"We’re done!" Maevia declared. "The ground is sealed!"

The two Arcanists, Maevia Sol and Amira Vineheart rested their hands as glowing runic circles shimmered in their fingers before dissolving away.

The ground glowed silver, then stopped, signalling that the magical shield had solidified.

Cassian Roa, excited to deliver the news, yanked the door open, and stepped partially outside the chapel.

"Guys, we’ve done it!" Cassian yelled out to Astensia and the fighting students.

Astensia glanced back and her blue eyes instantly snapped wide. "What are you doing?! Get back and close the door!"

It was too late.

Completely out of nowhere in the midst of battle, a giant Humanoid Demon lunged at Cassian like an arrow.

The next thing Cassian knew, claws had sunk deep into his chest and neck and slashed downwards, completely tearing him open and spilling out his earlier excitement.

"Cassian!" Amira screamed as the Wind Mage slumped backward, tumbling back into the chapel.

The Demon shrieked in triumph, its multiple heads snapping its jaws as it planted its feet to jump into the chapel.

"Blessed Blade Form!" Astensia roared fiercely. "Blessed Spear!"

Her sword instantly began to glow unforgivingly bright. Then, within the golden radiance, the claymore stretched wide until it transformed into a long, powerful spear.

Quickly, Astensia planted her front foot and hurled the weapon.

The golden spear tore through the air like a laser, and as the Demon leaped into the chapel, it stabbed directly into its chest with a sick crunch.

EEERRRRKKKK! the monster shrieked in pain.

Renan and Lancet, who had both stood ready to fight the Demon, stepped in to finish it off.

But Lancet was surprisingly faster.

He planted his boot on the floorboards, gripping the hilt of the Radiant Guillotine with both hands. Channeling his Level 11 strength, he swung the golden blade upward.

The blade sheared cleanly through the Demon’s thick neck, decapitating all three of its heads at once. Purple blood geysered upward, splattering against the chapel ceiling as the massive body went entirely limp.

Ding!

[ You have killed 1 Demon (Rank: 5-Star Descending) ]

[ You have gained 1200 EXP ]

Dong!

A darker, church bell-like sound rang after the notification.

[ The Radiant Guillotine - Soul-Trap Activated ]

[ A Demon Soul has been stored. ]

[ Soul Count : 1 ]

Lancet felt the red stone in his pommel grow warmer, heavier, as if it had just swallowed something alive.

Renan lowered his own sword, glancing at the decapitated monster and then at his classmate. "Great slash."

"Thanks," Lancet breathed, flicking the purple blood from his blade.

The golden spear violently ripped itself backward out of the Demon’s chest, flying through the air like a boomerang.

Lancet and Renan watched Astensia catch the shaft. The moment it touched her gauntlet, she spun the weapon as it glowed and transformed back into her trusted blade.

Then, Lancet and Renan’s eyes widened. A Demon was right behind her! They were about to yell her warning when she simply drove the blade behind her, directly into the abdomen of the four-armed Demon without even looking.

Lancet wondered why he even bothered to panic.

"Go ahead!" Astensia yelled, ripping the sword free as the monster collapsed. "I’m right behind you, go meet the civilians!"

More Demons began to spill through the shattered courtyard walls, shrieking and clawing over one another. But Nereus, the most efficient Awakener aside from Astensia, dealt with them.

The Shadowmancer merely stood there, but all around him, his dark summons fought the horde, tearing Demons apart with the twisted powers they possessed.

Nereus turned and approached the chapel doors as his summons cleared the way for him, killing any Demon that neared him. Lancet thought he looked incredibly cool, completely unfazed by the gore raining around him.

"Is he okay?" Nereus asked once he was close enough, looking down at Cassian.

Maevia was knelt beside the Wind Mage, her hands glowing with an emerald hex symbol. "The wound is deep, but he’ll be fine," she said. "I spent most of my Grace on creating the ground shield, but I’ve got enough supplements to cast more hexes."

Lancet looked at the Shadowmancer. "We’ve got it from here. Just keep the Demons away."

Nereus looked at him for a while, then spoke;

"The civilians might be startled," he warned calmly. "Don’t allow anyone to overreact and hurt someone."

Lancet nodded. Nereus turned his back, returning to the battle.

"We have to get moving," Lancet told the remaining students.

"Agreed," Renan said, sheathing his sword.

Frieda stayed dependently close to Renan’s side, while the others including the wounded Cassian followed closely behind. Lancet and Renan took the lead, marching straight to the door behind the altar.

Renan grabbed the handle. "It’s locked from the inside."

Lancet spun his sword and stabbed right into the thick wood, shattering the lock. With a creak, the door opened.

Lancet and Renan looked at each other.

"After you," Lancet mused.

Renan chuckled once and stepped into the pitch-black darkness. Not very long after their boots hit the stone stairs, they heard a desperate voice cry out from the darkness.

"We rather die fighting than perish cowardly to you monsters! RAAARRRR!"

"It’s too dark!" somebody shouted from the back of the student formation.

