Solarynth continued fighting alone at the center of the battlefield, completely surrounded by soldiers of the Pandemonium Legion from every direction.
The battlefield around him had already become a storm of steel, blood, and burning magic.
Even though Solarynth possessed enough power to defeat the soldiers surrounding him, sheer numbers still mattered in a war, one mistake, one moment of carelessness, and even someone powerful could be overwhelmed beneath endless attacks.
As long as he stayed focused..
As long as he refused to become arrogant or ignorant of the situatio..
He would survive.
Though Kurie continued draining enormous amounts of magical energy from his body, yet Solarynth remained stable despite it.
His body was adapting naturally to the battlefield the same way it once adapted to the harsh environment of space itself.
His breathing remained calm and controlled.
Another soldier suddenly lunged toward him from the right side.
"Die already!" the Pandemonium soldier roared, thrusting his sword directly toward Solarynth's head.
With calm composure, Solarynth tilted his body slightly to the side, the blade barely grazing past his face as he weaved smoothly between incoming attacks.
Around him, more weapons came from multiple directions at once, spears, swords, axes.
Yet his eyes tracked everything effortlessly.
Kurie allowed him to observe the battlefield without even moving his head, celestial rings spinning slowly within his glowing eyes while every movement around him became visible all at once.
A spear thrust came from behind.
He stepped aside...
A blade swung toward his ribs.
He twisted past it...
Another attack descended from above.
Solarynth ducked beneath it without breaking rhythm.
"Damn it, how is he reading everything?!" one soldier shouted in panic.
Then Solarynth countered, his fist surged with compressed magic before he delivered a clean, precise punch directly into one soldier's stomach.
The impact detonated violently.
The Pandemonium soldier's eyes widened instantly as the force of the strike stole the breath from his body completely.
He stumbled backward several meters across the battlefield, barely remaining conscious from the sheer shock traveling through his body.
Before the soldier could even recover.
Solarynth was already there.
Blue and yellow electricity crackled beneath his feet as he surged forward in a blur before delivering a devastating side kick directly into the soldier's face.
The impact echoed sharply through the battlefield.
Pandemonium soldier's body was launched backward violently, spinning through the air before crashing hard into several nearby troops and collapsing into the dirt.
Another enemy rushed Solarynth immediately afterward with a battle cry.
"Surround him! Don't give him room!"
More soldiers closed in from every side but Solarynth's expression never changed.
The lightning around his body intensified slightly as he lowered his stance once more, Kurie continuing to spin within his celestial eyes while the battlefield reflected endlessly around him.
And then he moved once again...
While Solarynth continued fighting through the battlefield with overwhelming speed and perception, on the other side of the warzone Elyndra was facing something far more monstrous.
She stood motionless for a brief moment, shock visible across her expression as the massive figure emerged from the smoke and destruction to intercept her attack.
Project X-002.
The giant stood like a wall between her and the elite enhanced soldier she had originally targeted.
Steam rose from both of his burned arms, the damage from Elyndra's beam still visible across the reinforced flesh, yet even that terrifying spell had failed to bring him down.
Elyndra's grimoire floated beside her, pages flipping violently from the pressure radiating off the battlefield while strands of her hair drifted in the heated wind left behind by the explosion.
"...You blocked that?" she muttered under her breath, disbelief lingering in her voice.
The elite enhanced soldier behind Project X-002 slowly regained his footing before looking upward at the massive figure standing protectively in front of him.
Project X-002 had not moved to defend him out of loyalty.
Nor compassion.
The enhanced soldier was simply considered valuable, a necessary weapon for the war ahead.
The Pandemonium Legion did not waste useful assets so easily, especially not elite enhanced soldiers refined through rare experimentation and unstable magical substances.
To them lives only mattered when they remained useful, the giant slowly lifted his head toward Elyndra.
His glowing eyes locked onto her position without emotion.
Around him, the ground cracked beneath the sheer weight of his body as faint neon-blue veins pulsed violently across his massive frame, regeneration magic already repairing the burns across his arms at an unnatural speed.
Elyndra narrowed her eyes immediately after noticing it.
"...He's regenerating already."
Nearby kingdom soldiers who witnessed the scene instinctively stepped backward.
One Spartan tightened his grip around his spear.
"What the hell is that thing...?" he said nervously.
The air around Project X-002 felt wrong its was heavy and oppressive like standing near a living siege weapon rather than a human being.
Then the giant finally moved, one step, battlefield trembled beneath him.
Another step followed immediately after, crushing broken weapons and corpses beneath his boots as he advanced directly toward Elyndra without hesitation.
The elite enhanced soldier behind him pointed forward coldly. "Kill the mage."
At the command, Project X-002 accelerated.
The ground exploded beneath his feet as the seven-foot juggernaut charged forward with terrifying speed that completely contradicted his enormous size.
