Chapter 322

322 Girl of Steel #3

We left Delphi and headed towards a nearby beach.

To be precise, an open clearing.

It’s a beach called the ‘Sacred Ground,’ where no one ever comes. Didn’t we once meet the sea nymph, the mermaid Eariol, here long ago?

The reason we came here is that this place seemed like it would be the most suitable for fighting Gloria without any distractions — it was the least crowded and large enough to give us peace of mind.

“Now, I’ll focus and make the preparations!”

Luna took a bucket from somewhere and poured its contents onto the golden sands of the beach.

Gush, gush-.

The red liquid swirling there dyed the golden sand with ominous hues, leaving behind streaks.

“Luna, what is that?”

“It’s the bl**d of a sheep we slaughtered yesterday! I got it early this morning from the market.”

It was eerie to see her sprinkle sheep’s bl**d on the beach, yet Luna proceeded to draw a circle and a hexagram within it using footprints.

“Hassan, lie down here! And I’ll give you a cloak, so you need to cover your face entirely! You mustn’t remove it until I say it’s alright!”

I lay down on the strange pattern made by footprints, as Luna had instructed, and covered myself with the cloak.

“Is this good?”

“Yes! This is the Ideope Night Sorcery, the Veil of Night. It will conceal Hassan’s presence and smell!”

The Veil of Night. That sounded familiar. It reminded me of a grace given to me by Lady Nox that shared a similar name.

The actual effect of reducing one’s presence is identical to the grace Veil of Night.

That meant that as long as I stayed here quietly wrapped in the cloak, Gloria wouldn’t be able to detect my position.

“Paranoi, ink!”

“Here it is…! Ah-.”

At Luna’s call, Paranoi opened her mouth, and between her plump cheeks popped out a leather bottle the size of a palm. Judging from the splashing sounds inside, it seemed to be a flask filled with ink.

“Brush!”

“I’ll give you the brush as well!”

Soon Paranoi spat out a brush, its bristles soft and feathery. Watching this, Paranoi seemed to have become the perfect inventory for Luna.

What on earth does she keep inside her mouth?

However, Paranoi’s grace, Squirrel’s Storage, was best used for this exact purpose. Luna’s ability to carry tools for voodoo and sorcery was now much better thanks to Paranoi.

“Everybody, gather around! I’ll draw the Armor of Night on each of you!”

Luna immediately started scribbling strange and incomprehensible characters on the face, neck, and arms of Hippolyte. Hippolyte slightly frowned seeing her body being doodled on.

“With these markings on my body, I feel like I’ve become Antiope herself. What exactly does this Armor of Night do?”

“It will protect your body from a powerful impact at least once! Elpride, come here with your hand!”

Swish, swish-.

Luna scribbled black characters on Elpride’s hand and face with the brush despite her apparent reluctance.

After observing this for a while, Elpride spoke.

“The runes look similar to the ancient runes once popular in my homeland. I can sense peculiar magical flows. They seem to be an ancient and complex set of runes.”

“Of course, it’s a spell that only the advanced sorcerers of Ideope could use!”

Luna’s skills had improved to this level, it seemed. She had indeed advanced rapidly during her time studying sorcery and pharmacology under Nemea.

Judging by her current level, things were going well:

『Name: Luna Noxdotty Level 29

Strength: 8

Agility: 13

Stamina: 8

Abilities: Struggling》 Carnivorous Love》 Nocturnal》

Condition: Lion’s Fascination》 Obsessed with Voodoo』

Her level alone makes it clear she’s almost ready for the Silver Tier. It felt natural considering how hard she works, even when others don’t notice.

Originally, Luna is the daughter of beings who embody night and darkness, after all.

However, Luna, who had confidently declared all of this, added in a small, shy voice as if she felt embarrassed.

“B, but since it’s not night, and I haven’t received the higher sorcerer’s vows yet, don’t trust it too much. It might not work.”

“Even if it only blocks an attack once, that’ll be a big help. Anyway, since we’re up against Gloria, preparation must be thorough.”

As half a day passed, Luna finally wiped the sweat dripping from her forehead with her palm and exclaimed.

“Done! As far as I can see, the preparations are complete, so all that’s left is to lure that mischievous girl here!”

Then, she placed a small lock of my hair she had snipped off onto a strange magic circle before lighting it on fire.

