Allowed A Way Out

[ Is this the result of me not completing my personal Trial? ] Magnus smacked his nonexistent lips.

He existed as a mere mind right now, without occupying any of his members' bodies. It felt awkward, but he did not have the desire to inhabit the bodies that he had given personalities to at the moment.

He was content with observing how Klaris dealt with the dire situation. He saw it all from the first-person point of view. It was quite a thrilling movie.

[ I wonder if I should have gone about my Gate creation in another way... ] He thought as Klaris dodged a light arrow deflected in his direction.

"Close!" Klaris gasped and swore to himself. He was looking for the person or artefact that was locking down space and keeping him trapped here.

His primary suspect was, of course, that dainty woman. Rie agreed with him.

"Laurel," Klaris whispered as he was singed by the black flames born from whoever was in combat with Ariel.

And the moment he did, he looked in the woman's direction. He had finally settled himself on the floor where the battle was taking place.

Only to find out that she was looking straight at him as well.

For a moment, time seemed to pause as wariness flashed across Laurel's eyes.

.

.

.

"You... Have you come to rescue your friend?" Laurel probed.

She recognized Klaris from the visions that she had seen through her Heavenly Eyes of Prophecy. The man before her was clearly one of the [Gatemaker]'s accomplices, at least from the garments he wore, his demeanour, and his stature—faces were hazy in her prophecies.

Ariel was currently engaged with another fierce combatant that rivalled her realm of strength.

This left the bound Magnus free for the taking.

And Laurel was not the combative type.

She glanced at the mysterious black shadow swimming in flames of darkness. Seeing his flickering form and bright golden irises gleaming against Ariel's lights, Laurel couldn't help but swear.

'I couldn't see him... He has an Obscuration, just like me.' She sighed inwardly, 'Since when were Obscurations so common? Everyone can hide from us Seers nowadays.'

Feeling her thoughts going astray once more, Laurel shook her head and pulled out a simple bow from her Storage Scroll.

It was a white bow with no engravings or designs. It was just a piece of pristine curved wood with a piece of string pulling it together.

It did not look special at all.

But when she pulled at its string, an arrow of Spirit Energy instantly shone into existence. It pulsated with the density only a 3-star being could craft.

"I'm much weaker than Ariel, but I should be more than enough to deal with you." Laurel spoke to herself, caring not for whether Klaris could hear her insults or not.

Swish!

An arrow was let loose.

Swish swish swish!

Three more followed swiftly after it, cutting off any escape routes her foe would take.

But to her surprise, Klaris simply charged forward.

He accepted her first arrow like it was nothing. A hole was thus carved into his chest, searing blood and forcing the man to grimace in pain.

The second pierced into his thigh, carving out another hole into his flesh and cutting into his bone.

The rest, however, flew into Ariel's barrier and was forcefully dissipated.

"What—?" Laurel paused, bewildered. She then asked, "Are you here to commit suicide?"

No reply came her way.

Klaris was barely stopped by the incorporeal arrows. The pain did not seem to be something he cared about now.

His charge forward continued.

And he had swiftly closed the distance with his abilities.

Swish swish swish!

Laurel let out another volley of arrows. If her enemy did not wish to speak with her, then so be it.

Let mysteries remain mysteries.

Her arrows thus flew in a telegraphed manner. All of them aimed for Klaris' heart.

And still, the man did not dodge.

"Crazy," Laurel whispered as she knocked another arrow and disengaged from her enemy with a leap.

Whoosh!

Klaris' fist missed its mark as Laurel left his range.

Ssuk!

Another arrow pierced through him at that moment.

It struck straight into his head, rendering him dead.

That was for sure.

But then, a masked child holding a rifle appeared from behind the collapsing figure of the man. Laurel questioned her eyes at that moment.

'This stature..! I've seen her before, with the [Gatemaker]. But... where did she come from?' She thought.

The masked child had appeared out of thin air, and thus bullets were about to be sent flying her way.

Click!

The sound of the trigger.

Swish!

The sound of an arrow leaving its bow.

At the same time that Rie found an opportunity to shoot, Laurel had already let loose her arrow.

Bullets and the arrow of Spirit Energy consumed each other. The steel bullets turned to dust under the ferocity of the arrow as it continued forward.

The arrow grazed Rie's cheek as she dodged, cutting a deep groove on her youthful complexion.

But, just like Klaris, the pain seemed to be nonexistent.

Laurel let loose a few more arrows as Rie shot the gun that was clearly too big for her. The straight-line exchanges were always met with Laurel's victory.

More and more wounds were appearing slowly but surely on Rie's body.

It was then,

Laurel felt her Blessing activate on its own.

