Chapter 113: Steel and Shadows

"Oh, they're managing this quite well so far," Thyra remarked, mildly taken aback by the teams' proficiency in executing the mission.

As Thyra made her observation, Aron remained silent, his gaze fixed intently on the unfolding events. With his dragon eyes, he could perceive every detail as though he were present.

The task of the Beta team was to divert the attention of the Falcons, absorbing the damage and sowing chaos wherever possible, and surprisingly they were doing a great job in that.

Freya, wielding her new favorite weapon—a brutal steel hammer—was at the forefront of the onslaught, leading her team with confidence. Her presence on the battlefield was commanding, her blows swift and devastating as she carved through the enemy ranks with unstoppable force.

The hammer was forged in a shape reminiscent of a spiked club, with the spikes crafted from black nails. These very nails had once held Freya captive in that dreadful form. Now they serve as harbingers of death to those unfortunate enough to incur her wrath.

Guessing that the nail's metal was somewhat uncommon, Pethra entrusted them to Balin in hopes that he could find a practical use for them, as the metal was revealed to be a rare blend of normal steel and hell steel called Stygian Steel—a metal with formidable properties.

Having prior experience with this metal, Balin found it manageable, because the Hell aspect of this steel posed a slight toxicity to living organisms.

"URAAHHH!"

BOOF!

Two heads erupted in a crimson spray as Freya swung her hammer with brutal force.

"Aahhh! I've missed this feeling," she exclaimed, her adrenaline surging as she embraced the thrill of battle once more.

Thanks to Aria's venom, the team could easily discern the targets by their pinkish skin. Yet, the other members didn't remain idle while their base was under assault and their guildmates were being slain.

Freya and her team tried to avoid killing by just knocking them out, though it proved unfeasible for all, especially those posing genuine threats.

"Got you!"

Freya was so engrossed in the enemies before her that she failed to notice a man sneaking up from behind, aiming a dagger at her flank.

WHOOSH!

"AHHH!"

He cried out in agony when something sharp pierced his left shoulder, causing the dagger to veer off its mark as he stumbled and fell to the ground. He attempted to crawl, hoping to escape. However, a potent spiked hammer struck his skull, crushing it instantly.

Freya turned with a grin, raising a thumbs up. "Thanks, Sister," then swiftly resumed her assault on the frozen Falcons with a ferocious grin.

"Leave your back to me"

Standing at the rear was Pethra. Her sole role was protection. Positioning herself between the assault team and the support team, Pethra employed her Earth magic to pick off any enemies attempting to flank or attack from a distance.

Her precision was flawless as she unleashed torrents of stone and earth, crushing any opposition with ruthless efficiency while her stone guardians wreaked havoc in the front.

Consuming Aron's blood didn't only heal her mana veins, No, it gave her a whole new mana. A red mana similar to Aron's.

Pethra tried to control and use this new mana, however, all her efforts were in vain as the red mana proved to be quite a challenge.

Another thing she got was a big boost to her already massive mana pool, allowing her to summon the Stone guardians without the fear of the drawback.

Luna stood beside her, utilizing her water magic to create shields protecting her comrades and deflecting any magical spells aimed at the support team.

Though their month-long training had elevated them to a decent level, it still fell short against a mercenary.

Kasumi and Victoria dedicated the training to one specific thing. agility. The girls had to rely on it to survive and fight in a duo to maximize their chances of winning.

However, mistakes were bound to happen, and some incurred injuries. Fortunately, Luna utilized her water magic to encase the injured members in a bubble of water and ferry them to the support team.

Assisted by two elven sisters, twins, casualties were nonexistent. The twins utilized their nature magic to mend any injuries, their prowess so potent that it could even reattach an arm, sparing its owner a crippled existence if they survived.

"Hmm... their cohesion is impressive," Aron remarked, taken aback by their progress. Much still needed improvement, yes, but considering most of them were ordinary women, the strides they had made in just one month were significant. Especially in one aspect: trust.

Aron couldn't help but feel a swell of pride watching them entrust their backs to one another, fighting as a unified entity

"Indeed," Thyra agreed, her voice filled with admiration. "Their teamwork is remarkable. It's clear that they've put in a tremendous amount of effort to reach this level."

The maid next to her wore a proud smile saying "It was challenging, but we managed to achieve it."

"We?" Aron raised an eyebrow turning to his left, this was the first time he paid attention to the maid. When he caught sight of her violet eyes, Aron narrowed his gaze, focusing intently on her. Soon, he penetrated her illusion, glimpsing her true form.

"Oh! Another fox?"

Thyra smirked, while Victoria opened her eyes wide in astonishment.

"Can you see me?" she asked in disbelief.

"Of course I can. Four... No, five tails. Are you related to Kasumi by any chance?"

"Oh! I apologize," Victoria bowed, realizing she hadn't introduced herself to him until now.

