《Abyss of Dual Cultivation: Goddess's Lust system》


 Chapter 1

    [Remember, this is the path you have chosen for yourself. Whatever happens from here, it is no longer my responsibility. As such, this new world is yours to govern over]


    Golden eyes opened, feeling the wetness of the water around them. It seeped into their fragile retina. It instantly caused the eternal being to close their eyes and reject the painful feeling.


    [From today onwards, you shall be known as Aurora. Forget all that you have suffered. Forgive all that you have seen. For you are no longer a mortal being but a deity]


    But she could not forget. Nor could she forgive.


    The voice faded from the blue-haired Goddess¡¯s mind as she tried to hold on to thatfortable voice. The only way to soothe her anger was to keep on listening to that unknown voice.


    But whatever she did, she could not bring the voice back. It was gone from her mind forever.


    Only then did Aurora open her eyes again. It was a new beginning for her. One she had been granted to change her fate.


    The dark water was everywhere, the whole ce filled with it. There was no sign of life as well. Aurora was left alone down there to rot.


    But no, she was a goddess and could not die. She had just been abandoned once again by her loved ones. Time and again, Aurora had been left alone.


    She remembered what she had done in her grief. Aurora had challenged the fates; she had ravaged thend. She had aimed to conquer the abyss till it was all hers.


    It had all resulted in her present situation ¨C her rebirth.


    But that also begged the question ¨C Where was she now? Thest thing Aurora remembered was the destruction of this earth as her lover had run a knife through her newly immortal body. Those golden eyes were full of remorse and longing.


    Aurora remembered being killed by the love of her life. The masses had led her wife astray. But The Abyss tower was the one at fault, not her wife.


    Had her wish changed at thest second? It felt like it since she was no longer in the dark abyss. Then this must be the world before she had begun her journey. She did recognize the ce she was at, if only vaguely.


    And since she remembered this ce, memories were beginning toe back to her in bits and pieces. It took some time for her to remember where she was.


    In the dark, no one witnessed the Goddess¡¯s Silver hair turn blue and the golden eyes turn Pink. This way, the true nature of the goddess has been sealed.


    ¡­


    The world changed after the Abyss appeared. It had gone beyond imagination since the great rift had emerged. Humans were no longer the only dominant species on the.


    It had been a thousand years ever since the great Rift had emerged. The Abyss had a lot of names, but nothing was asmon as ¡®The heavenly punishment.¡¯ In the eyes of the holy council, it was the total of all human sins.


    But science had seen it as something different. It had seen it as an opportunity for something great.


    They had invested money and power in researching the rift and uncovering its mysteries. But it did not amount to anything. The abyss was too dark and deep for one race to cover in its entirety.


    Even after several years, the Abyss was not something that a single person could understand. It had its own rules.


    There had been no one who had seen the end of this rift. No one. Except for the gods and goddesses.


    They were the pinnacle of power. People that had uncovered all its mysteries with the help of their close ones. Abyss was a death trap for those who entered it.


    ¡­.


    For Aurora, the abyss had been her source of joy. It had also provided her with Misery. It had given her Clove, her wife.


    But it has also given birth to Abyss Tower, the academic institution that had a monopoly over every aspect of the abyss.


    Aurora knew that the Abyss tower was the primary reason she had died in her previous life. They had poisoned her wife¡¯s mind against her. And for that, they would pay.


    Aurora would make sure to destroy them and everything they stood for. The warmth of a goddess was a big thing to face.


    ¡°Oi, are you all dead? Aren¡¯t you all taking too long in there?¡± the guard came in, cutting through the fog around Aurora¡¯s memories with a sharp knife. She quickly picked herself up, her blue hairing to cover her intimate parts.


    As far as Aurora remembered, she had been let in here with a group of 14 individuals. She had been the only girl inside the pool when the ceremony had begun.


    The door finally opened and caused light to flood the chamber. Aurora held her head high as she watched the guards rush inside.


    ¡°Hey, hurry up. OH MY GOD. W-WHAT DID YOU DO?¡± the guard looked shaken as he peeked inside the chamber. Aurora could feel his horror and curiosity from where she stood. The guards appeared to be horrified.


    It was intriguing, this human specimen. While the physical appearance was not to Aurora¡¯s liking, she did find the mixture of thoughts he had inside his head interesting. They were amusing to hear and kept Aurora entertained.


    Maybe she should offer him power, just to see what he would make of it?


    ¡°Hey Eric, what taking you so long? HOLY HELL, THEY¡¯RE ALL DEAD.¡± The second guard did not dy his arrival. The sound of footsteps filled the hallway. Aurora faintly remembered having other chambers simr to her own.


    How long had it been? How much had she forgotten? Aurora had no idea.


    But what she did remember was that each chamber had been different, some killing its upants, the others granting blessings.


    But it was all a test to see who would survive the abyss. The water used to submerge the trainees served as a poison test. It had left Aurora on the verge of deathst time, but not this time.


    This time, she felt fresh. She felt rejuvenated. She also felt like she could crush this tower to bits.


    And she felt like she had enough magic to be able to change this world. She wanted to change this world and save those people she had not been able to herst time.


    ¡°No. Not everyone is dead. Look, the girl is still alive. But she¡¯s covered in blood. Do you think she killed them all? What should we do now?¡± the guard asked. He whispered those words to hispanion.


    Aurora felt rejuvenated and refreshed. It was another chance for her to thrive in this world and take her revenge. And she knew exactly how she would do that. She would fight fire with fire.


    If the Abyss tower held its standing because of a powerful force, Aurora would create her force. She would set up an academy and train her own army.


    She would show the Abyss tower that they could not keep doing whatever they wanted.

 Chapter 2

    She stepped forward and saw the two guards flinch at her approach. One of them even held the weapon ready should she decide to attack. But Aurora did not want them dead.


    If she killed them, her chances of meeting Clove would reduce to zero. These guards were the reason Aurora had met Clove the first time around.


    She needed them alive and to follow the plot.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think she killed them. Look, she¡¯s in shock as well. What kind of sane human would walk out naked and covered in blood. Here, you wait while I¡¯ll go and fetch a fresh pair of clothes.¡± the second guard almost yelled as he made his way out.


    And then it was only Aurora and the other guard with her. He gave her a nervous smile and twisted his hands. His behavior made it evident that he did not want to be here.


    ¡°Ugh, maybe you should take another bath? Not that you are not alright as you are, but the blood must be bothering you. Also, I think you¡¯re pretty. But you would look much, and I mean, much better with the blood off of your face.¡± The guard rambled a bit, his eyes darting around to look for a secure way out.


    The uneasiness oozing off the guard was evident. The fear was too much as it began to clog Aurora¡¯s senses. She wanted to make him stop whatever he was doing.


    ¡°Where is freshwater? I¡¯ll wash all this blood off.¡± Aurora spoke for the first time, not even recognizing her voice. It did not sound human even to her ears. It had been melodic, a little too high-pitched, and enchanted.


    The voice affected the human. The guard was too ordinary to resist the allure in Aurora¡¯s voice and went dazed-eyed. Aurora chose to focus on getting herself cleaned up.


    And there it was, a bucket full of clean, non-abyss water. It sat in the pointed corner like an innocent bomb.


    Water had be a precious resource ever since the abyss. To see a bucket full of it was a luxury. It showed that these people had been ready for something like this to happen.


    Aurora used the water quickly. She wanted to get out of the facility and into the abyss since Clove was waiting for him. She had to find her wife and make her fall for Aurora all over again.


    And she also had to scout out herpetition. She remembered the batch she had been a part of was excellent in quality. She needed to aim and be better than them.


    And this time, she had to make sure to keep those traitorous men away from her wife. The abyss was poison. Aurora would soon see them burn before she ever joined them.


    ¡°Here, these clothes should fit you till we get you something else. Please make do with them till we get something better for you. We did not expect to have to provide for someone of your, eh, development¡± The second guard returned with a bundle in his arms.


    Aurora took it from him with a straight face. She had seen where the human had been eyeing her. She did not mind getting a few looks.


    Aurora was far from bashful or timid. The abyss had trained it out of her years ago.


    She had learned that overdeveloped human females like her did not tend to survive long in the abyss. Most adventurers chose to stick to higher levels of the Abyss. Or have a strong party with them to protect themselves.


    Aurora had only met a handful of powerful yet adult females in the abyss. That was why she knew her wife was unique.


    Her Clove had been strong and had the perfect pair of breasts, just a little smaller than Aurora¡¯s had been.


    God, she missed her wife and all that she had stood for. The world felt a bit bleaker when she was not by Aurora¡¯s side. How would she be now? Would she be like Aurora? Would her growth be like Aurora¡¯s?


    Aurora¡¯s pair did seem like it had grown a little bit since she hadst felt it. Had it not been a little under-developed at this time of her journey? Aurora remembered being thirteen. It had been an awkward age for her.


    But her current body did not feel like it was thirteen.


    She felt like she had as an adult, far too old for her age and size. Had shee back in her older body? Or was this a side-effect of time maniption?


    She did not realize that she was giving her guards quite a show as she parted her shirt to look at her breasts. And they did not look anything like thirteen years old¡¯s should look.


    *Cough* the guard finally decided to interfere, knowing that he could not handle it anymore.


    The beautiful female in front of him was almost indecent and seemed tock self-awareness. If this continued, then his body would betray him.


    ¡°I think it¡¯s time we take you to the rest. Master wants to know how many passed this year¡± Aurora heard those words and instantly wanted to refuse. She hated the leader of the abyss. That old man and his whole family had been nothing but a thorn in Aurora¡¯s side.


    She especially hated the Abyss leader¡¯s Son.


    Being the leader¡¯s son, Quince was someone that had tried to one-up Aurora at every step. He had been Clove¡¯s childhood friend and chose to exploit that face quite often. He was also a contributing factor to Aurora¡¯s death.


    He would be a thorn once Aurora set up her academy. She would need to have him dealt withter.


    She needed to find her wife, and there was the first problem. She needed to see how Clove was doing with her own eyes.


    This time Aurora was not weak at all. In fact, she was too strong. Aurora was a goddess, the most powerful being. She had no idea how she would be able to hide her aura and power. They leaked out and affected her surroundings.


    ¡°Oi. Stop daydreaming and follow me. We¡¯re alreadyte.¡± the guard called. Aurora decided to focus on her attempts to reel in her aurater. She hurried to catch up with the guard before she was left behind.


    The first step of her revenge had already started. Once she had a clear understanding of the Tower¡¯s general power level, she would be able to start nning her next step.


    Maybe it was also time to pay a visit to some potential allies. Aurora had a few in mind.

 Chapter 3

    ¡°Oi. Stop daydreaming and follow me. We¡¯re alreadyte¡± Aurora hurried to catch up with the guards, her mood instantly lifting at the thought of seeing her wife again.


    Whatever blood Aurora had with the Quince, she¡¯ll settle itter and likely in private. She did not want to show the world what she could do.


    Her feet did not feel like they touched the ground when she walked. Aurora could feel the nces she was getting through the corridor.


    Being a goddess meant that she had a divine body. It drew unconscious looks her way without any effort. Unless Aurora learned to tone it down, she would be the recipient of such nces from all around her.


    Aurora could feel the lustful thoughts aimed her way. While she did not mind being looked at, being a target and sexualized for no reason did make her ufortable. She wanted to kill off all the other filth who dared to look at Aurora like she was a piece of meat.


    ¡°We¡¯re here. I think you should cover yourself a little more. You know, so that you do not get stared at so much.¡± the guard pointed to Aurora¡¯s burst that threatened to escape her garments.


    Aurora did not care. The Abyss Tower was giving her the creeps.


    The only thing keeping her going was the prospect of meeting her wife was so close at hand. Aurora could physically feel her wife inside the room.


    But something seemed wrong. Clove¡¯s aura was far weaker than Aurora had ever felt before. It worried her.


    No, not even that. Clove¡¯s aura felt as if there was only a fraction of her soul inside her. The feeling of emptiness was ring clearly at Aurora¡¯s senses.


    ¡°Wee to the registration process. Kindly fill out this form so that we can get you registered¡± Aurora stared into a pair of friendly brown eyes. The female in front of Aurora was attractive in all senses of the world.


    But she was not Aurora¡¯s type.


    Aurora was more than half sure it was because of her divine aura. It left everyone, even females, appreciative of her power. But also drove the fact home that Aurora needed to tone down her magic.


    Already, people had started to eye her up and down. She could see many even debating whether to approach her or not. Even Quince looked at Aurora like she was a fine piece of meat he wanted to devour.


    But Aurora did not see the one she really wanted to see there. Aurora could not spot Clove in the masses of students.


    ¡°Thank you for the form¡± Aurora turned her attention back to the female in front of her as she took the offered form. The guide looked flushed at having Aurora¡¯s attention focused on herself.


    Aurora shifted her eyes in dismissal. The guide was heading toward forbidden territory with Aurora.


    Her aura made it really difficult to keep attention off of her. Aurora could already spot people eying her up in interest.


    Aurora chose a corner to sit down and fill out the useless form. She did not need to do all this, but Aurora wanted to do everything right for her wife. Who knew what changes could ur if she allowed her power to burst forth and change the start of everything.


    For all she knew, her wife might never meet Aurora ever again.


    ¡°Hey, you know you¡¯re too bright. You should tone your aura down. Or, you¡¯ll attract unwanted attention. I can already see my childhood friend eyeing you up.¡± And all of a sudden, the pen in Aurora¡¯s hand froze.


    That familiar voice near her ear felt perfect and brought tears to Aurora¡¯s eyes. How long had it been since she hadst heard that voice? It had been far too long for Aurora.


    ¡°H-Hey, are you crying? P-Please don¡¯t cry. I don¡¯t know what to do when I see a beautiful person cry¡± The honey-haired female stepped in front of Aurora, her eyes filled with worry. Aurora felt herself lose her bearing train of thoughts.


    It was the first time she felt like abandoning her revenge plot and joining the Abyss Tower again.


    It was Clove. And she looked just like she had so long ago, young and beautiful.


    It made Aurora want to touch her and hold her. There was so much to talk about between the pair. But it all seemed so insignificant right now.


    Clove¡¯s soul was a ring dark hole to Aurora¡¯s senses. It knocked Aurora out of her thoughts and made her really take Clove¡¯s physical form.


    Unlike her, Clove was still thirteen. It felt wrong to see her. Aurora found it impossible to look Clove in the eye. There was too much age difference between them.


    ¡°I..nothing is wrong. All these stares just make me ufortable. I feel like they are undressing me with their eyes.¡± not that Aurora minded. She did not care about modesty, but she knew her Clove had a soft spot for these kinds of things.


    Besides, as much as she could not make a move on Clove until Colve grew up, nothing stopped her from seeking the younger¡¯s attention.


    And just as she had expected, Clove¡¯s eyes went soft. Her expression settled into that ¡®hard yet determined¡¯ mask. That was the same look her wife had when she had made up her mind.


    Nothing could change Clove¡¯s mind once she had decided on something.


    The next thing Aurora knew, she had a small hand tugging her arm. Aurora was being dragged around by the young princess. Aurora felt her face flush at the contact, her arms feeling hot and her body frozen.


    Even more, eyes turned to the stunning pair, many people even trying to take a step forth. But with the addition of Clove in the mix, the guards jumped in as well.


    ¡°Oi Clove, where did you disappear? And who¡¯s this? A new servant?¡± that arrogant voice was one Aurora hated so much. It had been a thorn in her side. Quince had tried repeatedly to make her wife leave her side.


    ¡°Stop being mean, Quince. She needs our help. You know, I was thinking-¡±


    ¡°-if we can take her as a party member. You know we cannot. I cannot be counted on to protect two damsels in disaster. One is already enough of a burden. Even I¡¯m not that skilled.¡± the brat Quince replied with an almost sneer.


    Aurora felt her annoyance rise at being underestimated.


    The man, no, the child, gave her a re that would have made even the strongest warriors step back but not Aurora. She had put up with his bullshit before. And she was not afraid of him now.


    ¡°I don¡¯t need you to protect me. I can wipe the floor with you any day¡± her deration might not have the best timing, but it was something. She could no longer take it back. She would have to back her words with her actions now.


    It was also the best time to test how herpetition faired in skill level.

 Chapter 4

    ¡°I don¡¯t need you to protect me. I can wipe the floor with you any day.¡± Aurora¡¯s voice echoed in the empty room. She could feel the people¡¯s disbelief as they looked at her. No one believed her words, not even her dear Clove.


    And it hurt badly.


    But most of all, her words seemed to have pissed Quince off. Those narrowed eyes spoke of trouble and a promise of hardships that had yet toe. But Aurora was not afraid of those eyes. She had faced the worst.


    ¡°MUHAHAHAHAHAHA


    And suddenly, the tension around the battlefield was cut by an annoying yet familiarugh. The current Abyss leader had decided to grace their small group with his presence.


    If there was one obstacle Aurora needed to crush, it was this man. The Abyss tower was an overbearing power, but it was because of this man that it had the influence it did.


    Aurora also knew that this man would be the biggest obstacle in her aim to set up her academy.


    ¡°What a surprise to see someone this young brimming with such power. Hey brat, where did you find this girl?¡± the old man forced his way into the circle. Aurora could see the interest in his eyes brimming.


    Aurora instantly upped her guard, not allowing her emotions to escape. She might not be able to control her aura, but she could limit her mind from being read.


    This crafty elder was not one to be underestimated at any time. He may have sensed the power brimming inside Aurora and decided to check it out.


    ¡®Darn it. I need a way to be able to turn this power off. I wish I had some kind of interface that could help me with it¡¯ Aurora cursed inside her mind as she remained calm on the outside.


    If she showed even a hint of weakness, the other would jump up on it like a tiger on its prey. And while Aurora did not have anything to fear from him, the same could not be said for Clove.


    ¡°U-Uncle. I thought you said you were not going toe. Do you have any business with my friend here?¡± Clove interfered in the situation before it could get heated. Her sweet wife positioned herself to make a barrier between the elder and Aurora.


    Her wife had been one of a kind. Aurora felt d that she had not lost it even if she no longer had her whole soul.


    And that was why it also stung that Clove could not be a part of her revenge. If Aurora decided to recruit Clove now, she would always doubt Colve¡¯s loyalties.


    Aurora needed to give Clove time to decide what she wanted to follow. A betrayal like her past life would shatter her.


    ¡°Ah, a friend of yours? Where did you meet this ¡®friend¡¯? And how long have you known her?¡± the old man asked, his gaze moving all over Aurora.


    And for the first time, Aurora felt angry. The elder was trying to probe her mind for answers. It made Aurora feel vited.


    But this elder would lose something precious soon if he did not leave Aurora alone. She did not have enough patience for his tricks.


    ¡°Hey, old man. It¡¯s not important right now. Weren¡¯t you required to run an urgent errand? Mom would be worried that you arete¡± Aurora was sure she could even feel surprised by anything Quince did. But if she could, she was close to it.


    Never in her life would she have expected Quince to be the one to save her. His world was just loud enough for the nearby people to have heard. It was evident that he had done it on purpose.


    Quince gave her a re that clearly stated, ¡®I did not do this for you, but she could feel that her aura was affecting Quince. It was making him act out in a way he had never before.


    He had not built up any resistance against a goddess¡¯s passive aura. Aurora¡¯s seemed to be potentially rabid and untrained. Aurora could see why Quince did not want her anywhere near the group.


    The ¡®old man¡¯ could not refuse that im without losing face. His position did not leave him any choice but to agree.


    ¡°That I do need to do, my boy. But why don¡¯t you and your friend join me? And maybe bring your new friend with you as well? I know your mother would be interested in her.¡± the old man asked. His words made it seem like he was joking about this issue.


    But anyone who knew the leader could tell that it was no joke but amand. The leader wanted Aurora to follow him. Everyone else held their breath to see what would happen next.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I cannot. I have prior engagements I need to get to¡± Aurora did try to sound sorry. She did not even try and mask her words.


    No one could take it for anything else than it was ¨C a dismissal of the elder¡¯s words and actions.


    ¡°I see. It¡¯s too bad then, but it¡¯s good for me. Quince, Clove, let¡¯s leave now. I¡¯ve found a third member for your starting party. Oh, and miss, make sure you find yourself a ¡®nice¡¯ party. It won¡¯t do you to die so young and beautiful.¡± the old man warned.


    And instantly, everyone staring looking at Aurora in interest changed the direction of their gaze. No one wanted to be the one to look her in the eye and be a target of the old master.


    What a cheap trick the abyss leader was ying. Just because he was alienating Aurora from the Abyss¡¯s people did not mean a thing to her.


    It was not like she was going to stick around any longer.


    But it was alright with Aurora. Anyone who would fall for the leader¡¯s trick here would not be an ally to her. And Aurora had no intentions of partying with traitors this time around. She had enough of it herst time. There was no way she was teaming up with anyone under his rule.


    No, she would seek out people she knew she could trust and that deserved a second chance at life. She had been hopelessst time.


    This time she was a goddess. She knew what she could do. She could offer people power and fulfil their wishes.


    Some people could change this world. Some people could do so much good but did not live that long.


    Aurora would take them all in and make her academy a sess.


    And Aurora watched the people go, her eyes locked on the form of her wife, well, former wife. Aurora vowed that this was not a mistake. She would set up the academy, change the world and get her wife¡¯s soul back.


    And maybe, just maybe, she felt a little ashamed to be facing her wife right now. It had been her selfish wish that had taken Clove¡¯s soul away by parts.


    Clove left the area.


    Aurora felt her heart be heavier.


    And since her wife was no longer here, there was no point for Aurora to stay here any longer. There was nothing else she wanted from this ce. She had already sensed the power level of the Abyss Tower¡¯s elites.


    And really, these people were too under the Abyss¡¯s thumb to even think of going against him. Aurora would just be wasting her time even if she did stay here any longer.

 Chapter 5

    ¡°Eh, Miss. Aren¡¯t you going to fill the form and wait for the matching?¡± the female who had handed Aurora the form asked with a confused face as she watched Aurora leave the venue.


    ¡°Not interested. I don¡¯t need blind people on my side.¡± Aurora¡¯s words were met with a wave of protest. People did not like to be jabbed in their weak sports.


    And these towerckeys were too stupid to see that they were being used.


    These people had no idea what they were doing here anyway, nor did they know what the Abyss Tower was nning for them in the future.


    And they certainly had no idea just what the truth of this world was. The Tower were all risking lives for a purpose they would not even live out to see. The bottom of the abyss was hell.


    9/10 people standing inside this room would die by the end of the first floor. Which made them abination of brave and foolish to try out for the Abyss exam.


    So Aurora walked out of the venue, leaving everyone tunned behind her.


    She knew it would not be long before talks about her spread around. People like her were rare. She had gone a step further and even insulted the Abyss leader.


    There would be retribution to pay for her actions. Aurora was not foolish enough to think that the Abyss tower will not try and take revenge on her.


    The attempts would be vicious once they knew her ns about opposing them in their own game. But Aurora still had time.


    The outside world looked so different from the history books. Gone was thend that once housed the human and had been reced by a bottomless hole.


    The only thing that had survived even after the engulfing abyss was the mountain peaks. The only way to survive was to build on top of such a harsh ce and use magic to hold the settlement together.


    But since thend was sparse, several bridges were used to connect various pieces of floatingnd. The world had be airborne.


    And Aurora used one such bridge to get to the overly popted town in front of her.


    By the time anyone thought to stop her, it was already toote. Aurora was gone from thepound and any hope they had of catching her had been reduced to zero.


    But Aurora knew that the Tower will not give up so easily. She needed a disguise to hide.


    That was why she swiped some clothes that could hide her. Then she headed to the city¡¯s secret port. One that would lead her to the underground section.


    She knew what she would find there. But her target would have to wait for a little while.


    She had an even more important thing to do first ¨C get her powers and aura under control. Or she would be found in a matter of minutes.


    Aurora had power.


    But she was far from foolish. She knew she was not invincible and she would be a better study subject alive. The Abyss would try to get her at one point or another.


    She needed to get her powers under control and find a way to learn how to use them.


    ¡®If I remember correctly, my guide said to concentrate your magic into your core and form an external connection to release it in. That was how you formed a familiar with yourtent magic¡± Aurora focused her magic in her hand.


    Nothing happened.


    Well, a small explosion did take ce. But it was not strong enough to do anything. Aurora had not anticipated not happening. She released her magic as soon as it felt like she had lost control.


    The problem with having too much magic was that she had no way to control it. And since there was no manual to help her with this stuff, Aurora had to learn everything with the hit and trial method.


    But she did vow to keep a ¡®trial and error¡¯ journal with her. She didn¡¯t want a repeat of these incidents in the future after all.


    The trial-and-error method was incredibly frustrating but rewarding as well. It had helped Aurora learn things she would not have otherwisee across for a long time.


    Like, how to dim her aura.


    It had been an ident when she tried to create a familiar. She had somehow managed to turn her over-flowing magic off and concentrate it inside her body.


    But it was difficult to achieve.


    ¡°You know, you can try putting a little less magic into your familiar? It might help it retain the small form better¡± Aurora did not get startled. Or so she would like everyone to believe.


    But the voice had spooked her. It was familiar to her. But Aurora was sure she had never heard it reaching that octave before.


    Aurora turned her head to look at the new arrival, only for her eyes to meet a familiar red.


    The girl in front of her was young. Much too young. But there was no denying those red eyes that sparkled with joy and happiness.


    ¡°Hey. Nice to meet you. Name¡¯s Rita.¡± the younger yet taller girl replied as she jumped down from her branch. Aurora gaped at her like a goldfish before realizing that she was not in a dignified position.


    But still, she could not help but pinch herself as she watched a younger Ritand on her feet. Thest time she had seen Rita, it had been when the younger had died for her.


    She had really been a loyal friend and perhaps something more if not for Clove.


    ¡°Less magic? What are you, an expert in familiar magic or something?¡± Aurora asked in a cold voice even as her insides felt nervous. She had no idea how to face a young and happy Rita again.


    Her words caused the redhead to pout her adorable smile. Rita still seemed to be sensitive about her ¡®familiar magic¡¯.


    ¡°I¡¯m more than an expert. Just trust me, alright? I¡¯ve been doing this for longer than you¡¯ve been alive.¡± the girl replied. Her voice had that disappointed sour note in it.


    However, there was a look of uncertainty on her face, a hint of insecurity.


    ¡®Ah, she must be afraid that I won¡¯t believe her. She¡¯s what? Seventeen right now?¡¯ seeing as how most people don¡¯t develop their abilities till they visit the Abyss tower, it did seem a little ridiculous for Rita to be making that im.


    The earliest age for one to enter the Abyss tower was thirteen. But that applied to only ¡®special cases.¡¯


    Most people who entered the Abyss tower were nearly sixteen.


    But Rita had been ¡®special¡¯ since her birth. It had branded for her a life of solute and loneliness. One that was marked as cursed.


    ¡°What is it? Not going to ask me to ¡®not lie¡¯?¡± the girl asked in a small voice. Aurora shook her head at the disbelief look on the redheaded girl¡¯s face.

 Chapter 6

    ¡°No. I believe you. The world¡¯s crazy and so is the abyss. Inparison, your im about having done magic for your whole life doesn¡¯t seem that out of the realm of possibility¡± Aurora could feel the disbelief and hope in the girl¡¯s voice.


    ¡°Really-?¡± the girl didn¡¯t get to finish before the pair heard urgent footstepsing their way.


    Rita looked startled and a little guilty at the noise but Aurora knew what was happening. The guards hade to escort Rita back to her ¡®room¡¯ and they would be here any second now.


    She could already hear the shouts of ¡®Lord Rita¡¯ in the background and she could tell that the girl in front of her was startled as well by the new arrival. Her expression looked to be a mix of worry and guilt and it did not suit her at all.


    ¡°Hurry,e this way with me. I know how we can dupe them for some time¡± Aurora whispered to the startled female in her arms. She had a feeling she could not allow Rita to go back with her guards.


    Something about the trusting smile Rita sshed her with seemed to melt Aurora¡¯s heart. How long had it been since she¡¯dst faced such a sincere smile?


    ¡°I¡­that would be lovely. Not that I don¡¯t want to go back or they are bad people or I¡¯m being abused or-¡± the girl babbled trying to assure Aurora that she was alright but Aurora did not care for the half-truths.


    She saw the longing in Rita¡¯s. The longed to be free and to leave this caged life behind her. It was an earnest request that reached Aurora¡¯s soul and she decided then and there that she was not going to return Rita unless Rita wanted her to.


    Aurora might not have enough control of her powers to ensure a safe victory but she was not going to lose here.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to worry, kid. I might not look like it but I¡¯m pretty strong. Besides, I can smell your reluctance to go home quite clearly¡± Aurora got a puzzled look for her efforts to exin but she did not have time to sit around and expand on her words.


    Had Rita always been such a worried individual? The one in Aurora¡¯s memories was a mischievous yet battle-hardened warrior that had been sent as a backup for them.


    The shouts and the footsteps, both were closing in on them and there was only a small window of opportunity left for them to take. Aurora grabbed the taller girl around her stomach and threw her up her shoulder in a ¡®sac carry¡¯ style.


    Not the best or mostfortable of the holds, but it would do for now.


    Her actions had shocked Rita enough to stop her futile struggling and she realized it a bit toote that she was being taken away by a stranger. It should have been a humiliating sight but it just looked awkward.


    Most people would have panicked at this point and called for help but Rita could not help but find peace in this situation. She did not know what it was about this stranger, but she felt familiar and safe to Rita¡¯s senses.


    ¡°Are you¡­eh,¡­ Am I being kidnapped?¡± Rita asked in a small voice, still trying to wrap her head around what was happening to her. Rita was not sure she had ever been in such a situation before.


    Sure, there had been sessful kidnapping attempts made on her life but those had been put to an end by her a lot sooner than they had been allowed to get to this stage. However, Rita knew this time was different.


    Not only her magic, but even her mind felt at peace in the female¡¯s arms. Rita did not know why, but she did not mind being carried away by the blue-haired beauty. Even theugh she let out sounded melodic and out of this world.


    She liked that voice and the person attached to the voice. This was a first for Rita and she could not understand why.


    ¡°Kidnap? Weren¡¯t you willing toe with me willingly? I don¡¯t see you struggling to get away¡± the beauty replied back in an amused voice.


    And it was true for the most part. Rita could feel that she would be let go if she struggled even a little bit. But she did not want to go back to the stiffening atmosphere of her room. She wanted to go out and explore more. She wanted to see more and feel more.


    ¡°Hey, wait. Put Lady Rita down. Otherwise,e we¡¯ll be forced to retaliate¡± the guards had finally seen them run away and Rita waited for the spike of fear to enter her heart.


    After all, the guards were not gentle and had been trained by the experts of the Abyss tower. As such, they were really powerful and took to their duty quite seriously. Rita did not want them to catch this lovelydy that just wanted to help her out.


    ¡°You can put me down here before the guards catch us. They¡¯ll likely not chase you once They have me¡± Rita exined, waiting for the other female to drop her. It had been fun while itsted but she knew it was time to go home.


    She waited and she waited but the other seemed to have no intention of putting her down. Instead, the beauty seemed to be picking up speed.


    ¡°Hey. Didn¡¯t you hear me? You should put me down¡± Rita tried again, trying to get free. But her heart was not in the struggle.


    ¡°Don¡¯t want to. And you don¡¯t want to go back either, right? Stop resisting¡± thedy seemed so sure and Rita just gave up. It no longer mattered to her what happened to the other. She had yed her part.


    She watched in remorse as a guard tried to skewer Rita¡¯s carrier right through her chest, being mindful of Rita who was on her shoulder.


    These guards had been trained specially for weird situations and Rita was sure the situation could not get weirder than this. She already regretted inviting the kind stranger into this mess and closed her eyes in silent prayer.


    And then the guard passed right through them along with his weapon. All Rita saw in thosest few seconds was the startled expression on the guard¡¯s face and the joyfulughter of her carrier.


    ¡°Hold tight. It¡¯s going to be a deep fall¡± were thest words Rita heard before she felt her body free-fall through the air.

 Chapter 7

    ¡°WE¡¯RE GOING TO DIE. WHAT DID YOU DO?¡± Rita¡¯s heart was beating fearfully, afraid that it would be ttened at any second. The velocity at which they were falling did not help reassure Rita of their survival chances.


    And the worst part about it all? The stranger was still holding her captive in her shoulder which gave Rita no chance to use her summoning magic. Even if she did try, the bacsh would be felt by both of them and send them hurling through the air.


    And beneath their falling bodiesy the abyss. The darkness eclipsed the wholendscape, leaving the ground as a bottomless surface. Rita had never entered the abyss herself but she had heard stories from her guards. And they were not pretty or inspiring.


    ¡°Are you suicidal? Why me? Why did you close with me? Will we continue to fall the whole time? I heard that the abyss doesn¡¯t have an end. I don¡¯t want to be here¡± Rita felt tears hit her eyes as she looked down.


    So this was how she was going to die? At the hands of a madwoman who did not see it as wrong to jump down directly into the abyss? So what if the lightsing from the abyss looked pretty? That did not mean it was the right idea to jump down.


    ¡°Youin too much¡± Rita felt herself being moved in that embrace and the next thing she knew, she was on the beautiful girl¡¯s shoulder again. The one carrying her made a small impact which felt like they hadnded on solidnd. The lights surrounding them also neared and were at a touchable distance now.


    T-There really was ground down here. Then, did that mean the abyss had an end? It seemed to be shallower than Rita had expected it to be. But maybe the abyss and its depth had been an exaggeration? Its corrosive magic felt weak to her.


    ¡°I-Is this the abyss?¡± Rita asked, her voice shaky. She had been mentally counting the days for this very moment. She knew she was nearing her initiation date into an abyss team and she had been hand-picked as well.


    But now that she was finally here, Rita could not help but feel afraid of what would happen next. She had never imagined herself to be in the abyss alone, much less with a stranger that had dragged her there.


    ¡°Abyss? What are you talking about? We¡¯re in the underbelly right now, trying to get to the pleasure district. The abyss is 1000 or so meters below us¡± the blue-haired female reassured and weirdly enough, Rita believed her.


    After all, this ce did not give off the same amount of oppressive feeling the Abyss¡¯s taint gave off. Rita could breathe the air in and it did not harm her.


    ¡°If we¡¯re not in the abyss, then where are we? I never knew there was another city this deep beneath our own¡± Rita marveled at the dark and gloomy architecture of the ce. Most of it was mismatched and did not fit together.


    No two buildings were alike in looks or even maintenance. They all looked like they were falling apart and it made Rita hesitate to step inside.


    ¡°Such ces exist beneath every city, even the holy one, not that they¡¯ll ever admit it. But these underbellies are a necessity to keep the upper cities working. No, don¡¯t make eye contact¡± The blue-haired girl¡¯s handnded on Rita¡¯s face and turned it away from the direction she¡¯d been staring at.


    The pair staring back at her nced at herpanion and something in their gaze just changed. Rita could sense the moment they decided to make a move and she instantly felt like she should be on the alert.


    ¡°Hurry. Walk fast but don¡¯t run. We don¡¯t want to alert any unsavory parties about our location¡± Rita nodded as herpanion took her arm and started to drag her away.


    But it did not deter the pair from following after them. Instead of slowing down, it felt like the guards had sped up even more and the guards were about to catch up to them. Rita wanted to tell herpanion and she even opened her mouth¡­


    ¡­only to stop. How did she call thedy at her side? It was not like Rita even knew her name or anything.


    Had Rita actually consented to leave with an unknown person out of her own will? Hadn¡¯t she been warned again and again about this? How did that happen?


    ¡°Don¡¯t panic. We¡¯re almost out of their hunting area. They won¡¯t follow us into the red valley!¡± Her beautifulpanion exined, totally missing the origin of Rita¡¯s panicking.


    However, something in Rita told her not to ask the question now. People down here were weird and they were observing Rita and herpanion with a discreet eye. And if not for her training, Rita would have never noticed this at all.


    Rita¡¯s eyes moved back to the pair following after them and she saw them falter just as herpanion entered the alley and put her down. Rita had not even realized that she had been carried around on the other¡¯s shoulder this whole time.


    ¡°They won¡¯t bother us anymore since this area is under protection. Now, what are you going to do now?¡± The blue-haireddy asked. She did not sound demanding but something in Rita made her want to reply back.


    Rita paused, thinking back at all that had happened in thest few hours. She had been free and void of all her responsibilities but she had also been thrust into a world she knew nothing about.


    As such, there was only one correct answer for her.


    ¡°I want to go home. Please take me back¡± Rita requested, even as her heart sank. Being free had been awesome but she knew she could not remain free forever. She had responsibilities and had people dependent on her back home.


    She just hoped that the female in front of her understood.


    ¡°You¡¯re free to go back. I still have work here to do so I¡¯ll be going ahead now¡± thedy turned and Rita felt panic settle inside her.


    She was not going to be left alone here, was she? T-There was no way, right?


    ¡°What is it?¡± The blue-haireddy asked as Rita caught her wrist. There was no way Rita was going to traverse this ce alone.


    And as much as she hated to admit it, the blue-haired female was the only one she felt like she could trust. So the other was stuck with Rita whether she liked it or not.


    ¡°Uh, I think it¡¯ll be better if Ie with you, what¡¯s your name again?¡± Rita asked, only to get an amused chuckle in return.

 Chapter 8

    ¡°Uh, I think it¡¯ll be better if Ie with you, what¡¯s your name again?¡± Aurora watched Rita with an amused smile. It was almost adorable to see her once-friend be so careless and not be hardened by battle.


    Still, she had never taken Rita to be someone careless. She was still somewhat surprised that Rita had even agreed to go with her in the first ce. The Rita she remembered had been somewhat paranoid.


    But it had also been the abyss where they met so Aurora was not sure it counted. But she did decide to tease the poor girl at her side.


    ¡°Ehhh. You didn¡¯t even know my name and you still decided to follow me down here? My, you must be really brave¡± Aurora¡¯s voice had just a hint of that tease she always used.


    Not that she behaved like this often. Her more yful side mostly came out when she had been with Clove.


    To be like this with someone who was not Clove should have been tough but it felt freeing to Aurora. She had spent so much of her life focused on Clove that she had missed a lot of other experiences. One she could make up for before she met her wife again.


    ¡°I, it¡¯s not like that. I know you¡¯re a good person and Ikindoftrustyou¡± thest words took some effort to understand but once they did Aurora felt touched.


    Trust was something that was difficult toe by in their world. The abyss was hailed as a ce of destruction and power, not of trust and friendship. Rita might not have known it, but her one sentence had made Aurora¡¯s day.


    She would like to treasure Rita¡¯s friendship this time around and even give her a second chance at life. She would not let Rita die this time around. Still, she needed to have words with Rita about stranger danger.


    ¡°It¡¯s good that you trust me but don¡¯t just follow any person offering to help you out. God knows there are not a lot of good people left in this world¡± Aurora was only half-teasing by now.


    ¡°I know all that. Doesn¡¯t change the fact that it was you who decided to take me along. Take a little responsibility here¡± Rita replied back with just as snark. For the first time, Aurora could see the sh of her future friend in this young girl.


    Maybe there was hope for the future to shape out as the way it had been. But was that really for the best? As for the present, it was better to live in the moment.


    ¡°Responsibility? Aren¡¯t you a little young for me? Also, are you sure? Once you bind yourself to me, there is no going back¡± Aurora teased even further, not being able to stop herself.


    She might be getting too much into it all, her face almost at chest level with Rita¡¯s eyes. And Aurora could see the interest shining in Rita¡¯s red eyes. The girl was familiarly eyeing her and that meant that ytime was up.


    As much as Aurora would love to keep this y up, she did not want to encourage Rita to start something she did not understand.


    ¡°I-responsibility? What do you mean?¡± Rita¡¯s gulp was audible and so loud that it caused Aurora to scoff. Yup, it was getting out of hand alright.


    ¡°Oh, nothing much. Stick with me for a bit longer and I¡¯ll take you back home. For now, though, I do need to get my work in there done¡± If Aurora had time, she would have taken Rita back to her home first.


    But time was something even a goddess could not control (at least Aurora did not think so). And there were things Aurora had to set in motion before she could start searching for Clove¡¯s souls.


    She would not only need resources but people as well. She would need trained soldiers who would be her shield and allow her the connection needed to live out her life in the shadows.


    ¡°By the way, what could you possibly need in a ce like this that you could not get above here?¡± Rita asked as she eyed the buildings with a disgusted look.


    Aurora felt sad that Rita was only looking at the surface to judge this ce. She had no idea just what kind of hidden gems these underbellies were, brimming with talent. It attracted all kinds of crazy that could not exist in the normal society.


    ¡°The upper surface has wealth while this ce? It had talent. Don¡¯t underestimate these people just because they don¡¯t have the means to get a proper education. Most of them outlive normal people in the abyss¡± Aurora knew of a few people who had ventured into the abyss¡¯s depths.


    The brightest of diamonds really were forged by the harshest of the conditions. And Aurora was about to recruit one such entity in a matter of minutes.


    The first stop would be thest ce one could think to look for such a person.


    ¡°Your ID. I need to check if you are of age or not¡± The bouncer asked as he guarded the door. The muscr back and the huge body made him look intimidating but Aurora knew she could take him out if she really had to.


    Thankfully, she was not here for the same thing the normal people were.


    ¡°I.D? I¡¯m sure there is no need for the I.D to get into the lower floors?¡± Aurora shed her arm, her magic making ink disappear from her arms as a familiar sign pulsed beneath it. She had sensed it when she had firste into this body.


    It was her old one, the one that became the goddess. It had retained each and every mark she had ever born and yet they did not show up on her skin unless she willed them to.


    ¡°And her?¡± the guard asked, not even beating his eyshes at the mark. Rita looked confused, as did the others in the line behind Aurora. She had cut line and it might have been thanks to her goddess¡¯s allure she had barely let out.


    But now people were starting to notice and they wouldin if she did not hurry.


    ¡°With me. We¡¯ll take the backdoor so there is no need to see us off¡± Aurora dragged Rita, not waiting for the confirmation. She knew her mark would allow her the entry since it had retained its original magic.


    ¡°What happened? How did you get past the guards?¡± Rita asked in a confused voice. The pair watched as the bouncer thrashed another client for presenting a fake ¡®I.D.¡¯ Man, these people were strict with their protocols.


    ¡°That¡¯s a trade secret. I¡¯ll tell you once you¡¯re old enough¡± Aurora spoke as she ced her hand on her lip in a teasing way. But she knew she would take her secrets to her grave this time as well.

 Chapter 9

    ¡°This ce makes me nervous. Do we have to be here?¡± Aurora would have been annoyed by Rita¡¯sints if she did not sound genuinely scared. Her eyes held a fear Aurora had seldomly seen before.


    And Aurora had a feeling that she¡¯ll be seeing more of Rita¡¯s emotions in this short while. The girl had not perfect to mask them yet.


    The squeak Rita let out as she almost stepped into a creek was amusing though. It was only Aurora¡¯s quick intervention that saved Rita from falling into a hole. The floor was just too old and rotten at some ces to be able to take her loadfortably.


    The ce really looked gloomy and uninviting at first nce but Aurora knew it almost as a second home. It had just been too long since she hadst been here and she appreciated the consistency of this ce.


    ¡°The one I need is here. He might be the only one who would listen to me right now anyway¡± Aurora assured as she dodged another shady step. She recognized the work of her ¡®sworn-brother¡¯ and knew how to avoid the traps.


    This was something everyone associated with the man learned sooner orter. Rita had a hard time before she had learned in the original timeline. Aurora did wonder if things would be the same this time around or not.


    However, if the disdain on Rita¡¯s face was anything to go by, the female did not enjoy these harmless traps as much as Aurora did. A pity really.


    ¡°You talk like you¡¯re a wanted criminal or something. I didn¡¯t see youmitting any crime-¡± Rita started, only to stop mid-way with a flushed face. She likely remembered that her being here might be considered ¡®kidnapping¡¯ by most people.


    Even if she was here by choice, the conditions that had led up to this point had not really been ideal and painted apletely different picture.


    ¡°Well, nothing to be done about it now. And I was in trouble way before I met you anyway. Also, watch your head¡± Aurora warned before she yanked the door open.


    She already knew she had to dodge the iing glitter powder held on top of the door frame but Rita had no such knowledge. Even her warning did not help her keep herself glitter-free.


    ¡°Wee stranger. Are you here to party? What would you like? A coke? Rum? Or perhaps something a little more ¡®spicy¡¯?¡± Poor Rita was red in the face as the young man neared her face.


    But as fun as this interaction was, Aurora did not have time to fool around right now. She would not have used her trump card if she did have the time to look for another way.


    ¡°Can you leave her be ande with me for a second? I need to talk with a handsome man like you¡± Rita gave her a relief-filled murderous look as Aurora took the offending man¡¯s arm in her own.


    Aurora just angled her body slightly to show off her mark and she instantly watched the man¡¯s eyes turn toward her arm. He seemed confused as he took in her mark and then her face, likely not recognizing her.


    ¡°I see. So this cutie here is yours? Man, all good ones are either taken or gay. But maybe I can change that? Now, why don¡¯t you follow me to my room and I¡¯m sure we can work something out¡± the man flirted, his expression losing his momentary hardness.


    But Aurora saw beneath the mask. That voice had been no suggestion but amand for her to follow. The man still had an advantageous position between her and Rita so Aurora was not going to try anything.


    ¡°Alright. I guess we can work things out¡± Aurora flirted back, feeling a little awkward. She had no practice doing this so she tried to channel what her wife would have done had she been in the man¡¯s ce.


    And it seemed to have worked. No one batted an eysh their way anymore, their attention focused on their own prey. There were only a handful of people in this section right now which made their escape easier.


    Aurora took Rita¡¯s arm in her own, gave her a beaming smile, and then proceeded to drag her after the man.


    ¡°H-Hey, let me go. I don¡¯t want to-¡± but anyone who heard Rita¡¯s words left them unsaid. Aurora knew what kind of message she was sending by dragging an unwilling Rita after her into a dark room but it did not matter.


    This was an underground society in the pleasure district and it did not judge anyone who stepped in here. People were too drunk to even remember their own name, never mind Aurora¡¯s or even Rita¡¯s.


    Aurora almost shoved Rita into the room when she tried to hold onto the door to keep herself out of the room.


    ¡°-Pervert, sick, what kind of human are you? Is that why you wanted me to trust you? Are you going to sell me to the pleasure district?¡± Rita questioned as she was dropped onto the ground.


    Aurora had gotten sick of having to drag her around and had proceeded to just pick her up from her middle and get her inside. The man who had led them here enteredst and proceed to close the door after him.


    Rita curled protectively over herself, her eyes shing and daring everyone not to move. Aurora wanted to apud her for her tactic but she also wanted to smack her for irritating Aurora thiste.


    ¡°Charmingpanion you got there. I take it she doesn¡¯t know anything about it. And sorry to say, but who are you? There is only one person who could look like you but you¡¯re neither the right age nor have the correct sign to be that person¡± the man asked, all the flirtatious tone draining from his voice.


    Aurora felt her back straightening as soon as she heard those words. Of course, her sworn brother could always takemand of the room as if he owned it.


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s kind of a long story which I cannot go into detail about. Just know that things happen and your guess is correct. The sign should be proof enough about my identity since the magic is unique¡± Aurora assured as she finally sat down.


    Rita, finally convinced that she was not in danger of being done anything, also chose to sit. But she was far more tense and vignt than Aurora was.


    And the man just sighed and looked as if he was done with his life already.


    ¡°I can see that. Aurora, just what did you get yourself into this time? It is still you, right?¡± the man asked in a pained voice and Aurora automatically replied.


    ¡°Not my fault Rex. Well, not fully at least¡±

 Chapter 10

    Those had not been the first choice of words Aurora had when she had first thought about exining her situation. But reflexes were hard to master.


    And in this case, it meant opening her mouth to deny all usations made against her person, even if it was half her fault this time.


    The silence that descent in the room was awkward and Aurora could see Rex questioning his life choices.


    ¡°So, you know this guy Aurora? He¡¯s good?¡± Rita asked, finally rxing her tense body. The awkwardness that had risen due to Aurora¡¯s thoughtless reply had made her forget that Rita had even been here.


    And now she felt doubly embarrassed at showing this side of her to her friend. What must she be thinking of her? It made Aurora kind of d that Clove was not here to see her blunder.


    ¡°Hey, I would have you know that I¡¯m an extremely honest guy. I¡¯m only like this to gather information, understood? And you, you better start spilling what happened to you¡± Rex replied, his tone frustrated.


    Rex had been a short-tempered guy who had just gotten worse as the time had passed. Aurora genuinely did not even remember what he had been like when he was not tense.


    Rita seemed to not be believing Rex¡¯s words, her eyes darting back to Aurora to confirm her safety. For Aurora, this situation was not one she ever thought she would be in. Rex and Rita had never met in her original timeline.


    ¡°He¡¯s good so we can trust him. I came here especially to recruit him for a project¡± Aurora assured, tackling one problem at a time. Rex did not look amused at seeing him being ignored but he held his tongue.


    Really good progress her sworn brother had made. Or maybe it was hisck of progress that had assured that he remained calm.


    Aurora took in a deep breath, not sure if she wanted to talk about her current situation. But she had to. She would need all the help she could till she figured out how to use her powers right.


    ¡°Would you believe me if I told you that I am from the future? I was supposed toe back in my original body and somehow ended up messing things up¡± Aurora exined in the simplest of ways.


    ¡°Of course you did. I¡¯m not even surprised that something like this could have happened. Since you are here like this, I believe that something went wrong somewhere but never mind that. You are here to ask for help? Be more specific and I¡¯ll see what I can do¡± Of course, her brother did not need much more than that to be able to read her.


    They both had grown up in conditions that had not been typical so it was no wonder that they had grown closer. Even Rita looked excited, her eyes shining as she leaned ahead to be able to hear better.


    Aurora took in a deep breath to calm herself down. It was now or never.


    ¡°I am going to set up an academy. One that will train the abyss aspirants and help them venture deeper and deeper into the space. I need your help to achieve that¡± The ss slipped out of Rex¡¯s hand and even Rita looked shocked.


    It was a given since the very idea of setting up an academy opposing the Abyss tower was stupid. It was akin to suicide and there was no way it was going to seed.


    However, this was the only shot Aurora had if she wanted to cover the abyss and look for Clove¡¯s split soul. And it was not like Aurora could cover all of it on her own with other gods and goddesses around.


    ¡°You want to do what? Tell me that you¡¯ve lost your mind and that¡¯s why you are spouting this nonsense. I¡¯m out¡± Rex replied as he turned to leave. Even Rita was gaping like a goldfish, her mouth opening to speak but then thinking better and not speaking those words.


    However, Aurora was not as worried. She knew things from the future which would help her. She also knew some of the inner workings of the Abyss Tower, having to spend a lot of time there in thepany of Clove and others.


    She was not talking out of her tits.


    ¡°Are you sure? I¡¯ve lived the future, you know and I can assure you that it is entirely possible to topple the current political system on its head. Right now, the Abyss Tower had a monopoly on the power but it¡¯ll notst forever¡± Aurora was taking a gamble here.


    She might not have received any warning about spoiling the future, but she was not naive enough to sprout it all out in one go.


    To reel a fish in, you needed to bait it out first. And Aurora knew from experience that nothing people more than forbidden secrets.


    ¡°Are you serious? I take it that the future is not something you can talk openly about? Aurora shook her head. Technically, it was not a lie since Aurora¡¯s instincts told her not to spoil the future.


    It might be her new nature as a goddess, but she could feel the magic tense up when she started to talk about the future. It indicated that it did not like her actions very much.


    However, she had done her part and the bait had beenid. Now all she had to do was to reap the benefits.


    Maybe probe a little bit more.


    ¡°You are free to believe me or not to believe me. But I do have a lot of advantages. I might also have an idea of the ¡®thing¡¯ you are looking for. I can¡¯t say it yet but if you help me out, I will reveal the hint to you before the timees¡± and that nailed Rex¡¯s attention.


    ¡°Fine, deal. The fact that you know I am looking for something makes me believe you. I can¡¯t guarantee you the desired oue but I¡¯m willing to help you out¡± Rex replied.


    And honestly, this was what Aurora had expected. Her body finally rxed and the tension in the room bleed out. Aurora expected him to leave after his outburst, but the man flopped down on the couch instead.


    ¡°Take the side room for now. It¡¯ll not be ideal if you went out right now since there are some shady people here. But I can¡¯t guarantee you will get a decent night of sleep here. This is the pleasure district after all¡± Rita looked confused as Aurora ushered her friend into the side room.


    Rita might not have gotten what Rex meant but Aurora was not as innocent. She was sure her face was ming as she left the room.

 Chapter 11

    ¡°GYAYAAAAAA¡± Aurora woke up with a start as the loud noise prated the thin walls. She hated this ce and the way her body was heating up at hearing those voices of pleasure.


    It did not help her that Rita¡¯s decent-sized burst was rubbing against her arm. It felt good but also wrong. And it was not the only part the female was rubbing against Aurora.


    But Aurora tuned it out of her mind since she did not want to think about it. She did not want to get aroused in here since she had no means of relief.


    Having tasted the pleasure of sex, Aurora could not help but imagine her wife¡¯s hand on her body, her fingers inside Aurora as she was teased mercilessly. Clove had a way with sex which left Aurora wanting more.


    ¡°M-MORE¡± The voice prated Aurora¡¯s fantasy and brought her back to the present. She had not realized that her hand had inched closer to her lower half in the meantime and Aurora felt mortified.


    Had she truly been about to y with herself when she had Rita in the bed with her? Would it have counted as cheating on her wife? Even when Aurora did not have a wife right now?


    ¡°Hmmm¡± Rita¡¯s unconscious body shifted before Aurora, her hands venturing over Aurora¡¯s body, causing Aurora to freeze. Rita¡¯s hands were close to her pussy and if Aurora moved, they would make contact.


    The situation was not one Aurora had expected to find herself when she had first lept in the bed.


    There had been only one bed in the room but Aurora had not thought much of it. She was sure that Rita was not attracted to her like that and Aurora already had a wife so sleeping together should not have been a big problem.


    Of course, she had not ounted for her body to feel heated up as she heard those indecent voices. Nor could she had ounted for Rita¡¯s weird sleeping habits.


    And now Rita¡¯s hands were moving once again. Aurora had to muffle her pleasure-filled noise as they brushed against her pussy lips. How the younger had not woken up, Aurora was not even sure at this point.


    But she knew she could no longer take it. Aurora had to get away from Rita and this bed. She had to take care of herself before she made a mess of the bedsheets and have to answer ufortable questions in the morning.


    She tried to push herself off of the bed, but it caused Rita¡¯s hold to tighten and her body pressed against Aurora¡¯s even harder. It was all too much and Aurora gasped in horror as she realized that her new body was sensitive.


    It was responding to the voices around her, feeding off of the pleasure-filled noise. She was sure she did not have this problem before so it must have something to do with her goddess powers.


    The thought finally gave her enough power to push herself away from Rita and caused her to fall to the ground.


    ¡°Wha-Are you alright?¡± Rita asked, finally waking up. The noises of pleasure and loud banging had not been enough to wake her up but Aurora¡¯s fall had been?


    Had it not been for Aurora¡¯s knowledge of Rita from her past life and her character, she would have believed that the other was doing this on purpose to harass her.


    ¡°Nothing. I wanted to go to the bathroom. You can go back to sleep¡± Aurora replied, wishing for the other to miss the needy tone her voice had.


    And somehow, it worked since Rita just turned around and went back to sleep. Aurora was not sure how the other managed to tone all these voices and feelings out but she was thankful for it.


    She hurriedly entered the bathroom, closing the door after her and pulling up a muffing charm. She did not want to be heard when she tended to herself.


    And her hand finally came down to trace her lower half. It had been soaked wet and so sensitive to even her touch. It had to be something her goddess powers did.


    Aurora had been someone who had been hard to please. Her one hand had done nothing for her in her past life and many nights have even ended for her without release. She usually focused on Clove¡¯s pleasure and her dull sensitivity did not help the matter.


    But now she felt extremely sensitive as she fingered her lower lip open. She felt the cool and hot feeling of passion touch her magic as her mind flooded with pleasure not her own.


    It almost felt like she was channeling others¡¯ magic through her body and it made her body even wetter.


    Aurora did not venture her fingers too deep in herself, choosing to focus on her clit for now. And her body instantly felt a shock go through it as soon as she did. It was powerful and Aurora did not even realize that she had released it till she brought her hand in front of her mouth.


    It had been soaked wet with a shiny substance that did not look like a human release. It had a golden tint and honey-like hue that made it look almost divine.


    And as Aurora brought her hand closer to her face, she got a whiff of strong magic from her hand that caused her to almost gag at the strength.


    It felt like molten magic used to restore mana. It was a high-grade abyss substance that could potentially save someone¡¯s life and had sold for a lot on the ck market.


    Coincidentally, her release felt like that to her and Aurora finally felt the implications of this draw over her.


    She was no longer human and it took an orgasm to realize this fact.


    She quickly washed the evidence of her y away, not wanting anyone to find out what had happened here. She would think about it all when she had more situational awareness.


    For now, she would try to force herself to sleep through the horny magic around her and the pleasure-filled feeling she was getting from this ce, and tomorrow she would leave. She was not sure she would be able to live in this ce long-term.


    The morning came too early for her and Aurora did not feel even a little rested. Rita looked fresh when she came out of her shower but her refreshed face felt mocking to Aurora.


    And then Rex had to audacity to open the door with a dang, causing Aurora¡¯s headache to get worse and she finally snapped.


    Rex received a pillow to his face for his efforts and Aurora felt her mood lifting.


    ¡®Serves him right¡¯

 Chapter 12

    ¡°The resistance agreed to help you out. I did not tell them everything but they decided to take this chance. However, they asked to be kept informed about your next moves¡± Res exined, nursing his cheek.


    There was a huge red print on his face where the pillow had hit him and Aurora felt guilty about it. It had not been her intention to hurt Rex but things had just happened like that.


    ¡°I see. I¡¯m thankful for their assistance. I will make sure to keep in touch¡± Aurora assured as she picked up the tea that her brother had served her. She hesitantly brought it up to her lips, only to curl up in distaste.


    Yup, the tea was just as foul as she remembered it to be. She could even see Rita choke as soon as she had a taste and Aurora felt avenged for the unintentional teasing of thest night.


    ¡°Now, I assume that you¡¯ll be leaving this district? The resistance would like you to keep on hiding here for a little longer but I can see that you are not interested. And frankly enough, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s safe for you as well with you looking like that¡± Rex exined as he gestured to Aurora.


    For a second, Aurora felt genuinely confused at the attention. She had to double-check that Rex meant her and not Rita when he said those words, but he was gesturing to her.


    Aurora had never been the most attractive girl in the room since her wife had always been present. And even if someone had been interested in her ¡®assets¡¯, her cold and interested attitude had put people off.


    But now? Now was a different case since Aurora had the goddess¡¯s allure.


    ¡°I see your point. I can¡¯t allow Rita to stay here as well¡± Aurora replied. Her words conversely that she knew what Rex was talking about but it was not all about her. It was also about Rita and her safety.


    And maybe she was letting her weakness be known to her brother by doing this but she did not care. She trusted Rex to a degree and having him on her side would be a great boon.


    Even if he did not look happy about her choice to bring Rita along, she knew he would respect her enough to protect her if things came down to it.


    ¡°Fine, do what you want to but you do know that I can¡¯t help you get out. My cover would be blown if I did and I can¡¯t risk it right now¡± Rex sounded stressed.


    Aurora did not sweat it since she already knew her brother would be of no help in this regard. He had already yed his part by contacting the resistance on her behalf. It was not the only organizationmitted to bringing the abyss tower down but it had the most influence.


    As such, their help would be invaluable in the uing battles. Aurora knew exactly what they could do since she had been a hidden member in her previous life.


    ¡°Ummm, won¡¯t it be difficult? I¡¯ve never even heard of this ce before being dragged in here by Aurora so doesn¡¯t that mean that it¡¯s really difficult to get out of? Otherwise, the existence of this ce would bemon knowledge¡± Rita asked with a nervous voice.


    This was the first time she had spoken during this conversation and Aurora was surprised to see her speak.


    She had watched Rita step around Rex nervously, her eyes darting to the man and keeping an eye on him.


    It was clear that she had not yet forgotten their first meeting and Aurora felt amused to see this change. But she also knew that Rita woulde around to knowing Rex.


    What a change a few years could make on a person¡¯s rtionships.


    ¡°It ismon knowledge in most circles, just not talked about in the open. The tower is also trying to actively suppress the news about this ce since they see it as their biggest shame. Not that most people care or want to get out¡± Rita looked confused at the prospect.


    Maybe for her, living in this pce sounded like a punishment. This ce was dark and unhygienic in the worst way possible. It alsocked resources and the precious sunlight needed to survive was almost negligible.


    But Aurora knew the real reason people came to the undergrounds was to escape. This ce had a degree of freedom associated with it that was not found on the upper surface.


    It was like a heaven for the outcasts, a ce for the strong to survive and conquer.


    In a way, this ce was simr to the abyss and was the perfect ground to learn how to survive down there. And that was also why the tower did not eradicate this ce.


    ¡°So, how do we get out? I have a ce in mind for my academy but I need to be on the upper surface to get the process started. However, I am nning to include the underground in my scheme as well¡± this ce was a goldmine of talent.


    And Ideally, this was the perfect pce to start the academy but it would not change anything. To oppose the Abyss tower, they needed to be recognized by the main people as well.


    There were also precious resources being hoarded by the maind people but that wouldeter.


    ¡°This pce as well, huh? You are really suicidal to even think of the Rocx valley as your base. But I¡¯m beginning to think that your kind of suicide is eptable. And that is why I¡¯ll give you the address of a reliable broker that can get you out of this ce¡± Rex replied.


    As usual, he had guessed what Aurora had not said. Rocx valley was one point where the underground and the surface converged. Rita seemed to not know about Rocx valley, a typical reaction to her sheltered upbringing.


    Rocx valley was dangerous since it was a middle ground for both ces but too dangerous to be tamed.


    As such, it was wastednd but it did have a direct connection to the abyss. It had been ced under the ¡®do not use¡¯nd status a long time ago and only the ambitious thought about that ce.


    But Aurora had more than one reason to chose that ce. Not only was it perfect for what she was thinking about, but it was also one of the only ces that could get her permission to set up the academy once she had enough funding.


    Rocx valley was also called the valley of death and anyone who had even thought of using that pce had ended up as dead.


    ¡°Here, she¡¯s someone who can get anything done for you if you pay her the price for it. She¡¯s a greedy witch but one who had a reputation in our circles. Coincidently, she¡¯s in the underground right now¡± Rex sounded vexed as he handed Aurora the card in his hand.


    She could feel his reluctance as she took the card from him but she could not figure out why that was. But her questions were answered as soon as she opened up the business card in her hand.


    ¡°Michell, huh. My condolences to you for getting robbed¡± Aurora tried to sound sorry but it only came out as an amusedugh. Knowing Shelly, she must have robbed Rex out of a good amount of fortune.


    Michell, or Shelly as she liked to be called in the business, was a witch that would do anything for money. Aurora had a strict business rtionship with her in the past but she had considered the other a reluctant friend.


    ¡°Yeah, yeah. You¡¯ll see just how bad she is once you deal with her yourself¡± Rex replied and Aurora could not wait.

 Chapter 13

    When Rex had talked about Michell¡¯s ce in the underbelly, Aurora had anticipated it being a much more sophisticated ce than the hellhole she found herself in front of. The other female liked to hoard and spend money as she liked.


    By the time Aurora had met her in her past life, the other had an empire build-up of wealth and a workforce willing to do her bidding. She had also been a background helper for the resistance, willing to trade them favors in exchange for rare goods.


    Michell had also been a feared name since she had been one of the people who had seen the deeper abyss and knew how to navigate the first few floors safely.


    ¡°Wow, this ce sure is run down. Couldn¡¯t the witch fix it all with magic?¡± Rita asked from Aurora¡¯s side.


    Aurora had not wanted to bring Rita with her initially but she had no choice. Leaving her alone in the pleasure district was not an option and neither was Rex.


    Aurora was 80% sure her brother would have tried to rope Rita into unspeakable situations if Aurora had left her behind.


    ¡°Just because her title is ¡®witch¡¯ doesn¡¯t mean she¡¯s a magic user. But don¡¯t let your guard down in any case. Michell can be incredibly dangerous, even more so than most magic users you have met¡± Aurora cautioned.


    As much as she hated to admit it, even she was not sure if her current self would be able to get Rita out of here safely if a fight did break out.


    Aurora had magic coursing through her but it was unpredictable and as good as Rita was, she still did not have ess to her best summons.


    Michell on the other hand was a well-trained killer. She was also ruthless and it was only her greed that could stop her from going on a rampage.


    ¡°Oh. Then why do they use the title of ¡®witch¡¯ for her when she can¡¯t even use magic?¡± Rita asked as she followed Aurora into the abandoned building.


    It was almost falling apart around them, even the columns were deformed and had their inner surface exposed. The ce was not somewhere anyone would want to live unless they had no other choice.


    ¡°It¡¯s because I can make your wishe true. That is if you pay me the right amount for it. But you already knew that, did you not?¡± The voice sounded lighter and younger than how Aurora remembered it being but the figure standing on top of the beam looked the same.


    Michell jumped down, her metallic half making noise as she reached the ground. Rita looked taken aback at seeing a half-humanoid and half-mechanical being in front of her but it was not such an umon site for Aurora.


    Once you went through the abyss once there was not much that could surprise you. And some things were just impossible to get back once they were stolen from you.


    ¡°It¡¯s an honor to meet you, Michell, or rather, ¡®Witch Shelly¡¯. We would like your help¡± Aurora gave a half-bow of greeting. It was a customary way to tell someone that they were on the resistance side.


    If the time was still on the right track then Michell should have a temporary unspoken alliance with the resistance. As such, she would likely hear them out if Aurora showed her goodwill.


    And it did seem to work.


    ¡°Let me guess, you want to go to the upper surface? Easy enough task but the speed would depend on what you can exchange for it. I am quite a busy person after all¡± Michell neared them and Aurora held her ground.


    The other was seizing them up, seeing what they were worth. If Aurora backed down now, then she would be marked as easy prey and lose any ground she had.


    She knew how Michell worked and she also knew how to handle her.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure I have a lot of things you would be much more interested in than money. For example, the location of your lost specter¡± Aurora replied in the same tone of voice Michell had used.


    She knew the moment the other realized what Aurora was talking about. Not that she felt guilty for using their weaknesses against them.


    ¡°You do? Well then,e inside and we shall talk¡± Michell stomped her feet at the ground once and it caused a trap door to appear.


    Michell did not waste time in jumping down and Aurora took it as a gesture of ¡®follow me.¡¯


    ¡°Are we jumping down as well? Can¡¯t I stay here?¡± Rita asked, not liking the thought of jumping down a hole again. Thest time she had been forced to do that, she had ended up in the underbelly with Aurora.


    And Aurora understood that train of thought. She was not going to force Rita to follow her. If Rita decided to follow her, it had to be her own choice.


    ¡°Do what you want¡± Aurora¡¯s answer caused Rita a bolt of surprise but Aurora did not stick around to see her reaction. The hole swallowed Aurora when she jumped down but she did feel someone reach out for her arm at thest second.


    She turned around, only to meet red eyes ring back at her fearfully. Rita had taken the chance totch on to her wrist.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare leave me behind¡± Rita hissed as she was dragged down as well. Aurora decided to humor her but she could see the flooring closer.


    And that made Aurora react. She twisted her body and caught Rita in her arms before they could be tted. Aurora was sure she could only see in the darkness due to her goddess powers.


    This darkness was not natural and she could feel mage the air around her. It made her stand on the edge and also question Michell¡¯s motives.


    As far as she was concerned, Michell¡¯s main motive had been money. The female usually did not y these kinds of games with someone willing to pay her.


    The air shifted and Aurora had a split second to take out a knife and defend herself with the sword while still holding on to Rita with her other hand. She shifted Rita to rest on her shoulder so that she could have a better range of moments.


    The sword changed directions and Aurora saw the glint heading for Rita. Aurora swirled out of the way and twisted to position her right side against the attack.


    Her eyes met a sh of Amber before she retreated with her baggage.


    ¡°WAAAA. WHO IS ATTACKING US?¡± Rita questioned as she tried to calm down. Poor girl had no idea what was happening and even Aurora was stunned to see this development.


    She had not thought she would find herself in this situation so soon.


    ¡°Stop attacking us. I told you we were willing to pay, right?¡± Aurora asked her voice tense. She could notprehend why she was being attacked by Michell in such a way. Her distress caused her to drop her shields as well.


    Her mour and Goddess allure must be shining through her skin since the attack did stop and Michell stepped ahead.


    ¡°That man was right, there is something different about you. You don¡¯t feel human but not in a bad way. I¡¯m willing to believe you now¡± Michell exined and Aurora finally put Rita down.


    It took her some time to realize that this all had been a test to know if she was trustworthy or not. And there was only one reason for this to happen in the first ce.


    ¡°Rex sold me out to you¡± Aurora was not angry but she was pissed. She did not feel betrayed by Rex since she had expected him to let the news about her out. It was a good way for her to gain recognition in the circle.


    But at the same time, could he not have told her about this? It would have made things easier for her.


    ¡°Not sold but he did make an exchange. And now I want to make one with you as well¡± Michell exined, much to Aurora¡¯s shock.

 Chapter 14

    The weapon was pushed down, and so was the tension. Aurora had not even realized that she had taken a protective stance in front of Rita but it did make sense for her to do so. She was fond of the girl and Michell was not a soft person.


    But it did shock Aurora a little to see Michell of all peopleing up to her for a trade. Michell was someone who never did things that did not profit her in the long run.


    ¡°An exchange, huh? Now you¡¯ve got my interest¡± Aurora felt her curiosity spike as she calmed down. Now that there was no immediate threat looming over her head, she could take the time to ess Michell.


    ¡°Hey, she just tried to attack us. Should you really be arguing with someone like her?¡± Rita asked, no doubt still salty about almost being killed. Not that Michell would have done anything to her. Had Michell wanted to kill them, they would be dead by now anyway.


    However, it did make Aurora realize that the situation was a little out of hand for her. She needed to get the control back in the next few minutes or she knew she would lose the advantage she had gained here.


    ¡°Just to remind you all, this is strictly business for me. If you are interested, follow me. The specter is important to me but it¡¯s not invaluable¡± it was only because Aurora knew Michell that she caught the lie in those words.


    The witch was really good at lying her way through any interrogation. Maybe that was why she was such a good candidate to get secret information through.


    ¡°Aurora, are we really going to follow her? What if she kills us?¡± Rita asked once Michell was out of their audible range. Aurora was sure the half-human could still hear them just fine from her range so she did not try to hide her real feelings.


    Besides, she knew it was about time Rita got her life set straight. As fun as her innocent days were, she would not survive long with such a weakness.


    ¡°Sometimes, it is better to consider the future than the present. People like Michell are rare and it¡¯ll benefit to have them on your side. But of course, you don¡¯t have to forget or even forgive. Just tone your feelings down for now. She¡¯s the only one who can get you home¡± Aurora knew she was being unfair to Rita.


    She should not be the one to inform Rita of all this in the first ce. But this was just how the situation ended up as. Aurora could not look Rita in the eye when she followed Michell further inside.


    And that was why she missed the curious and frustrated expression on Rita¡¯s face as the younger one followed after her.


    ¡°You¡¯ll take us to the surface?¡± Aurora asked as soon as she saw Michell observing the wall. Her hands moved all over the surface as she tried to find something there. Likely a trigger or something simr to open a door.


    ¡°Yeah. But more specifically, I¡¯ll be taking you to the edge of the surface now. You caught me at the best time since I was about to leave this ce as well¡± Michellmented.


    And again, another surprise. Not the timing, but the words.


    ¡°You don¡¯t want the information beforehand? What if we refuse to pay you after you take us up? Not that we¡¯re not going to pay or anything-¡± Aurora stopped before finishing.


    This string of fortune was suspicious. She could not see the angle Michell was going for here and there had to be an angel here for Michell to attach herself to the cause. She just had to ask the question.


    ¡°What are you nning? You¡¯re not such a benevolent soul and for you to dy payment is unheard of¡± Aurora asked. She could see Rita catching up with the duo and waiting for her.


    It also gave her the slightest view of Michell¡¯s expression. And the grin looked disturbing and greedy at the same time.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you worry your pretty head about this? Let¡¯s just say it¡¯s a part of a previous deal for me that had been paid for. As long as you are willing to give me the specter¡¯s location, everything would be alright¡± now it was confirmed.


    The resistance had likely made a deal with Michell on Aurora¡¯s behalf. Whether it was a bribe or a peace offering, Aurora could not tell. What she could tell was that she had Michell interested in her.


    ¡°Whatever you people are brewing in the background, keep me out of it and we¡¯ll have a great partnership¡± Michell¡¯s grin widened at those words.


    ¡°Deal. Let¡¯s have a good partnership¡± Rita looked unimpressed at the deal but she did not object to the action. Not that it would have mattered much at this point.


    The tunnel they were in was fragile and a single step would cause it to cave down. They had to move in there carefully and follow after Michell to not get lost.


    Almost a few hours went by walking before Michell knocked at the upper surface before lifting it. Aurora¡¯s vision was filled with green as she lifted herself out of the tunnel.


    ¡°Here we are. Now, my payment¡± Aurora handed the paper with information in Michell¡¯s hands. She did not mind parting with that information.


    The shout of ¡®finally, freedom¡¯ sounded from behind the pair as Rita made her way up as well. The poor girl barely made it out, her face red due to theck of oxygen at the end.


    ¡°Going? Not gonna question the validity of the information?¡± Aurora asked once she realized that Michell was starting to move away from the group.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I need to. Being in this business gives you a third sense of such things. And besides, you won¡¯t live long if this information is wrong. After all, I don¡¯t like to lose money¡± as much as Michell was joking, thest words were serious.


    Aurora had seen thedy gut people for less.


    ¡°How charming of her to get thest words. I don¡¯t like her at all but I¡¯m willing to give her the benefit of doubt. She did get us up¡± Rita replied in a sour voice.


    She looked dirty and tired, but happy to be out in the sun. Aurora just shook her head at the younger actions, not paying her any attention for the time being.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get you home now. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve had enough of mypany¡± Aurora replied, getting back a beaming smile from Rita. She was not sure she wanted to know what was going through her head.

 Chapter 15

    ¡°Let¡¯s get you home now. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve had enough of mypany¡± Aurora did not like the look she was faced with when Rita looked back at her. It was a mischievous smile that did not bode well for anyone involved.


    It caused Aurora to involuntarily take a step back as soon as she saw that smile but Rita had no intention of letting her go.


    For every step Aurora took back, Rita took one forward toward her. It was an involuntary chase that did not end till Aurora¡¯s back hit the tree. Rita was too close and her expression clearly told Aurora that she had a n in her mind.


    And she was willing to bet anything that it did not involve going back to her home.


    ¡°Are you that tired of me already? Didn¡¯t you say you were going to take responsibility for me?¡± Rita asked with an impish grin. It was a direct contrast to the earlier timid nature she had shown. This felt more like the Rita Aurora had known in her time.


    Some kind of switch seemed to have been flipped inside the younger¡¯s mind that caused her behavior to change. Aurora had not sensed any kind of external interference for this but you could never know.


    After all, the closest ce to the abyss without stepping into it was the underground.


    ¡°I¡¯m not tired of you or anything but I don¡¯t want you to force yourself as well. And I thought you wanted me to take you home?¡± Aurora asked, earning herself a pout from the younger. In a way, the pout was assurance that whatever had caused Rita to change had not managed to get her fully.


    ¡®Her older self would be so mortified to see this pout¡¯ the thought was amusing but brief as it crossed Aurora¡¯s mind.


    ¡°Well, that is true but I don¡¯t want to be locked up in my room just yet. Just let me spend a little more time out here. Ah, I know. Why don¡¯t we take care of some business of yours?¡± Rita¡¯s eyes were glowing as she asked that question.


    Aurora knew she should not indulge Rita in this. It would build up bad habits and give the younger girl a wrong idea about Aurora.


    But at the same time, was she really going to see Rita after this? Rita would be busy with the abyss while Aurora had an academy to handle. It won¡¯t hurt to let Rita make a few more fun memories.


    ¡°Fine. You can apany me for now. But please, follow my words this time. We were lucky that Michell did not want to cause any trouble for us¡± Aurora almost pleaded. Rita¡¯s expression spoke volumes about her thoughts on Michell but she held it on to herself.


    Aurora took the small victory, hoping that it signaled the things that were toe. If only she knew what caused Rita¡¯s behaviors to change so drastically in such a short amount of time.


    ¡°I get it, alright. Stop lecturing me and lead the way¡± Aurora shook her head fondly as she was ordered around. She did not mind letting Rita have her way for now. And she did need to make a hasty call.


    Now that she had established the connection with the revolutionary and gained their forces and funding, she needed the task force. She would need at least a few experts on her side but she did not have the time to scout them all out.


    Moreover, Aurora knew the people she was going to target for certain positions but she had no way to get in contact with them on her own.


    But the biggest problem of this all was the Rocx valley itself. As good as that ce was, it was still uninhabitable. Aurora was counting on her goddess powers to help her make that pce useful.


    But if it failed, she would need to make some house calls and call in some favors with other higher powers who may or may not remember her. There was no telling how her time-reversal had affected the other gods and goddesses.


    Two things happened at the same time. Rita sped Aurora¡¯s arm, causing the elder to flinch just as a scream echoed through the park. Itsted only a second before it was muffled but it was enough to send chills down someone¡¯s back.


    The scream had been loud enough to cause Aurora¡¯s ears to ring and the terrifying feelings reaching her also caused her to freeze. They felt cold and gripping to her and Aurora almost kneel from their intensity.


    Aurora tried to send soothing feelings back as a means of help, but the panic and fear were too loud to allow her help. Aurora had no option but to focus and knock the source of that voice out.


    The process came almost naturally to her but it took time to understand what her instincts wanted her to do.


    ¡°Rita. stay here while I check it out¡± Aurora called as she reached for the younger one at her side. But Rita was not there. Aurora had not even felt the hand on her arm disappear and she quickly spread her senses for the younger.


    Logically, she knew that there was no way for Rita to get kidnapped right in front of her without Aurora feeling her emotions but her system was still trying to cope with the empathic shock it had felt.


    Luckily, Aurora was able to feel Rita¡¯s aura and followed it. She found the younger kneeling in the tall bush, her attention focused on the clearing in front of her.


    A still-bleeding bodyy there and Aurora felt Rita¡¯s intention of jumping out and iming the body back. It was only Aurora¡¯s quick reflexes that managed to stop Rita from exposing herself.


    ¡°Let me go. She¡¯s my servant and I need to help her out. This treatment against her would not be tolerated¡± Rita sounded angry. She even looked angry and Aurora was not surprised to see this reaction.


    Rita had always been attentive to her friends and those under hermand. This made her a reliable leader that people wanted to follow and Aurora knew that it had sprouted from the fear of losing dear ones.


    Rita might not have ever openly detailed her losses but it was quite clear that she had lost people.


    ¡°She¡¯ll be alright. Let me check her out¡± Aurora assured as she left the bush. She was a low-risk target whenpared to Rita and there was no reason to attack her here. Worstes to worst, they would try to take her alive to question her.


    Or so she thought. But the arrows aimed at her told a different story. The body had been a bait.

 Chapter 16

    The attack was executed with the intention of killing her. Aurora was sure that the arrow was alsoced with some kind of poison to take her down. Her instincts told her that she had just dodged a fatal blow to her head.


    ¡°Tch. Sit down and let me shoot you¡± the annoying voice yelled. It startled Aurora enough that she jumped back in time to avoid the other arrow. It was lucky since she had not sensed anyone else in the vicinity.


    Granted, Aurora was not using everything she had in her arsenal, but still. It was a major achievement. It also indicated that her mind and body were not up to par with her powers and shecked a lot of control.


    ¡°Be careful and don¡¯t kill her. We need her alive to know what she did to Rita¡± another voice stopped the next attack on Aurora. The archer pouted as she looked toward her partner with a disappointed look.


    Aurora decided to use this distraction for a different reason. She quickly gathered the required magic for a sh spell. The pair in front of her had taken Aurora for a small fry so she was going to use that to her advantage.


    Aurora locked eyes with the archer just as the sh spell went off And filled the area with light. It was so potent that no one who saw it would be able to see it clearly for a few minutes.


    Anyone else but Aurora. Being a goddess had its peaks. Even if it made her eyes throb due to the intensity of light, her vision had not been affected in the slightest.


    Aurora took this time to gather the fallen person on her shoulder and headed to where she could see Rita trying to sneak out and help her. Aurora¡¯s hand sped around Rita¡¯s arm and dragged her along.


    Aurora could stay back and fight her way through the guards but she was not sure if it would help her. She was not worried about herself but about herpanions. Both of them were dead weight and reminded Aurora why she did not like to team up with other people.


    ¡°W-What happened? I can¡¯t see anything. Did you use a sh bomb?¡± Rita asked as she was dragged along with Aurora. The poor girl sounded a little lost.


    ¡°Something like that. Keep your eyes closed so that they heal faster. Don¡¯t force them open¡± Aurora advised. She had fallen victim to many sh bombs in her time but what she had used was different.


    Unlike most sh bomb¡¯s gas usage where you needed to clean them out with tears, magic ones needed time and darkness. Trying to open one¡¯s eyes here would cause more pain to them.


    But where did that leave them now? They had a few people on their trail now and Aurora was not a fool. The hunting hounds would have been deployed behind them already.


    ¡°Rita, change of ns. We can¡¯t head to the Rocx valley right now. You know any other ce we can hide?¡± Aurora asked. She would not have normally asked Rita for such a thing but she had a feeling the other could guide them.


    After all, hadn¡¯t Rita been running away from her guards when she first met Aurora? There had to be a reason for her to be able to get away from her cagers.


    ¡°There are a few ces we can hide but I don¡¯t know if we¡¯ll be able to get there. Do you think there are guards after us right now?¡± Rita asked in a worried voice.


    Aurora would have answered her if the body on her shoulder had not let out a pain-filled groan. She quickly stabilized it as it started to slip again.


    ¡°We¡¯ll have to try anyway. I trust you to lead us to the location and then you can leave the rest to me¡± Aurora assured. She had a few tricks up her sleeve even without her goddess powers. (Not that she was going to use them. It was too risky for her with herck of control)


    ¡°Alright. Then, there is a safe-house this way. It used to be Karina¡¯s home and I don¡¯t think she¡¯ll mind us using it¡± Rita assured.


    Aurora did not ask who Karina was. If Rita thought it to be safe then it was their best bet. And if not, well Aurora was ready to fight if she needed to.


    And that¡¯s how she found herself jumping through hoops and ducking behind towers. She tugged the other two behind as well, using her magic to block the searching devices she could feel being used.


    ¡°Take left. We¡¯ll enter the worker portion of the town¡± Rita led the trio behind her. Aurora had not thought that the sheltered young girl even knew this ce existed but even Rita was not that ignorant.


    Unlike the underground, this ce was filled to the brim. Houses ovepped each other as they tried to upy more and more space. It was not a healthy living atmosphere but it was all these people had.


    Aurora took left as she finally entered the surface equivalent of slums. There were eyes on them, pointing toward them and judging them for all they were worth.


    Aurora tried not to feel self-conscious but it was difficult not to react. It was just luck that no one questioned them throughout the way. Rita stopped in front of a shabby-looking door before she knocked at it.


    ¡°Hold your breath or you¡¯ll choke¡± Rita warned before the door barely opened and Aurora was greeted with a face full of a powdered substance. Luckily, Aurora had closed her mouth and her node at thest second.


    She heard Rita try and cough, unable to hold her breath for long. Unlike Aurora, the other did need to breathe.


    ¡°Ah, sorry. I thought it was the tax collectors who decided to grace us again. What can I help you with?¡± The shivering body that exited the door was the oldest person Aurora had seen in her life.


    The poordy was all bones and skin and it looked as if a single gust of wind would blow her away. But her magic still shined strongly in Aurora¡¯s eyes and it made her pause.


    Now that she looked at the old woman again, she could see a transparent magical coating on top of the old woman. Maybe it was some kind of mour.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be sorry, help us out here. And don¡¯t you dare refuse. You owe me a few favors¡± it was the second time Aurora had seen Rita act this rude and she expected the olddy to take offense.


    Instead, she just pushed her door open.

 Chapter 17

    The inside of the home looked nothing like what one would have expected from the run-down exterior. Had Aurora not stepped inside on her own, she would have never believed that something like this was even possible.


    ¡°Put the maid there. I¡¯ll go and prepare the supplies¡± the old woman replied as she stepped behind a curtain. Aurora could feel the heavy cloak of magic being stored behind that curtain but she held her curiosity in.


    Mainly because Rita looked like she was about to puke her gut out due to her nervousness and Aurora did not want to make things any worse for her. Aurora was sure that this maid had some kind of connection with Rita but she did not want to push the other into telling her.


    ¡°You know, I just realized that I was a fool. I only thought about myself when I decided to leave. In the end, someone else had to pay the price for it¡± Rita started as her eyes moved toward the female in the bed.


    It gave away about the kind of rtionship she had with the female. Still, Aurora did not want to go ahead and make assumptions on her own.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure you are curious about the identity of the female we saved and I feel like you deserve to know as well. She¡¯s a maid that was assigned to look after me. I guess they did not like it that she let me leave, even though she could do nothing to prevent me from leaving. And I don¡¯t know what they were thinking as well since she was new and we didn¡¯t even have a bond or anything and -¡±


    Aurora stopped the speech by cing a hand on Rita¡¯s shoulder. It was tense and hard under her hand. Rita was going to hurt herself if she did not rx.


    ¡°I understand your guilt but you need to rx. It¡¯s not your fault, nor is it hers. But if you really have to me someone, me me. You¡¯ll have to go back home eventually ao ming those people would not help you¡± besides, Aurora was used to being hated and med for things she did not do.


    It would not be anything new but it would make Rita feel better (hopefully).


    But the re she got back clearly told Aurora that it was not going to be the case. Rita was stubborn like that so Aurora did not take it to heart.


    ¡°I would much rather be optimistic in this scenario. Also, what is taking that sted doctor so long? It¡¯s been ages¡± Rita sounded annoyed but fond as well. Aurora felt that it was mainly the worry that was making hersh out.


    However, this was another connection Aurora never knew Rita had. Not that she had paid too much attention to Rita the first time, but they had been friends.


    ¡°I wanted toe out but you people were being too lovey-dovey for me to feelfortable. Now, if you¡¯ve done then I would like toe out¡± the voice spoke from behind the curtain.


    But it was young. Far too young to have belonged to the old woman. The shadow of the figure behind the curtain also looked taller and younger than before.


    Aurora could only guess that the olddy had decided to put her mour away when she went back. It would make sense as well since keeping mour up took precious magical resources.


    ¡°Hurry up ande out here. I¡¯ll even pay if that¡¯s what you want from me¡± Rita sounded almost as if she was begging. Even if her voice sounded sure and hard, it was easy to hear the desperation in her voice.


    ¡°As if you¡¯ll be able to pay me. I don¡¯tck money, kid and it does nothing for me. What I want are essences. Like, your friend here¡± Aurora knew the elder was talking about her.


    As much as she tried to hide her aura, she just did not have enough control to be able to hide it from an expert. And this female doctor sounded like an expert if she could detect Aurora.


    ¡°But I¡¯m calling in a favor. You can¡¯t refuse me like this¡± Rita almost shouted but the doctor seemed to have made up her mind.


    ¡°Yeah you did and that¡¯s why I let you in. You saved me from getting discovered once and now I did the same for you. As far as I know, we¡¯re already even¡± thedy replied. She sounded bored with the conversation.


    Rita almost looked like she was fuming but held herself back. It must have taken considerable effort on her part but she somehow did it.


    It seemed to not have mattered to the doctor at all.


    ¡°You¡¯re the one asking me for help because you know you cannot go anywhere else. You better be polite if you want my help. And send your friend in once you decide on your option but don¡¯t take too long either¡± the doctor informed.


    Aurora didn¡¯t need an interpretation to guess what she meant. Their rescue did not have a lot of time left. Aurora might not have seen the wound but she could feel the light dimming inside the maid.


    And it made her itch to help out. Her magic could help, it could heal. Aurora could feel the pulse of such magic but she still hesitated. After all, healing magic was a tricky thing. Aurora has seen ack of technique to kill people when using such magic.


    And as much experience as Aurora had with the magic and the abyss, she never had the opportunity to learn such magic in any capacity. If she had, then she would not have died and left her wife behind.


    And that also gave her an idea. If this doctor was half as good as Rita made her out to be, Aurora knew she could make use of her.


    ¡°Rita, how good is this doctor?¡± Aurora asked, knowing she would get a biased opinion. Still, she needed to hear it before making any decision.


    ¡°She¡¯s good, so good that it¡¯s scary. I¡¯ve heard that she can bring people back from the brink of death. And as much as I hate to admit it, she¡¯s the only one who can help us¡± Rita admitted.


    And it prompted Aurora to finally make her decision. Rita sounded like she knew what she was talking about and Aurora¡¯s magic also told her that this doctor was powerful. This doctor was the real deal.


    And that was what prompted Aurora to walk up to the curtain and slip to the other side.

 Chapter 18

    ¡°So you did choose toe back here after all. Come inside and close the curtain behind you¡± Aurora shuddered at the seductive tone being used on her and her body reacted ordingly.


    Aurora was loyal to her wife but even she could appreciate a nice body when she saw one. And the female in front of her was a vision with everything on disy like that.


    The former old woman now looked like a young and erotic vision that could have walked out of someone¡¯s erotic dreams. The skin was young, and so was the voice.


    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you be wearing clothes?¡± Aurora asked, swallowing the saliva gathering in her mouth. The doctor made her nervous just sitting in front of her.


    ¡°Should I be? They feel rather restraining and would just get in the way of what I need to do next anyway. You do know how essence gathering works, right?¡± The female asked and Aurora nodded.


    She did have a vague idea about the topic but she had never experienced it for herself. She knew clove had given some of her essences away before but Aurora never had the need to.


    But from what she knew, the process was a little erotic in nature and required a lot of physical contact. The naked doctor¡¯s presence just solidified that im in Aurora¡¯s mind.


    ¡°I have a general knowledge but I want to know ¨C why me?¡± Aurora asked quietly. She could feel the curiosity and eagerness in the other¡¯s bodynguage and it felt good to create such a reaction.


    It felt nice to be acknowledged by someone other than Clove. It made her feel relevant and soothed an ancient part of her soul. It made her feel powerful to see the doctor looking at her like that.


    ¡°Why you? Can¡¯t you see the kind of aura you have? It¡¯s overflowing with power and it¡¯s the first one I¡¯ve seen that is so bright. Your essence would give me so much room to experiment. Nowe and sit. You don¡¯t need to do anything¡± the doctor finally stood up, her breasts bouncing with the motion.


    There were hidden muscles in the doctor¡¯s body that made Aurora¡¯s mouth go dry. There was a certainpulsion inside her that wanted to touch the female in front of her and marvel in the wonder of pleasure.


    ¡°You can call me Freha. As you have guessed, I¡¯m half-human and half-subus. No, don¡¯t pity me here¡± the doctor replied back. Not that Aurora would have pitied the other.


    Half-humans were a prettymon sight after the abyss had opened. Humans were an adventurous breed and could not stop their curiosity when faced with new species. (Not that there were no unfortunate cases in the mix)


    Still, Freha did not look like she regretted her position or her non-human nature. She was one of the minorities that seemed to not mind her heritage.


    ¡°Are you sure it is wise to tell this to me? What if I tell you about the Tower council? Won¡¯t you be haunted?¡± Aurora asked, wanting to watch the other¡¯s reaction.


    ¡°Well, if you did then that¡¯s it. But I¡¯m willing to take the risk because of a rumour I heard in the underground world. But that¡¯s a thing we have to discusster. That girl outside is running out of time, so I would rather get started on it¡± Aurora nodded.


    She could tell when the conversation had been dropped and she had no intention of continuing it any further anyway. Not that she had any intention of getting Freha in trouble. She didn¡¯t want to subject her to the tower¡¯s cruelty.


    Not when such a person could be a strong ally in the abysster on. Half creatures who had control over their powers were rare and a resource Aurora wanted to invest in. Those poor people did not deserve the mistreatment they got just because their parents could not keep it in their pants.


    ¡°I will need you to guide me further¡± Aurora replied, her breath hitching as her breasts were touched lightly. She had not felt Fariha move but the other had somehow made her way in front of Aurora.


    There was a light shove that caused Aurora to lose her bnce and fall back on the small bed the good doctor had been upying seconds ago.


    Aurora instantly locked eyes with a golden pair in front of her as she felt the demonic part of Freha rise up. The energy felt familiar to the abyss and caused Aurora to further drop her guard. It was a gentle coax as magic caressed her own and caused Aurora to involuntary moan.


    It was such an intimate gesture and felt as if she was being yed with. Lust was rising in the air and it was messing with Aurora¡¯s head. She could feel Freha getting more and more turned on as the time passed.


    ¡°Should I go further? I¡¯ll need a verbal confirmation once¡± the voice whispered in Aurora¡¯s ears as she felt the presence of those hands near her chest area. They were so close and would feel so good on her chest.


    Aurora knew she should not do this right now since she had a wife.


    ¡®But you¡¯re not married right now. Experimenting a little won¡¯t hurt you. And Clove would not mind.¡¯ Her brain reminded her. It had not been like Clove had been a virgin either when they had gotten together, nor had they been exclusive.


    There had just been too many situations that had caused too much trouble for the pair. And this was a medical emergency as well.


    ¡°Do what you have to¡± Aurora¡¯s voice came out far more vital than she felt at the moment. It held none of the breathiness that would have been expected of her, nor did it break under the pressure of her one desire.


    But her words did cause the hands on her body to start moving and they finally rested on her chest to give it a light squeeze.


    It felt good to finally have someone y with her chest. It sent sparks of pleasure down her spine and made her arch her back in pleasure.


    It felt far better than it had with only her hands. The hands ying with her also felt experiences as they channelled the magic in and around her. She could feel something trying to connect with her magic and it sent sparks down her spine.


    And all of a sudden, the hand on her chest tightened as it squeezed. It hurt but it also felt so good and Aurora had another body rub against her.


    ¡°F-Fuck. W-What kind of essence is this? It¡¯s so fierce and potent¡± Freha panted as she rubbed her hardness against Aurora¡¯s stomach.

 Chapter 19

    Aurora was indeed out of it. That had to be the reason for her slow response as different sensations of all kinds assaulted her body. A lot of it was unsuppressed lust that made her body heat up even more.


    She would totally me it for the reason she missed the obvious hardness pressing against her stomach when the doctor decided to rub herself all over Aurora. That had to be the reason Aurora did not notice anything wrong with her biology.


    ¡°Fuck. I feel like I can get drunk on your aura alone. How is it this potent?¡± Freha asked as she massaged Aurora¡¯s breasts. They were so sensitive now, feeling every little motion to the extreme. Aurora was being yed with and it caused her illusion to fade away.


    There was a slight shine to her body now that betrayed her ¡®human¡¯ disguise but Aurora was too far gone to care about it. She wanted to stop the female in front of her but she also wanted her to keep on continuing.


    ¡°Pay attention. Gather your power into your lower body. I¡¯m gonna lick your essence out¡± Freha dared to not even sound out of breath when she made that demand. And thatmanding tone did things to Aurora.


    She unconsciously followed those instructions as she forced her energy to flow through her body. She could feel the formation of some kind of energy inside her but she could not pay attention to it.


    Not when something, or rather, someone was tugging her clothes off of her lower half and exposing her sex to air. Aurora felt the urge to hide but she held herself back.


    ¡°Freha, what are you nning?¡± Aurora asked. Even if she had a feeling about what was going to happen next, she still had to ask that question. She did not like the mischievous glint in Freha¡¯s eyes.


    Things happened when that particr look had been involved in Aurora¡¯s bedroom life. And Clove had been someone who hardly let herself go in the moments of passion. But when she did, it was glorious and left Aurora all kinds of loose.


    Freha looked like she did not have Clove¡¯s inhabitation and would act upon her promise of doing things and making Aurora feel pleasure.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it too much. Just sit back and enjoy the show. It¡¯s going to be the best oral of your life¡± Freha did not give her time to gather her thoughts before Aurora felt a jab of the tongue on her sensitive part. She could feel a wet sensation assault her pussy lips.


    It felt weird but made her body feel hotter all the same. The sensation was foreign to her body but her mind connected it with all the fun such a situation had created for Aurora and her wife in the past.


    Not that her mind retained the capacity to think when it was melting with pleasure right now. The tongue was furiously attacking her clit, making fireworks go off inside Aurora¡¯s mind. Her empathy was also picking up on the amused pleasure of her partner.


    And then a finger probed at her pussy lips and slipped past her lips without resistance. Aurora knew she was tighter and wet since she could feel the finger very acutely. But her body did not provide any resistance to the finger.


    ¡°Your body is sure sucking me in. Is it that desperate for a good fuck? Essence like yours needs to be fucked out¡± Freha seemed to be enjoying this if her smug face was anything to go by.


    She also had a thoughtful face as she looked back at Aurora¡¯s body that had been pierced by her finger. Aurora lowered her eyes, not being able to look the other in the eye when she met a protruding erection.


    ¡°What? Never seen a demon before? Most of us do have dual sex. I can use it on you if you are curious¡± Freha asked with a grin. That impish grin was Aurora¡¯s undoing and caused her toe on the spot.


    Well, that and the breach of a second finger. It left her drained but also satisfied beyond belief.


    ¡°D-Don¡¯t you have your e-essence now?¡± Aurora asked with a pant. She wanted to rest but there was not enough time for her to do so. Her dropping pussy did not seem to think the same as it throbbed and heated up at the jab of Freha¡¯s fingers.


    However, her words were enough to break the mood and cause Freha to harden her expression. The other pushed her fingers out and toward her face with a thoughtful expression.


    The golden release seemed to be sticking to her fingers and the other observed it with a curious gaze.


    ¡°Yeah, it should be enough for now. You can freshen up in the side stall while I go and have a look at my patent¡± The docs were back in action. Aurora did not see what she did as she turned around but Freha¡¯s hand was clean of any fluids in a matter of seconds.


    Seeing no point in staying back, Aurora decided to have a fast shower before joining the trip outside. The doctor seemed to be finishing up her patient but she turned toward Aurora when she stepped out of the shower.


    ¡°What¡¯s the status?¡± Aurora asked as she took a seat at the bedside. She was worried about the patient but even more so about Rita. The poor girl looked exhausted.


    ¡°She¡¯ll live but you better leave her here for now. She¡¯ll need a doctor to look after her and I can monitor her situation better from here¡± Freha exined as she made space for Aurora to sit at her side.


    Rita had a constipated expression when Aurora took the offered seat and she also looked a little sick. But since Rita did not speak up, Aurora let the topic slide for now.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be in your debt if you do that¡± Aurora gave a small bow to the doctor which caused her flirty expression to falter for a few seconds.


    ¡°I would like to have some way to contact you but everymunication line is guarded by the Abyss tower. And since the princess here ran away, I bet they would be on the outlook for you both¡± the ¡®princess¡¯ was mockingly aimed at Rita and caused the youngest to pout.


    But it was a problem for them, thismunication thing. Aurora wished she had something to rectify this problem. But maybe her powers could help? She had heard about an idea of a tform?


    There were fantasy texts that told of awork often titled a ¡®system¡¯ that could various things. Maybe Aurora could make her powers work that was as well for convenience¡¯s sake?

 Chapter 20

    Rita was still pouting.


    Aurora was amused to see the other fuming over what had happened with Freha but it was getting old as well.


    ¡°Stop getting irritated. If you¡¯re going to be like this, then you should go back home¡± Aurora teased as she tried to get her magic to work in a way she intended to. So far, she had managed to make a basicmunication manual and a binding connection.


    ¡°No, I¡¯ll behave. But I¡¯m bored. What are you doing?¡± Rita asked, finally giving up on holding a grudge. Freha was likely going to be a sore subject for her but it seemed as if she was finally over it.


    Aurora¡¯s magic moved to connect the final piece in her interface and it finally managed to make a basic frame. It was workable and Aurora would be able to improve on itter.


    ¡°This is a system that would help our allies develop their magic. This is still in the testing stages but I hope to have it fully developed by the time we set up the academy. Want to try it out?¡± Aurora informed.


    She passed the small light bubble toward Rita to take. This was rtively harmless for the most part. And even if something happened, Aurora had made sure that the magic would not be affected.


    ¡°It¡¯s safe?¡± Rita asked even as she took the small sphere. Aurora nodded in assurance and Rita finally sped her hand around the small bubble.


    Aurora watched in glee as a small screen appeared in front of the female and showed her level and other things. Aurora could feel the magic binding with the younger and scanning her.


    ¡°How does it feel? Try using it¡± Aurora encouraged. She had made the system an independent entity, not unlike a child. It would learn over time and improve itself but it was still quite new right now.


    She had based it on a gaming screen she had the pleasure of witnessing on T.V. and she felt conflicted about its design and limitations. It was made to expand over time and would only be capable of basic functions right now.


    Still, Aurora felt a thrill go through her as she watched Rita open the inventory and experiment with it.


    The experimentation took a whole afternoon where they tried out different functions of the system. Rita had also gotten a few upgrades on her summoning magic as the system had sessfully uncovered her ws.


    It seemed to be working as intended and Aurora handed another copy of it to Freha before the pair left the ce.


    ¡°Remember, Rocx valley is not a gentle ce and we are not trying to subdue it right now. We are just going there to check some things before wee back. Hopefully, Rex would have managed to get the necessary permissions by then¡± Aurora hoped her brother had.


    Because they were already running short on time. Every second they spent here, the abyss was getting a new and powerful recruit that would give them an advantage. The abyss was expanding every second as well.


    ¡°So, I know that we are going there to scout the ce out, but what does that even mean? Are we going to scout that ce out?¡± Rita asked, sounding confused.


    Aurora had expected that question so she did not mind answering it for the other. It was also a good time for her to see what her system could do in non-magic-rted situations.


    She opened her panel and scanned the area to get a map-like image. Rocx valley was the perfect ce to experiment as well since it had the closest energy to the abyss on the surface.


    The map she got back was far from perfect but it was a start. It had the basic topography as well as thendmarks. The only drawback was that it only covered a small portion of the valley.


    ¡°Before we enter the Rocx valley, you should be aware of a few things. The main valley is the ce where the academy will be built (Aurora pointed toward the center of the map) but it is not the main ce we will be targeting. Our real objective this time is to reach the Starlite cave¡±


    The ce Aurora pointed toward was just a little out of the map¡¯s area but Aurora knew the cement of the cave. It had been an important resource in her time and she did not doubt that it would be an important asset this time as well.


    ¡°Oh. Isn¡¯t it in the deeper areas? Should we not wait to tackle those parts after we have the academy and a little more force?¡± Rita asked. To Aurora, she sounded nervous and tried to hide it.


    And Aurora understood why Aurora was feeling like that. They were already at the cups of the Rocx valley and the feeling of oppressioning out of the ce was something else.


    For those who had never faced the abyssal energy, this ce was unnerving. But to Aurora, it almost felt like home. The magic she had acquired after bing a goddess rejoiced at the familiar feeling.


    ¡°To be honest, I did not want to bring you here at this time but I don¡¯t have any other choice. There are things I need to do and people I need to meet before it bes toote¡± since she knew of the future events, Aurora knew the importance of this ce.


    Contrary to popr beliefs, Rocx valley was not uninhabited. It had a lot of strong non-human races that were being sought by the abyss tower as ves. It was only because of the aura and the guardians that this ce had survived.


    And since it had such strong protection. Aurora felt it was only right to seek permission to build an academy here. She did not want to rm the guardians or the people living here.


    And maybe, just maybe she would also be able to atone for the sins of her past. She had been one of the participants of the great purge by the abyssal tower as well and she had contributed to a lot of unnecessary bloodsheds.


    She knew she had to at least try and make sure these people were safe this time.


    ¡°There are people down there? I won¡¯t believe it till I see it for myself¡± Rita sounded spectacle at her words and Aurora just shook her head at that.


    ¡°Well, then brace yourself forbat if you want to meet them. Not every creature down there is friendly¡± Aurora warned as she took a spear out of her inventory. She was going to make sure of the system as well.


    Rita followed suit, not fully convinced but determined to follow after Aurora none-the-less.

 Chapter 21

    ¡°Well, then brace yourself forbat if you want to meet them. Not every creature down there is friendly¡± when Rita had heard those words, she had prepared herself to fight. She believed in her creatures and summons to get her through the uing battle easily.


    After all, her creatures were really powerful and nothing had proven to be a challenge to her powers yet.


    That had been one of the reasons Rita had been enthralled by Aurora at the first nce. The female had excluded power and aura like nothing Rita had seen before. It had left her in such awe that she knew she had to have it for herself as well.


    But nothing short of being petty had gotten her the wanted attention from the elder. If anything she felt like she had been neglected and this feeling of being ordinary was not something Rita had been used to.


    And didn¡¯t know why, but she felt annoyed when Aurora¡¯s eyes were not on her. It left her raging quite hard and made other unfamiliar feelings sprout up inside her heart.


    That was why Rita had wanted to take this time in the Rocx valley to impress Aurora. She had to show her worth in order to remain relevant. She would finally prove that she was an important asset.


    Or so was what she had wanted to do. But fantasy and reality often held different expectations for her and Rita found her summons to be powerless in front of the huge ws of the abyss monsters.


    She found the system shing with ¡®the opponent¡¯s power level exceeded the user¡¯s and that made Rita¡¯s panic worse.


    The monster raised its w to attack and Rita braced herself for the impact. It was going to hurt badly and she was not sure if she could even survive.


    But the w never managed to reach her at all. Instead, it was cleaved in half and the monster in front of her disappeared in a sh. Rita only saw the silver sh of a spear before it was gone as well.


    She had been saved by Aurora at the nick of time and she could only watch in awe as the others danced between the monsters and thinned their number. Aurora looked like she belonged here and even her steps had a lightness to them.


    Meanwhile, Aurora relished in the kill. She had not felt such a thrill for a long time and it made her blood boil to dispatch these monsters. Most of them were not even capable of higher thoughts and only had killing on their mind.


    But it felt amazing to wield her weapon once again. Even if it was only tost for a short time, Aurora wanted to make the best of it.


    It would not be long before the ounders decided to join the fun and that was one group Aurora didn¡¯t want to alienate this time.


    She felt the thrill of battle but her senses also sensed the change in magic. There was a device that was using it up from the environment and Aurora felt the strikee her way.


    She twisted her body as that the impact would not affect her but rather,nd on the monsters behind her. And the impact caused the monster to disintegrate in an instant.


    The mechanical fist did not stop. It made a noise Aurora was vaguely familiar with and then the first made another attempt at iming her life.


    ¡°Wooo, stop right there. I am not your enemy¡± Aurora reasoned as she tried not to hit the ounder that had just arrived. They were particrly sensitive to magic but could not use any on their own.


    The poor people called the ounders were considered cursed as they could not use magic on their own but they had made technological advancements enough to allow their tools to be able to use magic instead.


    Their living conditions in the Rocx valley had also made them particrly tough mentally and a force to be reckoned with. Despite the tower¡¯s best attempts, they were never able to get rid of these people.


    ¡°Tower scum are not weed here. Killing you is the obvious choice on my part¡± the man well, the boy yelled before he made another attempt on Aurora¡¯s life.


    In another life, the child had grown up to be the biggest threat to the Abyss tower¡¯s power. He was responsible for killing many top recruits as well as the copse of the main building.


    He had never been caught but he had shown up time and time again in front of Aurora and made her question everything she knew. But Aurora had held on to her ideals for Clove and fought him every time.


    For now, the owner of those powerful golden eyes was just a kid struggling in Aurora¡¯s grasp. She had caught his fist and held him into her hold.


    And as soon as she had done that, the fighting seemed to have stopped around her. She had not even noticed the other ounders thinning the monster¡¯s numbers around her till now.


    ¡°I am not your enemy so I would like it if you did not attack us. Until then, I¡¯ll hold him hostage¡± not a bright move to make for trying to gain someone¡¯s trust but Aurora knew that those would not hear her out any other way.


    The prejudice against the tower ran deep in these people and for good reasons. But for now, their goals were aligned. Aurora was hoping that they could coborate in their effort to take the abyss tower down. The Ounder¡¯s technology was something else as well.


    The ounders around her growled in warning, not liking the way she was holding one of their own. The kid in her arm thrashed, his horning to attack Aurora¡¯s unprotected arm but she held him in ce.


    The kid was strong but Aurora had the strength of a goddess. The kid would not be able to escape her hold that easily.


    ¡°You promise to not hurt him?¡± Aurora nodded as she carefully made her way toward Rita. The girl had been left alone this far but Aurora was not willing to take any chances.


    ¡°I¡¯ll not harm him. I came here to extend an olive branch and fight amon enemy. I would appreciate it if you would take me to your current leader¡± Aurora asked.


    She could see that the group in front of her was stumped, not knowing what to do. They had likely never met someone this polite from the surface and Aurora kept her aura unthreatening.


    It was up to them to decide if she was worth the risk or not.

 Chapter 22

    ¡°I have a feeling that these people do not trust us¡± Rita whispered as she took a seat adjacent to Aurora. Aurora still had the kid tucked at her side as an assurance and her arm paid the price in form of a huge bite mark.


    The kid didn¡¯t have the decency to even try and be gentle at all. He had gone full feral even after Aurora had handled him with care. She had no other choice but to knock him out for the time being.


    Still, she had to give it to the child. He really was resilient and kept on trying to flee till the very end. It was a miracle he has not managed to injure himself.


    ¡°We will have a talk with our leader. He¡¯ll see you in a short while. Kindly handle our young master with care¡± the woman who had led them to the base replied before disappearing behind the gate.


    It was brave of her to reveal the identity of Aurora¡¯s charge like that and the young goddess found herself impressed at the tactic. Normally, this kind of information would be thought of as a liability but in the current situation, it was a burden.


    Had Aurora not already known the identity of the child as the next n head, she would have panicked a little. But Rita had that part covered for her.


    ¡°This child? The next n head? Isn¡¯t it too early to decide? Or is it something hereditary?¡± Rita seemed interested in the customs of these people and Aurora counted it as a sess on her part.


    She could see the group around her tense up at the question, not willing to expose any more information than they already had. So it fell on Aurora to break the awkward silence.


    ¡°It¡¯s the golden eyes. It is said to be a blessing from the goddess of victory and marks the next leader for these people¡± her words caused everyone to look startled. And Aurora understood why as well.


    These people had gone a long way in order to hide that information from bing public. They had not expected someone to just walk in knowing this knowledge. And as one, everyone stared at Aurora in warning, daring her to hurt the kid in her arms.


    Aurora raised her hand in a ¡®mock surrender¡¯ kind of way to let everyone know that she had no intention of hurting the kid. It did not help the others feel safer around her but she could feel them rxing a little.


    And then Rita opened her mouth to make the situation worse.


    ¡°Wow. So he¡¯s really important? I guess we got the right bait?¡± In her defense, Rita had not thought over her words. She also did not have enough social experience to remember that some things did not need to be said out loud.


    Aurora did not even have the heart to scold Rita for her mistake. Nor did she even have the time to do so. Before she could make a move, the other warriors around her had Rita in their grasp.


    ¡°I said I¡¯m not a danger. If I really wanted to hurt the kid, I would have done it by now¡± Aurora recalled, but it did not help. The group looked back at her as one but they had a hostage this time.


    It was at this moment that the gate opened and the first female exited out. It did not feel like it had been that long at all. The female just raised her eyebrow at the scene but chose not toment on it.


    ¡°Master says that he¡¯ll see you now. Alone¡± Rita, who had been about to stand up and join Aurora as well, was stopped in an instant. And as much as Aurora wanted to help her out, she knew she could not.


    Not if she wanted the negotiations to go well. She needed to show that she was harmless and hade in good faith.


    But Aurora also knew that the ounders were not nice people. They were loyal to a fault and talented as well but only to those that were deemed as ¡®eptable¡¯ in the n.


    ¡°Will you be holding her hostage to try and make me behave?¡± Aurora asked as she tensed.


    ¡°Hostage? Now, why would we do that? It¡¯s just insurance since you¡¯ll be bringing our young inside with you¡± thedy did not give Aurora an option to talk back.


    And they both knew that she was right anyway. The golden-eyes youth was a significant piece of Aurora¡¯s n.


    ¡°Rita, stay here and behave. I¡¯ll be back soon¡± Rita watched Aurora pick the kid up with resignation. However, there was no resentment on her part.


    It did warm Aurora that Rita trusted her enough to know that she would not be risked. As long as Aurora behaved, Rita would be alright as well.


    ¡°Fine. Throw me to the monsters but know that I¡¯ll be back¡± her theatrics brought a smile to many faced but the ounders¡¯ guard did not drop. Nor had Aurora expected it to but it did feel good to know that Rita was not feeling down.


    ¡°Once you enter the gate, follow this token. Do not lose it or you¡¯ll lose your protection as well¡± the woman warned as she handed Aurora the token.


    The faint shiver the token gave off categorized it as a magical emblem or even akin to a ¡®key¡¯. It was likely a trigger to prevent the defense mechanism inside the domain from enabling.


    ¡°I understand. Also, take care of mypanion in my absence. She¡¯s somewhat of a fool but she means well¡± not that Aurora was counting on these people to help her out. They had their own priorities to look after.


    But the woman in front of her was kind enough to nod in agreement and gestured to the kid in her arms.


    ¡°You take care of him, we¡¯ll make sure yourpanion doesn¡¯t get a scratch. But know that the goddess is always watching with her ¡®golden eye¡¯. She¡¯ll know about this and ask retribution¡± the woman warned before she walked away.


    Aurora felt equally amused and tired at those words. She did know that it was an option but she had weighted the risk vs reward spectrum and thought this risk to be worth it.


    The goddess of victory was an odd one who favored humans. Aurora had never met her but she felt like she could get along with her if they did happen to meet in the future.


    And if not? Then it didn¡¯t matter since Aurora was a goddess as well. She¡¯ll do what she would need to to survive.


    And she¡¯ll hopefully also have a powerful army by then. One that could even trample the goddess of victory and bring her to her knees.

 Chapter 23

    Aurora walked for quite some time before she felt the bundle in her arms starting to wake up. She tightened her hold on the kid when she felt him struggle to get out of her hold.


    There was no way she would allow the kid his freedom inside this domain. He held too many advantages.


    The kid also held the key to Rita¡¯s freedom.


    ¡°Stop struggling so much. I am not in a decent mood. You will get hurt if you continue to show such behavior.¡± Aurora¡¯s words finally caused the kid to stop struggling so much.


    Even then, the kid did not stop giving Aurora the stinking eye.


    ¡°Let me down. I won¡¯t try to escape you.¡± the kid asked. Aurora debated those words before finally letting the kid down. But not before taking measures against him escaping Aurora¡¯s hold.


    Aurora was suspicious like that.


    The kid yelped as the rope snapped around his arm. He gave Aurora a betrayed look. A weaker person might have crumbled under that look and apologized, but not Aurora.


    ¡°What the hell? I told you that I would not try to escape you¡± the kid sounded betrayed and angry. Aurora tried not to look too amused as she looked at the kid. He was radiating frustration and failure.


    Aurora patted herself on the back for her quick thinking. The kid seemed to have recognized this ce. He made no ns to escape her hold when she had her attention diverted.


    ¡°Sorry, kid. I trust your words as much as I trust the Abyss tower. Both of you are liars.¡± Aurora teased back.


    Her words were angering and hit their mark. The kid hissed like a jolted cat.


    Aurora¡¯s fast reflexes saved her face from receiving a grave injury as the kid tried to snap off her nose with his wed glove. The faint ¡®humm¡¯ of the engine betrayed the engine.


    ¡°Don¡¯tpare me to those tower scums. We are nothing like them.¡± the kid yelled. Aurora had to take a step back and rub her ear.


    Darn, the kid was loud.


    The kid seemed unwilling to listen to her.


    He was rude and loud as well. Those golden eyes gleamed in anger at Aurora. The wish for her to drop dead was visible in those eyes.


    ¡°Yes, yes. You¡¯re nothing alike. Now stop your weapon and walk in front of me. We¡¯re going to your leader. I suppose you know the way there?¡± The kid seemed suspicious but rxed when she mentioned their leader.


    ¡°Our leader? That old man agreed to meet you when he didn¡¯t even have time for me?¡± The kidined. Luckily, he did start to move.


    The ounder¡¯s previous leader was not someone Aurora had much knowledge of. The Tower had taken measures to ensure that the secrets of the ounders remained buried beneath the Rocx valley.


    ¡°You don¡¯t sound too fond of your leader,¡± Aurora observed, almost surprised.


    ¡°It¡¯s not that. But it¡¯s frustrating to know that you are destined for something but do not even have enough power to achieve it. One day, I¡¯ll defeat the old man. Then, I¡¯ll have the goddess bless me and take my rightful spot¡± the kid sounded certain.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t hear anything,¡± the kid hurriedly added. It seemed as if it had hit himte that he had been boasting in front of the enemy.


    Aurora just let out an amusedugh at the kid¡¯s expense.


    ¡°Sure. Maybe once you hit the double digits, you¡¯ll be able to do it. A nine-year-old (I¡¯m eleven) should not have to worry about these things¡± if the kid was red before, he was a bright scarlet now.


    Aurora would not be able to tell that bright face away from a ripe tomato if she was asked.


    ¡°Stop talking like we are friends. A Tower scum like you would never be my friend. You¡¯ve taken too many liberties with us and even enved our brothers-in-arm¡± the kid whisper-yelled. Aurora was not sure which one it was at least.


    But those words sobered her mood up and also reminded her why she was here in the first ce. The Rocx tragedy would soon follow. The abyss was ruthless and the tower followed its lead.


    These people were not safe here.


    ¡°You¡¯re right. The tower has done enough harm tost us ages. It would continue to do so if we did not stop them. That is why I¡¯m here as well. We are not your enemy if you don¡¯t want us as one. Except for the tower. It is the worst.¡± Aurora stopped in front of the huge gate the kid had led her to.


    She could barely feel it but there was no mistaking the aura on the other side of the gate. She did not need a verbal confirmation to be able to sense another goddess¡¯s powers.


    [Alert. Powerful aura detected. The user is advised to practice caution]


    Aurora almost jumped when the system spoke those words inside her head. She had forgotten that she had never turned it off after testing it out earlier.


    ¡°You might not be an enemy of ours but you have not proven to be an ally either. Until you do, I will hold you in the same regard.¡± the kid replied. It was amazing to see the kid not back off when Aurora started him down.


    And those golden eyes shed with a power simr to the one Aurora was feeling behind the door. She could not help but reach out, wanting to know who the other goddess was. And that one second of connection was all it took to establish the connection with the original owner of those golden eyes.


    Aurora broke the connection as soon as she felt the other take notice.


    ¡®This is bad. This is bad. I need to get things rolling before that goddess decides to check me out¡¯ Aurora cursed as she yanked the kid through the gates. It had only been a week and she had already messed up. She hoped that it would not affect the future events she had nned for.


    ¡°You! Stop right there¡± but Aurora did not stop. She just shed the seal she had been given by her and dashed through the corridor.


    The poor kid she was dragging behind could do nothing but follow with a confused face. His pleading looks were ignored by the others around them as he was dragged behind the final gate.

 Chapter 24

    The kid looked tense and not happy to be in the corridor. If anything, Aurora had a feeling that the kid would rather not be here. Even she did not like the invasive feeling she was having.


    She had a n but she was not sure how much she trusted herself to pull it off. She already had the goddess interested in her so maybe Aurora could make use of her before she had to face off against her.


    Or if she was lucky, she could woo the goddess on her side. Having the goddess of victory on her side would be a gigantic boost to her forces.


    But she had to force her focus on the central figure in the room, the only other person except for the pair who kneeled in front of them. The only one who could convey her words to the goddess for now.


    Even though the man was kneeling, it was not a submissive position, but rather a dignified one with one¡¯s head held straight and proud. The aura of the Ounder¡¯s leader forced one to look them in the eye and show respect.


    ¡°Take a seat¡± the man pointed to the two pillows in front of him. Aurora got nothing from his emotions, nor did his bodynguage give anything away. But Aurora had a feeling that she was being tested right now.


    Had Aurora been a more prideful goddess, she might have smitten the man the very second he pointed toward the seats on the lower step. Even now, the part of Aurora that was the goddess wanted her to show the man why it was not a good idea to disrespect a goddess.


    But Aurora held her anger in. It helped that the leader was drenched in Victory¡¯s aura thoroughly to the point even Aurora felt hesitant.


    The same part of her that fumed at the disrespect also asked her to be careful in handling the other goddess. Even the kid at her side felt ufortable.


    ¡°I have been meaning to talk to you for a long time now. Is it safe to assume that you are not looking to take any action against the Abyss tower currently?¡± Aurora broke the ice first.


    The man looked too rxed andfortable to breach the subject first and theck of emotions flowing out of him made Aurora feel unsettled. What kind of creature did not feel anything?


    ¡°That is right. Our goddess doesn¡¯t feel a need to make the tower our enemy. We would rather live out our lives in peace¡± the man replied. The words sounded practiced as if they had been spoken too many times before.


    Aurora felt the angry fan inside her but it felt muted. It took her a second to realize that it was not the anger that she was feeling, but rather the kids.


    ¡°You always say that but it¡¯s not doing us any favors. The abyss is killing more and more of us every time theye here. They are enving more and more people every day as well. Shouldn¡¯t we fight back?¡± The kid roared.


    The leader took it all in stride as his golden eyes met Aurora. They had aged well with wisdom as well as challenges the other had faced. They made Aurora¡¯s experience feel inferior.


    They also managed to subdue the kid but he did not look happy about it.


    ¡°You¡¯ll understand one day why we cannot oppose the abyss in our full capacity. They are too big and have too much backing¡± the leader replied. He was right in that regard.


    ¡°I agree. The Abyss Tower has too much power and backing and that is also why it cannot be allowed to remain unchecked for long. That is why I have a proposal for you¡± Aurora knew she had gained the leader¡¯s attention.


    She could even feel the goddess of victory¡¯s presence strengthen as she proposed her idea. It was now or never.


    ¡°Proposal?¡± The leader asked. He seemed as if he was not interested but Aurora knew the truth. The man could lie but the magic surrounding him could not. There was one advantage Aurora had with her adult body ¨C people did not dismiss her ideas outright.


    ¡°We don¡¯t need to start big and take out the Abyss Tower in one go. What I¡¯m thinking of is to set up an academy to face off against the Abyss Tower. We should build up power slowly and lessen their influence first¡± Aurora¡¯s words were followed by silence.


    The leader did not look impressed at her idea but he did not need to be. Aurora was not interested in him but in the goddess looking at her through his eyes.


    As much as Aurora did not want to be the center of attention, it was important for her to be the goddess¡¯s focus.


    ¡°You¡¯re a fool. You¡¯re thinking of setting an academy against the tower? They will never let you. And why do you even need to drag us into this suicide attempt?¡± The kid finally broke, betraying his insecurities.


    But Aurora did not pay him any attention. She had her attention focused on the leader in front of him. His aura red and dimmed, clearly in a debate with the goddess. Finally, he decided to aim his attention back at Aurora with a tired sigh.


    ¡°What have you nned so far? If it sounds usible, then we¡¯ll support you. Your words and your aura, both have piqued our goddess¡¯s interest¡± it sounded as if it pained the man to admit that much. Not that Aurora did nor understand why.


    But as much as she understood and pitied these people, she was not nice enough to let this opportunity slip by.


    ¡°A week from now we¡¯ll have the permission to set up the academy base in the Rocx valley. We¡¯re thinking of building one in the central valley and would like your help in clearing and leveling thend. Also, your technology woulde in handy. In return, we¡¯ll help you hide when the Abyss decides toe for you and even protect you. We¡¯ll have a legal right as your employee to interfere¡± Aurora pushed.


    It was entirely possible that the abyss would have more support if that happened. They had major support in the uppernds but not all the support.


    ¡°As good as that proposal sounds, I can¡¯t see how you¡¯ll be able to achieve that. The council and the upper ss would favor the abyss in a heartbeat¡± The kid interfered. He sounded against the idea but there was also excitement in his expression.


    And Aurora felt a small grin greet her face as she turned to answer that question.


    ¡°They might have the public on their side now but that will notst forever. Let¡¯s just say that I have a few people on my joining list that could sway things in our favor¡± maybe it was her confidence, maybe her tone, but the pair did not question her further and the deal was done.


    They would help each other out and set up the academy as soon as possible.

 Chapter 25

    ¡°Hey, let me go. I¡¯m not interested in whatever you guys are nning to do. Hey, watch where you are touching me¡± Aurora watched in amusement. Rita sounded annoyed but her expression wasyered withughter.


    Being held captive without any malicious motive must be a first for the poor girl. Still, it was a new experience that would help her grow.


    ¡°Is she enjoying this? Why are all of you so weird? Is everyone in your academy going to be like that?¡± The kid asked. The kid looked interested in Rita¡¯s circumstances but chose to keep his distance.


    Aurora could spot the longing in his eyes. From what she had observed so far, people were not too close or friendly with the golden-eyed kid. They were respectful but still chose to keep their distance.


    He was simr to Rita in that way. Aurora could not help but feel that they would be great friends once they became acquainted.


    ¡°I¡¯m back with your young master. Can you let mypanion go now?¡± Aurora asked. As much as Rita was enjoying herself, things had to end.


    The deadline for the academy¡¯s setup was creeping closer every second.


    No one moved to follow Aurora¡¯smand. All eyes turned toward the golden-eyed youth at Aurora¡¯s side. Thankfully, he decided to be helpful and agree with Aurora.


    ¡°Let her go. They¡¯re not our enemies. The old man decided to form an alliance with them in opposing the Abyss Tower.¡± The people around did not look impressed with those words. Rather, they looked like they did not believe in Aurora.


    ¡°Master Damian, are you sure about this? What if-¡± the kid stopped those words before they could be uttered.


    ¡°That¡¯s what the old man decided and what the goddess wishes for. We are not in any position to go against their wishes¡± the surrounding fell quiet at those words.


    Aurora could summarise a few things. No one had any idea what to think about this emerging situation. While they all wanted to fight against the oppression of the Abyss Tower, no one was convinced that they could win.


    Aurora chose to keep quiet. Speaking up right now would not help the situation turn a new leaf. The fear and uncertainty brewing in the air was choking as well. But only Aurora could feel it.


    ¡°It¡¯s all going to work out. Aurora is strong and we have a n.¡± Rita, bless her, broke the ice. That optimism was heartwarming and needed as well.


    The situational shock had caused the onlooker¡¯s guard to weaken and Rita managed to escape their hold. She waddled toward Aurora¡¯s side and gently took her arm.


    And she was not the only one who had awareness of the situation at hand. The golden eyes youth ¨C Damian took charge of the situation.


    ¡°The alliance has already been decided upon. Nothing you say would change it. In a week, the academy project to oppose the Abyss Tower will start. Our job would be toy down the foundation. It¡¯s our only chance to oppose the tower. So we¡¯ll take this chance¡± Damian was a strong speaker.


    His voice did not crake. It did not show his inexperience.


    It only made him shine brighter in front of his people. It was strong enough to make you forget that Damian¡¯s age was not even in double digits.


    Aurora would have taken Damian for a confident young man at first nce. But she could feel his nervousness and hesitation. He was not as calm internally as he appeared to be.


    ¡°So, I see that you have it all handled here. It¡¯s time to take my leave now¡± Aurora nodded toward the young leader. The pinched expression on the kid¡¯s face tugged at Aurora¡¯s heart but she decided to be strong.


    Rita¡¯s insisting hand on her arm helped Aurora keep grounded. It reminded her that she had things to do outside of the Rocx valley and she only had a week left with her.


    ¡°By the way, how are you going to get the paperwork passed within a week? Doesn¡¯t it take years to have it passed through the council?¡± Damian asked.


    He was right. If Aurora had decided to set the academy up by normal means, it would have taken her year¡¯s worth of time.


    ¡°Let¡¯s just say that I have a few tricks up my sleeve. As soon as the permission is granted, I¡¯ll take my leave to finalize my staff. I¡¯m hoping to recruit at least three more members in the initial raster¡± Aurora was certain about the first two. They would have no problem with her.


    But her third choice was a bit of a toss-up. It could go either way and that worried her.


    But before all that, she had to wait for the good news. The news about her request being epted by the council.


    ¡­¡­¡­..


    ¡°Chairman, what are you looking at? Why don¡¯t you put it down and fight me? It¡¯s been a long time since we fought.¡± Quince¡¯s blue eyes widened as he was tossed aside.


    It was rare for him to see his father in a bad mood. But the current mood his father was in surpassed badly.


    He looked pissed off and that did not sound fun.


    ¡°Those old geezers are trying to make fun of me. How dare they give the required permission to set up an academy against the Abyss Tower? Healthypetition? What kind of trickery is that?¡± The poor paper had holes in it due to the elder¡¯s tight grip.


    Quince could tell that his father was trying to keep himself in check but the magic was leaking out of him like an uncontrolled fountain. It made Quince feel lightheaded with the overdosed exposure.


    He did not want to think what this could be making the other people on the floor feel. His father was the most powerful person in the tower currently. Everyone else was out in the abyss.


    No one would be able to stop him if he went on a rampage.


    ¡°Father, please calm down. Think of our people¡± Quince called. Things were spiraling out of control faster than he could keep track of.


    He picked up the fallen paper his father had thrown away in a fit of rage. He felt curious to see what had enraged his father so much.


    ¡®The high council grants Lady Aurora the right to start up a Magic academy under sanctioned Law 14, section 2.


    The first inspection would be carried out within two months and would be informed by a formal letter.


    Approver ¨C Minerva¡¯


    Quince could not help but gasp at the audacity. Abyss Tower¡¯s challengers were nothing new but he


    could see what had enraged his father so much.


    The sign at the end did not belong to a noble but a goddess. It was more than approval to set up the academy.


    The goddess¡¯s approval made this new academy a threat. It was a huge deal and could not be allowed to be made public.


    ¡°Quince, we¡¯ll be dying your group¡¯s Abyssal descent for now. You need to find out everything you can about this new academy. And find Rita as well. We can¡¯t lose the support of her mother now¡± Quince could do nothing but nod in agreement.


    His father was in a mood. He would not listen to anyone but himself.

 Chapter 26

    The red bird flying over the Rocx valley was as obvious as dirt on white cloth. Anyone could tell that the delicate and beautiful bird did not belong in the valley.


    And yet, no monster tried to attack the bird.


    It looked as if the bird was being protected by a higher power. Even the monsters looking up toward the sky ignored the bird.


    This was what the ounder¡¯s scout observed. He noticed the fast-flying bird heading their way and the monsters ignoring its presence.


    ¡°Boss, I think the Abyss Tower is out to scout the Rocx valley again. Their messenger bird is flying over themon valley¡± everyone in themon za tensed. They all had the same question on their mind ¨C should they hide?


    This was a random scout by the Abyss tower. One they happened out of the blue. Generally, the tower workers liked to stick to a schedule. It also made it easier for the ounders to hideaway.


    Personally, Damian knew that it was because the tower people did not think the ounders were capable enough to hide. Beingbeled as the ¡®barbarians highly skilled in machinery¡¯, the tower made minimum effort to engage them indirectly.


    ¡°Should we hide? You look pleased with the bird¡¯s arrival. Don¡¯t tell me that you are going to betray us now?¡± Domain looked at the pleased blue-haired female at his side.


    ¡°I¡¯m not betraying you but I did expect this bird toe. That should be the written request for the academy. Don¡¯t worry, they are not expecting the bird back.¡± the ounders looked scared.


    Aurora could feel their fear and the need to hide.


    ¡°Would it be better if I took this to somece else?¡± Aurora asked, turning toward the female that had been detaining Rita.


    Her partner was finally free but she was not out of capture radius. If the ounders wanted, they could easily detain her back with some force.


    ¡°It would be much appreciated. Your partner would have to stay behind a little longer though¡± the guard replied back.


    Had it not been for her empathy, Aurora was sure she would not have been able to read what the woman meant.


    But she did and she nodded.


    Aurora received the messenger bird on top of a hill a few minutes away from the Ounder¡¯s settlement. She raised her hand and allowed the bird tond on it.


    The pretty red bird erupted in a sea of mes but they did not burn Aurora¡¯s hand. The mes were a special kind of blend only used by the Abyss tower and they never dimmed.


    But it was only now that Aurora could feel why that happened. These mes were not ordinary.


    They were a goddess¡¯s mes. But Aurora had no idea which one.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see. So, the one to approve our grant was Minerva.¡± Aurora knew that the Abyss Tower was affiliated with gods and goddesses.


    Rather, it was better to say that the main force governing the Abyss tower was a group of gods and goddesses. That was what gave the Abyss Tower so much sway.


    ¡°How did the resistance manage to get her to agree?¡± Aurora questioned as she folded the paper.


    She did not care how Rex managed to get her this permit, just that he did. And that meant the world to her. She could finally start the main phase of her n.


    Her happiness was unbound when she returned to the ounder¡¯s base. Damian¡¯s disgusted look was a clear indicator of what he felt.


    ¡°Stop that. You are looking far too flowery.¡± Damian inched away from her as she approached the kid but Aurora did not care.


    She changed her direction at thest second toward Rita and threw her arm around the younger¡¯s shoulder.


    Aurora could tell that her action had spooked Rita but she did not care.


    ¡°We got the permit for the academy. I¡¯ll be in your care from next week¡± it was awkward to bow down while still being attached to Rita¡¯s shoulder. But it wasfortable and Aurora did not want to change spots.


    ¡°Good. You will finally get out of our hair now¡± Domain hissed back but Aurora felt his satisfaction.


    It was really easy to forget that the kid was only nine years old. The way he spoke made him sound so much older.


    ¡°Sure kid. You will get rid of me for a week. But do consider joining the academy once it¡¯s open. You¡¯ll see a new world there¡± the kid did not believe her but Aurora knew she had time to convince him.


    ¡°So, are we leaving now? Where are we going?¡± Rita asked. She sounded excited at the prospect of traveling and Aurora shed her a wide grin.


    She had her next destination in mind already. She knew it might be too early for Rita to head into the Abyss but Aurora¡¯s first choice for alchemy instructor lived in the abyss.


    ¡°To the Abyss. You¡¯ll finally get to see your first glimpse of the hell-hole¡± Aurora was sure her grin had a sinister tint to it.


    ¡°The Abyss? Isn¡¯t it too dangerous?¡± Rita asked. It was cute how she was trying to be brave, but Aurora could feel her uncertainty.


    Even Damian looked intrigued but disturbed. Abyss was a forbidden fruit that gripped everyone¡¯s interest but it also burned.


    ¡°Yes. Abyss is dangerous. But you wille along with me anyway, won¡¯t you Rita?¡± Rita looked mesmerized. Aurora felt like Rita would do anything she asked at this moment.


    Aurora turned toward Damina next, her serious look turning mischievous.


    ¡°Damina, you want toe along?¡± Aurora was joking but the resounding ¡®No¡¯ that echoed in the valley made her chuckle.


    ¡°Master Damian, don¡¯t even think about it. You are too young and there is the danger of the Abyss Tower. You can¡¯t abandon us here. You also need to train with master and-¡± the moreints that came from the ounders, the sulkier Damian got.


    The atmosphere had lightened enough to make Aurora let out a chuckle. The pleading look Damina aimed her way was golden and Aurora could not help tease back.


    ¡°Sorry kid. Once you are a teen you can try to dig deeper into the abyss. But focus on getting stronger till them.¡± It was not a promise but Aurora had a feeling that Damian took it as a promise anyway.


    ¡°Tomorrow we leave for the abyss. We won¡¯t venture deep but it will be tough. Prepare yourself Rita¡± Rita gulped. She was nervous for sure but Aurora knew she would get over it.


    She would have to. The Abyss was in her blood anyway.

 Chapter 27

    ¡°It looks like it¡¯s going to rain. You should wait for the rain to slow down first.¡± The ounder suggested as she walked them to the valley¡¯s end. Aurora sneaked a look down and eyes the fissure.


    The fissure was their entrance to the Abyss.


    Since the Abyss was a gigantic entity, it had many avable entries. Any ce that broke the surface of a settlement could be used as an entry to the abyss.


    Most entries were locked. The more vicious ones were regted by the tower. It left only so many non-hostile entries for Aurora to exploit.


    As far as Aurora could remember, the fissure in the Rocx valley was a safe entry but not regted by the tower.


    ¡°The rain won¡¯t be an issue down there. We¡¯ll be alright as long as it doesn¡¯t rain in the abyss.¡± Aurora assured.


    Rita looked uncertain but determined as she followed after her. The fissure only had a small opening that allowed one entry and Aurora decided to take the lead.


    ¡°Rita, keep your guard up at all times. I¡¯ll brief you about the abyss once we¡¯re in there.¡± It would be better to brief Rita outside but it would increase their chances of getting caught.


    Aurora had warned the ounders to hide and keep their heads low for one day. The Abyss knew where Aurora was and they would scout her position out.


    Thankfully, Aurora had anticipated this situation and prepared a suitable aid. Her magic doll would fool the tower¡¯s watch birds. Ordinary people did not know, but the watch birds looked for magic signatures instead of facial recognition.


    ¡°We¡¯ll start the work on the Academy¡¯s infrastructure as soon as your puppet leaves the valley. You can count on us¡± Aurora nodded her head in thanks.


    And then the pair entered the Abyss. There was no fanfare and no cracking noise.


    There was no magic or tragedy. Just a simple jump and they were both in.


    ¡°Did the entrance disappoint you, Rita? You don¡¯t look happy.¡± Aurora turned into herpanion. The poor girl looked like she had swallowed lemons.


    ¡°I-no. It is nothing like that. It¡¯s just, that the air inside here feels heavier.¡± Ritained. Aurora paused, thinking back to her first abyss entrance.


    She remembered her group finding it difficult to breathe in the heavier air. They had made a lot of mistakes and not rationed their supplies properly. They evencked survival experience.


    In the end, Clove had dragged them back to the surface and they had to train again.


    ¡°Environmental conditions that exist in the abyss are different from the surface. It can change every few kilometres in extreme ways due to the underground volcanoes. The deeper you head, the more vtile you¡¯ll find the abyss to be.¡± Aurora exined.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. They won¡¯t explode this early in the abyss. The first few floors are rtively safe from extreme natural disasters¡± Aurora assured.


    She pushed Rita to her side quickly. Rita was lucky since Aurora¡¯s action protected her from a st of toxic gas.


    Rita¡¯s unamused face looked back at Aurora.


    ¡°I said rtively safe, not harmless. Just stay with me and you¡¯ll be alright.¡± Aurora assured, taking Rita¡¯s hand in her own.


    Abyss could be overwhelming for the first-timers.


    ¡°How deep are we going this time?¡± Rita asked. Now that the danger has passed away, Rita¡¯s curiousness made itself known. It was only Aurora¡¯s hand that stopped Rita from bouncing all over the ce.


    ¡°Luckily, our target is on the base floor so we won¡¯t need to travel down. The only known transaction gate is guarded by the tower¡± the information was nothing new.


    The abyss seemed to be based on a gaming tower. The floors were connected to each other by teleportation gates. If you wanted to progress, you needed to defeat the boss and open the gate.


    Currently, only the first 20 floors were cleared by the abyss and no one knew how many more there were.


    Not even the goddesses. Aurora had made it to the ¡®assumed¡¯ bottom floor. She had gained ultimate power on the hidden floor after Aurora managed to reach the 50th one.


    ¡°Maybe this won¡¯t be so bad after all.¡± Rita beamed at her. Aurora gave a scuffed smile as she prayed for the younger. This trip was going to change Rita a lot.


    Aurora decided not to answer.


    She did not have any hope for an easy adventure. Even if this was the first floor, the monsters here were not easy for first-timers to clear.


    ¡°Let¡¯s head to the supply shop first. We will need some basic gear for you. You are already struggling to breathe properly.¡± Rita opened her mouth to reject Aurora¡¯s idea but broke out in a coughing fit.


    Shested longer than Aurora had expected of her.


    ¡°N-No, I¡¯m alright. We risk the chance of running into the Tower¡¯s team if we do that. Aren¡¯t we avoiding them?¡± Rita questions.


    Aurora shook her head.


    ¡°The only people who visit the beginner¡¯s shop on the first floor are the first-timers. I doubt anyone would recognize us there. Also, you will permanently damage your lungs if you keep on inhaling these fumes.¡± Aurora replied.


    Rita still wanted to protest but she no longer had a ground. Aurora was surprised at her own situation. Since she had travelled back in time, she expected her body to suffer from the abyss.


    But she had no problem breathing in the toxic air. Not did she feel the forbidden feeling the abyss gave off.


    Instead, it felt like it was weing her back. She could spot smaller creatures running out of her way with fear. Being a goddess had changed something inside her.


    ¡°O-Oh. Is that so? Then, I guess I¡¯m lucky to have you with me for my first time here.¡± Rita¡¯s words sounded too sincere. They made Aurora¡¯s inside itch at the tone.


    She was not sure someone had ever believed in her so hard.


    ¡°ttery will get you nowhere with me. But I do appreciate the vote of confidence. And maybe, just maybe, I will allow you to train under my supervision.¡± Aurora teased back.


    The abyss had never been a happy ce for her, but she was beginning to appreciate not being alone here.


    And Rita¡¯s mock-offended sound just amused Aurora even more.


    Even the sight of the Tower-infested mob in the distance did not dampen Aurora¡¯s mood in the slightest. She quickly made her way toward the shop with Rita following behind closely.


    It felt good to be back in the Abyss again.

 Chapter 28

    Aurora corrected Rita¡¯s path for the third time by cing her hand on the younger¡¯s back. She was sure Rita was not clumsy enough to barge into everyone she came across.


    ¡°Rita, behave. And don¡¯t fight with the shopkeeper. Her attitude can be a bit ¡®questionable¡¯ for her profession, but don¡¯t mind it.¡± Aurora advised Rita.


    Aurora eyes a dejected first-time adventurer walking away from the shop with almost tears in his eyes and she felt bad for him. Those shopkeepers were ruthless in words and actions.


    She shivered as her eyes met the shopkeeper¡¯s cold ones. They belonged to a mercenary more than they did to a shopkeeper.


    ¡°What¡¯s your deal? Hurry, we don¡¯t have the whole day with us.¡± If the eyes were cold, the voices were deadly. It was easy to see why the kid before had almost cried.


    ¡°Here to buy first-time supplies for her. We have the money¡± Aurora upper her charm. She had experience dealing with the Tower shopkeepers.


    They would only respect you if you seemed important enough. Not appearing nervous was the first step.


    ¡°Of course you have money. Would a moneyless persone to a shop and waste their time? Now give me a list and I¡¯ll get the things for you.¡± Aurora handed the list over.


    She had already made the list beforehand, knowing that it would smooth things over for her. The shopkeeper took the list with a raised eyebrow, her eyes gleaming in recognition.


    Only a high-level Abyss worker knew to prepare a list of needed items they would need on lower floors.


    ¡°Here you go. Being rich must be nice. Though, I don¡¯t know why you decided to buy from us.¡± The shopkeeper handed Aurora the bag of supplies.


    Of course, the rate of such goods decreased the deeper you headed into the abyss. The starter kit was practically a free item after floor 5.


    ¡°Thanks.¡± Aurora decided not to engage the shopkeepers in a conversation. As good as a gossip source they were, Aurora did not want them to have an impression of her any more than they already did.


    ¡°Here. Check the material and hold on to it tightly.¡± Aurora pushed the bag into Rita¡¯s eager hands.


    Rita looked excited to have the bag but her excitement dimmed as soon as she picked out the clothes from the bag.


    ¡°It¡¯s just an old cloak and somemon items. And here I thought this starter kit was really special¡± Rita sounded disappointed. It often happened to first-time adventurers.


    They made a mountain out of a molehill and got excited about anything.


    ¡°Well, this is the first floor after all. And all those items are important to have until you learn to navigate the Abyss properly.¡± Aurora was gentle in her scolding.


    A shadow dashed through the periphery of her vision and Aurora knew their bag was about to be stolen.


    She did debate about warning Rita but stopped at thest second. Rita needed to learn to be vignt in the Abyss. Even the humans could turn out to be enemies here.


    ¡°Still, can¡¯t they include acrima or even magic stone in this kit? What if we ran out of magic? And ¨C hey! Give it back here.¡± The thief snooped and took off with the bag.


    Aurora managed to tag them with a mark at thest second before she lost sight of the person.


    ¡°-can¡¯t believe the audacity of that thief. Did you see that, Aurora? Someone stole our stuff.¡± Rita was angry.


    ¡°I saw theming from a mile away. You need to train your situational awareness more before you are ready for the lower floors.¡± Aurora exined.


    Rita looked even more downhearted than before. Theck of awareness and the loss of items was going to cost them crucial time. But Aurora was willing to take this trade. It would help Rita out in the future.


    And if Aurora took this opportunity to help Rita learn to navigate the Abyss, no one needed to know about it.


    ¡°You could have told me that. I could have stopped them. Now, what should we do? I don¡¯t want to waste funds by rebuying our stuff.¡± Ritained.


    Aurora tapped her wrist that held the metallic band of the system. Having a physical tie made it easier to be able to use the system.


    The current exercise had two purposes ¨C to help train Rita and to find out how well the system held on to in the abyss.


    ¡°I ced a tracker inside our stuff before the thief took it. You can ess it using the system mainframe. It will teach how to use tracking magic. I would expect you to mark your stuff from now on and keep an eye on it.¡± Auroramented.


    Rita opened her system panel with doubt-filled eyes. But the bright red spot that indicated their target was visible on the screen.


    The only problem with the system¡¯s current map was itsck of detail. It did not show any distinction between mountain or valley. In other words, you could not rely on it forever.


    ¡°Nice. So, how do you use it?¡± Rita asked.


    Aurora shook her head at the teen¡¯s actions but did help her out. Since she had programmed the system, she had a vague idea about its usage.


    With the help of the system and Aurora¡¯s experience, the pair tracked their mark down. Or, they tried to but hit a dead end pretty soon.


    Their path led them toward a small cave with no exit. But the mark was still shining brightly on top of them.


    To find out the location of their mark was not a problem for Aurora. She had marked the thief with her personal mark which indicated his location to her at all times.


    Rita would have the real problem since shecked the mark. She also did not have experience with the abyss to make an urate guess.


    ¡°I hate it here. Why is the mark blinking this brightly? It cannot be a hidden passage since the location indicated is right on top of us.¡± Ritained but Aurora did not help her.


    Rita needed to figure it out on her own. There will be many simr situations in the future.


    ¡°Man, where did the thief disappear? It couldn¡¯t have been down, but I cannot see it being up either. I give up.¡± Ritained and Aurora finally felt like it was time to step in.


    ¡°Just because the Abyss heads deeper and deeper doesn¡¯t mean the floors are aligned linearly with each other. This cave¡¯s location may also be part of the first floor.¡± Aurora informed.


    Recognition shed across Rita¡¯s features before she fanned her hands.


    The next thing Aurora knew, she was falling down as the cave floor broke into pieces.

 Chapter 29

    Aurora felt only a sliver of surprise as the ground broke before she twisted her body andnded on her feet.


    Ritanded a few steps beside her on her familiar. The huge cat disappeared as soon as Rita¡¯s feet touched the ground.


    It took only one second for the pair to realize that they hadnded in the middle of a gathering.


    To be more precise ¨C a thief¡¯s gathering.


    ¡°Looks like you were right. There is an underground passage here. Now, let¡¯s get our stuff back.¡± Rita made a punching motion. Her expression looked ready to fight.


    Aurora quickly scanned their opposition and decided to let Rita handle this fight. Aurora would butt in if Rita needed her help.


    Not that she would. Rita was overqualified for the first few floors of the abyss. She justcked experience. Besides, Aurora spotted a familiar face standing at the back of the opposite group.


    She wanted to talk with that person.


    Rita¡¯s summons was a sight to behold and made quick work for the group around them. They were rough with the opponents and made Aurora feel sorry for them.


    ¡°You¡¯re not going to save your members? They will not be able to handle Rita alone.¡± Aurora questioned the masked woman once she reached the end wall.


    The mysterious woman had not moved an inch ever since Aurora hadnded down here. The masked woman did not even look surprised to see the ceiling crash.


    ¡°They are fools if they cannot see how outmatched they are. Why should I waste my time on them? Besides, that idiot would arrive here soon enough.¡± That voice was thest nail in the coffin.


    Thieves guild was a special organization (in other words ¨C unrecognized but needed) that would steal anything for the right price.


    People respected the thief guild. But only a few knew that the real workforce had been assembled by Sara.


    As of now, the thief¡¯s guild had yet to establish its reputation. But Aurora knew it would not be long before their name would spread far and wide.


    Aurora did not doubt that this was Sara. Unlike Michelle the witch, Sara was a name only known by seldom. But in the future, those who employed her service were never left hanging. She was the second-inmand of the thieve¡¯s guild in the Abyss tower.


    But in terms of fame, her leader certainly had her best.


    ¡°Hey, hey, hey. What is going on here? What¡¯s wrong with you? Beating up people for no reason. Are you itching for a fight with me?¡± The loud voice echoed in the cave.


    Sara¡¯s ¡®Oh God. He¡¯s here already¡¯ betrayed her annoyance. Aurora understood the reason behind Sara¡¯s


    ¡°No reason? You guys decided to steal my stuff. And now you pretend like you don¡¯t have an idea about it? Just who do you think you are?¡± Rita replied with just as much sass.


    It was unfortunate for everyone that those two had butting personalities. Aurora had no idea where things had gone so wrong for Aurora to turn this way.


    ¡°Oh,e on. It¡¯s just a small bag. I¡¯m sure you can afford another one. Our new members need this more than you.¡± The leader replied in a careless tone. Even his bodynguage was rxed.


    Rita must be seething. It was only a miracle that she had not attacked the leader yet.


    But she was also outmatched by the leader¡¯s skill. Rita¡¯s magic might have been as strong as the leader¡¯s, but the stronger didn¡¯t always win in the Abyss.


    It all came down to experience in such fights.


    ¡°Boss Bill, don¡¯t start here. Don¡¯t forget that we are currently in hiding. Fighting now would attract the tower goons. Well, more than we have already, that is.¡± Sara warned.


    Rita broke out inughter at the scolding.


    ¡°B-Bill? You are such a big-looking guy and your name is Bill? You lost all the intimidation points at the name.¡± Rita teased.


    Aurora wanted to stop her. Rita should not anger people she could not handle but the boss was already angry anyway.


    ¡°Stop making fun of my name. I won¡¯t tolerate this any longer. If the Tower wants to start something with me, they are more than wee to do so. Let me show you tower scum why I am feared so much.¡± The buffed man yelled.


    The voice caused a spark of pain to attack Aurora¡¯s head along with the overwhelming passion.


    ¡°Boss Bill, do not cause more problems for us,¡± Sara warned. But the big man-child was beyond the point of listening to her.


    Aurora felt the feeling of danger rise in the air. The buff man had a weapon that gave off a mean aura.


    Rita was too rxed and Aurora could feel her intention of tanking the hit with her familiar and then summon another to attack from behind.


    Unluckily for her, she did not have a familiar strong enough to tank the hit. And that was the point Aurora decided to interfere.


    Since Aurora decided to stop hiding without any preparation, she wasn¡¯t able to control her speed. She managed to make it between Rita and the boss before holding her hand out.


    The boss¡¯s ax collided with Aurora¡¯s shield. Simr powers resonated and the explosion caused the nearby walls to cave in.


    Aurora barely managed to push the thief boss back before straightening herself.


    ¡°I apologize for my subordinate¡¯s big mouth. It was not our intention to offend you. Truth to be told, we cannot go back to buy another beginner¡¯s exploration package because we are trying to avoid the tower as well.¡± Aurora exined.


    It felt wrong to bow her head in front of these people but Aurora wanted to convey her sincerity.


    ¡°Wow. You managed to stop my attack? There is no way such might can belong to the tower cowards. You must be telling the truth.¡± Bill eximed, almost looking happy.


    Aurora spotted face-palming from the corner of her eyes and felt sympathetic. It was not fun to deal with idiotic subordinates.


    ¡°Boss, just because someone managed to stop your attack doesn¡¯t make them a decent person. It just means that youcked power in your attack.¡± Sara added.


    At this point, the female had pushed herself off the wall and decided to walk over to the group.


    ¡°I know, I know. But I can just feel that this new girl is a decent person. Don¡¯t know about the younger one thought. She did attack us unprovoked.¡± Bill eximed and Aurora felt tired of his unbounded enthusiasm.


    And she was not the only one to feel this way. Sara looked like she wanted to kill her boss.

 Chapter 30

    Sara and Boss Bill seemed divided on their opinions. The ring match seemed to be intensifying.


    But it did look like Sara had the lead in that match-up. Her re looked like it wanted to burn Bill apart.


    ¡°D-Don¡¯t give me that look. I am the boss and what I say is what we will do. And my gut says to trust the young miss here.¡± Bill forced those words out.


    His nervousness grew the more he was red at by Sara.


    ¡°You say that now boss. But you do remember what happened thest time you had a ¡®feeling¡¯ about something?¡± Sara asked. It looked like there was a history behind that look.


    ¡°I know. But that wasst time. This time would be different. And they even say that they are not with the tower. Would a tower elite really say those words? Give me some credit here.¡± Bill asked as he raised his hands in mock surrender.


    Aurora watched the scene fold out in amusement.


    She had heard about Sara in the future but had never dealt with herself. Rumors had painted her out to be a fair but battle-hardeneddy.


    Aurora could already see the shadows of her future reputation in her current self.


    ¡°No, they would not. But you should still use your head a little more. Also, we should return the stolen goods to these people if we want to make a good first impression on them.¡± Sara pointed out.


    Bill¡¯s face bounced back from the nervousughter to a determined expression. He quickly picked up the stolen bag Rita had been reaching for and threw it toward their youngest.


    ¡°Here. Sorry for the trouble. But it is your fault that your stuff got stolen in the first ce. You should better take care of it.¡± Bill¡¯s words caused Rita¡¯s anger toe back.


    But Aurora stopped her before she could destroy their temporary truce.


    ¡°We know. Rita is still in training. I will be sure to teach our next batch better.¡± Aurora assured. She wanted to bow but her body would not allow it. And neither did the ¡®goddess¡¯ part.


    It snarled at her to not exin her actions to those below her in status.


    ¡°Next batch? Ah, you must be from one of the three new approved academies. Be careful not to be crushed by the tower.¡± Sara warned.


    Her words surprised Aurora. She had not known that there had been two other academy setting requests that were approved along with her.


    But it should not have been that surprising since most ambitious people did try to make one before realizing that they could not rival the tower.


    In the end, they ended up merging with the tower and training people under their name.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We are not fragile enough to be crushed. Be sure to visit us in the Rocx valley if you have some time.¡± Aurora spoke thosest words as she messaged Rita to prepare a summon for them to leave.


    The thief¡¯s boss and his second-inmand looked shocked at her words and that gave them enough time to leave.


    Rita had picked up their supplies and she summons looked ready to take them out.


    Aurora could have left the hole under her own power but Rita¡¯s huge summon made her look better.


    ¡°Was it wise to tell the academy¡¯s location to them? Won¡¯t it allow the tower to track us down?¡± Rita asked. She sounded worried which made Aurora chuckle.


    ¡°Once we pass the first inspection, the high council will announce our location to the world anyway. There is no point in keeping quiet. Besides, it is better to have allies in our situation.¡± Aurora exined.


    The bird broke through the hold but there was not enough room in the cave for the creature to be able to fly freely. The ceiling was too low for its wings to pfortably.


    Aurora picked Rita up by the waist and jumped down the huge summons. The sudden moment caused Rita to lose concentration and dismiss her summon.


    ¡°Once we return to the surface, we will focus on your conditional control and not lose focus even when something surprises you. You are too easily distracted.¡± Aurora scolded.


    Her words did not have any heat since she did not want to scare Rita.


    ¡°Sorry. And for that matter, I could have taken that Bill guy if he did not have his ax. That thing felt wicked and magical.¡± Ritained.


    But the teen in her arms was also feeling guilty at her scolding. This confrontation must have made her realize just how much more there was to this abyss.


    ¡°Ax or not, he was more powerful than you. Do not engage with such people unless you know you have a way out.¡± Aurora scolded with finality. She let the teen on her shoulder down and opened her map.


    It had improved a lot but it still did not show any significant detail.


    ¡°I understand so you can stop nagging now. Even my caretakers never nagged this much at me.¡± Rita sounded annoyed and pleased at Aurora¡¯s treatment.


    Aurora was about to reply before she felt someone head her way.


    She quickly pulled Rita toward her and behind a small boulder. She had a feeling she should not be seen here.


    ¡°-believe the audacity? They say it¡¯s the same chick who disrespected the headmaster of the tower. She sure got guts. Quince said that his father was angry and wanted to retaliate against the new academy.¡± Aurora did not recognize the new group but she could tell that they were from the tower.


    And their ease of moment also told Aurora that they were not first-timers in the abyss. They moved like professionals and knew how to carry themselves.


    ¡°Who cares about this any longer? If the leader has his eyes on the new academy, it had no chance of sess. Lady Minerva or not, it¡¯ll notst more than a few months.¡± the second person in that group spoke.


    Aurora was sure that they were talking about her academy now.


    ¡°Oi. A few months is giving them a lot of credit. I bet that the leader would not let them go past the first observation scale. Isn¡¯t that why he asked us to capture a beast from lvl 10? He wanted to release it in the Rocx valley and me it on the ounders.¡± the first person spoke.


    Aurora pped her hand on top of Rita¡¯s mouth to keep her quiet. This was crucial information and woulde in handy to know.


    She only lifted her hand off Rita¡¯s mouth once the tower group was gone.

 Chapter 31

    The tower group had given Aurora enough fodder to chew. But it did make sense in the general timeline of things.


    This could be the tower¡¯s initial step in retaliation against the ounders. It was a little early in the time frame but not uneptable development.


    ¡°We need to head back and warn Damian¡¯s n. They will be targeted because of us.¡± Rita sounded shocked.


    Treachery like this was nothing new in their world. Getting caught up in the middle of a revenge plot was amon urrence in their world.


    Even so, the tower¡¯s audacity left a bitter taste in Aurora¡¯s mouth. Especially since she knew she could not leave the tower for some time.


    ¡°I agree. The ounders need to know about this potential danger in case we do not make it out in time. I will send them a message as soon as I get my hands on the appropriate supplies.¡± Aurora assured Rita.


    Themunication supplied did exist in the starter pack Aurora had bought but they were only good enough to work inside the abyss.


    Besides, these supplies had the tower¡¯s mark ced all over them. Their messenger will be shot down before it would reach the ounders.


    ¡°Huh? Make it out in time? Why won¡¯t we make it out in time if we leave now? The abyss tower is capable of subduing strong creatures but it¡¯s not that strong. At least, that group did not look that strong.¡± Rita asked.


    ¡°We¡¯re not leaving the abyss. We¡¯ll secure the person we came here for and then leave this ce.¡± Aurora¡¯s tone was final.


    The disbelief oozing out of Rita was dense. It had anger mixed in it as well.


    And Aurora knew the outburst woulde any second now.


    ¡°Huh? We¡¯re not leaving the abyss? But why?¡± Rita questioned.


    ¡°Currently, we offer no advantage to the ounders. Even if we leave the abyss now, you are no match for the beast and I will not risk the academy before it is set up. The best we can do is to find our teacher andplete our required staff of three.¡± Aurora exined.


    Three qualified teachers were the minimum criterion for the academy. Among that, a medic was necessary.


    Aurora had the medic role fulfilled with Free. The Subus would be able to get her hand on a fake identification paper for herself.


    The second person would be Rex. Despite his reluctance and his ¡®questionable¡¯ habits, his background was nothing to beughed at. He did not even need to be an active teacher to be counted by the instructors.


    And the third was this person Aurora was tracking. Magic was an onboard ability while alchemy was a learned one.


    And Aurora knew there was no one better to teach it than the ¡®grandmaster¡¯ herself. To the tower, she was a miracle. She was a hermit with a curse to live forever.


    Or, that was the lie the abyss tower had fed the people.


    In reality, the grandmaster had been an experiment of theirs. She had been created to further the Tower¡¯s research about the abyss. They had used the monster¡¯s genes along with the god¡¯s magic.


    Things had not meshed up well. The resulting person had a half-human appearance but none of their limitations. The creature was as close to god but not epted by either side.


    ¡°Must be someone really epic for you to go out of your way like this,¡± Rita replied.


    ¡°She is. Astoria is someone you can ask anything and expect to get an answer. Her long life has given her much wisdom.¡± Aurora exined.


    She might have exaggerated a few things in her praise, but she did mean it overall. Astoria was someone they needed on their side.


    ¡°That¡¯s great and all. But would someone like that even join us? Won¡¯t the abyss offer her a better deal? And what is she doing in the abyss anyway?¡± Rita asked.


    ¡°Most people have their reasons. Don¡¯t ask this question to her right away. Not everyone likes when others butt in their business.¡± Aurora¡¯s tone had just a hint of scolding.


    Rita raised her hands in ¡®mock surrender,¡¯ but the message had gone through to her.


    Aurora led them further into the depth. It was a path she vaguely remembered but she did not know the right direction.


    It was not till she was the first sign of floral life that she allowed herself to rx. The tree might not look anything like she had seen before but it certainly was a tree.


    The tree trail led to a small clearing in the abyss. A huge hole opened up to the sky and facilitated the clearing with clear sunlight.


    ¡°Wow. I never thought such a ce could exist in the abyss. It looks just like the upper surface. How is this even possible?¡± Rita questioned.


    The answer was the female looking after her fields. Soft white hair trailed after the average heightened adult female.


    The hunched back might even give one an impression of her being ab olddy, but Aurora knew better.


    She had heard about thedy in white but this was her first time seeing Astoria in person. And Aurora had to say, the aura was certainly incredible enough to be felt from this far away.


    ¡°Look. Is thatdy down there Astoria? But you said she was old. She looks like she¡¯s in her twenties.¡± Rita pointed out. Again, she was not wrong since Astoria did look like a young adult.


    ¡°Looks can be deceiving. Let¡¯s introduce ourselves.¡± Aurora suggested. The gentledy down below tended to her nts.


    Aurora picked herself to scale down the clearing but then she saw it.


    The shadow was moving swiftly in the forest nearby her. Rita seemed not to have noticed it yet but they hadpany.


    Aurora had a bad feeling about this and she quickly looked down. Astoria was nowhere to be seen.


    The shadow was also quickly gaining ground on them. Aurora could feel the life force of the massive beast heading toward them.


    But the creature was not aiming for her. It was aiming for Rita.


    ¡°Rita, block,¡± Aurora called out as the shadow attacked Rita¡¯s unprotected back.

 Chapter 32

    ¡°Rita, block,¡± Aurora called out. She was not aware she had gained some distance between herself and Rita. It was just enough for her not to be able to make it back to Rita¡¯s side in time for the attack.


    Thankfully, Rita managed to block the attack on her own. Her knife collided with the ws heading her way and halted a fatal blow to her head.


    Aurora heaved a sigh of relief before she had her spear aimed at the head in front of her.


    The white obstructed her sight as tree branches began to sprout between her and the new creature.


    Not only that, but the ground had white nts sprouting all over. They moved as if they were alive.


    If Aurora moved right, they moved right. If she moved left, they moved left. They observed her decide what they wanted to do next.


    ¡°What is up with these nts? They behave like they are alive. I don¡¯t like them.¡± Rita sounded annoyed.


    The nts were not doing themselves any favor in her book by holding her in one ce. The more she shed, the denser they became.


    ¡°I won¡¯t say that if I were you. You might hurt their feeling.¡± the voice barely gave time to register itself before the tree branches began moving again.


    Aurora did not have enough trouble fighting off the weak attack. The branches were not hurting her, but testing her.


    They also seemed to recoil when she let her aura out. Her goddess charm must be confusing them.


    Rita seemed to be having a bit of a tough time on her side. Her fighting style was the tower taught and it seemed to be aggravating the branches.


    They were not leaving her with enough time to perform her summons.


    Aurora had two options. Either to help Rita out or to stop Astoria. She had caught a glimpse of the white hair from when she had been fighting.


    Her brain had instantly connected the dots and recognized the danger. They were being thought of as intruders.


    Maybe even from the tower.


    ¡°Rita, can you handle yourself for a little longer?¡± Aurora asked.


    ¡°Yeah, sure,¡± Rita replied as she fended off another branch.


    Aurora snapped her wrist as she felt her magic build up. The small orb she had created barely held any magic.


    It was an experiment to see how well her magic would hold against another goddess.


    Aurora did not have a good grasp over her goddess magic. She was limited in what she could do for now.


    Astoria did not have a lot of her limitations. Being a bi-produce of an experiment, she did have the goddess¡¯s magic. But only to an extent.


    Astoria could not ess all of Minerva¡¯s powers. And that was why Aurora decided to take the risk.


    The instant her magic collided with Astoria, Aurora knew she had the elder¡¯s attention. The sh of god¡¯s magic held a different spark than a normal magical collision.


    ¡°You are a goddess? But you were never in the tower? Then how?¡± Astoria sounded confused.


    Aurora closed the distance between their faces, her lips almost touching the elder.


    ¡°I¡¯m a recent addition. The Tower is not aware of my existence yet. And I prefer to keep it that way. I would appreciate it if you did not advertise my status this soon.¡± Aurora whispered.


    Astoria took a step back as her concentration broke. The magic lost control and the white branches fell to the ground.


    It must have been unnerving to have someone¡¯s breath fan across your face. That must be the reason Astoria had turned tomato red and her knees seemed to have be unsteady.


    ¡°But how? And why? Didn¡¯t the council rule that they did not need any more gods or goddesses?¡± Astoria sounded confused.


    ¡°They might have. But those fools forgot that they can¡¯t control the abyss. It does what it wants.¡± Aurora exined before Rita reached them.


    Her face must have shown her unwillingness to keep the talk going in someone else¡¯spany because Astoria dropped the topic as soon as Rita neared them.


    ¡°Man, those nts were sure something. Why did you even attack us in the first ce?¡± Ritained.


    ¡°My apologies. I thought you were a tower scum and hade to cause trouble. Since that is not the case, I will be taking my leave now.¡± Astoria did not even sound embarrassed at the misunderstanding.


    However, the words had the opposite effect on Rita. Instead of calming her down, they seemed to have irritated her.


    ¡°Why does everyone keep on mistaking us as the tower¡¯s people? Is it the vibe? Our mannerism? The way we speak?¡± Rita questioned.


    Rita had developed real hate for the Abyss tower in a short while. They had not given her any reason to like them either.


    ¡°It is easy to get mistaken for the tower since their influence is every field. We are not doing ourselves any favor by carrying around their stuff.¡± Aurora reminded.


    Astoria looked amused at Rita¡¯s over-the-top expression andical rage. The mood had considerably lightened and Aurora felt safe to breach the heavier topic.


    ¡°Actually, there was a reason I came here today. There was something I needed to ask of you, Lady Astoria. Won¡¯t you hear me out?¡± Aurora asked.


    Her polite and formal tone must have caught Astoria off-guard. Astoria¡¯s expression was a mask, but Aurora could feel her curiosity.


    Rita had stopped her self-speaking as well.


    ¡°Very well. Let us head back to my home and discuss it there. The forest has too many ears out for me.¡± Astoria gestured to the small home in her clearing and Aurora nodded.


    Aurora could not feel the presence of anyone in the forest but it was better to be safe than to be sorry.


    Besides, she also needed to find supplies to be able to send a message out of the Tower and Astoria was someone likely enough to keep those supplied with her.


    ¡°Lead the way,¡± Aurora replied but Astoria was already leading them down the gentle slope. There were other shadows in the forest but they did not feel alive to Aurora.


    She watched Astoria wave those shadows off and they finally reached the clearing. The sun was visible in the cut-out and it shined brightly in the sky.


    ¡°So, let¡¯s hear what you have to say,¡± Astoria asked and Aurora opened her mouth to propose her n. Astoria¡¯s eyes widened in surprise just a bit before they closed off.


    And then she gave her reply to the pair.

 Chapter 33

    Rita was not sulking. She would deny it if Aurora pointed out that she was sulking. She was just disappointed at the oue of their discussion with Astoria.


    ¡°Stop sulking. Astoria did not say no to our request. She just asked for some time before deciding on this topic.¡± Aurora remembered.


    She was not worried about Astoria taking her time before deciding on her offer.


    Astoria had been conditioned to follow the Tower¡¯s orders all her life. Going against that conditioning would take time.


    ¡°But still. She should have gone with better words. I don¡¯t think her ¡®No. I can¡¯t join you for some time¡¯ meant the same thing as ¡®I¡¯ll think about it.''¡± Rita did have a point.


    But Aurora knew what she had felt from Astoria. The female was interested but there might be something she needed to resolve first.


    ¡°She¡¯ll join us for sure. But for now, we should focus on you. Since we¡¯re here, you should take the opportunity to battle some of these monsters.¡± Aurora points out.


    The smaller monsters were docile and won¡¯t be a problem. But there were a few exceptions on the first floor that could prove to be a challenge.


    Aurora watched Rita work around therger opponents. Her summons made quick work of the mindless beasts in front of her.


    ¡°She¡¯s better than I expected. Her one stats are not great but her summons makes up for it.¡± Aurora observed. Since Rita was holding up better than expected, it was time to move her n to the next level.


    ¡°Rita,e back. We¡¯ll be trying something more challenging for you next.¡± Aurora gestured to her side.


    Her voice caused Rita to turn around and lose concentration. The summoned familiar looked confused at the abrupt magic cut-off and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.


    The surviving monsters did not have this problem. They attacked Rita¡¯s defenseless form. Rita appeared to be an easier target without her familiars by her side.


    But Rita had learned in a short amount of time. Her moment was better than before and her agility helped her dodge the slow monsters.


    ¡°Sure. Give me a second and I¡¯ll be with you shortly.¡± Rita replied. Aurora watched her take care of therger enemies without her familiars.


    Aurora had finished writing her letter to the ounders in the meantime. She allowed the blue messenger bird to fly away. It would find an opening to reach the surface soon enough.


    ¡°So, what¡¯s the n now? These monsters just look tough but are really easy to take care of.¡± Rita bragged.


    Aurora did not burst her bubble by telling her that giant monsters were some of the weakest in the abyss.


    Instead, she opened the system archive she had been working on. There were ancient goods avable on every abyss floor. It was a matter of finding them.


    And the first floor held a golden apple for Rita.


    ¡°Rita, most of your magical familiars are Tower gifted, right? You will lose ess to them once the tower realizes you are with me. We will need to get you more familiars.¡± Aurora pointed out.


    Rita looked ufortable at her words but she did not deny them. The tower was ruthless in allowing anyone possession of their tools.


    ¡°I know. Do you have any idea for my potential familiars?¡± Rita asked. She did not sound disappointed at the loss of her life-long familiars.


    Then again, most of her familiars were mindless puppets that followed hermand. There was not much room for bonding.


    And those familiars were also weak. They would not be able to keep up with the tower¡¯s dangers once they crossed the fifth floor.


    ¡°Every floor of the tower has at least one hidden treasure room. Anyone who passes this trial is awarded a special reward. Would you like to guess the trail for the first floor?¡± Aurora asked.


    Rita¡¯s face lit up. But Aurora could feel worry mixed in with that hope.


    ¡°Are you sure that is a good idea? If this is such an important treasure, won¡¯t the abyss be guarding it heavily?¡± Rita asked. She was right to worry as well.


    Rita did have a point. The Tower would not leave such a crucial resource unguarded.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. I have a n. But I won¡¯t be able to go in with you. Do you still want to try?¡± Rita looked conflicted.


    Aurora did not doubt the red-head. The red-head had passed the trail in Aurora¡¯s past timeline around this time as well. The familiarity she had gotten was a crucial one for Rita¡¯s development.


    But Aurora decided not to tell all that to Rita. She needed Rita toe to terms with her strength on her own.


    ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s do this.¡± it did not take long for Rita toe to that conclusion.


    And finally, things were starting to move. Aurora had a n to execute and powers to gather.


    The trail room had a huge crowd outside it. Unlike the more difficult floors, the first one did not ask for you to register yourself before taking the trail.


    There were too many people to keep track of and too much formality to look through. The guards werex and allowed most people in without looking.


    ¡°Go. I will make sure that you are not questioned at the gate.¡± Aurora assured her before she gave Rita a shove in the trail¡¯s direction.


    Aurora could see a guard notice them. He had a photo in his hand and Aurora knew he had recognized Rita.


    But before he could reach her, Aurora blocked his way.


    ¡°Let me through. I need to get to that girl.¡± the guard whispered. It was low enough for only Aurora¡¯s ears.


    The guard was wise and greedy as well. Aurora could feel his desire to monopolize the prize money by capturing Rita.


    Aurora could not allow that to happen. She had invested too much in Rita to allow such greedy people to take her away.


    ¡°Aww. And here I was thinking of helping you.¡± Aurora replied back with a simr voice level. Her expression was dark and her next words made the guard freeze.


    Aurora was a hunter, the guard her prey. She would end him here. The guard was far younger, practically a teen at this point.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure your debts will not pay themselves even if you got your hands on the prize money. But I can pay them off for you.¡± Aurora¡¯s tone was suggestive but yful.


    The guard looked startled at being found out but it was not hard to guess. Most of the guards on the first floor werezy and had a bad temper.


    Most also had a gambling addiction whichnded them in huge debts. And Aurora had learned to recognize those types.


    ¡°N-No. There is no need for that youngdy. I was never here and I did not see anything.¡± The guard hesitated but decided Rita was not worth the hassle.


    Aurora¡¯s words might have sounded innocent at first but they were codes used in underground society.


    Aurora had learned to recognize those codes and even speak them when she joined the resistance.


    She watched the guard go back to the other guards. Aurora did not care what story the guard fabricated to fool the other guards.


    But she was not taking any chances. She had utilized her system to attack a small fragment of it the guard.


    The system would keep him quiet and also ensure that the guard did not spill about Aurora or Rita to anyone.


    [System Alert.


    User

 Chapter 34

    Stepping into the domain we like stepping into Aurora¡¯s memories. Everything inside the room looked like it had when Aurorast saw it.


    But Aurora knew that was not possible.


    This ce did not exist in the present timeline. This pce was created using her memories.


    ¡°Wee back. Did you have fun today?¡± Aurora knew this ce was not real, but the hands on her waste felt familiar.


    Clove¡¯s hands moved under Aurora¡¯s shirt, reaching for Aurora¡¯s chest.


    Clove¡¯s body molded itself to Aurora¡¯s back. The bouncy and soft breasts pressing against Aurora¡¯s back felt good.


    So did the hands massaging her cleavage. The familiarity only added to the novelty.


    ¡°Yeah. I had fun outside.¡± Aurora replied. The illusion Aurora was pulled into was a potent one. It had the potential of captivating anyone with a weaker will.


    ¡°Oh. That¡¯s good. Now, should we have some fun?¡± Clove¡¯s voice spoke directly in Aurora¡¯s ear.


    Aurora turned around, her arms snaking around the familiar thin waist of her wife. The taller body of Clove radiated amusement.


    And that was how Aurora knew that this Clove was not real. This was a projection of her thoughts on a solid body.


    ¡°We will have fun, alright? But before that, do me a favour and take your hands off my chest.¡± Aurora¡¯s voice was sweet. She looked behind her back, seemingly at empty air.


    The hands moving over Aurora¡¯s body were real but they were not her wife¡¯s. But they did not stop their motion.


    ¡°But why? You seem to be enjoying yourself. And hasn¡¯t it been a long time since you felt the touch of your lover? Don¡¯t you want to keep on enjoying this a little longer?¡± The voice reaching Aurora¡¯s ears belonged to Clove.


    The hands fastened their moment over Aurora¡¯s sensitive chest. They tugged a little harder causing Aurora to lose focus.


    ¡°I would enjoy my lover but this is not Clove. Stop messing around with me. Is this why the Abyss brought me back?¡± Aurora yelled.


    More urately.


    Aurora tried to yell but Clove¡¯s hand on her chest pinched her. It caused her yelling to evolve into an ¡®almost¡¯ moan.


    That caused Aurora to lose control of her aura for a single second. Aurora¡¯s eyes popped open as the Clove in front of her disappeared into thin air.


    And not only her. The whole room started to fade away.


    ¡°You are still no fun. But it does seem like the Abyss granted you a second chance. Wee to the family, little princess.¡± It burned to see the adult Clove disappear in front of her.


    Aurora knew that it had not been her wife, but her body had recognized that touch as familiar.


    All Aurora felt was an aching feeling of familiar failure coursing through her.


    ¡°Who are you? I can tell that your magic is familiar to the abyss, but you don¡¯t look like a goddess to me. Who are you?¡± Once Aurora had gathered her thoughts, she finally decided to face her tormenter.


    The female in front of Aurora gave off a familiar feeling to her.


    ¡°Me? I¡¯m a part of this abyss that had gained consciousness. Since you have touched the ¡®real¡¯ abyss when you were granted its power., You know the real nature of this ce, right?¡± the female questioned as she walked toward Aurora.


    No. Walk was not the right word. The other female was floating.


    Her feet did not touch the ground when she stepped toward Aurora.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what this abyss is. I might have touched the ¡®real¡¯ abyss but that doesn¡¯t mean that I know what it is.¡± Aurora replied.


    When Aurora had been granted the Abyss¡¯s power, she had been dying. Forgive her for not remembering what the ¡®real¡¯ abyss was.


    ¡°I see. So you are an ignorantmb? I wonder why the abyss chose you from all the avable people there? Was it because your desire was that much stronger than the others?¡± the female questioned.


    The creature seemed to be talking more to herself than to Aurora.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t know anything. But I have a feeling you do. Spill the beans or I¡¯ll make you spill them.¡± Aurora¡¯s voice carried a threat.


    But she had a feeling she was not been taken seriously.


    Still, the other decided to humour Aurora and finally spill some beans.


    ¡°You might have be more than a human now but you still carry over their weird habit of categorizing things. ¡®Humans¡¯, gods¡¯, ¡®Monsters¡¯ are all categorized the humans made to make studying things easier. We? We are much more than those things. We are a part of the abyss itself. And we call ourselves ¡®Metamorphs.¡± the female exined.


    Aurora had no idea if the ¡®we¡¯ she mentioned meant herself. Or if there were more people out there that had the abyss¡¯s favour.


    ¡°Metamorphs? This is the first time I am hearing about this term.¡± Aurora tried not to show how surprised she felt.


    She had spent the better part of her life clearing out the abyss. It had given her the confidence of knowing the abyss inside out.


    It was shocking and refreshing to see that there were still things she did not know.


    ¡°Of course, you won¡¯t know that term. You humans call us something else. You call us the ¡®over-lookers.¡¯ if the words before had surprised Aurora, the next ones shocked her to the core.


    She might not have an idea what ¡®Metamorphs¡¯ had been. But she was not uncultured enough to not know what ¡®overlookers¡¯ meant.


    They were said to be the abyssal energy that had taken a solid shape. They were the will of the abyss.


    And they were a myth.


    Forget mortals. Even gods and goddesses were required to pay respect to Overlooker¡¯s empty chambers once they entered the tower.


    ¡°But, why did you show yourself to me? Are you here because I did not pay my respect to your chamber?¡± Aurora questioned.


    She was not sure if she was being lied to. But the energy of the abyssing from the creature in front of her was real enough.


    Aurora waited for the fear to wash over her. She knew she had messed up big times by not paying attention to the ceremonial details.


    There had never been a record of what would happen to the celestial if they failed to pay their respect.


    ¡°Ah, about that? I don¡¯t care about that at all so I¡¯ll let you go this time. You are someone chosen by the abyss and carry a part of it in you. Technically, you are closer to us than to those prideful gods and goddesses.¡± the female replied.


    Aurora jerked back in fright as the female almost touched her lips to Aurora¡¯s.


    Personal space seemed to not exist in the metamorph¡¯s dictionary. She did not take Aurora¡¯s hint to back off either.


    ¡°I see. Then, why are you here? Why did you pull me into this space?¡± Aurora questioned.


    The female overlooker seemed to have no n of causing Aurora trouble. It was a relief to see.


    ¡°Silly young princess. I did not pull you here. The abyss did that on its own. It has a task for you.¡± the female replied.


    ¡°A task? By the abyss? But won¡¯t that require the abyss to be sentient?¡± Aurora spoke those words but she could not feel them register in her mind.


    ¡°Sentient? Oh, poor child. You will soon learn that the abyss is more than sentient. It has a will and a flow. It is a living entity with co-exists with the earth. And one day both of them will reach their end.¡± the overlooker held a faraway look in her eyes.


    Aurora felt more questions pop up in her mind than answers. She wanted to ask them but she could not make herself to.


    The shock she felt at the revtions she had was too great. And yet, it did make sense.


    Sos did thest voice and energy she had felt when she woke up in the past. No ordinary person had that power. It had to be the abyss.


    ¡°Alright. I can feel that I should not press you for more answers. So, what does the abyss want me to do? And why did it prompt you to assign me this task?¡± Aurora questioned.


    The approving grin on the woman¡¯s face told Aurora that she had made the smart decision of not pursuing the answers.


    ¡°What the abyss wants you to do is simple. It wants you to correct its mistake and return a lost soul to its owner. Ah, it seems like you know what I am talking about.¡± it could have been something else but Aurora knew this task was about Clove.


    It had to be about Clove.


    ¡°I will do it,¡± Aurora answered without hesitation.


    ¡°You will? But you have not even heard what it could cost you and what benefits you will get in ret-¡±


    ¡°I will do it. I will do it with or without the Abyss¡¯s blessing. I would have done it even if the abyss had been against this idea.¡± Aurora¡¯s voice was strong and unshaken.


    And for the first time, the female overlooker let her head fall back and let out a humorousugh.

 Chapter 35

    Joyousughter filled the chamber. The overlooker¡¯s frame shook with amusement at Aurora¡¯s words.


    ¡°I expected nothing else from the one selected by the Abyss. That being said, what are you nning to do? Do you have any idea where those fragments of your lover are?¡± The overlooker asked.


    Aurora went red and then pale.


    She had never entertained the possibility of not being able to find Clove¡¯s soul when she had nned the future. She had not even considered it a hindrance.


    But looking back at it now, it was a massive oversight on Aurora¡¯s side.


    ¡°From your expression, I can tell that you did not think this far ahead. But I cannot fault you for it. You have the arrogance of goddess but no training to go along with it.¡± The over keeper¡¯sughter faded slowly.


    But Aurora still felt amusement ooze off the other female.


    ¡°Are you just going to mock me? Or, are you going to help me.¡± Aurora asked. She expected the overlooker to have a n.


    Otherwise, the creature would not have brought up this topic. You could never underestimate the creature of the abyss. Especially those who carried a part of its powers.


    ¡°I got caught. Well, since you are asking for help, I will throw you a bone. But you will need to do something for me as well.¡± the overlooker purposed.


    A thin and delicate hand extended itself toward Aurora. The overlooker gave a sharp but amused look.


    ¡°What do you say? You cannot control your powers. And you can¡¯t locate the soul fragments till you learn to control your powers. I can help you out.¡± the female was taunting Aurora.


    But even Aurora had to admit that she did not see this offering.


    Overlookers were extremely rare to sight in person. To see one offer a contract was unheard of in any myth.


    ¡°What is the catch? Why are you willing to help me?¡± Aurora questioned.


    She had to admit that her journey would be much easier with the overlooker¡¯s help. But she could not help but feel unsettled still.


    The overlooker was an agent of the Abyss.


    ¡°Catch? I don¡¯t think you¡¯ll believe me if I say that there is none. And even if there is, I promise it won¡¯t affect you.¡± the female assured.


    Aurora wanted to refuse on principles but she was running out of excuses. Her powers were not going to control themselves.


    She needed guidance.


    ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s form that contract of yours. But don¡¯t try to pull one over me.¡± Aurora did not know where her confidence wasing from.


    She did not feel afraid of the overlooker. The familiar feeling the overlooker gave made Aurora¡¯s instincts rx.


    ¡°See. I knew you woulde around. And I hope you know how to sign the contract as well? You will need to receive my power deep inside yourself. You will need to ept my essence.¡± The overlooker informed.


    This was something Aurora knew well enough. After all, this was what had given the abyss its true name.


    Themon people knew this ce as the abyss. But the ones that had gotten past floor 5 knew the abyss¡¯s true name.


    The Abyss of Dual Cultivation. And the real currency of the abyss was power.


    Once you got past a certain stage, everything was facilitated by the exchange of power between different bodies. Be it currency, weapon, or even a simple exchange of information.


    It was all regted by energy exchange.


    And the most important of it all was the contract exchange. And the only way to solidify such a contract was through dual cultivation.


    ¡°I know what I must do. But I have to admit that it does not make me happy.¡± Aurora slipped her hand into the overlooker¡¯s extended hand.


    She allowed herself to be pulled into the overlooker¡¯s body. Their chests met, as did their lower halves. It was difficult to tell where one started and where the other ended.


    ¡°Won¡¯t your wife be jealous if she sees you like this?¡± the overlooker asked as her face approached Aurora¡¯s.


    ¡°Only if she remembers. But Clove¡¯s forgiving and she doesn¡¯t get jealous easily.¡± Aurora assured. There was no need to bait the overlooker, but Aurora still did it anyway.


    And between one moment and the next, their lips met. It was a battlefield of dominance between the two powers. Tongues battled against each other inside Aurora¡¯s mouth and she felt her body react.


    When the kiss broke, a string of saliva connected Aurora¡¯s lips to the overlooker.


    ¡°My name is Ava Torkas. I am a vessel of the abyss. I propose this contract between myself and -¡±


    ¡°Aurora Dehva¡±


    ¡°-May our bear fruit of victory.¡±


    That was the most bizarre contract line Aurora had ever heard. It sounded more like a voe than a contract. But Ava gave Aurora no time to think her words through.


    One second she was speaking, the next Ava was trying to steal the breath out of Aurora¡¯s lungs.


    Something hard poked Aurora¡¯s stomach. The hardness felt familiar but one she had not felt for some time.


    It gave her a pause.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Are you scared? You can sit back and let me do all the work for you.¡± Ava purposed. Ava¡¯s hand made contact with Aurora¡¯s breasts and fondled the soft mounds.


    And then she shoved Aurora to the ground.


    Aurora felt therger body on top of her. Ava was pressing her to the ground. The outlooker¡¯s arms were caging Aurora inside.


    And Ava¡¯s gaze was challenging.


    ¡°Scared? I¡¯m not a blushing virgin who needs your help. I can take anything you dish out at me.¡± Aurora assured.


    She did not like the confidenceing out of Ava. The other was underestimating Aurora and it hurt her pride. The goddess inside her wanted to show Ava what real power was all about.


    But Aurora held back. She needed to sit back and receive Ava¡¯s powers inside.


    Taking initiative would not help in this situation.


    ¡°I knew you were the right match for me. Now, let¡¯s see how prepared your body actually is?¡± Ava¡¯s hands were cold and foreign as they mapped Aurora¡¯s chest.


    But the outlooker did not waste any in finding her pussy entrance.


    Aurora¡¯s body did not provide any resistance to the probing fingers. It took them all in with ease and stretched around the fingers.


    But it was still a tight fit.


    ¡°Wow. Your body is eager. It makes me wonder if the abyss gave you power over sex and seduction. Maybe even lust?¡± Aurora knew that Ava was not talking to her.


    But her body did not care. It reacted to Ava¡¯s voice and clenched around the fingers.


    The energy Ava was sending inside her was familiar and it filled Aurora perfectly. It was like weing a part of her back inside her body.


    Her pussy worked around the fingers. The feeling must be pleasurable for Ava as well since her hardness made itself known against Aurora¡¯s thigh.


    ¡°I wonder if I can enter you like this. Without any preparation and all raw. Shall we try it out?¡± Aurora felt her mind melt at the pleasure.


    She had been together along with Colve many times to know that this was not normal for her.


    But something simr had happened with Freha. Pleasure had made Aurora lose her reason at that time as well.


    The thinking was getting progressively difficult as more and more magic filled her.


    It was not enough and so much at the same time.


    The penis pressing against her pussy did not help the matter. Aurora was wet enough to take Ava¡¯s whole length inside her without any problem.


    Aurora¡¯s legs had a mind of their own as they snaked around Ava¡¯s hips. And before the overlooker had enough time to consider her new position, Aurora pulled the other toward her body.


    Ava¡¯s pleasure-filled yell informed Aurora that the overlooker had not been ready for that action.


    And neither had been Aurora.


    But the penis was inside her now and it throbbed painfully. It was pain and pleasure mixed in one.


    But the most overwhelming thing was the flow of magic between the pair. It was intense and familiar.


    The abyss was aiding their coupling, converting the pair into mindless animals.


    ¡°S-Sorry. I can¡¯t hold back. It¡¯s your fault for forcing me to go faster.¡± Aurora did not get to brace herself.


    Ava¡¯s thrusts were fast and sharp. Her penis made quick work of Aurora and dragged her closer and closer to the release.


    The magic aided their coupling and caused the pair to reach their end much faster.


    Aurora felt something wet fill her as the bond finally snapped in ce. She did not even notice her body let go. Nor did she hear her voice crying out in pleasure.


    It was all magic and heat around her. The embrace of the abyss beckoned her to sleep her fatigue off.


    [New contract sessful. Familiar acquired


    Statue: Bonded with a zoodiac]

 Chapter 36

    Aurora woke up alone in the underground room. Her surroundings seemed to have reverted to the normal Abyss dungeon in her sleep.


    Aurora waited to feel Ava¡¯s touch. She vaguely remembered therger female falling asleep spooning her body.


    So, theck of body heat was concerning. Had Ava decided to leave Aurora alone for the time being?


    Though Aurora did feel something heavy draped around her neck. It made her feel sore and tired. She did not remember owning such an essory.


    Aurora could only conclude that Ava must be behind this. Maybe the overlooker had decided to bestow Aurora with a magical artifact?


    ¡°Hey! Be careful. Having no limbs makes it difficult for me to bnce myself.¡± Aurora tensed as those words reached her ear. They sounded like they were spoken directly in her ear.


    There was a wet feeling in the inner side of her ear. Something wet was touching her ear rather intimately.


    Aurora¡¯s hands moved toward the ¡®essory¡¯ on her neck carefully. She had a feeling that ¡®essory¡¯ was not the right word to describe it.


    Aurora¡¯s hands touched something scaly. Aurora¡¯s mind decided to freak out and defend herself.


    One second Aurora¡¯s hand was empty, the next second she had a snake in her hand.


    ¡°Heyyyy. Wait! You can¡¯t throw me like that. We have a contractttttttt.¡± Aurora almost swung the snake before the snake decided to coil around her wrist.


    The snake¡¯s grip tightened at the first hint of the swinging. Aurora quickly stopped her assault once she realized who the snake was.


    ¡°Ava? What are you doing as a snake?¡± Aurora asked.


    She was not really surprised to see someone turn into a snake. Even a trained human could do this.


    So an overlooker being able to do this was not a surprise to her.


    ¡°This is my ¡®real¡¯ form. I was a snake before receiving the abyss¡¯s blessing. I don¡¯t enjoy being in this form. But it would make it easier for me to leave the abyss with you like this.¡± Ava exined.


    ¡°Real form?¡± Aurora questioned. She let Ava coil on her arm, but fatigue was building fast. The snake was heavier than Aurora had anticipated.


    ¡°Abyss can grant power. It can even reverse the time back. It even has the power to revive people. But it can¡¯t create life. So the tower shared its power and enlightenment with others it deems worthy.¡± Ava exined.


    The snake decided to take advantage of Aurora¡¯s shock and climb up her arm.


    Ava decided to coil around Aurora¡¯s neck and settle her body there. It was ufortable for Aurora at first, but she quickly got used to it.


    ¡°So, you were a snake before the abyss granted you enlightenment?¡± Aurora asked. She wanted to make sure she had the right information.


    ¡°Yes. I was a snake, just as you were a human. Now we both are more than that. But that is a talk for another day.¡± Ava answered. She had answered Aurora¡¯s question but it felt evaded.


    ¡°So, what next? How long have we been in this chamber for?¡± Aurora asked. She was calm at first but quickly panicked.


    It had felt like a day inside the chamber but the passage passing time was weird in the abyss.


    It mainly followed the over-world day-night cycle. But there were certain parts of the abyss that had their one flow of time. A day in such a camber could mean months outside.


    Aurora prayed that she had not found herself in such a chamber.


    ¡°How long have we been here? A century.¡± the snake answered. Aurora felt her heart sink and her face paled at the answer.


    A century? A CENTURY?


    What about the academy? The progress? Her revenge? Clove¡¯s soul?


    ¡°Hahahahahah. Your face! Did you believe me? Without any evidence? I did not expect you to be so pure despite your circumstances. Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s only been one day.¡± Aurora¡¯s pale face went red at the tease.


    ¡°Stop it. What did I do to deserve this treatment from you?¡± Aurora questioned. She did not want an answer for real.


    And Ava knew that as well. The snake chose not to answer Aurora¡¯s question.


    ¡°So, you wille and help me out? What about the area you have to overlook? Won¡¯t it be a problem for you?¡± Aurora questioned.


    It was not Aurora¡¯s problem for now. But it could be one in the future if Ava had to leave at a crucial time.


    Aurora needed to be certain that she could trust the over-looker at a clutch time.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I can still keep an eye on the first 5 floors from the outside. They are close enough to the surface that I won¡¯t have any problem.¡± Ava assured.


    Aurora did not question the overlooker further.


    The chamber door disappeared behind Aurora once she stepped out. The corridor was not the same one she had entered the chamber from.


    The first thing Aurora did was switch on her system. Aurora¡¯s heightened emotions had caused the system to malfunction on her end.


    She just prayed that it had not affected anyone else.


    [System powering on.


    Alerts: User

 Chapter 37

    ¡°Don¡¯t give me that look. Those rude humans totally deserve to fall down and break their necks. The audacity those humans had. They dared to block the way of an outlooker and then -¡± Ava never finished her words.


    Aurora lifted the snake from her neck. Then she moved Ava right in front of her and stared the snake right in the eyes.


    Aurora felt Ava¡¯s uneasiness.


    ¡°W-What? I did nothing wrong! They had iting. Did you not feel annoyed with them as well?¡± Ava defended her actions. She sounded certain and justified in her actions.


    And the sad part was that Aurora agreed with Ava. A huge part of Aurora felt gleeful when Quince had fallen through the trap.


    But then the reality hade knocking its ugly head and reminded Aurora that Quince was not alone.


    Clove was down there as well.


    ¡°You will show me the way down. We will get them out of that trap as soon as possible.¡± Auroramanded.


    Her voice was soft yet threatening. Aurora was sure Ava could feel her anger bubbling under her even temper.


    ¡°Of course. Right away. I can also let them out right now if you want me to.¡± Ava negotiated.


    Aurora could tell that she was scaring Ava. The abyss was responding to her anger and amplifying her magic.


    ¡°No. We will go to them and pretend that we did not know how this happened. I don¡¯t want to blow my cover this soon. And I especially don¡¯t want people to be clued on your identity.¡± Aurora reasoned.


    Even Aurora knew that she was bullshitting at this point. No one would pay any attention if the trap was terminated mid-way.


    It would not be the first urrence of such a thing. And it would not be thest either.


    ¡°Alright. If that¡¯s what you want, then that¡¯s what will happen.¡± Ava had better survival instincts than Aurora had given her credit for.


    The overlooker asked no questions as she waved her tail. The trail room¡¯s wall parted and allowed Aurora to view the secret passage.


    ¡°This is the secret exit way for the trail. Only lucky people can find it. We can use this to go down.¡± Ava pointed out.


    Aurora considered the offer. And then she decided to take it. It was better than falling down a hole anyway.


    The passage looked to be made out of well-maintained stones. It almost looked artificial in touch and feel.


    But there was nothing artificial about the abyss. It just appeared like this from time to time.


    ¡°Be careful. Do not drop me down in the water. I hate the feeling of being cold and wet.¡± Avained as she slid her way back up Aurora¡¯s arm.


    Aurora had not realized that she was about to drop the snake in her arm.


    ¡°Ah, sorry. I should throw you across the room for what you did.¡± Aurora let her voice have a hint of irritation.


    ¡°Are you still angry at me? Aren¡¯t I helping you? Stop being such a pain in my ass. Hey, stop ignoring me.¡± Auroramented her own bad luck.


    Out of all the people she had a contract with, she got the only one who had a personality she did not like. She desperately hoped that not all outlookers were like this.


    ¡°So, what¡¯s the game n? You will lead those two to the secret exit?¡± Ava asked once she realized that she was not getting a raise out of Aurora.


    And Aurora also decided to answer once she was sure Ava was serious.


    ¡°No. we can¡¯t lead them to the secret exit. That would lead to too many questions. It¡¯s better to try and find an exit with them.¡± Aurora exined.


    ¡°I know the exit route as well. But I have a feeling that you do not want them to find the exit too soon and make them suspicious.¡± Aurora nodded at Ava¡¯s conclusion.


    It would have been one thing for them to find the exit if they had experience. Had Aurora not met Quince and Clove before, she might have even led them right to the exit.


    But that was no longer the case. Quince and Clove knew that Aurora was inexperienced as of a week ago. One week was not enough time to change that fact.


    ¡°That would be for the best. A few hours should be enough to make our story believable. Also, do not talk in front of them or they will get suspicious.¡± with the finalmand Aurora headed to where she heard Clove¡¯s voice.


    Ava gave off an offending feeling and paired it with a light p of her tail.


    ¡°-don¡¯t have supplied. We will have to wait for the tower to send us back-up.¡± Clove¡¯s voice rang out clearly inside Aurora¡¯s ears.


    It was a surprise to see her once-wife say those words. Clove had always been an adventure lover and had never shied away from danger.


    ¡°But we don¡¯t know when they will be. We should at least try and get out of here.¡± Quince snapped back gently.


    Aurora had seldomly seen the pair fight in herst life. Most fights had been over Aurora and her rtionship with Clove.


    Never had the pair butted heads over what to do during an adventure. Quince was too whipped to argue with Clove most of the time.


    ¡°But I don¡¯t think I can move. And I don¡¯t want to risk your life either. We can manage to hold on-¡± Clove spoke and Aurora finally decided to make her presence known.


    She purposely kicked a stone and watched the pair freeze.


    ¡°Wipe the jealous look off your face. It will scare people off.¡± Ava spoke softly in Aurora¡¯s ears.


    Aurora refused to take the bait. (It had nothing to do with the fact that she had been jealous of Clove¡¯s attention on Quince. She was not about to admit that under any circumstances.)


    ¡°Who¡¯s there. Don¡¯te this way or I will kill you.¡± Quince threatened.


    ¡°No monster will understand you on the first five levels. You are wasting your breath.¡± Aurora stepped out of the shadows.


    Her entrance had been more dramatic than was needed but who cared. It did the job of driving attention toward her.


    ¡°Y-Y-YOU! You made us fall into this trap. What are you doing here?¡± Quince questioned. His confusion and wariness mmed into Aurora.


    Clove was a nk piece of paper for Aurora, but Aurora could real confusion in her aura as well.


    ¡°Do you really think I had the power to make you fall into a trap? It¡¯s like saying that I can control the abyss. Is that what you are saying?¡± Aurora questioned.


    She walked right to the group and sat down.


    ¡°Of course, you cannot control the abyss. But that doesn¡¯t mean you had nothing to do with our present condition.¡± Quince pointed out.


    Ava¡¯s amusement was clear to Aurora¡¯s senses. She lightly squeezed the snake on her neck before turning to the pair.


    ¡°I had nothing to do with you two falling into this trap. If I did then I won¡¯t be stuck with you as well.¡± Aurora informed.


    She could feel the other pair¡¯s will wavering at Aurora¡¯s words. She was finally getting through to them.


    ¡°Let¡¯s say that we believe you for now. What do you propose for us to do?¡± Quince asked. He finally looked like he was willing to hear them out.


    Aurora quickly gave him a look before looking at Clove¡¯s face. It was nk but Aurora felt Clove¡¯s eyes lingering on her form in confusion.


    ¡°Well, Quince is right. We can¡¯t stay here any longer or we¡¯ll be sitting ducks for the monsters lingering in these depths. The exit should be where the river ends.¡± Aurora pointed.


    She could feel Ava¡¯s nudge in that direction.


    Quince¡¯s aura told her that he was not willing to trust her 100%, but he would go along with her for now.


    ¡°Why are you helping us out? There is no need for you to stick with us. I can feel your magic and you have enough to break out of this trap on your own.¡± Clove questioned.


    ¡°Let¡¯s just say that it is a pet peeve of mine. You tried to help me out in the tower and I feel like I have to reciprocate your actions.¡± Aurora smiled as she spoke.


    Whether Clove beloved her or not, Aurora did not care. Nor did she check.


    She allowed the other two to discuss their options as she waited for their answer.


    ¡°Those people don¡¯t trust you and yet they agreed to your help. I feel like they are nning something.¡± Ava summarized. Her voice was just loud enough for Aurora to hear.¡¯


    ¡°Of course they are. I expected Quince to take my offer from the start. He won¡¯t miss a chance to scout out the tower¡¯spetition.¡± Aurora informed Ava.


    She could tell that the snake had been stunned silence.


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand your mind. Do what you want to.¡± Ava finally sighed as she settled down on Aurora¡¯s shoulder.


    And right in time for Quince to look up and present her with an answer.

 Chapter 38

    Do you think we should take her offer?¡± Quince watched his childhood friend shift around in nervousness. He could recognize that action as uneasiness on Clove¡¯s part.


    ¡°To be honest, I don¡¯t trust thatdy. She appeared down here even when we did not watch her fall. And the snake on her neck is an abyss monster. Yet it is not attacking her. Not to mention -¡± Quince fell quiet before he finished.


    Aurora Dehva was the name the blue-haired female had used to register herself with the tower.


    She had passed the exam without any problem. And then she humiliated the tower master in front of everyone present.


    But that was not all. Aurora had somehow transformed while being submerged in the tower¡¯s water.


    Listed initially as thirteen years old, the female had aged considerably in a few hours. The most evident change had been physical maturity.


    ¡°Quince, you are staring at her. Stop being a pervert and get your head back on the topic.¡± Quince did not blush at the usation. His cheeks just got red due to his justified anger at the statement.


    ¡°I am not ogling her assets. She might have an attractive outer appearance. But she¡¯s still ourpetition. Not that I believe that in her capabilities in being able to stand against the tower.¡± Quince assured.


    Clove¡¯s face told him that she did not believe Quince¡¯s words.


    But she had no right to criticize him in this situation.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you the one having dreams about her every night and waking up flushed? You¡¯re more likely to be crushing on her than I am. Besides, I¡¯m-I¡¯m sorry. I spoke too much.¡± Quince winched as he felt the re.


    Clove had a nk look on her face when she looked back at Quince.


    And when a woman gave you that look, you should keep your mouth quiet and apologize. That was a lesson Quince had learned the hard way.


    Especially when it was ¡®that time of the month¡¯ for the female.


    ¡°It would be better for you not to test my patience. I won¡¯t dignify your words with an answer either. But I guess you are right. We have to cooperate with her and find out whatever we can about her powers. I have a feeling that Aurora will y a major role in changing this tower.¡± Clove finally looked away.


    Quince breathed a sigh of relief when she did look away. She was scary and Aurora was powerful.


    Most higher-ups looked at her and saw her mask. The fragile smile and a venerable body. They did not know the darkness thaty beneath Clove¡¯s aura.


    It had happened out of the blue. One day Clove was alright, and the next she was scary and powerful. But she was not cursed, nor did she talk about it.


    ¡°Sooooo, have we decided on our course of action?¡± Quince asked.


    ¡°Yes. We will cooperate with her. I will try to get her to lower her guard and get some secrets out in the way as well.¡± Clove assured.


    Quince believed her when Clove said those words. But he also knew that some part of Clove wanted to be close to Aurora.


    Clove had not been herself ever since she had met Aurora. Her temper had gotten worse.


    But Quince decided not to interfere in this matter as long as he did not have to. He liked living.


    But still, he had observed a key thing. No matter how good of an actor Clove was, her smile seemed genuine when she was in Aurora¡¯spany.


    Quince would have to observe more before forming an official opinion.


    ¡­¡­


    ¡°Wow. Their emotions are all over the ce. I can¡¯t keep up at all.¡± Ava sounded in awe.


    Aurora felt worried and nced at the talking couple a few times. Both had their back toward her which made it difficult to guess what they were talking about.


    ¡°Humans are often like that. You¡¯ll get used to it.¡± Aurora assured. Even she found the fluctuation of emotions a little hard to keep up with.


    Aurora had a lot of questions she wanted to ask but now was not the time. She had to wait for the couple to finish their talk.


    But it did not take long for them to finish.


    ¡°Looks like they are heading our way,¡± Ava whispered before she fell limp on Aurora¡¯s shoulder.


    Quince gave Ava a searching look but the snake was smart enough not to react.


    ¡°Finally decided on my offer?¡± Aurora asked. Even then, she already knew what the answer was going to be from the other side.


    ¡°Yes. We decided that cooperation is the best option we have for now. There is no telling when the tower will send us help.¡± Quince sounded agitated.


    ¡°And do you agree with this option?¡± Aurora asked Clove.


    The female gave a hesitant smile to Aurora.


    ¡°Yes. I think it will be best for us to cooperate for now.¡± Clove agreed.


    It was nice to see that Clove was still the sensible female Aurora hade to trust. Aurora had missed her lover and seeing her this young was nostalgic.


    Even if the staring was getting a bit too much for Aurora¡¯s liking.


    ¡°Is something wrong? Do I have something on my face?¡± Aurora questioned. She expected Clove to shy away when her face neared the younger female.


    But it was Quince who jumped back in rm. He felt confused but also rmed.


    He looked between Aurora and Clove as if trying to figure something out. It made Aurora want to poke her tongue out at him.


    And she was about to do just that when she felt Clove turn beside her. Her expression must be bad for Quince to pale considerably.


    ¡°Your face is beautiful. But I was just startled by the snake on your shoulder. It is an abyss monster, right? Won¡¯t it be dangerous to keep it with us?¡± Clove¡¯s voice betrayed her nervousness.


    It did make sense for Clove to be nervous and ask questions. It also exined Quince¡¯s jumping nature.


    He was afraid for her friend¡¯s safety.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Ava is harmless. We have a contract so she won¡¯t attack us.¡± Aurora exined.


    ¡°Contract? Then you d-did that with a snake? How? Why? No, that is not important. How did you manage to find a contract beast on the first floor?¡± Quince tripped over his words.


    His face was red and his aura gave off an embarrassing feeling.


    ¡°Oh. And how do you know what should be done to make a contract? Did you secretly like to read such texts? Your reaction betrays you as a virgin.¡± Aurora teased.


    The teen went redder. Revenge was a dish best served cold.


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand this at all. Can someone exin this to me?¡± Clove asked and it caused Aurora to sober up immediately.


    The poor female teen exerted anxiety and confusion.


    It melted Aurora¡¯s heart and made her feel bad at the same time. She had not wanted Clove to feel confused.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to understand anything at all. Let us focus on getting out of this ce for now. Everything else cer¡± Aurora assured.


    She could feel the aura of Abyss monsters starting to close in on the group. Fighting would be a hindrance since she would have to hold back strength.


    And there was also the chance of getting attacked by a high-level monster. Clove was in a delicate condition for now. She could not handle this much pressure.


    ¡°We need to start moving. I can feel multiple beast auras heading our way.¡± Aurora informed. Her voice had lost its cheer.


    ¡°And how can you tell?¡± Quince questioned. But even he seemed to be on edge.


    Aurora did not like Quince but he had been strong in the future. Strong enough to survive theter floors of the abyss.


    And one did not make it far without having good instincts.


    ¡°I think you know how I can tell. The air in this trap had gotten disturbingly quiet.¡± Aurora replied.


    Her body unconsciously took a few steps behind Clove. Her love had never needed Aurora¡¯s help before but Aurora was not about to let her down.


    Quince looked like he would hiss at her if she did not get away. Aurora took a step closer to the behavior.


    Clove¡¯s aura felt almost content. It was reminiscent of Aurora¡¯s past life.


    After all, they had started as a party of three.


    ¡°So, we just follow the water for now. Let¡¯s hope we see the exit soon.¡± Quince sounded tired.


    Aurora let out a private smile as she walked behind the group. Her eyes narrowed at the monsters nearing the group and her power slipped just a bit.


    It was enough to make the monsters back off.


    If the other two noticed anything, they did not say. They seemed not to even notice how close the monsters were getting to the group.


    But the important part was, that no one got attacked throughout the trip and the trio safely made it out of the trap in record time.

 Chapter 39

    ¡°Finally. We managed to get out of that hole.¡± Aurora looked back at the pair panting behind her.


    Clove looked a little paler than Aurora would have liked her to be but Quince looked bad. His face was red and his breathbored.


    ¡°Was the climb that difficult for you? You should take care of yourself better.¡± Aurora neared Quince¡¯s face to check up on him but he jumped back.


    He quickly nced at Clove before turning back toward Aurora.


    ¡°I¡¯m alright. I¡¯m just a little surprised that we did not run into any monsters on our way out. I thought I felt them crawling near us a few times.¡± Quince¡¯sughter was nervous and forced.


    ¡®He is on to me.¡¯ Aurora was sure of this fact now.


    But she did not show that thought on her face. Aurora smiled her most disarming smile toward the pair.


    ¡°That was fortunate for us. I am d that no one got hurt.¡± Aurora aimed her smile toward Clove.


    Aurora felt Ava pick her head up from her rest and nce at the group. Then the snake went back to her rest.


    ¡°I guess it is time we part away. Hopefully, we will have more opportunities to work together in the future.¡± Aurora consoled the pair.


    The pair watched her go withplicated expressions.


    It was only after Aurora was gone did Quince risked taking a look at Clove.


    ¡°You don¡¯t look happy to see her go. There is still time to capture her and get her back. I¡¯m sure my father would be happy if we brought her back with us.¡± Quince suggested.


    But even though he was suggesting that option, he knew that it would not be possible for him.


    ¡°Be serious. We currently don¡¯t have enough power to drag her back with us. Didn¡¯t you notice how the monsters were avoiding her while we walked toward the exit?¡± Clove asked.


    Quince flinched as he remembered the glowing red eyes trailing their every moment. He had never felt this many monsters in such close vicinity.


    ¡°So it was not you who made them all back away?¡± Quince asked.


    Clove shook her head.


    ¡°I might have been born with the Abyss¡¯s blessing but I can¡¯t ess that power. No. Something else frightened those monsters. And I have a feeling that it was Aurora they were afraid of.¡± Clove concluded.


    ¡°What should we do now? Are we going to report her to the higher-ups? Clove? CLOVE?¡± Quince¡¯s questions went unanswered as Clove turned around to leave.


    An amused smile broke out on the female¡¯s face as she heard the desperate cries of her childhood friend.


    But the confused feeling of longing and grief inside Clove¡¯s heart did not lessen. It was the same feeling she had felt when she had first met Aurora in the Abyss tower.


    It felt like she knew Clove from somewhere but Clove could not tell from where. But Aurora made Clove¡¯s loneliness go away.


    So Clove was sure she would see Aurora again and soon enough.


    ¡°Master Quince, Mistress Clove. We finally managed to find you. Are you alright?¡± the worker that hade to receive the pair sounded relieved to see them.


    Clove quickly schooled her features into her polite and gentle smile. Quince flinched once he joined Clove¡¯s side.


    ¡°Did father send for you?¡± Quince asked. He was quick to pick up on the act.


    ¡°Yes. Master said to inform you that you need to head toward the first-floor trail room. The previous one will be over in a few hours. It would do you both good to have this cleared out of the way.¡± The guard informed.


    Clove nodded her head and Quince quickly caught on to her wish.


    ¡°Of course. Lead the way.¡± The pair arrived at the test chamber entrance and Clove instantly felt Clove¡¯s familiar presence.


    Her eyes moved through the room-


    -Only to see the elder being wrapped up in some unfamiliar redhead¡¯s embrace. And Clove could swear that the red-head was taking advantage of Clove¡¯s stunned face to take some liberties with her.


    But Aurora pulled away soon enough and dragged the red-head out of the room.


    The snake on Aurora¡¯s shoulder met Clove¡¯s eyes. Clove read the warning clear in them but she chose to ignore them.


    She almost took a step toward the pair before she felt a hand on her shoulder stopped her in her tracks.


    ¡°Don¡¯t cause any unnecessary trouble for us. We are in the public eye. Anything you do will be reported to the higher-ups.¡± Clove stopped.


    She had to make a visible effort to stop herself from gritting her teeth but she somehow managed to do that.


    For the rest of her trail, Clove had a fake smile stered over her face but only Quince could tell.


    ¡­¡­


    The journey through the trap had almost been nostalgic for Aurora. It had reminded her of the good old days.


    And the dynamic of the trio had not changed much, even if she was no longer the same age as the other two.


    Clove was still the sweet and caring girl she always has been. And Quince was still the problematic and jealous man he had always been.


    ¡°Is it necessary for you to go? It was fun being with you and I don¡¯t want to part ways just yet. Can¡¯t you stay with us any longer?¡± Aurora felt the pressure build up as Clove looked at her.


    Aurora knew if she looked at Clove¡¯s eyes, she would cave in. She had always been weak in front of her.


    ¡°I can¡¯t. I have an academy of my own to operate and I am not that fond of the tower. I can¡¯t reconsider, even if it is for you two. And I shall also take my leave.¡± Aurora quickly fled the scene.


    She could feel confusion and betrayaling from the pair. Aurora did not dwell much on these feelings as she fled.


    ¡°Those creatures were funny. But I would advise you to stay away from that girl. There is something not right about her.¡± Ava finally picked her head up for real.


    She had been so quiet that Aurora even forgot her existence. But the spoke words finally snapped her out of her thoughts.


    ¡°I can¡¯t afford to do that. That girl back there was Clove.¡± Aurora replied.


    Ava instantly fell quiet, her brain deep in thought.


    ¡°Fine. I was just warning you for your sake. You are free to do what you want to. Also, you should hurry up. I can feel the energy from the floor trial gate. It is about to be over.¡± Aurora changed her direction as soon as she heard that.


    Aurora had not even realized that two days had passed since she had left Rita. Aurora needed to get back and pick her up.


    Ava helped Aurora get back without detection. Ava directed her toward the hidden doorways Aurora had not even known about.


    And it was only because of Ava that Aurora managed to get back in time. Ava¡¯s proud aura betrayed her aloof face.


    ¡°Rita. Come this way.¡± Aurora waved as she spotted Rita¡¯s red hair. The teen looked dazed but her eyes held a real spark of power now.


    Aurora did not get a chance to react as Rita med the other people and mmed into Aurora¡¯s chest.


    ¡°Easy on the hug there. You are not as weak as you look.¡± Aurora scolded as she regained her bnce. The arms around Aurora tightened just a bit.


    And maybe it was Aurora¡¯s imagination, but Rita looked older. Aurora was sure that Rita had not crossed her shoulder in height two days ago.


    But now she looked almost as tall as Aurora.


    And when Rita looked up, she looked older as well. She almost looked like the Rita from Aurora¡¯s timeline.


    ¡°Did something happen in your trail? You look like you¡¯ve aged. Were the two days really that tough for you?¡± Aurora questioned but she only felt the hold tighten around her middle.


    But Aurora¡¯s middle was not the only ce she felt being squeezed. Something was lightly squeezing her right breast and fondling it.


    Aurora tried to gain some distance from Rita but the younger held on to Aurora too tightly. The hold on her breast tightened as well.


    Aurora felt the moan escape her. She could not stop the red from spreading across her face.


    She quickly nced across the room and spotted Quince¡¯s tinum-white hair and flinched.


    If he was here, then Clove must be here as well.


    ¡°Rita, we are leaving this ce. We cannot afford to be caught here.¡± Aurora whispered.


    Rita nodded. Her head did not pick itself up from Aurora¡¯s chest even when she agreed.


    Aurora quickly maneuvered the pair out of the room. She knew this would attract quite a few eyes but Aurora chanced that risk.


    She felt Ava pick her weight up and give the surroundings a vignt look.


    In this manner, the trio made their way outside the trail hall. Andnded head-first in the most basic trap on the first floor.


    They walked into a cave without any exit.

 Chapter 40

    ¡°How long are you going to hold on to me? It is ufortable for me since you¡¯re almost as tall as me now.¡± Aurora asked but she made no effort to separate Rita.


    ¡°Just a few more minutes,¡± Rita replied.


    The voice sounded familiar to Aurora. It brought back memories with aching familiarity.


    ¡°You sure did change in two days. You look years older now.¡± Aurora observed.


    Rita¡¯s face on her chest moved. Aurora could feel the lips move against her skin and it sent shivers down her spine.


    Rita¡¯s lips were too close to her nipples. Even the smallest moment could cause disaster for Aurora.


    ¡°-not two days.¡± Rita was speaking but Aurora felt distracted. The exhaling sensation against her breast was too distracting.


    ¡°Wake up. She¡¯s speaking to you.¡± Ava decided she had enough. Her bite brought Aurora back to reality.


    Aurora¡¯s hand instantly flew toward her neck and cupped the aching area. Her neck felt hot to touch.


    ¡°Ava, what the hell? What are you doing?¡± Aurora questioned. The bite was beginning to ache now.


    ¡°Yourpanion looked distressed. Her aura also feels like it will explode any moment.¡± Ava pointed out.


    Aurora did not get a chance to answer.


    Rita moved in an instant and pulled Aurora toward her chest with one hand while managing to capture Ava with her other hand.


    The snake did not struggle as Rita held her at sword point.


    ¡°What are you? You feel like a familiar but you don¡¯t have the magic of a familiar.¡± Rita questioned.


    Aurora had to take her time and nurse her spinning head. Rita¡¯s actions had been too fast for her.


    ¡°Rita, no. Ava is a beast I made a contract with. She¡¯s harmless.¡± Aurora assured as she quickly pulled Ava back to safety.


    Ava¡¯s aura conveyed her mixed feeling. The snake seemed to not be able to decide if she was insulted at being protected. Or if she had been ttered at receiving such a treatment.


    ¡°But we can¡¯t be sure about that. What if she turns on you?¡± Rita questioned.


    ¡°She can¡¯t. We have a contract that prevents Ava from hurting me and my associates.¡± Aurora assured.


    But Rita did not look convinced. Her narrow eyes made Aurora tense and she knew she had to change the topic now.


    ¡°We can discuss Avater. For now, I¡¯m more interested to know what happened to you? You were in your teens thest time I checked. But you seemed to have aged significantly.¡± Aurora questioned.


    Rita seemed reluctant to talk to her in front of Ava. So Aurora gesture for Ava to leave the pair alone.


    Ava looked betrayed at her action. But she did not linger around the pair.


    ¡°Hmph. I can see that I am not needed here. Call me when you decide that you appreciate my help.¡± The snake left.


    As she did, she closed the cave entrance behind her.


    Aurora wanted to remark on Ava¡¯s behavior but she suddenly felt drained of her energy. The wound on her neck throbbed as well.


    ¡°She¡¯s gone. Are you going to tell me more about what happened to you now?¡± Aurora questioned.


    Rita looked at the entrance. Aurora could feel her magic scanning the area for potential monsters.


    ¡®When did she learn to do that?¡¯ Aurora wondered. She could check the system to know but it felt like an invasion of privacy to her.


    ¡°You told me that only two days had passed since I entered the test chamber, right? But for me, it felt like decades. I didn¡¯t even feel like myself half the time there.¡± Rita sounded defeated.


    The cheer in her voice was gone.


    The younger female leaned her frame into Aurora. Aurora had no other choice but to support Rita or risk her falling.


    But Aurora¡¯s body did not have much strength either. It caused her to copse and Rita to fall on top of her.


    ¡°It was lonely. I was still me but it felt like I was living another life. A life in which I did not meet you when I did. A life in which I lost everything.¡± Rita continued as she moved her hands.


    Aurora wanted to stop Rita¡¯s wandering hands. One was beneath her shirt, mapping her stomach.


    ¡°Rita, cut it out. We are in a serious discussion.¡± Aurora hissed. But herck of action only spurred Rita further.


    The younger¡¯s hands were approaching dangerous territory.


    Aurora finally took action once Rita cupped her breast and squeezed the right one. The familiar feeling told Aurora who the culprit had been before.


    ¡°Rita, don¡¯t do something you¡¯ll regretter.¡± Aurora pulled away.


    Rita stared at her hand with a nk expression before schooling it back in the calm and collected expression Aurora had been used to.


    The younger looked exactly like her older counterpart. The same heated eyes, the same frown.


    It made Aurora skip a beat.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯m going to regret anything. I just wanted to confess but I messed things up.¡± Rita whispered.


    Aurora wanted to pretend she did not hear those words. But Rita¡¯s gloomy aura persuaded Aurora to act.


    She needed to solve this knot before it developed into something else.


    ¡°Rita, be clear in your words. I will listen and I won¡¯t run away. Whatever problem you have with me, let¡¯s clear it out.¡± Rita looked conflicted.


    But Aurora felt hope rise in Rita¡¯s aura.


    ¡°I love you.¡± The words were strong and confident. Aurora felt her breath stop as Rita¡¯s voice reached her ear.


    And her brain froze. Her body felt like it was heating up.


    ¡°Excuse me? What kind of joke is this?¡± Aurora asked. Her ears rang as her mind recalled Rita¡¯s words.


    Love? Rita had to be mistaken.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know when and where, but I fell in love with you. I did not even know it was love until recently. The trail made me hallucinate and then it showed me a future where you marry someone else. And I decided I couldn¡¯t bear it.¡± Rita sounded desperate.


    Even her aura felt desperate and clingy. Its intensity swept Aurora away.


    ¡°Wait a second. Aurora, you¡¯re young and I think you¡¯re confusing love with gratitude. You¡¯re not even an adult in your mind. You can still stop.¡± Aurora promised.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I can. I don¡¯t want to stop my feelings from developing. I want to take this chance, even if it is only 1%.¡± Rita confessed.


    Aurora tried to hide her face behind her hand but she was not able to pull them back.


    Rita held them in a a tight grip.


    ¡°Still, it is too soon for me. You were just a child for me a day before. Besides-¡±


    ¡°-besides?-¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure I can see you like that. I don¡¯t think I can see you in a romantic sense.¡± Aurora confessed.


    Rita looked confused but then determined.


    Aurora wanted to lean back when Rita leaned forward. Their lips were too close to each other and Aurora felt her face heat up.


    Her heart was beating like crazy and her head felt lighter than it had a few seconds before. The heat in her neck intensified even more.


    ¡®She¡¯s ours. She¡¯s offering herself to us. Take you like yours.¡¯ Some part of Aurora hissed at her.


    Aurora recognized it as the goddess inside her. That part of her mainly kept quiet but it was quite vocal right now.


    Vocal enough to seem like a different person.


    Rita did not linger near her face for long. She pulled back and a beautiful smile greeted the younger¡¯s face.


    Aurora almost reached out to cup Rita¡¯s face but stopped herself short.


    Rita did not allow her to do this.


    ¡°I won¡¯t ask for much. Give me one night to change your mind. And if we¡¯re notpatible after this, I will give up on you. But if there¡¯s even a small bit of hope, I want you to not stop me in my pursuit.¡± Rita asked.


    Aurora knew she should not give in to the other this easily.


    But her body was too tired and the heat was spreading. She did not want to fight this feeling either.


    ¡°One night. And no matter what the oue, you will never bring this night up again. That is my condition for this contract.¡± A hint of hurt shed across Rita¡¯s face before she schooled her face.


    Aurora knew she had been unnecessarily cruel in her words.


    But she wanted Rita to understand that things might not work out.


    ¡°I understand.¡± Rita agreed. Even Aurora¡¯s indifference did not drag her away. And Aurora decided to give up for the day.


    Her head was spinning already and her body felt heavy. She knew she was not suffering from a normal poison.


    It had to be the one Ava identally injected into her body when Aurora was bit by Ava.


    ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to carve myself on your body. You¡¯ll crave for me once we¡¯re done.¡± Rita promised and Aurora put up no resistance.


    Even when their tongues battle, Aurora did not push Rita away. Instead, she pulled the younger toward her body.

 Chapter 41

    ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to carve myself on your body. You¡¯ll crave for me once we¡¯re done.¡± Was what Rita had promised.


    Her words sounded confident but her technique left much to be desired.


    Rita¡¯s lips were demanding. Her tongue was hot and wet inside Aurora¡¯s mouth. It was a struggle to get the younger one to calm down.


    Aurora tried to get Rita to calm down and slow her pace. But Rita did not seem to appreciate her gesture.


    ¡°S-Slow down. You are g-going too fast.¡± Aurorained but her body seem to be enjoying the attention.


    Her lower half especially appreciated the attention it was getting from Rita.


    ¡°Are you sure you want me to slow down? Your body seems to have a different idea.¡± Rita¡¯s tone was teasing. But the younger sounded out of breath.


    Aurora¡¯s body reacted as soon as she felt hands near her lower lips. The friction felt good.


    She was too wet and hot to think properly.


    Aurora knew she had a reason for not wanting to sleep with Rita but it was too difficult o remember what it was right now.


    She could feel the heat taking over her body as Rita kissed her again.


    But this time, Aurora decided to take charge. Her lips hurt from Rita¡¯s forceful actions and Aurora wanted to show her how to kiss properly.


    Her lips set a gentler rhythm when they met Rita¡¯s. Aurora could feel the surprising hesitation Rita felt at her action.


    But Aurora did not stop.


    ¡°I-If you are going to kiss me, at least make it enjoyable for me. You are fumbling around like a virgin. Here, let me show you how to do this properly.¡± Aurora reversed their positions in a second.


    Rita¡¯s sudden yelp was like music to Aurora¡¯s ears.


    ¡®Serves her right. The poor thing thought she could overpower a goddess.¡¯ Had Aurora been in her right mind, she would not even have recognized her thoughts.


    But the venom in her veins had made Aurora unable to keep herposure.


    Aurora moved her hands and finally decided to give Rita a taste of her medicine.


    Whatever had aged Rita up had not excluded her breasts. The once-t teen had turned out to be almost one size smaller than Aurora.


    Those boobs were big enough to not fit in Aurora¡¯s hands. So Aurora chose to focus on Rita¡¯s nipples.


    Rita cried out as soon as Aurora¡¯s mouth met her skin.


    ¡°W-What are you d-doing? I-I was the one who was supposed to¡± Rita broke her sentence with a moan. She sounded wrecked already.


    Aurora continued her assault while also deciding to pay attention to Rita¡¯s lower half.


    Since Rita had taken the liberty of stripping Aurora of her lower-half clothes, Aurora decided to even out the odds.


    ¡°N-No. Don¡¯t touch that. I d-don¡¯t want you to¡± Rita cried out.


    Embarrassment and humiliation mmed into Aurora. It immediately made her stop her actions and stare at Rita.


    ¡°What is your problem? You are the one who started all this. And now you have a problem?¡± Aurora asked.


    Rita¡¯s blush and embarrassed aura were the only reason Aurora had not left her alone and decided to take care of herself.


    ¡°I-This was not the n,¡± Rita replied. The younger seemed to be talking to herself.


    ¡°What was not the n?¡± Aurora questioned.


    ¡°I just wanted to show you that we werepatible and for you to think of me as an option. Going this far was never an option. Not while I was cursed anyway. But things escted and I forgot.¡± Rita sounded frustrated.


    Aurora could still feel her arousal. And it fueled Aurora¡¯s arousal.


    Aurora wanted to be sympathetic toward Rita but her body was not leaving her with this option. It demanded release.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care. You started this and you will finish this.¡± Aurora¡¯s voice was dark. The influence of the divine power shined through her words.


    ¡°I-But my curse. You need to know that-¡± Rita did not get to finish those words.


    Aurora¡¯s hand moved faster than Rita¡¯s mouth andnded on top of her bottom half. And hardness met her hand as a familiar shape made itself known.


    ¡°-I have a penis and a pussy. I did not realize that this would happen when I took the power being offered to me.¡± Rita sounded done.


    But Aurora did not care for her reasoning.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care. You started this and you are finishing this.¡± Aurora quickly decided to show Rita that it did not matter to her.


    Her hands parted Rita¡¯s shorts and brought her hardness out.


    The penis was erect and the pussy beneath it was wet. Aurora¡¯s fingers made contact with thetter.


    Rita went limp. The sensation was too much for the inexperienced female to be able to handle.


    And the reaction just spurred Aurora on even further.


    ¡°Y-You don¡¯t care?¡± Rita asked. Aurora was not even sure if the younger was conscious when she asked this question.


    ¡°Nope. Don¡¯t care. You are not the first futa I¡¯ve been with. It¡¯s quitemon in the abyss.¡± Aurora was not sure if Rita¡¯s aura was disappointed or exhausted.


    ¡°O-Oh. Is that so? I guess I was worrying for nothing then¡± the words came out as a moan. Aurora jerked Rita¡¯s penis gently.


    When she did not expect was for Rita to release in her hand.


    Rita¡¯s inexpedience was not able to hold up against Aurora¡¯s aggression. And it caused Rita toe.


    Aurora tried to pump Rita¡¯s limp penis again but nothing happened. Rita looked too exhausted to be able to go again.


    ¡°Oi! Is this a joke? Are you going to leave me hanging like this?¡± Aurora asked. But Rita looked too tired to bother.


    She looked on the verge of sleep.


    The tired look just made Aurora sigh. She did not have the heart to ask Rita to continue when the other seemed on the verge of copse.


    ¡°Just sleep. I will find a way to take care of myself. We¡¯ll talk more once you wake up.¡± Rita tried to speak up but her body finally gave in.


    Aurora held her frustration back till Rita fell asleep and then she decided to take care of herself.


    Her fingers found her pussy and entered her body. They teased her G-spot and even brought Aurora on the bring ofpletion.


    Aurora¡¯s body shook as she came. But it did not help the burning sensation at all. Aurora still felt like she was about to die.


    ¡°AVA. Are you there?¡± the words escaped her mouth almost unconsciously. It was ast-ditch effort to save Rita¡¯s life and to make sure her ns worked out.


    ¡°Are you humans done with your silly courting rituals yet? I do not wish to see you fuck and-¡± The voice sounded like Ava.


    Aurora tried to move her to hear but she found it too tiresome. The venom was making Aurora too weak.


    ¡°You idiot. Why are you like this? You are a goddess and the venom should not have done more than to make you a little horny. Oh god, hand in there.¡± Ava sounded worried.


    Aurora felt scales on her face but they soon turned into hands. Someone familiar was holding on to her.


    Aurora tried to look up at the face but all she saw was light.


    ¡­


    Ava cursed as soon as she held Aurora¡¯s limp body in her hand.


    When she had bit Aurora with her venom, all she wanted to do was to help her out. She had hoped that her venom would act as an aphrodisiac and help smooth the tension over.


    But who would have guessed that it would be so potent to the young goddess?


    ¡°C-Clove?¡± the voice was so hesitant and fragile that Ava had to bow down to hear those words.


    But she felt a sour taste in her mouth as she heard that name.


    ¡°Don¡¯t think anything for now. I will help get the poison out.¡± Ava replied as she bend down to press her lips against Aurora¡¯s.


    The press was soft and light. Ava sucked the venom out but the after-effects could not be neglected.


    The main problem was out but it would take time for Aurora¡¯s body to calm down.


    Ava moved to press another kiss on Aurora¡¯s lips but stopped short. She felt danger creeping up behind her back and she instantly blocked the attack.


    Rita¡¯s eyes met her. The two pairs of eyes shed with each other.


    ¡°What are you? Your energy does not feel like a human but you are not a beast as well.¡± Rita questioned.


    Ava could feel the slight struggle her arms felt as they tried to hold the mortal back.


    Ava was not using her full power because that would be overkill even in her sealed form. But this human was not one to scoff at either.


    Her magic exceeded a regr human. It was closer to a goddess but not one chosen by the abyss.


    ¡°I am just a familiar who had a contract with Aurora. But more importantly, who are you? And what did you do with the owner of that body?¡± Ava asked.


    Red eyes narrowed at her words and Aurora¡¯s body groaned behind her.

 Chapter 42

    ¡°Look. I am aware that you do not trust me. But you can tell that I am not lying when I say that I want to help Aurora, right?¡± Ava asked.


    Aurora gave out an audible sound behind her.


    ¡°Ava. H-Help me out.¡± Aurora panted softly. Rita¡¯s eyes softened just a bit at Aurora¡¯s soft actions.


    But once they turned toward Ava, they were hard and piercing once again.


    ¡°I don¡¯t trust an abyss scum like you. But since Aurora is willing to trust you, I won¡¯t go against her. However, you do not get to touch her. Tell me what you need me to do.¡± Rita clenched Aurora¡¯s arm tighter when she pulled her closer.


    Rita did not like the look in the snake¡¯s eyes. She looked at Aurora as an investor looking at a profitable investment.


    ¡°Alright. Suit yourself. As long as Aurora lives long enough to serve her purpose, I am happy.¡± Ava spoke.


    Her light words caused Rita to growl out.


    ¡°Ohhh. Be careful puppy. Your fangs are showing.¡± Rita swiped her ws out toward the snake. Unfortunately, Ava dodged her ws.


    Rita growled lowly again. This one was filled with warning and Ava finally straightened herself.


    ¡°Do not speak nonsense.¡± It was difficult to speak through a mouth full of fangs. But Rita had perfected that art quite a while ago.


    ¡°Alright. Seeing as how you have achieved a merge with the abyss¡¯s energy, you are perfect for the job. You need to regte her energy levels by dual cultivating with her.¡± Ava exined.


    Rita¡¯s face flushed at the news. But her heart skipped a beat at Ava¡¯s words.


    ¡°I need to what?¡± Rita asked. She had heard clearly what the snake had said but her mind refused to believe it.


    ¡°Dual cultivate with Aurora. The venom in my snags caused her energy to destabilize. I thought it would not work. But I forgot that Aurora still thought of herself as a human. This upset won¡¯t kill her but it would be ufortable for her.¡± Ava exined.


    Rita felt conflicted. But Ava continued her persuasion.


    ¡°The main core of this abyss is an energy exchange. It can be used for anything. Your energy can also be used to stabilize Aurora¡¯s. And, wasn¡¯t this what you wanted? To go all the way with her after Aurora epts your curse self.¡± Rita almost cursed at those words.


    She might not have said anything, but this was her deepest darkest desire. This was what she had always wanted from Aurora.


    Especially now. Aurora had epted her cursed self.


    ¡°Are you still now going to take any action? Alright, fine then. Get out of the way and let me handle this. Aurora is my contractor and I can¡¯t bear to see her suffer.¡± The snake was spouting bullshit.


