Bro, I'm not an Undead!

Bull's eyes quivered as the implications bashed against his head.

These bastards...

'Using the civilians to divide our attention... Damn you!' Bull thought.

The healthy and the injured alike could be seen painting the area before the city walls, some heaped over each other like rocks as if they had been randomly tossed out of the City!

The bulky Commander cursed and dashed back after giving one quick glare at Brown who grinned at his distress, his Perfect Aura blasting from his body like a tornado!

"Attack!" Bull called out at the top of his lungs, prompting the Knights he was about to run past as he rushed to protect the civilians, act immediately!

The formation of Contract Knights, Cast included, all briefly turned to find what had gotten their Commander all riled up, the lieutenant immediately turning back his head towards where Bull had run from and charging ahead after realising the enemy's play.

The two nodded as they passed each other, from Cast's body a silver Aura burning ferociously as over his body that wore no battle protection, an archaic armour was formed!

The glimmering armour, formed purely out of silver Aura as Cast's Genuine Incarnation, released a dreadful shockwave and a blinding light, a rectangular tower shield appearing in the lieutenant's right hand to complement his style of fighting!

Cast's charge towards Brown rocked the immediate surroundings and the target himself was ecstatic to find that he had actually found a fun opponent.

The other Knights following behind Cast ignited their Full Body and Perfect Auras as not many were Second Phase Masters in this Division like Cast and Bull.

They roared as with their charge ahead, the army of three hundred hidden behind the slope steps away from Brown, all completely unscathed from the cannon fire just now, caused momentary fear.

But the Knights persisted.

On the other side, Bull was joined by Oliviana as the two stood before the piles of people, messily tangled against each other. His Perfect Aura had already started to rise from his body as he prepared for any kind of attack from in or outside the city.

"Good! That's it! Fight brave Knights!" Brown yelled in a ridiculing voice from the distance.

He was going to enjoy shattering this courage that was charging at him!

The Genuine Incarnation above him, with its two pairs of giant claws, made a move.

It brought two of its blade-like front limbs close and began rubbing them together intensely, sparks flying as it did so!

The sound that was produced... caused a menacing disturbance to say the least!

If one scratched a rough surface with their nail, it was enough to cause a grimace from those in the surroundings. However, if hundreds of thousands of nails scratched on hundreds of thousands of rough, board-like surfaces, it would cause more than just an uncomfortable flinch.

Especially.... if all that sound did not appear in the real world, but was mysteriously crammed directly into one's ear, the noise scratching against the brain!

"AAAAARRRGHHHHH!"

"NHGGGHHHAAAA!"

As the giant mantis Genuine Incarnation's limbs blurred with extremely rapid movement, tens of Advancement Stage Knights immediately shrieked and dropped to the ground, trembling fiercely as a gnawing pain and disturbing sensation fought against their nerves!

Blood flooded from their orifices as they convulsed and the formation was jumbled and thrown into disarray instantly!

The Master Stage experts groaned and were brought to a halt as the effect was not as bad, but some also knelt down, grunting in agony. This much was all that Perfect Aura could do to shield them as a brain was still a brain and without intricate defence, they too were doomed!

The only one left who was barely affected was Cast as his armour was an Object type Incarnation which meant that it emphasised defence above anything else.

The lieutenant didn't stop.

He only glanced back to his fellow Knights for a brief moment, frowned and turned back to Brown.

'So that's it? This man is a Mind Caster. He must be able to create disturbances directly one's brain or something like that. His range is vast too it seems. Curses! They never showed this surprise last time they attacked,' Cast thought as he brought his tower shield before his body.

There was quite the distance between the city and where Brown was. At full speed, it would take Cast seven seconds to cross it but that was too slow.

He had to reach his opponent now!

The lieutenant's silver covered body suddenly produced a mirage like outline of white, its shape like a flame around him and his figure instantly arrived before Cast, the shield ready to bash the man's face in!

...!

Brown ducked down, protecting himself against the mad swing of Cast's two meter tall tower shield with a perplexed look!

'Was that an auxiliary technique?! A speed type one at that! We have another noble child far away from home here, haha!' Brown thought as he leapt back, creating some distance between himself and Cast.

The speed Cast showed just now was the product of an auxiliary technique! Definitely!

It was scared the living daylights out of him but with his experience, it was nothing.

Auxiliary techniques were usually preceded by a complex shaping of mana around the user before the effect showed and this...

Another mirage burned around Cast's valiant figure as he shot towards Brown with a shield bash in less than the blink of an eye but the murderous attack was blocked by one of the claw of the mantis under which the two were fighting!

Cracks registered on the claw but it still held.

Brown laughed, looking to be having the time of his life.

"This isn't a one a one, I'm afraid," he yelled before he whistled, prompting dozens of Aura covered arrows to swiftly flash from behind him and snipe Cast with impeccable accuracy!

The lieutenant grunted as he blocked with his shield, but he was still locked in place by the assault.

The army of hundreds was finally on the move!

They had simply been waiting for Brown's command and the thuds of their boots and greaves as they rushed ahead caused Cast to grimace.

This was bad!

The mantis' claw flashed with incredible speed and struck Cast back as the rain of arrows continued to storm towards him, weakening his ability to fight back bit by bit!

