Trion remembered how coldly he had treated his parents after they disowned his beloved older brother. He had lashed out at them despite what Orpal had done to Lith and his last-ditch effort to implicate Trion in the murder attempt.
Later, Trion had chosen to abandon his family and cut ties with them out of envy for Lith. He had discarded their family name, and refused all of Elina’s letters and calls. Yet here she was, still mourning his death after over one year.
Elina’s joy at his sight, the warm tears she had shed when she had learned the truth about his demise, and the worried look in her eyes while he fought, let Trion understand that she still loved him no less than Lith or Solus.
‘l’m the worst son on Mogar, second only to Orpal.‘ He gritted his teeth as his fury and hatred, even the self—hatred, gave him access to the innate powers of his Demon body.
“Protect Mom. I’ll do the rest.” Trion said, taking the blades into his body and accepting the pain they brought him as a punishment he believed to deserve.
The Thralls struck at his vitals, yet he had none.
They had a vague idea of what a Demon was so they retreated after every attack, saving the limited undead energy stored in their blood cores to boost their physiques and fuel their deadly skills.
Trion charged at them like a mad beast and soon was covered in wounds. Driven by agony and fury, he breathed a blast of Void Flames that was easily dodged by the many Thralls crowding the room.
Just like he intended.
The mind link that Lith had granted Trion also gave him access to the contingency plans that he had devised during the talk with Orpal.
Each Sealed Space spell contained only a limited amount of world energy, limiting the Void Flame’s power.
After apparently missing its target, the black fire attacked the borders of the nearest Sealed Space, piercing through it and then attacking the adjacent one. The moment the second border collapsed as well,
the Void Flames gained access to the world energy it contained.
Akin to a backdraft effect, the fresh oxygen and world energy invigorated the black fire that became strong enough to pierce a third Sealed Space. Then, a fourth and a fifth, until the blast of Void Flames created a small but definite tunnel with the outside world.
At the same time, a couple of Thralls dodged Trion’s Flames and claws, but they ended up too close to his upside—down wings. The hand-like limbs wrapped themselves around their prey, activating Abomination Touch.
The Thralls fought like trapped lions, but trapped nonetheless. The Chaos inside Trion’s body consumed their life, their mana, and even their blood cores, adding their strength to the Demon’s.
Meanwhile, above Lutia and many other cities of the Griffon Kingdom,
the gruesome show had caught up by fast—forwarding the recorded part and was now being broadcasted live.
Orpal had been careful recording everything from the moment of his arrival, in the hope that Lith would hesitate to turn down his offer,
giving the Dead King the opportunity to brand his brother as a traitor.
Yet the images only boosted his reputation as he defended his family and village, without even considering Orpal’s offer.
At least until Trion appeared.
The Demon came from Lith’s shadow and still retained enough of his original appearance for his colleagues to recognize Trion. The revelation about his death shocked his friends, but scared to death anyone with more brains than feelings.
Lith’s ability to summon the dead who still retained their memories was more terrifying than any war. It meant that none of their secrets was safe if even one passing soul witnessed them.
The fear turned into horror when Locrias joined the fray, revealing to everyone that the ex-captain of the Queen’s Corps was among Lith’s Demons.
Among the dreadful thoughts and words that followed Lith’s name as people couldn’t take their eyes off the broadcast, there was also a silver lining. The Queen’s Corps that was protecting the farm saw the titans in the distance first and the broadcast later.
“Toman, take the kids, Rena, and go to the barn.“ Zesker, the newly appointed Captain of the detail unit ordered to his second in command. “At the first sign of trouble, Warp them to Valeron, the Ernas, wherever you deem the safest.
“I also leave you in charge of Raaz’s detail. Let me know the moment the target is found and secured again. The rest of the squad and I will give the Dead King the beating of a lifetime.“
“And we are going to help you.” Reaper and Lifebringer, two of the kings of the woods, stepped forward in their human forms. “Sentinel,
you stay with the kids.”
Toman and Zesker were grateful to the beasts for the reinforcements They had no idea that they had left one of their own along with a battalion of hundreds of magical beasts because they didn‘t trust humans.
Then, they opened a Warp Steps straight to Lutia and they joined the fight at the Heavenly Wolf restaurant.
At the same time, Tista, who was studying arrays under Raagu and Athung, received the news of what was happening via the communication amulet of their mentors.
“Fuck arrays, my family needs me!“ She said, Spirit Warping away before the Council representative could even answer.
Fn’ya leamed about it the same way, while Faluel was showing her the ropes of the Hydra bloodline’s Forgemastering techniques.
“You go first.” Faluel said while opening a Warping array. “I just need a few seconds to stabilize the process and not lose hours of work.”
Friya nodded and jumped inside the circle.
Meanwhile, in Lutia, the battle was already ongoing and became bloodier by the second. Orpal hadn’t lied when he said that he had assembled his forces for the occasion.
The moment the members of the Queen’s Corpse and the Emperor Beasts had stepped through the Steps, they had been ambushed by the same civilians they had tried to defend.
They found themselves surrounded and outnumbered, but not outmatched.
“Good work, Trion. It’s my turn now!” Solus had the Sage Staff revert to its original size and used the flow of world energy to empower herself.
Now that the Sealed Space spells were damaged, she shattered them with ease even in her weakened state and without Lith’s help.
Kamila and Elina had no idea what was happening, but while the Constable had training and experience, Elina was frozen in terror. The sight of the sharp blades, the chaos of the fight, and the wounds that her children sustained paralyzed her.
Solus had a hard time keeping her safe, even with Trion’s help.
Kamila, instead, kept her back glued to L0crias’, following his movements and making it easy for him to protect her, wrapping her with his wings when necessary.
The moment the Sealed Space shattered, she took out her communication amulet and several wands, shooting non-stop while calling for reinforcements.
“Finally!” With the Thralls busy dodging Kamila’s onslaught, Loerias could finally catch his breath.
Literally.
Locrias hurled a stream of deep violet Origin Flames while using his six eyes to Dominate Kamila’s spells.
