The afternoon comes and goes, soon... it will be nighttime.

One of the men approached Terros. "Grandpa, I will go back to the headquarters to get some food and bring them here. We haven't eaten anything yet. Our stomach is already complaining," he said. ​​

"Okay, go ahead!" Terros replied. His stomach growled the moment it heard the mention of food.

The guy disappeared from his sight. He shifted his attention back to the main entrance of the crumbling castle.

When he placed the unconscious men inside the castle, he didn't see the black liquid which was abundant before when he first entered the castle. He wondered where they are right now?

And Luke! Where is that damn brat!? He looked at Luke's body, safely cocooned inside the protective bubble. How long Luke's spirit can stay outside his body? And where is that brat right now? He sighed heavily and scratched his head. He shouldn't have allowed him to go inside the castle in the first place!

Why Luke's spirit is not back yet? What he's up to?

C-could it be that he was already captured by the King?

Damn!

If that is the case, then... they have another problem coming before the first problem has been solved!

He released a deep sigh. But he knows deep inside that even if he objected to Luke's coming into the castle, he can't prevent him 'coz that guy had a mind of his own and won't listen to reason!

"Luke, come back here now!" he muttered to himself.

Suddenly...

One of the men shouted. "The bats are coming!" he said alerting everyone.

Multitudes of bats have appeared from all directions.

"Stay close to me!" Terros shouted.

The men huddled together in the air close to the old man.

Terros moved his hand five times in circular motion... a shield was created immediately, enveloping the men in a protective bubble, including the bubble where Luke's body was resting.

Terros knows that bats are hard to fight during the night, especially if they come in all directions. He will never know that while he was fighting bats in front of him... some bats are already behind him or above him waiting to strike. Worst if he got bitten by the bats, which happened to be a carrier of a deadly poison that can kill in one go, then all of them will die today.

The bats are now attacking the bubble from all directions!

Soon enough, the bubble was like a giant big ball covered with bats suspended in the air twenty-five meters away from the castle.

It was a spectacle to behold from below.

Inside the bubble.

Terros and the men can't see anything. It's pitch darkness everywhere they look!

"Grandpa! How long this bubble could last?" asked one of the men.

"What if the bubble will suddenly burst out?" another one asked.

"We can fight the bats!" said another one.

Terros smiled. "Calm down, everyone! The bats attacked us because the darkness is fast approaching. They have the advantage to bite us while we're enveloped with darkness. If we will fight them head-on, it will be a waste of time and energy and possibly our precious life. Saving our precious life right now is not cowardice! It's called bravery at its wisest!" he said, accompanied with a chuckle.

The men laughed.

"Ah, let me assure you that, only if a dragon appeared out of somewhere and blast this bubble with flames after flames for half an hour, then that will be the time that this bubble will burst. And that will be the best time to fight the bats to the death. Stay relax! While I'm beside you, nothing bad will happen to us!" Terros assured them.

"Thanks, Grandpa!" the men said in unison. They finally relaxed and let their guard down.

A few minutes later.

The bats finally give up in biting the hard shell of the bubble that almost got their fangs broken.

They darted away from the bubble and distances from it a few meters away.

Finally! The men inside the bubble saw the light after a few minutes of pitch darkness.

Terros observed the bats' movements, his brows knitted together. "Huh? Why they're not going away? Are they planning to keep watching and guarding the bubble until darkness comes?" he asked himself aloud.

"It looks like they're planning on something, Grandpa!" one of the guys said.

As soon the guy finished his words...

The bats come together in three groups and what happened next blows the men's minds away!

After forming into three groups, the bats turned themselves into three giant bats that are now dwarfing the bubble!

And Terros's worst nightmare had just materialized! They opened their mouths, and flames merged from their mouths!

"Shiit!"

"Look at that!"

"Oh no!"

"We're dead!"

Collective shouts erupted from the men's mouths.

Terros wasted no time and waved his hand around the bubble. He quadrupled the overall strength of the bubble.

