BANG!
The bullet tore through the air at a speed far greater than it had ever before, cutting through the distance between Lance and the truck like a knife through paper.
He could see it, flying toward the men in a straight deadly line.
But just as it neared them and ready to slaughter them, the little girl in the front seat suddenly opened her eyes and glowed with an otherworldly light.
In the next instant, the space around the bullet distorted and twisted the air like a mirage.
The next moment, the bullet veered sharply, changing its trajectory and headed towards one of Lance's men who was leaping from the top of a building with his sword raised high, aiming to strike down the truck. But instead of cutting through metal and flesh, the bullet collided with him mid-air.
BOOM!
In an instant, this man was reduced to a bloody mist, and the sword clattered harmlessly to the ground, while the truck kept barreling forward, and the girl's glowing eyes slowly closed again as if nothing had happened.
Not even Price and his team had noticed anything as the entire thing took place within a fraction of a second. However, the only one who witnessed it all is the one who shot the bullet in the first place.
"Damn it! Her power is returning," Lance cursed to himself as he felt the strain. The Anti-Magic Collar was losing its grip and its power faded faster than he anticipated. "If I don't feed it more mana, we'll lose control of her!" His grip tightened on the flintlock as he seethed in frustration.
With a quick glance at his Chaos Spirit, who is still in its horse form, Lance leaned forward and whispered sharply into its ear.
"Catch the girl, and kill these men!"
Obeying its master's command, the Chaos Spirit dissolved into a dark mist and disappeared into the air. In seconds, the mist reformed behind the truck and morphed back into a humanoid form. Now, with monstrous claws over a meter long and enormous menacing wings, the creature hovered ominously, as its eyes glowed with lethal intent.
Before anyone could react, the Chaos Spirit flapped its wings once and appeared instantaneously at the rear of the truck.
Polites, sensing the danger, unleashed a fireball from the staff, but the spirit turned to mist mid-strike and effortlessly evaded the attack before reappearing behind Polities, and prepared to drive its sharp claws into his back.
At the last second, Belinski intervened with a well-placed shot from his pistol, blasting the Chaos Spirit in the face, momentarily stunning it. Using the opening, Belinski kicked the creature with all his strength, sending it hurtling off the truck. However, the spirit's wings spread open, catching the wind and allowing it to recover in mid-air.
The Chaos Spirit then morphed its hands into twin blades made of pure darkness and threw them toward the truck with terrifying speed. But Polites, quick on his feet, raised his Elemental Staff, and with a swift incantation, he summoned a gust of fierce wind and deflected the incoming blades harmlessly away from the truck.
The team was safe for the moment, but the Chaos Spirit remained relentless as it circled the truck like a predator ready for its next move.
But just as the chaotic chase continued, Price suddenly noticed an elf sprinting out of an alleyway with terrifying speed. With a thunderous impact, the elf bashed his arm into the left side of the truck, sending it spinning out of control in a violent 360-degree spin.
Everyone inside screamed as Price desperately fought to regain control, but it was no use, the truck screeched and crashed into a lamppost with a gut-wrenching crash.
For a moment, the world seemed to pause, as the enemy forces halted their pursuit, all but one elf, who leaped onto the roof of the wrecked truck and raised his sword high.
"Praise the God of War and Violence! May hell cleanse you—"
Before he could bring the sword down, his head exploded in a shower of blood and bone, leaving his lifeless body crumpling to the roof.
Standing over the elf's corpse, Price coldly lowered his smoking shotgun.
"Hans! No!" one of the elves screamed in dismay. "You bastards! The dude was having such a good day! Killing minors and toddlers and shit! He was a good man!"
"Con-gra-tu-lations," Price said sarcastically as he began clapping, "It took dozens of inhuman, retarded 'warriors' to hunt us down." He stepped down from the truck, followed by his teammates as they climbed out of the truck, weapons drawn and aimed at the elves as he continued. "Now that you have cornered us, what are you going to do now? Rape us?"
"Well, we do look kinda rapey," one elf muttered without missing a beat, earning a hard slap to the back of his head, silencing him.
"He gets it!" Price smirked and took a drag from a cigarette, blowing out smoke before speaking calmly, "Now, I hope this is everything you've dreamed of." He raised his guns with a cold gaze. "So have at it, then. Come at us, you Kraut shits!"
