As the group soared through the sky on the dragonback, the wind howled past them, but none of them spoke. There was an unspoken understanding hanging in the air.
The closer they got to the Armstrong Duchy, the more oppressive the atmosphere became.
Jared sat near the edge of the dragon’s saddle, his eyes distant. It was like his soul hadn’t caught up with his body.
Jack occasionally glanced at him but didn’t say anything.
Akira also noticed but chose to remain silent. Some wounds weren’t meant to be touched just yet.
Nox, who was leading the flight, suddenly gave a signal, and the dragons began their descent toward a nearby cliff overlooking the duchy.
They landed smoothly.
"We’ll go on foot from here," he said as he hopped down.
The others followed without question.
He proceeded to place the dragons inside his taming space.
From the cliff, they could see the Armstrong Duchy in the distance—tall walls, sturdy gates, and black smoke rising from within. Demon banners fluttered from the towers, and groups of humans in black cloaks patrolled the perimeter.
"Seems they’ve fortified the place well," Jack said with a frown.
"Not surprising," Nox replied. "It’s their most powerful stronghold, after all."
Akira’s eyes sharpened. "What’s the plan?"
Nox rubbed his chin. "We’ll sneak in first. We can’t just charge in headfirst—not with Jared in this state."
The mention of his name finally snapped Jared out of his daze.
"I’m fine," he said quickly. "I can fight."
"You can, sure," Nox said without turning. "But you’re not in the right mind to make decisions right now."
His fist clenched, but he said nothing.
Jack crossed his arms. "Sneaking in sounds fine, but do we know how many enemies we’re dealing with?"
"Not exactly," Nox said with a shake of his head. "But according to the ant scouts, there are at least four Level 100 enemies and some top Flaming Rose agents inside."
"That’s pretty rough," Akira muttered as she summoned her radiant sword.
Jack frowned. He didn’t really have a nice experience with the Flaming Rose, especially a certain red-skinned one that nearly killed him back in Snowhelm.
After that encounter, he had developed a somewhat fearful and hateful relationship with them.
Nox’s eyes turned cold. "We’ll split up once we get inside. Akira, you’ll find the survivors with Jack. I’ll head for the summoning artifacts directly. Jared, you’re with me."
Jared looked surprised. "You want me to follow you?"
"Yeah," Nox said flatly, not daring to say that the real reason he wanted him close was to keep an eye on him. To Nox, every one of his teammates was very important to him.
For a moment, Jared’s expression softened. He gave a small, confident nod.
"Alright, let’s move."
The group carefully made their way down the cliff and circled around to the less-guarded side of the duchy.
It took time, but eventually, they found a blind spot between two patrol shifts. Nox summoned Solora.
The little serpent creature coiled around his arm instantly, her bright, curious eyes darting around.
Akira’s eyes lit up as soon as the beautiful python appeared. She remembered seeing it back in her dimension in Valhalla. Now, it had only grown larger and more beautiful.
"Solora," Nox whispered as he gently stroked her scales, "clear the path."
[Finally, some action. I thought I’d stay in that boring world forever.] Solora hissed before slithering down his arm and disappearing into the shadows like a streak of blue lightning.
Moments later, faint sounds of bodies dropping to the ground echoed from the distance.
One by one, the patrolling guards fell, expertly taken down with lethal precision. The little snake was swift, striking their necks and vital points without giving them a chance to scream.
By the time they moved forward, the guards blocking their path were already dead.
As they proceeded, Solora slithered back and, without waiting for praise, curled comfortably around Nox’s neck, nuzzling his chin as if asking, ’Did I do well?’
He gently tapped her head. "Good job."
She gave a soft purr but didn’t reply. She simply closed her eyes and stayed wrapped around him like a scarf.
The town was eerily quiet, except for the occasional guttural roar of demons and the sound of metal clashing in the distance.
It was clear that the demons had turned this place into their fortress.
Akira and Jack broke off from the group.
Meanwhile, Nox and Jared crept through the alleys, avoiding patrols and quietly taking out isolated enemies.
After several minutes of sneaking around, they reached a large plaza.
But the place was heavily guarded.
It was common knowledge that the most guarded spot was usually where the goodies were kept.
At least 200 demons and 50 Flaming Rose agents stood watch.
"We’ll have to cause a scene," Nox muttered as he observed the situation. Naturally, he could use Phantom Cloak and slip past the multiple guards, but he didn’t dare leave Jared alone in this condition.
At the same time, he didn’t want to cause a commotion that would lead to activating the summoning artifact and bringing in more demons.
This job was originally meant for Bridget and Elvin, but with the current unexpected situation back at the barony, it was now left to Nox.
Without waiting for a signal, Jared threw three green seeds in front of the building.
The attention of the demons and Flaming Rose agents immediately snapped toward the seeds, staring at them with curiosity.
"Hey, where did these come from?" someone asked.
The seeds suddenly cracked open, releasing a thick green mist that spread unnaturally fast, blanketing the entire plaza in seconds.
"What the—?!" One of the Flaming Rose agents barely had time to react before collapsing, his body convulsing violently.
Panic erupted as demons and agents coughed, stumbled, and some even clawed at their throats, their bodies weakening under the mysterious toxin.
’Right, his class is Vine Master,’ Nox recalled as he watched the state of the demons and Flaming Rose.
Sometime later, they were all sprawled on the ground, squirming like fish out of water.
"Shall we?" Jared said. "My toxin skill is very powerful. Except there’s an extremely strong demon, everyone should be in the same state as them."
Nox nodded. "Alright, let’s head in."