Chapter 26: The Last Stand of Ashratal
Raj's POV
Vijay's awakening was a mystery. It wasn't unusual to awaken at twenty-one—but being unable to contract a constellation added weight to the enigma. Father sensed something, I was sure. But, like always, he didn't say a word. Maybe he was waiting. Maybe he was testing him.
I had been tailing Vijay from the moment he entered the dungeon. Super-large settlements were too valuable to ignore. Even before stepping into the portal, I'd heard hushed rumors circulating among mercenaries inside the staging cavern. Their whispers spoke of a sprawling goblin nest far east—something too aligned with the gossip on BattleNet to be coincidence.
Being a Rank 5 has its perks. Especially in surveillance. I relayed the coordinates to the Flamebearer Guild immediately—rookie Rank 1 and 2 hunters could benefit from the experience. And as for Vijay… I just hoped he wasn't going to be stupid.
But when I saw him kill the scout goblin and head east without hesitation, I knew.
He intended to take the entire settlement head-on.
A suicidal move.
Even for Rank 3 hunters, a horde that size would be a nightmare. Sure, goblins were weak individually. But en masse? They became death incarnate.
Yet he wasn't acting blindly. He knew I was following. He had factored that into his strategy. Fight until his last breath—and trust that I would intervene before he died.
Reckless.
But effective.
As I followed, I watched him scale the cliff with practiced ease. Only four days since his awakening and already he moved like someone who had fought with mana all his life. At the edge, he stood motionless, eyes fixed on the valley.
I turned my gaze downward.
The super-large goblin settlement sprawled like a disease across the valley floor. Thousands of thatched huts pressed together, forming narrow streets that reeked of filth and smoke. Fires danced from crude pyres. Goblin banners—tattered cloth smeared with blood—flapped in the wind. The stench of sweat, rot, and metal clung to the air like an invisible mist.
Eight thousand goblins, minimum.
If I were Rank 3 or 4, I'd hesitate.
But now, as a Rank 5, I knew I could flatten the entire infestation in thirty minutes.
Still, I watched.
Vijay stood still for fifteen long minutes. And then—he gathered mana.
He compressed it along his legs. Then leapt.
My breath caught.
High into the air he soared.
And then began to fall.
Mana coiled along Ashratal's blade, converging on its spearhead. Lightning crackled. Fire danced. Winds howled. Clouds churned.
This wasn't just an attack.
It was Father's move.
The Starfall Requiem.
Raw and unpolished—but unmistakable.
The storm, the descent, the explosion… I'd seen it before. It was seared into my memory from my childhood, watching Father obliterate beasts of myth.
As Vijay plummeted, lightning crowned him. Ashratal ignited like a fallen comet.
Then he struck.
The explosion was deafening. A 500-meter radius of devastation. Flames, debris, smoke. Goblins vaporized in an instant.
Even now, I got goosebumps.
Vijay's POV
My lungs burned. Sweat and blood clung to my skin and armor like molten tar. I gasped for breath as I clutched Ashratal. Flames licked its edges. Lightning danced across my arms. The sky above was darkened by lingering storm clouds.
The crater still smoked beneath my feet.
The ground was littered with goblin corpses—scorched, shredded, broken. I had landed in their capital, and the impact had left the battlefield fractured and uneven. Craters, scorched marks, snapped spears, broken huts.
But the goblins were relentless.
They regrouped. They reorganized. Archers formed lines on rooftops. Brutes with hammers and clubs surrounded me. Smaller goblins formed waves to bait my attacks.
And I was fading.
Half my stamina was gone. My shoulder had taken a blunt arrow that barely missed piercing the joint. Deep gashes decorated my thigh and ribs. My mana was low. The Eye of Alignment buzzed painfully in my skull. Even Ashratal had taken damage—chips along the axe-blade, dulled spear points.
A normal Rank 1 would be dead already.
But I wasn't normal.
Lightning still sparked around my legs—thin, weak. My storm clouds above had begun to disperse. Even the fire wrapping Ashratal flickered faintly. My mana skin was tattered—tears of blood running along my forearms.
I was at my limit.
The goblins circled me—growling, clicking, screeching in that guttural tongue. Some wore armor. Others had crude magical symbols painted on their chests. All were bloodthirsty.
I checked my satchel.
Two potions left. Not enough.
I bit down, inhaled deeply, and rolled my shoulder.
"One more round," I muttered. "Just one more."
They came.
A stampede of claws, blades, and snarls.
I charged.
Ashratal came alive in my hands. I spun, the halberd carving through chests and necks. A downward slash split a goblin in half. The blade edge sparked against bone. I kicked a brute in the knee, spun behind, and rammed my spear tip through his spine.
The Eye of Alignment lit up, paths forming across the field like veins of light.
Jagged.
Fractured.
None led out. All curved back to me.
This spot had become the center of the storm.
Thunder struck at random—one bolt incinerated six goblins, leaving behind blackened craters. Fire lashed from Ashratal with every desperate swing.
Bodies piled.
Blood soaked the dirt. Mine and theirs.
Thirty more minutes passed.
I had killed over two thousand goblins.
But I was dying.
My muscles spasmed. My grip loosened. My lungs wheezed. The armor protected my vital points, but everything else was shredded. My skin was blistered from mana backlash. Ashratal's flames had died. Only faint lightning pulses remained around my body.
Even the Eye of Alignment gave out—lines flickered and vanished.
No more paths.
No more strategy.
Just instinct.
I stumbled.
Goblin spears glanced off my chestplate. Arrows cut across my cheek. I fell to one knee.
I whispered, "Come on… just a bit longer."
I raised Ashratal again.
One more time.
Then I felt a hand on my shoulder.
I didn't think.
I spun, swinging Ashratal with the last of my strength.
The blade hit something solid—unmoving.
The shock rattled my bones.
I looked up.
Raj stood there. Unscathed. A faint glow shimmered across his body, mana rippling like liquid fire.
His eyes were wide. Not with fear.
But awe.
A half-smile touched his lips. "You lunatic," he muttered.
The moment I knew I was safe, my body surrendered. My limbs gave out.
Everything went dark.
But my last thought before I passed out?
I did it.
I endured.
I stood against the tide.
And I didn't back down.