'I Reincarnated But Have No System? You Must Be Kidding Me!'
Chapter 54: Burning Sky, Sealed Escape

Chapter 54: Burning Sky, Sealed Escape

Vulkris loomed above the battlefield, its monstrous form crackling with the fury of a world long buried.

It tilted its colossal head, golden eyes narrowing with cruel amusement as it watched the battered group attempt to regroup near the open portal.

"Going somewhere, Elarya?" it rumbled, voice deep and mocking—like mountains grinding against each other.

FLAP!

With a single flap of its titanic wings, the atmosphere shattered.

A searing cyclone of raw power erupted outward, blasting through the battlefield like a tempest from the depths of the earth. The gust hit the group like a hammer forged from chaos itself, launching them away from the portal and toward the cliffside.

Elarya, Rhiki, Kardel, Auren—all flung back like dolls in the wake of a god’s tantrum.

But the worst hit of them all was Auren.

Lighter than the rest, his body was tossed high and far. His vision spun, wind screaming in his ears as the world tilted wildly beneath him. For a terrifying heartbeat, there was nothing but sky and death.

"Bad Mufasaaa!~" he shouted while flying mid air and straight into the edge of the floating island and towards the sea of magma below.

"Not today!"

Acting on instinct, Auren tore his Divine Rapier from its sheath and slammed it downward—CLANG!

-embedding it into the crumbling cliff’s edge. His body jerked violently, arm nearly torn from its socket as his momentum halted.

He dangled over the cliffside like a pendulum, his legs flailing above the sea of magma bubbling below. Sweat poured down his forehead—not just from the heat, but from the proximity of death itself.

Grunting, he glanced at his MJ Boots and channeled his mana into them for a lift.

Nothing.

Smoke hissed from the soles.

The boots—his trusty, mana-guided MJ Boots—were toasted!

The earlier exposure to Vulkris’s prominence beam and the hellish environment of Inferna Hollow had melted the lower halves. Only his advanced constitution spared his feet from third-degree burns.

"Perfect. Just perfect," he muttered through clenched teeth, sarcasm dripping from every word. "But I’m the main character, boi—I’m not going down that easy. I’m not dying like Gollum!"

Farther up the slope, Rhiki spun through the air. Recovering mid-fall, he activated his movement skill and resummoned his twin daggers into a rock wall—CHNK! CHNK!—arresting his descent. Sparks flew from the impact.

Kardel wasn’t so lucky. He had tried to shield himself and Usan using his staff, but the moment Vulkris’s aura expanded, Usan collapsed.

The celestial beast had fainted.

"Usan..." Kardel whispered, his knuckles white around his staff.

Only Queen Elarya remained standing before Vulkris.

Tattered. Bruised. Spearless. Alone.

Yet still standing.

Her silver hair whipped behind her, and her tattered runesteel armor shimmered weakly with flickering enchantments. Even with her body screaming in protest, her eyes never left the beast before her.

She knew Vulkris well. Too well.

She had once stood beside the previous Verdant Sovereign—the one who gave their life to seal Vulkris centuries ago. She had seen firsthand the destruction: forest flattened by a single roar, rivers boiled into steam with nothing but its breath.

Now, the beast was free.

And she had no weapon. No army of elven warriors at her back. Just two fellow leaders clinging to life—and a human boy who remained a wild card in a game stacked against them.

Vulkris loomed above her, head tilted as if studying an insect. Its eyes shimmered with cruel intelligence as its molten jaws parted.

"Looking at your condition," it rumbled, voice low and condescending, "breaking you will be like stepping on a twig."

Its wings spread.

"Pathetic!"

A blast of wind surged outward as it raised a massive claw. The earth trembled as it swung toward her like a divine guillotine.

"You dare show your face in that state?" it roared, voice shaking the cliffside. "Then why dont you scram to next hell!"

But just as its claw began to descend—

WHSSSSK—THUNK!STAB! STAB! STAB!

A dozen shimmering blades soared through the air and impaled Vulkris’s paw mid-swing.

