Chapter 173 173: Help me out
‘When I thought that some things never change, this was not what I had in mind.’
Aurora fainted to her right as she watched the monster attack her from behind. She tried looking around for Quince but had effectively lost him in the mass of bodies surrounding her.
Not only that, Aurora could not even risk using her powers since she was in a tower-controlled area.
‘Fuck this shit. I want out of here.’
Aurora did not have a phobia of insects but was sure she would develop one if she had to spend more time in this domain infested with such filth.
The monsters she was facing could only be described as mutated insects found in history books and preservation manuals.
“Quince, are you still alive? Do you need me to help you out?”
Aurora yelled over the insects’ loud noise. The massive out load of bodies surrounding her made it difficult for Aurora to spot Quince.
“Of course, I am alive and kicking. You don’t need to worry about me. If you have time to get away, then go and find Clove. She might have backed herself into a difficult situation.”
Quince’s voice was faint but still firm. He seemed to have suffered no injury.
‘As expected. Quince is strong, even at this age.’
Since Aurora had been assured about Quince’s safety, it was about time for her to get moving as well.
The monsters had come out of nowhere to attack the pair when they had been looking for Clove. Aurora was sure that there was a monster nest somewhere close to their present location.
‘Someone must have rattled their nest. These monsters are not one to make a fuss otherwise.’
Aurora dispatched a few monsters that were trying to get past her. Her lance cleanly served the head of the giant insect that managed to approach her silently.
Transparent blood covered Aurora from head to toe as soon as she killed the insect. No matter how careful Aurora managed to be, it did not matter at all in front of the owner of the insect-type body.
“Such unpleasant things. I hope Clove is having a better time than me while dealing with these things.”
Aurora was not confident that it would be the case but Aurora still hoped that Clove had not run into these monsters.
But now that Aurora had finally managed to find herself alone, she could make use of her system and even use her powers as the goddess.
Once she let her aura go, no monster dared to approach Aurora anymore. Those that were brave enough to venture close to Aurora met their end by her hand.
Aurora quickly looked over her system for Clove but it was of no use. There was too much disturbance between her and the other female. Even Quince’s signal nearby flared only for a second before being overtaken by the monsters.
‘There are far too many monsters here. It almost seems like they are being born every second. Is there a birth nest nearby? The queen monster must be strong, at least Swarm level.’
The reproduction speed of these insects did not look normal. It had to be some kind of boss monster that caused such a huge surge of abyssal monsters.
Aurora was so lost in thoughts that she missed the signs of danger, but her body was not as clueless as her.
Aurora dodgers the incoming pincer but she would have been saved even if she had not managed to dodge the attack on time.
There was a sharp knife embedded in the wall inches away from Aurora’s current position which held the pincer in place.
The familiar shape of the knife handle gave away who the thrower had been.
“Aurora, you’re not hurt, right? I tried to avoid you but I’m sorry if I accidentally hit you.”
Aurora let out an unconscious smile as she looked toward Clove’s slightly panicked face. Her once-lover was still an excellent shot and she had managed to save Aurora from a grave injury.
Now that Aurora thought back on what all she had experienced, this scene looked somewhat familiar to her. She was sure something like this had happened in the past as well.
“Aurora, are you alright? Did I somehow break you? You are not moving.”
“Of course I am alright. I am not as fragile as to get hurt by a mere knife. But thank you for saving my life.”
Clove’s face looked slightly flushed at the praise from Aurora and it filled Aurora with a light warmth.
It was not quite what Aurora felt in the past for Clove but it was close enough. And the fondness had never gone away from her feelings.
“I am glad I was of any help. I don’t know what happened here. One minute it was all alright, the next minute I was surrounded by all these monsters.”
Clove sounded confused about what was going on around her. It was a given since she had not gotten the time to look around or spend time thinking about what had happened.
“Someone must have triggered the monsters by attacking their main nest. Did you run into anyone while you were trying to find us?”
“No. I did not see anyone and I didn’t see a dead body either.”
Aurora nodded at Clove’s words. If Clove said that she had not found any dead body then Aurora was willing to believe her.
“If you did not find anybody then the person who triggered these monsters is still alive. We will need to be vigilant. We don’t know what the person wanted when he woke these insects up.”
Clove went quiet after Aurora’s words. Aurora was not sure if it were her words or her tone that caused Clove to go silent in thoughts.
“What if it was an accident? What if someone accidentally triggered these insects and they came after everyone else as well?”
“If someone did make this situation by mistake then they must be dead as well. In that case, we should try to get to the monster’s nest and destroy the queen insect.”
To say that a lot of innocent people would die if this nest was not taken care of was an underestimation.
More than a dozen people were already dead and a lot more will likely die before this problem was taken care of.
Aurora was not a martyr and she would not even pretend to be one. If it was up to her, then she would likely leave this situation alone and for the tower to handle.
She would even be able to get Clove to agree with her to abandon this situation and let someone better take over.
The main problem would be Quince and his noble heart. He would want to take care of this problem as soon as possible and he might even do something reckless in return.
pA?,??.?0? And Aurora knew from experience, that if Quince would put himself in danger, then Clove would follow after him. It would also put Clove in danger.
So it was just better for Aurora to handle this situation before things came down to that.
“Clove, let’s find Quince before he does something drastic.”
Aurora suggested the solution before Clove could even move her mouth. Having known Clove for so long, Aurora already knew what the other wanted to say.
However, when Clove opened her mouth, the words that came out of her mouth were ones Aurora had never expected to hear in this situation.
“Is it really necessary for us to go? Quince can take care of this problem, right? We should get out of here before we get hurt.”
Aurora wondered if her ears were ringing or if she had misheard Clove’s words. Did Clove ask Aurora to leave Quince alone in such a dangerous situation?
“I-I mean, Quince is strong and he’s far too advanced for his age. I am sure he can take care of himself.”
Clove quickly rectified her answer as soon as she realized that her words were being taken in the wrong way.
Not that she needed to make such an effort for Aurora to like her. Still, Aurora could not help but feel like Clove was overestimating Quince a bit here.
“As decent as Quince is at fighting, he is still a teen and his power is limited. I’m afraid that this situation is too much for him to handle alone. It will be easier if I help him out. You can escape if you are feeling afraid.”
Aurora offered Clove a way out of the present situation.
Clove had never feared the inevitable but that had been a lifetime ago. This new Clove might have changed in ways Aurora was not even aware of.
“I am not afraid. I was just worried about you since you are unrelated to this mess. But if you are offering to help us out, then I will take you up on your offer.”
Clove’s words were so familiar in a tone that Aurora almost let out a chuckle. Clove had not changed too much after all.