Rebecca arrived at the perfect time. She understood the combat situation instantly, having observed the site of Kaelan's struggle for only a moment.
She knew the girl Kaelan had faced was a Stage Two Os Medulla. However, her focus was on Reynold's absence.
There was no way Reynold would simply leave Kaelan behind. Rebecca's initial thought was that Reynold had been lured into a trap.
Yet, after seeing Kaelan consciously seek help, Rebecca realized he was not in collusion with the enemy. A small seed of trust began to grow. Of course, Rebecca did not fully accept Kaelan just because of this minor incident.
"Another nuisance appears," Bovoy muttered, glancing in another direction. "It seems that woman was killed. Let it be; she was going to die according to plan anyway."
Bovoy appeared indifferent. He seemed mad, yet remained rational. His actions were no longer reckless or blindly aggressive.
"Hah, you have absolutely no regard for the life of your comrade?" Reynold said, his voice cold. "You people are worse than monsters."
Bovoy only offered a casual smile. "Death is paradise. She will merge with the curse and become a monster. That is how the curse establishes the laws of nature."
Whatever comes from nature shall return to it. Eternal Darkness was more like a cult with a blind faith in calamity.
"Your kind is even more irritating than the Church!"
Hearing Reynold compare him to the Church of Redemption, Bovoy was deeply displeased.
"Do not compare us to a troop of monkeys!" Bovoy snapped, flicking his cloak. "They are fools who believe the curse is a punishment rather than a blessing!"
Both the Church and Eternal Darkness shared an acceptance of the curse, but their ideologies and perspectives were diametrically opposed. That was why the two would never be at peace.
Meanwhile, the Radiant Covenant strove to find the light and eliminate the curse. The Outcasts, on the other hand, existed in a gray area; it was unclear what they believed in.
"You are all just as bad. For that, we will erase you!"
As Bovoy attempted to pull something from his pouch, Rebecca did not stay idle. She dashed forward, unsheathing her blade.
Bovoy gasped and summoned a wall of flesh to block her path. But Rebecca never hit it; as if vanishing, she appeared in mid-air and plunged her sword downward.
"Die!" Bovoy conjured numerous blood needles, intending to fire them. However, he faltered for a split second, forgetting that Reynold still stood tall.
"ORRAA!" With all his might, Reynold hurled his hammer.
The hammer slammed into Bovoy's previous wall of flesh, shattering it with ease before striking him squarely in the stomach.
Bovoy spat out blood; his ribs likely snapped from the powerful impact of the hammer.
"It is you who will die."
Rebecca remained calm as she swung her sword. She spun, aiming directly for his neck without a shred of hesitation in her movements.
But of course, Bovoy would not go down that easily. He had just spat out blood, and that was a weapon for a Sangu Carna skilled in controlling blood and flesh.
He encased his neck in blood and meat, reinforcing it so that Rebecca's blade could not decapitate him. However, the heavy impact of Rebecca's strike rattled him severely as a result.
Bovoy staggered for a moment. He glared at Rebecca and Reynold with pure hatred.
"Reynold, Rebecca!" A panting Drake began to pull a black stone from his pocket.
Kaelan, who had arrived with him, had already created dense beads of blood, ready to fire them with force.
"Useless!" Bovoy cursed in frustration as he slammed his foot into the ground.
The black veins on his face writhed slightly. His wounded body began to recover rapidly. Unfortunately, Bovoy could not heal his broken ribs.
Sangu Carna could only help bones recover faster, but it was not instantaneous like the restoration of blood and flesh.
"The most disgusting thing about the Radiant Covenant is your numbers!"
Bovoy was surrounded. He realized there was almost no way left to win the battle.
"Surrender peacefully," Reynold said. "At least you won't suffer."
Reynold held a deep, burning hatred for Eternal Darkness. He wanted to crush Bovoy down to his very bones, but Reynold remained rational.
He understood priorities. It was rare to have the chance to take a member of Eternal Darkness alive. They would be able to extract valuable information from Bovoy later.
"Cuih!" Bovoy merely spat and gave a mocking smile. "I would rather destroy my own head than hand it over to anyone else."
Without hesitation, Bovoy threw three small marbles onto the ground, which erupted into a thick, pitch-black smoke.
"Get back!" Rebecca realized the danger. It wasn't the smoke itself, but the attack following it.
Kaelan immediately created a mass of flesh, shielding himself and Drake beside him.
Hundreds of blood needles shot out wildly. They could see nothing through the density of the black smoke.
"Hahaha, I'll take my leave today," Bovoy laughed as his voice slowly faded. "Let us meet again when the storm arrives!"
Drake, already holding the black stone, immediately used it. "Wind!"
A gust of wind swept through the area, and the black smoke vanished quickly into the air. Looking at the spot where Bovoy had been, the man was nowhere to be found. Bovoy was gone.
He had vanished just as the black smoke was swept away by the wind. Reynold tried to use his sharp senses to track him, but he found nothing.
"Damn it!" Reynold felt a moment of frustration before looking at Kaelan. "Are you alright?"
Kaelan gave a wry smile. "No. If I hadn't met Drake, I surely would have lost."
He explained that he knew he wouldn't win the battle. His opponent was far more skilled and experienced. In the end, Kaelan's choice was to stall for time while heading toward the meeting point with Rebecca and Drake.
Reynold nodded with satisfaction. "Know yourself and your enemy, and you will win a thousand battles!"
His mood shifted quickly, or perhaps he was just hiding his feelings. Regardless, Kaelan was glad nothing horrific had happened.
"Why was that madman near the city?" Rebecca asked as she sheathed her sword.
"They must have a sinister plan!" Drake concluded.
Reynold nodded. "Kaelan and I ran into them by accident."
Kaelan merely nodded. "They have a goal. Perhaps... that strange-looking tomb."
Kaelan remembered the two Eternal Darkness members speaking near a tomb. He was quite interested in it. Not because of Eternal Darkness, but because Kaelan himself had come from a tomb.
Perhaps there was some kind of connection between his emergence from a tomb and Eternal Darkness. Kaelan wanted to investigate it directly and thoroughly.