The Moonstone seals—**all of them—**unleashed at once!

Boom!

A thunderous explosion echoed through the banquet hall. Clouds of dust rained down from the ceiling, falling into the blood on the floor that still radiated heat.

Several of the white serpentine monsters were blasted apart by the power of the Moonstone marks, their bodies torn into pieces and collapsing weakly onto the ground. But almost instantly, new serpents sprouted again, rapidly regrowing.

The thickest of them opened its gaping maw, its cold eyes locking onto Ed as it spoke:

"It's useless, Ed. You may have the strength of a low-tier Gold Hunter, but your methods are too limited. You can't do any real damage to me."

"Since we last met, my power has far surpassed anything you can imagine!"

In the next moment, several of the white serpents coiled and twisted together, forming a bolt of living lightning that shot straight at Ed's heart.

Ed quickly brought his steel sword up horizontally to shield himself. The impact hit like a hammer, sending him staggering backward several steps from the sheer force.

Vil seized the opportunity, rapidly closing the distance between them and launching another flurry of attacks.

Ed, however, remained calm. He parried and countered using his steel sword, staying locked in a deadly clash with Vil. Vil's strength was indeed overwhelming now, but Ed—empowered by the Lucky Dice to low-tier Gold Hunter level—could still fight back with confidence.

He was waiting—for the perfect moment to release the Blue Fire Seal.

Elsewhere in the hall, Eng led the three other Morton Family guards in fierce battle against Arya, Reve, the harpy, and the swarms of red-eyed crows. Reve had already transformed into a monstrous form—a hulking ape-like beast.

Clashes of blades, bursts of explosions, and agonized screams filled the entire hall with chaos.

Even while fighting Vil, Ed was splitting part of his focus to observe the battlefield. His mind remained sharp and clear. He knew he had to find a way to break the stalemate.

Right now, both sides were locked in a deadlock. If Ed could manage to take Vil down quickly and join the others, this entire crisis could be ended.

But Vil's regeneration was terrifying.

Even with Ed's steel sword, bolstered by his enhanced strength, slashing through serpent after serpent, new ones would grow back almost immediately.

Then—something clicked.

A thought sparked in Ed's mind. He suddenly began adjusting his position, steadily retreating, step by step.

As Vil once again struck with full force, sending Ed staggering backward, Ed immediately rolled across the ground, using the motion to disperse the force from Vil's blow. At the same time, taking advantage of the cover from his own body, he silently grabbed something.

In the midst of the chaos, no one noticed that Karot's agonized screams had suddenly fallen silent.

In the next instant, Ed bent his knees slightly and sprang into the air. With one hand gripping his steel sword, he brought it down hard toward Vil from above!

Vil quickly coiled several of his white serpentine creatures together, forming a thick, muscular arm to block the incoming strike.

But just as Ed's blade met Vil's improvised limb, Vil caught a glimpse of the faint smile at the corner of Ed's lips.

A sudden wave of danger crashed over him. His instincts screamed to retreat—but it was already too late.

Because at that very moment, Ed raised his left hand—and in it was the conversion rod that had previously been embedded in Karot's body, the very one capable of inflicting unbearable agony.

The rod, still unlit, clearly hadn't finished its absorption. And now, Ed drove it straight into the largest of the white serpents sprouting from Duke Morton's body.

A shrill, piercing scream erupted on impact.

Duke Morton's body, controlled by Vil, began to tremble violently.

The scene immediately drew attention. Arya screamed toward Ed in rage: "No! Damn you! Ed—I'll kill you!"

Ignoring Eng's attacks, Arya rushed toward Ed in a frenzy, utterly consumed by fury.

But by then, Ed had already raised both hands, bringing his steel sword down with all his strength—right at the serpent into which the conversion rod had been plunged.

Splurt!

The blade tore through flesh. A spray of foul-smelling blood burst forth. Vil collapsed to the ground.

In that instant, it was as if time itself had paused. Everyone instinctively turned to look—at Vil, now lying motionless on the ground, and Ed, still standing tall.

A powerful wave of joy surged in the hearts of the Hunters locked in combat with monsters. As for the red-eyed crows, the harpy, Reve, and Arya—they were frozen in disbelief.

But Ed's expression remained grim.

Without hesitation, he raised his left arm. The Blue Fire Seal flared to life, the mark glowing brightly as energy surged from deep within his body into the seal.

