Chapter 35: Close Call

'I did it! I killed him!'

Zowie happily thought. He felt like he achieved something big. His heart was overflowing with pride and arrogance.

'Hmph! What's the big deal with Integrateds anyways. If my brother can kill them, I can kill them too!'

But when he opened his eyes, his heart was shaken to the core. He saw that the Duke was looking at him angrily, like he was an Asura that escaped from hell.

His face looked hideous. He was so angry that his face wrinkled. His eyes were bloodshot and his pupil was overflowing with bloodlust. The bloodlust was like the rapids at the river, relentless and suffocating.

His aura was cold and felt like the ocean. It gave one the feeling of being stranded in the middle of a stormy seas.

The surrounding wild energy was scared by the aura and didn't dare to get any closer.

"YOU!!!! YOU ALWAYS FORCED MY HANDS!!! I'M GOING TO DROWN YOU!!!"

*Splash*

Currently, the Duke's chest was illusory, as if he had become water itself. His heart was pierced with the light rod but it was slowly regenerating.

This was the natural ability that almost all Integrated have. They can turn themselves into an element and heal themselves with the same element. However, Zowie didn't know about this, because he hasn't fought with any Integrated yet.

'H—He's still alive!? That's impossible! I— I swear I pierced his heart!'

Zowie was shocked. He has not experienced this kind of event yet, nor has he heard of it.

But before he could even think of what to do, the Duke had already made a move. With a sword in his hands, he raised his arm and swung it with all his might.

The gem in the sword lit up and released a deep blue brilliance. Afterwards, a deep-blue blade of water was catapulted from the tip of the sword.

The pressure inside it was so heavy and the speed was as fast as lightning. The aura it was releasing was so concentrated that it felt like a river.

*Swoosh*

The air split because of the speed, and the sound barrier seemed to have been broken.

Zowie felt his heart racing in fright. His forehead was swearing and his pupil was shaking. His hands were shivering and he felt a chill in his spine. The killing intent of the Duke was suffocating him.

Subconsciously, Zowie desperately tried to escape. His energy was as fast as light, faster than the Duke's attack. Zowie quickly moved and molded his energy into runes that can imbue his body with light.

Dim runes surrounded his body at the speed of light. It was already completed in just 0.000,1 seconds.

'[Solar Arts: Bright Incarnation]!'

Zowie desperately screamed in his mind. The runes on his body shined with brilliance and embedded in his body. His hair turned illusory white and his body became as fast as light.

Zowie desperately ran far away, he used all of his energy to increase his speed.

'Fuck it! I have to get away from here!'

However, because light is a ray, he can only run in one direction, so the blade of water is always behind him.

The water blade may not have hit him, but its aura alone can affect its surroundings. While in the incarnate state, Zowie was affected by the aura, so his body received large damage and was immediately wounded.

He felt like the cold aura of the water hitting his body, it was like he was a candle in the storm, about to die out at any moment. The heat in his body was dying out, he felt insecure and uncomfortable.

'Aaargh!'

Zowie was hurt, but he still persevered and escaped because light was relatively fast.

A beam of light flashed out of the camp and went into the forest. Zowie successfully escaped.

"DAMN IT!!"

The angry Duke screamed. Zowie has almost killed him, and he wanted revenge so badly.

When he discovered that his heart was pierced, his whole body shivered in fear. In desperation, he hurriedly integrated with his mana heart, making him survive the fatal attack.

To get back his sense of security and safety, he desperately tried to kill the source of danger— Zowie.

Alas, the enemy was too fast, so his attacks failed.

"DAMN IT! DAMN IT! DAMN IT!"

Duke Elamine screamed loudly. His screams reverberated throughout the whole camp, scaring all enemies and allies alike. They experienced the power of the Duke, and they don't want to experience it again.

*Huff*

The Duke was breathing heavily and he wanted to vent his anger so bad, but entering the Integration state cost too much of his energy. His energy ran out and right now, he might even be killed by a level 10.

'I'll remember that damn brat!'

Duke Elamine breathed heavily and calmed down. His eyebrow was frowned and he looked at Melajaine.

"I'll leave these bugs to you."

Without even waiting for a reply, the Duke immediately conjured a cloud and went back to the airship.

'Damn him! He could have just stayed here and intimidated the enemy! Did he really have to openly show to the enemy that he was retreating!? Now the enemy would get a boost on their morale! Whatever, it's not like I need you anyways.'

Melajaine screamed in her mind. Even though the Duke was responsible, he was selfish.

.

.

.

