Chapter 3603 Bleeding Out (Part 2) Ryman ignored the taunt and increased his speed even more. He dodged the whirlwind of slithering blades while knocking away those he couldn't avoid with his mace. More and more Griffon Fetters shattered beyond repair, giving Lith the opportunity to hit the ground and dig his talons. He stopped himself before Iraka could drag him into the jaws of Axiran's constructs and managed to break free with the help of his Demons. Iraka could either protect her disciples from the Skoll or neutralize Lith's escape attempts, but she couldn't do both. The Skoll was too fast, and dealing with him took most of her focus. Just like Friya expected. Suddenly, seven dimensional passages opened inside Full Guard's range, leaving Iraka and Axiran utterly confused. "Nice try, you runt!" The Blood Warlock released a tier four Spirit Magic spell, Blasting Comet, right into the Warp Steps aimed at him. "I recognized you from Faluel's party. I know how dimensional mages think." "Do you?" Friya smirked as the blazing spear conjured by Blasting Comet bolted through the exit point aimed at one of Iraka's disciples. The members of Lith's group shared Protector's senses just like he had used theirs until a second ago, allowing them to see past the range of their respective Full Guard spells. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺 "No, you don't!" Iraka cursed again, giving up on capturing Lith and using the Griffon Fetters to intercept the Blasting Comet before it was too late. Friya exploited the moment when the Council Elder had one Griffon Fetters focused on Ryman and the other on the incoming Spirit Spell to cross the only entry point she had placed near herself. It was just a paltry trick compared to Tezka's Nightmaze but she had wanted to try it ever since Lith had described Endless Night's enchantment to her. Friya appeared right beside Iraka with her rapier, Dreadnought, in one hand and a Spirit Spell in the other. The rapier lunged at the woman's throat while the tier four spell, Piercing Star, bolted at the apprentice at the opposite end of the Flowing Strength array. 'Checkmate.' Friya thought. Three people were under attack at the same time, and Iraka had only two spells. No matter what she did, one person was going to fall. The only question was who. Or so she thought until Blasting Comet took a sharp turn and the Raging Phoenix dived talons first at her. "Yes, I do." Axiran smirked back. Friya twisted herself in mid-air, using Dreadnought's enchantments to repel the construct's fiery limb and recalling the Piercing Star to make it intercept the Blasting Comet before it was too late. "I'm not as talented as you, child, but I've lived long enough to learn from my mistakes." Suddenly Axiran was behind Friya, following her every move like her reflection in a mirror. "Being undead allowed me to make a lot of mistakes and survive." She released all the spells she had at the ready and in her spell-holding rings while also Blinking away at the same time. Axiran conjured a Spirit Barrier to block what he could and weathered the rest. The blasts aimed at his brain and heart from point blank range would have killed a man, but he was an undead. His body suffered no pain, and it was not the strength of his bones and muscles that moved it. As long as his weak point wasn't destroyed or his blood core depleted, he could regenerate endlessly. His spear pierced through Friya's Featherwalker armor and left lung, missing her heart by a hair's breadth. The curved wings of the blade dug into her flesh like hooks in a fish so that he needed but a quick flick of his wrist to bring her back through the entry point of her Blink. "I have something you want, and you have something I want, Verhen. Let's talk." The Blood Warlock smiled as copious amounts of blood gurgled out of Friya's mouth and gushed from the hole in her chest. Friya tried to use Invigoration, but air escaped from the wound in her lungs as soon as it entered her nose. Her healing spells could do nothing against the cruel Adamant ravaging her flesh. Light Fusion stemmed the bleeding, but that was it. Enchanted metal stood in the way of her flesh's and blood vessels' attempts to mend and reconnect. "Heal her, let her go, and I'll let you live." Lith stood still while his mind frantically searched for a way to save his friend. "That's my best and final offer." Stalling for time was no longer an option. They had to act quickly, or Friya would die. 'Mom?' Solus started to shake uncontrollably, her trauma gripping her body. 'We can do this, daughter.' The First Ruler of the Flames gritted her teeth in blind rage. Menadion held Solus in a hug to calm her down. The sight of a young woman dying in front of their eyes with her chest pierced from behind brought the memories of the worst day of both women's lives back. 'Take out the Hands and do everything I say.' "Friya!" Nalrond charged past Lith with a deranged expression, his claws imbued with so much mana that they burned like lasers. Protector grabbed him from behind and slammed the Agni against the ground in a submission hold. 'Calm down, you idiot!' There was compassion in Ryman's thoughts, but mostly anger. 'Friya needs you to keep your cool to survive. What do you think you can achieve by throwing yourself at the enemy except offering them a second hostage?' 'Let me go, you hypocritical fucker!' Nalrond struggled with all his might, his eyes tearing up with rage and fear. 'You sacrificed your life for Lith and a bunch of strangers. How can you ask me to play it safe while the woman I love is about to die? 'I lost Ishil a few weeks before our marriage. Everything I dreamed of, hoped for, my entire future gone in a blinding flash of light. I can't let that happen again, even if it costs me my life!' "Your offer sucks, Verhen." Iraka sighed in relief and Invigoration, giving her sore old body the respite it so desperately needed. "We are at full strength, whereas you've just lost three companions." She pointed at Friya and then at the two Emperor Beasts tussling on the floor. "You have to do much better than that if you want-" "Silence, you hag." Lith snarled, and the coldness of his tone cut Iraka short. That and the sudden feeling of oppression from the Tiamat Fear as all the Demons formed a circle around Solus. Unseen by all, the Hands of Menadion now replaced her combat gloves and pushed the world energy infused with Tiamat Fear deep into the mana geyser's core. "My offer doesn't extend to you." Lith glared. "You are going to die anyway." A swing of Ragnarök conjured a quasi-Blade Spell that pushed Iraka back almost one meter (3,3') despite the Flowing Strength array. "Friya's time is precious, and I'm not going to waste it with the likes of you." The angry blade never stopped moving as Lith talked, weaving the necessary runes for the Blade Tier spell, Ruin. "Same for you, undead."