Chapter 615
Chapter 46: [Barracks]
“Boom boom boom boom!!!!!!”
The dust wave from the massive explosion covered most of the view again, and soon a low voice inquired from behind the White Fox Girl.
“Master, should we intervene?”
Glancing at the girl with four wings in the sky, flying around with a whole bunch of mechanical spheres, occasionally slashing some of them to trigger remote explosions, and then taking note of another figure amidst the dense dust, Vilyric shook her head.
“There’s no rush. They’re not delicate greenhouse flowers that can’t handle a little hardship. Proper pressure and damage are only beneficial to growth. Just watch, the strength of the mythological angel is far from just this.”
“Yes.”
Indeed, when the smoke shrouding Renée cleared, she was enveloped within a strange, white shell-like protective barrier. Although the outer magical shield had become tattered and looked quite miserable under heavy bombardment, the residual damage penetrating into the innermost layer was blocked by the girl’s broad wings layered around her body, seemingly unharmed.
She could still make some sharp battle quips.
“Damn, you scared me! What the hell is this? Is that thing filled with rampaging magic crystals!?”
“Be careful; the fight isn’t over yet.”
The agile figure of the four-winged angel descended from the sky again, with Leila waving her shimmering spear, her expression grave, while the large mechanical spheres that had previously been chasing her seemed to have vanished without a trace, indicating that they were all dealt with.
“I understand the theory, but sister, what exactly should we do next? Honestly, without Vilyric… that lady’s guidance, I really feel a bit lost…”
Hearing her sister’s soft murmur from behind, Leila didn’t respond right away. She just observed the dip from which those strange mechanical spheres continued to emerge, thought a bit, and then pointed over there.
“Did you see that? Since the enemy is still coming out from there, it means there must be something down below. As Miss Xī often says, ‘to catch the thief, first catch the king,’ we need to… charge in.”
“Huh? But those things go boom boom boom constantly! How are we supposed to…”
“I’ll charge in; you provide cover from behind!”
Without further explanation, the girl draped in white wings bent her knees on the spot, creating a sound like a sonic boom and leaving behind an afterimage, instantly smashing into the mass of mechanical spheres ahead!
“Ah! Sister!? Seriously… Sky’s Praise, mid-tier magical armor!”
Although she kept complaining, Renée didn’t slow down at all. As she raised her hand, several radiant beams rushed out from the tip of her staff, injecting into the body of the charging girl or coating her surface with a protective light membrane like a shield.
Receiving long-range support from behind, Leila’s already formidable momentum soared again. With just one spear thrust, it swept away a massive wave of incoming spheres, transforming into a white meteor and forcing her way underground!
“Boom!”
From within the crevice soon came a blast far more intense and deep than before, as if some giant monster was rolling about beneath the ground, crashing and fiercely battling the intruders.
Feeling the ground shake constantly under her feet, Tilysha couldn’t help but worry for her companions.
“Miss Xī, are we really just going to stand here and watch? While Miss Leila is indeed strong, that faint sense of dread hasn’t faded, and there might be something even more terrifying down there.”
“Mm…”
The girl wearing the white fox mask pondered for a moment, seemingly deep in thought. After a while, she shook her head.
“It’s fine, just let Leila take the lead; there won’t be any problems. We can go in later. It’s a rare opportunity, and we shouldn’t steal her thunder.”
Thanks to the angel’s forceful entry, it seemed that the mechanical spheres, which had been surging outward, were all drawn back into the ground. By the time Vilyric, along with the other two, reached Renée, the latter had already approached the edge of the crack left by the fallen rocks, peering suspiciously into the darkness below, her hesitant expression showing she wanted to help but was unsure.
Noticing her companions approaching from behind, she jumped up with a “Wow!” and shook her head fiercely, showcasing the weapon in her hands.
“Xī, Miss Xī!? I-I wasn’t slacking off! It’s just that sister communicated with me earlier…”
Laughing a bit, Vilyric patted her shoulder and nodded.
“Okay, I understand. After all, Leila has already stepped beyond her limits and is a warrior, while some things are indeed too dangerous for you right now. She’s protecting you.”
“Little slacker, if you want to keep up with sister and not be a burden, you really need to work harder.”
“Uh… I-I know…”
Since the commotion below had gradually quieted down, Vilyric led her companions to prepare to enter what appeared to be a uniquely shaped underground chamber revealed by the meteor strike but clearly had its own wonders inside.
Getting Tilysha outfitted with her flight wings, the four began to gently descend nearly a hundred meters before finally touching solid ground again.
Before them was an exceptionally spacious and uniquely shaped underground stone chamber, with a passage extending in a certain direction.
“I see…”
Scanning the ground littered with mechanical debris and tiny white dots on the ceiling that glowed faintly, the White Fox Miss pondered aloud.
“Master, what is this place for? And what’s with those holes?”
“Well, that’s a good question.”
Vilyric looked around the vast underground cavern, which had nothing but bare stone walls and those countless dots that would make anyone with a fear of holes a bit anxious, along with piles of mechanical remnants.
So she proposed a hypothesis.
“I believe this is a storage room, or you could understand it as a ‘barracks.’ Do you see those holes that connect to the outside? The transparent threads from before that attacked the merchant caravan and us likely came from here, operated by these spheres, which is why we couldn’t locate the attackers.”
“And each mechanical sphere represents a thread, a… soldier.”
Temporarily removing her cumbersome flight wings, Tilysha seemed a bit bewildered.
“But Miss Xī, what exactly are those spheres? They can’t possibly be the Holy Spirits of the Goddess of Light, can they? Then why are they specifically attacking passersby? Where did those people who were dragged away go?”
Seemingly pleased with the girl’s independent thoughts, Vilyric smiled gently.
“I’m not sure either, but these three questions… maybe one reason can explain them, and part of the answer seems to lie at the end of this passage. It looks like Leila has noticed that as well.”
“The end of the passage? What is it, Miss Xī?”
“Very simple. Since there are soldiers, there must also be commanders. If this is a barracks, there must be an area functioning like a ‘command center,’ connecting to the sprawling underground forest… Let’s go, Leila has already gone ahead.”
It seemed that the mechanical spheres themselves possessed the ability to discern direction in the dark because whether in the initial underground stone chamber — the [Barracks], or after Vilyric and the others entered the passage, there were no torches or magical lights for illumination.
While not essential, considering Tilysha’s and Renée’s feelings, the White Fox Miss took out a high-quality light element crystal, activated it, and used it as a light source.
By the way, as a semi-artifact, the [Mask of the God Fox] naturally had effects beyond just a simple change of outfit or identity. According to Vilyric’s experimental conclusions, this transformation, although temporary, shifted her from the perspective of [existence] into a new individual called [Xī].
If one didn’t know beforehand, outsiders would absolutely never be able to connect the two.
This was an evolution beyond the [Cognitive Mask], covering all its effects more thoroughly. When existing as Xī, although her attributes didn’t change, Vilyric’s skill list would temporarily swap to another fixed combination. While it wasn’t impossible to forcibly use her original abilities, it would exhibit some “anomalies.”
In simple terms, it was like when she was in Demon Town, where she manifested a ghostly image of the Priestess while using [Heavenly Blessing] to heal those otherworldly girls. Such phenomena that wouldn’t ordinarily appear made the scene feel more like a ceremony, as if — [Xī] was borrowing power from [Vilyric].
Though she didn’t fully understand the reasons behind the phenomenon, Vilyric preferred not to frequently use her original abilities while wearing the [Mask of the God Fox], as she was now [Xī]; if she was to play a role, she needed to go all out, right? ~