PNB Chapter 375 Return from the Expedition
Chapter 375 Return from the Expedition
Chapter 375 Return from the Expedition
Orario.
Kroy and Lunova, having accepted the mission, did not act immediately but instead gathered intelligence! Roy and his group were still fighting in the dungeon, while the two of them strolled around the Star Garden with natural expressions, seemingly unconcerned.
It's not so easy to ambush Orario's strongest Familia, let alone escape unscathed.
If it were the Loki Familia and the Freya Familia, the two of them would have absolutely no chance.
The two had previously attempted to assassinate members of the Ganesha Familia and Freya Familia, respectively, but were captured by Shakti and the four Flame Warriors and nearly lost their lives.
The few failures are also the reason why their mission success rate is not 100%.
Both of them were aware of the enormous gap between them.
However, compared to the other three major clans, the Astrea clan has two distinct characteristics.
The group has a small number of members, and they are all kind-hearted!
Kroi and Lunova easily ascertained the fighting strength of the Astrea Familia on the surface, as well as the daily routines of Astrea, Ryu, and others.
The highly skilled and daring Chloe even dressed herself up in a dirty manner, disguised herself as a refugee seeking help, and had close contact with Alexie and the others.
"Beautiful redheads, how can I ask you for help if I ever encounter any difficulties in the future?"
"Haha, we'll patrol the city or go to the Star Garden, where there are people on duty."
"We are the Astrea Familia!"
While it is shameful to take advantage of others' kindness, they will not invest extra emotion in their work.
Work is work!
a few days later.
Under the bright sunshine, the crisis of the "Six Rings of Fairy" has been resolved, and the vast Orario is in a joyous celebration, as lively as a festival.
Kroe and Lunova felt a surge of urgency, meaning that Roy the Madman's expedition might be on its way back, and time was running out.
While everything isn't quite ready, the two of them must take action; nothing in this world has a 100% success rate.
In critical moments, we must fight with all our might.
It was through repeated adventures and battles that the two were able to accomplish great things.
I reached LV.4 without even entering the dungeon!
Under the sunlight, the two quietly made their way to the Garden of Stars, pretending to be no different from ordinary passersby.
Choosing to act during the day is also a form of reverse thinking.
Most members of the Astrea Familia go out to maintain order during the day, leaving only one person at home to look after the mansion, as well as a member who was exhausted from working the night shift and came back to rest.
More importantly, the absence of Liu Liang, a top-tier adventurer at level 7, presents them with an opportunity.
Boom!
Kroy found a secluded corner, and with the help of her LV.4 ability, she flipped over the wall and slipped inside.
On the other side, Lunova burst in through the back door.
Both of them are level 4, capable of traversing the upper, middle and lower levels of the dungeon, and even teaming up to enter the deeper levels. On the surface, nothing can stop them.
The person on duty at the manor today is Noin Yuni, a former member of the Familia and a human guerrilla fighter. She's a diligent girl who, while guarding the base, helps clean the manor, prepare ingredients for dinner, and do laundry.
In the bedroom, Kaguya, the mage Liana, the elf defender Celty, and the werewolf center-back Neze, who were on patrol last night, were resting.
Both Chloe and Lunova found it hard to understand.
Why are the Astrea Familia members working so hard without any pay? Are they paying for their own work? If it were them, they'd just slack off.
But they couldn't help but fantasize.
If I had met these kind-hearted people in the past, would the outcome have been completely different?
Chloe was born into an assassination organization on the continent. She had no name from a young age and was trained as an assassination machine, skilled in using short swords and deadly poison.
The god who founded the organization insists that it's a so-called role-playing game, and he's having a blast.
Runova was born in an empire quite far from Orario. She lost her parents and became an orphan as the empire waged wars of foreign colonization. She struggled to make ends meet every day before joining a clan.
The deity of this clan is elusive, and they enjoy games called "coups" and "revolutions."
Ultimately, the clan was defeated in the factional struggle.
Runova then left the empire where she had grown up and wandered the world, eventually arriving in Orario.
The recollection of the past did not affect their actions in the slightest; now they were assassins and bounty hunters, with completing their missions as their primary objective.
Kroy silently infiltrated the mansion and placed several bottles of potion in different locations. The bottles emitted an alluring fragrance that spread through the air.
"Who goes there!"
Noin, also a LV.4 adventurer, caught a whiff of an unusual fragrance through his small nose, abruptly turned his head, and stared warily at the figure by the window.
Kroy wore a light combat suit with a deliberately pulled-down black hood, covering herself up completely. The only things that were hard to hide were her cat ears that bulged up on the hood and her long, thin black tail.
"This fragrance—it's a sleep aid!"
Noin breathed in the sweet fragrance in the air, then realized what was happening and covered his mouth and nose.