    Rita could see it in the snake¡¯s eyes. That creature held no love or respect for Aurora. There was only greed and desire when she looked at Aurora.


    The snake was going to use Aurora.


    ¡°No need. Tell me what I need to do and I will take care of things.¡± Rita denied the snake. Her arms caged Aurora tighter from the snake¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°Alright. If this is what you have decided to do. You know how to have sex right?¡± Rita¡¯s face went from flushed to red.


    Her mouth gapped like a goldfish as the snake neared them.


    ¡°I-Of course it is that. I know what to do now. You should leave us alone now.¡± Rita spoke.


    She was as so embarrassed that it was a miracle she was able to say anything at all.


    But the snake did not show any signs of leaving. In fact, Ava sat down on a nearby rock and faced the pair.


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid I cannot take that risk. It was not long ago when you were fumbling like a virgin in Aurora¡¯s arms. I need to be here in case things derail from the track.¡± Rita gritted her teeth.


    She wanted to attack the snake and make her leave. But Aurora had a tight grip on her arms that prevented Rita was moving.


    ¡°H-Help me out already. O-Or get out. I w-will find someone to h-help me out.¡± Aurora spoke. Her consciousness seemed to being and going out in intervals.


    Rita felt trapped. Ava¡¯s smug face finally caused Rita to take action.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care if you watch us. But I will harm you if you bring this upter.¡± Rita warned before she discarded what was left of her clothes.


    She could feel the snake¡¯s eyes roaming all over her body in appreciation.


    ¡°Nice body.¡± Rita held in the urge to gut Ava as the elder whistled in her direction. Rita¡¯s only focus was on Aurora in her arms.


    The female was wing away at Rita¡¯s arms. Her body was rubbing against Rita¡¯s in an attempt to seek relief.


    Her pussy was wet from their previous activities. But Rita still needed to stretch her apart.


    She chalked the honey-like substanceing out of Aurora¡¯s pussy as a side-effect of the venom. Her throat felt parched to have a taste but she held herself back.


    Rita¡¯s mouth licked Aurora¡¯s body but she hesitated once she reached that pussy.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Go ahead and have a taste. That is not a side-effect of my venom.¡± Rita felt a hand on her head before it was forced down.


    Aurora cried out as Rita¡¯s tongue made contact with her pussy. The voice echoed inside Rita¡¯s mind and made her forget whatever she had been thinking.


    Her tongue also decided to make the best of this situation and taste the substance in front of her.


    vor busted across Rita¡¯s tongue as soon as she made contact with the honey-like liquid. There was no way this was a normal substance.


    It had an almost sweet taste to it. And it also filled Rita with energy.


    ¡°Go ahead. Lick it all off. Get her ready for your cock.¡± Unfamiliar hands slipped down toward Rita¡¯s penis.


    Rita¡¯s half-erect hardness was nowhere ready for a second round. But it started to react once Ava¡¯s hands reached toward it.


    Something wet was smeared across Rita¡¯s cock. It made Rita buckle her hips out in pleasure.


    ¡°W-What are you doing? Don¡¯t touch me.¡± Rita broke away from Ava¡¯s hold with considerable effort. Aurora protested against the loss of friction on her pussy.


    ¡°I¡¯m just helping you go at it again. My venom can be used as an aphrodisiac.¡± Ava exined as she held her hands up.


    Her hand did have a colorless stain on it. But Rita did not believe her.


    She wanted to stand up and confront Ava. But Aurora did not give her a choice in this matter.


    ¡°You promised to help. F-Fuck you. If you don¡¯t have the guts to fuck me then I will do it myself.¡± In a sh, Rita felt her position being reversed by Aurora.


    Aurora had a hand on her pussy, fingering it open. While her other one positioned Rita at her entrance and finally took the final plunge.


    Rita¡¯s brain went empty at that sensation. It was warm and tight.


    It was nothing like she had ever felt before.


    ¡°It is fun, right? You feel like you can get addicted to this feeling. To this flow of energy. This is why this tower is so powerful.¡± Ava pointed out.


    Rita did not have enough brain power to be able to curse her out. Not when Aurora¡¯s insides felt like they would squeeze Rita¡¯s essence out.


    That tight pussy was too much for Rita to handle in her current state. Her body could notst any longer as it was finally released.


    Aurora kept going even after Rita went limp. Aurora¡¯s body had released as well but her body had not calmed down.


    ¡°AVA. THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT. FIX THIS.¡± The release had given Aurora just enough presence of mind to demand this.


    The binding magic shed around Ava¡¯s neck. The snake¡¯s amused expression turned into a solemn one as she neared the pair.


    ¡°Sheesh. There is no need to be so demanding. You are a goddess and you should behave like one.¡± Ava scolded.


    Aurora detached herself from Rita before she could start moving. She did not want to take advantage of Rita any longer.


    Ava¡¯s hand moved toward Aurora¡¯s pussy and inserted on finger inside Aurora.


    ¡°I will help you out this once. Do not make this a habit for me. Unlike humans, I gain no pleasure from this act. I am just a great actor.¡± Ava exined as she fastened her pace.


    Aurora felt her stomach clench as the orgasm approached her faster and faster.


    And when Aurora finally hit her peak she felt like she had exploded. The pleasure was too great and so was the magic.


    ¡°Unfortunately, this act is something a goddess cannot shy away from. Get used to doing it a lot. You will need to build up your resistance until you ept your true identity and ovee my venom.¡± Ava exined as Aurora caught her breath.

 Chapter 43

    ¡°Ava, why did you do that? You could have caused a huge problem for us.¡± The first thing Aurora did when she felt her mind return to her was ask Ava.


    ¡°I told you. It was not my intention to drug you. I was not even aware that my venom could affect a goddess. I just wanted to ease tension between you and yourpanion.¡± Ava exined.


    ¡°And you thought making me horny was the best way to do this?¡± Aurora questioned.


    Ava did not see what the big deal was. Goddesses she had seen before liked to indulge in these acts to increase their powers.


    Surely there was no need to make a big deal out of it?


    ¡°There was an attraction between you both. I just sped up the process for what would eventually end up happening. Is there a need to make such a big fuss about it?¡± Ava questioned.


    Aurora could see the confusion and stubbornness in Ava¡¯s aura. She instantly knew that this conversation was not going to go anywhere.


    ¡°Forget it. Just don¡¯t do that again without my permission. Also, do we have some water with us?¡± Aurora asked.


    Ava handed her hand out and a familiar screen appeared in front of her,


    [Registered user Ava Torkas asking to be granted ess to the system. Should the system register the individual as a user?]


    How the snake learned about Aurora¡¯s system, she was not even going to ask. Aurora just pressed ept and granted Ava ess.


    The sh instantly appeared in Ava¡¯s hand.


    ¡°Wicked. Is this some kind of human technology? It feels like magic but I¡¯ve never seen magic be used in this way before. It is even tugging at my magic.¡± Ava sounded in awe.


    But Aurora felt no joy in being praised by the snake. Her head was spinning just thinking about the kinks she would have to straighten out.


    ¡°Rita, time to wake up. Have some water as well.¡± Aurora shook the younger, yet taller body lying at her side.


    Rita looked exhausted when she pushed her body into a sitting position and took the offered sh. Aurora could see that Rita had not woken up yet.


    ¡°Sip slowly. You don¡¯t want to lose Aurora¡¯s taste just yet.¡± Ava teased and Rita choked o the water.


    ¡°AVA!¡± Aurora¡¯s voice sounded snapping. The goddess¡¯s hands rubbed along Rita¡¯s back to ease her out of the coughing.


    ¡°I-I am alright. That beast¡¯s words just took me by surprise.¡± Rita assured. Her re was anything but friendly when she looked at Ava.


    Aurora did not buy the innocent look Ava was trying to give her.


    ¡°Don¡¯t mind her. It is all Ava¡¯s fault for my condition earlier and I even ended up dragging you in that mess. Do you want me to take responsibility for my actions?¡± Aurora offered.


    The goddess part of Aurora protested against the idea. It did not want to bow down to anyone.


    Least of all a human who held no noticeable power in her hand.


    ¡°I-Excuse me? There is no need for you to take responsibility. I was the one who instigated our encounter. I also agreed to it all. It is as much my fault as it is yours.¡± Rita argues.


    Aurora did not agree but she could feel the fight in Rita. Any protest she made was going to be countered by Rita.


    ¡°So you don¡¯t want to be with me?¡± Aurora knew she was ying dirty. Rita¡¯s pinched face told her that much.


    ¡°Of course, I want to be with you. But not like this. I want you to give me a chance because you like me back and see me as an adult. But I can see it in your eyes that you are still conflicted about me.¡± Rita was not wrong.


    As much as she felt and looked like her adult self, Aurora was having a hard time differentiating herself from her teen self.


    ¡°So, what do you want to do now? Humans are so confusing. You should just forget your feelings and live for the moment like us beasts. I know. I can drug you both again so that you can solve your sexual tension.¡± The pair ignored Ava¡¯s words which caused the snake to pout.


    But Aurora could feel the snake¡¯s true feelings. This was all an act to hide her curiosity over this situation.


    ¡°No need. I want to court Aurora properly as an adult. I will make you see me as an adult and then make you mine. I just want the opportunity to be able to do that. I want to stay by your side.¡± Rita was on the verge of pleasing.


    Aurora knew she should not ept.


    She should not ept and lead Rita on. There was no ce in Aurora¡¯s heart for anyone except Clove.


    Aurora knew that much. She did.


    ¡°Alright. You can try if you want to. I won¡¯t stop you.¡± But her mouth still ended up saying something else.


    Rita looked relieved so Aurora did not feel bad about her decision.


    ¡°That¡¯s fine. So, when are we going to leave this ce?¡± Rita asked. The younger did not look at Aurora when she asked that question.


    ¡°Soon. We are just waiting for one more person to join us.¡± Aurora exined.


    Rita did not loom surprised at Aurora¡¯s answer. But Ava did look curious enough to ask. Aurora waited for her question.


    But a familiar presence stopped her thoughts short.


    ¡°I can sense someone powerful heading out way. Should I make them stop?¡± Ava asked. The snake stood up as she faced the direction the intruder was walking in from.


    But Aurora let out a small relievedugh as she waved her hand.


    ¡°No need. She is here because I offered her a ce in my academy. There is no need for you to get violent on my behalf.¡± Aurora stopped Ava before she could strike.


    The overlooker instantly calmed down. But her curious aura continued to poke Aurora.


    ¡°Am I unwee here now? Did I take too much time making this decision?¡± Astoria sounded hesitant. She stood outside the cave with her spear held at ready.


    The confidence she had shown in the fight before was nowhere to be seen. But Aurora did not feel disappointed.


    And how could she be when she had already been acquainted with Astoria¡¯s shy self beforehand.


    ¡°Nah. You¡¯re here in time. You are free to join us.¡± Rita offered. The girl seemed to have calmed down a lot after her growth.


    ¡°You are-? But how did you grow up this fast? What happened to your group? And why do you have an overlooker with you?¡± Astoria asked.


    Aurora¡¯s raised hand fell at that question. There was no point In hiding who Ava was now.


    But surprisingly enough, Rita did not jump to questioning immediately. She just stared down Ava with a questioning re.


    ¡°Rita underwent the first-floor trail and came out like this. As for Ava? We have a contract we cannot reveal anything about. Is it going to be a problem?¡± Aurora spoke.


    She ignored Rita¡¯s ¡®It makes so much sense now and focused on Astoria.


    ¡°I see. No, it is not going to be a problem. It will be my pleasure to be working with you in your academy.¡± Astoria replied.


    Aurora frowned. Astoria had agreed but her aura still had an ufortable feeling to it.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Aurora asked. She hoped that whatever Astoria was about to say would not cause any problem.


    ¡°I agree to be a teacher at your academy but I cannot head there right away. I need to retrieve something from the Abyss Tower first.¡± Astoria sounded distressed.


    ¡°Retrieve something?¡± Aurora asked.


    She was not sure why, but her brain reminded her about important events that happened around this time.


    ¡°Yes. It is of the uttermost importance that I retrieve that item. So I cannot join you right now.¡± Astoria sounded sorry.


    And Aurora knew what she had to do.


    ¡°Rita, Ava. Can you both do me a favor?¡± the pair nodded with suspicious eyes.


    ¡°Return to the Rocx valley without me and take care of it until I return. I will help Astoria finish her business and join you shortly.¡± Aurora assured.


    ¡°You can¡¯t be serious!¡± Rita cried out. As Aurora had expected, Rita was going to be a problem.


    But Aurora also knew how to handle her.


    ¡°I-NO. Don¡¯t look at me with those eyes. You know I am weak for them. Alright, fine. I will listen to you this time.¡± Aurora knew it was wrong of her to use Rita¡¯s feelings for her gain.


    But she did so anyway.


    Ava¡¯s stare was emotionless but the snake did not argue with her. Aurora was sure that the outlooker could sense Astoria¡¯s desperation as well.


    ¡°Don¡¯t take too long. I won¡¯t wait around for you forever. You might be favored now but the abyss is fickle.¡± Ava warned and Aurora took that warning to heart.


    She was not nning to fuck things up with her n.

 Chapter 44

    ¡°They¡¯re gone now. You are free to discuss the dragon egg with.¡± Aurora informed Astoria as she took a seat.


    ¡°I-What? How do you know about that? I m-mean, you are wrong about it being a dragon egg.¡± Astoria sounded flushed as she tried to shush Aurora. Aurora found her attempt quite amusing.


    But it did not matter in the end.


    Even if Astoria had managed to lie sessfully, her nervousness would have given her away.


    ¡°There is no point in hiding that egg. I already know about it. So why don¡¯t we discuss the reason you want to go after it now.¡± Aurora questioned.


    She did remember something about a dragon egg being stolen in the previous timeline. But neither she nor Clove had been part of the retrieval team.


    In the end, the egg had disappeared for a long time. It had never been seen since then.


    Aurora was sure that the egg had never hatched at all in her previous lifetime. And now she knew where the egg had disappeared to.


    ¡°You are right. That egg belongs to my father¡¯s hoard. As you are well aware that I am not a full goddess but a mix between a beast and a goddess. To sate my curiosity, I tried looking for the beast that had donated its DNA for my birth-¡±


    ¡°-But that beast had already been killed off by the tower. It is something the tower does to hide their trails.¡± The news did not surprise Aurora.


    She might have never seen a dragon but she did know the general characteristics of one. And Astoria¡¯s eyes were something she had inherited from her father.


    ¡°Yes. I wanted to retrieve that egg since it¡¯s the only one that was left in the next when they killed my father. You can still back out now.¡± Astoria¡¯s hesitation to stop at ¡®father¡¯ was understandable.


    So was her attempt to make Aurora back off.


    But really, there was no need for Astoria to go that far.


    ¡°Nah. I¡¯ll help you out. Mainly because I also have I want to retrieve from the tower. It is an elixir of life. Only the god of wine knew how to make it.¡± Aurora revealed.


    She had not wanted to go after the Elixir of life on her own. It was not something she needed urgently. All she needed was its location.


    That was the bait she hadid out for Rex. Her sworn brother was the one who needed that potion to cure his lover.


    ¡°Elixir of life? But there is only a limited amount of it left in the tower. It will be under as much security as the dragon egg will be. It is suicidal to try this.¡± Astoria replied.


    She sounded hesitant and her aura looked oily. That aura belonged to a dead man walking.


    ¡°It may be suicidal but I have confidence in my sess. However, it looks like you are not taking it seriously at all. You have no intention ofing back alive.¡± Aurora pointed out.


    Astoria¡¯s soulless chuckle was her answer.


    ¡°I know. But I have to try this. This is the only opportunity I have left. I did not initially want to go after that egg because I had no one on my side. But I know you¡¯ll look after that egg for me.¡± Astoria sounded confident.


    Aurora was not sure if the elder believed in Aurora¡¯s character. Or her greed for power.


    After all, having a dragon on your side was a gigantic advantage one could have.


    ¡°Look after the egg yourself. Just to be clear, I am helping you out because I want your skills. I could care less about an egg that might not even hatch in the future. So make yourself a priority or I will sacrifice the egg in exchange for your life.¡± Aurora snapped.


    The goddess part of her raged at Astoria¡¯s audacity. How dare the half-ling question Aurora¡¯s powers.


    At least the stunned and hopeful aura Astoria was letting out satisfied Aurora¡¯s temper.


    ¡°I understand. I will try not to die.¡± The oily ck aura was still around Astoria but it was considerably less dense.


    This was not a victory but it was not a loss either. Aurora decided to take it for what it was.


    ¡°Now that we have this figured out, tell me what you have nned this far? I am curious about our next move.¡± With the immediate danger out of t way, Aurora was happy to divert the leadership.


    Mainly because she did not want to spend brainpower thinking over the tower matter. Doing so would leave a sour taste in Aurora¡¯s mouth.


    ¡°Very well. I guess it won¡¯t hurt to share why I decided to take this risk now. It is because of the cab meeting. As you know, the goddess that makes up the tower council does not like to mingle together. They like their freedom and territory too much to allow coexistence.¡± Astoria spoke.


    Aurora nodded along with it.


    ¡°Of course. Too much power in one ce leads to conflicts in authority. So the cab meeting happens only once a year.¡± Aurora concluded.


    So it was this time of the year already?


    ¡°Yes. And it would be the perfect opportunity for us to sneak in and steal the egg. Their security might look tight on the outside but they are too divided on the inside. It is the perfect opportunity for us to get away with this act.¡± Astoria had it all nned.


    Aurora liked her thinking pattern.


    Having seen how the cab meeting operated, Aurora knew that this was a perfect opportunity to act.


    After all, only a fool with a death wish would attack the cab meeting which hosted the gods and goddesses.


    ¡°I agree So, when is the cab meeting?¡± Aurora asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s the day after tomorrow. People have already started to gather. I have an invite but we will need to do something about you.¡± Aurora was not liking the look in Astoria¡¯s eyes.


    That kind of manic light did not bode well for anyone.


    ¡°I don¡¯t like the look in your eyes. You are nning evil things with me. No, I don¡¯t agree.¡± Aurora tried to resist but she caved in once Astoria exined the n.


    ¡­¡­¡­¡­..


    ¡°Weedy Astoria. Is the man behind you your escort?¡± the guard asked as Astoria made her way inside the gate.


    ¡°Yes. He will be staying in the same wing as me. Inform my mother that I am here already. And also, someone gets him settled in. Do not try and take liberties with him.¡± Astoria¡¯s voice was solid.


    It sounded nothing like the timid goddess Aurora had met.


    And Aurora would have apuded her for her superb acting skill if she was not feeling so put out by her current situation.


    She passed a gentle smile to the disappointed female guards looking her way.


    ¡°Young master. Kindly follow along with me. I will show you to your quarters.¡± The guard bowed toward Aurora¡¯s disguise.


    Had it not been for her clothes concealing her chest and some hefty magic-making Aurora look almost t, the guy would have gotten a good view of her cleavage.


    ¡°Aura, make sure you take care of yourself. Do not allow anyone to bully you. And get me if you get in trouble. I will get you out.¡± Astoria¡¯s hand cupped Aurora¡¯s face.


    Aura was the name they had agreed upon for Aurora¡¯s disguise. It was close enough to not confuse the pair and distinct enough for her to not be recognized.


    ¡°I promise to ask for your help if I need it Mistress Astoria.¡± The words left a sour taste on Aurora¡¯s tongue.


    But she swallowed her difort and spoke clearly.


    Several female guards swooned at the side at her disy. They did not have anything better than to hang around back here.


    Even the male guard seemed to be blushing to look at the ¡®fake¡¯ disy of affection in front of him.


    He finally coughed to divert everyone¡¯s attention away from the ¡®sweet¡¯ scene in front of him.


    ¡°Young master, this way if you will.¡± The guard pointed. His sharp re made it clear that he expected Aurora to follow behind him.


    If not for the redness of his face, Aurora would have believed that the guard had not been affected by the disy she and Astoria had put up.


    ¡°Go. Get yourself settled in and then find me. We will continue where we left off then.¡± Astoria spoke gently as leaned closer to her ears.


    ¡°They keep the egg in the east documentary. Try getting closer¡± Astoria finally let Aurora¡¯s face go and the elder walked away.


    Aurora felt the eyes of the female guards eying her ¡®pretty boy¡¯ getup and she quickly urged the guard to hurry up.


    She had never thought that a female gaze could make her ufortable. But the ones around her were proving her to be wrong.


    And Aurora almost broke out in a shiver as she heard the ¡®it¡¯s pity he¡¯s taken. His face is my type¡¯. Girls could be crazy when they wanted to be.

 Chapter 45

    As soon as Aurora reached the room, she bolted the door shut with as much force as she could.


    The feeling of oppressive eyes of the female guard checking her out was among Aurora¡¯s most oppressive feelings Aurora had felt.


    She was far from shy in her real body. But the fear of being discovered by a guard in her current attire terrified the goddess.


    ¡®Must be all the heavy aura filling the tower. Those gods and goddesses are not even trying to hide their powers.¡± In other words, they were too proud to hide.


    Aurora decided to stay in the room for an hour before deciding to explore again. The main reason behind this was to give the female guards time.


    Time to get over Aurora and provide her with a window to leave.


    Aurora did not want to invoke her potential trump card just yet.


    ¡°Here goes nothing.¡± Aurora opened the door and forced a loud yelp down. Her face was too close to an eager Maid girl standing on the other side of the door.


    ¡°Y-You surprised me.¡± Aurora tried to calm down her beating heart.


    The face that she had not sensed the Maid girling meant that the girl had stood in front of the door for quite some time.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for the scare master. I was sent here to make sure you have everything you needed. Are you in need of an intimate service?¡± Aurora paled.


    The Maid girl was not even trying to hide her interest and intention from Aurora.


    Any passerby could hear those words and make out a hundred different meanings from those words.


    ¡°N-No. There is no need for that.¡± Aurora declined.


    It was partly shock and partly horror that made her decisions slower than usual.


    ¡°A master. There is no need to be shy. Why don¡¯t you allow me in and I can tell you all about the services we provide our guests with.¡± The female was too close to Aurora¡¯s personal space.


    Aurora¡¯s brain noticed a few details.


    The female was dressed from head to toe in a loose dress. It left nothing to be exposed to her body.


    Then there was that face. It was lovely to look at. But something about it irked Aurora. To her, itcked the natural gentleness a female¡¯s face had.


    Or maybe it was just Aurora who felt like that. Maybe she was making things up.


    But she swore that the Maid had a swelling in her throat.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be a shy master. Let me do what I here to do.¡± The Maid extended her hand toward Aurora¡¯s chest.


    And Aurora failed to stop her in her panic.


    The Maid¡¯s hand touched Aurora¡¯s chest and squeezed.


    Maria watched as the maid gave her a t look of disbelief and Aurora reacted on instinct.


    ¡°Sorry. It is your fault.¡± Aurora panicked before she mmed her magic-bound fist on top of the maid¡¯s head.


    The female copsed in her arms.


    Aurora immediately dragged the female toward the central garden. It was just a corridor away and the way was empty.


    Aurora carefully ced the maid¡¯s unconscious body on the bench and quickly left her there.


    And as soon as she left, the maid opened her eyes and rubbed her head.


    ¡°What the hell? She could have told me that she did not swing that way. She could have also told me about this n before she executed it. That punch hurt.¡± The maidined.


    But then the maid pulled her shirt up. Her t torso felt the cool breeze of the garden.


    ¡°Prince Karan, please stop disappearing on us. We have no idea what to tell the council and Lady Minerva when you pull such stunts.¡± The guard hissed.


    The ¡®maid¡¯ could see irritation sh in the guard¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°So, what did those boring hyenas want? I bet it was to scold me. I don¡¯t want to go.¡± Karan moaned.


    ¡°My prince, do not be stubborn. They are old gods and demand respect. And you should dress ordingly as well. Your subjects had prepared your clothes.¡± The guard scolded.


    Karan rolled his eyes as the guard continued.


    ¡°I will dress like how I want to. My ¡®subjects¡¯ do not get to decide for me. And you should also remember your ce.¡± Karan¡¯s voice was soft.


    But the magic in his voice left the guard breathless.


    Karan¡¯s magic was too oppressive. The guard looked like he would faint any second. But Karan reeled his magic in before things coulde to that.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go and meet those old coots. And next time, do not question my decisions.¡± Karan patted the guard¡¯s white cheeks as he walked away.


    ¡°Oh, and do me a favor and keep quiet. I will know if you open your mouth. And the consequences of tattling will not be pleasant.¡± The guard almost wet himself at the gentle smile.


    It felt like a devil was eying him.


    ¡­¡­..


    ¡®Fuck, shit, hell. I need to find Astoria and let her know what happened.¡± Aurora panicked.


    She tried not to run through the hallway in her hurry but her steps still showed her anxiety.


    The action of various female guards eying Aurora in interest did not help her calm down.


    ¡°Mister, you cannot head that way. You do not have the permission required to¡± Aurora shed his permission que toward the guard.


    The stunned guard could not stop Aurora in time.


    By the time the guard pulled himself together, Aurora was long gone from the corridor.


    ¡°What should we do? Do we issue an order to drag him out?¡± the guard questioned his partner on duty.


    ¡°We better let this matter go. Look, that que belongs to Lady Astoria. She has never brought a +1 to these events before. I don¡¯t want any trouble with her.¡± The guard sighed before agreeing.


    Lady Astoria was close with Lady Minerva. And no one wanted to be on the bad side of Lady Minerva.


    ¡°And also. That guy is incredibly beautiful. It would be a shame if something happened to that face.¡± The guard watched god-smacked as his partnermented with a red face.


    ¡°Y-Y-YOU! Don¡¯t tell me you swung that way, right? Not that I have a problem with it but it would make things weird for me if you do.¡± The guard begged.


    Only to be met with a deadpan face.


    ¡°Don¡¯t tter yourself.¡± The guard breathed easier once he heard that.


    ¡°Good.¡± The guard replied.


    ¡°What is good? Why don¡¯t you share it with me?¡± the guard paled again. His partner stiffened at that voice.


    Theirmanding officer rarely made his rounds during their shifts. It must be their bad luck that made themander choose their route to supervise.


    ¡°C-COMMANDER B-BECK? NOTHING IS WRONG SIR.¡± The guard cried as the elderly guard made his way toward the guard.


    ¡°Oh. And what about the young man who gave you the slip?¡± Commander Beck questioned.


    The guards broke out in a sweat at the question. Luckily, his partner spoke up.


    ¡°U-Uh, he¡¯s Lady Astoria¡¯s attendant. His que had unrestricted entry permission. Uh, sir.¡± The guard bowed.


    ¡°Lady Astoria? Then we should let things be for now. You go back to your post.¡± Themander replied ordering.


    The guards did not notice the curious nce theirmander gave toward the corridor behind them.


    But ultimately, he chose not to pursue his curiosity. Work was calling his name.


    ¡­¡­..


    Aurora did not realize when she stopped walking. What she did know was that she no longer recognized where she was.


    Aurora had not wanted to take such actions but things had just happened.


    But since things had happened like this, Aurora resolved herself to sneak around and take a look at things.


    The hallways blend into each other. They did not allow one to even guess where they were.


    In other words, the white walls made it extremely easy for one to get lost.


    But Aurora did not give up. She used this opportunity to map the area as far as she could. And for the first time, she felt d for the inted ego of the gods.


    Somehow Aurora managed to avoid the other divine beings andnd herself back in a familiar hallway. (only because she had marked Astoria¡¯s aura and followed it.)


    ¡°-and make sure the preparations areplete in time. I will not allow any dy to ur-¡± Astoria¡¯s familiar voice reached Aurora just in time for the goddess to spot her.


    And she was not the only one to turn her way.


    ¡°Intruder. Hurry and seize him at once.¡± The security guard ordered.


    But Astoria waved her hand and stepped forward.


    All eyes moved toward the goddess who took charge. Disbelief filled the room when the half-goddess cupped the unfamiliar but ethereal guy¡¯s face.


    ¡°You are finally here. Everyone, I shall be taking my leave now.¡± Astoria stopped her work short as she linked her arms with Aurora¡¯s.


    No one could stop Astoria from leaving. They were too busy wallowing in shock.


    And the present divine beings only shook their head in a ¡®knew it¡¯ way.


    ¡°She¡¯s finallying into her beast half¡¯s influence. Dragons were always willful creatures. Possessive of their own. Won¡¯t you agree, Karan?¡± the ck-haired god looked toward hispanion with an innocent smile.


    ¡°And why should I know anything about it? For all we know, Astoria might finally be in love.¡± The god smiled back at Karan¡¯s jab but he did not reply.

 Chapter 46

    ¡°Falling in love? That half-breed. Don¡¯t joke about that. Beasts like you and her do not know what love is. All you know is the feeling of obsession.¡± Everyone held their breath as the long-haired God blinked.


    And then he smiled the most vicious smile before separating the other god¡¯s head from his body.


    ¡°Now, now. Be careful about what you say to me, old man Zenith. You might just lose your head for real.¡± The elder God gulped as his head was handed back to his body.


    Karan had left the elder god with no face to save. And even the mortal people in the room could see that.


    ¡°So what they say is true.¡±, ¡± All gods are not born equal.¡±, ¡°I heard that gods can die as well. Maybe Karan will finally get fed up enough to end the old master for us.¡±


    The more gossip they reached Zenith¡¯s ears, the more he raged about it.


    ¡°Stop speaking nonsense. Go back to your work if you have nothing else to do.¡± Zenith¡¯s harsh words caused people to disperse.


    But the stiffenedughter did not go away. His humiliation had been burned in the people¡¯s memories.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be too harsh on them. They are mere mortals and don¡¯t know what they are doing.¡± Karen learned to whisper his next words in Zenith¡¯s ears.


    ¡°But they are right. Gods can be killed. And they are not born equal. Don¡¯t forget your ce again.¡± Karen walked away.


    The God he had left behind seethed at his retreating back.


    ¡°Fuck that bastard. Who does he think he is? He¡¯s just a young God fortunate enough to not be overshadowed by anyone else. He¡¯s not any more special than me.¡± But no one consoles the beaten God.


    Even Karan did not dignify him with a back nce.


    ¡­¡­¡­


    Aurora copsed as soon as she reached her room.


    ¡°Are you alright? Are the anti-magic wards causing you trouble?¡± Aurora¡¯s copse caused Astoria¡¯s facade to fall along with it.


    The confidence in the elder¡¯s face melted into an expression of worry and guilt.


    ¡°No. I didn¡¯t even notice the anti-magic wards so they¡¯re not the problem. The day just took its toll on me.¡± Aurora calmed the goddess down.


    ¡°I-Is that so? Then what is wrong? Is it about my actions? Should I not have dered my rtionship with you?¡± Astoria panicked.


    And since Astoria panicked, Aurora felt panic rise inside ever as well.


    ¡°Nico. That¡¯s not the problem. I don¡¯t care about that stuff. Besides, we have an even more serious problem. Someone might have found out the truth about me.¡± Aurora exined calmly.


    Her voice might be shaking and breaking, but Aurora was as calm as she could be.


    ¡°Someone did what? But it should not be possible. My mour should have protected you. Oh no! Did it fail? Is it my fault? D-Don¡¯t worry. We can still fix this. All we need to do is to find that person and kill them.¡± Astoria looked determined.


    But Aurora was not sure if it was even possible to do that. She had not spotted the maid while traveling through the garden.


    And she had left the maid in an open spot as well.


    ¡°So, who was it? Who is the one we have to silence?¡± Was it Aurora¡¯s imagination, or did Astoria look a little trigger happy at the prospect of offing someone?


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. All I know is that she was a pretty bold maid. Walked right up to me and harassed me. I knocked her out and left her in the garden.¡± Aurora recalled as much detail as she could.


    But now that she thought back at it, there was nothing to distinguish the maid. No way to tell which fraction she belonged to.


    ¡°A maid? Don¡¯t you mean a guard? No one except the guards and a guest¡¯spanions was allowed in this wing. For a maid to be able to enter here is impossible.¡± Austria sounded conflicted when she spoke.


    ¡°I think she was a maid. She did say she was there to ¡®serve¡¯ me. But I could be mistaken. There was just something about her face I cannot pinpoint right now.¡± Astoria looked deep in thought.


    Aurora¡¯s words might have given her room to think over this topic.


    ¡°If you¡¯re confident about it then I will believe you. Besides, if a maid managed to slip into this section then it is not secure. I will bring it up, Minerva when I meet up with her. We should try to sleep for now.¡± Austria did not sound like she had given up.


    ¡°I guess it is the best thing to do for now. Creating a fuzz would alert the maid that we are on to her. Besides, if she hasn¡¯t told anyone about it yet means that she is biding her time.¡± Aurora concluded.


    Talking this topic over did not solve it for her. But it did make sleeping easier for her.


    The thought of being found out didn¡¯t even invade her mind again until Astoria brought it up again.


    ¡°Be careful today. Most gods won¡¯t interfere in the tower¡¯s problem, but we can not make enemies with them. Keep a low profile and try sniffing that made out.¡± Austria advised.


    Aurora felt like she was being jabbed at when Astoria spoke to her.


    ¡°I got it. You should leave now before they send guards to collect you.¡± Aurora escorted Astoria to the hallway exit. Their walked hand-in-hand.


    The guards stationed around the hallway pretended not to see them. No one wanted to incur the wrath of gentle Lady Astoria.


    Aurora stopped before she left the hallway and Astoria turned around to face her.


    The embrace was surprising and expected at the same time. Aurora forced her yelp down as soon as she felt arms around her frame.


    ¡°Be careful. Don¡¯t try to contact me until I give you the go. And check out the left wing of the third floor. Minerva hinted that we should not go there.¡± Astoria felt her head swim as she was let go.


    But the curious auras around her and the feeling of eyes on her back helped her straighten her act out.


    ¡°Of course. I¡¯ll be careful. I¡¯ll miss you as well soe back soon.¡± Aurora waved her hand with fake regret.


    Astoria followed along with a sad smile. Things could not be going more perfect.


    ¡°Master Aura, I shall escort you back. Although you have permission to roam around, it would be for the best if you stayed in your room for now.¡± The guard warned.


    The guard looked pale as he nced around.


    Aurora¡¯s curiosity peaked and she also nced in the direction the guard was looking. And she instantly felt regret swell inside her heart.


    A female guard was eying Aurora. And from the uniform, she looked to be of a high rank as well.


    Her aura did nothing to hide her intention from Aurora.


    ¡°I understand.¡± Aurora agreed. The guard was a good man and wanted to help Aurora out.


    Unfortunately for him, the female guard decided she had enough of his disobedience.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you allow me to apany the young Master to his room? He¡¯s Lady Astoria¡¯s previous lover and extremely important. I cannot leave his security to a lowly guard such as you.¡± The female guard spoke.


    Aurora could see the struggle in that guard¡¯s eyes. He wanted to help Aurora out but he could not go against his senior officer.


    His expression told Aurora that he knew his senior officer¡¯s harmful intentions. But his hands were bound.


    Aurora never imed to be a good person. Heck, she was not even. a decent person by any means.


    But she decided to cut this guard some ck for his predicament. He had done a good job in alerting Aurora.


    ¡°I understand. I would take you up on your offer then.¡± That distributing smile on the female guard¡¯s face widened.


    Aurora was sure she was going to break her face if she did not stop her creepy actions.


    ¡°Then, this way please.¡± The guard gestured toward the opposite corridor Aurora needed to go.


    She was sure her intentions were less than pure. But she could not reject the female guard right after agreeing to go with her.


    There was no other choice but to solve this problem in private. Maybe even use magic this time to ensure her secret.


    But Aurora did not get to a single step before she felt an arm being drafted around her shoulder.


    The hallway fell silent and everyone looked pale.


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid this young man has a previous appointment with me. You all should leave us alone now.¡± The owner of that arm spoke.


    The voice sounded soft and pleasant to Aurora¡¯s ear. It also sounded familiar but that was not what made everyone tense.


    No.


    The real reason everyone tensed was because of the high amount of magical presence being emitted by that arm owner. It is heavy and choking.


    And it belonged to a powerful God.

 Chapter 47

    ¡°M-My lord? Ah, I mean, Lord Karan. Shouldn¡¯t you be in the meeting? Lady Astoria just left for it. I can take her guest to his room.¡± The female guard tried to reason.


    Her words sounded reasonable. But unfortunately for her, she was barking up the wrong tree.


    Her body refused to cooperate once the good locked his terrifying stare on her face. It was a gentle smile that was aimed at her but she still felt like an animal being caught by a predator.


    ¡°The meeting? You¡¯re right. There is still that meeting but I don¡¯t want to go. Why don¡¯t you go and deliver my message to that old hag Minerva? Tell that old hag word for word ¨C I am noting and that old hag cannot make me.¡± The God behind Aurora spoke calmly.


    But the female guard went from pale to ashes.


    ¡°I can¡¯t do that. I-I¡¯ll be killed. P-Please my lord, have mercy on me.¡± As much as the female guard has irritated Aurora, her fear felt genuine.


    Feeling her fear was going to make Aurora sick.


    ¡°Hmmm. I don¡¯t want to. But I¡¯m in a forgiving mood now. You are free to go.¡± The long-haired god waved his hand as he dragged Aurora after him.


    There was going to be gossip for sure. Aurora could already hear the words ¡®cheat¡¯ and ¡®two-timer¡¯ flowing around.


    But as much as those words irked her, she could not ask to stop. They were still in front of prying eyes.


    Thankfully, the god decided to look for a secure ce to talk. Aurora breathed a sigh of relief once she felt the door close behind her.


    ¡°So, we meet once again.¡± Her relief vanished at the god¡¯s voice.


    Aurora had been too relieved to be out of the public eye that she had forgotten the real source of danger.


    ¡°What do you want? I assure you that I cannot help you with anything regarding Astoria. We might look close but are not. Taking me hostage will also not help you in any way. It would be best for you to let me go.¡± Aurora reasoned.


    This was the moment of truth. Now she would know what the god needed from her.


    ¡°Huh? Who cares about her? I just wanted to talk to you again. But I have to say that I never took for a cross-dressing type of girl. And also, aren¡¯t you looking to be too old for your age? Shouldn¡¯t you be 13-14 for now? What do those resist¡± the guy never finished his words?


    Aurora moved on instinct and pped her hand in the god¡¯s face.


    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s the big deal? No one is going to eavesdrop on us here. You can say what you want to.¡± The god must be ying with Aurora.


    Even though his aura did not give off a being of deception, Aurora refused to let her guard down.


    ¡°Don¡¯t look at me like that? Don¡¯t you recognize me from before? And we were so close to each other as well.¡± The god fake-cried.


    Something about his face and his hair reminded Aurora of the maid she had seen the day before.


    But surely that was not possible? Aurora had to be mistaken!


    ¡°Y-You were the one in front of my door yesterday? The one who offered to ¡®service¡¯ me? What do you want with me?¡± Aurora questioned.


    But more than that, she panicked.


    ¡°Hey, calm down girl. I swear you used to be more level-headed. This has to be Rex¡¯s influence. I told you that dumb shit would corrupt you one day. Hey, watch the hair. Don¡¯t pull at them.¡± The god cried.


    And Aurora instantly let him go with a shocked face.


    She must be resembling a goldfish but Aurora had no way to confirm that.


    ¡°How are you doing that? Can you read my memories? Or did someone already tip you off about me?¡± Aurora felt her heart skip a beat.


    This was bad. This was really really bad.


    Even if the god did not look like he had a melodious purpose, his existence alone made Aurora¡¯s life difficult.


    And the worst thing was, Aurora was not even sure if she could kill that god at her current power. She was more likely to be killed in this scenario.


    ¡°Read memories? Who wants that ass power. But maybe you need it because of your poor memory? Am I really that forgetful to you? You used to call me sister along with Rex a long time ago. And by that, I meant 10-11 years ago. Our grandparents were friends. Do you remember now?¡± The god continued.


    Aurora was not sure if the god was mistaken or had simply lost his mind.


    But his tone sounded fond and his aura shined brighter when he brought up Rex¡¯s name. There had only been one person who shined this brightly when talking to her sworn brother.


    But that person was currently lying in a deepa. Aurora had personally seen the body suspended inside a crystal. And Rex had sworn to bring that person back to life.


    ¡°Still nothing? It Lucy. L.U.C.Y. And to think we used to be such great friends.¡± The male made a dramatic fainting pose.


    Disbelief filled Aurora¡¯s mind as she tried to connect the sweet but strong female from her childhood with this femboy in front of her.


    Her brain could just notpute the oue.


    ¡°H-Hey! Don¡¯t faint on me now. I¡¯m not joking around with you. Ask me anything and I can answer you.¡± Aurora almost copsed. But thankfully her sister (brother?) caught Aurora.


    What were the chances of this happening?


    ¡°Let me sit around for a while. This is a little too much to take in for me. To think I came here to get the Elixir of life for you.¡± Feelings of hope and disbelief shed inside Aurora¡¯s heart.


    She was sure she had been over this feeling in her previous life. Lucy was someone she had let go of, even if Rex had not.


    ¡°Really? So you wanted to wake me up? But I kind of like my new body, even if it happens to be a male one. It is strong and had tons of magic. The only downside is the irritating voice in my head that makes me act unlike myself sometimes. I¡¯m sure that olddy Minerva called them as instincts of a god or something.¡± The god, no, Lucyined.


    Her carefree attitude chased the doubts from Aurora¡¯s mind.


    ¡°Lucy-¡°, ¡°Call me Karan for now.¡±, ¡°-Alright, Karan. So, what are you nning to do next? Why did you chase me? And how did you recognize me in the first ce?¡± Aurora questioned.


    She had so much she wanted to ask. But Aurora could not gather her thoughts to sort them out.


    ¡°Of course I recognized you. You are a part of my horde. Both you and Rex are mine. But not in a romantic sense, you know? Anyway, it is hard to exin but I want to help you out?¡± was that a question or an answer to Aurora?


    The god looked back at Aurora with a hopeful expression.


    ¡°Alright. I believe you and understand you as well. Do you say you want to help me out? Then help me out just this once.¡± This was a bargain.


    Even though Aurora had said that she believed in Karan, she was not going to be foolish enough to not take precautions.


    ¡°Sure I will help you out.¡± The god agreed.


    Aurora had only one shot. The next few seconds would decide her future for her.


    ¡°If you really are Lucy, you would have noints in making a vow with me-¡± the male made a repulsed face at her words which offended Aurora, but she continues, ¡°-and submit your power under my control for some time.¡±


    Aurora knew her limit. And there was no way for her to be able to suppress the god¡¯s magic for a long time.


    It might have been possible in the abyss. But not outside of it.


    ¡°How long does this ¡®some time¡¯st? I am not staying defenseless for a week.¡± The god replied.


    ¡°Not that long. Just until this cab meeting is over should do. And you won¡¯t be defenseless against others, just against me. Your magic will be unable to harm me for the duration of the agreement.¡± Aurora rified.


    She could tell that the god believed her. Her aura gave Aurora¡¯s truth away.


    ¡°Alright. But how do we make this contract? Just so you know, I am not doing any ¡®lovey-dovey stuff with you. Don¡¯t even think about kissing me.¡± Karan sounded serious.


    ¡°Of course not. You are a male and I am not attracted to your species (hey, we¡¯re the same species). Hold my hand and I¡¯ll start taking care of the rest.¡± Karan shrugged but did as Aurora had asked.


    His hand in Aurora¡¯s hand felt heavier than Aurora remembered ever holding. But his body received her magic and the seal formed.


    (Temporary contract formed. Creator Aurora will remain unaffected by target Karan Lovis¡¯s magic)


    Aurora felt exhaustion creep up over her but also satisfaction. Finally, something went right for once.

 Chapter 48

    ¡°Stop looking at me like that,¡± Aurorain.


    ¡°Stop looking at you like what?¡± Karan replied. That teasing smile on this face grew in volume.


    ¡°Stop with your creepy smile. Don¡¯t you have work to do? Won¡¯t someonee looking for you if you disappeared for so long?¡± Aurora questioned.


    Rumors only needed a short time to begin cirction in a sealed environment. She was sure that everyone in the tower knew about her and Karan.


    Thankfully, nothing major would result from this rumor since Aurora¡¯s current disguise was male.


    And if Karan decided to return this early, the lingering doubt about something happening would also be crossed out from most people¡¯s minds.


    ¡°Work? Not really. But I can see that you need time to think on your own. Once you¡¯re done thinking, you can contact me by unwrapping this ribbon from your wrist. I will help you out.¡± Karan took her hand and tied a green ribbon on her wrist.


    The ribbon had a magical aura surrounding it. Aurora chose to ept it.


    ¡°Then, I¡¯ll be off. Don¡¯t miss me too much. And don¡¯t ruin the surprise for Rex, alright?¡± the god finally left.


    Aurora felt a sigh of relief fill her lung once she saw the god leave.


    This simple mission of ¡®in-and-out¡¯ had turned into aplicated mess. And Aurora had a feeling that things were going to get even harsher from this point onwards.


    ¡°System, can you locate where I am?¡± Aurora had not gotten a good look at where she was being dragged toward.


    Aurora knew the tower inside out. She had lived here long enough in her past life to be able to navigate it properly.


    Or so Aurora had thought.


    But Aurora had never been to this restricted part of the tower before. She had been an adventurer and had kept clear of the godly affairs.


    As such, she was not permitted into these parts and was now paying the price.


    (System is scanning surrounds.


    Error: map not found. Should the system start the mapping process?)


    It was just Aurora¡¯s luck to end up in such a ce.


    ording to her programming, her system could map the basic areas of ces she had been to before.


    If her system had no data on this ce, it could only be because she had never been here before.


    ¡°Great. Now, what should I do? Am I even allowed to be here?¡± Speaking aloud at this point did not change things.


    Neither did questioning herself.


    Theck of sound prating her hidden space also made Aurora vary. She quickly opened the door to peek outside.


    As she had expected, the hallway in front of her was empty. But echoes of footsteps still reached her ears.


    Aurora quickly shut the door after her. She just left it open enough to allow sound inside.


    ¡°-orders from Lord Baron. Guards at the meeting said that Lord Karan arrived there alone. He won¡¯t be able to get away in time to stop us.¡± The guard spoke.


    It was Aurora¡¯s lucky break that the guard decided to stop in front of her door while discussing these things.


    ¡°But are you sure? He was brought here by Lady Astoria. Won¡¯t she be angry? She made it pretty clear that she cares about that human male.¡± The other guard spoke.


    He sounded scared of Astoria¡¯s temper.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be fooled. Lady Astoria is just ying around. A human is beneath her status as a goddess. Besides, we are doing it for her. This way, Lady Astoria can finally romantically see Lord Baron.¡± The first guard spoke.


    Aurora reached a horrible realization. These guards were talking about her and Astoria. And if she was right, they were talking about finding her to kill her.


    ¡°I don¡¯t see what killing Lady Astoria¡¯s escort has to do with her liking Lord Baron. But I will have to agree with you about killing that escort. He doesn¡¯t strike me as a good man. He¡¯s too delicate and pretty.¡± Those words stabbed Aurora in the chest.


    It might not have been her idea to dress up as a male. But it was still her body they were insulting.


    Aurora took deep breaths in to calm her inner goddess down. This was also the time the third pair of footsteps arrived in the hallway.


    (Warning: System users 04- Alexander Beck detected.


    A warning will be issued to the user due to the proximity breach)


    Aurora tried to stop her system from sending the warning but she was toote. The system must have informed that guard of Aurora¡¯s positioning.


    Why had she added the proximity check? When had she added it? She did not remember.


    (The creator did not add a proximity check. The system AI decided to upgrade and add the feature as a security enhancement.


    Proximity check can be deactivated by clicking-)


    Aurora closed her system screen in favor of listening to Alexander speak. She needed to be aware in case she was found out.


    ¡°What are you both doing here? You do not have the clearance to be on this floor.¡± Alexander sounded exhausted.


    It had approximately been five days since Aurora hadst seen the guard but he looked like he had been through hell and back.


    ¡°Oh, and what are you going to do about it? You are nothing but daddy¡¯s little boy. Depended on him for everything. But I also heard something. They say that your daddy abandoned you when you fell in debt.¡± The guard taunted.


    Aurora did not like the guard¡¯s tone but she also chose not to step in.


    It was not her fight.


    She expected the guard to get angry. But the anger never came.


    ¡°Yes, that all happened. So what? At least I am not trespassing in this area. I was assigned here by my father. Now leave before I report you both.¡± Aurora felt bad for the tired guard.


    But that feeling did notst long.


    ¡°You cane out now. There is no use hiding from me since your ¡®system¡¯ already gave itself away.¡± Aurora did not try to pretend like she was not there.


    Her system had betrayed her already.


    She quickly stepped outside and stared the guard down. Her residual magic kept a check on the system and made sure the guard had no surprises for her.


    ¡°So it way you? I guess you won¡¯t take the system back even if I asked you to?¡± the guard asked.


    He looked to be a far cry from the scared guard she had seen only a few days ago. He had a maturity about him now.


    ¡°I will not risk it. You will have to live with your new circumstances.¡± Aurora replied.


    She did not give the guard any false hope. She could not afford to let her guard down.


    ¡°Yeah. I thought so. But what if I report you to the tower right now? That would be the end for you and Lady Astoria.¡± Alexander smirked. But his smile had no gloating quality.


    ¡°If you report me now, then you will be killing yourself as well. Do you believe that the tower will be kind enough to let you live? They¡¯ll brand you as a traitor as well for knowing about us.¡± Aurora informed.


    ¡°You¡¯re right. I will be killed. But maybe I am just crazy enough to take that risk. God knows that my father has abandoned me already.¡± The man, no, the teen replied.


    And when he turned to leave Aurora did not stop him.


    His aura had betrayed him already. He was not going to tell anyone about her or Astoria.


    ¡°If you¡¯re looking for a way out, then just go left. If you are looking for anything else, the garden is the best ce. Do not get caught by the guards.¡± Those were bold pieces of advice.


    Aurora hesitated over her next words, but Alexander¡¯s courage finally made up her mind.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to stay in the tower all your life. It is a parasite that sucks you dry. If you want a new life,e find me in the Rocx valley. I¡¯m sure you will not regret that decision.¡± Aurora offered.


    The guard left the scene without looking back. But Aurora was sure he would reach a decision soon. His aura told that much to her.


    ¡°So, the garden. I guess I better start looking there if I want to find the secret entrance.¡± Aurora whispered as she started walking.


    Alexander had taken a huge risk in telling her about this secret.


    But Aurora found a fault with his information a few minutes after waking. She had no idea where the garden was. For all she knew, she could be going around in circles.


    ¡°Hey, you! What are you doing here? Show me your permit or else I will have to report you.¡± Aurora slowly came to a stop. She looked at the guard who had stopped her.


    The male guard looked a little flushed. But he also seemed to be built simr to her. And it gave Aurora a solution to her problem.

 Chapter 49

    The male guard looked a little flushed. But he also seemed to be built simr to her. And it gave Aurora a solution to her problem.


    ¡°Ah, sure. Can you follow behind me? I need to sit down to show you the pass.¡±


    The guard followed behind her nervously.


    Maybe he could sense that something was wrong. Or he could tell that he was not going to like what was about to happen.


    But the guard immediately tried to fall once Aurora shut the door close behind her.


    It was a passable effort. But the guard did not make it very far. Aurora¡¯s nerve strike knocked him out cold.


    ¡°Sorry. It¡¯s not your fault. I just need your clothes to be able to blend in.¡±


    Aurora apologized. However, her actions contradicted her words.


    Luckily for the guard, she was a male. Aurora did not feel too bad leaving him in his under-clothes once she was finished.


    A good thing about being dressed as amon guard was theck of attention it drew toward Aurora. She could blend in far easier.


    ¡°Halt. Show me your hall pass.¡±


    The guard on duty sounded bored when he asked Aurora to stop. Staying on the same post day and night must be taking a toll on these guards¡¯ endurance.


    This time, Aurora did not hesitate to sh the hall pass she had snatched from the guard.


    Thankfully, the hall pass did not possess any initials or identifications. It was a general passmon for everyone.


    ¡°You are free to pass. Where is your assignment post located?¡± the guard asked.


    ¡°I am assigned to the garden, sir.¡±


    Aurora did not hesitate in her answer. She even bowed the correct way to make her acting more believable.


    ¡°The gardens? Are you sure?¡± the guard asked.


    Aurora nodded without hesitation.


    ¡°Weird. They generally don¡¯t post anyone at such a useless ce. Well, go ahead. You are cleared of charges.¡±


    The guard ushered Aurora inside. He did not sound worried about the schedule change. Aurora did not know if she felt grateful or worried about the tower¡¯s security.


    But lingering on the past feelings was of no use. Aurora needed to head ahead toward her destination.


    Just as the guard had said, no one else seemed to be heading the same way as her. The hallway was as good as abandoned by the guards.


    Aurora took it as a blessing in disguise. It allowed her to move undetected through the hallways and be on the outlook for the tracking devices.


    Her system also got a free reign to scan the hallway and map it out.


    The garden was located in the east-side courtyard part. And contrary to its name, it was not an actual garden.


    More urately, it would not trigger an image in your mind if you thought of a garden.


    The ground was covered with concrete but the side-lines were filled with nters. The center of the za held the most iconic structure in the vicinity ¨C a huge waterfall.


    Aurora could not spot the origin of the waterfall, nor could she see where the water went after it hit the ground.


    But she could feel the aura of magic all around that waterfall.


    And that was how she knew that the waterfall was the real deal.


    ¡°System, scan the surroundings. Try and find out the source of the waterfall.¡±


    Since the waterfall had been ced in the center, there had to be a reason behind it. To have such a garden in the tower was an oddity.


    With this much magic running around, the ce should have been filled with nts and greenery. But someone had gone through a lot of effort to make this ce vegetation-free.


    Except for the nters on the side wall.


    (Scanning finished¡­¡­


    Decoding the area map¡­..


    Asking permission to turn on the magic sensor¡­..)


    Aurora took in a deep breath before she gave the go-ahead. Her eyes burned as magic rushed toward her eyes.


    Small magic spells were easy to cast. But Aurora did not want to risk losing control over her powers if something went wrong in the process. That was why she had made the system initially.


    And she apuded herself for her foresight as she blinked her tears away. She was not sure she would have been able to maintain the spell for a long time if she did not have her system.


    Sometimes, forcing control outside of her hand was a good thing.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see what secrets the tower was trying to hide from me,¡± Aurora whispered.


    The garden no longer looked like before. Her eyes could spot a misty hue in the air. It was magic in its physical form.


    Generally, magic did not have a physical sense. But it did react with a certain type of magic to create an illusionary image.


    This could allow someone to see magic in its physical form. But the technique used for such a thing required precise control and calctions. Something Aurora was not confident in when she was in pain.


    ¡°W-What is that? Is that a magic formation?¡± the magic in her surroundings was not stagnant.


    Generally, magic did not flow on its own. Only an external force could make magic move and change shape. The bigger the force, the more magic they could move around.


    Under these circumstances, the magic in the garden should not be in motion. There was no active user in the vicinity.


    And yet, Aurora could see a small vacuum of magic toward the center of the water-fall. It gathered at the top and flowed along the water.


    And then it disappeared beneath the surface.


    Wherever the water was going, so did the magic.


    ¡°This is another dead end for me. I can tell that water is disappearing in this cavity but I¡¯m too big to enter here.¡± Aurora knelled in front of the waterfall.


    There was a small cavity in front of her. But it was too small for even the water flow to be directed into.


    If not for magic, it would have been impossible for the water to be able to disappear into the cavity.


    But that was of no concern to Aurora.


    She did not care how the water managed to get into the base below the garden. She needed to know how she could enter the base as well.


    ¡°Think of the teachings. You have read so many magic formation manuals in the tower¡¯s library. There had to be something that could help me out.¡± Aurora tried to recall.


    But the sad thing was, she had read ¡®too¡¯ many books. And no amount of retention power was strong enough to remember all the content.


    Still, she could try and think this topic through rationally. Many things stood out in this setting.


    The waterfall was the most obvious object of interest. But that was nothing more than a medium. Anything more would make it unstable.


    So it was not the device being used to maintain the spell.


    What else could there be? nts could be the answer but their magic conductance was different. They could not manipte the magic in the air.


    What else could it be in the garden that could manipte magic like this?


    Aurora felt her headache. Her thought process was in shambles and it made things difficult for Aurora.


    She decided to give her thought process some rest and look up.


    And her eyes instantly widened in understanding.


    It was no wonder that she had not realized what kind of situation she was in. It was because the real spell had been hidden beneath the magical fog and the waterfall.


    But the ss above Aurora reflected the real shape of the spell toward the ground.


    The thing fueling the spell was neither the waterfall nor the nts. The magic in the surrounding helped hide the real ¡®garden¡¯ beneath the magic mirage.


    How cunning of the tower to try and dilute the real magic with the help of extra magic. Even if someone knew that something was wrong, they would not be able to tell what it was.


    Aurora did not question why the ss above the garden was installed in such a way to give this cleaver trick away.


    There were many mysteries of the abyss tower that were better left unquestioned.


    Aurora followed the guidance of the huge ss on the ceiling. She could barely see her position.


    But she did make sure she was tapping the right spots on the floor. It was a matter of life and death for her.


    Aurora held her breath as she pressed thest red tile on the floor. She waited for something to happen but nothing did.


    Aurora started to pick herself up to try again but then it happened.


    The floor started shaking and the waterfall began disappearing.


    And there it was, the door to the underground. The road had parted to show Aurora the right way. And the feeling of magic was dense in the cavity in front of her.

 Chapter 50

    The underground area was as dark as Maria had expected. The only source of light was the sidemps lighting the wall.


    Their magic was strong but not enough to repel Aurora away from the source of heavy magic she was feeling.


    If this was the dragon¡¯s magic, Aurora could see why the human race was so afraid of it. The condensed mana down here would rival any goddess.


    If not for the protection of her powers, Aurora was sure she would not even be conscious to make it this far. And it also made sense why there was ack of security along with these parts.


    It was because anyone sensible enough to feel this aura would not daree close to it. The aura would knock them unconscious long before that time.


    But Aurora continued to walk ahead. She could feel the aura pressing against her but she kept on pushing back. She had walked too far to turn back now.


    Thankfully, the pressure of that aura did lessen considerably once she was deep enough in the chamber. The oppression no longer bothered her.


    Instead, the probing was more yful and restrictive. It shied away from her when she tried to chase that aura back.


    But if Aurora was one thing, she was stubborn.


    She followed after that feeling. She did not allow it to flee from her senses and finally found the hidden chamber she had been looking for.


    She had to admit that the tower had some sense of interior design left in their team. The chamber looked like a nest with the walls carved in heating stone and the floor made up of firestone in the center of the room held several tforms filled with important artifacts.


    Aurora would not have been able to tell what was what if she did not have prior knowledge of her objective.


    That was to say, Astoria had told her something peculiar about the dragon egg that would help her recognize the egg.


    Despite all the rumors and spections, the dragon egg was not dead.


    ording to Astoria, the egg still had a heartbeat inside it. And if Aurora focused enough, she should be able to hear the heartbeat.


    But it was easier said than done. Aurora had no experience in this department and her confidence was not on par as well.


    She was aiming in the dark, Aurora had to concentrate more than she normally would have to.


    Or so she thought.


    But the loud heartbeat was echoing in her ears a long time ago. It had apanied the shy aura she had followed after.


    But the problem was, that she did not know where the heartbeat originated from. The echo was so loud that it did not rify where it wasing from.


    ¡°System, find the source of that echo. And hurry up.¡± As happy as Aurora was to find the heartbeat, it was beginning to annoy her.


    The constant pounding of that voice in her head was getting repetitive now.


    (Echoing traced¡­..


    Finding targets¡­..


    Targets found sessfully¡­..)


    Aurora took a deep breath before she left her and fell from her ear.


    Now all she had to do was to follow her system and she would be able to find the source of her headache.


    And the location of the egg should have been predictable. It was held in the center of the room, the very middle table.


    It was asrge as Aurora¡¯s forearm and looked heavy to touch.


    ¡°System, store the egg in the inventory.¡± Aurora neared the egg and reached out to touch it.


    The egg felt smooth and hot under her hand. It gave off aforting feeling that made Aurora want to crass it even more.


    But she was on a timer and had to hurry up. She did not doubt that her being here had triggered some kind of rm in the security chamber.


    She knew how the tower worked and a ce like this was never left unattended for long. Especially so if the ce was a secret chamber like this one.


    (The system apologists to the user.


    Live objects cannot be ced inside the system¡¯s inventory)


    Aurora wanted toin about the system. But it would be like scolding herself. She had made the system and she knew that it was not omnipotent.


    Well, it could not be helped. She would have to smuggle the egg out the old fashion way.


    Thankfully, Aurora had the foresight to bring apression traveling case with her. The small pouch should be able to keep the egg inside itself.


    Or so was the n. But the egg decided to be a pain in the butt and not fit inside the pocket dimension.


    It gave off a pissed aura. Aurora had no other choice but to pick the egg up in her arms and give up their freedom.


    The egg settled down once it was in her arms. It seemed content to stay there and Aurora sighed in irritation.


    So much for a quick in-and-out job. This was turning out to be a hassle.


    ¡°-in there. We are not permitted to be down here.¡± Footsteps apanied by voices made their way toward Aurora¡¯s location.


    She only had so long to hide before she would be found out.


    Aurora quickly made a decision and she nabbed the nearest veil of liquid.


    She did not have to test it to know that it was the Elixir of life. That was the only liquid bottle down here which made it the said item by default.


    ¡°-cannot be risked. Lady Minerva is in a meeting. It is our only chance to see what the tower is hiding in here.¡± Aurora quickly jumped up in the air and used magic to hold herself above the lintel level.


    She positioned herself near the entry gate to not be seen.


    She knew that this was a blind spot once someone entered the room. No one was alert enough to look up once they entered a space.


    ¡°I know. But still, this feels like cheating. Aren¡¯t the rebels suppose to be the honorary ones in this fight?¡±


    The speaker sounded conflicted. Aurora felt bad for the poor kid.


    The speaker had made it abundantly clear that he was with the rebel forces. So technicality, they were Aurora¡¯s allies.


    But Aurora was stealing an important treasure without the rebellion¡¯s knowledge. As such, her presence here could bring a lot of problems.


    Hopefully, the rebels would not have the same objective as her during this raid.


    ¡°Honor? There is no honor in a fight. Now get started and find those papers. We need to take them back to our leader.¡± The second speaker sounded amused at the hopeful tone.


    Aurora did agree with him on that front. There was no honor in a fight. It was about either death or survival.


    Aurora could have stayed behind and cleared a misunderstanding. But she chose not to show herself.


    She quietly jumped outside the door. The dragon egg was secure in her arms when she did so.


    The climb back was not as tough as her mind was making it out to be. Aurora easily headed outside the main door and fled the scene.


    And once she was outside, she took in a deep breath and held the dragon egg a few inches away from her face.


    ¡°I saved you so you better not make me regret my decision. You better behave or I will have you cooked.¡± Aurora was joking for the most part but her threat carried a heavy tone.


    But the egg did not look concerned. Even it knew the effort it took Aurora to find it and steal it.


    It gave off a smug aura. Aurora wanted to smash it apart at the second but her rationality stopped her from making that grave mistake.


    She had promised Astoria to help steal this egg. She needed to bring it back safe and sound.


    So with a heavy heart, Aurora picked the egg up and dumped it into her side bag. At least it stayed safe there.


    But the egg decided it did not want to stay there as well. Aurora only had a fraction of a second to catch the egg before a cmity would befall her.


    ¡°You are serious giving me a heatstroke.¡± The egg felt smug in her arms.


    Aurora just sighed and left her fate up to the heavens.


    But on the brighter note, she did have the egg with her. So her side of the bargain was already fulfilled.


    Now all she had to do was to get it back to Astoria and she would be done.


    But then happened what Aurora had been fearing all along. Things went wrong and a small explosion shook the ground under her feet.


    Smoke seeped out of the passage she had existed from. And Aurora bolted from the scene. She did not look back at the smoke, nor did she loosen the hold on her egg.


    She just ran and ran till she reached her assigned room.


    And then she bolted her door shut.

 Chapter 51

    Aurora had done it. She has sessfully pulled off one of the biggest thefts in human history.


    She had sessfully stolen from the tower and walked away alive to tell the tale.


    Aurora eyes the warm egg on her bed. The aura of contentment it gave off was getting stronger by the second.


    ¡°I just need to wait for Astoria toe back now. And then we can leave this ce. But what should I do about Karan?¡±


    Aurora was not sure how to proceed with the situation now.


    It was true that she had attained their initial objective. They had sessfully managed to snatch the egg.


    But there was so much left to unpack as well.


    Aurora did not get much further in her thoughts before the knock on the door stole her attention.


    ¡°System, scan the identity of the person outside the door.¡±


    The sealing spell caused on the door made it impossible to tell who was visiting her right now.


    (Scanning identity¡­..


    The person identified as goddess Astoria¡­..)


    Those words caused a wave of relief to wash over Aurora. Her hand loosened her grip on this handle and yanked it open.


    ¡°Hurry up ande inside.¡±


    Aurora did not give Astoria a chance to brace herself before she yanked the elder inside.


    The goddess looked a little disoriented at the suddenness of Aurora¡¯s action but she adjusted pretty quickly.


    ¡°So, did you manage to get it? Where did you put it?¡±


    Astoria did not need to specify what she was talking about. There was only one thing she could be referring to.


    ¡°It¡¯s on the table. The tower really went through the grinder to keep it hidden. It was even under a powerful illusion.¡±


    Seeing as how powerful the dragons were as a specie, it was no wonder that the tower went through hell to keep it a secret from the world.


    If this egg ever happened to hatch, then a new dominant force would be born. And the proud gods could not allow that to happen.


    Astoria moved closer to the egg and reached out to it using her magic. Aurora felt the careful bnce of magic shift inside the room.


    Everything seemed to be going extremely well. And that meant that something bad had to happen.


    Two kinds of magic shed and sparks flew all over the room. Aurora had to hold herself strong or she would have been blown away by the shockwave as well.


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s question came out in a low and rasped voice. Her knees shook when she tried to stand straight and she was sure she had hurt something in her back.


    It was a good thing her magic decided to elerate her healing by quite a lot. Or the wounds on her face would have been difficult to exin in the morning.


    And she was also sure that a lot of people would have taken this as an excuse and pin wrong usations on her character.


    ¡°It rejected my magic. Dragons are quite territorial beasts so this is not a shock to see.¡±


    Astoria made it sound like an everyday urrence.


    Had it not been for magic-canceling wards, the whole tower would have known who was behind this magical explosion.


    ¡°I should try again. Maybe I should even submit to it so that the baby inside the egg doesn¡¯t see me as an enemy dragon.¡±


    Astoria¡¯s words made sense.


    Sensing it again, Aurora could see why Astoria had reached that conclusion.


    The stagnant magic in the air that belonged to Astoria felt simr to the unborn egg¡¯s. Bothcked the divine attribute of the gods but possessed the chaos factor of the abyss.


    ¡°Maybe you should not. The egg was not hostile to my magic so maybe I should be the one to take care of it¡±


    Aurora¡¯s offer was genuine. She could feel the egg¡¯s annoyance every time Astoria neared it. But the same did not happen to her when she tried to approach it.


    ¡°Maybe that will be for the best. I can see that the egg is sensitive to your magic. It¡¯s very reminiscent of a high-level abyss beast. Maybe it recognizes you as a mother figure.¡±


    Aurora wanted Astoria¡¯s words to be a joke. She could not see herself as a mother figure to anyone, much less a recently hatched beast.


    But it did make sense in a twisted way. Aurora had been the first magic the egg had felt outside of the tower¡¯s own.


    ¡°Let¡¯s not jump to conclusions. We have more important things to focus on.¡±


    Aurora diverted the attention from the current awkward talk to the main focus of her call.


    ¡°I agree. This egg feels like it is about to hatch any day. We should take precautions against that.¡±


    Astoria¡¯s words were true enough. Aurora could feel how close the egg was to hatching. Her instincts told her that it could hatch any moment now.


    But her memory was what held her back. As far as she remembered, no dragon had been deployed under the abyss banner.


    No dragon had been killed by them either. (And she would have known if the tower had killed such a mighty beast. It would have been a bragging ground for them.)


    So it was only logical to think that someone had swiped this incident under the rug in herst life.


    Someone high enough to know where the egg was being kept and powerful enough to shut everyone¡¯s mouth.


    Someone like a god or a goddess. Or even the tower master.


    ¡°Should we leave the tower now? We have what we came here for.¡±


    Aurora made that offer.


    ¡°Not now. I cannot ditch the conference tomorrow or it would raise a lot of questions. But we are free to leave after that. So all we have to do is to keep this egg a secret for one day.¡±


    Aurora heard what Astoria was not telling.


    The security was too tight for them to act right now. Guards were posted everywhere and it was impossible to even leave the room.


    The explosion in the secret chamber must have caused a chain reaction. The tower would be desperate to look for traitors in their midst.


    ¡°I understand the reason. But will we be able to leave with the egg? It doesn¡¯t like to stay in pocket dimensions. We will have to carry it out.¡±


    Aurora offered the crucial information before it became toote to be of any use.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to worry about it. I will take care of things once the timees. For now, just focus on getting past tomorrow.¡±


    Aurora had no choice but to go with the flow. Since Astoria assured her that things would be taken care of, Aurora chose to believe her.


    It was still early enough in the evening for people to be moving around. Astoria could not stay in the room any longer as well.


    As a member of the cab, she had duties she had to see to. Aurora felt d to not be part of such a busy world. She hated this kind of responsibility.


    Astoria opened the door to leave the room but a smiling face greeted her back.


    ¡°Good evening Lady Astoria. I was not aware that you were friends with my esteemed friend here. Ah, but your rtionship is something deeper right?¡±


    Karan¡¯s grinning face stood on the other side of the door. He tried to look past Astoria¡¯s shoulder but the goddess stopped him cold.


    ¡°You need not concern yourself with my rtionships, Lord Karan. Though I did happen to hear a nasty rumor about you and my dear escort. Tell me, were you bullying him?¡±


    Lady Astoria¡¯s decent mood seemed to be going down the drain by the second.


    Tension was rising in the air faster than a bird could fly. And this was the moment Aurora decided to take action.


    ¡°Excuse me.¡±


    She took Astoria¡¯s hand in one hand and yanked on Karan¡¯s hand with the other. And within seconds, the trio had disappeared from the hallway.


    The guards stationed in the hallway surely got a few topics to gossip about that day.


    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s the big deal? You could have been gentler with me.¡±


    Karanined as he rubbed his wrist in a mock of injury.


    There was no way Aurora¡¯sck of strength had left a mark on his skin.


    ¡°I would like to know what is going on here as well. Do you happen to know this person Aura?¡±


    Lady Astoria was still trying to keep up the charade of Aurora being a guy. She was performing admirably as well.


    But it was time to bring the truth to light.


    ¡°Actually, there is one thing I would like to tell you Astoria. And it concerns Lord Karan here. You don¡¯t mind if I tell her about it, right?¡±


    Aurora asked, just to make sure that they were all on the same page. She would not want to make an enemy of a god so early.


    ¡°Yeah, sure. Go ahead. I don¡¯t care about my secret.¡±

 Chapter 52

    For the second time in her life, Astoria wondered if she had been wrong about Aurora. Maybe the female had sold her out to the other gods


    Lord Karan¡¯s grinning face would certainly indicate this fact. And it would also exin what the other good was doing in Aurora¡¯s room.


    ¡°Lord Karan and I are childhood friends. No, more importantly, he is not even Lord Karan but someone else stuck inside his body.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s exnation sounded wild and Astoria should not be believing her. But there was no aura of lie or deception around her.


    Moreover, Lord Karan¡¯s aura felt clean and came across as shining to her. It was a much bigger tell than Aurora¡¯s assurance. The god had never hidden what he felt about a given situation.


    ¡°So, you mean to tell me that you are not Lord Karan. But someone else impersonating him? Then how do you have his aura around you? Is this another one of your tricks?¡±


    Astoria did believe the pair in front of her. But she had to ask just to cover all her bases.


    ¡°The body is Lord Karan¡¯s so the magic force it emits belongs to him. But the soul inside of this body belongs to someone else. And I used to know Aurora when she was young.¡±


    Things were beginning to make sense to her now. And it also exined a lot about Lord Karan¡¯s recent behavior.


    The entric god had always been carefree. But it was only recently that his carefreeness had begun to take an unconscious role.


    Sometimes, heshed out at the smallest of things. It indicated that he was having trouble keeping himself in check.


    ¡°I see. What name would you like for me to use? Should I call you by your older name? It would confuse but I can exin that it is a nickname for you.¡±


    As awkward as Astoria felt about calling the man another name, she would do it if it meant that he would keep her and Aurora¡¯s secret.


    ¡°There is no need to. I have gotten used to this name and form. This body is much morefortable than my previous one anyway and I always wanted to live as a guy.¡±


    Astoria tried to understand where the man wasing from but she could not. Gender was not a big norm for gods and goddesses as it was for everyone else. Most gods and goddesses could shift between either gender but preferred a dominant form that they kept.


    ¡°I see. So was that all? You will keep our secret?¡±


    Astoria was hurrying the god to make a decision. She needed verbal confirmation of security from the other.


    ¡°Yeah, I will keep your secret for now. I want to help Aurora in her time of need and I also do not want to give those old fools any unnecessary advantage.¡±


    Lord Karan¡¯s tone indicated that there was some beef between him and the other council. Astoria had never heard about such a thing before.


    ¡°Don¡¯t mind him. It¡¯s something from his previous life he¡¯s carrying over.¡± Aurora assured.


    ¡°Oh, I see. In that case, I will try not to think too deeply about this issue. Though that does exin how the resistance got past the tower defense so many times.¡±


    Karan¡¯s grin was a little maniac when he looked back at the pair.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are talking about. I just toss whosoever I want to in the fold and call it a day. The guard candidates do not get a choice in this matter.¡±


    Astoria just shook her head at the usible denial the man in front of her presented her with.


    He was a devilish man who hid behind a carefree exterior. She would not make the mistake of underestimating him again.


    ¡°I shall be going now as well. As much as I want to shaft my duties, that old hag will have my head. And for the love of God, do something about the egg¡¯s aura and smell. Anyone who walks in here could tell what you stole.¡±


    The man left with just as much fanfare as she had arrived. But he had presented the pair with useful advice.


    ¡°What should we do now?¡±


    Aurora asked. If they believe Karan¡¯s words, then that made the situation much more dangerous for them.


    ¡°For now, stay here and spray the room in perfume. I will leave my magic residue behind since it is simr enough to the egg. Make sure to supply your magic to the egg in the meantime to help it hatch.¡±


    As expected of Astoria, she had a few methods ready to try.


    By the time the elder goddess left, Aurora¡¯s room positively reeked of strong perfume and other kinds of smells. The magic inside the room was thick and ufortable as well.


    And hopefully, it would be enough to get them by till they had to leave the tower.


    ===========================


    ¡°You all, leave this ce. You are not permitted to be here.¡±


    The guards froze as soon as a powerful presence descended upon them. No one could even lift a finger in the almighty goddess¡¯s presence.


    Lady Minerva was a vision of beauty and grace. Her face held an ageless beauty along with a healthy sheen. Her eyes were a captivating shade of blue, the same as her daughter¡¯s.


    She was not beautiful in an aesthetic way but in an other-worldly way.


    ¡°L-Lady Minerva, allow me to make this report to you.¡±


    The guard fumbled his words when he faced the goddess. Her soul-piercing eyes were too much for a mere mortal to be able to handle.


    After all, she was hailed as a half-incubus. That was the source of her magic.


    Like all gods and goddesses, her magic was also a counterpart to the lord of the abyss. There were 7 main counterparts to the sevenmandments of the abyss.


    ¡°You all can leave now. I do not need you any longer.¡±


    Her words were cold and the guards around her shivered. Their weakness disgusted the goddess but she did her best to not sneer at their retreating back.


    The goddess inside her would not allow her to show such an undignified side of her character.


    She did not need those foolish guards to tell her what happened since she had already picked up the briefing file submitted to her.


    It was daring of the resistance to send their soldiers to confront her in broad daylight. But they had underestimated her security breach.


    The two people they had captured might not have talked about their origins or their purpose foring here, but there was no need to ask that of them.


    After all, dead people did not talk and those two captives would not survive the night in interrogation.


    They were not even aware that their thoughts were not safe inside their mind. An empath was reading their thoughts all the while and making a record.


    The secret base looked almost destroyed when Lady Minerva stepped into the room. The debris made it difficult to spot where things were ced but Minerva had sorted this ce out enough times to know which thing went where.


    However, the more she sorted the things, the more she felt like something was missing.


    The dragon egg she had stored in this room no longerid there. It had been stolen by someone.


    But how would dare steal from a goddess?


    It could not have been the rebellion since their thoughts did not show that they were after it.


    Unless the rebellion had found a way to counter the empaths, there was no way they would have been able to hide this information from her.


    And that meant that there was someone else who had entered this room as well. Someone whom even the resistance did not have any knowledge about.


    And Lady Minerva had an idea who could have down that.


    Although she did not want to put Astoria under suspicion, the younger had been making pretty suspicious moves all this time. She had even been bold enough to bring a cleverly disguised femalepanion.


    Whatever she was cooking, Minerva had turned a blind eye to it. But if she was behind this theft, then it changed things for them.


    ¡°Someone, go and get the tower master. We have a few rats to catch.¡±


    Minerva hated the thought of involving the tower master in this situation. She had no love left for that lineage since they had deteriorated every generation.


    But she still could not help but hold out the hope for the youngest master of that household.


    Quince was a good kid and had a sensible head on his shoulder. He would be a good leader with Clove by his side.


    As for his father, he was a necessary evil she had to bear for now. And it was also something he had to know about.


    Things needed to change inside the tower and a silent investigation needed to be carried out in the meantime.

 Chapter 53

    Minerva took her time observing the basement room she had taken so much pain in organizing. She had shed blood, sweat, and tears to make it as theft-proof as possible.


    But in the end, it seemed to not have mattered to those who broke in here and made a mess of things.


    And for that, they needed to die. Minerva would teach them a lesson as soon as she finds out who did this to her.


    ¡°Lady Minerva, the cab meeting is about to start. What should I tell the other members?¡±


    Lady Minerva had forbidden anyone from entering here. But there were a few exceptions to that rule.


    The shadow warriors were a huge help in all her operations. And they could not currently betray her. They had grown up only knowing one had that fed them ¨C Minerva¡¯s.


    As such, the thought of betrayal could not even cross their mind. They made much better pawns than Astoria.


    And for Minerva that made all the difference.


    ¡°Tell the cab that I¡¯ll be there in a few minutes. I need to take care of some things before I can face them.¡±


    The shadow warrior did not even flinch when she was leveled with Minerva¡¯s hard gaze. She just bowed and left the room.


    Being a soulless husk of flesh had its own advantages sometimes.


    Minerva cast an illusion spell on the chamber and prepared herself to leave the ce. She would not gain anything by staying here.


    But she was curious about the rebel soldiers that had managed to infiltrate this deep.


    It was too bad she would never get to visit them. They would be dead by the time her cab meeting ended.


    ===============


    Aurora tried not to pace around in her room. But she could not stop her nervousness from bursting and affecting her mood.


    -baam


    The knocking on her door was getting urgent by the second.


    ¡°Lord Aura kindly open the door. We know you are in there. We just want to check a few things.¡±


    This knocking had been going on for some time now. There was only so much time when Aurora could pretend that she was in the washroom.


    She had to open the door before higher authorities got involved in her case. Aurora had to just pray that her perfume was enough to ward the people off the strange smell of the dragon egg.


    -baam


    The noise was particrly loud this time. The guard knocking on the door must be running out of patience.


    ¡°Lord Aura, if you don¡¯t open the door now then I will have no choice but to involve the authorities in this case. We have strict orders from the tower master to investigate every person inside the tower.¡±


    ¡°You only have a minute to open this door.¡±


    Aurora panicked and flew toward the door. She quickly opened it to face the guard outside.


    ¡°Let¡¯s not be so hasty now. I was just trying to enjoy my free time, you know. My body has needs it needs to take care of.¡±


    Aurora cringed as she winked at the female guard standing behind the main one.


    The poor girl blushed at the attention being bestowed on her by Aurora but she managed to keep her professionalism.


    This seemed to be pissing off the main guard. He disliked flirty young masters who were born with a silver spoon with a passion. And that was what hebeled Aurora as at first nce.


    ¡°Enough chit-chatting. Hurry up and search the room. Do not dare and leave any spot unnoticed.¡±


    The female guard gave Aurora a side nce that said ¡®sorry, can¡¯t help it¡¯ before the pair forced their way in.


    Aurora might be a goddess but she did not want to blow up her cover. She had no choice but to let the pair do what they wanted to in her room.


    Thankfully, the guard took the right side of the room while the female walked off toward the bed.


    ¡°This ce smells really strange. How much perfume did you use?¡±


    The make guard seemed to be finding fault with anything and everything.


    Aurora would have rolled her eyes at any other chance but her mind was not in the game right now.


    ¡°Well, Lady Astoria has her preferences in this matter.¡±


    Aurora tried to make her tone as suggestive as possible.


    She knew she might be damaging Lady Astoria¡¯s reputation by making up such a rumor about her but she was sure the other goddess would understand.


    ¡°I did not need to know that. Anyway, Anna, I¡¯m going to check the bathroom. Make sure you check the bedroom thoroughly.¡±


    The male guard looked a little red in the face. Aurora did not even want to imagine what he had been thinking when Aurora told him the news.


    The female guard looked flushed at the sudden sh of information but she handled it much better than the male guard.


    And that is to say, she did not lift her head up again as she searched beneath the bed.


    And then she reached for the bed covers and tried to lift them. And Aurora panicked.


    ¡°Let¡¯s not do that. I¡¯m sure Lady Aurora wants to keep some of her modesty intact. Let¡¯s not expose her deeds to anyone or I will need to silence you.¡±


    Aurora held the hand close to her chest but still far enough to not make her secret obvious. Her face was close enough to the female guard to make her nervous.


    She could see that she was making the female guard flustered. The red-faced female was getting distracted sessfully.


    ¡°Oh, is that so? I didn¡¯t know Lady Astoria was interested in intimacy. I should probably not check this in the future.¡±


    Thedy guard had drawn her one conclusion. Aurora sighed in relief once she felt the burden lighten from her shoulder.


    Mission sessful.


    -Baam


    ¡°Oi Anna, are you done yet? If so thene here and help me open this basin.¡±


    The female guard looked conflicted at his superior¡¯s order. Aurora could feel her desire to stay with her.


    ¡°Go. He needs you in there. You can alwayse and find meter.¡±


    Aurora lightly pushed the female toward the guard inside the bathroom. And thankfully, the female guard did not linger outside for a long time either.


    It was only once they left did Aurora breathed a sigh of relief and looked beneath the cover.


    The eggid on the bed was as perfect the day as she had stolen it. And she could not help but let her dissatisfaction bleed in her voice.


    ¡°You are a real piece of work. Making me go through such hoops to protect you.¡±


    And of course, there was no answer to her question. But the egg¡¯s aura felt smug to her.


    In the end, Aurora decided to pick the egg and change its location to the right side of the room.


    She managed to straighten herself up right in time for the other two toe back outside.


    ¡°You are lucky we did not find anything. But that doesn¡¯t mean you are out of the suspicion lest yet. You have a weird air around you and I don¡¯t trust that.¡±


    Aurora had to give it to this guard. He had a really well-developed instinctual power. Or maybe it was his luck that was so great.


    ¡°I will remember and take your words to heart.¡±


    The guard red at Aurora when he left. The girl behind him also gave Aurora an apologetic smile before she left.


    Aurora held her breath and only released it once the pair left her vicinity.


    She had managed to get away from one inspection but it was only one of the many toe. She was not sure how she would be able to survive this more than a few times.


    ===============


    Astoria took in a deep breath to psyche herself before she took her seat. She had to do her best to not draw any attention to herself.


    She could already see the people around her taking their assigned seats but she could not see anyone¡¯s face.


    The seating arrangement in the cab was unique. It had a curtain in-between every chair space to maintain the privacy of the gods.


    It might be all for the show, but it was a long-held tradition.


    Astoria¡¯s eyes moved toward the center of the stage where the seats for the major 7 gods and goddesses were located.


    Among those 7, only 5 were affiliated with the cab and only 4 attended regrly. That number had been cut to three this year since Lady Asami could not get away from her work.


    Lord Karan sat in his seat but anyone could tell that he was not interested to be there.


    At his side sat Lady Me, the beautiful goddess of cmity. Her temper was legendary among the towermunity and everyone knew not to anger her.


    Unlike the other gods and goddesses, Lady Mei had no filter.


    And everyone could feel her irritation sitting in the same room as her. She was getting impatient.

 Chapter 54

    ¡°How boring. Why does Minerva insist on doing this every time? And she iste as well.¡±


    Karan could only shake his head at the cmity¡¯s goddess. She was too much for him to handle in this early morning.


    Things could get difficult with her anytime and Karan was not in a mood to pacify her if she decided to go berserk.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure Minerva has her reasons. Personally, I don¡¯t mind her beingte. It will mean that the meeting was cut short and I like that.¡±


    Karan was notzy by nature. He just did not like to spend effort where he did not need to. And the tower was certainly not a ce he wanted to spend her effort in.


    When he had been Lucy, there had been a period of time when he had admired the tower.


    To conquer the abyss was not an easy task to aplish. It required strong willpower and attitude to aplish such a feat.


    He had even argued against the rebels when they hade to his home to ask for help. But the decision had ultimately lied to his parents.


    And they had decided to tower about their deeds.


    In the end, they had beenid to rest by the other nobles that could not afford for the tower to lose such strong support. And Lucy had joined the rebellion.


    But that was a talk of the past. Lucy was no longer that little girl but a powerful male god.


    He had to get his head in the game if he did not want to give himself away. Especially not now when Aurora had gotten involved in this mess.


    Karan had always kept tabs on the girl that had like a sister to him. He had seen her try and infiltrate the tower during the selection test.


    And then he had lost contact when she had stormed out of the room.


    Had it not been for him keeping tabs, he would not have recognized her in her adult form at all.


    He did not have to question why the younger female looked like an adult. He could already smell the abyss all over her.


    And staying in thismunity you learned not to question the abyss and its actions. Even the gods could not go against it.


    ¡°Finally, she decided toe. I was getting bored.¡±


    Karan lifted his head up at Mei¡¯s words.


    And true to her words, Minerva had decided to grace the room with her presence. Her head was held high and her aura screamed power.


    She was the true definition of a goddess beloved by the abyss. She was upright and tried to do the right thing.


    If not for her inflexibility, Karan would have liked her as well. She was thinking of the betterment of themon people after all.


    ¡°Everyone, take a seat. It is time we start this meeting. I am sure you have a lot of questions about me and my actions. And it is time we address them all.¡±


    ===============


    Minerva could see that the people were getting agitated at her dy.


    But she also knew that the cab was made up of cowards and fools.


    As high and mighty gods and goddesses tried to make themselves out to be, they were nothing more than the tower¡¯s pawn. They were given this power by the tower and even their title held no meaning.


    These people might have the instincts of a divine being but that did not make them divine themselves.


    Minerva¡¯s eyes fell on Astoria and her regal form.


    ¡®Perhaps not all of them were a lost cause.¡¯


    But the sess of one did not make up for the failure of the others.


    ¡°Everyone, take a seat. It is time we start this meeting. I am sure you have a lot of questions about me and my actions. And it is time we address them all.¡±


    Minerva could already see the eager faces looking back at her. These people were not even trying to hide the fact that they wanted to drag her down from the main seat.


    Too bad, the main seat was not a favor but a shackle. The 7 original gods would never be reced by anyone outside the circle.


    ¡°Boo. You took your sweet time getting here. I was beginning to get bored.¡±


    Mei was the first one to greet Minerva. This was something Minerva had expected to happen.


    Mei was not the most patient person in the world. And her temper was legendary even among the gods.


    Karan looked more subdued to see her arrive. Generally, he tried to egg Mei on and cause as much havoc as he could.


    But he looked a little lost in thoughts today.


    ¡°Lord Karan, are you bored as well? You can leave if that is the case.¡±


    It would be ideal to have Lord Karan here. The god had a presence that was strong and scary. Most people would not even dare utter a single word in his presence.


    ¡°No, I am good. I was just thinking about something.¡±


    ¡°More like someone. Are you missing your lover already? I head about him from the gossip vines.¡±


    Minerva arched her eyebrow in surprise.


    Of course, she had heard the rumors regarding Lord Karan and Astoria¡¯s escort. But she had not paid much attention to them.


    Knowing the people of the tower, they could gossip about anything and everything.


    ¡°You should not believe everything you hear in the gossip Mei. My rtionship with Aura cannot be exined in words.¡±


    Minerva felt shocked at the admission.


    Lord Karan took extra care not to form rtionships. He was a certified weirdo and someone who no one liked to mess with.


    ¡°Is that a confirmation? Are you admitting to having a lover? And a male lover at that? I never thought I would see the day.¡±


    Lady Mei broke out inughter.


    ¡®What is going on down there?¡¯, ¡® Did Lord Karan tell a joke?¡¯, ¡®Darn these magic canceling-stones. I can¡¯t hear anything at their present volume.¡¯


    Minerva felt her temper rise at the ridiculous situation.


    She could not allow rumors to rise due to this misunderstanding. She had to cut the gossip off before it could get any further.


    ¡°Ridiculous. What good would holding on to a mortal do for you? Remember, humans, are as insignificant as ants to us. They will pass in the blink of an eye.¡±


    ¡°The only thing we need to focus on is¡­.¡±


    ¡°¡­.the continual survival of the human species. We know. You don¡¯t have to repeat it every chance you get olddy.¡±


    Mei cut Minerva off.


    Minerva could tell that she had already lost the interest of the two gods in front of her. This situation was beyond salvageable.


    ¡°Lady Minerva, can we start this meeting now? It is gettingte and I need to head back to my territory.¡±


    Everyone held their breath as a minor god finally decided to stand up and say his thing.


    Speaking such words was akin to suicide for most. But the god that had stood up to interrupt Lady Minerva has a good pedigree.


    He was also close with Lady Asami. So he knew that he would be rtively safe even if he caused a minor scene.


    ¡°You are right. We should start this meeting now.¡±


    Those words brought mixed emotions to the present party. All they could do was stare at each other and wonder if they had seen the same thing.


    After all, it was unlikely for Lady Minerva to let someone behave like this and not say anything.


    ¡°So, do any of you have any questions for me?¡±


    Lady Minerva decided to beat around the bush and ask the question.


    For a minute, it looked as if no one would dare ask her anything. They were all too scared of any potential reparation to even open their mouth.


    But then someone finally stepped ahead and raised his hand.


    ¡°If thedy doesn¡¯t mind, I would like one of my questions answered. It is regarding the recent permission you granted. Why did you allow a no-name person to open a training academy in the Rocx valley of all ces?¡±


    It was the tower master who spoke up.


    Minerva felt her temper rise as he questioned her decision. How dare a human try and humiliate her like this? Did he not want to live any longer?


    But then she took in deep breaths and calm herself down.


    Of course, he would ask something like that. He had been trying to get an answer out of her all this time.


    But Minerva had underestimated his desire to know the answer. He had taken ount of this opportunity and forced her into a situation that was difficult to answer.


    But she had an out as well.


    ¡°It was not my decision but a request made by Lord Karan. That was all.¡±


    Everyone¡¯s attention shifted from her to the carefree god at her side.


    ¡°What? I was just bored and wanted action. I don¡¯t care about anything else.¡±


    It was such a Karan action that no one could even say anything against him.


    After all, who did not know of his weird habit of picking up strays and collecting them in the guard squad?

 Chapter 55

    Aurora was not having a good day.


    She had thought that she would be safe after the first inspection had been done but she could not be more wrong.


    She was sure that the guards had an agenda against her because someone kept on knocking at her door and trying to enter for inspection every few minutes.


    -baam


    ¡°Open the door. It¡¯s the inspection squad.¡±


    This was the fourth time someone was at her door. They just kept oning and Aurora had given up at this point.


    ¡°How many times are you going to check my room? You won¡¯t magically find something the fourth time you decided to go through my things.¡±


    Aurora tried not to sound as annoyed as she was but her tone could not keep up with her mind.


    The guard seemed to find fault with her speech because he pushed Aurora aside and forcefully entered the room anyway.


    ¡°Make a full inspection and be thorough.¡±


    The other guards looked exhausted but they followed along anyway.


    Aurora had no choice but to enter and make preparations for another game of hiding the egg. This was getting exhausted now.


    ¡°Excuse me. Once you are done, can I go out to the gardens? It is getting a little ustrophobic in here.¡±


    It was almost night. Aurora had been in her room for well over a few hours now and the lockdown was beginning to take its toll.


    ¡°You are free to do what you want to. But we will advise against roaming around in the hallways. The Cab meeting has started and security is at an all-time high.¡±


    Aurora almost cursed at the news.


    ording to Astoria¡¯s information, the cab meeting should not have started until muchter in the day.


    In fact, it should have been held the next day.


    ¡°Did the meeting get pushed ahead of time? Lady Astoria said that the meeting was tomorrow.¡±


    Aurora had to weasel out as much information as she could. She got a feeling that the tower was on to her and Lady Astoria already.


    ¡°Pushed ahead? Well, something like that. Someone broke into the tower and stole important stuff. Lady Minerva wants to get her affairs in order before she dealt with those individuals.¡±


    The guard exined. He was being too forward with presenting all this information. He must be confident in his position and Lady Minerva.


    Aurora quietly positioned the egg out of his reach and toward the other side of the room.


    ¡°Sir, we did not find anything of significance. Webed through the room but nothing looks to be out of ce.¡±


    The guard sighed and bowed to Aurora.


    ¡°Our apologies for taking up your precision time. We should be getting going now.¡±


    For what it was worth, Aurora did not feel any malice from the guard that had forced his way inside her room. He was just doing the work he had been assigned and nothing else.


    ¡°Have a nice day.¡±


    The guards finally left and Aurora quickly slid down to the floor in a fetal position.


    This stress of keeping the egg hidden was going to kill her. She was already starting to feel the stress of the position she had been forced into.


    ¡°I can¡¯t keep doing this. I need to get fresh air.¡±


    Aurora picked the egg up and decided to flee the room. Theck of guards in the hallway helped her reach her goad ¨C the gardens.


    ¡°You are such a trouble ma. Just stay here for now and allow me to rest.¡±


    Aurora put the egg down for a second and went to rx. She walked toward the water fountain to quench her thirst.


    But when she came back to her original bench, she found a surprise waiting for her. The egg had its shell cracked and a pair of shiny red eyes stared back at her.


    The egg had hatched.


    Of god, the egg had hatched.


    ¡°What are we going to do now?¡±


    Aurora whispered as she held her hand out to the small reptile in front of her.


    If things had been difficult before, they just jumped to the devastating category for her.


    After all, hiding an egg was easier than hiding a small dragon cub in her arms.


    ¡°Oh god. What will I tell Astoria?¡±


    ===============


    ¡°Lord Karan? You allowed Lord Karan to influence you into making such a crucial decision? Lady Minerva, what were you thinking.¡±


    The cab hall came to a halt as the tower master¡¯s outburst rang through the empty space.


    First of all, no one could believe that someone had the guts to say anything to Lady Minerva. She was one at the pinnacle of power.


    Did the tower master not care for his life?


    Second, Lord Karan was someone who was too willful and did what he wanted to. If he got angry, then everyone would be included in his revenge.


    ¡°Huh? Do you have a problem with my decision? You can just tell me to piss off and I will never see you again. I don¡¯t care about the tower anyway.¡±


    Everyone present cringed at the crude words.


    They all knew that Lord Karan held no love for them but did he have to dere it every chance he got? What face did it leave them with?


    ¡°No, this is not what I meant to say. I just wanted you to be careful and not make a mistake in the future.¡±


    The tower master was sweating at the clear provocation in the god¡¯s voice. He sounded pissed off and that did not bode well for anyone.


    ¡°Good. Know your ce or you will not live long.¡±


    The tower master had no other choice but to bow his head.


    In reality, Lord Karan was no better than any of the other 6. If he and Lady Minerva fought then he could be gravely injured and easy to fight off.


    But this was just a hypothesis. No one had ever seen one of the top 7 ever fight against each other before.


    ¡°This is enough. I made the decision based on the information I was provided with. It would suit you well to take it into ount before you make any usations.¡±


    Lady Minerva closed the topic with herst words.


    No one could say anything to her now.


    ¡°Very well then. I will drop this topic for now. But we have another topic at hand ¨C the recent resurgence of the rebellion.¡±


    ¡°There had been too many cases of attacks against our tower officials. What should we do about it?¡±


    As the tower master, it was his responsibility to look after everyone¡¯s welfare. But the rebellion was not a topic he could poke around.


    Especially since they had one of the 7 main gods as their head.


    ¡°Leave it be for now. We caught some rats recently and I will be taking charge of it soon. If n thinks he can fight against using ants then he is more than wee to¡±


    Lady Mei sounded confident in her victory.


    It stung to see these gods and goddesses toy with human life as they pleased. They did not care for anything other than their own gain and loss.


    Thye did not regard human life as important. To them, humans were just like a tool ¨C to be sued and discarded.


    ¡°Very well then. Then it was all I wanted to ask.¡±


    The tower master had no other choice but to take a step back.


    He had already offended two gods, he could not afford to poke the third one.


    And not one as ill-tempered as Lady Mei. She would start causing trouble for him if she felt like she was being mocked. And that was more annoying than anything Lord Karan could do.


    ¡°Anyone else has any questions?¡±


    Lady Minerva asked. But no one was foolish enough to ask anything else. They were too afraid of her and her sour mood.


    ¡°Cowards¡±


    Lady Mei¡¯s provocation did nothing for the mood of the meeting. She just made the situation worse by dragging attention to Lady Minerva¡¯s mood.


    Everyone could tell that the meeting had all but ended already. There was no use staying here any longer.


    -baam


    The cab door was forced open and a shadow guard hurried past the guards.


    The poor guards were too stunned to even pay attention to the intruder. They could not react in time when more guards entered the room and kneeled in front of Lady Minerva.


    ¡°Mydy, we have something urgent to resort to you. We felt a surge in dragon energy rise in the west tower. We are afraid that what we feared had happened.¡±


    The shadow guard kneaded with his head nearly touching the ground.


    And instantly, Lady Minerva¡¯s face crumbled in shock and anger.


    ¡°This meeting is hereby dismissed. But you all will need to stay here for now. I have something I must do.¡±


    And then she left the mess of a meeting room.


    All that echoed in there was Lady Mei¡¯sughter and Lord Karan¡¯s empty smile.


    And a lot of minds filled with questions about her decisions.

 Chapter 56

    The silence inside the cab meeting room broke as soon as Lady Minerva left the meeting room.


    The people left behind could do nothing but discuss what had happened with each other.


    After all, they had no rification about anything that had happened. And neither did the shadow guards indulge them when they asked the question.


    ¡°Heh, how interesting. It seems like the old hag has found herself in a pinch. Maybe we should go and investigate what is happening?¡±


    Mei sounded rather amused at the turn of events.


    There had only been a few moments when she had seen Lady Minerva act in such a reckless manner.


    To leave the cab meeting without even dismissing everyone made this situation smell like a disaster pending to happen.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to make an enemy out of her but I find myself curious as well. And I¡¯m bored sitting in this meeting room so I¡¯ll join you as well.¡±


    Mei¡¯s smile widened at the other god¡¯s answer.


    He was good at masking his emotions but Mei had better intuitions. And they told her that the god sitting at her side was worried about something.


    Something was going on behind the scene and both Minerva and Karan were connected to it.


    ¡°But won¡¯t it be suspicious if only both of us disappear? Let us bring someone from the cab crowd as well with us. Let¡¯s see¡­Zenith looks like a good option right?¡±


    Mei was making things up at this point.


    Suspicious? Them?


    What did it matter even if someone did find them suspicious? They would not be able to touch them anyway.


    She could see that Karan was not buying her excuse.


    ¡°Ah, I remember, you had a spat with Zenith a little while ago over your lover. It¡¯s no wonder you don¡¯t want him toe with us. Then, how about Lady Astoria? She is a decent choice, right?¡±


    Mei noticed the small shift in emotions in Karan¡¯s eyes.


    Jackpot, she had hit the arrow right in the centre.


    It seemed like Lady Astoria was connected to the situation as well.


    ¡°There is no need to¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­.but I insist. Lady Astoria, can youe with us for a second.¡±


    Karan was not able to refute Lady Mei¡¯s words once they had been spoken. He had no choice but to sit back and let things y out.


    ¡°Lady Mei. Are you in need of my assistance?¡±


    Mei could teel the tense aura surrounding her from both sides.


    Everyone in the cab was eying the odd selection in the middle with curiosity. They were all wondering what Mei had called the other goddess to do.


    It was a well-known fact that gods and goddesses of different fractions did not mix well. They were loyal to their highest authority and did not like to curry favors with others in the main cab.


    Moreso, the gods, and goddesses in the main 7 did not like to barge into other fractions. It was beneath them to try and poach out talent in such a way.


    So, to see Lady Mei call upon Lady Astoria with such ease caused more than one eyebrow to raise up.


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s nothing. I was wondering if you could guide me somewhere. You don¡¯t mind right?¡±


    Mei smiled her gentle smile knowing fully well that Lady Astoria could not refuse her this favor.


    ¡°Of course not. You can ask me to lead you anytime.¡±


    Karan was looking more and more green at their forced familiarity. Mei took joy in making the god lose face like this.


    ¡°Then, you won¡¯t mind leading me to the central gardens, right? I want to have some fresh air.¡±


    All three could tell that Mei was bullshitting around.


    Fresh air? Such a thing did not exist on this earth any longer. The atmosphere was regted with magic and pollution did not exist any longer in the regtednds.


    This was just an excuse to get out and find what she wanted to.


    But despite knowing that no one could stop her actions. Astoria had no choice but to agree and lead the way.


    ===============


    -pat


    The dragon took a step forward and Aurora took a step back.


    It did not deter the baby dragon and he took another step forward.


    Aurora could feel his curious aura as he took in the surroundings. The baby dragon was curious and healthy at birth.


    But the baby dragon was also looking toward her every few seconds to check if she was still in his vicinity.


    If Aurora moved, so did the dragon. The distance between them was not closing at all.


    Aurora did not know what she could do. She had not expected the egg to hatch this early despite the signs of awakening being there all along.


    And now she had a forearm-long dragon baby to hide while also maintaining her identity as a secret.


    ¡°Be a good boy ande here. Do not make any noise.¡±


    She was not sure if the dragon had not developed his vocal cords or if it understood her words. But his steps made no noise as came closer and closer toward Aurora.


    She quickly scooped the dragon in her arms and hid in a nearby bush.


    ¡°¡­ing this way. Lady Minerva said we had to seal this area. No one is allowed toe in or go out of this garden¡­.¡±


    The voice of the guard reached her but it contained important information. This information put a dent in her ns of escaping this ce.


    ¡°¡­heard that it was something dangerous. She looked mad when she left those orders to us¡­..¡±


    So the goddess was not happy? It had to be expected.


    ¡°Oi, you both. Stop patrolling the same area and move around. We would all be executed if Lady Minerva found us loitering around.¡±


    Darn, her source of information was already gone.


    Aurora would need to move around and find another chatty pair of guards.


    The bundle in her arms struggled to get free but Aurora held tightly on to its small body.


    Even if the nails were starting to hurt her arm, she had to endure their sting. She had to let her blood bleed out if it meant she could keep her life.


    ¡°Bad news. We need to let out of here. I sawdy Mei and Lord Karan heading this way led by Lady Astoria. We would get killed if we are found loitering about.¡±


    Aurora was not sure if this was good news or not.


    Had it only been Karan and Astoria who decided to approach this area, Aurora would have riskeding out of hiding.


    But she knew who Lady Mei was and her presence in that group made Aurora hesitant to leave her hiding ce.


    Because if Karan was a loose cannon, then Lady Mei was a storm. She was a wild card who could not be predicted.


    ¡°Well, fuck. What should we do now? We are doomed from both sides, aren¡¯t we?¡±


    The guardined as he started to walk away.


    Aurora could tell why the guard had chosen this moment to walk away from the clearing.


    It had to be because of the massive aura heading their way. Just feeling it was enough to make Aurora feel ufortable.


    Talking about in terms of impressive, it was not the best Aurora had felt. It was nothingpared to the pressure of the lower abyss.


    But to see such an aura in the open world meant that the individual was not shy about disying their strength. Such a disy could only belong to a goddess.


    ¡°What is that smell? It smells like such a strong perfume. Is this some new kind of flower the tower is experimenting with? Let me see it as well.¡±


    Aurora wanted to curse her luck. But it seemed as if she had run out of it all.


    ¡°Mei, stop fooling around. I don¡¯t want you to identally run into Minerva and cause us problems.¡±


    That was Karan¡¯s voice. He was here as well and he seemed to be distracting Lady Mei from focusing on the scent.


    ¡°If Minerva finds us then she finds us. But more importantly, what happened to your carefree attitude? You seemed not to care what anyone was doing? So why are you stopping me now?¡±


    Karan looked taken aback at the question.


    Aurora could only see his face but it looked cked and troubled.


    Most people would not have asked this question to Karan. But Mei was not ¡®most people she was someone who held the same power and status as him.


    In that way, she was his equal.


    But they all missed one nig fact about Lady Mei. She was older than Karan. She had much more experience with the world and other gods.


    ¡°You can¡¯t fool me. I smelled it the moment I arrived in this park. It is the smell of a juvenile dragon. And I will find it with or without your help.¡±


    Well, shit. There went any hope Aurora had of getting away sessfully.

 Chapter 57

    Aurora held her breath once she heard the usation being made against her.


    This was really bad for her.


    She had ounted for someone hearing the dragon¡¯s cry but she had not thought about someone being able to smell the dragon.


    And for that someone to be a goddess made things worse by arge margin.


    ¡°Mei, don¡¯t joke around. I don¡¯t find jokes about dragons funny.¡±


    Karan¡¯s voice sounded annoyed and Aurora took this distraction to try and get away. She had to get away now or her window of opportunity will no longer be avable.


    ¡°Joke? Don¡¯t forget boy. I was there when we killed thest dragon emperor. It was such a thrilling battle that it still sends shivers down my spine.¡±


    ¡°There is no way ¡®I¡¯ of everyone would make this mistake. The dragon I am smelling has the same scent as his sire.¡±


    Triple shit.


    This goddess was crazy.


    ¡°Mei, there is no dragon here. Maybe you drank something that is making you hallucinate.¡±


    Aurora moved a few steps at a time. She had to smother the dragon in her arms so that it did not make any noise.


    ¡°Oi, is that so? Then, you won¡¯t mind me taking a look around this garden.¡±


    Aurora saw the attacking her way.


    Thankfully, her body had enough awareness to dodge out of the attack¡¯s way in time. The bush where she had been hiding previously did not have the same luxury.


    Aurora looked up at two pairs of stunned and one pair of smug eyes.


    ¡°See, it is a dragon baby. And it¡¯s so small and cute. I wonder how strong it would be. And ites with a present as well. How delightful.¡±


    ¡°I wonder what Minerva would say if she were to see this.¡±


    Mei could only stare back at the female goddess in front of her. The dragon child in her arms growled at seeing so many new faces.


    All four of them stood in a stalemate, not knowing what to do.


    But that stance was finally broken by Mei¡¯s attack.


    Her aura materialized in the shape of a whip thatshed out toward Aurora. Thankfully, it was not as fast as Aurora had been expecting it to be.


    Having fought with many high-ranked demons in the abyss, Aurora could tell that the goddess was holding herself back and not fighting at her full power.


    Aurora had no idea why the goddess chose to y with her like that, but she was thankful nheless.


    ¡°Aurora, run.¡±


    Astoria did not sit ideal as Aurora was being attacked.


    Aurora had not expected the demi-goddess to break her stance and intercept Mei¡¯s attack. But the elder goddess did that anyway.


    ¡°Ho, so you were involved with her. It would break Minerva¡¯s heart to hear this.¡±


    Aurora only heard that much before she was out of the area.


    The dragon in her arms felt agitated. The sharp nails of the dragon left bleeding impressions on Aurora¡¯s arms.


    But she ignored them as she kept on running.


    ¡°Halt right there. You will not be going any further than this.¡±


    And of course, just as Aurora thought she made it out, she had to run in the worst person possible ¨C Lady Minerva.


    Aurora only realized thedy¡¯s read identity after she sampled that huge aura. It felt much more oppressive than Lady Mei¡¯s.


    ¡°You are¡­..


    ¡­Astoria¡¯s partner. Why do you have a dragon with you? Where did you find it?¡±


    Aurora took in a deep breath before she opened her mouth to lie.


    ¡°I found him in the gardens. I don¡¯t know how he got there?¡±


    ¡°Well then, you won¡¯t mind returning him to me, right?¡±


    ¡°¡­.¡±


    ¡°¡­..¡±


    ¡°Kyuuu?¡±


    The dragon looked back at Aurora in a confused manner. He did not seem to understand what was going around him at the current moment¡±


    -grrrrr


    ¡°But he did seem to feel the same hostility he had felt against Mei earlier. The dragon¡¯s aura was getting more and more agitated as time passed on.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? You¡¯re not going to hand the dragon over?¡±


    There was no way Aurora could hand the dragon over to Minerva. Not when she knew that the dragon would not survive past the next day.


    But Aurora could not retreat from the area either without exposing her powers.


    She had effectively cornered herself in a stalemate.


    In front of her were Minerva and her massive power. Behind her were Mei and her destructive power.


    ¡°Aurora, get aside.¡±


    Karan¡¯s voice warned her and Aurora felt her bodyply with the demand.


    Before she knew it, a fast force passed her past location and collided with a stunned Minerva.


    ¡°Hurry. We need to leave this ce now. Go, I will stall them for you.¡±


    Karan stepped in front of Aurora and the other two goddesses. He hunched ahead in a protective positing and Aurora felt bad for dragging him into this conflict.


    ¡°Aurora, let¡¯s leave right now. We are no match for those two. They have too much experience over us.¡±


    Astoria also made her way over.


    Aurora could do nothing butply with her demand. She had to leave Karan behind.


    ¡°Go. I will be alright. I have some things I need to talk about with Minerva anyway.¡±


    Karan gestured for the other two to leave with the baby dragon.


    ¡°Heye back here. Minerva, I am going after them.¡±


    Karan and Minerva, both tried to stop Mei from chasing the fleeing pair. But the hot-headed goddess was too much for them to handle.


    She easily dismissed their attempts to hold her in her ce and fled the scene.


    That left only Karan and Lady Minerva at the site of the previous battle.


    ==========================


    In all her years of existence, Lady Minerva had never had such conflicting emotions before.


    She had also never been made a fool of like that.


    ¡°Lord Karan, you have one minute to exin what you are doing aiding those thieves.¡±


    Minerva was not in a forgiving mood but she could not just take the other god on. She had to n carefully and make sure she was on the right track beforeing to any conclusions.


    A fight between gods was not something she could afford to take part in.


    ¡°Well, it is exactly as how it looks. I am helping those two escape the tower with the dragon. You see, we dragons have a kinship of sorts. I feel like I have to help him survive.¡±


    Karan spoke those words with a small grin. He sounded delighted to be able to hold Minerva back.


    ¡°Kinship between dragons? Surely you jest? Dragons are unfeeling beasts of the abyss. They have no such feelings of honor or family. And besides, you are not even a real dragon. You just have the core of one. Now step aside and let me correct your wrong behavior.¡±


    Every god had a core that gave them power. The more powerful the core, the more powerful the god.


    Only the top 7 gods had the mythical cores and were worthy of the title of ¡®natural gods.¡¯


    Still, having a core did not make them the beast itself.


    ¡°How cold of you to say that. Just for that, I won¡¯t step aside and let you pass. You¡¯ll have to remove me by force if you want to pass me.¡±


    Karan was being a stubborn idiot.


    Initially, Lady Minerva had no intention of using hostile force to solve this situation. But there seemed to no longer be a choice avable to her.


    ¡°Fine, have it your way.¡±


    Lady Minerva was no longer going to hesitate. Her power was no longer going to hold itself back.


    She was already at the pinnacle of her patience. And she was going to show this imprudent younger god why no one messed with her.


    Her bow materialized out of thin air just as Karan realized that he no longer held the upper hand in this situation.


    Aurora held her breath once she heard the usation being made against her.


    This was really bad for her.


    She had ounted for someone hearing the dragon¡¯s cry but she had not thought about someone being able to smell the dragon.


    And for that someone to be a goddess made things worse by arge margin.


    ¡°Mei, don¡¯t joke around. I don¡¯t find jokes about dragons funny.¡±


    Karan¡¯s voice sounded annoyed and Aurora took this distraction to try and get away. She had to get away now or her window of opportunity will no longer be avable.


    ¡°Joke? Don¡¯t forget boy. I was there when we killed thest dragon emperor. It was such a thrilling battle that it still sends shivers down my spine.¡±


    ¡°There is no way ¡®I¡¯ of everyone would make this mistake. The dragon I am smelling has the same scent as his sire.¡±


    Triple shit.


    This goddess was crazy.


    ¡°Mei, there is no dragon here. Maybe you drank something that is making you hallucinate.¡±


    Aurora moved a few steps at a time. She had to smother the dragon in her arms so that it did not make any noise.


    ¡°Oi, is that so? Then, you won¡¯t mind me taking a look around this garden.¡±


    Aurora saw the attacking her way.


    Thankfully, her body had enough awareness to dodge out of the attack¡¯s way in time. The bush where she had been hiding previously did not have the same luxury.


    Aurora looked up at two pairs of stunned and one pair of smug eyes.


    ¡°See, it is a dragon baby. And it¡¯s so small and cute. I wonder how strong it would be. And ites with a present as well. How delightful.¡±


    ¡°I wonder what Minerva would say if she were to see this.¡±


    Mei could only stare back at the female goddess in front of her. The dragon child in her arms growled at seeing so many new faces.


    All four of them stood in a stalemate, not knowing what to do.


    But that stance was finally broken by Mei¡¯s attack.


    Her aura materialized in the shape of a whip thatshed out toward Aurora. Thankfully, it was not as fast as Aurora had been expecting it to be.


    Having fought with many high-ranked demons in the abyss, Aurora could tell that the goddess was holding herself back and not fighting at her full power.


    Aurora had no idea why the goddess chose to y with her like that, but she was thankful nheless.


    ¡°Aurora, run.¡±


    Astoria did not sit ideal as Aurora was being attacked.


    Aurora had not expected the demi-goddess to break her stance and intercept Mei¡¯s attack. But the elder goddess did that anyway.


    ¡°Ho, so you were involved with her. It would break Minerva¡¯s heart to hear this.¡±


    Aurora only heard that much before she was out of the area.


    The dragon in her arms felt agitated. The sharp nails of the dragon left bleeding impressions on Aurora¡¯s arms.


    But she ignored them as she kept on running.


    ¡°Halt right there. You will not be going any further than this.¡±


    And of course, just as Aurora thought she made it out, she had to run in the worst person possible ¨C Lady Minerva.


    Aurora only realized thedy¡¯s read identity after she sampled that huge aura. It felt much more oppressive than Lady Mei¡¯s.


    ¡°You are¡­..


    ¡­Astoria¡¯s partner. Why do you have a dragon with you? Where did you find it?¡±


    Aurora took in a deep breath before she opened her mouth to lie.


    ¡°I found him in the gardens. I don¡¯t know how he got there?¡±


    ¡°Well then, you won¡¯t mind returning him to me, right?¡±


    ¡°¡­.¡±


    ¡°¡­..¡±


    ¡°Kyuuu?¡±


    The dragon looked back at Aurora in a confused manner. He did not seem to understand what was going around him at the current moment¡±


    -grrrrr


    ¡°But he did seem to feel the same hostility he had felt against Mei earlier. The dragon¡¯s aura was getting more and more agitated as time passed on.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? You¡¯re not going to hand the dragon over?¡±


    There was no way Aurora could hand the dragon over to Minerva. Not when she knew that the dragon would not survive past the next day.


    But Aurora could not retreat from the area either without exposing her powers.


    She had effectively cornered herself in a stalemate.


    In front of her were Minerva and her massive power. Behind her were Mei and her destructive power.


    ¡°Aurora, get aside.¡±


    Karan¡¯s voice warned her and Aurora felt her bodyply with the demand.


    Before she knew it, a fast force passed her past location and collided with a stunned Minerva.


    ¡°Hurry. We need to leave this ce now. Go, I will stall them for you.¡±


    Karan stepped in front of Aurora and the other two goddesses. He hunched ahead in a protective positing and Aurora felt bad for dragging him into this conflict.


    ¡°Aurora, let¡¯s leave right now. We are no match for those two. They have too much experience over us.¡±


    Astoria also made her way over.


    Aurora could do nothing butply with her demand. She had to leave Karan behind.


    ¡°Go. I will be alright. I have some things I need to talk about with Minerva anyway.¡±


    Karan gestured for the other two to leave with the baby dragon.


    ¡°Heye back here. Minerva, I am going after them.¡±


    Karan and Minerva, both tried to stop Mei from chasing the fleeing pair. But the hot-headed goddess was too much for them to handle.


    She easily dismissed their attempts to hold her in her ce and fled the scene.


    That left only Karan and Lady Minerva at the site of the previous battle.


    ==========================


    In all her years of existence, Lady Minerva had never had such conflicting emotions before.


    She had also never been made a fool of like that.


    ¡°Lord Karan, you have one minute to exin what you are doing aiding those thieves.¡±


    Minerva was not in a forgiving mood but she could not just take the other god on. She had to n carefully and make sure she was on the right track beforeing to any conclusions.


    A fight between gods was not something she could afford to take part in.


    ¡°Well, it is exactly as how it looks. I am helping those two escape the tower with the dragon. You see, we dragons have a kinship of sorts. I feel like I have to help him survive.¡±


    Karan spoke those words with a small grin. He sounded delighted to be able to hold Minerva back.


    ¡°Kinship between dragons? Surely you jest? Dragons are unfeeling beasts of the abyss. They have no such feelings of honor or family. And besides, you are not even a real dragon. You just have the core of one. Now step aside and let me correct your wrong behavior.¡±


    Every god had a core that gave them power. The more powerful the core, the more powerful the god.


    Only the top 7 gods had the mythical cores and were worthy of the title of ¡®natural gods.¡¯


    Still, having a core did not make them the beast itself.


    ¡°How cold of you to say that. Just for that, I won¡¯t step aside and let you pass. You¡¯ll have to remove me by force if you want to pass me.¡±


    Karan was being a stubborn idiot.


    Initially, Lady Minerva had no intention of using hostile force to solve this situation. But there seemed to no longer be a choice avable to her.


    ¡°Fine, have it your way.¡±


    Lady Minerva was no longer going to hesitate. Her power was no longer going to hold itself back.


    She was already at the pinnacle of her patience. And she was going to show this imprudent younger god why no one messed with her.


    Her bow materialized out of thin air just as Karan realized that he no longer held the upper hand in this situation.


    Minerva pulled her bowstring back and released the stored energy toward the sky.


    Arrows rained down toward Karan¡¯s location with a velocity no one could see with naked eyes.


    But Karan was not a normal human. He was a god as well and his reputation was well-earned as well.


    ¡°Bring it on old hag. I am sick and tired of your bullshit anyway. I want in on some action as well.¡±


    Karan and a sword in his hands in second and parried away the arrows raining down on him.


    The shing auras of the two gods were enough to cause damage to the surrounding gardens. The soldiers passing by could not even take a single step.


    It was all too much for them.


    ==========================


    On the other side of the clearing, Aurora and Astoria found themselves at the edge of the tower. The only way out was to either fall or get past the angry goddess in front of them.


    ¡°Are you both done running away? Then, let¡¯s get to business, shall we?¡±


    Mei had caught up to the pair and now cked their way out.


    Minerva pulled her bowstring back and released the stored energy toward the sky.


    Arrows rained down toward Karan¡¯s location with a velocity no one could see with naked eyes.


    But Karan was not a normal human. He was a god as well and his reputation was well-earned as well.


    ¡°Bring it on old hag. I am sick and tired of your bullshit anyway. I want in on some action as well.¡±


    Karan and a sword in his hands in second and parried away the arrows raining down on him.


    The shing auras of the two gods were enough to cause damage to the surrounding gardens. The soldiers passing by could not even take a single step.


    It was all too much for them.


    ==========================


    On the other side of the clearing, Aurora and Astoria found themselves at the edge of the tower. The only way out was to either fall or get past the angry goddess in front of them.


    ¡°Are you both done running away? Then, let¡¯s get to business, shall we?¡±


    Mei had caught up to the pair and now cked their way out.

 Chapter 58

    ¡°Are you both done running away? Then, let¡¯s get to business, shall we?¡±


    Mei was getting annoyed with all the chasing around she had to do. The pair in front of her was slippery.


    If not for the dragon in their arms she would have simply ended their lives the first chance she got. (Even if it meant hearing Minerva¡¯s nagging all the time.)


    ¡°There are only two ways out of here for you. Either you jump out of the tower window or try to get past me. But both will result in your death.¡±


    Mei watched as emotions shed on the other two¡¯s faces.


    Well, their choice had already been made the second Mei had decided to chase them. They had to jump and take the chance with the fall damage.


    If they were lucky and had not consumed the magic-suppressing food, then they could use their magic to cushion their fall.


    If not, then they were as good as done.


    ¡°Astoria, you can¡¯t take Mei on in raw power, right?¡±


    Mei watched amused as the girl dressed as the guy spoke.


    She was a curious one who had dared walk in the tower by hiding her gender.


    And she had been good. Well, more than good enough to get away with hiding her secret as well. Even Mei had to take a second look to spot the charms on her body.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be ridiculous Aurora. She¡¯s a full-blooded goddess and I¡¯m a half-goddess. My magic may be dragon-bound but using it is as likely to harm us as it is her.¡±


    Astoria was an intelligent girl.


    Mei had mostly seen her use her light magic and not her natural affinity. That was because dragon magic harmed the goddess. (Most Abyss magic tended to do that)


    ¡°What about your nt tricks?¡±


    ¡°Won¡¯t work on her. She¡¯s too strong for that kind of magic.¡±


    Mei felt ted to see that the other two knew their ce in the hierarchy.


    ¡°You both can¡¯t defeat me anyway, so why don¡¯t you give up? I swear to make your death as painless and gentle as I can.¡±


    Mei proposed but her proposal was met with hostile nces.


    ¡°A pity that you both are not going to cooperate with me. Then, I will take the dragon from you by force.¡±


    Mei was not going to give the other side any time to gather themselves.


    Her magicshed out toward the other in the form of a fire snake. It was too hot to bear and it would melt anyone¡¯s skin on contact.


    No person in the overworld could survive this attack without external help.


    She aimed the attack more toward the female carrying the dragon than Astoria.


    Astoria was a goddess and had the dragon¡¯s blood inside her body. She would not be affected by the magic much.


    But the other female felt like a human to Mei. And she knew from experience that humans were naturally frail.


    A little push from her would be enough to make the human female cave in and give up.


    Mei was not ahead to killing the human but she would do that if that was what it took.


    She would have the dragon under her control.


    ¡°Aurora. Shit, I¡¯lle and help you out.¡±


    Astoria turned around to help Aurora out but Mei was not going to let that happen.


    She used her superb speed to ce herself between the two other females


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you pay attention to me? Yourpanion is as good as dead. But you can stille back to us.¡±


    Mei purposed to the younger goddess.


    One casualty should be enough to make the other party realize what kind of situation they had found themselves to be in.


    ¡°And what If I refuse? Will you kill me as well?¡±


    Mei frowned at the sharp tone Astoria was using on her.


    She had been very lenient with the younger female this far but her patience was reaching its end.


    Mei was not someone who was known for her patience in the first ce. So the fact that she had not killed the other two yet was a miracle in itself.


    ¡°You know what? I am done with you and your bullshit. Forget Minerva and her feelings. That old hag is a block of ice. She won¡¯t even care if you die right here and now.


    But I will care if I did not kill you right now.¡±


    Mei¡¯s aurashed out again.


    The aura transformed into another fire creature and lept at Astoria.


    The resulting collision was enough to make anyone pale. There was no way any ordinary god or goddess would be alive by the end of that attack.


    But Mei had a feeling things were far from over.


    She had felt the barest hint of a dragon¡¯s power when her aura had been about to hit Astoria.


    It was entirely possible that the younger goddess had used her destructive properties to her advantage and nullified Mei¡¯s power.


    ¡°Y-You can¡¯t overpower me with fire. My sire was a fire dragon and his fire lives on through me.¡±


    Astoria was injured after Mei¡¯s attack but she showed no sign of backing down.


    Mei felt a thrill go through her as her challenge was properly answered for the first time in a few centuries.


    ¡°The fire live¡¯s on you say? Then show me that fire of yours. I will make sure to extinguish it this time.¡±


    Mei held her hand up and gathered her aura in it.


    It instantly burst out in an orange me made up of pure mana. This was the me of a goddess.


    Astoria tried to do something simr with her arm but her me was much weaker and had a bluish tint to it.


    The two med collided but neither seemed to want to give way to the other.


    The two were in a stalemate now with no winner emerging.


    But Mei knew that this was a battle of endurance, not power. The mes were canceling each other out but this status-quo will notst forever.


    Astoria¡¯s me was already weakening by the second and her body would start to break down soon.


    After all, a goddess¡¯s body was not meant to house a dragon¡¯s me. It had a bad reaction when those two things met.


    ==========================


    ¡°You are a few years too young to think of challenging me. What kind of foolishness were you thinking by opposing the cab?¡±


    Minerva felt agitated at everything that was happening.


    Taking down Karan had been easy enough since he had not been fighting for real.


    To Minerva, it felt more like he was trying to buy time for the other two to escape.


    ¡°Foolish? Challenge? That was never my intention. I was just doing what I wanted to do. But what about you? What will you do with me now? Will you kill me? Banish me out of the Cab?¡±


    Karan¡¯s question was loaded.


    Minerva felt a headache ovee her as she thought back to what she could do.


    Karan could not be allowed to leave the cab. He was one of the 7 major gods and the cab could not afford to lose another one of them.


    Karan could not be killed either because of his godly status. The bacsh would not be worth it.


    Besides, the fraction was backing Karan up. They would not be happy with the tower and cause problems for them in the future.


    But maybe Minerva still had an ace up her sleeve.


    ¡°That female, I recognize her now. Isn¡¯t she the one who wanted to start an academy in the Rocx valley? So you knew her after all.¡±


    Minerva wanted to probe into Karna¡¯s mind. Maybe bait him out a little as well.


    She had not expected the god to jerk in her direction with serious eyes.


    ¡°Leave her out of this. This has nothing to do with us. This all is your daughter¡¯s fault in the first ce.¡±


    Minerva wanted to smile at getting one up over Karan. But she did not because she could not afford to show that weakness.


    Instead, she looked the other god straight in the eye.


    ¡°I know it is Astoria¡¯s fault and I am not going to let her get away. But she¡¯s not the one who¡¯s got the most to lose by doing this. I can take away that permission I gave for the academy.¡±


    ¡°Since it had not started operating yet and the first inspection is still pending, even a small incident can cause its reputation to fall.¡±


    Karan looked like he was about to growl in warning but held himself back.


    ¡°Are you threatening me?¡±


    Karan sounded pissed off and Minerva tried to y his concerns off.


    ¡°No, of course not. I am merely suggesting you choose your next actions carefully.¡±


    Minerva had sessfully passed the ball over while still remaining in control.


    ¡°I¡­my decision..¡±


    Karan wanted to speak but a burst of powerful aura stopped him.


    Minerva felt her eye pop open as soon as she felt that presence. It felt like the tower¡¯s presence.

 Chapter 59

    ¡°It is your loss. You have failed to ovee me and my mes. But I will still give you thest chance to save your life.¡±


    Mei closed in on the defeated goddess.


    Astoria was tired and her body was burning. Prolong exposure to her dragon med and made her body weak. She would have no choice but to yield to Mei.


    But Mei would not kill her like that.


    No, she would let the younger female live and then take her time hunting the half-goddess down. She would squeeze thest amount of enjoyment she could from the female in front of her.


    And then she would move on to the juvenile baby dragon.


    Astoria¡¯s human toy might have perished in the fire but Mei could still feel the abyssal tint in her fire.


    The dragon was likely alive and well within her mes.


    ¡°I c-can¡¯t give up.¡±


    Mei had no idea why Astoria was being so stubborn over this topic. She had never seen the younger goddess this passionate about anything.


    ¡°I am not asking you to give up because that is a luxury for the strong. You, Astoria, are weak against me. You have no right to choose to do anything.¡±


    Mei could feel the half-goddess¡¯s frustration rise up.


    Losing herpanions must have zed some kind of fire inside Astoria because her aura was getting more and more fired up by the second.


    She would reach her zing point soon.


    The zing point was a phenomenon only shown by abyssal beasts. It was when they pushed past a normal body¡¯s limit and enhanced their everything with the power of the abyss.


    It was a point of no return for a beast.


    Mei was sure Astoria had inherited this power along with her mes from her dragon sire.


    The half-goddess was not even speaking now. Her words had been reduced to growls of pain and anger.


    And her attacks had gotten more and more ferocious. Magic was running rampant.


    ¡®It¡¯s fun. I want this feeling tost.¡¯ It had been a long time since Mei had let loose like that. She could not help but embrace that feeling of joy.


    It was so much fun for her that she did not even notice getting closer and closer to her fire.


    And then she stepped into the area near her fire.


    ¡°F-Finally.¡±


    Astoria panted, forcing herself out of her zing point.


    Mei felt annoyed to be treated like a low-level mob. Was she not even worth it for Astoria to fight properly?


    Did Astoria think that she could get away half-assing their fight? Mei would show her why no one messed with her.


    ¡°You little bug? Why did you undo your zing point? Your body is done for anyway. Face me properly.¡±


    Mei roared.


    She could feel the smaller dragon closing on her space but she did not care for it.


    The dragon was not a threat to Mei and would not be for a long time toe. She could crush it anytime.


    But for now, she needed to take care of the goddess that had pissed her off. Astoria needed to die to satisfy Mei¡¯s anger.


    ¡°Little bug? Me? But you are the one who is currently in danger.¡±


    Mei only got a second of warning before she felt something erupt at her side.


    The magic she felt was like nothing she had felt before. It resonated with something ancient in her core and rooted her in the spot.


    Why did it feel familiar to her?


    ¡®Don¡¯t move. Don¡¯t look at it. It¡¯s a disaster that will pass soon. All you need to do is to stay out of its way. There is no need to engage in simr power.¡¯


    It had been a while since Mei¡¯s inner goddess had done anything but get angry at the world. The main reason for this was ack of challenge avable to a goddess.


    But now this! This looked to be out of even her control. This energy sends shivers down Mei¡¯s spine. It made her excited in a way nothing had for a long time.


    ¡°What kind of trick did you pull?¡±


    Mei forced her quarry out despite her inner goddess¡¯s warning. She felt like she had to ask before she was consumed by this power.


    ¡°Trick? I did not pull any. I just got lucky to find a good partner to share my burdens with.¡±


    Mei watched in disbelief as Astoria walked around her and toward the burning piece of human.


    Mei recognized the human form in front of her but it did not register inside her head. Her whole frame shook with caution.


    ¡°Y-You? What are you?¡±


    Mei asked with a shiver of something in her voice but no one answered her.


    It started with caution but it was quickly developing into something else. It was developing into interest.


    ==========================


    The fire burned.


    Aurora had never felt agony like this in her life. The fire was attacking her very core and Aurora could feel her body trying to keep up with the magic demand.


    It was all an unconscious process and the healing was taking its toll.


    Mainly because Aurora was still keeping a tight grasp on her goddess powers and suppressing them.


    ¡®Let it go. Let the magic run its course. You will feel much better once you do.¡¯


    The voice was like a siren inside Aurora¡¯s mind. She had to actively stop herself from letting go.


    But she could also feel her life force vanishing from her body. She would not be able to keep up with the burning soon enough.


    ¡®Let it go. Let the abyss in and let it help you out.¡¯


    Aurora did not want to let the tower know of her existence but she also felt like she had no other option.


    She could feel Mei¡¯s magic and Astoria¡¯s mes crashing.


    And she could also feel Astoria¡¯s lifeforce depleting at a fast rate. The half-goddess was not doing so hot at the moment.


    Then there was the small dragon body curled up on top of Aurora.


    The dragon¡¯s aura felt worried and its small nose poked Aurora constantly.


    Aurora could not die right now. She had to survive this and make the best of her life. She had to focus.


    ¡®Let your magic flow. Don¡¯t fear your magic.¡¯


    Aurora did not fear her magic but she did fear the effect the abyss could have on her. She feared the changes it would bring inside her.


    Because Aurora was a goddess but she had not used her magic or charm actively.


    Somewhere it had not sunk inside her brain yet that she was a goddess. But now it was forcing her to admit that fact.


    Aurora saw her dividing line as a red ribbon inside her mind. It felt like it was holding something back on the other side of the cab.


    And she reached out to yank it open.


    Magic filled her entire being as she did so.


    And Aurora finally felt her conscious rise up to face the world.


    ¡°Y-You? What are you?¡±


    The goddess of cmity asked. Aurora could recognize that firey presence inside her mind.


    The one who inhabited the traits of a phoenix and rose up from the ashes. That was who Mei had been before her rise in fame.


    Aurora could not even tell where her mind was pulling all this information from, but she had it.


    Aurora saw the me heading her way but she did not feel afraid.


    The energy in those mes felt familiar and mouldable. Aurora felt like she could reach out toward that energy and change its course.


    But knowing you could do something and actually doing it were different things.


    Despite Aurora¡¯s new awakening, she was no match for the raw power and experience Mei had. Aurora could only manipte the mes to not let them hit her.


    ¡°You¡¯re not a normal human, are you? No human can match my med like this. Are you perhaps¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­A goddess?¡±


    Aurora did not grace Mei with an answer. She used that time to maneuver herself toward Astoria¡¯s direction.


    ¡°Astoria, we are escaping. Brace yourself for the fall.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°No, wait¡­¡±


    A lot of things happened at once.


    Aurora held Astoria from her waist and held her hand out at the same time. The baby dragon jumped in her arms at thest second before Aurora fell through the window.


    Mei also reached out to catch Aurora¡¯s hand but she was not able to.


    All she could do was watch the trio fall down into the depths of the abyss before snapping out of her shock.


    ¡°Well, fuck it. You don¡¯t get to escape me like that. I will follow after you for my match.¡±


    Mei was about to jump down but she never got a chance to do so.


    All because of the tight grip someone had on her shirt.


    ¡°That is enough damage you caused. We can¡¯t afford to lose you right now Lady Mei. You need to calm down and listen to me.¡±


    It was Minerva who walked in with a grave expression. She had Lord Karan following behind her with a solemn look as well.

 Chapter 60

    ¡°I¡­my decision..¡±


    Karan wanted to curse himself out for being this oblivious. Of course, Minerva had found out about his connections.


    First of all, Minerva was a shrewddy. It would be foolish of Karan to think of her as anything but cunning.


    Then there was the fact that Minerva was the oldest goddess.


    Being the oldest, she held a great advantage over everyone else. She had practically seen all the other gods and goddesses grow up and embrace their powers.


    And then there was her intuition. It was unlike anything Karan had ever seen. She could just look at you and know your deepest, darkest desire.


    Karan was about to answer her when he felt that happen.


    The abyss erupted with power beneath their feet.


    But that was not all. Somewhere in this tower, a great surge of power was converging. It felt like a curious mixture of the abyssal and bestial energy.


    It almost felt like a divine power. But it was much stronger than Karan had ever felt before.


    Had it not been for the small ray of familiar magic mixed in it, he would not even have known who that power belonged.


    ¡°That power? A new goddess? But there is something familiar about it? Was it the young woman who Astoria brought with her?¡±


    It did not surprise Karan to know that Minerva had found out Aurora¡¯s secret with just one nce.


    But it did surprise him to know that Minerva remembered Aurora¡¯s magic signature in just the first meeting.


    ¡°Did you know about it beforehand? Is that why you helped vouched for her?¡±


    Minerva was asking questions now. Questions that made it hard for Karan to keep up with the conversation.


    Did he know about Aurora¡¯s power beforehand? Of course not.


    In-face, he had not even known that it was Aurora that wanted to set up the academy. The resistance had not provided him with any such information.


    Karan had just decided to help on a whim because he had seen Rex¡¯s name on the report. That was all there was to it.


    ¡°Maybe I knew that about her. But why does it matter? Will you take the permission back now that you know about Aurora¡¯s real nature?¡±


    Karan had to be careful about his words and actions now.


    Aurora was in a delicate situation and he did not want to make it any worse.


    ¡°If you want to lie, the at least practice your skills. I can see through your words easily enough.¡±


    The jab hurt Karan. But Lady Minerva was not finished with her words.


    ¡°As for permission? I will have to think about that topic. But frankly speaking, I do not want to make an enemy of her if I can help it. Her power level looks to be on a simr scale to a high-goddess.¡±


    This was good. It was better than good.


    Since Minerva was conscious of Aurora and her power, she would not take any hasty decision. She would also not cause any problems for the academy.


    ¡°We need to stop Mei before she does something drastic.¡±


    Now that one problem was dealt with, Karan could focus on the other side of things.


    Mei was a powerful force of nature but she was not without ws. She was hot-headed and easy to distract.


    Karan had to believe that Aurora could take care of herself and had somehow gotten away from the cmity goddess.


    ¡°That we shall do. But we are not done with you yet. Whatever your reasons were, you still tried to help traitors. We need to take action so that the news doesn¡¯t spread.¡±


    Karen cursed his twisted fate and Lady Minerva¡¯s insight.


    He would not have minded getting his reputation tarnished. It was something he was used to in a normal situation.


    But now the situation involved the tower and Minerva¡¯s subordinates. She would be a bitch about everything being proper.


    It was better to indulge her and to be on her good side.


    After all, the resistance was counting on Karan to get the inside information and nt their moles. He could not leave the resistance hanging on his end.


    ¡°What do you want me to do about it?¡±


    Karan already had an idea of what he would be asked to do. It could not be anything public since it would defeat the whole purpose of keeping things quiet.


    But it would not be something small this time either.


    ¡°Take a voe to be on the tower¡¯s side for the next sixth months I won¡¯t ask any more of you but this much you will have to do.¡±


    Minerva¡¯s words caused Karan to groan in irritation.


    Six months was not a lot of time in terms of gods and goddesses. But it was enough to reinforce the image Minerva was trying to set up.


    Taking a voe would mean that Karan would be powerless against Minerva¡¯s and the tower¡¯s orders.


    But not taking it would also put him at odds with Minerva and the tower.


    And while he did not care about what happened to himself, he did care about what happened to his fellow n members and those under hismand.


    ¡°Fine. But only six months. And I will not take any action against that new academy or the resistance. Do not try to use me to deal with them.¡±


    Karanid his terms down.


    Under natural scenarios, there was no way a god would be called down to handle such matters. It fell to the soldiers.


    But Karan was not going to take any risks.


    ¡°Alright. I understand. And I was not going to ask you to do ant¡¯s works anyway. Now let go and find Mei.¡±


    Lady Minerva was a harddy to please. But Karan could not help but feel like he had gotten away with something huge.


    The pair found Lady Mei almost about to jump down the broken window.


    ¡°Well, fuck it. You don¡¯t get to escape me like that. I will follow after you for my match.¡±


    But before the goddess could make her decisive jump, Lady Minerva interfered and stopped her actions.


    ¡°That is enough damage you caused. We can¡¯t afford to lose you right now Lady Mei. You need to calm down and listen to me.¡±


    Lady Mei looked like she was pouting. It felt wrong to see that expression on the face of someone so old. (That was all in his mind. Lady Mei looked 21 in age.)


    ¡°B-But they got away. I need to pay them back for this humiliation.¡±


    Lady Mei looked pissed but so did Lady Minerva.


    ¡°Mei, don¡¯t cause problems. You will get your chance to face that goddess and dragon in the future once we secure them as allies. Don¡¯t make matters worse for us. We can¡¯t give Lord n such a strong ally.¡±


    Lord n was the god who had deserted the cab and formed the resistance. He had been too in disgust to see where the tower was headed and had made his decision.


    Karan had never actually seen him but he was the second oldest god alive.


    Legends said that his power was unbeatable but he had suffered an injury that made him unable to fight.


    ¡°You should understand this. There are 4 of us and three deserters in the cab. We cannot make the odds 4 vs 4.¡±


    Lady Mei finally calmed down.


    Lady Minerva did have a point in her words. And if she suspected Karan as well, it would be even worse odds stacked against her.


    ¡°But the other three don¡¯t get along while we do. Won¡¯t we win if we attack them now?¡±


    Lady Mei pouted as she spoke those words.


    Karan took a step away from Minerva. The eldest looked like she was about to explode.


    ¡°Mei, behave and don¡¯t make things difficult for me. The damage control I will need to do is massive enough as it is.¡±


    And there went all the chances of peace Karan could have. Now he had to deal with an angry and annoyed Minerva on top of all the questions his subordinates would ask.


    ¡®I am so fucked. Why did I think helping the resistance was a good choice?¡¯


    ==========================


    They were falling down.


    They were falling down fast and would hit the ground at any moment.


    Astoria had already lost consciousness due to herck of energy and Aurora was no better at the moment.


    Aurora¡¯s magic was all over the ce. It wasshing out and she could not even control it to slow her fall.


    They were about to hit the ground and the fall would hurt, if not outright kill them.


    Aurora wanted to live. She wanted to live and bring Astoria back home.


    She wanted to live and make the tower suffer for all it had done to her and her previous life.


    She wanted to live ande back to those who loved her. She still had things left to do after all.


    And her magic responded to her honest wishes and slowed her fall.


    It still hurt when Aurora touched the ground but she did not break her spine.


    But Aurora could not stop her consciousness from fading.

 Chapter 61

    ¡°L-Leader. The sky is falling. W-What should we do?¡±


    Reptilian grey eyes watched the fast-descending meteorite fall toward the earth. The small shapes around the leader hopped around in panic.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. That thing is not the sky, but a human. You all head back for now and I will check those people.¡±


    ¡°B-But leader¡­¡±


    The small subordinate had no way of opposing her leader.


    Even if she did happen to say something sensible, chances were that the leader would just refuse to listen to her words.


    In the end, the smaller figure could only order her people to leave.


    ¡°Be a careful leader. Those humans might not be our friends. I don¡¯t want to see you dead.¡±


    The leader just rolled her eyes at the obvious worry her subordinate was showing.


    It was sweet of the smaller rabbit to care about her like that. But there was no need to be so cautious of the humans.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I can take care of myself. After all, I am stronger than I look.¡±


    The female licked her ws in a show of her strength. Her nails looked vicious, stopping at a few inches short of skinning anyone.


    The female kept guard till her tribe disappeared.


    And once she was done, she finally turned around to start moving toward the falling bodies.


    She could feel the magic surrounding the metros calling her like a siren. It was a powerful bewitchment that called out to her.


    The leader had not initially wanted to care about the magic at all. She had convinced herself to walk away from the scene.


    If not for the familiar scent emitting from their direction, she would have decided not to involve herself in this mess.


    ¡°My lord. Why are you with those wrenched humans? They were the ones who killed you?¡±


    The female Viera could not figure out why the reincarnated dragon-lord had chosen the humans as its caretakers. But she decided not to question it.


    Higher beings of the abyss had their reasons for doing things. And trying to understand it was only something a fool would do.


    The Viera leader hopped around on her four paws. Her unique body shape and sharp moment made it very easy to navigate the rocky space of the surrounding hills.


    And she was near the crash site mere moments after the crash.


    ¡°My Lord, are you alright?¡±


    The Viera leader asked in a small voice. She did not want to cause unnecessary distress to her lord¡¯s new body.


    -Grrrr


    The small ck form of a baby dragon growled in warning toward her.


    The Viera leader took an unconscious step back at the warning. The small form of the dragon looked far from satisfied though.


    The more she stepped back, the further the dragon walked in her direction.


    ¡°My lord, there is no need to be hostile to me. I am here to help you out.¡±


    The Viera beast called out in hopes of being understood.


    But the dragon was not in a forgiving mood. It was closing in on the female warrior with a ferocity she had seldom seen in any abyssal beast.


    ¡°H-Huh?¡±


    The growling almost stopped at the weak voice.


    The dragon baby ignored the Viera leaderpletely and coiled around the semi-unconscious human.


    ¡°W-Who¡¯s there?¡±


    The voice was really weak when it asked the question. It did not belong to someone who could survive such heavy injuries.


    The Viera leader had no intention of stepping out to help the unconscious human pair initially. But her lord was attached to these humans.


    And helping their lord was one of the primary functions bestowed upon their n by the abyss.


    ¡°Do not be rmed. I am the loyal soldier of My Lord and my name is Ely. The dragon you have with you is the reincarnated form of my lord and I have to help them out.¡±


    ¡°And since you are my Lord¡¯s precious people, I shall help you out as well.¡±


    The dragon decided he did not like those words.


    There was no way the tiny dragon could harm Ely in his current state. The small dragoncked its zing point activation and he did not seem to have developed his magical core as well.


    All in all, he was in a vulnerable state and must be protected.


    ¡°No, don¡¯t attack her. Come here.¡±


    Ely tried not to gasp as she watched the human interaction with the dragon. The human female in front of her looked unafraid of the dragon.


    Both she and the unconscious human lying at her side had no energy to speak of. Even still, she held enough courage to get the dragon to interact with her.


    And the most amazing thing of all was ¨C the dragon wasplying with her request.


    ¡°Lady Ely was it? I want to take your offer but I don¡¯t think I can move right now. Do you think you can get someone to take us to a safe space?¡±


    Would surprises never cease to exist?


    Ely had thought that she would have to pull some kind of trick to get her lord and his humans toe with her.


    ¡°I understand. But I don¡¯t think my lord likes that idea very much.¡±


    Ely looked at the small dragon who eyes her with distrust. He seemed to be fighting with his instincts to like her.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright. Wait, have I named you yet? Ely, you called him your lord, right? So, do you know his name?¡±


    Ely tried not to judge the human for herck of knowledge but it was hard.


    After all, what kind of human decided to keep a creature as mighty as a dragon with them and not even research their kind?


    It was not like there were a lot of dragon lords that lived.


    But Ely did not show her thoughts on her face.


    ¡°My lord was named Ur. I hope the name will be bestowed upon our lord once again.¡±


    Ely hoped the human was not foolish enough to name the dragon anything else. After all, the name ¡®Ur¡¯ held importance for her people.


    ¡°Ur? I guess it is fine if the dragon likes it? What do you say?¡±


    Her lord looked offended at the name but he did not reject it at once. Ely could only take it as a good sign.


    ¡°Hey, do you think you can take Ur back to your ce while I help my otherpanion out? I need you to promise that you¡¯lle back for us and keep Ur safe.¡±


    Once again, a thing out of the norm had happened.


    A human was asking someone from the abyss for a favor.


    Was the human not afraid that Ely would kill her once she had the chance? Where did that confidencee from?


    But whatever had prompted that confidence, Ely was thankful for that. She could take this opportunity to wrestle her lord¡¯s favor and divert him from the human¡¯s side.


    ¡°Ur, be good and go with her for now. And If Ely doesn¡¯te back with the troops, you have my permission to cause as much hard as you want to.¡±


    Ely wanted to scoff at the threat.


    There was no way her lord would cause the Viera harm. It was because of him that the Viera race was even alive right now.


    ¡°I voe to take care of my lord and send some people back for you as soon as I can.¡±


    Ely vowed before pressing her lips against the conscious human. To show her sincerity, she even used her magic to exchange the voe.


    As per abyss rules, the exchange of energy solidified the contract.


    Since it was such a short-term contract, all it required was a small press of surface area and an exchange of energy.


    The deed was done just in time for Ely to avoid a pair of dangerous ws aiming for her throat


    ¡°Yeah. Send for help but tell them to take a little more time than necessary. And also have some medicinal supplied readily.¡±


    Ely¡¯s reptilian eyes met another reptilian pair. But unlike Ely, the other one had no sense of recognition or even human intelligence.


    One had to wonder if the owner of those eyes was even a human, to begin with. Those familiar eyes looked at Ely in a haunting manner.


    ¡°Now hurry up before Astoria decided to skin you alive.¡±


    It was only after Ely left the clearing did she realized what had been missing in the exchange she just had.


    The unconscious female had never been a human at all. Her lord¡¯s presence had distracted Ely from the real truth of the matter.


    And at first, she had thought that the scent she had been smelling was the dragon in her arms.


    But it had been that other female that had given out that dragons-scent of the ze.


    That woman had the blood of their lord flowing inside her veins as well. She was their lord as well in the sense of the abyss.


    So what did that mean for the Viera race now?

 Chapter 62

    It was cold. It was so cold that her body was not able to keep up.


    Astoria felt like all her energy had left her body. The only thing that was left behind was the feeling of ice inside her chest.


    The only source of warmth was outside of her body. It was lying at Astoria¡¯s side and she had to consume it.


    Her instincts screamed at her to secure her treasure before the intruder took it away from her.


    The intruder already had one of Astoria¡¯s treasures in her hand. Astoria could not allow her to take another one from her hoard.


    ¡°Go. I will keep her stalled.¡±


    The voice brought a wave of cool with it. Astoria chased it unconsciously with her lips.


    Her lipsnded on something soft and cool. The feeling of magic brought calmness to her mind. The calmness of the likes Astoria had never felt before.


    She wanted more. She needed more.


    She needed to be surrounded by that coolness and make it her own.


    So that was what she did. She leaned in and started consuming whatever energy she could get her hands on.


    ==========================


    Aurora expected the attacking her way.


    Astoria had not exactly hidden her intentions toward Aurora. More so, her aura had given her excitement away to Aurora.


    ¡°Don¡¯t hurry to devour me. I am not going anywhere. Come, have your fill.¡±


    Aurora braced herself for the sh of pain that was about toe. She could sense Astoria¡¯s intention of biting her nape.


    Astoria was more beast than human right now. As such, her body was responding in kind and making her act out.


    Aurora also knew that the use of ze point had deprived Astoria of anymon sense she held before. Theck of energy in the goddess¡¯s body contributed to her wild nature.


    There were only two ways to knock Astoria out of her current condition.


    Either let her gather her energy or to dual cultivate with her and restore her power.


    Aurora chose the more time-efficient one from the bunch.


    ¡°Calm down. Match your breath with mine.¡±


    Aurora cupped the elder¡¯s face with her hands. It was an attempt to snatch the elder goddess¡¯s attention back on her.


    But Astoria did not pay any attention to the softmand. The elder forced her lips out of Aurora¡¯s neck and reached toward her breasts.


    But of course, things were not that easy for the pair.


    Astoria pawed at Aurora¡¯s shirt in an attempt to get it off. But theck of sense was getting in the way.


    There was no other way now.


    Aurora pressed her lips against Astoria¡¯s with a brutal force. Being nice and soft was not going to work against a beast.


    Astoria did not y around either. She forced her body back against Aurora¡¯s in a violent sh of tongues.


    Two pairs of lips moved against each other before Aurora broke the kiss.


    Astoria followed the saliva string held between the teeth and licked across Aurora¡¯s face.


    ¡°Give me some space to work.¡±


    Aurora tried to push Astoria¡¯s heavier body off her but the half-goddess did not seem to be in the mood for that.


    The more Aurora pushed back, the more Astoria pushed ahead.


    In the end, Aurora had no choice but to give up and allow Astoria to have her way with her body.


    Astoria¡¯s hard penis was rubbing against Aurora¡¯s belly but the hands-on her breasts distracted Aurora more.


    Astoria was ying with her nipples and fondling her breast like a baby who had found a new toy.


    ¡°Astoria, pay attention to..¡±


    A hiss was forced out of Aurora¡¯s mouth as Astoria decided to bite her. The soft flesh of Aurora¡¯s breast held the teeth imprint.


    But Astoria looked far from satisfied and intensified her attempts to mark Aurora.


    Pain mixed with pleasure inside Aurora¡¯s mind. Her skin blossomed a pretty pink at being handled in such a way.


    ¡°A-Astoria, C-Come here.¡±


    Aurora branched herself before she pulled Astoria¡¯s body on top of her own.


    She made sure to move around so that her pussy would rub against Astoria¡¯s hard penis. The contact made Aurora hiss out in pleasure.


    And it distracted Astoria from her ruthless assault on Aurora¡¯s neck as well.


    The half-goddess finally seemed to be paying attention to Aurora and her lower half. Astoria¡¯s penis rubbed against Aurora¡¯s wetness resulting in a bolt of pleasure.


    ¡°That¡¯s right. That is where you need to go. Don¡¯t be shy and touch it.¡±


    Aurora was not sure if Astoria understood her words or not. But the elder did reach out with a hesitant touch and lightly touched Aurora¡¯s pussy.


    The pleasure was intense on Aurora¡¯s side but Astoria seemed to find her exploration fun.


    The fingers disappeared quickly from Aurora¡¯s pussy and were reced by a hard penis.


    Astoria seemed contented to rub her penis against the wet pussy in front of her. The goddess was not even interested in pration.


    Or, it was more likely that the thought of being inside Aurora had not even crossed her mind.


    Aurora cursed her fate and got ready to take things in her hand.


    Since Astoria looked inexperienced, Aurora decided she needed to pull her weight and ride that hard cock.


    That was the only way things would work out for the pair.


    ¡°Sorry for the dy.¡±


    Aurora apologized before she finally turned the tables.


    Astoria melted once Aurora put her hands on the elder. The hard penis throbbed in Aurora¡¯s hand and Astoria all but copsed on herself.


    Aurora easily manhandled Astoria on her back while she reached for that hard cock in front of her.


    It was impressive and rtively human-shaped.


    However, Aurora could also feel something new at the bottom of the cock. Something not rtively human-like.


    ¡®I am in for it. She¡¯s going to knot.¡¯


    Aurora knew being half-beast came with such a territory but she had never experienced this phenomenon before. Being knotted was not on her list of priorities.


    But now it looked like she would have to face the beast head-on.


    Aurora pumped the cock in front of her before deciding to take a lick. Theck of lubrication only left Aurora with so many options.


    Aurora needed to be wet to be able to take Astoria without pain. And the only way to do that was to y with herself.


    Since Astoria was out of her mind, Aurora could not even count on her for preparation. All Aurora could do was distract Astoria and pray that her mere preparation would be enough.


    Aurora¡¯s hand entered her pussy as she yed with Astoria¡¯s cock. Her mouth made quick work of lubricating the well-sized cock in front of her.


    Aurora finally decided to such the cock head to prepare Astoria for the sensation of sinking in a tight wet heat.


    But the n backfired on herself.


    Somehow, Astoria gathered enough brainpower to catch Aurora¡¯s head and force her to take in the whole cock.


    Aurora¡¯s new bodycked a gag reflex but the pration still hurt her throat.


    Aurora wanted to pull back but Astoria did not allow Aurora to do that. Aurora had to fight against Astoria¡¯s stronghold to get free.


    A pair of teary eyes looked back at Astoria and it seemed to have excited Astoria even more because she pushed harder against Aurora¡¯s head.


    Aurora had to do her best not to use her strength.


    Though she did use her magic to calm down Astoria and to free her mouth.


    Her pussy was more than ready to take Astoria¡¯s cock and she had to pull back to get to the main course.


    Thankfully, Astoria finally got the clue and let Aurora¡¯s throat go free.


    Aurora gulped in the unneeded oxygen and quickly straddled the elder half-goddess.


    ¡°You better appreciate my sacrifice. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be able to use my voice tomorrow.¡±


    Aurorained before she sank on Astoria¡¯s cock and took it in deep.


    The pration caused a hiss of pleasure to escape both parties. But no one even slowed down to take time and adjust the position.


    Aurora held herself back from actually moving once she had sunk balls-deep on top of Astoria¡¯s cock. She wanted to catch her breath before the next big event.


    But Astoria¡¯s instincts finally kicked in and she decided to take charge of the operation. Her hips moved aggressively against Aurora¡¯s and the position allowed Astoria to reach down into the deepest part of Aurora.


    It was hard and fast action that caused both parties to not give in.


    Aurora tried to take control of the situation but Astoria did not seem ready to give the control up.


    Astoria seemed more than ready to take advantage of her new position and her thrust picked up speed.


    Aurora was losing ground faster and faster. It was Astoria that was in control of their coupling.


    But before Astoria could release, Aurora tried onest try to get the control back in her hands.


    She held Astoria¡¯s hand tightly and kissed her before the half-goddess could move.

 Chapter 63

    Astoria felt her mind getting lost in pleasure as the warm and tight ce on her cock sucked her in.


    She had never felt pleasure like this before and the half-goddess doubted if anything would ever feel this pleasing again.


    But she wanted more of that mind-melding feeling.


    So that was why she hurried up her thrusts and ramped into that wet pussy. Her instincts roared at Astoria to chase that heat.


    She needed to release herself inside that heat and leave her im. She needed to mark that space.


    But the magic flowing inside her also felt rxing. It was the only thing that contained this crazy lust inside Astoria¡¯s mind.


    The first thing Astoria became aware of was her wet cock being stuck in a divine heat.


    The second thing she became aware of was a flushed looking back at her.


    ¡°Finally back with me? Don¡¯t move around or you¡¯ll hurt me.¡±


    Astoria tried to move despite the fact warning and instantly felt a small burn on her penis.


    ¡°Haney. We¡¯re still locked together so be a little gentle with me.¡±


    Aurora tried to warn but her voice sounded pained.


    Astoria only needed one guess to know why that was so. It was because of her penis being stuck inside the other female.


    ¡°Ah. Did this happen because of my ze point? I was supposed to die, right?¡±


    Astoria was sure she should be dead right now.


    Utilizing ze point was something monsters of the abyss did when they had no other choice.


    And even though Astoria had the same protection as the abyssal beasts, she did not have the same mentality as them.


    Not to mention, the goddess part of her body still suffered from the draconic magic.


    ¡°Think about dying some other time. I need you alive for now to make my dreame true.¡±


    Aurora sounded calm. Astoria also settled down in her former position.


    Now that the ze of energy deprivation no longer colored her vision, Astoria could easily make out how she felt.


    First, her breasts were squished while she pressed against Aurora¡¯s body.


    Since both she and Aurora were well-developed in the size department, there was no space left between their bodies.


    And then there was the unnatural amount of sweat that had built up between them.


    Not to mention, the release that was still sealed inside Aurora.


    ¡°By the way. Where is the baby dragon? You didn¡¯t name it yet, right?¡±


    Despite the hundred questions Astoria had, this one slipped out.


    ¡°Out of everything you could have asked me, this is what you chose? But I guess it does oddly make sense. Now, don¡¯t panic about my next words. I did name the dragon.¡±


    Astoria felt an odd sense of detachment as Aurora confirmed those words.


    It was not Aurora¡¯s fault that she did not know about dragon customs. If she did then she would not have named the dragon kid.


    Only family members or significant others were allowed to name the dragon. And only if the dragon ept it did the name gain significance.


    ¡°Did the kid ept his name?¡±


    ¡°Yes. A Viera arrived not long after we crashed and proimed the dragon kid as her lord. I asked Ur to go with that Viera so that I could cure you.¡±


    ¡°A team of Viera should be here soon to retrieve us.¡±


    Aurora exined and Astoria felt her nerves calm down. If the specie that had found them was Viera then things would turn out to be alright.


    Astoria knew about the history of her sire and Viera. And like most Abyssial beasts, Viera were also bound to serve their family line through magical means.


    ¡°I see. I guess we got lucky then.¡±


    Astoria felt her knot swell down. It finally allowed her to pull out of the wet heat she had been enjoying.


    And once she had the luxury, Astoria did not wait around and pulled back.


    ¡°I can feel the Viera soldiers heading this way. They will be here in about 15 minutes. I think we should get cleaned up. Is there a water source nearby? I am too tired to make water using magic.¡±


    Aurora did look to be tired.


    Astoria tried to ignore her throbbing cock as she took in the various flesh marks she had left behind. Now was not the time to think about those things.


    ¡°This ce is quite dry. I don¡¯t think there is a water source nearby.¡±


    Aurora groaned at Astoria¡¯s words. It was a cute sound and Astoria felt her lips move up unconsciously.


    ¡°Then what should we do? I feel like everything will slip out if I stand up now.¡±


    Astoria didn¡¯t want to tell Aurora that their release was already making its way out of Aurora¡¯s body.


    The translucent-white material mixed with a honey-gold was making Aurora¡¯s skin shine.


    And there was something hypnotic about it. Astoria could say for sure that it was because of her instincts but she decided to do something about that leaking fluid.


    ¡°H-Hey, we just finished. What are you doing?¡±


    Astoria did not even know she had such beastly instincts inside her. But Aurora¡¯s words did not stop her from leaning down and taking a swipe out of her release.


    But one lick was far from enough. Astoria wanted more. No, she needed more.


    So Astoria quickly got to work and ate that pussy out.


    ¡°S-Stop it. Enough.¡±


    Astoria must be really good at her work or Aurora must be really sensitive, because her cries were getting louder and louder by the second.


    The flow of magic was happening unconsciously between them. Astoria could not stop herself from licking into that delicious treat in front of her.


    And Aurora did not seem to want her to stop either.


    Despite Aurora¡¯sints, the younger goddess had a tight grip on Astoria¡¯s hair and was urging her to go faster.


    The sounds of pleasure escaping Aurora¡¯s lips also encourage Astoria to keep on going faster and faster.


    The release build up faster this time and Astoria made sure to lick it all off.


    ¡°You could have warned me before doing that. I don¡¯t even think I can walk right now.¡±


    Aurora¡¯sints were unfounded since the younger goddess pushed herself up on shaky legs and started to pull her clothes back up.


    Astoria felt an odd sense of aplishment at seeing the other struggle to even stand up right now.


    That aplishment turned to glee as Aurora¡¯s legs buckled and she almost slid down to the ground.


    Astoria could still feel her body protest against having anything pressed against it. The beast inside her did not like to feel restricted.


    But Astoria knew how to control herself.


    Despite her inner need to mark Aurora¡¯s neck even more and to leave visible signs of possessiveness behind, Astoria pulled herself back and got dressed.


    She could not allow herself to give in right now.


    ¡°Should we go and find those Viera guards? Or should we allow them to find us?¡±


    Aurora looked conflicted in her decision. It was not a good look on her face. So Astoria decided to take matters into her own hand.


    Before Aurora could ask any more questions, Astoria picked her up and dashed toward the Viera guard¡¯s location.


    Since she also had the blood of Ur, there was a small connection between her and the Viera race.


    That connection made it easy for Astoria to be able to find the hidden guards.


    Poor bunny looked confused to see Astoria stand in front of them. Many even took a step back in fright at seeing her aura for the first time.


    ¡°Take me back to your leader. Angering me won¡¯t leave a good oue for you.¡±


    Astoria did not want to be mean but she had to maintain her status right now.


    Since she had the bestial instincts inside herself as well, she knew the best way to get someone to agree with you was fear.


    Strong ruled the weak in the abyss and for Astoria to get her way, she had to show her superiority above the other race.


    M-My lord. Of course. We were looking around for you. Kindly follow us to our base.¡±


    A timid guard finally stepped ahead and threw her body in a full-blown bow. The poor girl¡¯s body shook at every breath she took but Astoria did not ask her to stand up.


    Seeing how one of their own was bowing to this new deity, the other followed suit.


    They could all feel their lord Ur¡¯s aura emitting from the female in front of them. That aura screamed the world ¡®heir¡¯ to them.


    Their lord had a sessor in the form of this female and she even held enough power to make them all bow.


    The only thought that still created doubt in their mind was the arrival of the small ck dragon Lady Ely had brought back.


    That dragon had a simr aura but was weaker.


    But dragons only had one offspring in their life. So which one was their true lord?

 Chapter 64

    Ely tried to calm her racing heart down as she heard the guard¡¯s report.


    She had sent some well-trained people to retrieve back Lord Ur¡¯s people but she could not help but feel like she was missing something big.


    She remembered how close to her Lord¡¯s aura that silver-haired human had given out. It almost felt like her lord was standing before Ely once again.


    But surely that could not be true.


    Since her lord had already reincarnated in the form of his offspring, Ely was curious to know that human imposter¡¯s identity.


    And that curiosity made her heart pound more and more.


    ¡°Lady Ely, we have brought those humans back to the base. But are you sure about it? That silver-haired female is bizarre. She¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­makes you think of our lord. Her aura is simr to our lord, right? Don¡¯t worry, I will provide you all with an exnation soon enough.¡±


    The guard still looked hesitant to take Ely on her words.


    Ely smiled her charming smile as she stood up from her throne. The ck dragon opened his eyes to give her a stare before curling back to sleep.


    ¡°Don¡¯t question my words. Have I ever led you all astray? Don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t abandon the duty our Lord bestowed upon me.¡±


    The guard finally looked relieved at Ely¡¯s words. His expression conveyed his uttermost trust and adoration toward his leader.


    ¡°Of course. If Lady Ely is saying this then it must be true. Then, I will look forward to the good news. Oh, and the guests we brought back are being kept in the central quarters.¡±


    Ely¡¯s smile widened at those words. Finally, she could start getting answers to her questions.


    ¡°Very well. You all are dismissed for today. But prepare for a grand feast in our lord¡¯s name soon.¡±


    The guard bowed and left, her long ears twitching in happiness and contentment.


    Ely picked up the heavy body of her lord lying on the cushion at her side and almost received a lethal bite mark.


    Lord Ur did not appreciate Ely¡¯s attempt at disturbing him. He had curled up into a ball as soon as he had been ced on the cushion and decided not to let anyone approach him while in this state.


    Many court officials who had felt his aura had already decided to try and visit him. But the dragon had paid them no attention.


    ¡°Lord Ur, your humans are in our guest quarters. Should we go and meet them?¡±


    The dragon finally paid attention to Ely, his wings pping in impatience. That was his signal to say ¡®hurry up and move.¡¯


    And Ely followed the issuedmand without any dy.


    ==========================


    The room Aurora had found herself in was not too shabby. It could be called luxurious by beast standards.


    ¡°Astoria, I¡¯m going to take a bath now. Will you be alright here on your own?¡±


    Astoria did not say anything at Aurora¡¯s words. She just leapt on the bed and rxed her body.


    Aurora decided to leave the half-goddess alone for now. The female had done a lot today and deserved her rest.


    ¡°Then, I¡¯ll be going now.¡±


    Aurora hesitated only a few more seconds before she entered the bathroom.


    It followed a simr luxurious style of architecture as the room outside. Stones line the walls and the floor, giving it a non-skidding texture.


    While the water was not a luxury in the abyss or nearby areas, it was a precious resource to be had.


    Most bestial species did not even use water for their bodily functions. Thankfully, Vieras were not like that.


    They had a considerably good plumbing facility going on and Aurora enjoyed the gentle spray of water on her head.


    It also helped her clean off the residue of body fluids inside her body.


    But once Aurora was done, she felt much better and ready to face the day.


    She opened the bathroom just in time to feel something solid jump into her arms and nuzzle her neck.


    ¡°I see that our Lord found you. It is my honor to meet you once again.¡±


    The ck ball in Aurora¡¯s arms purred and only then did Aurora realize that it was the small baby dragon she was holding on to.


    Ely, the Viera leader, stood in front of Aurora. But as soon as their eyes met, the elder kneeled down on the ground.


    ¡°Pardon my rude behavior. I was not aware that esteemeddy was someone precious to our lord. May I know your names?¡±


    The Viera leader asked as Aurora took a seat on the bed.


    Astoria seemed to have woken up from her nap as well and Aurora could feel her aura press all around the room to mark her territory.


    Since Astoria was still not fully out of the ze¡¯s after effects, this must be an unconscious action on her part.


    ¡°Astoria, you can calm down. You are making poor Ely nervous.¡±


    Aurora made her way toward the elder half-goddess. The dragon in her arms seemed to not like that direction but he did not put up any fuzz about it either.


    ¡°Sorry. This was my first time using ze and my sire¡¯s power. I am still getting the hang of things.¡±


    Astoria apologized but her voice did not convey her apology.


    Aurora still chose to ept that fake apology since it was the best she was going to get. And Ely would just have to bear with this ufortable feeling for the time being.


    ==========================


    Ely could feel the power oozing out of the silver-haired female in front of her.


    It was just as she had expected, it was her lord¡¯s power she was feeling. Even the blood tie she had with lord Ur seemed to be present.


    Whoever this female was, she was simr to the baby ck dragon who was Lord Ur¡¯s sessor.


    ¡°What happened? Are you confused about my aura and power? It is exactly as you are thinking it to be.¡±


    Thedy with her lord¡¯s power exined.


    She sounded so sure about her im that Ely felt her doubts rise again. How could it even be possible? Didn¡¯t the dragons only have one offspring throughout their life?


    ¡°Astoria, don¡¯t confuse her any further. We should tell her the truth.¡±


    The human carrying Lord Ur seemed much more sensible and likable. There was something about her aura that put Ely at ease.


    She oozed the abyssal energy as well. And it was afort for Ely to feel that.


    ¡°No, you are right. I should not let my irritation at this situation take over my head. Listen, Ely, the reason you are feeling your lord¡¯s auraing out of me is that I was created using his blood.¡±


    ¡°The tower created me using the dragon lord Ur and goddess Minerva¡¯s essence. I am both a beast and a goddess. You are free to believe me or not to believe me.¡±


    ¡°But it won¡¯t change the fact that I have your lord¡¯s blood inside my veins.¡±


    Ely wanted to say that she was surprised but she could not even bring herself to muster the energy.


    Of course, she had heard about the tower and the cab of goddesses. It had been a decent organization at the start which used to corporate with the abyssal beasts and keep bnce.


    But things had changed from ancient times and that respect had changed into hate.


    The tower had even assassinated their Lord Ur and stolen his egg. It had been one of the first conflicts ever recorded between the goddess and one of the abyss Lords.


    ¡°I will like some time to think over this matter and decide who our next lord should be. As per our customs, we can only serve one lord at a time. Both you and Lord Ur carry our master¡¯s aura and blood.¡±


    ¡°But we can only choose one. And the choice is not that easy to make.¡±


    Lord Ur, the junior one, did not seem to care about her words. He just curled even deeper in her human¡¯s chest.


    ¡°Do what you want to. But you might find yourself at the same endpoint anyway.¡±


    Ely had a feeling that was going to happen.


    Both the dragons seemed to be gravitating toward the human sitting in the middle of their heap. And Ely had a feeling that the female in the middle would be the real key point in future events.


    ¡°I understand. I would also like to ask what your next course of action will be. If possible, I would like you both to extend your stay here for a few years.¡±


    Since they have just gotten their lord, Ely could not their lord to be separated from them.


    As such, she was ready to use any method to keep her lord with them. Even if it meant keeping their humans along with them and looking after them.


    ¡°That we cannot do. We have to be somewhere in a few days. We need to return to the Rocx valley as soon as possible.¡±

 Chapter 65

    ¡°Your highness, are you sure about this? Won¡¯t it be better for us to negotiate these terms?¡±


    Ely ignored the councilwoman talking around her. She had already made up her mind about this issue.


    ¡°We don¡¯t have any other choice. I¡¯m afraid that we won¡¯t be able to control the other one. And even if we did decide to keep our lord here, I am not sure we would benefit that much from it.¡±


    The council fell quiet at Ely¡¯s words.


    In retrospect, they all knew Ely was right. They all trusted their queen to keep them safe and sound.


    ¡°So it is decided. I will ask the humans to lend us our lord for the time being.¡±


    Ely left the council room with a heavy heart.


    Even though the decision had been made, Ely could not help but feel like she was not going to be sessful in keeping Lord Ur here.


    ==========================


    ¡°Should we be waiting around here? The tower will not sit back quietly after the humiliation we pulled off.¡±


    Astoria¡¯s words were true but Aurora could not help but consider their current situation.


    Had they been in their usual form, it would not have been difficult for the pair to break away from the Viera establishment and head for home.


    But both Astoria and Aurora were drained of their power. And Ur was still a kid with no way of being able to protect himself.


    Besides, Aurora was interested in the solution Viera people would be able toe up with.


    Ely have given off a weird aura when she left for the council meeting. Aurora could not help but be intrigued about the answer she would be able toe up with.


    ¡°We should wait around for now. Getting one more ally would be a good choice. Besides, I don¡¯t know how to take care of a baby dragon.¡±


    Aurora admitted her reasons for wanting to say here.


    While it had a lot of personal reasons, a big reason for wanting to stay back was because of Ur.


    ¡°That¡¯s true. I am more of a goddess than a dragon so I don¡¯t know the needs of the abyssal beasts. I guess we are going to wait around here.¡±


    Aurora breathed out the air she had been holding back inside her.


    Not that she had not expected Astoria to agree with her. Astoria was a level-headed female and she also understood the necessity of information.


    But Aurora had expected Astoria to feel a little odd staying between the people her sire protected.


    ¡°Here shees.¡±


    Aurora felt Ely¡¯s aura after Astoria directed her toward the source.


    As expected, Astoria¡¯s connection to the Viera race allowed her to pinpoint them anywhere within her vicinity.


    ¡°So, what¡¯s the verdict? What have you decided on your side?¡±


    Aurora asked before Ely could greet them. Since Ur was asleep at Aurora¡¯s side, Aurora took this chance to get the conversation over with.


    ¡°We have indeede to a decision that was not easy to reach. We wish to travel with you and be a part of your society.¡±


    ¡°If mydy would permit it, we would like toe with you to yournds.¡±


    Ely held herself in a low bow to convey her sincerity. Aurora could only look on in shock and wonder as that happened.


    It was unheard of for a beast tribe to leave their lives in the abyss and relocate. They were territorial beasts that prided themselves on their territories.


    For the Viera tribe to arrive at such a conclusion was a big shock to Aurora.


    ¡°Are you sure about leaving thisnd? Your ancestors used to rule here and live here. Would you even be able to survive outside the abyss?¡±


    Aurora had several questions about this.


    First of all, the overworld was not favorable for the abyssal beasts. Many lost their rationality once they arrived in the overworld.


    Even ces like Rocx valley that were filled with such energy could not save the mental capabilities of the beasts.


    Secondly, most beasts adhered to the territory rule. To leave their territory and enter a new one would be a huge blow to the Viera tribe.


    And if the new territory owner took offense to their presence, they would be killed without mercy.


    The Viera knew all that and they were still risking this move?


    ¡°We are quite sure about this. As you know, we are linked to our lord through a magic contract. We don¡¯t have any other choice but to follow them if they chose to leave our humble abode.¡±


    Aurora did not miss the use of the word ¡®them.¡¯ It looked like even the Viera could not decide who their true Lord was.


    Still, Aurora had to do her best to warn them before they decided to pull something outrageous.


    ¡°Since you have decided to make this move, I will tell you who the Lord of Rocx valley is. It is the goddess of Victory. She has not been seen or heard from in a long time. But she will be a vicious opponent should she take offense.¡±


    Ideally, Aurora would want to avoiding in contact with another goddess so soon. But the goddess of Victory had already taken ount of Aurora.


    It was high time Aurora visited her and announced her intentions about hernd and her people.


    ¡°We understand. But this decision is no longer in our control. We shall brave the goddess¡¯s anger and cross the border.¡±


    Ely sounded determined in her decision.


    It was not something Aurora could talk them out of. Nor did she want to talk the other race out of this.


    Having Viera as allies would help her academy grow in terms of physical strength. Since Viera were abyssal beasts gifted with an adequate amount of physical strength, they would make for great trainers.


    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, I understand. I do have a proposal for you. I can talk with the Lord of the Rocx valley and exin your situation. But in turn, you must help us out at our new academy.¡±


    Aurora was not sure how much Ely understood her words, but she decided not to deceive the other party.


    Taking advantage of someone¡¯s desperation was something Aurora was willing to do but she was not going to be a scum about it.


    ¡°Academy? Like the tower? And our Lord agreed to your proposal?¡±


    Ely sounded special about Aurora¡¯s im. It was not hard for someone as old as Ely to put two on two together ande to this conclusion.


    ¡°I already agreed to help Aurora. You can trust her in this regard.¡±


    The hesitating look Ely had disappeared from her face at Astoria¡¯s words. Instead, her eyes shined with a new light and understanding.


    ¡°I understand. How soon do you need us to start moving toward the Rocx valley?¡±


    Ely was diligent in her work but Aurora needed to take her next few steps carefully.


    She needed to inform the Ounders of what had happened here and about the changes that were about to be made.


    Aurora also needed to invest in a better security protocol and make her system be able to cover a wider area for defense.


    ¡°Wait around for a bit. I will send you the signal to start moving. For now, I will go back alone and make preparations for your arrival. Astoria, I¡¯ll leave Ur in your care.¡±


    Ur decided to wake up at this exact time and decided he did not like Aurora¡¯s decision.


    But Aurora had made up her mind about what to do next. She had to take care of things before they be a problem for everyone involved with her.


    ¡°So, when will you be leaving the settlement? And how long should we wait before deciding to take action?¡±


    Astoria caught on to Aurora¡¯s words quickly. But she also decided to put her safeguards in ce.


    ¡°Three days. It should all be done within three days. If not, then contact me with this system. I will register you in its database.¡±


    Aurora held her hand out and a screen popped up in front of her.


    ==========================


    Registering: System user 06 ¨C Astoria


    Wee to the user interface.


    ==========================


    ¡°Get yourself acquainted with it. I will see you once you return to the academy. I won¡¯t be much help to you since I will leave at the earliest avable time.¡±


    ¡°And when will that timee?¡±


    ¡°In a few hours. The earlier we start our task, the earlier we can rx and begin our true offense.¡±


    No one else seemed to agree with Aurora¡¯s enthusiasm. But they did not try to hold her back either.


    And Aurora the Viera settlement that evening toward the Rocx valley.


    She had a few tasks to finish along the way which she could not tell anyone about. Those tasks were something she had discovered in her past life but no one should know about them.


    And Aurora was about to head toward those dangerous ces all on her own. She just hoped that things would be alright in the end.

 Chapter 66

    Traversing through the rocky parts of the abyss was not something Aurora had thought she would do again.


    But being somewhere on the first floor of the abyss did amount to a lot of irregr architecture.


    The abyss was like a maze with different levels corresponding to different ces. That was what made it so difficult to navigate.


    But that was a conversation for another time. Right now, Aurora needed to get out of the first floor of the abyss and get to her designated location.


    The most important task of all was to find a girl who would be extremely important in the future. And the name of that girl was Emilia Rose.


    Right now, Emilia was an ordinary girl with nothing to her name. She had no family and no money to her name.


    The vige she lived in took care of her as a pity case but it would notst long. She would soon be outcasted for her phenomenal powers and taken under the tower¡¯s wing.


    Andter on, she would be the second ¡®goddess of victory.¡¯


    A well-known fact about the gods and goddesses was that they could not be killed. No matter how hard one tried, one would not be able to end a goddess¡¯s life.


    But that did not mean that the divine race was immortal.


    Just like any other race, even they had a definite lifespan that was tied to their power and the abyss. Every divine member had a death date and the one etched in the soul of the goddess of victory would be arriving soon.


    Had Aurora not been from the future, she would not have known this face at all. Only Lady Minerva knew the truth.


    But Aurora had no idea how the eldest goddess knew this fact, or how she even tricked down Emilia in herst life.


    Aurora just knew that she could not allow the tower to have Emilia. It would pose to be too big of a threat if they did manage to do so.


    The goddess of victory would not die for quite some time. Aurora had almost 2 years to prepare Emilia to take up this role.


    But the difficult part of this all was to convince Emilia toe with her.


    From what Aurora remembered of the child, Emilia was really timid when she had been young. Her current age should be around 12 and she should be housed in the Horax vige.


    But Aurora had no idea where the Horax vige was exactly. She knew the vague location she could search for clues about the same.


    ¡°System, load the location map for the ce from here to the Rocx valley¡±


    [Affermitive. Loading the system map]


    Aurora had taken the liberty to load some more location maps in her system for such a task. And now it wasing in handy.


    It was because of this that Aurora was able to narrow the location of the Horax vige.


    But the main problem this time would be to get away from the guardian. Exiting the abyss became ten times more difficult this way.


    Since Aurora did not have Ava with her, she did not have the authority tomand the guardian beasts out of the way. That only left Aurora with one option ¨C to fight.


    ¡°Alright. This is it. It should not be too hard since it¡¯s only the first floor.¡±


    Aurora opened the guardian door of the hidden chamber and entered the room.


    Her opponent was the goblin king ¨C an elite of the first floor of the abyss.


    As per his name, hemanded the smaller hoards of goblins and was responsible for a lot of injuries to the neers. His size also intimidated a lot of first-timers who attempted this chamber.


    But that was all he had going for him ¨C the number of his smaller soldiers and his huge body. He was not particrly dangerous if you took away those advantages from him.


    -fweet


    Aurora¡¯s whistle gathered the attention of the smaller monsters near her. The hoard attacked her without mercy.


    But as Aurora had expected, they did notst long against hernce. The hoard fell in one swoop as Aurora swung her weapon.


    But that did not seem to deter the hoard from attacking even harder. New ranks reced the fallen soldiers and Aurora found herself surrounded by the mob.


    The goblin king had not even moved from his throne. He was contented to sit there and observe his subjects die.


    Unlike Viera or other higher races, Goblins did not have higher brain function. They were not able to ess emotions or rational thinking.


    They were truly animals in that sense and would show survival behavior at all times.


    That made it easier and difficult to work with all around.


    Aurora¡¯s body was not used to her godly powers but it was in prime physical condition. As such, it should be able to channel her power in the form of a small spell.


    One might say that performing your best in the physical aspect was enough to ovee one¡¯sck of magic in the tower. But it only held true for the main course.


    For fights such as this, it was better to go with the magical part of one¡¯s kit.


    Aurora fired a shot of lightning and cleared out the way to the goblin king. Smaller goblins died even before the magic hit them.


    It was a pitiful existence to be a goblin and live such a meaningless life. Aurora did pity them to have been born as such.


    But that pity did not mean she was going to go easy on them. She had her own life and ideals to deal with and saving a doomed race was not in her ns.


    Besides, mobs like goblins would be respawned by the abyss in due time. Their poption would also restock once the abyss decided that they were needed again.


    ¡°Your life ends here.¡±


    If Aurora hoped for the goblin king to stand up and fight, then she was sorely mistaken. The goblin king died soon after Aurora served his head from the body.


    His throne which housed the goblin king¡¯s body split apart as soon as the goblin king¡¯s blood touched its surface.


    And it revealed a hidden door behind the throne.


    Had Aurora not known about this door¡¯s existence from her previous life, she would have been hesitant to even enter the door.


    But Aurora did know about the door and she knew that it was safe to go through the door. So Aurora did not hesitate to enter the door.


    White light eclipsed Aurora¡¯s form and made it impossible to tell where she was going. Aurora tried to force her eyes open but the light made it impossible to see ahead.


    Aurora pressed ahead with everything she had. Stopping here would make Aurora a sitting duck and she would be stuck in this light forever.


    -Aurora,e back here. It is alright, I am here.


    Aurora shook her head as she heard Clove¡¯s familiar voice.


    The tower was trying to pull the same shit Ava had pulled in her chamber. Since the first floor was Ava¡¯s domain, it held a simr power to her.


    And just as Ava had failed, so did this illusion as well. Aurora was easily able to shave off this feeling and press ahead.


    The tower did not give up trying to stop Aurora from advancing.


    Since Aurora had not stopped for the voice, it decided to use physical violence instead.


    The shadows in the cave grew in size and solidified in the form of small beasts with sharp ws. Their eyes glowed with malice as they eyes Aurora with hunger.


    Had it been anyone else, they would have tried to defend themselves against the goblin. But Aurora knew better than to do something this foolish.


    These monsters were not real but a part of the illusion created by the abyss to keep Aurora inside.


    The abyss was greedy and did not want to part away from its prey. It would hold on to your soul once you entered.


    Entry was easy in the domain but exiting it was next to impossible.


    The tower had to also clear out a way and maintain it with a goddess¡¯s power to make it safe for people to enter and exit without losing one¡¯s souls.


    But Aurora pressed ahead without any problems. She did not allow the surroundings to slow her down or deter her from her goal.


    And finally, the light dimmed and the white was reced by the natural glow of the sun. Aurora had managed to finally make out outside on the other part of the continent.


    And now she could start looking around to find the Horax vige.


    ¡°E-Excuse me, are you lost?¡±


    Aurora almost jumped at the voiceing from behind her. She had not expected anyone to be standing behind her.


    But once she did turn around, Aurora could not help but pat her back. She found the person she was looking for.


    Standing in front of her was the next goddess of victory ¨C Emilia Rose.

 Chapter 67

    ¡°E-Excuse me, are you lost?¡±


    Aurora shook her head to get it back to the present moment. She could not afford to be distracted now and make a bad first impression.


    ¡°Yeah, I am kind of lost. I just exited the tower and somehow ended up here. Can you take me to the nearest vige?¡±


    Aurora had not meant to deceive anyone for her benefit. But she had no other choice but to pretend to be ignorant about her whereabouts.


    ¡°The abyss? Really? Are you someone from the tower as well? Are you here to help us out with our beast problem?¡±


    Aurora took a step back at the rapid influx of questions being thrown out at her. She had no idea how she should reply back to those inquiries.


    Telling the truth was out of the equation. Aurora did not want toplicate her stay in the Horax vige. If someone from the tower did show up and did not recognize Aurora, it would be disastrous.


    And if they did recognize her, then it would be even worse.


    No matter how Aurora look at her, it was a lose-lose situation.


    ¡°Wait, you said ¡®as well?¡¯ Is there someone else from the tower here?¡±


    It struck Aurora a little toote but her alert level jumped from 1 ¨C 10 in a single second.


    It really would be the worst-case scenario if someone else from the tower was here and could recognize Aurora.


    ¡°Yeah. Vige elders reported to the tower about our increasing monster problem and the tower send us to help in the form of two of their soldiers. But our vige is not safe even with the added help.¡±


    ¡°That is why I am really d to see you arrive here for help as well.¡±


    Aurora wanted to curse her luck but she had no opportunity to do so. She could not show her difort at being ssified as one of the ¡®tower¡¯s people.¡¯


    ¡°This is all good but I am not someone from the tower. I was just trying to clear the abyss but somehow ended up here.¡±


    Emilia¡¯s face told Aurora that she did not believe Aurora¡¯s words.


    Under normal circumstances, Aurora should not have recognized Emilia right away. There was no power or aura that denoted Emilia as a different being from other kids around her.


    If not for her eyes, Emilia would have been no different from a normal kid. Her long brown hair was held up in pigtails and her clothes were ordinary.


    But her pupils held a unique shape hidden behind a mour. The star-like shape of her grey eyes was hidden beneath a dull brown cloak of magic.


    The famous theory back home had been that Emilia¡¯s mother cast the spell on her for protection and sealed her magic. The previous goddess of victory, Emilia¡¯s mother did not want to involve her in the world of the abyss.


    But fates could not be changed and no one could verify the truth any longer.


    ¡°So, you are not here to help us out? But why?¡±


    Oh God, Emilia looked like she was about to cry. Aurora was not good at handling such kids and she had no idea what to do.


    Generally, Aurora left these matters up to Quince since he was the only one who had any real experience with the kids. But Aurora did not have him with her.


    ¡°H-Hey, I will help out as long as I can. But I cannot stay here for long. Though, I do know of a way to take care of your monster problem.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s proposal caused Emilia to finally stop crying. However, the suspicious look did not vanish from the teen¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°Y-You swear to help? You are not trying to s-scam me, are you?¡±


    The weight of those grey eyes felt heavy on Aurora¡¯s soul. If possible, she did not want to answer that question.


    But she had no other choice but to answer the female in front of her.


    ¡°I¡¯m not here to scam you. But we should go back to the Horax vige since it is going to get dark soon. By the way, what were you doing out here?¡±


    Aurora quickly scouted the surroundings for danger as she held Emilia¡¯s hand.


    She could not feel any monster in the vicinity but that did not mean that there were no dangers here.


    ¡°Oh right, I was here to lead those two elders from the tower around to hunt for monsters but I got lost. Help me find them please?¡±


    Aurora wanted to decline that request but the weight of those grey eyes did not allow her that luxury.


    ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s find those people from the abyss and then help them out. Then we should go back to the Horax vige and rx.¡±


    Emilia seemed to agree with Aurora. Her aura seemed content and hummed with a silent power which made Aurora rx as well.


    Emilia gave off a familiar feeling of the abyssal energy which only a goddess could do.


    ¡°Take a right turn and you should be able to see them.¡±


    Aurora did as the teen suggested. Not that she needed the help since she could feel the faint power being used in the forest¡¯s vicinity.


    But now that she thought back to it, there was something familiar about that power. It seemed as if she knew the people she had heading toward.


    Aurora cleared the forest, only to see two familiar people being attacked by an elite-mob tiger cat.


    It was a monster found on the first floor of the abyss and was equivalent to the goblin king.


    But unlike the goblin kind, this mob had a better body condition and sharper moment speed. It made up for itsck of subordinates with a better power level.


    ¡°Quince, dodge.¡±


    Aurora wanted to turn around and abandon the pair in front of her. She did not have the time or energy to deal with Quince and Clove right now.


    Just seeing the pair put Aurora in a weird mood.


    ¡°Hurry, you should help them out.¡±


    Emilia have Aurora a small shove once aurora put her down. The teen looked worried and afraid for their life.


    ¡°They will be alright. The tiger king is not their opponent yet. I do not need to interfere in this fight.¡±


    Aurora knew her former party¡¯s level and powers. Such a small boss should not be a problem for Clove or Quince to take care of.


    But Aurora had a bad feeling about this fight. She knew that Quince alone should be able to kill off the tiger-king.


    Then why were those two being pushed around like prey? Why were they not attacking the tiger-king back with everything they had?


    Aurora decided to finally help the pair out. She could not sit back and see her former party being toyed around with like this.


    ¡°Clove, dodge, or you¡¯ll die.¡±


    Aurora barely made it in time to stop the ws from ripping Clove apart. The younger female had been knocked back due to a heavy blow of the monster¡¯s w.


    ¡°Y-You! Why are you here?¡±


    Aurora ignored Quince¡¯s wonder-filled voice. The monster in front of her eyed Aurora¡¯s new addition with interest.


    But too bad for him, this was hisst moment to be able to live in peace.


    ¡°Disappear.¡±


    Aurora had not wanted to use her magic initially. But she did not want to drag this fight out either.


    That was why she decided to end this face with a sh and utilize her lightning spell.


    The poor tiger-king did not even stand a chance against Aurora. He was too weak to be able to stand up against such a mid-level spell.


    Had it been an elite boss from a higher floor, this trick would not have worked at all. But Aurora had just fought the goblin king and she had adjusted to the power level of the first-floor mobs.


    They were no longer going to be a problem to her.


    ¡°HEY, ANSWER ME! Did you follow us here? What is your objective in being here?¡±


    Quince looked equal parts mad and frustrated to see Aurora. But Aurora was more focused on Clove.


    The poor girl looked flushed and a little out of it. Her face was red and full of sweat as well.


    Aurora quickly noted her temperature and it was high for a human body. Clove was likely running a fever but she had still decided to venture out into the woods and help clear the area out.


    ¡°We can talk our differences outter. For now, we should start heading back to the Horax vige and set up a security front. I will take care of the monster problem for them.¡±


    Aurora offered as she picked up Clove.


    But like every other time, Quince stepped ahead to stop her from having any time with her wife.


    ¡°No need to do that. I can carry my party member. And if you are telling the truth, then carrying Clove will slow you down. Here, give her to me.¡±


    The man held his arms out and Aurora¡¯s grip tightened around the body in her arms.

 Chapter 68

    Quince wanted to curse his luck at running into that familiar face.


    And it also had to happen at the worst possible time for him. Clove was running a small fever and her body wascking her usual power.


    Under normal circumstances, Clove should not be out there fighting the monsters. Quince was more than enough to take care of these monsters on his own.


    But Clove had been stubborn and had wanted to clear this ce out as soon as possible. She wanted to return to the tower and help the security team out.


    And Quince did not want to disappoint her because Clove could get scary when she wanted to.


    ¡°Clove, you should rest for a bit. Rushing out like that is not good for your body.¡±


    Quince could only advise his childhood friend as she ughtered the low-level beasts like they were made up of butter.


    She was having too much fun clearing out the mobs but Quince could tell that she was getting distracted as well.


    Clove was dragging her fights out and her attack speed was slower than her usual one. It had not be a problem yet but he could not help but feel that it woulde back to bite them soon.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me. You focus on protecting the young girl who led us here. You did keep an eye on her, right?¡±


    Clove asked and Quince felt his heart skip a beat.


    ¡°I thought I asked you to keep a look on her and take a step back? Don¡¯t tell me that you lost her?¡±


    Quince questioned but he was awarded an angry look that made him calm down.


    ¡°I mean, I will find her right now. She could not have gone very far, right?¡±


    Clove did not say anything but her attitude screamed her unhappiness. All Quince could do was swallow his unhappiness and back down from the fight.


    It was not worth it to anger Clove any further.


    ¡°I can still feel her magic. Let¡¯s follow it and find that girl.¡±


    Clove¡¯s voice sounded rougher than before. The physical work must be tiring her out and Quince wanted to ask her to take a rest.


    But Clove was stubborn and she was not someone who liked to listen to him either.


    So he had no choice but to follow behind her and protect her back. That was the only option he was left with since his father would not allow Clove to take a rest from the abyss exploration team.


    He saw potential in Clove and he wanted to cultivate it at any cost.


    ¡°Quince, brace yourself. Guard your left side.¡±


    Quince followed themand unconsciously as he picked up his spear. A heavy w collided with his side and almost send him flying.


    But Quince had cast his barrier at the right time to defend himself against the attack so he was only pushed back a little.


    Once he got away from the attack, he finally paid attention to the beast that had been attacking him.


    ¡°It¡¯s a tiger-lord. An elite mob of the first abyss level. It is not something the people of Horax vige would be able to take care of.¡±


    Clove summed up the situation pretty quickly. And she was spot-on in her analysis of the vige¡¯s condition.


    The vigers had no protection and no magic to save themselves. Such an elite boss would kill them all in a single swoop.


    But it was not a problem for Clove or Quince. They had already surpassed the first level of the abyss and we¡¯re well past the second half as well.


    Such a small elite boss should have been no problem under normal circumstances. But the conditions were far from favorable for the pair.


    Clove was in a delicate situation and her body had no energy. Quince had been using his energy to protect her all this while so hecked in the strength department as well.


    Besides, for a mob to appear outside the abyss was a seldom phenomenon. This mob must be much more powerful than a normal soldier to be able to get past the abyss¡¯s defense.


    ¡°We will need to deal with this first. Can you still fight Clove?¡±


    Quince hated to put Clove in danger like this but she was the better fought out of the tow.


    Initially, their party was supposed to have three people but the magician chosen for the party had run away.


    Rita had abandoned them and no one else had the time or skill to join them. His father had tried to buy others but Clove had ultimately ended up rejecting most of the applications.


    Clove¡¯s gaze often looked at the space on her right with a haunted look. It almost felt like she was looking at the ghost of someone who should be there.


    But every time Quince tried to probe into that problem, he came up empty-handed.


    So he had stopped trying to ask her that question and he had also epted their party to forever be a 2 personal party.


    And now that wasing back to bite him.


    ¡°Quince, dodge.¡±


    He did dodge the attack of the beast and tried to retaliate but the beast decided to change the targets.


    It did not help that a familiar presence was standing on the edge of the forest and it was distracting Quince from the fight.


    He looked at the periphery of the forest, only to see a familiardy standing with their guide.


    Quince wanted to say something but he forcefully shoved his attention back into his fight. And right in time to see Clove on the verge of her death.


    The beast was right on top of her and Quince would not make it in-between them in time.


    ¡°Clove, dodge, or you¡¯ll die.¡±


    He tried to move but his speed was too slow.


    Luckily for the pair, someone else managed to save Clove in time. The familiar blue hair mocked Quince in his ipetence and also made him d to have the female on his team.


    ¡°Y-You! Why are you here?¡±


    Quince knew he had no right to be angry at someone who had just saved Clove¡¯s life but he could not ept the female¡¯s help.


    There was something about her that disturbed him greatly.


    ¡°Disappear.¡±


    With a single attack, the elite mob was dispatched and the female proceeded to ignore all his questions till it was time to head back.


    She picked up Clove and Quince felt worried about something. He could not exin the feeling he had but he knew he could not allow Clove to see the female or something bad would happen.


    ¡°No need to do that. I can carry my party member. And if you are telling the truth, then carrying Clove will slow you down. Here, give her to me.


    He asked the female to hand Clove over but he had a feeling the female would fight him on this.


    He tensed up to fight the more powerful female but things did note to that.


    ¡°Fine, you carry her. I have something much more important to do right now anyway.¡±


    Clove had lost consciousness due to her fever so she was out of the count. And it stung Quince to let Aurora go like that.


    But he had to prioritize Clove¡¯s health and welfare above anything else.


    ¡°I understand. We will be leaving this ce in a week so you cane to im your favor anytime. It is the second time you¡¯ve saved our lives and our debt is too huge.¡±


    Quince did not want to own this female anything. She was an enemy who was going against the tower and he had to be vignt.


    But it also did not feel right to not repay her for all she had done for them.


    ¡°I will tell you if I think of something. Now head back and make sure your partner stays alive.¡±


    Her words were spoken softly. Quince knew that the female was speaking more for her partner¡¯s well-being than his own but he could not help but be grateful to her.


    He did not answer when he turned around to leave but he also felt like their party and this female were linked in some way.


    But for now, he would keep this meeting to himself and wait a while to report to the tower with an omitted report.


    Quince had a feeling that Horax vige¡¯s problem with the beasts was about to be solved. And the tower would lose its ground to operate here.


    But Quince did not want to make assumptions beforehand and he did not want to risk lives unnecessarily.


    If Aurora did have a solution for Horax¡¯s problem, she was more than wee to work it out and save this vige.


    Quince would not be an obstacle for Aurora when she was trying to achieve the same thing he wanted.


    -Mnnn


    ¡°Clove, sleep for now. Things will be over once you recover.¡±


    Quince hoped that things would be alright once Clove woke up and for some reason, he had faith in Aurora.

 Chapter 69

    It stung to let Quince take Clove away like that but I could not let my emotions sway me away from what was important.


    And I knew that if Clove had been in front of me, she would have understood my choice and not hesitated to agree with my decision.


    ¡°Hey, do you know those tower people? That man seemed like he was not happy to see you.¡±


    Aurora held back a chuckle at the question. Now that she looked back at it, Quince did look older than his age.


    But maybe it was that Emilia looked younger than she was. Their maturity gap was too much to make any urate guesses as well.


    ¡°I guess you can say that I know them. I helped them out once but they misunderstood my intentions. Also, Quince is only two years older than you so you should not call him a ¡®man¡¯ yet.¡±


    ¡°Only two? But he talks like an adult already.¡±


    ¡°Sometimes, people have to grow up much earlier than they are supposed to. But let¡¯s not talk about unimportant stuff. Lead me to your vige entrance and I¡¯ll see what I can do for you.¡±


    Aurora did not want to waste precious time thinking about Quince and his unfortunate circumstances. Everyone had problems they wanted to get saved from.


    And in terms of Quince, Aurora had personally witnessed the problems he was going to face. Even more so once he came of age and took up a permanent position in the Cab.


    ¡°Alright. If you say so then I will trust you. The vige is this way.¡±


    Initially, Aurora wanted to hurry past the monsters in the forest and quickly establish security around the vige.


    But she had no other choice but to go slow for Emilia¡¯s sake. The poor girl looked exhausted and would not be able to keep up.


    Aurora did not want to push her luck and suggest to carry Emilia either. She was not sure how much pride the goddess-to-be had. (Though it did not look like much.)


    But staying with Emilia, Aurora quickly came to know a little about the teen.


    First, the child was a scaredy-cat. She jumped at the slightest noise and couldn¡¯t even walk straight for the most part once the sun went down.


    She was sticking awfully close to Aurora when they were walking back and Aurora could feel the small shivers wrecking Emilia¡¯s frame.


    Secondly, Emilia had no idea what kind of presence she was giving off. Her aura was fluctuation with fear and power.


    It was a temptingbination for the lower-end abyssal beasts. Aurora had already spotted a few trying to close in on the pair.


    But thankfully, Aurora¡¯s aura was a little too strong for them to bear and they turned tails as soon as Aurora red in their direction.


    Lastly, the child was clumsy. She had just about tripped five times in thest fifteen minutes. That was a new record if Aurora had ever seen one.


    The sixth time it happened, Aurora finally decided to do something about it.


    ¡°Emilia, do you need me to pick you up and hurry back to the vige? You are going to hurt yourself at this rate.¡±


    The teen looked back at Aurora with a nk face. It made Aurora doubt her actions.


    Had she made a mistake by offering to carry the child? Had she offended Emilia¡¯s pride and alienated her even before she had made any progress?


    But then the empty jewels in front of her were filled with hope and expectations and Aurora breathed a sigh of relief.


    ¡°Please carry me. I heard that it is fun when someone does it for you. It¡¯s totally not because I¡¯m scared or anything.¡±


    Aurora could not stop her chuckle from forcing its way out of her throat. It was funny to see the child this excited at being carried by Aurora.


    ¡°Come here. I¡¯ll take care of the monsters for you.¡±


    Aurora extended her hand toward the small teen in front of her. And Emilia jumped into her arms without any dy.


    Aurora could feel the girl¡¯s emotions and aura zing on her face and the magic was vibrating with excitement,


    Aurora braced herself for the impact. But she had not expected the tingle of magic that rushed through her body.


    That was not something Aurora had felt before and she had no idea what that even meant.


    ¡°Wow, what was that? Can we try that again?¡±


    Aurora felt her breath leave her lips as she tried to gather her thoughts back inside her head.


    That had been magic resonance she had just experienced. She had never expected herself to ever be able to experience that in her life.


    Magic resonance was a rare but harmless phenomenon that happened when two types of magics werepatible and could be used to further one another¡¯s recovery.


    Besides that, it had no other practical function. But it requires a huge amount of trust and reliance to pull off.


    For Aurora to experience this right now, she had to wonder just what she did to get Emilia to trust her.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think it will work again right now. But, are you interested in learning how to do that again? I can take you to a ce that can teach you about your magic and how to control it.¡±


    Aurora offered, finally getting a chance to talk to the teen about this topic.


    Initially, Aurora had wanted to breach this subject carefully and not frighten the teen about what the future had in store for her.


    But now it looked like she had no other choice but to bring this topic up prematurely.


    ¡°H-How did you know? I did not tell anyone about my magic because then I would have been sent away. No, I m-mean, I don¡¯t have any magic. I am a normal and average girl and¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­I¡¯m sorry. Please don¡¯t send me away to the abyss. I don¡¯t want to die.¡±


    Aurora almost panicked but she took in a deep breath to calm herself down.


    Emilia had not started crying yet but it was a close thing. Aurora could see the drops of tears starting to appear in her eyes.


    ¡°I won¡¯t tell anyone. And why would I when I can do magic as well? I know how the world can be to those who are different and the abyss is no ce for someone like you.¡±


    ¡°And that is why I offered to teach you how to control your magic. You won¡¯t be able to control it forever but you can learn how to hide it once you have enough control.¡±


    Emilia still did not look convinced but she did not start to cry at the first chance she got.


    Aurora could see the conflict written all over her face. The girl really did not want anything to do with magic.


    But she had been saddled with the responsibility and it woulde back to bite her if Emilia did not do anything about it.


    ¡°But I don¡¯t want to leave this ce. I love everyone in this vige and I want to stay with them.¡±


    Aurora knew this was going to happen. But the girl needed to understand how the world worked and what she needed to do for her future.


    ¡°You can stay here for as long as you like but your magic will expose itself one day. Aren¡¯t you finding it hard to control already? That is why it resonated with me.¡±


    ¡°Besides, I never said you could not return once you have enough control over yourself.¡±


    The girl looked hopeful at Aurora¡¯s words. Her eyes sparkled with hope and trust which made Aurora weak in her heart.


    Unlike everyone else in her party, this child would be reliant on her for protection and other things. No one else had that kind of rtionship with Aurora and it made her somewhat afraid.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I am ready for something like that but I want to try. I don¡¯t want my magic to hurt someone but it seems difficult sometimes. Not being able to control my magic is scary.¡±


    The teen sounded scared and Aurora had to sigh to get her emotions under control.


    If possible, she did not want to look at Emilia¡¯s disy of emotions. It was eerily simr to something she had once felt a long time ago.


    But reverting her eyes was no longer an option for Aurora. She had made this decision and she had to stick with it.


    No more children were going to fall in the tower¡¯s hand and be their tools.


    ¡°If your magic scares you then learn to control it. It is in your hands what you make of it. Though I do know of someone who has magic really simr to you and could help you.


    ¡°I know where your mother is and how to reach her. Are you interested in meeting her?¡±


    It was a gamble but Aurora was banking on it paying off.

 Chapter 70

    ¡°I know where your mother is and how to reach her. Are you interested in meeting her?¡±


    Aurora asked this question knowing what it meant for Emilia. No matter how much older she got, she was but a child right now.


    And every child had an innate longing to meet the one who birthed them. In that case, Emilia was no different from a normal child.


    Aurora should have been disgusted to use such a weakness to her advantage but she could not back down. If she took her words back now, then her reputation was as good as gone in Emilia¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°My mother? She¡¯s still alive?¡±


    Emilia sounded like a lost child. Aurora could see how much her words were eating away at Emilia¡¯s heart.


    ¡°Your mother is alive but in aplicated situation. I am in no ce to tell you why you were left behind by your mother. But I can offer you a chance to find out why you were left behind.¡±


    In retrospect, what Aurora was doing was no better than dangling a carrot in front of a hungry horse.


    From the second Aurora had decided to deploy this tactic, she knew she had Emilia in the palm of her hand.


    ¡°I want to take your offer. I can talk to the people who look after me and tell them that I want to go with you.¡±


    Hook, line, and sinker. She had the teen on her side now.


    ¡°Of course. But it would be better to let me talk with the adults. They will take it much better if they heard the truth from me.¡±


    Aurora was not concerned about the objections people would pose toward her taking Emilia.


    Emilia was an orphan child and no one in the Horax vige had enough resources to take care of her and still maintain the household.


    As such, Emilia was as good as a charity case as one could see. And no one would object if Aurora did take her away.


    The real problem was the tower and its twisted ways. They could pose a serious threat to Aurora in a political sense if she did not have appropriate permission to keep Emilia with her.


    That was why Aurora needed to get written confirmation about what she was purposing and what it meant for the people involved. She had to draw the line between legal and illegal means.


    And if Aurora could transfer Emilia¡¯s guardianship over to her, then it would be the best-case scenario.


    ¡°Alright. I will let you take charge. Let¡¯s go back now.¡±


    Emilia looked relieved and Aurora wanted to chuckle. What an amusing child Emilia was, scared but not willing to show it.


    ¡°Yes, let¡¯s go back. The faster I set up the protective barrier, the faster we can head back toward your mother¡¯s location.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, Yeah. Let¡¯s go.¡±


    Horax vige was just as primitive as Aurora had thought it to be. Their homes were not even lined up properly with protection and the vige did not have a single magical enhancement lined up.


    It was a pitiful sight to see in current times but it did not surprise Aurora to see such depravity in such a backwardnd.


    Since this vige could provide neither precious resources nor magical supplies, there had been no need to invest in such a ce.


    For the tower, it would have been better if this ce did not exist at all.


    But even saying this, they had sent some of their best rookies to this ce which emphasized that they knew this pce had some importance to the tower.


    So, did it mean that Minerva knew about Emilia¡¯s existence? It was entirely possible but Aurora knew it was toote for the tower to interfere now.


    ¡°I¡¯ll go back home for now. Come and find me once you are done.¡±


    ¡°Sure. Get some rest since we¡¯ll be departing tomorrow for our new home.¡±


    The child cheered at her words before leaving toward a shabby hut. It had seen better days in its lifecycle and Aurora was sure it would copse any day now.


    It was lucky for Emilia that Aurora had arrived when she had. Things would have ended up as a disaster otherwise.


    ¡°Now, let¡¯s see. System, check the perimeter and find the most optimal security solution.¡±


    Aurora could have done the check herself but she felt toozy to do that. Her system was more than capable of keeping up with her requirements.


    [Affirmative. Checking for appropriate solutions.


    Checking¡­


    ¡­Solutions found¡­..


    ¡­Implementing security protocol¡­


    ¡­Connecting to natural power source¡­


    ¡­¡­Security protocolpleted]


    Aurora felt the second the magic barrier went up. It was powerful but nothing a high-level beast would not be able to breach.


    But the barrier was good enough to keep the vige safe for a long time. Higher-level beasts did not leave the abyss. Nor were they mindless creatures hell-bent on killing and revenge.


    This vige was as safe as it was going to be without a permanent guard in ce.


    Aurora breathed a sigh of relief once she was done with her work. The barrier was up and the vige was safe.


    That should have been the end of things but her luck was not that good. She was soon found by thest person she wanted to see in the vige.


    ¡°What are you nning? Why did youe here? Are you following us?¡±


    Quince seemed to have a lot of questions about her work and her habits. He did not hold back anything once he started firing off questions.


    Aurora wanted him to slow down but even she knew it would be impossible to change Quince¡¯s mind once he had decided on something.


    ¡°Would it matter if I said that me being here right now is a coincidence? And I have no intention of staying here for longer than necessary.¡±


    ¡°I will be leaving this ce tomorrow so treat my presence here as a hoax and forget about it.¡±


    Aurora did not want her whereabouts to reach the tower¡¯s ears. Especially Minerva was a big no-no in her book.


    ¡°I can¡¯t do that. I will have to report what happened back to the tower. You are too suspicious to not be taken care of.¡±


    Aurora flinched at the brutal words Quince let out. Even at fourteen years old, he had a sharp tongue and an even sharper temper.


    Aurora was just d that the teen seemed to not run dry on his emotions like in hisst life.


    ¡°Well, if you can¡¯t ept my words, how about a trade? I will give you a special grade healing potion and in turn, you do not speak of my involvement in anything.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s proposal was met with a keen eye. Highest-grade potions were rare toe by, especially the healing kinds.


    They were expensive and well-sought after.


    Had Aurora not had a trump card, she would not even have gambled with those words. The funds needed to procure even one of these potions were out of this world.


    Especially since there were only two ways to get this potion- by a goddess and by clearing the high-level bosses of the abyss.


    Both were something no ordinary human could do.


    In this way, Aurora was telling the kid that she was dangerous and had the backing of a goddess behind her. He would not tread so recklessly now.


    ¡°So this is how it is. I understand why you are so confident now. Fine, I agree to your trade but I have a condition of my own.¡±


    Quince was willing to negotiate which was a rarity to see. Aurora did not know if she should be impressed or amused at such a turn of events.


    ¡°Sure. I¡¯ll see if I want to help you out once you speak your mind.¡±


    ¡°Tell me what you know about the tower and its secrets. I won¡¯t spend my life as a puppet for an origination I can¡¯t even see through. Since you decided to go against the tower, there must be a deep dark secret it must be hiding¡±


    ¡°And what will you do once you learn of this secret? Will you leave the tower?¡±


    ¡°This¡­I will decide once I know its secret.¡±


    Quince looked to be in doubt. There was something that was bothering him for sure.


    Aurora had not expected to be at this crossroad with Quince this early in life. Thest time she had been here, she had been dying and Quince had been the one behind most of the nning.


    The poor fool had been controlled like a puppet his whole life and he had not been able to escape even after knowing the truth.


    But it no longer had anything to do with Aurora.


    ¡°There is nothing like that with the tower. My reasons for going against it are because of my personal feelings and nothing more than that.¡±


    Though, I won¡¯t trust the tower 100% if I was in your ce. Just be careful and protect Clove for me.¡±


    With those confusing and parting words, Aurora left the teen with more questions than answers.

 Chapter 71

    ¡°Hey, wait a minute. What do you mean by those words? Exin it all to me. HEY!¡±


    Quince felt his temper rise as the blue-haired woman left him with more questions than answers.


    He had never been treated like this before. Nor had he ever been humiliated to such a degree.


    Most people did not shy away from answering when he asked them a question but here this female was, pretending as if she could not hear what Quince was asking.


    There was a time in life Quince had trusted every single word his father had said. Buttely, he could not help but feel like something was missing in the tower. It was changing at a rate Quince had never seen before.


    ¡°Thinking over nothing will not help anyone. I better head back and take a look at Clove. This potion looks authentic as well but I¡¯ll have a healer check it for me.¡±


    Quince had already sent a signal for help. Someone will arrive here from the tower tomorrow to help clean their mess.


    It was lucky for him that Aurora was in a mood to leave before the help from the tower arrives. Otherwise, things would have gottenplicated fast for Quince.


    ¡°Clove, how are you feeling?¡±


    The house Quince and Clove had been stationed in was not too shabby. It was well-furnished and easy to live in.


    ¡°I¡¯m alright now. By the way, did someone save us from that monster? I can¡¯t remember clearly what happened there.¡±


    Quince deliberated about telling Clove the truth for a second. He did not want to keep her in the dark if he could help it.


    But thinking back over what had happened and Clove¡¯s weird obsession with that blue-haired elder, Quince decided to keep quiet for the time being.


    It was better if Clove did not know how close Aurora was to them.


    ¡°No, nothing happened. I used the emergency attack supply we were granted and we managed to get away. But the backup from the tower will be arriving tomorrow so that is no need for us to worry.¡±


    Besides, Quince had already felt the magical barrier go up around the vige. It was strong enough to keep the smaller monsters out of the vige.


    ¡°Quince, learn to lie better. But I will choose to believe you this time. I am too tired to go out right now anyway.¡±


    Clove seemed to be out of energy. Her fever had yet to break and Quince felt bad to see her in this condition.


    Despite how Clove behaved with him, she was his childhood friend and he did have feelings for her.


    Quince knew he had a solution for her problem in his hand. If what Aurora had said was true, then the potion he had could cure Clove in an instant.


    But in the end, he decided not to use the potion unnecessarily.


    ¡°Yeah. Rest for now and tomorrow will be a better day.¡±


    ==========================


    Once her talk with Quince was over, Aurora did not hesitate to knock on the door of the vige elder couple. She had an important thing to talk about with them.


    The door was opened by a well-ageddy. Her white-haired head looked right through Aurora and into the distance.


    ¡°Hello. Is someone there? I¡¯m sorry but I cannot see very well.¡±


    The milky-white eyes of the elder did look to be empty. Aurora should have noticed her sightlessness way before being told about it.


    ¡°Good evening miss. I am someone from a magic academy. I was hoping to talk to you about one of your children and a chance for free education. May I enter the house?¡±


    ¡°Of course. Pleasee in.¡±


    The olddy did not hesitate in inviting Aurora inside. Theck of defense irritated Aurora but she decided not to let it bother her.


    ¡°Honey, someone from the tower is here to offer our child a chance.¡±


    It snubbed Aurora¡¯s pride to be taken as one of the tower¡¯sckeys but she chose not to correct the olddy yet.


    It was better toy her cards out once she had everyone important gathered in front of her.


    ¡°What did you say? Why did you not tell me before? Ying,e down with your wife right now. Our young one¡¯s future is at stake here.¡±


    Once the old man got news of Aurora¡¯s arrival, he quickly gathered his whole family down except the child of the house.


    This degree of double-standards disgusted Aurora a lot.


    When it came to Emilia and her magic, the vige had treated her as an outcast and actively tried to break her. But when it came to their child, they could not help but be overjoyed.


    ¡°Miss, please continue with your offer.¡±


    Aurora had a lot of words to say to these greedy people. But she chose to calm herself down and focus on her main reason for being here.


    ¡°I recently discovered a child in your vige with a good amount of potential. And I would like to offer her a chance to learn magic. Though I am not from the tower, I know a fair share of magic myself.¡±


    ¡°I have also covered your vige with a protective spell as an offer of goodwill. Small monsters and beasts will not bother you any longer.¡±


    Aurora poured a tone of information over the family in one go. It was a tactic to confuse the family and not give them time to think on their own.


    ¡°T-That¡¯s wonderful news. S-So how soon can my grandson leave¡­.¡±


    ¡°I was not talking about your grandson but the small orphan girl in your vige. I would like to take her under my wing.¡±


    Even if Aurora was not from the tower, most of the magical academies were affiliated with the tower. It was natural for the couple to doubt her words even if Aurora did make it clear that she had nothing to do with the tower.


    Not that it mattered much to her now. It was better that these people believe Aurora had connections with the tower.


    ¡°So, you are saying that you want to take the child away with you to train her in magic? Are you sure you are talking about the right child?¡±


    The younger leader¡¯s wife asked with a hopeful look.


    ¡°I am quite sure it is that young girl I want. I am not doing it just for her, but for you all as well. Her magic is extremely powerful and will explode if she does not learn to control it.¡±


    ¡°Won¡¯t it be better for her to leave with me? As for your grandson, some officials from the tower will be arriving tomorrow. You can try your luck with them.¡±


    The family looked relieved to hear Aurora¡¯s news.


    Aurora could see that they had already made their decision but were hesitating just for the sake of showing that they cared.


    ¡°B-But we have taken care of Emilia for so long. W-we can¡¯t just let her leave like this?¡±


    ¡°R-Right. She is like my own daughter. How can we let you take her away.¡±


    Aurora could not help but scoff at the duality of this family. They were very good at lip service. Even their expressions seemed to be genuine.


    But their aura gave their real intention away. It was time to pull the real big guns.


    ¡°I am well aware of how much you care for Emilia. And that¡¯s why I am willing to show my sincerity to you as well. Here, a token of my goodwill, a mana stone for your son.¡±


    Aurora held out a small glowing stone toward the family.


    Manastones were a precious resource that allowed a normal human to be able to perform magic for a short while.


    But it was only a temporary solution to one¡¯s problem.


    ¡°I-I see how sincere madam is about Emilia. Of course, Emilia should go with madam.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, Madam knowns the best.¡±


    Aurora smiled a charming smile but she also knew that her aura was working on this family.


    Refusing a goddess was impossible for a human in the first ce. Ones without any magic like this family were even worse.


    ¡°Then, please sign on these custody papers and we¡¯ll be done here for now.¡±


    ¡°O-Of course. But c-can I ask m-madam a favor? Can madam take a look at my son real quick?¡±


    The man of the house (the younger one) asked. This was the first time he had opened his mouth to say something.


    Aurora wanted to ignore him but she felt she had to oblige that man. Something in her was telling her she should heed his words carefully.


    ¡°Alright, I am willing to take a look. But no one elsees inside with me when I do so except this gentleman.¡±


    Aurora made her conditions clear. The family did not look happy but the man who had asked Aurora to have a look did.


    After all, he was the only one Aurora was allowed to apany herself.


    She was sure there was nothing left that could have surprised her like this, but Aurora found herself taking her words back once she looked at the kid in front of her.

 Chapter 72

    ¡°This child, has he always been like this?¡±


    Aurora found those words difficult to speak. She had not expected to see this kid after her re-birth.


    His existence was an unounted factor for Aurora and she could not evenpute how this had happened. Where had this childe from when Emilia was supposed to be an only child?


    ¡°Y-Yes. S-o, what do you think? What should I do with this kid?¡±


    Aurora looked the man in the eye. The man was taking a huge risk by telling Aurora about the truth behind this child.


    ¡°First of all, calm down and tell me the truth. Is this child and Emilia rted? They look to be about the same age as each other.¡±


    If thighs were really as Aurora had suspected them to be, then she would have to change her approach toward this topic.


    She also had to be careful to not let the tower find out about the existence of this teen.


    ¡°Emilia? Ah, yes. So you saw through their connection as well. Nothing less than I would have expected from an expert such as you. And since I decided to trust you miss, I will tell you what I know.¡±


    ¡°It all started when that woman, no, that goddess stepped inside our vige all those years ago¡­¡±


    ==========================


    The day started as ordinarily as it could. The sky was clear and the monsters were choosing to keep away from the vige.


    It was a perfectly ordinary day to enjoy an outing with the family.


    The day was even more special for Mr. Rose since his wife was pregnant and on the verge of giving birth. His family was about to beplete soon.


    ¡°Mr. Rose, a woman is standing outside the vige doors. How should we deal with her?¡±


    A guard hurriedly made his way toward Mr. Rose. His voice sounded as if it was panicking so Mr. Rose decided to console him.


    ¡°Oh, so what¡¯s the problem? Let her in and get her set up in the guest amodations. It¡¯s not in the best condition but I am sure thedy won¡¯t mind.¡±


    Mr. Rose was not a cruel man and decided to invite thedy to the vige.


    The guest amodation had been built by the tower long ago when Horax vige had been relevant to them. But it had been a long time since that building had been maintained.


    Still, it was holding up well enough to house a traveler for a day or two.


    ¡°Ah, the thing is¡­Umm, it would be better for Mr. Rose to see for yourself.¡±


    Contrary to his belief, the guard did not head back right that second to convey Mr. Rose¡¯s message.


    That was when Mr. Rose felt his curiosity peak and he decided to entertain thedy at the vige entrance.


    ¡°Fine. I wille with you to greet thedy. Let me see what the problem is.¡±


    Mr. Rose had a simple n ¨C to go out and wee thedy in the vige. And then he could wash his hands off this case for real.


    That had been his initial n.


    But as soon as he saw thedy, he understood the guard¡¯s hesitation in putting thedy in the guest quarters.


    ¡°Are you the vige chief here? I would like to ask a favor of you. I will surely repay you for this favor in form of protection from the wild beasts roaming around this ce.¡±


    Mr. Rose did not have any experience with magic or the tower, but the second he saw her he understood what kind of creature she was.


    To call the temptation in front of him a ¡®human¡¯ would be an insult to her overwhelming might. She was a goddess that had descended on this vige to bless them all.


    The only thing that broke that illusion was the dented belly the goddess had.


    ¡°Miss, are you by any chance, pregnant? My wife is in a simr condition as you. And as such, I would like to extend my hand to you and ask you to stay with us for the duration of your child¡¯s birth.¡±


    Mr. Rose had no intention of allowing thedy in his home at first but he could not stop himself from offering after he saw her.


    His mouth seemed like it had a will of its own and it made that offer to the goddess.


    ¡°Mr. Rose, what are you saying? What would your wife say if she heard you?¡±


    The guard that had asked Mr. Rose toe there asked. He sounded terrified but intrigued by the beauty in front of him as well.


    ¡°My wife would understand. After all, how could we turn down ady in need of our help? And what if she¡¯s from the tower? We will all get killed if we refused her?¡±


    As much as thedy attracted Mr. Rose, something was terrifying about her presence. She felt far too much like a predator to him.


    ¡°Ara~ How can I refuse such a kind offer? Of course, I will take Mr. Rose up on his offer.¡±


    Thedy walked slowly but each step she took was hypnotic. There was a bell sound as she walked and Mr. Rose found himself falling hard.


    ¡°By the way, I don¡¯t see your husband around? How dare he abandon such a beauty like you?¡±


    Mr. Rose might be getting in on his years but he had not lost his charm for flirting.


    ¡°You¡¯re bold. How did you conclude that my husband abandoned me? That he did not die?¡±


    Mr. Rose felt his saliva get stuck in his throat as the goddess questioned his back. Her easy-going tone hid the hard intonation of her actions.


    And for some reason, Mr. Rose was convinced that thisdy had not lost her husband in an ident but a murder case. A murder she might very well have carried out.


    ¡°Y-YOU! How can you be so shameless to walk arms-in-arms with anotherdy when your wife is pregnant and about to give birth?¡±


    Mr. Rose felt his soul return to his body when he heard the angry cry of his wife.


    ¡°Ah, you must be this lovely gentleman¡¯s wife. Miss is much more beautiful in real life. Your husband was kind enough to offer me lodging until I can birth to my kids. He is such a kind man.¡±


    Mr. Rose tried to hide his eyes from his wife¡¯s vengeful re. His wife had always been a jealous woman.


    ¡°Oh, I see. He¡¯s a kind man, huh? Well, I won¡¯t take back the offer he gave you but that doesn¡¯t mean I have epted you into our lives. You will go away as soon as you are done with childbirth.¡±


    Mr. Rose flinched at his wife¡¯s harsh words. In his option, she was making a big deal out of nothing.


    But he had never been able to say anything to her in all his life. His mother had liked his wife enough to sell Mr. Rose out to her family.


    And now he was all but the vige head in the name.


    ¡°Of course. I would have never dared to step foot in this vige if not for my unborn children. And I am grateful for all the kindness you are showing me this day.¡±


    Mr. Rose did find the situation a bit odd but he chose not to say anything about it. Keeping quiet and letting things y out was the best source of action he could take right now.


    His wife red at him yet again and Mr. Rose realized with a jolt that he was in apromised position with the new female in front of him.


    He quickly let go of her arm and gave her a small bow.


    ¡°Hope you enjoy our hospitality Mrs..¡±


    ¡°Shinobu. My name is Shinobu.¡±


    ¡°Ah, yes Mrs. Shinobu, it is nice to meet you. Now if you excuse me and my husband, we have something important to talk about.¡±


    This was how Mr. Rose found himself in his new predicament. This was also the cause of the first fight between him and his wife.


    But nothing came out of it and Shinobu stayed in the same house as the couple.


    Mr. Rose had been spectacle about her im of being a mage but when no monster attacked the vige for a few days, he could not help but believe the female¡¯s im of providing protection.


    A few days passed away in such bliss and the day of heavy rainfall, it finally happened.


    Both his wife and Mrs. Shinobu went intobor and gave birth.


    One gave birth to a pair of twins with unique eyes while the other gave birth to a dead son. It was a heavy day for the family.


    But Mr. Rose still decided to fulfill his duty as the host and visit the other woman in his house.


    After all, she had just birthed a pair of healthy children and she deserved to have someone stand beside her in such a difficult time of her life.

 Chapter 73

    ¡°Your son died, right? Are you looking for a recement? How about taking my son in as yours?¡±


    The exhausted goddess asked as she held her children close. Mr. Rose wanted to say something to her but his mouth could not move.


    His body was betraying him in the worst way possible and Mr. Rose was terrified of what that meant for him. Was this going to be something permanent?


    Whatever this goddess had done, it had affected Mr. Rose on a psychological level.


    ¡°I-If I take the boy, then what will happen to your girl? I can¡¯t take both of them in since my mother knows that a boy was born. B-Besides, these kids look inhuman. T-Their eyes¡­¡±


    ¡°You do not need to worry about that. Here, now it is alright, right?¡±


    The goddess ced her hand on the boy¡¯s head and Mr. Rose watched in wonder as his features changed to match his own. In a matter of seconds, it was impossible to tell if the child was his or not.


    It could only be called a miracle to see such a sight in front of his eyes.


    Had Mr. Rose not seen it happen, he would not be able to tell that this child was not his. His wife and his family will surely be tricked by this.


    ¡°This child, hand him over once someonees to this vige to help you out. You will understand when the timees. As for the girl, leave her be. She needs to bear her fate.¡±


    The goddess whispered in a monotonous voice. It felt more like an order than a piece of advice.


    ¡°B-But it should not be right. What if I make a mistake and the child is found out to be not mine? I will be killed off. And what about equality?¡±


    Mr. Rose was trying to find excuses at this point but the goddess was not going to give him an out.


    ¡°You either follow my words or you all die. Do not test my patience human, you won¡¯t like it. After all, you humans are such fragile creatures.¡±


    For the first time, Mr. Rose thought of the goddess as scary. She was just sitting there, smiling at him and he felt his soul shiver in fear.


    Had Mr. Rose been a good man, he would have argued against such a treatment being given to the girl.


    But Mr. Rose was a coward and all he could do was agree with the goddess and take care of the boy while leaving the girl once she grew old enough to look after herself.


    As for the goddess, one day she walked toward the forest and was never seen again. The vige forgot such a woman existed and her memory faded away from the vige.


    Only Mr. Rose remembered those unique eyes of the female. The star-shaped grey eyes were inherited by her children.


    Everyone lived on happily from that date on, unaware of what had happened in the vige or the identity of those kids they adored.


    ==========================


    ¡°¡­And that was all that transpired. Since we never saw that woman again, I did not wonder too much about things. But now that you are here, I cannot help but wonder if you were the one she was talking about.¡±


    ¡°So, I would like you to ask for a favor. Take this kid with you as well. Joseph is a good kid and he won¡¯t cause you too much problem.¡±


    Mr. Rose pleaded with a passion Aurora had not expected from the meek man. Guilt was oozing out of the man in abundance and it was clear to see why he was behaving in this manner.


    ¡°I understand what you want me to do. But this kid should stay with you. Despite him being a goddess¡¯s kid, he has no magic inside him. He would be a burden to me.¡±


    ¡°Even so, you have to take him with you. Please, I beg of you.¡±


    The man was adamant about getting Aurora to take the kid away from this vige.


    Perhaps, he knew of the fate that was about to fall on the vige and wanted to do onest good task to ensure someone¡¯s survival.


    ¡°Alright. I will take both kids and leave in the morning. Be prepared and meet me at the vige gate when the sun rises.¡±


    Aurora would curse her soft heart for her decisionster. For now, she had a lot of nning to do and a letter to send to the Rocx valley about their new members.


    The night was still young when Aurora exited the vige leader¡¯s house so she decided to do some more groundwork and strengthen the defenses.


    She wanted to go and visit Clove but Aurora held herself back.


    Now was not the time to visit her former wife. Aurora could not be allowed that luxury as long as she had not taken care of things on her end and made sure she had Clove¡¯s soul with her.


    When the morning came it felt all too soon and too far away.


    ¡°Are we going to leave now? When will we be leaving?¡±


    Emilia¡¯s hyper voice called out and the energy in it exhausted Aurora even more. Had it not been for necessity, Aurora would have dyed this encounter.


    ¡°We¡¯re waiting for one more person to join us. Then we can leave.¡±


    Emilia looked confused but she did not question Aurora¡¯s decision. And Mr. Rose did not take long in arriving with Joseph either.


    ¡°Joseph, this is Miss Aurora. She will be in charge of you starting tomorrow.¡±


    The kid looked shy. He could not even look Aurora in the eye and Aurora felt worried for him. Knowing Damian, the kid would eat this shy one alive.


    ¡°H-Hello¡±


    The teen bowed to Aurora with some hesitation but she decided to wave her hand and ask him to stand.


    The teen followed without dy.


    ¡°We shall be going now. Take care of yourself and your family.¡±


    With thest bow, the Aurora parted from the vige with two kids at her side. It was all quiet till they hit the forest.


    And then Emilia started firing questions at the nervous teen.


    ¡°Soooooo, why are you here? Can you do magic as well? Are you strong? What can you do?¡±


    The more Emilia questioned, the more withdrawn Jospeh became. Aurora could spot his nervousness from a mile away.


    And the mour his mother had cast on the teen should be getting ufortable as well. Aurora decided to help him out by removing that cast.


    ¡°Emilia, keep quiet for a minute. The circumstances for Joseph being here are special, just like your case. But he is not like you in the magical department. You will understand in a minute why that is so.¡±


    Aurora waved her hand over the magic seal and it disappeared in a single second.


    Normal features bent and then disappeared into the unusual look only a divine being could give off.


    Emilia¡¯s gasp of wonder sounded far too loud in Aurora¡¯s ear. But Joseph did not look shocked to see his face in the small pond nearby.


    ¡°He looks just like me. How is it possible? Is he a g-ghost?¡±


    It looked like Emilia had a far more vivid imagination than Aurora had first given her credit for. Really, to see this and think about ghosts.


    Where did this girl borrow her imagination from?


    ¡°F-Father said it was because we share a mother. He also said that I was not his real son.¡±


    This was the first time Aurora had heard Josphe¡¯s voice and it was far colder than she had expected from such a small kid.


    Now that she paid attention to the kid, his body temperature was lower than Aurora expected as well.


    Was it a side-effect of the spell being cast on him or something else? Aurora had never heard of such a case before?


    ¡°Oh. So you got adopted? Well, I don¡¯t care about it. I¡¯m just happy I have a family now. Also, did you know that we have a mother? I mean, an alive mother. Aurora is taking us to see her.¡±


    ¡°Is it true?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, she said that she would do it.¡±


    Initially, Aurora had wanted to wait to see the goddess of victory. She had no idea how to approach this subject with two kids with her.


    It would have been difficult to defend a single kid had the goddess taken offense, but defending two of them would be a nightmare.


    But the choice had been taken out of Aurora¡¯s hand by two twelve years old. Their expecting eyes looked at Aurora and she knew she could not say no now.


    She could not dash the hopes of two innocent kids in front of her.


    Especially not the ones she was hoping to work to the ber on and convert into her helpers.


    ¡°Alright. Buckle tight because it is going to be a long trip from here.¡±

 Chapter 74

    The Horax vige was in an uproar the next day. And the main reason for such an uproar was the arrival of a single figure.


    ¡°L-Lady Minerva, what are you doing here yourself? There was no need for mydy to take up such a task herself when¡­.¡±


    ¡°I came here because I had business here. Do not tter yourself by thinking it is for you. Now, where is the couple that was stationed here? Bring me to them.¡±


    Meanwhile, Quince was thankful for the support team and their quick response to his inquiry.


    It was all thanks to them that Clove was recovering at a rapid rate and her fever had finally broken as well.


    As soon as Clove stabilized, Quince handed the healing potion vile over to the doctor who had cured Clove. He was a highly-learned man whom Quince trusted.


    And he also wanted to get his doubts cleared as soon as possible.


    ¡°M-Master Quince, where did you get this potion vile? The one who gave this to you did not lie at all. It is the highest-quality healing potion one could find.¡±


    The doctor looked to be in awe of the vile. But Quince was just relieved to not be ripped off in such a blunt manner.


    It looked like Aurora had been telling the truth about her having high connections. And Quince would need to exercise caution with her.


    And also keep Aurora and Clove as far away as possible.


    ¡°What is all thismotion about? I would like to participate in this talk as well.¡±


    Quince had just started to rx but he tensed as soon as he heard that voice. It was such an iconic voice that he could not help but get whish as soon as he heard it.


    ¡°L-Lady Minerva, it is incredible. This potion is potent and it is undiluted. Here, have a look.¡±


    Had Quince known about Lady Minerva¡¯s arrival, he would have never dared to hand the healing potion over for inquiry in Horax vige.


    He would also have prepared an excuse to ount for his vile¡¯s presence in his inventory.


    ¡°Oh, let me have a look. Give that vile here.¡±


    Quince wanted to stop the exchange from happening but there was no way for him to do that anymore.


    He watched with a heavy heart as Lady Minerva held the vile and opened it to take a sniff.


    Her face did not change even a single bit as she observed the contents inside the veil before handing it back to the doctor.


