............"Hmm... who are you? How dare you intervene when I am trying to punish a sinner!" Aarav noticed Eirik's body was missing after the dust cleared. He also sensed another presence, which had interrupted his punishment and saved Eirik from his wrath."Fufufu... What do you mean, My Lord? You were just about to send my son to meet his maker, and you expect me not to intervene!" Elowen Everglen appeared a distance away from Aarav, her laughter echoing with a chilling tone as her son, Eirik, lay unconscious on the back of a beast resembling a large eagle."Ohh... You are the mother of this sinner. That means you are the root of sin itself!" Aarav directed his gaze at Elowen Everglen, his voice cold as he confronted her, his pressure bearing down on her, causing her to flinch but hold her ground."Fufufu... How scary, but I am not your opponent," Elowen Everglen laughed before stepping back, and suddenly, black tendrils like limbs attacked Aarav."Whoosh...!!""Now who is this..
............The air was thick with the sharp smell of burning energy, and a dense cloud of dust and smoke rose from the large crater where the dark ball had exploded. Debris rained down around him, clattering noisily to the ground."Whoosh... Bam...!!"Isolde Moonshroud and her men lay scattered across the battlefield, some groaning in pain, others completely still. The ground beneath them was scarred and cracked, showing the immense power that had just been unleashed. Aarav's Blade of Light still shimmered with an ethereal glow, though it had dimmed slightly after the intense clash.Aarav looked over at Isolde, who was struggling to push herself up from the ground. Her face was pale, and her eyes were wide with shock and fear. The confidence and anger she had shown earlier were gone, replaced by a look of helplessness."Is this the extent of the Moonshroud Family's power?" Aarav asked, his voice cold and mocking. "I expected more."Isolde's hands trembled as she tried to summon m
............"Cough... cough... not... good. It's not good. We need to run right away... we have no future... it's totally bleak!" Malik coughed, his voice filled with horror. He had seen something that made him despair and feel dread deep in his heart."What do you mean, bleak? Let me see!" Celestius Starcrest didn't believe Malik, even though he felt in his heart that Malik might be right. He decided to see for himself and performed the divination personally."Pufffff... cough... cough...!!" It didn't take a minute before Celestius coughed up blood, looking pale from the dread and despair. He understood why Malik said they had no future and needed to run."So, we really angered someone we shouldn't have and have no way to salvage our situation," Celestius muttered with a grim face, all color drained from his face.Both Malik and Celestius saw a vision of their men and themselves lying in a pool of blood. A man stood over them, radiating a divine presence like an ocean, deep and hea
............"Yes, now they won't be able to escape unless they strike the barrier with double the force needed to break it!" Thaddeus Lumara said with a smug smile, pride evident in his tone."Good. Let's tighten the noose," Rajendra Chauhan said, his eyes narrowing as he watched the chaos unfold. "We can't let any of them escape."Thaddeus Lumara nodded, signaling his men to advance. The barrier shimmered faintly, slowly closing in on the Starcrest Family grounds.The Holy Knights, emboldened by the barrier's protection, pressed their attack harder.Inside the Starcrest grounds, the Starcrest men were struggling. Despite their fierce resistance, they were being overwhelmed."Vice Head, we're surrounded!" one of his men shouted, desperation in his voice."We have no choice but to hold our ground!" Malik barked back, refusing to show any fear. "Keep fighting! Reinforcements will come!"But deep down, Malik knew the situation was dire. The Starcrest grounds were their last refuge, and
............Thaddeus's Divine Tool had already lost four petals, leaving only a single petal."Swiish... Bammm... Swiish... Boomnn!!""Boommmn... Craaack!"In a decisive moment, Celestius found an opening. With a swift, powerful strike, he brought his weapon down on Thaddeus. The powerful aura shield Thaddeus had dissipated as he blocked the attack, losing its last petal."Thump...!!"Thaddeus fell to the ground, drained of all his energy.The battlefield fell silent, all eyes on Celestius as he stood victorious. His presence radiated hope and strength, and the Starcrest men rallied with renewed vigor."Fight on, Starcrest!""Hooooohhhh!!" The remaining Starcrest men shouted with zeal, despite being tired and injured, or coughing up blood.Malik shouted, his voice filled with triumph, "Victory is within our grasp!"Meanwhile on the Everglen Family grounds,"Bammmnn...Booommn...Ahhhh...!!"Aarav arrived at the mansion after decimating several dozen beasts on his way through the fores
............Yet he wondered how Elowen knew about the situation in Quartzgate City when even Pope Aurelius only knew because Bishop Dominic had informed him.He became curious about this Dark Dan she spoke of. From her tone, Aarav could guess that it wasn’t anything good, seeing the malevolent energy surrounding the figure."Swiish...Bamnn...!!"The malevolent figure moved with inhuman speed, his attacks precise and deadly. Aarav could barely keep up, his body screaming in protest with each parry and counter.Despite being equal in strength, Aarav started to lag behind due to fatigue and exhaustion. But he still fought on, as he had no choice but to keep this malevolent figure occupied and try to analyze his weakness.Aarav knew he had to end this quickly. He couldn't afford to let the malevolent figure wear him down.Gathering his remaining strength, he waited for the right moment. As the malevolent figure lunged again, Aarav dodged to the side, bringing his light dagger up in a sw
............Aarav was beyond pissed, trying to repeatedly stop a crazed opponent. He was done holding back; he was ready to kill her, seeing she was beyond saving."Ah... Swoosh... Bam!"Elowen attacked again with sinister energy. Aarav deflected it, sending a shockwave back at her."Boom!"Elowen staggered, her momentum broken. Aarav seized the opportunity, closing the distance between them in an instant."Swish!"He brought his dagger down, aiming for Elowen's shoulder. She barely managed to deflect it with a barrier of malevolent energy, but the force of the blow sent her reeling."Swish... Bam!"Aarav pressed his advantage, striking with swift, precise movements that left Elowen struggling to keep up."Boom... Ah!"With a powerful strike, Aarav broke through Elowen's defenses, his dagger cutting through the dark energy that surrounded her. Elowen cried out in pain, stumbling back as the light dagger pierced her shoulder."Thud... Ah!"She fell to the ground, clutching her wound,
............The woman nodded slowly, allowing Serena to help her to her feet. Serena signaled to a nearby holy knight to escort the woman and immediately set up a temporary area where they could give her counseling.Cardinal Serena then approached other people who were also overwhelmed by despair. She spoke to them in a soothing tone, offering comfort and hope.Cardinal Serena not only had the gift of healing but also Persuasive Oratory, a talent that made her speeches and seminars deeply moving and inspiring, able to strengthen people's faith.So Cardinal Serena was the right person for this job, and she excelled in helping those who had lost hope and were on the verge of losing themselves.Meanwhile, Pope Aurelius was directing the holy knights and men from Lumara, Chauhan, and Moonshroud Family who had surrendered to Aarav, ensuring that aid was distributed efficiently.He also asked them to use their family resources and contact construction companies immediately to start rebuil