All eyes in the sanctuary turned toward Carlo.

"Really?" Isaac's voice carried a note of disappointment.

"Quite unexpected from a member of the esteemed Devereux family," Ava remarked, her tone tinged with disappointment as she glanced at Carlo.

The rest of us nodded in agreement, our expressions mirroring her sentiment.

Carlo looked ashamed, his shoulders slumping and his eyes downcast. "Sorry. I lost my composure."

He then unleashed his code.

{Fulgur: Stormbreak}

Above the paladin, the ominous thunderclouds crackled with energy, illuminating the chamber with their fierce red glow.

In a sudden burst of crimson lightning, the sanctuary was engulfed in a powerful explosion that shattered the marble floor and sent shockwaves reverberating through the air.

Amidst the chaos, a white dust cloud billowed from the devastating strike's epicenter.

"Now did that get him?" Krystal asked, peering through the dust cloud with her azurite eyes.

Iris shook her head. "No. He’s an S-ranker. No way something like this would harm him."

Just as she said those words, a terrifying wave of ardor swept over us.

"FALL BACK!" Iris screamed as the glowing silhouette of Isaac rose from the dust.

Suddenly, an explosion of white light enveloped us, sending powerful beams of light everywhere.

I quickly leaped back as the light blinded me, shifting my body to the right and barely dodging a light beam that grazed my shoulder.

Shit! That burns!

I collapsed against a fallen column and averted my eyes, my vision still swimming with bright spots.

Isaac Zierheart's laughter echoed around us, a chilling sound that made the hairs on my neck stand up.

"MARVELOUS! YOU YOUNG ONES ARE JUST MARVELOUS!" he bellowed, shaking the sanctuary with his voice.

I heard cries of pain beside me and saw Artemis leaning against a fallen column, her face contorted in agony as she clutched the bleeding stump where her left arm had been severed.

I rushed to her side, pulling out bandages with trembling hands, and quickly stopped the bleeding.

She whimpered as I dressed the stump, her eyes glistening with tears.

"You okay?" I asked, my voice strained with worry as I glanced at her severed arm lying a few feet away.

"I'll live," she gritted her teeth and tried to get up, only to grimace in pain.

Her side was also struck and was bleeding heavily. I took out a recovery potion and made her drink it, watching as some color returned to her pale face.

"How are we going to beat him?" she gasped as I wrapped bandages around her waist, tightening them until she yelped.

"Iris can defeat him, but I am not a huge fan of her method," I replied, my voice grim.

"Yep! That is good!" I said, trying to inject some confidence into my voice as I finished dressing her wound.

The rubble a few feet away shifted, and Krystal rose from it, bloodied and battered but in better condition than Artemis.

"How are you doing?" I asked, helping her steady herself.

The girl with azurite eyes spat out a clump of blood and grinned at me. "Apart from a few broken bones and teeth, nothing too major is damaged. I'm good!"

This girl is just bloody insane!

Waves of terrifying ardor washed over us as the dust began to settle, and the glowing form of Isaac emerged, holding a sword of light in his hand.

"I was expecting a second phase to this boss fight, but hot damn, he's like a walking supernova," Iris materialized beside me and remarked, her tone a mix of awe and frustration.

Unlike us, she was uninjured.

"You look rather healthy," I remarked, trying to keep my tone light despite the dire situation.

"Jumped in a shadow at the right time. Almost got my ass vaporized when the light show hit the shadow, though," she replied, rubbing her backside with a grimace.

I couldn't help but glance at it.

"You have a nice butt," I complimented her rather attractive rear end.

Iris shot me a sly grin. "Thanks! Of course, I have a nice butt."

"Guys. Focus," Artemis interrupted, wincing in pain.

"Right." I refocused, turning my attention to Isaac, who stood at the center of the sanctuary, his armor glowing brightly and his cape burning with the silver flames of the Baskervilles.

His eyes, now burning brightly, stared at us as if waiting for our next move.

