Iluna's eyes unconsciously looked again at the two black cats that had already walked away; they walked side by side on the street, very inconspicuous in the dark due to their fur color.
“Hmm?”
The two black cats rubbed against each other as they walked forward, as if it were spring instead of winter.
They very naturally, on the deserted road, suddenly veered their direction to the left, and after circling a small area, continued walking forward, as if something existed in that empty air.
Iluna narrowed her eyes slightly, releasing her clasped hands from her chest.
Ling flowed within her soul, but it was neither transforming into the four elements to use the power of a Ring術士, nor transforming into the power of a Sorceress to wield the “Edict” series of secret arts she learned from Jialinna.
Ling poured into her left eye, forged with divine power, and as a dark golden light flashed through her pupil, the world instantly became incredibly real.
She did not see the so-called “Thief”; instead, in that seemingly empty air, she saw a lady with her hair tied up, wearing a long black and red dress.
She held a large silver book, standing outside the window of the “Hyde Bookstore,” which had already turned off its lights, her gaze fixed on Yodel Palace.
She was not alone; to her left stood a middle-aged man in a sharp black suit, who looked like a university professor based on his demeanor; on the other side was a young man with brown hair who kept tossing a metal die, dressed quite casually, his hair looking unwashed for a long time, extremely messy and greasy.
Of course, while called a young man, he appeared to be twenty-five or twenty-six years old.
A holy emblem hung on his chest, but Iluna could not see it clearly due to the distance.
“A large book with a silver cover?”
Iluna was startled, and at the same time, Pa Wo suddenly looked suspiciously at the book automatically turning pages in her hand, her face also showing surprise as she looked around.
“That book discovered I was looking at them, but it doesn't know where I am?”
Iluna immediately understood, and at the same time, the instructions she received before the operation were instantly recalled:
“Tonight’s primary target is Jack the Thief; generally, do not disrupt the arrangements.
But if another valuable target appears—”
As for whether the Vice President of the Truth Society, Pa Wo, was valuable, Iluna naturally had her own judgment.
Without hesitation, the copper whistle tied around her neck was already in her mouth, and with the sharp, low whistle that only the Church's Ring術士 could hear piercing the long night, the night, which had been solidified like an oil painting, was shattered in the moment.
Her left hand grasped and rang the 【Judger Holy Bell】 at her waist, and the golden electric light that instantly erupted danced in her right hand.
The bursting thunder finally made Pa Wo understand which corner the gaze watching them came from, but it was clearly too late to counterattack at this point; the first thing the three saw was a Sunlight Gun flying out of a black vortex, close at hand.
The golden thunder spear flew much faster than the reaction speed of the three Ring術士, but the smolville code, which Luvia believed to be an angel-level relic, actively influenced the Sunlight Gun.
Thunder exploded, yet strangely, there was no sound.
This blow was completely blocked.
But the large silver book also seemed to lose its ability to fly and fell to the ground, where Pa Wo lightly picked it up.
The figures of the Church's Ring術士, summoned by Iluna's whistle, were already approaching.
Iluna did not wait for her helpers to arrive; as the brass Destiny Ring appeared behind her and transformed into a golden Balance, she had already thrown a second 【Sunlight Gun】 and charged towards the three enemies.
“We've been discovered early; proceed according to plan.”
Pa Wo said to the two beside her in the darkness, holding the large book.
The Truth Society's High-Ring Sorcerer grabbed the young man tossing the die with one hand, then leaped into the air, “flying” upwards, but immediately encountered two low-Ring術士 who were ambushing on the rooftop.
Several figures flew from a distance, but before entering Silver Cross Avenue, they were blocked by other figures.
The patrol team, who had rushed to the scene on the street, was still several hundred meters away, while Iluna had already met Pa Wo, whose Hexacle Destiny Ring had appeared behind her, head-on:
“Chosen One?”
Pa Wo recognized Iluna's identity and retreated into the shadows on the street while casting a spell.
Her core Ling Rune 【Number】 resonated with the Enlightenment Ling Rune 【Defense】, and a Miracle light, which Iluna had never seen before, attached itself to Pa Wo's body.
The latter actively spoke the name of the Miracle:
“Number Tuning.”
A dull circular base array appeared under the Sorceress's feet, but the rune in the center of the ritual array was surprisingly the number “1”.
With the effect of the Miracle, the dull number “12” transformed into the brightly glowing number “23”.
She waved her hand to meet Iluna's “Sunlight Gun,” and at the cost of instantly exhausting the Miracle's amplification effect, she dispersed the spear, which had not been thrown with full power.
“Flashy, it's just PentaCircle.”
The PentaCircle Iluna murmured softly:
“Balance!”
She did not look directly into Pa Wo's eyes, but after the dark golden Balance's light swept over, the Sorceress's movements were noticeably less swift than before.
The rotation speed of her Hexacle Destiny Ring suddenly decreased, accompanied by the failure of the next Miracle she was about to use.
