"Lakyus, we can't hold on much longer..." One of the twin ninjas—who rarely spoke—finally opened her mouth. The two of them excelled at assassination, but their frontal combat ability was lacking. And in this environment, they had no way to use stealth or backstab techniques.
Not only did the enemy outnumber them, their coordination was flawless. On top of that, the surrounding magic attacks had never once ceased. They could feel that they wouldn't be able to endure much longer.
"Go! I'll hold them off!" Gagaran kept repeating the same words. She hoped to trade her own life for her teammates' survival, so she fought desperately every second.
Fortunately, although these creatures possessed terrifying traits, their offensive power was generally weak. Against a group of adamantite-ranked adventurers like them, victory would not come quickly.
"Damn it, we can't drag this out any longer." Gritting her teeth, Lakyus swung her greatsword with both hands, forcing back several Umbral Shadows around her. Energy surged from her body as she shouted, "Fivefold Shadow Slash!"
The pitch-black greatsword in her hand cleaved downward. Five blades of wind materialized from thin air, blasting through the cluster of Umbral Shadows and tearing open a small gap.
"Now! Move!" Seeing her martial art take effect, Lakyus immediately led the others toward the opening.
Unfortunately, the Umbral Shadows gave them no such opportunity. The moment a flaw appeared in the encirclement, they abandoned their surrounding formation and scattered, entangling the girls and preventing their escape.
The Pale Shadows perched in the trees continued firing icy arrows. The relentless barrage threw them into chaos and slowed their movements, making it even harder to fend off the Umbral Shadows' assaults.
Their division of labor was now crystal clear. The Pale Shadows acted as spellcasters at range, controlling the battlefield. The Umbral Shadows stood at the front as warriors, blocking their retreat. With their near-immortal trait in darkness, they fearlessly used their bodies to intercept every attack.
The members of Blue Roses could never withstand damage in such a suicidal manner. Hesitation cost them every fleeting chance. Prolonged combat and extreme mental focus rapidly drained their stamina. In just a little while longer, they would collapse from sheer exhaustion.
Evileye had already used all her strength. Yet although she had lived for over two hundred years as a vampire, she was far inferior to the vampire progenitor Shalltear.
If Shalltear were here, these Umbral Shadows would simply be courting death. She could dispatch them one by one with a single thrust. But for these girls, unless they reached the Earth rank and could annihilate them instantly, they would only be worn down slowly until death.
Before long, the first to suffer a grievous wound and collapse was Gagaran. She fought the fiercest and feared death the least. To ensure the girls' survival, she gave nearly everything she had—but she could not halt the tide of defeat. Three Umbral Shadows swung their pitch-black longswords and pierced straight through her chest. Coughing blood, she fell to the ground.
"Gagaran!" Lakyus' eyes were filled with anguish. At a moment like this, a blow like that might as well have been a death sentence. There were simply too many enemies. She had no chance to cast resurrection magic to save her. Besides... whether she herself would survive was still uncertain.
"Looks like it's time for me to act..."
The enemy had already reduced their numbers. The remaining few were barely holding on. If she still didn't intervene, it would seem deliberate.
"Ah—"
Just as Chu Lian was about to move, Evileye—who fought the fiercest after Gagaran and was also the strongest—became the primary target. All the Pale Shadows' ice arrows poured down upon her, halting her movements. Several Umbral Shadows seized the opportunity. Almost simultaneously, multiple black blades pierced her body. She froze for an instant before erupting in fury, blasting the Umbral Shadows away.
But her heavily injured body could no longer continue fighting. Her vision blurred. What she saw were Tia and Tina, still relying on their agility to evade attacks and having sustained few injuries so far, and Lakyus charging toward her, carving a path forward with her black greatsword.
Am I going to die?
She had never imagined she would die here. How could enemies like these... actually kill her?
A dazzling pale radiance flashed before her eyes. Drawn to it, she struggled to lift her head. What she saw was a beautiful girl dressed in a peculiar bodysuit, holding a long blade.
Standing at the highest point beneath the silver moonlight, she appeared like a goddess.
All the surrounding trees had been cut down—save for the one upon which she stood.
She seemed to notice Evileye's gaze. Gently shaking her head, she vanished in the blink of an eye and appeared directly before her. Was that a spellcaster's teleportation magic? But she looked like a warrior.
Though her consciousness had been fading, the moment Chu Lian stood before her, Evileye's spirit was reignited. It wasn't because someone had come to protect her—but because of the aura emanating from the girl before her.
It was even more terrifying than the demon god she had once faced two hundred years ago alongside the Thirteen Heroes. It felt as though the very heavens and earth could be cleaved apart in her hands.
Cleave apart?
The instant that thought crossed her mind, she witnessed a scene she would never forget.
Those forbidden shadows she had been unable to kill no matter what—were as fragile as paper in Chu Lian's hands. They were effortlessly split in two, and this time, they did not regenerate.
The remaining forbidden shadows met the same fate. Her figure moved too quickly. In the flicker of motion, Evileye could not see her at all—yet the enemies simply died.
