“Ugh!”

At the last instant, Vermeil cast a fireball and let it explode right beside her. The force of the explosion sent her flying out of the way of the energy beam, but she was still grazed by it.

A large portion of her upper body got “burned” and started turning black. Her clothes were weathering away as if rapidly decaying.

“NO!”

At that point, Alpha was already on her knees, shaking as she watched the scene she feared unfold.

“IT STILL HAPPENED…!”

She groaned in pain as blood started to flow down the corner of her eyes. I wasn’t sure what she did, but she probably tampered with Vermeil’s fate in a desperate attempt to save her.

Zeshion stared onward, shock on his face, as he watched one of his god-tamer comrades fall. A moment later, he grits his teeth in anger before trying to rush forward carelessly. But Zeta quickly pulled him back, trying to calm him down.

I… was shocked by how fast the events unfolded.

In an instant, like a random frame being inserted into a playing movie, the second Void Beast, the 50-meter one, appeared behind the smaller one. Two of them were in one place, one with an intact shell, while the other was battered and slowly rebuilding its shell.

We already used up the special ammunition to neutralize the protective shell, and it would take hours just to make another one that could work on such a powerful enemy.

“… This is hopeless.”

One of the four god tamers fell, and another is in critical condition, being healed by Blanc. Zeshion was consumed by anger, while Alpha suffered from the drawbacks of whatever skill she used.

*BANG!*

But amongst the despair, a resounding shot echoed. The familiar explosion when firing a rifle, Fatima! .

The bullet she fired flew in a straight line, heading for the smaller Void Beast’s open chest, where a deep wound was opened. The bigger Void Beast saw the attack and moved to block it in panic, but just as its hands were about to catch the bullet…

“Teleport!”

Ember’s shout echoed.

The bullet, on its way forward, suddenly “jumped” through space and bypassed the Void Beast’s hand, appearing right at the smaller one’s chest. It was too late to move and catch it again, while the shell’s reconstruction wasn’t completed yet. It was a perfectly timed attack!

*THUD!* *CRACKLE!*

The bullet she fired wasn’t a normal one, either. As soon as it touched the enemy’s body, a special reaction occurred. In the middle of the smaller Void Beast’s chest, a black hole was generated.

It wasn’t as powerful as a real black hole, but it was still enough to drag everything within its immediate surroundings down into its center. Even the ice and trees that were part of Tau and Psi’s domains got dragged into its center.

*GRAAAAAAGH!*

A roar filled with anger and fear echoed before the Void Beast’s entire body got swallowed into the small dot. As if getting full, the dot started to reverse the process, violently expanding.

A white flash washed the entire scene, and we needed to cast barriers to protect ourselves from the intense heat coming out of the explosion. When the light faded, in the middle of the battlefield, only the bigger Void Beast remained, its hand still in the position of holding its smaller buddy.

“…”

We… managed to destroy one Void Beast in time!

It was supposed to be something worthy of celebrating, but everyone was too busy in their respective businesses to even bother. Furthermore, the battle was far from over, so it was no time to celebrate yet.

Zeshion finally slipped past Zeta’s hold and rushed to the bigger Void Beast.

I’m not sure if he’s doing it consciously, but he wrapped his blades with Void Energy and transformed it into a thin film. He was copying the method I used to harness Void Energy into an attack!

“YOU B*STARD!”

Zeshion cursed as he swung his sword down, applying Sky Fall with it.

*TING!*

However, the strength of this one’s Protective Shell was greater than the previous. Zeshion’s attack could only sink a few inches, even after using all his strength to attack.

“…!”

Furthermore, it could move faster than the other one.

As if in anger, it waved its hand like shooing a pesky fly. Zeshion tried to dodge, but one of its fingers still managed to touch his thigh.

*CRACK!*

The bones of his thigh cleanly snapped from just a “light touch” of the Void Beast. It wasn’t something he couldn’t heal, fortunately, but he wasn’t given time to recover. Another slap was coming for him, this time faster than the previous one!

“BLUE!”

Fortunately, before the attack landed, Zeta managed to pull Zeshion back using a portal. She failed to remove the portal in time, however, so it was literally smashed into bits by the Void Beast.

“Ugh!”

The backlash from getting her portal destroyed caused Zeta to feel dizzy. Still, she didn’t let go of Zeshion’s body at all. The two of them landed where Goddess Blanc was treating Vermeil, where we all were along with the rest of the survivors, and stared toward the enemy.

The Void Beast, as if still lamenting the loss of the smaller one, stayed still for a while. Was it his son or something? I don’t think Void Beasts have families, though.

Anyway, it’s fortunate that it stopped moving, as we all gained time to retreat strategically. I turned to Ember and nodded. Understanding my intentions, she silently opened a portal under everyone one after the other and dropped them somewhere within the Seimei Territory.

In the field, only Namia, Ember, and I were left, staring at the Void Beast one last time before retreating with everyone else.

“…”

It’s not going to follow us, will it?

Anyway, before it changes its mind, we better leave.

I turned around, about to enter the portal that Ember had made… but it suddenly disappeared. I turned to Ember, but she looked as confused as I was. Namia looked calm, however, still looking at the Void Beast.

“What happened…?”

I tried to open up another portal, but it failed. Even straight-up teleportation didn’t work. Just as I was starting to panic, Namia’s voice reached our ears.

“Don’t even bother, brat. That Void Beast… sealed the entire space right now.” 𝑖𝘳.𝒸ℴ𝑚

“…!”

In short… We’re stuck in this place with that thing?!

𝘪𝑎.𝘤𝑜𝘮