Chapter 308: The Final Banishment

"Watch out!" Quest's form abruptly vanished into the shadows, his speed a fraction faster than the bronze Heron Sculpture's close-range strike. The instant Ron felt the sharp pain, the Spy pulled his hand back, preventing the statue from launching a follow-up attack.

The statue let out a piercing shriek. Piercing Ron's fingertip had apparently allowed it to siphon enough blood. What had been mistaken for worn patches were rapidly filled with crimson patterns, and its once-lifeless eyes were now stained a violent scarlet.

The bronze base melted into the heron's body. The ominous statue came alive, spreading its wings. It dodged the wooden club Quest swung at it, all the while shrieking as if to taunt the group.

"An animated Gargoyle?" Jilannis's eyes widened as she sized up the bronze heron leaping about. She was intrigued by this statue, which was much smaller and made of a completely different material than an ordinary Gargoyle. The next instant, the Elf's cerulean eyes transformed into pitch-black voids filled with terrifying power. Her voice became an undeniable decree. "Statue, gaze upon me!"

The sound of grinding metal was deafening. Under Jilannis's compelling gaze, the statue struggled desperately but could not escape the Grand Mage's control. Its long neck twisted a full one hundred and eighty degrees, its blood-red eyes fixing on the Mage, frozen in place.

"Sleep—urgh!"

Jilannis tried to command the strange Gargoyle (or bronze-goyle) to return to its inert state, but before she could finish her incantation, the same soul-piercing pain Ron had just felt assaulted the Elf as well.

"Lady Jilannis!" Silvia instantly realized something was wrong. Black mist spewed forth from the tip of her Walking Stick, the concealed Arcane Magic within attempting to control the statue that could even wound a Grand Mage. However, it was futile.

With a bizarre, owl-like cackle, the bronze heron broke free from Jilannis and Silvia's restraints. The statue's heavy bronze wings flapped impossibly, lifting its equally heavy body. It tore an opening in the surrounding dark mist, its beak piercing through You's Spirit Body as it flew straight for the exit!

"Aiksuuri!" Ron bellowed, summoning the Young Dragon outside for support. His fingertip felt paralyzed by some venom; he could barely bend or straighten it. The numbness spread to his entire hand and forearm, making it impossible to cast spells, draw a bow, or aim a crossbow.

"Stop that statue! Don't let it get away!"

A deep Dragon Roar echoed from the cave mouth, followed by the SIZZLE of Strong Acid corroding something hard and the statue's terrified shriek. But after only a dozen seconds, Aiksuuri's pained cry came from outside—it seemed the hastily engaged Young Dragon had suffered the same fate as Ron, wounded by a peck from the bronze statue.

"Should I use Time Stop?" Jilannis shook her head, her pointed ears flushed red with humiliation. "I must remind you: this spell will stop time for all creatures in the vicinity, including all of you."

"If that statue isn't affected, it's very likely..."

"There's no time!" Ron pulled out a bottle of antidote, trying to restore his ability to fight. "Use whatever you've got! If we hesitate, it'll really get away!"

'That bronze statue is definitely big trouble! If we just let it go, heaven knows what kind of chaos it will cause!'

But just as Jilannis was preparing to cast, a flash of silver light suddenly erupted from the ground of the Dragon's Nest. It streaked past the group and shot toward the cave entrance. Within seconds, the bronze statue's unique and evil shriek echoed through the cavern.

"What was that?!"

The sudden flash of silver light made both Silvia and Quest jump in alarm. Even though it hadn't been aimed at them, a fleeting, heart-stopping terror lingered in their minds like a persistent nightmare.

'It felt like... some kind of natural predator!'

'A natural predator?'

"Dispel Otherworld! Don't tell me you have a Paladin here as well?" Jilannis instantly identified the true nature of the silver light. Ron was already a step ahead, dragging his still-numb arm out of the treasure vault and rushing straight for the cave entrance.

"A Paladin?" Quest and Silvia exchanged a glance. "Andre is Tyr's... no, that's not it!"

In that instant, the image of another figure flashed into their minds—one slightly shorter than Andre, but with a far more resolute faith. The fish-headed warrior hadn't interacted with them much, but he had once bought them precious time at a critical moment!

"Devin Booker!"

By the time the group arrived outside, the statue, which had been moments from freedom, was shimmering with silver light. The silver Holy Power froze it in a strange flight posture, its wings uncontrollable. It fell helplessly into the mire outside the Young Dragon's nest, like a toy carelessly tossed aside by a village child.

"The crimson color on its body is fading!" sharp-eyed Silvia immediately noticed the change in the statue. "Is that Paladin's power at work? But... but he's already..."

"Apparently, he left a contingency," Quest said thoughtfully. "But why? If he had noticed there was something wrong with this statue, why didn't he deal with it? At the very least, he could have told Aiksuuri and the gold dragon..."

The Tiffling glanced at the Black Dragon supporting itself on three legs. Aiksuuri was clearly clueless about the matter.

"There's another possibility: the Paladin you spoke of originally set this trap to deal with other creatures," Jilannis said, turning to Ron. "Lord, they just mentioned a Paladin named 'Devin Booker.' Why was he down here? And why would he leave behind a Dispel Otherworld, a spell meant to punish Otherworldly beings?"

"Paladins aren't Casters like us. Dispel Otherworld is closer to channeling Divine Power, and setting up such a contingency would be no easy feat."

"It might be because..." Ron thought for a moment, then simply relayed everything he knew about the Fishman Paladin to Jilannis.

"The Freshwater Legion..." The Moon Elf nodded. "The legions of the Sorol Fishman are mostly deployed to deal with Elemental Creatures. It seems he wanted to extend his watch over this place for as long as possible, preventing Elemental Creatures from invading from here."

"But he sacrificed himself, and the Teleportation Gate that Saran fellow set up was closed by you all, so the trap he left behind was no longer needed for those Water Elements. It was just a fortunate coincidence that Gargoyles, which are derived from earth elementals, are also Elemental Creatures. Thus, his contingency suppressed this statue."

"However..." Jilannis picked up the now-inert Heron Sculpture, on which the silver light and crimson stains had nearly cancelled each other out. "It seems my judgment was slightly flawed. The true target of the Dispel Otherworld doesn't appear to be the statue itself, but rather some entity within it?"