indianbanksassociation Chapter 185 The Village Exuding an Eerie Aura
Chapter 185 The Village Exuding an Eerie Aura
Chapter 185 The Village Exuding an Eerie Aura
The magic that maintained the Golden Key Celestial Robe far exceeded Lucy's expectations, especially since several constellation gates had been opened earlier. So when Chase untied the unicorn horn, the connection to her Celestial Robe immediately broke.
To make matters worse, he got so excited that he lost his original clothes!
If Happy were there, she would definitely have added insult to injury by saying, "As expected of Lucy."
Finally, it was Dark Magician Girl who suggested that Lucy could change into the less demanding Canis Minor Celestial Robe, thus ending Lucy's much-anticipated fan service.
Considering that they were still some distance from the client's location, Chase used a stamina booster, Super Z, to replenish Lucy's depleted mana, allowing her to continue her high-intensity training and further solidify her still-unstable Celestial Cloth magic.
From this perspective, the Forest of Porndari, inhabited by all sorts of ferocious magical beasts, is definitely the most suitable place for training!
As Lucy fought her way through the battles, she became more and more proficient in using the Celestial Cloth, increasing her success rate from 20% at the beginning to 50%!
This rate of growth was terrifying, but Chase wasn't too surprised.
After all, Lucy's talent for Celestial Magic was extremely high. In the original story, despite being busy with her work at the newspaper, she learned how to make Celestial Clothes through her own study in just one year.
Now, she not only has the foundation laid by the Dark Magician training program, but also the full guidance from herself and the Dark Magician Girl. Furthermore, she is in an extreme environment of fighting against powerful magical beasts, so her progress is naturally rapid!
Of course, this semi-hellish method of cultivation also has quite obvious drawbacks:
By the time the outline of the ancient village surrounded by the forest came into view, Lucy was already exhausted, her legs were weak and she had no strength left.
The Super Z-Physical Enhancer only replenishes magic power; it cannot restore injuries or depleted mental strength.
"Master, is that village ahead our destination for this mission?"
The Dark Magician Girl stood on the treetop, her right hand resting on her fair forehead in a cute and innocent pose as she gazed into the distance.
In the distance, the setting sun casts an orange glow over the vast forest.
It was already dusk.
"According to the markings on the map, it should be correct. There are no other possible villages around." Chase rolled up the parchment he had spread out and put it away.
"We've finally arrived—" Lucy sighed heavily, looking utterly dejected.
Her tongue was sticking out as she panted heavily, and combined with her pure white Canine uniform, she gave off a truly exhausted vibe.
Even after mastering the advanced magic of Celestial Robe, and recovering his magic power several times, he was barely qualified to meet the client.
A guild newbie with lofty ambitions to become an S-rank mage has truly experienced the difficulty of SS-rank commissions!
Just as Lucy was about to head to the village with Chase and the Dark Magician Girl, the dense, tangled bushes ahead shook violently, and a dark figure suddenly darted out at an incredible speed.
Chase's gaze sharpened, and he reacted quite quickly, almost instinctively clenching his right fist.
However, the next second, he suppressed the restless dark golden magic power and slowly withdrew his fist—he recognized the identity of the person who came.
"Huh? A puppy?"
A man wearing purple shoulder armor and reeking of alcohol leaned close to Lucy, sniffing her scent.
"Where did this freakish monster come from!" Lucy reacted instinctively, kicking the man violently away.
Only after the man, struck hard, traced a graceful arc through the air and crashed into the nearby bushes did she belatedly realize that he seemed to be human.
"Huh? I'm so sorry, I didn't realize it for a moment."
The man struggled to climb out of the bushes, his steps unsteady and swaying, it was unclear whether he had been captured or was already intoxicated.
"fine."
He shook his head, his brow furrowed, and said to Lucy, "But you, you're wearing a puppy costume, yet I have absolutely no recollection of your scent. You seem rather clumsy and stupid. Are you a newbie who just joined our guild, the Four-Headed Hounds?"
The strange person and their off-putting remarks made Lucy's lips twitch, and she immediately switched into a crazy吐槽 (tu cao, meaning to roast or criticize) mode:
"I'm just wearing a puppy costume, not a dog, and I don't have any strange smell!"
"To conclude that someone is a member of your guild based on just this is far too hasty! And would a newbie even venture into a godforsaken place like this?!"
