Chapter 32 - Devastation

Far away from the overwhelming, one-sided slaughter led by powerhouses like Captain Kōrōbō and Yako, the reality of the invasion was proving to be far more gruelling for the rank-and-file defenders.

In a ruined commercial district of Outer Kyoto, a mixed supernatural squad was locked in a bitter, bloody stalemate. They moved in a tight, practiced formation through the debris-littered streets.

Anchored in the rear was a pudgy Gama Yokai, his webbed hands raised high as he strained to maintain a shimmering, dome-like barrier that deflected incoming spells. Pushing forward as the vanguard were a single winged Tengu warrior and an Exorcist from Touji’s ranks, their swords drawn and ready to deliver lethal damage. While Kōrōbō had signalled all four hundred Tengu troops to converge on the city, only a handful possessed the sheer speed to arrive this early; after all, not every warrior was a monster like their Captain.

Meanwhile, a sleek, agile Nekomata darted silently through the shadows of the burning alleyways. Her twin tails twitched in anticipation as she stalked the perimeter, waiting for the perfect opening to launch a lethal ambush, while simultaneously keeping a sharp eye out for any trapped civilians hiding in the rubble.

Opposing them, standing amidst the burning wreckage of a flipped car, were the three black-robed cultists. Their eyes gleamed from beneath their hoods with a sickening mix of fanatical bloodlust and sheer excitement.

Serving as the trio's vanguard was a hulking cultist wielding a massive, heavy warhammer. His swings were wild, messy, and entirely uncoordinated, yet the combined strikes of the Tengu and the Exorcist completely failed to leave a single scratch on him. Whenever their blades managed to strike his body, a network of intricate, glowing runes would flare to life across his black robes, absorbing the lethal impact entirely.

By swinging his heavy weapon with such reckless, devastating sweeps, the brute created an impenetrable wall of offense. He forced the frontline fighters back and made it nearly impossible for the squad to penetrate their defences, especially targeting the agile Nekomata, repeatedly smashing his hammer into the shadows to deny her any chance of a surprise attack.

Safely protected behind their rune-clad vanguard, the remaining duo stood shoulder-to-shoulder. Their hands were outstretched, converging in the space right between them. Wisps of dense, crackling mana flowed continuously from their fingertips, weaving together to form a highly intricate, overlapping magic circle.

As they channelled their power, their voices intertwined in a haunting, guttural chant in Ancient Greek:

"Ὦ Χρόνε, πανδαμάτωρ, ἄνοιξον τὰς πύλας! Καταστροφὴ γενηθήτω!" (O Chrone, pandamator, anoixon tas pylas! Katastrophe genetheto!)

With every syllable spoken, the ambient air around the duo grew suffocatingly thick. The oppressive, heavy aura of their accumulating magic pressed down on the Yokai squad like a physical weight, signalling that a devastating spell was nearing completion.

"We can’t keep going like this!" the Exorcist shouted, panic bleeding heavily into his voice. Desperate, he reached behind his waist, drew a silver holy pistol, and unloaded a rapid succession of shots at the brute. The blessed bullets merely sparked and ricocheted off the cultist's glowing runes, completely useless.

The winged Tengu beside him didn't waste breath on a reply. He only grunted with extreme effort, his arms trembling as he barely deflected another devastating sweep of the warhammer, his sharp eyes locked solemnly on the enemy.

"T-The barrier... it will only hold against t-their spell for about ten s-seconds!" the Gama Yokai stuttered in terror. His clammy, amphibian skin paled drastically as he sensed the sheer, overwhelming density of the mana the duo was weaving.

High above the fray, the Nekomata couldn't even hear their desperate exchange over the roaring flames. She was a frantic blur of motion, repeatedly darting between the crumbling walls in a futile attempt to bypass the brute's impenetrable defence.

"Kehehehehe! USELESS! USELESS! HAHAHAHA!" the hulking vanguard roared. The blunt-force impacts from the frontline duo didn't deter him at all; instead, the pain seemed to excite him deeply. His eyes widened in twisted, masochistic ecstasy as he swung his massive weapon with wild abandon.

