Chapter 216 216: Plans are carried out
‘What kind of idiot did I end up working with? All we’ve done for the past few days is to chase after targets and scam people with their money. I wonder what goes on inside Asami’s mind.’
Clove followers after Asami at a slow pace. She could feel the presence of shadows following after the pair which diverted Clove’s attention.
‘Looks like potential bodyguards of our target. I wonder how long they will last in a fight.’
Clove was not one to exaggerate but it would be impossible for a normal person to defeat a goddess. Make it two and the chances were negative.
However, it didn’t seem like the bodyguards had it all figured out just yet.
Now if only Asami started paying attention back to Clove and her mission, then things could stand on track once again.
But the goddess was busy running like a lunatic after her chosen target.
“Hello, my beautiful lady. May I say that you are looking rather refreshing today and you also seem to have such a shining aura? Would you allow me to read your fortune for you?”
The shadows following Adami tensed as soon as she made contact with that blue-haired lady.
It was also the first time Clove saw her face and it took her aback.
If she eliminated the shape of the elder female’s eyes and her hair length, it felt like Amane was looking back at Aurora for a second.
‘Do all blue-haired and golden-eyed people look the same?’
It was also that familiarity that caused Clove to take a step closer to the pair.
She did have an option to stop the attack that was about to happen but Clove trusted Asami to take care of herself.
After all, Asami was a goddess and this was her domain. It was unlikely that Asami would not be able to stop this attack.
“So, what do you say my lady? Would you like to know your future?”
Asami pressed her agenda forward. She had a card held ready in her hand to decipher something before she threw it backward.
A body hit the floor, a card still embedded in its chest. The lack of heart-beat indicated that the body was dead.
And panic instantly rose in the clearing. No one had paid attention to see a swindler try and poach a rich target. It was a common sight in the night market.
But to have someone fall dead all of a sudden was a big thing.
Clove hurriedly approached the body and snatched the card up before anyone else could check the body over.
‘Asami is too much work.’
“Ah, I think that deciphering my future will no longer be possible today. However, if you manage to have good fortune then you will surely be able to meet me again. Now, I should escape the market before someone else tries to take advantage of me.”
The blue-haired familiar lady was there one second and she melted into the crowd the next second.
Asami looked disappointed when Clove reached her. It was a miracle that Asami had allowed someone to escape her without paying any special price.
“Ah man, I cannot believe I got turned down. Clove, do I look ugly? Or am I just unattractive?”
“I think you are just stupid to go after a married target who doesn’t swing your way. And can you stop randomly picking up your targets? We have to leave for the Rocx valley soon.”
Clove was irritated at being squeezed into the panicking crowd. She had to carefully make her way through without making many contacts.
The whole place was packed with very strong auras and seeing them was a headache.
Clove might have memories of her past life but her body could not hold all that talent. As such, Clove had to be extra careful while using more taxing abilities.
“Random targets? I never went after random targets. Everything is following according to our plan and Lady Dehva is the last piece in the coffin for us.”
“Do you know why the tower is so desperate to maintain their good relationships with the South? Because they believe in keeping their friend close but their enemy even closer. And I think it is because they are afraid of the south.”
Clove had not given it much thought but she did agree with some aspected of what Asami was saying.
The relationship between the tower and the south could only be called unnatural. They seemed to have no conflict and the tower didn’t even push for supremacy here.
It was almost as if the tower’s superiors were afraid of the south.
“So you think that the South had a way to harm the tower’s core power? But a goddess’s power is eternal as long as their core is active.”
“And that is why we have to look around for information. I think we are close to solving this case.”
===========================
“You can rest in the temple quarters today. The royal palace had sent an invite for you for tomorrow. Our next session will be held in a week and I will seek you out myself in my realm.”
Aurora nodded at the flushed Nymph. It had been a tiring session but Aurora had never felt this refreshed before.
The corruption felt like it was a thing of the distant past but it was not entirely gone from her system yet.
Once the Nymph left, it was time to start looking at her current condition. Aurora could tell that her power had amplified due to the presence of the second core inside her.
If Aurora tried it out, she could even touch it. But she could still not sense the presence of her core.
“Time to see what the second core can do.”
Aurora was spectacle about using this second core before but her mind reminded her that she did not need to fear it that much.
After all, the new core was a part of her now. So Aurora might as well get some use out of it.
“Let’s see. I need to concentrate on the core and catch a threat of its power.”
Aurora felt the magic respond to her. Her body was changing as a result of the magic she was forced out of the core.
She forced it into the earth and it erupted into spikes, almost hitting Aurora’s body in the process as well.
“An earth affinity. It could come useful in the future.”
Aurora had not gotten much time to check up on what kind of powers the Zoodiac had when they fought but Aurora could feel the core’s affinity inside her body.
Aurora tried out a few more tricks before she felt something around her shift and the door beneath her foot open.
It was the ground that split causing Aurora to fall into the deep depths of the underground. The room she was in was not one she had ever seen before but it felt vaguely familiar to Aurora.
It felt like she would remember it if she only tried hard enough.
[System warning. A powerful individual was spotted. The user is advised to run away.]
The system’s warning blazed up all of a sudden. It didn’t even leave any room for Aurora to gather her thoughts about this place.
“I came here to issue Shaun a warning but I see that it will be unnecessary now. Now, if you want to live then you should leave this place.”
The voice that spoke was familiar too. So were the eyes looking back at Aurora from a familiar face.
Familiar blue locks framed a face very similar to Aurora’s. It almost felt like looking back at herself in a mirror.
But this new person was an obvious male and much more powerful than Aurora could ever imagine any human being.
‘An outlooker. This person is surely an outlooker I cannot match. And it is the same one I met before when I saved Rita in the Northern Continent.’
Aurora was sure of the fact that the voice matched the one in her memories about the corruption.
“Can I know what this place is? I accidentally fell in here while practicing my magic.”
Aurora held her breath for what would happen next. Would the man attack or would he help her out?
“Fuck, be careful. I don’t want to fight you.”
Aurora managed to raise a protective wall in front of her before she was pierced by an air spear.
The attack had come out of nowhere and left Aurora in a daze. The warning signs in her head were getting louder by the second.
“So you did manage to sense my attack and even evade it in time? And you even managed to use Shaun’s core. There might be hope for us after all.”
The blue-haired man mumbled as Aurora tensed up for another attack. But it didn’t come.
Instead of attacking, the man turned his head away from Aurora and walked away from the room.
And just like that, he left Aurora with several more unanswered questions than answers.