Suddenly, a gust of wind blew past him.
Unbeknownst to him, a shadow had appeared behind him, wielding a glowing golden demonic blade raised high, aiming a lethal strike at the back of his head.
The shadow swiftly split Eddie in half with a demonic blade, sneering, "Idiot!" But the attacker was immediately stunned.
Eddie's body had miraculously vanished; the blade had struck only an afterimage. Where was the real Eddie?
"I agree with your 'idiot' assessment," Eddie retorted as he suddenly appeared. A crescent-shaped blade, enveloped in flames and smoke, sliced through the air, fiercely striking the back of the sword-wielding shadow.
Simultaneously, Eddie's foot shot out in a sly kick to the shadow's rear.
The attacker, unable to control his momentum, flew forward, scattering the scattered demons on the ground, and crashed heavily into a mountainside, creating a thunderous noise and a cloud of dust.
Eddie lamented the missed opportunity; if only he had the power of a giant shadow to amplify his strength a hundredfold, then Marion, this arrogant figure, would have been at his mercy.
But for now, his power wasn't enough to be lethal.
The mountainside exploded, and a black figure wielding a demonic blade emerged - the man who had just ridden the black dragon.
Marion, one of the three giants among the Demon Commanders.
Despite being ambushed, he remained arrogantly composed, shaking off the debris from his shoulders and glancing contemptuously at Eddie. "Little insect, you're quite fast, but your strength is pitifully weak. What's your name?"
"Don't talk to him," the Faling-Flower Master interjected. "He has a bizarre beast called 'Roaring Dragon Spirit,' an invisible dragon soul. If you speak to him, you'll be silenced for at least five minutes. He's trying to prevent you from summoning your grimoire. Go and kill the Demon Generals; I'll handle this guy."
As she spoke, Eddie could see a black mist emanating from Marion's armor, taking the shape of a dragon and lunging at the Faling-Flower Master. She was prepared, summoning a golden grimoire that raised a bright protective barrier just in time to block the dragon-shaped mist.
"Faling-Flower Master, long time no see. There's no point in fighting you; we've clashed over ten times without a clear victor, and I doubt this time will be any different. However, I'm curious whether your little thief can withstand the joint attack of my five Demon Generals for even a minute," Marion said as he summoned his own golden grimoire.
The Demon Generals, recovering from the Bloodthirsty Queen's banshee scream, were visibly in pain but gradually stood up.
The Faling-Flower Master glanced at Eddie, noticing he was unaffected, and felt a sudden sense of reassurance.
Despite only having met him a few times, she instinctively trusted him, feeling an inexplicable confidence in him. She would never have brought an ordinary thief from the first level to the third, let alone to hunt the Bloodthirsty Queen.
Yet, for some reason, she felt he was the ideal partner for this mission.
"Kill him!" Marion ordered, observing the Faling-Flower Master's expression.
He was irked by her lack of panic. Did she really have so much confidence in that quick-footed thief?
His specially chosen five Demon Generals and nearly a hundred elite soldiers trained by him—could that thief truly hold the line?
Or was the Faling-Flower Master just feigning confidence? Knowing her cunning and composure, she would not show fear even at a disadvantage. It was likely just a bluff.
"Yes," roared the five Demon Generals in unison.
The Demon Generals didn't all act together, nor did they deem a human thief worthy of a combined assault.
Had it not been for Marion's command, they would have simply sent a few long-horned ghouls to tear the thief apart.
One of the Demon Generals stepped forward, ready to strike, while another stood guard, wary of the Falling-Flower Master's potential ambush.
The other three continued to monitor the battlefield, ready to attack the Demon Blade Butcher.
Unnoticed, the Ghost Claw Harpy had escaped the net and, instead of rejoining the battle, fled in terror into the sky.
Perhaps sensing the Bloodthirsty Queen's critical injuries and the unfavorable turn of the battle, it abandoned its queen and homeland in a cowardly escape.
The Demon Blade Butcher, a formidable female Minotaur-like giant, recovered from its daze and fought on, undeterred by the relentless assault of the ghoul troops.
