Chapter 39 - The Steel Shelled Turtle (1)

"Meeeow!" The little kitten's cries lasted a long while until finally, the little kitten felt a force pushing against her falling form, pushing against her and slowing her fall down of the seemingly never ending tunnel.

'Is this a spell?' The little kitten asked herself as she felt herself being eased downwards at a gentle and almost comforting pace. Eventually, as she looked beneath her, she saw an opening in the tunnel leading to a well lit room.

In seconds, her slowly falling form reached that rooms vicinity and she could finally gauge her new surroundings.

This was a rather small space compared to the corridor before. The room was around fifty cubic meters and was made all out of a marble-like material. On the walls were a few simple lit torches.

All of these aspects of the room were simply background to the most eye-catching aspect of the room, which was a rather large, around 10 meter wide turtle-like beast that laid dormant at the other end of the room.

This turtle Magical Beast had a large, solid looking metallic shell that held a soft azure glint. Its four limbs that protruded out of its shell were rather bulbous and its head glared intently at the newly arriving kitten with narrowed, threatening eyes.

"KRREEEEEE!!" The turtle Magical Beast let out a long, ear piercing screech at the little kitten.

The little kitten tried to block her ears with her two front paws clumsily as the turtles piercing screech continued on until it finally died down, in time with her paws landing softly on the marble-like floor beneath.

'So... I guess this is my opponent for the second part in my trial, huh.' The little kitten softly exhaled as her eyes studied the beast opposite her intently. Compared to this giant of a beast, her normally small form seemed even more tiny in comparison and she gulped involuntarily. 'This is going to be a difficult one, isn't it...'

"Of course, I've gotta increase the ante from the last test! Kekeke!" The Guardian Spirit's voice echoed around the small room. A second later, a red form materialised out of thin air in front of the silver kitten.

'So what is this turtle beast?' The little kitten asked as her sight moved from the newly arrived figure of the Guardian Spirit and back to the now strangely silently still turtle-like Magical Beast.

"That, my friend, is the Steel Shelled Turtle. A simple, but apt name. This beast is of the Metal Element and its shell is permanently formed by metal. I'm not going to tell you any more than that." The Guardian Spirit explained with a lazy drawl. "This test has been excruciatingly planned by myself to act against some of the weaknesses I have seen from your previous battle... So good luck!"

And like that, the Guardian Spirit vanished once more, leaving an astounded kitten behind.

The little kitten didn't even get time to process the Guardian Spirit's words when the Steel Shelled Turtle's loud screech echoed through the room once more. It had seemingly awoken from its previously paused state.

'Right into it, huh.' The little kitten smiled wryly. 'Oh well, who need time to think!'

The Steel Shelled Turtle was the first to act as it suddenly began to sing out a chant in a low, gruff voice that held a menacing air. The little kitten watched intently as she sang out a chant of her own, forming the 'Ravager Armour' over her lean form.

By the time the 'Ravager Armour' came to fully form around her, the Steel Shelled Turtle's own chant completed. When its chant ended and the spell went off, the little kitten was shocked to feel a rumble beneath her before a set of spikes suddenly sprung out directly under her!

These spikes shun with a metallic shine and looked extremely sharp. If she were to be pierced by these spikes, there was no question that they could pierce through her armour!

With clenched teeth, the little kitten leapt with all her strength into the air, managing to dodge those metallic spikes as they jutted out to full length, reaching around a full meter or two in length.

'That would pierce straight through my body!...' The little kitten gulped as her soft paws landed back of the marble floor from her small flight.

Yet, the little kitten was shocked once more when she noticed more spikes forming beneath her once more!

'But it didn't chant... Is this all one spell?' The little kitten grumbled as she clambered away to safety once more.

Looking at those metallic spikes behind her as they shoot out to stab nothing but air, the little kitten then turned her small head to the first set of spikes, only to find that they seemed to have dug back into the earth in the direction of the new set of spikes...

