As the battle with the nobles drew to a close, the assassins surrounded the fleeing figure—exhausted and bewildered, as though resigned to his fate.
The atmosphere was tense, every eye fixed on him, until the silence was broken by the sudden arrival of Vice Commander Karen.
Karen emerged from the shadows with calm, deliberate steps, but the aura he exuded was enough to strike fear into the hearts of everyone present. Without uttering a word or explaining his intent, he darted toward the fleeing man with supernatural speed and whisked him away like an unstoppable phantom.
"Karen? What is he doing?" one of the assassins shouted.
"Why is he taking him? That man needs to be captured to complete the mission!" another retorted angrily, clearly baffled.
But Death remained silent. In his memories, Karen had never been one to act recklessly. His instincts, which had never failed him, screamed that there was something far deeper behind Karen's actions—something that went beyond orders. It felt like a conspiracy brewing in the shadows.
Whispering to himself while staring at the void where Karen had vanished, Death muttered, *"Something isn't right… I need to act now."*
Without hesitation, Death bolted like an arrow toward Commander Daren's location, driven by an unshakable instinct. His sense of danger heightened with every step until he arrived at a scene straight out of a nightmare.
Commander Daren lay on the ground, his body soaked in blood, his gaze unfocused and slipping from reality. Standing before him was *Iralos*, the nobles' commander. Though his features bore the pallor of impending death, his expression remained fierce and resolute. His body trembled under the weight of his mortal wounds, but even so, he managed to gather the remnants of his strength.
Iralos's energy seemed to condense into a glowing, otherworldly sword, its deadly light piercing through the surrounding darkness. The blade was pointed directly at Daren, as if Iralos had resolved to drag his enemy into death alongside him.
"Iralos!" one of the assassins who had followed Death shouted, but his cry was swallowed by the suffocating tension in the air.
Without waiting, Death surged toward his commander with blinding speed, faster than anyone could anticipate. In a decisive moment, he seized Daren's body and pulled him away from the sword's path. The blade, though narrowly avoided, struck the ground with an immense force, releasing a shockwave that tore through the earth, leaving behind a crater ten meters deep.
As the dust settled, everyone stood in stunned silence. Death had successfully saved his commander, but not without cost. The violent energy wave had struck him directly, leaving visible, grotesque marks of disfigurement across his body.
"Death is injured! Quickly, help him!" one assassin yelled as others rushed to the scene.
"Be careful… His injuries aren't normal," one of them cautioned, lifting Death as though his body might shatter under their hands.
Others tended to Daren with equal care, fully aware that a single mistake could claim their leader's life.
"What happened here?" someone asked, staring in shock at the massive crater and Iralos's dying body.
"And why wasn't Karen here? He abandoned us at the worst possible moment!" another shouted angrily.
Despite the flood of questions, everyone knew that now wasn't the time for discussion. The priority was saving Death and Daren.
---
When they returned to the camp, Third Commander Aletha was waiting anxiously. Though her calm demeanor masked her worry, her eyes betrayed the tension simmering beneath. She wasted no time.
"What's the situation?" she demanded firmly.
"Death suffered severe disfigurement from the sword's energy, but he's conscious. Commander Daren… his condition is critical."
Without hesitation, Aletha placed her hands on Death's body, channeling her healing energy. His body responded slowly, but the deeper injuries required far more advanced treatment.