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A pillar of fire shot up from the house. The wooden structure was engulfed by the red-hot fire, making a light and disconcerting sound as it vanished, leaving not a speck of dust.

Seletina rolled and slumped over trying to escape.

She was hit by a powerful blast and a heat wave, causing her to be blown a long distance, scraping every part of her body on the cobblestones, and eventually crashing into the stables.

“Argh!”

She exclaimed, but luckily her wings took most of the impact. Even though she’d suffered a major impact, Seletina’s body felt surprisingly fine. She picked up Elyutinias, which was covered in hay.

From the heat and eerie presence that she felt crawling up her skin, Seletina could tell that the black goat was close.

“Run!”

She cut the rope that held the horses together and slapped them to encourage them to run away. The horses were startled and rushed out of the stables like hares.

Seletina had no time to waste on them. The black goat came barreling forward, accompanied by destructive flames. Its trident, thrown forward as if being pushed by a gust of wind, carried with itself tremendous killing intent.

Seletina gracefully moved in a swirling semicircle and skillfully dispersed the hay clumps using Elyutinias

The black goat exhibited a hint of unease, as debris and dust from the hay swirled into its six eyes. Seletina didn’t miss this opportunity. Silver stars gleamed before her, however, those weren’t in fact stars, but the flashes of Seletina’s sword.

This impressive display of swordsmanship came with a piercing high-pitched tone, penetrating deep into the mind. Elyutinias’ slender blade deftly severed the Wearer of Death’s limbs. In the blink of an eye, the pieces of his body scattered through the area.

As the Wearer of Death tumbled through the air, “?!”

A triumphant laugh erupted, only to be swiftly consumed by flames and reduced to ashes. The remnants of its flesh cracked open, spewing forth flames and an unimaginable number of wolves.

The wolves were the wolf-like Demons Seletina had slain, just before confronting the Wearer of Death.

“Dummies!”

Seletina unexpectedly expressed her frustration with a click of her tongue. She was standing a bit far away, watching as the black goat sneered and played with a ‘seed’ in its hand.

Just as the Defiler of Pride and Wisdom possessed characteristics like regeneration and transformation, the Wearer of Death had its own unique traits. Aside from manipulating destructives flames, it was known for summoning troublesome underlings.

Seletina had no way of knowing if there was a limit to this, but numerous ‘seeds’ bubbled up from the black goat’s palm, and were scattered into the sky. When the ‘seeds’ burst, they released a sludgy darkness, from which the black goat’s underlings crawled out in a slimy manner.

Seletina clicked her tongue once more as she swiftly beheaded the wolves one after another.

“Damn… This is getting tricky…!”

The brilliance of Elyutinias began to diminish, as if it were fading away at long last.

Amid the constant struggle for survival and death, Seletina rarely found any respite. Additionally, her energy had been depleted by the unfamiliarity of aerial combat, making her body cry out in discomfort.

It was something of a miracle that she had come this far without her body crumbling. The crest around her neck, which had once been a source of good health, now emitted only a feeble and weakened light.

“Hyaaaaa!!!”

Seletina swung Elyutinias sideways, delivering a powerful blow that tore through three wolves simultaneously. However, the attack deviated from Seletina’s intended trajectory, missing their vitals.

“Argh!”

Seletina sweated heavily and gasped, both at the shallow blow and the dwindling of her strength.

The wolves howled in pain, but their wounds didn’t seem to deter them as they continued to attack her.

“Haa… Haaa… Haaaa….”

Seletina’s body tried to swing Elyutinias once more. Even a young child could maneuver the thin, enchanted blade yet it nevertheless responded to its user’s needs.

From the side, it looked like she was holding a solid lump of iron.

Seletina harnessed the power of the centrifugal force, twisting her hips, shoulders, elbows, and wrists not letting even an ounce escape. She struggled to maintain her control over Elyutinias while conserving that force.

The situation was so perilous that she feared the Sacred Sword might slip from her grasp.

Furthermore, she was also concerned that the Wearer of Death had not made any moves despite being cornered to this extent. However, that unease was quickly dispelled.

“What the–”

The image before Seletina’s eyes was that of the sun shining brightly. However, it wasn’t exactly that. Rather, it was the black goat floating in the air, holding a cluster of red.

Its bat wings appeared to have regenerated. With a wicked smile on its face, the black goat waved its hand at Seletina as if casually discarding a piece of paper.

Seletina’s blue eyes widened in alarm.

The wolves had seamlessly blocked her path, leaving her with no means of escape.

“S̲h̲i̲t̲…”

In an instant, Seletina’s vision was enveloped in blinding white light.

The red mass, resembling the sun, swallowed her along with the goat’s underlings, transforming the entire area into a nightmarish scene. The searing-hot air even reached the reception hall in the far distance.