Is this really a Game?!

As Reign's transformation ended, his wings fading away, his body turning back to normal, he felt the heavy toll of the battle settling. His body hurt, every single muscle was sore, screaming at him for rest while his mana reserves were nearly depleted after all the powerful attacks he had used.

It was Reign who was responsible for the swift deaths of the two abominations after all, not to mention the fact he had killed one abomination by himself, without any help.

It was what had to be done after all, the system had given them this trial based on their capabilities, and they were all well aware that it was Reign alone who could turn the course of the battle, and make them the winning side.

He was the only one who was not only powerful enough, but also fast enough to decimate his own opponent before reaching another group quickly to help them out, and then do the same for the third one.

Without him, there was no way they could win. Perhaps they could have all charged at one abomination together, trying to overwhelm the monster before killing it, but that would have cost them time as they would need to move from one monster to another, all the while they were being besieged by the horde.

Not only that, but there was a chance the other three great abominations would have moved, either grouping together or actually charging at them while they were fighting the first one.

They were certain that the system wouldn't allow an easy victory, whatever they did, the system would have made sure to make the trial as dangerous and difficult as it could be, no matter what course of action they took.

They were all actually quite unlucky in this battle as they had all chosen the wrong opponents.

Had Wolf been in the team fighting against the ape, his flames would have been able to deal a lot more damage to it.

Had Jin been the one leading the battle against the scorpion, he would have been able to deal immense damage to it simply because the chitin, although it would have been able to defend against the explosions, wouldn't be powerful enough to defend against the shockwaves that would have definitely dealt damage to its insides.

The monster Wolf was fighting against was actually a perfect opponent for Reign. It was huge, and even though it was quite fast for its size, it was still not as fast as the other monsters, not to mention that the scales, as durable and tough as they were, had small gaps that Reign could have exploited in battle.

With his great speed in the Nephilim form, he would be able to win, although the battle against the monster would have taken a great toll on him, much more than the battle against the giant it had faced did.

The giant would have been great for Mia, as well as for Beast and Laura. The former could use her frost very effectively as the giant was actually weak against that element, something Reign didn't know as he didn't have the ability to use frost or ice, while Laura and Beast could have used their long-range attacks quite reliably against it.

Even though its earth manipulation would have made the battle difficult for them, with Beast's tamed beasts present, they would have found the battle much easier compared to the scorpion.

In fact, all of them had gone to fight the one monster that had powers that could counter theirs, which was the only reason the battle was taking this long, and was this arduous.

Reign was the only one to notice that, simply because he was the only one who had managed to defeat an abomination by himself and observe the other fighting, noticing the strengths and weaknesses of the monsters they were battling against.

Still, the reason he went to help Jin and the others, and not Wolf, was because he was certain that Beast and Laura would be more effective against the abominable chimera Wolf and the others were facing than the gorilla.

Luckily, Wolf and his team had managed to do more damage to the monster compared to what Beast and Laura had done to the scorpion, or what Jin, Aelrinder, and Shadow had inflicted upon the gorilla.

That was because Greenie and Tank were a good match for the chimera, and Wolf and Mia's combined attacks proved to be quite effective.

Still, Reign gritted his teeth, his muscles aching with every breath as he glanced at Jin, Aelrinder, and Shadow, who were barely standing as their marks dissipated as well. The monsters could sense it, their weakened forms, their eyes glowing with anticipation as their grotesque mouths were wide open, foaming at the mouth as they imagined how good the humans would taste.

"We're not done yet, come on, we have to defend until Wolf and the others take that thing down, we need to survive." Reign growled as he lifted his swords with trembling arms before discarding one and holding one with two hands, which was the only way he could effectively fight right now.

"How long do you think we need to last?" Shadow asked as he stood up, his arm useless, his breath heavy and difficult thanks to the broken ribs.

"As long as they need to defeat it, a couple of seconds, maybe a minute." Reign stated as Aelrinder winced.

"We won't last longer than 30 seconds, and that is me being quite generous."

"I know, which is why we defend, no need to try and slaughter these things, we can barely put up a fight against them anyway."

"Here they come," Jin said as the four of them stood back to back, forming a small circle as the creatures encircled them. They could all sense the danger that was coming their way, the immensely difficult, and dangerous battle they would now have to survive.

The creatures started advancing, the weaker ones charging without a care in the world as the abominations slowly moved forward, staring at the four with calm expressions.

"They're biding their time, still not sure whether we can kill them or not," Jin said as Reign smiled.

"That's good, gives us a bit more time."

"Yes, but I doubt it will take them long to notice how weak we are right now." Reign said, his heart pounding in his chest while his mind raced for possibilities. They couldn't just fight head-on, they had to survive long enough for the others to defeat the last abomination, but it wouldn't be easy.

Suddenly, a deep roar echoed through the battlefield, the monsters stopping dead in their tracks, frozen in fear and shock as they all stared west, including Reign and the others.

They stared at a giant head that was visible from hundreds of meters away bleeding, a fountain of blood splurting out as a giant blade that was icy blue on the outside, but purple inside, almost decapitated the monster.

The ice then melted, and flames lunged forward, devouring the head as the monster started trashing about, multiple more attacks landing on its body as a giant flood dragon bit its side, and a wyvern came from above, landing on its back, trying to break through the scales at once.

"It won't last much longer, and luckily, their transformations are still present." Shadow stated as Reign nodded.

"Mia has a double mark, and Wolf has one given by a Peak God, it's not a wonder their marks will last a bit longer."

Just as they finished talking, the monsters attacked, the smaller ones jumping on them. Reign and the others barely had time to react, and started cutting them apart as they came close, a small hill quickly forming around them as they decimated the weak creatures that could do them no harm even in their weakened states.

Alas, the abominations noticed their weakness and attacked as well.

Their formation was quickly broken, with Reign being grabbed by one large abomination that tried to swallow him whole. He was struggling in the mouth, holding it from closing down on him with full strength as his lightning started flickering around him, charring the inside of the mouth, causing the monster to roar in pain and open its mouth, allowing Reign to jump out, but not without a price.

As he jumped out, slower than he usually would, the monster's jaw closed, and Reign suddenly felt cold. He glanced back and noticed that his left arm was gone, severed from the elbow.

Shadow on the other hand was pierced by one abomination's horn, his face pale as he was grabbing on the horn, life escaping him.

Jin's chest caved in as a small abomination appeared in front of him, and mimicking him, punched him with full force, sending him flying back, only for him to be caught by multiple weaker creatures that tried to rip him apart with their bare hands.

As for Aelrinder, he was currently up in the air, thrown by a bull-like abomination that struck him from below during its charge, its horn managing to mangle his body, his spine nearly broken, blood flowing down as he started falling.
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And at that exact moment, as they were all near death, a notification sounded out, and time seemed to freeze.