The fact I didn't get hit gives me pause, it isn't usually a good idea to split your focus during battle but my success in avoiding the projectile bears an immediate relevance to my current situation.

It isn't that complicated, you were moving away from the bolt which means it came at you slower than those before. That doesn't make sense, Archer would shoot the fastest possible bolt he is able to.

He has been doing that but the fact you're moving in the same direction as his arrow meant it was slower relative to you but not the previous projectiles. Oh, okay then. Do you really get it?

I ignore my sister's taunt because I hear an Exemplar stomping forth in plate and about to come out of an alley ahead. I angle my course to buy some space and twist to the side as the temple guard comes out swinging, his blade slashing with such speed I couldn't have dodged if I didn't hear him coming.

I detect several silver constructs flying at me from behind as well which forces me to take a sudden left turn in a different direction than the one I'm headed. Fuck, they noticed I'm out of energy.

How can you tell? Not so proud of yourself anymore, are you? Answer, sis, I need to know. Simple, they've been fighting without taking risks until now by supporting each other but this one came out with such speed he would have died if I could counter.

But you could have. I couldn't have breached his armor, especially with their kinetic blocks which I can no longer overwhelm, and it would have lost me so much speed those behind would have caught up.

I dodge to the side, avoiding a sword strike and thanking the fact there is now a building between me and Archer. I make a series of quick turns and manage to lose the elite temple guard who is much less maneuverable but fail to use the cover of night to lose all my pursuers.

I determine, after only two minutes, that they have ways to track me and so give up to accelerate towards my destination. Shit, shit, shit. My sister's swearing is somewhat distracting but I don't complain as the tearing dry pain coming from my chest tells me all I need to know.

Kruzser is huge and spans two to three dozen square kilometers but, luckily, most of the important properties like the Midnight Palace and the Emperor's Tomb are located at the very center while the Hospitalier headquarters is at the periphery.

I swerve through alleys and streets without using the avenues which are too large but it only allows me to avoid facing more than a few of my pursuers at once. I receive multiple injuries from air-blades and needles launched at me from afar in too large numbers to dodge them all without flow to use lion steps.

My eyes and Vuskyt chain-mail allow me to survive without taking a critical hit until I finally reach my destination only to witness another squad of Exemplars already waiting for me there.

Their plate armors have dents and quite a few lack shields, meaning I've encountered them previously. Among them is Leomi who is standing upright with crossed arms.

“Honorary Duchess, not blocking us isn't enough after the actions you took this night.” One declares as he activates his gauntlet's shredding blade to deal with me. “You must show your loyalty by helping us subdue this enemy of our great Empire.”

With these words, the man shifts towards me with his squad and prepares for a fight. Their aim is clearly to delay me until the rest of the Order's forces catch up but they'll soon realize I'm so weak they can deal with me on their own.

There are a few hundred Hospitaliers watching from the sidelines and two companies of imperial guards keeping their distance, likely there to ensure Leomi and her people don't get any rebellious ideas.

“As you can see, I am injured.” Leomi says as she shapes one of her lance constructs, using the very last of her energy. “As such, I'll provide support from the back.”

She'd barely finished speaking that she launches the construct at me. I blink in surprise because, as the lance flies at me, it becomes evident she hasn't completed it. I slash down at it with my liangi and shatter it.

The outer layer splits and air-needles fly in every direction, some striking the Exemplars to explode without doing any damage while most smash into the ground to burst and project dust into the air.

I feel a dozen portions of energy enter my body but don't waste time thinking on this and use the cover and flow she provided me to launch myself into the building's second floor in a single leap.

“Honorary Duchess Lance!” The Exemplar exclaims in outrage.

“Oh, no, I have lost control.” Leomi says with an emotionless voice. “What a mistake I've made, how shall I ever explain myself.”

“What is your and Elizabeth Vil's plan?!” The elite Templar erupts.

“I've no knowledge of her current goals, our cooperation was incidental.” Lance calmly responds.

The man begins swearing at these lies while I go through a window and their voices begin fading. As I cruise towards our apartment, I catch sight of more and more imperial guards, Templars, and Exemplars approaching the structure.

With no time to waste, I decide to directly crush through walls to reach the Little one. These successive impacts wake Wraith who starts struggling and whining from pain. His left arm catches on a shattered section of the last wall so I jerk my shoulder forward, breaking the limb but also dislodging it.

“Aaarh, bitch!” He screams.

I throw him at the floor without holding back. The assassin crashes and rolls on the floorboards with flailing limbs like a puppet whose strings were cut, which is exactly what he is.

