The Duke's Passion

825  His mom

Panic and alarm swelled in the warriors' hearts, seeing the herds of undead running in their direction. It took them a while before they caught the person running ahead of them. A woman waving a gigantic scythe at them.

"What the… who is that?" a warrior mumbled in shock, noticing how these undeads were following her.

"Why is she leading those monsters here?"

"Auntie Lilove… what the heck??" Claude also joined the mumbling, scrunching up his face in disbelief. Meanwhile, Rufus narrowed his eyes as he focused his attention on Lilou. She was waving her scythe to get some attention; whose attention it was, they had no idea. "Rufus!" her yelling faded into the background noises. Rufus tilted his head to the side as his gut feeling told him she wanted to convey something. Hence, to understand her intention, his eyes landed on her moving lips. "Ru. Fus! Switch!" whispered Rufus as he read Lilou's lips. However, before he could react, he noticed that Lilou's steps grew larger and faster, creating a wider gap from the herds of undead behind her. From the corner of his eyes, he also noticed Acheron's slight movements. Before Rufus could even think, the ground underneath his feet cracked until it hollowed because of his weight. And after a second, he disappeared from his vantage point. Claude and the warriors snapped out of their trance as the ground trembled. Their eyes shook, searching for Rufus, only to catch him sprinting to the herds of the undead. But that wasn't what made everyone gasp in suspense. Because they saw Acheron catch up to Rufus from behind.

"Watch out!" Claude shouted on instinct, almost jumping to cover Rufus from the surprise attack, but stood frozen a second later. BAM!

A strong gust of wind blew past Claude, and the warriors behind him had their jaws dropped. They almost didn't see what happened. Everything happened so fast that all they saw was a bright glint from metal, and then followed by a loud boom as Acheron was sent flying. "How…" a warrior trailed off under his breath, staring at another smoke from a distance, wide-eyed. They hadn't recovered from the shock when a blinding light from the corner of their eyes stole their attention. The warriors, including Claude, instinctively shifted their eyes to the light, only to squint their eyes. The light was bright — too bright. The only thing they could see through their squinting eyes was Rufus standing in front of the waves of the undead. His sword was raised, pointing at the sky. It was as if he was an angel of war who descended into this hell to cleanse it. Soon, the light coming from Rufus' sword spread across the area, bringing daylight for a moment.

BOOM!

The Warriors had no choice but to shut their eyes, flinching at the soundless explosion the light created. When they recovered, peeking from one of their eyes to see that the light gradually subsided, they looked around in confusion. The smoke where Acheron landed already wore thin and the darkness slowly enveloped everything once again. However, they caught a glimpse of the herds of undead, now unconscious on the ground. Even those undead that were already around them were knocked unconscious. When the darkness completely took over, it brought silence within it. No one spoke; they couldn't. All they could do for the next full minute was dart their eyes to where Rufus stood, and then at the figure behind the thick smoke. "What… who… how…" the warrior who recovered first couldn't make up for what question he should ask first. They were still darting their eyes between the figure behind the smoke until the smoke was thin enough for them to see a woman. And then to Rufus, who didn't move an inch from where he stood before that brief light. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

They already knew Rufus, but this woman was someone they hadn't seen or heard of. "Auntie Lilove!" Claude's excited voice made some warriors flinch in surprise. Claude didn't hesitate to skip his steps, jogging in Lilou's direction while the latter approached him to meet him halfway. "Auntie Li —"

A frown instantly replaced his bright smile when Lilou pressed the tip of her scythe against his chest. His arms were wide open, and it was obvious he was about to throw himself at her. "Where's Sam?" she asked without beating around the bush, making her nephew's frown deepen. "Auntie Lilou, I thought you came here because you're worried about me." Claude pouted, shocking the warriors behind him, who regarded him as their hero.

"Claude." Lilou let out a deep, exhausted exhale. She glanced over her shoulder, seeing Rufus approach them leisurely. "I was looking for Rufus. I saw him flying in this direction, so I brought all of them."

Lilou peeled the tip of her scythe from Claude's chest, turning on her heel to face Rufus. However, her eyes didn't linger on Rufus's figure as they moved to the people behind him, unconscious.

"I knew it." She heaved a sigh of relief, casting Rufus a look. "You can dispel it."

"On some of them," corrected Rufus. "I can only dispel it if they meet the requirement. I won't bore you with the details."

"But that's better than them being a sacrificial lamb." Lilou licked her chapped lips, rocking her head as she caught up to her breath.

"What are you two talking about?"

Lilou and Rufus raised their brows at Claude. The latter cocked his head to the side, blinking. "Ahh…" Lilou cleared her throat, but before she could begin her explanation, she noticed the people several steps behind them. She cocked her head to the side, assessing them from head to toe. "The Warriors?"

"And who is she…?" someone among them asked, giving Claude a curious look, hoping the latter would give them enlightenment. Claude's lips parted, glad to introduce Lilou to everyone. However, just before he could say, "his beautiful aunt," mischief shone in his eyes. His lips stretched mischievously before he said, "his mom," while pointing at Rufus.