I drew an image of Gloria in my mind, as Luna had instructed.

“Glory…”

And I continued to call out her name.

Sizzle, sizzle-.

The smell of burning hair, strangely potent with the scent of protein, spread across the salty air of the beach and enveloped the surroundings.

Finally, after some time, the sound of soft footsteps approached, and a Samaritan woman dressed in a white fur coat appeared on the beach.

“It felt like my brother was calling me, so I came.”

That voice was familiar, deeply etched into my mind from yesterday. My spine shivered with a chill, an instinctive fear urging me to run.

She really came.

Throb, throb-.

The elbows and ribs I had bruised yesterday started to ache again, making me feel like I was dying.

“Master Hassan! That wicked Samaritan has shown up again…!”

Beside me, Paranoi, who was hiding under a cloak with me, explained the situation. Of course, I could see everything even without her explanation, through the slightly parted gaps.

“Really, will we not be caught just hiding like this?”

“Shh, stay quiet, Paranoi-.”

I covered Paranoi’s mouth with my palm. If this little guy keeps talking, all our efforts hiding under the strange magic circle with cloaks might go to waste.

What if the sorcery doesn’t work or if we get caught because of Paranoi? Just as I was slightly tensed up thinking about it-.

“What? My brother isn’t anywhere, and instead, I’m just surrounded by these ragged-looking girls. And there’s a heap of strange spell circles. What is this? Did I get lured into some kind of trap?”

Gloria frowned and bared her fangs. Luckily, the sorcery of the Veil of Night that Luna had cast seemed to be functioning properly.

But still, spotting that this was a trap so quickly… Gloria, you really have a sharp mind.

“Alright, if my brother isn’t here, then it’s time for me to leave. I don’t have the time to be a part of such suspicious acts.”

Gloria was about to leave. Of course, I had been warned by Hippolyte, “She’s more cautious than you’d think. She’s as wild as an animal. She may not fall easily into our traps.”

That was why I was here.

So I opened my mouth.

“Gloria, I’m here.”

“…What? Where is that voice coming from? What are you doing, playing around like this?”

I could see Gloria snarl and anxiously look around. At that moment, just as I was about to be exposed, Luna’s voice echoed out.

“We’ve hidden him somewhere nearby! If you want to find your brother, you’ll have to defeat us first! We’re the witches who are using and trying to eat your brother!”

“What…? Do you really think you’re my rival? A soft witch like you won’t even leave a trace when hit by my fist.”

“No, your rival is me, Gloria.”

Swish-.

Hippolyte stepped in front of Gloria and unsheathed her sword. Everything was going according to plan so far.

If we can guide Gloria to the previously prepared shadow-binding magic circle and seal her, we can either make her surrender or obtain a strand of her hair.

That was Luna’s plan.

“Master Hassan, what should we do now?”

“I don’t know, let’s just eat some popcorn. You don’t have any snacks, do you?”

“Shall I pull them out of my storage? There are some leftovers from yesterday…!”

The thought of sharing something from inside Paranoi’s mouth felt so strange and off-putting that I decided to endure the hunger instead.

Then Gloria spoke.

“The last time you fought me, you were so pathetic. Are you trying to get beaten again? I’ll have you write a letter of apology again, just like last time?”

“That was when we were both young. If you think it’s the same as back then, your arrogance will be shattered.”

“Tch, annoying. You couldn’t even face me head-on without setting up such tricky stunts and now you’re here quivering with fear.”

Swish, clang-.

Hippolyte replied by pointing her longsword.

Her sword hummed and began emitting a strange golden mist or powder.

Gloria continued.

“This clearly looks like a spell circle. While I’m fighting you, that weird staff lady must be planning to strike me with a fireball from behind. Then you would use some ominous formation to capture me.”

“Master Hassan, she knows everything…!”

Paranoi let out a startled exclamation. And indeed, she was right. Gloria wasn’t some dumb savage; she had an excellent eye and sharp judgment.

Of course, that makes sense.

Gloria was known for being one of the top students at the prestigious Kairos Academy, which has honed countless Gold Tier heroes.

What if she rejects our provocation and runs? Should I come out of hiding?

After mulling over how much I, still recovering from yesterday’s injuries, can handle her, Gloria laughed.

