"Let's move quickly, while this Miranda Flower is still asleep."
Morgott surveyed their surroundings. Aside from the Great Miranda Flower's deep slumber, the Lesser Miranda Flowers were mostly preoccupied, sprawled over various animal carcasses and absorbing nutrients.
"No arguments here..."
Mohg glanced back as he spoke. If he had already mastered his Curseblood or Bloodflame abilities, he might have considered picking a fight with these things—after all, the Miranda species was notoriously weak to fire.
Having reached a consensus, the two crept along the wall on tiptoe, inching their way toward the exit.
Mohg had expected another chaotic encounter, but to his surprise, the escape was exceptionally smooth. They successfully navigated around the thick, sprawling vines on the ground and emerged into the open without incident.
"Phew... finally, I can breathe freely again..."
Morgott shook his head and let out a long sigh of relief. While the toxic spores hadn't caused them significant harm, the constant exposure had still been a strain.
Mohg nodded in agreement, though he felt a slight twinge of regret. While the Miranda spores had that numbing side effect, at least that area didn't reek of the typical sewer stench.
"Let's keep moving and see what's up ahead."
Mohg stretched his limbs and began walking forward. However, just as he rounded the next corner, his body suddenly jerked to a halt.
His eyes widened in sheer terror as he stared straight ahead. His entire expression screamed a single message: Don't you dare come over here!
"What is it?"
Morgott, completely oblivious to the danger, walked up behind Mohg and tapped his shoulder in confusion.
Mohg didn't say a word. He simply used his eyes to signal toward the path ahead.
"Hm?"
Morgott looked over, and his breath instantly hitched in his throat.
In a rare moment of perfect synchronization, the two brothers swallowed hard simultaneously. They began to back away on tiptoe, inch by agonizing inch.
But they were a second too slow. Two massive prawns positioned ahead had already locked onto their silhouettes.
Thud!
"Hiss!"
Mohg realized this was the first time he had ever heard a prawn let out an angry roar.
Without a moment's hesitation or a second thought, Mohg grabbed Morgott and bolted straight back toward the Miranda Flower's toxic mist.
Splash! Splash! Splash!
Hearing the rapid, heavy splashing of water behind them, Mohg and Morgott's legs moved faster than they ever had before—they were sprinting so hard their heels were practically smoking.
In their frantic flight, they had no time to watch where they were stepping. They trampled directly over the Miranda Flower's sprawling vines.
These vines served as both a nutrient-absorption tool and a sensory alarm system for the Miranda colony. Faced with such a violent disturbance, the Great Miranda Flower was jolted awake from its slumber.
As the saying goes, animals often have a "waking-up temper," and as a hybrid species that blurred the line between plant and beast, the Miranda Flower was no exception.
Faint, brilliant white specks of light began to coalesce around its body, forming streaks of light that resembled falling stars. Though these objects looked beautiful, they contained terrifying energy—a power inherited from the era of the Primeval Crucible.
Just as the white light around the flower reached its peak, the thunderous splashing of water arrived.
Mohg and Morgott couldn't care less about the flower's impending attack. If the Miranda Flower wanted to hit them, that was a problem for a few seconds from now; being caught by those two giant prawns was a problem that would end their lives instantly!
The two massive prawns charged into the toxic mist and were momentarily dazed. Their confusion didn't last long, however, as they laid eyes on a rotting carcass of one of their own kind.
Having lost sight of Mohg and Morgott, the prawns found a new target for their aggression. While they didn't feel "sympathy" for their fallen kin, they possessed a keen survival instinct when faced with a species capable of hunting their kind!
"Hiss!"
With a piercing screech, two high-pressure water jets, carrying immense concussive and piercing force, slammed directly into the Miranda Flower.
Shatter—
Suffering a sudden, heavy blow, the Miranda Flower writhed in agony. Two gruesome, gaping holes appeared in its tough, fibrous stalk, and thick green sap began to pour onto the ground.
Enraged, the Great Miranda Flower ignored the fleeing Mohg and Morgott, focusing its entire arsenal on the two prawns.
The brilliant white light rained down from the air, pelting the prawns and leaving terrifying dents in their hardened carapaces.
Meanwhile, the Lesser Miranda Flowers swarmed forward with suicidal bravery. Their roots lashed out, attempting to coil around the prawns' bodies. This wasn't because they were fearless, but because they had no choice under the mother plant's control.
Soon, green vines had completely entwined half the body of one of the prawns. Even the massive claw that the prawn tried to raise was dragged down to the floor by the weight of the vines.
Seeing its opening, the Great Miranda Flower swayed violently, releasing clouds of highly concentrated pollen toward the two intruders.
The remaining prawn used its lower limbs to prop up its upper body. It raised its two massive pincers and slammed them down with a roar.
Boom!
Crash!
The deafening sound caused Mohg and Morgott to look back. They saw a wall of churning sewage surge upward, instantly smothering the surrounding pollen.
Through the chaos, the brothers finally saw the state of the battle.
The two prawns, who had briefly been on the defensive, were reclaiming the advantage. The disparity in raw strength between the Miranda species and these prawns was simply too large. The vines of the Lesser Miranda Flowers were too fragile; as they constricted, they were severed by the sharp edges of the prawns' armored shells.
However, the Great Miranda Flower's retaliation was still formidable.
Its massive floral crown slammed down, dealing a heavy blow to the nearest prawn. One of the creature's giant pincers suffered visible damage, cracking open to reveal the snowy-white meat within.
Bang!
After another thunderous boom, the prawn that had been pinned to the ground managed to break free.
Its massive claws snipped through the thick vines surrounding it. It tilted its head back slightly, and white bubbles began to froth around its mouthparts.
The Miranda Flower began to tremble violently. It started frantically diffusing pollen in every direction while simultaneously gathering that terrifying white light once more. It was clearly preparing for a final, desperate struggle against the two predators.
Seeing this, Mohg and Morgott stopped running and began to watch from a safe distance.
Perhaps... they could scavenge the remains when the dust settled!
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My : https://[email protected]/AuAuMon
Elden Ring: As the Consort, I Reject Miquella (129 Chapters – Ongoing)
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