Cain could feel the demonic energy swelling inside Kayden, he was about to unleash something big. Selena instinctively jumped back upon hearing Cain’s voice.

With a quiet rumble, a dark mist covered Kayden’s body. The mist started to inflate and swell rapidly like a foam explosion.

[Hallucinatory Terrain] When Cain came to realize it, they were inside a dark forest of dead trees and molded ground. The place had a horrific stench and bone-chilling cold. The trees seemed to wave and twist with the wind giving anyone who stares at them nausea. Kayden was nowhere to be seen.

“This is an illusion, don’t be tricked!” Cain screamed, but it was too late. Selena didn’t enough intelligence to break through the spell and see reality. Her head started spinning and she was stumbling around like a newborn kitten.

Thud! Kayden appeared behind her brandishing his sword. “Die!” Cain didn’t have enough time to fly and block his attack to save her so he was forced to shove her aside with an [Earth wall]

“Why do you keep going after them?” Cain screamed as he launched a [Lightning strike] at him. Kayden dodged it immediately and rushed at Cain in an instant.

“Of course, I will kill the stunned ones first!” Kayden replied even Cain didn’t want to hear an answer. Kayden first attacked Alice since she was the healer and now he attacked Selena because she couldn’t move.

“Just die!” Cain swung his lightning sword as fast as he could blink, and Kayden easily deflected them all. Even the attacks that Cain made from angels that were impossible to block, Kayden just snapped his joints and deflected all of them.

‘Damn it, damn it. This 20-strength and 20-dexterity combo are ridiculous. I have to break this illusion or Selena wouldn’t be able to help me.’ Cain found himself stuck in a deadly loop of him attacking and Kayden blocking his attacks.

“We should help him!” Sofia said as she was about to jump from the 40 feet tall tower.

“Wait, we should help the villagers. Someone has to take care of the remaining bandits!” Alice yelled at her. She knew that Sofia could somewhat fly with her flames but it seemed dangerous jumping from such a high place.

Earlier when She was attacked, Alice wasn’t able to neither see nor feel anything. All she saw was a flash of blue light and Selena jumping from the tower. She knew that they were too slow to react to that demon’s attacks, they will only slow Cain down.

Alice quickly grabbed herself and the rest and climbed down the tower. Lexi’s parents were still calling out, what is happening?

“We will explain later, for now just hide inside!” Sofia yelled as she rushed toward the village gate Cain made yesterday. Less of a gate and more of a choke point where the bandits have to get inside slowly. Alice and Gracie quickly followed after her while Lexi stayed to explain what little she knew.

She did struggle to explain what she saw, the red dragon was an ally while the black one is an enemy. The demon who is supposed to be the bandits’ leader is fighting Cain and Selena inside the black dome to the left. The other bandits are attacking the village so the other three went to fight them..

Her father looked confused for a moment before bringing his woodcutting axe. “I expect a better explanation later, you stay inside for now!” After closing the door on his wife and two daughters, he hurried into battle after Alice and Sofia.

Gracie took the front being the only decent melee fighter, Sofia was running around shooting any bandit that pass through the gate with [Firebolt], and Alice then finished them off with her cursed aura, The moment they stepped in their burns will start rotting killing them from bleeding and severe pain.

Everything looked to be progressing smoothly, as long as they kept preserving their MP this fight was an easy win. Sofia might not have the stomach to burn someone to death. Both Alice and Gracie had no problem sending someone to the grave slowly.

Then a small problem arose, a bulky bandit rushed in. He could take a beating so he might break their formation. Gracie stepped in to kill him directly, she usually just finish the bandits who were burning but now this man could fight back.

“Fuc*ing maid?” He swung his sword at her. Gracie bent to the side and dodged. Followed it with a slash at his wrist. The bandit dropped his sword to save his hand and tried to deliver a kick.

Gracie nimble jumped over the kick. She didn’t give him any time and sent a slash at his throat but the bandit took a step backward, grabbing his sword once again.

Sofia and Alice were busy clearing the other bandits so Gracie was alone in dealing with this one. “I gonna fu*king kill you!” The bandit charged with a wide swing, his movements were predictable so he just stood in place., the moment he got close enough, she kicked a nail to his crotch.

The bandit screamed in pain but didn’t stop, the nail had missed the vital parts by a hair strand.

“Caught you little nimble bit*h!” He managed to grab her in a bear hug. That was nothing like a hug as she felt her rib cage getting crushed, it was getting harder and harder for her to breathe.

“If I can’t hit, all I have to do is catch once and never let go until you die!” He growled as tried to crush her to death. He was staring into her half-dead eyes when he noticed something scary.

The maid that was in his arm got suddenly eaten by darkness, her body flowed through his arms as if it was made of smoke. “What..” Before he could finish he felt a knife digging through his throat. [Shadow cover]

“Master would be proud,” Gracie said as she cut the bandit’s throat. She used shadow cover to jump inside his shadow and exit behind him, she then sliced his throat.

As the man was twitching toward death, she looked toward Alice and Sofia who were still fighting. As she tried to go toward them to help she felt a cold hand stroke her cheek.

Just that sensation made Gracie’s hair stand, her body trembled in fear. “It’s years since I saw you last!” That voice alone paralyzed Gracie in place, all but this one, she could never remember emotions but this feeling was familiar. Terror!

“Huh? Did someone erase my slave bind? Don’t worry, I will restore it immediately.” Meliliana whispered in Gracie’s ear.

The moment she touched the link, It was too hot to grab. HOOOONK! She could hear the ear ringing sound of a horn getting blown. “The horn of purga..” Before she could finish. Sofia gave her a flaming kick to the face.

The succubus rolled on the ground, Before she could come to rest, Sofia came in with another batch of fire BANG! She stepped on her head and grind it on the ground. And finally kicking her toward the wall.

Alice came rushing toward Gracie, the men of the village are now holding the bandits back so came to help. “Are you..” Alice didn’t need to finish her sentence, Gracie who never showed the slightest emotion is now shaking in fear. Her face twisted as tears dripped from her eyes, her legs couldn’t muster enough strength to carry her.

Seeing her like this, something switched in Alice’s head. Her horns emerged and her wins flapped under her cleric cloak. Her sinister aura covered the whole place to the point it was hard to breathe. She started to slowly walk toward Meliliana. The soil she stepped on by her right bloomed with life and grass grew even though it was cold, the soil she stepped on by her turned black and rotted away.

..

On the other side of the battle, Spindle was busy doing a dangerous mission. Dragging the unconscious Selena out of Kayden’s spell. That was no easy task. Selena was too heavy for his small body to drag and the place wasn’t peaceful.historical

Looking above he could only see a lighting bolt flying in every direction possible and dragging something at its tip. Cain and Kayden were clashing at lightning speed. standing there was deadly.

After struggling a lot, Spindle finally managed to drag her outside when felt something even more sinister. It was a feeling that he remembered from hell, “An upper-rank aura?” He gasped looking in that direction.