This is a special tool used to hypnotize the target.
Depending on the materials and preparation methods, the quality varies, but once inhaled, it can cause unconsciousness.
To Noin's horror, even though she had only inhaled a few breaths of the fragrance and possessed the ability to develop "abnormal resistance," she still felt dizzy.
The other party must have used very high-grade materials, and it was carefully made by a highly skilled pharmacist with advanced "blending" abilities.
It's not hard to imagine that the cost is incredibly high!
"Heh!" Chloe's lips curled up. The apothecary was herself. She had been exposed to poisons since childhood, and later, as she leveled up, she chose "blending," taking her skills to a new level.
Her ability to concoct poisons was unparalleled!
boom!
Strike while the iron is hot! Kroy moved like a shadow, swiftly passing by and instantly arriving in front of Noin. Her short sword thrust out fiercely, displaying the power and professionalism of an assassin. The angle was tricky, like a venomous snake.
Norin broke out in a cold sweat; it was someone of equal strength! She narrowly dodged the blade's edge, but her head was spinning, and her movements were a little too slow. The blade left a shallow wound on her neck.
This wound is far from fatal.
But less than three seconds later, Noin's legs buckled, and he half-knelt on the ground. "This feeling is—"
"I've been infected!"
Chloe chuckled, toying with her beloved sword. This dark sword, named "Violet," was crafted at great expense by someone else. It possessed the special ability to absorb toxins, and today it was absorbing "Poisonous Demon Maggot Venom." This monster's toxin could ignore low-level "abnormal resistance," and even a small amount of toxin entering the body could cause high-level adventurers considerable suffering.
Combined with the previous sleep essence, even a LV.4 adventurer would find it difficult to withstand this combo.
Consequently, it cost her a lot of money.
Adventurers' battles are all about burning money; equipment accounts for at least 50% of their combat power.
Fortunately, they received a deposit of 100 million in advance, but Roy used the most premium toxins available on the black market.
"An assassin!" Noin's face turned grim. Encountering such an enemy launching a sneak attack was truly terrible.
"Just lie down obediently!"
With a sharp cry, Kroy moved like a streak of black lightning, her short sword transforming into a sharp, cold star, darting swiftly and directly towards Noin.
Noin looked serious, but not flustered.
This is their headquarters!
Clang!
A clear, melodious sword cry suddenly rang out!
Just as the short sword was about to strike Noin's chest, a long, narrow, and cold-looking Japanese katana, with a flowing, chilling light, blocked it.
Metal clashed! Sparks flew!
Kroe's sure-fire sword strike was steadily blocked by this suddenly appearing katana! The powerful recoil made her wrist slightly numb, forcing her to retreat. Looking at the person who had come, her face darkened; they had woken up quickly.
Kaguya Gojou, a girl with distinctly Eastern characteristics, is the former vice-captain of the Astraea Familia, LV.4, and bestowed the title "Yamato Rindou" by the gods.
As the blade flashed, Kaguya, dressed in her pajamas, stood expressionless in front of Noin, her katana pointing diagonally at the ground, its blade reflecting a cold gleam. Her clear, cold voice demanded, "Who are you?"
Krooi, "Just a cute catgirl passing by!"
"You won't talk? Stay here, I happen to have some interrogation skills!" Kaguya's face turned cold.
Behind Kaguya, the werewolf center-back Neze, the mage Liana, and the elf defender Celty appeared. The former two were LV.4, while the latter was one of the few LV.3.
The sounds of the battle instantly woke them up.
As a high-level adventurer, one's vigilance in this regard is beyond question, but it is also inevitable to inhale the sleep essence, causing the brain to feel tired.
"Sleep fragrance. If only Lyra were home." The wolf girl, Nezha, frowned.
Lyra is also an expert in poison, hidden weapons, and traps. As a dwarf, her basic stats are low, so she must make up for it in other ways.
Even so, with five against one, and four LV.4s and one LV.3 on their side, they have nothing to fear.
"Kaguya, be careful, her short sword is poisoned!" Noin slowly stood up and warned.
"clear!"
Kaguya nodded slightly, then drew her sword and moved forward.
"Play around, phantoms!" Chloe whispered. As soon as she finished speaking, two figures appeared beside her, their appearances exactly matching Chloe's.
"A clone magic?" Kaguya murmured.
Before Kaguya could figure it out, three Chloe attacked her simultaneously. They were indistinguishable in appearance, build, aura, and equipment.
Dual-body illusion magic, Chloe's super-short incantation illusion magic can create up to two clones that are indistinguishable from Chloe herself, acting entirely according to her will, but unable to attack or defend.
Seemingly useless, Roy used this magic in many ways, employing it to lure enemies, disrupt them, and launch surprise attacks; it was one of her key methods for successful assassinations.
