Master Of Astral Summoner

Chapter 221: The Last Line of Defense

Theo turned his face away and refused to look at either of them. Lightning began to course across his entire body. In the blink of an eye, he vanished, leaving only crackling arcs of electricity dancing through the air.

"Lira... what should we do now?" Chelsie clutched Nalira’s arm tightly, her face pale with worry. "Sir Walter is incredibly strong, and Theo doesn’t stand a chance against him. We can’t leave him there alone."

Nalira slowly walked away. "...Just let him go. He made his choice. Why should we help him?"

Before Nalira could take another step, Chelsie grabbed her hand. "No. We have to help him," Chelsie said, trying to convince Nalira. "Um... even though he said that, but... I know he still needs our help."

Nalira stared at Chelsie with a blank expression. "Why would you help someone who openly insulted you? He hasn’t treated either of us with any respect."

"Uhm... you’re right, Lira." Chelsie lowered her eyes for a moment. "But... I believe there’s a reason Theo acts like this." A gentle smile appeared on her face. "I’ve always believed that everyone deserves a chance to change."

She looked into Nalira’s eyes. "Don’t you think so, Lira?"

Hearing those words, Nalira fell silent. She had never expected to meet someone as kind and genuine as Chelsie. By all logic, Chelsie had every reason to hate people. Others had bullied her countless times and constantly looked down on her.

Whenever someone insulted her, no one stepped forward to help. Yet despite everything she had endured, she still wanted to save someone like Theo. People like Chelsie hardly existed in a world this cruel and selfish.

’Someone like her deserves protection.’

"Lira, are you listening to me?" Chelsie waved her hand in front of Nalira’s face. Her brow furrowed. "So... what do you think of my idea? Are we going to help Theo?"

"...All right." Nalira nodded. "We’ll help him."

"R-really?" Before Nalira could say anything else, Chelsie wrapped her in a tight hug. "Thank you, Lira. I’m so happy to hear that."

"We don’t have much time. We have to go after Theo right away, this very moment."

"Uhm... I understand."

***

Theo sprinted toward the cathedral gate at full speed. After a glance around, he confirmed that everything remained quiet. Neither the traitor nor that bastard of a Resistance leader had noticed him. Good. Everything had gone exactly according to plan.

"I’ll make those two bastards pay."

With unwavering confidence, Theo tightened his grip on his sword and swung it in a single, swift motion. He had no doubt the two bastards would fail to dodge. The distance between them had already closed to almost nothing. This attack gave them almost no chance to escape.

"Now die, you bastards!"

However, just as Shaan was about to slash at both of their necks, Sir Walter easily blocked Shaan’s slash. This instantly stunned Theo. With a speed like that, it seemed impossible to parry his attack. Sir Walter didn’t even try to dodge the attack; he used his fingers to block Theo’s strike.

"W-What...?" Theo’s face turned pale as he struggled to pull his sword free. "What the hell did you do, old man?!"

"You really think I’m that weak?" Sir Walter tightened his grip on the blade and looked at Theo with calm, almost disappointed eyes. "You’ve underestimated me, boy."

Instantly, cracks began to spread rapidly across the blade’s surface, slowly shattering Theo’s sword. Theo gritted his teeth and poured every ounce of strength into his arms. With one violent yank, he finally tore the sword free.

He drove a punch straight into Theo’s abdomen. The impact launched him through the air like a cannonball.

"Argh, d-damn it!"

Theo’s body slammed into a nearby stone wall with a thunderous crash. In an instant, his mouth was filled with blood. His entire body immediately throbbed with pain as Theo took the blow. Damn it. He never imagined that the crazy old man would still have the strength and stamina like this.

"Oh?" The Resistance leader glanced at the injured Theo with little interest. "So, it’s only a troublesome rat." He turned toward the cathedral. "We don’t have time to play with vermin. We have more important matters to attend to."

"I understand, Commander."

"D-Damn you!" Theo forced himself back onto his feet and glared at them with burning hatred. "I won’t let you get away! I swear I won’t!"

"Walter," the Resistance leader said without looking back, "I’ll leave this little pest to you." He continued walking toward the cathedral entrance. "I have more important business inside."

Sir Walter’s lips curled into a faint smile. "With pleasure."

The resistance leader completely ignored Theo’s words and walked through the cathedral gates along with several other resistance members.

Theo, seeing this, immediately flew into a rage. His hands instantly trembled with fury. Once again, Theo focused all his electrical energy and launched a barrage of attacks at Sir Walter.

’Bastard! How is he dodging every single attack?’

Theo launched one attack after another at Sir Walter. However, Sir Walter avoided every attack with effortless precision. Each missed strike drained more of Theo’s mana. Before long, his breathing grew ragged, and his movements slowed.

"Ah, it seems you’re already running out of strength," said Sir Walter with a smile, noticing Theo’s movements beginning to slow down. "And I haven’t even started fighting."

"W-What?" Theo frowned. "The hell are you—"

Before Theo could finish his sentence, Sir Walter vanished.

A split second later, he appeared right in front of Theo. He immediately struck Theo’s leg, breaking through his defense with a single kick. Instantly, Theo fell to the ground.

"Holy sh— H-How are you so fas—"

Before Theo could get back to his feet, Sir Walter immediately kicked him in the stomach. In an instant, Theo was sent flying with tremendous force, smashing into a row of wooden crates surrounding him.

Theo drove the cracked blade into the ground and forced himself upright."I... I have to beat that bastard..."

"Theo!" Chelsie sprinted toward him, panic written across her face. "Please stay still. I’ll heal your wounds."

"...Theo," Nalira asked as she hurried over, her eyes scanning the area. "Where’s the Resistance leader?"

"H-He..." Theo struggled to remain standing, but his legs gave out beneath him once again.

"Argh..."

"He already went inside the cathedral."

"Theo, don’t move," Chelsie said as she knelt beside him and placed a trembling hand on his shoulder.

"I’ll heal you."

"You two need to go after the Resistance leader," Theo said through gritted teeth. "Don’t let him take control of Twilight Sanctum."

"B-But how?" Chelsie’s face turned pale as Sir Walter slowly approached them. "Sir Walter won’t let us pass... and neither of us is strong enough to stop him."

She returned her focus to her healing spell, its gentle light flowing from her hands. "I’ll keep healing your wounds."

"...Elsie, listen to me." Nalira gently rested a hand on Chelsie’s shoulder. "I’ll keep Sir Walter occupied." She drew her sword and stepped forward."You have to chase the Resistance leader. Stall him for as long as you can."

"B-But... are you sure that’ll work?" Chelsie lowered her head, uncertainty filling her voice. "Besides... I don’t even know if my father will listen to me."

"He’s still your father," Nalira replied. "If anyone can reach him...it’s you." She tightened her grip on her sword and fixed her gaze on Sir Walter. "Right now, we don’t have another choice." Nalira took a slow step forward, placing herself between Sir Walter and the others. "Now, go. Before Twilight Sanctum falls into the wrong hands."