A group of thirty men stood together to face the incoming cultists. Some were so nervous that you can see their hands trembling as they hold the weapon in their hands.

Many of them hadn't even killed a single beast in their entire lives as they worked in agriculture, construction, or crafting…

​​

Needless to say, they haven't killed a human as well.

At the very least, one of them has a little bit of experience in seeing such gore as he's one of the Dismantler in the Hunter's Association.

He tried to rally the remaining men and made a defensive formation

"Graaa!"

The cultists roared in happiness after they saw the group of living sacrifice… Now that they had seen them, they would surely do their best not to let anyone escape again.

They were obviously not content with the blood that has been spilled in the village and wanted to hunt some more.

"We're not going down easily!"

"We'll protect everyone! Elder! Lead the women to escape!"

Stella stood at the center of the group as she held the two wooden swords in her hand. Hemil wanted to scold her for not leaving the place but he didn't have time to do that as the cultists had already reached them.

Clang! Clang!

Most of the cultists no longer have weapons in their hands and if they have one, the blade has already dulled and it would seemingly crumble after a few strikes.

Although their physical strength had increased due to the corrupted Spiritual Energy, they were not capable of influencing their weapons or equipment to have similar toughness.

"Aarrgh! No! Help!"

The berserk enemies were not afraid of getting hit or stab as they did so little to defend themselves from harm and focused instead on attacking.

Hemil also acted as he smashes every cultist that comes in his way. Since three men were holding a shield made of wood and steel, he stayed with them to act as the damage dealer.

He also made sure that Stella was near her…

'Wait, where's my niece?!'

Hemil was sure that she was just beside him when the battle started. He only left his sight on her for a few seconds but she already disappeared!

Baam!

Aaarrghh!

One of the mad cultists who were so aggressive a while ago had suddenly screamed in pain. He was also the tallest cultist that could instill fear in everyone just by standing there…

However, at this time, most of the people in front saw this man kneeling. He held his stomach in pain but his scream didn't last long as he was suddenly hit by another strike from the enemy that caused his life.

The defending men who saw this scene shouted in joy as it increased their morale!

"Ha! We can do this! They're already tired!"

"Don't give up everyone! Keep pressuring them!"

The others who didn't see what happened was just glad that everyone wasn't losing hope. Whatever the source of their morale is, it doesn't matter…

Hemil didn't see what happened at the start, but the final strike was definitely done by his niece!

"Stella! Be careful!"

He was happy that Stella was strong enough to protect herself but was still worried as she was going deeper into the enemies.

***

Before Reiji took over control of Stella's body, he already gathered enough data about the strength of the enemy.

From the ten powerful leaders of the cult that he saw at the mountain, only three of them attacked the village and one of them has already died due to the combined attacks of the five Arcanists stationed at the village.

The two powerful cultists were hiding at the back as they were probably exhausted due to the recent fight. He learned from Diether that although Spiritual Energy can be refilled, it still takes some time and needed a lot of concentration to do.

'I had to deal with the two before they regain their strength…'

Although this is what he thought, he still had to lighten the burden of the villagers so they can effectively hold off the other cultists.

As soon as he saw the tallest cultist about to deal with one of the villagers, he immediately acted.

The cultist was holding a dull blade as he raised it to slice the villager who was trying to deal with another cultist.

Nitouryuu's Enkyoku no Kamae!

It was the best stance to use in the situation!

The two wooden swords were now crossed with each other as he approached the tall cultist in a few steps.

"Haa!"

The force behind Stella's strike was extremely powerful now that Reiji was used to controlling such Spiritual Energy.

He successfully hit both the head and stomach of the enemy but he didn't stop there! Another overhead strike hit the cultist's head after he kneeled in pain.

'One down!'

He needs to effectively use the time limit of the [ Take Over ]! Although he has the cheat to refresh the cooldown, it can only be done a few times. He was still hoping that he won't max the skill before he finished fighting here.

Reiji then changed his stance to deal with more enemies.

Enso no Kamae!

Unlike Enkyoku where the two swords are crossed with each other, this stance made the two swords separate with an opening between them while the tip of the swords is facing forward.

With this stance, Reiji was confident that he'll be able to deal with more enemies.

Haaat!

Reiji's superb footwork allowed him to control Stella's body to act like a ghost on the battlefield. Everywhere she goes, the cultists would be in a disadvantageous position allowing the villagers to gain an upper hand and deal the final blow…

The villagers including Hemil was so surprised after seeing Stella's movement. They didn't know that this young girl was so good at swordsmanship!

They were surely curious about this sudden show of skills, but this also made them happy as someone can actually fight in their midst.

They cheered for her as she fought like a veteran warrior…

Without her presence here, their defensive formation may have collapsed for a while now and they were already made as a sacrifice for the evil god.

During this time, Reiji already refreshed the Take Over Skill twice and spent 10 Skills Points. The Take Over was now 30 seconds long with a bit shorter cooldown.

'Hmm… Stella's body is starting to ache… Even if her body was fit, it seems that extended combat was still too much for this young girl…'

Reiji decided to back away and run behind the villager to take a bit of rest… Only thirteen cultists were left while the villagers still have twenty…

"I can't waste my Energy to these weaker cultists… I'll deal with the two leaders in a sec, hold them off for me!"

They suddenly heard Stella commanding them as she kneeled on the ground to rest. She wasn't breathing heavily or seeming heavily tired but some of them felt that her Spiritual Energy has weakened. It seems like she used a lot of her power during the previous battle.

"Leave it to us!"

Although the cultists don't look tired, the villagers felt easier battling them after they learned their attack patterns. They were only strong physically but they mostly use their instinct in combat… Treating them as bipedal wild beasts was a good idea.

"Stella, recover your energy for a while first before we go into another battle…"

"Urgh… Y-yes, I'll do my best…" Stella answered while frowning.

"Ah… Is it painful? Sorry, we still got hit a few times in the battle…"

"I-it's alright, Mr. Sword. I can endure it…"

Although Reiji's footwork was incredible, the cultists were still larger than Stella's body by twice. Even the heavy and rough cloaks used by the cultist can probably injure Stella's skin. It may even be a piece of magic equipment if he was not mistaken.

In any case, evading almost 90% of the attacks coming to her way was still an amazing feat.

"Urghh!"

"Just hold on!"

Baam!

Everyone was doing their best to hold off the remaining enemies but the two leaders suddenly acted, they scattered a powder to the cultists which made them even crazier! They regained their strength and pounced on the villagers!

Stella saw the villagers getting pummeled or smashed to death as she tried to quickly gather more Energy…

She suddenly regretted that she didn't continue strengthening herself and had been satisfied with only blacksmithing… If she continued her practice with the Energy before, she may have enough for Mr. Sword to use.

Stella gritted her teeth as she closed her eyes to focus…

Hemil saw that Stella was still not ready so he decided to clash with the strengthened cultists!

"Haaa!! Come!"

He then started smashing his hammer at the cultist who was being blocked by his fellow villagers.

This time, however, the cultists had tougher bodies that allowed them to endure the hammer strikes…

AAhh!

Hemil almost lost consciousness after being tackled by one of the evil god worshippers. He felt his ribs were broken as he spits a mouthful of blood.