Chapter 2381 Number 03 <TOC> Chapter 2383 Bluffing
Translator: SumTLMan
“You’ve finally come out,” Firo said with a smile, his words seemingly laden with deeper meaning.
Number 03 felt something was wrong, but the situation no longer allowed her the luxury of hiding, as the skull of the Wave Mechanism was nearly reduced to ashes. Without the skull, the Mechanism’s shell couldn’t be operated in the short term. More importantly, the person behind the Wave Mechanism was someone she couldn’t afford to offend.
Firo taunted, “I thought you’d continue hiding under that tender umbrella, like a turtle shrinking its head.”
Number 03 glared coldly at Firo, “It seems you were looking forward to my appearance? You think you can definitely defeat me?”
“Don’t delude yourself. We’ve studied the formal wizards here for a long time, and although the ‘Firewalker’ is often stationed in Sleepless City, we have quite a bit of information about you,” Number 03 confidently stated.
She knew Firo, but Firo didn’t know her. Moreover, she had made many preparations to deal with Firo in the past few days. With the asymmetry of information and preparation, she was confident she could keep Firo here.
Firo understood what Number 03 meant, and he laughed it off, “Secretly studying the wizards of various organizations, you really do have ambitious plans, don’t you?”
Number 03 knew Firo was fishing for information, and she coldly chuckled without responding.
Firo shrugged, “Well, if you won’t say, then let it be. But, do you really think you’ve won?”
At this, Firo suddenly burst into laughter.
Facing Number 03 alone, with the asymmetry of information, he might indeed be at a disadvantage. However, he wasn’t alone here and now!
As his laughter subsided.
Number 03’s body suddenly shook, as if she had realized something, her face filled with disbelief.
Why did she feel a strange, powerful energy fluctuation behind her?
She slowly turned her head, and her pupils dilated in shock at the sight.
Somehow, a grey-haired little old man had appeared behind her, smiling amiably. Upon seeing Number 03 turn around, the grey-haired little old man greeted, “Beautiful lady, aside from the tattoos on your face, every other part of you has completely captured my heart… So, could you give me your soul?”
“Redemption of the Dead, Nisi Byron?!” Number 03’s expression was one of disbelief.
“Just thinking about my name coming from the lips of a beautiful lady truly thrills my heart,” Nisi said with a smile.
“How, how are you here?” After Number 03 asked, she realized how pointless her question was. She turned her head towards Firo, who was not far away, and said coldly, “It seems I’ve underestimated you. You not only know the whereabouts of our combat personnel but also arranged for Nisi to spy in the shadows. You know more than I imagined.”
“Who is the power behind you? Flore, or the Spring of the Departed?”
Flore, Spring of the Departed? What are these forces? Both Firo and Nisi pondered this in their minds.
Despite their confusion, Firo didn’t show it, maintaining his composure, “You’re asking which power stands behind us? Why don’t you take a guess?”
Upon hearing Firo’s response, the tension in her eyes visibly relaxed, and she spoke with a firm tone, “It seems I was mistaken; you know nothing of these forces.”
Firo was taken aback. Indeed, he knew nothing about these forces, which is why he had attempted to use his words to deceive Number 03, hoping to extract some relevant information. However, how did Number 03 deduce his ignorance from his response?
“It appears you’re quite confident in your judgment. But sometimes, excessive confidence can easily lead to downfall,” Firo responded, unsure if Number 03 was also attempting to deceive him, so he continued to speak ambiguously.
Number 03 scoffed, her tone dripping with scorn, “You think I’m deceiving you? Hah, some information, if you know, you just know. If you don’t, no amount of pretending will make it appear otherwise.”
After saying this, Number 03 chose not to mention the so-called Flore and the Spring of the Departed again, as she had already determined Firo’s lack of connection to them.
“Why have you come to ambush me in Snoke? We have no dealings with the Savage Grottoes,” Number 03 coldly stated.
“A cunning woman,” Firo muttered under his breath. He wasn’t foolish; Number 03’s words were a form of inquiry, aiming to find out whether Firo and Nisi’s appearance was coincidental or inevitable. If it was the latter, what was the Savage Grottoes’ involvement?
Regardless of how Firo responded, with Number 03’s insight, she would glean some information, so the best strategy was to disengage.
