Running through a dark and eerie forest, the figure of a young and slender man in his early twenties ran through the grass, his footsteps almost inaudible to anything inhabiting the place.
The moon shined brightly over the sky, illuminating his shiny black armor, and his long and white hair. Wearing a mask, the man hides his identity, although by looking at the wolf-like ears over the top of his head, it was clear that he was a Wolf Beastmen.
Hiding beneath the mask there was a flawless and handsome face, with shining blue eyes, gleaming through the night, and guiding the young man through the night.
"Hey, you there!"
"Catch the traitor!"
"Don't leave it run away!"
"We must punish him for his heresy!"
"He shall become Geggoron-sama sacrifice!"
The man was being followed by a group of different canine-type beastmen. Werefox, Hyena, Coyote, and even other Wolves.
"Tch! Stop your foolishness! Geggoron is not the god that we should praise, that is Marnet-sama! I won't kneel before a demon, never!" shouted the man, unfolding his long and black blade and confronting his persecutors.
Flash!
From the shadows, the slim figure of a Werefox appeared, however, it was not an enemy. Her long and azure hair waved through the cold breeze of the night, and her aquamarine eyes gleamed with a fierce conviction. Her body was slim and flawless, with slightly wide hips and a generous pair of breasts, tightly saved beneath her kimono-like attire. The azure-colored tail of a fox popped out from beneath her dress, as she also had fox ears over the top of her head.
"Eifert, I have managed to catch up with you… let us confront these insane cultists and let's make haste towards Moonfang!" she said.
"Haruko-san… Thank god you're in fine condition…" muttered the man, Eifert, the 'Eclipse Blade Werewolf Paladin' of the Sunclaw Kingdom.
Haruko, the azure-colored Werefox was the 'Sun Blade Werefox Samurai', a beauty amongst beauties in the Sunclaw Kingdom, who used her talents and strength to protect her people.
Both of them had been caught in Geggoron's schemes, their other two allies, the 'Sacred Light White Wolf Swordsman' and the 'Corrosive Poison Sword Hyena Knightess' were brainwashed by Geggoron's cultists and made into loyal pawns.
Eifert and Haruko were late to understand what was truly happening beneath the scene in the Sunclaw Kingdom and were caught in a trap made by their own allies. Managing to escape in time, deciding to go to the Moonfang Kingdom to alert the people about what was happening in Sunclaw…
Of course, they were unaware that in Moonfang, things were even worse.
"Here they come!" shouted Haruko, taking into a stance with her long katana, engulfed in azure flames.
"You're committing HERESY for not obeying our Master, Geggoron-sama! Our one and only god! You shall become the nourishment for his strength and that of his children! Die!" shouted a figure coming from within the shadows, a large Coyote Beastmen wearing dark, and thin leather clothes, resembling the attire of a ninja, and wielding two long daggers coated in deadly poison.
"Not so fast, pest! Azure Sun Blaze Blade Technique; Lotus Blossom!" shouted Haruko, as her katana waved and moved majestically, creating the illusion of a blue lotus flower blossoming.
"Hah! What with that pesky show?! You're nothing but- GYAAAAH!"
Slash! Slash!
The Coyote Beastmen had his two long arms suddenly sliced off his body, blood pumping like a river from his two large wounds, where the bone could be seen perfectly cut without any cracks at all, revealing the scarlet bone marrow.
"What?! Didn't we were told that she was not much? Wasn't she the weakest amongst the four?!" shouted a Hyena Beastmen, bewildered.
"No matter how good of a sword master she is, she cannot fight back against Geggoron's sama magic! Nightmare Blaze!" shouted a Wolf Beastmen, wearing an artifact in the form of a pendant given by Geggoron, which gave him the ability to cast a few Nightmare Magic Spells.
Dark-colored blazing flames flew towards Haruko with incredible speed, resembling an evil specter ready to devour her every self.
"Your pesky magic cannot fight against my blade! Eclipse Blade Technique; Light and Darkness Ballade!" shouted Eifert, as he moved rhythmically with his blade, as if he were dancing, light and darkness converged from within his blade, showing a beautiful spectacle of amazing magic and technique mastery!
SLASH!
A single slash was released from Eifert's blade as it rushed through the night, destroying the dark nightmare flames, and reaching the Wolf Beastmen that conjured it, slicing him in half in a quarter of a second!
