Control the wealth, and you shall control the world.

~ Precept from the Church of Pernatia

The trajectory of Alda's spear was changed by an errant shadow blade striking it at the tip. Instead of a fatal blow like the dwarven general had wanted, it cut deep into the succubus' shoulder and made her scream in pain.

"Shit!"

She cursed, falling back just as the assassin reached her position. Seeing just how close she was to eliminate one of the two biggest threats to the royal palace made the spearwoman gnash her teeth in frustration.

"I warned you, Loveborn. Drink."

The dark-skinned assassin knelt towards her and gave Tinder two high-grade healing potions. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to recover fully from the devastating blows she received to the head and shoulder. Arber's hammer flew towards him, returning to his hand due to a magical enchantment.

"Alda, we need to put them down now. GO! These bloody bastards know they can't kill me. They want me alive."

The general couldn't believe what she was hearing. The recklessness that the blacksmith possessed was incredible, and he didn't even turn to see if she agreed with the plan before he barrelled toward them. With a massive dwarf coming toward them, the two executives of the invading army dodged him with ease. After living for multiple centuries, he had amassed more STR than anybody despite having a non-combat class. He broke the ground underneath with a strike of his hammer, and Alda used him as a cover to focus on the injured succubus.

Tinder Loveborn barely dodged the oncoming strike, fumbling the last potion in her grasp and casting another spell. The gash on her head had stopped bleeding, but the dried blood had marred her beautiful face. Her smile was long gone, and in her eyes, Alda could see anger and a hint of fear.

"Phantasmal Lover."

The surroundings faded briefly, and the pink-skinned woman transformed into a man. It was as though his features were carved from stone. A chiseled jawline, tan skin, and a muscled figure that rivaled a vampire's. Alda forgot the entire situation as she stared into those warm, brown eyes with a mischievous glint. Curly, matted hair that made him look as though he had just woken up. The battle-hardened woman felt her heart beat faster as she tried to remember what she was doing.

A cheeky smirk formed on his face. "What are you staring so hard for? You want me that badly?"

Phantasmal Lover is partially resisted.

The woman grunted as she took a vicious kick to the midsection. Her surroundings returned to normal, with the succubus having shifted back to her regular form. During the few seconds in which she had been enchanted, Arber had collapsed to the ground, paralyzed as a viscous, green liquid dripped from Kang's dagger.

"Elson's paralytic is quite potent. To be able to work even against a transcendent figure; I suppose I'll have to thank him later..." He glanced over at the tiring general, who looked on worriedly as she fought off several foot soldiers controlled by Tinder. She cut them down with ease, despite her being blind in one eye. "We should finish up here first."

"Tremor!"

The ground shook once more, destabilizing the area as the remaining soldiers tried to put up a fight. Kang had prepared himself, managing through the shaky terrain and pressuring the half-dwarf even further. Aware of the poison on his blade, she kept her guard up and played it as safely as she could.

"You're right, sir Fistpig. We're under strict orders to keep you alive." Loveborn said, stepping close to the incapacitated blacksmith. He couldn't move his face, but his eyes were bloodshot as he made eye contact with the witch who destroyed the palace. "But that doesn't mean it has to be painless. Dream Infiltration!"

A ghastly, purple aura occurred as she was protected by a squadron of soldiers. She remained deathly still along with the dwarf, connected by a tendril of mana. Alda tried to disengage and go for the succubus but was forced back by the rogue who had no plans of letting her interfere. She noticed how he slipped through attacks that seemed impossible to dodge at random times, noting it as a skill that likely gave him a small chance of evading an attack at any given moment. It didn't work at all times, but enough to push the spearwoman to her limit.

"Get. Out. Of my WAY!"

She stomped the ground, making Kang fall back and tense up as she reared her spear over her shoulder and swung it as hard as she could. The shadow assassin was given no time to dodge, and could only put his daggers together to block the strike. The shaft of her spear made an impossibly loud clang as it sent him flying, and she rocketed towards the group at blistering speeds. Kang was forced to distance himself even further after avoiding a timely arrow from Welton's soldiers.

You have slain Human (level 14)

You have slain Human (level 12)

Within a few seconds, she cut down almost a quarter of the people guarding the prone succubus. Knowing that she didn't have many choices, she thrust her spear forward, past another foot soldier, and leaving herself wide open to an attack, hoping that her armor could tank the damage in exchange for disrupting Tinder's skill.

