Chapter 182 – Diana vs. Ludendorff
"I can get you inside."
"But I won't be opening a portal—I'll take you in with teleportation."
"Also, Diana and I will be coming with you."
Roy said unhurriedly, looking at Steve.
Steve frowned. "Your clothes are too conspicuous; you'll be spotted the moment we enter."
"Don't worry about that—I have it covered."
With that, under Steve's watchful gaze, Roy raised his right hand and snapped his fingers.
A soft green light flared over him and Diana.
When the glow faded, their clothes had changed: Roynow wore a German Army colonel's uniform, and Diana a deep-blue, low-cut backless gown.
Transformation spell.
A simple bit of magic, easy to learn and highly practical.
Its only real drawback was the duration—two hours at most.
Still, that would be more than enough time to track down Ludendorff and Doctor Poison inside the castle.
Seeing Roy cast the spell to change their outfits, Steveand the others wore odd expressions.
Though they'd seen Roy use magic before, every display left them thinking, magic really is convenient.
Ignoring them, Roy took Diana's right hand.
Then he grasped Steve's shoulder.
Teleportation.
Without hesitation, he vanished from Samir, Charlie, and Chief's sight.
In an instant, Roy brought Diana and Steve inside the castle.
Diana had experienced teleportation before; her face showed no surprise.
Steve, on the other hand, needed several seconds to steady himself.
"The castle is hosting a banquet. If Ludendorff and Doctor Poison are here, they'll attend."
"The three of us walking in together will draw unwanted attention."
"I'll go first; you follow."
Steve spoke slowly.
"Fine."
Roy replied.
He had no objection to Steve's plan.
Steve nodded and strode toward the banquet hall without another word.
He soon disappeared from Roy and Diana's view.
Once he was gone, Roy asked Diana, "Care for a look around the castle first?"
"All right."
Diana answered at once.
Though they were here to find Ludendorff and Doctor Poison, she wasn't in a hurry.
Or rather, she didn't mind learning the castle's layout beforehand.
She slipped her arm through Roy's and pressed close.
Roy wasted no time strolling through the castle with her.
The place was fairly new, not some ancient stronghold.
Judging by the walls and floor tiles, it couldn't be more than ten years old.
In short, it had been built just before the war.
They hadn't walked far when they encountered patrolling German Soldiers.
The men didn't stop or question them.
Spotting the colonel's insignia on Roy's shoulder, they saluted.
Roy merely nodded in return.
After ten minutes of reconnaissance, they reached the banquet hall.
Before entering, they heard music and conversation within.
Moments later, they stepped inside.
The vast hall glittered with gold and crystal, filled with high-ranking German officers and officials.
Many had brought female companions.
These women wore splendid gowns, like Diana.
They also displayed costly jewelry and elaborate makeup.
Yet beside Diana—fresh-faced and unadorned—they looked like mere foil.
To put it plainly, they were the leaves setting off a single brilliant flower.
Almost at once, Roy and Diana drew glances.
Guests studied them with open curiosity.
No one doubted their identities.
It wasn't just the uniforms; their features and bearing simply didn't suggest spies.
Unconcerned, Roy and Diana calmly scanned the room.
They quickly spotted Steve—and Doctor Poison.
More precisely, Steve was working his charm on Doctor Poison.
Among the guests, Doctor Poison's look was unique.
Though her deep-green outfit was proper, the mask on her face stole every gaze.
She stood before a fireplace, eyes fixed on the flames, replying absently to Steve.
Beside her, Steve played the devoted admirer with polished skill, trying to learn the location of the poison factory.
Steve was, undeniably, a gifted spy.
Though Doctor Poison didn't know him, she didn't suspect him and conversed with interest.
Yet she wasn't so dazzled by his "beauty" as to reveal anything.
Steve remained patient, continuing his flattery.
"I love fire—do you?" he asked.
Doctor Poison stayed silent, still watching the flames.
Unperturbed, Steve went on.
"To me, fire is order slipping into chaos, the ultimate destroyer of Worlds."
"It reminds me that everything ends: dust to dust, earth to earth."
"That thought comforts me."
He turned to look at her.
She met his gaze, the two studying each other in silence.
"I see all that in your eyes. Perhaps you'd show me your work."
He stepped closer as he spoke.
Doctor Poison instinctively retreated a step, momentarily at a loss.
Just then, Steve noticed Roy and Diana entering.
He flicked his eyes toward them once, then looked away.
Though he loathed Doctor Poison, the seasoned spy could see he was getting to her.
Or rather, she had been moved by her own "beauty" and the admiration she displayed.
