"Alright, you can put me down now. This is kind of embarrassing."
Feeling the softness pressed right against the tip of her nose and that faint, elusive fragrance, Lynelle finally realized her position was rather improper.
So after giving a good, deliberate nuzzle against Wendy's chest, she wriggled out of Wendy's embrace on her own.
"What's this? It looks... Mr. Gray Serpent seems quite surprised?"
Lynelle smiled faintly. "When you were using the Rod of the Underworld, did it never occur to you that the staff itself could be considered a type of electronic device?"
"Although its unique activation effect prevented me from directly disabling it, pinpointing which Gray Serpent had it was child's play, wouldn't you agree?"
"So... you were aware of our plan all along?"
"Not only that, I even knew you probably weren't all that willing to truly harm me."
Sensing the chaotic mess of Honkai energy and the core within her body, Lynelle stuck out her tongue slightly.
"Looks like I didn't let you have your way... But let me guess, the reason you didn't want to hurt me... is it because of Kevin?"
"Miss Lynelle, you are very perceptive."
Things having developed to this point, Gray Serpent seemed to see little need to keep speaking in riddles.
"However, since you not only know of Lord Kevin but are also aware of the existence of the Elysian Realm, I cannot comprehend why you chose to join Schicksal and Anti-Entropy, instead of devoting yourself to World Serpent and Project Stigma."
"That's a matter of ideology. In my view, that plan isn't a perfect one, and I believe Kevin thinks so too."
Lynelle offered a slight smile.
"No matter what, Kevin will steadfastly carry out Project Stigma. Doesn't that precisely mean we are free to try and forge other paths without reservation?"
"On that point, I reserve my judgment."
Gray Serpent sighed, a syringe appearing in his hand. "But, since you are unwilling to join World Serpent... then there is nothing more for us to discuss."
"The Herrscher core is essential for the Sovereign's return. Even if your identity may be more complex than it appears, perhaps far beyond our imagination, for the sake of Project Stigma, we will eliminate any obstacle in our path, without hesitation."
"After using this, we will no longer be able to hold back. Miss Lynelle, please be careful."
"A wetware body enhanced with a special serum..."
Lynelle gave Wendy's hand a gentle squeeze, signaling the girl not to be nervous. "Interesting. I think I know what your final trump card is."
"But I have one more question. After you use that thing, even if you defeat us, who do you plan to have retrieve the core?"
"Gray Serpent 1904 of the conservative faction is already on his way. So, if our methods become... excessive, as long as death isn't immediate, your safety and that of your companion should be assured."
Hearing the word 'companion,' Wendy's pretty face warmed slightly, but she still asked in a low voice, "Lynelle, should we maybe..."
"It's no use. That syringe in his hand isn't something that can be stopped by killing him."
"If we could interrupt his 'transformation sequence' with a sneak attack, I would've done it already. Besides, if we don't clear this threat, when Ragna returns, she'd have to fight for her life anyway."
Watching the two 'wetware' Gray Serpents begin their physical distortion, Lynelle sighed and muttered under her breath, "How did I end up running into all the mid-game items and bosses right now... Is this what they call power creep?"
That's right. Gray Serpent's trump card was the very same transformation device—the 'Assaka Transformer'—that had appeared in the Sea of Quanta instance.
This transformation serum was another one of Jackal's developed tools.
However, compared to the Rod of the Underworld, this thing had even lower controllability.
After all, transforming into a Honkai Beast wasn't reversible, and it greatly impacted one's sanity.
While it boasted combat power on par with a Emperor-class Honkai Beast, frankly, it couldn't hold a candle to Stan in either ability or rarity.
Looking at it that way, Stan was actually quite important to Jackal.
One wonders if Jackal threw a fit on the floor like Raven did after Durandal snatched the cat away.
"And besides..."
Lynelle silently deactivated her transformation. The moment she exited her 'Seele' state, the aftereffects of the Rod of the Underworld immediately began to manifest on her body.
"Kgh..."
The corner of Lynelle's mouth twitched. The intense pain nearly sent her collapsing back onto Wendy.
"Ahem, it's fine. I actually have a counter prepared for Gray Serpent's trump card too."
"It's just that my condition isn't great right now, Wendy. Could you please keep him occupied for a bit? Just a brief engagement is enough. I estimate I only have enough strength for one shot. It'd be bad if I missed."
"Okay, don't worry."
Wendy stepped in front of Lynelle.
"That scare you gave me earlier... in that moment of crisis, I felt the connection between my Herrscher core and myself loosen somewhat... Now, I should be able to draw more power from it."
"That's good..."
Lynelle took a deep breath and directly activated Elysia's Stigma.
With the help of a strange power emanating from the Stigma, the violently rampaging Honkai energy inside her, like a wild dragon, temporarily settled down.
Then, she forcibly gathered the Authority of Corruption into her hand.
As pink crystals gradually coalesced in her palm, an exceptionally gorgeous pink longbow took shape in Lynelle's grasp.
[Whisper of the Past: Sonnet]—Elysia's personal weapon. Its data had been packaged and gifted to Lynelle by Elysia herself. Now, the girl chose to materialize this weapon.
Then, the Authority of Corruption activated once more, and a second weapon began to form.
Judging by the energy signature, it was another familiar one—[Black Abyss White Flower], the weapon Lynelle projected second-most often.
Although Elysia had once disliked it for not being pretty enough, the pragmatic Lynelle paid that no mind.
The only problem was... this particular projection of Black Abyss White Flower looked a bit strange.
To be precise... it was a bit small.
Then, to Wendy's astonishment as she glanced back, Lynelle chose to nock Abyss Flower... onto the bowstring.
"I Am The Bone Of My Sword—"
At this point, Lynelle's final, held-in-reserve trump card was laid bare for all to see.
Although the incantation was really just a playful reference, the essence of Lynelle's skill was indeed quite similar to a certain red-clad nameless hero's.
After all, the power of Tracing was even inferior to Welt's constructs.
Managing to exert thirty to fifty percent of the original weapon's power was considered a stroke of luck.
Even with the foundation of Elysia's crystal magic, it only provided the weapon with a true framework, not significantly boosting its destructive potential.
And that's when Lynelle had her clever idea.
Since it had a framework, and the power wasn't ideal anyway... could she make these traced projections... self-destruct?
The answer was yes.
Using the versatile crystal magic as the base for detonating the projections, and attaching the pirated Authority from the traced projections onto the crystals as the energy attribute, Lynelle was surprised to find she had accidentally recreated a version of [Broken Phantasm] that probably owed royalties to a certain Counter Guardian.
"Still, this is my first time trying this ability... Judging by the amount of Honkai energy I'm pouring in, the power is guaranteed. But I hope it's enough to take down the Assaka in one shot."
"Black Abyss White Flower— Broken Phantasm!"
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T/N: Completely forgot to ask, but is there a localized name for the Rod of the Underworld? I couldn't find jack
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T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.