Chapter 73: Named 【Xī】

Although it seemed a bit confusing, the character with bangs still had a great deal of trust in the “Princess’s Messenger” and the savior, Miss Priestess. He wasn’t particularly strong, but moving weak humans outside was hardly challenging.

With Vilyric’s help, the character with bangs quickly tossed a group of Ghost Thieves captives, tightly bound like zongzi, out into the manor’s courtyard and closed the door, just in time to assist the incoming Black Knight Mercenary Corps.

So, only Vilyric and the collapsed exotic girls remained in the hall.

“Seriously, why do I have to deal with this nonsense…?”

Grumbling in a voice no one could hear, the black-haired girl honestly raised her priestess staff and began to set up a barrier to isolate the chaotic phenomena.

After pondering for a moment, Vilyric took a mask from her backpack and put it on her face. It wasn’t the “Cognitive Obstruction Mask,” but rather a white fox mask she brought from a game.

Though it looked quite ordinary, this was a semi-artifact level equipment, much more precious than the former, a real one-click dress-up item.

Once put on, the black-haired girl swiftly transformed into a figure with silver-white long hair, dressed in red and white shrine maiden robes, her face hidden behind the small fox mask, with realistic fox ears sprouting from her head—a completely different persona.

Though her height and figure hadn’t changed much, the powerful effect of the semi-artifact completely masked all traces of “Vilyric.” Even the Little Dragon Daughter standing here wouldn’t be able to see through this white fox shrine maiden’s true identity without a contract connection.

Then, Vilyric took a deep breath.

“Okay… here it comes, the Blessing from the Heavens!”

Her skirt billowed from the rising magical power, silver-white hair danced in the air, and a hazy glow arose from behind her, transforming into a petite figure more akin to Miss Priestess than the fox lady.

In the illusion, she folded her hands before her, eyes half-closed, resembling a devout believer in prayer.

Then, a responding light descended from the heavens.

“Boom!!!”

A dazzling and powerful golden light beam fell from the distant sky. The girl’s phantom, bathed in the light, gradually merged with the form of Vilyric as a white fox.

…

“?!”

Just after stepping out of the manor hall, while discussing the situation with Lester and others who had rushed over, and deceitfully claiming that “the princess brought a skilled healer from the capital,” the character with bangs suddenly froze, as if sensing something, and turned his head back.

The others, also puzzled, looked up at the high sky of the manor.

There was a light beam falling from the sky, but for some unknown reason, it was abruptly cut off at a far height by some indistinct power. Only they, still inside the manor, could roughly judge its possible landing point.

“What… is that? Why does it feel so strange?”

The adventurers exchanged glances, but only the Little Dragon Daughter, lingering away from the crowd, gazed thoughtfully in the direction of the light beam and turned to stride toward the building in front of her.

…

After finishing the skill invocation, Vilyric didn’t linger but immediately set off. The beam of light, several meters in diameter, followed her movements.

Every few steps, Miss Priestess would pause momentarily, allowing the concentrated light aimed at her to fully illuminate the surrounding girls, and then continue moving forward.

After she left with the light, those girls, who had previously shown signs of pain and fainted, soon woke up, sitting up in bewilderment, looking at the sacred figure of the fox lady bathed in light, lost in thought.

This was the power of full restoration. No matter the injury or ailment, as long as one wasn’t completely dead, the Blessing from the Heavens could restore everything.

This was far more efficient than Vilyric treating them one by one.

However, the Blessing from the Heavens was a single-target magic, and even Vilyric could not expand its range too broadly. Thus, she could only use this cumbersome method, but fortunately, the skill’s duration was long enough; making a few rounds could cover all the patients.

About ten minutes later, the beam of light gradually faded, and Miss Priestess just finished treating the last batch of Magical Beasts girls. She retracted the priestess staff used to extend the duration and sighed in relief.

Though there were some complications, the satisfaction and sense of achievement after saving the patients were undeniably refreshing, which was one of the reasons Vilyric chose to become a priestess.

Next, let’s hurry up and chase…

“Whoa!”

The masked fox lady turned around, just about to raise her foot, when she was startled by the scene in front of her.

