“To think I wanted to make a Saint out of you! You fooled me, monster!”

The [Oracle] was bleeding from his ears, nose, and mouth. Barely managing to stand up, he still found the strength to curse me.

“Die like the beast you are! [Scatter the evil].”

The sky turned red.

“Mother! Today I call to ask fo-” he coughed blood onto the stage. “I call to ask for your help to eradicate the evil that plagues these lands.”

The weather revolted. A storm appeared right above my head, ignoring the blasting sun that had been there just a minute before.

The [Oracle] collapsed back to the floor.

“In exchange,” his words were but a whisper at this point, “You shall take my life.”

[[Oracle] has been defeated - 15133 xp] [Advanced Corrupted Bloodshaper has leveled up] [Advanced Corrupted Bloodshaper has leveled up] [Advanced Corrupted Bloodshaper has leveled up] [Advanced Corrupted Bloodshaper has leveled up] [Advanced Corrupted Bloodshaper has leveled up] [The Third Eye of Corruption has leveled up] [The Third Eye of Corruption has leveled up] [The Third Eye of Corruption has leveled up]

I dismissed the messages, deciding that the elements at play above my head were a million times more important. Clouds had turned black. Spiraling wind was forming and threatening to become a wild hurricane. Thunder was striking down everywhere, pulverizing buildings like they were made of straw.

I had come here for a reason, and I hadn’t forgotten.

I ran.

I sprinted with whatever ounce of strength I had left.

I sent my energy to create a protection layer around Yasmin. A small capsule, something I knew would be useless if thunder struck it. I just needed a few more seconds.

I recklessly jumped to the air.

I’m coming!

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Nothing hit me by the time I reached Yasmin. It was a small miracle that both of us were still in one piece. She had passed out, I would have to carry he-

Everything became silent. I watched up—even if I didn’t have to—and sent a pulse.

The storm had stopped. The thunder calmed down. There was no trace of red right above me was.

But the worst was yet to come.

A scar was diving the sky in two, and within the hole peeked an eye. Black with a red Iris. Stars painted on its pupil.

And hell of a lot of energy. That was the only thing that my pulse relayed. Not even a System message. Just the primary and instinctive fear that my life was about to be taken.

There was no time to run. And, even if there were, something told me it would be useless. The air around me heated. Pebbles vibrated as magic started condensing in a column big enough to wipe the whole square.

“Yasmin!” I jumped onto her.

Hugging her body, I did the only one thing I could think of.

[Portal to Corrupted dimension]!

I did the equivalent of a blink for me—two rapid pulses in succession. The first, Yasmin and I were about to be swallowed into an ocean of energy. The second, it was only her and me. Blackness and void, nothing, a type of cal-

“You seem to be back.” A voice that I couldn’t tell if it belonged to a man or a woman said. The same voice as last time, probably. “So it was not chance that brought you here last time. Oh. My.”

I could no see them, but I somehow knew that they were licking their lips right at that moment. They seemed… excited. Excited that I was there, that I was terrified and defenceless.

“And you have interesting friends…”

I reflexively hugged Yasmin harder. Have I just sentenced us to a different death? I couldn’t help but think.

“Not that!” The voice scoffed. “You have met her.”

I struggled to understand, and was fighting myself over answering or not. I decided my day had been weird enough already, so adding a conversation with an individual I couldn’t see in a corrupted dimension was not going to make much of a difference.

“Do you mean Mother?” That’s the only her relevant here that I could think..

“Pfft!” They broke into a short laugh. “It’s been a while since I heard someone calling her that. But no, not Her. I don’t think we would be talking if you met Her. Though I believe you’ve had the honour of meeting one of her grandchildren.”

They were full of vile. Every mention of her or her offspring was filled with sarcasm. Maybe that was my chance to escape from here alive?

“Someone used a skill to invoke her on me, I believe. This,” I circled my arms around, not sure if they could see, “was my best bet at escaping.”

“Hmm…” They hummed without answering. “Get back, little one. The danger has passed, and your friend here will not be able to hold herself any more.”

Right! I snapped suddenly. This was a corrupted pocket dimension. It was corruption. Anyone but me would end up corrupted by staying inside.

“Ah, thanks?” I waved into the air as I cast back the skill.

As soon as my feet were on solid material again, I sent a pulse to confirm where I was. It didn’t seem the same place, at all. In a hundred meters radius from where we were there was nothing. It was as if that eye had wiped everything above the ground.

The sky was back to normal. Sunny and calm, as if nothing had ever happened here.

We couldn’t stay here. Even if the [Oracle] was gone and the immediate danger had passed, I was convinced the city guards would cause us trouble. For better or worse, they were part of the Church.

I picked Yasmin up once more and sprinted towards the gates. Everything was deserted. The population had fled the city, scared of the battle and the consequences.

No doubt they would be back—one does not simply abandon their life—but right now it seemed like the city had been abandoned.

I stopped running and used my energy. No one would be complaining about it, and there was no risk of bumping into anyone.

The only place I could run to, that I knew I would be safe for the time being, was my dungeon.