The strike halted, massive claws just meters away from Elarya’s figure.

"Not on my watch," Kardel growled not far behind, his staff glowing with azure mana.

He stood atop a jagged platform, brow drenched in sweat, and veins pulsing as he channeled every ounce of energy into maintaining the binding spell on his summoned daggers.

Elarya didn’t waste the moment. She rolled backward, dodging out of the death zone just in time.

BOOOM!~

The massive paw hit only the ground.

"Thank you, Kardel!" she shouted as she retreated behind a rocky outcrop.

The Vulkris looked at its pierced claw and blinked. Then, slowly, it turned its massive head toward Kardel. Its maw curled upward.

"Interesting tiny weapons," it said with a sneer. "Then do your best to entertain me elf-"

Before it could finish the insult, a whirlwind of shadows surged toward it.

"RAAAAAHHH!!"

Rhiki, back in the fray, had launched himself toward Vulkris’s face, his fierce clones close behind him. His body pulsed with raw energy. His muscles bulged to the maximum, tattoos glowing with dark mana, and his twin daggers trailed smoky wisps as he charged headfirst.

[BLADESTORM CARNAGE]

The moment his daggers touched Vulkris’s scales, Rhiki split into four—five—six blurs, each a clone lashing out with brutal precision.

SLASH!~ STAB!~ SLASH!~

The air sang with steel and violence!

A storm of blades slashed, sliced, and stabbed into the beast’s snout, cheeks, and eyes. The clones weaved in and out with speed that could carve even Ascended Wyverns apart.

Had it been any other foe, it would’ve been minced.

But Vulkris barely flinched.

Its skin was tougher than ancient mountain stone, and its regeneration was instantaneous. Every cut Rhiki made healed in the blink of an eye.

Unfortunately, no matter how much he cut, the damage was meaningless before the King-level beast.

"This—this should’ve worked!" Rhiki muttered in disbelief. "Why isn’t it working?!"

The answer came swiftly.

"You amuse me, little dark elf."

A smirk formed on Vulkris’s fanged lips.

And then—

WHOOOOOSH—BOOOOM!

Its flaming tail swept sideways like a meteor. It came so fast that not even Rhiki’s incredible reflexes managed to dodge it.

The clones vanished in a burst of smoke, and the real Rhiki was swatted out of the sky like a fly.

He crashed into the ground with a thunderous impact, a crater forming beneath his broken body.

"RHIKI!"

Elarya screamed, heart seizing at the sight of her own people being crushed like a bug.

Kardel’s hands trembled. His ace fighter was down. His celestial partner was unconscious. His mana reserves were draining fast.

"Go get some rest, Usan," Kardel whispered, voice tight with concern.

In response, a soft glow enveloped the unconscious celestial beast. With a gentle shimmer, Usan dissolved into motes of light and was drawn back into the safety of the amulet around Kardel’s neck.

Now alone and exposed, Kardel’s hands moved quickly. He rummaged through the mystical space provided by his storage ring, fingers brushing past countless failsafes until they closed around a familiar summoning stone.

"Don’t fail me now... Abthik."

KYOOO!

A crack of lightning split the air as the next beast burst forth in a blaze of yellow light.

Bursting forth from the ring came a massive yellow insect—three times Kardel’s size, with antennae twitching and chitin crackling with stored energy.

A Skitterbolt.

Built for speed, not war.

Like a living bolt of electricity, the insect crouched down, and Kardel climbed atop it like a jockey.

Just in time.

Vulkris’s eyes flashed again. Its interest shifted to Kardel and Elarya, both of whom were still active threats.

"Annoying bugs," it hissed. "DIE."

Its maw began to glow.

Elarya’s eyes widened.

It’s charging another beam.

There wasn’t time to warn the others.

But even as the air grew hotter, and the taste of ash filled her lungs, Elarya rose again—wings flickering behind her, a faint glimmer of her divine energy beginning to stir.

"No..." she whispered, voice firm. "Not like this."