Leaving Malena's predicament aside for now—outside, as Sulpharlo burst out of her laboratory, the first thing she saw was the brilliant light leading the way ahead: Theresa's sunlight.
But unlike the Dark Elves, who were terrified of sunlight and could only operate underground, Sulpharlo had lived for a thousand years in Mount Celestia, surrounded by the radiant pollution of countless deities. She was practically immune!
Even light bright enough to blind surface dwellers meant nothing to her.
Instead, she faced Theresa's magic head-on, beautiful blood-red eyes wide open and unwavering. When she finally made out Theresa's face, the corner of her mouth curled into a cold sneer.
That nun from the monastery.
Come to rescue Malena, no doubt?
Heh. Clueless little pest.
That day in your monastery, I had to avoid Laeral Silverhand's gaze and leave quickly—so I didn't fight back in the face of your attacks.
Who would've guessed that would boost your confidence, making you bold enough to chase me all the way to my Old Nest!
You've got guts—so let me show you what a real battle angel can do. Let's see how pathetic your vaunted light really is!
Sulpharlo stretched out her hand—dark red flame blazed, and a nearly two-meter-long black greatsword manifested in her grip.
The sword's blade was wrapped in dark red blasphemous fire; just looking at it sent chills deep into the soul.
Now that she'd fallen completely, the sword's power was more terrifying than ever before!
Until now, Sulpharlo had always disguised herself as her old "angel" self to avoid pursuit from her Celestial colleagues, suppressing her fallen nature, at odds with her own weapon, unable to fully draw out its might.
But now, with her experiments a success and nothing left to fear, she'd fully accepted her true self. Her strength was skyrocketing—multiple levels above before!
"Embrace your death, mortal!"
She unfurled her vast black-and-red wings—nearly three meters across—then beat them hard, an explosive shockwave in her wake. Her body practically left an afterimage as she charged straight for Theresa!
Up ahead, Theresa stiffened with alarm—a surge of danger tore through her mind, sending every nerve into overdrive.
She instantly recognized Sulpharlo, and at once realized: if that fallen angel reached her, she could kill her with a single blow!
"Blink!"
She frantically chanted, her body flashing into the Ethereal Plane, barely dodging the attack!
Elsewhere in the cave, on the other side of a rock wall, a radiant afterimage shimmered—Theresa blinked back into the Material Plane, heaving for breath, chest heaving.
Thinking back, Sulpharlo's speed this time was a little slower than last—however, she hadn't buffed herself with "Haste" now. Her current speed was a quarter of what it had been that night!
Her only chance was to jump planes like this—anything else and she'd never dodge Sulpharlo's attacks.
What should I do?
Master claimed he had a way to handle Sulpharlo, but alone, there's no way he can win. I have to support him—but Sulpharlo is so resistant to radiant magic...
She still hadn't found a solution, frustration welling in her chest. She doused the daylight brought by the "Dawn" spell, prepping new defensive magic—when suddenly, her heart leapt and tension spiked. Instantly, she blinked back into the Ethereal once more!
Boom—
A wall beside her exploded. Sulpharlo burst through with her sword, a ferocious grin on her flawless face. "Run? How far do you think you can get!"
"Foolish spellcaster—today, I'll teach you just how stupid it is to come to the Underdark for trouble!"
Her smile sent chills through Theresa. That wall, as far as she could tell, was a good two meters thick—yet Sulpharlo shattered it with a single swing!
Even a normal angel shouldn't have this strength. Sulpharlo was leagues beyond!
Theresa immediately retreated again—no intention to stand toe-to-toe. Sulpharlo, exhilarated by her much-increased strength, chased after her with wild glee.
Meanwhile, in the darkness left behind as Theresa's sunlight vanished, the lurking Dark Elves returned.
They feared sunlight, not simple illumination. With no sunlight to worry about, they now revealed their true prowess as elves.
"Faerie Fire!"
