LEVEL EVERYTHING UP in my Eldritch Tribe - Chapter 44

Chapter 44: Devil Horned Tribe demise
Suddenly, a massive burst of magical energy emerged from the land of the destroyed Devil Horned Tribe.

The energy coalesced, swirling and pulsating, forming into a colossal monster. It stood tall and proud, its body resembling that of a majestic buck, but with an otherworldly and ethereal glow.

Groooo!!

Its fur shimmered with iridescent colors, shifting and changing with every movement. Antlers, adorned with glowing runes, extended majestically from its head, crackling with raw power.

Its eyes blazed with an intense light, reflecting the anguish and fury of the lost tribe.

Lord Victor laughed, a chilling sound that echoed through the devastated landscape. “Behold! The spirit of the dead tribe I just annihilated,” he declared, his voice dripping with arrogance.

The buck-like spirit roared, the sound reverberating through the air, causing the ground to tremble. Victor stood his ground, a smirk playing on his lips. “Oh, this will be entertaining,” he mused, raising his hand to conjure a low-level spell.

“Let’s see how you handle this,” he said, sending a bolt of dark energy towards the spirit. The spirit reacted swiftly, raising its antlers to deflect the attack, the runes glowing brighter as they absorbed the energy.

Victor’s eyes widened slightly, a mix of surprise and amusement on his face. “Impressive. But that was just a taste,” he taunted, launching another spell. This time, tendrils of shadow shot out, attempting to ensnare the spirit. However, the spirit’s form shimmered and dissolved, reappearing a few feet away, unharmed.

“You’re quick, aren’t you?” Victor commented, his voice laced with mock admiration. “But speed alone won’t save you.”

He cast another spell, this one a torrent of dark flames that surged towards the spirit. The spirit responded by summoning a barrier of shimmering light, the flames dissipating harmlessly against it. Victor’s smirk faltered for a moment, then returned with renewed vigor.

“You’re full of surprises, little spirit. But let’s see how you handle this.” He conjured a series of dark orbs, each crackling with ominous energy. He hurled them at the spirit, the orbs splitting and multiplying in mid-air.

The spirit’s eyes blazed brighter, and it charged forward, its antlers slicing through the orbs, dispersing them in a dazzling display of light and shadow.

Victor laughed, a sound filled with genuine delight. “You have some fight in you! This is more fun than I anticipated.” He continued to cast spells, each one increasing in complexity and power.

The spirit met each attack with equal ferocity, deflecting, dodging, and countering with its own bursts of magical energy.

“Is this all you have? Come little spirit, have some more fight with you,” Victor taunted, sending a wave of shadowy spikes towards the spirit.

The spirit leaped into the air, its body shimmering and transforming into a spectral form, passing through the spikes unscathed. It landed gracefully, its antlers glowing with renewed energy.

Victor’s eyes narrowed, a flicker of frustration crossing his face. “You’re persistent, I’ll give you that, please last more,” he muttered, raising his hand to cast another spell. This time, tendrils of shadow erupted from the ground, aiming to ensnare the spirit.

The spirit responded by stomping its hooves, sending shockwaves through the ground, disrupting the tendrils and causing them to disintegrate.

“You’ve lasted longer than most,” Victor admitted, his tone begrudgingly respectful. “But this ends now.” He raised both hands, summoning a vortex of dark energy above him. The vortex crackled with malevolent power, growing larger and more menacing with each passing second.

The spirit roared, its eyes blazing with defiance. It charged at Victor, its antlers aimed directly at him. Victor unleashed the vortex, the dark energy surging towards the spirit.

The spirit collided with the energy, its form flickering and distorting as it struggled to resist the overwhelming power.

Victor laughed maniacally, his voice echoing with triumph. “You can’t withstand this! You’re nothing compared to those low level spells that are the results of my experiments haha!” He poured more energy into the vortex, the dark tendrils wrapping around the spirit, pulling it towards the center.

The spirit let out a final, defiant roar, its eyes locking onto Victor’s.

For a moment, it seemed as though it might break free, but the vortex’s power proved too great. With a blinding flash of light, the spirit disintegrated, its form reduced to dust.

