The Counterattack Begins Now!

The grand avenue outside the royal palace was unusually quiet tonight. Unrelated personnel had been ushered away early on, and even the guards originally tasked with palace security had received special orders to stand down from their posts. There were also those who could not leave, such as the old king, whose performance had just concluded. He huddled together with more than a dozen of his granddaughters and granddaughters-in-law, shivering in the corner of a bedroom. In the eyes of commoners, they were noble royals, the spiritual totem of the Wien Empire. When news of the late queen's passing broke, not only were countless people across Wien plunged into grief, but many colonial subjects in the empire's colonies had knelt for hours, weeping bitterly. They would compare themselves to "pigs and dogs," while in their eyes, the Wien royal family was akin to "gods." Yet before a true clash between orthodox churches, royalty were merely human—no, they were pigs and dogs all the same. Thus, there was little they could do now. They did not even know what was happening outside, able only to pray that this disaster would not spill over to them. The old king muttered through pale, trembling lips. How he wished he were a cockroach right now—that way, no one would notice him, and he could gain true freedom. This was no longer just a blade hanging over their heads, but the sheer terror that a stray shockwave from some spell could level the ground beneath them at any moment. In truth, the royal palace was virtually deserted now; even the servants had mostly been sent away, because the original itinerary had planned a special, uniquely grand reception program exclusive to the Wien royal family. The female relatives gathered around the old king were the "performers," while the old king himself held the post of master of ceremonies. Director Gisen's decision to come here for a late-night snack had made meeting Karen secondary, merely incidental. If he had genuinely wanted to meet, renting a private room at the Ankara Hotel would have sufficed. After all, Karen had arranged the security at the hotel personally back then; finding a quiet spot for a confidential, recruitment-style chat would have been trivial. So he had come specifically for this performance. From what he had let slip, he had once visited this place together with his father. It was just unclear whether he had peeked at his father enjoying the show back then and never forgotten it, or whether he had sat with his father, watching and enthusiastically applauding together. When members of the ruling elite escaped the struggles of survival too early without building a solid spiritual anchor, they often sank into the pursuit and indulgence of all manner of desires. Churches were much the same—perhaps even worse. Because it was easy for them to lose touch with their very concept of being "human," the depths of their depravity were truly unimaginable for ordinary people. Yet unlike other churches, which retained their primal barbarity even within the heart of their sacred grounds, the Church of Order was an outlier in the church world—a breath of fresh air—owing to the Code of Order and its doctrines of Order. The end result was that the Church of Order was not devoid of scum, perverts, and degenerates; rather, they tended to be beasts in secret while maintaining an immaculate, respectable facade in public. Unfortunately, the turn of events had defied his expectations. Although a heinous assassination had occurred at the Head Bishop's residence in the Yorktown Region not long ago, who could have anticipated a second incident in such short order? Moreover, security measures had indeed been in place for the director. But who would have imagined that the people striking at him would come from within their own church? The few Whip of Order squads originally stationed around the perimeter, along with a security team from the Regional Administrative Office, had been quietly reassigned. The communication nodes they had deployed were taken down alongside them, culminating in an artificial vacuum. As long as there were enough "moles" and "traitors," even an assassination could be staged as if executing an official mission in broad daylight. ... Rumble... rumble... rumble... The cart came to a screeching halt. One of the wheels "went AWOL," rolling off to the curb and only stopping when it crashed into a utility pole. The fact that it had held together this long was already remarkable. Though Little Kanna was petite, once she started sprinting, even a cheetah would look like a snail in comparison. It wasn't that she couldn't simply reveal her true form and fly over—after all, young though she was, her true body stretched over ten meters, easily bearing a cat and dog. The problem was that it would be far too conspicuous. Karen's order had been to return in secret without alerting any party. God knew whether there were Davins's people inside the research institute. Sitting atop Little Kanna's head, Purr waved a cat paw. "Quick, prepare for battle!" Ashley helped prop the skeleton upright. "Hurry, stupid dog, get in!" "Woof!" Kevin dove in first, followed by Purr. Before long, the puppet "came to life." It began with a brief warm-up, moving its hands and feet to check its condition. "I think we're good, meow." "Woof!" "Heheh, meow." The skeleton opened its right hand, revealing a bead resting on its palm. Clenching its fingers, it crushed the bead, causing a miniature rune to materialize instantly. Reaching inside, the skeleton retrieved a fire-attribute crystal, then pulled open its clothing and slipped the crystal into its chest. Inside the refrigerator at home, aside from housing Karen's greatsword, the remaining space was filled with these fire-attribute crystals acquired especially from the black market, which partially resolved the skeleton's limited stamina. Because the crystals were expensive, this was the first time since obtaining this "toy" that Purr and Kevin were legitimately allowed to squander them. The most excited of all was Purr. She had yearned for her past power for ages. She was a proud cat, and