How I Became the Strongest Sovereign

Chapter 26 - Relying On Sara

DING! The bell rang and everyone ran forwards, barging each other out of the way.

"Looks like the Xanxus pair are observing the directions of the others! Great strategy!" a voice spoke loudly through the air from the arena.

I ran left, bringing Sara with me, leaping over fallen branches and poisonous weeds sprawled out on the moist floor. The scent of anything living was hard to detect with only the smell of damp grass in the air, blocking out my sense of smell. The thick blanket of mist started to lay on top of the trees, blocking out all sunlight as darkness filled the forest in its eeriness.

Beasts normally lived somewhere dark to catch unsuspecting prey which meant that the mist could lead us to our target easily but it was still a surprise as to what could happen. We were at a great disadvantage with the fact that the fog left us in nearly pitch black darkness. I tried using my inspect skill but the mist still clouded my vision; it must've been a spell; I would have to rely on my sense of touch then. I sped through the forest; making sure to move fast so if a beast spotted us, it couldn't prance on our backs.

[Seikuken (Level 35) will consume 1MP every minute]

I also activated my Seikuken to help with obstacles in our path.

Sara tugged at my arm, indicating me to stop. Hastily, I turned to her but realised the look on her face. "Zeref, what's the plan?" Sara tried to catch her breath.

"Sara activate your beast mana." my eyes darted around as I put my arm out in front of her in a protective stance, backing her to a large oak tree.

Her eyes searched mine before she nodded in understanding. Cautiously, I took a step back, giving her the space.

"I won't be able to speak after this. I'll just lead you to it." her teeth started to sharpen into canines as she emitted a low growl from her chest. Instantly, a burst of fur started to grow on her arms. Her ears were fuzzy and stood up as if it were listening out for any sound. Her eyes gleamed like a cat in the dark as she bent down on all fours, rapidly growing by size until her clothes started to tear and fell to her sides, shredded in pieces onto the floor. She fully transformed into a large wolf.

Standing tall and full of pride, she looked down at my amazed gaze and nuzzled her snout into the crook of my neck. There was a spark of serenity in her gaze which enchanted me. Gently, I dragged my hands through her black silky fur. She knelt down, offering her back to me so I could get on and I didn't hesitate to do so, grabbing a fist full of fur.

As soon as she knew I had a firm grip on her, she lifted herself up with ease, raising her snout into the air. Her tail pointed upwards, signalling me to hold on, before she sprinted left in full speed.

My breath went ragged as I gasped, feeling the wind against my face. Barely touching the ground, her paws kissed the earth with an effortless ease. She moved so elegantly and I could feel the minimal energy she needed to keep moving with every stride.

After a couple minutes, she halted in her tracks, making me face plant into the fur on the back of her neck. "Ow…" I hissed. She stood still, gesturing to me to get off with a low growl.

We were now in clear light and had gotten out of the dark part of the forest. I looked up in awe, gazing at the bright, gleaming lagoon in front of us. The edges were emerald green but as my eyes moved it's way into the middle of the water, the green started to fade and the sun helped illuminate the beautiful blue water underneath, waiting to be noticed.

I stepped forwards but was stopped when Sara's paw patted my shoulder. I turned and she stepped back, looking down and indicating the floor. I followed her line of vision and saw the big paw print, three times larger than Sara's paw. Sara lifted her snout and stared into the lagoon. Again, I turned around, confused as to what she was trying to say but then it hit me.

"The beast is in the water?" I questioned and she let out a tiny bark as a yes. I didn't hesitate unbuttoning my shirt and putting it on Sara's back but to my surprise, Sara put her paw into the surface of the water and looked back at me with a pleading look.

"You want to handle this one?" I asked and she barked happily. I knew she would be fine. It was a D ranker after all and the less I used my powers, the less attention I'd attract. I nodded in agreement and she shook my shirt off of her happily before leaping into the lagoon.

Only after she had jumped, I pondered. Why would a beast be in the water… unless. My heart thumped out of my chest. We were dealing with a water beast. This was bad. I never encountered water beasts before. That just showed how rare they were.

What was it about them that Mr Xanxus told me were extremely dangerous?

"They are smart creatures who find their prey's weak points in a few seconds."

Then more of Xanxus's words hit me. "It is the rarest but strongest type of beast, having the power to compel its prey with it's eyes, playing with it before swallowing it whole."

