“This is hell...” Kanari’s fearful voice softly tickled the eardrums of Ella and Emma. They were standing far from the humongous obsidian gate and therefore, far away from the heart of the battle. The Spirit Venerates, being forces that could change the maps of a region with a swing of their blade, continuously forced billions of dust particles into the air as Umbras were hacked in droves. Fire spewed out from the destruction, even though the deluge that the World Serpent had summoned continued to grow stronger by the second.

There was next to nothing that Kanari and the twins could do to assist in the battle. Any stray attack by the Spirit Venerates would be capable of decimating their bodies, and they would be taking a one-way trip to the River Styx. Their only task… was to mow down any Spirit Beasts or Umbras that entered into their camp.

In her Spiritual Body Enhancement form, Kanari sent a pale, flaming ball at the charging bull that zoomed past the camp. Just like the Black Masks, the Alliance had created a temporary camp made with simple makeshift tents that could be dismantled and rearranged within minutes. It wasn’t particularly fortified with thousands of men or potent cannons that packed firepower capable of destroying forts. However, it did have a plethora of divine talents…

Ella and Emma would expertly snipe down all of the flying creatures that attempted to pass them by while Kanari would burn down the threats on the ground using her domain. The other Spirit Emperors that were stationed here to protect them felt like they had their jobs stolen and wore sullen faces.

“To tell the truth, I would love to be by Shin’s side now...” Kanari gazed up into the heavens’ in the rough direction that her lover had flown to. As they spoke, Shin was busy recharging his mana for the eventual final assault against the Black Masks. Although he’d promised to return before charging right at Junius, Kanari and the twins were sceptical if Shin would really adhere to his promise.

“We all would…” Emma frowned and dropped her head. “However, we would just be a burden to him… For now, we should wait patiently for his return...” Another nocked arrow was released from Emma’s body as it flew over a kilometre into the air. The falcon beast stood no chance and fell straight down into oblivion.

Ella was doing well herself, with her icicles rushing out from her bow at astonishing speeds. Of the three, she was by far… The quietest. Her mind wasn’t even on the Spirit Beasts that surrounded them. Instead, they were looking further west, waiting for even the slightest hint of Junius. “Are you sure that Junius would be hiding in the base? It doesn’t make sense for him to be among the Spirit Venerates and Tier 9 Spirit Beasts...”

“We don’t have to worry about that,” Kanari replied, her eyes narrowing down even more. “Venerate Maurice says that Junius is the Champion of the Tree of Illusions. For him, the safest place to hide would most definitely be in that region...” The black-haired beauty gentled tapped on Ella’s shoulders as a bitter smile crept up the corners of her lips. “Don’t worry… Even if Shin were to pull his punches, I would be there to take Junius down… He killed Shizen, and I don’t intend to let him get away with it!”

Kanari felt responsible for allowing the nature boy to venture into the Illusory Canyon. If she hadn’t given Shizen the opportunity, perhaps the hobbit-like boy would be hopping around Ella, annoying her to death. However, the past could never be changed. What Kanari needed to do now… Was to make sure that Shizen was properly avenged.

“Kanari… Something’s off...” Emma, the most alert of them all, suddenly jumped back in alert. Her ears were twitching uncontrollably while her nose was shifting from side-to-side. They could sense something that Kanari and Ella could not…

“What is it?”

“The ground… Was it always that tingly?” Emma asked.

“Are you talking about the earthquakes created by the Spirit Venerates?” Kanari tried to confirm her friend’s suspicions. Yes, the ground beneath them was roaring, but it had been shaking ever since the battle began. There was nothing odd about it then, so there shouldn’t be anything wrong about it now. However, Emma quickly shook her head.

“No, this is different… The source of the tremors seems more… It seems closer than before...” Emma elaborated on her worry.

“That’s… You’re right...” Ella, her twin sister, instantly fell down to the earth and placed her ear above the ground. It was a time-old trick, but it had always worked. “The tingly sensation that Emma’s talking about… It isn’t from the Spirit Venerate attacks!!! They’re coming from underneath us!!!”

“What?!” Kanari jerked into alert. She leapt away from the Spirit Beasts and Umbras that stayed in her domain and promptly retreated to her butler Claudia and her Spirit Venerate bodyguard, Thea. The twins promptly did the same. The other Spirit Emperors of the Alliance were wholly unaware of the change in the earth and were focusing on stopping as many Umbras as they possibly could.

Rumble… Rumble… Rumble…

“What’s this?” One Spirit Emperor finally noticed the odd change, ten seconds after Kanari and the twins made it back to safety. She stopped on the battlefield and gently placed her fingers down on the cold, muddied floor. The trembles continued to intensify, ignoring the cries of the beasts that roamed above the ground. The Alliance members that were mindlessly killing the enemies quickly ground to a halt, holding their weapons a little more cautiously now.

Alas, it was a little too late…

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM!!!

A colossal detonation erupted from the bottom of the earth, decimating anything that stood at the surface. The explosion was in a beautiful shade of crimson and was emitting a mesmerising light that dazzled any that gazed into it. Light continued to flow out like a reverse waterfall, as the mushroom cloud of the explosion took the shape of a gorgeous crimson flower. Lightning flashed within the core of the Crimson Rose, and dense mana particles warmed the faces of any that stood before the light, Kanari included.

