The eyes of the unconscious Great Knight opened wide out of nowhere.

But the revealed black pupils lacked any signs of vitality and intelligence.

They looked empty, as if belonging to a puppet.

However, this didn't limit the captain's movements.

Another shrill cry came from the insect curled in the Life Seed, and the captain shot up.

His Life Force poured into his hand and transformed into a long sword, which he swung in Liora's direction.

Clearly, the captain, or to be more accurate, the insect, had noticed the threat brought by Liora.

With no hesitation, it decided to wipe this potential enemy out before she could truly threaten it.

The captain's actions were unexpected, but they didn't catch Liora off guard.

She had remained alert ever since the alarm bells rang in her heart, waiting for something like this to occur.

Thus, facing the sudden sneak attack, she reacted swiftly.

Her mind connected with the array she had previously engraved, and with a move, she urged it to activate.

Devil Runes instantly materialized across the walls of the research facility.

They flashed crimson and then black before turning into metal chains and firing at the captain.

Their speed was extremely fast.

In the blink of an eye, they had seemingly teleported in front of him and wrapped around his four limbs, binding him tightly.

Unfortunately, the captain had surpassed the Great Knight rank. The array was unable to contain the full extent of his power.

Following his struggle, the black chains shook violently at first, before they began to crack.

It looked like at any moment, the captain would break free.

However, Liora would not give him the chance to succeed.

She could see that although the captain had barely become a King of Knights and was unable to exert his full strength, he still possessed the combat power of a Lesser Devil.

Liora knew that she should never let such a dangerous person go!

Without holding back, she used her trump cards.

First, she ignited her Life Seed, burning her vitality in exchange for a temporary boost in strength.

Then, she grabbed the Bloodforge Halberd and activated Bloodlust.

Boundless strength instantly filled her thin body.

Under the effects of the two abilities, her strength skyrocketed.

Liora didn't have the time to feel lost in that power, though. She was in the middle of a battle.

Raising the imposing halberd above her head, she brought it down with a thrust and swung it towards the captain.

Its sharp edge glowed with a crimson tinge as it penetrated his skin and separated his body into two.

Although the captain tried to put up a defense, his resistance was ultimately meaningless. The metal chains were able to restrict his movements. At least, until they broke.

Yet, Liora didn't breathe a sigh of relief.

When she lowered her head and looked at the place of collision, she discovered that the captain was still not dead.

His bloody upper body used its hands to crawl forward while the other half's legs bent in unnatural directions, as if they were both trying to escape.

Liora would not let him do as he wished, however.

With a step, she left an afterimage behind, and her figure flickered above the captain.

Then, she brought the halberd down once again.

This time, she made sure that she aimed at a human's biggest weakness—the head.

A thunderous boom echoed.

The halberd whistled through the air before it smashed onto the captain's head, blasting it into pieces.

Blood and brain matter splattered.

This seemed to have completed the job.

The struggle of the captain's two parts ceased, and Liora watched a soul fly out of his body.

This confirmed his death.

But things were still far from over.

The moment the captain died, the insect, curled up in his abdomen, finally moved.

With a swoosh, it tore the Life Seed apart again and crawled out like a centipede.

It didn't attack Liora but turned around and escaped at an extremely high speed.

Ordinary people would never be able to detect it, while even Great Knights would have trouble capturing its outline.

Fortunately, Liora was not an ordinary person. The moment the insect emerged, her mind moved.

The shadows in the research facility rippled and shot out like arrows, flying towards the fleeing insect.

They gathered together in the air and wove one onto the other, constructing a large net around the insect.

As more shadows emerged, the net grew smaller but far more sturdy, until finally, it trapped the insect inside.

Sensing the incoming danger, this creature wanted to struggle. But Liora took action before it.

A pale domain expanded with her as the center and covered its figure before she calmly raised her hand.

Under her call, the insect's soul flew out of its body and was banished into Nothingness.

Liora caught a glimpse of its soul's appearance in the brief time that it was revealed to the outside world.

It first looked like an orb, then like a drop of blood, until finally, its soul's appearance matched its real one.

This confirmed it.

The insect was not merely a manifestation of the blood, but a real, living creature.

Liora's movements didn't halt because of this.

More and more darkness fell like black ink, engulfing the insect's body and binding it more and more tightly.

A few seconds later, when its soul returned to reality and descended into its real body, the insect could no longer struggle.

Though it tried to move, it was unable. The net of darkness firmly trapped it in place.

"It's done!"

Seeing this, Liora exhaled softly.

She wove a few more nets around the bound insect, and after she confirmed that it could no longer resist, she finally sat down.

It was only then that she had the time to take a look at her surroundings.

The devastated research facility, the captain's body that had been split into two, and the insect that seemed to be sealed in amber...

All these sights fell into her eyes and, despite everything, she couldn't help but let out a chuckle.

Soon, this chuckle turned into full-blown laughter.

"Hehe... Hahaha! I see! I see!"

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