"What about the others?" I asked, keeping my eyes on the paladin.

Iris shook her head. "Ava lost a leg and Apollo lost an ear and got a hole pierced through his left lung."

"What?!" Artemis sat straight up only to collapse back with a painful cry.

"Calm down. He is fine. He used his strand to heal himself," Iris reassured her and turned to me.

"Carlo was knocked unconscious. I smacked him awake. He is well enough for another round."

"That's good," I nodded. "We doing it your way?"

She nodded back. "Yep."

"I don't like it," I sighed.

Iris smiled, a reassuring light in her eyes. "I'll be fine. I have you."

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Her gaze shifted to Isaac. "He's a spirit, right?"

"That's what he said," Krystal replied as she reached us.

"Spirits are tethered to the realm of the living by something significant from their past life," Iris elaborated, her expression thoughtful.

My eyes widened. "The door in the inner area! It may lead to whatever is binding Isaac to this world!"

"Or it could be his armor or even his sword," Artemis suggested.

Iris shook her head. "I doubt it. I nicked his armor back then and it didn't even tickle him. It has to be something else."

Her eyes hardened with determination. "If that fails, we still have my stigma."

Artemis looked concerned. "Are you sure about that? I've heard about your stigma... it's dangerous."

The Fairy of Tenebris gave her a reassuring smile. "It's our best shot. And I'm willing to take the risk."

"Plus, it's been a long time since I was on the brink of death," she added with a grin.

"Bloody masochist," I chuckled, shaking my head as I regarded her.

"Your orders?"

Iris nodded. "I, Mordred, Krystal, and Carlo. The four of us will engage Isaac."

"You and Apollo pick up Ava and look for the anchor," she directed Artemis, her gaze firm.

The young Fray nodded resolutely and, with Krystal's assistance, rose to her feet.

"We're going to need an opening to enter the doorway."

"And you will have that," Iris assured her, extending her arm toward Artemis.

With a glow in her blue eyes, black smoky tendrils extended from Iris's fingers and enveloped Artemis.

In an instant, her wounds began to heal, the bleeding from her stump and side ceased, and color returned to her face.

Her golden eyes widened in surprise.

"How?" she stammered.

Iris grinned. "Tenebris can also heal along with mimicking the other strands."

"Time for round two," I declared, rising and wiping the blood from my mouth as Haema sealed my wounds shut.

I turned to Krystal. "You ready?"

She grinned. "Hell yeah."

"OI CARLO! YOU ALIVE AND READY?" I shouted across the room.

"Yeah!" Carlo's voice echoed back.

Isaac's burning eyes bore into me. "You all seem to be ready. Shall we dance?"

I met the paladin's gaze with a smile.

"Yeah. Let's dance."

I, Iris, and Krystal stepped forward, releasing our auras, which reverberated through the sanctuary, colliding with Isaac's formidable presence.

Eight barbed tentacles of blood unfurled from my back, and blood swirled around my arms as I activated Haema.

Beside me, Iris's blue eyes gleamed as darkness coalesced around her, forming two fairy wings of pure darkness.

The temperature dropped as icy spikes materialized above us, all aimed at Isaac.

Krystal pointed her rapier at the paladin with an insane smile. "This is going to be fun!"

Red lightning crackled as Carlo rose in the air behind Isaac, his entire body enveloped in red lightning and his eyes glowing with the power of Fulgur.

"Lunatics!" Iris's voice echoed. "Let's go crazy!"

With an excited yell, Krystal launched her ice spikes at Isaac.

Simultaneously, Iris and I surged forward, our blades enveloped in our respective strands, poised for a lethal strike.

I tapped into the most extreme form of my Triquetra state.

Triquetra Overdrive.

Time seemed to halt around me as my perception and senses reached an unprecedented level.

My blood surged beneath my skin, threatening to burst my veins as my blood acceleration doubled. Layers of ardor enhancement enveloped my body, fortifying it.