"Retreat!" the Exorcist screamed. Seeing that their best efforts were doing nothing to the trio, his fragile resolve completely shattered.

The Tengu shot a fierce, sideways glare at his human ally. "There are civilians hiding right behind us," he intoned, his rough voice heavy with an unshakable resolve.

Sweating profusely and shaking like a leaf, the pudgy Gama Yokai still managed a firm nod of agreement. Despite his overwhelming fear, his sense of duty to Kyoto's people held him firmly in place.

"Tch..." The Exorcist gritted his teeth, his eyes flashing with a chaotic mix of guilt and desperation. Without another moment of hesitation, he completely disengaged from the frontline, turned his back on the outgunned Yokai, and sprinted away into the ruined streets.

"Kusoyarou! (Piece of shit!)" the Tengu roared in furious disbelief at the sight of the fleeing deserter.

As the chaotic sounds of battle began to fade behind him, the Exorcist clenched his fists, not daring to look back. 'Sorry. I just want to live,' he thought grimly, disappearing into the thick, choking smoke.

"Hehehehe! Humans are the absolute worst, aren’t they?" the hulking cultist cackled gleefully, his twisted grin widening as he watched the Exorcist’s retreating back disappear into the smoke.

He didn't seem to care in the slightest about the fact that he himself was human. Or perhaps, after a century of subterranean exile, self-torture, and suffocating despair, his mind had become so thoroughly warped that he no longer even considered himself part of their fragile species.

"Well, time's up," the brute cultist sneered finally. "Goodbye~"

With a sickeningly playful wave, he leapt backward, retreating safely behind the chanting duo just as they completed their incantation. Hovering directly above their intricate magic circle, a gigantic, hyper-compressed sphere of roaring fire materialized, its blinding, white-hot core aimed dead at the Yokai squad.

The Tengu's eyes widened at the terrifying spectacle, his pupils shrinking against the intense glare. "Hold the line!" he roared, refusing to step aside.

Abandoning his combat stance, he bolted to the Gama Yokai's side. He slammed his hands squarely against the toad's back and forcefully injected his own youki straight into Gamato's fragile body.

"GAAAAHHHH!" Gamato shrieked.

Deep, glowing cracks instantly spiderwebbed across his clammy amphibian skin, unable to naturally contain the sheer overload of foreign energy. Yet, within his bulging, pain-filled eyes, an unyielding resolve burned brighter than the approaching fire. Not a single word of complaint left his lips. Fuelled by the Tengu's power, his shimmering barrier flared with blinding intensity, growing drastically thicker and more robust.

Seeing their desperation, the Nekomata abandoned her flanking position in the shadows. She blurred to Gamato's other side, pressing her paws against the toad and flooding him with her own youki.

"Guh..." This time, Gamato didn't even scream. He only grunted, his round body trembling violently under the unimaginable, agonizing strain.

"Gamato, I'm sorry..." the Tengu gritted out, a heavy, crushing guilt lacing his rough voice. "The civilians..."

But before the Tengu could finish, Gamato interrupted him. Gone was the terrified stutter from moments before. Instead, a weak but undeniable beat of pride echoed in his strained voice.

"Hehe... don't worry. Just... guh... make sure to tell the Elder... that I did... my best." His voice was fading rapidly, slowly being drowned out by the roaring flames.

The Tengu's jaw tightened. He offered a single, deeply solemn nod.

"Meow..." the Nekomata whimpered, hot tears finally spilling from her eyes as she felt Gamato's lifeforce pushed to its absolute breaking point.

BOOOOOM! The compressed sun erupted. A massive, roaring beam of pure, incinerating fire swept forward, threatening to instantly atomize the squad and the streets behind them.

But Gamato's overcharged barrier stood firm. Like a diamond wedge parting a raging river, the glowing dome took the full, catastrophic brunt of the beam, reflecting the apocalyptic flames outward. The redirected fire tore through the buildings and asphalt on either side of them, reducing the surrounding block to molten slag, but the space directly behind the brave toad remained completely untouched.

