Undead Beast Master: Living Solely for My Desires

The mighty waters of the deep ocean trembled under the sheer power of the meteor shower.

Each one, a rock of devastating proportions, caused the atmosphere itself to ignite at the moment of impact. Mushroom clouds of hundreds of meters rose high in the sky, air filled with toxins polluting the air.

Waves that could threaten to swallow whole cities rose in circular patterns, some going to do just that while others clashed with their brothers, caused by the other meteors.

The darkness of the night was gone, replaced by the intense orange hue of the sky and the blinding explosions that shook the very foundation of the earth on each impact.

The calm ocean waves were no more. Now the scene mirrored a bloody battlefield — nature against nature, devastating any living being that was unfortunate enough to be caught in the legendary clash.

The shockwaves created by the impacts were storming akin to a nightmare, their sheer might strong enough to travel deep in the ocean water, shaking the very bottom thought unreachable by many.

Zaroth and Vera on that bottom felt the change as well. Their very bodies shook from the clash that was happening above them, trying to seep to their current location and turn them into paste.

Yet they didn't have the luxury to worry about what was happening afar. Instead, they were forced to deal with the problem in front of them.

Namely, the air was running out, and while this didn't trouble the undead beasts, it threatened their own master and the Oracle.

'Sand,' the moment the serpent reached the bottom, its body scraping against its surface, it relayed the information to its master.

'Luna, do it!' he barked, eyes glowing, core straining to the limit as he summoned her as well.

Her mighty dragon form appeared in the waters, maw already open as she unleashed a deadly fire.

The sand didn't stand a chance — some was blown off to the side before being turned into glass by the devastating temperature, other parts of it didn't even have the chance to do that, being stuck at the bottom.

In a matter of seconds, a glass dome of about ten meters in diameter appeared, enclosing both Zaroth and Vera.

"Ah!" Zaroth cried, letting go and dispersing the circle of flames he had kept all this time.

One problem had been taken care of — the glass dome was going to protect them from the deep waters. Thanks to its thick structure, it wasn't going to give out against the pressure caused by being so deep underwater.

The biggest problem, however, remained: they were still in desperate need of air. The flame dome hadn't managed to contain enough oxygen to last even a single day.

'Shit,' Zaroth cursed inwardly, forcing his body to breathe as little as possible. He was in an exhausted state, yet he couldn't afford to waste the little precious air they had left just because he was tired.

Unlike him, however, Vera was still in top condition, her mind working perfectly as always.

"There!" she shouted, finger pointing to the darkness.

The serpent flared its nostrils. It had learned to trust the Oracle at least a little, so it went where the woman wanted it to.

A volcanic vent — that was the thing she had been guiding them to this whole time.

It gave off both oxygen and toxins harmful to the human body. Usually, this wouldn't have been able to save them. However, the serpent had been living in a volcano before. It had a certain mastery of lava, magma, and its properties — that included the smoke they emitted as well.

Taking a staggering volume of harmful air, its body filtered out any kind of deadly substance before transferring it to the glass dome.

The moment it did, Zaroth took the greatest gasp of his entire life, then turned to his side and began to cough violently.

Both his mana core and his body had been under monstrous strain, having to function while their very essence had been taken away from them.

The situation might have lasted just a few minutes, but to him it felt like an endless torture that has no doubt shortened his life by a few years at least.

'If my hair wasn't already white, I would have at least a few strands of white hair by now,' he thought, trying to keep himself positive despite the stress.

An explosion after explosion continued to resonate at the ocean's top, shaking the very bottom.

The glass dome trembled under the power, yet it managed to hold, not letting the deadly water enter and doom the Beast Master and the Oracle… for now.

While the dome continued to shake due to the impacts above, the two stood in silent darkness.

Just like how he had discovered previously, his skill Darkgaze wasn't able to see past darkness caused by the deep water for whatever reason — resulting in him and Vera finding themselves in the embrace of the shadows.

"Do you perhaps have a light?" Zaroth asked, not sure where Vera was sitting in the dome. He didn't want to use fire to light up the place, fearing the air was going to become too polluted.

A soft sigh echoed and a warm light appeared in Vera's right palm.

"I have learned a few light skills when I was still in the academy," she replied softly.

It was only natural. While Zaroth had been only a first-year there, she had been a fourth one, already officially graduated just like Sofia. She was a few years older than him, so she has had the time to learn a few skills the normal, slow way.

"Thank you," Zaroth flashed her a smile. Both knew that the light could spell trouble, attracting sea monsters toward them, but in the moment, their mental health was important as well. Plus, Zaroth betted that every single being in these waters was hiding due to the meteor shower happening above.

Zaroth sighed and summoned his partner, then just like intended, she brought the titanium bed from her shadow. The truth was, while the glass dome was useful in keeping them alive, it was very uncomfortable sitting on it. Even uneven ground of an mountain sounded like a better idea to be sat upon.

With tired steps, he approached it and sat upon it.

A flicker of relaxation flashed on his face, eyes landing onto Vera.

He patted the bed softly. "Come and sit here, the glass ground must be uncomfortable for you as well."

She tilted her head to the side. "Can't you at least get dressed?" she asked.

Due to the situation, Zaroth had once again forgotten he had been naked after spending a night with Luna. With a silent curse, he quickly dressed himself and changed the bed sheets to be on the safe side.

Not long after, the two found themselves sitting upon the bed while the sounds of natural clashes echoed from far above, causing the dome to tremble ever so slightly from time to time.

"Thanks," Zaroth broke the silence. "For coming with me. You were right — had I been alone, I would have died by now, that is for sure."

Vera simply nodded, her white mask never leaving her face, keeping her emotions a secret.

A hesitation passed over his face for several seconds, until he pushed past it and turned to her once more.

"You once said that you have the same goal as me, right?" he asked, just to be sure.

"Yes," she answered simply.

This was the moment to ask the question that had haunted him ever since taming Luna.

"Then… you're an Oracle. You must know something others don't. You must be able to answer my question."

His voice dropped, darker now.

"How does one go about killing a god?"