the cruelest thing to her had been spending so much time as nothing more than dead weight to Karen. Now, she was going to truly prove herself! "Uh, wait, stupid dog, do you remember which side's people are supposed to go first?" "Woof." "Was it left unclear?" "Woof." "Then what do we do? When are we supposed to make our entrance? Are we the opening ceremony, the middle act, or the grand finale? Oh damn it, why didn't I ask in advance!" "Woof, woof!" (Karen only seemed to want us to bring over the healed bone dragon. He didn't ask us to fight.) "How could that do? We are the core fighting force!" "Woof!" (Right, right, right!) Kevin had always doted on Purr, indulging nearly every demand she made. Since Purr wanted to play, Kevin was naturally more than willing to play along. Besides, he had immense confidence in this skeleton puppet he had personally modified. Kanna clutched her chest. Due to the master-servant contract, they could sense each other when nearby, and right now, she felt Karen summoning her. "Ooh, it's time, meow! Who cares, we're going in!" Purr shouted excitedly. "Evil God Knight, deploying!" "Woof woof woof!" The skeleton began cracking its finger knuckles, but because the bone quality was too pristine, it couldn't make a sound. In the end, it settled for clapping three times. Immediately afterward, the skeleton floated into the air. "Stupid dog, confirm the numbers!" Around the palace perimeter, sentries hid in the shadows. The ones fighting within the barrier were the main strike force, while those outside were responsible for cover, extraction, and cleanup. Yet no matter how well concealed they were, they were nothing before Kevin's perception. "Woof!" "All right, twenty-one, is that right? Fine. Come, let me show you my original spell, meow." The skeleton crossed its hands, condensing a fireball between its palms. Once formed, the fireball did not expand; instead, it shrank, compressing from the size of a basketball down to a billiard ball. Inside the sphere, sparkling flakes appeared, swirling like crimson snowflakes. Then, as its palms pressed rapidly together, a crisp pop rang out. The fireball split open, scattering sparks. Yet the drifting crystalline flakes resembled fireflies—twenty-one in all—dispersing in every direction. They fluttered their wings, frolicking like adorable little pixies. Furthermore, they shifted their visual profile so that after traveling a short distance, their points of light vanished from view completely, even though they truly existed. One by one, the tiny fireflies drew near their respective targets. Some settled on shoulders, some nestled into the tips of hair, and others slipped beneath cuffs. The skeleton spread its arms wide and stretched lazily. Then, drawing its arms back, it clapped its hands hard together: "Melt, meow!" In an instant, the twenty-one fireflies burrowed into their respective targets. Each figure hiding in the shadows froze. Their mouths fell open, puffing out a wisp of black smoke, and their bodies collapsed. The moment they struck the ground, their bodies disintegrated into ash, leaving behind nothing but pristine, undamaged garments. From beginning to end, not only were there no screams, but not even a decent noise was made. With its left hand on its hip, the skeleton snapped its right fingers: "Nice! Perfection, meow!" ... "Huh..." Madame Tangli, who was still sharpening her kitchen knife on the rooftop, suddenly stopped. The "twenty" sentries within her sensory range... had all lost their aura signatures in an instant! They couldn't have all withdrawn at once; they had to have been killed in a single breath. And it was done by one person, or else they couldn't have perished in such simultaneous uniformity. Yet who was capable of eliminating so many people in absolute silence? Madame Tangli's brows knitted tightly. She felt rather displeased, perhaps even indignant, for this meant that grandson of hers had brought in another powerhouse no weaker than herself to back him up! Is having your own grandmother not enough? Do you have so little faith in your grandmother that you went and invited someone else? In truth, what Madame Tangli did not know was that Karen had originally only thought of inviting Delon. Across the entire Yorktown Region, Old Master Delon was perhaps the only one with both the stature and skill to reliably unravel whatever barrier might appear. Neither Karen himself, Uncle Aisen, nor Mars had absolute confidence. Yet calling Delon naturally had to go through Grandmother. Richard or Aisen could have gone to fetch him, but Grandmother was the most efficient. Naturally, Karen hadn't had the gall to tell Grandmother she didn't need to come; otherwise, she would surely have taken offense. Yet right now, Grandmother was already offended. She had already worried she'd have few chances to strike tonight, and now a powerful outside helper had surfaced—wouldn't her chances become even slimmer? What Madame Tangli didn't know was that the one who struck was the cat Karen kept at home. Purr was simple in some ways; she had always lived like a young girl and was pampered wherever she went. But having once led an adventuring squad across the world in search of secret realms, how could she truly be merely an innocent girl? This spell of hers—cute fireflies reducing twenty-one hidden foes to ash in an instant—represented the pinnacle of magical mastery, both in delicate energy control and sheer spell innovation. Furthermore, she felt not the slightest guilt over killing twenty-one people in one fell swoop. While Karen might still weigh the principles in his heart before acting, she didn't need to care about any of that. This was why Bernard had been so terrified of Purr finding out after betraying his companions. He knew full well that if Purr were alive, with her temperament and knowledge of what he had done, she truly would massacre an entire island. Just imagine: a Purr at her peak, seeking vengeance, launching round after round of surprise attacks against Dark Moon Island with all manner of unthinkable techniques—how could Dark Moon Island have withstood that? She wouldn't even deign to