As soon as they saw Yurial, they immediately pointed their blades at him.
"What the heck is wrong with you?" Yurial managed to stop at the last second before getting stabbed.
Seeing surprise instead of l.u.s.t in his eyes, Freya sighed in relief.
"Didn't you hear that crazy b*tch command? I almost got r*ped thrice in the last five minutes. If it wasn't for Quylla I would be already dead, or worse."
Both the girls had Warped to the destination as soon as Jirni contacted them, trying to keep themselves out of sight and out of troubles. What they didn't expect was for every single mind controlled boy to recklessly converge on Friya on sight.
Her biggest mistake had been using a spell to kill the first a.s.sailant. The noise had revealed her position, multiplying the number of enemies. They had kept warping and fighting until that moment, managing to survive only because they wanted her body intact and because they completely ignored Quylla.
She had never been so happy for not being very attractive.
Phloria, Jirni, and Orion Warped there too a few seconds later. Aside from Jirni, they were all deadly pale and covered in blood.
"Glad to see you are all right, girls." Jirni checked her daughters and husband, almost ignoring Yurial.
"It's the only piece of good news so far. The power core is down and so are the Warp Gates leading here. It will take a while for the reinforcements to get here. I'm afraid when they arrive it will be already too late. I contacted Manohar on the way here.
He says they have their hands full treating wounded students and neutralizing the Professors under Nalear's influence. Trust no one. Anyone here could be an enemy."
They all nodded in unison.
"We have only two options run to the forest and get ourselves to safety or find Nalear and kill her. If she dies, all those under the influence of a slave ring will be freed."
"No, there is a third option." Orion chimed in. "The kids save themselves by hiding in the forest while we stop that madwoman."
"Don't go, please." Quylla sobbed desperately. "I don't want to lose my family again. Please, don't leave me."
Jirni hugged Quylla, trying to calm her down.
"We'll never leave you alone, darling. Our duty is…" Jirni stopped her eyes wide in surprise.
Quylla's blade had pierced her lung and heart, striking from the blind spot created in the stomach area when Jirni embraced her. There was a reason if Quylla had ignored Nalear's final command. Her duty was getting rid of constable Ernas all along.
After Lith, Nalear considered Jirni the biggest threat to her plan. She had come too close to the truth too many times. Nalear knew that the only way to kill someone so meticulous was to exploit her only weak spot. Jirni's love for her family.
While everyone was still too shocked to react, Quylla Blinked behind Yurial's back, cutting his throat from ear to ear. Blood spurted everywhere, blinding Phloria and Friya while Orion attempted to save his wife.
Quylla Blinked again, this time going for Friya's life. Nalear had given her precise orders. To make sure Jirni was beyond saving, Quylla had to kill all the Healers.
***
Lith pressed the advantage by activating his tier four true magic spell Burning Prison. Six fireb.a.l.l.s appeared at the same time around Nalear, one above, one below and the others in a square shape. The fireb.a.l.l.s exploded simultaneously, one reinforcing the effect of the other.
It was the same tactic Nalear had employed in her ambush and now it was Lith's turn to exploit the spell's nature to predict her next move. If she used ice to counter the fire, he would use lightning. If she Blinked, he would follow suit, stabbing her the moment Nalear reappeared.
Thanks to Life Vision, an Awakened one could see the exit point of a Blink, making the first one to employ such spell an easy target. Yet she did neither. Nalear activated once again her sword's barrier, using it to take the brunt of the damage.
It was one of Lith's best spells, yet she came out of it almost unscathed.
Almost.
Lith bolted forward boosted by air fusion, but Nalear was ready for him. With an upwards swing of her sword, while she was still in a crouched position, she managed to deflect the Gatekeeper and aim for his right arm at the same time.
There was no time to adjust his stance, Lith could only let go of the blade to prevent his limb from being cut off. Nalear smiled in triumph, aiming to Lith's head next.
That until she saw the Gatekeeper plunging from the air as quick as a bullet toward her heart. Only then she noticed Lith's right hand was bare, the gauntlet was gone. Cursing at herself for falling into such stupid trap, Nalear blocked the falling blade, leaving her side exposed in the process.
Lith punched her in the ribs with all his strength, cracking three of them. His aim was to break the ribs and use them to puncture her lung, but Nalear managed to fly backward at the last second reducing the damage.
'd.a.m.n! At least she took a solid hit. Sooner or later she will have to use Invigoration and that will be my only chance to take her out.' Lith thought.
Alas, Nalear was well aware of such a possibility as well.
Solus returned to Lith's hand, who was flying towards the enemy at full speed to not give her a single moment of rest.
Thorman, the Professor of the Mage Knight specialization, flew against Lith enveloped in a sphere composed by conjured s.h.i.+elds which rotated at high speed. It was the tier five Mage Knight spell Revolving Fortress.
Lith cursed when Solus pointed out the Professor was wearing a slave item too. Now that they were activated, she only needed a glance to recognize them. Lith attempted to dodge, but the s.h.i.+elds broke the formation barring his way.
At the same time, Professor Binlow of the Mage Knight cla.s.s unleashed against him several armor shaped constructs. Each one was armed to the teeth but frail. Lith needed only a few slashes to wipe out s.h.i.+elds and construct alike, but it gave Nalear the time to get back at her peak condition.
Binlow sent a pulse of mana, allowing the constructs from his tier five Personal Army spell to repair all the damage they had sustained.
"Sorry, Lith." Said Nalear with a smug expression.
"You are not the only one who has brought friends to the party."