"Haaaahp!"

Marin, the vice-captain, swung her massive greatsword through the air. The force of the blade, enhanced by Meditatio, sent a shockwave tearing through the swarm of Foreign Entities. The creatures were crushed like soft cheese, shattering under the weight of her attack.

It seemed the battle would end quickly with the ease at which they fell, but reality was never so kind.

Marin glanced around.

The pink mist, a result of the sheer number of Foreign Entities, swirled and moved in waves. Amidst it all, she spotted flashes of white slashes cutting through the fog.

It had to be White Mask's work. At her level of Meditatio, scattering attacks like that posed no issue.

Taptaptap.

Footsteps drew closer from all directions, giving her no time to relax. As the girls emerged, Marin raised her greatsword, her eyes narrowing.

"You never know when to quit!"

She spun in place, sending the girls flying back against the walls instead of cutting them down. Had she struck them with the blunt edge of her sword by mistake? It couldn’t be a coincidence. Only then did Marin realize she was breathing heavily.

Her stamina was dwindling.

Left alone in this sector, she’d taken on the burden of minimizing casualties among the knights. It was inevitable.

At the very least, she needed to hold out until Tanten returned.

"Haha, this isn’t looking good."

There was no choice. A knight’s duty is to protect what they hold dear, even at the cost of their own life. If she met her end in this battle, it would be an honorable death.

So, with a shuddering arm, Marin raised her greatsword again, squeezing out every last ounce of strength.

"Vice-captain."

She felt a chill run down her spine at the sound of the voice. She turned toward the source, her body tense.

The Knight-Captain stood there.

She was supposed to be resting at headquarters. What was she doing here?

"Captain, this is dangerous."

"Hmm? Is it now?"

The captain looked at her, tilting her head as if unsure of the situation. Marin couldn’t help but feel uneasy. If something were to ambush the captain right now…

And then, as if her thoughts had materialized, one of the girls closed in on the captain, aiming for her neck.

"Captain!"

By the time Marin shouted, it was too late. She was too far to intercept, too late to protect. She watched helplessly as tears spilled from her eyes, fearing she was about to lose someone precious again.

But fate, it seemed, hadn’t abandoned her entirely.

Thunk.

Marin watched in astonishment as the captain, without even looking back, caught the girl’s head with her hand, crushing it with a dull crunch.

"Uh? Wh-what is this?"

The captain threw the girl's lifeless body to the ground, as if surprised by her own actions.

Marin felt as though she’d seen a glimpse of the captain she had known—someone she had trusted and admired.

Exhaustion finally overtook her, and she fell to her knees, the weight of battle pressing down on her.

"Hey, are you alright?"

The captain knelt down, worry in her eyes. Marin smiled.

She wanted to protect the captain, even if she didn’t remember her past. But that brief moment revealed something else: the captain’s body still remembered its duty to protect Londan, even if her mind did not.

Without realizing it, Marin had fallen into the captain’s embrace.

"Vice-captain?"

"Captain."

Marin looked up, amused by the captain’s startled expression.

"What is it?"

"These wretched creatures are tormenting me. Could you lend a hand?"

"What?!"

The captain’s eyes flared with anger, scanning the sky with a scowl.

"To harass a saint who buys me dinner… Unforgivable."

Marin chuckled, saddened by the thought that she might only be worth a meal to the captain. But it was just like old times—her protecting grin, her righteous wrath.

"Rest here. I’ll take care of them."

With that, the captain crouched, poised for a leap.

In an instant, she was airborne, her silhouette a dot against the sky as a horde of pink-tinged Foreign Entities shifted direction, drawn to her like metal to a magnet.

The captain braced herself, unfazed by the oncoming swarm, her body emanating a powerful aura that wrapped around Londan like a protective shell.

Marin swallowed dryly, witnessing a rare glimpse of the captain’s formidable strength.

But this was only the beginning.

When the swarm closed in, the captain swung her fist at the leading creature. Such a simple movement—and yet…

The very air within Londan shifted.

It felt like a hurricane. But no, it was the captain’s punch altering the flow of the wind itself.

Before Marin’s eyes, a wide, triangular wave of force erupted from the captain’s fist, cleaving through the swarm. The creatures disintegrated, their remnants swept away by the shockwave.

Marin could only stare in awe as the skies seemed to part before the captain’s might.

The sole Foreign Entity killer. She had lived up to her reputation.

