Using the remaining strength inside him, Lamont channelled his holy power. The hammer on his hand gleamed as the scriptures on it lit up. He pushed himself against the ground and swung the hammer as hard as he could. It left his grip and transformed into a bolt of yellow lightning, piercing the air, lighting the trees on fire as it passed through the air.

It proclaimed its presence with a powerful shockwave and a thunderous sound that pulled all attention. Iris turned to face it, her eyes narrowing. Faint laughter echoed inside her mind, guiding her movement and instilling exotic knowledge into her soul. It was as if someone was controlling her hands to practice the movement.

"Watch carefully, my Kin. This is how we used our power," the voice rang.

Though Iris didn't know its origin, the familiarity it brought reminded her of the Earth Goddess who sent her to this new world. It was the camaraderie of those who shared the same fate as the outsiders. There were others like her, even if she had never met them.

The invisible guidance took over her body, not with hostility but with goodwill. She gradually let the other control her power and observe its every movement. It was something she did best, learning from the masters and breaking down their decisions. Her curious mind absorbed all sensations she felt and noted.

Now her hands gracefully waved, leaving traces of her slime in the air. They floated like vapours and weaved together like threads. Their tails swung and caught against the terrain, binding onto the rocks, coiling around the trees, stabbing into the ground. Their tight grip, when crashed with the searing bolt, expanded and stretched backwards. As the force pulled the hooks out, the threads recoiled, wrapping around the bolt, then pulled its momentum groundward.

The holy power inside the lightning held the bolt up. Seeing the struggle, Iris glided her hand down, willing the threads to graze the dirt and seeped into the soil, rooting themselves in place, creating frictions, dragging down the yellow bolt.

The sounds produced by the clash resounded and took Lenmia's attention. She diverted from her path then prepared her spell, but Iris, with a carefree smile, placed her hand on Lenmia's and shook her head. The authority in her gesture compelled Lenmia to trust her unconditionally and focused on escaping.

Rapidly approaching the Monster Girls, yet also rapidly losing its momentum, the blot whirled in the air. The holy power inside it leaked out and manifested streaks of electricity, which shot everywhere. Iris, not knowing what her friend intended to do, tensed, suppressing herself from panicking. Lenmia had placed her trust in her. She must not betray any appearance of uncertainty.

Her heart unwavering, she closed her eyes and raised her hand, hovering it above her chest. In the end, the threads on the bolt stretched as long as they could and broke into fragments. The bolt screamed out the holy power and made the final push towards Iris. Its radiance dimmed with the lessening distance. As it came to touch her neck, its momentum ceased. Floating above her hand, it spewed tiny sparks that couldn't affect her.

Gently, Iris grasped the bolt and slid it into her mouth. The holy power dispersed as her body assimilated it. Unlike other Monster Girls who couldn't touch the holy power, she devoured it and took its essence into her soul. It tasted bitter but not enough to irritate her. A strange sensation that made her subtly yearn for more.

After she swallowed it, her consciousness shivered from the overflowing energy. Her body glittered in yellow light, which gradually transitted to a darker purple shade before returning to the previous bright blue. Her skin smoothened, cleansed, and grew more distinct. She underwent the second stage of Metamorphosis, using the devoured energy to accelerate the process.

Lenmia noticed the sudden change, but the shadow cast from the descending hand had already concealed the sky. She couldn't afford to think about anything else, so she merely ran, jumped, sprinted, and held onto her sisters, praying to nothing but herself.

"My Kin, I'll show why we were once feared by all," the voice rang once more. Iris assumed control of her body and gazed upwards.

The space-time above the landing site split open. Rays of pale light seeped through the rift and dispelled the darkness of the descending hand. Within the wall of light, countless feathery wings spread their reach and curled before they soared skywards, shredding their feathers. The sea of whiteness overwhelmed the golden hand, clinging, pulling, dragging it to the ground.

On the other side of the portal to the divine kingdom, a dignified voice shouted in the language known only in the era long forgotten. The sound of distress echoed inside the Sinking Dark Forest but could not reach the neighbouring kingdoms and empires. The portal immediately closed and cut off the golden arm. Without the power source to support the divine hand, down it fell.

Closing her eyes, Iris hugged Lenmia. Her body quickly completed her second Metamorphosis. At once, she followed her feeling and moved with grace. A barrier of slime emerged, shielding her sisters from the impact.

Covered in milky feathers, the hand hit the ground and shattered into a sea of feathery particles. They flooded the surrounding with soft fluff, creating no quake nor damage nor terror. Aside from their large quantity, they were harmless, merely a big pile of cushions.

After she climbed out of the feathers, Iris slowly turned her attention to the mountain in the middle of the Sinking Dark Forest. Underneath it was the prison for the Outsider who had saved her. With the prospect of learning about her purpose, the debt of life, and as the same kind, she had to go there, but only when she was strong enough.