"Not bad magic, but it's a pity." Kaguya's eyes were calm, but she had just encountered her.
"The flower beyond the calamity!"
Five lights!
As Kaguya finished chanting, she swung her katana. In that instant, five sharp, piercing blade lights appeared simultaneously, like pale lightning tearing through the night sky, covering Chloe's true form and her two phantom clones.
scoff!scoff!
The two phantoms were instantly shattered.
Kroy's expression changed. Her luck was terrible. She nimbly rolled backward, her body close to the ground. The blade grazed her hair and the hem of her clothes, and its sharp aura stung her skin.
The sharp blade light dissipated after forcing Krooi back, allowing the other girls to breathe a sigh of relief. Otherwise, with the destructive power of LV.4, it could easily have destroyed their house!
"hehe!"
Kaguya smiled; she wasn't some useless elf like Rion who didn't know her own strength.
"As expected of an adventurer honed in the dungeon." Kroy's tone was wary. As an assassin, if the first strike fails, the chances of winning a head-on battle against these adventurers of the same level are slim.
There are still five people on the other side; it's time to retreat!
Bang!
Just as Chloe was about to retreat, another unexpected event occurred. With a loud bang, a figure full of explosive power, like a cannonball, smashed through the wall with unstoppable momentum and rushed into the hall.
It was none other than the bounty hunter Lunova!
The hypnotic fragrance lowered their perception and mental strength, and Kaguya and the others focused most of their attention on Chloe. They didn't expect there to be another expert!
Even the same level LV.4!
Her goal was extremely clear: to prioritize eliminating the defenders, the mage Liana, and the elf Celty.
"Lie down!"
Runova roared and punched out with the terrifying force of shattering rocks, striking Liana and Celty in the unsuspecting abdomen.
boom!boom!
Two muffled sounds rang out! Liana and Celty's slender bodies were blasted away by the violent force of the punches, tracing a miserable arc in the air.
The two crashed heavily into the wall.
"Liana! Celty!"
Nez's face contorted with rage, and in the next instant, she transformed into a furious wolf, pouncing on Lunova with an aura of tearing everything apart.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The two instantly became locked in combat.
The two men's iron fists clashed violently together, colliding and exchanging blows in mid-air.
It unleashed a shockwave visible to the naked eye!
The groans of bones and muscles were drowned out by the deafening roar; only pure, primal power and will fought madly! Ice shards and drops of blood sprayed and splattered all around them.
The floorboards shattered, and the cracks spread wildly to the walls.
Faced with the attack of two LV.4 powerhouses, Kaguya and the others had no time to worry about the facilities in their home.
"That bastard, he actually hired other people too," Chloe muttered to herself. Quick-witted, she immediately understood Lunova's background and then joined the battle.
Liana and Celty are temporarily incapacitated, making it a two-against-three situation.
Facing two well-prepared and aggressive assassins and bounty hunters, Kaguya, Noin, and the others, who were caught off guard, unsurprisingly found themselves at a disadvantage.
"This guy is strong!" The werewolf girl, Neze, felt the powerful punch from Lunova.
Runova has no magic, but she chose to develop her abilities in punching, shattering, and boxing, and the power of each punch reached the peak of LV.4.
The five LV.4 powerhouses fought without holding back, and in the blink of an eye, the Star Garden was reduced to ruins.
Rumble!
Countless fist marks and knife marks were viciously imprinted on the walls of the mansion, crisscrossing and intersecting.
At the same time, the smooth marble floor was also devastated. Wherever the fighting went, the heavy floor tiles were neatly cut, tossed, and crushed!
A shocking, massive ravine was left behind, revealing the broken earth and rocks below! The entire mansion trembled violently under the numerous attacks, with smoke and debris billowing everywhere, as if it had just experienced a major earthquake!
Just as the two sides were locked in a fierce battle.
Liu, at LV.7, was the first to return, carrying the stunning goddess Astrea in her arms. Her figure, as swift as the wind, appeared atop a nearby high-rise building.
Upon seeing the figures fighting inside the mansion, a look of urgency appeared on the elven girl's cool and beautiful face.
Was it a conspiracy by the god Dionysus?
At that moment, Astraea stopped Ryu from making a move and whispered, "Ryu, wait!"
Liu stopped in her tracks.
Astraea, "Look more closely."
Hao Yan, Liu Ning stared at the battle on the side of the Star Garden. She had been too anxious to watch carefully earlier, but after the goddess reminded her, she realized that the two people who had been tied up were LV.4 and were fighting Kaguya and the others to a standstill.
Relatively speaking, their strength is too weak, and it doesn't seem like a conspiracy by the god Dionysus.