The three giant bats throw flames into the bubble in the next few minutes. Although the flames can't penetrate the bubble, the constant attack heated the bubble inside and out.

The bodies of the men were already drenched in sweat, and the inside of the bubble gets hotter!

Terros looked at his companions. They will become fried men if he won't do something!

"Time to retreat!" he finally said to himself.

He closed his eyes, and he quickly initiated the teleportation process in his mind.

A few minutes later.

Suddenly, the bubble vanished from the air!

The bubble reappeared outside Terros's fortress where Luke's tent was still standing nearby.

Terros waved his hand, and the bubble disappeared in an instant. "Men, we're safe in the forest now!" he announced.

The men's faces broke into relief and happiness as their bodies start cooling down while inhaling the fresh air and the gentle breeze of the forest wind.

"Hooray! We're back in the forest!" the men shouted in delight.

"Everyone, if you are thirsty, go to the stream on the north side and drink some water to cool your bodies!" Terros ordered.

The men scrambled to the north side, eager to reach the stream to drink water and quench their thirst.

Terros released a deep sigh watching the men gone from his eyes. He glanced at the bubble with Luke's body inside.

A moment later, a guy materialized in the clearing, carrying a wooden box with him. He placed it on the ground and went to Terros's side.

"Grandpa, I went back to the crumbling castle, but I didn't see anyone there! That's why I teleported here," he said.

"Ah, we left the crumbling castle because three giant bats attacked us. Did you still see the giant bats there?" Terros asked.

The guy shook his head. "No. I didn't see anything above the castle," he replied.

"I guess the bats already returned to the castle," Terros spoke. "Did you bring the food?" he asked.

"Yeah, it's in the box!" the guy said and went to the box and opened it. He picked up one paper bag, inside was a round bread and a scrambled egg in the center. He accompanied it with two pieces of ripe yellow bananas and handed them to Terros. "Here's the food, Grandpa! It's the only thing I can come up with because the cook went home and no one will prepare the foods, so I have to invent from scratch," he said apologetically.

Terros smiled brightly. "It's good enough for me!" he said and took a bite of the egg sandwich. "Hmm, taste delicious! Good job, son!" he said and gave the guy a thumb up for the job well done.

"I'm glad you like it, Grandpa!" the guy said with a smile. "Eat some more. I added five more extra," he said.

"Ah, no more. This one is enough for me!" Terros replied and munched on the ripe banana.

The guy roamed his eyes around the area. "Where are the others, Grandpa?" he asked.

"They're in the stream as of this moment, drinking water. And maybe they're taking a bath as well," Terros responded.

"Ah, okay. Let's just wait here," the guy said.

A few minutes later, the men returned from the stream.

"I brought food!" the guy announced to his comrades.

"Wow, food! Give me! I'm starving already!" the guys shouted.

Terros helped in distributing the food to the hungry men.

A few minutes later.

Terros addressed the men. "Men, after eating, go home for tonight! It's already dark outside the crumbling castle right now. Let's just returned there tomorrow morning after breakfast. Remember, avoid getting so close to the castle! Keep a safe distance and don't stay on the ground. The air is much safer! See you tomorrow outside the castle!" he said.

"Copy, Grandpa!" the men replied in chorus.

A few minutes later, the men finished eating their food.

Time to go home!

"Bye, Grandpa!" the men bid farewell to the old man and disappeared from the clearing.

Terros released a deep sigh of relief. What happens earlier? He didn't expect it. The multitude of small bats suddenly transformed into giant bats! It seemed the cursed King is getting stronger, eh? How come?

Is there a possibility that the King can now leave the basement freely without the need for Laura's blood to restore his full power? Or maybe, the King's power can only do much close to the castle, but once the distance is far away, his power can no longer do anything?

He looked around him. The forest is getting quiet. It's preparing for the night to come. He touched the bubble with Luke's body inside and vanished from the clearing.