Chapter 113: Shattered Door, Blood of Revenge

The Imperial Guard’s furious charge crushed the already battered butchers blocking their path without a shred of mercy.

The holy barriers manifested by the priests, typically defensive in nature, were transformed into the vanguard of the assault; propelled by the collective might of the entire legion, they collided with the butchers, grinding them into nothingness.

With barely a pause, the Imperial Guard surged along the path to the Hellgate, a route already scoured by the meteor-like strikes of Saelunor. The remaining enemies, caught in the unified onslaught of the legion, were utterly fragile, incapable of hindering the charge in the slightest.

As they pressed their violent advance, the legion rapidly approached the scorched perimeter of the Hellgate. Surrounding the gate lay a zone transformed by its unique field into a hellish wasteland, where raging fires burned and molten lava pulsed deep beneath the earth.

Within these volatile, flame-drenched regions stood the Hellgate’s exclusive guardians—creatures of rock and fire, summoned not for conquest, but for defense: the Hellfire Elementals.

These humanoid elemental beings, composed of stone and flame, hovered in the air, possessing fire energy far more explosive and potent than that of standard fire elementals, combined with the rugged durability of their earth-bound kin.

As the Imperial Guard’s charge breached the scorched zone, these wandering Hellfire Elementals immediately converged upon them.

The hulking elementals leveled their arms at the legion, launching their own burning, stone-encased limbs like projectiles.

"Expand the shields!" the adjutant’s command rang out instantly. The barriers, woven by the legion’s mages around the formation, surged with an infusion of extra mana, expanding outward to meet the incoming barrage of flaming rock.

The elementals’ attacks struck the shields, triggering violent detonations. The entire barrier rippled under the dense, powerful elemental bursts, teetering on the brink of collapse.

"Discard the current shield, deploy the next!" the adjutant commanded the mages with icy composure.

Hellfire Elementals were formidable hell-spawn; these soulless beings could unleash terrifying elemental attacks without regard for their own physical integrity.

Though they could not sustain such assaults for long—as they consumed their own bodies to fuel them—and were inherently fragile, their destructive potential was absolute.

Entangling with these guardians was unwise. The adjutant’s goal was simple: ignore the obstructions and drive straight to the source, shattering the Hellgate itself.

The mages reacted with lightning speed, discarding the failing barrier without hesitation and weaving a new one to envelop the legion.

Deprived of mana, the old barrier disintegrated under the elementals' relentless assault.

Yet, the shield had served its purpose. By exploiting the nature of the Hellfire Elementals—whose attacks detonated upon contact and triggered chain reactions—the mages forced the projectiles to explode in the air, far from the ranks, effectively neutralizing an entire wave of fire.

Before the next volley arrived, the mages had already manifested a fresh barrier, intercepting the subsequent barrage.

Much like a tank’s reactive armor, the legion neutralized enemy fire by sacrificing layer after layer of protection.

The adjutant’s tactic followed the same principle, though unlike a tank’s armor, the legion’s shields could be regenerated time and again by the mages.

They labored incessantly, rebuilding the barriers to withstand the dense elemental explosions raining down from all sides.

The constant output of mana and the mental strain of constructing complex spell structures took a heavy toll on the mages.

Nosebleeds became frequent, and a deathly pallor settled upon every one of them.

Yet, it was this frantic maintenance that ensured the legion did not slow, preventing them from being trapped and annihilated by the sustained bombardment.

At the front, the holy barriers continued to smash through the Hellfire Elementals, shattering them in bursts of flame. Their actual defense was abysmal, and against the combined might of the Imperial Guard, they stood no chance.

The powerful elemental explosions that followed their destruction were entirely absorbed by the sturdy holy walls.

Compared to the mages, who faced attacks from every direction, the priests’ holy barriers were not only more resilient but dealt with fewer incoming strikes. Under their guidance, the walls remained unyielding, crushing the elementals and pushing forward with relentless fervor.

With each charge, the Hellgate drew closer. Before the mages reached their limit, the legion finally arrived at the threshold, where a pale yellow shroud encased the Hellgate as it hovered in the void.

The legion halted. At that moment, the massive swarm of Hellfire Elementals launched their most ferocious assault yet, covering the entire formation in a deluge of elemental fire.

The priests, no longer needing to maintain the forward barriers, joined the mages in defending against the all-encompassing bombardment, yet even so, the sheer volume of attacks threatened to overwhelm them.

Maintaining the shields became increasingly grueling, yet neither priest nor mage showed a hint of retreat, their faces calm as they focused on the defense.