    ¡°It is indeed the real deal. The potency of it tells me that a goddess made it. So, Quince, where did you get this potion from? And do try not to lie to me.¡±


    Quince cursed his luck but he could no longer lie. He had to tell them what happened in Horax vige before they arrived.


    But although he could not lie, Quince could omit the truth to suit his needs. And that was what he was counting on doing.


    ¡°While out hunting beasts, I met someone who saved me and mypanion. They took pity on me and handed me this potion and then left for the vige.¡±


    ¡°I arrived back with Clove to allow her to recover but by the time I checked for that person, they were gone from this vige. This is all I know.¡±


    Lady Minerva¡¯s eyes did not change at his answer. Quince had no idea if the goddess believed his words or not.


    ¡°You did not know this person you speak of? Is it the same one who put up this barrier around Horax vige?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°I see. I suppose I cannot me you for not being able to look through such a tough illusion. You are far too green right now. Now, rest here while I go and investigate this matter further.¡±


    Quince held his breath till Lady Minerva left the room.


    He was more than aware that his words had not been believed by the goddess at all but he was happy to have gotten this time.


    Now if only Quince never runs into Aurora again, it would be the best-case scenario.


    But he had a feeling that he would run into Aurora far sooner than he would have liked to.


    ==========================


    Minerva exited the room with a dark expression on her face. Anyone who saw her quickly escaped out of her way.


    It was not just her expression but her magic as well that wasshing out.


    ¡°Mydy, you are scaring away our people. Kindly calm down a bit.¡±


    Thankfully, not everyone in her guards was a coward and quickly established what needed to be done.


    ¡°Quince dared to lie to me. He might say that he never met the owner of that vile but his aura gave him away. If not for my fondness for him, I would have ended him there and then.¡±


    It was not like Minerva could not understand why Quince had lied to her. It was clear as a day that only a goddess could have produced such a potent healing potion.


    But to hide it from Minerva was a grave sin in her eyes.


    ¡°Mydy, Quince is still a child. He will learn in due time and will understand what needs to be done. Meanwhile, we looked around for the kid you mentioned but it seems as if we were toote.¡±


    ¡°What did you say?¡±


    ¡°We looked around and it seems like someone took that girl away¡­¡±


    Minerva had managed to calm down a bit but the news send her temper flying again. Minerva had never felt such peeved before.


    It was like she was ying chess with an invisible enemy and she was always two steps behind her enemy.


    She had been feeling the same ever since Astoria had managed to escape the tower with her guest.


    ¡°Who dared to do such a thing?¡±


    Had someone discovered who that girl had been? Or had it been a coincidence? Minerva was no longer sure what to think about this situation.


    ¡°Let¡¯s head to the vige elder¡¯s house and have a talk. Hopefully, the situation is not beyond our control just yet.¡±


    Although Minerva said that, she could not help but feel like she had already lost this hand.


    The leader couple looked nervous to see her. The man could not even look Minerva in the eye while the female tried everything to tter her.


    ¡°No more. I just want to know who took the girl away.¡±


    ¡°It was someone named Aurora. She said she was from an institute and saw talent in that girl, Emilia, and our son. D-Did we make a mistake? But she could do magic?¡±


    Lady Rose looked a little annoyed at being tricked but Lady Minerva already knew she had lost this gamble.


    Now that she knew the name of the one who had taken away her prize, she could not help but remember the one person who had defied the tower and lived to tell the tale.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. The one who took your kids away was not lying. Your kids are in safe hands.¡±


    It hurt to say but Lady Minerva did not lie to the couple. She saw no benefit in lying and she also did not want to anger Karan right now.


    Whatever beef Lady Minerva had with Astoria and Aurora would have to be settled during the first investigation report. Doing anything before that would cause the tower¡¯s reputation to take a downfall.


    ¡°By the way, I am interested in one more topic. The main shrine in the vige, can I possibly see it?¡±


    With the major topic out of the way, Lady Minerva decided to focus on the one topic that was itching her.


    There was weird energying out from the center of the vige and the seal protecting it felt familiar to her.


    Unlike the barrier that covered the vige, this one was designed to keep something in and had a goddess¡¯s power embedded inside it.


    It made Minerva curious to look at the thing Goddess of Victory could have stored in this vige.


    ¡°O-Of course. Mydy,e and follow behind me.¡±


    Lady Rose jumped at the chance to show her worth. Minerva had dealt with too many people having the same temperament so she was not surprised to face such an extreme reaction.


    ¡°Are you not going to follow us, Mr. Rose?¡±


    The man looked startled at being called out but he shook his head as soon as he realized that he was being called upon.


    ¡°Let him be. My husband is such a shy person and he¡¯ll hold us back if we take him with us.¡±


    Lady Rose left her husband with no face when she criticized him. But it was not Lady Minerva¡¯s ce to say anything to them.


    They had their own pace to follow and their problem to solve. Minerva will not interfere in their mess and leave the vige be.


    She had far more important things to take care of.

 Chapter 75

    The trip to Rocx valley was not as long as Aurora had thought it to be. Before he knew it, she was standing at the entrance of the famous Rocx valley with her two charges behind her.


    ¡°So, this is where our mother is? Are you sure someone can live in such a desert-like area?¡±


    Emilia¡¯s question stemmed from her child-like innocence. For someone who had never faced many hardships and lived in a rtively safe vige, it was hard to imagine living in such a ce.


    ¡°Some people don¡¯t have a choice about their home. But the condition of this ce will get better in the future.¡±


    Rocx valley might be an uncultivatable desert right now, but it would soon turn into a lushnd where people would be able to live out their lives in peace.


    ¡°And what about our mother? Is she here as well? Is she going to meet us here?¡±


    Joseph¡¯s question sounded equally innocent but this was a heavier topic than the one Emilia had chosen to take up.


    It had taken some time for the children to get used to each other¡¯s presence and familial rtionship with each other. But once they had gotten used to each other, they got along like oil and fire.


    In other words, their innocent actions were making Aurora¡¯s life much more painful.


    ¡°We¡¯ll head toward your mother¡¯s location to meet her. I did not tell her I was bringing you two so it will be a surprise for her as well.¡±


    Not that it would be that much of a surprise.


    Aurora could already feel the familiar magic of a goddess check her out. As soon as she stepped into the Rocx valley, the goddess would know that Aurora was not alone.


    Whether the goddess cared enough to investigate this topic or not, that was not something Aurora could say for certain.


    ¡°So what are we waiting for? Let¡¯s go and meet mother.¡±


    Emilia hurried past the boundary line without hesitation. For someone scared of her own shadow, this was a big step to take.


    Did the child trust Aurora this much to even take such a big risk?


    ¡°Let us go in as well, Joseph. Or we will lose Emilia in this forest.¡±


    Aurora had put a tracker on both children so she was unlikely to lose them in such a huge ce. But it never hurt anyone to be cautious in such a big ce.


    The only stroke of luck the trio had once they stepped into the valley was ack of monster encounters.


    Aurora had released a small portion of her power to keep the low-level monsters away from the trio.


    She did not want to risk getting one of the children identally hurt in the process of taking them to see their mother.


    ¡°When will get to our mother? How far away is she? Is she beautiful? Does she look like us?¡±


    Emilia¡¯s questions were getting more and more frequent. Aurora did not have an answer for her since she had never seen the goddess of victory.


    All she knew about the current goddess of victory was that she did not agree with the tower and she had gone independent a long time ago.


    ¡°You will know once we get there. Asking questions will not make our destination arrive early.¡±


    Although Aurora said those words, she had no idea how far away the goddess of victory¡¯s abode was.


    Since the goddess¡¯s power was far beyond Aurora¡¯s control, her system could not mark down a location for the said goddess.


    It would be up to the Goddess of victory to lead the trio to her. And if she did not want to be found, then it would be nearly impossible to find her.


    ¡°Uh, excuse me. But is the desert supposed to have birds in it?¡±


    Joseph pulled at Aurora¡¯s clothes and pointed toward a small red, white and ck bird. It was a Tanager bird which was not a desert bird at all.


    In the modern world, normal animals were a novelty not everyone could see. Theck of resources had made the small animals go extinct.


    And those who were left were either mutated by the abyss or had developed magical properties of their own in the process of survival.


    But this small bird did not seem to possess any magical aura around its small body. It was a normal bird.


    ¡°Good observation. We need to follow the bird from this point on.¡±


    Since such a unique bird had arrived in front of them, Aurora could only take it as a sign from the goddess of victory.


    Whether the goddess wanted to doom them or help them, Aurora could not even begin to guess at this point.


    ¡°It¡¯s such a pretty bird. Do you think I can touch it? Animals back home are huge and they try to kill you if you touch them.¡±


    Emilia¡¯s voice was filled with longing as she looked at the bird.


    But the bird did not seem to exist toe down and allow a human to pet it. Every time Emilia started to step toward the bird, it seemed like it would fly away.


    The only way to know what it wanted for sure was to wait around and allow it to fly away on its own.


    -achoo


    ¡°Sorry, I could not stop myself.¡±


    Emilia apologized but the bird had already taken flight. It stopped a few meters away from the trio and looked back.


    This time, the look in its eyes seemed a little intelligent to Aurora. It beckoned the trio to follow after it and the trio did.


    They followed the bird as far as they could and ended up in front of a small cave.


    ¡°Where did the bird go? I don¡¯t see it anywhere.¡±


    Emilia¡¯s observation was cut short when Aurora pulled her and Jospeh behind her. Something huge was inside the cave and the aura it portrayed was unlike anything Aurora had seen before.


    She would havepared it to Lady Mei¡¯s had thedy gone all out in her spar against Astoria and Aurora.


    That power could have only belonged to a goddess.


    ¡°Your mother is inside there. Don¡¯t take everything she says to heart.¡±


    Aurora reminded the kids before she braced herself and walked inside the cave. The darkness caused the children to cling to her for support.


    But Aurora did not push them away. Instead, she cast a small spell on their body to keep them protected against the heavy aura of a goddess.


    ¡°And who dared to enter my abode uninvited? I did not want to havepany right now. Whosoever you are, kindly go back.¡±


    The voice of the goddess sounded melodic but also a little tired.


    Had Aurora not known that her opponent was a goddess, she would have thought of the other as a sick person.


    But then again, the goddess of victory was at the end of her life span. She did not have much time to live so it was not far-fetched to think that it was affecting her physical manifestation.


    ¡°Are you our mother?¡±


    Aurora had not expected the children to take a stand against such power. But Joseph gulped down his fear and asked that question.


    ¡°Mother? Ah, so that¡¯s why you feel familiar to me. Did the new goddess bring you two to me?¡±


    Aurora felt a brief touch on her shoulder and she tensed up.


    A huge surge of power was gathering behind her but Aurora felt like she could not turn toward it. If she did then she would surely be attacked.


    ¡°Come closer. Let me have a look at your face.¡±


    Emilia was shaking at Aurora¡¯s side but Joseph decided to be brave and take a step ahead. The presence behind Aurora also disappeared and she felt the magic gather in front of her.


    The fiery-orange hair of the goddess was the first thing Aurora saw emerge from the magical me followed by a young body.


    Her age seemed to be almost simr to the boy in front of her.


    Had Aurora not known just what the goddess power was capable of, she would have never believed Joseph to be the goddess of victory¡¯s child.


    Not when he looked both taller and older than the goddess.


    ¡°Youe forward as well girl. I need to see you both to confirm something.¡±


    Emilia¡¯s shaking got worse. She must be feeling that heavy aura of the goddess press up against her own and it should be making her condition pick up.


    As much as Aurora wanted to help her, she knew she could not do that. This was something the kids had to face on their own.


    ¡°Hurry up girl. I do not have the whole day to waste with you. Do not make this game any more difficult than it needs to be.¡±


    Aurora patted the young girl on her head but she did give Emilia a small push to move forward. The child needed to ovee her fear right here and now.

 Chapter 76

    ¡°So only one of you retained by magic? It is better than I expected. Seems like my gamble paid off after all.¡±


    The goddess of victory sounded pleased as she observed the twins in front of her.


    She had not touched the kids yet but Aurora knew it was only a matter of time before the elder goddess made a move.


    ¡°It¡¯s a pity that only one of you will survive and inherit my powers once I die. I wonder which one of you it is going to be.¡±


    The goddess¡¯s words caused a wave of difort to build up inside Aurora. Just what did the goddess mean by those words?


    Emilia looked like she was about to faint. The poor girl was white in the face but Jospeh looked determined.


    ¡°Ah, you did realize what I am talking about. You are a smart boy, aren¡¯t you? A pity you did not inherit my powers as well. You would have been a certain candidate as the next god.¡±


    The goddessmented and Aurora finally felt it click what she was saying.


    Since the goddess had given birth to twins, her powers had been divided between the pair. Unlike the birth of a natural goddess where all the power was given to a single person, this time it was divided.


    So once the current goddess of Victory dies, her power would have a hard time deciding which vessel to choose next.


    And if Aurora was correct in her assumption, the tower would try to kill one of the twins to gather up in a single vessel.


    ¡°Is there a way to save them both? They are kids and should not be subjected to this treatment.¡±


    Aurora felt pity for the kids who were stuck in this kind of fucked up world.


    Had she known this would happen, she would have never taken Joseph with her. Then she would not have such a burden on her mind.


    Aurora never promised to be a saint but seeing someone she knew die was not something she wasfortable with her either.


    She would have preferred not to have known the dead person at all to ease her conscious.


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid the y has progressed far too much to stop it now. But you still have time to figure out a solution if you want to. My responsibility is already over.¡±


    The goddess of victory did not seem like she cared much about this topic or her children.


    Once she was done observing the kids, she turned away and did not pay attention to them again.


    Ths kids still looked interested in knowing more about her and Aurora felt ufortable to be standing in such a gathering.


    ¡°Ask your questions now. I will answer them since I am in a good mood.¡±


    The goddess seemed to be in an agreeable mood so she offered to answer the question.


    ¡°Why did you abandon us? I thought you were dead or something.¡±


    Emilia seemed to finally gather some courage and ask the question that was weighing on everyone¡¯s mind. Aurora was curious whether the goddess would answer this question or not.


    ¡°Your birth was never my choice. I was just fulfilling my duty as dictated to me. Why do I need to care about you once I was finished?¡±


    Contrary to what Aurora expected, the goddess¡¯s answer was cold and detached. But the goddess continued her verbal assault anyway.


    ¡°The tower forced me to have a recement before I die but I did not want to do that. In the end, I was forced to fulfill my job. It was a game which I could not escape so I decided to stop ying.¡±


    Surprisingly enough, Aurora found the goddess of Victory to be a little childish. But not childish in a good way.


    Her thoughts, and her pattern of behaviors, all pointed toward a child who refused to grow up and take responsibility for her actions.


    ¡°And you decided to abandon children to their fate when they couldn¡¯t even walk? Did you not feel any attachment to them at all?¡±


    Aurora had decided not to speak anything. She had wanted to stay out of this mess.


    But she could no longer stay out of the verbal abuse she was hearing about. No child deserved to hear that they were not needed.


    ¡°That¡¯s right. I do not feel any sort of emotions for them except fulfillment. Now you can leave if this was all you came here for.¡±


    Aurora felt angry at the oue of her talk but she also felt like something was missing from this whole exchange.


    Theck of aura and emotions she was feeling from the goddess was concerning. It made Aurora suspicious about the exchange she was having.


    ¡°Emilia, Joseph, can you go and wait in the next hallway while I have a serious talk with your mother?¡±


    The kids nodded without looking up and left the hallway.


    Aurora could still feel them typing to listen in on the conversation that was taking ce between aura and their mother but Aurora decided not to shield them.


    In her opinion, they were old enough to hear the truth.


    ¡°Did you mean what you said? About your feelings?¡±


    Aurora spoke with purpose so that her words could not be misunderstood.


    ¡°My feelings do not matter. The abyss has a will of its own and I do not want to be a puppet in its schemes. As for my feelings for my children? Who could remain unaffected after carrying around a life inside them for nine months?¡±


    ¡°I care about them as much as I can care about anything. But my will to break free of the abyss¡¯s chains is much more solid. So I made my choice.¡±


    That made sense to Aurora. Even for her, if things came between her desire to collect Clove¡¯s soul and her desire for vengeance, Aurora was sure she would be able to choose Clove above the other.


    Some feelings were just too deep-rooted to allow others to rece them.


    And in the end, even goddesses were creatures with desires and emotions.


    ¡°So you do love the children in your way, huh.¡±


    ¡°I guess so. But I do hope this was not all you wanted to ask from me.¡±


    This was the moment of truth. This was where Aurora¡¯s n would make or break.


    ¡°No, of course not. I had another request to ask of you. Do you know about the academy I am about to set up in Rocx valley I am thinking about locating Viera in your territory? I hope you do not mind.¡±


    ¡°I do not mind. I am in no condition to be making such decisions anyway. I will not live long to see the oue anyway.¡±


    Aurora wanted to pity the goddess in front of her but she could not bring herself to feel the emotions she wanted to.


    The goddess might be under the influence of her own emotions, but the decisions she had made were not something Aurora could respect.


    ¡°I will take care of your kids. I will make sure they both live to their fullest potential.¡±


    Aurora knew she might be making an empty promise to the goddess but she was doing this for herself.


    ¡°Do what you want to. You have my support in everything you do since you are helping the outcast people I took under my wing.¡±


    That was at least one problem solved. But still, this talk brought forth a new question in Aurora¡¯s mind.


    ¡°By the way, why did you not leave your kids with the outcasts? Surely it would have been an option for you.¡±


    ¡°What makes you think I did not want to? But the tower would not have left the outcasts alone if I did that. I am a bird bound in the abyss¡¯s cage.¡±


    Aurora decided she could not take any more of this atmosphere.


    The goddess of victory was too far-gone in her thoughts and emotions to be making much sense. Aurora was not good at dealing with these kinds of people.


    ¡°Then, I shall take my leave now. Hopefully, we won¡¯t meet again.¡±


    The goddess of victory did not stop Aurora from leaving. Aurora did not look behind herself either.


    ¡°Did you both hear everything? I¡¯m sorry that this was not the ideal meeting you expected to have with your mother.¡±


    Aurora regretted bringing the kids here the most. This was unnecessary emotional baggage she had saddled the kids with.


    ¡°No. I am d we came here today.¡±


    ¡°The meeting might not have been the ideal one we expected but at least we know for certain that our mother loves us in her way. And this is enough for us.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for giving us this opportunity.¡±


    For the first time, Aurora felt she had underestimated someone. She had expected the kids to feel sorrow or even criticize Aurora for her decision.


    But they chose to thank her instead.


    Now she needed to find a way to make sure both kids lived their lives to the fullest.

 Chapter 77

    Although Auror felt that the incident with the goddess of victory had been handled safely, she could still feel the burden of her decisions.


    The kids might have taken the news gracefully but the aura of hurt around them was still potent.


    ¡°Kids,e here. This will be a one-time thing so do not get used to it.¡±


    Aurora pulled the kids in a hug as soon as they were near to her. The tight embrace caused the kids to finally let loose their emotions and start crying.


    And as if a dam had broken, the tears did not stop once they had started falling down the kid¡¯s face. Their soft hups and shivers wrecked their small frame, causing Aurora to feel their emotions.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright. You both are not alone. Soon you will have more people who will love you.¡±


    Aurora was certain that these children would be cherished by the outsiders and the Viera n. They were good kids who knew how to behave.


    ¡°I-It hurts.¡±


    ¡°I know. But things will be alright.¡±


    No matter how strong a child was mental, such things were bound to take their toll on them.


    Aurora could feel the elder goddess keep an eye on the trio but the goddess of victory did note out to confront the crying children.


    The message she was trying to send was clear ¨C I am washing my hands off this case. It is your responsibility now.


    And since this was the case, Aurora decided to take her responsibility seriously.


    The children calmed down around an hour or half, finally allowing Aurora the peace of mind she wanted.


    ¡°Do you need to rest some more? Or are you ready to finally head out now?¡±


    Aurora did not mind spending a few more hours consoling the children but they did need to start heading out now.


    They might be in the Rocx valley but the academy was still on the opposite side. It would take at least a day for Aurora to reach the settlement and then some to check up on the progress.


    ¡°No, we don¡¯t need any more time. We are alright now.¡±


    As expected, Joseph was the first one to calm down and ept the situation. He was also the one who helped Emilia realize that their situation was not so bad.


    It was nice to see such a bond form between siblings.


    Aurora had been brought up as an only child but she had her friends who were almost like siblings to her.


    Still, this disy made her wonder how different blood-rted siblings were whenpared to sworn siblings.


    Maybe if Aurora had stayed behind, she might have gotten a chance to find out. After all, she was not an only child.


    But the time of regret had already passed a lifetime ago.


    ¡°From here on, be careful and don¡¯t wander off on your own. I don¡¯t want to see you in trouble with the monsters.¡±


    The children agreed without hesitation.


    Aurora crossed the valley far slower than her original pace. Since she had kids with her, she had to walk at their pace.


    She also took the initiative to teach Emilia some easy magic but she could not do the same for Joseph.


    But what hecked in magic, he more than made up for in intelligence.


    ¡°Emilia, practice this spell. I have something to give to Joseph.¡±


    The girl agreed without much probing. It was a nice thing to see ¨C theck of jealousy.


    Maybe it was because they had grown up in different households and under different conditions, but the sibling pair did notpete with each other for resources.


    ¡°Do you feel left out while Emilia is practicing magic?¡±


    Aurora could see the longing look Joseph cast toward Emilia¡¯s magic. There was a yearning in his gaze that Aurora recognized.


    ¡°Not really. I have epted that I will never be able to practice magic. And it¡¯s not like I¡¯m the only one.¡±


    Joseph was trying to be rational but his voice shook when he spoke. It was tragic to see a child go through this dilemma.


    ¡°Your condition is not unique but it¡¯s not beyond help either. And there are ways for you to be able to keep up with Emilia without even magic. I know some people who can help you out.¡±


    Aurora was talking about ounders.


    Their technology required intense practice and concentration to use but it was universal enough to be used by anyone.


    ¡°Help me? Then there must be a catch to it all.¡±


    ¡°Of course. You will need to put in much more effort than Emilia and you will also need to condition your body. But you¡¯re young enough to adjust. So you should think about it.¡±


    ¡°¡­.¡±


    The kid did not answer Aurora at once as she had hoped him to. Joseph proved to be wiser than Aurora had expected him to be.


    ¡°You can take your time thinking over your choices. Now let¡¯s get up. Someone will be here to pick us up soon.¡±


    Aurora had sent a message over her system a long time ago and she could finally see Rita¡¯s signal on her map.


    The younger was close by.


    ¡°AURORA, THIS WAY.¡±


    The redhead waved her hand over the small cliff she was standing at. Aurora waved back at her in greeting.


    The children at her side looked intrigued but quickly took a step back as they watched a huge shadow approach Rita from behind.


    ¡°Look out¡­¡±


    Emilia did not get to finish the sentence before a small wolf left the huge shadow and electricity filled the background.


    The huge monster was charred within seconds with not even a body remaining intact.


    ¡°You should not worry about Rita. She¡¯s trained for such circumstances.¡±


    Aurora pointed but even she was impressed by the advancement Rita had made in such a short time.


    The power Rita¡¯s summon had shown was much more impressive than Aurora had seen before she left. The result of a week-long training was clear in Aurora¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°So you dide back. And here I thought you abandoned us here.¡±


    Rita was not alone. Damina had decided to tag along with her. The kid had a sour expression on his face but his aura felt satisfied.


    ¡°Yo. I am back and I have gifts with me. You both cane out now.¡±


    Joseph looked intrigued to see Damian and his armor. Aurora was sure it was his first time seeing someone fight without magic and still be able to keep up with the monsters.


    ¡°What the hell? You are younger than us? Who allowed you to go out and fight?¡±


    Emilia did not have a filter and asked a rude question. Damian¡¯s sour expression froze at the question and Aurora feltughter build up inside her chest.


    ¡°Emilia, don¡¯t be rude. I think he was cool.¡±


    Joseph tried to dispel the awkward air that had filled the space but he was toote. Rita had already broken out inughter at Emilia¡¯s words and Damian was red in the face.


    ¡°Y-Y-YOU! HOW DARE YOU MOCK ME? FACE ME IN A CHALLENGE.¡±


    ¡°You brat got owned.¡±


    Rita was not helping the situation with herments and Aurora tried to hold back her iing headache.


    Why could the children not make an agreeable first impression?


    ¡°Emilia, don¡¯t be rude. Damian will be your senior once you start. Joseph, you can have a talk with him about the specifics of their tech and then decide if it is something you want to pursue.¡±


    Aurora tried to dispel the hostile air around the group but it was going to be a problem. Damian and Emilia were not even looking at each other after that confrontation.


    ¡°Will it be alright to leave the kids alone? The air feels tense here.¡±


    Rita was notining but Aurora could not find it in herself to be worried. Looking at the trio, it did seem familiar to her.


    ¡°They¡¯ll be alright. They¡¯ll be too busy to bother each other once the academy starters and their sses begin for real. For now, I will leave them in the ounder¡¯s care. I need to start preparing for the inauguration.¡±


    Aurora had a few ns in ce to start the academy.


    Mainly, she needed to have a talk with the selected board and make things clear to them.


    Rex had helped Aurora with this by providing high-ranking people from the resistance to act as the board members. They were puppet leaders that just needed to stand there and look pretty.


    But if they got any ideas in the future, Aurora would not stand for that. She needed to make this clear as soon as possible.


    ¡°I understand. The building is ready and Ava has already started her work. We will have no problem once we began to start running the academy.¡±


    Aurora felt a smile itch on her face at the news. Things were finally going ording to her n. Now she only needed to watch out for the sneak attack nned on the academy by releasing the abyssal beasts.


    But it should not be that big of a problem for their side.

 Chapter 78

    The tower had fallen into a state of quiet for the past few hours. Ever since Lady Minerva had arrived back from the Horax vige, she had been in a strange mood.


    The rumor in the tower was that she lost something important in the vige she could not talk about.


    Everyone was curious about her present state but no one had the guts to be able to ask her what happened openly.


    ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because she wants to getid but cannot. No man is good enough for her.¡±


    ¡°Maybe she prefers women but is too shy? Should I take my chances with her? Lady Minerva is cold but beautiful, you know.¡±


    ¡°I know. She is that kind of beauty.¡±


    ¡°Keep your voice down. You never know who might be listening in on you.¡±


    ¡°You are right. I don¡¯t want to get in trouble but maybe it is worth it if the punisher is as beautiful as Lady Minerva.¡±


    ¡°Oh! Is that what you all think of Lady Minerva? I had no idea she was so famous in you young people.¡±


    The guards jumped back at the arrival of the tower master. His gentle smile reassured no one.


    ¡°A-AH, tower master. We did not see you there.¡±


    As soon as the new presence was detected in the hallway, no one dare to open their mouth and make ament.


    It was alright to discuss a fantasy among the people of qual standard and like-mindedness. But as soon as a foreign factor was introduced into the mix, no one dared to even open their mouth.


    No one was delusional enough to think that their talk had not been heard and understood by the tower master.


    He was far too powerful to be fooled by mere guards.


    ¡°W-We should get going now. Otherwise, we will bete for our work.¡±


    One by one, the guards dismissed until the hallway was empty of any presence. Only then did the smile fade away from the tower master¡¯s face and was reced by indifference.


    His face did not give away any glimpse of his thoughts and any passerby that looked at him could not stop their shiver of fear.


    The sheer aura the tower master excluded was enough to put many people to shame.


    Only once the tower master reached Lady Minerva¡¯s room did he stop. His impassive face was schooled into an easy-going smile and a soft knock greeted the room door.


    ¡°Come inside, Charles. I do not have time for your games.¡±


    The tower master opened the door and quickly stepped inside the familiar room. He was here often enough to not be surprised by the grand decore of the inside.


    Instead of a room, it was more appropriate to call the amodation a hall with a high ceiling and carved pirs.


    ¡°Lady Minerva, I am here as promised. As always, I have a solution to your problems. I heard that you encountered a roadblock even you cannot handle.¡±


    Charles gave a small bow in greeting. His straightforward nature was what hadpelled him into bing the tower master.


    Or that was what everyone thought. But in reality, this nature was nothing more than a facade he put up in front of everyone.


    He only ever said the truth when he knew he could get away with it.


    ¡°And where did you get this news from? Are you trying to keep tabs on me?¡±


    ¡°Of course not. But a magician doesn¡¯t reveal his hand. But rest assured, because I have taken the first step toward our victory already.¡±


    ¡°And how do you know what I am worried about?¡±


    ¡°Is it not about the new academy? Don¡¯t worry, I will take care of it. By tomorrow, it will be all but history for us. And if not, rest assured that it will not be tracked back to us. And it will also help us root out the ounders.¡±


    Charles smiled a small grin as he exposed his n. His n was finally bearing fruits.


    Not only would the new threat be neutralized, but he would also get the ves he needed to bribe the other members of the board and keep them under his thumb.


    And the best thing about this was that even if most people knew what he was doing, they will not be able to stop him due to the support he had.


    ¡°Charles, what did you do?¡±


    ¡°Nothing much. I just send them a goodwill gift. A huge goodwill gift my best hunters managed to capture alive. Nothing that can be traced back to us.¡±


    Charles¡¯s smile widened just a little bit more and Lady Minerva¡¯s face faltered for just a single second. Yup, he had her on his side even after all this.


    ==========================


    Lady Minerva observed the human in front of her with a nk face.


    The more he spoke, the more worried Lady Minerva became. In the end, she could not even keep her face straight.


    ¡®Nothing much. I just send them a goodwill gift. A huge goodwill gift my best hunters managed to capture alive. Nothing that can be traced back to us.¡¯


    The words echoed inside Lady Minerva¡¯s mind with a vengeance. They mocked her for her ipetence in being able to keep her subordinate in check.


    Had it been anyone else Charles had targeted, Minerva would not have been this nervous.


    But he had to go ahead and target the only other person in the world who had divinity backing them.


    Not to mention, Aurora had a dragon¡¯s ward and a likely future goddess with her. And then the whole matter of the academy being situated in the Rocx valley.


    It was the domain of the goddess of victory. And as her domain, she had full power there. Even Minerva was not sure she would be able to defeat the goddess there if a fight did break out.


    ¡°Why did you not discuss this with me before proceeding ahead? You might cause serious damage to our reputation.¡±


    Lady Minerva already knew that she would not be able to talk Charles out of his foolishness. And the man was also smart enough toe to Lady Minerva thiste in his n.


    Even if Lady Minerva wanted to wash her hands off this case, she no longer could.


    Nor could she make the tower master disappear in such a short amount of time.


    ¡°But I dide to you before the n went live. Now we are aplices in this crime. Won¡¯t you help me cover my tracks, mydy? I am one of your most devoted followers after all.¡±


    The man was taking advantage of Lady Minerva¡¯s nature and her coldness.


    Contrary to popr belief, the gods and goddesses were not omnipotent. They were limited to what they could and could not do.


    Most people did not think that way and were content to follow the will of the divine. But people like Charles were different.


    They were ambitious and did not fear anything. Their brain just made them that much more terrifying.


    Lady Minerva had not expected to end up in such a position when she had first established the tower. But in the end, she had ended up under a human¡¯s control.


    Maybe it was inevitable in the end but she had no other choice but toply.


    ¡°I understand. I will help you cover your tracks this time so don¡¯t you dare make this mistake again in the future.¡±


    Lady Minerva had been foolish enough to develop feelings for the tower master. She had brought the child up and she had seen him grow.


    This child was the closest thing to a son she had and she could not help but feel like this feeling was going to be her downfall.


    ¡°Of course, I will tell you before I do anything else. After all, Lady Minerva is my mother in all but blood. As a son, I have to look after her.¡±


    Lady Minerva was disgusted at being called a mother by Tower master. Her feelings for him were conflicted and it was difficult to say what she felt for him.


    Maybe it was because she felt guilty for how she treated Astoria in her past, she hadtched on to the young me she had felt almost half a decade ago.


    ¡°If you are done, then leave me here to think. I don¡¯t want to see you until the next week.¡±


    The man left without any hesitation anddy Minerva felt her emotions calm down.


    She needed to get to work and make sure to cover the tower¡¯s bases. Whatever Charles had nned must note to bite the tower back.


    It must especially not cause a problem for Quince and his generation. And if the general public never found out about this, the better.


    ¡®I have no other choice but to prepare a sacrificial toon to slow down the ¡®surprise¡¯. Hopefully, Astoria and her partner will find a way to deal with their problem in time.¡¯


    Minerva will help as much as she could afford to but even she had her hands tied up.


    It would be up to the people of the Rocx valley to take care of this mess.

 Chapter 79

    After going through so much in her past life, Aurora had thought she had conquered the feeling of nervousness.


    But the aura around the hall was making her nervous. The chosen board members were not going to ept Aurora easily.


    At least she had Rex on her side during the meeting. Her adopted brother had arrived not too long ago and had taken charge of things.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry so much. I will take care of things if anyone goes overboard. You just focus on maintaining yourposure.¡±


    That was not the main issue Aurora was facing. Her nervousness stemmed from the fact that her inner goddess found theck of faith satisfying.


    It wanted to fry these small flies and be down with this meeting. That way, no one would be able to oppose Aurora¡¯s decision.


    ¡°No, I am alright. I need to solidify my position right now or these members will never ept me.¡±


    Aurora knew why her goddess was provoked so much by the presence of this newpany.


    It was because these followers belonged to another god and help no respect for Aurora inside their minds. Their aura was a ticking time bomb for Aurora¡¯s aggression.


    ¡°When did you be this wise? You still feel like you were that young child I and Lucy used to y with. And now look at you. Lucy would have been proud of you.¡±


    Rex sounded equal part reminiscent and sad.


    It suddenly drew on Aurora that she had never told him about Karana and his connection to Lucy. But in Aurora¡¯s defense, she had no time to contact him for a leisure talk.


    She had been too busy.


    ¡°Hey, Rex. Stay here after the meeting. I have something important to tell you regarding Lucy.¡±


    Rex looked a little confused at Aurora¡¯s words but he did not make much fuss. Instead, his face had a knowing smile.


    ¡°I know what you want to tell me? You got me the thing I wanted, right? The Elixir of life is with you, right? You don¡¯t need to tell me about it.¡±


    ¡°Well, yes. But that is not what I¡­¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to be shy and considerate. Even if the elixir does not work, you did your part. Don¡¯t worry, I will not go back on my words as well.¡±


    ¡°Anyway, just stay back after the meeting.¡±


    Aurora gave up exining her side of the story. It was clear that Rex was not going to listen to her anyway.


    The elder didn¡¯t even look ashamed to interrupt Aurora as she tried to convey something important to him.


    ==========================


    The room felt stiffening to Aurora. The people inside were making it easy on her as well. Their suspicion and hostility were visible on their face.


    ¡°Rex, you are finally here. Is this our chairwoman and principal? Isn¡¯t she too young for this post?¡±


    Aurora had not expected to get a nice greeting. But she was taken aback by the quick question thrown her way.


    The elderly who had asked this didn¡¯t even have the decency to question her. Instead, the question went to Rex.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be like that Donna. Aurora is more than capable of handling her post.¡±


    Rex¡¯s smile was impable when he countered the woman¡¯s im. Hisck of hesitation gave Aurora hope that the others would ept her based on his words alone.


    But then her hopes were dashed as the others in the council started to show their true colors.


    ¡°No, I agree with Donna. She¡¯s too green for her role. I would also prefer someone older and more mature than her to take the job. Why don¡¯t you take this job, Rex?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true. I will feel much morefortable having Rex as the one in charge than this woman. Rex is also a public figure so it¡¯ll be good for us.¡±


    ¡°Rex will be better in this post as well.¡±


    ¡°I feel so too.¡±


    ¡°Rex¡­¡±


    ¡°Too young¡­¡±


    The talks continued without any input from the main pair. Aurora felt her temper loosen at the usation but she did not say anything just yet.


    She had to bide her time and notsh out.


    ¡°That is impossible. I am not the right person for this job, but Aurora is. She did all the work of convincing the people to build this ce and scouting the teachers. I will not take her right.¡±


    Rex was exaggerating a lot. If one looked at the things Aurora had done for the academy, there was nothing much that came to mind.


    Most of the things in the academy had been finalized by Rex. Even the permission had been acquired by his connections.


    So Aurora could see why the resistance was so up in the arms about this topic.


    ¡°But still, you need our support to finalize this ce. We will only give it to you if Rex is the one to take charge and not Aurora. Frankly speaking, I cannot trust an outsider with our resources.¡±


    ¡°Right, it¡¯s not about you but our stability in the long run.¡±


    Aurora wanted to rage at the injustice but life had taught her that some fights were unwinnable if you also wanted to win the war.


    Compromises were very important in the grand scheme of things and Aurora would have to make one right here and now.


    ¡°I won¡¯t take¡­¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s alright Rex. They are not wrong to say you will be a better public face than me when ites to the academy. You might also get to reconnect with your family if you be the ringleader now.¡±


    ¡°Besides, I need to be in the shadows to do most of my work. If I be a public face then it willplicate things for me.¡±


    Now that Aurora thought back to it, quite a few people knew her face. It could be disastrous if they recognized her while she was out on a mission.


    ¡°You cannot say that all of a sudden. How am I supposed to cope with a sudden leadership I am not even prepared for? How is that fair to me?¡±


    Rex looked equal part scared and hopeful.


    Aurora knew the man wanted to take this opportunity and establish his position in the resistance.


    As much as resistance tried to be a liberal group, it was not immune from the in-fights and sabotaging strategies. It was very much like an organization one needed to climb up in.


    Even Rex, who had a solid footing, needed fundamental establishment to solidify his role in the group. And his position would be needed by Aurora in the long run.


    Aurora had not nned this oue but it might turn out to be a better alternative than the original thing Aurora had thought.


    ¡°So, if we are all in agreement, let¡¯s solidify the deal. I have the papers ready to stamp. And it¡¯s not like we will ignore Lady Aurora either. She can still be a share-holder on our board.¡±


    Aurora knew those were empty words to make it seem like she had power. But she didn¡¯t mind ying the puppet in their hands for now.


    This academy was a means to the end, not Aurora¡¯s end goal. As such, it was fortunate that Aurora would not have to bound herself to this ce forever.


    She wanted to explore the abyss and find Clove¡¯s soul. And then she wanted her wife back with her in this life.


    ¡°Did you all n this? I have a feeling like I¡¯m being set up right now. Can I quit?¡±


    Rex sounded uncertain but Aurora could feel his happy aura radiating out of him.


    No matter what these people said to him, they did care about him a lot. Rex was lucky to have such people at his side.


    Aurora wanted to give Rex a little more time toe to terms with what he had epted but she did not get a chance to do that.


    A small earthquake shook the building they were in and caused several objects to fall and break.


    ¡°W-What happened? An earthquake? Isn¡¯t Rocx valley a protected ce?¡±


    What Donna said was the truth. The Rocx valley was a goddess¡¯s domain. Natural disasters like earthquakes should not be happening without the goddess¡¯s permission.


    Unless this earthquake was magical, its existence should not be possible at all.


    ¡°Aurora,e out now. You need to see what is happening.¡±


    The council room door opened with a bang and Rita ran past it in a hurry. Her expression did not look assuring to Aurora and she felt a headache from behind her temple.


    ¡°Is it something important? Is it rted to the earthquake?¡±


    Aurora just had a feeling that it might be. Whatever could cause such a panic in Rita had to be something massive.


    ¡°Of course it is. There is a chaos-level threat heading this way. There is no way to take it out before it reaches us.¡±


    Aurora wanted to curse the tower for their interference but she could not even find it in herself to do that.


    A chaos-level threat on the surface? How did the tower even manage that?

 Chapter 80

    Chaos ensued as the dust cloud neared the Rocx valley. It was emerging from the side where the abyss was situated.


    Had Aurora not already known about the tower and its tricks, she might have genuinely believed that this was a weird coincidence.


    ¡°Oi, what should we do now? Can we even take that thing down ourselves?¡±


    Rita¡¯s question made sense. Aurora was not sure she could take care of the giant chaos beast herself.


    Monsters in the abyss had different levels. It was a well-known fact. They ranged from Normal<Elite<Swarm<Chaos<Legendary<Myth.


    Out of them all, Legendary level monsters could only be found on the lowest floors. Even Aurora, who had ventured down as far as level 50 had only seen 3-4 of them.


    Legendary level monsters were akin to minor gods and goddesses while Myths went beyond that and had the will of the abyss behind them.


    In terms of power, Ava was close to the myth level of the monster but Aurora knew she could not count on Ava to help her out. The abyss would not let Ava use her powers outside the abyss.


    ¡°What should we do now? Our abyssal defenses would notst out for long. And fighting the beast can lead to huge losses on the outside.¡±


    Although Rita said losses, Aurora knew it was about human lives at this point. The cloud of magic the chaos beast was bringing with it was too huge to contain.


    Once it died, its residual magic would explode and cause the surroundings to get damaged.


    They would lose this battle no matter what they did.-.


    ¡°We need to divert the beast toward the other side of the Rocx valley. Currently, we are not in a condition to deal with the beast. We need external help.¡±


    Aurora could only think of one way to get rid of this problem and that solution involved getting a goddess to help.


    There was no doubt in Aurora¡¯s mind that the goddess of victory would notice such a huge presence entering hernds. But Aurora was not sure if the goddess would help them out or not.


    A goddess¡¯s temper was fickle and unpredictable.


    Especially for the goddess of victory, this statement could not hold any more truth.


    ¡°You say that so easily but executing the order would not be easy. I can already make out the shape of the beast. It¡¯s a whale and the only Chaos beast I can think of is Mobi Dick.¡±


    Rex had arrived outside by this time as well. Aurora soared him a single nce before she diverted her attention to the real threat in front of her.


    ¡°Ok, listen everyone. Here is the n for our next course of action.¡±


    ¡°I will go and divert Mobi Dick¡¯s attention. I¡¯ll also think of some way to lead it toward the other side of the valley. Rita, and Rex, help out the others to set up a barrier around this ce. We cannot allow it to fall.¡±


    Aurora did think about taking backup with her but anyone she took would prove to be a hindrance at this point.


    Rita would have been the safest choice to take with her but Aurora did need someone to stay behind and take care of this academy business.


    ¡°Are you an idiot? You are just asking to get killed out there. We cannot lose you right now.¡±


    Rita¡¯s voice was shaking with emotions. Aurora had never seen the girl this desperate before and it touched her.


    But it did not shake her resolve to do what was right.


    ¡°Hey, say something. Do you want to see her die out there?¡±


    Seeing as how Aurora was not agreeing with her, Rita changed her target to Rex. But the elder also chose not to answer her.


    Rex had already realized Aurora¡¯s thought process and Aurora could see that he did not agree with her. But he still chose to believe in her which warmed her heart.


    ¡°Am I the only one who could see a w with this n? Why are you all so quiet right now?¡±


    Rita was not going to be on Aurora¡¯s side but Aurora also could not afford for Rita to follow behind her.


    ¡°Rita, listen to me now and I¡¯ll spend a night with you once Ie back. And I do promise toe back so don¡¯t follow after me.


    That was thest gamble Aurora had in her aisle. Her whisper words were only for Rita¡¯s ears. Her arms tightened around Rita in a hug to hide her face.


    She could see the female looking torn up at Aurora¡¯s promise. There was longing and desire in Rita¡¯s eyes but there was also defeat. ¦Ñ?????????


    ¡°Fine. But it¡¯s a promise you will have to keep. I will not go soft on you even if you get injured out there.¡±


    Aurora tried not to stare at the hardness poking her in her stomach as she separated from the younger.


    How Rita found the time or energy to get hard right now was beyond Aurora¡¯s understanding.


    Aurora quickly separated from the group before someone else coulde up with another stupid idea to make her stay behind.


    [System alert. Viera tribe is about to enter Rocx valley.


    Would the user like to send them a message?]


    What impable timing. It could only be called a stroke of luck for Astoria and Ryu to have arrived at this time.


    And suddenly, the situation did not look as grim as it had before. There was a ray of hope outside this tricky situation without getting the goddess of victory involved.


    ¡°System, send Astoria and Rex a message for me. Tell them to get ready for the next main event.¡±


    Aurora had no confidence that she would be able to kill Mobi Dick alone. Not without making the Rocx valley her victim as well.


    But Astoria was different. She had much more control and she could help Aurora weaken the beast enough tond the final hit.


    The Viera leader, Ely was also an aplished fighter. She could also help Aurora out a lot.


    And then there was Ryu. He was young and small but he was an excellent source of defense for the institute. His rank alone could do wonders for the magical resources the academy had.


    But the sess of Aurora¡¯s n still depended on her. Her being able to lead Mobi Dick away from the academy and toward the more open side would decide what course of action the ounders would have to take.


    As Aurora neared the huge cloud of dust, she began to see the iconic fins and other animal-like characteristics of the Mobi Dick.


    It was a creature worth its Chaos status. Everywhere it touched, things started to melt away from its acidic aura.


    The huge mass of the whale was made up of magic and extremely light. It floated upon the sea of corrupted abyssal magic underneath it.


    The monster itself had no conscious thought about where it was headed. It was a ve of its magic and would go where the magic to it.


    And this was what Aurora was counting on to save her.


    The root of all her problems was the wave of magic beneath the huge whale. If Aurora could influence it, then she could divert the huge mass toward where she wanted it to go.


    But it would deplete Aurora of her magic for a long time. It might also cause somesting after-effects but that was something Aurora could think aboutter.


    ¡°System began diverting my magic and create a link with the abyssal magic beneath Mobi Dick¡±


    [Affirmative]


    Aurora felt the first burn of the abyss magic touch her. It was worse than anything she had ever experienced before and it ate away at her magic.


    The more time Aurora spend connected to the magic, the more she got used to it. But the burn did not lessen at all. It just kept on growing and growing by the second.


    ¡°System, take control of my moments and lead us away.¡±


    Aurora had not meant to use her system this much. It had been ast resort she had programmed inside itsmands but it looked like she had no other choice.


    The more magic that flowed out of Aurora, the more her control over her limbs loosened.


    At this point, Aurora was moving through sheer will-force and determination. Aurora knew she was forcing her body to move in unnatural ways.


    But she decided to keep on pushing ahead just a bit more. All because of the solid presence she could feel behind her.


    Astoria was finally here.


    ¡°How dare you step outside your domain. Go back to where you belong.¡±


    Aurora felt her connection with Mobi Dick snap and her legs give out as the huge magic st overtook her senses.


    Familiar silver hairs covered her vision as Aurora looked up toward blue eyes.


    ¡°Why are you always in trouble? You make me question my decision of following you sometimes.¡±


    Finally, Aurora could rest. Astoria was here.


    But Mobi Dick was not done at all. Its loud roar cut through the surrounding valley and shook the earth. The beast was angry.

 Chapter 81

    ¡°All that magic and not even a single scratch on that bastard. It pisses me off to see.¡±


    Astoria was correct in her observation. The huge Chaos-level monster didn¡¯t seem to have a single scratch on his body.


    On the contrary, Aurora was spent by having used her magic to lead the beast away and Astoria¡¯s aura indicated that she was not in the best health either.


    The burden of having to use zing point had not yet faded away from her body. A second ignition would be impossible for her.


    Aurora could still spot the academy behind Mobi Dick which indicated that she had not managed to lead the monster far enough.


    ¡°System, tap back in my resources and connect me with Mobi Dick. I want to lead it away even further.¡±


    [Request denied under user protection protocol.


    The user has umted too much mental stress to be able to maintain control. The system cannot allow the user to ess more magic]


    What kind of bullshit scheme was this? Who designed this safety protocol? Had it been Aurora?


    ¡°That¡¯s Mobi Dick? What is it doing outside of the abyss? Never mind, what can we do now?¡±


    Even Astoria was getting impatient and worried about the monster in front of her. The Mobi Dick was getting more and more enraged by the second.


    The huge body of the whale had started to thrash about and the magic stream that was making Mobi Dick was getting out of control.


    ¡°For now, all we can do is to try and lead it further ahead in the Rocx Valley. It¡¯s not our domain so we don¡¯t have much control over it.¡±


    For gods and goddesses, a domain was a ce under their control where they were birthed. It also marked the ce where they were the strongest.


    The only way to take over another divinity¡¯s domain was to win the ce from them or kill them. Both were next to impossible tasks for most people.


    As such, the strongest person in this valley is the goddess of Victory but she had not stepped in to take action yet.


    ¡°Is the goddess of this valley not going to step in and do something? I thought she was better than that.¡±


    Astoria¡¯sment felt thoughtless at first but Aurora could not help but feel like it was a clever trick.


    No matter how indifferent a goddess was, they all held pride dear to their heart. The goddess of victory was no different in that regard.


    Aurora could feel the goddess¡¯s aura look over the pair in surprised rage. She was taking the bait.


    ¡°Hey, do you think if I do a good enough job and kill Mobi Dick, I can take over this ce as the new goddess? Maybe even share this ce?¡±


    Aurora never thought she would ever say those words out loud. She was not someone who invited danger to herself.


    But Aurora didn¡¯t want Astoria to shoulder this task on her own either. Astoria¡¯s nervous aura was already making itself known.


    It was surprising to see Astoria put up a brave mask at such a time.


    ¡°For now, let¡¯s lead Modi Dick deeper in the territory. I¡¯m sure our dear goddess will not interfere in our progress.¡±


    Aurora knew she was ying a dangerous game.


    Astoria might have started this all as a means to challenge the Goddess of Victory¡¯s inner instincts but Aurora knew that her words would spark more than that fire.


    The arrival of Mobi Dick was a reminder of how much the abyss controlled the upper world and its happenings.


    And GoV was someone who hated the abyss with a passion and was already itching to kill the beast.


    ¡°Astoria, I leave leading Mobi Dick up to you. We can share the reward once we¡¯re sessful.¡±


    Aurora saw the Mobi Dick start to move toward where Astoria was leading it. The beast seemed to be following its instincts to follow after prey and Aurora gave a small but private smile.


    But suddenly, Astoria took a sharp breath before she stumbled. The corrupted magic beneath Mobi Dick pulsed and became even more violent.


    If it was not clear before, now Aurora was sure that someone was in control of the Mobi Dick remotely with the help of an immense amount of stored magic.


    And no matter how much the two goddesses struggled, they were in a disadvantageous situation due to circumstances.


    Aurora had never cursed her situation before.


    She had more than enough magic to take care of this situation but her condition was holding her back from being able to do anything.


    Astoria had good control but she could not match the other half-gods and goddesses that were likely on the other side.


    The tower was making a fool out of them at this point. And Aurora could not even fault them.


    It looked like the GoV was not going to interfere after all.


    ==========================


    ¡°Are you sure this is alright? Did Lady Minerva give a go-ahead for this?¡±


    The tower master gave a happy hum at the question before shaking his head gently.


    ¡°Of course, I asked for permission. I¡¯m not a fool to go against Lady Minerva. Now, focus your magic on Mobi Dick and lead it toward the abandonednds.¡±


    The half-god looked unconvinced but he did not question the tower master.


    None of the four half-gods that Charles had gathered said anything more after he confirmed their beliefs.


    ¡°It is for the good of themon people. Our teams are still investigating how Mobi Dick managed to escape the abyss ande to the surface. But we cannot make a mistake and allow it to roam free.¡±


    ¡°Besides, the only people down in the Rocx valley are the ounders. And the ounders are half-monsters themselves. They break the natural order of the world and try to harness magic when they are not supposed to.¡±


    ¡°Does it matter if they get hurt if it means saving all the other normal people of the upper surface?¡±


    The half-gods had nothing else to say to that.


    It was not like they agreed wholeheartedly with the tower master but they were guilty of the crimes against ounders and other tribes of the region as well.


    Their families had ved in their ount and many had participated in the raids against the ¡®so-called¡¯ ounders.


    ¡°You all can leave your worries behind. I will carry the burden of this order for you all. So do not worry and do your part.¡±


    Charles knew he had a silver tongue and he was not afraid of using it. But even he knew it was all possible because he had the support of Lady Minerva behind his back.


    One day, he would have all this power for himself without needing to be at anyone¡¯s beck and call.


    ¡°S-Sir, we are losing control of the Mobi Dick. It is moving in areas beyond our control.¡±


    Those words knock Charles out of his thoughts. His eyes widened as he watched the Mobi Dick move in the opposite direction he wanted it to go.


    ¡°How is this possible?¡±


    ¡°Someone is pouring more magic than us in the path. We can¡¯t help it.¡±


    ¡°But they likely won¡¯t be able to maintain this flow for long.¡±


    Charles felt his temper get better once he heard those words. Unless the other side was a god or a goddess, this much flow of magic would be impossible to maintain.


    All they had to do was to wait around and their chance woulde soon.


    And just as it had been expected, the flow of magic lessened soon enoingh. The Mobi Dick was significantly out of track but nothing that could not be salvaged soon.


    ¡°Sir, a new flow joined in. But we can overpower this one if we tried to.¡±


    ¡°Then do it. Aim for the ce I am pointing you to. Lady Mei will take care of everything else.¡±


    Of course, Lady Mei will be able to one-shot the Mobi Dick from far away. That was all the permission Lady Minerva had given her.


    And Lady Mei was not foolish enough to step into Rocx valley without backup. Even she could not go against the GoV in this domain.


    But all Lady Mei needed to do was to shoot Mobi Dick down. Then everything else would be over and the magic would explode.


    And then it finally happened ¨C the hitch in Charle¡¯s n.


    ¡°Sir, we lost control. T-The magic, it¡¯s too much for us to take care of. We¡¯re afraid that it¡¯s the GoV who had interfered in our ns.¡±


    Charles felt his head hurt as he heard those words.


    His fist made a dent in his arm-rest without much effort and his being leaked anger.


    How dare that goddess toe out now? Why was she interfering now of all times when she had been happy to stay away all this time.


    ¡°Take control back. Just make Mobi Dick reach near to the dot on the map.¡±


    Forget the n about control, getting close would have to do now.

 Chapter 82

    Aurora had exhausted her supply of magic. Her body was telling Aurora that it could not handle anymore.


    ¡°Astoria, do you think you can make one more full-powered attack right now? We need to knock Mobi Dick off the track.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s powers had not failed her yet and Astoria also had a bit of her magic left. This was their only chance to get Mobi Dick off track.


    ¡°Sure, I have some of my magic left. But what will we do after we get it to follow us? I don¡¯t think we have it in us to kill that thing.¡±


    Astoria¡¯s worried voice brought a smile to Aurora¡¯s face.


    This was something Aurora had been worried about earlier but not now. Aurora was not so scared after feeling the energy humming around them.


    GoV was finally showing her true colors. She had noticed just what kind of monstrosity had entered hernd.


    Aurora was sure that her anger was directed toward the tower more than the actual monster that was running rampant around the grounds and Aurora did not me the female.


    ¡°Astoria, hurry up. Can¡¯t you feel the help we are about to get?¡±


    ¡°Huh? You mean¡­¡±


    Astoria caught up as well. And once she did, Astoria¡¯s eyes glinted with assurance.


    Finally, magic started to flow around the pair and it was enough to break the fragile control the tower had over Mobi Dick¡¯s moments.


    [Warning: Mental magic overload. The user is asked to stop before their body is no longer capable.


    Failure toply would lead to dire consequences.]


    What a useless warning. If Aurora could stop then she would have not waited around like this.


    The pair was gradually but slowly dragging Mobi Dick toward the center of the stage. It was only a matter of time before Mobi Dick would be killed off and the pair would be free.


    [System warning overload. Emergency measured being implemented.]


    At the most crucial time of the n, Aurora felt her magic being cut off. She was left vulnerable and herck of support caused Astoria to lose control of her magic as well.


    ¡°Aurora, are you alright?¡±


    Aurora wanted to speak but the abrupt emptiness that followed herck of magic took her breath away. Aurora could not say anything at all.


    But the worst part of it all was that Mobi Dick had not been dealt with yet.


    The tower still had control of the monster and used this opportunity to lead Mobi Dick back toward the center of the Rocx valley.


    ¡°What should we do now?¡±


    Astoria sounded helpless as well. But there was nothing more they could do.


    If even their magic was not enough, then Aurora doubted that anyone else would be able to deal with the gigantic whale as well.


    ¡°ARE YOU REALLY JUST GOING TO WATCH? THOSE TWO ARE ON THE ACADEMY GROUNDS AS WELL. THEY WON¡¯T SURVIVE THIS ATTACK EITHER.¡±


    Aurora knew this was herst attempt to get GoV to help her out. Her shout made her throat throb with pain but Aurora knew it was necessary.


    [Save your breath. I can see that you failed. So, I guess I have no other choice but to take over from here]


    The child-like voice caused Aurora to finally calm down and rx.


    ¡°Is that¡­¡±


    Astoria¡¯s voice was full of wonder when she asked that question but Aurora did not need to answer her. Astoria already knew the answer to her question.


    [You both, sit back and see how a real goddess works. Maybe then you¡¯ll realize the difference in our powers]


    For a second nothing happened. Aurora was not even sure if something was supposed to happen.


    Aurora had seen Emilia fight once in her past life. The new goddess of victory had been young but shy. She had been impressive and her powers had caused the battlefield to ignite.


    Aurora had been thinking of a simr effect when she thought of GoV¡¯s power.


    But when the magic hit, Aurora felt like everything she had known before paled inparison.


    The magic was vibrating all around her. Even the ground was not immune to magic¡¯s effect.


    Mobi Dick, which had been ignorant of everything before, finally turned its head and paid attention to what was happening in front of it.


    Initially, Mobi Dick was akin to a zombie-type monster that did not pay attention to anything else except its own needs and desires.


    Even with all the magic that had been sued on his till now, it did not even spare one nce to it.


    But this time was different. The massive power of a predator finally caused the whale tosh out and try resisting it.


    [No matter what you do, it¡¯ll be futile from here on. I am not allowing you to escape my clutches that easily. Now be a good whale ande here.]


    Chains sprouted out of the ground and bound the huge body of the whale.


    They dragged the still-air-born body toward the empty valley Aurora had been trying to lead it to.


    Once it was near enough, a pink light descended all around Aurora. For a second it looked as if the sky had turned pink as well.


    But when Aurora looked up, it was only a shell that covered the sky. Its shiny hexagonal parts reflected the ground and the shape slowly began spreading.


    The chains kept on dragging the struggling whale toward the center where the GoV¡¯s astral body was waiting.


    [You would have been a challenge had it not been my domain. Now rest easy.]


    The chains loosened the whale but they did not let go fully. Aurora gulped her saliva down as she watched the arrows rain down all over the prone body of the whale.


    But the arrows that did not hit the body reflected off the ground and toward the shell where they were absorbed and then reflected again.


    It seemed like a never-ending cycle to Aurora. One that was incredibly cruel to the poor whale-like creature but still necessary to put an end to it.


    ¡°Don¡¯t look if you cannot. Goddesses are not kind creatures. This is just their nature.¡±


    Astoria sounded like she was used to it all. And she might as well have been since she had grown up among the tower people.


    Still, Aurora was not one to judge after all she had seen in the abyss.


    This might seem like a cruel fate to most people but this was a mercy in the tower. Mainly because Mobi Dick was going to die in the end. There will be an end to its suffering after this cycle was over.


    Most monsters inside the lower level of the abyss didn¡¯t even have this luxury afforded to them.


    The whale suffered for a long time before falling dead. It happened all of a sudden as well without indication.


    [WHO DARE TO KILL THIS WRENCHE OUT RIGHT NOW]


    GoV sounded pissed off. Her words made it clear that she had not been the one who had fired off the arrow. But who else could it have been if not her?


    ¡°Aurora, look. It¡¯s an arrow made up of mes. The magical energy it gives off is also familiar, don¡¯t you think?¡±


    Aurora observed the arrow and it did feel familiar to her. But Aurora could not recall where she had felt this energy before.


    [THAT INSOLENT BITCH THINKS SHE CAN TAKE MY PREY? HOW DARE YOU MEI. HOW DARE YOU]


    GoV sounded pissed but Aurora finally had a name to put to their kill-stealer.


    Of course who else could it have been but another goddess? And the arrow had also killed off Mobi Dick because the monster had been weakened significantly enough.


    Still, a kill was a kill. And the credit for this kill would belong to the tower¡¯s goddess.


    ¡°Finally, this nightmare is over. I just want to fall asleep and disappear for a few days.¡±


    Aurora wanted to do the same. Her body protested against any moment she did and Aurora wanted to sleep her aches away.


    ¡°Hey, they are here. Hurry up and help us out.¡±


    The backup also arrived at the right time. Familiar hands picked Aurora up and Rita¡¯s face snapped into focus right in front of Aurora¡¯s eyes.


    She wanted to say something more but her energy failed her. Aurora was knocked unconscious before she could say her words out loud.


    At the top of a cliff just outside the Rocx Valley, the figure of Mei finally held her bow down with a frowning face.


    ¡°Stupid Charles and Minerva. This is what they reduced me to? Damage control? Who do they think I am?¡±


    But the goddess also had an unconscious smile on her face. Despite her words, she was d that she had decided to take up this task.


    She had gotten to see something really interesting. Goddess of Victory might awaken fully soon and Mei would have a new opponent to keep herself upied in the near future.

 Chapter 83

    Consciousness came and went in intervals. Aurora¡¯s head did not stop spinning even after she tried her best. It made her wonder just what she had done to be dealt with such punishment.


    ¡°Are you awake now? How are you feeling?¡±


    Rita¡¯s face snapped into focus as soon as Aurora woke up. Her mind tried to ignore the sudden on-ughter of memories it was being dealt with.


    ¡°I feel a little weak but I¡¯m alright now.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s body had almost no strength. She could also not feel her magic very clearly.


    ¡°That¡¯s because of magic exhaustion. You pushed yourself a little too hard yesterday.¡±


    Rita¡¯s words sounded sour. It was like she was angry about something and Aurora had a bad feeling about it.


    ¡°Rita, are you angry at me? You do know that I did what I had to? You understand me, right?¡±


    ¡°I know why you did what you did. But I refuse to understand your reasons. In the end, the tower was the one that benefitted from our mess. And no, I¡¯m not angry at all.¡±


    Rita¡¯s aura and her words contradicted herself. Although she said she was not angry, her aura sang different words.


    Aurora knew persuading Rita right now would not be right. But Aurora did not want to sour her rtionship with Rita over such a small issue either.


    Although, Aurora did feel a small pressure on her leg. It was not something she had done to herself.


    So where did that pressuree from?


    Aurora lifted the sheet and instantly smalled it down on top of the hand she saw. Aurora¡¯s face went red as the hand neared her hidden heat.


    ¡°H-Hey, this is not the time to be doing this. Are you even listening to me?¡±


    Aurora quickly connected tow-and-two together. There could only be one person that hand could have belonged to. And it was Rita in front of her.


    ¡°I am not doing anything? I am just touching you a little. After all, you did promise me that you will let me do this. Don¡¯t tell me you are going back on your words now?¡±


    Aurora did remember vaguely saying something like this. But in her defense, she had meant wayter.


    Maybe once things had calmed down and Aurora had recovered. Aurora might have also thought that Rita would forget all about her promise once enough time had passed.


    But Rita had no intentions of doing that.


    ¡°Rita, can we postpone this till I am recovered? I am not in a mood right now.¡±


    ¡°But you are physically alright. You are just a little exhausted but that¡¯s no reason to deny me. As for mood, I can fix that as well. Just give me a few seconds.¡±


    Aurora did not need to ask how Rita was going to make the mood ¡®right¡¯.


    After all, the hand on her breasts more than made Aurora aware of what Rita considered as ¡®fixing¡¯ the mood.


    Aurora¡¯s body leaned into that touch even when her mind was not in the mood. The duality of that action surprised Aurora as well.


    ¡°It feels good, right? I learned how to use my magic to make sex better. Can you feel the difference?¡±


    Aurora felt moans escape her lips as Rita¡¯s hand massaged her nipples. The small vibrations rocking her body were also something Aurora had never felt before.


    Small sparks of magic also rocked Aurora from the inside. They were pressing on her pleasure nerves and making Aurora¡¯s body gox.


    ¡°I can¡¯t wait to feel your heat again. Your pussy is something else. I can¡¯t help but think of it every time I see you. Don¡¯t you think of me fucking you once in a while as well?¡±


    Aurora didn¡¯t really think of Rita in that sense. But now that Rita was saying all this, Aurora could not help but imagine the other¡¯s cock now.


    ¡°Want it now? I can give it to you. But maybe you¡¯ll also enjoy having fun with my breasts? Why don¡¯t you try fondling them?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s hands had no energy but Rita seemed to not think of it as a problem. She supported Aurora¡¯s hand and dragged them toward her chest.


    Her heavy breasts were already reaching Aurora¡¯s chest so there was not much of a struggle in making this happen.


    ¡°Yes, just like that. Squeeze them a little. You¡¯re doing great.¡±


    Aurora felt shame fill her being at the praise.


    Aurora was no blushing virgin. She was also the more experienced one among the pair. Aurora was sure she was also the one who had taken Rita¡¯s virginity.


    So why was Rita in a dominant role right now? This was not right.


    ¡°Y-You little. I will show you how to please someone.¡±


    Aurora mustered what little energy she could and pushed Rita down. Surprisingly, Rita went down surprisingly easily.


    Aurora utilized this opportunity to establish her dominance over the younger female inside the room.


    ¡°Now that you had your fun, It¡¯s time for me to have fun. Hey, have you ever had your pussy yed with? Want to try it?¡±


    ¡°H-HUH?¡±


    Aurora did not give Rita any time to prepare before she touched her pussy.


    It was a wet and familiar feeling around Aurora¡¯s finger. One she had not felt in a long time and she wanted to explore more.


    Rita¡¯s cool and calm facade exploded as soon as she had a finger inside her pussy. Her body shook at the intrusion and her tightness made it obvious that Rita was a virgin in that sense.


    ¡°N-No. Stay a-away from there, ughg~¡±


    Rita¡¯s reaction was something Aurora had never seen in her. The red-faced teary look filled with lust was something Aurora had never seen on the female¡¯s face before.


    She wanted to see more on Rita¡¯s face. Aurora was getting addicted to this feeling of dominance.


    ¡®That¡¯s it. That¡¯s the way things are supposed to be. Take your pleasure from her.¡±


    Aurora had not been in a mood to fuck before but now she was. Her pussy was throbbing but Aurora did not want things to end just yet.


    She wanted to prolong this feeling of pleasure and ecstasy she was feeling.


    So Aurora decided to add another finger inside Rita. It was a tight fit and Rita¡¯s virgin pussy tried to force Aurora¡¯s finger out.


    Rita had been tight before but it was next to impossible to move inside her now.


    ¡°N-No more. It h-hurts¡±


    Aurora did feel pity for the virgin. The first time was the worst at first but once it did get better, it turned into an addicting feeling.


    ¡°You¡¯re not wet enough. We need to do something about that.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s fingers tried to loosen Rita up but her body was not cooperating with the elder. There was also ack of lube in the vicinity which made things much moreplicated for the pair.


    There was no other way for Aurora to make this situation better than to use her mouth.


    ¡°Rita,e here.¡±


    Aurora mmed her lips over Rita. her tongue mapped inside the younger¡¯s dazed mouth with vengeance.


    Once Aurora went down on Rita¡¯s pussy with her mouth, she would likely note up for a kiss. So she was going to take her to fill right now.


    Rita was too overwhelmed by the pleasurable feeling that she did not even fight back against all the sensations she was feeling.


    Despite being the taller and heavier one, Rita was being manhandled in the bed by the goddess. But Rita seemed not to mind it at all. She was content to go with the flow and take what she could from the goddess.


    Once they separated, there was a string of saliva connecting the two pairs of lips.


    ¡°Rita, you still there?¡±


    ¡°HUH¡±


    ¡°Try to keep up with me¡±


    Was thest warning Aurora gave Rita before her lips connected with Aurora¡¯s pussy. The neglected cock was wet and red but Rita¡¯s pussy pulsed around Aurora¡¯s mouth.


    It was a different sensation for sure. One Aurora might even have missed from herst life.


    But Aurora did not stop even after Rita¡¯s pussy started to loosen. Instead, Aurora just got more ferocious with her actions.


    Her tongue decided to join in on the action and finally breached Rita¡¯s pussy.


    The taste of Rita¡¯s pussy was not bad and Aurora felt her enthusiasm rise as she went faster.


    Aurora had not wanted to get this caught up in eating Rita out but she could not help herself. Rita was just that addicting in a ¡®fresh¡¯ way. Her inexperience made her every action that much more adorable in Aurora¡¯s eyes.


    Maybe Aurora was not opposed to spending a few nights with Rita anyway. Maybe this can be a regr thing in the future as long as no feelings got involved from both sides.


    ¡°N-No more. I¡¯lle¡±


    For not, this one-time deal was enough to keep Aurora sated andfortable. The pleasure that was felt was also something Aurora was more than happy with.

 Chapter 84

    ¡°I-I¡¯m about toe. G-Get off me¡±


    Aurora did not slow down or stop even as Ritained. She kept on going faster and faster. Aurora¡¯s tongue jabbed at Rita¡¯s soft pussy again and again.


    Faced with such a new onught of feelings and wetness, Rita was not going tost long. Aurora could not allow the other toe on her tongue.


    Aurora had other ns for Rita. So she stopped right before Rita coulde.


    ¡°W-Why? Why did you stop?¡±


    Rita¡¯s tear-filled red eyes did things to Aurora. She had not expected to feel the sudden rush of power and dominance she felt once she saw that tear-filled face.


    But Aurora could not ignore the feeling inside her. She needed to see more.


    ¡°Calm down. We are just getting started. I want to stretch you out more. And your cock is also weeping for attention, right?¡±


    Rita¡¯s dazed look spoke volumes about her current mental level. It was entirely possible that Rita¡¯s mind was not even here fully to appreciate what Aurora was doing for her.


    That¡¯s why Aurora decided to not prolong the torture and change the targets.


    Aurora mouthed at the hard cock in front of her as her fingers headed toward Rita¡¯s wet pussy.


    They soon found her target and the on-ughter began from both sides.


    ¡°S-Slow down. I-I¡¯ll burst¡±


    Rita, who had never felt this much sensation before, could not help herself froming once the release hit her.


    Aurora¡¯s face for the full-forced effect of Rita¡¯s release and the whitee filled her face. Rita¡¯s load was bigger than Aurora expected and she was not able to swallow it fully.


    Rita¡¯s pussy gushed with released as well, and Aurora¡¯s fingers were soaked in her translucent release.


    Rita was a mess in all senses of the world but Aurora was far from done yet.


    ¡®You did your part. Now take your reward.¡¯


    Aurora¡¯s inner instincts were not satisfied at all. Rita might have had her fill, but Aurora had not gotten her satisfaction yet.


    ¡°Rita, can your body go again?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s question was ignored by the pleasure-filled eyes of the younger. Rita¡¯s mind must be tired but she also needed to take responsibility for Aurora¡¯s current condition now


    Aurora stroked the cock in front of her in hope of getting it to harden but it was a slow process.


    It was frustrating to feel such dissatisfaction but Rita was only human. Her stamina and her experience, both were limited and Aurora should not feel this frustration.


    But since Aurora had let go, her instincts were the thing ruling her rationality. They did not care whether Rita was human or not.


    They asked for satisfaction and Aurora had to give it to them now.


    ¡°A-Aurora?¡±


    It was nice of Rita to finally starting around once Aurora had hit her threshold of patience. Rita¡¯s cock also started to waken up and harden once her consciousness started toe around.


    Aurora¡¯s almost purred at the sensation of a hard throbbing thing in her hand.


    ¡°Rita, want to do it properly once? You just need to sit back and let me take care of things.¡±


    ¡°A-Alright?¡±


    Rita sounded confused when she consented. Under normal circumstances, Aurora would not have taken these actions any further. But Rita¡¯s aura was far from panicking and it gave Aurora all the courage she needed to take things a step further.


    Aurora¡¯s body felt like it was moving on its own. Her thighs were wet from her pussy juice and her body was asking for something hard inside it.


    She could wait around no more. Aurora lifted her body over Rita¡¯sp and sank onto her hard cock.


    Rita felt bigger inside her than had had in Aurora¡¯s hand. It also felt different to have a cock inside her pussy.


    This was not Aurora¡¯s first time with Rita but it felt like the first proper time they had sex.


    Aurora¡¯s body took the lead and her jerky moments caused Rita¡¯s cock to disappear inside her pussy.


    Aurora was only half of Rita¡¯s cock inside her properly when she felt the other shake and Aurora stopped immediately.


    ¡°W-Why? Why did you stop? I was about toe.¡±


    Rita sounded devastated at Aurora¡¯s action. Her face was wet with unshed tears and Aurora felt satisfied to have reduced Rita to this begging mess.


    It was Rita¡¯s own fault to try more than she could chew anyway.


    ¡°Not so fast. I still don¡¯t have my fill of you.¡±


    Aurora was far from being done. Her body was nowhere close but the pleasure sang in her every nerve. It was a sensation that was akin to edging and Aurora could feel her body demanding more.


    But Rita did not look like she could take more of this pleasure. Her body was on the verge ofing and Aurora felt pity for her.


    So she did not dy and sank all the way on Rita¡¯s hard and throbbing cock.


    Rita came immediately as soon as she was surrounded by Aurora¡¯s wet heat. The release filled Aurora¡¯s pussy and even leaked out.


    Aurora tried to move around but Rita was already spent. Nothing Aurora could do now would change the matter in any way.


    Aurora was frustrated but she could do nothing but pick herself up with disappointment.


    All that preparation and crazy talk only to end like this?


    Aurora would have to take care of herself. Her hand moved to finger the wet cum-filled pussy but satisfaction did note.


    ¡°Fuck this. I need something hard in me.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s body had gotten sued to pleasure, things like her hand no longer helped her out. She needed something firm and proper inside her.


    ¡°Feeling frustrated? I see the kid left you hanging? Want me to help you out?¡±


    Aurora looked toward the open door, only to see a familiar figure heading her way.


    Ava had decided to make herself known finally and Aurora¡¯s traitorous mind reminded her of past pleasures they had shared.


    It might have only been once or twice, but Aurora¡¯s body did not care. It wanted relief and Ava could give it to her.


    So Rita jumped the other before Ava could reach her.


    Before Ava could react, Aurora had her legs warped around the overlooker and her lips attacking the elder.


    ¡°Slow down. I can see how pent-up you are. Let me take care of you master.¡±


    Aurora might have recoiled had she heard those words in her normal frame of mind. But her lust-filled thoughts along with her hungry body did not find those words odd at all.


    On the contrary, they turned her on even more and caused her pussy to release a fresh wave of wetness.


    ¡°Give it to me now.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s voice did not even sound like her own when she made thatmand. But Ava seemed to have expected it and her small smile felt reassuring to Aurora.


    ¡°Of course, I will give it to you. But only if you ask me nicely.¡±


    Ava was teasing Aurora now. But Aurora was far beyond the point of care. She had endured enough and she was not in a mood to indulge the shellfish demands of the others.


    That¡¯s why she could not stop her hand from moving toward Ava¡¯s hair and knocking the overlooker toward herp.


    ¡°Take care of me now.¡±


    Ava¡¯s eyes looked stunned to see Aurora acting like that but understanding soon settled down in her eyes.


    Aurora was sure Ava knew how impatient Aurora was right now. Aurora was not trying to hide her present condition. And the proof of Aurora¡¯s desire was in front of her as well.


    ¡°Hmmm, I don¡¯t know if I should help you or not. You¡¯ve not exactly asked me nicely. But if you say please, I will help you out for sure.¡±


    Aurora wanted to refuse. But her pride was a goddess would not let her speak those pleading words out loud.


    ¡°Say please.¡±


    Aurora was getting desperate now. Her body was aching and her pussy drooled out fluid in desperation.


    ¡°P-Please help me out.¡±


    It took Aurora everything she had to utter those words. Her instincts revolted against her saying such submissive words but Aurora forced them out.


    Ava¡¯s aura bloomed with satisfaction and her eyes held humor when they looked back at Aurora with a taunting light inside them.


    ¡°Good girl. You are finally learning your ce with me, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s mind went nk as soon as she felt the wet swipe of a tongue touch her pussy. Pleasure filled her senses as she was being eaten out by Ava¡¯s experienced mouth.


    The outlooker was more than good and soon her teasing reduced Aurora to beg on her own.


    ¡°P-Please help me out. I can¡¯t take this itch anymore.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s voice was just above a whisper but she had a feeling that it was heard clearly by the owner of the glowing eyes that were eating her out.


    Ava¡¯s eyes held the promise of pleasure and Aurora handed herself over to her care.

 Chapter 85

    Ava was not a rough lover, but she also knew Aurora could take everything she dished out. A goddess¡¯s body was tougher than people gave it credit for.


    It did not take long for Ava to reduce Aurora to a moaning mess. The drooling pussy in front of Ava¡¯s face was wet enough to sink all her fingers in.


    ¡°Aurora, you still there?¡±


    ¡°K-Keep on going.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s confirmation was all it took for Ava to go back to eating Aurora¡¯s pussy out.


    Aurora¡¯s body was shaking at the pleasure she felt and it did not take long before she had her release.


    Golden liquid squirted out of Aurora¡¯s pussy and drenched Ava¡¯s expecting face.


    The elder finally pulled her face away from the mess that was Aurora¡¯s thighs and wiped her face using her hand.


    ¡°That¡¯s quite a lot of pent-up frustration you let out. Are you feeling better now?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s ring face met Ava. Her eyes looked far from satisfied. The small act Ava had pulled had been far from enough for Aurora it seems.


    ¡°You know I am not satisfied with that at all. Come back here and fuck me properly.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s voice sounded demanding. It was not like her everydaymanding voice.


    Right now, the young goddess was lost in the allure of pleasure and was allowing her inner instincts toe to the surface.


    Ava would need to tread carefully if she wanted to not offend Aurora right now.


    ¡°You sure you can take me?¡±


    Had things been different, had Aurora been someone else and not a goddess, Ava might not have thought twice about fucking her.


    But since Aurora was a former human and now a goddess, Ava did not want toplicate their rtionship by forming bonds.


    ¡°Stop asking stupid questions. If you don¡¯t hurry then I will take charge of the situation myself. And you won¡¯t like the consequences.¡±


    Ava just sighed and resigned herself to her fate. There seemed to be no other choice but toply with Aurora¡¯s wishes now.


    Besides, Ava was hard as well. And her cock was getting ufortable without the much-needed friction it demanded.


    Ava¡¯s body also remembered the tight and wet heat that was Aurora¡¯s body and Ava resigned herself to her fate.


    ¡°Alright. Sit back and enjoy the show now.¡±


    Aurora decided that she did not like those words. One second Ava was positioning her cock to enter Aurora, the next she was being pulled down into a rough kiss.


    It was a sudden thing and caused Ava to freeze in the middle of her actions.


    Aurora took the chance to assert her dominance over the situation by tilting her hips up.


    It was an awkward first fit and it must be causing Aurora some difort to take Ava in at that angle.


    But the goddess did notin.


    On the contrary, Aurora¡¯s tongue decided to be bold and lick inside Ava¡¯s mouth with a vengeance.


    Aurora¡¯s hips also made small thrusting motions to be able to amodate Ava¡¯s size better.


    Suddenly, Ava realized that she had lost control of the situation. The pace of their fucking was being dictated by Aurora now.


    This was dangerous for Ava this slow-paced fucking was going to drive her endurance out. And it would also frustrate Aurora.


    So Ava decided to take control back.


    Once Aurora pulled back from the unexpected kiss, Ava drove back with her own need. Their lips met in a violent sh but Ava was the one in control this time.


    Mostly because her cock had finally decided to listen to her and start moving inside Aurora.


    Aurora tried to break the kiss and let a moan out but Ava swallowed the noise. The kiss did not break even at the violent pace Ava had set up for the pair.


    ¡°S-Slow down. T-Too fast.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s words contradicted her body¡¯s action of trying to pull Ava closer. Aurora¡¯s hips were moving along with the violent action of Ava¡¯s cock and her body seemed to be enjoying this rough fucking session.


    The only thing that was dishonest about Aurora was her mouth.


    ¡°You were the one who wanted it hard and fast. I can feel your emotions, remember? I will give you exactly what you need.¡±


    Ava had not wanted to be this rough with Aurora but she had to get her point across.


    So she fisted Aurora¡¯s hair and decided to pull the younger into another kiss. It was a lot of movement after that.


    But Ava was not going as fast as she could in this position. Her instincts wanted Aurora in another position.


    ¡°H-Hey, why are you pulling back? What are you doing?¡±


    Ava ignored Aurora¡¯sints as she pulled her cock out of Aurora¡¯s pussy. Her cock was wet and throbbing.


    It wanted to go back inside that divine heat and finish its job. But Ava held back and helped Aurora to turn her body around.


    Her attempt ended with Aurora being on her all fours and looking back at Ava with a confused expression.


    ¡°What the hel..¡±


    Ava never gave Aurora a chance to finish that sentence before she plunged inside Aurora¡¯s wet and tight heat.


    The bed shook with the violent sh of their bodies but Ava felt herself sink much deeper than before.


    Her instincts carved such a connection and Ava decided to give in to them this time.


    Mainly because Aurora looked too far gone this time to remember this fucking session properly.


    ¡°C-Close. I¡¯m close.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s moans fueled Ava further. But her instincts did not like the words Aurora was sprouting out in her passion.


    Clearly, if Aurora could still speak then Ava was not doing a good enough job of fucking her.


    So the brutal pace became even harsher and Aurora¡¯s body finally gave up holding itself back.


    Aurora¡¯s pussy mped Ava¡¯s cock tightly when she came. And Ava followed behind not too long.


    It was a tiring session that had been unexpected but Ava found herself not so disappointed.


    ¡°I think I¡¯m going to pass out now. Wake me up if there is something important.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s words sounded more like an automatic response than a well-thought-out one. And the goddess passed out before she heard Ava¡¯s answer.


    Ava decided to finally pull out and start with the pst-cleaning process. It would not be good to let the pair sleep in their release.


    It was a wonder how Rita had managed to sleep through all the noise Aurora had made while being fucked by Ava.


    ¡°It must be nice to be this young and carefree. I wish I had that luxury as well.¡±


    But there were things to be done and Ava had a lot of preparation to do toplete her objective.


    The face that the abyss had allowed a chaos beast outside its domain did not sit well with Ava.


    Effort or not, the fact that the overlooker did not stop this mess was a cause of concern for Ava. It meant that the other overlookers were starting to pay attention to Aurora and her circumstances.


    It would not be good for Ava if her lie was caught. She had to keep Aurora in the dark till she was able to achieve her objective.


    The door to the room opened just as Ava finished the task of cleaning up Rita and Aurora. It was perfectly timed, almost as if the person on the other side knew it was safe toe in.


    ¡°Hey, can I talk with you? There are a few things I need to clear out with you.¡±


    Much to Ava¡¯s surprise, it was Astoria that graced her face on the other side of the door. The half-goddess did not attempt to enter the room or even take a nce inside it.


    ¡°Yeah, sure? Say what you want to say.¡±


    Ava had not expected someone to seek her out this early but it was also better for Ava to clear the air out with people.


    The more people she had on her side, the more secure her position would be in the group.


    ¡°Not here. I would prefer if we head out to a ce more secluded. Come with me to my room. I¡¯ve warded it against surveince.¡±


    ¡°Oh, you¡¯re inviting me to your room? You sure are a bolddy, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    The offer was an unexpected one. But Ava did not show how much it triggered her instincts.


    Instead, Ava tried to make Astoria feel ufortable by leaning close to the half-goddess. Ava¡¯s hand almost touched Astoria¡¯s face before the goddess turned her head away.


    ¡°Don¡¯t think unnecessary thoughts in your head. I just want to make a few things clear.¡±


    But Astoria¡¯s ear was red and her aura seemed embarrassed. It was an amusingbination that finally made Ava drop her guard down in front of the half-goddess.


    ¡°Sure, let¡¯s head to your room and have this talk. I am interested in you as well.¡±


    Ava¡¯s words made Astoria¡¯s blush worse but the half-goddess did not make a fuss. What a shame.


    Ava wanted to see more of her expressions.

 Chapter 86

    Blue shed with amber when the two goddesses kept staring at each other. One had an impassive face while the other was all smiles and giggles.


    ¡°What is wrong? I thought you wanted to talk with me? All you¡¯ve been doing for the past few minutes is stare at me.¡±


    Unexpectedly, Ava broke the unspoken vow of silence between the pair. Her amused eyes stared right into Astoria¡¯s when she asked this question.


    ¡°I-Huh? Did I stare at you for that long? My apologies. I was a little lost in my thoughts. I did not know how I wanted to start this conversation.¡±


    Astoria tried not to show embarrassment, but it was tough to do so.


    Her timid nature made it too easy for things to show on her face even when she tried to hide her emotions.


    ¡°No. I don¡¯t dislike your attention at all. I think you¡¯re cute as well. Cute enough to gulp you down in a single bite.¡±


    Astoria felt a shiver of fear run down her spine at the creature¡¯s words.


    Astoria was not sure why, but her instincts screamed at her to run away and hide. They told her that the creature in front of her was not safe.


    ¡°I¡¯m just kidding. You¡¯re my contractor¡¯s precious partner. There is no way I will eat you up if you do not want me to. And I kind of like you as well. You¡¯re so cute.¡±


    And just like that, the atmosphere was back from the weird space it had be. Astoria also found it easier to breathe now.


    It was like the tension from earlier no longer existed.


    ¡°M-Miss Ava was it? Who, no, What exactly are you? You¡¯re not a goddess or a beast. But you are not human as well. You also have the aura of the abyss all over you. You feel almost like Aurora but a little different.¡±


    ¡°What do you think I am?¡±


    Astoria¡¯s question rewarded her with a raised eyebrow and another question.


    It was more than likely that this was a test to find out how much Astoria knew about this situation.


    ¡°That¡¯s the problem. The only answer thates to my mind is something that is not possible.¡±


    ¡°Is that so? Still, why don¡¯t you take a wild guess anyway? The worst that can happen is that you will guess it wrong. I promise not to react to your answer ¡±


    Astoria knew that she should not answer the other. She should keep her answer close until she was certain about all the facts.


    But her curiosity had always been something she had been unable to control. And this was another point where Astoria was not able to control her mouth.


    ¡°What do I think? I think you are an overlooker but why would youe out of the abyss? See, it doesn¡¯t make any sense, right?¡±


    Her words caused Ava to break down intoughter. Astoria felt shame creep up her face at the obvious jester move she had made.


    Why did she think it was a good idea to speak her ridiculous thoughts out in the open.


    ¡°I-I see. It is a ridiculous thought for sure. I was not aware that you were such a dangerous person to keep around. Maybe I should kill you to keep my secret after all.¡±


    One second Astoria wasmenting her embarrassment, the next she felt something being pressed against her throat.


    The glowing eyes looking back at Astoria were filled with magic and a promise of death.


    ¡°I wonder how you found out who I am. But it doesn¡¯t matter any longer. You are about to die now. Do you have anyst wish you want me to fulfill?¡±


    Astoria did not doubt in her heart that she would die at this moment. There was a reason no normal person had seen an outlooker.


    They were too dangerous and unstable to be kept around the normal poption.


    ¡°I just have a question I want you to answer. Why Aurora? Why did you make a contract with her? What are you trying to gain? And what did you offer her?¡±


    ¡°That is more than one question. But I am in a decent mood so I¡¯ll answer some of them. Hmm, let¡¯s see.¡±


    ¡°I did not choose Astoria. Rather the abyss chose her and I decided to take advantage of that fact to approach her first. Don¡¯t worry, my end goal will not hurt Astoria at all.¡±


    ¡°As for what I offered her? I just offered her what she wanted at that time. But I do wonder if she would regret it once she reaches her goal.¡±


    ¡°Now, why don¡¯t you die for me?¡±


    Astoria closed her eyes as she waited for the final blow toe.


    She was far from satisfied with the answers she got but there was nothing else Astria could do against an outlooker.


    Even if this was not their domain, Astoria was more than aware of the difference in power level she and Ava had.


    Something cut across Ava¡¯s throat but not deep enough to kill her. Astoria reached out her hand and felt the bleeding cut.


    It would likely scar if Astoria did not treat it immediately but nothing life-threatening.


    ¡°I decided to spare you today since I find you amusing. You¡¯re also really cute so it will be a shame to kill you now. So, I¡¯ll leave you with a mark for now. Don¡¯t heal it up or you won¡¯t like the consequences.¡±


    Ava turned around as soon as she was done talking.


    Astoria was not able to see her face but she wanted to. She wanted to ask Ava why she spared Astoria¡¯s life.


    But before she could question the overlooker any further, her room door was opened with a snap.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on here? I felt Ava¡¯s power spike and¡­..¡±


    ¡°¡­..¡±


    ¡°¡­..¡±


    Three pairs of eyes red at each other in disbelief before a scream echoed inside the hallway.


    ¡°What happened to me? Why am I a child again?¡±


    ===============


    The tower master was in a foul mood today. Everyone knew something had happened but no one dared to confront him.


    On the other hand, Lady Mei¡¯s mood could not be called anything but sparkling. She didn¡¯t even snap at anyone the whole time.


    This contrast was rare to see and caused a string of gossip vine to start spreading rumors.


    That was why everyone secretly looked forward to an encounter between those two. It was a given that something had happened between them to cause this effect.


    ¡°Lady Mei, can we talk for a second. I have a few things I need to run through and I want your advice.¡±


    Everyone held their breath at the request.


    ¡°Yeah, sure. I also need to repay you for what happened earlier. I am thankful you entrusted that job to me.¡±


    There was a story behind that statement everyone wanted to know. But no one dared to say anything to the pair.


    Eager eyes followed the pair even when they disappeared behind the doors.


    ¡°Lady Mei, why did you do it? The Goddess of Victory had the Mobi Dick handled. Don¡¯t you think youplicated the situation by stealing her prey? Think of what this will mean for us.¡±


    Charles was pissed off but he had to control his temper. He could not afford to anger Lady Mei and lose her support.


    He had initially approached Lady Mei with this proposal to gain her approval and then slowly pull her to his side.


    But she hadplicated things for him unnecessarily.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with me killing my target? I was tasked to kill Mobi Dick so I did. Whether the Goddess of Victory was involved in this or not is none of my business.¡±


    ¡°But Lady Mei, you did not think about us. We can¡¯t afford to make a goddess our enemy right now. It would just be handing more power to ourpetition.¡±


    The real reason Charles was so pissed off about this action of Lady Mei was because of Aurora and her academy.


    The GoV was already favoring those people. Charles did not want to see the goddess join them openly.


    But before Charles could open his mouth and speak his thoughts, a huge pressure stopped him in his tracks.


    ¡°Let me be clear with you tower master. You are the one who needs me, not the other way around. And you were the one who gave me the freedom to go out and kill that beast.¡±


    ¡°Do not test my patience or I will leave this tower. The only reason I am here, for now, is because it is interesting. And I will not lose even if that goddess decided to make us her enemy.¡±


    Charles felt the familiar fear creep inside his mind. But he was getting better and better at shaking that fear off.


    ¡°I understand. But please, think about your position next time too. People are depending on you.¡±


    ¡°Alright. If you keep being this interesting then I will help you out.¡¯


    And just like that, the atmosphere returned to normal.

 Chapter 87

    ¡°What happened to me? Why am I a child again?¡±


    Aurora had not taken notice of her present condition before but she could no longer ignore her physical limit.


    [The user is informed that this is a result of the ¡®penalty¡¯. The effect of the ¡®penalty¡¯ will be lifted off in a weak.


    The user is asked to train their mental condition if they want to avoid the effect of ¡®Penalty¡¯ in the future.]


    Why? Why had Aurora been de-aged like this of all possible scenarios?


    ¡°Looks like you lost control of your magic. Do you have any idea when you will be back to normal?¡±


    Ava was the first one to regain herposure. It also made sense why she hade around so quickly.


    The abyss was a ce full of such tricks. There must be weirder things Ava must have seen in there.


    ¡°I knew it was possible for the goddess¡¯s to stop aging with the help of their magic but I have never seen a case like you before. Are you sure it is alright?¡±


    Astoria sounded worried and for good reasons. But Aurora knew a lot of people who could manipte their ages and bodies at will.


    That was not the real issue with Aurora here. She was more worried about herck of magic and defense capabilities.


    ¡°It¡¯s quitemon for people to use their magic for body maniption. But I will be vulnerable for the next week. Now I am thankful that I convinced Rex to take my ce as the headmaster now.¡±


    What a stroke of luck that decision had turned out to be.


    ¡°Hey, have you seen Aurora anywhere? I want her opinion on something¡­¡±


    Speak of the devil and he shall appear. Aurora was not sure why Rex chose this ce to look for her but his words got stuck in his throat as soon as he saw Aurora.


    ¡°I think I had a little too much coffee and healing potions. I am starting to halucinate..¡±


    ¡°Oi, I¡¯m right here. This is an ident and you better keep your mouth shut about it.¡±


    ¡°Alright, what happened?¡±


    ¡°Ava, Astoria, can you give us both a second to be alone? I need to discuss some things with Rex alone.¡±


    To be honest, there was no reason for Ava and Astoria to leave if Aurora just wanted to talk about her present condition.


    But there was one more topic she wanted to cover and it was about Lucy.


    Although Aurora had already told Astoria a little about Lucy and Karan¡¯s situation, she did not want to air her dirtyundry out in front of an outsider.


    As for Ava, they had a business partnership and the less they got involved in each other¡¯s matters, the better.


    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll take my leave then. I have work to do and this ce needs more protection embedded inside its space.¡±


    ¡°I should get to work as well. I need to have a look andpile the sybus I will be teaching to the children.¡±


    Ava and Astoria left without much fuss. They must have realized that Aurora had something personal to talk about.


    ¡°Is this talk rted to what you wanted to tell me before? Well, you know, after you forced me to take the role of the headmaster.¡±


    ¡°Yes. you might want to sit before you hear the news.¡±


    Aurora felt nervous but she did her best to involve as much detail about Karans¡¯ situation as she could.


    But the more she spoke, the more she realized that Aurora knew too little to be of any use.


    Surprisingly, Rex heard her through without exploding or asking her any questions. He seemed deep in thoughts.


    ¡°I see. He told you all this and you believed him just like that?¡±


    ¡°I did believe him but not just like that. How do I exin it? There was something familiar about him and he also helped me. Maybe you¡¯ll see for yourself once you meet him.¡±


    Rex seemed deep in thoughts but he did not say ¡®no¡¯ out of the gate. That gave Aurora some hope that he would think this topic over.


    ¡°I will investigate it on my own. So let¡¯s forget about it for now. There is a bigger elephant in the room right now. What should we do with you for now? What age are you even?¡±


    Aurora had not thought about her situation yet but Rex¡¯s question finally made her aware that she should take her condition seriously.


    ¡°I think I¡¯m almost nine right now. I need to get through this week and I should be back to normal.¡±


    ¡°Nine, huh? A year too young for the academy¡¯s first batch. We decided on eleven to sixteen years old for our first batch age.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to enroll in the academy right now anyway. It would be difficult to exin what happened to me once I return to normal.¡±


    Aurora did not have to think over this topic and Rex seemed to agree with her.


    ¡°Right. Then, should we introduce you as a rtive of mine? No one would question you if we pulled that route.¡±


    That did make sense. Since Rex was the headmaster, no one except the school council would question him.


    And they would recognize Aurora¡¯s magic and put two-on-two together.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go with this for now. It will also allow us to observe how the academy works for the students and how they get along. Did you screen through the first batch of applications?¡±


    Initially, screening students were supposed to be Aurora¡¯s job. But then things happened and the task has been pushed over to Rex.


    ¡°Ah, about that. There were some things I wanted to talk with you about. Here, this is something I think you should be interested in.¡±


    Aurora took the file being handed over to her. But it was a little too heavy for her nine-yeard old body to handle.


    So Rex just put the open book on the table in front of Aurora and pointed toward the page.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know why she even applied toe here. But we cannot refuse her without making an enemy out of the Northern republic. What should we do now?¡±


    Aurora looked at the page in front of her with a bewildered expression.


    Out of everyone who could have applied here, it had to be the princess of the northern republic.


    With the exception of the tower, the northern republic had the highest monopoly on the magic users and abyss travelers. They also had the most academies affiliated with the tower.


    As such, it was not wrong to say that the northern republic and the tower were close to each other.


    ¡°Anyway, we cannot afford to refuse her right now. So invite her here as well. We¡¯ll just have to keep a tight eye on her. She¡¯s currently 12 right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, she is. Why?¡±


    ¡°I have someone who can keep an eye on her.¡±


    Aurora was not sure how good Emilia would be able to act but Joseph was a good actor at least.


    He would be able to keep the northern princess upied and also extract some information she might have.


    ¡°I guess we are inviting her now. The council is also in favor of not ignoring the northern republic right now. Our position is not the best in the world.¡±


    Aurora sighed at the uing mess she would have to clean up.


    She had an idea why the northern republic¡¯s princess was being sent to their academy and who was behind it.


    And it was a good opportunity for Aurora to establish friendly connections with the northern republic.


    ¡°I guess that Karan is on our side. This is an opportunity and a half.¡±


    Aurora knew that this was an opportunity. She could not afford to mess this up.


    ===============


    ¡°Why do I have to go to such a remote ce? That academy is so new it doesn¡¯t even have a record yet.¡±


    No one in the northern republic knew how to handle their princess when she was in such a mood.


    ¡°It was Lord Karan who asked this favor from you. Don¡¯t you want to help him out?¡±


    The nanny who had been assigned to the princess tried to calm her down. And surprisingly, it did help.


    ¡°Lord Karan? I guess I can do this if he was the one who asked.¡±


    Everyone breathed a sigh of relief as the princess calmed down.


    It was just their luck to be stuck with such a brat as their princess. But they had no other choice but to keep her alive for now.


    Because even though they were a republic country, they were bound by their royal blood. It was the only thing that could activate their ultimate weapon in case the abyss woke up and tried to devour them all.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go, mydy. We have your things packed. We shall leave for our destination now. After all, Rocx valley is far away.¡±


    The princess did stand up but her dull eyes did not seem interested in anything.

 Chapter 88

    ¡°Out with it. What is wrong with you now?¡±


    Aurora had thought her conversation with Rex was over for now. And she waited for the man to finally leave her alone.


    But much to her surprise, she could still feel the aura around her adopted brother re out in irritation.


    He wanted to tell Aurora something but was holding himself back.


    Under normal circumstances, Aurora would have let this go. But she found his actions distracting for now and finally decided to snap at him.


    ¡°Ah, I really can¡¯t hide anything from you. There is another problem we are facing and it¡¯s about the northern princess.¡±


    ¡°Out with it. Don¡¯t beat around the bush now.¡±


    ¡°We will need to send someone to go and get her. Some people do not want the northern princess to get to this academy. I¡¯m also afraid that the tower will use this opportunity to kill the princess off.¡±


    Aurora paused as soon as she heard Rex¡¯s concerns.


    They were valid opinions Aurora had not thought about yet. Mainly because she had just been introduced to this possibility.


    But assassinating the northers princess on her way to the Rocx valley was a sure way to me Aurora and the Rocx academy.


    It will also weaken the northern front and allow the tower to sink its ws inside the country.


    ¡°I agree. I would have gone myself but I won¡¯t be respected much in my current form. But we also need to send someone responsible and mature enough to not leak our secrets.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t have a lot of people like that with us right now.¡±


    Aurora could name a few people to send but none of them seemed like the right choice.


    ¡°I was thinking of sending Rita but I¡¯m worried about sending her alone. She¡¯s a little hot-headed and ident prone.¡±


    Aurora took note of all the others they could send.


    The Academy¡¯s most prominent task force was made up of ounders. And sending them to the northern front was asking for trouble.


    Simr was the case with the rebellion people. Their chances of sess were too low.


    Hiring someone outside of their fraction was unthinkable for them. Even hiring someone as capable as Michell (That witch) was out of order for now.


    ¡°We have no other choice but to send Rita. Ava is too busy and Astoria will also need time to make her lesson ns. I will apany Rita as your representative.¡±


    ¡°It would also work out with our backstory with me being your rtive. It will present the northern front with a false sense of security.¡±


    Truly, it could work. Rita was more likely to listen to her than anyone else in the academy. And it also happened that she was the only one who was free to carry out this task.


    Aurora was willing to take the burden of this job for now.


    ¡°Alright. It shall only take a few days. Keeping you out will also help us exin your sudden disappearance once your curse is broken.¡±


    While there were too many ws with their current n, Aurora was sure they would be able to smoothen it over time.


    For now, it was the best alternative avable to Aurora and Rex. they could not allow anyone to have a handle on their weakness.


    ===============


    ¡°Y-You turned into a kid. I can¡¯t believe what I am seeing in front of my eyes. Oh wait, did I sleep with a kid? God, what did I do?¡±


    Rita¡¯sughing face broke into a cold sweat as soon as she realized what had happened to Aurora.


    The sudden whish in emotions caused Aurora to sigh out loud.


    ¡°Rita, you did not sleep with a kid. I was still an adult when we spend the night together. You did not do anything wrong.¡±


    Aurora tried to console but Rita did not seem like she was listening. It was only after Aurora threw a vase in her direction that Rita decided to pay attention to her.


    ¡°Hey, what gives? Can¡¯t I even panic in peace?¡±


    ¡°Rita, not now. You need to pay attention to this conversation.¡±


    To be honest, Aurora was getting a little tired of Rita¡¯s free attitude. She wanted the serious girl she knew in her past life back.


    And it did not take long for Rita to realize that her new attitude was not being appreciated by Aurora. So she calmed down.


    The papers in the elder¡¯s hand were straightened out before Rita put them on the table in front of her.


    ¡°The northern princess Natasha Kowalski. She¡¯s a cute thing for sure. Silver hair and blue eyes. Very distinct. I¡¯m sure we will have no trouble recognizing her right away.¡±


    Rita¡¯s confidence was a given. Aurora did not doubt that the girl would be difficult to find even if she happened to get lost.


    The norther princess was someone who was bound to stand out from her surroundings. She was the closest person to divinity without actually being a princess.


    ¡°She is not the problem, everyone else in the northern front is. We need to make sure we retrieve her without any problem.¡±


    Aurora was well aware of the rumors that were often floating around the northern princess. They made her out to be a ruthless ruler who ruled hernds with an iron fist.


    She was such an effective ruler that even the tower was wary of her until the end.


    But no matter what kind of character she turned out to be, Princess Natasha was still a princess right now.


    And this was the right time for Aurora to step forward and start making connections with the future superpower.


    ¡°Alright. I got what you are trying to say. We will retrieve that girl and thene back here to celebrate.¡±


    ¡°You go and prepare. I need to pay a visit to someone first. I¡¯ll meet you outside the Rocx valley in about three hours from now.¡±


    Thankfully, Rita did not ask any more questions from Aurora. She epted her answer with a wide smile and left the ce.


    As for Aurora? She had someone she wanted to meet first. Aurora needed to extract a promise from the GoV before she left this Rocx valley.


    ===============


    Aurora walked through the cave she had visited only once before.


    But the strong aura the GoV let out surrounded Aurora without hesitation and probed at in curiosity.


    ¡°Why are you back here? I see that you did not bring my kids with you this time.¡±


    Aurora did not mind the hostile tone the other goddess used with her. Aurora was used to such behavior. And she had even epted it before arriving here.


    ¡°I am here to ask a favor from you. I want you to look after the academy while I¡¯ll be gone.¡±


    ¡°And why should I do that? As far as I¡¯m concerned, I do not have anything to do with that academy.¡±


    Aurora tried to hold back her flinch but she was not able to. The GoV could be pretty harsh with her words.


    But she had not lied to Aurora.


    It was true that the GoV did not need to have any contact with the Rocx academy.


    But still¡­.


    ¡°Your children are in that academy. Are you saying that you want to abandon them to their fate? Will you not help them if they get in trouble?¡±


    This was Aurora¡¯s trump card. One she had used before and was willing to use again. She had no shame in her actions.


    ¡°I knew. Still, they could not remain dependent on me forever. Sooner orter, they will need to learn to protect themselves.¡±


    ¡°Alright, I understand. Thank you for helping me with this small task of mine.¡±


    Aurora let out a small smile as soon as she felt the goddess¡¯s aura chance in front of her.


    What a dishonest person the GoV was. Her words made it sound like she did not care what happened to her children. But her aura was gentle and full of care.


    It reassured Aurora that the GoV will help keep the academy safe in the time Aurora was not there to protect it.


    ¡°I did not say that I will help you out.¡±


    ¡°I know.¡±


    ¡°I might let them all die if it bes too bothersome.¡±


    ¡°You might¡±


    ¡°¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­¡±


    ¡°Take care of yourself. Your curse might be temporary but it is annoying. It would suck if you died out there without being able to protect yourself.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll take care of myself. Don¡¯t worry because I will visit you once I recover from this curse.¡±


    Aurora exited the cave with a small smile on her face. She could not help but feel like she had made progress with GoV in hertest visit.


    If things continued like this, then Aurora was sure she would be able to recruit the GoV in her fold and get her to help before the GoV was supposed to die.


    And who knows? Maybe Aurora will be able to prevent GoV¡¯s death as well.

 Chapter 89

    ¡°We¡¯re back. We¡¯re finally back on the city surface. It feels like it has been years since I¡¯ve been back here.¡±


    Aurora could not help the smile that stretch across her face at Rita¡¯s words. The currently-elder female seemed to be teary-eyed to see the upper surface of the city.


    As good as Rocx academy was, it was still limited in resources due to its location.


    It would take time for that ce to get as fresh and worthy as the nned city around the tower was.


    ¡°Rita, don¡¯t wander off on your own. We are not here for sightseeing. Let¡¯s buy our tickets before we are recognized.¡±


    Aurora pulled the bigger hand holding her own and she tugged Rita toward the bus stand.


    While enjoying oneself was all good, Aurora was worried that someone would recognize her in her younger body.


    And if someone did recognize her, they would call the tower immediately. Aurora was not sure if she would be able to fight the tower in her current form.


    As for Rita? She was nowhere near a goddess level right now.


    ¡°Aurora, just rx. You¡¯re a kid right now. There is no way you will get recognized in your current form.¡±


    Rita was right. There was no way in hell that someone would look at Aurora and think of her as the same person who caused so many problems to the tower.


    Maybe something good dide out of her temporary curse.


    ¡°You¡¯re right. Still, we should hurry up and get out of the tower radius. It will take us a day to get to the northern republic.¡±


    ¡°Fine. You¡¯re a killjoy even as a kid.¡±


    Aurora only smiled back at Rita to hide her real feelings.


    She did not know why but Aurora could feel that something would happen before they reached the northern republic.


    ¡°Ticket for two to the northern republic.¡±


    The man at the counter did not even look up when he handed Rita her ticket. He seemed eager to go home and rest.


    Thisck of attention was fortunate for Aurora and Rita. It reduced their chances of getting found out while out here.


    It was not until the air was seated in the train that Aurora breathed a sigh of relief. So far so good.


    ¡°See, I told you nothing would happen. You were just worrying for nothing.¡±


    Aurora was inclined to believe Rita more after theck of action. Maybe it was an indication that everything was going to be alright for now.


    ¡°Maybe you were right. Maybe I was worried for nothing.¡±


    Maybe theck of sleep was finally catching up to Aurora now.


    [System warning. The user Alexander is nearby.]


    The warning came toote.


    One second Aurora was walking around as if nothing happened, the next second she felt her body collide with something solid in front of her.


    ¡°Aurora, you alright? You did not get hurt by the collision? Right?¡±


    Rita sounded worried but Aurora was more concerned about the silent arrival of Alexander.


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s you again. How did you manage to get yourself so small? Even your magic feels negligible. I wouldn¡¯t have recognized you if not for the system.¡±


    Double shit. Alexander had not only managed to run into Aurora, but he also recognized her.


    Everything Aurora had done till now to remain hidden felt like a joke.


    ¡°Huh? Are you sure you are talking to us, mister? I think you made a mistake just now. You see, this girl here is my younger sister and¡­¡±


    ¡°Lying to me won¡¯t help you out. I can help you get out of this town undetected.¡±


    ¡°And why would you do that for us?¡±


    Aurora decided to break her vow of silence. There was no use in staying quiet now. It was more than obvious that she had been found out.


    The man sounded confused before understanding mmed in his eyes.


    ¡°I¡¯m thinking of taking your offer. And for that, I need to make sure you remain unharmed. So I will help you out for now.¡±


    Aurora felt her eyes widen at the confession. She had made this offer initially as a joke.


    But Alexander seemed serious about taking Aurora up on her offer. This was a weird twist of fate.


    ¡°Are you trying to trick us? What offer could Aurora have made?¡­¡±


    Aurora stopped Rita from finishing her sentence.


    ¡°I understand. I can see that you are serious about that offer. In that case, help us out and I¡¯ll send a letter of rmendation for you at the Rocx Academy.¡±


    ¡°Consider it done.¡±


    Alexander did not look worried about his ability to get the pair out. And Aurora was not particrly worried about his betrayal.


    Alexander¡¯s aura of corruption was as good as gone.


    It was clear to Aurora that he had benefited a great deal from this system¡¯s support but she did have the heart to look his file over.


    ¡°Are you sure we can trust him? He¡¯s from the tower.¡±


    Rita had a legitimate reason to sound worried. Aurora had not expected to end up in this situation as well.


    But surprisingly enough, Aurora was not worried about anything regarding Alexander. Somehow, his arrival elevated some of Aurora¡¯s worry.


    But the heavy feeling inside her had not disappeared yet. She still felt like something big would happen.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think we have anything to worry about from Alexander¡¯s side. I have a system tracking his every move. He won¡¯t be able to betray us.¡±


    Aurora decided to reveal her trump card.


    ¡°Ohhh. So that¡¯s why you were confident in him. Then I guess we can trust him.¡±


    Aurora nodded before she decided to look up.


    And her eyes instantly met a familiar pair. As soon as that happened, Aurora ducked her head and pulled Rita¡¯s hand.


    ¡°We need to get going. We will be in trouble if we stay here any longer.¡±


    Aurora had a sudden realization of why she was having this bad feeling.


    Out of everyone whom Aurora could have met her eyes with, why did it have to be Lady Mei?


    And she was not alone. Aurora had also caught the sight of the tower master with her.


    This was abination of Aurora¡¯s nightmare. If those two joined hands then Aurora was sure something troublesome would happen soon.


    But that was the tower¡¯s headache. Aurora could just wash her hands off this topic.


    ¡°What happened? Did you spot someone you recognized? Hey, stop pulling.¡±


    Despite herints, Rita¡¯s aura looked happy at being bossed around.


    Aurora had no time to correct Rita¡¯s behavior. Not if she wanted to get away from the nightmare following behind her.


    ¡°Hey, kid. Wait right there. You are not allowed to leave this ce.¡±


    Shit. Aurora had been spotted and it seemed as if Lady Mei was heading toward her.


    The only stroke of good luck Aurora seemed to have was that the tower master looked as surprised as her to see Lady Mei headed their way.


    ¡°What are you doing? Start moving now.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s pulling had turned into a full-force struggle now.


    Thankfully, Rita realized the situation. And she finally started cooperating a little toote.


    The people around them made it difficult for Aurora and Rita to move. They tastefully blocked their way.


    The pair couldn¡¯t risk hurting the crown in their struggle to get away from Lady Mei either.


    There would be no choice for them but to meet the goddess.


    ¡°Hey,e this way. Hurry up.¡±


    But not all hope had abandoned the pair. After all, they had someone from the tower on their side as well.


    People gave way in confusion as Alexander coaxed them to step aside.


    Since Lady Mei had never specified to whom she was ordered not to move, the crowd became confused.


    Alexander used this confusion to lead Aurora and Rita out of the way.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get going now. I booked our tickets for the northern republic. You were headed there, right?¡±


    ¡°How did you know where¡­¡±


    Rita started the question before realizing that the terminal they had met Alexander belonged to the northern republic.


    It was a well-educated guess to think of that ce as the destination.


    ¡°Thank you for the tickets. I suppose you will be apanying us?¡±


    Aurora would not mind having Alexander with them to help out.


    Sometimes, having someone affiliated with the tower cleared out a lot of obstacles for you.


    And Alexander seemed bright enough to keep himself out of trouble.


    ¡°I might as well apany you. If Lady Mei spotted me and reported me back then I would be in big trouble with my father. I¡¯ll rather take my chances with you.¡±


    Aurora nodded in agreement. But she also needed to draw the line.


    ¡°You cane along. But don¡¯t act too familiar with us for now. I don¡¯t want rumors to spread that we¡¯re affiliated with her tower.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll be discreet while under operation. And besides, I will not remain as a tower official for long.¡±


    That was true. Once Alexander left the tower things would be clear about Rocx academy¡¯s affiliations.


    But it was just better not to poke the ashes and cause a potential fire.

 Chapter 90

    With the assistance of Alexander, it did not take long for the duo to escape Lady Mei¡¯s pursuit. Mainly because the people around them helped the trio out.


    In the end, the trio managed to sessfully board the train in time for departure.


    ¡°I cannot believe we managed to give Goddess Mei the slip. She¡¯s known to be ruthless and ck-hearted.¡±


    Rita melted into her seat as soon as the soft surface touched her bottom. Her eyes closed in pleasure and she looked on the verge of sleep.


    The day had been hectic so Aurora did not me Rita for being exhausted. Even she felt tired from all the detours they had to take.


    ¡°Lady Mei might be a goddess but she¡¯s also a public figure. It is difficult for her to do everything she wants. I just took advantage of this fact and helped us escape.¡±


    Alexander sounded confident in his synopsis. And seeing as how he had helped Aurora out, there was a decent enough reason for him to be cocky.


    ¡°Man, it must be such to be a higher-up member of the tower. They are always in the public eye. It¡¯s a wonder how they managed to get away with so much.¡±


    ¡°Being under the public eye is not a hindrance but a benefit to them. It helps them sway public opinion and create a false image. But it is not something everyone can understand.¡±


    ¡°Why you? Are you belittling me?¡±


    Aurora was amazed at the change in the native guard. In a matter of weeks, the old and weak guard she had threatened was gone. And in his ce stood someone who understood how society worked.


    Had it not been for her system, Aurora would have sworn that this was an entirely different person in front of her.


    ¡°Rita, let it go. He¡¯s an ally for now so take his words to heart.¡±


    ¡°B-But! Alright. I won¡¯t get angry for no reason again.¡±


    Rita went back to sulking but Aurora did not console her this time. She could not always hold Rita¡¯s hand and make her behave.


    Rita had to learn how to behave for the most part. She was an adult now and such behavior was not epted among the higher-ss people.


    The rest of the journey passed in rtive silence. No one had the heart to talk things out so everyone remained silent.


    The night was also equally quiet. The only light to illuminate the outside came from the abyss beneath the train track.


    The bridge that lined the two huge masses ofnd was built a long time ago and was maintained with magic.


    For most people, it was the only way to travel across continents. If something ever happened to the bridge, then the mostmon means ofmunication would be cut off.


    ¡°It is beautiful. The abyss looks like a gigantic water body from this far above.¡±


    Rita sounded lost when she spoke those words. Aurora understood the mysterious allure the abyss cast on the viewer.


    When she had first seen this view, she had been bewitched as well. It had been Quince that had knocked him and Clove out of their thoughts.


    Aurora still remembered what he had said to her.


    ¡°The more beautiful a thing is, the more ugly secrets it is trying to hide. The abyss is a giant gem filled with wonders. But it also hides the deadliest of poison in its fangs.¡±


    Aurora did not know why, but those words had struck her in her heart.


    Even more, after she had traveled to the abyss once. The darkness it held could not bepared to anywhere else.


    ¡°I¡¯m surprised to hear this from you. As far as I know, this used to be an old tower saying. Hardly anyone uses it nowadays. It makes me wonder about your connections to the tower.


    Alexander looked suspicious. Aurora had not expected the man to know this saying. She had note across this saying after Quince had said this to her that one time.


    ¡°Would it surprise you to know that it was someone from the tower that told this to me a long time ago? That person no longer exists but the saying struck me.¡±


    ¡°Is that why you want to take revenge on the tower? For that person?¡±


    ¡°No. He¡¯s not the reason but he is a part of the reason. Not that it matters much now.¡±


    Aurora did not deny the usation of revenge against the tower. Even she knew that there was no point in denying something true or could easily be guessed.


    The talk ended on that note and right in time for the announcement of their arrival toe.


    /Reaching Northern Republic center station in fifteen minutes. Passengers are asked to be prepared to step out./


    The sun was rising on the horizon and the train was finally pulling up to the other continent.


    It was a peaceful time when everyone could enjoy the tranquility and the beauty of the northern continent. The country of snow and wind was being approached by the train.


    This journey was going to be over soon.


    Or so everyone thought.


    /Emergency warning issued. Everyone is asked to not leave their seats and sit tight. An abyss monster has been spotted near the northern continent./


    /I repeat, Emergency warning issued. Everyone is asked to not leave their seats and sit tight. An abyss monster has been spotted near the northern continent./


    /Forces from the northern front have arrived on the scene./


    Aurora cursed her rotten luck.


    These attacks by the abyss monsters weremon enough to ur outside of the abyss and in areas with such dense abyssal energy leaking out.


    But Aurora had not expected the attack to take ce just as their party was about to arrive at the station at that.


    ¡°What should we do now? Should we sit back and let the Northern Republic deal with the monster? Or should we help out?¡±


    Rita sounded divided. Aurora knew it was because Rita was a noble soul who could not let anyone suffer if she could help it.


    But Aurora had no intention of helping those republicans out. Doing so would put Aurora in a tough situation and also cause the republic to question her motives.


    ¡°Let¡¯s not interfere more than we have to.¡±


    ¡°B-But¡±


    ¡°I agree. Let¡¯s stay here for now. Things will be over soon.¡±


    Outside, the battle raged on with a ferocity seldomly seen outside of the abyss. Northern forces were slowly but surely taking out the abyssal monster.


    Aurora could not see what kind of monster it was that was rampaging outside of the train but she had a bad feeling about it.


    ¡°H-Hey, I think I¡¯m going to sleep. I can¡¯t keep my eyes open any longer.¡±


    Rita slumped in her seat as soon as she finished speaking. It would not have been such a bizarre situation had she been the only one to fall asleep.


    Aurora¡¯s bad feeling became worse as Alexander copsed in his seat as well. And not only him, but the whole train couch also seemed to be falling asleep.


    The scent that filled the train felt familiar but Aurora could not open the door to check the situation outside.


    The curtain on their couch door also hid the outside corridor from Aurora¡¯s view and blocked most of the magical aura from being visible.


    Aurora was left with a few visible clues to figure out what was happening outside on the train.


    A shadowy hand reached out for the curtain of Aurora¡¯s train curtain and she tensed. She was not in any condition to protect herself from any external attack.


    [WARNING. MASSIVE ABYSSAL ENERGY DETECTED. THE USER IS ASKED TO RUN AWAY.


    WARNING. ASIOAOJSKD=-=[¡®;L.¡¯;.;¡±;¡¯;/]-==-=¡¯/]


    Whatever was outside of the door was causing Aurora¡¯s system to go out of control. It had to be something massive to cause such a disturbance in her magic reserves.


    A goddess¡¯s magic reserves were something sacred. Even the curse that had bound Aurora¡¯s magic and held her captive in this form had not touched her system.


    ¡®[Are you there?]¡¯


    Aurora¡¯s breath got caught in her throat as she heard the voice question her.


    It was a breathy voice that was barely audible to anyone. And Aurora had no idea why it was asking her this question. Did that voice not knock out everyone asleep in one go?


    But then one hand became two and then four. It continued until the whole curtain was filled with nothing but the silhouette of those hands.


    Those bony hands tried to pry the curtain open and Aurora quickly moved toward her seat and closed her eyes.


    Maybe if she pretended to fall asleep, she could get out of this situation without alerting the others about it.


    And if things did be dangerous, then Aurora would think of a way out.


    ¡®[Something is different here. Things are different this time.]¡¯


    The owner of those creepy hands was not leaving and Aurora¡¯s fists clenched in fear. She needed to do something to make those monsters leave.

 Chapter 91

    ¡®[Something is different here. Things are different this time.]¡¯


    The owner of those creepy hands was not leaving and Aurora¡¯s fists clenched in fear. She needed to do something to make those monsters leave.


    For some reason, the monsters were getting more and more agitated the more they observed Aurora¡¯s cabin.


    ¡®[IT¡¯S HERE. IT¡¯S HERE. IT¡¯S FINALLY HERE. OUR TREAT IS HERE AFTER A LONG TIME]¡¯


    ¡®[MASTER! MASTER! HURRY UP. WE¡¯RE HUNGRY]¡¯


    ¡®[CAN WE EAT THIS TASTY TREAT? CAN WE?]¡¯


    Aurora did her best not to tense up as the voices got louder and louder. At this point, the only thing remaining between her and the owner of that bony hand was a thin curtain.


    Aurora knew she could run away as ast resort. But she also had to take care of Rita and Alexander. Those two were still unconscious.


    But the shadows seemed not to be leaving the cabin. They were reaching inside for someone and Aurora felt her throat get blocked by her fear.


    ¡®[WE¡¯LL EAT IT UP]¡¯


    ¡°Don¡¯t touch them. I will not allow you to touch them.¡±


    Aurora knew it was a foolish idea for her to use her powers in this situation. She had almost no energy left and her curse could be worse if she let her recovered powers out.


    But Aurora knew she could also not sit back and do nothing.


    Her aura red and her body grew to her original size in a matter of seconds. Her hand also held her spear at ready.


    ¡®[IT¡¯S THE ABYSS. IT¡¯S THE ABYSS]¡¯


    ¡®[OUR LORD¡¯S AURA IS HERE. OUR LORD IS BACK]¡¯


    ¡®[OUR LORD BROUGHT US A TREAT. LET¡¯S INDULGE IN IT]¡¯


    ¡°I asked you; what are you doing? Did I not tell you not to touch them?¡±


    Aurora had no idea where her power wasing from. Maybe it was the nearness of the open abyss that was fueling her magic, maybe it was her desire.


    But one thing Aurora knew for sure. No one would be able to touch her in this form.


    Aurora wanted to eradicate each and every single one of these shadowy hands and creatures that were reaching out for her people.


    She did not show mercy to those trying to take her things away. Those Aurora had chosen were her and no one else was allowed to keep them.


    Aurora tensed as another massive aura headed toward her cabin. This one felt different from the shadowy figure groveling around her.


    This one was dangerous and it would be a challenge to get him to cooperate.


    ¡°Are you here to challenge me as well?¡±


    The man looking back at Aurora looked familiar. Aurora was sure she had seen him before but she could not figure out where.


    There was just something about those golden eyes and blue hair of his that seemed familiar to her.


    ¡°You all, Scam. If you value your life then you won¡¯t show your face again in front of me.¡±


    Even that voice of this new person sparked something inside Aurora. But she knew one thing for sure.


    He was not someone she had met in her previous life. Nor in her present one.


    Those golden eyes and blue hair were not something one could forget just because they wished to. Nor was this man¡¯s aura something that Aurora could ignore if she wished to.


    ¡°Don¡¯t give me that look. I will not attack you just because I wished to kill you. I was just here to check up on something.¡±


    ¡°A pet of mine escaped my clutches a while ago so I was trying to track him down. I see now how he managed to get past my defenses.¡±


    Aurora traced that golden-eyed man¡¯s gaze back to Alexander.


    It was not to out two-on-two together and figure out who that man meant when he talked about the ¡®pet¡¯.


    ¡°So sorry to steal your dog. But I need him with me.¡±


    Aurora did not know why she decided to defend Alexander from this powerful man, but she just moved in front of the unconscious pair behind her.


    It was foolish of her to give in to her instincts, but Aurora wanted to face this man head-on.


    ¡°You need him? Alright, you can have him. But in return, you will need to visit the next time you enter the abyss. Enter any of the overlooker chambers and call out my name.¡±


    Aurora felt a growl build up inside her throat as those golden eyes eased their hostility toward her.


    Suddenly, the situation had be a lot clear to her.


    This man was an overlooker of the abyss. But his aura waspletely different from Ava¡¯s. just standing in front of him caused Aurora to go out of breath.


    ¡°Why should Ie to look for you?¡±


    ¡°Because you own me for sparing your life. I hope we meet each other soon.¡±


    Aurora wanted to chase after the man once he left. But she knew she could not leave her people or the train alone.


    The presence of that golden-eyed man was leaving the vicinity of the train but the smaller shadows had not left yet.


    They were waiting for Aurora to allow them to capture the energy of herpanions.


    ¡°What troublesome creatures. It¡¯s a pity that I have to rely on the Northers Republic soldiers to take care of these things for me.¡±


    Aurora cursed openly but she was relieved to have a reason to not go after that dangerous man.


    ¡°Fuck my condition.¡±


    Aurora could feel her power flowering out of her body. It was almost like a leaking tap, unable to hold onto her residual power.


    Before Aurora knew it, she was back into her kid form.


    ¡°Open the door and let us check inside. It is by the order of the Northern Republic, let us in now.¡±


    Aurora almost jumped as soon as she heard the door open. Her body flinched at the noise the door made when it opened.


    ¡°This was the best sleep I¡¯ve had for a while. So, what happened while I was asleep?¡±


    Rita finally woke up after the soldiers forced their way into their ward. Aurora felt her temper cool down as soon as she watched it happen.


    ¡°It¡¯s a kid. Seems like she was awake during the confrontation. Do you think we should take her into custody?¡±


    Aurora wanted to scream but she could not say anything at all. The republic soldiers were looking at Aurora with an interested look.


    ¡°Hey, kid. Come with me. I have something I want to ask you.¡±


    Aurora took a step back as the soldiers advanced toward her. She did not want to get caught and be held in protective custody by anyone right now.


    But the soldiers either ignored her difort or did not care about herfort at all. A hand closed around Aurora¡¯s arm with a hard grip.


    ¡°Let her go. You have no authority to touch her.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s body froze at the familiar presence behind her. Aurora had not expected to feel Rita¡¯s older presence again.


    Aurora took a step back and knocked her back into Rita. Aurora¡¯s eyes quickly looked up into a familiar pair.


    Rita had a nostalgic look in her eyes when she looked at Aurora. To Aurora, it almost felt like she had stepped back into her past.


    Was it possible that Rita had some of her past life memories?


    Rita had acted all this time like she was apletely different person. So to see Rita¡¯s this mode was a surprise for sure.


    ¡°Authority or not, it is not for you to decide. State your name and your purpose for being here. We will decide what to do with you.¡±


    The guard was not willing to back down from his words. But it seemed like Rita was not about to back down either.


    ¡°I¡¯m with the Rocx academy. I¡¯m here on official business and it will be in your best interest to let me go.¡±


    Aurora wanted to pat Rita¡¯s back to congratte her for remembering. The guards seemed to be hesitating after hearing Aurora¡¯s words.


    Rita knocked the final nail in the coffin by bringing out the official documents. The guards had no other choice but to back down after seeing those documents.


    ¡°Our apologies. We were not sure whether to believe you or not. But since you are our esteemed guests, kindlye this way and we will take you to the royal pce.¡±


    Rita¡¯s expression was disgusted. Aurora was sure that Rita would not agree with the guards.


    So Aurora decided to interfere before Rita could sabotage our chances.


    ¡°Rita, let¡¯s take their offer. I think their offer is worth considering.¡±


    Rita finally calmed down after Aurora spoke those words. Her eyes did not lose their hostility during the exchange.


    ¡°Fine. Lead the way.¡±


    The guards hurried up to apany the trio. Alexander stayed a little in the back to hide his presence. But he still kept alert.


    As for Aurora? She had a weird feeling as soon as she stepped into the Northern Republic. Theis ce was hiding a huge secret.

 Chapter 92

    White dominated thendscape of the Northern Republic. The snow-covered slopes weed the iing train from the central continent.


    The information preserved in the archives made it possible to tell that the Northern Republic was established on top of ruined Russia. But all the traces of the former nation had been eroded by time.


    The only thing the oncerge nation remained was its snowy white peaks.


    ¡°Here we are. I would like to apologize again for our misunderstanding. Kindly keep our encounter to yourself.¡±


    The guard that led Aurora andpany out of the train had a sheepish smile on his face.


    But Aurora was not fooled by the soft surface emotions she saw in that man¡¯s eyes. There was something shrewd beneath that easy-going exterior.


    It was that guard¡¯s aura that screamed that his words were spoken in jest.


    ¡°We understand.¡±


    Thankfully, Alexander caught up on the real meaning of the guard¡¯s words and stopped Rita before she could open her mouth and disagree.


    ¡°In that case, you all are free to roam around the northern republic for the next few days after you get yourself chipped.¡±


    ¡°Chipped? We are not some crimin..¡±


    Aurora jabbed Rita softly to make her stop speaking. Their guard had a sour look on his face when he faced the trio.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but rules are rules. It would be faster if you cooperate with us.¡±


    Aurora tugged at Rita¡¯s pants. It was a signal for Rita to agree with that man¡¯s demand for the time being.


    Rita had a conflicting aura around her but she did follow Aurora¡¯smand in the end.


    ¡°Fine. Show us the way. Let¡¯s get this over with.¡±


    Aurora breathed a sigh of relief as soon as the guard turned around to lead them out. This encounter had been far too close for Aurora¡¯sfort.


    Aurora tried to re at Rita to express her displeasure but the elder pointed to her wrist. Aurora heard a familiar ping and opened her system to check the notice.


    /Is it alright for us to get chipped? Won¡¯t it affect our moment in the Northern Republic?/


    Aurora was not surprised to see this question being asked. This was something Aurora had wondered about during her first visit to the Northern Republic.


    /It won¡¯t be a problem. The system would make sure we are not being detected. But we need to keep up appearances for the time being./


    Entering the Northern Republic was akin to entering a viper¡¯s pit. People had no loyalties here except for their benefits.


    God Karan might be the ruling deity of this region but he never actually stayed here for long. People had no faith in him and had taken up the governance by electing leaders.


    /Still. I can¡¯t help but feel like we¡¯re being treated as criminals./


    /Endure it for the time being./


    Endure. This was all the advice Aurora could give Rita for now. Since the republic did not trust outsiders, it was impossible to refuse such a big rule being set by them.


    Aurora found this whole interaction distasteful as well but she knew there was no going around this topic.


    ¡°We¡¯re here. You will need to go in one by one to get chipped. Don¡¯t worry, it won¡¯t hurt or make you sick.¡±


    Aurora must have made a weird face for the guard to turn toward her and speak.


    ¡°So, who would like to go in first to get chipped? How about you, Miss representative? Would you like to go in first?¡±


    Rita¡¯s aura screamed difort all around. She would not be the first one to step up and make her way inside.


    And Aurora would also have preferred to be the one to head in first for getting chipped. Mainly to check the changes in the chipping process.


    But Aurora¡¯s current condition would make her move very suspicious.


    ¡°I will go first. Aurora can go next and Rita can gost. You won¡¯t have a problem with this arrangement, right?¡±


    In the end, it was Alexander that decided the order. He walked in with a straight face and the other pair waited outside.


    ¡°Rita, make sure to switch off your system before going in. The Northern Republic is much more advanced than the central capital. We can¡¯t risk them detecting the system.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    It did not take long for Alexander to return. He looked to be alright so Aurora decided that the process must be safe for them to experience.


    ¡°Little one,e in now. It is your turn.¡±


    Aurora entered without much dy. The chipping room was as dark and cold as she remembered it being.


    Even the surgical devices that lined the wall of the hall were the same as in her previous life.


    To say that the room resembled a torture chamber was more than urate.


    ¡°Come here. Don¡¯t be afraid of these devices. I¡¯m not going to use them on you. Yes,e here. You are a brave girl.¡±


    Aurora could not express how humiliated she felt at that moment.


    To be treated like a child due to her current situation was one thing. But the person in charge of chipping her was treating Aurora like an invalid.


    Not to mention, that fake and sickening tone was causing Aurora to develop a headache.


    Aurora picked up her pace and quickly sat in front of the chipping person. She also held her arm out so that the process of chipping could not be dyed any further.


    ¡°Is this your first chipping experience? Don¡¯t worry. This chip will expire and be dissolved in your body within a week. It is magical so it won¡¯t harm you.¡±


    Aurora wanted to say that she knew all this already. But staying quiet and letting the chipdy do her job was the best oue for now.


    Aurora didn¡¯t even flinch when the chipping machine touched her arm. A small sting could be felt at the ce where the chipping matching her pierced Aurora¡¯s body.


    ¡°And we¡¯re done. See, it wasn¡¯t that bad, right?¡±


    Aurora nodded before she stood up and left. She knew what wasing next and Aurora wanted to escape before she could be humiliated any further.


    ¡°Ah, where are you going? Don¡¯t you want candy in return for being a good patient? I know that children love candy.¡±


    And there it was, the treatment children got from doctors and others when they behaved.


    ¡°No need. I am alright.¡±


    Aurora just caught a sh of surprise in the nurse¡¯s aura before she sprinted out. Aurora almost gagged at the exchange she had with the chipping nurse.


    To be treated like a child was an ufortable feeling for Aurora. One she hoped not to feel again.


    ¡°Alright miss, you can go in now. Then you all are free to roman around.¡±


    Rita passed Aurora a concerned look but she did not stand around for long. Aurora also gave her a relieved nod to continue moving.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with the child? She isn¡¯t reacting to the chipping, right? It should not be possible. But then again, she¡¯s such a slight child.¡±


    The guard that had apanied the trio this far seemed concerned to see Aurora¡¯s flushed face.


    His concern just jabbed at the sore spot in Aurora¡¯s mind.


    ¡°She¡¯s alright. You know how kids are.¡±


    Alexander was shouting death with his remarks. Aurora could see him squirming in front of her once her curse was broken.


    That guy would regret making fun of Aurora like this.


    ¡°Are you sure? I have never seen someone go this red in the face because of the chipping process.¡±


    The guard seemed to be getting far too involved in their case. It was time to divert his attention away at all costs.


    Even if it meant humiliating herself further.


    Thankfully, that distraction came in the form of Rita and her exit. She had a re in her step that attracted people¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°Finally, we are all done. So, are we free to go now?¡±


    Rita¡¯s cold and biting words caused the guard to snap out of his daydream and snap to attention.


    He quickly typed a few things on the screen and Aurora instantly saw three dots on it. They likely represented the chips the trio had been imnted with.


    ¡°Looks like everything is working as intended. You are free to roam the Northern Republic for the time being. We will send someone to collect you once we need you.¡±


    The guard bowed and left without any instructions.


    Rita¡¯s tension also flew out as soon as they were alone. The cold and aloof persona from Rita¡¯s previous life seemed to be seeping out of her.


    ¡°Thank god the guard is gone. But I can¡¯t understand why he wanted us to wait around and not invite us to the royal pce? The princess should be there, right?¡±


    Aurora had found it odd as well. And she was sure that there was a reason behind this change in the treatment they had been experiencing.


    ¡°I agree. It almost feels like the republic is trying to stall us out.¡±


    Alexander¡¯s words made far too much sense. But why and for what reason?

 Chapter 93

    The cold walls of the Northern Pce felt restrictive to the small princess. The cold was seeping into her body, making her senses go numb.


    But the small beauty was used to such treatment. Her body was used to enduring the cold since she had lived in such an environment for a long time.


    ¡°Hey, do you know when the people from the academy will be here? Will lord Karan apany them as well?¡±


    The small beauty¡¯s voice was extremely cold. It held no emotion and caused the maids around her to flinch.


    This action of the maids did not even phase the small princess. She had long gotten used to such treatment and even lost hope that these people wille around.


    It made taken years for the princess to realize that her maids feared her. They never told the princess why they feared her, but they did.


    And they were not the only ones.


    Everyone except the head maid feared her.


    ¡°P-Princess. The people from the academy will arrive in the Northern Republic shortly. The princess just needs to sit tight and wait for them.¡±


    The princess did not ask anymore after that.


    Since her second question had been ignored, it was safe to say that Lord Karan will not be arriving with the party.


    Not that the princess expected Lord Karan toe for her. He was far too busy in the to brother with her for now.


    ¡°I see. You can go away now. I want to be alone.¡±


    The maid didn¡¯t even give the princess a back look when she left. The maid left as if she was fleeing for her life.


    It was like this each and every time. These people were afraid to anger her but they didn¡¯t make any effort to reach out to her either.


    The princess did not want to stay cooped up with her thoughts so she decided to take a walk.


    The princess was not supposed to take a walk alone. Her head maid had insisted for the princess inform her when she wanted to go out. But the princess wanted to be alone.


    So for the first time, the princess decided to sneak out and visit the gardens on her own. She wanted to be surrounded by the whitendscape and mute her thoughts.


    The princess had a good memory and easily escaped from her room. The corridor was cold but not as cold as the loneliness the princess faced each day.


    ¡°-feel sorry for her. I mean, the princess was so enthusiastic when the head maid told her that it was Lord Karan¡¯s idea to send her to the Rocx academy.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t feel sorry for that monster. She had iting-¡±


    The princess stopped and turned toward the conversation. She felt like she needed to hear that out.


    After all, her head maid had refused to tell her anything when the princess asked about the academy.


    ¡°-but still, isn¡¯t it too pitiful? Lord Karan made this decision to send the princess away. But the academy he chose isn¡¯t even affiliated with the tower. Isn¡¯t that academy headed for doom?¡±


    ¡°Well, I also heard that Rocx academy had a fall out with the tower recently. They are not going tost.¡±


    ¡°So Lord Karan did care about us. He¡¯s sending the princess out to that failure of an academy to rot. We won¡¯t have to see her face again.¡±


    ¡°For real. That monster gives me the chills. No emotion and so cold. And she¡¯s only twelve right now. I¡¯m afraid to see how she¡¯ll be once she grows up.¡±


    The princess felt the earth beneath her feet shift. Her bnce fell off and she realized toote that she was having a dizzy spell.


    But the princess could not stop her emotions from ringing in her head.


    ¡®Lord Karan won¡¯t do that. He cares. He¡¯s the only one that cares for me.¡¯


    /But he¡¯s not here. He left you as well/


    ¡®Not true. He said he¡¯lle back to save me. He won¡¯t lie.¡¯


    And then the princess did something she vowed to never do.


    The princess ran away from the royal pce with only the clothes she had on her body. She did not care much for the cold, nor the thought of survival.


    She just wanted to get away from her life.


    And that was why she jumped down the first bridge she saw leading out of the royal pce. Even if she died, she would have no regrets.


    Because at least she would be free. She would be free to be with her parents whom she has never seen in her life.


    But life was not that grateful to the Nothern Princess. The cruel threads of fate will not allow her to escape her destiny.


    Her head maid had told the princess how she was important and precautions had been taken against her death.


    Now the princess would find out if the head maid told her the truth or not.


    The freefall feeling was exhrating. It made the princess¡¯s heart beat like crazy and she could not help the small grin that greeted her face.


    But it was all over too soon and the princess crashed into something hard. Her fall was broken and she soon lost consciousness.


    But at least this was the point in time where her fate changed. This encounter was fated to happen sooner orter.


    And it would change the tides of the uing war for everyone.


    ===========================


    ¡°I agree. It almost feels like the republic is trying to stall us out.¡±


    Aurora had to agree with Alexander¡¯s analysis. The republic¡¯s actions did not inspire any feelings of friendship in Aurora.


    Rather, they felt like an obstacle implemented to observing the foreign pirates.


    ¡°Does it matter what the republic is trying to hide from us? Whatever problem they are having is none of our business.¡±


    Rita was also right in saying this. Aurora and the Rocx academy were only here to take the northern princess away with them.


    Whatever was happening in the Northern Republic had nothing to do with them. But that was what made the republic¡¯s actions so suspicious in Aurora¡¯s eyes.


    If this all was a ruse to stall Aurora and her party, then why did the republic need to do so much?


    ¡°I think something happened to the Northern Princess and the republic is trying to hide it from us. That is the only thing that made sense.¡±


    The main reason for Aurora to think like this was because of the treatment they got from the republic.


    While everyone entering the northern republic needed to get chipped, their party was the only one that had been apanied by guards.


    ¡°Makes sense. They send a tone of guards to make sure we get chipped. Thankfully, they¡¯ll leave us alone now.¡±


    Rita rxed after finishing her words but Aurora could not help but still feel suspicious of the situation.


    Hacking the chips felt like a temporary solution to their problem.


    ¡°I still think we should be careful about how we handle this situation. But let¡¯s forget it for now. We should enjoy our time here. Remembers, don¡¯t do anything suspicious to attract the guard¡¯s eye.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s suggestion was based on her instincts. She could not help but feel like something big would happen soon.


    That was why she decided to issue a warning and tell everyone else to be careful.


    She was not sure why, but her instincts were trying to lead her somewhere. Ignoring them did not seem like a wise decision to Aurora.


    ¡°H-Hey, where are you headed? Didn¡¯t we decide on the marketce to visit first? Why are you walking toward the opposite side?¡±


    Rita¡¯s voice sounded panicked. Aurora had no idea why her body wanted to go the way it was going, but she could not help but feel like something was heading her way.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry so much Rita. I just have a feeling that I should check this direction out as well. Maybe we will find something huge here.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s feeling was rarely wrong and as a goddess, her instincts were even stronger. So she decided to listen to them.


    But she did not get very far when she felt something collide with her back and send her lying down.


    Aurora felt the impact her body made with the snow but thankfully the soft cover broke her fall. It also prevented Aurora¡¯s chest froming in contact with the hard concrete floor.


    Whatever was pinning Aurora down was heavy and the impact hurt.


    ¡°Huh? A kid? Aurora, someone fell on top of you. I wonder where this child came from?¡±


    Aurora would like to ask that question as well. Did kids rain down all the time in this capital? No one else seemed to be paying any attention to the trio.


    ¡°Looks like your instincts were telling you about this kid and her possible suicide attempt. So, what should we do now?¡±


    What should we do now was the big question here.

 Chapter 94

    The kid on Aurora¡¯s back was getting heavier by the second. And it was getting to a point that Aurora was getting ufortable.


    The snow¡¯s coldness did not help Aurora feel any better as well.


    ¡°Weird. What should we do with the kid now? Should we look for her parents? Or take her to a doctor?¡±


    ¡°Maybe we should let her be. We don¡¯t know who she is in the first ce.¡±


    ¡°But it won¡¯t feel right to me. Kids should be protected at all costs.¡±


    ¡°Hey, if you¡¯re both done talking, then help me out here. I don¡¯t think I can take her weight any longer.¡±


    Aurora got a pair of sheepish smiles as a result of her scolding. But thankfully, Rita and Alexender got to work and picked up the small but heavy body on top of Aurora.


    Aurora could feel the pain in her back but nothing seemed to be broken. Thankfully, Aurora¡¯s goddess physique saved her from a possible heavy injury.


    But the same could not be said for the kid who hadnded on top of Aurora.


    Even if Aurora had broken her fall, there must be a lot of damage she could have sustained from such a fall.


    ¡°Sorry. We were a little distracted. Here, let me help. Wow, she¡¯s light.¡±


    Rita cradled the elder girl in her arms as she checked her over. There did not seem to be anysting damage visible at first nce.


    ¡°Let¡¯s look for a room first. We should see what we need to treat the child for.¡±


    Aurora was not a sympathetic person usually. But she did understand the underlying grief that must have gued this child.


    Besides, there was something familiar about this child. So Aurora decided to take this risk.


    ¡°Are you sure that is wise? What if it attracted the republic¡¯s attention. Thisck of reaction from the surroundings doesn¡¯t inspire much faith in me.¡±


    That was true. No one else seemed to be even looking in their direction. It was just not a normal reaction for people to have when they see someone trying to kill themselves.


    ¡°There might be magic involved in this mess. And we are already involved so we might as y along.¡±


    Aurora decided to give in to her urges to help the small child. And it helped that herpanions did not refute her advice either.


    ¡°Fine. Let¡¯s look for a hotel and treat you two. Thankfully, we do have some funds we can use for now. We¡¯ve not gone for a currency conversation yet so weck funds.¡±


    Aurora tried to hide the flush her face must be spotting at her obviousck of oversight.


    Currency conversion was the first thing she should have done when the trio got chipped. But the excitement of exploration had made Aurora forget this fact.


    ¡°Let¡¯s look for a cheap ce for now. Then one of us can go and get money and food. I would like to find out who this girl is as well.¡±


    Aurora was thankful when her voice came out normal. But the knowing looks being aimed her way told Aurora that her secret had been exposed.


    ¡°Alright. I know a ce we can rent for cheap. It¡¯s a friend¡¯s establishment so we should be alright there.¡±


    Aurora decided to take Alexander up on his words. If something did happen, then her system would take care of it.


    ===========================


    As soon as the trio had hit their room with their extra guest, Alexander had left to arrange money for their trip.


    Aurora had handed him the conversion card Rex had given her but not without precautions on her part.


    ¡°Are you sure we can trust him? I did not ask this before but he is from the tower. What if he is tricking you despite having the system track his moments?¡±


    Aurora considered Rita¡¯s words carefully before answering her.


    ¡°I feel like we can trust Alexander. I have my reasons for believing in him. So don¡¯t you worry.¡±


    Rita was pouting. Aurora was sure that the other female¡¯s puffed-up cheeks were a sign of unhappiness.


    It made Aurora want to tease her. So she crawled toward Rita¡¯sp and borrowed it.


    Small hands came to rest up on Rita¡¯s face before Aurora moved her head to make Rita face Aurora instead.


    ¡°What is it? Are you pouting? Are you feeling jealous of Alexander?¡±


    Aurora was sure that was not the case. Her trust in Alexander was just on a subordinate-employer level. There was nothing romantic there. And there never will be.


    But it was funny to see Rita¡¯s emotions all over the ce.


    ¡°Jealous? Yes, I¡¯m jealous and also disappointed in myself. You took so long to trust me to help you out. But you just allowed that man to help you out as soon as you two met. How is that fair?¡±


    ¡°Not to mention, there is too muchpetition for your attention and I feel like I am losing you. You also refuse to put abel on our rtionship. Tell me, how is it all fair?¡±


    Aurora felt shook. She had not realized that Rita felt like that about her.


    The red-haired beauty looked disheveled after her outburst. Her eyes held emotions of embarrassment and guilt.


    But the elder female did not back away. Rita did not take her words back which indicated how serious she was about this topic and this rtionship.


    ¡°Rita, it is not about you but me. I told you this before, that I cannot love you like you want me to. I might never be able to return your feelings for me. You should find someone else.¡±


    Aurora did not know why her heart felt heavy when she advised Rita to give up.


    A small part of her did not want the red-head to give Aurora up. The attention Aurora got from Rita felt rewarding.


    But Aurora knew how much one-sided love hurt. She had seen people get hurt over it in the past. And she did not want Rita to experience that feeling.


    Not when Rita could do so much better.


    ¡°Fine someone else she says. As if it¡¯s that easy. Matters of the heart are not a joke. Aurora, I love you and I don¡¯t know how to stop. You say you do not like me but your body disagrees. And ¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­I¡¯m still a kid right now. We can pick up this conversation once I¡¯m back to normal. For now, we should focus on the problem at hand.¡±


    ¡°Alright. But just a warning, I¡¯m never gonna give you up, never gonna let you down. I will be there with you till the end.¡±


    ¡°Rita, did you just¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­No, don¡¯t speak. I can feel the embarrassment rolling back. But I did not lie. Please do take me seriously.¡±


    Aurora could feel Rita¡¯s desire to say more. But the kid in the bed decided that it was the right time to wake up.


    Whatever Aurora wanted to say got cut off as soon as the child woke up with a gasp.


    ¡°I¡¯m alive. Why am I alive? Did I get saved?¡±


    The girl looked scared but her words sounded cold and devoid of life. It was only her aura that felt expressive to Aurora.


    The girl had cold blue eyes that could pierce right through to one¡¯s soul. But despite all this, Aurora could not help but feel sorry for the girl.


    It was clear that the child had gone through a lot to end up like this. Aurora wanted to help the child.


    ¡°I broke your fall. Well, more like, you fell on top of me which broke your fall. But the point is, you are alright now.¡±


    The girl looked a little disoriented when Aurora spoke. Her eyes blinked a few times before focusing on Aurora.


    ¡°Did you break my fall? And you¡¯re alright? What kind of creature are you? My fall should have killed you.¡±


    ¡°Why you little..¡±


    Aurora could feel Rita¡¯s anger spike at the cold words. But before Rita could make a move, Aurora stopped her.


    Despite the girl¡¯s cold words, Aurora could feel the concern and worry in that girl¡¯s aura.


    It was only theck of emotional tone in the girl¡¯s words that made her words sound cold instead of worried.


    It did not feel like an intentional thing the kid was doing.


    ¡°Thank you for worrying about me. I guess I got lucky that nothing happened to me. But what about you? Are you alright? Can we check you over to make sure you don¡¯t have any injuries?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s words must have caused Rita to realize what was going on since Rita calmed down pretty quickly.


    The cold-eyed girl looked a little shocked at Aurora¡¯s words. This was the real sign of emotion the elder girl had shown all this time and Aurora could not help but count it as a sess in her book.


    ¡°I¡­that is to say, I think I am alright. But I guess I won¡¯t mind getting a checkup as well.¡±


    There was a small flush on the girl¡¯s face and Aurora passed her a huge grin.

 Chapter 95

    Aurora didn¡¯t take long to check the girl over.


    Maybe it was because Aurora was a kid right now, or maybe because the ck-haired, blue-eyed girl was a kid as well, but there was nothing sexual about the check-up.


    Thankfully, Aurora¡¯s inability to do magic had not affected her system¡¯s storage feature. It was still working properly and Aurora was able to take out the potion.


    It felt awkward to use the potion on someone this young but Aurora knew she had made the right choice when she saw the red back of the child.


    The girl was not bleeding from her back the impact had left a huge reminder on her back. Even lying down on one¡¯s back would be painful with such a huge injury.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You will be alright soon¡±


    Aurora spread the diluted golden liquid all over the patient¡¯s back. The injuries begin healing visibly.


    [A top-grade healing potion was used. The healing effect will begin in 3¡­2¡­1¡­]


    Every time Aurora touched the red back, the girl flinched away due to pain. But she endures the agony for the sake of treatment.


    Thankfully, the injury did not require immediate advanced treatment and the potion was enough to heal it back up.


    ¡°T-Thank you for helping me. I should leave now to save you both some trouble.¡±


    The girl looked tired but determined to leave the bed. However, her body was too weak toply with her demand.


    Although a healing potion had healded the child, it could not relieve the mental fatigue.


    ¡°I cannot allow you to leave until you are alright. Can you tell us how to contact your parents? I will call them to pick you up.¡±


    Rita¡¯s words caused the girl to panic a little.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have parents. And I don¡¯t want to go back for now. I escaped because I didn¡¯t want to live with my guardian anymore. Please don¡¯t make me go back.¡±


    Aurora considered the child in front of her with a careful look.


    There had been no sign of physical abuse on the girl¡¯s back so she ruled that possibility out. But mental abuse seemed like a likely factor the child was facing.


    As such, sending the girl back into a toxic environment did not sit well with Aurora.


    And Rita seemed to agree with her decision.


    ¡°Hey kid, if you don¡¯t want to go back then you can join us. I am from the Rocx academy and I¡¯m here to retrieve one of my students. You can join us on the way back and enter the academy as well.¡±


    ¡°There will be a lot of kids your age and you can befriend them.¡±


    Aurora could see the girl look at them with interest. It was difficult to see but Aurora did spot the hint of interest in the girl¡¯s eyes at the mention of ¡®Rocx Academy.¡¯


    It seemed like this child was no ordinary person.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to impose on you so I¡¯ll have to decline. Besides, I am waiting for someone here and I want to continue waiting for them. I hope you both are not too disappointed with my decision.¡±


    Aurora could see the internal struggle the child was going through.


    ¡°Alright. Since you have decided upon this, then I won¡¯t force you. But you are free to join us if you change your mind. My name is Aurora and this is Rita. You can join us for now.¡±


    ¡°M-My name is Natasha. It is nice to meet you both.¡±


    Aurora had known there was something familiar about those cold blue eyes and shiny ck hair of the child. And now she knew why the girl felt so familiar to her.


    That name confirmed the identity of the little girl for Aurora. She was the Northern Princess and it seemed as if she had run away.


    No wonder the guards had been trying to stall Aurora and the others from the Rocx valley. It was because the princess had run away.


    ===========================


    ¡°M-My name is Natasha. It is nice to meet you both.¡±


    The Northern Princess could not help but flinch as she introduced herself. It had been so long since she had said her name out loud.


    For a long time now, she had simply been the princess of the royal one. The maids were too afraid to take her name and the head maid just called her the princess.


    As such, Natasha had almost forgotten her name.


    But saying the name out loud brought back memories she did not want to remember.


    ¡°Natasha? Got it. So about our offer of joining us for the next few days? How about it? Want toe along with us for sightseeing?¡±


    Aurora offered her hand out to the other girl. Natasha eyes it with suspicion before realizing that there was no utter motive for using her.


    Besides, the one offering her the hand was just a child not even ten years old.


    Natasha turned her attention toward the elder female in the room. It was normal to think that she was the real authority here.


    Even Natasha had to defer to her head maid while deciding for the country and herself. Adults were the ones in charge.


    ¡°Are you alright with it, miss? Won¡¯t I be a problem at your party?¡±


    Natasha wanted to join the duo. This was the first time someone had not been afraid of her and her cold tongue.


    She also could not help but feel like the younger girl understood her emotions even without expression.


    This was the first time Natasha had found someone like this. She did not want to make light of this feeling.


    ¡°I don¡¯t mind. Aurora can make her own decisions. If she decided to trust you then I will defer to her on this matter. Wee to the gang little miss.¡±


    Natasha felt her eyes be wet at the confirmation. She had never felt this epted before. She could not help but bask in this feeling.


    ¡°H-Hey, don¡¯t cry now. You are alright. You don¡¯t have toe along with us if you don¡¯t want to. It is perfectly alright.¡±


    ¡°N-No. I want toe along with you. Please allow me toe along with you.¡±


    Natasha could not help but feel like something inside her had burst open at the easy eptance.


    Even Lord Karan had not epted her out of the blue like this. But these people did ept her without even asking her about who she was.


    Natasha was sure that the pair had their suspicions about her real identity and rank but they did not ask.


    Everyone else that had tried toe close to Natasha had wanted something from her. They had never taken what Natasha wanted to do into ount and had forced her to befriend them.


    But these people felt different from all the others Natasha had met before.


    ¡°Alright, if you are sure then we can go once we freshen ourselves up. Besides, your clothes are not suited for people to wear in this weather. And also, is your back alright now?¡±


    Her back? Weirdly enough, it no longer hurt.


    The magic potion the little girl had used had to be of the top quality and expensive to be this effective. And she had used it without hesitation.


    Natasha could not help but feel like she was a gullible idiot. And to think that she had used the potion before she had known Natasha¡¯s name.


    ¡°My back no longer hurts. I will repay your kindness one day.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. You just enjoy yourself with us for now.¡±


    Natasha felt the first tear leak down her cheek but she did not stop it. A few more followed before her face was fully wet.


    ¡°Huh, Why did you start crying? I did not do anything wrong, right? Rita, help me out a little here.¡±


    Aurora sounded a little panicked. It was like she was not even aware of what she did to cause this reaction from the Northern Princess.


    And that caused the first sob to hit Natasha¡¯s frame.


    She had never been treated with this much care before. People didn¡¯te close to her to allow her to feel like this.


    This ughter of emotions was new for her. But her cold face did not change despite the tears flowing down her cheek.


    ===========================


    ¡°Aurora, don¡¯t ever change. Your kindness is a weapon in itself and you don¡¯t even realize it. Well, looks like we have a new brat to look over.¡±


    Rita¡¯s words went unheard by the pair in front of her.


    Not that it mattered much right now. Things were just as they were supposed to be. And Rita would make sure nothing wrong happens to their party.


    But she could also not help but feel worried about the future.


    They were poaching the Northern Republic¡¯s princess. Surely not everyone was going to take kindly to the Rocx Valley¡¯s action. They will need to be prepared to face some extreme bacsh at least.

 Chapter 96

    It had taken a fair amount of time for Natasha to calm down.


    Even if Natasha¡¯s face said that she was alright, Aurora knew the truth inside the girl¡¯s heart. And it was all because of her ability to see the aura.


    So she waited for Natasha toe around before she decided to take the party outside.


    ¡°Here, have you ever eaten this candy? I¡¯ve heard that it¡¯s sweet at first but turns sourter. Here, you try one.¡±


    Aurora handed the newly purchased candy to Natasha. The poor girl seemed to have no idea what she should do with the treat.


    The more things Aurora showed Natasha, the less she seemed to know. All these signs pointed to a neglectful childhood.


    ¡°Here, give it to me. You need to peel it before putting it into your mouth.¡±


    Seeing as how Natasha seemed to have no idea how to eat the candy Aurora hand handed her, Rita decided to interfere.


    She peeled the hard-covered candy for the younger female to chew.


    Aurora looked on in expectation as Natasha put the candy in her mouth and chewed. The sour taste should be hitting her anytime now.


    Aurora was aware the moment Natasha tasted the sourness since the aura around her shifted to difort. But as usual, the face did not show anything.


    ¡°I-It¡¯s weird. Is this candy supposed to taste this sour?¡±


    ¡°It is. Did you like it?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s alright. I don¡¯t mind the taste.¡±


    Although Natashained, Aurora could make out the pleased expression the girl spotted. It was nice to see the younger girl enjoying herself.


    ¡°So, where should we go next? National Park, Museum, or the Aquarium? I¡¯ve heard that the Northern Republic has some of the rarest aquatic animals on disy this time of the year.¡±


    Aurora tried to keep the conversation going but it was difficult to do so. Rita seemed to not want to cooperate most of the time and Natasha seemed to have no idea how she should react to that offer.


    Aurora did not want to pressure the princess into making a decision but it seemed to her as if the elder girl was just going with the flow all this time.


    All the major decisions had been made by Aurora. Natasha seemed to be agreeing with whatever Aurora said and that did not sit right with the youngest.


    ¡°I am alright with whatever you suggest.¡±


    ¡°But I want to know where you want to go. Don¡¯t you have any ce you want to visit?¡±


    ¡°Not really. Even if you ask me, I don¡¯t know what all there is to see in this country. I have never been out of my home before. This is all a new experience for me.¡±


    Natasha didn¡¯t even sound bitter about her circumstances. Instead, she sounded resigned. It was as if she had epted her position in life and was content.


    But someone content with their life did not try to escape it by suicide.


    ¡°Hey kid, how about we give you a choice and you pick where you want to go? Tagging along with us aimlessly won¡¯t help you out. Sooner orter, you will need to make your own decisions.¡±


    Surprisingly, it was Rita who spoke those words. Aurora had not expected the eldest to get into this matter but it did make sense for Rita to speak up.


    Aurora did remember that Rita initially had simr origins to Natasha. She was also someone who was kept in the dark about a lot of things.


    It might be possible that Rita was projecting herself on the younger girl and trying to help her out.


    How unexpectedly cute of her.


    ¡°I¡­. can try. Alright. Then, let¡¯s see the central park first. I¡¯ve always seen it from home but never dared to ask to visit it.¡±


    Aurora shook her head but agreed without dy.


    The only ce that had a clear view of the central park was the upper district where the ministers and the royal pce were situated.


    Natasha had just given away a crucial piece of information that many could take advantage of.


    She was lucky that Aurora and Rita were not that kinds of people.


    ¡°You heard the girl. Central Park, it is now.¡±


    Aurora forced her voice to sound cheerful to change the topic. She did not want to show that she had noticed Natasha¡¯s slip-up. It would only serve to make the girl even more nervous.


    ¡°So, how much does the ticket to Central Park cost? I have some money left over.¡±


    Aurora only remembered the crucial point after she had asked this question ¨C they did not have enough money to cover the ticket cost.


    The one in charge of money exchange had note back when the trio had left and now it was toote to go back.


    ¡°Should I make a quick trip back home?¡±


    ¡°No. let¡¯s call Alexander over instead. He should be done with the money exchange right now.¡±


    Aurora opened the system to send the message but stopped short as she read the message left on it.


    [Alexander: Be careful. We are being tailed for some time now. I only noticed the intruders a few minutes ago]


    Aurora forced her senses to sharpen and instantly noticed some suspicious moments going on behind her.


    How had she not noticed this before? And how had Rita not noticed it before as well?


    ¡°Rita, take Natasha to Central Park first. I¡¯ll meet up with Alexander and head toward that location. Also, be careful. The Northern Republic is on to us.¡±


    Rita seemed surprised but she just nodded and yed along.


    ¡°Natasha, let¡¯s leave first. Aurora¡¯s dad ising to pick her up and will meet uster.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    Thankfully, Natasha did not question the decision to leave a nine-year-old alone in the crowded za.


    And then it was finally time for Aurora to show her true colors. She would make their stalkers vomit the reason they were following the trio.


    ===========================


    ¡°Tell me, who send you to follow us? And how are you tracking us?¡±


    Alexander bend the man¡¯s hand behind his back in a painful hold. It was something every Tower guard was taught.


    But he had never expected this hold to evere in use. It was such an old-fashioned hold that no one used it anymore.


    ¡°I-I don¡¯t know anything. W-We were not tailing your group but the girl you found. I s-swear we do not mean any harm to you.¡±


    Alexander did not believe the man¡¯s words.


    [System alert: tone conclusion ¨C Lying]


    Alexander was thankful for the system at times like these. The man was lying about something for sure and Alexander would drag the truth out of his mouth.


    He had already sent a message to Aurora to make her aware of their stalkers.


    ¡°You don¡¯t know anything or are you unwilling to tell me anything? Don¡¯t worry, I have ways to drag the truth out of your mouth.¡±


    Alexander pulled his glove off and pushed his hand on top of the man¡¯s head.


    His magic flowed inside the man¡¯s head and pulled out the recent memories he wanted to see.


    This skill was one he had inherited a few days after his magic had been sealed for the first time. It was also the first time he had a close brush with death.


    But it had all been worth it to get his hands on this skill. It was the closest skill one could have to a divine aura reading skill.


    The man didn¡¯t know much but Alexander did get the most crucial information out of his head.


    ¡°So she was the princess who ran away from home. And you people were ordered to bring her back and kill anyone who came close to finding the truth? And you said that you did not mean us hard.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you know that lying can get you killed?¡±


    Alexander wasted to know more so he forced his magic deeper. But something unexpected happened.


    Before he could push in further, the connection he had with the man got cut off and left Alexander hanging. It was frustrating to know that the man had taken his life already.


    ¡°Useless shit. But he might not be the only one who was sent to investigate us. Let¡¯s see if there is anyone else left here.¡±


    Alexander could not feel anyone on his tail but it did not mean that no one else was tailing him.


    He was about to start forcing his way when he got Aurora¡¯s message to find her and her general location.


    [Aurora: I send Rita and Natasha ahead. Let¡¯s take care of these fools first before we conclude.]


    There was a change in Alexander¡¯s ns as soon as he read that message. He would catch the rats tailing himter.


    For now, he had to regroup with Aurora because she sounded like she had a n. And Alexander knew that he could trust the goddess to not lead him astray.


    That was the whole reason he had decided to follow along with her.

 Chapter 97

    The people following Aurora and the others were more than good. They were even able to evade Aurora¡¯s divine senses.


    But they could not evade her system¡¯s biometric scanning feature. That was the only reason Aurora knew where those people were.


    But it was a tiring process since Aurora had to take into ount the people she could sense with her powers and find out the missing dots in the system map.


    It was a next to impossible task for such a crowded ce. Aurora would have to bait her stalkers out to follow her for such a task.


    Thankfully, she was not alone. She could already sense Alexander approaching her direction with inhuman speed.


    It was time to start her n and head out. Alexander will find her without much problem.


    ¡°Hey kid, are you lost? Do you need help in finding your parents?¡±


    The good thing about being a kid right now was that Aurora would be underestimated. That was what she had been counting on.


    And it seemed like it was the right decision on her part. The man who had approached Aurora could not be sensed by her without much effort.


    There was some kind of weird tech that was blocking Aurora¡¯s powers from working right on him.


    But it was also partially thanks to the fact that Aurora¡¯s major powers were sealed right now that made it possible for her stalkers to hide.


    ¡°Hey kid, are you going to answer me or not? I don¡¯t have all day to spend here.¡±


    The stalker was getting impatient. Or he was appearing to be impatient and mean to Aurora to get her to agree.


    Most children would either agree out of fear or cry in such a situation. Calling an authority would not even cross their mind.


    And even if it did, Aurora was well aware that the police and authorities were mixed in with these people.


    They would not help Aurora or any kid in such a situation.


    ¡°My father told me not to take a stranger¡¯s hand if he offers me anything. I don¡¯t trust you, mister.¡±


    If the man was baiting Aurora out, then she would y right into his hand.


    For now.


    ¡°Hey, I think we have a misunderstanding here. I¡¯m not a stranger but a policeman. It¡¯s my job to make sure that lost kids such as you return to your parents safe and sound.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You can trust me.¡±


    Aurora had to give it to the man, he sounded convincing. He also had the police badge in his hand and showed it to Aurora.


    This act was enough to see the stalker¡¯s story. Any normal kid would have fallen for it.


    But Aurora was neither normal nor a kid.


    ¡°Alright. Please take me to my daddy. He asked me to wait for him right here but he¡¯s been gone for a while.¡±


    Aurora tried to make her voice as pitiful as possible. Her inner self cringed to see her performance but she justified it by convincing herself that it was important.


    That was the only way she would be able to get through her act.


    ¡°Well, we can wait here but I think going back to the station would be a better choice for you. You can eat something there while you wait for your father.¡±


    Aurora agreed without putting up much fuzz. It was better to show her willingness to make the stalker lower his guard.


    ¡°Good choice. Now,e this way since my car is parked there. You can even call shotgun if you want to. I¡¯m sure my partner won¡¯t mind.¡±


    Aurora nodded to show that she understood.


    But in reality, she was gathering information from the short information the stalker was letting slip. Aurora was sure it was because he saw her as a kid and not a threat that he was letting everything known.


    ¡°Excuse me? Are there more people like you out there? Looking after lost kids like me, I mean?¡±


    ¡°There sure are. There are 11 people in our division but we lost contact with one of our own a little while back. But you don¡¯t need to be worried about it.¡±


    So eleven people were working on this n? It was nice to confirm the number.


    The missing one must be the one Alexander took down a while back. That meant that Aurora had ten more targets.


    ¡°Hey man, you are finally back? And who¡¯s that? A lost kid? Who do you think we are? An orphanage?¡±


    Aurora quickly snapped her attention to the other man in the car. He was tall and had dark hair.


    Other than that, there was nothing remarkable about him at all. He was as in and nd as people came.


    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t be like that. She¡¯s an *important* guest we need to take care of.¡±


    The stalker emphasizes on certain words did not escape Aurora¡¯s notice. And it seemed not to have escaped the other man either.


    ¡°Oh, I see. In that case, push her in, and let¡¯s go.¡±


    The stalker in the car sounded impatient. Aurora could sense the urgency in his voice.


    It was also the time when Alexander caught up with her. Aurora could feel him looking ahead to the nned signal but she stopped him short.


    If they attacked now then they would alert the other stalkers and lose their chance to capture the others.


    Aurora needed to find a way to drag the others out before making her move.


    ¡°Here kid, hurry up inside. We don¡¯t have much time to spend here.¡±


    ¡°Hey, that is my seat. How dare you give it to a kid.¡±


    ¡°Shut up man, it¡¯s just a kid. Let her have that seat for now. You need to grow up and let go of things.¡±


    Aurora took this opportunity to look around the car for clues about these people and instantly spotted a phone.


    It seemed to be locked but that was not a problem for Aurora. She quickly snapped the phone before the two stalkers could finish their conversation.


    ¡°Sorry for my partner, kid. The man¡¯s a giant kid himself but he won¡¯t disturb you. Sit tight and buckle your seatbelt.¡±


    Aurora nodded and did as she had been instructed. But she already knew she had what she wanted from these people.


    With the phone in her hand, Aurora did not need these people anymore. They were disposal to her now.


    ¡°E-Excuse me. Can we stop here? I need to go pee.¡±


    Aurora asked that only after they were deeper into the deserted area. It was lucky that these people had done exactly as Aurora had wanted them to do.


    She did not even have to put extra effort into getting these fools to go to a secluded ce.


    ¡°Hey kid, hurry up and be done with your shit. I don¡¯t want to wait around for you to get finished with your problem.¡±


    The one who spoke was the man sitting in the backseat.


    Aurora recognized their tactic of good cop, bad cop. But she did not even care to reply to the man.


    He was not going to live any longer so Aurora did not want to bother forming any attachment.


    ¡°I will be back in a few minutes.¡±


    Aurora signaled Alexander as soon as she was outside the audible range.


    Then all she had to do was to wait a few seconds for Alexander to be done and head back. It only took a minute for Alexander to be done and join Aurora in the next moment.


    ¡°There are eight more people. I got their names and what they look like. They use a phone tomunicate. I hope you got the phone.¡±


    ¡°Of course I did. So, let¡¯s take care of them right now and meet Rita and Natashater. I want to enjoy the Northern Republic as well.¡±


    Aurora opened the phone and handed it to Alexander.


    It would be better for Alexander to be the one to speak with these fools than Aurora. He would be much more respected and taken seriously.


    ¡°I¡¯m done. Let¡¯s go to the meeting spot and bust some heads. I am in a mood for violence.¡±


    Aurora just sighed at the violent man but she had nothing to say regarding his new temper.


    Aurora had a feeling that this temper of Alexander was a direct result of her system¡¯s meddling.


    Maybe she should limit her meddling in his affair and let Alexander take care of this mess.


    Besides, Aurora was also worried about Rita and Natasha and she wanted to check up on them.


    ¡°You go ahead. I can see that you have it all handled here. I will go back for now and keep you posted about the current situation.¡±


    Aurora hated to rely on other people. But she knew when she needed to back down from a fight.


    Right now, this fight was not one she should get into. So she left everything to the former tower-guard and took her meddlesome self somewhere else.

 Chapter 98

    Rita hurried up as soon as she separated from Aurora.


    Now that Aurora had told Rita about her suspicions of being followed, Rita could sense the people following her.


    But the barely-there feeling was concerning. Those people were hiding well enough to fool even Rita¡¯s senses.


    ¡°Hey, are you alright? You seem a little tense. Am I a bother to you?¡±


    ¡°No. It¡¯s not about you. There are just some people who decided to tail our group since we are from the Rocx Academy. I¡¯m just trying to lose them.¡±


    Rita did think about hiding the situation from the princess but she decided not to hide in the end.


    Since Rita and Natasha shared a simr background, Rita knew that the princess would not be impressed with the if they hid such a piece of crucial information.


    Rita would not have liked it if someone treated her like a kid either.


    ¡°Are you sure they are after you and not me? You don¡¯t have to lie to me to spare my feelings. I can go away if you find me to be a bother.¡±


    Rita sighed as she heard those words. She was not good at this kind of talk and she hated to get invested in emotional situations.


    But she had to remind herself that she was doing this for Aurora and that made this worth it. Aurora was worth it and so much more.


    ¡°Natasha, you are going to be a part of our academy. It is our duty to look after you. Besides, Aurora likes you so she¡¯ll help you out. I am just helping her out.¡±


    ¡°Wait! So you knew who I was all this time?¡±


    ¡°Of course we did. We just don¡¯t care about it. You can be whoever you want to be in the academy.¡±


    Rita had not expected to speak so much. She had just wanted to console the other female a little and be done with it.


    But once she had opened her mouth, words had started pouring out like water.


    ¡°You talk like you have experience with this kind of thing.¡±


    ¡°Of course I do. My family situation was simr to yours. Locked up and made to practice for a selfish purpose. But I decided I had enough and ran away.¡±


    ¡°And then I met Aurora and she epted me for myself. And then more and more people joined in. I¡¯m sure you will also find people who ept you for yourself in the academy.¡±


    ¡°I guess I will have to take your words for it.¡±


    Rita¡¯s eyes might be ying tricks on her but she was sure that Natasha¡¯s face looked a little redder than before. It almost looked like a blush.


    But Rita decided not to call attention to it. Natasha was not ready for that kind of teasing yet.


    ¡°So, about the people following behind us? What should we do about them?¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t need to do anything. Ourpanions will take care of it. You should just focus on enjoying our day out.¡±


    There was a point in time when Rita would have killed to have someone show this kind of care.


    It had been before Rita had met Aurora but she still remembered the feeling of longing and freedom she had carved.


    ¡°You are right. I want to enjoy this time I have. So, I also have a request to ask of you. There is this one ce I want to visit today. Can you take me there?¡±


    Rita felt somewhat shocked at Natasha¡¯s words. She had not expected the younger to trust her enough to ask for a request.


    ¡°No. Never mind. Forget that I asked you anything.¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s right. I was just surprised by your request. You don¡¯t have to feel shy about asking me for something.¡±


    Rita quickly amended her behavior. Her surprised expression must have caught Natasha off guard.


    Rita cursed her inability to act right in such situations. She was awkward when emotions were involved. Now if only Aurora was here, things would be so much better for her.


    ¡®Speak of the devil and she shall appear.¡¯


    Rita breathed a sigh of relief once she felt the familiar aura headed her way. Aurora was finally here and she could take care of things from here on.


    ¡°Hey, I¡¯m back. Alexander decided he had some other work to do so he¡¯ll join uster.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s cheerful voice sounded forced. It was a poor attempt on her part to hide the truth.


    ¡°So he¡¯s dealing with those creeps following behind us? Good.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s face did not change when Rita spoke those words. Rita had a feeling that Aurora had expected the truth toe out by this point.


    Rita hated to be this predictable but it was also nice to see that Aurora knew her this well.


    ¡°Hey Aurora, did you know that Natasha had a ce she wants to visit? She even went ahead and made a request.¡±


    Rita ignored the startling jolt Natasha gave at her words.


    ¡°She does? Then let¡¯s visit that ce. Natasha, where do you want to go?¡±


    See, Aurora was better at this wholefort thing than Rita. She even knew what questions to ask and what kind of voice to use.


    ¡°I..ah, it¡¯s nothing important. We can forget about it and enjoy Central Park for now.¡±


    It seemed as if the confidence Natasha had disyed before was nowhere to be seen. Instead, she seemed nervous to bring up that ce in front of Aurora.


    Was it because Rita had bared her heart out in front of Natasha? Or because they were simr that Natasha had decided to trust her?


    ¡°Now, don¡¯t be shy. You can tell me, Natasha. We are going to be family at the Rocx Academy soon enough.¡±


    ¡°Family?¡±


    ¡°Yup.¡±


    Rita wanted to shake her head at the unintentional maniption Aurora was doing. She had no idea the effect of the things she was speaking about.


    For people like Rita and Natasha, the family was all but an illusion they had been shown. As such, the feeling of carving for love and eptance was always burning bright in their heart.


    ¡°A-Alright. I¡¯ll tell you where I want you to take me. But you have to promise not to make fun of me.¡±


    ¡°Sure¡±


    ¡°I want to go to a grave. My mother¡¯s grave to be exact. But I do not know where it is situated. Will you help me look for it?¡±


    Rita opened her mouth to agree with the request but it was Aurora¡¯s unusually serious face that stopped her.


    Aurora was hardly this serious for anything. So, for her to be making this face for Natasha¡¯s request was a first for Rita.


    ¡°Are you sure this is what you want? To go to your mother¡¯s grave? Will you be able to handle the truth about it?¡±


    Rita had a feeling that Aurora knew something about Natasha¡¯s mother¡¯s death. It would not surprise Rita even a little bit.


    Aurora was someone who knew a lot about insignificant things which may nevere up in politepany. She was a resourcefuldy who held her cards close.


    Even Rita had not discovered a lot of her secrets.


    ¡°I was afraid up until a few moments ago. But now I¡¯m sure I can face the truth. So please, if you know something then tell me.¡±


    Natasha sounded unusually serious. It was nice to see the indecisive girl finallying out of her shell.


    But wasn¡¯t it all happening too fast? Natasha had not even known Aurora and Rita for even a day before making this request.


    ¡°No. You are too desperate for my help to make me feel alright about you doing this. I cannot allow you to face your past in such a state.¡±


    ¡°But, I need to do this. I¡¯m afraid I will not get another opportunity like this.¡±


    The more Natasha spoke, the more desperate she sounded. And the more desperate she sounded, the more Rita felt sorry for her.


    ¡°Natasha, I can see what you are thinking. I won¡¯t allow you to find out the truth and then end your life. Someone like you needs a purpose to live. So make this your purpose and get stronger.¡±


    ¡°But¡±


    ¡°This truth is something you will have to find out for yourself. Her grave is something you are not ready to face in your current condition. Come join us in the academy and get stronger. Only then will I tell you if you want to know.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    Rita felt awkward seeing that scene, but she did not interfere.


    As for Aurora? She had her reasons for hiding the truth from the Northern Princess.


    There had been rumors about Natasha trying to end her life after a certain incident. Aurora was not sure what the incident was that pushed the northern princess to take her life but she had a feeling it was connected to her mother¡¯s grave.


    And this was a risk Aurora did not want to take right now.


    [Alexander: We have a problem. A group of main pce guards is headed your way right now. What should I do now?]

 Chapter 99

    [Alexander: We have a problem. A group of main pce guards is headed your way right now. What should I do now?]


    It took some time for the message to sink into Aurora¡¯s mind but she was quick enough to take action.


    ¡°Change in ns. We need to look for a safe ce. Natasha, we must also find a way to smuggle you out of the Northern Republic.¡±


    This might be a dumb idea when you look at the state of affairs. Smuggling a run-away princess out of her country was calling for trouble.


    Especially when the smugglers were people without any official recognition,


    Oh sure, on paper the Northern Republic was being all friendly and caring toward Rocx Academy but anyone could tell that they did not care about the connection being made here.


    Aurora could not help but feel like she had stepped into a well-crafted trap. But she had no idea who hadid out this trap.


    ¡°By the way, why were you so quick to trust us, Natasha? I never asked before but you seemed to have no problem following us around. You didn¡¯t even doubt us once.¡±


    That was a good question Rita asked. In all the excitement, Aurora had forgotten that their trio had been strangers when they first met Natasha.


    ¡°Oh. that¡¯s because Lord Karan vouched for you. He was the one who wanted me to go and study in your academy. I guess I instinctively trusted his words.¡±


    ¡°Karan? How dare he not inform us that he is involved. I¡¯m going to kill him the next time I see him.¡±


    Aurora could already imagine the sheepish smile of the other god inside her mind. It was irritating to know that he yed her like this.


    But now that Aurora knew that Karan was behind this n, she could also rx a little. That god was someone Aurora did not need to take care of at least.


    Besides, there was a chance that Karan did this to help Aurora out. She might not be able to see the full picture right now but the benefit must be there.


    ¡°Anyway, we¡¯ll need to think of a way to get out of Northern Republic without using the train. The only other way to cross the bridge would be through the abyss.¡±


    That was going to be a problem for Aurora. Now that she had said it out loud, she could spot the problem.


    Had it only been her and Rita, Aurora might have taken the risk of traveling through the abyss. But taking the untrained Northern Princess through the abyss was a no-go.


    Especially when you look at the condition of the abyss below.


    It was not the first floor or even the fifth. The abyss below the Northern Republic was a part of the deeper abyss. Somewhere between levels 6-10. This was not safe to travel for a kid.


    ¡°I have another idea. There are some mecha suits prepared by the Northern Republic. They had not been made public yet but I think the guards said that they can travel across the bridge. If we can get our hands on one, then we can travel across the bridge without taking the train.¡±


    ¡°Is that even possible?¡±


    ¡°No, it should be possible. Natasha, you gave us some very fortunate news.¡±


    Aurora had not spoken up about this possibility because she had not been sure when the original prototype for the ¡®power-suit¡¯ had been developed.


    The normal mecha used by the Northern Republic was only capable of short-distance travel and had more firepower.


    But in the future, they had developed a fast-traveling suit that reduced the time needed o cross the connection bridge.


    It seemed like the prototype has already been made by this time.


    ¡°Do you know where the mecha suit is being kept?¡±


    Aurora had a few ideas about the possible location. But none she was confident about. It would be better for her to cross-check where the suit was before taking any action.


    ¡°It should be in the royal pce. I am not sure where exactly it is being kept though. I¡¯m sorry.¡±


    ¡°No, don¡¯t be sorry. We can look for it once we break inside the royal pce. You have nothing to be sorry about.¡±


    Natasha had helped the pair out a lot. And it was time for Aurora to y her part and break into the royal pce.


    [Aurora: Lose the people tailing you and head toward the royal pce. I will send you the details about what we need to do.]


    ===========================


    [Aurora: Lose the people tailing you and head toward the royal pce. I will send you the details about what we need to do.]


    Alexander was hiding his presence when the message broke his concentration. He wanted to curse at the sender but it was toote for him to do so.


    ¡°I heard a noise. I think he is hiding this way.¡±


    Alexander pressed his back against the wall and cursed the soldiers tailing him. Why did they have to be so persistent?


    Alexander had taken care of the stalkers as soon as possible but he had made a mistake and one of the stalkers had gotten time to send an emergency beacon.


    It would not have been a big deal had it not been for the royal guards. It seemed like the royal guards were the ones stalking them.


    And now Alexander had a bigger problem on his hand.


    ¡®Head to the royal pce, she says. It¡¯s easy for Aurora to do this since she doesn¡¯t have people after her.¡¯


    Even though Alexanderined about the task, he knew that he would follow the orders.


    Mainly because the royal pce was the best ce to hide for someone like him. The guards would not be able to imagine him hiding away in their stronghold.


    Besides, the news of the new mecha-suits interested him as well. He had only seen the other side use mecha-suits once but it had piqued his interest.


    ¡°Hey, I can see him. He¡¯s there.¡±


    ¡°Fuck. I have no other choice now.¡±


    Alexander cursed as he was discovered but he was not afraid. He had ast resort prepared for these kinds of situations.


    ¡°System, initiate the sleeping spell. Make it as powerful as you can¡±


    [Order confirmed]


    One by one, the royal guards fell asleep but Alexander also felt his power weakening.


    A sleeping spell was a powerful tool but it took too much magic at his current level. So Alexander avoided using it as much as possible.


    ¡°Fuck you Aurora. You and your demands¡±


    But even though Alexanderined, he knew that he would follow the goddess to the end of the world.


    ===========================


    ¡°I have to ask a question. How do we get to the royal pce from here? I don¡¯t see a way to get up that high.¡±


    Aurora was aware of this problem even before Rita opened her mouth. The Northern Royal pce was built almost 1 km above the normal town and the only way to go in and out was through the connection bridges.


    Of course, one could use flying magic and such but it was asking for trouble.


    ¡°There are a few secret ways to get into the Northern Royal Pce so we¡¯ll have to see. The easiest way would be through the maintenance channel.¡±


    Most Royal Pces had a maintenance channel that could only be used by the emergency staff. But its location was hidden and the staff going in and out was not aware of where those channels were.


    ¡°But are you sure we should do this? We don¡¯t know when the time for maintenance woulde. How about an emergency exit? There should be one right?¡±


    ¡°W-Well, there is one but I don¡¯t think it will help us out much.¡±


    Natasha looked ufortable at Rita¡¯s enthusiasm. But it did seem she was taking it seriously.


    And Aurora had thought about the emergency exit as well but she had also discarded that idea right out of the gate.


    But it seemed as if it would be theirst resort to get to the pce. And the easiest one as well.


    ¡°How can we know whether it would help or not unless we try?¡±


    ¡°No, you don¡¯t understand. That ce is not safe at all for us to climb up through.¡±


    Rita seemed to not want to back down and Natasha looked ufortable.


    It was not like Aurora was not aware of why Natasha was against going in through that route but Aurora had a feeling it was about time.


    ¡°I think we should take the emergency exit as well. I have a few ideas of how we can make it work so do not worry.¡±


    ¡°Alright. But don¡¯t tell me I didn¡¯t warn you.¡±


    Aurora knew it was going to be a long climb from here on ahead. And she hated the thought of plunging herself into that space. But for now, it was the best option they had avable to them.


    Regrets couldeter.

 Chapter 100

    ¡°Sooooo, does anyone have a rope and a hook? Or anything we can use to climb this tower?¡±


    ¡°Rita, those things won¡¯t work. This tower is magically enhanced to prevent someone from climbing it. The only thing we can do in this tower is to climb down.¡±


    ¡°Then how can we get up using it? Isn¡¯t this useless in the first ce?¡±


    Aurora sighed at the conclusion drawn by her partner. Even Natasha had a disappointed look on her face but she seemed to have expected it.


    ¡°See, didn¡¯t I tell you that going up this way would be useless? Let¡¯s find another way up.¡±


    Natasha seemed to have given up without even trying. Her bodynguage seemed defeated and Aurora wanted to encourage the girl to not give up this easily.


    Besides, she would not have suggested this way up if she did not have a n to ovee this obstacle.


    ¡°There is a way to climb this tower but it will require a lot of magic power and willpower. You need to make up your mind if you want to do this or not.¡±


    This was thest warning Aurora was going to issue.


    Not because she was not worried about her partners, but because she trusted them to ovee this obstacle.


    ¡°There is a way to climb this tower? Then let¡¯s go.¡±


    As ever, Rita seemed to not be afraid. But Natasha had a look of trouble on her face. She seemed to not be ready to head in just yet.


    ¡°You can decide to stay back here. Our thirdpanion will be here soon and he can keep youpany out here.¡±


    ¡°No. I need to do this as well. I need to face my past and move on ahead.¡±


    Natasha looked worried but it soon turned into a determined expression. Aurora was certain that the Northern princess knew what the trail ahead contained for her.


    ¡°Alright. But you can back out if you feel that it is too much for you¡±


    Aurora assured the princess. She was not sure how far the twelve years old girl would be able to endure the trial.


    But Aurora did not voice her doubts. She did not want to make Natasha any more nervous than the female already was.


    ¡°I will be alright. Let¡¯s head in now.¡±


    ¡°Hey, guys. Hurry up.¡±


    Rita seemed to be getting impatient so Aurora decided to cut her talk with Natasha short and head toward the tower.


    It was smooth to touch and glossy in look. The stone used to construct the tower seemed to contain high amounts of magic power inside them.


    And it was all woven from the dark abyssal energy. It was surely thest line of defense for the Northern Pce.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go. Be sure to be on the outlook.¡±


    And with that, Aurora opened the door and stepped inside. Darkness was all that greeted her senses but she kept on walking.


    She could not stop here and lose her way.


    ===========================


    Aurora did not know how long she walked through the darkness. After a while, time lost its meaning as well.


    The darkness of the abyss was hitting Aurora¡¯s senses and it made her head spin. It was not the kind and gentle energy of the abyss she was sued to after rebirth.


    This hostility felt more like the one she had faced in herst life. It was as if she was a normal human again.


    ¡°Hey, look out. This is no time to be standing around. Can¡¯t you see that we are in the middle of a battle? If you are going to be useless, then leave.¡±


    Quince¡¯s familiar voice struck Aurora speechless. Then a solid body collided with Aurora¡¯s and send her flying.


    She instantly looked up toin, only to be met with Quince¡¯s back as he pushed the iing monster back.


    ¡°You are such a hassle. Hurry up and kill it already. We need to help Clove out.¡±


    Aurora quickly snapped out of her thoughts and raised her hand to cast a magic spell. The aura of the goddess she was about to use would dispel the abyssal monster.


    Or that was what was supposed to happen.


    But instead of the goddess¡¯s magic, an ordinary fireball was shot out of her palm and right in the monster¡¯s face.


    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s with the low-level magic spell? Do you want me to die?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s head felt disoriented. It was swimming in and out of focus but this scene felt familiar. Aurora had been in this position before.


    This abyss floor also felt familiar to her.


    ¡°Sorry. My head is not all here. Give me another try.¡±


    Aurora felt her mouth speak on its own. Her body was moving through a familiar motion she had not used after her rebirth.


    Her spear snapped at the speed of light and struck the monster right in the chest. The monster died with a final cry of pain and then all that remained was silence.


    ¡°Fuck. What the hell was that? Did you hit your head that hard? What am I going to tell Clove?¡±


    Quince seemed to be talking to himself. His tone indicated how irritated he was to see Aurora acting this way.


    But Aurora felt like something was wrong with Quince standing in front of her. He looked a little older than she remembered.


    ¡°Quince, how old are you? When did you get this tall?¡±


    Aurora felt the question escape her lips without her permission. She quickly snapped her mouth shut but it was toote for her to take her words back.


    ¡°Huh? I was joking earlier but did you hit your head and got amnesia? We¡¯re both neen this year. Now, hurry up and pull yourself together. We need to get this corpse back to the tower.¡±


    Tower? Hasn¡¯t Aurora vowed to cut tied with the tower in her life? What was she doing back here?


    But this ce, Quince¡¯s presence and even the current circumstances, all seemed a little out of ce for Aurora.


    Not to mention, her head ached the more she tried to make sense of things. It seemed as if something did not want her to remember what was going on.


    Had she been caught in some kind of trap? Everything looked different than Aurora remembered it to be.


    ¡°Oi, let¡¯s hurry back. Don¡¯t tell me that you need me to carry you back?¡±


    Quince¡¯s hand neared Aurora¡¯s face and her body instinctively recoiled. She felt like she had to avoid that hand at all cost.


    As a result, Aurora felt her side smack into the floor and pain fill her arm. It was not broken but it had wounds on it for sure.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you today? Why are you acting like this? Anyway, it is not my concern. Just make sure Clove does not see you like this or she¡¯ll be worried. I do not want her to worry ¡®because she can be scary.''¡±


    Aurora was sure that thest words had not been meant for her ears. But things seemed to being back to her in bits and pieces.


    It seemed as if this ce was the trail the tower had prepared for her. But whether this was a memory, the past, or another timeline Aurora was not sure. She just knew she was sent here toplete a task.


    What terrifying magic the Northern Republic had at its disposal.


    It was no wonder that no one tried to climb up this way into the Northern Pce. And Aurora could not help but feel worried about herpanions.


    She had to look for a way back as soon as possible. Staying in this ce would not be ideal.


    The more time she might have spent here, the more she would be enchanted by this ce.


    ¡°Aurora, you¡¯re back.¡±


    But every thought fled from Aurora¡¯s mind as soon as her eyes fell on the silhouette of her lovely wife.


    Clove looked just as she had in Aurora¡¯s memory. But she was all grown up now. Her long hair had been done up in a high pony and her blue eyes shined with a familiar love.


    ¡°I brought her back alive. She is no longer of any concern to me.¡±


    Quince sounded irritated to see Clove and Aurora interact with each other. It was so simr to Aurora¡¯s memory that she almost let out a tear.


    She might have never said it out loud but she had missed this. The ease of familiarity as well as the time Aurora had spent in thispany had not been something Aurora had ever forgotten.


    ¡°Quince, stop being mean. Aurora, hurry up inside. We should clear you up so that your wounds do not get contaminated.¡±


    Aurora allowed herself to be manhandled with ease. She felt happy to have her wife¡¯s hands on her body again.


    It had been so long since she had enjoyed the simple pleasure that was Clove¡¯spany and Aurora carved that contact.


    ¡°Clove, would you join me in my bath. I think I will need the assistance.¡±


    Clove blushed a pretty red while Quince gagged in the background.


    It was all so familiar that Aurora¡¯s heart ached.

 Chapter 101

    Aurora might have asked Clove to join her in her bath but she was not sure she was emotionally ready to spend a night with Clove just yet.


    There was too much going on inside her mind to even feelfortable.


    ¡°Aurora, stop thinking so much. Allow me to make you forget about everything else.¡±


    Clove¡¯s chest pressed up against Aurora¡¯s back was a familiar feeling. The water in-between their bodies provided a slippery and wet feeling.


    Every time Clove¡¯s wet breasts pressed against Aurora¡¯s back, it brought shivers to her body.


    It seemed as if Aurora¡¯s body had not retained her godhood in this trial but it had retained its sensitivity. Even the tiniest brush of skin caused Aurora immense pleasure.


    ¡°C-Clove. I know I suggested we spend a night together but let¡¯s not do it today. I am not sure I can handle it today.¡±


    ¡°Huh? You can¡¯t? But your body is responding to me so well. It sure wants me.¡±


    Clove was a crafty one. Aurora could not even deny her words since her body had gotten wet as soon as Clove had started rubbing her breasts.


    It was a familiar feeling. And unlikest time with Ava¡¯s illusion, Aurora could feel Clove¡¯s body heat.


    This was not a mere illusion and the Clove in front of her was as real as Aurora could make her be.


    But still, it did not feel right to invest in her emotions right now. Not when Aurora knew she had to go back anyway. This happiness was temporary.


    ¡°Hey, you¡¯re still thinking about something else? Did you happen to fall in love with someone else? I won¡¯t let you go.¡±


    ¡°N-No. it¡¯s nothing like that. I love you Clove and I want to marry you.¡±


    ¡°Good answer. Now let¡¯s enjoy ourselves.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s mind and body were divided. But in the end, her body won over as soon as Clove kissed her.


    Clove¡¯s tongue dominated Aurora¡¯s mouth. Aurora might have preferred to give back as good as she got but Clove had a different preference in bet.


    ¡°Good girl. Lie down while I y with you. I can see that your pussy missed me. It is leaking so much.¡±


    Who would have thought that a gentle girl like Clove had such a mouth on her? Aurora had not known about this before she got together with Clove.


    ¡°S-Stop speaking like that. J-Just get on with it.¡±


    Aurora was sure her face was red by now. She had never been able to take Clove¡¯s forwardness in bed very well.


    ¡°What? Can¡¯t handle the truth? But see, your pussy is so happy to see me again. It¡¯s even twitching to have my fingers inside.¡±


    Clove¡¯s fingers were right on top of Aurora¡¯s pussy. Aurora knew a single touch would be enough to stimte her body greatly.


    And Aurora felt afraid of her desires. She wanted Clove¡¯s fingers inside her.


    ¡°P-Please don¡¯t¡±


    Aurora¡¯s mouth worded the sentence but those words had no heat behind them. The pair knew that Aurora was spouting empty words.


    ¡°Are you sure? Then, try pulling your pussy back from my fingers and I will let you go. Surely you can do that much.¡±


    Aurora opened her mouth to protest but all that came out was a moan. Clove already had a finger inside Aurora and it felt so good.


    It had been so long since Aurora had any fun with her wife and her body seemed to have missed that feeling.


    ¡°What happened? Are you not going to pull back? Your body seemed to be trying to ask for more. See, you got even wetter. I wonder if I can make youe from my hand alone?¡±


    Aurora tried to protest but her body defeated her by mping hard around that single finger.


    It was too much and not enough at the same time. Aurora needed more of that fulfilling feeling.


    ¡°C-Clove. Please.¡±


    ¡°See, that¡¯s the problem with you. You do not make your intentions clear. Do you want another finger? Or do you want me to stop? What do you want?¡±


    Clove¡¯s voice was teasing but her finger pushed harder against Aurora¡¯s pussy. The hard jab was keeping Aurora on edge.


    But it was not enough. It would not make here at all.


    ¡°A-Another. I want more of this feeling.¡±


    Aurora knew she should not but she could not help but carve the pleasure. It was so good that her mind was going numb.


    Clove¡¯s face looked a little flushed as well but Aurora was in no mind to pay her any attention.


    ¡°Something is different about you today Aurora. You seem unusually sensitive. I¡¯m sure you¡¯re about toe any second. But I don¡¯t want that.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°I changed my mind about letting youe on my finger. I want to fuck you properly.¡±


    Aurora did not get a chance toin before Clove pulled her finger out and raised herself on top of Aurora.


    Aurora felt something wet touch her pussy but it was not a hardness she was familiar with.


    ¡°Clove? What are you doing?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s voice was all but a breath. She was not even sure if she was breathing properly due to the sensations she was feeling all over.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to fuck you. It¡¯s a pity that I don¡¯t have a cock but it¡¯ll still be pleasurable for you.¡±


    Aurora felt the first hint of friction as Clove¡¯s pussy rubbed against her wetness. It was a weird feeling and also unfamiliar. At least for her current body.


    But it was not any less pleasurable than before. The friction felt amazing and Clove seemed to be an expert in using her body.


    Aurora wanted to feel jealous of the one Clove had practiced it with but she also knew it was a foolish thought to have.


    ¡°Aurora, you¡¯re mine, right? You¡¯ll stay with me for eternity, right?¡±


    Aurora wanted to reply but all her lips were capable of was moaning. She could not even pay attention to what Clove was saying.


    There was magic that was knocking at Aurora¡¯s own. It was caressing her magic and asking to be let in.


    It felt familiar and gentle. The darkness of the abyss was calling out to Aurora and highlighting her pleasure.


    Aurora could not stop even if she wanted to. Her release was building up faster and faster.


    ¡°A-Aurora. I¡¯m about toe. Do you feel it?¡±


    Aurora did not get a chance to answer before she had a tongue forcefully mapping out her mouth. Clove was far from gentle and her lips hurt from the pressure.


    But it was also something Aurora¡¯s body seemed to be carving. It drank the energy seeping inside its core and it filled Aurora with a feeling of power.


    Aurora hit her climax with a sh of light. But it seemed to not have made a difference for Clove. The elder kept on going till her back arched and her body released.


    The kiss also broke as soon as Clove had her release and her body copsed on top of Aurora.


    All Aurora could do was hold on to Clove¡¯s slumbering body and catch her breath. It had been a shock to her system.


    But Aurora felt a familiar feeling humming beneath her skin. Her power as the goddess seemed to be returning in bits and pieces.


    The space around Aurora also became clearer and clearer.


    And Aurora instantly knew what was going on here. This was a space created from Aurora¡¯s memory to trap her here.


    Unlike Ava, this was a test to see whether Aurora had the resolve to step past it or not. And the test was just starting.


    Soon it would force Aurora to forget her memories and submit to the curse. It was a terrifying curse one could be under.


    But Aurora did not feel afraid for some reason. The familiar hum of magic around Aurora felt protective.


    ¡°Aurora, is everything alright? You feel distressed.¡±


    Clove¡¯s familiar face looked back at Aurora and it instantly made her melt. This was the clove in Aurora¡¯s memories. This was someone whom Aurora was fighting for and one she wanted back.


    ¡®You have her right here. There is no need for you to go back. You can enjoy all this and more if you stay.¡¯


    Aurora could enjoy all this and more if she stayed. This was what her heart wanted and this space was reflecting her innermost desire.


    But Aurora could also feel conflict building inside this ce. This space was not as stable as it should be and Aurora did not know what that meant.


    That was the only reason she was afraid to break this illusion and get out of here.


    ¡°Aurora, pay attention to me. Are you sick? You don¡¯t feel so hot to me so it¡¯s not a fever.¡±


    Clove¡¯s hand on Aurora¡¯s forehead felt like a dreame true. And Aurora knew that this nice thing could notst.


    Aurora needed to break free of this illusion before it consumed her fully. She could not allow her desire to break her.

 Chapter 102

    Clove¡¯s cold hands on Aurora¡¯s forehead were a sharp reminder that this was no longer her reality. This was a y on Aurora¡¯s memories and she should not be taken in by them.


    ¡°I am alright. Thest fight just knocked the wind out of me but I¡¯ll recover quickly.¡±


    Initially, Aurora had wanted to ask which floor of the abyss they were at currently.


    Knowing the floor might help Aurora jog her memories a little bit. But asking this question would also alert Clove that something is wrong.


    As far as Aurora could remember, she never had any memory problems. So this sudden change could prove to be disastrous.


    ¡°If you are still tired then you should rest. I will wait around for Rita toe back with our supplies. Oh, you might not know who Rita is since the tower assigned her after you and Quince went to battle.¡±


    ¡°Rest for now. Things will be better once you wake up.¡±


    Rita? Was it her Rita or the one in Aurora¡¯s memories? Only time will be able to tell.


    Aurora would have preferred to get up and check for herself but it seemed to not be possible right now.


    Clove had a tight hold of security and Aurora did not have enough information to act on her emotions. So she decided to hold back for now.


    But once the coast looked clear, Aurora stepped out of her bed and managed to sneak out. It was not difficult with the new skills she had.


    Aurora tried to flex her power but she was not able to reach her goddess magic.


    She could still feel that abyssal energy moving about in her body but Aurora was sure she would not be able to use that magic anytime soon.


    Whatever this trial had done to Aurora, it had been unable to erase her Abyssal energy. Maybe because Aurora¡¯s magic was more powerful than the trail magic.


    But even saying that her sealed magic provided Aurora with a big disadvantage.


    ¡°System, are you still there?¡±


    Aurora tried to call upon her system for help in such a situation. She had a gut feeling that she would still be able to use her system in such a situation.


    Mainly because when Aurora had been cursed before and had her magic sealed up, the system had still been there.


    That meant that as long as Aurora still had her magic, the system would follow along.


    [Greetings User Aurora. What can the system do for you?]


    Aurora breathed a sigh of relief as she looked at the digital screen on top of her wrist. It seemed as if her hypothesis was correct.


    That took care of atst one problem for her. Now, Aurora needed to n the out.


    ¡°Fine the location of user Rita for me.¡±


    Aurora was sure that if she was able to use her system, so should Rita. And they could use the system tomunicate with each other.


    [User Rita found. Marking location on the map. Would the user like to send a message to User Rita?]


    If the system was asking such a question then it meant that Rita was in this space as well. But did she have her current memories? Or was she just like Clove and Quince?


    Only time will tell but the thought of not having her normal Rita pained Aurora¡¯s heart. She hade to view the other as a dear friend in her new life.


    [Aurora: Rita, meet me behind themunal bathroom in the next 5 minutes. We need to talk]


    Aurora waited until she got a confirmation that the other side had seen the message before she made a break for themunal bathroom.


    She had chosen the busiest time of the day so that she had an excuse to go to the baths even if she was caught.


    The noisiness of the people taking bath right now would also reduce the risk of being overheard by someone important.


    Aurora was not going to take any chances with this ce or the trail.


    ===========================


    ¡°Stupid tower, stupid magic. Why am I back here? I thought I was done with this ce after the first-floor trail?¡±


    Rita wanted to break something but she held her anger back. She did not have the time to look around and think in the middle of a fight.


    ¡°Leader, look out.¡±


    Rita¡¯s body sensed the iing attack and acted ordingly. She dodged out of the huge monster tail that pped down on the earth.


    The flying debris caught Rita in her side and caused her to lose her bnce.


    But her face showed nothing but pure concentration. It was moving on auto-pilot and Rita was just going with the flow.


    /My familiars, heed my call.


    Come forth, Divine wolf/


    Rita knew she did not have such a familiar in her current aisle. But her chant still brought forth a gigantic wolf demon.


    The majestic wolf had swirl patterns all over its body and its me burned the iing debris away.


    It was such a magnificent beast but Rita knew she would not be able tost long with this summon. The magic required to maintain the current condition of the summon was too much for her current body.


    ¡°Hurry up and take the beast down. What are you all looking at.¡±


    Rita¡¯sint caused the rest of her part to snap into action. But despite their best effort, they were unable to cause any substantial damage to the huge monster in front of them.


    It also made sense since most of Rita¡¯s current party had nobat experience. The tower hadnded them on her to make her cooperate with them.


    ¡°I knew I should have invested in some personal attack magic.¡±


    Rita had wanted to learn but the tower had not allowed her to venture past her role. She had thought to ask Aurora but she had not gotten any time to do so.


    ¡°The beast is breaking out of the chains. Hurry up and retreat.¡±


    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t move or we¡¯ll all be in danger.¡±


    Rita wanted to smack the foolish man who had issued the retreat. He was making everything worse for Rita.


    If the current structure of the seal was maintained, Rita would be able to hold the beast in ce for longer.


    But the panicked shout had caused people to start running away. The supply of magic was slowly but surely being cut off.


    Such a situation did not help Rita maintain her magical formation and it copsed.


    The monster took this opportunity to attack Rita but her divine summons stopped him cold for a second.


    That was all the time Rita got to roll out of the attack before her summon had to be canceled. Rita had used far too much magic on her side.


    The huge beast raised his paw to attack Rita and she closed her eyes.


    There was no way to know what would happen if Rita died in this trial but it seemed as if she was about to find out.


    ¡°And they said you were the best in your generation. What a joke you are.¡±


    Before Rita could feel the heavy blow of the paw, someone cut the beast apart. Rita only saw golden hair before the red covered her and the other person from head to toe.


    ¡°You are..¡±


    Rita tried to look inside her mind for this person¡¯s name but nothing came to mind. But the mere fact that he had in the beast so easily meant he was powerful.


    Howe such a powerful person does not have a known identity.


    ¡°Did you hit your head as well? Stop messing around and take a bath. You¡¯re covered in blood.¡±


    Rita decided she did not like this man. He had an attitude problem which did not sit well with Rita.


    But it seemed like she was the only one who had a problem with this man. Everyone else seemed to be alright with fawning over the blond-haired man.


    ¡°Wah, Quince is so cool. He killed that monster in one sweep.¡±


    ¡°I wish I was under hismand as well. I¡¯ve heard that he does everything himself.¡±


    ¡°He and Lady Clove would make such a divine couple. But I¡¯m d he is single. Should I go for him?¡±


    The more Rita heard, the more she wanted to gag. This person did not seem all that great to her. But he had also saved Rita¡¯s life so she could notin.


    ¡°Thank you for saving my life. If that is all, then I shall go back now.¡±


    Rita gave a small bow to Quince before she turned away. She did not want to interact with the man more than possible.


    Quince did not answer bow and Rita had not expected him to either.


    [Aurora: Rita, meet me behind themunal bathroom in the next 5 minutes. We need to talk]


    Rita almost tripped as soon as she got that message. Was this her system? This message?


    Was Aurora in her with her as well? What was going on here?

 Chapter 103

    ¡°Aurora, what are you doing here? Didn¡¯t I tell you to take a rest? And how did you get past the guards? Did you give them the slip? I ought to scold them for their negligence.¡±


    Aurora almost jumped in the air when she heard Clove¡¯s voiceing from behind her. How in the world had Clove known where Aurora was?


    ¡°I just wanted to take a bath and left my room. There is no need to involve the guards in this matter.¡±


    Aurora tried to divert the attention from the main topic. She did feel sorry for the guards who would have to take the brunt of Clove¡¯s anger but she was doing it for a good cause.


    And, it was not like this all was going to matter once the trial was over. None of this was real and would not matter anymore.


    ¡°Aurora, please be careful of your health. You might not see this, but many people in the tower are envious of you. This is a good opportunity for them to try and get rid of you.¡±


    Aurora paused as soon as she heard those words. They were different from anything Clove had said before.


    Actually, Aurora knew all this beforehand. She had been a throne in the tower¡¯s novel lineage and a stone in the tower master¡¯s ns as well.


    How could she not be aware of all the screaming going on against her in the tower? She had even ended up dying because of that.


    But she had never known that Clove paid that much attention to the tower¡¯s current state when it came to Aurora. She had never said anything to Aurora. So Aurora had assumed that Clove never knew about it.


    But it seemed as if the one in dark was Aurora.


    ¡°I will be alright. It¡¯s just a bath and it will be pretty crowded there. I doubt anyone will be foolish enough to cause a scene right now.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s tone was filled with assurance. Her smile was perfect and gentle. It was just like the one she had always given Clove before.


    But instead of looking reassured, Clove had a worried look on her face. Aurora had a feeling that she had made the situation worse than she needed to make it.


    ¡°Is that so? But I am still worried about you. Then, why don¡¯t I apany you to the baths? This way I will feel so much better.¡±


    ¡°No need to. I want to go alone.¡±


    Aurora cursed herself for replying so fast. But she could not allow Clove to tag along with her meeting with Rita.


    At this point, Rita and Aurora were strangers. An idental meeting would spark too many questions.


    Especially with someone like Clove around. Aurora was not even sure how she would be able to exin it all to Rita.


    After all, how did you take your lover to meet someone who had confessed their love to you in the past without making it awkward?


    It was better to avoid it at all costs.


    ¡°You don¡¯t want to take a bath with me? But you were all over me yesterday? Did you get bored of my body?¡±


    ¡°N-No. That is not it. I¡¯m just afraid that I¡¯ll get distracted if you are there with me. My body is not up for any more surprises right now.¡±


    Aurora felt a blush creep up her face as she spoke those words. And Clove looked taken aback at her words as well.


    ¡°You know, if I see you naked then I will get aroused and I don¡¯t want that. B-Besides, a bathhouse is not the best ce to do something like that. And there are also too many eyes and¡­¡±


    ¡°Hahahaha. Excuse me but what? hahaha¡±


    Aurora was cut off by a burst of wildughter. Clove seemed to have lost it at Aurora¡¯s unexpected shyness and her body was knocked back.


    Aurora felt her cheeks get warm at the mocking tone but she tried to control it. It was her own fault that she was in this situation.


    ¡°Stopughing at me. It is not that funny.¡±


    Aurora tried to stop Clove¡¯s burst ofughter but her attempt was half-hearted. There was no point in trying to stop Clove right now.


    ¡°I-I understand what you mean. Fine, I won¡¯t follow after you for now. But do make sure to be quick. Your body is not up for a lot of physical exertion.¡±


    Was Clove in any position to say all this after what she had done? But Aurora could not find it in her heart to say anything to her.


    Thinking back at the timeline, Aurora knew that there were not a lot of things tough about right now. The abyss was a hard and cruel ce.


    So whatever joy one could find here needed to be preserved. And that was why Aurora did not stop Clove when she made fun of Aurora.


    ¡°Be careful as well. I will be back at night.¡±


    If everything went right then this was a promise Aurora would not be able to keep. She would be back in the tower and the trial would be over for her.


    But Clove did not need to know about that. She just needed to be happy and live her life out.


    Once Clove was done walking away, Aurora picked herself up and left for the baths.


    [Rita: I¡¯ll be a littlete. I have some matters to take care of first.]


    Rita¡¯s message made it seem like she¡¯ll bete for the meeting so Aurora might as well clear herself up.


    Wath water was a luxury in the abyss so Aurora would be a fool to miss up on an opportunity to take a bath. She liked the feeling of water running all over her body.


    Aurora quickly opened themunal shower and instantly felt her body get lost in the mass of tower soldiers.


    It seemed as if the floor they were on was not deep enough to thin out the number of soldiers. They were maybe somewhere on the fifth floor or near that.


    Floors started to get more specific the deeper you went. So this generic setting was assuring.


    It took time for Aurora to find an empty stall and stand under the shower. The water seemed to be washing away all of Aurora¡¯s worries and aches. She felt refreshed to stand under the water.


    And once she was done, Aurora finally turned around to leave the stall¡­


    ¡­only to be met with the familiar naked body of her friend.


    ¡°I¡­should I go away for now?¡±


    ¡°Rita. Are you covered in blood? What the hell happened to you?¡±


    Aurora could not help the question. She saw Rita flinch and calmed her excited tone down. Her voice had also attracted quite a few gazes but it was alright for now.


    None of these people were important in the grand scheme of things. They could be ignored for now.


    ¡°Not here. We should talk once I¡¯m done taking a bath. I will set up a barrier as well.¡±


    Aurora did not want to dy this talk but she knew she had no other choice. More than one ear was out for the gossip and Aurora would be damned if she gave them a chance to one-up her.


    ¡°Fine. But don¡¯t take too long. We don¡¯t know if this trial has a time limit or not.¡±


    ¡°Hey, blood takes time to get out, alright. But I¡¯ll try to get it done as fast as I can.¡¯


    Aurora knew that Rita was not trying to grab time. And that was enough for her to quickly make her way out of the bathhouse.


    After all, there was no reason to give the tower soldiers any more room to gossip about her.


    ===========================


    ¡°Where am I? What is this ce?¡±


    Bright blue eyes opened with a snap. Natasha pushed herself to sit on the floor as she pushed her body beyond her limit.


    She knew that she was no longer in the Northern Republic. This ce felt fundamentally different than before.


    But Natasha had no idea where she had ended up being.


    ¡®I¡¯m in the abyss. I came here for the Mystic Pearl.¡¯


    Natasha had no idea how she knew all that. But her thoughts were crystal clear. She could remember heading toward the deeper abyss but identally falling into the deeper end. And now she had no idea where she was.


    But all she knew was that she had to get back the stolen ender pearl. It was the source of power for the republic.


    ¡°Mydy, we found a tower camp. Hold on because you will be alright soon. Your wound has also finally stopped bleeding.¡±


    She had been bleeding? It was weird but Natasha could not feel anything at all. Her body felt numb and her energy was being drained out of her soul.


    ¡°So this is the abyss? It is so terrifying.¡±


    Natasha lost consciousness before a pair of hands could pick her up and take her away from the ce.

 Chapter 104

    The air was filled with a feeling of awkwardness. Aurora wanted to start the talk but the atmosphere would not allow her to.


    Rita looked ufortable as well. So at least Aurora was not alone in her feelings.


    ¡°Hey, say something. I don¡¯t think I can take the silence anymore. We both know each other, right? Why are you keeping so silent?¡±


    Rita finally decided to break the silence and Aurora could not help the small chuckle that escaped her lips.


    Despite what had happened, it seemed as if this was the Rita of the second timeline. It reassured Aurora to see her friend again.


    ¡°Rita, calm down. This ce is not real, but a temporary space created because of the trial. As long as weplete it, we should be free to go.¡±


    Aurora was bing more and more sure of this face. Rita¡¯s existence in this ce could not be counted on anything else.


    ¡°But this ce looks so much like the one in my memories from thest trail. Even the people here are the same. It¡¯s making me confused.¡±


    Aurora snuck in a sharp breath at the confession. She had known that Rita had experienced something like this before and had regained some of her former memories. But Aurora had not known her to be affected.


    If Rita could recognize this ce as well, then whose memories was this pce borrowing from? Her or Rita?


    Or was it Natasha who was the main supplier of memories?


    ¡°Rita, did you see Natasha anywhere? She should be here as well.¡±


    Aurora tried to rack her brain for the answer to her question. She knew there was a reason the trail had chosen this memory but she could not connect why this was the memory being chosen.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Would she be here as well? After all, Northern Republic seemed to have their expedition team.¡±


    Aurora paused in her thinking. Memories mmed into her brain all of a sudden at Rita¡¯s words.


    ¡°I see why the trial chose this setting. I cannot believe I forget about this encounter altogether.¡±


    ¡°What encounter?¡±


    ¡°We will need to sneak into the medical bay to see Natasha again. I¡¯m sure she is there.¡±


    There had been one time when the tower had saved the Northern Princess¡¯s life. It had been a short encounter so Aurora had wiped it off her memory.


    But it seemed as if that small encounter had be a catalyst for so much more inside the trail.


    ¡°Wait. I think I remember the rumor but I never paid any real attention to it. So this memory was chosen because all three of us are in it?¡±


    ¡°That seemed to be the only reason. But we cannot assume anything for sure. Magic doesn¡¯t always make logic and neither does the tower.¡±


    Aurora had encountered her fair share of magic in her life. And she could confidently say that not everything made sense in this world.


    Most of the time 2+2=4. But in the case of magic, it could very well be a 6 or even a 22. This was just the nature of magic.


    ¡°Let¡¯s break into the medical tower right now. It should not take long for us to get in.¡±


    Aurora knew it should not take long for the pair to get in. But it was not going to be a smooth sail as well.


    With Quince¡¯s presence overlooking the base, Aurora was sure she was going to face problems sooner orter.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go now. The more we wait around, the fewer chances we will have to influence this trial.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s emotions were all over the ce. She had no idea why she was being faced with such a difficult choice.


    But she also knew things would be clearer and clearer the more the trial unfolded.


    ===========================


    ¡°Princess, you are finally awake. Doctor, hurry up and check her over.¡±


    Natasha felt her head ache as her maid yelled right in her ear. Her voice was too shrill and loud for Natasha¡¯s liking.


    ¡°Get off.¡±


    The maid quickly fell off to the ground with a frightened expression as soon as Natasha spoke those words. Her cold voice seemed to have that effect on people.


    Natasha tried to think back on what had happened but all she remembered was walking into the tower and then being transported here.


    The rest of Natasha¡¯s memory was a little hazy and she could not make out what had happened.


    ¡°You had a nasty injury. We managed to find you in time or you would be dead. Rest for now and we¡¯ll contact your forces to take you out.¡±


    Natasha nodded in agreement but her mind was somewhere else. She remembered the voice telling her to find the ¡®Mystic Pearl¡¯ if she wanted to get out of here.


    So Natasha could only assume that it was the purpose of her trail.


    But she was not sure if she was alone in her quest. What about Aurora and Rita? Where were they?


    Did they have their trials or were they in here with Natasha as well?


    ¡°Princess, do you need something?¡±


    Her maid¡¯s question cut right through Natasha¡¯s thoughts. It was irritating for her to hear the maid talk as if she cared about her.


    What a bunch of hypocrites these people were. Talking like they knew and liked her but nning her downfall behind her back.


    Natasha had no idea why she knew all this but her thoughts were quite foreign to her right now.


    ¡°Leave me alone for now. You all can go out if you want to.¡±


    Natasha wanted to tear the maid apart when she left with a happy expression. It seemed as if she had been waiting to be dismissed all this while.


    It also hurt Natasha but her emotions seemed to be used to such a response.


    The door closed and Natasha got lost in her thoughts. But not for long as another knock interrupted Aurora¡¯s thought process.


    The door opened without her consent and Natasha got ready to chew the intruders out¡­


    ¡­only to fall silent when Aurora and Rita entered the room with sheepish expressions.


    ¡°Yo. Did you miss us? We¡¯re back.¡±


    Rita¡¯s cheerful voice seemed to not have changed. She looked just as she had before.


    But Aurora seemed to have aged quite a lot. Her long blue hair moved in the wind and framed her beautiful face.


    Natasha felt a blush ovee her face as she tried not to look at Aurora. Who knew that the girl could turn out to be so beautiful.


    ¡°I..Aurora, you grew up. And¡­what¡¯s wrong with my voice?¡±


    ¡°Natasha, you are in an adult body as well. Do not panic right now.¡±


    Adult body? Her?


    Now that Natasha looked back at her situation, her body did feel different from her original. This one was longer and sturdier.


    ¡°What the hell? Did this trail age us both? Then why did Rita not age?¡±


    Natasha felt a little confused but her emotions did not seem to be conveyed in her voice. At least this part of her had remained the same throughout.


    ¡°Age? Oh, it¡¯s not quite like that. I just went back to my original body. You are the only one who had aged¡±


    ¡°What do you mean. Don¡¯t make it more confusing than it had to be. Just tell me the whole story.¡±


    Aurora and Rita exchanged nces and Natasha already knew she was not going to get the whole story from them.


    ¡°I was cursed into a child beforeing to the Northern Republic. My curse is supposed tost the next 5 days in real life. I can only assume that I¡¯m in my original form right now because of the trial.¡±


    ¡°As for you, I have no idea why you seemed to have aged as well. Maybe it is because of the trail¡¯s setting. But I don¡¯t know what it wants us to do.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s exnation was simple and to the point. Natasha had a lot of questions to ask but it seemed as if there was no point in asking that right now.


    Aurora seemed to have a tight mouth so she was not an ideal person to get information out of.


    As for Rita, she was an even tougher cookie to crack. And just thinking about this topic gave Natasha a headache.


    ¡°Don¡¯t think too much about all this. This is just an illusion we have to ovee. You¡¯ll lose your way if you think too much.¡±


    Aurora was trying to distract Natasha. And Natasha was sad to say that it was working just fine.


    She did not want to think too much. And maybe Aurora was right, this was all an illusion without much substance.


    ¡°Anyway, I wanted to tell you that I might have an idea of what we need to do in this trial. When I first woke up here, my mind was filled up with images of ¡®Mystic Pearl.¡¯ I think that is what our objective is this time.¡±

 Chapter 105

    ¡°Anyway, I wanted to tell you that I might have an idea of what we need to do in this trial. When I first woke up here, my mind was filled up with images of ¡®Mystic Pearl.¡¯ I think that is what our objective is this time.¡±


    Aurora heard the message but it did notpute inside her mind.


    Or, it was more urate to say that she had never heard of a ¡®Mystic Pearl¡¯ before. It was certainly not an artifact that existed under normal circumstances.


    ¡°Is there any other information you can share with us about this ¡®Mystic Pearl?¡¯ I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve heard of it before.¡±


    ¡°Me neither. But I can ask around.¡±


    Rita seemed equally worried about the existence of this new artifact. This certainly curled out the possibility of this ce being crafted from someone¡¯s memories entirely.


    It was surely possible that the abyssal magic was ying tricks on the trio.


    ¡°To be honest, I feel like I¡¯ve known about the existence of the Mystic Peral forever but I know this is my first time hearing this name as well. I¡¯m sorry that I cannot be of any more use.¡±


    Natasha looked down. Aurora could understand why the youngest was feeling like this.


    This was most likely her first experience with the abyss and it was through a trial. It was a given that Natasha would be confused under these circumstances.


    ¡°Don¡¯t let it get to you kid. You are doing the most you can. But it would be better for us not to contact each other too much.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    Rita¡¯s words were followed by a confused question from Natasha.


    ¡°It¡¯s because of our present situation. Rita and I are with the tower right now while you are the princess of the Northern Republic. And the rtionship between the two groups is not the best.¡±


    ¡°It would be better for us to contact each other with the system.¡±


    ¡°System?¡±


    ¡°Ah, wait. Give me your arm and I¡¯ll show you how to use it.¡±


    Aurora took the offered hand before she activated her system to make a sub-copy.


    Since Aurora was on a trial right now, the system she made was not of the highest capacity. It had limited functionality.


    And by that, Aurora meant that it could only serve as amunication device. Most of the higher functionalities needed to be cultivated with time.


    [System User registered: Natasha Silkovya.


    The user will be grantedmunication privileges]


    ¡°Take care of yourself and keep me posted about your update. We still don¡¯t know where our objective for this trial is.¡±


    Aurora hated to be the party pooper but she had to do what she must.


    She was mainly doing this for herself and to remind her kind not to get toofortable with this setting.


    ¡°Of course, I¡¯ll keep in touch. I¡¯ll also try asking around and looking into this topic more. I have a feeling that the Northern Republic is somehow connected to this case.


    To be honest, Aurora had a simr feeling when she heard Natasha¡¯s words.


    There had to be a reason the voice had sought out Natasha out of the three to deliver this message.


    Not to mention, the trail has been developed by the Northern Republic. It was more than likely that it favoured the Northern Republic people than the tower soldiers.


    ¡°Alright. Keep your eyes out and take care of yourself. I should get going now before I am found out to be missing.¡±


    Aurora wanted to stay longer and figure a few more things out. But she knew she had to go back. Quince would be getting on her back anytime soon.


    He was a persistent one but he was not the real reason Aurora was heading back. Clove would be worried if Aurora stayed out for too long.


    ¡®How pathetic. Even in this trial, I am concerned about Clove and her feelings.¡¯


    Aurora did not know when this obsession had started but the more she fell into it, the calmer she felt.


    In the end, that was what led Aurora to sneak back into her room without alerting the soldiers but she was not lucky enough to avoid all the watching eyes.


    And as the normal tower fashion, the gossip did not take long to travel all over the camp.


    ===========================


    Aurora tip-towed into her room to avoid making any noise.


    But her efforts failed as soon as she took a single step inside the room. The pair of blue eyes looking back at Aurora halted her in her steps.


    ¡°You werete. Did it take this long for you to shower?¡±


    ¡°Ah, C-Clove. What are you doing here?¡±


    Aurora tried to change the topic as soon as her lover brought it up. Aurora had never been able to lie well in front of Clove.


    And she knew if she opened her mouth, then Aurora was sure to get caught in her lies.


    ¡°Aurora, don¡¯t try and change the topic. You were not at the baths, right? I heard the news all over. Do you prefer Rita over me?¡±


    Aurora stopped cold as soon as she heard those words.


    She knew she should not have ignored the gossip going on all around the camp. But it seemed like Aurora had not learned her lesson in her previous life.


    ¡°Of course, I do not prefer Rita over you. We just met for the first time today and I was a little surprised. This is all. You don¡¯t need to worry about this so much.¡±


    Aurora flinched as soon as she finished speaking,


    She was getting too defensive over something that was not even worth talking about. Had it been any other person or any other situation, Aurora was sure she would have brushed it off easily.


    But just because it was Rita, it somehow felt wrong to let things left unsaid. Aurora wanted to air out everything and take out the heavy feeling inside her heart.


    ¡°If that is all then I¡¯m relieved. Maybe I was too quick to believe the rumors. I should think over my actions.¡±


    ¡°N-No. it¡¯s not your fault. The situation was just a bit weird so anyone could have misunderstood.¡±


    Once again, Aurora did not know why she was making such a heavy effort to justify her actions. But Aurora could not help but feel guilty.


    But guilty over what? She had not done anything wrong.


    This all was not even real, to begin with.


    ¡°I understand. So let¡¯s end this debate for now. Come here, lie down next to me. I just want to spend time with you.¡±


    Aurora sighed in relief as soon as Clove patted her side. She quickly made her way over to her lover and threw her body on the bed.


    It was far toofortable for Aurora¡¯s liking. Her back was not used to suchfort and Aurora found it difficult to lie down.


    Clove finally took pity on Aurora when she twisted and turned around for the fourth time in a minute.


    Strong arms circled Aurora¡¯s waist and pulled her back into a soft chest. Aurora felt the touch of Clove¡¯s soft touch of breasts against her back.


    It felt rxing but Aurora could also not help her body from getting excited.


    She was not sure what it was about Clove, but Aurora felt excited every time she was near her. That was the whole reason Aurora had started changing the other female.


    And then it gradually turned into love along the way.


    ¡°Don¡¯t give me that look. Just let me enjoy your body. It¡¯s been a long time since we¡¯ve been to a safe ce like this. I just missed you a lot.¡±


    Aurora wanted to tell Clove that she had missed her more.


    Unlike the Clove in this trial, Aurora had not be

 Chapter 106

    Clove¡¯s body felt stiff in Aurora¡¯s arms. Her lips mapped Clove¡¯s in a frenzied chase.


    It was rare for Aurora to take initiative in bed when she spend the night with Clove. Mainly because Clove did not like to lose her control.


    Aurora understood Clove¡¯s need and let herself be pushed around. So her moments of dominance were rare indeed.


    ¡°Clove, let me do it tonight. You must be tired from running around all day long.¡±


    ¡°A-Alright.¡±


    Aurora had not expected to gain eptance so easily. But she was happy to see Clove agree with her nheless.


    Mainly because it had been a long time since Aurora had taken charge in the bed with her lover. Aurora¡¯s memory couldn¡¯t even recall when thest time she had topped had been.


    Not that it had mattered because Aurora had loved Clove a lot and they both did not have the necessary parts for pration.


    And since they bothcked a cock to fuck the other with, it had not mattered who topped or bottomed for the most part.


    ¡°Do you have our toys with you?¡±


    It was only after Aurora had started ying with CLove that she remembered the way the pair had spiced up the things in the bedroom.


    Just because they bothcked a penis did not mean that they found no joy in pration y. There were a lot of ways to get around that restriction.


    ¡°B-Beneath the bed. Didn¡¯t you put them there?¡±


    Aurora flushed a pretty red but she refused to show her shyness in front of Clove. She did not want to lose her advantage in front of her lover.


    ¡°Did I? Well, now I am telling you to take it out and prepare me. I don¡¯t want to waste time today.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s words were unnecessarily harsh. But that did not mean Clove found them offending.


    On the contrary, Clove seemed to be getting turned on by Aurora¡¯s words. The moan that escaped her lips was anything but decent.


    ¡°I..s-sorry. I did not know what came over me.¡±


    Clove looked unnecessarily flushed as she apologized. This was a rare sight to see for Aurora.


    Her headstrong partner hardly ever got shy like this. And hardly over sexual matters at that. It was a bewildering sight to see.


    Aurora wanted to see more. She wanted to push the boundaries of what she could get away with in this illusion.


    Who knew whether Aurora would get another shot at this or not. She did not want to miss this opportunity.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be sorry and bring the box over. Also, Hurry up.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s hand moved toward Clove¡¯s hair and she fisted them lightly. Her hold was too soft to leave anysting harm but Clove arched her back in pleasure.


    This y seemed to be turning her partner on.


    ¡°A-Aurora. B-Be gentle with me.¡±


    Clove¡¯s mouth said one thing but her body said another. Aurora could feel her lover¡¯s body arching into her hands.


    ¡°Be gentle with you? Are you sure that is something you want me to do?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s question was followed by gentle fisting of Clove¡¯s hair. Aurora increased the pressure just a bit more than before Clove let out a loud moan.


    It was far by the loudest Aurora had ever heard from her lover before.


    ¡°S-Stop, please.¡±


    Aurora immediately stopped. She had not meant to enact this reaction from Clove but it seemed as if the mood had influenced Aurora more than she had wanted.


    ¡®Why did you stop? You wanted it to happen like this. Is that not what you wanted from your lover?¡¯


    Aurora batted the voice of her inner goddess away. The sting of truth in these words hurt.


    The truth was, Aurora had wanted Clove¡¯s submission in the earlier days of their rtionship but that was before their rtionship had progressed into love.


    After some time, Aurora was content to just be by Clove¡¯s side.


    ¡°What is wrong? Did I do something wrong? Why did you stop?¡±


    ¡°No. Nothing is wrong. I just lost the mood to continue.¡±


    Aurora did not want to tell Clove that she had scared herself. Her greed had scared Aurora more than she had thought possible.


    ¡°You say you lost the mood but your body is saying something opposite. You¡¯re still quite wet. See.¡±


    Aurora was alright one second and flinched out the next. Clove had one of her fingers inside Aurora¡¯s pussy without any warning and Aurora felt the energy in her body leave her.


    It felt so good and Aurora¡¯s sensitive body was turned on enough to not even hurt at the insertion.


    ¡°C-Clove. What are you doing?¡±


    Aurora wanted to get out of Clove¡¯s hold but her body seemed to have a mind of its own. Instead of getting away, it leaned more into that finger. Her hips seemed to have a mind of their own.


    ¡°See, I told you your body wanted it. You were born to submit to someone so I can see why you got spooked earlier. But don¡¯t worry. I am here to take control over.¡±


    Aurora wanted to protest that it was not why she had backed off. There had been another reason for Aurora¡¯s reluctance.


    But Clove¡¯s fingers inside Aurora were making her forget everything. This was a little too much for Aurora and the wet noises in her ear were not helping her gain control.


    ¡°Let me see what we can use here. Ah, I know. This should be good for you.¡±


    Aurora opened her eyes to barely make out an egg-shaped familiar object. It was a vibrator Aurora had gotten used to in herst life.


    ¡°C-Clove, let¡¯s not.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s words came out breathy but her body was getting wetter. Even Aurora¡¯s mind told her to submit. To pass control over to her lover.


    She did not even know why she was protesting but it was a habit at this point. Aurora always tried to run away from her pleasure in the past and it seemed to have carried over to this life as well.


    ¡°You don¡¯t want to? Alright. I will not push you.¡±


    ¡°N-No. That¡¯s not what I mean. I want you to fuck me.¡±


    Aurora felt her face go red at her words. It was not often that she spoke those words while in the bedroom.


    Most of the time Clove seemed to just know what Aurora wanted and she did not push for a verbal confirmation. But it felt so humiliating to speak those words out loud.


    ¡°You want me to fuck you? Well, I can if you put up a good show for me. Here, take this and get started.¡±


    Aurora looked down at the egg-shaped vibrator Clove was handing over to her. It was the same one Aurora hadined about.


    ¡°Come on. Hurry up and show your sincerity. If you do well enough then I might consider fucking your brains out tonight.¡±


    Had Aurora been in a better state of mind, she would have found those words offensive. But right now, all Aurora wanted to do was to impress Clove and get fucked.


    Her body was sensitive and in need of relief. Aurora was willing to do anything to get it right now.


    ¡°Good girl. Now take it slow. I already stretched you out so taking this in should not be a problem.¡±


    Aurora reached out for the vibrator and carefully inserted it into her stretched pussy. The burn at insertion was not too much thanks to Clove¡¯s help.


    But the friction was not enough. Aurora needed something harder and bigger inside her pussy.


    ¡°N-Not enough.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s hands came up to y with her heavy breasts. They had been aching for some time now and they needed relief as well. Aurora hardly yed with her breasts but she wanted to right now.


    ¡°So nice. You¡¯re putting on a show for me, right. But just seeing is not enough. Come here and service me as well.¡±


    Aurora felt her body move at themand.


    It was not like Clove¡¯s voice had anypulsion or even magic. It was a normal voice but Aurora followed it because she had been trained to do so.


    Her mind was used to following thatmand and it always felt pleasurable.


    ¡°You tried to take control earlier but you weren¡¯t able to. Do you need me to teach you how to dominate someone?¡±


    Aurora wanted to speak up but her body did not have strength. All she could do was to allow Clove to move a hand in her hair and pull her head up.


    Clove¡¯s grip was far from gentle but it was a famir stretch. Aurora had not even known she had missed being manhandled around like that.


    Clove¡¯s brand of harshness was different from Ava or Astoria. It was a famir dangce between the pair that had been polished a lot.


    ¡°Aurora, service me good and I¡¯ll fuck you hard. Now go on and lick.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s face was right in front of Clove¡¯s pussy and she swiped her tongue for a taste.

 Chapter 107

    Aurora swiped the taste with her tongue but it was not enough. Aurora needed more of that familiar taste and feel. Her body felt hungry for more.


    ¡°Hurry up. I know you can do better than this. You are thirsty for me, right? Then suck.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s tongue finally breached Clove¡¯s pussy as she felt her head being pushed harder and harder.


    Aurora tried to pull away but the hold Clove had on her head stopped her short. Aurora could not pull away from Clove.


    ¡°Don¡¯t try anything funny. Just service me. I can see that your body needs this.¡±


    Aurora couldn¡¯t find it in herself to protest.


    Not when Clove had her hands all over Aurora¡¯s body and stripped her of her clothes. It felt cool and pleasing to Aurora and she did not want to pull back.


    Aurora sucked and picked the pussy in front of her. She even paid special attention to the Clove¡¯s clit which had been neglected all this time.


    The stimtion must be getting to Clove as well because her back arched before her body found her release.


    Aurora felt her face get wet with the liquid being squirted out.


    ¡°W-Was I good?¡±


    Aurora would not have asked this question under normal circumstances but she had a vibrator inside her right now.


    A vibrator that was rubbing against her walls and all around. It was stimting Aurora from the inside but it was not enough for Aurora to find release.


    It was just prolonged sweet torture she wanted to be over already.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry baby. You were fantastic. And that¡¯s why I¡¯m going to help you out. Come here and bring the cock that you want to get fucked with. The box is sitting at your side.¡±


    Aurora had not even realized that the box of toys was lying at her side. But as soon as she realized that, she picked up the tool she wanted to get fucked with.


    This was not Aurora¡¯s first time being fucked with a fake cock and one might think that it would pale inparison to a real one.


    But these toys were magical. Aurora had no idea where Clove had gotten them from and she never dared to ask either.


    ¡°Now Aurora,e here and sit at my cock. I¡¯ll take care of the rest.¡±


    Aurora felt her mouth go dry as she watched Clove in that familiar sitting pose.