Victor lowered his hands, panting slightly from the exertion. He looked at the spot where the spirit had stood, a satisfied smirk on his face. “And so ends the spirit of the Devil Horned Tribe,” he said, his voice dripping with arrogance. “A fitting end for such a pathetic existence.”

He turned to Lyerin and Corora, his expression triumphant. “Do you see now? My power is absolute. No spirit, no tribe can stand against me. I will achieve my dream of becoming a GrandMaster Assassin or an Eldren Grandmaster in the real world. And anyone who dares to oppose me will meet the same fate.”

Corora trembled, her eyes wide with horror and disbelief. Lyerin, still maintaining his facade, nodded slowly. “Yes, Lord Victor. Your power is undeniable,” he said, his voice steady despite the turmoil inside him.

Victor laughed again, a sound that sent chills down their spines. “Remember this moment, for it is a testament to my strength. Now, let us see what other challenges await.”

As Victor basked in his victory, the ground beneath them began to tremble once more.

Soon, a deep, resonant sound echoed through the air, growing louder with each passing second.

Lyerin and Corora exchanged worried glances, their fear palpable. Victor looked up, a look of anticipation on his face. “Ah,” he said, his voice filled with excitement. “It seems we have company again. Who could it be, another antler?”

As the ground continued to tremble, another buck-like creature began to materialize in the distance. However, this one was different from the first. Its form was blood-red, its appearance more sinister and foreboding. The air around it seemed to shimmer with a crimson haze as it took shape.

Lord Victor watched with a mixture of curiosity and amusement. “Ah, another one,” he remarked, his eyes gleaming with anticipation. “Let’s see what this one can do.”

The blood-red creature solidified, its eyes glowing with an eerie light. But before it could make a move, its body convulsed violently, and with a horrifying crack, it exploded into a rain of blood, drenching the ground and everyone nearby.

Lord Victor clicked his tongue in disappointment, his hand wiping a splatter of blood from his cheek with disdain. “How anticlimactic,” he sighed. “I had hoped to test a few more low-level spells. Such a waste.”

He turned to Lyerin and Corora, ready to make another comment, but suddenly froze. His eyes narrowed as he sensed something wrong with the blood. “This blood… it feels off,” he muttered, more to himself than to them. “It feels like it’s balancing my senses out.”

Victor’s eyes widened as he locked onto Lyerin and Corora. He stood there, silent and tense, as if trying to decode an unseen puzzle.

Without another word, he spun around and disappeared through a dark portal, leaving Lyerin and Corora standing in the blood-soaked clearing.

As the echoes of Victor’s departure faded, a system screen materialized in front of Lyerin, glowing softly. The message was long and detailed:

> “The passing of the Devil Horned Tribe has been recorded. The spirits of the deceased, their blood, and their essence have been absorbed into the land. The ancestral spirits mourn their loss. A new era begins for those who remain.”

Lyerin read the message, his heart pounding. Before he could process the information, another system screen appeared:

> “For being one of the two living members of the Devil Horned Tribe, and having a higher rank than the other, Lyerin is hereby designated as the Mountain Chief of the Tribe. This title grants authority over the tribe’s remaining lands, resources, and any future members.”

Lyerin stared at the screen, reading and re-reading the words.

The reality of his new position slowly sank in, and a wide smile spread across his face. He couldn’t help but laugh, ‘HAHAHAHA’ with a sound filled with both triumph and relief to it.

“Finally,” he muttered, his voice trembling with emotion. “This was my plan all along. Manipulating Lord Victor was risky, but it was the only way to achieve this. I couldn’t climb the ranks of the tribe from the bottom, constantly controlled and scrutinized. I needed to be at the top, free to shape our future.”

He looked at Corora, who was still in shock, with her eyes still wide with horror and disbelief. “Corora, we are the last of the Devil Horned Tribe,” he said softly, his voice steady and reassuring. “But from this tragedy, we will rebuild. We will make the tribe stronger than ever before.”

Corora nodded slowly, with her fear giving way to determination.

As if Lyerin’s words ignited a spark of hope within her, and she grasped his hand tightly.

Just as Lyerin was about to continue, a dark portal opened behind them.

Before they could react, Lord Victor’s hand shot out, grabbing both Lyerin and Corora. They were pulled into the portal, the world around them dissolving into darkness.