Redeemer Highlands, central region.
The rumbling and howling continued without pause. Soul vines came bursting from underground, baring their fangs and claws, yet they could not stop the figure shrouded in rising black smoke. Besides, he had nearly a hundred Demon Clan warriors behind him.
"My lord, I won't disappoint you this time—unless I die here."
A Demon Clan member wreathed in black smoke spoke. His features were impossible to make out; only a pair of pitch-black horns and eyes that seemed to have flames burning within them could be seen.
"Kill them. Leave no one alive."
The black-smoke demon practically ground out the words through clenched teeth. He pointed the flame spear in his hand forward, and the Demon Clan warriors behind him began advancing toward the central region.
The Demon Clan's opponents were Saint Zaga? No. From beginning to end, their opponents had been the Feather Clan. It was just that neither side had made their identities clear. That way, those who died at Redeemer Highlands could only be considered victims of a private grudge, not casualties of a conflict between two races. The black-smoke demon knew this, which was why he had ordered them to kill every last one.
The black-smoke demon's name was Ulysses. He had failed here once before. He had originally thought it would become the stain of his life, but that lord had given him a second chance.
'Ulysses, I believe in you. I did before, and I still do.'
Crack, crack, crack...
Ulysses clenched his fists. It seemed as though Demon Flame had truly ignited in his eyes. He could die in battle here, but he could not betray that elder's trust a second time.
At the same time, a stern-looking woman in feathered garments stepped into the central region. Nearly