"My name is Victoria Kage. Kasumi is my sister. And I'd like to take this opportunity to thank you for saving her."

"I see... Her sister. It's a pleasure meeting you. My name is Aron, and as you can see, your sister is part of my big family now."

Victoria smiled warmly at Aron's words, a sense of gratitude washing over her. "Thank you, Mister Aron. I'm relieved to know that Kasumi is in good hands."

"Nahh don't mention–"

BOOM!

An explosion rocked the third floor, capturing the attention of Aron, Thyra, Victoria, and Mia.

"Interesting" With his keen vision, Aron discerned that Kasumi was engaged in combat with a blond man.

…

"That was a close one"

"Tsk" Kasumi clicked her tongue, annoyed that the blond man managed to block her strike.

When her katana was inches away from claiming his head. He was suddenly propelled backward by some wind force, granting him enough space to draw and utilize the claw on his gauntlet to parry the blow.

The blond man smirked, his eyes gleaming with amusement "You'll have to do better than that, woman" he taunted, his voice dripping with arrogance.

His name was Jonathan Falcon, the Leader of White Falcons, also the elder brother of Josh, whom Aron had tortured and killed in the forest.

Kasumi immediately leaped back, creating distance. Jonathan presumed she was attempting to retreat, so he endeavored to intercept her by leaping over his desk. Yet, he halted when he sensed something peculiar.

When Kasumi's feet connected with the darkness of the doorway, her presence disappeared

Even without full access to Shadow magic, Kasumi could still employ a few tricks she had learned in her clan, supplemented by new techniques learned with the aid of her 'Onee-sama'.

One such skill was Shadow Step, allowing her to blend with the shadows at the expense of rapid mana depletion. However, that mattered little as she required only one perfect strike to dispatch her target.

As Kasumi vanished into the darkness, Jonathan's senses heightened, his eyes scanning the room for any sign of her presence. But try as he might, he couldn't discern her whereabouts amidst the shadows.

A tense silence filled the air as Kasumi waited patiently, her heart pounding in anticipation as she pulled out a small knife. She knew she had to time her next move perfectly if she wanted to catch Jonathan off guard.

WOOSH!

Suddenly, a faint whisper of movement from behind caught Jonathan's attention. Without knowing its source, he attempted to evade sideways, but he was too late. A knife pierced his left shoulder.

"UGHH…BITC–" He swallowed his words when he felt multiple knives hurtling toward him from all directions.

"Damn!"

Jonathan grunted in pain as the knives found their marks, embedding themselves into his flesh with a sickening thud. He staggered backward, his mind racing as he tried to process the sudden onslaught of attacks.

"Enough!" he exclaimed, wrenching a knife from his arm and hurling it at the desk oil lamp.

Instantly, the carpet ignited, which Jonathan then fueled with his wind magic, intensifying the flames. His intent was clear: to dispel the shadows by illuminating the room.

As the flames spread and the room was bathed in light, Kasumi's advantage dwindled. Or so he thought.

"Fool!"

THUD!

"W-What!...Cough" With a thud, the katana plunged into his back, eliciting a pained gasp from Jonathan as he stumbled forward, his strength waning.

Kasumi emerged from the shadows behind him, her eyes gleaming with determination as she twisted the blade, prompting Jonathan to cry out in agony.

"You underestimated me," Kasumi hissed, her voice dripping with venom as she tightened her grip on the katana's hilt. "You thought you could nullify my advantage with fire, but you forgot about your own shadow."

The flames danced around them, casting eerie shadows against the walls as Kasumi stood triumphantly behind Jonathan Falcon, her katana buried deep in his back. Despite his struggles, he couldn't dislodge the blade, and with each passing moment, his strength faded away.

"You... you'll pay for this, girl," he growled through clenched teeth.

Kasumi released her grip on the katana and walked in front of Jonathan, seizing his hair and forcing him to meet her gaze.

"I've already paid more than you can imagine," she retorted coldly, her eyes ablaze with defiance.

"Why?... Cough... Why did you attack me?" he managed to ask, blood filling his mouth.

Kasumi's expression remained cold as she stared into his soul with piercing violet eyes.

"Why?...It's funny you ask that when you sold innocent children to their deaths"

"Just for that—"

THUD! CRACK!

Before Jonathan could finish his sentence, Kasumi silenced him with a powerful punch, shattering his jaw entirely.

"What you've done was enough for some of us to feel less guilt about killing you all. However, for me, it's different."

Kasumi released his hair and walked behind him.

"No matter the reason, my master demanded your head."

Grabbing her katana, she added, "And as his loyal shadow, I must fulfill his request."

"AHHH:"

Slowly withdrawing the katana from his back, Kasumi held the blade aloft.

"By the will of the dragon, I sentence you to death"

SLICE!