World's Last Hope-Chapter 68: Alone with Thoughts
It was decided that they would attempt to liberate the cathedral.
"So what’s the plan?" Aria asked, glancing at Eric.
"We managed to lure out that thing because of the presence of the colossal monsters, so I believe we should use the same method to lure it out."
"So you mean while that thing fights the colossal monsters, we enter the hole and go straight to the cathedral?" Olivia joined.
"Yes, but the problem remains that, considering how fast they’re going to be killed, we’ll need more than one or two," Eric said, glancing at Aria.
"I’m going to be honest. No matter how much my traits empower me, I won’t be able to match the speed of the colossal spiders or the flying butterflies. But you, being a Grandmaster and all, would have the best chance among us."
"Figures," Aria said with a sigh. It seemed like she had been expecting that.
"I also have an idea, actually," Olivia said.
Eric raised an eyebrow. "Which is?"
"I would hate it if the princess did all the work, so an idea came to mind. After that thing kills the monsters we lured to it, it’ll head straight for the hole to reach the cathedral, right?" She pointed at the tree they were currently stationed at.
"What if, just after it shows itself from the hole, we make one of the trees fall, covering the hole? It would need to move the tree out of the way to enter, so it should slow it down a bit, right?"
Eric scratched his chin, thinking. "That could work, but these trees are thick. We’d need a lot of power to take one down."
Olivia scoffed at his words. "Don’t underestimate me, Eric. I can make this tree fall in moments."
"If you say so," he agreed to her plan as he shifted his gaze to the ground below them.
The thick acid blood of the monsters had almost disappeared, as most of it had poured into the hole.
’I just hope that once we enter, there’ll be a place for us to step on without the acid melting our feet,’ he thought.
"Then i guess i should go," Aria spoke as she got up and summed her white sword.
Looking at her, Eric felt like he wanted to say many things, but in the end, he only managed to say a few words,
"Take care." 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎
Aria’s lips curved into a smile. "You too."
The next moment, she dashed away from the tree branch, jumping effortlessly from tree to tree.
Eric was stunned for a moment. After all, the trees were more than fifty meters apart, yet Aria was jumping these lengths with ease.
"Snap out of it," Olivia said, patting him on the back.
"We have things we need to do too."
*****
Jumping from one colossal tree to the next, Aria felt her golden hair dancing in the wind.
Despite showing such remarkable feats of strength, her breathing was controlled, and her heart was beating calmly.
She couldn’t help but feel proud of herself for finally achieving one of her goals—becoming a Grandmaster.
And yet, there was a feeling deep within her, a hunger for more. Grandmaster wasn’t enough. She wanted to become stronger.
First, she had to figure out how to become a Saint, but she knew even that wouldn’t satisfy her. She would likely crave more power after that.
Until she was ready to face the corruption on her own, she would always want more strength.
But at the same time, it felt comforting to know she had people she could rely on.
"Humans are social creatures, after all," she muttered under her breath.
She knew that if she truly wanted humanity to stand against the corruption, she couldn’t do it alone. She would have to rely on others.
She had known Olivia for some time, though they hadn’t been on particularly friendly terms before. They weren’t hostile either.
They had once ventured into the death zone together as part of a large conquest for a cathedral. During that time, they’d spoken occasionally, but given how many people were with them, Aria couldn’t say they’d formed a particularly strong bond.
"That all changed after Eric arrived."
After Eric joined them and ventured into the death zone alongside Olivia and Aria, they’d been forced to rely on each other countless times. Now, they trusted one another to cover their backs when necessary.
This was another of Aria’s goals. If humanity as a whole could unite, she was certain they would be able to win against the corruption.
But for them to unite, there had to be a leader. The question was, who could that leader be?
Even if it sounded arrogant to some, Aria believed she was the best person for the role. Unlike others, she didn’t have any ulterior motives—her sole focus was to exterminate the corruption at all costs.
Well... there was one other person who might potentially be fit for the role.
"Eric."
Just thinking about him made her face redden slightly, but she tried her best not to let personal feelings cloud her judgment about who was best suited to lead humanity.
Eric certainly had the ability to remain calm, even in the most dangerous situations. However, unlike many others in this world, he lacked something vital, experience.
He simply hadn’t lived long enough here to truly understand how terrifying the corruption could be. He likely underestimated it to a grave degree.
Nevertheless, whether it was herself or Eric who was best suited to lead humanity, one thing was certain, they needed to show strength if they wanted the masses to follow them.
Aria cast aside all other thoughts and focused on her current objective. After earning the title of Grandmaster, she intended to help her friends achieve the same.
"That was faster than expected," she muttered as she stopped, gripping the branch of one of the giant trees.
It seemed she had already found one of the colossal monsters.
