LOTS of Shiny Lights!

Nex glanced at the countless Awakened around him in awe.

They were surrounded by plenty of small magical barriers that drove the bloody rain away, and all were staring straight at him with the intensity of a crematory oven!

"Asher, we did it! We freaking did it!" He exclaimed, only to be met with silence. He was probably playing dead, not wanting anyone to know his "Fusion" secret.

A second later, Nex noticed a streak of golden light flying toward him. The being had an ethereal aura and bright shiny wings. An angel?!

Turns out it was an Awakened, the elf priestess from back then.

"What are you gawking around for?! Are you completely retarded?! This place's about to turn to dust! Hurry and get the hell off. We're about to start the formation!" The angel berated.

Nex totally agreed but could barely feel his legs. As he glanced at the ground so far below, he totally gave up on climbing down.

"Oh, pointy-eared shouting angel…can I get a lift?" He shamelessly requested.

"Tch- Fine." At first, she wanted to mercilessly deny him but relented simply for the feat he had just accomplished. He had made their job a ton easier.

The gorgeous High-Ranked Awakened flew as quickly as she could, a bloodied and dirty Slum-Dweller grabbing on to her leg. This would totally ruin her image!

But, there was a being very adamant against Nex flying away.

— SHRIEEKKK!—

The Behemoth shrieked, enraged. It had been so close to slaughtering the human! Now, this meddlesome flashy thing wanted to save him?! Not on its watch!

The monster instantly turned berserk, stabbing with its legs, biting with its mandibles, charging yet another bloody beam, and even throwing small cockroaches at them!

Every attack was so fast that Nex could only see afterimages.

It gave him cold sweat. A single attack like this earlier would have annihilated him!

Heck, even the air that the assault displaced was enough to injure him all over, making him feel like he was in a meat grinder!

Luckily, the Elf kept dodging with uncanny speed! It was as if the godly Hermes possessed her!

Actually, the Behemoth attacked even faster than she flew, but she kept moving from side to side with the most erratic movements akin to a fly.

"Be careful. We'll have to speed up soon. This thing changes tactic when it sees something doesn't work." Nex warned.

"Speed up? I'm already going as fast as I can! Do you think flying's easy, eh?!" She exclaimed, annoyed.

Oh crap! Nex suddenly a really bad feeling about this! Turns out he was right too, for a second later, the creature took a deep breath and sent something new their way.

It wasn't as powerful as the Bloody Beam from before.

It wasn't as quick as its lightning-fast stabs either.

But this one was unbelievably more deadly!

This was a breath attack that had to be at least a goddamn kilometer wide! Avoiding? Impossible! They'd be completely engulfed in the acidic miasma in a matter of instants.

Goddammit! He'd undoubtedly survive this….but what about his ride?! He could already picture the poor elf melting while he fell to his death.

Fuck no! After all, this, die from fall damage?! Unacceptable!

He just had to save her somehow! His power worked on clothes, right? Maybe it could work on people if he really tried?! He'd freaking wear her!

This was the best plan his mana, sleep, and blood-deprived brain could think of. Without hesitating, he climbed her leg, embracing her soft body completely.

At this moment, their current position would have even made a pornstar blush!

"Bastard! Where the hell do you think you're touching?! I'll freaking kill you! I'll slash your hands and heads!—" She screamed furiously.

Yet she was met with a serious gaze worthy of a monk, void of any desire or lust. The bloodied Nex looked so intense that she froze for an instant.

"Shut up. I'm saving your life!" He screamed back.

She kept flying, but the miasma cloud behind them was still gaining on them. Hopefully, this would work! But right as it was about to engulf them, it magically stopped…what?!

Nex could only stare blankly.

"I-it stopped?"

The Elf finally understood, a chuckle escaping her as she forcefully moved his hands away and explained.

"It's a protective array. There are countless surrounding us, some invisible at first glance."

"Ah!" Nex wasn't even paying attention to the beautiful Elf anymore.

So many barriers had begun lighting up! It was simply phenomenal! It looked even flashier than a firework show, the crackling of the energy echoing all around.

One in particular was so big that it surrounded the Behemoth! It glowed golden, pitch-black glyphs swimming inside as if alive, forming Draconic shapes! How awesome!

All around its perimeter, Awakeneds held gigantic Mana Stones up that were incomparable to the Mana Fragments he had seen in the Slums. Those were the real deal!

This was a colossal project that definitely required an army to set up.

"Wow." A gasp escaped Nex.

"That's a Dragon-Slaughtering Formation. Honestly, it's already a miracle that we could set it up. This thing's so volatile and easy to detect." She explained.

"Are you calling me a miracle?" A chuckle escaped Nex. After all, this was all thanks to his "1 v 1" with the Behemoth, right?

"The miracle is you still being alive…." She berated, her meaning clear. He should focus on surviving instead of pulling crazy stunts.

A moment of silence elapsed, Nex shaking his head. She couldn't understand. he wasn't alone in this world: surviving by himself wasn't sufficient.

"So, everything's over, right?" He asked.

"For this Cockroach, it is. For Arcadia, it's just a Thursday." She retorted.

Nex sighed in relief, all tension leaving his body. The Orphanage would be safe, at least for today. That's when the fatigue finally caught up to him, both physical and mental.

He found even keeping his eyes open to require a gargantuan effort. He still wanted to see the creature's end, forcing himself awake a few seconds more.

— SHRIEEKKK!—

A colossal black-golden energy dragon appeared, the magical spell taking flight and roaring domineeringly in response to the shriek.

This dragon contained enough power to turn half the Slums into a wasteland, yet all of it was centered on the Behemoth.

Yet the creature didn't even glance at the dragon. No, its piercing eyes were focused on one human. Even as the dragon engulfed it, the Behemoth's gaze didn't sway.

There was a sense of longing in its eyes, seemingly saying: "In another life, let's finish our duel."

[Behemoth Slain!]

[Absorb its Blood to…]

The rest escaped Nex, for he had already lost consciousness, a small relieved smile adorning his lips. The Alcove had survived this calamity and he could finally focus on growing stronger.

He was already dreaming of System Notifications and level-ups, blissfully ignorant of what was happening IRL.

A certain white-haired red-eyed assassin was approaching his body, spear hand twitching...