Chapter 108
Ivan's POV
[Not Long Ago]
I rode Lightning's back as we dove through Thunder Canyon, wind roaring in my ears.
The clamor below faded into the distance, but my heart clenched tighter with every passing second.
Chloe was facing Connor alone—should I trust she could hold her own?
"Don't worry," Zeus rumbled in my mind. "That girl will be fine."
I didn't answer, just patted Lightning's neck. It seemed to sense my mood, picking up speed, electricity crackling across its scales.
"Besides..." Zeus paused, his voice carrying a confusion I'd never heard before. "I sense a mate's scent on her. Especially strong today."
My face burned instantly.
"What... what are you talking about?"
"You heard me." Amusement threaded through Zeus's tone. "Don't play dumb, Ivan. You know it yourself."
I shut my mouth, refusing to engage.
Yes, I knew. From the first time I saw her defeat Jordan in the training yard, from when she barged into the gym demanding to join, from countless sparring sessions, treating wounds, fighting side by side—I'd known.
But now wasn't the time to think about that.
Canyon walls blurred past on either side. Below, twisted Devil's Ivy corpses littered the ground—charred, withered, half-rotted, like bodies piled on a battlefield.
Lightning dipped low, unleashing a bolt of pure white electricity that struck a writhing mass of vines. The tendrils turned to ash instantly, filling the air with the stench of burning vegetation.
"Good work, buddy. Keep going."
It rumbled acknowledgment and accelerated toward the next target. We swept through the canyon systematically, the number of Devil's Ivy remnants visibly decreasing. At this rate, we'd have everything cleared in ten minutes.
Just as I began to relax, something felt wrong.
The scenery started to seem off—that boulder split into three pieces, I'd definitely already flown past it, so why was it appearing ahead again? And that lightning-scorched dead tree, I remembered it being on the left canyon wall, but now it stood on the right.
I signaled Lightning to slow down.
"Zeus, do you feel like—"
"We're going in circles," he interrupted grimly. "More than once."
Lightning noticed the anomaly too. It hovered in place, turning its head warily, electricity dancing between its scales.
My hair stood on end—that feeling of being surrounded by invisible hostility, as if unseen hunters lurked in every direction and we'd already walked into the trap.
A shadow flickered at the edge of my vision.
I whipped around. Nothing—just empty canyon and floating thunderclouds. But instinct screamed—that thing was still there, nearby, watching us.
"Left side!" Zeus roared.
Without thinking, I commanded Lightning to fire at that direction. Blinding white light tore through the air, but just before impact, it bounced back as if hitting a mirror.
"Damn it—"
The lightning bolt shot straight at me. I threw my arms up to shield my head. The familiar numbness flooded my body as electricity hit my chest. Though I was immune to electrical damage, the massive impact still threw me backward. I clung desperately to Lightning's body to keep from falling off.
Lightning shrieked in fury, struggling to steady itself. It gathered power, the glow at its neck condensing into a brilliant sphere, then—boom! An even thicker lightning column erupted, aimed at that seemingly empty void.
Same result. The lightning struck some invisible barrier and instantly ricocheted toward another direction.
I squinted, trying to make out the barrier's outline, barely catching a shimmer of distorted light, like heat waves rising from pavement.
"Mirrors," I muttered. "We're surrounded by a mirror maze."
This was extremely complex magic—capable of warping space, trapping us in an infinite loop through the same area while reflecting all attacks.
And the caster was hiding somewhere in this maze, coldly watching us walk into the snare.
I stroked Lightning's neck, feeling its labored breathing. It understood too—this wasn't a trap that could be broken by brute force. I took a deep breath, forcing myself to calm down, straining to catch every sound. Wind, thunder, echoing stone... what else?
An extremely faint rustling, like fabric brushing against itself, to our right rear.
I spun around and finally saw it—a translucent figure wrapped in a black cloak, emerging from behind a floating mirror.
The face was pale and twisted, lips curling into a mocking smile.
"Found you," I growled.
Lightning didn't wait for my command, opening its mouth to unleash another bolt. But this time, the witch didn't rely on the mirror defense. Her entire form dissolved into black mist, reappearing above us.
She raised her hand. Countless thorn-covered chains burst from the void, writhing toward us like living things.
"Lightning, ascend!"
It shot vertically upward. The thorns wove through the air behind us, forming an impenetrable net. I dodged a chain that grazed my cheek, the barbs tearing a gash across the back of my hand. Pain flared, but I couldn't focus on it—more thorns were closing in from all directions, impossibly fast.
Lightning rolled and twisted through the air, electricity exploding around it, barely severing a few chains. But those damn things regenerated after being cut, even splitting into more thin vines that struck like snakes.
The aerial battle had become a war of attrition, and we were clearly at a disadvantage.
"This is endless!" I said through gritted teeth.
"Find the source," Zeus said calmly.
Right. The thorns were just puppets—the witch controlling them was the key. I forced myself to ignore the encroaching chains, focusing on finding the enemy's position.
She had to be nearby—this level of control required continuous spellcasting, she couldn't be far.
There.
On the western canyon wall, one shadow seemed deeper than the others. I stared at it for three seconds, finally catching an unnatural ripple.
"Lightning, full power strike, western wall!"
It roared and dove, its entire body blazing with blinding light. I felt the energy boiling inside it, burning, then—crash!
A lightning pillar as thick as a barrel descended from the sky, striking that shadow precisely. The cliff face exploded, debris flying, and a figure tumbled awkwardly from the blast center, landing at the canyon's edge.
It was her—a short, obese witch in black robes!
Her cloak had several burnt holes, a charred wound across her face. But she didn't fall. Instead, she lifted her head, fixing us with bloodshot eyes.
"Brat, you've angered me," she rasped.
Before she finished speaking, more thorn chains erupted from the ground beneath her feet—ten times as many as before.
The thorns dragged Lightning and me crashing toward the ground.
I slammed hard into the unforgiving stone, mouth filling with the taste of blood.
I heard Chloe's distant shouts, the warriors' screams, Lightning's defiant roar...