Chapter 555: Stay put and don't drop down

Kyle blinked as his mind was unexpectedly bombarded with a barrage of curses. Within the cacophony in his head, he recognized a young female voice...

The voice was undeniably familiar, and despite the curses aimed at him, he found himself devoid of anger, almost as though he had become accustomed to the same voice cursing in his head. His eyes shifted to the crimson bird, which fell silent as their eyes met. The bird's round crimson eyes held a unique blend of blue and pure golden hues, but they quickly turned tearful, punctuated by a loud hurrmp.

He was distracted when the back of his hand, clutching the demon woman's wrist, started to shine. As they both looked down, a bright symbol manifested above his hand. It quivered and then broke into various pieces that scattered into the air. When the symbol dispersed, it felt like a barrier had been broken, as intense emotions, not his own, flooded Kyle's mind.

The sudden rush of someone else's feelings caught Kyle off guard, but he quickly recognized them as Bia's. As he replayed the shattered symbol in his mind, he realized that for some reason he had set up a barrier in their connection to prevent her from detecting his presence. This very barrier also hindered his ability to sense the usual portion of her emotions that one could feel from their bonded beast.

He noticed how Bia's eyes widened a bit and grasped that now she could sense him and just like him, she could also feel his emotions since the barrier in their bond had crumbled when he arrived by her side. Kyle's gaze flashed with a smile as he picked up on the exasperation and ire in her emotions aimed his way, but beneath those feelings, he could distinctly sense sheer happiness and a peaceful calmness, as if she was in a conflicted yet content mood.

But the smile in his eyes faded and was replaced by a chill when he saw the blood soaking the little bird's feathers. His hold on the demon woman tightened as he gazed directly into her eyes. The woman smirked at him with disdain.

She could clearly sense his rank and knew he could be dealt with effortlessly with just a flick of her finger. However, when she attempted to move her hand away from his grasp, a frown creased her face because she couldn't budge her hand.

"You-!"

Her words were abruptly cut off, and a sharp cry escaped her lips as the resounding crack of bones breaking filled the air when Kyle tightened his grip on her wrist... and unlike fighting with Glacia, this time he used his full strength.

The cry escalated into a dreadful scream, and the woman's fingers, entwined around the phoenix's body, snapped open as her wrist became useless.

Bia flapped her wings frantically to fly toward Kyle, but due to the injuries on her body and the sudden movement, instead of flying, her small body plummeted towards the ground. Her eyes widened, but before she could regain her balance, Kyle let go of the screaming woman's wrist and extended his hand to catch her. A familiar cold sensation tingled through Bia's feathers, and she ceased her movements before tightly gripping his hand with her wings.

The demons and dark race individuals around Kyle all gazed at him dazedly, quite shocked by what had just happened before their very eyes. Did a divine rank just harm a transcendent rank?

Many others fighting in the vicinity also heard the demon's dreadful scream that echoed throughout the battlefield. Even though they were busy in their battles, they glanced back to see who had dared to fight the demon woman to save the group of humans surrounded from all directions.

Jian grinned and took advantage of the opportunity created by Kyle's distraction. He jostled the individual who had his hand on his neck, performed a backflip, and landed a punch to the man's gut.

Another scream echoed through the air, breaking the silence, and once again, a fight erupted between the four humans and the demons and dark race individuals surrounding them.

Kyle raised his hand and gazed at the crimson bird in his grasp. He narrowed his eyes and examined her blood-filled body. A faint sense of worry was visible in his eyes.

"Are you alright?"

His question was met with a distressed voice in his head that grumbled like a child. It almost seemed as if he was the one who had harmed her.

-'Do I look fine to you!? Huh, can't you see I'm dying?? Help me! Give me a healing potion! No, not just one, give me a few at least. I can't stand the pain!'

-'Ugh, damn, this witch, I swear I want to break all her bones, but I can't right now as I don't have strength left in my body...'

Kyle furrowed his brows at the incessant voice in his head, and Bia felt her world spin violently as he deftly evaded the attack of the demon woman who had regathered herself after the initial dread.

The woman let out an angry scream and thrust a blade that materialized in her unharmed hand towards him, yet he smoothly evaded once more.

Kyle noticed Bia's eyes spinning from his sudden fast movements, so he snapped his fingers. Instantly, a few symbols lit up in the air, forming a shield around the phoenix's body to help her regain focus.

A few curses slipped out from Bia's mouth, and Kyle made a mental note that he needs to correct her language as it wasn't good for his bonded companion to curse so much.

Spiritual energy emanated from his palm to heal her injuries because, unfortunately, he didn't have any healing potions with him.

The demon woman glared at him with pure hatred and launched another attack. But Kyle deftly maneuvered in mid-air once more and evaded her assault. A frustrated scream escaped her lips, and he caught sight from the corner of his eye that a few more demons were stealthily gathering around him, aiming to overwhelm him. So, he firmly grasped the spear that had been hovering behind him all this time and placed Bia on his shoulder.

"Little one, stay put and don't drop down. Since you can't break her bones, I will take care of it for you."