    Clove¡¯s legs were spread wide while her pussy had a thick roding out of it. The fake-cock Aurora has chosen was a two-way thing. It could stimte both of their pussies at the same time.


    Aurora did not take long to crawl over Clove¡¯sp and sink on the fake-cock.


    The texture and thickness felt just like a real cock. Aurora held back her moans but her body seemed to have an idea of its own.


    ¡°Wow, look at you. I just fucked you this morning and now you¡¯re behaving so hungry again. How can I let you out looking like that?¡±


    Aurora felt her lips being pulled back into a kiss. She knew it was Clove who had the upper hand right now so she let herself go.


    Her hips were moving at a fast enough pace to feel the burnter.


    ¡°Is it good? You don¡¯t say much at this time so I-I can¡¯t guess h-how you f-fell. Fuck, it¡¯s good¡±


    Aurora was sure that Clove was beginning to feel the pleasure burning away at her nerves. The only time her partner stuttered was when she was overwhelmed.


    Aurora wanted to be proud to be able to reduce her partner to this state but her current situation did not look any better than Clove¡¯s.


    Their magic was flowing all over and Aurora felt it connect with her core. The energy that rushed inside her belonged to the abyss.


    What had happened before was happening again. Something was trying to connect with her and gain ess to her core.


    ¡°Don¡¯t think so much. You just need to feel for now.¡±


    Aurora knew that the magic was bad news. The abyss was trying to gain control over her.


    So she fought back with what awareness she had. The pleasure she felt only made things worse for her but Aurora refused to give in.


    ¡°A-Aurora, I¡¯m about to ce. Let¡¯s ce together.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s throat let out a pleasurable scream as Clove tilted her hips up. The exchange of energies was making Aurora¡¯s powers go out of control.


    ¡°Everything is alright. You just need to rx.¡±


    Aurora felt her energy go out of control one second and the next everything was alright. Things seemed to have calmed down.


    Aurora¡¯s body fell to the floor dazed and tired. But she had no intention of picking herself up.


    ¡°You¡¯re still sozy. I guess it¡¯s up to me to clean us up.¡±


    Clove¡¯s familiar hands picked Aurora up. They felt so strong andforting to Aurora. She wanted to stay in them forever.


    ¡°Sleep for now. Tomorrow will be a better day for us.¡±


    Aurora closed her eyes and felt the darkness take her. Everything she was currently going through felt like a dream to Aurora.


    The more time Aurora spent inside this illusion, the less she wanted to go back. She had not realized just how big a trap this trial was.


    ¡®I hope Natasha finds out what the ¡®Mystic Pearl¡¯ is soon. I can¡¯t take any more of this.¡¯


    Thest thing Aurora remembered was replying to Natasha¡¯s relief-filling message.


    [Natasha: My maids found out the location of the ¡®Mystic Pearl¡¯. It is being guarded by Quince.]


    ===========================


    It took far too long for Natasha to fall asleep alone. The energy of the abyss was making things difficult for her.


    Natasha had never been someone who feared the unknown but being alone in this trial was taking its mental toll.


    ¡°My Lady. Would you like to have some medicine to fall asleep?¡±


    ¡°No need. Did you find out the information we are looking for?¡±


    Natasha did not dare let her guard down in front of her maids. They might seem like loyal subjects but they were itching to kill her.


    Natasha had no idea how her mind knew all this but she did not dare doubt herself.


    It was better to be safe than to be sorry right now.


    ¡°Mydy. We didunch an investigation regarding the ¡®Mystic Pearl¡¯. From our investigation, one of the tower¡¯s team has the said team.¡±


    ¡°Which team is it?¡±


    ¡°W-Well, the one that saved us.¡±


    Of course, it was. Natasha should not be surprised at any coincidence that happened right now.


    She was not someone who had studied magic or the abyss extensively but even she knew that this ce had a will of its own. It did what it wanted to.


    And any spell that was cast using the abyss magic was special.


    ¡°What are the chances that we can steal this ¡®Mystic Pearl¡¯ from the tower team?¡±


    Natasha knew she should not take action on her own but she wanted to try. She had a golden opportunity to help Aurora and Rita out.


    ¡°Not very likely. It is being guarded heavily by Lord Quince. Going against him is not something I would advise mydy to do.¡±


    Natasha had no intention of going against Quince either.


    Rita had asked her to vary of Quince. He was someone whomanded respect. But there was something about him that put people on the edge.


    Not to mention, he was the sessor of the tower. Any problem created with him will drag the tower into this mess.


    And Natasha was old enough to know that this was not a good idea on her part. She had to think about the Northern Republic even if this was a trial.


    ¡°Leave it be. And leave me alone as well. I want to sleep now.¡±


    Natasha waited until she could not feel her maid¡¯s presence. Only then did she open her system and gathered the courage to send a message.


    Rita had taught her how to use the system for basicmunication but Natasha still felt worried about messing up.


    [Natasha: My maids found out the location of the ¡®Mystic Pearl¡¯. It is being guarded by Quince.]


    Natasha gulped her nervousness down when no reply came in the first five minutes. She was getting a feeling that she did something wrong in sending the message.


    [Aurora: Understood. I will try to get him to speak. You sit back and rx now.]


    Natasha felt her body go ck when she read the message Aurora had sent. She was not sure why but she felt like things would be alright now.


    Aurora just gave off that feeling that she would take care of everything.


    When Natasha finally fell asleep, it was with a sigh of relief.


    ===========================


    Of course, not everyone was this lucky at night. And Rita was one of those who¡¯s night was getting worse and worse by the second.


    ¡°Quince, what are you doing thiste at night? Don¡¯t you have work or something?¡±

 Chapter 108

    Oncer Aurora had left Rita and Natasha alone, the pair did not know what they should do next.


    In retrospect, Aurora was their leader and also the one who had the most idea of what was going on in this trial.


    ¡°I should get going as well. I don¡¯t know what would happen if the tower find out I was here. I am still under prohibition.¡±


    Out of everyone present in the trial, Rita was in the most difficult situation. Since she was someone who had been sent as the backup by the tower, she was not trusted by the party.


    And Rita was sure she would be cornered by Quince sooner rather thanter.


    ¡°Alright. Take care of yourself.¡±


    Rita nodded along before she left the safety of the medical hall. She did not want to go to sleep just yet so Rita decided to roam around for some time.


    And that was when she a head full of golden hair top-towing around the camp. The familiar silhouette caused Rita to try and investigate why Quince was sneaking around the base.


    ¡°Quince, what are you doing thiste at night? Don¡¯t you have work or something?¡±


    The blind turned toward Rita with a stone-cold face. He had a shining stone in his hand which he quickly sneaked back into his coat.


    But Rita had already seen it a feeling inside told her that this was their objective. That must be the ¡®Mystic Peral¡¯ the trial wanted them to retrieve.


    ¡°You don¡¯t been to worry about why I am out here. I just wanted to take a stroll and get my thoughts in order. You should go ahead and return to your room.¡±


    Quince sounded like he was not in a mood to talk with Rita. he was hiding something for sure.


    But Rita knew pushing the man right now would not be a good idea on her part. Patience was a virtue that was very helpful in these situations.


    ¡°I see. If that¡¯s the case then I should retire for the night. Have a good day ahead.¡±


    The golden-haired man narrowed his eyes at Rita but he did not contradict her words.


    Rita tried to feel for the pearl¡¯s energy by Quince¡¯s natural energy cut Rita¡¯s attempts off. And just like that, she ended the encounter with the best news she could have.


    ===========================


    Aurora woke up the next morning alone. Clove seemed to have left the bed already which brought about a wave of disappointment and relief in Aurora.


    As much as she wanted a normal rtionship, this was the worst time for Aurora to be caught up in her feelings.


    Being alone made it easy for Aurora to slip out and head toward the meeting ce she had set up with Natasha and Rita yesterday.


    It was easier to sneak into Natasha¡¯s room this time around. It seemed as if her maids had decided to abandon her security and Aurora only had to walk in.


    Rita was already in the room when Aurora arrived and her expression was filled with relief.


    ¡°Did you get my message yesterday?¡±


    Rita asked as soon as she spotted Aurora. She did not even give Aurora room to breathe before she begin her interrogation.


    ¡°Of course, I got your message. But Quince is going to be a problem. Knowing him, the pearl must no longer be in his grasp.¡±


    Aurora knew her old-time friend. Something important like ¡®Mystic Pearl¡¯ would no longer be with him. He must have shipped it to the tower already.


    ¡°I asked my maids to check around and found out that the next delivery for the tower will be let out in the afternoon. That will be our best chance to swipe the pearl off.¡±


    ¡°But we will need a big distraction to make our n work. Any ideas on how to do that?¡±


    Natasha¡¯s informationwork looked strong. If her words were to be believed, the group had a lot less time than they had originally anticipated having. Aurora did not mind this change in n.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the distraction part. We are in the abyss and there are many beasts we can use to our advantage. We just need to make sure we drag one out to attack the pick-up.¡±


    Aurora knew that she could not make a scene during the trade-off. But everything after was a fair deal in her book.


    She was not looking to kill the onesing to pick up the pearl but she was not going to pretend that no one will die.


    Sacrifices were a must to survive and Aurora was just following the natural order.


    ¡°I can lead the beast over. Natasha, it will be best if you stay out of this trouble for now. We don¡¯t know what getting you involved could mean for the Northern Republic.¡±


    The excited princess visibly dropped at Rita¡¯s words. She had wanted to help but her circumstances prevented her from doing much.


    ¡°It will be for the best. Even if you are in an adult body and have knowledge of how to use your powers, youck experience. If you feel frustrated then channel it into your energy and learn to do better once you go back.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s words sparked a new light inside Natasha. The princess¡¯s eyes shined with new determination at her words.


    It might have been a sign of momentary courage the princess had received but it warmed Aurora to see that she was able to influence the princess to such a degree.


    ¡°Rita, you will need a head-start if you want to get to the beast. Be careful of the tower patrol and be sessful.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to tell me that. I will be back soon with good news.¡±


    Rita left the scene quietly. Aurora also didn¡¯t linger any longer inside the medical bay.


    Aurora had already shunned her duties quite enough. She remembered that there used to be meetings Aurora used to head to during this time but Aurora had not done that quite in some time.


    ¡°Aurora, are you hiding something from me? This is the second time I¡¯ve seen you wander around aimlessly. You can tell me anything you want to.¡±


    And of course, it was just Aurora¡¯s luck to have a run-in with Clove right as she exited the medical bay.


    Why did these things always happen to her when she least expected them to? Now, what kind of excuse could Aurora give Clove to get her off Aurora¡¯s back? And how much of it will Clove believe this time?


    If any news got to Quince then Aurora¡¯s n would not take ce.

 Chapter 109

    ¡°Aurora, are you hiding something from me? This is the second time I¡¯ve seen you wander around aimlessly. You can tell me anything you want to.¡±


    Aurora knew she was sweating bullets as Clove interrogated her. Aurora had never been able to lie sessfully to her wife and it seemed like this would not be any better either.


    ¡°I¡­That is to say¡­I was feeling a little pain in my back so I decided toe here and get myself checked out. I did not look for you since I knew you were busy.¡±


    Aurora had a lot of lies she could have told but remembered the best one right in the nick of time.


    ¡°Oh, and what did the doctor say?¡±


    ¡°I could not find her so I decided to head back. And then I ran into you.¡±


    Thankfully, Aurora had a handy system that could sense the doctor¡¯s current location and she seemed to have entered Natasha¡¯s room to check up on her.


    Even if Clove was to feel for the doctor, she would not be able to conclude that Aurora had lied about this topic.


    ¡°Is that so? If it is something like this then you should have told me before. I got worried for nothing.¡±


    Aurora felt warm as she heard those words. It always felt good to hear Clove talk about her lovingly. It reassured Aurora that Clove cared about her a great deal.


    ¡°Come on. I just told you that I did not want to disturb you so I kept my pains to myself. What are you doing here anyway?¡±


    Now that Aurora thought back, it was not often that love came to look for her during working hours. It was mostly Aurora that did the chasing around.


    ¡°Ah, about that. I wanted to retrieve you for the exchange of goods but if you¡¯re not feeling well then you should rest. I will tell Quince that you are not feeling well right now.¡±


    ¡°NO.¡± Aurora took in a deep breath to calm herself before continuing. ¡°There is no need for you to do that. I am well enough to see the exchange through.¡±


    Aurora was afraid to miss the exchange. There was so much that could go wrong that it was not even funny.


    ¡°Alright. I got it. I will not ask you to site out of this exchange. But do take it easy. I¡¯ll be there soon enough.¡±


    Clove¡¯s gentle words caused Aurora to sigh in relief. It seemed as if Clove had not taken her outburst seriously. It was reassuring for Aurora.


    ¡°I should take care of a few more things so I¡¯ll be heading out now. I¡¯ll see you at the exchange spot.¡±


    Aurora had a weird feeling as she watched Clove walk off. It felt like she would not see the blond-haired girl for a long time.


    But Aurora was not able to find an excuse to hold on to Clove and the blond-haired girl disappeared into the medical hall soon.


    ===========================


    The exchange center was full of as much cheer and livelihood as Aurora remembered. It was a much-awaited chance to get resourced for the exploration team.


    As such, no one wanted to make any mistake while they waited for the cargo ship to descend into the abyss. It was made specially to withstand abyss conditions.


    No matter how many times Aurora saw it, she was still in awe of therge cargo ship the tower had built to make transportation easier inside the abyss.


    ¡°System, scam the ship¡¯s blueprints. I need even the smallest detail avable.¡±


    Aurora had not thought of this as an opportunity initially but it was a good chance to get her hands on some ssified data. She could hand it over to the ounders to make changes.


    Sooner orter, Aurora would have to invest in such gear. So it was lucky that she got her hands on such important information this early on.


    ¡°Why are you looking at the cargo ship like it¡¯s your first time? Go ahead and supervise the exchange.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s good mood ended as soon as she heard Quince¡¯s voice. He seemed irritated and also a little cranky.


    It was likely due to all the stress that was piling up on top of his head. There were too many incidents around this time and Quince had been appointed as the team leader.


    Aurora did understand his worries and she even sympathies with him. But that did not mean that she liked him.


    ¡°I¡¯m still injured so I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be of much use. It¡¯s better to send someone who can ¡®handle¡¯ this role.¡±


    ¡°Aurora, stop making excuses and go help out. Don¡¯t pretend to be helpless when Clove isn¡¯t even here.¡±


    Aurora rolled her eyes in irritation but she did get to work. There was no reasoning with Quince when he was in such a mood.


    [Rita: Everything is ready. I am ready to initiate the n as soon as you want me to]


    Aurora tried to keep the grin off her face but she failed to do so.


    Excitement coursed through her body as Aurora waited for the real show to begin. She had taken precautions against the monster and also thought of the routes to take once the monsters arrived on the scene.


    As soon as the ground started shaking, Aurora knew that it was time. The monster had been lured over already and now began the show.


    ¡°R-Run away and save your lives. It¡¯s the leviathan, the floor boss. We¡¯ll be killed if we stay here any longer.¡±


    Aurora paused before she felt her face go white.


    Out of everything Rita could have chosen to bring over, she chose the floor boss? There was a reason the party was stuck on this floor and it was because they did not have enough confidence to be able to take the floor boss yet.


    Just what was Rita thinking by bringing such a powerful monster after her?


    ¡°Aurora, set up a defensive formation. Get as many people to safety in the cargo ship as you can. As soon as you take them to the upper floor it doesn¡¯t matter if the cargo survives.¡±


    Quince¡¯s voice cut through Aurora¡¯s panic. He sounded calm even in such a situation which indicated why he had been chosen as the party leader.


    ¡®This is a trial. This is not real so you do not need to worry.¡¯


    Currently, that was the only thought inside Aurora¡¯s mind that was keeping her going. And it was only because of this thought that Aurora gathered the courage and turned her head toward the cargo.


    She needed to find the mystic pearl and end this trial.

 Chapter 110

    Alexander stepped in front of the tower where Aurora¡¯s signal wasing from. It had taken him a long time to take care of everything else and get here.


    But no matter where he looked, he was not able to find any trace of his party members.


    [User alert. Presence of strong abysmal magic detected.


    Scanning¡­..Presence of a Trial detected. Would the user like to take part in the ongoing trial?]


    Alexander gave his system a look of betrayal. But he couldn¡¯t me it for the problem he had run into.


    Alexander could feel the strong magic spells that had been used all over the emergency tower. The caster had been strong to make all this possible.


    Had he been alone, Alexander would have risked trying to clear out the spells and head inside the tower. But if Aurora had chosen to take the trial then it meant that this was not optional.


    That was the only reason Alexander did not hesitate to walk into the darkness and instantly found himself inside an emerald cave.


    The space around Alexander felt like an abyss but he was sure this was not the real abyss. This must be a ce that was created by the trial spell with the help of the abyss magic.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see. The first thing I should do is to find those other three and¡­¡±


    Alexander paused as he heard his voice. It sounded deeper and his body felt weaker than he was used to as well.


    He quickly took out a metallic te in his inventory and looked over his face.


    Much to his shock, he looked a few years older and skinnier. He had no idea what kind of curse or magic was capable of doing this but Alexander had a bad feeling about it.


    ¡°I need to find those three and I need to hurry up. I hate feeling vulnerable like this.¡±


    Alexander quickly opened his map to look where the rest of his party was. Only to stop short as soon as he noticed Rita heading his way at a really fast speed.


    Alexander had a bad feeling about his current position and he was proven right as soon as Rita emerged from the cave she had been in.


    And she was far from alone. She had a gigantic water-snake chasing after her.


    ¡°Rita, what did you do?¡±


    Alexander cried out before he started running as well. He was not capable of taking on such a challenge in his current state and he had no idea what was going on around him either.


    ¡°You? What are you doing here? No, let¡¯s talk about thatter. For now, let¡¯s run.¡±


    ===========================


    Rita had a n she wanted to follow. She had chosen a rtively harmless water monster as her target and she was ready to make it follow her.


    Rita had a small bait ball in hand to get the monster out and then attack. She had calcted everything and then fired her magic as soon as she felt the monstere near.


    But fate had other ideas for her since she didn¡¯t hit the intended monster but the boss of theke instead.


    ¡°Fuck. I knew I should have looked for a monster much further than the boss cave.¡±


    But even as Rita admitted that fact, she had no other choice but to head for the boss¡¯s room. The other hoards were either too far away or too weak to be of any use to Rita.


    She quickly took the route she had nned and entered the emerald room. It was the room just before the boss and would lead her to the cargo bay.


    ¡°Rita, what did you do?¡±


    Rita thought she was hallucinating for a second as she heard the familiar voice. But it did turn out to be Alexander.


    The man looked a little older than Rita remembered him being and he felt really weak to her senses. She was not sure why he hade here in such a condition but Rita did not want to see him die.


    ¡°You? What are you doing here? No, let¡¯s talk about thatter. For now, let¡¯s run.¡±


    Rita quickly fired off a spell to get the Leviathan¡¯s attack off track. It barely made a dent but the fang did miss the duo.


    ¡°Hurry, this way. We need a way to make him break the surface.¡±


    Rita quickly summarised the situation. There was not much time for sitting around and talking about the n.


    ¡°That is easy for you to say. If I stop then I will die.¡±


    Aurora did not disagree with Alexander on this topic. His weak magical aura did make it seem like he would be killed off if even the smallest of pressure was exerted over him.


    But that also gave Rita another idea.


    ¡°Alexander, take the right turn at the junction. If the boss doesn¡¯t follow you then try to make the ceiling cave in.¡±


    Rita was sure that the beast would only follow her if she red her aura. If even she was having trouble sensing Alexnader then the beast must not be able to follow him as well.


    ¡°Is my aura that weak?¡±


    Alexander caught up fast on Rita¡¯s thoughts and he looked disgusted to know the n. But he did not disagree with Rita.


    At the next junction, the Leviathan followed after Rita and the pair finally got their chance to drag the boss out into the open.


    Alexander quickly fired off the explosives he was used to carrying around and the ceiling came crashing down on top of the huge beast.


    The beast thrashed around in agony. Its huge head snapped toward the ceiling and it cried out in pain.


    But it did not take it long to follow along the cracked ceiling and smack into it. The Leviathan didn¡¯t have much of a brain and it could not figure out Rita¡¯s n.


    And when it finally broke the surface did Rita breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, the monster was out in the open.


    ¡°So, are you going to tell me the status report now? Or do I need to guess what we need to do to pass this trial?¡±


    Rita gathered her thoughts and gave out the smaller version of events. But Alexander was pretty much caught up on things once Rita finished exining them.


    ¡°I understand. All we need to do is to get the ¡®Mystic Pearl, right? I¡¯ll see what I can do about it.¡±


    Rita did not try to stop the man. Their n had already gone off-trail as soon as the boss had decided to follow after Rita. things could not get any worse than this.

 Chapter 111

    Things can go wrong in a second. It was something Aurora had known forever.


    But standing in the middle of the tower group and waiting for the huge Leviathan to crash into the surface was not something Aurora had expected to encounter so early on.


    ¡°Hurry and run away. What are you doing?¡±


    Aurora did want to move but her brain went nk in the span of a single moment. She could not remember what she was supposed to do.


    ¡°Aurora, set up a defensive formation. Get as many people to safety in the cargo ship as you can. As soon as you take them to the upper floor it doesn¡¯t matter if the cargo survives. Hurry up.¡±


    Aurora could hear Quince¡¯smand but she could not follow it no matter how hard she tried to.


    Her magic was boiling over inside her and Aurora could feel it fighting against the curse. It wanted to burst out and take care of things for her.


    And amidst all this rampage, the huge body of the beast did not stop descending.


    ¡°Mydy, wait. We need to go to safety first.¡±


    ck hair obstructed Aurora¡¯s vision and a hand firmly gripped Aurora¡¯s face. No one paid attention to this scene.


    ¡°Stop looking so spaced out. We can still solve this situation if we get our hands on the ¡®Mystic Pearl.''¡± Aurora felt a sting in her cheek and it was enough to drop her out of her daze.


    ¡°Mydy. You should not mingle with the tower¡¯s soldiers. Let¡¯s hurry up and leave.¡±


    It was Natasha that had taken the initiative to snap Aurora out of her daze. She was also the one who had dragged Aurora out of the Leviathan¡¯s attack range.


    ¡°No. We are not running away from here. Even if we run now, I¡¯m sure the Leviathan will not let us go. We should fight.¡±


    Aurora felt shocked at Natasha¡¯s deration and so did everyone else.


    ¡°M-Mydy, what are you saying? We can¡¯t risk you like this.¡±


    ¡°R-Right. You should go and we will stay behind to fight.¡±


    The maids tried to console Natasha but she seemed to have made up her mind. And Aurora felt her thoughts gather at Natasha¡¯s determination as well.


    ¡°You¡¯re right. We cannot run away from this situation. I¡¯m sorry, I just got lost in my emotions and froze up. Here is the new n. I will distract the Leviathan and angle Quince toward you. You should try to take the ¡®Mystic Pearl from him.¡±


    Aurora would have proposed to do it herself but she knew Quince would not let his guard down around her.


    Natasha was their best shot at getting the pearl from the blond.


    ¡°I understand. I will do my best.¡±


    Natasha looked worried but also determined. And Aurora had a feeling that things would be alright.


    ¡°System, give me a list of everything I can do in my current state. Do not leave anything out.¡±


    Aurora quickly gathered her remaining magic power and set up a defensive array. All that thrashing around was not allowing anyone to approach the Leviathan. It would take killing the huge beast difficult.


    [Due to special circumstances, the user is allowed ess to their basic powers. The user is advised to use this opportunity well.]


    Aurora felt her magic return in a burst and she quickly banished her weapon. As a result, her mobility made it easier for Aurora tond the first bleed on the Leviathan.


    But the huge beast was not going to get done that easily.


    ¡°Aurora, have you recovered enough? I¡¯ll take the right side and you take the left. I asked Clove to see through the recovery process so she¡¯ll not be able to assist us.¡±


    ¡°I can take the left side for the offense. Let¡¯s take this beast down.¡±


    It was far easier to fall back into the rhythm Aurora had been used to. Quince was a really good fighter and he covered Aurora¡¯s blind spots perfectly. It was really easy for Aurora to keep her attention on the beast.


    But she also had to look for the perfect opportunity to sabotage Quince and make him fall toward Natasha.


    ¡°Aurora, pay attention.¡±


    Aurora felt the Leviathan¡¯s tail smack her toward the pool. Aurora felt her back smack into the water and her body began to struggle to get back up.


    Quince had not been spared either. But he was flung in the opposite direction.


    If Aurora¡¯s wounds were anything to go by, then Quince would not be able to stand for some time either.


    If Natasha took this opportunity to get things rolling then this trail was as good as over.


    ¡°Aurora, don¡¯t fall asleep yet.¡±


    Aurora felt someone grab a hold of her and pull her back up. She could make out ck hair and a cold expression in front of her.


    The person holding Aurora up was taking her toward the surface of theke. It was a short swim but Aurora had a sinking feeling inside her heart.


    ¡°Are you alright? Can you breathe properly?¡±


    It was Natasha that hade to Aurora¡¯s rescue. The foolish girl had prioritized Aurora¡¯s safety over going for the ¡®Mystic Pearl.¡¯


    ¡°Why are you making that face? You should be grateful that I saved your life.¡±


    Aurora was grateful to Natasha for saving her life but that did not mean she had to like her circumstances.


    ¡°Idiot. You should have gone after Quince. We missed a perfect opportunity to get our hands on that pearl.¡±


    Aurora was disappointed but she was not angry. How could she be when Natasha hade to save her even after everything?


    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t worry so much about it. After all, we have other capablepanions on our side. You need to believe in them.¡±


    Aurora opened her mouth and closed it again as she heard Natasha¡¯s words.


    Natasha was not wrong and what was done cannot be changed now. It was up to Rita to take care of this mess.


    Hopefully, the redhead would have picked up on the situation and decided to help out on her own.


    [Trialpleted. Trial space will expire in 1 minute.]


    ¡°See? I told you ourpanions will take care of everything for us.¡±


    Aurora felt a tried smile slip over her face. She felt relief at the trial finally being over. Maybe she should not have doubted Rita after all.


    The space faded from around the pair and Aurora found herself in front of the Northern Pce gate in her smaller body.


    Rita and Natasha were there as well. But the most surprising one there was Alexander who had a small pearl in his hand.


    ¡°I cannot believe I just did that.¡±

 Chapter 112

    Rita and Alexander cheered as soon as the Leviathan broke the surface and jumped up.


    ¡°So, since we are done with this n, what¡¯s the next step?¡±


    Alexander asked as soon as he reached a safe spot. His body hurt from all the moment and he could not help but curse his weak constitution.


    Why was he so weak all of a sudden? He had trained hard to get to where he had been outside of the trial? What kind of trial was this to render him powerless like this?


    ¡°The next part? It¡¯s for Aurora to try and snag the ¡®Mystic Pearl¡¯ back from Quince. Our part here is done.¡±


    ¡°But still. Shouldn¡¯t we go up there to keep an eye on things? I can¡¯t help but feel worried for some reason.¡±


    Alexander did not know why he felt such a disturbance in the force. His instincts had always been sharp so he wanted to follow them.


    But still, if Aurora had asked Rita to stay away after doing this task, he did not want to interfere. He did not want to spoil her n.


    ¡°Aurora did not ask me to keep away so I was about to head out and coborate in the relief efforts. You can apany me so that people don¡¯t ask you questions.¡±


    Alexander nodded and followed after Rita.


    The scene in front of him looked nostalgic to him. People were running about to try and save their lives from the huge monster. Alexander had participated in such raiders as well when he had been in the tower.


    At that time, he had been a coward who could not do much but run away so he had been just like those losers.


    ¡°Hey, what are you doing? Hurry up and run away.¡±


    A soldier grabbed Alexander¡¯s arm and he might have broken it had the soldier not run away just as fast as he hade.


    Rita had also disappeared from the crown and Alexander was left to fend for himself.


    Above the huge crowd, Alexander could make out two forms going toe-to-toe with the Leviathan. It was a magnificent sight to see for most people.


    Too bad, the soldiers were not interested to stop around and marvel at the disy of their powers.


    ¡°He¡¯s still as good as before. But Quince looks older. Is this a result of the trial as well?¡±


    Quince had been someone who Alexander had considered a ¡®friend¡¯ a long time ago. Alexander¡¯s father had been a regr to the tower and Quince had befriended a young Quince.


    But that had been a tentative friendship and had not withstood the trials of time. And as was natural in such rtionships, the two parties drifted apart after some time.


    Alexander watched as the huge tail of the Leviathan came crashing down on both parties and send them flying in different directions.


    Aurora fell toward theke while Quince was sent flying quite close to Alexander. It was a prime opportunity for him to take possession of the ¡®Mystic Pearl.¡¯


    Alexander had expected Quince to be knocked out after taking such a huge attack right in the face but the man was still clinging to consciousness.


    It was a valent effort but wasted. With all the injuries on the blond¡¯s body, there was no way he would be able to fight anytime soon.


    ¡°Don¡¯t try to stand up. Otherwise, you will aggravate your injuries.¡±


    Quince¡¯s head snapped toward Alexander with a ferocious look. His burning eyes cast a scalding look toward Alexander.


    But it was ignored much to the blond¡¯s dismay.


    ¡°What do you want? Why did you not leave with the troops? I ordered everyone to leave me behind. You¡¯re too weak to be of any use on the battleground anyway.¡±


    Quince sounded mad but also worried. It was a weird mixture to see on that face. Alexander felt those words jab at his pride.


    How dare Quince call him weak? The blond did not even know what all Alexander went through or how good he was.


    Quince was just making excuses now and it was pathetic to see.


    ¡°I just want something from you. I¡¯ll leave as soon as you hand the pearl over to me.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t. If that is all then you can leave now.¡±


    Quince did not even hear Alexander out before he denied it. The disrespect caused Alexander¡¯s face to cken and heshed out.


    ¡°You! What are you doing? Don¡¯t you know who I am?¡±


    ¡°I know who you are. I just don¡¯t care about you much right now. So sit here and rot.¡±


    Alexander quickly aimed for the spot where he could feel the pearl¡¯s energying from. It was a swift take on his part but left Quince speechless.


    Alexander would have enjoyed this encounter had it not been because of the trial. The look on Quince¡¯s face was priceless.


    ¡°That¡¯s a good look on your face. Lost and not knowing what to do next. I should pull a few more stunts like this in the future to keep you on your toes. Too bad you¡¯re 13 right now or I would have toyed around with you more.¡±


    ¡°Wait, what are you¡­¡±


    But Quince never finished his words before Alexander caused the magic pearl to burst. The background began to fade to ck as soon as Alexander did that.


    ¡°You just wait. We¡¯re not finished yet.¡±


    Alexander¡¯s voice sounded threatening but it was nothing more than an empty threat. Both parties knew that Alexander could not do anything right now.


    ¡°I cannot believe I just did that.¡±


    Were Alexander¡¯s first words when he came back around. He had never thought he would get to meet Quince again, much less under these circumstances.


    ¡°Alexander? Did you get caught up in the trial as well? How lucky that you managed to get the mission aplished.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s voice washed over Quince¡¯s lingering worried and he quickly came back around to his senses.


    ¡°Ah, yes. How lucky indeed. I guess it¡¯s time to forget all this and get going.¡±


    Alexander inserted the pearl into the tiny spherical hole located at the side of the main door.


    The door shook and shined white before it opened up slowly. They were finally entering the Royal Pce and they were going to steal from the Northern Republic.


    It was a tall order but it brought a sense of excitement inside Alexander¡¯s heart. He could see simr looks of anticipation on Aurora and Rita¡¯s faces as well.


    ¡°I can guide you from here. And also, wee to my home.¡±


    Natasha bowed to them but her words were cold and emotionless still. They send a chill down Alexander¡¯s spine.

 Chapter 113

    ¡°You just wait. We¡¯re not finished yet.¡±


    Quince tried to reach out to the familiar silhouette but he was unable to. The magic energy around him was vivid and itshed out at him.


    The next time he opened his eyes, he was sleeping inside his room. It seemed as if he just had a vivid dream he could not shake off.


    He had seen that blue-haireddy as well as herpanion in his dream as well.


    But the offset things had been his and Clove¡¯s game. They appeared to be older than their current self.


    ¡°Quince, can Ie in? I have some things I want to discuss with you.¡±


    It was Clove who asked. It irked him how she ignored all social antiquated and sought him out in the middle of the night.


    It would not be a problem for her but Quince would be left with a tone of rumors to clear in her name. He dreaded thinking about the nagging he will have to face because of this.


    ¡°What is it, Clove? Can it not wait until morning? And how many times do I need to tell you not toe here at night?¡±


    ¡°Oh, and now you¡¯re threatening me? I guess you don¡¯t care if I let some of your matters slip past my lips. I wonder how your father would¡­¡±


    ¡°Shut up ande inside.¡±


    As soon as Clove began those words Quince opened his door and dragged her inside. He could not allow her to speak her mind in the open like that.


    ¡°Do you know how many rumors will work because of yourte-night visit? I just curbed thest batch.¡±


    ¡°That is your problem. What do these rumors have to do with me?¡±


    Quince had to remind himself that he could not hurt Clove. Not only will his father kill him but it will also require a lot of post-cleanup.


    Sometimes Quince hated his life.


    ¡°Not only did I have to be tortured by you in real life but also my dreams. Why did you get to enjoy life with your lover while I had to work so hard? Even my Pearl got taken in the end.¡±


    ¡°Wait. What did you say about that dream?¡±


    Quince was not aware he had been babbling out loud. But the shocked expression on Clove¡¯s face told Quince that something he has said has sparked her interest.


    ¡°Sorry, I was babbling. I just had a weird dream today.¡±


    ¡°You too, huh? Were you older and in the abyss as well?¡±


    ¡°You too?¡±


    It could have been a coincidence that Quince and Clove have the same dream but it did not feel like that.


    It felt more like dream magic to Quince. And advance dream magic at that. It had even given Quince feelings he should not have had.


    ¡°So, what else did you do in your dream? Weren¡¯t you with Aurora most of the time?¡±


    Quince had asked a generic question but Clove went red at his words. And suddenly, Quince realized that he did not want to know what Aurora and Clove did in that dream.


    Ignorance was bliss after all.


    ===========================


    The Northern Pce was as cold as Aurora had expected it to be. But the hallway was tastefully decorated and had an aura filled with magic. The pce represented its history well.


    ¡°So, do we have any idea where we are going or are we wandering around aimlessly?¡±


    Rita was brave to ask this question. Aurora could tell that she was bored and did not regard the Northern Pce as anything special.


    ¡°Of course, I know where we are going. But even I don¡¯t know the pce inside out. That¡¯s why I am taking you to somece where you can get the map of this pce.¡±


    ¡°And where might this pce be?¡±


    ¡°My head maid¡¯s room. She might be called the ¡®head maid¡¯ but she¡¯s the one in charge of most operations going on inside this empire. Even as a republic state, the power in the royal family¡¯s hands can not be ignored.¡±


    Aurora had to give it to Natasha. She was as far from an ignorant brat as she could be. Aurora had underestimated her.


    And what she said about her head maid also made sense.


    The royal family could not be ignored in the Northern Republic. It was a symbol of power and protection. And the head maid sounded like someone who knew all this and was taking advantage of this fact.


    ¡°We¡¯re here. I will go and distract her for now. You should take this opportunity to clean her room out.¡±


    Natasha knocked at the room door and the party hid behind the corner. Rita had cast an invisibility spell but it was not a strong one. All the trio could do was to keep quiet and keep themselves hidden.


    The study door opened slowly and Aurora held her breath.


    ¡°Mydy? What are you doing here thiste at night? Did you have a nightmare? Would you like toe in?¡±


    ¡°No. Actually, I came to ask you if you can take me out for a walk. I am unable to find anyone else to take me.¡±


    Aurora felt all her expectations dash as soon as her eyesnded on the small and fragiledy kneeling in front of Natasha.


    Had she not heard what the true colors of thisdy were, Aurora would not have believed her to be the master maniptor Natasha imed her to be.


    ¡°She looks so normal and weak. I bet I can blow her head out even from here.¡±


    Rita¡¯s words sounded amused. Aurora had a feeling that Rita might follow through on her words if he was not stopped right now.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be an idiot and cause a scene right now. We cannot afford to drag other maids here.¡±


    Aurora agreed with Alexander¡¯s assessment of the situation.


    Besides, she also found it odd that the security around the royal pce was thisx. It was asking for all kinds of trouble, right?


    ¡°Alexander, you go and follow after Natasha. I¡¯m a little worried about her. Rita, let¡¯sb the study for anything useful inside.¡±


    ¡°Sure.¡±


    Alexander disappeared in a swirl. The invisibility spell he had cats was much stronger than Rita¡¯s but it also came with its limitations.


    With the owner of the study out, it was prime time for Aurora and Rita to get to work.


    They finally slipped past the door and Aurora felt no magic run around her. But she did feel someone push her into the door and a pair of lips on her own.

 Chapter 114

    ¡°Wow. somehow this room feels even colder from the outside hallway. How do the people of the republic live in such a cold environment? They don¡¯t even use magic to keep themselves warm.¡±


    Rita was not wrong in saying that the head maid¡¯s room was colder than the outside corridor. But somehow, it matched the esthetic of the interiors.


    It was difficult for Aurora to exin, but the marble dding walls as well as the abundance of blue and white in the walls made the room seem colder than it was.


    ¡°Rita, don¡¯t joke around. We need to find the map of this ce and then get out. We don¡¯t know how long Natasha will be able to stall the head maid for.¡±


    If possible, Aurora did not want to face the guards of the Northern Pce andplicate her rtionship with the others.


    ¡°I know. But I¡¯m doing this to curb my worries. I mean, what if the head maid knew about Natasha running away? I know it¡¯s not been long but there is that possibility.¡±


    Of course, that was a possibility. It had crossed Aurora¡¯s mind that they might be getting yed with but somehow she was not worried.


    ¡°I trust Alexander to keep up his end of the mission. We should focus on our side for now.¡±


    ¡°Alright. If that is what you want then I¡¯ll not bring this topic up again.¡±


    Aurora was not avoiding this topic. She just knew that there was nothing more to talk about. Finishing this topic was for the best.


    Aurora got started on sorting the documents. The room was well organized but it was a mesh of digital and hand-written documents.


    Many of the pages Aurora found deeper in the chest were old and fragile. They looked like they would copse at a single touch.


    ¡°Sheesh. Who keeps these important documents like this? And why did someone leave chests open with ack of security? It¡¯s as if they do not care whether someone walks in or not.¡±


    Aurora had noticed that as well. All the chests in the head maid¡¯s room were unlocked and could be easily essed.


    It was almost like the head maid did not care if someone found her secrets of her or not.


    What gave her this much confidence? It worried Aurora to see this.


    ¡°Here. is this the map? Look, it has Natasha¡¯s family crest. I wonder what kind of bird this is.¡±


    Rita held the piece of paper in front of her. It was an old and fragile thing that was falling apart.


    The back of the paper held a faint imprint of a majestic bird about to take flight. Its unique three tails magnificently circled the huge body. It was truly one of a kind bird.


    ¡°It¡¯s a phoenix. The northern family¡¯s house symbol has always been a phoenix. It is said that their symbol was adopted just as the abyss descended onto this world. They were one of the oldest aristocratic families that still hold the secrets of the ¡®old world¡¯ with them.¡±


    ¡°Old world? Isn¡¯t that just a myth? No one has been able to prove its existence for a long time now. Does it exist?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    The Old World was folklore nowadays. It was a name given to the world before the abyss. It was believed to be a prosperousnd without magic and technology.


    But so much time had passed that everything that belonged to those old times had been eradicated. To prove its existence now was impossible.


    ¡°Anyway, what should we do with this map? I¡¯m too afraid to even touch it because I feel like it will crumble.¡±


    Rita held the map tenderly away from her. Aurora could tell why she was worried about the old paper


    Time had taken its toll on the poor paper.


    ¡°I¡¯ll get it scanned by the system and prepare a 3-D copy. We canpare with the existing data we have and then decide what our next move should be.¡±


    Aurora quickly got to work. Her system was back online so it did not take long for her to make the necessary preparations.


    ¡°It¡¯s time to get out of here. Let¡¯s go and get our other two party members.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s¡±


    Aurora opened the door but the corridor was not empty. nk-faced maids filled the hallway and blocked the pair.


    ¡°You are under arrest for breaking the Northern Pce. Fighting back will be taken as a sign of struggle and you will be charged for that.¡±


    The maid in front of the group seemed fearless. She was standing tall and her nk eyes looked Aurora right in the face.


    Somehow, that cold tone and uncaring attitude reminded Aurora of Natasha. It was simr in feel but the intention waspletely different.


    ¡°Right. Rita, change of ns. We¡¯ll be breaking into Royal Pce for real now.¡±


    ¡°I was waiting for you to say that. Let¡¯s show these people who is the boss.¡±


    Even before Aurora had finished speaking, Rita had a fireball ready in her hand. But this is not any fireball.


    It was the smoke-screen one that would allow the pair to quickly flee the scene.


    But despite the smoke, the maids did not look worried at all. Her cold eyes snapped toward Aurora and she had a feeling that something was going to happen.


    Aurora managed to get her spear out in time to block the ax being aimed at her. The delicate-looking maid swung the heavy object toward Aurora again.


    ¡°Fuck this. I¡¯m not holding back. My familiar made of shadow, heed my call.¡±


    A giant wolf cut the space between Aurora and the maid. It stopped the maid and herpanions short every time they tried to take a step toward Aurora.


    ¡°Hurry up and run. That shadow puppet will only be able to take so much. We need to find Alexander and Natasha before everyone bes alert about our presence.¡±


    Rita held Aurora¡¯s hand and pulled her away from themotion. The shadow wolf covered their tracks.


    It felt wrong to run away from a fight like this but this was the best approach for their group.


    As much as Aurora hated to admit it, Natasha was in a hostage situation so rescuing her would be their priority.


    ¡°Darn it. They areing from another route. Aurora, we should split up here. Alexander will get Natasha out somehow.¡±


    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll send him a message about what he has to do. I will trust him.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s separate on the next node. I¡¯ll meet up in the weapon¡¯s room.¡±


    Aurora did not disagree and when the next corridor came, Aurora took the right turn.

 Chapter 115

    The head maid¡¯s hand felt cold in Natasha¡¯s grip. The grip made Natasha afraid for some unknown reason but she did not know why she felt such fear.


    Was it because Natasha was trying to keep a big secret from the head maid? She had never really lied to someone like this.


    ¡°What is wrong, princess? Is there something you wanted to tell me?¡±


    The head maid¡¯s voice was sweet and innocent. The gentle expression on her face was a forced facade Natasha was used to by now.


    Even today, it showed nothing but the face of a kind and gentle person who had taken care of the princess.


    ¡°No. Nothing is wrong. I just feel tired today so I¡¯ll retreat to my room now.¡±


    There was a sh of disappointment in her head maid¡¯s brown eyes. Natasha had a feeling she should not have said those words.


    And yet, the sounding out of the head maid¡¯s mouth was kindle and gentle.


    ¡°I suppose it is quitete. You should go back to your room and rest now.¡±


    Natasha sighed in relief as she turned around. She hoped that Aurora and Rita were done with their find.


    She could not buy them any more time with her acting.


    ¡°Oh, and by the way, did you enjoy your day outside the pce? I was worried when I got the news that you were gone but I trusted you toe back.¡±


    Natasha felt every bone in her body freeze as she heard those words.


    It should have been a given that her head maid had heard about her abrupt disappearance, but theck of a retrieval team had made Natasha think that it did not matter.


    Had she been foolish or just too hopeful to ignore the obvious oue?


    ¡°I had a fun time outside. Your concern is most weed.¡±


    Since Natasha could not see her head maid¡¯s face, she did not know how she should react in this situation. This had never happened to her before.


    But she also knew the head maid could noty a hand on her. Natasha needed to be kept alive for the republic¡¯s good.


    ¡°Concerned? I think you¡¯re mistaken princess. I always knew you woulde back. After all, this is all you have known. Even after you go to the Rocx Academy, this will be the ce you wille back to.¡±


    ¡°It not us who need you, but you who need us.¡±


    Natasha could not reply when she was faced with such a deration. What could she even say in such a situation?


    Any wrong word would expose their n and make things difficult for everyone else as well.


    ¡°I do need you people. I should get going now. I am really tired.¡±


    In the end, that was all Natasha could say. Even if Natashained about her head maid, who would listen to a kid like her.


    Even the nobles ignored her existence and thought of her as a burden.


    ===========================


    The head maid watched the little princess walk back to her room. Her gentle smile did not fade until the princess waspletely out of her sight.


    The smile faded away into a neutral look only once the young girl had disappeared.


    ¡°Mydy, is it time already? But our preparations are not finished. The next clone to rece the current princess has not been born yet.¡±


    ¡°¡®Then hurry up. You know the rules. Once the current princess gets too involved, we need to rece her as soon as possible with a newer model. We cannot allow the princess to gain too much power.¡±


    ¡°W-We will hurry, mydy.¡±


    The head maid frowned but then eased her expression. Her impassive face broke into a smile even when no one was looking.


    It was such a forced habit that it could not be dropped even when she was alone.


    Shouldering the burdens of the Northern Republic and its royal house had been a big responsibility. It was not something just any normal person could do.


    The head maid had been selected carefully and then trained into her role by the noble fraction to maintain their power.


    Every day the republicans grew in power and influence while the nobility was pushed to the back. But the nobility could not be eradicated.


    And it was all thanks to the Royal Family and their unique power over thisnd. They were the blessed ones, the ones chosen by the abyss.


    And that was also why they needed to be controlled.


    The noble fraction had managed to get their hands on a cloning device from the abyss, one that can allow the royal family to live on forever and keep on making a new ¡®pure¡¯ noble bloodline.


    The princess and the royal family that was once undisputedly important was no more than a pawn now. They were receable and should be taken care of as soon as they showed signs of intelligence and betrayal.


    This was an openly known secret in the royal pce so no one paid any respect to the princess.


    After, why care for her when she would just be killed off soon enough?


    But the real problem was Lord Karan¡¯s interference and the Rocx Academy. Things would not be so easy to keep under wraps if the news of the princess leaving the Northern Republic for her education got out.


    Their means to control the republic fraction will also be gone for some time.


    And it was not like they could just rece the current princess with a new one either. Because their family power could only exist in one individual at a time.


    That was why this mess was orchestrated by the noble fraction. They needed a way to maintain their superiority.


    ¡°Hello, miss. Would you mind giving me some of your time? I just have a few questions for you.¡±


    The head maid almost jumped as she heard someone speak from behind her. She had not felt someone approach her. When had someone gotten this close to her?


    The ck-haired man did not look impressive at the first nce but something was unsettling about his aura.


    He was powerful and possibly dangerous as well.


    ¡°How did you get inside the royal pce? You are not a guard or even a guest?¡±


    The head maid did not want to jump to conclusions but she had a feeling she should get away from this man.


    The reason she was feared so much was because of her connections and her mind. Her personal talent wascking inparison and it would not be good for her to be caught in such a difficult situation.

 Chapter 116

    Alexander wanted tough a the serious and cold expression on the head maid¡¯s face. He could feel her difort even without her face betraying her emotions.


    But he was also curious about her words from before. He wanted to know what the head maid had meant by ¡®newer model¡¯ when she had talked with that other maid.


    Things were getting interesting around the Northern Republic and Alexander wanted to be someone who held the ropes of sess.


    Besides, he had a feeling that knowing this information would save their side a lot of grief.


    ¡°Since you have managed to sneak in this far into the Royal pce then you must be considered a criminal. But since I¡¯m in a forgiving mood now, I¡¯ll let this go. You should get out of the royal pce as soon as you can.¡±


    Alexander smiled at the ease of provocation. He had thought that it would be difficult to rile up ady who had climbed such a difficult socialdder but maybe that was not the case.


    As soon as he had seen thedy¡¯s earring, everything made sense to him. There was only one reason a person from the Northern Republic would wear earrings in only one ear.


    ¡°Mydy, are you the sessor of your noble house? It must have been difficult toe here and leave your home behind.¡±


    ¡°What are you trying to say?¡±


    ¡°Me? Nothing. I was just a little surprised to see a nobledy such as yourself be stuck as a head maid for the royal family.¡±


    Maybe Alexander¡¯s tone was a little too mocking. The head maid looked a lot angrier than before.


    But the angrier she would get, the more her tongue would loosen. Alexander had seen too many people in her position falter under the pressure.


    ¡°It¡¯s an honor for anyone to serve the royal family. Be it a noble or amoner, we are all equal in front of the royal family.¡±


    ¡°So you don¡¯t deny that you are a nobel. And here I was wondering how long you would beast around the bush for.¡±


    ¡°Get to the point here.¡±


    Thedy was getting impatient. Of course, it was also because Alexander was stalling her. But what could he do?


    He had to allow Natasha a chance to get away and causing a problem in the Northern Pce was not his style.


    But if he had to expose himself, he might as well get some useful information in the process.


    ¡°My point is, what would the republican say if the news of your maniption of the royal family got out. Or the news if you using your technology to clone the royal family for your one convenience.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t make absurd ims about things you have no proof about.¡±


    ¡°Oh, but then why is your face turning so white, mydy? Don¡¯t tell me! Are you afraid of me and the truth froming out?¡±


    Alexander had to admit that it was a fun and thrilling feeling to be so on edge. The rush he got from threatening the head maid was a little addicting.


    He would have to be careful to not get addicted to this feeling but he could not help himself.


    ¡°You are such an eyesore. But it seems like your luck has run out as well. Guards, make sure he does not live this encounter.¡±


    Darn, Alexander had been careless. Just as he had been stalling for time, so had been the head maid.


    She had made Alexander just long enough for the guards to arrive.


    What a cunning and dangerousdy the head maid was. She was unwilling to dirty her own hands but she had no problem using a borrowed sword to put an end to him.


    ¡°Too bad. You tried to threaten me but you will never get a chance to do so. Now, say goodbye to your life.¡±


    Thedy turned her back to Alexander. It seemed like she had too much confidence in her guards to not even bother staying around to see the result.


    Or maybe she was too afraid to see the oue.


    Anyway, it was a lucky break and the only reason Alexander was able to escape the ambush. He had no donut that he would have been killed had the head maid not gone away.


    ===========================


    Aurora ran through her chosen corridors with a purpose. She had chosen this route because that was the only way she would be able to encounter Natasha.


    She knew that the princess would be headed to her rooms once the talk with her head maid was over.


    The head maid would not be foolish enough to hard the princess openly. But Aurora was sure that the head maid would try something funny soon.


    That was why Aurora was running as fast as she could to reach the princess.


    Thankfully, she was not the only one looking around. Natasha seemed to be headed her way as well and Aurora would meet her in the next corridor.


    The first thing Aurora spotted was the ck hair and the frosty eyes of the northern princess running through the hallway.


    Her cold looksplimented the coldness of the corridor.


    The second thing was a ssh of silver behind the princess. It looked like a knife and Aurora quickly tackled the princess to get her out of the way.


    Because Aurora had tackled the princess, the pair fell and the de missed them. Itnded a few feet away from the pair.


    But the danger had just begun around them. The assassin that had dared to attack the princess in such an open manner was still around.


    Aurora could not feel them with her current power and she could not check her system openly topare.


    ¡°Natasha, be alert. We are being targeted.¡±


    Aurora was used to this feeling of being cornered but she was not sure how well Natasha will be able to adapt to it. The princess had lived a pretty sheltered life this far.


    But the princess surprised Aurora by deciding to take the initiative to save her own life. She picked up the knife that had been used to attack her and positioned herself in a ready pose.


    ¡°No. I won¡¯t hide. They cannot kill me off so I¡¯m the best bait. Besides, I have to learn to step up as well.¡±


    It seemed like the princess had matured just a little bit more. The determined look in her eyes represented a hungry predator eying her prey.


    ps sounded from the corridor in front of the pair and Aurora could hear footsteps headed her way.


    ¡°Wow. Looks like a chick is trying to y brave. Unfortunately, you will not live to be a ¡®golden hen¡¯ after all.¡±

 Chapter 117

    ¡°Wow. It looks like a chick is trying to y brave. Unfortunately, you will not live to be a ¡®golden hen¡¯ after all.¡±


    Aurora quickly asserted the situation and positioned herself in front of Natasha. They could not let anything happen to the Northern Princess.


    Not now when Aurora and thepany had been seen. Anything happening would put the Rocx Academy in a precarious position with the tower.


    ¡°Oh, what¡¯s this? Is the kid trying to y a knight? But kids like you should learn to stay quiet or you¡¯ll be killed.¡±


    ¡°Natasha, do you know magic?¡±


    Aurora ignored the taunting voice of the assassins. They were spouting nonsense to distract Aurora and intimidate her.


    She was sure the assassins would not risk killing Natasha but Aurora was a fair deal. It was her life on the line.


    ¡°I know some but nothing offensive. How should we deal with these people?¡±


    Natasha did not sound worried in the least. Maybe she had figured out a simr conclusion to Aurora.


    And if so, then Aurora was sure she was ready for the next step.


    ¡°I don¡¯t need you to do anything offensively. Just give me some light and make it bright enough to obstruct my movements.¡±


    Aurora got ready as soon as she felt the lights¡¯ warmth.


    ¡°You bitch. My eyes! They burn.¡±


    Since Aurora had her back to the light, she was not affected by the intense flow of the light. Instead, it helped mask her moments.


    Shedding blood in front of an innocent victim like Natasha did not seem like a nice idea to Aurora but desperate times called for desperate measures.


    The light helped so much that Aurora easily managed to dispose of the two assassins. But surprisingly enough, the third one was dealt with by one of the assassin¡¯s aplices.


    The masked person cut down a charging assassin in half.


    ¡°Natasha, that is enough.¡±


    The light was helpful at first but it was soon bing a burden. The one assassin that had helped Aurora out did not look like an enemy to her.


    As such, Aurora wanted to have small talk with them.


    But she was not foolish enough to be at a disadvantage. It would not take long for the assassin to adjust to the light and then Aurora would be at a disadvantage.


    ¡°Greetings, Princess Natasha, Lady Aurora. My name is in. I was sent here by the order of Lord Karan to assist you.¡±


    The assassin dropped down to his knees as soon as Aurora stepped forward.


    Aurora quickly checked the masked figure for any lies or deceptions but it did say so in his aura. The man was likely telling the truth.


    ¡°Lord Karan? What did he ask of you exactly? I¡¯m sorry to say but I don¡¯t believe your words.¡±


    Aurora did believe the man but she could not show it without hesitation. She needed to show at least some doubt before she could trust the man.


    ¡°It is understandable, mydy. You can put a temporary seal of obedience on me to make sure I don¡¯t betray your interests.¡±


    This was a tall order. A seal of obedience was no joke, even a temporary one as this person was suggesting.


    As the name foretold, a seal of obedience was formed when two bodies agreed to a ¡®servant¡¯ contract. Under its influence, the one who was contracted had to follow his master¡¯s words without any dy or question.


    Failure to do so could lead to death or even worse. It was a magic-bounded contract.


    For the assassin to even suggest this was a big deal. A morally right person will not think of subjecting anyone to such a contract.


    But unfortunately, Aurora was not a morally right person. She was just someone who was looking after her interests.


    And as such, this was a good opportunity to make use of.


    ¡°in, are you a citizen of the Northern Republic? Your answer will determine what I will do next. I might even kill you if you lie to me.¡±


    Aurora was letting the person know that he should y games with her.


    Rationally speaking, there were only two powers who could send a group of assassins inside the Northern Pce. Either the nobility or the Republic fraction.


    And even among those people, Aurora could easily narrow down the suspect who had tried to kill Natasha like this.


    ¡°Mydy, I am in Fedorov, a noble of the Northern Republic. However, my affiliations do not lie with the nobility. I am a member of the Republic fraction. I am here today to pledge my loyalty to mydy Natasha Kowalski.¡±


    The man bowed down.


    There had not been a single lie in his words. This man was serious in his words and actions. He had taken a great risk in identifying himself and Aurora knew that fact.


    This man sure was daring but Aurora did not mind such a person.


    ¡°I understand. But I am in no need of a guard, nor a servant. I would rather pass you off to another¡¯s hand.¡±


    ¡°My Lady?¡±


    ¡°Instead of me, the one you can have the contract with is Natasha. Won¡¯t it be better for everyone?¡±


    To be honest, Aurora did not want to get involved with the Northern Republic more than necessary.


    She knew that she could not stay out of the looppletely but Aurora would be faced with her troubles soon.


    So she wanted someone to stay by Natasha¡¯s side in the meantime and protect her in Aurora¡¯s ce.


    And what better person can do it than one who could y both sides.


    ¡°I understand. Mydy Natasha, kindly take my oath.¡±


    The man quickly caught on to Aurora¡¯s thinking. It was nice to have such an obedient pawn on her side of the field.


    She would use it to its full capacity when the time called for it. But for now, she would let it fall to the side.


    ¡°I¡­are you sure?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    Aurora smiled a disarming smile and she could see Natasha rxing. She was a natural ruler and her bodynguage told her that.


    Once the oath was done, the assassin stood up and looked Aurora right in the eye.


    ¡°Lady Aurora, there is something else you should know about. But it is not something meant for anyone else¡¯s ears. Can we have a small private talk?¡±


    The assassin sounded serious and that surprised Aurora. The man had asked to talk to Aurora in secret even after he swore the oath. It seemed like the topic he was about to talk about was extremely serious.


    ¡°I understand. Let¡¯s talk in the study. Natasha, call us if anything happens.¡±

 Chapter 118

    ¡°I understand. Let¡¯s talk in the study. Natasha, call us if anything happens.¡±


    Aurora tried to open the study door but her short arms were unable to reach. Fortunately, the assassin saw her trying to open it and decided to help.


    Aurora had to keep her temper in check the whole time. She knew she had needed the help but she had wanted it from the man.


    But she had to constantly remind herself that this was her own good. She had to stay put and deal with her current circumstances.


    ¡°Lord in, are you not worried that I am a kid you have to serve? Surely you have questions for me?¡±


    Aurora was burning with curiosity from a while back. Thinking back at it, the assassin had approached her and not Natasha.


    ¡°Lord Karan vouched for you. He said that you were like a sister to him and were capable. Seeing you, I would have to agree. You have a certain charm about you that cannot be ignored.¡±


    Aurora felt her blood stop cold. in¡¯s words made it sound like he knew something he should not have.


    If that was the case then Aurora would have no choice but to kill him off. Oath or not oath, Aurora would not risk her life like that.


    ¡°Do not fear me, mydy. As a noble, my chances of encountering a goddess are much higher. As such, I can say for sure that you have some kind of divinity inside you but I can also see that you do not want this information to leak out.¡±


    Ah, Aurora should not have worried so much about this topic.


    Aurora had been so caught up in all this that she had forgotten that demi-gods and lower divinity existed. And it seems like Aurora was being mistaken for such a case.


    Did noble in think of Aurora as a minor goddess under Lord Karan¡¯s protection? It was a good cover for now.


    Aurora could use it.


    ¡°I see that you understand. So please make sure that this information does not leak out. And also, please tell me the news you were about to tell me initially.¡±


    ¡°Of course mydy. The news I was about to tell you is¡­.¡±


    ===========================


    Aurora exited the room with a headache. She could not believe all she had heard inside that room.


    But she was also thankful for in¡¯s insight in telling her this without anyone around.


    Aurora had not expected the truth behind the Northern Republic¡¯s nobility to be this grim. But human greed had no end and this was a ssic example.


    ¡°Thank you, sir in. This information will certainly prove to be useful in the future. It seems like we will have to change our ns now.¡±


    Aurora had wanted to get out of the Northern Republic without making a big fuss. That would have been for the best.


    But if Natasha was a clone of the original princess, then that changed things. The Northern Republic would not leave Natasha alone.


    And they might even make another clone of her out of desperation and dere her the princess.


    The new clone will not have any powers or memories of this Natasha but it will be a strong tool in the nobility¡¯s hand. And the nobility could keep on doing this until Natasha died or something.


    The only way to solve this problem will be to destroy all the material rted to cloning and such from the Northern Republic.


    ¡°Do you have any idea where they could have stored all this material? It would have to be the pce since they need to keep an eye on the operation.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s conclusion was logical. Theb had to be in the pce somewhere but narrowing down the location will be a hard task.


    Not to mention, Aurora was running out of time. She could not help but feel like she had to hurry back.


    ¡°Unfortunately, I do not have any location in mind where such a thing could have taken ce. I¡¯ve only been here for a few days but there are certain areas I do not have ess to.¡±


    ¡°That makes sense. But let¡¯s look around anyway. Natasha, you cane in now.¡±


    Aurora opened the door to let the princess inside.


    Since the real talk had finished already, there was no harm in the princess participating. The main reason Aurora¡¯s talk had to be kept secret was because of Natasha¡¯s origins.


    But when Aurora opened the door, no one was outside. Natasha seemed to have disappeared in thin air.


    ¡°Shit. Was she taken? We need to find her right now ¡±


    Aurora felt her heart beat inside her chest painfully. She could not help but feel like this was all her fault. How could she have left Natasha alone in this corridor without protection?


    ¡°Don¡¯t panic, mydy. I will look for Lady Natasha. Since we have contacted each other, I can feel her location. You should head toward the base where you were about to meet yourrades. I will make my way there.¡±


    Aurora did not want to agree.


    But she also knew that she would not be able to do much in her current body. She was weak and helpless after all.


    ¡°Lord in, I hate to say this but I¡¯ll be leaving this matter in your hands. If you run into mypanions, enlist their help and be careful. I will meet you at the end point of our journey.¡±


    Aurora felt the words taste bitter inside her mouth. She had not been this useless ever since she had traveled back in time.


    But her small body andck of capabilities did make her a hindrance. She had been so limited that she had not even noticed when Natasha had slipped off without her notice.


    This was not something that could have happened to her if she was normal. It all happened because Aurora had been cursed into her kid form.


    ¡°I understand mydy. Also, it is not your fault. I was the one who let my guard down so I am to be med.¡±


    ¡°I understand.¡±


    But that did not mean Aurora agreed with the assassin. She was responsible for her actions after all.


    ¡°You heard all that Alexander? Now you cane out and we can exchange our pieces of information.¡±


    Aurora called out the man she had felt hiding a while ago. Her system had informed her of his presence as soon as he had been close enough to sense.


    ¡°The information I have is simr to what you got from that noble. It seems we have a lot to uncover here.¡±

 Chapter 119

    Natasha was curious about the information Aurora and that assassin were talking about. She was also envious of Aurora for getting the information instead of Natasha.


    Natasha did not know why she was feeling like this. It was true that she was still a child while Aurora was much older and was just stuck in a child¡¯s body because of a curse.


    But feelings were rather irrational like that. Natasha had felt like she had shown her sincerity but to still be tossed aside easily hurt.


    ¡®I wish I could do something else while those two are talking. I want to take my mind off this topic.¡¯


    Natasha was leaning against the other door when she saw a nce of red in the distance. It looked like someone was running away while being chased.


    It looked like Rita was in trouble and Natasha decided to help her.


    She took onest nce at the door behind her. Aurora had told her not to leave this ce and to call for her if something happened.


    But Natasha did not want to disturb her. And Natasha also wanted to prove her capabilities inbat.


    Natasha might not have killed the assassins before but she had lent a hand in the assassination.


    So despite knowing that she should not, Natasha decided to leave her ce and follow after Rita.


    She ran toward the corridor she had watched Rita disappear into and quickly dashed through with a light spell ready in hand¡­


    ¡­only to be met with a de at her throat as angry red eyes blinked at her.


    ¡°Natasha? Thank god I stopped in time.¡±


    Rita breathed a sigh of relief as she dropped her sword. Her eyes looked tired but lively to see Natasha alive.


    ¡°Ah,..yes. Rita. Are you alright? I thought you were in trouble so I followed after you. But where are the maids who were after you just now?¡±


    Natasha was sure she had seen a few maids headed this way. But once she had gotten to this ce, there was no one but Rita in sight.


    ¡°Oh them? I dealt with them already. They were annoying me to death but I did not want to kill them out in the open. It is not something you should be worried about anyway.¡±


    Natasha breathed a sigh of relief she had not even known she had been holding. She was not sure why she was so relieved to hear this news.


    ¡°I see. I was just with Aurora when I ran into you. She is nearby as well so let¡¯s go and find her.¡±


    Natasha tried to change the subject but she did not get to walk away before Rita sped a hand on her mouth.


    ¡°Don¡¯t make any noise. I can hear someone headed this way.¡±


    Rita was not breathing behind her. Natasha could not feel the moment of her chest anywhere and it made her panic.


    Her mind knew that Rita was alive and well but the nerves of the moment made Rita¡¯s head spin. She could not decide what she should do.


    The footsteps came closer and Natasha saw Rita¡¯s weapon rise in front of her face. It was held right in front of her and the gleam caused Natasha to close her eyes.


    Ritashed out just as the footsteps turned the corner.


    Metal met metal before Rita¡¯s grip on her faded.


    ¡°It¡¯s just you? Can you make your presence known next time? You gave me a heart attack.¡±


    Natasha was let go and she opened her eyes to see the familiar ck-haired man. He was a member of Aurora¡¯s party but Natasha had not seen him often.


    ¡°You should work on your situational awareness. I send Aurora ahead so that I could regroup with you. There is a change in ns. We will be heading to the train za and take a train out of here.¡±


    Natasha was surprised but not shocked at the turn of events. Ever since that assassin had introduced himself, Natasha had a feeling that things were bound to change.


    ¡°Huh? What¡¯s this all of a sudden change? Why would we risk exposing ourselves like that?¡±


    ¡°Because it had be necessary. Even if we do manage to escape in secret, things will not turn out for the better. We will need to make a public scene of us taking Lady Natasha away. The Republicans will help us out.¡±


    ¡°Alright, fine. I don¡¯t even care why or how you decided this but how are we going to do that? It took us so much effort to get into this royal pce.¡±


    Natasha was aware of how much effort it had taken. And Rita¡¯sints made sense to anyone not involved with this fiasco.


    ¡°Oh, that? We will be stealing those suits still and everything. Only our destination has changed ahead of time.¡±


    ¡°Fine. If you are here then I expect you to lead the way. I tried to find the way and all but I got lost in the process. The map is not easy to navigate at all.¡±


    Natasha had lived her whole life in this castle and there had been many passaged even she had never seen before.


    ¡°I know. The pce was built with the help of magic and there is not much we know. But we know the way to our destination now due to inside help. Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t lead you to your death.¡±


    ¡°Somehow you saying that does not spark a feeling of confidence in me.¡±


    Natasha had not wanted tough but the smile escaped her lips regardless. Even in such a tense situation, these two people were content to bicker. It seemed as if they did not worry about the world.


    ¡°You two seem close.¡±


    Natashamented in between her giggles. She felt envious of their easy rtionship. She wanted to have something like this in the future as well.


    ¡°Close? No change. We are just stuck with each other due to the circumstances around us.¡±


    ¡°True. Who would want to be close to a violent chimpanzee like this red-head here? All she does is cause problems for us.¡±


    ¡°Y-You? Why are you picking fights with me? I feel like you remind me of someone else (Ava)¡±


    ¡°Oh really? Then I would like to meet this amazing person in the future. I have a feeling we will get along.¡±


    The bickering between the pair was amusing but all amusing things shoulde to an end.


    And this time, it happened because of the interruption caused by a small but sharp-eyesdy.


    ¡°You! You are not getting away from this castle alive.¡±


    It was the head maid who had arrived on the scene.

 Chapter 120

    The head maid looked furious when she arrived on the scene. Her eyes burned like charcoal now that she had the backing of the guards surrounding her.


    ¡°You all, make sure they all die, even Lady Natasha.¡±


    ¡°B-But¡­¡±


    ¡°Do as I say or else your family will face the consequence. I hope you have not forgotten who I am?¡±


    ¡°Of course not, Count Violet. Your orders shall be carried out by us.¡±


    The guards looked conflicted at their orders. It was clear from their expressions that they did not want to follow her orders but they had no other choice but to do so.


    But to think that the count was even willing to create so many witnesses that could be used against her in the future.


    It was obvious what her strategy was. No one except her wasing out of this fight alive. Those who die will die and those who survive will be killed off by the nobility before they could even take a step outside this pce.


    ¡°Head maid, what are you doing? I am still royalty and I should be respected as such.¡±


    Natasha stepped in front of the group. Her voice was cold as ice when she asked that question but there was brokenness in her eyes.


    ¡°Ah yes. My Lady is really of the royal blood but it won¡¯t matter for much longer. Please die for the betterment of this nation, My Lady.¡±


    With those final words, the attack began. It was three against a dozen and there were not a lot of chances for the trio to be able to escape sessfully.


    ¡°Fuck you all. If we¡¯re not getting out of here alive then neither are you, you devil. I hope you enjoy your life in hell.¡±


    Rita¡¯s words did not even cause the head maid to flinch. Instead, the anger faded into indifference.


    ¡°A devil you say? From my perspective, that girl behind you is the real devil. Living each day happily while being unaware of the darkness of this world. She is a ticking time bomb for our nation. We had no other choice but to keep her in check.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±


    ¡°Well, you see, it is a long story. Unfortunately, we have run out of time. Maybe you¡¯ll get to hear it in the afterlife.¡±


    The head maid¡¯s words caused a lot of confusing thoughts to appear inside Rita¡¯s mind but if she chased the truth now, then they would all die.


    ¡°Rita, this way. Hurry up inside.¡±


    Rita wanted to ask more but she ultimately decided to abandon the truth and run after Natasha and Alexander.


    ¡°Follow after them. And put the emergency magic in ce. No one shall escape this pce today.¡±


    Thedy had protected this secret for more than a few decades now. She would be damned if the secrets of this nation were revealed now.


    ===========================


    The tunnel system inside the Royal Pce was a mess. Aurora had gotten lost more than a few times already even with the help of a map.


    Thankfully, she had a guide with her who could lead her toward her destination. The assassin had disappeared for some time only to appear with another old-fashioned map in his hand.


    Aurora had quickly scanned it with her system and then decided to make use of it.


    The deeper Aurora walked, the colder it got. In the end, it got so cold that Aurora could even feel her breath freeze over due to the cold.


    Her body was shivering and the temperature would soon get into the life-threatening territory.


    To say that ce was an ice prison would not be overexertion on Aurora¡¯s part. Even the coldest parts of the abyss paled inparison to this ce.


    But the most concerning part of the whole equation was the concentrated abyssal energy that the ice gave off. And the source felt exactly like the trial.


    The one who had constructed this icy prison must be the same one who had cast the spell for the trial.


    ¡°Mydy, I have a favor to ask of you as a republican, no, as a citizen of the Northern Republic. Please do not reveal anything you see inside to the public. These secrets should never see the light.¡±


    ¡°I understand. Do you need me to swear an oath to you about it?¡±


    ¡°No. Your words are enough, My Lady.¡±


    From the assassin¡¯s words, it was clear that whatevery behind the door was not something an ordinary person could ess.


    Nor it was something that people could just know about at will.


    It was a secret big enough to spark a war or even worse if it was to be revealed. And Aurora was hesitant to even know of such a secret.


    No matter how big this secret was, once it was revealed to someone, it would be a liability.


    ¡°As you can see, this door is no ordinary door. The only ones who can enter and exit it are the head of the four ancient Duke families of the nation and someone who has the blood of divinity.¡±


    ¡°I cannot enter this room but Lord Karan asked me to lead you here. This is also here that you will know why we are powerless to do anything against the nobility or the royal family.¡±


    Aurora touched the door and instantly felt the repelling magic trying to push her away. It was strong enough topel any ordinary person to step away.


    But Aurora was a being filled with divinity and the door was observing her magic. The second it identified her, it began to step back little by little.


    The pressure due to the magic never really disappear but it did settle all around Aurora like a cloak.


    It was a warning for Aurora not to be foolish and open her mouth unnecessarily. It was dormant magic to keep people¡¯s mouths shut.


    What a terrifying weapon this was. It was no wonder that neither the assassin nor the other nobles ever opened their mouth.


    Aurora felt her heart beat faster and faster as she neared the door. There was a ringing inside her ears that made Aurora lose her bnce and slip off the floor.


    ¡°MY LADY.¡±


    Aurora felt her body falling and a pair of hands reaching out for her but then the darkness broke her connection.


    She instantly picked herself but her surroundings had changed. Instead of an icy cave, Aurora was standing on top of an icyke. The coldness was seeping inside her heart but it was nothingpared to the surprising feeling she got.


    The center of theke held a gigantic icy pir with a familiar face sleeping inside.

 Chapter 121

    Long ck hair contrasted well with the ivory white skin inside the icy prison. Thedy was asleep but her beauty could not be tarnished even when her eyes were closed.


    There was no doubt in Aurora¡¯s mind about who this person resembles. It was the princess of the Northern Republic who had be a part of Aurora¡¯s group.


    And yet, when Aurora opened her mouth the name she uttered waspletely different. The subtle energy in the air felt familiar to her.


    ¡°Clove?¡±


    The soft whisper broke the tense atmosphere inside the icy room. The energy also disappeared as soon as it had appeared.


    Aurora quickly shook her head as soon as the ridiculous thought entered her mind. No matter how she looked at the body in front of her, Aurora could see nothing but an adult Natasha.


    She did not know why she had uttered Clove¡¯s name when she had entered.


    Aurora observed her surroundings but all the room had was ice inside it. The body sped inside the ice was the only exception to that rule.


    ¡°Shall I try to get this body out?¡±


    Aurora tried to create a small divine me to get the icy body out. The divine me she created didn¡¯t have an ounce of her power but any ordinary ice would not be able to hold out against it.


    But the me didn¡¯t even make a dent in the ice surrounding her.


    This was no ordinary ice.


    Aurora decided to approach the icy pir in the center of the cave to observe but nothing looked out of the ordinary.


    Even her system did not identify this ice as anything amazing.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you wanted me to see, Karan. Why did you send me here?¡±


    Aurora pushed her hand against the icy pir housing the goddess to support her tired weight.


    That was all she wanted to do. But something unexpected happened.


    She had not noticed when, but her right hand was sped in ice as well. And not only that, the ice was spreading over her arm as well.


    ¡®No, the ice is not spreading. I am sinking into the pir.¡±


    As soon as Aurora realized that, she tried to struggle with all her might. But even if she pulled with everything she had, Aurora was unable to get her hand out fully.


    ¡®Shit. I don¡¯t want to be frozen in the icy pir. I need a way to get out.¡¯


    Aurora struggled with all her might but she was ultimately unable to pull herself out. And she sank into the icy cold prison.


    The cold seeped into her body and Aurora closed her eyes to go to sleep.


    ===========================


    Something warm was filling Aurora¡¯s being. It was chasing away the coldness from Aurora¡¯s heart and it also allowed Aurora to breathe easier.


    The warmth started to disappear after a while but Aurora did not want it to disappear. Aurora reached out to get a hold of that warmth.


    She did not want to face the chilling cold again.


    ¡°Hey, easy there. You¡¯re safe now so there is no need to be this hasty.¡±


    Aurora quickly opened her eyes to meet Icy blue ones. The pair of eyes looking back at Aurora looked identical to Natasha.


    Was this Natasha who hade to save her? If so, then she has grown.


    ¡°Are you alright now? You almost froze in that river. You should be careful since you¡¯re still young. We still don¡¯t know if you possess any of my divinity or not. And Minerva is taking a long time to respond to me as well.¡±


    ¡°But that¡¯s enough about the depressing thoughts. You should cheer up now and face our people with confidence. After all, you are my daughter.¡±


    Aurora felt dazed by that brilliant smile. Thend in front of Aurora was like a beaming sun. The golden hair and the blue eyes made thedy look like an angel.


    Now that Aurora took a deeper look at the female, she looked nothing like Natasha. The only thing they shared was their eyes.


    ¡°I understand, Mother. I will not disappoint you.¡±


    Aurora felt her mouth move on its own. The voice that came out of her throat was not her own.


    The body she was in was moving but Aurora quickly caught her reflection inside the mirror.


    Long ebony ck hair and icy cold blue eyes. Her face looked exactly like Natasha¡¯s but older.


    ¡®No, not Natasha¡¯s. Maybe these are the memories of the person trapped in that icy prison.¡¯


    ¡°Queen Kowalski, the preparations have finished. You can step inside the chamber to greet the delegates of the tower.¡±


    ¡°Of course. Natasha, you stay here for now. I will take care of everything. I might be a minor goddess but even my voice counts for something.¡±


    Aurora felt her head nod along but she was not really understanding anything.


    All she could make out safely was that she was inside someone¡¯s memories and that she was currently upying someone else¡¯s body.


    Aurora had no control over her body moments and it was irritating. She was like a bystander in a movie. Someone who knew the truth but could not do anything to change it.


    Once the elder woman left, Aurora finally felt safe and opened her eyes to look at the maid who hade to inform the queen of the order.


    ¡°Medelia, is my mother gone now?¡±


    ¡°Yes, mydy.¡±


    ¡°Finally. Now I can go out and have fun. Don¡¯t tell anyone where I am going.¡±


    ¡°No, mydy wait¡­¡±


    But Aurora¡¯s body refused to hear anyints. She quickly jumped down the balcony and disappeared inside the huge crowd down below.


    This was a sense of freedom Aurora had never felt in her childhood. Nor had she ever wanted to rebel like this in the first ce in her previous life.


    If this person had been Aurora, she would have sat tight and enjoyed her time. But the owner of this body had other ns.


    She seemed like an adventurous and mysterious person. She was bright and lively as well.


    She was someone as far away from Natasha as Aurora had gotten to know in the future. And it made Aurora curious about what had happened.


    Why had this cheerful female changed so much in such and what had caused her to be cursed in the first ce?


    ¡°Natasha, this way. You are finally here.¡±


    ¡°Of course I am. I told you I would be here today and I am not someone who breaks my promise easily. You will keep your end of the deal as well, right?¡±


    ¡°Of course, I will. After all, I promised to make you a goddess as well. I will keep my words.¡±


    Everything In Aurora¡¯s body told her not to turn around but the host body still did.

 Chapter 122

    Everything In Aurora¡¯s body told her not to turn around but the host body still did.


    If Aurora had been able to, she was sure she would be shaking at the feeling of the familiar magic behind her.


    ¡°Lady Zoe, it is nice to see you again. Now, please give me the medicine you promised me.¡±


    Aurora felt her hand rising and something falling in her hand. The feeling of abyss Aurora got from the shard was overwhelming.


    ¡°I managed to smuggle this out of the abyss with great difficulty. Make sure you take it with great discretion. My Lady would have my head if she knew I gave you this pill.¡±


    ¡°After all, Lady ra hates the tower to death. She will kill you as well if she knew you took this pill.¡±


    Aurora felt a shudder go down her spine at the name. Just what kind of trouble had this foolish girl gotten herself into.


    Out of the seven major gods, Lady ra was a name people had erased from their memories. She was an omen of ill-will for this world and everything holy.


    After all, out of all the gods and goddesses, Lady ra was the only one who had sided with the abyss in the first war.


    She had personally led the forces against the other divinity and human race but had been defeated in the end.


    In the end, her soul had been shattered into pieces but she had survived till this date. No one knew where the once-dominant goddess was.


    ¡°You said that Lady ra is weak now. But rest assured. Once I have that divine seat in the cab, I will help you look for her soul fragment.¡±


    ¡°Of course, you will. You will have no other choice but to do so.¡±


    Zoe had a sinister look on her face. Aurora was sure that the look promised pain and death to anyone who bothered to look at it.


    How this foolish and naive girl had managed to miss that look was beyond Aurora¡¯s understanding.


    ¡°I should go back now. My test will start in the evening and I have a lot of preparations to do.¡±


    ¡°Oh wait. I had something else I needed to hand over to you as well. Here, catch this.¡±


    Aurora caught the small jewel Zor threw her way with ease. It was a small topaz gem with clear shine and a really bright color.


    It was a ssic beauty if Aurora had ever seen one.


    But despite all that, Aurora wanted nothing more than to throw this piece of gem as far away as she could.


    There was an aura of magic around it so strong that it was making Aurora¡¯s senses hurt. Anyone with even a thread of magic or divinity should be able to sense this with ease.


    ¡°What is this?¡±


    Natasha¡¯s curious voice told Aurora that she had not sensed the auraing out of the gem at all. Such a strong seal and Natasha brushed it off like that? It did not sit well with Aurora.


    ¡°That? Just a gift for you. It has sealed magic inside it and if you use it during your trial, you are sure to get your seat in the tower¡¯s cab.¡±


    Zoe¡¯s smile promised trouble. It was the kind of smile parents warned their children about.


    ¡°Alright, I get it. I will use it if I need to.¡±


    Natasha, like the fool she was proving herself to be, took the gem and ced it on her ne.


    Aurora could feel the barest amount of energy enter inside the body she had been upying but it felt different than divine energy.


    It was a mixture of darkness and magic Aurora had never felt before. But one thing was for certain.


    This power was not something a goddess shoulde in contact with. It could corrupt someone with ease and make them go out of control.


    Generally, this was not a worry for the divinity since this kind of power required permission to enter someone¡¯s body to cause harm.


    As long as the person did not allow this energy ess inside them, there was no worry that it would ever go out of control.


    But Aurora could easily make out what happened next just from having upied this body for a few hours.


    Tired of Natasha¡¯s foolishness, Aurora decided to have a look around the country she was in.


    This Northern Republic was different from the one Aurora had seen in this future. The current setting was backward and had ack of technology. The winter snow had not started to fall yet.


    ¡°The nobility cannot be allowed to continue ruling us like this. If we do not do something, then we will die from starvation.¡±


    ¡°The rising taxes is not something I can keep up with. At this rate, I will need to look for ways to get out of the country.¡±


    ¡°The queen refuses to listen to our worries. She¡¯s too worried about the tower and her daughter. I heard that the daughter doesn¡¯t have any magic because of her unknown father.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t they care about us? If that daughter is ipetent then the queen should just have another one. Then she could listen to us.¡±


    ¡°Are you foolish? Don¡¯t you know that the royal family is cursed to only have one child? That wicked goddess ra cursed the tower and the royal family. Now the fate of this country is bound by the royal blood.¡±


    ¡°Then what should we do? Will we all die because of that ipetent heir? What will happen when our queen dies?¡±


    ¡°Our queen won¡¯t die. She¡¯s a minor goddess and divinity doesn¡¯t die. Our queen still looks so young.¡±


    ¡°You fools. Gods cannot be killed but they can still die. Our queen might look young but she¡¯s already 500 years old. The cycle of change will soon begin for our country.¡±


    Aurora heard all those words and could not help but marvel at the cruelty of those worlds.


    But the fear her body felt was real. The feeling of disappointment was also real inside Natasha¡¯s heart.


    If these words were something the girl often heard, then it was no wonder that she was desperate to search out the wrong side for help.


    ¡°I must seed. I must get a seat at the tower cab before my mother dies. I have to do it or this country will fall.¡±


    The desperate words of the little girl seemed more like a wish than confidence. And this single wish would change the course of the winds of the Northern Republic forever.

 Chapter 123

    ¡°Mydy, you are finally back home. Your mother has been looking for you everywhere. I managed to stall her for some time but you should hurry back.¡±


    It had been an exhausting day for Aurora overall. The new body she was in held a lot of secrets and Aurora¡¯s incapability to do anything left her frustrated.


    Even now, the low hum of the corruption that seeped into her body could be felt by her.


    ¡°My mother is looking for me? I should hurry on over then.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s body moved over to the deeper parts of the castle. The icy cold that had enclosed the royal pce was nowhere to be found.


    Instead, the temperature was rather pleasant.


    ¡°Natasha, where were you? Don¡¯t think for a single second that I believed a word of what the maid said. Did you leave the royal pce again?¡±


    Natasha stopped walking once the question was asked. The voice hade from behind Natasha¡¯s body and it made her nervous.


    ¡°I¡­I did go out. But I made sure I came back in time. A-Anyway, is it time yet?¡±


    Aurora could not make out the goddess¡¯s expression once Natasha turned around. The nk face had only disapproval written all over it.


    ¡°Yes, it is time. Let¡¯s hurry over so that we are notte.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s body nodded and Aurora made herst futile effort to gain control over it but was unable to.


    She would have rather heard or seen this all than experienced Natasha¡¯s life. At least then this feeling of regret would not be eating her over.


    ¡°From here on it¡¯s the trial room. It was set up by Lady Minerva not too long ago. I hope you do well.¡±


    Natasha nodded as she entered the familiar tower.


    Now that Aurora looked at it, the tower she was entering looked vaguely like the one their group had entered to climb up. This was the emergency exit.


    The scent of the abyss was rather strong all over it.


    ¡°I will make you proud,¡± those were thest words Natasha said before she disappeared behind the trial doors.


    Aurora had expected the space to mold itself to her mind again. But the darkness inside the room did not reflect any of the earlier characteristics she had experienced.


    All Aurora could feel was the concentrated darkness surrounding her body. It was soothing to feel for her but Natasha¡¯s body felt ufortable.


    ¡°H-Huh? Why is it shining like this?¡±


    There was a blinding light from the gem Natasha had been given. It gave off a warm light that lessened Natasha¡¯s shaking.


    Aurora could feel the barest sense of coldness seeping through her body. It felt like someone was freezing her from the inside.


    ¡°This feels good. I feel warm all over.¡±


    Warm? All Aurora felt from the corruption was the coldness. Why was Natasha having a diverse effect like this?


    The gem was vibrating harder the further Natasha walked in. The space was responding to her feelings as well.


    And then what Aurora had been thinking finally happened. The small gem exploded and the contents spilled over the ce.


    ¡°W-What happened? What should I do now?¡±


    As expected, Natasha panicked once that happened. Her panicked thoughts let her concentration down and Aurora felt something taking control of Natasha¡¯s body.


    There was a small shove before Aurora felt someone push her soul out of her body.


    ¡°You freed one of my soul fragments. For that, I am grateful to you. Now child, tell me what your wish is.¡±


    Aurora turned her head softly toward the voice. If possible, she wanted nothing more than to wake up from this dream.


    The pressure Aurora felt surrounding her was nothing like she had ever felt before.


    If the powers of the goddess of victory and Lady Mei were a storm, this was a cmity. Every bone in Aurora¡¯s body asked her to run away.


    ¡°Y-You are? But h-how? You should be dead! The tower dered you as dead.¡±


    Aurora was all but a soul right now. Her transparent body could not interact with the world. All she could do now was to be a bystander and look at what was happening around her.


    ¡°Oh! Is that what Minerva cooked up? I suppose she didn¡¯t want people to worry about me. But see, I¡¯m alive and kicking. And soon I¡¯ll be back in my true shape. And it¡¯s all thanks to you.¡±


    ¡°As a reward, I shall reward this ce with my powers. Ah, I know what to do.¡±


    Aurora wasted as the golden hair shined in the darkness. The goddess raised her hand and the darkness exploded everywhere.


    ¡°The northern continent shall be a part of the abyss. You shall be our first human citizens.¡±


    It happened all in a second. The darkness exploded all over the ce and the temperature rose. It was searing hot to the point of making it hard to breathe.


    Aurora was not in a body made of flesh. She did not need to breathe or feel the heat. But even she could feel how hot the magic was.


    ¡°It will take time for me to recover, but I¡¯ll be back. Till then, try your best to survive.¡±


    ¡°N-No. You can¡¯t do this.¡±


    Natasha reached out toward the owner of the golden hair but was unable to grasp the person.


    Instead, darkness escaped her hand that looked familiar to the explosion.


    ¡°Ah, did I mention that you are the pir of the abyss in this continent? If you die then everything should solve itself just right. Think over it.¡±


    Aurora had a dilemma. She wanted to stay here and watch how things y out. But she also wanted to chase after that golden-haired goddess.


    There was something achingly familiar about her presence. Aurora had not been able to see her face but her body longed to follow along.


    But before Aurora could make a solid decision, the door to the trial room was knocked out and someone entered. Minerva¡¯s grim face broke the darkness surrounding the trial.


    ¡°ra? So you were still alive and kicking. What are you trying to start here? And this child? Why were you trying to pull here?¡±


    Minerva picked up Natasha¡¯s burning body. It was bad enough that the heat emitting from her was causing the stony surface to melt.


    ¡°Someone, go and get every avable major god you can. This is an emergency and keep this a secret.¡±


    Aurora forced the gasp to stop. She had never heard about a time when all the avable major gods had been called together except in the first battle.


    Something major had happened and it had been erased from history.

 Chapter 124

    After what had happened, Aurora wanted to follow Lady Minerva. But every time she tried to move away from Natasha¡¯s body, something pulled her back.


    It seemed like Aurora was stuck with the unconscious princess for the time being.


    Aurora decided to gather her thoughts in the meantime to make sense of all she had seen this far. And there was a lot to unpack there.


    It seemed like the abyss had decided to make a move in the north. But the news had been erased from history to keep the peace intact.


    It made sense in Aurora¡¯s mind why this happened.


    But why had Goddess ra chosen the Northern Republic to carry out such a n? Was it because Natasha was the easiest target?


    Likely not. There had to be another reason behind it that Aurora was unaware of.


    The only thing Aurora could think of was the trial. The trial held for a demi-divinity status was extremely rare.


    Even in present times, there were less than 100 minor gods and goddesses in the cab and most of them had lived a long life.


    So, was the purpose of this attack the divine power of the trail? It made sense why Lady ra had gone to such lengths to smuggle the gem in.


    Aurora only stopped thinking once the door opened and Lady Minerva stepped in. behind him was a man Aurora had never seen before. But she did not need to have heard of him to know why he was.


    After all, there was only one person in the whole world with such unique features.


    Pupil-less silver eyes paired with a bald head. There was not even a single w on the face and the expression was always turned into a gentle smile.


    ¡°n, what do you think about ra¡¯s involvement? You were the closest to her once upon a time.¡±


    ¡°Honestly, I can¡¯t tell what she is thinking anymore. She hates humanity but she was never interested in the northern regions.¡±


    The man¡¯s gentle voice was enough to wash over anyone¡¯s worries. This person was said to be the gentlest of the gods. The one who listened to themon folks and had been a pir of the tower once.


    Now he was the leader of the resistance group fighting for themon people. Many called him a coward for hiding behind his subordinates but there was no doubt about his power in anyone¡¯s mind.


    Leader of the resistance, God n.


    ¡°It has been centuries since ra lost her soul. The other fragments of her soul were bound to reincarnate as a parasite with other souls but I never expected ra to make such an open move.¡±


    ¡°Was that why refused all those requests to make the northern princess into a cab member?¡±


    ¡°That was a reason. But the bigger reason was that I could not sense any divinity in this child. So I never thought that there would be a reason for ra toe after her.¡±


    All this new information mmed into Aurora with a bang. All this was nothing she had heard before.


    ¡°So this child only had half of her soul now? What would happen to her?¡±


    ¡°People can live out their lives with half-souls. Just like all the other carriers of ra¡¯s soul, Natasha will forget this incident and live a happy life.¡±


    Aurora felt her throat go dry when she heard that news. Natasha¡¯s situation looked simr to Clove¡¯s.


    All this time Aurora had thought that Clove¡¯s situation was unnatural since she had nevere across anything like this before.


    But what if this was moremon than Aurora thought it to be? And it seemed like the tower was aware of how to handle such a situation?


    Maybe if Aurora listened more to them, she would be able to know more about how to help Clove in the future.


    ¡°All this is fine, but this situationes with its own set of problems.¡±


    ¡°Problems?¡±


    ¡°Yeah. More specifically, a half-soul cannot sustain all the body¡¯s powers. The power vested in the northern imperial family is hereditary. The current queen will need to pass her powers to Natasha soon.¡±


    ¡°But this tattered soul will not be able to handle all the stress and will shatter. Besides, the corruption inside Natasha¡¯s soul is spreading. We cannot keep her alive like this for long.¡±


    Minerva sounded concerned. No, she sounded worried but not about Natasha. Her voice had a different tone to it.


    ¡°It seems we have no other choice. Let¡¯s enclose her body in ice and put the northern princess in a deep sleep until it¡¯s her time. She¡¯s someone we cannot kill now but we can prevent her destruction.¡±


    ¡°I shall make the preparations for the ice ceremony. The amount of power we¡¯ll need to maintain this spell will be huge.¡±


    n¡¯s soft voice did not sound like it was delivering grim news. Hearing him speak was like being reassured that everything would be alright.


    Had Aurora not been a goddess, she was sure she would have fallen for that soft voice as well. It was a dangerous allure to catch his prey.


    ¡°I understand. It seems we have no other choice. We shall channel the energy needed for this spell from the abyss. But shall this spell copse, so will the northern region. It might be the end for them.¡±


    n gave a final node before he left the room. Aurora could simply sit down where she was standing to catch her breath.


    ¡°When your ancestors begged ra to bind their lives to the northern continent, ra fulfilled their wishes. To her, it was another evidence of human greed she hated. This is all just a consequence of what you sow.¡±


    ¡°I hope you have a decent sleep princess. This sleep will be the longest you will experience.¡±


    Minerva cut off a couple of raven locks from the sleeping body and enclosed them in a paper charm.


    ¡°This shall be thest gift for your mother. She loved you very much.¡±


    With that, Lady Minerva left the room.


    Time passed in a second and the next time Aurora opened her eyes, it was to watch as the cave was enclosed in ice and Natasha¡¯s adult body wasid inside the deep coldness.


    ¡°May your sacrifice be carved in ice. The nation shall mourn your loss.¡±


    Perhaps it was because Natasha¡¯s fate was bound to the northern continent by magic, but thefortable climate of the northern continent turned into a coldndscape overnight.


    Aurora touched the icy pir in the middle of the room and the cold seeped into her heart as well. As did the unfamiliar magic which knocked Aurora back with incredible force.

 Chapter 125

    Aurora felt searing heat fill her inside while everywhere else felt cold. Her hand was almost blue when she managed to pull it out of the ice.


    ¡°So that¡¯s what happened to you? I can¡¯t say I expected to ever know the Northern Republic¡¯s secrets like this.¡±


    Aurora could easily gather what had happened next.


    Once the royal family and the nobility had messed up and almost managed to make the Northern continent seize to be, the nobility shifted the me to the tower.


    It exined why there had always been a cold war between those two fractions. It also exined why the tower had never kicked the representatives of the northern fraction out of the cab.


    Somewhere deep inside,dy Minerva did hold herself responsible for this incident.


    But to think that there was magic powerful enough to trap gods for eternity inside it. And the tower had ess to it all this time.


    Aurora would need to take her next few steps carefully.


    ¡°You suffered because of one foolish mistake made a long time ago.¡±


    And worst of it all was that Natasha had not managed to reach rest even in her sleep. The nobility had managed to find a way to clone her from the small sample of hair Lady Minerva had given to Natasha¡¯s mother.


    ¡°First of all, I need to find the cloning machine. I don¡¯t know if it can only be used to make a clone of you or if it can be used to replicate other gods as well. But this is a risk I cannot take.¡±


    Just because the Northern Republic had not managed to clone any of the other gods did not mean that theycked the means to. They might have not found a way to achieve that yet.


    It would be beyond devastating if someone ever managed to copy a major go or goddess. They could even form an army that way.


    Aurora took onest look at the female enclosed inside the ice before she turned away.


    Aurora did not allow herself to look back or her resolve would weaken. She might have upied Natasha¡¯s original body for a short time but it had been enough to create a connection.


    If Aurora did look back, then she would regret doing something foolish. And having felt the corruption, Aurora did not want to unleash it upon this world.


    It was better if it rested within Natasha and ends there as well.


    Although, Aurora was feeling a little fainter than before. Her small hands and short legs made it difficult to walk back.


    ¡°I guess this is goodbye then.¡±


    Aurora was not sure why she was speaking out aloud. No one could hear her inside the room since the only other upant was asleep.


    But somehow, speaking out aloud made Aurora feel better about herself.


    Aurora pushed her hand against the icy door she had entered from. She now had a purpose to look ahead to.


    Not only was this ce connected to the abyss but also the tower. Aurora could not allow its secrets to fall into either one¡¯s hands.


    All Aurora saw was her reflection in the icy door and only one thing stood out to her.


    There was a white fringe in her blue hair, making direct contrast with her natural appearance.


    And then Aurora was pulled out by a magical force and was shoved to where she had begun her journey from.


    Only this time, there was no one standing on the other side. The man who had led Aurora to this ce was gone.


    And the cold was seeping inside her now. No matter how much her heart burned, Aurora was not able to warm her body.


    ===========================


    ¡°How long do we need to keep going for? I swear we passed this junction twice already.¡±


    Natasha did not want toin but she could not help that she was wasting time walking around like this.


    Neither Rita nor Alexander hadined about this yet but they must be frustrated as well. Rita¡¯s fluctuating mood spoke volumes about what she thought of their current pace.


    ¡°I know. We¡¯ve been going around in circles for a while now but it is intentional. It¡¯s been a while since we¡¯ve been followed by anyone.¡±


    Natasha opened her mouth to ask more questions before falling silent. Alexander was right when he said that they had not been followed for some time now.


    Either the guards following them had given up or they had taken another path somewhere else. When had that even happened?


    ¡°The guards had to split up at every junction to cover our path. That thinned their numbers. The others were likely caught up in the traps I set up the second time around so we should be safe now. This round was just to ensure our safety.¡±


    Ah, so that¡¯s why the pair had decided to walk around in circles. It was not because they were lost or anything.


    ¡°Don¡¯t believe everything Alexander says. We are also lost right now because we have no idea where to go from here. Most of our paths have been blocked by the guards so we cannot leave this ce.¡±


    Rita broke the illusion of coolness Alexander¡¯s words had set up. It was a wonder that the man¡¯s face did not break at Rita¡¯s words.


    Instead, his expression was close to the saying -¡® What are you talking about?¡¯


    ¡°Should we head back to the surface? I feel like we¡¯re wasting time here. We should find other hidden routes.¡±


    Rita seemed to have taken the hint but her face was still full of disgust over Alexander¡¯s behavior.


    There was some serious beef between the pair but it was nice to see them rxed and enjoying their time.


    ¡°We should head out but I feel like waiting here would be a better option. There is one person who can find us in this mess and lead us out with ease.¡±


    Alexander sounded confident in his words. Natasha felt the need to ask more but she heard footsteps before she could open her mouth.


    Rita quickly took her position to attack and ttened herself against the wall.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright. It¡¯s just your friendly assassin in here to help you out.¡±


    ¡°Rita, wait!¡±


    Natasha called out before Rita could attack and behead the assassin who was turning the corner.


    Unfortunately, the warning did not reach Natasha on time, and her body moved with the knife to attack.


    ¡°in, duck if you value your life.¡±


    Steel shed with steel and Rita saw sparks fly in front of her eyes from the action. Her de had met something solid in its path.

 Chapter 126

    Steel shed with steel and Rita saw sparks fly in front of her eyes from the action. Her de had met something solid in its path.


    It was lucky that Rita could control her strength after the first sh or the ck-dding assassin would have been sent flying.


    ¡°An ally?¡±


    Rita quickly backed down once she assessed the situation in front of her. The assassin was quick on the uptake and threw his weapon down to show his surrender.


    ¡°He¡¯s an ally for sure. Both I and Aurora can vouch for him. He is safe to follow.¡±


    Alexander¡¯s words caused Rita to drop her vignt posture as well. Even if she did not like Alexnader, she was beginning to trust his words.


    Even Natasha seemed to be in on the secret and her meaningful nces caused Rita to sigh and drop the topic.


    ¡°Fine, fine. He shall live for today. But why has hee after us now?¡±


    ¡°I am here to lead your group to the weapons room. The room will be the only ce you can exit from once the attack begins. Once the real attack begins, this ce will no longer be safe for you all.¡± The man looked nervous when he conveyed his thoughts.


    ¡°Attack? I was not aware that there was so much disharmony in the Northern Republic. Will it be a terrorist attack from the republican¡¯s side?¡±


    The timing would make sense. Now that there were intruders in the pce, most of the forces were focused on catching them.


    This new split attention would prove to be the best time for one to attack the pce in secret and get away sessfully.


    ¡°Terrorists? No, not quite. But we should not linger around so much. Lady Aurora will meet us once we make our way outside.¡±


    So it was Aurora¡¯s orders? Why the man would note out and say all this was beyond Rita¡¯s problem. The onlyint she had was that Aurora had not contacted her directly to exin the situation.


    ¡°If this is something Aurora is in control of, then we should hurry and get out. We cannot be the ones holding her back.¡±


    Although it did not seem like Aurora¡¯s style to face the problem head-on, Rita was not one to judge. Aurora might just have had a change of heart.


    ¡°Are you sure these are Aurora¡¯s words? To get us out of here and allow her to deal with the problem? She did not say anything about it.¡±


    It seemed like Rita was not the only one finding this information hard to swallow. Alexander had a pinched expression on his face.


    ¡°Of course not. These are not Lady Aurora¡¯s words but Lord Karan¡¯s. Our lord was convinced that Lady Aurora will take care of things on her own once she knew the truth of the crystal room. My only job now is to ensure your safety.¡±


    in quickly assessed the change in mood and made his words clear. His panicked tone was genuine and Rita was sure it was not his intention to get misunderstood.


    His words seemed to make Alexander pause for a second before he cooled off.


    ¡°If things are like that then we should leave. Rita, don¡¯t argue over this now. Aurora will be able to take care of herself.¡±


    Rita knew that. Of course, Aurora could take care of herself but that did not mean Rita was not worried about her.


    Especially recently because¡­.


    ¡°Aurora is under a curse. She can¡¯t even use her powers properly. How can I allow her to remain here and take care of things on her own?¡±


    ¡°Rita, we have to believe in her. Besides, there is nothing we can do for her in this pce. The most we can do is to divide attention and lead the guards away from her.¡±


    Alexander¡¯s calmness was a contrast to Rita¡¯s anger. His brown eyes were cold with confidence and Rita felt her heart harden.


    ¡°Fine. Natasha, let¡¯s get out of here. Your safety is of the utmost importance here. Natasha?¡±


    Rita called out to the youngest who had been silent this far. She expected to get a reply but the ck-haired beauty had a vacant look on her face.


    Her soft face was controlled by a horrified expression but her chest was moving at a constant rate.


    ¡°It¡¯s leaking. The corruption, it¡¯s been leaking all this time. I-I don¡¯t feel so good here. We should get out of here and fast.¡±


    For the first time, the nk face of the goddess had some sort of expression. But it was not one Rita would have liked to see on the young child¡¯s face.


    ¡°What¡¯s leaking Rita? What¡¯s this about corruption? Are you sure you are not feeling sick? Maybe all this cold is finally getting to you and¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t touch me or it¡¯ll stick to you too. Y-You should leave this ce without me and go.¡±


    The ck-haired girl had a feverish face. The redness she was disying convinced Rita that she was sick and she needed a doctor.


    ¡°Natasha, don¡¯t be stubborn ande with us. Let¡¯s look for a doctor in the city who can cure you. You look like you have a fever.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t believe me? Can¡¯t you feel the corruption? It¡¯s so cold but it burns in my heart. It feels suffocating. I-I need to absorb it all because it¡¯s my fault. I need to contain it or it¡¯ll find another host to torment.¡±


    Natasha was shaking in her ce. The pale face of the princess was even paler due to the pain and the fright. Rita felt afraid to even touch her but she reached out nheless.


    But the princess dodged her touch and took a few steps back.


    The more Natasha stepped ahead, the more Natasha backed off until she even took a turn while walking backward.


    Natasha disappeared behind the corner before her unconscious body fell forward toward Rita. Rita¡¯s reflex kicked in as she caught the small princess.


    She was about to tear the person who dared to treat Natasha like this but then her face fell onto an even paler face with sunken eyes.


    Hair full of blue and white streaks reached Rita¡¯s vision as a familiar face made itself known.


    ¡°I knocked her out for now. Keep her asleep when you get out of here until I return. I will take care of her once I¡¯ve dealt with this ce.¡±


    It was Aurora but she was not looking so good either. Her paleplexion and her red face matched Natasha¡¯s. The symptoms she disyed were simr to the princess but they were the only ones who seemed to be affected by this phenomenon.

 Chapter 127

    It was so cold. Every step Aurora took was a struggle to take but she did not give up.


    The most important thing to do for Aurora right now was to ensure that she pushed her foot in front of the other and to not lose her concentration.


    The contradicting forces inside her body were not allowing her any time to rest and to see to her situation.


    ¡°Just keep walking. I can feel Rita¡¯s magic nearby.¡±


    Aurora had to speak out loud to keep herself conscious. All her body wanted to do was to fall asleep and never wake up. But this was not something Aurora could afford to do right now.


    If she stopped walking then she would die due to the pain.


    Aurora knew that this was all because of the effects of the corruption. She was suffering like this because she had absorbed some of the darkness inside the main body.


    But she had no idea that harboring this magic would be so detrimental to her health.


    Aurora had no idea where she was walking and how long she had walked for. The cold invading her body made it incapable of feeling anything.


    She did not even realize someone small had bumped into her until she almost stepped Natasha over.


    The ck-haired girl looked smaller than her. Aurora had to look down at her to notice that she had gone back into her adult body.


    When and how it happened was still a mystery to Aurora. Her memory of the walk was a little foggy.


    ¡°Y-You¡¯re suffering from the corruption as well. You f-fell it too right? This is not natural.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s face was red as well and it was swimming in and out of focus. Aurora¡¯s careless actions seemed to have affected her health as well.


    So Aurora did the only sane things she could in her situation. She used her powers to knock Natasha¡¯s smaller body out.


    It was no cold sleep but it would keep Natasha¡¯s suffering at bay.


    As a result, Aurora felt the corruption inside Natasha trying to find a new host. It was like a parasite who was looking around to use what it can.


    And Aurora was a prime vessel for it to use. Aurora was already suffering from corruption so the new dose was even more painful.


    That was why she did not notice when Natasha fell toward the other corridor and was caught by a familiar face.


    Rita¡¯s eyes shot a venomous re toward Aurora before realizing how was standing in front of her. Then they softened as soon as Rita was knocked back to her senses.


    ¡°I knocked her out for now. Keep her asleep when you get out of here until I return. I will take care of her once I¡¯ve dealt with this ce.¡±


    Rita had aplicated expression on her face but this was not something Aurora could allow her to but in as she pleased.


    If Rita insisted on staying back and helping Aurora out then things could getplicated.


    ¡°B-But you look like you¡¯re in pain. You are in no condition to be walking around either.¡±


    Rita¡¯s outburst brought the other two people toward their small group as well. Alexander had aplicated expression on his face but in looked like he had expected this.


    ¡°Will you still insist on going ahead alone? You can ask for help from us and we willply.¡±


    It seemed like Aurora did look worse than she had expected to. But that was not a cause of concern for her yet.


    As long as she could move, Aurora wanted to see things through alone.


    ¡°I will be alright. It was not something I need to ask for your help with. Rather, I need you to clear this ce out since it will no longer be safe. This castle, it will not remain standing like this for long.¡±


    ¡°So you should understand what I want you to do.¡±


    Alexander did look troubled. Even Rita had a pinched look on her face.


    ¡°I will do what you ask of me. But take care of yourself as well.¡±


    Aurora gave ast nod of appreciation before she forced her body to move. The corruption inside Aurora was capable of finding other sources it was originating from.


    Aurora had only realized it once she had stumbled upon Natasha and recognized the hum of energy she gave off.


    If so, then this corruption would be the key that would lead Aurora toward the secret room where the cloning experiments were being kept.


    ¡°You have toe back alive. I won¡¯t forgive you if you died now.¡±


    Rita¡¯s yell came out unexpectedly. Her red eyes looked moist and on the verge of crying but she was a good follower who did not insist on following after Aurora.


    ¡°I won¡¯t die because of a small thing like this. I¡¯ll see you all soon.¡±


    If Aurora was right in her assessment, she was sure that there were two major ces inside this castle the nobility wanted to protect ¨C the cloning room and the research room.


    There would be various protective spells ced on both ces in case of emergency but Aurora was banking on the rooms having a transportation spell in ce.


    Now Aurora understood why she had been pushed by the Republicans to make this decision. She even understood why Karan had interfered to make Aurora aware of the secrets of the Northern Republic.


    The Northern Pce was not a ce one could walk into and roman freely. It was true for even Karan since he would be watched thoroughly.


    Not to mention, Karan had the tower¡¯s eyes on him as well.


    In a sense, only a third neutral party would be able to sneak in here and cause the trouble which would help the Republicans gain the upper hand.


    Once the research facility would be transported away with its goods, in would send a message and call the Republicans over. Instantly, they will have the upper hand and the resources at their disposal.


    As for the cloning facility? It will not live to see another day.


    This might be all Aurora would be able to do for the innocent girl she who¡¯s the body she had been upying recently.


    ¡°Look at me, being reduced to a pawn in other¡¯s n. And I swore not to be used again.¡±


    But somehow, Aurora did not hate the feeling of being someone¡¯s pawn this time. Maybe it was because her own beliefs were simr to the people who had pushed her into the role.


    ¡°I guess I¡¯ll count it as a favor I did to Karan. I do own him a lot after the tower.¡±

 Chapter 128

    ¡°Don¡¯t think about doing something stupid. We should be thinking of getting out of here.¡±


    Alexander¡¯s words halted Rita¡¯s steps. He could tell that the female was frustrated but he would not allow her to do anything foolish.


    Alexander could tell that Aurora had a n in mind. And her expression said that she wanted help but could not ask for it now.


    There had to be a reason behind all this.


    Since Alexander already knew the major secret behind the Northern Princess that could not be the case. There had to be some other reason Aurora wanted to keep them out of the loop.


    ¡°But you saw her face as well. Aurora looked like she was about to copse. Not to mention, she looked older. Is her curse acting up again?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s the case. But people like Aurora are not fragile. Believe in her and let her go.¡±


    The sound of someone gritting their teeth reached Alexander. Rita¡¯s pissed-off expression met his face but he refused to back down.


    ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll do this for Aurora and not for you. Now, how do we get to our destination?¡±


    Rita finally gave in. Alexander could tell that she hade to the same conclusion he had and for that he respected her.


    It was not easy for one to push their feelings back and focus on the mission but Rita was adjusting well to her situation.


    ¡°in, you know the way to the researchbs, right? Then I¡¯ll count on you to lead us there.¡±


    ¡°Of course, I know. Now, follow behind me and I¡¯ll take you there.¡±


    This was the most silent Rita had been all this time. Natasha¡¯s unconscious body in her arm seemed like a constant reminder to keep on moving ahead.


    ¡°From here on it¡¯s the research area. You can feel the difference inwards and spells being woven in here. This used to be the royal family¡¯s emergency retreat a long time ago,¡±


    Alexander reached for the spells he could feel surrounding him. The magic was still holding strong here even after so many years.


    Unlike the castle, this ce was warm andfortable. It was not even possible to think that such a ce could have existed in the northern territory.


    ¡°This is some strong magic. It also seemed unaffected by the cold outside.¡±


    ¡°That is because this ce was sealed off before the cold spell was ced over the northern continent. The holy power that protected this ce is the royal family and it is said that only someone from the royal family can ess its powers.¡±


    in exined before he forced the door of the facility open. The sound of hurried footsteps followed from the other side.


    ¡°Oi. I thought you said only the people of royal bloodline could ess this ce?¡±


    ¡°I said power, not the ce. Anyone can visit this ce freely if they know of its existence. But there is only one person who has the authority toe and go as they please.¡±


    Alexander did not even have to think about the answer. If there was one person who had the ess to the tower then it was the head maid.


    ¡°It¡¯s you again? Why are you here? How did you even find this ce? Are you haunting us or something? Ah, I know. You fell for my devilish charms and decided to stalk me. I¡¯m sorry to say but I don¡¯t date old hags.¡±


    Alexander felt his temper rise as he watched the older woman parade in front of him. He wanted to tear her a new one but he did not want to fall to her level.


    So he did the thing he did best, annoy the hell out of the old maid.


    ¡°Ah, and you think your in looks are to my liking? Well, maybe you¡¯ll look fancier with some blood on your face instead.¡±


    This time, the head maid gave as good as she got. Her words were spoken with amused confidence which did not sit right with Alexander.


    ¡°I can see that not all of you made it till here. I guess our young guest could not hold on till the end. But don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll get to meet her soon enough.¡±


    The small body of the head maid was soon eclipsed by a huge shadow from behind. The owner of the shadow looked big enough to hit the ceiling of the room.


    ¡°It¡¯s the battle suit, the worst one the nobility ever made. It is run on magic and can utilize spells as well. We¡¯ll need to be careful.¡±


    Why had Alexander thought that this fight would be easy? Of course, things were never easy for him.


    It seemed like he had no other option but to go ahead and fight that monster head-on.


    ¡°Wait. I¡¯ll take that thing on. You, take Natasha and get out of here. I¡¯m pissed off and the giant in front of me is pissing me off even more.¡±


    Rita looked calm on the outside but her magic was fluctuating quite a bit. She was just like a ticking time bomb that was about to explode at any time.


    In this situation, there was only one thing Alexander could do.


    ¡°Alright. You deal with that giant while we escape this ce. Take care and bring Aurora out alive.¡±


    He wiped his hands off the fight and took Natasha¡¯s unconscious body in her arms. She was a key asset in the Northern Republic¡¯s future.


    Truth to be told, Alexander already had an idea of what Aurora wanted to get rid of. It had to be the cloning facility.


    And if so, then survival of Natasha would be a top priority. Alexander was worried about Rita¡¯s chances against the magical tech of the Northern Republic.


    But he was a rational person and knew when to put his feelings aside for the greater good.


    ¡°You are not going to escape this pce alive. Your opponent will be me and I will also be the one to finish you off.¡±


    Alexander felt a little surprised when the small head maid ced herself in-between Alexander and the exit route.


    He could not feel any magicing off her body but that did not assure Alexander about his victory against her. There had to be a reason the head maid had stepped ahead knowing she could not defeat Alexander.


    ¡°Look out. I¡¯ll take her on so you should keep running.¡±


    Alexander felt someone shove him backward. in blocked the attack meant for him with his sword.


    Alexander could have defended against that attack if his hands were empty but he was currently holding Natasha.


    ¡°You traitor. You were alive all this time? But you have gone too far, in. You bring dishonor to our house.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s alright with me. Our house was never honorable, to begin with. I am just doing what I should have a long time ago.¡±


    It seemed that there was some personal beef brewing in front of Alexander¡¯s eyes. Too bad that he could not sit back and enjoy it.

 Chapter 129

    Aurora felt hesitant to open the door to the chamber she had stopped in front of. This was her final destination, the cloning room.


    Following the corruption had led Aurora straight to the heart of the problem, that much she was sure of. But standing in front of the final step, Aurora realized that she was getting cold feet.


    ¡°Let¡¯s just get it over with. I¡¯m sure the others will take care of themselves.¡±


    Aurora finally made up her mind and opened the door. Her closed eyes opened in an instant to face the nightmare she had been dreading to clean up.


    But the room in front of her eyes was no different than any normal one she had seen this far. The only thing that was different about the room was the bareness inside.


    There was only a bed and a desk inside the room. Anything else, even the walls were bare of any decorations.


    ¡°Is this the cloning room? Somehow I was imagining something different. But this should make looking after the cloning device easier.¡±


    Aurora shook her head as soon as the thoughts of arge machine-dominated room filled her head. Her fantasies were getting a little out of hand.


    But finding the cloning device should not be that tough.


    Or so Aurora thought for the first fifteen minutes. But it was impossible to tell where the cloning device was inside the room.


    Her deteriorating condition made it difficult for Aurora to be able to function mentally and the stress of corruption on her body was not helping much.


    The only thing Aurora had been able to find this far was the hair samples that had been used for cloning.


    ¡°This is irritating. If I can¡¯t find the machine, then I might as well erase all the evidence of this ce.¡±


    Aurora was usually a m-headed person but her kindness could no longer excuse the actions of the Northern Republic. The pce that had seen the atrocities of the country needed to be burned down.


    Aurora¡¯s magic ignited like a sh. The fire zed bright even in the coldness of the snow around her.


    Divine magic shed together and fought for dominance. But the fire was a dominant force over ice and Aurora¡¯s anger was fueling the fire.


    ¡®That¡¯s it. Let your anger burn brighter. We are stronger than anyone else so let¡¯s prove it atst.¡¯


    The voice inside Aurora was getting stronger. She had never heard it so clearly before but she could hear its advice now.


    ¡®This ce is not worth the trouble to keep around. Insignificant magic like this cannot keep us down.¡¯


    The voice was cold but cruel. It sounded like it was on Aurora¡¯s side but she knew that the voice was just relishing in the distraction taking ce surrounding itself.


    It was a good distraction that helped Aurora keep her focus on the task. It made the cold feeling in Aurora¡¯s veins an insignificant annoyance.


    But more than that, the voice was so,


    ¡°Annoying. I don¡¯t need you to tell me what to do. I will take care of everything by myself.¡±


    The fire was burning but the cold corruption inside Aurora was on a rise as well. And the more power Aurora used, the colder and harsher she felt.


    ===========================


    ¡®Shit. I talked big but I cannot summon my familiars anymore. This ce is blocking any contract magic. At this rate, I¡¯ll have to end up using my other tactic.¡¯


    Rita quickly blocked the magic arrow that the Mecha suit had sent her way. She quickly used her shield magic to parry the attack.


    Her fight had drawn into a stalemate this far because of her indecisive actions.


    It might seem like she was unwilling to attack the huge Mecha suiting to kill her at first but that was not the case.


    The initial n had been to find her footing and call upon her familiars to help her out. But the second Rita had tried to reach for her contract, her end of the bond had gone mute.


    It was logical to think that the walls of this chamber had anti-magic spells waved into them.


    ¡°Such an annoyance. But, I¡¯m not out of options yet.¡±


    Rita¡¯s deration was much more for her benefit than to convey the information. The shout allowed Rita to gather her bearings before calling forth her hidden talent.


    Those who practiced familiar magic had one taboo art they should not use under any circumstances. It was the art of possession.


    [Activated skill ¨C possession. The user can use the power of a contract divine beast outside of their summoning period.


    Warning: Skill will expire in 5 minutes on its own]


    5 minutes was the limit Rita could maintain this skill, but that was not without consequences on her part.


    The possession skill caused a huge amount of strain on the user¡¯s body. It will likely leave Rita in a dire situation once she was done dealing with this fight.


    But there was no other option avable to her. She had to end this fight as soon as she could and then find Aurora.


    ¡°Divine beast of lightning, lend me your strength.¡±


    Rita flinched as the shock traveled through her body before settling in her core. She could feel the changes taking pce inside her body already.


    Her arms had small feathers sprouting as well as her eyes changed shape.


    While Rita would not be a demoness fully, her body could no longer stay human to channel the divine powers. She had to be a beast as well to be able to handle such magic.


    The change in features seemed to have left the Mecha for a loss. The artificial intelligence inside the machine did not look to be as advanced as Rita had believed it to be.


    Having lost its target, the Mecha began retreating into the base. This was something Rita was not willing to overlook.


    ¡°Just where do you think you are going? Your opponent is right in front of you.¡±


    The Mecha stopped at the sound of Rita¡¯s voice. It seemed like the machine was not gone at least. There was still some hint of intelligence behind his eyes.


    ¡°I¡¯m tired of this chase now so let¡¯s end this fight. Useless things should be discarded after all.¡±


    It was likely that the mechs suit was not going to understand a thing Rita was saying but she was angry and she needed something to sate her anger.


    The divine power in her body was going crazy and it was time to let it have an outlet.


    It had been a long time since Rita had let loose like this but the feeling of her magic colliding with another directly was exhrating.


    It was just like the one she had experienced in her first trial inside the abyss

 Chapter 130

    ¡°You did well today. If you keep it up then you¡¯ll be ready to go into the abyss soon enough. The tower leader said that he has personally selected your team members. You should be honored and make us proud.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll get to be in the same team as the tower leader¡¯s son and Lady Clove. How lucky for you to be chosen. I think we did a good job raising her.¡±


    ¡°Of course. After all, Lady Rita is a genius summoner and the best one in her generation. But for now, she needs more practice. But of course, we will make sure she does¡±


    The eight years old Rita looked up at the faces of her caretakers. Thedies were busy talking among themselves, ignoring the eight years old.


    The young girl was bitter but not surprised at the turn of events.


    From a third person¡¯s perspective, it looked like thesedies were praising Rita. But all they were doing was stroking their ego.


    They were not even looking at Rita when they were talking to her. And they¡¯ll ignore her if she talked back to them.


    This was a rule Rita hade to understand early on in her life.


    After all, even her mother chose to ignore her existence unless Rita was needed for her talent. If Rita could not win her father¡¯s favor with her abilities, then she was useless.


    But her father was a minor god and did not care about her mother. It had been a political marriage that produced Rita with minor divine powers.


    Not nearly enough to make her a god or goddess but enough to make her stand above regr humanity. That small traces of divinity were also the reason Rita was able to summon the divine beast and contract them.


    She was a goldmine for her family.


    She endured it for years. She did all that was asked of her and did not look at the consequences of what she was doing. All she had wanted was to be loved.


    It allsted until the day she heard someone go against the tower master¡¯s wishes when she was sixteen.


    The figure inside the room was so dazzling and shining that Rita had been unable to look away.


    When that dazzling figure had left, Rita had wanted to follow after her. But her caretakers had not allowed Rita to do so.


    So Rita had taken the first big risk of her life and decided to run away.


    And then she had seen her ¡®hero¡¯ trying to make sense of their magic in the park. Curiosity had led to longing and Rita had gathered enough courage to finally talk with that dazzling being.


    She had expected to be turned away and be rejected. She had been ready to run away but the creature had smiled at her and taken Rita¡¯s hand.


    Rita had so many experiences since that day but the most memorable was the night she spent together with Aurora and that unforgivable trail she had gone through.


    The joy of seeing Aurora inside that trail room had faded away to form a dream when Rita had seen that golden-blond hair near Aurora¡¯s face.


    Could Aurora not see what kind of devil her ¡®lover¡¯ was? Was she blinded by love? Or had Aurora been enchanted by the devil?


    Everyone seemed to be happy with Clove and Aurora being a couple in that trial but Rita could feel a sense of uneasiness. Looking at Clove gave Rita goosebumps.


    There was something not right about her and her soul. There was darkness and corruption all over it.


    But Aurora seemed not to see it. She looked happy and content.


    And that was when Rita found herself jealous and longing for power. She wanted, no, she needed that scene not toe true.


    It would end in Aurora¡¯s unhappiness. And that was something Rita could not allow.


    That¡¯s what lead Rita to gather more power.


    That¡¯s why she hade as far as she had. And that¡¯s why she had formed a divine contract and aged herself.


    It was all for that one person who had shown Rita the light.


    Even if the divining lightning burned her now, Rita would not stand back and allow Aurora to destroy herself.


    ¡°You damn machine. Don¡¯t you dare stand in my way any longer. You should just die now.¡±


    Rita¡¯s right side was bleeding from the scratch she had received from dodging the metallic w.


    It did not hurt but the blood was making her side messy.


    But the blood had also gotten into the Mecha¡¯s joints and interfered with its seals. It would no longer be able to use its magic properly.


    ¡°Good night.¡±


    Rita brought her sword down. The ck metal drenched in her blood caused her to crack with lightning and pierced the Mecha.


    There should not have been a need for Rita to go so overboard. She could have dealt with that Mecha more gently. But it would have taken her precious time she could be using to look for Aurora.


    The machine finally went quiet and the traces of other life forms were gone from the chambers.


    ¡°It looks like Natasha and Alexander managed to get out of here safely. I should get going as well.¡±


    Rita¡¯s body did not feel tired even after going through such an ordeal. The special constitution of her divine form made Rita¡¯s senses go numb.


    She would be feeling it all once this problem was over.


    The core of the Mecha exploded and the head rolled hear Rita¡¯s feet. The head had something white and transparent shining inside it so she decided to pick it up.


    ¡°Huh? What¡¯s this? An absorbing crystal? Whatever, I should take it with me as well.¡±


    Rita did not know then that her small and careless action of picking up the absorption crystal would be the cornerstone of the northern empire.


    For now, all that was on her mind was to reach Aurora and get her out of this mess.


    As soon as Rita exited the chamber, she felt the magic on the seals start acting up. The chamber vibrated before finally disappearing from behind Rita.


    The so-called ¡¯emergency evacuation¡¯ had finally been activated. And the chamber of research had gone toward a safer destination.


    And just as that happened, a huge st of fire cracked open the secret passage¡¯s top. The mixture of blue and green enveloped the icy castle and it began melting.


    The Pce of Northern Republic, the cornerstone of the nobility was burning away without anything left behind to spare.


    It was a tragic event that would be remembered in everyone¡¯s memories.


    But all Rita could think of was one thing.


    ¡®How beautiful. It looks like a dream.¡¯

 Chapter 131

    As the blue mes eclipsed the royal pce, Aurora had a thought.


    ¡®Is this what arsonists feel? I can get addicted to this feeling.¡¯


    The feeling of power and authority that danced around Aurora was high and intoxicating. It was bing her toe closer and to take a bite of this power.


    It took considerable willpower and effort for Aurora to not lose her sense of this feeling of power. She had to resist the temptation of corruption.


    The pce was burning and it would not be long before everyone would be aware of this. The humans of the republic were already eying this unnatural phenomenon.


    But it was the abyss Aurora was worried about.


    She was sure that the mes would not harm the body of the sleeping princess but Aurora could never be too sure.


    Corruption was on the rise as well. The unclean aura that could be felt through the castle was overflowing.


    Aurora had hot realized this before releasing the burning spell but the ice had been keeping this corruption in check.


    The icebined with Natasha¡¯s real body was what slowed this darkness to stay in one ce and allow the people down to live in peace.


    ¡°I need to do something about this corruption. Sleep or not, Natasha¡¯s body will not be able to purify all this.¡±


    Slowly but steadily, the corruption has started to escape from Natasha¡¯s unconscious body. This was something Aurora had figured out long ago.


    But since Natasha had very low divine powers, her body had begun fighting back against the corruption. Corruption could only affect the ¡®divine¡¯ things after all. It was rtively harmless to humans without magic.


    Had things been left as they were, the corruption would have ended up being cleared one day.


    But the cloning process had halted progress and the events of today seemed to have changed things for the negative.


    It almost felt like this was someone¡¯s scheme Aurora had fallen into. Aurora had no idea why she was getting such a feeling but she did not like it.


    Aurora quickly looked back at the blue-burning pce and let out a sigh. Things were getting more and more awkward for her.


    Just then Aurora¡¯s eyes met a familiar face in the fire. It was a meeting that onlysted for a second but it was enough for Aurora to be shaken.


    ¡°W-What¡¯s she doing here? Surely I must be mistaken. Why would that ¡®Zoe¡¯ be here? I must be hallucinating from the smoke in my eyes. Yes, that must be it.¡±


    Aurora rubbed her eyes again but that woman was long gone. Even if Aurora wanted to chase after the mirage, it was toote for her.


    And there were more pressing matters to attend do anyway.¡±


    ¡°I need to do something about this corruption. It will be a problem soon.¡±


    The corruption was bringing the abyss closer and closer to the surface. If it was not taken care of now, then it really will engulf the Northern Continent without fail.


    Just thinking about it was enough to make Aurora have a headache.


    ¡°AURORA. WHERE ARE YOU?¡±


    Rita¡¯s familiar voice worked like a soothing balm on Aurora¡¯s tired soul. It made hanging on to this far worth everything.


    ¡°Rita? What are you doing here? You should have escaped by now.¡±


    Aurora wanted to say a million things. She wanted to ask Rita about the new magical aura she was giving off.


    But all that was eclipsed by the feeling of fear Aurora felt. She did not want Rita to stay here and be affected by the corruption of the abyss.


    ¡°I cannot leave you here and escape on your own. My conscious would not allow it. So I¡¯ll help you out instead. Tell me what you need to do.¡±


    Aurora felt hesitant in asking Rita for help. But she also realized that Rita was stuck in this situation now.


    Their only means of easy escape was gone and now this corruption needed to be taken care of.


    ¡°We¡¯ll need to cast a sealing spell all over this area. We cannot allow the castle to fall into the abyss or the whole continent will fall as well.¡±


    Since the royal castle was the pir of the continent, it will be the first thing to be consumed by the abyss.


    Just because this castle was built at the highest point in the city did not mean anything to the abyss. It would rise from beneath the castle if needed.


    ¡°How do we do that? What all will we need?¡±


    Rita didn¡¯t even hesitate to ask the question. Her eyes were serious when she asked that and Aurora wasn¡¯t even sure why she felt surprised at that.


    After all, Rita had never tried to betray her.


    ¡°We¡¯ll need an absorbing crystal and an amplifier. I can take care of things from there.¡±


    ¡°An absorbing crystal? Will this work?¡±


    Rita took out a pure crystalline substance from her inventory. It was the highest grade crystal one could get their hands on.


    It was perfect for usage.


    ¡°Where did you¡­? No. it¡¯s not important for now. We¡¯ll need to get started right away. Rita, I¡¯ll count on you to amplify my magic.¡±


    Aurora could feel the divine magicing off Rita. Anyone capable of handling divine magic could work as an amplifier even if they had no prior knowledge.


    ¡°B-But..¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll do fine. I trust you to do fine. And we don¡¯t have any other choice in this matter.¡±


    Rita knew Aurora was right. Aurora could see it in her friend¡¯s red eyes.


    In the end, Rita lowered her hand and ced her hand in front of Aurora. It was a clear sign that she agreed with Aurora.


    Aurora took in a deep breath before she began to gather her power. She needed to guide the corruption into the absorbing crystal and hope that it holds on somehow.


    If the crystal broke or Aurora¡¯s concentration faltered, then things would end in a huge st.


    It took close to a house before Aurora felt she was close to finishing. She opened her eyes to look at the state of things when she saw an arrow being fried at Rita. the figure who was firing had a hood up but Aurora could still see the image ovepping with Zoe¡¯s.


    Aurora tried to interfere but she could not move from the ceremony.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright. Let it hit me since I won¡¯t die. But you have to see this ceremony though at all costs. For me.¡±


    Rita had seen the same thing Aurora had and she had made a decision.


    The arrow hit Rita in her arm and she let go of Aurora. Rita was falling down into the abyss but Aurora could not follow as long as she was stuck in the ceremony.

 Chapter 132

    There is a time when one has to choose between duty and personal desire. That was where Aurora found herself currently at.


    Even when Rita was falling right in front of her, Aurora felt powerless to do anything to stop her fall.


    It would be easy for Aurora to cast a spell and save Rita but it would mean letting go of the absorbing crystal. And if Aurora let go of it, then the corruption stored inside the crystal would explode.


    It would reduce all her effort to zero and the Northern Continent would sink into the abyss.


    ¡®But why does it matter to us? Rita is the important one, right? We should chase after her, or she¡¯ll die. She¡¯s human after all.¡¯


    The voice was clear and strong inside Aurora¡¯s mind. It was a mixture of corruption but also her desire to save Rita.


    It made Aurora¡¯s will waver and her grip on the crystal lightened for just a second before a familiar voice rang inside her ear.


    ¡®You have to see this ceremony though at all costs. For me.¡¯


    The voice was amand that had been cast using magic. The familiar feeling of Rita¡¯s magic snapped Aurora back into focus and caused her to tighten her grip.


    She could not let go now. Not after Rita¡¯s words and wishes.


    ¡®I¡¯ll have to trust her to be alive. It¡¯s not like it¡¯s Rita¡¯s first time in the abyss.¡¯


    The ceremony was about to be over anyway. Aurora had to only hold on for a little while longer and things would be over for real.


    The transparent crystal was already a muddy color. It had done its best to absorb most of the corruption from the surroundings.


    And what it could not absorb was being taken in by Aurora inside her. Since she was a major goddess, her divinity could be used to keep it in check.


    The snow was raging all over the Northern Republic. Everyone could make out the cloud of reddish-ck hanging over the royal pce.


    The bluish-green mes were visible to naked eyes and everyone was paying attention to this historic event.


    But those who were involved in this mess were quite busy with other things.


    Witnesses foretold the horror that went on for hours. The fire did not diminish until the sun rose in the sky and the traces of the icy pce were gone once the fire was subdued.


    The only remaining relic that was discovered was an ice-d body of the Northern princess and a snowyke.


    ===========================


    Aurora¡¯s body was in a worse condition than she had expected it to be. Her magic and corruption were running on a rampage inside her body and every step was agonizing to her.


    And yet, she had to focus on taking a step further. Rita had fallen into the abyss and Aurora had followed after her as soon as she had been able to.


    She had been sure she had seen where Rita had fallen but the ce Rita should have been was empty.


    It was like someone had deliberately moved her away from the main room.


    The weing aura of the abyss was not soothing to Aurora right now. Rather, the numbness from her overexertion was the main force inside her body.


    ¡°RITA! CAN YOU HEAR ME?¡±


    Aurora knew it was a futile effort on her part. Even if Rita could hear her, she would not be in a condition to be able to reply to Aurora.


    Aurora would have to be the one to find the redhead first.


    Her system beeped and gave Aurora a sense of relief. It had finally traced Rita¡¯s magical aura and it was providing Aurora with a clear path to follow.


    The walls of the abyss were cold and reminded Aurora of the Northern Pce in Natasha¡¯s memories. Her current surroundings were influenced by the previous castle.


    ¡°Really? Here of all ces?¡±


    The ce Aurora stood in front of was the throne room. The huge door with the intricate design was important.


    But Aurora¡¯s senses told her something else about this room. This was the chamber of the overlooker for the sixth floor of the abyss.


    This was a ce Aurora had not expected to end up in so early. Should she open the door and go in?


    ¡°Pardon my intrusion.¡±


    In the end, the decision was already made up for Aurora. She could not abandon Rita to her fate in the abyss after all.


    The chamber was empty when Aurora stepped in and Rita was lying out cold on the floor.


    The red-haired girl looked rtively unharmed but Aurora could feel her magic fading away faster than it was being replenished.


    Whatever magic Rita had used had been dangerous. Her current inexperienced body had not handled it well.


    ¡°Magic source. I need to look for a magic source.¡±


    Aurora quickly essed the situation and made a swift decision. She needed to find a source to supply Rita magic with external magic.


    She could not use her magic due to the amount she had currently left. And then there was the issue of corruption inside her body as well.


    It was by pure luck that Aurora found a magic stone nearby with enoughplimentary magic to be able to cure Rita right away.


    She ced the stone on Rita¡¯s chest and cast the spell. Things certainly were starting to look up again.


    ¡°You have to live. Please live and be alright.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s wishes must have reached the magic since it reacted and began healing Rita. it would take some time for Rita to heal uppletely but she¡¯ll be out of the danger zone soon.


    ¡°I see. An insect managed to crawl inside this chamber. It looks like the Outlooker of this floor wasx. No matter, I shall take care of things in her stead.¡±


    Aurora felt fear tickle her senses. It was a familiar sensation that she had felt before.


    This aura, this magic, it felt like the same one Aurora had felt on the train before. It was so overwhelming that it was even making her shiver in fright.


    ¡°D-Don¡¯t..¡±


    Aurora ced her body over Rita¡¯s to block the injured red-haired girl but the blue-haired man seemed not interested in Rita.


    His glowing golden eyes looked uninterested in anything but he did raise his words and Aurora felt something wet touch her hand.


    ¡°Survive if you want to live and I will see you again. And next time, don¡¯t steal from the outlooker¡¯s chamber or you will die by my hands.¡±


    Aurora fell to the ground with her wound bleeding. Thest thing she saw was the golden eyes and blue hair of the stranger looking at her with a strange look on his face.

 Chapter 133

    The outlooker¡¯s chamber had two unconscious bodies and one threatening one. That was the scene the hooded figure came across once she entered the room.


    ¡°Violence is not the option. Did you kill them?¡±


    The hooded figure asked. Although her words sounded kind andpassionate, they held a mocking tone in them as well.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be absurd. She will not die that easily, nor will she let herpanion die that easily. She was chosen by the abyss so I believe she will ovee this.¡±


    The blue-haired man did not sound like he had any confidence in his words. It felt like he was repeating the words he had often spoken.


    The green-haired woman looked delighted to hear those words. She even let out a chuckle before she looked toward the blue-haired man.


    ¡°I suppose she will live. But what about the red-head? She¡¯ll surely die if she remains in her present condition since her magic is going out of control. Won¡¯t it be irresponsible of us to let her die?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to hear about irresponsibility from you, Zoe. You left your chamber without prior notice so expect to be punished for it. Also, don¡¯t think that your little experiments with that wrenched goddess are going unseen. The others are catching on to your plots.¡±


    The green-haired girl¡¯s happy expression faded into an indifferent one at the man¡¯s words. Her yellow pupils held no light inside them when she looked toward the blue-haired man.


    ¡°Just because you are the leader of the outlookers and closest to the one controlling the abyss doesn¡¯t mean your threats will work on me. Your hands are just as tied as ours so don¡¯t act all high and mighty.¡±


    ¡°Also, let go of your past attachments. Your days as a human are long over. You are one of us now so do think over your actions carefully.¡±


    ¡°Are you threatening me?¡±


    ¡°No. It¡¯s just some advice from me. I may be younger than you but I¡¯ve still been alive for a long time.¡±


    From an outside perspective, it looked like a fight was going to break out any second. The two figures inside the chamber looked ready to duke it out and even their magic was seizing each other up.


    However, before things coulde to it, Zoe backed down. Her indifference faded from her eyes and a fake amusement overtook its ce.


    ¡°Well, with that being said. I think we should take our leave now. Someone is headed this way to get our guests out to safety. It won¡¯t do well for us to be seen with them.¡±


    From the blue-haired man¡¯s face, it was clear that he wanted to speak more. But the hurried footsteps wereing closer.


    The time to talk was over already.


    ¡°Do as you wish.¡±


    The man left without any other parting words and the green-haired woman let out an amused smile.


    Things were progressing better than she could have ever expected. And now, things were starting to fall in ce.


    The things she had sacrificed to set this bord for herdy had not been in vain. Hopefully, this would go well this time around.


    Zoe hung out in her chamber just long enough to see a ck-haired figure kneeling in front of the two damaged bodies.


    As soon as she knew that the injured parties were in safe hands she left the chamber.


    ===========================


    Aurora felt the consciousnesse and go out in intervals. Many times she felt like she was awake but her body could not move.


    It was a constant struggle for her to fight against her mind and wake up.


    But when she finally did wake up, it was to the shining view outside the window. Sun had risen high in the sky and there was not even a single dark cloud in sight.


    The garden that Auror could view from her bedside window was also in full bloom. Various colored flowers filled thendscape from top to bottom.


    It was a perfect view for someone who had only seen white for some time now.


    ¡°Y-You are awake? Y-Your awake this time?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s eyes snapped from the outside garden to Rita¡¯s familiar face. The ref-haired girl looked better than thest time Aurora had seen her.


    Her face was still pale and her eyes had dark bags underneath them but she looked rtively healthy otherwise.


    The only difference Aurora could make out about her appearance was her hair.


    ¡°You cut your hair. When did you do that?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s voice came out more hoarse than she had expected it to. It also hurt to speak and she massaged her muscles to ease the pain.


    ¡°My hair? It¡¯s been like this ever since a month ago. The doctors decided to cut it shorter to make my wounds more essible. You¡¯ve been asleep since then as well.¡±


    A month? Really?


    A month was a long time for one to fall asleep like that. The news of her long sleep was surprising for sure.


    But for some reason, Aurora could not find it in herself to be worried. Her emotions felt a little dulled out but she was sure it was because she had just woken up.


    ¡°Wait, a month? What happened to the academy? A-And the management? Who¡¯s taking care of all that? Where are we currently at?¡±


    Now that her brain had caught up, a variety of questions popped inside Aurora¡¯s mind. She had not realized she had missed this much during her sleep.


    ¡°C-Calm down or you¡¯ll worsen your condition. We were escorted back to the academy once things calmed down and this ce had Rex taking care of it so the academy opened without any problems.¡±


    ¡°As for what happened in the Northern Republic? I think you should hear the news from Natasha¡¯s mouth. She will be able to convey this to you in a better manner than I. I send her a message just now.¡±


    Aurora felt her breath ease when she heard Rita mention Natasha. It looked like the princess had gotten out of the danger zone without a problem.


    The door was knocked on twice before it finally opened. A ck-haired beauty entered the room with her cold blue eyes.


    The figure that stood in front of Aurora was the same one that had been eclipsed by icy prison. But the magic and aura she gave off belonged to the small girl Aurora had rescued not too long ago.


    There were many questions Aurora could have asked in that situation. But there was only one that escaped her mouth.


    ¡°Natasha, have you grown up? You look like an adult now.¡±


    An awkward silence followed her words.

 Chapter 134

    ¡°Natasha, have you grown up? You look like an adult now.¡±


    An awkward silence followed Aurora¡¯s words. However, Natasha had an indifferent expression on her face.


    It was easier to tell that this was Natasha Aurora and Rita hade to befriend. This was the younger one with her cold and indifferent attitude.


    ¡°I am merely upying a new body since my old one gave up. The ¡®me¡¯ in this body gave up so the abyss thrust my soul in here.¡±


    Aurora found her ears hard to believe. But it was not impossible to believe for her.


    After all, Aurora had already witnessed the abyss mess around with time and other things. What was its interference in one small soul¡¯s whereabouts?


    ¡°So you somehow ended up in your older body after you died? But how did it even happen? And how did we get out of the abyss?¡±


    Aurora more or less understood what Natasha was hinting at. The recent personality of Natasha had merged with her past one to create a single existence.


    ¡°I guess I will tell you since you are so curious to know. It all started when Alexander ran away with me¡­¡±


    ===========================


    Natasha felt the cold of the pce seeping into her heart. There was a yearning in the ice surrounding her, telling her not to leave.


    This deep into the underground, Natasha could not help but want to follow the call of this familiar magic.


    It was only Alexander¡¯s hold on her and her body¡¯s incapability to keep on holding that made Natasha unable to fulfill her purpose.


    ¡°Princess, are you alright? Your body feels a little colder than it is supposed to.¡±


    Alexander¡¯s voice was a far-away notion inside Natasha¡¯s mind. Even the words were covered by a thin mist inside Natasha¡¯s ears.


    ¡°Let me go.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s sudden words and struggle startled Alexander for him to loosen his hold. Natasha took this chance to run away.


    Alexander wanted to chase after her but he lost his chance once he slipped on the icy surface. And before Natasha knew it, she was out in the hallway.


    The castle was burning around her. Natasha could feel the magic crying out in pain as it disappeared around her.


    It was asking her to interfere and save it. But Natasha was more interested in the voice calling out to her.


    She walked toward the voice, unaware of where she was heading to. She just knew she had to be careful and look for that voice.


    ¡°This is¡­¡±


    The room she arrived at looked vaguely familiar and yet Natasha could tell that she had never been there.


    Her feet rested on ake made up of ice. The room was frozen and had nothing inside it except ice.


    Even the roof was made up of ice and it was melting away at a fast pace.


    But all that did not concern Natasha. It did not even attract her attention in any real way. The only thing that attracted was the ache in her heart at seeing the icy pir in the middle of the room.


    The closer Natasha got to the pir, the more her heart hurt. She got a feeling that she should not be here. Her senses were telling her that this was a forbidden area.


    But Natahsa continued to move ahead nheless.


    And what she saw in the icy pir surprised her.


    ¡°That¡¯s me? But how?¡±


    Most people would have called seeing their own face trapped in ice a fraud. They might have called it a trick and dismissed this whole thing.


    But Natahsa could not ignore the existence of this new body. And it was all because of the familiar magic she felt oozing from the body.


    She could not deny that the femaliarity she felt being near the frozen body as well as the magic were her own.


    This body, it was rted to her in an intimate sense.


    ¡°I want to take a closer look. Should I touch the ice?¡±


    Natasha¡¯s mouth moved as her body decided to take action. She ced her hand on the ice gently just as the roof exploded and fire broke out everywhere.


    It startled Natasha enough to make her let go of the icy pir and loose her concentration.


    ¡°I should get out of here or I¡¯ll burn to death.¡±


    Natasha was concerned about the frozen body but her own life was more important than a dead person. As such, she decided to flee to the safety.


    Or that was the n before she was pushed into the pir.


    Natasha tried to hold on to the pir to support her weight but instead of making any impact, she began sinking into the ice.


    ¡°Hope you have a better life this time.¡±


    Before she waspletely gone, Natasha saw a vision of green along with yellow eyes looking back at her.


    Even they gave off a sense of familiarity but Natasha was sure she had never seen them before.


    ===========================


    ¡°When I woke up, the ice of the pir had shattered and I was in this body.¡±


    Natasha finished her story quickly. Aurora could tell that she had really shortened the story and only retained the important parts.


    ¡°I see. It is something we¡¯ll look more into. I guess the Republicans helped us get out of the Northern Republic?¡±


    ¡°Of course. Things became a mess once Alexander handed over the research facility to the republicans. The noble houses were in an uproar but they could do nothing when the princess was in full support of us.¡±


    Oh! That was indeed good news.


    ¡°Then what about the princess? Weren¡¯t the people surprised to see her all grown up instead of being a young girl? She also doesn¡¯t meet the academy age requirement any longer.¡±


    Out of one problem and straight into another one. Aurora could not even fault her luck this time.


    ¡°The people did not make much of a fuss since the ice cracked in front of a lot of people. The citizens are taking my sudden circumstances as a divine intervention so we need not worry.¡±


    ¡°As for the academy, it will be impossible for me to attend now. I need to head the royal house of Northern Continent and show my support to the people.¡±


    Aurora sighed when she heard the news. A lot of things had happened in a short amount of time so it could not be helped.


    ¡°I see. We should count ourselves as lucky that things did not get too harsh.¡±


    ¡°Indeed. And because of your great contribution toward us, I would formally like to extend our thanks and an agreement to help you out whenever it is needed.¡±

 Chapter 135

    ¡°Indeed. And because of your great contribution toward us, I would formally like to extend our thanks and an agreement to help you out whenever it is needed.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s words were formal but necessary. Aurora had almost expected things to end up like this after hearing what had transpired.


    Still, she was a little touched to see Natasha proposing this deal to her.


    ¡°I would be d to take you up on this deal. For further negotiations, you can approach our headmaster Rex and he¡¯ll fill you in.¡±


    Was Aurora shifting her work on Rex? She was and she was proud to say that she felt no guilt for doing so either.


    ¡°Now that the important discussion is over, we have one more thing to talk about.¡±


    The voice was not a whisper but it was spoken directly in Aurora¡¯s ear. The exhale hitting her neck made Aurora¡¯s face go red.


    Aurora felt Ava¡¯s presence behind her only after she had spoken. Ava had one arm circling Aurora¡¯s waist and the other dangerously close to her breasts.


    It was an indecent image no matter how you looked at it. And it was even shown in front of guests.


    ¡°Ava, let me go. Now is not the time to be joking around.¡±


    Aurora tried to dislodge Ava¡¯s arms from around her torse but the white-haired girl did not let go.


    ¡°No can do. I need to maintain physical contact with you to keep the corruption at bay. I don¡¯t know how you got yourself contaminated but it¡¯s eating away at your divine powers. You need to pour it all out of yourself.¡±


    Aurora paused at the words. She did remember trying to deal with the corruption and taking the essive amount into herself but she had not expected it to still be a problem after a week.


    After all, a goddess of her level should have purified the taint of corruption already.


    ¡°I know what you are thinking but getting rid of the corruption is not that easy. It is even more difficult for you because your divine powers are so powerful.¡±


    Ava did sound like she could read your mind. Her words were said yfully to lower the tension but they still held the heavy truth in them.


    Somehow, Aurora got a feeling that Ava was not happy with the circumstances either but she was not willing to say it out loud.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. This is all my fault. I will take any punishment you dish out to me. I can even take it back inside me if you allow me to.¡±


    Somehow, Natasha was the one who apologized for this. Aurora could feel the guilt oozing out of her in waves.


    ¡°No can do. You have divine powers now so you¡¯ll die the second you take this corruption in. We will need someone capable of taking this tint in and purifying it. And there are only two types of people who can do that.¡±


    ¡°Either a really strong human who can endure the tint-transfer process. It would be ideal since the corruption does not affect normal humans but the burden of the transfer ends up killing most of them.¡±


    ¡°The other would be to look for the purest life form with healing capabilities ¨C a Nymph or an angel. Their blessing is a direct contradiction to this curse so they¡¯ll be the only one capable of purifying this curse.¡±


    Aurora could feel an iing headache forming behind her head. The corruption was something that was turning out to be much more troublesome than it was supposed to be.


    However, if she thought this was the end of all the bad news then she was mistaken. Ava decided tond another blow on her with her next words.


    ¡°In the meantime, we will need to regrly regte the corruption inside your body or it¡¯ll continue to fester. Dual cultivation should be an adequate process to suppress it for the time being.¡±


    If Aurora could have yelled in that situation, she would have.


    ¡°So, you are saying that I need a regr infusion of energy through dual cultivation to make sure that this corruption doesn¡¯t overwhelm me?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what I am saying. It also needs to be someone without divine energy so that they don¡¯t get affected in the process. And that leaves us with¡­¡­.well not many candidates. Thinking back at it, all those who are left are men.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t swing that way so we can discuss itter.¡±


    Aurora was tired already. All she wanted to do was to go back to sleep but her mind was in overdrive.


    She was about to fall asleep when she felt a jolt of pain in her stomach. Her throat felt irritated so she tried to ease it with a cough.


    But when she removed her hand it was red and sticky.


    ¡°Shit. The situation is worse than I expected. We have no other choice but to take emergency measures. Rita, Amanda, you are both still humans so you can act as a proxy for a person.¡±


    ¡°How?¡±


    ¡°We will bind your divinity for now and make you into an ordinary human. This will be a one-time deal so prepare your mind. Aurora, I¡¯ll knock you unconscious for now but once you wake up, do brace yourself. You will not get time to rest afterward.¡±


    Aurora wanted to protest against this order but her arms felt like they had no energy.


    She had not wanted to get Rita or Amanda involved in her problem but she could see their determination being reflected in their eyes.


    They were going to do this with or without Aurora¡¯s agreement. So it was better to ept their gift generously than to make it difficult for themter.


    ¡°Alright. I will take you up on that offer.¡±


    Aurora felt like she was fighting a losing battle. So she decided to give in and go back to sleep.


    She felt Ava¡¯s spell fall over her and drag her into unconsciousness. No matter how hard Aurora tried to wake up, she would not be able to unless Ava wanted her to. It was dangerous for Aurora to hand herself over to Ava like this.


    But it was for the better. And because of the contract, Ava could not do anything to Aurora either.


    Time went past while Aurora slept. Time had no meaning in the darkness of her mind but Aurora still tried to keep a sense of how much time had passed.


    It felt like an eternity before Aurora felt her spell being lifted. She could smell something sweet and intoxicating reaching her nose and two pair of hands all over her body.


    It looked like the show had started.

 Chapter 136

    Aurora woke up with a pair of hands massaging her breasts. The coldness of the fingers made her nipples ache.


    ¡°Rita is not here?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s voice was still sleepy but the breathiness mixed with pleasure still made itself known. Aurora was enjoying the message much more than she should have.


    ¡°We¡¯ll take turns for now. Handing two of us at the start might be too much for your body to handle.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s cold voice tickled Aurora¡¯s ears. The cold hand massaging her breasts had given up on cupping her heavy breasts. Instead, it had taken to roaming around her body.


    Theck of clothes made this moment much more intimate.


    ¡°Hey, Natasha, do you have any experience with this kind of thing? Sexual stuff, I mean,¡±


    ¡°Do you care if I do?¡±


    ¡°No. Not really. But I do need to know what boundaries I can and cannot cross with you. For example, I won¡¯t kiss you if it makes you ufortab¡­¡±


    Aurora did not get a chance to finish her words before she was pulled into a harsh kiss. Natasha¡¯s cold mouth did not stop pressing against Aurora¡¯s lips until she relented and allowed her tongue entry.


    Natasha¡¯s lips and her body were cold but her tongue was burning with passion.


    No matter how Aurora looked at it, this kiss was not something an inexperienced person could produce.


    When the pair separated, there was a string of saliva connecting their lips.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about taking liberties. I want you to do with me what you want to.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s cold eyes held a bit of warmth to them. The light inside them took Aurora¡¯s breath away with its intensity.


    There was only one reason Aurora could think of behind Natasha¡¯s actions.


    ¡°Do you like me?¡±


    Aurora had expected a denial out of the gate. She waited for the flushed ¡®no¡¯ but did not get one immediately.


    Instead, Aurora got a bite at her breast and around her nipple area.


    ¡°Hey¡­¡±


    Aurora opened her mouth toin but the intense look in Natasha¡¯s eyes stopped her dead on the track.


    ¡°Like you? I guess you can describe my feelings like that but my feelings cannot be categorized in such simple words. For now, I would just like to focus on this moment and not think about them.¡±


    Aurora immediately shut her mouth. Asking any question right now felt taboo.


    ¡°Fine. Let¡¯s not talk about it. But I am curious to know how you learned about all this sex stuff. I don¡¯t think the pce maids taught you anything.¡±


    Aurora burned with a curiosity to know. She had not expected the cold-hearted ruler of the Northern Continent to be knowledgeable about the affairs of the bed.


    ¡°Ah, that¡­. Rita taught it to be. She asked me whether I knew how to do it in bed with someone and I said ¡®no¡¯. So she taught me things.¡±


    Aurora felt a burst ofughter bubble up inside her throat. She did not know why but she could not imagine such a scene.


    ¡°Hey! Stopughing. Do you know how embarrassing it was to practice kissing with her? I couldn¡¯t help but..¡±


    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll stopughing now. I want to release as well.¡±


    Aurora finally pulled Natasha down into a fierce kiss. She could tell that Natasha was trying her best to reciprocate but she did not know anything beyond kissing.


    So Aurora broke the kiss and finally decided to move downwards.


    Natasha¡¯s breasts were perky but it suited her well. Aurora decided to fondle them a bit but they did not fit in her palms.


    But Natasha seemed to be enjoying this treatment nheless. Her moans were getting louder and louder every second.


    ¡°I wonder how you¡¯ll react if I touched your pussy. Has anyone touched you here yet?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s hands wandered down Natasha¡¯s body. Natasha¡¯s face was getting red in embarrassment but her body was incapable of pulling itself away.


    Even at Aurora¡¯s worst, she was much more powerful than Natasha. But it seemed like Natasha had not expected it.


    ¡°Rita touched me there. Once. But nothing happened at all.¡±


    Natasha sounded embarrassed when she spoke those words. Aurora could see that she was trying her best to muffle the soundsing out of her lips.


    And it would just not do. Aurora wanted to hear more of her moans and see more of her reaction. She wanted to see the icy exterior of the queen melt.


    The first moan that sounded out of Natasha seemed to have started even herself. Her wide blue eyes looked unfocused and Aurora felt a smile itch itself on her face.


    Somehow, the sound Natasha let out had been ¡°Cute¡±


    ¡°I am not cute. I would rather you call me b-beautiful.¡±


    Aurora only realized that she had spoken those words aloud after Natasha replied and pulled Aurora down into a kiss.


    Even though Aurora could not see her face, she knew that Natasha was feeling embarrassed over this situation. Natasha¡¯s hands covered her face but they could not hide the redness of her cheeks away.


    Aurora had barely even touched Natasha¡¯s pussy but her voice was already singing for Aurora. The real deal might be too much for her to handle but Aurora was not worried in the slightest.


    After all, Natasha¡¯s body had already given Aurora her answer. Natasha¡¯s pussy was wet and leaking. It had painted Natasha¡¯s legs in a translucent liquid.


    ¡°Have you ever had anything inside you?¡±


    ¡°Inside?¡±


    Natasha sounded hesitant to answer but she still did not hold back. Her attempt to be brave was worth praise but useless in this situation.


    Not that it mattered to Aurora at all. She had promised to show Natasha a good time so she would show her a good time.


    ¡°Well, since you don¡¯t look like you¡¯ve ever been breached before, we shall start small. You¡¯re a human now so this might feel ufortable for you.¡±


    That was all the warning Natasha got before Aurora had a finger inside her. The warm and soft insides weed Aurora was the least amount of friction imaginable.


    ¡°F-Feels weird. C-Can we do something else?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. It will start feeling good soon enough.¡±


    Aurora assured her before she brought the vile of lube out. It had been left by Ava to make their time much smoother.


    Aurora coated her fingers into the liquid before she finally breached Natasha again.


    But this time, the fingers slipping inside Natasha had a much easier time. And before she knew it, Aurora had three of her fingers inside Natasha¡¯s virgin passage.


    ¡°T-Too much.¡±


    It was only a small amount of stimulus but Natasha already looked done and spent.

 Chapter 137

    Natasha had no idea how she lost control of the situation in a matter of minutes. Thest thing she remembered was trying to get Aurora to rx.


    Then why? And how had she ended up underneath Aurora with three fingers in her pussy?


    ¡°F-Feels weird.¡±


    Natasha had never heard her voice make that sound or reach that pitch. The needy tone caused Natasha to clench her pussy tighter around the fingers moving inside her.


    Her body unconsciously chased after the feeling of fulfillment that Aurora¡¯s fingers gave inside her. They were moving inside Natasha and it made her feel funny.


    ¡°N-No more. S-Something is building up. I c-can¡¯t stop it.¡±


    The rush of feelings was a first for Natasha. She could feel the pressure building up inside her and decided to warn Aurora.


    For some reason, the thought of bursting with Aurora¡¯s fingers inside her felt embarrassing. Natasha did not want to show her face to anyone because she knew it had gone red.


    ¡°Let yourself go. Just enjoy this feeling.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s hands smacked Natasha¡¯s arms away from her red face. It left her embarrassed face exposed for the world to see.


    ¡°No need to hide between us. I can feel you are close. Your pussy is twitching so much around me and it¡¯s so wet.¡±


    To apany her words, Aurora roughly pushed her three fingers inside Aurora. The motion made wetness escape from Natasha¡¯s inside.


    But it was not enough. This stimtion was not enough to make Natashae. All it did was drive Natasha on the brink of release.


    ¡°Still not enough, huh? I guess I have no other choice but to do that.¡±


    ¡®That? What¡¯s that?¡¯ Natasha wanted to ask the question so badly. Rita had exined the basics to her but the redhead had been too embarrassed to go into detail about the sexual stuff.


    So when something hot and wet touched Rita¡¯s cold things for the first time, her mind decided to shortcircuit.


    ¡°A-Aurora? What are you doing? D-Don¡¯t lick there.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s body was flexible and could easily twist itself to look down at the blue head between her thighs.


    It vaguely felt like a tongue but surely that was not right? Aurora would not lick Natasha there, right?


    ¡°I¡¯m going to eat you out. Don¡¯t protest and enjoy the service.¡±


    ¡®Eating out? What does that¡­¡¯ Natasha¡¯s thoughts stopped abruptly as soon as the first swipe of tongue touched her wet lips.


    The stretch from the fingers had left her pussy gapping a little and Aurora¡¯s tongue managed to slip in just the barest amount.


    But even the tiniest of sensation was enough for Natasha to throw her head back and cry out in pleasure.


    Her body seemed to be sensitive and colder than anything Aurora had ever touched before. It felt like licking sweetened ice and Aurora increased her speed just the tiniest amount.


    The pussy muscles finally yielded to Aurora¡¯s insisting tongue and she managed to slip deeper with her tongue.


    ¡°T-Too much. N-Not gonnast long.¡±


    Aurora looked up from her service to make out the expression on the cold face.


    Rosy cheeks and tear-filled eyes stared back at Aurora. That cold and aloof face no longer maintained its indifference. Instead, the expression on Natasha¡¯s face was full of pleasure.


    The ck-haired female was as forgone as one could in pleasure¡¯s embrace.


    ¡®We did that to her. She looks so lost in her pleasure that she will allow us to do anything.¡¯


    Aurora felt her energy and corruption reach out toward Natasha. It was an instinctive response to the activity.


    Aurora hadn¡¯t even remembered the initial purpose of this coption but the pleasure mixed with magic seemed to be working on its own.


    ¡°A-Aurora?¡±


    Aurora felt someone touch her head and she finally looked up. Her eyes met feverish blue ones and Natasha¡¯s mouth had drooling out of it.


    It was clear that Natasha was far gone in pleasure and the hand on Aurora¡¯s head was not hers.


    ¡°She looks exhausted but there is no corruption inside her. Let¡¯s give her some rest and then we can start our turn.¡±


    Aurora tried to reach out toward Natasha but the female seemed to have no energy left. Aurora¡¯s instincts forced her to cover Natasha in her energy and not let go.


    These twisted thoughts were likely a bi-product of the corruption leaning ahead to capture its prey. But theck of a responsive host was causing them confusion.


    Red hairs obstructed Aurora¡¯s vision and Rita moved in front of her to take Natasha¡¯s hand.


    ¡®NO. She¡¯s our prey.¡¯


    Aurora was sure that these thoughts were not hers. They had to be from the corruption stemming inside Aurora and taking control of her body at the moment.


    She needed to do something to stop herself from attacking Rita.


    ¡°B-Before you do that, you should b-bind me up with the suppressant chains. H-Hurry up.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    Rita looked confused at her words and her face had a worried expression. She reached out toward Aurora with hesitant arms before Aurora stopped her.


    ¡°Don¡¯t touch me right now. My instincts are all over the ce and it¡¯s tough to hold them back. At this rate, the corruption will not stop until it has infected another host so I need you to bind me up.¡±


    Rita¡¯s expression looked like she understood what Aurora was asking her to do but she was not happy to do so.


    But then her expression turned from unhappy to a mixture of embarrassment and arousal. Aurora had no idea what was going on inside Rita¡¯s head for her to give off that expression. Nor did she want to know.


    ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll lock you up but don¡¯t me me if I do this wrong. I have no experience doing such a thing.¡± Rita was red in the face when she spoke those words.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you? Hurry up and tie me up.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s tone was not harsh but Rita still flinched for some reason. But she did hurry up and take out the chains.


    Rita¡¯s hands were gentle and swift when she tied Aurora. Their pace was steady and they followed the manual path.


    But Aurora could still feel that something was not right. The tension that was supposed to exist in the chains as they held Aurora back was missing.


    ¡°I¡¯m done. Is something wrong? Do you need me to loosen you up?¡±


    Rita sounded nervous and worried so Aurora decided to cut her some ck.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think you¡¯ve tied me too loosely? I can easily get out of these bindings. Tie me up more tightly.¡±


    And Rita¡¯s face exploded at Aurora¡¯s words.

 Chapter 138

    Aurora could feel that the chains that were binding her were too loose. She didn¡¯t even need to try and snap them to get out.


    The chains had been provided by Ava as ast resort to suppress her powers and Aurora could feel them working. But the improper hold of these chains still made it impossible for Aurora to use her powers.


    ¡°Y-You want me to chain you up together? But won¡¯t it hurt? The chains would bite into your wrist and arms. It might also leave impressions¡­.¡±


    ¡°Rita, stop talking and chain me up. I don¡¯t want to hear your nonsense any longer.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s annoyed voice stopped Rita cold in her rambling. Her red face stared right at Aurora¡¯s crimson one and Rita¡¯s throat went dry.


    The more questions Rita asked, the more Aurora wanted to hide away and never emerge again.


    ¡®This is not some kind of kinky S&M y. This is necessary to ensure everyone¡¯s safety.¡¯


    That was the mantra Aurora employed as she watched Rita finally get to work. The chains that were once loosely held around her were tightened up correctly.


    Aurora felt pain in her arms and limbs where the chains bounded her. Rita had not yed around this time and bound her hand properly.


    Once the final knot was tied against Aurora¡¯s chest, she tried to wiggle around to test the bonds. But they did not be loose easily.


    ¡°This will work. Rita, you can take Natasha out no..¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t speak. I did not realize seeing you tied up will affect me like this.¡±


    Rita had one hand on her face while the other was messaging the hardness in her pants. She looked turned on for some reason.


    Aurora trialed Rita¡¯s gaze, only to see them fall onto her naked breasts that were being popped out due to the chains binding her.


    ¡°Rita. Don¡¯t tell me you have a binding fetish. Am I turning you on?¡±


    Aurora made the weakest sound she ever had in her life. She could not feel her magic inside her body. The chains had reduced Aurora into an ordinary person for now.


    Not that it meant that Aurora could not take control of this situation. Aurora could get out and break free of the chains if she wanted to.


    But something about being tied up and being held at someone¡¯s mercy felt arousing to her.


    ¡°N-No. I¡¯m not a pervert and I don¡¯t have a fetish as well. I just¡­feel pent up? I¡¯m sorry.¡±


    Rita¡¯s face went through twenty shades of emotions in a single minute. It was amusing to see and the embarrassed expression shended on made Aurora feel better.


    ¡°Fine. Kiss me once and then bring Natasha out of here to rest. We can continue our partter.¡±


    Aurora wanted to get rid of the corruption. She could feel it lingering beneath her skin and looking for a way out and into another host.


    But she was not impatient enough to not give Rita some time topose herself. She could see that the younger needed time to gather her thoughts.


    Rita did not argue with Aurora. She just yielded control over Aurora through the kiss.


    Aurora bit Rita¡¯s bottom lip to finally get Rita to respond to her. And it finally paid off when Rita¡¯s involvement increased.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take Natasha out now. And then we can continue this.¡±


    ¡°No, don¡¯t. I like the view from here.¡±


    Aurora tightened her hold on Rita¡¯s shoulder and hid her face in her chest when she heard Natasha¡¯s familiar voice. She had not even realized that Natasha had been awake this whole time.


    ¡°When did you wake up? Aren¡¯t you too tired to stay awake?¡±


    Thankfully, Rita seemed to have an idea of what to do in this situation.


    ¡°I am tired but also turned on. I cannot possibly go at sex again but I don¡¯t mind watching you two go at it. So, can I stay here and watch?¡±


    For the first time in her sex life after rebirth, Aurora found herself being speechless. She had never expected to be asked this question.


    ¡°You want to watch us fuck but not participate? But why?¡±


    Rita seemed equally baffled as Aurora. The question of ¡®why¡¯ was written all over her face.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. It just seemed interesting to me and you both looked hot when you kissed. Besides, I have no prior experience in these kinds of things so I want to learn. So, can I stay here while you both do what you have to?¡±


    ¡°Ah, sure?¡±


    Aurora realized that she had spoken the wrong words toote. She had not meant to agree but she had not been able to stop herself in time either.


    ¡°Aurora?¡±


    Rita had a look of disbelief when she looked in Aurora¡¯s direction. Her expression said it all but Aurora could not possibly take back her words now.


    ¡°Let her stay here for now and get this over with. I heard that you have been helping her learn so it¡¯s not it¡¯ll be something new for Natasha to see.¡±


    Aurora tried to make excuses to justify her agreement. And surprisingly enough, Rita seemed to being around as well.


    In the span of a few minutes, Aurora had learned more about Rita and Natasha than she had ever wanted to. But it was not a bad feeling to be watched.


    But Rita seemed to be hesitating despite Aurora¡¯s verbal agreement. Aurora could see that Rita was interested in the offer of being watched but she was bound by her non-existing ¡®moral values.¡¯


    ¡®Fuck with this all.¡¯


    ¡°Rita, sit down on the bed.¡±


    Rita followed themand without much dy. Aurora could not use her hands so picking herself up was difficult.


    But Aurora¡¯s body was strong enough to be able to sit and crawl toward Rita even without the use of her hands.


    And on one single swoop, Aurora had her tongue pressed up against Rita¡¯s and the kiss turned harsh.


    It was mainly done to distract her mind from the watching eyes but it soon turned slow and pleasurable.


    Aurora¡¯s sudden attack caused Rita to be pushed on her back while Aurora struggled to move over her body.


    And the kiss finally broke when Rita let out a loud moan from the friction Aurora¡¯s rubbing caused on her cock.


    Rita had been heard already but the friction was making her leak out as well. Aurora took advantage of this face and rubbed her thighs together over that cock.


    Rita¡¯s hands finally came out to support Rita¡¯s butt and correct her pace and positioning.


    The next thing she knew, Rita had a thick rod hitting her pussy entrance and Rita was looking at her with tear-filled eyes.

 Chapter 139

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I can do all the work here so you can sit back and rx.¡±


    Rita¡¯s tear-filled face filled Aurora¡¯s vision. The feeling sit evoked in Aurora¡¯s body were not ones she was familiar with.


    ¡°D-Did you get wetter?¡±


    ¡°Maybe I did. Does it turn you on even further?¡±


    Aurora made sure she was rubbing against Rita¡¯s hardness when she asked that question. Rita was chewing on her lip to stop the iing moan but she could not truly suppress her desires.


    With a single motion and Aurora took Rita¡¯s cock inside it.


    The motion was hard and fast which left both parties panting for breath. It was a little painful due to the awkward angle Aurora¡¯s inside was being hit at but it was nothing she was not prepared for.


    After all, Rita was of adequate size, and doing things without ample preparations was bound to hurt.


    ¡°C-Can we slow down? I feel like I¡¯lle any second now.¡±


    Rita¡¯s voice was a whisper in Aurora¡¯s ear. Aurora considered stopping but a hand on her clit brought her back to reality and made her hips move involuntary.


    Beneath her, Rita¡¯s body flinched at the sudden motion and Aurora felt tense muscles under her hand.


    ¡°Wow, that was an intense reaction. Should I touch you there again?¡±


    Natasha¡¯s voice was unexpected. Aurora could barely turn her head to look at the ck-haired beauty before she felt the motion again.


    Natasha¡¯s hand on her clit caused Aurora to move her hips involuntary. In turn, Aurora could feel Rita¡¯s penis hitting her pleasurable ce inside.


    It was double the pleasure and Aurora found it hard to catch up on her breath.


    ¡°W-What are you doing? D-Didn¡¯t you want to j-just watch?¡±


    Aurora barely let those words out before Rita¡¯s next thrust distracted her from her thoughts. Her mind was going nk with pleasure.


    ¡°I did but this looks fun so I decided to join. My body is in no condition to have an orgasm again but I can still use my hands.¡±


    Natasha stopped speaking and then a mischievous smile took over her face. Aurora had a hard time focusing so she missed the meaningful look Natasha was casting her way.


    ¡°Or, would you rather use my mouth this time? I bet you would taste nice if I decide to take a bite right now.¡±


    ¡°Whatever you decide, please hurry up. I cannotst any longer.¡±


    It seemed like Natasha was not the only one impatient. Rita seemed to be at her limit as well and Aurora could tell that she would burst out any second.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You cane first and then I can take care of myself.¡±


    Aurora assured Rita as she picked up her pace. But Natasha decided she did not like being ignored so she pushed her hand harder against Aurora¡¯s clit.


    The dual sensation of pleasure assaulting Aurora inside and outside her body made her lose focus.


    Rita¡¯s arms clutched at Aurora¡¯s back and before she knew it, Aurora had something wet filling her up. Aurora wanted to move away and cling back but her arms were bound.


    All Aurora could do was arch her back and take what she was being dealt with.


    Rita was spent aftering once. Aurora could feel the corruption heading toward Rita but not being able to enter her due to her sealed state.


    ¡°I feel tired. Aurora, you did note yet, right? Should I help you out once I catch my breath?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s body felt feverish and her insides cramped with the need to release. But the loss of sensation did not allow Aurora the satisfaction ofing.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. You can go ahead and rest now. I will help Aurora for now. That is if she is ready to guide me.¡±


    Natasha seemed to have recovered from her exhausted state and her body seemed to reach to go once again.


    If possible, Aurora did not want to have Natasha have a go in the sheets this soon. The effects of corruption must not have subsided yet.


    But still, Aurora¡¯s body was demanding relief and Aurora was not dense enough to ignore its needs.


    ¡°Are you sure you want to do this? Are you not tired from before?¡±


    ¡°No, I¡¯m alright. I want to do this.¡±


    Natasha seemed enthusiastic to do this so Aurora did not see any harm in letting her try. If things got worse, then Aurora could stop this scene and allow Natasha to rest.


    ¡°Fine. Do you want me to leave you both alone for now?¡±


    ¡°No, stay. You can watch us go at it if you want to.¡±


    Rita looked a little shocked at Natasha¡¯s offer. Even Aurora was taken aback by it.


    She had not expected someone cold like Natasha to enjoy being seen in the most vulnerable state of her life. Sex was a private affair for most people.


    Aurora could not make our Rita¡¯s expression clearly but she could tell that Rita was interested as well by her aura.


    ¡°Rita, you should stay if you want to. I don¡¯t mind being seen by you.¡±


    Aurora encouraged Rita to do what she did not dare to do. And Rita seemed to be considering her offer as well.


    ¡°Alright. I think I will stay this time. So, what am I going to witness this time? Who¡¯s going to fuck who? Or, are you going to rub against each other till youe?¡±


    For someone hesitant about these kinds of things, Rita certainly seemed to have an active imagination.


    ¡°Natasha. What do you want to do? Do you want to take the lead?¡±


    Aurora decided to leave the decision up to Natasha. The other girl needed toe out of her shell and this seemed like the perfect opportunity.


    ¡°M-Me? Well, since my body is in no condition to be active, I would like to eat you out instead. You did it for me and I enjoyed it so I want to return the favor.¡±


    Aurora paused at the confession. She had not expected to receive something like this as a result.


    But it was not so bad to indulge.


    ¡°Alright. You can do what you want.¡±


    Natasha gave a pleasured smile before she approached Aurora and neared her pussy. She hesitated for a second before her tongue breached Aurora¡¯s pussy.


    It was the start of a long round that left all three parties exhausted. But the primary objective of this meeting had been achieved.


    The corruption was held at bay for the time being and Aurora felt so much better as a result.

 Chapter 140

    ¡°Is your body alright? I heard that you were not well the past few days.¡±


    Aurora did her best to control her blush at Rex¡¯s statement. She had no idea how to answer his curiosity so she chose to divert the topic.


    ¡°I am alright. I hope everything is alright on your part as well. Is the academy doing alright? No problem with the children or the tower, right?¡±


    Now that Aurora¡¯s body was feeling better, for the time being, Aurora quickly got back to work. There was a lot she had to look over and ess.


    Passing the corruption onto a pseudo-human could only slow down the process but not eliminate the darkness. That was what Ava had said.


    But even if Aurora did want to go looking for a Nymph or an Angle, now was not the time. With the academy¡¯s position still unstable, Aurora needed to work hard.


    ¡°The academy is alright. We managed to snap a few talented people to teach here so that is not a problem. However..¡±


    Rex pushed a piece of paper in front of Aurora to have her look at it. Aurora¡¯s face turned sour as soon as she picked it up.


    ¡°So the tower is not going to pick a fight on its own and do it through the investigation. It seems like we will have to be extra careful these next few days.¡±


    Aurora pushed the paper back on the table with a thoughtful look.


    The paper was something that was issued by the tower and thest obstacle in her way to getting the academy recognized.


    It was the first inspection that was performed by the tower and the cab once the academy was finished with its preparations.


    This would be the final chance for the tower to be able to file a legalint and go against Aurora¡¯s academy in a legal battle.


    If things went wrong during this investigation the academy will be shut off. But even that was the best-case scenario.


    At worst, the Rocx academy will be made to ept the tower as its head and be an ordinary academy.


    That would be the only way to keep Rocx academy afloat in case of a failed inspection.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure the tower will try to interfere with his inspection. They have no intention of sharing their power and standing in this current world.¡±


    ¡°On the other hand, if we can sessfully go through this investigation, we will be a force to be reckoned with. Others will also want to be our allies.¡±


    Rex¡¯s words held the truth. The people in the shadows who were dissatisfied with the tower were looking for an opportunity to fight back. Rocx academy¡¯s legal standing would provide them all with this opportunity.


    So Aurora was sure that a lot of people had already reached out to Rex and offered him help regarding this matter.


    ¡°Do you know who the investigator is? From your expression, it looks like you found out who it is but you¡¯re not pleased about it.¡±


    Aurora had known Rex for about forever. That was why she could tell that there was something that worried him.


    ¡°Yes, I do know the identity of the investigator and I find it a problem. That woman is someone I don¡¯t want to see again in my life.¡±


    ¡°That woman? Do you mean it¡¯s Lady Voile? Why would she want to be a part of this mess?¡±


    Aurora felt shocked at the news. Never in her life would she have thought that the person in charge of the investigation would turn out to be Lady Voile.


    But if someone had dug into Rex¡¯s past, then it was easy to think why they chose Lady Voile. She and Rex did not have the best of rtionship.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure the tower was behind this. They might have dug to see who I was rted to and chosen her specifically. But why did that woman have to ept this order? Was it not enough that she tormented me in my childhood?¡±


    ¡°Rex, calm down. She might not have been good to you but she is still your mother.¡±


    ¡°Step-mother. I will never think of her as my mother. She drove my mother to her death and stole her spot. Both her and father, I will never forgive them as long as I live for.¡±


    This was getting dangerous. Rex¡¯s eyes held anger and despair. Aurora had thought that he had gotten past this part of him after some internal struggle.


    But Aurora had not remembered that she had reminded time. Of course, Rex had not confronted his family in this timeline.


    Still, she could not allow him to remain in such a destructive mood.


    ¡°REX! Rex calm down right now. I know it¡¯s difficult to see thatdy as your mother but you should not let your emotions cloud your judgment. For now, she¡¯s just an inspector we have to get through.¡±


    Aurora was not sure how effective her words would be against Rex. But it was a relief to see that the elder was calming down after hearing her words.


    ¡°You are right. I should not be so on edge about this topic. She is just another woman for now. But you should hide for the duration of her visit. It won¡¯t be good if she recognized you and the news got back to your parents.¡±


    ¡°Because unlike that woman and my father, your family is a little¡­¡±


    ¡°..Troublesome.¡±


    Aurora chose not toment. Her family was not something she had wanted to talk about, especially after her rebirth.


    If possible, Aurora would want to never see them again as well. Just the thought of going back to that ce terrified her.


    ¡°You are right. I should stay out of sight. Then, I will leave all the preparations up to you for the investigation.¡±


    Aurora felt like such a coward for running away from her responsibilities but she refused to let her emotions sway her decision.


    But now that she had made a decision to stay out of sight, she would need to prepare. There was a lot she needed to do now and the most important was to make sure the people kept their mouths shut about her.


    ¡°Just my luck. Out of one trouble and directly into another. I better go and have a talk with Ava as well about what I saw in Natasha¡¯s past. I feel like I should know what that was about.¡±


    Suddenly, a lot of things were happening at once around Aurora and she felt like she was being led around by some invisible force.


    What was it that the abyss wanted from her anyway?

 Chapter 141

    ¡°I see. So that¡¯s something that happened to you in the Northern Republic? And you met a green-haired female in the older Natasha¡¯s dreams that caused this problem?¡±


    Aurora had told Ava the shortest version of the story. Somehow, she did want to tell Ava everything but Aurora still needed answers.


    And if the only way for her to get answers was by trusting Ava, then that was what Aurora was going to do.


    ¡°I remember falling into the abyss and encountering someone incredibly strong but I cannot remember anything about that person. But somehow, I think that person was an overlooker as well.¡±


    Aurora could have easily told Ava about that blue-haired man from before. Aurora had gotten stabbed by him and then lost consciousness soon after.


    But somehow, Aurora wanted to keep her silence about this topic. And also the topic about that familiar soul.


    Aurora did not want to reveal that she had felt Clove¡¯s soul fragment in Natasha¡¯s memories.


    ¡°So you cannot tell me anything about that man since you don¡¯t remember. But even if you tell me he was an outlooker, I cannot help you know which one it was.¡±


    ¡°There are almost 13 of us and outlookers also expire and are reborn into another body. I haven¡¯t seen any other outlooker for years now so I am no help.¡±


    This was what Aurora was afraid of. She was afraid that even Ava will not have any information about the things that had happened.


    ¡°However, I do have a faint idea about that green-haired girl. As far as I remember, there was only one green-haired outlooker among us. She¡¯s likely Zoe, the one denoted by the Ox. But if that is the case then you should not focus on her.¡±


    ¡°What I am saying is ¨C forget that you ever met her and never chase after her. She is extremely dangerous. She¡¯s much more like a snake than an Ox.¡±


    Aurora was startled to hear such open hostility in Ava¡¯s voice. The normally calm and collected girl had a dark expression on her face.


    Also,paring Zoe to a snake was ironic for Ava who was the snake of the zoodiac. There must be a deep beef between them.


    And for some reason, Aurora got a feeling that it was rted to the lost goddess who had abandoned the Tower.


    ¡°So, you are saying to not chase after Zoe and take revenge for what happened to Natasha. Don¡¯t worry. I am not foolish enough to do that and jeopardize our operations. And besides, we have bigger fish to try at the moment.¡±


    ¡°Is it about the inspection you told me about? Have the tower finally decided who they want to send here?¡±


    Aurora nodded, sessfully changing the topic. As much as she wanted to talk about personal problems, the broader picture needed to be considered right now.


    ¡°The tower did decide on who to send. But the person they chose will be a problem to deal with for Rex. He doesn¡¯t get along well with that female and she will also do her best to humiliate Rex. We will need to make sure that nothing goes wrong in the process.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t get along? So you¡¯ve met the inspector before.¡±


    ¡°Yes. She¡¯s Rex¡¯s stepmother. They don¡¯t have the best rtionship in the world so I¡¯m worried. I also don¡¯t want to show my face for personal reasons. So I¡¯m thinking of sitting this dight out.¡±


    Aurora felt bad for leaving all the work to other people while she got the time to rx. But what could she even do in this case?


    There were times one needed to back off and enjoy life. And Aurora knew that was her time.


    ¡°Oh? But can¡¯t you change your appearance with magic? I¡¯m sure it would be enough to fool any ordinary person.¡±


    Ava did make a good point but if only things were that easy. The whole reason Aurora had not even considered using magic was for one and one reason.


    ¡°Lady Voile is special. She can detect even the barest amounts of magic and recognize it if she¡¯s ever seen it before. We won¡¯t be able to feel her no matter what we do.¡±


    Since Lady Voile was a minor goddess, she did not have particrly high amounts of magic power. But what shecked in power, she made up for in technique.


    And this extreme perfectionist habit of her had led Lady Voile to develop her secret technique. She could feel the magic in the same way the highest gods could.


    ¡°Rightttt. You have really strong magic so you will be caught right away and made to answer questions. You told me that you should be 13 years old right now. It would be a problem if you got recognized.¡±


    Thankfully, Ava easily recognized what Aurora¡¯s real problem was. The ounder was sharp in this aspect and could even tell that Aurora was worried.


    This was the reason Aurora had sought her out as her first choice. If there was anyone who knew what Aurora could do in this situation, it would be Ava.


    ¡°Do you know anyway for me to be able to hide? If possible, I would not like to leave the academy at such a crucial time but I don¡¯t I will have any other choice in this matter.¡±


    Just the thought of leaving the academy vulnerable when they had enemies inside felt foolish to Aurora. It pumped her paranoia and made Aurora unable to keep thinking straight.


    Besides, Aurora wanted to be here in case some emergency broke out and she was needed.


    And knowing the tower and that fearsome tower master, something big was bound to happen that Aurora would not be able to ignore.


    ¡°Hmmm. If it¡¯s only about changing your magic signature and making you appear as someone else, then I know of a way. But we will need some time to prepare. Do you know when the inspection will be conducted by the cab?¡±


    Aurora felt hope build up inside her at Ava¡¯s words.


    While she had expected Ava to have an answer, getting one back right away made Aurora¡¯s heart feel lighter.


    ¡°Well, we can dy the inspection for a week for now. Do you think it will be enough time for us to get what we need?¡±


    ¡°Do you think a week will be enough time for us to reach floor 7 from floor 5? I won¡¯t be much help on those floors since I¡¯m not their overlooker so it¡¯ll depend on you.¡±


    A week to clear 2 floors? It was more than enough time for someone like Aurora.


    ¡°Then it¡¯s a done deal. Let¡¯s get started.¡±

 Chapter 142 - Betrayal of the case - part 1

    Aurora stood ready in front of the gate of the academy. She had everything of importance packed into her inventory and she was prepared to make a quick round of the abyss.


    Ava was the one who would be apanying Aurora initially. But somehow, the group of two had be a group of 4.


    And by that, Aurora meant that she had been joined by Rita and Natasha¡¯s self-invitation.


    ¡°Are you sure it is a good idea to take them along? It will slow us down considerably since Rita and Natasha¡¯s divine powers are bound.¡±


    ¡°Even if it is not alight, it is necessary. It¡¯ll be bad if the corruption got out of hand for you.¡±


    Aurora opened her mouth to argue but nothing came out of her mouth. All Aurora could do was stand there like a goldfish and look foolish.


    ¡°Still. It¡¯s too dangerous with such a small group and where two of the people cannot even right.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s rude to say. Ounder¡¯s technology is suitable for me and I even got taught how to use some of the fighting tools. I will be able to take care of myself.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s aura felt annoyed and offended at the same time. Her puffed-up cheeks looked cute so it negated any threat that was present in her voice.


    ¡°Who said I was talking about you? Rita will not be able to protect herself since the Ounder¡¯s tech is notpatible with her and Ava is useless anywhere outside of the first 5 floors.¡±


    ¡°Hey, I¡¯m not useless.¡±, ¡°I will restrict your ess if you said anything like that again.¡±


    Rita sounded annoyed but it was surprising to see Ava speak up as well. Aurora had not expected the white-haired girl to ever get offended at anything anyone said.


    But maybe Aurora¡¯s sentence had finally made Ava break her mask of indifference. And it left Aurora pretty baffled to see.


    ¡°Let¡¯s hurry up and leave before that annoying brates to bug us again. I am not going to be a babysitter for that annoying prick.¡±


    Aurora shook her head at Rita¡¯s words. It seemed like the redhead was still angry with Damina. Their rtionship had never really improved after their first few encounters.


    But unluckily for Rita, the young master of the outlookers had been selected as the one who would train her in magical weapon usage when she had asked for one.


    And it just so happened that Rita had been unable to use any magical weapon ever since that day.


    ¡°Who are you calling an annoying price, you talent-less hag? It is not my fault that you can¡¯t currently protect yourself. So let me tag along and protect you all.¡±


    The now 11 years old heir to the ounders stepped out from the corridor he had been hiding in. His pissed-off face said that he might have heard every word Rita had said about him.


    Aurora could feel hurt and angering from the young child. There was no doubt that Rita¡¯s words had hurt Damian¡¯s pride.


    ¡°Huh? What did I do wrong? Isn¡¯t it because of you that I cannot learn the magic weapons? Otherwise, why won¡¯t they respond to me? I don¡¯t have magic currently.¡±


    ¡°You fool. The magical weapons we create are not for everyone. Don¡¯t let yourck of talent nder our n¡¯s name.¡±


    The fight was getting more and more intense every second. Natasha looked uninterested in stopping the fight while Ava looked to be enjoying the fight.


    Aurora had a bad feeling about the glint of mischief in Ava¡¯s eyes so she decided to put a stop to her actions before she could do something extreme.


    ¡°It is enough. We will likely be moving in a group inside the abyss so try to get along. Ava can take us directly to the end of the fifth floor and then the real struggle will start.¡±


    It was clear to see from Rita and Damina¡¯s actions that they were not taking the threat of the abyss seriously enough.


    They were both young and inexperienced in many ways. And they were also the most vulnerable and carefree of the bunch.


    If possible, Aurora did not want to take them both into the abyss but they were a calcted risk.


    Aurora had to take Rita in case of her condition worsened.


    And as for Damian, it was a request from GoV. Aurora had not asked much when GoV had asked her to take Damian with them. Aurora was too indebted to GoV to not consider this request of hers.


    The crack that the group took to enter the abyss was the same one Aurora had taken the first time she had snuck in with Rita.


    However, this time the entry was easy. It road had been cleared by Ava in advance and no monster dared to attack them since the overlooker was on their side.


    It did not take the group long to reach the fifth floor and the end of Ava¡¯s governance. This was the end of the safe road for them.


    ¡°I must remind you all again. The journey till here was a breeze because I was the one protecting you all. From here on, we will be entering a different world. Floors 6-10 are different from the first five floors.¡±


    ¡°From here on, every 5 floors will share a theme, be it culture or its setting so be vignt. I will not be able to keep youpany any longer.¡±


    Aurora instantly turned to Ava with a shocked and betrayed expression. What did Ava mean by these words?


    ¡°What do you mean you will not be able to keep uspany? You-¡±


    Before Aurora could finish her words, the door closed behind her and the group. Ava, who was still standing on either side didn¡¯t even give Aurora ast look.


    ¡°Did we just get abandoned? I knew we should not have trusted that snake.¡±


    Rita¡¯s voice was full of disbelief. Aurora felt shocked as well but she shook it off pretty easily. There was nothing to be done except keep on moving ahead.


    ¡°I guess we should keep on moving ahead for now. Ava cannot betray mepletely because of our contract and she cannot let me die as well. Maybe she has a n she cannot execute with us around.¡±


    That was all Aurora could hope for. Getting betrayed by Ava this far into the journey would really be such and Aurora would also have to somehow end Ava¡¯s life for that.


    ¡°We should all cheer up and get moving. Here, have some candy to life your mood.¡±


    Aurora took the candy and instantly chewed it up. But maybe because of her foul mood, the candy tasted te and tasteless.

 Chapter 143

    ¡°Sooooo, now that we have been abandoned here, what should we do next? Should we risk it and move ahead or should we turn back now? We still have time to turn around.¡±


    Surprisingly enough, the idea came from the least likely source. It was Damian who suggested for the group to return.


    ¡°No way kid. There is no way we are turning our tails and running away now. We need to press forward and march toad our victory.¡±


    If Damian was the one who looked at the situation with a cautious mind, then Rita was someone who wanted to march ahead without any care.


    Under most circumstances, Damian was the one who Aurora would have preferred to go along with but not now.


    Aurora got a feeling that Ava had abandoned their group for a reason. So it would be for the best for their group to move forward now.


    Besides, sooner orter, they would have to face theplications of the sixth floor anyway. It was just better to get it over with.


    ¡°Natasha, what do you think about this situation? Do you want to go back as well?¡±


    Aurora asked just in case. She did not want to pressure anyone into going in if they did not want to. And Natasha was vulnerable right now so her consideration needed to be considered.


    ¡°I think we should go ahead. I feel like we can still trust Ava on her words to help us.¡±


    So Natasha had gotten the same feeling as Aurora. It was reassuring to know that Aurora was not the only one who felt like that.


    But now only one problem remained.


    ¡°Damian, do you want to go back?¡±


    ¡°No way. If you all are going then I should as well. I am the second-best fighter here currently.¡±


    Well, the kid was not wrong. As good as Rita and Natasha were, they were just not on par with Damina without their powers.


    And theck of confrontation that followed Damian¡¯s deration also solidified the im of his words.


    ¡°If everyone agrees, then we should go now. Be ready to see a surprise once I open the door.¡±


    With a smile in ce, Aurora opened the door. Whaty beyond the doors was not something that anyone in the group had expected.


    ¡°Wow, there are so many people here. It almost looks like a desert night market here.¡±


    Damian let out the words escaped his mouth in amazement, but Aurora could understand his shock.


    For most people who had never ventured into the deeper abyss, it was an abandonednd filled with mindless ughter. But once you made it past the first few floors, the atmosphere changed.


    ¡°I-Is that a half-beast who is selling the herbs? And humans are purchasing them of their own free will? How is that even possible? I thought humans ughtered monsters as soon as they saw them.¡±


    Rita¡¯s confused words were a genuine inquiry that many people made when they first arrived on this floor.


    There had been a time when Aurora had asked the same question. But unlike her current group, she had already known the cultural shock she was about to receive.


    But she had still been shocked to see this mind-blowing scene.


    ¡°It¡¯s true that demons and humans have a harsh rtionship. As soon as you exist in this city, you will see nothing but mindless ughter. But not here.¡±


    ¡°This ce is a safe spot and killing is prohibited here. You could even say that this is this floor¡¯s ¡®overlooker¡¯s¡¯ personal theater where we are all actors. And there is only one rule in this y ¨C you are not allowed to kill anyone.¡±


    ¡°So remember this well. Never kill anyone in a safe area or your life will end.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s words were both ¨C a promise and a warning. She just hoped that her group took it seriously enough.


    ===========================


    ¡°It¡¯s been a long time since I¡¯ve seen youst, Snake. What brings you here to my domain? Don¡¯t tell me this visit is because you missed me. I won¡¯t take that nonsense from you.¡±


    Ava stopped walking as soon as she heard the voice in the darkness. But since she had found the one she was looking for, she had pretty much achieved her objective.


    ¡°It¡¯s been a long time since we met and this is how you greet me, Zoe? I am almost offended. And please, call me Ava and not the snake. After all, we both know who the ¡®real¡¯ snake in the room is.¡±


    Ava¡¯s tone was friendly and sweet. But there was a jab in her words that must have hurt Zoe¡¯s pride. Ava was sure that the green-haired bitch must be foaming at the mouth.


    It was too bad that the artificial darkness in the room was stopping her from seeing that scene.


    ¡°You dare to call me out after teaming up with that new ¡®goddess?¡¯ Honestly, I cannot tell what you are thinking of gaining by using that useless piece in our game. But enough of that. I can see that you are not here to talk about old times.¡±


    ¡°Of course not. I am merely here to purpose a deal. So, how about it? Do you want to take me on?¡±


    Ava was sure that she had gotten Zoe interested in this deal. And since the fish had taken the bait, it was time to execute the n.


    ¡°Alright. What do you suggest the term of the bet be?¡±


    And there it was.


    ¡°I heard that you have beenbing your territory for Lady ra¡¯s soul fragment but are unable to find it. Out of the ten that were lost, you only have about 2. But you must have also noticed what was simr in those two conflicts, right?¡±


    ¡°And your master did as well. Isn¡¯t that why she gave up all the power she collected and made that deal with the abyss to reverse back time?¡±


    Ava was having fun with her words. But she could also see Zoe struggling to control her breath.


    ¡°So, you want something in exchange for that soul fragment. I see why you sought me out like this and why you dragged that cursed child into my domain. But fine, if that is how you want to y, then this is how we will y.¡±


    Ava let out a happyugh as soon as Zor agreed to her terms.


    ¡°I knew you would agree with me.¡±


    ¡°But I must ask you one question. Why are you doing this? Didn¡¯t we all agree to let that cursed child live how she wanted to?¡±


    Ava paused before replying.


    ¡°It¡¯s already toote to let things be. The ¡®curse¡¯ this abyss had been protecting all this time has started to awaken inside her. And I am just following the will of the abyss so you don¡¯t need to worry about it.¡±


    ¡°Just rx and let me take care of things. That will be for the best.¡±


    Ava left with those parting words but Zoe still looked stiff. It was only after Ava was gone did the green-haired girl picked up a vase and chucked it at the wall.


    ¡°For the best she says. If that curse awakens then we are all dead. I knew we should not have allowed that cursed child toe into being when the abyss suggested it.¡±

 Chapter 144

    The night market on floor 6th was like a hub of information. If you could pay the right price then you could have your every wish fulfilled.


    But toe up with the right price was a tricky deal.


    Actually, even if you called it the ¡®right¡¯ price, one needed to overpay for things they wanted to. Only the desperate people did any actual trade in this market.


    Since Aurora knew that fact, she did not allow anyone to swindle their group with false hope. She had already pulled Damian back more than twice and stopped him from entering shady areas three times.


    Children were a rare sight in the deeper abyss but Damian¡¯sck of magic made him even special.


    ¡°Hey, kid. You are attracting too much attention. Can you tone it down a bit? This much attention is not good for us.¡±


    Rita took every opportunity to rub salt in Damian¡¯s wound. It never ceased to amaze Aurora how immature Rita could get at times.


    ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯m trying to attract all this attention. These people are naturally attracted to me so what can I do? Unlike someone useless here, I am much more interesting.¡±


    ¡°Why youuuuuuu? Damina,e back here you little punk. I¡¯ll show you what real attention is like.¡±


    Aurora allowed the duo to maintain this yful atmosphere for some time before deciding that they had wasted enough time. The sun was about to rise beyond the horizon anyway.


    And when the sun rose on floor 6, it was time for the night market toe to a rest.


    ¡°Natasha, stop those two and meet me at the gate in under an hour. We need to get out of this market before the sun rises.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    Since Natasha had a system capable ofmunication Aurora did not feel weird sending her after the other two. She knew that Natasha was responsible to know when to contact Aurora.


    The real purpose of sending Natasha away was not to get the other two back but to have some time alone.


    There were some things that Aurora wanted to take care of alone. And having anyone else with her would lower Aurora¡¯s chances of sess.


    Since there was no guarantee for the daytime on floors 6th-10th was going to be productive, Aurora had to make do with what little time she had.


    She looked up at the rapidly lightning sky-like mirage for a moment. It looked like a real sky but Aurora had seen the market¡¯s open setting in a history book once.


    It was said that the abyss borrowed itsndscapes from the old earth. This topic was under a long-going debate, but Aurora was sure that it was true.


    At one point in time, an open desert market in a za must have existed.


    ===========================


    The bell on the door broke the silence of the empty shop. There were no people inside and the owner looked like he was closing his shop up after a hard day.


    ¡°The shop is closed for today. You cane back tomorrow if you need something from me.¡±


    The shopkeeper sounded annoyed to see someone enter his shop this close to the closing time. He looked to be in a hurry to leave the shop.


    Even the material inside the shop was not properly set up at the time of his departure.


    ¡°How can I be sure that you will be alive tomorrow to ask questions? For all we know, you might as well be killed out there today. This floor is not such a kind ce to allow fallen soldiers to live.¡±


    Aurora walked deeper inside the shop but she kept her head hidden with the help of her cloak hood.


    She could see that her words had piqued the shopkeeper¡¯s interest and it was the right time to strike. The iron was hot right now and Aurora needed to press harder.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what miss means by her statement. But the shop is closed for today.¡±


    The shopkeeper even looked annoyed to see Aurora. Aurora could tell that she would be pushed out of the shop at any time.


    But before the shopkeeper could force her out, Aurora took out a container.


    ¡°Now, now. Why don¡¯t we both be civil and solve this issue like peaceful humans? I am not looking to stay here for any longer than necessary either. But I heard you were looking for that.¡±


    The shop owner opened Aurora¡¯s box and picked out a bracelet.


    The bracelet he had in his hand was fairly ordinary in look but it still left the shopkeeper in awe. Aurora had specially prepared that bracelet to be used for a bargain.


    She had a few more copies for emergency usage and now she was thankful she had made them.


    ¡°T-This? How did you get this? Aren¡¯t you a human? Did you dabble in the forbidden arts?¡±


    ¡°No, nothing like that. I just had a few connections that helped me get this bracelet. I can give you one more if you pay me the price I asked for.¡±


    The shop owner looked at the paper inside the box before looking back at Aurora with a curious look. Aurora knew she had him in the n of her hand now.


    ¡°Alright. I will test this bracelet today and then decide. If this bracelet turns out to be the real deal then I will arrange your information to reach here tomorrow. If not then don¡¯t even show up here again.¡±


    ¡°Alright, I can wait a day for your information.¡±


    Aurora would have preferred to not have to wait to get her information. But she knew she had no other choice. She could not kill someone in this area and the daytime was going to be a survival test.


    ¡°And remember, don¡¯t spread this information around or you¡¯ll die before tonight. I will be able to track you and end your life.¡±


    The monster shuddered at Aurora¡¯s words but he did not look as afraid as Aurora had wanted him to look.


    But it was alright for now. Aurora would rather have a clean reputation and do easy business than be turned down because of her fearsome aura.


    ¡°It will take some time and effort but I¡¯ll see what I can do. Hope you survive the brilliance of the sun¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I will be alright since I¡¯m a human. But you bettere back and pay your dues off or I¡¯ll hunt you down to the depths of the afterlife.¡±


    Those were the parting words before the time ran out. Aurora hurried out of the building and toward the major gate. Her work for today was done.

 Chapter 145 - The Night Market - Part 2

    By the time Aurora reached the Main Gate, a small crowd had gathered outside it. There were a lot of people clustering together.


    But despite this crowd, it was not difficult for Aurora to spot her group. They all had distinctive magical auras and then there was the system.


    ¡°Did you have any problem getting out of the night market? You did not cause any trouble in there, right?¡±


    The first thing Aurora did was ask these important questions. It would be bad if something major did end up happening to her group.


    ¡°The first thing you do after reuniting with us is nag? Did the streak of white in your hair age your mentality as well? Stop acting like us mom and let us live a little.¡±


    ¡°The streak of white in my hair has nothing to do with it. It is just a result of my encounter with corruption. Stop making things up and trying to justify reasons when it suits you.¡±


    Aurora quickly shot down Rita¡¯s pitiful attempt to distract her. Her change in physical characteristics had nothing to do with her personality.


    A part of Aurora¡¯s front hair had turned white after her adventure in the Northern Republic. Aurora was convinced it was because of the corruption she had taken in and controlled.


    But since it did not inconvenience Aurora, she had not paid any attention to it.


    ¡°Forget this idiot. We need to figure out what we should do next. Look, the night market is disappearing.¡±


    Damian¡¯s words were true. As soon as the sun started to rise, the night market buildings started to disappear.


    Consequently, the people around them had started to vacant the premise.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. This is amon phenomenon on these few floors. The night market will be back once the sun goes down but it will be at another location. We will need to travel to this new location if we want to participate in the auction.¡±


    ¡°Auction? What do we need to buy at an auction?¡±


    ¡°Information.¡±


    The real allure of the night market was not its huge range of products but the information that circted in those circles.


    Since the night market was a ce dominated by both humans and monsters, it was the perfect ce to let a rumor run rampant.


    This was the perfect ce for Aurora to look for clues about the item she was looking for. If there was one ce that knew where the item to mask one¡¯s magical presencepletely was, then it was on these floors.


    ¡°That¡¯s easy to say and all but how are we going to find the night market next? I heard some people say that the next location is chosen randomly and the chances of it being nearby are very low.¡±


    Natasha seemed to have taken her job seriously and her sharp ears picked up on the news in their vicinity.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Most people think that the next night market¡¯s location is random but it is not true. The night market follows a schedule on where it will arrive next.¡±


    ¡°Is that so? Then, do you know where it will pop up next?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t. But I know someone who can tell us. We are in luck as well since the location of that person is nearby.¡±


    Aurora had made a few connections in this ce during herst life. But she had never gotten to use those connections much.


    But since the information was power, Aurora had done her best to keep tabs on her connections and she had a lot of dirt on them.


    Even if Aurora did not have any connection to these informants in this life, she still had the dirt she had collected on them.


    And based on the things she remembered, there was one person who could help her out.


    ¡°Hey, I was meaning to ask this but have you seen Damian? I was sure that he was standing near us not too long ago but now he¡¯s gone.¡±


    Rita quickly pointed out the fact that Damian seemed to have gone missing. Despite Rita¡¯s ims that she did not mesh well with the younger, she did look out for him.


    And that must be why she was the first one to realize that the kid was missing.


    ¡°Damian? He was standing just adjacent to me. He should be nearby.¡±


    Aurora quickly took out the system map to lol around her surroundings.


    There were won¡¯t a few people around them but Aurora had made sure to provide the system users with unique colors on their map


    And because of this foresight, Aurora managed to spot Damian right away.


    But he was not alone and he also seemed to have run quite far away in such a short amount of time.


    Two possibilities ran through Aurora¡¯s mind when she saw this scene ¨C


    Damian was hungry and wants to eat and look for other necessities.


    He had been kidnapped and was being held, hostage.


    And somehow, the second possibility seemed to be looking more and more likely. Despite everything Damian had going for him, he was a kid and a valuable asset. He was worth kidnapping and grooming.


    But the bigger question was ¨C was it the tower or the monsters that took the child away. Depending on the answer, the response time and action would have to be changed.


    ¡°Let¡¯s recuse Damian first. I am worried for his captors and knowing Damian, he will somehow manage to kill them before getting answers.¡±


    Aurora was not the one to show sympathy to the opponents but she knew the importance of having captives that could provide Aurora with information.


    ¡°That brat can take care of himself but I guess we should go and get him back. No matter how irritating he is, he is still a part of our team.¡±


    Rita had wanted to say something else at the start but a re from Aurora and Natasha caused her to change her mind and answer.


    Aurora would not say she was worried for Damian but she did want to finish the day early. She had invested enough in the night market that would be held the next night and Aurora wanted to reap the benefits.


    ¡°How troublesome. But I guess I finally got something to tease the kid with. It will be a fun experience to hold this over his head for some time.¡±


    Aurora just shook her head at Rita¡¯s way to distract herself.


    The redhead would never admit it to herself but she did care about people other than Aurora. But if Rita was not going to say it, then Aurora would also not say it.

 Chapter 146 - Taking Advantage - Part 1

    While the elder trio was busy talking, Damian decided to look around the ce. He had seen a lot of interesting and a few suspicious-looking people roaming around.


    Usually, Damian was not one to poke around in other people¡¯s business but he could not help but notice the people keeping an eye on his group.


    There were a few groups who were looking at them with interest but there was one group in particr that irked Damian.


    Mainly because they were staring at him. He even tested their gaze by moving a little away from the group but those idiots were still staring at him.


    He could almost imagine their idiotic ambitions behind their calm facades.


    ¡°Hey, kid. Can youe with us for a bit? I have something to show you.¡±


    Damian almost scoffed at the careless approach. He almost wanted to kill the man who had approached him but then stopped. Aurora¡¯s warning rang inside his mind and Damian decided to be careful.


    Since he did not know if killing at this ce was safe or not, he decided to hold back his murderous intentions for now.


    ¡°Alright. What did you want to show me?¡±


    Damian decided to follow after the man without much thinking. It was not like he was going to get killed anyway.


    And he could tell that these people had some kind of interest in him but they were not taking him seriously enough. So he wanted this chance to gather information from the humans.


    ¡°Hey, Arlo. Who is that kid with you? Your son?¡±


    ¡°As if. The abyss is too dangerous for my son so I¡¯ll never bring him here. But this kid here is someone who can help us out.¡±


    Damian felt insulted that these goons didn¡¯t even bother remembering his name. But thinking about it, it was a good thing that Damian was not recognized.


    ¡°This kid? Help us? As if that is even possible. I can¡¯t even sense any magicing off this kid. You better wash him off your hands or it¡¯lle back to bite you.¡±


    Damian felt wary of this new guy. He could tell that he was intelligent and had moremon sense than the other cheering people around him.


    But thankfully for Damian, the rest of the people around him were him were muscle-heads and onlyughed off the man¡¯s warning.


    ¡°Come on, Hughes. He¡¯s just a kid so you don¡¯t need to be this cautious. Besides, this kid looks like he has no one else but us on his side. His poor guardians were also stupid enough to send him into the abyss without any responsible adult.¡±


    Damian wanted to retaliate against those ims. He did not need a guardian to look after himself, but a trustworthy group to watch his back.


    But he had studied enough war tactics to know that appearing ignorant will help him conceal the truth.


    ¡°Fine. If you want to keep the kid Arlo then he is your responsibility. Just know that I don¡¯t want anything to do with you.¡±


    ¡°Of course not. The kid will be handed over to someone ¡®trustable¡¯ as soon as we reach our base anyway.¡±


    Arlo tried to hide his intentions behind an uglyugh but Damian figured out what he wanted pretty easily.


    So these low-lives were thinking of selling Damian off, huh? He would show them how bad of an idea that was.


    ===========================


    The panic of losing Damian did notst long. Aurora was already on the case and she had Damian¡¯s location mapped out in a matter of minutes.


    She had also sent a message to Damian but the younger had just given a line single reply of ¡®I¡¯ll take care of it.¡¯


    Normally Aurora would have been contented to leave Damian to do what he wanted to but she was worried about the effects of the abyssal energy on Damian.


    Chances were that he would not even notice the energy of the abyss. Most humans did not feel it. But there had never been an ounder who had ventured into the abyss before.


    So Damian¡¯s case was a new one.


    ¡°Hoh? The kid is asking us to stay back? But of course, we will not sit back and take it. Let¡¯s hurry and catch up with him.¡±


    Natasha sounded pissed off and for good reasons. She had enough experience of being used as a child so her anger was justified.


    Rita was the one most excited to go after Damian. Not that Aurora did not agree with her sentiment to hurry up.


    ¡°Rita, you should go ahead and catch up with Damian. Make sure he does not do anything stupid like killing those humans. We can still put them to good use.¡±


    Most of the time, Aurora would not even consider letting such low lives live but she had an idea this time. She needed manpower to gather information and such people were the perfect henchmen for the job.


    Of course, Aurora would make sure to seal their mouths shut so that they would not be able to spill her secrets.


    ¡°So, we are not killing these scums who kidnapped Damian? I thought we were going to kill them outright to drive our point across.¡±


    ¡°We could. But alternatively, we can also use those scums to further our agenda. Which one do you think will cause them more pain in the long run?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s words caused a grin to manifest itself on Rita¡¯s face. Even Amanda looked amused at what Aurora was purposing.


    ¡°What are you saying? We are not going to make those people suffer, we will make them wish they were dead instead.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s voice was like a sweet poison to Aurora¡¯s ears. It promised death and destruction to the subject of her displeasure.


    ¡°You can do what you want to. Now, Rita, you should hurry up and follow after Damian. I did send him a message but I don¡¯t think he saw it.¡±


    With a heavy and exaggerated sigh, Rita hurried and called one of her sealed summonses.


    The seals were embedded with Rita¡¯s powers and could be used in emergencies to call upon her sealed powers.


    In other words, it was stored power and could only be used because the summons was an external entity with their magic.


    ¡°So, should we follow after her?¡±


    ¡°We shall. But first, let¡¯s give Rita a little bit of a head start while we take care of other eyes on us.¡±


    Aurora had sent Rita ahead because she was the most vulnerable one and being protected would have hurt her pride.


    But now with Rita gone, Aurora and Natasha could easily take care of the left over trash that was eying them for profit.

 Chapter 147 - Taking Advantage - Part 2

    Aurora approached the group who had been eying her carefully. She did not want to give away her intentions but she still wanted to make asting impression and hook the man into her trap.


    ¡°W-Weedies. What can I do to help you out?¡±


    The man who looked like the ring-leader of this operation looked a little worried and suspicious to see Aurora approach her.


    But Aurora knew a perfect way to make the likely-ring leader let his guard down.


    ¡°Hello, mister. I and my friend am new here and we got separated from our friends. Since we are new here, I was wondering if you could help us reach the next night-market location?¡±


    Aurora wanted to gag as she let those polite words out. The man in front of her was eying her in a viting way. It made Aurora want to snatch his eyes out.


    But not right now.


    When Aurora had eyed the man¡¯s group from afar, it had not looked like a suspicious bunch. Most people were eying Aurora back with a curious gaze.


    But now that she hade closer, she could feel the weird energy in the air. There was something wrong with the group.


    No to mention, thedies and the younger kids in the group were looking at Aurora with a worried expressions.


    ¡°Why of course. I will be delighted to help beauties such as you. Why don¡¯t youe in and we can discuss this in more detail.¡±


    Natasha looked ufortable at Aurora¡¯s side. Aurora had caught the slight flinch Natasha¡¯s body gave out as the man held his hand out to her.


    Aurora felt bad exposing Natasha to such a filthy man so she gestured for Natasha to join the otherdies. She alone was more than enough to take care of this filth.


    ¡°Natasha, why don¡¯t you join the otherdies while I talk with this gentleman here. It won¡¯t take long.¡±


    Aurora took Natasha¡¯s hand in her own and looked Natasha in the eye. She made sure to press a small ball of condensed magic into Natasha¡¯s hand and leaned closer to the younger¡¯s ear.


    ¡°Thedies and kids likely have some kind of magic that is binding them. I trust you to free them as soon as you can.¡±


    Aurora separated once her message had been passed over to Natasha and then turned toward the wickedly smiling man.


    The more she saw of that grin, the sicker Aurora felt. But she held it all in for now since she had a task to aplish.


    ¡°Pleasee in, mydy. I¡¯m sure we will be having a lovely time here.¡±


    Aurora tried to keep her smile up as the man gestured toward his private tent. Aurora wanted to gag as he opened the curtains for her to step in.


    Did the man think that Aurora could not see through his disguise? With how obvious he was being, seeing through it was as easy as a child¡¯s y.


    Now Aurora was even more thankful she had sent Rita away on time. The redhead would have exploded in anger and punched the ring leader of this group.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, mydy? Are you having second thoughts?¡±


    The man asked once again, holding the curtains at the side to make way for Aurora.


    Since the curtains were parted, Aurora could see inside the tent. But it was dark and gloomy inside the tent.


    Not to mention, there was a weird presence inside the tent that put Aurora on edge. She did not want to get in.


    But there was no other choice avable to Aurora right now. If she did not enter the tent, then she would lose the opportunity to uncover the truth behind this matter.


    The man entered after Aurora and the curtain closed behind him. It was only because of Aurora¡¯s goddess vision that she was able to see clearly in the dark.


    Something hairy touched Aurors¡¯a arm. It almost felt like a feather but with a hairy texture.


    Aurora batted the object away but then another object touched her. And then another touched her without dy.


    The touches were not invasive yet so Aurors could endure them but she decided to draw a line as soon as she felt a human touch.


    ¡°That is it. You should not y with fire if you do not want to get burned by it.¡±


    Aurora had a burning torch in her hand. The small fireball she had created was capable of lighting the whole tent.


    The man behind Aurora stiffened for a second before he let out a delightedugh. It was soon followed by more sinisterughs filling the room.


    ¡°You brought us a good meal. I can feel her pulsing with power and magic.¡±


    ¡°We would have fun tearing her apart.¡±


    ¡°I can feel my hunger rising at this delicious smell.¡±


    Many voices wereing from around Aurora. They sounded human but had the undertone of being possessed.


    Aurora saw a low of human bodies lying around the ground and looked back at her. But the most disturbing one was the half-human half-spider body in the middle of the room.


    ¡°Mother. I have brought you your next meal.¡±


    The man who was behind Aurora bowed to the spider. Aurora could feel the magic controlling the man voluntarily.


    ¡°You did well. You finally found me a delicious meal. I will reward you well after I eat.¡±


    The spiderdy seemed to not think of Aurora as a threat. It was humiliating but also reassuring to Aurora.


    But now was not the time to think about it. Aurora was here for some other reason and she also felt creeped out when the spider¡¯s magic touched her head.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare touch me! I hate bugs like you so I won¡¯t hesitate to light you on fire.¡±


    ¡°Oh! She¡¯s festy. I like her. I will use her body well once I vite her mind.¡±


    The spider was getting ahead of itself. And Aurora decided she did not want to deal with it gently.


    One touch of Aurora¡¯s fire was all it took to get the tent to catch the fire. The suddenness of her magic startled the spider and it didn¡¯t even get a chance to retaliate before it was burned to the crisp.


    The man who had led Aurora this deep into his tent looked shocked at the disy of power. His legs gave out as soon as Aurora¡¯s eyes met his and the bodies around the pair went limp.


    ¡°Now I should think of a way to deal with you. Tell me, would you like to be killed? Or spared?¡±


    Aurora had a sinister look on her face and she was sure she was scaring the man.


    ¡°P-Please spare me. I will never do something like this again.¡±


    The man pleaded and Aurora decided to spare his life. For now.

 Chapter 148 - Taking Advantage - Part 2

    Aurora had only wanted to issue a warning to the trash that was eying her and Natasha. But somehow, Aurora had ended up taking care of everyone in a short amount of time.


    And now she had a dozen of people tied up together and at her mercy.


    ¡°P-Please let us go. I don¡¯t know what we did to displease you mydy but I can assure you that it was not our intention. Please believe our words and let us go.¡±


    The temporary leader of the captured party pleaded with Aurora for the third time. His voice sounded scared and genuinely sorry.


    Had it not been for Aurora¡¯s ability to be able to sense his aura, she would have been convinced of his acting as well.


    But as things stood, Aurora was sure she could not trust this man and his subordinates.


    ¡°Hmmm. Just because you did not do anything bad yet does not mean I was not aware of what you were nning to do with us. I can see the desire for money and power in your eyes. Tell me, were you going to sell us?¡±


    Aurora had seen her fair share of such scums in her travels. Most of the time they left her alone when she disyed her powers and went after the much weaker prey.


    But some daring people did try to mess with her despite her show of power. And this person¡¯s aura screamed crazy and power hungry.


    ¡°O-Of course not, mydy. I would never think of harming you at all.¡±


    The man was pleading for his life now. Aurora could see tears straining his cheek and his breath gettingbored. But Aurora refused to feel sorry for such scum.


    ¡°I see. But you see, I don¡¯t believe you. And because I don¡¯t believe you, I will be putting you under inspection. I will mark you so that you will not be able to carry out any bad deals.¡±


    Aurora had learned her lesson after Alexander and modified her system to enable it to carry out surveince without providing ess to any other functions.


    ¡°W-What did you say, mydy? S-Surely you jest?¡±


    The man had gone pale as soon as he had heard Aurora¡¯s words but he soon regained his true colors back. Aurora could see that he did not believe her word.


    So she quickly cast the magic and restricted the man¡¯s moments. Her work here was done and she could feel the man trying to escape her magic but to no avail.


    ¡°Listen here. You brought this pain on yourself by going against us. So don¡¯t bother escaping my clutches now. Justy low and look for the information I asked you to look into.¡±


    The man nodded in fear. He had recognized his position and has essed that he was in no position to ask questions either.


    Aurora wanted to pat the man at his sensibility but she did not want to contaminate her hands with his filth.


    The man fled in a hurry before Natasha even returned from his subordinate¡¯s tent.


    ¡°Did you let that man go?¡±


    Natasha¡¯s first words aftering out of the tent were filled with fury. Natasha had initially been against Aurora¡¯s decision to only punish the head and not his subordinates but her current state told Aurora that she hade around.


    ¡°Most of the people here are this man¡¯s ves and were under the control of magic. They will be alright in a bit.¡±


    Aurora nodded once Natasha finished her report. It was not difficult to tell why the man had turned to the demon to get support in his situation.


    The deeper you went into the abyss, the more intelligent the beasts became. Without overwhelming power and experience, the only way to survive the deeper floors was to make a deal with the devil.


    ¡°I-I am sorry I made that deal. B-But I did not have a choice in-¡±


    ¡°Save your breath. I don¡¯t care why you made the deal or who you used it on. But you made a mistake when you targeted us. And since you tried to use me, it is time I use you in return.¡±


    Aurora was not a saint. She did not care that the man had just been sued before and was about to be used again by her.


    As long as Aurora got her purpose solved, she did not care much about how it was done.


    ¡°W-What do you want me to do?¡±


    For the first time, the man sounded truly terrified for his life. Maybe he thought he would be sacrificed to a demon just like he had tried to sacrifice Aurora.


    ¡°Nothing much. I just want you to gather some information for me. People like you have a lot of connections all over the night market so I¡¯m sure it would be easy for you to collect information as well as funds for me.¡±


    The man paled even more at Aurora¡¯s words.


    ¡°I c-can not do that openly. I will be caught if I did that.¡±


    ¡°Oh? Then I am sure the tower will appreciate a report on all the illegal acts youmitted. I have a lot I want to tell them after all.¡±


    And the pale man went white. Of course, small incidents like this were not the one tower was overly concerned about. But that did not mean they would not take advantage of it if they could help it.


    The man was as good as fucked as soon as his true colors had escaped to the outside world.


    ¡°I-I understand. Of course, I will cooperate with you, mydy. You can leave everything up to me.¡±


    The man sounded desperate to keep his deeds a secret. This fear was good for Aurora since she could use it to further her agenda.


    ¡°Good boy. Then, I am sure you will do well. Remember, if you even think of betraying me then you will be handed over to the tower and I will wash my hands off your case. I have a lot of evidence against you.¡±


    The man seemed to have believed Aurora. She could see the resignation in his expression as well as the desire to live. This man will go well under her as long as he had a desire to live.


    ¡°Natasha, we are done here. Let¡¯s go and catch up with those other two before something did end up happening.¡±


    Natasha looked amused at the turn of events but she did notin. She had no more reason to stop around and y either.


    On the other side, Rita picked up speed to keep up with Damina and his kidnappers.

 Chapter 149 149: Unexpected boss - part 1

    ¡°I cannot believe that I have been reduced to a babysitter for that brat. Why did he have to go off on his own and cause us so many problems?¡±


    All Rita had wanted to do was to spend some quality time with Aurora. She might have to share Aurora¡¯spany but it was better than to separate.


    And now Rita had been asked to go after Damian while leaving Aurora alone with Natasha.


    ¡°Just my luck. She gave me this useless work because I cannot ess my powers, right? I wished she would trust me to look after myself more.¡±


    Ritained but she still did not go back. Instead, she followed Damian¡¯s location from a distance.


    She could make out the group Damian was traveling along with. They were moving at a moderate speed but the sense of disaster was still in the air.


    Rita only stopped following once she saw the group standing in front of a cave opening and pushing a few rocks to make the entrance open up.


    Once the group disappeared behind the wall it was time for Rita to make her move. She gave Damian five minutes to take care of things on his end before she opened the door.


    The lock was not difficult to crack open as Rita had seen the man open it once already. But there was a sense of uneasiness in the air around the cave.<sub>.</sub>


    There was disturbing energy that put Rita¡¯s senses on the edge. She clutched her emergency summons fur tightly and made her way inside.


    ¡°H-Have mercy on us. We did not know you could take care of yourself.¡±


    The scene Rita came across was one she had anticipated for a while. The small group of men that had tried to kidnap Damian was lying around on the ground in a small heap.


    It was easy to see that the ten-year-old had gotten impatient and decided to take his frustration out on his kidnappers.


    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t kill him yet. Aurora said that we can make use of them as informants working for us.¡±


    Rita had wanted to hide and see more of the action. But she quickly chose to abandon her diving spot once she saw Damian ready to kill.


    ¡°I read her message. But I don¡¯t think these low lives can offer us anything. It would be merciful of us to kill them off now,¡±


    Rita agreed with Damina¡¯s words but she had her orders. She was sure Aurora had her reasons for wanting to keep these people around.<sub></sub>


    ¡°I don¡¯t think we should kill them yet. We should discuss it first with Aurora at least.¡±


    Rita reasoned and she could see Damianing around. Despite being a child, he was a rational person and that was something Rita admired in him.


    ¡°Fine. I will let him live for now. But I need assurance to ensure his loyalty.¡±


    ¡°That should not be a problem. Aurora sent me a message with a magic spell that we can use. It should be sufficient for now.¡±


    Rita quickly opened her system and took out the magic tag. It shined with a golden bright light that almost made Rita go blind.


    But once she was done, she could see a sigil appear on the kidnapper¡¯s body. They looked like one-sided bond marks that were used to ensure obedience.


    As long as the men in front of Rita had these marks, they would not be able to betray Aurora¡¯s trust.


    ¡°Wow. I guess this is the safest way to ensure their cooperation. Now, listen here you scum. You will gather information for us and report it to us once a week. Otherwise, your end will be as painful as you can imagine it to be.¡±<sub></sub>


    The man trembles as soon as he had Damian¡¯s eyes pointed toward him. Damian did look like a devil right now with his glowing eyes and mechanical highlights.


    The only thing that broke this illusion was Damian¡¯s short height.


    ¡°You should grow up first if you want to pull that look off. You look like a child trying to y at being an adult right now.¡±


    ¡°What did you say? I dare you to say that again,¡±


    ¡°You are a child so you should not show such a scary face to me. Look, you are scaring your kidnappers as well,¡±


    Rita managed to pull at Damian¡¯s cheeks to tease him. It was obvious that the younger only allowed this to happen because he was shocked.


    ¡°They are not scared of me. See¡­.¡±


    The kidnappers had frightened expressions on their faces. But it was not because they were looking at Rita or Damina.


    Instead, their focus was on the huge body which was suddenly casting shadows on their bodies.


    ¡°L-Lord Beatrix. W-Why are you h-here? W-We were going to b-b-bring your t-tribute.¡±


    Rita¡¯s eyes narrowed as she watched the huge bird-like monster tower over the group. Its golden beak and red feathers made it look like an expensive and ornamental bird.


    But the aura this bird possessed was unlike any monster Rita had faced before.


    No, there was one monster that had an aura like this. It had been Mobi Dick. this bird reminded Rita of that dangerous Mobi Dick.


    But unlike Mobi Dick, this monster did not have all of its aura or power. It felt iplete to Rita.


    ¡°A swarm. This monster is a Swarm-level monster. Is this the boss of this floor? What is it doing here?¡±


    It was Damian who whispered those words. He sounded worried but also in awe to see the mighty monster.


    ¡°Lord Beatrix, please answer me.¡±


    The leader of the kidnappers begged the monster to answer him but the monster didn¡¯t even spare him a nce.


    Instead, he started charging toward the group with a final cry of anger.


    ¡°It is not going to answer us. It doesn¡¯t even have a consciousness of its right now. The only thing we can do is to get out of this cave and save ourselves.¡±


    As much as Rita would like to take on this monster, it was not something she could handle on her own. She needed support and to be at the height of her powers to even stand a chance against that thing.


    And she could not allow Damian to throw his life away by fighting that monster either.


    ¡°P-Please, save me.¡±


    The kidnapper begged Rita but it would be impossible to save everyone in this space. There was only so much Rita and Damian could do to stand against a Swarm-ss enemy.


    But still, Aurora had asked her to make sure that these kidnappers survived to be an asset.


    ¡°Damina, I am going to stop Beatrix for a second. You should take the others out and escape this cave.

 Chapter 150 150: Unexpected boss - part 2

    ¡°Damina, I am going to stop Beatrix for a second. You should take the others out and escape this cave.


    ¡°What the hell are you talking about. Hurry up and think of a way out. We can leave these losers here to die.¡±


    Damian sounded pissed as he tried to get Rita to leave. But the redhead did not bulge from her position in front of the group.


    ¡°Aurora asked me to make sure that these people live. So I will do my best to make it happen.¡±


    Rita was resolved to do what was asked of her. She quickly took out a defensive talisman and stopped the clumsy attack of the firebird.


    She seeded in fending off the damage but she was not able to stop her skin from getting burned by the attack fully. Her arm was red and bleeding where the phoenix¡¯s power had managed to gaze it.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be an idiot. Aurora would not want you to sacrifice your life for these people. Don¡¯t be stubborn and follow after me.¡±


    ¡°I cannot. I need toplete the task given to me.¡±


    ¡°But you will die. If Aurora told you to die, then would you? I trust Aurora but I will prioritize my life above her order if needed. It¡¯s not logical for you to die here.¡±<sub>.</sub>


    ¡°Would you prioritize your life if Aurora asked for you toy it down? Maybe you would but you are not me. And love was never a logical thing in the first ce.¡±


    Rita pulled out thest of her talisman Aurora had given her. She would need to make itst as long as she could.


    The phoenix was flying far above them now and they were sitting ducks for his attack. They had lost their opportunity to be able to get out of this situation a while back.


    ¡°Darn it. I guess we will be fighting that thing now.¡±


    Damian decided to stay back as well. He might not like Rita personally but he did appreciate her dedication to their cause.


    So just this once, he will help her out.


    The phoenix let out a cry and went in for another swoop. This attack wasced with a heavy amount of magical energy which would cause a huge st when it hit the ground.


    Rita was confident that she would not be able to stop it in time. But the kidnappers were lying behind her so she had to try.<sub></sub>


    ¡°Duck your head. The debris will protect you.¡±


    ¡°Huges, you¡¯re here.¡±


    Two cries reacher the pair simultaneously and Rita¡¯s body moved on reflexes. She quickly covered Damina with her body to reduce the impact of the falling rocks.


    The rocks must be magical because they created a barrier between the group and the Swarm-level beast attacking them.


    As soon as Beatrix¡¯s attack hit the rocks, he decided he had enough and flew away withoutint.


    Somehow, the party had been spared from experiencing a horrible death.


    ¡°Huges, what are you doing here? I thought you were done with us afterst time and vowed to nevere here again? Now help me out and we can deal with those kids and sacrifice them.¡±


    The kidnappers¡¯ leader looked a little too happy at seeing hispanion.<sub></sub>


    Rita watched Damian go tense at her side. The kid was likely contemting different ways to snap the human¡¯s neck.


    Not that Rita was not interested to do the same. She would kill the man if he became a danger to her and Damina.


    ¡°Shut your mouth, Arlo. You¡¯ve caused me enough problems so don¡¯t even tryining now. I am not here to save you but to make a deal with them,¡±


    Rita instantly went on alert. Anyone who approached them with an alternative condition had to be taken into ount.


    ¡°Make a deal with us? Why do you think we want to make a deal with you of all people?¡±


    Damian was the one who asked this question. The suspicion in his eyes was a given and even Rita was curious to know the answer.


    If she did not like the answer, then she could always kill this man and be done with it. Aurora had not asked her to let an outsider live.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure your leader, thedy with blue hair, will be interested in our proposal. But if you are still suspicious, then you can hold my good friend here as a hostage. Kill him if I do something bad.¡±


    ¡°Oi Huges, what are you saying? Is my life so cheap to you?¡±


    The kidnapper sounded panicked at being used as a bargaining chip. His panic was real meaning that this was not something the due had nned.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure I can believe your words. You were ready to let your ¡®friend¡¯ get killed so easily. How can we believe anything thates out of your mouth?¡±


    ¡°True, True. Hughes is not someone I am well familiar with so do not make a deal with him. Killing me will not be worth it.¡±


    The leader of the kidnappers was getting more and more desperate. Just listening to him gave Rita a headache.


    ¡°A. Don¡¯t be like that Arlo. I will not let your sacrifice be in vain. I just want to exchange some information with that blue-haireddy. Something she is desperately looking for.¡±


    The man sounded so confident in his im that Rita felt her consciousness waver. Maybe she should let him meet Aurora after all.


    And it was not like this man would be able to over-power Aurora anyway. Aurora will be alright and they could kill this man if he tried anything.


    ¡°Fine, you cane along. But only if you take a temporary mark of obedience. We will not risk you attacking any of our people.¡±


    Rita¡¯s proposal was met with silence. For a second she was sure that the man would not take up on her offer.


    But then the man let out a chuckle and his expression softened into an eptance.


    ¡°Alright. I will take that mark but only a temporary one. That much is easy for me topromise.¡±


    Once the man agreed, Damian opened the system to transfer the mark onto the man. It didn¡¯t take long before the magic took root.


    ¡°So this is her magic? It is indeed stronger than I was led to believe. Never mind, it seems I cannot trick this mark even if I wanted to so don¡¯t give me suspicious looks.¡±


    The more this man spoke, the more his words sounded weird.


    Even the kidnapper¡¯s leader, Arlo looked suspicious of his ¡®friend¡¯. Maybe the feeling Rita was getting was not wrong after all. Maybe this man was dangerous.

 Chapter 151 151: You are not who you seem to be - part 1

    ¡®Natasha, we are done here. Let¡¯s go and catch up with those other two before something did end up happening.¡¯


    This was what Aurora had initially nned but she changed her thoughts once Damian¡¯s message finally came in. ording to him, the situation had been handled on his end but he had run into some ¡®unexpected¡¯pany.


    The choice of words did arouse Aurora¡¯s curiosity but she chose not to state it over the system.


    ¡°Natasha, are you done on your side? I need your help in burning out the trash.¡±


    ¡°Sure. Would lighting the tent on fire be alright? I have a few ways to make sure no ¡®evidence¡¯ is left behind.¡±


    Behind Aurora, the ring leader shuddered at the audible threat in Natasha¡¯s voice. He understood the underlying meaning behind Natasha¡¯s cold words.


    ¡°Yup. It will be alright. I will make sure that the fire doesn¡¯t spread to other tents.¡±


    With Aurora¡¯s audible permission, it didn¡¯t even take Natasha a second to light the tent on fire. People around the tent were startled once the fire started but they settled down pretty quickly once they realized that the fire was not going to spread.


    Once that was taken care of, Aurora turned toward their new ¡¯employee¡¯ who was scared out of his wits.


    ¡°Now that things have calmed down a little, let¡¯s talk business. You have been marked by my magic and you will not be able to get rid of it even in death. But if you do a good enough job, I might allow you to get rid of it.¡±<sub>.</sub>


    ¡°All you need to do is to search for the information about the underground auction rings. Can you do that for me?¡±


    The leader shivered at Aurora¡¯s tone but he nodded pretty quickly. Since he had understood, Aurora let him go.


    Natasha¡¯s concern about Aurora¡¯s actions was visible in her aura but she waited till the man was far away before addressing Natasha¡¯s worries.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about him so much. He is a smart man so he will keep his words.¡±


    Natasha looked even more worried once she heard Aurora¡¯s words.


    ¡°N-No. That was not what I was thinking about. Won¡¯t it be a problem if that man found a way to undo your magic and leak information about us?¡±


    Ah, these were real concerns someone might have. Aurora had forgotten that herpanions did not know everything about her abilities.


    Ever since she had stepped back into the abyss, the feeling of being invincible had enveloped Aurora. She felt like she could do anything and make anything happen.


    It was a dangerous feeling which could get Aurora addicted.<sub></sub>


    But it also told Aurora that her magic was not going to fade away.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about anything for now. Just believe in me and my magic. Even if that man ends up finding a way out of his curse, he will not be able to leak out secrets. I made sure of it.¡±


    Natasha had aplicated expression on her face. Aurora found it hard to read.


    No, she did not want to know what Natasha was thinking. She would rather remain oblivious to Natasha¡¯s real feelings regarding this matter.


    ¡°If you believe that we will not be betrayed then I will trust your decision. The sun is about to set as well and the night market will appear soon. We still have to find its entrance so let¡¯s go and look for it.¡±


    Natasha was avoiding Aurora¡¯s eyes. Perhaps she was afraid of Aurora now?


    After all, Aurora had never shown her real colors in front of Natasha so it was possible for the princess to have gotten the wrong idea about her.


    ¡°Natasha, do I scare you? Should I leave you alone now?¡±


    ¡°N-No, it¡¯s nothing like that. Y-You were just a little too h-hot for me at that moment so I don¡¯t want to look at you. I¡¯m afraid I will do something if I looked at you right now and we don¡¯t have time for that.¡±<sub></sub>


    Oh?


    Oh!


    Aurora felt her face go red at the admission. She had no idea how Natasha was able to say those words out loud and in open. Aurora would not have been able to do it.


    ¡°Natasha, are you aroused? Do you need help?¡±


    ¡°A-Aroused? Don¡¯t be foolish. I am alright.¡±


    ¡°No. I think you need help. I can help you out.¡±


    ¡°R-Really? If that¡¯s the case, then-¡°


    Natasha was about to agree. Aurora was sure that the northern princess was more than ready to take her up on her proposal.


    But the universe had bad timing and the familiar auras headed their way killed off the mood. Natasha¡¯s disappointed sigh was almost audible over the sound of footsteps.


    ¡°We¡¯re back. And we brought back your luggage safe and sound.¡±


    Rita and Damian were back. And they had the kidnappers bound up and walking behind them.


    The second Aurora¡¯s eyes met their own, she saw the kidnappers go pale. They likely recognized Aurora as the source of the curse that they were suffering from.


