It was a warm night in the chambers of the Saint's sect. Ever since Kayn and Rengar's arrival, the sect had been in a bit of an uproar for a few days—until peace and routine once again took control.
It was rare to receive visitors at the sect, considering the dangers encountered just in traveling through the mountains to reach it.
Secil, who had found the two sorcerers by chance while hunting in the forest, had remained on alert 24 hours a day since their return.
Normally, Secil handled matters only for the Supreme Master, leaving all human trivialities to Fungi. After all, she was just an assassin—not someone with charisma.
However, this time, Secil had not left the sect. Something about them had unsettled her when she first encountered them. As the saying goes—"a thief knows another thief." The first sensation she felt that night, when she found the pair using the corpse of a large beast as a camping tent, disturbed her deeply.
She also analyzed the situation: two sorcerers crossing the mountains without a single trace of dirt or damage?
That alone, coupled with their claim of coming from the southern islands all the way to the central ones, meant they had traveled much farther than anyone else who had ever stepped foot in the sect.
And that's just taking the journey into account. Considering that even clans and sects usually travel in sizable groups, it made it clear these individuals had come for something serious.
She even discussed it with the Supreme Master—whether they were the seers predicted long ago. Though their appearance didn't match what had once been described, the Supreme's methods of divination could have erred in that minor detail.
Still, her master calmed her fears, explaining that if they truly were the prophesied seers, they wouldn't have hesitated to lay siege to the sect—if it were in their power. After all, they carried the authority of the Supremes and full funding for such missions.
Even so, Secil didn't lower her guard during those days. She borrowed several materials from the hidden cave in the mountains to prepare rituals in advance. As for Fungi, under the Supreme's orders, Secil was to personally ensure his retreat from the sect if things spiraled out of control.
Fungi didn't show any resistance to this order. Secil felt at least somewhat satisfied by his uncharacteristically complaint-free reaction—quite a change from the usual objections she expected from him.
Ever since the Supreme's orders came after the assimilation, she was surprised to see Fungi working so obediently. She had even secretly spied on him regularly but found nothing unusual.
It was strange for Secil to see Fungi cooperate so suddenly, but for the time being, she decided to let it go, assuming he understood the importance of his role these days.
The other members, on the other hand, weren't fully aware of the situation. They were merely told that in case of an attack, they should run toward a rarely-used mountain path—but none seemed truly frightened by the news or the danger they could be in.
Many were veteran members of the sect and knew very well the combat capabilities Secil had, along with Fungi's miraculous healing. As long as one of them was standing, there was no reason to panic in their eyes.
Not to mention all the defenses constantly maintained to protect the sect.
Being able to carve out a path through the jungle and claim part of a mountain was a luxury reserved for powerful sorcerers—usually sect leaders or noble bloodlines.
But no one could ever truly know the kind of people they might face.
That's why Secil took extra precautions this time, setting up preloaded spells around the sect—and her most valuable weapon:
Her book.
Meanwhile, outside the mountain, there didn't appear to be any violent movement… but that didn't mean none existed. Slowly, like a creeping shadow, something was stirring among the trees.
A dozen beasts began surrounding the perimeter. At first, it was just a few—but very quickly, that number multiplied. A dozen became hundreds of beasts.
Secil, observing from a distance, remained expressionless in the face of the situation. The sect had always remained secure from such calamities, thanks to her being a great master of conjuration.
Unlike regular spells, conjurations were far more durable and powerful—requiring only maintenance of the catalyst materials, like fuel.
And she had kept these conjurations well-maintained in recent days. She had nothing to fear.
However, her expression began to darken more and more.
She had no problem handling hundreds of beasts—but in just a few minutes, they became thousands.
Now things were getting serious—and unfortunately, that was just the beginning.
The entire horde charged toward the sect as if led by a warlord. Not a single beast showed fear. The ritual traps activated in sequence across each invaded zone.
Dozens of traps were unleashed. Dozens upon dozens of beasts were impaled, burned, or frozen simultaneously.
Many dropped like flies—despite their average size of two meters, it was a bloodbath in every sense. Some didn't even make it close enough to trigger the traps before dying from the raw impact of the rituals.
All the traps were designed at a scale powerful enough to kill beasts as easily as cutting grass.
The sect, although pacifist, was by no means unprotected.
The slaughter did not stop for several minutes… and it wouldn't stop. Terrible screams echoed from the depths all the way to the sect.
The great beasts had arrived—and to everyone's horror, it wasn't just a few.
Secil, who had kept a cold-as-ice expression, showed a flicker of surprise.
They were being besieged by dozens of giant beasts, each with its own pack.
All of them rushed forward like trains at full speed. The initial traps proved inefficient at slowing down the hordes fast enough. The beasts died slower than the traps could reset.
Secil opened the pages of her book, which displayed several detailed patterns atop a map of the mountain—and slowly, the page began to fade away.
She flipped through the pages until she reached a specific one, tore it out, and immediately it turned to ash. In the middle of the battlefield, a massive storm swept through the beasts, preventing their advance—and though the stronger ones were only slowed, it gave the traps time to work.
The big ones barely seemed to suffer damage—but the spell had worked.
Secil stayed calm and started flipping through her book again, tearing out page after page and integrating each one into the detailed mountain map.
Dozens of new spells launched like a storm of bullets at the massive beasts.
Small fireballs were shot with great violence toward the tyrannical creatures. Once their skin touched them, they suffered constant burns and explosions. The wind did not extinguish the flames—on the contrary, it spread them further.
Agonizing screams echoed across the mountain. The giant beasts began to retreat.
The smaller, unlucky ones were reduced to ashes within seconds.
Secil felt satisfied with the scene—the advance had been adequately delayed. The preloaded conjurations had been a complete success in defending the sect.
And yet… she felt uneasy.
She couldn't quite explain why—she just knew the assault wasn't over.
Then the worst happened.
Far away, on the other side of the mountain, stood Kayn and Rengar—both with binoculars pointed toward the sect.
Rengar was calmly observing with an impassive look, while Kayn was furiously scribbling in a notebook—writing ancient runes that were glowing and rising off the pages.
A massive grin spread across her face.
Her eyes wide open.
She was writing a spell.