himself.
The gap narrowed, and he made the final leap at the last second, landing on the solid ground at the end of his vision.
He had exerted force above his limit and experienced extreme fatigue. But he was grinning as he received the best news he had waited for.
[Mission Complete:
Survive the swarms of worms, and reach the Ruin of Worm.]
[You have leveled up.]
The demon worms had become completely still, motionless, as if they were left with empty husks.
"Were they hibernating?" Brand asked Seraphine.
"Nope, it should be coming out soon." Seraphine giggled.
============
Distributing Mission Completion Rewards:
============
1. +3 AGI.
2. Title Change:
(Removed Title) The Beetle Who Consumed The Worms.
New Title:
The Beetle Who Stands Above The Worms.
3. Continuation mission unlocked:
- Explore the Ruin of Worm.
============
[Title: The Beetle Who Stands Above The Worms.]
[Title Effect: Worm-type creatures will not attack you first.]
"Hmm, so the effect went from being a bait, to a repellant?" Brand scoffed while looking at the title effect.
But the thing he was most concerned about was the continuation quest.
’Explore the Ruin of Worm.’
"I’m not returning to the human world?" For a moment, worry flickered across his face as he opened up his map. Karl and the others were gone.
"Karl and the others have already returned..." He muttered, scanning the map for any familiar indicators. Then, he looked for Ruby.
She, too, hadn’t returned to the human world.
