[B... B... B-Benjamin, are you seriously saying you can... see detailed information about people and objects just by looking at them? Like, full ranks and classifications popping up in your head?] [Rose]
Ah, I could feel intense embarrassnt radiating from her now; hot, flustered waves that made her ntal voice waver slightly.
...Why is she embarrassed again?
[That sounds... exactly like the legendary ability called Serpentine Gaze, doesn’t it? You know, the one written about in the oldest scrolls of the Green Church of Elyndor.] [Claire]
[But that ability was said to have been completely lost during the chaos of the 7th Celestial War, no? It was wiped out along with so many other forbidden arts and magic.] [So unknown fairy I haven’t t yet]
[If he’s truly a god-touched, then it is possible. They surpass normal conventional logic in ways we can’t even comprehend. Rules bend around them.] [another fairy I haven’t really spoken with]
[Sir Benjamin, I’m available right now; please marry and fuck every single day! I’ll be your devoted wife forever!] [So depraved fairy I haven’t t yet]
But seriously, they were making an enormous deal out of this.
Compared to that freaky teleportation, or the other beasts locked away inside Concept Assimilation, and especially the fact that I acquire these abilities through sexual activity, sothing like Serpentine Gaze was basically just a support-type thing: useful for reconnaissance and info gathering, sure, but hardly world-shattering on its own.
Anyway, the telepathic network was lightning-fast, so we weren’t simply wasting precious ti standing around on the battlefield while chatting.
Every exchange happened in split seconds, minds linking and responding instantaneously.
That gave breathing room to monitor how those Second through Sixth Born were moving and start piecing together potential counterasures before they closed the distance.
[Roselyn, do not worry about your ability faltering right now; I will personally shield the forest while you focus entirely on the fight ahead.] [Ben]
[Huh?! Did you have an ability like that this whole ti? I was using {StrongHold} to barricade the entire forest periter, but it’s barely holding together because of my current fight, I’m getting pulled in too many directions at once.] [Rose]
[I said don’t worry... Trust on this. I’ve got it covered.] [Ben]
I could feel her worry and concern pulsing through the link in tight, anxious threads that tugged at .
But after a brief hesitation, her presence suddenly lit up with determination and agreent.
[Alright, Benjamin, I’ll trust you completely and go all out on those big bosses! I won’t be holding back anymore!] [Rose]
That’s great, then.
[Ah, Sir Benjamin is so cool! Sir Benjamin, please notice ; I’m right here fighting for you!] [The sa depraved fairy I haven’t spoken to yet]
[Rina, focus on the war right now! And stop daydreaming!]
Ah, soone, probably one of the more disciplined fairies, rebuked her sharply, cutting off the flirtation.
Anyway, with my decision to hold the fort and protect the forest, Isabelle imdiately shifted gears.
She began issuing clear, precise directions and orders to the rest of the group through the network, coordinating movents like pieces on a chessboard.
She might actually be really good at chess, now that I thought about it: the calm under pressure, always thinking several steps ahead, that kind of thing.
"Ehehe..."
Hm? Isabelle suddenly let out a soft, adorable titter beside .
"What happened?" I asked aloud, genuinely confused, because nothing in this horror-filled battlefield—swarming grey monsters, black blood spraying everywhere, the ground torn up and steaming—could possibly make soone laugh so cutely right now.
"No... I was just thinking that... my l-lover is soone so amazing..." she murmured, her voice soft but warm, cheeks vaguely flushed even in the midst of chaos.
I felt my own cheeks warm up in response, a rush of embarrassnt mixing with sothing softer.
"Geez, focus on the battle and stop flirting," I teased, gently poking her cheek with one finger before turning my gaze back to the field.
Roselyn, Claire, and Clay had already moved forward, advancing to directly challenge the slowly incoming Second through Sixth Children—the anomalous six who had begun descending from their raised platform with eerie calm.
Huh?
Now that I thought about it, Clay hadn’t said a single word (or "thought," I guess) to in the network this entire ti. Not even a greeting or a response.
I was if the arrogant opinion that she was madly in love with , and would be one of the first to regard .
Well, I should say hello, then; maybe she’s being shy.
[Clay, do your best out there! I’m cheering for you!] [Ben]
But... the... thing going on inside Clay’s mind startled badly when I brushed against it.
[Kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill!] [Clay]
Uh... she wasn’t listening to at all.
That single, relentless loop of murderous intent drowned out everything else.
There was no acknowledgnt or warmth, only pure, motorized and cold repetition of butchery and bloodbath.
"Isabelle... is Clay alright?" I asked aloud, my voice dropping with serious concern.
"Haha, do not think much of it," she lightly laughed, trying to brush it off. "She won’t attack her allies, at least. That’s not how she works."
No, it was more than that; Clay had gone full killer mode, completely unresponsive to reason or outside input.
Her mind was locked in a single-track state of slaughter.
According to Isabelle, Clay had always carried that deep murderous streak since the day she was born, but she kept it carefully hidden from her friends and never let it spill over onto those she cared about.
So we were safe, technically.
But I was still deeply worried.
I looked back at the field just in ti to see Clay move first.
She almost disappeared from sight due to her explosive speed, her violet hair whipping behind her like a cot tail, then she reappeared an instant later directly behind one of the female-looking Children from the group.
Her small hand flexed, glowing purple veins pulsing brightly along her arm as the massive spiked club ca down in a brutal overhead downfall.
GBAAAM!
The impact rang out like a heavy boulder falling from a tower. The club connected solidly... Yes, but it shattered imdiately upon contact.
Shards of dark wood and twisted iron flew outward in a spray of splinters.
Yikes.
Those guys’ skin looked like flowing mud from a distance—grey and kinda wet, constantly shifting—but it seed to be quite sturdy after all, far tougher than it appeared, at least.
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