The young ladies on the dock saw the Flesh City unfold and assumed Shade had already entered it to fight the Doppelganger, but that was not actually the case.
"Can the House of False Men also count as a weapon? Can a demon's power enhance this type of relic?"
Just as Shade had this question, the demon's power seeped into the relic's core area. The Doppelganger's power across the Blood Pool grew further, and as it attempted to drag Shade into the Flesh City for a final battle, a cold voice spoke from behind him:
"Duck."
Shade immediately bent over, and a black scythe burning with raging flames flew directly over his head. The scythe was not meant to attack the Doppelganger, but was instead nailed into the ground before him.
The flames nearly instantly charred the flesh beneath the scythe black. Then the power of death seeped into the flesh of the ground, and blackened traces swiftly spread in every direction. The phantom Flesh City's advance toward Shade was forcibly halted before that black scythe, and Shade knew who had arrived this time.
Turning around, he saw cracks already appearing across the crown-shaped Silver Eye Patch. Like the fissures on Sister Devlin's body, those cracks glowed fiery red.
The black scythe was a Spiritual Weapon. Carrying the power of the First Fire, it stabilized this space of flesh. If the Doppelganger's Mystic Lock dared to swallow both the scythe and Shade behind it, then the Primordial Fire could burn away all the flesh within the Mystic Lock.
The Night Watchman Shade had asked Claire to hold was now carried in Sister Devlin's left hand. The longsword was thus returned to Shade, its silver blade shining brightly within the bloody space. Whether it had sensed the demon or was reacting