From the shadows, the Dark Elves chanted spells in Elvish, and motes of multicolored magic light appeared, landing all over Charles and his crew.
The spell was called "Faerie Fire"—it didn't do damage, but highlighted key points on the targets' bodies (head, vitals, and so forth) like shining bullseyes for their attackers!
As soon as it landed, the Dark Elves drew light crossbows and opened fire from cover.
"Down!" Charles barked, dropping first. Hattie, Sophia, Nymeria, Willo, and Adele all hit the ground too, even Shapiro reluctantly swallowing his pride and ducking low after some internal struggle.
Arrows hissed past, but their quick reactions saved them from being hit.
Charles breathed a sigh of relief, then, still prone, whipped out his staff. He began chanting—"Eldritch Blast"—to return fire!
Boom, boom, boom—
At level eleven, he could fire three bolts at once. With Illusionist's Bracers, that doubled to six.
But firing from prone, his aim was off. The Dark Elves knew the pattern, ducking behind rocks, so all six bolts hit stone, spraying rubble everywhere.
The cavern was narrow and full of cover—not a good place for ranged dueling.
Charles saw it instantly—he sprang up and called, "I'll go assist Theresa! Sophia, with me! Hattie, hold off these guys!"
They'd glimpsed Sulpharlo earlier, but she was focused on Theresa and disappeared quickly.
But Charles knew perfectly well: with her traits countering Theresa completely, there was no way Theresa could subdue Sulpharlo.
Beating her meant Charles would have to step in personally!
As long as the others could hold the Dark Elves, he'd be able to slip through a few passageways and shake the pursuit.
"Understood!" Hattie answered. She turned and inhaled—suddenly, black mist filled the cavern, countless greenish-black tentacles stretching from the floor, hunting for prey.
Shapiro, panic in his eyes, shouted after Charles, "I'm coming with you—!"
But Charles only shot him a cold look: "Stay!"
"Trust me. Follow orders!"
Shapiro froze, biting back frustration as he thought of earlier battles. He ground his teeth, forcing himself to hold steady, and turned to shout at the Dark Elves, "Bring my sister back safe!"
Charles didn't reply, just motioned for Sophia and sped off.
All around, Hattie's tentacles grew quickly—if Charles looked closely, they were noticeably thicker now.
Ever since that night on the seafloor, Hattie had felt her body subtly changing—to grow faster, stronger. She assumed it was thanks to Charles's affection.
The denser tentacles were much more effective in a cramped tunnel!
In theory, anyway. Up ahead, the Dark Elves folded their bodies and leapt effortlessly—like butterflies—dancing through the tentacle forest. Even when snagged, a quick cut from their enchanted daggers freed them almost instantly.
Still, Hattie's tentacles weren't useless. Behind her, Willo and her daughter conjured vines to snare Dark Elf legs, but with little success.
The Dark Elves barely touched the ground, bounding seven or eight meters at a time—hardly ever within reach of ground-bound hazards!
"Shapiro, let's do this—!"
Nymeria summoned her greatsword, spinning it before her to form a barrier against the oncoming foes.
Shapiro conjured his scythes, targeting the lead Dark Elf, and flashed forward in a bolt of lightning, swinging for the head—
Clang!
Even in that split second, the Dark Elf's twin shortswords were in place, parrying Shapiro's strike!
The Dark Elf used the force to flip back, while his allies rushed by. As they passed, poison-tipped blades silently slashed Shapiro's leather armor and drew blood, flooding his body with deadly Drow toxins.
"Nggh—!"
Shapiro grunted, spinning his scythe, but the nimble Dark Elves slipped away before he could retaliate. His limbs were already starting to go numb—the toxins were taking effect.
This was the lethal prowess of Dark Elf warriors!
Every one of them had over a century of combat experience—combined with innate spellcasting, among mortals, each would be an elite champion without rival.
That's why, despite their small numbers and slow reproduction, Elf civilizations dominated the world.
