Chapter 77: Mom’s here

“Help! Help!”

The white-haired little loli was running for her life with all her might.

Behind her, Stella followed closely.

She couldn’t understand it.

Tina was a member she had personally trained, the most obedient and sensible of them all.

But exactly this well-behaved, gentle child had openly defied her for a little girl from the enemy side she had just met, and even risked letting her escape while the guild was at a disadvantage.

In Stella’s eyes, it was all Nuo Ai’er’s fault.

That soft, innocent-looking little white cat must have been whispering sweet nothings behind her back, stealing away her obedient Tina.

“Stop! Don’t run!”

The more Stella thought about it, the angrier she got. She swung her whip.

It precisely grazed Nuo Ai’er’s back and struck the muddy grass, splattering a spray of dirty water.

“Eeek!”

Nuo Ai’er’s little body trembled in fright, her heart pounding wildly.

But she dared not stop.

Stella chased and questioned at the same time:

“What exactly did you say to Tina?! What sweet talk did you use to twist her around?!”

“She’s been with me for years and has never talked to me like that! But the moment she met you, she disobeyed me again and again!”

Nuo Ai’er: “…Huh?”

Is this girl’s brain waterlogged or something?

The desperately fleeing Nuo Ai’er heard the accusations from behind. Gasping for air as she ran, she mustered the courage to fire back:

“It’s not that I twisted her around… it’s that you suffocate her!

“She helped me not because I tricked her, but because she’s been living under so much pressure.”

That one simple sentence instantly struck the truth Stella least wanted to admit.

“You’ve been pushing her down, never letting her have her own thoughts.”

Nuo Ai’er shouted:

“You’re the one who made her that way!”

Her voice pierced through the wind and rain, reaching Stella’s ears loud and clear.

“Nonsense!”

Stella’s eyes burned with shame and anger, and she lost all patience.

Whoosh—!

The black whip precisely spun into a looping lasso!

But this time it wasn’t a strike—it was a bind.

“Wah?!”

The flexible whip wound tightly around Nuo Ai’er’s slender waist, then pulled taut, binding her firmly.

“Mmm…”

Nuo Ai’er’s running was forcibly stopped.

A huge tug came from behind.

Stella’s strength far surpassed hers, and now she was even more enraged.

Nuo Ai’er’s tiny body had no chance of resisting.

“Let me go!”

No matter how much she kicked or lunged forward, it was useless.

All she could do was watch helplessly as the whip held her tight and dragged her backward, inch by inch, closer to Stella.

This is it…

I’m going to be caught (crying).

I just made her angry, so being caught is going to be really bad… ugh…

“Forget it!”

Nuo Ai’er gritted her teeth and decided to go all out.

She freed one little hand and quickly clenched the lightning pendant in her palm.

Then, with a burst of strength in her fingertips, she squeezed the pendant.

The magic circle inside the pendant activated.

The next second…

BOOM!!

A thunderous roar exploded.

Blinding golden lightning was incredibly conspicuous, piercing through the layers of rain and locking onto Stella’s position, striking straight down.

“Is that… my Lightning Lure Pendant?”

Stella was stunned.

“Tina actually gave this to you?!”

She never expected that the exclusive magic item she had given Tina for self-defense had been passed on to an outsider.

The lightning fell, instantly enveloping Stella.

The whip around Nuo Ai’er’s waist loosened.

The bind was released.

“Huff… that hurt…”

Nuo Ai’er collapsed to the ground, clutching her sore belly, taking a brief moment to breathe.

But that relief lasted only a second.

The lightning dissipated.

The next moment, Stella, who had been struck square by the lightning, casually raised a hand and patted her shoulder, looking calm and composed.

She wasn’t even hurt—not a single strand of hair was out of place.

“Hmph, stupid little loli.

“I forged that pendant myself.

“And you dare to use my own power against me?”

The next second…

Zzzzz—!

Golden electricity materialized around her body, crackling densely and wrapping around her whip.

“The cat-and-mouse game is over.”

Stella took a step forward, lightning flaring around her, and gave chase once more.

This time, her power was several times greater than before.

“Waaah—!”

Nuo Ai’er was so scared she didn’t dare pause for a second. She turned and fled again with all her might!

“Do you really have to do this? Using a second phase just to catch me?!”

Nuo Ai’er complained as she ran.

“Enough chatter!”

Stella couldn’t be bothered to respond.

Soon, Nuo Ai’er was exhausted.

Under Stella’s relentless pursuit, boosted by the lightning buff, within just nine minutes—

“Urgh…”

Nuo Ai’er’s legs gave way, her vision darkened slightly, and she could run no more.

The whip precisely wrapped around her waist and tightened firmly.

Nuo Ai’er struggled weakly but was caught anyway.

“Do you want to be electrocuted or strangled to death?”

Stella dragged her back and grabbed hold of her.

She pinched Nuo Ai’er’s chin and spoke.

But then, the captured Nuo Ai’er lifted her small, drenched face.

Was she… smiling?

“What do you mean?”

Stella noticed.

“Why are you laughing?”

How could she still be smiling?

She was completely caught, about to be eliminated.

Faced with Stella’s confusion, Nuo Ai’er panted softly and spoke in a weak voice:

“I win.”

Stella: “?”

What does that mean?

Throughout it all, Nuo Ai’er had been desperately fleeing, only to end up exhausted and captured alive.

Win where, exactly?

“As the creator of that pendant… I knew from the start it couldn’t hurt you.

“So I never planned to use it against you.”

Nuo Ai’er explained in a feeble voice.

“So what?”

Stella stared at Nuo Ai’er.

“That lightning just now… it wasn’t meant to attack you. It was a location signal I sent.”

“Huh?”

At those words, Stella’s eyes widened.

“So all I had to do was buy time.

“I believed they were looking for me, and that they’d definitely find it…

“In this dungeon, the map is huge, and with the rain interfering, finding someone is nearly impossible.

“But that thunderclap was obviously abnormal—it was the most conspicuous signal in the whole forest.”

“You—!”

Realizing what was about to happen, Stella immediately tried to activate her ability, electrocute Nuo Ai’er, and escape.

“I knew you’d come.”

Nuo Ai’er showed a relieved smile.

Then she passed out.

The next second, a red figure flashed out from the dark shadows of the trees behind.

A blood-red blade instantly locked onto Stella’s neck.

“Not good—!”

Stella’s pupils contracted sharply, but it was too late.

The red-hooded girl’s blade was already at her throat.