Chapter 92 : Illusion

Illusion

Celia, not understanding the other party's intentions, withdrew her sword.

At the same time, the banshee that had been flung away by the Skeleton Warrior was now surrounded; under the combined assault of three Skeleton Warriors, she instantly lost her life.

After her death, she too wore the same expression of relief as the previous banshee.

Serea sensed that there was a hidden meaning behind this.

At this point, both sides had suffered casualties. The enemy had lost four banshees, while Serea's side had lost a single low-level Skeleton Warrior—but as long as the enemies were dealt with, Serea could simply reawaken it.

"Defend yourselves—spiritually, I mean!"

At that moment, Betimia suddenly spoke up with a warning, leaving Serea somewhat bewildered.

"Huh?"

Psionic Screech!

As the staff was raised, Serea instantly felt a powerful force targeting her and her companions; it was clear that a mental storm was about to break loose any moment.

"Interrupt her!"

But thanks to Betimia's warning, Serea had Little White ready and aimed at her.

An arrow was loosed!

Seeing this, Betimia instinctively tried to dodge, but her body halted mid-motion, as if she purposely chose to take Little White's attack.

*Thwack!*

Because Betimia shifted slightly, the arrow pierced her shoulder and tore it open completely.

With that, the Psionic Screech was interrupted.

"Good, but don't let your guard down. My next attack is coming—Death Shock!"

Serea was still puzzled by her behavior, but from Betimia's words, it seemed as though she wanted Serea to defeat her.

**Skeleton Warrior, Block it!**

Indeed, as soon as the Skeleton Warrior took position, a cloud of gray mist rushed toward them.

Block it!

With shield raised, the Skeleton Warrior was completely unaffected. This confirmed one thing: the person before Serea was actually helping her!

"Careful, someone's sneaking up behind you!"

Hearing this, Celia immediately understood. She decisively cast Holy Light, illuminating the area behind her—forcing a bloodthirsty banshee out of stealth.

Power Shot + Armor-Piercing Arrow!

Little White released another arrow, the shaft piercing through the head of the banshee. The protective cowl of leather armor was no match at all for the Armor-Piercing Arrow.

Another one down!

"You're helping us?"

"Addis is about to be resurrected. Only if you make it out alive can you bring the news to the Blood Legion. Remember, you must survive!"

Betimia's tone was grave. Upon hearing this, Serea asked,

"Uh... Blood Legion? Bloodstorm? I..."

"Careful, it's Bloodied Hand. Dodge immediately, do NOT try to block it!"

Serea recalled something, but just as she was about to speak, Betimia cut her off.

This time, Betimia's warning was too late. Her hand was already raised, aiming at Serea; as Serea spoke, she suddenly felt her heart stop.

An invisible hand clutched her heart, ignoring the Skeleton Warriors' shield defense!

That's the only way to describe it. As the grip tightened, Serea could imagine what would happen next.

"A...attack!"

Clutching her chest, Serea gave the order. Little Black ignored the banshee's entanglement, launched the bone blade from his hand into Betimia's chest, and then dashed in with a claw swipe that sent her flying.

After being knocked back, Betimia looked down at her chest.

The wound Little Black dealt her was physically irreversible, but as an undead, she was unconcerned by such injuries.

But something did catch her attention—she looked at her hands.

Just now, these slender hands had manipulated blood to clutch Serea's heart, and during that, she sensed a familiar aura.

"The Bloodstorm bloodline!"

Still dazed from her heart's sudden halt, Serea did not answer right away, but Betimia's words made her even more certain that her "Bloodstorm" surname concealed some secret.

"How dare you hurt the queen! Unforgivable!"

Little Black charged at Betimia. The bone armor on him was broken in several places—proof that he had forcibly escaped the grip of the bloodthirsty banshee. Now, Little Black cared for nothing else but slaying the one who dared to harm the queen.

Betimia did not resist.

She was struggling to break free from another force—a spiritual power that coerced and controlled her.

Relying on the abilities she had from life as a mental mage, Betimia broke free from that restraint briefly and unleashed a psychic blast at Serea.

Serea wanted to evade, but just then, a gentle female voice sounded.

"O descendant of Bloodstorm, I mean you no harm—please accept my request."

After confirming that this psychic surge was not harmful, Serea chose to accept it.

Her body shuddered, and her mind entered her own consciousness.

There, before her, stood a beautiful woman—Betimia without a doubt.

Seeing her, Serea instinctively felt wary; this woman's abilities were simply too bizarre.

Sensing Serea's caution, Betimia explained,

"Noble descendant of Bloodstorm, my name is Betimia Bloodstorm. I hold no enmity toward you."

"This is what you call 'no enmity'?"

"That was forced. Both our bodies and spirits are controlled by Addis. Attacking you was not our intention. Please forgive our rudeness."

As Betimia said this, Serea recalled the bone ring at the mention of 'Addis'.

"I'll choose to believe you for now. Then, why have you brought me here?"

"To warn you, Bloodstorm descendant. Please, stop Addis from resurrecting."

"Stop Addis' resurrection? Me?"

"You'll understand after seeing this."

As Betimia spoke, a powerful surge of spiritual energy swept in like a tidal wave, instantly changing the surrounding scene.

Suddenly, Serea found herself on a battlefield—humans and undead clashed, while another force hidden in black mist watched from afar.

The undead, like a torrential flood, did not fear human magic or volleys of arrows.

Not even powerful elemental fiends or war beasts could halt their advance.

In that battle, skeletons made up the bulk of the army, with the so-called elite Skeleton Warriors forming dense black ranks.

Towering undead rode skeletal warhorses across the fields, abominations and flesh-stitched monsters devoured human soldiers whole, bone dragons soared above, pestilent breaths swallowing up drake units, and liches and skeletal mages continually created new undead troops for the war.

And this was only the tip of the iceberg—more giant beasts and terrifying undead lurked in the mists, beyond Serea's vision.

Faced with such a tidal wave of the dead, humanity was on the verge of defeat, until a young girl stood at the center of the crowd.

Her eyes were blood-red, her skin deathly pale—she was undead!

Yet, with her appearance, a shocking scene unfolded.

The undead began to struggle, halting their assault.

Taking advantage of this moment, the human warriors charged desperately into the black mist, clashing with the mysterious force hidden within.

And with that, the vision ended...

(To be continued)

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=