The portal slammed into the ground with a thunderous crash, sending a cloud of dust into the air. Six guards ran out of the barracks and stopped in front of the glowing circle. Silence reigned for a few seconds, until suddenly the portal burst into a blinding light.
Noah was the first to rush out of it. His right fist burst into flames, and without a moment's hesitation, he charged at the nearest guard and struck him in the chest with a single precise blow. The guard crashed into the wall of the barracks with great force.
Noah smiled.
"Get him!" — shouted one of the guards.
Another charged from the side, but Noah was faster and struck him in the face with his fiery fist. The guard flew several meters away but quickly got back to his feet. The next one attacked Noah from behind, but Noah turned around and knocked him back as well.
Suddenly, a magical projectile struck Noah's arm. The attack didn't cause him much damage, but Noah glared at the guards in irritation.
"Tch… Explosion Boosting!"
His Demon Arc flashed with an orange light, and short bursts of explosions shot out from his body, propelling his movements. In an instant, Noah was in front of one of the guards and began a flurry of rapid punches.
Meanwhile, three mages appeared on nearby watchtowers. They raised their hands, and magical circles formed before them.
"Don't let them enter the castle!"
Red beams of energy shot out of the circles, heading straight for Noah and the portal opening behind him.
Before the mages could make a move, two silver swords appeared in the sky and streaked toward them at tremendous speed. The first mage, terrified, tried to cast a defensive spell, but he was too late. One sword pierced his defense, and the other struck him in the head, causing him to lose his balance and fall from the tower.
The mage on the second tower looked at his companion.
"What the…?" — he whispered.
Then he noticed a figure flying straight toward him. It was Kael, who, thanks to the power of his Demon Arc, was able to levitate. In his right hand, he held a silver sword he had summoned just moments earlier.
Kael approached the mage and, with a single powerful swing, knocked him to the ground, then landed right in front of him. He looked up and spotted the last mage, who was just preparing another spell.
"Too slow."
Kael swung and threw his sword. The blade sliced through the air and shot straight toward the mage, forcing him to interrupt his spell.
Arwen and Mayuri also ran out of the portal. Mayuri held her scythe in her hand, and Arwen wielded two white daggers from which brown energy emanated.
"Let's get to work, Mayuri." — Arwen said.
Mayuri nodded and swung her scythe.
"I'm ready…" — she replied, then looked toward the castle. — "I'm coming for you, Valdor…" she thought.
At that very moment, more guards armed with swords ran out of the castle and charged straight at the girls.
Arwen smiled.
"All right, time to use my Demon Arc power."
Her ring glowed with a brown light, and Arwen struck the ground with her hand. A moment later, a massive stone pillar rose up before her. A few meters away, another appeared, followed by yet another, forming a barrier in the path of the approaching guards.
The guards stopped and looked at the pillars rising before them.
Noah, who was still fighting off more opponents, noticed this out of the corner of his eye and smiled.
Kael, meanwhile, was hovering above one of the towers and dealing with the remaining mages.
Mayuri looked at Arwen with curiosity.
"Earth magic?"
Arwen laughed softly.
"Yes, but thanks to it, I can do something else… an enhanced Lupine Form."
Brown energy enveloped Arwen's body and began to pulse around her. Her eyes turned an intense yellow, and her senses sharpened dramatically. Her fingernails lengthened, taking the shape of sharp claws, and her fangs became more pronounced. Her movements became lighter and more instinctive, and every sound coming from the battlefield was perfectly audible to her.
Arwen sheathed her daggers and looked at the approaching guards.
"Now we can begin."
Arwen ran straight toward the guards, bouncing off one stone pillar after another. Every time her feet touched one, she immediately changed direction, leaving only dust in her wake. She was too fast for anyone to keep up with her. Her claws sliced through the air, and the guards couldn't even predict from which direction she would reappear.
Mayuri stayed where she was. She looked at the few guards who had managed to get past the pillars and were now advancing straight toward her.
"I'll give it my all, too…" — she whispered.
Her Demon Arc glowed with an intense purple light. Mayuri gripped the scythe tightly with both hands and assumed a wide stance. She stepped one leg forward, planted the other firmly on the ground, and raised the weapon high above her head, preparing for a powerful swing.
"Arc of the Demon: Scythe of the Soul…" — she whispered.
The scythe's blade began to glow purple, and energy began to gather around it. The air around Mayuri trembled as the power gradually concentrated on the blade.
The four guards charged at her with determination, not slowing down even for a moment.
Mayuri calmly looked ahead.
When they were close enough, she swung the scythe with all her might.
A broad slash of violet energy shot from the scythe. For a moment, only a soft whoosh could be heard as the wave of energy raced across the battlefield at tremendous speed.
The guards came to a halt.
A moment later, their forms disintegrated into a violet light that dissipated into the air like dust.
Mayuri lowered her scythe and was breathing heavily.
"Valdor… hold on a little longer."
Meanwhile, Noah had defeated the last of his opponents. He approached the wounded guard lying on the ground, then crouched beside him and pressed both his flaming fists against the man's head.
"If you don't want your head burned off, tell me where Valdor is..." Noah said coldly.
The guard looked at him in terror and began to stammer nervously.