"What the hell?!"

"The captain’s up in the sky!"

The knights nearby buzzed with excitement, and Marin allowed herself a smile.

"Still the same, Captain."

With her here, the battle seemed so much more manageable.

The Inquisitor’s laughter rang out as I dodged and weaved, barely keeping up with the barrage of pain orbs she launched like cannonballs. Asti was struggling, her shoulders heaving with exhaustion.

I remembered the Saint’s words: depending on the situation, the Inquisitor’s power could escalate to conceptual levels.

Even with Asti’s dragon wings, which managed to deflect the orbs, we were pushed to the brink.

"Asti."

"Yes?"

"I hate to ask, but… could you grab the Inquisitor’s attention?"

"Do you have a plan?"

"Sort of."

Improvised, really. But we had no other choice.

Asti seemed to sense the urgency and nodded.

"Understood."

Without hesitation, she darted toward the Inquisitor, pushing her body to the limit. The Inquisitor smirked, extending a hand toward her.

"Ugh!"

Asti was drawn toward her, as though an invisible force pulled her in.

"Those who feel pain cannot escape me. Not even you, my dear daughter."

But Asti resisted, fighting to carry out my plan. Her resolve was palpable.

In her moment of distraction, I rushed the Inquisitor from the other side.

"So, you’re choosing death?"

The Inquisitor fired an orb at me, larger than the others. I raised my wings to meet it head-on. The impact was immense, threatening to tear my wings apart.

"Haaaargh!"

Gripping my sanity, I forced the orb aside, redirecting its trajectory just enough to avoid a direct hit.

"What the…?!"

The Inquisitor was caught off-guard, but I was already upon her.

My blade plunged into her abdomen with a sickening squelch.

I twisted the blade, driving it deeper.

"Ungh!"

The Inquisitor cried out in pain, stumbling back as blood seeped from her wound.

She staggered, clutching her abdomen, and for a moment, the sight of her in pain seemed almost surreal.

Was this it? Had I won?

Wait.

She was in pain—that wasn’t right.

The Inquisitor thrived on pain, even her own. Something was wrong.

"…Heh, hehe."

The Inquisitor started laughing, and a sense of dread crept over me. I tried to step back, but—

"Ahahahaha!"

Her face contorted with a mad grin, and she lunged, grabbing my neck and slamming me into the ground. She straddled me, pinning me down.

"Haha! How hard you must have worked, thinking you’d struck a fatal blow! How delighted you must have been!"

Her face was inches from mine, her eyes alight with a terrifying joy.

"Ah, that look of despair! Knowing you’ve lost, that you can do nothing now. That’s what I wanted to see!"

Panic clawed at me, but I forced myself to glare at her, trying to stave off the terror rising in my chest.

Was this the end? Defeat by a Foreign Entity meant certain death.

"Fascinating, human. I’ve never had so much fun!"

She sneered, raising an arm to unleash another wave of red energy—until a sudden movement caught her eye.

Asti had managed to sneak up on her, but the Inquisitor spotted her at the last moment.

"Back off, you filthy wench!"

In a fit of rage, she hurled Asti back, her voice laced with venom.

Now panting, Asti lay crumpled on the ground. The Inquisitor turned back to me.

"No, I won’t kill you. You’ll serve me forever. I’ll reward you as you wish—even give you my body, if that’s what you want."

She was lost in her own twisted ecstasy, seeming more like a drug addict than an all-powerful being. It was horrifying, but it also triggered something else in me.

A profound helplessness.

Was this really it? I tried to summon my strength, but her grip on my neck only tightened.

My vision began to fade as I struggled for breath. Was this the end of my plans, my fight for Londan?

No, I couldn’t let it end like this.

And then, out of nowhere, a booming voice thundered through my mind, as if someone were striking a drum right inside my head:

“Don’t you dare... touch what’s precious to me!!!”

The words shot through my consciousness, snapping me back to awareness. I felt a sudden change in the air. The Inquisitor had frozen, her grip loosening as she looked startled, almost paralyzed, and began to back away slowly.

“Why... how are you...?”

Behind her, something bizarre started happening. The space around her warped and turned pitch-black, pulling at the surroundings as if trying to consume them. It was like a black hole had formed, devouring everything within its reach.

I didn’t know what this was, but one thing was clear—I had a chance. Whatever this force was, it might just turn the tide in my favor.