Uriel knew what had to be done.

That necromancer needed to die.

He was a constant threat to the group’s advance, and he had already proven it multiple times. Even so, there was no telling what dangers awaited them once they approached his lair.

"Anastasia, you’ll lead the way. Try to stay close to me."

It was the logical choice. Anastasia could easily follow the traces of negative energy, while Uriel could follow the golden trail.

"Goodness, Comrade Uriel, I didn’t know you had those kinds of intentions toward me."

Anastasia curled herself close to Uriel, who froze stiff as stone at the sudden proximity. She slowly brought her hand toward his chest, but before she could touch him, an arm violently shoved her aside.

It was Ininise.

She immediately cut off whatever Anastasia had been intending to do.

"Oh, Ininise, don’t get angry. It was only a joke. Don’t tell me you like Comrade Uriel?"

Anastasia chuckled softly.

However, Uriel noticed something was wrong.

Ininise glared at Anastasia with pure hatred, as though she might pounce on her at any moment.

It wasn’t a jealous look.

So why was Ininise this angry?

The group resumed their march, though their formation had become somewhat strange, with Ininise refusing to stray far from Uriel.

The black structure slowly grew closer, and Uriel noticed the golden trail was leading toward only one of the towers.

Uriel stopped for a moment. He wanted to know Anastasia’s opinion.

"The golden trail goes left."

Anastasia looked at him with a smile.

"Well, it seems we’ll have to choose, because the negative energy is coming from the right."

Uriel stared at the structure. In the end, it didn’t matter too much, since both sides were connected by a massive bridge linking the two areas.

Miguel approached and offered his thoughts.

"It’s probably a trap. He wants us to split up when the result will most likely be the same."

Uriel thought about it, but the answer felt too simple.

"I’m not so sure." He brought a hand to his chin, concentrating. "Maybe that’s exactly what he wants us to think, while his real plan is escaping through the other side once we all move together toward one."

Miguel nodded.

"That’s possible too. He’s been trying to kill us from a distance this entire time. He has to have some kind of plan."

For the first time in a long while, Vladimir spoke, something Uriel immediately noticed. After all, he rarely took initiative.

"The path is clear. We keep moving forward."

Anastasia spoke next.

"If you ask me, comrades, the answer is pretty simple. No matter what we do, the necromancer will keep stalking us if we don’t advance. Let’s pick one tower and continue."

Uriel narrowed his eyes.

"We’ll follow the golden trail. That’s why we came here in the first place. It’s time to fulfill our mission."

Uriel and the group entered the tower on the left.

Inside were countless bones, far more than any common mass grave.

"This place was some kind of corpse storage or something?" Miguel observed the scene carefully. There were too many bones deliberately piled together.

Why would someone do something like this?

Uriel’s mind searched for some logic behind the situation.

Why would anyone need so many bones?

Uriel remembered the numerous enemies they had fought up until now. All of them had been monsters that emerged from nowhere before attacking the group.

He crouched down and grabbed some of the corpse dust with his hand.

He concentrated as hard as he could.

Suddenly, Uriel’s eyes widened in horror, though thankfully nobody noticed.

Uriel had realized something that chilled his blood.

The situation had become far more complicated.

He would even dare say that, ever since entering the tower, this was the most dangerous moment he had experienced in his entire life.

He stood up and tried his best to maintain his composure. Fortunately, his expression revealed nothing.

Still, he was certain there was one person here who perfectly understood the concerns running through his mind at that moment.

That calmed him slightly.

"Let’s keep moving."

Uriel urged them onward. If the situation had truly become this dangerous, then he needed to make use of everything at his disposal.

Eventually, they reached the top of the tower.

When they arrived, both Uriel and Miguel felt their hearts grow heavy.

Soliel’s obelisk emitted a faint glow.

It was trapped beneath a dark dome that seemed to be feeding the very structure surrounding it.

Miguel gripped his sword tightly.

"How dare they... HOW DARE THEY!"

He immediately lost his patience. He couldn’t endure seeing Soliel’s symbol defiled like this.

He rushed toward the structure, trying to slash it apart with his sword.

"Wait, Miguel!"

Uriel shouted, even attempting to grab him before he charged in.

But it was already too late.

His own speed was nothing compared to a warrior in the middle of an attack.

Miguel swung his sword at the dome imprisoning the obelisk, but right before the strike connected, the dome moved as if it had suddenly come alive.

And devoured Miguel whole.

The group rushed forward to observe the situation, but there was little they could do now.

Miguel was trapped.

Uriel avoided getting too close. It was highly likely the obelisk could contain more than one person.

Meanwhile, inside the dome, Miguel was being ravaged by negative energies.

Uriel watched in horror as his body was torn apart.

His pale skin turned blackened.

His blond hair became white.

And the pure energy of Soliel slowly left his body.

He was being corrupted by negative energy.

And there was nothing Uriel could do.

The process didn’t last long.

In fact, it happened quickly.

Miguel’s suffering was mercifully brief.

To everyone’s shock, the dome shattered, and the obelisk’s energy vanished.

From the mixture of both energies, a figure emerged.

It was Miguel.

But he had completely changed.

"You were looking for me?"

A smile appeared on his face, utterly different from Miguel’s usual relaxed grin.

This one was macabre.

Filled with pleasure.

Uriel observed the situation with concern. He didn’t fully understand what was happening, but he instinctively knew the necromancer had possessed Miguel’s body.

"What did you do to Miguel?"

Uriel tightened his grip on the hammer while the rest of the team moved into formation beside one another.

Miguel stared directly at Uriel.

"So you’re Soliel’s little boy. What a prize."

That single sentence was enough for Uriel to make a decision.

The situation was clear now.

There was no need to hesitate anymore.

Ininise moved instantly.

Her spear had already been summoned.

All it took was one precise and efficient spin.

Vladimir’s eyes widened in shock as Ininise’s spear pierced straight through his stomach.