"Box the Hydra, guys," Reidar ordered. "Who can must fight from a distance."

That was mostly referred to the Archons.

The Quadraginta formed a perimeter and poked at the Hydra's flanks, drawing its attention away from Reidar, Jake, and Lena. The Apex Menagerie filled the empty spots and tried to pierce its abnormally durable skin with their stingers. Whenever they did, the monster's natural regeneration kicked in and closed the wound.

"This is going to be hard."

The Hydra roared; all five heads snapped toward Reidar's army. It forgot about the two small figures, Isadora and Lucius, disappearing into the brush since it had bigger annoyances to deal with, and that was good.

Reidar stood back at a safe distance, tracking the unfolding chaos as his summoned creatures engaged the massive Hydra in battle.

"Go," he said to the others.

Jake activated Augmentation, dumping mana into his S.H.I.E.L.D. attribute to get even faster than he already was thanks to his new boots. Then, he and Lena dashed away.

…

"Again, you deal with the woman, and I deal with the guy," Lena said.

Jake nodded. While he might have been able to fight against the man, Lucius was still stronger than him, and fighting him wouldn't be as simple as Lena doing it.

They sprinted into the treeline.

Lucius was fast for a tank wearing very heavy enchanted armor, but he was not that fast. Plus, every step crunched through the undergrowth. He was breathing hard, and his injuries made everything worse.

Isadora was right beside him, stumbling over tree roots. She looked pale.

"They're following," Lucius said, glancing back. "I can hear them."

"Keep moving," Isadora said. "If we get far enough, I can cast a signal flare. The outpost will see it."

"I don't think that will be enough."

"Maybe," Isadora said. "But they are not so strong that they can fight against thousands of us without risking their lives."

They burst into a small clearing, their boots sliding on the wet leaves.

"I'm sorry to say this," Lena said as she appeared behind the two. "But you aren't going far."

Lucius spun around, raising his tower shield. He didn't look panicked anymore. He looked like a cornered boar as he parried Lena's strike.

"Stop with these dishonorable tactics!" Lucius said.

He slammed his shield into the ground, activating [Fortress Stance] once again. That spell was sure useful. A golden ripple distorted the surrounding air.

Lena disappeared and materialized behind him, going for the slide she had planned—a quick slash to the hamstring to cripple him.

But Lucius's skill protected him; plus, he fought plenty of battles, and despite everything, he wasn't weak at all.

He dropped his weight and slammed the bottom edge of his shield backward, driving it into the mud right where Lena was sliding.

Clang.

Lena barely twisted in time. The heavy steel rim caught her shoulder instead of her neck.

[You took 510 Bludgeoning Damage.]

[Warning: Left Shoulder Bruised. Mobility Reduced by 5%.]

She gasped in pain, rolling clear just as Lucius pivoted, his blade slicing through empty air where her head had been moments before.

"You think I'm some mindless beast you can kite?" Lucius spat. He stepped forward, keeping the shield high. "I am a Captain of the Church of Unbinding!"

Lena scrambled to her feet, holding her shoulder. He was fast. Too fast for someone that injured.

"Incoming!"

Jake crashed through the bushes a second later. He saw Lucius block Lena, but he ignored the tank. He had another target as per agreement: Isadora.

The Battle Priestess turned as she saw the kid rushing at her, not without showing Jake eyes filled with desperation. She didn't have the mana for high-tier healing, but she had enough for combat magic, which she was far less versed in.

She cursed herself now for not creating more combat spells.

"Repent!" she said.

She thrust her hand forward, and a ball of light exploded in Jake's face.

[Enemy 'Battle Priestess Isadora Thane,' used 'Flash of Condemnation.']

[You took 450 Magic Damage.]

[Status Effect: Blinded (3 seconds).]

"Ah!" Jake yelled, stumbling back as his vision filled with white static, forcing him to swing his dagger blindly through the empty air. Before he could recover, Isadora swung a heavy mace—a weapon Jake hadn't even noticed she was carrying—and cracked it against his ribs.

[You took 280 Physical Damage.]

Jake grunted, the air leaving his lungs. He fell to one knee, blinking tears out of his eyes as his vision slowly cleared. As Isadora raised the mace again for a killing blow, she also started to think she had won, to the point she got cocky.

"You are just a child," she said. "You should have stayed in the dirt."

Jake looked up. The mace was coming down, but now that he could see again, he knew he had the S.H.I.E.L.D. advantage, so he lunged up.

He took the hit on his left arm. The bone cracked, but his defenses were high enough for him not to sustain a worse injury.

[You took 310 Physical Damage.]

[Warning: Left Arm Fractured.]

These guys were far stronger than they had been until that point. Maybe it was because they didn't have to focus on the zealots or the hydra anymore. Regardless, Jake was still stronger than her.

He ignored the pain and grabbed her wrist with his good hand.

"I'm not a child," Jake said, his voice straining with effort. "Not anymore."

He head-butted her.

Jake needed to use a healing spell as soon as he could; otherwise, killing the woman would prove difficult.

Lena was right in her selection of the targets, and as his forehead slammed into Isadora's nose with a sickening crunch, she reeled back, dropping her mace while blood gushed down her robes.

Ten meters away, Lena found herself in a frustrating fight with Lucius, who defended like a turtle; every time she tried to flank, he pivoted to keep that massive slab of steel between them, and when she threw a dagger at his visor, he tilted his head, causing the blade to spark off his helmet.

"You won't get things your way this time!" Lucius said, though his voice was getting weaker.

"Really? Did you forget I almost shredded you to bits 5 minutes ago?"

Lucius swung his sword in a heavy overhead chop, but Lena sidestepped the blow, allowing the blade to bury itself deep in the dirt.

Under normal circumstances, he would have retracted it instantly, but the exhaustion and accumulated damage from the battle had finally caught up to him, making his reaction half a second too slow.

Lena seized the opening and stepped on the blade to pin it to the ground; when Lucius yanked futilely at the hilt, finding it immovable under her weight, he looked up just in time to realize his mistake.

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