Of course, at first I wanted to leap in and save Sara but I knew she wanted to handle it. She had the beast element after all.

I let out a sigh of relief when her head popped up out of the water to take a breath. It seemed she had transformed back to her human form. My eyes connected with hers and she seemed fine. She dipped back down into the water and my anticipation was killing me.

**

-Sara's POV-

My body emerged into the water and a blurred cheer from the crowd could be heard, sending waves through the serene water. My eyes squinted as I forced myself to sink. My wolf couldn't control the water filling my lungs and I swiftly whirled in the water, swirling the water as I switched back into my human form, now naked.

This lagoon was deeper than I thought, I looked down at my feet, seeing the darkness under me as I kept sinking.

I sunk farther down; the sunlight gave the water above me a soft diffused glow but I was sinking into the darkness. The deeper I sunk, the less the light could penetrate. The rocks were now silhouettes and I noticed no life in the peaceful water I was engulfed in.

I flapped my arm slowly in the water, keeping myself from sinking or rising. If I sunk any deeper, I'd be blind from the darkness. A sudden shock of the water sent frost bites through the surface of my skin and a sudden dangerous feeling of being watched made my heart thump faster.

Why do I have a feeling that this beast was not a D rank? My eyes scanned the opaque vastness of the mysterious lagoon. Nothing. There was nothing. I made sure to keep flapping to show Zeref a sign that I was still alive.

My breathing started to plummet and I swam back to the surface, gasping for air, before ducking my head back into the water. Luckily, Zeref didn't pay much attention to me. I stayed at the surface of the water this time, looking down into the deep darkness.

Two glowing beams blinked out of the darkness and before my mind could realise what I just saw, waves of water was sent in an upward formation and large jaws emerged from the black water below me at a deadly speed. Its jaws were bigger than my whole body and I wondered… How big was this thing?!

The beast widened its mouth and roared, making the water around me shake in furious big waves. The waves moved my body up and down as I bobbed like a useless prey.

Just as it was about to come any closer to the surface, I shot my dominant, glowing eyes at it, showing who he was going after. I shifted only my arm and released my claws. Swimming towards it and slashing it's snout, I forced it to swerve back into the darkness but before it could, I caught a glimpse of the necklace around its neck.

No way was this a D rank… It's mouth was twice the size of my wolf.

I turned my body and to my horror, I met the beaming eyes of the beast. Right. In. Front. Of. Me. I could feel the tips of its fur on its face, tickle my stomach. It didn't move and it just glared at me with its head tilted downwards, looking straight at me.

I was confused, I felt that if I moved, it would kill me quicker than I could roar, so I just stood there. What the hell was I doing? My muscles tensed and I felt entranced by the creature's glowing eyes. I wanted to stay with it and submit-

A loud yell from Zeref erupted from outside the water but I couldn't move. I didn't want to move. Suddenly, another wave of water hit my back and I was pushed into the beast's forehead. Slowly, the beast opened its mouth, taking its time to show me its teeth. They were beautiful and sharp, and I gazed at them in awe.

Loud screams from the arena echoed through the forest making me anxious. Did someone complete the task?

"GRAWWWW!!! " it whimpered in pain, shutting it's eyes and I felt as if my heart started to beat again. Zeref shot spears of ice out of his hands at its head and the water started to bleed out red. I felt my muscles loosen again and I hastily formed into my wolf and sunk my teeth into the monster's neck, instantly killing it. The icicles soared through it's throat and pierced out of it's nape. I swam to its neck and snatched the necklace in between my teeth before slashing the beasts neck one last time and swimming up.

**

-Zeref's POV-

"It shows no mercy to ones who disturb it and is immortal."

I didn't understand how it was 'immortal'. I literally just killed it… or-

The beast's face twitched as his eyes opened and its wounds sealed up. It looked more deadly. I was too shocked to think and blew a punch of ice at its face, pushing it downwards back into the darkness. I didn't let it take a break this time and created a wall of ice where the dark and light water met. I watched as the beast clawed at the wall of ice, trying to get through to me but I knew it couldn't. Swimming back up, I stared at Sara's wolf who was waiting for me. She was braver than I thought. She knew how big the thing was and yet she still stood her ground, helping me. I looked at her like a brother would look at his sister. My heart swelled in pride.