Even divided and diminished, the Sun Elves, Moon Elves, Wood Elves, and Drow were all still superpowers—no one dared challenge them!
"Come on, everyone—oh, shoot—" Hanni nervously cheered from the back. She danced lightly, spell-chaining Longstrider, False Life, and other wards onto Hattie and the defenders.
When her mana ran dry she wailed, "I'm out—what do I do now, Nymeria?"
"Find a hiding spot!" Nymeria barked, desperately parrying as faerie fire marked her out for every hidden shooter. "Look after yourself!"
"Okay, got it, thanks!" Hanni piped up. Then, turning toward the depths of Sulpharlo's Old Nest, she dashed inside on short legs.
...
Meanwhile, Charles pushed ahead with Sophia, closing in on the sound of battle between Theresa and Sulpharlo. While running, he drew a Sending Stone and messaged the archwitch: Stop running! Get back here—I have a way to deal with that angel!
After several quick sends, a light flared—Theresa appeared at the far end of the cavern.
But she was a mess—her golden hair unkempt, her milky nun's robe scorched, and her once-regal bearing in tatters. Charles's heart ached for her. But now was no time for tenderness—there was only battle.
He was ready, panting but denying himself a moment's rest. "Sophia, Extended Haste—now!"
Sophia was already chanting. Magic suffused Charles, time seeming to slow, his body feather-light—every step could cross dozens of meters!
Perfect.
He inhaled deeply, then began reciting the [6th-level spell]: "Tasha's Otherworldly Guise!"
Buzz—
Magic roared around him. Pale blue bat wings sprouted from his back, lifting him into the air, unbound by gravity.
With a beat, streams of magic jetted behind, rocket-blasting him ahead. "Theresa, get back. I'll handle her!"
"Careful!" Theresa called. "She's even stronger than last time!"
As she spoke, the supposedly unbreakable side wall detonated—
Boom!
Charles barely dodged aside—then, amid the billowing dust, a winged figure hurtled toward him!
Sulpharlo!
Charles squinted. This was truly his first face-to-face encounter with Sulpharlo; last time, she'd struck the monastery so quickly he hadn't even glimpsed her.
Now that he was here in person, he finally got a good look.
Truth be told, Sulpharlo had a kind of striking, sculpted energy in her features—not the gentle beauty of Malena's mixed Seinite descent, but the sharp definition of pure-blooded Germanic beauty.
Only, her eyes had turned blood-red, her hair jet-black; her wings—once snowy white—were now twisted black and red.
A sulfurous stench—like that of the pit fiends—hung around her, marking her as truly, utterly fallen.
Her black-flame greatsword and the gaping hole she'd carved in the wall caught Charles's attention immediately.
One thing was clear: now fully fallen, Sulpharlo's power was far beyond any ordinary angel's. An unseen blood mist cloaked her, boosting her vitality.
Both her magic and her physical prowess had surged so high that even backed with boundless magic, Theresa couldn't hope to match her now.
But...
Charles eyed her wings, thinking hard.
One price for losing the gods' favor was—her speed must have dropped!
The difference might be minuscule—barely noticed by mortals—but for Charles, it meant the gap went from "impossible" to "maybe"—from zero chance to one. A critical shift!
He grinned inwardly—if she'd kept her divine speed even with all his buffs, he'd have no way to catch her, or she could just outlast his "Tasha's Otherworldly Guise."
But now, since you've truly fallen, lost the blessing of the Gods of Order, and given up your most dangerous advantage, it's game on!
He tightened his grip on his twin-bladed polearm, blue wings stretching to block Sulpharlo's charge: "Your opponent—is me!"
Everything—his judgments, her assessments—took less than a second. Sulpharlo's cold red eyes flickered with disdain as she sized up Charles and his glowing enchantments.
Yet she sensed little threat—his aura felt weak, unworthy of concern.
She was supremely confident, her power surged to blinding heights by the final loss of her grace. Anything mortal was beneath her now!
~~~
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