    ¡°So these are the scums that tried to sell Damian? They don¡¯t look like much. I guess they won¡¯t be much help after all.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s cold words caused several people to freeze, including Rita. she almost wanted tough at the joke she had yed.


    ¡°So, can we kill them?¡±


    Damian looked excited to kill their captives but Aurora had other ns for them.


    ¡°No. Since these kidnappers managed to somehow survive, we shall put them to good use.¡±


    Aurora took out a paper slip and handed it to the kidnapper¡¯s leader. The man looked startled at Aurora¡¯s action but took the paper slip anyway.


    He read the slip but as soon as he finished it, the slip burned away to ash.


    ¡°You read the slip so I hope you will be able to follow those instructions. Now go and do not waste my time any further.¡±


    Aurora could see the reluctance in the kidnapper¡¯s eyes but they had no other choice but to obey her words.


    All of them left except one person. The only person who was left behind looked to be in his 30s and had a weird aura around him.


    The aura he had was not his own which made Aurora instantly alert. The man felt like he was possessed by some kind of higher entity.


    ¡°You? What the hell are you and what do you want? Do not take a single step or I will be forced to kill you.¡±


    The man looked amused at Aurora¡¯s words and he even let out a chuckle.


    ¡°So I was found out, huh? In that case, let¡¯s talk in private.¡±

 Chapter 152 152: You are not who you seem to be - part 2

    ¡°Let¡¯s talk in private.¡±


    The man¡¯s voice betrayed nothing about his ambitions. But it did make Aurora¡¯spanions alert. Even Rita and Damian looked taken aback by this sudden shift in mood.


    But only Aurora was aware of the real danger they were in. She could feel her mark of obedience on the man¡¯s body but she could not feel her magic taking effect on him.


    It was like ayer of magic was protecting the real ¡®soul¡¯ of the man in front of Aurora. It would be horrible if he somehow managed to get out of Aurora¡¯s magic.


    ¡°Alright. We can talk in the tent behind me. I will cast privacy spells around us so that we will not get disturbed.


    ¡°Aurora, no! That is too much of a risk to take. This man is dangerous. He even managed to stop Beatrix, the floor boss.¡±


    Aurora agreed without problem but herpanions had other ideas about her decision. Rita in particr sounded angry at her decision.


    However, the man in front of Aurora gave her an approving stare. His nce told Aurora that resistance was futile and it was better to listen to him.<sub>.</sub>


    ¡°It is because this person is dangerous that I am doing this. I don¡¯t want to make him our enemy so talking about mutual benefits is the best course of action to take.¡±


    Aurora decided to be open about her decisions. She had a feeling that trying to fool the controller of this man was a foolish idea.


    ¡°Do you believe that this is the best course of action?¡±


    Natasha¡¯s face betrayed none of her thoughts but Aurora knew that the princess was worried sick as well. That was why Aurora decided to give her an assuring smile.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Alright, you heard her. Now let¡¯s leave them alone. We should make sure the other people are ok as well. I saw some injureddies when I arrived here. You should also brief about our situation Natasha.¡±


    Despite his age, Damian was a good leader. Aurora could see him grow and take charge of a situation.<sub></sub>


    Even Rita was listening to him unwillingly and it was nice to see her follow Damian¡¯smand and calm down.


    ¡°Fine. I will back away for now but call us as soon as the meeting is over.¡±


    Finally, Rita backed down. Aurora breathed a sigh of relief when she left with the other two. But not before giving Aurora ast meaningful nce.


    ¡°You have one hell of a guard god. Did you know that she even went against a guardian even without having ess to her magic? Oh, I should introduce myself first before making suchments.¡±


    ¡°My name is Huges. It¡¯s a pleasure to meet thetest goddess and the one favored by the abyss.¡±


    If Aurora ever had any doubt about this man, they evaporated as soon as he opened his mouth.


    He knew about Aurora and her situation great amount and she did not doubt that he was keeping tabs on her.<sub></sub>


    ¡°I do not need to know your false name. I am more interested in knowing about your real name and what you want from me.¡±


    The man, Huges, cracked up at Aurora¡¯s questions. He seemed to be finding Aurora¡¯s questions funny for some reason.


    ¡°Ah, I was caught after all. You are right in saying that this body is not mine. Let¡¯s just say that I am borrowing it for now. You don¡¯t have a problem with that, right?¡±


    ¡°I am in no position to say if I have a problem with your actions or not. I just want to know why you decided to meet me like this.¡±


    Aurora was not interested in the man¡¯s real body or the kind of circumstances he had found himself into.


    Nor was she interested in knowing why or how this possession was even possible.


    She just wanted to know why the spirit had sought her out. And what it wanted from her. And most importantly, if this was a threat to her and her team or not.


    ?[0)??? ¡°Rx for now. I am just here to sate my curiosity. I just wanted to know what kind of goddess you were to not evene and pay your respect to the overlooker of these floors. You do know that these kinds of mistakes can get you and your party killed, right?¡±


    Aurora went from rxed to tense in a single second. She felt her magic respond to her panic and form a protective shield around the possessed man.


    If he tried anything, Aurora would fry him out.


    ¡°Rx. I told you I will not do anything right now. I can see why Eve decided to ce her bets on you. You are different from the rest of the divinity. I don¡¯t mean in personality but your aura. You are closer to us than you are to humans.¡±


    ¡°It makes me wonder what you experienced to be this tightly woven with the abyssal energy?¡±


    What the overlooker said went over Aurora¡¯s mind. This was her second time hearing this from anyone.


    ¡°You know Eva?¡±


    ¡°Of course, I know her. We¡¯re fellow overlookers so I know that snake very well. It will be better for you not to trust her every word even if you have a contract with her.¡±


    With those words, the man stood up and turned away. It looked like he was about to leave.


    ¡°Wait, is that it? That was all you wanted to talk about?¡±


    ¡°Yes, that was it. I told you that I am here to look for trouble, nor am I here to stop you from your journey. I will even overlook the insult you made by not visiting me when you arrive here because you showed me something amusing in return.¡±


    Aurora refused to believe her luck. She was not someone who was blessed with such good luck.


    ¡°Oh, I almost forgot that I had another gift for you. The ce where the night market will arrive today is a few kilometers west of here. Head toward the red peak and you shall see it in a few hours.¡±


    Aurora had a lot of questions to ask the overlooker but she did not get to ask them before the man, Huges, disappeared into the air.


    Aurora tried to get a hold of the man but her hand passed through the mirage. All she saw were familiar yellow eyes but Aurora was not sure where she had seen them before.


    Aurora¡¯s hasty actions caused her to crash into the storage crates in the back and cause a crashing sound.


    And Aurora was left alone inside the tent.

 Chapter 153 153: Lets set off to the market

    ¡°Aurora, are you alright? Did that bastard do something to you? Should I go after him and end his sorry existence?¡±


    As expected, Rita was the first one to reach Aurora. Her panicked voice was a little unexpected and Aurora held on to her arm before Rita could make any foolish decisions.


    ¡°Hey, what is going on? Where did Huges go?¡±


    Damian and Natasha had followed right behind Rita but they were a littlete in arriving at the scene.


    So the scene they came across was one where Aurora held on to Rita for dear life and the redhead was pissed off and ready to murder someone.


    ¡°Everyone, calm down. Huges did not do anything except provide me with the location of the next night market. I was just a little startled by his sudden proposal so I made a fuss about it. You should not take it to heart.¡±


    ¡°But how can I not be worried? You were alone in here with that man. What if he had¡­¡±


    ¡°He won¡¯t have been able to harm me. And I could tell that he had no intention to do so either. He was just rying a message from the overlooker to not cause any trouble.¡±<sub>.</sub>


    Rita¡¯s angry face was right in front of Aurora. Aurora could almost see the gloomy aura Rita gave off.


    And that was why she decided to stop Rita before she could fly off the rock and do something foolish.


    Aurora¡¯s words sparkled with just enough truth to not make a mess of things even if the truth came out.


    ¡°Overlooker? Why would the overlooker be concerned about us? I thought that the overlookers were not allowed to interfere in the normal abyss situations.¡±


    Natasha sounded worried and confused. But she was not the only one who was paying attention to Aurora¡¯s words.


    Rita¡¯s dark look said that she was thinking the same thing but unwilling to say it out loud.


    It was times like these that reminded Aurora that she might want to protect and live for these people in the present but she did not trust them to be safe.<sub></sub>


    She was hiding too much from them and she would continue to hide it till she is sure about everything working out.


    ¡°The overlooker likely looked for me because she got to know about a fraction opposing the tower. Despite their neutral stance, the overlooker cannot stay out of all the abyssal troubles.¡±


    Aurora was making it all up. Anyone who had to spend even a fraction of a day trying to understand the overlookers could tell that they did not care about human affairs.


    But Aurora¡¯spanions had no way of being able to tell that. The only outlooker they knew was Ava and even that was a rtionship that started with pretending that the other did not exist.


    ¡°Now that I think about it, Ava was oddly invested to know more about the tower when I talked to her. I did wonder why that was but maybe it was to sate her curiosity?¡±


    ¡°It is possible. She even asked our elders for information about anything unusual happening during thest few centuries. I think she even went to the goddess of victory for information but turned away,¡±


    The more Damian and Natasha talked, the more they solidified Aurora¡¯s im about her words.<sub></sub>


    It seemed like she would not have to put any effort to get the others to believe her story. They were already making excuses for her anyway.


    ¡°I guess I am overthinking it a little bit. So, what did that man tell you about the next location?¡±


    Rita finally seemed to have calmed down after hearing Natasha and Damian¡¯s words. Herplexion was still not what it was supposed to be but her temper was in control.


    ¡°It¡¯s a little further but we will be able to reach it within a few hours at a modest pace. I already made preparations for us to start gathering information so I am hoping for good results.¡±


    Aurora was not sure if she wanted to head toward the night market tonight. She was exhausted by her encounters and she also had to think about the people left under her protection.


    But even with everything that had happened, Aurora¡¯s desire begged her to move ahead and keep on going.


    ¡°What about the people?¡±


    ?[0)??? ¡°We will take them with us. They can get back to the surface without help from there if they trade away useless things in their possession.¡±


    ¡°So we will wash our hands off them?¡±


    ¡°Yes, we will.¡±


    Aurora only had limited patience and having a group of 4 was already enough of a responsibility.


    She did not have it in her to be able to care for more people and still move ahead. In that way, she was not a good leader at all.


    ¡°We should send someone to escort them out. We also use them if we direct them toward the resistance. I talked with a few people here and they hate the tower for what happened to them.¡±


    Surprisingly enough, it was Damian who came up with this idea. Three pairs of eyes snapped in his direction at his unexpected words.


    ¡°What? I mean, didn¡¯t you say we werecking manpower in the resistance? These people might be weak but they can still use magic.¡±


    Damian was not wrong about this. But this was not something Aurora had thought about.


    ¡®Maybe that is why I am not a good leader. Once I get focused on one thing, I lose track of everything else.¡¯


    ¡°It is a good idea. And I have someone in mind who would be able to get you all out for the right price.¡±


    Everyone looked interested to hear who Aurora had in mind. Honestly, Aurora was even surprised that she remembered that person.


    But since Aurora had been helped by the ¡®witch¡¯ once for the right price, there was no harm in getting Michelle to help them again.


    ¡°True, we can get the witch to help us. But how are we even going to afford that? The ounders are not made up of money and neither is the academy.¡±


    ¡°But the resistance had some to spare. I am sure they will be able to convey my message to Rex and he will figure it out on his end.¡±


    Aurora sent Astoria the message. The half-goddess was the best person to convey her thoughts to Rex and get away scot-free.


    ¡®Next time, I will give Rex a system as well. It is annoying to go through a middle party for importantmunications.¡¯ this was a promise Aurora made to herself before her thoughts faded away.


    And the party set out to reach the night market.

 Chapter 154 154: Baiting out the truth

    ¡°No matter how many times I see this, the night market still looks like a scene out of a movie. I am sure this is how the historians described the ancient civilization to be.¡±


    ¡°I am just amazed to see this pce standing like this without magic or technology. How unique.¡±


    Once the group had reached the night market, they had broken away from their shy nature and taken to exploring the ce.


    Aurora did not stop them since the day had been hectic for them. And herpanions hadn¡¯t gotten any time to explore yesterday since they had been new and tense.


    ¡°Be careful to not break anything. Also, be sure to be back in an hour. Damian, you will have to apany the group who wants to leave the abyss with the resistance so be back on time.¡±


    ¡°Alright. I will be back soon after I¡¯ve looked around some more.¡±


    Aurora bade farewell to her group for the time being before she started to look around for a familiar store.


    The stores and the stalls in the night market changed locations every day the market was relocated. It was one of the charms of this ce but it was quite annoying right now.


    It made Aurora¡¯s search for the shop much more difficult.<sub>.</sub>


    ¡°Mydy, can you apany me? I need to have some words with you.¡±


    Aurora felt the beast approaching her from behind. She made sure that his body did not show how tense she was to be approached in such a startling manner.


    However, once the man shed a piece of familiar jewelry on his wrist, Aurora rxed instantly.


    ¡°Of course, I will apany my benefactor. Kindly lead me to your shop so that we can discuss the prices for your services.¡±


    Aurora instantly turned around to follow after the cloaked man.


    Now that she was someone¡¯s client, the interest other sellers showed in her faded away. The rule here stated that once a client was secured, no one was allowed to steal them until their pair service was over.


    This was not something Aurora had expected to happen to her when she had made the deal yesterday but she was happy to see the results of herbor nheless.


    ¡°So, were you able to find the auction house? I am expecting good news from you.¡±<sub></sub>


    ¡°Of course, I was able to. I was even able to get you an entry ticket to the auction since you paid way over the price range for my service.¡±


    Aurora stopped short of what she had been about to say.


    It was true that she had overpaid the price for the service but she had not done it to get anything extra in return. She had just paid the price because that was the only thing she had on her to exchange.


    ¡°Oh? What a fortunate turn of events this turned out to be. I am hoping that you would hand over the ticket to me now.¡±


    Aurora extended her hand to get the ticket. The beast ced three tickets in his hand which was suspicious to Aurora.


    ?[0)??? ¡°This is more than one ticket.¡±


    ¡°I know. But this was what I was able to acquire. I am giving them to you to foster a good rtionship with you in the future. I can tell that you are a resourcefuldy and having you on my side will be good for me.¡±


    This was an incredible development. Never in her life had Aurora thought that this was something that would happen.<sub></sub>


    ¡°Did someone instruct you to do this? Three is a very specific number, right? But I have four people in my current party, right?¡±


    ¡°I had no idea. The person who gave this to me told me that you will only need three of them.¡±


    ¡°The person who gave them to you?¡±


    Aurora was instantly on guard. The only person who could have told this to the man had to be someone from her group or a part of those who were bound by Aurora.


    But that should be impossible for anyone to even guess that she would send Damian back.


    ¡°Yes. The one who told this to me was human in appearance but his energy was all over the ce. I think his name was Huges or something. I did not pay much attention to him so I don¡¯t remember much about it.¡±


    ¡®Huges? So it was the overlooker who send for us to attend the auction? If it was her then it is possible for this all to make sense.¡¯


    ¡°Is something wrong? Did I make a mistake in getting you these tickets?¡±


    The person in front of Aurora looked a little panicked at herck of response. He had likely taken Aurora¡¯sck of response for a negative and had panicked a little.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You are not in trouble and Huges is someone I know so you don¡¯t need to worry. I was just a little surprised to hear his name, is all.¡±


    The man rxed as soon as he heard Aurora¡¯s words. She was assuring him that he was not in danger, nor had he broken his deal.


    The shopkeepers in the night market, especially the beasts relied on their reputation to do business. To bebeled as ¡®faulty¡¯ was the same as being abandoned. But tobel one as ¡®faulty¡¯ was not easy.


    It involved magic and a grave offense against the buyer for the shopkeeper to bebeled as ¡®faulty¡¯. It was something everyone wanted to avoid at all costs.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you did well. I will look for you when I have other services I need to purchase from you.¡±


    ¡°A-Alright. Thank you for your time and patience. Hope you find what you are looking for soon.¡±


    Aurora just smiled at the beast but her heart was full of twisted thoughts.


    She knew the real meaning behind the shopkeeper beasts¡¯ words and it was not good. The beast wanted her to fail and to find him for help again.


    But he was unlucky because Aurora could see his intentions and decided to nevere back here.


    After all, she had just decided to make this deal based on herck of time. She had many other options avable to her.


    And the beast must have sensed it as well because hisst words were unexpected but also weed.


    ¡°Next time youe to make a deal, I will tell you a secret no one else knows about the abyss. Until then, take care of yourself.¡±


    The shopkeeper knew what he was doing. He knew that Aurora did not have time if she wanted to attend the auction so he was setting up a trap for her.


    And Aurora will fall into it willingly for now.


    ¡°Ah, is that so? Then I guess I will have no choice but to returnter.¡±

 Chapter 155 155: Taking the edge off - part 1

    Aurora did not take long to return to her group after she finished her initial deal and had the pass for the auction house.


    She had gotten a response from Astoria about the deal and Michelle did not take long to reply to Aurora about her inquiry.


    The witch would be arriving on the sixth floor shortly along with Astoria to take these people out.


    Technically, the resistance was smuggling these people out with Eve¡¯s help but no one knew about it. Rex had kept the extraction method a secret from the other resistance members.


    That was why the only member present in this meeting from the resistance¡¯s side was Rex who already knew Ava¡¯s secret and was under an oath of secrecy.


    ¡°Have the representatives arrived yet? What about the people we rescued? Is everyone here?¡±


    Aurora quickly met her group at the allocated location. She was the only one who waste but that had to be expected.


    ¡°Everyone is here. Astoria said that they will be here shortly with Eve. Their side has already made contact with each other so we do not need to worry about it.¡±


    Rita gave Aurora the best news imaginable. It took a huge chunk of worry off Aurora¡¯s shoulder.


    ¡°Rita, Natasha, stay here and make sure these people get out alive. Since it will take Astoria and Rex some time to get here, I need you both to make sure everything stays in an alright position.¡±<sub>.</sub>


    ¡°Once you both are done,e and join me at this address. There are your tickets so you will be able to enter without problem,¡±


    Aurora handed the two tickets she had been given to herpanions.


    She would have preferred to go together as a group but there was not much time before the auction starts.


    The auction was not Aurora¡¯s real target but the after-party was. That was where the real action of information took ce and that was also where Aurora needed to go.


    But it was only possible if one took part in the pre-auction and bought a membership.


    ¡°You cannot put it off?¡±


    ¡°No. This might be our only chance to enter the after-party. Our tickets will be invalidated after today so I have no other choice but to hurry up.¡±


    Aurora felt like she was forcing herself to perform many tasks. Her body was beginning to feel the effects of corruption but it was not something like a heavy blow.


    ¡°Aurora, you look paler. Is it your ¡®illness¡¯ acting up again? Do you need help with that?¡±<sub></sub>


    Rita leaned in toward Aurora¡¯s face. Her body was close enough for Aurora to smell her natural scent, which was a bad idea.


    ¡°I can manage for now. You can help me after the after-party is over. So do try and hurry up the business here so that you can join meter.¡±


    Aurora almost panted those words out with effort. Her condition had not been bad before but it was worsening by the second.


    Her proximity with Rita was not helping her case and Aurora instantly took a step back to calm her body down.


    And she lost her bnce at that moment. Her legs felt tied and her body was tense.


    ¡®Pull her closer and dominate her. It should be easy to do that and take pleasure in that soft and warm body. It is so easy to pull her close and-¡®


    ¡°Aurora, are you alright? Your hands are sped too tightly on my arm. Do you not need any help?¡±


    Rita¡¯s voice cut Aurora¡¯s thoughts off. She had not even realized that the voice was back had Rita not called her out.


    But herck of response made both females in front of her aware that something was wrong with her.<sub></sub>


    ¡°Natasha, you stay here and make sure Damian and others get to the surface. I will go with Aurora for now and try to make her calm down. There is not much time left before the auction.¡±


    Rita could see the reluctance in Natasha¡¯s expression but the rationaldy did see sense in not stopping Rita.


    As much as Natasha wanted to help Aurora, now was neither the time nor the circumstance for her to be able to help.


    Moreover, Rita had more experience with Aurora and would be able to stop her if things went a little south.


    ¡°Fine, you can take her away. But before you do that, let me do one thing at least.¡±


    Rita didn¡¯t stop Natasha¡¯s actions. She was not even sure what Natasha was going to do before she did it.


    Aurora was suddenly sandwiched between Rita¡¯s body from behind and Natasha¡¯s from the front.


    And then she was pulled into a violent kiss. It was a kiss that Natasha dominated with her willpower alone. Natasha¡¯s tongue was mapping Aurora¡¯s mouth out.


    And Aurora had a dazed expression when Natasha let her mouth go.


    ¡°Here. I took some edge off her for now but it will be up to you to make her feel better. Now, hurry up and go.¡±


    Rita nodded, a little stunned at her stoicpanion¡¯s sudden and out-of-character actions. She had not expected Natasha to ever be this bold but it was not unweed.


    The spark of jealousy and irritation was still there but it was not as dominant as it should have been.


    ¡°Did you have to do that in front of all of us? I should charge you for that.¡±


    Damian¡¯s sudden voice almost caused Natasha to break out into a flush. Her white skin was too red to hide her blush.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are talking about. And where were you until now? You should have talked with Aurora before you left this ce.¡±


    Natasha tried to divert the talk to something else as soon as she realized there was no other way she would be let go in this situation.


    Unfortunately, Damian was too smart to be caught up in her trick.


    ¡°I decided to stay away as soon as I saw you three make those bedroom eyes. Do you know how ufortable it is to talk to you all when you are busy pinning over each other?¡±


    ¡°We do not pin over each other.¡±


    ¡°So you did not disapprove of the ¡®bedroom eyes¡¯ part, huh? Even you are self-aware of your actions and you still ask me why I am ufortable.¡±


    That was the day Natasha realized that Damian was a menace and the less she tried to provide him, the better.


    For ten years old, his soul had seen too much.


    ¡°By the way, who taught you all this stuff? I am sure a normal ten-year-old doesn¡¯t know all this.¡±


    Natasha had not when she had been that age.


    ¡°I¡¯m not a prude. And also, Alexander is a treasure of information if you can get him to spill.¡±


    Of course, it was Alexander who taught Damian. That man had gotten along with Damian like fire and oil. Suddenly, Natasha was afraid of what the future held for them all.

 Chapter 156 156: Taking the edge off - part 2

    It was not easy to drag Aurora away from the scene and into a quiet location. Mainly because the meaning of ¡®quite¡¯ did not exist in the night market.


    But there were a few avable options and Rita was ashamed to think of the red-light district as the only right one.


    The sector was not easy to find. In their current world, the red-light district was an area to be avoided. A normal red-light district outside the abyss held different designs and different spaces hidden from the normal eye.


    But the night market boasted about a different culture.


    Rita was a little overwhelmed to see that people in the abyss were a little more liberal about their needs and desires.


    Almost a little too liberal.


    ¡°Hey, cutie. Want to have some fun with us? I¡¯m sure you would be surprised to see what we are packing down there.¡±


    The person who tried to hit on Rita was a half-human, half beast. She was not one of the first ones Rita had seen and she certainly would not be thest one either.


    People in the red-light district had almost no clothes on and little to no money. It was a delicate situation for them but Rita just found their advanced annoying.<sub>.</sub>


    Moreover, they were treating Aurora as if she did not even exist. The bundle in Rita¡¯s arms was being ignored by everyone around her which was irritating.


    ¡°Fuck off. I just want to find a hotel toy mypanion down at. If you cannot help me find one then don¡¯t even bother talking to me.¡±


    Rita¡¯s tone was excessively rude but it did not drive the message in the stubborn female¡¯s mind.


    If anything, she looked even more aroused and determined to seduce Rita.


    ¡°I know a ce you can rest for tonight. If you follow me then I will even get you a discount on your nightly rate.¡±


    The female prostitute was trying her best to get Rita to follow her. Her eager expression seemed almost anxious which made Rita suspicious.


    But she did decide to follow the female in the end. If the other workers saw that Rita already had someone in mind, then she would be left alone by the other people looking at her.


    ¡°Alright, fine. Show me the way.¡±<sub></sub>


    The female leading her looked happy but Rita knew that this happiness would notst long. Whatever the female was thinking, it would not happen tonight.


    The prostitute leads Rita and Aurora to a red-painted high-ss building. It would have looked like a high-ss hotel if not for thepany and many half-naked people entering the front lobby.


    ¡°Hey, Eddy, I have customers. Do you think you can give them a discount? For me?¡±


    ¡°Again? This is the third night in a row where you have asked for a discount.¡± the man on the counter looked annoyed but then his expression changed as soon as he saw Rita.


    ¡°A ¡®discount¡¯ you said? Sure, I will give them the best ¡®discount¡¯ they could ask for.¡±


    Rita had a feeling that they were going to be ripped off their money. The way that man¡¯s tone had changed after seeing Rita¡¯s fancy equipment did not look natural.


    ¡°Just hurry up and charge me for a night. And I do not want to be disturbed tonight.¡±


    Rita quickly paid the hefty sum the man had asked. It was not out of her budget but it was more costly than she would have liked it to be.<sub></sub>


    In the end, she ended up parting with a high-grade healing potion in exchange for the room.


    ¡°Mydy, tell me how you want me to serve you tonight. Surely I will be able to satisfy you-¡°


    Rita instantly knocked the door close. She did not wait for the female to even finish her proposal since she was annoying.


    This whole endeavor was turning out to be more annoying than Rita would have liked it to be. But the look on that prostitute¡¯s face had been worth the irritation Rita had faced till now.


    ¡°Now, what should I do with you? The spell that you cast on yourself is about to fade off. I should bind you before you wake up as a precaution.¡±


    Rita quickly took out the energy-binding chains from her bag but stopped before she could touch Aurora with them.


    Her mind shed images of herst encounter with Aurora that had involved these chains and her cock twitched at the call-back.


    The scene had been hot and bothering for Rita and it send heat down her spine just thinking about it.


    ¡®No, don¡¯t think about it or you¡¯ll get aroused. Just focus on trying Aurora up for now.¡¯


    Rita quickly shook her head to get it back into the game. She had to hurry up and chain Aurora before the female gained consciousness. It was only a matter of time before Aurora woke up anyway.


    Once Rita was sure that Aurora was tightly bound and would not be able to wake up, she rxed.


    But something about seeing all that smooth and pale expanse of skin bound in the ck chain did things to Rita.


    She did not even realize when she had started stroking her cock in an attempt to calm herself down. But it was a bad idea since it caused her desire to spike up even more.


    ¡®One kiss would not make a difference. Aurora would take time to wake up so I can get at least one kiss from her.¡¯


    Rita¡¯s thoughts were all over the ce but her desire was pushing her to go ahead and kiss Aurora anyway.


    And Rita was no blushing virgin. She had done this deed a few times now and even Aurora knew what to expect.


    ¡®It¡¯s her fault for looking so alluring in the chains. Her breasts are sticking out as well. I want to touch her.¡¯


    Rita could no longer hold her desire back. Her hands rested on Aurora¡¯s free breasts and squeezed. The body beneath her gave out an unconscious moan that Rita devoured with her mouth.


    The sensation was familiar and so was the energy flowing between the pair.


    The next time Rita pulled back, Aurora¡¯s familiar pair of eyes were looking back at her.


    ¡°Hello. I hope you had a well-rested sleep because things are going to get tiring now.¡±


    Rita cringed at her own words but Aurora did not seem to mind them. Instead, the elder pushed her body against Rita¡¯s and kissed her back as much as her binds would allow her to.


    Rita suddenly realized one important thought ¨C she was the one in control for now and it was not a bad situation to be in.


    Actually, it was really arousing to be in such a position.

 Chapter 157 157: Taking the edge off - part 3

    Aurora did not like her current position. Her inability to be able to ess her powers was a liability that irritated her for no reason.


    ¡®Stupid bitch and stupid binds. Does she really think she can keep us caged in like this forever?¡¯


    The voices inside Aurora¡¯s head were a mess. They wanted her to break out of her bonds and to show Rita her ce beneath her body.


    It was only Aurora¡¯s enormous self-controlbined with her loss of magic that kept her in check.


    ¡°Hello. I hope you had a well-rested sleep because things are going to get tiring now.¡±


    Rita sounded much calmer and collected than Aurora had thought her to be. But her eyes were telling Aurora that this situation was getting to her as well.


    And not only her eyes. Her aroused cock was also a big indicator of her interest in Aurora¡¯s current form.


    ¡°You really enjoy seeing me at your mercy, right? I can see the interest in your eyes.¡±


    Aurora decided to tease Rita a little. That was all she could do in this situation to make Rita hurry up.<sub>.</sub>


    ¡°I really do enjoy seeing you like this. All bound and at my mercy. I wonder how much further can I push you? But s, that is something we will have to try at some other time to find out.¡±


    ¡°For now, I will just pound your difort away.¡±


    Aurora was a little taken aback by the direction of this conversation. She had expected Rita to take advantage of this situation to tease Aurora a little but Rita had surprised her by going directly for Aurora¡¯s pussy.


    One finger turned into two in a matter of minutes and before Aurora knew it, she was being stretched out.


    Rita had one hand ying with Aurora, while the other tried to lube herself up. Aurora wanted to help out but she could not even move in the chains surrounding her.


    ¡°Once the auction is over, Natasha and I will do our best to provide you withfort. Just bare with me for now.¡±


    Aurora felt speechless by the spoken words. But soon something else made her speechless as well.


    And it was Rita¡¯s cock inside her. The hard and throbbing organ felt so good pressed against Aurora¡¯s sweet spot that it made here fast.<sub></sub>


    Rita was not ying around right now. She was doing her best to drive every thought out of Aurora¡¯s mind except for pleasure.


    Rita¡¯s hips were moving on their own to catch the fast-moving cock. Her pussy was wet with her own release as well as Rita¡¯s pree that was leaking out.


    Not to mention, all the lube Rita had used just made their union even more smooth and wet.


    All Rita could feel was a wet tightness trying to suck her in deeper. Each thrust went deeper and deeper inside Aurora. She had never been this rough or desperate with Aurora before but it was a nice sensation.


    ¡®She¡¯s hungry for us. We can take her as our own. Don¡¯t you want to own her?¡¯


    Aurora¡¯s mind was a mess of emotions and desire. Her thoughts were calling out to her to lock Rita up in this addicting sensation.


    Her pussy felt good, it felt melting. Her pleasure was washing over her from all directions while Rita tried to go deeper and deeper inside her.


    Her cock was hitting against something deep inside and Aurora could not help but feel like Rita had gotten bigger all of a sudden.<sub></sub>


    ¡®Just like that. Invite her deeper inside and keep her there. Keep her there till she can no longer escape our grasp.


    Aurora tried to move her arms but they were bound tightly behind her back. She could not even move them an inch, never mind pulling Rita closer.


    ¡°Rita, let me go. You can unchain me, right? I will make you feel good if you did that.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s instincts and her desire were piling up under the same nket. She was saying things she did not mean and Rita knew that.


    The corruption was trying to gain freedom so that it could try and dominate someone else.


    ¡°I could let you go but I like you like this. Beneath me and at my mercy. I also like you split on my cock while our breasts rub against each other. Don¡¯t you like this too?¡±


    The corruption wanted to deny this but Aurora¡¯s body was much more earnest than that. It tightened around Rita every time she tried to pull away from Aurora¡¯s body.


    ¡°You are pulling me deeper with every thrust. Do you like getting fucked hard like this?¡±


    Rita¡¯s question was answered by Aurora¡¯s moan. The elder was too deep in her desire to even be able to form a response.


    Not that Rita minded it at all. She could feel the pussy around her shaking and pulling her even deeper.


    Rita wanted to prolong this fucking session but she was close and so was Aurora. The energy around them was going wild and it was only contained because of the magical barrier around their room.


    ¡®Doing it in a brothel was the best choice. No one else can hear us or feel our energy due to the spells.¡¯


    Rita¡¯s hips picked up the pace once she felt Aurora¡¯s energy mixing with her own. The corruption must be trying to leach onto Rita through their bond but it was unable to find the divine energy needed.


    Rita wanted tough but all her mouth let out were monas. She was closer to her release than she had thought and she came with thest squeeze of Aurora¡¯s pussy around her.


    Aurora had let go a while back but she continued to chase after her release even after being filled with Rita¡¯s release.


    It was tough to even move in her chained binds but Aurora somehow managed to make it work.


    The chains also provided her with friction against her nipples and other body parts when she tried to move.


    It was a constant mix of pain and pleasure that made Aurora finally cross over the edge and release with a cry of pleasure.


    The corruption was edging away from her thoughts and Aurora could feel her head getting clearer by the second.


    ¡°Are you back with me now? You won¡¯t jump me if I release you, right?¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t jump you so you can release me now.¡±


    Rita breathed out a sigh of relief but her aura seemed disappointed. Aurora reached out toward her and pulled her down into a hot but demanding kiss.


    Rita looked startled and a little turned on as well. Her face was an amusing mixture that caused Aurora to let out a smallugh.

 Chapter 158 158: The Auction house - part 1

    Rita¡¯s startled look at the sudden kiss brought augh to Aurora¡¯s face. Rita was making such an interesting face that Aurora could not help but pull her back into another kiss.


    ¡°H-Hey, what are you doing? I thought you said that you will not do anything.¡±


    Aurora could not help butpare Rita to an offended cat. A big and fluffy, red-haired cat that had been offended by Aurora was trying to hiss at her to hide her difort.


    ¡°But I didn¡¯t jump you, I just pulled you into a kiss. That is not the same thing, right?¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s not. But that is not the point. I will end up getting hard again if you do that and we do not have time for this.¡±


    Aurora wanted to tease Rita more but her words made Aurora sober up. Rita was right when she said that they did not have time. The auction would start in under an hour and Aurora still needed to get ready.


    They still needed to acquire their items for the auction from the meeting spot and then head to the main location.


    ¡°I wish we had time for this as well but it will be better for us to get going now. This is the whole reason we came to this floor.¡±


    Aurora signed but agreed to leave the room after hearing Rita out. As much as she wanted to sit there and listen to Rita more, she knew that she had a task toplete.<sub>.</sub>


    ¡°You are right. My mind was a little messy before but it is clearing up now. We should start heading out now.¡±


    Aurora waved her hand to clean the pair up. This spell was not one she liked to use often but this was an emergency.


    ¡°Wow, this is handy. You should use it more often if you have something useful in your arsenal.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t like to use this spell since it leaves me feeling slimy afterward. Don¡¯t get used to this,¡±


    Aurora quickly shot down Rita and proceeded to open the door. She could feel something heavy blocking the door from the other side but it did not stop Aurora from opening the door.


    ¡°Mydy, have you changed your mind about-¡°


    A pair of beautiful and seductive green eyes met her but they faltered as soon as they saw her.


    The half-naked girl seemed to be taken aback at seeing Aurorae out of Rita¡¯s room. Her eyes darted to Rita standing at Aurora¡¯s back and then back at Aurora again.<sub></sub>


    ¡°What is wrong with you? Didn¡¯t I tell you that I wanted nothing to do with you? Why are you still waiting here?¡±


    The girl flushed a bright red, finally realizing the situation.


    Maybe she had not taken ount of an unconscious person in Rita¡¯s hands before. After all, she had many customers who arrived with their love-interest unconscious but liked to fucked the others before doing it with their interest.


    Those customers generally deployed a prostitute to ¡®take the edge off before being with their love interest. The prostitute had thought of it to be a simr situation.


    But it seemed like she had made a big mistake.


    ¡°A-Ah, I¡¯m sorry. I made a mistake and I¡¯m sorry for that. I should get going now.¡±


    The girl turned tail faster than Aurora could even say anything. She looked hesitant to even be in the samepany which was suspicious.


    ¡°Rita, do I smell or something? That girl ran as if her hair was on fire.¡±<sub></sub>


    ¡°Huh? Oh her? Let her go. She¡¯s likely too embarrassed to even show her face right now.¡±


    Aurora just shook her head. Since she was unconscious most of the time, she had no idea what was going on. Nor did she care much about what was going on.


    ¡°We should get going now. Did you pay for the whole night?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I did. They might have charged me extra but I decided not to negotiate for now. I was kind of in a hurry.¡±


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter. We wille back here after the auction is over anyway. I have a few uses for this ce.¡±


    Aurora did not remember this ce but she did know one thing ¨C this ce was a gold mine of information. All kinds of people came here to gather information.


    As such, Aurora needed to have a few of her ears in here to gather more information. And also, the brothels were the only ce that did not disappear when the night market disappeared.


    It was a well-known secret that if you remained in the brothel rooms during the night-market disappearance, you will disappear with it and never be seen again.


    No one had returned alive from spending a day in these rooms before.


    ¡°I guess it won¡¯t matter much if we came back here or not. But I have a feeling you are nning something crazy which I would not like one bit.¡±


    Rita had really sharp instincts to be able to feel that bad feeling. Aurora gave her a reassuring smile which did not reassure Aurora at all.


    But despite all that, Rita followed Aurora to the exchange location and collected their gear.


    The dress code for the auction horse was a white mask and a ck overall robe that hide your real identity. The only way to be recognized inside the auction was through your number and Aurora¡¯s was coincidently 69 while Rita had 70.


    ¡°Don¡¯t say a single word about this or you will live your life in pain from now on.¡±


    ¡°I was not going to say anything. But maybe this number does suit you a little.¡±


    ¡°Rita, do you want to die? There are other more painless ways to ask for death, you know.¡±


    ¡°Fine, I will keep quiet now¡­..The number does suit you well.¡±


    Aurora made a fake motion of capturing Rita but she got up pretty early. The auction was about to start any second now and Aurora did not have the time to y around.


    She quickly headed to her seat once the auction started and waited for the others to sit down as well. The auction would not start unless there was a 50% attendance ratio.


    And the number was about to be achieved any minute now.


    (Ladies and gentlemen, wee to tonight¡¯s auction. Tonight, we have a special item you all might like to have so look forward to it.


    And now, without further dy, let the auction start. I hope you all can find what you are looking for tonight.)


    The seller¡¯s voice gave off an ominous feeling but Aurora held on to her seat and did not get taken away by his flow.


    It would be a tough auction for sure but Aurora was ready for this situation.

 Chapter 159 159: The rare treasure

    Everyone looked excited at the news of a ¡®special¡¯ item appearing in today¡¯s auction. Aurora had noticed that there were more people in attendance today than there was any other time she had been in an auction.


    ¡°Wow, people look excited. Do you think we will be able to get something good today? Since we don¡¯t have a lot of money.¡±


    Rita sounded excited but scared at the same time. She must be thinking of stealing something if they were not able to buy it outright.


    Not that it was a problem for Aurora. After all, the main currency of this abyss was not coins or money. It was magic and energy.


    Aurora was sure that she could outss everyone in this auction if she wanted to do so. She did not even have to try very hard to win everything.


    But she did not want to stand out and make herself a target of these jealous people.


    ¡°Rita, tell me if anything catches your fancy. I will surely get it for you. But only one thing since I don¡¯t want to stand out.¡±


    ¡°Alright. Then I¡¯ll choose something inexpensive since we need to conserve our funds.¡±


    Rita decided up on her one that she needed to save money. Maybe she felt conflicted after paying for the night hotel at an outrageous price.


    Aurora did not correct her misconception. She would just buy more things if she did not like what Rita had picked out.


    A few items like the ¡®king¡¯s cross¡¯ were something Aurora could have bought but she was not trying to show off her energy.<sub>.</sub>


    She also needed to consider the other people in the auction house as her future allies and stealing from the allies was a big no-no in their field. It would breach the trust of the partners.


    Not to mention, all kinds of people would get involved in these deals and make it much more difficult to do things in the future.


    (As for our next item, it¡¯s a rare ingredient called ¡®sphinx core.¡¯ It can be used as a stimulus for the magical beasts, so kindly pce your bets on this material.)


    Aurora wanted to buy this item for Rita but Rita seemed uninterested in the core. However, Aurora could see many people other than Rita wanting to buy this item.


    Still, Aurora decided to invest in the core for now. Even if Rita did not want the core, Aurora could use it for study purposes. She could even use it as a bargaining chip to get extra information during the after-party.


    ¡°You did not have to buy that. I could have found a better core for my summons.¡±


    Rita sounded put out to see Aurora buy such an ugly item but there was just a tiny hint of pleasure in her aura.


    Maybe Rita did want this item but had convinced herself that she did not need it. It would be something Rita would think of doing so Aurora was not holding her breath.


    ¡°Just keep it as a gift from me. Who knows when you might need to use this since you don¡¯t even have your powers with you right now.¡±


    Rita fell silent at Aurora¡¯s teasing. Aurora felt bad for saying those words but she also knew that it was the only way to get Rita to agree with her and take the core.<sub></sub>


    Aurora wanted to add more words to her talk but before she could do that, the announcer changed the subject.


    His next words were ones everyone was eagerly waiting for so everyone instantly turned to him as one in body and mind.


    Even Aurora, who had not paid any attention to the auction till now decided to turn her attention toward the announcer when he whistled.


    (Let¡¯s start with our first item for today. It is a special-grade neced with Beatrix¡¯s tears. It will make you invulnerable to its attacks for a few minutes after usage.


    Kindly ce your energy bids for this artifact.)


    ¡°Wow, it could turn out to be useful. Should we buy it for the boss room?¡±


    Rita seemed impressed by the first item but Aurora knew it was going to be a waste of her resources. Beatrix was only a swarm-level opponent and it was not something that could hurt her.


    But maybe buying it for Rita would not be a bad idea.


    Still, waiting for more expensive items to appear would be the better deal out of everything.


    ¡°I can get it for you if you want to. But it will only be useful on this floor and nowhere else. Others know it as well so they are not cing any bets on it.¡±<sub></sub>


    True to her words, not a lot of people looked interested. Actually, more than half the poption looked like they had no interest in this item.


    In the end, it did not sell very well.


    And neither did the other few items that were taken out after the ne. They were all of the superior quality but very limited in their usage.


    The only thing that was of any universal usage was a highest-grade healing potion but even that was useless for Aurora.


    She had thought that she had made a mistakeing here tonight. Without anything worth buying, it was impossible to integrate herself into the real informationwork of the underworld.


    Aurora was about to call it quits and buy the next expensive but useless thing when she realized that everyone had gone quiet.


    Something major must be happening for this to have happened.


    (And as promised, we will be bringing our hidden item early this session. This is what you all were waiting for ¨C a phoenix¡¯s feather.


    It does not belong to a monster but a real-life phoenix. The very beast that gave rise to one of the current supreme goddesses. And legends have it that this feather can cure one of every imaginable ailment.


    Now, please ce your starting price for this item.)


    ¡°Aurora, that is¡­¡±


    ¡°Yes. It is a genuine feather of a phoenix. I can feel its power even from here and it is uncontaminated from the abyss.¡±


    A phoenix feather? What a rare treat this auction turned out to be.


    Unlike certain curses and ailments that could not be cured even with divine powers and potions, the phoenix feather could purify.


    In a way, it was the ultimate panacea one could avail. If Aurora had it then she could even break her curse this instant.


    This will be a difficult bid to take home. A lot of people had their eyes on this item but Aurora was assured of her victory.


    Her meter blinked to the limit when Aurora passed its energy. She was depositing the initial energy needed for the auction but the device had a limit it could take.


    It was made for the people using these low levels so it could not afford to take in such high-intensity energy Aurora was giving out. Not to mention, the boosted abyssal energy Aurora now possessed.


    (We received all your prices and we will be sending this item with a letter of meeting to the winner of this bid.


    With that said, let us continue this auction further.)


    Aurora felt cheated when she was not announced as the winner. She could already see the ¡®congrattions¡¯ message being disyed on the screen.


    Thisck of acknowledgment sent a dent in Aurora¡¯s ns. And she was forced to buy a few more useless but specific things to show her energy¡¯s wealth.


    When the auction finally, Aurora could see a few interested nces people were giving her but nothing out of the ordinary.


    It was not until she left the hall did someone from the auction house came to collect her. But for some reason, his aura looked haggard and hisplexion looked much worse than Aurora had ever seen before in a person.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡±


    Aurora tried to reach out to the man but he stepped back with a flinch. He looked far too pale to be alright but he was pushing himself a little too hard.


    ¡°I am alright. Please do not touch me and follow behind me to the back of the auction hall. The auction master wants to ask you a few questions before handing over your prize to you.¡±


    The man was a good actor. A normal person would not have been able to see through his deception but to Aurora, his lies stood out vividly. His aura was ufortable and filled with his lie.


    Still, Aurora did not call out to him and chose to follow behind him instead. Someone had put in considerable effort in trying to lure her out so she was going to give him as good as she got.


    She signaled to Rita to be ready to get attacked and walked ahead with confidence. She could feel people following behind her but Aurora showed as if she had not noticed anything until she stepped into the dark alley.

 Chapter 160 160: Guidance for help - part 1

    The man was walking really slowly. His steps were also not steady which betrayed just how nervous he was while leading their group away from the auction house.


    In the end, he had given himself away before he could havepleted his task so the man was as good as dead. It would be better to get all the avable information away from him.


    ¡°Hey, I want to ask you a question. Are you really from the auction house or are you trying to scam us?¡±


    Rita finally broke down and asked the question. She had realized that the man had led them to the alley to be trapped.


    Even now he was positioning himself in such a way to avoid anyone from running past him. His objective seemed to be to hold her and Aurora inside this alley.


    ¡°W-What are you trying to say? The auction house¡¯s backdoor is just past this alley. I am not trying to deceive you or anything.¡±


    The man was sweating bullets. The temperature of the night market was not too high and the slightly cool breeze that was flowing through the ce kept it cool.


    There was no need for the man to sweat this heavily when he had not done any physical activity before. The only other reason had to be because of his nervousness.


    ¡°Is the auction house this way? But I can see the main building behind you.¡±


    ¡°T-That is just the main building. The actual boss is waiting for you somewhere else.¡±<sub>.</sub>


    The man was getting nervous more and more. The more Rita pushed his button, the more his words faltered. He was falling into Rita¡¯s trap.


    But Aurora finally decided to take mercy on the man. Seeing his aura fluctuate this much would end up giving her a headache as well.


    ¡°If you are going to lie, then lie better. You were trying to get us away from the auction head so that your client could meet them instead of me, right? But it¡¯ll be useless since the auction uses an energy detection method to guarantee full transparency.¡±


    This security measure was one of the reasons Aurora had not been worried about leaving her post.


    Even if the auction representative met someone else in her ce, the item would not be handed over until Aurora met the representative and proved their identity.


    ¡°Oh, and just as a warning. The end is not pleasant for those who try to y the auction house. Your client will likely not live past the next fifteen minutes if they tried to mimic me. It will be better for you to go and help them out.¡±


    The man looked like he did not believe Aurora¡¯s words at first, but then a blood-chilling scream filled the air.


    The agony one could feeling out of that scream was not one people wanted to hear. It also left their guild stunned before he took off.


    ¡°What should we do? Should we follow after him? Or, wait here?¡±<sub></sub>


    Rita seemed unconcerned by the scream that was disturbing their surroundings. Aurora was sure that Rita found it annoying as well, but she chose not to do anything about it.


    ¡°We should start heading back as well. We will be counted out of the bet if we do not show up to collect the prize.¡±


    Despite how fair the auction house was, it was still a business and it very much liked to profit. If Aurora failed to make her full transaction then her im over the feather would be fortified.


    ¡°A, do we have to? Somehow I feel like we will get stuck in a very annoying situation if we go back right now.¡±


    Despite Rita¡¯s words, she was the first person to turn around and make her way back. Aurora could only shake her head at the impulsive but familiar action.


    The scream did not lighten down even a bit by the time Aurora made her way back to the auction house.


    A tall but unfamiliar bodyy curled over itself and cradling his injured hand while the other auction employees had it surrounded from all sides.


    The voice of the person who had tried to scam them and then led them away came out clear as the day. He sounded desperate for help but it was hispanion everyone paid attention to.


    ¡°P-Please let us go. W-We did not know the rules and it will not happen again. We will not show our face here ever again.¡±<sub></sub>


    The man who had tried leading Aurora and Rita astray was stered over the unconscious body on the ground. His position was protective but also trying to hide the body beneath him.


    Aurora felt curious about their motivation in trying to fool the auction horse but she was not sorry for their end. They had tried to harm her and they were just getting their just-deserts.


    ¡°M-Master, hurry up and apologize. We cannot have you die here tonight.¡±


    The servant looked desperate for his master to follow his lead. Fear was audible in his voice and Aurora could see his aura fluctuation between worry and dread. He really felt like he would die today.


    But the man whom he was trying to defend was different. His aura was unyielding. It gave off a familiar feeling and Aurora decided to stay away from him for now.


    His aura felt like trouble. And the kind that would follow you long after you were out of its reach.


    ¡°I r-refuse to. I w-will take that phoenix feather with me at all costs. I will take it back even if I had to kill everyone here right now.¡±


    The man was determined for sure. Anyone could tell that he was at the death¡¯s door but he was still staying stubborn till the end.


    The more Aurora watched him struggle, the more she was sure that he was someone whom she knew about. And it was not just his voice that sounded familiar, it was his mannerism as well.


    [Notification received.


    Natasha: We are done on our side so I will be heading over to your location.]


    The message was sent moments before Aurora felt the cold aura approach her. And she was not the only one who did.


    For some reason, the cloaks that were given to them could not block out their magical signatures fully and betrayed the real person if someone was sensitive enough to auras.


    Thankfully, there were not a lot of people who fitted this criterion. But Natasha¡¯s presence was unusually strong despite her sealed nature. And so was this man in front of her.


    Despite having her powers sealed, Natasha had an unremarkable presence that betrayed who she was. And it even made the man who had been yelling only moments earlier stop short in his tantrum.


    ¡°Is everything alright? The auction took longer than I thought it would.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s monotonous voice reached Aurora¡¯s ears minutes before she reached the duo. Luckily, she did not seem to be addressing Aurora alone but speaking in a general way.


    However, her attention snapped itself to the now frozen man on the ground. The resulting silence was a little heavier than Aurora had expected it to be.


    ¡°Hey, you know him?¡±


    Rita finally asked as she pointed to the man. Since the man had stopped protesting, the auction guards quickly captured him and rendered him immobile.


    Rita followed the lead Natasha had set and quickly pretended to be a stranger. It was lucky of her to do so since people had started looking their way. They would not be able to stay anonymous if any more people decided to interfere.


    That was the perfect time for that man to make a fuss and get the trio into trouble. This was the perfect opportunity as well.


    And yet, the man did not make any fuss. He seemed to be thinking something before he made a deep bow in front of Natasha.


    ¡°Northern queen, Natasha, please listen to my request. I hope you will consider my position and not deny me this single request.¡±


    The man who had tried deceiving Aurora and Rita looked startled at the sudden turn of events. In fact, he was not the only one.


    Everyone except Natasha and the bowing man seemed to be taken aback at the sudden turn of events.


    Natasha was not surprised but she did look a little lost for words. She had not expected to be in this situation after all. Her helpless gaze fell onto Aurora and she had no other choice but to agree with what Natasha was asking of her.


    ¡°Alright, we will hear that man out. Excuse me, can we get a secure room around here?¡±


    There were too many ears listening to their conversations and talking out in the open was akin to suicide in such a crowded ce.


    The auction guard passed Aurora a device to prove her identity which she quickly did. And only then were they led to a secure ce.

 Chapter 161 161: Guidance for help - part 2

    ¡°Did you have fun when you went to look out for Aurora and the others? I saw what you did for them, Zoe. Why did you help them out?¡±


    Zoe quickly turned toward Ava¡¯s voice so that she no longer had her back to the snake. She had expected the snake to make her entryway earlier but it seems like the snake had wanted to wait for her.


    ¡°I decided to throw you chosen a bone since she looked like she needed help. After all, it did not look like you were going to help her so I did it in your ce.¡±


    Zoe wanted to drive the snake away but her words were all wrong.


    Instead of going away, Ava seemed even more amused than before. The white-haired female made her way toward Zoe and draped her arm around the shorter.


    ¡°A. I knew you would like Aurora if you met her. She has that ¡®charm¡¯ about her, right?¡±


    ¡°Charm, huh? I did see what you meant by ¡®charm.''¡±


    The charm would be the wrong thing to say. As soon as Zoe had seen Aurora, the need to help her out had made a home inside her mind.


    It was the samepulsion the outlookers got when it came to the abyss and its demands. It was just as strong, if not stronger than their sense of duty.


    That itch had not faded away even after their second meeting a little while ago.


    Zoe had ended up helping her out even when she had not wanted to help Aurora out. She might have even done worse had she not left when she did.<sub>.</sub>


    ¡°So, are you going to abandon your mission and join Aurora in hers? I know Aurora would be happy to have you.¡±


    ¡°Fuck off. I am not going to abandon my mission, nor am I going to help that person out any longer. And as far as the bet is concerned, I just need to deal with you and that is all.¡±


    The longer Zoe stayed away from Aurora, the less her urge to help became. So staying away was the best solution Zoe had to her problem.


    But Ava¡¯s smile said that things would not be that easy for her.


    ===========================


    ¡°You can leave us alone now. I will be able to handle things from here.¡±


    Aurora quickly received her prize and knocked the auction people out. She would deal with themter.


    For now, she needed to focus on the man who was bowing in front of Natasha again. His body seemed tense and unused to bowing but he still did notin. He had a lot of courage to bow like this in public.


    But Natasha looked ufortable to see that action being done to her. Her expression told Aurora that this was the first time something like this had happened to her.


    ¡°Natasha, do you know this creep? If he¡¯s someone who is trying to take advantage of you then you should tell us. I will take care of him for you.¡±<sub></sub>


    Rita sounded too enthusiastic in her offer. She even looked ready to punch someone hard and break a few bones.


    But Natasha did not seem to share her enthusiasm. Instead of looking reassured, Natasha looked a little concerned about their situation. It was easy to tell that she was being bothered by something serious.


    ¡°To say that I ¡®know¡¯ this person would not be the correct thing. But I¡¯m also not ignorant of who he is.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s words conveyed that this person was someone important without revealing the person¡¯s identity. So it was likely that he was not someone who could out his identity without causing problems.


    ¡°There is no need to beat around the bush, princess of the north. I don¡¯t mind if my identity gets exposed. All I care about is the tear of the Phoenix.¡±


    The man sounded firm in his belief. The trio was startled when he took his helmet off and Aurora already knew that this man would be a trouble of a kind they had never faced before.


    ¡°Please tell me that this is a nightmare. Why would the only duke if the east kingdom be in the abyss?¡±


    Rita sounded pained when she said those words. Her gained expression was something Aurora wanted to mirror.


    Out of every continent on this earth, no one was more loyal to the tower than the east. It was because their princess had married the current tower head.


    With their king in aa and the queen dead, the one to inherit the continent was the duke.<sub></sub>


    The very same duke who currently kneeled in front of the trio and was asking them to lend him their prize.


    ¡°I cannot hand the phoenix¡¯s tears to you because I need them to cure my curse. I am sure you understand what I mean.¡±


    The item Aurora had won was something that could only be used once.  But it was not like this was Aurora¡¯s only out of this situation.


    She was willing to trade it if some other better deal came along. And she was sure that the other side was aware of this as well.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure I can provide you with anything you want in exchange for that tear. My king needs that feather to wake up. That is the only way out of our cursed agreement with the tower and to stop them from asserting dominance over the east.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s focus narrowed as soon as the man mentioned the tower. She had a feeling that this situation was connected to the tower.


    Even though Aurora knew that the east would be the biggest supporter of the tower, she was not ignorant as to how it was made possible.


    Currently, the king of the east was only unconscious, but he would die soon if nothing was done about his condition.


    But various experts have already tried their best to wake him up from his curse but there was no progress. Hence, the only solution was the phoenix¡¯s tears.


    If Aurora agreed to give up the tear now, then she would gain an invaluable ally in the future. But she would also lose her chance to break the curse.


    ¡°I think we should help them out. Having East under the tower¡¯s control would be too big of a liability. We can also use east to traffic in some resources for our academy.¡±


    Natasha seemed to be on board with the n. She had reached the same conclusion Aurora had before.


    The main problem was going to be Rita. Aurora could already see the signs of a frown appearing on her face and her temper rising.


    ¡°No way. Why should we give up this chance to cure Aurora? Won¡¯t it make our future smoother if Aurora is cured?¡±


    Rita sounded bitter but justified when she spoke. Her concern was touching but not needed. (Not that Aurora was going to say it out loud)


    ¡°No, I agree with Natasha. East will be an invaluable ally for us in the future. Besides, I have you both to keep my curse in check for now. I am sure I can manage the corruption just fine.¡±


    Rita fell quiet at Aurora¡¯s words. There was a silent blush on her cheeks but her words did note out of her mouth.


    She had been rendered speechless by Aurora¡¯s faith in her.


    ¡°I-If you believe in me s-so much, then I guess I c-can¡¯t say anything else to you.¡±


    Rita seemed to have given her approval to Aurora as well which was nice to have but not needed.


    However, their exchange seemed to be of interest to the man in front of them. Aurora could see the interest sh in his eyes when the trio discussed their options.


    ¡°If you are dealing with corruption, then I might have a solution for you. We have a Nymph in our court who can help you out. She is skilled but it¡¯ll be up to you to convenience her to help you out.¡±


    What a coincidence. The man in front of them had single-handedly solved one of the major problems Aurora was facing currently.


    It almost felt like fate for the group to have met each other. A little too much of a ¡®coincidence¡¯ to make Aurora not feel suspicious.


    ¡°By the way, why did youe to this auction today? Did you already know that there will be a tear on disy?¡±


    Natasha¡¯s question showed that she felt the same as Aurora had.


    ¡°No way. The news about auction items is a strict secret. It was just, a man who told me toe here tonight. He said that I would get what I wanted if I came here tonight and looks like he was right.¡±


    ¡°He introduced himself as prophet Huges but I brushed him off then. But looks like he was a real prophet after all.¡±


    The Dukeughed but Aurora felt her throat get blocked by emotions. It was the overlooker who was meddling in her business.


    But why? Why was she helping Aurora out like this?

 Chapter 162 162: The back-life

    ¡°Huh? Did I say something wrong? You had aplicated expression on your face just now.¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s nothing. You can continue telling me about what you were saying before.¡±


    As much as Aurora wanted the man to forcefully let all the information out, it was not worth it to sour their rtionship.


    ¡°Oh, that prophet told me toe to this auction today when I met him two days ago. He was with a rough-looking man and hisplexion didn¡¯t look so good. But then he bought something and his personality changed.¡±


    The duke unknowingly gave a lot of information away. If he had been a spy, he would have been found out in the first ten seconds.


    And his aura screamed innocence and truth. There was no single hint of deception in his words.


    ¡°So, about the tear? Can I have it?¡±


    The man looked hopeful and Aurora finally relented her hold on the precious item. She did not care much about the tear anyway.


    ¡°Sure, you can have it. I would prefer having connections in the east over having an instant cure anyway.¡±


    ¡°Then, I will take your kindness and await your message to reach the east pce. Have a nice day, mydies.¡±


    ?[0??]? The man opened the tent door, but not before he handed Aurora a slip of paper.


    The servant who had tried to stop from leaving before was leaning against the door, waiting for his master toe out. He almost fell when the door was pushed open.<sub>.</sub>


    ¡°Master Noctus, are we going back? Did you get what we wanted to find?¡±


    The man chose not to answer his servant, nor did he turn around. But he did choose to drag the servant away when the servant red toward their group.


    Before anyone knew it, the crisis was over and the danger had been averted.


    ¡°That was an unexpected situation. But will it be alright to give our hard-earned prize away like that? Didn¡¯t we need it to get into the after-party?¡±


    Amanda¡¯s worried did make sense. Out of everyone present, she had the least bit of information about the issue at hand.


    ¡°No. we will be alright even without the grand prize. I did buy a few other things in case of emergency so we should get by alright.¡±


    Aurora quickly shook off Amanda¡¯s worry about the topic of the auction. The night market was about to be over and the time left for the after-party was too short.


    The window of opportunity their group had was too small to be of any proper usage.


    ¡°Rita, stick close to me. Amanda, it will be better for you to stay out of this mission now. The duke might have caused your identity to be exposed.¡±


    Thankfully, Natasha¡¯s solo entry made others think that she was alone in her adventure and that her arrival at the scene was a coincidence.


    Another thing that helped their group, for now, was the masks and their hidden identity. Even if everyone knew how the northern princess looked without the mask, they did not know what herpanions looked like.<sub></sub>


    They could make sure of this fact and establish themselves as a separate team.


    ¡°I understand. I don¡¯t like this decision but I will abide by it for now. You all should be careful as well to not get caught. If someone links us together and figures out who we are then it would be a problem.¡±


    ¡°I know. I will be careful. I will also leave separately so that people don¡¯t connect uster.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s aura felt disappointed but she did understand the importance of keeping secrets. Besides, Aurora was also sure that Natasha had guessed the problem with her aura.


    Natasha made her exist at the exact moment the representative of the auction house made his way in.


    ¡°Where did yourpanion, seat no 68 go? Are they not going to apany you in?¡±


    Since that man was a staff member, he likely knew that Natasha was theirpanion. Things like these were not kept a secret from the auction house.


    ¡°Ourpanion had a sudden problem they needed to take care of. They won¡¯t be joining us today.¡±


    ¡°Oh. Is that so.¡±


    The employee sounded uninterested but his aura spoke something different. The disappointment Aurora could see in his bodynguage meant that the man had wanted Natasha to be there today.


    Now Aurora was even more thankful that she had sent Natasha away on time.<sub></sub>


    The employee led them in through the back door and into a ballroom. Everyone inside was dressed in fancy cloaks and face masks.


    It would be impossible to guess everyone¡¯s identity based on their body structure alone but Aurora had a huge advantage and that was her system. She could easily tell who the important people were.


    ¡°Rita, we will be heading over to table two. I need you to act as my escort and not say a word. No matter what happens, do not say a word out loud.¡±


    Rita nodded along, not even giving a verbal response.


    The people at table two quietened down as soon as they watched Aurorae near their table.


    ¡°Ah miss, are you lost? I am sure this is not a table for respected people like you two.¡±


    The man who spoke sounded in his middle thirties. It was obvious why he was speaking to Aurora as if she was a child. His interests were a ¡®little¡¯ bold to say the least.


    But he was not the only one who was like that. The whole table was filled with people who were in various states of indecency.


    Some had people sitting in theirps, grinding away at their hardness. The others had their partners kneeling in front of them like dogs.


    It was not a respected scene to see out in the open. It looked more like a bedroom y but no one batted an eye at such a bold disy.


    Such disys weremon in these settings and making a fuss over them was not worth it in the end.


    Rita seemed a little ufortable at the open sexual disy but she did not seem opposed to the idea entirely.


    Aurora hoped that Rita would y along with her as she fooled these people. But Aurora had not exined to Rita what her role would be.


    ¡°You, kneel¡±


    Aurora was not sure what she was expecting. But Rita exceeded her expectations by kneeling on the chain and making space between her legs.


    As soon as Aurora took her seat, Rita was draped all over her like a nket. But the hold was not possessive, nor was it tight.


    It showed affection but also submission.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to be that concerned about me or my interests. My pet would also like to greet you all.¡±


    It was now the people at table two who looked ufortable at the disy. To have someone unknown walk up to their table and show such open dominance was a challenge to their authority.


    But no one dared to even stand up and leave. They were likely interested in the person who issued such an open challenge.


    ¡°So, miss. Why did you seek us out? I am sure there are more interesting people in this ce to talk to.¡±


    ¡°Of course there are. But theyck the most important thing I am looking for ¨C intelligence. I want to know more about the underbelly of this floor, so can I ask you, people, to help me out?¡±


    The table looked at each other in interest.


    For them, Aurora was like fresh meat that had walked right into their ws. She was an inexperienced child who was trying to y at being bigger than she was and she could be easily tricked.


    ¡°Alright. We will take you under our wing.¡±


    Little did these people know that they were the real prey in Aurora¡¯s trap. Their words mixed with lies were easy to look through for her and all relevant information was easy to sort out.


    By the time that night ended, Aurora had a tone of new information she could use. But none of it was what she wanted to know.


    ¡°So, did this night help you out?¡±


    Rita¡¯s teasing voice snapped Aurora out of her slump. The redhead had been through a lot tonight and Aurora knew she would have to pay for thatter.


    But for now, it was best to take precautions against her creeping corruption.


    ¡°Let¡¯s collect Natasha and leave for today. The night market is about to disappear anytime and staying in the brothel is not a good idea.


    Natasha was awake when the duo reached her. But Aurora had made a miscalction in her assumption and she felt her body hurt.


    Her corruption was creeping up her back faster than it should have been but she had no idea why.


    ¡°Shit, you both have really bad timing. The night market is disappearing right this second.¡± this was bad. If the night market really did disappear then their group would get stuck in there.

 Chapter 163 163: Trying something new

    ¡°Shit, you both have horrible timing. The night market is disappearing right this second.¡±


    That was a concerning fact. Aurora was sure she should be paying attention to it. If not only for her insides felt like they were dying and her brain was constantly under a fog.


    Rita, the one holding her up, must have also realized this fact because her face was a mask of panic.


    ¡°Natasha, take Aurora and help her out. I will go and scout the area out.¡± Rita looked exhausted and for good reasons. Unlike Natasha, she had not gotten a chance to rest.


    So this was her attempt to pawn Aurora off to someone reliable and take a small nap.


    Natasha realized the gesture of trust and goodwill as well so she did notin. Being the more perspective of the two, Natasha seemed to have realized the kind of condition Aurora was in.


    ¡°You sure you don¡¯t want to watch?¡±


    ¡°Positive. I don¡¯t have enough energy to stick around right now.¡±


    With thatst bit ofint, Rita finally left the room. It was a difficult decision but it was made in good faith. Rita did not look this gifted horse in the mouth and decided to enjoy the moment.


    Not that she had much of a choice when Aurora decided to take control of the situation. As soon as Rita was gone, Aurora had pulled Natasha down and her hands snaked beneath the icy empress¡¯s clothes.


    ¡°Calm down. I can undress on my own,¡±


    Natasha tried to bargain but it fell on deaf ears. Before she had even finished speaking, Aurora had bare of her clothes and in her underwear.<sub>.</sub>


    Natasha didn¡¯t even get a chance to make a move before Aurora¡¯s hands squeezed her breasts and toyed with her nipples.


    Natasha felt a moan leave her lips as she felt the sensation. It was addicting to feel this much stimtion on her body.


    But Aurora did not stop with her hands. Once the nipples looked abused enough, Aurora¡¯s tongue came out to y as well.


    The wet organ made contact with the hot breast and sucked. It sucked like it was trying to get the milk out but nothing escaped Natasha¡¯s body except moans.


    ¡°A-Aurora¡­..don¡¯t¡­.. B-bite.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s voice finally broke its monotonous approach and it got higher in pitch. It only fueled Aurora¡¯s desire more.


    The hand which had been ideal until now reached for Natasha¡¯s lips and fingers entered Natasha¡¯s mouth.


    They did not sit around ideal once they were surrounded by that warm and wet sensation. They felt around that mouth, forcing Natasha¡¯s tongue to y with them.


    Aurora continued this torture until she was sure her fingers were wet enough for the next part.


    ¡°Y-You¡¯re¡­wet¡­.too. Let me help.¡±


    Aurora did not stop Natasha¡¯s hands from wandering all over her body. But she did flinch once Natasha reached her wet pussy.<sub></sub>


    Aurora was beyond wet at this point but her corruption-riddled brain did not care much for it. She wanted to experience something warm and wet exploding all over her mouth.


    Natasha explored the new territory with hesitation. Auror had an intoxicating smell, not to mention, a hot body. Natasha could feel her self-resistance growing thinner the more she yed with Aurora.


    Her hand hesitantly tried to probe Aurora¡¯s lower lip, just as Aurora breached her pussy with her newly wetted fingers.


    The unexpected jolt of pleasure caused Natasha to lose her sanity for a few seconds and her fingers made their way inside Aurora as well.


    The heat was wet and throbbing. It was unlike anything Natasha had felt before on her fingers since she did not even remember thest time she had sex.


    But Aurora seemed to be enjoying being finger-fucked as much as Natasha was enjoying this. It was almost rxing as she massaged those tight muscles more and more.


    ¡®I want more.¡¯ The thought was almost unconscious but Natasha did blush as soon as she realized what she was thinking about.


    She had not thought of herself as a sex addict but her thoughts were proving something different.


    ¡°You want more, right? This much is not enough for you.¡±


    Aurora spoke those words directly in Natasha¡¯s ears. The soft breath that hit Natasha¡¯s ears tingled and made Natasha¡¯s sensitive body even more sensitive to the other¡¯s presence.


    Had Aurora managed to read her mind? How did she know that Natasha was feeling this way? Natasha was sure she had not done anything to give herself away.<sub></sub>


    ¡°I can see it in your body. You want more from me. But you¡¯ll have to be the one to ask for it. If you want to get a proper fucking, then open the drawer and take out what is in there.¡±


    Natasha felt her face go red at the provocation. She didn¡¯t even dare to look Aurora in the eye.


    And yet, she wanted this itch beneath her skin to be gone. The feeling of wanting to have something fill her up was getting overwhelming.


    ¡®Don¡¯t think too much. Don¡¯t think too much. Please, don¡¯t think too much.¡¯


    This was a mantra at that point for Natasha since she could not stop her free hand from reaching out and opening the side drawer.


    Her other hand was still buried inside Aurora¡¯s heat and the pussy was massaging her hand, causing it to get wetter.


    Natasha could feel Aurora¡¯s eyes on her the whole time she opened the drawer and took out a familiar-looking material from inside.


    ¡°I-It¡¯s a-¡°


    ¡°Dildo. It¡¯s a two-sided fake-cock we can use to sate our desire. Don¡¯t you want to try it, Natasha? Are you not curious about what being fucked feels like? I have been fucked before, so let me tell you ¨C it¡¯s pleasurable. Do you want to try it?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s words were borderline filthy and they were being spoken directly inside Natasha¡¯s ears. Natasha had no idea what to do now.


    On one hand, she did find herself curious about the topic of being fucked. She had asked Rita once but her question had been deflected.


    ¡°Don¡¯t think too much over it. A ¡®yes¡¯ would be enough for us to try this once. If you are not interested in the future, then we don¡¯t have to try this again.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s words fascinated Natasha. She had always been interested in getting fucked and she could not think of a better partner than Aurora.


    ¡°Aright. I want to try it out.¡±


    The grin Aurora gave Natasha could only be described as dark. Her golden eyes had a hint of ck in them but that was likely due to corruption.


    ¡°It is nice that you are acknowledging your desires. Now go ahead and get it ready.¡±


    It took Natasha some time to realize what Aurora wanted her to do. But as soon as she did, her face went red.


    ¡°S-Surely there is no need-¡°


    Natasha had her face stuffed before she could even finish those words. The fake cock was stretching Natasha¡¯s mouth to its limits and it was even beginning to hurt.


    Not that Aurora seemed to care as long as it was bearable.


    As soon as it got to be a little too much, Natasha felt the silicon cock being forced out of her mouth.


    She barely made out the half-goddess instating one end of the fake cock in herself before something big probed at her lower pussy lip.


    And then something huge breached her opening. It was too much and too little at the same time.


    Natasha was not sure if she wanted to pull Aurora close or to push her away. She only knew the stretch her body was feeling at that moment.


    Aurora gave her a minute to adjust before the first hard thrust was felt. And another followed without any break, and then another.


    ¡®So this is fucking? I feel like I¡¯ll lose my mind.¡¯


    Pain and pleasure were mixing up inside Natasha¡¯s mind and the hard rod was being driven inside her opening again and again.


    Aurora showed no sign of even feeling tired but Natasha could already feel her body approaching its end. She felt like she would burst due to all the pressure.


    ¡°Let your body go. All you need to do is to rx ande.¡±


    Aurora didn¡¯t even sound out of breath when Natasha felt like she was approaching her end. But it was too much for Natasha to handle.


    She felt her end approach like a violent release and the fake cock hit something inside her that unwinded Natasha.


    Before she knew it, her body had gonex and the clear liquid was escaping from around the fake-cock inside her.


    A pair of lips ruthlessly attacked Natasha¡¯s limp ones and she did her best to respond to them. But her tired body was too busy trying to keep up with her tired mind.


    She wanted to go to sleep and wake up fresh.


    ¡°Go to sleep. You will need the energy to escapeter,¡± that sounded like Aurora¡¯s voice but Natasha was too sleepy to hear it properly.

 Chapter 164 164: So good to see you - part 1

    Despite the negative energy circling this ce, the night market was not a violent ce in the daytime. It was peaceful enough for Rita to fall asleep.


    Rita had initially wanted to help Aurora out in her times of need. But she had felt out of energy as soon as the ce had shifted.


    Rita wanted to ask someone else if they felt the same thing she had but the only other people in this ce were busy.


    ¡°I wish I could go in and help as well but my body feels like it is breaking apart. Sex would have just killed me right now.¡±


    Ritained as she stretched her body and looked at the sky. It was a clear day outside with the sun high up in the sky.


    It felt like nothing could go wrong on a day like this.


    Expect, it did. Rita could feel various signatures of energy heading their way from all around the ce.


    It seemed like they were not as alone as Rita had initially thought their group to be.


    ¡°More than 100 people out to get us? I wonder who we pissed off.¡± Rita was curious about the reason their group would be sought out like this.


    Thankfully, Aurora and Natasha seemed to be done as well. Rita could hear the sound of running water, meaning someone was taking a shower.


    So Rita did not feel awkward barging in on the couple. The worst that could happen was for her to find the other two naked, something she had experience with.


    ¡°You are back? Did you have fun while napping?¡±<sub>.</sub>


    Of course, her reason for not being of any help had not escaped Aurora¡¯s radar. It seemed like she was vignt even when she was not in a clear state of mind. It was a fact that Rita would have to remember in the future.


    ¡°I was having fun before some people decided to drop in on me. I don¡¯t suppose you have any idea why they are here, right?¡±


    ¡°Of course not. If I did then I would have told you beforehand.¡±


    Rita did not rx after hearing Aurora¡¯s words. Even if the elder sounded calm and collected, Rita could read out the tension she felt.


    Aurora likely knew something about this situation but she was not willing to share it with Rita for her safety. This was something Rita hated about Aurora.


    Aurora was too paranoid which led to her isting herself away from everyone else.


    She mighte off as friendly and supportive but it was only ever for the other side. When it came to wanting things for herself and the dangers she had to face, Aurora kept it all to herself.


    ¡°Is Natasha in the bathroom? Does she know of the danger we are in?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t before but now I do.¡±


    Natasha came out of the bathroom half-dressed. There was no telling how long she had been there and how much she had heard about the conversation.


    But as soon as her eyes met Rita¡¯s, she knew she had an ally against Aurora. This was not something they would let Aurora do alone.<sub></sub>


    ===========================


    Aurora wanted to sigh as she looked at the two stubborn fools in front of her. They could have cleared this problem while being ignorant of the danger, but they wanted to butt in and help Aurora out.


    As admirable as it was, it was also troublesome.


    Aurora had initially decided to distract those presences outside while keeping the duo in the dark. But her corruption-riddled brain had dragged things out much longer than she had expected.


    In the end, the other two had be aware of this situation so it was better to include them in her n as well.


    Knowing Rita and Natasha, they would be a huge asset on her side.


    ¡°The presence you feel outside this building is likely ghost species responsible for looking after this night market. They take care to clean this ce and make it suitable for transportation to different locations.¡±


    ¡°As long as we remain in this building, we will be transported to the new location tonight and can escape afterward.¡±


    The solution to their problem was really simple in theory. They just needed to stay indoors and they would be alright.


    ¡°There had to be a catch here, right? If things were that simple, then more people would have tried to spend a day in the night city.¡±


    Natasha was right. Her cleaver mind had picked up the unspoken words in Aurora¡¯s response.<sub></sub>


    ¡°You are right. Things are not as simple as they seem and it is because of the cleaner ghosts. Theye inside the building to clean it up and if we¡¯re caught in here, then we will die by their hands.¡±


    Cleaner ghosts, as their name suggested, were a ss of ghosts tasked with looking after the cleanliness of the building. That meant, cleaning up the space and not leaving anything behind.


    Not even humans and customers.


    ¡°Can¡¯t we just kill them when those ghostse here? I¡¯m sure we can take a few ghosts out without any problem.¡±


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t think things are going to be that easy, right?¡±


    Natasha turned toward Aurora as soon as she made that admission. Rita also sobered up after seeing Aurora¡¯s tense expression.


    ¡°It won¡¯t be easy to get out of here. Actually, no one had ever escaped this ce alive. All those who tried to spend a night in here got killed off trying to escape.¡± Aurora finally admitted.


    ¡°Wait, if no one ever escaped this ce alive, then how did you know about this ce? Are you some kind of prophet who can see in the future or something? Not that it would surprise me even if you did turn out to be one¡­.You¡¯re kidding me right?¡±


    Rita¡¯s words started rather yful but the more she spoke, the more twisted Aurora¡¯s expression got.


    In the end, Aurora was not able to control her expression which made Rita reach the wrong conclusion.


    ¡°NO, WAIT. I am not a prophet but I do have some knowledge about this world and the abyss. As for how I came to know all this? I cannot even tell you even if I want to.¡±


    ¡°Is it some kind of curse that prevents you from talking about it?¡±


    ¡°Yes, something like that. So please don¡¯t try to look into this too much.¡±


    No curse prevented Aurora from speaking about the truth of her origins. But that did not mean she wanted to tell about it to everyone.


    Not that it mattered any longer what kind of world this was supposed to be before Aurora was reborn. Neither Natasha nor Rita could go back to undo their actions.


    It would be better if they never realized what their original fates would have been.


    ¡°So you cannot talk about the source of your knowledge? Got it! We won¡¯t ask you again. But does anyone else know except us both?¡±


    ¡°No one does.¡± Rex did but that was beside the point.


    Rex was a calcted risk that had not been proved wrong by Aurora. And she knew that Rex take her secret to the grave. (Just like all the other ones.)


    ¡°Well, I hate to be the bringer of bad news but I think someone is heading this way. I can hear footstepsing near us.¡±


    Aurora could hear those footsteps as well. But something was wrong with this situation.


    Ghosts didn¡¯t have footsteps since they did not have material to make up their body. Only living beings who had a corporal form could make noise.


    ¡°That is no ghost, but something else. Hurry up and take shelter behind me. I will deal with the person on the other side.¡±


    Aurora quickly gathered her magic to kill the enemy and attacked as soon as she was sure the opponent was on the other side of the door.


    Spiked made up of magic pierced the door and pierced the person on the other side of the door.


    Or the magic was supposed to do that.


    But when the door swung open, a familiar face looked back at Aurora with disagreement written all over it. Just looking at that face brought a headache and Aurora instantly wanted to close the door to block the person.


    ¡°Ara~ I risked my life to sneak in here to help you, and this is how you repay me? I cannot believe being apart for only two days made you so cold.¡±


    ¡°Ava? You are back? How dare you show your face back here after you betrayed us.¡±


    Rita sounded annoyed but also relieved to see Ava. Even Natasha looked a little calmer to see the familiar face.


    But the most relieved was Aurora.


    ¡°Betray? How dare you say that? I was just helping you out by staying behind. It¡¯s a big deal for an overlooker to venture inside another overlooker¡¯s domain without permission.¡±


    ¡°And you have the permission now?¡±


    ¡°Yes, but only in this space. So leave everything up to me now.¡±


    Aurora had never been more relieved to see Ava before.

 Chapter 165 165: So good to see you - part 2

    ¡°Hi~¡­Did you miss me?¡±


    Aurora could not express how relieved she felt to see Ava here at this point. It seems as if a load had been taken off her shoulder as soon as the white-haired female had arrived at the scene.


    However, not everyone seemed to be sharing the same opinion as Aurora. Natasha looked suspicious at Ava¡¯s sudden arrival and so did Rita.


    However, they both kept their feelings to themselves for the time being. It was better for Aurora as well since she did not have to pacify people.


    ¡°So, what¡¯s the agenda for helping us? I suppose you have a n if you decided to show yourself in front of us.¡±


    Rita¡¯s words were snapping. She was channeling the anger she felt at the thought of being betrayed by Ava.


    Even if Ava had not ended up betraying their party, she had taken the initiative to leave their group without dy or warning. And that had been uneptable to Rita.


    ¡°My my, such hostility. I would hate to see how I would be dealt with if I ended up betraying you people someday. I think I will be killed on the spot.¡±


    Ava was teasing but her aura red for just a bit. Seeing this integration gave Aurora a bad feeling. Something in her was telling her that she needed to stop this confrontation or something would happen.


    Even Natasha seemed to be on guard all of a sudden.


    ¡®This is not good. I need to defuse this situation,¡¯ Aurora had noticed the tension that was not going down and so had Ava.<sub>.</sub>


    And thankfully, Ava had enough sense to not egg Rita anymore about this situation and back down calmly.


    ¡°Alright, that¡¯s enough ying around. First of all, let me start by apologizing. To deceive you all was not my intention but it was necessary to fulfill the conditions of the bet I made with the overlooker of these floors.¡±


    Aurora did remember the proxy of the overlooker saying something about a ¡®bet¡¯ they had made. It did make sense if Ava was the one they were talking about.


    ¡°That checks out with what I heard from the overlook before.¡±


    Aurora butted in before anyone else could question Ava on her im. Since Aurora¡¯s words carried a lot of weight, they should help the other two clear out their misunderstanding.


    However, instead of looking relieved, Rita and Natasha looked taken aback.


    ¡°You met the overlooker? When? And how? You should have informed us of such a huge development.¡±


    Rita¡¯s was the first one to explode. Just as Aurora had expected, the questions were fired in rapid session and Aurora was not even able to keep up with them.


    Even Natasha looked betrayed but understanding drew on her face when she thought more about it.


    There were only so many people who could have contested for the spot of being the overlooker and still have only Aurora recognize them.<sub></sub>


    ¡°Was it Huges? It felt like something was wrong with him when I first saw him but I did not want to overestimate my guess.¡±


    ¡°No, you¡¯re right. It was Huges. Or rather, it was the overlooker who decided to use Huges¡¯s body to meet me.¡±


    Aurora had never wanted to keep this a secret from the other two but there had been no chance or need to air out her dirtyundry before.


    But now that things hade to this, it was better for herpanions to know of these kinds of things.


    ¡°Do you have any idea why she came to meet you? Was it because of the bet?¡±


    Natasha was probing further into the truth. It was cute how she was trying to make sense of the things she knew.


    But there was no need for the female to try so hard. She could ask Aurora outright and Aurora would not have lied to her.


    ¡°That might be one of the reasons for her to seek me out but I feel like she was more concerned about Aurora not paying her a visit in greetings when she arrived on this floor. It is customary for the divine beings to greet the overlookers when they enter their domain.¡±


    Unfortunately, it was Ava who decided to spoil Aurora¡¯s surprise. She delivered the news as one delivered a daily conversation ¨C without thinking too much about it.


    ¡°What the hell? Aurora, do you want to tell us something.¡±<sub></sub>


    But of course, the news was not as light for the other two as it had been for Ava to deliver it. Rita and Natasha looked taken aback but not really shocked.


    ¡°So, surprise? I was not trying to hide this news from you-¡°


    ¡°-you totally were. But you were not good at it, so we figured it was something like that-¡°


    ¡°-but I had my reasons. Of course, you knew, How long have you known this for?¡±


    Aurora felt her headache at the turn in the conversation. All she had wanted to do was to get herpanions to stop doubting Ava, not to tell them the news about her status.


    But it seemed like herpanions had secrets of their own that they had not told Aurora about.


    ¡°It was not hard to figure out. I mean, Ava was an overlooker that no one else but the divine can meet so I took an educated guess and started observing you. Natasha just figured things out on the way.¡±


    ¡°I knew the first time I saw you. You were not really discrete in hiding your identity.¡±


    Ah, that made sense. While Aurora had not gone out of her way to announce her status, she had done nothing to hide it either.


    Someone was bound to find out about it sooner orter. She was lucky that the ones who had were keeping her secret to themselves.


    ¡°I guess I didn¡¯t try that hard. Still, thank you for keeping my secret. I can¡¯t afford to have my identity exposed.¡±


    Aurora was thankful for having such good friends on her side. They understood her and even stood by her side.


    And maybe they were bing more to her as time passes. It was not ¡®love¡¯ yet but it was certainly something.


    Something wonderful enough to even make Aurora wish to keep on living like this and forget her past.


    ¡°Now that we have everything out in the open I would like to say one thing. Do not lose focus and forget why you are doing all this. We have a task toplete and for that, you need to pay attention to your mission.¡±


    Aurora felt a wave of coldness brew all around her at the sudden reminder.


    ¡®You can¡¯t give up now and leave Clove in her condition. Remember, you need to save her.¡¯


    The realization was like a shock to Aurora. Never had she ever entertained the thought of abandoning Clove before for her gain. Even the thought should have been impossible toe by.


    ¡®Let¡¯s not think about it anymore. This and that are unrted. I doubt they would ever have conflict so I should not worry about it.¡¯


    ¡°Ava, I would like to hear what you have in store for us. I am sure you did note here merely to help us out of this situation. You knew I could handle this, right?¡±


    Despite her holding back, Aurora was still a goddess, and handling this much should not be a problem for her.


    ¡°You are right. I did note here merely to help you out but also to guide you ahead. You are not making any progress in gathering the information you require, right? So I send someone to gather it for you.¡±


    ¡°That someone already approached you with the offer, right? You should take him up on it and give him this the next time you meet him.¡±


    Ava handed Aurora a familiar-looking ne. It was the same one Aurora had given to the shopkeeper when she had first purchased the auction passes.


    ¡°I see. I won¡¯t ask you how you managed to send a spy on these floors. I am sure you have your resources and are doing your best to help us out. But I do want to ask you how reliable your information is.¡±


    ¡°I would say following my lead is better than sitting around here and doing nothing. And I¡¯m sure you were intrigued as well when that seller told you about the information he might have.¡±


    Aurora had to admit that she had been interested in the information the salesman had offered her. And now that she knew he was reliable, Aurora wanted to find out even more about what he knew.


    ¡°Aurora, what are we going to do now? Are we going to follow Ava¡¯s lead?¡±


    Natasha sounded unsure but both she and Rita were going to follow her lead on this issue. It was all up to Aurora now.


    ¡°I understand. I guess we will be staying in the night market one more night.¡±


    ¡°Ah, that was what I wanted to hear from you. I will be going now so take care of yourself.¡±


    With those parting words, Ava left the scene and so did the ghosts that were loitering around.

 Chapter 166 166: Offering a deal

    Despite the night market being a ce filled with deception and ruled by the wealthy, it did have its nice spots. If you knew how to make use of the informationwork in the night market, you could do a lot.


    For example, ensnarl big fished toe and hook them toe and seek you out. That was why Aurora was not particrly worried about being found in the brothel once the night arrived.


    Her exploits were most likely going to be treated like rumors rather than truths.


    ¡°Are you sure we don¡¯t need to worry about being found in here? I can snap the owner¡¯s neck and get away discreetly if you want me to.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s offer was tempting. It would be nice to not be bothered for another while Aurora nned.


    But she also could not stay in the shadows forever. The more she tried to hide, the her stance would be obvious.


    And the more weirdos Aurora would attract to herself and herpany. It was better to cut the edge off before things progressed to that degree.


    ¡°No need. You can let those people in here. They will keep their mouth shut if they know what is good for them.¡±


    The nice thing about having too much magic flowing through her was that Aurora did not need to fear being betrayed. The monsters in the night market recognized strength.


    And Aurora was strong. She was the earthly creature in this abyss baring the overlookers. That was also why she had not been stopped when she had barged into the brothel when it had been about to close yesterday.


    ¡®The owner knew I was strong. He wanted to test me and that¡¯s why he did not warn Natasha to get out.¡¯


    Aurora was pissed off but she also understood that reeling her temper was a necessity.<sub>.</sub>


    The room¡¯s door was knocked with a hesitant bang. The person on the other side of the door was nervous and for the right reasons.


    ¡°E-Excuse me? Is anyone in there?¡±


    Aurora signaled for Rita to knock the servant out. As much as Aurora wanted to announce her presence, she did not want someone to barge in on her unannounced.


    For now, all that needed to escape this brothel were rumors and nothing else. A vague description of her looks would be enough to get people¡¯s mouths going.


    Rita did her assigned job excellently. The female servant on the other side of the door was knocked out in seconds and wasid on the bed.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go and visit the owner. He needs to learn when to keep his mouth shut.¡±


    Rita had an unholy grin on her face at the mention of violence. She seemed to be getting more and more unhinged as the days progressed.


    But it was surprising to see Natasha in her new role. She had adapted to the ounder¡¯s technology seamlessly enough to make use of it without pain.


    ¡°Should I clear out the way to the boss room? I can just kill everyone in my way.¡±


    Rita¡¯s proposal sounded tempting, but it was scrapped away as soon as it was out of Rita¡¯s mouth.


    ¡°Don¡¯t kill people needlessly. We need these people to do more work for us.¡±<sub></sub>


    ¡°But we have more than enough people under our belt already. That old man we caught before is still out there gathering information.¡±


    Rita sounded disappointed. Her face fell at Aurora¡¯s words but Aurora was not willing to give in to Rita¡¯s hical demands.


    ¡°Rita, we spend most of our newly acquired assets back to the surface. We only have so many people down here. Besides, a rumor that started in a brothel had a different feeling to it. People are more willing to gossip from an hical source than an official source,¡±


    Aurora was not aware Natasha had such knowledge about how the deeper floors worked. But Natasha was not wrong in saying this.


    People were more likely to believe things they heard in their intimate times than one that was spread in the pubs.


    Besides, since the source of news originated from the brothels, it was only right to use this ce as the origin of such rumors.


    ¡°Rita, just keep a lookout to make sure no onees out way. It doesn¡¯t matter if they see us or not.¡±


    ¡°Alright. I understand what you want me to do.¡±


    Had she wanted to, Aurora could have left the brothel without being seen. If she did that, then no one would have ever been able to find what she did.


    ===========================


    ¡®I have been running this brothel for almost a century now but I¡¯ve never seen a case like this before. How did that girls manage to survive a day in the brothel? There had to be a reason behind their survival that I am missing. I need to see them for myself to confirm my suspicions.¡±<sub></sub>


    The owner of the brothel was sitting on the chain, his eyes unmoving as he looked at the screen in front of him.


    The redhead girl was doing an amazing job at taking care of all the servants the boss had to send their way.


    But he still could not see anything out of the ordinary about the redhead. She was just someone better than most at fighting.


    The ck-haired girl behind her was faring no better. She was using some weird tech to support herself, but there was nothing special about her.


    But the one in the middle. She was looking directly at the owner in the eyes through his hidden camera. It should have been impossible for her to be able to guess where the camera was located, but she still was able to spot it easily enough.


    ¡°She can¡¯t possibly be seeing me? It must be a fluke that she is looking in my direction.¡±


    The owner tried to console himself over that fact but his breath fell short the more he tried to assure himself.


    Those golden eyes were looking more and more intense as time passed by. Even when they changed directions to focus on anything other than his camera, the intensity of those eyes still felt stiffening.


    The boss was so lost in his thoughts that he even missed the knocking sound on his door.


    By the time he realized someone was outside his door, it had been knocked down and familiar faces were looking back at him.


    ¡°Ouch! Punching your door down hurt. Now, how are you going topensate me for it?¡±


    It was the redhead that had single-handedly managed to knock his door down. Her arm was still stretched in the punishing motion and the boss was frozen in his seat due to the intensity of the aura that the redhaired girl emitted.


    ¡°C-Compensation? You destroyed my property and you ask forpensation. Guard-¡°


    ¡°Don¡¯t bother calling them. I¡¯ve made sure they won¡¯t be able to respond. Now, sit down because our leader wants to have a few words with you.¡±


    The ck-haired girl cut the boss off before he could call for help. Her voice did not sound like it was kidding.


    ¡®Did these fragile-looking girls manage to render me protection-less? What should I do now?¡¯


    The owner of the brothel cursed himself fornding this bad luck. He did not know what he did to be in this situation but he knew that there was noing out of it.


    These girls knew they had the upper hand and they were not afraid to let him know.


    ¡°What do you want from me? Money? Connections? My life?¡±


    ¡°Keep your cheap life to yourself. We just want to talk with you.¡±


    The redhead¡¯s insult came out seconds after the owner had purposed his questions. By her tone, it did not sound like they were his enemies.


    Rather, the redhead made it sound like she was offering him something that he might want to take.


    ¡°Rita, that¡¯s enough. We still need him to cooperate so we shouldn¡¯t make his job any harder.¡±


    The one who spoke was the blue-haired female whom the owner had pointed out as the leader.


    Beautiful would be the wrong words to describe the bleu-haired beauty. It would be more urate to say that she was eternal but not in an earthly way.


    Her aura screamed power and dominance. It made the owner want to submit to her and to do anything to please her.


    Even if he had never seen her before, he could recognize the tell-tale signs of the overlooker¡¯s aura on her.


    The owner of the brothel was a mere monster from the middle realms. He had enough intelligence but not enough power.


    As such, he did not want to get in the way of an overlooker and lose his life and his property.


    ¡°Mydy, what can I do for you? I would be happy to help you out with anything you want me to.¡±


    If you cannot beat them, then join them. That was what the owner thought as he saw the glowing female.


    There was no one better to join hands with than an overlooker after all.

 Chapter 167 167: The new destination

    ¡°Mydy, what can I do for you? I would be happy to help you with anything you want me to.¡±


    It was evident to Aurora that the owner was tiring to tter her into letting him go. He likely did not hold any respect for her, but he did fear her power.


    The more the man tried to tter Aurora, the more she felt disgusted by his tant disy. If possible, Aurora wanted to put an end to this cheap ttery.


    ¡®But it¡¯s not that bad to be on the receiving end of such fear. I know Rita is enjoying this.¡¯


    Ture to Aurora¡¯s thoughts, Rita had a pleasing aura surrounding her. To be inmand andmand respect was something that came to Rita naturally. So having this man tremble in front of her must be nice for Rita.


    ¡°I want you to do one simple thing only you can do. And if you do it well then I¡¯ll make sure no one would bother your business again.¡±


    Aurora was not making an offer, she was threatening the other man. The man seemed to have understood Aurora¡¯s signal as well because he did not even try to talk his way out.


    ¡¢ ¡°I understand. Any work that you give to me would be taken care of, mydy.¡±


    The man extended his hand toward Aurora in an expecting gesture. His intention of proiming his loyalty by kissing Aurora¡¯s hand was borderline insulting. But the man seemed to not hold the same feeling.


    ¡°If you understand, then good. I don¡¯t have time to sit around and exin everything to you in detail either. Natasha, I will leave the briefing to you and Rita. I should get our other affairs into order.¡±


    ¡°Alright. We will take care of things here.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s tone did not hold excitement her aura did. But since Natasha wanted to stay back with Rita to handle this matter, Aurora did not stop her.<sub></sub>


    Besides, moving alone in the night market was a good idea. Aurora would attract less attention that way.


    ¡°Have fun. We will meet you in the morning.¡±


    Rita wavered cheerfully, her eyes not moving away from the pinned prey in front of her. Aurora is sure that Rita will enjoy today to her heart¡¯s content.


    The muffled yell of the brothel owner could only be heard by Aurora but she did not care enough to turn back and have a look.


    She trusted her two partners to take care of this business.


    ===========================


    The doorbell jingled as Aurora opened the door. The atmosphere inside the shop was simr to what Aurora had experienced before but the atmosphere inside it had changed significantly.


    The once empty shop was full of curious people looking around. The new crowd had managed to change the shoppletely.


    The shopkeeper¡¯s familiar silhouette seemed to be moving from one cab to another at a pace unseen by the human eye.


    It was only because of Aurora¡¯s divine powers that she was able to keep up with the fast-moving pace.


    ¡°I can see that your business is blooming perfectly. Should Ie backter?¡±<sub></sub>


    The shopkeeper didn¡¯t even look startled at being addressed out of the blue by Aurora. He continued to move around and hand things to his customers.


    He did gesture to one of the free employees to take Aurora away and into a more private setting.


    Aurora had half a mind to refuse that offer ande backter but she decided toply in the end. Curiosity was a cruel mistress and Aurora had fallen victim to such a temptation.


    There was no way she would be able to sit still now. Not until she had her information at least.


    The shopkeeper didn¡¯t keep Aurora waiting for long. He waved his employee over as soon as he entered the backroom.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know you had more people working in your shop. I was also surprised to see so many customers.¡±


    ¡°I am surprised at the sudden resurgence of customers in my shop as well. Looks like one of the new teams from the tower decided to stop on this floor before moving ahead.¡±


    Ah, that did make sense. Tower teams worked in shifts and only once you passed a significant enough mark were you allowed to venture deeper.


    And the night market was the first stop between safety and dangerous grounds so people wanted to explore it as much as they could.


    ¡°Mydy, you sure kept me waiting. I was afraid that you would not want my information anymore.¡±


    The shopkeeper gave out a theatrical sob that did not match the intensity of his eyes. He was looking to check Aurora¡¯s expression so Aurora decided to match his pace.<sub></sub>


    ¡°Oh no, how can that be? I was dying of the curosity to know what the shopkeeper meant.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s words matched the shopkeeper to the point but theycked any hint of personality. They were a textbook example of reading and even the shopkeeper was taken aback.


    ¡°A-Ah, mydy. I apologize for these foolish theatrics. I was just too overwhelmed to see you that I lost myposure for a second. But I am d to see you take me up on my offer for information.¡±


    The man seemed awkward now that Aurora was not ying along with him. But as entertaining as it was to watch this exchange, it was about time Aurora got her information.


    ¡°Enough ying around. Just tell me what your sponsor asked you to tell me,¡±


    Aurora finally snapped at the man. He looked taken aback by Aurora¡¯s sudden shift of personality but he did not back down.


    ¡°My sponsor recently came across a rumor they could not hold on to themselves. They said, ¡®there is a masking river in the middle of floor 8th that can make even a skunk invisible. It is found in the middle of Lake Variety.''¡±


    ¡°Lake Variety?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s surprise was genuine. Lake Variety was not a famouske, nor was it well sought out.


    In fact, before this day, Aurora had not even heard of Lake Variety before and now she was asked to go and find it.


    ¡°I suppose it is the first time mydy is hearing that name? We, the abyssal monsters call it Lake Variety but you humans call it the ¡®death pool¡¯.¡±


    The shopkeeper spoke his words slowly and mysteriously. It was not like talking slowly would change Aurora¡¯s destination.


    But still, the death pool? Ava wanted her to head toward the death pool. It was named the death pool for a reason.


    The death pool was a ce on floor 8th of the abyss where no one could survive. Even monsters avoided that ce and anyone who ever set foot closer to it died.


    ¡°It is up to mydy is she wants to go to Lake Variety or not. But if mydy does decide to finally start heading there, then she should be prepared to lose something important in return.¡±


    The shopkeeper¡¯s words and tone were getting creepier by the second. The more Aurora heard it, the more she wanted to do nothing with this case.


    ¡®But I cannot throw this case to the side as well. There must be a reason Ava wanted me to go there.¡¯


    ¡°I understand. Here, this is for your payment.¡±


    Aurora handed over a highly-condensed energy stone filled with her magic. The information she asked for might not have cost this much but Aurora did want to maintain her friendly rtionship with this shopkeeper.


    ¡°Thank you so much for your purchase dear customer. I hope to see you again in the future.¡±


    Aurora nodded along to show that she understood and was appreciative of the help.


    ¡°Should I head toward the Death pool alone? I don¡¯t think taking Rita and Natasha along will be a good idea. For some reason, I have a really bad feeling about this trip.¡±


    ¡®Should I abandon this mission and go back? I can always face Rex¡¯s mom head-on. It won¡¯t be that bad,¡¯ but even as Aurora thought that she knew she did not dare to do so.


    For all the braveness she showed, there were things Aurora was afraid of.


    ¡°Anyway, let¡¯s head back and think about thister. I don¡¯t want to worry my head needlessly over this topic.¡±


    Aurora finally made her decision but she had only taken a few steps before she felt her body collide with something smaller than her.


    Strong arms reached out to catch Aurora¡¯s arm and pull her back into a standing position.


    ¡°Are you alright? I didn¡¯t mean to collide with you¡­Oh, it¡¯s you? It is nice to meet you again,dy Aurora. Do you remember me?¡±


    Of course, Aurora did. She remembered those piercing blue eyes and that blond hair anywhere.


    Clove looked like she had aged quite a bit but her baby charm was still the same.


    ¡°Clove, slow down. We are here just to observe today so don¡¯t cause¡­¡±


    Quince, who was following behind Clove quietened down as soon as his eyes locked on Aurora. And Aurora suddenly felt exposed standing between those two.

 Chapter 168 168: Trailing Secrets - part 1

    ¡°Clove, slow down. We are here just to observe today so don¡¯t cause¡­¡±


    To say that Aurora had an awkward smile while running into the two familiar faces would be an underestimation.


    ¡°Clove, Quince, it¡¯s nice to meet you again¡­. I should get going now.¡±


    Aurora was not running away, she was making a tactical retreat. What was there to be scared about anyway?


    And it was not like she was wanted in thispany anyway. Quince¡¯s eyes were ring at her to go back and not show her face in front of the pair.


    However, it was Clove¡¯s eyes Aurora was glued to. The younger girl was staring at Aurora with unseen emotions and her blue-colored crystalline eyes were tinted with a darker tone.


    Aurora tried to go around Clove and make a quiet retreat but she was not able to bypass Clove. The younger girl had her arm in the hold which made it difficult for Aurora to move around.


    Had Aurora wanted, she could have broken the hold Clove had on her arm and escaped. But Aurora chose not to do that because of the soft spot she had for Clove.


    Instead, she turned toward the younger with eyes filled with question.


    ¡°Is something wrong? I¡¯m afraid that I can not spend a lot of time with you. My partner is waiting for me.¡±


    It was not until Aurora finished her words that she realized how misleading they could be. Clove looked taken aback by Aurora¡¯s answer and even lightened her hold on Aurora¡¯s arm.<sub></sub>


    However, Aurora was not able to make use of this opportunity to escape before she had her arm in a tight clutch again.


    ¡°Partners? Who are those partners you spoke¡­¡±


    ¡°Miss, are you very busy? Can you help us out? It is our first day on these floors and I was hoping to get a reliable guide to help our group out.¡±


    Aurora could feel Clove¡¯s anger bubbling under the surface. The words did not let out how the female was feeling but her aura was not able to hide her feelings.


    However, Aurora was not the only one who noticed. Quince, who had likely noticed this change, quickly changed the subject to calm the situation.


    ¡®Clove has changed. Is it because I am no longer at her side? Or is it due to her missing soul?¡¯ the question gued Aurora¡¯s mind all of a sudden and it also caused her to feel guilty.


    But no matter how much guilt she felt, she did not want to help the tower out in any way.


    ¡°I am quite busy so I will have to refuse your offer. You should look for a reliable informant near the auction house.¡±


    Aurora cursed her soft heart for helping the tower out. She had wanted to erase the sour look on Clove¡¯s face so she had ended up blurting that information out.


    ¡®It¡¯s for Clove and not the tower. I¡¯m doing this all for her.¡¯ Every time Aurora closed her eyes, the younger face of Clove ovepped with the older one in her memories.<sub></sub>


    Now that Clove was growing up a little, her face was beginning to resemble her older self. And it was getting more and more difficult to keep on looking at her.


    ¡°Aurora, what are you doing here? We should get going now,¡± thankfully, Rita¡¯s timing was impable.


    The redhead came to her rescue in the nick of the time. She even had a frown on her face to indicate how worried she was about Aurora.


    ¡°Ah, Rita. I¡¯m sorry I kept you waiting. I just ran into some familiar faces here so I wanted to say hello.¡±


    Aurora sneakily got her arm out of Clove¡¯s grip and freed herself before joining Rita¡¯s side. She did not ask where Natasha was and quietly positioned herself in a safe spot.


    ¡°Friends? Aren¡¯t they too young to be associating with you? Also, aren¡¯t they too young to be venturing this deep into the abyss?¡±


    . ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because we are much stronger than you. You got here because you are clinging to Aurora, right? Otherwise, how can a powerless person like you make it this deep into the abyss? You don¡¯t even have any divine power in you.¡±


    Aurora tried to stop the gasp that was escaping her mouth. Never in her life had Aurora ever seen Clove behave like this.


    Had someone told Aurora that Clove was capable of being rude like this, Aurora would haveughed their im off and called them a liar.


    However, seeing this with her own eyes was a different experience for sure.<sub></sub>


    ¡°You little brat. What do you even know about me and my rtionship with Aurora? How can you even guess how deeply connected we are?¡± Rita sounded pissed off.


    ¡°And what do you know about my rtionship with Aurora? What if we are fated to be? What will you do then?¡± Clove replied, her voice cold as ice. She also sounded pissed off.


    ¡°As if that would ever happen. You are from the tower and Aurora hates the tower. There is no way she would ever consider¡­¡±


    ¡°Enough. Rita, it¡¯s enough. We should start heading back since we are done with our work. Quince, make sure to check out the ce I told you about. I have no intention of hurting you but I won¡¯t help you either.¡±


    Aurora tried not to flinch when she ignored Clove. The golden-haired girl was staring at Aurora with a betrayed look on her face.


    But no matter how much it hurt to have Clove look at Aurora like that, Aurora had to draw the line somewhere.


    Both pairs parted without any additional words spoken. A lot was left unsaid spoken between them and there were a lot of feelings of regret as well.


    ¡°Aurora, are you sure you are alright? Your eyes. They look a little redder than normal and also a little wet.¡±


    ¡°Leave me be for now. I am alright and I don¡¯t want to talk about it for now. I will tell youter if I dare to face myself.¡±


    Rita did notment on Aurora¡¯s shaking voice, nor the wet note in her tone.


    No tear fell from Aurora¡¯s eyes that day but her heart was heavy. It also made her wonder if she was doing the right thing or not.


    But she did not get to think about it anymore when she reached Natasha who was waiting for the pair at the city gate.


    Natasha did not ask Aurora to borate and Aurora did not say anything to her either. There was a silent pact between them to not mention this incident ever again.


    ===========================


    Quince watched the blue-haireddy walk away.


    She had a different look and air about her. The new streak of white in her hair was also interesting but not as interesting as the aura of darkness around her.


    Seeing her in the abyss again, Quince could confirm that there was something familiar about her. The woman, Aurora, had a feeling about her that screamed ¡®Abyss¡¯ born.


    ¡°Clove, are you alright? I have never seen you break character before like that.¡±


    However, as much as Quince wanted to chase after Aurora and solve her puzzle, he had a more important thing to tackle. And that important thing was Clove.


    Ever since thatte-night talk where he and Clove had that same dream, Clove¡¯s behavior had changed.


    She still pretended to be that sweet and charming girl everyone liked but she was slipping more and more. She was also beginning to show a weird detachment to this world.


    But the most worrisome part of her was her disappearance.


    Oftentimes, Clove vanished in the middle of the mission without telling anyone. She did return quite soon but no one could point out when she had left or to where.


    These disappearances were worrying but they also made Quince nervous for some reason.


    ¡°Of course I am alright. Even I am allowed to break character once or twice so it¡¯s no big deal.¡± Clove took in a deep breath and her aura of nervousness disappeared, ¡°Are you going to take her advice?¡±


    Quince was a little startled before he remembered what Clove was asking about.


    She was asking about Aurora and the advice she had given to Quince. He did want to take up her advice but he had other ns.


    The tower had already made sure there was a guide for their party. He had only asked Aurora because he had wanted to distract Clove.


    Thankfully, Aurora followed his lead and rejected that offer. Quince had no idea what he would have done had his offer been epted by Aurora.


    ¡°I will check the auction house out but I also know a few elder adventurers who can help us out. I will be going to check them out. What about you?¡±


    ¡°I would like to roam around this ce and buy a few things. Then, we shall meet again in a few hours at the entrance of the night market?¡±


    ¡°Sure.¡±


    Quince was skeptical about leaving Clove alone but this was his chance to know more about what she was doing.


    As soon as she disappeared, he opened his fist and a bird made up of magic flew out to tail Clove.

 Chapter 169 169: Trailing Secrets - part 2

    ¡°Does he think I am an idiot and I will not realize he is trailing me? How pitiful.¡±


    Clove had noticed it the second she had a tracking spell ced on her person. She did not fault Quince for his curious nature but he was pissing Clove off now.


    Of course, he had caught on to Clove¡¯s weird behavior changes but she was not trying to hide them either. She just wanted answers and she was looking for her.


    Ever since Clove¡¯s first encounter with Aurora, she was having dreams about a life she had never known before. In those dreams, Clove was older and in a rtionship that made her feel good.


    It made Clove feel invincible and nothing like the weak child she had always known herself to be.


    ¡®No matter how good I get, I never feel like I do in those dreams again. They bring a hidden desire inside me. That is the only reason I am seeking you out.¡¯


    Yes, that was the only reason Cloev had agreed to this cooperation request she had gotten for the overlooker of floors 6-10.


    The Ox had been a curious one but she also felt familiar to Clove. Her instincts told Clove that she could trust the Ox to help her out.


    Still, habits born out of necessity were hard to tackle and Clove still maintained her vignce in the overlooker¡¯s presence.


    Clove quickly cloaked herself in magic to make Quince¡¯s bird lose notice of her before she knocked on the overlooker¡¯s chosen hideout.


    ¡°It¡¯s me. I am here to make a deal with you.¡±


    The door opened without much fuss and Clove entered. A pub filled with people greeted Clove but no one as much as nced at her when she entered.<sub></sub>


    Due to the code words she had spoken, Clove had be invisible to all these people. She was like smoke, easy to move and unable to be touched when she moved through the crowd.


    Even if someone sensed her presence, they would not be able to tell where she was.


    ¡°Mydy, go to the second floor and then to room 420.¡±


    Someone passed Clove a key and whispered in her ears the address. But she knew if she turned around, she would not find anyone there.


    The one who had whispered in Clove¡¯s ears was a servant of the overlooker. He was only here to deliver the message before disappearing into the wind.


    Clove quickly left the over-filled hall. She did not want to spend any more time in between unfamiliar bodies.


    Just having someone like this touch her caused her to develop a vtile mood.


    Room 420 was just like any other ordinary room from the outside. But Clove could feel the feeling of power and magic from behind it.


    Once she entered that room, she would be cut off from the tower and be plunged into a new domain of the tower.


    ¡°Wee, my dear. Please take a seat so that I can listen to your worries for you.¡±


    The familiar face with yellow eyes and green hair weed Clove. As soon as Clove saw that face, she felt her worries melt away from her frame.<sub></sub>


    There was a feeling deep inside her that trusted the overlooker without any reason and Zoe had not proven that feeling wrong so far.


    ¡°I decided to visit you as soon as I got here but I ran into a familiar face that caused this dy. I apologize for thisteness in my greeting.¡±


    Clove was apologizing for the sake of apologizing. She did not feel bad in reality but she was curious about how Zoe would respond to her.


    ¡°Ah, you met Aurora, right? I was wondering if you both would sh again.¡±


    ¡°So you knew about her? Something about her feels familiar to me but I cannot tell what it is.¡±


    Clove did not even know why she was blurting all this for Zoe to hear. Those words were not something she had even told Quince about.


    But Zoe was easier to talk to and also highly versatile in her approach to emotions. She was also a better judge of character.


    ¡°It must be your lingering feelings from your past life.¡±


    ¡°Past life?¡±


    ¡°Ah yes. So you don¡¯t remember? It¡¯s weird for you to not remember since you were the one that begged the abyss to spin back in time. You even ended up losing the soul fragments you worked so hard to obtain in that life just for the sake of your foolish love.¡±


    The more Zoe spoke, the weirder Clove felt.<sub></sub>


    All those words about soul fragments and past life sounded familiar, even if they did not make much sense.


    ¡°Zoe, start from the beginning.¡±


    p-?-?-?-?-?-0-?-?-?¡¢?(??) ¡°As you wish. But, are you sure you are ready to hear it all? There was a lot you wanted to forget in yourst life.¡±


    ¡°I am sure.¡±


    ¡°Well, if you are sure then I will tell you the short version. As for the long version? You¡¯ll have to remember it yourself. Even I don¡¯t know everything that happened or who you did what you did, so do not ask me any questions.¡±


    Zoe took in a deep breath before she began telling the story.


    ¡°It all started when the abyss first opened. All of us overlookers were born with the abyss, all 13 of us. But we were not the only ones to be born out of the abyss.¡±


    ¡°This abyss is a parasite, an external life form that merged with the earth in a symbiotic rtionship but it did not take long until it became a parasite and started leeching off from the earth.¡±


    ¡°To protect itself, the earth gave powers to the divine behind called as the 7 original gods who protected earth, but then things happened and those gods had a disagreement.¡±


    ¡°In the end, one of them chose to side with the abyss and that was your original soul. She got defeated and her soul got scattered across the abyss and earth.¡±


    ¡°I promised her to return her soul to the original condition but I did not find an apt vessel until you came along. Not only did you look like her, but also behaved like her.¡±


    ¡°You even had a pet human you liked to keep close to you. So I approached you to help you beplete but the tower did not want that and neither did the earth.¡±


    ¡°They opposed, and you rebelled against it. In the end, your human died and you snapped. Your powers went out of control and the tower offered you a deal in exchange for getting your soul scattered once again.¡±


    ¡°You epted and here we are now. Once again in a time loop where youck even more of your soul than before.¡±


    Clove felt something hurt in her brain when she heard all that. For most people what Zoe had said might have sounded like bullshit but Clove could believe this to be the truth.


    ¡®Not believe to be the truth. I know these things happened.¡¯


    ¡°And so? What happened to the soul I made this deal for? Are they still alive?¡±


    ¡°Of they are still alive. In fact, she¡¯s the very person you have been obsessing over all this time. It is hard to tell if she remembers you or not but your destiny is still connected.¡±


    There was only one person who fits this bill. There was only one person Clove was obsessed with and that was Aurora.


    Then, did Aurora remember what happened with Clove in their past lives? And those dreams Clove was having? Were they her memories of her past life?


    ¡°I feel like my head would explode. What should I even do with all this information?¡±


    ¡°Anything you want to. I can also help you get your divine powers back if you want me to. I already have quite a few of your soul fragments with you. They also contain your memories of the past. Do you want them?¡±


    Zoe¡¯s offer was like sweet poison. The more Clove would know, the more she would long to know.


    Even now, the feeling of wanting to know more about herself and Aurora was suffocating. It overwhelmed Clove and she wanted to know more.


    ¡°Think over this a little more but make your decision quick. If you dy your answer then you might lose someone precious to you.¡±


    Clove closed her eyes but the image of Aurora shed in front of her closed eyes. This Aurora had a happy smile but an unfamiliar hand on her waist leading her away.


    ¡®I don¡¯t want that. I won¡¯t be able to take it.¡¯


    ¡°Zoe, I have my answer. Help me regain my powers.¡±


    ¡°That was what I expected you to say. Now,e here and ept these 2 soul fragments. We will need to get 8 more after this.¡±


    Clove reached out with her hands toward the two translucent fragments and epted their powers.


    The power burned but her mind was clouded with familiar memories that made Clove numb.


    ¡®Ah, I see. I loved her. I loved Aurora and maybe I still do.¡¯

 Chapter 170 170: The empty boss room

    ¡°You look like you are on edge. Did something happen when I was not with you?¡±


    Aurora felt her nerves calm down as once she settled between Natasha and Rita. She had not realized how much on edge she had been because of Rita¡¯s fluctuating aura.


    ¡°I¡¯m still pissed off. Can you believe the audacity of that girl? Thankfully, we did not have to meet up with her ever again.¡±


    Aurora heard Rita rant but she did not break her fantasy about not meeting Clove again. No one could tell what the future held and Aurora could not guarantee not having another meeting with Clove in the future.


    ¡°So, what is the agenda? How do we head toward the floor? Will we need to clear the boss room? That phoenix will be a problem for sure.¡±


    Rita¡¯s concern was clear in her voice. Since she had faced the beast before, she knew what kind of danger the group was into.


    But Rita was also forgetting that Aurora was not like Rita. Aurora did not fear this situation and she even had her powers.


    ¡°I can take care of the floor boss so that is not a problem. The main concern is to not run into the tower team that is here for the same reason.¡±


    Aurora did not want to run into Quince and Clove¡¯s team. If she did then the chances of her secret getting out would be much higher.


    ¡°Should we wait for the tower team to clear this floor before us? We can¡¯t predict their moment so we cannot respond in kind.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s question was worth considering. But theck of predictability did make things much more difficult for the group.<sub></sub>


    ¡°We can¡¯t do that. We don¡¯t have that much time on our hands. If possible, I would like to skip floor 7 altogether and head straight to floor 8.¡±


    ¡°Is there even a way to do that?¡±


    ¡°There is but there is a catch. Only someone from the tower can get us to floor 8th. Since the tower has cleared this floor before, they have a way to travel between the floors without facing the boss rooms.¡±


    Yes, this was the fastest way for a group to travel in the abyss. Aurora used this method in her previous life a lot of times and she even knew where the transporting circles were.


    But the main problem would be to get the tower to cooperate. Only someone from the tower who had enough authority could get the gates open and travel in such a manner.


    In other words, there was only one person present here who could get them to floor 8.


    ¡°I would rather kill myself than ask the tower for help.¡±


    Rita rejected the proposal at once. Aurora was not sure if she did this for her or if Rita did this because of her personal feelings.


    ¡°I agree. We can¡¯t trust the tower to not betray us like that.¡±


    Aurora just sighed at the silent agreement her partners were in. They did not even consider asking Aurora¡¯s opinion on this matter.<sub></sub>


    ¡°If you both are certain then I will toss this possibility out of my head. Let¡¯s just kill the main boss and progress adequately.¡±


    The two others agreed with Aurora and the matter was settled.


    ===========================


    Or, it should have been settled until Aurora and thepany reached the boss room, only to find it empty.


    ¡°I can¡¯t sense the boss at all. Did the tower reach here before us and kill Beatrix?¡± Natasha tried to sound logical but her confusion was evident in her voice.


    ¡°That can¡¯t be. These people recently entered this floor so they won¡¯t be this reckless. Someone else must have done this.¡±


    Aurora was more logical in her thinking. Thanks to her understanding of the tower and how it worked, she could tell that the person who had killed the boss was not sent by Quince.


    Quince was much more cautious about these matters and would not have endangered his team by rushing like this.


    ¡°It¡¯ll likely take a few days for the boss to respawn now.¡±


    Rita was disappointed, and so was Aurora. This put their n a few steps behind what they were hoping for. It was time Aurora could not afford to waste in the abyss.<sub></sub>


    The sound of footsteps reached the group and it was only because of Aurora¡¯s preupied mind that she failed to recognize who they belonged.


    ¡°Did you people clear this room before us? But I don¡¯t see a gate to the next floor here.¡±


    Of course, it was Quince who had walked in on the trio. Maybe it was because it had been some time since Aurora had spent time with him but she seemed to have forgotten Quince¡¯s habits.


    Quince always made sure to check the boss room early so that he could prepare a strategy tobat it. Turning back the time seemed to not have changed his habit.


    ¡°We did not kill the boss. It was already dead when we arrived here. We thought that the tower was behind this.¡±


    Natasha, being the calmdy she was, chose to reply neutrally.


    Aurora could tell that Quince was frustrated at theck of response he got from their group but he did not make the matters worse for them.


    ¡°I see. From your expression, it seems like you were in a hurry to leave these floors. In that case, do you want me to help you out?¡±


    Aurora instantly felt her awareness rise when she heard Quince¡¯s words. He never suggested things like this without thinking his options through.


    If he was suggesting helping Aurora out then there must be a reason behind this. What kind of advantage did he wish to gain by helping Aurora out?


    ¡°Don¡¯t misunderstand. It¡¯s for helping me during that time in the Horax Vige. I don¡¯t like to be in other¡¯s debt so I am repaying you now.¡±


    Oh, Aurora did remember that now. She had given Quince that highest-grade potion that one time.


    It had been so long that Aurora had ended up forgetting that whole ordeal but the teen in front of him seemed to remember.


    ¡°Ah, that? Didn¡¯t I tell you that I was helping you for free then? I do not want anything in return for my good deed.¡±


    Aurora did not want to run her mouth unnecessarily. She could feel Rita¡¯s re digging holes in her head with a questioning look.


    Aurora had not wanted to hide things from others but there had been no reason for her to share her opinions either.


    ¡°I know you said that you did not need anything but I still wanted to repay you for that one time. That potion ended up saving the life of someone close to me,¡± Ah, so it was used on Clove.


    .?O,? Aurora had handed the potion over because she had been worried. Even if she had said that she had no utter motive, she did have a motive then.


    But Quince did not know that and he wanted to repay Aurora now. Aurora should take him up on his offer.


    ¡°If that¡¯s how you feel then I guess there is no problem in taking you up on your offer. But just this once, alright?¡±


    Aurora could feel Rita¡¯s displeasure at this agreement. It seemed like her firey-tempered teammate did not want to cooperate with the tower.


    So, Aurora decided to clear this misunderstanding.


    ¡°But just so you know, I am taking this offer up because it came from you and not from the tower. The responsibility of this trade will fall upon you.¡±


    ¡°I understand. I will make sure the tower never knows about it.¡±


    Since Quince was assuring Aurora about this topic, she felt happy to take him up on it. The faster she reached floor 8, the faster she could find the Lake Variety.


    ¡°Come, follow me. I will take you to the circle and help you cross before the others from the tower can make their way to this cave. I am sure you don¡¯t want to run into other people on your way ahead.¡±


    Quince was correct in his saying. Aurora did not want to run into other people while moving around.


    So she took the younger up on his offer and the party left for the transporting circle.


    ===========================


    Somewhere else, a lone figure with golden hair and blue eyes opened her eyes as she exited the gate.


    ¡°I told you to be careful in using your powers. You have not adjusted to your new soul fragments so it will be difficult for you to control them.¡±


    Clove ignored Zoe¡¯s urgent advice as she washed the excessive blood off her face.


    She had challenged Beatrix to test out her new powers but it had been too easy for her. The challenge had felt hollow and meaningless.


    ¡°I wonder what Quince would be doing. I should head back to him so that the tower doesn¡¯t get a wind of this.¡± Zoe just sighed at her new queen¡¯s actions but she did not disagree with her.

 Chapter 171 171: 404: Error - part 1

    Aurora was hesitant about following Quince back to the tower¡¯s base. She did not want to risk running into Clove while she was here.


    But the nearer Aurora got to the tower¡¯s base, the more she was certain that Clove was not in there. She could not feel the energy Clove gave off.


    ¡°I sent everyone off on an errand when I decided to bring you here. Don¡¯t worry, we are alone in our base right now.¡±


    ¡°You send away Clove as well? What if something happens to her?¡±


    It was not right of Aurora to butt in into the tower business like this but old habits died hard. Aurors had spent a lifetime worrying about Clove. It was not that easy for her to stop all of a sudden.


    ¡°You should not worry about mypanion that much. Clove is more than capable of taking care of herself. Although I cannot figure out why you care about her so much when you are both strangers to each other.¡±


    The word ¡®stranger¡¯ burned in Aurora¡¯s mind but she had no words to refute that im either because Clove had been a stranger to Aurora.


    Aurora had no words to convey to Quince what her bond with Clove was without raising too many red gs in the tower¡¯s mind.


    ¡°Come on. Aurora¡¯s connection with yourpanion doesn¡¯t have to be deep for her to care. Our Aurora is a caring person and lovely person. You should be thankful that she helped you out before.¡±


    Rita lightly pped Aurora on the back to show her support while she addressed Quince at the same time.


    Her tone and her words made even Quince take a step back. His expression shifted from amusement to irritation.<sub></sub>


    Rita¡¯s simple words might have caused his brain to short circuit but they also made Aurora one thing.


    ¡°Although you and Clove are strangers to me there is something familiar about you that makes me want to help you out. If you find this disturbing then I won¡¯t approach you again.¡±


    Aurora was making things tooplicated with her thinking. She was thinking about the possibility of the impossible.


    Even if Quince did figure out about Aurora and his past, would he be able to ept it? Time-reversing was an impossible phenomenon.


    ¡®Quince won¡¯t ept such an absurd possibility. There is no reason for me to feel this nervous.¡¯


    Aurora gave Rita a thankful smile to show that she was grateful for the support. It had been Rita and her quick action that brought Aurora out of her bind.


    ¡°Remind you of someone, huh? I can¡¯t say that I understand but I won¡¯t ask you to stay away from us either. Clove likes you so I guess I can learn to tolerate you as well.¡±


    Even though Quince said that Aurora could feel his aura gettingfortable with her.


    Now that Quince did not fight 24/7 with her for Clove¡¯s attention, the open hostility he showed Aurora was gone from his being.


    Now Quince behaved with her like behaved with any other acquaintance.<sub></sub>


    ¡°I¡¯ll get the coordination ready for you but are you sure you want to head to the 8th floor? With this circle, you can go all the way over to the 10th floor and avoid running into other monsters.¡±


    ¡°I know. But the 8th floor is where we need to go.¡±


    ¡°Alright. If that¡¯s what you want me to do then I¡¯ll send you out there.¡±


    Quince nodded along, knowing that he would not be able to sway the party in any way. He could see their unwavering determination in their expression.


    The teleportation circle sprang to life when Quince dropped his blood on it. His magic flowed into the circle and created a pool of light.


    ¡°This will take you to a random ce on the 8th floor. I could not set the pool to the usual coordinates since they correspond to the tower base and I¡¯m sure you want to avoid that encounter.¡±


    ¡°Ah, yes. Thank you for your help regarding this issue.¡±


    Aurora thanked the young teen before following her twopanions. They had already disappeared into the pool of light but Aurora had not wanted to leave without saying a word before leaving.


    The pool¡¯s light reached her burst before she heard another pair of footsteps and a familiar presence made itself known to the pair.


    ¡°Quince, what is going on? Are we going somewhere?¡­..W-Wait, I think I¡¯m going to fall.¡±<sub></sub>


    Aurora quickly turned around, only to meet wide blue eyes that were falling along with Aurora into the pool.


    ¡°Clove, what are you doing?¡±


    Clove seemed to have lost her bnce. (how she got so close to the pool without notice was anyone¡¯s guess). Her body fell toward Aurora and Aurora hurried up to catch the younger female.


    At the same time, Quince had reached out to fish Clove out as well but the momentum his body preserved caused him to slip up and fall as well.


    The trio fell into the light pool as it got cut off from the other side.


    ===========================


    Natasha and Rita made it to the other side rtively safely before they felt that something was wrong.


    Aurora had not arrived through the light but it seemed to be fading from around the pair.


    ¡°What the fuck? Did that tower brat trick us?¡± Rita cursed as she watched the pool¡¯s connection get cut off.


    She could not believe that she had decided to trust a tower official. In the end, they all had been tricked and now they were separated.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think it was Quince¡¯s doing. I think something forcefully changed the coordination of the pool. There was a slight flicker of power when I tried to sense the flow of power on the other side.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s exnation was clear and to the point. Rita chose to believe her since Natasha was much more sensitive about magical matters.


    Still, it does not change the fact that their group had been separated by some kind of higher power.


    p?(??)? ?o??? ¡°Shit. What should we do now? We don¡¯t even know where we are in the abyss.¡±


    The more Rita thought about her situation, the more annoyed she felt. It did not help that her powers were as good as gone in her current condition.


    She had only Natasha to rely on and even Natasha could only do so much. The pair had not realized just how much they had been dependent on Aurora to keep them safe.


    ¡°Rita, I cannot help but feel like yournguage is getting cruder and cruder each day and so is your brain. Anyway, we can use the system to lead us back to Aurora. Whatever is affecting this ce seems to not affect our system at all. I can still see Aurora¡¯s position on it.¡±


    ¡°Really? Let me see. Whoa, you are right.¡±


    Natasha wanted to shake her head at Rita¡¯s obviousck of foresight. Sometimes, Rita behaved more like a teenager than an adult she was.


    ¡°Sometimes I wonder who is the adult between you and me. You act so childishly most of the time that I forget you are over 21 years old.¡±


    ¡°Technically I am 17 years old but the abyss aged me quite a bit in its trial and my body is nearly 24 years old. Does it still make me a teenager? I¡¯m not quite sure but I do feel horny like a teenager.¡±


    ¡°You! Let¡¯s just forget this conversation ever happen.¡±


    This was, by no doubt, the weirdest conversation Natasha ever had the pleasure of being a part of.


    For all the information they had shared, Natasha had never bothered to ask Rita about her past. There were some things Natasha knew about Rita but they were mostly small pieces of information Rita ended up revealing.


    It was the first time Rita had feltfortable sharing such a big secret of hers. Natasha did not want to carelesslyment on it and hurt the elder.


    ¡°Do you think we should risk moving from this ce? We are not the best fighters right now and we alsock resources.¡±


    Most of the resource management was done by Aurora since she knew what their party would and would not need on this journey.


    But Natasha and Rita could not sit back and wait for Aurora toe and find them either. That would put too much pressure on Aurora.


    ¡°Let¡¯s take it one step at a time. The first thing we should do is to find the night market on this floor. Since the sun is still up, we likely have a few hours to start heading toward it.¡±


    ¡°But where should we even be headed? It¡¯s not like we know where the night market will be held.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t but the other humans might know. I can see some humanoid life signals when I opened the map. I¡¯m sure I will be able to force out some information out of them if I yed my cards right.¡±


    ¡°Sure. Do what you want to but don¡¯t get hurt in the process. I won¡¯t exin to Aurora what happened here.¡±

 Chapter 172 172: 404: Error - part 2

    The light of the teleportation pool was blinding but it did not hurt Aurora¡¯s eyes. She could still see clearly when she opened her eyes after being transported to the 8th floor.


    However, Quince and Clove did not seem to be having as good a time as she was. Clove seemed to be adjusting better but Quince looked miserable.


    ¡°Darn it Clove. Why did you have to push us all in? Are you even alright? I cannot see anything right now.¡±


    Aurora sighed before making her way toward Quince. The poor teen might not be liked by Aurora but he had been someone Aurora had respected and dependent on.


    He had also kept Clove safe this far for Aurora so she did not mind helping him feel better.


    ¡®I guess I did care for Quince even after all our fights.¡¯


    Aurora¡¯s hands covered the teen¡¯s eyes and she endured the elbow jab she got in her stomach for her effort.


    ¡®This brat! I want him to go blind now,¡¯ but Aurora did help him out even with her mentalining.


    There was a short burst of magic and Aurora let Quince go. She had to dodge the next elbow jab Quince tried to hit her with.


    ¡°Calm down. I was just trying to help you before you went blind. Clove, should I help you out as well?¡±


    ¡°Yes, please.¡±


    Quince did not say anything when he tried to open his eyes. His green-colored eyes did look better after having gotten the treatment. The milky-white sheen they had sprouted beforehand was as good as gone now.<sub></sub>


    Aurora turned toward Clove after she had gotten consent. She tried to move Clove¡¯s head around to see the damage but she could not spot anything.


    ¡°Clove, can you see me?¡±


    Aurora tried to gauge the damage but it was clear to her that Clove did not sustain any.


    ¡°My eyes are a little blurry. Can you help me out?¡±


    Whatever Aurora wanted to say was left unsaid in her throat. Aurora was weak against Clove¡¯s begging and she ended upplying with her.


    ¡°Come here and close your eyes. I will see what I can do for you.¡±


    Aurora ced her hand on top of CLove¡¯s eyes and used her magic. As she had expected, there was nothing for her to repair beyond basic fatigue.


    p??-??-. Clove¡¯s blurry vision must be due to her sudden moment and not due to an injury she sustained.


    ¡°You should be alright now. Do you feel better?¡±


    ¡°Of course I do. I am thankful for your help.¡±


    Aurora felt weird to be flirted with by someone who looked half her age. Technically, Aurora and Clove were the same age and always had been.<sub></sub>


    But the tower had deposited Aurora back in the past with her adult body and she even had adult memories. In that regard, wasn¡¯t Aurora the adult here?


    ¡°Your flirting disgusts me. Clove, Aurora is like, twice your age so show some restraint.¡±


    ¡°She is not. She¡¯s more like, 10 years older than me. It is not that much. Weren¡¯t your parents over 25 years apart in age?¡±


    ¡°That is a different case. My mother is a minor goddess so she ages slowly. Compared to her, my father looks like the older one. And also, they were both adults when they married. You are still a teen so control yourself.¡±


    ¡°Why should I? Ahhhh, I get it. You are jealous of me, right? You are jealous that Aurora likes me more than you.¡±


    ¡°No way. You know I don¡¯t swing that way. Besides, she¡¯s too old for me anyway.¡±


    Aurora had no idea how her trying to help Clove had evolved into a mini-fight between the pair.


    It was nothing serious but it was certainly the first time Aurora had seen the pair fight amongst themselves. It was amusing, to say the least.


    Herugh caught the pair¡¯s attention and their irritated eyes turned toward her.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you now? Do you find our fight that much fun?¡±


    Quince¡¯s words caused Aurora tough even louder. The more sheughed, the more irritated the pair in front of her got.<sub></sub>


    Aurora had to try her hardest to control her emotions or she was sure she would hurt herself with herughter.


    ¡°Enough with yourughter. Are my feelings for you a joke? I am quite serious about you.¡±


    Aurora stoppedughing as soon as she heard Clove¡¯s serious voice. She knew that voice quite well since she had heard it quite often in the past.


    Clove was serious in her im about being interested in Aurora. Maybe it was fate for Clove and Aurora to fall in love at the first nce with each other. That was the only exnation Aurora could give for receiving such an earnest confession.


    But, even with that being said, Aurora only had one thing to say about this situation.


    ¡°I am thankful for your confession but I cannot ept it. It is not because you arecking something but rather because of your age. Quince is right in saying that you are too young for me. So you should grow up first and then confess again.¡±


    Aurora finished her words and picked herself up. Her conversation with the pair had distracted her from her surroundings but she quickly decided to rectify that.


    Now that she was paying attention to her surroundings, she could tell that there was something weird about it. She recognized the banners on the wall and even the residual energy clinging to this ce.


    ¡°Quince isn¡¯t this ce¡­..¡±


    ¡°The tower¡¯s base on the 8th floor. But I cannot feel anyone¡¯s life signature.¡±


    And neither could Aurora. It was like the whole base was devoid of any form of life.


    ¡°Clove, stay close to us. Clove?¡±


    Quince called out to their thirdpanion but she seemed to have disappeared into thin air. It was so much like Clove to have done this that it left Aurora baffled.


    ¡®Some things never change no matter what you do.¡¯


    ===========================


    To say that Clove was disappointed would be an underestimation. She had done so well to hide her intentions and make her fall into the light pool as an ident.


    But Quince had decided to apany her and flop her ns. He had even managed tond in the same position Clove had intended for her and Aurora.


    He was also interfering with Clove¡¯s n to figure out what was going on between her and Aurora. There was an invisible bond between them both that Aurora was more than aware of.


    Clove had tried to figure out this bond but her efforts had been in vain. It was not a matter of attraction or even not having feelings.


    Clove could feel that Aurora liked her enough to stick to her. But she still refused Clove.


    So Clove had decided to be direct about her intentions and to let Aurora know that refusal was not an option. But of course, Quince had butted in.


    And Aurora had found the most useless excuse to reject Clove, her age. Age was never a factor when it came to things between the divinity that lived for centuries and even beyond.


    It had caused all of Clove¡¯s ns to flop and now she had to find a way to age her body to her adult years.


    ¡®Having my adult body back would be nice. I can fuck Aurora without a problem if I¡¯m an adult. And I can also tell that she liked my adult face. I cannot wait to ditch this small body.¡¯


    Clove was lost in her thoughts so and that was what she would me her getting lost on.


    And then there was the problem of being followed around by something she could not see. But she could feel the energy signature from just behind her.


    ¡°You have some nerve to stalk me outright. Don¡¯t you know you will be killed if you are not careful?¡±


    Clove condensed her magic into a small before throwing it toward her stalker.


    She felt the moment that invisible entity moved around to avoid her attack. It seemed it had a little intelligence left in that tiny brain of his.


    Not that Clove cared. Why would she care about something that was doomed to die ever since it decide to target her?


    The monster didn¡¯t even see Cloveing before she separated its head from its body.


    A gigantic lizard head fell on the ground and the invisible body became visible in a matter of seconds.


    ¡°So it was a monster foolish enough to stalk me? Surely this is not the only one in the base.¡±


    Clove could not feel more monsters around her but she did not doubt that there were more monsters around.


    Looking around her, she could recognize the building she was in to be the tower¡¯s base for floor 8th. Theck of people around her likely meant that everyone else was killed off in a surprise attack.


    ¡°Hoh? Things are starting to get interesting now. I wonder if I can get some practice out of killing these ants.¡±

 Chapter 173 173: Help me out

    ¡®When I thought that some things never change, this was not what I had in mind.¡¯


    Aurora fainted to her right as she watched the monster attack her from behind. She tried looking around for Quince but had effectively lost him in the mass of bodies surrounding her.


    Not only that, Aurora could not even risk using her powers since she was in a tower-controlled area.


    ¡®Fuck this shit. I want out of here.¡¯


    Aurora did not have a phobia of insects but was sure she would develop one if she had to spend more time in this domain infested with such filth.


    The monsters she was facing could only be described as mutated insects found in history books and preservation manuals.


    ¡°Quince, are you still alive? Do you need me to help you out?¡±


    Aurora yelled over the insects¡¯ loud noise. The massive out load of bodies surrounding her made it difficult for Aurora to spot Quince.


    ¡°Of course, I am alive and kicking. You don¡¯t need to worry about me. If you have time to get away, then go and find Clove. She might have backed herself into a difficult situation.¡±


    Quince¡¯s voice was faint but still firm. He seemed to have suffered no injury.


    ¡®As expected. Quince is strong, even at this age.¡¯<sub></sub>


    Since Aurora had been assured about Quince¡¯s safety, it was about time for her to get moving as well.


    The monsters hade out of nowhere to attack the pair when they had been looking for Clove. Aurora was sure that there was a monster nest somewhere close to their present location.


    ¡®Someone must have rattled their nest. These monsters are not one to make a fuss otherwise.¡¯


    Aurora dispatched a few monsters that were trying to get past her. Hernce cleanly served the head of the giant insect that managed to approach her silently.


    Transparent blood covered Aurora from head to toe as soon as she killed the insect. No matter how careful Aurora managed to be, it did not matter at all in front of the owner of the insect-type body.


    ¡°Such unpleasant things. I hope Clove is having a better time than me while dealing with these things.¡±


    Aurora was not confident that it would be the case but Aurora still hoped that Clove had not run into these monsters.


    But now that Aurora had finally managed to find herself alone, she could make use of her system and even use her powers as the goddess.


    Once she let her aura go, no monster dared to approach Aurora anymore. Those that were brave enough to venture close to Aurora met their end by her hand.


    Aurora quickly looked over her system for Clove but it was of no use. There was too much disturbance between her and the other female. Even Quince¡¯s signal nearby red only for a second before being overtaken by the monsters.<sub></sub>


    ¡®There are far too many monsters here. It almost seems like they are being born every second. Is there a birth nest nearby? The queen monster must be strong, at least Swarm level.¡¯


    The reproduction speed of these insects did not look normal. It had to be some kind of boss monster that caused such a huge surge of abyssal monsters.


    Aurora was so lost in thoughts that she missed the signs of danger, but her body was not as clueless as her.


    Aurora dodgers the iing pincer but she would have been saved even if she had not managed to dodge the attack on time.


    There was a sharp knife embedded in the wall inches away from Aurora¡¯s current position which held the pincer in ce.


    The familiar shape of the knife handle gave away who the thrower had been.


    ¡°Aurora, you¡¯re not hurt, right? I tried to avoid you but I¡¯m sorry if I identally hit you.¡±


    Aurora let out an unconscious smile as she looked toward Clove¡¯s slightly panicked face. Her once-lover was still an excellent shot and she had managed to save Aurora from a grave injury.


    Now that Aurora thought back on what all she had experienced, this scene looked somewhat familiar to her. She was sure something like this had happened in the past as well.


    ¡°Aurora, are you alright? Did I somehow break you? You are not moving.¡±<sub></sub>


    ¡°Of course I am alright. I am not as fragile as to get hurt by a mere knife. But thank you for saving my life.¡±


    Clove¡¯s face looked slightly flushed at the praise from Aurora and it filled Aurora with a light warmth.


    It was not quite what Aurora felt in the past for Clove but it was close enough. And the fondness had never gone away from her feelings.


    ¡°I am d I was of any help. I don¡¯t know what happened here. One minute it was all alright, the next minute I was surrounded by all these monsters.¡±


    Clove sounded confused about what was going on around her. It was a given since she had not gotten the time to look around or spend time thinking about what had happened.


    ¡°Someone must have triggered the monsters by attacking their main nest. Did you run into anyone while you were trying to find us?¡±


    ¡°No. I did not see anyone and I didn¡¯t see a dead body either.¡±


    Aurora nodded at Clove¡¯s words. If Clove said that she had not found any dead body then Aurora was willing to believe her.


    ¡°If you did not find anybody then the person who triggered these monsters is still alive. We will need to be vignt. We don¡¯t know what the person wanted when he woke these insects up.¡±


    Clove went quiet after Aurora¡¯s words. Aurora was not sure if it were her words or her tone that caused Clove to go silent in thoughts.


    ¡°What if it was an ident? What if someone identally triggered these insects and they came after everyone else as well?¡±


    ¡°If someone did make this situation by mistake then they must be dead as well. In that case, we should try to get to the monster¡¯s nest and destroy the queen insect.¡±


    To say that a lot of innocent people would die if this nest was not taken care of was an underestimation.


    More than a dozen people were already dead and a lot more will likely die before this problem was taken care of.


    Aurora was not a martyr and she would not even pretend to be one. If it was up to her, then she would likely leave this situation alone and for the tower to handle.


    She would even be able to get Clove to agree with her to abandon this situation and let someone better take over.


    The main problem would be Quince and his noble heart. He would want to take care of this problem as soon as possible and he might even do something reckless in return.


    pA?,??.?0? And Aurora knew from experience, that if Quince would put himself in danger, then Clove would follow after him. It would also put Clove in danger.


    So it was just better for Aurora to handle this situation before things came down to that.


    ¡°Clove, let¡¯s find Quince before he does something drastic.¡±


    Aurora suggested the solution before Clove could even move her mouth. Having known Clove for so long, Aurora already knew what the other wanted to say.


    However, when Clove opened her mouth, the words that came out of her mouth were ones Aurora had never expected to hear in this situation.


    ¡°Is it really necessary for us to go? Quince can take care of this problem, right? We should get out of here before we get hurt.¡±


    Aurora wondered if her ears were ringing or if she had misheard Clove¡¯s words. Did Clove ask Aurora to leave Quince alone in such a dangerous situation?


    ¡°I-I mean, Quince is strong and he¡¯s far too advanced for his age. I am sure he can take care of himself.¡±


    Clove quickly rectified her answer as soon as she realized that her words were being taken in the wrong way.


    Not that she needed to make such an effort for Aurora to like her. Still, Aurora could not help but feel like Clove was overestimating Quince a bit here.


    ¡°As decent as Quince is at fighting, he is still a teen and his power is limited. I¡¯m afraid that this situation is too much for him to handle alone. It will be easier if I help him out. You can escape if you are feeling afraid.¡±


    Aurora offered Clove a way out of the present situation.


    Clove had never feared the inevitable but that had been a lifetime ago. This new Clove might have changed in ways Aurora was not even aware of.


    ¡°I am not afraid. I was just worried about you since you are unrted to this mess. But if you are offering to help us out, then I will take you up on your offer.¡±


    Clove¡¯s words were so familiar in a tone that Aurora almost let out a chuckle. Clove had not changed too much after all.

 Chapter 174 174: Working together

    Being with Clove made Aurora forget a lot of bad things in life. Clove was like a drug for Aurora. The more time Aurora spend with her, the more she forgot about this world.


    Maybe that was why Aurora did not notice when the earth started shaking quite violently. It was Clove that managed to pull Aurora aside in time.


    Otherwise, Aurora was sure she would have been crushed by the boulders that were raining down from the ceiling.


    ¡°The ceiling broke due to the shanking. We will need to stay here if we do not want to get crushed.¡±


    Clove sounded irritated at the notion of being stuck. The falling ceiling was doing a great job at reducing the insect poption surrounding the pair but it added more to the overall danger surrounding the two.


    Aurora cursed as she watched the falling boulders getting bigger and bigger.


    ¡°This shelter must be built underground. It exins how the monsters were able to enter the base undetected.¡±


    Aurora had no recollection of ever being on the tower base on floor 8th. It might have been a brief encounter in her time or maybe Aurora bypassed this floor altogether.


    But one thing Aurora could say for sure was that she needed to resolve the issue of this base.


    The falling ceiling had done Aurora a favor and her system was more urately able to tell where Quince was.<sub></sub>


    pa?,??-,c<o>m ¡°Hey, what¡¯s this? Is this some new kind of technology? Can I try it out?¡±</o>


    Aurora was so used to being surrounded by people who respected her or feared her that she never expected the question of the system toe up in a conversation.


    People around Aurora either knew how to operate the system or were polite enough to not ask. However, Clove did not fall into any such category.


    Aurora was unsure about what to tell her. All she could do was raise her hand to not let Clove get her hands on the system screen.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing for you to worry about, Clove. It is just a tool that will help us find Quince faster.¡±


    Aurora summed up the system¡¯s usage in a few simple words. Although her system could do so much more, Aurora did not want to alert Clove about its real usage or even credibility.


    ¡°If you don¡¯t want to tell me then just say so. There is no need for you to get so passive-aggressive with me.¡±


    Aurora instantly felt bad when she heard Clove¡¯s words. In Aurora¡¯s opinion, she had not been that harsh with Clove but maybe her tone hade off as harsher than she had intended it to be.


    ¡°I apologize. This technology is top secret so I cannot show you how it is used. But I  do know where Quince is thanks to the use of this technology.¡±<sub></sub>


    ¡°Alright. If it is not something you can tell me about, then I won¡¯t ask you to show me. We should start moving now or we will be surrounded by these insects again.¡±


    Aurora nodded in understanding as she started moving again. The insects around her were getting restless which made it difficult for Aurora to make out their moments.


    There was also a weird odoring from the base that Aurora could pick up. It smelled vaguely familiar but it was not decent enough for Aurora to recognize all of a sudden.


    But the closer she got to Quince¡¯s location, the more intense the odor became. The underlining sweet smell caused Aurora to almost gag out in repulsion. It was just too bad and it hurt Aurora¡¯s senses.


    ¡°Man, what is this weird smell? It is enough to make me gag.¡±


    Clove¡¯s question mirrored Aurora¡¯s curiosity and repulsion. It seemed like Aurora was not the only person who was smelling the familiar odor.


    Clove was not one toin unnecessarily. So seeing her express her dislike for something was rare and a testament to how ufortable the odor made her feel.


    ¡°You can stay out here if you feel bad. I can go in alone and get Quince out.¡± Aurora assured Clove without missing a beat.


    She did not want to put Clove in a weird position by asking her to enter somece that made her feel sick.<sub></sub>


    ¡°No way. Quince is in there all alone. I need to help him out.¡± Aurora¡¯s offer was declined without even missing a beat but Aurora was not disappointed or even surprised.


    Actually, it was something Aurora had expected to happen ever since she had caught wind of this situation. Quince was someone Clove would always favor so Aurora didn¡¯t even take Clove¡¯s answer to heart.


    ¡°Alright. If you are sure then we should enter the room at the count of three and do our best to get Quince out of there.¡±


    Everything felt so familiar and foreign at the same time. Aurora was not sure if she wanted to be happy or sigh at the experience.


    All she knew was that she had missed this rush of feelings that she experienced every time she was near Clove and she wanted to experience more of it.


    ¡®I never actually managed to fall out of love with Clove, did I? Even now she can make me feel this way.¡¯


    ===========================


    Clove wanted to curse Quince¡¯s foolishness. He just had to go ahead and trybating the monsters that were spread out in the base.


    Clove had managed to track down the insect base as soon as she had started her rampage but she had gotten bored and given up halfway.


    These monsters had been no match for Clove¡¯s superior strength and they could not even make her move from her position, much less get her to take them seriously.


    Had it not been for Clove catching sight of Aurora, Clove might have even ended up destroying the hole wing where the insect monster¡¯s nest was.


    After saving Aurora, Clove had the perfect opportunity to escape the base with Aurora. She had even purposed to leave Quice behind but Aurora had refuted her.


    Aurora might not have said it clearly, but Clove had read the question in her eyes ¨C what about Quince? Are we leaving him behind?


    And Clove had no other choice but to relent her offer of running away. Saving Quince had toe first.


    ¡®Darn that fool. He¡¯s making my life difficult by just existing. If only he was not necessary for my n, I would have ended up killing him.¡¯


    Clove knew she would not have been able to do that in a thousand years. Not because she loved Quince, but because of the necessity of keeping him alive.


    Quince was someone who had too much influence on the tower. He would soon be a pir of the tower and be revered as such.


    To have him on Clove¡¯s side would be a big help in the future and a sure-about way to take the tower down. That was what Clove was banking on forever.


    And that was why here Clove was with Aurora. The primary objective of this mission was to take out Quince alive and destroy the insect monster¡¯s base.


    Clove was sure she had never worked with Aurora in this life before. But her brain and her instincts fell into the support role all on their own. The more Clove positioned herself to cover Aurora, the easier it was for her body to act.


    It almost felt like she had done this a thousand times already.


    ¡®Was Zoe right in her im? I thought I would let the past be but it¡¯s getting more and more difficult to let it go. Being in a rtionship with anyone? I cannot even imagine that in my life.¡¯


    Clove shot down another insect while buffing Aurora at the same time. Her attention was spilt all the way but it was not difficult to defend herself.


    Aurora was already covering the pair while heading toward Quince at the same time.


    The teen had yet to see the pair but Clove had a feeling he was more than aware of their positioning.


    ¡®It feels familiar to me. Even the timing of my buffs is something I cannot help but match with these people. I don¡¯t want to admit it but it¡¯s fun. Fighting together with those two is so much fun.¡¯


    The trio had fallen into a familiar rhythm. There was no time to think, just to act. All three of them were holding back to not destroy the base. But they were also looking after each other at the same time.


    It was something that was out of this world, a kind of energy that could not be matched by fighting with anyone else.


    ¡°Quince, shield the area off. I am going to incinerate the nest now.¡± Quince raised the barrier without question. He was dependable in these times.


    Clove even added her power to the barrier and Aurora finally let the me burst out of her palm.


    And the next exploded with a bang, taking all the surrounding monsters with it. When the fire calmed down, only one body stood in the center of the fire and that was Aurora.

 Chapter 175 175: This obsession

    Even after taking out the insect base, things did not slow down for the trio. They had to dispose of the rest of the insects on their way out and then smoke out the rest of the monsters.


    It was a time-consuming but mindless process that could be easily taken care of. But it also served to remind Aurora of how things had been in past.


    While the circumstances of her cooperation with Quince and Clove were not ideal, they were simr to her past life.


    ¡°Wow, things are so much easier when you have an extra hand around. It makes me want to keep you around longer.¡±


    Aurora felt her neck turn at a breaking speed at hearing those wordse out of Quince. At the same time, a shiver passed down Aurora¡¯s back and her instincts told her to run as far as she could.


    Aurora had rarely gottenpliments from Quince in herst life. The man was busier on finding Aurora¡¯s ws thanplimenting on a deed well done.


    That was why every time Quince as much as hinted at the praise, you could tell that he had an utter motive.


    ¡°Whatever you are going to ask ¨C I will not do it. Find someone else to do your dirty work.¡±


    Quince¡¯s mouth opened and closed like a goldfish. Clove let out a joyousugh at Aurora¡¯s side at the unexpectedeback.


    Aurora was more than aware that not many people have said ¡®no¡¯ to Quince in his lifetime. He was far too important to be angered.


    But those people did not know Quince as Aurora did. Quince was not an omnipotent entity, he was just a human and he was more than capable of rational thinking.<sub></sub>


    ¡°You won¡¯t even hear my request out? Maybe I did underestimate you after all.¡±


    Quince¡¯s words were muttered under his breath but they were not muffled enough not to be heard.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want anything to do with the tower and that also includes you both. I have my own life to live.¡±


    p-?-?-?-?-?-0-?-?-?¡¢?(??) Aurora felt Clove¡¯s eyes ring into her but she ignored those ring eyes. Clove had attachment issues but she got over people easily enough.


    Aurora had promised herself not to take Clove under her wing until she had all of her souls in gathering. But it was going to take a long time for that to happen.


    ¡°I agree. So, what are you going to do now? Are you going to look for the Death Pool now? You know you are courting death, right?¡±


    Clove jumped at Quince¡¯s words. Her eyes were filled with concern and Aurora felt her resolve waver in the wake of such emotions.


    ¡°You should not head there. No human had ever returned alive from there. You will die if you head there now.¡±


    Clove sounded scared. Her voice sounded unlike anything Aurora had ever heard before and she felt her resolve almost breaking at the begging tone.


    But as soon as that thought came to the mind images of her new home and everyone dependent on her also shed by. It helped Aurora make up her mind.<sub></sub>


    ¡°I know it sounds like a crazy idea to head toward the Death Pool but I have my reasons. I am not suicidal enough to throw my life away for no apparent reason.¡±


    Clove did not look like she believed Aurora but Quince seemed to be having no problem in this regard.


    His eyes met Aurora¡¯s and she was not sure what he saw in them but he decided to divert Clove¡¯s attention.


    ¡°Clove, we should start looking for a way back, or the tower will send reinforcement after us. Our team is also waiting for us on the 6th floor so we should leave now.¡±


    ¡°But we cannot leave Aurora here alone. What if the queen is still alive and decided toe back.¡±


    ¡°Then Aurora will have to deal with it on her own. But I don¡¯t think that will be a problem knowing her power level.¡±


    Aurora was not sure what surprised her more ¨C Clove¡¯s desire to help her out or Quince¡¯s confidence in her skills. This was quite opposite of herst life.


    ¡®Who knew staying away from Quince in his childhood and not butting heads with him could help me gain his respect.¡¯


    ¡°You both should start heading back or the tower will get worried. I am sure this ce has nomunication capabilities with the outside so you¡¯ll need to set up an external array.¡±


    Since they all were at the same party, for now, Aurora decided to part her words of wisdom with the other two. Unlike them, Aurora had faced such a situation before.<sub></sub>


    She did not mind helping her two dear friends out in the least.


    ¡°We will do that. Be careful when you go out and hope your journey ends alright.¡±


    Quince¡¯s parting words were not as big of a shock as they would have been in her previous life. It made Aurora wonder how different life would have been had she been more mature in herst life.


    ¡®Would our rtionship have been better if I did not egg Quince about his obvious crush on Clove?¡¯


    But the time for regrets and ¡®what-ifs¡¯ had long passed. Both Quince and Aurora were no longer the people they had once been and their surroundings had changed as well.


    ===========================


    ¡°Are you disappointed to see her go? I was so sure you would try to stop her by any means possible. You even sabotaged the gate to separate Aurora from herpanions.¡±


    Quince watched hispanion with guarded eyes. Clove had an impassive face but he never trusted her face to tell him how Clove felt.


    ¡°So you knew about that already? I admit that I was not thinking straight when I made that decision but I don¡¯t regret it either.¡±


    Quince wanted to pull his hair out of frustration at his childhood friend¡¯s actions. She dared to not even sound guilty when she admitted to her crimes.


    Did she not care what consequences her actions caused for the people around her? What if Aurora¡¯s other twopanions hadnded in a situation just as dangerous as their own?


    ¡°Before you ask- No, I did not care what happened to those other two extras. They were an eyesore anyway and I would have preferred to kill them but I chose to practice restrain.¡±


    Quince could only shake his head at his friend¡¯s cruel words.


    He had known that Clove could be cruel but it was different when he had to face her true self head-on.


    ¡°Anyway, how do we get back to floor 6? Do we have to take the transportation device again?¡±


    ¡°We might have to. We don¡¯t have much time left before we need to send a report back to the main tower branch.¡±


    Quince flinched at Clove¡¯s angry look. He was beginning to notice Clove¡¯s moods more and more. And he was also bing certain of one thing ¨C Clove hated the tower with a passion.


    He was sure that there had been a time Clove real liked being in the tower. She had worked hard to be where she was.


    But things had changed somewhere and Clove¡¯s like had turned into cold indifference and then into hate.


    ¡®It all started when Clove met Aurora, right? That was the beginning of it all.¡¯


    Quince shook his head at that absurd thought. As far as he remembered, Clove had a certain dislike for the tower. It had nothing to do with Aurora or her appearance.


    ¡°By the way, why did you decide to disturb the insect nest in this base? We would have had an easier time killing these monsters off if you did not do it.¡±


    Quince did not doubt that it had been Clove¡¯s doing. There was no one else alive in this base and Clove had a knack fornding herself into difficult situations just because she found them to be fun.


    ¡°Why did I do it? Just to test a few things out and maybe to get rid of my boredom as well. And thanks to that, I got to see something amazing.¡±


    Clove¡¯s eyes had a shine to them. It was different from anything Quince had seen before.


    If he had topare it to something, he would say that it was akin to the shine an addict got when they saw a drug they liked.


    ¡°In that case, I feel sorry for Aurora who is going to be a victim of your obsession. Seems like she will have a hard life ahead of her.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t say that. I will make sure Aurora is happy by my side.¡±


    Quince didn¡¯t even pretend to be surprised. He already knew this was going to happen a long time ago.


    ¡°Hey, Quince, what will happen if I decide to leave the tower? Do you think Aurora will like me better?¡±


    ¡°Clove, you better not dare. Lady Minerva will not allow that to happen at any cost. Besides, I am not sure I want to test her right now. She is not in the best of her moods.¡±


    Clove went quiet at his words but Quince could see that she agreed with him.

 Chapter 176 176: I will leave it to you.

    ¡°Hey, Natasha, I know I said that I wanted to look for Aurora as soon as possible but I think we should sit around and wait for Aurora to find us instead. I don¡¯t want to lead these monsters back to our base.¡±


    Natasha looked at Rita with a dead expression on her face. It had not been her idea to charge out and take the fastest route back possible.


    It had been Rita that had decided to charge out on her own andnd the pair in this situation. Had it been up to Natasha, they would be back at their starting point.


    ¡°Look, I know it is my fault o stop giving me those eyes. The more you re at me, the worse I feel about myself.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s re intensified. Only Rita who had gotten used to looking at Natasha and being able to guess her moods was able to tell recognize this small change in Natasha¡¯s expression.


    ¡°Rita, I am not angry and I also agree with you. We cannot allow Aurora to see this ugly sight. We should deal with these monsters as soon as we can.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s words were well times. As soon as she finished speaking, she had to dodge the attack from the monsters that had cornered her and Rita.


    There were more than a dozen small monsters, all too mindless to be a threat but the number concerned Natasha a little.


    ¡®Is their nest nearby? Did Rita identally trigger these monsters?¡±


    It would be entirely possible for Rita to unknowingly cause this situation. But Natasha did not fault the redhead even if that was the case.


    The fight against the monsters could barely be called even that. These small fries were different from the elite and intelligent opponents Natasha was used to fighting.


    Even Rita was able to hold her own against these monsters without her magic. It truly spoke of the growth the pair had shown ever since they had decided to seal their powers away.<sub></sub>


    ¡°Man, this is the third time we were ambushed by monsters ever since we left our cave. I wonder if Aurora is having this problem as well.¡±


    Rita¡¯s question was not serious. She was just curious about what Aurora was doing all this while.


    She had sent a few messages to Aurora a while back but she had not received any reply to her inquiry yet. She was not even sure if Aurora saw her messages or not.


    pa??? ?<0,>?,?? ¡°Being ignored feels bad. No wonder all those maids back home used toin about their lovers ignoring them. I willin to Aurora as well when I meet her next.¡±


    ¡°What will youin about to me? Let me hear it as well.¡±


    Rita would deny it forever but she did jump up in fright at Aurora¡¯s sudden appearance. She had not even felt Aurora approach the duo and that was why she wasfortableining about her feelings.


    Butining about her feelings in front of the person it was about was a lot more difficult than one could imagine.


    ¡°She wasining that you were ignoring her messages.¡±


    Natasha, as the traitor she was, decided to spoil Rita¡¯s fun and let the cat out of the bag. Rita¡¯s face shed in shame and embarrassment at being called out like this.


    ¡°Oh, I see. I thought getting to you two faster would be better than returning your message ASAP. I guess I made a mistake.¡±


    ¡°N-No, I misunderstood. It¡¯s nice to have you back.¡±<sub></sub>


    Aurora¡¯s suddenughter filled the area at Rita¡¯s quick correction of her mistake. It was a niceugh and one that calmed Rita down.


    It was rare for Aurora tough like this so any circumstance of hearing it, Rita would take dly.


    ¡°It is nice to see you back. Did something happen? We all separated without any notice.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s calm words cut through the atmosphere and returned it to the vignt one it had been before Aurora¡¯s arrival.


    Natasha looked serious when she eyes Aurora. The time for fun and the game was over.


    ===========================


    Aurora had wanted to y a trick on Rita for a long time now, and she finally got her chance.


    She pretended not to have heard anything Rita was saying since it was fun teasing her but Natasha¡¯s words reminded Aurora that they were not out of danger just yet.


    ¡°Something interfered with the spell. It was too brief for me to be able to tell what interfered but it had to be something major. I think we should be careful on this floor.¡±


    Aurora could have sworn that she felt a goddess¡¯s power in the pool when she had been about to teleport.


    But that could not be possible since the abyss was not supposed to have any other goddess other than her.<sub></sub>


    ¡°So, you mean to say that we don¡¯t know why this happened? Did someone want to lure us somewhere?¡±


    Rita¡¯s question did make sense. Aurora had thought of that before well but things did not quite connect in her mind.


    Why would someone try to lure them here?


    ¡°Who knows. But we are short on time. Let¡¯s head toward Lake Variety now. We will need to find a guide on our way there.¡±


    Aurora did not want to spend any more time thinking about the teleportation case than she had to. Especially because there was only one conclusion Aurora could reach.


    ¡®My instincts are telling me that it was Clove who interfered with the spell. But I cannot rationalize it.¡¯


    The more Aurora thought about this topic, the more her head hurt. So she decided to stop thinking about it.


    ¡°How are we going to find a guide to that ce? No human cane back from Lake Variety alive and I somehow doubt the mindless goon on this floor will be of any help to us.¡±


    Aurora agreed with Rita in that regard. All she had seen on this floor were mindless monsters that could not be reasoned with.


    One could not put their trust in these monsters because they did not have enough intelligence to even hold a conversation.


    However,


    ¡°Ava took care of our guide for us. She gave me the address of someone who can lead us into Lake Variety without getting us killed in the process.¡±


    Aurora was suspicious of Ava¡¯s intentions at first as well. This was too generous of an offer for the overlooker to make.


    But thinking back at it, Ava was only following Aurora¡¯s orders to help her out. It did make sense for Ava to go out of her way to acquire such contacts for Aurora.


    Aurora¡¯s safety instincts didn¡¯t even go off when Ava gave her the information slip so Aurora felt safe to trust her on this.


    ¡°It¡¯s from Ava? Are you sure it is alright to use it? Ava isn¡¯t the most trustworthy and I have a feeling that she is using us for her good.¡±


    Rita seemed to still have a bad impression of Ava. it seemed like she was never really going to warm up to Ava at this rate.


    ¡°I think we should check it out. If you brought it up now then that means you have decided to trust Ava¡¯s judgment on this issue?¡±


    Natasha was someone who got Aurora¡¯s thought process. Unlike Rita who acted on her emotions, Natasha gave things a deeper thought before she spoke about them.


    ¡°Ahhh, I can just tell that things are going to get annoying. Aurora, can I back out now.¡±


    ¡°Rita, I cannot help but feel like you are getting more and more unhinged as time is passing. Where did that obedient and cute child from before go?¡±


    ¡°She died under the stress. Man, I don¡¯t want to do anything Ava has nned for us but I will do so because you asked me to.¡±


    Aurora felt warmth fill her being. Rita surely had a way with words and she surely had changed a lot from the time Aurora had found her.


    Aurora met Natasha¡¯s eyes on Rita¡¯s other side and the ck-haired beauty gave Aurora a reassuring smile back.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I am with you as well. As long as there are two of us, I am sure we can keep Rita in check. So you can depend on me as well.¡±


    ¡®Ah, I¡¯m no longer alone now. These two arepanions who will never leave me.¡¯


    Aurora was thankful for the support and that was also why she decided to go along with her desires.


    Call her weak but Aurora was never someone to hold back when she knew what she wanted from life.


    ¡°Hey, in that case, I would like your help with something. I think we should get the corruption out of the way before we head toward theke.¡±


    Aurora got two pairs of wide eyes looking at her before Rita grabbed her hand and decided to drag her toward the cave in the distance.


    Natasha followed not too far.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We will take care of you so leave your body to us.¡±

 Chapter 177 177: A new kind of play - part 1

    ¡®Don¡¯t worry. We will take care of you so leave your body to us.¡¯


    As soon as Aurora had heard those words, she knew she would end up between Natasha and Rita somehow. The pair had not tried to hide their intentions from Aurora in any way.


    As soon as Aurora¡¯s back had hit the cave, Natasha¡¯s mouth had been on her own. The kiss was unlike anything Aurora had experienced from the shy girl.


    Natasha was taking the initiative this time. Rita seemed to be taking this time to sit back and enjoy the view.


    Aurora had not thought Rita capable enough to sit back and enjoy the view. Generally, Rita was the jealous type and she did not like to share her things.


    ¡®But Natasha¡¯s closeness to me never seemed to bother her before.¡¯


    Aurora¡¯s mind was a mess. She was not thinking too much about anything right now. Natasha¡¯s enthusiasm certainly made up for the technique shecked.


    Even now, her inexperienced tongue was trying to get Aurora to fight back against her.


    ¡°Aurora, you are enjoying this far more than you are showing us, right? Your ears are red.¡±


    Rita¡¯s voice was heavy in Aurora¡¯s ear. She had not noticed when the younger had moved near her.


    Not that Natasha was giving her much of a choice to focus on anything but the kiss. The more Aurora tried to divert her attention, the more Natasha tried to bring back her focus.


    However, it seemed like Rita was done being a bi-stander. Aurora could feel a pair of cold hands making their way beneath her top and fondling her chest.


    ¡°Rita¡­stop¡­it¡±<sub></sub>


    Aurora thought she was pushing her body away from the sensation. But the more she tried to push away, the better she felt Natasha¡¯s coldness on her body.


    A cold pair of hands pinched Aurora¡¯s nipples and she instantly flinched at the sensation. It caused her back to arch into a soft chest and a pair of lips attacked her mouth.


    ¡°Rita, it must be a hard angle for Aurora. Her neck might pain if you kiss her in that position.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s voice washed over Aurora as she was kissed harshly. Rita¡¯s tongue was dominating and non-yielding.


    A pinch on Aurora¡¯s side caused her mouth to fall open even wider and Rita did not miss this chance to pull Aurora¡¯s head back even further.


    As Rita had said, it was a painful position to maintain for Aurora but it did not hurt yet.


    ¡®Need to take back control.¡¯


    Aurora feltpelled to act by her instincts. She did not enjoy defending herself, and the corruption was enhancing this emotion in the goddess part of her.


    Aurora needed to let Rita know that it was a bad idea to keep Aurora unbounded. The sh of powers inside Aurora was already making her lose focus.


    ¡°Rita, the ropes. I cannot hold on any longer.¡±


    Aurora pulled back from the kiss somehow. Her awkward posting made it difficult for Aurora to be able to move. She was even sure her feet were barely touching the ground and her back was positioned in a painful arc.


    ¡°I understand. Natasha, distract Aurora.¡±<sub></sub>


    ¡°Wait, how have I supposed to-? Oh, forget it¡±


    Before Aurora recovered from being abruptly let go by Rita, she was pulled back into Natasha¡¯s arms.


    This caused a sudden loss of bnce and Aurora fell. Shended right on top of Natasha¡¯sp in an awkward sprawl.


    ¡°Are you alright¡­¡±


    Before forcibly locking lips with Aurora once more, Natasha pulled back on her head. Before touching Aurora¡¯s ass, her icy fingertips searched over her remarkably warm body.


    Natasha then squeezed her there.


    It was unexpected for Aurora. It was her first time being touched like that.


    For all intent and purpose, Aurora had never really experimented outside vaginal sex. Even Clove had not touched her there.


    It was a part of Aurora that was as virgin as it could be.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? You seem sensitive there. Should I tease you more?¡±


    Aurora wanted to ask Natasha not to touch her on the back but her words never escaped her lips.


    Like a shark that had tasted blood, Natasha jumped at Aurora¡¯s weakness in an instant. Before Aurora knew it, she was trying to push her body more and more into Natasha¡¯s hand.<sub></sub>


    ¡°Rita, I think I found Aurora¡¯s weakness.¡±


    Aurora tried to stop Natasha from speaking anymore but her arms felt heavy to lift. Her pleasure was making Aurora useless and it was even clouding her mind.


    ¡®She won¡¯t get away with it. I need to push this bitch down and show her where she belongs.¡¯


    Aurora¡¯s thoughts were a mess. They were a mixture of corruption and her dominant instincts.


    Her arms were finally moving but not under her influence. They were moving because the corruption wanted her to move them.


    Aurora¡¯s handsnded on Natasha¡¯s breasts and she squeezed.


    But before Aurora could go any further, a bigger pair of hands took her wrists hostage and her arms were bound on top of her body.


    ¡®I won¡¯t be contained. Not this time.¡¯


    When Aurora attempted to escape, she was obstructed by two sets of hands. Natashapleted the remaining knots as Rita¡¯s body covered her own.


    ¡°Back with us now? I¡¯m sorry I took my time.¡±


    Rita dared to not even sound sorry. She did not know how close the situation had been for Aurora.


    But the goddess chose not to worry her.


    She could feel her instincts trying to break free and then recognizing that they would not be able to.


    ¡°Next time, do this sooner so that I don¡¯t have to worry about your safety.¡±


    Aurora was not ying about the safety of her group. But it seemed like her partners did not care about her holding back.


    ¡°I don¡¯t mind. The worst you can do is be rough with us. I think Rita might even enjoy that.¡±


    ¡°I would but hey, that¡¯s not the point. Today is about Aurora so let¡¯s focus on her.¡±


    Aurora felt like she was being ganged up upon. But before she could say anything, she was being kissed hard by Rita.


    The younger girl was taking advantage of Aurora¡¯s inability to move and was positioning Aurora¡¯s body over herp.


    Her hardness was pressing against Aurora¡¯s wet pussy but thedy was not even ashamed to rub against Aurora.


    pa?,??-,c<o>m However, Natasha¡¯s hands were what Aurora was more conscious about. They were crawling closer and closer to Aurora¡¯s ass.</o>


    The more they tried to caress her, the more Aurora tried to push back from them. And the more Aurora tried to push back from them, the more she pressed herself against Rita¡¯s hard cock.


    ¡°Aurora, stop trying to get away from me. I am not going to eat you alive. I just want to y with you a little.¡±


    Natashained as she finally got a good hold of Aurora¡¯s side.


    She instantly turned Aurora back to face her while Rita sat obediently at her ce.


    ¡°Hey, Rita. I think we should try something new with Aurora today. Have you ever tried anal sex before?¡±


    ¡°Anal? Can¡¯t say I have but are you sure? Are you offering?¡±


    ¡°Me? No. But I think Aurora is interested in it. Every time I touch her there, she flinches but never pulls away from me.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s voice was near Aurora¡¯s ear. It highlighted the essence of her voice and made Aurora shiver at the low tone she heard.


    She wanted to protest but her body seemed a little too into the idea of Anal sex. Aurora hated how easily her body betrayed her emotions.


    ¡°Aurora, I want a verbal answer from you. Are you interested in this offer? I won¡¯t do it if you feel ufortable with this idea.¡±


    Although Rita said that, Aurora could tell that she was interested in it as well. Her cock got harder at the idea of typing out something new.


    Aurora could see the exciting spirit Rita had and she could even see the smug expression Natasha had.


    Aurora knew she should say no. Aurora knew she should not give in today. If she gave in today then there woulde a time when these two would demand even more ridiculous things from her.


    But Aurora did want to do something for Natasha and Rita. they had decided to stick with her this far.


    She could always me herck of protest on her current state which was pleasure filled and making her lose her mind.


    ¡°Alright, you can fuck my ass. But be gentle because it will be my first time and¡­.Natasha, slow down.¡±


    As soon as Aurora had finished speaking, she felt a pair of cold hands on her back. Natasha was ying with her ass and she was even good at that.


    ¡°Natasha, you prepare her for me back there and I will take care of her pussy. I¡¯m sure we can get Aurora toe before I fuck her.¡±


    Aurora hated how she was being handles but her body loved the treatment.

 Chapter 178 178: A new kind of play - part 2

    ¡°N-No more. Rita, stop touching my butt. I don¡¯t like it.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s moans fueled Rita even more. She had not anticipated herself as a butt kind of person but it seemed she will have to re-evaluate her preferences.


    ¡®But then again, it¡¯s Aurora¡¯s butt I like. It¡¯s pale and pink, just like her skin. It is attractive just like Aurora. Maybe I should try punching it?¡¯


    As soon as the impulse came, Rita followed through with it. She could not help herself when such a prime opportunity presented itself.


    ¡°Ritaaaaaaaaaaaa~¡±


    Aurora was not one to moan openly during sex but it seemed like her self-restrain was nowhere to be seen today. This was the first time Rita had seen Aurora so helpless.


    Natasha was not missing this opportunity either. As soon as Aurora had opened her mouth, she had found fingers inside.


    ¡°Aurora, suck them good. I need my fingers wet to stretch you out.¡±


    Natasha seemed to be in a mean mood as well. Had it been a different situation, Rita would have reminded her that saliva did not make up for a good lubricant.


    ¡®But then again, Aurora is slick enough to not need much preparation in her pussy. It is her ass I will need to stretch out first.¡¯


    There was ack of lubrication but Rita did not seem to mind. Aurora was producing enough slick to use it for her ass as well.


    ¡°Aurora, lend me your pussy for now. Be a good girl and slick Natasha¡¯s fingers for her.¡±


    Aurora moaned at the order but did as she was asked to do. Her submissiveness was something new.


    Rita¡¯s fingers were slick and wet. Aurora was dripping today and it was making Rita feel hotter.


    ¡®This is dangerous. This feeling of power and dominance is addicting. I don¡¯t want to get caught up in this feeling even further.¡¯


    Rita¡¯s mind was warning her to be cautious but her body had other ideas. Her fingers were already stretching Aurora¡¯s pussy out and Natasha was ying with Aurora¡¯s breasts.


    Aurora was like a doll caught between two beasts who were doing their best to lead her ording to their wishes.


    ¡°Natasha, I will be starting on Aurora¡¯s ass. You should fill her up here so that Aurora¡¯s pussy doesn¡¯t feel lonely.¡±


    ¡°Hey, there is no-¡°


    ¡°I got it.¡±


    Aurora sounded like she wanted to say something but the pair was not going to give her any chance to protest.


    As soon as Rita took her slick fingers out of Aurora, Natasha¡¯s mouth upied that space. They gave Aurora no time to adjust to this change in sensation.


    Natasha¡¯s tongue was as cold as the rest of her body. It was a direct contrast with the hot wetness inside Aurora¡¯s pussy.


    This contrast in temperature was ufortable but it felt so good to Aurora that her body could not hold on.


    One second Natasha¡¯s face was dry, the next second it contained Aurora¡¯s release.


    ¡°Wow, you came fast. Were you that pent up?¡±


    Natasha¡¯s voice had a teasing tone. Her smile resembled a predator that had found its prey. Natasha¡¯s current positioning of kneeling between Aurora¡¯s legs was sexy enough to even make Rita agree.


    ¡®To think Natasha was a virgin until a weak ago. Some people are talented in these arts.¡¯


    Rita was d to see Natasha fit in with her and Aurora. It made Rita feel assured to see Aurora have someone like Natasha with her.


    ¡®Even when something happens to me, I¡¯m d that Aurora would have Natasha to keep herpany,¡¯ that thought came to Rita all of a sudden.


    It was sudden and provoking. As soon as Natasha thought of it, her body froze and her fingers stopped massaging Aurora¡¯s butt.


    Her abrupt stop did not go unnoticed by Aurora.


    ¡°H-Hey¡­everything¡­.alright~?¡±


    ¡°Of course it is. I was just giving you a moment to brace yourself before I begin.¡±


    As soon as the thought passed Rita¡¯s mind, she decided to forget about it. There were more important things to focus on right now.


    ¡°Stop ignoring me. Rita,e here.¡±


    Natasha decided that she did not like being ignored. But it was weird of her to call for Rita instead of Aurora.


    Aurora¡¯s mischievous grin did not make Rita feel secure. It felt like the female knew something she did not and it worried Rita.


    Still, she decided toply with Natasha¡¯s demand, only to be pulled into a harsh kiss.


    The kiss came out all of a sudden and it took Rita off guard. Natasha seemed to be trying to assert dominance over her and she even seeded for a second.


    When the kiss broke, Rita felt her head swim with all kinds of thoughts. The kiss sessfully chased away any useless thoughts she was having.


    ¡°Empty your mind and focus. Now hurry, Aurora is waiting for you.¡±


    When Rita looked at Aurora who was sandwiched between the pair, she had an amused smirk on her face. Rita could tell that Aurora would not let this moment go if she gave her a chance to start talking.


    So before Aurora could open her mouth, Rita decided to take the initiative and her lubricated finger entered Aurora¡¯s butt.


    ¡®Tight. I will need to open her up good.¡¯


    Aurora¡¯s ass was tighter than Rita had expected it to be. It seemed like Aurora had never tried to y with it before.


    ¡®She¡¯s a true virgin here. I want to take her anal virginity away.¡¯


    Rita had never resented Aurora for not having been a virgin during their first union but there was a certain pleasure in taking someone¡¯s virginity.


    ¡°Rita, want help?¡±


    ¡°No need to. Focus on her pussy.¡±


    Rita fingered Aurora open with one hand while she pulled Natasha¡¯s head toward Aurora¡¯s pussy with the other. Natasha did not disappoint her either.


    As soon as Natasha¡¯s face neared Aurora¡¯s pussy, her tongue came out to y. It was an instant motion and Rita decided to focus on her pleasure.


    She could see Natasha teasing herself to release while pleasuring Aurora. It seemed the pair would not need Rita to help them out for now.


    So Rita took her time ying with Aurora but she did not take too long of a time.


    Her cock was throbbing and Rita needed to find her release as well. Her hard penis wanted to enter Aurora¡¯s soft ass and experience that new tightness.


    ¡°R-Rita, I¡¯m¡­.close¡­.¡±


    Rita could have waited to enter Aurora after Natasha was done with her but she decided not to wait around.


    It was easier to enter Aurora when she was lost in pleasure and the pleasure also made Aurora a loser andxer.


    As soon as Natasha hit her peak, Rita pulled Aurora back into her. Ficking Aurora¡¯s ass was different from fucking her pussy.


    There was ack of wetness and more friction but it was a different kind of pleasure.


    Aurora seemed to be feeling it as well. Her body was tensing and arching into Rita as she thrust into that tightness.


    Meanwhile, Natasha seemed to be recovering. It did not seem like she could go again but she did want to help Aurora out.


    Her tongue returned to Aurora¡¯s pussy and teased her clit. The dual assault was too much for Aurora¡¯s body to handle. She had always been weak to pleasure and this new sensation was confusing her mind.


    ¡°Rita¡­..too¡­much¡­..gonna¡­e.¡±


    Aurora was notining, she was informing Aurora about her body reaching its limit. But Rita seemed too lost in her pleasure to consider what Aurora was saying.


    ¡®Should get out of these bonds and fuck her back.¡¯ But Aurora¡¯s body moved like how Rita and Natasha wanted her to move.


    Natasha¡¯s cold blue eyes stared into Aurora¡¯s own and she received a smirk before her body tensed.


    Her release hit in a matter of seconds.


    One second it felt like too much and the next second, Aurora felt her body hit its limit. Rita did notst long either when Aurora¡¯s ass tightened as a result of her release.


    It was a mess when the pair finished their coption. Aurora could feel the semening out of her ass but her body had no strength to clean herself up.


    Even Rita seemed to spend after that intense round. But she had a content aura around her.


    ¡°Hey, does this mean I will have to clean us up? How is this fair?¡±


    Natashained as soon as she saw the pair copse in front of her. Her voice sounded irritated but her face and aura did not show it.


    She seemed to have enjoyed herself as well.


    ¡°Don¡¯tin Natasha. You did the least work so you can at least clean us up.¡±


    Rita¡¯s voice was not serious as well and Aurora tried to stop herughter from bubbling out of her mouth.


    ¡°Let¡¯s rest for an hour and then set out. We don¡¯t have a lot of time on our hands.¡± Aurora would have liked to stay behind and rest some more. But they werecking time.


    The weekly limit they had was about to reach its end soon.

 Chapter 179 179: Catching a dwarf

    ¡°Ready to head out now? I tracked our guy down and he¡¯s nearby.¡±


    The short period of rest had done a lot for Aurora¡¯s physical health. Her fortitude was the goddess¡¯s recovery tool, but natural rest was still superior.


    Even one hour was enough to make her feel energetic.


    ¡°Sure. Should we bury our tracks this far? We¡¯ve not bothered to hide our presence this far but it could get problematic if we were to get followed from here on.¡±


    ¡°We should. We were not on the tower¡¯s radar before but I feel like the tower will start to take us seriously from here on.¡±


    Aurora was sure that the tower would be a bigger problem for them from here on. The only reason their group had not been targeted this far was that no one knew their affiliations.


    But Aurora knew that Quince would not keep their secret. And once the tower knew, their security would be non-existing.


    ¡°Ok, Take a few steps back and I will torch the ce down. Don¡¯t give me that look. This much is easy to do.¡±


    Aurora was worried for Rita but she ultimately decided to wash her hands off this case. If Rita wanted to torch the cave down, then it was up to her.


    It was not like the cave would have any more used for their group anyway and it was a security risk since it carried too much of their scent.


    ¡°Make sure you mask the smell properly. It would tease you forever if the tower managed to find us because they tracked us by our scents.¡±<sub></sub>


    ¡°Of course, that would not happen. Have some faith in me at least.¡±


    Ritained but she took out her tag from the system storage. It was a newly made one from Aurora¡¯s residual power and it was extremely potent.


    In a way, this usage of the spell was also a trial run to see howpatible Rita was with using Aurora¡¯s magic.


    ¦Ñ?n?a (n??)???? And it worked perfectly. The cave was lit aze within seconds ofing in contact with the magic spell.


    ¡°So now that we took care of it, where should we go next? Our man is on the run, right?¡±


    Aurora nodded at Natasha¡¯s observation. The tracking spell Ava had given Aurora had not worked so far but it had suddenly started working a few minutes ago.


    Aurora could only chalk it up to being a distance issue. Their guide must be nearby but they were not showing themselves.


    ¡°On the run or not, it doesn¡¯t matter to me. I am not in a mood to chase someone down. I guess it is time to let loose.¡±


    Aurora had held back using her magic this far because she did not want to give her identity away to herpanions. But now that she no longer had to keep her secret, it was time to let loose.


    The magic started with a ball of light before it started taking shape into a wolf. This was one of Aurora¡¯s spells she rarely used but it was really useful when she had to track someone down.<sub></sub>


    ¡°Go, drag our guide out.¡±


    The magic left through the boulder before disappearing behind another boulder.


    ¡°Wow, I didn¡¯t think you were capable of summoning magic as well. Will I be getting my spot taken away as the team¡¯s summoner?¡±


    Rita was joking, this much Aurora knew but she did not want Rita to entertain such useless thoughts.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be ridiculous. I am not a summoner and that was no summoned. I just forced my magic to take a physical form and it naturally turned out as a wolf.¡±


    ¡°Oh, is that so? I didn¡¯t even know something like this was possible.¡±


    Rita sounded relieved with the discovery. Aurora was d that she had decided to interfere before Rita could get any more ridiculous ideas in her head.


    ¡°It is not difficult to create such creatures out of magic but theyck utility and have to be manually controlled. I¡¯m d we have Rita as our summoner so that we don¡¯t have to waste magic on such useless tasks.¡±


    Natasha was not one to speak uselessly. So seeing her speak in such a situation was rare for Aurora. Rare and also heartwarming.


    Natasha was trying to cheer Rita up in her own way. It was awkward at best but it was heartwarming for those who knew Rita.<sub></sub>


    ¡°So I am your manualborer now? You don¡¯t have to tter me like this to gain my favor. I will still do my best when I regain my powers.¡±


    Rita forced out augh but it turned genuine pretty soon. Aurora was d to see that Rita was not feeling down.


    It was difficult for Aurora to remember that Rita was a teenager mentally. Just because her body was that of an adult, it did not mean her mind was as well.


    ¡°Look, the wolf is back. And doesn¡¯t it look like it is carrying something in its jaws?¡±


    Aurora, whose attention was on Rita, quickly looked over to where Rita was pointing. She could make out a familiar shape in that direction and she could also feel her magic.


    It seemed like the wolf she had created had ended up finding what she had sent it to find.


    ¡°Spit it here¡±


    Aurora opened her hand to receive what the wolf had brought back. She was sure that the wolf had a clue about their guide but the wolf spat out a dwarf on Aurora¡¯s hand instead.


    The small body on Aurora¡¯s hand was alive and humming with energy. She could tell that the dwarf was alive and well.


    It was also awake but pretending to be asleep. The irregr heartbeat beneath her hands gave the dwarf away.


    ¡°Ahhhhhh, I think we killed it. What should we do with it? Should we throw it away and look for a new guide?¡±


    Aurora saw the aura flicker with hope as soon as Rita spoke those words. The dwarf was amusing to see but Aurora was annoyed to see it trying to trick them.


    ¡®I guess I will have some fun as well.¡¯


    ¡°No. Let¡¯s dissect every part of this dwarf and sell its organs. I am sure it will fetch a huge market price.¡±


    Aurora was faced with the twin¡¯s looks of concern at her words. She was even sure Rita was giving her the look which screamed ¡®concerned¡¯ but Aurora did not back down or correct her words.


    All she did was give the pair a gentle and calming smile back and it seemed to be enough for Natasha to get the message.


    ¡°Ah, I see. I think I know of some ces where we can get this dwarf dissected. But first, we should preserve its body in frozen cold. I don¡¯t want it to dpose before we reach the upper floors. Here, let me¡­¡±


    As soon as Natasha¡¯s cold hands touched the dwarf, it jumped up in fright. It had tears filling up its huge eyes and he gave the trio his most pitiful look.


    ¡°P-Please don¡¯t kill me. I will do whatever you want me to. Please don¡¯t kill me.¡±


    Aurora tightened her hold around the dwarf as soon as it showed that pitiful expression. She was not surprised to see what a good actor and liar the dwarf was.


    ¡°Drop the act. I know the overlooker told you we wereing. You were trying to run away from us, right?¡±


    Aurora tightened her fist even more and she continued doing that until the dwarf found it difficult to breathe.


    Only then did the dwarf breaks its pitiful mask and showed its true colors.


    ¡°Tsk, so you knew. I thought I would be able to get away because humans are stupid. I¡¯ll warn you, I don¡¯t intend to help you any more than I have to.¡±


    The dwarf dropped its polite and meek speech as soon as it realized it had been caught. Swarfs were treacherous creatures who did not care about anything or anyone.


    As long as they could benefit, they won¡¯t even hesitate to sell their own child or loved ones. They were heartless creatures who only cared about themselves.


    But it was not their fault. It was the fault of the abyss that made them this way.


    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry. I will make you do what you need to. So, it¡¯s time to get back to business. Start leading us to the Death Pool.¡±


    The dwarf did not look happy but it ultimately decided toply. One thing the dwarfs had was their sense of self-preservation. And the dwarf could tell that these people were not the ones he could outrun or outwit.


    These were different from all the other humans it had seen this far. So he decided to sit tight andply with them.


    Besides, there was the pressure of the overlooker to consider as well. The dwarf did not want to get on her bad side if he could help it. Thest dwarf that had tried had ended up dying a painful death.

 Chapter 180 180: A moment of helplessness

    ¡®This is scary. This is so scary. I never knew humans could be this dangerous. I cannot tell what this female is thinning.¡¯


    The dwarf had seen a lot of foolish humans during his time in the abyss. This was also not the first time it had to help humans on orders of the overlookers.


    Lady Zoe had asked the dwarf to lead a lot of foolish humans to their death, and so had the other overlookers. The dwarf was just one of the minions used to sate the evergrowing hunger of Lake Variety.


    And human blood was the best food to sate that hunger.


    ¡®I was suspicious when the upper floor¡¯s overlocker asked me to lead the travelers. She hated getting involved with people so I knew these people would be dangerous.¡¯


    But the dwarf had never felt this fear in its life before. The female that was holding him captive had an unusual aura.


    ¡®She feels like the abyss. I am scared to even go against her word.¡¯ The dwarf had done its best to not show its fear this far.


    But when faced with a lion, there was only so much a mouse could do.


    ¡°What are you thinking in that tiny head of yours? Are you thinking of different ways to betray us?¡±


    Thedy with blue hair asked. Even her casual tone sent shivers down the dwarf¡¯s back. No matter how much it wanted to look away, it could not.


    ¡°O-Of course not. I am a capable guide and I will follow the instructions given to me by the overlooker.¡±<sub></sub>


    The dwarf had to make the scarydy let her guard down. She must not suspect its involvement with what was going toe up next.


    A lot of people had died while trying to reach Lake Variety and it was because of thebined efforts of the monsters on the way.


    The dwarf knew that most beasts and monsters that were found around Lake Variety were not natural. They were too intelligent and strong for their surroundings.


    Even Lake Variety gave a feeling like it did not belong on this floor. Most people who came to these parts were unprepared to face such challenges and that caused them to die.


    But somehow, the dwarf had a feeling that it would not be the case with these people. Despite their weak-looking body and sealed powers, the dwarf could not help but fear their power.


    ¡°Beyond this point, you will enter the enchanted forest. Lake Variety lies in the center of the forest. This is as far as I can take you so good luck.¡±


    The dwarf needed to get away from these people. The attack of other monsters would begin soon and they would not spare the dwarf if it was caught with these humans.


    It was an iron-d rule to not apany the humans inside. This was one every guide needed to follow.


    Naturally, it meant that the dwarf had to follow it as well. But it did not get a chance to make its exit.


    Not before he was caught by that scarydy and tossed over to the taller red-head.<sub></sub>


    ¡°Who said you were dismissed? You are our guide so you will also apany us inside the forest. Don¡¯t worry, we will let you go once wee out of the forest.¡±


    ¡°I cannot. That is against the rules¡± the dwarf begged before he could exin his reasons. The scary blue-haireddy was ring at him with golden eyes. It made the dwarf¡¯s heart skip a beat in fear.


    He did not know why, but thedy¡¯s face looked eerily simr to someone else at this moment. But the dwarf could not figure out who he was thinking about.


    ¡°Oh? I was not aware that I was giving you a choice in this matter. This was not an opinion but a deration from my side. Rita, make sure you hold on to him tight. Things are about to get messy now.¡±


    The dwarf held his breath as the female entered the forest. His twopanions watched this happen silently.


    The dwarf was worried and surprised to see the blue-haireddy¡¯s twopanions watch her enter. Humans werepassionate creatures so the dwarf had been sure that they would care about theirpanion¡¯s life.


    ¡°Are you not going to stop her? Thatdy is going to get attacked soon.¡±


    The dwarf had no reason to give out the forest¡¯s secrets. But it felt afraid for its life. It had a feeling that it would die if it did not open its mouth.


    ¡°Do you really think so? Personally, I cannot see Aurora losing a fight in her current state. Right, Natasha?¡±


    The red-haireddy seemed to not be worried at all. On the contrary, she looked confident to see herpanion walk to her death.<sub></sub>


    ¡°Aurora will be alright. I can sense the level of monsters that are waiting for her but they don¡¯t seem to be anything we have not encountered before.¡±


    H-How could this female say that? The dwarf could tell from the residue of the abyss on them that this floor was the deepest they had ever been.


    It was unlikely for them to know what the monsters of the lower floors were really like and how strong they were.


    ¡®What gives them this much confidence? But no, I cannot wait around to think about this. I need to get out of here before these psychos manage to get me killed.¡¯


    The dwarf had thisst thought before it made a decision.


    ¡®I will need to disinfect my handter.¡¯


    The dwarf made the final decision and bit down on the redhead¡¯s hand.


    ===========================


    p-?-?-?-?-?-0-?-?-?¡¢?(??) ¡°MI~NER~VA~. Do you have some time for me? I need to ask you something~¡±


    The voice echoed through the tower¡¯s hallways but no one tried to look at the speaker. The guards knew they had to keep their mouths shut or their heads would be separated from their bodies.


    The guards even tried to divert their eyes away from the familiar scene of Lady Minerva walking down the tower¡¯s hallways while Lady Mei followed behind her like a lost puppy.


    It would have been a highly-amusing scene if not for the recent high tensions that were sweeping the tower.


    ¡°Lady Mei, please behave yourself. No matter how many times you ask, I cannot grant your request to visit the Rocx academy as an investigatory. The representative has already been decided and we cannot interfere.¡±


    Lady Minerva did not even falter when she spoke those words. Her voice was calm and neutral, a testament to how many times she had repeated those words.


    The guards that heard this news were not surprised either. This was a routine affair for the past few days for them.


    ¡°But Mi~ner~va~, how can we trust this ¡®Rocx academy?¡¯ Besides, I am sure they will be happy to receive a goddess of my standing. Don¡¯t you think it is a perfect opportunity to get their trust?¡±


    Minerva didn¡¯t even give Lady Mei¡¯s words a second nce. Lady Mei was right when she said that sending a goddess would be a good way to establish rtionships.


    At the same time, it would also send a message to the Rocx academy to not underestimate the tower and to tell them not to get cocky.


    The only problem was that none of the major divinity present in the tower was suited for this job. That was why someone from the outside had to be deployed.


    ¡°Aw, that¡¯s not fair. You deny me but you approved sending Lady Voile even when everyone knows what her rtionship with the headmaster of Rocs academy is?¡±


    ¡°Trust me. I did not want to approve of  Lady Voile either, but I had no other choice. She was volunteered by Lady Asami of all people and Lord Karan approved her as well. Not to mention, Charles also suggested sending her.¡±


    The more Minerva thought over this topic, the more her head ached. In retrospect, there was no connection between the three parties that had anonymously decided to back the same person.


    No, it would be better to say that these three fractions hated each other.


    ¡°Asami? Did she decide to get involved? I thought she said she wanted nothing to do with the politics and the tower after Lady ra¡¯s death. Has she finally calmed down?¡±


    ¡°She did say that and I don¡¯t know why she decided to get involved now of all times. So for now, keep out of this matter Mei or you will find yourself in a pinched situation.¡±


    Lady Mei had no other choice but to back down. Minerva saw it quite clearly and she did feel sorry for what Lady Mei was going through.


    But this was for the better and Lady Mei needed to understand that she had to choose her battles. Gods were not all-knowing and immortal.


    And it was only through facing such situations did one understand where they stood in life.


    When it came to the battle between higher powers, pride and power were no longer a factor to decide who would win. It was just a bonus to the equation.

 Chapter 181 181: Making poor decisions

    Things were going well. They had the dwarf in their hands and Aurora was dealing with the problems their group might be facing in the future.


    It was all going exceptionally well. And this was enough for Natasha to get concerned.


    As it stood, their group¡¯s record of staying out of trouble was not that good. It was about time something happened to ruin their progress.


    ¡°Ouch. That little shit bit me and ran away. I will kill that dwarf once I get my hands on it.¡±


    And there it was. It happened just as Natasha expected something to go wrong. Somehow, the dwarf had managed to escape Rita¡¯s clutches and now they were onepanion short.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry so much about the dwarf, Rita. We don¡¯t need it to show us the way anymore. You should treat your bleeding first so that it doesn¡¯t get infected.¡±


    Natasha took Rita¡¯s hand in her own to observe the wound she had suffered. The bleeding wasn¡¯t excessive, and the cut wasn¡¯t particrly deep.


    This much could still be taken care of with ease.


    ¡°Darn. This happened only because my body is human right now. I wish I could return to my original unsealed state. Then I would not have let that dwarf go.¡±


    Natasha listened to Rita cursing but she no longer consoled her. Rita needed to understand that she could not pick and choose her battle right now.


    She needed to calm down and avoid creating trouble.


    ¡°The dwarf bit you hard. I¡¯ll use a healing potion on you so sit tight.¡±


    Natasha took out the remaining potion she had. She only had one left so she will have to ask Aurora for more.<sub></sub>


    Natasha had no idea where Aurora kept procuring these potions but Natasha would not look a gifted horse in the mouth.


    ¡°Does this feel better?¡±


    Thankfully, though the wound was severe, it wasn¡¯t fatal. Additionally, there was some superficial bleeding, but nothing of importance had been hit.


    ¡°Much better. Thanks for the treatment and I¡¯ll pay you back for itter. For now, I have a dwarf to catch.¡±


    ¡°Rita, wait! Don¡¯t chase after the dwarf¡­..¡±


    Natasha¡¯s warning fell on deaf ears. It seemed like Aurora had no intention of listening to her at all.


    ¡®She¡¯s as stubborn as ever. I should have expected her not to listen to me at all.¡¯


    Natasha sighed but she decided to follow after Rita. the redhead had already dared to cross the threshold of the forest.


    ¡®Aurora will kill us once she finds us inside the forest. I hope we¡¯ll be able to calm her down in time and get her to listen to us.¡¯


    Natasha knew it was not a good idea to ignore Aurora¡¯s warning and enter the forbidden area. She had heard the stories about this ce from other people.


    But she could not leave Rita alone in that ce. She had to brave her soul and look death in the face.


    ===========================<sub></sub>


    ¡°You.Little.Shit. Come back here and face your punishment.¡±


    Rita ran after the dwarf. She had the advantage of her system which showed her where the dwarf was running.


    The little thing was fast but not fast enough to outrun a human¡¯s leg. It did not take long for Rita to catch up to the little dwarf.


    ¡°Y-You? Why did you enter this ce? Do you not value your life?¡±


    The dwarf sounded stunned to see Rita follow after him. It was amusing to see the dwarf so out of it currently.


    ¡°What? You were the one who decided to run away. I am just chasing you to bring you back.¡±


    Rita huffed as she tried to catch her breath. She had pushed her human stamina a little too hard and now her body was paying the price.


    Lake Variety had a strange atmosphere surrounding it. It was making it difficult for Rita to breathe properly and her body also felt heavy.


    ¡®Darn this seal. I would not be feeling like this if I had my powers.¡¯


    Had it not been for Aurora¡¯s sake, Rita would have never agreed to seal her powers up. Living without powers made one feel too miserable.


    ¡°In all my years as a guide, I have never seen humans such as you. Just what did I do to get stuck with fools like you all? I don¡¯t want to die because of you so leave me alone.¡±


    The dwarf was not yelling yet but its voice held fear. Had Rita been a better person, she would have stopped to ask him why he was so fearful.<sub></sub>


    But the current Rita did not care about anyone¡¯s feelings but Aurora¡¯s and herpanions. The dwarf did not matter to her.


    ¡°Unfortunately, you do not get a choice to leave us like this.  You areing back with me, whether you like it or not.¡±


    The dwarf tried to dodge Rita¡¯s hand but it was unable to. Rita had too fast reflexes and too much experience in her current body. That dwarf never stood a chance at all.


    ¡°Let me go. You will doom us all. Let me go.¡±


    The dwarf was too noisy so Rita chose to forcefully quieten it.


    Too bad, she was not able to do it in time before the dwarf¡¯s struggles attracted the attention of nearby monsters.


    Rita tensed as soon as she felt the corrupted energye near her. It was simr to Aurora¡¯s but it had a sharper edge to it.


    It was suffocating but it clung to the person who had suddenly appeared in front of the duo.


    ¡°Ohhh, what do we have here? Another sacrifice? Why you shouldn¡¯t have walked to your death.¡±


    The corruption was dense. It was choking Rita by just being near it but was a silver lining in this situation.


    Rita¡¯s current human nature prevented her from being a victim of this corruption. No matter what happened, she would not be affected by this energy.


    And since she would not be affected by this energy, she still had a chance to get away and find Aurora.


    ¡°Hey, where are you looking? Are you thinking of running away? Do not even tr

 Chapter 182 182: Infernal

    Natasha followed after Rita with a worried look on her face. This forest was not typical and the further Natasha ran, the more she felt like leaving.


    How Rita had managed to ignore her instincts to run away was beyond Natasha. Every fabric in her body was asking her to open her either turn back or open her seal.


    ¡®I wish I could stop as well. But Rita is more important right now.¡¯


    It was only Natasha¡¯s worry that was keeping her going. She could feel that something bad was about to happen soon.


    ¦Ñ?n?a (n??)???? There was a small barrier that isted the inner corridors from the outer film but Natasha could not get past it.


    It was not allowing her human body to get past it but Rita had somehow managed to cross this barrier.


    ¡®Is her seal breaking? This is not good. I need to do something before Rita¡¯s seal ispletely broken.¡¯


    Natasha was not one to take risks but she could not watch Rita unwillingly sacrifice herself for no reason. This ce felt corrupted and Natasha¡¯s senses felt overwhelmed.


    It felt just like it did when Natasha suppressed the corruption inside Aurora. It was a simr sensation.


    ¡®I need to break my seal. I am sure I will be able to keep myself sane for some time even if I get corrupted. But Rita would notst long.¡¯


    Unlike Natasha, Rita was fueled by emotions. The corruption would end up consuming her before she would be able to do anything.


    ¡°I knew this day woulde. It would be better if I don¡¯t say my goodbyes.¡±<sub></sub>


    Natasha took in a deep breath before she forced her power past the tight seal that was suppressing it.


    It was a painful process to force the seal open. Natasha did not have the right key toplete this job. But she persisted.


    The force of her magic caused Natasha to fall to her knees. Her chest burned with the sudden intrusion of magic, the coldness numbing Natasha¡¯s heart.


    What little warmth Natasha had seemed to be vanishing under the force of her magic and it was being reced by unfeeling coldness.


    The barrier gave way under Natasha¡¯s power but the corruption molded itself against Natasha¡¯s body. It was seeking a way inside her and Natasha had no way of stopping it.


    Natasha was not a goddess but she had divine magic. Her body was also familiar with the taste of corruption.


    When youbined these two factors, it made sense why the corruption found it so easy to make its way inside Natasha.


    But Natasha did not lose focus. She held on to her sanity as tightly as she could and began her search for Rita. her system was blinking brightly and showing where Rita was.


    Natasha reached the clearing where Rita was, only in time to feel a sliver of Rita¡¯s magic and a voice taunting her.


    ¡°Hey, where are you looking? Are you thinking of running away? Do not even try or you will end up like the human who walked in here before you.¡±


    ¡°YOU! What did you do to Aurora?¡±<sub></sub>


    Rita¡¯s voice came out clearly and strongly. Rita could likely realize the absurdity of that beast¡¯s im but it was difficult to make any certain im without proof.


    However, Natasha also knew that they could not let these beasts¡¯ words get to them. It was trying to get to let their guard down. Natasha knew better than to fall for this kind of trap but Rita seemed to be struggling with this.


    Her body was shaking badly and it would only be seconds before Rita did something stupid.


    ¡°Stop talking nonsense. Rita is fine as she is and Aurora will not fall to scums like you. So be quiet and return to your darn ce.¡±


    Natasha quickly took this as her chance to join the fray. Rita had already fallen into a trap and she would not be able to break free on her own.


    But Natasha utilized her magic to freeze the trap and drive away the beast at the same time.


    The beast gave a chilling smile mouthing the words, ¡®one of us¡¯ before it disappeared into different cracks.


    Natasha felt revolted but she tried not to show it on her face. She knew very well that she had been corrupted but it was a risk she knowingly took.


    ¡°Natasha, are you alright? How did you knock me out of the spell¡­.¡±


    Rita started but her words trailed off as she looked at Natasha. And Natasha knew that she had been caught.


    ¡°She¡¯s corrupted. Yourpanion, she¡¯s beyond saving now.¡±<sub></sub>


    The dwarf in Rita¡¯s grasp summarised. His factual voice matched the devastated look on Rita¡¯s face.


    ¡°Natasha, what did you do¡­¡±


    Rita seemed to be at a loss of words. Natasha would have been as well if she had been in Rita¡¯s ce. Rita¡¯s emotional state was already a mess which Natasha needed to be careful of.


    ¡°I took a risk. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m alright for now. Let¡¯s go find Aurora.¡±


    Natasha tried to make her voice strong but it was difficult. The corruption was eating away at her core and Natasha felt weaker than she had ever before.


    ¡®I need to find Aurora before I die. I want to see her onest time.¡¯ That was the only thought fueling Natasha and keeping her going.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Natasha. I will help you out. Just sit back and allow me to relieve you.¡± Natasha felt thankful for Rita¡¯spany which turned into a yelp as soon as she felt herself being pushed back.


    ¡°Rita, what are you doing?¡±


    ¡°Create two barriers. One for the dwarf and one for us. I will help you keep the corruption at bay for now.¡±


    As soon as Natasha heard those words she understood what Rita was purposing. Her cheeks went red and she did as was asked of her.


    It was only after Natasha was done did she realize what she had done and her red cheeks went scarlet.


    ¡°Rita, we should not be doing this. We need to find Aurora.¡±


    ¡°We do. But we also need you alive to do that. So shut up and let me do this.¡±


    Natasha was not uninterested in the offer. Natasha was a sexy woman whom Natasha might have had a small crush on. So it was not a bad proposal for her.


    ¡®I guess I¡¯ll be selfish this one time.¡¯ Natasha agreed as Rita pulled her in for a kiss.


    ===========================


    Aurora walked through the unfamiliar forested corridor. Never in her life had she ever thought that she would ever have to visit the Death Pool, but here she was.


    ¡®Such a dark and gloomy ce. I feel like I¡¯m being watched.¡¯


    Aurora was thankful that she had asked herpanions to stay out of this ce. There was something weird going on in here.


    ¡®The corruption is too strong here. It is typing to draw me in as well.¡¯


    Aurora could feel the corruption inside her singing to join the others of its type. There were other hosts of corruption looking toward Aurora.


    Thankfully, no one tried to approach Aurora outright and she was sure it was because of her magic as a goddess. These creatures were suspicious of her and not willing to approach her so easily.


    ¡®I never thought the abyss would have such a ce this early in the abyss. It makes sense why no one ever returned from here before.¡¯


    If a person with any divinity walked in here, it would be impossible to keep their purity intact. The corruption would eat them alive.


    But this peace was not tost for long. The more Aurora walked, the more she felt curious eyes on her person. It was not long before she was finally approached by a spirit.


    ¡°Ah, you¡¯re one of us? But why did youe here?¡±


    The beast had no human form but Aurora could barely make out a thin and tall humanoid form beneath the smoke of corruption.


    The corruption was not racing to capture Aurora since she already hosted some of it inside her body.


    ¡°I am not one of you. I have not lost myself yet. I am just here to retrieve something.¡±


    Aurora was not sure if she was trying to reassure herself or if she was trying to reassure the formless creature.


    From his expression, he did not look impressed with Aurora¡¯s answer but it did not try to push her for more either.


    It just gave Aurora an eerily look before snickering and vanishing.


    ¡°Good luck. I hope yourpanion make it out of here alive.¡±


    Aurora had a bad feeling about those parting words. She had left herpanions outside the forest and she was sure that they would not disobey her words.


    But something about this situation made Aurora doubt her mind. She had to check up on herpanions to make sure.


    And Aurora felt her blood freeze as soon as she spotted herpanion¡¯s position on the map.


    They were inside the forest.

 Chapter 183 183: No part of this

    ¡®Rita, Natasha, I will kill you both with my own hands if you are not dead already.¡¯


    Aurora had no idea why her twopanions thought that it was a good idea to follow after her inside the forest. Aurora had specifically told them not to follow after her.


    The only thing that was keeping Aurora from going back and dragging those two out was the fact that they were sealed into their human selves for now. The corruption Aurora felt would not be able to affect them.


    But still, the fear of losing those two centered itself around Aurora¡¯s brain.


    ¡°Should I go back now? I should have a look in on Rita and Natasha.¡±


    That was Aurora¡¯s n and she instantly turned around to go back. But Aurora had not made it two steps out when she felt the ground shaking.


    It was trying to throw Aurora off her feet and Aurora had to try hard not to fall.


    Aurora twisted her body to match the moments of the shaking earth when she felt it stop shaking. That shaking seemed to be only a momentary thing.


    So Aurora decided to try again and turn back but the same thing happened.


    ¡®Is the forest trying to prevent me from going back? It only shakes when I turn back.¡¯


    Aurora had only tried a few times but the simrities were too much to ignore this oue. The forest was actively trying to prevent Aurora from moving outside.


    ¡°Should I force my way out of here?¡±<sub></sub>


    Aurora wondered out aloud. There were a lot of eyes watching Aurora but she had no idea if they were judging her or looking for an opportunity to kill her off.


    Aurora tried to st her way behind her but the magic disappeared into the space. Aurora tried again but the abyss decided to push back at her.


    It seemed like the abyss itself was telling Aurora not to turn back. This was the first time something like this had happened to Aurora.


    What made it even more surprising was the fact that Abyss seemed to be coxing Aurora to keep on moving ahead. Its force had been gentle and calming.


    ¡®What should I do now? Do I have no other but to move forward? I don¡¯t like this.¡¯


    Aurora hated her situation but it felt hopeless. Trying to go against the Abyss was not a good idea.


    ¡°Don¡¯t fight the feeling or something bad would happen. Just keep on moving.¡±


    The call came from one of the shadows tailing Aurora. She tried to spot who spoke to her but there was no one behind her.


    There was no one around her either but the feeling of being watched did not stop.


    ¡°The only way to get out of here is to find the mother. If you failed to find her then you will be stuck here like us.¡±


    ¡°But mother doesn¡¯t like disobedient children so you should be careful.¡±<sub></sub>


    ¡°Right. Mother was also in a bad mood a few days ago so be careful¡±


    The more Aurors heard about this ¡®mother¡¯, the more curious she became. But even her curiosity was not enough to ovee her worry for herpanions.


    ¡®I guess I have to keep on moving for now. I should focus on finding this ¡®mother first.¡±


    Aurora knew she was in a difficult situation where she could not choose her path. This was the price she had paid for her choice of leaving herpanions alone.


    But in her defense, she had thought that they would acknowledge her words and keep her out of danger.


    Aurora was filled with worry when she felt it. It was a sense of familiarity when Aurora sensed the nearby soul. Aurora was sure she had felt it before but she could not remember where she had felt that could before.


    ¡®Should I follow after that soul? I am worried about Rita and Natasha but I cannot do anything to help them for now. Besides, they have not contacted me yet so things should be alright for now.¡¯


    Aurora was torn but curiosity won in the end.


    If what these shadows said was the truth then Aurora needed to hurry up and finish her exploration.


    It did not even ur to her that herpanions had not called her for help because they were too busy not to. And this would be something Aurora would regret all her life.


    But for now, Aurora was contented to stay back and explore the cave. She allowed her senses to guide her toward the hidden vault.<sub></sub>


    And then Aurora opened the vault and stepped inside.


    It was all blue, a space filled with water and wetness. The night sky was being reflected in the darkke which converted into a molten pool of stars.


    ¡°It¡¯s so beautiful. I wonder who made this ce. It doesn¡¯t feel like a natural ce.¡±


    Aurora walked closer to theke, her eyes taking in everything around her. She tried to spot her reflection in the pool but paused as soon as her eyes met her pool counterpart.


    But Aurora had only leaned in to see herself when she felt someone push her into the pool. One second she was out, the next she was in the water.


    She didn¡¯t even hear the words of encouragementing out in a familiar voice as she sank into the water.


    ¡°Good luck Aurora. I hope you have a pleasant swim.¡±


    Ava¡¯s familiar face was reflected in the water and an innocent smile made itself home on her face.


    ¡°I guess it¡¯s time to pay a visit to that other pair. They sure know how to cause trouble for me.¡±


    Ava left the scene and there was no evidence left behind of what she did. There were many things Ava had done in her life which would brand her as a traitor and this was one of those things.


    But Ava did not feel guilty for what she did. After all, it was all for the sake of her grand n.


    ===========================


    ¡°So, did you get the answers you wanted to find Clove? Has your heart settled down now?¡±


    Clove looked up toward Zoe¡¯s yellow eyes. The zodiac was waiting for her reply but Clove did not have one for her.


    The past few days had been a rollercoaster ride for her but it was finally time for her to head back.


    The tower needed to n for the uing abyssal games and they needed Clove and Quince to participate as their representatives.


    As much as Clove did not care for them, she also knew she needed the tower¡¯s help in achieving her goal andpleting her soul.


    As for finding answers? She had a lot of her memories back so the answer was ¡®yes.¡¯


    ¡°You do not need to know what is going on with me. I promise that my condition will not hinder my resolve. I will help you out if you help me out.¡±


    Clove had remembered a lot of her past life which had helped her ept Zoe¡¯s help. But those memories had also ignited a long-forgotten feeling.


    ¡°Good. Then, I want to ask a favor of you. A long time ago, someone managed to make away with one of my treasures. The owner of such treasure would die soon but I want my treasure back. So I want you to help me sneak in and steal it.¡±


    Clove considered Zoe¡¯s words but they did not sound that difficult.


    p?(??)? ?o??? ¡°If it is something from the tower then there is no need for you to sneak in. I can get it for you.¡±


    Clove had a lot of power and authority. It would be better if she was the one who requested to ¡®borrow¡¯ the thing Zoe wanted. It was not like Lady Minerva was going to say ¡®no¡¯ to her.


    But instead, Zoe shook her head.


    ¡°No. That item is something I need to retrieve personally and it is not in the tower. I need to get into those abyssal games to get that item because it will be one of the prizes. Will you be able to get me in or not?¡±


    Clove felt surprised at Zoe¡¯s insistence in this matter but she ultimately decided that it had nothing to do with her.


    Smuggling Zoe into the Abyssal games was not difficult for Clove. And Clove also had no reason to say no.


    ¡°Alright. As long as you promise not to cause trouble for me or expose me, then I can help you out. I don¡¯t care about these games either way.¡±


    Zoe gave a small smile back but she did not exin any further what she wanted from Clove. The talk also fell silent after that and Clove left pretty quickly/


    It was only once she was gone did Zoe turn toward the small pool of water, only to watch Ava push Aurora into theke.


    ¡°I guess Ava got impatient and decided to take matters into her hand. I don¡¯t know how those fools don¡¯t see what a devil she is but they will pay a price for it soon enough. I should not concern myself with this.¡±


    For once, Zoe would turn her head away and pretend she did not see anything. Whatever n Ava had, Zoe wanted no part of it.

 Chapter 184 184: Easing it out - part 1

    It did not take long for the kiss to get heated up. One second Rita and Natasha were trying to go slow, the next second Rita exerted pressure against Natasha¡¯s lips.


    It was quite a desperate kiss where both sides gave as good as it came. There was no pressure of being good for the other.


    It was hard and fast sucking, both partied trying to overpower the other. The outside presence disappeared from around the pair.


    Rita finally won the tongue battle, her tongueing out to lick Natasha¡¯s lips. Her grip on the ck-haired girl forced her to open her mouth.


    Natasha was being utterly dominated and she knew that as well. Rita was giving her no chance to back out of this arrangement.


    ¡°R-Rita, you need to slow down. You are not in your right headspace.¡±


    Natashained but she did not hold herself back either. Her lips chased Rita¡¯s tongue and her tongue came out to lick across Rita¡¯s face as well.


    ¡°You areining too much. I can see that you want me to. Isn¡¯t the pressure inside you too much? You can let it go with me. Trust me to take your rage.¡±


    Rita knew that her time with Natasha would be different than with Aurora.


    With Aurora, there was a clear involvement of feelings that gave Rita butterflies at every touch. But that was not the case with Natasha.


    Rita liked the younger one but she was not in love with her. It was all about physical pleasure.


    And it seemed to be the case with Natasha as well. Rita could tell that her reactions were not as fueled as they were with Aurora.<sub></sub>


    But they both could not deny the physical attraction they felt for each other. Their bodies werepatible and the awkwardness of the ¡®first time¡¯ was not there.


    ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because we have seen each other naked and fucked-out before but fucking you is easier than I thought it would be.¡±


    Rita confessed, her mind losing itself to the pleasure she was feeling. She could tell that Natasha was feeling the pleasure as well.


    The icy princess was red in the face and her breath wasbored. She was as far gone as Rita had seen her with Aurora.


    ¡°B-Bastard. W-We¡¯ve done sexual stuff before. You taught me about this all.¡±


    ¡°Oh yea, I did do that. You have gotten so much better than thest time.¡±


    Rita¡¯s mind was only working at half its capacity and it showed. She could not even remember what she had done and had not done with Natasha before.


    Their lips met in another filthy kiss, their saliva connecting their mouth when the pair separated.


    ¡°You¡¯ve got a nice pair of breasts. Can I y with them?¡±


    Rita¡¯s question was more like a confirmation of her actions. Her hands came down to y with Natasha anyway and her hands tried covering thoserge breasts but could not.


    Rita¡¯s hands were hot against Natasha¡¯s skin and she could feel them against her. It was a weird sensation she wanted more of.<sub></sub>


    ¡®This feels good. I want more.¡¯


    Natasha¡¯s brain was shutting off its ability to be able to think. It was all about sex for now and Natasha decided to lose herself in that pleasure.


    There was a throbbing in her lower half, her pussy gushing out liquid to make pration easier.


    Natasha tried to rub her things to hide this fact but it did not escape Natasha¡¯s notice. The female gave out a wide smile at Natasha¡¯s pitiful attempt.


    ¡°You got wet for me? Let me see that.¡±


    Natasha tried to hold her thighs closer but Rita¡¯s superior strength provided to be too much for her. Rita easily managed to separate her thighs and see her wet and leaking pussy.


    Natasha felt exposed with Rita¡¯s gaze on her but she did not try to hide. Rita had a grip around her thighs that was impossible to break.


    ¡°Let me see. You are still a virgin here, right? Aurora fucked you but she did not break your hymn. Should I take your virginity right now?¡±


    Natasha went red at Rita¡¯s words. She was not used to hearing such vulgar words during sex.


    While Aurora did get down and dirty with her words sometimes, it was not to the point where Natasha felt hot and bothered.


    But Rita was downright filthy with her words. She seemed to have no filter.<sub></sub>


    ¡°Don¡¯t you want to get pounded deep in your belly? I¡¯ve seen you look at Aurora¡¯s face when we fuck. Did you think about being in her ce? Getting yourself pounded into the mattress?¡±


    ¡°W-What are you saying? I stare at Aurora because I like her face, not because I imagine getting fucked.¡±


    They both knew Natasha was lying through her teeth. She had stared at Rita¡¯s cock quite a bit during sexy times and it was impossible to hide that.


    However, admitting it out loud did not sit well with Natasha. It felt like she was betraying Aurora by admitting this fact.


    ¡°Let yourself go. I know you want me as well. See, you are gushing so much.¡±


    Rita seemed to have no problem in regards to that at all. She seemed to be enjoying her time with Natasha to the max.


    Her cock was erect, her breast nipped standing erect as well. Rita was turned on and she was not trying to hide this from Natasha.


    ¡°Natasha, why don¡¯t you stretch yourself out? Put up a show for me.¡±


    ¡°H-Huh? Why should I? Isn¡¯t this your idea in the first ce? You should be the one helping me out.¡±


    Natasha felt mortified when she spoke those words. Her words of denial she had prepared did note out of her mouth.


    Only words of encouragement came out when Natasha opened her mouth and her red face went scarlet.


    ¡°Oh! Are you finally being truthful with me? It is nice to see you not hide away now. Don¡¯t worry. Since you decided to ask for help, I will help you out.¡±


    Natasha wanted to hide her face but her hand was stopped by Rita before it could reach her face.


    She waspletely exposed and Rita¡¯s hand hovered right above her wet pussy. It was so embarrassing but Natasha had no way to stop herself from responding.


    Rita¡¯s touch on her pussy felt different than Aurora¡¯s. It was rough and electrifying in a way Natasha was not ready to face.


    Her mouth broke out into a moan as soon as her insides felt the invasive touch. Rita¡¯s fingers were rough and tracing.


    pa?,??-,c<o>m They were also longer than Aurora and reached deeper. They made Natasha¡¯s belly flutter due to nervousness.</o>


    The first one was a tight fit, but the second one was even worse. For some reason, Natasha¡¯s body was not stretched out at all.


    ¡°Why are you so tight? You just had a round with Aurora before and she stretched you out.¡±


    Ritained as she tried to loosen Natasha even more. Natasha¡¯s tightness would make things difficult for Rita¡¯s cock.


    Natasha was not like Aurora. She did not loosen up easily and it took considerable effort on Rita¡¯s part to get her wet and ready.


    But Rita was still worried so she decided to make Natasha¡¯s pussy even wetter.


    If her fingers won¡¯t do, then her mouth would have to.


    ¡°Natasha, ever touched a cock? Well, you are about to touch one now.¡±


    ¡°Rita, what are you saying? I don¡¯t need to¡­¡±


    But Natasha was pulled into Rita¡¯sp and her hands were led toward a hard and firm stick in Rita¡¯sp.


    ¡°I need you to take care of this while I take care of your pussy. My mouth will be quite pussy with you so do a good job.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s face looked reluctant but Rita knew she was interested. Her hesitant hands were alreadying out to y with Natasha¡¯s hardness and they were rubbing against her with enthusiasm.


    It was not until Natasha gave a hesitant lick against Rita¡¯s hardness did she realize how just interested Natasha was in her penis.


    The ck-haired female could try to deny all she wanted but her body was betraying her now. Her mouth was trying to suck Rita out and that enthusiasm was well-appreciated.


    As for Rita? She did not have any problem opening Rita up with her tongue. The taste was not as good as Aurora but it was bearable.


    Plus, every time Rita licked past Natasha¡¯s clit, it caused the female¡¯s breath to hitch and moan around her cock.


    It was a cycle of constant pleasure but it was not enough to make Ritae.


    ¡®Being with Aurora has spoiled me. I cannote from this alone. I need to be inside this tightness.¡¯


    Rita knew she needed to go slow with Natasha but her cock seemed to not be getting this message. It was throbbing to get let wild and Natasha seemed to agree as well.


    Her body was leaking even more and her pussy was finally stretched enough for Rita tofortably enter her.

 Chapter 185 185: Easing it out - part 2

    Rita finally pulled away from Natasha¡¯s pussy when she felt the other girl was ready for more. Her pussy was finally stretched enough to take Rita¡¯s hardness in.


    ¡°Get ready because I will make it hard and fast for you.¡±


    Natasha gulped, anticipating what was going to happen next. She had seen Aurora and Rita go at it before so she had an idea what would happen.


    However, what Natasha did not anticipate feeling was the sensation of pain in her pussy. It was a painful first stretch.


    ¡®Fuck, I did not think that it would hurt this much. How did Aurora event enjoy this sensation?¡¯


    Natasha¡¯s eyes were filled with tears at the unexpected sensation. Her body tried to reject the cock forcing it open and it felt difficult to breathe.


    ¡°Natasha, breathe. This pain will pass soon enough. Everyone feels this when they first have sex.¡±


    Natasha tried to breathe but it was difficult. Something inside her was being torn apart by Rita¡¯s huge cock.


    ¡°R-Rita, there is blood down there.¡±


    Natasha picked her body a little to see the cock inside her. Her vision instantly zoned out on the red she was seeing and it scared her.


    ¦Ñ?n?a (n??)???? ¡°Of course, you are bleeding when your hymn got shattered by me. Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s quite normal. It will start feeling good soon enough.¡±


    ¡°Huh? No, wait! I am not ready¡­¡±<sub></sub>


    But Rita did not stop to give Natasha time to adjust to her size or the new sensation. She rammed her cock in and Natasha could only gasp out in mixed pain and pleasure.


    This continued until Natasha changed her angle and hit something inside Natasha that made her see stars. It was a different sensation than before and the pleasure felt real.


    ¡°W-What was that?¡±


    It almost felt like Natasha¡¯s clit was being stimted but even more intense. Natasha¡¯s brain melted as soon as Rita¡¯s cock angled toward that new spot.


    Sex had never felt this good before and Natasha felt her arms pulling Rita closer to her and her legs curling themselves around the red-heads strong waist.


    Rita¡¯s breasts were rubbing against Natasha¡¯s own and bouncing all over the ce. They mesmerized Natasha and she reached out to take one in her mouth.


    Her cold tongue rubbed against Natasha¡¯s erect nipped which caused Rita¡¯s hips to falter in their moment.


    The new angle was even more intense than before and Natasha felt the other go deeper inside her. It was all mind-melting pleasure that made Natasha unable to think.


    ¡°See, I told you this won¡¯t be that bad.¡±


    Rita¡¯s words seemed to being out perfectly. It was almost like this sex was not affecting her in any way.


    And it bruised Natasha¡¯s ego a little.<sub></sub>


    Here she was, losing her mind due to Rita while Rita seemed to not be affected by Natasha¡¯s body at all. This will not do for Natasha and she instantly positioned her hips to match Rita¡¯s moments.


    At the same time, Natasha pulled Rita down into a kiss and her tongue came out to dominate Rita¡¯s mouth.


    It only worked because of the shock factor but Rita¡¯s breath did hitch and her hips falter as soon as she felt Natasha move against her.


    ¡®Finally, I made Rita¡¯s cool mask break.¡¯ Natasha felt happy to have gotten this victory but this happiness did notst long.


    Rita¡¯s next thrust caused Natasha to break their kiss and moan out. Her back arched against the floor at the intense feelings she was feeling and pleasure took over her.


    Rita¡¯s thrusts picked up speed and they got even harshed after that stunt. Her eyes had a fire in them that burned Natasha and dared her to pull a stunt like this again.


    ¡°You are asking for it now.¡±


    Natasha braced herself but nothing could prepare her for the harsh pounding she got in her pussy from Rita.


    Their hips shook as the pair approached their release. It hit the pair at the same time and they exploded.


    Rita¡¯s body copsed on top of Natasha¡¯s and their breasts collided with each other as a result.


    It forced a moan out of the pair and they both copsed on their sides.<sub></sub>


    ¡°Rita, I don¡¯t think I will be able to move now. Also, we don¡¯t have any supplies with us here to clean ourselves with.¡±


    Rita groaned at Natasha¡¯s logical answer. She knew that the other female was right but she just wanted to enjoy her post-climax time in bliss.


    ¡°We also need to find Aurora. I am sure she would be pissed to see us in here.¡±


    ¡°Aww fuck. I forgot all about her.¡± Rita¡¯s carefree mood vanished as soon as she remembered Aurora and her instructions.


    She was going to be so pissed at the pair now.


    ===========================


    Aurora felt weightless as she sank deeper into the water. It was a calming feeling that cause Aurora¡¯s mind to go nk.


    The water around her felt like the abyss and it was reaching out to help Aurora out. It was like a gentle parent, trying to guide Aurora along.


    The residual burn of corruption was nowhere to be felt and this was the most rxed Aurora had felt in a long time.


    But Aurora knew that hidden behind this calmness was a darkness that was waiting to devour her. If Aurora let her guard down she would have her body taken over in an instant.


    It was a battle for her life and the only way to get out of this ce was to break the seal that was cast on this ce.


    Aurora risked opening her eyes but all she was was clear water and an image of familiar blond hair.


    A hand reached out toward Aurora, asking her to take it but Aurora hesitate to take it.


    After all, the hand was not trying to pull her out but to sink her even deeper. The origin of the hand, nor the original body was visible to Aurora but she could tell that the hand was friendly and would help her out.


    ¡°Mother is here. Mother will help you out if you let her.¡±


    Aurora gulped her nervousness down as various voices rose around her. The calm water was instantly rustled with motion and various bodies swam past Aurora toward the darkness where the hand originated from.


    ¡®It must be a trap. I should get out of the water and make my way back.¡¯ Aurora tried to swim against the flow of water but it was difficult.


    The abyss was suppressing Aurora¡¯s magic and Aurora was not able to break out of her seal.


    The hand reached out to grab at Aurora¡¯s clothes and finally dragged her down into the water¡¯s depth.


    There was no oxygen to keep Aurora conscious and she finally felt her breath run out. She was being dragged deeper and deeper into the abyss but Aurora was also losing her strength.


    Her eyes could barely make out anything in front of her and this experience felt so familiar to her.


    ¡®Have I ever drowned before? I remember Clove reaching out toward her to pull me out.¡¯


    Aurora was sure it was only theck of oxygen in her brain that was making her hallucinate the golden hairs and blue eyes of Clove.


    The hand no longer looked to be originating out of darkness, but it seemed to be attached to a body that looked vaguely familiar to Clove¡¯s.


    ¡°Take my hand.¡±


    Aurora reached out toward the hand before realizing that the voice she heard did not sound like Clove¡¯s at all. The shape of the female¡¯s face and the way she swam also seemed different from Clove.


    It was only the initial impression and the familiar aura of this person that seemed to scream ¡®Clove¡¯ but this was a different person.


    Still, Aurora allowed herself to be pulled deeper into the depths of theke and closed her eyes.


    Her body was heavy and it was sinking but her brain did not feel the feel. Instead, it felt protected and warm.


    It felt like she was supposed to be here. Like she had found something important she had been looking for.


    Outside theke, Ava gave out a joyousugh as she felt the power surge around her.


    ¡°So, that fragment finally made contact with Aurora? It is all up to you now, Aurora. Do not disappoint me.¡±


    Ava¡¯s hummed out a tune due to her happy mood. She had worked so hard to present Aurora with this opportunity and she had a feeling that Aurora would not disappoint her.


    After all, this was the wish Aurora had made when she had contracted herself with Ava. She no longer had any ground toin.


    ¡°See Zoe, I told you things would work out.¡±


    Ava knew Zoe could hear her. She did not need an answer from the other overlooker to know that she had her interest.


    Things were falling into ce and soon enough Ava would be able to rest. Things were working themselves toward the end Ava anticipated that she would see it through.

 Chapter 186 186: Part of a script - part 1

    ¡°Oi, wake up. You cannot sleep here or you¡¯ll get frozen to death. Hurry and wake up.¡±


    Although Aurora felt her body shaking, she was unable to move her arm because of how cold it was. Her entire body ached and felt as though it had been frozen.


    The heavenly power Aurora possessed ought to be doing something to heal her right now, but it wasn¡¯t reacting to her.


    Her powers didn¡¯t even seem to be being restrained.


    ¡°Darn it! Are you dead already? After all that I did to get you unfrozen and this is how you respond to me? What can I even do with your body?¡±


    The thinking was difficult for Aurora in her current situation. All Aurora could focus on was the voice calling for her and the hand shaking her body.


    She was not even aware of how much time had passed ever since she had fallen unconscious. Aurora did not know anything at all.


    But despite all this, Aurora knew she had to show some kind of moment to survive. Her present circumstances did not look ideal but she was not out of help entirely.


    ¡°Huh? So you are alive. Good! Then keep holding on to me and I will save you. If you fall asleep here then you will never be able to return home.¡±


    ¡®Home? I want to go home. But I cannot fall asleep.¡¯


    Those words were like apulsion and Aurora found herself following them more and more. Her mind did not allow Aurora to fall asleep after she heard those words and this was how Aurora survived the whole time.<sub></sub>


    The subtle warmth of the body carrying Aurora out of the hands of a certain death felt familiar and so reminiscent that Aurora found herself leaning into her.


    pa?,??-,c<o>m It was all she felt until she was dumped into something hot. The sudden temperature rise was enough for Aurora toe back to her senses.</o>


    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t move around. You are lucky that you managed to escape your situation without getting any frostbite or losing any limb. Not everyone is as lucky as you are.¡±


    Golden hair and blue eyes met Aurora. For a second, Aurora felt like she was looking at Clove but then her brain reminded her that the blond¡¯s features did not match Clove¡¯s.


    The only thing this female had simr to Clove was her aura and the color of her hair.


    Even the blue of her eyes was different from Cloves.


    ¡°How are you feeling now? I hope you are feeling better than before. The hot water managed to get the warmth back into your body at least.¡±


    The female had a nice and soothing voice. Aurora knew that her fondness of her savior¡¯s voice was likely a bi-product of her current mental state and the familiar aura she had, but Aurora could not deny the fact that she liked it.


    Nor could she stop her body from leaning into the hand caressing her head. The action felt too natural to not be done.


    ¡°Once you are done, you shoulde out and eat breakfast with me. Food is hard toe by in recent times. This earth is changing far too fast to keep up.¡±<sub></sub>


    ¡°Do you know, just recently a fissure opened nearby and swallowed a vige? The scientists have decided to call this fissure the ¡®abyss¡¯ and they are thinking of sending a team down there to study it. I am one of these selected candidates as well.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I have not introduced myself yet, right? My name is ra. It is nice to meet you.¡±


    Aurora hardly heard the blond speak but the talk of ¡®Abyss¡¯ caught her fancy. The more she heard from them, the more confused she felt before it all came crashing together in her head.


    The death pool, the sinking feeling, being dragged away and then having a familiar face help her out.


    ¡®Lady ra must be the mother of those tainted being mentioned¡¯.


    Is this a piece of her soul then? I did learn that her spirit had fragmented, much like Clove¡¯s had.


    Aurora needed answers to so many questions, but she was aware that she would not get any at this time.


    The thing about such fragments of souls was ¨C they were not aware of their existence. They forever lived in a designated loop and were content to live out their lives in peace.


    But it took a significant amount of energy to keep this loop going. It was not surprising that anyone who came close to the Death Pool eventually died.


    I must remove this spell as quickly as possible. If I remained here, this piece of Lady ra would attempt to eat me as well.<sub></sub>


    Aurora did not doubt her power. If she faced Lady ra head-on then Aurora might win. But that would just reset this loop.


    ¡®I need to look for an opening in the cycle to escape. But I have no idea how to achieve that.¡¯ Aurora had never been in such a situation before.


    Everything Aurora had mentioned before was a result of hearing others¡¯ experiences. But hearing about something was different than experiencing it for yourself.


    ¡°Hey, the water must have gotten cold by now. Hurry up ande out or all my hard work will go down the drain.¡±


    Lady ra called out to Aurora and she had no other choice but toe out of the water and face her current circumstance.


    Lady ra seemed to be in a good mood. Her humming was loud enough for Aurora to head even in the bathroom.


    It was a calming and familiar sound to hear and Aurora finally managed to pull herself out of the water and calm herself down.