“But, it’s fine. I’ll take you all on, including that nymph hiding somewhere!”

Crash-.

Clasping both fists, Gloria vanished in the blink of an eye.

Creak-!

When I came to my senses, Gloria, now wielding her cudgel, had already pressed against Hippolyte’s sword.

Sparks flew as Hippolyte clenched her teeth and braced herself by putting strength into her thighs.

“What? You’re still exactly the same!”

“Impact…”

At that moment, a spell chant came from the rear. Simultaneously, the air heated up, and a massive fireball came barreling toward Gloria, incinerating the space.

“What? Some fire wizard? This is getting annoying…”

Whoomp-.

Gloria easily leaped back and dodged the fireball conjured by Elpride. The flames swept through the space she had occupied.

Realizing the intensity of the heat, the smirk on Gloria’s face faded.

“…”

She seemed to have realized that Elpride’s fire is not ordinary. After all, Elpride was the arsonist who had set fire to the World Tree and caused much destruction in Sodomora.

And even Hippolyte, who had witnessed many sorcerers, had never seen any other magic user handle aggressive magic as powerfully as Elpride, making it evident that her flames were a real threat even to Gloria.

The odds are in our favor.

Just as I was thinking that, Gloria’s eyes flashed with dark light as she lunged toward Elpride.

“It’s basic strategy to take out this spell caster before she causes more trouble!”

Whoosh-.

She raised the cudgel high, aiming a downward strike toward Elpride’s head. Right at that moment, Luna tugged hard on the rope she held in both hands and shouted.

“Snake totem!”

Fssssw-.

Something submerged in the golden sand swiftly rose and blocked Gloria’s path.

“What? Is that a Hydra?”

It was a snake’s head— a monstrous hybrid with sharp fangs.

Of course, it wasn’t the real Hydra but merely a scarecrow stuffed with straw and cotton beneath a cloth, but apparently, it was enough to momentarily fluster Gloria.

“This is what? It’s just a puppet!”

Gloria, looking irritated, smashed the snake’s head.

In the meantime, Elpride managed to escape.

“You want to taste my cudgel, you dirty thing?”

Gloria seemed extremely angry at being fooled. The veins on her forehead were popping, and the air around her was crackling with tension.

But with the distance closed by Hippolyte, who attacked with her longsword, Gloria was left with no choice but to focus on defense.

Meanwhile, Luna set up another trap, and Elpride began her spell-chanting.

“Really, we’re three-on-one…! The wicked girl is frowning, losing her cool…! It’s incredibly satisfying…!”

Against what I initially feared, things were going well as Paranoi hopefully cheered. Luna, Hippolyte, and Elpride were handling themselves admirably against Gloria.

Hippolyte, the only one capable of withstanding Gloria’s attacks, buys time, while Elpride unleashes fireballs, and Luna uses crowd control techniques to create variables.

There was something artistic about this perfect balance.

“That, thatuu-.”

“Okay, done! Shadow Bind!”

We successfully led Gloria into the trap where Luna’s magic lay – a significant victory. The shadow bind, triggered by obsidian daggers embedded in the ground, restricted her movements.

“Guhhhhhh-!”

But Gloria’s resistance was fierce. She writhed as if trying to break free with sheer strength, even though the same shadow bind had paralyzed Regulus, the grandson of Echidna, the Queen of Monsters, for a few seconds.

“Elpride! Fire the fireball now! I don’t think we can hold her much longer!”

“Raaaahhhh-!”

Instead of Elpride’s spell, a strange elfish scream rang out from behind.

“What, what is this thing? Get, get away from me!”

Grrr-!

Attached to Elpride’s head was an odd object. It looked like a sky-blue cotton ball or a clump of sheep’s wool.

“Is this cotton candy?”

True to Paranoi’s words, it did resemble cotton candy.

Crackle, pop-. Crackle.

The worrying thing was its body started to crackle with electricity.

“Fall, fall off! What on earth are you?”

Grrr…!

Elpride wriggling with the cotton candy stuck to her face, and the crackling electricity around filled me with foreboding.

“Heads down!”

Ignoring the hiding, I shot out and lunged toward Elpride’s face.

“Lightning!”

At Gloria’s thunderous roar, countless bolts of lightning struck the world.

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