Chapter 144: Weakness
What made her react was a sharp pain in her chest, accompanied by two interlaced wounds of nearly identical depth on her abdomen.
The Apollo Familia's coat of arms, emblazoned on her uniform, was torn apart by the strike. Blood gushed out, staining the shattered emblem a deep crimson.
"Stop!"
Cassandra watched in panic as her friend fell to the ground.
Quickly, she waved the magic staff in her hand, a green light flickering over the wound.
In addition to her precognitive dreams, Cassandra was one of the rare healers in Orario. Her healing abilities were exceptional, encompassing area recovery spells and detoxification magic.
"Stop here! Surrender, you fools—you've already lost!"
Fiora cast a glance at the opposing group but didn't stop Cassandra from treating Daphne.
She stepped around the two of them. The trembling, low-level adventurers lining the road dared not intervene, watching from a distance as Fiora passed unchallenged.
She had defeated Daphne, a Level 2 adventurer, so fast that Daphne couldn't muster a counterattack.
What could these Level 1 adventurers hope to achieve? Were they simply offering more heads for the taking?
"There's no worthy opponent left. I'll leave this place to you to guard. I'm going to find where their commander is," Fiora declared.
She planted the Morgana Familia's flag atop the stronghold and instructed her team to hold their position.
The flag had to remain raised to claim the stronghold as theirs.
While it was possible to destroy the stronghold, winning this war game would make the area Morgana Familia territory. If they destroyed it now, they would have to repair it themselves later.
Fiora chose the most economical option.
——
At one of the other strongholds, Vayne was already cleaning her crossbow.
Apollo Familia adventurers lay sprawled on the ground, their arms pierced by Vayne's crossbow bolts.
They had been shot with the very crossbows they carried. If Vayne had used the holy silver crossbow slung on her back, these adventurers would already be meeting Apollo in the heavens.
She remained at the stronghold only to wait for her teammates to catch up and secure the position.
As an ADC(*ADCs are champions that deal a lot of physical damage to enemies. They are also known as Marksmen. ), she had rushed ahead a little too quickly and inadvertently lost contact with her group.
Sylas' task was even simpler. The entire stronghold was encased in ice, and the Apollo Familia's defenders were now frozen statues.
This was the magic he had copied from Riveria's abilities, specifically prepared for crowd control.
Although he could use it only once, and its power wasn't as potent as Riveria's original spell, it was more than enough to handle the Apollo Familia's forces.
After all, Sylas lacked powerful clearing skills of his own.
"Let's go. It's time for us to find that Hyakinthos—and end this farce."
Sylas turned his head to glance at Sona. The earlier battles had ended too quickly, leaving the girl with little sense of involvement.
Not that she seemed to mind.
Still, Sylas needed to hurry. He had no intention of being the last to arrive.
After all, a man's competitive spirit is strong—
When Sylas and Sona arrived, Fiora was already waiting, calmly wiping her longsword.
Vayne was the last to arrive, but she had been delayed for the same reason as Sylas.
The members of her group were not as strong, and waiting for them to secure the stronghold had taken more time than expected.
Of course, Vayne's lack of enthusiasm for competition didn't help.
"It seems I'm first," Fiora declared, a triumphant smirk on her face. "So how about leaving the commander to me?"
She volunteered to take on Hyakinthos herself.
For Fiora, this battle was more than a skirmish; it was an opportunity to restore the Laurent Family's glory from scratch.
This war game was a divine opportunity, a gift from the gods to her.
All of Orario was watching, and the battle with Hyakinthos would undoubtedly be the climax of this event.
Fiora wouldn't let anyone else steal this moment from her.
"Alright. You can handle Hyakinthos," Sylas agreed. "Vayne and I will take care of the others."
While speaking, Sylas glanced at Vayne.
She didn't voice any objections, only nodding silently.
Vayne understood Fiora's determination better than Sylas. After all, Sylas had spent much of his life imprisoned, while Vayne was a renowned demon hunter from Demacia.
She had heard whispers about the Laurent Family and knew Fiora carried burdens too heavy to share openly.
Meanwhile, deep within the stronghold, Hyakinthos was bound by the rules, unable to leave his post.
However, reports from his Familia members kept him informed.
The situation was dire. Several strongholds had been obliterated almost instantly.
Communication with the defenders of the three outposts had been severed—undoubtedly, they'd met disastrous fates.
How powerful were these Morgana Familia adventurers? They had obliterated his forces so quickly that no one had even managed to send word back.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
The sound of approaching footsteps echoed, snapping Hyakinthos into high alert.
At this moment, no ally should have been coming to him.
He drew his weapon, pointing its blade toward the gate.
Creak—
The door opened, and a streak of silver light flashed toward it.
The sharp clash of swords rang out as the woman at the entrance blocked his strike with ease, holding her sword with a single hand.
Impossible. He was the captain of the Apollo Familia, a Level 3 adventurer!
Who was this woman? How could she counter his attack so effortlessly!?
The realization struck him—this woman was of a higher level than he was!
But why did the Morgana Familia have such a formidable warrior?
"You're Hyakinthos? What a feeble sword," Fiora remarked casually.
She seemed utterly unfazed by his attack, even taking a moment to taunt him.
Hyakinthos, however, was filled with dread. He could already see the bleak future awaiting the Apollo Familia.
Gritting his teeth in desperation, he swung his longsword again, clashing with Fiora in a series of rapid strikes.