'.....' The system's nonsensical chatter had finally gotten under Ryuk's skin once more.
For a brief moment, he considered the possibility of clarifying things in a way the system might actually comprehend.
However, given how the system adapted to his abilities with each passing day, always managing to escape his grasp after he subdued it, he ultimately concluded it was wiser to simply ignore it.
"Ugh..."
A sudden wince caught his attention, prompting Ryuk to turn to Esme.
She was completely focused on Yu Shao Yan, her expression a clear indicator of the mental strain she was enduring.
It was obvious that her condition was worsening under the tremendous pressure she faced.
With the heightened vulnerability of everyone nearby, concern washed over Ryuk; this news was far from reassuring.
He felt utterly drained, and the burden of needing to protect Esme while preparing to confront that woman once again weighed heavily on his mind.
As he contemplated the toll this would take on him physically, a surge of familiar energy signatures drew closer to their location.
Without a second thought, he declared, "Leave her."
"What?" Esme replied, her curiosity ignited even amid her distress.
She had caught his earlier mention of liberating the woman from her mental prison—the illusion that Esme herself had woven.
At least, it was evident that both of them recognized the toll their exhaustion was taking.
"Stop pushing yourself. It's fine," Ryuk reassured her, his amber gaze fixed intently on the woman who was on the brink of being freed.
His eyes remained unblinking and alert, prepared for any sudden movements from her after she broke free from her confinement.
As he said this, Esme nodded, placing her trust in his words, and retracted her illusion.
In that swift moment, reality returned with startling clarity.
SWISH!!
The air, mere inches from Ryuk's body, sliced through with alarming force, sending gusts of wind rushing past him. The searing breeze tugged at his hair, yet his body remained utterly unyielding.
Without so much as a blink, he caught sight of Yu Shao Yan, sword in hand, launching a ferocious swing aimed directly at his neck, covering the ten-step distance with astonishing speed.
Though her vision blurred, Yu Shao Yan managed to glimpse the two figures draped in cloaks, their presence steeped in a dense aura of mana that seemed to permeate the air around them.
The strength radiating from these two was staggering, especially as she now processed it along with that woman from Sword Valley. Now, that young man had two more individuals with him.
The situation was growing increasingly dire.
As she fought through the pain, her gaze flickered momentarily towards the sky, and she glimpsed similar cloaked figures—more than just ten or twenty—hundreds of them surrounding the area.
It felt as if the most formidable beings had descended from the skies, possessing the might to obliterate the entire Jade Dominion.
This was the frontline battalion of Ardoros.
"Kugh!" she gasped, the sound echoing the chaos around her.
Her eyes widened as she found herself in a small crater, a result of the overwhelming force that had thrown her down.
Though she was clearly injured, the damage was not life-threatening.
Prompted by a surge of adrenaline, she swiftly flipped herself back onto her feet and, with remarkable agility, distanced herself from the crowd surrounding her.
As she did, her gaze finally grasped a larger view of the unsettling scene.
"Y-you?! What do you want?!" Yu Shao Yan exclaimed, her voice trembling.
She had initially anticipated that this guy would arrive alone or perhaps with one or two experts.
But now, in front of her stood an entire army.
Panic gripped her thoughts—was he here to annihilate the Jade Dominion?
Initially, she had thought that he, living inside the Heindal continent, was just trying to torture her granddaughter, evident from years ago when she had tried to attack him.
But the mistress of the Devereaux family had sternly warned her not to even think of harming her grandson.
And now, when Yu Shao Yan thought to, just in case he tried to come back for her granddaughter, she used that gardener as a means to kill him before he could even reach Middletown.
But now that he had arrived here, it appeared that this was more than just to harm her granddaughter. Instead, his aim was different.
Given this support, it was also evident that he had become a flag bearer.
Things were dire, and right now she needed to prioritize her family or the safety of this place.