"And what do you mean by 'looks clumsy and stupid'? Your pickup skills are absolutely terrible! Terrible!!"
After a flurry of spittle, Lucy suddenly froze, as if she had realized something important.
"Wait! You just said—you're a mage of the Four-Headed Hound?"
Although the Four-Headed Hounds is not as famous as Fairy Tail, it is not an unknown small guild either, and has considerable overall strength.
Before deciding to join Fairy Tail, Lucy had researched many guilds, including Phantom Lord, and was quite knowledgeable about them.
During the La Labai incident in The Magic Flute, she also had a brief encounter with Goldman, the chairman of the Four-Headed Hounds, and knew that he was a longtime friend of Chairman Makarov.
So why would you encounter a person with four hounds here?
"That's right, this thing is an S-rank magical soil with four little dogs."
Chase walked over slowly, glanced at Packas, and said, "Drunken Eagle Packas."
The Kingdom of Fiore is neither small nor large; it's common for mages from different guilds to bump into each other while on assignments.
At that time, he had only recently become an S-class, and because they couldn't stand each other, he got into a fight with Pakas, which ended in a draw with both of them falling to the ground.
Incidentally, the magic card Pot of Greed was obtained around that time.
"S-rank? This drunkard?!"
Lucy exclaimed in surprise, then burst out laughing at the nickname "four-headed puppy".
"Tch, I didn't expect you, you bastard card player, to be here too." Packas sneered, but was also somewhat surprised.
Normally, the belligerent man would have already attacked Chase by now.
Now, judging from his weak breathing and disordered magical energy fluctuations, it's not hard to tell that he's not in good condition.
"What? They're from Fairy Tail? I thought we were finally going to have some cute girls join our guild."
"Hey! If you're also here for that SS-rank commission, you can go back now."
The four hound mages who were chasing from behind were in even worse shape. They were all covered in dust and dirt, with multiple injuries and a listless aura.
While not as extreme as the Mermaids, the Four Hounds are mostly burly men, with very few girls joining.
Seeing this, Chase easily figured out why the four hounds were there. He looked at the leader, Pakas, and said with a mocking tone:
"So, you failed to fulfill your request, right?"
Packas sensed his sarcasm, but instead of blushing and angrily defending himself as expected, he did not react with anger.
Recalling the terrifying experiences of the past two days, he sighed deeply, his eyes flashing with lingering fear, and said in a deep voice, "Chess, you should give up as soon as possible."
"This commission—"
"This is simply beyond the capabilities of mages like us!"
Despite Parcas's cryptic pronouncements and serious emphasis on the dangers of the SS commission, Chase showed no sign of backing down.
On the contrary, some were eager to try.
Based on the descriptions and experiences of Pakas and his group, this request was indeed not something that an ordinary S-class mage could accomplish.
Unfortunately, now that he has reached the level of the Ten Wizard Saints, he has long since fallen behind Pacas!
In contrast, Lucy looked unwell, clearly frightened.
Watching the four hounds and their companions gradually disappear into the depths of the jungle, she tentatively asked, "Chess, was that guy really... really able to fight you to a draw?"
Through the battle with Phantom Lord, she had a vague feeling that Fairy Tail's S-rank might be—
It's a bit stronger than the S-rank guilds.
For example, Leon, Gray's senior, was recently rated as an S-class mage by Boa Hancock Scale.
Lucy tried to "weaken" Pacas's strength in order to convince herself that this SS commission was not as terrible as the other party claimed.
"That was true before, but now, I could beat him to a pulp in a minute." Chase confidently shook his arm.
"I knew it! I knew it—"
"However, without considering special circumstances, Pacas's strength should be about the same as Erza's, after all, he is the strongest mage of the Four-Headed Hound."
"That's roughly what it means. In other words, the relief and joy that had just appeared on Lucy's face instantly froze, her pupils dilated, and after a brief moment of stunned silence, she exclaimed in surprise, 'Even Erza couldn't have accomplished this?!'"
"This conclusion is not accurate. Although a mage's strength is key to completing a task of corresponding difficulty, a mage's own judgment, willpower, and experience are also very important factors." Chess rarely spoke so seriously about the relevant knowledge.
Putting aside the outcome of a life-or-death battle, in terms of willpower alone, Erza is definitely stronger than Pacas!
