Several footprints had been left behind in the snow. They were created by men wearing armor etched with a black ring underneath thick leather clothes.
The black ring was the Goddess of Deathâs symbol! They were the Church of Deathâs paladins, whoâd come to the continent in search of Mayanes Krishan.
âItâs over there.â The blue eyed paladin, Bray, pointed at the snow covered mountain amidst a flurry of snow.
It wasnât that big, but he could see a cave about halfway up the mountain, which appeared like the gaping maw of a demon.
The other paladins nodded their heads.
âWe were ordered not to enter the cave, and to remain on standby near the mountain, so thatâs what weâre going to do,â Bray said. He had the authority to command them when Muhawk wasnât present. âKrishan may attempt to escape, so split into groups of three or four and form a perimeter around the mountain.â
âYes, sir!â
âGet a move on!â
The 99 paladins, Bray included, scattered across the snowy fields. A short while later, a bunch of flowers sprouted from the snowy field.
Flowers growing when itâs this cold? Moreover, the flower petals and stems were completely white.
Pop!
All of a sudden, seeds that resembled dandelion puffs popped out.
Whoosh!
Wind blew from the mountain, threatening to send the seeds flying. But something extraordinary happened. The seeds flew towards the mountain, pushing through the intense winds!
Obviously, they werenât normal flowers. They were surveillance plants. Krishan had placed them all around the snow covered mountain!
The surveillance plants had done their job. They let their master know that she had unwelcome guests.
* * *
Within the cave, Krishan lay sideways above the flower in full bloom.
âHuh?â She opened her palm. A white seed softly landed inside of it. It was a seed sent by the surveillance plant.
Krishan instantly went through what it had seen. She narrowed her eyes and began emitting an intense killing intent.
âThe goddessâs servants!â Krishan suddenly stood up. âSseup, Iâll drain you all dry!â She smacked her lips.
She planned on draining the paladins of their life force, which would fully heal her left wing and left pinky.
Krishan took a step forward. However, she didnât take another step. She remained still, locked in thought.
âIs that all of them?â Krishan soon shook her head. âNo, it canât be. They canât overcome my immortality. Even so, they came here to keep me from escaping. Which meansâŠâ
They were waiting for someone. But who?
Then, Krishanâs eyes glowed red.
âItâs him!â
The man whoâd humiliated her!
Grr!
Krishanâs face contorted with rage and she gritted her teeth.
How dare a mere human, one thatâd transformed into a lowly beast at that, rip off her left arm and her precious left wing. Moreover, he had forced her to shamefully run away.
Just thinking about him made her swell with rage hotter than even lava itself. She was so angry that she almost rushed out there without thinking.
However, she couldnât afford to leave the cave and unleash her fury upon the paladins. Because a small part of her was afraid.
âAhem.â Krishan bit her lip.
She clearly remembered what happened last time. Kang Oh had completely annihilated Mayanes Diabol, a fellow immortal, and she had been in danger of being killed herself.
âI donât want to die!â The fear of death instantly cooled her anger, like a snowball sliding down a hill.
As the wielder of Demon Sword Ubist, Kang Oh was capable of killing her. He had also humiliated her, which made him the target of her revenge. At the same time, she couldnât forget the fear that heâd planted in her heart!
Krishan sat on the flower once more, and then opened and closed her left hand. She wasnât at her best right now.
Moreover, she didnât have enough life force to use the God of Creationâs power, which would allow her to create monsters, travel through space, etc. In other words, using divine power was out of her reach right now.
What if she fought Kang Oh in her current state? She couldnât even beat him when she was at her best, so what chance did she have now? Back then, she had plenty of life force, so she was able to use the God of Creationâs power without limit. Moreover, her immortality wouldnât keep her safe from Kang Oh.
Krishan thought things over, and her face eventually brightened. It wasnât the best option, but it was the second best thing.
âI have no choice.â Krishanâs eyes gleamed, and she clenched her fist.
* * *
Kang Ohâs party arrived in Santana, and then immediately headed for Yuki-Onnaâs Paradise.
âGiddy-yap!â
They rode on horseback at top speed, so they quickly reached their destination.
Muhawk looked for the men heâd send here in advance. Kang Ohâs party and Cyndia followed him.
âSir Muhawk!â The blue eyed paladin, Bray, came over.
âWhatâs the situation?â Muhawk asked.
âWe established a perimeter around the mountain, but Krishan came out of the cave and attacked us.â
The paladins had clearly done battle. Based on their expressions, the battle hadnât gone well.
âWere there a lot of casualties?â Muhawk asked.
âShe got twelve of us.â
âMm.â
âShe looked like she was trying to escape, so we stopped her, but the cost was great.â Bray bit his lip. He recalled the faces of all his comrades that sacrificed themselves to stop her.
âDid Krishan get away?â Cyndia asked.
âNo. We just barely stopped her from escaping, forcing her to return to the cave,â Bray immediately said.
âDid you say Krishan attempted to escape?â Kang Oh asked.
