Amidst the rumbling sound of the rain, strange figures began to emerge from the windows, alleyways, and rooftops of the seemingly abandoned houses. Simultaneously, after Shade and the professor made their final leap through the window, shadowy figures of local residents appeared on the street behind them.
Professor Katya was elderly and perhaps could not see clearly, but Shade saw them vividly. The faces of those residents were unmistakably like the ones in the oil paintings—ugly and terrifying. They might not have been as pure or as horrific as the captain of the Fishbone Pirate Ship, but they were absolutely not normal humans.
"This old street... Professor, Mr. Scott, run first. Go in the direction Miss Princess indicated."
As Shade spoke, a silver arc of light flew from his hand, severing the head of the manservant who had just poked his head out of the window they had jumped from.
The head landed on the rainy street, rolling and spinning before coming to a stop at Professor Katya's feet. Its eyes remained open—eerie, bloodshot fish eyes that looked exceptionally disgusting.
Professor Katya looked at Shade in surprise, a look of sudden realization crossing her face.
"So you are... I understand! Let's go first."
As a folklorist who had once collaborated with the Church, how could she not know of the existence of Ring Warlocks? The professor grabbed the student, who was staring at the surroundings in terror, and ran straight toward the street that had not yet been blocked.
Lacia stood beside Shade. The former nodded and took a deep breath. As a tossed scroll of paper ignited, shimmering pale green specks of light flew out. A few seconds later, the illusory figure of a forest archer carrying a quiver appeared beside her.
"The cult here is transforming humans into those terrible fish-men."
The princess summarized the situation in the rain, controlling the archer to draw and fire. A green light pierced through the curtain of rain, accurately penetrating the throat of the fish-faced creature closest to them. The other creatures looked on in fear.
"Mr. Jude's claim that he cured the mermaid curse probably wasn't a lie. By transforming into merfolk, the curse might disappear. He used those words to attract local cursed Ring Warlocks, wanting to transform them into these ugly things to prepare more manpower for the Return to the Sea ritual," Shade added.
Leaning his back against Princess Lacia, Shade gently pushed the silver moonlight forward. The arc of light acted like a shockwave, slicing through the rain and cutting three fish-faced creatures rushing out of the abandoned stone houses in half at the waist.
Although these things looked terrifying, aside from being difficult to kill and having stronger physical attributes, they possessed no special powers.
Just as Shade was thinking this, Lacia suddenly pulled his arm, making him step back two paces. Almost in the next second, an arrow composed of black liquid flew past his face.
Both looked toward the side alley. Mr. Jude, who had claimed to be going upstairs to retrieve antiques, was now looking at them while holding a long, thin salted fish. A voice that sounded as if it were speaking through a mouthful of phlegm drifted through the rain into their ears
"I originally thought you were truly journalists and wanted to transform you into servants of my Lord. I didn't expect you to be Ring Warlocks attracted by the rumors I spread. That's even better..."
People with fish-like facial features lurked in every corner of the street, spying on the two. With the warning of the woman's voice in his ear, Shade noticed that among those fish-man creatures, at least four Ring Warlocks were hidden.
Since this old street was a stronghold of the Crimson Secret Sect, there certainly wouldn't be only one Ring Warlock stationed here. It was likely that all the residents of this entire street were horrific creatures transformed by the sect—some living here, and some who had long since infiltrated the city.
"Your companions won't escape either; someone will intercept them. We have controlled this street for centuries. From the ground to the high sky, a large-scale ritual ensures that no matter what happens, it will not attract the attention of outsiders."
Mr. Jude looked in the direction where the two scholars had fled. Lacia pursed her lips, while Shade looked through the rain toward the Peace Church located in the old district of Coldwater Port. The church wasn't very far, but even without a ritual, in this torrential rain, the sound of steam bombs wouldn't be able to travel beyond this street.
"Shade, you..."
The princess, soaked to the bone, glanced at Shade. Her long red hair clung to her face, making her look quite disheveled. "Do you know what you're doing?"
Shade nodded. "I do, but I need to buy some time so we have a chance to escape."
"No problem."
She produced two scrolls of parchment. As the flames burned in the rain, a nearly solidified princess holding a spindle appeared on the left, and a similarly solidified little girl wearing slippers and carrying a basket appeared on the right.
Dorothy had said that a key manifestation of their mutual influence was that both could use each other's powers.
Whistles and bells rang out, and the Ring Warlocks hiding in the buildings rushed out, though they all seemed to be low-ring warlocks. The princess holding the spindle and the little match girl met them in the rain. Mr. Jude, who was closest to the two, once again shook the long, thin salted fish in his hand. Lacia hooked a thin red ribbon from her earring with her right hand and sent it flying toward Mr. Jude.
Mr. Jude did not dodge; the salted fish in his hand emitted a faint silver light. He quickly flicked the fish in the rain. Although it looked ridiculous, the red ribbon actually deviated from its course.
Shade dropped the frog leg in his hand, crouched slightly in the rain, and then leaped violently into the air. Looking up at the raining sky, when he reached the highest point, his body vanished into thin air and reappeared 30 feet away at an even higher point.
"This height is enough."
None of the tallest buildings in the nearby blocks were higher than him. Shade narrowed his eyes toward the direction of the Peace Church, then pointed his finger at the sky, his entire spiritual reserve erupting violently at that moment
"Silver Moon!"
