The moment the voice fell, three crimson fire rays erupted simultaneously, hurtling toward them like three venomous serpents.
Wherever the flames passed, the air warped and distorted from the heat, and the stone slabs on the ground cracked from the high temperature, making a crackling sound.
Greg and Vivian rolled to either side almost at the same time to dodge.
The fire rays grazed the edges of their clothes, striking the spot where they had been standing just moments ago and blasting two scorched craters into the ground.
“Looks like their levels are only around Level 30.”
Greg flipped to his feet, patted the dust off his clothes, and sized up the three enemies.
He could sense that these three were about as strong as the elite monsters on the first layer. They posed a slight threat to him since he couldn't use his full strength right now, but not by much.
“And they all specialize in fire magic.”
Standing not far from Greg, Vivian calmly analyzed the enemies' positions and mana flow with her ice-blue eyes.
“Their casting rhythm is very steady. They must have been trained; they aren't just ordinary Demon King Cult believers.”
“I can tell,” Greg replied in a low voice.
“Since they're all fire-attribute, you cover me from the back while I go up and suppress them. No problem, right, Madam President?”
Vivian didn't answer, choosing instead to show her stance through action.
Forming hand signs with both hands, ice-blue mana condensed into an ice shield in front of her, blocking the sudden fiery barrage.
The ice shield quickly melted under the intense heat, releasing a thick shroud of steam that obscured the vision of both sides.
Seizing the opportunity, Greg instantly activated Shadow-Step, his figure blending into the steam as he vanished from the enemies' sight.
“Watch out! He's coming!”
The leading believer shouted a warning.
But it was already too late.
Greg suddenly burst out from the steam, already closing in on the leader's position.
In a panic, the believer switched targets and swept a fire ray toward Greg.
Greg forcefully twisted his body in midair to avoid the path of the flames, while slapping his right hand against the wall—Earth Pierce!
Several sharp stone spikes suddenly bulged out from the ceiling, forcing the believer to retreat to avoid them.
With his footing disrupted, the accuracy of his fire ray wavered.
Greg seized the momentum and gave chase, unleashing a succession of Earthfire Blasts that triggered a series of explosions beneath the feet of the Demon King Cult believers, forcing them to scramble.
At the same time, Vivian launched her counterattack.
Dispelling the melting ice shield, she condensed several ice spikes in her hands and shot them at the believers on both sides from tricky angles.
The two were forced to divert their attention to defend against the ice spikes, and the suppressing power of their flames immediately weakened.
“Don't let her tie you down! Hurry up and use your full strength to finish her off, then come help me!” the leader shouted.
Hearing this, the two simultaneously unleashed their strongest fire magic at Vivian, sealing off any space for her to dodge.
Vivian did not panic.
Lightly tapping her toes on the ground, she drifted backward while rapidly forming hand signs. A thick Ice Wall rose from the ground, blocking the onslaught of the flames.
The Ice Wall quickly melted and vaporized under the high temperature, but Vivian continuously channeled her mana to maintain its structure, entering a stalemate with the two.
“Now you have nowhere to run!”
Seizing this chance, Greg hit the believer—whom he had already cornered to the edge of the roof—with a Level 4 Water Gun at point-blank range, sending him crashing heavily to the ground.
Then, he immediately spun around, gathered his mana, and unleashed an Earthfire Blast at the two believers who were locked in a stalemate with Vivian.
A molten sphere exploded beneath their feet, the violent blast knocking both of them to the ground.
Seizing the opportunity, Vivian withdrew her Ice Wall and sent a sweeping current of ice-blue mana to freeze the three fallen enemies to the ground.
The leader struggled to stand up, but Greg was already before him, knocking him unconscious with a single kick.
“And that's that.”
Greg looked down at them.
From start to finish, the battle had lasted only a few short minutes.
All three Demon King Cult believers had been subdued, lying sprawled across the ground in various directions.
Seeing that the danger had passed, the surrounding crowd gradually stopped running and began to watch cautiously from a distance.
“Hehehe! You foolish brats! Don't think you've won just because of this! Lord Demon King will destroy you all sooner or later!”
A hoarse, furious roar echoed from the crowd not far away.
Greg snapped his head around. A man who had been blending in with the onlookers was now pressing a sharp dagger against a little girl's neck.
She was a girl of about seven or eight with messy brown hair and wet tear tracks still on her face, trembling so hard from fear that she couldn't even make a sound.
The man's eyes were filled with fanatical madness, his bloodshot eyes wide as an unnatural smile played on his lips.
He screamed at the top of his lungs, “For Lord Demon King! I shall offer up this sweet fear!”
“Die!!!”
The man raised the dagger high, about to plunge it ruthlessly into the little girl's neck.
A maniacal pleasure flashed in his eyes, as if what he was about to perform was not a murder, but a sacred sacrifice.
Greg was too far away. Even with Shadow-Step, he wouldn't make it in time. At this critical, life-or-death moment—
“Swoosh!”
A sharp streak of sword aura, like a silver meteor, sliced through the air with an unmatched sharpness, severing the man's knife-wielding arm with absolute precision.
All anyone could see was a flash of silver light, followed by a spray of blood as the severed arm fell to the ground.
The man let out a shrill scream, clutching his bleeding stump as he stumbled backward.
Blood welled through his fingers, staining his shirt crimson.
His eyes bulged, his face a mask of disbelief and agony.
Seizing this chance, Greg instantly activated Shadow-Step.
His figure swept across several yards like a specter. Before anyone could react, he had already reached the man, igniting him with a Level 3 Fireball. Amidst the man's agonizing screams, Greg scooped up the little girl and carried her out of the danger zone.
“You're safe now. Don't be afraid.”
He gently set the little girl down in a safe spot, squatting down to comfort her in a low voice.
The little girl was still trembling, but seeing Greg's calm eyes and handsome face, her crying gradually subsided.
“Mister, are you a prince?”
“I'm not a prince, but this big sister here is a real princess.”
Greg ruffled her hair, then handed her over to Vivian.
“I'll leave the cleanup here to you. I have other things to take care of.”
Greg stood up and ran toward the alley where the sword aura had originated.
Left standing there, Vivian watched Greg's retreating back as he vanished into the alley. Recalling that streak of sword aura, her usually expressionless face showed a hint of complexity.
Then, she looked down, noticing that her fingernails had dug deep into her palms without her realizing it.
Her knuckles were white from clenching her fists, and a sharp pain throbbed in her palms, but she seemed completely oblivious to it.
She didn't chase after him.
Because she knew exactly who the owner of that sword aura was.
It was the one person she least wanted to face right now.
Rate on N.U.
