[Nightmare]

"This is so embarrassing that it's mildly traumatizing." Marie cried.

She was leaping like a frog through the forest.

Her crazy stats, agility, and strength allowed her to jump 20 feet at a time, aligning with the speed of the Lagrock.

Between hops, she put her hands on the earth.

"[Double Sink]!" She yelled for the forty-eighth time.

Two earth ripples passed under the earth lightly.

Once it reached the Lagrock's feet, the earth sank where its feet landed.

The group learned early on that spells aren't assigned with Nightmares.

Instead, they are developed through creativity and training.

Then the autopilot feature takes over to smooth out orders.

The spells are designated in advance but unlocked through discovery.

So Helix's Nightmare unlocking wasn't unique.

After countless hours of practice and [particle kisses], Marie unlocked [Double Sink].

It allowed her to activate two [Sink] spells at a designated distance, and [Conditional Nightmare Fusion] smoothed the endpoints.

"Stop complaining!" Charlotte yelled mockingly.

"I've never seen Hellie give so many kisses in his life!"

Marie blushed but turned wrathful the minute she had to hop again.

"Marie, you're under Tinker's invisibility wall." Helix reminded her.

"Only we can see you from the sides, and the Lagrock is protecting you.

Thank you for this. You're critical to this operation."

Marie blushed and kept her blush an entire hop.

Then her eyes burned with determination.

"I'll do whatever it takes!" She yelled.

However, her mortification returned in full force when the group exited the forest.

The closer she got to the city, the worse it got.

Luckily, she was hidden and only had a couple hundred meters to go.

She stood up and started running in broad daylight.

"[Domain]!" Charlotte yelled.

The Lagrock began wobbling, causing Marie to fall over.

When she hit the ground--

"[Sink]!" She thought in her mind.

BOOOOOOOM!

The monster crashed into the earth, leaving a crater in distant farmland.

The sun briefly returned before it was slowly eclipsed again by the monster standing up.

It broke free from Charlotte's gravity and started moving toward the Kingdom again.

It got up slowly, cracking the earth through illusion alone.

"[Sink]!" She thought again.

The Lag rock took its first step.

"[Sink]!

The second step cracked the earth.

Silent casting was possible.

However, aside from Helix, no one used it because it was a form of communication.

"[Double Sink]!" She muttered out loud.

Her words were an indication it was moving to Charlotte, who released [Domain].

It started walking again, taking huge strides at high speed.

Each step covered 20 feet, making it 40 feet every two steps.

Helix picked Marie up from the ground and pressed his lips to hers while carrying her.

Once they ran a small distance, he put her on the ground to start running.

"[Domain]!"

Its body began falling.

"[Sink]."

BOOOOM!

The body hit the earth.

"[Sink]."

It took its first step to get back up.

"[Sink]."

It took a second step.

"[Double Sink]!"

The Lag rock started moving.

Pick up.

Spirit kiss.

Repeat.

It was a grueling trial that tested Marie's endurance and [resolve].

But she was making it work--miraculously.

Once they got near a high point, Charlotte reached out her hand.

"[Domain]!"

BOOOOOOOM!

The Lagrock hit the earth in a stunning display that rocked the emotions of the guards.

Helix started calling out.

"Marie! Move to a higher vantage point where you can see better!"

"I'm on it!" Marie yelled out.

"Make the best decisions, and remember that I'm wearing gear that can take a beating!"

She ran to the hill while Helix barked orders to Charlotte and Riley.

Then hit that thing with [Domain]!" Helix yelled out.

"On it!" Charlotte yelled out.

"Riley! Stay on standby. We'll need fire suppression once this thing's on fire!" Helix ordered.

"So focus on defense and support for now, and prepare for [Flood] or [Cyclone].

We're too damn close to the city!"

"Charlotte! Send Tinker out to prevent those showoffs from trying to fight!

Everyone but Marie wore Amplification Circles that raised their voice a few decibels.

That way, everyone knew who they were and when they were casting spells.

Masov, otakus, and Macron all paled when they heard the voice.

"Wait!? Is that Helix!?" Leo cried.

"Wait... yeah! That's Helix, Charlotte, and Riley!" Tanya cried.

Cheers started exploding on the wall.

"Wait. That's Sir Helix, isn't it?" Masov commented with wide eyes.

"Yeah, that's Sir Helix and his partners." Lamath confirmed with amazement in his eyes.

"Why is he back here?" Masov asked in a stupor.

"I don't know.... From what Macron said, he came here to ensure that his friends didn't die." Lamath replied in a daze.

"I've been told that Helix is that type of person.

His treatment here the first time was much worse from what I've heard.

So I don't think that his reception would change his mission.

Maybe he was camping out or staying in a closeby township?" Lamath suggested.

"GOOOOOOOOOOOR--!"

BOOOOOOOOOOOM!

"Haaaaaah. Now that I've seen that spell in action, I'm kicking myself for not trying hard enough.

Let's get the soldiers to the back to provide support!" Masov roared.

The soldiers released a murderous battle cry once the general's harangue was over.

It triggered the Lagrock to turn to them mid-battle, sending shivers down their spines.

"Those idiots!" Helix yelled.

"Riley! Make contact with Masov and tell him we can handle this alone!"

"On it!" Riley yelled before running away at lightning speed.

Charlotte released [Domain] and allowed herself to be hit by the aftershock of a [Sink] spell.

She flew backward, giving the Lagrock time to cast its spell.

--

"I'll... do my best." Marie said nervously.

"If anyone can showcase that skill level, it's you, Marie." Helix said with a gentle gaze.

Marie's face heated up, and she hugged Helix.

He loved that she retained her blush long after achieving confidence in their relationship.

So while she blushed often, she wasn't nervous about holding him or accepting his praise.

Perhaps it was Charlotte who broke the redhead's shyness.

The blonde's nightly, shocking exploits always felt embarrassing.

However... Helix loved it, so she accepted it and soon became immune to regular embarrassing things.

After all, after walking in to find 15 pairs of Charlotte's panties on the bed and floor, she stopped thinking public kisses were mortifying.

"Helix...." Marie whispered as she held him.

"I'm scared you'll get hurt. What if you pass out, and you're blacked out when the backlash comes."

Helix chuckled, squeezed her, and patted her head.

"About that. I'm laying a massive, multilayered [Contained Charge] circle under the beast." He explained.

"It has a conditional trigger to explode if I pass out."

"How...." Marie whispered.

"Gaming the system." Helix replied with an evil smile.

"I made a blood pact with Charlotte to kiss her at least once after the blood pact if I'm conscious after the vow."

Marie's eyes trembled with shock.

"To fulfill that request, I requested information that processes information while I was conscious." Helix continued with madness in his eyes.

"I attached the blood seal to the [Containment Charge] so that it would trigger if passing out was a threat after activation."

Marie's [already slacked-jawed] expression turned into a full-blown gawking display.

"Lastly, I'm setting up a conditional trigger for Nightmare Fusion to start dissolving immediately, and Charlotte will hit it with a low [Exodus Flame]." Helix concluded with an evil grin.

"They'll hear an explosion, see fairy dust, then see a bright flash of fire. The end."

"How did you...." Marie whispered.

"Charlotte and I were feeling devious and inspired." Helix replied casually.

"Our relationship started with mind games, and she was excited about this plan.

So we started scheming mid-sex."

--

[A/N: Don't get your hopes up or panic. The next chapter isn't a sex scene.

There are 20 lines of non-explicit, amusing dialogue in the next chapter. That's it. :)]

--

Power stones and grammatical errors = more content. :)