Ruben's soldiers hid their swords beneath the table, at their seats. Slade's soldiers were asked to surrender their weapons when they entered the estate.

It was a sensible thing to do for any guest coming to a banquet. So they hid small blades and knives inside their clothes to bypass the guards.

Those tiny blades meant nothing in front of real steel swords.

Ruben's force had an advantage. All because Siderius had advised beforehand.

An enemy stood up, hand plucking into his shirt to pull out the knife. A soldier sat next to him was quicker. He grabbed the blade under the table and sliced that hand before he could even do anything.

The next table was the same. With Ruben's men mercilessly massacred the enemy.

Slade's expression darkened. He stepped backwards, into the safety of his men as they surrounded him. His men pulled out their swords. They were the only ones with swords because they were a lord's guards.

Slade clenched his jaw. The tide of battle had gone against him. But he had no worries.

"Do it." Slade said.

Barrick took out a small firework in his pocket and pulled. The fireworks flew to the sky and exploded. That was the signal for the soldiers around the estate to attack.

"Stay close to me, Rea." Siderius walked forward leisurely.

Any enemy that approached them instantly got cut down by the fiery blade. No man was even able to withstand a second strike.

A group of soldiers rushed at him, aiming to overwhelm Siderius.

The hunter drew an upward Y in the air. Then he controlled the Sulfur in the bracer to shoot out.

The sulfur went through the Piryo Sigil and caught fire. A wave of flame washed over the approaching soldiers, burning them alive.

[SULFUR -5]

They weren't dead right away but they lost all their will to fight. Their minds were flooded with pain as they ran around in panic, flaming engulfing them and their armor.

Armor was great against weapons. But against fire, it was simply a forge cooking them alive.

"Fire? How can he use fire? Isn't his desire monstrosity? Wait a minute…" Slade's brow furrowed. A monstrosity ate witches. There was only one reason why Siderius had the Rage of Fire.

With the death of several comrades, Slade's soldiers gave up on attacking Siderius. Everyone who came close to him had died. They switched their target to Ruben.

Siderius whistled high. Lycan rushed out from one of the bushes and bit into the neck of an enemy. It tore his throat out immediately, killing him off.

"Keep an eye on the girl." Siderius said.

Lycan saluted then rushed to Rea's side.

Slade widened his eyes further. "Beast Control… How many witches did he eat?!"

Siderius turned into a blur and rushed into the crowd. His flaming blade turned into a brush of orange color, wiping onto the canvas that was the enemies. It drew red, painting the ground with blood.

He stood between Ruben, his soldiers, and Slade's soldiers. Siderius became an impenetrable wall that couldn't be crossed.

The first group of Slade's reinforcements had come. He raised his hand and pointed at Siderius.

"Charge! Everyone charges! 100 gold coins for anyone that can take his head!" Slade roared.

The soldiers rushed at Siderius without hesitation. Greed blinded their minds even though his flaming sword was intimidating.

Siderius chuckled. He took out a Toxic Bomb and threw it on the ground. A cloud of green smoke exploded and covered the entire field.

Ruben and his soldiers retreated even further, avoiding the cloud of poison.

"Reform! Reform! Leave Nyx alone! He can take care of himself! Do not drag him down!" Ruben shouted, trying his best to command his soldiers.

Slade's men inside the cloud couldn't see anything. The spirit of salt formed in their lungs as they felt the stinging burn inside them. The disgusted smell of Canis Fetorium caused a few of them to vomit instantly.

Siderius' flaming blade didn't stop. It continued to wave in the smoke, chopping down even more men than before.

They fell down like trees. One after another.

Slade and his knights retreated backwards.

"Should we…" Barrick said.

Slade shook his head. "You will only die. Even with the magic the Grove gave you. You are no match for a real witch. And he is just not any witch. He's a monster."

The cloud slowly dissipated. Along with it was the noise of weapons and men.

When everything became clear, only Siderius stood on a tiny mountain of corpses.

The masked hunter tilted his head slightly. He walked toward Ruben with his sword burning without stopping.

"You think you've won?" Slade smirked. "The game has only just begun."

More men rushed into the banquet. Slade had five times the men Ruben had. All were gathered from all the nobles under Lord Rufus.

Siderius stayed silent and kept walking toward Ruben.

A group of Slade's soldiers carried a big piece of stone inside. It was a white stone that was as high as an adult's belly.

"Do it. Barrick." Slade said.

"Yes, my lord."

Barrick walked to the stone and sliced his hand. His blood, a mix of black and red, dripped onto the stone.

The blood created blood veins on the stone. The stone began to beat like a real heart, shining a white light with every beat.

An invisible shockwave pulsed from the stone and spread to the entire area.

Siderius looked around and then looked at Slade.

"Can you finally feel it?" Slade chuckled. "The feeling of your mana slowly disappearing? No matter how strong you are. In front of the Dimming Stone, you are only a mortal!"

Barrick, now with newfound confidence, approached Siderius. "Stay down, High Lord. Lord Rufus does not want to meddle with you. Walk away and we can all forget this ever happened."

Siderius rushed at Barrick.

"Idiotic!" Barrick shouted. The mark of servitude on his face moves. The veins of his entire body bulged up, pumping more strength into his muscle.

Barrick gained power, speed, durability, and the effect of a minor spell. This spell allowed his sword to create a sharp wind slash with every strike.

He turned into a blur and slashed at Siderius. The end of his sword released an invisible wind that cut forward.

Siderius' eyes constricted. He saw the movement of Barrick even before he did it.

The masked hunter lowered his body and spun horizontally at the same time. An awkward and hard to grasp spin that made even the audience confused.

But his spin allowed him to dodge the strike and continued with his momentum. The flaming sword slammed at the armor of Barrick, denting it into his ribcage, crushing his heart into pieces.

Barrick fell to his knees.

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