"Leave!"
The Power of the Link of Loyalty was fully unleashed the moment Michael's command rang through his subjects' ears. Following that, the Golden Stinger Wasp and the two Greater Eagles began to move at once.
The Elemental Empress created a small portal for the Golden Stinger Wasp, which stung the Greater Eagles before disappearing through the portal. In the next few seconds, Icarus and his mate disappeared. They were replaced by the Golden Stinger Wasp that was about to continue stinging the remaining people when Mika groaned loudly.
The Power of the Links of Loyalty couldn't be underestimated. They forced Tiara and the EmeraldLeaf Adventurer team to listen to Michael's command even though they didn't want to.
Mika was the first to approach the Golden Stinger Wasp with a beet-red face. He was trying his utmost to resist against Michael's order but that was easier said than done.
"Even if you want to fight alone, wouldn't it be better if we help you? Let us fight a little bit from a distance and leave once the danger level reaches a high-risk threshold?" Mika asked through his gritted teeth.
He was visibly struggling, but Michael ignored the Forest Elf.
Leaving the Kitsun Lord on his own after causing this much damage would lead to a worse reaction. Furthermore, Michael didn't want to give the Kitsun any more time. They ought to cease to exist in the Savannah region and the Untamed Jungle. Every second of their continued existence made Michael feel restless and angry.
"That sounds like a good idea, but I cannot protect everyone from these invisible bullets. In fact, there might be other long-range attacks that I cannot protect you from as well. It's already hard enough to ensure my safety. I really don't want any of you to die!" Michael answered, his voice cracking a bit at the last line.
He knew that his subjects thought of his approach as risky and suicidal. However, Michael had a plan. The Kitsun Lord could be better prepared this time, but that was given. All fights of life and death held a certain risk.
No risk, no fun.
But the others didn't have to take the same risk. It was not necessary for them to jump straight into the Lion's Lair. He carried the responsibility, so he ought to jump into the pit of fire alone.
"No. We won't leave," Lilcia announced, suppressing the power of the Link of Loyalty with sheer willpower.
Using her willpower to fight against the Link of Loyalty was tiresome, and not a permanent solution. The moment her willpower was used up, Lilica would naturally follow the command she'd been given.
"If you force us to leave, we will break our Links of Loyalty with you and stay here, either way. So, how about you accept your fate and let us fight alongside you?" Lilica shouted, reminding Michael of the special clauses that had been added to the Links of Loyalty of the EmeraldLeaf Adventurer team.
The conditions to break their Links of Loyalty with Michael could be fulfilled at this moment. Breaking the Links of Loyalty by force was impossible for subjects with a firm Link of Loyalty. Even those with a weak Link of Loyalty could hardly break it without dying due to the backlash. Breaking a Link of Loyalty was the same as committing suicide. It was simply not worth it and unheard of.
However, the special conditions of the Forest Elves' Links of Loyalty would suppress the backlash. They had the right to break their Links of Loyalty.
Michael's eyes furrowed deeply as he looked at the members of the EmeraldLeaf Adventurer team. His gaze moved to Tiara, who struggled the most against Michael's command.
Her Link of Loyalty with Michael had reached perfection. Tiara trusted Michael wholeheartedly, and she would do everything he wanted her to do, no matter what it was. Her loyalty and trust resulted in a strengthened Link of Loyalty; a Perfect Link of Loyalty.
Having a Perfect Link of Loyalty with Michael, Tiara couldn't disobey his commands anymore. Yet, here she was, struggling to stay by Michael's side even after she heard his command. Blood trickled out of her nose and her eyes were bloodshot too.
'Are they serious? Why can't they listen to me right now? I am just worried about their well-being!'
Michael sighed heavily. He didn't want to cancel his command, but he still waved his hand nonetheless. It was hard to witness their pained expressions knowing that he was the cause of their pain.
"Ignore my last command. I take it back…"
The moment he said that, Mika slumped to the ground, breathing heavily. He stared at his colleagues and forced a smile on his face. After giving Lilcia a thumbs-up for recalling the special clauses of their Links of Loyalty, Mika got up from the ground again.
He saw that the gates to the settlement were pulled down. Rows of dozens of Kitsun Guards moved through the gates simultaneously. They moved in formation and were heading to Michael's position. It wouldn't take long until they reached Michael and the rest.
"But you have to retreat when I tell you to leave. I have a plan…well, somewhat like a plan," Michael said, the corner of his lips curling upward.
It was annoying that Tiara and the Forest Elves didn't want to listen to him, but it warmed his heart as well. The Forest Elves and Tiara didn't owe him their lives, yet they were willing to take the risk to fight by his side. How could Michael not be grateful?
