Souta wasn't the only one that felt it. The other warriors also sensed the intense fluctuations of the energy in the atmosphere.
The aura of the Shackled Realm experts made the earth tremble.
"They are here."
The vibrations in the air were getting stronger every second. The experts weren't hiding their battle intent. They were all ready to fight an all-out battle in the middle of this place.
"There are still civilians around. I don't think they can evacuate before the battle started."
One of the warriors said.
"We can't protect everyone. Protecting the masses while fighting those mad people from Red Matter Association will be hard."
"Focus on the enemy in front of us."
A Squad Leader said with a grave expression.
Chaos spread quickly. People were panicking as they tried to run everywhere. They were helpless as the energy kept surging in every direction.
Thousands of innocent people had already died at the initial clash of the two groups. Even the authorities of the Aekr Republic couldn't stop the events.
"They are coming!"
In the blink of an eye, dozens of people flashed in the air and launched a series of attacks.
Swoosh!
Flames, lightning, light, water, and ice rained down casually destroying the houses.
"Everyone protect yourself!"
Leilus said to his squad members. He raised both of his hands and a mana barrier formed before him.
"Yes, Sir!!"
Marcus, Sekmet, Drami, and the others followed the order of their Squad Leader. They erected a barrier to protect themselves from the attack of the enemies.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Blood was gathering in mid-air as it blocked the spells from the enemies. Some of the blood turned into sharp blades before shooting at incredibly high speed.
Swoosh!!
"It's getting worse."
Souta glanced at the side of the Red Matter. Within the range of his perception, he could sense thousands of people around him.
The people that were running away must be the civilians but the people that were coming in their direction must be from Red Matter.
So using his [Crimson Perception] to sense the enemies, he launched countless blood blades toward them.
Swoosh!
"Tsk! Not enough firepower."
Souta clicked his tongue in disappointment. All the people that he shot within his range were still alive. None of them have died from his counterattack.
'It's really hard to insta-kill a One Shackle Realm with my base power alone.'
He said inwardly. He slightly turned his head and glanced at the warriors behind.
Some of the warriors quickly charged forward after blocking the enemies attacks. They were going to clash at this moment.
No one could stop this clash.
'Should I join them or not?'
Souta sat down. He was on top of a three storey house watching the scene before his eyes leisurely.
The house beneath him was one of the only few untouched houses in the area around him. Most of the houses in the vicinity received damage from the initial attacks of the Red Matter.
"Kill steal should be enough for me. Yep, I'm going to kill steal everyone."
Ten humanoid shadows rose behind him.
[Doppelganger]!
Souta suddenly turned his head at the sky. He saw three figures coming in his direction.
"You chose to fight me..."
The ten shadows quickly jumped to intercept the three figures.
Two men and one woman. The woman was equipped with a long sword while the man was equipped with a pair of daggers and the last one was armed with a round shield and a short sword.
Bang! Bang!
They quickly destroyed four shadows but got entangled with the remaining six shadows.
"Go down!"
Souta pressed his hand down and the gravity on the three people increased hundreds of times. It became heavy as the ground started to form spider-web cracks.
Then, he activated several combat arts and spells to boost his overall strength.
The Second Mode.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
It took the three people ten seconds to defeat the six shadows. Although they were being suppressed by heavy gravity, it didn't hinder them that much from destroying Souta's doppelganger.
Souta charged forward with great battle intent burning in his eyes. The ten shadows that were destroyed suddenly regenerated.
"It will be a hard battle."
Souta laughed as he slashed the vajra sword in his hand.
Swoosh!
The man raised the round shield above his head and blocked the vajra sword.
Clang!
Then, he thrust his short sword forward but Souta was already gone. The figure that appeared in front of his eyes was four shadows.
Swoosh!
[Melting Strike]!
The woman used a very destructive combat arts.
She slashed her sword downwards and the atmosphere boiled. Her slash generated a powerful heat wave that melted several houses. It also destroyed ten shadows at once.
Boom!
"That's close."
Souta muttered as he stared at the woman. The man with a pair of daggers was observing him while the man with a round shield stepped forward projecting a defensive aura.
'As expected... Without any dark enhancing skills, the strength of my doppelgangers couldn't keep up with a serious One Shackle Realm expert.'
He said inwardly while analyzing the strength of the opponents. He couldn't carelessly use his [Element Drive] again.
He just used it in the previous battle in the Fone Kingdom and from the current situation, he knew that this was not the final battle. There were more battles to come so he had to save his aces for more difficult opponents.
The leader of the Red Matter Association hasn't shown his appearance yet.
This was only a trap to cut down the forces of the Third Set.
"I didn't expect a monster to become a warrior of Athena. Are you sure you've joined the right legion?" The woman said mockingly.
"Ehe~ it's too boring to join the legions of those monster lords. They rarely participate in worldly matters. I wouldn't have a chance to fight and kill people like you if I join one." Souta said with a wide grin.
"Then, you've made the wrong choice!!"
The woman said before she charged at him. Her aura burst forth turning into flames.
[Element Drive: Fire Force]!
"Damn! They are getting serious!"
Souta said to himself as he coated the vajra sword with his energy. He swung it diagonally the moment the woman appeared before him.
Swoosh!
The woman also swung her sword and both of their attacks collided causing a powerful vibration in the surrounding area.
The other two men followed the woman to attack Souta.
They wrestled in the mid-air. Using their advantage in numbers, they pressured Souta into taking a defensive style.
Boom!! Boom!! Boom!!
Souta's body was thrown away and penetrated several buildings before finally stopping.
"Ow, fuck! These guys are serious about taking me down!"
Souta said while looking at the ceiling. He stood up and shook his body, causing the dust to fall. The ten shadows regenerated beside him and they quickly disappeared to attack his three opponents.
Black tentacles were wriggling around in a wide area. They were being chopped at high speed leaving no time to regenerate.
'I just want to kill steal yet why did these three want to fight me...'
He complained in his head. Suddenly, he felt something.
Swoosh!
He quickly moved his body and jumped out of the building. In the next moment, the building exploded as a red light flashed.
Boom!
"Oh, damn!"
Souta landed on the floor looking at the three people. His energy was decreasing every second as his opponents were destroying his shadows nonstop.
His shadows couldn't even last for more than five seconds. They were utterly destroyed every time they regenerated.
Bang!
A loud sound echoed from above.
Souta looked up and realized that the loud sound came from the ceiling of this place. Something was happening on the ceiling.
The huge shining crystals that provided lights on every living being here were falling.
"Don't tell me that another one will fall...?" He muttered with a gloomy look.
"Your guess is right. Another boulder will fall here in this nation." The woman said with a smile.
"Hmm..." Souta turned his attention back to her. "I guess this is enough of me."
"Monster, why don't you show your release form to us?" The woman said.
Souta didn't answer her question. Instead, he walked toward her as strings of flesh wrapped around his body.
His appearance had greatly changed. He grew taller and looked more savage.
Boom!
Souta raised the vajra sword as a huge amount of energy surged out of his body.
[Possession]!
"I'm going to finish this as soon as possible."
The man with a round shield didn't even hesitate as he charged at Souta. The man with a pair of daggers and the woman followed behind him. They were ready to support him at any time.
"That's right! Enough talk! Come at me and give me everything that you've got!"
Souta grinned widely as strings of red flesh wriggled on his face. Power gathered on the blade of his sword as he swung it.
[Crimson Moon]!
