The Seat of Order, Sulong Blue Grass, called for a tactical retreat due to suffering heavy losses and the Parasite’s unexpected arrival.

Although all of his mages were killed, he and the other seats had planned ahead in case of such complications.

Once his men rushed into the woods for obfuscation, he used an artifact to send a signal to Gerard and Hector, after which, Sulong, despite being wounded and exhausted, made use of his orbs to gather energy and then launch a powerful blast.

From within the forest, a pillar of light burst forth, smashing into the Protection Charm. Simultaneously, Hector and Gerard did the same, each one using their unique type of ability or magic to bolster the wave of energy.

Fortunately, they didn’t have to maintain this for long as the Protection Charm crumbled relatively quickly.

However, when the gargantuan Treant rose from Blackcrest, retaliating against the Demon Lord, the three Seats attacked again, but unlike their first successful attempt, things didn’t go as smoothly this time.

The first to be disrupted was Sulong, whose men were ambushed and attacked by the Viscount’s men.

Led by Veronica, the soldiers rushed with full-force, attacking those supposed to be their allies.

“What are you doin-”

The Seat of Order wasn’t given the time to question this foul play as the female Knight bulldozed her way through his men and reached him in mere moments.

She wielded a particularly big longsword that cut through anything it touched.

With gritted teeth, Sulong moved his golden staff to parry but, much to his surprise, it was cleanly cut in two when it came into contact with Veronica’s blade.

Shocked, he tried retreating but her gauntlet-covered hand smashed into his chest, breaking a few ribs and smashing him on the ground.

“Tell your men to stand down.”

With a chillingly cold look, Veronica pointed her longsword at his face.

The man’s two hands let out faint multi-colored lights, but, in the blink of an eye, one of them was severed by the knight.

Sulong let out a wail of agony as blood gushed out, spilling on the dirt and grass.

“Last chance.”

Hearing no response from him, Veronica raised her head and looked at his soldiers, who were still resisting and trying to group up.

“Kill them all.”

When they heard this, the Viscount’s soldiers grew aggressive and started dealing killing blows rather than simply trying to overpower and corner the enemies.

The cleanup lasted for barely two minutes. It wasn’t even a fight, in fact. Sulong’s men were mercilessly killed by the much stronger and cooperative forces of Kirn Sparrow.

Veronica kicked Sulong’s head, knocking him unconscious before gesturing to her men to carry him.

“Go back. I will deal with the rest.”

The soldiers saluted and then began marching South-west, soon disappearing from sight.

As for Veronica, left alone, she took a deep breath and then, like a bolt of lightning, shot toward Blackcrest.

Her task was yet to be completed. There were three more targets she needed to bring back, all of them equally important for her Lord’s plan.

…

Albeit reluctant, Arthur didn’t run away. He set his attention towards Sulong Bluegrass only to stop midway when the pillar of light disappeared.

As he had seen Veronica rush after him, it wasn’t that hard to guess what happened.

The next on the list was Hector, who was West of Blackcrest and relatively closer than the other Seat.

There was also Gerard, but he was East, which meant Arthur had to either go through Blackcrest or circle around, though both options were time-consuming.

The Treant’s arrival notwithstanding, the Demon Lord’s Blight was still in Blackcrest and Arthur didn’t want to rush into it.

As he got closer and closer to the Western wall of the city, he saw flashes of lights and fiery explosions.

The fight between Halric’s familiars and Sulong’s men paled in comparison to the true chaos Westward.

There were hundreds of plant-like summons and Treants battling against Hector’s Cavalry knights. Most of the Infantry soldiers were killed, but the mounted and heavily-armored knights were mobile and more powerful as they moved in coordinated and synchronised groups.

A distance away, the Parasite saw the Duke of Blackcrest, flames blazing from his longsword as he clashed against the relentless knights.

A bit to the back, surrounded by 20 to 30 soldiers, was Hector of Raziwon. The Seat of Protection was powering up his shield and using it to shoot that thick pillar of light at the treant in the middle of the city.

Not yet noticed by the enemies, Arthur switched to the Sand Worm and dove underground. He used the host’s sharp teeth to dig through dirt and close in on the grizzly-faced Hector.

[Law of Perception]

[Law of Resilience]

Like an unseen predator, the Sand Worm dug its way toward the Seat of Protection until he was right above it. Thereafter, it shot upwards like a bullet, surging from the dirt and pushing away the nearby soldiers as well as interrupting Hector.