Iluna knew that as long as she could prevent her from escaping within fifteen seconds, the approaching reinforcements would arrive.
Therefore, the core Ling Rune 【Hero】 flashed on the Balance's surface, the Miracle Ling Rune 【Light】 cooperated with it, and she threw the small nail in her hand to the ground:
“Thorns of Light!”
Light suddenly illuminated the dark night, and flashing pure silver thorns grew around Pa Wo, while another Sunlight Gun lit up on the street.
The silver book was held up, silently blocking the Sunlight Gun again, but this time Pa Wo was forced back two steps, her body directly hitting the flashing thorns, which directly pierced her abdomen.
Iluna manipulated the thorn bush to contract inward, and at the same time, the supporting Ring術士 finally descended from the sky.
Although they could not use overly exaggerated Miracles in an environment like Silver Cross Avenue, an Eleventh-Ring Sorcerer, a Five-Ring Sorcerer, and a Ten-Ring Sorcerer still stood side by side, casting spells together:
“Duel Pact!”
“Sunlight Gun!”
“Blazing Ray!”
Mr. Modero of the Peace Church extended chains from his hand, circling a dueling ground on the floor.
This was a space-like Miracle, which designated the dueling area and prohibited anyone from leaving.
Iluna's Sunlight Gun and Miss Green's blazing light, a Ten-Ring Sorceress of the Sun Church, simultaneously pierced the silver book and Pa Wo's body.
But the Hexacle lady's wound did not bleed; instead, the inside of the wound was filled with pages covered in text.
“It's a decoy, not a Miracle effect, but a relic effect.”
The white-haired Mr. Modero said, and the injured “Pa Wo” smiled, looking at the three:
“The Chosen One is indeed the Chosen One; you truly cannot be judged by ordinary standards, being able to gain the upper hand on our first encounter in a head-on clash.
Tobesk truly has many talents; the ugly woman I met at Lakeview Manor last time also gained the upper hand on our first encounter.
Chosen One, I am honored to invite you to tonight's game; the game is about to begin, remember not to be late.”
She was looking at Iluna, her voice very clear, not at all like someone injured.
She seemed very confident, that knowing-everything look was truly infuriating.
“Don't waste time with her.”
Miss Green reminded her in a calm voice, so Iluna raised her hand, and the “Pa Wo” in the silver flashing thorns and the silver book, which was certainly not the real one, simultaneously caught fire.
The flames quickly consumed the paper-like two, and the three Orthodox Church members simultaneously saw dense text flying out of the burning Ashes, and whisper element spread like sewage dripping into clear water towards the entire street.
The three quickly took out their respective holy emblems, and amidst soft prayers, used Miracle elements to counter the spread of the whisper element.
Fortunately, the supporting Ring術士 team quickly arrived, taking over the task of handling the elemental pollution from the three.
“What game was she talking about just now?”
Iluna finally murmured softly on the street.
Miss Green shook her head:
“Don't believe a madman's words; that one just now seemed to be the Vice President of the Truth Society; that book is very recognizable.”
She paused, then added:
“Don't leave this block tonight; Tobesk's North District has erupted, and three High-Ring Sorcerers have released an out-of-control keeper-level relic.”
“Something also happened in the East Suburbs, but it's not a big problem; the Cultists 【All Things Return to One Society】 held a ritual to summon evil creatures, and the Dawn Church went to handle it, with the Twelfth-Ring Loranta in charge.”
Mr. Modero of the Peace Church also said; he was casting a spell, trying to locate Pa Wo's true body, but apparently made no progress:
“Someone wants to take advantage of the Church protecting Yodel Palace tonight to do something in the city.
But after the lesson of Summer, this time we will not make the same mistake again.”
“Did she intentionally let me discover her?”
Iluna asked suspiciously, suddenly stepping over the team setting up the ritual and looking up at the sky.
Miss Green and Mr. Modero each caught two bodies falling from the sky; Iluna recognized them as the Natural Church's low-Ring術士 who had been ambushing on the rooftop.
Both had their throats slit, blood gushing out, but they were not yet dead.
The team's healer immediately reached out to provide aid, and on the rooftop, the “professor” and the Cultists who had escaped earlier flashed across the night, as if deliberately reminding those downstairs of their location.
“Even if it's a trap, we have to pursue them.”
Leaving the team to rescue the injured and deal with the pollution, Miss Green grabbed Iluna's arm and, along with Mr. Modero, flew to the rooftop.
At this point, the Truth Society's professor and the die-tossing Cultists had also fled from the rooftop towards the south of Silver Cross Avenue.
Even if the two High-Ring Sorcerers of the Church were faster, the two who started first were a step ahead of them, rushing towards the nearby Prophet Association.
A playing card shot out from the third floor of the association, leaving a scar on the neck of the “professor” in the sharp suit.
But he ignored it, pulling his companion, and silently crashed through a window sideways, falling into the brightly lit room at the end of the second floor of the Prophet Association.
