The Greatest Awakener: Ruler Of Time And Portals.

Chapter 4: Moment Of Danger

The sun had begun to rise, its vibrant hues spreading across the sky. The birds were singing their tunes, slight mist accompanying the environment. The creatures had all awakened, many of them going out for hunts to catch prey.

Inside a tent lay Nicolas, barely having slept; the entire night was spent in an effort to make himself fall asleep, but the mixture of disquiet and suspense made it impossible.

The young man gradually got up and made his way to Emilia's tent.

"Emilia, are you awake yet? The sun has risen!" shouted Nicolas as he got close to the tent. Some rustling sounds were heard, and before he could reach the tent, out came her unkempt figure, marking that she had just woken up.

"Good morning, Nick! Did you sleep well? I am familiar with how easily you get insomnia during such matters," inquired Emilia caringly as she stretched her body to get rid of sleep fatigue.

"Morning, I managed to get some sleep," Nicolas replied, speaking part truth, part lie.

"We have to eat something and get ready, or we may not reach Myriad Mountains by dusk," he added with firmness in his gaze.

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The pair washed up in a nearby pond, ate the leftovers from yesterday's dinner, and set off for the Myriad Mountains.

The forest seemed much quieter today; no beast cries could be heard, and even the birds only appeared occasionally. The mist had somehow gotten denser, obscuring their sight. This restriction in vision led to some delay, but the duo still managed to arrive in time.

The mountain range looked to pierce the clouds, as if it were the one supporting the sky. The upper peaks were covered entirely with mist, and the lower ones with shrubs and trees. The two started their climb, making sure to stay close to each other. Looking up from their position made it seem like the peak of the mountain had vanished into thin air, as the mist had limited their vision to about 5 meters.

After what seemed like an eternity, Nicolas and Emilia had finally scaled the mountain they were climbing, but the view in front of them consisted merely of thin grass and stunted plants, and even this view was largely obscured by the daunting mist.

Grrrrr.

A roar broke the pair's observation, and their gaze shifted towards where the sound had come from. There stood, or more accurately lay, a boar munching on the carcass of a large cattle, albeit not larger than itself. Thankfully, it was busy with its meal and hadn't noticed them, or their climb may have been interrupted by its aggression.

The two masterfully brought out their weapons, paying attention to silence, and sprinted deftly toward the beast.

Nicolas moved with as much speed as he could muster, and just as he closed in on the boar, he leapt high into the air. The noise caused by the descent attracted the beast's attention, and it immediately tried to shift its body to avoid the attack. It succeeded in its attempt to turn its body sideways, but the sudden gush of blood from its back caused the beast to shriek and turn its head toward the wound.

The blade of Emilia's whip had pierced deep into the beast's body, causing a great deal of blood to flow out. The knee-jerk reaction of the beast made it open its mouth to bite down on the whip and pull it out, but it had forgotten one crucial detail: its other attacker was still behind it.

This oversight resulted in the mutilation of its head by the dreadful saber of Nicolas. The head rolled down the rugged grassy terrain of the mountain, the blood dripping from it and dyeing the grass a deep red. Its body lost life and fell to the ground, causing a deep thrum to reverberate throughout the surroundings.

The fight this time was much easier than the last, as this time their opponent had no element of surprise to aid it. The two collected its eyes and teeth—after all, it was called the metal-teeth boar. Once everything was done, the two went to a more open mountain peak and brought out the RT-snares.

These traps worked on the principle of the carrot and the stick, using Enchanted Herbveil as a lure to attract the beasts. As soon as the beasts picked up the bait, pressure would be applied on the ground below, and the mechanism would activate, trapping their head or, in the wood golem's case, their hands. If the trapped creature tried to move, the sharp metallic thorns would clench more and more.

Nicolas and Emilia had to spend the first 30 minutes preparing the vitality paste from the Enchanted Herbveil. They had not done so earlier because it spoiled extremely fast.

After some tiring hours, the trap was fully set up and ready to function. The pair moved away from the trap, and the wait began.