“Catching you, we’ll have plenty of time to talk!” Firo silently vowed, crushing a fire sphere to form a fiercely burning flame sword, and swung it viciously at Number 03!
Number 03 understood that their time for exchanging words had ended. Without hesitation, she conjured a water shield.
After blocking the Flame Bloom Sword, she extended her other hand.
A pale, slender palm shimmered with a faint blue light, and as the glow flickered, space began to ripple in waves.
Upon seeing the ripples, Firo shouted, “She’s trying to escape!”
These water ripples were all too familiar to Firo; the moment he saw them, he understood Number 03’s intention.
Number 03 was preparing to flee.
Indeed, although Number 03 was keen on rescuing the head of the Wave Mechanism, all actions had to be under the premise of self-preservation.
If it were a one-on-one confrontation with Firo, Number 03 would prioritize rescuing the head of the Wave Mechanism, confident in her ability to handle Firo. However, once Firo and Nisi joined forces, her ability to even protect herself would be compromised, let alone anything else.
Thus, without hesitation, she created the ripples, planning to escape back through them, waiting for the return of Numbers 01 and 02.
As for the head of the Wave Mechanism… if it was damaged, so be it. The worst-case scenario would be facing punishment from her superiors, but at least she would have saved her own life.
Number 03 decisively fled back through the ripples, leaving Nisi and Firo astonished.
This witch was incredibly tenacious, not even bothering to struggle before fleeing!
Firo hastily transformed the Flame Bloom Sword into a wide-ranging fire rain, attempting to break through Number 03’s water shield and destroy the water ripples. However, the defense of the water shield was not weak, making it nearly impossible to break through in one or two seconds.
Firo could only place his hopes on Nisi.
Nisi was a soul wizard, and as long as he was willing, he should be able to break through the elemental energy of the water shield.
Indeed, Nisi did just that. To destroy the water ripples as quickly as possible, Nisi used a soul magic trick called the Soul Splitting Hand.
The Soul Splitting Hand could condense an invisible and intangible power of the soul, directly attacking the target’s soul.
The introduction to the Soul Splitting Hand might seem ordinary, but it is one of the rare abilities in soul magic that can directly attack the soul.
It is known that the soul resides in the ethereal soul realm. For the Soul Splitting Hand to attack an opponent’s soul, it must be able to enter the soul realm, lock onto the opponent’s soul, and cause damage. This single soul magic trick combines so many functions into one, so one should not judge the trick by its simple introduction. The simpler the introduction, the more complex its implications might be.
The intangible Soul Splitting Hand passed through the water shield without any hindrance and directly entered Number 03’s body.
Number 03’s movements momentarily stalled. However, quickly, Number 03 returned to normal, continuing to generate water ripples as if nothing had happened.
“Something is blocking the Soul Splitting Hand… Does your soul have barriers?” Nisi exclaimed in surprise and doubt.
Number 03 did not bother to answer Nisi’s question, merely curling the corners of her mouth slightly, displaying a smug emotion while subtly mocking Nisi.
“I’ll be leaving now. As for that Wave Mechanism skull… If you dare, continue trying to destroy it. The unknown punishment will inevitably descend upon you.” The moment Number 03 finished speaking, the water ripples had already formed, and half of her body had also entered the water ripples.
“You people are just good for nothing, aren’t you?” Firo said angrily.
“Hehe, I never fight a battle unprepared, that’s my motto.” Accompanied by the faint sound of water, Number 03’s figure completely disappeared into the water ripples.
In Number 03’s view, the outside Firo and Nisi were angrily venting at their surroundings. Firo was burning the skull of the Wave Mechanism, while Nisi had summoned a large army of skeletons, recklessly destroying everything around, seemingly trying to force Number 03 out of her hiding space.
Number 03 sneered and shook her head: “As long as I don’t show myself, even Number 01 and Number 02 can’t break through the capabilities of the Water Trace, let alone you.”
After saying this, Number 03 turned her head, preparing to delve deeper into the Water Trace.
However, just as she turned, Number 03 felt a blur in front of her eyes.
She closed her eyes and rubbed her eyelids: “Have I been too tired lately?”