"Lady Astraea, if we let them continue fighting like this—" Ryu hesitated, feeling a pang of heartache as she saw her house about to be demolished.
Astraea, however, showed no sign of distress. A gentle smile graced her beautiful face. "Liu, don't you think this is a golden opportunity?"
Liu was puzzled. An opportunity? An opportunity to tear down the house?
Astraea said meaningfully, "The Freya children say that the extermination of the fairies is over, and the Roy and Loki children are returning to the surface."
It's time to let our girls fight side by side once; feelings are built through interaction!
Liu blinked innocently, as if she had thought of something, and Ling Lan Diao's eyes grew brighter and brighter.
"Have you figured it out?"
Astraea giggled, "My Ryu is so cute, that little rascal got lucky."
Liu Qingli's beautiful face flushed slightly, her eyes darting around in a daze. Her lovely wife, still so charming, whispered in defense of her husband, looking quite adorable.
"He's not actually that bad!"
It would take Ota a considerable amount of time to train that Minotaur, and it wasn't time to play with the rabbit yet, so Roy and his group, along with Loki's Familia, returned to the surface first.
The Loki Familia members swung their legs back, boosting their reputation among the people, while the Astrea Familia didn't need to do that; they had already reached their limit.
Transfer to a higher position!
Roy, along with Tione, Tiona, and the other girls, activated magic, causing spatial fluctuations to appear, instantly transporting them from the Tower of Babel Square to the Garden of Stars.
"Wow, that's fast! No wonder you're the commander!"
"I feel all sticky, I need to take a shower!"
"This is the Garden of Stars? No way!"
As soon as they landed, the girls exclaimed with joy, but the joy on their faces didn't last a second before the dust that came their way ruined their mood.
What they saw before them was not the luxurious Roman-style mansion made of white marble, but a hideous ruin.
Dust flew up and slapped against the girls' faces.
They unconditionally trusted Roy, knowing that Roy couldn't possibly have made a mistake in transferring the item; there was someone tied to him!
The girls entered battle mode, gripping their weapons tightly, ready for action. A fierce rage surged in their eyes. Who was it? Who dared to destroy the Star Court? They must be torn to pieces!
Following the sounds of fighting, the crowd looked behind the ruins and saw a group of five locked in fierce combat.
Kroy, Lunova, Kaguya, Noin, and Neze also noticed the sudden appearance of Roy and the others, and subconsciously stopped, put some distance between them, and turned their heads.
The two stared at each other, wide-eyed.
A long silence fell over the room.
Roy glanced at Chloe and Lunova and asked, "What's going on?"
"They're here to assassinate us, and they're at level 4!" Kaguya said quickly.
"not good!"
Kroe and Lunova recognized Roy and his group, their expressions changing drastically as they exclaimed inwardly, "No way! Why are these people here?!"
Both of their organizations had people monitoring Babel Tower Square. As soon as Roy and the others returned, they would immediately come to notify them and cancel the mission.
But to their utter surprise, spatial magic existed in the world, and Roy and the others returned to the Star Court at a speed far exceeding everyone's expectations.
"Walk!"
Seeing that the situation was hopeless, Roy and Lunova's eyes flashed with panic at the same time. They dared not look at each other for long. Almost on their survival instincts, their bodies tensed up and they turned away in different directions without hesitation.
However, they could never outrun Roy.
Transfer to a higher position!
The magic was activated, spatial ripples appeared, engulfing Roy's figure and instantly appearing beside the two.
boom!boom!
Roy moved with lightning speed, grabbing Kroi and Lunova's heads with his two large hands and slamming them hard onto the cold, hard ground.
A dull, chilling sound rang out!
The two men's heads collided with the ground, causing the earth to shatter and sink downwards, sending debris flying everywhere.
"Ugh!"
Excruciating pain, accompanied by a suffocating sense of oppression, instantly spread throughout their bodies. Both of them let out miserable groans at the same time, their cheeks stinging from the rough ice surface, their vision blurred by the pain and shock.
All preparations and all skills become laughable bubbles in the face of absolute power!
Profound despair, like the coldest winds of the icy plains, froze their hearts and blood.
What speed! What power!
Chloe and Lunova's hearts trembled. This was the Young Escape, hailed as a "miracle" by the gods! A monster, a genuine monster. Any powerful being they had ever seen was nothing compared to him!
This time we're completely finished!
Chloe and Lunova wore bitter smiles as they slowly closed their eyes, their consciousness fading, awaiting their fate's judgment.
"Ling, how did our home become like this?" Astraea appeared at the right moment, looking at the ruins of the Star Garden with a shocked expression.
Roy looked at his dramatic goddess speechlessly. Whatever makes you happy. In his Netherworld Soul-Chasing Perception, the two of them had been near the Star Court.