Fmes spread through the city. Several houses burned out of control, lighting up the streets.
On the ground y the bodies of several soldiers.
CLANG!
“Attack! Don’t stop!”
The western square had descended into chaos. The fountain in the centre had been stained red, and the blood running through the cracks in the ground slid toward the figure standing in the middle of the square.
Arrows flew across the sky, fired from different directions toward a single target. But before reaching it, they were devoured by the darkness surrounding him.
Soon, the number of soldiers began to dwindle.
“Where are the reinforcements?!”
One soldier dropped his sword. His hands trembled.
“I… I’m getting out of here,” he said as he ran to save his own life.
The bells continued to ring. In the distance, a young soldier rushed toward the battlefield at full speed.
“Damn you!” he shouted, jumping and smming his sword against the Dark Knight’s armour.
The blow was so powerful that it sent him flying, crashing into the fountain in the middle of the square.
Soon silence filled the area. All the soldiers were dead. The few who had survived fled the scene.
Damn it! I have to stop him here. I can’t let him continue his sughter.
The Dark Knight stood up. Soon the swords cshed again.
CLANG!
The young soldier managed to block the attack, but the force of the impact forced him to step back several paces.
‘His strength…’
He gritted his teeth.
‘I must end this here.’
His expression hardened. He drove his sword into the ground, and it began to glow.
“Simple technique… Crescentia Style…”
Energy flowed through the bde until it covered it completely.
“Imbued Sword!”
A yellow aura wrapped around the bde. The young man lifted his sword and lunged forward.
“Die, you damn beast!”
Light against darkness—the swords cshed violently.
BOOM!
An explosion of air shook the square.
The young soldier was bsted backwards, rolling across the ground until he stopped at someone’s feet…
“Damn it, we’re te,” Darik said as he quickly crouched down and checked the soldier’s pulse. “He’s still alive.”
Mira was watching the Dark Knight carefully.
“You saw that, right? That guy unched a powerful attack… and it was repelled that easily.”
The Dark Knight began walking slowly toward them.
Darik stepped forward.
Small sparks began running across his body.
“Let’s buy time. Send the signal.”
“Understood.”
Mira grabbed a signal arrow, aimed at the sky, and fired.
The arrow exploded high above, leaving a red trail visible across the entire city.
At the same time, another red explosion appeared in the sky.
“Huh?”
Darik looked up.
“That’s Alice’s signal.”
The Dark Knight was already in front of them.
“Mira, fall back.”
“Right.”
The sparks coursing through Darik’s body intensified.
He stepped forward as well. The bck sword came down quickly, aiming for a clean cut.
He barely dodged the attack and threw a punch straight into the Dark Knight’s chest.
Electricity burst on impact.
“Good—now!”
The discharge paralysed the enemy for a brief moment.
Mira quickly nocked another arrow, aimed, and fired.
The arrow flew straight toward the helmet of the armour, but the darkness surrounding it stopped it completely.
“Explode!” Mira said as she clenched her fist.
BOOM!
A cloud of smoke covered the Dark Knight.
Darik quickly retreated until he stood beside the archer.
“Get ready. This isn’t over. If it could withstand the Imbued Sword, there’s no way that killed it,” Mira said while preparing another shot.
Through the smoke left by the arrow, a silhouette could be seen rising.
Suddenly, a deep and horrifying voice echoed.
“Beast Manifestation…”
The darkness on the ground began to stir.
“Shadow Bull.”
From the shadows emerged an enormous beast shaped like a bull.
Its eyes, just as bck, fixed themselves on the duo.
“Attack.”
The beast snorted and charged straight at Darik.
Sparks burst from his legs, and with force he leapt to the side.
“Close…”
The bull crashed into a wall, tearing through it as if it were paper.
“Mira! We need to retre—”
The sentence was cut short.
The Dark Knight appeared in front of him and unched a horizontal ssh straight at his chest.
“Darik!”
CLANG!
The attack was blocked. A shining sword had intercepted the bck bde.
“I’m not dead yet, damn you.”
The young soldier had stood up. His sword began glowing again.
“For my honour… Simple technique, Crescentia Style…”
Yellow light wrapped around the bde.
“Imbued Sword!”
The impact cracked the ground beneath their feet.
Both sides were thrown back in opposite directions.
This time, they all nded on their feet, sliding across the ground.
The young soldier was breathing heavily.
“Are you alright?”
“Yes,” Darik replied, surprised.
“We have to stop him here,” the young soldier said, raising his sword. “If he advances any further, he’ll destroy the entire city.”
Mira ran closer.
“The situation is critical. Kael hasn’t arrived yet… and Alice sent her signal a while ago.”
The young soldier blinked.
“Miss Alice is here? I thought she had gone on an expedition.”
Mira looked at him with suspicion.
“And you are…?”
“Luke Morvaik. Css 3 soldier of the city of Doletto.”
‘Css 3?’
Darik thought.
A snort interrupted the moment.
The Shadow Bull charged at them again.
“Behind me.”
Luke stepped forward.
His sword drew a downward ssh.
The beast split in two before dissipating into bck smoke.
“Good… now only that bastard is left,” he said while pointing his sword toward the Dark Knight.
Suddenly…
The ground began to tremble. A thunderous sound spread across the entire city.
The battle stopped. Everyone looked toward the source of the noise.
An enormous beam of dark energy rose into the sky.
“What the hell is that?” Luke muttered.
Darik frowned.
“It’s coming from the northern part of the city…”
Suddenly, something ran through Mira’s body.
A familiar sensation.
The wind began to move toward that event.
“That can’t be…”
It felt the same as that day. The day she met…
“…Theoder.”
