Extra's Ascent

Aldrich, Fiona, and Trevor were cornered.

The situation was dire—a relentless struggle for survival.

Faced with a predator-ranked foe, they were forced into constant defence, narrowly escaping each brush with death.

Each evasion drained their mana reserves, leaving them perilously close to exhaustion.

Gritting his teeth, Aldrich drew two arrows from his quiver.

Desperation marked his every move as he sought to draw the Kraken's attention.

Halting abruptly, he notched both arrows to his bowstring, ready to fire.

Yet, as he aimed, a thought struck him like a lightning bolt.

This isn't going to work.

The distance between him and the Kraken was too vast.

Shooting from here would only sap the arrow's force, ensuring it would barely graze the creature.

Even drawing the bowstring to its fullest would change nothing.

If Aldrich wanted to succeed, he needed to think differently—think closer.

Abandoning futile notions, he focused on what was achievable.

To deliver a blow strong enough to catch the Kraken's attention, Aldrich had to reduce the distance.

An arrow is the fastest and most powerful the moment it leaves the bowstring.

From where he stood, it would lose momentum before it reached its mark.

The lack of damage from his previous shot proved this.

If he fired at close range however?

Aldrich didn't expect the arrow to pierce the Kraken's tough skin—that was a fool's dream.

His goal was simpler: to hurt it.

Even a blunt impact could cause pain, like the sting of an open-palmed slap.

Pain would suffice; penetration wasn't necessary.

There was a catch.

From afar, avoiding the Kraken's relentless tentacles was a gruelling task.

Closing the distance would hand the creature an overwhelming advantage, increasing its chances of landing a fatal blow.

But Aldrich wasn't entirely without options.

Thanks to the clairvoyant ability of his Aldaman lineage, he could perceive attacks with precision—his first clover granting heightened visual acuity.

While a fully trained body could use this to predict and counter attacks seamlessly, Aldrich hadn't reached that stage yet.

His physical reflexes lagged behind his enhanced sight.

I just need to get close enough—a distance my body can handle.

Aldrich dismissed the idea of using elemental Art for now.

They couldn't afford to drain their mana reserves without first understanding what the Kraken was fully capable of.

This plan was their best shot at testing the waters while conserving energy.

"I'm going in. Wait for the right moment!"

With that, Aldrich charged headlong into danger.

As he sprinted toward the Kraken, his pupils shifted.

Black turned to a luminous silver-blue, the pattern transforming into a one-leaf clover shaped like a heart.

The clairvoyant ability heightened his vision to unprecedented clarity.

Every ripple in the water, every twitch of the Kraken's tentacles—he saw it all.

Closing the gap, Aldrich stopped just short of the point of no return.

Any closer would be suicidal, even with his enhanced perception.

Side-stepping constantly, he drew two arrows from his quiver, aimed at the Kraken's forehead, and pulled the bowstring taut.

Inhaling deeply, he unleashed the arrows with all his might.

The result was underwhelming.

CLANG!

The arrows ricocheted off the Kraken's impenetrable hide.

Not all was lost.

Though the arrows failed to harm the beast, they delivered enough of a sting to draw its attention.

The Kraken turned its gaze toward Aldrich, its tentacles writhing with newfound purpose.

If it could speak, it would likely roar, How dare this human harm me?!

All eight tentacles lunged toward Aldrich, their tips coiling and striking with deadly intent.

"Great! Now!"

Aldrich had achieved his goal: drawing the Kraken's aggro.

He backpedalled, keeping his eyes locked on the advancing tentacles.

With fluid precision, he drew five arrows and notched them all at once.

He fired the first arrow—a decoy—while keeping the remaining four ready.

As expected, the single arrow did little to deter the tentacles' advance.

But Aldrich wasn't concerned; his role was to distract, not deal damage.

That task fell to Fiona and Trevor.

As Aldrich danced and dodged, occasionally firing two arrows at once to maintain the Kraken's focus, Fiona and Trevor prepared their counterattack.

With the creature entirely fixated on Aldrich, the duo seized the opportunity to manoeuvre behind it undetected.

This was their one chance. Failure wasn't an option.

Leaping off the water's surface, they closed the distance in a single bound, their weapons poised for a decisive strike.

Trevor's sword screeched against the kraken's hide, failing to leave a mark.

On the other hand, Fiona's blade found its target, sinking deep into the creature's flesh.

The Kraken let out an earsplitting wail of agony.

"Nice!" Aldrich shouted in triumph, only to notice the tentacles shifting direction.

They abandoned him, surging toward Fiona in a desperate bid to eliminate the greater threat.

"Oh no, you don't!"

Aldrich sprinted after them, closing the distance to the Kraken once more.

The Kraken was no fool to the obvious.

Splitting its forces, it sent five tentacles after Fiona while dispatching three to intercept Aldrich.

Undeterred, Aldrich faced the tentacles head-on.

Two arrows already notched, he adjusted his aim to widen their trajectory.

Just as the tentacles were about to strike, he shifted his target from them to the Kraken's body.

Release!

The first arrow tore through the air, its momentum unyielding.

A moment later, the Kraken howled in anguish as the arrow embedded itself in its left eye.

Aldrich prepared to fire his second arrow, this time aiming for the right eye.

As he took aim, his clairvoyant sight warned him of danger.

A tentacle lashed out, forcing Aldrich to arch his body backwards to evade.

He succeeded, but only for a moment.

From the sides, a second tentacle rushed in and struck him squarely, slamming his body with bone-crushing force.

Aldrich's vision blurred as he was sent hurtling across the water's surface.

His mana concentration faltered along with the attack, and with it, his mana circulation failed.

With the absence of a regular circulating mana, his footing on the water surface failed, and then... He plunged into the ocean depths.