73~ This Was a Helpless Counterattack
The sound grew louder as it approached. Behind this massive boulder, Tillysha caught sight of two familiar figures.
Her former teammate, Rainy, and Cole.
Besides them, there were also two other teammates she didn’t recognize.
After she left them, Rainy and Cole seemed to still be in the same team, though their situation apparently had changed.
Right now, their voices were locked in intense conversation, seemingly in the midst of an argument. Rainy, leaning against the boulder with her head slightly bowed, clearly wasn’t holding the upper hand. Her lips parted slightly as she said something, only to be met with mocking remarks from her teammates.
With her exceptional auditory senses, Tillysha overheard their conversation.
“Can’t even handle a simple cover-and-attack maneuver properly, and almost let the enemy escape. Miss Rainy, have you ever considered how much actual effort you’ve contributed since joining our team?” A refined young man, elegantly dressed in plush robes and stylish pointed boots, delivered his words with razor-sharp precision.
“Ever since our team has relied on Cole as the vanguard, we thought adding a knight-class holy maiden would help alleviate some of Cole’s burdens. But who would have guessed you couldn’t even handle a simple task like that? How do you expect us to keep moving forward with you?” The mage chimed in, his tone filled with condemnation.
“Hey, please don’t talk to her like that. We’re all teammates here. This time, Rainy might have just been careless and didn’t react quickly enough. Next time, she’ll surely remember what to do. Besides, I’m not really that reliant on others for pressure relief.” Seeing everyone ganging up on Rainy, Cole stepped in. On the surface, he was trying to mediate, but his words were clearly meant to belittle Rainy while elevating himself, without a shred of subtlety.
“I’m sorry……” Faced with her teammates’ reproach, Rainy could only continuously yield, expressing her guilt.
“What’s the use of apologizing? What’s the use?” The refined young man asked coldly. “Just now, you almost caused a disaster, endangering the entire team. Do you even realize that, Miss Rainy?”
“Well, my divine authority isn’t of the attacking type……” Rainy meekly replied.
“What are you implying, Miss Rainy? Are you saying it’s my fault?” The elegant young man raised an eyebrow.
“No, that’s not what I mean!……” Faced with the young man’s imperious attitude, Rainy found herself at a loss for words.
“You better not mean that.” The young man said coldly. “Let me ask you one thing: are you a knight class holy maiden or not?”
“I am……”
“Well then, as a knight holy maiden, your role is either to charge forward or support offensive actions. Do you seriously want to stand at the back like the rest of us? What use would we have for you then?” The mage questioned.
“I’m sorry……”
Within the team, both the mage and the divine son hurled cold words at Rainy. Cole appeared to be trying to break up the argument but was actually taking sides, not impartial, nor supportive of Rainy. Instead of calming the situation, Cole was more like fanning the flames.
Rainy’s situation had evidently deteriorated to this, hadn’t it?
Tillysha sighed lightly, but she didn’t feel surprised.
Rainy’s personality was originally quite timid. After joining the divine son’s team, the gap in their backgrounds widened further. It was quite common for her teammates to bully her or even use her as a scapegoat to vent their frustrations. It wasn’t unexpected for this scene to occur, even if surprising at first glance.
As for the divine son’s skill level, Tillysha wouldn’t comment, but judging from his fancy and expensive appearance, he clearly wasn’t from an average family. He was likely the offspring of some wealthy family. As for the mage, well, if your family wasn’t wealthy, how could you possibly afford to learn both magic and alchemy? Daydreams don’t get any more ridiculous than that.
And Cole, who came from a similar background as herself, had a much more practical divine authority with far greater utility. Even if the divine son and mage looked down on him inwardly, outwardly they wouldn’t dare to disrespect him. So, naturally, all their frustrations were directed towards the easiest target: Rainy.
Tillysha could almost picture the three of them in the team taking out their anger on Rainy whenever they pleased, treating her like a subordinate.
Why bother with all this?
It would be far better to find a team with people of similar origins, even a grassroots divine son with a decent character, rather than being a scapegoat for everyone in the team.
At this point, Tillysha withdrew her gaze and prepared to leave.
After all, this was none of her business. Regardless of Cole or Rainy, Tillysha could forgive them for abandoning her in pursuit of power, but that was the extent of it.
There was no connection between them, so she had no obligation to interfere in this right or wrong.
As for this time, it could just be considered letting them off easily.
“Slap!” Right as she turned to leave, a crisp and resonant sound echoed.
Tillysha turned her gaze back and saw Rainy holding her crimson cheek, her teeth lightly gritted, looking utterly wronged.
“Next time you make such a mistake, it won’t be so easy.” The young man coldly收回his hand that had just delivered the slap. “I will kick you out of the team. Do you understand?”
“I understand. Thank you for your leniency, noble divine son……”
“Hmph. An incompetent holy maiden is nothing but a burden.” After lecturing Rainy, the young man was about to turn around when he suddenly noticed a figure standing on the boulder. He froze momentarily.
“What person is over there?!” The group quickly directed their attention to the figure atop the boulder, taking a battle-ready stance.
“Here I’ve been squatting for about ten minutes, and you’re only noticing me now, Divine Son?” The wind swept up, revealing the girl’s flawless tresses. “Judging by standards of competence, you appear to fall quite short yourself.”
“Who are you?!” While the elegant divine son questioned, he activated the “Divine Analysis Technique” and “Sharing Technique,” transmitting Tillysha’s information to his other three teammates.
Then……
“Ahahah!”
“My eyes!……”
“Argh!”
Tillysha looked at the group, writhing on the ground, with confusion. Their reactions were identical to those of the previous divine son Peek she had eliminated.
However, Tillysha didn’t take advantage of their vulnerability and strike them down just yet.
“What is this?” The recovered noble divine son, clutching his throbbing head in pain, stared at Tillysha in disbelief.
The burning streak of golden light from her information earlier had shielded her like a protective barrier. Every time their eyes dared to read Tillysha’s data, their retinas were scorched.
Tillysha’s emergence wasn’t accidental; she had deliberately revealed herself. Her initial intention was to let them off, so she wouldn’t make a move unless they provoked her.
“Sorry to bother you all, but I’ll be taking my leave now.” She finished by bowing slightly, ignoring the glaring stares from the three men, and was about to leave.
“Do you think you can just walk away?”
“Mage, kindly use the frost magic to detain her,” the divine son commanded, “I may not know what kind of illusion she used to block my divine analysis, but I’m certain that besides her, there is no one else nearby. She has no teammates!”
“Leave it to me.” The mage pulled out a staff encrusted with frost crystals and began chanting a spell.
A wall of ice erupted from the giant rock and blocked Tillysha’s escape route.
