One-Eyed Monster

Although the word ’escape’ seemed slightly shameless at this moment, Igor had no other choice.

Though he despised the act of running away, it was a far better alternative than raising a hand against his own friend. Compared to fleeing, Igor found attacking his friend even more unacceptable.

The emergence of Hustace fueled Igor’s anger. The Scale of Faith in his heart, already wavering, was on the verge of tipping completely—almost to the point of dragging the old granny from her little shack.

As Igor fled, he thought. I can’t let Hustace continue like this. I am absolutely determined to bring him safely back to Yonder Travel Academy. I have to do something; I can’t just keep running.

Igor began to reconsider Kadi’s words. At times unreliable, Kadi’s uncanny strategies often brought unexpected results in key situations.

This time, I feel I haven’t fully grasped Kadi’s intentions. I need to think about it again. For my own sake, and for Hustace’s.

Kadi had said not to confront the enemy head-on, as a direct confrontation would mean falling into their trap. Igor hadn’t paid it much mind at first, but looking back now, it seemed Kadi had been exactly right.

Confronting this Dark Force head-on does indeed show your courage and your strength. But what’s the outcome? The outcome is you get entangled by them, with no way to escape, not even a chance to communicate with others.

Igor was annoyed. Why did I only realize this now? Kadi, on the other hand, noticed it early, though his way of explaining things could certainly be improved... If I’d understood this sooner, I would have avoided some missteps and wouldn’t be in such a panic.

Time was pressing. Kevin and the others were completely surrounded.

Luckily, I ran early. Otherwise, I’d also be trapped in that formation, unable to move. The enemy’s strategy seems to be to wear us down, rather than aim for our demise. Wait, what about Hustace...?

Another thought seemed to strike Igor. Hustace’s appearance hadn’t just made Kadi’s true intentions clear; it had also revealed another truth to him.

This hidden aspect is truly dark!

Igor suddenly felt he had stepped into a vile and sickening world. The vileness of that world was almost unbearable.

Igor believed that a person who had lost their self was nothing. And that was exactly what had happened to Hustace; he had completely lost his self.

Hustace had turned into a Puppet controlled by the Dark Force. The mere thought of it set Igor’s blood boiling.

This Dark Force has sucked out everyone’s emotions, creating a horde of Puppets devoid of any feelings or sensations! Such tactics are despicable. But even worse, they’re using these Puppets as tools, forcing them to do their bidding. If a person loses their emotions and feelings, can they still be considered human? Their souls hollowed out, leaving nothing but an empty husk of a body. Hustace now seems to be just such an empty husk, cut off from the outside world, a mere shell at others’ command.

Thinking about this, Igor felt both anger and sadness. He was furious at the enemy’s abhorrent actions and saddened by the loss of Hustace’s spirit...

Regardless, Igor was determined to bring Hustace back to Yonder Travel Academy. After all, that was his friend Hustace, even if all that was left was an empty shell.

No matter what, I’m bringing you home, Hustace!

Immediately, the Scale of Faith within Igor tipped. I know I can’t fight the entire formation, and saving Hustace will be incredibly difficult, but I have to try, no matter what.

So, he began to weave through them. Since I’m running anyway, I might as well do it with flair! Dream big. If I’m going to run, I should make it lively. Just running blindly is too boring. I wonder how Kadi would escape in this situation? After thinking it over, Kadi would definitely cause trouble while escaping. Normally, Kadi might use Verbal Attacks, taunting these guys with words. But now, facing a bunch of emotionless people, Verbal Attacks would surely be useless. So, verbal provocation is out. It won’t work. If Kadi were here, he’d definitely run all over the place, maybe even jump left and right. Kadi would probably try to lure this formation to another place. The best would be to lure them towards Kevin’s group. It’s messiest over there, and making it even messier would be just Kadi’s style.

And so, Igor started to act accordingly.

He began to run around, dodging left and right, ensuring the enemy couldn’t capture him. While he didn’t have enough strength to fight the Death Knights and Puppet Soldiers, he could still dodge them freely. Of course, this kind of purposeful dodging was quite difficult.

Unexpectedly, his erratic escape began to disrupt the once orderly formation. The Puppet Soldiers’ spears wavered, unsure where to thrust. Their spears, meant to thrust inward, faltered as he suddenly leaped up. They adjusted to aim upwards, but before they could strike, THUMP! He had dropped to the ground and started rolling.

Handling a spear was already challenging, let alone amidst the frontal charge of the Death Knights. In no time, the Puppet Soldiers’ formation had trampled their own Death Knights. Their own side attacking their own side—this was hardly a good thing, even if these beings had no feelings at all.

If these soldiers had emotions, hehe, now that would be a sight to see... A pity they’re just a bunch of Puppets.

Igor’s antics had completely thrown the formation into disorder.

In a conventional confrontation, he had absolutely no chance of winning. But now, with all this chaotic maneuvering, Igor found it was actually having an effect.

And just like that, the other formations began to shift. They noticed that the supposedly weakest flank had suddenly fallen into disarray. These methodical formations started to dispatch some soldiers to this side to provide support.

Even when dispersing soldiers, these formations remained meticulously orderly, not a hint of chaos...

Watching the scene he had created, Igor couldn’t help but marvel. So, it can be done this way too! So, running away can actually cause a commotion! Kadi was really onto something!