Solo Cultivation in The Apocalypse

Its two yellow eyes popped from the river, its skin looked slippery due to the water. It had a few blocks of ice on its tentacles and it was bigger than a normal octopus, bigger than Hitori.

Kamiya healed Hitori\'s wounds, the bite marks left a scar below his eye, one on his forehead, and a scar on the back of his head. Kamiya clicked his tongue and stopped healing.

The monster tapped its tentacle on the river shore. Hitori grabbed his eye and turned to the octopus monster.

The air felt colder than normal, was it due to fear? Hitori removed his hand from the eye and reached for his wand.

"Save your mana, Kamiya," he said, as he grunted and ran towards Kraken.

p "Hitori!" Kamiya shouted, then clicked his tongue. "You are being reckless."

"I know what I am doing," he whispered, Kamiya could not hear it.

From the eight tentacles Kraken had, it pulled four tentacles out of the water, two to keep it on the surface, and two for an emergency.

Hitori was at the river\'s shore when Kraken threw two of the four tentacles at Hitori.

Kamiya joined from behind, he fired a fire spell. The fire bounced off the tentacle and disappeared in the river.

"What the fuck is its skin made of?" Kamiya lowered his wand. He decided to get close to the monster.

Hitori paused himself on the snow-filled ground. He lost his balance for a moment, regained it, and fired at the monster\'s head. "Petrify!"

Kraken swung its purple color tentacle and blocked the spell from hitting its head. But the spell petrified its tentacle.

Kraken had no problem breaking its tentacle by smashing it on the ground like a hammer. Its tentacle shattered as if a hammer was smashed on a stone.

Hitori realized it has regeneration ability. He needed to do something different to beat the monster.

He had never fought a river or sea monster before, he had not met any water monster ever. All he had fought were humanoid monsters-- elf, minotaur, Duergar, goblins, and wolves.

He had no idea how to defeat an octopus monster. He found Kamiya constantly firing spells at the monster, but it did not let a single spell hit its head.

They were wasting mana. Hitori did not have to make a move, he needed a plan to kill it, mana would not work.

Hitori was lost in his thought when Kamiya shouted, "Watch out!"

His voice echoed in the forest. Hitori turned to face Kamiya behind him but found a tentacle mouth approaching him to devour.

Hitori lit his hand on fire, he swung it towards the tentacle. He was not expecting much, he just wanted to buy some time.

Hitori tilted his head, Kamiya stopped firing a spell, and they watched. They watched as the tentacle closed its mouth and moved away from the fire.

Hitori stepped forward and stretched his hand. The tentacle moved further back. He glanced at Kamiya with a grin.

Kamiya clenched his wand and turned to the monster. He raised his wand at the monster\'s head.

"Why?" Kamiya wondered, "Fire does not hurt it, then why?"

But he had more to do than worry about it. It stepped back, it was scared, that was their mission, it was accomplished.

Kamiya lifted his wand. "Electrify!" he shouted as he swung his wand.

A blue beam of electricity sparkled at Kraken, it could not dodge it with its tentacle this time, its focus was on something else.

It screeched. It was a screech loud enough for Senso to hear it. He stopped, his feet pushed the snow into a pile. He lifted his head and looked around.

Jiyara shouted at the students and used the same spell as Senso to quiet them. They were still shouting and yelling but no one could hear them. The teachers were happy with the action.

He looked at his junior and another mate. "We should head back," he said. They nodded.

They left the porch (entry to the forest) and teleported to the cabin.

He saw the screen glowing, the alarm was off. "Oh shit, shit, shit!"

He pushed his chair and took a seat, then he moved his fingers across the keyboard.

"Fuck!" He went for his wand. "Atama-sensei, come in. Fucking hurry! It is an emergency!" he shouted, but no reply.

"Jiyara... what is it?" he heard his mate behind him. He glanced at him, then turned around to let his mate take a look at the screen.

He leaned forward, towards the screen, and his eyes popped out. "W-What the... i-is it going for a hunt?"

"Bingo." Jiyara nodded. "A lottery for it." He pulled his wand to his lips again. "Senso-sensei, do you copy?"

