In the underground hallway, Rain and the team reached a hidden passage leading upward into the castle.
They moved cautiously, the tension thick as they approached their target.
At the top, the hallway opened into a grand room, and there he was: Jhon Lucas.
The sight made Rain's skin crawl.
Jhon Lucas held a chain, and at the end of it, a beast-woman knelt on all fours, her canine features—fur-covered body, snout, and animal-like legs—making her look more Furry than human.
But her eyes, wide and filled with fear, told the real story.
"You call yourself human," Jhon Lucas sneered, pulling hard on the chain, causing the woman to yelp, "but you're nothing more than a pet. Do you understand?"
The beast-woman trembled, her voice barely a whisper, "Yes... master. Please, no more."
The beast-woman whimpered, her voice barely audible as she spoke, "Please, master... I'll be good."
Her voice, though broken, reminded Rain that she was still human enough to beg for mercy.
'What the hell... treating them worst than a pet,' Rain thought, fists clenching.
He glanced to the side where several other beast-women cowered, their eyes filled with hopelessness.
Kephela gave a subtle signal to their team.
Hans, already poised to attack, flicked his wrist and sent a dagger flying through the air with the speed of a bullet, aimed directly for Jhon Lucas' throat.
But before it could reach its target, a figure blurred in front of Jhon Lucas—a 7th-tier aura knight.
The knight's aura flared, and with a single swipe of his hand, the dagger was deflected, sparks flying.
But before the blade could reach him, a figure moved in a blur. A 7th-tier aura knight appeared, blocking the dagger with his bare hand, his aura flaring as sparks flew from the deflected blade.
"Assassins!" the knight roared, his voice echoing through the chamber.
At that moment, four more aura knights emerged from the shadows, all at 6th-tier.
They surrounded Jhon Lucas protectively, their weapons drawn and ready.
Rain cursed under his breath.
'Damn, they've got him guarded well. A straight assassination isn't happening.'
Kephela's sharp voice cut through the sudden chaos, "Plan B! Prepare for battle!"
Jhon Lucas sneered, pushing the beast-woman aside as he stood. "You thought you could kill me so easily? I am the chosen of this world. You mongrels don't stand a chance."
"Attack!" Kephela's voice cut through the tension. Their team sprang into action.
The team rushed forward.
Elara, the lithe elven woman, vanished into the shadows, her 6th-tier magic masking her presence as she scouted the battlefield.
Tharnak, the towering orc strategist, gritted his teeth as he unsheathed his enormous blade.
Despite his brutish appearance, his mind was razor-sharp, already calculating the enemy's strengths and weaknesses.
And Garvin, the tiger-like beastman, roared into the fray, his claws outstretched, muscles rippling as he tore through the 1st and 2nd-tier soldiers who dared to stand in his way.
The battle erupted, filling the chamber with the sounds of clashing steel and roaring magic.
Kephela moved with calculated precision, her frail frame belying her true strength as a 7th-tier mage.
Barriers formed around their team, deflecting spells and attacks, while her buffs enhanced their strength and speed.
Rain, meanwhile, struggled to keep up. His mana heart throbbed, pumping energy into his spells as he conjured his corrosive flames.
His control over all attributes gave them a critical advantage, especially since their enemies predominantly used ice-attribute magic and Aura.
He conjured a rare metal using his sorcery, igniting it with fire spells to create corrosive flames that could burn even in icy environments.
'This is insane,' Rain thought, his frustration growing. 'I'm stuck in a full frontal battle, and I'm only 5th tier in terms of actual combat power. I've never even fought head-on like this before.'
Kephela, though frail, was brilliant. Her barriers absorbed impact after impact, and her buffs turned their team into a formidable force, allowing them to hold their ground. Yet Rain couldn't shake the strange feeling in the pit of his stomach.
Still, despite their advantage, the pressure mounted.
The sheer number of reinforcements pouring in was staggering.
1st-tier and 2nd-tier soldiers flooded the room, overwhelming them with sheer numbers.
The floor cracked under the weight of the battle, tiles shattering as Garvin's claws tore through a wave of soldiers, while Tharnak's massive blade cleaved through the enemy ranks.
In the midst of the chaos, one of the beast-women, still chained near Jhon Lucas's Throne, spoke weakly, her eyes wide with fear. "Please... help us. He treats us like animals... we're... we're not pets."
Rain's blood boiled. 'These aren't animals, they're people. How the hell can anyone just treat these adorable beast-woman badly? Even me, at worst, I'll still treat them as good pets.'
'But there's no way I'll do that, a geek like me will to treat these beast demi-humans as friends.'
Kephela's voice was steady amidst the chaos, "Elara, take out the casters! Hans, cover our flank! Tharnak, push forward!"
But there was no time to dwell on it. More soldiers began pouring in. 1st-tier and 2nd-tier soldiers flooded the hallway, reinforcing Lucas' defense.
The tiles cracked beneath the weight of their magic and physical power, walls shattering as spells collided with stone.
Rain gritted his teeth, pushing out more mana, flames spiraling around his hands as he burned through the waves of soldiers.
But no matter how many they cut down, the reinforcements kept coming.
"Kephela!" Rain shouted over the noise, his voice edged with frustration. "There's too many of them!"
Elara reappeared behind one of the enemy casters, her dagger slicing through the air in a clean, swift motion, severing his connection to his magic.
Hans deflected a barrage of ice spears with his aura, spinning his blades with deadly precision.
Tharnak advanced, his brute strength carving a path through the enemy lines.
Rain gritted his teeth. 'Damn, I'm barely holding up.' His corrosive flames burned through more ice soldiers, but the endless reinforcements were taking their toll. 'I'm at a disadvantage here. Full frontal combat? Not my style.'
Kephela, eyes sharp despite the sweat running down her brow, cast another barrier, deflecting a flurry of ice spears.
"Just hold your ground, Rain! We need to hold until we can break through!" she commanded, her voice calm under the pressure.
Rain clenched his fists. 'Easy for you to say. I'm burning through mana like crazy, and we're still getting swarmed. I should've never come on this damn mission.'
Despite the overwhelming forces, Rain's diverse control over elemental magic gave them an edge, especially with his corrosive flames burning through the ice-attribute aura knights.
Kephela, however, was a master of support magic.
Her healing spells healed their comrades at full health, while her debuffs weakened the enemy forces.
But as Rain watched her work, something gnawed at him. 'Her spells… why do they feel so familiar?'
But just as he felt they were starting to gain ground, his eyes flicked toward the back of the room.
His heart dropped.
Suddenly, his eyes snapped toward the back of the chamber.
A glowing light caught his attention.
A teleportation platform—its magic beginning to hum with power.
Jhon Lucas smirked, stepping toward it with a calm confidence, his hand raised to finish the activation.
"He's escaping!" Rain shouted, panic gripping him as his eyes locked onto the shimmering platform.
Kephela's head whipped around, her eyes widening. "We can't let him get away!"
Rain's heart pounded in his chest. 'Damn it! If he gets away, this whole mission will be a waste.'
Before he could react, an explosion of ice magic forced him to leap back.
Jhon Lucas was only feet away from the teleportation platform, his arrogant laughter echoing through the chamber.
Rain felt the pressure mount. 'I have to stop him. We're running out of time!'