Aura's brain was spinning fast. While Nanoda was entangled with the Demon General, it seemed she might find a chance to escape.
However, Hafleet was staring right at her. Crap, does he know me? I don't know him! Look at the arrogant guy in front of me instead! Aura felt a bit awkward inside.
"I am the Demon Army General, Hafleet of the Ashes. Is this broken-horned kin your slave? What an impudent fellow. Are you trying to snatch our prey? State your name!"
Hafleet could sense through his mana perception that the broken-horned, white-haired Demon possessed negligible mana. On the contrary, the purple-haired Demon standing behind her emitted a mana that gave him a slight sense of oppression. In terms of mana alone, he couldn't compare to the kin before him, but he wasn't afraid either.
Being stared at by the expressionless Hafleet, Aura felt a bit guilty. Although her mana volume was vast compared to his, he had two subordinates. She habitually relied on the Magic of Obedience; fighting without servants, she wasn't necessarily sure she could win.
She was somewhat afraid and secretly tugged at the hem of Nanoda's clothes.
"Leave now, and no one gets hurt."
Nanoda coolly ignored Hafleet's words, fully displaying the demeanor of a master conversationalist.
"You guys, kill her!"
There was nothing left to discuss. Ordering his two subordinates to kill Nanoda, Hafleet brandished his dual blades and rushed toward Aura.
"Don't come over here!"
Aura prepared to bolt. The Magic of Obedience required Nanoda's permission to use. Facing this Demon General, she decisively gave up on confrontation and chose to play it safe.
"Aura, don't be afraid. I'll show you the magic I thought up on the way here—Severance Magic."
Grabbing the fleeing Aura, Nanoda blocked her path.
The two black Demons raised their long spear and machete respectively, attacking Nanoda from both sides with extreme speed.
Hafleet also took the lead, wielding fireballs and a long blade. However, just as he was about to close in on the enemy, his pupils constricted violently. In an instant, the intuition honed from years of battle told him that death lay ahead.
"Stop, quick!"
Hafleet shouted. He lost all will to fight and stomped his foot hard to retreat backward. But he was still a step too late. Blood sprayed forth; an invisible slash severed the two arms holding his blades.
The other two Demons showed a flicker of emotion on their expressionless faces upon hearing Hafleet's words, but by the time they reacted, they had already been sliced in two at the waist.
"Damn it, what an insidious fellow. To not release it until I was close—is this your magic?"
Having pulled away, Hafleet's severed arms poured blood like broken faucets.
He glared viciously at Aura, who was hiding behind Nanoda.
"Boohoo, why are you glaring at me? I really didn't do it. I just wanted to run away..."
Aura felt very wronged. She hadn't done anything just now. She was terrified; when Nanoda grabbed her, she thought they were going to be chopped into pieces together. Yet, at this moment, Nanoda's hand actually gave her a brimming sense of security.
Since Nanoda only possessed the instinct to mobilize mana and knew absolutely nothing about the formulaic composition of magic—unable to cast even if she knew the basic effects of killing magic—Nanoda simply drew directly upon the surrounding mana. She compressed the mana in one spot to the extreme, triggering a mana collapse; invisibly, both air and space could be severed by it. However, the range of this technique was extremely limited, making it impossible to kill enemies from a thousand miles away.
Boom!
Hafleet's entire body suddenly ignited with flames, transforming him into a man of fire. The usually expressionless Hafleet revealed a rare look of grotesque agony.
"I bet on the name of Hafleet of the Ashes—now, I will give it my all! Either you die, or I die! Finally, state your name for me!"
Seeing Hafleet's desperate stance, Nanoda sighed.
"Behind me is Freebie Aura. I am Nanoda."
"Why 'Freebie'? It's 'Guillotine'!"
Aura poked half her head out from behind Nanoda to whisper her protest.
The response they received was two large fireballs flying at high speed. Nanoda took a step forward, activating Severance Magic. The two fireballs were instantly sliced apart, turning into two clouds of white mist that obscured their vision.
Nanoda braced herself for Hafleet's surprise attack. However, when the white mist cleared...
"Eh? Where is he?"
Hafleet, who had just been spouting fierce words about a fight to the death, had actually fled.
That's right, Hafleet ran away with all his might. Upon seeing that eerie Severance Magic, Hafleet knew he was no match. Dropping two smoke bombs, he fled madly into the distance.
"Ah, I was tricked by him."
Nanoda stamped her small foot, somewhat speechless. She had to admit, the 'fight to the death' vibe was acted out quite well; she almost thought the guy was getting emotional.
"Aura, can you let go first?"
Feeling the impact on her back, she saw Aura's hands wrapped around her waist like a belt. The entire Demon was plastered against Nanoda's back, the two soft mounds of breasts on her chest feeling very soft and bouncy.
"I was scared, wasn't I~"
"Even if you're scared, you can't hang on my back."
"You were the one who wouldn't let me go~"
Nanoda facepalmed. She had never seen such a cowardly Demon. She grabbed Aura's horns and yanked her down forcefully.
"Ouch, ouch, ouch! It's going to break! It's going to break!"
Aura cried out in pain before finally letting go.
The man fallen on the ground: Please look at me, I'm dying here.
Smelling the scent of blood, Nanoda saw the man lying on the ground. In her past life, she had some understanding of human anatomy, and the humans of this other world seemed to be about the same. After a brief examination, she found that although he had been stabbed in the chest, no vital organs were damaged. Aside from being on the verge of excessive blood loss, he seemed saveable. However, she didn't seem to know Healing Magic. Let alone Healing Magic, she didn't have general magical knowledge either.
"The Demons are here! Everyone, don't be afraid! Charge together!"
"Oh god, Timmy's dad has been killed!"
"Damn Demons! Fight them to the end!"
A group of villagers surged to the village entrance holding shovels, pitchforks, and kitchen knives. Leading them was little Timmy, with tear tracks still on his face. They were all refugees from northern villages who had gathered to establish this hidden hamlet. Having already lost so much, upon learning that Demons had come again, they decided to defend this land with their lives. They didn't want to lose any more relatives or friends. This time, they mustered their courage; even if it meant death, they would work together to bite a chunk of flesh off the Demons.
Looking at his unconscious dad lying on the ground, Timmy's tears gushed out uncontrollably.
"Stupid Dad!"
"Charge!"
The villagers raised their weapons and rushed toward Nanoda to kill her.
"Please, wait a moment!"
Just as Nanoda was thinking of bursting her mana to suppress these hot-headed villagers, an elder's shout rang out from the crowd. Everyone stopped one after another, making way for a path.
"Timmy said it should be a red Demon leading black Demons in the attack. If you can communicate, could you explain this to us?"
A highly respected old man walked out slowly leaning on a cane, his bright eyes looking at the expressionless Nanoda.
___
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