Chapter 206: Escape

The squad appeared on the surface outside the dungeon, where their beasts awaited them.

Seraphina released a blasting spell into the tunnel, blocking the exit.

Hugo threw Vlad onto Shadow’s back and muttered, "Take care of your friend."

He rushed towards his direwolf, leapt into the air, and landed directly on its back. The other team members had already mounted their beasts.

"Move out at full speed," Seraphina ordered the squad as they rushed away, the heavy footsteps of their beasts echoing through the forest.

"I’m sorry for being a dead weight back there," Alisha murmured, her eyes lowered in guilt.

"Don’t blame yourself," Hugo said in a reassuring tone. His injuries had already been healed by her. "It was only the most natural reaction to such a sight."

"Who was that freak?" she asked, nervousness and fear lacing her voice.

"Must be the one cultivating that monster farm," Hugo muttered, tightening his grip on the white fur of his direwolf.

Seraphina’s eyes turned towards the dark unicorn beside her, where Vlad’s unconscious body rested. Her jaw tightened, veins bulging on her forehead in both anger and frustration.

When Alisha woke up, she secretly removed the sword from Raphael’s abdomen and healed him with her spells while still lying down, careful not to alert Daemoth.

Raphael began creating the array while lying down as well. However, he needed some time to finish the array.

Seraphina intended to buy that time by risking revealing her vampire bloodline, but Vlad stopped her. He didn’t even know the reasons Seraphina had for hiding her true identity, but the fact that she was keeping it hidden was reason enough for Vlad to make sure she wasn’t forced to reveal it.

He had risked his life and poured everything into his last attack to create this opening for the squad to escape.

Now, Seraphina had to do everything in her power to make sure the squad reached the gates of the academy safely.

Her thoughts came to an abrupt stop as all of their beasts skidded to a halt.

Raphael’s griffin descended to the ground in front of them. All color had drained from his face, and his hands trembled at his sides.

"W-we cannot leave," he muttered, gathering the squad’s attention.

"Why? What did you see, Raphael?" Hugo demanded, his voice shaking.

"A-an army..." Raphael murmured. "Thousands of monsters are coming our way from every direction."

"We will move straight through them," Seraphina ordered, tightening her grip on the blazing mane of her Qilin. "I will create the path."

"We can’t," Raphael said weakly. His usual composure had completely broken. Only fear and despair filled his eyes. "The army consists of Dullahans, undead griffins, and many Rank Four monsters."

A ripple of gasps escaped from the group.

"Th-that can’t be true!" Hugo desperately denied. "You must have seen it wron—"

His words stopped mid-sentence as he felt the reverberations through the ground. The snow on the leaves shook, falling to the ground, while the debris beneath their feet trembled.

In the distance, the army of the undead became visible, emerging in a wide arc.

At the front walked dark horses with purple eyes and visible bones protruding from several parts of their bodies. Mounted upon them were undead knights wearing heavy armor and wielding swords or spears, each weapon laced with purple-colored sword aura.

There was one thing common among every mounted knight.

Their heads were missing.

They were Dullahans, undead monsters rumored to be as strong as peak-stage Marshal Knights. The fact that these undead couldn’t feel pain made them even more terrifying.

To take down a single Dullahan, at least ten Marshal Knights or one Cavalier Knight were needed.

There were over fifty of them.

And that was just the beginning of the army.

Behind them, different undead beasts such as direwolves, mutated bears, and griffins followed closely by zombies and skeletons.

No wonder even Seraphina’s Qilin seemed reluctant to move forward.

Seraphina knew that it was impossible to break through such an absurd army of undead. If even one of them injured them, their skin would be corrupted by the undead mana.

She would naturally be safe as a non-human, but the same couldn’t be said for her team. Alisha, as a Lumen Mage, could naturally heal them, but it would consume a huge amount of her mana.

"Raphael, how much time do you need to teleport us directly to the academy?" Seraphina demanded, turning her focus towards him.

"T-the academy is hundreds of kilometers away," Raphael murmured hopelessly. "They will catch up to us before I can even carve the first pattern..."

"You are the vice-leader of the team, Raphael!" Seraphina snapped at him. "I need an answer, not excuses!"

Raphael’s eyes widened. He took a deep breath to calm his nerves.

"I need fifteen minutes," he said, sounding somewhat calmer now.

The army of undead was already only a few hundred meters away from them.

"Everyone, follow me back to the center," Seraphina ordered, turning her Qilin around.

No questions asked, the squad immediately turned around and followed her. They knew that they would have more chances buying time against Daemoth than against these mindless undead monsters.

Shadow stared at the undead monsters with its blue, pearl-like eyes. There was no fear in them. After a few seconds, it also turned around, following the squad.

When they reached the center, the tunnel was still sealed.

However, at the edge of the terrain where the tunnel was located, Daemoth sat cross-legged, looking at the squad with a wicked smile on his sunken face.

"I have been waiting for you," he said as the squad cautiously dismounted their beasts. "How could heroes just escape without a proper fight?"

He widened his arms and continued, "Isn’t this a more befitting scenario?"

"You will regret this," Hugo shouted as he unsheathed his saber, lacing it with his Anemo Aura. "I will try to stop him. Raphael, focus on your task."

Daemoth’s grey eyes narrowed at Raphael. He was about to move from his position when Seraphina declared, "Hugo, you are no match for him. Protect Raphael. Alisha, shield them."

She stepped forward, holding the wand in her hand.

"I will be the one fighting him," she declared, her pupils compressing and turning vertical.