The image of a scythe swinging straight towards her and slicing her body nearly in half appeared before her eyes. It played for half a second, and when Laurel regained her normal vision, the sound of whistling wind forced her to turn her head.

Whoooosh!

The scythe crafted out of Divine Energy cut through the air, screaming purification as it went. Laurel reacted. Her visions were something she had grown used to. She had been saved by them many times before.

Now was no different.

Clang!

Restiel's scythe struck Laurel's bow. The sound of a metallic collision rang out in pulsating waves.

From behind the mask, Laurel watched as Restiel's eyes widened in surprise, allowing her to smile. Her eyes flashed with contempt.

As if to say, "Don't expect my defeat to come easily, friends of the [Gatemaker]."

And yet then came an ultra-heated fireball flying from out of nowhere. It headed straight for Laurel's face.

Blaze had joined the battle.

Laurel's mouth hung in shock. Just where were these people popping out from? All of them wore masks yet bore familiar forms. It was an eerie experience, as if her visions brought about ghosts.

She moved to dodge, but another vision appeared before her eyes.

A shower of bullets was about to be shot her way. She thus tried to shift her body elsewhere—

Shliik!

But Restiel was there waiting for her. His scythe cut a deep wound on her arm, almost severing it in the process. Restiel's aim had been her neck, but the results he had gotten were subpar.

It was all because a green light had burst from Laurel's neck at just the right moment to redirect his attack.

Restiel slashed again and Rie shot another spray of bullets after reloading, pushing Laurel into a corner. Flames continued to burn through her garments as she avoided those ultra-heated fireballs with all her might.

"BASTARD!" A fierce roar shook the hotel's upper ground floor at that moment.

Ariel's personality had turned a one-eighty as she fought a gruelling battle with the mysterious shadowed entity.

"You damn individual of chaos! Your savagery knows no bounds!" Ariel growled and spat out curses.

The cries of the civilians in the floors above were become more and more apparent as the dark flames grew ever more ferocious.

A deep chuckle came to reply to Ariel's fury. The so-called individual of chaos had a voice that caused the Spirit Energy in the area to sway. His flames moved with every breath he took.

"A lowly dog has no place to call me a savage."

VWHOOOOOOOM!

A sudden eruption of strength. The dark flames melted even concrete, through a physical reaction that could not be explained with simple science.

It looked as if the mysterious shadow was looking to end things in the next exchange.

"Shit!" Another Klaris appeared, cursing, shocking Laurel once again.

[ We need to escape, now! ]

A realisation had dawned upon Klaris. He yelled out into the Hivemind in a hurry.

[ Our efforts were unneeded! To me! ]

The battle between the Hivemind and Laurel was instantly put to a halt. The different masked figures retreated after nearly attaining victory. They all disappeared in flashes of light.

Only Blaze was left. The one most attuned to flames.

In the next moment, dark flames engulfed the entire area.

"No!" Came Ariel's panicked voice, "Laurel!"

"Aaaaaah!" A scream. One of immense pain.

Crack!

Crack!

Crack!

The sound of artefacts shattering, consumed by temperatures greater than they could withstand.

Blaze resisted the pain of her melting skin. She took out a Monster Continent Visitation Scroll and instantly tore it. She lacked the time to write on a One-Time Transport Scroll.

Thus, she disappeared from where she stood in the instant she was freed of the spacial lock.

"Safe..."

Blaze sighed as she collapsed onto half-familiar ground.

Roaaaar!

An earth-shaking roar sounded out in the distance. Flocks of birds were startled into flight.

The low hiss of some reptile could be heard nearby, and the buzzing of insects swarmed Blaze's ears.

This was the Monster Continent.

.

.

.

Back in Midseer.

Ariel successfully protected Laurel, keeping her from being turned into ashes. The price she had to pay, however, was half of her own life.

Black flames still burned through her flesh, eating away at her barriers while it was at it. Mocking her defenses.

BOOM!

A powerful force landed nearby, hurried and dire.

Farlier had arrived, although a bit late. The figure of a demon rose from within the small dust cloud.

"...I'm late." He announced the obvious as he clicked his tongue.

He then produced a large bottle filled with red, sloshing liquid. He poured it over Ariel's wounds, putting out the fire in the process.

"You look horrible, Ariel." Farlier picked the half-conscious combatant up. He also grabbed Laurel and made his way out of the ruins of the hotel.

"T-the... civilians..." Ariel groaned out her words, pointing towards the half-collapsed hotel. It was only surviving because of her barriers.

Farlier understood what Midseer's Protector wanted.

"All will be dealt with. Your underlings are here." He reassured her. "So release your barriers."