At the Blue Planet, within the Vampire Domain, Bryan, Rider, Bringer, and Tiara could be seen sitting and discussing as they waited for Anthony to be done with whatever he was discussing with the Blood Queen.

As they waited, the building suddenly shook violently as the roof exploded outward with a booming, thunderous force that reverberated across the entire structure. Their heads snapped upwards in unison as they saw the massive slabs crashing down towards their positions with overwhelming speed and destructive intent. They didn’t hesitate; their bodies turned into blurs as they vanished from where they stood, reappearing at another position.

Slabs of concrete smashed into their previous location as the ground shook violently upon impact, cracks spreading like spiderwebs across the surface. Their heads immediately snapped to the side where they could pick up a profound, metallic smell of blood lingering thickly in the air; they didn’t need to be told to know that the fight between Anthony and the Blood Queen had already begun in earnest.

Their heads snapped upwards again, towards the sky this time, as they saw Anthony being surrounded by a few Vampires, which he wiped out almost instantly with overwhelming ease before vanishing from his position, likely heading towards outer space where the battle would no longer be restricted by the confines of the Domain.

Before they could even make a move or react further, the Vampire officials that had welcomed them earlier appeared beside them with blurring speed that far surpassed anything Bryan and his friends could hope to match at their current levels of strength. The Vampire Queen hadn’t given any direct command to attack them or even kill them, but they had arrived alongside Anthony, who was the primary culprit; hence, they were considered guilty by association without question or hesitation.

Their fists tore outward with lethal precision, aiming to end these children before they could even think or respond, but in the very next moment, their shadows twisted unnaturally, writhing as though alive, and from them, four different presences rose as though they were being summoned directly from the abyss itself. A massive broadsword, a chained sword that seemed intricately linked together, a razor-sharp claw, and a reinforced palm, each of them appearing in perfect, flawless timing to intercept and block the incoming attacks.

With wind-tearing blasts and violent pressure waves, attacks and defenses collided with catastrophic force, and the chamber crumbled into dust and debris with stone-crushing ease as the building itself exploded outward due to the overwhelming impact of these four opposing forces.

Bryan, Bringer, Tiara, and Rider stood stunned, their eyes wide with shock as they hadn’t sensed or seen anything prior to the clash, which made perfect sense due to the vast and almost incomprehensible difference in power scale between them and the beings now standing before them. Then, from their shadows, Igris, Bellion, Beru, and George stepped out with calm, composed ease, their presence steady and calm.

The Vampire officials’ eyes narrowed sharply to slits as they stared at the Shadow soldiers before them in confusion and growing unease. But the Shadow soldiers weren’t confused; instead, they acted immediately, their bodies turning into streaks of black as they launched forward and unleashed their own devastating attacks without hesitation.

The Vampire officials’ reaction was instantaneous, their weapons manifesting in their hands as though summoned by instinct as they blocked with composed ease. However, the moment both sides clashed once more, the entire Blood Castle was immediately leveled to the ground with cataclysmic fury, the impact tearing outward in all directions as it sought to erase everything within the Vampire Domain itself.

One of the officials within the Vampire Domain had no choice but to react, his body vanishing from where he stood before reappearing midair as he unleashed his mana in vast quantities. Using pure mana control and refined precision, he stabilized the violent earthquake and the devastating shockwave that sought to erase every Vampire within a radius spanning several thousand kilometres.

The remaining Vampire officials also vanished from where they stood as they quickly understood that continuing the fight here would inevitably lead to the deaths of countless Vampires, and the Blood Queen would have their heads without hesitation upon her return. With that realization firmly in mind, they shot towards the sky with remarkable speed, their bodies vanishing into outer space as they were certain these strange shadow-summoned entities would follow them without fail.

Igris immediately sheathed his sword without taking a single step further; as a Knight, he understood that the duty his liege had given him was to protect the Dragon named Bryan, and since the enemies had already withdrawn of their own accord, there was no necessity to pursue or give chase unnecessarily.

Bellion was much the same; he calmly attached his chained sword to his waist as he took the same composed stance as Igris, as both of them fully understood and respected the orders they had been given. As for George, despite being just as powerful as these individuals, he remained silent; he wasn’t part of their circle of companionship, so he simply stayed where he was, his gauntlet firmly fastened around his hands, ready to act at a moment’s notice if necessary.

Only Beru seemed visibly eager; his sharp ant-like eyes were fixed intensely on the sky as he gazed at the Vampires waiting above for him and his comrades to approach. Just as Beru was about to move, Bellion spoke calmly in a composed, knightly tone, "I hope you haven’t forgotten your duty, Commander Beru."

His words immediately caused Beru to pause mid-motion; he couldn’t simply abandon Tiara here and rush towards his enemies without fulfilling his assigned responsibility. His eyes narrowed briefly as an idea flickered into existence within his mind. He raised his clawed hand as his mana hummed steadily, and in the very next instant, his mana enveloped Tiara completely. At this moment, he was merely replicating what Anthony had done earlier, how he had allowed them to survive within the vacuum of space just a few hours prior.

Tiara immediately smiled softly as she reached for her glasses, the ones Anthony had given them, and carefully placed them on. With that, Beru’s wings flapped once, but even with that single motion, a massive chasm tore open beneath him due to the sheer and outrageous wind pressure generated. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

In the next instant, he shot towards outer space with a fierce battle cry. He had remained within the shadows for far too long; this was finally an opportunity to release some of that pent-up energy, even if only slightly. Although his liege had mentioned that they would eventually battle the Angels, he had no knowledge of when those winged birds would make their next move.

Seeing Beru depart with Tiara trailing closely behind him, George, Bellion, and Igris couldn’t help but release faint sighs as they turned their gazes towards one another in silent understanding. They could understand why Beru was so eager; truthfully, they too felt the same urge stirring within them, but they possessed a far greater level of restraint and discipline over their impulses.

Since Beru had already taken the lead, Bellion’s eight wings spread wide before flapping powerfully, and with a thunderous burst, he propelled himself forward at immense speed. George didn’t hesitate in the slightest; his body surged forward like a bullet tearing through the air, his eyes locked firmly onto his chosen opponent as a faint, almost imperceptible smile formed on his lips. Igris, true to his nature, said nothing at all; he simply launched himself forward, his cape billowing dramatically behind him as he followed without delay.

And behind these three figures were Bryan, Rider, and Bringer, their bodies fully coated in their mana.