And Nyx felt the walls closing in.

She grit her teeth.

"This is bad… If only I had a bit more damned power…" [Telekinesis] still wasn't strong enough to restrain these monsters, and her other spells were not only reliant on cooldowns but also lacked a bit of firepower to cut through these monsters at a rate she would've preferred.

On the other hand, Aria and Bastet had the firepower, but they lacked the defenses to protect themselves.

Nyx's thoughts cut off as three monsters lunged at once.

She caught one with her barrier, redirected the second by a spatial push, but the third…

A voice slid into Kaiden's head.

<Hmm, hmm… I suppose the girls need my help… Big brother, how about you turn them into stay-at-home lovers and only go to war with me at your side? I'm all you need…>

Kaiden's eyelid twitched.

'Alice.'

<Just kidding~>

But the effect was immediate.

Kaiden felt the air shift. A hum vibrated above his skull before the dark halo on his head began to thicken, its edges sharpening into a ring of focused energy. Shadows curled around it like threads being pulled tight, and a wave of pressure bled outward, enough to make the nearest monsters hesitate mid-charge.

The halo ignited.

Dark luminescence, dense and heavy, descended along Kaiden's spine and spread across his body. His muscles tightened as if wrapped by an unseen force, his stance grounded with unnatural stability. The greatsword in his hands drank the aura eagerly, its surface darkening before streaks of deep violet coursed along its length.

Then Kaiden inhaled, the halo pulsated with that one breath, and swung with all his might.

The slash tore through the nearest monster.

And then the miracle hit.

A warm rush, steady and overwhelming, flooded through the entire battlefield, washing into every girl like a tide of stolen life. Aria felt her strained lungs ease, the panic in her chest fading under a soothing wave of vitality. Nyx, bruised, pressured, and cornered, felt the hit to her ribs unwind, muscles knitting just enough to keep her mobile.

Energy flowed through all of them.

The secret weapon.

Alice.

She wasn't just the shy little sister waiting on the sidelines. She was the binding agent, the force multiplier, Kaiden's living amplifier.

The formation only worked against such a large wave of strong monsters because she existed inside it. With her awake and channeling through him, Kaiden became more than a damage dealer. He became their bulwark, their engine, their frontline healer.

They all knew this spell.

They remembered when Kaiden presented it when the Dungeon-Born were busy dying to low-level monsters. He and Alice used that week to try out their new synergistic spells.

This was one of them.

[Dominion Convergence]

When activated, 10% of all damage dealt by the Dominant Core is transferred as healing through the Conduit, restoring all nearby allies designated as "trusted."

It was a spell that had no cooldown but drained mana every second it was active. Thus, Alice couldn't keep it active throughout an entire battle.

The moment Kaiden swung again, another burst of vitality surged across the battlefield, restoring what the monsters tore away.

And suddenly, the backline didn't feel cornered anymore.

They felt unstoppable.

Alice was a light-based awakened, but she wasn't one of healing. Her title, 'The Light That Destroys,' showed that her powers could be used for offensive capabilities.

But when she and Kaiden underwent their symbiosis, the girl gained new abilities, abilities that help her do what she wanted to do the most: protect her big brother and let him shine on the center stage with her supporting him.

She never cared for fanfare, for the opinion of strangers. Alice was a girl who knew exactly what she wanted and didn't care to announce it to the world.

But Kaiden, while loving Alice dearly, was also a man who deeply cared for his lovers. As a result, during their symbiosis, Alice was given spells that could not only help Kaiden but also his allies as well, making her the perfect support in the process.

This happened not because Alice wanted to necessarily become the glue that held together Kaiden and his harem (not at all) but because she wanted to become as useful to her big brother as possible, and to do that… Well, she needed to become the glue that held the harem together.

At least on the battlefield.

But sensing the immense pride and joy swelling in Kaiden's heart in this moment, utterly proud of his amazing little sister's might, Alice felt warmth overwhelm her whole existence.

'Yes… This is my big brother. There's space in his heart for more than I, but there's space just for me nonetheless…'

This was the moment that the little sister truly accepted that no matter what she did, the women would remain. But, perhaps… Maybe it wasn't a bad thing. After all, when in her Conduit mode, Alice could feel her brother's emotions, and what she felt right now made her beyond happy.

This was the way it was meant to be, she accepted.

And as for the abilities that have given her the title of 'The Light That Destroys,' well, they were there. She was still the S-tier awakened who could make strong, adult male awakened tremble in their boots when they heard her name.

But she didn't use them now because, one, she felt much happier being in her Conduit form, and, two, she wanted to conserve her mana and spend it on what mattered; strengthening her big brother and keeping him alive when the situation became dire.

As for her partaking in the competition as a New Dawn member, that was okay. She not only took up a slot from Runewoven's 20 fielded rookies, but…

A healer healing members of another guild was more than acceptable; they were encouraged by the association due to not wanting to lose valuable manpower. The last thing they wanted was to have healers watch as men bled out because they were from another guild that was competing. Or the injured to refuse healing because their points would go to the healer's guild.

As a result, there were no rules put into place to prevent this from happening.

And just like this, the battle raged on. Soon, the first day came to a close, and it was time to evaluate their performance and that of the other guilds.

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