Isaac deflected the ice spikes with a swift slash of his sword and brought it down toward me as I closed in on him.

Gripping my sword tightly, I met Isaac's attack with precision, halting it in its tracks. Our clash erupted in a storm of sparks and a powerful shockwave of ardor.

I gritted my teeth as the force of the paladin's strike pushed me into the ground.

He's even stronger than before!

Meanwhile, Iris descended from above, her massive wings casting a looming shadow over us.

She extended her hand, black runes encircling it as multiple vortices of darkness swirled around her, coalescing into various weapons.

Swords, spears, and daggers crafted from darkness pointed menacingly at the paladin below.

With a clenched fist, Iris unleashed the arsenal of darkness upon Isaac in a deadly barrage.

{Tenebris: Bladefall}

Isaac swiftly adjusted his stance, his longsword sliding against mine with a shower of sparks.

In one fluid motion, he repelled me and unleashed a devastating slash, releasing a blinding arc of light that vaporized everything in its path.

Iris's eyes widened as the arc vaporized her code and continued toward her. Reacting swiftly, she countered with a powerful arc of darkness.

Light and Darkness collided in the air, releasing a powerful explosion as both strands annihilated each other.

Thrown against the upper walls by the force of the explosion, Iris quickly regained her footing and wasted no time in recovery.

We wasted no time either.

As soon as the explosion blew up the ceiling of the sanctuary, a barrage of red lightning surged toward Isaac.

The paladin tore off his burning cape and threw it at the oncoming lightning. The cape turned to ashes as the lightning hit it instead of him.

I quickly closed in on him, my tentacles lashing out in a relentless assault.

Spinning his sword, Isaac countered, the bright blade slicing through the air and intercepting my tentacles as they surged toward him.

In a shifting blur of slashes, he shredded them, only for them to regenerate and renew their attack.

I joined the fray, my white blade meeting his sword and making shockwaves with each clash.

My bones shook and my balance threatened to collapse as I fought against the paladin, my tentacles and sword working together in perfect harmony.

Yet, he was still holding them off with relative ease.

The temperature dropped again as Krystal joined the fray with another delivery of massive ice lances.

Her rapier flashed as she went for the paladin's knees while simultaneously unleashing another volley of ice lances aimed at him.

Isaac's eyes flared as he unleashed a powerful burst of ardor, repelling us and shattering the lances into tiny shards of ice.

He dispatched my tentacles, deflected my sword, and intercepted Krystal's strike with precise efficiency. With the same upward fluid motion, he launched me toward the shattered ceiling, leaving me airborne and vulnerable.

As soon as I was airborne, he crouched low and dealt a devastating knee strike to Krystal's gut, sending her crashing into the walls of the sanctuary with blood spurting from her mouth.

Reacting swiftly, I twisted in midair and unleashed a spiraling slash of blood toward the paladin.

However, Isaac countered with a forceful punch that tore through the air, dispersing my attack.

"Coming through!" Iris's voice pierced through the chaos as she streaked past me like a comet of darkness aimed directly at our adversary.

Isaac reacted swiftly, raising his sword to meet Iris's black daggers shrouded in darkness.

The clash between light and darkness sent shockwaves rippling through the air, shattering the floor as the force pushed the paladin's boots into the ground.

Still airborne, I channeled ardor into my legs, allowing me to land gracefully on the ceiling before launching myself downward toward the fray between Isaac and Iris.

In a burst of crimson lightning, Carlo materialized beside me, his claymore enveloped in his strand, ready to join the assault.

Meanwhile, from the shattered wall, Krystal emerged in a flurry of ice, her eyes and rapier glowing as massive spears of ice materialized around her.

Blood swirled around my sword and runes encircled my arm as I used another code I had learned.

{Haema: Shredding Gyroscopes}

Orbs of blood the size of golf balls, surrounded by concentric circular rings of blood that rapidly spun like gyroscopes, formed around me.

With our strands roaring in unison, we descended upon the paladin.