Reinhard forced his eyes to focus as blue ripples spread from beneath his feet.

Time began to slow down extremely, the world shifted into crawl, movements becoming visible in excruciating detail.

Reinhard rushed forward as Zenuken became a blur, hacking, chopping, slashing, cutting into the Night Terrors. The blade passed through the first Night Terror's chest, black-blue energy trailing. He spun, momentum carrying him to the second target.

Another slash, this one severing the creature's wing before he went on to the third, fourth, and the rest. His blade tore through all of their bodies, and until no parts were still connected.

Time returned to normal.

The Night Terrors burst outward, their shadowy figures trembling violently, and then they fell to the ground.

But instead of dying, they swirled, and the darkness from their body began reforming into new shapes. Five crow-like Night Terrors appeared where the bird-forms had been, they were smaller but more numerous.

They screeched in unison.

The combined sound was worse than before, as the five voices harmonized in discord. Reinhard's vision went white as his balance wavered, and the agony forced him to grip his head. But then he gripped Zenuken together as the blade began to glow, and then Reinhard hacked out with it.

Ragnarok.

Zenuken blurred through the air faster than the eyes could follow, creating multiple afterimages of Reinhard hacking out.

Fifteen separate sword slashes appeared around the Night Terrors instantly. They didn't come sequentially but appeared all at once, existing in the same moment from impossible angles.

Some struck from above, descending like judgment, while others came from the sides, horizontal cuts that swept through the air. Some seemed to emerge from within the creatures themselves, slashes originating inside their shadowy bodies.

The crow-like Night Terrors didn't have time to react. The slashes cut, slashed, chopped, swept, and hacked through them from every conceivable direction. Their forms fragmented, unable to maintain cohesion under the omnidirectional assault.

They fell, shadows dispersing into harmless wisps that faded against the forest floor.

Everyone quickly recovered before they continued moving immediately. Amiya had the map out again, eyes scanning while her feet moved automatically. Marie's Star Jewel blazed, parting roots that tried reforming barriers ahead.

But then, new enemies emerged from the tree line.

Dozens of root-humanoids with mushrooms growing from their bodies blocked the pathway completely. The fungi on their wooden forms glowed, glowing with a green light that grew brighter with each passing second.

They opened their mouths and spoke. "Come join the others. They have all decided to sleep away the nightmare and enjoy their paradise."

Casseo's eyes rotated behind his helm, pupils spinning. His gaze locked onto half the group, and the mushroom humanoids froze immediately, caught by invisible bindings. Fear radiated from their wooden forms despite having no faces to express it.

Honor's eyes performed the same rotation; the remaining root-humanoids froze and were held by different invisible shackles. The effects of both would last for three seconds, but that was more than enough as the mushroom light illuminated the area.

Then they exploded.

Spores burst outward in massive yellow-green clouds that filled the air and began melting everything they touched. Wood was dissolving, turning to slush that dripped away in disgusting streams. The roots on the ground hissed as spores touched them before melting down.

Reinhard grimaced, watching the corrosive effect spread. Even with spiritual armor protecting them, those spores would hurt and burn them, and may even break their skin.

They moved around the expanding spore cloud carefully, making sure to not get too close. The other frozen root-humanoids broke free of their bindings, but the mushroom explosion had caught them. They melted alongside their surroundings, wood dissolving into puddles of sludge.

They frowned but continued moving forward, pushing through the forest. Then they saw other Night Terrors drifting and walking in a daze in this section.

They were the standard variants this time, shadowy forms with white glowing eyes, moving with that characteristic dazed wandering.

But their mouths opened, faces splitting to reveal interiors that should not exist, and the voices came again, but different this time. "

"Stop it. Rest, and peace. Give up and sleep. End the pain. Let go. Embrace darkness, no more fighting, and no more suffering. We understand, we care, and we want to help. Just stop." It was multiple tones, all speaking at once.

The words overlapped, creating discordant harmony that wormed into thoughts despite attempts to ignore them. The Night Terrors advanced slowly, tendrils rising from their split faces, reaching toward the group with terrible gentleness.

But Reinhard's eyes erupted with a golden light before he released a roar. Instantly, a visible wave spread out from him before striking the Night Terrors and making them fall silent.

While they were stunned, his eyes shifted back to blue as Zenuken reappeared in his hand, and then he waved his hand.

Leading to the sky above to shine golden before golden swords appeared above.

Then they rained down, striking and piercing through the Night Terrors, over and over, before they were shattered.

But then, more root-humanoids appeared, such as mushroom-covered variants. Phantasm Beast constructs rushed from multiple directions like Werefangs, Bear-Terrors, and Tetans.

All of them arrived before they began speaking with those same soft, caring voices while attacking.

The numbers began to swell, already reaching over thirty enemies.

And more was appearing every second, rushing from forest depths in seemingly endless waves.

"All your greatest desires and fantasies can be fulfilled if you simply stop. Just a little taste, I promise you that you will never want to leave."

Reinhard's light blue eyes scanned the battlefield, calculating odds that decreased with each new arrival.

There were too many, even with the Star Jewel's help and them unleashing all of their strength.

It would still be their loss from using up most of their magic, while the forest can still send waves.

Reinhard began thinking of what he should do, but he paused as he glanced at the Star Jewel around Marie's neck. Then he recalled that it could grant what you desire, and in which case.

It was to stop the attacking forest or gain help-

Reinhard's eyes widened as he recalled Commander Dune's words. "If you ever need help, call on me, the Star Jewel will answer."

"Marie!" Reinhard shouted over the voices and combat. "Throw me the Star Jewel!"

Marie didn't hesitate or question; she pulled the artifact from around her neck and hurled it in a perfect arc. The golden orb caught what little light existed, stars swirling within the sphere as it flew.

Reinhard caught it one-handed, the metal pieces encasing it cold against his palm. He pulled back from the front line, creating space between himself and immediate threats.

"Protect me for a bit." Reinhard stated quickly. "I'm going to try something."

The others responded immediately. Joseph moved to cover Reinhard's left flank as he hacked down with his lance.

Casseo took the right while Veryn and Honor positioned themselves ahead, creating a defensive perimeter. Janus covered the back with Marie, and even

Amiya put away the map, summoning her own weapon to join the protective formation.

Reinhard closed his eyes, blocking out the voices, the attacks, the overwhelming sensory assault.

He focused inward, calling up the memory of Commander Dune.

The spectral figure appeared in his mind, he was shaded in gold like the others, but far brighter.

Armor similar to the Golden Warrior's, with a large golden cape hung off his left shoulder, connected by gold fabric.

A massive pauldron adorned his right shoulder, with a leather belt running across his chest, connecting to his left side.

The image solidified, gaining detail and presence until it felt more real than memory should allow.

Reinhard's thoughts shaped themselves into command, directed at the Star Jewel clutched in his hand.

Summon Commander Dune.

Golden light rushed through his mind, it was brilliant and overwhelming, filling every corner of consciousness with power.

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