When she reopened her eyes, the blurriness had disappeared, and she was surrounded by familiar settings: a golden pool, with water jets inside the pool spurting high and creating foam, and in the center of the pool, a statue of a young girl sculpted in her likeness.
In the heart of the “Water Trace,” a golden pool served as the core, an alchemy gift bestowed upon her by her faction, brimming with the pure essence of water energy.
Previously, when the Wave Mechanism suffered damage, it was in this pool that she soaked it, allowing the comforting embrace of water energy to hasten its recovery.
Surrounding the pool was a living area laid with crystals, furnished with sofas, tables and chairs, mirrors, and wardrobes, along with various trinkets.
This area was referred to as the Crystal Zone by Number 03.
Typically, upon entering the Water Trace, Number 03 would rest in this crystal-adorned area.
Exhaling turbid breaths, she staggered slightly as she took a seat on a sofa within the Crystal Zone. Perhaps due to her repeated use of magic through the Water Trace, she felt somewhat dizzy.
After sitting and resting for a while on the sofa, she began to feel a bit more comfortable.
Lifting her head, she instinctively looked towards the golden pool.
For some reason, she felt that today, the golden pool seemed a bit lackluster, its mist not as dense as usual.
She stood up, intending to take a closer look at the pool, but the moment she did, dizziness overwhelmed her again, forcing her to sit back down.
After resting a bit longer, she felt spirited enough to once again gaze upon the golden pool… finding its mist’s density back to normal.
“Could I have been mistaken?” Number 03 pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling something was wrong, yet upon closer consideration, everything seemed in order.
The situation was peculiar. Deciding to meditate, Number 03 sought to inspect her condition more closely.
Just as she was about to delve into meditation, a heart-wrenching scream from outside reached her ears. Hesitating for a moment, she waved her hand in front of her, conjuring a water mirror that displayed the scene from outside.
Upon closer inspection, the screams turned out to be Nisi and Firo, who were furiously shouting due to their inability to find Number 03.
“Jumping jesters,” Number 03 mockingly projected her voice through the Water Trace.
Hearing this, Nisi and Firo’s anger intensified.
Observing the enraged wizards from outside, Number 03 felt a peculiar satisfaction.
She even felt a strange sense of superiority, moving towards the wardrobe with interest to select several bathrobes for soaking, standing in front of a square mirror, trying them on one by one to see which suited her best.
“When Number 01 and Number 02 return, I’ll wear the radiant gown given to me and step out. Those two fools will surely be even more annoyed.” The reflection in the mirror was filled with malice and delight: “The more annoyed they are, the happier I am!”
——While they wreak havoc outside, here I am, leisurely bathing and changing clothes within the Water Trace. Anyone who knew would be annoyed.
With this thought, Number 03 even began to hum a tune in contentment.
Then… she slipped off the blue scale gown, revealing her hollow, pale, slender, and well-proportioned body underneath.
Gazing at the perfect figure reflected in the mirror, Number 03 even indulged in a moment of narcissism, caressing it lightly.
The only source of dissatisfaction for Number 03 was the number tattoo on her face.
“Just this one ****, and I’m sure the higher-ups will reward me. Then, I can request to have the tattoo on my face removed, just like… those people.”
Murmuring to herself, Number 03 once again lost herself in the perfection of her reflection in the mirror.
Bare, she posed in several seductive gestures when suddenly, a strange sound echoed.
Gurgle——Tsk——
The sound was like someone swallowing saliva.
Most importantly, this sound… was incredibly close!!
Number 03 froze, puzzled by the origin of such a sound.
Could there be someone else here? Impossible, this place is within the Water Trace!
But if not another person, then where did the sound of swallowing saliva come from?
She looked around in confusion.
Gazing at the distant, ornate golden pool, the sofas and chairs, and then back at the mirror in front of her… everything was so familiar, yet everything seemed so foreign.
Something was wrong, terribly wrong!
Number 03 massaged her temples, as if deep in thought.
“Yes, I remember now!” Suddenly, Number 03 rushed to the edge of the pool, frantically reaching her hand into its depths.
Despite the clear, rippling water before her eyes, she felt not a hint of moisture.
Or rather, there was a sensation of moisture, but it was merely a simulated exterior, far from reality.
As a water witch, she was acutely aware of what water should feel like.
The water in the pool was fake!
If even the water was fake, then this space might be…