The Siegfried Clan and the Norvas Corps continued fighting on the wrecked Arsolo Stronghold.
"Surround them! Surround the bastards! Let none of them escape!", ordered a bare-chested warrior to his subordinates.
"Listen to Elder Garrold's orders! Flank those shitheads over there! And you, back that squad at the far front!"
The warriors from each side clashed head-on, banging their shields and striking their swords upon their adversaries.
One of the Siegfried Clan members sneaked out of the entrapment and made his way to the southern exit.
"Shit, catch that rat!"
The warrior was nimble and traversed the pathways while eluding the pursuit of his enemies.
'Can't catch up with me!', the warrior thought until he heard a loud growl from a beast. The last thing he saw was a white-striped feline beast pouncing on his frozen figure.
"Ahhh!", he shouted as it bit his shoulder and left a huge gaping wound.
The beast then continued munching on his face while he was alive. This scene horrified even the battle-hardened warriors.
A few more feline beasts jumped out from their hiding spots and ambushed their unsuspecting prey.
"Wh-what are those beasts doing here?!", Elder Harald was frightened. Dealing with the Siegfried Clan was exhausting. If the beasts came here to wreak havoc as well, they might die under their ferocious assault.
He jumped atop the roof of a broken stone house and shouted, "Everyone! The beasts have arrived and are here to help us! Do not be afraid and coordinate with them as much as you can!"
His short message enlivened the exhausted will of his subordinates. They shouted in unison before charging back against the traitors.
"Your subordinates sure took their time.", Arahon sniggered from the sides, "Are the beasts in the northern lands this clumsy?"
Harrtugg Naaw snorted, "I'll teach them a lesson in the future."
The arrival of the beasts under Harrtugg Naaw drastically shifted the balance of power to the utter disadvantage of the Siegfried Clan.
Filled with howls from both humans and beasts, the stronghold showered in blood once again.
"Whew! Good thing they were distracted by their fights!", Lucan merrily walked while princess-carrying Olivia back to the Siegfried Mansion's great hall.
He was trying to uplift the mood because the cold girl was glaring at him.
'Hey, hey now! I'm trying to get you to safety and this is what I get in return?!', her response annoyed him.
He then realized that the longer he ignored her, the angrier she got.
'Come on, why are you looking at me this way?! I need to get to where Emi and the rest are before she loses her temper for whatever reason it is!'
He opened his map and located their position.
"Emi!"
Emi was tending to Solordo who was sitting on the floor with his back on the wall. His dragon armor was long gone and a trace of it could be found sticking on his skin.
She turned her head and the two of them, "Oh, brother Lucan? Sister Olivia?"
Haera went over to Lucan and gestured for him to put her down. She put her fingers on Olivia's right wrist and checked her vital signs.
"How is she… uhm… sister Haera?", Lucan worried.
Haera sighed in relief, "She is exhausted of mana and passed out but don't worry. She will be fine. Passing out is a common symptom when mages as young as her lose all the mana inside their bodies."
Lucan and Emi were both relieved as well. There was nothing to worry about for now except for the chaos outside.
"It looks like everyone here has gathered.", Jinmu's silhouette showed up from the dark.
"You-!", Lucan jumped in fright, "Please, don't do that again! You'll scare me to death!"
'Heh, now I know this bastard is scared of the dark.', Jinmu silently mused.
"Brother Jinmu, you've come back!", Emi stood up in excitement.
"Not only me.", he shrugged.
A tall figure of a brunette demi-human appeared from Jinmu's back and ran towards Emi.
"Emi!"
"Bi-Big Sis!", Emi stuttered as the figure of her big sister Akane flashed right before her eyes.
Akane stopped and slowly took her steps and carefully stared at her little sister and the other one had done the same.
This was a scene that neither of them thought would happen in the slightest of chances. Tears streamed from their eyes before Akane's emotions erupted and she ran away.
She embraced Emi without hesitation, gripping her little figure tightly, and hoped she wouldn't disappear.
Jinmu silently appeared beside the rest of the group and said, "Hey, let's not interrupt their reunion. Pack up because we're going back to the entrance after this."
The three nodded subconsciously. Haera carried the sleeping Olivia on her back and they silently exited the great hall.
"Big sis…"
Akane let go of Emi and smiled, wiping off the tears from her little sister's face.
"Emi, you've grown bigger and more beautiful. Big Sis is proud of you.", she remarked.
"Big Sis, that doesn't matter now. I was worried when I saw what happened back home. I thought you died. I thought I won't be able to see you again."
Emi's tone was a little muddled because she kept sobbing while staring at Akane.
"It's alright now. I'm here, okay? You don't have to be worried."
Emi nodded and hugged her again.
"Shush, you're always a crybaby, you know.", Akane patted her back coupled with some chuckles.
"You can't blame me, big sis. I just can't bear to not see you again…"
Elation filled Akane's heart, "Okay, okay. Big Sister won't be away now, hush…"
They embraced each other for a while until their emotions stabilized.
"Big sis, these injuries… wh-who did it? Don't tell me it was that man named Erik?", Emi was angered.
Akane's fair skin was filled with scars of lashes and cuts. With trembling hands, the big sister grabbed Emi's head and forced it to look straight back at her.
"Emi, listen to me. Whoever did this, they will pay soon for what they have done. Okay? Now, let's go where your seniors are. They might be waiting for us.", Akane insisted.
Emi wanted to argue but her sister's firm grasp of her hand stopped her from doing so. They exited the great hall and went into the passageway where they saw the rest of the group waiting.
Jinmu turned his head and asked, "Is everything done?"
"Yes.", Akane nodded, "Thank you again… for saving me."
"Don't worry about it.", Jinmu waved his hand, "You'll have more chances to talk with one another after this chaos is finally over."
