C13 Everyone's King

Egil plopped down on the ground, leaning against the relief. Martina ceased her patting and took a seat next to him.

The silence that followed the cessation of the patting was broken only by a howl from the monster below, which then gradually faded away.

Egil whispered, "Let me take a guess. The holy beast is that monster down there, and only the true king of all can pass. It's about proving to the monster that one is indeed the king of all to either leave this place or, more accurately, to enter the shrine."

Martina remained silent in the darkness.

Egil went on, "So, how do we prove ourselves to the monster? Simple. Jump down, defeat the monster. The king of all is surely the mightiest, right? I bet the entrance to the shrine is right beneath the monster's feet... Perfect reasoning, absolutely perfect!"

Martina's laughter, unfortunately, was anything but joyous. "I'm now convinced you're not a professor from the Azure Dragon Garden, but an ex-soldier."

"Go ahead and fight! Hehe, what defines a king? What does it mean to be the king of all? A true king rules over all," Martina shared her perspective.

Egil wasn't convinced. "A sea of people strategy? What's the difference? If a fifth or sixth level individual steps up, and the monster is already dead, could they really say it's against the rules to pass?"

Egil fell silent, contemplating the possibility.

Breaking the silence, Martina said, "The relief tells us the holy beast controls the passage, and only the king can pass. It doesn't specify that the king must slay the monster. It doesn't even say the king must defeat it, right?"

Egil was puzzled. "Not defeat the monster? Then how do we get past? By seduction?"

Thump! Ouch! Martina's elbow connected with Egil's stomach, causing him to double over and retch.

"Consider the difference between a king who commands his subjects and a hero with unmatched strength."

Egil kept retching.

Martina went on, "Heroes are barely a snack, but a king could command many to feed the monster until it's sated. As for the holy beast, think of it like the Mayans' living sacrifices."

Egil was taken aback, his mind racing back to when he realized they were in a sealed space, his first thought being an arena, while Martina had immediately thought of a feeding pool.

Wait a minute... Egil leapt to his feet, exclaiming, "You knew all along!"

Martina's reaction was obscured by the darkness.

Egil's voice grew fierce, "It was you! You orchestrated this whole trap!"

"You deliberately deceived Mark and the others into coming here, offering them up to the monster! Four meta-humans! And Mark, he's only at the third level... Of course, Willoughby University and the Vrimen government would never sanction such sacrifices! So you resorted to underhanded tactics!"

As he spoke, Egil realized an even greater problem. He chambered a round in his polar assault rifle and said, "But the passageway still isn't open!

The monster hasn't had its fill! Who's next to be fed to it? Quintana? Or perhaps... me!"

"No!" Martina finally spoke up, "I may have erred... The underground sea shaped by meta-human powers, the stone door that only a meta-human can open—I instinctively assumed we needed to feed the holy beast with a meta-human."

"Now that I think about it, the king of everyone. Meta-humans are the rare exception. 'Everyone'... It looks like we'll need to resort to using ordinary people as sacrifices!"

"You!" Egil was staggered by Martina's revelation! Her small silhouette in the darkness now seemed to morph into a creature even more horrifying than the one below!

"Martina! The Willoughby students above—they're your backup fodder!" The moment the words left his mouth, Egil knew things had taken a turn for the worse.

Ratatatat! The submachine gun fired relentlessly!

In the flash of gunfire, he saw that a stone wall had somehow erected itself between Martina and him! Bullets ricocheted off the wall, sending sparks scattering in all directions!

After emptying the magazine, the gun fell silent. Martina's voice floated from behind the wall, "Egil! You..."

But before she could finish, Egil had already leaped from the platform!

Determined to understand his fate, Egil unleashed his psionic power! Now, his only hope was that the heightened awareness it provided would help him evade the monster's attacks and escape through the entrance they had used earlier!

Empowered by his psionic state, Egil ran with supernatural precision. Each step was optimally powered, each turn masterfully executed to distance himself from the sounds of the pursuing beast.

A massive rock soared overhead, narrowly missing Egil!

It was a close call!

With a thunderous crash, the rock struck just in front of him!

A monstrous hiss erupted as the rock collided with the creature!

Damn! That monster was cunning, lying in wait with its mouth agape. Had the rock not struck it, Egil would have unwittingly run straight into its maw!

Boom! Boom! Boom! The barrage of rocks continued, each one hitting the monster and each time aiding Egil in averting disaster!

He remembered the entrance being a wall, but it was pitch black! He had mistaken the location! Egil ran circles around the wall again, finding it far more thrilling than his previous run atop it.

Martina's relentless assault with rocks persisted! Her overt protection was unmistakable. She had used her last psionic power to shield him, to help him escape her own influence!

This wasn't the time for reflection! Egil was determined to rescue the Azure Dragon Garden students trapped in the ruins above. Knowing Martina's character and her long-standing schemes, she wouldn't hesitate to feed all the archaeologists to the monsters!

Despite having no personal vendetta against Martina, who had saved Egil multiple times and was doing so again, his duty as a Vriudron soldier forbade him from standing idly by as his compatriots were treated as fodder.

Even if Egil was a dishonorably discharged veteran, he remained a soldier at heart.

A gust of wind signaled the entrance was near! Before relief could wash over him, a blast of hot, fetid air hit him! The monster had found them! It was ready to bite down from head to toe!

As he had done before, he shut off his psionic power, bracing for a swift end.

"Egil!" A sharp exclamation came from behind him!

A kick to his back sent Egil tumbling aside! Martina, glowing with psionic energy, had leaped down to join him. In that critical moment, she selflessly threw herself into danger to save Egil!

"Martina!" Egil tried to aim his gun at the beast, but it was too late. The creature's gaping jaws clamped down where Martina had stood, only to meet a rising stone that swiftly enveloped her. The monster's teeth crunched on the Stone Egg instead! Martina had concealed herself within the Stone Egg.