In the shadow of anguish.

Lysielle was exhausted, but she couldn’t rest at that moment. From the smoke below, some 

figures emerged. Immediately, the young lady felt both surprise and hope: Garikk and three of his surviving warriors had arrived.  The young woman lifted her gaze suddenly, her heart racing with relief.  — G… Garikk… — she murmured, almost disbelieving.  The veteran appeared through the smoke with his armor partially dented and covered in enemy blood, but his eyes were steady, burning with determination. Behind him, three knights emerged in the same condition — wounded, exhausted, but standing. The weight of the battle fought so far was carved into their bodies, but their resolve was firm.  — Young lady, thanks to your help we finished our part. — said Garikk, preparing to return to the battle alongside his men. The state of the four made their fatigue obvious, but even so, they were all ready to defend their mistress with their lives.  The moment, however, was abruptly cut short when one of these brave soldiers was instantly blown apart, turning to ash before he could even react.  — Pathetic… I find it amusing when mere cockroaches like you act so confident — said one of the three remaining mercenaries, lowering his hand after the attack.  The disdain in his voice, and the sudden loss of another comrade, reignited hatred and the thirst for vengeance not only in the three remaining knights, but also in Lysielle, who clenched her teeth, helpless.  Without waiting for orders, Garikk and the other two warriors charged forward in fury. Hanart, meanwhile, laughed, flashing a wide grin:  — Hey boss, I’m gonna play around with this trash a little. I know you two can handle that brat on your own. — he said, darting like lightning toward the knights, initiating another clash.  — I need to recover and find a way to defeat the other two… Thank you, my brave warriors. Now, for a short time, it will be one enemy less… I promise I’ll assist you as soon as possible! — Lysielle told herself, as her mana dragon advanced on the two remaining mercenaries.  With the dragon’s charge, the two mercenaries were forced to dodge and launch small attacks, but the dragon’s hide was as resistant as steel; nothing pierced it.  — A being of mana shouldn’t be this hard to deal with… — thought the mercenary leader, slashing the air with blows that devastated everything ahead of the dragon, without even scratching it.  The dragon then set the area ablaze, but the enemies avoided it with precision.  — Auri, come! — shouted Lysielle, while the dragon bought her time.  The small fairy swiftly appeared, saw her mistress weakened, and immediately began healing without hesitation.  — I need to focus on healing these wounds as fast as possible, even if… — Lysielle began, until she was caught by surprise by the second mercenary, who appeared behind her and grabbed her neck, slamming her into the ground. Her energy began to drain, and he smiled arrogantly:  — Hoo, poor thing! Why don’t you try resisting a bit more?! — he said, delighting in the situation.  At that moment, Auri, close to Lysielle, looked at the mercenary and terrified him. The air around them shifted, and he halted his mana-absorption ability for a moment. Taking the chance, the noble girl said weakly as she smiled.  — dra… dragon… Divine Fire!  The dragon turned its head and released a burst of flames, hitting them both and burning the mercenary to death, reducing him to ash in seconds. Lysielle, though hit by the flames, didn’t suffer the same fate because it was her own magic — familiar to her — though it still harmed her slightly.  Rising unsteadily, she tried to stand, only to collapse forward onto her knees from exhaustion, coughing blood and struggling to gather even a bit of breath.  Her blurry eyes lifted — and then she saw it.  In the distance, Liora’s body, her childhood friend, realizing the fight had shifted back to where it began. A chain was wrapped around her neck, some new type of item she didn’t recognize, but whatever it was, her power was being suppressed rapidly.  Feeling overwhelming physical and mental pressure, Lysielle broke through her level 5 and reached level 6, evolving and rising in class. The mercenary leader was startled for a moment, but soon a cruel smile formed on his face.  — Impressive, but that won’t change anything! — he said, pulling the chain around Liora even harder.  Desperate, seeing the attack approaching Liora, Lysielle gestured to the dragon, which immediately struck the ground with a massive claw, placing itself between the girl and the attack.  Lysielle fell to the ground, drained, but the attack was completely blocked before reaching Liora. On the ground, feeling her energy slipping away, she noticed the chain around her neck had locked tightly, sealing her magic.  Because of that, her mana dwindled until the summoned dragon began to slowly fade into the air. Even so, Lysielle held tightly onto the black spear in her hand.  The mercenary leader approached, and after seeing the enormous losses this small noble had caused him, and noticing how tightly she still clutched the weapon, he realized she refused to give up — and that gave him an idea.  Laughing and savoring the moment, he took a small knife from his belt. He knew selling it wouldn’t cover the day’s losses, and even knowing what he was about to do wouldn’t change anything financially, he was far too enraged by the situation.  — Hoo, my my, sorry dear client… seems the prey tried a surprise attack, and one of my men unfortunately… damaged it a bit… — he said, watching the girl crawl away, his intentions as clear as the rising dawn.  He then stepped on Lysielle’s last healthy arm and slowly leaned over it, as she struggled however she could.  Far away, Lysielle’s three soldiers were completely immobilized, pinned by mana stakes like puppets.  — Come on… is that all you’ve got?! — said the mercenary, annoyed. Then, looking toward the leader, a cruel grin spread across his face. — Look at that… seems my boss is going to have a little fun with your young mistress.  The three knights could only watch, helpless, as the scene unfolded before them.  — S… sir Garikk… we have to do something! — said one of the warriors, only to be struck by Hanart, who growled that he wanted to enjoy the show that was about to begin.  The knight who was struck died instantly, his head dropping forward as a massive hemorrhage burst the moment the attack landed.  Garikk, meanwhile, felt powerless. He knew he should try something, even if it cost his life, but if the young lady herself had fallen, there was no longer any real chance of victory. He no longer had the strength to escape that torture.  The mercenary leader slowly lowered himself over Lysielle, grabbing her wrist to stop her from using the weapon, placing the knife at her pulse. Lysielle thrashed with all her remaining strength, trying to escape.  In the distance, Garikk could only close his eyes as his lady’s screams echoed.  The screams that filled her soldiers with helplessness sounded like a precious melody to Hanart and his leader, making Hanart tremble in joy before the scene.  — We’ve received a fine trophy today! — said the mercenary leader, finally forcing Lysielle’s hand away from the black spear.  — We have an excellent medic in my camp, don’t worry… she knows how to stitch very well! — he said maliciously, grabbing Lysielle’s exhausted body and lifting her over his shoulder.  After calling his partner, they decided it was time to finish everything and leave. However, in that moment, both were suddenly struck and sent flying.  Due to the surprise attack, Lysielle was ripped from the enemy’s grasp and found herself in the arms of a hooded figure who, despite hiding his face, appeared young based on his size and proportions.  — I’m sorry… I couldn’t do anything before preparing myself — he said. Without waiting for a reply, he shot forward into the dark forest like lightning, leaping from treetop to treetop.  Even without knowing whether that stranger was an ally, Lysielle was awake and aware: at that speed, they would be caught soon.  In seconds, the two mercenaries were already chasing them at high speed.  — Boy! I don’t know who you are… but I’m going to cut you into pieces when I catch you! — shouted the mercenary leader, gritting his teeth.