It felt great to have people around you, especially those who genuinely care about you.
"As long as the Golden Stinger Wasp has marked us we will be fine. We will leave once the situation gets too tricky. Trust me, we don't really want to die today," Lilica joked lightly, glad that Michael accepted their decision.
It might be easier if they broke their Links of Loyalty with Michael right here. That way, they could leave Michael whenever they wanted to. However, no member of the EmeraldLeaf Adventurer team wanted to leave Michael.
Lilcia turned serious and added, "You should also leave once you realize that you cannot handle it anymore. I know you're powerful and that you can handle your energy and stamina well with Extraction, but there are many Tier-3 Kitsun. The Kitsun Lord should be at the Peak of Tier-3 already as well!"
Michael nodded toward Lilica subtly. Then he summoned Zark and condensed an energy arrow. Activating Eagle Eyes, Michael readied the bow, pulled back and shot the arrow at the gate.
He was not sure how strong the sniper was, but watching the Kitsun sniper condense two black blazing bullets was enough to collect some details. First, Michael found out that the sniper consumed his lifeforce to create the black blazing bullets. This drained his mental power gradually as well.
With the consumption of his lifeforce, the black blazing bullet would continue to grow stronger. This resulted in the creation of enough force to kill most powerful enemies before they even realized that they had been targeted. The only downside of this kind of attack was that the backlash paralyzed the Kitsun Sniper for a few seconds after the bullet was released.
The third black blazing bullet was released, and Michael reacted naturally to it. He manifested a Glacicle in front of Liopham, who was the target of the bullet and released the energy arrow. The black blazing bullet shattered the Glacicle, but it gave Liopham enough time to use Swiftness to move a few centimeters to the side.
The bullet didn't hit Liopham. It narrowly missed him and impacted heavily on the ground next to him. The crater created through the explosion of the bullet affected Liopham a little, but other than searing heat and some dirt hitting him in the side nothing major happened.
Meanwhile, the sniper received the backlash. He couldn't move for a few seconds, which was perfect for Michael, Lilica, and Mika who had moved near-simultaneously to eliminate the snipe.
A yellow barrier manifested around the unmoving sniper when Michael's energy arrow was about to eliminate the sniper. The energy arrow dispersed after leaving a small mark on the barrier. The next arrow to hit was Mika's. Like before, the yellow barrier ought to block the arrow.
However, Mika's arrow was reinforced through Pierce. The arrow shattered the damaged barrier and hit the sniper alongside Lilica's arrow. The arrows dug deep into the sniper's chest and throat, eliminating one of the most annoying threats.
Mika turned to Opars in the next second. He didn't say anything to his colleague, but Opars knew exactly what was going on.
"Let's do three barrages. After that…I won't be able to continue fighting anymore…" Opars said, ignoring that his stamina had already hit rock bottom. Since they wanted to stay by Michael's side to fight, he might as well give his all and collapse before the Golden Stinger Wasp moved him out of the danger zone by bringing him to the two Greater Eagles.
"In that case, I'll give my best. I shall go beyond my limit and knock myself out!" Mika said, a tinge of excitement in his voice as he retrieved a bunch of vials from his storage space.
"But all I need is a single try, so you should give me your all right off the bat, Opars!!"
He consumed the content of the vials without hesitation before he retrieved an arrow that looked similar to Pieckers. However, it was not quite the same.
Lilica and the others looked at Mika a little surprised, but they smiled in the next second.
"It looks like Mika took a liking to you," Lilica said to Michael, who didn't quite understand what was going on.
"This arrow belonged to Mika's father, who got a handful of them from his grandfather. He had the same Soultrait as Mika. Precisely, everyone in Mika's family had the same Soultrait, and these arrows are their family heirloom. They amplify the Duplicated Arrow Soultrait or something like that. We're actually not sure what they can do. Nobody in Mika's family used their heirlooms in the last 300 years," Opars said, curious about the power of Mika's family heirloom, yet also unsure what to think about Mika's action.
"Don't sweat it. I still owe you a big one for telling the Lionheart about your fault. Being drunk is no excuse. I shall repay my debt with interest. I am a man of my word!" Mika said, smiling at Michael before he nocked the arrow on his Bow Artifact.
"Furthermore, my dad said that I should make use of these old things. I shouldn't be as stupid as he and his ancestors had been for not using their heirlooms when they needed it the most," Mika added, unable to contain his vibrant smile anymore.
"Last but not the least…I've always wanted to see how powerful these arrows truly are. I was just waiting for this opportunity!!"