"Y-Yes, Jiyara, I copy." Senseo was surprised to hear him. Jiyara would contact Atama-sensei, why him? "A-And I heard a screech, can you confirm if it was the monster?"

"It WAS the monster. And that is not it. You are meters away from the teens and the half white-dragon is no more than fifty meters away from them."

His mouth dropped open. He had to tell Atama, he had to teleport if he wanted to reach them. He had to. He turned around, he knew Atama was just right there standing behind him, and just as nervous as him-- okay, maybe not that nervous.

Senso turned. "Atama-sensei, the dragon had reached them, we would need to teleport..." his voice faded.

His heart jumped. Atama was with him, he was assured it would be alright as long as Atama stays with him. They both could take down the white half-dragon easily, but the fear of the unknown remained.

But when he found cold air and fog behind him, he stuttered. "Uh... Jiyara... where is Atama-sensei?" he asked. "Can you track him?" he asked in a deep, serious voice.

"What?!" he cried, "what are you saying?" he asked as he navigated the screen to track Atama\'s position. "Sir, did you forget you need to look out for your partner?"

"He is the strongest warlock alive, do I need to do it?" Senso nervously looked around.

"Fuck, how can he disappear?" Jiyara spotted the blue dot. It was there, meters away from Senseo. And... not moving at all.

"Found him... or should I say I found his card... ONLY."

"Where?"

"Meters away from you. And he is standing still, no, it is not him at all, it is just his card."

"Card?"

"God..." Jiyara dropped into his chair.

His mates were nervous and scared more than Jiyara and Senseo were.

"Damn... you three are colinear. The teens are meters away from you, near the partition; you are in the middle, near Mahoutokoro; and Atama-sensei\'s card is lying near the Ministry\'s building. This is messed!"

Senseo had no way. "I am going. Look out for Atama-sensei."

"Huh? No," he said, "you are not going anywhere. You are not---"

"I sure as hell am!" Senseo shouted and disappeared.

Jiyara was frozen, staring at the wand in his hand, then his hands started trembling. He chuckled. He put his wand on the table and pushed his hair back.

He leaned forward and grabbed his head in his right hand, hair pushed back. He closed his eyes and muttered, "His shout is still scary as hell..."

Kraken was planning for a counter, it had pushed its tentacle behind Hitori and Kamiya.

But when the electric shock fell on it, it whipped its tentacle in Kamiya\'s direction. It swept Kamiya, grabbed it from behind, and started moving to the water.

Kamiya shouted. His spell broke and Kraken was railing its prey.

Hitori aimed at the monster. "Koros!"

The brown-bloody beam hit the monster it screeched again but this time, it turned off. Its screech was cut off in the middle.

Hitori stood steady, he wanted to make sure it was dead. "Koros! Koros!" He fired the curse again.

But he did not realize he was hurting someone else. "S-Stop it…" Kamiya groaned. "I-it is coiling around me tightly!" Kamiya grunted.

Hitori stopped, the tentacle was still moving, it was squeezing Kamiya, and he was trying to push it, burn it, freeze it, petrify it with his hands on it.

Thankfully, the tentacle did not open its mouth. Hitori put his wand in the scabbard and raced to Kamiya who was in pain.

Not more than twenty meters away, a humanoid creature took a step in the snow. The white scales on its foot mixed with the snow. And the snow did not seem to bother it at all. It opened its snout, saliva danged from its teeth, and its whiskers bounced.

It rolled its reptile tongue inside, its tongue was a pink glint compared to its white body. It inhaled the air, the fog compressed and entered its mouth.

The white half-dragon held its breath and stepped close to its prey. Then it opened its mouth and released the cold wave.

Hitori strode to Kamiya as he reached for his neck, he pushed the hoodie\'s neck and grabbed the key chain with silver chain.

It took around two seconds for the dragon\'s breath to travel fifteen meters and reach Hitori. He paused in the middle, his hand around his neck, and his face turned pale.

Hitori hesitated again. It was close, he felt as if he was making out with a girl and she was breathing in his neck, moaning and groaning as she tightened her arms around his back. It felt that close.