'Oh... Does that mean that those new spikes were the same spikes from before!' The little kitten came to this understanding, and as she watched those spikes, she found her theory to be confirmed when she saw those spikes curve and pierce into the ground. Soon, it would probably attempt to strike her once more!

As the little kitten dodged another attack from the metallic spikes, she suddenly let out a loud angry hiss. 'I can't just let this damned turtle keep chasing me with those bloody spikes. Take this!'

The little kitten sang a chant, and thereafter, a 'Celestial Claw' spell was quickly propelled forth, striking into the long snake like metallic spikes!

However, the little kitten was displeased to find that her spell did nothing but leave a hollow scar in the metal. It would take several attempts with precise aim to cut through this spike spell.

'Dammit!' The little kitten cursed. But her thoughts were interrupted by the familiar rumble beneath her feet. 'The spikes!'

Leaping into safety once more, the little kitten turned her attention to the Steel Shelled Turtle, which was glaring at her with blood thirsty eyes.

'If I can't cut through your metal, then I'll just go directly to the source!!' The little kitten growled in thought as she sent off a chant-less 'Celestial Claw' attack. 'Can't give it time to dodge!'

Screech!

The sound of the 'Celestial Claw' spell arcing through the air. Soon, four white lines of aura were threatening down upon the Steel Shelled Turtle.

In response to this threat, the Steel Shelled Turtle let out a shrill screech before suddenly its head and four limbs retracted into its metal shell. Its actions didn't end there though, as shockingly, a metallic surface closed up those open gaps in its shell, fully covering the beast inside!

'What?!' The little kitten's eyes opened up in alarm. 'This...'

The 'Celestial Claw' struck the metallic shell where the Steel Shelled Turtle's head should have been, but only ended up cutting up four shallow claw marks in its metallic shell.

'My 'Celestial Claw' spell is useless like this!' The little kitten thought in despair.

The worse part was that the Steel Shelled Turtle now refused to leave its shell, simply opening the front gap of its shell so that it could see its prey. With its glaring eyes keeping a watchful gaze on her, the beast continued to send those metallic spikes after her.

The little kitten dodged another attack before charging into the turtle's left side, to an area where the turtle couldn't see her!

'Now, it'll probably have to take out its arms and legs to move and find me!...' The little kitten's eyes gleamed in satisfaction. '...And when it does, that's when I'll strike!'

The plan would have went well, if only the Steel Shelled Turtle had reacted like the kitten had thought...

'I-Is it really just going to lie there?...' The little kitten cried sullenly.

As the little kitten watched on, prepped to strike, the Steel Shelled Turtle just simply stayed still, not moving a single muscle.

'Okay then, let's try this.' The little kitten sang out a chant once more. This time, she summoned the power of the 'Sky Piercing Arrow'! 'The 'Sky Piercing Power' has a much stronger penetration power than the 'Celestial Claw' spell. Maybe this can pierce through this turtle's damn shell!'

Gritting her teeth, the little kitten ordered her 'Sky Piercing Arrow' forth. The metallic arrow charged forth at great speed, whistling through the air in an arc.

Bang!

The sound sound of metal striking metal. Yet, the 'Sky Piercing Arrow' simply bounced off the Steel Shelled Turtle's metallic shell, resulting in only a small shard being cut off.

'Heh... As I thought, its not enough...' The little kitten looked on with a sullen expression. 'What can I do...'

She was currently at a stalemate. With her being unable to damage her enemy and her enemy not taking the risk to move itself so it can attack her...

The silence in the room was broken by the Guardian Spirit who suddenly spoke up. "Kekeke, I wouldn't sit there twiddling with your non-existent thumbs. This test will now have a five minute time limit, good luck!"

'A-a time limit?!' The corner of the little kitten's mouth twitched. 'This... I've used all the attacks I can... The 'Wandering Glow' will do nothing to it either, its way too small to burn through its thick shell!... Also, this beast has got to be a Major Magical Beast... And probably a Mid Stage one or higher as well...'

The little kitten let out a long, pained sigh as her brain got to work, thinking of her few options...

The only positive she could find so far, was that the beast was giving her plenty of time...