There was still a long way to go, a long way which Vilia would never be a part of. Iris touched her lips, where a faint aroma lingered. The weight of a snake body pressed against her back, embracing her while whispering teases which she could not hear anymore.

"Sister Lenmia, where are you?" Iris shouted, and a muffled response resounded somewhere a little farther away. "Wait for me, I'm coming!"

...

In the middle of an altar, a ray of light bloomed and dispersed into sparkles. Errenia manifested on the floor, holding onto herself, shaking, mumbling. On her body, the black marks of Corruption Power seeped through her veins, tainting her fair skin purple. They gradually filled her mind with strange thoughts and twisted her moral. She was falling.

Surrounding her, a few priests raised their hands and manifested spheres of purification light. They swirled around her then merged with her body, burning the Corruption Power. In both pain and pleasure, she screamed, reluctant to part with the wonderful feeling. Her struggle to maintain her sense of self continued until her voice faded and her spirit exhausted. She collapsed on the floor, motionless, devoided of the Corruption Power and happiness.

After the purification was completed, a man strolled into the room. When he passed the guards and the priests, they lowered their head and kept their back straight. Their respectful exclamations echoed throughout the hall, resounding thrice before fading. He was Faxon, the Head of the Hastinda Warrior Family.

Faxon stood in front of his daughter, his feet directly blocking her view. She raised her head but failed to see his face, which hid under his own shadow. No matter how hard she tried, she could only see his blurry expression.

"Errenia, your temper has misled you to your defeat. If not for the ring, you would've been dead," he said.

"Father, did you know I would lose?"

"The Church has already planned everything. I'm just giving you a chance to learn something."

Faxon knelt and placed his hand on her head. His magical power transferred into her body, systematically destroying every last trace of the Corruption Power inside her soul. Though it hurt a part of her soul, which constituted the essential parts of her sense of self, it was the only way to stop the corruption process.

As it purged the Corruption Power, it entered her soul and met with an exotic seed rooted inside. The seed exuded a mysterious kind of energy, whose power was to assimilate everything. The two clashed, but the seed was too foreign and consumed the magical power easily.

Not revealing anything, Errenia slowly stood up and watched her father left the room. Despite her ordinary outer appearance, her mind was fleeting. She gripped her chest, feeling the excitement rising. The connection between her and Iris had formed and would soon be realised. She had already fallen.

"Father," Errenia said, faintly smiling, "what if it didn't go as you planned?"

Faxon stopped for a moment before he resumed his pace, not turning back. "There is no what if, only what has happened."

After he left the room, Errenia dismissed all the guards and the priests. She stood alone in front of the altar, her eyes gazing at the teleportation array beneath her feet. Her father was right. She had learnt something valuable today, but it was something he didn’t expect.

"That’s right, Father. There is only what has happened, and we have to live with it," she whispered, hoping that Iris would hear her.

...

Atop a fortress at the edge of the Sinking Dark Forest, in front of an army of paladins and knights and mages, a lady cloaked under a fleeting white robe stood with her sword stabbed against the floor, her head lowered, her gaze sweeping across the Crusade she supervised.

The members of the Crusade shouted their warcries and chanted the words of their belief. They thundered and shook the ground with their might spreading into the Sinking Dark Forest, opening a path from the shadowy atmosphere. They were a part of the great whole, comprised of many a belief. The Sinking had ripped apart many lives; the Crusade was an attempt to end it once and for all.

The leader, Lady Pallorn, raised her head towards the waving flag of her belief, the Goddess of Redemption.

"In the past, we feared the Monsters for their terrific acts and power. They ravaged our homes and parted us from our loved ones. In desperation, we built a wall to protect ourselves," she said, her voice echoing throughout the army. "However, hiding from the darkness alone is not enough. We have to drive them out of our world, to build a better future, where our loved ones won't have to suffer again!"

Pallorn raised her hand skywards, lining it with the fiery sun. She held onto the hope and showed it to the army below her. The air surrounding her rippled and fluttered her clothes, glowing in under soft grey light.

"We, the Redeemers, are under the Goddess's protection. It is time to prove our faith in humanity and the divine by vanquishing the centre of all darkness. For the Goddess, for the future, for us, and for the fallen."

Above the sky, beneath the sun, a portal to heaven opened. A massive divine hand reached out and pushed against the ground. The shockwave it produced created yellowish sparks, which flew across the landscape, glittering with the holy power.

"The divine bell has been rung," Pallorn shouted. "Let the Crusade begin!"

The feverish cries of the believers resounded along with their steady march towards the Sinking Dark Forest. After igniting their morale, Pallorn lowered her hand, pulled out her sword, turned around, and left the spot.

"I won't let you down again," she whispered while looking at a hand pocket, where she stored a picture of her sister, the loved one whom the Sinking had taken hold.

GDLiZy

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