[Guardian of the Wings has fallen!]
[All enemies are no longer berserk!]
[Power of the Wings is no longer being discharged!]
[Malaikat's blessing has been lifted from the land!]
[Reanimated enemies have fallen for good!]
[Time remaining until temple's destruction:]
[02:12]
The light of the bright afternoon sky pierced into the hollowed temple.
With the guardian defeated and the sound of drumming footsteps had ceased, my comrades stared around the battlefield bewilderedly.
I stomped my feet hard through the temple's smooth floor and woke them from their daze with a shout.
"Run!"
The rocky hills around the temple began to rumble as the timer was running out.
My comrades and I dashed through the marbled road back to the crossroad on the mountain path.
[00:01]
The second the timer reached zero, a whole hill behind the temple collapsed.
A great avalanche of boulders and dirt flooded through the clearing, swept and buried the temple, and eventually covered the entire marbled road extending from the temple to the intersection.
The rockslide stopped just where we found them ended on the seventh floor as if there was a barrier preventing it reaching further.
Even with the knowledge, my comrades and I made sure we were dozens of steps away from the border.
We did not waste many time to be in daze of the great battle we just went through.
Trudy immediately poured the advanced health potion to the bleeding point where her arm was severed. Shanny also helped her by pouring her own vial to the wound, despite Trudy's objection.
The bleeding on Trudy's severed limb soon stopped and Shanny quickly tied her stump of an arm with a cloth to close the wound.
Jonah and Darius were also in the middle of recovering from the injuries they received from the knight statues.
As we were resting, I retrieved a vial of mana potion from my dress and chugged it till it was half empty.
The Fourth Circle spell and many casting before it took a toll on my mana supply.
I continued to put my fingers behind my ear.
"Zecht, Ashta, tell me your situation."
I called them.
[The monster corpses are dead again! But we could no longer hold the outer walls! Maddock's dead and the ogres had somehow tore down the gates! We're now retreating to the inner walls!]
Zecht reported.
[All of my comrades are dead! There're just too many of them! Even with Norn's help, we couldn't fight them off! We tried, Serafina! But we couldn't! I'm so sorry!]
Ashta said. She sounded very desperate. Very.
The news was grim, but we had no time to wallow in the deaths of our comrades, not until after the trial was finished.
I nodded to their reports and calmly addressed the party leaders.
"I understand. Retreat to the inner wall district and set up a barricade on the eastern and western gate. Help from Party 1 is coming."
I disconnected the line and proceeded to raise my hand to an open space beside us.
Threads of mana poured out of my fingers and formed a circle-shaped glow.
['Serafina (★★★★)' is opening a dimensional portal!]
[Establishing connection to the storage!]
[A dimensional portal has been created!]
[Serafina (★★★★) is requesting 'Intermediate Health Potion (B)' x30, Mana Potion (B)' x1, 'Exploding Throwing Spear (B)' x2, 'Exploding Arrow (B)' x30 and 'Wind Arrow (B-)' x150!]
Upon my request, master deployed one vial of mana potion, three crates of intermediate health potions, two exploding spears, and quivers filled with either the remaining exploding arrows or the regular enchanted ones.
With those items granted to us, I closed the dimensional portal connected to the storage.
I turned my hands facing nearer to where Trudy and Shanny propped themselves.
Using the beacon spear as my guide, I manipulated the space stretching over Surga Pass and forged a connection between where we were to the central square of Loro.
['Serafina (★★★★)'s Hands that Twists Space and Time has levelled up to level 4!]
Another portal was formed.
This one was radiating with greater energy from the previous one.
I also pulled the remaining enchantment stones I brought with me and activated their incantation.
The previous enchantment had wear off sometime during our battle in the temple.
['Serafina (★★★★)' is casting temporary enchantment.]
[Elemental Attribute, Penetration]
[Party 1's strength, agility and stamina has increased by 5 for the next 45 minutes.]
The stones crumbled into dust and I reached for my mana potion again.
While emptying the last half of my first mana potion vial, I addressed my comrades.
"Shanny, Trudy, Darius, I need the three of you to return to the city and help Party 2 and 3 guard the statue. They have retreated to the inner wall gates. Divide yourselves accordingly and help them."
I pointed to the items master just summoned and continued.
"Bring these supplies with you and set them in the central square. Then deliver some to the two parties as you go to help them at the gates."
I turned to Jonah and stared along the eastward trail.
"Meanwhile, Jonah and I will continue on to the sixth floor valley and make sure the imperial army reinforcement reaches the city."
Trudy stared me in disbelief.
"Just the two of you?! Wouldn't it be better if one more come along as well?"
I shook my head.
"Had you been uninjured I would consider it. But even then, I would still be inclined to send three people back. There is no point of getting the imperial army reinforcement if the statue fell to the monsters first."
"What if you're too late and the valley is already buried when you get there?"
Shanny asked.
She was half-believing it was true.
I hesitated to answer but I maintained my composure. I too had thought of this scenario.
"Should the valley is already buried when we get there, I will use all my powers to clear it again. Though it means it will be much longer till the reinforcement arrives."
I pointed my hands to the portal once more.
"Let's not waste any more time! Hurry! I can't keep the portal open for so long!"
With my urge, Darius and Shanny quickly grabbed the supplies master deployed. Darius took the quivers while Shanny the health potion crates.
Trudy would help but she could not do much with just one arm.
I also made sure I grabbed the one mana potion to replace the one vial I just emptied.
Shanny and Darius were the first two to pass through the portal.
While looking worriedly back to us, Trudy spoke to us before she vanished through the haze.
"Be safe, guys!"
I waved my hand and made the portal disappear once the three had crossed over.
By now, Shanny, Darius, and Trudy had returned to the central square in Loro, embarking on a new objective to protect the statue along with our remaining comrades in Party 2 and 3.
I looked to the shepherd who remained with me at the forked path as he replaced his exploding spears.
It was left to the two of us now to make sure the trial will not end up in failure.
"Let's go!"
I called the shepherd.
With Jonah by my side, I began my sprint toward the sixth floor valley.