"I can''t contact Ka and Kuro either, it''s as if my connection with them has been cut off but the contract is still there!"


    Evan tried to remain calm but he could not. All the spirits with them had disappeared not long after he said something about not using the spirits for battle, it''d be weirder if he was still calm after that.


    The next moment, the runes on the altar began to glow with a brighter light as three of the four monster spawn points shed with light.


    ''This is horrible timing!''


    Evan cursed as he summoned his de, gazing at the spawn points with fury in his eyes, however, a chill ran down his spine in the next moment as he felt the auras of the monstersing out.


    "No fucking way!"


    From the three glowing spawn points, three monsters emerged, each of them emitting an aura that made Evan reflexively take a step back.


    The three de wraiths that walked into the room were d in glided armour and bucket-like helms that reminded Evan of ancient samurai from his home world''s history.


    They wore masks that covered every inch of their faces, save for their blood-red eyes that gazed towards the party silently. Their armours were coloured red, golden and ck respectively.


    Each one carried a sword that was wrapped in the aura of their corresponding colour and their red eyes red straight at Evan''s party.


    ''Helmet, mask, and chest armour paired with shoulder guards, sleeves, a skirt, thigh protection, and shin guards.


    No doubt about it, these are superior de wraiths!''


    "This is bad..."


    Sweat dripped from Evan''s forehead as he spoke.


    "de wraiths are an ancient monster species that are dedicated to using des all through their lives. They never pick up other weapons except under a single condition..."


    Hearing him speak, Pride tightened her grip on her sword and asked.


    "I already have a guess but I''m gonna ask either way. What is that condition?"


    "...That the de wraith in question, has reached a sufficient level of mastery in their de. In other words, de wraiths only pick up other weapons when they have be master-level existences."


    The moment she heard Evan''s words; Eliza''s eyes darted around before zooming in on the things hanging from the waists of the three de wraiths.


    The red and golden armoured de wraiths had crossbows hanging from their hips while the ck armoured one had a short staff that was a bit below the halfway mark of Eliza''s staff''s length.


    "Those are secondary weapons, aren''t they?"


    "yep."


    "So, you''re saying that these three de wraiths are on the level of a sword master."


    "Exactly."


    "How are we supposed to fight that???!!!"


    The young priestess couldn''t help but scream out loud. She knew that although Evan was a master-level existence, his sword skill was not up to par and she was at least a dozen levels away from bing one herself.


    Pride was the only genuine master level among them and they had three genuine masters as enemies.


    The scales weren''t bnced at all!!


    Nevertheless, for some reason, the three de wraiths were not even moving, only standing in ce and staring at the trio in silence.


    Evan noticed this too but couldn''t think it through as his mind was upied with thoughts of his contracted spirits.


    "Facing these three without the help of the spirits is gonna be difficult, to say the least."


    The young hero murmured to himself silently, only for a familiar notice board to pop up in front of him.


    [The ''Eternal of Time and Destruction'' says that is exactly the point of taking away the spirits.]


    "Huh?"


    The boy couldn''t help but let out a surprised voice, causing Eliza and Pride to give him strange nces, however, he was far too preupied to even notice this.


    ''What do you mean by that?!''


    [The ''Eternal of Time and Destruction'' says he means exactly what you think. He is indeed responsible for cutting off the connection between you and your contracted spirits.


    He wishes for you to battle these adversaries without their help, with the intention of it being practice for the future.]


    [The ''Eternal of Time and Destruction'' also says that you of all people should know about your future enemy who possesses powers that are very effective against spirits.]


    Evan didn''t even get a chance to reply when he suddenly heard a voice ringing out in his head.


    [Now then, amuse me.


    Surrender, is NOT a valid option.]


    The moment he heard thatst line, his blood ran cold as he looked up and shouted with all his might.


    "They''reing!!!!"


    And that was exactly what ''They'' did.


    The three de wraiths that had been silent since they stepped into the room suddenly unsheathed their swords and dashed forward with the swords in front.


    Evan and his party members reacted appropriately, pulling up their weapons to defend themselves from the monster''s attacks.


    Without hesitation, the trio drew their weapons to fend off the three monsters'' onught, preparing their energies for the inevitable counterattack.


    The destructive energy circuit in Evan''s body circted his energy wildly as he coated his de in his distinctive golden aura to fight the de wraith''s lightning-infused aura.


    He then activated two skills simultaneously, his body being coated in a thinyer of white light while delivering a palm strike to the monster''s midsection with his left hand off the sword hilt.


    Although his strength did not match up to that of the seven feet tall monster, he was able to hold on for a few seconds with just one hand, long enough for the second skill he activated to take effect.


    **BOOOMM!!!


    There was a loud explosion, with Evan and the de wraith being sent flying for a few dozen metres.


    "Guhh!"


    Evan grunted in pain as he struggled to his feet as fast as he could. He tried to grab onto his sword with his left hand and use it to prop himself up but the pain he felt only intensified.


    As if on cue, a ring of green light appeared around his left wrist and the pain was alleviated before he could even scream in agony.


    Sadly, Evan did not even have the time to say words of thanks as he sensed two chunks of magic power heading in his direction, looking up to see two crossbow bolts of pure lightning-infused magic power speeding toward him.


    He rolled out of the way to avoid the bolts before rousing his magic power and snapping his fingers.


    The spell he had copied from the demon Xakon was activated as five two-ringed magic circles appeared around him.


    From each of these magic circles, mes were generated,ing out in a spiralling motion, which created a tornado-shaped st of mes.


    The five sts headed straight for the golden armoured de wraith that was speeding towards him, burning through the air in their paths as they zoomed towards their targets.


    To the young hero''s surprise, the de wraith suddenly tossed its de up in the air and pulled one hand backward while fiverge orbs of golden lightning formed on its open palm.


    In the next moment, the de wraith then leaned forward andunched the orbs of lightning in the direction of the iing sts of mes.


    **BOOOMMM!!!!


    The lightning orbs and me sts collided mid-air and exploded, releasing a cloud of dust and smoke that obscured the young hero''s vision temporarily.


    He didn''t dare stay within the smoke any longer, activating his blink skill and warping nearly twenty feet into the air.


    Looking down, he saw the ghostly outline of the de wraith that had just cut the ground where he stood moments prior with a de coated in a golden aura.


    "AHHH!!"


    Upon hearing a familiar voice screaming, his eyes turned in the direction of the source, locking on the figure of the ck armoured de wraith raising its sword above its head and swinging downwards in the direction of his party''s one and only support.


    ''Oh no, you don''t!''


    Right before the force of gravity made him fall to the ground through the cloud of smoke that was yet to clear up, he blinked once more, appearing at the side of the ck armoured de wraith and activating another skill immediately after.


    "Aura sh!"


    The de wraith''s sword strike was disrupted by a sh of aura that coalesced around his weapon and radiated forth from him in a golden hue.


    Before the monster could evenprehend why Evan was suddenly beside it, the young hero had transitioned to another attack, his left palm stretching out as he activated his energy st skill.


    A golden beam of lightning wasunched from his palm, hitting the de wraith straight in the head and knocking it off its feet.


    Evan heard the sound of something cracking and shattering, but he paid it no mind, refusing to give the de wraith even the slightest bit of time to recover as he coated his sword in lightning and swung it downwards faster than he normally could, releasing another aura sh simultaneously.