Chapter 485: Retreat

This might be the first time Noel saw the angry Jonathan. He normally didn't show his emotion and maintained his poker but gloomy face.

It seemed Jonathan had found out about their movement earlier. But because Noel didn't have the chance to inform him, Jonathan took everything into his own hands.

Instead of helping the Demon Hunting Squad stop the demons, he chose to go after his teammates, considering Paul and the others weren't there. He had to protect them this time, especially Noel, who was known to be reckless.

And it was proven right because he found Noel almost died at the enemy's hand. Though, he was also shocked to find out that Noel managed to take down a Spirit Master. It was a huge accomplishment.

But due to the aftermath that was visible on the battlefield, he realized Noel had utilized both elements.

If the enemy was aware of Noel's ability, they wouldn't have left him alone. So, he decided he was going to kill this one person.

Noel, on the other hand, didn't know Jonathan's motivation this time. But it was clear that his power was overwhelming.

He actually suppressed his enemy with his Telekinesis. When the enemy used his Spiritual Energy, Jonathan would disperse it with his ability. When the enemy tried to attack him, Jonathan controlled their body until they were severely injured.

Noel finally understood that Stella's strength might be second to Paul's in the Zero Squad. But Jonathan might be the underdog who never really used all his strength.

The battle only lasted for ten minutes before another Spirit Master from the Supreme Devil Organization died.

Jonathan let out a sigh after making sure the enemy died. He turned around to check Noel's condition. "Are you alright?"

"Yes. I'm just a bit exhausted." Noel nodded. "Although it's impossible to kill another Spirit Master, I should be able to run away."

Jonathan thought for a moment and said, "In that case, you're going to follow me. At the very least, you will be safer this way."

"Yeah." Noel pointed in the southwest direction and said, "They are in that direction. It's better if we hurry up. As long as we can tilt the balance over, the enemy will be in a disadvantageous position."

"I see. Our victory is assured then." Jonathan nodded in agreement. With Noel looking so confident, it was clear that the battle was in the bag.

So, Jonathan led Noel in that direction and found the other three Spirit Masters.

Although the logical option would be to take one of Ben's enemies, Ben actually pointed at Rose's enemy as if telling him to target him first.

Jonathan understood what he wanted and worked together with Rose to kill the Spirit Master. This way, they could conclude the battle faster.

And having the number disadvantage, the enemies chose to retreat.

Noel stood in front of them and used his Undying Phoenix to make them stay for a while until his team caught up. And they ended up dying in Ben and Jonathan's hands not long after.

After handling the enemies, they gathered up to discuss their next move. Obviously, they were staring at Noel as if it was the normal thing to do. Even Rose, who took care of the group's strategy, asked his opinion.

Noel sighed. He wanted to leave the battle plan to Rose, but since they didn't have a lot of time, Noel accepted the role and gave some plans.

"We're going to help Captain Igor to buy some time from one of his enemies. I'm pretty sure he will be able to defeat his enemy. We have Richard as well. Although his strength can't be compared to Captain Igor, he still has enough abilities to handle one Spirit Grandmaster with our help."

Rose contemplated for a moment and nodded. "Yes. If we have Captain Igor back, we can launch a sneak attack against the enemies and figure out their objective."

Noel nodded. "That's why we have to hurry up. I'm afraid the enemies already know about our existence and aren't sure about the situation."

They exchanged nods, reaching an agreement. They hurriedly moved toward Igor and found Richard fighting against one Spirit Grandmaster.

With Igor only fighting one Spirit Grandmaster, it was clear that Richard managed to stop one of them. But the difference in skill was visible since Richard's body was covered in wounds. It would be bad if this continued, so Noel hurriedly waved his hand, asking his teammates to move.

"!!!" The four Spirit Grandmasters immediately found their presence on the battlefield and spared some attention to see their identities.

The moment they confirmed they were from the Demon Relief Squad, Igor and Richard smiled since this was the time to counterattack. Meanwhile, the people from the Supreme Devil Organization seemed to have a prior arrangement in case they failed.

And looking at the Demon Relief Squad appearing on this battlefield, they finally fulfilled their objectives.

Without hesitation, one of the Spirit Grandmasters took out a small cylinder where he poured his Spiritual Energy and threw it to the sky.

*Boom!*

The small tube exploded, releasing red-colored particles in the air. It was so big that everyone in the area should be able to see it.

'Hmm? Why did they—' Noel tried to figure out the enemy's intention by using that signal. He thought they wanted to inform the others so that they would get surrounded, but the Spirit Grandmasters actually turned around and jumped away as if they were planning to leave.

'Huh? A signal? Leaving? Don't tell me, it's a retreat signal?' Noel gasped as he shouted in panic. "Not good! We can't let them get away. Chase after them and kill them!"

The people were confused. Although it was bad that they couldn't kill the enemies, repelling them was enough since they could use this opportunity to ambush the remaining enemies along with the demons.

They didn't realize the meaning of a retreat signal. And that meaning would be engraved to Noel and the Demon Relief Squad instead of the Demon Hunting Squad.