Uninjured, no sign of struggle on her face, even her clothes weren't so much as touched

On her shoulder was the tail of some fish she was dragging out slowly, the body of the swamp creature was still for the most part as it got pulled out of its territory, they could tell that it was more than alive however with its antennas twitching

​​

Dropping the fish before them she dispelled her shielding aura, allowing the purple liquid to fall to the ground, then took her spot next to YuJu as if nothing important just occurred

Meanwhile everyone couldn't get past their shock, not just because of how ridiculous the scene that played out was, but because of who did it

'A follower of his made it look like a walk in the park? Then where does that put us!?'

Some thought, feeling somewhat inferior to this woman whom they usually dismissed

'Then again he did order her to battle the generals back when a fight broke out, does that mean she, and even that silly hound, are just as strong?'

What a terrifying thought, one they refused to accept, attributing the matter to some sort of skill or unique class

"I got you the creature alive, you take its heart and present it to Aminta, we will be taking our leave"

Again, no room for negotiation, something clearly happened or he wouldn't forgo his casual demeanor to turn this serious

Still, he did his part, and more, though it looked like a joke rather than punishment

Within the meeting hall Aminta did take a little offense at the blatant disregard of his but she didn't call him over to reprimand the disagreeable behavior, not until she knew what was wrong

It's turned out that he came on his own though, right after everyone but Verbrand and Latvia were dismissed, popping into their sight signaling that he was hiding there all this time

"You need to stop sneaking in like this"

Latvia commented only to receive a cold glare

"What seems to be the matter friend"

Before any fuse could be lit right after the matter of the last fight ended Verbrand intervened

"I'm informing you of my leave, along with Ellis and Anput as well"

"Again? Was it about your message"

"Yes, I received information about a wraith horde, a massive horde, one so big they must have had their own world"

"That does sound problematic indeed, where are they currently headed"

YuJu turned silent for a bit, somewhat sullen at the question, then answered, in his own way

"They were behind the Land Kraken, I assumed they were fighting something there but it looks like they were just looting whatever the behemoth managed to destroy, now that the beast is heading to great battle they seem to have decided the chase must end"

"Meaning they might come for us"

"No, wouldn't have survived that long if their leader was that dumb, the matter of the Land Kraken has been solved for a while too, enough time to go around the tower's area"

"Then what's the problem"

Latvia asked

"If they have already gone around us then we shouldn't bother with them, killing every threat is not a reason all thing to do, plus they are just heading toward...the...."

"Human land"

Aminta continued for her perspiring general, now she knew why he was so upset, him diverting Hortus from a major threat brought an even bigger disaster upon his people

"Would you like a hand?"

Seeing as it was somewhat their fault she offered help

"That's a Raid level wraith horde we're talking about here, not something easily contained, the only solution would be to allocate plenty members into the mission which would leave Hortus vulnerable to attacks from the inside"

His logic was sound, it didn't seem like he was willing to give up on either side too, it appears Hortus was just as important to him as his race, unless of course, he regarded both with equal apathy

"Either way the best option is still to do it myself, and hiding the fact that I am helping out as well"

"So Genus Insania wouldn't extend their claws to them no?"

He gave a nod toward Aminta's deduction, both knew blackmail tactics were the most troublesome, that's why neither ever exposed what was dear to them, with her committing to that rule even more than himself

"How do you suppose you can reason your absence this time"

"I simply don't, a double will take my place, roam about the terrace along with some shadows, as far as everyone's concerned I'm out looking for that creature's trail"

"I'll tighten security too so your double isn't found to be fake"

Latvia offered, perhaps out of guilt for not taking into consideration how they could have affected his race, YuJu didn't refuse the much needed help

"Then I shall be off"

"Ask for aid if it comes to"

"Safe travels friend"

"Be careful"

With a warmer departure than the last time YuJu exited the meeting hall, stopping by his house to take Ellis and Anput along as well as instruct the parasite to its new duty

"Disguise myself as Master? It's impossible to pull off a good disguise without devouring the being in question first, any attempt at doing so would be half assed, much too easy to tell part with a discerning eye, one I can tell this place doesn't lack"

"No worries, you will just be flashing my figure every once in a while, I don't want you to be in the presence of anyone, not even close to them"

"Hmm, I guess I can pull it off, but first I need some of your blood to better emulate the body shape"

YuJu allowed the parasite to drink some of his blood, giving it some of Ellis's and Anput's as well, both causing the little fellow to give a weird face at the taste

"What are these two made of, I feel like I'm about to die just by drinking the redhead's, as for the hound's, well, I feel like I'm already in the state of death"

It complained, then got handed a burial gem filled with black miasma

"This contains Anput's energy, it's so unique the others would quite easily sense it, make sure to allow the energy out when you take her form"

YuJu instructed, then turned to Ellis

"Get all the maids to gather in this room"

"Yes Master"

Not even a minute later all of them were in one place, standing respectfully before him

"All of you have done well, your service ends here however"

He announced, much to their dismay, what would the commander think when they told her the blackguard leader dismissed them from the mansion? How would she get her information now?

"Silence them"

He motioned to Ellis, only then did they get what he meant by ending their service, sadly it was too late as the redhead hesitated not in slicing their necks off clean

"A spy among their ranks?"

She asked, swishing the sword to the side to clear the blood off her blade

"Yes, it's much too troublesome to flush them out, especially knowing not how many there are, the fastest way is to get rid of all the options at once"

Typical of him, one could expect nothing less from this heartless man

"I also needed some war shadows to 'scout' the surroundings of Hortus, now we have them"

Anput was onto what he meant, calling forth the war shadows from the dead maids and ordering them to obey the parasite

"Everything is settled, hopefully, we can leave now"

"Where to"

"Back to earth"

Ellis's eyes went wide in surprise, they were going back to earth? That was great news! How she longed to check on her fellow humans, settle back in the comfort of her own race, perhaps have a little peace of mind

However, the dreamy thoughts did not last long as she thought of how hurried her Master has been, that and his foul mood, perhaps something bad happened? Being the upfront type she was quick to say what was on her mind

"Bad? That's an understatement, the human race might as well be wiped out in this single raid"

"Wiped out?!"

"Calm down, that's why we are going to interfere"

He assured, not that his thoughts were calm whatsoever, in fact ever since the blood message he'd been thrown into a torrent of internal debates, all leading to the same point every time, the human race will not survive

'The Wraiths were not supposed to attack this soon, they only came after the long battle between the Land Kraken and Hortus, something I should have taken into mind'

He couldn't go back through time again to fix this, that's a mistake he'd have to face the consequences of

'The angel is dead, she was the bastion of humanity for the upcoming raid, the guilds have not formed, humans have yet to earn their third classes, we are ill prepared'

And it was all his fault, every action taken caused major ripples through the chain of events, one toppling the other behind the scenes until the momentum was so great he couldn't put a stop to it

'Ready or not I will not allow humanity to fall to its knees, not under my watch'

His mind determined YuJu took a step forward, the two following behind, the impossible before them, waiting for what miracle they would bring about