Oddly enough, the woman felt that the Crimson Rose was quite familiar. It was warm and devoted, much like someone she once knew. However, the stench of blood and crude power that was used to create such a spectacle… It was something that Kanari hated more than any other.

Peering into the bottom of the lit-up crevice, Kanari could see a dense network of passageways, each one wide and complex. Thousands of beasts made with pure obsidian horror crawled out from the tunnels, further plaguing the already dirtied world. Like the other Umbras that crawled out from the Obsidian Gate, the beasts ranged from Tier 1 to Tier 6, each one carrying their own unique characteristics. Some could create poison, others mauled their enemies with the power of their own bodies.

“There’s no way that we could beat those numbers...” Kanari remarked, her voice no longer holding the same confidence as before. Thea, the only Spirit Venerate protecting Kanari and the rest, was also holding a broken frown. In truth, she wanted to scoop Kanari right now and fly back to the Himmel Empire, where it was the safest. However, fortunately, it looked like the Spirit Venerate bodyguard didn’t have to resort to that method just yet...

The Umbras all charged on by the camp, ignoring the injured Spirit Emperors and the youngsters that stood on by. Many of them moved haphazardly as if unburdened with the curse of intelligence. They barged forwards with their fangs and claws unleashed focused on one direction and one direction only… East.

“They’re ignoring us...” Ella remarked, amazed by the sight.

“Yeah, it looks like they’re more focused with invading the Kori Federation...” Emma thought out loud, her nails firmly in the centre of her two front teeth. “Though, that isn’t all that bad… Kanari, we should leave the base and find somewhere a little safer. That way… Kanari?” The bob-haired archer raised her brow, confused as to why her friend was staring straight into the tunnels like a fish with an opened mouth. However, it didn’t take her long to find out why…

“T-That’s!” Like Kanari, Emma dropped her jaw as she followed her friend’s line of sight. There were a handful of Black Masks, each one with their Spirit summoned and weapons drawn. The majority of them had Umbras standing underneath them, acting as faithful mounts. However, that wasn’t the main reason why Kanari had halted her movements.

The man standing at the very front… The man that stood over two metres tall and was covered in a thick iron sheen… Kanari knew him… No, everyone in Imperius Academy, nay… Everyone in the Himmel Empire’s High Society knew of that devoted face. It was none other than the world’s most dedicated lovebird himself… Fred Newton.

“Fred...” Kanari spat, her face contorted wildly.

“Kanari… Oh, my beautiful Kanari… How do you like my present?” The man flew up from the broken floor and landed just ten metres away from the woman. Thea moved to the front, and like a mother hen, the Spirit Venerate placed her arm in front of Kanari’s.

The man with the Iron Giant Spirit squinted his eyes but didn’t mutter out a single word in complaint. Instead, his face was firmly attached to the love of his life’s slender body. Before, when Kanari was still a teenager, her S-line was nowhere near this defined. An ample bosom and an hourglass figure that would make any man drool, Kanari had now grown into a full-fledged woman… and that drove Fred utterly crazy.

“I see you’ve grown quite spectacularly over the years.”

“And I see that you’ve remained the same… A fucking pervert that doesn’t know his limits...” Kanari continuously spat venom, utterly disgusted by Fred’s morbid use of his powers. “I’ve heard that you’ve gone missing, but never would I have imagined that you’d joined the Black Masks… Have you really stooped that low?!”

“HAHAHA!!! Who are you to judge me?! The woman that had rejected my love so many times?!” A vein popped in the colossal man’s forehead. “I had everything! I had talent! I had the looks! I had the prospect to become someone big! Every single girl would die to have a date with me and yet to rejected me over fifty times!!! In the end, you even settled with some random brat that loved someone else! YOU ARE THE ONE THAT STOOPED LOW!!!”

Fred continued to holler in a white-hot rage. “I did everything right… Yet, you didn’t even want to look in my direction… So… I turned to other prospects...”

“Hmph! And you think that you’ll win my heart by joining the Black Masks?!” Kanari scoffed in fury. If she were frank, Kanari didn’t hate Fred at all. She just didn’t feel any love or attraction to the man.

“No...” Fred shook his head as he waved his arms up. In his right hand, there was a black crystal, one that emitted a sinister wave of energy. As Fred raised the crystal higher, a portion of the Umbras that were charging out to the East stopped in their tracks and made an abrupt turn towards the young ladies and their protectors.

“I’ve given up on winning your heart, Kanari… I’ve learnt my lesson… No matter how many times I try to prove myself, I’ll only be hurting myself...” The man exhaled and raised both his arms tragically, like an opera lead performing in the theatre. “However, although I can’t win your heart… I can at least obtain your body… See, there’s a senior in the Black Masks that has a trick to reanimate the dead...”

There was no need for Fred to elaborate any further. The five women that heard Fred’s speech instantly scowled and their pupils shrunk back in disgust. There was no need for any sympathy now… Fred Newton, once the brightest star of the Imperius Academy… Was now an enemy that had to be killed no matter the cost.

“So, Kanari… My beloved Kanari… Die for me, will you?”