Bingyuan.
This place was once the very heart of the storm, yet it was so calm. The dark blue ice, thick as sturdy pillars, supported a spacious area beneath the water.
Vyea paced slowly around an off-white shell that stood even taller than she was, a look of confusion in her emerald-green eyes.
She had once been a Brave with vast experience in slaying monsters and demons, and had encountered countless unusual creatures. It could be said that of all the monsters on this land, she had at least heard of—even if not seen—nearly seventy percent of them.
But as for this giant shell emitting white mist before her, she had only heard of such things in the legends from the Eastern regions—Mirage Demon, a special type of monster that lurked in the deep sea, skilled at creating massive swathes of mind-bending sea fog and illusions so real they could not be distinguished from reality.
Among the monsters most feared by sailors venturing into the East Sea, the Mirage Demon easily ranked in the top three.
Imagine it—while sailing through the treacherous, stormy sea, the entire crew is suddenly, and without warning, plunged into a malicious illusion. How could they possibly return alive?
They wouldn’t. There wouldn’t even be a chance to send a distress signal.
The Mirage Demon was a unique creature of the East Sea, capable of casting an enormous illusion over an entire city with ease. However, by nature, it was lazy and extremely slow to act. Without external interference, it would never appear in the southern regions thousands of miles away.
At this moment, Vyea suddenly realized that this disaster was not caused by a single person or a single monster.
This was the work of a group!
Behind it was a band of people—or a pack of cunning monsters!
So, what was their goal? Was it merely to prevent this ship from reaching the war zone to provide support?
Vyea hesitated for a moment, then walked closer to the Mirage Demon, pondering how to deal with the root of all these illusions.
The Mirage Demon moved slowly, and apart from its large-scale illusion ability, it had no other means of attack. Its only defense was the shell on its surface. Once its true body was found along the thread of its illusions, it was as defenseless as a lamb awaiting slaughter.
[Race: Mirage Demon Level: 786 (Soul Injured)]
Her fingertips pressed gently on the off-white shell, and in that instant, Vyea caught the scent of fear and terror emanating from the Mirage Demon.
As expected, unlike monsters with only a pure urge to destroy, this one possessed a certain degree of intelligence.
But what a pity. I’ve already dealt your soul a heavy blow—can you still produce any illusions worth mentioning?
The pressure at her fingertips increased, and the Mirage Demon’s shell began to creak under the strain.
“Pl-please… I beg you, please spare my life…” Suddenly, the off-white shell trembled, and a pleading voice sounded, “I didn’t want to leave my warm pool and come here. They forced me… I just want to live… I just want to live…”
“Them?” Vyea didn’t let go. She wasn’t surprised that this monster could talk, but her heart tightened.
Dragging a near-eighth-tier monster all the way here to ambush the Starlight Lily of the Valley would have required an immense amount of effort.
No one would go to such lengths unless they had a very good reason.
Could it be, they don’t just want to hinder the Starlight Lily of the Valley, but aim to keep everyone on this ship trapped here forever?
This was serious trouble, Vyea thought to herself.
“They are Humans, a group of terrifying Humans… If you’re willing to let me go, I can show you what they look like—through an illusion.” The Mirage Demon was utterly humble and desperate; Vyea suspected that if this monster had a human form, it would already be groveling and kowtowing by now.
“I’m sorry that you were coerced and used by Humans.” Vyea glanced at the cracked opening in the shell with a hint of pity. “But I can’t let you live.”
“No, no! Please! I promise I won’t tell anyone what I’ve seen! Wuwuwu…”
The Mirage Demon, known among Adventurers and sailors alike as the nightmare of the sea, was now crying like a child whose candy had been stolen and who had been kicked down in the mud.
“Please… let me live… If my parents don’t see me again, they’ll be heartbroken…”
Parents?
Vyea never expected to hear such words from the mouth of a monster. But as she pondered, the hairs on the back of her neck suddenly stood up, as if a thousand venomous snakes hidden in the grass had all turned their eyes on her. A chilling, murderous intent surged from behind.
“I don’t want to die!” the Mirage Demon shrieked in terror, extending a sluggish foot in a desperate attempt to escape.
But it was too slow.
Vyea turned around—just as a tremendous force pierced through her abdomen. The pain was so intense it made her mind go blank for a moment.
Squelch!
The force tore through Vyea and continued on, smashing into the fleeing Mirage Demon. Its slow speed offered no chance of escape; all it could do was stare wide-eyed as death descended.
Boom!
With a shrill scream, the two-meter-tall Mirage Demon exploded into a pile of fragments.
“Haha, when a tool malfunctions, you’ve got to toss it out and replace it, right?”
A girl dressed in a billowing black coat, wearing a hand-painted Stygian Reaper Mask, descended from above. Her pale green hair was tied in a low ponytail resting on her chest, her black coat fluttering wildly. She suddenly noticed Vyea, who was still in shock, and exclaimed in surprise:
“Huh? Why are you—still alive?”
“……”
She didn’t spend even a moment mourning for the dead Mirage Demon.
Vyea slowly raised her head, one hand clutching her abdomen where the wound was healing rapidly, while her gaze remained fixed on the masked girl in bizarre attire. Yet, her eyes held neither anger nor murderous intent.
She simply stared, as if during a battle between black and white armies, the white general suddenly realized the black general was an old acquaintance—one who failed to recognize her, and was now raising sword against her.
“So, why are you staring at me like that? Want revenge?” The masked girl rested a hand on the rapier at her waist, her tone light and playful, but her posture radiated the tension of a predator about to strike.
“Aoluola.” Vyea spoke the name softly. The masked girl immediately tensed, as if facing a deadly foe.
“Who the hell are you? How do you know my name? No, wait…” The masked girl drew her rapier, slowly retreating into the shadows. “How do you know me?”
Of course I know you… Even with that mask on… For a moment, Vyea was at a loss for words. She could not understand why a former teammate from her Brave squad was now working with monsters to commit evil.
“Not willing to answer, huh?” The masked girl vanished into the darkness, her voice echoing from all sides. “Then let me chop off your limbs and bring you back for the Soul Extractor to rip out your memories… hehe…”
Cold laughter echoed from every direction.
“Aoluola, does your sister know what you’re doing now?” Vyea said coldly.
“You know my sister… No, wait,” the voice in the darkness paused briefly, then continued, “I’ve read your file, Vyea, the disgraced noble’s daughter? Heh… That’s all fake, isn’t it! Who the hell are you? Tell me!”
“If you want to ask someone a question, you should at least have some basic manners, shouldn’t you?”
Vyea’s tone was calm and measured as she added, “Judging by what you’re doing, it seems your sister isn’t aware. Also, you can’t kill me, so unless you want your sister to know all about these dirty deeds, come out of the shadows and face me right now!”
“Heh, you think I can’t kill you? You think that last strike was my best? Such arrogance!” The masked girl’s voice, hidden in the darkness, was full of disdain—but a hint of unease crept into it nonetheless.
“Then let’s make a Bet.” Vyea released her hand—the wound on her abdomen had healed without a trace. “I’ll stand right here and give you five chances to attack me. But with each strike you make, the chance of me telling your sister about all this increases by twenty percent. After five attempts, I’ll tell her everything—no matter what.”
Vyea rested a hand on her hip. “How about it? This is the special favor I’m giving you for your sister’s sake. Do you dare take this Bet?”
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