A dense SKITTERING sound, like a tide of death, surged from all directions and quickly surrounded Roland.
His eyes sharpened as he instantly locked onto the sound's source.
It wasn't coming from the crumbling ruins, but from the desolate, desert-like earth beneath his feet.
Countless tiny bulges were moving rapidly just beneath the surface, closing in to encircle him.
'Hiding underground, are they?'
Roland's eyes narrowed. Instead of retreating, his right hand shot out like a bolt of lightning and gripped the hilt of the sword at his waist.
SHING!
The Moonlight Longsword slid from its sheath.
But he didn't swing it. Instead, he gripped it in a reverse hold and, with unstoppable power, plunged it straight into the earth at his feet.
BOOM!
Blood-colored Fighting Spirit, like a long-suppressed volcano, surged furiously down the blade and into the ground.
