The Bird and the Garden 3: The Final Adventure

Chapter 75: Cruelty of the Gods, Part One

Further down the battlefield, Verde and Midori were pinned, the waves of abominations seemingly unending. The mother and daughter duo had their backs pressed against each other, bright beams of magic blasting from the tips of their staves. But they couldn't hold out forever; their mana was running low, and without mana they couldn't cast spells. They had plenty of potions, but the abominations weren't giving them the chance.

"Midori!"

Before Midori could respond to her mother's shout, the witch tackled her daughter away as an abomination was sent flying towards them. They looked up to see the face of Scylla, the hydra rushing to their aid. But she wasn't alone. At her side was Poppy and a dragon that resembled Agot. Instantly it clicked for Verde and Midori. That dragon was Agot's mother. The trio met the witches, Poppy helping them to their feet.

"... Well, this is awkward," Verde muttered.

"Tell me about it," Scylla groaned. "At least it was only four of us who had kids with him."

"Don't forget us!"

They turned to see a group of women racing towards them, helping push back the abominations. Verde felt the color drain from her face, her heart beginning to pound. "W-wait... All of you... With D-Darling...?"

A succubus from the Cult nodded. "Yeah! I have a daughter with him! Her name is Lillin!"

The succubus was telling the truth and Verde knew it just by reading her expression. The other women yelled in agreement, the witch's fists beginning to clench. Poppy winked, beating her wings through the air. "We did it! Scatter!"

They ran away from Verde as the witch exploded in a rage, bringing down the stars themselves on the abominations.

"VAO!"

Poppy flew alongside the women, a frown stuck on her face. "L-look, I get we had to lie about more kids, but... Did we just get Vao killed?"

Midori blinked. "... You all lied to make Mother angry?"

"Well... Yeah," a dwarf admitted. "That Cultist there wasn't lying though. Congrats, you got a big sister in the Cult."

"Oh dear... Mother is going to make him cry again."

The war raged on as they drew closer to the ruined city, the hordes of abominations never seeming to thin out. Salem found herself fighting at Sasha's side with Mono, their arms beginning to tire from cutting the thick flesh of monsters.

"D-damn! Do they ever stop coming!?" The elf tomboy shouted. Mono didn't answer right away. She spun on her heel, letting her hammer's momentum carry her to crush an abomination that had thrown itself at Sasha's back flat into the ground.

"They're likely spawning from a source in the city!" The monoeye shouted back. "We need to drive a wedge and get Salem close enough to destroy it!"

As they approached the city's edge, a wave of abominations washed over the buildings, keeping the forces at bay. With the abominations having the advantage of cover, the armies couldn't get inside, stuck in the wide open. They needed one final push.

Jasper flew to Yin's shoulder, burning an approaching monster to a crisp. "Watch out, Yin!"

"Sorry for not having eyes in the back of my fucking head!"

Jasper smirked. "Then I'll be those eyes. Just what would you do without someone as great as me?"

Without warning she planted a kiss on his cheek, the healer's face turning a shade of pink as they fought. And just as it looked like they would be surrounded and slaughtered like pigs in a slaughterhouse, another figure fell from the sky and grappled with one of the abominations. Yin and Jasper looked up to see a scantily dressed ogre beating the living shit out of the creature with a club, turning their heads to the new force.