"H-Hitori…" Kamiya\'s weak moan snapped Hitori out of the captivate fear.

Hitori grabbed the katana in his hand, then he snapped the katana with a jerk. The chain came off the hook and fell over Hitori\'s hands. He stopped near the tentacle and lifted the katana, then he paused.

\'How do I use it? Is this its normal size?\' he wondered, \'or is this a small– a tiny– a miniature katana?\'

Hitori pinched the handle in his thumb and index finger. It was too tiny to even be used like this. \'Just how does it works?\' He forgot to ask.

Kakashi forgot he had to tell Hiro\'s disappointing son about this. He assumed Hitori might know how to. But he did not.

The dragon took another step. Its mane made of scales went down to his thick white tail that swept the snow on its way.

It was in no hurry. It knew its prey can not run from it. It knew it will eat a human for the first time in a few years. It knew this chance can not be wasted.

Senso teleported as close to them as he could. His best was a hundred meters away from the duo. "I have never been near the partition. I better clear the major side of the forest rather than clear near their border."

So he had to run the rest of the hundred meters. He wanted to make sure he was straight on the path, he contacted Jiyara. "Am I on the track, Jiyara?"

"Yes. You are on the track. Atama-sensei is standing still– heck, I can not find him. And the half-dragon is only seven meters away from the teens."

"And what about Kraken?" he asked, still running.

Jiyara hesitated. "Uh… according to the law of the jungle, the Kraken should have fled when it sensed the dragon from hundred meters away, but…"

"But? Does it dare to fight the half-dragon?"

"It would not be able to even if it dares to… i-its mana… is fading."

Senso applied brakes. "What?"

"Y-you are not going to believe it but… yes, I think those teens managed to kill Kraken. It is losing mana, almost has, and it is dying."

"Dying? Impossible!" He started running again.

"Told you… you would not believe it." Jiyara sighed, he saw Senso running to the site as fast as he could without trying himself.

The white half-dragon was only five meters away, it was grinning. It opened its mouth and rolled its tongue again. This time, it would not be a cold wave, it would be a freezing wave.

Hitori shook the katana. "Come on!" he shouted. Kamiya was getting crushed by the tentacle.

The octopus was wet and the electric shock reached its head but could not harm its brain. Hitori cursed it and that was it. The weak curse reached its four hearts and brain, damaging them and hence killing it slowly.

Kamiya\'s spell damaged one of its hearts. Hitori used the curse three times (coincidently) and killed the other three hearts.

The slow painful death was what triggered the monster to coil its tentacles. If you would look around you would find every tentacle was curled into a coil. Of course, the tentacles could still move but not as powerful as they could when they grabbed Hitori\'s head.

"Oh, hell!" Hitori shouted and threw the katana on the tentacle.

The dragon inhaled the fog and held its breath.

When the katana touched the tentacle, gravity acted on it, and it fell on the shore, right in front of Kamiya. The only difference was the katana\'s size.

Hitori was relieved that the katana had finally enlarged. He still did not realize how it did but it did, that\'s what mattered.

His smile faded the next second. The katana was rocking on the side of an ice block, a little here and there, and the katana would fall into the river.

He wanted to prevent it, anyone would so he bent to grab the crimson-blood color katana from the dark red handle.

The fog had cleared around them so when Hitori bent, he saw blue liquid around the katana\'s blade. He frowned. The katana balanced itself on the corner.

Then, a drop of blue liquid fell on the blade. Hitori hesitantly raised his head and saw blue blood dripping from the chopped tentacle. Blood gushed from the corners and fell on the blade, moving it lightly.

Hitori followed the tentacle, he looked at the shore. Kraken\'s chopped tentacle was falling into the water along with the sinking monster.

The katana started rocking again. Hitori leaped for the katana but in an instant, the chopped tentacle still attached to Kraken regenerated and opened its mouth.

Hitori panicked, he jumped back. The mouth grabbed the blade and pulled the katana into the water. The Red Dragon Slayer disappeared into the dark water along with the monster.