    ¡°Come and sit down. I hope the breakfast is to your liking.¡±


    Aurora quickly took the seat opposite the would-be goddess but her appetite was nowhere to be seen. She could not even pick up her spoon and bring it to her mouth.


    ¡°You know, you should not be picky with your food in these times. Who knows when the next time you eat will be.¡±


    Lady ra teased, her spoon aimed toward Aurora. Even this action seemed familiar to Aurora and her brain decided to make a few unnecessary connections.


    Aurora did not know why, but the more she stared at Lady ra, the more she missed Clove. She was even beginning to see the other blond in the future goddess.


    ¡°I¡¯m just not hungry. Maybe it is because my body is recovering from the cold still. Can you store this food for me to haveter?¡±


    Aurora would have stored her food in her system but her system was not working right now. This had only one implication  ¨C Aurora¡¯s current body had no magic in it.


    She was no better than an ordinary human. Aurora could not evenbat disease in her current condition.


    It was likely a result of the ¡®setting¡¯ which had rendered Aurora useless.


    ¡®Seeing as how ra has no magic as well, this has to be a time before humans gained magic. This is unknown territory for me.¡¯


    No matter how much Aurora tried to hide her disdain, she could not help but find this situation worrisome.


    Being powerless was not a feeling Aurora was used to.


    ¡°I see. In that case, you should rest for now. I will start heading toward the Abyss study station pretty soon but I don¡¯t want to leave you alone either. Would you like toe with me?¡±


    Things were happening around Elysia. And they were happening too fast for her.


    One second, Elysia was being pulled toward one side, the other she was being pulled toward another. Reasoning and feelings were bifurcating Aurora in different directions.


    ¡®I don¡¯t know why I ended up here or who wanted me here, but sticking with ra, for now, would be a good choice. I have a feeling I ra is the key to solving this problem and I need to stick close to her to solve it.¡¯


    In the back of her mind, Aurora knew that something huge was about to happen. Her brain was trying to warn her against following her heart but Aurora still decided to take this risk.


    ¡®You are just trying to deny the truth you have realized but it won¡¯t help you out. It is better to give up and stick to what you know best.¡¯


    Had Aurora listened to her head then and not her heart, she could not havee to the sick realization about ra¡¯s true identity and her connection to Clove.


    But as things seemed, regrets were something one could not avoid and Aurora was an unwilling victim of her circumstances either.


    Besides, what could ever happen in the world created by a soul fragment?


    ¡®Past cannot be changed without rewriting it entirely. I am sure it will be alright in the end.¡¯ This ce was not a rewrite of the past, but a y that reflected things as they had been.


    And Aurora was just following a character in that script as well.

 Chapter 187 187: Part of a script - part 2

    ¡°Rita, are you sure we are going in the right direction? I cannot help but feel like you got us lost in here.¡±


    ¡°Of course not. See, we are moving in the right direction. And we can just knock over a wall or two if we ever find ourselves in a pinch.¡±


    The pair ran through the forest in a hurry. Rita¡¯s arms carried Natasha in them while the dwarf was held in Natasha¡¯s grip.


    The poor creature looked terrified for its life and one could even see the spirit of life disappearing from its every with every second that passed.


    ¡°We are going to die. You are going to get us all killed. Why don¡¯t you leave me here and die on your own?¡±


    The dwarf had never seen a more suicidal pair of idiots in his life. The red-haired and ck-haired humans were charging right into the heart of the forest, ignoring all the other creatures eying them.


    Could they not tell that they were painting themselves as the prime targets?


    Not to mention, the ck-haired girl still had the seed of corruption about to burst out of her. She was the biggest danger out there.


    The redhead had somehow managed to surpass the corruption but that seal would notst for long.


    ¡°Rita, time is up. Turn around so that I can st those fools away.¡±


    ¡°Roger that, mam.¡±


    The dwarf cried out as the redhead took an abrupt turn. The momentum of that turn caused the dwarf to feel sick but the ck-haired human seemed to be alright.


    No, she seemed better than alright. Her mouth was already chanting the spell needed to save their group.


    ¡°Fuck you,¡± ice spread out of Natasha¡¯s stretched hand. It stopped all the attacks heading the trio.


    But the magic did not stop there. It managed to reach its attackers and pierce them formless parties in the heart.


    ¡°Natasha, you are going overboard. Your body cannot handle this much magic.¡±


    Rita sounded worried but her heart was pounding in fear and exnation. It had been such a rush to face their fears.


    But despite everything, Rita knew they could not spend too much time and power against these small enemies. Natasha was being worn off and herpletion was ash-white. Her magic was also irregrly ring and the corrupted taint was spreading.


    ¡°I can handle this much. My magic can hold on for even longer.¡±


    The ice was holding in against the onught of attacks the trio was facing but it would not hold on forever.


    ¡°I know you are confident in your power but maybe we should get going. Chop, chop, get moving soon. And by soon, I mean now!¡±


    The dwarf cried out, his eyes filled with tears. It was the only person confident enough to voice their opinion.


    ¡°Shut up. The only useless person does not get to make demands from me.¡±


    Rita snapped back, her temper ring at the unnecessary egging she was hearing.


    Not only was the dwarf being unnecessarily noisy, but it was also causing Natasha to loosen her grip on its small body. And since Natasha had to arrange herself to keep a tight grip on the dwarf, her body was shaking as well.


    If this continued, then Rita would be forced to stop and reconsider her options.


    .?O,m ¡°You! Stop it or else.¡±


    And Rita was not the only one who was losing her temper. Natasha also lost whatever grip she had on her temper and snapped out.


    Her hand tightened around the dwarf and it dragged a squeak out of the dwarf.


    ¡°I am settling down now. Please forgive me.¡±


    The dwarf sounded scared and it finally settled down. But this clownery gave their attackers enough time to catch up with them.


    Natasha tried to fire her magic but she stopped. Any more than this would cause her corruption to re.


    And they did not have time to get this corruption under control this time.


    ¡°Time to help out the needy. Hey hothead, jump up with all your might if you want to live.¡±


    Help arrived at the most unexpected time and in the form of the most unexpected person.


    Rita got seconds before she heard Ava¡¯s words and before she felt her body flowing into the air.


    ¡°Shit, holy. Give me. A warning before pulling something like this next time.¡±


    Rita felt her trip on Natasha loosened but she caught the ck-haired princess at thest second.


    Ava¡¯s magic swept the area beneath the trio. It was like a hard and fast fire, consuming everything in its way but the owner of the said mes did not seem to care for the cries she heard.


    Ava was floating in the air and for a second, Rita¡¯s eyes met Ava¡¯s on an equal footing.


    ¡°Your dumbfounded face is so much better than your biting tongue. I think I prefer you in this expression, hothead.¡±


    Ava¡¯s words taunted Rita as she felt gravity finally take a hold of her and her precious baggage. By the time she reached the ground, it was nothing more than a torched surface.


    The only thing that remained of the bodies that had tried to get a hold of Rita and Natasha were the ashes.


    Ava made her way down as well, her body not even boasting a single scratch. Her amused smile seemed especially unfamiliar on her face.


    ¡°You? When did youe here? More importantly, how long were you keeping an eye out for us? Could you not have helped us earlier?¡±


    Rita¡¯s questions escaped her mouth one after the other. Her temper was thin and vtile but she could not help herself from asking all that.


    She was sure that Ava could have helped them way before she showed herself. If she had done that then Natasha would not have to use her magic and fight these monsters off.


    ¡°Hey, calm down. I arrived here just in time to save you. Do not take your anger and frustration out on me. I did the best I could under these circumstances.¡±


    Natasha gritted her teeth but she could not find a point in having a verbal spar with Ava.


    ¡°Ava, did you see Aurora anywhere? We got separated and now we are trying to find her.¡± Natasha took charge of the situation once she realized that Rita was not going to be any help to her.


    The younger did understand where Rita wasing from when she made her usations. Ava just gave off a feeling of distrust but Natasha was not someone who judged others based on a first impression.


    Natasha was willing to give Ava the benefit of doubt. (Even if her presence in the current scenario did sound suspicious.)


    ¡°Aurora? I know where she is but we cannot help her right now. It will be better for us if we leave this forest before it explodes.¡±


    Ava skirted around the topic, her voice mysterious. Her decision to not give Natasha a clear answer irked her curiosity but it was the dwarf that caught the message Ava was trying to give them.


    ¡°EXPLODES? THIS FOREST IS GOING TO EXPLODE? THEN, WILL WE ALL DIE?¡±


    The dwarf loud cry pierced the forest. The small voice was suddenly loud enough to cause the sleeping beasts to wake up.


    ¡°You fool. Why can¡¯t you use your head once in your life? Are you trying to get us all killed with you?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to die. Please save meeeeee¡±


    Rita took the dwarf out of Natasha¡¯s hand when she let the younger leave her arms. She shook the dwarf to make hime to his senses but it was not going to help the situation.


    ¡°Alright, you both can stop fighting now. Firstly, we should get out of this forest. The rest, I will tell youter.¡±


    Rita frowned, not trusting Ava¡¯s words. But she also knew that Aurora trusted Ava. So Rita also decided to follow Ava, for now, her personal feelings taking a backseat in this department.


    ¡°By the way, what are you even doing here? Is it alright for you to be here? Won¡¯t the overlooker of these floors take notice of you?¡± Natasha¡¯s words caused a small smile to appear on Ava¡¯s face.


    She did not look concerned at all.


    ¡°Oh, me? Nah, it¡¯ll be alright in the end. You just focus on yourself and I will take care of myself for now. Besides, I have the overlooker¡¯s blessings to be here right now. I doubt she would cause any problems for me.¡±


    Ava sounded confident so Natasha let the topic fall. But it did not fade away from her mind.


    In the end, there was nothing Natasha or anyone else could do but follow after Ava. The overlooker took them outside the forest just in time for it to explode out.


    The magicalbustion was too much that it eradicate the whole forest, reducing it to the ashes.


    ¡°Right in time, Now, it¡¯s all up to you Aurora. Hope youe back alive to us.¡±

 Chapter 188 188: A new project starts

    ¡°Oh, me? Nah, it¡¯ll be alright in the end. You just focus on yourself and I will take care of myself for now. Besides, I have the overlooker¡¯s blessings to be here right now. I doubt she would cause any problems for me.¡±


    ¡®That damned snake. I wish I could boil her and feed her remains to the beasts in this abyss.¡¯


    Zoe cursed as she watched Ava make quick work of the beasts on her floor. This was not even her domain but Ava was not holding back.


    Moreover, she had used the cursed magic which would make it impossible to revive these monsters. Ava was crippling Zoe indirectly.


    But despite all this, Ava had not lied when she said that she had permission to be on that floor. Zoe had given in and allowed Ava entry into the Death Pool.


    ¡®If only Ava had not promised her Lady ra¡¯s soul fragment in return. I would have never agreed to her demands.¡¯


    The fact, however, was that Ava had discovered a way to take advantage of Zoe¡¯s w and was doing so to her greatest advantage.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe she consented to shove the contractor into the enchanted pool and sacrifice her. Either Ava has ced too much trust in Aurora, or she is a fool who wants to perish in the water with these people.


    Zoeined but she knew in her heart that Ava had won this bet. Aurora was not someone who Lady ra could ignore.


    She had no been able to get past Aurora¡¯s charm in the past and likely would not be able to let her go in the future.


    The illusion of the soul fragment that showed the past was already starting to fade away. A soul¡¯s past could not be changed without paying a heavy price but the abyss had a certain fondness for Aurora.


    Aurora¡¯s entire being felt like the abyss itself and it was different from theirst time.


    ¡®The future is no longer certain. However, those who are meant to die will die regardless. It is futile to wish life on someone who died during theirst lives.¡¯


    Zoe did not know the rules of this reset hard and fast but she did know some things.


    All those people who had died in thest round of this reset would die this time as well. Aurora could try to prevent it all she wanted but that would not change the fact this was the past.


    You could change mall things but the bigger picture would remain the same. Those who live would find a way to survive this time as well.


    ¡®But I have a feeling that Aurora¡¯s involvement would change things this time. Am I overthinking this too much?¡¯


    In the end, Zoe decided not to pay much attention to what was going on around her. As long as she got her soul fragment, it did not matter who lived and who died.


    Still, Aurora was an amusing specimen to study. It was too bad that Zoe could not use her powers to pierce the abyssal barrier around Lady ra¡¯s soul.


    Aurora would have to be the one to drag her out.


    ===========================


    ¡°Would you like toe with me?¡±


    Aurora agreed with Lady ra¡¯s request easily enough. The elder was her way to get out of this situation.


    Besides, Aurora did want to head into the abyss and see what all she had missed. Was the abyss any different this far into the past? Or did nothing change in all the centuries that passed?


    Aurora was also curious about the origin of magic and the history of the goddesses as well. So little was known about this period and the original 7 gods.


    And even those who knew choose to keep their mouth shut. It was as if they did not want to get this story out there in the open.


    ¡°By the way, you have still not told me your name. I can¡¯t keep calling you ¡®hey¡¯ every time I want to talk to you, can I?¡± Lady ra turned her head sideways and gave Aurora a curious look.


    Aurora shook her head at the other¡¯s cute action. For some reason, anything Lady ra did seemed cute to Aurora.


    It was like she was back with Clove and she was having a lot of fun again.


    ¡°Call me Aurora. It is also nice to meet you, ra.¡±


    It was so weird to address a goddess without their proper title but ra had refused to hear anything before her name.


    It did not help that Lady ra had no divine powers currently. Aurora was curious to know how she gained them at all.


    ¡°We should hurry up and go now. The scientists told me that there was something weird going on with the abyss. I wonder what is going to happen next?¡±


    Aurora was less curious about what was going to happen.


    Had it been the future, such news would not have affected the lives of ordinary people. The future settlement was built high-up enough to nevere in contact with the abyss.


    But the settlements of the past were built on the surface. Any changes the abyss suffered would have a direct impact on them.


    ¡°Hurry up and wear your sun cloak. It¡¯s going to be a hot day out.¡±


    Aurora followed Lady ra out into the open and closed her eyes. She expected to feel the coldness of the outside freezing her body but it was hot.


    It was too hot to be the cold she had been saved from. The sun could easily be 36 degrees.


    ¡°Are you surprised to see the day being this hot? It¡¯s all because of the abyss. This fluctuation in temperature killed off all our crops this year. Now there is a food shortage all around the world.¡±


    Lady ra exined the present weather phenomenon quite casually. This type of thing no longer urred in the future so this was something that would settle down if it was given enough time.


    ¡°We are here, the abyssal emergency institute. I hope you will have a pleasant time here.¡±


    Lady ra walked through the gates and Aurora followed behind her. No one as much as dared to stop her entry.


    ¡®Weird. I thought they would stop me at the gates. They don¡¯t know me after all.¡¯


    It was all quite weird for Aurora to face. She could see people pointing toward her and whispering behind their hands but no one approached her.


    It was only her and Lady ra that walked the whole time.


    The first sign of social activity only urred after the pair reached the innerbs. Aurora could spot some familiar faces in front of her.


    Lady Minerva looked as upright as ever, as did Lady Mei. Lord Karan had an indifferent look on his face. Aurora had to remind herself that this Lord Karan had a different soul.


    Besides these three, there were more unfamiliar faces in front of Aurora. Most of them were people Aurora had only heard of before.


    Lord n, the resistance leader had a bald head and a serious look on his face but his eyes looked kind. The goddess of Victory, Seraphina was all but a kid shy of her teenage years.


    Lady Aasmi¡¯s predecessor had her face covered by a cloth which made it impossible to see her read features and she had a small girl held at her side.


    Along with Lady ra, this marked the original 7 gods and goddesses that started the fight against the abyss.


    Out of these 7, only five lived to make it to Aurora¡¯s future. Lady ra died and Lady Asami¡¯s predecessor sacrificed herself.


    ¡°Yo, ra. I see a new face with you today. Care introducing us all to her?¡± Mei¡¯s loud voice attracted everyone¡¯s attention.


    ¡°Mei, please calm down or you will injure yourself. Today will be a big day for us all so don¡¯t cause us trouble.¡± Lady Minerva interfered. Her tone had not changed a bit in all the extra years she lived.


    ¡°That is right, Mei. Try and control yourself a little. You will get plenty of chances to fight once you gain your powers.¡± Lord n¡¯s kind voice interfered.


    The more these people spoke, the calmer Aurora felt. The attention was no longer on her but the people in front of her.


    ¡°Booo. Such a mean thing to say to me. I just wanted to greet the new person who will be working alongside us.¡±


    Mei seemed to not have taken any of those words to heart. Instead, she had a cheeky grin on her face.


    But before any more conversations could take ce, the main door opened and a person dressed in a white overall suit exited the chamber.


    ¡°ra, this is the new person you wanted to rmend for our experiment? We checked her bloodwork and she doesn¡¯t have a problem. So we will take her in as your partner. From here on, you eight will tackle the abyss and be the first humans to take in the abyss¡¯s energy.¡±


    ¡°You all would be the foundation to humanity¡¯s survival and do what those poor sacrificed animals failed to do. It is time ¡®Project Humanity¡¯ starts for real.¡±

 Chapter 189 189: For the human gain - part 1

    ¡°Waaaaaaahhhhhhh! So this is the abyss? Looks like an abandoned cliff. Man, how disappointing.¡±


    For Aurora, time passed in an instant. One second, she felt like she was outside of the abyss and into that facility, the next second she had entered the abyss with the exploration team.


    ¡®Time is not a constant factor in this illusion. I should not treat the passage of time here simr to the one outside the illusion.¡¯


    The more Aurora focused on the facts, the more they slipped out of her mind. Someone wanted Aurora to follow a script but Aurora was stubborn as well.


    ¡°Hey, you feeling alright? You are looking for a little pale.¡±


    Lady ra was standing on Aurora¡¯s side, her blue eyes gleaming with concern. It seemed like she had adopted Aurora into the group without hesitation.


    ¡°Oi lovebirds, stop wasting time and hurry up.¡± Aurora shook her head at Mei¡¯s teasing tone. The fiery goddess was a teenager right now and being impatient came with the territory.


    The colder wind of the abyss blew Aurora¡¯s white hair away, an abnormality from her real body and also the reason Aurora found it easier to blend in with the others.


    She had adopted the persona of an outsider in the group. But strangely enough, such a person was never mentioned when the subject of the ancient gods and goddesses was raised.


    They were always hailed as the original ¡®7¡¯, not the original ¡®8¡¯.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to pay any attention to Mei. She¡¯s just agitated since we have not made any progress in the past week. But I feel like we are getting closer and closer to the truths of the abyss.¡±


    Lady ra¡¯s reassurance felt good but hollow. Aurora knew how deep the abyss went in her current time. No one had seen the end to this ce.


    But still, Aurora decided not to dash Lady ra¡¯s hopes. There was nothing cruel in this world than a broken heart and broken hope.


    ¡°I am not bothered by Mei¡¯s words since I can understand why she is trying to distract herself from everything. She joined this operation for her parents, right? To get them a better life since they were sick.¡±


    ¡°Yeah. That and she waspatible with the abyss. We all were selected from the human race because we hadpatibility with the abyssal powers. It would be nice to finally get our hands on some.¡±


    n followed Aurora¡¯s words, heading toward her with a gentle smile on his face. It seemed like all he could do was smile at the circumstances.


    ¡°It¡¯s notpatibility but our effort that led us to be selected. Do not belittle our experiences.¡±


    Lady Minerva had a lot to say as well. Aurora felt like she could understand the olderdy a little more after a week. (Not that Aurora had any memories of this past week.)


    ¡°I don¡¯t know about you but I think Seraphina should not be here with us. Chosen or not, she is too young for all this.¡± Lady Asami¡¯s predecessor also walked over toward the group with sharp steps.


    She carried the small goddess of victory in her arms while trying to get her to sleep. The young teenager was not equipped for such a situation.


    ¡°She¡¯s here because she needs to be. Besides, she is safer with us than back home.¡± Lady Minerva¡¯s words caused the former goddess to quieten down.


    Aurora did not have the full details but she had a feeling that the small goddess did not have the best home life.


    ¡°Hey, enough chit-chatting. I think I found a way out of here.¡± Lord Karan finally returned from the scouting. All of a sudden, the eight of them were present in the same ce.


    This was a rare urrence ever since this expedition had started. They all had different objectives but all had the same goal ¨C finding a source of their power.


    ¡°ording to the data we have, we need to find beasts to make a contract with. The research department already chose for us but it will be up to us to steal the appropriate artifact needed.¡±


    This was the part that Aurora did not know. She had never taken any interest in how a god or goddess was born.


    She did know that a medium was needed for the lesser gods to be born in the current time but she was not aware that it was something simr in the past.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know if we should do this. I mean, how much can we even trust the science department? Humans are wed by nature.¡±


    Even if Lady ra¡¯s statements were upsetting, they were justified. These people she was with were experimented on for a very long time before being abandoned into the abyss, ording to what Aurora had witnessed during the previous few days.


    Aurora had been ast-second addition so she had gotten lucky in that regard. But the others bore marks of shame on their body.


    ¡°The science department did what it needed to make uspatible. Since we were the lucky ones to survive the tests, we must help humanity out.¡±


    Lady Minerva seemed to be holding great love for humanity even at this time of her life. Some things were not meant to change.


    ¡°Minerva, you are so lucky to still have your faith. For me, this is all a nightmare I want to end. The only thing that is holding me back is you, people.¡±


    Lady ra¡¯s remarks were initially interpreted as humor, but Aurora knew they would eventually prove to be very urate.


    These people did not have a stable mentality. Most of them were alreadying to hate humanity and this new world but their faith in each other was keeping them close.


    Anyone would not see these cracks forming at the surface but Aurora had seen the fissure at its finest. She knew these bonds would break soon enough.


    And she also had a feeling that her ¡®current¡¯ body would be the trigger for that separation.


    After all, there had to be a reason the eighthpanion was never mentioned in the stories about the past.


    ¡°Let¡¯s hurry up. I just received a report from the main center. Our first target has shown up in the vicinity. We will have our first core now.¡±


    Aurora got up as well, her body held at ready. She knew that this was an important moment for the group. It will be the crowning of the first goddess.


    The battle passed in a sh. Maybe it was not important or the soul did not remember what had happened on that day but Aurora could not recall a single detail of how the core was retrieved or how it was absorbed.


    She did not even know what kind of core it was or how got it. Aurora was just going with the flow right now.


    ¡°Aurora, help me out here. I think I am feeling sick.¡±


    But it was not long before disaster began to strike. The team began feeling ill one by one until none of them could stand it any longer.


    ¡°We need to get out of the abyss. This ce is making us all sick. We need to retreat and thene back.¡±


    Aurora had to take charge of the situation. No one else looked remotely healthy in this ce except her.


    Maybe it was because Aurora had not taken in any core or maybe it was because she was immune to the abyssal corrosion, but Aurora felt alright to continue.


    ¡°T-Then we will be counting on you Aurora. Take us back home.¡±


    To be trusted in such a situation was an honor for anyone but Aurora could not help but feel burdened. She had the responsibility of carrying so many innocent lives on her shoulder and the pressure was massive.


    Still, Aurora knew she would be able to do this.


    No, she had done this in the past and that was why these gods and goddesses had survived this long.


    ¡°W-We made it out. The scientists said that they would meet us nearby.¡±


    Aurora had sent a message out before exiting the abyss. She just needed to wait a little longer and they would all be rescued.


    Around her, most of herpanions were in various forms of andromorphic changes. Even Clove had half her arm covered in ck scales of unknown origin.


    ¡°You did well. Now, we shall take it from here on. Hurry up and upload these precious specimens for us shall dissect them and use their information well.¡±


    Aurora knew that humans were cruel but she had not thought them capable of doing this.


    Mainly, Aurora felt that it was all happening too fast. Things were happening but Aurora was not able to react to it all happening. Even her body was beginning to feel heavy and tired.


    ¡°Sleep. You won¡¯t wake up again. You are the most interesting of all these people. You went in there but came out without any mutation. We need to study this effect well.¡±


    Aurora felt the scientist hover over her but she was unable to react to him.

 Chapter 190 190: For the human gain - part 2

    - ¡°Sleep. You won¡¯t wake up again. You are the most interesting of all these people. You went in there but came out without any mutation. We need to study this effect well.¡±


    The scientist was hovering above the group, his instruments in hand and an evil gleam in his eyes.


    ¡®What the hell? I knew these people were fucked up but I did not think something like this would happen for real. I guess this is the part where someone snaps and someone else gets killed as a result.¡¯


    Aurora knew she should be feeling a sense of urgency considering her current situation but she felt calmer than she ever had before.


    But not everyone was feeling the same as her. Lady ra was going wild a few feet adjustment to Aurora.


    ¡°Get your hands off me or you will never see them again. I promise that you will have a painful death if you touch me.¡±


    Lady ra¡¯s voice was the loudest but it was not the only one that rang in that clearing. The threat was clear but the people around Aurora were too tired to care.


    But since Aurora could feel everyone¡¯s lifeforce around her she knew things were alright. The scientists would not dare kill their precious specimens.


    They won¡¯t harm their specimen, right?


    ¡°Fuck this bitch. She dared to bite my hand and also block the kid. This is the end for her.¡±


    ¡°You won¡¯t be touching Seraphina. I will protect her even if it costs me my life. You will not get to touch her, you hear me?¡± Lady Asami¡¯s predecessor yelled, her voice brave but tired.


    The clearing went silent as soon that promation happened before Aurora felt magic build up beneath her body.


    The abyss was responding to something and it was filling the area around their group with resonance.


    If nothing was done then a magical explosion would take ce.


    ¡°This might be all I can do but I will make sure I drag you all into hell with me.¡± The goddess was going crazy over her ce. She was not only willing to drag the scientists into the abyss but also her allies.


    ¡®Not like we will die but isn¡¯t this too risky?¡¯


    No one got any time to get words in before the ground gave way. All Aurora heard were the cries of pain from the scientists before she felt the ground give way beneath her.


    ¡°Aurora, hang on. Hold on to something and I will pull you all up.¡±


    Aurora tried to follow those instructions but her body was filled with the drug. Her arms did not have the strength to keep holding on to the ledge.


    Someone¡¯s hand caught Aurora¡¯s arm, her body hanging on the edge.


    Pain-filled blue eyes caught Aurora¡¯s own and Lady ra¡¯s tear-filled gaze met Aurora.


    ¡°Let go. ra, you need to let go of me or we will both fall.¡±


    Aurora tried to save ra¡¯s life. She knew that this body was meant to die here and be a part of the abyss but Lady ra seemed to have other ideas.


    ¡°I cannot. I love you so I won¡¯t let go. I feel like I will break and start to hate humanity if I let go now.¡±


    Of course. So this was the catalyst of the change in the god¡¯s rtionship. Love was a foolish emotion that made people do weird things.


    This love was the reason this illusion was able to hold on to this long in the abyss as well. But it had gone on for too long.


    Aurora was a hypocrite to say this, but past feelings needed to be let go.


    ¡°ra, you need to let go. You know that trying to save me will not help. How many times do you want to go through the same thing over and over again? Isn¡¯t this pain enough?¡±


    Aurora tried to console the goddess. She knew that the soul¡¯s memories were going through a loop and the same events would repeat themselves.


    Normally, that would not have been a problem but Aurora was kind of in a hurry here. She needed to return to her original ce and to the people who needed her.


    ¡°I cannot let go. Please do not make me let go. I know how that ends but I cannot ept it. Please do not make me face reality.¡±


    Aurora took in a sharp breath, realizing that this was the breaking point.


    A normal person would tell ra to move on, to not hold back and let the past go. Aurora was sure that the person whose body she was upying in this illusion told Lady ra something simr.


    So it would only be right for Aurora to follow in their footsteps. Foreign emotions were swimming inside Aurora¡¯s mind, yelling at her to make things right.


    But Aurora knew that if she followed along with them then nothing would change. What ra needed to hear were not words of assurance or that things would be alright.


    ¡°ra, you are allowed to be selfish. I will allow you to pull me up but nothing would change even if you do. So, won¡¯t you let me go?¡±


    Aurora gave ra the choice. It was clear that this was what ra wanted from her all along,  a choice to be able to change the past.


    And ra did not disappoint her when she pulled Aurora up. Somewhere inside ra¡¯s heart, she had realized the truth as well.


    This soup was much more self-aware than Aurora had given it credit for.


    But since the illusion had not faded yet, that meant Aurora had not finished things up here yet. She still had something to resolve but she already had an idea of what it was.


    After all, once you lost a loved one there was anger and bitterness that remained. But that was not all that remained.


    ¡°You caught me.¡±


    ¡°I did catch you. Does that mean I get to do what I want with you?¡±


    Aurora took in a deep breath, anticipating what was about toe. Aurora truly had braced herself for the next step.


    ¡°You can do what you want with me. I promise not to resent you for your choice.¡±


    Lady ra took in a sharp breath before pulling Aurora against her body. It was a short and tight hug conveying all the feelings that had been pent up inside the older goddess.


    But the hug was cut short and Aurora felt a sharp push on her chest.


    ¡°I always wanted to do that to you. You know, as much I loved you, I also resented you for leaving me behind. Why did you have to be the only one to die today? You made me hate humanity as well.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s body fell into the crack but there was no resistance now.


    She knew that it was killing ra to do this but this was necessary. Past was impossible to change and deaths were impossible to overwrite.


    ¡®Those who are meant to die will have to die. You cannot change one¡¯s lifespan. It was also why things be precious to you.¡¯


    That subtle voice and thought felt familiar. Aurora had no idea if it was her own, the abyss, or the original owner of this body. But Aurora could feel the truth reflected in those words.


    ¡®Yourpanions are also people who will not be able to escape their fate so you should brace yourself because this is the path you chose.¡¯


    Aurora closed her eyes, her heart not wanting to face this truth.


    Time was running out for Rita and Aurora had long since been aware of this. Even Rita had known about this to some extent and it was visible in her recent behavior. The younger had finally decided to let go of restraint and live her life.


    ¡°But I still want to believe that I can change something. Is it foolish of me?¡±


    Aurora whispered in a low voice. She was not sure why she still had faith in things turning out alright.


    ¡®In that case, you will have to make a choice. But both options will be as bad as the other and there will be no winner in this gamble.¡¯


    ¡®Whether you take it as a gift or a curse, it is up to you. But you won¡¯t be able to avoid making a choice. Aurora¡¯s body hit the water just as she felt something explode around her.


    The surroundings were filled with magical power unimaginable to anything Aurora had felt before but she also felt the residual of a familiar magical signature in front of her.


    The mutation had finally decided to show itself and Aurora felt her magic respond to her wishes.


    ¡®It feels so good to have my magic back. I truly missed it a lot.¡¯ The time Aurora had spent without her magic had been miserable but now she was ready.


    She could feel Lady ra¡¯s soul inside that residual energy gather up and take the form of a giant blob.


    ¡°Fuck. Now I have to fight her as well? Could the abyss not make this easier on me?¡±

 Chapter 191 191: There is no out

    The blob was a challenging opponent to fight. It was resistant to any magical attacks and it resisted any force Aurora used.


    Frankly, Aurora¡¯s existing tools would not allow her to escape the blob. She was limited to hunting prey. Aurora would have a way out of her predicament if she could locate the core of the blob monster.


    ¡°However, saying that is simple. For me to trulyplete some tasks, I need space and time.¡±


    The main problem with fighting the blob was its rapid durability and regeneration abilities. Aurora was cutting at the slimy arms but her knife seemed to just pass the blob without damaging it.


    The only way Aurora could think of dealing with the blob was to freeze it in ce and then search the body.


    ¡®But I will need someone else to hold this monster down. I won¡¯t be able to maintain my concentration once I begin my search.¡¯


    This was the biggest predicament Aurora had. She had the power but none of the control to maintain her ice spell.


    ¡®This is what happens when I rush into things. I wish I took more time out of my schedule to practice magic.¡¯


    This thought was one that everyone had at least once in their lives. Aurora was no different since she could not get away from it.


    But even then, her regret was a little different from normal people¡¯s. She was in a life or death situation currently.


    ¡°Stand still, why don¡¯t you? You are so annoying that it hurts to deal with you.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s words were not making much sense currently but she just wanted to curse at the monster. The forest was as good as gone already so it did not matter what else they did right now.


    Aurora hacked at the blob and waved her way through aplicated mesh of trees. She wanted to buy some time to get the blob slowed down but things did not happen as she had envisioned.


    Instead of slowing down, the blob managed to move its body parts and move through the space.


    ¡®I can see it. The soul capsule is inside that blob. But how do I get it out?¡¯


    Aurora would need to dip her hands into the blob to get the capsule out but she had no idea if that was even safe or not.


    The blob was not acidic but it was brimming with power. For all she knew, Aurora might be able to separate its body parts again and escape her clutches.


    ¡®I seriously need someone toe and keep that monster down.¡¯ Just as Aurora had that thought, she felt the surrounding temperature getting lower.


    Aurora¡¯s luck finally turned around and magic surged around her. The ice broke through the water¡¯s surface and began climbing all over the blob.


    The blob fought against the magical shackles that were trying to hold it down but it could not break past the icy on its lower half.


    ¡°Hurry up and do what you need to. I will try to keep the monster down.¡±


    Natasha¡¯s voice was like a calming balm to Aurora. The familiar magic surged as Natasha fought to keep the monster down.


    Aurora had no time to spare Natasha any nce. She was curious about Natasha¡¯s ability to wield magic but Aurora knew this was a conversation for another time.


    Just immobilizing the blob¡¯s lower half did not mean that Aurora was out of danger. The blob could still fight and it tried to hit Aurora using its upper body.


    ¡°Don¡¯t even try.¡±


    As soon as the upper parts of the blob tried to move to cut off Aurora¡¯s path, someone froze them. The magic felt Natasha¡¯s but it was not her who cast that spell.


    ¡°Oi, hurry up and go. Indirect spells like these would notst long but I will try to make your way easier.¡±


    Rita¡¯s words were followed by a few more shots. As she has said, the spell freezing the blob¡¯s upper body did notst long.


    Aurora could tell that she had mere seconds to react even with Rita and Natasha¡¯s help. They were lucky that the magic they were using was cast on the environment around the blob and not the blob itself.


    ¡°Keep it held for a few more seconds. I will end it in one strike.¡±


    Since magic would not work on the blob, all Aurora could count on was a force. She had to concentrate and rise her physical level up to strike at the soul capsule.


    Aurora¡¯s felt coldness grip her arm as she covered it with a thickyer of ice. She would not be able to stop once she begin her assault.


    ¡°Ava, you cannot help us, right? So watch our back.¡±


    Aurora had felt the out lookers presence behind as. But unlike the others, the snake did not help them out.


    Frankly, Aurora did not think she would need Ava¡¯s help anymore but it was better to be safe than sorry in this scenario.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for being useless but my hands are bound right now.¡±


    Ava did sound sorry but Aurora could not take her words at the face value. But she did not want to look at the silver-haired female either.


    ¡®I guess I don¡¯t want my hopes and trust to be broken right now.¡¯ Aurora realized that this scenario was a part of Ava¡¯s n all along.


    The outlooker had led them here knowing what kind of dangers they wouldnd themselves into.


    ¡°Aurora, pay attention to the enemy in front of you. Don¡¯t let your mind wander all over the ce.¡±


    Aurora gulped her nervousness down and she finally extended her hand toward the light blob in front of her.


    It took one second for Aurora¡¯s hand to sink into that blob and for her to grasp the soul capsule.


    Images of golden hair and blue eyes shed behind Aurora¡¯s eyes and the familiar face of Lady ra stood in front of her.


    ¡®If you do this then I will disappear. Are you sure you will be able to bear seeing me disappear?¡¯


    ¡°Bold words for a phantom to say to me. I fell in love with Clove, not Lady ra, and the one I¡¯m doing this for is also her. So I don¡¯t mind saying goodbye here.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s words were meant only for herself and the phantom in front of her. To most, her words might sound hurtful but the phantom only smiled at her words.


    It seemed like the phantom expected to hear Aurora say all that.


    ¡®See, I knew you were stubborn and I am d that you did not change even after what I did to your soul. Ahhhh, I¡¯m so envious of my fragment that managed to get you to love her.¡¯


    So that was it. That was the confirmation Aurora needed to prove her theory.


    Ever since the start, Aurora had a feeling that her connection with Clove was unnatural but she had never dwelled on it.


    Things like ¡®star-crossed¡¯ or ¡®fated¡¯ were the concepts that Clove dwelled upon. For Aurora, living in the present moment and falling in love with someone were acts she did of her free will.


    ¡®Besides, I don¡¯t think what I feel for Clove is the same as before. Time and distance do change a lot of things. And so does thepany. I have new people around me now, people I want to cherish.¡¯


    Aurora felt the power of the soul bing more and more recessive. It was hiding away in the capsule and she had a feeling that she would not see Lady ra again for some time now.


    ¡®So that is one thing taken care of. I need to take care of the other problem now.¡¯


    The other problem referred to Natasha and Rita who had managed to crawl their way into this forest despite Aurora telling them not to.


    Aurora had half a mind to tear the pair a new one but her words died down in her throat as soon as her eyes met Rita¡¯s teary ones.


    The redhead sat in front of Aurora, her arms cradling a sleeping body in them. But Aurora could feel the fading aura of the ck-haired girl and she knew what that meant for her.


    ¡°A-Aurora, this was not supposed to happen. W-What should we do now? Natasha is not waking up.¡±


    Rita¡¯s words were filled with disbelief. It seemed like she was facing death for the first time.


    ¡®She is facing death for the first time. It is times like these that reminded me how young they all are. Am I really in the right here to drag these kids into my trouble? No, what am I even thinking right now? I need to save Natasha first.¡¯


    ¡°Hurry up and give her here. Let me have a look at her to see what we can do.¡± Aurora had hope in her heart. She wanted to really do something to save Natasha but her heart sank as soon as her hands made contact with the icy princess.


    Natasha¡¯s body was icy cold and unfeeling. And there was corruption brewing under her skin.

 Chapter 192 192: Temporary solutions

    ¡°Ava, what can we do to save her?¡±


    Rita¡¯s mind was a mess. She had handed Natasha over to Aurora but her hands still felt the phantom weight of the princess in them.


    This was not supposed to happen. Natasha was not supposed to be the one to pay this price.


    ¡®I should be in her position. I was the one who created this mess. I ran in here without thinking of the consequences and I was also the one who broke their seal first. It should all be me.¡¯


    Rita did not like pain but she did understand responsibility. She knew that this situation was her fault and someone else was suffering in her ce.


    ¡°AVA, ANSWER ME.¡±


    Moreover, Aurora sounded rattled. This was the first time Rita was seeing Aurora lose her cool like this. Natasha¡¯s fading life force certainly had something to do with this situation.


    ¡®She was not with us for long but Natasha was a part of our family. I still cannot believe that her soul is fading this fast.¡¯


    The corruption was not only affecting Natasha¡¯s body but her soul as well. Almost half of it was already gone.


    ¡®Even if we save her now, it will be no good. Natasha is not like Aurora, she cannot keep holding on for long.¡¯


    Rita knew how lucky she had gotten when she had Natasha protect her. The redhead would not have been able to resist the allure of the corruption for long anyway.


    ¡°I cannot help. If I could help with the corruption then I would have helped you already. The only reason Natasha was able to survive this long was that she had previous experience with corruption.¡±


    Ava¡¯s exnation was sounding all logical. Her voice didn¡¯t sound either sad or angry at the situation.


    ¡°Ava, I did not ask you for help. I am demanding for you to help me out.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s voice was low and scary as well. Rita was sure that her eyes would be zing with anger if she happened to look up.


    ¡®She is shaking as well. I don¡¯t think Aurora is taking this situation as well as she should be.¡¯


    Rita could read Aurora like a book right now and she knew that Aurora was ming herself for the things Natasha went through.


    ¡°Fine, I guess it does me no favor to hide things from you so I¡¯ll tell you what you can do to help Natasha. However, you should be aware as well that the soul she lost cannot be saved. You should brace yourself.¡±


    Ava sounded almost bored while speaking. Her detached tone made it seem like she had nothing to do with the situation but Rita could see past her facade.


    ¡®She¡¯s enjoying this chaos. This situation was exactly what Ava wanted from us but I cannot figure out why she wanted us all to be miserable like this. What is she nning exactly?¡¯


    Rita could have opened up her mouth and exposed Ava then and there. But Ava¡¯s sly eyes met her and the teasing smirk on the overlooker¡¯s face looked confident.


    Ava knew that Rita would not say anything against her right now. Rita could not afford to miss any hint about Natasha¡¯s welfare.


    ¡°Well, the answer is simple ¨C you need to let Natasha¡¯s soul merge with someone else. Her body is like a broken tap and unable to hold her soul in. Soon it will all fade away into nothing.¡±


    ¡°But corrupted souls cannot enter the cycle of rebirth by normal means and Natasha will certainly end up as a monster if you allowed her to die.¡±


    ¡°So the only thing you can do for her is to have someone cut out a part of their soul and take in Natasha¡¯s healthy soul into their body.¡±


    Ava made it sound so simple while Rita knew that it was anything but simple. A soul was like a patchwork of cloth, it could function as an entity or as smaller pieces.


    But to take another soul into your body was an invasive feeling. One needed to give up an equal part of their soul to achieve that effect.


    But the biggest reason that this was a foolish dream was that the souls that were undergoing merging needed to bepatible.


    These conditions sounded simple in hearing but they were far moreplicated than anyone could imagine them being.


    ¡°Is that the only way? Then, let me do this. Natasha did all this because I dragged her into my mess. So I need to be the one to take responsibility for it.¡±


    Rita¡¯s insides felt frozen when she heard Aurora¡¯s deration. It was solid and filled with intent.


    ¡®She would go along with it. I cannot allow Aurora to go along with this madness.¡¯


    ¡°N¡­No. D¡­Don¡¯t do t¡­.that.¡±


    It was a wonder that Natasha managed to open her eyes at that time. Her eyes likely were not able to see anything right now but she still managed to drag herself up.


    ¡°I d¡­don¡¯t want to b..be a p..p¡­part of Au¡­ro¡­ra.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t be foolish Natasha. You are fading fast and you don¡¯t need to be a part of me either. I can give you parts of my soul to scrap yours together.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s second offer was even more outrageous than the first. Rita felt her anger and helplessness rising inside her.


    But she also felt her resolve to tighten.


    ¡°Let me do it. Natasha, we¡¯re simr in our interests enough that I feelfortable taking your remaining soul inside me. Besides, my soul has surfer damage due to corruption as well so I need to cut it out.¡±


    There was a reason the corruption had no solution. The more powerful a soul was, the harder it was to find apatible one to match it. Aurora¡¯s current soul was too much to be rescued while using this method.


    But Rita and Natasha were different cases. They could hold on to this method while their group finally finds an elf.


    ¡°I agree as well. This is not a permanent solution and it would be better for you all to find a Nymph or an angel soon but your soul should hold on for that long.¡±


    Aurora was outnumbered. Even she had realized by now that the other three would follow through with their words no matter what Aurora said to them.


    ¡°Fine, do what you want to but stay alive by the end of it.¡±


    Aurora finally gave in and Rita felt her breath ease out. The most difficult part of their problem was dealt with now.


    ¡°Give the soul capsule to me. I would need it to help mend their souls. You can take a nap in the meantime or knock yourself out. Once we are done, we can head back to the surface. I got the thing we needed down here.¡±


    The group had a lot of questions but they were exhausted physically and mentally to ask Ava what and how she achieved their goal.


    ¡°Things will be alright now. Leave everything up to me and rx.¡±


    Rita felt a shiver run down her spine at Ava¡¯s words. She did not want to trust the overlooker but she had no other choice but to trust her.


    ¡®This sucks but I guess it is better than dying. I hope this process is painless.¡¯


    Point and fact ¨C the soul mending process was not painless. But Rita did feel better after she was done. She could feel Natasha¡¯s soul and her desire running inside her body.


    ¡°Hey, can I ask you a favor? Rita, can you fuck me right now? I just need to reassure myself that you are still here.¡±


    Rita knew she should not give in to Aurora¡¯s demands but she was a weak woman. Natasha¡¯s desires inside her soul did not help the matter and Aurora ended up surrendering in the end.


    ¡°Sure. I will show you a good time tonight.¡±

 Chapter 193 193: Just going at it - part 1

    ¡°Hey, can I ask you a favor? Rita, can you fuck me right now? I just need to reassure myself that you are still here.¡±


    Aurora did realize that purposing to have sex in the current circumstances was not the best idea she had but she could not stop herself.


    She just wanted to stop thinking for a few seconds and exhausting herself with sex was the best way to make it happen.


    Besides, Rita did not seem to mind it at all. The younger girl looked excited to have gotten this chance.


    ¡°Don¡¯t overthink this Aurora. I am still Rita but I can feel Natasha¡¯s emotions inside me as well. She is excited to take you this way as well since it will be a new experience for her. She cannote out and say this herself.¡±


    Rita¡¯s aura did not contain any lie in it. Aurora felt her worries melt away from her shoulder as soon as she heard the other speak.


    She had not even realized that this was a worry until Rita smoothed it over for her.


    ¡°Hey, I just told you not to overthink things. I guess I¡¯ve got no choice but to make you not think of anything but me,¡± that was the only warning Aurora got before Rita took her face in her bigger hands and smashed their lips together.


    It was not soft like before. There was no finesse in Rita¡¯s actions as she plundered Aurora¡¯s mouth.


    The younger felt as desperate for this contact as Aurora was and that confirmation felt good. It finally gave Aurora enough courage to ce her hands all over Rita¡¯s body.


    Aurora had notid down with Rita a lot but she still knew her body inside out. The merging of souls had changed her body a little bit.


    The softness of her belly belonged to Natasha, and so did the slightly colder temperature of her body.


    But it was the cold tongue that was eating Aurora¡¯s mouth out that confirmed it for her ¨C Natasha was a part of Rita now.


    ¡°Aurora, let¡¯s make today about me. You are not in dire need to curb your corruption, right?¡±


    Rita¡¯s aura was still fully human. The merging of souls had repaired her slightly broken seal so the corruption could not get her.


    If things got too much then Rita would drop everything to help Aurora first. This much even Aurora knew but she did not want to take advantage of Rita like this.


    Today, she just wanted to treat the other girl and help her feel better.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry so much about me. Do what you want to. I want to make it about you today.¡±


    Aurora knew she was egging Rita on. She had never given Rita this much control over her body before.


    She might have allowed Rita to tie her up and have her way with Aurora¡¯s body but the person with real power had always been Aurora even in those circumstances.


    And the added factor of bandage automatically made that situation different from this unconditional surrender Aurora was showing Rita.


    Aurora was letting Rita know that she could get away with anything and it seemed to be doing things to Rita as well.


    There was a heat in those red eyes. But if Aurora looked carefully, she could spot the hint of blue mixing together with Rita¡¯s natural red eyes.


    She had a feeling that the red would soon turn into a stunning purple. Aurora could not help herself when she got the urge to push herself up and kiss Rita¡¯s eyelids.


    ¡°You make it difficult to control myself. Aurora, if you keep on being like this then I will not be able to hold back.¡±


    Rita sounded pained. Aurora pulled herself into the other female¡¯sp and instantly felt the reason for the other tensing up.


    Something hard was poking her in the back and Aurora let out an amused chuckle.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want you to hold back with me. I told you that you were free to do what you wanted with me and I was not kidding.¡±


    Aurora rubbed against the hardness poking her ass. The friction caused Rita¡¯s penis to harden even more.


    The moan Rita let out was filthy but the real effect of it was felt by Aurora¡¯s ass. Rita was not holding herself back. She was rubbing against Aurora¡¯s ass with all her might.


    Aurora was almost sure that Rita would be able to find her release from rubbing against her but that was not what she wanted.


    Rita¡¯s groan of pain and suffering echoed in the empty forest. Had Aurora not already known the reason, she would have been worried.


    But as it stood, Aurora just leaned her body down to pull herself out of Rita¡¯sp. Her hand pulled back Rita¡¯s underwear to cup her hardness.


    ¡°You are so big and satisfying. I just want to take you in me.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s one hand was on Rita¡¯s hard penis while the other caressed her huge breasts that were hanging in front of her.


    She wanted to y with Rita all over but she also wanted Rita to find her pleasure soon.


    ¡®I should let here first before going further. She is too tense.¡¯


    Aurora could feel Rita holding herself back. The younger female¡¯s body was tense but her eyes were heated up.


    It told Aurora that Rita did like this but she did not want toe so fast. Maybe she was afraid that this would be over as soon as she came.


    ¡°Time to get to work.¡±


    Aurora licked across the hard penis in front of her, her golden eyes not moving away from Rita¡¯s heated gaze. She could see the redhead meeting her gaze with a heated look.


    ¡®Well, time for the second treat.¡¯


    Aurora licked the penis all over again but there was another ce she wanted to lick. She was sure that Rita had not experienced having her pussy being yed with so Aurora wanted to give her that.


    The first lick of Aurora¡¯s tongue caused Rita to tense up but the second one caused her to let the tension go.


    The cock in Aurora¡¯s hand got even bigger and harder as soon as she licked Rita¡¯s pussy and clit. It seemed Rita still had stimtion there.


    ¡°I will be enjoying this so much. Rita, do you want me to y with your pussy? You will need to answer me.¡±


    Aurora pushed her finger lightly against Rita¡¯s pussy. The younger girl tried to push her wet core to get Aurora¡¯s finger inside but it was futile. Aurora pulled back at thest second and left Rita wanting more and more.


    The redhead looked frustrated at theck of action and friction she was getting.


    Aurora¡¯s eyes could see the cock and pussy twitching from close enough but she knew this was not all. Rita was holding back on her and that would not be eptable.


    ¡°P-Please. Don¡¯t tease me like this. I w-want toe.¡±


    Rita sounded wrecked but not over the edge yet. Aurora alternated between licking her pussy and cock to get her going but Rita seemed not to be interested in taking initiative.


    Aurora almost pulled back in disappointment, her saliva connecting her lips to Rita¡¯s cock when she felt a hand take charge of her head and pull Aurora¡¯s mouth back on that cock.


    ¡°Don¡¯t t¡­.test m¡­e. Fi¡­ni¡­sh what¡­you sta¡­rted.¡±


    Aurora had not expected this sudden bout of roughness from Rita. the elder girl had always considered Aurora¡¯s pleasure and experience over her own.


    But this was not bad. This was exactly what Aurora had hoped to achieve since she had started.


    Rita finally lost control and her eyes zed with the heat. Her hand pulled Aurora up and down on her cock, using her mouth like a personal toy.


    It was a pleasurable experience and Aurora finally felt Rita¡¯s release down her throat.


    But the younger seemed not to be done. As soon as she pulled Aurora¡¯s head back from her cock, she pushed it against her wet pussy.


    ¡°Lick it well. If you make mee again then I will finally fuck you where you want me to. It will also be rough and sloppy, just like you want me to.¡±


    ¡°You will be feeling that ache for ages once I am down with you.¡±


    Aurora doubted that would be the case for her. Her body healed too fast for her to retain the marks or the ache in her body but the image in her mind did not care much for it. Aurora¡¯s body heated up hearing those words and it was ready to go again.


    Rita was really good at riling Aurora up and Aurora was d she had corrupted the once-innocent child.


    ¡®I feel sorry for Rita but not really. She really did grow up well.¡¯

 Chapter 194 194: Just going at it - part 2

    ¡°Stay still. I cannot fuck you well if you keep on moving on your own.¡±


    Rita pulled Aurora¡¯s body back on her cock, her breasts rubbing against Aurora¡¯s back as she thrust into the body beneath her.


    The pair had been going at it for some time now and Rita finally decided she wanted to sink into Aurora¡¯s wet heat.


    But she did not want to do it the usual way. She wanted to take Aurora hard and fast like the elder had wanted to.


    ¡°Y..ou are g¡­.going t..to¡­.s¡­l¡­ow¡±


    Aurora¡¯s voice was low and melodic. Rita was almost sure that the elder would lose her voice by the end of this session. Rita was not holding back anything and Aurora was weing her back.


    This was what Rita had wanted and she could tell that Aurora wanted this hard and rough sex as well.


    However, Aurora had also asked Rita to take charge and make this about her. So Rita was going to follow Aurora¡¯s wishes and not allow the elder to do what she wanted to.


    ¡°Ah, but this is about¡­me¡­.right? Now stop moving.¡±


    Rita groaned out those words as she rubbed her cock inside Aurora. She slowed her hips down which pulled a while out of Aurora.


    Rita knew for a fact that Aurora had never been edged like this before. The reactions that wereing out of her were all new.


    ¡°W¡­.h¡­y? Hurry..up.¡±


    Aurora tried to move again but Rita¡¯s hand on her hips held her back. The younger was not allowing her to do whatever she wanted and it made Aurora feel hotter for some reason.


    Rita could tell Aurora was enjoying this position and this behavior from her. If not, then Aurora would not have gotten this wet or let Rita continue her edging.


    ¡°Do you want me to do deeper? You¡¯ll need to beg me to fuck you or I am not going to move.¡±


    Rita knew her words sounded cruel to Aurora. The blue-haired girl was too turned on to calm down, but theck of friction must be making her tense.


    A little more and Aurora would break as well. That was what Rita wanted to see.


    The next few thrusts of her hips finally drove Aurora all the way into the headspace Rita wanted her to be in. the begging started for real after that.


    ¡°P-Please¡­.R..i..ta¡­hurry¡­up¡­and¡­fu¡­ck..me¡­alrea¡­dy.¡±


    ¡®Fuck, this is sexy. I should have tried this with Aurora a long way back.¡¯


    Rita¡¯s body decided to finally start moving and her hips drilled her cock into Aurora¡¯s wetness. It was a hard and fast fuck which made Rita rub all around inside Aurora.


    The blue-haired girl looked half out of it by now, her voice not evening out.


    The pair had never been this far gone in their pleasure before. The outside world did not even exist for them at this point.


    Rita did not even care if she was begging seen by anyone or not. If someone was nearby then Rita could not even feel them.


    ¡®It won¡¯t be bad for others to see me fuck Aurora. It will finally make them realize that she is mine.¡¯


    Rita was not possessive but there was something about Aurora that brought the worst out in her.


    ¡°R¡­i¡­t¡­a¡±


    Aurora¡¯s hands back to tug at Rita¡¯s breasts. The goddess¡¯s body was flexible and Rita instantly leaned down into the intended kiss.


    Just like their fucking, the kiss was violent and consuming as well. Aurora gave back as good as she got, her tongue rubbing against Rita¡¯s own and prying her mouth open.


    Their desires were mixing and so were their bodies.


    It was only a matter of time before they both came and Rita was the first one who felt herself let go.


    Warmth filled Aurora¡¯s belly as Rita released and that finally drove her to the edge as well. The pair panted after the release but Rita did not pull out.


    Instead, she turned Aurora around and pulled the elder into another kiss. This one was soft but Aurora did not intend to keep it short for long.


    Aurora¡¯s hand moved down to the pace where they were connected and instantly passed Rita¡¯s cock.


    Her fingers teased Rita¡¯s swollen and wet pussy, instantly entering her and rubbing against her pleasure spot.


    ¡°Aurora, don¡¯t y with fire. You cannot possibly take any more fucking today.¡±


    Rita warned as her cock twitched inside Aurora. Those fingers inside her were turning her on even more. They were making Aurora feel hot and bothered by simply pushing against her pleasure spots.


    And it did not help that Aurora was helping milk her rising cock but moving her pussy up and down again.


    Rita¡¯s cock had not left Aurora¡¯s wetness but it was already ready for round two.


    ¡°Rita, please continue. If worstes to pass, you can just carry me up and we will be alright. For now, give me your cock. Or, do you want me to make youe with your pussy first?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s fingers scissored Rita¡¯s wet pussy. They were just long enough to press against Rita¡¯s pleasure pot and it caused her to sink even deeper inside Aurora.


    Her hips were losing strength but her willpower was not wavering.


    ¡°Let go. This is about me so I will decide how I take my pleasure today. And what I want to do is to fuck you again.¡±


    Rita pulled Aurora¡¯s fingers out of her pussy. Her body felt disappointed but Rita decided to start thrusting into Aurora again. This was going to be a long and satisfying session but the pair did not mind.


    It helped them tune out the world for a bit and they were both contents to do that.


    ===========================


    ¡°Here is your soul. See, I managed to keep my part of the deal. I hope you will also keep yours and give me the locket to hide the aura.¡±


    Zoe looked toward the other outlooker sitting on the sofa in front of her. Ava gave an innocent smile back but Zoe knew what kind of demon was hidden behind that mask of hers.


    This innocent-looking woman had just sacrificed a portion of herpanion¡¯s soul toplete the bargain she made.


    ¡°I can see that you managed to repair the part of Lady ra¡¯s soul. Don¡¯t worry, I will keep my part of the bargain. But I have to ask you, don¡¯t you feel ashamed of what you did?¡±


    ¡°Ashamed? What is there to feel ashamed of? I managed to achieve my goal and my contractor is physically alright.¡±


    Ava¡¯s tone sounded curious. It just made Zoe pissed off to hear but she managed to hold herself back.


    There was no point in arguing with Ava right now. The other outlookerckedmon sense and other typical emotions that made one human.


    ¡°Here, take this locket and get out of here. The more time I spend with you, the more you upset me with your words.¡±


    The more time Ava spend with Zoe, the more inhuman she seemed to Zoe. In an actual sense, Ava behaved like an ideal outlooker.


    She was someone was would do anything for her goal, even destroy what she view to protect. No matter how much Zoe tried, she could never be like Ava.


    ¡®And I don¡¯t want to be like her. Lady ra taught me about humanity and human emotions. I need to not forget them and live my life well.¡¯


    Zoe knew she was not so far off from Ava when it came to obsession. She was someone who would do anything for Lady ra as well.


    And maybe it was these simrities she had with Ava that made her hate the other outlooker but still not be able to turn her away when she came for help.


    ¡°Fine, I will leave you alone for now. I hope you achieve your goal soon. I want to see how wonderful this ¡®Lady ra¡¯ of yours is to make you turn away from the abyss and other outlookers.¡±


    Zoe felt her blood freeze as soon as she heard Ava¡¯s interested tone. She did not want the other outlooker anywhere near Lady ra if she could help it. Ava would try to swindle her toward the wrong path.


    And that was something Zoe could not allow to happen.


    ¡°Rx, I won¡¯te near your Lady if the thought makes you so ufortable. But you better be careful as well. The other outlookers have started paying attention to us and our movements. Even Shaun send me a message some time ago asking what we were up to.¡±


    This was the worst news Zoe had heard this far. The tiger of the zoodiac, Shaun was someone who was not easy to deal with. He would also not give them a second chance if he decided that they were traitors.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I managed to diffuse the situation but you owe me one. Well then, until next time.¡±


    Zoe hated the idea of owing Ava but it was better than getting killed by Shaun and the others.


    She would need toy her head low for now.

 Chapter 195 195: Declaration

    ¡°Ah, did you manage to get all your frustration out? Then, we should head back to the surface now. We have a lot of work to do.¡±


    Aurora found herself not being able to look Ava in the face. She knew that it was not Ava¡¯s fault that such a situation had urred but Aurora still found herself angry at the outlooker.


    ¡®She could have helped us and this all would not have happened.¡¯ The thought gued Aurora¡¯s mind before she shook it off.


    Even she knew that Ava could not have acted as she liked in another¡¯s territory. It was stupid of Aurora to expect the outlooker to risk her life for Natasha¡¯s sake.


    ¡°Oh, and before I forget! Here, this is the locket we came down here for. You will be able to hide your aura with the hold of this locket.¡±


    Aurora could not bring herself to take the locket from Ava¡¯s hands. It felt heavy to even look at. All Aurora wanted to do was to throw it as far as she could and never see it again.


    But Aurora did not do that. She could not because Rita picked up the locket and held it up.


    ¡°Turn around. Let me put it up on you.¡±


    The red of Rita¡¯s eyes was more of a purplish color. It made Aurora feel like she was talking with Natasha. Even the voice Rita let out was cold and rigid. It did not sound like her at all.


    Aurora turned around and raised her hair. She could feel Rita¡¯s gaze aimed at her neck but Aurora did not flinch away from her.


    ¡°All done. It looks good on you.¡±


    The end of the locket came to rest on Aurora¡¯s breasts and sank in between them. It was difficult to see, especially when Aurora had clothes on.


    But she had a feeling that Rita was not talking about the locket specifically.


    ¡°Ok, enough flirting around me. Let¡¯s head out now. Aurora, did you send the message to the Northern Republic to inform them what happened to their princess?¡±


    Aurora nodded, her heart still feeling heavy.


    As soon as she had finished her round with Rita, Aurora had made it a priority to inform the Northern Republic and Rex about what happened down here.


    Rex had assured her that the Northern Republic did not hold her responsible but Aurora found it a hard pill to swallow.


    The Northern Republic had converted into a full-on republic as soon as the truth of their nation had been revealed.


    Since corruption and sinking were no longer an oue for them, the monopoly of nobility did not matter.


    The nation had let go of its past and its princess. So the loss of their monarch was not as big a blow.


    ¡°It¡¯ll be alright. Besides, Natasha is not dead, she¡¯s just resting inside me. We might not hear her speak again but I¡¯ll keep telling you how she feels.¡±


    Aurora knew that this was Rita¡¯s way of cheering her up and it was working to an extent. Aurora did feel better already.


    ¡°Oi, I just told you both that we need to go. We will bete for the ceremony otherwise.¡±


    Ava¡¯s yelling finally got the other two moving. It was time to leave the abyss.


    Aurora and Rita had made a small grave for Natasha¡¯s body in the abyss itself. It would not be possible for them to take her body above ground since it had already disappeared as a result of soul merging.


    It had been a difficult thing to do but the uing ceremony would be even more difficult.


    ¡°I am a little worried to have asked Rex to help me prepare a funeral for Natasha near the academy but I¡¯m sure he would have done a fine job.¡±


    Rex had assured Aurora that everything would be ready when she returned to the surface.


    It did not take long for them to return to the surface and they were weed by a guilt-ridden face that belonged to Damina. Aurora could read what the young teen did not say.


    ¡°It is not your fault that Natasha died. You being down there with us would not have helped Natasha. So don¡¯t me yourself needlessly.¡±


    Aurora assured the kid as soon as she dragged herself out of the hole. She knew what the kid was thinking but Aurora did not want him to drag himself through the mud.


    ¡°I am not ming myself. Sacrifices are necessary to win a war and someone was bound to die sooner orter.¡±


    Aurora felt her heart hurt at the kid¡¯s speech. It was clear that he had lost people to the tower before and it had hardened his heart.


    But the pain of loss was never going to be easier.


    ¡°Anyway, we pitched a lot of effort to give Natasha a beautiful grave. Astoria even managed to grow nts around her grave because Natasha loved flowers.¡±


    Damina led the trio toward the back of the academy. The once-barrennd had been transformed into a beautiful garden with various flowers and trees covering the area.


    The center of the park held arge rock covered by veins and it had only one name in the center of it.


    Natasha Kowalski


    The princess of North.


    May she find peace in the afterlife.


    The words were simple and minimalistic. They were very much like Natasha herself and Aurora felt her eyes fill with tears.


    She quickly diverted her eyes toward Rita and the redhead had silent tears running down her face as well.


    When she turned her head toward Aurora, her eyes were blue and brimming with happiness. At that moment, Aurora was sure of one thing ¨C the one looking back at her was Natasha and not Rita.


    No hint of Rita¡¯s red eyes could be found on that face.


    ¡°Thank you for loving me. I feel like I can leave in peace now.¡±


    Aurora wanted to say a lot of things to Natasha but her throat felt blocked every time she tried to. Aurora had no right to say anything to Natasha right now.


    Not when the other was asking Aurora to let go of her and to keep on moving toward her goal.


    ¡°No, thank you for loving me. For loving us all and following us till the end. I will see the end to my journey for you as well.¡±


    Aurora did not know what her end goal was. When she had started this new life, all she had wanted to do was to exact her revenge at the tower and collect Clove¡¯s soul.


    That goal had not changed at all but Aurora also knew that it could not be the end goal for her.


    The abyss was the real threat here, it was the real consumer and the reason everything had gone wrong.


    Perhaps once Aurora was done exploring the things on the surface, she would take her time and explore the depths of the abyss as well.


    There had to be a way to put an end to the cursed existence that was the abyss. It hid so many more secrets than it told the human race.


    ¡®One day, I will conquer it all and see past the tragedy that caused it to exist. But for now, I need to focus on the present and make sure that the sacrifices that were made on our behalf do not end up being in vain.¡¯


    ¡°Aurora, do you want to say something to these people? They are waiting for your words.¡±


    Rex arrived on the scene as well, his white clothes depicting his mourning period. It felt good to see him again but Aurora knew she needed to pull herself together.


    More than a dozen eyes were focused on Aurora, waiting for her to address them all. These people trusted Aurora to lead them and prepare them for future dangers.


    ¡°This sucks, but I won¡¯t pretend that this loss never happened. The abyss is dangerous like that and this would not be thest sacrifice it will take from us.¡± Aurora paused, taking in the frightened faces, ¡°but, that is why I will do my best to prepare you all. We cannot let fear stop us here or this will be the end for us all.¡±


    There were only a handful of students in the Rocx academy for now but a lot more woulde once the news of their sessful expedition spread across the masses.


    Only losing one person in the abyss was considered a miracle for anyone who was not from the tower¡¯s main branch and Aurora had even managed to take artifacts out.


    They would be getting busy pretty soon. The delegates from the council would be here tomorrow and Aurora needed to make sure everything would be up to the mark for their arrival.


    ¡°The real fight is just starting now. Everyone, brace yourself because the uing week is going to be hectic. We will not go down without a fight.¡±

 Chapter 196 196: The inspection

    It was finally the day for the council delegates to step into the academy. The party that had been readied to receive those important guests was also chosen.


    As per the norms, Rex would be heading the party along with Astoria. Rita had also taken the initiative to head out with them while Aurora chose to stay behind.


    Initially, Aurora had wanted to go as well but it would have left the academy without anyone to look after it.


    There was too much risk involved if Aurora decided to take off and the academy was attacked in the meanwhile.


    They did have soldiers to take care of the attack and their students were also taught how to take care of themselves but that was beside the point.


    ¡°Have fun and make sure you maintain a civil approach. And I mean you, Rex. Do not let your temper fly.¡±


    Aurora was hesitant to send Rex out to meet his stepmother. He did not have the best rtionship with Lady Violet but the customs called for him to go.


    At this point, Aurora could only depend on Lady Astoria to keep Rex in check. Even Rita was prone to angry fits and making rash decisions.


    If she somehow got taken in by Rex¡¯s angry rhythm then that would be it.


    ¡®I miss Natasha and her calm aura. I would surely have sent her if she was here.¡¯


    Aurora¡¯s heart gave a painful tug at remembering Natasha before she shook her head off. She needed to distract herself from her sadness and Aurora knew the best way to do so.


    ¡°Now let¡¯s see, what should I teach the children today?¡±


    Since the academy did not have a lot of students in its first batch, most students were assigned to mentors in batches depending on what they were good at.


    Also, because of the presence of students like Damian who could not do magic but had good physical capabilities, things had to take a non-traditional approach.


    ¡®Ah, I should also make a round and check up on Emily and Joseph. I told them I would bring a friend for them but then Natasha ended up being not it.¡¯


    Aurora did remember her promise but she had no way of fulfilling that now. Things had happened and now Aurora was left in an awkward situation.


    Maybe she would pull the pair aside and then inform them about the bad news.


    ¡®But is there a need to? I am sure the kids have forgotten all about my words by now. It has been some time now.¡¯


    Aurora opened the door to the ssroom, only to find the 16 current students sitting in the same ssroom.


    There was ack of teachers in the academy for now since they still had to pass the inspection. Most teachers interested to take up posts here would have to wait for that official decision.


    ¡°Ah, you all are here? What happened to your mentors?¡± It was not rare to see the children mix up in the academy but it was rare to see them in the same ss during official hours.


    Most children in the academy werepetitive and were driven to prove themselves. Rex had chosen them carefully as the pre-batch for a reason.


    ¡°Professors are busy today and we are bored. Can we go out to y?¡±


    Aurora was not sure why she felt surprised to hear the kids ask to be let out. Kids generally were energetic and were not ones to sit down in a ssroom.


    Plus, most of these kids were not normal and needed a high amount of activity to keep them active.


    ¡°Alright, I can let you all out but no fighting. Have you gone through the new obstacle course yet?¡±


    The new obstacle course had been set up a few days prior. From Rex¡¯s reports, it was a space that could change depending on one¡¯s caliber and weaknesses. It was a good way to train someone.


    And the best part about it was that it had already been tried out and approved for use. It would be a good way to tire these kids out and also see how far they hade.


    And from the looks on the kid¡¯s faces, it seemed like they were ready to take on such a challenge.


    The only kid not present in here right now was Damian but he was a special case so Aurora did not feel the need to go and fetch him.


    He would join them if he wanted to.


    ¡°Alright, form a line for now, and let me see how well you perform.¡±


    Aurora kept an eye out for the dangers these kids might be in. but they did much better than Aurora expected them to.


    It seemed like assigning them sses based on the kid¡¯s strengths was a good idea. It made these kids much more confident to try new things out.


    ¡°So, you did not lie for once Rex. These kids are decent in using their powers. But I¡¯ll need you to bring out all certificated rted to this program and magic. I have heard that it can be quite dangerous if it is not properly certificated.¡±


    The low voice that spoke behind Aurora was familiar. And so was the growl Rex let out as he replied ¡®Sure, fine.¡¯


    Lady Violet was finally here but Aurora did not turn toward her. She had used her magic to turn her hairpletely white and retained her golden eyes. Even her facial structure had been altered a little to make Aurora unrecognizable.


    But for some reason, as soon as Aurora¡¯s eyes met Lady Violet, she felt like she was being seen through by her.


    This was a feeling Aurora always had when she faced Lady Violet. The elderdy had never failed to make Aurora nervous.


    ¡°Teacher Aurora, can you help us out? I want to get to the next level but I don¡¯t know how to tune the things.¡±


    Aurora felt a share re aimed at her back. She was sure that it was Lady Violet who was looking at her and judging her for all she was worth.


    ¡®Maybe I should have changed my name as well. Aurora is a dead giveaway about who I am.¡¯


    But as good as that thought was, Aurora also knew that it would not have helped her.


    If she had decided to change her name and someone had somehow slipped up and called Aurora by her real name, things would have gotten even more awkward.


    It would also make Lady Violet wonder why Aurora felt a need to hide her real name from her and then the elder would try and pry into her business.


    Being truthful about her identity was the best way to ensure that Lady Violet just thinks the naming was a coincidence.


    ¡®Besides, I cannot be sure if the tower told her about me. They must have known my name at least.¡¯


    Quince knew Aurora¡¯s name and he was not one to keep important information to himself. Aurora needed to be careful but she did not need to be paranoid yet.


    ¡°If you¡¯ve seen enough here then we should head toward the other areas. You do want to see the certificate we have about safety protocol right?¡±


    ¡°Of course, I want to. I need to know how much my stupid stepson managed to mess up this time. Lucy is not here to bail you out, so you better be through with your work.¡±


    O-Oh, that was andmine of a topic but Aurora was sure it would be alright now.


    She had told Rex the truth about Lucy and her circumstances. She was sure that Rex would not outright explode this time and ¨C


    ¡°Fuck you. You have no right to bring Lucy up when you just sat there as she was dying. Don¡¯t pretend as you care now.¡±


    And there Rex went. He was unable to keep his temper in check. Astoria had to step in to bail him out.


    ¡®Maybe I should have chosen Astoria as the headmistress. She certainly looks more ready to take the role than Rex.¡¯


    But the time for regret and choices was over. Astoria managed to lead the conversation away and also drag Lady Violet away.


    ¡®Rex, you better behave. I did not go through all that in the abyss, only for you to mess it up now.¡¯


    Aurora¡¯s eyes met Rex¡¯s in the distance and she was sure that the other man got her message.


    The small flinch Rex gave felt good. It seemed like he was still capable of feeling shame for his actions.


    ¡°Teacher Aurora, help me out.¡±


    The kid tugged at Aurora¡¯s sleeve, finally dragging her attention away from the inspection party.


    ¡°Of course. Just give me a second and I will help you out.¡± the day was peaceful and so was the week.


    Despite Aurora¡¯s fears, the inspection passes quietly and they got their certificate.


    And then the attack happened, on thest day when the inspection was over. The tower had chosen to make its move at the wrong time and the wrong ce.


    Because Aurora found the attacker even before anything happened.

 Chapter 197 197: The intruder

    The attack looked to be nned but just mistimed. The attacker chose when Miss Violet was escorted back to make a move.


    The attackers had positioned themselves in a way that hid him from the normal eyes but Aurora could sense the moment in the distance.


    Usually, it would not be that noticeable of a move. This was a school and the students here were unique. Finding one or two of them hiding away would not be odd.


    But the man had a weird aura around him. His dishonest intentions made him shine out in the sea of children around him.


    Besides, Aurora could tell that something bad was about to happen and she decided to take action against the man.


    ¡°Teacher, are you alright?¡± The children that were around Aurora asked.


    Their eyes held curiosity and a thirst for knowledge. Aurora suddenly had a bright idea to make use of this situation.


    ¡°Well, I have a task for you all. Someone suspicious managed to sneak around the school but I doubt he would be able to harm us. I want you all to spread out and find the intruder.¡±


    The children shared a look before they ran away. They did not say anything in response to Aurora¡¯s request but she knew that they understood what she wanted from them.


    The children would create chaos that would confuse the intruder. It would make him sloppy and that was when Aurora would catch him.


    Frankly, Aurora was not worried about these children¡¯s safety. They had been selected with care and each of them had a protective spell woven in their skin.


    Their intruder would get quite a shock if he tried to harm these children.


    And it just so happened that the attacker chooses was the worst children to target. By the time Aurora arrived on the scene and took the intruder captive, Damian had already detained the man.


    The teen had a sneer on his face, his eyes ring daggers toward the intruder.


    ¡°Damian, nice work.¡± Aurora¡¯s praise caused the teen to blush.


    ¡°It was easy enough. Next time, I want a bigger challenge. Sending such a low-level assassin is an insult to me.¡±


    Aurora just shook her head at the teen¡¯s words. He was not acting any different from his usual self. This assassination attempt did not seem to be bothering him.


    ¡°Now then, I should put you behind bars for now. We cannot have people seeing an intruder in here.¡±


    Aurora picked the man up. It must have beenical to see a petite female picking up a bulky and strong-looking man by one arm.


    But anything was possible when you had magic and Aurora had no problems picking the man up.


    However, her n to make a quiet exit did not work out as she had intended. Even before she could leave the corridor, she came face to face with the one person she had been meaning to avoid.


    Lady Violet raised her eyebrow, her familiar eyes switching between Aurora and the man she was dragging away behind her.


    ¡°Is something the matter here?¡±


    Rex, who was standing behind his stepmother, gave out a tired sigh. The past few days in his stepmother¡¯spany seemed to have taken a toll on his mental health.


    There were dark circles around his eyes, and he looked ready to copse at any second. This was the worst condition Aurora had seen him in.


    ¡°No, nothing is wrong. I am just taking the trash out. Excuse me then.¡±


    Aurora tried to go past the elder but Lady Violet stepped in Aurora¡¯s path. Her nk face made her impossible to read for most but Aurora could feel her curious aura poking around her.


    The elderdy reached out and Aurora flinched on reflexes. She had never liked anyone from her past touching her. It had been something that had carried over from her younger days.


    ¡°Rx. I am just trying to have a good look at this intruder. I feel like I know who send him here. Besides, this case has now be a security issue for the cab so we will need to investigate it thoroughly. Don¡¯t give me that look, Rex. Your certificate is safe for now.¡±


    Aurora also felt her breath ease as soon as Lady Violet confirmed the safety of their certificate.


    Aurora knew that such a sloppy attempt would not be a cause for concern in her mind, but she had still been worried.


    ¡°Now that things have be difficult, I guess I will stick around here for a bit longer to make sure everything is alright. You do not have a problem with that, right Rex?¡±


    Aurora felt her enthusiasm plummet at those words.


    ¡®Why? Why can¡¯t she leave us alone?¡¯


    This was the worst news Aurora could have gotten from this encounter. She had thought that she was finally free of Lady Violet but then this happened.


    The intruder chuckled at the look of misery Aurora had but she could not even begin to punish him for it. She had to behave herself in front of Lady Violet.


    ¡°And you! Don¡¯t think I have no intentions to make you pay for what you have done. The main reason I have decided to stay back is to bake you confess who your contractor is.¡±


    The man stiffened in the face of danger known as Lady Violet. Aurora knew from experience how scary she could look and feel. The man held no chance against that re.


    ¡°Mother, it is enough. For now, we should make preparations to detain this man and do a thorough check around the perimeters for any problems that may arise as a result.¡±


    Rex was brave to speak up. Aurora could see that he wanted nothing more than to wipe his hands off this case but the man held his ground.


    As for Lady Violet, she had a thoughtful look on her face. It was difficult to tell what she was thinking.


    But she did walk out of Aurora¡¯s way for the time being.


    ¡°Fine, I will give you people the first dibs on this man. But I want my chance to interrogate him as well. We cannot overlook this incident since the timing and intention of it urring looks to be nned.¡±


    It did ur to Aurora that thedy might be worried for her life. Even though the intruder did not say anything, he was looking at Lady Violet with shady eyes.


    Aurora guessed the man¡¯s intentions to charge at Lady Violet before the man could act on it. The man tried to use his superior strength to break free from Aurora¡¯s grasp.


    But he was unlucky that he was being held in Aurora¡¯s grasp. Not only did the man fail, but Aurora also did not hesitate to knock him out.


    ¡°Ugh, I hate dealing with idiots like him. I better hand him over to Alexader. His ability to read minds will be really useful right now.¡±


    Aurora did not want to spend any more time on this man than she had to. As soon as Alexander would be back, Aurora would hand this man over to him.


    She had other ns in action and Aurora needed to do something about her corruption.


    There had been a letter sitting on her desk from the Eastern continent. The king of the eastern empire had recovered and invited Aurora and herpanion toe and celebrate that joyous asion.


    And that was an event Aurora did not want to miss. She needed to make connections with the East to ease their academy¡¯s way into the trading route.


    Honestly speaking, Natasha¡¯s loss had been a huge blow to the Rocx academy¡¯s connections with the north. The nation no longer needed to keep strong ties with the academy.


    And in such a trying time, Aurora needed to find another power to keep peaceful connections.


    There was no better time to head out than right now. And Rita was already standing on the stand-by to head out.


    But this time, Aurora had anotherpanion she wanted to take along. East had been the city of dragons. It was where most of the legends about the hardy dragons originated from and there was one person who was curious about such tales.


    ¡°I should send a message to Astoria as well. And I better take that baby dragon along with me. I wonder how big he must have gotten in the meantime. I all but abandoned him to that Vieras.¡±


    Aurora did regret abandoning the dragon child but she had no other choice. The dragon was too young and inexperienced to take with her.


    But now was the time to take her secret weapon out. Unlike the other regions, the East had an unhealthy obsession with dragons and dragon-born. There was a rumor that their current king had some dragon blood in him as well. (Aurora did not believe this rumor)


    So it would only be right to take the dragon to such a nation.

 Chapter 198 198: A journey begins

    ¡°Taking our lord to another continent? I cannot allow that. No, I won¡¯t allow that to happen. You cannot take Lord Ur out. What if something happens to him? Our lord is a delicate being. He won¡¯t be able to survive long without us and¡­¡±


    Ely¡¯s words poured out her mouth without stopping. She was brave enough to be able to say all this even when her lord was all warped around Aurora like a tight nket.


    The young, but noticeablyrger dragon had all but abandoned hisfortable cushion as soon as Aurora had arrived and was running toward her.


    It had not taken long for the dragon to begin nuzzling Aurora¡¯s head in the form of a greeting. He was almost like an oversized puppy.


    And oversized zealous pussy with scary ws and immunity to most magical spells. The dragon was a deadly being after all.


    ¡°A,e on Ely. Nothing would happen with us around. Besides, Ur wants to apany Aurora so we should let him.¡±


    Ely became even more violent at Rita¡¯s words. Aurora knew that Rita was just picking a fight with the angry Viera. It was her way of making friends with the other female.


    But Ely did not seem to think along simr wavelengths. Her ws were ready to fight and Ely was one step away from attacking Aurora and taking the baby dragon away by force.


    And she was not the only one who was ready to do so. The other Viera around the room were tense and ready to act as well.


    ¡®It¡¯s cute that they think they can stop us. I guess it¡¯s a good thing I asked Astoria to step in for me.¡¯


    Astoria didn¡¯t need to step in but it would certainly make things easier for Aurora.


    ¡°What is going on here? I told you all to keep a low profile but I could hear your voice on the surface. Keep your voice down.¡±


    Astoria came down the stairs in her usual no-nonsense attitude. She looked much better today than she had for the past few days.


    ¡®It seems like Rex is not the only one having a hard time with Lady Violet. Astoria looks like finally got some sleep today.¡¯


    And it was all because Astoria was finally off Lady Astoria¡¯s duty. That had been assigned to Alexander since he was the chief interrogator.


    Aurora already knew that Lady Violet and Alexander were going to rub each other in the wrong way. They were both too simr to not disagree in the first few minutes of the meeting.


    ¡®I don¡¯t envy Rex for having to deal with their shit. He deserves that much for being the headmaster.¡¯


    Aurora refused to feel guilty for the way things had ended. Nothing was her fault.


    ¡°Lady Astoria, please stop Lady Aurora¡¯s madness. She wants to take our young lord out in the open. It is too dangerous for Lord Ur to go out for now and we cannot¡ª¡±


    ¡°Stop nagging. Let Aurora take Ur out. It¡¯s not like you¡¯ll be able to stop Ur if Aurora asked him toe along. He¡¯s only going to listen to her.¡±


    The dragon kit chirped from around Aurora, his voice adding agreement to Astoria¡¯s argument.


    The tight grip the dragon kit had around Aurora made it difficult for her to move around. The dragon kit was even ring at Ely, daring her to suggest separating Ur from Aurora.


    Aurora could see defeat ssh around Ely¡¯s eyes but she was not giving up yet.


    ¡°T-Then, let me apany you all. I have been looking after Lord Ur¡¯s needs all this time. I know how to take care of him and¡ª¡±


    ¡°Ely, you are a queen. Your people need you in Ur¡¯s absence so you should stay back. Ur will be just fine with us and we¡¯ll bring him back safe and sound.¡±


    Ely finally backed down. It was not like she could go against Astoria¡¯s orders either since Astoria had Lord Ur¡¯s essence inside her as well.


    It was an awkward position for Ely but she finally backed down. (Not that she had a choice since Lord Ur was refusing to even look at her.)


    ¡°Alright, you win for now. I will not stop you from taking Lord Ur. But please bring him back in one piece. No matter what the Eastern Empire offers you, you have to bring Lord Ur back with you.¡±


    Oh, so that was the real concern Ely had. She was afraid that Aurora would offer to send Ur to the Eastern Empire for momentary gain or an alliance.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I have no intentions of letting other people have Ur. I need him with me for future tasks.¡±


    Ely had a relieved and worried expression on her face at the same time. It was quite adorable but Aurora did not have much time to sit back and enjoy it.


    She had a lot to be done still and she also had to meet Lady Violet before heading out.


    The council representative had asked to meet with Aurora before the younger left for her journey. And quite frankly, this meeting scared Aurora. She did not want to hear anything Lady Violet had to say to Aurora.


    ¡°Astoria, take Ur and get him ready for the journey. I assume you know what I want you to do? I will meet you and Rita at the main door at 4:00 PM sharp.¡±


    Aurora did not answer any of the questions Astoria was having and the elder did not ask. This easy friendship was something Aurora hade to adore in her life.


    It was quite unlike Rita, who was ring daggers into Aurora¡¯s back at this moment.


    ¡°Before you ask Rita, no! You cannot apany me when I go out to meet Lady Violet. She asked me toe alone so I will go alone.¡±


    Rita¡¯s pout was adorable but useless. Aurora had be immune to that smile long ago.


    Not that it seemed to be clicking in Rita¡¯s mind. The younger still tried to sway Aurora¡¯s heart.


    As for the lunch meeting? It was as normal as Aurora hoped for it to be. Lady Violet did not make any unnecessary demands from Aurora. Nor did she ask any out-of-the-blue questions.


    She was civil and polite. But Aurora still got a feeling that the elder was observing her and deciding what to do with her.


    The more time that passed indy Violet¡¯spany, the more Aurora found herself tensing. Even a little move Lady Violet made seemed like a shock to Aurora.


    ¡°You know, you don¡¯t have to be so tense around me. You are afraid of me for some reason? You shouldn¡¯t be.¡±


    Lady Violet¡¯s words attempted to lighten the mood but all Aurora felt was more dread. She wanted to look up at the other female but she was not able to raise her head.


    Aurora had a feeling that she would be found out the second she looked the other female in the eyes.


    ¡°You remind me of someone with your timid nature and your refusal to look up at me. I wonder how that child must be doing out in the world. Thest I heard, she went missing. Do you know what the funny thing is? That child had the same name as you.¡±


    Aurora gulped the drink as soon as she heard Lady Violet¡¯s words.


    She knew that there was no chance in hell that she had been discovered. Lady Violet had not attempted to drag her back home which was testament enough that Aurora was free for now.


    ¡°Are you looking around for that child?¡± Aurora knew the answer but she still needed to confirm with the elder. She needed to know if her decision had been the right one or not.


    ¡°Me? I am not particrly concerned with that child but her parents are good friends with me and they are looking everywhere for her. If I found that child, I would take her back to her home but I won¡¯t go out of my way to look for her.¡±


    ¡®My decision was the right one. I am so d I took the risk.¡¯


    As soon as the thought came to Aurora¡¯s mind she felt sick to her stomach. She had sacrificed something great to gain her freedom and it did not feel good.


    ¡°Are you alright? You look a little sick. Should we call it a day?¡±


    Lady Violet did not sound concerned for Aurora but Aurora still took it as a win. She nodded and excused herself from the gathering.


    This much socialization had been enough for her. All Aurora wanted to do was to leave now and get away from this ce.


    This was suffocating to her. And Aurora finally could breathe freely again once she was out of the academy¡¯s gates.


    She had left a dangerous opponent unchecked within the academy¡¯s boundaries but Aurora did not have the heart to go back in there.

 Chapter 199 199: A night out - part 1

    ¡°Finally, we¡¯re out of that stiff space. The past few days felt like they were dragging along. I had so many ces banned to me that it was not even funny.¡±


    Rita¡¯s yelling echoed across the valley. The group had finally left the Rocx academy after a few dys and ration rechecks. (Mostly to avoid being followed by a certain guest.)


    It had been difficult to avoid Lady Violet¡¯s watchful eye. The female seemed to have made a home in the Rocx academy. Her presence was almost everywhere.


    And to lessen the Lady¡¯s suspicion and reach to sensitive areas, many ces had been made off-limit even to the academy staff. Even Rita had not been spared from this ban, but that was for good reasons.


    ¡°It does feel good to be out here. I think we are far enough to let Ur out of his bag.¡±


    Astoria opened the pouch she had been dragging in the cart behind her. The grumpy dragon made a run for his life as soon as the bag opened.


    It was another thing that had been arranged at thest moment and Astoria felt sorry for the dragon.


    Since Lady Violet had such a tight grip on the academy¡¯s workings, the group had to find a way to smuggle the dragon past her.


    Aurora did not want to announce to the world that she had been behind the tower¡¯s theft a few months ago.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry we had to stuff you in a bag but we could not have let Rex¡¯s step-mom find you. You are free to fly around now.¡±


    The baby dragon gave a happy chirp before taking to the skies.


    Fortunately, it did not run far off so Aurora let him enjoy his free time. She had more important things to n for now.


    ¡°So, which route should we take to the Eastern continent? The shortest route would be through the central district but I don¡¯t think it¡¯s safe.¡±


    Even the shortest route amounted to a few days¡¯ trip. And the central district was home to the tower personnel.


    Taking a juvenile dragon to such a ce was asking for trouble.


    ¡°Knowing our luck, we are bound to run into a high-ranking member of the tower if we go to the central district. We will have to risk traveling through the Nacross Valley.¡±


    Nacross Valley was the path that led toward the eastern continent and it had been the prime route of traveling before the building of the 4-way corridor in the central district.


    The main reason it had been abandoned was not because of the time it took to reach the other side but the opening of the abyssal gate.


    The Nacross Valley had a close connection with the abyss. It had fissures that one could easily fall into and find themselves in the abyss.


    Normal people tended to avoid such ces and it was slowly forgotten over time. But it had not been abandoned yet.


    All kinds of shady people used the Nacross Valley as their primary source of traveling to the Eastern Continent.


    In other words, it was an illegal smuggling route that was being looked after by the people.


    ¡°Right, we do have that option as well. But why do I feel nervous now that it had been pointed out to me? Aurora, can we take a safer route to our destination?¡±


    ¡°Rita, it¡¯s going to be alright. The worst that could happen is that we will meet some annoying people that will try to leech off us. We can handle a few pests like that, right?¡±


    ¡°Rightttttt. Whatever you say Astoria. But just know, I am still against this idea.¡±


    Aurora shook her head at the easy banter between her twopanions. This was something she had missed for the past few days.


    Knowing Rita, her words only contained half-truths. But the redhead would follow along with what Aurora wanted to do.


    ¡°We¡¯ve talked enough. Let¡¯s settle in for the night and think about what we should do next. Rita, would you like to help me tonight?¡±


    ¡°Huh? Did kind of help do you ¨C Oh, I understand. Sure, I will help you out.¡±


    Rita¡¯s face went through twelve shades of red before settling on a soft pink shade at Aurora¡¯s suggestive offer.


    Aurora did feel awkward about offering this in front of Astoria but the other¡¯s disgusting look made Aurora sigh in relief.


    ¡°I will take Ur tonight and stay out of your way. You both better not be gross in the morning.¡±


    Aurora was d for Astoria¡¯s easy understanding. The elder female did not try to hit on Aurora and she did not try to take advantage of the situation as well.


    Had this been a different world and Aurora had a different upbringing, she might have fallen for Astoria. But for this life, she was happy being fast friends with Astoria.


    The night fell fast enough and Aurora patiently waited for Rita toe to the cave. Aurora had used her magic to seal off a part of the cave for personal use.


    She did not feel the corruption surging up but it was better to be safe than sorry. There had not been a lot of chances for Rita to be able to help Aurora in the academy.


    Lady Violet had too tight a grip on the scene for Aurora to be able to sneak off a lot. So it was time to use this opportunity to the fullest.


    Who knew when the next time Aurora would need Rita¡¯s help would be?


    ¡°Aurora, are you awake? Should Ie in now?¡±


    The hesitation in Rita¡¯s voice did not suit her. Aurora did not like Rita like this. She liked Rita when she was confident and knew how to express herself.


    ¡°Come in here and leave your hesitation out of the door.¡±


    Rita¡¯s expression melted into sheepishness before her eyes shed with hunger. This was more like the Rita Aurora was used to and she finally pulled the other girl close.


    ¡°A, I was just trying to spice things up. Don¡¯t you like innocent girls? I swear you did since you have a habit of picking them up.¡±


    Rita¡¯s lips were on Aurora¡¯s ears. The low voice did things to Aurora and her body shivered as a result.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have a type. It¡¯s a coincidence that you all start as innocent girls. It has nothing to do with my fetish.¡±


    Aurora protested, her body shivering as she felt Rita¡¯s lips on her neck. The younger was sucking along her neck, that long tongueing out to lick at the hickey she had just made.


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s just a coincidence, huh? I guess I got lucky that you found the old innocent me. I should thank you by blowing your mind out.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t be gross. Aren¡¯t you speaking too much today?¡±


    Rita ignored Aurora¡¯s taunt. Her eyes were focused on massaging those full breasts in front of her. Rita wanted to have a taste of that heaviness in her hand.


    A single lick on those rosy nipples caused Aurora to flinch. The icy-cold temperature of Rita¡¯s tongue felt like a shock to Aurora¡¯s body.


    ¡°R¡­ita t-too much. You¡­re tong¡­ue is c¡­ol¡­d¡±


    The more Rita licked along Aurora¡¯s body, the more Aurora shivered due to the temperature change.


    It was such a different feeling than normal that Aurora had no idea if she should pull away or lean into Rita¡¯s touch.


    ¡°Too much? But aren¡¯t you enjoying this too much? Look, you are dripping wet down here.¡±


    Rita¡¯s hand touched Aurora¡¯s wetness. The coldness was a shock to Aurora¡¯s system and she felt something wet dip out of her.


    ¡°Ah, see. You can¡¯t even hold yourself back. Do you want me to touch you here?¡±


    Aurora tried to pull her body back from the cold touch but her hips buckled into that touch even more.


    Her body was seeking out its pleasure and it was Rita who could give it to her.


    ¡°Yes, let go. I know you want me to take charge but I cannot until you surrender your body to me.¡±


    Aurora wanted to snap at Rita¡¯s bold words. The girl had been a blushing virgin until a few months back but look at her now.


    ¡®But I¡¯ll let her have this now. I will take my revenge some other day when I am not feeling this good.¡¯


    Aurora¡¯s thoughts came to a halt as soon as her face was forced up and into a kiss. Rita¡¯s tongue was in her mouth and her cold finger finally breached Aurora¡¯s lower pussy lips.


    It was a shock, different sensations rushing toward Aurora and assaulting her from all directions. She could not even move or find it in herself to fight against that feeling.


    All Aurora wanted to do was to keep on moving her hips and drag those sinful fingers even deeper inside her body.


    She wanted something harder and bigger in her and Rita was the one who could give it to her.

 Chapter 200 200: The night out - part 2

    ¡°Darn, I really want to take my time tonight but I should hurry up and fuck you. The nights have gotten shorter and I want you to enjoy yourself.¡±


    Rita¡¯s body gave in a small thrust, her expression twisted into one of pleasure.


    The pair had not waited around to y tonight. There was a sense of urgency in the air and the pressure of magic was surrounding them.


    Aurora could also feel the curious magic reaching toward her barrier, trying to break it and peek inside.


    ¡®Ur is¡­.too curi..ous for hi..s ow..n go..od.¡¯


    It had to be the dragon cub trying to connect with Aurora but the barrier was preventing it from reaching Aurora. And for good reasons as well since now was not the time for Aurora to be seen by anyone by Rita.


    ¡°Stop thinking about useless things. You need to keep on focusing on me.¡±


    It was easy for Rita to say that. Aurora had a feeling that the younger would not even mind if she was caught fucking Aurora.


    ¡®I bet Ri¡­ta w..oul..d really l..ike it.¡¯


    Aurora¡¯s mouth was being assaulted by Rita¡¯s tongue, her pussy by Rita¡¯s cock. The dual sensation of being filled was so good that Aurora¡¯s thoughts were slipping past her mind.


    Her free hands were roaming around Rita¡¯s body, cupping her hanging breasts and massaging them.


    Her other hand had also decided to go exploring, trying to find sensitive spots around Rita¡¯s body.


    And the most appropriate point Aurora had found was the other female¡¯s sensitive pussy.


    It was a difficult angle for Aurora to reach while she was being fucked but her hand could reach out to y with Rita¡¯s clit and wetness.


    ¡°H-Hey, where are you touching? S¡­top it.¡±


    Aurora grinned as she pushed her hips back to ask Rita to continue her thrusting while her hand yed with her wet pussy.


    If Aurora was being fucked hard and fast, she wanted Rita to feel the same sensation. The wet pussy was begging to be fingered.


    ¡°Keep on moving, Rita. I did not say that you could stop.¡±


    Aurora tightened her pussy around Rita¡¯s huge cock, her internal walls doing their best to milk Rita out.


    The sensation must have felt great for Rita since her body all but copsed on top of Aurora. It caused that cock to go even deeper inside Aurora¡¯s pussy.


    ¡°C¡­ome on. Ri..ta mo..ve.¡±


    Aurora finally took her fingers out of Rita¡¯s pussy to give her some breathing room. She did not want to overwhelm Rita right now.


    She needed the younger to gather her strength and fuck Aurora silly. Aurora¡¯s body could not handle this much dual sensation. It was too hot and too cold at the same time.


    It was too much for her poor brain to be able to handle all at once.


    ¡°Give me a second.¡±


    Thankfully, Rita¡¯s body did not need long to get going again. She was close and Aurora could tell that.


    The cock inside was twitching like mad, Rita¡¯s body tensing up as she reached her release.


    The sudden rush of hot and cold feeling caused Aurora to hit her end as well. Her body tensed up before releasing it all in one go.


    ¡°Rita, get off me. It might not seem like it but you are quite heavy.¡±


    Aurora pushed the heavier girl off her body. Rita gave an annoyed look but she did get off Aurora without a problem.


    ¡°That damn dragon is still at it? Can he not take a hint?¡±


    Aurora sighed as she felt another knock against her barrier. The dragon kid was turning out to be a lot more trouble than it was worth.


    ¡°Fine, I will deal with Ur for now. You can go ahead and sleep.¡±


    Aurora waved her hand to make herself clean. It was a neat trick that helped after such an intense session.


    It was a necessity if Aurora wanted to travel with Ur. Dragons had sensitive noses and Aurora did not want to make Ur ufortable.


    Aurora dropped a part of her barrier and the dragon took that opportunity to jump at Aurora.


    He gave a few curious whiffs but ultimately chose to node off against Aurora.


    ¡°Before you ask, I did try to hold him back. But even I cannot handle an energetic dragon pup. You will need to calm him down on your own.¡±


    Aurora sighed as she held the dragon close. She had a feeling that things woulde down to this sooner orter.


    Dragons had possessive feelings toward those they imprinted on and Ur was no different. Aurora had brought this upon herself by deciding to steal the egg.


    ¡°Ur, behave yourself and stop causing trouble for Astoria. You¡¯ve seen me now and you have scented me as well. Now go and sleep with Astoria.¡±


    The dragon gave the most pitiful look he could to Aurora but it did nothing to her. Aurora handed the dragon over to Astoria who took him with a suffering sigh.


    The dragon still tried to paw away at Astoria and head toward Aurora before he finally got the message that Astoria was not going to let him go.


    ¡°Be a good boy and I will give you a treat tomorrow.¡±


    The dragon instantly calmed down at the mention of a treat. It was kind of like a mixture of a dog and a toddler at his current age.


    ¡°Astoria, sleep tight since we will be leaving early tomorrow. We have a long journey ahead of us.¡±


    Astoria did not look amused at Aurora¡¯s attempt to lighten things up. The other female had been made to stay up and look after Ur while the other two enjoyed themselves.


    Not that Astoria had any need or want to relieve herself. That only happened when she went into a rut.


    ¡°Tomorrow night, you sleep with Ur and bear all his scratches. I will not be responsible for whatever happens.¡±


    Aurora took in the scratch marks all over Astoria¡¯s arm and gave a sheepish smile in return. She had not expected Ur to put up such a fuss and even injure Astoria.


    ¡°Ah, sorry for making you go through all this.¡±


    Astoria did not say anything after that. She did not even look at Aurora but Aurora had a feeling that everything was alright between the pair.


    Morning came faster than anyone wanted it to. Everyone looked tired after getting the minimum number of hours to sleep but it did not matter.


    This was the only time the Nacross Valley was uninhabited and it was all because of the monster that appear at this specific time.


    ¡°Now listen, as long as we do not attack or alert the Sand Scorch, we should be alright. It is not a violent monster and it would also leave us alone¡­¡±


    No sooner than Aurora had finished speaking did she feel the feral aura behind her. A gigantic shadow covered the area and stopped Aurora from uttering even a single word more.


    ¡°Fuck. Can things go our way one time? I cannot believe we lost the 1/10the chance of encountering this thing.¡±


    Rita¡¯s words were all Aurora needed to confirm the identity of the behemoth lurking behind her. The monster Aurora had wanted to avoid had sought them out instead.


    Its huge centipede-like body and various legs caused Aurora to feel nauseated. The monster was not only ugly but repulsive to look at.


    But no matter how much Aurora hated it, she had to face it to progress.


    ¡°How troublesome. Sit back while I take care of this insect.¡±


    Astoria seemed to be having a simr idea as her. Her fire magic was adept in dealing with the monster but it did nothing more than push it back this time.


    ¡°I hate all this sand.¡±


    Aurora decided to help Astoria out as well, her magic blowing away the protectiveyer of sand the monster had around his body.


    It took only minutes for therge monster to fall. And then the trio was done.

 Chapter 201 201: A small human - part 1

    ¡°Well, this was easy. The monster had no protection outside of its covering. Now then. What should we do with its body? Since it is not the abyss, the body is unlikely to disappear for some time now.¡±


    Aurora approached the body in front of her carefully. It was a rotten corpse but the monster was very valuable.


    It had a lot of ingredients that could be harvested if the body was still freshly in. And Aurora got to work as soon as she saw an opportunity.


    ¡°Here, use this scalp. I will help you out as soon as I am finished with the tail.¡±


    Aurora was not the only one who had the idea of harvesting the body. Astoria¡¯s eyes were shining at the discovery of rare ingredients in front of her.


    Knowing how loyal Astoria was to her art of alchemy, it was no wonder that she had decided to start harvesting the corpse as well.


    ¡°Well Ur, looks like we are the outcasts here. Let¡¯s have a look around in the meantime. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a good idea to distribute these two anytime soon.¡±


    Aurora ignored Rita¡¯s sarcasticmand. Just because Rita did not have any interest in this art does not mean she could interrupt Aurora¡¯s work.


    Rita took Aurora¡¯s silence as a reason for her to leave. She gave ast look behind her but the other two were too busy in their own world to pay any attention to Rita.


    Not that she minded. Aurora was passionate about harvesting this corpse so Rita did not want to disturb her. She knew that the harvesting ingredients were going to be soldter and added to the party¡¯s fund.


    Still, Rita did not like to see someone get opened this carefully. She had standards about killing things and making them unable to move around.


    ¡°Ur, is something wrong?¡±


    The dragon gave a low growl, his reptilian eyes trained toward the rock a few steps away from the duo.


    It did not take Rita long to figure out what was agitating Ur this much. The brown hair was very much visible to Rita even if the child tried to hide her presence.


    ¡°Ur, stay here. I just thought of a fun idea.¡±


    The child looked too self-conscious. Now that she had been discovered, she didn¡¯t even trying out to greet Rita.


    Instead, the child just hid away even deeper behind the rock.


    Rita took the long road to approach the rock. Although it was going to take longer, Rita was practically invisible throughout the process.


    By the time Rita approached the kid, the poor girl was peeking from behind the rock toward Rita¡¯s previous position.


    ¡°She left? When did thatdy leave? I need to ask her a favor. How do I find her again?¡±


    The girl sounded agitated. Her desperate voice made Rita feel bad and she decided against scaring the kid.


    After all, the only crime the kid hadmitted was to look at Rita. And that could hardly be called a crime at all in today¡¯s day and age.


    Besides, Rita was curious to know what a kid was doing in such a dangerous valley. These were not safe areas and even professionals avoideding here.


    ¡°Hey kid, are you looking for me? You should have juste out and said that.¡±


    Rita had intended to not scare the kid. But she failed anyway. The kid all but jumped into the air as soon as Rita¡¯s voice spoke out from behind her.


    The poor girl clutched her heart, her wide eyes looking at Rita and then back out the rock. She finally realized that Rita had not left the ce, just changed her targeted location.


    ¡°I¡­ummm¡­.I should leave now.¡±


    The kid tried to move away but Rita blocked her way. It almost felt like bullying but Rita had a feeling that the kid needed her help.


    No one came out in such a dangerous ce and looked for dangerous people unless they were desperate. And Rita knew a thing or two about being desperate herself.


    ¡°Kid, you can ask for help. It¡¯s not like I will kill you if you ask me a question.¡±


    Rita tried to lighten the mood. The only kid Rita regrly dealt with was Damina and Natasha for a short while. And these two could hardly be called children.


    Apart from them, Rita had a terrible track record when it came to children.


    And it just so happens that this time added to that terrible record as well. As soon as the girl saw Rita¡¯s face, her green eyes broke out into tears.


    ¡°I¡­sowwy. I don¡¯t want to die.¡±


    The kid was so scared that her words were mixing up with each other. Rita felt guilty for making the kid cry.


    ¡®But it¡¯s not even my fault. I did not say anything mean to the kid. Why did she end up crying like this?¡¯


    The more Rita tried to figure it out, the more confused she got. Was this how kids behaved nowadays? Sensitive and prone to fits of anger? It did not make sense to Rita.


    ¡°Please, calm down and listen to me. You are not in danger. I am offering to help you out. Now stop crying like this.¡±


    The kid finally seemed to be calming down. Since Rita had not made any move on her until now, the kid was starting to feel safe.


    But it all came crashing down as soon as Ur decided to make his appearance. The sharp wsbined with the inhuman body cause the kid to take one look at him and the waterworks began again.


    ¡°Ur, why did you have toe over? Hey, kid, no don¡¯t cry again. Ur is harmless to you.¡±


    It took Rita nearly fifteen minutes to calm the kid down after that and extract the story from her. Apparently, her family was into the smuggling business and had fallen sick nearby.


    Theck of healers in this ce was a big problem, as was the presence of these gigantic monsters.


    Most monsters that appeared at these specific times of the day were much more dangerous than the general ones.


    Normal people had no chance against them.


    ¡°So, your parents are trapped behind a wall of such monsters and you want us to get them out?¡±


    ¡°Yes, but we also need to be fast. My parents didn¡¯t look so good when I left and it¡¯s already been almost a day since I left them. I am worried about them.¡±


    The kid sure was impressive. She had managed to survive out in the open for so long all alone. Most people won¡¯t evenst a few hours, much less a day.


    ¡°Well, if that¡¯s the case then I should call my party over. This task would be over much sooner with more people around.¡±


    The kid looked worried for a second before her eyes shined. The sudden bout of energy was new but not unexined.


    ¡°You will get those amazing people who defeated that giant monster with you? Wow, that would be great. A human like you would hardly stand a chance against these monsters.¡±


    The kid¡¯s words reminded Rita why she did not like kids. They were insensitive and never thought about what they were saying. The kid was not wrong to say that Rita was currently the weakest link in their group.


    ¡®But did she have to point it out? I can take out a dozen monsters even in my current form.¡¯


    Rita ranged inside as she gave a charming smile on the outside. She had to endure this for the sake of herself and her future. She could not let it show on her face that she was disturbed by the kid¡¯s words.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Were my words insensitive? Mother says I should think before I speak.¡±


    Rita had a few choice words for the kid but she swallowed her anger in the end and gave a small smile.


    ¡°No kid, everything is alright. You said your name was Mary? Don¡¯t worry Mary, your family will be alright soon.¡±


    Rita was not one to make empty promises and Mary¡¯s trust-filled smile gave her the will needed to head back and exin the situation to Aurora and Astoria.

 Chapter 202 202: A small human - part 2

    It took exactly one hour for Rita to exin the situation to herpanions and the trio to clear out the monsters around Mary¡¯s parents.


    Truth be told, these monsters were not even that powerful. They just had numbers on their side to intimidate normal people.


    But anyone who had magic could clear them out in a single strike. This time, the honor went to Ur. It was nice target practice for the kid dragon and also served for him to practice his control.


    Rita just watched as everything burned around her within Ur¡¯s mes.


    ¡°Hey Ur, control yourself. The mes almost hit me.¡±


    Ritained and the me surged even brighter around her. The dragon gave her a stinky eye, still not happy that this human had her scent all over her parent figure.


    ¡®This grumpy dragon seemed not to have any problem with me when we were alone. But as soon as Auroraes into the picture and he pretends like he doesn¡¯t know me.¡¯


    Still, Rita did not hate Ur or his yfulness. And she did not want to face off against a dragon. She loved her life more than that at least.


    ¡°Mommy, daddy, are you both alright? These nice people helped us out.¡±


    Mary looked happy to be reunited with her parents. The couple did look sick but it was not to the extent that should be deadly.


    Had it been Rita, she would have been able to walk and even fight around in that condition.


    ¡°Their temperature is too high for a human. I have some medicine to cure them but they would need a lot of rest and food. If possible, you both should head out of the valley and find suitable amodation for a few days.¡±


    Was the couple really in that bad a condition? Rita had not even realized how fragile humans were as a race. And without magic, it was even worse.


    ¡®It makes sense now why Aurora always asked us to be careful in my human form. But I¡¯m not that fragile of a human so she should calm down.¡¯


    Rita clenched her fists, her nails leaving imprints on her hand before healing in seconds.


    Just because Rita¡¯s magic was sealed did not mean it did not work at all. Her body still subconsciously used magic as it wanted to.


    Rita could just not consciously use magic to let it leave her body. That was the price she had paid for being human.


    Still, it was better than having no magic in her system at all.


    ¡°Here, the creature shall apany you until you get out of the valley. I wish you three a pleasant journey.¡±


    In the end, it was Astoria who ended up taking charge of the ill couple. She had the most knowledge about remedies and healing so no one contested her once she imed her role.


    The kid, Mary stopped in front of Rita and gave a small bow. Her eyes stared Rita right in the eyes and her face had a determined expression.


    ¡°Thank you for your help.¡±


    Before Rita could have said anything, the kid changed targets and bowed in front of Aurora and Ur as well.


    But as soon as she stopped in front of Astoria, her eyes held a different light in them. Rita had a feeling something interesting was about to happen.


    ¡°Uhmmm, I want to thank you but I don¡¯t think words would be enough to express my feelings. So please, take me along. I will find a way to repay you somehow.¡±


    Astoria¡¯s face had a priceless expression on it. It was a mixture between awkwardness, helplessness, and anger.


    Neither of those emotions seemed to be winning thought and Rita had to fight hard to contain herughter.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think that would be possible or even necessary. Kids your age should y around and stay with their parents. I do not need payment from you.¡±


    Rita did feel bad for Astoria fornding in such an awkward situation. If there was someone more awkward with kids than Rita, it was Astoria.


    The poor female had no idea what to do with kids outside of an academic setting. She was not even able to converse with kids who approached her with questions.


    Astoria was popr with the students for her no-nonsense attitude but she was rarely spotted outside of working hours.


    Still, it would be good for Astoria to learn to deal with kids. She could do not avoid them forever in her profession


    Besides, Mary did not look like she was going to give up after one rejection. The girl had stars in her eyes when she looked at Astoria.


    It was something more than adoration. It was the beginning of a crush.


    ¡®I think Astoria is in for a hard time ahead.¡¯


    ¡°Mary, you should go look after your parents right now. They are in a delicate time and you don¡¯t want to lose them, right?¡±


    Astoria breathed a sigh of relief at Aurora¡¯s help. If there was one person who could convince you that white was blue, it was Aurora.


    She was the best person when it came to dealing with people. And she was also popr with kids.


    So naturally, Aurora should have been able to talk Mary out of her stupid idea of following after Astoria.


    Only, that did not happen. Instead of agreeing, Mary had an annoyed look on her face.


    ¡°Are you her lover? If not, then do not butt in into our conversation.¡±


    Rita could only watch stunned as the scene in front of her yed out. This was the first time Rita had seen anyone talk with Aurora like this.


    Most people who talked badly about Aurora did it behind her back. No one cursed her out to her face.


    And not over liking someone else. Rita really wanted Aurora to lie and admit to being Astoria¡¯s lover.


    Well, Rita would feel jealous if Aurora did so that but it would all be worth it to see the iing shit show.


    Sometimes, you had to sacrifice something to get something of higher value. And this entertainment really was something of a higher quality. It made Rita want to roll around while clutching her belly.


    ¡°Mary, you are too young for me. Not only in the body but in the mind as well. Besides, I don¡¯t have any interest in brats. Now, go back with your parents and stop trying to rile Aurora up.¡±


    For what it was worth, Aurora looked seconds away from breaking intoughter as well. Rita was d to see that she was not the only one who found this situation funny.


    ¡®Darn, now I really want to tease Astoria about this.¡¯


    Rita¡¯s smirk made it obvious what she was thinking. One look was all it took for Astoria to guess her intentions.


    ¡°We cannot afford to take a kid with us on our journey. Not only is it dangerous but it will also slow us down. And no, this is not up for debate.¡±


    Rita muffled herughter but she did agree with Astoria. Their journey was no ce for a kid like Mary to walk around on.


    There would be too much danger, not to mention the dangers of being exposed to the abyss at different points in time.


    Abyss was something that no kid should be worried about.


    ¡°I know what you mean. Sorry kid, it looks like you¡¯ll have to stay behind for now. But you can always try out for the Rocx academy since that is where Astoria teaches.¡±


    Astoria¡¯s irritated look was all worth it in Astoria¡¯s eyes. She was enjoying this too much.


    But it was also time to go. The sun was high up in the sky and the path would be safe to travel now.


    The group left the couple¡¯s dwelling, not realizing that they were being followed behind by a small shadow.

 Chapter 203 203: Deep Caves

    ¡°Hey, how long will we let the little one follow after us? I know we said we will not get involved with her but we cannot allow Mary to follow us like this either. She¡¯s too young to be put in danger.¡±


    Aurora had known that Rita had a bleeding heart when it came to children.


    She might react like she did not care for others but Aurora knew how Rita was. If there was one of them who would take mercy on Mary, it would be Rita.


    ¡°Let her follow us if she wants to. No monster will attack her as long as she stays near us. Besides, aren¡¯t you keeping an eye out for Mary as well? We don¡¯t need her in our group to keep her safe.¡±


    If Rita was someone who had an openly bleeding heart, then Astoria had a closed-on. She did care about the safety of the child but she could not go out of her way to help the child out.


    Not without anything life-threatening happening to the child at least.


    Frankly, Aurora was more on Astoria¡¯s side than she was on Rita¡¯s in this case. She did feel sorry for the child following after them but Aurora had not asked the child to follow them.


    The child had taken it upon herself to follow after them. It was the child¡¯s responsibility.


    ¡°Hey, I know you did not have the safest childhood out there but Mary is still a normal human child. She would die out here without protection.¡±


    Aurora finally sighed after hearing Rita out. The bickering was getting a little too much for her.


    Both sides had good arguments for not bringing Mary along. But for Aurora, it was about to resolve.


    The journey their group had started was not an easy one. Bringing a kid along would only slow them down. It was not a wise decision when they were on a timer.


    And if the child somehow got the idea to quit halfway, then it would be a big disaster. The group would not be able to turn around and deliver Mary back to her parents.


    ¡°Rita, we are about to enter the deep caves. We don¡¯t have the time to look after a kid.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what I am saving. What if Mary refuses to back down even after reaching the deep caves? Would leave her to die? She can¡¯t possibly enter that ce and find her way out.¡±


    Aurora knew Rita was telling the truth. A kid likely won¡¯t be able to find their way out of the deep caves without help.


    But Mary will likely give up even before that happened. The deep caves gave off a dangerous feeling to humans. No kid would risk their lives while traveling through the caves.


    ¡°If she follows after us inside, then we might take her to our party. But only until we reach the Eastern Continent. I am not looking after a kid more than that.¡±


    Surprisingly, Astoria was the one who spoke. Aurora had not anticipated Astoria to make such a decision, but it was typical of her.


    She cared about the child in her own way, and her decision to push the child away was also a way of demonstrating her love for her.


    ¡°That¡¯s what I wanted to hear. Well, if this is the case then I have no choice but to agree with you on these conditions. But Astoria, you should not underestimate a desperate human kid. You might get surprised at what you find.¡±


    Astoria snorted, not believing Rita¡¯s words. It was one thing to believe in the words of someone who had magic or power, it was another to believe in an ordinary kid.


    Aurora decided to keep herself out of this gamble. She did not want to be a roadblock between this bet.


    Besides, Aurora had a feeling that Rita was onto something with her words and her impression. She had seen something in Mary which had convinced her to believe in that kid.


    But there was not much time to sit back and think on this topic either. Not when the deep caves were in front of them.


    This was the true meeting point between the Eastern Continent and the valley. And also the ce where the abyss met the overworld.


    Aurora was thest to step into the dark caves but also felt the small presence hesitating outside the cave.


    Mary was hesitating whether she should go in or not, but she decided to enter the caves in the end.


    Aurora was surprised to feel the human presence enter these caves after her but the shock did note.


    ¡®Looks like Rita won the bet this time. Humans can be daring when they need to be sometimes. It¡¯s amusing.¡¯


    It would not be untilter that Aurora would think back on her words and realize she had begun distancing herself from humans as a whole. But for now, she did not find anything distracting in her thoughts.


    ===========================


    Mary took in a deep breath as she stood in front of the scary-looking cave. She did not want to enter the cave.


    ¡®I should stay away. This ce is not for me. B-But, Astoria and the others entered it. It should be safe, right?¡¯


    For the past day, Mary had done nothing but follow the group around on their journey. She had been quiet in her following.


    She was sure that the group had not realized that they were being followed since Mary had kept her distance from them.


    She had thought that it would have been difficult to follow after them. These people were powerful and they had magical powers.


    But surprisingly enough, Mary had not been found out yet. It had to be due to theck of monster attacks that happened. Usually, Mary had to keep out of 3-4 attacks a day, but no monster had been spotted today.


    ¡®Oh no, they are getting away. I should stay near them.¡¯


    Mary did not know why, but her instincts were telling her that thisck of attack had something to do with these people in front of her. They were the only factor that was different between now and the past.


    Besides ¨C ¡®I need Astoria to take me in as a student. I want to learn medicine as well.¡¯


    Most doctors from the tower charged them a hefty fee for cures. And their medicine was not as fast-acting as Astoria¡¯s had been.


    If Mary learned from her, then she was sure that she would get better soon and she would be able to look after her people.


    But since Astoria had no intention of taking Mary as a student, she had no choice but to sneak around.


    That willpower and courage were what finally convinced Mary to step into the abyss and follow the group. She could not let such a good opportunity pass through her hand.


    Mary had not moved too deep when she felt a huge presence attaching itself to her back. It felt like someone was digging their ws into her back and weighing her down.


    Mary was strong for her age, but her small bodycked the body mass needed to push the weight off her back.


    Not to mention, herck of magic made her useless in this situation.


    ¡°Now, what is a kid like you doing in this deep of the abyss? I know you came here to be my familiar. How lucky of me! I just managed to escape my boss¡¯s room and this is the reward for me.¡±


    Mary turned around with scared eyes. A cat-like creature stood over her and a human female at its side.


    The female was human without any doubt but the situation made her look demonic in Mary¡¯s eyes.


    ¡®W-Why is this happening? Why is a human attacking me like this?¡¯


    Mary had a lot of questions but her life seemed to being to an end here. The cat-like monster raised its paws high up but theynded on Mary too softly to hurt before they slid off her back.


    ¡®Did I survive? B-But how did that happen?¡¯

 Chapter 204 204: The Eastern Continent - Part 1

    ¡°Looks like I won the bet Astoria. Now, would you go out and save our dear guest? I am afraid that she is about to be fodder for a familiar soon enough.¡±


    The trio and the dragon stood there watching as Mary was apprehended by the young and inexperienced familiar magician.


    The young girl had made the bad decision of challenging the boss room and had gotten her ass handed to her. The cat-like familiar she had with her also looked to be in bad shape.


    In other words, it was a pathetic sight that was not worth looking at. It was also amon sight to see in the abyss.


    But what does it have anything to do with catching Mary? Well, a lot.


    One could not forget that a familiar was an abyssal beast as well. They also gained some power after killing humans but it was a behavior that was looked down upon in themunity.


    A young girl without any background support like Mary was the perfect prey for such people. It was not amon scene in the abyss.


    ¡°Astoria, make a decision soon or I will have to step in. I don¡¯t want to see Mary killed like this.¡±


    Aurora had not gotten attached to the young girl but she could feel Astoria had. For all the ¡®nos¡¯ Astoria had spoken, she had been interested to take the young human as a pet as well.


    This might have been the first human that had surprised Astoria like this and Aurora did understand the appeal.


    After all, Rita had done something simr as well toward Aurora. She had refused to give up when needed and followed after Aurora.


    Astoria did not say anything but she did pick herself up from the ground.


    Before the cat-like beast knew it, its w had been served from its body. The familiar and its human gave a startling growl toward Astoria but it was a rather one-sided battle.


    ¡®Serves them right for trying to pick a fight they could not win. Astoria was too much for them.¡¯


    Aurora decided not to question what was going through Astoria¡¯s mind. She did not want to get involved in other¡¯s affairs.


    ¡°See, I told you Astoria would fold when the timees. I could read the interest in her eyes all along.¡±


    Rita looked happy to see this new development. Then the redhead turned her head toward Aurora, her eyes shining brightly toward Aurora.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t this remind you of us? Well, not the age difference but the rtionship. We started awkwardly as well.¡±


    Aurora just leveled Rita with a t stare. She did not remember someone feeling ¡®awkward¡¯ in her presence.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so. You were quite bold in your time and your actions were not so pure as well. I wonder how you got the idea of our rtionship being pure form.¡±


    Rita went red at Aurora¡¯s teasing but she still some whole managed to maintain her cool.


    Meanwhile, Astoria finally made her way toward the group. She had an awkward expression on her face so Aurora did not ask her for details.


    The child in her arms seemed to have fallen asleep after all that happened to her.


    ¡°Ur, do not identally eat her. We are taking Mary with us for the time being. I hope no one has a problem with it.¡±


    Astoria¡¯s questions were met with negatives. No one minded her taking in someone under her wing.


    And so their trio gained a new member in a matter of minutes.


    ===========================


    If you ask Astoria why she had decided to help the kid out, she would not be able to give you an answer.


    It had been more of an impulse thing than an actual decision on her part. And Rita¡¯s teasing had to be a reason behind it.


    But now that Astoria had taken a human under her wing, she needed to be responsible for her. She needed to make sure she had enough to feed and clothe her in her times of need.


    ¡®I need to think things through. I will also have to hide sensitive material in myb from Mary once I go home.¡¯


    Astoria had never thought she would get a personal student. And she had never thought it would be like this for her.


    But life worked in mysterious ways and Astoria was just someone who was caught in the middle of it all.


    Or so it felt to her.


    Ever since she had met Aurora, it felt like things were happening one after another. The world was changing faster than Astoria could keep up with.


    ¡°Should we exit the deep caves now? I can see the other side already.¡±


    Now that Aurora had pointed it out, Astoria could see the light as well. As much as she did not want to, Astoria had to admit that Aurora was right about the future.


    Humans were not as weak as Astoria had thought them to be. They were much stronger than Astoria had given them credit for.


    The deep cave was finally behind them and the Eastern Continent came into view. It was a much-needed breath of fresh air Astoria needed.


    ¡°Finally, we are here. We can now take public transport to get to our location. It would take us¡­.two more days? Isn¡¯t there a teleporter nearby that we can use?¡±


    Rita wasining again. But this was a part of her nature and it did not bug Astoria much nowadays.


    Rita was just like this and Astoria liked her behavior. (More like, she had gotten used to it over time.)


    ¡°Astoria, you should take the kid to the restroom first and exin to her what is happening. I am sure that Mary will be shocked once she wakes up. As for us? We will look around the ce for a bit and then join you.¡±


    ¡°Right! You take care of your kid and we will enjoy our date. Also, keep Ur with you. We cannot have him crashing our date.¡±


    Astoria had a few choice words to say to Rita but she chose to keep quiet in the end. It was not up to her to preach things to Rita.


    And despite Rita¡¯s careless words, she was right in saying that Ur cannot be allowed to roam freely with them without cloaking him.


    Astoria would need to use magic to make Ur not appear like a dragon until they reached their destination.


    ¡°Fine. Enjoy your day out. But do hurry back or I will let Ur out to y. I don¡¯t have enough patience to look after him the whole day.¡±


    Astoria¡¯s words were a warning and a promise in the same tone. She knew that the other two understood what she was not saying and it was her go.


    Now it was Astoria who was left alone in her room with Mary and the sleeping Ur.

 Chapter 205 205: The Eastern Continent - part 2

    ¡°Au~Ro~Ra, where is your head right now? I feel like you are miles apart even when standing right in front of me. Isn¡¯t that kind of sad?¡±


    Aurora quickly turned her head toward Rita, only to be faced with her pouting face. The expression dragged out augh from Aurora¡¯s lips.


    She did not know why she found it so funny, but Aurora was unable to control herughter once she saw Rita¡¯s pouting face.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I was not distracted by anything. I was just trying to enjoy the atmosphere of this ce. It is quite reminiscent of my hometown.¡±


    Aurora had never talked about her home before and she had never felt any need to do so either.


    She had not been an only child but Aurora had been raised as such. As far as she knew, her brother had died a long time ago and left her parents broken.


    As a result, they were a little constrictive when it came to Aurora and didn¡¯t even allow her to go out without supervision. The kind of lifestyle was like rearing a bird in a cage.


    ¡®Let¡¯s put things that have no connection to me in the back of my mind. I don¡¯t need to think about that ce again.¡¯


    Aurora shook her head, her eyes moving toward the decorations around her in wonder. It had always been her wish to participate in a local festival like this.


    The festival was still not here yet as it would take a few more days but the streets were already decorated.


    ¡°It¡¯s all so beautiful. Isn¡¯t this all being done to celebrate a festival of the south? I recall that even the central district prepared a few offerings for this festival.¡±


    Rita¡¯s words caused Aurora¡¯s mood to sour. She knew that the central district took this festival seriously.


    They had to since they were in an alliance with the South. South was the biggest supporter of the tower and also the closest.


    ¡°That reminds me, I haven¡¯t asked you anything about your home life and how you grew up. Are you originally from the south? What about your family? What about Rex? You have known each other forever. Were you childhood friends?¡±


    Rita was curious but Aurora felt weird to recall all she wanted to forget. Her silence finally seemed to have driven the message home because sometime soon, Rita began to quieten down.


    She did not ask any more questions, nor did she show any interest in the topic of the festival.


    In simpler words, Rita dropped the topic and Aurora felt bad for making the other female ufortable.


    ¡°My family is well-established in the southern continent. One could even say that we are the controlling powers there. But I don¡¯t get along with my parents. We had too different views of what my future should be like to get along.¡±


    In simpler terms, her parents wanted Aurora to serve in the tower as generations before had done so.


    They were under Lady Asami¡¯smand but the real person they followed was Lady Mei.


    ¡®That and my parents followed the rule of ¡®survival of the fittest.¡¯ They never failed to remind me what kind of people I should befriend.¡¯


    Aurora had been a political tool for them. She had been the right age to send to the tower as a spy and as a representative.


    s, they had lost their chance of controlling her a long time ago.


    ¡°Hey, no more bad thoughts. You should forget all that happened and enjoy your time here. Who knows how long this peace willst.¡±


    Rita¡¯s easy-going words made Aurora smile. She knew that the redhead was trying her best to cheer Aurora up but her words were not appropriate.


    ¡°Rita, wrong expression. But I know what you mean. Thank you for believing in me.¡±


    Aurora smiled happily and watched Rita¡¯s eyes widen at that gesture. The awkwardness Aurora had not even known was around them disappeared.


    ¡°Of course, I will always believe in you. So, can I ask for your hand to apany me to this festival?¡±


    If Aurora had been trying to stiffen herughter before, she could no longer hold it in. Rita was not finny but her delivery had been weird which made Auroraugh.


    Rita¡¯s knowing smile told Aurora that it had been intentional on her part. It was nice to have people around her that supported her.


    ¡°Rita,e here.¡±


    The redhead came closer with a confused look on her face. Aurora pulled her into a kiss as soon as she was close enough.


    It was considerably softer and gentler than what they exchanged during sex. It was not a ying field of domination but just a quick exchange of feelings.


    Rita¡¯s hands reached up toward her lips in shock at the sudden gesture. The confusion in her eyes was clear since the younger had associated kissing with sexual acts before.


    ¡°Aurora, do you need my help? You should tell me if you are not feeling well.¡±


    Aurora shook her head at the question she was being presented with. For all worked up Rita got, she was such a beginner when it came to romance.


    Aurora had never given anyone other than Clove a change in her life but she wanted to give Rita one. It would not be so bad since they werepatible in bed as well.


    ¡°Hey Rita, would you like to go on a date once this is all over? You know, to try out how we feel about each other. We don¡¯t need to jump into a rtionship but starting small would be good.¡±


    Aurora turned toward Rita who had gotten as stiff as a stone at her words. The younger female looked like she was in shock at the sudden promation.


    ¡®Maybe it is too much for her. Should I take that offer back? Or should I ease Rita more gently into this direction?¡¯


    Aurora was about to open her mouth to say that she had changed her mind when Rita suddenly acted out.


    The kiss they shared was sharp and passionate, not unlike the ones they shared in bed. But it was far greater than Aurora was used to.


    Rita was in charge of this kiss but it was not clumsy or desperate. Instead, it was reassuring and heartwarming.


    ¡°I would like to try being with you. Of course, I will do my best to be the perfect person for you.¡±


    Rita¡¯s eyes were filled with tears but they did not drop down. Instead of crying, Rita¡¯s face broke out into a soft smile.


    It was the most delicate expression Aurora had ever seen on the female¡¯s face. But somehow, it was not as bad as Aurora had expected it to feel.


    ¡®It¡¯s nice to see her happy for once.¡¯


    Aurora took Rita¡¯s hand and held it softly for the first time in a long run. This was the most intimidating the pair had gotten despite having had sex with each other.


    Rita behaved almost like a child the whole day, pushing and pulling Aurora everywhere. The pair made most of their day, their worries are forgotten in face of the fun they were having.


    It was not until the evening arrived and the city began closing did the pair slow down.


    ¡°I had a lot of fun today. It is a shame that we will have to leave this ce tomorrow. Do you think Astoria would be done with Mary and Ur for now?¡±


    ¡°I am sure Astoria did her job. We should not underestimate her.¡±


    Astoria was the mostpetent person Aurora knew. Handing a task to her was asking for the task to be performed with the uttermost detail.


    ¡°I know and¡­.I think we should head back now. It is no longer safe here.¡±


    Rita¡¯s words were cut off abruptly. Her cheerful tone changed to a serious one as she looked past Aurora¡¯s shoulder.


    Aurora chanced the risk of looking back as well, her curiosity taking the best of her. The familiar face of a goddess met Aurora¡¯s eyes. The cheerful eyesbined with that bored look gave away who the person was.


    ¡°Shit, that¡¯s Lady Mei. I don¡¯t know what she is doing here but we need to go back now. We need to head out before we are found in this town.¡±


    It was unlikely for Lady Mei to spot them outright but Aurora would not rather risk it if she could help it.


    Her cautious nature stopped Aurora from taking this unnecessary risk and she was sure the others would agree with her.


    Besides, they had already wasted a lot of time today. The risk of leaving the city at night was low and the chances of being discovered were nil as well.


    ¡°I should send a message to Astoria to get ready. I hope she is alright for now.¡± Aurora was worried but she also knew her partner could take care of herself.


    Still, the nagging worry was starting to form in Aurora¡¯s mind and it refused to go away no matter what Aurora did.

 Chapter 206 206: The Eastern Continent - part 3

    ¡°Home, sweet home. Oh, how I missed being back home. Hey, Emily, can you see how happy I am to be back home?¡±


    The guard names Emily shook her head at her Lady¡¯s carefree smile and words. She had been with Lady Mei for so long that seeing past her mask was second nature to her.


    She knew what herdy thought about this ce and her connections to this continent. And since she knew, Emily knew she had to keep her mouth shut to survive.


    Unfortunately for the others, they did not have the same privileges as Emily and made the mistake of questioning Mei.


    ¡°Mydy, don¡¯t you hate this ce? Why did you want toe back here when you don¡¯t like it here.¡±


    The older guards tensed up as soon as they heard those words. They knew Lady Mei had a short temper and she did not like being questioned much.


    ¡®This guard is dead. We won¡¯t see him past tonight.¡¯


    Everyone had the same thought in their mind. The poor guard had unknowingly dug his own grave by angeringdy Mei.


    ¡°Oh, I don¡¯t like this ce. Who said that and when? Did you hear ite out of my mouth? Yes, I might be annoyed that these people are ungrateful to their phoenix benefactor and are crazy about the dragons but I never said I hated them.¡±


    ¡°DID.YOU.UNDERSTAND.ME?¡±


    The guard shook in his ce. Finallying face-to-face with an angry Lady Mei was an experience. Most people fainted even before they got to see Lady Mei¡¯s anger.


    The guard was good as he even managed to hold his ground in front of such a re.


    ¡®It¡¯s always the brave ones who act foolishly. I hope the next guard who reces him is a little more tactful.


    Emily¡¯s thoughts did have sympathy for the guard but she was not foolish enough to say anything in his defense. Why would she risk her perfectly safe neck for a stranger.


    ¡°Emily, what¡¯s the next on our agenda? The foolish king is finally awake so I need to visit him. Is there anything else left for me to do?¡±


    Lady Mei did not look concerned about the king but there was a hint of affection in her eyes. Anyone looking at them would have taken Lady Mei for a Tsundere if they saw her.


    But Emily knew it was more of a lingering attachment herdy had with the Eastern Royal family.


    They were the descendants of Lady Mei¡¯s rtives and had blood ties with her.


    As time passed, those ties had gotten weaker and weaker but in the end, blood was thicker than water.


    No matter how diluted those blood ties got, Lady Mei still held lingering affection toward that family.


    ¡°The Shadall Festival is about to begin soon. Maybe we can take a look around once we are done greeting the royal family. It has been a long time since mydy came out to y like this.¡±


    Emily knew how to tter Lady Mei. Her Lady had been in a bad mood these past couple of days.


    First and foremost, her plea to apany the inspectors on their journey to Rocx Academy had been turned down. She was then barred from the abyss¡¯s arena.


    And now she knew that someone had poisoned the Eastern King and that it had been kept secret from her all this time.


    This allbined to drive Lady Mei mad. She was beyond reasoning at this point.


    ¡°Hey Emily, don¡¯t those two look familiar? Have we seen them before?¡±


    The question came out of a sudden but Emily was ever present to serve her master. She quickly looked in the direction her Lady was pointing toward but she saw only ordinary people.


    The festival had attracted a few people around them and the streets were busy.


    As such, Emily was not sure where her Lady was pointing toward. She could not spot anyone suspicious.


    ¡°I am not sure what you want to show me, my Lady but I will help you out in whatever way you want me to. Should I go out and ask the city guards to interrogate people?¡±


    Emily expected Lady Mei to drop the case. Herdy did not like using excessive force to get her way.


    But much to her surprise, herdy seemed to be considering her suggestion. The look in her eyes was not one Emily had seen before and it puzzled her.


    ¡°You know what Emily? I think the city does need to go under curfew. I just saw a highly dangerous criminal running among themon people. We cannot allow people to get hurt, now can we?¡±


    Emily shook her head. She was surprised at her Lady¡¯s quick choice in this matter.


    But thinking over something like this would not help Emily. Nor would questioning her Lady like this.


    It was just better to do as Lady Mei said for now and to follow along. Nothing good came from going against her words anyway.


    ===========================


    ¡°So we are in the Eastern Continent now? Wow, I never expected toe here but this is nice. How long are we going to stay here? Hey, you aren¡¯t thinking of abandoning me, are you?¡±


    Astoria rubbed her head at the small headache that was forming. The kid, Mary¡¯s questions were making Astoria tired.


    She had exined the situation to the younger more than three times already but it was like the younger refused to understand.


    It was a given that it would not hit Mary home until she faced the situation but the younger wasn¡¯t even trying to understand.


    ¡°Mary, pay attention to what I tell you. Our situation is far from good and we are on a run from the tower. There was a reason I did not want you to get involved but if you are going to get involved anyway, then stay vignt.¡±


    Mary looked like she would cry at the thunderous tone Astoria used.


    It had not been Astoria¡¯s intention to frighten the younger but she also could not afford for Mary to babble to others who Astoria was.


    ¡°No, I  understand that you are running away from the tower but I don¡¯t understand why. You are such nice people-¡°


    ¡°But being nice is not everything in this world. I might be nice to you but I am not nice to everyone. Now hurry up and decide if you want to go back or not. This is the only time I will ask you this.¡±


    ¡°I want to stay with you and learn. Even if I cannot perform any magic like you or have ack of talent, I want to try my best.¡±


    Astoria finally gave in to the younger. Frankly, she was tired of this back-and-forth debate.


    No to mention, the message Aurora had sent a few minutes prior told Astoria clearly that they were out of time now.


    ¡°Fine, here. Wear this cloak and wait around for me. I need to get Ur ready for the journey.¡±


    Mary watched with fascinated eyes as the dragon turned into a dog. It was a giant ck thing with a lot of fur but it was friendly looking.


    The dragon tried to fly in its new body but was unable to.


    ¡°Don¡¯t do anything stupid and bear with it. Your appearance is just until we get out of this town and into a ce where no one would kill you.¡±


    Ur quietened down at Astoria¡¯s words. But it was clear that the dragon was not happy with the treatment he got.


    Astoria did not care about him at the moment, too busy preparing the teleportation array she had been sent by Astoria.


    It would take them to a vehicle that they could use and it was a one-time use item. It was useless outside the Eastern Continent and a lot more expensive than Astoria would have liked.


    ¡®I will buy one and research it once I get time to. I know I can make this thing better and usable in the abyss.¡¯


    ¡°Astoria, are you done with the preparations yet? I think Mei is headed this way.¡±


    Aurora chose that moment to open the door and Astoria identally set the circle aze.


    It activated at the touch of magic and took the party to its designed location.


    It was fortunate that no ident urred but it had been a dangerous situation all the same. Even their lender looked worried to see them all shaken up.


    ¡°It looks like you all went through a storm. Let me guess. You messed up with your teleportation circle but somehow managed to reach here? You are one of the lucky ones.¡±


    There had been nothing lucky about it. It was only because Astoria had used the back door in time to activate the failsafe.


    ¡°There is no luck involved. Just give me the darn keys so that I can get out of here.¡±


    Astoria was pissed off and ready to drive. Luckily, Aurora took the keys before Astoria could drive away.


    ¡°Maybe I should drive for now. You know, just as a measure. You can take over once you have calmed down enough.¡±


    Astoria took one second to confirm before she fell asleep. She hated stressful days like these.

 Chapter 207 207: The first step - part 1

    ¡°So, are we there yet?¡±


    Aurora ignored the question as she drive away in the car. There was no point in answering this question since it had been asked thrice in the past fifteen minutes.


    ¡°No Mary. We are not there yet and we will not reach our destination until a few hours have passed.¡±


    Rita answered the question with the same tired sigh that Aurora wanted to give. She was tired of that question and the child¡¯s endless energy. Did Mary never get tired and fall asleep?


    Aurora wanted to wake up Astoria and hand the driving over to her but the elder looked too peaceful to wake up. It made Aurora not want to disturb her.


    And the result of that decision was to curb the child¡¯s curiosity about their destination.


    ¡°Alright. I understand.¡±


    Finally, it seemed as if Mary was willing to listen and be quiet now. But the silence was not tost long.


    It was a mere five minutester when Mary opened her mouth with a familiar question.


    ¡°Sooooo, are we there now?¡±


    And the conversation begins anew. Personally, Aurora was sure that the child would calm down and not ask this question if she was ignored one or two times.


    But Rita was not one to ignore anyone talking to her. And she was not above carrying on a one-sided conversation either.


    And when she was egged like this by a child then there was no chase of Rita staying quiet.


    ¡°Rita,e over here and take up driving. It will be good practice for you since the road is empty anyway.¡±


    Since they had left at an awkward time, the traffic on the road was non-existing. Maybe that was why Aurora felt as if it was safe to hand the car over to Rita.


    ¡°A-Are you sure this is something we should be doing? I am not the safest driver we have and -¡°


    ¡°You are also the only driver we have. Juste here and drive. I want to take a nap right now.¡±


    It has been a long time since Rita had shown this fragileness about herself. Aurora was surprised to see herself this shy in front of a stranger.


    But Aurora was bone tired right now as well. She did not know why she was feeling lethargic. The longer she drove, the more tired Aurora got.


    ¡°Do you want me to try driving? I am sure I can-¡°


    ¡°No. I¡¯ll drive inside. I¡¯m afraid your feet will not even reach the paddle if you decide to drive.¡±


    Mary gave an angry huff but she settled down quietly. Even the child knew what kind of ridiculous offer she was making in front of the two elders.


    Aurora quietly changed seats with Rita and settled down into her seat. It was justfortable enough for Aurora to fall asleep but her head was at an awkward angle.


    It was sure going to hurt when she woke up but her body chose sleep over the pain it was potentially going to feel.


    Everything felt alright for a few minutes. Sleep was catching up with Aurora when she felt the car jolt and her body went crashing into the front seat.


    ¡°Sorry, my bad. I identally pressed the wrong paddle and stopped the car. I just wanted to slow down and change gears.¡±


    Aurora rubbed her nose against the seat. Why had she trusted Rita with driving again?


    ¡°Rita, get out of the seat. Let me take over driving now.¡±


    Astoria was awake as well and her eyes had a mean look. Aurora wanted to stop her from taking the wheel but one look was all it took for Aurora to change her mind.


    Well, none of them were going to die even if the car crashed so it should be alright for Astoria to drive.


    No matter how bad her mood was, surely Astoria would drive respectfully and not try to crash them-¡°


    That was the wrong thing to think. Aurora felt her body jolt due to the new speed their car had picked up.


    Forget being careful, Astoria was breaking at least breaking 5-6ws by going at her current speed.


    ¡°I¡­am¡­feeling¡­dizzy.¡±


    Mary¡¯sint was not out of the blue. The child did look sick and on the verge of hurling her breakfast. This fast speed did not agree with her stomach.


    Neither did it agree with Aurora¡¯s but she knew she had to hold it in. Astoria was not sane right now and agitating her any further would not be a good idea.


    ¡°Just sit back and endure it for now. It will be over soon.¡±


    Rita assured from the other side. She looked green in the face as well but she was also enjoying this speed.


    Aurora felt her eyes close due to exhaustion taking over her. She knew she should not sleep but her body made that decision for her.


    The next time she opened her eyes, they had reached their destination.


    ===========================


    Aurora opened her eyes carefully, her hands reaching out to touch her surroundings.


    It took Aurora a second to realize that she was reassuring herself that she was still alive and well. Things hade down to that, huh?


    ¡®To think that even the abyss didn¡¯t scare me this much. Note to oneself: Do not go on a car ride with Astoria when she is in a bad mood.¡¯


    ¡°So you are finally awake Aurora? I was afraid that we lost you back there for a second.¡±


    The first person Aurora saw after waking up was Rita. The younger was sitting at Aurora¡¯s bedside, her eyes almost vacant of any light in them.


    The car ride seemed to have taken a toll on her as well.


    ¡°Looks like we are alive and made it to our destination. Where are we right now?¡±


    The first thing Aurora did after waking up was to get check on the situation. It was important to know how things were progressing with them being here and all.


    ¡°We were stationed in a nearby hotel. Noctus wanted to take us to the royal pce as soon as possible but I declined the invite on your behalf. I don¡¯t think it is safe to move around when we have Mei after us.¡±


    Rita was right and the decision was also right on her end.


    A person could give away a lot by their facial expressions. And it was even more dangerous to lie in front of a goddess.


    If Mei interrogated the royal family and the court about Aurora and the others, lying would not work.


    ¡°You did well. So, where are our other two members?¡±


    Aurora asked, only to be met with a mischievous grin on Rita¡¯s face. This was one Rira usually had when she was thinking about sexual stuff in her mind.


    ¡°Rita, no. I am not in a mood right now.¡±


    ¡°A,e on and let me y with you for a bit. Astoria and Mary are just outside but I¡¯m sure they won¡¯t mind us doing some kissing and-¡°


    ¡°Don¡¯t you sare. I am not in the mood to see you both being gross right now. Don¡¯t forget that we are sharing living quarters right now.¡±


    ¡°Right. And you cannot do this in front of a child as well. I am a kid and I don¡¯t want to see you being gross.¡±


    Aurora pushed Rita away as soon as she heard the young voice.


    Aurora had no problem being close to Rita in front of Astoria since the elder was used to it. But Mary was a separate case.


    The child was too young and innocent to be seeing these things.


    ¡°Tsk, stop ruining my fun with Aurora whenever you want to. You could just have waited outside for me and let me have my fun first.¡±


    Although Ritained a bit, she did back down pretty easily after thoseints. Aurora could see that Rita was in a yful mood which meant that things were going alright for now.


    ¡°Yes, I heard you Rita but fun time is over. First of all, someone gives me a summary of what happened and what we should do next. Then, we can discuss our next course of action.¡±


    Auroraid out what she wanted to hear and it did not take long for Astoria to recap what had happened.


    They had arrived in the Eastern Capital not long after Aurora had fallen asleep. The person they were supposed to meet had given the option of the royal pce or outside.


    Astoria had chosen the ¡®outside¡¯ option since Mei was an ever-present threat to them. And now here they were, in their temporary abode in a foreignnd.


    ¡°So, what should we do next? I did ask the man to pass Noctus a message but it might take a long time before we can meet him.¡±


    Aurora knew that it was a possibility. But there were a few more things one who visited the Eastern Continent the first time should do.


    ¡°Well, I think we should enjoy ourselves for now. How does a trip to the temple sound to you all?¡±

 Chapter 208 208: The first step - part 2

    ¡°Well, I think we should enjoy ourselves for now. How does a trip to the temple sound to you all?¡±


    Aurora¡¯spanions looked worried and suspicious at her words. But it did not take long for Astoria to catch on to what Aurora did not speak about.


    ¡°The temple? I almost forgot that the Eastern Continent has a religion.¡±


    The influence of the Eastern Continent¡¯s religion was not as widespread as the Southern Continent or even the tower. But there were still a significant number of believers that looked after the temple and its donation.


    For foreigners, religion was not a big concern so the temple was not counted as a tourist spot on the Continent. And for a good reason as well.


    It was a well-known fact that the temple was not on good terms with Lady Mei and Lady Mei also tended to ignore the temple. It was a cause of longsting friction between the Eastern Continent but no one knew where that agitation had stemmed from.


    Well, no one in this timeline knew this secret.


    In Aurora¡¯s previous life this event of the confrontation betweendy Mei and the temple had be big news. It was also something that had caused the longsting Eastern religion to fall.


    And it had all been because the head priest had tried to wake up the guardian deity of their temple, the great dragon lord.


    It was a well-known taboo to bring back dead people. Even a kid knew better than to try something like that.


    But the temple had tried to bring back their draconic lord and let rid of Lady Mei. It had almoste to a full-blown war in the end.


    But Lady Mei had ended that war singlendly by killing the draconic lord. No one had been able to dispute her powers afterward.


    The royal family had be mere puppets as well after that since they were such big devotees of the dragon lord.


    So really, if someone wanted to visit the temple, this was the best chance to do so. It was before the dissertation and its demise.


    ¡°I see. The temple is not a ce Lady Mei will step in at any cost. We should visit it soon.¡±


    Astoria caught on to Aurora¡¯s meaning and so did Rita. Mary looked confused but ready to take on any action that was needed.


    ¡°We can also ask them to hide Ur for now. Knowing the temple, they might do this willingly.¡±


    Aurora did not doubt it but it was also a point of worry for Aurora. Ur was a good bargaining chip but Aurora did not feelfortable sending him in there knowing what was going on down there.


    ¡°Astoria, you should stay with Ur in the temple. We will reveal his true origin but don¡¯t leave him alone with any priest. Also, bug his skin so that we can find him at any time.¡±


    Aurora was being paranoid but it was better to be safe than to be sorry in this situation. Ur was too big of a bargaining chip to be lost just like that.


    ¡°I will keep an eye on him and Mary. You both do what is needed in there.¡±


    Astoria was a smartdy. She caught on to the fact that Aurora had more than one objective behind sneaking into the temple.


    But the second objective was more personal than the first one. It deals with Aurora¡¯s corruption and the way to cure it.


    You see, Lord Noctus had kept his words of finding the Nymph for Aurora¡¯s sake. But the only known one was in the temple perimeters.


    And Aurora would need to sneak around to find that Nymph.


    ¡°Got it. Now, let¡¯s get this show started.¡±


    The temple was as luxurious and grand as one could expect to see in the central city of a continent. It was not only huge in volume but also in the area it covered. Most of it was open ground surrounded by water channels.


    It was a refreshing and lovely ce to be and it also gave off a holy feeling I am standing a few meters away but I can still feel the magic aura gathering inside the perimeters.¡±


    Aurora could feel that magical aura as well. It was easy to tell that something was going on here.


    ¡®It must be because the only people whoe here are humans that this ce has not been caught yet. There is no way the temple will be able to hide for much longer like this.¡¯


    Aurora felt sorry for the poor priests who were just humans but trying their best. They had no idea how to take care of their spells.


    In simpler terms, those priests were the sacrifice that was taken advantage of by the temple.


    ¡°Oh, are you people new here? You just missed the ceremony by a few minutes. But if you hurry then you can still make it in time for the blessings.¡±


    Just as Aurora was about to make a n in her mind, a priest walked over to their group. He looked rtively young and healthy but there was ack of magic inside him.


    If Aurora concentrated, she could feel the core resonating inside the man but the presence of magic was justcking around him.


    ¡°I see. Then we shall head toward the blessing room as well.¡±


    Aurora gave a small bow to the man and gestured for the other two to follow. She could see the surprise shing inside their eyes as well.


    ¡®So I am not the only one who felt that man¡¯s oddity.¡¯


    ¡°You felt that as well, right? That man felt like he was a sealed human but without any outlet.¡±


    ¡°He did feel like me but I don¡¯t know. There was something odd about him as well.¡±


    As Rita was a sealed human as well, her feeling on this matter was important. If even she felt like something was wrong then it was worth considering over.


    ¡°Usually, the seal causes my magic to be inbound and unusable but its presence is all there inside me. But that man felt more like a hollow shell than a person. It made me want to keep my distance from him.¡±


    It was weird that Aurora had not felt like that when she faced the man. And from Astoria¡¯s face, it seemed like she had not felt that feeling as well.


    Then, did it only happen to Rita?


    ¡°It was creepy. That man felt wrong to me as well. It was like something inside me was being dragged out toward him and I could not resist him.¡±


    It was a shock to realize that it was Mary who said those words. Mary was a magic-less person so she should not have felt anything here.


    Normal people who were ¡®magicless¡¯ could not feel the presence of magic and that was why they could not perform magic.


    Mary should not have been able to detect anything on her own. It meant that the man had tried touching Mary with his magic as well.


    ¡°Maybe it was not voluntary? You said that the man felt empty to you, right? Magic tends to fill a space if it¡¯s not being used.¡±


    Astoria¡¯s words caused something to almost trigger in Aurora¡¯s mind but then it slipped away. It had felt so important at that moment as well but Aurora could not recall what she had been thinking about.


    ¡®Let¡¯s forget it for now. It wille back to me if it¡¯s that important to remember.¡¯


    Since it was like this, Aurora just decided to go with the flow. There was too much to worry about as it was. There was no reason for Aurora to put any more pressure on her mind like this.


    ¡°For now let¡¯s head to the blessing room and then decide what to do next. I am sure that the head priest would be in there as well. Astoria, keep an eye on Ur-¡°


    Aurora looked around for the dragon but the dog-shaped dragon was nowhere to be found. Sometime between their conversation, the dragon child had gotten bored and decided to walk off.


    That made their problems suddenly double in size. The dragon could be anywhere in this hugeplex and they would have to spend time on him to find him.


    ¡°Astoria, you bugged him so you go after him with Mary. I and Rita will head to the blessing hall to check things out.¡±


    Astoria looked like she wanted toin about her task but she stopped herself.


    Ur was important but it was an easier task to find him. And that was likely why Astoria decided to take it so easily.


    ¡°What a drag this is turning out to be. If I knew this was going to happen then I would have chanced being found out by Lady Mei.¡±


    Aurora huffed those words out but she felt Rita tense behind her. For a second, Aurora almost thought it was because of what she had said but then Rita hissed out some unfortunate words.


    ¡°Aurora, maybe you should not wish for such things. Who knows when they mighte true.¡±

 Chapter 209 209: A familiar face - part 1

    ¡°Aurora, maybe you should not wish for such things. Who knows when they mighte true.¡±


    It took a few seconds for Aurora to release that Rita was not joking around with her. Her tone was entirely severe and she was also looking toward a familiar figure in the distance.


    As soon as Aurora turned her head, her eyes met the familiar pair, and Aurora panicked.


    She snatched Rita¡¯s hand and dragged her away from the ce. She knew she needed to get out of there or they would be found out much sooner than Aurora had anticipated being found.


    ¡°Aurora, is everything alright? I know seeing Lady Mei here is spooky but you need to rx. You¡¯ll start making mistakes if you are this distracted.¡±


    Aurora forced her brain to stop overthinking. She knew Rita was right when she said that but the worry was still in the back of Aurora¡¯s mind.


    Besides, the very nature of findingdy Mei in the temple was a big shock Aurora was still trying to cope with. As far as the world knew, Lady Mei would never step into the temple even at the cost of her life.


    But if the female had dared step in here then things had to be severe. Has Lady Mei already sensed what the temple¡¯s intentions were and hade to put a stop to it?


    ¡°Sorry, I panicked at the moment. We chose the wrong day toe here. I¡¯ll send a message to Astoria to be careful.¡±


    Aurora had no other choice but to avoid Lady Mei on the temple premises. They could not leave easily since the prayers were going on.


    Besides, Aurora was still curious about the ¡®blessing¡¯ ceremony that had been mentioned before.


    Not to mention, they could not leave the grounds before Ur was found out.


    ¡°It¡¯s just one thing after another, right? Don¡¯t worry so much. The worst that can happen is this temple¡¯s copse. I am sure we will survive to see another day even if we are found out. In a one-vs-one, you are just as powerful as Lady Mei, right?¡±


    Aurora wanted to agree with Rita¡¯s enthusiasm but she was not sure if things would be so close this time.


    Thest time¡¯s escape from the tower had only been possible because of the surprise factor Ur had managed to give them. That was not going to happen this time.


    As for powers, Aurora had been practicing how to use her powers but Lady Mei still had more control over hers.


    And the victory in a battle did not belong to the stronger person, it belonged to the smarter person.


    ¡°We should just head toward the prayer hall. At least that space should be safe from Lady Mei¡¯s powers. Since the temple prays to the draconic lord, Lady Mei¡¯s powers will be hampered.¡±


    So would be Aurora¡¯s but that is a thing for another time. They still had Ur on their side so that was something.


    Rita opened her mouth, likely to suggest something but then gave up as soon as they heard the noise of footsteps heading toward them.


    Along with the footsteps, the familiar voice of Lady Mei also made its debut. And as expected, the goddess sounded pissed off.


    ¡°I cannot believe Minerva asked me toe here. She knows I hate this ce but she said ¡®Since you are going, you might as well pay to visit the temple.¡¯ How ridiculous. I mean, I know it¡¯s her job to maintain a bnce between different sectors but still! Can¡¯t she cut me some ck?¡±


    Lady Mei sounded far more annoyed than Aurora had expected her to be. Her voice sounded rather calm but there was an undertone of anger.


    But it was her aura that screamed frustration and disappointment that gave away how Lady Mei felt.


    ¡®It¡¯s so weird to think of Mei as a ¡®goddess¡¯ when I remember her younger days in the abyss. She used to be such an earnest kid.¡¯


    And Mei had been a kid back then. She had been such a responsible but wild kid as well, always managing tond herself into trouble.


    This feeling of nostalgia was a dangerous thing but thankfully it was not strong. Just like most emotions, Aurora felt these days, it was a little muted as well.


    ¡°Lady Mei, the prayers must have just ended. Should we head toward the blessing hall and check it out? Maybe you will find that familiar aura in there.¡±


    The maid with Lady Mei was a sharp woman. She would be a formidable opponent at any other given opportunity.


    But too bad that this was a ce Lady Mei hated. And the suggestion the maid made sounded offending to Lady Mei enough for the maid to instantly drop it.


    ¡°I will drop dead before I allow myself to step foot in there. You can check it out at my ce if you need to. On that note, talk with the priests and find out what is going on here as well. I¡¯m going back since I already traced this ce with my presence today.¡±


    With those words, Aurora was assured that this was a false rm. They were safe right now.


    And they had also gotten a big piece of information from this exchange.


    ¡°I understand. I will present you with good news soon, Mydy. Have a nice day then.¡±


    Lady Mei¡¯s presence vanished from around the grounds. Aurora was not sure if the elder was gone or not, but she didn¡¯t think to risk it for now.


    ¡°Should we get going now?¡±


    Rita asked in a small voice. Her voice was low but still audible enough to be heard by Aurora.


    And she was not the only one who heard it. The bush behind the pair rustled and a familiar head popped out of the bush.


    ¡°Ah, so here you both were. I was wondering where you disappeared to. It is nice to meet you again,¡±


    Lady Mei¡¯s amused grin met Aurora¡¯s face and watched it go white. Aurora had no idea what she should do in this situation.


    Rita seemed to have a better idea as she prepared to hit Lady Mei but her body refused to move at themand.


    ¡°Now, please don¡¯t be violent. I am not Minerva or one of those towers bruted who thinks with their fists and not their brains. I am perfectly capable of being civil. Hey, quit looking at me like that.¡±


    Lady Mei was either being sarcastic with her remarks or she had no idea what her reputation was.


    For someone who had a fiery temper, Lady Mei was behaving surprisingly well right now.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I want to listen to someone who holds my body in such a tight bond like that. Let me go and I might decide not to punch you.¡±


    Rita¡¯s almost yell earned her a yank before Aurora managed to stop the force of Mei¡¯s power.


    They both had decent control so it ended up in stalemate over that spell. But it also aroused Lady Mei¡¯s curiosity.


    ¡°Hey, I was thinking of thisst time as well but you do remind me of someone I used to know a long time ago. And your powers, are not ordinary as well, right? I want to talk with you.¡±


    ¡°Fuck off, I don¡¯t want to talk with you. Nor does Aurora.¡±


    ¡°Hey, no need to be so rude to me! Besides, I was not talking to you redhead, I was talking to Aurora.¡±


    Both of these girls were behaving like children. The more Aurora heard them fight, the more she wanted to quiet them down.


    But she also felt the need to hear Mei out right now. If the other goddess was willing to let them go without causing any fuss then it was worth listening to her for now.


    ¡°Rita, head to the praying hall. I need you to be my eyes and ears this time. I will stay here and listen to what Lady Mei wants to tell me.¡±


    ¡°But-¡°


    ¡°Rita, do me this one favor for now. Please.¡±


    Maybe it was the final ¡®please¡¯ or the seriousness in Aurora¡¯s voice that convinced Rita to get moving. The youngest took ast look back in hopes that she would be called back but Aurora did not say a word.


    ¡°Ara! Yourpanion looked like an abandoned puppy just now. Are you sure you should not go after her to console her?¡±


    Aurora ignored the jab that Mei made at Rita. The elder was trying to get a raise out of Aurora which she was not going to give.


    Instead of getting angry, Aurora leveled a calm expression toward Mei. If it was one thing Mei hated, it was getting ignored.


    Aurora could already see her brows ticking because she was being ignored. It would not take long for the goddess to explode.


    But before that happened, Aurora decided to ask the main question. Her curiosity got the better of her.


    ¡°What do you want from me? Why did youe after me?¡±

 Chapter 210 210: A familiar face - part 2

    ¡°What do you want from me? Why did youe after me?¡±


    The scent of danger was high in the surroundings. Aurora¡¯s body could not handle the tense atmosphere as it shivered in the cold.


    Lady Mei had gone silent at the question, her eyes starting Aurora right in the eye. If not for her appearance not having changed even a bit since she had gained these powers, Aurora would have been sure that she was looking at a different person from the past.


    ¡°I was hesitant to make a connection before but the more I look at you, the more certain I be. You are someone I¡¯ve known in the past, right?¡±


    Aurora tried not to get tense at the question. The answer to this question would determine whether Lady Mei was a friend or a foe to her.


    ¡®Why couldn¡¯t she have asked this question thest time we met? It would have been easier to lie back then.¡¯


    It would not have been a lie to say that Aurora had never met Lady Mei when they had theirst meeting with each other.


    Memories were what made a person their present self. And Aurora who did not have any memories of meeting Mei back then would not have been caught telling a lie.


    It was different from her present situation.


    ¡°The answer you seek is not one I can give you. Besides, it is not about me but you. I hope the reason you sought me out today is more than just a casual meeting.¡±


    Aurora instantly diverted the question toward another topic. Mei had a considerably shorter attention span.


    Even if she noticed that Aurora was trying to change the topic right now, if she followed along then she would not remember toe back to this conversation.


    ¡®Ah, she noticed that I am trying to change the subject. Now, will she follow along with me or not?¡¯


    ¡°You are right. There is indeed another reason I wanted to seek you out,¡± Mei coughed to clear her throat before her next words took Aurora by surprise, ¡°I want you to invite me to your academy.¡±


    ¡°Pardon?¡±


    ¡®I must have heard wrong. Surely Mei made an error when she spoke?¡¯ That was all Aurora could think of when Mei¡¯s words reached her ear.


    Why would Mei want to visit a newly established academy that was not even under the tower¡¯s jurisdiction? And even if she did, why did she need permission to do so?


    ¡°Minerva will put up a fuss if I decide to do what I want to, but I need to settle the score with Seraphina. So please let me visit your academy. Invite me as a guest lecturer. Consider it a favor from me for not exposing your location to Minerva right now.¡±


    ¡°You do me this small favor and I will assist you when the timees. After all, I have no loyalty to the tower and you already have Karan on your side. Surely having me on your side will tilt the scale of bnce in your favor? Don¡¯t you want that.¡±


    Now that Mei had spoken it out loud, Aurora could feel the appeal of doing what she had asked.


    The tower had four gods on its side along with numerous smaller gods. This was a huge monopoly of power in their hands.


    ¡®But do I still want to trample the tower over? The more I live my new life, the less motivation I can find in destroying the tower for what it did to me.¡¯


    Revenge had been the sole reason Aurora had managed to survive this long. But things were changing recently.


    ¡°Alright. I will think about your offer.¡±


    Mei gave a happy whoop. It was very simr to the behavior she showed in the past which reassured Aurora that Mei had not changed much ever since the time she became a goddess.


    ¡®Change is a human emotion. What use is a change to a god who reflects the desire that made them?¡¯


    The thought was not Aurora¡¯s. It belonged to the goddess inside her. It had been a long time since Aurora had heard her speak like a different entity.


    ¡°Ah, now that we have that tentative peace, I feel like I should also tell you something about this temple you might not have known about.¡±


    Mei¡¯s attention snapped toward Aurora in an instant. Since Aurora had decided to reel Mei to her side, there was no harm in giving her this new information.


    ¡°The priest of the temple might be up to something strange and it¡¯s rted to the dragons. And since I know a dragon personally, I thought I should check it out. So Mei, can I ask you a favor? Can you let us handle this case?¡±


    Lady Mei¡¯s raised eyebrow let Aurora realize that she might have called the other goddess too casually. She had gotten used to calling Mei without horrific in the past so it was difficult to keep the habit consistent.


    But still, Mei didn¡¯t seem to particrly mind this new change.


    ¡°Fine, do what you want to. I will overlook it all as long as you send me a formal invite. Oh, and might also want to finally settle the score with Seraphine so be prepared for that.¡±


    Aurora instantly had a feeling of iing doom. But she knew she had no choice but to agree with Mei now.


    All in all, Rex would have to be the one to handle the political mess. It eased Aurora¡¯s mind to have such a reliable helper on her side.


    (Somewhere far away, Rex shivered as if feeling his future peace disappearing under a cloud of despair.


    ¡°What is wrong with you now? Can¡¯t you even do paperwork adequately?¡± He shivered as Lady Violet¡¯s voice reached his ears.


    His step-mom was sipping the tea in front of him, her eyes staring right at Rex and daring him to make a mistake.


    ¡°Of course now. Let me finish my work in peace.¡± Rex¡¯s voice sounded confident but he was tired as well.


    Why did the woman in his life have to be so hellish? Maybe that was why no one after Lucy had ever turned him on.)


    As for Aurora, she was now faced with a tough choice. Lady Mei had granted her the wish of beg left alone but the prayer time was already over. Should Aurora even bother with going to the praying hall?


    ¡°Ahhhh, so much wasted time and effort. I hope Rita managed to get something solid in there. I don¡¯t want to leave this case unfinished.¡±


    Aurora didn¡¯t generally like to stick her head in such weird cases. They were not for her so she tended to keep away from them.


    However, this time was special. Aurora felt like she had to help or something bad would happen. The whole temple was starting to seem a little fishy to her now.


    Aurora had not noticed it before but there was a subtle smell of the abyss beneath this temple. But that was not all.


    Along with the abyss, there was another smell mixed in the air. It excluded power and influence like none other.


    If Aurora had topare it to anyone, she wouldpare it to Ava. It meant that an overlooker was involved in this temple¡¯s case.


    ¡°But why did I only feel this influence now and not before? Is it because I am alone? Or because the prayer formally ended now? I should not take this case lightly.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s senses gave off a stinging feeling. She instantly went on alert as they shed with her power.


    ¡®Someone just tried to scout me out. Fuck, where did that person go? They hid their presence so easily from me.¡¯


    The more Aurora tried to spread her senses around, the more she felt like she was grasping at thin air.


    Despite being a goddess, Auroracked the power and influence that was a part of her post. It was clear that Aurora still had a long way from being a proper goddess.


    The familiar feeling reached Aurora again and she grasped it tightly this time.


    ¡®I need to soothe the magic before following it. I should calm myself down.¡¯


    That was Aurora¡¯s n. But as soon as she reached back she felt the anger in the magic cut across her aura. It was sharp, almost like a de and it retreats as soon as Aurora felt it connect with her.


    It was like a small but dangerous animal. Coming close to addressing the curiosity but striking at the first sign of danger.


    Aurora wanted to follow the magic but the thread was gone. There was no longer any trace of that magic in the air.


    ¡®Did I hallucinate it all? Maybe I am more tired than I am willing to admit.¡¯


    Aurora¡¯s head spun at the effort she had put in but there was no result no matter how many times she tried. Magic often left residue so theck of trace was a concern.

 Chapter 211 211: For the end

    ¡°Wee to Henry¡¯s magical circus. Ladies and gentlemen wee to tonight¡¯s special show.¡±


    The hall broke up in an uproar at the introduction of the circus troupe who were going to perform next. People looked excited to see a magnificent performance by the famous circus group.


    ¡°Now, one of your audience members would be chosen at random for the next trick. And how about you, my dear lovelydy in the silver? You look lovely tonight.¡±


    The ringleader extended his hand toward a familiar face and pulled the Teen up to the stage. Familiar pure-blue eyes looked at the man as he gestured for her to go to the box.


    ¡°Now, my lovely audience members, thisdy here would go into the box and then disappear. But don¡¯t you all worry because you won¡¯t remember anything that is about to happen in a second here.¡±


    Clove stepped into the box and the curtain fell behind her. She took in a deep breath as she opened the box from behind and entered a new room.


    She had taken a risk by going to the circus in the open but she could no longer hold herself back.


    The third piece of soul that Zoe had retrieved from the abyss for her contained really useful information. It had memories of a time when Clove had been ra but had not met Zoe yet.


    And it also contained memories of that mysterious but powerful presence that had told Clove how to get rid of the abyss once and for all.


    That would be the only way for Aurora and Clove to be free of their curses and that was why Clove had decided to embark on this journey alone.


    ¡®The tower is corrupt. People are too reliant on the abyss for survival so they would try to crush any n that involved getting rid of it. I need to do this alone.¡¯


    Clove hesitated at first but she had finally taken the first step. She had sought out the only goddess who would agree to Clove¡¯s oundish request.


    ¡°Ah, it¡¯s wonderful to havepany after so long but why did it have to be from the tower? Did Minerva send you here to try and talk me out of my business again? I¡¯m sorry to say that I am not interested.¡±


    The voice echoed around the chamber, making it impossible to tell where the speaker was standing.


    But that was alright since Clove was not here for such trivial things as ying a game.


    ¡°Lady Asami, no, goddess Asami, I havee here to seek an audience with you. Will you please grant my wish?¡±


    Clove bore the burden of those eyes on her. It had been a risk to seek out the only goddess Clove knew next to nothing about.


    ¡°Bold of you to assume I want anything to do with the tower or anyone from there. The only reason I am considered a part of your fraction is because I don¡¯t bother correcting people about it.¡±


    Lady Asami was a really easy-going person. She was someone who was known to do what she wanted.


    As the only goddess born after peace had been established, Lady Asami really didn¡¯t think along the same wavelengths as the other goddesses.


    She did not have the same desperation everyone else had about their freedome and why they clung on to the past. Everyone else was too burdened by thier failures to move past it all.


    ¡°I am not here on behalf of the tower today. Rather, I am here to put an end to everything. Lady Asami, aren¡¯t you tired of living an immortal life wandering from ce to ce? I can see the tiredness of living in your eyes.¡±


    Clove had heard stories about Lady Asami from Minerva before. Lady Asami had been a normal child before she had realised that she could not die.


    The young child had been unable to take the burden of watching the people she loved died and had tried to kill herself too many times before resigning to her fate.


    And as a result, the young goddess had taken up a role as a travelling merchant and used her powers to swindle people out of thier money.


    That was the only pleasure Lady Asami had these days of being bored. She had long lost the control on her emotions so all she could do now was to fake her emotions.


    ¡°End it all? Those are some bold words to say but let¡¯s hear you out. But be careful because I might kill you if I don¡¯t find your words interesting.¡±


    Any other person might have flinced and given in to their desire to fell from Clove¡¯s current situation. But she could not back down.


    Since she had her main core of memories back, Clove needed to start advancing preparations she had made in herst life.


    ¡°There is one way to shut down the abyss and that is to wake up their ¡®god¡¯. Currently, the abyss is like a factory that is gathering power to working to gather powers. The main source of these are the overlookers. You know the origin of the god¡¯s power, right?¡±


    The amusement from Asami¡¯s face drained in an instant. She knew that there should not be anyone outside thier cycle who should know of this fact.


    Even Asami had been kept in dark for most of her life which was a fact that had caused a huge crack in her rtionship with the other gods.


    ¡°Project Humanity, huh? How did youe across it? Not that I know much myself since my mother was the one who took up the initial post in it.¡±


    Asami pped her hands and the lights around her dimmed. Outside of the tent, the audience members rubbed thier eyes, as if waking up from a dream and began leaving.


    Tonight¡¯s show was over already.


    ¡°How I came across is my personal matter. But project humanity was an inhuman project that fused animals with the empitome of the abyssal connection and then led humans to killing these beasts for thier cores.¡±


    ¡°As a result, there emerged 13 cores in total. 7 goddesses and 6 overlookers were left by the end of it all. But why did these cores emerge? People forgot this ever happened but no one tried to answer this question.¡±


    No one except ra had tried questioning this. It was also when she met ¡®that mysetrous man¡¯ who told her about the cores and thier true purpose.


    ¡°You are saying that these ¡®cores¡¯ we have are the keys to that final room? Who can I believe that?¡±


    Asami looked agitated since she likely could not sense any hesitation or lie on Clove. Clove was as serious as she had ever been.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to belive me but I am not lying when I say that I have seen the final room. I was just unable to open itst time because I did not know how to. So, Lady Asami, would you help me out here to gather the cores and open that door?¡±


    It was all but a sucidal mission at this point. Clove would also need to sacrifice her core to open the door in the end.


    Only one person could survive by the end of this madness and conquer the abyss and that person had been decided long before this day.


    There was a reason a ¡®goddess¡¯ had been born from the abyss and able to take it¡¯s taint without facing any bacsh.


    Aurora was the chosen one and the overlookers had realised that.


    ¡°You sure have some balls to suggest this to me. Isn¡¯t this the same as saving ¨C please help me kill yourself? Why should I do that for you?¡±


    ¡°Because that is something you want as well. You want to die but you don¡¯t want to die in vain. Your mother was someone who wanted the nightmare of the abyss to end as well. And won¡¯t it fun to take revenge on those people who profited from putting us down? Think over it, you have nothing to lose.¡±


    There was a reason Clove had chosen Asami as her aplice. The goddess was powerful but she also had no desire to live or dominate.


    She was happy to be where she was but there was a madness underneath her surface. She was the only one who would ever agree to this self-sacrificing shit Clove hade up with.


    ¡°There is no need for me to think. Let¡¯s just say I believe you for now and I am willing to cooperate. So, what are we going to do next? Who should our target be?¡±


    Clove gave a small smile before she spread out the photo in front of her.


    ¡°We will go after the easiest target first. Lady Seraphina is powerful but she¡¯s also rust and alone. Let¡¯s start with her and then think of our next target.¡±


    ¡°Fine. But you know our bodies cannot handle another core in them. What are you going to do about it?¡±


    Clove gave a small smile at that question before it turned genuine.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to worry about that. You see, we already have that issue covered.¡±

 Chapter 212 212: A passionate entry - part 1

    Rita felt like puking as soon as she stepped inside the praying hall. The smell that had been faint until now was all over the ce.


    It was a sweet but overpowering smell that made Rita feel dizzy. But her will to keep herself awake was stronger than the smell¡¯s desire to put her to sleep.


    The people in the hall were sleeping quietly as the priest kept on speaking in hushed words. Rita could hear them but they did not register in her head. All she was feeling was dizziness.


    ¡°Hey miss, let me help you out. I am sure you will feel better as soon as you sit down-¡°


    Rita pushed her hand out of the priest¡¯s arms, his face flushed at the notion of being touched.


    ¡®Danger. Danger. Danger. Danger. Danger.¡¯


    The words repeated inside Rita¡¯s head as she took a step back. The feeling of having her energy sucked out was so strong in the room that Rita wanted to get away.


    Whatever was going on in here was not normal.


    ¡°Is something wrong up there?¡±


    Rita¡¯s hurried refusal caused the priests down to turn toward her as well. Rita felt like a small animal pinned under someone¡¯s heavy gaze which burned into her soul.


    ¡®Darn! If only I could use my magic.¡¯


    Rita allowed the first priest to help her up. The contact burned away at what little energy reserved Rita had and her arms lost their strength.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Someone just woke up in the middle but I will take care of it soon enough. Should I alter her memory as well?¡±


    The priest who was holding Rita up asked. He didn¡¯t sound excessively worried to see Rita awake so it must not mean that much to him.


    ¡°Ah, no need to. They don¡¯t remember what happened even if they wake up in the middle. We can send them back as soon as the Head Priest arrives in the hall.¡±


    Rita had initially wanted to leave the praying hall but she stopped herself after hearing those words.


    The Head Priest was the real reason they were here. As such, it would be better to stop around this ce and wait for him to arrive.


    It would make it easier to recognize himter.


    ¡°Fine. Luckily, today¡¯s harvest is over already. I am sure Lord Shaun will be happy with the procession. He was worried about the quality of magic we were collectingtely.¡± The first priest replied as he put Rita down on her seat.


    ¡°There is nothing we can do about it. The Haikyruu festival is almost here and people are busy. Even if this is the temple for the dragon lord, people won¡¯t just burst in here whenever we want them to.¡±


    Despite what the manined about, the hall was almost full of people sleeping in various poses. Rita could barely keep herself awake to know what was happening around her.


    ¡°Ah, there he is. The Head Priest is finally here so we are free. Time to wake these people up.¡±


    Rita held her head down until a few people had woken up before her. She needed to keep her action neutral but she had a pretty good idea of what was going on here.


    She had recorded all the words that were spoken in the room and the system had delivered them to Aurora.


    The hall began to get empty and Rita was among thest persons to leave the hall before the shaking began. Something heavy knocked itself to the floor and familiar reptilian eyes met Rita¡¯s.


    ¡®Fuck, shit, damn. What kind of trouble did Ur decide to get in this time? How did his body grow up to be that big in the first ce?¡¯


    Rita had a lot of questions and she even tried to get around the shocked priest to head toward Ur. But she didn¡¯t make it far before the priest made a barrier appear around the inner rooms and where Ur¡¯s unconscious body was lying.


    Something small grasped Rita¡¯s hand and she jerked her hand out of instinct before she heard a familiar voice.


    ¡°Calm down Rita. Everything is under Astoria¡¯s control for now. She asked us to meet Aurora and then regroup. She will arrange a meeting with the Head Priest. A lot happened that you should know about before you decide to change in.¡±


    ¡®Yes, I can see that a lot happened in an hour. Let¡¯s hope that this is the end of it all.¡¯


    As much as Rita hated it, she turned around and marched out of the hall with everyone else. Mary was a soothing presence at her side that kept her sane in these trying times.


    ===========================


    ¡°I will cook Ur alive once I find him. How dare he make me waste so much time like this.¡±


    Mary took a step away from Lady Astoria and her rageful mood. The female was in a vtile mood as soon as she realized what Ur had done.


    But that onlysted for the duration of herining before she went quiet and calm again.


    ¡°Ur should be nearby in that building in front of us. I think he entered one of the rooms since I cannot see him in the corridors¡±


    Ur was the size of arge dog so he couldn¡¯t hide easily. The only reason Astoria could think of not being able to see him was as if he was in one of the rooms.


    ¡°Should we check out these rooms one by one?¡±


    Mary was brave to suggest that. Despite her words, she was shaking in her ce and it made Astoria feel bad for doing this to her. This was not what she intended at all.


    But sending Mary away might be a bad choice right now. There were too many people around her for Mary to make it to the hall safely.


    No matter how safely Mary tried to travel, a magic-less child could not overpower a trained soldier or someone with magic.


    Aurora opened the only door that made sense when she considered Ur¡¯s location and it opened up into a staircase that went downwards.


    There was a weird feeling of magicing from down the basement and it worried Astoria. It felt addicting to her and it made her want to consume that magic.


    But she was an adult who had lived centuries so she was able to control her body. Ur likely won¡¯t be able to control his urges and give in to the temptation.


    And if it was anything like the magic Aurora had hinted at before then things would not end well for people. This magic would cause Ur¡¯s body to forcefully grow up to contain this new power.


    ¡°I think you should go and find Rita. Tell her that everything is under control and I will take care of the Head Priest. I will also find a way to arrange a meeting with him soon. Now go.¡±


    Mary looked hesitant to leave Astoria but it was good that she realized that Astoria was doing this for her safety.


    Whatever was down in the basement had caused Astoria to go white in the face. So it likely could not be something beneficial to them.


    ¡°I understand. I will be the best messenger you ever had so wait for me.¡±


    Mary promised with the same enthusiasm a kid did when asked to do a task. This betrayed her true age and also caused Astoria to let out a tiredugh.


    ¡°Yeah, sure kid. But you don¡¯t have toe back. Stay with Rita and Aurora for the time being.¡±


    Astoria send the kid back before she walked down the stairs. As she had expected to see, Ur was going on a rampage.


    His body and magic were at odds and he was hitting his head against the ceiling to try and calm down.


    His massive body managed to shatter the floor and that was when Astoria struck him with a sleeping spell.


    It took everything she had and then some to calmly put Ur to sleep. Her half-brother was too strong to contain properly.


    And it was also then she saw the wide eyes of the Head Priest and the narrow eyes of the man standing beside him.


    ¡°H-Holy, it¡¯s a dragon.¡±


    The Head Priest eximed, his voice going high and loud. But the man at his side seemed sullen to see Ur.


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s a dragon but it¡¯s not ¡±The¡¯ dragon we need. And it alsoid out preparations to waste.¡±


    The unknown person looked pissed off and his magic rose to strike Ur.


    Astoria instantly positioned herself in front of Ur¡¯s unconscious body to protect it and the man paused at seeing her.


    No, he did not pause seeing Astoria.


    But rather, the person who had just walked into the hallway after Astoria.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry if I am interrupting something here but I felt the need toe here. I hope I am not being a bother to the overlooker present before me.¡±


    Aurora had walked into the half-empty hall and her entrance caused the unknown man tough out loud.

 Chapter 213 213: A passionate entry - part 2

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry if I am interrupting something here but I felt the need toe here. I hope I am not being a bother to the overlooker present before me.¡±


    The more Aurora tried to sense the presence back, the more it had not responded. That had eroded Aurora¡¯s thoughts about the identity of the man in front of her. There were only so many individuals who could erase their presence from being felt by a goddess.


    But the list was further narrowed down when Aurora took in the evidence she had. It was not difficult to conclude that an overlooker was involved in this scheme.


    The evidence of such interference was even present in Aurora¡¯sst life but Mei¡¯s interference had changed thingsst time.


    ¡°Finally, you came to me on your own ord, my dear interesting subject. Were you the one who managed to hatch this dragon egg? The presence of the abyss is so dense on you that I was taken aback the first time I saw you.¡±


    The outlooker¡¯s warm brown eyes stared Aurora down. There was no sense of urgency in the man¡¯s posture but Aurora still felt her body tense up.


    ¡°Am I making you nervous? I¡¯m sorry but that was not my intention. For now, why don¡¯t you follow me and I¡¯ll tell you what is going to happen next? As for this dragon, well, he caused our preparations to go down the drain so well punish him ordingly. Also, call me Shaun for the record. Being called the outlooker is too much.¡±


    How the man managed to out all that information in one breath was amazing. He didn¡¯t even seem winded after speaking for so long.


    But even though that outlooker had warm brown eyes, his aura was not as calm as it was being made for the others to believe. The man was pissed off and he would likely take it out on Ur if Aurora didn¡¯t stop him.


    ¡°And if I refused to leave Ur alone, then what are you going to do? Are you going to fight me right here and now?¡±


    Aurora knew she was taking a risk by positioning herself in front of Ur. But there was a legit chance that the ounder would attack if things got heated up.


    ¡°Fine, I will leave the dragon alone for now. But you need to get him out of my sight or I won¡¯t be responsible for my actions. As for you? You¡¯ll still need to follow after me. Those are the conditions I am giving you to ensure that everyone survives today¡¯s disaster.¡±


    Astoria¡¯s anger pulsed visibly in front of Aurora¡¯s eyes but it was not possible to go against the ounder.


    [Astoria, take Ur out to the royal pce for now. Don¡¯t worry about Lady Mei since we talked before I came here.]


    Astoria looked visibly frustrated at Aurora¡¯s words but she did not put up much of a fuss about the arrangements Aurora made with her.


    She was a level-headed individual who saw the bigger picture. It was the right idea to take Astoria along on this journey.


    ¡°When I mean that I wanted to be left alone with her, I meant you as well Head priest. Do you want to see your head roll around once I separate it from your body?¡±


    The Head Priest looked shocked but then adapted quickly. From his behavior, Aurora could conclude that this was not the first time he had been threatened like this.


    ¡°Now then, shall we go ahead and make ourselvesfortable? I am interested to know where sprouted from. A goddess like you should not exist since there is no space left on the table. Won¡¯t you agree so? Our dear fourteenth member?¡±


    The man opened his eyes, the visible part of the outlooker¡¯s eyes shining with interest and Aurora had a bad feeling about it.


    ¡°I have no idea what you are talking about. Numerous gods and goddesses are born every year so why should I not exist? What makes me so special?¡±


    Aurora had to ask this question. So far she had gotten no answer about her circumstances but it was not like Aurora had been interested in herself to know about it either.


    Since Ava had notmented on Aurora¡¯s powers beyond what was normal, Aurora had taken it as a silent confession that the ounder did not know anything about her.


    But had Ava kept quiet not because she knew nothing but because she did not want to say anything to Aurora?


    ¡°What makes you special, you ask? Then, let me ask the basic question first. Do you know what the origin of all the gods and goddesses in this world is?¡±


    ¡°A core. More specifically, all gods and goddesses possess a core of a powerful divine beast that grants them special powers. But I don¡¯t see what that had to do with anything.¡±


    Although Aurora said that, she had an inkling of where this story was going. It also made sense why the gods and goddesses had to step into the ounder¡¯s chamber to pay their respects.


    ¡°Now, don¡¯t say that so easily. You know what I am trying to say but you just don¡¯t want to ept it. After all, it was no coincidence that the humans chose their targets so long ago to take their core. In the end, they got lucky with the harvest of the cores and gained 7 new powers.¡±


    ¡°But before the humans could harvest those cores, they were merged with something else. Can you guess what these things were?¡±


    The outlooker looked at Aurora with a curious expression. It was honest and earnest that Aurora found it difficult to look away.


    The realization of what she was thinking also made Aurora feel sick but she knew in her heart that what she was thinking was the truth.


    ¡°It was those 13 animals used for experimentation. Don¡¯t tell me that they managed to be integrated with those cores.¡±


    ¡°Of course we did. It¡¯s not like we had another choice if we had to survive. But then those greedy humans came back and killed off 7 of us for their gain. I hate them for it but I guess I pity them as well.¡±


    That was a fascinating story to hear. For someone who was involved with the god business for so long, it was weird to hear all this now.


    But it did exin why and how the abyss was so integral to the whole mess. It also exined why and how a divine power could be passed on.


    ¡°So that was why I wanted to ask where you came from? As far as I know, none of the Zoodics are missing, nor is any of those gods and goddesses dead. Your power should be unnatural and it interests me.¡±


    Instead of looking stressed, Shaun looked excited to see Aurora. His gaze made Aurora feel like a guinea pig participating in an experiment.


    ¡°So, what do you want with me? Before you begin asking me difficult questions I must tell you that I don¡¯t know anything. Also, does it mean that most of the abyssal belts have no governance right now?¡±


    ¡°Well, the abyssal floors not under our control have nothing to do with us. But this is why we rotate floors between the remaining ounders to make sure everything is alright. And now that I have answered your questions, it¡¯s time I take my reward.¡±


    ¡®Reward? What is the man talking about?¡¯


    Aurora¡¯s body dodges the iing attack without even being aware that she did it. The outlooker in front of her looked impressed at the fast reflexes she showed but he also felt annoyed.


    ¡°Hey, sit still. It won¡¯t hurt much when I take your core out. I just want to study it and see how your existence is even possible.¡±


    The man was not only fast but he was ruthless as well. His touch easily reduced Aurora¡¯s surroundings into rubble and it made her worry for her life.


    ¡®Not hurt my ass. This man just wants to kill me.¡¯


    Aurora dodged another attack before she felt her back touch an invisible wall. The outlooker was caging her in.


    ¡°Is that it? How boring and disappointing. Why don¡¯t you show me what you can do with your powers? Or, is that really the end of your capabilities.¡±


    Aurora felt her body boil up in rage at the taunt. She was not one to show such essive emotions so it worried her a bit.


    She was not sure why this man/beast was getting to her but she felt her temper hit a point and her mind nked out.


    The next thing she knew was that she had the man beneath her foot, her hands stained red and wide eyes looking back at her.


    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is? I see¡­..Finally, this nightmare cane to an end. I guess¡­it¡­was¡­about¡­time¡­for¡­things¡­to¡­¡­end¡­¡­¡±


    Aurora could feel the life ticking out of the body beneath her feet as the core in her hand pulsed.


    ¡®Shit, what happened? I felt like I nked out. Now, what should I do with this? No, I should keep it in the system inventory. I need more time to think things over.¡¯

 Chapter 214 214: The aftermath - part 1

    The temple was falling apart with the death of the outlooker. Something about his power had given way in thest second before Aurora¡¯s hands ripped out his pulse.


    But the weird thing was, Aurora did not remember what happened in the few seconds she had lost conscious for.


    How had she been in a losing position and then ended up killing the outlooker so fast? Things just didn¡¯t make sense.


    ¡°L-Lord Shaun, are you done in there? Can Ie in now?¡±


    The voice belonged to the Head Priest. The man was likely waiting outside for the door to know what he should do next.


    ¡®Another headache I don¡¯t know what to do about. How did I get myself into this mess again?¡¯


    All Aurora had wanted to do was to use the knowledge she had about the future to her advantage but every time she tried to do that, something or other ended up happening thatplicated things.


    It was like the future knowledge was andmine telling Aurora to stay away from it.


    ¡°Lord Shaun, are you in there?¡±


    The door was opening and Aurora kind of panicked. She had killed the ounder in an uncontrolled loss of power and now had to face the consequences of her action.


    (Somewhere in her mind, Aurora¡¯s goddess self could not help butugh at the absurdity of the situation Aurora was worrying about. She had somehow killed an ounder and was afraid of a few people?)


    ¡°Your Lord Shaun went back to the abyss for a bit but handed the authority over to me for all the operations he was heading. He also asked me to get the details of the magic-gathering ceremony from you.¡±


    Now that her main lead was gone, Aurora focused her attention on the next best source of information she had. The Head priest looked taken aback at Aurora¡¯s words but he was smart enough to realize that he was no longer safe.


    Even a child knew that their priority was to survive the danger and then look for a way to improve the situation. An adult was no different in this regard.


    ¡°I s-see. It is fortunate that we have mydy with us. Now, what does ourdy want us to do?¡±


    The Head Priest changed his tone easier than a human changed clothes. Aurora did not trust the man but his aura of fear was real. She could use him well.


    ¡°I heard that you have a nymph in your temple. I want to meet her for some personal business. And I also want details of everything you people have been doing in the past 100 years. Don¡¯t try to deceive me or you will all suffer the consequences.¡±


    It should have terrified Aurora to know how cold she was being. Her mind had no problem imagining snapping the Head Preist¡¯s neck if he betrayed Aurora.


    She had never been this ruthless before but somehow it came easy to her right now.


    Her mind almost felt like it was drunk on power. The magic was pulsing in Aurora¡¯s veins, asking her to swallow the second core she had gotten.


    ¡°I understand mydy. Do you need to lie down right now? You don¡¯t look so good right now.¡±


    The Head Preist sounded worried about Aurora but his aura said it was more for his benefit than Aurora¡¯s.


    No matter how good of a rtionship the temple had with the royal family, they could not hide away from Goddess Mei on their one.


    As such, Aurora was their only option. If she was powerful enough to drive Lord Shaun away then she was a worthwhile investment.


    ¡°What has gotten into me? This unsettling feeling won¡¯t go away. Did something happen in the time frame I lost consciousness for?¡±


    Aurora clutched her hand tighter but she felt something hard in her hand stop it from closing fully.


    It was the core she had ripped out of the outlooker.


    ¡°What should I do with it? Should I give it to someone and add a new goddess to my side?¡±


    The more Aurora thought about that idea, the more appealing it sounded to her. But for some reason, all Aurora wanted to do was swallow the core.


    Her mouth was salivating for her to put the core inside her body and absorb it.


    ¡®No way. Won¡¯t I choke on it if I try to swallow ut?¡¯


    But Aurora¡¯s brain and body were at a different wavelength. She could feel the pulse of magicing from the core. It was so bewitching that Aurora lost control of her impulses.


    By the time Aurora realized what she had done, the core was already in her belly and the energy inside it was umting with Aurora¡¯s own.


    Her throat was burning with the desire to drink something to ease the passageway.


    ¡°Mydy, I have the nymph with me. Should Ie in now?¡±


    The Head Priest chose a dangerous time toe back. Aurora¡¯s mind and her body were at odds with each other.


    But the worst thing was the corruption that had taken this time to strike at Aurora¡¯s vulnerability. It was spreading inside her veins, trying to render Aurora useless.


    Aurora tried to warn the priest but he was a human without much magic power. He could not understand what Aurora wanted to say.


    He had to consider himself lucky to have the nymphdy with him. She was likely the one who sensed that something was wrong with Aurora and instantly blocked the corruption¡¯s attack with her magic.


    Since Nymphs¡¯s magic was one of the two counters to the corruption, it was effective against the iing wave. But it was not able to hold off against the god¡¯s might.


    ¡°Head Priest, you head out for now. Things are going to get dangerous here.¡±


    A better and braver person might have protested and offered to help. But the Head Priest was all but a coward who hid behind the others and reaped the benefits.


    So all he did was agree and ran away like the coward he was.


    Once he was gone, the nymph used what little magic was left in the seals around the temple to seal the goddess inside.


    It was only a temporary solution but the nymph had bled her magic in the seal. It was responding to her and surpassing the corruption.


    Slowly but surely, the corruption was losing effect on Aurora but it was only a temporary solution.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know how you did it, but the corruption inside you is surging. Something excited it recently and your body is fighting hard tobat it. But even that cannot handle the stress of corruption for long.¡±


    The nymph looked emotionless when she said that. She hadmendable bravery to be able to stand straight in front of Aurora like this. It seemed as if she did not fear anything at all.


    Maybe it was because she had faced a lot of simr situations or if she did not understand how grave the situation was for her. It could be any of the above conditions that made her so fearless.


    But Aurora no longer cared. Her brain was in turmoil that wanted relief before she explode. Different energies were colliding inside her right now.


    This was worse than being boiled alive. This was like someone was trying to pull out Aurora¡¯s internal organs right now and trying to rece them with liquid fire.


    The sensation was not only painful but recurring.


    ¡°Just help me out now. I won¡¯t be able to stay sane for long.¡±


    Aurora knew what she had to do to get the corruption out. The nymphs had a soul tree that could take their corruption away as nutrition. Aurora needed to pass on her corruption to the nymph.


    ¡°I understand. My name is Phione and I will help you calm down. Now please, focus on my voice and allow me to draw you into my inner world. Don¡¯t worry, there is no danger there.¡±


    The voice echoed around Aurora¡¯s mind in a loving whisper. It wanted Aurora to surrender to it and Aurora tried hard to let her body melt into that voice.


    But it was tough for her to do that. Her body was not rted at all. This much was just not enough for her.


    ¡°Darn, you are a tough one. I cannot believe how much magic you have inside you. But you have to let me in if you want me to help you out.¡±


    Aurora felt something soft touch her face. It was a hand but the touch was softer than anything she had felt in her life.


    Someone was cupping her face lovingly and it was enough to throw Aurora off her trail.


    ¡°Good, you finally let me in. Now, open your eyes so that you can see my real self.¡±


    Aurora hadn¡¯t thought much of the nymph¡¯s read appearance and that was why the vision in front of her took her back a little.


    ¡°A catdy? Really?¡±

 Chapter 215 215: The aftermath - part 2

    ¡°Since this is going to be your first session with me without any pre-reference data, let me make a few things clear to you right here and now. First, there will be no emotions attached to this deal.¡±


    ¡°Both of us will consider it a business transaction and that will be it. I will help you out forever with how long it takes for you to get cured and then we will go our separate ways. Is that understood?¡±


    The no-nonsense voiceing out of that cute face sends Aurora¡¯s senses in a whish. But she did understand why the Nymph had used such a business-like approach.


    For someone who had to deal with sex constantly, this was a good approach to protect one¡¯s heart.


    As for Aurora, it worked since she wasn¡¯t looking to form a connection with the Nymph in the long term anyway.


    ¡°Then, let¡¯s get started. Seeing the state of your body, it will be advisable to not dy the initial procedure. Would it feel morefortable if we engage in forey before the initial deal?¡±


    Aurora almostughed out loud at the no-nonsense tone the female had used to describe kissing and such acts.


    For someone who dealt with sex regrly, the Nymph was quite a shy person.


    ¡°Yes, I would like a kiss. It would help me get distracted from the main event.¡±


    Aurora would not have minded not kissing but she could see that the action made the Nymph a little nervous to suggest.


    And Aurora wanted to extract a reaction out of the Nymph.


    She might be asked not to consider her time with the Nymph as anything special but that did not mean that Aurora didn¡¯t want to have a bad time.


    The Nymph hesitated before pressing her lips against Aurora¡¯s. It was a hesitant action and so was the press of that rough tongue against Aurora¡¯s own.


    ¡®It¡¯s different. The tongue feels rough in my mouth.¡¯


    The cat-like nymph¡¯s tongue was rougher but it scratched the itch Aurora was feeling inside her mouth.


    When the kiss broke, there was a string of saliva connecting Aurora¡¯s lips with the other females.


    The cat-like mouth did not stay ideal for long. Aurora opened her eyes, only to be met with an intense pair of amber.


    The nymph looked like a different person right now.


    ¡°Get ready since this might hurt. My penis is rather abnormal in many ways. You will understand why just in a minute.¡±


    That was all the warning Aurora got before she felt something probe at her pussy. And then something hard was breaching her opening.


    Phione¡¯s penis was rather¡­odd and peculiar. It was cold and had a rough texture.


    ¡°My penis is an extension of my spirit tree. Let its energy flow inside you so that we can clean you up.¡±


    Aurora flinched at the cold touch of that hand on her body and the flow of energy inside her body. The hard rod in her pussy had started to move and the Nymph above Aurora was letting out moans of bliss.


    The hard thickness of Phione¡¯s unique penis was hitting spots that a natural one could not.


    ¡°W-Wow, you¡¯re sure sucking me in good. What kind of b-body do you even h-have?¡±


    Phione¡¯s breath was hitting Aurora¡¯s ear directly. The hard organ inside Aurora was thrusting slowly but it was beginning to pick up speed as well.


    It was hitting against the pleasure spot inside Aurora¡¯s body which caused her to tighten around the penis.


    It was such a different feeling to have that ¡®fake¡¯ hardness press against Aurora¡¯s intimate parts. It felt good.


    Aurora felt something sucking the corruption out of her. It felt like her magic was leaving her and Aurora mourned the loss for a second.


    And then the thrust continued and Aurora forgot all about it in the next few seconds.


    ¡°Should we try to go even faster? You have a lot of the corruption pent up inside you.¡±


    Aurora tried to pay attention to what she was hearing but there was a ringing sound in her ear. The corruption was trying hard to stay inside her but it was difficult.


    ¡°Come on, let go. You need to push the corruption out.¡±


    There was a shrinking feeling inside Aurora¡¯s stomach. She felt the excitement build up in her body and then release all of a sudden.


    This whish of emotions caused Aurora to let go and she finally came with a violent jerk. But her body suched the hard rod inside her even deeper.


    ¡°You did well. Let¡¯s go one more round for the measures and then we can call it a day.¡±


    There was a sharp lick over Aurora¡¯s stiff nipples. The rough tongue was making her nipples tingle with the sensation.


    Big and warm hands were fondling Aurora¡¯s breasts all around. It was such a feeling for Aurora to let go of her body like this.


    ¡°You need to surrender to your feelings even more. Can you see the root of your power? Yes, pull out the things blocking your power and let your emotions fall free.¡±


    Aurora felt like she could do it. She was so close to the root of her power and all she needed to do was to reach out for it.


    The spear of white that was shining inside her was finally visible to Aurora¡¯s naked eye and her hand almost closed around it.


    Her body gave ast jerk outside before losing all control of itself. The Nymph absorbed all she could until she physically no longer could hole on and finally served the connection.


    ===========================


    ¡°The night air is so fresh and light. I could stay here forever and drown in the sweet e of money around me.¡±


    The night city buzzed with light and different sounds. It did not pay attention to the twodies making their way through with careful precision.


    This was not Clove¡¯s first time in the night market of the Southern Continent but it was the first time she had taken the time to appreciate it.


    And it was all thanks to Lady Asami who was her guide today.


    ¡°Lady Asami, can I ask you what we are doing here? I hope you have a n for bringing us here.¡±


    The atmosphere was different from what Clove had expected of this ce but she still could not understand why she was brought here by Lady Asami.


    ¡°Well my dear, since I have an assistant now I wanted to try and scam a big fish. Oh, I can just hear the sound of coins falling into a heap.¡±


    Clove was sure that she could see Lady Asami¡¯s eyes turn into a money sign at that moment. Her conduct was unlike any goddess Clove had met this far.


    ¡°Can¡¯t you just ask the South to donate the money to you if you want it? I am sure people will be happy to give you all the money you want.¡±


    Clove did not get Asami and her intentions. What kind of goddess liked to scam people instead of outright asking?


    The southern continent was the wealthiest in this world and there were a lot of followers that belonged to Lady Asami.


    It should not be that difficult to get the money Lady Asami needed.


    ¡°Booo, you¡¯re such a party pooper. It¡¯s not about the money but the experience. I love seeing people get triggered when I scam them for their money. Their cry of misery fuels my soul.¡±


    ¡°Aha, I think I see what kind of person you are.¡±


    It was just Clove¡¯s luck to find that one goddess who liked mischief and then ally herself with that goddess. Clove could already see her ns breaking apart.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t I a great person to never be bored with? As for our target? Why don¡¯t we try thatdy over there? Doesn¡¯t she scream ¡®power¡¯ and ¡®wealth¡¯ to you?¡±


    Clove followed Lady Asami¡¯s sight, only for her eyes to fall on the familiar shade of blue.


    The view in front of Clove caused her breath to hitch for a second before she realized that it was not Aurora she was looking at but someone else.


    ¡®Of course, it¡¯s not Aurora. Zoe said that she was heading toward the Eastern Continent. This is the Southern Continent which is far away from where Aurora is.


    ¡°Hey, let¡¯s hurry up and stalk our target. We don¡¯t want her to get away from us, right?¡±


    Clove wanted to call the whole thing quit. She did not understand why and how stalking someone was relevant to her n.


    But she decided to give Lady Asami the benefit of doubt for now. Clove had decided to form a partnership with the other so she needed to follow through on it.


    ¡®Let¡¯s just hope that this decision doesn¡¯t end up blowing in my face. I have big ns for my future.¡¯


    But despiteining about the unfairness of everything, Clove followed Lady Asami to catch up with the Lady they were following.


    The night market raged behind the pair and shadows followed the pair in secret. The shadow now had a shadow of it¡¯s own.

 Chapter 216 216: Plans are carried out

    ¡®What kind of idiot did I end up working with? All we¡¯ve done for the past few days is to chase after targets and scam people with their money. I wonder what goes on inside Asami¡¯s mind.¡¯


    Clove followers after Asami at a slow pace. She could feel the presence of shadows following after the pair which diverted Clove¡¯s attention.


    ¡®Looks like potential bodyguards of our target. I wonder how long they willst in a fight.¡¯


    Clove was not one to exaggerate but it would be impossible for a normal person to defeat a goddess. Make it two and the chances were negative.


    However, it didn¡¯t seem like the bodyguards had it all figured out just yet.


    Now if only Asami started paying attention back to Clove and her mission, then things could stand on track once again.


    But the goddess was busy running like a lunatic after her chosen target.


    ¡°Hello, my beautifuldy. May I say that you are looking rather refreshing today and you also seem to have such a shining aura? Would you allow me to read your fortune for you?¡±


    The shadows following Adami tensed as soon as she made contact with that blue-haireddy.


    It was also the first time Clove saw her face and it took her aback.


    If she eliminated the shape of the elder female¡¯s eyes and her hair length, it felt like Amane was looking back at Aurora for a second.


    ¡®Do all blue-haired and golden-eyed people look the same?¡¯


    It was also that familiarity that caused Clove to take a step closer to the pair.


    She did have an option to stop the attack that was about to happen but Clove trusted Asami to take care of herself.


    After all, Asami was a goddess and this was her domain. It was unlikely that Asami would not be able to stop this attack.


    ¡°So, what do you say mydy? Would you like to know your future?¡±


    Asami pressed her agenda forward. She had a card held ready in her hand to decipher something before she threw it backward.


    A body hit the floor, a card still embedded in its chest. Theck of heart-beat indicated that the body was dead.


    And panic instantly rose in the clearing. No one had paid attention to see a swindler try and poach a rich target. It was amon sight in the night market.


    But to have someone fall dead all of a sudden was a big thing.


    Clove hurriedly approached the body and snatched the card up before anyone else could check the body over.


    ¡®Asami is too much work.¡¯


    ¡°Ah, I think that deciphering my future will no longer be possible today. However, if you manage to have good fortune then you will surely be able to meet me again. Now, I should escape the market before someone else tries to take advantage of me.¡±


    The blue-haired familiardy was there one second and she melted into the crowd the next second.


    Asami looked disappointed when Clove reached her. It was a miracle that Asami had allowed someone to escape her without paying any special price.


    ¡°Ah man, I cannot believe I got turned down. Clove, do I look ugly? Or am I just unattractive?¡±


    ¡°I think you are just stupid to go after a married target who doesn¡¯t swing your way. And can you stop randomly picking up your targets? We have to leave for the Rocx valley soon.¡±


    Clove was irritated at being squeezed into the panicking crowd. She had to carefully make her way through without making many contacts.


    The whole ce was packed with very strong auras and seeing them was a headache.


    Clove might have memories of her past life but her body could not hold all that talent. As such, Clove had to be extra careful while using more taxing abilities.


    ¡°Random targets? I never went after random targets. Everything is following ording to our n and Lady Dehva is thest piece in the coffin for us.¡±


    ¡°Do you know why the tower is so desperate to maintain their good rtionships with the South? Because they believe in keeping their friend close but their enemy even closer. And I think it is because they are afraid of the south.¡±


    Clove had not given it much thought but she did agree with some aspected of what Asami was saying.


    The rtionship between the tower and the south could only be called unnatural. They seemed to have no conflict and the tower didn¡¯t even push for supremacy here.


    It was almost as if the tower¡¯s superiors were afraid of the south.


    ¡°So you think that the South had a way to harm the tower¡¯s core power? But a goddess¡¯s power is eternal as long as their core is active.¡±


    ¡°And that is why we have to look around for information. I think we are close to solving this case.¡±


    ===========================


    ¡°You can rest in the temple quarters today. The royal pce had sent an invite for you for tomorrow. Our next session will be held in a week and I will seek you out myself in my realm.¡±


    Aurora nodded at the flushed Nymph. It had been a tiring session but Aurora had never felt this refreshed before.


    The corruption felt like it was a thing of the distant past but it was not entirely gone from her system yet.


    Once the Nymph left, it was time to start looking at her current condition. Aurora could tell that her power had amplified due to the presence of the second core inside her.


    If Aurora tried it out, she could even touch it. But she could still not sense the presence of her core.


    ¡°Time to see what the second core can do.¡±


    Aurora was spectacle about using this second core before but her mind reminded her that she did not need to fear it that much.


    After all, the new core was a part of her now. So Aurora might as well get some use out of it.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see. I need to concentrate on the core and catch a threat of its power.¡±


    Aurora felt the magic respond to her. Her body was changing as a result of the magic she was forced out of the core.


    She forced it into the earth and it erupted into spikes, almost hitting Aurora¡¯s body in the process as well.


    ¡°An earth affinity. It coulde useful in the future.¡±


    Aurora had not gotten much time to check up on what kind of powers the Zoodiac had when they fought but Aurora could feel the core¡¯s affinity inside her body.


    Aurora tried out a few more tricks before she felt something around her shift and the door beneath her foot open.


    It was the ground that split causing Aurora to fall into the deep depths of the underground. The room she was in was not one she had ever seen before but it felt vaguely familiar to Aurora.


    It felt like she would remember it if she only tried hard enough.


    [System warning. A powerful individual was spotted. The user is advised to run away.]


    The system¡¯s warning zed up all of a sudden. It didn¡¯t even leave any room for Aurora to gather her thoughts about this ce.


    ¡°I came here to issue Shaun a warning but I see that it will be unnecessary now. Now, if you want to live then you should leave this ce.¡±


    The voice that spoke was familiar too. So were the eyes looking back at Aurora from a familiar face.


    Familiar blue locks framed a face very simr to Aurora¡¯s. It almost felt like looking back at herself in a mirror.


    But this new person was an obvious male and much more powerful than Aurora could ever imagine any human being.


    ¡®An outlooker. This person is surely an outlooker I cannot match. And it is the same one I met before when I saved Rita in the Northern Continent.¡¯


    Aurora was sure of the fact that the voice matched the one in her memories about the corruption.


    ¡°Can I know what this ce is? I identally fell in here while practicing my magic.¡±


    Aurora held her breath for what would happen next. Would the man attack or would he help her out?


    ¡°Fuck, be careful. I don¡¯t want to fight you.¡±


    Aurora managed to raise a protective wall in front of her before she was pierced by an air spear.


    The attack hade out of nowhere and left Aurora in a daze. The warning signs in her head were getting louder by the second.


    ¡°So you did manage to sense my attack and even evade it in time? And you even managed to use Shaun¡¯s core. There might be hope for us after all.¡±


    The blue-haired man mumbled as Aurora tensed up for another attack. But it didn¡¯te.


    Instead of attacking, the man turned his head away from Aurora and walked away from the room.


    And just like that, he left Aurora with several more unanswered questions than answers.

 Chapter 217 217: Just a meeting

    Wee to the Royal Pce of the Eastern Continent, I¡¯d like to officially say. Hope you all had a great journey this far. Oh, I know some of you stayed herest night, but try to put your previous stays aside and treat this as your first time here.


    The cheerful face of Noctus lookedck at Aurora and herpanions. They had finally gotten to regroup and take a breath of fresh air before being whisked away by the Royal Soldiers.


    Word on the street was that Lady Mei had returned to the tower already and it was finally safe for them toe out.


    Most people were surprised when Lady Mei chose to depart all of a sudden. Nobody had, however, been able to prevent her from departing.


    ¡°Ignore the past experiences he says. It¡¯s not like we almost didn¡¯t die back there or something.¡±


    Aurora sighed at Rita¡¯sining tone. There was a clear reason for Rita to be irritated but it had nothing to do with the Royal Family.


    In addition, their visit to the temple had served its intended objective, and Aurora now had the temple on her side.


    ¡°By the waydy Aurora, I was not aware that you had such a magnificent creature as apanion. Now I understand why you became such an amazing person. Anyone with a dragon god as apanion had to be strong.¡±


    Had it been anyone else who said that to Aurora, she would have taken it the wrong way. But the one who spoke was Noctus. And his aura held no ill-will against her or herpanions.


    ¡°I am ttered by yourpliment but I¡¯m not going to hand Ur over to you.¡±


    Aurora t-out denied the request that was about toe out of Noctus¡¯s mouth. And the Dule looked bumped at the quick refusal.


    ¡°Well, it was worth a shot. Anyway, today is a good day for us all. We have you here and our king has woken up. Now, I would like to invite Lady Aurora and herpanions to meet the king.¡±


    The Duke was making a big deal out of this, but Aurora could see why he was putting up such a show. Various people around her were eying her interest.


    Were they seeing her as an easy target to conquer since Aurora had not shown them her power?


    ¡°Astoria, would you like to apany me in? Rita, you keep an eye on Mary and Ur.¡±


    The invitation to meet the king was likely extended to the whole party but Aurora did not want to take her entire group in.


    Mary was a kid and Ur was a bundle of destruction. Taking them in might not be the best idea right now.


    ¡°Alright. Have fun in there.¡±


    Rita seemed to have no intention of following after her either which relieved Aurora. She might have folded if Rita had asked her to take her decision back.


    ¡°Mydies, you need to head this way.¡±


    Aurora nodded toward the Duke in thanks before she followed his instructions. The second she entered the door she felt weird energy all around her.


    ¡°It¡¯s a dimension door. They separated their king into a different world than the normal one. I wonder why they did that?¡±


    Astoria¡¯s sharp senses picked up on the detail as well. But she was able to better ssify the magic and its purpose. Her experience truly shined through her words.


    ¡°Let¡¯s keep on moving now. The Duke did not follow after us, right?¡±


    Aurora could not feel the Duke¡¯s magic signatureing after her. It was unusual for the Royal guards to let the two enter such a grand ce without any checks in ce.


    ¡®Are they underestimating us? Or do they trust us this much?¡¯


    For some reason, both of the reasons did not fit well with Aurora. No matter howx she had been, she was still a dangerous goddess. Did these people not think of Aurora as dangerous?


    ¡°Wee to my hoard. I see that you made it here well, daughter of the Lady Minerva. And yourpanion is the most unusual person I ever expected to see again. I heard that the youngdy of House Dehva went missing, but it seems like you were just sightseeing.¡±


    Aurora was shocked to hear herst nameing out of someone¡¯s mouth. She had made sure to keep her origins a secret.


    She was not ashamed of her lineage but Aurora did not want to be dragged away just because of herst name. Aurora had not considered herself a part of that house for a long time.


    ¡°Are you the emperor of the Eastern Continent?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s question was aimed mainly to distract the man from speaking. There was no presence of human life around Aurora so she was on alert against the unknown.


    She had a weird feeling that she had heard that voice before but Aurora¡¯s mind was a mess these days.


    ¡®I must have heard his voice in my past life. But since I don¡¯t recall anything significant happening, it must mean I heard him in passing.¡¯


    Aurora tried to justify her feelings but her heart told her that she was wrong in this aspect.


    ¡°I am indeed the current king of the Eastern Continent. I see that the Young Lady of Dehva house forgot me. But then again, you were a kid when west met so it should be expected.¡±


    ¡®Ah, so it¡¯s that kind of know. No wonder I don¡¯t remember him.¡¯


    Aurora had taken out all memories that had to do with her life before the temple. The emperor was just another victim of her brain.


    ¡°I am sorry my lord. It has just been a long time since Istid eyes on you. But it is nice to see you in good health.¡±


    Auroras¡¯ words were polite but she had no interest in carrying out this conversation. She wanted nothing to do with her past.


    ¡°It is indeed nice to see you again. I heard from the Duke that you helped me out. Is there something I can help you with in return?¡±


    There it was, the loaded question. Aurora could have asked for so much at this moment but she did not.


    There was only one thing Aurora had prioritized when it came to this deal.


    ¡°I want your support in trading. Our rtionship with the tower and the center is not the best so we need to look for new trade partners. I hope my lord would consider my proposal.¡±


    Aurora gave the barest of bows toward the emperor¡¯s direction. Her instincts didn¡¯t want her to bow but Aurora still forced her head down.


    ¡®It¡¯s just once so it doesn¡¯t matter. Let¡¯s just get this done and over with.¡±


    The emperor seemed to be in thought before he nodded.  Not that it would have any other oue when the emperor asked Aurora to say what she needed.


    As long as the request being made was not outrageous, the emperor would agree with it.


    ¡°I understand. I will ask the Duke to make arrangements. We will also give you a fair deal on all our goods. So, will that be all?¡±


    Aurora had a few things more to ask but they were all she asked for right now. Anything else could wait until Aurora was back home.


    ¡°Yes, that will be all. We still need to prepare for our trip back tomorrow after the festival. The sooner we return home, the better for us.¡±


    Aurora had initially wanted to stay for longer but she no longer had the drive to do so. Too much had happened in the Eastern Continent in this short period and Aurora wanted time to rx.


    At the same time, a new kind of worry had risen in her mind. She had received Rex¡¯s message that morning and it had been anything but optimistic.


    ¡®The tower purposed the annual games to take ce in the Rocx academy? But we have not even been operating for a year and we don¡¯t have enough resources. The tower knows that but it still pushed for this? Something is fishy here.¡¯


    Aurora had a bad feeling about the uing games. Her academy would not be participating this year due to the age restriction so Aurora had thought of herself as safe.


    But now this new development worried her.


    ¡®I guess I will tackle one problem at a time. Fortunately, we have Ur¡¯s adult with us now. He will be a big asset for me.¡¯


    Amane had not expected things to take this direction but things had somehow ended up like this.


    Not to mention, Aurora had also promised Mei that she would invite her to the academy. That promise would also fall under the same time frame.


    ¡®There will be a lot of divine power gathered in a single ce. Me, Ava, Mei, and Seraphina. Plus the core I have inside me as well. I wonder if things will be alright around all of us.¡¯


    Aurora should know better than to hope but she still did.

 Chapter 218 218: Bonus: Night sky

    ¡°You know, we could be out there enjoying the festival with everyone else. Are you sure you want to stay in here and spend the day fucking?¡±


    Aurora painted those words out as her body was touched all over by Rita¡¯s rough hands. The younger had a fiery look in her eyes as her hands teased Aurora¡¯s nipples.


    The younger was not going to let go anytime soon and her body heated up as she touched Elysia more and more.


    ¡°I wanted more time to spend with you. We hardly ever get to be alone like this.¡±


    Rita¡¯s voice was sulky as she pressed kisses all over Aurora¡¯s face and body. Her cock was hard and throbbing inside Aurora. Rita was not wasting time today.


    The redhead had jumped Aurora as soon as the day had started and refused to get up. And one thing had led to another which had ended up with the pairying around in the bed.


    ¡°You know, it¡¯s been a while since I have to restrict your desire. You can finally let yourself go Aurora.¡±


    Rita¡¯s voice caressed Aurora¡¯s ear and it dragged a moan out of her throat. It felt so good to feel those cold hands on her breasts.


    Rita was massaging Aurora¡¯s breasts in a hurried motion and her hands came up to pinch Aurora¡¯s nipples.


    Aurora¡¯s back arched into her touch and her back left the soft bed. Rita¡¯s hand on her waist was what supported Aurora¡¯s current position.


    ¡°Come on. You feel so good and wet surrounding me. You are gripping me so tight like you don¡¯t want to let me go. Do I make you feel that good?¡±


    Someone was riding this wave of desire and lust a little too much. Rita¡¯s voice in Aurora¡¯s ear made her shiver. It made Aurora melt into the pleasurable thrusts she could feel rocking her body.


    ¡°You¡¯ve¡­gotten¡­a¡­little¡­too¡­good¡­at¡­it.¡±


    It was hard topare Rita to the innocent child she had been at the start of all this. Currently, her cock was hitting all the right spaces inside Aurora.


    The pleasure was making her mind go nk and Aurora¡¯s body was losing control of itself.


    Rita¡¯s pleasure-filled face was going in and out of focus, the more Aurora was pounded into.


    But Aurora was not the only one feeling good. Rita¡¯s cock was swelling inside Aurora as well, her body tensing as she neared her release.


    Cold wetness made Aurora shiver as it filled her up. It was a weird but familiar sensation that made Aurorae and she felt her body go ck with her release.


    Rita pulled out of her but she did not allow Aurora to get very far before she pulled her back.


    ¡°Where are you headed to? I never said that we were done just yet.¡±


    Rita¡¯s rough hands pulled Aurora¡¯s body back toward the younger. Her cock had gotten hard again after justing. This was a little too soon for Aurora¡¯s liking and her pussy throbbed in pain.


    As much as Aurora wanted to help Rita out, her body needed rest. The past day¡¯s session with the Nymph was not entity out of Aurora¡¯s system just yet.


    ¡°Rita, spare my pussy. Can I help you in another way?¡±


    Aurora was not sure if Rita would agree or not. But she was lucky when she saw Rita¡¯s node. Finally, Aurora¡¯s pussy would get some rest.


    ¡°Fine, you can suck me off. But I want another prize soon.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    Aurora agreed easily enough. Any amount of rest she got was good for her. Her mouth was a good way to make Ritae for now.


    Rita positioned herself against the back, herp open and her cock erect. Aurora made her way toward Rita¡¯s cock and mouthed it experimentally.


    Aurora was far from shy but it had been a long time since she had sucked someone off like this. Aurora wanted to enjoy this moment and she also wanted Rita to enjoy this as well.


    ¡°Your mouth feels like just another pussy. It is so tight and warm. It is wet as well, just like your insides down there. It makes me go crazy every time I am inside you.¡±


    Rita¡¯s mouth seemed to have lost her filter. Her lips were sprouting words that might have made others go crazy.


    But Aurora just enjoyed them all. Her mouth worked even harder after she heard Rita¡¯s vulgar words.


    Aurora knew she should not enjoy this but she still did anyway.


    ¡°Aurora, you feel so good but this is not enough. Let me fuck you again. Not the front but the back will do.¡±


    Rita¡¯s hands moved all over Aurora¡¯s back until they rested on her ass. They fondled her and the sensation caused Aurora to moan out loud.


    Her ass was sensitive and it seemed like Rita remembered that as well.


    Rita¡¯s finger circled Aurora¡¯s ass before she inserted it into that crack. Aurora tensed before her body flinched at the sudden sensation.


    And then Rita had a hand in Aurora¡¯s hair as she pulled Aurora¡¯s mouth to work around her cock. It was a mixture of sensations Aurora felt.


    It was too much and it was turning Aurora on again. Her body was heating up and approaching her climax.


    Rita also seemed ot be enjoying this but she managed to pull back before she came down Aurora¡¯s throat. Her eyes were wild as she turned Aurora around before she entered Aurora.


    It was a hard and fast thrust that left Aurora panting and wanting more.


    Rita¡¯s hips had no rhythm as they mmed into Aurora with a ferocious motion. The faster they went, the more Aurora felt them filling her up.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see. I promised not to enter you here but I can y with your clit, right? Now shhh, don¡¯t make those noises or I¡¯ll get turned on even more.¡±


    Rita¡¯s hand on Aurora¡¯s clit stimted her while her other hand muffled Aurora¡¯s cry of pleasure.


    It was a dual assault that caused Aurora¡¯s senses to be clouded and her eyes to roll into the back of her mind.


    ¡°Rmmsh¡±


    Aurora tried to call out Rita¡¯s name but it came out all muffled due to Rita¡¯s hand in her mouth. The sensation was all around Aurora and her body gave a jerk as she tried to get used to it all.


    But there was no getting used to it. Rita was bullying Aurora in the bed and Aurora¡¯s body was reaping all the pleasure it could.


    ¡°Aurora, I am close. I will shoot it all inside your body and make you enjoy it. Are you ready?¡±


    If Rita¡¯s words were a warning of her actions, they came toote. She finished speaking just as her body gave in to her release and she came.


    Aurora was not far behind her, her body arching into pleasure as well. There were stars surrounding her eyes and her voice was also shrill.


    ¡°Rita, enough. I cannot do this anymore.¡±


    Despite being a goddess, Aurora did have sexual stamina and her body wanted to go to sleep. She had exhausted herself but the intense sex she had.


    ¡°Aurora, just one more round. Just one more and I will let you go.¡±


    But Rita had other ideas. Her voice sounded in pain and pleading. Aurora knew she should not give in to Rita¡¯s words but her body was at its limits.


    ¡®I want to rest now.¡¯


    Aurora wanted to sleep but she gave in to the pleasure she was feeling. Rita had started to move her hips around a little and it was enough to cause a spark of pleasure to start speaking inside Aurora.


    Her stomach was feeling funny and her body was heating up as well. It was only Rita¡¯s cool body temperature that was keeping Aurora sane.


    ¡°Aurora, can I go once more? It will be a quick and painless round.¡±


    Rita was pleading with her now. Aurora could not look her in the face when she nodded but it was an agreement nheless.


    Rita gave a soft and sweet smile to Aurora before her eyes went dark and her thrusters picked up speed again.


    She pounded Aurora¡¯s body more and more until the morning and that ¡®onest round¡¯ turned into two and then three until they both lost count of how many times they did it.


    By the end of it, Aurora was sore and sleepy. Her eyes closed as Aurora lost control of her body.


    ¡°Well, that was a satisfying session. I hope I did not tire you out.¡±


    Rita looked fresh and ready to go a few more rounds. But thankfully, she did not go more rounds and Aurora could finally rx her body.


    But by the time they were done, the sun had set down and the night sky was dark. The day had been wasted and it was time to head out.


    ¡°Rita, I hate you so much. Ugh, this return trip is going to suck.¡±


    ¡°Sorry.¡±


    Rita¡¯s mouth spoke something but her eyes said something else. Rita was anything but ¡®sorry¡¯ right now.

 Chapter 219 219: Back in business

    ¡°Have a good journey ahead. Even though you were here for only a few days, your presence would be missed by us and-¡°


    ¡°Shut up man. Go back and live your life as you were doing before meeting us. You don¡¯t have to be so emotional to see us going back now.¡±


    Aurora looked on amused as Noctus and Rita duked it out onest time. The Duke had his arms around Aurora¡¯s waist to try and stop her while Rita was trying to pull Aurora out of his grasp.


    It was a funny scene and the atmosphere was finally broken by Mary¡¯s innocentment ¡®what is going on here?¡¯


    ¡°You know what Mary, I have no idea what is going on here. Aurora, are you sure you want me and Ur to stay behind for a little longer in the eastern continent?¡±


    Aurora nodded from in between the two people trying to drag her away.


    ¡°I need you to stay here and take charge of the operations. Now that we have the East¡¯s cooperation, we can finally move the Viera out of the Rocx valley and out of the tower¡¯s nose. I don¡¯t want them anywhere near when the inter-academypetition starts.¡±


    Aurora had given it some thought and had realized that she needed to start making preparations to empty the academy.


    She had gotten away so far with hiding both the ounders and the Viera because she had not faced any major academy people.


    But it would be a different case now. The Rocx academy was about to gain a lot of pressure and momentum all of a sudden because of the uingpetition.


    ¡°Alright, you can do that. It will be nice to have another race who worships dragons nearby. I am sure the temple would appreciate the help as well.¡±


    Aurora did not doubt that the temple would help her out regarding this. The temple was already informed of what was going to happen next anyway.


    ¡°Aurora, let¡¯s leave now. I don¡¯t want to spend any extra second in this lunatic ce. I feel like I am losing brain cells  by being here.¡±


    Rita finally managed to push the Duke off Aurora and right in time for her to take Aurora¡¯s hand and whisk her away from him.


    Aurora gave a wave behind her before she was out with Rita. the other girl had an annoyed but honest look on her face.


    ¡°You seemed to not like the East that much. Did you not have fun on this trip?¡±


    Aurora herself did have fun on this trip but it was difficult to say in Rita¡¯s case. The girl did not often let her true feelings let out when it came to Aurora.


    ¡°Fun is a subjective thing. I cannot say that I had fun but I did not hate it either. Oh, by the way, can we take the train to the central continent this time? I don¡¯t want to spend extra time going through the Nacross Valley again.¡±


    Rita was avoiding the answer so Aurora did not push her.


    The train came and the journey back was peaceful and quiet. The central continent was as messy and full of people as ever but it was much easier to navigate.


    Rita had a wistful look on her face when she looked at the tower and Aurora had a feeling that she was not quite over things as much as she said she was.


    ¡°Do you want to have a look at your old home? I know you miss your maids sometimes. Besides, I also know that you want to take a look at the maid we saved before.¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s alright. I feel like I would make a foolish decision if I go back now. It would be better if we move on back home.¡±


    Aurora wanted to tell Rita to be selfish at that moment but then she held herself back. She could see that Rita was already struggling to hold her tears back.


    Aurora did not need to make it tougher for her by egging her to do anything.


    ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s go home. I think we¡¯ve got enough excitement for now.¡±


    The pair took the train back to the Rocx valley and then they were back home. There was a week left before the main event of the year, the inter-academy face-off but there was much to be done.


    ===========================


    ¡°I cannot believe that this is happening to me. Why did they decide to hold the Academy fights on the Rocx campus? It hasn¡¯t even been a year since we set up.¡±


    Rex looked stressed and tired when Aurora saw him aftering back.


    She had chosen to help Rex out instead of resting aftering back. And Rex¡¯s tiredplexion and dark circles told Aurora that it had been the right decision to make. The man needed all the help he could.


    ¡°It must be a ploy to get you into trouble. But I don¡¯t see the problem here. You can always hire outside help to manage. If you beg nicely then I will even consider helping you out.¡±


    ¡°And why are you here in the first ce? I don¡¯t remember inviting you in here with us. Just go back to your rxing trip, mother.¡±


    Aurora opened her mouth but her voice was buried in between the arguing pair in front of her.


    She could understand why Rex was sounding so angry at Lady Violet¡¯s presence. And truthfully, she had no business being in this small meeting right now.


    But Aurora also felt that it would be nice of Rex to swallow his pride and ask his stepmother for help. If there was one person who could stop this madness then it was Lady Violet who had a goddess¡¯s support.


    However, Aurora knew Rex well. And because she knew Rex well, she could tell that he would not ask his stepmother for help.


    ¡®I guess I will have to be the one to ask her for help.¡¯


    ¡°Lady Violet, please help us get some more time on our hands. I promise we will do anything and everything in our power topensate you for your help.¡±


    Those powerful eyes turned toward Aurora and regarded her with an openly hostile stare. At the same time, Rex¡¯s ¡®not we, just you¡¯ reached Aurora¡¯s ears.


    ¡°I guess at least one of you has enough manners and mind to know what is good for you. Now if only my good for nothing son realizes what I can do for him, he would stop being this petty and -¡°


    ¡°I will never forgive you for what you did to my mother. I will not lower myself to beg for your help ever.¡±


    Rex and Lady Violet¡¯s eyes shed which caused Aurora to sigh out in annoyance.


    ¡®Well, there goes out the chance to convince Lady Violet to help us out.¡¯


    ¡°Fine, if you don¡¯t want my help then I won¡¯t give you any. But I will let you in on a secret since we are still family.¡±


    ¡°Out of all the academies out there, only 8 agreed to this year¡¯s stand-off, and that also for obvious reasons. Now, I won¡¯t tell you what they are but you should know that your burden will not be as big as you think it will be.¡±


    Rex looked suspicious at his stepmother¡¯s words but Aurora chose to believe Lady Violet.


    Someone like Lady Violet would not go out of her way to lie for momentary gains. So her word was one Aurora chose to trust.


    ¡°I see. We will keep that in mind.¡±


    Aurora nodded toward the elderdy who looked to be deep in thought before she stood up and walked away.


    But not before she turned back to look Aurora in the eye. Aurora¡¯s hands went up to clutch at the pendent she had sacrificed a lot to acquire.


    ¡°You can¡¯t keep running away from what you don¡¯t like. You should think about facing your past head-on instead. Who knows what new secrets you might find in there.¡±


    Lady Violet¡¯s words sounded personal and Aurora felt sirens start blowing in her mind. A low growl escaped her chest which caused Lady Violet to smile.


    ¡®She¡¯s enjoying my misfortune.¡¯


    ¡°Well, I guess since I¡¯m no longer needed here then I should return to the South now. I should have reported a week ago but I got busy here. I did enjoy my stay here and I also liked the hospitality.¡±


    ¡°Oh, and I am d you and Lady Mei are getting along. I always thought that girl was a bit lonely deep down. It is nice to see her go out and make friends with people.¡±


    ¡®She knows. But how does she know about me and Mei? Did she spy on Rex to get this information? Or did she spy on me?¡¯


    Aurora did not know why she felt so off about being Lady Violet but Aurora had a weird feeling around the female.


    Maybe it was because Lady Violet was a part of Aurora¡¯s past she did not want to remember but seeing her leave filled Aurora with relief.

 Chapter 220 220: Start of a new journey

    ¡°Do we have everything ready? The delegates will be arriving in the Rocx valley any minute now and we need to make sure we have everything ready. Aurora, you don¡¯t need to be here for all this so you can return if you want to.¡±


    Rex sounded worried when he asked Aurora to return. Maybe he was responding to Aurora¡¯s dark-circled that were visible under her eyes now.


    For the past few days sleeping had not been easy for Aurora. If it was not the time for her medical treatment with the nymph, it was one nightmare after another.


    Aurora could not even remember when was thest time she had a good night¡¯s sleep. Subtle emotions and memories from the second core inside her body were pulsing.


    And then there was the fact that Aurora could still not ess her core. It was locked out of her reach inside her body.


    ¡°No, I will stay here with you. Since Lady Mei ising, someone familiar should be here to guide her away.¡±


    This was just an excuse for Aurora to justify her choice of not going to sleep. And Rex likely knew that as well.


    But he did not point it out to Aurora which she was thankful for. She did not want to get into a verbal match with him right now.


    ¡°Au~ro~ra. I am here.¡±


    Mei was the first one to touch the ground. She ignored everyone and everything as she jumped into Aurora¡¯s arms.


    It would have been a heartwarming scene had Aurora and Mei been close. But for now, it was all an act to keep up appearance.


    As the only goddess invited for this asion, Mei had to show that she had some kind of bond with Aurora and they had settled on friendship for now.


    It was not entirely unthinkable since Astoria¡¯s presence was well-known across the world and so was her association with the Rocx Academy.


    ¡°Wow, so this is Rocx academy? It is more ordinary than I thought it would be. I am so d that I got to visit here.¡±


    Mei¡¯s words might seem mocking at first hearing but the wonder in her voice more than made up for it. She was excited to be here and she was letting everyone know.


    ¡°It is nice of you to be here as well. I am sure that both the students and the other participants would love to have you here.¡±


    Aurora made light talks with Mei as well. She signaled Rex to take care of everything else while she took care of Mei.


    A goddessing to such a festival was not a big deal but Lady Mei was an exception. She hardly ever interfered in the academy business so her presence was especially noted in these times.


    Aurora could already see a lot of curious eyes keeping a tab on Mei¡¯s moment and trying to approach her.


    Since Mei looked like a teenager, a lot of people mistook her mental level as such as well and tried to take advantage of her.


    ¡®I cannot tell which one I am protecting at this point. Is it Lady Mei or the people who could be her prey?¡¯


    Aurora sighed as she stopped the overly excited teenager from wandering off alone in such a big ce.


    ¡°Hey, Aurora I need to ask you something important. Is Seraphina nearby or does she live on the outskirts of the Rocx Valley? I am just asking because I cannot feel her presence nearby.¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s not here and you will not seek her out either. Don¡¯t forget that you promised me not to cause trouble while you are here.¡±


    Aurora was not sure if Rex¡¯s blood pressure would be able to take this much excitement all at one go.


    He was surprisingly delicate at weird times and tough at the others.


    ¡°Ahhhh, did I promise anything like that? No, don¡¯t worry. I will not do anything suspicious like that. I don¡¯t want to make you angry. It¡¯s just that, Seraphina disappeared a long time ago so I was worried about her. Despite what happened between us, we are both goddesses.¡±


    Aurora did understand where Mei wasing from. Some bonds could not be served no matter what one did.


    And this seemed like one such bond that Mei had forced herself to be in with Seraphina.


    ¡°I will pass on your message to Seraphina but I am not sure if she would respond to you or not. But for now, please stay put in your room.¡±


    Aurora had no ns to visit Seraphina before but now it seemed like she would be visiting the GoV soon enough.


    ¡®The time of her origins death is also nearing. I wonder what would happen next.¡¯


    Aurora had nned to help GoV out but it was not looking very hopeful right now. After all, Aurora had spent no time taking care of this mess in her free time.


    ¡°So, what else do you have nned for me, my dear hostess? Will we meet the kids? Or will you take me out on a tour? I am looking ahead to what will happen next.¡±


    ¡®Of course, you are Lady Mei. I would not have expected anything else from you.¡¯


    ===========================


    ¡°You are getting so good at sneaking into ces Clove. Your talent makes me jealous. Where did you learn so many of your tricks?¡±


    The more time Clove spend with Asami, the more she understood what the other goddess thought.


    And the more she was sure that it was impossible to ignore Asami. If Asami had decided to annoy you, she would annoy you to death at all costs.


    Things like rest and calm did not exist in her dictionary.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you pull your weight as well? Can you not do anything other than scam people?¡±


    It was rude of Clove to talk with a goddess like this. Had it been the usual her, Clove would have died of embarrassment at her behavior.


    But Lady Asami was a special case of ¡®nut-job¡¯ and her presence made Clove¡¯s life difficult.


    ¡°Well, I can help you out but then we¡¯ll have no chance ofnding a sessful negotiation. The rtionship between me and Lady Dehva is already rocky enough.¡±


    ¡®Gees, I wonder why that is so? How many times did you try to trick her into a scam?¡¯


    Clove wanted to ask that question but then thought better of it. She was not sure she wanted to know the answer to that question either.


    ¡°Ohhh, we¡¯re finally here. I can feel that scary aura from anywhere. It makes me so excited to face her.¡±


    ¡®Lady, you have some massive issues.¡¯


    This was what Clove wanted to say but she shut her mouth and entered the room. Lady Dehva was waiting for them inside, just as she had said she would.


