~ A Few Minutes Earlier ~
" Everyone, hurry up we need to evacuate immediately. " Miyuki shouted as she began to help the rest of the villagers escape the encirclement through an emergency tunnel they had prepared in the past.
Even though most of the villagers are fighters, most of them are forced to escape. The reason is due to Nekomata's mating season that happened not long ago, so most women are pregnant or have already given birth.
Due to this, Miyuki and her friends, who are the only fighting force of the escape team, have to take on the duty of crowd control. Although they are young and don't have any experience in doing such tasks, desperate situations make people very adaptable.
In no time they all managed to evacuate everyone into the secret tunnels. After that, with a heavy heart, Miyuki blasted the entrance so the army wouldn't be able to pursue them through the tunnels.
This also meant that Miyuki basically cut off the last escape path for the group of elders who are tasked with buying enough time for the rest to escape.
"Let's go," Miyuki commanded as she led everyone through the dark tunnels. Even though they aren't a light source as Yokai, they didn't really need one to see through the darkness.
The journey was a very quiet one. No one was in the mood to have any small talk. Especially when they can hear the faint sound of battle and slaughter from the distance where the tunnel entrance was.
After a few minutes, they reached the end of the tunnel. Seeing this, everyone who had despairing and fearful faces finally had some hope in them.
Seeing everyone's hopeful expressions, Miyuki clenched her fists and thought, 'Did you see, Father? This is all thank you all. We are finally a step away from freedom.' And with determination, Miyuki unlocked the secret door that would let everyone exit the tunnel.
Just as everyone was about to run out, they all froze in their place as fear and despair filled their faces. What came in front of them was not the freedom they thought but the army of devils who were obviously waiting for them with smirks on their faces.
"How? How did you...?" Even Miyuki, who always had her cold expression, muttered in shock as she looked at the army.
"Hehehe, did you really think you kittens could run away from us?" A teasing voice came from the back as the soldiers made way for a middle-aged man to walk forward.
The man had medium-length blonde hair blue eyes and a handsome face that is expected of a being of sin. Unlike the rest of the devils, he wore the attire of an aristocrat. On his back, the crest of the Nebiros house was embroidered with golden color.
This man is the head of the branch family of the Nebiros house where Kuroka was captured. In fact, Kuroka's dead master is this bastard son. In short, he was also the one who is responsible for killing all the Nekomatas in the name of justice in the original timeline.
" Lord Kassius," the soldiers bowed as the man stood in front of them.
Kassius ignored the soldiers as his eyes were on the Nekomata villages, which were now shaking in fear. Seeing the large number of pregnant women, his smile couldn't help but widen. Previously they were wondering whether to capture some breeding studs to breed more experimental subjects, but now it seems that is no longer needed.
After these women gave birth, they could start on the experiments that needed newborn babies as subjects. And after they are done, they could get more research data and perfect their plan to produce artificial super devils that will answer only to them.
And with these accomplishments, he is sure he would get heavily rewarded by the higher-ups. Thinking of the bright future, Kassius couldn't help but let out his greed as he looked at Nekomata women.
" Men capture these kitties and make sure not to be too rough; after all, we will be helping each other for a long time, " Kassius said with an evil grin.
Hearing his words, many of the soldiers had greed and lust overflow from their eyes. Some of them couldn't help but lick their lips in anticipation. You know these Nekomata women are very pretty. Even their unique features make them more attractive to men. Especially for devils who are known to be very lustful.
Seeing the desires of all the devils, Miyuki and the others had chills running down their spines. They knew if they were captured, their fates would be something worse than death.
"Everyone, I will try to hold them. Try to escape as many as you can, " Miyuki said in a low voice as she readied herself. Although she may only be able to hold them for one second, that one second may be enough for even one of them to escape.
Steeling her resolve, Miyuki took a deep breath and began to make preparations. Although she may not come out of this alive, she didn't care. She would like her father to protect everyone with their life on the line.
"Miyuki," the rest of the Nekomatas faces changed as they heard Miyuki's words. Some of them clenched their fists in anger and helplessness. During this short time, they all saw how this little girl tried her best to act as their leader.
Even though she is as anxious as them, this girl tried her best to keep her calm so as not to panic anyone. One could even say they have all been charmed by her charisma. So when they heard she was going to sacrifice her life to buy them another chance to escape, many wanted to argue. But unfortunately, Miyuki didn't give them enough time to voice them as she dashed straight forward.
In a flash, she was in front of Kassius, swinging her dagger at him. If she managed to kill him, then the army would be in chaos, earning her companion enough time to escape. But unfortunately, Kassius isn't a waste like his son.
Before Miyuki's dagger could harm Kassius, it was swiftly blocked by one of the Ultimate class generals who were on standby.
Miyuki clicked her tongue as she knew assassinating Kassius was near impossible now. So she decided on her plan B. And that is to kill as many soldiers as possible. This way she may be able to forcibly make a way for her people.
With this thought in mind, Miyuki began her massacre. Her father always told her that she was born to be an assassin, as she could erase her presence at any time unconsciously. Using this to her advantage,, she began to kill as many low-class devils as she could.
And in just no time, she was able to kill 10 soldiers who were close to her. Unfortunately, her feats made the ultimate class generals make a move by themselves.
Although the death of ten soldiers is nothing with their numbers but with the Neboris family being cornered, Kassius didn't want to lose any more men. This is why he ordered the generals to act by themselves and capture Miyuki. Special talents like her are very suitable for their research.
While the fight went on, others tried their best to escape the soldiers. Although many Nekomata were very weak, they could still throw a spell or two at the soldiers. But unfortunately, with just their numbers, devils crushed any resistance.
Just as everyone was about to sink into despair, a loud scream rang in the entire battlefield.
When everyone looked in the direction the scream came from, they saw that Kassius was now hung on a black cross with various stakes drilled into his body.
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