"I have a few husks remaining; I must concentrate. I am in my demon form, and I can prevail," Avari stated, a mix of confidence and concern evident in her voice.
She then charged towards another group of husks, enveloping the area with her blood art, which manifested as flames.
Avari concentrated all her remaining magic into that attack before unleashing it.
"Go to hell, husks!" she roared, blood beginning to seep from her mouth due to the exertion of magic.
Avari scoffed as she narrowly escaped the fire tornado, which had already claimed the lives of about ten more husks.
"I need to wrap this up quickly, or I risk dying from overexerting my blood art," Avari muttered to herself, coughing up blood from the strain of her magic.
She then rushed towards a husk and dispatched the creature with a powerful gut punch to its core.
Avari began to lose her composure as thoughts of summoning Seku to join the battle crossed her mind.
"Where is he at a time like this? I instructed him to stay on guard, not to abandon his post entirely," she remarked, her voice laced with anger.
Suddenly, a husk with significantly greater magical pressure than the others emerged.
"A husk lord! Damn it, I need to escape now," Avari exclaimed as she attempted to flee towards the exit of the nest.
As soon as she reached the exit, she believed everything was secure until the husk lord delivered a roundhouse kick to her ribs, sending her hurtling towards a mountain.
When Avari crash-landed on the mountain, she coughed up blood.
"This is the reason I retired and dedicated my efforts to training Seku," she snarled, filled with regret over her actions.
"Pitiful demon, do you truly believe you can rival the power of the husk lords?" the husk lord spoke in a language that Avari comprehended.
"Go to hell, and burn there for all I care," she retorted, spitting blood into the husk lord's face.
The beast then delivered a gut punch to Avari, cracking her core but not destroying it.
"You're fortunate I'm allowing you to live, but next time, you will die," the husk lord remarked, laughing as he flew away.
Avari lay on the ground near the rubble, having lost consciousness.
Upon waking, she found herself in the Nightfall City hospital with Seku by her bedside.
"Hey Seku, I suppose you found me," Avari said with a chuckle, though her voice was too weak to be loud.
"Don't speak, the doctor mentioned you might not be able to engage in combat again," Seku exclaimed, his concern for his sister evident.
"What do you mean I won't be able to engage in combat again?" she replied with a smirk.
"This isn't a joking matter, sis; your core is cracked," Seku reiterated, his worry intensifying.
"Oh right, I suppose that's true. I'm already retired, so it doesn't matter if I return to combat," Avari explained, her smile reaching her eyes.
Angelita and Isaias entered the room, with Angelita hurrying to the side of Avari's hospital bed, filled with concern.
"My dear, sweet angel, who has done this to you?" Angelita inquired, her worry evident.
"Just some husks; I became overconfident and underestimated them," Avari admitted, revealing the truth about her defeat in battle.
"Husks should not be able to defeat someone of your rank. What kind of husks are there?" Isaias asked, his expression curious and his tone skeptical.
There are three types of husks: the first type is magic husks, which utilize blood arts from a distance as they lack hand-to-hand combat skills.
The second type is lightning husks, which engage in hand-to-hand combat and close-range fighting, but they do not pose a significant threat.
Finally, there are the husk lords, a group of husks that possess power comparable to three celestials; they are capable of both hand-to-hand combat and magical attacks.
"I was ambushed by one of the husk lords," Avari remarked, feeling shame as she recalled her earlier attempt to flee from one.
"Alright, you both are not leaving the city again for your own safety, do you understand?" Angelita stated in a motherly yet authoritative tone directed at Avari and Seku.
"Yes, we understand. We are now aware of the risks associated with venturing outside the city to train," Seku responded, his tone sincere.
They are now aware of the dangers associated with leaving the city walls; however, will they attempt to seek vengeance for Avari's shattered core?