Speed

Ieme's heart jumped.

None of the normal signs of an approaching enemy had been there. There wasn't an influx of Force, there wasn't an odd sound, there were no fluctuations in space… There was absolutely nothing.

It took him a moment to understood, but he soon grasped it. There were none of those signs to grab a hold of because they weren't there to begin with. Those boats weren't being propelled by Force, they were being propelled by nothing more than wind and the rapid waters. On top of that, because they were using the water, their movements were masked by the rivers itself. It was no wonder none of them had realized that something was wrong until they were already so close.

After understanding this, Ieme calmed. He had been through a lot in his life and as a man who had been willing to uproot everything on this singular bet, he was decisive and intelligent as well. He immediately came up with several weaknesses to this clever plot of Earth, one of the main one's being that if Earth was intent on using river flow for movement, that meant that they could only ever attack from one direction.

Ieme stored these conclusions away and immediately stood.

His gaze narrowed when he got a better look at Leonel's face. To think he would meet the man who killed his Three-Layered Hand Brother so quickly. It seemed that the Goddess worked in mysterious ways and had laid this opportunity at his feet.

The others weren't aware of this, but the truth was that after Leonel shattered the seal that would have been placed on him, he had gained the fury of the Evergreen Goddess. As such, his head was worth a large amount of Evergreen Force so long as he was sacrificed to their altar.

The real reason Ieme had been willing to take this enormous risk was that Leonel's head was worth more than ten times the Evergreen Force he had used to gain this speed advantage over everyone else eyeing Earth.

So, seeing Leonel now, it felt to Ieme as though everything was snapping into place, as though the world itself wanted him to succeed and like the Goddess was smiling down upon him. Content is property © .

"Prepare for battle!" He roared.

They had already set up their Shrine in the two hours it had taken for Leonel and the others to get here. Though not everything was complete, it was enough to give them a small area of effect advantage and dampen many of the oppression they would normally face after entering another's Fold of Reality.

This was the advantage that Religion provided.

At that moment, the Layered Hands began to get into formation. Though they were men of Goddess, they were very much used to battle. In fact, even compared to other organizations, they were even a cut above.

Despite the speed of the raging waters, none of them was fazed and they easily stepped onto the rapid waves, forming up a strong formation before the quickly speeding boats.

Now that the formation of six was closer, they got a good look at the design. Those who had some Crafter experience couldn't help but nod their heads in appreciation toward the perfect design of the boats. They were truly built for speed.

At that moment, the six sleek boats suddenly simultaneously released their parachute systems, cutting their speeds in half as heavy anchors fell.

In as little as a hundred meters, they had come to a grinding halt. But, things didn't stop there.

The so-called 'parachute' system were actually wings of silver the boats suddenly deployed. Despite their thin and frail appearances, they hardly rocked as they brought the boats to a stop and also formed up a line of sturdy barricades at the same time.

In the blink of an eye, the formation of six sleek boats had become a miniature fort on the ocean, turning the advantage the Evergreen Brothers and Sisters had had in mounting a defense to almost nil.

"Fire!"

Leonel voice boomed over the battlefield.

At that moment, Ieme became almost too keenly aware that Leonel was the only individual present. At least, Leonel was the only one visible right this moment. And yet, he had just barked out orders.

Before Ieme could understand what was happening, a rain of hundreds of arrows suddenly shot out from above.

'This speed…!'

Ieme and the others were completely caught off guard. From the boats appearing, to them coming to a grinding halt and suddenly firing, not even half a minute had passed. The sudden shifts in the battlefield were far faster than anything they had ever been a part of.

"Again!"

Before the first wave even landed, Leonel roared again.

In a panic, the religious men and women put up their defenses, trying to work together to create a large shield of wood. Their speed was exceptionally fast, especially under the influence of their nearby Shrine. And yet, it was right then that Leonel pointed out two fingers.

'Range.'

Despite still being 200 meters away from their frontline and despite the fact that two volleys of arrows had already been loosed…

Leonel's Spear Force still made it first.

SHUUU!

The barely constructed wooden shield was sliced in two and continued unhindered, piercing into the hull of the spaceship still hovering above the waters and bisecting it as well.

Under the horrified gazes of the Evergreen Brothers and Sisters, their ship collapsed into the water and the shield was sliced apart, interrupting their rhythm.

With their collaborative efforts destroyed, their attempt to build a large shield failed and they could only quickly attempt to put up their own individual defenses. But it was exactly then that the first and second volley fell, causing a chorus of pained cries to call out.

Right then, Leonel shot forward. From behind the silver wings of the sleek boats, eight individuals quickly followed suit.

With a flip of his palm, a wooden spear of deep black appeared in Leonel's hand, his speed so fast that the waters seemed to separate below him as a streak of gold followed his wake.