Ascalon could feel the maid’s bloodlust like a knife to his throat. He had taken a moment to send a bit of his ‘will’ towards her—a warning, urging her not to wager her life in vain. It seemed to work, thankfully.

Whatever her plans were, they were none of his business, but he preferred not to get Selorien in trouble, as he had heard the girl call him ‘young master’ at some point. Hopefully, she would behave, so he could focus again on the fight.

The Flaming Fist himself was in a state of panic. “What are you?!” He shouted as he opened his stat screen, to see if his bonuses were even applying. And there they were.

Strength Up, Speed Up+, Honed Senses, and some other passives were activated. So then, how?! How was he no match for that guy?! He tried to regain his focus, putting all he had into his relentless barrage.

Sparks flew through the air as Rosco’s scythe clashed with Ascalon’s lance. Flames burst left and right with each hit, illuminating the street with ephemeral brilliance. The rest of the Flaming Fists stood in hesitation, not knowing whether to attack or retreat, as Rosco’s cutting winds posed a threat to anyone who would get close.

Even so, none of these attacks had even grazed Lilithra, who was the closest to the action. There were scorch marks on the ground and cuts here and there, but it was as if she were surrounded by an invisible barrier. She was absorbed with the spectacle in front of her, admiring the immeasurable skill of the knight.

It was indeed Ascalon who was keeping her safe. Now that he had decided on it, nothing would harm her. Lilithra could feel that it was so, and was filled with many emotions, from gratefulness to deep, caring affection. She wiped her eyes roughly, a few droplets staining the ground, and grabbed her banner to hold it high.

As gales of wind rushed around her, the cloth of her weapon danced furiously and began to glow once again. “Be brave!” She shouted her skill one more time, as she didn’t want to simply stand by anymore.

Ascalon felt the warmth envelop him. It was a familiar feeling, somehow, and he felt a soft smile forming on his face. A gesture Rosco hated, of course. At that moment, a blue screen appeared in front of the knight.

The personal skill - Be Brave - Has been activated in the surrounding zone.

Ascalon peered at the information as he let out a curious 'hmm'. The notice itself could be read by anyone, but an extended description of the skill was shown only to her allies. He read the contents slowly, while dealing with Rosco’s furious attacks.

The personal skill - Be Brave - Has been activated in the surrounding zone.

Her resolution shines on the battlefield, her demonic heart a beacon of hope!

—Skill info—

Lilithra Vexeria’s unique skill.

Rank: F - Level 18.

Potential: SSS.

Attribute: Holy.

Effects:

All subjects considered an ‘ally’ by Lilithra Vexeria will get a 10% increase in all stats.

Additional effects:

* Has a 10% chance of shaking off fear debuffs.

* Has a 15% chance of rousing up morale.

* Has a 0.1% chance of doubling all effects percentages.

So that was Lilithra’s resolution, in the form of a unique skill. Ascalon wondered if it was just as the ‘unique’ label implied, and if that meant it was hers, and hers alone. It did suit her, truth be told.

It was surprising to see her full name, too. And also, these skills sounded really interesting! That aside, he didn’t perceive much of a change in his prowess, but felt motivated nonetheless by the simple meaning of the action. She had his back, too.

In front of him, Rosco was at his wits’ end. He was still attacking because he thought that stopping would mean defeat. But even if he kept going, what would change? What could he do to claim victory over the monstrous man that was that lance bastard wielder? Just how much of a level difference was there? His underlings weren’t daring to interfere, and that Moleman idiot was also keeping away.

As for Moleman, he also noticed the situation was going nowhere. Rosco was being manhandled like a novice, by a man that ended up being way more powerful than expected.

Moleman wasn’t a foolish man, so he knew that involving himself in the battle would be futile. His plan was crumbling to bits, and both anger and fear were starting to mix inside him. Anger at the uselessness of Rosco. Fear of what he could face, should he fail.

That’s right. Even if he turned away, the others were going to chew him out about his actions, and only that if he was lucky. So what was there to lose? He cast doubt aside, and brought up both arms to his chest. He put a hand on top of the other, both of their palms facing off, and then started separating them. As his fingers curved, a yellow energy sphere began to take form.

Ascalon took notice of the sudden threat, and looked over at the hooded man. He seemed to be preparing some sort of magic spell, so he put a little more strength into his next attack. He couldn’t waste any more time with Rosco.

