World's Last Hope-Chapter 69: Horde of Monsters

Before her stood a colossal spider, towering at nearly 200 meters in height.

Thankfully, due to the immense size of the trees, Aria was able to remain unseen for the moment.

"Now the question is... how do I lure it?"

Just by looking at the creature, she could tell how strong it was.

"Mid-Grade 5..." she whispered to herself. Before, she wouldn’t have even thought about drawing the attention of such a dangerous entity, but now, here she was, plotting how to lead dozens of them.

"Life sure can progress fast..." she muttered, tightening her grip on her sword.

For now, her plan was to play it safe for as long as possible.

Holding her breath, Aria waited a minute or two, watching the creature closely for the right moment. Once the spider shifted slightly, exposing its back to her, she dug her foot deep into the branch she was standing on and dashed forward with blinding speed.

The branch shattered under the sudden force, sending countless fragments flying in every direction and creating a loud, sharp sound.

The colossal spider reacted instantly, its massive head beginning to turn toward the noise—but it was already too late. Aria had landed on the ground near one of its enormous legs.

In the blink of an eye, her eyes shone blue like gems, and her hand moved so quickly it appeared as a blur.

A moment later, the spider let out a pained roar as it felt one of its legs sliced clean in two.

"That will do," Aria said calmly, positioning herself so the spider could clearly see her.

Its crimson eyes locked onto her, glowing with fury. It charged toward her with terrifying speed, but the loss of its leg slowed it down, if only slightly.

Seeing that she had successfully drawn the creature’s attention—and managed to slow it down in the process—Aria shifted her gaze forward and began running, searching for more monsters.

From here, things would get easier... or at least she hoped so. With a colossal creature roaring and pursuing her, its cries would surely attract the attention of other colossal monsters.

Aria’s movements were graceful, her feet gliding over the ground so lightly that she left no trace in the soil as she ran.

"Please tell me this isn’t the only one in the area," she muttered in frustration, only to grin a second later.

In her peripheral vision, she spotted a colossal butterfly heading in her direction.

Abruptly changing course, she dashed to the side. Without waiting for the butterfly to get close, she slashed her sword in a fluid motion, creating a arc of light that traveled forward and struck the creature’s wing.

She wasn’t attacking just to slow them down. Considering that these two types of creatures were not on friendly terms, there was a real possibility they would begin fighting each other and forget about Aria altogether.

To ensure they targeted her and only her, she made sure to inflict deep wounds on each creature that decided to chase her.

"Alright, now there are two... let’s see how many more I can gather," she muttered.

***** 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Taking a deep breath, Eric sat on the ground and dismissed his sword.

With an exhausted grin, he glanced at his work proudly.

One of the trees had almost been cut down, a deep slash visible in its trunk. It only needed one final push to fall toward the hole and cover it.

’Once we send it down, will we be able to run fast enough to reach the hole before the tree does?’ Eric asked himself. It wouldn’t be good if he and Olivia blocked themselves from entering the hole—it would doom them, leaving them at the mercy of that manifestation of corruption.

"Isn’t she taking too long?" Eric muttered to himself.

"Relax. No matter how fast she is, it’ll take time for her to gather enough monsters on her tail," Olivia said lazily, leaning against a tree and playing with her dagger.

’Even if that’s the case, I can’t help but feel worried... Being in love really sucks.’ Eric thought, his expression heavy with concern.

Seeing the worried look on his face, Olivia tried to cheer him up.

"Come on, we both know that out of the three of us, she’s the strongest. There’s no way she isn’t fine."

"I know, I know," Eric answered with a grunt.

"Oh? Is that what they call love?" Olivia teased, with a smirk. "It must feel weird to constantly worry about your girlfriend’s safety."

"I mean, isn’t it natural to worry?! How would you feel if your partner was in danger?" Eric shot back, only to narrow his eyes as he realized the mistake he’d just made.

Olivia’s eyes darkened. "You know I haven’t had a partner—and why."

Eric silently cursed himself. ’Great job, me! She tried to cheer you up, and you just had to bring her mood down!’

With a sigh, he apologized. "I... I’m sorry. I can’t imagine how it feels to tremble just from touching someone of the opposite gender. And honestly, I’ll probably never understand."

"Well... there is actually one guy that doesn’t make me tremble..." Olivia said softly.

Eric’s eyes brightened, sensing an opportunity to lift her spirits. "Really? That’s great, then! I guess he must be a nice guy. Why don’t you try to get into a relationship with him?"

Olivia glanced away and scoffed. "...Let’s just say there are some unfortunate circumstances that prevent me from doing that."

"Oh, come on!" Eric spoke as he stood up.

"Just shoot your shot! What’s the worst that could happen? It’s better to be rejected and move on than to live your whole life in regret!"

Olivia seemed to consider his words, falling into deep thought.

Finally, she spoke. "Eric, I—"

But her words were cut short as both of them went on guard, preparing for battle.

Just from feeling the vibrations in the ground, it was clear that Aria had returned...

With a horde of monsters behind her.