Online Game: Starting With SSS-Ranked Summons

Seeing the current predicament, Arthur had no thought of holding back. This was no joke of a fight—this was a battle that would require every ounce of his accumulated power, tactical intelligence, and equipment advantages to survive.

This was going to be a tough one.

Aether wasn't currently with him, which might have seemed like a tactical disadvantage to outside observers. However, Arthur had deliberately positioned his most powerful companion outside the Winter Beast's domain for strategic reasons that went beyond simple combat support.

Arthur knew very well that the Winter Beast would prove extraordinarily difficult to defeat through conventional assault. Hence, he had instructed Aether to remain in the peripheries of the frozen domain, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. When the time was right, Aether would use his spatial manipulation abilities to appear at exact coordinates Arthur had provided, allowing them to execute a coordinated surprise attack that could severely injure the massive creature.

But first, Arthur needed to create the opening that would make such an attack possible.

The Winter Beast rose to his full, intimidating height, ice crystals forming around his massive frame as his domain abilities intensified in response to the threat Arthur represented. The air itself began to crystallize, creating an environment where even breathing became difficult for creatures not adapted to supernatural cold.

Arthur drew his Chaos Katana fully, the pseudo-legendary blade humming, as if excited at the prospect of fighting the Winter Beast. His enhanced attributes, amplified by his epic-rank equipment, would need to compensate for the level difference between them.

"Pride, Cackle Queen—coordinate attacks but maintain defensive positioning," Arthur commanded through their mental links. "Your primary objective is distraction and creating openings, not direct engagement."

Both legendary creatures acknowledged his instructions, recognising that they were facing an opponent whose individual power exceeded their combined capabilities. However, their distraction value could prove crucial in a battle where split-second timing would determine victory or defeat.

Arthur teleported directly toward the Winter Beast's left flank, his katana cutting through the air in a precise arc aimed at the creature's knee joint. The attack was calculated to test the beast's defensive reflexes while avoiding his most dangerous offensive capabilities.

The Winter Beast's response was immediate and overwhelming.

His massive hand swept downward with speed that defied his size, forcing Arthur to teleport again to avoid being crushed like an insect. Ice formations erupted from the ground where Arthur had been standing, creating spear-like protrusions that would have impaled him if he had remained in position.

Pride launched himself at the Winter Beast's opposite side, his golden claws seeking purchase on the creature's thick hide. The attack was perfectly timed to exploit the distraction Arthur's assault had created, but the Winter Beast's abilities made even legendary-rank attacks significantly less effective.

Ice formed around Pride's claws the moment they made contact, reducing his strike's penetration and allowing the Winter Beast to backhand the Golden Mane away with casual force. Pride's body sailed through the air before crashing into a crystalline formation that exploded into fragments upon impact.

Arthur teleported again, this time appearing directly behind the Winter Beast's head, his katana aimed at the base of the creature's skull. The strike was precise and powerful, enhanced by his equipment bonuses and delivered with perfect timing.

CLANG!

The blade struck a barrier of ice so dense it rang like struck metal, sending vibrations up Arthur's arms that spoke of defensive capabilities far beyond normal elemental manipulation. The Winter Beast's hide wasn't just protected by natural durability—it was constantly generating defensive barriers that could deflect even legendary-rank weapons.

The Cackle Queen, recognising an opportunity, activated her Nightmare talent with focused intensity. Her psychological assault struck the Winter Beast's consciousness with visions designed to induce paralyzing terror, if only for a fraction of a second.

For the briefest moment—less than half a heartbeat—the Winter Beast's defensive coordination faltered as her illusions found purchase in his ancient mind.

Arthur seized the opening immediately, his enhanced reflexes allowing him to exploit the minuscule window of vulnerability. His katana found its mark, slicing through the Winter Beast's shoulder and drawing the first blood of their encounter.

The wound wasn't deep, the creature's legendary constitution prevented serious damage, but it was enough to prove that the Winter Beast wasn't completely invulnerable.

The massive creature's roar of pain and anger shook the entire domain, ice formations cracking under the force of his vocalisation. His ancient eyes blazed with fury as he focused on the Cackle Queen, recognising her as the source of the psychological interference that had allowed Arthur's successful strike.

"That crimson pest is becoming annoying," the Winter Beast snarled with deadly intent.

He raised his enormous hand and gestured sharply toward the Cackle Queen's position. A wave of ice shards, each one perfectly formed and moving at speeds that exceeded artillery shells, flew toward her with lethal precision.

Arthur's enhanced perception immediately recognised the deadly trajectory and responded with spatial manipulation that operated faster than conscious thought. He appeared directly next to the Cackle Queen just as the ice barrage reached her position.

Shing! Shing! Shing!

His katana moved in a blur of defensive strikes, each swing precisely intercepting the incoming projectiles. The ice shards shattered against his blade with sounds like breaking glass, but the force behind each impact sent shock waves up his arms that spoke of devastating power.

Crack!

All the ice shards broke under his desperate defence, crystalline fragments scattering across the frozen ground like deadly snow. But before Arthur could catch his breath or assess the situation, another wave of projectiles followed the first, this one larger and moving even faster.

Seeing that conventional defence wouldn't be sufficient against the sustained barrage, Arthur grabbed the nearby Cackle Queen's shoulder and activated his spatial manipulation with both of them as targets.

"Hold on," he commanded tersely.

The moment the legendary hyena made contact with him, Arthur teleported both of them to a position outside the immediate danger zone.