face you head-on, and you would be utterly powerless against her. "Dear?" Delon couldn't help asking his wife. "Is it time to act?" "Hmph! What are you standing around for? Break the barrier!" "Oh, right." Delon unfurled a scroll he had prepared beforehand. As the scroll activated, a massive runic array materialized above the rooftop, projecting a thick beam of light that slammed directly into the barrier above the royal palace. A breach tore open in the barrier immediately, like an egg having a section of its shell cracked off. "How was that, dear? I feel like as I grow older, my understanding and application of arrays is only getting better and better." Delon smiled warmly at his wife, eager for a word of praise. Yet having already spotted a figure wrapped in flames flying into the barrier, Madame Tangli—infuriated at knowing she was still a step too late—vented her temper: "Nonsense! That's just what you traded for becoming worse and worse everywhere else." Delon: "..." ... The giant was already closing in on Karen, and the assassin was flitting about in search of an opening. A pattern similar to the previous assault was about to play out once more, except the target had shifted to Karen. Karen had already sensed the bone dragon's approach; he truly felt no panic. Because aside from the little bone dragon, his inner circle had arrived as well. Most importantly, that thrill-seeker Purr had mentioned, who had recently broken through, certainly wouldn't miss out on tonight's fun. Confidence ultimately stemmed from strength—which was why Karen had insisted on killing those people from the Church of the Desert for revenge. Old Master Theisen had said: When you have the power to do it, and it aligns with the Code of Order, then do it. However, what Karen had not anticipated was that the first to enter was not the little bone dragon, but... "Hahaha, little Karen, kitty's here!" Purr's entrance was nothing short of flamboyant. As it descended, the flames behind it formed a fiery phoenix that wheeled endlessly around it, spewing torrents of flame into a spectacular, cascading waterfall. This spectacle brought both the giant and the assassin to a dead stop. Even the old acquaintance standing farthest back couldn't help narrowing his eyes. It was not that they feared the arrival of a "skeleton," but that they knew its appearance signaled their operation tonight had veered significantly off course. The skeleton touched down gently in front of Karen. Spreading its arms wide, it declared, "Come, let me protect you this time." With that, the skeleton opened its left hand. Another bead appeared, and upon being crushed, revealed a tiny starlight rift. It pulled out a fire crystal and slid it into its chest. A flashy entrance was always a drain on the battery, but Purr felt it was well worth it. Moreover, she knew full well that expenses incurred in helping Karen were always easily reimbursed by the Radio Fairy. With its energy replenished, the skeleton dropped to one knee, planted its left palm on the ground, and chanted: "Purgatory of Fire!" Buzz! A crimson line spread out from the skeleton's palm. Immediately, the line expanded, churning into magma. Karen raised his right hand. A Chain of Order scooped up the unconscious Gisen and shifted him to another spot; otherwise, the director, who happened to lie right along that line, likely would have turned into a roast suckling pig on the spot. The extreme rule of magma manifested, drastically altering the local environment. A square barrier of molten rock rose directly in front of Karen, while the garden was completely ruined—the lush greenery that had stayed vibrant even through winter was reduced to scorched earth. Altering the battlefield in advance before fighting was a habit among the truly powerful. In the mythic narratives of various faiths, gods often acted far more extravagantly. For instance, Artemis, Goddess of the Moon, would smash a crescent moon directly into the battlefield so moonlight saturated the terrain; the Sea God had once even called down the ocean itself, ensuring home-field advantage no matter where he fought. However, after this single spell, the skeleton's movements suddenly hitched. Its left hand crushed yet another bead, retrieving another fire crystal. Karen's eyes narrowed slightly. In a flash, he vanished from his spot and reappeared in front of the skeleton. It wasn't that he was pinching point coupons and hesitant to let Purr keep going, but rather that the assassin had seized the opening to close in. The enemy wasn't an idiot; who would tolerate someone swapping batteries mid-cast? Clang! Karen parried the assassin's blow with his greatsword. Just as the assassin prepared to launch a follow-up attack, a young girl plummeted from the sky with outstretched arms and an open mouth. The assassin immediately sprang back several meters to dodge. Boom! The girl crashed squarely into the earth, blasting out a crater. It was evident that the little bone dragon had not only healed her injuries during her time at the research institute, but had also enjoyed good "meals"—she had put on noticeable weight. Meanwhile, the giant began charging toward Karen. Though the magma terrain impaired his speed, his sheer strength remained formidable. As he drew near, the girl poked her head out of the crater. Having no time to leap onto Karen's back, she grabbed hold of his calf and bit down. Boom!! A colossal cloud of white mist detonated outward. The giant, barreling forward with terrifying momentum, felt as though he had slammed into an impossibly rigid wall. His body shuddered violently, and he was forced to a dead halt. When the white mist cleared, a massive row of pale ribs appeared before him. It was precisely this white "wall" that had halted his charge—and he had only managed to leave behind a few faint hairline cracks. The old acquaintance standing in the distance spoke up: "I never imagined that in the short time since we last met, you would change so much." Clad in the Dragon God Armor, Karen looked back at him with an unflinching gaze and replied: "So, you thought the only thing that changed between us was our ranks?"