The moment those words fell, three crimson fire rays erupted simultaneously, hurtling toward the two of them like three venomous snakes.
Where the flames passed, the air scorched and distorted, and the stone slabs on the ground cracked from the intense heat, crackling as they split.
Greg and Vivian rolled to opposite sides almost simultaneously to dodge.
The fire rays skimmed past the edges of their clothes and struck the spots where they had just been standing, blasting two scorched craters into the ground.
"Looks like their level is only around LV30."
Greg flipped to his feet, patted the dust off his clothes, and sized up the three enemies.
He could tell that the skill level of these three was roughly on par with elite monsters of the first layer—a mild threat to him while he couldn't unleash his full power, but not much of one.
"And they all specialize in fire magic."
Standing not far beside Greg, Vivian calmly analyzed the enemies' positions and mana flow with her ice-blue eyes:
"Their casting rhythm is very steady. They've likely been trained, so they aren't just ordinary Demon King Cultists."
"I can tell," Greg responded in a low voice.
"Since they're all fire-element, how about you cover me from behind while I push forward to suppress them? Any objections, President?"
Vivian did not answer, choosing instead to express her stance through action.
Forming hand seals, ice-blue mana condensed before her into an ice shield, blocking the sudden fire rays.
The ice shield rapidly melted under the extreme heat, giving off thick steam that veiled both sides' line of sight.
Seizing the opportunity, Greg instantly activated Shadow-Step, blending into the steam and vanishing from the enemies' vision.
"Watch out! He's coming!"
The lead cultist shouted a warning.
But it was already too late.
Greg suddenly burst out of the steam, closing in on his location.
Panic-stricken, the cultist scrambled to switch targets, sweeping a fire ray toward Greg.
Greg forcefully twisted his body in midair to dodge the fire's trajectory, simultaneously slapping his right hand against a wall—Earth Pierce!
Several sharp stone spikes violently surged out from the roof, forcing the cultist to retreat and dodge.
With his footing thrown into disarray, the fire ray's aim veered off course.
Pressing his advantage, Greg repeatedly unleashed Earthfire Blast, triggering a chain of explosions under the feet of the Demon King Cultists that forced them to scramble erratically.
Meanwhile, Vivian launched her own counterattack.
Dismissing the melting ice shield, she condensed several ice spikes between her hands and shot them at tricky angles toward the cultists on both flanks.
The two had no choice but to divide their focus to defend against the ice spikes, instantly weakening their suppressive fire.
"Don't let her tie you down! Use everything you've got to kill her quickly, then come help me!" the leader bellowed.
At his command, the two simultaneously unleashed their strongest fire spells at Vivian, sealing off all room for her to dodge.
Vivian did not panic.
Tapping the ground lightly with her toes, she drifted backward while rapidly weaving seals before her. A thick Ice Wall erupted from the ground, blocking the impact of the flames.
Though the Ice Wall melted and vaporized rapidly under the intense heat, Vivian continuously injected mana to maintain its structure, locking the two into a stalemate.
"Now you've got nowhere left to run!"
Greg seized the opportunity to strike the cultist he had backed to the roof's edge with a point-blank LV4 Water Gun, sending him crashing heavily to the ground.
Then he immediately turned around, gathered his mana, and cast Earthfire Blast at the two cultists locked in a stalemate with Vivian.
Molten spheres exploded beneath their feet, the violent blasts knocking both of them off their feet.
Seizing the opening, Vivian dispelled the Ice Wall and swept forth a wave of ice-blue mana as a freezing draft, locking all three grounded cultists in ice.
The lead cultist struggled to stand, but Greg was already before him, kicking him unconscious with a swift strike.
"That settles it."
Greg looked down at them.
From start to finish, the battle had taken mere minutes.
All three Demon King Cultists were subdued, lying sprawled across the ground in disarray.
Seeing that the danger had passed, the surrounding crowd gradually halted their panic and began watching cautiously from a distance.
"Hehehe! Fools, all of you! Don't think for a second that you've won! Lord Demon King will destroy you sooner or later!"
A raspy roar erupted from the nearby crowd.
Greg snapped his head around to see a man who had been blending into the onlookers, now holding a sharp dagger to 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 violently from terror that she couldn't even manage a cry.
The man's eyes gleamed with fanatical madness, bloodshot and unhinged, with an unnatural grin stretched across his lips.
"For Lord Demon King!" he shrieked loudly. "I shall offer up this sweet fear!"
"Die—!!!"
Raising his dagger high, the man prepared to plunge it savagely into the little girl's neck.
Frenzied pleasure gleamed in his eyes, as though he were about to complete a holy sacrifice rather than a murder.
Greg was too far away; even using Shadow-Step, he wouldn't make it in time. Right at this critical juncture—
Whoosh—!
A sharp streak of sword aura cut through the air like a silver meteor, carrying an invincible sharpness that cleanly severed the man's dagger-wielding arm with terrifying precision.
All that could be seen was a flash of silver light, followed by a spray of blood as the severed arm hit the ground.
The man let out a shrill scream of agony, clutching the bloody stump of his arm as he stumbled backward.
Blood gushed out between his fingers, staining his shirt crimson.
His eyes bulged wide, his face filled with sheer disbelief and torment.
Seizing this opportunity, Greg instantly triggered Shadow-Step.
His figure darted across dozens of feet like a specter. Before anyone could react, he had arrived right in front of the attacker, blasting him directly with a LV3 Fireball that set him ablaze. Then, amidst the man's painful shrieks, Greg scooped up the little girl and whisked her away from the scene.
"It's all right now. Don't be afraid."
He gently set the little girl down in a safe spot, squatted down, and offered a quiet word of comfort.
The little girl was still trembling, but seeing Greg's calm eyes and handsome face, her weeping gradually quieted down.
"Big Brother, are you a prince?"
"Big Brother isn't a prince, but this big sister here is a genuine princess."
Greg patted her head, then handed her over to Vivian.
"I'll leave the cleanup here to you. I have other business to take care of."
Greg stood up and dashed toward the alley where the sword aura had originated.
Standing in place, Vivian watched Greg's figure disappear down the alley. Recalling that streak of sword aura, a complex expression flickered across her usually stoic face.
She lowered her head, gazing down at her fingernails, which had dug deep into her palm without her realizing it.
Her knuckles were white with tension, and a sharp sting throbbed in her palm, yet she seemed not to register it at all.
She didn't chase after him.
Because she knew who the owner of that sword aura was.
It was the one person she was least willing to face right now.
Rate on N.U.
