If one were to ask Simon when he placed Merath under an illusion, the answer would be from the moment they stood in front of the crimson barrier.
When Simon told Sonya to not worry that he’d deal with Jorra and Merath if they tried anything funny, he had started dealing with the two Daemons from the moment he said those words.
He had been subtly using the Hollow Sky Eye to influence Merath’s mind.
He chose Merath, not Jorra, for several reasons.
First of all, Jorra’s mental defenses were sturdier than Merath’s.
Jorra’s abilities revolved around cursed spirits and cursed energy, but these were also related to his mental energy.
Simon was certain that for Jorra to be able to control cursed spirits, he needed to have a unique and powerful sea of consciousness.
So, he chose Jorra.
Simon had planned in his heart from the moment he started escaping the Shadowgrave Clan that he would kill either Jorra or Merath, or he would kill both.
He did not drag Jorra and Merath to join his escape just because he was worried about a trap, or he wanted to use them as shields, or he was wary of them.
No.
He needed the heart of a Daemon, and Jorra and Merath were the only Daemons he knew.
Why would he let them go when the heart of a Daemon was actually the rarest of the ingredients he needed to improve his one-horned demon bloodline?
And now, Simon had a Daemon’s heart, and one of his goals was accomplished in this escape.
’Even if I have to abandon the Herald’s corpse for now, at least I obtained something in the end.’
Simon glanced at Merath who was desperately dodging for her life even with just one arm.
Then he looked at the withered tree with narrowed eyes.
For a moment, the thought of trying to approach the withered tree in order to find a way underground appeared in Simon’s mind.
Sunless’ was distracted by Merath, and Simon could find a way to sneak to the withered tree without Sunless noticing on time.
But, Simon shook his head and dispelled this thought.
It was a thought that was solely driven by greed, and nothing else but greed.
He was severely injured to the point that he needed somebody’s help to move.
The main reason he was alive was due to Unholy Regeneration , Devour , the Miser’s Ring, and most importantly... Luck.
If he pushed his luck, he would surely die.
’Sigh.’
’When did I become so greedy for power? I need to be mindful of this.’
Unfortunately for Simon, this was easier said than done.
He looked at Sonya and Akaza.
"Sonya, Akaza... come."
The two of them looked at Simon, then they looked at one another before nodding.
They approached Simon.
They dodged whatever attacks was in their path, and it was a lot easier for them to do compared to before.
Simon looked at the two of them, then his gaze shifted toward Merath and Sunless once again.
Merath was still desperately running and dodging Sunless’ unstable attacks.
Her bloody aura surged around her body, and although she only had one arm, her movements were fast and sharp.
However, no matter how fast she was, she looked like a mouse running before a wounded lion.
Sunless was still laughing and attacking wildly.
Her attacks were powerful, but they were not accurate. Some shadow blades struck the crimson barrier. Some struck the ground. Some almost hit Merath, while some flew in completely wrong directions.
The Eternal Mind Maze was still working, but Simon knew that there was a very high possibility of Sunless breaking out of the maze.
He needed to act, and he needed to act fast.
’Now.’
The Chaos Wraps around Simon’s right arm moved.
They moved slowly, silently, and subtly.
They did not shoot out like before. They crawled across the ground like a harmless strip of black cloth being dragged by the wind.
Akaza and Sonya noticed it, but neither of them said anything.
The Chaos Wraps moved past a few stones, passed over the dry ground, and slowly approached the withered tree.
Simon did not look at it.
He did not dare to look at it.
He kept his gaze on Sunless and Merath, making it seem like all his attention was on them.
Then the Chaos Wraps reached one of the lower branches of the withered tree.
It curled around the branch gently.
Simon inhaled softly.
A second later, black flames erupted from the Chaos Wraps as Simon summoned the Chaos Flames.
The flames were silent.
No heat spread from them.
No smoke rose from them.
But the moment the black flames touched the branch, the withered tree caught fire.
The black flames crawled from the branch to the trunk like a hungry beast that had finally found food.