A surge of blue flame burst from Ed's left arm, roaring forth like a fire dragon, completely engulfing Vil, who lay on the ground.

The stench of scorched flesh and burning rot filled the air. Arya, the red-eyed crows, the harpy, and Reve reacted swiftly—immediately retreating from the battlefield and falling back.

Their eyes were locked on Vil, now consumed by the raging blue fire. If Vil was truly dead, then continuing the fight would be meaningless—they wouldn't be able to win.

A once-insignificant Ed, a supposedly weak Ed, had turned their carefully laid plans into a disaster.

Seconds ticked by. No sound came from the blaze that engulfed Vil.

Just when everyone thought Vil was dead, a pillar of black light suddenly erupted from where his body had fallen, shooting straight up into the sky and piercing clean through the roof of the City Lord's banquet hall.

Cold moonlight streamed in.

A massive white serpentine creature slowly rose into the air.

Vil wasn't dead.

Ed snapped his head up, his eyes locking onto Vil, now floating high above the battlefield. Upon Vil's snake-like head was a pitch-black eye, glowing with dark energy.

That had to be the Eye of Delphilis.

The Parasitic Serpent Monster Vil hovered in the air, bathed in cold moonlight. He began laughing maniacally, screaming:

"Damn it! Damn it! Ed, you should be dead!"

"I had to use the Eye of Delphilis early… The sacrifice won't be perfect now! No… five Gold-level Hunters aren't enough—not nearly enough!"

"Everyone! All monsters—everyone must become the sacrifice! That's the only way!"

In the next moment, the black light exploded outward, spreading in all directions and enveloping everyone—red-eyed crows, the black-skinned red-eyed rats, and every single person inside the hall.

In an instant, the crows stopped flapping their wings and dropped from the sky. The black rats froze as well, motionless.

Arya, Reve, the harpy, Eng, the other Gold-level Hunter-class guards, and every Hunter present—all their faces changed. It was as if they were witnessing something unspeakably terrifying.

Someone shouted in panic, "Father! Don't hit me—I was wrong! I was really wrong!"

Arya cried out in tears, "No—Gidell, don't leave me!"

Reve stared blankly and murmured, "Mother… the fire… the fire is coming… Run! You have to run!"

...

Except for Finniel Morton, everyone was frozen in place, completely motionless.

On her wrist, an ancient-looking bracelet was slowly emitting a soft green glow—its protective power the only thing keeping her from falling into the horrifying illusion.

At that moment, Finniel Morton looked up at Vil floating in the air, then at the others around her, and finally at the blood on the ground, which was flowing into a twisted, ritualistic pattern. Despair filled her heart.

In a panic, Finniel Morton muttered again and again, "What do we do? What do we do? Is there really no hope left?"

Though she was unaffected thanks to the artifact on her body, there was nothing she could do now—only watch helplessly as everything unfolded.

And then, suddenly, a thought struck her. She turned with desperate hope in her eyes, looking toward Ed.

He seemed completely unaffected.

Instead, he was lifting his sword and walking straight toward Vil.

In that instant, light returned to Finniel Morton's eyes.

There was still hope!

Ed was the hope!

"No… No way! Why are you not affected?!" Vil's eyes widened in horror. He was in the middle of channeling the Eye of Delphilis, performing the sacrificial rite—he couldn't defend himself.

As he watched Ed approaching step by step with sword in hand, it was now Vil's turn to feel fear and despair.

How could anyone withstand the influence of the Eye of Delphilis and remain completely unharmed?

But then, something happened that Vil couldn't have imagined.

As Ed drew near, the black, floating Eye of Delphilis above Vil suddenly trembled—then jerked violently, as if it wanted to fly toward Ed.

Vil tried with all his might to hold it back.

It was useless.

The pitch-black Eye of Delphilis shot through the air like a lightning bolt, moving so fast even Ed couldn't react in time—and it fused directly with his right eye.

Ed froze mid-step. He instinctively raised a hand to touch his right eye—but felt nothing unusual at all.

"No! Impossible! Why?! Ed, what are you? What the hell are you?!" Vil screamed in utter collapse.

Ed didn't respond.

Instead, he leapt into the air with all his strength—and brought his sword down in a single, cleaving strike.

Vil's head and body separated, crashing to the floor.

Before his eyes could fully close, the Blue Fire Seal ignited.

And then—blazing fire erupted, consuming everything.

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