"Frieda, give us light," Renan commanded.

Frieda immediately raised her hand, conjuring a bright, crackling orb of fire.

The sudden illumination revealed a heart-stopping sight: a group of exhausted, terrified civilians charging directly up the stone stairs.

They were armed with splintered chair legs, rusty kitchen knives, and heavy iron candlesticks. On their faces were expressions of fear, frustration, tiredness and rage.

"Hey," Renan called sofrly, raising his empty hand to show he wasn’t attacking. "We’re humans. We’re the Awakeners from the Academy sent here to help!"

The charging civilians froze. The man leading them—a burly blacksmith holding a heavy iron hammer—blinked against the firelight. He looked at Renan’s gleaming armor, then at Lancet’s golden blade.

"Awakeners?" he whispered. "The Academy sent Awakeners?"

The weapons slowly lowered. The blacksmith dropped to his knees, burying his face in his dirt-stained hands. "We’re saved! We’re truly saved!"

The shock gave way to an eruption of sobbing, cheering, and overwhelming relief. People collapsed into each other’s arms, celebrating their rescue.

A child—no older than seven—ran forward and wrapped his arms around Lancet’s leg, burying his face in the golden greave.

Lancet looked down at the boy, unsure what to do. He placed a hand on the child’s head, awkwardly.

Renan raised his voice to address the crowd. "Listen to me! We need everyone to gather together, stay in the catacombs for now, it’s safe down here. The ground has been magically sealed. Nothing can dig up to reach you."

He pointed to a group of able-bodied men and women. "I need some of you to help keep everyone calm and organized. Count the people. Make sure no one is left behind."

To the blacksmith he said, "Take charge and make sure everything goes smoothly. We will be going to clear the tunnels and the back gate to allow everyone to escape safely."

Lancet didn’t like many things about Renan, but he appreciated that the MC had certain leadership qualities, qualities that helped in times like this.

Renan turned to the others. "Some of us will stay here to protect the citizens. Others will join me to clear the tunnels."

Frieda, Seradine, Jaxen, Darian and Lancet offered to join in clearing the tunnels.

Lancet felt the child release his leg. He looked down and nodded at the boy, then followed Renan toward the far end of the catacombs, where the tunnel entrance waited.

They made it three steps before a cracking sound caused them to stop.

Everyone looked up. "What was that?" a civilian asked. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Suddenly, the ground began to shake rabidly. Dust and chunks of stone rained down from the catacomb ceiling. The entire structure groaned under an immense, crushing weight.

"EVERYONE GET BACK!" Renan shouted, grabbing Frieda by the arm and yanking her away from the ceiling.

The chapel above was collapsing.

Outside was a nightmare. The Demons had stopped coming in waves. They were flooding now, pouring from every corner, over the chapel walls, between the buildings.

A never-ending tide of Gloom, flesh, and claws.

Their complete focus was the Chapel. The Demons had realized why these intruders were going into the building.

It was where the civilians were hiding! They’d been searching for them for days!

Now, Astensia and the vanguard were completely overwhelmed. Led by two 6-Star Descending monstrosities, these Demons were ferocious and determined.

One of the leaders was a Giant Crab Demon. It was easily fifteen feet wide, its shell covered in barnacle-like growths that oozed purple slime.

It scuttled through the streets, crushing its own lesser kin beneath its massive legs. Its pincers were the size of carriage wheels and the edges were sharp as swords.

The other was a Giant Serpent-like Demon. An eighty-foot-long abomination of scales and miasma that was currently wrapping its coils around the chapel’s spire, actively shattering the stone roof to force its way inside.

Nereus, Rilla, Jaxen, and Seradine were fighting for their lives against the unending swarm, their Grace reserves dipping dangerously low.

Astensia was fighting as many as possible. She deflected a tail swipe from the Serpent, severed the arm of a Humanoid Demon, and spun to block an incoming attack.

And it was right then that the Crab Demon got her. The crab’s right pincer lashed out.

Too fast for her to regroup.

The blade-edge of the pincer caught her square in the chest, punching through her skin right above her breasts. The pincers shattered her collarbone and emerged from her back in a spray of blood.

Astensia gasped, blood spilling past her lips.

The Crab Demon raised its arm, lifting the legendary Knight fifteen feet into the air. Astensia groaned in excruciating pain, her legs kicking uselessly, her blood dripping down the creature’s arm and pooling on the ground below.

"ASTENSIA!" someone yelled. She couldn’t tell who, her hearing was as hazy as her vision.

Blood rushed into her head. She tried to reach for her sword. Her fingers closed around the hilt, but her arm had no strength.

The Blessed Blade felt heavy—heavier than it had ever felt. Astensia knew then that her Strength stat was gone, completely depleted by hours of non-stop fighting. She could barely lift the weapon, let alone swing it.

Her fingers went numb. The Blessed Blade slipped from her grasp, clattering uselessly against the cobblestones below.

The Crab Demon opened its mandibles, preparing to bite her in half.