The moment the Demonic Wolf realized this, the heavy, iron-black flagpole in Angel's hand slammed into his enormous forehead, almost igniting the tuft of short white fur and leaving a banner-shaped mark between his brows.
At that moment, Cottar felt as though he had returned to the moment thousands of years ago when he had swallowed a Miracle Invoker characteristic raw and, by sheer luck, advanced to become an angel. His consciousness reeled, and even his brains seemed to have been shaken into a slurry.
Instinctively, he wanted to leave the castle through Flaming Jump or by swapping places with a marionette, putting some distance between himself and this violent Demoness. But the sealed space created by the Velvet Curtain affected him as well as his enemies. Until the seal was lifted, no one could escape.
Once the thought of fleeing faded, the urge to fight back filled Cottar's mind again. He had spent a year establishing himself in this castle and had moved all his marionettes here. Naturally, he had ways to handle an enemy attack when he himself could not escape. Had he not been chased and beaten by a Demoness wielding a flaming Straight Sword and an enormous flagpole, he would never have panicked so badly.
With a thought, Cottar once again exchanged places with a marionette that contained one of his Worms of Spirit and could maintain a deep connection without divinity, returning to the castle hall where the flames had just faded.
Countless human, elf, and giant corpses already littered the floor. Most had died before divinity dissipated, killed by the Sword of Glory's Mist of Death or by fighting one another after being conquered. A few still burned with white-hot flames, with traces of Harvest at their vital points.
Fewer than ten marionettes remained,