Reborn as an Extra Chapter 641: The Empress of War! Part-4.
Previously on Reborn as an Extra...
"They've truly begun targeting you... If you remain by my side, I won't be able to battle freely and will constantly need to shield you..."
Watching Nova struggle to even respond to the arrows, nearly perishing multiple times and only alive thanks to Lia's protection, Lia declared,
"I'll hold these foes occupied; head off and aid the other fairies in establishing a secure getaway path..."
"We cannot endlessly battle like them, since we must safeguard a huge group of non-fighters..."
Their camp brimmed with non-combatant fairies skilled merely in basic elemental and healing magic, unable to fend off even the feeblest foes effectively,
whereas the enemies consisted of two fully equipped armies, each member able to deal heavy damage and protect themselves amid perils.
The extended this fight lasted, the greater the losses for Kenorland's fairies, potentially leading to total annihilation with no survivors to warn other cities of the disaster.
"B-but how can I abandon you while you're still in combat... plus, the 'fountain of elemental life' isn't something that can be easily seized..."
As Nova wavered in doubt, Nine soared in once more to strike her, yet Lia parried with her sword, this time requiring both arms to brace the blade and halt Nine's assault!
[He's growing even stronger? Hmm? That artifact draws vitality from a designated zone, it appears... now he's harnessing the life force of the dying across this battlefield as fuel...]
Upon hearing Kai's observation, Lia scanned the area and saw the corpses of slain humans, demons, and fairies crumbling into dust and vanishing.
This was undoubtedly due to their vitality being drained by that accursed artifact.
"You're staying put; reveal the location of that girl 'Bela'. Surrender her to us, or we'll pursue you to the farthest corners of the world!"
Nova's eyes bulged in astonishment at Bela's name, prompting her to blurt out in confusion,
"H-how do you know she's with us!?"
Nine flashed a smug grin and responded arrogantly,
"Never underestimate us; you fairies aren't the sole race with mighty artifacts—we possess many ourselves..."
"Among our collection, artifacts for tracking specific targets are the most prevalent!"
[Ah, that explains how they located Kenorland so effortlessly... they've imprinted Bela's soul signature into a potent tracking artifact...]
[The device must have detected Bela within this concealed illusion, prompting them to deploy a space artifact to breach the barrier and storm into Kenorland...]
[Yet dispatching a whole army just for one child? That girl holds some extraordinary significance...]
From her initial encounter with Bela, Lia had sensed the child was far from ordinary, though she hadn't grasped the full severity then.
'Who would've thought this whole expedition stemmed primarily from a little girl hunted by an entire army...'
Locking eyes with Nova, Lia commanded,
"Grab Bela and flee this place... I'll ensure these pursuers don't follow-"
Just as Nova neared persuasion by Lia's urging, a brash voice cut in, accompanied by several formidable auras materializing close by.
"No, none of you are escaping—not the royal fairy or any other... I'll slaughter every last one here today!"
Trnak emerged from the furious water cyclone into the midst, trailed by five additional S-rank demons who materialized from every side, encircling Lia and Nova.
One after another, two mighty demon sorcerers arrived; one expended vast mana for a potent 'spell counter' that nullified the water cyclone entirely, normalizing elemental flow and visibility.
The second sorcerer then unleashed dark magic, spreading a vast darkness field where miasma and dark-element beings gained massive enhancements, while others suffered severe penalties.
Though Lia shook off the penalties, the overwhelming menace of seven S-rankers encircling her proved intensely oppressive even for her.
Nova, unlike Lia, faltered under the debuffs, freezing rigid as summoning even scant elementals for a shield became arduous in this shadowy domain.
Her command over elements paled against true seasoned mages and warriors, rendering her novice spells worthless the instant a demon sorcerer joined the fray.
Even human Nine endured heavy debuffs from the dark magic, but he simply amplified his cursed artifact's power to counter the penalty with an even greater surge!
Witnessing this, Lia grinned while facing the seven S-rank adversaries and scores of top A-rank foes, lifting her sword skyward.
"I must admit, your setup impresses me; this will push me to go all out too!"