Lucas slammed his fist into the ground.
The earth answered.
Boulders tore free with a furious roar, ripping themselves from the soil as if the
land itself were panicking.
They rose—then shot forward like cannon fire.
—BANG.
An unseen barrier caught them.
Stone screamed as it melted, collapsing into rivers of lava that splashed uselessly across the ground.
The barrier surged forward.
He staggered back.
"Damn it—!"
Left.
The heat followed.
Right—
Still there.
Closer. Hotter. Suffocating.
The man laughed.
"You think movement will save—ACK!"
Something snapped tight around his neck.
A whip—woven from flowers.
Purple dust burst into the air as it constricted.
Sora yanked.
The man gagged
—then smiled?
Heat rippled beneath his skin.
The whip hissed. Blackened. Withered into ash.
"Clever," he said calmly.
"But not enough."
He yanked hard.
Sora was ripped forward—
"FISTS OF PELGORIA!"
The blow landed square in her chest.
—SMACK
She flew backward, smashing into the wall.
She hit the wall.
For a second—
nothing.
Her body crumpled beside Lisha, a broken whine tearing from her throat.
"Oh God—there's a dent in her chest!"
Jina screamed, panic flooding her voice.
She rushed to help, her hands trembling
—but healing was not her gift…
"Mei," Lisha said sharply, her voice cold and steady.
"Take her inside. I'll handle this."
Her blessing activated.
'Enemies of the Enchantress'
A translucent screen unfolded before her eyes.
[Enemy Detected:
Joseph Stark
(Cultist Leader)
Designate as enemy?]
"Yes."
Her hands went white.
"A leader…?" Lisha muttered.
Joseph brushed at the purple dust clinging to his neck.
It only spread.
"She was close," he admitted softly.
"Very close."
His gaze snapped back to Lucas.
"Where is the boy?"
Lucas shouted,
"WHO?"
"I believe his name was… Fredrick," Joseph said calmly.
"He didn't fight like you."
"Fredrick…?" Lucas frowned.
"There's no one named Fredrick!"
Joseph's eyes narrowed.
"I can feel him. He's near."
His voice dropped.
"He commands—but never fights."
Lucas froze.
Commands… but never fights.
Lucas didn't want to say the name
His stomach dropped.
"…Felix."
The air snapped cold.
"ICE WALL!" a voice rang out.
The mansion was instantly encased in towering ice, sealing every opening.
"She made it!" Olivia gasped.
"Am I on time?" Nina asked, breathless.
Olivia rushed forward.
"There's an ugly guy outside fighting Lucas—and he keeps asking for someone named Fredrick!"
Nina blinked.
"Who's Fredrick?"
"I don't know—But I think he met Felix—"
—BOOM.
The ground shook violently.
A massive boulder slammed into Joseph, the impact echoing like thunder even through the ice wall.
"You're not going anywhere," Lucas growled.
Joseph smirked as lava hissed around him.
"Still using the same tricks? Did you forget how this ends?"
"No," Lucas said.
More stones rose.
Towering. Crushing. Encircling him.
Joseph's smile faltered.
"…Why do I feel cold?"
He looked around wildly.
"Where is he?"
Lucas struck.
—CRACK.
Something shattered.
Joseph reeled.
"Why didn't the barrier react—?"
Lucas drove his heel into the center of Joseph's face.
Joseph hit the ground hard.
Blood spilled from his nose. His vision rang, unfocused.
No fire answered him.
"No… this isn't it."
Joseph stared into the dark sky.
For the first time—
nothing answered him. Not even his power.
A voice echoed—feminine, distant.
"He is unable to accept such a fate."
Another followed—childish, yet unmistakably male.
"These children are interesting… and intelligent."
"Those voices…!"
Joseph's body jerked violently.
"No—NO!" His voice fractured, overlapping itself.
Something inside him pushed back.
Lucas stepped away.
Joseph screamed.
The sound was no longer human.
The air compressed, as if the world itself was holding its breath.
"He's… repairing himself?!" Lucas whispered.
Joseph stood.
His body bubbled, flesh shifting as lumps crawled beneath his skin.
The damage crawled backward.
"Better. But the poison is not wearing off."
The fog thickened.
Lisha checked her blessing again.
"Is my power not working…? Something's wrong."
Olivia swayed, heat washing over her.
"Nina… I don't think the ice wall is doing anything."
Mei caught her before she fell.
"I think he upgraded!" Mei said sharply.
"Ice Wall!"
The barrier stabilized.
Stepping outside, heat slammed into Nina's face. She flinched.
"Oh my—this heat is unbearable!"
Joseph smirked.
"What now? Trembling?"
Lucas's vision blurred.
"I have to… get out—"
He stumbled.
"He looks… deformed," Nina murmured.
She inhaled sharply.
"Time to save the day, I guess."
Her frost erupted, dragging the temperature down.
Joseph turned.
"I see you called for help."
He lunged—trees of fire tearing from the ground like spears.
Nina crossed her arms, Her palms forward.
"Frost of the Ages!"
The fog turned brutal.
The flames froze midair.
"How much mana does this girl have!?" Joseph snarled, Stopping mid air.
"You're at a disadvantage, dear," someone said.
"YOU—!"
Joseph froze.
Grinding echoed behind him.
Stone shifted.
No—assembled.
A colossal hand formed from the earth itself.
It closed around him.
—CRASH
He was slammed into the ground, stone shattering beneath him.
The weight was unbearable.
Frost crawled across his skin.
He forced the rubble aside.
Lucas's voice echoed, mocking.
"Can you find us, old hag?"
The answer came calmly.
"Of course… I can."
Joseph plunged his hands into the ground.
The grass burned.
The frost vanished.
"Now where—?"
Nothing.
While Joseph raged, Lisha remained still.
Her eyes were locked onto the translucent screen hovering before her—numbers, symbols, shifting data.
She forced herself to breathe.
"I can't… keep going," she murmured, her voice cracking.
"My blessing was working—until he repaired himself."
Her gaze sharpened.
"No—wait."
She leaned closer.
Purple threads pulsed across the display of a human body, slow but deliberate.
"That's—"
Realization struck.
"Sora's poison!"
Her breath hitched.
Lisha froze.
"Wait…
Why am I acting like this hasn't happened before?"
The battlefield faded. Only the screen remained.
Then she exhaled.
"…Right."
Her eyes hardened, focus returning.
"Doesn't matter," she whispered.
"It's in his core."
(WORK still in progress :"3 !!!)