On a hazy, rainy morning, even a flash of light cannot travel far. However, being high in the air without buildings to obstruct it, the brilliance—which nearly blinded everyone on the ground—immediately caught the attention of the Peace Church.
Shade landed steadily. Lacia was unharmed because she had lowered her head and closed her eyes in time, but most of her opponents lost all their vision for a short period.
"Go, quickly!"
The strange light appearing in the city had already drawn the church's attention; high-ring warlocks stationed locally could appear at any moment. The cult members realized this as well. In the chaos following the flash, not many were still thinking about detaining Shade and Lacia.
"Wait, only he has seen our faces up close."
The blurred figure of the archer beside the princess appeared again, drawing the bow. An arrow pierced the rain, shooting toward Mr. Jude at the mouth of the alley. But the blinded middle-aged man lightly flicked the salted fish in his hand, actually blocking the arrow.
"That fish has a special resistance to energy-based attacks!"
"The Church people are coming!"
Golden specks of light had already appeared in the high sky; if they didn't leave now, it would be too late.
"You go first. You absolutely cannot let the Church see you."
Shade gave Lacia a push and then charged straight at Mr. Jude. The princess nodded with some concern.
"Run east in a moment; I'll wait for you there."
With that, she lifted the hem of her dress and ran in the direction the two scholars had left.
Boots stepped into puddles, but the splashing water could not keep up with the pace of movement. Mr. Jude turned and ran along the alley toward another block. The sound behind him let him know someone was chasing him.
"Stop him!"
Although he was temporarily blind, he knew there were helpers ahead.
Two fish-man creatures ambushing in the alley immediately leaped past Mr. Jude and fired guns at Shade. However, the old-fashioned gunpowder guns they used were prone to malfunction in the rain, and they were aiming at a moving target; Shade remained unscathed after two consecutive shots.
The sound of wind came from behind. Mr. Jude remembered the sharp moonlight he had seen earlier and immediately turned to block with the salted fish. To his surprise, what sliced through the rain and air was not moonlight, but something more like a playing card.
"What?"
The salted fish that could resist energy was actually sliced into two sections by a playing card, which surprised even Shade. He had thought it was a relic, but it turned out to be an alchemical item.
Immediately after, the outsider, who was only a dozen steps away from catching his opponent, sent a flying arc of moonlight toward Mr. Jude's head.
The middle-aged man continued to run while manifesting his Life Ring behind him. The [Guardian] spirit rune flashed, and a full set of metal armor entwined with seaweed appeared from the air, blocking the moonlight attack.
The armor moved sluggishly toward Shade, as if trying to block him. But Shade, having caught up, raised his sword and brought it down with immense momentum. The metal armor was split in two, the cut surface perfectly smooth.
"Oh!"
The running Mr. Jude suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood; the mystical backlash made him stagger, nearly falling.
A second spirit rune, [Drowning], lit up. A profane spiritual light surged, making Shade, who had caught up in the rain, suddenly feel difficulty breathing.
"Underwater Breathing."
The mystical effect was specifically countered. Shade continued to approach, carrying the greatsword. Mr. Jude stopped fleeing; he clutched his chest, breathing heavily, and turned to face Shade.
"Do you think I'll be afraid of you just because I'm blind?"
The four-ring warlock's Life Ring appeared completely. Three runes—[Guardian], [Fish], and [Sacrifice]—lit up simultaneously. The flashing silver light made the middle-aged man seem to grow taller on the spot. His face became even closer to the terrifying image in the oil painting, and his hands gathered the rainwater, fixing the liquid into a slender rapier and a shield bearing a mermaid pattern.
A gunshot rang out; Shade had fired a shot. His revolver's waterproofing was quite good. But Mr. Jude tanked the shot. Then, his ears detected the sound of wind appearing on both sides simultaneously. Thus, the rapier in his right hand pierced the flying playing card, and the shield in his left hand blocked another.
Because he was blind, he did not see that Shade, utilizing the power of the spell that had not yet faded, had already leaped above him.
"Hah!"
The sword light descended. A corpse and a spray of blood fell onto the pitted ground of the alley. The silver greatsword vanished from Shade's hand, and the blood clinging to the blade left more stains on his trouser legs.
Shade had dared to pursue because he knew the opponent was a low-ring warlock. This was not a fair fight; if the opponent's eyes could have seen that the attacks from the sides were merely playing cards, he would never have abandoned his frontal defense.
At that moment, gunshots rang out from behind again. Shade instinctively dodged. Just then, a whole squad of Ring Warlocks appeared at the end of the alley. Instead of finishing off the two fish-man creatures who had shot at him, he leaped violently onto the roof beside the alley and quickly departed through the rain.
Sporadic gunshots echoed behind him, and the specific golden light of divine arts appeared in Kaizem Alley. Shade vaguely heard the voices of the squad of Church Ring Warlocks as they rushed forward
"Look, I knew there would be a merfolk who could shoot!"
Heading east, after crossing two streets, he successfully spotted Lacia and the carriage. The eyes of the driver and the two scholars were severely injured; only the maid in the carriage was fortunately unharmed.
Shade jumped down from the roof, crouching using the momentum of the fall, and then with a spring, he nimbly leaped through the window into the carriage.
"Go quickly... oh!"
And then he collided with the blind men inside the carriage.
The maid and the princess ignored the wails of the people in the carriage. Together, they drove the carriage, carrying everyone as they raced away through the torrential rain.
(End of Chapter)