Verónica bit her lips, helpless for the wounds of her beast. She looked at Draco and his apprentice; now she wasn't sure if she could defeat them, but: "damn it, we have the advantage, and I'm not going to escape. My men, Bucullatus, and my little one! KILL THEM ALL!"
"Warriors, this is the moment of truth! Maybe it's too late to save your families, so make sure to avenge them. Show what you're made of! LEAVE NO ENEMY STANDING!" Draco shouted, motivating his men. Jill picked up one of the swords on the ground and blessed her companion's body. "For those who fell and for those still here!"
All the warriors and mages erupted in cheers, ignoring the terror from a moment ago, determined to fight until the last of them fell.
Draco rushed against the demon, knocking it down with his body and rolling on the ground. The soldiers clashed against each other; the echoing of dozens of swords clashing, along with the cries of many warriors, drowned out any other sound in the entire castle.
Mages from both sides began to cast their most powerful spells. The Bucullatus, who were mostly masters of entropy, sought to weaken and demoralize their enemies. But the healers who were still alive revitalized the troops; besides, the fervor that Draco had infused kept them firm in their fight.
Elemental mages cast low-level but powerful spells, avoiding further damage to the structure, or the building would come crashing down.
Jill attacked left and right, finishing off an enemy with each step. She wouldn't stop until she killed the witch who had brought death to her two companions; and Silo, who had betrayed them.
The demon avoided getting too close to Draco, aware that the spear he wielded could hurt it. But the guard attacked fearlessly, dodging the destructive blows of the demon and thrusting at such speeds that the movement of the spear was barely perceptible.
One of his thrusts reached the demon's abdomen, easily piercing its skin; blood flowed from the wound, and the demon roared in anger. The stones that adorned "Vindicta" shone; the weapon glowed even more, and flames covered the blade. The demon shivered, remembering the face of the one who had wounded it before. It tried to retreat, but Draco cut the distance and attacked. Although his body stopped before impacting the demon, he was paralyzed by a spell. With effort, he looked at Verónica, who smiled at him with raised hands.
"Damn bitch," he said before seeing the demon's fist coming towards his body. He managed to lift his shield and was sent flying against one of the walls.
Verónica smiled pleased, but her expression disappeared when she heard Jill scream. She quickly raised a barrier that barely blocked Jill's thrust. She stepped back a couple of meters and glared at the mage.
"You shouldn't make faces like that; you'll get wrinkles, and that beautiful face will be ruined," she said mockingly.
"I'm going to destroy that pathetic barrier and repay the favor by crushing your head," Jill's expression hardened even more, displaying absolute fury against Verónica.
"With that way of speaking, you must not be very popular with men. Although I'd like to see you try," Verónica glanced sideways as Draco stood up, almost unscathed. "Unfortunately, there are others lining up to die first, but I'll give you someone to play with. Silo!"
The elf approached the two women, looking at them with fear. "What do you want? Should I kill my companion?" he asked, trembling.
"You are no longer my companion," Jill scolded him. Verónica smiled upon hearing this.
"You're right, you're a traitor, aren't you?" Silo shivered as he saw Verónica take out another stone like the one she had given him before. "So, there won't be a problem if you kill her, right?" She threw it to him.
Silo caught it and looked at it hesitantly. He didn't want to be an indiscriminate killer again, but still, he wanted to feel that power again, to be invincible.
"Oh, don't worry. This one is a bit different; I won't let you kill more of my men, so you won't stop until you kill just one person, the one I order you to," she said, pointing at Jill. "So, my dear elf, it's time to choose. The pathetic people who underestimated you and are doomed to lose, or us."
Silo hesitated for a moment upon hearing Verónica's words. He didn't want to obey her, he wanted to cut her throat right then and there; still, he couldn't. He wanted the power, he needed it, he had to obey his mistress.
Jill noticed at that moment that Silo was under the influence of the entropy that Verónica was emanating. "Silo, wait!" But it was already too late. Before her words reached Silo, he took the stone and had begun to change, taking the same appearance as before. "What the hell?"
Verónica let out a little laugh; her bloodshot eyes looked at her, and she just pointed at Jill. The elf smiled and lunged at what was once her friend.
Fender watched the battle from a distance. He knew they had very few chances of winning. He noticed how the few soldiers he had left fell one by one, the mages who were still fighting ran out of energy, and most of the cámelio had been destroyed in the explosion. Jill fought against what was once Silo, and Draco was at a clear disadvantage against the demon and the witch. Still, fearing for his life, he could only think and wonder if his son would be okay.
Draco felt half of his body numb. His shield had been crushed, and his arm was broken, although he could still move it. He struggled to keep up with the demon's pace, as the witch kept weakening him and empowering the demon. 'At this rate, I...' Draco thought, searching for an opening in the demon's movements, without success. As long as the witch continued to hinder him, he couldn't kill the demon. He could only wait and resist until he found a way to deal with her.
Jill tried to reach Verónica, but Silo was too fast and strong. His appearance also inspired terror, making Jill hesitate with every step she took.
Silo swung slashes, strikes, and thrusts at a speed that Jill could barely match. She kept dodging and counterattacking without success. Each time, she felt more frustrated and tired, which infuriated her.
