Chapter 904 (2/2)

“Fuck! About damn time.” The Obsidian Duke grumbled, immediately seizing Drake’s bound body and rushing toward the portal. Thea nodded sharply and dashed to the side to arrive at the bit of charcoal that had been the Deep Horror. Her hand brushed against its shell and came away flakey with ash.

It seemed that Randidly hadn’t moved because he had to… it was because he was finished.

Gritting her teeth, Thea spun around to see Randidly dashing toward the newly opened portal as well, even as the prior portal finally was allowed to close by his vines.

“Thinking of escaping…? I don’t think so.” Randidly growled. The Obsidian Duke safely made it through the portal with Drake, followed by a squeaking Winged Serpent. Which left her and the Wildness to push through.

Even though she didn’t like it, Thea admitted that Chrysanthemum was the best matchup against Randidly. If she bought time for them-

“Fucking man-child, pleased with your little bit of strength…” A grim voice cut across Thea’s thoughts as a body interposed itself between Randidly and the portal. The Wildness was… steaming. Long clouds of smoke drifted up from his body. After spitting up a mouthful of blood, he bared his gap-toothed grin and raised his blade. “Try a taste of this.”

To Thea’s surprise, Randidly slowed to a stop and frowned at The Wildness. “You… broke your own Nemesis binding? Why? How? Without that, won't you be rejected-”

“But I’ll have enough time to teach a welp like you a lesson,” The Wildness grunted. His gaze went to Thea and he subtly jerked his chin. Thea nodded and dashed past him. “You think you are the only one who can create something from nothing? I’ll show you the pride of one who killed a whole world to become a Nemesis. Our images aren’t nonexistent. We simply aren’t allowed to grace your world with their majesty-”

“I won’t let you go that easily,” Randidly thundered, his burning emerald eyes shifting to Thea. The ground in front of her erupted in bursts of emerald fire. Gritting her teeth, she could only hope for the best and plunge through the thick flames.

It was not for nothing that the Deep Horror had been reduced to ash by this vivid fire, but her brief exposure only left Thea with some superficial burns. She pushed forward, crossing the final few steps to arrive in front of the portal. Vines were already rising to block her way and snaking up to grab her ankles with malicious precision.

Thea’s eyes narrowed and she began to cut her way forward.

Behind her, the sky rumbled and the Wildness spoke. “One Cut, One Sacrifice.”

A peal of thunder rang out as a bolt of vivid red lightning struck downward toward their battlefield. It hit the ground with a dull roar, and Thea was surprised to see the vines that had been reaching toward her slow and pause in their attacks.

Despite herself, she spared a glance over her shoulder to see what had happened. In that brief flash, she saw the Deepness was raising his blade once more, but what grabbed her eyes was Randidly. That charcoal body armor he wore had been split open and there was a deep wound across his chest.

There was shock in his eyes too, but then his face split into a grin. “Ha. Is this all an Upper Cohort can manage?”

“Good armor,” The Wildness said grudgingly, but then he hissed as Randidly blurred into motion and appeared behind him. His blade swung around but Randidly was gone, this time borrowing the strike’s momentum and appearing right next to Thea. His spear was already halfway toward her calf.

Fucking brutal, Thea thought with a fair bit of respect. But her ax took on a life of its own as it twisted upward in a Reaping Cut. The blow smashed into that fucking metallic arm of Randidly’s, even as he savaged her calf with a thrust as fast and poisonous as a viper bite. She stumbled, but the telltale sparkle of a determined spectral fire burned along the cut she had just made.

There was a flash of relief in her chest. It will have to be enough. Spectral Detonation.

The fire exploded, sending Thea sprawling backward toward the portal. Again vines rose like hungry snakes from the ground to snap at her, but her ax cut sideways through them and opened a path. Behind her, she heard Randidly’s furious hiss but the Wildness had caught up with Randidly again and the Ghosthound had to choose between protecting himself and stopping Thea’s crazed dash.

He chose self-preservation.

“One Cut, One Sacrifice-”

“Spear Advances, Ash Trails.”

Thea tumbled through the portal and sprung immediately to her feet. Her leg was out of commission, but she balanced expertly on the other foot. The first thing she did was spin and bring the pommel of her ax against the Winged Serpent temple like a hammer. The thing yelped and collapsed, knocked out. Then she brought another Reaping Cut down on the delicately arrange teleportation array, shattering it.

The portal flickered, then rapidly began to fade.

To Thea’s relief, Randidly was too preoccupied by the Wildness to stop it.