Netori: Stealing The Hero's Party!

Chapter 903: An Angel Not So Angelic

”Why are we still on water?” Standing beside Regalia, her hands folded firm and her chest full of pride, Evangeline demanded to know as she felt that she’d waited far too long to have not faced any enemies. ”Our enemies draw breath, and we idle on this dark path of nothingness. Tsk!”

As an angel who was mostly suspended in time by turning into an idol of stone, she was used to fighting as soon as she wakes up from her slumbers. But now the night was over, and there was yet a single beast to be found.

”Devoid of life, this place disgusts me...” Her gaze downcast, the angel–dressed in her angelic white robe–glared through the window at the hell’s ocean. ”Having to share this flying beast with the slayer of dragons only makes this journey worse.”

”What did you say?” Finally lifting her eyes to greet the angel, Regalia had had enough of listening to her complain. Digging her nails into her palm, she conjured a blade made of her blood and pointed it at the tall angel’s throat. Barely reaching her neck, the wolfgirl lifted herself off the floor with wind magic–one of the many aspects she was borrowing from her three patrons.

Glancing sideways at her, Evangeline moved her hand onto the tip of the blade and slowly moved it away from her neck. Not a lick of anger was flashed on her face; instead, she seemed just as disinterested as before.

”Save your strength, wolf child.” Before looking away from her, she blew a healing gust of wind over Regalia. Her wounds closed in a second, and the blade disappeared right after. ”I am simply airing my frustration about our predicament. Besides, your king nearly killed all the dragons to extinction. Do you have any idea how much value is in a dragon’s life?”

”As far as I’m concerned,” although still frustrated, Regalia leaned over the console once more. ”Their value is only as much as the resource they can provide for us to make armor and weapons out of to then kill more of their kind.”

”A pity then. Their bodies nourish the flames of volcanoes, their carcasses give rise to new terrain as valleys and mountains, and their hives feed their element to the soil, giving it a life of its own. Alas, all you see is their carnage.”

”Them killing others was fine, but killing them is a crime?”

”I do not hold pity for the monsters you killed, but lament the loss of the children who shall never be born now that their colonies are far and few in between.”

”For an angel of life, you have a twisted way of looking at life.”

”I do not yearn for harmony amongst the races, wolfchild. All I do wish for is balance and to watch the races of this world bask in its bounty.” Turning her attention back to the window, Evangeline turned around and started walking away. Each step she took, a golden dust emerged from under her feet and elated all that came in contact with it. Not to mention, her tall frame and voluptuous body made the metal of the trident tremble underneath. ”Inform me when land greets. This vessel’s too slow for my liking.”

And with that, she walked away, her thighs brushing together, and the bounce of her flesh underneath that white garment drawing the eyes from both men and women.

”Everyone’s got an opinion...” Regalia whispered with a sigh.

”Tell me about it.” Reina tried to agree, but after the stunt she had pulled last time, the only response she got was a stern glare and a head jerk for her to focus on the console and not chit-chat.

”I can sense land close by,” staring through the front windows, Regalia–through the borrowed eyes of her sea-dwelling patron–could make out a faint parcel of land with semi-towering structures not far from the bay. ”I...also see some ships. A dock should also be there. We should talk to Raven before attracting their attention.”

”How the fuck do you see anything?” Squinting her eyes with her body leaning forward to the point where she could fall any second, Reina tried to spy the same things as Regalia. But her human gaze, paired with the lack of any patron, wasn’t fit to perceive what lay beyond the curved horizon.

”Just–” Grabbing her by the arm right as she was about to fall, Regalia held Reina firmly. ”Don’t tell anyone anything. The last thing I wanna do is cause an uproar on the ships. We’ll wait for the general and let him make that decision, alright?”

Still a bit woozy from being jerked back, Reina wore an awkward smile and gave Regalia a nod.

Her days at sea were wobblier than this glide through the air; perhaps it was the lack of rocking itself that was causing her to lose focus more than she’d expected. On that very trident, however, there were others suffering worse than her; amongst them was Moeria; however, her condition was atypical.

Having just woken up surrounded by numerous familiar faces from before, she’d sat upright at the edge of the bed with her face buried in a leather throw-up bag. Adjusting to a new body, especially one so...racing with thoughts and stimulations, her mind and soul were both feeling overwhelmed. Especially the mind, as it appeared as though Mono’s true body refused to pause and not think of something for even a second.

”Ughhh...Definitely those two workaholics’ child,” pulling her head out of the bag, she looked around the room. ”How do I look?”

”Like shit,” Helga responded, making Moeria laugh, then reach for the bag to throw up once again.

”I can’t really cast a healing spell on someone so vulnerable without breaking, so I will leave that to Erika,” retreating from Erika’s body and taking residence by her soul again, Asmodia left the care of the sick in the priestess’s hands. Coming back to her senses, however, Erika wasn’t too thrilled about the idea of healing someone who used to answer directly to Aphrodite and even connect to her mind. ”Just sleep it off. I doubt you can see anything, much less the location of the lair, even if you’re cured right now.”

”Y-yeah... I should lie down.” Moeria whispered, slowly putting herself to bed.

Thankfully for her, Melicia moved closer and placed her hand over her head. Using woodland magic, the elf conjured a sprinkle of an alchemical mushroom’s spore. Inhaling it, Moeria’s mind was set at ease, and she slowly drifted away. Had her troubles been only physical, the spores would’ve aided with them too, but the acclimation process with Mono’s body was a matter of both body, heart, and soul.

”Let’s wait for Raven,” looking to the window inside the room, Mel drew a deep breath. ”Soil and vegetation. We should send the scouts in the meantime and gather intel.”

”Lily and I will take the lead then,” Amedith offered, grabbing Lily’s hand, and in a flash, the two disappeared into specks.

As for the rest, it was time for them to hope for the worst and prepare for it as well. For once the holy war had begun, there was no such thing as a non-hostile settlement or kingdom.