In a burst of speed, Kang had interrupted her attack once more. A shadow blade forced it to veer off-course and slam harmlessly into the ground.

"HA!"

The enemy foot soldier's attacks were paltry in comparison to anything she had received so far, but it was enough to make her stumble backward from the sword strike which bounced harmlessly off her helmet. In such a vulnerable position, she used Stone Cloud to deter anybody from approaching her, hoping that at least one of the projectiles would hit the succubus along the way. She rolled to the ground to avoid a jumping attack from Kang, who had leaped over the attack to finish her off once and for all.

"Ah, that was good." The succubus had gotten up, opening her eyes to see the assassin and warrior locked in a vicious battle. Most of Welton's forces had been depleted during the ensuing chaos. It was likely the main units had yet to realize the palace was under attack. They had made sure to cover any tracks, assassinating any scouts before they revealed themselves at the heart of the kingdom. Tinder Loveborn smiled, rising from her seated position as Arber's eyes rolled to the back of his head, clearly unconscious. "Now we can focus on the task at hand."

The aura surrounding Welton's forces had disappeared, weakening them even further. Blacksmith's Will was no longer in effect, and Alda tightened her grip on the spear as she faced off against two demon contractors.

The last dozen defenders watched the back of their leader as she pushed on in the face of despair. Alda knew there was no option to retreat. The burden placed on her shoulders was immense, but the woman's eyes never wavered. It still searched for a chance at victory. Despite the skills she had shown so far, Alda still had some tricks up her sleeve.

Feigning exhaustion, she leaned forward in a kneeling position. Although her posture didn't look like it, every muscle in her body was tensed; ready to explode into action at any given moment. Tinder remained cautious, knowing that a high-level melee fighter like herself wouldn't be exhausted so easily.

"Bloodsong, we are gracious enough to allow you to surrender. There is no need for this bloodshed. We are trying to preserve both sides' forces." Kang said, unmoving from his position in front of the Vault. "Our end goal isn't destruction."

'Ha. You expect me to believe that now? I'd rather die than admit defeat.' Outwardly, she panted heavily and kept a close eye on both contractors. She knew that hitting one of them was unlikely, and decided to buy herself some more time as she tried to recover her HP.

"Then why are you here? You've slaughtered my men and held sir Fistpig hostage. Who sent you?"

"...We can't say. If you cooperate with us, you'll understand our goals. We need access to that vault, for the sake of the greater good."

She barked out a harsh laugh; condescending and bitter. Alda looked around the tattered ruins of the palace, with the last of the soldiers in a tense stalemate during their conversation. "If the greater good requires sacrifices like this, then I'd advise you to go fuck yourself. Shattering Charge!"

A class-exclusive skill, she used it sparingly, and for good reason. Combined with Earth Infusion, her physical abilities had gone up by a significant amount and broke the floor underneath her as she dived forward like a rampaging bull. Swinging her spear horizontally, she attempted to cut both contractors down in one fell swoop, knowing that it was unlikely she'd hit either one when they were both so cautious.

With the patterns shown so far, both contractors expected her to change directions and head for the succubus. Tinder was prepared, having already created a duplicate and ready to employ an illusion spell at any given moment. The shadowy assassin was woefully unprepared for Alda to follow him instead.

'She's using Shattering Charge now? I don't like this one bit...'

He could barely avoid a spear thrust aimed at his exposed upper body and was forced to block a strike aimed at his throat. The succession of strikes was difficult to avoid considering her blistering speed which nearly matched his own, and he kept his guard up knowing that she likely had something up her sleeve still.

'Just one cut and I can administer the paralytic.'

With her charging skill over, she had returned to regular speeds and attacked another foot soldier mind-controlled by the succubus. Kang coldly analyzed the best spot to strike her before aiming at a precise chink in her armor, right on the side of her torso. Alda was unable to block the attack while being occupied by Tinder's interference, and she gasped in pain as the strike hit her in the midsection.

You are paralyzed for 5 seconds.

The dwarven general fell to the ground much to the remaining defenders' dismay. None of them retreated, unwilling to betray their commander's determination. They all fought until forcibly restrained or killed. Several men grabbed a hold of the paralyzed woman, and Kang made firm eye contact with Alda.