Swiftly, Arthur possessed a human host and used [Air Decay].

Albeit unable to breathe, the old man was able to bang his massive shield on the ground and cause a shock wave that dispersed the green mist that swirled around the parasite.

[Sanguis Barrier]

The shiny barrier bashed down on Hector’s shield, dealing no damage whatsoever.

[Power Attack]

With the human host, Arthur crashed down into the old man’s, who was still able to move his shield and successfully block.

“Abomination!”

Hector roared, his shield bursting with blinding white chains made of Holy Energy. Akin to slithering serpents, the chains reached Arthur and wrapped around his body.

[Slime Me Not]

The parasite’s body grew squishy, easily slipping out of the chains’ grasp and falling down.

[Potent Multi-Spell]

[Enhanced Spell]

[Fire storm]

[Frost Blast]

[The Mist of Decay]

[Icicle]

A combination of spells bombarden Arthur’s surroundings. Hector staggered back, though he kept tightly holding to his human-sized glowing shield, which melted around the edges.

Before he could retaliate, swirling vermillion flames descended upon him.

“Deal with the knights!”

That was all Arthur could hear as a fast figure flashed past him and attacked The Seat of Protection.

The Duke, his armor bent, cracked, and riddled with holes, swung his flaming blade at Hector, resulting in both a shock wave and flames spreading everywhere.

Not ten seconds later, Arthur saw the remaining Cavalry Knights galloping in his direction.

[Berserk]

He took out a sword and rushed at them on foot, green mist spinning around him and giving him a semblance of cover from their magical projectiles.

[Sanguis Barrier]

Once he was very close to them, his yellow-ish barrier, taking the shape of a drill, pierced through one of the horses’ heads, killing it on the spot.

The knight managed to balance his body and safely land on the ground, but four icicles impaled his chest.

Arthur tried to possess him, but four others charged at him from all directions.

[Magick Sense]

[Multi-Spell]

[Frost Blast]

[Frost Blast]

[Frost Blast]

A wave of light-blue energy froze the ground around him as well as slowing down any close hostile enemies.

[Sanguis Barrier]

[Wither Touch]

Arthur hastily crouched down and touched the ground, his body rapidly absorbing an enormous quantity of energy.

The spherical barrier was enveloping and, momentarily, protecting him from the knight’s magical spells and physical attacks.

After a couple of seconds, it shattered and his body was hit by no less than five Holy-aspected magical arrows.

Nevertheless, such wounds didn’t affect him. He moved quickly and decisively, a burst of mist coming out of his body.

[You possessed ‘Infantry Soldier’: Kratin]

[You possessed ‘Infantry Soldier’: Lorp]

..

.

The ground was littered with corpses, all for the taking. Arthur didn’t hesitate or slow down, continuously jumping from host to the other.

His stat was rising and the knights couldn’t keep up with him, especially since they only knew which body he possessed after it showed slight movement.

[Icicle]

[Frost Blast]

[Fireball]

[Icicle]

It was a nasty trick, but it helped the Parasite take down four of them in a minute.

He only stopped his possession streak when he reached one of the dead knights.

Except for a gaping hole in the torso, the rest of the heavy set of armor was, more or less, intact and usable.

Greatly empowered, Arthur picked up a sword and faced the incoming knights.

[Sword Blast]

He swung it diagonally, releasing a powerful blast that cleaved three horses and killed one knight. Right after, he kicked the ground and rushed at the Cavalry knights.

[Law of Perception]

[Law of Resilience]

Despite their numbers, he overpowered them with sheer toughness and power. Even when their attacks hit them, he didn’t flinch.

His armor made use that any attacks he sustained didn’t damage his body enough to force him to switch.

[The Crescent Moon]

Six knights galloped toward him, shields in hands and blades raised, however, when the shining silver moon rose up and exploded, they were all sent flying backwards along with their mounts.

Before they could get up, the parasite was already upon them, finishing them off. While they were getting tired and injured, Arthur was quite the opposite. Whenever he had the chance, he possessed them, thereby growing more powerful and getting hold of a better host.

It was a very one-sided fight that slowly dwindled the Cavalry Knight’s numbers until only 20 of them were left.

Meanwhile, Hector and Terden kept facing off against each other in a brutal and intense fight.

