Surrendered To The Lord Of Sin

Chapter 91: Barrier

A quiet gasp slipped from her lips emotions tightened in her chest. Fear, confusion, and something close to awe settled over her all at once, leaving her caught between panic and disbelief.

Vespera wasn’t fading. She was doing something. And whatever it was, it took control of the gentle breeze around them.

"Vespera...?" she whispered, softer this time—but the murmured words didn’t stop, as though they hadn’t heard her at all. Lucrezia’s gaze narrowed towards the unmoving creature at the other end, and a chill ran down her spine.

His expression looked even worse, more disturbed than annoyed, as his eyes—for the first time—shifted to take note of his surroundings. Lucrezia’s heart drummed wildly against her chest.

He noticed, she thought, and the realization ran her blood cold. Then suddenly, Vespera gasped, her attention slipping towards the lady before her.

Her body jerked as a cough tore through her, and Lucrezia froze when she saw the result. "Hey—hey..." she murmured quickly, panic rising again as she tightened her hold. "It’s alright—just breathe..."

But Vespera didn’t answer until her body sagged again. Weaker and... fading, truly, this time. Lucrezia’s throat tightened painfully. She didn’t understand any of it—but she understood enough.

Time. She was buying them time. But she couldn’t help but question for what reason? A movement slipped at the corner of her eyes and her head snapped forward across the split ground.

Her stomach dropped at the sight of the creatures moving. One after another, they leapt, clearing the chasm with ease, landing smoothly on her side.

Lucrezia’s blood ran cold.

"No..."

But they advanced quickly like raindrops in the night sky as if they already knew how this would end.

Lucrezia stumbled back, dragging Vespera with her, her movements desperate now. Her boots slipped again, her strength faltering as she tried to move faster than her body allowed.

"No, no, no..." she muttered under her breath, panic spilling over. "We have to go—we have to go—"

But she was too slow. Too weak. And they were gaining.

Her breath hitched sharply. She wasn’t going to make it.

The realization hit hard, settling deep in her chest. She couldn’t outrun them. Couldn’t fight them. Couldn’t—

Her grip tightened suddenly. "No," she whispered, shaking her head. "No..." At this point, her entire body was stained with blood, and she didn’t care. It was the least that crossed her mind, Vespera’s survival was her utmost priority.

Just as she attempted to pull Vespera who was now unconscious, a dull thud echoed in the surrounding. With a shaky gasp, her eyes snapped forward once more, drawn by the noise, only to find the creatures collapsing backwards.

For a moment, she assumed her eyes were playing their trick, until more and more kept flying in a desperate attempt, only to land fiercely on something unseen, sending them a few feet behind. While some went behind, others fell into the wide broken divide.

The sight of it made her freeze. For a heartbeat, Lucrezia could only stare, her chest rising and falling too fast, as her mind struggled to catch up with what she was seeing.

They were being pushed back by something... else.

The creatures lunged again—faster this time, more desperate—but the moment they crossed a certain point, something struck them hard, sending them hurtling backward as if they had collided with a solid wall. One of them twisted midair before slamming into the frozen ground. Another was thrown off balance completely, tumbling into the jagged divide with a hollow, echoing fall.

Lucrezia’s breath caught in her throat. Her grip on Vespera tightened as she looked around, confusion and fear tangling together inside her chest.

There was nothing there, no flame, no wall, but an unseen barrier preventing them from proceeding. A faint tremor brushed against her senses, softer than before, quieter... but steady. It threaded through the chaos like something carefully placed, something deliberate, and her gaze dropped instinctively.

Vespera.

The memory of her whispering, the chant, and the strange shift in the air struck her once. ’Buy time...’ Lucrezia recalled.

Her eyes widened. This was it, she thought, as realization slowly dawned upon her. Whatever she had done—whatever she had whispered into the air—it had worked.

She felt dizzy in relief.

A shaky breath left her as a fragile and uncertain hope stirred in her chest but it didn’t last long when her eyes fell on those unnatural ones from a distance.

The look on his face chilled her bones, clearly looking unsatisfied with the result. Even though he remained unmoving, she could picture his disturbance. A part of her felt eased that he failed to predict what just happened, and the other dreaded what would happen next.

So she held onto that thin fragile hope, praying for the victory to last longer. Just when she felt his move to retreat, Lucrezia breathed in relief, but it was only momentarily.

One moment, it seemed like the triumph was theirs, and the next, everything seemed to collapse right before her eyes.

Because the creatures weren’t retreating. They happened to be adjusting, circling in a slower and more cautious stance.

Their hollow eyes flickered as they tested the unseen boundary, probing it, pressing against it like predators learning the limits of a cage. And with every strike, the resistance seemed to weaken.

Lucrezia saw it. She felt the invisible force shudder faintly with each impact, like glass beginning to crack under pressure.

O-Oh gods!

"No..." she breathed, her voice trembling again. "No, no—"

Her fingers tightened around Vespera as she tried to pull her back again, dragging her weight across the frozen ground. Her arms shook violently now, her strength nearly gone, but she forced herself to move anyway.

"We have to go," she whispered, more urgently this time. "We have to go now—"

Behind her, there was a sharper impact that caused a shift in the air like a ripple, flickering for just a second, resembling something bending under strain.

Lucrezia’s heart dropped. It wasn’t going to hold, and the creatures seemed to realize it too from the change in their movements. It was more aggressive and certain now. One lunged again, faster than before, and though it was thrown back, it didn’t go as far.

Closer. They were getting closer.

Her breath hitched as panic surged all over again. "Please..." she whispered, though she didn’t know who she was begging anymore. "Just a little longer..."

Another strike, and an unseen barrier wavered. Another, and a faint, cracking sound slipped through the air.

Lucrezia flinched.

Her body screamed at her to run, but her legs barely responded, her movements reduced to a slow, desperate drag as she pulled Vespera with her.

"I’m trying..." she murmured brokenly. "I’m trying, I—"

A sudden force slammed into the barrier again but it held this time, barely. The air rippled violently, and the pressure snapped outward before settling again, weaker than before.

Lucrezia’s breath came in short, uneven bursts as she stared, her entire body trembling now.

It was failing.

Her grip faltered for a split second before tightening again. "No," she whispered again, firmer this time despite the fear clawing at her chest. "Please, no..."

Her eyes burned, her vision blurring as tears mixed with sweat and blood on her face, but no matter what she did, nothing could alter the inevitable from happening.