A short break before the onslaught continues. I can only imagine the Imperial soldier and the false Hydra evil grinning as they do something unexpected once again. 

"Mom... Mom! Please, it's me, Rentap!" [Head Knight]

"Shit! It's my older brother! He's being controlled too!" 

"No... Not my son! Please, he's only 9 years old!"

"I thought we remember everything, so why..."

"This is too cruel..." [Diana]

"Tchh! Just concentrate on subduing them! No need to kill or hurt the civilian! Once we finish killing the false Hydra, they will return to normal!" [Head Knight Rentap]

"Right!" 

The victims come rushing with the intention of hurting us. They're clearly being manipulated, not like the monster we fought, but their memories altered, their senses disrupted.

"You bastard! You killed my son!"

"Give her back! Give me back my wife!"

"Die! Just die!"

"Please, it's me! Please come to your senses!"

"Watch out!"

I tried to counteract by dispelling the spell and THE THING from them, but the moment I do, I can feel the fake Hydra just reassembling the spell. This is frustrating.

Mother trying to kill her son. A son kicking his father. Wife trying to skin her husband alive. Cries of sadness from the knights and adventures of Emas as they beg their beloved. Please stop. Please stop. We don't want to hurt you. They said this repeatedly, but to no avail, the magic of the mirage prevailed. Everyone must be hoping for a miracle, a miracle that their loved one will suddenly snap out of it, but, a miracle is hard to achieve. 

To make matters worse, the monsters are attacking us and the victim at the same time. I'm not sure if this is an order from the false Hydra or just their instinct, but this complicates things. Obviously, the knights and adventurers will shield their loved ones, and this results in them being on the fatal end of both the monster and the loved ones. A blunt blow from a goblin to the back of the neck, while the beloved stabbed the tongue with her rusty knife while laughing maniacally, believing that she managed to get her revenge. 

"Tchh. This is nonsense. That's why I hate these Empire people! [Dana]

"Their strength is hysterical. Even when they get hurt, they think they didn't get hurt and keep moving" [Randy].

"Diana, can't you really make everything go away?" [Sas]

"I tried my best, but the moment I do, the false Hydra just puts the spell back" [Diana]

"We have no choice but to put them to sleep" [Randy]

"I doubt it will work, the false Hydra will probably counter with its own mirage spell" [Nar].

"Then we should knock them out!" [Kat]

"But that will seriously injure them, some might even die" [Khamisah]

"We are in a bind... Goddess, help us" [Head Knight Rentap] 

Sleeping... Didn't move... What if I paralyze them? No, that will cause serious injury to them. What if I use Titania's power to override the false Hydra spell? A good choice, but it will drain my mana and make others vulnerable to the fake Hydra. What if I put them to sleep with Titania's power, good choice, but again, it will be a battle between two mirage mana users, and I'm sure Titania will prevail, but once I'm tired from using Titania's power, the false hydra will put it spell back. Is there another way to put the victims to sleep without using Mirage Mana? 

Water Mana? No, that will drown them! Earth mana? How? Maybe if I trap them, but that will be inconvenient, we will have to carry them if I trap them with earth mana, and besides, they will use their hysterical strength to escape.

"Do you have any brilliant ideas, Diana?" [Kat]

"Yes! I hope it works! Nar, Sas, help me, will you?" [Diana]

"You're gathering wind spell, I'm not sure what you wanted to do, but if it works, it will be huge for all of us" [Nar].

"Tell us what you are going to do first" [Sas]

"If I put them to sleep with mirage mana, the false hydra will just overwrite it when I get tired, but if I suffocate them, they will sleep naturally!" [Diana]

"I see... If you put them to sleep like that, any mirage spell will have a hard time countering it. The mirage spell required a game of perception, but once they're asleep, they need to be awakened again before they can be controlled! Great idea! In fact, let me add another layer to your strategy, once they're suffocated and fall asleep, quickly use your Sleep spell, that way, they will be in even deeper sleep stage, that way the fake Hydra will have an even harder time waking them up!" [Nar]

"Okay!" (I don't fully understand Nar's explanation, but I think it will work!) [Diana]

Wind Fairy. Oh wind fairy, please hear me

(I hear you) [Sylphid]

(!) [Diana]

(Do not be surprised. You're constantly improving yourself, strengthening your blessing every day with various help. This is one of your rewards, unfortunately it's still imperfect.) [Sylphid]

(I see, then can you help me smother them?) [Diana]

(Will do) [Sylphid]

I never thought the Wind Fairy would answer me from within my blessing. Her voice is weak, but I can still hear it clearly. I use my wand to channel my blessing, specifically the wind fairy Sylphid's power. Strange, I know her name without even asking her. Her power, it's the power to control the air around us. Imagine that. Imagine taking the air out of your surroundings. Imagine, imagine the air slowly leaving their environment. They will suffocate, they will...

(An easier way is to take the air from them as well.) [Sylphid]

(You can do that!?) [Diana]

(Not with your current level of mastery, but if you keep at it, you might one day) [Sylphid]

(Then I will do my best) [Diana]

(Also, keep some air on them. As soon as they start gasping, push all the air into their lungs. The force will cause them to faint, putting them to sleep even faster) [Sylphid]

"Cruel..." [Diana]

"Hmm?" [Dana]

"No... Nothing!" [Diana]

As we continue to deprive them of their precious air, they slowly become dizzy. Their movement becomes unstable. So did the monster, which the others quickly took advantage of by killing them in a flash. As for the victims, once they start gasping for air, I quickly do as I was told and they quickly faint without making a sound. Terrifying. It's as if their lives were suddenly taken from them. 

"Sleep! Sleep! Sleep! Sleep!" [Diana]

(Are we even needed right now...) [Nar]

(Better than doing nothing, I suppose) [Sas]

I quickly use the sleep spell to send them deeper into sleep. Seeing this, the others quickly bind their loved ones so they won't do anything dangerous when they're awake. Fie even binds them with earth spell to make it difficult for the victims to move.

"Now all that's left is the false hydra. I can sense it just up ahead" [Dana]

"Knight! Adventure! Prepare yourself!" [Head Knight Rentap]

"Yes!" [All]