The exotic girls who had been kidnapped by the Ghost Thieves from various races and regions were all now prostrating on the ground, either gazing at Vilyric’s figure with utmost reverence or quietly crying tears of gratitude, but all displayed extreme respect.

“Uh, totally forgot about this…”

Well, it wasn’t so much forgetting; after all, this wasn’t the first time it had happened.

The Blessing from the Heavens was indeed powerful but had too much noise. Vilyric set up barriers to prevent the spread of influence, avoiding situations like that at Wanku Fortress. Level 9 magic being witnessed by ordinary people could cause mental pollution, though not as severe as level 10 magic, it was certainly present.

However, the girls as treatment subjects couldn’t avoid this impact, but Liliya and the others had previously been closely exposed to the same skill. At that time, the princess was just an ordinary person, and she seemed quite normal afterward. Thus, Vilyric decided to use it boldly for convenience.

But this scene… cough, something about it feels a bit off, right? Did something go wrong?

“…Are you all alright?”

Whoa! Isn’t that a rather obvious question!? How should I phrase this? Come on, smart little Vilyric, get moving!

Well, she indeed wasn’t used to having so many people bowing before her, especially with so many adorable girls kneeling simultaneously, which could easily lead someone to have weird associations. Fortunately, the fox mask nicely concealed some of Miss Priestess’s awkwardness.

The Merman girl, adorned with six teardrop patterns at the corners of her eyes, who was among the first to receive treatment, seemingly held a prominent position and naturally became the temporary leader of the exotic girls.

She slightly lifted her head and prayed in a sweet voice reminiscent of a clear creek.

“Yes, thanks to the Holy One’s rescue, our bodies are now well. You wish not to reveal your true face… there must be a reason. We are of lowly status and do not dare to ask for too much… we only wish to know your name, so we may remember your kindness in the future, may that be alright?”

“Holy One…?”

What a strange title.

As for names, Vilyric certainly didn’t wish to disclose it. In fact, she had anticipated such a situation, which is why she had put on the small fox mask for a complete disguise, even altering her voice.

High-level magic is incredibly powerful, but the accompanying information pollution is quite troublesome, just like that “Cult of Light” that mysteriously emerged in Sky City the other day, which is often unpleasantly close to a sort of invisible brainwashing.

From the devout expressions of these girls, distinctly different from Liliya and her group back then, its efficacy might relate to the strength and mental state of the affected.

And just like the Merman girl with six tear marks, this batch of exotic girls indeed had several individuals of noble status; they hailed from all corners and countries, even including Winged People. They were likely the most important batch of goods for the Ghost Thieves.

Thinking about it, if these girls ever learned Miss Priestess’s true identity, with their current attitude of utmost gratitude and respect, once they returned to their homelands, it would be an immeasurable influence.

Ever since that incident in Sky City, Vilyric had been considering whether to create an alternate identity to specifically handle attention-drawing troubles, to avoid becoming too famous and being targeted wherever she went.

Not like the “Cognitive Obstruction Mask,” which directly obscures observation effects, but rather a secondary identity she could switch to whenever necessary.

Fame can sometimes solve problems, but more often it brings trouble, so needing an identity rarely used to bear those negative effects was essential.

That’s why Vilyric had donned the small fox mask and warned the character with bangs to keep it a secret.

As for Mona, there was no need to worry. The Shadow People and the Grim Reaper’s Scythe merely knew that Vilyric had stayed behind; they didn’t understand the specifics related to Miss Priestess’s abilities. Given how different the fox lady’s appearance was, even if someone asked, there would be plenty of excuses.

Of course, ultimately, this idea was a bit rushed and hasty, potentially leaving many loopholes. If she were to do this again, she’d need to be more careful.

With fluffy fake ears atop her head, peering through the fox mask, Vilyric observed the looks of respect and gratitude on those Magical Beasts girls. A certain name naturally surfaced in her mind, and the words slipped out without premeditation.

“Call me 【Xī】. Since you are all well, I have matters to attend to; we shall meet again another time.”

Feigning nonchalance, she smiled slightly, lifted her somewhat awkward cloak, and in the eyes of the girls, who were about to speak but hesitated, the red and white shrine maiden fox lady had already vanished.

   

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