The pair of eyes gazing out from between the gap shifted. After having stopped on Eugene for a few seconds, the eyes turned to look at the rest of the people there. Then the eyes stopped once more on Kristina.

Eugene’s instinctive response to this unexpected appearance was to think, ‘What the hell is this?’

He had only met those eyes for a few moments, but Eugene could still feel a chill running down his spine.

Unconsciously, Eugene took a step forward. Even though that was all he had done, the prickling sensation coming from his skin in response to that movement was the first sign of the threat lying in front of him.

He sensed a terrifyingly sinister dark power coming from those eyes. So he was sure that this person was involved with black magic, but there was something else familiar about it.

Right at that moment, the pillar of soil that had risen up from the ground suddenly shattered apart as something leaped out from inside.

The explosion threw Eugene off guard for a few moments. No, rather than throwing him off guard — Eugene had actually been overwhelmed by the pressure, even if it was only for a few seconds.

Was it due to the figure’s strength? No, it wasn’t anything like that. Instead, what had overwhelmed Eugene was the figure’s terrible hatred and killing intent. This hatred and killing intent were so intense it felt like it wouldn’t stop even after killing everyone in this world, and it shot past Eugene before rushing at Kristina.

Kristina was neither a knight nor a warrior. Having been personally instructed by Raphael, she did possess a certain level of combat capability, but her role as a cleric meant she was someone who assisted the knights and the warriors from the rear. However, the truth was, even if she had been an exceptional knight or a warrior, she still wouldn’t have been able to react in time to this situation she was faced with.

Struck by a tide of bewilderment and distress, Kristina’s body was frozen stiff.

It wasn’t just Kristina. Even Anise, who also shared her body, was astonished and at a loss when she saw the same thing as Kristina.

The rage and killing intent of the figure were directed at Kristina’s neck. Its hand, which was swung like a blade, was about to tear out Kristina’s throat, but just then, Eugene barely managed to intervene.

Clang!

The collision took place right in front of Kristina. Instead of pulling Kristina...