"Gyaaaaah!"
"I don't want to kill any of my citizens anymore, go away!" shouted Eifert.
"How dare you look down on us?! For Geggoron-sama, we will do anything!" shouted the Hyena Beastmen, rushing towards Eifert and Haruko with his heavy battle-ax while enhancing his capabilities with several artifacts, and releasing a barrage of techniques to crush his enemies!
"Die! Charge! Execution Slash! Blaze Cut!"
"Sigh…" said Haruko, as she moved her blade majestically, the blossoming of the lotus changed into a caressing breeze.
Slash!
"Gueeh…?!"
The Hyena beastmen body was divided into several sections, each one falling down the ground, alongside a large pool of blood.
Three more beastmen were wearing ninja-like clothes present there, glancing at the pair of beautiful blade masters with eyes wide open.
"D-Don't falter! Kill them!"
"F-For Geggoron-sama!"
"May Geggoron-sama bless our souls, even after death!"
"Wait you fools!" shouted Eifert.
"Eifert… it's useless. They have been completely brainwashed. There is only one way out for them now" said Haruko.
Slash! Slash!
"Guuuaaaaahh…!"
"Buggyaaa…!"
"Giiiiiiiii…!"
The two bared their blades and released a series of slashes and techniques, as their persecutors finally died, sliced into pieces.
Their blades stained in the blood of their people, the two glanced at the corpses with remorse.
"Was there… not any other way?" wondered Eifert.
"Don't be foolish, Eifert. That demonic god had seeped his claws deep within our people… the only thing we can hope to do now is to go to our neighbor Kingdom and ask for their assistance… perhaps, if we can communicate with their goddess…" muttered Haruko.
"Maeralya, the sister of our god and founding father, Marnet… is it even possible that they could help us? They had not communicated with us for centuries… I feel like they had forgotten about their children… it is normal. We are mere mortals, while they are gods among the heavens… how could they even see us as something valuable at all?" said Eifert.
Haruko patted Eifert's shoulder.
"Don't lose hope. We are their children… even if they have not communicated with us in centuries, it only means that they wanted to leave us to prosper by ourselves, using what they had given to us" said Haruko.
"Do you think so, Haruko? Do you think there is even some hope?" asked Eifert.
"There must be. Without hope, how could we be attached to our lives? Without hope, everything would be pointless. If you do not want to have any more hope, sit there, and die. I will continue by myself" said Haruko. She had to be harsh with the young wolf beastmen, or he could only fall into more despair.
"I… no! I will go as well… If I just lose hope, then I would be falling into that demon hands! Never… Let us go, Haruko" said Eifert.
Haruko released a mild smile on her flawless and beautiful face.
"Good," she said.
The two knights that once protected the Sunclaw Kingdom rushed through the night, their figures slowly dissipating through the shrouding darkness.
Meanwhile, in the outskirts of the Moonfang Kingdom, Mohini, the Living Deity of Desert Cat Beastmen wandered through the wild, deep within the dark of the night.
Geggoron, who was glancing at her through the clones he had spread around the sky, smiled.
"Little kitten… you shouldn't be playing around at this hour… strong and fiercer beast may appear" he muttered, with a smirk on his formless, dark cloud-like body.
Mohini walked barefoot through the forest, she had just saved a village earlier from a werewolf attack and was feeling happy to have 'made a difference'… although she only let them there afterward instead of trying to lead them to a safe place. This only resulted in that person being attacked by another group of bandits, this time monster tamers, that almost caused the end of the weakened villagers who did not have anywhere to run away to.
If it were not for Kireina that had saved them, they would have most likely died, without Mohini realizing this…
Mohini was good-hearted, but perhaps, too naïve. She wanted to help others, but never considered anything long-term. She was almost incapable of seeing the entire picture of things. If she were, she would not have foolishly healed the cat beastmen and then left them to die to whatever appeared afterward.
She was a bit selfish to think that nothing else could happen to them anymore if she were to save them for some danger. If you saved weak people and did not help them to grow strong and not be weak anymore, they would be sooner or later face danger once again.
Mohini knew more or less the geography of the Moonfang Kingdom, she was now venturing through the 'dark and vast forest' that made most of the outskirts of Moonfang, which were surrounded by such forests alongside the plentiful of farming villages.