"My job... is... done..." Gamato whispered softly into the inferno.

Cra-crack.

The glowing fissures crisscrossing his skin finally gave way. In a blinding flash, his physical body shattered, disintegrating entirely into fine, glowing ash. The turbulent winds caught his remains, carrying the brave Gama Yokai away and scattering him gently across the ruined streets of Kyoto.

"GAMATO!" the Nekomata screamed, her voice breaking in shrill agony as tears streamed freely down her face.

The Tengu stood frozen in the settling ash. His wings drooped heavily as he bowed his head, offering a moment of deep, silent respect to the fallen hero.

"Hehe, how touching. A shame there are still two survivors," the brute mocked, chuckling darkly as the glowing ash settled around the Yokai. He seemed genuinely disappointed that his targets hadn't been incinerated outright.

"Bastards," the Tengu cursed, his eyes blazing with a murderous, unyielding fury. But this time, his wrath wasn't aimed solely at the cultists, a heavy, burning resentment was directed squarely at the cowardly Exorcist who had abandoned them. 'If that human hadn't fled, we could’ve hold out even longer...' he thought bitterly.

Now, with both his and the Nekomata’s youki completely drained from overcharging the barrier, defending themselves against the remaining trio was going to be nearly impossible.

"Well, no matter. I suppose I'll just have to squash you two myself." A grotesque, impossibly wide grin stretched across the brute's face. "Even better," he added gleefully.

Without another second of hesitation, the hulking vanguard launched his massive frame into the air. He vaulted directly toward the two exhausted Yokai, raising his gigantic warhammer high above his head, fully intending to crush them both into the pavement.

But before his descending arc was even halfway complete, the sky above them suddenly darkened.

A colossal, shifting wooden paw swept violently out of the smoke, swatting the mid-air cultist like an annoying insect.

"Ah—" the brute gasped, his startled realization cut brutally short.

SQUELCH! His rune-covered body was instantly pulverized against the side of a nearby building, crushed into a gruesome, unrecognizable paste before his hammer could even touch the ground.

Back at the rear, the spell-casting duo had dropped their guards, panting and relaxing after expending all their mana on their ultimate attack. Seeing their vanguard suddenly swatted out of the air, their eyes widened in terror. But they couldn't even take a single step to run.

BOOM! The earth beneath their feet violently ruptured. Two massive, jagged wooden branches burst straight up from the asphalt, impaling both cultists directly from the bottom up and hoisting their lifeless, bloody bodies high into the stormy air.

**********

Meanwhile, at the borders of Inner Kyoto...

"What a coincidence," the white-robed man stated calmly, a chilling, venomous hint of glee bleeding into his voice as his gaze locked onto the boy.

Seeing the unfamiliar intruder, Ren’s body reacted on pure instinct. He immediately shifted his weight, dropping into a wary, defensive stance. His hand whipped toward his waist, his fingers tightly gripping the hilt of his weapon.

Without a single second of hesitation, he drew.

Shing!

The sharp, metallic ring of steel tore through the heavy air. Ren leveled the tip of his blade directly at the intruder's chest, his eyes narrowed in hostility. "Who are you?!" he demanded, his voice steady despite the alarm bells screaming in his head.

"Hehe. Since the Chosen One asked—" the man chuckled, his smooth voice dropping to a theatrical whisper as he let the sentence hang in the air.

At the sound of that specific title, Ren’s breath hitched. His eyes widened drastically in shock, the cold realization finally sinking in.

"—I am Orodes," the man continued, his twisted smile growing. "First Commander of the Cult of Time, the Hour Hand. A pleasure to finally meet you, Chosen One."

With a mocking, arrogant flair, Orodes executed a flawless, aristocratic bow. He gracefully crossed one leg behind the other, pressed his right hand flat over his heart, and swept his left arm grandly through the air, looking for all the world like a performer on a stage rather than an invader in a war zone.

'The Lord’s return is nigh...' a gleeful, fanatical thought echoed in his warped mind as he stared down his ultimate prize.