"You could've-"

"Lightning BLAST!"

Hidden from her clothes, the amethyst redeemer on her neck used up the stored spell within itself and blasted the rogue point-blank in the chest. Reminiscent of the black panther of Wisperium's elemental attack, it went through his body before slamming into the impenetrable defenses of the vault. Kang yelled out in agony as lightning coursed through every pore on his body. He had not expected any more resistance from the fallen foe. With the last of her MP spent, she collapsed to the floor and was handled roughly by the foot soldiers.

'I should thank Natalia for putting Archie's attack on my redeemer. If I can't, then I will in the afterlife...'

Alda was satisfied. She had managed to bring down at least one of the kingdom's enemies, and the woman had resigned herself to death. There was no more strength left in her body.

"You really don't give up until the end, do you? Tsk, tsk." Tinder said, rushing towards the injured assassin. He had collapsed to the floor, twitching slightly as the aftershock ran its course throughout his frame. His eyes had rolled up to the back of his head, but it was clear he was still alive. The succubus patted down his attire until she found the last remaining health potion, and she poured it into his mouth without a fuss.

He sputtered back to life, wheezing slowly as he got himself together. His armor was broken, and the parts of his body that were exposed had been covered in electrical burns. Despite it all, there was no rage in his expression. His half-lidded eyes made contact with Alda's as she looked up from her position to see the assassin still alive. It was as though he understood her animosity. Kang showed no signs of resentment. Getting up into a kneeling position, he winced as the half-dwarf spoke rudely.

"Kill me. You won't get a word out of me. Break my bones, flay my skin, I won't share anything about the vault with you bastards."

Kang shook his head. "There's no need for that. Tinder, reach into her mind. I'll go with the others and collect the Royal Family."

The succubus knelt before the woman. Her injuries hadn't fully healed, and a piece of her horn had been broken after making contact with Arber's hammer. With a sadistic smile that contrasted heavily with her compatriot's, a tendril of mana reached out to the powerless dwarf's mind.

"I'm going to enjoy this."

Just as the mana made contact with her forehead, a loud noise occurred that made it seem as though the entire palace was shaking. A metallic creaking noise, one that Alda had never heard before.

"The vault..." She whispered. Her eyes shook upon seeing the massive, adamantium door open slowly. Tinder, Kang, and the other invaders looked dumbfounded as their primary goal had opened itself up so easily. Its movement halted immediately, enough to obscure what was hidden inside and prevent the entire palace from seeing what was within the interior. As soon as it stopped moving, the spoked handle began to turn counter-clockwise and close up before anybody could react. It was silent for several seconds, without anybody moving or even daring to breathe.

Kang looked uneasy and whispered to himself. "Blindsense."

His eyes became complete darkness, almost removing his vision entirely. In this state, he could only see one thing; mana signatures.

"TINDER! WATCH OUT!"

She raised her staff and was sent stumbling backward after something made an impact with her weapon. The mithril handle bore a small mark at the level of her neck, showing that the mysterious assailant was trying to kill her. Tinder gasped in pain as something stabbed into her back. Several points along her shoulders were bleeding profusely, as though she was poked with a needle.

"Show yourself!"

Several foot soldiers dashed forward in an attempt to attack the invisible opponent, hitting thin air with their weapons. It wasn't until one of their errant swings caught a hold of something did the attacker reveal his face. An iridescent material warped and slithered past all the weapons and returned to him, molding itself onto the green, mithril armor he wore. Standing protectively between Alda and the succubus, the shadowy assassin retrieved his weapons and prepared himself for another fight.

Greater Invisibility has been dispelled.

'Attainium?!'

"Who are you?" Kang asked. He was an unknown variable. A wrench in their plans. His mind assumed it was a foolhardy foreigner who got involved in the kingdom's scuffle, but it didn't explain why he was in the Vault in the first place, raising more questions.

Chester Everheart transformed the Attainium in his hand into a massive, lengthy flail. The spiked end was almost the size of his entire torso, yet he swung it with ease, gripping the weapon with a uniquely colored pair of gauntlets that contrasted heavily with his mithril armor. He clenched his jaw, eyeing the state of Alda as he answered back.

"A hero, I guess."