Chapter 206: The Fall of Bastion Thirel
The three of them stood there in silence as the howls and screams of those who were dying echoed around them. Flames rose. Blood spilled. The chaos grew more and more as the last of the debris finally landed back on the ground.
Watching the horror unfold before their very eyes, Soren couldn't help but grit his teeth. He was the first to speak up:
"We have to get out. Now."
Princess Myrella turned to him—her expression warping by the second. "Get out? You mean out of the castle?"
He nodded, then turned to Cassia, who was still staring at the colossal destruction. "Yes! All three of us must leave right now. Your goal is to survive, is it not? Bastion Thirel is going to fall—There's no way for us to protect you here."
Soren had already realized this the moment the spectral banners shifted. That no matter his actions, defending the castle was now impossible. With the Fae armies losing to the Daemon forces, there was nothing left standing before the Spirit Wolf legions. It won't take them long to capture the entire bastion.
So much for changing history, he thought. His actions on the first day of the siege only delayed the inevitable. Not that he wasn't expecting it at all—the mission that the Blossom Sword Flower had tasked him to complete already changed from defending the castle to defending the Hallowed Star fragment.
Still, it wasn't as if hope was completely lost. From his estimates, only two days remained before the reinforcements would arrive. If they could just survive for that long...
"You've already mapped out the layout of the castle using your spirits, correct?" He asked Myrin—their thoughts finally syncing. "Surely this castle has some hidden exits?"
Myrin nodded. "I'll lead the wa—"
Suddenly, the door to the room violently burst open. What entered inside was a colossal figure decked in silver-leaf armor. He held tightly to his radiant sword as he glanced at the three of them. Locking eyes with Soren and Cassia, the man clicked his tongue.
"Princess! I am here to escort you—come with me!"
"And what about them?"
"Leave them behind! Your safety is of utmost importance—they'll only hold me back!"
"I will not do such a thing," Princess Mirella stomped her heel. "Either all of us leave or none of us!"
The anima in the air became heavy. Ilrune stared at Soren—eyes flush with anger. "You... What in the Maiden's name did you say to the Princess?! She would have never defied me like this in the past—you must have done something to her!"
Soren grit his teeth as he tried to move his muscles to no avail. Is this... Bloodlust?
He had seen something like this before during his fight against Rodrick. At the time, he had given the Knight Captain a [Card of Insight]—One that held corrupted information about the Crimson Eye...
Filled with madness, the Dungeon Slayer could no longer control his anima. It flailed and howled, filling the air with its chaos. If not for their narrow escape using the Fairy Blades spell, Soren and Myrin would not have been able to leave the ruined city intact.
This time, however, the effect seems much more controlled. It was as if Ilrune was purposefully exuding his anger and raw desire to kill them in order to crippled their minds with fear.
Is that something all Sentinels can do once they reach that stage of power? Soren smiled nervously. How exciting...
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His mind raced as he thought countless ways of escaping. However, it seemed that Ilrune was never going to give them the chance. The Knight Captain took a step forward, drawing his blade.
Without hesitating any further, Soren, Myrin, and Cassia all activated their Soul Realms at once. That was especially true of his two companions—Cassia's dragonflames roared to life, coating her in another layer of armor. As for Myrin, his anima was much more powerful than the both of them combined. Translucent strings could be seen all around him as if his willpower was desperately clawing at the seams of reality, trying its best to be known.
Seeing this, Ilrune couldn't help but laugh. "What? So you're just going to fight me now?" And in a way, Soren couldn't blame him. After all, the gap between a 4th Circle magus and a 5th Class Sentinel was not something that could be easily closed—not unless Mysteries were involved...
But at the moment, neither of them had their Soul Weapons. Only Cassia could be able to provide them with support... And she was not... in the best shape...
Holding tightly to his wand, he turned to her and said, "Are you sure you want to fight?.."
Without glancing at him, she chuckled, "what kind of question is that?"
"… Right," he shook his head—sweat pouring down his cheek, "I should have expected that..."
"Let's stop wasting time..." Ilrune covered his eyes as he prepared his sword. "By the authority granted to me, I shall bring you to safety, Princess."
Just as the Knight Captain was about to dash forward, a sudden flurry of wind whizzed by Soren's ear, heading directly for Ilrune's head. With a swift slash, he deflected it, exploding the wall nearby.
Enemy attack? Soren's eyes widened.
"Duck!" Myrin shouted—his two companions quickly followed the order. Soon, a barrage of arrows flew from the balcony into the room. Ilrune tried to deflect them, but one landed on his shoulder anyways—the force of which pushed him through the wall behind him. Smoke and dust filled the air as the three magi scrambled to understand what was happening.
"So this is where the Hollowed Star fragment usually stays..." A somewhat husky voice whispered. Turning his head, Soren immediately saw who the enemy was. His eyes widened in shock.
Standing atop the balcony railing was a colossal warrior covered in rags. His wolf head was marked by a grotesque 'X' shaped scar that only became more apparent the wider he smiled.
But what drew their attention was the warrior's four arms—two on each side. He held a spear and a shield on his right and a radiant bow on his left. It was as if the man-beast was an avatar of war, brought down by the heavens themselves.
How is this possible... Fear spread all across Soren's body. His gut was telling him this—death was the only outcome if he decided to fight here.
"Who the hell are you?" Stepping out of the rubble, Ilrune dusted off his armor.
The spirit wolf warrior placed his spear over his shoulder, "Hegir of the Bloodpine Tribe. Are you the Hollowed Star fragment's guardian?"
Ilrune glared at his foe and frowned. "Indeed." Without saying anything further, he leaped forward, leaving behind an afterimage in his wake. Hedger met his sword slash with his shield, then tried to impale him with the spear which missed.
Their anima danced as shadows were left in the rubble. Arrows pierced the stone floor like it was made of rubber. Swords slashed through walls as if they were paper. There was nothing left of the royal furniture—the room had instantly turned into a battlefield.
Taking the chance, Soren held tightly to Cassia's and Myrin's wrists, "Violet Mirage!" Almost instantly, the magecraft spellform activated, turning them invisible.
"I can't tell if we're lucky or not..." As they ran through the dim corridor, Myrin couldn't help but frown.
"Does it really matter? If we were truly lucky, none of this would have happened to begin with," Soren answered—his eyes focused on the next enemy ahead. Seeing their figure slowly approaching, He quickly threw his dagger.
Ghostfang the Pale sliced through the air as it approached the distant Spirit Wolf. Seeing the attack approaching, the warrior grinned. "How foolish..." He quickly flicked it away with his sword, but Soren was expecting that.
The true attack came a second later!
Before he could even realize what had happened, the man beast fell back—eyes full of confusion. Engraved into his forehead was a glass-like blade whose reflection shifted endlessly.
"You've gotten better at wielding that dagger..." The trio ran past the fallen foe into the distant darkness.
Soren chuckled, "Anything is possible with enough practice..."
It didn't take them long to finally reach their destination. Slowing down to catch their breath, Soren spotted a wooden gate in the distance—no doubt, their hope of escape. To the left was a staircase that led out of the basement. He could hear countless sounds coming from up there.
"Let's hurry up and get out of here before they discover us."