The impact between his lance and Rosco’s scythe sent the latter violently backward, as astonishment washed over his face. The ground cracked and rumbled with the air pressure of Rosco’s momentum, finally stopping after he struck a wall, a long distance from the knight.

It took no longer than a moment for Rosco to fall weakly to his knees, pieces of the wall hitting the ground around him. He didn’t want to admit it, but the pain was more than enough to break his will—he was absolutely nothing in comparison to Ascalon. Everyone could hear his pride shatter, in the form of his scythe falling to the ground.

The sight of their leader in such a state and the destruction around them, combined with the powerful growing energy from Moleman, finally encouraged the rest of the Flaming Fists’ to flee in defeat. A few of them actually seemed to care, coming back to pick up Rosco and his weapon in a hurry, dragging him away. At least they had a sense of self-preservation and camaraderie!

Still, something told Ascalon that this wasn’t the last he saw of the scythe-wielder. But for now, his attention was on the hooded man.

Yet just as Ascalon began to prepare himself for a new opponent, he smiled boldly and showed a content expression, relaxing his whole stance. The sight of this made Moleman very confused. Did the lance wielder have a trick up his sleeve? No matter! He would take the chance to gather even more power, and disintegrate him in a maelstrom of raw, pure energy!

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While Moleman was thinking that, he felt a sharp pain in his back and chest. “Huh?” He gasped in confusion, as the power in his hands began to fade away.

He looked down, his breath turning ragged and wet, the sound of blood bubbles filling his lungs. Two sharp edges protruded from him, and as his vision started to get blurry, he slowly turned his head around.

There stood Selorien, an elated expression on his face. “You all forgot about me, huh?” A mischievous smile appeared on his lips as he spoke.

Selorien noticed Escarlata’s fixation with Ascalon, and decided to take advantage of the situation, using the same skills the maid was so proud of: Stealth and assassination.

Sure, he wasn’t anywhere near her level, but it had worked thanks to the many factors at play. He had Ascalon to thank most of all, of course, but his gamble had paid off.

“Y-you… b-bast-tard…” Whispered Moleman as he began to crumble, the two daggers being removed from his body.

Selorien deftly slashed the air, removing the blood from his weapons, and sheathed them into oblivion. He was surprised the knight didn’t raise a ruckus about his treacherous attack. But truth was, Ascalon had no issues with how ‘rogues’ operated—especially in war.

It was at that moment, seeing Ascalon in a less threatening posture, that Escarlata noticed Selorien’s actions. She had made a heavy blunder, failing her Master, and it was all thanks to that damned wanderer.

That muscular, blonde hunk of a wanderer! With those big, strong arms… But she shook her head, dissipating the creeping thoughts, and focused on what this entailed. She was going to be punished.

She sighed deeply, defeated, and took a moment to recompose herself and got up, bowing in Selorien’s direction after cleaning up some dust from her skirt.

“Young master.” Were the only words she spoke, as she banished as quickly as she had arrived. Ascalon being the only one to notice that, as she fled, she kept glancing back at him.

He wondered if she was afraid he could attack her from behind. But Ascalon was not the kind of person to resort to such treacherous ways, so she was safe for the time being.

Ascalon took a moment to observe the aftermath of the event, taking in the sight of those who surrounded him. On one hand, Rosco and the Flaming Fists’ had scattered, their presences fading away as they raced the alleyways.

Lilithra now stood at his side, her weapon dissipating into the air, with a relieved expression and a nervous smile on her face. Selorien was approaching them at an exhausted pace, half a grin shining under his hood.

Suddenly, in the distance, a black pool of goo began to form in the ground around Moleman. The trio tensed up, Selorien stopped and quickly turned back, as everyone looked at the sight with cautiousness.

Black, slimy ‘hands’ began to rise up from the puddle, enveloping the hooded man’s body little by little, until he looked completely wrapped up. And at the next moment, the black limbs began to pull the lifeless Moleman into the ground. It simply sunk, slowly, disappearing along the goo-ish substance.

Ascalon frowned, as his good eye darted through the scene and his senses expanded. But shockingly enough, he couldn’t feel anything out of the ordinary. That put a lot of wariness in the mind of the knight, seeing that there was some unseen hand at play, and that he couldn’t react in any way to it.

But contemplating that nothing else was happening, he finally relaxed a bit. It seemed to be finally over. The one to break the silence after such a sight, was none other than Lilithra.

“W-well, that was scary… Hehe.” She said shyly, as Selorien continued to walk towards them, wary of his surroundings. She seemed a bit tense still, but a lot calmer. Ascalon looked at her and smiled softly.