"Prepare!" The Knight Commander raised his oversized greatsword high, roaring at the top of his lungs.

"Yes!" the knights responded in unison, driving their internal battle-aura to its absolute limit, strengthening the flow that already linked them as one.

The surging aura converged upon the core of the formation—the Knight Commander. The excess energy manifested around him, forming a colossal, armored giant of pure aura. The greatsword in his grip hummed, vibrating with the weight of the concentrated power.

"Hah!" With a thunderous shout, the Commander swung his greatsword in a wide, violent arc. A massive crescent of battle-aura erupted from him—a Great Whirlwind of Blade-Qi!

The ferocious strike swept across the perimeter, shattering scores of Hellfire Elementals, but its primary target was the pale yellow shroud covering the Hellgate.

The blade-qi collided with the shield in a violent clash. Battle-aura, a force unaffected by the Hellgate’s field, sliced through the barrier with absolute lethality.

Though the Hellgate’s shield was formidable—capable of withstanding even the Levius Magic Cannon—it could not endure the concentrated aura of the entire knightly order. With a mournful wail, it split in two and disintegrated, revealing the Hellgate itself.

However, the Imperial Guard lacked the means to seal a spatial rift; their expertise lay in destruction and frontal combat, not the delicate art of closing portals.

The fire-red, flickering rift hovered before them, exposed and undefended, yet they had no way to seal it. The Hellfire Elementals continued their assault, and the shields were once again failing.

But the Imperial Guard did not fight alone. Their allies had arrived: the vanguard of the Night’s Edge, led by Cassia, fresh from the city outskirts.

This small, elite force had broken through the encirclement of demons and elementals with swift, precise strikes, reaching the Hellgate at last.

As experts in handling spatial rifts and otherworldly incursions, they were perfectly equipped to deal with the now-defenseless gate.

"Prepare to destroy the spatial anchor!"

"Yes!"

...

When the Hellgate above the city walls finally collapsed and dissipated, the citizens of the Royal City let out a collective sigh of relief, followed by cheers of victory and survival.

The sound of jubilation traveled far, and the city was swept up in a wave of triumph. Though many districts lay in ruins, the attention of the populace was so thoroughly captivated by the gate’s destruction that the events unfolding in a small, shadowed alleyway went entirely unnoticed.

Hela stumbled out of a secret passage she knew well, one used by the city’s underground "rats." Her beautiful face was twisted in agony; she felt as if a piece of her brain had been torn away, a searing pain flooding her mind and soul.

She was in a dire state, struggling against something that sought to seize control of her body. She fought it with every ounce of her will, a battle so taxing that she could barely maintain half of her strength.

"Master... I must help Master. He is badly hurt. I must return... return to the mansion," she muttered to herself. Her mind was clouded, her consciousness slipping, yet a singular, resolute conviction drove her to reach the mansion and find a way to heal Mr. Colin.

She did not know why she felt such devotion, nor why she was so fixated on this task, but she attributed it to her loyalty to Mr. Colin. She could not—would not—lose to the entity fighting for control within her mind.

She hurried through the alley, determined to reach her destination without drawing attention. Despite the agony, her innate power allowed her to keep moving.

Clutching her head, Hela rushed forward, desperate. She knew she might lapse into unconsciousness at any moment due to the internal conflict. She had to hurry.

Just as she prepared to step into the familiar passage, a primal instinct screamed a warning, and she leaped backward.

The pain and vertigo in her mind severely hampered her reflexes; though she sensed the danger, she could not fully evade the sudden strike.

The ground shattered. A hand of earth and stone erupted from beneath the paving stones, clamping onto her ankle.

"Who?!" Before she could react, a figure with skin flushed red and radiating heat leaped from the roof of a nearby house, a fist driving toward her forehead.

"Boom!" Hela managed to raise a hand, but the hasty block was no match for the premeditated strike. Her wrist snapped with a sickening crack, and she was sent reeling backward.

Even caught in a trap and ambushed, Hela did not abandon her defense. Her superior technique allowed her to adjust her balance mid-air, but her attacker gave her no respite.

Before she could recover, a heavy, lightning-fast knee struck her abdomen. She was launched into the air, the stone hand gripping her ankle shattered by the force of the blow.

Tumbling through the air, Hela slammed into the alley wall. The searing pain in her gut cleared her mind for a fleeting second; she felt several ribs snap, her internal organs severely damaged.

"You!" Hela looked up, gasping as she saw the figure charging at her again with cold, murderous intent. It was Wang Yu, the new member of the special operations team she had once ambushed.

