Clara’s finishing move triggered a catastrophic explosion in the energy section of the beacon device.
It was already a highly volatile apparatus, so the explosion had been anticipated.
In an instant, the blast wave swept through the exhibition hall, blowing away the nearby booths and even damaging the already fragile rooftop.
The mech, manipulated by the black mud and carrying the beacon device on its back, was blasted into pieces.
Of course, the heroes who had been holding down the mech’s movements didn’t fare much better; along with the shadow soldiers, they were thrown back. Some rolled on the ground to cancel their transformations, while others simply perished, their souls returning to the abyss…
It was yet another wave of brutal sacrifice.
The sudden shockwave also affected Pure White Storm in the sky, causing him to fall backwards into the circle of shadow soldiers…
Meanwhile, the heroes farther away hurriedly unleashed their defensive techniques to protect themselves and the civilians…
“Looks like Clara succeeded!?”
Though the situation was still precarious, Lucía, who had just gotten back on her feet, let out a relieved sigh.
With the beacon device destroyed, Clara’s first public appearance in this opening battle was marked by such a remarkable achievement—truly an excellent start.
Perhaps she had already become a fan of this little hero; as her technician, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to genuinely become one of her supporters…
“She did succeed, but we’re still far from victory. Don’t celebrate too early.”
Fran poured cold water on Lucía’s optimism, then added:
“However, with the beacon device destroyed, it means no reinforcements for the monsters for now. That converted mech was also blown to bits, so they’ve lost their biggest asset.
Next, we just need to wipe out the remaining monsters.”
Though the nearly invincible shadow soldiers remained troublesome, knowing their weakness meant they were not entirely unstoppable. The heroes were gradually gaining control over the situation…
“Wait, Miss Fran.”
Lucía’s expression suddenly turned anxious again.
“T-that blob of black mud isn’t dead yet!”
The black mud that had previously fused inside the mech was now seeping out of the ruined heap of scrap metal, rolling towards the crowd like a tsunami or an avalanche.
But before it could reach anyone, it was shattered by artillery fire from above.
It was Clara again.
“You okay?”
She landed in front of Lucía, riding her squid broom, showing concern.
“Oh! Senior Clara!”
Lucía, excited, hugged her tightly.
Because of their height difference, Clara’s soft face was pressed repeatedly against some soft part of Lucía, causing her cheeks to flush red.
“D-don’t do that, so many people are watching…”
As the older brother, it was hard for Lucía to accept her younger sister hugging her like this, but after finally calming down, she still refused to let go.
“Thank you~”
Hearing her sister’s words, Clara was genuinely pleased.
Fran, watching everything through her glasses, shouted at that moment: “Hehe! This is a battle zone! I get that you two are close, but save the hugging for after the fight, okay?”
Clara, still pressed against Lucía, heard Fran’s voice as well.
“Huh? Doctor Fran?”
“That thing isn’t destroyed yet. Those smaller monsters can reorganize as long as their core isn’t destroyed. You don’t really think that big blob will be taken down so easily, do you?”
Just as if to prove Fran right, the black mud that Clara had smashed to bits started gathering again.
Not only that, the shadow soldiers who had been tangled with the heroes suddenly seemed to receive an order and turned to rush toward the black mud.
Those who got close lost their physical form and collapsed into the same black mud, merging with it. But as the total mass increased, the volume of the mud began to shrink, as if undergoing some kind of evolution…
“The Witch is coming.”
Nyx’s words were cryptic, and Clara naturally didn’t understand.
“Huh? Witch?”
“The weakness is still the core. When it forms, get ready to fight.”
Lucía removed her glasses.
“Doctor Fran said she could help you. Put your glasses back on.”
“Oh…”
Luckily, these were plain lenses, so wearing them didn’t affect her vision.
Looking up again at the black mud that was now continuously shrinking and reshaping, it had taken on the figure of a girl—fitting Nyx’s description of the “Witch.”
Unlike the shadow soldiers who were mere silhouettes, the witch formed from countless shadow soldiers mixed with the black mud had distinct facial features—dark skin, white hair, and emerald green vertical pupils. She wore a thin dress, with slender limbs and form-fitting fabric outlining her alluring curves, her every step radiating grace…
The drones that had been circling Clara moments ago now risked flying near the witch to film her.
Clara muttered, “The media sure are opportunistic, huh? This was supposed to be my grand debut battle!”
However, the witch still bore many inhuman traits: multicolored black scales, eerie green slit eyes, and a thin, snake-like tongue.
From Clara’s perspective as a monster, the appearance was actually quite beautiful—but also dangerous.
A masked hero in a dark bodysuit, claws at her fingertips, rushed forward to fight, but was pierced through the chest by black needles before even making contact.
“The target is smaller in size, but not weaker. It’s even stronger after absorbing the power of other shadow soldiers… We don’t know what kind of magic she uses yet, stay alert.”
Even without Nyx’s warning, it was obvious just from looking.
This so-called witch might already be at the level of a special-class monster or special-class hero—the same tier as the “Naitmel” supreme leader. A formidable enemy capable of sustaining an entire organization…
It would be extremely difficult for the heroes on the scene to take her down, so Clara didn’t want to be the first to engage. She certainly didn’t think she could defeat such a monster…
“This is the witch? Not some female monster with serpent genes?”
“A resident of the Dark Realm—that’s a lingering issue going back centuries.”
Fran, watching through her glasses, continued to explain: “We don’t know who opened the wormhole to release them, but because they’re so hard to handle, it’s been dragging on without a solution for so long…”
The “Dark Realm” was a historical problem in this world.
Because it was difficult to purify, several “Dark Realms” had been sealed off.
But someone couldn’t resist and connected the pipe that let the creatures out…
This wormhole was that “pipe.”
“Nyx can’t help either?”
“She has two cores that must be destroyed simultaneously in a short time.”
A useless piece of advice, but it sounded even harder to deal with.
“Please, the enemy isn’t going to just stand still for me to attack… Seriously, why am I, a rookie hero, supposed to handle an endgame-level boss like this?”
The enemy’s strength was clearly beyond what a new hero could take on. It was better to ensure Lucía’s safety first…
However, the snake-eyed witch didn’t seem to think the same way.
She headed straight for Clara, who thought she could stay safe hiding in the back.
“Huh? So grudging!”
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