The elves erupted in laughter, clearly underestimating the humans. One of them finally stepped forward with a grin and drew his blade.
"Very well, then..."
With warning, the elf lunged at Price with a roar as his sword aimed for his throat.
"I'LL STAB YOU IN THE THROOOA—"
Suddenly, the sentence was cut short as a grotesque gurgling sound filled the air. Out of nowhere, blades of unknown energy materialized and impaled the elf mid-leap, his body convulsing violently before melting away and exploding moments later in a flash of blood and ash.
In the eerie silence that followed, a man materialized in front of the truck. Lance, still among the enemy elves, felt a cold wave of dread wash over him as he recognized the figure.
"Benjamin?" he whispered.
Hearing the name where the person belonged, his henchmen began to murmur in shock and fear as their eyes moved toward the man who now stood before them.
"Is that… the Holy Knight himself?" one of them muttered, unable to hide his trembling as their earlier confidence instantly evaporated when they realized who they were now facing.
Standing over the area with his eyes flashing with a fierce light, the man they were all focused on was none other than the Holy Knight of one of the strongest nations in the First Civilization Zone.
His presence alone sent fear on Lance's crew.
"Well, well, if it isn't the Theocracy's lapdog," Lance muttered with utter disdain in his voice.
"Yeah, it's been so long since I ever saw you, Lance," Benjamin chuckled darkly, as his gaze locked onto Lance. "Did you hear that, my friends?" he called, looking skyward.
The GaterGame gang looked up, and their faces went pale as an entire army of Holy Knights descended upon them, armed to the teeth and ready for battle as their sheer number was overwhelming.
Benjamin's voice hardened as he addressed Lance again. "Though, I'll give you credit for killing that bitch Sirrah and her joke of a party, but you crossed the line when you stole the Pope's most precious treasures and had sex with one of our Priestesses. For that, I shall kill you."
Lance erupted in mocking laughter. "Jealous, huh? Sad you never got to slap that nun's ass yourself? Face it, Benny, your religious principles are just a front to hide how more bigoted you are than all of us and how boring you are. Y'all live pathetic lives, and, if you haven't noticed, we outnumber you. Badly."
Benjamin unsheathed his sword, with the blade coating with holy power, and he spoke calmly, "Are you done running your mouth? Because we're done talking. We'll fight you until the last breath leaves your body. Judgment is upon you, Lance, and that judgment is death."
Lance rolled his eyes, "Being over dramatic and such? We outnumber you in terms of numbers and firepower. Clearly you're at a disadvantage."
"You underestimate us," Benjamin replied quietly. "And that will be your downfall."
As he spoke, four of Lance's henchmen, two of whom had been hiding within Benjamin's own shadow, lunged at him at breakneck speed. But before they could even strike, Benjamin spun in a fluid motion, slicing them down with a precise 180-degree sweep of his swords, and their bodies hit the ground, lifeless, as if they'd never stood a chance.
"...In case you didn't catch my meaning," Benjamin finished in a cold voice.
Lance's confidence wavered, but he masked it with bravado. "Alright, boys. Kill these cults!"
The following instant, the battle erupted in a frenzy with Lance's henchmen charged, while the religious warriors, led by Benjamin, met them head-on. Steel clashed against steel, and the air filled with magic.
"Let the slaughter begin!" Benjamin roared.
"Yeah, for you!" a random henchman retorted, only to have his head blown apart less than a second later.
Among the chaos, a nun wielding a katana moved with incredible speed, and her blade moved in a blur as she cut through dozens of men, dashing effortlessly through their attacks at speeds that no human could match.
With one fluid swing, a flash of light severed the heads of her enemies, and their bodies collapsed around her in an instant.
Out of nowhere, another of Lance's men rushed her and thrust his fist forward at blinding speed. But before he could land the blow, her blade was already at his throat and his head rolled to the side as his lifeless body slumped to the ground.
Even though Lance's gang fought viciously, throwing everything they had at the religious warriors, they were losing ground. Benjamin's forces were overpowering them, largely due to the terrifying presence of the Holy Knight himself.
Benjamin hacked and slashed through Lance's men with both swords, cutting down thirty GaterGame gang members in a single deadly arc. Their blood splattered the walls, and their bodies crumpled under the weight of his attack.
As the battle raged on, Benjamin took a moment to survey the scene. He frowned as he scanned the battle, only to notice there was no sign of Lance.
"Where are you, you coward?"