"You're all doomed!" Brown yelled with madness painted on his visage, his giant mantis which still rubbed its claws, thus keeping most of the Knights incapacitated, raising its free claw and swiped down brutally!

At first Cast thought the attack was directed at him, but...

The sound akin to a turbulent wind bashing against a raging ocean ensued as with a single swipe, a blade of malevolent Aura raced past Cast, digging a trench through the ground all the way towards the city!

The Knights in the way were erased in the brief moment that this attack lasted while those with at least their perfect Aura around them managed to keep their bones!

When the blade of dull of green light that travelled at a treacherous speed finally reached the City, one burly man's deflection of it managed to reduce the damage it would have gone on to cause but the death toll had already spiked!

*

Inside the City, fifteen second before...

Anara was left gaping at what was going on.

In one second, he could see in his peripheral vision the many people moving about within the streets while he ordered the Purity Knights to get ready and in the next, these people were all gone.

His face paled.

Immediately afterwards, he felt a powerful presence hovering in the air.

It was a giant, luminous black dragonfly with purple stripes all over its body!

It zipped a meter to the left, to the right, below and a meter above within a millisecond, its focus directed towards him!

This was a Genuine Incarnation from the looks of its glow.

"Formation!" Anara commanded his Purity Knights who immediately did as they were told.

His eyes flashed around the area, looking for whoever had summoned this Incarnation. A moment later, he found a familiar man standing on the roof of a building close to the dragonfly and narrowed his eyes.

It was one those two dangerous bandits.

Black.

The man looked excited. Eerily so.

"Ah, I don't think you'd want to hand over all the good stuff even if I asked nicely, right?" he asked to which no reply but hostility came. "Fair enough. Have it your way!"

Pttstststtstststs!

Rapid flashes of blue and bright condensed Aura suddenly poured with extreme speed from underneath the giant dragonfly which zipped from place to place with an otherworldly showcase of speed but remaining close to Black!

Anara raised his guard further and rushed away while yelling "Split up!" but...

By the time half a second passed, eight of his Knights had already been killed, their heads blown to bits by the bright projectiles!

Each beam of Aura demolished the street, acting like a mini bomb that rocked the ground and shook the houses nearby just by the shockwave it produced!

From something like this, ordinary Knights couldn't defend!

Also, unlike Anara, most of the Knights weren't able to react in time and more were being cleanly slaughtered as the milliseconds went by!

Anara clicked his tongue.

First, all the people in the city had suddenly vanished and now this?!

The two twins hadn't used their Incarnations in the last raid and thus, dealing with them now, above their basic strength which was already terrifying...

'Perfect! Just perfect! This is my first time seeing an Incarnation that can fire Aura projectiles like this! What are this man's abilities? Is he the one who caused the civilians to disappear?!' Anara agonised before calling to his dying Knights.

"Don't hold back and don't stay in one place! Move around!" he ordered.

In cases like this, those who panicked would focus on defending with everything they had rather than running away from an opponent who could easily catch them, which is what some of Anara's Knights had been doing instead of trying to evade.

But that wasn't working.

Now that they were given another order, they ran in different directions. They were beginning to adapt to the dangerous situation.

But...

Ten different screams lorded over Anara's ears as ten of his men were beheaded by a darting figure with a shining dagger!

...!

Before he knew it, this figure had already reached him as well, stabbing at his side viciously!

Anara hurriedly parried with his sword and with a furious roar, icy white steam rose from his body and coated his sword, its cool pervading the atmosphere!

"Ah! I see! That's your Divine Blessing isn't it? Show me what it can do! Show me!" Black, who had been pushed back a bit by Anara's parry yelled enthusiastically, his dagger swinging from one hand to the other as he then flitted forward like a shadow!

This man was fast!

Anara's fury grew but so did his anxiety.

Black wasn't intimidated by the effects of his Divine Blessing, Sacred Frost, in the least!

This was the pride of a Paladin Champion that they prioritised over Stages, Classes and Cores, yet his enemy was merely curious!

'He's faster and very skilled with close quarters combat! Can I win this?!' Anara thought, as Perfect Aura also gushed from his body to strengthen him many fold.

But was it enough?!

His Knights were still being picked off by the streaming blasts from the dragonfly overhead and he, with just two more clashes against the grinning Black, his wrists were already bleeding!

Anara tried to create some distance but Black wouldn't allow it!

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! FLSH!

Anara's shoulder was sliced through by Black whose movements grew to become blurs hard to perceive for the Champion's eyes!

The man gritted his teeth.

This was hopeless.

Perhaps this is why...

Maybe this was why he...

'Hmmm?'

Black who had been speeding towards him with a blackish purple Aura around him, his murderous intent suffocating Anara's fighting spirit... suddenly stopped.

His face which had showed only excitement just now grow serious as he back away and looked up.

Anara was confused.

Why did he stopped?

Was this a trick?

No. Black wouldn't need to use a trick on someone like him. He was already dominating this fight.

Then why?

The tall, stout Paladin Champion gazed up as well, following Black's line of sight and saw...

'What is that... wait... is that person?' he thought.

High up and a distance from the city walls, someone was standing in the air overlooking the city with his empty eyes...