Chapter 43 Alise's Skill

"Captain! Captain Alise!" Ryuu's voice called out, heading towards where the rest of the Familia was finishing up bathing.

"What?!" Alise yelled back, strapping her breastplate on.

"Rivira is on fire!" Ryuu said as she came into view.

"Shit… okay, everyone get your gear on now! We are heading over as soon as everyone is ready. Ryuu, where's Kova?"

"He's a little ways back, said something about not wanting to say goodbye to his kids before they are born."

"Grab him and let's go."

—

Valletta Grede ripped open the canvas covering of the shop. Screams as her Familia members slaughtered the people deliciously resounded in her ears and she licked her lips.

But they weren't here just to kill the inhabitants of Rivira, it would be a fruitless endeavor anyways. The people here were used to scurrying away like rodents then rebuilding in a matter of days.

No, there was a person here that she was meant to retrieve. A large man, around Level Two in full armor rushed her and Valletta simply grabbed him by the helmet, the metal squeaking as her hands bent and rended the metal. The man screamed blood pouring out the gaps until a fleshy crack was heard as his skull was crushed.

She tossed him aside and continued her way through the shop and opened a wooden door that led to a storage room. As soon as she opened the door bolts of lightning arced towards her, it was too sudden for her to dodge and she felt a rippling pain in her body.

It only took her a moment to shake it off, she blurred forward and destroyed the magic item. She heard the crash of someone hurrying away. The footsteps of the person was right on the other side of the wall, instead of going around she shot her hand straight through, catching the man by the throat.

"Nonono, I need you alive so there's no need to struggle," She cooed.

"Fuck that, let me go," the man yelled.

He was an old human man, looked to be around sixty, but thanks to his Falna was actually around eighty.

"Ok."

She dropped him, before he even hit the floor she slammed her fist into his face, nose breaking and teeth going flying. The man slumped to the ground unconscious.

"Hey! One of you come grab the guy," She yelled out.

A few of her subordinates came in, their own clothes splattered with blood. One restrained the old man and the rest of them began to grab the Magic Items in the shop.

The Evilus had their own Magic Item maker, but this old man had knowledge that they needed. They'd pull the information out of him and have Barca do the work, or maybe keep him as a Magic Item factory for them. Her sharp Level Four eyes caught the Rivira people grouping up, ready to begin combing the town for her and her subordinates.

"Let's go," she told her team.

Rarely was there anyone in Rivira that could match her, but a swarm of ants could kill an elephant.

She turned, ready to leave when another group entered her sight from the other side. She recognized the leader as the captain of the Astrea Familia. A Familia of Level Two's and One's would be like a wolf among sheep, and the Astrea Familia was one of her faction's targets, but the Magic Item maker was the mission right now.

She licked her lips, barely holding herself back from going in to slaughter the lot of them.

"We have another group blocking the main escape route, switch to the-"

Balls of glowing light smashed into the group of them. The Level Ones fell to the ground with broken bones, and the three Level Two's had a few injuries as well. The Magic Item maker wasn't hit directly so only had a few scrapes on him.

Valletta zeroed in on a masked elf standing on a roof a few meters away. She threw the Magic Item maker to the remaining Evilus.

"I'll cover the escape, get his ass out of here."

She knew from the Astrea Familia's reputation that her people wouldn't last long enough for Valletta to get to Knossos without being spotted. They needed the advantage the man made tunnel system gave them.

In a blink Valletta was above the elf her sword drawn and it ripping the air as it came down on her.

Another girl that had been hiding nearby triggered a spell at the same time and a lance of fire knocked Valletta away. For all the strength and power Level Four gave her it didn't change her weight so she was blown into another building.

Without even a scratch she pulled herself from the rubble.

Most of the Astrea Familia split off to chase the Level Twos that were taking the Magic Item maker away, but the ones that she guessed were the strongest stayed behind to hold Valletta back.

Oddly she saw what looked to be a half-elf boy in the group chasing her teammates. Maybe it was just an androgenous girl?

"You can't beat me, you can't even survive a hit from me," She cackled cracking her neck from side to side.

"Well your tighter than skin pants will slow you down enough that we'll be fine," said a Far East looking girl.

"Says the girl in a thin dress," the elf mutters.

"I'm sorry that I'd rather not be showing my entire thigh to every guy that passes."

"Wha-"

"Not now, shes Valletta Grede from the Thanatos Familia, suspected Level Four," their captain said.

The Captain already had a fire enchantment covering her weapon arms and legs. Her blade was leveled to Valletta and her eyes had a cocky, confident shine to them.

The ground cracked as Valletta rushed to her, she wanted to end it quickly.

Alise let the swordstrike slide down the length of her own blade and twisted her wrist and Valletta's swordstrike bit deeply into the ground. A fiery blade came at her, far faster than any Level Two should be capable of. Valletta rolled to the side, but the blade changed direction, going from Vallettas face to her thigh. The blade cut and seared her flesh.

Valletta growled.

"You're not fucking Level Two, isn't it wrong to lie to the Guild?" She said getting to her feet and ignoring the pain.

"Oh I am, but I'm just better than you were at my Level is all," the red head said once again raising her blade.

—

Alise felt her skill pulse through her body, Lubrude Bequia was a skill she got when she Leveled Up after fighting a Level Two that had killed one of her Familia members. In that moment she had wished she had even half as much strength as the man in front of her so that she could have saved her friend.

That was exactly what the skill did. When activated it gave her an additional power boost equal to half the power of the opponent she was facing. It only worked on one opponent at a time, and the stronger the opponent the more Mind it took. It also would slowly wane as soon as it activated, meaning she couldn't keep up the same strength forever.

She just needed to wait until Rivira reinforcements would arrive.