Despite its low intelligence and the toxin's influence from the "Frenzied Crimson Ant Wasps," it was lured into reckless attacks by the Demon Generals, forgetting its mission to rescue the Bloodthirsty Queen and indiscriminately chasing after the Demon Generals or slashing at nearby ghouls.
Marion, realizing the ghoul troops were taking heavy losses against the level-seven bronze Demon Blade Butcher, summoned a Silver-Spotted Dragon to join the battle, focusing its attacks from the sky to contain the Butcher.
However, Marion's primary focus remained on the Falling-Flower Master.
Having clashed with her over ten times, he knew her combat prowess was formidable, capable of swiftly annihilating opponents.
Had it not been for her prolonged energy accumulation, he reckoned no creature would survive the battle, including himself.
"Corrosion Dragon!" Marion summoned another dragon. Eddie realized this guy was obsessed with contracting dragons as his beasts.
His mount was a black dragon, the Roaring Dragon Spirit for stealth attacks, the Silver-Spotted Dragon to attack the female Minotaur-like giant, and now the Corrosion Dragon to target the Falling-Flower Master.
Eddie was amazed at the number of dragons Marion had contracted.
The Falling-Flower Master left her Three-Tailed Snow Fox under the protective barrier; the Corrosion Dragon was Marion's counter to her Six-Tailed Spirit Fox transformation.
The Spirit Fox abhorred contamination, which would significantly reduce its combat effectiveness. She summoned a Light Spirit to orbit her, rapidly absorbing and accumulating light.
"Be careful, and if it gets too dangerous, summon your grimoire and take shelter in the barrier," the Falling-Flower Master advised Eddie.
She closed her eyes, meditating to accumulate Aurora energy as quickly as possible, aiming to annihilate the ghoul troops and several Demon Generals in one swift move.
"Kill!" Marion was well aware of the destructive power of her Aurora. He gestured towards Eddie, signaling a death strike.
"Darn it, do you think I'm that easy to kill?" Eddie grumbled, frustrated.
If he hadn't been so intent on using his shadow to possess the Bloodthirsty Queen, he could have easily slain the Demon Generals with his Ashen Blade.
But the Queen's will was incredibly strong; despite Eddie's covert attempts at possession, she resisted, seemingly aware that she would become a puppet.
Even at death's door, her royal dignity wouldn't allow it. Eddie repeatedly tried but failed to succeed.
Realizing the Queen's unyielding will, Eddie reluctantly abandoned the idea of possession and prepared to defend himself against the attacking Demon General.
It was unfortunate that the Bloodthirsty Queen was dying, but he couldn't force the possession.
As Eddie turned and raised his Moon Blade to block the Demon General's heavy sword, a burst of golden light suddenly shone behind him, drawing everyone's stunned attention.
To Eddie's ecstatic surprise, the moment he gave up on possessing the Bloodthirsty Queen, she willingly merged with his shadow, instantly completing the contract.
It seemed she feared death but refused to let her body become a puppet, only merging with the shadow when Eddie abandoned his possession attempt.
Now Eddie could control the Bloodthirsty Queen's body and sense her weakness but not her thoughts—a baffling and unexpected development.
"Kill him, quickly!" Marion bellowed. If the Bloodthirsty Queen recovered, she would undoubtedly become their toughest opponent.
Had it not been for the sneak attack with a golden Dragon-Slaying Dagger to her heart, the battle would have been entirely different.
As the five Demon Generals converged on him, Eddie swiftly removed the Dragon-Slaying Dagger from the Bloodthirsty Queen's heart and crushed a healing stone, reviving her.
The stone's light rapidly healed her wound, and although still weak, her life was no longer in danger.
Eddie then summoned his Bronze Grimoire and called forth the Barbarian Bull Shadow.
To his amazement, the Shadow exhaled a burst of flames, and one of the Demon Generals, caught in its glare, screamed and crashed to the ground, twitching helplessly. He was out of the fight.
Marion watched in disbelief.
How could this be possible?
The remaining four Demon Generals, recoiling from the force of their weapons striking Eddie's Bronze Grimoire's barrier, stared in terror at their fallen comrade.
How could they fight an enemy capable of instantly killing them?