The Demon Queen's Royal Consort-Chapter 100 - Dungeon - VIII

The centipede, however, did something unexpected. It opened its scales, releasing a thick cloud of toxic gas that immediately began spreading through the dome. The grasshopper didn't retreat—instead, it seized the moment to attack. Its blades sliced through the air in one fluid motion, severing nearly twenty percent of the centipede's body.

"AGRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!"

The centipede's shriek was so high-pitched it made my ears ache. Green blood gushed like a fountain, mixing with the toxic cloud and drenching the grasshopper from head to toe.

And the bastard didn't even seem to care.

I tried to retreat, but then I saw it—from the centipede's bloodied maw, a black lightning bolt denser than darkness itself shot across the dome, straight toward me.

"What the fuck?!"

No time to dodge.

Dorian appeared like a ghost, his already damaged shield rising between me and certain death. The black lightning struck the metal and...

...vaporized it.

Literally.

The shield disintegrated at the atomic level, but the deflection was just enough for the bolt to miss my face by centimeters, searing my hair and leaving my left ear throbbing in pain.

I nodded to Dorian, and together we advanced. Two scimitars forged from pure lightning formed in my hands, intercepting two strikes aimed at Dorian's neck with surgical precision.

'This bastard is too fast, too deadly, too strong,' I thought desperately. 'And that carapace might as well be indestructible!'

Half the dome was now covered in the centipede's toxic gas, its body reduced to barely three meters in length. But to my surprise, it didn't seem to be dying—if anything, its movements had become more agile, more furious.

Dorian looked shocked when I rushed past him, intercepting two of the grasshopper's bladed arms with my lightning. He didn't hesitate—charging like an enraged bull, his sword blazing crimson as he aimed for the creature's neck.

But the grasshopper had a third arm waiting.

The impact sent us flying back like ragdolls, and it was then I realized—the flow of battle had changed. In that split second of hesitation, I felt a sharp gust of wind rushing toward my neck. The grasshopper was growing more aggressive, its movements more calculated.

And then it struck.

"Fuck! I'm gonna get sliced in half!!!"

Dorian intervened again, what remained of his shield rising between me and the blades.

"CRACCKKK"

The sound of tearing metal was followed by a grunt of pain. The grasshopper's blade cleaved through the shield like paper, pierced part of Dorian's armor, and carved a deep gash from his trapezius down to his pelvis.

"BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM"

The impact hurled him into the dome wall like a cannonball.

My eyes widened.

And in that moment of hesitation, I felt the air shift behind me.

The blade came like lightning, so fast I could already feel the sharp wind against my neck.

"I'm gonna die!!!"

Just as the blade was millimeters from my throat, a black lightning bolt struck the grasshopper in the ribs, sending it flying.

The centipede—now smaller but far more agile—had finally revealed its true power. The black serpent in its maw spat bolts with terrifying frequency, each stronger than the last.

I retreated, assessing the situation.

"If they don't die, we all die in the end!"

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Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Dorian rising. His torso was drenched in blood, the upper half of his armor completely destroyed. His face, however, was more determined than ever.

We advanced together.

My lightning struck the centipede's damaged sections, where its chitin had been pierced. The electricity seared through, vaporizing muscle and making green blood bubble.

"GRIIIIIIIII!" The centipede screeched, its body writhing.

The grasshopper seized the opening. It appeared above the centipede like a demon, three of its blades glowing with a sickly green light as they descended to decapitate it.

But the black serpent reacted.

A colossal black lightning bolt intercepted the strike, locking them in a stalemate for a fraction of a second.

That split second was enough.

In that time, I tore open a rift and moved behind the grasshopper. From my eyes, two colossal lightning bolts struck point-blank, hitting its already damaged carapace dead-on.

"CRACKLE!"

For the first time, I heard something incredible—the sound of chitin cracking.

The combined force of the black lightning and my electric attack destabilized the grasshopper, sending it flying like a meteor into the mercury walls.

Dorian didn't waste a second. He leapt like a madman, scaling the centipede's body as if it were a mountain. His sword now burned red as lava, and with a guttural roar, he drove it into the centipede's head with enough force to bury it up to the hilt.

"AGRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!"

The centipede reacted unpredictably—its head segment rotated a full 360 degrees, its body twisting violently as it hurled Dorian straight into the toxic cloud.

I tried to intercept him, but the grasshopper blocked my path.

"CLANG... CLANG... CLANG..."

Our attacks clashed, each impact sending shockwaves through the already devastated ground.

I was covered in wounds. If I weren't a Warlord, I'd have been dead long ago. My muscles swelled, my blood circulation accelerated, my senses were pushed to the limit—and I no longer cared if anyone noticed. If I didn't give it my all, I'd be split in half.

The flow of combat shifted. My speed—enhanced by electricity, gravity, and body reinforcement—barely surpassed the grasshopper's.

The creature grew impatient. It began acting like a desperate beast trying to keep its prey from escaping. Its once-precise, refined strikes turned wild. Its strategy of alternating offense and defense collapsed—now it attacked frenetically with all six arms.

That's when I noticed it—where the black lightning and my attacks had struck, the grasshopper's carapace was completely shattered. A weak point.

'Its attacks are getting desperate.'

A deafening noise interrupted my thoughts.

"BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM"

The centipede, in its final moments, unleashed its most powerful attack. The black lightning that erupted from the serpent was so dense it seemed to suck in the surrounding light.

One beam shot past us, and I barely dodged—but the grasshopper wasn't as lucky.

Struck dead-on, it staggered.

And I seized the opportunity.

My fist, wrapped in pure lightning and amplified by a hundredfold gravity, slammed into its exposed ribs.

The impact was so violent I felt my own bones crack.

"BOOOOOOM!"

The grasshopper was hurled like a meteor, crashing into the dome wall with enough force to collapse part of the ceiling. The floor and walls, once reflective, began losing their luster, turning dull and opaque.

Meanwhile, the centipede—now insane, with a sword embedded in its head—fired black lightning wildly in a desperate death throes.

Its eyes locked onto me, and with maddened fury, it charged.

At the same time, the side walls exploded, revealing the grasshopper—its torso's protective chitin completely destroyed. A devastating green energy erupted from its body as the creature lunged like a god of death, its six bladed arms shimmering with wild, sharpened power.

Both creatures targeted me—one in front, one behind. The stench of death and madness flooded what remained of the dome.

The centipede surged forward for its final attack, black energy erupting from its maw.

The grasshopper surged forward for its final attack, six bladed arms bubbling with savage energy.

And I prepared for my final attack.

"CRACKLE!"

Space fractured around me.

"BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM"

The explosion that followed carved a crater nearly ten meters wide.

Dust shrouded the area, plunging it into pitch-black darkness.

A heavy silence followed—until a small illumination stone flickered amidst the chaos.

As the dust settled...

I stood at the center, bloodied like a berserker on the battlefield.

Covered in so many wounds that in some places, there was no skin left—just a crust of coagulated blood.

Before me, the centipede lay decapitated, six perfect cuts separating its head from its body.

Behind me, at the crater's depths, only the grasshopper's chitinous legs remained. Its bladed arms, still intact, were scattered across the dome like relics of a nightmare.

"Phew... Bleugh..."

I exhaled and spat a glob of blood, my legs trembling as I turned to search for my companions.

The battle was over.

But the war?

The war wasn't.