"Besides, luck can sometimes be more useful than hard skills~" The dark magician girl raised her fair finger and added.
"Am I lucky?" Lucy sighed wistfully.
Ever since she joined the guild and teamed up with Natsu, she seems to have been very unlucky; otherwise, she wouldn't be unable to save up for rent!
"Turning back home before even trying is not the style of a Fairy Tail mage."
Chess clenched his fist excitedly, a hopeful smile spreading across his face. "I've unexpectedly gained another reason to complete this task. Let's go, Lucy, let's give those four little dogs a good slap in the face!"
After saying that, he took the lead and walked forward along the forest path.
Without the slightest hesitation, the Dark Magician Girl followed closely behind, humming a little tune.
"That's true, considering we're already here!"
Lucy took a deep breath, adjusted her breathing rhythm, and quickly caught up.
Soon, the three of them arrived at the location marked on the map—a small village protected by a stone wall several meters high.
The moss-covered rock walls blend perfectly into the surrounding forest landscape, and its front is a bronze gate engraved with ancient symbols, which looks exceptionally sturdy.
Although the bronze door was closed, Chase could clearly detect the peculiar aura leaking from the cracks in the door.
That feeling was definitely not human magic, nor was it like the forest monsters we had encountered before; it was very strange.
To verify his suspicions, Chase slowly walked over.
The moment I reached out and touched the bronze door, the magic power within me inexplicably became disordered, and an uncomfortable and oppressive coldness spread throughout my body!
"This village." Chase withdrew his hand, his brows furrowing slightly.
"Master, something seems off inside." The dark magician girl also noticed the abnormality.
In terms of perceiving power alone, having trained with the Black Mage for countless years, she is even more perceptive than Chess.
"Chesco, Dark Magician Girl, don't scare me! I didn't feel anything at all!"
Lucy, who had quickly hidden behind Chase, peeked out and cautiously examined the bronze door in front of her.
Even a door is so strange; she really can't imagine how terrifying the scene inside must be!
"Hey! Who are you people?!"
A sudden low shout from the wall startled Lucy, who was on edge.
Looking up, I saw a strong man wearing an animal skin coat, holding a large, gleaming knife in his hand.
Thankfully, it was a human who looked fairly normal, not some monstrous monster.
Lucy secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
"We are mages from Fairy Tail, here on a commission."
Chase stepped forward, took out the commission form from his pocket, and showed the other party the Fairy Tail emblem on his right arm.
"Fairy Tail? That guild that claims to be the strongest in the Kingdom of Fiore?" the burly man asked with a hint of doubt.
If it were a few days ago, upon hearing this resounding name, he would surely have shown an excited expression, feeling that the crisis troubling the entire village could finally be resolved.
But right now, he has just experienced the blow of the Four-Headed Hound's strongest mage's defeat, and is greatly disappointed with these famous guilds.
Even so, the strong man still held a glimmer of hope, flipped over the wall, and jumped down to Chess's side.
He reached out and took the order form, and only after confirming that the information was correct did the wariness on his face ease.
"Hello, mage who has come from afar, I am Berest, the guard of this village."
"I am Chess Lynn Edgardon, an S-class mage from Fairy Tail." Chess shook hands with the other person.
Berest's pupils constricted sharply: "Chase? The Chase who defeated the Eighteen Ancient Demon Gods on the Isle of Ruins a while ago?!"
"If I'm not mistaken, it should be me," Chase said calmly, subtly showing off a little.
It's not hard to tell from the fact that the other party even knew about this news that, even though they are located deep in the Boendali Forest, the people of this strange village must have frequent contact with the outside world.
This is actually quite easy to understand, since they were able to entrust the task to the Guild Alliance and the Council, and even raised the original S-rank difficulty to SS.
level.
"Great! You're definitely better than that silly little drunkard, right?!" Berest was overjoyed.
Hearing this, Lucy felt immense pressure. She silently thought to herself, "I can't even imagine what this guy will do behind my back if even Chess fails." (Fairy Tail)
"Of course, Parcas is nothing but a defeated opponent of mine."
Chase stepped aside to make way for Lucy, pushing her forward from behind, and laughed, "Besides, this time the leader is none other than Lady Lucy, who's right beside me!"
Upon hearing this, Lucy's eyes instantly became incredibly clear, and she was completely bewildered: "..—"
team leader?
Lady Lucy?
Wow!