After a successful entry and safely securing the captives, the third and most important part of a successful raid was the exit plan, or else everything that had been done was all for naught.
Due to their current position behind enemy lines, the acolytes needed to get out of this place as soon as possible lest they be overwhelmed by the enemy reinforcements.
The best chance at making it out was to take over the enemy vessels. Unfortunately, before they were able to secure one for their escape, the dark elf magus managed to destroy it first.
In spite of that, however, Emery did not lose hope. Even though the magus had destroyed the huge transport ship, which was the ideal vessel for them to steal, there were still two smaller ones around.
As they couldn't afford to lose even one, Emery quickly gave an order to protect the two ships at all costs.
"But they won't be enough to carry us all," Shatter said, questioning Emery's decision.
Ignoring those words, Emery turned towards the others saying, "Hurry, get all who are most injured into the ship!"
The Cross noble once again complained, but Emery simply had no time to deal with the man's antics, as he still had his gaze focused on the ongoing battle.
In particular, the threat of the dark elf magus and his dragon creature that still roamed freely in the sky.
Seeing that the noble was still yapping at him, Emery finally turned to the man. He grasped the latter's shoulder and said in a solemn tone, "Shatter, I will take care of the magus and I need you to deal with the dragon!"
"What!?" A dumbfounded look appeared on his face. "Me?! No way!"
The sudden request naturally took the man by surprise and to further persuade the young noble, Emery said "You are the strongest here now, we are all counting on you."
Surprisingly his words gave some effect to the man and before the noble of the Cross faction changed his mind, Emery left him to think of the solution himself.
Afterward, Emery gave a glance at the battlefield and saw Thrax and Zetto holding a defensive line against the incoming thousands of Nightwalkers. Knowing that his flank was safe, for now, Emery turned his full attention to the dark elf magus.
Right at that moment, the magus has prepared another spell. Understanding the latter wanted to destroy the other two ships, Emery immediately took action.
[Shadow Edge]
Brandishing the Savage Sword in his hand, Emery mustered the spirit energy within his body before performing a diagonal slash towards the sky. A crescent-shaped darkness energy shot from the blade at breakneck speed, heading swiftly towards the dark elf magus.
But to Emery's dismay, the powerful attack was blocked by a dark lightning sphere that enveloped the magus' body. Nevertheless, the magus was surprised by the violent explosion that occurred after, prompting him to turn towards Emery.
"I see you are the special one among this bunch. For that, you shall be my next victim," the dark elf magus said.
Even though he clearly heard the dark elf's words, Emery did not respond. Instead, he took the chance to make his way towards Atlas, who was lying on the ground with his body lost from the waist down.
If not for the fact he was half a machine, Atlas would surely have died from the massive blood loss he endured. Although the man could only crawl with his arms, the half-machine acolyte still appeared preparing himself for another fight.
"I… need 12 minutes to repair my system. I'll be ready to… fight…""
"Take all the time you need, friend. I will take care of him."
A maniacal bout of laughter erupted from the dark elf magus, as if he had heard the joke of the century. Emery coldly cast his gaze at the man, rage silently building up within as he said, "If you think my words are funny, think about six magus friends of yours that I have killed."
Those words sent the magus' expression to disbelief before transforming into a solemn one. It seemed it had succeeded in angering the magus, as he looked to be seriously preparing to fight Emery.
A bolt of lightning crackled on both of the magus' upturned hands, which made Emery realize this particular dark elf was an unusual one. After all, it was widely known that no dark elf should have a proficiency in the lightning element.
Looking at the striking golden hair the other party had, Emery guessed that the magus was someone who was born mixed, most likely between a dark elf and a high elf.
On the other hand, this fact also made Emery more excited for the upcoming fight.
"It's good that you're different. After all, I have grown weary dealing with fire spells again and again."
Saying those words, Emery stomped the ground as hard as he could. His figure shot towards the dark elf magus, his arms swinging the two swords in his hands. Flashes of light and darkness appeared repeatedly, illuminating the sky in erratic ways, as Emery relentlessly struck the lightning barrier.
The dark elf magus swiftly countered with powerful chains of dark lightning that burned Emery's skin and muscles, delivering excruciating pain across his body while also making it lose sensation.
Fortunately, Emery had his buddy Twik that not only greatly enhanced his power, but also acted as an armor against the magus' attacks. With his arms enlarged by [Fusion], Emery shielded his vital parts from the rain of dark lightning.
A fair amount of time had passed, but there was still no clear sign of a victor emerging from the two's fight. This evidently wiped the confidence the dark elf magus previously showed, as his face sported a somber look.
On the other hand, even though he was currently capable of matching up against the Half Moon magus, Emery knew very well that his time was running out. He couldn't afford to prolong this fight, as more and more acolytes fell under the Nightwalkers' hands.
Everyone without exception fought with everything they got.
If only they had another magus-level figure, or even one of the top 5 acolytes to help him defeat the Half Moon dark elf magus
As if answering his thoughts, it was at this moment a figure jumped over the sea of Nightwalkers. The newcomer was indeed one of the top five acolytes, but certainly not the one Emery was expecting.
The figure turned into a brilliant light before his form appeared behind the dark elf magus fighting Emery. Immediately afterwards, he unleashed a powerful attack while chanting a string of words.
[1000 blossom sacred Strike]