The vines held for 30 seconds —
SNAP—!
The barrier cracked.
"Rin!" Gaja yelled.
"I KNOW!"
This time...
The Second Barrier Cracked...
"We're doomed..."
The beast growled.
Like mocking with a smile and saying you're next...
Rin wrapped more vines around Limbo,
Creating plant-shield and thorn walls. Gaja ran forward to intercept the first hunter wolf.
He's blades clashed with bone-like claws.
The hunter Wolf's strength was far beyond any normal wolf. This even surprised Gaja!.
It swung its fang at once—
Gaja quickly responded and blocked.
This time it unleashed two back-to-back fangs at twice.
Gaja avoids them by sliding back a meter.
Third swing..
The beast was agile.
Rin trapped its legs with vines, giving Gaja an opening to strike its ribs.
Beast screeches loudly, shaking to be free. Also, at the same time wanted to dominate on their mind by creating fear in him.
And they will make a mistake that will give him a chance to be free.
Gaja and Rin were dealing with the hunting wolf.
Limbo didn't move.
Or rather.. he couldn't move.
He was focusing only on stabilizing the Fragments. He knew if he did, then the tide of the battlefield could be changed.
His body was trembling violently.
As the three Fragments resisted purification.
This will not be this difficult to integrate the fragment, but it was becoming difficult due to the earlier battle.
System Warning
Stability: Dropping... 58%... 52%...
External interference detected.
Integration speed disrupted.
Limbo tightened his teeth, whispering,
"Come on... hold together..."
Limbo was trying harder to stabilize.
Meanwhile,
But the hunting pack was relentless.
They were tearing apart a Beta wolf.
Fragments they can sense.
They didn't care about anything.
Three more wolves spread out, circling the trio. Their eyes fixed on Limbo like he was a glowing lamplight. Fragment's resistance attracted them.
Then.
One of the hunters sensed the purification as it spiked...
The wolf lunged. And jumped.
SLAM—
Rin rushed to defend. With her strength, but her vines barely blocked it.
Also, the protection circle was cracked.
A sharp sound echoes.
Crack...
Rin gasped.
"The barrier... Limbo, it won't hold!"
Gaja slashed down another hunter, but more were closing in. As the fight intensified.
They both were worried, but neither even for a second thought about abandoning him.
Limbo's system flared aggressively like a wildfire.
[ WARNING: PROTECTIVE CIRCLE AT 12% INTEGRITY ]
[ DANGER: HOST VULNERABLE]
He opened his eyes for a moment —
After the message to check what happened.
What's the current situation?
And froze.
A hunting wolf was already mid-air.
His claws were extended, straight aiming towards his chest.
"Limbo!"
Rin screamed.
Gaja tried to jump.
But he wouldn't make it in time. Even if he hurries.
The Wolf's claw was about to touch the Limbo's chest, less than an inch away.
SHHHHHRING...
A golden light explodes from Limbo's chest.
A ShockWave blasted outward, throwing the hunter wolf 10 meters back.
It slammed into a tree so hard at the back.
It broke a few bones like a glass, and the beast coughed blood from its mouth.
Gaja blinked.
"...what the hell was that?"
Rin's eyes were locked on the Limbo's chest. Searching for the injury and caused of this reaction.
Rin shouted Look...
The Pendant....
The same old, dull-looking, normal pendant he always wore.
Was glowing.
No.
It was burning with radiant golden light, and it started to draw symbols in the air.
Limbo's eyes widened in surprise.
"Mom... Dad's pendant...?"
The Pendant floated upward from his neck, spinning gently.
The air around it wrapped.
Golden string erupting in a perfect circle around Limbo.
A shield.
A strong one.
A powerful one.
Lines and symbols he didn't recognise were forming across the shield's surface, with ancient runes mixed with... Like some kind of old codes.
Rin covered her mouth, which was wide open.
"It...cast the barrier itself..."
Gaja stepped closer.
Near them.
In a range.
"Kid... Since when could it do that?"
"Kid?... Who?"
Limbo didn't know about that.
He couldn't think something like this.
He couldn't comprehend.
His parents... Did say something like this will keep him safe.
Did they know something?
Was this pendant always meant to protect him?
The Pendant was glowing brighter and attached itself directly to the protection circle.
System Notify
Unknown Artifact interference detected.
Stability: Restored.
Purification rate increasing.
Host safety is guaranteed until completion.
Limbo takes a breath of relief.
For the time being, he decided to focus on fragments. And leave this matter for now.
But he had too many questions.
But he needs to overcome this crisis to ask them.
LIMBO closed his eyes.
The fragments inside him finally stopped fighting.
They were calm. They aligned.
They finally merged.
They began to purify.
50%...63%... 79%...
The Wolf hunters roared. Many at once.
This incident attracted too much attention. They began to slam into the new golden barrier again and again.
But the shield didn't crack. Nor a slight scratch.
Not even once.
Rin and Gaja stood behind Limbo, staring at the glowing spherical protection circle around them. Watching the pendant burn like a mini sun. Keeping the beast away.
The forest was trembling.
The hunters were howling.
The Beta Wolf went silent.
Mist rolled violently.
And in the center of all.
Limbo sat with crossed legs like a god, glowing fragments orbiting him just like the orbs of light.
The final integration began.
The ground cracked around him.
Wind swings violently.
The shield was shining brightly.
System Notify
Purification: 92%... 95%... 99%...
Awaiting final synchronisation...
Preparing for the final.
Gaja whispered quietly,
While glaring at Limbo.
"Rin... When he opens his eyes ... What do you think he is going to do?"
What will change?
Rin swallowed hard.
"... whatever, but he will definitely do something stronger and unimaginable."
He was showing full confidence in limbo.
She knew whenever he took time to do something, he always did something out of the box.
Suddenly, Limbo's eyes flickered and opened.
They were glowing with golden-blue.
The pendant flickers once.
Twice.
Then fused its light into him.
Reverting back to its usual form.
System Notify
Synchronisation is imminent.
Please stand by....
The hunting wolves surrounded the glowing barrier.
Rin and Gaja are watching breathless.
The forest was shaking.
The Beta wolf is almost dead.
Limbo transform.
A new power awakens.
Will this be sufficient to change the situation?
Let's see what happened.