In his view, with just a little more effort, Doctor Poisonwould surely reveal the location of the poison-gas factory.
Given enough time, he could indeed extract the exact position of the factory from Doctor Poison.
But as the saying goes, plans can't keep up with changes.
The moment he spotted Roy and Diana, Doctor Poisonalso saw Ludendorff enter from the other end of the ballroom.
At the sight of Ludendorff, the defenses Steve had just pried open nearly snapped shut again.
Under Steve's gaze, Doctor Poison spoke: "I'm grateful for your interest in my research."
"However, I am loyal to General Ludendorff and have no intention of changing partners."
"Besides, I know you're only interested in my work, not in me as a person."
"Because I don't see in your eyes the kind of affection a man shows a woman."
Having said that, without waiting for Steve, Doctor Poison walked toward Ludendorff, leaving him no further chance.
Failed!
Steve sighed in resignation.
Seeing Doctor Poison head for Ludendorff, Diana looked earnestly at Roy and said quickly, "I will end the war right here!"
"Agreed!"
Roy replied.
Then, without hesitation, he dispelled the transformation spell on himself and Diana.
As the spell faded, their clothes reverted to their original forms.
At the sight, the surrounding guests showed astonishment.
Before anyone could speak, Diana undid the belt of her fur coat; with a shrug of her shoulders it slid to the floor.
The next instant, she drew the god-slaying sword and divine power shield from her back.
Without a moment's hesitation, she exploded forward across the ballroom toward Ludendorff, legs driving like pistons.
Diana's action caught not only the guests off guard but Steve as well.
By now, however, he had no time to stop her.
With speed far beyond ordinary humans, Diana closed the distance to Ludendorff in a blink.
Though startled, Ludendorff quickly reacted, seizing a blond officer beside him and shoving him at Diana.
Shhk!
The god-slaying sword, meant for Ludendorff's heart, pierced the blond officer's instead.
Unconcerned by the man's death, Ludendorff pulled two deep-blue vials of performance-enhancing gas from his pocket.
He crushed them instantly, inhaling every trace of the gas.
As the enhancer flooded his system, his face twisted into a beastly snarl.
The moment Diana freed her sword from the dead officer, Ludendorff was on her, right fist swinging.
Unable to dodge, Diana raised the divine power shield in her left hand.
Boom!
Ludendorff's fist slammed into the shield like a cannon shell, the impact thundering through the hall.
The force sent Diana stumbling back two or three steps.
Before she could steady herself, Ludendorff's second barrage began.
He didn't draw his sidearm; instead, like a savage, he rained wild punches at her.
In close-quarters skill, Ludendorff was no match for Diana.
Yet his berserker frenzy caught her off guard and gave him the upper hand.
Once the two clashed, the other guests fled the ballroom as if escaping a disaster.
Outside, German Soldiers rushed toward the hall.
Magnetism Manipulation Superpower!
Roy acted at once, unleashing his ability.
The next second, the advancing soldiers felt an enormous force.
Before they could react, their rifles were torn from their hands, hovering in mid-air and aiming back at them.
Gunfire erupted in a staccato roar.
The soldiers were cut down by their own weapons before they could do a thing.
After dispatching them, Roy kept the guns aloft.
Under his control, the floating weapons came alive and began hunting the guests fleeing the ballroom.
Though not all were soldiers, they were clearly no innocents.
Good people wouldn't attend a banquet hosted by Ludendorff.
While Roy's guns pursued the guests, Steve didn't stand idle.
He had meant to aid Diana, but seeing Ludendorff heft an enormous wooden table and hurl it at her changed his mind.
Plainly, the current Ludendorff was beyond him.
After a second's thought, he sprinted toward Doctor Poison.
Since espionage had failed, he'd take her by force.
It was the smart choice.
Intervening in Diana's fight would only get him torn apart—literally.
The enhancer had twisted Ludendorff's mind, filling him with bloodlust.
Diana didn't pause to wonder how he'd gained such strength and speed.
After blocking several blows with the shield, she seized the initiative.
She slipped past his fist and slashed with lightning speed.
Shhk!
The razor-sharp god-slaying sword swept across Ludendorff's neck, severing his head.
Momentum sent the head flying, blood spraying from the stump.
Diana leapt back several meters to avoid the gore.
Once she landed, Ludendorff's headless body crumpled to the floor.
It's over!
I have slain Ares!
She gazed at the corpse, relieved she had killed Ares and ended the war.
But she quickly realized it wasn't that simple.
Gunfire and explosions continued; German Army troops kept assaulting the ballroom.
How can this be?
Ares is dead—why don't they stop?
Diana looked to Roy in bewilderment
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