Chapter 317 - Vol. 5 -

Ash

Quiet footsteps approached the castle. Under a sheet of mist, dozens of men and women cut through the darkness as they made their way into what had once been an escape route. There had been no demons yet, instead, as Ash kept her eyes peeled for anything that even flinched, she remained ahead of the group, leading these soldiers into Pearl. 

To her right, the general and Satsuhiro walked with her. Behind her, Keiko, those three Zayama rookies, and Ichigo were all there, and she guessed Yumi and Sinneah were at the back. 

"...  Bow." 

As they entered a pitch-black hall, there was a brief flash as Ash transformed her  Lust.

Okay, just stay calm, and if you see anything, snipe the motherfuckers as soon as possible. 

As Ash traveled deeper into the escape route than she had with the smaller group before, she soon lifted a hand off of her bow and put it up to her nose. 

"Ugh, what the shit?" She whispered as she looked around, trying to get a glimpse as to what was putting up the horrible smell in the air.

It reeked of death in this place, which made sense of course given its recent history, however, it felt like the smell was a little more intense than what Ash remembered. 

Where is it even com-

As she rounded a corner, she froze. Ahead, she could see a couple of demons slowly walking from one side of the hall to another, almost as if they were on patrol. 

Can't let them see me,  she thought, as a golden arrow appeared. If I take them down as quickly as possible, Niven shouldn't know that an entire army is coming up here. Even if he does send some demons to investigate or something. 

With that thought, she pulled back an arrow and let it fly through the dark hall toward the pair of glowing violet eyes ahead. 

"Uagh!" A demon choked up as the arrow embedded itself in its neck. 

Another arrow appeared in Ash's hands as the other demon looked like it hadn't noticed anything. Before it could turn and see the body, Ash did the same to it, and two demonic bodies were laid out on the ground, violet blood seeping from their wounds, as the army continued their movement into the city. 

Soon, they reached the keep where the civilians had been put during the first battle, and here, they paused their advance. 

"Okay," Satsuhiro said, "now we have to wait for Kasumi to do her thing." 

Even his voice sounded a little more concerned than normal. With hundreds of people held up here, this grand space felt cramped. Ash, however, kept her eyes on the gate ahead, where they'd burst through once the illusions were made. 

This should be easy,  Ash thought.  But, given what that Nightmare managed to do earlier... I need to keep an eye on Keiko, Yumi, and even Sin, she told herself as she looked back at them. If I don't...

---

Kasumi

Continuing through the dark forest, the illusionist kept looking from one side of the area to another, hoping her eyes wouldn't fall on any demons anytime soon. Until, eventually, they finally exited the maze of trees and could once again see Pearl, just up ahead. 

Okay, we're here. 

As per her instructions, she had to cast her illusion as soon as she arrived, while the main forces would likely already be there before Kasumi and her squad reached this point. Knowing this, she took a deep breath and prepared herself. 

"Okay, let's get this out of the way," she muttered to herself. 

Outstretching her hands, Kasumi ran through her memories in search of the spell she'd need for this occasion. 

I need to learn more spells after this,  she thought.  I feel like my moveset is pretty limited. 

"Visions of deceit lie at my feet. Let them be seen, here and now." 

As she said this, she closed her eyes and pictured a soldier just like the one curiously watching her from the right. 

When her eyes opened, an image of that soldier was standing in front of her. If anything touched it, it would see through the illusion in an instant, as it was merely visual, but it would get the job done here. 

"Gonna have to make a lot more than that, though," Kasumi acknowledged before she got to work. 

By the time she was done, her mana was fully spent, but she had enough pictures of soldiers by her to make it look like there was a believable, small, force about to commit suicide by storming the city from the front. 

"Okay, everyone," she turned around and looked at each of the soldiers behind her. To say they looked nervous would be an understatement. "We're going in. Stay behind the illusions, and wait until the demons start fighting the real forces before we actually engage them ourselves. Are we clear?" 

"Y-Yes," one guy responded and Kasumi sighed. 

"Then... Let's get started." 

And, on that note, she commanded the illusions to move forward, as the real soldiers walked behind them. 

---

Luvine

Cold nights had become normal these past few weeks, but this one, in particular, felt much, much colder. It could be because they were currently in the middle of nowhere with no fire, or the fact that the night being underway meant that a chilly air was sliding through the trees, but it could also be because Luvine was worried. 

That concern she felt right now was probably at least part of why her legs wouldn't stop shaking and her eyes were turned low, as images of ravenous demons plagued her mind. 

"So..." Metsumi said, as she sat down by one of the soldiers who had been assigned to watch over them. "Do we have any food here? For the girls, I mean." 

"No, ma'am," the soldier replied, shaking her head. "I apologize." 

"Eh, no worries, no worries," Metsumi replied, as Luvine looked down at her own hands. Beside her, Opah was looking up at the stars, and nearby, a couple of soldiers were looking out toward the trees.

Once again, she, Opah, and Metsumi were here, alone, while the woman she looked up to was somewhere else, fighting. It was something that Luvine had come to accept as being normal, even if she didn't understand it all in truth, but the sight of the bodies leftover after the previous fight had made Luvine wonder if Ash would someday turn out to be one of them. 

She'd seen it firsthand, after all. The terrifying devastation that those beasts Ash fought could wreak. 

"Hey," Metsumi said, as she sat down next to Luvine. "Are you okay? Are you feeling cold at all?" 

"Mm." She shook her head. 

"Good," Metsumi replied, before casually pulling her in for a half-hug. 

All that did, however, was make it easier to imagine what was happening. She could picture Ash swinging a sword around as she fought multiple monsters at once. She could picture the woman walking through a battlefield, covered in violet blood as Luvine had seen her many times before. And, of course, it wasn't hard to picture ways in which she could be beaten. 

All of these thoughts circled Luvine's heart, prodding at it with a needle that made her skin feel cold. 

But, after so much time spent thinking that she couldn't do anything about it, Luvine ran into something that changed that outlook. It wasn't the first time she'd seen the art, but this was the first time she'd felt its benefits, and she wanted it. 

She had seen soldiers being healed after the last battle. As Metsumi had escorted them away and they were separated from the dead bodies littering the field of grass, in the middle of it, Luvine had seen a woman's hands glowing white as she placed them over an injured soldier's body, and when her mind saw that, she finally put two and two together. 

Maybe, just maybe, if she learned how to do that, she could help Ash. Then, she'd never have to worry about her getting hurt again. 

It was a simple and perfect plan.

The only question was, who could she learn that healing from? Ash herself knew how to heal, as she'd told Luvine, but she was always out fighting. Metsumi didn't look like she knew, and Opah also didn't, so, how could she pick up these skills she'd need to protect the woman protecting her?

... I wanna know.  She thought.  I need to learn. 

"Bop!" Opah said, before flicking Luvine's head with her finger. 

"Ow," Luvine turned toward her, and all thoughts of that plan were briefly taken out of her mind. 

"Can't catch me!" Opah said before attempting to run away, but, contrary to what she'd just declared, Metsumi caught her. 

"Whoa, whoa, no running," she told her. Opah made a sad face. 

"Why!?" 

"It's dangerous out there, tonight," she said, pulling Opah in and adding her to the hug with her other arm. "We need to stay put. Your big sisters are out there fighting, understand?" Metsumi asked. "If you go away, they'll worry about you." 

"..." Opah pouted and looked away, clearly unsatisfied, as Luvine continued to ruminate upon her master plan. 

I'll be the best at it,  Luvine promised.  And, once I can heal, I'll stay by her side.. And, she'll never get hurt.