    ¡°Hi! We found our way here finally. Now can we have the pleasure of talking with you? Mypanion here has an idea that you might like.¡±


    Asami sounded so cheerful that one would think that this was a meeting between friends. But theck of any verbalmunication from thedy sitting in front broke that illusion.


    ¡°What is it that you want to purpose? Be quick about your request or I will reject it without hearing you out.¡±


    Clove gulped her nervousness down. It was now or never for her.


    ¡°I heard that you have a way to kill the gods and want to know what that way is. I want to put an end to this hellish nightmare known as the abyss and I need your help in achieving that.¡±


    The blue-haireddy sipping the tea stopped short after hearing this. Her eyes were hard when they looked at Clove but Clove refused to flinch under that re.


    She would not bend, nor would she cover in front of her.


    ¡°I see. So you are one of ¡®those types.¡¯ But what makes you so sure that you will seed where everyone else failed? What think it is that makes you so special?¡±


    ¡°It is not ¡®me¡¯ who is special but someone else. There are some things that I am about to tell you that might change your perspective about this world and the abyss so please hear me out.¡±


    Thedy did not look interested at first but Clove still told her about Aurora and thest gate of the abyss anyway.


    The more Clove spoke, the more interested the Lady looked until there was a spark in her eye that was too bright.


    ¡°I see. So that is what you are nning? Then, let me ask you this? Why are you doing all this for someone you do not even know that well? I don¡¯t think my daughter is worth all that to be honest.¡±


    ¡°Wait, your daughter? What the hell is going on in here?¡±


    ¡°Well, when I heard your story I thought that you approached me because of my familiar face. Don¡¯t I look like my daughter, Aurora? People said that we looked alike all the time.¡±


    Of course, Clove had seen the resemnce but she had not wanted to make an uneducated guess.


    ¡®But it seems like I am the fool here.¡¯

 Chapter 221 221: A Familiar encounter

    Contrary to Aurora¡¯s expectations, the next two days passed in rtive peace. The tower¡¯s representative did not do anything weird or uncalled for which made it easier to handle them.


    But the biggest shock was Mei and her willingness to sit back and enjoy everything that was happening.


    At first, Aurora had been sure that Mei would decide to take off at the first chance she gets to find Seraphina but that had not been the case.


    Surprisingly enough, Mei was content to sit back and enjoy the preparations that had been made for thepetition. That was a big shock to everyone, especially Rex who was paranoid that something should happen by now.


    ¡°You know, I don¡¯t believe this stroke of luck we¡¯ve had this far. Are you sure the person who came here is Lady Mei and not an imposter? She¡¯s acting way too rational.¡±


    This was what Rexined about when he first met Aurora after a long time. His eyes darted toward Lady Mei, only to get diverted the very next second when the goddess looked back at him.


    The suspicious look in Rex¡¯s eyes did not move even an inch at that time.


    ¡°Mei is alright. I have Rita keep an eye on her for these trying times. But more on thatter. How are things holding up on your end?¡±


    As much as Aurora pretended not to be interested, she did want to know what was going on with thepetition that was being held.


    It was a shock to see neither Quince nor Clove participate in thispetition so Aurora had lost interest in it as well.


    Whatever happened there had nothing o do with Aurora anymore.


    ¡°Tower is winning as was expected. But that was a given. The other teams are not even trying.¡±


    Rex sounded bitter but the oue had to be expected. No one was going to go against the Tower¡¯s winning position and make an enemy out of them.


    Aurora would have asked Rocx to do just that to spite them but they were not even participating in this littlepetition.


    Besides, Aurora had a full te already to pay any attention to Rex¡¯s side of things.


    ¡°Man, it sucks. If only we could use this opportunity to strike at the tower, we could do some serious damage to their reputation. But here we are stuck now, doing our best to make thingsfortable for them.¡±


    Aurora knew Rex did not feel good about this arrangement but it was a necessary evil they had to face.


    ¡°I know how you feel but keep on hanging in there. I will be taking Mei outside the academy so I won¡¯t be avable today. If the tower decided to cause any mischief, then it would be today.¡±


    ¡°Can you not go now? Just stay put a few more days¡ªyou know what? Forget I said anything.¡±


    Rex¡¯s request was a given but he seemed to think about it again and took it back soon enough.


    ¡°Mei had behaved well until now but that will likely notst. I can feel her getting angsty due to ack of activity. I hope that facing some monsters would get her in a better mood.¡±


    That was not the only reason Aurora had wanted to go out but it was the primary one. A  bored goddess was a pit of despair for everyone.


    Besides, Aurora did want to check out the Rocx valley as well. There had been signs of weird moments all around and Aurora did not want to take any risk.


    The times were too tense right now to allow anything big to happen.


    ¡°Will you be taking Rita as well?¡±


    ¡°Likely not.¡±


    ¡°Then good luck and keep yourself out of trouble.¡±


    Rex was asking for a lot from Aurora. It was not like she specifically went out to look for trouble. Usually, the trouble ended up finding her instead.


    So Aurora did not make any promises. Instead, she just nodded and epted her uing fate.


    ===========================


    ¡°Wow, so this is the Rocx Valley? It looks different from the surroundings of the academy. It is a desertednd.¡±


    Mei sounded in awe at seeing a huge expanse of uninhabitednd. Monsters fell around the pair without any extra effort on their part. There was just too much energy in the air for them to survive.


    Aurora had asked Mei to show her how to work a goddess¡¯s core and so far Mei had done an excellent job demonstrating.


    But the power residual build-up was too much for the poor surroundings to take.


    ¡°We don¡¯t usually use our core outside the abyss since it is very taxing for us. Let me show you how you manipte it.¡±


    Mei¡¯s aura changed to a brighter shade before her magic pulsed. It was something Aurora was sure she could do as well if she found a connection with her core.


    ¡®System, record every reading and apply it to my core.¡¯


    [Affirimative]


    Aurora¡¯s system was convenient for these times. It was taking into ount everything Mei was doing while allowing Aurora to concentrate on her surroundings.


    Maybe that was why she did not miss the sh of ck entering the abyssal crack nearby. It felt familiar but Aurora could not understand why someone would want to enter the abyss from here.


    ¡°Mei, we have a few intruders nearby. What do you think we should do about it?¡±


    Aurora asked her current partner who showed a confused expression on her face before her grin turned feral.


    ¡°We have a few intruders? Why? We ought to show them who is the boss here. I say we take care of them.¡±


    ¡®As expected, Mei wants to kill off these people as soon as possible. I should have expected this kind of reply from her.¡¯


    Aurora wanted to sigh at herpanions¡¯ reply. Mei never changed, no matter what happened.


    ¡°Sure, if that¡¯s what you want to do. Just make sure you clean up after yourself.¡±


    Aurora gave her permission without thinking about it. What did it matter to her in the end if some unknown person died in this desert?


    People should know better than to walk in into a goddess¡¯s territory unannounced anyway.


    ¡°Wow, you¡¯re unexpectedly colder than I thought you to be. But I will notin since it is fun for me as well.¡±


    Mei too off wihtout Aurora. She took the same direction that the shadow took beforehand and Aurora rxed her body.


    She trusted Mei¡¯s powers. She would not even be shocked if Mei ended up killing someone while ying around.


    But what Aurora was surprised at was the familiar voice that reached Aurora¡¯s ears. She felt someone¡¯s hand in her hair and instantly tried to move.


    ¡°Are you not worried about your friend? She could get seriously injured if she encounters Zoe like that.¡±


    Clove¡¯s soft voice washed over Aurora like a soothing balm but Aurora felt herself unable to move for whatever reason.


    She was stuck in the same position for some time now.


    ¡°What are you doing here? No, more importantly, how did you even get here? This ce is forbidden to enter this time.¡±


    Aurora was not only surprised to see Clove here but also shocked to know that Zoe had entered the premises.


    Lady Minerva¡¯s and Ava¡¯s powers were currently protecting the perimeters due to thepetition so no outsider should be able to enter.


    Or that should have been the case this far. But unexpectedly, Clove only smiled blissfully toward Aurora. Her face had a nostalgic smile on it that made Aurora want to reach out to her.


    ¡°What? I cannot enter a ce like this. Aren¡¯t I a part of the tower? Don¡¯t worry, we are not looking forward to causing any trouble right now. We just want to retrieve something.¡±


    Clove looked bitter at Aurora¡¯s priorities and it was a familiar expression on her face.


    She often made that expression when she felt wronged and Aurora had always tried her best to reassure Clove that there was nothing for her to be bitter over.


    Even now Aurora wanted to reach out and hold Clove¡¯s face in her own, but it was toote for that.


    Or appropriate for that matter.


    Clove was not someone who Aurora could touch whenever she wanted to.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you came here for but even Zoe¡¯s powers are limited in the overworld. I am sure Mei will be able to take care of her. And then there is Seraphina as well. It will be 2 vs 1 in there.¡±


    Aurora tried to unnerve Zoe with her words but the younger did not look worried at all.


    ¡°Will it really be 2 vs 1 in there? After all, you are not the only one who can ask a goddess for help. I made some preparations of my own this time.¡±


    It took some seconds for Aurora to realize what Clove meant but her blood went cold as soon as she realized what Clove was suggesting to her.


    ¡°Clove, why are you doing this? What is your purpose? Whatever it is, we can talk it over among each other and solve it.¡±


    Aurora pleaded but Clove looked pained. And that was how Aurora knew that she had lost this round.

 Chapter 222 222: The ridges [pt1]

    ¡°HEY, STOP RIGHT THERE OR I WILL BE FORCED TO MAKE YOU STOP.¡±


    Mei followed after the shadow that was getting away faster and faster from her. She did not know how it was even possible for someone to get away from her this easily.


    Unless the other was as powerful as Mei or exceeded her magic powers, they couldn¡¯t hide from Mei. And yet, the person running away had somehow made it possible.


    ¡°This is thest warning for you. If you don¡¯t stop now then I will retaliate. But if you do stop now, then I won¡¯t harm you ever.¡±


    Mei was being generous right now. Her instincts were telling her to chase down her prey and dismantle it. But Mei was more than her instincts (no matter what the others said about her, she knew how to control herself at times.)


    However, the shadow she was chasing did not seem to want toply with her.


    It took a sudden right turn and disappeared from immediate view. Now that was a grave insult Mei found hard to swallow.


    Not only had she lost the signs of that shadow, but she had also been made a fool out of. Mei was not going to take it sitting down.


    ¡°Fuck, this is it now. Time to show you what I am made up of.¡±


    Her temper gave rise to her magic. Fire was usually weak against rocks and ground but Mei¡¯s temper fueled her magic and it ended up sting the wall down.


    Once the wall was down, Mei could see the fleeing shadow of that person. It would be easy to shoot down with such a clear vision in front of her.


    The motion of drawing her bow and pulling the string was natural. Her core vibrated with magic, forming the arrow before Mei let go.


    The cloaked figure took a sharp turn back, her body not showing any signs of being afraid of Mei¡¯s attack.


    ¡®There is no way they can dodge my attack. What are they being so cocky for?¡¯


    Mei fired the arrow but someone stuck her side, changing the aim of the arrow. At the same time, the female in front of her took out a familiar metallic object and fired back.


    ¡®A gun? Who uses a gun in this day and age? What are we in? Thete 2000s.¡¯


    Nowadays the concept of guns was all but a fantasy. With everyone having ess to magic, guns had all but gone extinct in the market.


    The only ones that could be found were in the collections of high-ss merchants or historic museums.


    But the one that cloaked figure had fired did not seem to belong to any such groups. It was too well-maintained and oiled to be an antique.


    The unexpected shock of being hit in the side and having the gun fired at her made Mei lose focus and get hit by that shot.


    It should not have been a big deal when Mei dug into her arm to take out the bullet.


    But it was.


    There was something about that bullet that made Mei feel wobbly and her hand was still stuck.


    ¡®I¡¯m not healing. But that should be impossible to happen. Why am I not healing?¡¯


    As a goddess, there was no injury that Mei¡¯s body could not heal. Her regeneration rate was the fastest out of everyone in her group so this new injury was a surprise to see.


    ¡°Ah, so they were not lying to us. This bullet does work. Too bad that we got the wrong target on our end. Now we only have one shot left.¡±


    The voice sounded familiar but Mei could not concentrate to know who had spoken. The cloaked figure was walking closer to Mei, her steps slow and deliberate to intimidate.


    ¡°W-Who are you?¡±


    Mei wanted to know. The sensation of pain was making Mei¡¯s legs go weak. It had been eons since she had felt such agony.


    The pain was a foreign sensation Mei did not know how to deal with. Her body was confused at theck of relief it was feeling as well. It had sent Mei¡¯s system into overdrive and it was all over the ce.


    ¡°Who am I? Tsk, it breaks my heart to see that my aunt does not even remember my voice. But then again, you never really cared for me beyond me being my mother¡¯s daughter so what can I expect from you.¡±


    Mei had no idea what kind of crap thisdy was sprouting. Why did she have to care about someone who was not her?


    ¡°Still not remember. Well then, maybe having a look on my face will help you remember me.¡±


    The cloak came down and Mei watched wide-eyed as the familiar face slithered into view. It was Asami¡¯s smile that greeted her.


    ¡°Hello, aunt Mei. Did you miss me?¡±


    After centuries of no contact, Asami had decided to show herself, and what a spectacr manner she had revealed her true colors.


    ¡°You! What are you nning on doing?¡±


    Mei tried to move but her body felt heavy. Her eyelids were heavy as well and Mei wanted to go to sleep.


    ¡®What a foreign sensation this is. How long has it been since I required any sleep.¡¯


    It had been too long for Mei. Her body had all but forgotten this sensation but now those old feelings of hers wereing back to her.


    This pain and this tiredness reminded Mei of being human.


    ¡°It¡¯s a shame that this little medicine will not kill you off but we can always finish you ourselves and take your core. Now just sit still and we will finish this job-¡°


    ¡°And then you will me it on me, right? I cannot say that I am impressed by your choice.¡±


    Mei¡¯s vision turned golden for a second and another familiar voice joined the trio. But this one felt more weing to Mei.


    It was one she had longed to hear for some time now. She had not heard Seraphina talk ever since they had that big fight.


    ¡°Looks like we will not need to hunt for our prey this time. Our prey decided to walk toward her death all on her own.¡±


    Now that voice was one Mei had never heard before but she did want to look up at who it was that was speaking.


    But more than that, Mei wanted Seraphina to leave this ce and save her life. These people had something that could even harm a goddess so it was not safe to be with them.


    ¡°S-Seph, r-run!¡±


    Mei had never expected that she would ever use these words in this context before but this was all she could let out.


    ¡°Yes, aunty Seph. You should run away like the coward you are. Don¡¯t worry, we will hunt you down once we are done with Aunt Mei here. It should not take that long to-¡°


    ¡°Shut up. I have heard enough bullshit for today. How dare you alle in here like you own this ce and then sully my honor. I will not forgive you.¡±


    Mei had seldomly seen Seraphina get angry. Seraphina had always been someone who had too attached to those she loved and wanted to live a normal life.


    She had been all but a tiny baby when she had been dragged into everything and a part of her never grew up.


    Every time Mei saw her, all she saw were the tiny nine years old following them. And that was what their argument was about as well.


    ¡°Enough chit-chat. I will be extracting her core now.¡±


    The sharp pain cut through the numbness that was settling around Mei¡¯s mind someone was digging into her chest and looking around.


    But it hurt even more when that hand was forcefully pushed out and the person tormenting Mei was thrown back.


    ¡°You, recover your powers for now. I will take care of these intruders. They made a mistake of intruding on my domain so they shall pay the price.¡±


    Usually, Mei would not have been worried about Seraphina in her own domain. A domain was a ce where a goddess had the most influence and power.


    But there was something weird about the confidence of those two intruders. They did not look worried about their safety at all which worried Mei.


    It was as if they had expected things to happen this way and did not mind being dragged into Seraphina¡¯s domain.


    ¡°Seph, be careful. I have a bad feeling about what they are nning.¡±


    That was all Mei could let out of her mouth. She could not even understand what she said, much less expect Seraphina to know what she said.


    But the goddess gave Mei a solid and reassuring look. That look said that everything would be alright in the end. Mei did not know why she felt so reassured by Seraphina¡¯s protection but she did.


    ¡®The kid I used to look after had grown up. Is this how parents feel when they see their kid aplishing something.¡¯


    It was a good feeling to have and Mei felt hopeful for the first time.

 Chapter 223 223: The ridges [pt2]

    ¡°Clove, why are you doing this? What is your purpose? Whatever it is, we can talk it over among each other and solve it.¡±


    Aurora hoped that Clove at least heard what she had to say and would take the time to think about it. But all Aurora received in return for her efforts was a nk stare.


    Clove¡¯s face said that she did not want to talk about anything right now, nor did she have the patience to sit around and listen to Aurora.


    There was an anxiety in her bodynguage that betrayed her intentions of stalling Aurora.


    ¡°Clove, step aside. You and I do not need to butt heads here. Even if you did something wrong, as long as you do not stop me I won¡¯t me you for it.¡±


    Having spent so much time with Clove before and knowing how Clove thought and acted, there was no way Aurora could ever me Clove for her choices. Even if Clove intended to hurt everyone, Aurora was too biased to me her.


    But that did not mean that Aurora¡¯s trust was unconditional. And whatever Aurora had with Clove was in the past.


    She had not realized when but Aurora¡¯s feelings for Clove had changed a lot. Time was the best medicine when it came to healing certain wounds of the heart.


    Right now Aurora was sure that she could even face off Clove and restrain her if she needed to.


    ¡°Aurora, are you going to face off against me? Won¡¯t you listen to me just this one time and save us both the trouble? I promise that this will be thest time I ask you a favor. Just don¡¯t interfere in what is going on here.¡±


    Aurora would have indulged Clove under any other circumstances but not this one. There was an irritating itch underneath Clove¡¯s skin that alerted her of danger.


    She had a feeling that if she did not interfere then something major would happen.


    ¡°Clove, I asked you to step aside so why don¡¯t you? Now you really cannot me me for forcing your hand.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s core was pulsing with magic. It was the second core she had taken inside her body and it made the earth part right between her and Clove.


    No matter how fast a human was, they should not have been able to get out unscratched from that attack.


    But once the earth settled down, Clove looked as fresh and unhurt as she had before.


    ¡°You attacked me? Did you attack me? Why?¡±


    Clove sounded betrayed but Aurora was more cautious of her now. No normal human should even have seen the attacking.


    ¡°Hey Aurora, have I ever been bad to you? Have I ever treated you wrongly in the past or right now? So why? Why are you going against me now.¡±


    There was a boom of air that mmed into Aurora¡¯s side. It mmed into her despite her best efforts to avoid it.


    And it was soon followed by another and then another.


    No matter how many times Aurora was sure she had dodged those impacts, they still made contact with her.


    ¡®Darn it, I cannot keep trying to dodge. I need to block them and find a way to take the host out.¡¯


    Clove had a crazy look on her face as she continued her attack. She did not even look conscious as she continued and Aurora had a feeling that she was being controlled by something right now.


    But that something must be really powerful to not even give Aurora any room to breathe. Every pour of Clove¡¯s body was emitting a goddess¡¯s aura.


    ¡°Clove, did you take a core inside your body? You need to take it out before it devours you. Your body cannot handle a goddess¡¯s core.¡±


    Aurora was not kidding when she described the burdens of a core. Even her body which was of a goddess found it hard to handle the core sometimes.


    ¡°A, are you worried about me? You shouldn¡¯t be because we have nothing between us anymore, right? But for what it was worth, I do love you.¡±


    ¡°Clove you-¡°


    If Aurora doubted Clove before, all of it was gone. The only thing that was going through Aurora¡¯s mind was that ¡®she remembered.¡¯


    Aurora did not know how or why Clove remembered what she should not have. There was no reason for Clove to remember things that had not happened yet but one look was all it took for Aurora to realize that the Clove she was seeing in front of her was the same one she had loved.


    ¡°I-how did that happen? You should not have remembered anything.¡±


    Aurora felt it all crashing down around her. Her feelings and her emotions were all too much to handle right now. The scope of what had happened just hit Aurora as well.


    ¡°I know this was not supposed to happen but we¡¯re here anyway. So won¡¯t you give me this opportunity to make things right? Hey Aurora, let¡¯s go back to those times before. Let¡¯s resume where we let things off.¡±


    Clove had a hand extended out toward Aurora. It was such a familiar scene that it brought tears to her eyes.


    ¡®Go back to where we let off? Is that even possible?¡¯


    If Aurora had been somewhere else or had it been another time, Aurora would not have hesitated in taking that hand. She could still feel the warmth of that hand beneath her even without touching it.


    Aurora almost touched that hand before she realized with a jolt what she had been about to do.


    ¡®N-No. all my progress, all my expectations, I cannot let them down. What will happen to all these people I love if I went back to where we left off.¡¯


    It was a surprise to see all those familiar faces sh across Aurora¡¯s eyes as she extended her hand to take Clove¡¯s.


    There was Natasha, Rita, Astoria, Damina, Alexander, Rex, and even Mei. All these people had managed to change their destiny because Aurora had changed the course of the future.


    Stepping back into that fold would mean sacrificing them all.


    ¡°No.¡±


    Aurora spoke up but it was a hesitant answer. Even Clove seemed to think that as well because she looked taken aback but not surprised.


    ¡°No? Why not?¡±


    Clove spoke like she could not understand why Aurora had declined her offer. And perhaps to her, it was not clear because she had never paid close attention to Aurora before.


    They had been in love but that love had never been cultivated, right?


    Now that Aurora thought back at it, there was too much they had not done as a couple. And Aurora did not mean like go on dates and stuff.


    No. They had never really sat along and taken their feelings out. Aurora had tried but Clove had always been distracted or changed the topic.


    Aurora had ignored the nagging feeling that said that Clove was not interested in her. Often, she looked like she was not really seeing Aurora when she looked at her but someone else.


    And it had hurt before but now Aurora was more clear-headed.


    ¡°I said that I won¡¯t go back to those times. This is a better future for all of us so I want to see it flourish.¡±


    Aurora made the stone wall stand up near her feet. It cut off her visual ess to Clove and made it difficult o predict her future moments.


    She could feel the air des circling her body but the earth stopped it from making any direct contact with Aurora¡¯s body.


    ¡°I see. So that¡¯s your answer. I wonder why I feel hurt even when I knew this was going to be the oue. Why did I get my hopes up only to get hurt in the end?¡±


    Clove sounded sad and Aurora did not look up at her. She knew she would find tears in Clove¡¯s eyes and that would break Aurora¡¯s resolve about this entire matter.


    She did not want to deal with things like feelings and emotions. They were all but a hassle to deal with.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright. Things were bound to end this way. And you are right! We cannot keep on doing this forever or we¡¯ll both burn into ashes in the end. Now, let¡¯s finish what we started a long time ago. Let¡¯s resolve this fight.¡±


    Aurora felt her breath stop as she looked up. Clove had the same face she had that long time ago. Her hand was still trembling with unkept emotions but her face looked determined.


    And then that sword came swinging down toward Aurora.


    But this time things were going to be different. This time, Aurora was not going to go down that easily and she would prove her existence and how far she was willing to go.


    Earth bent to her will,ing up to cover her body and arms. It shed with the iing sword and made a crashing sound.


    And then the impact knocked both her and Clove back a few inches. The battle had begun atst.

 Chapter 224 224: End of an era [pt1]

    There was an explosion of powers. Both bodies did not want to give up the advantageous position they had carved for themselves.


    But even then, Aurora could feel herself being pushed back by Clove¡¯s force. It should not have been possible for Aurora to bow under that power since their current power levels were simr.


    But Aurora was unconsciously avoiding all the killer spots Clove had while Clove was busy with her assault. That difference was a big changer in their battle.


    Aurora¡¯s body sustained wounds that healed soon enough. But the blood loss was not something her body could actively take care of. Her power was not a self-healing type.


    While Clove on the other hand had always had an affinity for healing magic. Her body didn¡¯t even flinch when the stones and earth dug into her side.


    She just braved it all and continued her assault.


    And this was another thing that was different from any mock-fight Aurora had with Clove before. Clove was using close-range fighting techniques.


    Typically, Aurora battled at close range, while Quince and Clove fought at a distance. Due to the fact that she was unustomed to battling someone so close to her body, Aurora¡¯s rhythm was being disrupted.


    Because of this, Aurora was unprepared for the strike to her abdomen and felt her link to her abilities being severed.


    ¡°Y-You! What did you do Clove?¡±


    A core was an integral part of one¡¯s power and its presence was like life itself. Baring her system, nothing should have been able to cut off Aurora¡¯s with her core.


    Especially nothing external.


    But something had forced her core to be unresponsive in a matter of minutes. It was no longer a small deal.


    If her core could be cut-off, then so could Mei and other goddesses. These people had suddenly be infinitely dangerous to the whole order of this world.


    ¡°Surprised? Well, I was as well when I discovered who funded this project. But I am thankful nheless for this small miracle. It is allowing us to remove you before things get worse. You are the key to our sess Aurora.¡±


    Clove¡¯s face was as impassive as it had been throughout the fight. Her body also calmed down, her flushed face going back to normal.


    In this one second of calming down, Aurora felt Clove¡¯s image ovepping with one she had seen long ago in that illusion.


    Clove looked just like ra and the resemnce was uncanny.


    ¡°What is wrong? Did I somehow damage your mind as well when I fought you? That was not my intention.¡±


    Aurora knew that already but she was dead tired as well by this point. Her body was protesting against any sudden motion that Aurora tried to move.


    Clove cuffed Aurora¡¯s hands behind her back and that was it. Now Aurora was caught up in a trap.


    ¡°What do you want from me? Are you looking to finish what you started back then?¡±


    Aurora was hinting about the fact that Clove had tried to kill her off. That was a sensation that was difficult to forget even now.


    But Clove likely took it the wrong way because her answer was too immediate.


    ¡°Of course, I want to finish what I started back then. And for that, I need you to stay alive and co-operate with us. Now, take a break and sleep. You will be in a new ce when you wake up.¡±


    Aurora felt the spell wash over her. It came with the familiar tugging sensation of being pulled into a deep sleep.


    Aurora tried to resist but the pull was too much for her magic-less body to endure. In the end, Aurora could not keep herself awake and scumbled to sleep.


    Clove picked up her unconscious body with worried eyes. Her hands were gentle on Aurora¡¯s body and her teeth bit her lips until they bled.


    She had wanted to spare Aurora this grief in this life but the world had a twisted sense of humor.


    Things had changed from how Clove had wanted them to go back then and now Aurora had be an integral part of their n.


    Clove had sacrificed a lot to make sure this didn¡¯t happen but it went down the drain.


    ¡°Oh well, at least there is one silver lining in this whole thing. Aurora will live past the end of the abyss and that is all I can ask for.¡±


    Clove hated emotions since they clouded one¡¯s judgment. But when it came to herself, she was biased.


    ¡°Now then, I should let someone take Aurora back while I help the other two out. Even 1-vs-2 can be disadvantageous when one party is enraged.¡±


    Not to mention, the 1, in this case, was the goddess of victory. Seraphina was a beast when she got going and something must have set her off to let out such anger.


    The scope of her control even extended as far as Clove¡¯s current location so she did not even want to think how thick it would be in the center.


    ¡®Only one way to find out.¡¯


    ===========================


    It was not often that divinity let loose. In fact, it was rare for goddesses to lose control of their emotions and powers.


    The number of times their true powers have been released could be counted on two hands throughout history. And no one had survived any of those times.


    But even then, this was the first time Mei was seeing Seraphina lose control of her powers. Her magic was covering every nook and canny of this cave they were in.


    The sheep¡¯s scope of her power was enough to make the ground shake and then break apart.


    ¡°Zoe, take the right wing. I will try and find an opening in her defense-¡°


    ¡°That is cute of you to assume you will be able to.¡±


    Asami¡¯s body instinctively dodged the sword that appeared from the ground. Swords continued to pour out even as Assami¡¯s body broke down into different segments and avoided the attack.


    At the same time, Seraphina¡¯s body was blocked by the gigantic de that stopped Zoe from reaching her.


    Zoe felt those dangerous eyes turn toward her and the space on her right ripped itself apart to make another sword appear.


    The whole floor was almost filled with swords and even the wall had sharp projectiles lining it up.


    The only safe ce was where Mei was lying down unconscious.


    ¡°No other choice Asami. We are using n C.¡±


    ¡°No, you are not.¡±


    Seraphine aimed her powers in such a way that they protected Mei. she had guessed those two¡¯s intentions as soon as they had entered.


    But it was still not enough for her to stop Asami¡¯s powerspletely.


    Mei disappeared into a puddle of darkness and appeared in Zoe¡¯s arms. That was enough to shift her attention toward the outlooker.


    ¡°Give her back and no one will get hurt.¡±


    Seraphina demanded but Zoe had no intention of following her through. Zoe kicked a sharp sword and broke it apart before using her magic to keep it afloat.


    Seraphine aimed swords at her to get her down but Zoe dodged them all rather effortlessly. She almost looked like an immortal cultivator flying on their sword.


    But this was not a cultivation world, it had no immortal people but a bunch of gods and stuck-up people.


    ¡°Hey, be careful. If you make me drop then Mei will drop down as well. And she will not survive a fall this great in her current condition.¡±


    Seraphina stopped her assault for just a single second but it was enough to drop Zoe¡¯s guard.


    She almost lost her bnce but managed to shift her cargo to her partner¡¯s arms in the meantime.


    Asami caught Mei¡¯s body rather effortlessly before holding her at the knifepoint.


    ¡°Pull something funny and her throat will be slit apart. Now, can you calm down and allow us to talk in peace?¡±


    Asami¡¯s smile was like a snake looking to devour her prey. She was not a good person by any means and it was evident at this moment.


    The crazy glint in her eyes snapped Seraphina back and calmed her down.


    ¡®Right, this is not someone I can easily reason with. I need to calm down and look for a way to get Mei out of her grasp.¡¯


    ¡°Let her go and then we have a deal. You are here for my core, right? I don¡¯t mind handing it over. But let Mei go first.¡±


    Seraphina was not sure if her words would work or not. It was almost an oath she was giving the other two but they did not necessarily need to make it.


    But they should know that they would not get out of Seraphina¡¯s domain without making sacrifices as well.


    ¡°Alright then, I will make that promise. We will leave her alone as long as she does note after us herself. Is that alright with you? Now drop the domain.¡±


    Seraphina did drop the domain but with a reluctant expression on her face. And as soon as she felt it drop, she smelled something sweet in the air which made her feel weak.


    And then someone stabbed her and all Seraphina felt was pain.

 Chapter 225 225: End of an era [pt2]

    ¡°Y-You? How did youe in here without me notice-¡°


    The knife inside Seraphina¡¯s chest was twisted and then pulled out in an instant. She gasped, trying to reach back toward the woman who had dared to touch her but her hand passed through her body.


    The non-solid body looked and felt like air as Seraphina¡¯s hand passed through her but even the magic she used was not enough to help her grasp the person behind the illusion.


    ¡°Finally you¡¯re here. What took you so long? She was pushing us past our limits here.¡±


    Zoe sounded annoyed at Asami¡¯sining tone before she turned toward Clove as well. Clove had taken her sweet time outside.


    ¡°Me? I was just trying to capture our other target and it took quite a while to secure that package. But it looks like you had everything under control here.¡±


    The cave was a mess. The walls were showing signs of having been abused by something sharp and even the floor had broken parts of swords lying all around them.


    But the most prominent sign of the deterioration was the specs of blood Zoe and Asami had shed throughout the battle.


    Their bodies might have healed in the end but that did not mean that they were alright. Fighting Seraphina had taken a lot out of them.


    ¡°Man, this sucks. Who knew fighting another goddess while trying to hold back would be this tiring? We could not even go all out because that would have increased the chances of Seraphina¡¯s core going out of control.¡±


    Asami sounded anything but tired even after having won the fight. The smoke and that sweet scent that was filling up the room was something that she was not immune to either.


    Both she and Zoe had taken precautions beforehand to prevent themselves from inhaling too much smoke. But prevention could not substitute for the cure they currentlycked.


    ¡°Step aside. I will harvest Seraphina¡¯s core-¡°


    Clove¡¯s hand hovered right over the unconscious goddess¡¯s chest as she reached out into it.


    On the other side, Zoe already held Mei¡¯s core close to her chest and tried to feel any power in it. But it did not respond to her.


    And it would not respond to her until it was contained in another body. A core was dormant outside of its host and trying to use it forcefully would cause it to explode.


    Clove diverted her eyes from what Zoe was doing to what she was supposed to do. The chest beneath her hand was letting out rigid breaths.


    ¡®This is not good. I need to stabilize her now or Serpahina¡¯s core would rebel against the introduction.¡¯


    The chest beneath Clove¡¯s hands was letting out a rigid breath. It was difficult to tell how long she wouldst at this rate.


    Normally it would not have been a problem but it was in this case. Her injuries were causing Seraphina¡¯s fight-or-flight instincts to begin acting up.


    Unlike the other gods, Serpahina¡¯s survival instincts never went out since she was living an unsafe life. That was what made her the worst and also the easiest goddess to start their harvest with.


    Clove dug her hand deeper inside Seraphina¡¯s chest but she retreated her hand as soon as it touched the core. The static she felt warned her to not even try.


    But still, Clove knew she could not sit ideal and allow the core to do what it wanted with her. She needed to show her dominance with it and demand the respect she deserved.


    She needed the core to ept her.


    ¡°Zoe, get the first aid kit ready. I feel like my burn would not heal on its own.¡±


    Since it was a burn that was given to Clove by the effect of divine power, it would naturally not heal as fast as it should otherwise.


    But Clove at least hoped that she could pull the core out in exchange for her injury. She warped her hands around the core and pulled.


    The core budget just a little before it threw Clove back with a vengeful force. That force caused Clove to see double for some time.


    ¡°Clove, what¡¯s wrong? Did the core note out? Should I try-¡°


    ¡°No, don¡¯t. The core was triggered just now so we should not be foolish and force it out. For now, let¡¯s go back to what we have. We cane back for this coreter.¡±


    Asami was the one who proposed this deal. For the first time since Clove had known her, there was no smile on her face.


    ¡°You can¡¯t be serious. It took us a lot of time and effort to get her out this once and you want us to do that againter on? It would be just better to risk killing her and having her core explode.¡±


    Zoe did have a point in saying that. Seraphina was a force to be reckoned with and she would be extremely dangerous if she was left unchecked.


    But at the same time, no one wanted to travel with an unstable core that could go off anytime. It was not only a liability but also a security threat.


    ¡°I understand your concern but if Seraphina¡¯s core goes off, so would Mei¡¯s and ours. These cores have a resonating frequency that will end up killing us all if we are not careful with what we are doing.¡±


    Asami¡¯s voice sounded experienced and that was what made Clove finally listen to her.


    They were carrying Aurora¡¯s unconscious body back with them as well and an unstable core would be a problem for her.


    The only way to make things safe would be to ce this core inside Aurora¡¯s body for safekeeping and then proceed back.


    But that was a problem in itself because it would put unnecessary strain on Aurora¡¯s body as a result.


    ¡°Fine, let¡¯s leave Seraphian alone for now. I have a feeling she wille after us herself to retrieve something precious we stole from her. We cany out a trap for her then.¡±


    ¡°And we will also have certified help in regards to this from our benefactor. See, it would be a win-win situation for everyone.¡±


    Asami finished Clove¡¯s words with a happy smile. She finally seemed to be going back to her usual mask of being a goofy joker.


    Zoe seemed to be the only one who had a problem with this but even she sighed and agreed in the end.


    She had nothing more to say or to add to what these fools were saying. If they were confident with their decisions then Zoe would not be a burden for them.


    ===========================


    Seraphina was barely conscious when she felt her three attackers leave the cave with Mei¡¯s core. The only one Seraphina had known the identity of was Asami.


    But for Asami to agree to participate in this scenario was a big deal. As far as Seraphina knew, Asami didn¡¯t even listen to Minerva most of the time.


    And then there was the problem of who thatst attacker who had tried to take Seraphina was. The only remarkable thing about her was the presence of a semi-core in her body.


    Seraphina would have taken her as a simr existence to Aurora if not for that half-formed core¡¯s familiarity. Feeling its presence was an experience in itself.


    ¡°It¡¯s all too much. What happened here¡ªMei, Mei are you alright?¡±


    Seraphina¡¯s body protested her sudden desire to move around. Her core did not feel like it was in the right position and that sweet scent from before was still persistent in the air.


    But Seraphina still forced her body to move and reach Mei¡¯s unconscious body.


    ¡°Mei, are you alive? Tell me you are alright?¡±


    Fear gripped Seraphina¡¯s body as she felt the cold and limp body in her grasp. Mei looked far too fragile and tired to be alright. She was lying cold and limp in Serpahina¡¯s arms as if she was dead.


    ¡®Is this a joke? Tell me this is a joke. But even if this is a joke, it¡¯s not even funny.¡¯


    Breath became difficult after that. Seraphina¡¯s vision blurred as she tried to make sense of what to do next.


    She was not apt at healing magic and Mei no longer had a core. It would not be long before Mei eventually kicked the bucket for good.


    ¡®I cannot allow that to happen. Mei cannot die. Anyone but her.¡¯


    Seraphina felt the grief overwhelming her. Mei was one person she had not minded in this world after she had felt abandoned by the world.


    She had been so young and the only one her age in the same boat had been Mei. They had shared something special between them that no one else had.


    Seraphina could still remember the first time she had met Mei all that time ago. It had been such a happy time when they had no other worry than to live another day.


    It had been eight of them back then and it had been such happy times.

 Chapter 226 226: Me and her

    ¡°From today onwards, you all will be thest line of earth¡¯s defense against this invasive parasite. If you have anything else to say, do it now. I will hear nothing from today onwards.¡±


    The eight-year-old girl looked back at the scarred man in front of him. He was rough looking and his eyes had a mean look in them.


    Seeing his stare pointed at her made the child back down and hid behind the taller woman¡¯s legs.


    The taller green-haired woman was a family friend who had volunteered for this service when she had heard that Seraphina had been selected. It was a pure coincidence that the woman had been able to make it this far.


    ¡°Hey, I have a question. I can understand why you took me in during this experiment but isn¡¯t this kid too young? She had not even hit her teen years yet. Surely you cannot allow her to participate as well.¡±


    The speaker had been a rtively young girl. When Seraphina had first seen her, the other girl had been full of life and fighting for what she believed.


    Well, in this case, it was to get Seraphina out of doing something dangerous but the thought was still the same.


    The reassuring smile that the young teen shed toward Seraphina was something the goddess remembered even until this day.


    ¡°Nonsense. Do you know how rare it is to find someone like you people who arepatible with the energy signatures we found? Out of a billion people, only seven were selected. How can we let you go.¡±


    At that time, Seraphina had not realized that these would be the words that would seal her fate. She had been naive and had thought of herself as special.


    Even if the aunt behind her had gone stiff, Seraphina had not thought much of it at that time. Life had been so simple back then that it was funny to even think about it.


    ¡°Still, at least go easy on her and don¡¯t cut off on her food supply as you do for the rest of us. The least you all could do is to feed us well if you want us to help you out.¡±


    Mei had been the only one to speak up back then. Maybe she thought that she had to speak up now or she would regret it, or she was the only one foolish enough to feel upset at what was happening.


    Anyway, that was the first day Seraphina had met Mei and that was also the first day she realized that something special had formed between the pair.


    Their second meeting happened a week after their first one. This time it was because Mei had been paired up with her that one time in training.


    And Seraphina¡¯s short legs had not been able to keep up with Mei¡¯s pace which caused her to fall.


    That was why Mei had decided to carry her on her back while he ran through the jungle course that had been set up.


    ¡°Ah, Seraphina you¡¯re awake? I was afraid that something bad happened to you and you hurt yourself badly. I¡¯m relieved to see that you finally woke up.¡±


    Seraphina had gone quiet at Mei¡¯s words, her tired eyes looking around before realizing where she was.


    As soon as the information about her current circumstances hit her, Seraphina hid her face in the back of Mei¡¯s neck.


    She had no heart to look up and see Mei¡¯s face.


    ¡°Are you alright now? Can you walk now?¡±


    Seraphina had nodded back then, too mortified to say anything more. Mei had looked Looking back, they were much lessplicated times. Mei and Seraphina didn¡¯t have to give their actions any thought. Back then, events just happened spontaneously.


    And now? Things had changed now. This was the exact opposite of how horrible it had been in the abyss when they had parted ways and Seraphina had discovered her frailty.


    The two girls had been fighting against one another in the monster-hunting tournament on that happy day when they came into the hallowed domain.


    Seraphina had all but exhausted her core in that special space, her focus not on the fight but on the small child her aunt had left behind.


    Asami was someone Seraphina did not understand. The child wished to be human when they were more than that. Seraphina could not understand why that was.


    However, Mei seemed to understand Asami and even took her said back then.


    What was that she had said?


    ¡®The sadness of losing someone is very painful. That child lives in a time different from us so her needs are different as well. It is not something we can understand.¡¯


    And it had taken Seraphina a long time toe to terms with it. By the time she had, she had already left the tower behind.


    ¡°S-Seph, are you there?¡±


    Mei¡¯s weak voice assaulted Seraphina¡¯s senses and she instantly looked at the pained face below her.


    Mei was as white as a ghost currently but she was alive. She was alive and talking.


    But she won¡¯t be talking for a long time. Even now Seraphina could feel her life bleeding away from her body.


    The thing was, gods and goddesses live a long life because of their magic and their core. Mei could not currently sustain herself properly and her body would start to degrade without her core.


    ¡°Seph, you s-surviv-ed? I¡¯m g-d to s-ee t-ha-t. L-ist-en, l-ive a g-good l-ife and g-go ba-ck. T-he-y a-ll mi-ss y-ou.¡±


    ¡®How is that ¡®all¡¯ you are talking about? Karan and Minerva didn¡¯t evene to seek me out even when they knew where I was. Asami betrayed me and ra is dead. And n, he is a coward. You are the only one who even tried to see me.¡¯


    In the start, Mei made an effort to mend their rtionship. Be it fighting orpetition, she had tried everything to ignite the fire in Seraphina.


    And it had worked for a while. Seraphina had let her anger control her moves at first and fought Mei a few times.


    But it did not take long for even that to be meaningless. The more Seraphina tried to hold on, the more she lost.


    In the end, she could not even hold on to her own body and had to follow the will dedicated by the abyss.


    ¡°G-Go b-ac-k¡±


    Mei said that but Seraphina could tell that she would not survive for long. Her body had started to break down as well.


    Her core had dislodged from its ce a while back which meant that there was no proper supply of magic in Seraphina¡¯s system now.


    She would die in a matter of days.


    ¡®But before that, I will take revenge. Those bastards won¡¯t know what hit them once I am through with them.¡¯


    ¡°L-ive a f-ull-flin-g l-li-fe.¡±


    Those were thest words Seraphina ever heard from Mei¡¯s mouth and her eyes felt warm and wet.


    ¡°Huh, what¡¯s that? Tears? I was not even sure if my body could even produce them anymore.¡±


    Seraphina had not cried in a long time now but these tears refused to stop falling down her face. A cry was building up in her throat that could no longer be contained.


    ¡°Fulfilling life? Yes, I would live a happy and fulfilling life by taking my revenge. I did not want to drag the others in it but I will no longer be considerate. Everything will burn in this world.¡±


    The world was painted in a thin film of red. It was her anger that was making Seraphina see red.


    The abandoned child inside her was crying for the loss of a sister she had driven away and it was casing the magic to flux around the valley.


    Outside the valley, Zoe turned back toward the site where they had left their target with a forlorn look. She was the only one who was worried as well.


    ¡°Is it really alright to leave things as they are?¡±


    ¡°Who said that we are leaving things as they are? Of course, we have a back-up n and Asami is making sure it is carried out. We don¡¯t need to worry about it that much.¡±


    Clove looked confident in the other goddess but Zoe could still not help but be worried. Asami was not someone Zoe would have chosen to trust in the first ce. But she had because of ra.


    And now that they were all in the same boat, she had to trust Asami to not screw them over.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry that much. The one who wants this n to go through the most is Asami. She won¡¯t be foolish enough to let her emotions get in the way.¡±


    Clove assured Zoe and that did bring a little ease to Zoe¡¯s mind.


    Well, they were all in the same boat now and had the same support. All Zoe could do now was to believe in her chosen partners. This was the path to the end she had chosen after all so she had to hold it in until the very end.

 Chapter 227 227: Cards of fate

    ¡°Wahhhh, it had been such a long time since I saw children be so carefree in such a big festival area. Seeing all this makes me want to destroy it so that I no longer have to keep looking at all these happy faces.¡±


    Asami walked through the various stalls of the festival, her eyes picking up on the different events taking ce.


    She was currently in the post-battle festival area of the inter-academy matches. The area was easy to ess for those who held a proper invite.


    And luckily for Asami, she knew Clove who had an invite. That was how her entry had been permitted.


    ¡°Now let¡¯s see. The children I am supposed to pick up have peculiar star-shaped pupils. I wonder if I will be able to find them in this crown. What should I do now?¡±


    Asami had a task to do. She had to ensure that they had backup against Seraphina when she attacked. But the only possible option left for that was her children.


    Initially, Zoe had been the one chosen toe in here and take the children away but that had changed for obvious reasons.


    ¡°As expected, I am the better choice when ites to festivals. And I also have a great idea of how to go about attracting attention. Now, let¡¯s see where the sign-up booth is and how¡¯s in charge of it.¡±


    Asami could have simply attacked and taken the children by force but that would be a dead giveaway of her intentions. It could also cause them a lot of trouble in the future.


    Plus, the longer their side could keep their silence from the tower, the better it would be for them.


    The event sign-up booth was located on the right side of the fair. It was rather spacious and have a tired-looking face stationed as the over-looker.


    ¡°Hello, I would like to submit a form to-¡°


    ¡°Set up a tent here. Sure, go ahead and fill up the form. You will get your permission by the end of the day at the earliest. Hope you have a good day ahead.¡±


    The man didn¡¯t even look toward Asami as he pointed toward the mountain of paperwork he had at his side.


    This was rather careless of the Rocx academy to permit but Asami counted it as a lucky strike in her favor. She didn¡¯t even have to charm the man to get her work done.


    ¡°Should I just leave it here?¡±


    ¡°Sure, leave it right there and I will get to it.¡±


    Asami folded the paper and inserted it into a small yellow folder. She also sneaked her magic card into the folder along with the paper for extra security measures.


    If nothing else worked, then a little illusion magic would be perfect to get around any restrictions and limitations Asami would be facing.


    ¡°What are you staring at me for? Don¡¯t you have work to do right now?¡±


    The man did not look up once again but Asami let out a fond chuckle. This was so much like the days she hated to remember. The atmosphere of this festival took her back to her childhood days.


    She quickly gave a small bow to the person who was processing all that paperwork before she joined the ordinary masses in the street.


    ¡°Now then, what should I do for the rest of the day? Should I start looking around? Maybe I should take a child¡¯s form as well. I don¡¯t want to be recognized easily.¡±


    Asami did not show her face often in public. But she was still a goddess and it was easy to recognize her once you saw her.


    As such, Asami did not want to take the risk of being spotted and then end up in an awkward position.


    She denied herself appearing nearly fifteen years old. This was an age no one had seen her being except the other goddesses. The chances of her being recognized were close to zero right now.


    Asami had not taken ten steps after that when her gaze fell on the old stone stall in the corner. There was only one other person in the stall who was ying that game.


    But it was not a game that was yed solo. Nor did people of this time remember such a game.


    The person who had set up the stall must be ancient to remember this game. And Asami found her feet unconsciously moving in that direction.


    ¡°Hi, are you here to try out my gaming stall? It¡¯s a pity that I am not very popr today.¡±


    The female who was sitting behind the counter had a sharp gaze and her eyes gave Asami an ufortable feeling.


    Still, Asami did not shy away from the stall she had found herself in front of. Her hand hovered over the stones and she picked up a small but smooth one.


    ¡°That will be 10 points per game. You need to pay up now since you already touched the stone.¡±


    Asami could have been the person whoined about ¡®just touching¡¯ and the shopkeeper being unreasonable, but she did not.


    Or rather, she *could* not do that. The warning bells in her mind were going off right then and Asami just paid the points that had been required of her.


    ¡®Thank god I converted some money into points beforehand. I would have looked like a fool otherwise.¡¯


    The shopkeeper shuffled the stones and Asami yed the game as intended. The more she yed, the more her memory about it came back.


    But despite all that, Asami did lose in the end. It was not until she started the game did she realize that there was now a way the shopkeeper could lose in this game.


    ¡°You yed a good game. Would you like me to read a fortune for you in return for you trying my game out?¡±


    Asami was initially going to deny that but then she paused and nodded. What was the harm in following along with this small prank anyway?


    Asami could read a little into the future as well but she could not read her future. However, letting other people try to read it for her was fun as well.


    She expected the shopkeeper to take out her card deck and begin shuffling but that did not happen.


    Instead, the shopkeeper just smiled at her before pointing toward Asami¡¯s side pocket.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry to ask this of you but can I borrow your deck instead? I don¡¯t have my deck with me and I am too tired to go back for it.¡±


    Asami held her hand on top of her deck, her eyes narrowing in warning as soon as she heard what the other said.


    ¡°How did you know I carried around a deck of reading cards with me? Don¡¯t tell me that I have a stalker! Oh my! How will I ever deal with it.¡±


    Asami was looking forward to the response. This would decide how she would deal with this situation.


    Did she need to shut this person¡¯s mouth right now? Or could she let her go?


    But despite everything Asami thought, she never thought that she would hear the stall ownerugh out loud at Asami¡¯s words before leveling her with an amused stare.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing like that. You just emit unusual energy that I thought looked familiar. You don¡¯t have to be so defensive with me here. We are in the same boat.¡±


    Despite hearing this, Asami did not rx. But she did take out her deck of cards and held it out to the shopowner.


    She kept an eye on that shopowner that whole time to ensure that nothing out of the ordinary happened. And nothing did happen.


    The shopkeeper took the cards that were offered to her and shuffled them. Then she picked out two cards and held them out to Asami.


    ¡°Here, I did a reading. You can read them and interpret them yourself since I need to get going. Hope everything goes well for you during this festival.¡±


    The shopkeeper stood up but she did turn toward Asami to level her with onest look.


    ¡°Oh, and remember. The east exit is always empty around midnight time. It might make things easier for you in the long run.¡±


    Asami froze, her hands stopping their reach toward the cards that had been kept face down on the table.


    ¡°Hey, wait-¡°


    But thedy with silver hair and slit pupils was gone. All that was left behind were two cards on the table.


    Asami debated whether to pick them up or not. She was curious but it was not enough to make her forget to be careful.


    ¡®Well, fuck it. I guess I would check it out at least.¡¯


    Asami turned the card upside down.


    Despair and forgiveness, huh? Quite abo it makes.


    ¡°Now then, I shoukd probably forget this ever happened. Not that I would see thedy again so I don¡¯t have anything to fear.¡±


    Asami needed to focus on her target, not on the meaningless struggles of others.

 Chapter 228 228: A successful Kidnap? [pt1]

    ¡°I think I should have reported someone who is here to create chaos but since Lady Asami gave me such a special gift I think I would forgive her. It is not every day one gets toy their hands on a goddess¡¯s corps.¡±


    Ava walked through the uneven cave where Mei¡¯s dead bodyy.


    The body no longer belonged to a young and vibrantdy buty between a sword formation and was not old and withered. It was a pity to see her in such a state when the goddess had been so full of spirits just a moment before.


    ¡°Such a pity that not even your hair survived once your core was removed. You are in such a sorry state. But don¡¯t worry, I will help you fix it.¡±


    ¡°After all, you are a very important specimen for me.¡±


    Avaid her hand on Mei¡¯s dead chest and light shot out from her body. It surrounded Mei¡¯s dead body and slowly it recovered to its former state.


    There was not a single w on that beautiful face left but there was no life in that body either. It was just a well-rested corps.


    Well, that was until Ava opened her hand and threads came out. They were no ordinary threads as well, but webs made up of special enzymes.


    Mei¡¯s skin darkened once it came into contact with the threads but she could no longer make any moment to save herself.


    Slowly, those threads entered her body and her arm began to move. Mei¡¯s eyes opened as well but there was neither light in them, nor any recognition.


    ¡°Wee back my dead puppet. I am so d to see that you managed to stay intact throughout the process. I knew saving this card woulde in handy in the future.¡±


    Ava sounded delighted to see Mei waking up. And why should she not be when she had a very powerful puppet in her hand?


    Not only was it good for Ava to have a former goddess in her collection but it would also serve as a big surprise factor for everyer on.


    ¡°Now then, what should we do with your dear little friend, Seraphina now? She¡¯s going down a warpath she has no hope of winning and her opponents are not people I am concerned about. But they did take Aurora away which could be a problem for me.¡±


    Mei¡¯s hand moved to touch Ava¡¯s shoulder but her expression was still nk.


    ¡°Ah, so you are saying that I should not worry about it? I see that you are worried about me. It makes me so happy.¡±


    Ava ced her hand right on top of Mei¡¯s in a mockery of kindness. The dead person could neither feel her emotions nor hear her voice.


    This was no more than a show or a y put up by one person for their own entertainment.


    ¡°What is that? We should go back home now? Alright, I am missing home as well but we should wait a little longer for Asami to do what she wanted to. I wonder if she ended up taking my advice. She will meet someone entertaining if she did.¡±


    Ava did not have a habit of meddling in things outside of the abyss. But it was no longer possible for her to sit back and watch everything happen either.


    Especially when things were getting so interesting and two of the twelve holders had already been killed.


    It was only a matter of time before everyone else would be dragged down into this abyss as well and will be forced to participate in a survival game.


    But why did it even matter when the abyss had already chosen a winner?


    ¡°Let¡¯s go back and wait for our turn next. I want to enjoy my life to the fullest.¡±


    Ava kissed Mei lightly on the lips but the puppet did not respond. No puppet ever did when Ava did these things to them. They did not have feelings or emotions.


    They were just like Ava and that was why she felt sorry for them.


    ___________________________


    ¡°Ugh, I cannot wait, it took me so long to set up my stall. I wish I could just use my magic and be done with it. Why did I have to pretend to be human right now? It is not fun.¡±


    Asamiined about it but she was having fun. The fair was making her forget why she had been here in the first ce.


    But the happyughter surrounding her was breaking that illusion of peace for Asami and dragging her back into the mission.


    ¡®I guess I will get to harvest magic again. These kids should have a good amount of magic because of their upbringing.¡¯


    ¡°E-Excuse me but is your stall open right now? I am interested in it.¡±


    The kids had started to flock around Asami already, their beady eyes looking over the colorful decorations that lined the wall.


    It was also familiar to Asami. This made it easier to approach the kids and reel them in.


    She could even see her target girl in her line of sight. The star-shaped patterns were so obvious that Asami didn¡¯t even have to look around for them.


    ¡°This game is really simple. Just knock over all the balls and you will win a prize.¡±


    Asami handed the ball over to the eager kids but none of them would be able to knock these balls down. Asami¡¯s magic prevented that from happening unless she wanted it to.


    Was it a dishonest practice? Of course. But Asami was not about to get caught up.


    After all, who would even be able to prove that she was cheating? Her magic was undetectable.


    ¡®It¡¯s fun to con people. Especially unsuspecting children since they get triggered andpetitive so easily.¡¯


    ¡°Hey, let me try it out. I feel like something fishy is going on here.¡±


    The ck-haired kid had a particr aura around him. Theck of magic he supported made Asami¡¯s senses stand up and she instantly let her magic go.


    The ball tower came trembling down at the ck-haired child¡¯s shot.


    ¡°Wow Damian, you won this! As expected of the ace of Rocx academy. I am sure brother Alexander will be happy to see you seed.¡±


    ¡®So this is the ounder I was told about? He is really young but I can see how he would be a problem in the future. His ability to cancel out magic can be a threat to me. Should I eliminate him now?¡¯


    Asami was about to make her move when she felt her target approach. That sobered her right up and she instantly held her temper back.


    She could not let herself go right now. Not until there was no other problem.


    ¡°Damian, you did it. Which toy are you going to choose? Will you give it to my brother? Or keep it?¡±


    Emily was a talkative child and bubbly as well. She looked nothing like the reports said her to be.


    Her shyness was nowhere to be seen.


    ¡°You can have the gift if you want to since I don¡¯t need it. Are you happy now? Now can you leave me alone and stop following me?¡±


    ¡®Perfect. I don¡¯t need to even make this game winnable for my target and cause amotion.¡¯


    Things had taken an unexpected turn but Asami was not sad about it. Instead, she was delighted to see that things were going her way for once.


    ¡°Wah, will you give it to me? Thank you. I will say a few good words about you to my brother.¡±


    ¡°There is no need to¨Cforget it. It¡¯s not like you will listen to me anyway.¡±


    The ck-haired child spoke badly. The children around him looked used to this bickering anyway and they didn¡¯t even bat an eysh.


    ¡°So, who is going to be next?¡±


    Sufficient to say that no one else won a game that evening. Not even the most talented of people could beat Asami in a game that she had full control over.


    And they left the stall with tearful looks and threats of ¡®we¡¯ll report you for fraud.¡¯ But Asami was far from worried since she would be dipping out anyway.


    The sun had all but set in the sky and the effect of the magic amulet should be kicking in any second now.


    Soon, that girl Emily would walk out here on her own and apany Asami back to the south.


    Asami could already make out the silhouette of that girl from the corner of her eyes. She had already crossed the threshold.


    But surprisingly enough, she was not alone. There was another child with her who had simr star-shaped pupils and a familiar face.


    ¡®Well, this is a surprise. I only got the report saying that there was one child, not two of them, and even twins at that. This makes things interesting for sure.¡¯


    ¡°Well, hello there. Where did youe from and what is your name? Don¡¯t be afraid of me, I am just a small-time merchant. You can call me Asami.¡±

 Chapter 229 229: A successful Kidnap? [pt2]

    ¡°Well, hello there. Where did youe from and what is your name? Don¡¯t be afraid of me, I am just a small-time merchant. You can call me Asami.¡±


    Asami extended her hand out toward the boy who has apanied his sister. The zed-over look in the girl¡¯s eyes was a clear indicator of her being under a strong influence.


    The locket that was warped around her neck shined with a light red glow which indicated that she was currently dreaming and her body was being controlled.


    But that was not something her brother was going to know just yet. Especially not with the weak magical aura he had.


    ¡°What are you doing here? What do you want with my sister? Why did shee out to meet you in the middle of the night?¡±


    ¡®Kid, you need to slow down your questions. Do you think I want to answer you if keep on behaving like this?¡¯


    Asami¡¯s thoughts were not in the children¡¯s favor but she only smiled outwardly. She did like people who tried to go beyond their station and achieve something more.


    But that was only when the person they were trying to go against was not her.


    ¡°So, your sister came out to meet someone suspicious in the middle of the night and you decided to follow her without calling for help? Aren¡¯t you over-estimating yourself a lot here?¡±


    The kid took a step back as Asami took a step ahead of him. She could see the fear in his eyes as he tried to pull his sister back.


    He was looking at Asami like she was out to kill him. And she might not have hesitated if the situation was a little different from this.


    ¡°Look kid, I have no beef with you or your sister. I just want your cooperation n some matter. I promise I will let you go as soon as I am done.¡±


    Asami was being generous by offering this. Kids were a hassle to deal with and Asami did not want to waste her time trying to convince a brat toe with her.


    ¡®I should have brought a second one in case of an emergency. I never thought I would have to hold back my powers like this.¡¯


    Asami was a free spirit so this was almost a first for her to be like this. But she had to keep on reminding herself that this was for the mission and nothing else.


    ¡°I don¡¯t trust you. Did the tower send you here? Are the after my sister?¡±


    ¡°Kid, I don¡¯t need to answer any of your questions. Come with me while I¡¯m being nice or you will find yourself in a difficult situation.¡¯


    But the kid still did not seem to be in the same boat as her. It was giving Asami a small headache and she just decided to knock the child out.


    The child must be sensitive to magic because he went down quite easily. There was no resistance in his body.


    Asami picked up the boy first before extending her hand toward the girl with a nk look in her eyes.


    The magic of the pendent was still holding up quite nicely but it was not  Asami¡¯s specialty to make it. Any form of disruption would make it copse.


    And that disruption came in the form of a small body catapulting itself between Asami and the girl.


    ¡°I knew you looked fishy. So you are trying to kidnap someone from our academy? Are you from the tower?¡±


    It was the kid without any magic. The one who had won the stall game Asami had set up and had confused Asami¡¯s magical senses.


    ¡°Kid, go back. I don¡¯t have time for you and you won¡¯t be able to handle me either.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll see about it.¡±


    The kid did not take Asami¡¯s warning seriously. Despite all odds, he attacked Asami and she had to make a visible effort.


    His hand was covered by a weird glove-like device that rendered Asami¡¯s attacks useless but anything other than that was free range.


    The kid managed to cover the distance between Asami and himself in a short while but Asami was not worried.


    Why was she not worried about the kid breaching her defenses? It was a simple matter.


    ¡°You are a good kid but there is too much difference between your body and mine. I don¡¯t need magic to take care of you.¡±


    Asami knocked the boy out by kneeing him in the stomach. She was not cruel enough to rapture his organs but she did make sure that it hurt a lot.


    The kid won¡¯t be able to keep himself awake for a long time.


    ¡°W-Wait! Where are you taking Joseph.¡±


    ¡®Wow, he¡¯s still conscious? This kid sure is something.¡¯


    Asami had never seen a kid this determined to keep himself awake before. Had the situation been different, Asami would have taken the kid under her wing in a heartbeat.


    Too bad that they were enemies now and Asami had to make sure that the kid didn¡¯t be a problem to her in the future. With another blow, the kid was knocked out cold.


    ¡®Too bad for him. I was interested to see how well the kid did in the future.¡¯


    It was a shame but what could one do? The kid had already lost consciousness and Asami wanted to get going.


    The girl was alreadying around now, the illusion losing its potency on her body and her wide eyes looking back at Asami with fear in them.


    ¡°Ugh, why did you have to gain consciousness now of all times? I cannot believe I missed my timing.¡±


    And to think that she had even taken that weird stall owner¡¯s advice to use the back gate. It seemed like she had been scammed.


    ¡®A scammer getting scammed? Who would have thought.¡¯


    Asami did not find the situation funny.


    ¡°W-Who are you? Why are you carrying Joseph on your shoulder like that?¡±


    Emily was awake and her eyes were fearful yet determined to save her brother.


    ¡°Yes, I would like to know who you are as well. Since you managed to get past our defenses then you cannot be any ordinary person either. Why don¡¯t you and I sit down and talk.¡±


    ¡®Ugh, they just keep oning. Just where are these people popping up from? I thought this was supposed to be a deserted area?¡¯


    A quick in and out of the mission was what Clove had said to Asami. What a load of bullcrap it had been.


    Ever since Asami had stepped into this carnival nothing good had happened.


    ¡°Well, would you look at the time? I should get going now. It was not nice to meet you all.¡±


    The unnamed man attacked Asami. He was much faster than anyone she had met including Seraphina and his swing was really precise.


    She quickly took out her stored power to create a shield around herself to deflect his attack but the man managed to pierce her shield.


    A human had managed to surpass a goddess¡¯s magic.


    ¡°Oi, are you even human? How the heck did you do that?¡±


    Asami asked, her voice full of awe. Never had she seen such a marvel of human power in front of her eyes.


    ¡®This man, he¡¯s fascinating. I want to find out more about him and how his mind works.¡¯


    Asami had never been this interested in a human before. Her eyes were all but sparkling with a need to know more.


    ¡°Alexander, be careful. She had my brother hostage in her arms. We need to be careful if we want to avoid hurting him.¡±


    Emily was finally fully conscious and had taken note of what happened. There was a fear in her eyes that only came when one was on the verge of losing someone precious to them.


    In this case, it was her brother.


    ¡°Got it. Emily, go back with Damian and call Rex and others here. We cannot take a goddess down on our own but we can stall for help toe our way.¡±


    Now, this was irritating. Asami was sure that she had not done anything to give herself away but the man still sounded confident about her identity.


    The girl ran away as soon as she heard the man¡¯smand but she did look back to see her brother being carried in those foreign arms.


    ¡°Did you send that child back because you were too afraid that she would see you lose? Man, you sure are a crafty person.¡±


    The man looked taken aback at the address before understanding shed across his face.


    ¡°No, I didn¡¯t send Emily back because of that reason. I just wanted to get the children out of the way so that you could preserve your dignity after losing to me. Now, hand Jospeh over to me as well and then I can let you go.¡±


    The man did not look afraid of Asami at all. On the contrary, he looked bored to be facing her.


    ¡®Such a fascinating human. I guess he won¡¯t mind dying then.¡¯

 Chapter 230 230: A successful Kidnap? [pt3]

    ¡°Oh, are you awake now? You should sleep more because we are not quite back home yet. I will wake you up when it is time.¡±


    There was a thinyer of fog around Aurora¡¯s brain. She could hear and see things but could notprehend what they meant or how to associate them.


    She only knew that the voice talking to her was familiar andforting. And it was soothing Aurora¡¯s mind to hear it being spoken directly in her ear.


    Her eyes slipped shut again as the voice caressed her ear and the sweet smell rxed her more and more.


    ¡®I feel like I am forgetting something. I don¡¯t want to sleep, but the pull is so strong. I don¡¯t think I will be able to resist any longer.¡¯


    The sleep did im Aurora after that as her eyes slipped shut.


    All this while she did not even notice the two pairs of eyes watching her struggle. Nor did she feel those gentle hands pulling her closer or those jealous eyes observing this interaction.


    ¡°There is no need for you to personally out Lady Aurora to sleep. I am sure the incense we brew is potent enough to keep her under control for now.¡±


    Zoe sounded bitter as she suggested that. It hurt to see her precious Lady ra¡¯s reincarnation be this intimate with someone.


    Now, Zoe had known that her Lady already had a special someone before they had met. There had been a deliciousyer of grief covering her when they had first met. That was what had attracted Zoe to the newer goddess.


    But it had gradually evolved into something more and deeper. It had terrified Zoe to feel that since Overlookers were not supposed to have emotions.


    And it was not like Lady ra had been ready for something new as well. She had been recovering from the loss of her first love.


    By the time Zoe had bided enough courage to confront her feelings, she had lost Lady ra for good.


    And she had vowed to help out Lady ra¡¯s reincarnation if she ever got the chance to and fate had smiled at her. But it had also dealt her with a losing hand.


    To be faced with something she longed for but could not have was a tough and silly feeling at the same time. It made Zoe feel weak and helpless.


    ¡°I know there is no need for me to soothe Aurora but I want to soothe her. I missed being with her like this but I know it would not happen again. If this is the only time I can be with Aurora like this then I would ept it with grace.¡±


    Clove had a bitter smiling face when she said that. It was taking a lot out of her to get those words out.


    She had never thought that things would end like this when she initiated her n. Aurora was someone who was not supposed to be caught up in this mess.


    But she had and Clove could not help but feel like it was all her fault.


    ¡°Don¡¯t beat yourself over it. Things need to get worse before they can get good. If Aurora cannot understand that then she is not worth your time.¡±


    ¡®She¡¯s not worth your period. Didn¡¯t she choose those other people over you? How can you sit this calmly and say that nothing happened?¡¯


    Zoe knew that these thoughts were the result of her unjust jealousy toward Aurora. She did not like the fact that Clove was paying this much attention to that mutant.


    Why did ra have to meet Aurora before meeting Zoe? It did not feel fair or even worth it to change ra¡¯s heart but Zoe had no other choice.


    Love was an irrational emotion that did not leave one much of a choice or free will.


    ¡°I won¡¯t beat myself over things I cannot control. And I also have Zoe to help me so I don¡¯t feel as bad or lonely as I should. I cannot believe how lucky I got despite all that happened.¡±


    ¡®Don¡¯t smile at me like that or you will end up giving me hope. I do not want to have any more hope since I know your heart is not mine.¡¯


    Zoe wanted to yell it all out, but she did not. She did not want to show her undignified side to Lady ra¡¯s reincarnation.


    Nor did she want to make things difficult between them.


    ¡°Then, I shall take my leave now. I need to send the message back to the south about what happened here. We should not keep them wondering when we will be back.¡±


    ¡°Sure, do what you have to. Once we go back, we can finally start preparing for the uing mess. I heard that we might get a guest soon as well.¡±


    Zoe bowed before she left the room. Her brain was full of thoughts and feelings she should not be having.


    Clove watched her leave with an empty smile and an innocent face before it all slipped off from her face.


    ¡°I know how you feel about me Zoe, but I cannot return your feelings. I already made my choice a long time ago and now even love cannot stop me.¡±


    Aurora let out a tired groan in Clove¡¯sp, her eyes furrowing over as if she was about to wake up.


    ¡°You need not worry. When you wake up next the world would be a different ce you will enjoy living in. I hope you don¡¯t miss us all too much then. This world is going to get a new beginning soon.¡±


    Clove had done it before but she had not been sessful fully. But now she had been given another chance by fate to make things right.


    And this time, she was not going to let this opportunity slip by her.


    ______________________________


    ¡°Have you had enough of this small fight? You should understand the difference between you and me by this point. You cannot even get out of my illusion without losing your way.¡±


    Asami taunted the human who was fighting inside her illusion. She had to admit that he was doing so much better than she had expected him to but he was a human in the end.


    There were things they were capable of and there were also limitations to his magical powers.


    And right now, he could not defeat Asami when it came to powers.


    ¡°You talk too much. Do you think you are the only one capable enough to manipte the abyss¡¯s massive powers? I have a link to it as well.¡±


    All of a sudden, the man¡¯s power level spiked. That instantaneous spike made Asami lose her focus and Alexnader managed to get a sessful attack in.


    His de gazed at Asami¡¯s face causing her to bleed but she managed to get out of the way in time.


    ¡°You dared to injure my face? Do you not care for your life?¡±


    ¡°My life? I do care about it and that is why I will take you down right here and now. I cannot allow a mad woman like you to roam the streets.¡±


    ¡°Madwoman? I am perfectly social and mentally stable. What would you know about me to make that im?¡±


    Asami was no longer that lost mad child from her childhood. She had managed to outgrow that phase and mature.


    She would not be ndered like that.


    ¡°Well, you set up a scam stall and then proceeded to kidnap a child. What can I call you if not a mad woman? If you were sensible then you would have turned yourself in.¡±


    ¡®T-This human dares to insult me like that? That¡¯s it, I am killing him.¡¯


    It no longer mattered to Asami that she needed to keep a low profile. She was going to crush this insect right here and now.


    And to add to the injury, she was not even going to sit around and watch it happen. It would be so overwhelming of a victory that she would not need to look back.


    ¡°Goodbye. I hope we never meet again.¡±


    A huge hat-like object dropped right on top of that man and he would be trapped inside an ultimate nightmare-like illusion.


    By the time he came out, he would have gone mad with everything he had dealt with and then he would be killed off by his people.


    Had she looked behind, she would have seen Alexander thaw his way out of that illusion and break free of her magic.


    But Asami just flew away, the wound on her face mending itself but not healingpletely. It had managed to leave asting scar.


    ¡®Darn that man. If only I could tear him to pieces for making me feel this way. I don¡¯t even know why I am getting this irritated over his words. They are not the first I have heard.¡¯


    A goddess did not need to feel emotions, but Asami had always felt too much, which was her w.

 Chapter 231 231: The meeting

    ¡°That woman sure had one hell of a temper. I felt like I would be burned alive just back there. Lucky that I had the system to protect me.¡±


    Alexander breathed a sigh of relief as he broke free of the illusion he had been trapped in. But it was not a mere illusion he had to face this time.


    He felt like his life was in danger back then. One wrong move and he would have be a toast because of the danger he put himself into.


    ¡®So lucky that I managed to get out without any trouble.¡¯


    Alexander had always had a stroke of luck in the most dangerous situations and this one was no different.


    ¡°I should contact Aurora and inform her of what happened. She did ask me to keep her up to date.¡±


    Alexander opened his system tab to contract Aurora but the tab under her name showed up as nk. It was not that she was not online, but there was no connection to her possible at all.


    It should only have been possible if Aurora was dead but Alexander could not believe that she had just died out of the blue.


    [Everyone, meet me in the central room. It is important to report as soon as you can.]


    The sender was Rex. The message had no pre-text of what it was about but Alexander had a feeling he knew what it was about.


    ¡°What kind of trouble did you end up causing Aurora? I hope it¡¯s not something too big.¡±


    Alexander had a n of his own but he would not put it above a friend¡¯s safety. So that was why he sighed and packed up his things. He had to go back now.


    The room only had a limited number of people inside. But the most prominent person in the room was the scared tower professor.


    Alexander had half a mind to look into his memories to know what had happened but he controlled himself.


    The truth of why they had been gathered here would be revealed soon.


    ¡°I would like to wee you all here but this is not an asion worth celebrating. I will be blunt with you about what happened here and what I saw.¡±


    Ava was the one heading the meeting. Alexander had never seen her this serious before but he could not take her mood at face value.


    The female gave him the creeps. There was something unnatural and fake about her every move but she was loyal to Aurora enough for Alexander to not say anything.


    ¡°It mighte as a shock to most of you but Lady Mei is dead. I presume that she was killed by an unknown organization in the south and Lady Seraphina went mad. Those same people also managed to get a hold of Aurora.¡±


    ¡°You ask us to believe this nonsense? Lady Mei is a goddess. There is no way she was just killed like that. Did you do something to her and are now making up excuses for your fault? where did you lock Lady Mei?¡±


    The maid that hade with the tower¡¯s representative looked mad with grief. Alexander would have had a simr time being in disbelief if he had not heard Aurora tell him about the overlooker¡¯s death.


    If a zoodiac could die then so could a goddess. They were humans, to begin with, and even Aurora had a lot of moments where she was vulnerable.


    If the tower was not willing to believe it then it was their problem. The Rocx academy had done its job in ensuring that the information reached the right party.


    ¡°You are free to believe what you want to, but we already informed your higher-ups of what happened. We have no more responsibility to bear.¡±


    Rex was relentless in speaking. The tower¡¯s representative looked pissed off at being made a fool out of but he hesitated before doing anything.


    He was a lowly henchman and even he had heard about what kind of monsters people of the Rocx academy were.


    ¡°S-Still, you don¡¯t think you can get away with doing all this? Lady Mei was a goddess and she was invaluable to the tower and -¡°


    ¡°Her death is regretful. But Mei was a goddess in the end. I doubt there was much these people could have done if our opponent was even able to kill off a goddess.¡±


    All senses in Alexander¡¯s body told him to not turn back and face that expressionless face. The power oozing off the elder body behind him made xender tense up.


    And he was not the only one who looked surprised to see Lady Minerva enter the fold. The tower¡¯s representative seemed just as much lost as everyone else.


    ¡°Lady Minerva, I thank you for responding to my letter anding here as soon as possible. Are you here alone?¡±


    The elder goddess nodded as she took a seat in the only vacant chair inside the room. Her mere presence seemed to have changed the atmosphere of the room a lot.


    The tower¡¯s representative looked like he did not know where to look at. Lady Minerva¡¯s re aimed at him also forced him to not respond.


    ¡°I felt Mei¡¯s death happen so I did not dy ining here. I also know that the child Aurora is missing. And so is Seraphina since her presence over her domain is thin. It does not look like things are well for your side.¡±


    Lady Minerva was a sharp woman. Alender had never seen someone catch up on the situation so fast.


    Moreover, her calm attitude of listening to them out instead of using them outright was also very different from the tower.


    One had to wonder how the tower became the ce it was currently with such a person in charge. It just did not seem right to think that.


    ¡°It was regretful that Mei died but I did notice something weird when I reached that cave. There was a weird energy in the cave that made me feel faint. It was blocking my powers from working properly so I was not able to save her body.¡±


    Alexander did not know why he felt like Ava was lying about something. She had a weird tone to her voice that put him on edge.


    He should not doubt his ally but he could not help like he was missing something right now.


    ¡°I see. It is regretful that this happened but we cannot do anything about it. So, where is her core? Did you manage to find it?¡±


    Lady Minerva did not beat around the bush when she asked that question. She looked straight at Ava when she asked it as well.


    Whether she was able to know if Ava lied to her or not was none of Alexander¡¯s business. He just wanted more information.


    ¡°It was not there. Whosoever managed to off Mei managed to get her core as well. And we all know who would be the one to benefit most from this mess.¡±


    Minerva had a thinking face before she stood up.


    ¡°Alright, the tower will cooperate in this raid on the south. But only because we cannot allow Mei¡¯s core to stay in those traitors¡¯ hands. Once we are done with this deal, let¡¯s never see each other again.¡±


    Lady Minerva had a really cold face and voice. It was a wonder how Ava didn¡¯t even flinch when she faced that look.


    Instead, she had a soft smile on her face as she faced Lady Minerva¡¯s hard eyes.


    ¡°Of course. We should head out tomorrow for our rescue mission then. As much as I want to wait, I and Aurora did have a contract to help each other out. I don¡¯t want to break it and face a bacsh.¡±


    ¡®Oh, I am sure it is much more than that. Aurora refuses to see what a snake you are and you are taking advantage of it.¡¯


    Alexander knew that Ava was not good for their group but he still kept her around just because Aurora wanted her to be around.


    But he would not make the mistake of trusting her too much. That mistake would get him killed off quite easily.


    ¡°Fine, we will cooperate for now. But I hope that you know what this means. I don¡¯t trust you and you should not trust me either.¡±


    Minerva left the scene and the tower¡¯s representative followed behind her. Ava had a hard smile on her face that concealed the boredom she felt.


    ¡°Ava, don¡¯t send away a potential alley for us. Can you not behave yourself for a few minutes?¡±


    Rex asked, his eyes pulled high up as he tried to alleviate his headache. It must be difficult for him to deal with Ava without Aurora around.


    ¡°Sorry, I slipped up. If that is all then I will go and find Rita. I am sure that child is having a hard time right now.¡±


    The overlooker left the room as well but not before she shared a sly look with Alexander which gave him the chills.


    ¡®She¡¯s nning something and I don¡¯t like it.¡¯


    Alexander hated sticky situations the most and now he could not help but be caught in one.

 Chapter 232 232: High emotions [pt1]

    The next time Aurora woke up, she was much more awake than before. She could even feel her arms and other parts of her body responding to hermand.


    The room she had been brought back to was vaguely familiar to her but Aurora had a hard time remembering where she had seen it before.


    ¡®Ugh, it¡¯s on the tip of my tongue. I just need to try harder to remember.¡¯


    Aurora was sure that she would be able to remember if she was given enough time to consider her situation. But she had been kidnapped and that made time luxury to her.


    The door to the room was locked shut with that weird anti-magic thing that was preventing Aurora from using her powers or her system.


    The person who had locked her in here must be really strong to be able to do this to a goddess.


    Well, either strong orpletely knowledgeable on how a goddess¡¯s powers worked. And that narrowed the list down a lot for Aurora.


    ¡°Ah miss, you are finally awake. Master was worried that you would not wake up for some time but we are happy to see you up and moving now.¡±


    The speaker was a shadow doll without features. The only thing remotely human about the doll was its shape.


    But still, Aurora could not help but feel a vague familiarity as she looked at the doll. She felt like she knew what the doll was and how it operated.


    Even the cold feeling of the doll¡¯s hand was familiar to Aurora in a way that this room had been ¨C a distant feeling of nostalgia.


    ¡°Since you are awake, we should get master here to meet you. Master was looking forward to this opportunity.¡±


    ¡°Hey, wait. At least tell me where I am being-¡°


    But the shadow doll did not listen to Aurora¡¯s words. Before she could finish speaking, the shadow doll dissolved into the ground and left just as quickly as it had arrived on the scene.


    Aurora tried to rx but the more she tried, the more on edge she got.


    Why was she here? What brought her to be kidnapped and why was Clove helping the opposition? Was this the tower¡¯s doing? It did not seem like the tower¡¯s style but one might never know.


    ¡®I need to take a chance as soon as the door opens. I just need to overpower my opponent on the other side and I will be able to run away without any problem.¡¯


    Aurora had a n brewing inside her head. She knew that a normal human won¡¯t be able to win against a goddess and that was what Aurora was banking on to get aplete victory.


    That was until the door opened up and a familiar face looked back at her.


    All of a sudden, all of these familiar dolls as well as the familiar room made sense to Aurora. There was a reason she felt like she knew them all.


    It was because she did know them all quite well.


    ¡°Hello, Aurora. It¡¯s been some time since west met but I can see that you went through something that changed you. Not that it matters much now since you are finally home.¡¯


    That voice and that face, it was engraved into Aurora¡¯s memories and she could not help but feel light-headed and scared.


    ¡®There is nothing to be scared of now. She¡¯s not who she used to be and I am also not who I used to be. I need to get myself to rx.¡¯


    Aurora¡¯s brain tried to calm her down but her body had other ideas. It was terrifying of seeing those familiar eyes locked down at her.


    Those eyes could see through Aurora¡¯s soul and nitpick even the smallest detail of how she was feeling.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Are you not going to greet your mother? One would think that I raised you to be an ungrateful adult.¡±


    Her mother¡¯s voice sounded as if Aurora had wronged her in a way. But Aurora knew that it was not true at all.


    Her mother was the one who had given up on Aurora. She had traded her only alive daughter and handed them to the tower to take care of.


    All because she did not believe that Aurora was talented enough to handle the family business.


    That was something Aurora resented her mother a lot at first before realizing how freeing it was to get out of that home¡¯s shadow.


    ¡®To think that I ended up here of all ces. How shameful for me.¡¯


    Aurora thought as her lips were pulled back into a snarl. She would prefer to be dead than to be here but she doubted that she would be allowed to just off herself.


    ¡°I don¡¯t consider you as a mother. Not after you threw me away like that. I want nothing to do with you in this life or the next.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s emotions were running high and making her speak up things she would not have otherwise. But she could not help herself either in this situation.


    The person in front of Aurora was someone she had always feltplex emotions toward and even now she did not know how to treat her mother.


    ¡°I know how you feel about me and what kind of misconceptions you might harbor toward me but I won¡¯t resent you for it. I just ask you to make yourselffortable for now and think your options through. You might find that things are not as bad as you make them out to be.¡±


    Her mother spoke those words in the same ridley pattern as she always had. Why did she not make the meaning of her words obvious, Aurora had no idea.


    But she did know that her mother was a dangerous person Aurora needed to stay away from.


    ¡°Enough of your word-ys. Why was I brought here? What are you nning on doing?¡±


    There was no point in asking all this of her mother but Aurora still held hope in her heart that her mother would answer her. But it seemed as if her hopes were meant to be dashed outright.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to know all the details of what I am nning, nor do you need to participate in my n. You just need to stay in this room and stay out of the way. So Aurora, behave yourself, or I will be forced to make you obey.¡±


    Aurora wanted to rebel but her body remembered the feeling of her mother¡¯s punishments. It froze at themanding tone her mother used and that was it.


    Aurora knew she had lost that round already but she was not bitter. She knew that her time woulde sooner orter anyway.


    ¡®It¡¯s not like my teammates will abandon me. At least Rex and Rita wille for me and so will Ava. I just need to trust them toe soon.¡¯


    ¡°I will leave you to your device now since I need to take care of our guests who will be arriving soon.¡±


    Her mother leveled Aurora with a look that clearly said to ¡®note out and embarrass me¡¯.


    Yeah, nothing had changed from that time Aurora had managed to run away from this ce. She was still stuck in the past and had not even realized it yet.


    ¡°Oh, and also. Your friend will be visiting you in the evening so do be ready. She¡¯s been a big help to me all this time so I will approve of her. But make sure you clean your mess if you decide to end things with her.¡±


    ¡®As typical of my mother. She¡¯s not worried about me but the loss of a potential alley down the road. But then again, what could I have expected from such a cold and ruthless woman like her? She never liked me in the first ce.¡¯


    It stung that her mother did not turn around to give Aurora ast nce. She just left the room and closed the door behind her.


    Aurora tried to open the door but it did not help at all. The door had been locked tightly and there was no way to escape it now.


    ¡°Don¡¯t give me such a pitying look like that. I will get out of here one way or another. So don¡¯t you dare pity me?¡±


    The shadow doll had no expression on her face but Aurora still got a feeling that she was being made fun of.


    ¡°Aurora, are you in there? Can Ie in and talk with you?¡±


    The voice belonged to Clove. She did not need to hide behind the door and ask Aurora for permission. Not when Aurora¡¯s mother trusted Clove more than she trusted Aurora.


    And it stung to know. How did thingse to be this way?


    ¡°Aurora, are you alright? Can Ie in now?¡±


    Clove asked again, now sounding extremely worried but Aurora was having none of it.


    ¡°No, you cannote in right now. Just return back to your room and leave me alone.¡± Aurora picked up the vase and threw it at the door. She just wanted to be left alone.

 Chapter 233 233: High emotions [pt2]

    ¡°No, you cannote in right now. Just return to your room and leave me alone.¡± Aurora picked up the vase and threw it at the door. She just wanted to be left alone.


    The sound of that porcin breaking startled even the shadow doll who was standing at Aurora¡¯s side and she felt something wet flow down her hand.


    ¡®Of course, I am bleeding. This would just be the cherry on the top, right?¡¯


    Blood was flowing down Aurora¡¯s hand at a considerable speed which made her hand wet and sticky. A broken shard had managed to embed itself in her hand.


    At the same time, the door to her bedroom opened with a bang and Clove looked back at her with a sickening expression.


    She looked between Aurora and her hand before looking back at Aurora again with a determined expression.


    ¡°Someone, bring me the first air box and every healing potion you can find. We need to treat her hand¨C¡±


    ¡°There is no need to fuss. I can take care of myself. Just remove me from my restrictions and I will take care of it myself.¡±


    Aurora was not sure if Clove would fold under the pressure or not but it was worth asking for.


    Aurora was sure that she could do something if only she had her system¡¯s support for a second. She could even send a message about her whereabouts back.


    But from the stern looks, the shadow doll was sending Clove and her, this would not be possible. How the doll managed to be this stern even without a face was beyond Aurora at this point.


    And she was also too tired to ask anyone. She had long lost interest in anything to do with this ce.


    ¡°Sorry, but you¡¯ll have to make do with the potions we give you for now. Don¡¯t worry because they are not poisoned. See, I¡¯ll even take a sip to ensure that they are safe.¡±


    Clove drank down a considerable amount of potion before handing Aurora the rest.


    If she meant to assure that this potion was safe for consumption then she was doing a poor job of it.


    After all, just how much can a potion affect a goddess¡¯s constitution?


    ¡°See, not poisoned. You can have it without any fear.¡±


    Aurora wanted to sigh at the unnecessary fanfare Clove was going through for her sake. She had not once thought that the potion she had been handed would harm her.


    She just did not want to take the potion because it would make her feel sluggish until the ingredients kicked in and Aurora felt better.


    It was always like this with her after all.


    ¡°I told you I will be alright. See, the bleeding stopped already. Now leave the room and leave me alone if you are not going to be of any help to me.¡±


    Aurora wanted to be alone with her thoughts but Clove pushed ahead without any warning.


    The hand on Aurora¡¯s face startled her enough to make her face go ck. She wanted to turn away but Clove held her face gently in her hands and did not let go.


    ¡°Clove, let me go. I told you that I did not want to see you.¡±


    Aurorained as she tried to pull away. She was done with these emotions and the mess they were making out of her.


    It was not a new feeling to feel her anger and disappointment dragging out of her body as Aurora got more and more used to Clove¡¯s hand.


    ¡°Still so defenseless. You say that you don¡¯t want me to touch you but you still lean into my touch quite desperately. Your heart and your mouth are not singing the same song, Aurora. Isn¡¯t it time you forgive me?¡±


    Clove whispered those words in her ear. Aurora knew she should feel embarrassed to be putting up this show in front of the shadow doll but she felt warm inside.


    Her insides were tingling after having that warm presence behind her for so long.


    The only thing that broke the illusion was the feeling of those small hands shifting her face to meet Clove¡¯s young face.


    She was too young for Aurora currently, her body not having reached the maturity it needed. It was in wrong on so many levels for Aurora to even be entertaining these thoughts.


    ¡°Are you turning away from me again? Very well then. I will leave today but I promise to visit you again tomorrow. Hope you have a good day as well.¡±


    Clove walked off to go out of the room. She gave Aurora onest desperate look to be called back but Aurora was not going to bulge.


    Clove realized that as well as she walked past the threshold. And then it was Clove alone in her room with the shadow doll.


    ¡°Can you leave me alone as well? I don¡¯t want to see your face as well.¡±


    The shadow doll gave a shallow bow and left the room. It was too quiet and serene after she left. Not a single thing looked out of ce from what Aurora remembered her room being.


    Even the stains on the wall had retained their shape.


    It was like Aurora had stepped back into time with her body. Even the limitlessness she felt in this ce was the same.


    ¡®I should go to sleep for now. The more I think, the worse I will feel.¡¯


    Aurora tried to close her eyes and rx but sleep was tough toe by. Visions of her past being locked inside this room shed by. Somehow, the time she had to spend here felt like centuries.


    When Aurora finally had a chance to go out, she had all but run from this ce.


    It was poetic for her to end here of all ces because of the person who had helped her escape the clutches of her nightmare in the first ce.


    The door to her bedroom jiggled a bit and Aurora felt her senses sharpen all at once. She knew someone was entering the room and she got ready to throw something at them again.


    ¡°Clove, I told you that I did not want to see you-¡°


    ¡°Hey, be careful. You will alert people that I am here. Hurry, I am here to get you out of here.¡±


    That voice did not belong to Clove or anyone else who should be here. But the familiar voice did belong to someone who could help her out.


    ¡°You? What are you doing here? Do you know how much trouble the tower will get in if the south finds a god of the tower sneaking around in here? And how did you find me in the first ce?¡±


    It was Karan who hade to get her. The long-haired man was cross-dressing as a shadow doll and he was scarily efficient at that.


    ¡°This ce is not asplicated as I remember it being so it was easy to sneak around. As for how I found you? There is only one way I remember your room being so I followed my memories. Luckily, I remembered enough to get me by.¡±


    Karan seemed to have taken a huge gamble ining after Aurora.


    Whether he knew about the core-sealing power these people had or not, he hade for her, and Aurora could not help but feel happy about it.


    This was the first time in her re-setted life someone had outright risked themselves toe after her without gaining anything in return.


    ¡°Now hurry up and let¡¯s get moving. We need to get out of here before the towerunches its assault.¡±


    Karan extended his hand toward Aurora to help her up. And just like the person she was, Aurora epted it and helped herself stand up.


    ¡°By the way, how did you even know where to find me? Or even about me being here? I am not sure even the Rocx Academy knows that I am missing.¡±


    They would not know anything for now since Rex trusted Aurora enough to know that she could take care of herself.


    However, even he would have to get worried when Aurora failed to show up after a few days. This time frame did not make sense in her mind.


    ¡°Oh, about that? Believe it or not, I have my spies in the South and everywhere else who tell me what is going on. As soon as they told me about someone being held captive here, I had a feeling it was you.¡±


    Karan said that as if this was the most natural thing in the world.


    And it might be because this was how his world had been before he reincarnated. Knowledge had been power and power was something everyone carved.


    ¡°Now, we¡¯ve talked enough for today. We really should get going before we are caught. I don¡¯t know about you but I am terrified of your mother and what she can do. That woman is not stable.¡±


    Karan¡¯s words had a mixture of truth and lie in them. But they made Aurora smile nheless.

 Chapter 234 234: A surprise indeed [pt1]

    ¡°Now, we¡¯ve talked enough for today. We really should get going before we are caught. I don¡¯t know about you but I am terrified of your mother and what she can do. That woman is not stable.¡±


    A shiver went down Karan¡¯s spine as he thought about the ruthlessdy he would have to face soon.


    Lady Dehva was the most impressive woman Karan knew of and he knew some pretty remarkable women in his life.


    However, a certain charm to the Southern leader had made her very beloved in the region and very feared outside of it. It might also have something to do with her beauty and ruthless behavior but Karan was not sure.


    He just knew that Aurora had inherited her charm and was impressive in her way. That was what had attracted him to Aurora in the first ce.


    ¡°I want to leave here as well but I am kind of in a pinch here if you cannot see! I have no idea how to get out of my binds.¡±


    Aurora might not be shackled up visibly but she could feel the weight of her chains nheless. And maybe Karan could feel them cutting off her power as well because he winched apologetically.


    ¡°Sorry, I cannot help you out. The stones embedded into the wall are cutting off my magic supply as well. But I promise to help you out once we are out of this ce.¡±


    Karan promised as he pushed the door open more. Elysia was surprised to see just how much power his bare hands held right now.


    Usually, Gods and goddesses werecking in the physical department and they made up for it with the help of magic. Aurora was guilty of doing the same but Karan seemed to possess some actual muscle mass.


    The man managed to open the door when the building shook with a violent temper. The earthquake that urred was strong enough to make some breakable stuff fall violently.


    ¡°An E-Earthquake? How is that possible? Isn¡¯t this building supposed to be disaster-proof? I am sure it doesn¡¯t even have a foundation or any connection to the ground.¡±


    Aurora might have a crappy memory but she was more than sure that her birth home had been built with the help of magic and was currency floating a few feet above the ground. It should be impossible for natural disasters to reach this far.


    ¡°This should be the tower¡¯s attack to retrieve Mei¡¯s core from these people. I want to help as well but getting you out is the top priority right now.¡±


    Karan said those words almost casually but Aurora felt her heart break hearing them. Mei had grown up on her in the past few days so the news of her demise hit Aurora hard.


    ¡®Mei died? How I that possible? How can a goddess of her level die like that?¡¯


    Aurora could just not wrap her head around the fact that Mei had died. She had been so full of life and vigor. But more than that, Mei wanted to know who killed her.


    (She knew who it was in her heart but Aurora did not want to admit it to herself. She wanted to give Clove a shred of chance but the more time that passed, the more unlikely that chance seemed to be.)


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to worry about who killed Mei or not. You just need to get out of here safely and into the abyss. That would be the best revenge we can ask for in this scenario since we will be depriving these bastards of their biggest weapon.¡±


    Aurora opened her mouth to protest that she was not a weapon. But then closed her mouth since she knew that she wascking a lot of facts.


    If she was indeed a weapon for her mother and her family then things made a lot of sense about her neglect and treatment in the past.


    But Aurora still found it a hard pill to swallow.


    Her eyes felt wet with emotions and Aurora even felt one slide down her cheek and fall to the ground. Was she crying in this situation? How humiliating.


    But the tears refused to stop falling down her cheek and Aurora had no intention of stopping them either. She needed to vent out her emotions and this seemed to be the only way to do so.


    ¡°Aurora, are you crying? H-Huh, don¡¯t cry. It is alright and you don¡¯t need to push yourself that hard. Everything will be alright, you¡¯ll see.¡±


    Karan tried to console her but Aurora¡¯s tears picked up more speed and force. She was outright sobbing now and Karan¡¯s arms around her just caused her to sob even more.


    It all was so humiliating but Aurora¡¯s body seemed not to care about it. Her tears continued to fall down her face anyway.


    It was the second quake that snapped Aurora out of her misery and made her realize that the danger was just around the corner. There was a feeling of uncertainty in the air and Aurora knew that her disappearance had been found out.


    ¡°Karan, you can use your magic now, right? Then I need you to help me reach somewhere.¡±


    Aurora knew she was thinking of taking a risk but she no longer cared at all. There was something she needed to get her hands on before she left this ce and she would get it at any cost.


    If these people had robbed her friend, then Aurora would rob them back. They did not deserve to keep holding on to Mei¡¯s core and there was only one way to ensure that happened.


    ___________________________


    The castle shook violently from the outside as more and more weapons knocked themselves against its walls. Had it not been magically enhanced, it would have fallen a long time ago.


    Not that Seraphina cared too much about it when she had every intention of knocking this ce down and then tearing it apart.


    She was

 Chapter 235 235: A surprise indeed [pt2]

    ¡°Hurry up and head this way. I will do my best to distract the guards. Do you think they are stu[id enough to fall for a doll that looks like you?¡±


    Karan asked the question but he did what he wanted to anyway. Soon enough, Aurora had a water doll that looked exactly like her roaming around.


    It turned around and went in the opposite direction from her. Anyone would have thought that doll to be her at the first nce.


    ¡°I tried to make it as life-like as possible but it¡¯s tough to work with female proportions now. I hope I was still able to do you justice.¡±


    Aurora would have been more creeped out if she had not known Karan to be a female before his rebirth. The doll not only looked familiar but felt familiar as well.


    ¡®Let¡¯s not think about it any more than I have to right now. What was I thinking about? Ah, yes. The storage room.¡¯


    As soon as Aurora remembered what she wanted to talk about, she turned toward Karan with a serious face. Even the god looked taken aback at seeing Aurora this serious.


    ¡°Is something wrong? You look rather pale and ufortable.¡±


    ¡°Karan, we cannot leave this ce yet. We need to find Mei¡¯s core and retrieve it first. I don¡¯t want to leave it in these people¡¯s hands since they don¡¯t deserve to have it.¡±


    Aurorained, knowing full well what kind of position she was putting Karan in. He could not outright refuse the girl but she could tell that he did not want to put himself through it either.


    But Aurora was not one to back down. She felt strongly enough for this thing to happen so she would do it herself.


    ¡°T-That is a little difficult to do. I think your mother is the one who is holding on to the core and she¡¯s a little¡­.difficult to deal with.¡±


    Karan was not wrong when he expressed his difort. Even Aurora knew that her mother was the problem here.


    But still, she wanted to hold Seraphina out since she could not help but feel like Mei¡¯s death was her fault. The only way to redeem herself would be to bring her core back.


    Maybe Karan saw that in her gaze and realized it because he just sighed in resignation and epted his fate.


    ¡°Alright fine. I will help you out but only this time. Don¡¯t expect me to listen to any of your other absurd requests anytime soon.¡±


    Karan looked like he was in pain when he said that but Aurora did not care much. She knew Karan would help but things came down to it. He might look rough around the edges but he was a good guy in the end.


    ¡°Thanks a lot. So, do you have any idea where the core could be kept? I¡¯m afraid to say that I don¡¯t have a great recollection of this ce in my memories. So I have no idea where to even start looking for the core.¡±


    Karan let out another heavy sigh as he turned around to face Aurora. His eyes held unspoken words but someone managed to swallow them all as he faced her.


    ¡°Aurora, you know you are such a big pain in my neck? I have no idea what to do with you.¡±


    That was likely not apliment but aint against Aurora. But Aurora did not take it to her heart.


    Karan was just looking out for her in his way.


    ¡°Anyway, I did manage to snag a map of this fortress so it might help us out. Take a look at it and point out the direction we should be heading toward. You have better instincts than me and I trust your judgment.¡±


    Karan was a little tooid-back when he said that but Aurora could tell that he had given it some thought at least.


    She did not mind taking a look at the map of this fortress either and it brought back too many memories when she did. She used to look at this map with her brother all the time when he had not died.


    Even now, the feelings of those hazy times threatened to choke Aurora. But she shook it all off as she turned toward Karan while pointing toward a nk spot on the map.


    ¡°I am sure mother¡¯s room used to be somewhere around here. I think it would be good for us to head toward that side as well. If nothing else, it has an emergency exit that we can use.¡±


    Aurora had a lot of residual memories of this ce she wished she did not have. But she was going to make good use of the ones she could not get rid of.


    ¡°Alright, if that¡¯s what you think is right. We should start heading out now.¡±


    ¡°Or, you both should surrender. Don¡¯t cause any more trouble than you already have.¡±


    Aurora was tired of being caught off-gaurd and Zoe¡¯s presence was not weed in herpany. The overlooker had a sullen look on her face as she blocked the way.


    ¡°I have no idea how you managed to get out of your room but this foolishness ends here. I cannot allow you to cause any more trouble for us.¡±


    Zoe held her staff at ready, her eyes shining with sparks of electricity. She was the worst match for someone like Karan who had a water affinity but Karan did not back down from the challenge.


    He somehow managed to block the attack heading for him and turned to face Aurora in a single moment. His eyes looked feral as he blocked the attack meant for Aurora and it hurt his hand badly.


    But it did not even seem to have registered in his mind what had happened. He was so concentrated on blocking the attack that nothing else mattered.


    His throat was letting out a low threatening growl which was so unlike himself and his eyes had gone into slit mode as well. He was a dangerous person right now and he even gave Aurora the chills.


    ¡°Aurora, get out of here if you don¡¯t want to get caught up in this situation. I am not sure if you will be caught up in my rampage or not.¡±


    That was a warning meant for Aurora¡¯s good but she could not help but nce toward Karan¡¯s tense body.


    He looked to be on edge and not happy with his circumstances of having to face down someone who had the opposite affinity to him.


    But he was trying to keep Aurora out of this mess which she was both grateful and angry about. What gave him the right to decide what was good for Aurora and what was not good for her?


    Also, did he think that Aurora could not help out when he needed it the most? Was he trying to insult her without actually saying anything?


    Zoe¡¯s next attack came at them all of a sudden and Aurora found herself raising the ground unconsciously tobat the electricity.


    And it worked wonders since the earth managed to digest all the shocks that were heading their way.


    Karan looked stunned but not any more than Zoe whose jaws had dropped right to the ground.


    ¡°Oops! Looks like I am a bad match for you this time around. Karan, I think I will stick around to help you out to solve this mess.¡±


    Karan did not say anything at the start but he did look thankful and calctive when Aurora turned toward him. He still looked like he would rather not have Aurora¡¯s help but he ended up folding to her request in the end.


    ¡°If you are so hell-bent on helping then I might as well let you do that. Let¡¯s show this overlooker who the real boss is here.¡±


    Karan moved to raise his hand and a bolt of water rushed toward Zoe which she dodged. The ground where the waternded was charred and broke off from the pressure.


    Surprisingly enough, even water could be an offensive weapon when one had enough magic to wield it properly.


    And Karan was anything but shabby in his execution. His power almost looked like a dance happening in front of Aurora¡¯s eyes.


    He attacked, Zoe dodged, and then attacked back.


    However, Zoe¡¯s attacks nevernded their hit since Aurora managed to block them in time. It was a never-ending cycle at this point and Aurora was beginning to enjoy it a little.


    That was until Zoe realized that nothing was going toe out of this arrangement and began leading them slowly toward where she wanted to take them.


    By the time Aurora realized what was happening, they had already fallen into the trap and ended up in an unfamiliar ce.


    On top of that, Aurora had also somehow ended up separating from Karan in this short amount of time.


    But the feeling surrounding her was familiar and Aurora did not need to be a genius to know that it was from the abyss.

 Chapter 236 236: The abyss nightmare

    ¡°This feeling around us¡­. Fuck, don¡¯t tell me that we somehow ended up in the abyss.¡±


    Karan¡¯s voice echoed the disbelief Aurora felt at that moment but it was no time to be surprised. The real danger had just begun and now they were stuck in an unbelievable situation.


    On top of that, this space had a weird feeling about it. This ce was a mess even for the abyss.


    ¡°We should keep our guard up. Who knows what kind of things this ce is crawling up with.¡±


    Aurora could feel a lot of life forms surrounding them and just begging to crawl out of those holes.


    In her experience, it meant that there were a lot of swarms in the area who were looking at them a little too eagerly. The pressure of their eyes gave Aurora the creeps.


    But it was not like these swarms were going to sit back and allow Aurora to do as she pleased either. It did not take long before one of the smaller but braver monsters decided to crawl out of the hole.


    It was one and then another and then another until the whole ce was filled with the presence of these monsters.


    ¡°Wow, look at the audacity of these creatures. They think they can crawl out anytime to disrupt us. How careless of them.¡±


    Karen looked uneasy but also pissed off. Aurora could see his struggle to maintain hisposure but it seemed to be getting difficult by the second.


    It almost felt like he would erupt due to the pressure when he raised his hand and the earth broke down under the water pressure.


    It was a tidal wave that crashed into these monsters and took them away. The pair remained. I scratched in the center of this typhoon. But despite that, the number of monsters didn¡¯t seem to be decreasing.


    If anything, for everyone they killed off, another took its ce. It seems like a never-ending cycle.


    ¡°Where are these monstersing from? Is there a best nearby? Maybe I should destroy everything in my way to make it easier on myself.¡±


    Karen seemed to be in a foul mood because of these monsters. Aurora could feel his pressure rising faster than these monsters could replenish their number and she knew it was her cue to help out.


    She quickly separated the monsters from Karan¡¯s line of sight before aiming toward the spot where the most concentrated energy could be felt. She was more than sure that it housed the monster nest.


    Earth pierced the nest and drew out a loud and injured cry before the earth began to shake. The monsters fell into this new crack as they cried out in warning but it was unnecessary. The monster in the middle of the sandy typhoon could be seen.


    ¡°The Bahamut. To think we got thrown in the Bahamut¡¯s nest just like that. I don¡¯t know if I should call it lucky or unlucky.¡±


    The Bahamut had not noticed then for now. But it would not stay unconscious of their presence forever. It was time to either kill this creature forever or bow down to it.


    ¡°Fuck, now I¡¯m pissed off. I never thought someone would force me to use my weapon. But the abyss has always been unpredictable in that way.¡±


    Karen sounded resigned as his hand brightly under the influence of his power. It was still the next moment and then his hand held a rose whip.


    It was golden in color and had a faint floral scent to it. It oddly suited Karan¡¯s appearance and it cracked down on the earth with a resounding sound.


    The surrounding earth shook as power traveled through it and the surface broke out into a thorny field of shrubs. They tangled the Bahamut up, stopping its rampage. But even that was not enough to stop the Bahamut.


    It was getting injured and bleeding quite heavily. But it was healing just as fast. Now it was a battle of insurance.


    Well, this and who could dish out more damage in a short amount of time? But for some reason, Aurora was not too worried about the aspect of their problem.


    The real problem was how to pierce the armor around the Bahamut¡¯s body. That was the real problem a hole dealing with the Bahamut.


    ¡°Aurora, I will hold the Bahamut in ce while you deal the final blow. Think you will be able to dish out enough magic to do that?¡±


    Karen asked as his magic rose in volume. It was all but holding the Bahamut down but the huge lizard-like creature was still trying its best to get up and attack back.


    Aurora might have felt afraid of this situation once but no longer did she feel anything of such kind. Instead, she felt excited for some reason as her blood sang to finish the creature off.


    ¡°Just give me a few seconds of the uninterrupted attack time and I will finish it off.¡±


    Aurora had no idea where she got the courage of saying all this from. But she knew that she meant it. Every fabric in her body was singing the song of power and the anticipation was rising.


    It was not often that Aurora felt like tho but it was an overwhelming feeling nheless.


    Karen just nodded as more nts joined up in the effort to hold the huge body down. The Bahamut was trying its best to break free and reach Aurora as well but it was not going as well as one had expected it to.


    However, that small second was enough for Aurora to concentrate her power and let out a huge st of magic. It had enough power to pierce the heavy armor that the Bahamut had and hit it straight in the core.


    The st shook the whole abyss floor up as the huge body fell to the ground. It was letting out waves and waves of magic in its surroundings with a clear intention of blowing up.


    ¡°Karan, hurry up over here. There¡¯s going to be a huge magic st soon.¡±


    Aurora spoke up as she held her hand out toward her friend. Karan could sessfully ward off that explosion by himself but it would take too much magic and effort on his part to do that.


    With Aurora¡¯s help, it would be so much easier to get out of the explosion range and save his power.


    Maybe that was what made Karan agree and he held Aurora¡¯s hand before she pulled him closer into her shelter as the abyssal floor exploded.


    The earth rose to form a protective dome around the two and Aurora reinforced it with her magic, again and again, to not let it fall.


    Karan added his magic into the mix as well as to not let the dome fall and finally, the cmity calmed down. Aurora breathed a sigh of relief as she felt her surroundingse to an easy stop.


    But then she heard a pair of footsteps and the sound of pping. Zoe¡¯s familiar face broke the serenity of the surroundings as she looked down at Aurora impassively.


    ¡°So even the abyss is not enough to stop two gods. You both gave admirable performances so I will let you go for today. However, do not tell anyone you saw me or things would get difficult for me as well.¡±


    ¡®Look at her trying to be generous now that she knows that her n failed. Still, I should take her out now before she bes a problem.¡¯


    Zoe was an overlooker and had more control over her powers than either Aurora or Karan. If things came out to an overall brawl then their side would be at a disadvantage despite having more numbers.


    Aurora knew that she should not think like that but she still felt like that anyway.


    Karan was injured as well whichplicated things a lot more than Aurora was willing to admit. He might be trying to hide it but the subtle limp in his left leg is as obvious as a ring red signal.


    ¡®We are outnumbered andck the tactical knowledge of our surroundings. We¡¯ve got not choice but to back down for now.¡¯


    ¡°Alright, we will take the olive branch you are extending. But don¡¯t you dare try to swindle us or we will retaliate.¡±


    This was what Aurora let Zoe know and her smile turned bitter.


    ¡°Just go. I don¡¯t want you both here as well. You are just going to make things worse for me over all.¡±


    Zoe sounded like she was holding back to notsh out. It was a cute attempt but useless in the face of everything else.


    Aurora gave her onest look as she turned to run away. Karan followed her with an unhappy expression but he did not fight her decision as well.


    This was how things came to and end that day and Zoe watched them go with a bitter face before it broke out into a subtle smile.


    ¡°Yes, I will let you both go and face your doom. Lady Dehva will be waiting for you at the end of the roads so good luck.¡±

 Chapter 237 237: A clash of ideals [pt1]

    ¡°This is not funny in the least. But if you think that an illusion of this caliber will stop me then you are sorely mistaken.¡±


    Seraphina took in the illusion that she had been brought face-to-face with. The fact in front of her looked scared and lifeless but the child was still alive.


    His eyes were covered with the help of ck cloth and his body trembled with fear of being killed off. But the child still held on to his beliefs, his mouth shut tightly to not let any sound out.


    The life-like illusion would have confused anyone but Seraphina was a little different. Her anger made her notice theck of emotions emitting from the person in front of her.


    ¡°H-Hello, is anyone there? I-If there is, then can you help me out?¡±


    Joseph sounded scared as he asked for help but Seraphina just raised her sword and shed through the illusion. As she had expected, her sword passed cleanly through the body without harming even a single hair on Joseph¡¯s head.


    Asami¡¯s voice reached Seraphina¡¯s ear in the form of a whistle. She sounded impressed with Seraphina¡¯s cold and effective method of dealing with her stress.


    ¡°Look at that! There was no hesitation in your swing. Would poor Joseph have been killed had he been standing there instead of his illusion? This poor abandoned child is making me feel sorry for him.¡±


    Asami was speaking too much and it was getting on Seraphina¡¯s nerves. Asami had no right to say anything to Seraphina in this situation.


    After all, she was the one who had kidnapped Joseph in the first ce and brought him here.


    ¡°Quit your yelping and face me head-on It is your fault that we havee down to this in the end, right? Do you not have anything to say for yourself?¡±


    Seraphina red at Asami but her eyes softened as she looked at Joseph. She had never been good at maintaining an aloof face when it came to her children.


    She might not show it but Seraphina did love those two to bits.


    ¡®But are they worth throwing away my revenge for? Do I want to avenge Mei more or to save Joseph more?¡¯


    It should have been a no-brainer for most people. Mei was dead while Joseph was alive and alright in front of her. He should have taken priority in Seraphina¡¯s life but she still found herself hesitating to follow through with this rescue.


    Revenge and anger were just this strong of emotions and had taken a hold of her. And Seraphina had always been weak to her emotions and easy to bow before her anger.


    ¡°Joseph, I told you before, right? Your birth mother doesn¡¯t care for you at all. She left you all alone all those years back and even now she¡¯s the reason you are being tested like this doesn¡¯t this make you angry at her?¡±


    Asami sure had a talent for speaking in riddles and confusing people. Her voice was sympathetic and lonely as she broke down what was happening for the kid to understand.


    Seraphina did not know why but it filled her chest with soft white-hot anger and dread hearing those words. Even after all this time, she did not want Joseph to hate her.


    ¡°Joseph I¡­¡±


    But Seraphina could say nothing to make the situation better for her. She had been a lousy mother and a lousy friend. Her actions left no room to misunderstand her actions and even a blind man could tell that she was bad news.


    Still, Seraphina found herself seeking out Joseph¡¯s eyes behind the illusion but he had gone still.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you feel anger and frustration fill your chest as you remember your position? This all happened because of your irresponsible mother.¡±


    Asami continued her criticism without stopping to even think. A wiser man would have noticed that she was projecting her one situation over this one. But Seraphina had always been a bit slow on the uptakes.


    She knew she was not a good mother or a good partner by any means but she had hoped to keep her kids out of the mess. Even then, the most she could have hoped was for the girl to inherit her powers and that would be it.


    Joseph needed to stay out of the goddess¡¯s life or it would make Seraphns go crazy. It was already driving her crazy as it was.


    If the one person she tried so hard to keep out of this life also criticized her choice, then Seraphina would end up losing it for real and attack someone. She would go on a rampage, no longer being able to keep her calm.


    ¡°Now Joseph, don¡¯t you have anything to say to your mother? I am sure you have a lot of things piled up in your chest.¡±


    The kid looked scared as he faced the direction Seraphina was likely to be in. But because his eyes were covered, he looked slightly to the right of her head.


    But despite that, Seraphina felt herself standing still, waiting for the child to speak his words.


    ¡°I¡­.know it¡¯s not your fault. When I stepped into this life, I epted the risks that woulde with it. I knew it was a possibility to be used like this against you but I don¡¯t regret making this choice.¡±


    Joseph¡¯s words came as s shock to her. And not only to her but to Asami as well. The other goddess looked like she did not believe the bullshot that wasing out of Joseph¡¯s mouth.


    ¡°What are you saying? I can feel the resentment and anger deep inside you. Why don¡¯t you let it out finally and show your mother how you feel.¡±


    Asami sounded mad and she had a right to be. She had spent too much time and effort on arranging this insurance, only for things to end up against her. This situation was beyond any sort of prediction she could have made.


    ¡®I doubt it¡¯s something even Lady Dheva could have seening. I should not get too discouraged.¡¯


    Asami tried to console herself but it was not that reassuring.


    ¡°Of course, I feel resentful and angry at what happened. I am a human after all and I have emotions as well. But I know it was not my mother¡¯s fault and ming her is not the right thing to do. Besides, despite everything that happened, I am happy to be born in this world.¡±


    If Seraphina would have been capable of it, she was sure she would be crying right now. But there were no tears in her eyes, nor did her eyes look wet.


    They just looked determined to save her son and take her revenge.


    ¡°Fine. If you¡¯re going to be like this then I will have no choice but to use you as bait. Your life is going to get a lot moreplicated all of a sudden.¡±


    The child gulped his fears down as his eyes shined with determination. She could read the message of ¡®bring it on¡¯ in his gaze and that made Asami smile.


    The child was a worthy opponent as well and Seraphina could read some of herself in the kid. But there were huge differences between her and the kid as well, namely ¨C the beliefs they shared.


    ¡°Joseph, sit tight. I aming to save you.¡±


    But even as Seraphina said that she was not sure she would be able to take it there in time. Asami had a lot of leverage and time to mold Joseph ording to her will.


    And despite everything that happened, Joseph was a human child and was delicate. He did not even have his sister¡¯s magic to protect him.


    But at that very moment, a miracle happened. The door broke down and dust descended around the illusion. Something had affected the real room where Asami and Joseph were currently at.


    ¡°Wow, my luck must be absurdly high today. I managed to find the only other room with a goddess in it.¡±


    Both Asami and Seraphina looked startled to hear the familiar voice heading toward theter. It was a familiar face that followed as well.


    ¡°Karan? What are you doing here? How did you even find this ce? This should not be present on any map of this ce.¡±


    Asami sounded justifiably confused as she closed the illusion. Seraphina¡¯s heart went cold as her only method of keeping tabs on her son was cut-off.


    ¡®How dare she do that to me? I guess Asami is tired of living.¡¯


    Magic build up inside Seraphina and took the form of a familiar bow. She had always used bows and simr weapons, forgoing the bow since it was something that carried the memories of the past. But it was time to start showing her real power.


    She would have to believe that Joseph will be alright in the end and push ahead for herself. And maybe then this sinking feeling in her heart would go away forever. She just had to believe enough.

 Chapter 238 238: A clash of ideals [pt2]

    ¡®We were just together. Then how did this end up happening? How did I get separated from Karan just like that?¡¯


    Aurora was sure she could feel Karan¡¯s presence behind her back but he was not there when she reached the end. How that ended up happening, even though she had no idea.


    But he had gotten lost somewhere along the way and now she was sure she was lost.


    This ce might be the fortress Aurora had grown up in once upon a time, but it was no longer a ce she recognized.


    ¡°Man, what a pain. Now I¡¯ll have to manually check every door to nowhere Karan ended up at. I knew I should have bugged him when I had the chance. It would have made things so much easier.¡±


    It had not even crossed Aurora¡¯s mind to present the other god with a system and now she kind of regretted her decision not to do so.


    But then again, gods powers were vtile and not something that should be mixed. This was something that should not be experimented with out of the blue.


    And since things hade down to this, Aurora had no other choice but to follow her gut feeling. Her system could not scan the pce map because of the magical interference.


    In that sense, her system was worthless and she was incredibly lucky that she had not caused any major hup for now.


    With no other leads to follow, Aurora pushed open the door to her right and entered the marshynd.


    The room turned into a forest with a dense canopy and plenty of wildlife. It was so thick that even the light could not prate until the ground.


    And because of this, there was ack of wildlife present on the ground. The forest floorid bare any kind of interference.


    ¡°I never knew this pce had such a ce built inside it. I wonder why I never went in here?¡±


    Aurora half mumbled, and half-yelled those words out. They echoed back at her after some time, creating confusion in her mind.


    Why a forest had such a prominent echo, she had no idea.


    But she kept on walking more profoundly until she reached a clearing.


    In the vast darkness provided by the thick canopy, that clearing seemed to be the only spot of light. It shined brighter and Aurora felt drawn to it.


    She felt like she had to be in the light to get the answers she needed. But even she did not know what kind of answers she was looking for.


    The further she walked, the more she realized that she was not as alone as she had expected herself to be.


    There was someone already sitting on one of the chairs in the clearing. And this someone was a person Aurora had wanted to avoid meeting all this time.


    The light blue hair and those golden eyes that looked just like hers were frequent visitors to her nightmares when Aurora was younger. And now facing that familiar face made Aurora realize that she had never managed to bury her fearspletely.


    ¡°You took your sweet time ining here. Nowe and have a seat. I am sure we have things we need to discuss with each other. I know that you have been curious about a lot of things. It¡¯s time I answer some of them for you.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s mouth went dry at the unexpected offer. And it was unexpected enough to make her take a step back to consider.


    ¡®Things are never that easy. I cannot see what mother is nning but she is nning something for sure. I can feel it in my bones.¡¯


    For some reason, the person Aurora was most in tune within this world was her mother. One word from thisdy could shift Aurora¡¯s entire perspective. Aurora¡¯s world revolved around her at one point in her life.


    ¡°What are you thinking about? Hurry up and sit down. I won¡¯t ask you twice about it.¡±


    ¡®Of course, you won¡¯t. You think of yourself as too self-important to bow down to the likes of us. It will be beneath your station to do so.¡¯


    But Aurora sat down nheless. Her body might be that of a goddess but it still housed a soul that had lived under the hands of this woman. As such, it unconsciously followed the will of her mother.


    Aurora did not even realize what she did until she was sitting down firmly in front of a bemused Lady Dirac.


    ¡°So I still have sway on what you do? It is nice to see you being this obedient for once in your life.¡±


    Aurora had a lot to say to that but she chose to keep quiet in the end. It would not do her any good to egg her mother¡¯s fantasies about her any more than she already had.


    Still, Aurora wanted to get in at least some words before giving uppletely.


    ¡°My curiosity is not something that can be sated with the help of a few well-ced words. Are you sure you are ready tomit to my demands?¡±


    ¡°That depends. Are you sure you are ready to hear the answers I am about to give you? They might be a tougher pill to swallow than you are expecting it to be.¡±


    This was a first for Aurora to be hearing those words from her mother. Had it been anyone else, Aurora would have taken this concern at face value.


    But this was her mother. Every word that came out of her mouth was a double-edged sword.


    ¡°I will hear you out at least since I am mentally stronger than you think. But of course, you won¡¯t know that since you never looked at me properly.¡±


    Aurora took the seat finally but her eyes did not stray away from her mother¡¯s figure. Thedy was looking at Aurora with dark eyes.


    ¡®Have I finally managed to crack her facade? It feels good to render her speeches for once.¡¯


    Aurora felt good about herself. Her mother was not ring at Aurora yet but it was a near case.


    Ultimately, Lady Dirac dropped her cup into the saucer and started Aurora right in the eye. And despite herself, Aurora found herself gulping her nervousness down.


    ¡°Soooo, how much do you know about our household and yourself? Do you think that you and I are rted? What about your father? Have you ever wondered who he was?¡±


    Now that Aurora thought back to it, the thought of her father had never crossed Aurora¡¯s mind. She had always known herself to have a brother but never a father.


    ¡®Did that thought never really cross my mind? Or, is there something more to this?¡¯


    Aurora hated this about herself. Her curiosity often let her forget everything else around her andser focus on the main issue. And in this case, it was rted to her origin.


    ¡°I cannot say that ever cared about such stuff before but now you made me curious about it as well.¡±


    There was a subtle feeling of fear inside Aurora¡¯s heart. She did not if she felt fear or excitement right now.


    But whatever it was, she did not want to face it. Nor did she want to face the truth that was about to spill from Lady Dirac¡¯s mouth.


    Somewhere inside her heart, Aurora felt fearful of the future and what it might mean for her.


    ¡®Should I not ask for the rification of this? But I still want to know more about myself and who I am.¡±


    Aurora was indecisive in speaking up but it did not seem to be a hindrance to Lady Dirac. She was much less of a mother and more of an overlooker anyway so she did not need to care about Aurora¡¯s opinion or her feelings.


    ¡°Then, let¡¯s start with the easy question. I am sure you are well aware of the powers to duplicate someone and cone them. You came across them already, right?¡±


    Aurora nodded to let Lady Dirac know that she was understanding what was being said. Of curse, Aurora knew all about that technology and how it worked


    Natasha had been a perfect result of that technology and Aurora was proud to have known her. But what did that have to do with her condition?


    ¡°Then, what if I told you that you are in a simr situation? Now, of course, you can refute my words but that will not change the truth of this matter.¡±


    Aurora felt those words ring in her ear before she shut her mind down.


    ¡°I am sure that you and I are nothing alike except for our looks. Doesn¡¯t my brother look simr to us as well? And I doubt that he is your clone as well.¡±


    Aurora shot down the very idea since it did not sit down well with her. She expected Lady Dirac to continue but the Lady fell silent after that before opening her mouth to pass one final blow.


    ¡°Who said that you are my clone? In fact, it¡¯s more appropriate to say that it is the other way around. You are the real body who gained consciousness while I am the clone.¡±

 Chapter 239 239: Its ridiculous [pt1]

    ¡°Karan? What are you doing here? How did you even find this ce? This should not be present on any map of this ce.¡±


    Asami sounded surprised to see Karan there. She could not even begin to think about the reason he had somehow ended up in front of her.


    As far as she was concerned, no one should be in that part of the castle. Even the shadow dolls had been sent away by her authority.


    ¡°Yeah, funny thing¡­Sorry, I¡¯ll be taking the kid now.¡±


    Asami looked back, only to see the veins closing around the kid and he disappeared into the ground. At the same time, Karan took off as well, making Asami confused about whom to chase.


    In the end, she chases after the veins moving below the earth. She was at a disadvantage with her powers originating from the wind. They were as restrictive as a one-way current.


    But that did not stop Asami from still blowing away the veins inside the ground. In a single second, the three huge veins had been separated into hundreds of smaller ones.


    ¡°Fuck, she¡¯s a fast freak. I don¡¯t want to deal with you.¡±


    But despite him saying that Karan gave chase after her anyway.


    The current positions for their group had reversed in an instant with Asami chasing the veins and Karan chasing after her.


    Asami shot back with wind des, her power breaking the surroundings apart. But Karan managed to deflect air with the help of water.


    He had to make the water denser to make sure he got away safely. Asami was not holding back against him. The only lucky break he had was that Asami was not paying full attention to him.


    A brand new vein broke the surface and struck the ground in front of Asami. The shock factor caught her off-guard and she stopped her chase.


    But even that show of power was enough to step Asami. Neither were the water des that flew toward Asami.


    The floor was the biggest casualty of their fight. The surface was no longer able to maintain its shape and gave way. Asami managed to keep herself afloat but Karan allowed himself to fall.


    The veins reconnected with him in the meanwhile and he carefully extracted the kid. The kid was knocked unconscious due to the pollen and his eyes zed over.


    Karan intended to leave the kid behind for good and lead Asami away but he still needed to leave a note for someone toe and pick the kid back up.


    ¡°I hope I am not making a mistake by trusting him. But he¡¯s the only person I can ask to look after a kid.¡±


    The person in question used to be a childhood friend but Karan was not particrly close with him. Still, he had no other choice but to trust this childhood friend.


    ___________________________


    ¡°Who said that you are my clone? In fact, it¡¯s more appropriate to say that it is the other way around. You are the real body who gained consciousness while I am the clone.¡±


    ¡®Am I supposed to believe this bullshit? This is why I never liked my mother. Nothing she says makes sense.¡¯


    Perhaps it was her closed-off expression that caused Lady Dirac to sigh and her amused expression broke off into a silent one.


    ¡°I am sure that you are thinking of my proposal as ridiculous and it might as well be. But there is no doubt that we all share a single set of genes mixed with a human donor. However, your body is different. Unlike those of us who were born into this family artificially, you were born naturally into that body.¡±


    ¡°Furthermore, your geneposition is the same as the sample we found in the abyss for our gic code. But we never managed to make another perfectbination after you. All our experiments ended up doomed.¡±


    Lady Dirac¡¯s face didn¡¯t change when she delivered the news. Aurora was sure she knew what her mother, no, the clone in front of her was saying.


    ¡°So you killed them all? You killed off all the other experiments which resulted from your greed.¡±


    Aurora felt anger but she controlled it for the sake of her safety. There was a need to be cautious in this tower. Especially, even more, when your opponent was this woman.


    ¡°Killing is such an arbitrary term for what we did. We simply threw out the waste we did not want to use. After all, a body without a soul is as good as an item worth throwing away.¡±


    Aurora agreed and disagreed with the statement at the same time.


    While a body was worthless, it did not mean that the clones deserved to be thrown away just like that.


    ¡®No. Why did I even believe what she said in the first ce? I feel like my brain is turning into mush just trying toprehend the situation.¡¯


    Aurora quickly took her seat again as she faced the woman in front of her. How she could sprout this much nonsense with a straight face, Aurora had no idea.


    Not to mention, she didn¡¯t even look ridiculous while doing it. Lady Dirac looked like she was convinced about what she was saying and that very fact made Aurora frown.


    ¡°If you don¡¯t believe my words, then, will a demonstration help you ovee the block in your brain and make you believe me?¡±


    Lady Dirac gave a bright smile toward Aurora. Seeing her smile for the first time in her life was a shocking scene for Aurora.


    It was so shocking in fact that Aurora almost fell in the process of getting away.


    But one thing was for sure, she didn¡¯t want to stay here any longer. Even with such a strong bait-like ¡®evidence¡¯ hanging in front of her, Aurora held her head up high.


    All until she walked out of the door she had entered the room from. And then she felt her breathe out heavier than before.


    For the first time in her life, Aurora had not only managed to talk back to thatdy but walked away from her as well.


    Frankly speaking, Aurora was amazed to think that she even managed to get out of the first while being intact. Lady Dirac was not a forgivingdy and she would have retaliated for sure had she caught sight of what Aurora had been thinking about.


    ¡®You can try to run but the evidence will find you soon enough. You cannot get away with looking at the other side anymore.¡¯


    Elysia felt her breath shorten as her mind projected those words back at her. No one had spoken and yet Aurora was shaken.


    ¡°It¡¯s all nonsense. It is a way to shake my will but I will not fall for it. I need to find a way out and also retrieve Karan. I still cannot believe we managed to get separated in such a short amount of time.¡±


    Aurorained for the sake of keeping herself sane. Her mind was already overwhelming her and it made Aurora want to sink in itsfortable embrace.


    But she held herself back from epting the sweet embrace of sleep. If she fell under now then she would likely only wake up once everything would be over.


    ¡°Now then, where should I head next to? Knowing Karan, he could have ended up anywhere in here. And I am sure mother won¡¯t have made it easier for him to meet me as well.¡±


    Aurora still found it a little awkward to say the word ¡®mother¡¯ out loud. But it was a habit at this point and she found it difficult to quit.


    She walked through the corridors of the ce in rtive quietness before hitting the dead-end. Once again, the corridor ended up leading her to a room she had never seen before.


    She thought she knew this ce inside out but the more she discovered about this ce, the more Aurora ended up realizing that she had never known her birthce anyway.


    Aurora forced the door to open before she felt a bolt of lightninging her way. The light caused her eyes to burn and Aurora unconsciously protected them from harm.


    That turned out to be the right decision as her eyes were sensitive. This light was made specially from the Goddess-suppressing magic and was particrly harmful to them.


    Had she looked at it directly, Aurora would have ended up losing her eyesight.


    Luckily, that did not happen and Aurora safely managed to pass through the trap. Her senses also picked up a familiar type of energy in her surroundings and she moved toward the source.


    A familiar-looking kid was hidden behind the rubble and Aurora hurriedly pulled him out.


    ¡°Joseph? Why in the world are you here?¡±


    Aurora asked the question but the kid was not awake enough to answer her. Unknown to his surroundings, he was still sleeping under the influence of the spores that Karan had used and he was particrly harmless right now.

 Chapter 240 240: Its ridiculous [pt2]

    Chapter 240 240: It''s ridiculous [pt2]


    ¡°Joseph? Why in the world are you here?¡±


    As expected, the kid did not answer her. He was in no condition to open his mouth and speak which was a shame.


    His presence here was making Aurora curious about what had happened outside while she had been held captive. Was the Rocx academy ok? Was Joseph the only one who was brought here along with Aurora? Or were there more people here?


    All of a sudden, it had be extremely important to take Joseph up and interrogate him about why he was here.


    ¡°Oi Joseph, wake up. I need you to tell me how you ended up here.¡±


    Aurora tried to wake the kid up but he kept on sleeping anyway. It did not look like he was going to wake up anytime soon.


    The spore used on him was potent but Aurora had no way of knowing that. All she could assume was that the worst had happened and the kid was in a suspended state of unconsciousness.


    ¡®He will die if he doesn¡¯t wake up soon. The human body starts to lose muscle mass once they are in this state for long enough.¡¯


    Aurora panicked for no apparent reason seeing the kid in this state. Truth be told, she was underestimating the human body¡¯s tendency for self-recovery and was making a mountain out of a molehill.


    The kid was not going to immediately die even if he had been knocked unconscious but Aurora didn¡¯t even want to take the risk.


    ¡°I¡¯ve got no other choice. You better be grateful to me, you sleeping beauty.¡±


    Aurora picked up the considerably light kid and began to run. The kid did not even bulge in her arm which told Aurora how deep of a sleep he was in.


    She quickly covered the distance of the corridor in a matter of seconds before taking a right turn. Now that she was out of the corridor, she could feel a faint feeling of powering out the corridor.


    Naturally, Aurora decided to follow the trial since it seemed to have been left by Karan and he was someone Aurora had decided to trust.


    She quickly hit another dead end but this time she had a feeling about what to do. One of the walls here caved in and Aurora sted a hold through it. She only remembered because of the familiar marks on the wall.


    She had a lot of fun sneaking out of here when she had been young and this wall had to be reinforced again and again. That made its joints incredibly weak to any form of force being used on it.


    The opening led into a different part of the castle and this room was covered in sharp des and a powerful scent of magic.


    Aurora barely avoided the attack that was made against her and blocked it with one hand. She was lucky that Joseph was a light child and very easy to carry with one hand.


    Otherwise, Aurora would have to take some dangerous measures to secure his safety. And then she would have been killed by Seraphina.


    ¡®Well, looks like I will be killed by her anyway. I can read murder in her eyes.¡¯


    Seraphina¡¯s sword shed with Aurora¡¯s spear right in time for Aurora to defend herself properly. Sparks flew everywhere as metal connected with metal and caused the floor to shake.


    ¡°Give him back.¡±


    Seraphina¡¯s voice seemed shaken and not right. It made Aurora winch as she heard it and she quickly took a step back to distance herself from Seraphina.


    But the elder goddess followed right back. The weapon that had been aimed at the ready did not lower down the whole time. If Aurora was not careful then she would be making a really powerful enemy right about now.


    ¡°Seraphina, calm down. I am here to help you out. Don¡¯t you remember me?¡±


    Aurora tried to calm Seraphina down but it was doing more harm than good. Seraphina looked like she had no idea who Aurora was and her weapon did not move away from Aurora¡¯s neck.


    Aurora allowed that to happen, not putting up a fuzz about it. If doing this put Seraphina at ease then Aurora did not mind being the sacrifice for now.


    ¡°Here, you can have him. Just be mindful of his skin because he is a human.¡±


    Seraphina¡¯s insulted look made Aurora take a step back. Awareness seemed to be creeping into her expression slowly and Seraphjina¡¯s eyes were clearing up as well. It almost looked like she was waking up from a long suspended dream.


    ¡°Looks like Joseph will be alright. Did you manage to save him? What are you doing here anyway?¡±


    Aurora felt relieved once it seemed like Seraphina had gained her wits back. The goddess was extremely alert now, her eyes staring right at Aurora in a questioning manner.


    The atmosphere had calmed down all of a sudden and Aurora could not be happier to be in Seraphina¡¯spany.


    ¡°I was brought here the same way as Joseph. I did not want to be here, but I was dragged here anyway. I do want to get out but I need to find someone first.¡±


    Aurora replied to the Goddess of Victory who was holding onto her son.


    Her young-looking body seemed odd holding her son up. They looked like a pair of siblings more than a mother-son duo. But bringing this up would be a sensitive topic.


    ¡°I see. Then, I will leave you on your device while I head out now. I want to get Joseph checked out at a hospital.¡±


    Seraphina started walking once she was done speaking. She seemed to be in a hurry which Aurora understood the reason for. There could be a million things wrong with Joseph and no one would ever know.


    Aurora did not follow after the pair since she felt no need to. She had a lot on her te already and she needed to give the mother-son duo a chance of bonding.


    ¡®Besides, I will be killed if Joseph does not wake up soon. I would like to avoid that confrontation.¡¯


    Call Aurora a coward but even she had her limits of what she could and could not face.


    Currently, she needed to help Karan out before he was killed off. It was not going to be easy by any means since Karan had left no traces for Aurora to follow but she could feel his magic in the most random of ces.


    But the breaking of the floor dictated Aurora¡¯s fate. She no longer had any choice but to help Karan out once she fell through the breaking floor and right onto his vein.


    She managed to raise the earth in time to block the rain of wind arrows that had been responsible for breaking the floor apart while she raised the earth on the other side to pierce the wind user.


    Of course, Asami easily managed to dodge the clumsy attack and retaliate back. But Karan¡¯s veins and water spell caused her wind attacks to deviate.


    ¡°Wow. Out of all ces I could havended in, this one was the least likely. How did I end up here anyway?¡±


    Aurora asked but no one gave her any answer. No one as much opened their mouth as they continues attacking each other. Especially Asami seemed to be getting more and more pissed off.


    The more time they spend parrying off Asami¡¯s attacks, the more her firepower increases. But the uracy also decreased.


    She was not used to using this much magic power and it showed as her attacks gained more speed. Aurora could not tell you how lucky this was for her.


    ¡°Darn you both. You managed to foil all of our ns in a matter of minutes. But I will take care of you before the tower enters this building. Your corps will make for a fine gift. It is not like we need to keep you alive.¡±


    Asami seemed to have taken the insult of them managing to escape personally. From Karan¡¯s expression, this seemed to be something unusual for him to see.


    Aurora did not know what kind of person Asami was but she had a feeling that she was not usually like this. She was being too aggressive and angry for no reason.


    ¡°I don¡¯t like it. There is a sour smell in the air that is making e agitated. I feel like I want to be violent but it was difficult to control.¡±


    Aurora could not feel this ¡®sour scent¡¯ in the air but Karan¡¯s forehead had broken out into a cold sweat. His face looked pained, almost as if he was resisting something and that made Aurora more than certain that he was smelling something repulsive.


    ¡®Is it because of their cores that they can smell this smell? Since the core inside me is not my own, I guess this smell isn¡¯t affecting me.¡¯


    It was a fucked-up logic that did not make any sense but this was the only thing Aurora had to go off on.

 Chapter 241 241: Deeper into the palace [pt1]

    Chapter 241 241: Deeper into the pce [pt1]


    The rising tension caused the two figures standing in the center to tense up. And Aurora, caught in the middle, had to witness their sh.


    She barely managed to get out of the range of their first attack when the second stronger ones shed with each other.


    It was aplete mess of firepower and Aurora was the unwilling victim caught in the middle. The other two were already behaving like rabid animals as if not even aware that she was even standing in front of them.


    At this rate, Aurora would get killed off in the middle of this brawl and no one would be wiser.


    The earth rose to protect her body but the wind des Asami created managed to tear her defenses apart quite easily. The water rose to protect her from the vicious attack but it was unable to retain its shape either.


    Karan¡¯s usual patience was nowhere to be seen. Instead, he was growling and going after his target with ferocity Aurora had never seen before.


    They both were tearing the very space apart as soon as their powers shed and this was a dangerous situation to be in. If Aurora was not careful then she would die without even knowing anything.


    The sparks of their sh were already sparkling near Aurora¡¯s head and she had to actively keep track of who was where to make sure her head was still intact.


    She raised the death, again and again, to defend not only herself but Karan as well. But he seemed to be getting more and more agitated at her attempts to shield him.


    In the end, Aurora chose to focus on herself. Her core was not awake enough to fight the other two head-ons. But she could strike back if she had an opportunity to do so.


    ¡®But before that, I need to find a way to turn off this scent they both are being affected by. I should be d that I cannot smell it.¡¯


    Aurora was thankful but it also worried her. It meant that she had a different physique than the other gods which would be troublesome if it was found out.


    She had just managed to walk out of the chamber with Lady Dheva since she was no longer interested in Aurora. But this could very well ce Aurora back on the observation table quite easily.


    ¡®System, can you not sense the source of this smell they are both sensing? Can you even detect the scent?¡¯


    Aurora did not have much faith in her system but it seemed she should have. Her system¡¯s green light indicated that it was picking up signals about what Aurora had asked it to find.


    [Scanning in progress. 3%¡­..15%¡­45%¡­..75%%¡­100%¡­.


    Source found. Initiate forceful takeover and shut-down?]


    Her system wasing clutch in these times and Aurora quickly pressed the ¡®yes¡¯ option before she felt her body weaken.


    She had not realized how much magic it would take to perform this task and now she was paying the price. Her legs even refused to move due to theck of magic she had.


    But it did do the trick. Karan¡¯s body seemed to be rxing and even Asami looked confused at the newfound sensibility she had.


    This was the window of opportunity Aurora needed to make the attack work. She poured all the magic she had into a sleeping spell and targeted Asami.


    It would not keep her under for long but it should be long enough to be able to get away from here.


    As expected, Asami began to fall asleep as soon as she came in contact with the magic and Karan looked a little stupified at what was happening.


    ¡°Oi, help me walk. I overexerted myself a little and now my legs refused to work.¡±


    Aurora called out to her friend who sighed before making his way over to Aurora finally. Karan¡¯s arms were strong as they held Aurora and he moved quickly through the base.


    Once again, it was quite easy to run away but the pair never made it to the final opening before the wall at the side gave way and Aurora barely managed to force the earth up for protection.


    Familiar red eyes looked back at her from a pale face framed by red hair.


    ¡°Whoa, Aurora? What are you doing here? No, more importantly! YOU! Let go of Aurora or I will make you suffer.¡±


    If this had been a normal day, Karan would not even have flinched at the provocation. There were enough idiots out there who thought that they could take on a good and win.


    But today had been an exhausting day for Karan and Aurora. They had to face the other gods and also face their past. They were in no condition to fight any longer.


    ¡°It¡¯s right Rita. Karen is on our side and he is helping me out. More importantly, are you here alone? What about everyone else? Is Rex here as well?¡±


    Aurora was not sure if Rex woulde here or not. This ce had been his home as well but he had suffered here the most. She wanted to keep him away.


    ¡°Rex? I am not sure. Thest I knew of him, he headed into a meeting to get more allies. The tower is on its way but I sped past them toe here and save you before they could. Apparently. The tower is thinking of blowing this pce up.¡±


    Frankly speaking, Aurora was surprised that this had not happened way before this time. The tower had always been wary of the south to the point of even outcasting them.


    And they had a real reason to be as well. After all, the south had the power to kill their biggest weapon ¨C the gods.


    Now that a major goddess had been killed off, the tower could no longer sit back and see things happen.


    Even if Minerva was not the one to take the initiative, Aurora doubted that the old man of the tower would sit back and watch it all happen.


    ¡°That reminds me, I need to check something out real quick. Apparently, there is a room at the bottom of this castle that contains something important.¡±


    Aurora was sure that was where the hinted research was. Aurora did not have to be a genius to know where a secret like that would be stored.


    And there was no real reason for her to check it all out but she needed to sate her curiosity. If not then she would end up thinking about it all her life.


    ¡°The bottom of this castle? I am sure no one was permitted to go there when I was still living here. Apparently, there was a rumor that it was connected to the abyss.¡±


    ¡°You lived here? But aren¡¯t you a god of the north? Why would youe and live here in the south?¡±


    Rita asked, now of this man who was helping them out. Something about him did not sit right with her. It seemed like he did not fit with the body he was in.


    ¡°It¡¯s a long story that you don¡¯t need to know about. For now, just know that I am Aurora¡¯s friend and I am helping you out for that reason only. You should consider yourself lucky that you managed to snag me to help you out.


    ¡°Karen, you are getting a big head now. Do keep yourself under control. We don¡¯t want a repeat of that incident long ago when we were caught off guard and almost died.¡±


    ¡°Hahahah, of course not. I would never get overconfident and cause trouble. Overconfident and me? These words don¡¯t match together.¡±


    Karan¡¯s voice started nervously but he soon adjusted his tone. He seemed much better now and Aurora finally felt like she had enough courage to press ahead into the abyss now.


    The deeper they went into the tower, the more energy rushed back at Aurora. It was a weing feeling but the other people around her did not seem to think the same as her.


    Especially Rita was shivering due to the cold air all around her. Her lips were turning blue due to the extremely cold surroundings and Aurora felt pity for her.


    ¡°You can stay here if you want to. There is no need for you to go any further than here. I am sure everything will be alright-¡°


    The castle shook violently. It was no earthquake but the feeling of heavy magic ramming into the castle.


    ¡°Tsk, the tower is here and they are as showy as ever. We need to hurry up and get out of here.¡±


    Karan eximed as he leaned against the wall. He was the only one of the trio who had not fallen due to the sudden shaking of the floor.


    Rita looked annoyed at her current position but it had nothing on Aurora whose eyes had gone wide and her body was unconsciously following the new trail of magic she had sensed.


    Suddenly, she knew where she had to go and what she had to do.

 Chapter 242 242: Deeper into the palace [pt2]

    Chapter 242 242: Deeper into the pce [pt2]


    Once it was decided where Aurora needed to head out to, she quickly bided her time and left the scene.


    Of course, Rita followed after her while Karan separated from the group. He was going to attempt to buy them more time by pursuing the tower to not attack the bottom.


    For a tall-standing castle like this one, it was amon practice to attack the base to take the whole fortress out. This time it was no different but Karan could no longer allow that to happen.


    He hurriedly stepped up the stairs in an attempt to reach the top as soon as possible. That was the easiest way for him to get out of the pce.


    He had never seen the hallways of this pce so empty and devoid of life. Not even a single shadow could be seen in the vicinity of the ce which was rather concerning.


    Not only had everyone disappeared all of a sudden, but it had also left a visible gap in the defense of this ce.


    This was akin to asking someone toe and take this ce over.


    ¡®What is that woman cooking up? I cannot believe she is leaving herself this defenseless like this. But I cannot see any motive behind her actions as well.¡¯


    Karan could not see any motives and that was the real problem for him. Lady Dheva was a powerful enough force for even him to not be careful about.


    As such, he was not sure he was su[er confident in being able to repel her attacks once she got serious.


    For a human, she was surprisingly powerful. Even Minerva had to think twice before crossing her and causing trouble.


    But for a woman like her to just sit back and do nothing as all this was happening was a little concerning. What was with this open invitation to attack?


    Karan felt that something was wrong but he did not realize what it was until he was halfway through the hallway and stopped in shock at the site in front of him.


    If there was one face Karan had not expected to see in his life again, it had been the one in front of him. It was his face from his past life staring back at him with dead eyes.


    ¡°You are a liar and a conman. That body is not yours so you should return it ande back. I am sure some people are waiting for you to return home.¡±


    Karan was sure he was shaking quite badly. It was tough to hide the expression of horror on his face but he was also sure that no one would be able to find him anyway.


    This had to be one of the tower¡¯s tricks to let his guard down. As much as he loathed to admit it, the Southern pce did not deploy such cheap tactics to win.


    And they especially will not need such underhanded tricks with the three god-level powers under their expertise.


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard enough of your yelping. Do you think that I cannot tell you what you are nning on doing to me and everyone else in this ce? You should have thought twice before trying to deploy force against me.¡±


    Karan¡¯s words echoed in the space and the shadow doll grinned with an amused expression.


    He knew that it had not been his real body since that expression on that doll¡¯s face was unnatural.


    ¡°Ahhh, I got found out. What should I do now? What should I do now? Should I kill you and be the real one? Hey, tell me what I should do?¡±


    Karan took a step back from the over-excited female in front of him. She was closing in toward him with a happy smile but there was murder in her eyes.


    Karan seemed to have ignited the fire of death and intent in her body which forced the female to attack him.


    Now that things hade to this, he remembered why he was being currently attacked by this doll-like creature.


    It was because this was a shadow puppet as well but this shadow puppet was special. It was a curse made of his energy and shadow and it had an unnatural obsession with bing ¡®real.¡¯


    Unfortunately, that would be only possible once Karan¡¯s current body was taken over by the said creature and it devoured him from the inside.


    ¡°You rotten creature. No wonder you felt so familiar to me. So you have been hiding this kind of interest, huh? And did you think I will just it back and allow you to do as you pleased?¡±


    Karan gave as good as he got from the creature. His powers were running low because of using them the whole day but he still had enough magic to be able to defend himself.


    His retaliation took his shadow aback but ¡®Lucy¡¯s¡¯ face grinned at his efforts before she opened her mouth again.


    ¡°You are good but not good enough. Did you think these measly tricks will be able to save you? Look, you don¡¯t even have enough magic to sustain yourself currently.¡±


    The shadow taunted as its attacks picked up in ferocity. Karan needed to finish this fight right now or he would end up burning himself.


    The worst thing about fighting a shadow puppet was that it consumed the magic of the person to whom it was connected. And in this case, it was Karan.


    He did not doubt that he would be able to win in an all-out brawl but it would still exhaust him a lot.


    __________________________


    ¡°A-Are you sure we are going in the right direction? This pce has started to give me the chills.¡±


    Ritained as she picked up the pace to be with Aurora. She could not understand how anyone coulde down here and not feel awkward about it.


    Even she was getting chills by walking further and further. And she was someone who was used to such an atmosphere.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much. This atmosphere ismon in most ces that connect to the abyss. These nodes are the parts where the abyssal resentment gathers. All you need to do for now is to not let the miasma in your body.¡±


    ¡°Miasma? What are you talking-¡°


    Just as Rita opened her mouth to ask that question, Aurora covered her mouth with her hand. A st of concentrated magic hit her straight in the face.


    There was a little bit of poison mixed in that st that would have made breathing difficult for Rita had Aurora not covered her mouth in time.


    Aurora let go once that st has passed and it was safe to continue once again.


    ¡°Oh, so you were talking about that Miasma. I can see why that would be a problem for anyone. Thank god we managed to avoid it.¡±


    Rita sounded far too pleased for someone who had managed to just avoid being crippled for life. It made Aurora ufortable to see her disregard for life like this.


    But she chose not to say anything for now. She did not want toe off as too overbearing.


    Besides, Rita needed to start thinking for herself sooner orter and this was the prime time for her to do that.


    And anyway, they were right in front of the door that contained the secret her mother had whispered to her. The ce behind the door was reeking of the abyss and inviting Aurora toe in and embrace her powers.


    ¡°This ce is so creepy. No offense to anyone but how can someone be expected to live here? We should start heading back home now-¡°


    Aurora should have been d to see that Rita was unaffected by the sudden change in momentum and even with everything going on.


    But Aurora found it hard to concentrate with the sudden bout of magic rushing into her body. It almost felt like corruption and Rita would have to help her outter.


    The door was hiding a big secret and Aurora felt scared to open it all of a sudden. She felt like she did not want to look at the other side.


    ¡°Hey, hurry up and enter already. How long are you going to keep on standing there like that.¡±


    But what Auroracked the courage to do, Rita managed to do quite easily. She forced the door open and entered the room without any care in the world.


    Once she was in, Aurora had no other choice but to follow along as well. She did not want to send Rita in there alone.


    And she especially did not want to seem like a coward. She had to face these truths one day.


    ¡°I guess there is no choice for me now.¡±¡®


    Aurora whispered as she entered the room as well. She was assaulted by the familiarity of the abyss as it rushed to greet her but her eyes were focused on the only source of light in the whole chamber.


    And it wasing from a cocoon-like entity in front of her.

 Chapter 243 243: The cocoon

    Chapter 243 243: The cocoon


    There it was, right in front of her eyes. And it wasing from a cocoon-like entity in front of her.


    Aurora wanted to take her eyes off the cocoon but there was something attractive about this entity that made it impossible for Aurora to look away from it.


    She wanted to reach out and touch this cocoon but Rita¡¯s voice was what held her back. There was fear in Rita¡¯s voice as she hung back and observed the entity.


    ¡°Maybe it is not a good idea for us to mess with this thing. There is too much energying off this cacoon and the feeling of an Abyss is reeking from this ce. It is making me a little ufortable, to be honest.¡±


    Rita had never been ufortable with the presence of the abyss so this was a first for her. This put even Aurora at a loss of what to do.


    She wanted to help Rita out but the need to know more about the origin of the cocoon was overwhelming to the point that Aurora was sure she was underpulsion.


    Every time she neared the cocoon, the heat in her body dimmed down as well and pleasure coursed through her body.


    This cocoon was her calling and Aurora needed to check it out at any cost.


    ¡°Rita, take a few steps back and turn around if you feel ufortable. I am sure everything will be over soon.¡±


    Aurora asked as she walked near the cocoon. She had yet to touch it but her fingers were lingering dangerously close to it.


    It took a single step for her to push the soft threads of the cocoon apart and stare at the empty but small face in front of her.


    Blue hair and pale skin were what greeted Aurora and she wanted to be surprised to see her face stare back at her. But even that feeling of surprise came to her muted. The abyss was making her emotions duller.


    Magic was interacting with her body all over, caressing her in ces it should not be Aurora was feeling the tingles all over herself.


    ¡°What are you going to do about it? This kid looks just like you. Is it your secret daughter I knew nothing about?¡±


    Rita tried to tease but even that fell t in the tense atmosphere. Aurora could tell that Rita was trying her best but this was just not the mood for that kind of thing.


    ¡°This is not my kid but I have no problem taking her as one if she waked up right now. Hey, help me drag her out of the cocoon.¡±


    ¡°W-What? We are extracting that thing out? How about we don¡¯t do that and leave things as they are? Hey Aurora-¡°


    But Aurora had made up her mind and her hands were already working to separate the threads around the kid.


    Seeing her work this hard, Rita had no choice but to join her with a reluctant sigh and her hands tore the cocoon apart.


    And just when it felt like they had done enough, it happened. The self-healing of the cocoon kicked in and it managed to repair itself in record time.


    That thought of wasting effort on such a thing annoyed Rita but Aurora was far from done. She dragged her hand and formed a dagger out of her powers.


    The threads that were connecting again were cut-off again but Aurora and Rita just sat back this time to see how Aurora handled this.


    After all, she was bing more of a hindrance than a help, which was not good for Rita. Aurora managed to drag the kid¡¯s body out finally but she was exhausted and panting.


    The kid shined for a few seconds before her eyes opened into the golden slits the same shade as Aurora.


    She gave out a yawn before her body shined a bright silver and an egg stood in the child¡¯s ce.


    ¡°Wow, so that happened. What else do you want to do Aurora?¡±


    Rita turned toward the other female who was cradling the egg but her face was unnaturally flushed and her body was radiating unnatural amounts of heat.


    Aurora¡¯s panting face and flushed cheeks were doing things to Rita that they should not and she had to hold her moan back at the erotic picture it made.


    ¡°Aurora?¡±


    Rita asked again, just to confirm if she was on the same wavelength as the other and she got a re for her efforts.


    ¡°Stop looking at me like that and help me out. This thing is not going to correct by itself. I need to fuck and get it out of my system.¡±


    That was all the permission Rita needed to jump Aurora and she smashed her lips against the older female.


    ___________________________


    The shadow puppet had not been easy to deal with. It had been exhausting both physically and mentally but Karan had managed to get rid of it somehow.


    His experience with annoying magic came in clutch and he managed to erode the puppet before it could open its annoying mouth.


    Karan had never used his magic this much before but it just highlighted how dire the situation was.


    Well that, and he had gotten incredibly lucky when the canon from the tower¡¯s attack had managed to hit his opponent and had taken it off-guard.


    That had freed Karan to do what he wanted to and he had sprinted toward his destination.


    Karan ran faster through the hallway, his feet not losing their bnce despite the shaking of the floor. The tower was bing more and more viscous in their attack and Karan had a feeling that they would soon deploy the big guns.


    Not that it mattered much when it came to the gods. Any one of the Southern elites could handle whatever the tower threw at them and therey the problem.


    The tower only had Minerva right now for helping them out. Two out of their three gods were missing and that put the tower at a massive disadvantage.


    What Karan needed to do was to do the asshole thing and use this missing situation to his advantage to get the tower under his control.


    Minerva might not care about what the tower did but Karan had poured his blood and sweat into it even when he did not need to do that. And somewhere along the way, he had gotten attached.


    ¡®Not to mention that it would help Aurora and Rex in the long run as well if the tower stopped messing with them.¡¯


    This was also a big reason that made Karan start moving.


    He quickly reached the top of the pce and took in the ship that the tower had sent. It was advanced and had a lot of stored magic in it.


    It might even be felt from here and it was Minerva¡¯s magic that was operating that thing. And it was not gentle most of the time.


    It would tear anyone apart if it managed to hit someone. And it would be indiscriminate in its destruction as well.


    Karan did not want to say this but Minerva was someone who liked to retain ¡®bnce¡¯. When all the others favored using favored strengthened elements to their advantage, Minerva favored them all equally.


    That made her both easy and annoying to deal with. And dealing with Minerva¡¯s mood could be tricky. She had been the cause of more than a few incidents as well.


    ¡®Anyway, time to head into the shop to see who ismanding it. If nothing else, threatening the one in charge is always viable.¡±


    Karan took in a deep breath before he shot out like a beam toward the ship. He knew from instincts where to and how to get in quickly.


    Theck of surveince meant that his presence had been noted and he was deemed to be safe to take in. Karan did not hesitate to make use of this opportunity to knock everyone down and connected with the ship¡¯s magic.


    But he was rejected, much to his shock. There was only one person who had a higher degree of control than him over this ship and he could not believe that Minerva had managed to drag herself out as well.


    ¡°So you came back? Right in time to see me crush these southern bugs. They have annoyed me enough until now.¡±


    It was Minerva and for the first time in his life, Karan could say that she sounded annoyed. The canons charged at her orders and they fired at the root of the building.


    That snapped Karan out of the daze he was in and he instantly wrested Minerva¡¯s magic for control to change the aim of the canons.


    He did not fully seed but even a little control was enough to force those canons away from the root of the building.


    ¡°What do you think you are doing hindering me?¡± Minerva¡¯s voice was full of annoyance and Karan let out a startledugh.


    ¡°Ahhh, so first thing first, can you not shoot the roots of the pce? Some important people are in there,¡±


    Minerva red at him but she finally changed her aim without asking much.

 Chapter 244 244: Insatiable apatite [pt1]

    Chapter 244 244: Insatiable apatite [pt1]


    Their lips met in a frenzy, and Rita needed only a second to map out Aurora¡¯s mouth. There was some absolute desperation in her moments right then.


    Aurora gave back as good as she got as well. The heat in her body caused by the magic of the abyssal energy flowing into her was not going away that easily. She needed release badly.


    However, Aurora also tried slowing her rhythm down to match faster. But Rita did not want to follow the same rate as her.


    Rita licked across Aurora¡¯s lips to ask for permission to enter her mouth which made Aurora¡¯s dazed. It had been some time since she had any sexual encounter and now her body felt extra sensitive to this feeling.


    ¡°Open your mouth and allow me in. I swear you will feel better once you do that.¡±


    Rita asked and Aurora found herself following without muchint. The heat was making her much more submissive than she had ever before.


    But Rita was acting much more dominating than before as well. Rita¡¯s eyes looked magic-drunk as her tongue forced itself into Aurora¡¯s mouth. It was one-sided domination as Aurora¡¯s legs went soft at the feeling of being carsed.


    Rita was ying with her breasts, her hand pinching and squeezing Aurora¡¯s nipples to make them hard. Aurora¡¯s aroused state could be seen visibly on her face once Rita let go of her.


    Aurora sat there with her legs spread and her face flushed. Her mouth was panting open and a string of droll was connecting her lips to Rita¡¯s.


    It was such an arousing scene that Rita found herself unable to push Aurora down and rub against her. Rita¡¯s rock-hard cock rubbed against Aurora¡¯s softness and it made both parties moan out loud.


    ¡°Ask me to fuck you and I will. I want to hear from your mouth what you want me to do.¡±


    Rita asked as she pinched Aurora even more. Her hands were roaming all around Aurora¡¯s body now and helping her get rid of her clothes safely.


    Her mouth moved toward Aurora¡¯s full breasts as soon as they were visible and free of her bra. They were such a nice size and they fit into Rita¡¯s hands quite nicely.


    She pinched and squeezed them, feeling Aurora get even wetter against her cock. Their breasts were rubbing against each other, stimting both of them equally.


    ¡°I-I want it. I want to be fucked. Rita please.¡±


    Aurora was really out of it if she was begging already and it aroused Rita even more. She wanted to take Aurora hard and fast today.


    She turned Aurora around and rubbed her hard cock between Aurora¡¯s wet pussyfolds. Aurora¡¯s thighs were closed off shut around her cock and it felt so good.


    It was different from being inside Aurora but it still felt pleasurable enough for Rita to reach her climax for the first time.


    Her semen drenched Aurora¡¯s thighs and her pussy fold which earned Rita a re from the said target. Aurora¡¯s displeasure was immediate and so arousing that Rita wanted to tease her more.


    ¡°R-Rita, you are wasting it. I want you toe inside me, not waste youreing on my thighs.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s voice had a whine to it now. To Rita, it was clear that she was not fully there at this moment but Rita did not care. She decided to y along since this chance seemed to be temporary.


    Besides, something in her was finding it more and more arousing to be in this position.


    ¡°If you want something then you need to ask for it properly. If you beg nicely then I will fuck you properly.¡±


    Not that Rita expected it to happen. She was going to fuck Aurora anyway in a second but she also wanted to tease the female a little.


    Who knew that Aurora would y along with her and positing herself on her hand and knees.


    With her ass positioned out toward Rita, this position left nothing to one¡¯s imagination. Both Aurora¡¯s aroused pussy and her ass were visible to Rita now and they were both wet and aroused.


    Aurora¡¯s fingers circled her wet pussy and one entered it shily before it be bold and soon turned into two.


    By the time Rita realized what Aurora was doing, she was using her fingers to spread her pussy and looking back at Rita with a wet face.


    ¡°Please fuck me here. You don¡¯t even need to prepare me. You just need to thrust your big cock inside and I wille. Please hurry up.¡±


    Aurora was almost begging now. Her pose along with her wet eyes looking back at Rita did the trick and she quickly thrust into that divine pussy.


    Aurora gave out a cry of delight at the action, her pussy mping hard around Rita¡¯s cock and it felt so food to be surrounded by that familiar wetness.


    ¡®Holy fuck. This feels even better than usual. Is it because of the atmosphere we are in? It is much more stimting than before.¡¯


    Rita moved her hips a little and instantly felt the tightness around her give way. Aurora had never really had a problem with taking her size in but those insides were fluttering a little more than usual today.


    Rita liked it and her hips picked up the pace.


    ¡°R-Rita, slow down a little. Y-You are hitting me too h-hard.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s mouth was drooling and her eyes had almost heart-shaped symbols inside them. She was clearly under the influence of the heat and it was wrong of Rita to take advantage like this.


    But she could still not stop her hips from moving and pistoning into Aurora with everything she got.


    She wanted to reach her climax and drench Aurora in her scent.


    And it was not like Aurora was not enjoying her pace as well. Her hips were moving on their own, pulling Rita¡¯s cock even deeper into her body and squeezing around it in an inciting manner.


    ¡°Your mouth says to slow down while your body is telling me to go faster. Which is it that you want me to do? Should I slow down?¡±


    Rita slowed down her hips. Her thrusts going much deeper now than before but Aurora¡¯s hips picked up the pace.


    They were going out of rhythm now but no one minded now.


    ¡°Nonononono! Don¡¯t slow down. I-It is good, really good when you go hard and fast. Please give it to me.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s voice was barely a sound at this point. It was a miracle that Rita even understood what she was saying but she picked up pace nheless.


    Her hips picked up their pace again and her hands dug themselves into Aurora¡¯s sides. There will be hand-shape prints thereter. Rita was sure of that.


    Aurora gave back as good as she got. Her head was thrown back in pleasure and her knees were shaking with the effort to maintain her position Rita pulled her back on her cock.


    And just as Aurora copsed, no longer able to keep her position due to the fatigue and the pleasure that was coursing through her body, Rita pulled her back into herp.


    This new position allowed Rita to go even deeper into Aurora and her hips were flushed against Aurora¡¯s ass as she bounded the other all over her cock.


    ¡°You are doing so good to milk my cock out. You want me toe in you, right?¡±


    Rita whispered in Aurora¡¯s ears to which she got a node. She had a feeling that Aurora would agree with anything she asked right now and Rita had to control herself to not go overboard.


    Aurora had trusted her by showing her this side and Rita needed to not let herself gopletely and take Aurora again and again.


    The pussy around her cock fluttered as it tightened and Rita felt the wetness around her cock increase just as Aurora¡¯s body went ck.


    She had managed toe and now had no energy to even life her hand. But Rita did not slow down.


    ¡°S-Slow down a little. I am spent¨Ceppp¡±


    But Rita did not slow down at all. She only increased the speed of her hips, her thrusts just as strong as before.


    ¡°You did release but I have yet toe again. Just bear with me for a bit and it will be over soon.¡±


    Rita assured as Aurora¡¯s body shivered around her. But her nipples were still erect and her pussy was trying it¡¯s best to milk Rita right now as well.


    And knowing Aurora, it would not take long until she was aroused again and ready to go. Rita had seen her go at sex a lot of times and she knew that Aurora would be able to handle her just fine.


    ¡°M-More. Rita, give me more.¡±


    Aurora reached back for a kiss which Rita indulged. Aurora¡¯s hips had started to match her pace now and Rita had known that Aurora woulde around soon.


    After all, the one with the insatiable appetite was Aurora here.

 Chapter 245 245: Insatiable apatite [pt2]

    Chapter 245 245: Insatiable apatite [pt2]


    Rita picked up Aurora¡¯s limp legs until they were t with her chest and started thrusting inside her again. These thrusts were shallow and fast, not to stimte but to frustrate her partner.


    And Rita was sessful in annoying Aurora since the goddess looked frustrated at theck of stimtion.


    ¡°S¡­top tea¡­.sing. Hur¡­..ry u¡­p.¡±


    Aurora managed to stutter out before a hard thrust caused her to lose her train of thought. Rita had done that rather masterfully as she kept on pounding into that pussy in front of her.


    She did pick up the pace finally and that caused Aurora¡¯s body to bounce with the new force. Her full breasts juggled at the force her partner was using but her body felt so good.


    The pleasure was making Aurora melt and her brain was shutting itself off.


    ¡°I-It¡¯s good, right? You need more, right?¡±


    Rita asked as she thrust away into that beautiful and eager body in front of her. Her thrusts were breaking their rhythm here and there because of the constant force she was using.


    Her cock felt like it would melt inside Aurora¡¯s hot body but that did not happen. Instead, Aurora clenched tightly around her, her inner walls milking Rita¡¯s cock for all it was worth.


    Both moaned as Aurora tightened around that cock in her pussy, reaching out to drag Rita down for a kiss.


    Their lips met before their tongues battled it out for dominance. But the battle was rather one-sided as Rita pushed all her weight on Aurora to cage her in her arms.


    Rita¡¯s thrusts were alternating between hard and shadow thrusts that made Aurora feel the pleasure but stop at the wrong time to not allow her toe. It was constant torture for Aurora who just wanted toe.


    In the end, Aurora¡¯s body was weak to pleasure and her heat made her sensitive walls mp around that cock.


    The stimtion this time was enough to make Rita give in and she finally came into Aurora¡¯s pussy. The wet sensation made Aurorae as well.


    But things were far from over.


    Rita pulled her cock out as she looked at the filled-up pussy. Her mouth watered at seeing the treat and her tongue darted out to taste it.


    ¡°H-Hey, what are you thinking¡­uggg.¡±


    The sudden rush of wetness that surrounded Aurora¡¯s clit took her aback and she instantly threw her head back in pleasure.


    Her eyes had heart-shaped marks as she allowed Rita to y with her. She was too far gone to make sense of what was right and wrong anyway.


    Seeing this Aurora, Rita could not help but pick up the pace. The more she saw, the more she wanted to see from her partner.


    The said partner looked like she had no idea what was happening to her though and her eyes were zed over.


    ¡°R..Rita, no m..ore. I¡­am..tir¡­ed.¡±


    Aurorained but her body was rather ready to receive more. It was getting more and more heated by the second, arousal running through her body.


    Not only that, but her body was beginning to emit such a sweet smell that made anyone lose their minds and go into a mindless rut.


    Rita was no different as her cock stood up due to all the pheromones that were in the air. As someone who had received the blessing of the abyss, she had some kind of animal instincts inside her as well.


    Before Aurora knew it, her pussy was being stretched by two fingers and Rita was pumping her fingers in and out of her body. The shudder made Aurora lose her mind but her hungry body wanted more.


    It was striking in Rita¡¯s fingers and the arousal was striking back at Aurora¡¯s body.


    Rita turned Aurora around and did not waste any time in thrusting back into that hungry body beneath her.


    ¡°Look at that, you are swallowing me whole. Are you that hungry for me?¡±


    Aurora wanted to cringe but her body was betraying her at the feeling of pleasure. She could not even speak properly, much less make any coherent sentence. All Aurora could do was to feel and do her best to not be swept away.


    Her pussy fluttered as it dragged Rita¡¯s cock deeper into her body. The feeling of pain and pleasure mixing made Aurora hit her climax rather soon and Rita followed suit.


    But Rita was still not done. These pheromones in the air were making her insatiable. Her cock was still hard inside Aurora and she thrust her cock in again.


    It was non-stop pleasure and the pair were lost in each other¡¯s bodies despite the kind of trouble that was taking ce outside.


    __________________________


    ¡°You allowed them to get away. How could you do that to us? Have you betrayed us?¡±


    Asami asked as soon as she watched Zoe sit therefortably. The overlooker looked like she had no care in the world as she sipped away at her team.


    At her side the other two seats were empty. There was neither Clove here nor Lady Dheva to tell them what to do next.


    Not that it mattered much because Asami was an independent person at heart. And as such, she would do what she wanted to do.


    ¡°You say that I let them go but did you not do the same? We are both equally guilty.¡±


    ¡°They managed to get away from me but you didn¡¯t even try. These are two entirely separate things.¡±


    ¡°And yet the oue is the same. But in my case, I was asked to let them go. There were things Aurora needed to learn if we are to make here to our side willingly.¡±


    Zoe sounded convinced of her words but Asami still did not believe her.


    But it was toote to go out now and to talk things over. She needed to n about what to do next anyway.


    ¡°Where are Clove and thedy? They should be here to help and n what will happen next, right?¡±


    Asami was annoyed to be the only one to be taking this seriously. She was not usually like this but she had thought she could trust these people to show her real self.


    Clearly, it was not so and she had been made a fool out of. Why was she the only one taking this quest seriously?


    ¡°I don¡¯t know where Clove went but Lady Dheva went out to negotiate with the tower regarding this attack. Let¡¯s hope that it does not take long or we will need to go to war with them.¡±


    Zoe sounded tired but resigned to her fate. It would be difficult to avoid the war with how things were going. They had killed off a goddess and that was a big thing in itself.


    ¡°Do you think the tower will even agree to talk with us, much less listen to us? And even then, do you think I want them to help us out? I joined this side in the first ce because it fucked the tower over as well.¡±


    Asamiined but Zoe looked rather calm.


    She just picked up her teacup and took another sip before turning her yellow eyes toward Asami. The intensity of nkness in her expression made Asami take a step back and gulp her saliva down.


    ¡°Do you think that I am any happier than you are to see the tower here? But what is necessary is necessary. Since we cannot eliminate the tower, we might as well join them for now.¡±


    Zoe¡¯s nk expression took Asami back and made her realize that the other goddess was not any happier than her when it came to the tower and its moments.


    But unlike Asami, Zoe was willing to overlook everything that happened with the tower before to ensure a great partnership.


    ¡®And it¡¯s not like the tower holds any personal stakes in her life. She was on rather good terms with those people.¡¯


    Asami cursed inside her mind at the unfairness of what was happening but she stayed quiet for now.


    There was no use crying over spilled milk and it would make things easier in the longer run.


    ¡°But I won¡¯t like the tower or cooperate as if nothing happened. So don¡¯t expect me to pull my weight for them.¡±


    Asami got in the final words and she was rewarded with a small and secretive smile from Rita.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We might be joining the tower for now but that doesn¡¯t mean we won¡¯t fuck them over when the timees. Everything abyss-rted needs to rest and the tower will be no different.¡±


    ¡°For now, you just need to grind your teeth and bear with it all. Things will be alright soon.¡±


    Things better be alright soon. Asami was not sure how long she will be able tost like this but she was willing to try.


    Her dream was bigger than pettiness and getting rid of this curse would be the best thing that ever happen to Asami.


    And if she had to make ¡®nice¡¯ with her enemies for some time, she could bear to do that as well.

 Chapter 246 246: The end of the South [pt1]

    Chapter 246 246: The end of the South [pt1]


    ¡°Is your body alright? Can you move now?¡±


    Rita looked Aurora right in the eye as she asked that question. She could tell that her partner was still not feeling alright but this was as best as that heated fever was going to get.


    When the heat refused to go down despite both parties being exhausted, they both knew that there was something wrong.


    And the only connection they could find between not feeling well and that fever was the presence of the abyss in this chamber.


    Somehow, even Rita could tell that the abyss¡¯s presence in this ce was different from before.


    ¡°My body is alright. But there is a feeling of emptiness inside me. I might have an idea what this chamber wants from me but I cannot indulge it in its desires.¡±


    Of course, Aurora knew. Rita was sure that Aurora had a sixth sense when it came to things like these. Somehow, she always knew what was going on.


    It was like she had a connection with the abyss that Rita did not know about. But whatever it was, it usually proved to be quite useful.


    And having known Aurora for a while, Rita knew not to ask her questions about it. Aurora would tell you if she thought that the secret was worth telling.


    ¡°Rita, you walk out of this chamber first. I need to get hold of that egg first before I cane out. I have a feeling that the egg will be a little difficult to convince to leave.¡±


    It was times like these that made Rita feel like Aurora was losing her mind slowly. Who talked to an egg in an attempt to coax it outside of a chamber?


    ¡®I have seen more weird and unconventional things in my life. This is nothing.¡¯


    Rita psyched herself as she stood up. She was not going to question what Aurora was doing and why she was doing things.


    It was time to turn her head away from the weird and not think about it at all.


    Aurora who watched it happen just shook her head before turning toward the egg and pushing her hand against its surface.


    There was a life inside that egg that felt strong against Aurora¡¯s hand. This egg was not a dud and had some substance worth looking into.


    To be honest, Aurora had not sent Rita out because she needed to convenience the egg to leave but because she needed time to figure out how to safely extract the egg from this chamber.


    Whatever energy that was circting inside this chamber was all connected to this egg. There was a more than likely chance that this chamber would go ¡®boom¡¯ as soon as this egg was removed.


    And Rita was only human. Aurora doubted if she would be able to survive such a st of magic or not. But the risk of danger alone made it worthwhile to send Rita out.


    Aurora picked up the egg very carefully but it was dormant in her hand. The energy that was connected to the egg shifted its focus toward her as soon as it detected her.


    As a result, the heat that Aurora had been avoiding all this while came crawling back and tried to drag Aurora down in it again.


    It felt like there were several hands on her body that were trying to drown Aurora in the pool known as desire.


    But the coldness of the egg in her arms reminded Aurora of where she was and it broke into her mental focus.


    Somehow, it felt like the egg was making a fuss whenever Aurora¡¯s mind was deviating from its presence. Was it a sentient even right now? What kind of lifeform was in it?


    Somehow, whatever it was, Aurora had a feeling that she was a part of it. She could feel the same energy flowing inside her as the one in the egg.


    ¡°If you turn out to look like me as well then people will think that I gave birth to you. I wonder how that would work out.¡±


    Aurora touched the egg as she finally took it out of the chamber. The magic tried to hold her back and the door refused to open up.


    But her desire to escape was so prominent that she felt the egg respond to her.


    One second it was in her arms, the next it disappeared in a sh of light and a foreign sensation of being filled was felt in Aurora¡¯s stomach.


    But it faded away as soon as it came. The only thing that was left behind was the magic she felt and the numbness in her legs.


    ¡°See, I knew that it would happen. You took that egg in your body, right? Do you even have any idea what will happen next?¡±


    Clove¡¯s voice reached Aurora¡¯s ears just as she looked up. Clove was standing in front of her with a look full of disapproval.


    Aurora could even see Rita behind her, standing there was a warrior expression as she tried to break the light barrier that had been formed between herself and Aurora.


    Was Clove an enemy or an ally right now? It was tough for Aurora to tell and her feelings were a mess whenever she saw Clove.


    Aurora was still in love with Clove but Clove was no longer her whole world. There were more people Aurora had rtionships with and considered important. She could no longer give herself to Clove fully.


    ¡°Are you here to take me back? Or take that egg back? I am sorry but it is toote.¡±


    Aurora taunted as she tried to stand up again. But her legs gave way again. It was getting more and more annoying by the second to keep her temper in.


    ¡°I am not here for any of that. In fact, I am here to help you run away. I will not say that I am sorry for what happened until now but you needed to reach this chamber to activate your hidden potential and the purpose you were born for.¡±


    Clove did not sound sorry and somehow that made Aurora feel better. She had no idea how she would have reacted had Clovee out and told her that it was all a misunderstanding and that she had made a mistake.


    Somehow knowing that Clove did this all willingly made it easy for Aurora to understand why Clove had done all this despite it having hurt Aurora.


    It was not like Clove¡¯s love had faded with her memoriesing back, but that she had a mission even more important than her love for Aurora.


    ¡®Perpahs I med the wrong person all this time. The tower might have a hand in everything that happened but I don¡¯t think that it is the real culprit behind everything that happened to me.¡¯


    This was the thought that Aurora had for the first time. No, perhaps that was just something she had epted for the first time.


    The tower had been an easy target for her fury since it had been a pain in her ass for such a long time.


    And somehow, Aurora had not wanted to believe that Clove could betray her without any external factors involved.


    ¡°I don¡¯t need your help. Your or anyone else help is not needed. Let Rita go and I will make sure I never see you again.¡±


    Aurora tried to walk away but her wrist was caught by Clove¡¯s hand.


    The girl did not let go of it and Aurora could see Rita baring her fangs in their direction. Aurora felt annoyed as well until she felt something being shoved into her hand.


    ¡°You might not want my help but you will need it. That thing in your body will start to devour you until you don¡¯t collect all the other divine cores and feed them to him. You were always meant to be the incubator for it and that¡¯s why your body can handle foreign cores.¡±


    That piece of information made Aurora¡¯s mind stop working. She could not even think properly after what she just heard.


    From Rita¡¯s expression, it did not seem as if she had received the news as well.


    ¡°We are heading toward an era where neither the gods nor the abyss will exist. This world will finally know peace under one supreme power and everything will be reborn. So you just need to sit back and see it all happen. Now, why don¡¯t you take a rest and when you wake up, you will be back home.¡±


    ¡°No, wait. I have questions-¡°


    But as soon as she started asking, Aurora felt her body weakening under the influence of that magic and she went down.


    Thest thing she saw was Rita copsing as well due to the magic and that was when she knew that Clove had been serious.


    She was going down a path she believed all just for a chance to save this world from the abyss. And somehow, Aurora could not help the thoughts that popped into her mind.


    ¡®Clove never changed. Perhaps the one who changed was me along with my feelings. Is everything my fault?¡¯

 Chapter 247 247: The end of South [pt2]

    The atmosphere was tense on the tower¡¯s ship. Even the most basic of humans could understand the concept of fear. So it was no wonder the huge number of mages on the ship could feel the tension rising in the air.


    And it was all because of the presence of that blue-haireddy that had walked up straight into their ship.


    Everyone knew who she was but no one dared to open their mouth to chase her away. How could they do that if they valued their lives after all?


    Everyone knew who the leader of the southern fraction was since they had such a great influence on the tower¡¯s decision.


    And now Lady Dheva was standing on top of their ship as an enemy. It made everyone too nervous to even speak.


    Everyone except Lady Minerva had an annoyed expression on her face. If there was one person who could face the formidable leader of the south, it was their goddess.


    ¡°Today must be a miraculous day for the leader of the south to show her presence so openly. What can I help you with?¡±


    Minerva sounded bitter when she spoke. No one had heard such emotions in her voice for a long time.


    It made people flinch away from her but no one was more surprised to see her acting like this than Karan.


    He knew that there was a history of not liking each other between these parties but he had never noticed just how deep that dislike went.


    And it seemed like it was not as one-sided as he had considered it before. It made him flinch as thesedies yed war all over his head.


    ¡°I-If you both need privacy then I should leave you to be. I am sure you must feel ufortable with my presence here as well. Some things are best talked about in femalepany, right?¡±


    Karan tried to extract himself from the situation entirely but one look from Minerva was enough to make him sit back down.


    Call him a coward, but Karan knew when not to try and push his luck. Lady Minerva was too scared to go again. He better watches his mood and her expression as well.


    Don¡¯t be too hard on this poor guy Minerva. We all know you tend to get cranky from time to time. Now, why don¡¯t we have a chat so that we can ovee your differences-¡°


    The table between them cracked as Lady Minerva¡¯s fist hit it at full force. There was a murderous expression on her face.


    Most people would have flinched at this point and already made excuses for themselves. But not Lady Dheva. She looked no different from before but her eyes had gone dead in a matter of seconds.


    These twodies looked at each other, their gaze neutral. But anyone could see that they were not happy to see each other at all.


    Karan, who was stuck in between this fighting pair could do nothing but sit back and try to surpass his presence. If he tried not to be there mentally, they would also not pay him any physical attention.


    That was all dashed by Lady Minerva¡¯s angry usation. They made Karan flinch and he had to drop his face of indifference.


    ¡°How dare you show your face here after what you have done to us. Mei died because of your actions and now you have the face toe here and ask for cooperation? With what face are you showing up here?¡±


    Lady Minerva was livid. Her eyes were bloodshot and ready tomit murder. A wise man would have taken this clue to know that he was fucked but not Lady Dheva.


    Instead of looking worried, she just gave a pitiful smile back to Lady Minerva.


    ¡°Mei was an unfortunate child who had too much burden on her shoulder. I just allowed her the luxury of eternal rest she always carved. And it will be the same for all of you as well. Your era ising to an end now.¡±


    Lady Dheva seemed to have no filter to her words. Even Karan flinched hearing her words.


    How could she say all that in front of Lady Minerva without flinching? Did she not fear death? Or was she confident that she would not be killed?


    ¡°Stop talking in riddles. Mei did not deserve to have her life cut short. I knew that you were conducting dangerous experiments but I let you be because I pities your conditions. But I can no longer overlook what happened. It¡¯s time you give me an exnation of what you are nning.¡±


    ¡®Ugh, Minerva is super pissed off right now. She is not likely to listen to anything Lady Dheva had to say right now. They are both so scary that I don¡¯t even know who I should cheer for.¡¯


    Karen wanted to be anywhere but here. His body was even protesting against moving due to magic exhaustion.


    But the stare-off between the two females in front of him did not slow down. It picked up the intensity in a matter of seconds.


    All until Lady Dheva deliberately broke it off as she picked up her cup and took a sip slowly. There was a certain serenity to her actions.


    ¡°What do I want to do? I thought I made it pretty clear what I wanted. I wanted to get rid of the abyss once and for all. But it would not be possible until you gods are around. So you all need to go. Mei was just the first piece to that puzzle.¡±


    ¡°So you are saying that you are aiming to kill us all? What a foolish deration to make aftering in here. You have no fear for your life. The south is already done and over with.¡±


    Lady Minerva sounded confident when she made her im.


    Now that Lady Dheva was in their ship and the rest of the goddesses lured out, there was no one left to protect the southern pce. It was time to get rid of it.


    ¡°You can st off that pce for all I care. But you cannot stop the clogs of fate that had been set into motion now. Things will happen whether you all like it or not.¡±


    Minerva could no longer take it. With a single strike from her sword, Lady Dheva was impaled on a sword.


    Thedy did not look to be in pain or even surprised at what happened. Instead, she had a knowing look on her face as she faced the leader of the tower.


    ¡°You might not want to hear it all but even you know that the abyss is a ticking time bomb we need to get rid of. And you, you need to go back to your original body. How long are you going to y at being someone you are not? Come find me when you are ready and I will help you.¡±


    Lady Dheva¡¯s body copsed into different particles of light. She had never been there, to begin with but had been an illusion all along.


    Lady Minerva¡¯s furious yell could be heard all over the base but Karan left her alone.


    He had a feeling he knew what Lady Dheva¡¯s parting words for him had meant. He did not want to believe that it was possible but he was sure that thedy knew about him and his circumstances.


    So did that mean that his original body could be retained? He could go back to being human once he was done with everything. How wonderful would it be to be back in his own body?


    ¡°Fuck that crafty woman. She sacrificed the southern base to be able to escape. We need to do a lot of damage control right now. Send people out to help the poor and needy.¡±


    Minerva took charge of the situation.


    Now that they had won, it was more important than ever to sway public opinion in their favor. The public had an image of the tower that should not be tarnished. Karan knew how important it was to Minerva.


    ¡°I will head out to overlook the restorative measures myself. I will also make sure to capture any estray people we can use to get information out of.¡±


    Karan suggested and Lady Minerva waved her hands in an aggreging motion.


    She trusted Karan to a great extent and he felt guilty for using her trust like this. But he had a reason for wanting to go out into the field. And that was to help smuggle Aurora and her party away.


    He had gotten a message from someone to help and Karan decided not to overlook it for now.


    It was a risk for sure but one Karan was willing to take for the sake of his friends and loved ones. In the end, he was the one who decided to help Aurora out so he had to see it to the end.


    And he was worried about the general public as well. It was also time to announce Mei¡¯s passing.

 Chapter 248 248: The conclusion of the attack [pt1]

    Karan waited around for the messenger to arrive. He was still not sure if he was headed into a trap or not but he was willing to take that risk. It was all because Aurora was really important to him, to begin with.


    The person who walked out of the room had a vaguely familiar face. Karan could say that he had seen her around the tower which meant that she was a mole.


    It was the presence of Rita around her that made Karan rx for real. He might not have trusted the tower with Aurora¡¯s safety.


    However, her moments were not the most coordinated and even a child could tell that there was something wrong with her.


    Karan¡¯s attention snapped up all of a sudden as soon as he felt the foreign magic controlling Rita¡¯s limbs. The redhead¡¯s eyes were closed and she looked to be sleepwalking.


    ¡°Hey, stop before you shoot me. I did not control this girl because I wanted to but because I had no other choice. I needed to get them both out of the way before they became targets.¡±


    The tower¡¯s person yelled before Karan could attack. Her presence was masked masterfully which indicated that someone powerful was behind her.


    And to be able to mask her magic even from Karan¡¯s senses meant that the person had to be a god or goddess of his caliber.


    ¡®So Minerva did send a mole in the southern fraction. Weird that she did not tell me about it when I asked.¡¯


    And Karan had asked Minerva about this. He had asked a few times but Minerva had always avoided his question.


    Now he could see why and he was not sure if he trusted Minerva with such secrets of his own or not.


    ¡°Fine, I will not shoot. But they both are alive, right?¡±


    That was not a question but a threat. He was sure that Minerva would not mind losing one or two pawns if it meant having Karan on his side.


    ¡°They¡¯re alive, but just knocked out. They were asking too many questions so I decided to quit them. Hope that is not a problem.¡±


    It was a problem but not one big enough to make Karan reconsider his options. He eyes the mole distastefully for herck of care but he chose not to hold her ountable.


    After all, Aurora was willful and she was also really stubborn when she needed to be. As such, it would not have been possible to reason with her and get her to trust an unknown person.


    And from what he had heard, Rita was a hot-headed person as well so the chances of her being heard were slim to none.


    ¡°Thank you for helping these two out. I can take things over from here on out so you can let go of them.¡±


    There was some hesitation showing on the person¡¯s face but she finally let go. Karan used his powers to surround the other two and transport them away.


    Not only will it keep them out of danger but it would also keep them hidden and out of the public eye.


    The main premise of this mission had been to take revenge and to perform cleaning on the southern traitors. It would not be good to let people know what the real meaning of this mission had been.


    ¡°Is there something you want to say to me?¡±


    Karan waited around the female to go away before he left as well. The main reason for this was that he did not want to turn his back on that unfamiliar face.


    He knew that it was not for him to be so conscious of this unknown person but he could not help it.


    His instincts were up on rising for some reason and the unimpressed look he got was getting to him as well.


    He was getting rilled up for no reason.


    ¡°You should be careful and consider going back to your roots. That thing inside you will need to leave your body sooner orter. Since you are precious to Aurora, I want you to survive no matter what. Once you decide on what to do,e and find me.¡±


    ¡°Hey wait. What are you saying-¡°


    But the female was gone in front of him. Gone and vanished into thin air. Not even a trace of her smell could be felt around him.


    Even his powers were useless in trying to find that female. And Karan could not help but sigh out in defeat as that happened.


    ¡°Fuck, what is going on here. I cannot help but feel like I got the same warning twice. First from Lady Dheva and now from this unknown person. Why does everyone try to air out my dirtyundry like it¡¯s their business.¡±


    Karanined but his heart was not in it. He was afraid of what would happen next since he could not predict the future.


    But having so many people know your secret was scary. It made Karan feel exposed in a way that he had not been for a long time.


    And just as he decided to move, a bird made up of airnded on his shoulder and dissolved into the air.


    But the magic let him know the message it wanted to convey.


    ¡°Fuck you, Minerva. Do you want me toe running to you whenever you call? What am I, your dog?¡±


    But even if Karanined about it, he knew that he would go to Minerva¡¯s side since it was for Mei¡¯s ceremony.


    He and Minerva might not see eye-to-eye on most things but they had both help with a certain respect for Mei. and as such, they both wanted to be there for her in her death.


    ¡°Still, I cannot believe that one of us managed to fall and die out finally. It has been a long time since such a ceremony had been held. I wonder how the east would take to their goddess dying.¡±


    East had no loyalty when it came to their goddess but they did hold responsibility for her. As such, Karan was sure that they would pay their respect to her memory and not sully it by establishing another religion.


    However, in the absence of a core that contained Mei¡¯s powers, it would not be possible to raise the same goddess twice.


    As such, it was the end for the east with this lineage. But they had others to rece Mei with and this power hole was one everyone would be eying greedily.


    ¡°Let¡¯s hand you both over to the Rocx valley first and then I should head back. Man, I had ns to leave the tower but it seems like they will all have to wait around for a bit.¡±


    Karan carved independence but it seemed it was not written in the stars.


    As much as Karan would not mind letting the tower copse around all the lies it had been built upon. It did not mean he wanted to see a lot of lives ruined as well.


    As such, he had no other choice but to contribute to the stabilizing of the tower.


    He used his powers to walk toward the Rocx valley where their representative was standing. It was none other than Astoria who looked as calm as she ever did.


    ¡°Here they are. They are still alive, just sleep so you do not need to worry about them. Just let them sleep it all off and everything would be alright.¡±


    Karan reassured Astoria who did not look worried but he knew that the other half-goddess had some concerns.


    And the tension did ease out of Astoria¡¯s shoulders at his words. She gave him a grateful nod as she reached out for his powers.


    He allowed Astoria to hold on to Aurora and Rita and watched them go. But then his vision blurred and his powers felt like they were going out of control.


    He hesitantly touched his core but it was not there. Much to his surprise, it felt as if his core had been taken away without harming his body.


    But a body could not live long without a core, especially one that was as old as him.


    And that was when Karan knew for certain that he was going to die. His body would notst long and that was when Karan remembered the words of Lady Dheva and that mole from Minerva.


    ¡®They knew this was going to happen. But how and why? D-Did they n this together? I won¡¯t put it past Lady Dheva to try something like this but when did she even pull this off?¡¯


    Karan¡¯s mind spun but he took in a deep breath to keep holding on. He would be able to hold on for some time. But he would need to look for an alternative soon enough.


    ¡®Fuck. Do I have no other choice but to go back to my original body? I don¡¯t want to but did I ever have a choice in this matter?¡¯

 Chapter 249 249: The conclusion of the attack [pt2]

    It was for the second time in Aurora¡¯s life that she had ended up in such a situation. And just like any other time, this one did not feel great as well.


    But unlike thest ceremony, this one was held all over the world. As if echoing the solemn mood, the world had turned into a white field as well.


    Aurora felt as if it was all unfair for her to be faced with this so soon.


    ¡°You should not let things such as these keep you down. Death is a natural part of the process known as life. And I am sure that child wanted to rest as well. Don¡¯t think too much about it.¡±


    Aurora wanted to agree but her heart was not in it.


    However, she knew she had to say something to let the alliance leader know that she understood.


    It was her first time meeting the leader of the alliance but she wished that it was under better circumstances that she did.


    ¡°I know that I should not let it get me down but I cannot help but feel like I bear partial responsibility for this.¡±


    Aurora was not sure why she was telling all this to Lord n but she felt like she could click with him.


    Out of everyone from that vision of the past, Lord n was the one who seemed to not have changed. He still held on to his morals and did not judge.


    ¡°I see that you are thinking about it. Then, I am also sure that you will be able to conclude on your own. Now, I should bid you farewell so that you can gather your thoughts.¡±


    Lord n did not stick around for long. For the first meeting between them, this was not so bad.


    Rex hurried over toward her as soon as he saw Lord n leave. His eyes held curiosity but he did not ask the question he wanted to outright.


    ¡°Say what you want to say. I will answer your question if I want to.¡±


    Rex looked taken aback but he easilyposed himself and faced Aurora with a confident face.


    ¡°Did he talk to you about something important? I am not nitpicking but Lord n had not been the same ever since Lady Mei died and we are all afraid-¡°


    ¡°If he is looking for a way to die as well. Don¡¯t worry, he¡¯s alright. He is stronger than you all give him credit for. He will survive.¡±


    Rex let out a sigh he had been holding on to but then he looked guilty for the same. He opened his mouth tofort Aurora but she stopped him.


    ¡°Did you see Seraphina? Did shee around?¡±


    Aurora asked as the white continued to fall. She knew that the answer was negative in her heart but she still dared to ask that question.


    After all, she knew where Seraphina had gone. And it was not some ce Aurora wanted to follow after her.


    She did not want the tower to gain any more power than it already had. But at the same time, she also knew that she had no right to stop Seraphina from doing what she wanted to do.


    ¡°Oh, what about Joseph? Is he back yet? Did Seraphina bring him back?¡±


    Rex looked awkward and even shifted his eyes away from Aurora. That meant that Aurora could not like the news she was about to get.


    But then again, she did not like most of the news she tended to get so this was nothing new anyway.


    ¡°Joseph dide back but he chose to leave withdy Seraphina instead. He wanted to stay with his mother in these trying times. His sister is still here though so that is something.¡±


    Truthfully, this was a surprise to know that one of those twins had stayed behind for Aurora. She expected them both to pack up and leave as soon as their mother showed interest in them.


    But the circumstances of things had changed for everyone. No ce was safe any longer now that a goddess was dead. This sudden piece of news shifted the world¡¯s perspective and brought forth a new era.


    ¡°I am sure there will be consequences for making this knowledge public but this was what Mei deserved to happen. I guess she will find peace now.¡±


    Or that was what Aurora hoped for the younger girl. God knew how much that child had suffered through the times. She had tried, again and again, only to be rejected until she had been forced to confront her true nature.


    ¡°Let¡¯s just hope this does note to bite us in the back. The bnce of power is really weird right now.¡±


    Rex was right. If Aurora¡¯s hunch was right and Seraphina did end up joining the tower, then they would retain their three major gods.


    Meanwhile, the south also had three major powers, and then there was the Rocx academy which had two. (Three if you count Lord n but Aurora did not.)


    With two of them dead, it left only one neutral party out there. Aurora had a feeling that it was the blue-haired man she had met in the abyss before.


    He had just given that overwhelming feeling of being an overlooker and hence important.


    He was out of any league Aurora had seen before and she had a feeling that the side he took would determine which power would emerge as victorious in the end.


    Which meant that it was time to head into the abyss for onest time to find that man. He was the likely key to solving all the nk holes in her mind.


    _____________________


    ¡°Why did you decide toe here now? I thought you and Mei were through. Are you here to insult her memory?¡±


    Seraphina held her temper back as she heard Lady Minerva¡¯s words. She needed to maintain her peace just for today.


    She did not want to sully Mei¡¯s resting ce with blood after all. But she could also not ignore Lady Minerva¡¯s jab at her expanse. It had taken a considerable effort on her part toe here, only to be mocked.


    ¡°I loved Mei like a sister. She was closer to me than anyone else. We might have had our differences but I never wished her harm. Now I cannot tell her all this even if I want to.¡±


    The world was mourning the loss of a goddess. Winter hade for the world but Seraphina felt hot inside.


    Her rage had not been quelled and she wanted to take revenge. She knew that Minerva also felt the same since she had seen Mei as her kid at one point.


    However, this silent attitude was too troublesome for Mei topare. How could Minerva make that face?


    ¡°I see. But there is nothing you can offer to the dead. Mei had passed on and that is the truth.¡±


    ¡°That might be the truth but I still want to do something for her. And for that, I need resources to hunt down the one who killed Mei. I need to tower to seek my revenge.¡±


    For the first time, there was a crack in Minerva¡¯s mask but Seraphina could not tell if it was good or bad.


    The very next second, Minerva¡¯s expression was closed off.


    ¡°If you are here for shellfish desires then I will advise you to go back and try again. I am not in the mood to let the tower be a sacrifice for your needs. Not when you are not willing tomit to its mission-¡°


    ¡°And what if I am? What if I ammitted to this mission and want to be a part of the tower? Will you allow me ess to its resources then?¡±


    There was a stare-off between those two powers. No one looked away and in the end, it was Lady Minerva who gave way for the other.


    ¡°Fine, do what you have to. As long as you can carry your worlds and provide the tower an edge, I will allow you to do as you please. But remember, it¡¯ll be the tower that owns you, not the other way around.¡±


    Seraphina gritted her teeth, not liking the idea a single bit but she calmed herself down after that.


    If she had to sell herself to get her revenge then it was fine. It was something Seraphina will be able to deal with.


    ¡°Alright, do what you want to. Oh, and give me a room for a child as well. My son came with me so he will be a part of this tower as well.¡±


    Minerva¡¯s look of surprise was amusing but only for a few seconds.


    ¡°Alright. I will ce him with Quince for now so that he can learn the ropes. I am sure Quince will be a good friend for your son.¡±


    Seraphina did not feel good submitting her son to anyone else¡¯spany but she had made her decision and she was going to stick to it.


    She would use the tower until she no longer could.

 Chapter 250 250: The abyss begins again [pt1]

    250 250: The abyss begins again [pt1]


    The mourning ceremonysted a whole week. Nothing significant was held over that week and only after everything had settled down that things began to move again.


    The time that had slowed down until now had started to flow once again and Aurora was one of those who began to look at the world in a new light.


    ¡°Hurry up Rita. You were the one who wanted to head into the abyss with me.¡±


    Aurora had not wanted to take Rita with her when it finally came time to head back into the abyss. But there was no other way than to agree with Rita.


    Otherwise, Rita would have found a way to follow her anyway and it would not have been safe to do so.


    ¡°I¡¯m following after you so don¡¯t you dare leave me behind. I cannot believe you wanted to leave me behind. And why did you agree to take this burden with us?¡±


    Ritained as she climbed the cliff. They were headed toward the entrance of the abyss which would take them directly to the tenth floor.


    These were the things that were agreed upon by the tower and the Rocx academy. But only three people had been allowed to pass.


    ¡°You know why we are bringing Ur with us. He¡¯s a creature of the abyss so he¡¯ll be able to adjust the best down there. And he had also gotten so much better at the magic that I feel like it was time to take him down there.¡±


    The main reason Aurora had chosen to take Ur over everyone else was simple. Ur had the best magic protection inbuild into his skin. Not to mention, he had killer instincts to be able to get out of trouble in the abyss.


    Ur was much more suited to be in the abyss than Rita was and that was a fact.


    But of course, this was not something Aurora would tell Rita otherwise it would hurt her ego. Since Rita wanted to tag along so badly, then Aurora would let her.


    The biggest problem right now was how to handle Mei¡¯s core right now. Aurora had found it in her hand once she had woken up but she had hidden it in her inventory until it was time for her to reach the abyss.


    Her body instinctively wanted to swallow the core and make use of its power but Aurora held back for now. She did not know what would happen if her body had so many cores outside.


    But now that she was in the abyss, this risk was suddenly eptable now.


    ¡°Rita, do you want to take some rest? We passed the abyss line a while back. We will soon be transported to the tenth floor so we need to be vignt here.¡±


    Aurora warned Rita just as she rxed. It must be difficult for her to move around without using magic.


    And Aurora had asked Rita to not use magic right now.


    ¡°Fine, let¡¯s rest for now. But we should not take too long to rest up. An abyss is a weird ce after all.¡±


    That it was. And that¡¯s why Aurora set up a lot of wards to make it more convenient for them to be able to rest.


    The ce they were at currently was a prime spot for monster activity and Ur had already taken off to y with those smaller creatures.


    Aurora threw her body sideways to rest for some time. Until it was time for the portal to open, she wanted to sleep and allow Mei¡¯s core to mingle in her body as well.


    She took out the core and swallowed it.


    The candy-like shape of the core went down easily but Aurora could not help but feel like it was stuck in her throat.


    Somehow, Aurora managed to swallow with much difficulty and she held her sore throat.


    Instantly her body was filled with unimaginable power. Not only was the first core resonating with her, but there was also a weird feeling of being full inside Aurora¡¯s stomach.


    She held her hand to her stomach and she could feel a barely-there bulge.


    ¡®Must be the side-effect of the core. I guess it will go back down soon.¡¯


    Aurora was not sure of this but this was the only thing that made sense. A goddess was someone who was supposed to be without imperfections after all.


    And Aurora was a goddess so her body would recover soon enough.


    ¡°Hey, I am done resting. Let¡¯s hurry up and go. I guess even Ur is restless now.¡±


    Rita pointed out as they watched the dragon make a small circled right over their head. His wings were fluttering faster and faster every second and it was not difficult to see that he was feeling uneasy.


    Even Aurora had a bad feeling about this abyssal trip since floors 11-16 used to belong to that dead overlooker.


    That meant that they had no one looking after them which was a shame.


    Aurora had not fully disappeared into the portal when she felt someone grab hold of her arm and tried pulling her back.


    But Aurora was stubborn and she pulled the other inside the portal instead. She was about to turn back and attack the person who had taken a hold of her when she stopped.


    Her eyes faced a familiar face and Ava had the decency to not even look worried or guilty.


    ¡°Sorry, I made you panic. But I wanted toe with you both. You see, I needed toe down to these floors to see how much damage had been done here. So I hope you both don¡¯t mind me tagging along.¡±


    Aurora shook her head in a silent ¡®no¡¯ as this question was asked to her. She did not mind having anotherpanion with her. She was just a little annoyed that Ava had not asked her beforehand and had scared the shit out of her by doing this.


    ¡°What the hell are you doing here? Aurora, can we send her back now. I don¡¯t feel safe if Ava is here with us. Something is unsettling about her.¡±


    Rita spoke those words in a whisper but it was loud enough to be heard over the silence of their surroundings.


    Ava just gave them a happy smile in return, not even looking a tiny bit hurt over what she heard. But Aurora felt guilty for not defending her right here and now.


    As much as Aurora understood where Rita wasing from, she had promised to help Ava out as well.


    ¡°Let here with us. Ava is a friend and she is also someone who knows this abyss like the back of her hand. I am sure she will prove herself to be an asset to us.¡±


    Aurora pointed out as Ava gave a fake smile that could be spotted from miles away.


    That made Aurora not want to take her with them but she had already spoken on this matter so she was not going to take her decision back.


    Rita looked pained after hearing that but she did not argue with Aurora any further. She just turned toward the camp they needed to walk to and continued going ahead.


    Aurora shook her head and followed after Rita. knowing Ava, she would want to go her separate way and do whatever an overlooker did down here.


    But surprisingly enough, Ava followed after them as well. She smiled as she watched Aurora give her a searching look and quickly exined.


    ¡°These floors don¡¯t have an overlooker so I am free to roam them around and clear them as well. You don¡¯t need to worry about me and my actions.¡±


    Ava sounded confident and somehow that made Aurora even more worried about her actions down here.


    Now that these floors did not have an overlooker, they were ticking time bombs. There was no one to control the stronger monsters, nor did the distinction between floors matter any longer.


    It would not be long before creatures from the deeper floors begin appearing on the upper floor, making it almost impossible for anyone new to reach and clear this floor.


    Ava was looking around with a serious face and it somehow reassured Aurora a little. It seemed like these floors would be alright if Ava was paying this much attention.


    ¡°Aurora, hurry up ande here. How much more time do you need to keep up with me? If you do not hurry then I will leave you in the dust.¡±


    Rita called out and Aurora finally picked up speed as well. She did not want to be left behind so easily after all,


    Besides, Ava might havee with them and Aurora might have agreed with her, but that did not mean that Aurora had to take responsibility for her. She could do what she wanted while Aurora did what was necessary.


    This was just how things were supposed to work and the trio + dragon kept on walking deeper into the abyss.

 Chapter 251 251: The abyss begins again [pt2]

    251 251: The abyss begins again [pt2]


    ¡°Before we reach the only settlement on this floor, I feel like there are a few things we should make clear among ourselves. Since I expect that it is both of your first times here, I will tell you what you need to be careful about.¡±


    Both Rita and Ava stopped walking as soon as they heard Aurora¡¯s words. They both hadplicated expressions on their faces but Aurora had a feeling it was for different reasons.


    Still, it had nothing to do with her so Aurora was going to look past it for now.


    Right now, she needed to make sure these two understood the hidden rules of this floor. Aurora had learned them the hard way so she did not want to make the same mistake.


    ¡°Ah, I think I heard about it once. From here on out, every floor has a game-like setting that needs to be passed to progress. The setting of the game is based outside the main city and can ur anywhere.¡±


    So Ava did know about this floor and its peculiar behavior. It did not surprise Aurora to know this since Ava was a part of the onlookers.


    They tend to know about each other¡¯s territories even when they were not interested in each other. This was more akin to a curse than a blessing in most cases.


    ¡°It¡¯s nice to see that you know the basics since you will need to help Rita out in case I am not able to. The only this that you need to know here is to not trust anything you see. The only right information from here on out is the one given out by the city terminal. As soon as you get there, connect your systems to it.¡±


    This was the biggest reason Aurora had decided to make her power into a system. It made the information easy to gather and transfer between each other.


    And it also helped to clear floors from 10 and below.


    ¡°Understood. I think I can see the city from here and, huh? Why is it upside down?¡±


    Aurora looked toward the city in the sky as well. It was a familiar scene in front of Aurora and she had a dreadful feeling being back here.


    Her first experience with such a setting had been the worst so this second time scared Aurora a little.


    ¡°Everything will be alright. You just need to believe in me.¡±


    Aurora felt reassured by Ava¡¯s words for a matter of only a minute before she felt a shudder pass through her body.


    ¡°Y-Yeah, I think I will pass on that offer. I am sure I do not need any more difficulties in my life.¡±


    ¡°Heh, suit yourself.¡±


    Ava did not take that rejection to heart and Aurora did not let it bother her either. Meanwhile, Ur kept on flying right over their head, its shadow acting as a shield from the harsh sun for the group.


    Aurora was sure that no one would bate an eysh toward Ur¡¯s presence. From here on, it was awlessnd not controlled by anyone, and power spoke volumes.


    No matter how high of a control tower had inside there, they were still a minority when it came to greater powers.


    The city was situated in the dry parts of the desert but anyone who had ever studied infrastructure could recognize the tall skyscrapers that were almost touching the ground by being upside down.


    ¡°Be careful. As soon as we enter the city field our bodies will get inverted as well. Close your eyes if you do not want to feel sick.¡±


    Aurora warned before closing her eyes as well. She felt Rita¡¯s harsh grip on her arm before there was a shift in the gravitational force.


    When Aurora opened her eyes next, she could see that the sky was beneath her feet and the ground was above her head.


    ¡°H-How are we not down into the sky? Is the abyss even capable of something like this?¡±


    Rita asked, her voice betraying the awe she was feeling. It was a given that she was impressed to see this happening. Most people were fascinated when they saw this phenomenon for the first time.


    But Aurora knew that things were not as decent as they looked. It might look safe to move around but it was a lot trickier than it looked.


    So that was why she caught Rita¡¯s arm as soon as she took one step ahead.


    Had Aurora not done that, Rita would have slipped off the tform and fallen into the sky. And had that happened, no one would have been able to save her.


    ¡°Be careful. It might look like every ce is safe to step on but that is not the case.¡±


    Aurora warned as she looked around for her other twopanions. Ava seemed to have adjusted to the ce already.


    She was currently skipping around, her feetnding from one tform to another. But Ur was nowhere to be seen.


    It was not until there was a shadow beneath Aurora¡¯s feet that she realized that something was flying beneath them in the sky.


    ¡°Looks like Ur was not affected by this magic as well. How lucky.¡±


    Aurora called out as she steadied Rita who somehow had managed to fall into another hole. It must be difficult for Rita to sense the holes in the ground since she could not see them.


    ¡°Follow me for now. We are lucky that we have someone to fetch us back up in case we fall.¡±


    Rita looked part annoyed and partly relieved at the news. But she settled at a nk expression and kept on walking.


    ¡°Hey miss,e here and join us. I can tell that you are an expert in this area but I cannot recall seeing you here before?¡±


    The one who called out to Aurora was a human shopkeeper. Any other person would not have ignored that man but Aurora did.


    After all, she did not want to fall prey to their schemes another time.


    ¡°H-Hey, they seemed to be calling for us. Is it alright to ignore them?¡±


    Rita asked as she was still a little overwhelmed by everything that was happening. However, she was doing her best to follow Aurora¡¯s lead.


    Meanwhile, Ava seemed to have adjusted fully to this new environment and she had even mastered the art of climbing buildings.


    It seemed as if her talent as the overlooker and connecting with the abyss even worked here.


    ¡°You can find these people if you ever want to be scammed. But they are not worth your time otherwise. Anything they can tell you will not help you out. After all, an equal exchange is a game in the abyss.¡±


    From here on, any exchange would be made in magic and energy. Money was useless and the only thing one can rely on was their strength.


    And since Aurora knew all that, she also knew that there was no need for her to pay attention to these small fries.


    Not when she had the power to attract the biggest of prey in front of her. She needed to find the guild that woulde to dominate this ce in a few years.


    Just because floor 11 was awlessnd, for now, does not mean they would never get a master to lead them around.


    And the one who would make them all connect were familiar faces Aurora had met a long time ago.


    Yes, she was talking about those missionaries that she had met in the abyss long ago. They had finally unionized and started to establish their influence.


    ¡°So, where are we going now?¡±


    Rita asked. Even Ava looked interested in hearing the answer and Aurora gave nostalgic smile as she stood in front of the shrine in front of her.


    It might have seemed weird for most people to see this old-fashioned shrine in the middle of this bustling city but not for Elysia.


    She knew the real nature of this shrine so she was careful not to arouse the hidden power inside it.


    All she did was ce a normal coin in front of the shrine and watched as a spiritual entity took the form of a dog and took the coin away.


    After that, it was only a matter of time before the gate opened and admitted them inside.


    Elysia tried to hold back her excitement but it was difficult to do. It had been ages since she hadst been in there and she wanted to see more of this ce.


    The shrine parted to show them the way up. This had not existed before this and it took Ava and Rita by surprise.


    But Aurora did not feel anything like that. She had been in such hidden bases enough times to no longer be surprised by them.


    She kept on walking deeper and deeper inside until she hit a dead wall. And she could also feel the presence of humans behind her. The other members of this guild had arrived as well and it seemed they did not want to wee Aurora here.

 Chapter 252 252: A nest of humans [pt1]

    252 252: A nest of humans [pt1]


    ¡°Looks like we have some guests here among us. Now, what should we do with them? They look so fancy that I can feel my mouth watering.¡±


    One of the more buffed women in the group said those words. Her tongue came out to lick her lips as she stared Aurora¡¯s group down. She looked overconfident in her abilities.


    But Aurora was not intimidated in the least. There was no need to pay attention to these low lives that were stationed on this floor.


    These people were only stationed on this floor because they were too weak to be taken into the deeper abyss. Aurora did not even need to pay attention to these kids to force her way in.


    She just needed to demonstrate that her abilities exceeded these kids and the leader of this floor would show themselves.


    ¡°Leave these small fries to me. I will take care of them in an instant¡­.Wowowo. What do you think you are doing Aurora? You will burn them all to a crisp.¡±


    Rita warned as soon as she felt Aurora¡¯s magic surge inside her body. It was taking a physical form as well.


    But despite this warning, Aurora did not stop. She could not afford to stop because she needed to show off right now.


    ¡°I know how capable you are Rita. But allow me to take care of this situation. I need to teach these kids a lesson.¡±


    Aurora allowed her magic to surge wildly. She could see fear in those kids¡¯ eyes and it felt good to be held high in their regard.


    These kids were lucky that Aurora had no intention of killing them. Otherwise, theirck of fear would have spelled their end for them.


    ¡°Is that all there is to your power? Even a kid won¡¯t be afraid of you¡­¡±


    The woman did not get to finish her words before her mouth was full of blood. Her brain might not have felt the magic surging but her body could not handle it.


    In the end, the organs could no longer hold their own under that much pressure and ended up capturing instead.


    And not only her. The others showed simr oues when they tried to breathe in the air. No one could hold on to their wounded body for long.


    Aurora did not spare them any face as well. She walked toward the buffed female from before and pushed her a little.


    Aurora¡¯s force was not great, but the buff female still found herself stumbling a little until shended on her ass.


    She looked up toward Aurora but flinched as soon as she saw that face covered in shadows. It was then she realized that she had made a mistake by challenging this person.


    ¡°Give up. You are not my match and you will only get hurt if you push yourself anymore.¡±


    Aurora warned and the female flinched. Still, she did not seem to be defeated which was a shame. Aurora did not want to drag this fight out any longer when the other side had lost.


    ¡°Don¡¯t joke with me. How could I lose to someone like you? You need to learn your ce and-¡°


    Aurora punched the female and she lost consciousness. It had been a light punch as well, with not a lot of force used.


    But the human was still not able to withstand that much force.


    ¡°Anyone else who wants to get a taste of my fist?¡±


    No one sped forward and Aurora had not expected them to either. These people liked to talk big but they did not have enough magic. The only thing they could do was threaten people in a group.


    One of the unlucky ones in the group tried to take out Ava since she looked like a fragile beauty but she was knocked out cold before she could achieve her goal.


    Ava was not a damsel in disaster and she showed it in the field quite nicely.


    ¡°Oops, I think I over-did it a little. Do you think this man will have brain damage now?¡±


    Ava asked as she picked up the unconscious person quite roughly. She had no mercy for the poor man and she even demonstrated that by snapping his poor wrist.


    The man cried out in pain as he held his broken wrist. He looked toward Ava as of she was a demon who hade ahead to kill him.


    ¡°What is wrong? Am I no longer a fragile maiden in your eyes? Can you not take me on all by yourself?¡±


    The man stepped a few steps back as he watched Ava approach her. It was entertaining for a few seconds before Ava made a bored face and faked a yawn.


    ¡°Well, looks like that was all these poor kids had. So, is anyone else going to step forward or should I consider you all as too afraid to face me? What was the word? Are you all pansies?¡±


    Ava taunted. Aurora could tell that the overlooker was having a little too much fun with everything that was happening.


    But there was a thin line between fun and snapping when it came to Ava. And Aurora had a feeling that she was approaching her line of patience quite fast.


    So she needed to interfere before Ava hit her bottom and all these poor kids ended up dead.


    ¡°Alright, I think we both have yed enough by now. So, why don¡¯t youe forward and show yourself now? You would not want me toe to you, right?¡±


    Aurora could feel that conflicted emotions rushing toward her. The leader of these people had been hiding among them for some time and Aurora was going to force them out right now.


    She did not have much time or patience to deal with these kids.


    ¡°This is yourst warning. If you did note out now, then you can kiss this ce goodbye. I won¡¯t show you any mercy¡­..¡±


    Aurora did not need to threaten the head for long. The wall parted and a fat man panted as he ran out.


    ¡°P-Please stop. Don¡¯t knock everything down. I will give you what you want. Our boss wants to see you as well.¡±


    Aurora stopped gathering magic but she did not let her guard down. For all she knew, this could be a trap she was being forced to step into.


    She gave the man a toxic re and she watched as he shrank. There was a feeling of real fear surrounding him and he was sweating as well.


    ¡®It doesn¡¯t feel like this man is lying. Well, I guess I will bite the bait now.¡¯


    Rita gave Aurora a look that said that she was waiting for Aurora to decide what to do next. Once she got a ¡®go ahead¡¯ from Aurora, she let the person she had taken hostage go.


    At the same time, Ava also stopped showing her threatening side. Things had calmed down in a second and everyone could see who the real leader behind this all was.


    ¡°Now then, take me to your leader, and don¡¯t try anything funny. I am not a nice person so you all won¡¯t get a second chance.¡±


    The man gulped as he realized that Aurora was rather uninterested in his well-being. And truly, Aurora did not care about him in the least.


    What she wanted had already been established by just standing here and letting her powers speak.


    The man parted the curtains and gestured for Aurora to go ahead. Aurora did not keep him waiting but Rita did trip the man just for his amusement.


    That poor man fell in Ava¡¯s way who gave him no face by stepping all over his back.


    In this way, the man had no other choice but to faint if he wanted to keep his dignity. But no one paid any attention to him.


    They were all watching the trio walk into the secret room even though they had not been allowed in. everyone was rather bitter to see this happen but no one dared to object.


    Not when they were defeated by these very people. And no one dared to open their mouth and call for their leader either. Especially since they would be the ones whom the leader will kill first.


    But Aurora had nothing like that on their mind when she walked through the door. She was certain she knew who was the current leader at this time and Aurora had an important bargaining chip in her hand.


    If she was right, then the current leader of these people was supposed to die pretty soon due to an illness.


    It was not something that could be treated right now but Aurora was from the future that had a cure for it.


    As such, she was going to negotiate the cure for a way to clear the scenario was would soon have to participate. And the only way to clear it was to seek help from these people.


    A lot of manpower would be needed by Aurora and what better ce to get it from than these people who would owe her soon?

 Chapter 253 253: A nest of Humans [pt2]

    253 253: A nest of Humans [pt2]


    ¡°T-The leader is waiting for you inside. When you meet the leader, please choose one of you to represent your group.¡±


    Rita¡¯s fist collided with the wall inches away from the man¡¯s face. Her pissed-off expression made her red eyes look even more demonic. And the light inside that building also made her hair look bloody color.


    The man yelled in fright at seeing such a provoking picture in front of him. It was a wonder that he did not piss himself off after seeing Rita like that.


    Ava was the one who decided toe to his rescue as she gently took Rita¡¯s hand away from the wall and healed the bleeding.


    ¡°I would be more careful in choosing my words. Not all of us have good temperaments when dealing with useless beings. Who knows, maybe it will be your head next time that explodes due to my friend¡¯s anger.¡±


    Ava waved her hands around as if saying that she was joking right now. But her eyes looked anything but joking.


    Anyone could see and feel the dangerous intention she was hiding behind that smile of hers. Even Aurora took a step aside to not be in the way of Ava¡¯s anger.


    ¡°Oi, don¡¯t you dare take my target away from me. I swear that I will make you regret your decisions and¡­¡±


    ¡°Anyway, I am sure you won¡¯t tell my friend to go in alone right now. You better not if you know what is good for you.¡±


    The man gulped down his nervousness as he finally realized that the only way he would get to live was to surrender to these demands.


    Aurora listened to all this from the sidelines but she finally decided to interfere in the end.


    Bringing both Ava and Rita inside with her would end up making them sh with the leader. Aurora knew how the leader thought so it was out of the question for these three to get along.


    ¡°You both, stay out here for now. I will go in alone and have this talk. And no, before you ask me. This is not negotiable and I will know if you decide to follow after me.¡±


    Aurora quickly shot down her two friend¡¯s chances of following after her.


    She did not need them to make things even moreplicated for her. She just wanted to have this negotiation talk over with.


    ¡°B-But that is not fair. Why did you get to have all the fun?¡±


    Ava asked with a depressed voice but Aurora could see that she did not mean those words. She was just saying all this to annoy Aurora.


    ¡°No moreints about this. I said I will go in alone so I will go in alone. You all are free to enjoy yourself in the meantime. You should also let Urnd and see if he has eaten.¡±


    Aurora was sure that Ur would be able to find his food but she did not want him to starve in case there was nothing out there.


    Since the magic in the city did not affect Ur, he would be having a really hard time.


    ¡°Sure, I will go out and have a look. You should enjoy your time here as well.¡±


    Ava agreed pretty quickly and left to take care of Ur. Rita however, decided to camp outside the room and Aurora did notin regarding her decision.


    She needed all her focus to deal with the enemy in front of her. She knew the person who could potentially be in charge of this floor.


    There were only three real choices to choose from and Aurora hoped that she had gotten lucky.


    ¡°This is where we will part ways. If you want something then please do not call me. I seriously will not answer your call.¡±


    Her guide proved himself as a coward and fled from the scene. But that was alright with Aurora. She did not need his help anyway.


    She made a big show of gulping her nervousness down before opening the door. Even if Aurora was not nervous, she needed to make a show of it so that the other side would lead their guard down.


    ¡°Come in and close the door behind you.¡±


    The voice was neutral in its tone which made it impossible to tell whether they were male or female. But still, Aurora had a feeling that the speaker was male. There was a certain roughness in his voice.


    ¡°Pardon my entry into your domain but I require your assistance.¡±


    Aurora entered the room and locked it behind her. Eyes instantly turned toward her chest with a curious gaze and Aurora wanted to smack the man.


    This was the one person out of three Aurora did not want to see her but it seemed she had lucked out this time.


    ¡°Of course, I will pardon you. Beauties like you are always wee here. Although, I hope that you would consider sacrificing something precious to you when youe here.¡±


    ¡°If you are talking about my virginity then I no longer have it. Besides, I need to measure your worth before I invest in our rtionship. Don¡¯t you agree with me?¡±


    The man went silent at her words, likely at a loss for words.


    The boss of this gang was a big deal on these medium floors. Every man and woman who first came to this floor wanted his attention in clearing the scenario and games. As such, he had never suffered from such humiliation before.


    But here she was, this seemingly innocent girl who knew nothing about the world. She had not only humiliated him but also managed to piss him off. And that did not sit well with the boss.


    ¡°Fine. If you are going to be like that, then you leave me with no choice. I will prove my worth to you in the next game. But if you are impressed by me then you have to be mine.¡±


    Aurora thought about it but it was not even apetition.


    First of all, being impressed was not something Aurora was used to. There was nothing in her life that could impress her anymore.


    So the man was already taking an empty bet.


    Second all, the only reason Aurora needed his helped to make up for the numbers she wascking. Nothing else mattered to her beyond that for now.


    So she had no hesitation in epting these terms. After all, this man did not even know that he was falling into Aurora¡¯s trap right now.


    ¡°So tell me when the next game will start.¡±


    ¡°Very well. The next game will start tomorrow and we are sure that it will be an all-out battle. As for how it will go, you will just need to wait and see.¡±


    And an all-out battle? It was an easy victory for Aurora but she was also afraid for the next day.


    ¡°How will the teams be spilled? Will it be between us and the abyss forces? Or will it be between human fractions?¡±


    These were things Aurora needed to know before she could decide on how to proceed.


    If it was indeed P-v-P then she will need to take extra care of her people. And it will also increase the chances of her being separated from Rita.


    ¡°This we will not know until tomorrow. What? Are you scared now?¡±


    Aurora stood up to walk out on the man and it made him panic. His puppet stood up as well and blocked Aurora¡¯s way.


    ¡°No, wait. I also know something else that might help you. I know of a way to make sure that three people end up on the same team. D-Don¡¯t you want to know how to do that?¡±


    Aurora had not wanted to know until now but she decided to hear the man out finally. Perhaps she could give him the benefit of doubt.


    ¡°Speak what you want to and hurry up. I neither have the time nor the patience to deal with you. I need to be at a lot of different ces right now.¡±


    The man gulped his nervousness down as he finally opened his mouth again.


    ¡°S.P stone. It can make sure that the carriers are in the same party. But I have no idea where to find a pair. B-But I do know someone who can tell you. And I will hand over that information if you agree to spend a night with me.¡±


    The boss of the building said. He suddenly sounded confident when he made that demand.


    ¡®It seems someone is too confident in their skills and power. It is time for me to knock this man down a little.¡¯


    Aurora did not like what this man was suggesting and she did not want to leave things as they were. She only needed a little time to bring this man under her control anyway so she decided to y along for now.


    ¡°Alright, I will give you some of my precious time. But make sure you do not end up regretting your decision.¡±

 Chapter 254 254: An all out asset [pt1]

    254 254: An all out asset [pt1]


    The negotiations went better than Aurora had expected them to go. The boss of this floor had also been easier to deal with this time around than thest.


    Maybe it was because Aurora had matured as a person or maybe because she was much more powerful than the other time around, but Aurora felt so much better aftering out of the room.


    Rita¡¯s worried expression was something Aurora had expected to encounter but it still felt good to be looked at in such a way.


    ¡°Did everything go alright there? I was worried because you took a long time.¡±


    Rita asked as she approached Aurora. The rest of the people were doing a good job of maintaining their distance from her which was alright with Aurora. She did not want them toe near her anyway.


    Most of the staff on the floor had ended up approaching her in the meantime which did not help Rita¡¯s mood.


    It was just putting her even more on edge and that was Aurora¡¯s cue to get her out of there before any unfortunate ident happened.


    ¡°I am alright. I also got what I came here for so I am free until tomorrow. Let¡¯s find Ava and have some fun today. We should check out our battleground for tomorrow.¡±


    Rita looked confused when Aurora said that but she still allowed herself to be pulled away.


    Aurora had a feeling that if she had not pulled Rita away right now, then something huge might have ended up happening in the end.


    ¡°By the way, you looked a little tense when you came out of the room. Is there something you are hiding from me?¡±


    Rita¡¯s eyes were curious and Aurora found herself unconsciously shrinking away from her. Rita was sometimes too much for even her heart.


    And it was not like Aurora was intending to hide this from her. But she just needed some time to contemte what to say to her.


    ¡°I want to tell you everything but not until we have Ava with us as well. It will be easier to spill the beans if we are all there.¡±


    Rita did not ask any more questions after that. She silently epted that Aurora would tell her when the time was right.


    They found Ava pretty easily once Aurora opened her tracking system. Both she and Ur were resting on the outskirts of the city.


    They were easy to spot in the mass of buildings. Ur was flying low enough to evennd on Aurora¡¯s other side.


    ¡°Are you done? What¡¯s the verdict?¡±


    ¡°We need to find some S.P. stoned for tomorrow but I don¡¯t it would be much of a problem for you, right?¡±


    Aurora asked and got a wide smirk from thedy in front of her. Of course, as the overlooker, Ava had a lot of advantages over a normal person.


    And since this floorcked an overlooker, Ava was free to do what she wanted with it. It also included manipting the floor to do what she wanted to do as well.


    ¡°Of course. Leave it all to me. I will get those S.P. stones for us.¡±


    Aurora left it all up to Ava. It was easier for her to n for tomorrow now. With her and Ava at the same time, their victory was all but assured.


    ¡°Let¡¯s rest for today. Tomorrow will be a big day for us.¡±


    Aurora went to sleep, expecting tomorrow to be a hectic day. But contrary to her expectations, she did not feel anything different once she woke up the next day.


    She just had a red mark on her arm that likely indicated her team.


    ¡°Aurora, did you get a mark on your arm as well? Look, mine is red. And so is Ava¡¯s.¡±


    Rita pointed out at breakfast. Ava showed her mark as well which looked the same as Aurora¡¯s. They were all on the same team.


    ¡°Of course, we are all on the same team. I did use S.P. stones to make that happen.¡±


    Ava looked proud of herself and Aurora let her have this victory. Ava was proving herself to be the asset she was brought here to be so Aurora had noints about it.


    ¡°It is nice to see that we seeded this far. But from here on, it¡¯s an all-out war. Let¡¯s crush our opponents and move on.¡±


    If possible, Aurora did not want to spend any more time on this floor. It was not only unnecessary but bothersome.


    The war ended up before it even started. No one was able to handle thebined worth of Aurora and Ava. Rita even participated but she took a more passive role this time around.


    Floor 11 was crushed before anyone could even realize what hit them and the trio was off to the other floors.


    There was nothing much to say about floors 11-15. They were simr and followed the same concept. They were also under the same gang and it was a simr process every time.


    By the time Aurora reached floor 16, she had made a name for herself and people knew her by sight now. Even Ava and Rita had gained fame by being associated with her.


    No one tried to mess with her or approach making use of her. Those who had tried early on had learned their lesson.


    Aurora knew that she was changing at a rate faster than it should be possible but she could not feel it happening. It all felt rather natural.


    _______________________


    ¡°Aurora, don¡¯t you think that you have changed a lot ever since we stepped into the abyss? Don¡¯t get me wrong because you are still incredible but haven¡¯t you gotten a lot meaner than before?¡±


    Rita¡¯s words took Aurora by surprise. It had been a week ever since they had stepped into the abyss but this was the first time Rita had said this.


    Truthfully, Rita had been thinking these words for a while now.


    Aurora had always been a little aloof and detached but she had never been unnecessarily cruel.


    But recently, she was showing no mercy and crushing her enemies when she came across them. It was a little scary for Rita to face such a terrifying Aurora.


    That aura scared even her and she was on Aurora¡¯s side all this time.


    ¡°Huh? Did Aurora change? She looks and feels the same as me. Just a little more efficient and a lot more able to swat away bugs.¡±


    As ever, Ava did not seem to quite catch what Rita was saying. Either that, or she did not care what Rita was saying.


    Both options were very likely right now.


    ¡°No, that was not what I mean. I meant how Aurora dealt with people. I feel like she is not very approachable these days. Even the children who approached us yesterday looked afraid of her.¡±


    ¡°And what is wrong with that? Fear is a good indicator to get people to follow you, right?¡±


    Ava still seemed to be missing the point and Rita was too tired to tell it now. Instead, she turned toward Aurora with an expecting face. Surely Aurora got what she was trying to say?


    But from that expression on her face, it did not seem to be the case at all.


    ¡°You know what? Nevermind. Maybe it is me that is being too sensitive. Please ignore my words and everything else I am saying. I am a lot tired nowadays.¡±


    Rita backed down, feeling like she had no other choice but to do so.


    If Aurora herself did not feel these changes then there was no need for Rita to point them out. Besides, she was not even sure if what she was feeling was right. Maybe it was the stress of the abyss getting to her.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright to be concerned about me Rita, but don¡¯t let it affect your performance. I won¡¯t be there to help you out all the time.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s words were short and sharp. It felt like she was pushing a wall between herself and Rita.


    It sucked that this was happening to her and like this but Rita did not want to argue with Aurora over this topic anymore.


    _________________


    While Aurora was making fantastic progress inside the abyss, the outside was a different case altogether.


    The tower which had stood as a symbol of peace and prosperity in the empire was all but a rubble ruin by this point.


    They had been taken in by surprise when only Minerva had been there and then been destroyed.


    Currently, the only goddess of the tower was left in the dust, unable to use her magic power.


    ¡°How despicable. To attack me when the other gods are not here. Did you n all this, Lady Dheva? How devious of you.¡±


    Minerva did not yell but her voice was loud and clear. She was utterly defeated and she had no excuse for it. And she also knew that she was going to die as a result of her choice.


    How pathetic for a person like her to be forced into such a situation.

 Chapter 255 255: An all out Asset [pt2]

    ¡°How despicable. To attack me when the other gods are not here. Did you n all this, Lady Dheva? How devious of you.¡±


    No one had seen this attacking. That was why no one could have prevented this from happening in the first ce.


    Lady Dheva had aimed for the time when no one was present in the tower to attack it. And she had sessfully managed to break down the defenses of this ce.


    But of course, she had not done it alone. To be able toe this far without help, it was clear that she knew the tower inside out.


    Or perhaps, she did have help in the end. After all, the south was notcking in resources right now. They might have suffered a crushing defeat at the tower¡¯s hand but they were still thriving overall.


    ¡°I have no idea what you mean. This all had nothing to do with me in the first ce. It¡¯s a total coincidence that I am here in the first ce.¡±


    Bullshit. Even if Lady Minerva did not see the smirk Lady Dheva had, it would be impossible to even consider those words.


    How could the tower fall under an unnned attack? Surely the other side had nned meticulously and then decided to strike when the tower was at its most vulnerable state.


    Minerva refused to believe any other oue that was possible right now.


    ¡°I see. So you are in a strong stage of self-denial, huh? If so then I should tell you the real reason your tower fell off. It¡¯s because you did not keep a tight leash on your dogs and they ran away.¡±


    ¡°Yup, that¡¯s right. It was your people who became the cause of your downfall.¡±


    Minerva waited for the shock toe and paralyze her but that did not happen. Things just made too much sense that Minerva could not even be surprised at that.


    Of course, someone had helped the south put to infiltrate the tower. How could an unrted party manage to enter it so deeply if not for inside help?


    But who would be foolish enough to betray them like that and still have such high authority? No matter how much Lady Minerva thought about it, she could not narrow it down.


    ¡°Oya? Are you putting too much pressure on your brain? Don¡¯t since it will be thest time you do so. Your core is a little worn down due to all the abuse it takes but it can still be used. I am so d to take it from you.¡±


    Lady Dheva had a creepy look on her face and it made Minerva panic. She knew that it was a given for the south to know the goddesses and their cores.


    They did have three of them right now and they were all really powerful. But to go after actively seeking them was a foolish decision that would have gotten them killed.


    And yet, these people had no fear of their own. They were gunning for the position of the most powerful person in the world.


    ¡°You! How dare you make fun of me? You have no consideration for your life.¡±


    Minerva had no magic after her core was sealed but her body still wanted to defend itself. She made a swipe with her wed hands but the leader of the south managed to dodge that hand quite easily.


    ¡°Be careful with how you try to kill me. I don¡¯t want to see you get in trouble with your beloved people.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are¡­¡±


    There was a fine line between pain andfort. But it was really easy to cross that and Minerva felt someone stab her in the stomach which made her cross that.


    This was the first time in her life as a goddess that Minerva was feeling this much pain. Someone was gripping her core and it was an ufortable feeling.


    ¡°I am sorry but this is all for your good. I know your existence is more of a curse than a blessing so it is time toy you to rest.¡±


    ¡°Fuck you. To think that I wanted to be friends with you because of your appearance. But you are nothing like that child from long ago. You are an egoist and selfish bastard and I cannot wait to see you die.¡±


    The joy was stripped from that face faster than Minerva lost consciousness. Her body felt heavy but her mind felt light.


    The only regret Minerva had left when she closed her eyes was that she had not gotten to kill thisdy with her own hands.


    Time and time again she had wanted to kill Lady Dheva but had stopped because she had a very familiar face. It was a face that forced Lady Minerva to wait and be soft in its presence.


    ¡°And to think that all it took was nostalgia to take the fearsome goddess down. How disappointing. Won¡¯t you say the same, Clove?¡±


    Lady Dheva looked toward the goddess who held the core in her hand. Her golden eyshes fluttered as she looked at the core in her hand.


    But her face was impassive and held no trace of emotion. She was like a doll who had discarded her emotions and no longer knew how to feel.


    Perhaps Lady Dheva wanted to see guilt or remorse on her face but nothing was shown on her pace except detachment.


    ¡°I was long prepared to do this so I had no attachment to her anyway. But it is time to clean up this ce and make other peopley to rest. We cannot leave the evidence of our dead behind.¡±


    Lady Dheva looked taken aback for a moment before she let out softughter. Somehow, she was not surprised that this was how things were going in the end.


    Every day, Clove was evolving closer and closer into the goddess she was supposed to be.


    ¡°Y-You really did end up betraying us all? Why? What did we do wrong for you to be this angry with us?¡±


    Clove froze as soon as she heard Quince¡¯s voice. It was not something she had expected to hear this soon but she should have been prepared to meet him.


    He was someone who was a part of the tower and took pride in it. Unlike Clove, he was devoted to his beliefs and was a good guy.


    He made Clove¡¯s heart hurt because he reminded her of Aurora.


    He had been a dear friend to Clove once upon a time but now she no longer knew what to do with him. He was an obstacle in her way but she could not bring herself to harm him.


    However, Lady Dheva did not have the same problem as her.


    Lady Dheva¡¯s powersshed out toward Quince but he managed to block them with his de and even make a counterattack. Lady Dheva let out a whistle of appreciation and looked interested in his skills.


