Chapter 79: An Evolving Beast
*Sssssssssss*
An incessant hissing echoed out clearly even while the boulders fell.
The shower of boulders lasted ten seconds, a very short time, but at the end of it, a one mile radius of forest had been devastated beyond belief.
At this time, another group arrived on the scene, this one far larger than the others.
The four squads and the guild master of White Iron had arrived as reinforcements.
Their appearance was shabby, but far less haggard than those closest to the area of the initial boulder shower.
They had met Restea and Fernand along the way, who pointed them in this direction.
Like Rowan, the guild master of the White Iron, Ilyon, immediately noticed the bizarre effects of increased mana regeneration.
But before he could ponder on it, much less give any orders to the guilders to search for the party of nine...
*Boom*
A tremor resounded, this one far less effective than the last with only two pieces of rock falling off.
Yet, immediately after, the loud hissing resounded again, this time far louder than the last.
The guilders didn't have to look far, because in the next moment...
The source of the shaking and rumbling showed itself.
The mountain that seemed inviolable quivered before a certain part burst apart with rubble flying out once more.
And from it came a snake!
One that made the blood of all nearby adventurers run cold. Even Ilyon and Rowan found themselves gulping at the sight of it.
It was a snake with glistening white scales and red eyes. A majestic sight for sure.
But it was its size that blew them away.
The snake...was as big as the Missionary!
It completely dwarfed all others around it. On its scales, those with good eyesight would see blue shimmering particles.
Those like Rowan and Ilyon grew solemn but also exhilarated at such a find.
Their suspicions were now confirmed, but celebrations would have to be held at another time.
A single glance was enough for anyone to tell that the creature in front of them meant business.
It shook its body groggily, as if waking from a deep slumber, which it was, before stretching out a tongue longer than normal into the air.
The moment it did so, the atmosphere changed as it began permeating a natural pressure that suppressed all those in its vicinity.
"R-Run!"
A few people already darted off like there was no tomorrow as they found the beast to be far more intimidating than anything they had ever seen.
Some screamed and collapsed onto the ground, these were those who had succumbed to the fear ability of the creature.
Not veterans though, no, guys like Rowan and Ilyon seemed unfazed as they watched it carefully and cautiously.
Looking closer though, one would see that their faces had turned grave at the sight of the snake.
They both knew.
'Damn! For an A-rank beast to appear here of all places...I changed my mind, today must really be the worst day of my life'
An A-rank monster had enough power to match a Master-rank human.
Such a monster appearing meant death to everyone in the outpost as there were no Master-ranks in sight.
The snake was the equivalent of a walking disaster at the moment.
That was if Rowan hadn't noticed that it was standing groggily without even moving for the past few seconds.
'Then, it's subconsciously radiating fear?'
It was a baffling question as it shouldn't be possible, unless...
'No way'
A smile made its way back onto Rowan's face.
'We might actually have a chance'
It was a longshot, but that was their only option.
'There's no running away from that thing'
It wasn't a beast they could hope to outrun.
So, they could only fight and hope to survive.
But Rowan also knew he couldn't do it alone, so he called out.
No, rather, he shouted as loud as he could.
"STOP RUNNING! ELSE WE SHALL ALL DIE!"
The adventurers scrambling like chickens calmed down as their senses returned.
As an Admiral, Rowan was certainly capable to an extent.
He knew he needed to keep up the momentum. He quickly shoved a bevy of potion into his mouth before shouting once more.
By now, he had noticed the White Iron guild squads. Then again, with how many there were, he would have to be blind to not have noticed them.
"ALL ADVENTURERS RALLY TOWARDS ME, THE ADMIRAL!"
The sound of rocks breaking was heard soon after as the adventurers jumped across the devastated land and arrived at Rowan's side.
"You heard the man, rally towards him!"
Ilyon, being as knowledgeable as Rowan concerning the beast in front of them, assisted with it as he quickly moved to Rowan's location.
There was no place for a one man show. They needed to band together to survive, else they would all perish.
"Rowan, what do you suggest we do?" Ilyon quickly got to the matter at hand.
While Rowan was displeased by being called out so rudely, he knew now wasn't the time to be petty.
"We break into two teams and surround it. We're all wearing poison resistance items but we still need to be careful about the venom. Ilyon, you and I will take the lead. Mages with earth and water spells will help us transform the ground into mud, anything that slows it down really, others mages are to focus on attacking. Knights and guardians are to take turns swapping between defense and offense, focusing on any unfinished scales. Archers, just aim for the eyes. All adventurers will be greatly rewarded for their contribution, all-"
Rowan didn't get to finish because large white scales, each as tall as your average man, fell from the snake's body, disrupting them as they scattered to take cover.
'So it had begun'
Rowan quickly brandished his great sword as he rushed towards the beast.
The only reason why Rowan could even rally the adventurers was because the snake stood groggily without acting even after coming out of the mountain while releasing enough pressure to scare people out of their wits.
And there could only be one reason why the beast would subconsciously release pressure.
It is currently evolving!
As of now, it was still a half stage B-rank at best.
So, before it could become a full-fledged A-rank, they had to kill it.
Else, they would be the ones to die.