On the ground, the Ershnirians were momentarily shocked. The emotional rollercoaster was too much for them.

The feeling of desperation when the barrier broke, then hope when they survived, then excitement when they found a plan to escape, then anger when the enemy tried to kill them, then fear again when they saw another rain, then hope again when Zowie came to their rescue, then another fear when Zowie lost, then another hope when the Duke ran away. It was all too confusing and emotionally draining. They were like kids who were being toyed at by adults.

"He..... Is he gone?"

One of the soldiers, stupidly said.

"AaaAaArgh!"

A sudden scream woke them up from their stupor. They looked at the source of the sound and saw a wounded soldier who was turning into ashes. He was attacked by one of the enemies atop the wall.

"A— Attack!"

The Commander was the first who came back to his senses. He hurriedly commanded the soldiers to attack the wall.

With the signal, all of the soldiers came back to their senses and resumed their escape.

At the front, the earth users added defenses to their bodies and rammed at the metal gate of the wall.

*Thud* *Rumble!*

The sonorous sound of ramming resounded like playing drums. It was rhythmic and lively. The walls of the gate rumbled with every beat.

"Raaaaaaaa!"

The bulky soldiers at the front roared and rammed at the gate with all their might, and they did so with coordination.

*Thud* *Rumble!*

"Ma'am! A— At this rate, they will escape in about a minute!"

A subordinate reported anxiously to Melajaine. However, Melajaine just stood there, nonchalant.

"Maintain a safe distance and keep on attacking. After 30 seconds, retreat immediately and standby about a kilometer away."

"B—But—"

The subordinate was about to argue that the enemy would escape, when he sensed the unquestionable aura in Melajaine.

"Y— Yes, ma'am!'

The subordinate hurriedly fled away and did as he was told. The Fenixians attacked from up above the walls, but they like hitting rocks with eggs, only a small blood was spilled. These attacks didn't stop the Ershinirians from escaping.

'They aren't actively stopping us? This is weird. It's as if they are.... confident.'

The Commander had an ominous premonition and he scanned the enemy. They seemed to be just.... playing. They didn't risk their lives or whatsoever.

'...Even if I know what they're planning, it's no use by now. We either have to escape, or stay here.'

The Commander resolutely thought to himself.

*Thud* *Rumble*

For the unknown time, the earth rumbled and the soldiers kept on ramming the giant gate. The walls creaked and cracks appeared. Smokes of dust were leaking from the cracks, but no one bothered with them. They just kept on ramming.

The earth users used their bodies, the flame users burned the enemy and the gate, the wind users.... were on standby, watching out for the enemy(basically, they're useless), and the water users defended the team from the enemy attacks.

All of them were on different levels and possessed different elements, but they cooperated, all for the same thing— to escape.

Beads of sweat poured down their foreheads, their muscles were numb from all the work. Bloods rained down and their exhaustion neared. But they kept on persevering. Adrenaline rushed into their heads and their eyes were bloodshot.

*Rumble!*

The walls weren't able to hold their power and shook. The Fenixians at the top panicked.

"They're about to escape! What should we d— do?"

The soldiers questioned their troop leader, he frowned and remembered Melajaine's words.

[Retreat immediately and standby....]

"Retreat 1 kilometer away."

Hearing this, the soldiers were shocked.

"W—What!?"

They knew that if they retreated, then the enemy would escape, which would lead to..... wait, why can't the enemy escape anyway?

Well, they're enemies.... That's right... Being an enemy itself is a reason to not let them escape.

"It's the leader's orders. Hurry up!"

"Yes!"

The soldiers quickly hopped on to their aerial beasts and retreated for one kilometer away.

Meanwhile, the Ershnirians felt that the burden on them disappeared, but they didn't pay any attention to it, as they were brimming with excitement, seeing that the gate was about to fall any second.

"GraaaAAaaA!"

The soldiers screamed and rammed the gate one more time.

*Thud*

Like a string that broke, the gate finally gave in and suddenly fell.

*Thud* *Rumble*

The earth rumbled from the weight of the gate and some of the soldiers tripped from the sudden fall. However, they were brimming with happiness instead.

Their hearts, which were on tenterhooks all the time, finally felt a sense of release. All the blood and sweat was not for nothing. They can finally live!

"We did it! Fuck ye—"

One of the soldiers cheered, when he was suddenly pushed by one of the soldiers behind. They were in a rush to escape from this hellhole and they didn't have any time to celebrate.

"Fucking rude!"

He screamed out, but he too, also shook off the happy thoughts and escaped.