The sun had started to go down the horizon, and the mist had thickened even more. The vitality paste exuded an enchanting aroma.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

A series of heavy footsteps was heard. A creature with the height of a 3-story building accosted the paste, each step replete with a stomp and a deep exhalation escaping its horrendous nose. Its body seemed to be made from some exotic durable wood, as if even steel would fail to surpass it. The eyes of the golem were filled with desperation and greed, focused on the greenish semi-fluid concoction in front.

The beast got closer to the paste, its gaze becoming even more edacious. It knelt to the ground, extending both of its hands to retrieve the paste. Its hands touched the fluid, and as soon as they did, a bizarre mechanical noise sounded. Before the golem could react, the ground seemed to split apart, and a circular mechanism rose from beneath, trapping both of its hands. The golem pulled with all its might, only to shriek immediately after. The beast, however, did not lack willpower. It started using its whole body to flail about, trying to break free.

While this was happening, the duo, who were ensconced nearby, had finally arrived, carrying different articles. Emilia was holding her spell scroll, and Nicolas had in his hands some inferno grenades. The beast, seeing the two, quickly figured out they were the ones responsible for its misery and grunted at them with hate and fury, its attempts to free itself becoming more and more frantic.

Understanding the delicacy of the moment, Emilia opened the pages of the scroll, her eyes focusing entirely on the chant written there.

"By the gods above and the void below,

Let thy strength wither, let thy power go.

In divine name, I call thee to fall,

Weaken thy might, hear the gods' call."

The chant left her mouth in an ethereal tone, manifesting an intricate hovering magic circle. Emilia transferred her mana from her hands to the circle, illuminating it. A sudden purplish glow spread, gradually condensing and approaching the golem. The incandescence struck the golem, its body appearing to be inflicted with immense fatigue.

The now effete golem lay feeble on the ground. Nicolas used this opportunity to throw one of the inferno grenades. The grenade exploded soon, turning into a terrifying conflagration. The wooden body of the golem got caught in its erupting flames. The smell of burning wood permeated the air, and the heart-wrenching screams of the golem accompanied the scent. Yet, Nicolas ruthlessly threw another one, causing the flames to roar even more and the shrieks of the golem to become louder.

After an unknown period, the flames had settled down a bit, and a particularly loud and sad scream was heard.

A sudden numinous presence seemed to precipitate in the air around Emilia, her entire body getting covered in colorful bright light. Eventually, the shimmerance ceased. Emilia was seen standing still, her gaze focused on the air in front. A normal observer may think that she was dazed, but Nicolas knew that it was her newly activated status screen that had captured her gaze.

"Nick, it has activated!" came the effervescent voice of Emilia. "It shows that my primal affinity is— wind."

"Congrats! Wind is great, especially when combined with the base affinity earth. It can create tornadoes, storms, and whatnot," Nicolas said, happy for his friend and pleased at the fact that they had come one step closer to their shared goal.

"It's getting late into the night; let's clean up the mess and set up the second trap. I look forward to seeing what your primal affinity is going to be."

Hearing her voice, Nicolas nodded, and the pair quickly and efficiently laid the next trap.

Again, the period of baseless waiting came. However, this time it was even more boring and apprehensive.

Many hours passed while waiting, still the forest was quiet as ever, as if it had been abandoned by the living and turned into an abode of the dead.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

A series of deep tremors shook the earth, as if a sudden earthquake had begun. It was the work of no earthquake, but a significantly powerful wood golem, who had been attracted here by the new vitality paste.

The gigantic creature approached the spot, relaxed, sure that no competitor could beat him to it. The duo, hidden nearby, looked excitedly as the golem went closer to the paste, bringing one of its hands near the ground. The same noises sounded, and a familiar contraption launched from the ground, capturing the beast's hands.

The massive beast was slightly startled and realized it had been trapped. Meanwhile, the pair approached the monster. Nicolas opened the page of the Dragon's Breath scroll, his mouth parting to start the chanting.

Clang!

Just as his vocal cords had started vibrating to cite the chant, a sharp snap was heard, followed by a ferocious roar, the beast had freed itself...