Before Geggoron appeared, explorers and knights would constantly patrol the small and divided forests and villages, cleaning the monsters that would appear and ensuring the safety of the villagers that produced a large amount of the food that the Kingdom needed.
However, now that those knights and explorers were called as troops for Geggoron's cultists, the forest had become wilder places, filled to the brim with deadly monsters.
Mohini of course was a Living Deity, her presence was strong and pressuring, simple monsters would not dare to approach her… but other beings lurked around, watching her.
As Mohini ran through the forest, a voice stopped her from continuing.
"Are you Mohini? Daughter of the Goddess Maeralya?" asked the voice of a mature woman.
"Ah! H-How do you know my name?!" shouted Mohini.
"So you are… I can't believe that you are the children of a Goddess, you're really such a foolish girl" said the woman.
"You must be one of Geggoron's pawns! Show yourself!" shouted Mohini, as she covered herself into the bright yellow light of her divinity, readying herself for battle.
"Mind your manners, you are disgusting bitch! Do not dare call our grandiose and benevolent master without any respect! It is Geggoron-sama! You damned bastardly woman!" shouted the mature woman, showing herself.
A beautiful and voluptuous woman, with charcoal-colored skin and scarlet eyes. Her face had the beauty of an exotic maiden, and her hands had paws covered in dark fur and long, white claws. A long black tail appeared from beneath her back, and two panther ears popped from the top of her head. She had wide hips and revealing clothes, and long, dark hair, covering part of her eyes, which gleamed devilishly.
"You are… Ah! Nari… one of Moonfang's three guardians…? Your presence… what have they done to you, my child?! Geggoron has brainwashed you?!" shouted Mohini, bewildered.
"Shut up! Do not talk so lightly of my beloved master, you scum! I have not been brainwashed; I have been enlightened by his guidance! You will become his nourishment!" she shouted, shrouding herself in nightmarish flames as she commanded her troops to attack Mohini, each one of them was a Black Panther Beastmen and was wearing one of Geggoron's artifacts.
"Don't worry, I will save you!" shouted Mohini, brazing her claws and fighting the group of Black Panthers that surrounded her.
She extended her Life, Earth, and Light Attribute Domain through her surroundings, illuminating the cold and dark night. The moment her enemies glanced at the light, they were blinded for a moment, as they felt all of their stats decrease.
"W-What is this light?!"
"My stats decreased… I can't see either!"
"Shining Life Light!" shouted Mohini, firing rays of yellow light and piercing her foes limbs so they could not move anymore.
"Gyaaah!"
"Guaah…!"
"She's not attacking us to kill… but to immobilize us? Such a foolish woman!" shouted a Black Panther as she approached Mohini and activated one of his artifacts, releasing black clouds that completely shrouded him into them, increasing his capabilities.
"Take this, you heretic!" shouted the man, using his gauntlets and trying to punch Mohini, only to be stopped by a barrier made out of the same light she was capable of controlling.
"It is useless, no matter what artifacts does the demon gives to you. You cannot go against the power of a Living Deity, my mortal children. Please, stop this pointless struggle…" muttered Mohini, as she immobilized more of her assailants.
"Not even Geggoron-sama Nightmare magic works?!" shouted another Black Panther, as she saw his allies be easily defeated by Mohini without her breaking a sweat.
However, Nari, laughed, showing her sharp teeth as her scarlet eyes shined brightly through the darkness of the night.
"It doesn't matter if it doesn't work! Give up your lives, use everything you have! We are not fighting to overpower her, but to tire her down!" she shouted, as the Black Panther realized their mission's purpose and activated the small artifacts implanted in their hearts.
"This is… for Geggoron-sama!"
"We will give our lives!"
"Succumb to Geggoron-sama, you heretic woman!"
"We will go down if that might make a difference!"
"Ah! Wait, no!" shouted Mohini
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Mohini was late to respond to their actions, as the artifacts inside the hearts of the Black Panther that she had only immobilized by attacking their limbs released a powerful wave of mana and Divine Energy, exploding with immense energy, creating a black cloud and setting the whole forest in a fire, engulfed in the dark, nightmarish blaze…
Mohini glanced as her children sacrificed their own lives for the sake of a despicable demon god that had only played with their lives as if they were mere pawns… the explosions were ferocious, imbued with Geggoron's Divine Energy. Mohini had to cover her entire body with her Divine Barrier.
