Turning to Cyril's perspective, this vast underground space featured a labyrinthine structure. As a “local,” however, Cyril was naturally very familiar with it. Turning left and right, he soon arrived at a place that resembled an altar.
Around a dozen black-robed figures were gathered here, engaged in unknown activities. Cyril stepped forward and said to one of them, “Teacher, I encountered something strange today.”
He then briefly explained how he had performed a divination, yet nothing had happened. This was, in fact, the reason Cyril had come to the Holy Blessing Society headquarters at this time; under normal circumstances, he should have returned to his rented room to await further orders.
The black-robed figure he addressed as Teacher fell silent for a moment before replying, “Do nothing. The plan is at a critical juncture right now. Do not provoke anyone you shouldn't, and do not cause unnecessary complications.”
Cyril nodded and said, “Understood.”
Fortunately, he hadn't harbored any malice toward the people in that club in the first place; otherwise, he would have brought major trouble upon the Holy Blessing Society.
Meanwhile, shifting back to Freya's side, not long after entering the underground labyrinth, a black-robed figure appeared before the three of them. The man seemed to be on his way out when he ran right into them. Freezing for a moment, he demanded, “Wait, who the hell are you people?”
Seeing this black-robed figure, Victor was also taken aback. This attire didn't feel like an extraordinary organization or an extraordinary gathering at all. Instead, it felt like... a cult?
Freya had known all along that this was a stronghold of the Holy Blessing Society, but Victor had no idea!
A drop of cold sweat trickled down Victor's forehead, but David excitedly blurted out, “H-Hello! We came to visit because of your great reputation! I want to join you!”
At those words, the cultist was utterly bewildered. What on earth?
Normally, having someone seek to join a cult should be a good thing for them—cults weren't picky, after all. The problem was, if you wanted to join a cult, you were supposed to find a cultist to introduce you, not stroll straight into the Holy Blessing Society headquarters!
It was like a group of drug dealers holed up in an ultra-covert spot preparing to commit crimes, only for an ordinary civilian to suddenly walk up and say, “I want to cook drugs too.” Bro, are you for real?
The cultist immediately hissed in a low voice, “Do you take me for a fool? Damn it, how did the Special Service discover this place?”
As he spoke, the cultist raised a hand, activating his extraordinary ability. The ground began to tremble, and sharp earthen spikes erupted from the earth. Small in size, they resembled high-speed rotating drill bits, flying toward the trio at near-bullet speed.
Victor hurriedly grabbed the two behind him and looked back, only to find that an earthen wall had suddenly risen up across the entrance they had come from. Clearly, it was already too late to retreat.
Left with no choice, he shielded Freya and David behind his back, standing ramrod straight as he faced the dense barrage of earthen spikes.
“Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh—!”
Yet, as the earthen spikes detonated near the trio, under the influence of powerful luck, not a single one hit them—every last one missed! Only then did Victor pull the two along and sprint in another direction, forced to take a different passage deeper into the underground labyrinth.
As he ran, he knitted his brows and said, “Earth Pathway? And at least Rank Four? Why is someone like that here?”
David had been scared completely witless by the sudden ambush. In contrast, Freya appeared utterly calm and composed.
She even found the time to glance back at the cultist. The man looked completely unhurried. With the exit sealed off, Freya and the others had no choice but to run deeper into the labyrinth—and this was the Holy Blessing Society's home turf. Wasn't that walking straight into a trap? Why would he be in any rush?
Victor twisted and turned through the passages, running for quite some time before gradually slowing down. Gasping for breath, David asked, “That stone wall that suddenly shot up, and those earthen spikes... were those extraordinary abilities?”
Victor snapped, “What else would they be? We almost died just now! This isn't any extraordinary organization—it's a cultist den! You really stirred up major trouble for us!”
Any normal person would certainly feel terror after surviving such a life-or-death crisis, but David was clearly far from normal. Rather than fearing the extraordinary world, he yearned for it even more. He stammered, “S-So amazing! I want an ability like that too!”
Victor was at a loss for words. “Seriously, my little ancestor, aren't you afraid of dying?”
David retorted, “So what? To chase a dream, what's a little danger? Isn't that totally normal?”
Victor was completely out of options. “Extraordinaries aren't nearly as great as you think. You think having superpowers means you can do whatever you please, whenever you want? I'm an extraordinary too, yet aren't I still just a working stiff?”
David was stunned. “Huh? You're an extraordinary? For real?”
Victor replied, “What else? What did you think I was?”
Without even thinking, David blurted out, “A scruffy middle-aged guy who's decent in a fight?”
Victor: “?”
David pressed on, “So, so, what's your superpower?”
Victor answered, “Good luck.”
Now it was David's turn to have question marks pop over his head. “Huh? For real? You aren't messing with me, are you?”
Victor sighed. “Whatever, forget it. Let's figure out how to get out of here alive first.”
Of course, despite his words, Victor glanced at the obedient, cute-looking Freya beside him, not feeling the least bit worried. Have faith in the big boss, have faith in luck.
While they were talking, a set of footsteps sounded from ahead. The black-robed man from earlier had somehow appeared in front of them. He chuckled. “What, not running anymore?”
Then, lightly raising his hand, another earthen wall rose up right between the three of them. Victor instinctively grabbed David, who was closer to him, before turning to look at Freya. To his surprise, he found that Freya had quietly taken half a step away from him. It was precisely that half-step difference that allowed the earthen wall to seal them apart.
Thud—
With a soft impact, the earthen wall collided with the ceiling. The black-robed man looked at Freya and licked his lips. “Hehe, now it's just you and me.”
Clearly, the man had done this intentionally to isolate Freya from Victor. Victor was evidently the strongest of the three and an extraordinary, while the remaining two were mere lackeys.
So, without her protector by her side, left all by herself, what kind of amusing expression would this cute little girl make?
...
Rate on N.U.