I then stomp towards the closet where the Little one's chest is stored while removing my mostly destroyed armor. Inside, I find a barrel that wasn't there before filled with Leomi's flow and with a paper note on top.

'Survive at all costs, my loves.'

Her hand trembled when she wrote this message because she felt it would be dangerous to restrict our options despite what it cost her to allow me to make the necessary decision. Fortunately for Leomi, my sister isn't out of tricks.

Considering the time it took me to get here while taking many detours and the ambushes from afar, it isn't too surprising my destination was found out but she must've been the first to see through me to prepare this for me.

I absorb the fifty portions of flow packed into the barrel while I finish getting rid of my chain-mail and sleeve-glove. I throw the mask into my liangi's long case to make sure it stays safe and fit my sister's helmet on.

You make it sound like I'm a brute! You are. Ghrrr. Calm down, think of our heart! Krjgzh! I return to the room with the chest while my sister froths and open it before the killer writhing on the floor.

“Your, arm.” He whispers with widening eyes as he notices the flow lattice attached to my left shoulder. “You're Jessica Freepath.”

“Not exactly, no.” I deny, his choice of words makes me realize that his sight must be blurry.

He opens his mouth to speak. Annoyed and expecting he would speak another ugly thing like earlier, I snatch the tongue with my left hand before he can utter a word and smack the sole of my left boot in his face to tear the offending flesh out.

“Grglrrkrh!” Wraith screams as a cascade of blood pours out from his mouth.

He tries to hit me with his injured hand and broken arm to no effect as I ignore his antics, throwing the tongue over my shoulder to land on the floor next to the open chest. Splot.

The assassin starts crawling towards it with a crazed look in his eyes, having clearly lost his mind to pain from all the injuries he took. I let him as I begin fitting on my sister's reinforced hard leather armor.

What's the next step? This is all I could get from your surface thoughts. You forget the ribbon in your hair. I reach behind my head and unbind my hair, swinging my head to mess them up just like Jess does.

I don't do that. You don't? Your hair are always messy to the point it has to be done on purpose. You're one to talk, wild-ling! I ignore her overreaction because Wraith suddenly threw himself back upon sight of a tentacle appearing on the border of the chest.

“Don't worry, it's not going to eat...” I pause because of my clumsy choice of words. “I mean, it is definitely going to eat you but there's no point in worrying about it since you can't escape.”

“Hrglhr!” The killer screams but I focus my hearing on a commotion happening on the ground floor which also triggers many of those on this level to rush downstairs.

“Hurry up, Little one, kitten can't buy us much more time.” I speak up while using flow to communicate the concept behind the words to my symbiont.

The parasite sends out a couple more tendrils and launches itself out of the chest directly atop the tongue which it seizes within its thick roots. Wraith tries to scamper away so I kick him back.

The Little one quickly realizes that he's the true prey and launches itself at him. The man manages to fend off its roots but the creature has too many tendrils and he has too many wounds.

His screams become blood-curling when these appendages find the hole in his arm while five twirl together to plunge into his mouth. As the symbiont begins savoring his blood, it doesn't stop exploring and soon finds the killer's eyes.

It plunges two tendrils into the sockets and pops out the eyeballs, blinding the assassin who can do naught to stop them from being ripped out thereafter and crushed by the parasite's roots.

I observe the bloody spectacle with a touch of interest but don't stop dressing up in my sister's gear, fitting on her cuirass while the man desperately tries and fails to fight back.

“Swiftly come hither, my lovely sister, watch this slaughter, with bright laughter.” I sing as I fasten her three broadswords around my waist.

“This is disturbing, Liz.” Jess mutters as the Little one twists Wraith's shoulder until the joint pops and the flesh tears.

“Have a taste, let naught go to waste.” I cheerfully reply as the parasite's roots rips the assassin's cheek to shreds.

I kneel down and snatch a bit of meat from the jaw to glomp down on it. I chew it but the flesh is rubbery and not easy to tear so I suck the blood out of it before swallowing it. The Little one throws a bit of muscle it tore from the hole in his arm at us. I snatch it and this time find more enjoyment in the meat.

“Not bad, he ate well.” My sister absently comments with a loud enough voice that it can be heard over Wraith's shrill screams.

“See, sharing a meal brightens the night.” I tell her.

“Jessica, Elizabeth.” Yvonne calls out to us as she opens the door.

Our best friend freezes at the sight of us partaking in a feast with the Little one but her eyes soon narrow as her mind catches up. She draws a dagger from her waist and stomps over.

The Little one tenses so I gently lay a hand on its flesh to calm it down. Yvonne kneels over Wraith and stabs him in the stomach without a moment's delay, causing him to freeze as this is ironically one of the most grievous wounds he's taken tonight if omitting the foot he lost.

