บท 209: The Spectators
Even though the Reincarnators were confident that Leone and Sheele's attacks wouldn't harm them, they weren't foolish enough to block the strikes with their bodies. The principle of "better safe than sorry" was something they had learned from their experiences as Reincarnators. In the past, members of their team had died at the hands of careless actions during their missions in various worlds.
So, while Leone and Sheele's movements were faster than ordinary people, the Reincarnators easily dodged the attacks.
In the next moment, the Reincarnators realized just how right they were to be cautious.
Sheele's short sword slashed through the throne, and the luxurious metal seat was instantly cut in half.
Had they used their bodies to block the attacks, their fates wouldn't have been any better than that of the throne.
"This isn't right! Why are their swords so sharp? They're just ordinary iron swords!" A male Reincarnator with short red hair exclaimed in disbelief, pointing at the weapon in Sheele's hand.
A short-haired female Reincarnator with glasses was equally shocked, shouting, "This is insane! What the hell is going on?!"
She was filled with a deep sense of fear. Just moments ago, Leone had attacked her, and if her reaction had been a second slower, she might already be dead.
Even the Reincarnator leader's brow furrowed as a sense of foreboding settled in his gut.
Leone, noticing that her attack had failed to land, frowned in frustration. Then, her gaze fell on Ogre, standing at the edge of the hall. The moment she saw him, her eyes burned with hatred, as the scene of her friend's death replayed in her mind. If there was anyone she wanted to kill more than anyone else right now, it was Ogre.
She immediately shifted her target from the Reincarnators and charged at Ogre, who was still frozen in shock.
Seeing Leone rushing at him, Ogre's face twisted with fear.
He wasn't an Imperial Arms wieler, nor was he a superhuman. His strength was only slightly above that of an average person. Against Leone's speed, his once-proud swordsmanship was utterly useless, and his ability to evade wasn't much better.
Faced with an impossible situation, Ogre made a split-second decision—he tried to flee the palace, realizing he couldn't rely on the Reincarnators.
But Leone was far faster than he anticipated. Before he had gone far, she caught up to him.
Panicked, Ogre raised his sword in a desperate attempt to block her attack.
However, his sword, which might as well have been made of paper, was cut cleanly in two, along with his body.
As Ogre's body split in half and fell lifelessly to the ground, Leone stood there, panting heavily. Her hand, still clutching the short sword, trembled slightly.
This was the first time she had killed someone, but aside from the exhilaration of avenging her friend, she felt little fear or disgust.
Just as Leone turned to resume her attack on the Reincarnators, she spotted Honest in the distance.
Though she didn't recognize him, the fact that he was standing with Ogre and the Reincarnators was enough for Leone to mark him as an enemy.
Honest, on the other hand, had no such thoughts. In fact, he saw great value in both Leone and Sheele. He hoped they would finish off the Reincarnators for him, clearing the path for his complete control of the empire.
When he noticed Leone's gaze, Honest smiled at her, attempting to appear friendly.
But to Leone, his grin looked full of malice, and she instinctively charged at him with killing intent.
This sudden turn of events left Honest utterly confused, his smile frozen on his face.
Though Honest had trained extensively in his youth at the The Imperial Fist Temple, making him quite formidable, his skills were no match for Leone, who had been empowered with Eriri's counterattack ability.
It wasn't long before the palace gained yet another lifeless, bloated corpse.
…
While Leone dealt with Ogre and Honest, Sheele continued her assault on the remaining Reincarnators. Under her relentless pursuit, they were forced to dodge frantically, but as time passed, Sheele's movements became more fluid, showcasing her terrifying talent for killing. Each strike grew more deadly and unpredictable.
One impatient Reincarnator, driven to frustration, decided to unleash his strongest defense, hoping to withstand Sheele's assault.
However, his supposedly impenetrable defense, capable of withstanding bombardments, was easily sliced by Sheele's sword.
The moment his defense crumbled, Sheele's blade sliced across his throat, making him the third Reincarnator to fall.
Not long after, the nearly lifeless, bald Reincarnator finally succumbed to his injuries, joining his teammates in death.
With half of their team now dead, the remaining Reincarnators—one man and three women—were forced into a defensive retreat.
Among the four survivors, three possessed Level 3 power, while the last was at the high Level 2. Even this remaining group alone could have easily swept through the world. But here they were, on the run from two ordinary girls. While their dodging skills were impressive, the sight of them being pursued around the palace hall made the scene look utterly chaotic.
As the two girls pressed their attack, one of the female Reincarnators with long hair anxiously asked the leader, "What do we do now, Captain? We can't keep dodging forever."
Despite everything, they hadn't considered fleeing the palace to escape Leone and Sheele.
Leone and Sheele were key targets in their mission for this world. If they didn't eliminate them, they'd never complete their task, meaning they'd be stuck in this world indefinitely.
And if they couldn't finish their mission, they'd never escape this place.
For Reincarnators, being trapped in a world was worse than death.
"We need to disarm them. Let's focus on getting those short swords out of their hands," the Reincarnator leader said, deftly dodging another one of Sheele's attacks as he spoke.
