Chapter 4028: Traitor Blood (Part 1) ’No, please, no!’ Missed calls, messages, and news of the attack on the Griffon Kingdom flooded the communication amulets with a new ping for each notification. ’They are everywhere! Meln’s everywhere! Nobody is safe!’ Yet none of that made Solus’ heart tighten as the missing runes on both communication amulets. She yelled in despair, her thoughts churning in such a chaotic flow that Lith needed a partial mind fusion to make sense of her reaction. ’Fuck me sideways, there’s not a moment to lose.’ He said. ’Call Grandma, Sinmara, and anyone we know who can take our place and keep our family safe after we leave for Lutia. ’I don’t like leaving the tower behind, but only Grandma can replace it without blowing our cover, and if she’s not the first to arrive, we can’t afford to wait for her.’ *** Griffon Kingdom, City of Lutia, a few minutes ago. "I don’t know what you are, but one thing is certain. You are no Dragon." With his violet core, Jorl was supposed to be just one step away from the full prowess of an Elder Griffon, the apex of the Divine Beasts’ physical might. Even with a bright violet mana core, Zoreth shouldn’t have been his match. Dragons possessed powerful magical abilities and were fearsome opponents at mid-range, yet their best weapons became dull in close-quarters combat. Dragon Eyes didn’t work on martial technique, and their vaunted Origin Flames hurt a Dragon as much as their opponent. Their claws were sharp and their scales thick, but their muscles were nowhere near as strong as a Griffon’s. The gap in Xenagrosh’s and Jorl’s mana core wasn’t enough to bridge the gap in their raw strength, and the effects of Life Maelstrom coursing through both their bodies should have tilted the scales in the Storm Griffon’s favor even further. Or at least, that was the theory. The Shadow Dragon’s fists hit like hammers, and even in its battle glove form, Sky Piercer punched through Jorl’s Adamant armor like paper. Her long tail lunged at him like a spear, and her neck whipped at his throat with frightening accuracy. If not for the Storm Dragon’s superior speed, he would have lost the fight and with it his life in a matter of seconds. "I am a Dragon, damned finch." Xenagrosh roared her challenge, daring Jorl to stop dancing around and fight. "But I’m also so much more. Here, let me show you!" Jorl had expected her to dodge the assault of his twin maces, Dusk Wraith, yet the Shadow Dragon literally took them head-on. The first mace caved her skull while the second cracked her armor and broke her collarbone. It was just a feint to bait her into his real attack, but once Jorl noticed that she had no intention of dodging, he put his full weight into the blow. It was more than enough to kill even a bright violet-cored Griffon, yet even after taking both blows in full, Xenagrosh’s life force burned as strong as ever. She also put her full weight into her attack, distending her fingers and claws to their full length. The two Divine Beasts hit each other at the same moment, and Sky Piercer’s battle gloves reverted into blades that pierced the Storm Griffon’s breastplate and came out of his back. Yet while the wounds of the Shadow Dragons healed so quickly that her head bounced Dusk Wraith back, the rivulets of blood streaking down the Storm Griffon’s armor showed no sign of stopping. The Chaos imbued in Xenagrosh’s weapon now festered the gashes she had inflicted upon Jorl, neutralizing both light and darkness fusion. The Storm Griffon coughed up blood and flapped his wings to gain some distance, but the Shadow Dragon pressed on. "I’ve made the mistake of letting you go once. There won’t be a second time." She took a deep breath, igniting a bright violet light in her chest. "If you so dearly wish to die before your Dead King, I’ll make it happen!" ’How is that possible?’ Jorl kept flying back while releasing wave after wave of Frost Soul, yet the Shadow Dragon showed no sign of its effects. The ensuing blast of Origin Flames confirmed his worst fears and burned both his mana and body. ’I need to get out of Lutia!’ Jorl thought as Xenagrosh renewed her charge against her weakened opponent. ’I need to use Invigoration and prepare new spells or-’ The Shadow Dragon’s battle claws broke past his guard, opening the way for her maw. Zoreth bit into Jorl’s neck, but didn’t go deep. Orpal’s Blade Spell, Shattered Moon, struck her from behind and vaporized her wings along with almost half of her body. The silver pillar of light blasted the Shadow Dragon out of the sky, sending her to crash outside Lutia on the opposite side of the Trawn Woods. ’There is no mana geyser here, but Eldritches are hard to kill, and those hybrids are even harder.’ Night pointed out. ’Don’t waste our energy on her. Focus on our mission.’ ’Don’t worry, I won’t let our prey escape. Not this time.’ Orpal nodded, moving the speartip towards Lutia. Shattered Moon was akin to a searing eraser moving across a chalkboard, wiping out of existence everything it touched. It blasted through buildings and stone roads, digging a deep furrow along its path. It shattered Raagu’s barrier and all the defensive spells she had placed around the Mage Association, stopping the momentum of the resistance and once again sealing the reinforcements. "Come out, Rizel!" The Dead King yelled above the clangor of battle. "Come out now, and all of this bloodshed will end! How many more people have to die before you crawl out of your hole?" This time, his words reached a few confused Lutians, but they paid him no heed, too focused on getting to safety to care about the ramblings of a madman. Only a few among the Awakened of the Council listened to Orpal’s cries, but Rizel’s name meant nothing to them. "Who’s Rizel?" The head that Faluel used to hold Orpal’s quarry asked while also injecting plenty of nutrients inside his mother’s body to save her flickering life. "I am!" He replied, fighting back the need to puke as the Hydra’s quick movements put every roller coaster that had ever existed to shame. Faluel couldn’t afford to move gently. Her remaining six heads were engaged against an Upyr, in a furious battle for her life and those of the two humans she carried. The Hydras had come in numbers, but they had expected to face Orpal and a few of his corrupted Divine Beasts. Even with the help of the humans and the magical beasts of the Trawn Woods, the Hydras were sorely unprepared to face over a hundred Upyrs, two real Divine Beasts, and a Horseman with a mage tower. "Orpal has come for me!" Rizel half barfed and half raged. "All this death, this misery, it’s all my fault!" ’I wish I could ask him what the hell he’s talking about and have the time to listen to his answer.’ Faluel stepped back, avoiding a blow that would have crushed her coiled neck and the people it was supposed to protect.