“Yvonne Shipwold, remember the name of the one who killed you when the Lake purifies your sins with its scorching fire.” She seethes between her teeth while twisting the weapon in the man's belly.

A shiver goes through the blind Wraith's entire body and he reaches out with his torn right hand only to swipe empty air. In the end, Yvonne pushes her dagger even deeper in his stomach, causing the assassin stiffen for a moment before turning limp.

“He's dead.” I conclude, feeling good my best friend personally had her revenge.

Yvonne doesn't relax, laugh, or cry as a result of her enemy's death, she instead turns a worried glance at us. We must have looked rather crazed when she walked in. My sister answers my unformulated question.

“Come with me honey.” She tells us.

“We have to...” I start.

“Just for a bit.” She cuts us off.

I nod and get up to follow her but she stops me with a hand on my chest. She raises the other and reveals a handkerchief she uses to wipe the blood around my lips, and a spot of it on my temple I didn't feel. I dismantle my left arm as we walk out of the apartment and she guides me as far from the staircase as possible.

“How do you plan to get out of here?” She asks.

“I'm not sure, I keep probing but sister is concealing the plan from me.” I complain. “But from what she made me do, I think Jess just wants to walk out as herself.” Yvonne frowns.

“Risky, but you need to do it quick because there isn't much of a commotion yet so most have been dragged out.” She urgently tells us. “If it fails, we'll be able to figure something else out.”

“Hrm.” I grumble. “I'll see you later then.”

My sister recedes, giving me primacy over our body. I exhale in contentment but the breath gets stuck in my throat as a wave of exhaustion like I've rarely felt before washes over me.

My attention is immediately caught by the agonizing waves of pain coursing through me. My tired heart is seizing with every beat, my torn back is vividly reminding me that humans are meant to be in one piece, and my burnt thigh feels numb yet remains the most painful of all my injuries tonight.

“You crazy fucking Dwarf, I'll flay you alive!” I scream in fury at my sister for the state she left us in.

This single outburst costs me so much I find myself on one knee before I realize it. Yvonne catches me by the shoulder but she's not as strong as she was before being wounded and so it doesn't help much.

“Go, I need a moment.” I grunt, loathing the fact I hadn't correctly estimated the damage Liz did to us despite being the one to keep the body going. “I'll be out soon.”

“The liangi.” Yvonne reminds me.

“I need it.” I deny while turning it in my hand.

She hesitates but nods in the end and leaves hurriedly towards the staircase from where I can already hear the Exemplar from before yelling at people to clear the way.

I check my body to make sure I've left no clues so as to the fact my sister and I share a body, noticing the glove on my right hand which I immediately discard and burn.

I then focus inwardly and gather unstructured energy. I use what Leomi did before as inspiration and sculpt an air-needle with an empty center where I store thirty portions of flow.

I then burn eight portions to shape dozens of constructs, making air-blade, lightning spheres, fireballs, and kinetic cubes. I activate half along with my tricky air-needle.

While the walls, ceiling, and floorboards around me explode and turn to scraps, the air-needle flies into the sky. The thirty portions I've sent with it fall back down like a falling star that accelerates more and more.

I raise my palm as it shoots straight at it and activate the other half of my constructs, finishing my work of destruction and causing the floor to give out under my feet just as my energy returns.

Upon impact, the flow scatters in a wave that gathers and redirects kinetic force of the area towards me only to explode outward and successively wash away the ground floor's walls in a tide of debris that shakes the entire structure and blows a hole that gives out into the street.

I gaze upon myself to find I'm in a suitably poor state with the dust covering me and stagger out of the building. I brandish the liangi under the gazes of hundreds, Hospitaliers and imperial guards alike, only to crumble to my knees as I finally exhaust the last of my stamina.

A deafening silence takes over after the blast that shook the headquarters and left a hole in the shape of a pillar. All these eyes on me make me uncomfortable, nervous, but Leomi arrives very quickly and so I am able to relax somewhat.

A spark goes through her silvery eyes as they fall on the liangi laying on the ground. She runs up to me and takes me in her arms. Lance is careful to conceal her pride at my clever escape but not the relief she feels at the fact I didn't use the Little one because others will interpret it as that the honorary Duchess' being glad her fiancee emerged victorious over Elizabeth Vil.

No Exemplar shows up and no imperial guard breaks rank as their duty to hunt for E.Vil has not changed. The Hospitaliers do not move either but theirs is a reaction of shock at the death of a legend at the hands of another. You dare claim victory over me?! Shh, you're supposed to be dead right now. Kyhzhgrhl!