"I-in the castle... t-there... in the underground h-hall... t-there's a p-portal... i-it'll take you to t-the room where they're h-holding him... P-please, don't kill me!"
Noah stared at him silently for a moment, then smiled.
"Thanks. You're free."
Noah stood up, turned around, and took a few steps. Suddenly, he stopped, glanced over his shoulder, and kicked the guard in the head.
"I was joking, dumbass!"
Then he headed toward the others.
"Come on! I know where they're holding Valdor!"
Everyone was still engrossed in the fight. Only Kael, who had been standing at the top of the tower, was observing the situation from above. After a moment, he jumped down and landed next to Noah.
"What's going on?" — Kael asked.
Noah pointed toward the castle.
"I know where Valdor is. We have to get to the underground chamber."
Arwen, who had just clashed with another guard, stopped and blocked his sword with her claws.
"Kael, Noah, go! We'll catch up with you!"
Mayuri also looked in their direction, gripping her scythe more tightly.
"Save him!"
Kael nodded.
"All right. We'll leave them to you."
Noah smiled and set off with Kael toward the castle.
"Hang in there, Valdor. We're coming for you!"
Noah and Kael walked through a small gate leading into the castle grounds. A long stone bridge stretched out before them, with expanses of red sand stretching out beneath it. At the end of the bridge stood a massive black castle, its three tall towers disappearing into the dark clouds.
Noah paused for a moment and looked at the structure.
"That's quite a castle."
Kael started walking forward.
"This isn't the time for sightseeing, Noah… Let's go."
"Yes, sir!"
They both began running across the bridge, heading straight for the castle's massive gates. With every step, they could hear the sounds of battle coming from behind the walls more and more clearly.
Kael gripped his sword tighter.
"Valdor is waiting for us."
"Then we'd better hurry."
Meanwhile, a guard burst into the chamber where the ritual was to begin and immediately ran up to Arthur, who turned toward him. Sylphia and Emi stood to the side, watching the whole situation, while Elio readied his sword and looked toward the entrance to the chamber.
"Warning! Luna's warriors have broken into the castle!" — said the agitated guard.
Valdor, who was still on his knees and bound by heavy chains, slowly raised his head upon hearing these words. A faint smile appeared on his face, and then he whispered:
"Friends…"
Arthur looked at Valdor and, after a moment, smiled as well.
"So they've arrived sooner than I expected…" — he said calmly. — "All right, we'll wait… And we'll kill you all together."
Arthur laughed, and his laughter echoed throughout the chamber.
At the same time, Noah and Kael were making their way through the castle's corridors. After a moment, they noticed a portal ahead of them leading to a chamber.
"There's a portal! — Noah said.
The portal was located in a small hall, and its surface rippled slightly, as if the passage might vanish at any moment.
"What are we waiting for?" — Noah said, and set off toward it.
Kael ran after him, but stopped after a moment. Something had caught his attention. In the middle of the room, he spotted the shadow of a figure. For a moment, he wasn't sure if he'd really seen someone there, but the shadow suddenly moved.
"Noah! There's someone there!"
Noah had already reached the entrance to the hall, but then he saw a massive hammer in front of him. To his left stood a two-meter-tall demon, who swung his weapon without warning.
Noah didn't have time to block the attack. The hammer struck him squarely in the chest, and the immense force of the blow sent him flying backward. Noah spat out blood and flew several meters before coming to a stop behind Kael.
Kael immediately turned around and saw Noah, who, despite the powerful blow, was already back on his feet and wiping the blood from his mouth.
"Are you okay?!"
Noah looked at him and laughed.
"Something like that won't beat me." — he replied, then looked at the demon. — "Watch out."
Kael conjured a sword in his hand and looked toward the hall from which the demon had just burst out. The creature was wielding a massive hammer and was charging toward them. It swung the hammer for the first time, and Kael immediately raised his sword to block the blow. A moment later, another attack came. Kael managed to stop it again, but the demon had no intention of giving him time to react. It swung once more, this time with even greater force.
Kael was struck and thrown toward the wall. He slammed into it with tremendous force, smashing through the stone structure before landing on the red sand.
Noah clenched his fist and, without hesitation, slammed it into the wall. The stones crumbled under the force of his blow, creating another hole. Noah leaped out of the room and landed next to Kael.
"Are you okay, Kael?"
"Yes." — Kael replied, getting up from the ground.
Noah looked toward the demon.
"What kind of monster is that…?"
"I don't know, but we have to hurry."
At that moment, the demon leaped out of the hole Kael had made earlier and landed a few meters in front of them. Red sand swirled around its feet, and the enormous hammer reappeared in its hands.
Noah and Kael exchanged glances, then turned their attention back to their opponent. They knew that if they wanted to reach Valdor in time, they would have to fight their way past this monster.
Meanwhile, preparations for the ritual had been completed in the hall.
Arthur stood a few steps away from Valdor and stared at him in silence for a moment. Silence fell over the chamber. After a moment, a red magical circle appeared on his hand. The runes on its surface began to spin around his hand, and powerful energy began to emanate from the circle.
Arthur moved his hand slightly.
"Forbidden Magic: Reincarnation."
At that very moment, two torches next to Valdor flared to life, and their flames shot upward violently.
Valdor looked at the red magical circle on Arthur's hand.
Arthur simply smiled.
The ritual had just begun.