While running, some of the soldiers felt something.... missing. They looked around and discovered that there were no Fenixians blocking them.

'What....?'

Some of the soldiers felt an ominous premonition, when a sudden sound entered their ears.

*Boom!*¹²

Dozens of explosions thundered in the night sky, clearing the clouds and shocking the soldiers' ear drum. It was a familiar sound.

'This...!'

Some of the soldiers recognized the sound. They were at the top of the walls long ago, so they heard it so much that they became slightly numb.

"No way! Don't tell me... It's the cannonballs?!"

The soldiers were shaken to the core. Just one of those cannonballs has the full strength of a level 10, and it can demolish a building in one strike.

They looked up to verify their assumptions, and it was all true.

The night sky was supposed to be dark, blocked by smoke and lit up by starlight. However, right now, it was like a star was falling down. There were dozens of shooting stars, raining down like meteor showers. They were beautiful and bright.

They exuded a fiery aura, burning the smokes to ashes and heating up the land. Various grass and trees nearby that held on from the war were not spared.

*Swoosh* *Crackle*

The air split because of their speed, and the whole area became brighter because of their presence.

*Thud*⁴

The soldier's heart raced in nervousness and fear. Just the aura of the cannonballs alone made their legs shiver. They felt that the heat was coming closer, about to turn them into ashes.

"R—RUN!!!!"

A scream broke them out of their stupor. They Immediately used magic to escape.

Beads of sweat soaked their bodies, it was unknown if they came from the nervousness, or the meteor.

They immediately ran. They just ran to wherever, as long as it was not the place they were standing up.

Some of the soldiers who were tired from the fight, or wounded, immediately gave up. They kneeled on the ground and begged the other to help them. Tears poured out of their eyes but they fell on deaf ears.

"Please! Help me! Please! I still have a family to take care of!"

At the end of the crowd of running soldiers, a desperate cry for help rang out. However, all the soldiers passed by. They can't even save themselves, what kind of idiot would save others?

The man, with bloodshot eyes from the tears and fight, crawled on the ground. Every time someone passesby, he would desperately clutch their legs, just to be kicked in the face.

"Get off me!"

"Please.... help me... please."

At the end of his plea, an animal leg appeared in front of him. The begging man, who had his legs cut off, shockingly looked up.

He saw a young man sitting in the large dark wolf. It was as large as a car, and it looked terrifying, but the aura it was releasing was as weak as a level 3.

The person who stopped the wolf looked messy and dirty too. His eyes were bloodshot and he looked like he hadn't slept in a year.

But there was something eye-catching in his eyes, it was filled with bright lights that looked like stars in the night sky, giving light to everyone. His eyes looked kind, innocent, and amiable, and right now, he was looking at him with pitiful eyes. He was Insig.

Insig looked at the wolf and he patted his head. The wolf's tail wagged and licked his hands cheerfully.

"Guster, help him up."

It was Insig who said that.

*Hours earlier*

At the fight, he was feeling down at his helplessness, so he looked around and tried to do something that could help.

At first, he saw wounded soldiers and he healed them. When out of energy, he would absorb a dead person's life energy when no one was looking.

After a while, he suddenly found a beastmaster, kicking his wounded wolf angrily.

"You're so useless! I paid all of my credits just to buy you, but all you did was drag me down! Damn it!"

When the war was about to break out, all of the soldiers immediately used all of their assets. They bought books, armors, weapons, and beasts. After all, what are assets for if you're dead?

However, the demand of beasts didn't meet the supply, so some of them had to bear with weaker beasts. There were even some who bought mice and rats, but... well, what can I say?

When Insig looked at the pleasing sad eyes of the wolf, his heart broke into pieces, but he didn't make a move. As a surgeon, he always has to ask for consent unless it's an emergency, so he has learned not to break into other people's boundaries.

'However, if he really is going to kill the wolf... then I won't blame him. Of course, I hope he doesn't blame me too.'

After venting his stress out, the beastmaster left the wolf alone. The wolf was shivering like a leaf in the storm.

The sounds of war were loud and he felt like he was falling off a cliff, without even a branch to hold onto. He looked around, trying to look for his master, but all he saw was unfamiliar faces and they were ignoring him.

The wolf felt like he was a child lost in the market. He was being looked at by other customers pitifully, but they didn't help him.

At this time, Insig approached the wolf. The wolf whined, but his eyes were looking at him with apprehension. He was scared. Scared of strangers and scared of dying.

Insig sat at the boundary where the wolf felt safe and he beamed a smile at the wolf.

"Ummm... Hello?"