At first, Sunless did not notice.
She was too focused on Merath, too focused on killing everything and everyone, and too focused on resisting the Eternal Mind Maze in her head.
But then...
Her body froze.
The shadow half of her face twisted violently, and her remaining eye slowly shifted toward the withered tree.
And the moment she saw the black flames burning the branch, her expression changed.
The madness in her eye became deeper.
The hatred became heavier.
And the killing intent became even more suffocating.
"Blackmoon..."
Her voice was low and trembling.
Then she turned her head toward Simon with a face that looked like it was about to tear itself apart.
"BLACKMOON!!!"
She took a step toward him.
But before she could take the second step, her body suddenly stiffened.
Her remaining hand grabbed her head.
The shadow half of her body began to distort violently, and her mouth opened wide.
"KYYYYYYYYAAAAAAARRRRHHHHHHHH!!!"
Sunless screamed.
It was not a scream of anger.
It was a scream of pain.
Extreme pain.
The moment her scream echoed, the entire Blackwind Valley trembled violently.
RUMBLE!
The ground shook like a massive earthquake was occurring beneath the valley. The crimson barrier rippled violently, and cracks appeared on its smooth surface for the first time.
The withered tree burned even more fiercely.
The black flames spread slowly, but every inch they consumed caused Sunless’ scream to grow louder.
The shadows in Blackwind Valley also became chaotic.
The shadows of trees, stones, demonic beasts, demons, and even corpses began to writhe strangely.
They twisted like worms placed in fire. Some rose from the ground and scattered apart, while some curled inward as though they were in pain.
Akaza’s expression changed.
"What the hell did you do?"
Simon obviously did not answer.
The trembling of the valley became stronger, and a violent wave of force erupted from Sunless’ body as she held her head in pain.
BOOM!
Simon, Sonya, Akaza, and even Merath were sent flying.
Simon was the weakest among them at the moment, and his body flew toward the crimson barrier like a broken doll.
Sonya’s expression changed.
"Little kitty!"
The ground rose beneath her feet, and she forced herself through the air with a painful groan.
A thick pillar of earth shot her straight in Simon’s path, then she quickly hugged him and twisted her body midair.
A thick slab of earth shot out of the ground right in front of the barrier and Sonya crashed into it but she was completely fine.
However, the impact still made Simon cough out blood, but at least his body did not strike the crimson barrier directly or the earth.
Sonya landed roughly while carrying him, her knees almost giving way.
She was beginning to feel tired.
"You should not be called little kitty but heavy kitty."
Simon glanced at her weakly.
"Shut... up."
Sonya’s lips twitched slightly, but before she could speak, Simon’s eyes became colder.
[Lilith.]
[I know.]
The Chaos Wraps around Simon’s arm suddenly tightened.
A sharp pain pierced Simon’s mind and soul.
It was not physical pain.
It felt... deeper and it was also more uncomfortable.
It felt like something was dragging invisible threads out of his soul and using them as fuel.
The Chaos Wraps moved.
This time, they did not move like cloth.
They moved like something alive.
Completely black Chaos Flames appeared on them once again, then the wraps shot toward the space in front of Simon.
They pierced the air.
Then they pulled.
CRACK!
The space in front of Simon cracked like glass.
Lilith pulled harder.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
A dark spatial crack opened in front of them. It was unstable, uneven, and terrifying to look at. Black lines spread around it, and beyond the crack was nothing but a swirling darkness.
Simon immediately looked at Sonya.
"Enter."
Sonya did not hesitate.
She carried Simon properly and entered the spatial crack.
Akaza gritted his teeth, forced himself up, and rushed after them.
Behind them, Sunless was still screaming in pain while black flames continued to burn the withered tree.
Merath looked at the spatial crack with wide eyes.
Then she looked at Sunless.
Then at the crack again.
"Fuck it."
Just as the spatial crack was closing, Merath rushed forward with everything she had and jumped inside.
A second later, the crack closed.
And inside the crimson barrier, only Sunless’ scream remained.