Pillar of Yita

The man chased to the entrance of the alley, sneakily poking his head inside, only to find the alley empty, leaving him stunned, thinking he had lost his target, and hurriedly rushed in.

But just as he stepped inside, he felt as if he had stepped into a layer of viscous liquid, with the air slowly twisting and stretching forward. The next moment, a soft ’pop’ sound, like tearing through a thin membrane.

The surrounding scenery formed patches of black and blue, merging together with the torn ’membrane’, and finally forming two girls, one on the left and one on the right. One held a dagger and had a hand on her waist, tilting her head, while the other was slightly shorter, holding a Magic Guided Wand, both looking at him leisurely.

”Who are you looking for?”

The blue-haired girl asked calmly.

The Sea Clan man thought swiftly, lowering his right hand to press on the short sword hanging at his waist, the next moment a silver light shot towards the black-haired girl. He knew that Magic Guided Conductors often had passive shields, making them unwise targets for a sneak attack— but when he noticed a weight in his hand, he looked up to see the black-haired girl had somehow stretched out her hands, interlocking them to block the shining blade— she was wearing black leather gloves that only covered half of her palm, playfully revealing her white palm, with a copper-bladed gear emblem on the leather.

The black-haired girl was also looking at him, her lips slightly curving.

The man was shocked, twisting the blade in his hand with force, but the girl seemed to anticipate his move, a flash of smart color passing through her dark eyes. She took two steps upward, kicking off the wall, spinning like a top, and at that moment the man felt a powerful force from his hand, involuntarily carried by the spinning momentum.

The girl folded in the air like a swallow, stretched out a leg, delivering a spinning kick down on him. It was like a black whip shadow, heavily striking the man’s back neck, almost knocking him down. But the man roared angrily, sinking down with one knee, releasing the dagger from his other hand, breaking free from the black-haired girl’s control.

”Oh, the skin is thick.”

The girl in the air had time to exclaim.

Gritting his teeth, the man drew out a hand crossbow with his other hand and fired at the black-haired girl.

Unfortunately, after the black-haired girl kicked like a whip at him, she dissipated like fog, the crossbow bolts piercing through her body, as if going through a shadow, flying out of the alley. The fog she transformed into flowed forward like a shuttle, passing through the man’s sides, gathering and reforming behind him in an instant.

The next moment, the black-haired girl was standing there cutely, taking advantage before the man could react, delivering a hand chop to the back of his head, causing him to roll his eyes and collapse.

Handwasher then looked at the blue-haired girl beside him, extending a small hand to her: ”Little Frost, want to clap?”

Frost Sky rolled her eyes: ”Save the trouble, quickly check who this guy is.”

But Handwasher gently shook her extended hand, and somehow a silver dagger appeared in her palm, encased in a dark sheath, with a uniquely butterfly-shaped silver decoration on it. She shook the sheath, smiled and replied: ”Already checked, if we search him now, the dagger might disappear, but the stealing skill is different.”

Even though partnering wasn’t their first time, Frost Sky couldn’t help being surprised at this scene: ”When did you make your move again?”

”Of course not long ago,” Handwasher showed her snow-white little fangs with a grin: ”I’m not the strongest in combat among the Nightingale, but when it comes to skills, even the Ten Kings might not beat me.”

”Sure, sure, you’re best at sneaky things,” Frost Sky said with annoyance: ”But I think you made a mistake, in Nightingale you might not be the best in skills, but in disguise and makeup, nobody could beat you.”

The black-haired girl laughed heartily, feeling proud rather than ashamed.

Frost Sky, tired of talking with her, only asked: ”What’s the story behind the dagger, do you know that butterfly?”

Handwasher glanced at the dagger in her hand, shook her head: ”Never seen, but this emblem is a bit special, should be a clue, let’s keep it for now.”

While the two were chatting, the sound of commotion suddenly came from outside the alley.

Frost Sky holding the Magic Guided Wand, a bit surprised, turned her head to see a group of Invokers in black and red war robes passing by on the main road outside.

Behind them, there was a row of knights on tall horses.

Those knights were wearing red robes and full helmets with a pair of dark gold wings, the narrow seams of the metal faceplates hiding their expressions, only giving a sense of oppression. Under the blood-colored long sleeves, silver metal armor was exposed, iron gauntlets gripping long halberds, with flame-cross emblems on them.

Frost Sky, somewhat surprised, looked at these people and couldn’t help but ask herself: ”What are they doing?”

”Those in black and red war robes are from the old Southern Region Alliance,” Handwasher replied beside her: ”Not all, but quite a few, they’ve been making a fuss here lately, you should have heard about it?”

”Of course I know,” Frost Sky rolled her eyes: ”I was asking about those knights, I haven’t seen them before.”