Elyndra's eyes widened slightly.
"What—?!"
Her grimoire instantly rotated beside her as multiple magic circles began forming around her body at once, glowing layers of blue and silver appearing rapidly in preparation for the incoming collision.
Because whatever Project X-002 was it was no longer something human...
Project X-002 moved first, closing the distance in an instant before throwing a straight punch directly toward Elyndra's stomach.
The force behind it alone distorted the air but Elyndra remained calm a dull metallic sheen spread rapidly across her skin as she activated a reinforcement spell designed to harden the caster's body against physical trauma.
The magic transformed her durability momentarily, allowing her body to absorb what would normally be lethal impacts or devastating blade strikes.
The punch connected, impact exploded outward with enough force to crack the ground beneath her feet and send violent wind pressure across the battlefield.
Nearby soldiers were thrown backward from the shockwave alone, yet Elyndra barely moved, only a slight shift backward.
Nothing more.
Project X-002's glowing eyes narrowed slightly.
"...What?" one nearby Pandemonium soldier muttered in disbelief.
Elyndra slowly lifted her gaze toward the giant standing in front of her, strands of hair drifting through the wind caused by the collision.
"Let me tell you one thing," she said calmly. "Forcing magic beyond its natural limits is never good for the body."
Project X-002 stared at her silently, momentarily confused by what had just happened.
That single moment of hesitation was enough Elyndra flicked two fingers forward a small dart formed instantly from pure shadow essence before launching through the air without a sound.
The projectile struck directly into Project X-002's right shoulder effect was immediate.
Dart caused only minor physical damage, but the spell hidden within it began draining magical energy directly from the target upon impact.
Project X-002 felt it instantly his movements slowed slightly, neon-blue veins glowing across his body flickered for a brief second as mana was siphoned away unnaturally.
The giant quickly grabbed the dart and ripped it out of his shoulder with force, but the distraction had already cost him.
Elyndra was already casting again.
"That reinforcement spell?" she said coldly. "It's only temporary for what i would give you next."
Behind her portals began opening one after another across the air.
Dozens then hundreds.
Blue magic circles rotated violently behind Elyndra as flaming weapons slowly emerged from within the portals, swords, spears, halberds, and countless sharpened projectiles formed entirely from condensed magical energy.
The battlefield illuminated from the heat alone, every weapon pointed directly toward Project X-002.
Nearby soldiers instinctively backed away from Elyndra's position as the pressure in the atmosphere intensified.
One Viking stared upward wide-eyed.
"She's making an entire arsenal..."
Project X-002 looked toward the incoming barrage without fear...his body changed.
A dark crystalline texture rapidly spread across his skin as his muscles hardened unnaturally, resembling a fusion between diamond and nephrite jade.
The transformation increased his toughness and durability to a monstrous level, his body becoming comparable to the armored hide of massive ancient creatures ground beneath him cracked from the pressure radiating off his reinforced form.
Elyndra narrowed her eyes slightly upon seeing it.
"You really are a pain in the ass..." Elyndra murmured under her breath, her eyes locked firmly onto Project X-002.
Wind whipped violently around her position as the portals continued expanding across the sky behind her, their glowing edges crackling with concentrated mana.
Project X-002 stood motionless beneath the storm of weapons aimed directly at him, his hardened body radiating unnatural durability as crystalline layers continued spreading across his massive frame.
Nearby soldiers from both armies instinctively moved away from the battlefield between them.
One Spartan looked upward nervously.
"Everyone back away from her!"
Even the elite enhanced soldier behind Project X-002 stepped backward slightly, understanding that whatever Elyndra was about to unleash would destroy everything caught near it.
Elyndra slowly raised her hand fully toward the giant.
Her grimoire floated beside her, pages flipping rapidly while magic circles rotated across her arm and shoulder like interlocking gears.
Then the portals fired.
Flaming weapons erupted across the battlefield simultaneously, launching downward like a meteor storm.
Swords tore through the air.
Spears screamed toward the ground.
Blazing projectiles illuminated the night sky in waves of orange, blue, and white as the entire magical arsenal descended directly toward Project X-002's position.
The first impact landed.
An explosion erupted instantly then another and another...
The battlefield shook violently beneath the relentless barrage as fire and destruction swallowed the entire area around the giant, shockwaves tearing through dirt while nearby Pandemonium soldiers were thrown off their feet from sheer force alone.
Project X-002 crossed his arms in front of his body as the attacks collided against him repeatedly.
Metallic shrieks echoed across the battlefield every time another weapon shattered against his reinforced skin.
But Elyndra didn't stop.
Her expression remained cold as more portals opened behind her.
"You wanted to act like a shield?" she said sharply while extending her hand further forward. "Then let's see how long you can keep standing."