    ¡°A daring little thing, aren¡¯t you? But your skills are not bad. Perhaps you would be interested in joining us? Who knows, I might take pity on you and give you power?¡±


    Lady Dheva looked a little fascinated and it reminded Clove of Aurora before she had gotten together with her.


    There had been a time Aurora had shown interest in Quince and his performance as well. At that time, Clove had held her desire to speak back and take things for granted.


    She had been sure that Quince would not end up taking Clove¡¯s woman away because he was afraid of her and respected her.


    But now was no longer the case.


    ¡°Don¡¯t bother talking to insignificant bugs. We don¡¯t need weaklings like him toe with us. Let¡¯s get going since we already have the core we need.¡±


    Clove did not want to harm Quince but that did not mean she wanted to keep on seeing his face either.


    She just wanted to go on her way and not look at this mess ever again. But it seemed like the world had other ns for her than this. And Quince attacked her as soon as she turned her back.


    Unluckily for him, there were just too many obstacles in his way and this time it was Asami who decided to take action.


    No one knew where she came from but she knocked the kid out in record time and before anyone knew it, she had thrown the kid down into the abyss.


    There was no telling where he would end up being or even if he was still alive or not after that. But no one said anything.


    Not until Clove exploded at Asami.


    ¡°Why did you do that? He was harmless and I could have handled him all on my own¡­¡±


    ¡°You could have but you did not need to. Don¡¯t forget what our objective is and what we promised to do. You need to kill your emotions Clove, or you will be swept away by them. And no one wants to see you suffer here.¡±


    Clove¡¯s emotions were divided but she was still really worried about Quince now.

 Chapter 256 256: From the sky [pt1]

    256 256: From the sky [pt1]


    ¡°Is something wrong? You have been looking toward the ceiling of this floor for some time now. Do you need to stop and rest?¡±


    Ava¡¯s eyes narrowed as she looked toward the surface. She was not sure why but she could feel a disturbance in the abyssal force.


    Something wasing down with an incredible force and it would be impossible for any normal person to stop.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing. It¡¯s just that something is falling down the abyss floors at an incredible speed but it will end up crashing on this floor. Floor 15 is made up of solid mass so whatever is falling will end up crashing t on it.¡±


    ¡°Ohhh, it¡¯sing down within seconds. What should we do now? It looks like it would crash into youuuuu¡­.¡±


    Aurora reached out and caught the falling body out of instinct. There was no need for her to try that hard but she still cushioned the fall with the help of air magic.


    It was so lucky for the person that she managed to use magic in time. Because otherwise, he would have ended up being ttened as a result.


    ¡°Quince. How the hell did he get here?¡±


    Aurora¡¯s surprise was evident in her voice. And it was for a good reason. Quince¡¯s presence in the abyss was a total shock to her.


    But the real question was, how the hell did he manage to fall these many floors down? He had never managed to reach this deep before.


    ¡°The only thing I can guess is that he got extremely lucky or that someone powerful managed to alter his course while falling to protect him. Hey, don¡¯t look at me like that. I can¡¯t read minds but your thoughts were evident on your face.¡±


    Aurora sighed at Ava¡¯s words, not caring if she was serious or just ying around. It did not matter right now.


    For now, Aurora needed to provide Quince with medical attention and know what was going on out at the surface.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go back for now. Rita must be waiting for us back at the base. I don¡¯t want to stay out in the open longer than we have to.¡±


    They were in the middle of a scenario right now. But since it was a fairly easy one, Aurora was a lot more rxed than usual.


    She had made all the preparations for the y and her team for this round was ready as well. The boss from floor 11 had made good on his words and helped Aurora out whenever he could.


    That manpower helped out a lot and Aurora had an easy time handling the abyss.


    ¡°Hey, are you sure you want to take the kid with us? Once we take him we won¡¯t be able to abandon him outside again. It is prime time to get rid of this responsibility¡­¡±


    Ava¡¯s words caused Aurora¡¯s temper to rise and she unconsciously red at her. Ava quietened down as soon as she faced a furious Aurora.


    Quite frankly, Aurora had every intention of not getting involved with Quince. But reality and intentions often took different routes and Aurora did end up getting involved.


    Everything inside her was telling her not to bother with the tower business but the kid that had grown up with Quince was different.


    ¡°Let¡¯s treat him first and then see what is happening. I do want to know more news about outside but I don¡¯t think Rex or anyone else would tell us truthfully what is happening.¡±


    Aurora trusted Rex as much as she trusted a concerned brother. He would always care for her but he would also conceal information from her because he did not want to worry her.


    Aurora hated that about Rex and also loved him for the same. Astoria was also an option to get information from but he would not have as much as Rex.


    As for Alexander? Who knew where he was? Thest time Aurora had contacted him, he had been about to set out on a journey into the abyss. But he had ended up losing contact with them all.


    He liked to do his own thing and Aurora did not want to be a shackle to him.


    ¡°If you want to save him then we should hurry up and move. I can see the beasts heading this way.¡±


    Aurora raised her hand and let out a powerful wave of magic. It sted away the small number of beasts heading their way but it was only the beginning.


    More and more beasts woulde now that the first wave had been annihted. And soon their boss woulde as well.


    The battle would not be tough but it will be tedious.


    ¡°Ava, can you handle the battle alone? I want to take Quince back to our base. Rita, are youing as well?¡±


    Rita jolted as she was addressed. She looked between the kid and Aurora before her eyes moved over to the horizon.


    ¡°Nah. I will stay here and help for now and help clean things out. You want some alone time with him to clear the air out, right?¡±


    Aurora felt awkward at having Rita beam at her with a happy expression.


    She did want some time to talk with Quince but not at the expense of sacrificing her other rtionships.


    But it seemed that Rita even guessed that because her next words were nothing but reassuring to Aurora.


    ¡°Don¡¯t think too much. It won¡¯t take us long to finish ande back. And we are just being efficient here. If the kid stays here then we will be worried about his safety and nothing would ever get done.¡±


    Aurora had no other choice after Rita had presented her logic. Not that she had wanted to in the first ce.


    And this was not even the reason Aurora was worried. She was just worried for Rita and her condition. Would the younger even be able to handle the beasts alone? Floor 15 was not easy.


    ¡°Hurry up and go. Do you need to worry about me here?¡±


    Ava asked and Aurora finally gave in. her whistle called Ur to her and she mounted the dragon carefully.


    Ur held back obediently as Aurora did that. He did not make any sudden move to cause harm to Quince, nor did he throw the kid off his back.


    Ur had matured a little down in the abyss as well and he now understood some concepts far better than before.


    ¡°Sorry to make you do so much Ur. I will give you a treat tonight.¡±


    Ur¡¯s eyes were filled with delight at getting a treat tonight and his wings took off. It was a surreal experience to fly beneath the city grounds and see the building foundations from her height.


    People were like ants here but theck of buildings was a little weird.


    This was another thing Aurora discoveredter on. Ur could take someone to fly below the city if he wanted to. His anti-magic worked for that as well.


    ¡°Alright. You can drop me here Ur.¡±


    The dragon drove near the hole and helped Aurora get back into the city. Their temporary amodation was nearby to the hole and Aurora picked Quince up.


    Ur also transformed into his dog form which made it easier for him to enter the city. This was the only way to allow the city¡¯s magic to affect him.


    ¡°No extra guests. If you bring someone else with you, you pay for an extra room.¡±


    The inn owner they were staying at made a face at Quinces¡¯ appearance. He likely did not realize that Quince was a kid and thought of him as a young-looking adult.


    It was a fairlymon mistake to make since kids were rare in the abyss and not often present on the lower floors.


    Aurora did not correct his misunderstanding about Quince. There was no need for her to do so since the innkeeper¡¯s cooperation was all but secured as long as he got payment.


    Aurora spared some of her magic as payment and gave it to the inn owner. It was a generous amount by the abyssal standards and the inn owner suddenly looked shocked but happy.


    There was a suspicious look in his eyes as he looked at the kid in Aurora¡¯s arms. Whatever he was thinking about, Aurora did not want to know.


    ¡°Like them, a little young, don¡¯t you? Well anyway, none of my business what you do or do not like. Remember, if you need something then you gotta pay for it.¡±


    The innkeeper yelled as Aurora went inside. He was a pain in her side but she knew she needed to tolerate him for now.


    They were all but done with this floor anyway and Aurora would not need to interact with this man any longer once they were out of this floor.


    ¡°Hey missy, if you are not busy then why don¡¯t you have dinner with me? They say I am quite handsome and big¨C¡±


    ¡°No need to. After all, I like them young and fresh.¡±


    The inn owner went red in the face and did not say anything after that.

 Chapter 257 257: From the sky [pt2]

    257 257: From the sky [pt2]


    ¡°Now then, let¡¯s take a look at what is wrong with you. Hopefully, you will not give me a lot of trouble.¡±


    Aurora examined the teen without hesitation. She could tell that something had hit his refreshing pints with great energy and precision.


    Not only did it damage many internal organs, but Quince also suffered from a magical rupture that would continue to inconvenience him for a long time.


    It was truly fortunate that he had managed to fall to the floor where Aurora was and nowhere else. It was as if fate had Quince¡¯s well-being in its grand ns.


    ¡°Now then, what should I do next for you? I cleaned your aura and looked after your wounds. Any further treatment would require for you to gain consciousness.¡±


    Which was not going to happen anytime soon. No matter how quickly Quince healed, some things could and could not happen.


    For a human to make a perfect recovery from his injuries within even a week was asking impossible. And Quince was too young to manage self-healing.


    The sound of fighting from outside the city was also racing Aurora into the inverted fortress. She could see that the abyss was trying hard to repel the intruders.


    But no matter who or what came her way, Ava was tearing everything apart. Most of the participants were looking at her in awe.


    On the other side, Rita was also a vision to behold. She had broken through another threshold of power and her summons consisted of anything that had fallen in the battle. She was well on her way to bing a necromancer at this rate.


    Aurora could tell that she had nothing to fear regarding herpanions.


    And just like that, they cleared another floor. Floors 11-15 were done and now the deeper abyss would finally start.


    These were the floors that could take one¡¯s life if one were not careful. And unlike the previous floors, the criterion to pass the floor differed for different groups.


    They would be heading for the floor 16th tomorrow so Aurora knew she had a lot to get done before that.


    It would be nice if you open your eyes as well. I want to know what else is going out on the surface. It feels like an eternity ever since we headed down here so I am sure the world must have changed greatly as well.


    The flow of time had been manageable so far but it would not be so in the future. Soon, the floors will start to show their real power, and Aurora was prepared to face that.


    The only one she felt bad for was Rita. The poor girl was human and had far more attachments than Aurora. She would likely never get to meet those human maids of hers ever again.


    ¡°Mhhh¡±


    Aurora almost jumped when she heard the sounding out of Quince. It seemed like he was waking up which was an impossible task topare right now.


    How was he able to even gather his strength to wake up when he was so badly injured?


    ¡°You are about to wake up? Seriously? Are you even human at all?¡±


    Aurora questioned but the kid gave her no answer. Instead, he just tried his best to wake up. This effort on Quince¡¯s part was worth praising.


    And since Quince was trying so hard, Aurora decided to give him a helping hand. She had not wanted to wake him up forcefully since it would have hindered Quince¡¯s recovery but it seemed as if he wanted that for himself.


    Aurora had known that Quince was sensitive to magic but she had never realized just how sensitive he was.


    He jolted awake at the first touch of magic used on his consciousness and looked at Aurora with unseeing wide eyes. His expression was a mixture of very and tired. It made Aurora feel bad for him.


    But at the same time, she also knew that the kid was here for a reason. And Quince was strong enough to ovee this obstacle of his.


    ¡°Finally awake? No, don¡¯t push yourself to stand up. Your body will not be able to take it.¡±


    Aurora warned as she pushed the kid bad on his back. Quince had a sour look on his face that whole time but he did not protest.


    He just followed those directions until he could no longer hold in his curiosity and finally turned toward Aurora.


    ¡°Why are you doing all this for me? You could have left me out there to dry and it won¡¯t have made a difference.¡± Quince questioned with a strange look on his face.


    It was not difficult to see where his curiosity was stemming from but Aurora did not want to confuse him or keep him hanging.


    The kid was already confused and Aurora did not want to add anything to that quota.


    ¡°You would have ttened dead meat if I did not help you out. Do you have any idea how deep into the abyss you are? This is floor 15 already.¡±


    Quince went pale after hearing that. He did not know where he was or what he was doing. So Aurora could summarize that it was not his idea toe down here.


    ¡°F-Floor 15? How? And why? All I can remember is being pushed down here but there should be no reason for me to end up down here.¡±


    Quince was right. There should be a reason for him to be here on his own. Not unless someone had deliberately altered his path to ensure that he ends up being here.


    As for why here particrly? There was only one reason Aurora could think of and it was her presence.


    She did consider this all to be a coincidence but that made Aurora even more nervous to think about. Coincidences were not her thing since they had never served her well.


    ¡°How did you end up here anyway? And don¡¯t give me any bullcrap either. I will be able to tell if you are sincere or not.¡±


    Quince looked caught up between the rock and a hard ce. Aurora could see in his eyes that he did not want to tell her about what happened.


    And Aurora had epted his attempts this far but not anymore. She needed answers from him and Quince would not be able to hide them.


    It seemed as if Quince realized that soon as well because he did not try to talk his way out again. He just sighed and epted his fate.


    ¡°I got thrown down here by Lady Asami when I tried to stop her. I don¡¯t know anything about that so I cannot help you.¡±.


    For what it was worth, Aurora would have found it hard to believe had she not met Asami head-on and seen what kind of headstrong person she was.


    But since she did know, Aurora knew why Quince was avoiding mentioning all this.


    No one wanted to help those who had been abandoned by the gods. Even Quince¡¯s mentality had been no different at this point in his life.


    But still, how did hee across Asami anyway? Thest Aurora had heard of her, she was still in the south and it had been destroyed fully.


    ¡°Are you trying to think about how all that happened? It¡¯s because they attacked the tower. It happened all of a sudden so no one was prepared for that either.¡±


    ¡®What happened? Someone sessfully attacked the tower? But how?¡¯


    ¡°I can feel your shock and you are not the only one who is shocked either. No one could believe it when the south made its move. What¡¯s more? Only Lady Minerva was in the tower at that time and 3-vs-1 was too much for even her.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t give me that pitying look. I did not tell you all this to gain your sympathy. You can keep it to yourself for now.¡±


    Quince sounded bitter when he said that. And that drained whatever expression Aurora had on her face.


    The sympathy did not go anywhere but Aurora did not want to let Quince see that she was pitying him.


    There was nothing worse than being pitied for something that was not in your control.


    ¡°I see. That is big news but you should not let it interfere with your recovery for now. I will take you to the next floor with me for now and then you can decide what to do with yourself. Just concentrate on healing for now.¡±


    Aurora had a soft spot for Quince and it showed. No one else would have gotten this offer.


    And even if Quince looked repulsed at the very thought of traveling with Aurora, she had a feeling that her offer would be epted.


    ¡°I will leave now and give you some time to think this over. In the end, the decision will be yours so don¡¯t take too long in deciding what you want.¡±


    Aurora warned as she left the room. It was all up to Quince now to decide what he wanted to do.

 Chapter 258 258: From the sky [pt3]

    258 258: From the sky [pt3]


    ¡°I will leave now and give you some time to think this over. In the end, the decision will be yours so don¡¯t take too long in deciding what you want.¡±


    Quince winched as he heard those words. As much as he wanted to be left alone, he also knew that he needed all the help he could.


    His legs were aching and refusing to work at the same time. It made him feel numb inside out because he could feel a lot of his body.


    Even when he tried to reach toward something, all Quince could do was make a half-hearted effort before letting go.


    ¡°Fine, I understand so stop trying to make your injuries worse. You don¡¯t want me to leave your side for now, right?¡±


    Aurora sat back down once she felt that hesitant pull on her sleeves. Quince might try to act tough but he was a kid right now. He neither had the experience, nor the memories of having grown up.


    There was a tense silence after that and they both did not know what to talk about. However, Quince seemed to be eaten away by something in his mind. That something seemed important so Aurora decided to ask him outright.


    ¡°I¡­why did this happen? I understand Lady Asami having a possible grudge against the tower but for Clove to betray us as well. I always knew she was a bit twisted but I never thought she would do this to us.¡±


    Quince sounded torn up at Clove¡¯s betrayal. And it was a given for him to feel like his. He had been with Clove for a long time and he had seen Clove differently than anyone else.


    He must be feeling torn up after all this happened. And Aurora found herself sympathizing with him.


    ¡°No one could have seen this happen, least of all you. You might try to act all grown up and whatever but you are still a kid at heart. Don¡¯t let these failures define what you can and cannot do.¡±


    Aurora tried to make Quince feel better but he unexpectedly started crying. It started as a sob but it quickly evolved into a full-blown cry.


    The more he cried, the more panicked Aurora felt. She had never been good when it came to children. And when Quince acted like a child, it was even weirder.


    ¡°Stop crying. If you do then I won¡¯t know what to do.¡±


    For most of her life, Quince had been the same age as her and incredibly mature for his age. Aurora had never found fault with his conduct before.


    But now she felt distressed as she had never felt before. And it was all because of the Quince that was crying in front of her. Silent tears that were streaming down his face were a little too much for Aurora to bear.


    ¡°I don¡¯t even know why I am crying. Maybe it¡¯s because I always knew that Clove was going to be troublesome but I still wanted to help her. I¡­she was the only friend I truly had and it hurt to realize that nothing was real from the start for her.¡±


    The more Quince spoke the more Aurora realized that he was just venting out to her because he had no one else.


    For the first time in her life, Aurora saw Quince not as she wanted to but as he was. He was an insecure kid who did not know what was going on and Aurora felt bad for him.


    ¡°Pull yourself together. Clove decided what she wanted to do on her own so you cannot fault yourself for her decision. The only thing you can do is to march forward and decide what you want to do.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s speech might sound harsh but Quince could not allow himself to wallow in self-pity.


    ¡°What is it that you want to do? Think of this, not as a disaster but as an opportunity. The main branch of the tower might be destroyed but the tower is still there.¡±


    No matter how harsh things might seem, it was truly not over until Quince gave up on his life and allowed himself to die.


    He was a natural-born leader so Aurora knew that he could bring the tower to its former glory.


    It made Aurora gag to say these things about the tower¡¯s revival since she had spent so long hating it. But now it was no longer a danger to her.


    Besides, the presence of the tower was required to keep the world stable. It was necessary to keep the south and other regions in check.


    ¡°It¡¯s amazing that you are the one who said that. I always got the feeling that you hated everything the tower stood for. The ¡®you¡¯ in my dreams always madements about it. I guess it was all a dream.¡±


    Aurora felt shocked at the admission. Her sharp eyes looked at Quince but he seemed to be too out of it to realize how much of Aurora¡¯s interest he had at that moment.


    ¡°It¡¯s weird, right? One night both I and Clove got a dream about being deep into the abyss and you were with the tower as well. It felt so real and you felt familiar as well. At first, I thought that it was a vision but now I think it was all a weird dream.¡±


    ¡°I do get those dreams often. There are you and Clove in them and you both are married. Gosh, look at how creative my imagination had gotten.¡±


    Each word Quince spoke was like a knife to Aurora¡¯s heart but it was getting numb as well.


    If Quince had experienced all that then that meant Clove had as well. She was not lying about the memoriesing back to her.


    And she had still gone ahead and pulled all that crazy stunts of hers. The more Aurora was reminded of that, the more she felt angry at herself for falling for Clove.


    ¡°It was all weird but it was a dream, right?¡±


    Quince sounded desperate when he asked Aurora this and Aurora did not want him to wallow in this darkness anymore.


    He needed release as well so Aurora was going to give it to him.


    ¡°Yup. It was all likely a weird dream you had. As far as I know, we did not know each other well enough to travel together.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s denial made Quince let out a sigh of relief.


    They were done talking right in time for the room door to be knocked open and Ava to march inside with a happy grin.


    ¡°We are done. We passed this floor so let¡¯s head down to floor 16. Oh, is our little guest awake as well? Are we taking him with us as well?¡±


    Ava sounded hyper and a little too happy with what was going on. But it was so much like the overlooker to be excited like this.


    She was letting loose all she wanted and no one was there to scold her. And the sense of belonging in the abyss must be doing her some good as well.


    ¡°Aurora, what are you nning to do with that ¡®thing¡¯? You cannot possibly be thinking of taking ¡®it¡¯ with you.¡±


    The only one who seemed to be having a problem with Aurora¡¯s decision was Rita. the redhead red at Quince and she seemed to be rejecting him entirely.


    Truthfully, Aurora had not expected to be met with such resistance so she had no idea what she could say to Rita in such a situation.


    Rita¡¯s experience with Quince had not been the best and Aurora did not want to choose between them.


    So she hoped that Rita would listen to her this time as well.


    ¡°Rita, stop calling Quince a ¡®thing¡¯. He needs our help and I intend to help him out. We are in the same boat now since the tower¡¯s main branch was destroyed. You know what that means, right?¡±


    Rita went quit for a second before she exploded.


    ¡°THE TOWER HAD WHAT? WHEN AND HOW?¡±


    No matter how much Rita hated the tower, even she understood that it was a necessary evil one could not get rid of all of a sudden.


    It would create a power vacuum and plunge the world into a bloody fight.


    ¡°Thankfully, Quince is alive for now and he can takemand once we send him out. The resistance would help us in this case and Lord n would understand our worries.¡±


    This much Aurora was sure about but she did not want to go out of the abyss for such a thing.


    ¡°But how do we send him back? There is no major tower post for the next few floors. The next one is on floor 18th.¡±


    Which was true. So they had no other choice but to take Quince with them for the time being.


    ¡°Hey, kid. Buckle yourself up because it is going to be a long ride from here.¡±


    Quince looked green in the face but he also knew he had no other choice but to follow Aurora along. As much as he did not like Aurora, she was his only safe option.


    For now.

 Chapter 259 259: The depth of the jungle [pt1]

    The n had been to get out of floor 15 as soon as possible but that had to be dyed all because of Quince.


    As soon as the discussion had ended, Quince had fallen unconscious and only woke up after two days¡¯ rest. His wounds had not funny healed when the group decided to start moving about.


    Aurora had wanted to wait a bit more for Quince to recover fully but he seemed to not be in a mood to rest.


    ¡°Next few floors *had* a ruler until recently. I heard someone offed him and now we are here.¡±


    Aurora looked away as soon as Ava said that. Even if no one pointed it out, she knew that Ava had been talking about her.


    But even if things were like this, Aurora could say with confidence that it was not her fault. She could still not remember what had happened at that temple.


    ¡°Anyway, watch your steps when you walk. The water might be contaminated so cover your steps in magic.¡±


    That was the only warning Ava gave before something wet and slimy covered Aurora¡¯s feet. The feeling was rather distinctive but it was water that was beneath Aurora¡¯s feet.


    Rita certainly jumped at the feeling and even Quince had an annoyed look on his face. That allbined with the bad smell in the air made Aurora¡¯s head hurt.


    ¡°Ava, where in the world are we?¡±


    Rita questioned as she felt around for any solid surface. Theck of natural light in their location made it impossible to see what was in front of them.


    But despite that, the basics of survival said to get out of the water and gain height. One needed to go as high as one could in such a situation.


    ¡°Where else can we be but in a marsh? These used to be amon sight before the abyss but now they are really rare. Watch your steps or your foot might end up in a predator¡¯s jaw.¡±


    Ava warned as she lit up the surroundings. There were a lot of dense trees around the group with low-hanging veins which they used immediately. The height was much needed since there were a lot of eyes on them once they gained the high ground.


    ¡°Ugh. It could have been so dangerous down there. I can still see the hunger in that beast¡¯s eyes.¡±


    Rita was not looking scared of the situation. But she did look disgusted with the slimy water that was clinging to her legs as well as the various beasts that were lingering down in the water.


    The trees also had moss covering various parts of their surface which made establishing a grip on their surface impossible. Aurora felt like she would slip a few times already.


    Thankfully, magic was an omnipotent tool that allowed Aurora to maintain her holding.


    ¡°So, what should we do with these monsters now? There must be a reason they are present at this low a level in the abyss but I cannot feel anything different about them¡­.No, wait. Something is weird here. I cannot feel anything from these beasts.¡±


    ¡°Empty beasts.¡±


    Mei sounded surprised about what she was feeling but it was Quince that hissed out the word. Frankly, Aurora was surprised to know the depth of Quince¡¯s knowledge when it came to these things.


    He knew a lot more than a person his age and abilities should know. Maybe his unconscious mind was pulling this information out of the dreams of the past he saw.


    ¡°Empty beasts? What does that even mean.¡±


    Rita was the only one who was confused. Well, she and Ur but the dragon seemed to not have a care in the world. It was not like any of those beasts would be approaching him anytime soon.


    ¡°These creatures are kind of like Ur in the sense that they have magic resistance. But there is much lower than a dragon. Still, don¡¯t fight them if you have another choice.¡±


    Aurora warned as she carefully navigated toward the outside of the forest. There were only a few options to choose from since the forest was too dark.


    ¡°There! I can see the light from the open space. Look out for the right side. Beasts areing from that way.¡±


    Ava warned as Aurora killed the beast trying to aim for her party. With a clean sweep of her spear, the beast¡¯s head was separated from its body andnded down the water.


    The darkness surrounding them made it impossible to see the situation downwards but the snipping sound made it evident what was happening.


    ¡°Ugh, so gross. Are these beasts eating the dead body of their brethren?¡±


    Rita questioned as his face turned a little green. The situation was not as repulsive as some of the others could be in the abyss.


    Aurora had seen so much cannibalism in the abyss that it had ceased to mean anything to her. Beasts without rationality like these Empty Beasts did not care for anyone else but themselves.


    ¡°You should be thankful that it is not your head that is being eaten right now. It is not dangerous as long as you keep away from their saliva but if you get caught by them then.¡±


    Ava warned as she tore apart a beast. The happy smile on her face did not match their grim situation.


    Had they now known Ava for this long, Aurora would have been sure that something was wrong with her mind.


    ¡°Ava, look out to your right. I think that snake is about to spit on you.¡±


    Ava turned in time to block her face from being sprayed by the toxic saliva that the snake beast spat out.


    ¡°Ava, are you alright? Y-You said that this thing was toxic. Do you need to rest? Are you going to die?¡±


    ¡°You idiot. The overlooker isn¡¯t going to die from something this small. Most of the abyss effects do not affect them or the gods.¡±


    Rita¡¯s panic was cut through by Quince¡¯s words. Aurora had to admit that Quince was good for his age.


    Aurora had not said anything to him regarding Ava but he had ended up guessing the correct thing about her anyway.


    ¡®Then again, Ava is not trying to hide her identity anymore. Her carefree nature is a result of her decision so I can guess how Quince reached this oue.¡¯


    Aurora was busy dealing with her brand of beasts but Ur¡¯s presence nearby made those beasts hesitant to approach.


    They were fast traveling across the forest and toward outside. The only thing slowing them down was Ur¡¯s inability to fly faster. The canopy of the trees was hindering his wings from moving.


    ¡°Ur, just fly away if you need to. There is no need to wait for us like this and restrict yourself. And by the way, take this burden with you as well.¡±


    ¡°Hey, I am not a¡­woooh, be careful.¡±


    Aurora threw Quince toward the dragon to get him out of the way. Quince was not a burden to her but his inability to use magic due to his injury would put him in danger.


    There was a huge mass of beasts following Aurora and her party which needed to be dealt with.


    Once Ur was out of her sight and safe, Aurora turned back toward the approaching beasts. Her dangerous aura along with her shining eyes made her appear extremely dangerous and even the beasts hesitated to take a single step forward.


    And when Rita and Ava joined her side, it was even more pressure being exerted. The beasts looked toward Aurora with hesitation in their eyes before they turned tail and ran away.


    But not everyone left. Those who were brave enough to face them were sacrificed to Rita and became her contracts.


    It was a one-sided massacre. For the first time, Aurora let her tightly held restrain go and killed off without hesitation. It felt liberating to her in many ways and ended so fast that it was not even worth mentioning.


    ¡°Ugh, so much blood. Do you think we should get ourselves cleaned up before heading back?¡±


    Rita asked as she held her shirt away from her chest. It gave a rather revealing view of her breasts but the blood took away any enjoyment such a view could have given Aurora.


    ¡°Well, we can look for a source of fresh water, or I could just do this and we are ready to head back.¡±


    Ava waved her hand and the party was clean in seconds. It startled even Aurora to see but Ava seemed to find it quite normal.


    When faced with twin looks of awe, she only grinned back innocently.


    ¡°What? I am the overlooker. This much is easy to do even if this is not my floor. The abyss is my home as well.¡±


    Ava reminded and Aurora calmed down. On the other hand, Rita was too surprised.


    ¡°You are a what? Why did you never tell us? And how did that kid know before me?¡±


    Aurora wanted to say that it was because Rita was not observant enough toe to this conclusion but she kept quiet.<!--


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 Chapter 260 260: The depth of the jungle [pt2]

    ¡°Hey, you should have told us your real identity before today. Had I known who you were, I would have asked you for help with some things.¡±


    Rita had finally calmed down after getting the second biggest shock of her life. But Ava looked unconcerned with that shock and continued to look uninterested in Rita.


    In fact, the earlier yfulness from her expression was gone, and Aurora felt that Ava did not find this situation as fun as she should.


    ¡°Why did I have to tell you about my business? Does it change how you see me? Or, do I be someone better in your eyes if you knew that I was an overlooker?¡±


    Aurora had never realized that this was something Ava was bitter about. She had always acted carefree about her status, not trying to hide it so Aurora had never paid any attention to her.


    Now that she thought about it, Aurora had no idea what kind of end goal Ava even had in helping Aurora with all this.


    ¡°N-No, I don¡¯t have a problem. But won¡¯t you be interested if one of your friends had such a big secret? Curiosity is a natural thing after all.¡±


    Rita tried to correct her misunderstanding as soon as possible and Ava rxed at her exnation.


    That neutral expression melted away from that face to give way to a kind smile. This might have been one of those rare ¡®true¡¯ smiles Ava shed rarely.


    ¡°Curiosity is good to have but don¡¯t let it ruin your life. I did not take offense at your probing into my past because I knew that you did not mean any harm. But not everyone you meet down here will be as kind. You cannot keep acting like a kid.¡±


    Ava warned before sheughed.


    Truthfully, Aurora would haveughed out loud at the shocked expression that Rita showed them.


    ¡°Y-Y-You have no right to say that to me? Me? Being childish? Have you ever seen it in the mirror before? Hey, stopughing. And you, Aurora. You stopughing as well.¡±


    ¡°No way. Your expression was too hrious.¡± Aurora joined in on the fun as well and Rita looked ready to cry.


    It seemed like things would be alright in the end and Aurora felt like a burden had been lifted from her shoulder.


    She hade to trust Rita as much as Aurora could. She had been so sure that this would never happen but it did end up happening.


    And Aurora could not be happier in the end.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go back. I don¡¯t think we should leave Ur alone too long with Quince. The abyss is not a suitable ce for kids.¡±


    Since the atmosphere had been cleared, Aurora felt like it was appropriate for them to pack up and head back to their camp. Quince had been injured so Aurora needed to have a look at her wound.


    ¡°You both head toward the camp. I will try to find a settlement and call you all over it once I do. Since I am the overlooker and Rita knows it as well, I do not need to hide my powers.¡±


    Ava suggested and Aurora saw no need to hold her back for now. She could go out all she wanted.


    And it would also help their group in the end.


    ¡°You go out and do that. Try to also keep an eye on any medicinal herbs you find on the way. I don¡¯t think we can rely on our magic to heal everything from here on.¡±


    Aurora warned as Ava left. She seemed to have understood what Aurora had been trying to say but Rita looked a little confused.


    As a first-timer who came to this depth, her confusion was evident and very much appreciated.


    ¡°Why can¡¯t we use magic for helping? Why use herbs at all?¡±


    Rita asked as she picked up the leftover supplies that they might need again. Her body was arched into a bend position that pushed out her assets even more clearly.


    ¡°Technically, it is possible to heal every injury with magic but it will not be possible in reality. Magic that we use and the monsters use can react and cause the injury to worsen. It is better to use natural means when possible since these herbs had adapted to this floor¡¯s energy.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s words caused Rita to groan out loud.


    ¡°Does that mean we will have to get new herbs on the next floor and the next? How much effort would it take?¡±


    Ritained, instantly catching what Aurora had been saying. Her agony-filled expression caused Aurora tough out loud.


    ¡°Of course, we will have to make an effort in the next floors as well but it would be better if you are careful out there. After all, if we don¡¯t get injured then we won¡¯t have any need to seek out these herbs.¡±


    Rita¡¯s expression looked far better after Aurora¡¯s assurance. She also seemed to have made up her mind about something but Aurora had no intention of asking her what she was thinking about.


    They yed down a few more monsters on their way back before they saw Ur¡¯s shadow right on top of them.


    Aurora whistled to get him toe down and the dragon did.


    ¡°What took you both so long? And where did you lose your third one? Don¡¯t tell me she ended up dying.¡±


    Quince asked with a detached voice but Aurora could hear the concern in his voice. Staying with their group had made Quince much less mellow and down to earth than before.


    They could still not get along quite well but they were making a visible effort to respect each other¡¯s boundaries.


    ¡°As if Ava could die so easily. She just went ahead to find us a settlement we can rest in tonight. She will message us soon¡­¡±


    As if realizing that they were talking about her, Ava¡¯s message tone rang through the clearing. Aurora opened her screen to read it out loud.


    [Ava: I found the settlement so you should hurry up ande here. I will make sure you get fresh food and an adequate water supply.]


    With the message came a location on Aurora¡¯s map. It was not too far away from their current location.


    ¡°Looks like this is where we are heading for now. Be careful on your way over and don¡¯t trust the local.¡±


    Aurora had almost no memories of this floor but she did remember not feeling a liability for the locals.


    There was something about their traditions that did not sit well with Aurora but she could not recall what it was no matter how much she tried to.


    No one replied to Aurora but she had a feeling that her message had been passed on sessfully to her group.


    Not that they had to worry about anything when every one of them was capable of defending themselves.


    The closer they got to the settlement, the more Aurora was sure that something was wrong with the ce. There was an air of detachment around them that made the camp stand out.


    Not a single person had walked out of that settlement to see the neers, nor did any of the beasts try and step closer to the settlement. There seemed to be an invisible divide between the two spaces.


    ¡°Wow! Talk about being creepy. Is this settlement abandoned?¡±


    Rita asked as she ran to the settlement. By this time, the concerned people from inside should havee out to look.


    But no one did. Not even a single soul seemed to be alive in this ce. And Aurora had a weird feeling that she was forgetting something.


    ¡°This ce feels so haunted. It¡¯s like these people never existed.¡±


    Ritamented that jolted Aurora¡¯s memory and reminded her of what she was forgetting about.


    Of course, she had not seen anyone in this settlement. It was because they were on the other side of this illusion. The settlement on this floor boasted about their special defense and being unique.


    Since this floor had so much wildlife, no sane species could survive and coexist with them. As a result, the human-like settlement had to hide away with magic to survive.


    Once Aurora remembered, it also became much easier to match her magical frequency with the surroundings and force the gate to open.


    It opened up into a familiar-looking market and Aurora hurried inside.


    She did not consider her actions as dangerous or attention-seeking until most people turned their eyes toward her and whispered while looking in her direction.


    ¡°W-What¡¯s wrong? Why is everyone looking at us like that?¡±


    ¡°Oh, I don¡¯t know. Maybe because of the dragon flying behind us? Surely you realize that it is not normal under any circumstances.¡±


    Rita asked but it was Quince that answered that question. He sounded tired and cranky but he still made more sense than most of the people in Aurora¡¯s life.


    And it was not like his words were not true. People were looking up at Ur in awe and pointing toward him.<!--


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 Chapter 261 261: The settlement of the past [pt1]

    ¡°W-What¡¯s wrong? Why is everyone looking at us like that?¡±


    ¡°Oh, I don¡¯t know. Maybe because of the dragon flying behind us? Surely you realize that it is not normal under any circumstances.¡±


    Aurora felt the awkwardness of the situation rise the more she was being stared at. These people did not know who she was, but they were still pointing toward her and makingments.


    And because Aurora was someone who had lived through these floors before, she could understand what these people were saying.


    ¡®Abnormality¡¯, ¡®an omen¡¯, ¡®destruction¡¯.


    Most of them were afraid because a dragon had suddenly appeared in their settlement. Many soldiers were even standing at ready with their weapons. They were seen as an enemy.


    ¡°Oi oi oi. I think there has been a misunderstanding here. We are not enemies, nor are we bad people. There is no need for you to behave like this with us.¡±


    Rita tried to reason but all her words went in from one ear and out from another. It was not like these soldiers could understand what she was saying so they could not help but think of them as enemies.


    Ur roared to get the people to back down but it seemed to have the opposite effect on the soldiers. Instead of being afraid, they looked more determined than ever to fight back.


    ¡°This is not good. Will we have to go through a whole settlement¡¯s worth of force? I don¡¯t want to hurt these humans.¡±


    Rita was soft-hearted. She was hesitant to hurt her fellow humans but no other person in their group had that problem.


    Aurora was even ready to make this settlement disappear from the abyss map when the forces parted to allow a familiar figure to emerge from behind.


    ¡°L-Lady! Are you here to help us get rid of these strangers? H-Hurry up and kill them with your mystic powers.¡±


    ¡®Just what did Ava do in this short amount of time to get this reaction from the locals? Why do I have a feeling that I don¡¯t want to know anymore?¡¯


    Aurora looked Ava in the eye to ask what she did. But the other silver-haired girl seemed to not even look guilty for manipting the locals.


    ¡°Let them in. These people are my servants so treat them with respect.¡±


    ¡°Who is your servant-¡°


    ¡°Rita, not now.¡±


    Rita was seething after hearing Ava¡¯sment but Aurora stopped her before sheshed out. She had seen how the locals had rxed after Ava had proimed the group as her servants.


    Maybe it was better to pose as her servants to enter this ce than to fight against the flow of an entire settlement.


    ¡°O-Of course mydy. We will show them in right away.¡±


    ¡°Phew, it¡¯s nice to see that ourdy has so many powerful servants under hermand. She is incredible.¡±


    ¡°Well, of course. She is the reincarnation of our long-lost king after all. This much had to be expected.¡±


    Rita had a weird face when she heard all this. Even Aurora found it all rather irritating but did not judge the people.


    First of all, she wanted to hear what was happening from Ava¡¯s mouth before making assumptions. And then she was going to smack Ava across the face for creating this misunderstanding.


    They were led to a faraway room and only once they were alone did Aurora breathe a sigh of relief.


    The constant pressure of having eyes on her was nerve-wracking.


    ¡°Now exin. What the fuck did you do to make these people into your willing ves? Reincarnation? What bullshit. I thought overlookers were older than these settlements.¡±


    Rita exined with questions as soon as they were alone. Even Quince had a curious look in his eyes but he was controlling himself better than Rita.


    As for Ava? She just sighed before opening the door. The only thing thaty on the other side was a huge painting of a familiar face.


    The man in the painting looked like Ava but there were certain differences between that portrait and Ava.


    ¡°What the hell? Why does that man look exactly like you? Did you have a secret son or something?¡±


    Rita asked, her braining to the obvious conclusion. Ava¡¯s deadpan face made all the irritation Aurora felt worth it.


    ¡°What son? I am an overlooker. We can¡¯t gically reproduce. This child was just a doll I made to represent me when I was looking after this floor in the past. I had no idea he became a king for these people or anything.¡±


    That made much more sense than Ava having a biological son. Frankly, Aurora could not see Ava being a mother, never less a good one. Ava was just too frank and unyielding to look after someone.


    ¡°Yeah, that makes sense. There is no way anyone would have survived under your watch. They would have starved in their first week with you.¡±


    ¡°Exactly. I am not someone who can look after people and¡­hey, I did not appreciate you making fun of me.¡±


    Ava was back to her usual self and so was Rita. Aurora just did not care about the history of this floor and what was going on here to care too much.


    ¡°So, should we start looking for ways to clear this floor now? Does anyone have any idea where the exit is? What about you Ava? You were in charge of this floor for some time so you should know.¡±


    Rita had a good point. As someone who had shared their senses with this floor, Ava should know every space avable on this floor. But things seemed to not be like that.


    If that were the case then Ava would not have to separate from the group to find this settlement. Nor would she have decided toe here for rest.


    ¡°Things don¡¯t work like that. It¡¯s been centuries since I¡¯ve been in charge of this floor and it has changed a lot in the meantime. It¡¯ll be easier to start from the scarp than to rely on my memory.¡±


    Ava¡¯s words triggered another memory inside Aurora¡¯s mind. She had heard it in the passing but never paid much attention to before.


    ¡°Every new overlooker changes the floor once they take over. It is a never-ending cycle.¡±


    ¡°Right. And this floor has gone through at least 2 overlooker changes ever since I left it. This is no longer a familiar territory.¡±


    Both Rita and Quince got what Aurora and Ava were saying but that did not mean they had to like it.


    Rita looked especially disappointed to hear the news. Her expression made her face look twice her age.


    Aurora would have dly continued this conversation but she felt an unfamiliar energy signature running away from the room.


    She quickly opened the door but no one was behind it. The energy signature was running away and Aurora decided to give chase.


    As much as she did not care about Ava¡¯s secreting out, she did not want innocent people to know the truth of this abyss she had shared.


    ¡°Do you think you will be able to outrun me? How foolish you are.¡±


    Aurora could feel the vibration those footsteps made as the body tried to get away from her. But a wave of her hand was enough to trap the other person in a prison-like space.


    She wanted to know who the person who tried to run away from her was and what did they want with her.


    ¡°L-Let me go. I did not hear anything and I don¡¯t know anything. I swear to never mention what I heard to anyone and..¡±


    Aurora just wanted to see the face of this daring person. Not only had they dared to run away from Aurora but also tried to lie to her.


    It seemed like they had a death wish and were not afraid of their betters.


    ¡°Aurora, why did you run out like that? Is there something wrong? And w-w-why do you have someone captured like that in the open? Did something happen?¡±


    Rita and everyone else arrived at the same time Aurora opened her stone prison. A beautifuldy was caught up in her trap.


    Those lovely eyes of hers looked like they were about to cry and Aurora felt like she wanted to bully this child even more.


    Somehow, the crying face in front of her looked too good to pass up and seeing it also alleviated the irritation Aurora felt.


    ¡°Aurora, did something happen?¡±


    Rita asked once again as she looked at the trapped girl.


    ¡°Yup. Something indeed did happen right now. Rita, I think we found a local who can help us out. We should take this child into our team for now.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s proposal was met with deadpan faces before Rita rubbed her aching head.


    Her eyes looked almost dead when she looked at Aurora and there were even hints of jealousy in her gaze.


    ¡°No, we are not taking a local in our team and that is final. We don¡¯t have time or resources to look after a kid.¡±<!--


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 Chapter 262 262: The settlement of the past [pt2]

    ¡°No, we are not taking a local in our team and that is final. We don¡¯t have time or resources to look after a kid.¡±


    Rita looked at Aurora and then at the arrogant kid who was looking her back right in the eye. The more she looked at the kid, the more she did not like her.


    The kid had golden hair and blue eyes. They were different from Clove¡¯s but they reminded Rita too much of the other female. The more she saw them, the more she wanted to tear the child apart.


    ¡°Rita, calm down. I was not telling you that we are taking the kid in but ordering you to take the kid in. I have a feeling that she would be of help to us.¡±


    Rita turned toward Aurora at those words. She could not believe her ears and what they were hearing right now.


    ¡®D-Did Aurora just say all that? I cannot believe what I am hearing right now.¡¯


    But that smiling face said it all. Aurora was 100% serious right now. The kid seemed to be surprised as well but she quickly hid behind Aurora¡¯s legs.


    Seeing that arrogant look of the child looking back at her, Rita could not help but rage even more.


    ¡°Stop it. You are behaving like a kid right now. I agree with Aurora that having a local would help us in our search for clearance. I have heard that there are ces on these floors that only the locals know about.¡±


    Quince quickly intercepted before the situation could worsen. It was times like these that his inner leader shined the brightest.


    ¡°But do we need someone like this kid? We have Ava with us and¡­¡±


    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t involve me in this. I told you that I no longer know this floor. The only ce I can even start guessing where the exit can be is the ruins.¡±


    Ava quickly took her to leave the conversation. But her words were enough for the child to recognize what they were talking about.


    She looked back at the group with sparkling eyes that made everyone feel ufortable.


    ¡°If you want to go to the ruins then I can take you with me. I know a lot of shortcuts since I spend a lot of time there. But the adults don¡¯t want me to go alone since there are dangerous animals around.¡±


    The kid seemed excited all of a sudden. The scared attitude she had shown only minutes prior was nowhere to be seen and Aurora was surprised at the sudden change in the kid¡¯s mood.


    Her excitement over the possibility of exploration had made her fear disappear.


    ¡°Oh right. My name is Ang and I am 11 years old. I can wield a sword and I can even use magic. I won¡¯t get in your way so take you with me¡­¡±


    Rita picked the kid up from her back. Ang was light and weak as she tried to break Rita¡¯s hold on her.


    ¡°Let me go. I don¡¯t ept this harassment.¡±


    Ang yelled quite loudly but no one helped her out. The people that were looking toward them saw Ava and averted their eyes. Her influence was too widespread in thismunity.


    ¡°Yeah, sure kid. How are you looking forward to helping us when you can¡¯t even help yourself out? It¡¯ll be better for you to stay at home and be looked after by your mother.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t have one. Don¡¯t you dare make fun of me?¡±


    Rita¡¯s careless words ended up triggering Ang and her eyes watered at the teasing tone. The anger that was directed toward Rita made her let her guard down and Ang took the time to kick Rita away from herself.


    Then in a sh, Ang ran away from the group with the knowledge of their secrets held close to her heart. She knew what they had discussed.


    ¡°You got outwitted by a child. What are you going to do about it?¡±


    Quince asked a fuming Rita. the redhead was flushing, her face even redder than her hair right now.


    ¡°I swear I don¡¯t like children. They are all troublemakers. Just wait until I get my hands on you. You won¡¯t be able to open your mouth ever again and¡­¡±


    ¡°Let it go, Rita. I am sure that the kid won¡¯t tell what happened here to anyone else.¡±


    Aurora interfered before Rita could go after the kid. In her opinion, it was not worth chasing the kid right now.


    ¡°Right. Who in their right mind would ever believe a kid that young when she makes those ims? The best she would get is a cold indifference or some indulging smile. It is nothing you have to be concerned about.¡±


    Ava agreed with Aurora as well. Since they knew the abyss¡¯s culture, they were qualified to talk about it.


    ¡°Yeah, I guess you both are right. Ang is just a kid after all so she doesn¡¯t know better.¡±


    Rita failed to hear the undertone in her partner¡¯s voice and took their words at face value but that was not the case for Quince.


    He had a feeling that these two females were thinking of doing something drastic and he did not want to be a part of that n.


    ¡°Listen Ur, keep as far away from Aurora and Ava as you can. Pretend as if you don¡¯t know them when the timees.¡±


    ¡°Kyuuuu~¡±


    The dragon purred as if he understood what Quince was saying. Recently, Ur was bing more and more like a human, and Aurora was sure that it was about time for his human metamorphosis.


    All high-level beasts were able to achieve that but it would be the first time Aurora to see a dragon in its human form.


    ¡°Well, these local people will sort their problem soon so that is not something we need to think about. However, we do need to think of what to do next. We only have so much time on our hands.¡±


    ¡°So, shall we head toward the ruins right now?¡±


    Ava¡¯s words came out of the blue and her excited smile made it impossible to speak anything against.


    Aurora wanted to rest first before going out but she had a feeling that Ava had a reason to go out right now.


    ¡°Yeah, sure. If you want to head out right now then we should not dy any further.¡±


    Ava had a mischievous smile on her face as she skipped out of the settlement. They had not refilled their quota of food and other supplies yet but there was no need to worry right now.


    Aurora could always do that when they came back to the settlement. And there was also the matter of finding local herbs on the way.


    They had only been traveling for a mere fifteen seconds when Quince gestured toward the back of their group. It did not need the genius to figure out what he was concerned about.


    Of course, as Aurora had expected. They were not alone to leave the settlement. A little animal had decided to follow after them and was even now following after them.


    ¡°This kid is daring. First, she runs away from me and now she ising after us? Should I show her what a foolish decision she has made?¡±


    Rita asked as she menacingly licked her de. Aurora could tell that this was all done to intimidate the child following after her.


    Ang had been following after them for a while so it was clear that she was not going to give up that easily.


    ¡°Nah. I think we should help the poor girl out by dragging her out in the open and making sure she shows us the way. Wasn¡¯t that what she wanted since the start?¡±


    Of course, Ava was not behind on her train of ideas. It was lucky for them that Ang had decided to follow after them on her own. It would save them the trouble of finding the entrance themselves.


    ¡°Ava, I will leave this matter to you. I know you are an expert in getting what you want to go and ask our stalker for the entrance to the ruins.¡±


    Ava¡¯s smile twitched just a millimeter but it was enough to convey to Aurora that she had been jabbed by those words.


    Still, Ava stood up withoutint and walked to the side. The real show was about to start and Aurora wished she had a bucket filled with popcorn to enjoy all this.


    ¡°Are you sure it would be alright to send an overlooker over like this? That kid might die under the pressure.¡±


    Quince¡¯s words made sense but Aurora was not concerned about any of it. Even she knew that Ava would hold back when dealing with a kid so she was not worried.


    Well, nor worried that someone would die. As for how things would go or how Ang would survive mentally? That no one knew and that was not Aurora¡¯s concern either.


    Above her, the moon was about to rise in the sky and the darkness of the night was seeping all around them.<!--


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 Chapter 263 263: The ruin deal [pt1]

    The night sky had turned a brilliant red right over the forest. The animal poption was nowhere to be seen but the rustling voice of the grass could be heard over the footsteps inside the first.


    But Ang noticed nothing of that as she followed behind Aurora and her group. She had taken a significant risk in deciding to follow these ounders but she wanted to go to the ruins.


    No one in her vige wanted to have anything to do with that sacrednd and to uncover its secrets. They were always afraid of that ce but not Ang. She had always found herself fascinated with those ancient spaces.


    But theck of manpower meant that Ang could not go there herself. She needed support from the people around her if she wanted to go even deeper.


    So that was why here she was right now, trying her best to follow after Aurora and her group. These people were powerful and they would be able to make Ang¡¯s dreame true.


    And maybe then she would be able to make sense of the dream she had been having forever.


    Ang looked out toward the group but she did not notice someone missing. She was too deep in her delusions that the footsteps behind her caused Ang to jump high in the air and fall on her ass.


    ¡°Hey kid, did I surprise you?¡±


    It was thedy with white hair and amber eyes that was looking at Ang. She had a satisfied smile on her face at seeing Ang¡¯s surprised expression.


    ¡°I w-was not following your group. We just happened to go the same way. Yeah, that¡¯s it. We just happened to be going the same way.¡±


    Ang tried to rify her actions before they caused her any more problems. She did not want to be taken as a stalker.


    The rules of her vige did not deal with stalkers like her kindly and who knew how much more brutal the regtions of these outsiders were.


    Ang had heard stories of people dying for less when it came to these outsiders.


    ¡°I see. So you were a stalker, huh? I should have seen iting when you interrupted us back then.¡±


    ¡°I am not a stalker.¡±


    Ang yelled, only to stop before she said anything even more. Pissing off someone who had your life in their hands was never a good idea.


    She expected the white-haired female to be angry at her and to hurt Ang but nothing of sort happened.


    Instead of looking angry, that white-haired female who was said to be a reincarnation of their king just smiled kindly. It should have been a reassuring smile but it terrified Ang a little.


    Everyone said that their king looked like a gentle person who could not harm a fly. His smile was said to have been the most calming thing one had ever seen.


    But Ang could not rte to their experience. If their king looked anything like this person in front of her, then the people must have been too terrified to speak anything against the king.


    ¡°A-Are you going to kill me?¡±


    Ang finally asked, wanting to know what would happen to her. She could see a lot of bad ways for her life to end but she was not sure which one woulde true.


    And the smiling face looking back at Ang was not reassuring. Those eyes had murder in them.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry kid. You look like a smart kid who knows what she needs to do. So surely a smart kid like you would know better than to open their mouth and speak about what happened here back home.¡±


    Ang quickly nodded her head to show that she understood. Whatever happened here, she would never open her mouth to tell it to anyone else.


    That maniac smile finally eased from the white-haired female¡¯s face before it was reced by a gentle smile.


    ¡°You are a good kid. And that¡¯s why I will give you an option. You see, a smart kid like you who knows the way to the ancient ruins can be of use to us. And if you agree to lead us then we will protect you in return. What do you say?¡±


    Ang was taken aback by the suddenness of this offer. She had just been able to warp her head around the fact that she would not die. This offer was far too sudden for her.


    But still, this was exactly what Ang had wanted to happen. Things could not have gone better even if Ang had tried.


    ¡°So, what do you say kid? Would you like to help us out?¡±


    Ang blinked her eyes a few times to make sure that this was not a dream. The illusion in front of her did not fade away which indicated that this was not a dream. This was happening for real.


    Ang had too many questions she wanted to be answered. She wanted to know why it had been her who had to be chosen and why she had gotten so lucky.


    But no words came out of her mouth when she tried to ask all that. She was too afraid to ask the wrong question and have her chance stolen away.


    ¡°I want to help you. Please give me a chance to help you out.¡±


    In the end, Ang knew that it all did not matter. Even if she got to know the reason she was being helped, it would not change the fact that Ang was going to ept this decision.


    Ava had a wide smile on her face once she heard those words. The child had agreed to help them out without much fuss so that took care of one thing at least.


    ¡°Ah, right. Before we go back I should tell you what you need to know and our names. Make sure you remember the signals I am about to show you.¡±


    _______________________


    ¡°Looks like Ava is done with her work. Now, we should start with our work as well. Have you mapped out the ce yet?¡±


    Aurora turned toward Rita that was working away on her system. She had learned how to map terrains recently and was busy adjusting the settings.


    Quince was also working on learning how to use the system and how to operate it. Aurora had caved in and ended up giving him one as well. It would be better for theirmunication as well.


    ¡°Enough about Ava. Look at what I found while looking around. It is a secret passage.¡±


    Rita called the rest of the group over as she pointed out the ce in her system. It was a small opening that looked very well-defined.


    Unlike the natural caves, this one looked man-made and that was enough of a red g to mark it as a possible entrance to these ruins.


    ¡°Hoh. I can tell that there is something hidden behind it but the map does not show a way to get to it. Do you think we have a safe way there?¡± Quince asked as he looked at the map as well.


    ¡°That¡¯s why we need Ang with us. She would be able to tell us if there is a hidden passage to get into that ce or not.¡±


    Frankly speaking, this was the reason a local person was necessary to get into the ruins. The hidden passages could be seen on the map but the way there could only be shown with the local blood.


    ¡°Aurora, we are back. The kid agreed to help us so let¡¯s put her to good use.¡±


    Ava returned with Ang as well. Aurora expected the kid to look ufortable but the excitement was a weing sight to see.


    ¡°I am here to help you all out. I hope I will not hold you back.¡±


    Ang looked back at the group with sparkling eyes. Aurora did not think much of it as she brought the kid into the fold.


    Most groups would have some concerns about bringing a kid with them but Aurora did not have one. And it was because she was confident in her powers.


    This might have been the middle floor of the abyss but Aurora could feel her powers growing every day. The more time she was spending in the abyss, the more powerful Aurora was getting.


    ¡°Anyway Ang, can you show us the way to this opening? It would be a big help if you could.¡±


    Aurora pointed the ce out on the map. She was eager to know how much help a local could be to her.


    ¡°Ah, this ce? I know how to get there. It looksplicated but it is easy to get there. I can take you with me.¡±


    Ang was confident in her ability to lead them and Aurora was assured of their sess.


    The only thing they needed to do was to get into the ruins. The rest would be easy for their group¡¯s might.


    ¡°Ang, let¡¯s go. You don¡¯t know how big of a help you are being.¡±<!--


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 Chapter 264 264: The ruin deal [pt2]

    Ang ran as fast as her tiny legs could take her. Her body was hot because of the pressure she had to face. She was currently running away from the beasts that were trying to chase after her.


    But no matter how bad the situation was getting, she refused to turn around. She had been warned to do that and Ang wanted to trust the people who had helped her out this far.


    ¡®Remember Ang, we will take care of anything that mighte after you. We will protect you as you open the way for us. So don¡¯t look back and trust us.¡¯


    It was a difficult decision for Ang to trust these foreigners but she still decided to run as fast as she could.


    The words Ava had said to her about helping Ang to achieve her dream, she wanted to believe in those words.


    Her actions were fueled by both fears as well as desperation to prove herself.


    It had all started when Ang hadmented that only the people with local blood could open the passages. She had just wanted to share the information, not spread awareness about this fact.


    But that one fact had sealed Ang¡¯s fate and she had to do her job.


    Currently, the beast after her life was closing in around Ang but she could only see it was a shadow behind her. A lot of beasts had been killed off already.


    Another one was shot dead in a matter of seconds by Ava. Ang could only tell that it was Ava because of her familiar energy.


    ¡°Ava, make sure to keep their bodies intact. I cannot control these beasts if you keep on brutally killing them. I am a beast tamer, not a necromancer.¡±


    Ritained but Ang still knew that she had taken control of the dead beast. She had enough mental strength to move even the empty shells of the beasts.


    It was a talent Ang had only heard about before but seeing it happen in front of her was something different.


    ¡°Yeah, you did say that but I told you that I am not interested in being your workdy. If you want unharmed bodies then you work for them yourself.¡±


    Ang would never have spoken like that to Rita. the redhead scared her a little but Ava was too courageous.


    ¡®I want to be like Ava. she¡¯s so cool and powerful.¡¯


    Just the sight of Ava standing behind these beasts and killing them with her cool and calm expression did things to Ang. She could feel her heart skipping a beast just thinking about it.


    However, these feelings were not something Ang wanted to putbels on. She wanted to be as free as she could and not think too much about something.


    ¡°Ava, less talking and more shooting. I cannot keep Ur under control much longer. He¡¯s getting too excited.¡±


    Quince yelled from above. Both the dragon and the boy were a mystery to Ang. They had nothing inmon with the group and often chose to keep to themselves.


    And yet, they were still sticking around with the group. Ang just did not understand why that was.


    ¡°Don¡¯t pay attention to them. You look ahead and make sure you pass the gate. I will provide you with the window of opportunity to do so.¡±


    Aurora¡¯s voice spoke directly in Ang¡¯s ears. If Ava was incredible then Aurora was someone who was beyond the human level. There was something in her aura that made Ang want to be close to her.


    But at the same time, she felt as if she was being choked when she stepped near Aurora. There was an invisible pressure around her.


    ¡°I am trying my best. I will make it past the gate in the gap you gave me.¡±


    The strategy wasing to bear fruit now. Ang could see the end right in front of her eyes.


    But just then, a huge monster emerged from the shadows and headed toward Ang. The suddenness of that action caused Ang to stop moving and freeze.


    She could feel that no one would be able to help her out in time. The others were toote and their attacks would not reach Ang in time.


    ¡°Don¡¯t stop. I asked you to keep on moving so just move. Leave your life to me.¡±


    Ang was afraid, terrified even. But she still chose to move as soon as she heard Aurora¡¯s words. They were the only source of encouragement she had.


    She had already crossed the threshold when Ang realized that she had made it past the danger. She had not been killed by the sudden emergence of the beast.


    Ang turned around with a surprised look on her face, only to see Aurora¡¯s hand having served the monster¡¯s head from its body.


    Her blue hair had a sh of dark red sttered all around it and there was a maniac look on her face. Even the sword she was holding was filled with blood and looked like it had seen better days.


    But despite such a ragged look on that beautiful face, Ang could not help but think of her as beautiful. It was a kind of beauty that only came with power and authority.


    No one who looked at Lady Aurora could deny that she was beautiful and deadly. She was like a poisoned-filled rose, deadly but also unattainable.


    ¡°Ang, hurry up and open the gates for us. The more time you spend looking around, the bigger danger you will be in.¡±


    Ang snapped out of her dazed thoughts at Quince¡¯s yelling. That boy was good at interrupting someone¡¯s internal thoughts.


    Ang¡¯s cheeks colored at the serious and scolding tone. She instantly opened the gates and waited for the group to head toward her.


    With this, the first big hurdle in their path had been cleared. It would allow the group to head toward the clearance area without having to worry about ess restrictions.


    Or at least that should have been the case. But as soon as the group made their way inside, the ground could not keep holding itself together, and cracks formed all over the surface.


    ¡°Rita, take hold of Ang and go together with Ur. I will find a way to you.¡±


    Aurora yelled as she tried to straighten her position. Even if she could use magic, she needed a steady hold of her magic and a clear sense of the space around her.


    But the falling motion made it difficult to achieve. Not to mention, the dark and heavy feeling of the pit also contributed to this.


    Thankfully, Rita managed to reach Ang in time for Ur and Quince to make their way to her. On the other hand, Aurora reached out toward Ava who seemed to be finding it difficult to use magic as well.


    For the ounder, this might have been the first time to face such a situation. She was confused and frustrated about what to do next.


    ¡°Ava, hold my hand. Otherwise, we might get separated.¡± Aurora reached out toward the overlooker who looked startled.


    But she reached back without much thought and grasped Aurora¡¯s hand. It was an unconscious action on her part and even Ava looked taken aback by what had happened.


    Her expression of shock was something Aurora rarely saw on her face. But it was well worth it to endure the fall like this.


    Aurora managed to maneuver herself in such a way that her back was the one that came in contact with the ground rather than Ava¡¯s. It was to ensure that not everyone was hurt once they reached the ground.


    As for herself, Aurora managed to cast cushioning magic so that her fall was not painful. So when her back connected with the ground, it was still bearable for her to straighten herself.


    ¡°Y-You! What do you think you are doing?¡±


    Ava looked flushed and frustrated at the sudden turn of events. It was an unlikely scenario for her to think of.


    Someone had just tried to protect her, an overlooker, from some harm that could have easily been avoided by her.


    The thought of such action made Ava enraged but excited as well. She had already lost her words for the moment.


    ¡°What is wrong with what I did? I protected you because you are a precious friend of mine. Besides, I cannot let you get hurt because we still have work to do.¡±


    That should have been the end of it. But for some reason, Ava looked hurt and also pissed off at Aurora¡¯s confession.


    Aurora waited for her to confess what had pissed her off but Ava kept her mouth shut. Surprisingly enough, she had enough patience to keep holding on to a grudge for something this minor.


    ¡°Ava, what is wrong-¡°


    ¡°Never mind. I guess I was just being a little sensitive right now. You don¡¯t have to pay any mind to me or my mood.¡±


    Ava sounded bitter but also resigned. And Aurora had a feeling that Ava did not want to say anything regarding what happened.<!--


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 Chapter 265 265: Clicking [pt1]

    ¡°Rita, take hold of Ang and go together with Ur. I will find a way to you.¡±


    Rita only needed to hear those words to follow Aurora¡¯smands. Her body was moving on auto-pilot to follow what Aurora wanted anyway.


    ¡®It sucks that Aurora will not be with me but I still need to fulfill the duty she left to me.¡¯


    Rita was a devoted person and that was why she dove after Ang who was falling without any foothold. Ur had also heard Aurora¡¯s order as he made a dive beneath Ang to catch her.


    Once Ang was safely on Ur¡¯s back, Rita also slowed down her fall. She used the falling debris to align herself right and tond softly on the ground.


    ¡°Are all of you alright?¡±


    Rita asked as soon as she was on the ground. She was light on her feet so the impact she made did not make any sound. Quince looked a little startled at hearing Rita¡¯s voice before he collected his mind.


    ¡°I have no visible injury and neither does Ur. Ang might have grazed her side a little so you should take care of her.¡±


    Rita could see that Quince was trying to be brave when he said that he had no visible injuries. He was favoring his left side more than his right as he walked toward Ur.


    Had it been any other situation, Rita would have allowed Quince to save his face by pretending he was not hurt. But right now his tough act was only going to hurt him.


    And in such a situation where they were all dependent on each other, one person hiding their injuries was a big deal.


    ¡°Sit down and get treated right now. I don¡¯t care how macho you think you are but I won¡¯t allow you to put all of us in danger.¡±


    Rita¡¯s words caused Quince to re out in anger. But he made a visible effort to calm himself down.


    Even he knew that getting angry right now will serve him no good. He needed to hold back and get treated. That showed that he was not entirely gone when it came to themon sense department.


    ¡°If you treat me now then I will be uselesster on. If we get attacked then it will be up to you and Ur to take care of it.¡±


    Quince finally spoke about the real reason he had hidden his injury. But his answer only jabbed Rita even more.


    ¡°Are you saying that I am ipetent and will not be able to save you when the timees? Are you questioning me?¡±


    Rita was mature in body but her insecurities were very much like a teen. This was something Quince hade to understand in a matter of days.


    So he also knew that he needed to handle this conversation carefully. He did not want to leave a bad impression on Rita.


    ¡°I am not criticizing you or anything. I just want you to be careful. You need to survive until you can reunite with Aurora.¡±


    Rita¡¯s eyes softened at those words. Somehow, Quince had a feeling that these words would make Rita melt and be nice to him. It was nice to see that it had worked as intended.


    ¡°I know you are worried because I am worried as well. But you should not y what your health like that. I want to see Aurora soon but I don¡¯t want to give her any bad news as soon as I saw her again.¡±


    Quince almostughed at the tone Rita was using. They were getting along surprisingly better than Quince had expected them to.


    ¡°Hurry up ande back. I t-think I see some moment in the nearby bushes.¡±


    Ang yelled back to the pair, her voice sounding fearful. Both Quince and Rita turned toward her with startled expressions, only to rx when Ur showed no signs of aggression.


    It meant that whatever had startled Ang was not a big threat to them.


    ¡°I cannot believe we got startled for nothing.¡±


    ¡°Yeah. In the end, a kid is a kid. We had nothing to fear since the start.¡±


    Both Quince and Rita let out a smallugh that was filled with relief.


    ___________________


    Things were going as nned. The tower¡¯s main branch had been defeated and people were reduced to ashes as per ns.


    But despite everything going right for Zoe¡¯s side, there was a feeling of wrong she was feeling.


    ¡°Hey, you! Do you know where Asami and Clove are?¡±


    Zoe asked as soon as she saw a familiar face. The man was a servant she had seen before loitering at the newly acquired tower but that was all Zoe knew about the man.


    However, it did not matter much to her who the man was or what he did. As long as he kept his head down and obeyed orders, he would get to live.


    After the tower had been destroyed and the former goddess had been taken captive, the rest of the tower¡¯s allies had kept their head low.


    The power gap had been filled by the emerging forces of the south and east in the meantime. But as a result, the resistance shifted their focus from the tower to them.


    And for the south, the resistance was a much bigger threat than the tower. They had too much-hidden influence and a goal to strive ahead.


    ¡°L-Lady Asami and Lady Clove? I¡¯m sorry but I do not know.¡±


    The man was shivering as he bowed his head in front of Zoe. It was anothermon scene that Zoe was beginning to hate.


    She hated how weak humans were and how easily they fell to power. They were too easy to crumble to their basic instincts.


    ¡°Stop stuttering and speak clearly. If you have not seen them then just run away.¡±


    The ck-haired man made a quick exit from the room. His defined body screamed that he was a well-trained warrior.


    But even such warriors could not do anything when their main source of power was gone. The tower had fallen.


    Zoe did not notice a pair of intense eyes looking back and observing her. Nor did she notice as the ck-haired man disappeared into thin air after marking her location.


    The identity of this ¡®man¡¯ was Alexander. He had used what little knowledge he could use to slip into the broke tower and look around.


    But his mission consisted of more than simply looking around and marking the ce. He was here to look for someone after he had been asked by Lord n of the resistance.


    ording to the information they had gotten, Lady Minerva was kept alive here. Not only she but Lady Seraphina was here as well.


    They both were being kept here rather voluntarily and this was what Alexander needed to check.


    He walked through the hallways when he froze at the feeling of familiar energy reaching his senses.


    He tried his best not to show the difort on his face, but Alexander was unable to keep himself in check. He had to turn around and look Seraphina in the face.


    ¡°What are you doing here? Do you have a death wish or something?¡±


    Lady Seraphina¡¯s voice was crude and strong. She was letting Alexnader know that she was not on his side and it caused Alexander to swallow nervouslessly


    He knew he could take Seraphina if things came down to it but he did not want to. Fighting here would cause everyone to be alert about his presence here.


    ¡°Did you join the tower only to betray them? Seeing you so rxed, this is the only thing I can think of.¡±


    Alexander did not move as Seraphina¡¯s powersshed out all around her. She was hitting every unrted surface in her rage.


    But Alexander could tell that this anger was a result of her helplessness as well as her frustration. This meant that her son was somehow involved in this case.


    ¡°Are you doing all this because of Joseph? Did the south hold him, hostage, again? You should let us know because we can help him out.¡±


    Seraphina did not like those words and sheshed out at Alexander. He had to finally step in and save himself but the sh caused the side wall to fall.


    ¡°You and I do not need to sh. This was yourst warning to get out. I will pretend that I did not see you but the next time we meet will be different.¡±


    Alexander was surprised to be let go this easily. He had expected the other female to be a little more fierce. But even he could see the effort Seraphina was making to hold back.


    Alexander quickly walked away, not looking back in case he was attacked. He decided to trust Seraphina and that was what saved his life.


    Now he only needed to find Lady Minerva and his mission would beplete. The rest of this mission would be carried out by the resistance and Alexander would head toward the abyss.<!--


    -->

 Chapter 266 266: Clicking [pt2]

    ¡°How the hell are we going to get out of these ruins? All I can see are these nk walls staring back at us.¡±


    Ava hissed as she smacked a wall to make it fall. But just like before, the division managed to withstand her assault.


    Not only did it not have a single crack, but it also didn¡¯t even show any signs of being harmed. That just served to piss Ava off even more.


    Aurora could see her temper rising and that was not a good sign. Just because Ava had not used her force yet did not mean she was not capable of it. She was just being considerate of her surroundings.


    ¡°Ava, there are more ways to solve a situation than using brute force. It might not be as effective or time efficient as knocking these walls down but we can try to find our way out of this maze by walking.¡±


    Aurora was rational when she said that. But even as she said that she was aware of how big of a risk she was taking by doing so.


    There was no guarantee that this maze-like pce even had an exit. Trying to walk out of here could be a big waste of time. But it was better than sitting around.


    ¡®Besides, I promised Rita that I will find her group. I cannot go back on my promise.¡¯


    Aurora had a goal in mind so she decided to bring out her ultimate card in such situations. Her system¡¯s navigation system.


    This ce was a hidden scenario in the tower so Aurora was a little worried about being able to map it out. But even then, this was not her real goal right now.


    The nk where Rita and Quince were was blinking brightly. It showed that they were together.


    ¡°Looks like Ur and Rita managed to catch the other two. I can see that they are alright for now.¡±


    It was a big load off Aurora¡¯s chest. Now she could focus more on the situation at hand


    ¡°Fine then. They are alright so what do we do now? How will we reach them?¡±


    Ava¡¯s question was valid but Aurora had a solution for even that. She knew a way to force this scenario to shut down.


    ¡°Ava, did you not say that you have ruled this floor before? Then how about taking control of this floor back? It should be easy since this floor has no outlooker to take care of it.¡±


    Aurora pointed out the obvious but Ava flinched at the option. To any person who has never seen the future, this might seem like an absurd request.


    There had never been a recorded case of an outlooker taking over another¡¯s territory because it was not a dispute anyone wanted to be a part of.


    But there was the rumor of one such incident in the future that had shaken up everything the world had ever known.


    And it was when the overlooker for thest floor had died. No one knew if they were dead for real or just hiding but it had caused the whole abyss to begin changing.


    In the end, things had stabilized but the rumor was that an overlooker had to step in to prevent the copse.


    Aurora had no way of knowing whether this was the truth or not but there should be a way to achieve this if the rumor spread in the first ce.


    Ava¡¯s reaction only served to make Aurora¡¯s suspicion deeper. There must be some truth to the rumor that one could take control of another floor if they had enough authority.


    Technically, even Aurora could have taken control of these floors but it would have required her to get acknowledged by the tower. Aurora did not need to attract attention to herself.


    ¡°Oi oi oi, are you serious? Do you have any idea what you are asking of me? You¡­ do right? Why am I not surprised by this?¡±


    Aurora could see it in Ava¡¯s eyes, the uneasiness at the situation she had been forced into. Taking over another territory was not an easy thing to do. There is always a chance for it to cause a ¡®rejection¡¯ phenomenon.


    ¡®Rejection¡¯ referred to when the abyss deemed you as no longer fit to be in its area and you have forbidden entry to any floor. It was a rare thing but it had happened before.


    Someone who was rejected would lose all their magic and their life would also be ridden with illness. This was a huge risk to take.


    And now Aurora was asking Ava to take this risk. The bigger one¡¯s reserve pool was, the more they were prone to these illnesses.


    ¡°Ava, I know I am asking a lot from you but please consider helping me out here. I swear that the oue will help you in the long run.¡±


    Aurora knew she was trying to sell a hard bargain. This n had more ws than it had merits for the overlooked. Moreover, Ava was someone who was cautious and liked to have things nned out.


    Still, Aurora was confident in her feelings and Ava finally gave in to Aurora¡¯s begging.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know how you are so confident but I decided to trust in you before. It means I will need to trust you right now as well.¡±


    If someone said that Aurora was surprised then it would be an underestimation of her shock. Aurora was beyond shocked to hear those wordse out of Ava¡¯s mouth but she did not have long to keep feeling shocked.


    With the first ning to fruition, Aurora could focus on the more difficult of the two parts. And that was to find the center of this floor. It was where the core was situated and where Ava will be able to take control.


    ¡°Do you want to take control of this floor first or find ourpanions first? It can be incredibly dangerous to go after the core alone.¡±


    ¡°And that¡¯s why we are going to go after the core first. We both will be alright even if the abyss protests against us. However, we cannot say the same for other people.¡±


    Ava sighed at the news she heard. Her eyes said that Ava knew that this would happen.


    ¡°I knew you were softhearted. I should never have put my trust in you like this.¡±


    Ava¡¯s words were harsh but there was a feeling of a smile in her words. Seeing her like this, even Aurora did not take her words to heart.


    ¡°You knew what I was like before you formed a contract with me. Now you have no other choice but to support me.¡±


    Ava smiled a small smile in return as she followed after Aurora.


    _____________________


    ¡°So, how did it go? I was surprised when you asked me to send your little friend down into the abyss. I wonder, did you hate him that much, my dear Clove?¡±


    Asami¡¯s voice had a smallugh as she asked that question to the young blond in front of her. Clove remained calm even as she was faced with that ridiculed smile from her current partner.


    ¡°Don¡¯t speak nonsense. I just asked you to remove Quince from my sight for now and to make sure he remained safe. I never asked you to send him into the abyss.¡±


    Clove reminded the other goddess who just giggled. Asami looked like someone who had discovered a great secret and was too happy to contain it in her mind.


    Asami jumped out of the way of Clove¡¯s knife, knowing that it was not a serious attack by the other goddess.


    ¡°Rx. I know that my methods might not seem like the best but I genuinely care about your childhood friend as well. That is why I followed your advice and send him to that goddess ¡®Aurora¡¯. You said that Aurora will protect Quince, right?¡±


    Clove felt annoyed at being read this easily. This goddess Asami was a pain in her ass but she was also an ally who helped out a lot when it came to heavy matters.


    It was also thanks to Asami that Clove had been able toe this far.


    ¡®But in the end, it is all for Aurora¡¯s sake.¡¯


    Clove was a little lost in thoughts but she was knocked back into her right mind when Asami¡¯s hands wandered too close to her private parts.


    ¡°Don¡¯t get too touchy with me. I do not like it.¡±


    Clove hit her hands to make Asami let go. As a result, she was faced with Asami¡¯s pouting face but that did not hinder Clover¡¯s self-restraint.


    ¡°Fine, I give up. I should go and do some work now. You should also be careful in the future. I heard a few things and I don¡¯t want anything to happen to you.¡±


    With those passing words, Asami left the room. But Clove did not feel the sense of danger she was supposed to at Asami¡¯s words.


    What was there to fear when the biggest danger out there was Clover right now?

 Chapter 267 267: The request [pt1]

    ¡°Finally, we managed to find the opening that will lead us to the center of the core.¡±


    Aurora looked at the rocky door that was guarding the secret of this floor behind it. It had been a difficult thing to find since the tower was trying to hide its existence.


    But a determined Aurora was something even the tower was not prepared for. She managed to not only find this ce but also avoid other traps on the way here.


    Ava on the other hand was not that lucky. She had fallen into a pit full of questionable liquid before they had reached the first checkpoint and had paid for her mistake deeply. Her skin was flushed and her cheeks were shining with arousal.


    But despite all that, Ava had decided not to stop on the way here and prioritized getting to this door.


    ¡°You can still turn back right now. I can go in alone and handle things from here.¡±


    Ava¡¯s offer was much appreciated but Aurora was not going to allow her to do this alone. Ava was powerful, yes. But she was also in pain and her body was flushed. It was up to Aurora to help her out.


    ¡°Ava, I want you to know that once we are done here, it can is thest stretch of our journey. I hope you will not have any regrets regarding this.¡±


    The abyss was showing signs of rejection already. It was more than likely that they would not be able to return to the abyss again.


    It was still manageable for Aurora if that happened but what would it mean for Ava who was born from the abyss? Would she even survive?


    ¡°I know I said that we should do this but you don¡¯t have to follow me all the way here. You can back down and I won¡¯t fault you-¡°


    Soft lips stopped Aurora from finishing her sentence. A sincere face looked back at her with a dazzling smile.


    ¡°There is no need for you to say all this. I epted this risk when I decided to follow you here. I won¡¯t have any regrets even if I die. But if I am going to die then I want one of my wishes granted first.¡±


    Ava aimed a sly look toward Aurora which might have made her take a step back under normal circumstances. But today was different.


    Today, Aurora was aiming to give Ava what she wanted since she was asking Ava to take a huge risk on her behalf.


    ¡°What is it? If it is something I can do for you then you should speak up.¡±


    Aurora had a feeling about what Ava wanted. Her earlier actions had proved to Aurora what Ava was thinking about.


    Still, Aurora did not want to get ahead of herself and make assumptions all on her own. She needed to hear from Ava¡¯s mouth about her desire.


    ¡°I want you to fuck me. Ideally, I would like to be the one on the bottom this time. I can even give you the appropriate parts for that.¡±


    Ava¡¯s suggestion was not something Aurora had ever thought about. She had wanted to experience how it would be to be the one to dominate the other but she had never gotten a chance to do so before.


    So Ava¡¯s offer was intriguing.


    ¡°And you will give me a dick just like that for today? You seem desperate for it Ava.¡±


    Aurora teased as she swallowed her saliva. The more she thought about the more appealing this idea became to Aurora. She wanted to be the one on top as well.


    ¡°Desperate is certainly a word for what I am. But I doubt that you are going to deny me this. You are excited as well, right?¡±


    Ava certainly had a way with word and Aurora could not deny that she was excited for what was toe next as well. Her body was vibrating with energy and emotions.


    Finally, it was time to experience what the other person did when they fucked Aurora. It would be a memorial day for her.


    Ava raised her hands and the surroundings changed in a second. It felt like an illusion but the sensations Aurora felt were real enough. It was the highest form of sensory magic that was avable to a creature.


    Aurora turned toward Ava to know what would happen next when she felt Ava¡¯s hand resting on the pce where her pussy was.


    There was a weight hanging right above her pussy that had not been there before but Aurora had not even noticed it.


    ¡°Is it weird to have an additional body part all of a sudden?¡±


    Ava asked as she lightly stroked the newly acquired penis Aurora had. The light brush of Ava¡¯s fingers caused Aurora to buckle her hips into those hands.


    It was a pleasurable and sensitive organ but Aurora was not sure what to think of it. The only thing she could say was that it was different.


    ¡°So this is how it feels to have a penis. It is not that much different from having breasts. Like, I can feel it is there and your hands are making me much more aware of its presence but it is not something I was initially conscious of.¡±


    Aurora spoke those words between her moaning sound. The more Ava touched it, the more sensitive her penis got.


    Ava certainly knew what she was doing with her hands alternating between her hard head and her sensitive rod. It was a continuous sensation of feelings and pleasure.


    It was bad enough that Aurora was even buckling her hips into that pair of soft hands without meaning to.


    ¡°It¡¯ll feel even better once we take your clothes off and you get some skin-to-skin contact. We have a lot of time so we can discover a lot of new things in the meantime.¡±


    Aurora did not think they had a lot of time on their hands but Ava looked determined to show her a new world.


    In front of all that enthusiasm, even Aurora could notst long. Her body was not used to this new sensation and ended up releasing it into Ava¡¯s hands pretty soon.


    That first orgasm caused Aurora¡¯s body to rx and melt into Ava like putty. She did not have enough energy in her limbs to even stand.


    Her cock was overly sensitive as well, feeling every small touch of Ava¡¯s hand and bing aware of her presence. It would take some time for Aurora to rx.


    In the meantime, Ava¡¯s hands were roaming all over Aurora¡¯s body and she seemed to be gaining a significant amount of control.


    This was not what Aurora had in mind when she first thought of this arrangement. She was the one who was supposed to be in control, not Ava.


    So Aurora gathered whatever little energy she could and pulled herself together. She needed to take advantage of the fact that Ava was not ying with her cock right now and take control.


    Her chance came when Ava leaned down to kill Aurora. In a matter of seconds, Aurora managed to invert the two so that she was the one who was pressing her tongue into Ava¡¯s mouth.


    This sudden change in action took Ava by surprise and Aurora was able to push her back onto the bed.


    Ava looked back with surprised eyes, not expecting Aurora to be this forward. And Aurora had never been this forward with Ava before either.


    ¡°Just because I look passive does not mean I am that passive. I can be quite aggressive when I need to be as well.¡±


    Ava¡¯s wide eyes told Aurora that she had not expected this arrangement but Aurora did not give her any time to think. She took Ava¡¯s breasts in her hand and fondled them. Her reddish nipples were a treat to bite and her breasts were bouncy.


    It was exactly what Aurora had imagined them being and she squeezed them to get out even more stimtion from them.


    No matter how Aurora saw it, Ava was the perfect specimen of a human body even when she was not human.


    Both Ava and Aurora had hard cocks and leaking pussy. They were getting off on each other but their little y was not enough to satisfy either of them. They needed more and Aurora even carved for more.


    Ava finally pulled back from their tonguepetition and gave Aurora a sexy smile. Her eyes were pulled back teasingly and she looked like a scheming fox.


    ¡°Do you want me to prepare myself? Or do you want to do that yourself?¡±


    Aurora did not have to think more about it. She had a n to follow and that included gaining total dominance over the other male.


    ¡°You need to just sit back and enjoy what I am going to do to you.¡±


    Aurora was going to dominate Ava with everything she had inside her and she was going to enjoy this very much.

 Chapter 268 268: The Request [Pt2]

    "You need to just sit back and enjoy what I am going to do to you."


    Ava looked both confused as well as aroused at the confidence Aurora had about her skills. She was excited to see what would happen if she let go of her control and handed it over.


    So far, Ava had never handed her control over to anyone else and she had never thought that she would. But Aurora quickly bes her exception in everything.


    Ava had never thought that she would ever feel needed like this again but Aurora had proven her wrong. And that was why Ava needed to experience this before she was going on the trip which could very well be her end.


    "Don''t think too much. I will get jealous if you give this much attention to something that is not about me."


    Aurora reminded Ava as she brought the overlooker''s attention back toward her with a painful bite.


    Ava''s sensitive breasts ached as her nipples were bitten and yed with. It was a weird sensation that made Ava want to pull back.


    But Aurora had no intention of letting Ava pull back from her touch. The more Ava backed down, the more Aurora pushed ahead. It was almost like a game between them at this point.


    "Well, if you want me to focus on you then you are not doing a good job of dominating me. See, I can still have other thoughts in my mind."


    Ava teased back, knowing full well what it would do to Aurora''s inner voice. The goddess part of her did not like to be challenged.


    So far, Ava had tried everything to make Aurora break her barriers down and ept her primal part. But nothing so far had truly worked.


    Not even the death of someone close to Aurora had made her break down the barrier. The only thing that was left was to forcefully awaken these instincts by stimting them.


    It was a thin chance for Ava to seed but she needed to see the fruits of herbor today. This was the reason she had chosen Aurora in the first ce.


    Even if she was to die, the dream she had been dreaming this far must be realized.


    "See, you are getting lost in your thoughts again. I guess I need to step up my game again."


    Ava was being bitten and squeezed wherever she could feel Aurora''s hands at. Aurora was not leaving her alone for a single second.


    Even her mouth was not safe from Aurora''s probing. That forcefulness caused Ava to rx into Aurora''s mouth and gave in to the younger''s tongue.


    Aurora, for her part, did not disappoint in the least. Her tongue was rough as it mapped across Ava''s mouth. It was reaching the deepest parts of her throat as Ava was losing her reasoning slowly.


    It was a miracle for Aurora to see such a dominant personality giving under her hands as well. The power rush she felt was real and it was making her head spin. She needed to feel more of this feeling.


    Aurora''s hand quickly made its way down Ava''s body and reached her soaked pussy. Ava''s hard cock was in the way but even that was cute.


    Every time Aurora brushed past Ava''s cock Ava buckled in her hands and pushed her chest even further up in the air.


    It was a beautiful disy that left no part of Ava''s body hidden. Aurora was pleased to see such a reaction.


    Ava''s pussy was tight as Aurora tried to force her fingers inside. It seemed as if Ava had never been prated before like this.


    "Look at you gushing out like this. I never thought you would be a virgin."


    Aurora''s words caused a blush to appear on Ava''s cheeks but she did not say anything in response. She only pushed her hips even harder against Aurora''s hand in a motion to go ahead.


    So Aurora decided to loosen her up with one hand while stroking Ava''s hard cock with the other. The dual sensation made Aurora moan and reach out toward Aurora.


    Their lips met in another kiss as Ava finally took another finger inside her body. It was a tight fit but Ava did not seem to be feeling any pain whatsoever.


    Instead, her body was cooperative by getting even wetter for the initial pration.


    "Look at you. Why did you get so wet? Are you that excited for me?"


    Aurora''s cocky voice caused Ava to feel flushed. She felt humiliated but also pleased to be in her current position. She waspletely exposed and vulnerable but she did not mind it a bit.


    Instead of shying away from Aurora, Ava took hold of her cock and caressed it. She knew how to make Aurora feel good because of personal experience.<sub> </sub>


    As just as Ava had expected, Aurora''s body was not able to keep holding its pressure inside for long.


    "You like my cock? If you like it so much, you should show appreciation by licking it."


    Aurora pushed Ava''s head into herp. It was a forceful push that Aurora might not have done in any normal situation.


    But this situation was anything but normal and even Ava did notin about the rough handling she was being subjected to.


    Instead of saying anything, Ava followed themand and her lips closed around Aurora''s hard cock. It was a divine sensation of having a wet heat surrounding her that made Aurorae down Ava''s throat.


    It was really fast but it was far from satisfactory. Aurora wanted more.


    No! She needed more and Ava will give it to her one way or the other. She would not allow Ava to pull away before she was satisfied.


    So when Ava tried to pull her mouth off Aurora''s cock, Aurora stopped her with a hand in her hair. With a light push and Ava was back to where she had been initially.


    Her throat was tight but rxed as Aurora used it to her hard again. And one she was done, she finally let Ava go.


    Ava copsed like a puppet with all its strings being cut off but the pleased look in her eyes did not fade away.


    It made Aurora feel powerful and she used her foot to make Ava look back up at her again.


    "Now then, shall we get to the main part? Present your body to me, Ava. Show me that you are worth being fucked."


    Ava looked a little lost at first but she did not hesitate to bring her rear up and show her wet pussy to Aurora.


    It was the perfect specimen and Aurora did not hesitate to touch it.


    Her finger went in easily this time since she had stretched Ava enough. It was a delight to see those pink lips stretching around her finger and that made Aurora lose her control.


    Her cock was hard and waiting so Aurora decided to finally treat it. Ava flinched when Aurora entered her but there was no resistance.


    Since this was an illusionary space, there was not much pain or interference involved with entering Ava. but the tight heat was squeezing around Aurora quite nicely.


    Her shallow thrusts inside Ava felt divine and Aurora could not stop her body from responding as she lightly fucked into Ava.


    The pussy seemed to be pulling Aurora deeper and deeper with each thrust. It was beginning to feel like her mind was melting with each push of her hips.


    ''So this is what it feels like to have all the power? It feels so good that my hips don''t want to stop.''


    Aurora''s hips were in constant motion. She was not even caring about how hard she was going or whether it felt good for Ava or not.


    She was busy chasing after her pleasure and her mind had singled out that face. Beneath her Ava''s moans and groans were fueling Aurora even more and her hips were picking up speed.


    "Why did it take me t-this long to try this?"


    Aurora could not remember why she had never tried being on top before. It was not like there were not many chances or opportunities for her.


    Even the power she felt by being the dominant one right now was something Aurora could not get enough of. She felt like she was the most powerful one in the world.


    "You we¡­.re bo¡­rn to r..ule."


    Ava panted out as the rationality was slipping out of her mind. She was going to get lost in her pleasure and be useless for the rest of this session.


    But she did not care. She could see that Aurora was beginning to ept the wild part of her and she would not be able to forget this sensation of power.


    Power corrupted and Aurora would soon seek for this feeling more in the future.


    Of course, all that was driven out of Ava''s mind as she was drilled into Aurora''s cock.

 Chapter 269 269: The Request [Pt3]

    The force of Aurora''s thrusts shook Ava''s body. She was swaying with the force of Aurora''s hips, her body moving up and down.


    Even her breasts were being shaken by the force of Aurora''s thrusts. Her expression was of someone who was too lost in pleasure to care about something else.


    "How does it feel to be fucked like this? I bet your tight pussy has felt anything like my cock before."


    "I love it. I want to feel like this forever."


    Ava was swinging and swaying as Aurora wanted her to. But she had no other choice but to do as Auroramanded. Her body did not feel like it was her own either.


    Ava''s mind was a box filled with only thoughts of foreign pleasure. She was working her body hard for that goal in mind.


    Aurora was sure that Ava would move her hips even if she stopped moving her hips and thrusting into Ava''s body.


    Ava''s tight pussy contracted around Aurora''s cock. It became even tighter and harder for Aurora to be able to drill into her body. But Aurora did not mind that one bit.


    That hard suction around Aurora''s cock was driving her crazy. Her cock was going even deeper and deeper into Ava''s body at this angle and Aurora could feel her end approaching.


    But she did not want toe alone. She needed to make sure that Ava came with her. And for that to happen, Aurora needed to make some effort.


    Ava''s neglected cock was red and it needed some attention as well. Aurora touched it lightly, only for Ava to flinch away in shock. Her cock was too sensitive which brought a smile to Aurora''s face.


    Suddenly, she knew how to make Avae before her.


    "Ava, do you want me to y with you here as well?" Aurora asked, lightly stroking her cock. As a result, Ava buckled her hips into Aurora''s hands.


    She looked back at Aurora with a tear-filled gaze but Aurora did not go soft on her. She needed to show Ava her ce right now.


    "Y-Yes, please. y with my cock as well."


    Ava was not begging but it was close enough. So Aurora decided to take that as encouragement and cup Ava''s hard cock. It was a weird feeling to y with her like this but Aurora liked that as well.


    And Ava seemed to have liked Aurora''s soft touch on her cock as her body got even wetter. It made thrusting into her body even easier.


    Aurora was too deep inside Ava and every thrust of Aurora''s cock send Ava''s nerves flying. They were both close toing.


    Fortunately, Ava was much closer to her edge than Aurora and her body finally came after a few more thrusters. Her pussy decided to milk Aurora''s cock for all it was worth and it caused Aurora to finallye deep inside Ava as well.


    Ava''s pussy was leaking familiar white stuff when Aurora pulled out and that attracted Aurora''s attention. Suddenly, she wanted to have a taste of here.


    "H-Hey, what are you doing?" Ava asked as her hips were raised and a tongue was licking her private parts. She had not expected this development so it came as a little shock.


    As for Aurora? She was having fun exploring Ava''s thighs. Not only did she bite when her teeth ached but she also caused Ava to flinch at the pain.


    Ava''s pussy was a treat and it tasted like honey even after having all thate inside her. Aurora''s tongue breached her tight lips and then her hole in one go. It was easy now that Ava had been stretched significantly.


    The more Ava flinched, the more Aurora tried to make her feel good. They were both getting hot and bothered again.


    Ava ended uping once again, drenching Aurora''s face this time with her cleare. That made Aurora''s cock stir with interest again and she knew that she wanted to have Ava right now again.


    But she did not want to fuck Ava in the same position asst time. She wanted to see Ava on top of her body, working for her pleasure as Aurora controlled her moments.


    "Ava, get ready for the next round."


    Ava''s tired eyes looked at Aurora as if asking for mercy but even Aurora knew that it was all a show. Ava was interested in this y more than anyone else.


    "I''m tired. Can we continue this after some time?"


    Ava asked but Aurora dragged her body into an upright position and pulled her right on that hard cock again.<sub> </sub>


    Aurora''s cock entered Ava''s pussy even deeper than before and she could see Ava''s eyes rolling into the back of her head. Her glossy expression was an indicator that this was good for her as well.


    Ava''s hips moved slowly as they pushed themselves on top of Aurora''s cock. It was a familiar motion that pushed Ava''s body to its limits.


    But Aurora did not mind being treated this harshly by Ava. She was chasing after her pleasure as she took Ava''s arms and pulled her down.


    "Ava, I told you that this is about me and not you. How dare you try to take control from me."


    Aurora scolded lightly but anyone could see that she did not mean those words. She did not mind losing control or handling it to the other female.


    She just wanted to have her fund and let Ava fulfill her desires at the same time.


    "S-Sorry but I cannot wait anymore. I need toe right now."


    Ava sounded desperate and Aurora finally allowed her to move as she wanted. Her body was a vision to see for everyone and even Aurora enjoyed the show she was putting up as a result.


    But at the same time, Aurora was also hindering Ava''s moments to only be able to move how Aurora wanted her to. It was a punishment for trying to trick her.


    Ava''s moans were full of frustration which were driven out when Aurora moved her hips inside her body. Her hips were going deep into Ava''s body and she was touching some deep parts of her.


    "You are too deep. T¡­hank god you c¡­annot kno¡­ck me u¡­p."


    Ava''s speech was slurred as she said that and her hips were moving full force. She was a vision to behold but Aurora only focused on the pleasure she was providing her with.


    With a final snap of her hips and Ava was gone. Her pussy finally tightened enough to milk Aurora as she got wetter and wetter around her.


    Her tear-filled eyes betrayed Ava and Aurora knew that she hade for thest time this round.


    But Ava did not stop moving even after she was done. Her hips were moving over Aurora''s hard cock in after-shocks of hering and Aurora took her waist and thrust inside hard.


    "W-Wait. I am over-sensitive right now."


    Ava cried out as she was fucked hard by Aurora. It was a hard and fast motion that had Aurora chasing after her own pleasure this time. Her cock wanted toe and it needed just a little more.


    "I am almost there."


    Ava cried out as her over-sensitive body was overworked by Aurora. But she just went with the flow for the time being. She likely knew that herints would not matter much to Aurora right now.


    Aurora was not in her right frame of mind anyway. And she would onlye back to her senses once she released here inside Ava.


    Knowing that Ava lightly moved her hips to match Aurora''s rhythm and helped here. Aurora was not aware of anything like that. She just needed toe and provide her body the relief it wanted.


    Her hips were too itchy toe as well and Aurora finally stilled as her body came.


    Ava''s back arched at the sensation of being filled again. She was too full at this point but Aurora was not allowing her to pull back.


    Her body was aching and it was crying out at all the abuse Ava had to bear this far. Even her pussy was all red and leaking after the fucking fest it had just gone through.


    But it all did not matter in the end. They both had gotten something out of this exchange and it would be asting memory for them.


    Aurora''s energy was spent as she closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep. She was too tried to be bothered with cleaning herself up or attending to anything else.


    She did not even notice that it was the illusion that was seeping her of her powers and rendering her body so tired.


    "Sleep well and have a good rest Aurora. The rest of this journey will be hard for you without me."


    Ava whispered as she stood up. Her legs shook at the effort it took but Ava knew she had to wake up and get started on her journey.

 Chapter 270 270: Clearance [Pt1]

    Aurora had a nice dream and when she finally woke up she was feeling much better than before. Ava was gone when she woke up but that had to be expected.


    The trail of the floor master was one Ava needed to take up on her own.


    Aurora formed a fist with her hand as she tried to stand up but there was something familiar in her hand when she looked down.


    "A core. Is it Ava''s core? Why would she leave it here?"


    Aurora had no idea what Ava was thinking about. Leaving her core behind like this was akin to suicide for her.


    "I should find her and talk with her. I wanted Ava to be the outlooker for this floor, not go on a suicide mission. How long will she be able to live without a core?"


    Every core that had been taken this far had been done by force. As such, there was no way for a divine being to survive the force on their core. But maybe it was something different when the core was removed with consent.


    However, even if Ava had taken out her consent, it would not be possible for her to survive for long.


    Aurora was about to go after Ava when a familiar ''ding'' of her system stopped her. She quickly opened it to see who had sent her a message.


    [Ava: Take good care of my core. Unlike those weaklings, I will be able to live for long because I have a bond with you. Don''t follow after me please.]


    Those words made Aurora jolt and she quickly felt around for the space where her bond had been. It was still intact and the other side of her bond felt strong.


    "I guess I will trust Ava this time. Now then, I should look for the rest of our gang."


    Aurora could see Rita''s location shining brightly on her system screen. The illusion faded from around her and it was time to get to work again.


    There were a lot of beasts around the way to Rita but Aurora easily killed them off. Her body was feeling lighter on her feet as Aurora moved around. Her de killed off anyone who came in her way.


    The wind was gathering beneath Aurora''s feet, propelling her forward at a neck-breaking speed. She was going through monsters as if they were tofu, their hard shells giving way beneath her sword.


    She could see Ang trying to run away from a monster at a distance. She was trying hard to get away from the jaws of death.


    Elysia quickly jumped over the wall and shed the beast in half. Its blood was sttered all around the road and that sticky sensation caused Ang to stop in her tracks as well.


    "Aurora, look out."


    Rita cried out but Aurora did not need that warning. She could see the monster that was trying to attack her and her sword easily shed through that soft body. Once again, Aurora had taken care of a monster with ease.


    Both Rita and Ur made their way toward Aurora. Quince was sitting on Ur''s back, his wonder dressed nicely.


    He seemed to be looking much healthier than before. Even his face had gained more color than before.


    "Where did you leave Ava? I was so sure she fell with you."


    Quince asked the question, his sharp eyes not missing the absence of one person. Rita ''tsk'''' at the news was expected. She had never meshed well with Ava before.


    "She will not be joining us for some time since Ava has some work to do. We should find the floor exit as soon as we can."


    Ava will need time and effort to capture this floor. And then she will need to ovee more trials to gain ess to other floors. This was a truth Aurora had not told her before but she knew that Ava will not me her for this.


    Because even if Ava did me her now, there was no other choice for Ava but to be the sole owner of the abyss.


    There was ack of outlookers right now and Aurora needed to press this advantage if she wanted to be sessful in the end.


    _________________________


    "There are too many monsters. I know we were asked to tay here but we will be beast food if he don''t move now."<sub> </sub>


    Rita knew that but she still wanted to not move from thier camp. Aurora had asked her to stay put which was what she needed to do.


    "It will be alright. Aurora can track us down with her system, right? Besides, we will all be exposed if we stay in this save for any longer."


    Quince''s words made a lot of sense. They had already been attacked twice by these small monsters and more were on their way.


    Rita had killed off the first wave with ease but Ur had to help her out during the second raid. Hisrge body as well as his aura had scared away most of the beasts.


    But the more time they spend in these ruins, the bolder these mosnters would be. There was also ack ofwater ess avable to them,


    "I knew I should have learned how to summon water when I had the chance."


    Ritained as she shot another small beast. Her summons were lookig after the area and keeping watch. They were Rita''s biggest asset right about now.


    "It won''t have helped even if you were able to summon water. Such water cannot provide human body any benefit as it tends to disappear soon. The reason Aurora can provide you with water is because of her divine nature."


    Quince was right once again. As a member of the tower, it was a given that he knew all this beforehand. Rita was not bitter about his knowledge, just of the opportunities he had been handed this far.


    She knew that she would have gotten the same amount of opportunities had she not left with Aurora but Rita had never regretted her decision to leave.


    "Oh let mein in peace for now. I know we need to leave but that does not mean I like it any more than necessary."


    Rita spoke as she peeked out to look at the situation. There were a lot of beasts roaming around and it would be difficult to pass them.


    "Listen, I will take care to distract these monsters so try to get to the other spot in the meantime. You will get a small window of opportunity once that happens. Take it when it happens."


    Rita did not wait around to see whether the other three got her words or not. The beasts were beginning to gather around them again. It was time to let go of her restraints.


    Rita could feel her familiars getting tenser as they sensed more beasts headed their way. Rita gave them the go-ahead to start killing.


    She could see both Ur and Ang dashing out of their hiding spots and running at full speed. The beasts had not noticed them yet which gave Rita enough confidence to be able to concentrate.


    But that confidence did notst long. The beasts finally noticed the running group and managed to corner them on the opposite side of the hallway.


    Ur attacked back but it caused him to be separated from Ang. Quince tried to help but his boundings left him useless.


    Ang had no other choice but to run for her life. The beasts were following after her since she was the easiest target right now. Her small body was winded already and she was about to be shredded by those huge ws.


    However, the heavens seemed to be on Ang''s side because she was saved before those ws could mince her into pieces.


    The beast was cut into two by Aurora who also proceeded to take care of other beasts. Even the one that had escaped Rita was no match for Aurora.


    There was something heavy about Aurora''s presence that caused every other beast to back down. Ur and the others quickly made their way toward Aurora''s location and their group was full once again.


    "Where did you leave Ava? I was so sure she fell with you."


    Quince was genuinely curious to know. He had some curiosity when it came to Ava since she was an overlooker. Those people were even rarer toe by and did not like humans or divine beings.


    "She will not be joining us for some time since Ava has some work to do. We should find the floor exit as soon as we can."


    The group fell silent, not knowing what to say to that.


    "Ava will take care of her work. Meanwhile, we should focus on what we can do and that is to clear this floor. I know where the exit is."


    Aurora opened her map that showed the location. And it was time to get started with things.

 Chapter 271 271: Clearance [Pt2]

    Aurora had a nice dream and when she finally woke up she was feeling much better than before. Ava was gone when she woke up but that had to be expected.


    The trail of the floor master was one Ava needed to take up on her own.


    Aurora formed a fist with her hand as she tried to stand up but there was something familiar in her hand when she looked down.


    "A core. Is it Ava''s core? Why would she leave it here?"


    Aurora had no idea what Ava was thinking about. Leaving her core behind like this was akin to suicide for her.


    "I should find her and talk with her. I wanted Ava to be the outlooker for this floor, not go on a suicide mission. How long will she be able to live without a core?"


    Every core that had been taken this far had been done by force. As such, there was no way for a divine being to survive the force on their core. But maybe it was something different when the core was removed with consent.


    However, even if Ava had taken out her consent, it would not be possible for her to survive for long.


    Aurora was about to go after Ava when a familiar ''ding'' of her system stopped her. She quickly opened it to see who had sent her a message.


    [Ava: Take good care of my core. Unlike those weaklings, I will be able to live for long because I have a bond with you. Don''t follow after me please.]


    Those words made Aurora jolt and she quickly felt around for the space where her bond had been. It was still intact and the other side of her bond felt strong.


    "I guess I will trust Ava this time. Now then, I should look for the rest of our gang."


    Aurora could see Rita''s location shining brightly on her system screen. The illusion faded from around her and it was time to get to work again.


    There were a lot of beasts around the way to Rita but Aurora easily killed them off. Her body was feeling lighter on her feet as Aurora moved around. Her de killed off anyone who came in her way.


    The wind was gathering beneath Aurora''s feet, propelling her forward at a neck-breaking speed. She was going through monsters as if they were tofu, their hard shells giving way beneath her sword.


    She could see Ang trying to run away from a monster at a distance. She was trying hard to get away from the jaws of death.


    Elysia quickly jumped over the wall and shed the beast in half. Its blood was sttered all around the road and that sticky sensation caused Ang to stop in her tracks as well.


    "Aurora, look out."


    Rita cried out but Aurora did not need that warning. She could see the monster that was trying to attack her and her sword easily shed through that soft body. Once again, Aurora had taken care of a monster with ease.


    Both Rita and Ur made their way toward Aurora. Quince was sitting on Ur''s back, his wonder dressed nicely.


    He seemed to be looking much healthier than before. Even his face had gained more color than before.


    "Where did you leave Ava? I was so sure she fell with you."


    Quince asked the question, his sharp eyes not missing the absence of one person. Rita ''tsk'''' at the news was expected. She had never meshed well with Ava before.


    "She will not be joining us for some time since Ava has some work to do. We should find the floor exit as soon as we can."


    Ava will need time and effort to capture this floor. And then she will need to ovee more trials to gain ess to other floors. This was a truth Aurora had not told her before but she knew that Ava will not me her for this.


    Because even if Ava did me her now, there was no other choice for Ava but to be the sole owner of the abyss.


    There was ack of outlookers right now and Aurora needed to press this advantage if she wanted to be sessful in the end.


    _________________________


    "There are too many monsters. I know we were asked to tay here but we will be beast food if he don''t move now."<sub> </sub>


    Rita knew that but she still wanted to not move from thier camp. Aurora had asked her to stay put which was what she needed to do.


    "It will be alright. Aurora can track us down with her system, right? Besides, we will all be exposed if we stay in this save for any longer."


    Quince''s words made a lot of sense. They had already been attacked twice by these small monsters and more were on their way.


    Rita had killed off the first wave with ease but Ur had to help her out during the second raid. Hisrge body as well as his aura had scared away most of the beasts.


    But the more time they spend in these ruins, the bolder these mosnters would be. There was also ack ofwater ess avable to them,


    "I knew I should have learned how to summon water when I had the chance."


    Ritained as she shot another small beast. Her summons were lookig after the area and keeping watch. They were Rita''s biggest asset right about now.


    "It won''t have helped even if you were able to summon water. Such water cannot provide human body any benefit as it tends to disappear soon. The reason Aurora is able to provide you with water is because of her divine nature."


    Quince was right once again. As a member of the tower, it was a given that he knew all this beforehand. Rita was not bitter about his knowledge, just of the opportunities he had been handed this far.


    She knew that she would have gotten the same amount of opportunities had she not left with Aurora but Rita had never regretted her decision to leave.


    "Oh let mein in peace for now. I know we need to leave but that does not mean I like it anymore than necessary."


    Rita spoke as she peaked out to look at the situation. There were a lot of beasts roaming around and it would be difficult to pass them.


    "Listen, I will take care to distract these monsters so try to get to the other spot in the meantime. You will get a small window of opportunity once that happens. Take it when it happens."


    Rita did not wait around to see whether the other three got her words or not. The beasts were beginning to gather around them again. It was time to let go of her restraints.


    Rita could feel her familiars getting tenser as they sensed more beasts headed their way. Rita gave them the go ahead to start killing.


    She could see both Ur and Ang dashing out of their hiding spots and running on full speed. The beasts had not noticed them yet which gave Rita enough confidence to be able to concentrate.


    But that confidence did notst long. The beasts finally noticed the running group and managed to corner them at the opposite side of the hallway.


    Ur attacked back but it casued him to be separated from Ang. Quince tried to help but his boundings left him useless.


    Ang had no other choice but to run for her life. The beasts were following after her since she was the easiest target right now. Her small body was winded already and she was about to be shredded from those huge ws.


    However, the heavens seemed to be on Ang''s side because she was saved before those ws could mince her into pieces.


    The beast was cut into two by Aurora who also proceeded to take care of other beasts. Even the one that had escaped Rita was no match for Aurora.


    There was something heavy about Aurora''s presence that caused every other beast to back down. Ur and the others quickly made thier way toward Aurora''s location and their group was full once again.


    "Where did you leave Ava? I was so sure she fell with you."


    Quince was genuinely curious to know. He had some curiosity when it came to Ava since she was an overlooker. Those people were even rarer toe by and did not like humans or the divine beings.


    "She will not be joining us for some time since Ava has some work to do. We should find the floor exit as soon as we can."


    The group fell silent, not knowing what to say to that.


    "Ava will take care of her work. Meanwhile, we should focus on what we can do and that is to clear this floor. I know where the exit is."


    Aurora opened her map that showed the location. And it was time to get started with things.

 Chapter 272 272: An Artificial World [Pt1]

    "You know, this sucks for us. Why out of all the ces we could havended up on, do we have tond on the one ce from where we can go nowhere from? Why did it have to be an ind."


    Rita''s voice echoed around the ind, the vast emptiness of the ocean making it travel even further in the enclosed space.


    No matter where you looked, you could only see water surrounding the ind with nothing else in sight. There were no aquatic animals or other features that indicated a life of any kind.


    It was now obvious that whatever world they were in was abandoned and void of life.


    "Stop making such a big fuss. We are likely in a suspended space on floor 16th. People here like to make this kind of space as a hobby. This is not the real world."


    Quince exined, finally getting tired of Rita''s question. Unlike Rita, Quince had spent a better part of his childhood just learning about the abyss and its quirks. And Aurora knew from experience how tacky he was when it came to the facts about this ce.


    Ur was having fun flying around for a few minutes but he settled down on the small ind pretty quickly as well. There was only so much to do in an enclosed space like this.


    "An enclosed space? That''s the first time I''ve heard about it. So, how does it work? Is this because of magic? Or because of the abyss? Is this a result of an artifact?"


    Rita was curious to know more but Quince seemed uninterested in answering her anymore. He had realized that the more he indulged Rita, the worse she got with her curiosity.


    If he left her alone for some time then she would get bored of asking and turn her attention toward something else.


    "Aurora, can you tell me what this is about? Since Quince is being a child by withholding information, then you are the only one I can turn toward."


    Aurora did debate teasing Rita by not breaking her silence but she decided to open her mouth in the end.


    "It''s because of magic specialization and a result of the local mineral. This kind of effect is not possible to achieve outside this floor so don''t get any weird ideas about it."


    This was a sub-category of illusionary magic but it was particr and strict whenpared to traditional magic. Hence, Aurora had not touched it in herst life.


    Besides, it also fucked with your mind a little when you were creating the illusion so most people chose to keep their distance from it.


    "Wow, it looks great. Do you think I can learn how to do this?"


    Rita seemed excited and Aurora felt bad to burst her bubbles. But this magic could not be learned by anyone.


    You needed to not only have the aptitude but also the right mindset for such magic. Emotions need to be eradicated and rtionships needed to be snapped if you wanted total control over your desired space.


    It was not something Rita was capable of since she was a sensitive person by nature. Even trying this would tire her out mentally.


    "I don''t think this field is something that is particrly suited for you, Rita. But I am sure you will get to experience a lot more things like these in the abysster on. I am sure those will be more to your liking than a limiting skill like this."


    Aurora didn''t outright deny Rita but her words had the same effect.


    "So, you are saying that I won''t gain anything by learning this art? You did not have to beat around the bush to tell me that. You could have juste out and said that to me."


    Rita sounded let down but also understanding. It was a godsend for Aurora that Rita knew her limits and did notin about injustice.


    "She''s just saying that you are too stupid to learn this art. Don''t go and make words up yourself just because you want to feel better about yourself."


    However, that did not stop Quince from making fun of her. He and Rita had a weird back-and-forth kind of rtionship. It was different from Aurora''s friendship with Quince.


    Somehow, they had the energy of siblings who always fought and teased each other.


    ''Even if the formation is the same, Clove''s absence makes all the difference. I never realized how tense Quince was all the time back there.''


    Maybe it was because they had all been kids back then or maybe because their beginnings had been different, but the Quince in front of Aurora did not behave like he used to.<sub> </sub>


    To Aurora, he had always seemed like the reliable older brother sort of figure but now he seemed to be acting more his age. It was nice to see Aurora and her eyes softened at the thought.


    "Aurora, how do we get out of here? As nice as it is to be here, I think it''s about time we get out and start some real work."


    Rita was done with her bickering and also bored with her surroundings. There was nothing to do on this tiny ind and not enough resources to live long either.


    ''Besides, we did not restock on thest world so we really should get food and other necessities soon.''


    It was entirely Aurora''s fault that they had not gotten anything. She had been in such a hurry to get to the next floor that she had not made a trip back to the town.


    "Alright, let''s try and break the sky for now. It should cause a big enough disturbance for us to be able to get out¡­.."


    Aurora was about to follow through with her words when the world shook. Water was rising in waves and it washed over the ind.


    Even for an artificial space, the force was enough to wash everyone away into the ocean. They were all separated.


    Ur quickly swam through the water currents and took hold of Quince. His injuries would get worse if they were exposed to water too much. Rita also managed to reach Ur easily enough by swimming.


    Aurora did not even need to swim. The water passed over her body harmlessly. Itpletely avoided her as if it was afraid to touch her.


    Ur finally broke the surface and swam toward the safe space Aurora was at. However, unlike Aurora, Ur and the others were not safe even in that space.


    Clearly, the water was not avoiding the area but the person here.


    "What''s with this tant discrimination? Why does the water not touch you?"


    Rita asked as another huge wave raised. It was even bigger than thest one and it managed to engulf the whole ind this time.


    Once again, it missed Aurora but she was not able to maintain her foothold this time since the ind had been swept clean from beneath their feet.


    Aurora''s body lost bnce as she fell. But the water ran away from her as if she was an untouchable person.


    Aurora tried to gather her magic to break free but the sh of light caused Aurora to close her eyes and her body hit the ground.


    It should have hurt because of the impact but Aurora surprisingly found her body falling on a soft surface. She felt around but only to feel a cushion beneath her body.


    "W-We survived. Man, I thought I was a goner. That water was weird as it did not allow me to summon my magic or my familiars. I would have drowned had it not been for Ur."


    Rita coughed as she spoke these words. The water was clinging all around her body and her hair had turned a neon shade of red.


    Ur and Quince were there as well but they had been rendered unconscious due to the pressure of the water. It was a wonder that Rita had managed to retain her consciousness.


    "Man, another failure. This is the seventh time this month that I have failed to retain the world''s consciousness in my ball. At this rate, I won''t be able to graduate."


    Aurora turned her head to look at the teen who had sounded so depressed. His eyes were dropping and his skin was pale and yellowish as well. He looked like someone who did not get enough sun.


    In simpler words, the teen looked like a sick human but Aurora knew that it was his naturalplexion. Everyone on this floor had yellowish skin that signified that they were demons and not humans.


    Rita, who did not know that this child was harmless, decided to take him hostage. Her knife rested on the kid''s neck as she threatened him.


    "Who are you and what do you want from us? You better answer truthfully if you don''t want your head to go off flying."


    Rita was aggressive so Aurora did understand when the kid ended up fainting under the force of her anger. Rita could be really scary when she wanted to be.

 Chapter 273 273: An Artificial World [Pt2]

    "Who are you and what do you want from us? You better answer truthfully if you don''t want your head to go off flying."


    Rita''s fast actions caused the young teen in her grasp to be startled. He iled in panic as he tried to get out of Rita''s grasp and Rita had to be careful not to graze him any more than she already had.


    Even though Rita held the kid at knifepoint, she did not want to kill him off for no apparent reason. She at least wanted to know why they were brought into that tiny room in the first ce.


    "P-Please don''t kill me off. I will do anything if you let me live. I p-promise to give up magic if you want me to. But please don''t kill me off."


    The teen was crying at that point, too terrified to even move from his ce. Rita had pressed her knife more firmly against his neck so that the kid could feel its sharp de every time he breathed.


    "Don''t worry kid. You won''t die as long as you do what we ask of you and tell us where we are."


    Aurora felt like it was prime time for her to interfere. She did not like ying good cop bad cop but this situation called for such a thing to happen.


    Besides, Rita had already terrified the kid so why did it matter if Aurora tried to make him feel better.


    "I w-will do anything you ask of me. B-But please don''t kill me. I want to at least graduate from school work. Please."


    The desperate cries of the kid made Rita feel nothing. She did not let him go until Aurora gave her a ''go ahead.'' The kid quickly arranged his body in a kneeling position and lowered his head.


    That ck-d yellow body was shaking. It was a truly pitiful scene to see but Aurora could not afford to have sympathy in this situation. If she sympathized with the kid once, she would end up sympathizing with the kid forever.


    ''I want to let you go kid, but I don''t think such a good chance to ask questions woulde again in my life.''


    "First of all, tell me how we got here. ording to thew, the door should have opened up into another door, not in that random ce we ended up in."


    Aurora''s words were vague and not easy to understand. But if the kid had any concept of the tower and its ascension system, he would know what Aurora was talking about.


    "Hahahaha, ah that? I think it might be my fault. When I was casting my magic, I made a small error and ended up pulling things I should not have. I-I''m so sorry. I will make it up to you."


    The kid looked embarrassed to be saying that and his body was shaking even more. Aurora could see the fear of death in his eyes.


    The kid was expecting Aurora to be angry with him but she was more shocked than angry at what happened. ording to this kid, he had pulled Aurora in when he had been casting magic. It was something that should be impossible to do.


    The tower had an amazing defense system for those who were crossing across floors. General magic could not interfere with it. Only the magic on par with a goddess or an overlooker could do that.


    So either this kid was lying or he had something that made it possible. And Aurora was willing to bet that it was thetter.


    "Nice story kid but interfering with the floors should be impossible. Now, why don''t you tell us the truth?"


    Quince caught on to the same facts Aurora did and he looked annoyed to be made fun of. His words were harsh and it caused the kid to flinch.


    He suddenly looked like he was going to run away from them.


    "I-I¡­it''s not¡­I''m not lying. I did manage to pull you but it was o-only because I had help. My teacher lent me his mana stone to practice since I''m bad at magic. You can a-ask him if you don''t believe me."


    The teen quickly corrected this statement as soon as he realized that Aurora and her party were not happy with his answer.


    In this way, he was trying to avoid all the me and invoke Aurora''s curiosity. And she had to say that it was working quite nicely.<sub> </sub>


    If it was an elder that lend this kid the power to pull them here, then he should be a big shot off this floor. Having such a person would help them out a lot in clearing this floor.


    "I understand what you said kid but I am not still satisfied with your reply. So, I need you to arrange a meeting with your master for us. And before you try to escape remember that I marked you off. I will know where you are anytime I want to."


    The teen wilted at Aurora''s words but he no longer looked surprised. His expression said that he had expected to be in such a situation but he did not like it.


    "I u-understand. Why don''t you all make yourself at home while I go and contact my master. Feel free to take anything you need. A-And also, can you do something about that thing behind you? I don''t think my house can fit something that big here."


    The teen pointed back to Ur who was in his miniature form. But his miniature form wasrge enough to touch the ceiling of the room and make the space feel even smaller than before.


    Aurora pointed toward Ur who tilted his head but his body did shrink down into the form of a kid dragon. He was asrge as a dog right now and he looked around curiously.


    "You better hurry up and run away now. The longer you make us wait, the harder it would be on you. Who knows, maybe Ur will eat you out of your house before tomorrow morning."


    Aurora was not serious and Quince realized since heughed. Rita was amused as well at the joking tone but the teen did not seem to find it funny.


    "O-Of course I should hurry up now. By the way, my name is Subaru so tell anyone my name if they ask why you are here. I s-should get going now."


    The kid left the room as if his backside was on fire. The threat of having him being tracked down had gotten to him hard.


    "So, when did you tag the kid? I did not see you using any magic once we came out.''


    Rita asked with a curious voice. She looked back toward the kid who had run away and then back at Aurora with questioning eyes.


    "I did not tag the kid. I lied to him to get him to cooperate with us. But I can track him down if I want to so that was not all a lie."


    Aurora chucked at the reaction she got from herpanions. It was such a knowing smile since these were the people who knew her the best.


    "You ended up terrifying the kid in the end. I cannot believe I have such a terrible person as my master. What should I do with you now?"


    Rita joked around and it caused a whole string of debates to start.


    Aurora quickly excluded herself from that talk because she had better things to do with her time. She had felt weird energy trying to take note of herself so Aurora decided to track it back in her mind.


    She felt the energy as it was rushing away from her and caught it in her hand. The person on the other end looked startled by Aurora''s quick actions and even tried to get away from her but Aurora did not allow him to flee.


    "Where do you think you are going? Why did you decide to follow after me like this? What do you want from me?"


    Aurora asked but she got no reply for her actions. The only thing she got was a sensation of shock as the light on the other end finally ended up breaking the connection with her consciousness and run away.


    And just like that, Aurora had been duped but she did not seem to mind that much. The sensation of being probed into was a new one and Aurora was curious about the origin of that power.


    Just who in the world had tried to look into her of all people and for what reason?


    ''It seems that this floor is not as simple as I made it out to be. I have a feeling that we are in for a tough time ahead of us now. I wonder how things would share up to be.''


    Aurora was curious but she also had a bad feeling about what was toe next.

 Chapter 274 274: An Artificial World [Pt3]

    Aurora waited for an answer toe to her queries but no one answered her from the other side. It was utterly silent which made Aurora worried about what was going on.


    She felt as if someone was keeping an eye on her for no other reason but to observe her and that made Aurora nervous. This entity felt a lot closer to the abyss than to a normal human being.


    And no one associated with the abyss was a decent human being. And yes, that also incused Aurora as well.


    "Aurora, is everything alright? You seemed to be lost in your thoughts there."


    Rita called out as she noticed the zoned-out expression Aurora had on her face. That concern was appreciated but it did not help lessen the weird feeling Aurora was having in the middle of her stomach.


    The part where that egg had been absorbed was throbbing ever so slightly and it made Aurora nervous.


    She had not been aware of that foreign presence inside her body for some time now and this sudden resurgence of feelings made Aurora stop to categorize what she was feeling.


    The curiosity she was feeling was not her own. The feelings inside her mind were being manipted.


    "Ur, hurry up and open the barrier. ck at attempts of magic being made on us right now."


    The urgency in Aurora''s voice caused Ur to whine but he followed her words and put up the barrier. The second it went up, Aurora breathed a sigh of relief. The foreign presence in her mind was receiving.


    "So, now would you tell us what was wrong with you? You were behaving quite strangely and it was worrying me."


    Rita''s face was nk but her voice was heavy with concern. Aurora felt bad for having worried her but she could still not afford to let her guard down.


    Because Aurora''s brain had been tried to be invaded, she suddenly had to consider the possibility that others in her team were not safe as well.


    "It''s nothing. I thought like I felt surveince aimed at us but maybe I was wrong. Still, it won''t be bad for us to be vignt in this new ce."


    Aurora cared a lot about herpanions but even she had to admit that they were not the best magic users out there. Especially Rita was weak when it came to sensing magic.


    "You felt someone connecting with your brain? It must be the administrator of this floor. I did remember reading about it before. This whole floor is under a single nket and outside of the overlooker''s control. The authority belongs to the administrator for some reason."


    Now that Quince said this, Aurora also remembers hearing about it in her past life. But she had been too busy with her shit to pay attention.


    And also, when they arrived on this floor, it had been under a unified government and not under an administratorst time.


    ''Ah, there was that incident when the floor citizens ended up rebelling. The overlooker at that time had to step in. It was also the first time an overlooker was seen out in the open.''


    Aurora had not been a part of that rebellion back then since she had been a few floors up. But the news of that incident had shaken up the tower''s political system.


    Every influential party had rushed out to gain influence and many new forces had emerged.


    But none had been as dominant as the tower which had helped stabilize the situation in here. Mei had been in charge of that subduction back then.


    ''What will happen this time since Mei is dead? Would the rebellion fail? Or will a new power emerge as a result?''


    The tower was no longer there to help stabilize the breakup of this floor. As such, there would be a huge power vacuum left behind once the waves of rebellion hit this floor.


    And it would be converted into an illusionary floor that had multiple exits. It would be quite a breakthrough point for people.


    Aurora had a lot to n now but she did not have enough time. It was gettingte and Aurora needed to meet the person who had managed to interfere with the flow of abyssal order before she tried looking around.


    Luckily, Subaru came back really early with good news. Aurora could see the relief coloring his face and she grinned back at him.


    "Master has agreed to meet you right now. But only one of you can follow after me to meet him."


    Subaru exined and it was not even a question at this point. They all knew the one to meet the teacher would be Aurora since she was the one who had suggested it in the first ce.


    "Alright, got it. I am ready to follow you."


    Aurora agreed easily enough. She did consider the possibility of this being a trap for her but it was a trivial worry.<sub> </sub>


    She was sure that she would be able to get out in time if the situation got sticky for her.


    "I was really surprised when Master agreed to meet with you. He is not someone who is easily swayed by material gains or even threats. You must be someone great."


    Subaru''s eyes held respect for Aurora. His scared attitude from earlier was gone, reced by trust and curiosity. It made Aurora nervous.


    At the same time, she was also vignt against this ''master'' he kept mentioning. It was clear that whatever had changed Subaru had to be connected to his ''master'' and what he had told Subaru.


    And if Subaru had been told something about Aurora that made him trust her, then his master also knew something about Aurora.


    "Does your master know me? Why would he know what kind of person I am?"


    Aurora tried to probe about the real identity of this ''master'' she kept hearing about. The chances of him being someone Aurora knew was high.


    But the weird part was, Aurora was sure that she did not know anyone this high up in the abyss.


    "Don''t worry about it. Master is very intelligent and they can guess anyone''s identity easily enough. You should be honored that they vouched for you."


    Subaru sounded offended that Aurora had questioned his master. He seemed to hold his master in the highest esteem possible.


    This much devotion was dangerous but Aurora was not someone who could say that. She was sure that Rita and the rest of her people had this much devotion to her as well.


    "I am honored but I would still like to know who the person I am meeting is. I guess I am just nervous right now?"


    Aurora spoke those words as she focused on opening the door in front of her. It required surprising amounts of concentration which made Aurora pant a little.


    Opening this door should have been easy for her since she was a goddess of the abyss but it was so heavy that Aurora''s vision blurred as a result.


    "Well, master did say that you were a cautious one and I should be aware of you getting suspicious but you seemed easier to deal with than I thought. Now, why don''t you enjoy your new home."


    The door cracked open all of a sudden and Aurora''s forceful push caused her to fall into the room.


    The door closed behind her back and Aurora struck the door to force it to open. But it did not open up.


    Instead, it forced Aurora into this dark and gloomy ce.


    "Great, now I am stuck here for the time being. What a fucking mess I ended up in. I knew something was wrong with this whole picture I was being presented with."


    Aurora was surprised that Subaru had made such a bold move all of a sudden. It seemed as if he did not care for his life and what happened to him.


    Aurora tried to use the string of curses she had left on Subaru''s body to get him to open the door but she faced some interference in the process.


    The same static that had been watching her before was back all of a sudden with a vengeance. It was making Aurora''s head hurt just to try andbat it.


    ''I guess this will not work right now. Is there something else I can try to break out of here?''


    Nothing came to Aurora''s mind so she had to give up. Fortunately, she had her team who would get her out soon.


    Hopefully.


    ''It''s up to them anyway.''


    Aurora had not given up but she had backed down for now. It would not do good for Aurora to run out of energy.


    "I hope they are alright. But knowing Rita, she would have made a mess by now. Quince, it is up to you to save this situation and get me out."


    God, it was reassuring to have Quince on her side right now and this was a sentence Aurora had never thought she would say again in this life.

 Chapter 275 275: Betrayal Hits Hard [Pt1]

    "Hey, don''t you feel as if it is taking Aurora a long time to return? I feel like something is wrong with her right now."


    Quince looked toward Rita who had an anxious look on her face. She was distracted even as she tried to solve the puzzle in front of her.


    This was not her normal dazed look and it made Quince instantly look toward her with worry.


    "I am sure Aurora is alright. It had not been that long since she left us so she should be alright. Moreover, are you sure you are not imagining your weird feeling?"


    Quince tried to tease Rita and she did take offense to his words, but the worried expression did not fade away.


    If anything, it seemed as if Rita was even more anxious after hearing Quince''s words.


    "That is the problem. I know that it has not been long ever since Aurora left but I cannot shake off this uneasy feeling inside my heart. I feel like we are falling into a huge trap right now."


    As Rita spoke those words, she tried to connect with Aurora over the system screen. But it was not cooperating for some reason.


    The screen was not nk but it was getting a static effect once in a while and the connection was also showing an error.


    Since it was not something that had ever happened to Rita before, she had no idea what to do about it.


    "Let me see. Ah, this is bad indeed. Did Aurora ever say anything to do when this happens? Why don''t you try to send me a message to check if the system is still working or not?"


    Quince''s offer had merit so Rita tried to send her a message.


    But as expected, it did not go through at such a close range as well. It was no wonder that Rita''s message never managed to reach Aurora at all.


    "So weird. Why do you think this happened? None of the other floors gave us such a problem and even Aurora never mentioned this possibility. Do you think it''s because of this floor?"


    Quince asked, only to remember something all of a sudden.


    There was one thing that could exin the mystery behind thisck ofmunication. There was only one thing that was different about this floor whenpared to the rest of the abyss.


    "It must be the administrator who is messing with us. Hurry up and close the system. In fact, shut it down if you can and¡­"


    But it was toote. As soon as Quince asked Rita to make that decision, their door was kicked in by someone.


    Smoke filled the area and caused Quince to feel lightheaded. It was making his senses blurry and Quince decided to hold his breath.


    "Boss, there is a dragon in there. We are not equipped to handle a dragon. What should we do now?"


    There seemed to be some kind of panic spreading between the people in front of Quince and he considered it to be a good thing. He could easily manipte this situation to suit his needs.


    "Ur, hurry up and get us out of here. We will be dependent on your for the rest."


    Quince yelled toward the dragon who was getting dizzy as well. The gas was affecting him in equal amounts but his huge body mass made it difficult to knock him outpletely.


    Ur roared to show that he understood and that was one problem taken care of. The other problem who Rita who seemed to have inhaled too much of this smoke.


    She was already swaying on her feet and even her vision looked wobbly.


    "Get a hold of yourself right now. I will take you out of here so just stay conscious for that long."


    Rita nodded as she leaned her weight against Quince''s side. Quince had to wonder just what in the world happened that had made Rita this tired.


    They had been betrayed by Subaru, there was no doubt in drawing that conclusion. But how and why that had happened was a mystery.


    Ur pped his wings to take off as soon as Quince dragged Rita on his back. His anti-magic properties came in clutch as he flew the pair out of danger.


    But that did not mean that the journey was over for them.


    The soldiers that hade to capture them tried to catch up to Ur but he was too fast. Quince also decided to aid the dragon by casting cloaking magic.


    "Ur, turn around and fly directly over them. I will mask your mass as well as shadows."<sub> </sub>


    The best way to avoid these fools would be to do something they did not expect them to do.


    Since they were expecting the group to flee to the south, Quince doubted that they would look for them on the north side.


    But even that was a maybe at this point. It was impossible to tell what these people will do since the whole floor was being managed by the administrator.


    "I guess I have no other choice but to risk a gamble," Quince muttered it under his breath before he snapped Ur''s side, "Take right from here and follow my orders. I will take you to a safe space."


    Quince was going to take hispanions to the hidden location only known to the tower officials.


    He doubted that there was anyone other than him and Clove left out there who could ess this location now. Even his father must be held captive by the south and maybe even killed off¡­.


    ''Don''t think stupid thoughts. You will get a chance to avenge them allter. For now, just focus on surviving.''


    "Ur, hurry up. My magic will notst forever."


    Ur did hurry up and they touched the ground sooner than Quince expected them to.


    _________________________


    "You sure gave us a hard time, Minerva. But did you think you will be able to keep your monopoly over the tower forever? You tried so hard to protect the status quo but you lost in the end."


    Lady Dheva''s blue hair shined as she walked around the bedroom-like prison that held goddess Minerva.


    The goddess, well, the former goddess was tied down in chains and all but unconscious. Only her stubbornness caused her to cling to her wakefulness.


    "You! What do you think you are doing? You know that we cannot go against the abyss, nor can we destroy it. It will cause the earth to copse in the state it is in and.."


    "What is wrong with that? The abyss is a parasite and it needs to go away now. It has been on this earth too long and it is depleting its resources. Just how long do you think this earth willst anyway?"


    Minerva had no answer to that question. She had felt the durability of earth''s life expectancy lower over the years. And she knew that the earth could not hold on for long.


    Neither could the abyss stay here forever since it would lose nutrition. It needed to utch from the earth and find a new host to eat away at.


    And that was why it had created the newest goddess and bestowed her with all this power. She was the perfect specimen that could make him reach a new goal.


    "Are you doing all this for the earth? Or because the abyss ispelling you to? I can see it in your eyes, the craze for power and the hunger to be your one person¡­"


    Minerva got a kick to her stomach for her words. The blue-haireddy''s expression was twisted in a rage-filled fury.


    But then she took in a few deep breaths to calm herself down.


    "I am doing all this for myself. The abyss needs a new host and it chose me to deliver it to him. I am just following the will of my creator. At least, I am not like you. A traitor to the cause."


    Minervaughed an emptyugh at those words. She could not help butpare Lady Dheva to an abandoned dog who was trying its best to gain its master''s favor again.


    But unfortunately, it would not be possible since the abyss had not chosen her.


    "So pathetic. Just because both Horas and Aurora were chosen doesn''t mean that you will be as well. You should admit it, you were abandoned by the abyss."


    "Shut up. What do you even know? All three of us, me, Aurora, and Horas were born from the same sample. We are all the same so I will be chosen sooner orter as well. You just wait and watch as that happens."


    Minerva looked at Lady Dheva with a sad but understanding expression. Her obsession made sense to those who knew her and it also made them feel sorry for her.


    "You should give up now. You made a mess of things already so there is no need to torture yourself like this."


    Minerva tried to reason but Lady Dheva was beyond listening at this point.


    Alexander watched all that happen from the shadows of the room and he bided his time. It would be just a matter of time before he had Minerva out of here.

 Chapter 276 276: Betrayal Hits Hard [Pt2]

    "I was thinking of talking with you a little more but I feel all my excitement draining out after talking with you for a second. I no longer want to have anything to do with you so I will be taking my leave now."


    Lady Dheva did not wait a single second more than she was supposed to inside that room. She looked pissed off as she left and Minerva only smiled.


    She had tried hard to reform the otherdy but nothing worked out. In the end, Lady Dheva started her destruction.


    "Are you going toe out anytime soon or not? I know you are there, child of the tower."


    Alexander debated whether to go out or not right now. But Lady Minerva''s addressing caused Alexander to finally step out in the light.


    Why would he bother to hide now when he had been caught? It did not make sense to him anymore.


    "You are a familiar face but I do not think we have ever met directly. Then, what are you doing here? Are you here to ask me a question?"


    Minerva looked half out of it as she leaned against the bed she had been locked onto.


    Despite being a prisoner, her condition did not seem as bad as it could have been. She was being treated fairly well right now with food and other necessities present.


    But despite all that, being locked up was not a pleasant experience and Yohan was here to take Lady Minerva out.


    "n asked me to help you out so I came here. You should tell me if there is something you want to take along with you."


    Alexander asked as he picked at the locks Layd Minerva was bound by. They were made specifically to stop magic but they could not do anything in front of human force and intelligence.


    That was why Alexander managed to unlock them in record time and free Lady Minerva.


    "You sure are fast. How did you unlock these cuffs?"


    Minerva looked surprised to be free again. She had not expected to see her wrist free in her lifetime but here she was.


    Her surprise was genuine but it was also a reminder that these people did not see anything beyond magical force. They never took precautions against people who did not have a great amount of magic and did not even treat them right.


    As someone who had suffered under the system for a long time, Alexander felt glee like never before when he was able to save Lady Minerva without magic.


    "I was able to save you because I used my mind over my magic. You should not underestimate those who do not have great amounts of magic since they are generally more dangerous."


    "I see. Since you did not have a lot of magic, you decided to apply other means to make do. It is certainly an eye-opening experience for me."


    Minerva looked impressed before her expression changed into the serious one she often wore.


    "Now then, I should start to y my part in this rescue as well. Do you have a destination in mind we can head toward?"


    Minerva asked and Alexander handed her the slip Lord n had given him for this particr asion. How the resistance leader knew that Minerva would ask for the location, even Alexander did not know.


    But this did prove that these gods and goddesses had a bond that went beyond friendship. They seemed to be able to guess what the other party was thinking most of the time.


    "Here, give me your hand. We will be teleported out of here right now."


    Lady Minerva extended her hand and Alexander hesitated to allow her along. This ce was warded against magic and that was why Alexander had a hard time moving around.


    He decided to trust indy Minerva and her magic so he ended up giving Minerva his hand. His stomach felt upset at the sudden force he was subjected to.


    When Alexander came around again, he was standing in front of the door to the resistance base he had been asked to lead Lady Minerva too.


    The transportation had been smooth and all Aenxader could do was look at Lady Minerva in a shocked daze.


    "What? Never thought that I could force my magic through anti-magic locks? Who do you think made those locks in the first ce?"


    Alexander shook his head to clear out the weird thoughts from inside. Of course, he had knowns that Lady Minerva had made those anti-magic locks and that they had an out. But he had not expected to experience them himself.


    And he had to say that he was impressed with what he saw.


    Many resistance members rushed out as soon as they felt themotion happening outside the base. Most of the looked startled to see Lady Minerva standing in front of them.<sub> </sub>


    It was understandable why that happened since Lady Minerva had been their enemy for a long time now.


    "What should we do?"


    "We cannot possibly take her on?"


    "B-But, we have to save everyone somehow."


    The restraint members were whispering to each other as they eyed the goddess in front of them. No one knew what to make of this development.


    No one but Lord n that is. The bald god walked out with ease and locked eyes with Minerva. They seemed to bemunicating with their eyes and everyone looked started.


    In the end, all Lord n did was a gesture for thedy to follow after him which she did. Everyone else fell quiet as that happened.


    And then they all turned toward n with a question-filled expression which he had no answer for. He was as startled as everyone else was at the sudden happenings.


    "Don''t look at me like that. I only did what I was paid to do and nothing more. I will now head out back to the academy."


    Alexander made an abrupt exit that left everyone baffled. But he was beyond done with these people.


    Every time he interacted with them, they managed to empty his energy. And Alexander was tired of being led around like that.


    "I need to find Rex and have a talk with him. It seems that the South will target the Rocx academy next. We need to get Aurora back to the surface."


    There had been a lot of evidence of this attack that Rex had found when he had been undercover. And he was beyond certain at this point that this attack woulde.


    He was not loyal to the Rocx academy but it was like a home to Alexander. And he would like to protect it if possible.


    ______________________________


    Aurora banged at the door she was locked behind but no one answered her call. It meant that there was no one around her.


    The feeling of being watched was getting more and more intense and it made Aurora walk in her ce.


    No one in her memory would want to have such a personal beef with her. So it had to be about something else.


    The pain in Aurora''s stomach was also worsening. The egg that had been dormant until now was giving her a lot of trouble all of a sudden. It was not only active but also made Aurora''s moments limited.


    Even walking was difficult to do inside the room since it was a closed-off space. There was ack of oxygen that made Aurora''s head spin.


    "I''m sorry that this happened to you but we cannot risk you moving around and alerting the abyss to our existence. You have a bond with this cursed ce that cannot be allowed to flourish."


    It was Subaru who hade back to taunt Aurora. He sounded genuinely sad that Aurora was being held in such a position but that did make him stop and help Aurora.


    If anything, he looked even happier to see Aurora fall off in front of him. The joy in his eyes was real.


    "You are so lucky that I cannot use my magic right now. Otherwise, you would have ended up dying right about now."


    Aurora threatened the kid, hoping that he would get scared and make a mistake. But that did not happen, nor did the kid make a mistake.


    He did not evene close to Aurora the whole while, content from watching her struggle.


    His eyes were filled with glee even as his mouth lied outright.


    "It is all happening for your own sake. You might not see it but the abyss is corruption you as well. We are just trying to save you from a fate worse than death."


    Subaru sounded so convinced that Aurora had to wonder if he was possessed or not. His eyes seemed normal but there was a weird energy around him.


    His words also did not seem to make much sense and he was often repeating himself. It was all a big mystery for Aurora and she found herself curious without her input.

 Chapter 277 277: Personal Gains [Pt1]

    "It is all happening for your own sake. You might not see it but the abyss is corruption you as well. We are just trying to save you from a fate worse than death."


    Subaru sounded too confident in his im but Aurora knew that he was only speaking words someone else had fed into his brain.


    His eyes did not look at Aurora as he stared in her general direction. Nor did it show the genuine fear he had shown at the start.


    It almost felt like she was talking with a different person and that was a big distinction.


    "You say all these big words but you cannot even keep me from figuring everything out. The reason you were able to trap us all this easily and the reason you needed to separate us all was so that we are not able tomunicate and tell each other that this is an illusionary world."


    Aurora was taking a shot in the dark but the more she spoke, the more she was certain about that fact.


    This was the highest level of illusion that could be created. It could be said to be a reality in itself since it followed all the rules of life.


    But the only difference was that this world had a god. And it was the administrator who had made this world possible. All thews here abided by their will.


    "Ho! So you managed to figure it out? Can you tell me what made you so certain that this was an illusion? I don''t think I gave anything away."


    Subaru, no, the illusion of Subaru asked her. His head was twisted in an unnaturally scary way. It all but confirmed that Aurora had hit the bull''s eye.


    "Does it matter how I figured it out? You should let me go now before you anger me. I am not amused by your tricks."


    Aurora was angry and her whole body showed her anger visibility. Even her aura was radiating anger and ufortableness.


    But the administrator who was watching from Subaru''s eyes just remained calm. She seemed to have no fear of being caught by Aurora.


    "And, what would happen next now that you caught me? Let me remind you that I am the main power here and you have no way of resisting me. Even an overlooker is unless against me, much less human like you."


    The administrator was not only cocky but arrogant as well. She seemed full of herself and her words were smug as well.


    Everything she was made Aurora hate her a little. She did not like the administrator''s attitude.


    "If you keep underestimating humans then you will suffer one day. You should be more careful about what you say if you do not want to lose your throne."


    Now the administrator scoffed at her words. She no longer found Aurora''s words amusing but insulting.


    The mere fact that Aurora had dared suggest that she would lose to a human was insulting to her.


    "Forget a human, even a goddess or a dragon cannot defeat me. I won the authority of this floor so I am the supreme ruler here. Even the abyss cannot go against my wishes."


    The administrator cried out as she held Aurora''s face in her hands. She seemed to find Aurora as repulsive as Aurora found her to be.


    Truly, two swords could not exist in one sheath without damaging each other. And these two alpha females were having a simr problem.


    "It doesn''t seem like we will see eye-to-eye on this matter. Then, let''s settle it the only way we can - be a bet."


    Aurora purposed, putting her entire life in her friend''s hands. He was sure that Rita and Quince will be able toe up with something.


    She did not need to be rescued but just was provided with enough of an opportunity to get out of there. The resistance against the administrator would do the rest.


    "Hoh? You sound confident there for a second. I also like the sound of a bet. But if I bet your freedom, what will you bet?"


    The administrator asked with a curious tone. She wanted to see what kind of precious thing a strong human captor held in her grasp.


    Aurora thought over this matter for a few minutes before she was finally deceived on a core. More specifically, she was going to bet Mei''s core right now.


    "Oh, I have the perfect thing for myself. How about, a goddess''s core? You can check it yourself."


    A goddess''s core had enough energy emission to be felt from afar. Someone like the administrator should be able to tell that this core was authentic.<sub> </sub>


    Subaru''s eyes widened until they looked like only the white of her eyes remained. The urrence of the core had surprised him enough to knock the administrator speechless.


    Even if the administrator hadplete authority over a floor, she still longed for a core. Having a core would mean that you could control more territory.


    She would also be able to escape the abyss''s eyes and finally be able to travel outside of her cursed territory.


    "I cannot believe what I am seeing. Are you going to bet it? I will not let you take this bet back once it is made."


    The administrator asked Aurora once again to make sure. But Aurora had no intention of thinking twice.


    She would win this bet since she knew herpanions and also knew the future. All she had to do was to negotiate the terms right and things would happen.


    "I am sure I want to bet this core. I bet that your downfall will happen within the next two weeks and you will be an ordinary human again."


    The administrator''s good mood evaporated at hearing those words. Her lips were pulled back into a snarl as she stared Aurora down.


    "Well then, you are going to be a rotten prisoner until the next two months. And not only you, but all yourpanions will also apany you to your death in two weeks. Mark my words."


    The administrator looked to be on fire now. She was burning with the mes of vengeance and to prove herself.


    Aurora knew that she should not have triggered the administrator like this but it had been fun. Besides, it did not matter how much Aurora opened her mouth.


    As long as she had the core to bet, the administrator would not be able to kill her off. Not until the core doesn''t take root inside the administrator.


    And the only way to ensure that it did was to have an expert on hand who could assist her.


    The only one who fit the criterion right now was Aurora.


    "Remember, you need to capture mypanions alive or our deal is void. But if you are too chicken to follow through, then I understand¡­"


    "Who is too chicken? I will bring yourpanions in front of you right in a matter of days. You just wait and watch that happen. Also, I will allow you to send a short message to yourpanions and then the game will begin."


    Aurora grinned a harmless smile back at the administrator and she was sure that it was pissing her off even more.


    But in a show of merciful temperament, the administrator decided to forgive Aurora and not say a word.


    For someone with such high pride as an administrator, it was a huge step. And it also showed that she had her gains as a top priority.


    Aurora watched her leave withzy eyes. She needed to think about what to write to herpanions to make them aware of this situation and not panic.


    "Let''s see. I should address it to Quince since he''s the most level-headed out of those three. I also need to give them instructions about what to do next and what to expect."


    It was lucky that Aurora had her system to send her message across. She was going to send a non-sense letter by the administrator''s hand while writing instructions for Rita to check the system files.


    It had so smart of her to hide this information in her system ahead of time so that she could reveal it in case of an emergency.


    "Enjoy yourst few days of being in power, administrator. Your fall shall be hard and glorious."


    Aurora generally did not wish harm to befall anyone but even she could not help but curse the administrator out.


    Her reasons might be personal but that did not mean they were non-sensical. Revenge would taste sweet and Aurora could not wait for that time toe.


    "Until then, I should try and break through the administrator''s main wall and make sure it is kept in check. I knew making my system interactable woulde in handy."


    The system had been a fruit of Aurora''sbor so it was her pride and joy as well. And now that it was reallying in clutch, no one could be prouder than Aurora herself.

 Chapter 278 278: Personal Gains [Pt2]

    "Are we finally safe while hiding in here? I don''t feel so safe right now."


    Rita asked as she ttened herself against the wall of the base. She hoped that doing this would make her stand out more.


    But she was only making herself stand out more by doing this. Quince was even looking at her behavior oddly and with a disgusted expression on his face.


    "Just behave normally. I brought us here because I was certain that the administrator would note after us here. There is no need for you to get so worried."


    Quince replied and Rita puffed her cheeks at his cheeky tone. She did not like that he was making fun of her.


    But Quince ignored her as he looked around this base. It was different from all the other bases that existed out there. This one had a lot of information archived in it.


    This was a base that was made by the southern people and then taken over by the tower. As such, a lot of records that were left here were by the southern tower.


    And Quince did not trust them in any way, shape, or capacity.


    Especially even more so when he knew that the one in charge of this ce had been Lady Dheva herself. She had been the one to hand it over to the tower as well since she no longer needed it.


    "Hey quince, look at this. Doesn''t this record look fishy to you?"


    ''Really, idiots and geniuses have the best luck in the world. I wonder which category Rita falls into.''


    Quince was baffled as Rita held up a manual record from a hidden container. The feeling of the broken seal meant that it had never been opened before today after sealing.


    And it had to have been sealed for a long time. Nothing had decayed but there was an air of abandonment around the safe.


    "Just how in the world did you manage to find this information? Now, let me see."


    Quince opened the booklet to see what else it contained. Most of the information on the first page did not make much sense to him. It was written in technical terms.


    But one particr sequence of words did catch his attention.


    ''The false god project - Administrator''


    Now that sounded ridiculous and important at the same time. Quince quickly opened the page to be able to read even more.


    ''The administrator is an artificial life form created in hopes to see if someone with an outlooker''s authority can be birthed by unnatural means. The project aims at-''


    That was all Quince had the time to read before a bird dropped a letter on top of Quince''s head. The rudeness of that action caused Quince to tense up and he quickly opened the letter.


    It was by the administrator which meant that they had not managed to get away from their control.


    "Look, it says that Aurora made a bet. What the hell? How does she expect us to pull this off? Isn''t this too much for us? Of course, we will save her."


    Rita sounded offended and d at the same time. But it was Quince who was suspicious of the letter.


    He could not believe that this was all Aurora had sent them when asking for help. It did not seem like much for her to leave her allies hanging.


    So there had to be something more. Quince took the letter back from Rita and looked it over.


    And he did find an odd energy signature behind the letter''s back that he put into the system and it causes static.


    All of a sudden, the feeling of being watched went away and Quince was sure that the administrator could no longer see their moments.


    Aurora had somehow managed to gift Quince and Rita with total privacy.


    "We cannot stay here any longer because this ce is not safe. Thankfully, Aurora managed to point us in the right direction."


    Among the data Aurora had forced them to see, there was a mention of a resistance group that Quince wanted to head towards.


    It seemed like the resistance group had been anticipated by Aurora and she had also betted on them winning.


    How Aurora came to this conclusion, Quince was not sure or even interested in knowing about it. He just knew that he needed to follow Aurora''s words for now.


    She had not led him astray and she likely will not lead him astray in the future as well. If she believed in this resistance group, then Quince needed to believe in them as well.


    "That''s all well and good but where will we go? I doubt there is any safe ce for us as long as the administrator is around."<sub> </sub>


    Rita pointed out and Quince had to admit that he agreed. But he was also willing to take a leap of faith this time.


    ______________________________


    The administrator watched as the two people on his screen opened the letter she had sent. She could see all their moments and it was only a matter of time before their grace period would be over.


    She had given Aurora a ray of hope and now it was time to shatter it forever.


    Or at least, that had been the n before her screen went nk and she could no longer see the people on the other side.


    "W-What happened? Why can''t I see those humans anymore?"


    The administrator asked as she smashed the screen in front of her in rage. No one had ever been able to get away from her eyes.


    The only people who were not seen by her all the time were the ones whom she found to be too uninteresting or bothersome.


    But it was on her rules and her ount. Not forcefully like this.


    "What did you do? How did you manage to hide the location of yourpanions from my all-seeing eyes?"


    The administrator asked Aurora who was sitting quietly in her cell. The administrator hated to admit it but Aurora had gotten the better of her.


    But she still could not tell what kind of trick Aurora had used to make it happen.


    "I did nothing. I guess the abyss was the one who helped them escape. You should not try to rationalize its moments or you will go mad."


    Aurora pointed out, only to feel the administrator''s rage.


    "Don''t give me such half-assed answers. The abyss has never interfered with me before so why would it start now? I was born to overthrow its authority on this floor so I shall fulfill my purpose."


    The administrator looked mad as she opened a second panel to order the people under her control.


    "Hurry up and find those three criminals. If you fail to do so then you do not need to live."


    The soldiers shuddered in fear hearing their administrator talk about killing them so easily. What was fueling these soldiers was not loyalty or even admiration, but fear.


    They were scared of the administrator and that was why they joined the rebellion once it was underway.


    But the one who had managed to kill the administrator was a hero from the outside. He would be arriving in the city after falling from the sky and being saved by the resistance.


    Aurora needed to wait for that time toe so she rxed for the time being.


    "You! How can you be so rxed? Are you not afraid that you might die in a matter of days?"


    The administrator was unable to rationalize Aurora''s behavior so she did not know what to make of this human.


    Not only was her energy weird, but so was her temperament. She behaved like she did not care about anything but the smallest of things could set her off.


    She was an enigma that worried the administrator a lot. Her energy was weird as well and it caused the administrator to feel faint. She did not know what she needed to do to get rid of Aurora since she could not kill her.


    And believe the administrator when she said that she had tried. Her control had slipped as soon as she had tried doing that and her breath had gotten caught short.


    "I know I told you this but you all are going to die in two weeks anyway. There is no need for me to be concerned."


    It seemed like the administrator was trying to reassure herself much more than she was trying to scare Aurora.


    It was getting repetitive and annoying for Aurora to watch but she still held her ground for the time being.


    She was worried about the future and the point of her timing as well.


    It was also possible that the future she knew had already changed a significant amount. But Aurora was willing to bet on the possibility that she was right and that things would work out for her.


    They had to work out for her or everyone she knew would die on this floor alone.

 Chapter 279 279: The Resistance Is Forming [Pt1]

    "Quince, do you need to take these records with you? They are slowing us down you know."


    Ritained as she secured the way toward the resistance base. It was a tough climb but one had to do this much to escape the administrator''s eyes.


    Ur had flown both her and Quince as high as he could but even he had to climb up the cliff on his own from a certain point. Not that he had a problem since his ws gripped the wall pretty well.


    The problem was Quince and his massive bag of data that he had not managed to digitalize. He had wanted to take these books with them for some reason.


    "You idiot. Do you know how valuable these books are? There are some very oundish things written in here but if they are to be believed, then everything changes."


    Quince snapped back, unwilling to leave his books behind. The books contained secrets of the abyss. And some of these secrets were groundbreaking.


    One such fact that the book talked about was the ''door of the end'' which signified the end of the abyss. That meant that this endless abyss had an ending.


    But it was not located on any of the floors but was another hidden exit that was present on all administrator floors.


    "Fine, take your books along. But pull your weight as well. Why do I have to carry most of these books up?"


    Rita asked, now finally asking the real question. The books weighed a ton and Rita''s arms were straining while carrying the books over the cliff.


    "Stopining. You are not even the one carrying most of these books, Ur is."


    "And you are carrying the least so shut it. Let mein in peace."


    Rita finished her argument as she finally broke the cliff surface. Her muscles were aching badly and she stretched her back to get rid of the sours.


    Quince also made it up with difficulty and he instantly began to scan those books. He seemed uninterested in finding the resistance.


    "Excuse me, but should we not find the resistance base first? Do you need to get to these books right now?"


    Rita asked but Quince ignored her. He was too deep into his reading and recording phase to hear Rita properly.


    "Listen, you look after him Ur. I will go and find the resistance in the meantime."


    Ur chirped in agreement, coiling his body around Quinc and his books. Ur had steeled down already so Rita felt safe to finally look around.


    Her first stop was to look into the cave nearby. The resistance always made their secret bases in caves and other such ces. Rita had to be right.


    She called forward her familiar and asked it to keep guard while she went into the cave. It was dark and gloomy, but Rita did not give up. She forced light to appear with her magic.


    And that was not the right thing to do. As soon as the cave was lit up, a lot of smaller beast bodies jumped toward Rita.


    She shed them all but she was finally convinced that it was not the resistance base. These kinds of wild animals were not only a threat to the intruders but also the residents.


    And it was not like these beasts were tamed either. They had no residual energy in their bodies. Rita would have been able to tell if that was the case.


    "So it''s not here, huh? Where else can I look around?"


    Rita asked but her voice only echoed back. She was lost and also grumpy.


    That was why the shadow that had been tailing her decided to attack her. Rita was safe for one second but had someone aiming at her the very next second.


    But Rita was also a bonafide warrior. Her instincts had been sharpened in battle and she managed to dodge the iing attack.


    She also managed to get her attacker in their stomach and they kneeled in front of her in pain. Their stomach was clutched in their hand and their terrified eyes looked at Rita.


    "H-How did you avoid me? I made sure to a-aim without bloodlust."


    That yellow face paled a little, turning into the most revolting shade of a face Rita had ever seen before.


    It almost looked like her attacker''s whole body was covered in wounds and even Rita had to flinch once her mind was reminded of such an image.


    "There are some things thate with experience and¡­s-sorry but can you turn around? Your faceplexion is making me ufortable."


    Her attacker gave Rita the nkest look she ever got in her life. Even Rita felt a little foolish asking someone who had attacked her to turn back but this was necessary for her to feel better.


    The attacker looked reluctant but even they realized that they did not have a choice in this matter.


    ''Look at that ass. A female or a very curvy male.''


    Rita observed before snapping her mind out of the gutter. She needed to make sure she was safe first.


    "Who are you and what do you want with me? Be careful how you answer because it might as well decide your life in the next few minutes."


    Rita warned as she held the knife even closer to her attacker''s back. She had taken this knife out specifically to threaten her attacker.


    "I am a local. I just wanted to know who you were and what you wanted from me. I did not mean you any hard, I promise."


    The man sounded desperate and Rita''s resolve wavered. She could tell that the man was speaking truthfully when he said he was a local.


    ''Dang it. He''s a man with a very curvy ass. I got baited hard by his body.''


    But she was still a spectacle about letting the man leave like this. If he was a local then he might know where the resistance base was. But if did not then Rita did not want to alert him and the administration.


    Rita was a little lost on what to do but she was thankfully spared from deciding by Quince.


    He walked into the cave softly and Rita saw him raise his eyebrow at her and the man in front of her.


    "I got attacked. The man said that he was not attacking me but checking something. What should I do now?"


    Rita asked and the man looked pleadingly toward Quince. Since he was a kid, the man likely thought that he would be let go.


    But Quince was even more of a hard-hearted guy than Rita. He took one look at the kneeling man and decided to dere him useless.


    "Sorry man but you are dead. But why don''t you tell us about where the resistance base is and we will spare you."


    Rita decided to finally ask, knowing fully well that she would kill this man after to preserve her secret.


    The man looked a little started at the mention of the resistance before his eyes sparkled with new knowledge. Suddenly, his whole body softened and he gave Rita a small but sincere smile.


    Even the color on his face had retired which made him look far better.


    "You are here to join the resistance? Why did you not say that before? I will take you to our boss right now."


    The man tried to stand by while both Rita and Quince shared a look. They decided to let the man stand up and lead them toward the base.


    If he was telling the truth then it was all well and good. But even if he had lied, it did not matter much. They had Ur and the system to keep thempany and to ensure that they will be able to recover.


    "You better have not lied to us about the resistance base. We are short temper and we don''t like people who lie to us."


    Rita threatened the man but he seemed unconcerned. He was either too confident about their character or he did not care if people came looking for the resistance.


    It was their lucky break so they decided not to look the gifted horse in the mouth.


    "It''s behind the waterfall. It''s a house that acts as a gateway to an illusionary world so hold on tight. People oftenin about feeling dizzy."


    Rita did feel dizzy as she felt the magic squeeze her body tightly. Her bones were pained and her body felt smaller than she was used to.


    But it was pretty much over in a matter of seconds and the cliff melted away into an open field. All kinds of flowers lined up the valley and many extinct animals also roamed around.


    "Yo, look here. These are new kids who want to join the resistance."


    Rita''s attacker yelled toward a group of white-robbed men. They looked startled at hearing those words before one of them almost broke down into tears.


    "Another pair of joiners? Is it our lucky day today?"


    Looking at these men, Rita did not feel confident in her chances of winning. But Aurora had asked her to trust these men so she shall trust them.

 Chapter 280 280: The Resistance Is Forming [Pt2]

    "Uhm, calm down everyone. We should not overwhelm our guests bying up to crown them. Now, give them some space."


    The elder man who seemed to be the leader of the resistance said. He seemed worried that his newly acquired fish will leave his and go on their merry ways. He did not want to lose these few people who hade out.


    "L-Leader, you were here as well? When did you arrive?"


    "I was already here. But that is not what''s important. We should brief them on our n of attack. We will be starting in a week."


    The old man assured as he opened up his map. A week was not a lot of time and there seemed to be hundreds of things they needed to prepare.


    Rita was hesitant to give them even her time of the day but there seemed to be no other choice avable to her.


    "Sean, take these new guests to where we sent our secret weapon. I am sure the administrator will not see our attacking."


    Rita had a feeling that the administrator had seen theming but she was not worried about this attack.


    Still, this was a good opportunity for them to make use of and save Aurora.


    Sean, Rita''s attacker, took them to the back room where their ''secret weapon'' was stored and Rita was hesitant to go in.


    She had a feeling that she might know who the person on the other side was.


    "Oi, are you going to give us something to eat? I am hungry¡­.."


    Rita only looked quietly at Alexander''s face before closing the door behind her. She no longer cared about the ''so-called secret weapon.''


    "No, wait. What are you doing on this floor?"


    Alexander looked surprised to see Rita there. But it was Rita who was even more surprised to see him.


    "We are stuck on this floor for some time. But how did youe here this fast? Were you not supposed to be outside right now?"


    Rita asked as she watched Quince put his guard up. He had recognized Alexander as a friend he once had.


    But both of them ignored each other in the end.


    "I am here because Lord Adam wanted to assist this floor. There is a secret behind the administrator which is tower-defining. What do you think it is?"


    Alexander asked as Rita settled down beside him.


    "Maybe something rted to this? Open pages 15 to 20."


    Quince send the file to Alexander who took the file with suspicious eyes. But once he opened the file, he looked stunned.


    "T-This? Is this for real? Then, what are all the people trying to get to the bottom of this abyss for?"


    Alexander asked as his anger boiled over. His mood had turned explosive all of a sudden and Rita took a step back from him.


    "I now understand why Clove did not care about going deeper into the abyss but going for the cores all of a sudden. It''s because they can reach the end floor anytime."


    Alexander seemed to be having a new realization. His eyes seemed angry whatever he was thinking about but Rita was not concerned about any of it.


    "Knock-Knock. Alexander,e back for now. Help us save Aurora first and then you can think about this document."


    "What do you mean help Aurora out? What did she do not? No, never mind. Our backup forces will be here this week and Aurora can take care of thingster on.


    _________________________


    "How is our n shaping up? You had a meeting with Lord n right now, right? Did you get what you went there for?"


    Clove heard Asami''s teasing words but she did not take them to heart. Asami was just a little annoyed at not being able to find the ''toy'' she had lost.


    ording to Asami, she had found the most annoying but fun human she had everid eyes upon. But she has not seen him after that raid on the Rocx Academy.


    With this tension added to the pressure and annoyance of Lady Dheva, Asami''s mood was at an all-time low right now without any signs of it getting lifted.


    Heck, Clove was even afraid of Asami abandoning her at a critical moment.


    "Don''t worry. Both Lord n and Seraphina agreed to give their cores away if we get Lady Minerva to escape without any harm. With that, we onlyck three main cores."


    Clove had calcted everything from the start to the end. But the main part was starting up now.


    She knew where Aurora was but it was a shame that the floor of the administrator was where the entry to the end was located.


    No one knew that but the reason administrator had been able to grow up this big was because she held a part of the abyss''s final authority. The only overlooker that had been personally shaped by the abyss had given the administrator birth.


    "Aurora has the final key inside her already. We just need to somehow get our hands on the final core. But where will we be able to find the final overlooker?"


    Asami had a right to be worried.


    The final overlooker, Horas was someone no one knew how to find. And once he disappeared he would not appear for some time.


    "Don''t worry. I know where Horas is. He will appear during the decisive battle against the administrator to kill her off and seal thest authority for the tower."


    Clove remembered hearing about it once. She had instantly headed out to meet Horas but it had been toote by the time she reached the administrator floor. The abyss''s battle had been over and done with.


    What it had left behind was a hole for survival and an eversting sadness. No one had been able to live on that floor for a long time afterward.


    Even the original upants of that floor had been shifted.


    "Great, the world above the abyss is copsing because the tower copsed, and now even the world below is not safe. It truly is the image of the end we all envisioned."


    Clove had nothing to say about it.


    As someone who had fought hard to achieve this end, she should have been happy to see things go her way.


    "Anyway, I am here to tell you that all the preparations have been done. Once the administrator goes down, we will have all the necessary ingredients to take the tower down. And as promised, I kept this news out of Lady Dheva''s ears."


    Clove was reassured after hearing this.


    Knowing Lady Dheva and her unnatural obsession with the abyss, she would not have agreed to that thing. But Clove knew how important it was for the abyss to die today. Otherwise, it would be a curse for everyone.


    "What about Zoe? Did she go back to her floors for final testing?"


    Clove had given Zoe the final weapon they had to use. Zoe had gone back into the tower to gather the necessary energy.


    "Yup, Zoe is gone so don''t expect her toe back anytime soon. We should also get going now. The abyss will not look after itself."


    Clove agreed with Asami and she also appreciated Asami''s help. She was the most wonderful partner one could ask for.


    "We will finally be rid of this monster in a month. This world will change forever but we will not be there to see it. Hopefully, nothing will happen to this earth when we are not here."


    Zoe had a wistful look on her face as she looked out of the broken tower window. She did love this world but she could no longer support what it stood for.


    "True. By the end of this week, Aurora will be freed and then we will all push her to make the final decision. The time would rewind to the time when the abyss had only just started as a small entity and everything woulde to an end."


    Clove was certain about that fact. Everything had a start and an end. The abyss had reached its cycle but to end it, one needed to stop it from starting.


    Clove had been ten years old when the abyss had shown up first but this time she will neither gain immortality nor see the world win.


    Even if it cost her Aurora, Clove would end the abyss''s cycle because that was what Aurora deserved.


    The center of the abyss shook, knowing that its end wasing. It could feel this world''s desire to recover and to drive itself out. And the abyss also decided to leave for a new host.


    As a parasite, its first instinct was to save itself. But he needed a host first. And how as better to carry its spread than the copy of the one who had brought him to this in the first ce?


    "You want me to bring Aurora here? I see, so it''s finally time, right?"


    Horas asked as he stood up. With that, the abyss had entered its final chapter on this.

 Chapter 281 281: The Battle For The Floor [Pt1]

    "What is wrong? The week is about to be over but it doesn''t seem like you have made any progress in finding the people mentioned in our bet. Would you lose this bet after all?"


    Aurora teased the administrator while watching the other female walk around her cell in frustration. She was having fun so Aurora saw no need to change her behavior.


    It was not like she would be killed off even if she managed to piss off the administrator. So there was no need for her to fear anything.


    Besides, there was nothing for Aurora to do now, so she was also bored. She needed to entertain herself or her mind would start to wander.


    "Shit. Don''t you dare make fun of me like this? I will win this bet in the end. Just you wait and see¡­"


    The administrator was not sulking but it was a near thing. Her rising temper was making the floor unstable for its upants. A lot of spaces had already broken off due to her ire.


    But the administrator seemed to not care about the harm she was causing. She was much closer to the ''gods'' that children read about in story books - uncaring and dominating.


    "You should be careful or your people would betray you. Fear cannot keep its hold forever."


    Aurora was speaking from experience. Even the tower had ended up falling in this life and its dominance had been non-challenged. The administrator did not hold any candle when it came to the sheer vastness of influence.


    Moreover, there was an attitude problem with the administrator. She behaved too much like a child that needed to get her way.


    Even her way of management could not hold and the only reason this floor had not copsed was that the normal people were trying hard to maintain it.


    "Ah, another industry copsed. Are you sure you can afford to lose any more power sources?"


    Aurora asked, now a little concerned. The resistance was the one supposed to bring this administrator down but it seemed like she would self-destruct way before that time came.


    "Why are you worried about me? Also, these peasants are capable of handling this much brute force. It will not be their first time cleaning up my mess. That is the least they could do in exchange for my protection."


    This was what Aurora meant by ''being like a child.'' The administrator was too ignorant of what was going on around this ce.


    "Worried? I guess I am concerned about my ns falling through."


    Aurora whispered those words as she looked outside the window. Another day hade to an end and now it was finally time for the rebellion. The dawn of the next day would see the city change a lot.


    And not only that, but the end of Aurora''s journey was fast approaching as well.


    She had read the details Quince had sent her and it had been difficult to swallow at first. There was too much information Aurora had gotten that had shocked her.


    But the sooner she hade to terms with it, the more she realized that knew these things.


    As someone who had traveled to almost 50 abyss floors without any end in sight, Aurora realized that there was an alternate end to this abyss. And the room she had seen at the end of her previous life had seemed nothing like the abyss as well.


    Soon, Aurora would go back to where it had all ended for herst time and where things had begun for her in this cycle. And this curse of the abyss will hopefully end for everyone.


    ''Clove, is that what you want? For everything to be over? Will you revert to who you were once you are finished with your mission?''


    No one answered Aurora and all she could do was wait for her answers to appear. And they will appear once she goes to the end room.


    ______________________


    "It is finally time. Our target is the internal tower where the prisoners are being held. We need to free them while the other side tried to cut off the administrator''s energy source."


    The old leader was conveying his n for the third time that morning. He wanted toe across as clear-cut as possible.


    However, it was getting annoying to hear the same words again and again. Rita was yawning as she heard the old man talk.


    And she was not the only one who had zoned out. Alexander had fallen asleep already but no one tried to wake him up.


    Alexander had proven his might as a fighting legend in the past few days. He had even managed to defeat Rita and Quincebined. That made Alexander their main source of offense.


    The other forces from the over-world had arrived a few hours ago as well. They were already spreading across the floor and taking up strategic positions around the town.


    "...h h h," Rita could not hold her yawn any longer and the old man looked right at her when he said the next words, "I will not keep you all waiting. Let''s fight against the oppression."


    "YEAH"


    "LET''S GO"


    "TIME TO GO NOW"


    People were too tense to bring the administrator down right now. Rita did understand why these people were so excited to be rid of their dominator.


    "Let''s get this rebellion over with and make it sessful. Aurora is waiting for us."


    Quince ced his hand on Rita''s shoulder to wake her up. But Rita was aware enough to avoid him and look back at Quince with an annoyed expression.


    "Stop touching me like that or I will get annoyed. I am in a killing mood so don''t expect me to be merciful today."


    Rita''s eyes had a mad re in them. There was an evil tint to her eyes as she called forth all the minions she had gathered until now.


    Rita was reaching the end of her magical limit but she did not care. She would do her part right.


    ________________________


    The early morning saw people of all shapes and sizes rushing outside of their homes. It was a busy day where everyone needed to head somewhere.


    But unlike a normal day, today they all had a purpose. They would make it seem like everything was alright at the start but then they would cut off the administrator''s wings right now.


    Once that was done, they would begin their main breakthrough by redirecting the supply source.


    All this time, the attackers kill off the distracted administrator. It was not a fool-proof n but it would work out the best.


    "Hurry up and liberate our people. I want the administrator to feel our wrath without herundering anything over our heads."


    The old leadermanded as Alexander broke free from the group. His work here was to get to the administrator''s office and end her life.


    He was sure he would be able to kill her once the power supply was gone. Rita was in charge of taking care of that aspect.


    Quince and Ur were in the anti-magic management. Since they had the capability, they were sent off to take care of that side of the floor.


    Anywhere people saw, all they could see was people rushing to their jobs. It was a normal day but the main yers were being transported to their ces.


    Alexander knew it was time to start once the first power grid went off-line and then another.


    The barrier holding up the imaginable ce started to go down slowly and it was time for him to start. The barrier might be going down now but the administrator would notice that soon.


    And once she did, she would take over control of this illusion. That was when she would be at her weakest and that would also be the time Alexander would be able to kill her off.


    He was halfway through the town already when the barrier began to reform itself. Along with that, an earthquake shook the ground. Alexander managed to retain his footing but it was scary to be in that position, to begin with.


    Alexander was ready to move once again when he felt a strong energy source heading his way. He unconsciously dodged a familiar-looking weapon.


    The speak that had embedded itself into the ground in front of him shook before rushing back toward its owner. The illusion around Alexander also changed as it shook. The city from before was being converted into the Rocx valley he was familiar with.


    "Hello, my prey. It is fancy meeting you again like this. Did you miss me as well?"


    Lady Asaminded down on the ground in front of Alexander, her eyes shining with humor but also sadness.


    She seemed d to see Alexnder again but he did not feel the same for her.


    "I cannot say that the feeling is mutual. I am afraid that I do not have enough time to greet you. I am in quite a hurry."


    Alexander yelled back as he threw an explosive toward the goddess. She managed to dodge it but the smoke caused her to feel faint.


    The smoke contained anti-magic properties and it seemed to be working on Asami as well.

 Chapter 282 282: The Battle For The Floor [Pt2]

    Asami gasped as she cleared out the air. Her body felt the effect of the magic-resistant smoke but she had not lost itpletely yet.


    "You! What did you do to me?"


    Asami asked as she jumped high in the sky. Magic gathered beneath her feet as she gained a certain distance from the ground and formed magical weapons.


    They fired at Alexander and he quickly shielded the ce where he was standing.


    But the force of that weapon caused the shield to break and knocked Alexander to be pushed quite a few steps back.


    "Is that all you got?"


    Alexander asked the question at the wrong time because Asami had just rushed at him with her weapon drawn.


    Their swords shed against each other and sparks flew. Magic was embedded in their weapon which caused their environment to be dented.


    The original illusion Asami had weaved for their fight was fading away to show the floor behind its cut space.


    Alexander and Asami exchanged deadly blows with each other. They both had different priorities that made their game n a lot different from each other.


    While Alexander wanted to escape and do his part of the n, Asami sought a zing battle with him.


    She wanted a battle to end all battles and Alexander was the only human who could give it to her. No one else had challenged her like this before and Asami felt unreasonably attracted to his power.


    "Show me more of your power. Hurry and let me see how good you are."


    Bolts of lightning flew out of Asami''s magic and headed toward Alexander. He parried them away with a flow of his sword and retaliated back with a blow of his own.


    The anti-magic smoke had made Asami considerably weaker than before but she was still a force to be reckoned with. She would continue to lose her magic slowly so Alexander only needed tost that long.


    "You are too active for an olddy. Hurry up and go to rest now."


    Alexander''s sword missed Asami''s back by a few inches. She had somersaulted ahead to avoid being split in two.


    The point where her hand touched the ground erupted into spikes and rushed toward Alexander. He had to take their force full-on since he could not avoid them.


    It hurt but the recovery spell Alexander had on him allowed him to shrug off the effects and pain he felt.


    "Isn''t ot glorious? Only one of us will be able to make it to the end."


    Asami sounded insane as she continued to attack Alexander. He had to be swift on his feet to avoid getting mauled by Asami''s fists. Magic was surging out of her in abundance.


    Asami had never heard the word ''holding back'' and she gave it her all. All Alexander could do was match her in the power department.


    "You are getting slower now. It is easier to keep up with you."


    It was not easier to keep up with Asami but the insult caused Asami to lose her focus and show an opening.


    "Shut up you-"


    Alexander''s fist knocked the wind out of Asami''s body as it connected with her abdomen. But she did not go down.


    Instead, Asami took a hold of his wrist and twisted his body behind her body. The angle caused Alexander''s fist to cry out in pain seconds before he crashed into the ground.


    "Time to say goodbye."


    Asami charged her magic and fired at Alexander. It was a close-range shot that would have killed Alexander had Asami''s magic not faded enough.


    Asami''s overexertion of her body had caused her to finally run out of gas and she could no longer pull any from her surroundings. She had pushed herself past her limits.


    Her body was beginning to break apart but she could not take it allying down. She did not ept her defeat and her death, even though she chased after that.


    "Pick up your weapon. We will go at it onest time."


    Asami yelled as she rushed toward Alexander with her sword held at ready. He was not ready to take her on and he only got his sword in time to see Asami right over his frame.


    He raised his sword to pierce the chest in front of him but he was sure that Asami would be able to defend herself in the nick of time.


    Alexander opened his eyes when he did not feel anything pierce his chest. Nothing hurt and he felt whole again.


    But there was a wet feeling on his hands that felt a little thicker than water. Alexander''s experience told him that it was blood that was coating his hand.


    It caused him to open his eyes and look up at the female in front of him.


    "I h¡­esit..ated. Why d..id¡­.I¡­.hes¡­ I¡­ta¡­te?"


    Asami asked as her hands broke free from her sword. Alexander''s sword had pierced her human shell and it even peaked out from the other side.


    His clumsy actions had caused him toe out victorious but it was not his effort that led to this oue.


    In the end, it had been Asami''s will that halted her from killing Alexander. She had been too obsessed with death and dying a death she could ept that she had held back unconsciously when she felt that it will not happen.


    Alexander was a little surprised to see the oue but he was not shocked beyond belief. He had felt Asami''s need to die a long time ago but it was only striking him now how deep it was.


    "You know, I think I liked you? Maybe¡­"


    Asami''s parting words were a result of her delusion. She was trying to justify to herself why she had held back but Alexander had not felt a punch of affection from her actions.


    "Now, to take your core."


    Alexander pushed himself up as she crawled toward the dead body of the goddess. He tried to find her core but there was nothing inside.


    The fact that Asami had died at all was likely a result of her not having her core. This was a fact that Alexander only realized once he was done searching for her.


    ''Fuck. so she was ready to die anyway. That is the only reason I can think of for Asami to take out her core.''


    It sucked that Asami had never been able to go all out against him but he had still ended up as the weaker of the two.


    Had it not been for Asami''s will to die, Alexander would not have been able to survive thatst hit at all.


    Even a magic-less goddess was still a goddess. He was sure that Asami would have been able to take him out one way or the other.


    "Shit, I am in no condition to fight the administrator now. I don''t even think I can move."


    Alexander''s body sagged as he tried to keep it up. The anti-magic smoke had been inhaled by him as well.


    And even he was feeling weaker by the second. He would be able to recover sooner than anyone else though since his constitution was different.


    But the main problem remained. The administrator was still arge threat and no one knew that Alexander was in no shape to assist them.


    He heard the sound of someone pping and Alexander tensed up. If someone had managed to sneak up on him like this, then they would also be able to kill him right now.


    Alexander was defenseless right now but he did not want to see his death approaching him outright like this.


    "Don''t worry. I have no intention of killing you or seeing you die. I saw your fight with Asami and I admired you a lot. I am here to lighten your burden."


    It was Clove who had walked toward Alexander. She had hidden well and her body looked older than thest time Alexander had seen her.


    She finally no longer looked like the kid she had been a few weeks ago and a visible transformation had taken ce in her.


    "You! Are you here to cause trouble again? It is all your fault."


    Alexandershed out but he had no right to. He had abandoned the tower as well and he had even butted heads with him.


    But he had a lot of loved ones in the tower he never wanted to see go down like this. Most of the lower-case workers had died when the south attacked the tower and Alexander med himself for not participating in that battle.


    "You made your choice a long time ago so don''t go ming me for the tower. But even if you do, you have no power to correct me. For now, just stay here and keep yourself alive."


    Clove''s words hurt because they were true. Alexander was powerless now.


    He could only watch Clove walk away toward the administrator''s office in his stead. It seemed like these roles had changed without anyone''s knowing.

 Chapter 283 283: The Abyss Closes

    "Wow, look at all that mess. It seems like your people don''t want you to rule over them. It must suck to be in your position. I truly feel sorry for you."


    Aurora did not feel sorry for the administrator but it was a way to taunt the other female. The administrator had a short temper and easily lost her focus.


    Having spent so much time with her, Aurora was sure about a few things.


    Firstly, the administrator might try to act like she was stable but that was not true. There were too many cracks in her mask.


    In the end, the administrator was nothing more than a kid who had been left too much on their own and had too much power in her hand. She had never been any real threat to Aurora.


    "Shut up, shut up, shut up. What would you even know about me? I was born to rule. My whole purpose is to harness the power of the abyss and make this floor a paradise that is outside of the tower''s control. I am the supreme being who will never die."


    The administrator was losing her reason slowly. The strain of the tower on her body was too much. She would not be able to control her body any longer and it was the prime time for Aurora to attack her.


    With having to maintain the barrier as well as take care of the dwindling power supply, the administrator had her hands full. The only way for her to survive was if others came together and began to start the floor''s operation again.


    But everyone down there wanted to get rid of their tyrant. They had enough of her rage and her obsession. They wanted the administrator gone and even the administrator knew that. They were why she was so pissed off and ready tosh on at anyone.


    "H-How dare these people to go against me? After all, I did for them. I kept them safe from the tower and its watching eyes. It was all thanks to me that they were able to flourish this much."


    It certainly was true that this floor was the most well-off there was in the tower. Out of the nearly 50 Aurora had seen, nothing held a candle to this floor and never will.


    But that did not mean the people were happy down there. They were begging for their freedom from this tyrant.


    "Do you think these people will be able to survive without me? They will starve and then die cursing their fates. They will realize that the only way to survive had been me from the star."


    The administrator kept on going. The more power she lost, the more her reasoning seemed to falter. She was getting delusional at this point.


    If Aurora could use her power then she would have killed the administrator right now. But Aurora was still a little tied out by the treatment she had been given.


    The administrator still had the upper hand right now and it seemed like she no longer wanted to wait.


    "The core. If I have the core then I will be the supreme being in this tower. I won''t need all these energy sources to keep me going. Hurry up and give me the core."


    The administrator was already on the road to self-destruction. Having read her file, Aurora was sure that her body will not be able to take the burden of the core and that was why she had been abandoned.


    It was a sad truth about the administrator but one Aurora did not feel bad about exploiting.


    "Fine. If you want the core then I will let you try the core."


    Aurora threw the core toward the administrator and she got a st of energy in return. Her body was able to take the abuse but her vision felt blurry. The injury caused Aurora to not be able to stand up.


    "Finally, I have it. I can feel its power."


    The floor was copsing under the administrator''s feet as she flew down. But she cared about nothing but the core in her hand. She tried to absorb it but nothing happened.


    The glee on the administrator''s face turned into fear and then loathing. She all but threw the core down and walked toward Aurora.


    Aurora''s delicate hearing picked up another pair of footsteps heading her way but she was not afraid.


    "You lied to me. The core is not helping me at all. Was it even real?"


    The administrator held Aurora up by her neck, her eyes shining in hate and resentment. It was a betrayal for her to be yed like this.


    "B-But it''s your one fault. You might have been born to house a core but your body cannot handle one. In the end, you brought your fault."


    Aurora spoke confidently even as her neck was being crushed. She would not die from this but it was going to hurt.


    Her legs were already starting to give in underneath her body weight.


    "Then, if I am going to die, let''s die together. I am sure you will enjoy the depths of eternity. Even a goddess like you will not be able to escape it."


    The administrator was dragging Aurora toward the depths she could see beneath. The fall seemed like it had no end and Aurora was afraid that it was the case.


    Once the fall began, Aurora tried to get the administrator''s grip off her neck but nothing helped. Aurora was powerless to right now to save herself.


    But just when she was about to give up, it happened.


    A sword cut through the administrator''s wrist smoothly and Aurora was in a pair of familiar arms.


    Looking up to see the familiar blue and blond of Clove''s adult face was a shock and it added to Aurora''s not being able to move around. It was such a strong feeling that Aurora felt her neck and her heart hurt.


    "Hello, did you miss me? I am sure we are quite even now on the ounts of saving each other."


    It felt like a dream or at least an illusion to Aurora. Seeing Clove standing like an adult behind her could be nothing else since Clove was a child right now.


    "Even if it''s a dream, I don''t want to wake up. I missed you so much."


    There were so many emotions connected with that face for Aurora that she was not even able to voice her words correctly. It felt all too real for her to speak and feel Clove''s heat so near her body.


    "I am ttered to know that you think of me in such high regards Aurora and I promise to you that everything would be alright. Are you willing to forgive me onest time?"


    It all felt like a dream but Aurora felt reluctant to speak. Somehow it felt like a fair well to her and it made Aurora feel sick to her stomach.


    "Let''s not say good buy right now. We have a lot of things left to discuss and a lot of misunderstandings to clear up. You won''t abandon me, right?"


    Clove looked away with a sad look on her face and somehow Aurora felt like this was a goodbye for her.


    "I am sorry but this is the end. If you remember, do know that I loved you a lot and I never meant for any of this to happen."


    Clove whispered those words before Aurora felt her world burn. Her chest was on fire as something was being pushed inside her.


    It was too consuming and Aurora was not even able to open her mouth to speak anything. All she could do was lie there and take it.


    Then, there was a shove to her body and she fell into a liquid.


    Clove looked happy for a minute before her face twisted into a sick expression. Time should have been turning back now but it did not happen.


    Instead, the magic began to concentrate and reach out toward Aurora''s body. It all began to flow into her and cause her to cry out loud.


    "Aurora."


    Rita arrived in time to watch it happen but even she was powerless to stop Aurora''s torment now.


    The final door of the abyss had been forced open and Aurora had passed it with all the cores inside her body.


    "I need to go out and save her. Aurora''s in pain."


    Rita cried out as she tried to get near. But a sword on her neck stopped her. Not only her, but Clove looked sick as well to see a familiar face.


    The blue-haired and golden eyes man looked exactly like Aurora did but male and taller. He had an impressive figure but also something Clove had missed.


    He held thest core in his body that was needed by Aurora. Clove had made a mistake.


    "Thank you for delivering ourst ingredient to us. Now then, it''s time you all leave the abyss and nevere back. From today, the abyss will be closing officially for everyone."

 Chapter 284 284: The End Of The Abyss Starts Now [Pt1]

    One day, out of the blue, the abyss decided to behave weirdly. It had been alright when the day started with everything still in ce.


    But halfway through the day, the more sensitive adventurers began to feel it. Something was different about the abyss today. The energy inside was not the same as it once had been.


    It had caused a minor uproar but no one had paid attention to it. Something always happened in the abyss. As such, they could not keep paying attention to every little detail about what happened.


    So naturally, no one paid much attention to it the first time.


    But once the shaking started and people began to find the ground beneath their feet being pulled off, they knew something was wrong with the abyss. It was being done in a hostile way it had never been done before.


    The abyss had always been a neutral space that treated everyone as equal. But now it was behaving in a way that was killing most of its upants.


    "Mary."


    "Joseph"


    All over, people were calling out the names of their loved ones as they were being swallowed by the abyss floor and falling into the darkness.


    The abyss had truly turned into the monster that everyone had believed it to be at one time.


    And amongst this chaos, the one who had broken down in shock was none other than Clove. She had nned everything, from start to end, only for it to backfire on her now.


    Where was the promised end? Where was the reverse in time that should have happened?


    Howe all she could see was the copse of thend as everyone tried to run fortheirr lives? How had thingse to this in the end?


    "Hurry up. We need to leave now."


    People were running around her but Clove was numb to it all. She had made a mistake in her eagerness to end everything and now Aurora was gone.


    The abyss was folding on its head and there was nothing to be done. The earth was done for and humanity had lost.


    "What do you think you are doing just sitting here? You need to get your ass in motion if you want to live. You owe this much to Aurora."


    It was Aurora''s red-hairedpanion who finally decided that Clove had enough of her moping around and she needed to stand up.


    Her strong arms picked up Clove by the back of her shirt and dragged her away from the main action zone. That was what saved Clove''s life in the end.


    But that did not mean Clove was grateful. Grief was a strong emotion to ovee and it could even make one lose their reasoning. Clove was in that category right now, not being able to decide if she wanted to live or die.


    "Let me go. Who allowed you to touch me so carelessly like this? Let me go right now."


    Clove fought hard to be let go of. It was a futile fight she was meant to lose but she did try to be free.


    Rita let Clove go but not without an annoyed expression on her face. She dropped Clove right in front of another familiar face.


    "Was it all worth it? The betrayal and the heartache. In the end, you never could share your worries with me."


    Quince did not sound angry but disappointed. And somehow, that hurt more than if he had been angry with Clove. He was turning away from Clove and that sucked.


    "It was not my fault. I-I never meant this oue to happen. It was never supposed to end in the abyss''s favor."


    Clove whispered as she felt her follow the heart. The absence of her core hurt badly but it was nothing inparison to theplicated web of emotions in her heart.


    "What you nned and what was supposed to happen, all those words do not matter. What matters is what you intend to do now. How are you going to take responsibility for all the lives lost today."


    Responsibility? There was no way to do that. Human life was precious and no one could ount for another''s life.


    No matter how much Clove tried to atone for it now, there was nothing to be done from her side.


    "It is not entirely Clove''s fault that all this happened. The abyss was always headed toward this end and the experiments Lady Dheva started a while back elerated this degradation. The abyss had always been a parasite."


    Surprisingly, it was Lord n who spoke. The bald man had walked down to the depth of the abyss for the resistance and was now her.


    He looked at the copsing floor and the vibration seemed to be getting stronger by the second.


    It was time to leave the floor before it copsed.


    "The resistance is out on all floors to try and get as many people out as they can. Since the very ground is copsing, there is no telling how long we will be safe. We will need to join for thest operation to save everything."


    Lord n seemed to know what was going on and everyone followed after them.


    Both Rita and Clove did not want to leave the abyss in hopes to get Aurora back but they were dragged away by theirpanions.


    And on that day, those lucky ones who managed to get out were the witness to how cruel the abyss can be to earth.


    _________________________


    "Here she is, your next vessel. Aurora seems to have developed rather nicely. It is a shame to see her be nothing more than a mindless doll for us."


    Horas had a truly sad tone to his voice as he watched Aurora''s face. It looked simr to his and it brought a pang of nostalgia to his brain.


    Aurora was the closest specimen Horas had to his dead sister but that did not mean that Aurora was his sister.


    The one who had held Horas''s hand so long ago had died and her body had been mutted by humans for their gain. For that Horas would never forgive them.


    And that was why he was also the only overlooker who never sided with humans or give them any benefit of the doubt.


    He never showed himself either until it was necessary.


    The blob of flesh in front of Horas throbbed and shone a light gold. This flesh mold was the abyss''s core, the only thing that was left of the parasite that made the abyss.


    And it was asking Horas a question he did not want to answer.


    "What about all our other brethren? They all either died or ended up betraying us. I believe that Ava is still alive in the stream somewhere but I cannot track her now."


    It was truly a shame to see Ava of all people reach her end like that. Ava was the one who had been the most simr to Horas and the abyss.


    Her desire to achieve her goal had attracted Horas enough for him to give Ava a chance.


    In the end, even she had fallen short of expectations and would no longer be able to stop the abyss from leaving.


    "I will be cing Aurora in the transfer core now. She will be the ''new'' seed of the abyss and you will cease to exist. Thank you for all your contributions thus far. You will be missed."


    The core pulsed, not liking that it would have to give up its existence to continue living. But even it could not deny the attraction and pull of wanting to live.


    Aurora sank into the flesh-like organ in front of her. Her body was soft and light in that liquid and Aurora kept on sleeping.


    Her blue hair was gaining a silver tint too them and her eyes would also change soon due to the effect of the abyss. She was gaining her true form, the one that was meant to have all of the abysses inside her.


    Horas did not take out his core to give it to Aurora. He would keep it to himself for now as an assurance that Aurora would not fail him.


    Besides, he knew that Aurora would need someone to guide her once she awakens to her new role. And that someone would have to be Horas.


    "Humans once tried to get rid of us before but they failed and our conquest began. I wonder how long will theyst this time. As soon as Aurora is done, we shall leave this in search of a new target."


    This was the whole purpose of the abyss, to find new ces to reproduce and to take over. And now that the earth had fulfilled its purpose, it was time to head out to another.


    And Aurora will be the new queen who would rule it all. Horas would see to it that the world would bow to Aurora''s ideals and she was the supreme ruler of all.


    Only then will his sister be paid true homage by him.

 Chapter 285 285: The End Of The Abyss Starts Now [Pt2]

    "Fuck! What happened down there? The whole surface felt when the abyss decided to close its doors on us all. The magic had gotten thinner all around the world."


    Rex bitched as soon as the group touched down at the Rocx valley. It was the ce nearest to the abyss and also the perfect spot to keep an eye on the abyss.


    The look on Rex''s face was angry and it was justified. He had been waiting on the surface for so long but it had all ended up being in vain. Rex had also just saved his face from getting burned.


    So he was pissed off and his eyes burned with a vengeance.


    "Oh, shut up. It is not like we pissed off the abyss on purpose. And it is not even our fault, to begin with, that the abyss is acting like this."


    Rita answered back, her eyes zing with a fury that made Rex back off. He suddenly realized that he was in deep waters if he continued to argue with Rita like this.


    Meanwhile, both Quince and Alexander looked at the abyss that was shrinking slowly beneath their eyes. There was a visible change in the world around them now.


    The vehicles and machinery that used heavy magic were beginning to fail. The influence of the abyss was shrinking on the world.


    "The abyss is not only shutting itself off but also draining the earth of its magic. We will need to make our move soon if we want to save it."


    Quince hissed as he felt his body be heavy. He was used to supplying himself with magic all the time so this empty feeling was new.


    As for Alexander, he had spent a lot of his life without reliance on magic so it was easy for him to adjust. But even then, his life had at least some reliance on magic.


    "The world will need to adapt to a time without magic then. This is not the big issue here. People used to live without magic a long time ago so they should be able to live without magic again."


    Rita said those words rather casually, her mind focusing on how to save Aurora.


    Everyone turned toward Rita as one, soon realizing that she did not understand the gravity of this situation.


    "You are wrong to think that people will be able to adapt to a change this big. There is no aspect of human life magic has not touched and there is no reliance on any other source of energy for us. Even getting food will get difficult after some time."


    Quince was rational when he spoke his words. He had read a lot of records on what happened to people when they suffered from magic deficiency and he was not a fan of losing his mind.


    "The earth will not survive a week without magic. When the abyss firstnded on earth, it destroyed its atmosphere. Right now, the only thing that is holding the earth safe is the magical barrier that reced the atmosphere. But we will be done once it is gone."


    Clove spoke up for the first time in her t tone. She sounded unconcerned with the fate of this world and Rita wanted ot to deck her a new one for that.


    But Clove already seemed like she was beating herself over what had happened and it drained Rita of all her motivation. She could only sigh as she watched the former goddess suffer under her decision.


    "So, what can we do to help? There must be some way to stop the abyss from draining this earth of magic."


    Rex questioned as he walked a few steps back. He could feel another burst of hot air beginning to emerge from beneath the surface and it would end up scarring this time.


    Everyone managed to save themselves but it left them in rather awkward silence.


    "The only way to save the earth would be to either kill Aurora off or to take her out of the abyss so that it could no longer use her as a host. Both options are too dangerous though."


    Everyone kept quiet, not wanting to open this can of worms. They all knew that the easier option would be to take Aurora out and even Aurora would agree with them.


    She was the more dangerous one at the moment and she would agree to sacrifice herself if it was for the greater good.


    "Please say that you are not serious. There is no way we can do something like this to Elysia. We cannot allow her to die."


    Rita was the only one who stood up for Aurora. Her heart did not agree with the notion to kill Aurora when there was an option to save her.


    If it came down to it, Rita would head in alone to save Aurora. This was the least Aurora deserved from her.


    "Rita is right. Aurora does not deserve to die or to be med for what is happening. We need to help her out so that we can make her the ultimate vessel for the abyss."


    Clove''s words sounded rather empty when she spoke but no one paid attention to her tone. They were all focused on her words, not liking them but agreeing with them all the same.


    "You are not serious? Not at all, right? After all that Aurora did for us, you are just going to abandon her like this? This is not what Aurora would want for her end..."


    Rita fell quiet all of a sudden, realizing that it was ''her'' that did not want this end for Aurora. Aurora had never said that she wanted to live long or to keep on living.


    But still, Rita needed Aurora to live long because Aurora was the only one who understood her. She was Rita''s pir-like no one else was and Rita needed her around.


    "Snap your mind out of your delusional thoughts. The thing that is influencing you from seeing the truth is the abyss. You know that Aurora left us with instructions to kill her off if she became an enemy but you are thinking of ignoring it?"


    Clove yelled, her eyes zing but it was not helping Rita make a decision.


    "Clove, calm down. You know that the abyss is affecting your emotions as well so you need to keep your temper in check."


    Clove wanted to speak more but she ended up shutting her mouth in the end. She had spoken a lot today and her words were making her mind slip now.


    Despite the closing, the abyss inside everyone was reading its head and inviting those who wanted to join him.


    "We will need to start nning right now if we are to take care of the abyss and save Aurora. We will all be rendered powerless in a few days."


    Alexander''s observation was on point. He could see his magic level on the system Aurora had given him. It was getting stronger by the second and it had some incredible functions for usage.


    "Alexander is right. We will need to head out today if we want to have any chance of victory against the abyss. Our mission will be to get Aurora back, not to defeat the abyss, understood."


    Most of the people were not listening to Rex but he knew that they would prioritize saving his sister over the abyss.


    Aurora had just the right amount of charm needed to pull people her way. Even the tower''s heir had been roped into helping by her.


    "I will also head out to gather as many people as I can. We will need to travel into the abyss onest time so we will need the necessary task force."


    Quince was right and that was why Alexander did not stop him. Rex was also busy nning the attack inside his head. He had a few sick ideas they could use this time to make the abyss surrender to them.


    "Let''s head out in the evening. This is a voluntary mission so make sure youe only if you have the will to seed."


    Rex spoke but he was stopped by Alexander''s raised hand.


    "First, we should get some insurance that no one will get in our way. We should take care of Lady Dheva as well in the meantime."


    Alexander''s words held merit. Aurora''s ''mother'' had a pretty big hand in all that happened and Clove could not help but agree with him. Looking back at it, this oue was something she had been looking ahead to forever and Lady Dheva had even taken measures to ensure that Aurora ended up this way.


    Clove had not stopped her then, thinking that it would cause no harm in the longer run. But she had been wrong and now everyone else paid the price for her decisions.


    "So, we should have two teams prepared for"


    "I don''t think there will be a need. We should prioritize the abyss because I have a feeling we will run into Lady Dheva in there soon enough."

 Chapter 286 286: The End Of The Abyss Starts Now [Pt3]

    "Did you hear? The Rocx academy, the resistance, and the remaining tower is nning an attack on the abyss. Do you want to join them as well?"


    The King of the western empire asked his loyal advisor and the duke who had been loyal to him forever. The news of the abyss''s copse had reached their ears as well and most of the nobility in their kingdom had freaked out.


    It was such a tough time when no one knew what to do. No one had ever thought that a day like this woulde.


    "...."


    The duke remained tight-lipped, his eyes not meeting his king''s. He wanted to join that central alliance but he did not want to betray his king for his wish.


    "I know you want to go Noctis, so you should head out. Be careful out there ande back alive."


    Noctis flinched at being caught by his king with his thoughts but he had finally gotten permission to go out.


    It was time to head out now and the king watched his loyal duke head out to a certain death. He had seen a lot in the future and it was only after a certain point in time that everything went hazy.


    The future of earth was still uncertain for now. But there were only two possible oues for them.


    "I wonder what choice Aurora would choose. In the end, the fate of this earth mighte down to her and her final wish."


    The king retired to his room, not too bothered with leaving his room. If the earth ended up being destroyed then there would be no ce humans would be able to escape.


    With the magic bing thinner in the atmosphere, the whole world structure would start to copse soon. The king was responsible for the Western empire so he needed to hold the grounds.


    The floating ind should not fall until the very end and their king would make sure that it stayed afloat.


    "This is goodbye for real. Win or lose, I will not live to see the end."


    Things were finally ending and it could not have gone in a worse direction than this.


    _______________________


    "More and more people are joining our alliance every minute but I still feel uncertain. I don''t know why I feel like I am forgetting something."


    No matter how much Rita thought about it, she could not find it in herself to chase her feeling of curiosity.


    The world felt grayer without Aurora in it. All the fun had been drained from Rita''s world and even the desire to breathe was getting harder.


    "Don''t let Aurora''s loss hinder your thought progress or you will lose her forever. Think of it as a mission and you will be ready to go."


    Rita knew that Quince was right and he was only trying to cheer her up. But his words irritated Rita a little.


    "You will be going after the southern district''s head, right? Aurora''s mother?"


    Rita asked as she tried to reel her disappointment and frustration back. She will channel it all once she was in the abyss.


    "She is not Aurora''s mother. I am sure that Lady Dheva knows something about the abyss since she yed a huge role in finding the final door of the abyss. It was also she who created the administrator a long time ago."


    Clove''s words were soft but they were impactful. Rita wanted to ignore her for what she had done to Aurora but it was impossible.


    The more Rita tried to ignore Clove, the more her attention was being diverted toward the blond. She had seen how Aurora had spoken to Clove and despite the age difference, something was going on between them.


    And Rita did not like that fact at all. She had loved Aurora first and she was sure that Aurora felt something for her as well. So she would not allow a new entry like Clove to butt in.


    But it was all secondary to getting Aurora back first.


    "Anyway, we all will be going after Lady Dheva first since she is in the abyss as well. You both are going to follow your roles and not go off on your own, did you hear me?"


    Quince warned the two females and they looked away from each other. Their rtionship was getting worse with their every interaction.


    Ideally, it would be best to separate them but they could not afford to shift the groups. Their group was marked for offense and effectiveness. They could not afford to miss even a single person right now.


    The trio fell silent and the door was shaped open by Astoria and Rex. they were heading this small group and the only one not here right now was Alexander.


    "Remember, this is ourst stand. Win or lose, this will be the end of everything. So go out there and exert all your effort."


    Rex stood in front of the door with his head held high. He was ready to head out and save Elysia.


    "I know that many of you have your grievances and a lot of problems with each other, but you all should keep your problems to yourself. Do not bring your fights into your mission."


    Rita and Clove looked away as they both felt eyes on their actions.


    They were not the only ones who were fighting but they were the only ones whose fight was so forceful and loud.


    "Let this attack begin."


    They all headed out toward the abyss. The gate was closed in front of them but that was not going to stop them.


    Rex inserted the key he had stolen from the southern empire but the gate refused to give way. It was a huge problem that they had not seening.


    "Fuck, now what should we do?"


    Quince asked as he looked at the door. It was a tall and imposing wall in front of them that was not reacting at all.


    "Everyone, change in ns. We are going after Lady Dheva first and force her to hand over the key to us."


    Everyone cheered hearing his words. A lot of people in the group had their lives changed irreversibly by Lady Dheva''s actions so they did not like her. It was a chance for them to take revenge.


    The side castle where Lady Dheva was situated was located on the outside. It was a short walk but dangerous nheless.


    The group only had a limited amount of magic left in between them and they had to use it wisely. Not everyone can use the right kind of magic as well.


    "Those who do not want to die, stand out right now."


    No one stepped back from this fight. It was the most important fight for most of them and they were ready toy their lives down.


    "Then, let''s hurry up and get rid of thest obstacle in our way. It is Lady Dheva first and the abysster."


    Rex sounded confident but he was a little conflicted right now. Out of everyone unounted for, the one he was most concerned about was his stepmother and her involvement.


    She was a wild factor in this fight but who knew what side she will take during this fight?


    _______________________


    "Everyone is so noisy today. I cannot believe that they think they can win over me. I will need to beat it into their head so that they cannot go against the abyss."


    Lady Dheva was in a half-dazed state, her being filled with power.


    Since she had contributed a lot to the oue, the abyss had bestowed her with power. It had not given her a core but the authority Lady Dheva had gotten had made her feel whole for the first time in her life.


    The world was bright and full of color for her now.


    She was connected to the outside of the tower and had been tasked to ensure that no one could enter her. So far, she had taken her duty seriously and allowed no one to enter the abyss.


    And these people will not be able to make her step back from her duty. She would kill these people and offer their bodies to their bodies to the abyss.


    "Time to head out and take care of some pests. Soon, the abyss will leave this world and take me with it."


    Lady Dheva had no name and identity if not for the abyss. The abyss was what made Lady Dheva and it was also the abyss that would be the reason for her living.


    Lady Dheva raised her hand and the shadows rose from the ground. It was a disy of power that left most people reeling back.


    Since the world was losing more and more magic, to be able to mutter up even this much was nothing less than a miracle.


    But Lady Dheva was being backed by the abyss and she had ess to a huge quantity of magic at her disposal. It would help her win this fight.

 Chapter 287 287: A Last Attempt To Call For Help [Pt1]

    "Everyone, pay attention to your surroundings. We have no idea what kind of danger we are heading into."


    Rex spoke thosest words before he opened the door to the castle. It faced an empty room that was supported by pirs on all sides. It was a hall where a pce was supposed to have an audience with the king.


    The ceiling was huge and their voices echoed in that space. They could see that there was a huge throw at the end of the hallway.


    It easily crossed two building heights with its huge mass and size. The throne was impressive for sure, but what was even more impressive was the humanoid shape upying the throne.


    "Wee everyone. It is so nice to see that all of you walked into your graves on your one feet."


    Lady Dheva''s voice washed over everyone and they flinched hearing her speak. She was not only loud but her voice also reflected authority.


    The weaker members of the attack group took a step back, suddenly wanting to turn around and leave for safety. But they somehow managed to hold their ground.


    Lady Dheva looked at the pathetic army in front of her with disdain. They were here to challenge her but they would not be able to even put a dent in her.


    The abyss was too mighty for them to win and Lady Dheva will prove it to them. She finally took a step down from her throne and the room shook at her single step.


    Her next one caused a lot of soldiers to fall due to the vibrations she was causing.


    "Look at you all, falling around like dominos at my every step. How will you ever be able to face me, much less harm me?"


    A lot of people were suddenly doubtful that they could win or not. They had the best fighters they could gather but that seemed to be of no use in front of this ultimate creature of the abyss.


    Lady Dheva looked down with a nk stare, her amusement rising as she realized that these humans had no idea what they had gotten themselves into.


    "W-We won''t back down."


    "Yeah, right."


    "It''s one against hundreds of people. You will not be able to win from us."


    The humans still had hope for their victory. It was a sight to see for sure but it was all a futile struggle they were aiming towards.


    Lady Dheva raised her hand and the floor broke apart. The sudden usage of magic caused the humans to panic but they managed to correct their footing in time.


    "Everyone, support our main fighter. We will only get one shot at this."


    Rex yelled, leading the charge. He was a familiar figure to Lady Dheva since he had been Lady Violet''s stepson and also someone who had been experimented on.


    But the child had no idea what kind of experiments he had been a part of in childhood and now it was toote to realize what power he could have wielded.


    It was an all-out war then. Humans against the one abyssal beast standing in their way. It was shy and bloody in all senses of the world but it did not take time for one side to show dominance.


    Despite humans having a bigger number on their side, they were losing badly. They just did not have enough magic in them to continue.


    They might have the former gods and goddesses in their numbers but the loss of magic had hit them hard.


    On the other hand, Lady Dheva had ess to all the magic in the abyss. She could easily send these humans flying and also control their bodies.


    Once victory was in sight for her, she reached out to take hold of the one person her daughter had been closest to in recent years.


    Rita yelped as soon as her body was picked up by Lady Dheva and the wind was knocked out of her body.


    "Look at you. You are so fragile that it makes me want to snap you in two. I wonder if dear Aurora will scream if she knew that you are dead? Or would the abyss take control of her emotions as well, rendering her an empty shell of her former self?"


    Rita looked enraged at the suggestion and she tried to bite the hand holding her hostage. But it was a futile attempt on her part.


    Lady Dheva did not feel pain so she did not let Rita go.


    "Say your final farewell because this will be thest time you see this world."


    Lady Dheva gloated, not knowing that someone was recording all this and reaching out to Aurora for help. It was theirst source of struggle and also humanity''sst survival tactic.


    The only one who could control the abyss was Aurora now so humanity needed her assistance if they wanted to live.


    "Aurora, can you hear me? I need you to hear me and reply right now."


    Lady Violet spoke softly as she connected with the abyss. She was using all her remaining magic to find a single spec of Aurora''s consciousness but it was tough.


    But not impossible.


    Finally, she got a lead and she followed it down to the pool. And she could see Aurora down there, her eyes closed and her body suspended in the pool''s liquid, waiting to be touched and woken up.


    //////////////////////////////////////


    Aurora was having a weird dream where she was stuck in a pool, unable to move. But she was not alone in the pool. There was another existence at her side, providing Aurora with the strength to continue forward.


    It was an unfamiliar face with ck hair and a fair skin tone. But that was all the features Aurora could figure out.


    She only knew that this child was important to her and that she could not let anything happen to her.


    "Aurora, are you there?"


    Someone was knocking on ss in front of Aurora. She looked up to see Lady Violet knocking at thin air above the pool.


    Her eyes were wide as she looked toward Aurora and her lips were forming words. Aurora was sure that she had an important message to pass on to Aurora but she was not able to say anything.


    Or rather, her words wereing out of her mouth but not reaching Aurora''s ears. She had a feeling that it was due to the barrier between them.


    "Wait a minute. I will help youe down here."


    Aurora raised her hand and the magic followed her will. It open the bubble in front of her and the woman swam down to her.


    Aurora had never seen Lady Violet look surprised but this expression went beyond surprise. It was borderline terrified and Aurora reached out toward her.


    Her hand touched Lady Violet and her eyes closed. Visions shed beneath her eyes and it all ended with Lady Dheva having Rita in her hands.


    Rita was going to die at this rate and Aurora''s emotions felt disturbed. The pool around her boiled in response to her magic and Aurora took one step to follow outside the bubble.


    But that was not something Aurora was able to do. Her hand was caught in a tight grip by the young femaleying on Aurora''s side. Her eyes stared Aurora down and she was yanked back.


    "You cannot leave now. We have things to do. And you, you should get back now. You are not wee here."


    The ck-haired female raised her arm and the water changed its temper. The calm water suddenly began to push Lady Violet out.


    Aurora reached for that outstretched hand, wanting to help. But the unknown female did not allow Aurora to take a single step or even stand up.


    No matter what Aurora did, she was not able to break that hold on her hand. And her body refused to hurt this small female that was holding her.


    "Let me go please."


    Aurora pleaded, wanting to save her important people. But the ck-haired female did not give up.


    "You are not allowed to leave. But if you want to help them, I will help you out. Please do not be disappointed in yourself."


    Aurora felt her eyelids go heavy as soon as the ck-haired child rubbed her hands over her eyes.


    Lady Violet watched it all happen as she was dragged further and further away from Aurora. The ck-haired child was looking back at her with a terrifying expression that caused her heart to freeze in fear.


    "Have fun."


    The ck-haired child whispered and the water threw Lady Violet out. She was suddenly back where she had started with no way of doing anything else.


    She did not know what kind of future humanity would be faced with but Aurora''s help was out of the question now.


    ''What will we do now?''


    Behind her, Rita was facing the final moments of her life. Lady Dheva had started to squeeze her body and Rita''s expression was twisted in pain.

 Chapter 288 288: A Last Attempt To Call For Help [Pt2]

    "Let me go now. You will regret trying to kill me. Let. Me. Go."


    Rita punched the hand that was holding her hostage but she was not let go of it. Lady Dheva kept on holding on to Rita and kept squeezing her.


    Oxygen was getting rarer by the second for Rita but she made ast-ditch effort to save herself. But nothing was working on Lady Dheva''s hand.


    "Say goodbye, you irritating worm."


    Rita closed her eyes but she had not epted her fate in her heart. She still felt hope that something will save her and that Rita will be able to live a fulfilling life.


    Lady Dheva''s hands squeezed and Rita''s ribs protested against that action. She somehow held on to her consciousness and gathered as much magic as she could.


    "Is that all you can do? The abyss doesn''t care about your effort at all."


    Lady Dheva yelled, her voice shaking the room. She was about to kill Rita when her wrist was cut off.


    Rita fell, her body not able to right itself in the air. The fall would kill her even if Lady Dheva was not able to. Her eyes closed, not wanting to see the ground so close to her eyes.


    But her fall was broken by a pair of arms catching her body.


    "Ya, did you miss me? I think I was able toe here on time to save the day."


    "Ava, you are here? When did you¨C?"


    Rita asked, not being able to speak fully. Her ribs were aching due to all the abuse they had taken and Rita''s breath wasing out slowly.


    Above them, Lady Dheva looked down angrily, her eyes zing red as she watched this new person interfering.


    Of course, she recognized Ava, the previous outlooker who had disappeared into the abyss floor with Aurora. Ava had tried to challenge the impossible and she should have been dead.


    But she had not only managed to somehow survive but also came back as if nothing had happened.


    "You? Are you betraying the abyss and its cause as well? You, out of everyone should have been on the abyss''s side."


    Lady Dheva roared out as she attacked Rita and Ava. her magic was mighty and still building up in her hand. It would soon reach Rita and Ava, ending their lives.


    "As if I would be done in by someone like you. I was loyal to the abyss but guess what? Aurora managed to win me over."


    Ava yelled back as her magic stopped Lady Dheva''s attack on her way. Everyone cheered at seeing someone other than the abyss''s guardian use magic.


    The one who was most taken aback was Lady Dheva herself. She had not expected anyone to stop her attack like that. No one should have been able to use magic and yet here Ava was, showing that she was not any weaker than before.


    "Impossible! How could you still have that much magic left? The abyss should have sucked you dry."


    Lady Dheva yelled in disbelief, not being able to control her eyes from taking a second look at what was happening in front of her. How could Ava, someone who had abandoned the abyss, be awarded such powers?


    It was not fair to Lady Dheva who had devoted all her life to the abyss and its cause.


    "I almost pity your position. Since you were born from the abyss, you can see nothing but the abyss. So I will give you what you should have - liberation. You will finally be free of your obsession."


    It was a sh of great magic, Ava vs Lady Dheva. They were both exchanging blows that were making the building shake.


    "Everyone, get out of here. The pce is about to copse in a few seconds."


    Everyone started running outside but Clove ran toward the center of the chaos. From experience, she knew that whatever was happening in the center will be her key to reaching Aurora.


    The only one who spotted this chaos was Rita who had been paying attention to this happening. She ran after Clove with a heavy heart.


    Meanwhile, the two people who had caused this copse were busy with each other. They were the only two beings left on this earth who still retained their magic.


    "You might be able to get rid of me but what about thest outlooker? Even you know that you cannot dent Horas even if you try. In the end, you will all fail."


    Lady Dheva seemed to have lost her mind as sheughed. Her voice was heavy and shrill, intimidating the people around her.


    But Ava was not impressed since this oue was something she had long expected to happen. Ever since she had decided to go against the abyss, she knew she would have to face Horas.


    "I know what I can and cannot do against the abyss but you do not get to decide that for us. If I die, then it will be on my terms."


    Ava snapped back as she felt her magic respond to her wishes. It was rising in her body and burning her from the inside.


    It was toote by the time Lady Dheva realized what was happening and she had been pierced through by the power of the abyss.


    Since it was the same kind of power she wielded as well, her body was not able to recognize the danger it was in and refused to heal.


    "W-Why? This was n-not supposed to happen to me. I was the chosen¡­..one¡­.."


    Lady Dheva''s fading voice reached everyone''s ears and they could not believe what had just happened.


    They had won and they had won hard. Thest gate that was blocking the abyss from them had been dealt with. No one mourned the loss of the former queen of the south.


    No one but Ava understood why Lady Dheva had done what she had done. The pull of the abyss was alluring and misleading. It could cause the most innocent people to travel down an evil path.


    "It''s finally done and over with. And now what? What is next for us?"


    Quince asked as he returned to the site. He was one of the few ones who had not hurried up into the abyss.


    As soon as Ava had arrived from seemingly thin air, he realized that it would not be easy to get to the end of the abyss. Simply entering the abyss would not give anyone the right to look for Aurora or to reach her.


    "Now, we need to decide who will go after Aurora. We cannot send a lot of people in since it will require a lot of manpower to keep the gate open."


    Ava exined and everyone looked at each other. They all wanted to go after Aurora because of thier reasons but only a few could enter the rift.


    "I will go. I need to go after Aurora at any cost and I will not stay behind no matter what you say."


    Rita dered as soon as she realized that it will be a firste and first serve position. She could not afford to miss seeing Aurora, especially if it turned out to be thest time she would be able to meet Aurora.


    Everyone snapped to attention as soon as Rita imed the first spot.


    "I will go as well."


    "Me too."


    "I need to go as well."


    "No, I want to go"


    Everyone was speaking at the same time so no one was audible. It was an irritating mess that no one could solve. They were all trying to be louder than the other to ensure their spot.


    "Enough. The maximum capacity of people that can enter the rift is 4. And I want Clove to go in at any cost. The rest, you can decide on your one."


    Everyone looked at Clove who had not spoken up until now. Even Clove looked caught up by that sudden address but she quickly wore a confident expression.


    "I will go. I know that you people have things to say regarding this but I need this chance to prove myself."


    Clove looked determined of a sudden and everyone fell quiet. They all agreed that Cloev should not have a spot on the team that was to go after Aurora.


    "Then, it will be me, Rita, and Clove. As for the fourth one?"


    "It should be me."


    An unknown female voice broke the silence and answered the question Rex had posed. He looked surprised to see Karan (currently Lucy) there since the former god had been assigned somewhere else.


    This was, again, a shock to everyone. They did not know who this unknown female was but she had appeared out of nowhere and was demanding a spot on the team.


    "Listen here, we are not running a-"


    "Alright. If you want toe then it is decided. The four of us will go after Aurora and that is final."


    Rex cut off Rita and solidified his words. Karan or rather, Lucy needed toe along.

 Chapter 289 289: The Last Hallway [Pt1]

    With the team decided, they entered the dark room that was thest floor of the abyss. It was as dark and gloomy as one could have expected a prison cell to look.


    This was not a ce one would associate with the finality of the abyss. It did not look like anything could survive the darkness of this ce.


    "Are you sure this is the right ce? Isn''t it too dark in here?"


    Rita asked the only one who was in the mood to make observations right now. Her vignt eyes were looking all around in an attempt to find an exit.


    She was not the only one paying attention to her surroundings though. Everyone else was hyper-aware of where they were as well as they continued to walk through the wet prison-like space.


    The whole space was giving off a depressing vibe. The further the group went in, the more they felt like the ce was not weing them.


    "Be careful. This ce gives me the creeps."


    Rex warned as he felt the energy rushing through him. The abyss was seizing him up, trying to see if he was an intruder or not. It made Rex''s senses stand on the edge and he could not help but look back at his shoulder once or twice.


    He was not the only one feeling the creeps right now. Clove was as tense as a spring ready to go off and even Rita was anxious.


    The only one who seemed to be a little rxed was Lucy (Karan) but it was because she was getting used to her new body.


    "What are you people doing here? The fact that you are here means that Lady Dheva lost. What a tragedy it turned out to be for us."


    Clove hissed as soon as she realized who the speaker was. There was only one person in this world who could sound this disappointed and still be at an advantage.


    "Thest overlooker. Be careful with him since he is not someone we can mess with."


    Clove warned her party, knowing well that Horas was ying around with them. Had he wanted them dead, they all would not even have been able to take a step in this corridor.


    The amount of influence Horas held on this abyss was tremendous. Some people would even call him the reincarnation of the abyss. He was just that strong.


    And currently, he was rushing at them with his sword out.


    Rex interrupted that attack with a sword, it shes with the man and stopped him in his tracks. Horas pretended to y to Rex''s tune as he turned his sword and lost it.


    "Oops, looks like I lost. What will I ever do now?"


    Horas''s voice was t but no one took his words seriously. He was not taking them all seriously and he had no reason to as well.


    "What do you want from us? Are you here to kill us?"


    Lucy (Karan) asked as she watched Rex being pushed back without even meeting swords with the overlooker.


    Horas just stood at his ce, his eyes looking over everyone who currently stood in front of him. His eyes held no care for anyone but his targets.


    "Killing you? It''s quite the opposite. I want to help you people out so that this abyss can finally find rest. Aurora is also rebelling a little because she is worried for your safety. So I want to show her that you all are alright."


    The party tensed as soon as they realized they had been used. The overlooker had expected them all toe.


    Clove decided to take a shot at Horas, not expecting her attack to have any effect on the overlooker.


    And as she expected. Horas managed to not only side-step her attack but also retaliate with his own in time. Clove copsed as she clutched her stomach. That punch had hurt her.


    "Do not try to fight a battle with me. I am not your opponent or here to cause you trouble. If anything, I am here to help you out."


    Horas said that all so naturally that anyone would have doubted his intentions. But he stood tall and firm on his decision.


    Rita was the one who decided to take the chance they were being given. She walked toward Horas and looked him in the eye.


    To her, Horas looked a lot like Aurora. From those blue hair to those golden eyes, everything about him screamed familiar and Rita decided to take a gamble.


    "I will go with you. If you say that you can show me where Aurora is then I am willing to take this chance."


    Since Rita was the only one who had stepped forward to take this chance, she was the one who should get it. She was ready to follow Horas into a trap if she needed to and Rita had her mind made up.


    However, all her hopes were dashed by the one person who was expected to help her out.


    "I want to take you with me but I have a feeling thedy behind you would be much better for this job. After all, she was the reason everything started in the first ce. It is only right that she gets the final words as well."


    Rita turned around to stare at Clove. Once again, it was Clove that had been chosen and Rita had no idea why. What was it about Clove that made everyone choose her over Rita?


    First Ava and now Horas, they had both pointed toward Clove as if she held all the answers to this mess.


    "Why her? What does Clove has that I don''t? Why does it have to be Clove who talks to Aurora when it was I who-"


    "It is not about who deserves it but who needs to finish it. The reason Aurora was pushed into this situation was because of Clove, or should I say Goddess ra''s reincarnation? Anyway, you made this mess in yourst timeline so you need to clear this up. The abyss also wants to meet you."


    Rita fell quiet after she heard those words. The more she heard, the more she realized that she might not know anything about what was happening here.


    Talks about second life and reincarnation, but Rita did not get them. She did not want to get them.


    "And if we refused to allow Clove to go alone? What will you do then? We all came here to drag Aurora out so we will all go to her together."


    Rex spat those words out as soon as he realized that he was about to be cast aside. Both he and Lucy (Karan) were ready to force their way through.


    Rita was ready to fight as well, not wanting to be left behind as well. But she was sure that Clove would agree.


    ''I guess Clove is an enemy as well now.''


    Rita turned toward the other female, only to be surprised when Clove did not immediately agree or disagree with Horas. But she was standing on their side which meant that she was not going.


    "I cannot ept what you are asking me to do. I do want to talk with Aurora again but it needs to be all of us together. I have no confidence that I will be able to drag Aurora back home alone."


    There was a time Clove''s one word would have made Aurorae running. But a lot had happened since then and both Aurora and Clove had changed.


    Even the people around them both had changed so Clove no longer held the same importance she once did in Aurora''s life.


    "I see. So this is your decision? You all leave me with no other choice now but to force the will of the abyss."


    Horas snapped his fingers and the world exploded. The hallway that had been empty before was suddenly full of moments.


    A lot of monsters began to emerge from the depths of the abyss. Horas was standing in the middle of those monsters, his eyes looking toward the group withzy eyes.


    "Everyone, pay attention. You will need to get past Horas if we want to save Elysia."


    That was the n and one final fight against the monsters began. It was them against thest of the abyss.


    Rita banished her weapons, her entire being focused on getting past Horas and the monsters pressed against them.


    Their gigantic ws came down to kill her but Rita managed to get past them easily. Her knife cut through the tough shell of these monsters like they were butter.


    She was not the only one who was getting past these matters. At her side, both Rex and Lucy (Karan) were making good progress.


    Clove was the only one having problems but it was because of the pain her stomach was in due to the injury she had suffered.


    And on the other end of the prison hallway stood Horas whose eyes were zing bright gold.

 Chapter 290 290: The Last Hallway [Pt2]

    The battle had no end. It was one wave of monsters after another and Rita was getting exhausted. She knew that she could not allow herself to fall since she was the first wave of defense.


    But it was tough to deal with these monsters without her magic. She had never needed to fight for this long either.


    Their side was slowly losing energy but their enemy had not even broken a sweat. Horas, thest overlooker was just standing at his ce and not even moving. It was a hurdle that seemed impossible to ovee at their current level.


    But Rita was not going to give up. There was no way she could afford to give up here and now. Not when so much was at stake here.


    "This is a reasonable attempt by you to make me give up but humans cannot ovee their limitations on their own. Even you all will fail in the end."


    Horas seemed convinced that he would not be defeated today but Rita knew that would not be the case. She will win at any cost, even if she has toy her life down.


    /////////////////////////////////////


    "Stop it. They''ve had enough of our fight. I don''t want them to suffer."


    Aurora knocked against the water bubble she was being held inside. The outside view she was being subjected to was a crude scene. No matter where she looked, people, Aurora knew were being killed off.


    The abyss was hungry and it wasing for humans to sate itself.


    Besides Aurora, the ck-haired child, the very essence of the abyss sat. she giggled every time a human was killed off and her eyes shined when their energy was absorbed.


    Aurora did not want to associate with the abyss''s reincarnation but she had no other choice.


    After all, she was the one who had brought forth the abyss in this world. It had been through her body that the abyss had been able to absorb enough energy to cultivate a body.


    "What is wrong? Don''t tell me that you are feeling sympathy for those insects. Don''t look at them too much because they are our food."


    With a single flick of her finger, the abyss sent everyone falling. Solid ground broke apart to cause magma to rise.


    People were dying left and right.


    "There is no need for you to do this, right? You will get your nutrition anyway, so why use this torture to get what you want? Besides, you have enough energy to leave this earth, right?"


    Aurora could feel the centuries of energy this abyss had cultivated. It was leaking out from every pore of the abyss and added even Aurora''s body.


    And because Aurora could feel all that, she also knew that there would be no way for her to win from the abyss.


    The only way she would ever be able to call her situation a victory was if the abyss decided to take a step back.


    "You can never have enough energy. But that is not why I am making all these humans into fodder. I am just trying to find a nice body to upy because my primary one decided to abandon me."


    The abyss looked straight at Aurora as it said that. There was usation and me in her gaze which made Aurora look away.


    She very well knew that she held arge part in what was going on around her but Aurora was hesitant to take responsibility.


    Aurora still had so much to do and so much to explore. There was a world out there that was waiting for her and there were also loved ones Aurora wanted to talk to again.


    "You should make up your mind. Look, I don''t think your party would be able to keep up with Horas any longer. Your brother is in a bad mood today."


    The abyss pointed out just as Horas shed Rita''s shoulder. It was a shallow wound that left Rita reeling back in shock.


    Red was flowing down her shoulder and she cupped it. But the flow of blood was not stopping. Rita would bleed out if she was not treated in time.


    "Stop it. Tell Horas to step back right now."


    Aurora could not watch it all happen any longer. She wanted everything to stop but nothing was in her control.


    The more Aurora tried to hold on to her control, the more it slipped through her fingers.


    The abyss was taking away everything from her but time was not slowing down.


    "You know what you can do to make everything stop. All you have to do is to ept me inside your body, merge with me and continue to exist in some other ce. All these people will be saved if you did that."<novelnext>  </novelnext>


    The abyss was such a temptation, its voice calling out to Aurora to ept. But she did not want to give in.


    There was too much at stake on both sides and Horas was doing what he had been ordered to do.


    Rita was going to get killed when Clove jumped in between her and Horas. It was Clove''s chest that was shed as a result and everyone looked stunned.


    The most stunned one was Aurora herself since she had not expected that. Her heart gave a pang of pain as she watched both of her precious people bleed out.


    "Time is ticking out. You only have so long before everyone ends up dead. So, what is your decision?"


    There was not much of a decision to make there. Aurora was being pressed to ept the abyss inside her. All she could do was sit back and agree with the abyss as it dictated what needed to be done.


    "Fine, I ept. But I want onest thing before we merge. I want a chance to talk with the people I am going to leave behind."


    The abyss did not look happy and Aurora knew that it would not agree with her. There was no real need for the abyss to agree with Aurora''s demand since it held the real power here.


    However, Aurora''s fears wereid to rest once the abyss turned toward her with its head tilted toward the right side and looking at Aurora right in the eye.


    "You have one day to say your goodbyes. That will be all the time I give you before we have to depart for a new world. Prepare your heart because there will be no do-overs for either of us."


    Aurora was surprised to get this second chance but she was not disappointed.


    Truthfully, this was more than Aurora had expected to get since she was talking to the abyss. But it just highlighted that the abyss thought well of Aurora and was willing to trust her.


    "Call Horas back right now."


    "No, I will not. Horas will go with you to keep an eye on you. I do not trust that you will keep your word ande back."


    Aurora could hear humor in the abyss''s voice. It was jesting with her but there was a warning in there as well.


    The day Aurora would get to spend with her family will be thest for her. After that, she will need to leave this earth while carrying the abyss within herself. She was not sure where she would be headed but Aurora knew that she would never be able to return.


    "Now then, ept me inside you, and let''s go."


    Aurora took the hand she was being offered. The abyss was a heavy presence inside her mind but it was not overpowering.


    Aurora was really lucky that she had enough endurance to not faint as soon as she felt all the sensations that were going on inside her body.


    ''Enough talking around. Hurry up and show me the outside world.''


    Aurora had a bitter-sweet realization - she will never be able to escape the clutches of the abyss no matter where she went now. All her hopes and dreams to perform a miracle were gone now.


    But thest chance to have a talk with everyone and clear the air out remained.


    The abyss parted around Aurora like it was a part of her body. She could feel the energy coursing inside the depths of the darkness and Aurora had never felt more powerful before.


    Each and every core she had within her body pulsed and gritted against each other. It created awork of power that Aurora appreciated.


    And Aurora was sure she would never be able to forget the expressions of joy and relief she saw on her party''s faces as they watched here back alive.


    They did not realize what was wrong with her but Horas did.


    And since Horas realized, he stopped his attack in time and all the people on the ground were safe.


    "Aurora, you are back?"


    Rex whispered but everyone heard him. It had gotten just that quiet around the area.


    "Yes, I am back. Let''s go home."


    It was a temporary victory but a bitter one.

 Chapter 291 291: End Of An Era

    It was a bright day. The abyss had finally calmed down and those who had survived felt lucky to be so.


    There were a lot of people who were mourning the loss of thier loved ones but just as many people were celebrating as well. The abyss had finally disappeared, leaving behind the broken earth and a small amount of residue.


    The ground which had been difficult to even step on once was regr and ready to see the light of day again.


    And it happened just in time for the floating cities tond on the ground. Without magic, it was no longer possible to sustain their floating.


    A lot of people lost their livelihoods that day but no one was angry or upset over it. Finally, an era wasing to an end.


    The ce that was celebrating the hardest was the Rocx Academy. They were the side that had lost the most and also gained the most. They were the true heroes of the day.


    And the one who had ended everything. Aurora was busy making rounds. She wanted to see everything she had saved and everything that she was willing to leave behind.


    "Aurora, are you sure you are alright? It had only been a few hours since the abyss disappeared. You should be resting right now."


    Rita sounded concerned and for good reason. Her arm was held in a cast which was binding her chest as well. She would not be able to use the arm again but she was lucky to be still alive.


    Rita eyes Horas, the one standing at Aurora''s side. He had been following Aurora ever since she had left the abyss. His presence had caused everyone to stand on alert.


    But he had done nothing but follow Aurora around. And since Aurora had assured everyone that he did not mean any hard, they had all allowed Horas to do what he wanted to.


    "You should not be concerned about me Rita. see, I am all right and it was not like I suffered any grave injuries. I am perfectly in shape to be walking around."


    Aurora assured Rita, knowing that she did not believe her. But Rita chose to let her go for thest time in her life.


    It would end up bing the biggest regret of Rita''s life in the future.


    "I see. It is nice to see that everyone is happy in the end. Also, I am d to see that we both turned out alive in the end."


    Rita sounded d and Aurora felt guilty for what she was about to do to Rita. It was something Rita would not be able to forgive Aurora for but Aurora still decided to take this step.


    "Rita,e here right now. Some people are here to meet you."


    Aurora looked up toward Rex as well when he called Rita over. Aurora recognized Rita''s maids, the ones who had brought her up.


    Rita had tears in her eyes at seeing her maids again. She might have grown up but she could forget the ones who had been kind to her at the start.


    "Go to them. They have missed you a lot."


    Aurora shoved Rita a little, giving her the courage to take the first step. And as soon as Rita took that one step, the next one became easier and easier for her.


    In the end, Rita was gone before Aurora coulde to terms with her absence but she was not bitter.


    "Are you done saying your goodbyes? I saw you moving around the whole day and we do not have much time left."


    Horas reminded Aurora, his voice t but concerned. He had been a good guard for Aurora, following her around the whole day.


    But Aurora had not forgotten the real reason Horas was here. He was here to keep an eye on Aurora and to make sure she kept up her side of the bargain.


    He might be rted to Aurora gically but that did not mean Aurora understood how his mind worked. Besides, Horas was loyal to the abyss, not to Aurora so that changed things for her.


    "Can you wait for one more hour before we reset the clock? There is one more ce I need to go before we head out."<novelnext>  </novelnext>


    Yes, there was onest ce Aurora needed to head out toward in order to make sure everything was settled.


    None of the people on this earth would remember a human named Aurora, nor would they remember a goddess or the abyss. They would all be able to live out their natural life-spans and all it would require was for Aurora to leave this with the abyss inside her.


    "I will give you time but do hurry up."


    Aurora waved her hand as she hurried toward thest ce she needed to go. And it was also the ce where Clove would be waiting for her.


    It was the cemetery where most of the dead gods had beenid down to rest. Both Clove and Ava were there but they did not speak up.


    The silence was tense before Clove broke down into sobs.


    "You are going, right? I wanted to prevent this ending by any means necessary but I became the catalyst for it in the end. Are you angry at me?"


    Clove was crying her heart out but Aurora did not have the heart to go over there andfort her. She could not bring herself to even move from her current ce.


    At Clove''s side, Ava stood there monotonously as well. She did not say anything but her eyes were using Aurora of running away.


    "You know, I don''t me any of you for what happened. You were both just trying to reach the ending that was suitable for you. In the end, it was the circumstances that led things to be the way they are."


    Aurora assured the pair, trying to make them understand her point of view.


    Since this was thest time they would meet, Aurora wanted to carry some nice memories in her heart.


    "You are an idiot. We could have thought of some other way to resolve the situation. There was no need for you to sacrifice yourself."


    Ava finally snapped, her anger seeping into her voice. This was the first time Aurora had seen her this angry and she could not forget that zing orb Ava called eyes.


    It was not a good feeling to be red at by the snake zoodiac but Aurora bore it considerably well.


    "You both are free to curse and cry about me but do not lose hope. I am sure you will miss me even when you have no idea who I am. So I wanted to take this time to say - be happy and live a healthy life."


    Aurora could feel her time running out. The abyss was urging her toe back now and the time was starting to move back.


    The one who realized that first was Ava, her senses were still connected to the abyss.


    "Aurora, don''t. There is no need for you to-"


    "Good bye and enjoy a happy life. I am sure that you will be happy this time around."


    The earth stopped moving before it began to go in the reverse direction. Everything was reverting to the time before the abyss had established its dominance, and things were just how Clove had wanted them to be in the first ce.


    Aurora was happy to see it all happy but she was also bitter to be sitting out on the lives of her loved ones.


    "Now then, it is time for us to leave. We have mores to conquer and more to see."


    The abyss extended it''s hand toward Aurora and she took it. shes of light passed through her mind. Aurora saw the ces the abyss had destroyed and ones that it had devoured.


    It''s memories blended into her mind, their presence bing one.


    And it a new beginning as well as a new end for all. This chapter of the abyss hade to a close.


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