On the high ground, Rena's smile stiffened.
It twisted into disbelief.
Things had been going perfectly.
He was seconds from watching Alina and her crew be devoured by the Corpsefiends.
Then reinforcements had to show up out of nowhere.
The ridiculous part? The reinforcement was someone he knew. Roland!
His mind flooded with questions.
When did Roland ally with them?And how did Roland suddenly get dozens of fully armed subordinates?!
Failure. But at least I caught Roland red-handed. Consorting with bandits!In the Tulip Empire, that's a death sentence!
Rena made his decision instantly. He suppressed his aura. He prepared to melt into the deep forest.
He reached the dark side of a giant tree. Just as he was about to move, the hairs on his neck exploded upright.
"?!"
A frigid, bone-deep killing intent locked onto him. It clung to him, refusing to let go.
This feeling...It's like being targeted by a venomous snake coiled in a dark abyss.
"Who?!"
Rena spun. He drew his sword in a reverse grip.
The blade's clear ring was swallowed by the battlefield's chaos.
His eyes, sharp as an eagle's, scanned every surrounding shadow.
No one.
Only the rustling of leaves in the wind. And the terrible shriek of a warhorse being torn apart by Corpsefiends nearby.
An illusion? No. Rena's heart was pounding.
The killing intent hadn't vanished. It grew thicker. It was almost a physical chill, threatening to freeze his blood.
Cold sweat beaded on Rena's forehead. His sword hand remained steady.
"Playing tricks!"
Rena steeled himself. He focused his aura. With a flick of his wrist, a sharp wave of sword-qi slashed into the shadows. The attack only left a deep gash in the dirt.
Where are they?
Rena's pupils shrank. This is bad. He had to run.
But right at that moment! An impossibly beautiful woman appeared silently in the shadows.
Rena's mind went blank for an instant. What the hell is this monster?!
Fear seized his heart. He didn't even have time for a second reaction. Violette was already moving.
Her movements were impossibly fast. Yet they held a strange, dance-like grace.
Rena only saw an afterimage. He instinctively raised his sword to block.
He hit nothing but air.
Violette's form was like a ghost. She wove through the shadows once more.
Rena couldn't track her at all.
One moment, she was in the shadows to his left.
The next, she vanished into the bushes on his right. Every flicker stretched his nerves tighter.
This isn't a fight.She's toying with me!
"Bastard!" Rena roared. His aura erupted. He swung his sword in a wide arc, hoping the indiscriminate attack would force her out.
But it was too late. A sudden chill grazed the back of his neck.
Violette was behind him. It was like she had never moved at all. Her blue eyes were flat, staring at him like he was already dead.
Rena froze. He could even feel the faint warmth of her breath. He wanted to turn. To fight back. To beg...
But Violette just raised her hand, fingers held stiffly together.
A soft thud.
Violette's hand chopped precisely onto the back of his neck. There was no great blast of energy. No deafening roar.
Rena's eyes went blank. They rolled back in his head. He crumpled, captured instantly.
Violette casually grabbed his collar, like lifting a dead chicken.
She shook the dirt off him in disgust.
Then she began dragging him back toward Roland.
...
Elsewhere, the battle was decided.
The slave army led by Roland himself was like a hot knife through butter. They tore a gap straight through the flank of the Corpsefiend horde.
On top of that, Alina's warriors had reformed their ranks. They were beginning to gain the upper hand.
He ignored the scattering monsters.
He charged straight to the giant tree where Alina was pinned. The mage in the tree was pale as paper. Sweat soaked her clothes.
Not bad. She was definitely well-built.
Alina looked up at the approaching man. Her eyes were still full of vigilance. Roland ignored her guarded, humiliated stare. He reached out. He gripped the shaft of the "Glimmerstone Arrow" stuck in her shoulder.
"You...!" Alina managed one word. Roland yanked.
Schlick— The arrow was brutally pulled free.
"Urk...!"
Alina grunted in pain. A spray of blood shot out. She trembled violently, nearly passing out.
She only just managed to cling to the tree trunk. Her vision blackened from the pain.
Just when she thought she was going to die, a small, cold vial was tossed at her.
It hit her in the chest. She instinctively caught it. Roland had pulled the healing potion from his coat.
"Our alliance still stands."
"Stop the bleeding. I need you alive."
Alina gripped the potion. It was still warm. This man...
Alina licked her chapped lips.
Without hesitation, she pulled the cork and downed the potion.
It wasn't poison.If he wanted to kill her, he wouldn't need it.
A cool, warm current spread through her.
Her depleted sea of mana began to refill.
She leaned against the trunk, gasping for breath.
Then she shouted, "Hey! Don't let your guard down!"
Roland paused, but didn't turn back.
"The bastard who lured the Corpsefiends here hasn't been caught!" Alina's voice was weak but fierce.
"That guy is hiding deep, he's the one..."
Her words trailed off. Sh... shh... The sound of something heavy being dragged came from the forest to their side.
Wood and the others nervously raised their weapons, aiming at the sound.
Just then, a figure emerged from the dark woods.
Violette smiled at Roland. She was dragging an unconscious man. She stopped in front of Roland.
Thump.
Violette tossed her burden. The unconscious scout, Rena, landed at Roland's feet like a sack of trash.
The color that had just returned to Alina's face vanished.
She and her men stared, dumbfounded.
This beautiful woman... where did she come from?
And the man she's dragging... isn't that the damn knight?!
The one responsible for all of this!
Alina looked at Violette's bright smile.
She wasn't a mage.
She was a Bloodline Awakener!
And a high-level one at that!