The area surrounding them was covered in flames and flashing white light. Holy and Fire energy, turbulent and intense, clashed against each other.

“...”

With a sword in hand, Arthur looked at the retreating knights.

When he looked North, he noticed that the pillar of light that had been launched by Gerard was also gone.

The Treant, controlled by Halric, was no longer disrupted or attacked from the three directions.

The sight of two colossal entities attacking each other was frightening. The sky itself seemed to shake as the Demon Lord grew more impatient and aggressive.

A cascading wave of miasma burst from His mouth, causing the Treant to rot and fall down.

..

“Colluding with a misbegotten fiend! Your crime deserves death, Terden!”

Hector spat blood and then raised his shield, about to bash it into the heavily wounded and severely bleeding Duke.

The Seat of War’s left arm was broken, dangling around, whereas his body was leaned forward, barely able to stand.

He had had a prolonged battle against the Cavalry knights, the infantry soldiers, and the Seat of Protection.

“I will not let you destroy my home.”

More flames came out of his longsword, releasing a wave of suffocatingly hot air.

Alas, before he could swing, Hector’s body flashed with a radiant golden light and then, with impressive speed, it shot forward.

It seemed as if he was about to hit Terden, but, unexpectedly, he hit something else, which managed to stop his rapid charge.

Noticing the green mist descending from up above, Hector used his shield to block four icicles.

[Sword Blast]

However, the mist suddenly dispersed, revealing nothing. Arthur appeared from the Seat of Protection’s rear and brandished his sword.

The blade violently struck the old man’s armor but, unfortunately, it was unable to destroy or cut it.

[Frost Blast]

As Hector staggered forward, his boots were frozen and rooted to the ground.

[Sanguis Barrier]

The barrier appeared again and struck the target’s flank before swiftly changing shape and assaulting the front.

“I… will not be bested by a monster!”

Hector cried out as his body shone blindingly.

Arthur, caught off-guard, was hit by a wave of Holy Magic, which blew him a fair distance away.

His armor broke apart, revealing a grievously wounded torso and waist. Even then, the Holy Energy seemed to have invaded his body and applied something akin to a burning effect that came from within.

As soon as the Parasite regained his bearings, his vision was filled with a red and white light.

Terden had, at last, attacked, releasing an attack so powerful that it split the ground as well as the golden radiance emitting from Hector’s body.

After that, the Duke knelt on the ground, his blade stabbed into the scorched ground to support his body.

As for Hector, he had lost hold of his shield and blown a bit to the side.

He laid on the ground, the front of his breastplate melted, revealing a wide bone-deep bloody wound.

His heavy breathing and groans, indicating that he was still conscious and alive, but he couldn’t move, much less get up and flee.

Arthur saw the remaining Cavalry knights galloping towards him, but he didn’t go to stop them.

[Mist of Decay]

The thick green mist rose slightly above ground and then whooshed toward Terden, carrying him closer to a city wall.

It was then that it finally happened.

A sinister flame, wholly different from Terden’s, burst from Blackcrest. It was savage, violent, and sentient.

The Fire Spirit immediately set its attention on the Demon Lord, who was made up of an absurd quantity of Demonic Energy.

From its perspective, Abrigel wasn’t a Demon Lord but a large feast of energy, meant to be devoured.

Halric’s colossal Treant was burned to ash within seconds, now replaced by a rising dark-red flame that had a laughing creepy face imprinted on it.

[Sanguis Barrier]

[Mist of Decay]

Booming sounds, deafening and terrifying, kept reverberating across Blackcrest and its surroundings.

Temperature drastically rose and the sky canopy was filled with flames and miasma.

Arthur stayed in the same place, absorbing any ambient energy to strengthen himself and maintain the constantly-shaking and cracking barrier.

“Ugh…”

Next to him, Terden Sidus raised his head and looked at the sky.

“What were you hoping to happen? Win or lose, the city is doomed.”

Arthur looked at the Duke and sighed. Even if he couldn’t see it, with what was happening right now, there was no way Blackcrest would survive this.

Terden didn’t speak, he groaned and, after a bit of difficulty, managed to stand up.

‘Your friend is in danger. You need to help me, Arthur.’

When he heard Halric’s voice, Arthur frowned.

‘Evelyn?’

‘It’s the maid. She’s trapped.’