"I'm sorry... brother," Jill said sadly, remembering how they had grown up together, and although they often fought or disagreed, they were practically family, all orphans that Draco had saved at some point. "But I'll have to do something I don't want to do."
Jill grabbed her spear tightly and took a fighting stance she had practiced lately to improve her speed. She glared at Silo, who seemed scared, and with determination recited in Orcish:
"Halv te gamte Guntentes met velsigme, og met gic fortan Lynrak Hastigat." After finishing reciting the spell, her armor glowed faintly. She raised her head and advanced one step in front of Silo. He instinctively stepped back, but couldn't dodge the impact that scratched his torso. "I'll only have about thirty seconds before my body collapses and falls to the ground."
Draco smiled as he dodged the demon's attacks. Verónica was distracted by the display of power, a perfect opportunity. He took a combat stance that left his forehead uncovered, provoking the demon, which responded with an impulsive attack that Draco avoided, managing to thrust into its side.
Verónica turned around when she heard the demon's roar and tried to exert her will on Draco again, but was interrupted by Jill, who had managed to temporarily take Silo out of the fight. Jill tried to swing a slash, but it was blocked by Verónica's barrier.
The barrier cracked slightly; the witch, noticing it, showed concern on her face for the first time.
"Why aren't you smiling now?" said Jill, enveloped in fury. She launched another slash that cracked the barrier again and got ready for her third attack; the slight concern turned into terror on Verónica's face, no longer looking so attractive "You shouldn't make faces like that."
"Sfaira..." Verónica tried to cast too late, as Jill launched her attack, completely destroying the barrier and piercing Verónica's side.
"That beautiful face of yours will be ruined," the witch's face transformed again, showing a mixture of fear and fury.
Jill pulled her sword out of her enemy's body and launched a thrust trying to pierce her heart, but her attack stopped before touching her body. She felt her body move involuntarily and was thrown into the air until she collided with a pile of debris.
Alwarmu advanced alongside the witch, his eyes gleaming with power and flashing with anger. Jill tried to get up, but the effect of the spell disappeared instantly, leaving her lying on the ground.
Silo rose with a bloody arm and face, looking at her former companion. It seemed to him that she was now facing death, ready to claim her in that moment.
At the same time, Draco continued to battle the demon. Although he could now injure it, he still couldn't get close enough to kill it, and the demon kept attacking.
"Halv te gamte Guntentes met velsigme, og met gic evnon tull Kempos Got," Draco recited, just like Jill. His armor glowed brightly, his weapon was once again engulfed in flames, and he attacked the demon with all his might.
The demon launched several attacks that Draco dodged and blocked with ease; his strength was now immense, and his response time approached the inhuman. He swung a slash that opened the demon's abdomen. It responded by trying to crush him with its fist, but Draco blocked and thrust a blow that pierced the demon's wrist from side to side; the beast howled and lifted its arm, throwing Draco into the air. It tried to catch him to finish him off, but stepped on one of the few traps that were scattered around, causing a slight explosion that charred the demon's leg and raised Draco a bit higher. Taking advantage of the momentum of his fall, he raised his weapon and sliced the demon's back from above to the base of its torso.
Blood-soaked Draco, and he prepared for his final thrust; however, the demon managed to react in time and threw a punch that hit Draco head-on. Feeling how each of his ribs was pulverized and his organs crushed, the knight fell to the ground, motionless.
Jill looked at her defeated master and then back at the sorcerers; both were smiling at Draco's plight.
"I have to admit that bastard is impressive. I'm a little disappointed that our dear pet had so many problems," Verónica said, glancing at Jill. "But you've already lost."
"Shut up," Jill retorted, trying to get up in vain.
"Are you sure you want to get up?" Verónica spread her arms. Jill looked around; the castle's soldiers had been completely neutralized, the mages lay lifeless on the ground, and the healers were being gagged by the enemies. "It's pointless... you're amazing, but unfortunately, I don't think you'll even serve as my pet; so just accept your fate."
Alwarmu approached Draco. Both sorcerers prepared to finish off the last standing warriors, but they were interrupted by Lord Fender, who approached the battlefield.
"Enough of this slaughter," he said calmly. Verónica, Alwarmu, and the demon stood in front of the Lord, who remained calm despite the situation.
"You didn't say that when they were massacring us," Alwarmu said agitatedly. "You're the main responsible for all this."
"I know," he replied guiltily. "But I had no choice; what they were doing endangered the entire world, and it was a direct order from the capital."
"Don't worry, once we finish here, we'll go straight to kill every damn member of the imperial court."
"Shut up, idiot," Verónica scolded him. He made a disgusted face; still, he obeyed and stepped back. "He doesn't need to know the details of our plan."
"So, is everything over?" he asked sadly, looked at Draco, and, as if he knew what he was thinking, nodded. Verónica turned around, the demon brought Draco and Jill's bodies next to them.
"Yes, everything is over." The Bucullatus gathered around the group, the enemy soldiers also approached to get a better look.
"At least let the girl go; she has a life ahead of her," Verónica smiled and grabbed Jill by the hair.
"I'm sorry, no survivors."