But at the back of his mind, Lilithra’s presence gnawed at him. Sure, he had decided to act, and had put aside his feelings towards the demonic for the time being.

Yet every glance at her horns brought back an unpleasant feeling. “Hah…” Ascalon let out a mix of a sigh and a mocking laugh at himself.

How could he still waver? The knight who thought was an unshakable force realized then, that maybe he wasn’t as strong as he had always thought.

He rested his gaze on Lilithra, who was looking more cheerful by the second as she conversed with Selorien. “Thanks, guys… I’m sorry.” She exclaimed sheepishly.

Selorien patted her head and answered. “Don’t be silly.” Those were the only words the elf gave back, as he smiled gently.

Lilithra then looked at Ascalon and beamed nervously, but genuinely. Her eyes reflected gratitude and admiration. Amidst that, she realized something, and covered her head with her hoodie once more.

Ascalon felt a tingle in his chest at Lilithra’s actions. He clenched his fist, hardening his grip on Exemplaris, ultimately banishing it into his ‘inventory’ now that its purpose was served.

How could such a sweet, pure soul reside in the body of a demon? Maybe… Maybe that’s why he was there, at that given time.

Somewhat of a revelation hit him. Maybe he had to witness this girl’s path. Perhaps he was sent to her side for a reason, to guide her, or even vanquish her if needed? He now thought that meeting her couldn’t have been simply a coincidence.

Even his awakening was in a place related to her. It all kind of made sense especially when he recalled that his Goddess, an omnipotent higher being, had put him there. Or so he thought, at least.

He gained confidence in his theory by the second, as he watched over a blushing Lilithra. He realized he had been staring at her for a good while, and no one was saying anything, so the air around them was kind of awkward.

This realization helped break his tension, and he sighed with tiredness. “No, I apologize.” Said the knight, leaving both Lilithra and Selorien kind of dumbfounded.

“Huh?! But you pretty much saved us from a lot of trouble! What’s there to apologize for?” Lilithra questioned him, as she started to chuckle at the sudden event.

Selorien laughed a bit too, and Ascalon simply smiled gently. Maybe it was better to keep his thoughts to himself, and focus on what lay ahead. Particularly on the new presences approaching them.

“This is indeed an unending night, my friends.” Both Lilithra and Selorien felt a tingle of surprise, yet rejoiced at the word ‘friends’, but then realized his stare was set in the distance.

Now even Lilithra knew to pay attention to Ascalon’s random distance-gazing moments, since it meant someone had caught his attention.

Sure enough, a few cars arrived moments later. Most were much like the one Ascalon had seen before, military vehicles. Then, a more elegant model, painted red and designed with style in mind, stood out from the rest.

From one of the military ones, a couple of people descended, among them the Sergeant. He looked at the damage they had caused all around them, and furiousness clouded his eyes as he trembled in place.

Then, from the more lavish vehicle, came out a single man. This one had a more distinctive presence, and a certain air around him. He looked as sleek as his ride, wearing an unbuttoned white shirt, tight blue jeans, and black leather boots. His long blonde hair danced in the wind, alongside his intricate earring.

“Ugh.” Blurted Lilithra under her breath, exchanging a sour expression with Selorien, before quickly trying to hide it.

It was a man Ascalon didn’t know yet—the Guildmaster of the Casanova Guild himself. He started to approach them, as he struck random poses in between steps, making for a very awkward sight. But Ascalon could see there was confidence behind the weird demeanor.

“My lovelies! My sweet Lil! Are you guys alright?! He exclaimed in a worried tone, as he looked at the pair with teary eyes.

A rose appeared on his hand, and he threw it at Lilithra with an extravagant motion. She slapped it to the ground mid-air, immediately.

“Ah- s-sorry Guildmaster, I’m, uhm, still in battle mode!” She stammered in a hurry, Selorien trying to hold back his laughter.

The man then looked at Ascalon, his brown eyes appraising him with seriousness. But just as he was about to say something, the Sergeant stormed in front of them and shouted rudely.

“Alright, enough of this nonsense!!! You’re coming to headquarters with me, now!!!” He pointed at Ascalon, extremely annoyed.

The Guildmaster raised an eyebrow, but decided to not interfere. The knight, who was being pointed at, simply blinked in confusion, and looked at his companions.

Lilithra and Selorien looked perplexed, but the girl nodded nervously. It was the result of their own actions, after all. It was finally time for Ascalon to get to headquarters.