"Say, Jinmu. Why do you want to move outside of the Stronghold?", Lucan asked, "Shouldn't we gather together with the people of Norva Assili?"
"Look, those people might be looking for us and our answers to our presence in this incident.", he added.
"Don't be a dumbass. We still haven't seen the presence of that demonic creature who is the mastermind of this incident.", Jinmu coldly replied.
"Well, isn't that even a greater reason to join them?", Haera backed up Lucan, "If we split up, the demonic creature may target us knowing that you are part of the Heavenly Magic Academy. Nobody would be there to defend us when the time comes."
Jinmu shook his head, "The demonic creature won't bother going after us. Even if he did, Elder Flock will protect us from harm. You shouldn't underestimate an archmage like him."
"Moreover, that demonic creature's time is running out. It won't be long now for him to show up any time soon."
"And at that point, he will want to wreak as much destruction as possible before he is taken down. If he still wants to pursue us, it will only be a waste of time and he won't get whatever he wants.", he answered with great confidence.
They arrived outside the entrance when the system prompted.
[ Warning: A powerful sound wave is approaching. Please go back inside and cover your ears tightly. ]
Jinmu's eyes widened and quickly turned around, "All of you, get back and cover your ears!"
"Wh-what happened?", Haera was confused.
"Don't ask, big sister! Just, ah damn it!", Solordo grabbed everyone and dashed to the inside of the mansion.
"Someone cover Olivia's ears!", Jinmu ordered.
"On it!", Solordo engulfed her ears in dense dark mana.
A second later, a loud shout shook the entire stronghold, putting everyone down to their knees and feet.
Many bled in their ears, unable to protect their eardrums on time.
'Wh-what was that shout? It shook everything including my damn soul!', Jinmu cursed with blood dripping on his mouth and ears.
The group tried to recover but the sound hurt their bodies badly and their muscles couldn't even twitch.
"Tha-that might be… Olivia's father!", Lucan spoke in anger. This careless father of hers had implicated them for the second time.
"Can… anyone else move?", Solordo managed to get up.
"You think we can?!", Jinmu's face darkened.
"Oh, it seems that you can't."
Seeing the muscle-brained idiot shake his head worsened Jinmu's expression. However, the next scene terrified them to the core.
"Hehehe… What a surprise indeed."
A low demonic voice echoing from the heavens fell to the ears of everyone present in Arsolo Stronghold. The intimidation and horror etched on its words were powerful enough to demand subservience from those who heard it.
"I-I can't- move!", Solordo complained while gripping tightly on the handlebar.
"Playing with these petty humans never would give me the satisfaction I need! You're all useless, utterly useless!"
The demonic voice echoed again, now emitting a strong pressure that flattened everyone to the ground.
"Are your teeth only made for barking, demon dog?", an elderly voice mocked. It was no other than Elder Flock.
The demonic voice interrupted and rapidly threatened, "Blasphemous old fucker! You want a taste of my bite?! Here, have a piece of it!"
Two large dark beams fell from the heavens, warping the space around them. One headed to the battlefield while the other headed to the location of the wounded warriors of the Norvas Corps.
The mightiest of warriors couldn't fathom blocking nor dodging the attack. The pressure from the dark beam itself was too powerful for them to contend against.
"Som-somebody do something!", Elder Harald was aghast.
Unfortunately, nobody could gather the courage to move.
Right as he thought he would die, time slowed down to a crawl.
A small petal of light flashed a few meters above his eyes before quickly expanding into the shape of a hexagon and wholly encompassing the size of the approaching dark beam.
Despite the thinner size of this shield made from light, it clashed full force against the demon's attack. The shockwave from the impact downed the remaining warriors who were standing and the result exasperated the demonic voice.
"You can't hide forever!"
The dark beams that were stationary in its direction of attack suddenly changed their trajectory in hopes of bypassing the light shield.
The shield followed the dark beams flawlessly, as if it had its brilliant mind, and proceeded to block the beam's advance wherever it went while leaving a trail. The dark beams attempted to split into numerous smaller ones, but the light shield held to it like glue.
From above, it appeared as though the black and white lines were racing against each other, with the latter having the advantage.
The witnesses to this spectacular phenomenon had their mouths gaped wide open. Utter awe and shock ran through their na?ve minds.
'Is this… the power of an archmage?!', Xerga was lost. Even his brother couldn't dare do this in scale, speed, strength, and precision, much worse against a true demonic creature.
The demonic voice snapped and withdrew the dark beams.
Elder Flock grinned and continued mocking the demonic creature, "Your teeth aren't sharp enough demon! Try again!"
"So I will until you die!", the demon replied.
A few seconds later, the skies darkened and the air shook ferociously. The sky above the entire Arsolo Stronghold formed into a vortex and within it, fell a humungous dark beam.
"Doomed! We're doomed!"
The sight of the beam itself knocked many unconscious. There was no way they could get out of this alive.
'Can he do it? Can that archmage do it?', Xerga clutched his heart in hope.
"Petty tricks! Can't you act more authentic, demon?!", Elder Flock's comment shocked everyone, "Greater Divine Shield!"
The space warped again.
The trail of lights that Elder Flock left behind combined into a single large shield, encompassing the same size as the dark beam. Its brilliance shone brighter and those who lost hope felt their minds uplifted and brimming with optimistic thoughts.
With an upward flick of his hand, the large shield rammed into the dark beam and clashed. The divine and the demonic essence fought each other in a life and death battle.
It kept on a stalemate until Elder Flock channeled the divinity in his body and chanted loudly.
"Divine Repellence!"
The shield flashed brightly, blinding everyone.
Under the commotion, the last thing they heard was a progressively loud warping sound, and when they opened their eyes, the sky had already cleared up and everything returned to normal.
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