Rise of the Eromancer

"That… looks familiar."

Back on Earth, there were several creatures who have caused devastation throughout the land—the ones responsible for making most of the Surface uninhabitable for both men and animals alike.

Threats level 8, 9, and 10—each capable of ending continents or even the entire Surface if they wanted to. One, in particular, will forever remain in Rhys's mind even though it was far before his time.

The Hydra.

Rhys might not know much about the creatures and monsters that have ravaged the Surface in its entire history, but he will never forget the Hydra for the sole reason that the base of the Underworld Corps of Amerka was built around the hole that a Hydra created—it was said to have been a threat to the entire land of Amerka, almost toppling the continent-sized country.

It had always been mentioned by his superiors during his short time in the Corps, and they always tell stories about it even though none of them were also even alive during the time it wreaked havoc.

But the way they described it, it was almost as if they were there—the detail they gave, how horrifying it is to be in its presence.

And now, Rhys could really think that they were right. Rhys did not even have to look back at all to know how terrifying it looked.

The ground was shaking beneath his feet as the shadow of the hydra danced; swallowing Rhys and Clio's shadow as its four heads rose into the air—the heads, each snapping and hissing with wild fury.

"That… that…" And finally, both Rhys and Clio turned around at the same time to finally look at the hydra–their eyes, immediately turning up to see its massive body looming over them. From the size of its body alone, it was obvious that it was probably using the large crater as its nest.

On Earth, this beast would have been classified as a Threat Level 9—something that anyone in the Top 15 Strongest Explorers could defeat. But here, in this world, Rhys could not help but wonder—how do the locals manage against something like this? Achilles, maybe? Or perhaps entire armies?

But then again, this might not even be at the same level as the hydra that terrorized the Surface all those years ago—either way, he probably shouldn't let his guard down as this was the first time he would ever be facing something like this. It was larger than the Barbarian Cyclops, almost an entire building by itself—each of its head the size of a car.

If he recalled, the hydra is capable of regenerating its head almost instantly. If so…

…then Rhys has already won this.

And without another word, Rhys rushed toward the hydra, not even waiting for anything else to happen; his hands, twitching as the threads started unraveling from his hands. The sharp, steel-like threads sliced through the air, causing a sort of whistle to hum as Rhys ran to the sides of the hydra—and without even letting it react, he started its legs.

"Kheheek!?" The Hydra screeched, its heads thrashing as it tried to move—unfortunately, that became its downfall as it slightly lost its balance and just toppled to the ground; a large quake, erupting when its large and heavy body hit the ground. Still, it continued to flail its heads toward Rhys, but Rhys was faster.

He darted up the Hydra's body with the speed he received from Olga—from afar, it was almost as if he was moving like a spider scaling its web, and perhaps that is exactly what he was for the giant beast. His threads then lashed out again, this time, he ran toward the bases of the hydra's heads and wrapped it around its necks, binding them together as he just started swinging, crawling, and climbing.

"Uhmm…" In truth, even though she was extremely scared, Clio actually wanted to rush in to help Rhys in any way she could—but upon seeing the scenery in front of her, with the hydra flailing around like some sort of trapped wild boar, the only thing she could really do was… watch.

But soon, however, she found her purpose—she heard tiny whispers brushing her ears from afar; she looked, only to see some of the people on the hydra's nest still moving—weak, but still moving.

"People…? They're… They're still alive!?"

Clio did not really hesitate at all as she turned her eyes away from the epic battle, rushing toward the survivors while calling out to Rhys.

"There are still some people alive, Rhys! I'll… I'll go and help them!"

Rhys didn't respond. His focus was entirely on the Hydra. He tightened his threads around the creature's necks, binding them tighter, almost like a noose.

"Keheek!!!" The Hydra screeched again, its body thrashing violently.

"Hm…?" Rhys squinted as he felt the threads tighten on their own—and very soon, he realized why.

The hydra, it was trying to yank one of its heads free—and after a few seconds, it did. Not even caring at all that the sharp threads sliced through its neck completely. Its blood showered through the air while its neck, now finally free, continued to flail around.

It was obvious what it was trying to do—but of course, Rhys was already waiting for something like this to happen.

The hydra wanted to regenerate its head. But of course, it wouldn't.

"Well then…" As the severed neck began to pulse, preparing to regenerate, Rhys's silver eyes started to glow—and with a single glance, the pulsing wound started to petrify, turning the bleeding flesh to stone before the Hydra had a chance to heal.

The Hydra let out a confused roar with its remaining heads. It was able to free its other heads since the threads loosened up—but once again, Rhys did the very same thing he did the first time. As soon as it sliced and chopped its own head off, Rhys petrified the wound completely.

And soon, it only had a single head left. Rhys rushed toward the head, dodging it as it snapped its jaws toward him—but Rhys did not move far, not at all. And instead, he grabbed its head and by the sides and pried it open himself.

"Alright then…" Rhys then let out a small but very deep sigh, "...Let's finish this."

And without hesitation, Rhys leaped into the Hydra's mouth.

The air inside was thick and suffocating, the creature's throat pulsing around him. But Rhys didn't stop. He summoned Vicky's power over water, calling it to him, and within seconds, a blade of water formed in his hands. He drove it forward, slicing through muscle and bone as he cut the Hydra apart from the inside.

The Hydra jerked violently, its body convulsing as Rhys's blade tore through it. Blood poured from its wounds, but Rhys didn't stop. He pushed deeper, slicing through everything in his path until the head was completely severed.

Rhys jumped out of the severed neck, and once again, petrified the wound completely.

And just like that, the fight was over.

The Hydra's body lay lifeless on the ground, its heads scattered across the battlefield. Rhys wiped the blood from his face, his eyes narrowing as he stared down at the fallen beast.

"Threat level 9…" Rhys muttered, shaking his head. "...I suppose not."

Rhys then took in a deep breath as he turned his attention to Clio, who was still carrying and helping out the wounded and injured people—there were a lot more of them than Rhys expected.

How could have they even survived the hydra…? Were they actually just playing dead so that the Hydra would completely ignore them?

"Hm…" Rhys shook his head off of the thoughts and opted to just look up into the sky—well, he did not really need to, as the light that guided them to the crater was so close and still pointing at the center of the massive cavity.

And so, he glanced at Clio one last time before moving toward where the light ended. He made his way across the crater, stepping over skeletons and bodies as he soon approached the center—and surprisingly, the center of the crater was unlike the rest of its surroundings.

It was immaculate, with even a pool of clear water with all sorts of fauna. It was almost… untouched—which was weird, as this would have definitely been squashed by the hydra since it was right at the center of its nest.

"What… is that?" And as Rhys stepped over and crossed the water, he saw the golden pedestal right at the center of the pool—it was almost shining and reflecting the light; he squinted his eyes to try and see it better.

What treasure could be so grand that kingdoms would fight over it?

Well, it wasn't gold or jewels like he'd expected. It wasn't even a weapon.

"Huh…?" Rhys squinted his eyes even further, making sure if he was actually seeing what he was seeing, "Are those… hands?"

To be specific, It was… a pair of severed hands, lying neatly on the pedestal.