Truth be told, he was growing increasingly frustrated. His immense strength, capable of wiping out entire nations in a short time, had no value in this battle, leaving him feeling utterly stifled.
"I agree. Let's take their weapons first," the long-haired female Reincarnator nodded and moved toward Leone and Sheele, alongside the leader, while the other two Reincarnators kept the girls occupied.
Their speed was incredible, far beyond what Leone and Sheele could track. In a blink, the two Reincarnators were beside them, striking out at the short swords, hoping to knock them away.
But as their attacks landed on the blades, a familiar sense of dread crept up on the Reincarnator leader.
"Get back! Now!" he shouted to the long-haired woman near Sheele, while simultaneously retreating away from Leone.
The energy they had used to strike the swords was instantly rebounded by the counterattack force, which reflected the attack back even faster. The leader managed to avoid the backlash, but the long-haired woman wasn't so lucky.
Though she heard his warning, she reacted a second too late and was struck by her own attack.
Fortunately, her strike hadn't been too powerful, so her injuries weren't too severe.
Having chased the Reincarnators for so long, Leone and Sheele's stamina was beginning to wane, forcing them to halt their pursuit and rest on the floor.
Meanwhile, the remaining four Reincarnators regrouped and began discussing their options.
They were filled with frustration toward the Lord God's Dimension that had sent them here. What they thought was an easy world had turned into a nightmare with no clear solution.
"What now? Their weapons also have the counterattack ability. There's no way to approach them," the long-haired woman muttered, her face twisted with frustration.
Though she had used a healing potion to recover fully, she still couldn't shake the humiliation of being caught off guard by Sheele.
"Maybe we should leave for now and come up with a new plan?" suggested the woman with a single ponytail, her expression equally sour.
The bespectacled woman nodded in agreement. "I think that's the best option. The mission doesn't have a time limit, after all."
"Fine. Let's get out of here and see if the other fated characters have this counterattack power," the leader said in a low voice.
This was his biggest concern. If all the fated ones possessed this strange ability, their chances of completing the mission were slim. But if it was just Leone and Sheele, they could figure out the source of their power and find a way to neutralize it.
He knew that Leone and Sheele had only gained this counterattack ability recently. If they had possessed it earlier, they wouldn't have been so easily captured by Ogre and dragged into the palace.
And from Leone's reaction during the first Reincarnator's attack, it was clear she had no idea she had this power before that moment.
Having made their decision, the four Reincarnators didn't hesitate and sprinted toward the palace doors.
However, as they neared the entrance, they were suddenly stopped by an invisible force.
Their expressions darkened, and an enchanting female voice echoed through the hall.
"Oh my, the show isn't over yet. How can the actors leave the stage without permission?" The voice, filled with a strange, captivating charm, made their blood run cold.
"Who's there?!" the Reincarnators shouted as they whipped around to face the source of the voice.
To their shock, they saw beautiful girls of varying ages had suddenly appeared in the once-empty hall.
The Reincarnator leader's pupils contracted sharply. From the words they had just heard, he was certain that one of these girls had given Leone and Sheele their counterattack abilities.
These girls were none other than Eriri and her group, who had finally lifted their concealment.
Each of them sat in an elegant, comfortable chair, with half a watermelon in one hand and a spoon in the other, leisurely eating the fruit as they watched the spectacle unfold.
Leone and Sheele, equally shocked, stared at the newcomers in confusion.
At that moment, Eriri chuckled softly and called out to Leone and Sheele, "Leone, Sheele, how are those counterattack powers working for you?"
"Sister, are you the one who gave us this power?" Leone asked, wide-eyed with surprise.
"That's right," Eriri replied with a smile.
Her confirmation made Leone's admiration for this beautiful woman soar. Without that counterattack power, she would have died at the hands of the bald Reincarnator. It wasn't an exaggeration to say Eriri had saved both her and Sheele's lives.
"Thank you for helping us, Sister," Leone quickly bowed alongside Sheele, showing their deep gratitude.
"No need to thank me," Eriri replied nonchalantly.
The Reincarnator leader looked at Eriri with a hint of obsession in his eyes but quickly forced himself to refocus. Their lives were on the line, and survival had to be his top priority.
Meanwhile, the three female Reincarnators couldn't hide their jealousy. Eriri's beauty captivated them, but instead of admiration, it stirred envy in their hearts. They didn't desire her; they wanted her extraordinary looks for themselves.
"Who are you people? Are you another Reincarnator team?" the Reincarnator leader cautiously asked.
From the storyline they had obtained from the Lord God's Dimension, Eriri and her group weren't supposed to exist in this world. However, the leader did recognize three of the younger girls—Mine, Akame, and Kurome.
It wasn't unheard of for two teams of Reincarnators to be sent to the same world, though it was rare.
Generally, when this kind of situation occurs, the missions of the two Reincarnation teams are mostly aligned.
Therefore, the two Reincarnator teams can either cooperate to complete the mission together or compete against each other to eliminate one of the teams.
Of course, the vast majority of Reincarnator teams would choose the former.
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