âThatâs right.â
âThatâs strange. She can cut through space and travel to another location, but she left the cave and tried escaping?â
Kang Oh clearly remembered her slicing through space and showing up out of nowhere! He also remembered her doing that to escape too.
âShe shouldnât be able to use a Spatial Leap,â Cyndia answered.
âWhy is that?â Kang Oh tilted his head.
âTraveling through space is a power that belongs to the gods. If a Mayanes wants to use a godâs power, then they need life force. She, who hasnât even fully recovered yet, doesnât have enough life force to teleport across long distances.â
âShe has the spell, but she doesnât have enough mana to use it.â Kang Oh nodded his head.
âMoreover, itâs unlikely that sheâs managed to gather an abundance of life energy in such a harsh environment. At best, sheâs drained the monsters here. She wouldâve used that life energy to heal her body. Thus, she wonât be able to properly use the God of Creationâs power.â
Cyndia knew exactly what shape Krishan was in via the Storm Guildâs information.
There was a reason the Goddess of Death had given her the task of helping Kang Oh destroy all of the Mayanes. There was no one better suited for the task.
âMs. Cyndia, Krishan dragged twelve of us with herâŠâ Bray said.
âSheâll drain their life force,â Cyndia said.
âWould that give her enough power to use a Spatial Leap?â Kang Oh asked.
âNo, that shouldnât be enoughâŠâ Cyndiaâs expression suddenly changed. âWe have to enter the cave now!â she yelled.
âWhat?â
âThere was a guild that fought Krishan before us. The life force she gained from them, and the life force sheâs getting from the paladins may be enough for her to use a Spatial Leap!â
Kang Oh immediately rushed towards the cave. Eder and Sephiro, whoâd fought alongside him for some time, followed after him.
âSir Muhawk,â Cyndia said.
âGather all of the paladins and enter the cave,â Muhawk immediately replied.
âPlease keep half of them outside on standby. You never know whatâll happen inside.â
âYes.â Muhawk gave Bray the signal, and Bray and the other paladins began gathering their comrades.
Cyndia turned her body, and followed after Kang Oh as fast as she could.
âPlease!â
She prayed that Krishan wouldnât be able to escape!
* * *
Did the goddess hear Cyndiaâs prayer?
Kang Oh was about to enter the cave, but thorny vines shot out of the darkness. It was a surprise attack!
âSseup!â
His Hyper Intuition sent him a warning! Kang Ohâs entire body felt cold, so he gritted his teeth and swung Demon Sword Ubist.
Slash!
Swish!
He swung diagonally, cleaving through the vines. But there was plenty more where that came from.
Whizz, whizz!
The vines stood erect like spears and aimed for Kang Ohâs vitals.
âArise!â Eder cast a spell.
Bone Wall!
Bone tangled together and formed a wall in front of Kang Oh.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
Many vines stabbed Ederâs Bone Wall. Despite that, the Bone Wall remained intact. The vines werenât the proper weapon to break down a wall.
âHoo.â Kang Oh took a deep breath.
Then, a powerful green blast came flying at him from within the cave.
Hammer of Arrogance!
Spears might not be proper, but a hammer sure was!
Boom!
It instantly broke through the wall, causing bone fragments to go flying everywhere.
âUgh!â Kang Oh was caught in the explosion, and was flung back.
Tramp.
Her foot came out first, which was followed by the rest of her body.
She raised her right hand into the air. Then, the gathered energy transformed into a green spear.
âDie!â Krishan mercilessly threw the spear.
Spear of Arrogance!
The mighty green spear cleaved through the air, coming straight for Kang Oh.
âNo thanks!â Kang Oh horizontally swung Ubist.
Tempest Tiger!
The golden tiger fiercely dashed forward, smashing right into the green spear. However, the Spear of Arrogance instantly pierced through the tiger! It was clearly the more powerful of the two.
âDamn it.â Kang Oh jumped out of the way.
Boom!
The spear hit where heâd just been, resulting in an explosion. It left behind a large crater, as if a bomb had just gone off.
Krishan didnât stop there. She drew a circle with her left hand, causing vines to rise from the ground and wrap around Kang Oh.
Vine Prison!
That wasnât all. Krishan had already gathered a ton of energy in her right arm. It was clear who sheâd soon be aiming that at.
âNo!â Sephiro shot an arrow, unwilling to lose him.
Sun Piercing Arrow!
Ground Shaking Arrow!
Waryong, who wore a feather hat and leather clothes, spat out its strongest flames.
Fire Breath!
âAge!â Eder pointed his staff at her. An evil spirit flew straight at Krishan.
Aging Curse!
She was burnt and arrows pierced her body, but she didnât care. She didnât care about the glimmering black ghost either. Her jade eyes were focused on Kang Oh and Kang Oh only!
Hammer of Arrogance!
A giant blast of energy came at him like a tsunami.
âTch!â
He couldnât dodge it. His body was completely wrapped in vines.
If thatâs the caseâŠ
âIâm breaking through!â His jet-black blade released immense darkness.
Everlasting Darkness!
Kang Oh and Krishanâs attacks clashed in the space between them, resulting in an explosion!
Boom!
Their bloody battle with Krishan had begun in earnest!