"What's going on!" The girl walking beside Wain exclaimed as she looked at the massive laser burning the ground and the woods.

"What I was talking about. Now you realize that you would definitely have died if you had stayed in the fortress just a little while longer." Wain said and lowered the girl he was carrying to the ground.

They had already moved a few hundred meters away from the fortress, but they could still feel the heat from the fire as if they were in the middle of a bonfire.

"You will get to the village on your own. It's time for me to go back."

"What? Do you want to go back there? Isn't it dangerous for you?"

"It is, but I'm sure it will be over soon. Good luck." Wain said and ran toward the fortress.

...

"Damn, I didn't know Zariel had such powerful skills. My information was incomplete." Keith shook his head disappointedly.

"Huh, you should be glad you're alive at all." Osvald said suddenly.

"What? What are you talking about?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Osvald raised an eyebrow, "He was able to brute force some of the space and get out of here. Don't you think that wouldn't be enough to kill you and all your illusions?"

Keith's eyes went wide, he realized that he just might have died without realizing it. It was a real failure for him since he thought he had always been ready for anything and nothing could hurt him as long as he used the Form.

"Then why didn't he do it...?"

"It's obvious. Even though the asshole is arrogant, he actually cares about his people. He used that skill to save them, otherwise, he would have done it to kill you."

Keith nodded. He realized that he was being careless, and Zariel was not as easy as he thought. He was driven not only by pride but by other deeper feelings and principles.

"Mr. Keith, are you all right?" Undeads ran to him. In the battle with the Angels, they had received only a few scratches and faint burns. They got off lightly.

"Yeah, don't worry about me."

While Keith was talking to his men, Wain reached the battlefield.

'Damn, it didn't look so bad from the outside.' Wain said inwardly.

He looked at the scorched fields and forests, there was nothing left of the grass and trees, only ash. It looked as if a branch of hell had appeared here.

"Wain! You're okay, that's great. I thought that pyromancer hit you too." Osvald walked over to him.

"No, I was away from the laser, but I was still hot. How did you stay in one piece? Didn't the laser hit you?"

"Huh, it's nothing to me. So, is it time to move on?" Osvald asked and looked up at the tree.

"I don't mind, after a little rest, but I think we have a new problem."

"Hmm?"

"Look." Wain pointed to the top of the tree.

The only way to the core was through the outer barrier, and the barrier's weak point was at the top, near the thunderclouds. The clouds had dissipated because of the battle and the last massive explosion, and nothing else weakened the barrier.

"Damn... By the way, Wain, if you want, we can leave right now."

"Ah?"

"Space still hasn't fully recovered from the explosion, and I can punch a hole, and we'll be home in a few minutes."

Wain looked at it, which still had cracks, and shook his head.

"No, we've been here too long and done too much to leave here empty-handed. As before, our goal is to get to the core and absorb Soul Pearls."

"Great attitude!" Osvald smiled and patted Wain on the shoulder.

Keith walked over to Wain and Osvald.

"Are you having trouble with the barrier? I think I can help you with that."

"You want to join us?"

"Sure. Mr. Osvald, I don't claim much, we'll make it fair, we'll split the pearls 50/50."

"Not a bad offer, but I have a better one. We split 70/30, and it's out of the question." Osvald mouthed, and a faint but very powerful aura emanated from him.

Keith wanted to object, but he quickly realized that Osvald was not someone he could condition.

"Sure, that's more than enough."

"Fine. How are you going to break the barrier around the tree? I warn you, I don't have enough strength for that. The barrier recovers too quickly, I don't have time to do enough damage."

"It's not a problem, but it will take my partners and me a while to get everything ready, about a day, though I think we all need a rest." Keith said and gave a command to his men.

"Sure. Then we'll be back at dawn."

"Good." Keith nodded and headed for the barrier.

...

Wain and Osvald returned to the village for a while. All of the girls successfully returned home and finally felt safe. They were all traumatized, but that was behind them, and they needed to move on.

Irma and the Old Man expressed to Wain and Osvald a special thank you. They couldn't have even imagined that Wain and Osvald would be able to handle all the Hunters in the fortress and clear it.

"How nice it is here, after all." Osvald drained the bottle of wine and sighed with pleasure.historical

"Yes, but it's boring, and the feeling that we're locked in here keeps me awake. I hope Keith and his men can make it before dawn."

"Don't worry. He sure knows his stuff."

"By the way, Osvald, that Angel called you Dragon Slayer, is that true? Did you kill a dragon?"

Wain was in awe of the power of these powerful creatures. Wain had only seen a dragon once, and then he felt an extraordinary rush of strength as if his heart had stopped.

"It did, but don't ask me to tell you about it. I won't do it."

"Why?"

"Because I won't be able to pick the best story out of a dozen."