The clash between the two blades generated a unidirectional shockwave, destabilizing Lilith and sending her body flying backward.
".....?!"
Mid-air, Lilith twisted her body to regain her balance before landing smoothly. She had never expected her rapier to be struck with such precision by her opponent's sword.
She looked up, clearly seeing Nathan standing right in front of Dimsk, wielding a longsword.
The creature was protecting its master. Attacking head-on would be asking for trouble; to press the issue now would be nothing more than recklessness on Lilith's part.
"Tch..."
Lilith needed to find a way to advance again and reclaim the Blades of Mirage, which were now within the creature's grasp. However, she was stunned to see that the Blades of Mirage showed absolutely no reaction.
(Why aren't the Blades of Mirage reacting at all...? It's just like what happened when Lord Infori touched the artifact back in Storm Queen City...)
Behind the creature mimicking Nathan's form, Dimsk clutched the artifact he had long coveted. A faint smile began to spread across his face.
Knowing this was his ultimate goal, he could not hide his elation. Now, all that remained was to hand it over to the person who had desired it for so long.
"Finally..." he whispered. Yet, the soft murmur was still audible to both Flynn and Lilith.
A few meters away, Flynn could only stand there, stunned by the scene.
However, his stupor was broken by a sudden 'beep' from the inner pocket of his coat; a small sphere was blinking, emitting a blue light from within.
The object flickered on and off intermittently.
"..."
Flynn retrieved the object from his black coat pocket. Even after being taken out, it continued to blink and emit a repetitive 'beep'. "Knightley Road..." Flynn said softly.
Then, Flynn closed his eyes. He tried to focus on the energy emanating from Knightley Road.
Flynn absorbed the magical energy—a force that could be sensed but not seen—drawing it into his body before releasing it back toward the orb at Knightley Road.
The orb synchronized with Flynn's body and began to glow with a brilliant blue light.
A beam of light radiated from the orb, becoming visible to the naked eye. It formed words in the air, hovering weightlessly, defying gravity.
(Headquarters...? At a critical moment like this...)
The message read:
— Captain Flynn Deschain, we apologize for the intrusion... We do not know your current location, but... We need your help... The headquarters in Storm Queen City has been breached by an unknown intruder...! —
Flynn's eyes widened as he read it; his body trembled briefly. It seemed the situation was far more critical than it had initially appeared. "What?!" he exclaimed in shock. (Headquarters has been... breached?!)
Nathan, standing right behind him, asked, "What is it?" As he spoke, he helped Iris—who had regained consciousness—back to her feet.
"The Knightley Queen headquarters in Storm Queen City... has been breached," Flynn replied, without turning around.
"What...?!"
Dimsk, overhearing their conversation, fell into thought; he wondered if the plan had already been set in motion, given the sudden news of the breach at the Knightley Queen office in Storm Queen City.
(Has... the plan already begun?) Dimsk took this as his answer; a sharp, high-pitched sound escaped his lips. He let out a quick breath—"Heh..."—a sound that drew the attention of Flynn, Lilith, Nathan, and Iris.
They stared at Dimsk in confusion.
"...."
"In that case, my task here is done..." Dimsk said softly.
"Huh?" Flynn was bewildered.
But Dimsk immediately spoke to him. His elation was still evident; in fact, he seemed even more delighted than before. Whatever had happened, one thing was certain: something terrible had occurred without them realizing it.
"It was a pleasure meeting you, Flynn Deschain. I hope we can meet and talk again, but unfortunately... I have to leave now."
The body of the void-creature he had created began to fade; the void that formed its shape slowly transformed into energy, flowing back into Dimsk's own body.
"What are you going to do now...?" Flynn asked, his voice firm. "Was this all your doing...?"
He answered honestly, yet somehow, it came across as a subtle taunt directed at his enemy.
"I didn't do anything. As you can see, I've just been standing here facing all of you. I hardly think I'd be the type to break into the Knightley Queen office in Storm Queen City; your security is far too tight for that."
"....."
"You don't need to worry about me now. I've already got what I wanted—something I sought to take from the hands of the man lying right there."
"Why would you do something like that? What did you do to Infori?!"
"I simply asked him to hand over the Blades of Mirage peacefully, but things turned out not to be quite that simple," he replied, gazing at the face of the unconscious Infori. "That is precisely why I did what I did."
Flynn turned his gaze toward his friend as well. There was a complex mix of emotions in his gaze, but he quickly looked away. He fixed a sharp stare back at the figure before him. His jaw tightened, and his hands clenched into fists.
"...."
No words were spoken. Only a wary, alert gaze remained, signaling his readiness to face whatever might come next.
Dimsk spoke again. "As I said, you need not concern yourself with me anymore. And you must return to your office in the city immediately."
"Why?"
"If you don't, something terrible will happen," he replied swiftly. "You need to look to the future now. The chaos between Nephilim like yourself and the Overworld..."
Flynn's hands clenched tighter; he strengthened his grip on the hilt of his claymore, Exceed The Storm.
He pushed off the ground, his body surging forward with the massive blade in hand, swinging it with tremendous force.
The blade arced rapidly from above, but just before it could strike, the figure unleashed a burst of magical energy from his palm.
Without warning, a striking dark blue circle appeared—blending subtly with the forest's gloom—with spiraling energy currents converging toward its center. Dimsk stepped into it, taking his Blades of Mirage with him and evading the attack.
"Huh...?!"
His enemy had vanished from sight, leaving them alone in the depths of the forest, far from the city center.
Flynn came to a halt, still stunned by the sight of someone capable of manipulating the void and opening portals at will. He released his grip on Exceed The Storm, causing the massive sword to dissipate.
"Vanished..." Lilith whispered.
Despite their shock, it seemed the trouble was far from over. Regaining his focus, Flynn picked up the longsword lying nearby, then lifted the Infori's body to carry it on his back.
Seeing that, Nathan asked.
"What are we going to do now?"
"We need to get to the city immediately. If not... something bad might happen."