A moment later,
"Hello there, Mr. Cultist. How are you doing, Sir?" Aeron called out with a grin as he casually strolled toward the cultist.
"How dare you return here, you filthy child?" The cultist's voice dripped with venom, his eyes narrowing in confusion at Aeron's uncharacted entry.
"Hey now, wasn't I a good boy?" Aeron smiled wider, almost taunting him.
"All who came from the other world must die!" the cultist snarled, his anger intensifying.
"Why do you hate us? Is there any particular reason?" Aeron asked, his expression serious now as he sought answers.
"Duck!" a voice echoed in Aeron's head. Without hesitation, he activated his slow-motion power, ducking just in time to avoid a fatal blow aimed at his head. A shadowy figure loomed behind him.
"Hey, I just wanted to talk," Aeron said coolly, looking the cultist dead in the eye.
"You don't see it, do you?" The cultist spat, his voice trembling with rage. "Your kind... your world... it's poisoning everything! You think you can just come here, traipsing into our land like it's your playground, like you have a right to be here!"
He stepped closer, his scarred face twisting with fury, pointing at Aeron with a shaking hand.
"Keep your guard up," the voice warned in Aeron's mind again.
Aeron drew his gun with his right hand and gripped a knife in his left, prepared for whatever came next.
"Look around you, outsider!" The cultist's voice turned manic as he gestured wildly. "The trees, the rivers, the very ground beneath your feet—they're all suffering because of you! Ever since your people crawled through that cursed portal, this land has been dying! The animals… they're withering away! The air grows foul, the water tainted… everything I once knew, everything that was pure and sacred, is rotting because of your foul presence!"
His voice softened, almost deranged, as he shook his head in twisted pity. "And you don't even realize it, do you? You invaders think you're here to help, to explore, to conquer—like everything in this world is just another frontier for you to claim. But all you bring is destruction. Corruption follows in your footsteps like a shadow! The moment your kind set foot here, the balance was shattered. The natural order, the harmony of life—it all began to crumble!"
"Two enemies at 4 o'clock and 8 o'clock," the voice whispered urgently.
"Got it." Aeron rolled swiftly to a safer distance, activating his power again. He fired two shots, but the bullets sailed right through the shadowy figures.
"Just like you said, they're immune to physical contact," the voice said.
"But we have a solution, right, Miley?" Aeron asked with a sly smirk.
"In the name of light, I call the dawn, Through shadow's veil, be thou withdrawn. Darkness creeping, take thy flight, Return to nothing, banished by light. By flame, by star, by sun's decree, Let shadow fall, and set us free!"
As Miley finished reciting the spell, a brilliant light erupted from the sky, flooding the area and banishing all the shadow figures in an instant.
Aeron recalled the moment he regained consciousness from the blow from the shadowy figure. He had noticed Miley's eyelids twitch, just barely. The faintest flicker of movement beneath them betrayed her act—she had been pretending to be unconscious.
"So that was your plan to defeat those shadow figures? Not to mention, she was faking it the whole time," the voice in Aeron's head remarked. "Nice thinking."
"Now, only these two remain," Aeron said, focusing back on the cultist and his eerie companion.
"For your information, we came here to help you from the Demon King. And these ecological disasters? That's not our doing. We brought guns, but nothing more," Aeron shouted, his voice rising with frustration.
"Do you think mere humans like you can defeat the Demon King?" the cultist growled, his eyes blazing with fury. "And as for the other talk, what about your people taking our resources?"
Aeron's confidence faltered as the weight of the cultist's words hit him. He looked down, deep in thought. Were they really to blame?
"Move to your right, quick!" the voice urged desperately.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Aeron tried to dodge, but it was too late—an invisible blow struck him, sending him stumbling.
"Sorry, my bad," Aeron muttered, struggling to his feet.
Miley launched a fireball at the cultist, but the strange boy leapt in front, deflecting it effortlessly. The fireball crashed into a nearby tree, setting it ablaze.
"Look at what you're doing!" the cultist shouted, glaring at Aeron. "See the destruction you bring?"
"And you?" Aeron shot back, "What about you killing those innocent cadets?"
"They're still alive. But not for long," the cultist replied coldly.
"Something feels wrong," the voice said in Aeron's head.
"I feel it too," Aeron whispered, eyes darting around.
"Jump to the right!" the voice commanded, and Aeron obeyed, narrowly avoiding another invisible strike.
The strange boy charged at Aeron with a knife. "Die!" he screamed, his voice filled with malice.
Aeron blocked the attack with his gun, slamming the butt of his knife into the boy's chest. With a powerful kick, Aeron sent the boy flying a few feet away.
"There's another one coming from your left," the voice warned.
"How many of them do I have to dodge?" Aeron growled through gritted teeth.
"Then kill the cultist first," the voice replied calmly.
"But this boy is a pain!" Aeron countered, frustration creeping into his tone.
Scanning for the boy, Aeron noticed he had vanished. "Where did he go?" he asked aloud.
"Behind you!" the voice echoed in slow motion as Aeron's power activated instinctively. Time slowed as he grabbed the boy's hand mid-swing, throwing him to the ground with force.
"That was quick," the voice remarked, impressed.
The cultist suddenly realized something was wrong. He turned to Miley, noticing her chanting a spell.
"Oh no, he's noticed," the voice in Aeron's head sounded worried.
The cultist charged toward Miley, but a sudden burst of gunfire erupted from the forest's shadows. "I'll keep him busy!" Kael shouted, firing relentlessly at the cultist, though his bullets did no harm.
"... and be free from all the curse upon you," Miley finished her spell. A misty smoke rose from the cultist's body as his strength visibly drained. Seizing the opportunity, Aeron rushed forward and struck the cultist's head, knocking him unconscious.
"That was awesome!" The voice—revealed to be Mihon—called from a tall tree branch where he had been hidden. He leapt down with a grin.
Miley screamed in surprise. "Don't worry, he's human. Just a little... unhinged," Kael said calmly.
"Hey, man, that's not cool!" Mihon protested with mock offense.
"By the way, Aeron, using my senses with your reflexes? Brilliant plan," Mihon said excitedly.
"That's nothing—" Aeron began, but Mihon's face suddenly turned serious.
"Everyone, draw your weapons. We've got a problem," Mihon said, his voice low.
They looked around, realizing they were surrounded by hundreds of Shadowfangs.
"Is that the Queen Shadowfang you mentioned earlier?" Aeron asked, gripping his gun tightly.
"Yes," Mihon nodded gravely. "And it's the most dangerous one. The one that can't see."