I Received System to Become Dragonborn-Chapter 856: Another Matter

The battle raged on. Darel's brow furrowed deeper as he watched the eight adventurers hold their ground. They were strong, far stronger than expected.

His plan for a quick ambush had turned into a prolonged war of attrition. Gritting his teeth, he glanced toward the distant trees.

"This is taking too long. The monsters will come soon!" he thought, unease clawing at his chest.

His instincts screamed of danger a second before it happened.

A figure burst through the mist with sword raised high. It was Hund who was charging with wild determination. His blade shimmered with a vivid blue glow that was unmistakably a Magic weapon.

Darel's eyes widened for a split second before he snarled, lips peeling back to show his teeth. No more underestimating them.

He raised his own sword. Its surface beginning to pulse and shimmer with blue light. Magic surged through his weapon, the glow intensifying until it gleamed like a blade of solid energy that closing the real blade.

Hund's eyes narrowed as he approached. This was no ordinary enemy. But instead of slowing down, he grinned.

His own sword flared even brighter. Their weapons collided in a violent clash. Steel against steel and Magic against Magic.

But unlike mundane weapons this impact didn't just spark. It erupted with a visible shockwave of blue Magic that rippling outward like a pulse of force.

Those nearby felt it in their skin like static in the air before a storm.

Around them, the battle showed no signs of slowing. Arrows flew. Spells crackled. Steel rang against steel. The mist curled and swirled as if alive like an audience holding its breath at the center of this chaotic duel.

But behind the mist — behind the veil of noise and violence — something far worse was coming.

Dozens upon dozens of grey creatures moved silently through the forest. Their green eyes glowed brighter as they approached. Their drooling unnatturally wide maws opening wider with anticipation. But these weren't just the twisted humanoid things seen earlier.

The larger of them also emerged from the mist. These were the hulking brutes with arms like battering rams, then the serpentine beasts with twin snake heads and one lion head, and grotesque flyers with flabby wing-arms flapping low and slow.

And then, behind them all it appeared. A different kind of creature. This one walked with more purpose not like with mindless steps like the others.

Its form was humanoid but more refined and more complete. It stood nearly two meters tall. Its body lean and powerful, lined with black markings etched into its skin. Those marks glowed faintly with every step. It have two green eyes blazed with intelligence, unlike the mindless stares of the others that only have one eye.

This one was a leader, a commander. And it was marching straight toward the battlefield behind its soldiers.

But the adventurers didn't see it for now.

Their focus was locked on the enemies in front of them and their instincts dulled by the thick mist that coiled around the forest like a curtain hiding a nightmare.

Only Selene saw it.

Hovering high in the sky while still locked in aerial combat with Yara, her eyes caught movement below during a brief moment of distraction. Her focus wavered for only a heartbeat but that was enough.

Her gaze swept the field below then she saw them.

Dozens upon dozens of grey creatures closing in from every direction. The faint green glint of eyes. The gleam of saliva. The massive silhouettes looming behind the front lines. And worst of all… Selene can spot that one.

The leader.

"Oh no…" she whispered, heart lurching in her chest.

They were surrounded and they didn't even know it yet.

Yara saw Selene glance away just for a second, her attention clearly pulled elsewhere. To Yara, that was all the opening she needed. Her opponent had made a mistake which mean weakness.

With a burst of speed she surged forward through the misty sky with her gauntlets pulsing with surging Magic energy, blue lines crawling across the surface like veins of lightning.

Her eyes locked onto her target. She was going to end this.

But then Selene turned her gaze back to her and shouted. "We're surrounded by the grey creatures!"

The words hit Yara causing her to hesitate mid-flight. Her momentum faltered but only for a heartbeat. She narrowed her eyes. It must be a bluff. It had to be a cheap trick.

"Shut up," she muttered and pushed forward again.

"Shit! Listen to me!" Selene shouted louder and with sharp urgency.

Yara reached her. She threw her punch with a blast of Magic behind it. But Selene was faster, she summoned a shimmering Magic shield just in time. The impact cracked through the air like thunder.

"The monsters from the other world are surrounding us, you fucking bitch! You want to keep this going?!"

Selene's voice trembled, not with just fear but also fury and desperation. And in her eyes Yara finally saw it. Real fear and warning.

Her fist hovered in the air for a second more before she glanced down and her eyes widened in shock.

She finally saw them.

Masses of grey creatures pouring through the mist. Dozens, maybe hundreds. They were all in different twisted unnatural shapes and sizes. Eyes glowing green and mouth opened wide with hunger.

Selene didn't waste the moment. She said, "We better kill them first then finish our business. If we keep fighting each other, we're all just going to die here. Look at their numbers!"

Yara's jaw clenched. Her eyes scanned the battlefield and the truth settled in like ice in her veins. If they didn't act now they'd be swallowed whole.

She ground her teeth.

"Damn it…"

Then came the scream.

"ARRRGHHH!!!"

Yara's head snapped toward the sound. A healer from her party, a woman in a green robe, was being dragged down.

A grey creature clamped its jagged teeth into her shoulder. Blood sprayed and within seconds more of them were on her ripping, tearing, devouring her body.

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