She had never expected it to be him. As Wang Yu threw another full-force punch at her head, she dodged desperately. The fist grazed her ear, smashing into the wall and pulverizing the brickwork.

"This power?!" Hela stared in disbelief at Wang Yu, who was fully utilizing his Blood-Burning Drive. The strength he displayed now was leagues beyond what he had shown when she had suppressed him with ease. How could there be such a difference?

Her shock would not save her life. What she thought mattered little to Wang Yu; her non-existence was all that mattered.

The blood Wang Yu had hidden within her—the blood used for tracking—had marked her completely. As long as she was within range, this blood of vengeance would never let her escape his hunt.

Hela barely dodged Wang Yu, but Avia, who had arrived in coordination, gave her no chance.

The earth on the brick wall suddenly surged, erupting from behind Hela’s head. With no time to react, she was struck in the back of the skull, and her world plunged into darkness.

That momentary dizziness sealed Hela’s fate; pulling his fist from the brick wall, Wang Yu did not hesitate, driving a right hook into her face. Bone shattered, blood and teeth sprayed into the air, and Hela was sent tumbling, rolling across the ground.

Wang Yu had no habit of granting his enemies a second chance; he surged forward, intent on finishing off Hela, who lay senseless from the brutal blow.

Yet, a ripple in space left Wang Yu a step behind. Hela’s form blurred, and in the next heartbeat, she reappeared down the street.

Hela, who should have been suffering from a severe concussion, suddenly scrambled to her feet, locking eyes with Wang Yu, who charged toward her without a flicker of shock or hesitation at the sudden teleportation.

"Damned servant, foolish loyalty—to think you would fight me for control of this body while I was trying to save you, only to end up in such a state..." Colin’s mood was volatile. Hela was his final contingency, but in his attempt to seize her vessel, he had met with fierce resistance.

Hela had been steadfast in her desire to restore Mr. Colin, frantically rejecting his consciousness, never realizing that the very entity trying to usurp her body was the master to whom she was so devoted.

He had intended to wait for another opportunity to seize the flesh, but Wang Yu and Avia had struck suddenly, their relentless ambush threatening to kill Hela—a woman of no small power—in the blink of an eye.

He had been forced to seize control while she was unconscious, using his remaining strength to evade Wang Yu’s pursuit. The last of his energy was spent on a desperate gambit: Mass Suggestion!

"Stop! You wouldn't dare murder a noble’s attendant in the middle of the street!" Colin shouted through Hela’s lips, his voice strained as Wang Yu bore down on him.

Blood-streaked and battered, she truly looked the part of a victim, and the sorcery he had unleashed was designed to warp the minds of the passersby on the street.

Wang Yu heard "Hela’s" plea and glanced at his surroundings. He saw the residents staring at him with strange, hostile eyes, as if he were a vile thug attempting to butcher a noble’s servant in broad daylight.

The disgust, fear, and rage in their gazes were undisguised; there was no doubt that if he killed Hela now, he would be set upon by the mob.

Noting how the influenced residents glared at the approaching Wang Yu, Colin felt a surge of triumph. It had worked. This member of the Night’s Edge would never dare kill under such scrutiny. In the kingdom, city guards or members of organizations like the Night’s Edge faced unbearable, severe punishments for harming the innocent.

"Thud!" Yet, Wang Yu’s fist did not falter for even a fraction of a second. With a dull impact, and before the eyes of "Hela," which widened in sheer terror, he smashed her skull to pieces. Then, with a fluid kick fueled by his battle aura, he snapped her neck clean through.

Having done this, Wang Yu swept his aura across her broken remains to ensure she was beyond any hope of revival, then turned and bolted into the alleyway, ignoring the frantic roars of the crowd and the shouts of those who recognized his Night’s Edge insignia, demanding he face the law.

What a joke. On Earth, perhaps public opinion could have been used against him, but here, he was the Night’s Edge—he was the instrument of violence. The idea of being sanctioned by this was laughable; he didn't believe for a second that the Professor, the Captain, or Father Fang would punish him for this.

Even if it did cause trouble, he would have killed Hela without a moment’s hesitation. Her death threats against him and Avia had already decided her fate; he simply needed the right moment to act.

As for fleeing, it was merely to avoid unnecessary complications. He hoisted the girl who waited for him in the alley with a smile onto his back and took off at a sprint. Let whoever wanted to play with those mindless residents do so; he had no interest. He would just report it to the Captain and the Professor later.

However, he failed to notice that the shock in the eyes of the Hela controlled by Colin was not due to his ruthlessness. Just before Wang Yu killed her, she had looked toward him and Avia, her lips forming a word she never had the chance to speak: "Key..."