Before his eyes stretched what should have been another empty dry plane with little vegetation, but was instead filled with two separate seas of people. Two armies gathered across from each other with a vast distance between them. So vast, in fact, that even second-rankers could only barely see the first line of the enemy.

On Erik's side were the combined forces of Maghreb and Enkarian reinforcements, who were still busy gathering back up after being spread out for the hunter purge. Contingents of warriors were still streaming in from all sides to join the defenders.

Unfortunately, the Humanitas Sangh counterattacking force was still larger than Erik's defenders. 'Looks like we underestimated how fast they could gather another army,' Erik thought, frowning as he witnessed what they were up against.

They'd suspected the hunters might send another army within a few days, but not that it'd be this big. They'd spread their forces wider to purge the hunters faster, only keeping them close enough to each other that they could gather quickly enough to face the kind of force they'd expected the hunters to bring.

For some reason, however, the hunters weren't pressing their current advantage. Rather, they appeared content to wait and let Erik's forces gather. 'Fortunately, it looks like there might not be any need for fighting,' he continued in response to this, his eyes flashing with a cunning light.

"Hey! You gonna let me down, or what?!" Seraphina scowled, looking up at him indignantly from her uncomfortable position.

Amused, Erik glanced at her. Smirking lightly, he nodded, "Sure."

Not the most gentlemanly person, Erik repaid her impatience by unceremoniously shrugging her off his large shoulder. Yet, Seraphina used her flexibility and gravity affinity to land elegantly on her feet anyway.

Scoffing proudly, she glanced at him. Seeing his approving nod, she puffed her chest out a little… just before remembering who he was. Her pride turned into a scowl, annoyed at herself for seeking his approval for even a moment.

Erik watched this and chuckled, but then quickly moved on. "Come, let's find the others," he hummed and walked forward.

Unsurprisingly, his arrival caused a stir. Even those who hadn't seen him before had heard about him, as well as his description. Even if they hadn't, however, the aura and pressure he exuded were enough that anyone he met quickly made way.

Murmurs arose anywhere he went as men and women alike looked at him with wide, curious, but also cautious eyes.

As he passed them, he let his gaze wander the ranks. He kept his gaze stern, but did occasionally nod in greeting at the surrounding warriors. He wanted to make an impression, which meant he couldn't be too friendly, but not too standoffish, either.

He decided to let his imposing aura and large frame do most of the talking. The beautiful, cold vampire by his side didn't hurt his image, either.

Eventually, they arrived at the front of the army to meet with Astrid, Nasir, and Zohran, who'd already made it there. Astrid immediately grinned upon spotting him and leapt closer. "There you are! Just in time. I was about to message you when I felt you approach."

Naturally, their bond allowed them to feel each other's presence and location. Smiling, Erik first grabbed her chin to pull her into a kiss, and Astrid responded eagerly. Every warrior—male and female alike—who'd already developed a crush on this powerful third-ranked vampire watched with a heated gaze.

Perhaps that was exactly the reason he did this.

Meanwhile, Nasir, Zohran, and Seraphina all waited wryly.

When they finally separated, Erik grinned at her. "I'd love to hear what you wanted to message me about, but I felt the urge to greet you first."

Astrid released one of her rare giggles and punched his shoulder playfully. "Hehe, I certainly didn't mind!"

Her expression quickly turned serious, however. It was time to get to business. "Anyway, the hunters send a message. If you don't show yourself within an hour, they say they'll wipe us out while we're gathering."

Scoffing, she then glanced at the larger hunter army across the plane. "Of course, I'd like to see them try, but I can't deny they've got more people than us right now…" She looked back at Erik sombrely. "And the message was signed by someone claiming to be confessor…"

Erik felt Astrid's mixed feelings on the matter. She did want to test herself against a confessor, but also knew it likely wouldn't end in her victory, and without Erik, there wouldn't have been anyone to bail her out.

Plus, she did feel for the many soldiers under her command, of course… but that was perhaps a more secondary concern to her than these warriors would have liked. Unfortunately for them, it was not Naeku commanding them this day.

Fortunately, they didn't know about her propensity to forget about the lives of others when faced with the prospect of an exciting battle.

"Heh, I see," Erik chuckled mysteriously, his gaze turning to the enemy lines. "So far, everything's going just as Elora predicted. Looks like we might not have any leaks in important places…"

His voice was soft enough that only Seraphina and the surrounding third-rankers could hear him, but only Astrid didn't look surprised. Naturally, Erik kept his wives informed.

Rather than surprised, Astrid actually looked disappointed, pouting lightly. "So no fighting today…"

"Probably," Erik nodded, rubbing the stubble on his chin. "But not definitely, so stay ready." He glanced at the people surrounding him. "I'll go see what they want."

For a moment, he glanced at the armguard on his transformed wrist… but then decided to show confidence, rather than caution and also transformed back into human form. If it came to a fight, he'd need less than a second to transform and armour up, anyway.

Then, before Nasir or Zohran could ask any questions, he started strolling forward. Despite resting his hands casually in his pockets and seemingly walking, he moved deceptively quickly. Short spatial jumps made it look like he was on a casual stroll, even though he was moving at a high speed, even among third-rankers.

Moments later, he reached the middle between the two opposing forces and waited there.

Back with his forces, Zohran blinked and looked at Astrid with a bewildered expression. "What the fuck is happening…?"

Nasir's cold, concerned gaze asked the same question.