The Giant Sandworm was not yet defeated. Alvaric had only injured the inside of its body. That alone wasn't nearly enough. Killing a level 82 monster was like trying to punch a mountain and expecting it to move. In Alvaric's mind, he never imagined he would win.
He knew it was nearly impossible, but trying was the only thing he could do. Even if the cost was his life, Alvaric would still do it, because doing nothing would lead to death anyway.
"Jump, Niva!" Alvaric shouted.
Hearing that, Niva leapt away from the Giant Sandworm's attack. She managed to dodge the giant monster's blow but stood frozen for a moment. Shocked by what she was doing. She thought she would be fighting a monster equal to or slightly stronger than herself.
In reality, she had to fight the Giant Sandworm. The most feared monster in this desert. For thousands of years, no one had dared disturb the Giant Sandworm because all monsters knew it was suicide—and now she was committing that very suicide.
"Don't worry! I'll be by your side," said Alvaric, patting Niva's shoulder.
Niva swallowed hard, her legs and arms trembling with fear. The wings on her back trembled slightly as if begging her to run away. Niva looked at Alvaric with doubt.
"Are you sure we're going to fight that thing?" asked Niva. She hoped Alvaric would take back his words. "But I don't want to die in vain. The Giant Sandworm is the ruler of this desert. Disturbing it is suicide."
"Then don't die," Alvaric said flatly.
"But, sir…"
Alvaric patted her shoulder again. "Just trust me!" he said.
Then Niva noticed Alvaric's left arm was missing. That made his words sound like hollow nonsense. She turned around and tried to run away. Unfortunately, Alvaric grabbed her hand. He slowly shook his head.
"If you run, I'll die," he said.
"If I stay, I'll die too," Niva thought.
Alvaric gripped both of his weapons. He stepped forward without hesitation and glanced at Niva before running toward the Giant Sandworm. Seeing what Alvaric was doing, Niva was stunned. Especially when he fought seriously. He truly wanted to defeat the Giant Sandworm, which was supposed to be nearly impossible.
"He's insane." Niva smiled. She was in awe of her master. "As a subordinate, I should be ashamed to let my master fight alone."
Niva nodded and sprinted toward the Giant Sandworm. She joined her master Alvaric in battle. This was the first time she fought with her life on the line.
The Giant Sandworm growled. Its sand-fortress-like body spun beneath the ground, creating a powerful whirlpool that sucked sand into a massive pit. The ground beneath them began to collapse. Niva flapped her wings and hovered, but Alvaric stood firm atop a trembling rock. He waited for the Giant Sandworm to reveal itself again.
"Looks like that's the only way to defeat this cursed monster," Alvaric said to himself.
He took a deep breath. Then he ran toward the Giant Sandworm again. The fight continued. Alvaric tried many ways to injure the Giant Sandworm, but nothing worked. Its outer skin was too hard. Like striking steel.
When the Giant Sandworm got very close, Alvaric looked back and nodded at Niva. "Don't forget to save me like last time!" he shouted just before he was swallowed again.
Alvaric was thrown out again. The Giant Sandworm spat him out just like the day before. He had used his Shield Regeneration skill, which activated once per day. He had deliberately allowed himself to be swallowed by the Giant Sandworm. That was when he attacked its internal flesh.
It worked, but nothing had changed. Alvaric repeated this once every day. Niva always accompanied him. She fought too. Several times she was hit and injured. Pain overwhelmed her body.
"I think defeating the Giant Sandworm is impossible," Niva said.
She and Alvaric were standing on a large rock. In the distance, the sand trembled. It was the Giant Sandworm moving beneath the surface. They had done this for seven straight days, yet the Giant Sandworm was still alive. Nothing had changed.
That made Niva doubt they could ever defeat the Giant Sandworm. She felt like this was a wasted effort. Completely useless.
"No effort is ever wasted. Even water can bore through stone with consistent drops," Alvaric replied.
He was ready to fight again today. This time he was more confident. When the Giant Sandworm got close, Alvaric ran toward it without hesitation. His eyes sharp, full of confidence. When the Giant Sandworm surfaced and tried to strike him, Alvaric smiled.
"You want to kill me, huh? Come on then, big guy!" Alvaric taunted.
His body was slammed hard. He disappeared when the Giant Sandworm dove back into the sand. Niva remained where she stood. Soon the Giant Sandworm came for her. It was about to attack. However, Niva flew as high as she could, out of the monster's reach.
The Giant Sandworm moved away. Niva followed it from a safe distance. She kept her eyes on it.
"Can Master Alvaric really defeat this giant monster?" Niva was doubtful.
It wasn't the first time she had told Alvaric this was all pointless. But Alvaric was stubborn. Without much explanation, he simply said he would succeed. His confidence grew stronger every day. Even today, Alvaric had been singing in joy.
Niva started to think her master might be crazy for continuing this hopeless fight.
But what Niva had doubted was finally paid off by Alvaric. The Giant Sandworm emerged with strange purple spots on parts of its body. It squirmed oddly. Its movements were unstable. It even crashed into a massive rock and changed direction afterward.
Seeing the Giant Sandworm like that, Niva frowned. She realized it was in immense pain. Its cries were deafening, almost rupturing their eardrums.
"Did Master succeed?"
Not long after, the Giant Sandworm opened its mouth and vomited Alvaric again. As his body was expelled, he laughed loudly. He felt genuine joy. After so long, he could finally see the Giant Sandworm in pain.
"Die, you giant bastard!" Alvaric shouted.
He was relieved, though the mission wasn't over yet. As he nearly fell, Niva quickly caught him and flew high again, carrying Alvaric in her arms. The two of them watched the Giant Sandworm from above. Its wild thrashing was a captivating sight for them.
"Did we do it?" Niva asked.
Alvaric glanced at his system.
[Mission: Kill the Giant Sandworm]
[Reward: Random Epic Skill, Legendary Item]
"Not yet, but that's the last hope I could do," Alvaric answered.
[0D: 20H: 18M]
"If there's no notification in 20 hours, it means I failed."