What kind of powerhouse was she? How could someone so overwhelmingly strong exist in this world? I want to know her...
Chu Lian's appearance not only revitalized Evileye's spirit—it also made the twin sisters, Tia and Tina, wary. While guarding against the surrounding Umbral Shadows, they simultaneously kept their guard up against this indescribably powerful girl.
Only Lakyus paid her no mind. She rushed to Gagaran's side and checked her condition. Discovering that Gagaran had merely lost consciousness due to severe injuries and blood loss—not death—she finally let out a breath of relief. Rising to her feet, she looked toward the girl slaughtering enemies they could not defeat, gripping her magic sword Kilineiram tightly, lost in thought.
"She's strong..." One of the twins spoke, her expression utterly serious. To encounter such a powerhouse before their eyes—shouldn't that be considered fortunate?
"Mm..." Lakyus nodded. Of course she understood. The girl before them was not merely strong—she was strong to a degree beyond their reach.
Even with hero-class strength, Lakyus could not follow her movements, nor could she comprehend how she was killing these forbidden shadows.
"Seven Illusions..." After activating the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception twice in succession, the Umbral Shadows in the area were finally slaughtered to the last. Chu Lian planted the Senra Longblade into the ground, then lifted her head to look at the Pale Shadows that were still casting spells. Raising her left hand, a magnificent longbow materialized in a burst of light.
"Thousand Feathers..." Drawing the string and pulling the bow, azure magic power surged. The arrow, containing boundless mana, shot into the sky. Within a hundred-meter radius, a dense rain of arrows descended.
With each magic arrow dealing over two thousand damage, they nearly ignored the Pale Shadows' passive abilities entirely. They were not even given a chance to regenerate before being buried beneath the arrow storm.
"How fragile..." The area around Chu Lian had been deliberately spared from her barrage, so a few Pale Shadows managed to escape initial destruction. She did not care. Locking onto their figures, she shot them down one by one, effortlessly harvesting their lives.
"That takes care of it..." After sensing her surroundings and confirming that every enemy had been eliminated, Chu Lian dismissed the Seven Illusions Bow. Turning back toward the three remaining members of Blue Roses—who were supporting their two injured companions—she frowned slightly and softly called out, "Hare..."
A girl emerged from a shimmer of spiritual light and immediately embraced Chu Lian tightly. In a gentle voice, she asked, "Shall I heal them?"
"Mm." Chu Lian nodded.
Using Chu Lian's body to shield her own, Hare Menjou extended her hand. Ribbons formed from thin air, giving the girls of Blue Roses no chance to refuse before wrapping around the two injured members. Five seconds later, the ribbons retracted. Gagaran and Evileye's wounds had completely healed.
Seeing that everything necessary had been done, Chu Lian drew a dagger and tossed it before Lakyus. It stabbed straight into the ground. Pointing at it, she said, "I've already killed that man. This dagger should be what you were after. Take it, and leave with your companions. The forest at night—especially certain areas—is not so easily traversed."
After speaking, she paid no attention to their reactions. Pressing lightly off the ground with her toes, a white rose pattern bloomed beneath her feet. Holding Hare Menjou's small hand, she stepped into the air. With each step, a halo of light formed, as though she were constructing a path to the heavens.
The newly recovered Evileye suddenly did something that stunned everyone—she stepped onto the rose patterns Chu Lian had created and followed after her.
"Can you tell me who you are?" Evileye stopped after closing some of the distance and asked nervously.
"Just a passerby. You don't need to know." Chu Lian had no intention of revealing her name so easily. Everything had already been set in motion. She would wait for them to seek her out themselves.
"I really want to know. I... my name is Evileye... You... you can call me Evileye, Evileye, Evileye..." She repeated it several times, determined that Chu Lian remember her name.
"Evileye? I'll remember it." Chu Lian nodded.
Without another word, she took Hare Menjou with her and used Teleport several times, vanishing from the area. Only the lingering white rose patterns and a group of stunned girls remained behind.
"I thought she had some ulterior motive. It seems I was overthinking." Watching Chu Lian depart so decisively, Lakyus let out a breath of relief—while also feeling ashamed of her earlier suspicions.
With strength like hers, what could she possibly need from them? The enemies that had nearly wiped them out hadn't lasted even half a minute under her assault. What could such a powerhouse want from them?
"She remembered my name. She remembered my name. She remembered my name!! I'm so happy!" Evileye had been silent after returning, but now she suddenly shouted, startling the others.
"Evileye, are you all right?" Lakyus asked anxiously, worried something was wrong.
"I like her! Ahhh—my maiden heart awakening because of another girl... this is wonderful!" She cupped her face in both hands, overflowing with excitement.
Even without seeing her expression, the others could tell she must be smiling brightly.
If Chu Lian were here and witnessed this scene, she would probably sigh and remark, "Since ancient times, vampires have always been perverts."
Unfortunately, she was now lying in her own bed, sleeping beside Hare Menjou, waiting for Blue Roses to come find her of their own accord.