“Oh? So you’re still hanging in there, huh? Well, stubbornness only gets you so far. That gash in your stomach is going to bleed you dry eventually. I can tell you haven’t mastered healing magic. Is that because you’ve been too cocky? Confident you’d never get hurt, so you didn’t bother learning how to heal yourself properly?”
It was a naive mistake. I’d never seen someone wield a power dampener as a weapon before. This was all new to me—getting injured mid-battle, the Guardian vanishing because its usage was limited. I was starting to realize I wasn’t as untouchable as I thought I was.
I gritted my teeth and tried to soothe the gash with healing magic. It was just basic healing, enough to numb the pain but not enough to close the wound completely.
“What you’re doing is pretty strange. You don’t stand a chance, so why bother fighting? I guess that’s just your stubbornness. Not that I don’t get it—I’m a stubborn girl myself.” Sara said, licking the blood off her dagger. My blood. “Mmm, you taste amazing! I want to slice you open and taste all of you! I can’t wait to slit your throat and drink every last drop!”
She lunged at me again, and I couldn’t react in time. She was too fast, and by the time I realized it, I felt a sharp slash across my shoulder.
“Ngh?!”
The pain was unbearable.
It burned like fire.
“Well, looks like she’s about done. Do whatever you want with her,” Sara sneered.
The people around me closed in, ripping at my clothes. My mind was slipping into unconsciousness, and even though their touch disgusted me, my body was growing numb. If this was how it was going to end…
I pressed my tongue between my teeth. If I had to be violated here, I’d bite through my tongue first.
My last thought was of Master. I remembered telling him I wanted to have pregnancy sex with him. We were going to do that, but now… it wasn’t going to happen. I’m sorry, Master.
Just as I was about to bite down, I saw someone fly through the air.
“Gabrielle!” someone shouted, followed by a series of explosions.
Scarlet appeared, hovering above me, her hands launching bursts of energy, blasting away the people surrounding me.
“Jeez, thank God that Natasha woman woke me up to find a patient. Looks like you’re the one in need of saving!”
Scarlet landed with a thud, the ground cracking under her weight, and with her metallic arm, she punched the men holding me down. Her hits were so powerful they flew back like ragdolls.
She was about to grab me when—
“Keeeh!” Sara lunged at Scarlet, her blade slicing through the air with deadly speed.
Scarlet’s metallic arm shot up, blocking the strike with a loud clang. Sparks flew from the impact.
“Oooh~! A metal arm!” Sara backed off, her tongue sliding along the edge of her blade like a predator savoring a kill. “I’ve always wondered what metal tastes like. Does it taste like blood? Metal and blood kinda taste the same, right? I wanna taste you.”
“Are your screws loose or something?” Scarlet growled, her eyes narrowing dangerously. “Or is this just how people are around here?”
She glanced at me, and I gave her a quick nod.
“I see… so you’re just like those infected freaks from my world,” Scarlet sneered, her grin growing wilder, more savage. “I’m gonna fuck you up real good!”
“Oh really?! Come on, try it!”
They didn’t waste any more time. Both of them lunged at each other with savage intensity, colliding mid-air. Scarlet’s metallic fists crashed into Sara’s dagger, sending shockwaves through the ground. The sound of metal striking metal echoed loudly, while Sara darted and weaved, moving like a demon as she unleashed a storm of slashes. Each one was aimed with lethal precision, but Scarlet held her ground, matching Sara’s speed with raw power.
Every time Sara backed off, that twisted grin stayed plastered on her face, like she was relishing the chaos. And, to be fair, Scarlet wasn’t much different. That wild look in her eyes, that manic grin—it was like they were both addicted to the fight.
I winced, watching the brutal exchange while I tried to heal myself. The pain pulsed through my body, but my magic helped numb it, at least for now. But then—
KABOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The ground shook violently beneath me, the force knocking me back. I turned just in time to see a massive explosion erupt from the heart of the Capital City. Flames spiraled into the sky, forming a monstrous mushroom cloud. The shockwave hit like a freight train, blasting the air around me and whipping my hair into a frenzy.
“Master…” I whispered, thinking of the man I loved. He wasn’t in danger… right? I believed in him, and I knew he had faith in me, too. But still, there were always things beyond our control—like the suicide bombing in Leonamon or me getting defeated by Sara. Anything could go wrong for Master, just like it had for me.
Worry twisted in my gut, but my body was too weak to move. My head spun, the world blurring around me. Darkness crept in at the edges of my vision, and before I knew it, I was out cold, collapsing onto the ground.
***
A little earlier…
Leon’s POV
Sesillian was still in the middle of his grand speech, spreading his arms as if that would make his words more powerful. But all I could focus on was how, to me, he looked like a woman. Every time he spread his arms wide, those big tits of his bounced. Not that I was fixating on them or anything…
“Now then! Have you all accepted that darkness alone should rule this world?!” he bellowed, his voice booming across the ballroom.
“Yes!”
The crowd answered him in perfect unison, their voices ringing out like a cult chant.
I glanced over at Rose, standing next to me. She was starting to fall under Sesillian’s influence, her eyes dulling as his mind manipulation took hold. I quickly wrapped her in the Guardian’s aura, muffling the sounds around her and blocking out Sesillian’s control. At the same time, I layered on some Illusion Magic to make sure no one could see the Guardian.
“If you have… then how about we get the real party started?” Sesillian grinned, his voice dripping with malice.
Right then…
“Kuk…! Krruuckkk!” Three people in the crowd started convulsing, their bodies twisting unnaturally.
