Everything Is According to Plan

"Nini, come here." Theus glanced at the Banshees in the distance. Having signed a Symbiotic Pact with all of them, he suddenly realized he could communicate directly with every Banshee through a Mind Link.

Perhaps due to the sheer number of pacts, the intensity of this Mind Link had increased significantly. While the range hadn't expanded much, he could now communicate even if there were obstacles in between.

Of course, the distance couldn't be too great, but the area was sufficient to cover the current battlefield.

Watching the Banshees surround the monster, coordinating and covering for one another, he suddenly had a bold idea.

The Banshees' loyalty to him was now extremely high, and they would execute his orders directly. Since his commands could reach all of them instantly, did this mean...

Could he micromanage them?

Suppressing the restless thoughts in his heart, Theus asked Nini, "Can your Flesh Magic withstand being directly surrounded by the corruption? What is the consumption like?"

"The consumption is very high; with our abilities, we can only maintain it for a short time." She pointed to the Banshees taking turns charging at the monster in the distance. "But as long as we coordinate properly, maintaining it for a short while is no problem."

"Good, then I'll follow you. Let's get closer and take a look."

"Huh?" Nini was dumbfounded. "Wouldn't that be too dangerous?"

"If we run into trouble, you can just take me away. You are much more agile than the opponent, and my plan requires us to be closer."

"What plan? Wait, I mean, no matter what the plan is, you cannot put yourself in danger. We don't need your plan; we can win regardless."

Nini's brows furrowed, and she crossed her arms over her chest. She was determined that, no matter what, she would not let Theus take risks again.

"Then what if my plan could save Monica?"

The expression on Nini's face froze.

"Ash, we have a problem! She's getting stronger too fast!"

A clansman shouted toward Ash.

Ash frowned. The monster Monica had transformed into was even more troublesome than he had imagined. The clansmen kept taking turns to wear it down, but the more they fought, the stronger it became.

The Banshees' stamina had its limits. Although their current state was decent, this attrition was not a sustainable solution.

It seemed he would have to take some risks.

Just as Ash made up his mind, he caught a glimpse of the golden-haired Nini out of the corner of his eye... and Theus, whom she was carrying.

Banshees were much taller than humans. Nini was carrying Theus with two of her hands, leaving her other four hands free to move. The weight of Theus didn't have much impact on her mobility.

Though, the expression on Nini's face was a bit strange.

"...What are you two doing?"

"Ash, I will take command from here on out!"

Ash didn't hesitate for a second and nodded directly. "Understood."

"Fall back a bit, and get ready to coordinate with me!"

"Also, catch this!"

Nini tossed something over. Ash raised his hand to catch it and looked down; it was a shield.

It was the Tower Shield Nora had been carrying. Theus had called her over earlier just to pick this up. The shield, which was massive for Nora, looked just right in Ash's hands.

"I'll tell you what to do in a moment!"

After saying this, Theus shut his mouth. He had to communicate mentally with nearly all the Banshees at once and had no energy left to speak aloud.

Theus's voice suddenly rang out in the minds of the Banshees, and he began to inform each of them of their specific tasks.

The Banshees' previously loose encirclement suddenly tightened, and the monster, which had been constantly harassed, suddenly found that no one was charging at it anymore.

It immediately lunged at the nearest Banshee, but the Banshee turned and fled.

The monster chased after it for a few steps, only to find it couldn't move forward anymore.

Several Banshees rushed up from both sides, activating their Flesh Magic to hold it back.

And as it looked to the sides, the Banshees behind it also charged in.

It was surrounded by a full circle of Banshees, squeezing it into the center so it couldn't move an inch.

The black corruption roared as it splashed outward, but it simply slid off the Banshees' bodies. The Banshees activated their Flesh Magic in unison; the monster couldn't harm them, at least not for the moment.

The mountain-like monster attacked the surrounding Banshees frantically with its twisted limbs, but Flesh Magic could block most of the damage. The Banshees who were struck would turn pale, only to recover rapidly.

The Symbiotic Pact allowed their vitality to be channeled through Theus, and any injured Banshee was healed instantly.

That mountain-like monster was actually trapped for a moment!

Nini did not participate in the siege. Carrying Theus, she circled the monster rapidly, and finally, she found a blind spot in its vision.

"Now!" Theus shouted.

Nini stopped in her tracks, her body tilting slightly. Her three left arms gripped Theus firmly, swinging him back slightly.

The next moment, the muscles throughout her body exploded with power. Like a bowstring being released, she spun around and hurled Theus forward with all her might!

Theus smashed toward the monster like a cannonball!

Time seemed to slow down as the monster noticed the movement behind it, slowly turning around and catching sight of Theus in its peripheral vision before its twisted limbs roared as they smashed toward him.

A tall figure appeared at Theus's side; Ash raised his Tower Shield, squarely blocking the monster's attack!

The mountain-like monster possessed unimaginable limb strength, and even with all six of Ash's hands pressed against the shield, he was still being pushed back step by step.

She let out a low growl, her entire body tensing like a leopard as her muscles bulged, holding the shield firmly in place to leave a gap for Theus.

The corruption rained down on both sides of the shield like a storm battering a tiny umbrella, immediately coating her entire body; Ash's magic was overdrawn, and he was unable to cast Flesh Magic.

Yet, the corruption simply slid off her body—it was Flesh Magic!

She glanced at her own snake tail, where a hand was gripping the very tip.

It was Nini!

Just after Nini had thrown Theus, Ash had immediately raised his shield and followed with a charge.

As he passed by Nini's side, Nini had reached out with her other three free hands to grab Ash's tail tip.

Ash's speed was too fast, and she had missed with two of her hands, but—it was enough!

As long as there was physical contact, she could cast Flesh Magic for another!

If they needed to maintain their own Flesh Magic simultaneously, Banshees would have almost no energy left to cast for others, requiring a whole group to gather together to barely manage to cast magic for one clansman.

But Nini's position was not being touched by the corruption, so she only needed to cast for Ash!

The Banshees' long, slender snake tails had performed a great service; Ash was covered in corruption, but Nini, who was pulling on his tail tip from a distance, hadn't been touched by a drop.

"Everything is going smoothly; now it's up to the Lord."

Nini and Ash exchanged a glance, both of them looking at Theus with faces full of worry.

Nini had indeed cast Flesh Magic for Ash, but Theus had none!