Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 1197 - 309 The Third Party

Chapter 1197: Chapter 309 The Third Party

"Huff, huff," the girls’ heavy breathing echoed in the dim corridors of the underground layer of the Death Temple. They had no idea where Between the Rituals was located; naturally, in this now empty and vast temple, it was unlikely that anyone would kindly offer them directions, so the girls could only fumble their way forward. Thankfully, on the prairie, in a temple almost identical to this one, Pannis had once given everyone a brief introduction to the function of most rooms along the way. Although Between the Rituals was not covered, the girls had vaguely guessed that the unforgettable battle that had led to the legendary ascension of the three girls must have taken place in Between the Rituals.

Thus, knowing the general direction, the girls meandered through the underground corridors. Their journey was anything but easy; in fact, it was extremely tough. It wasn’t that there were enemies obstructing their path—on the contrary, they hadn’t come across a single enemy. Mainly, it was because their movement was currently quite hindered. Catherine was carrying Vivian, and Lina was carrying Ava, with both girls supporting each other. As for Freya, although she was in perfect physical condition, she bore the luggage of five people, including all her components. The components, originally shared among the group, were now all on her, making it feel like she was carrying a Magic Crystal Cannon and a fortress on her back. The heavy burden made her pant with each step like a bellows, hardly looking like the strong and composed figure of a professional Legendary.

"Bullshit, you try carrying these bags," Freya rolled her eyes and retorted to Lina: "Let’s swap, and you’ll experience what it means to be strong and composed as a professional."

"I wouldn’t want to; it’s too tiring," Lina notoriously leapt in front of Freya to show off her lightness but nearly stumbled upon landing. Catherine, who steadied her in time, gave Lina several firm slaps on the butt until she behaved. However, Lina didn’t forget to tease Freya, "Don’t forget, this is your punishment, you dummy. It was your reckless firing of the cannon that triggered the last fight. Both sister and I are victims. Ow, sis, don’t hit me. I know it wasn’t like that; I was just provoking her. Hey, stupid Freya, weren’t you almost crushed by the luggage? Yet you still have the strength to pinch me. Just you wait, once I’ve recovered, I’ll settle this with you."

Amidst their noisy banter, the girls kept searching. Yet, before they could locate Between the Rituals, a familiar energy response suddenly emerged not far from them—it was Pannis’s energy. The girls exchanged glances and saw smiles in each other’s eyes. They knew that not sensing Pannis before was due to Between the Rituals blocking their perception. Now that Pannis’s energy fluctuations had appeared, it meant the blocking function was no longer present. In other words, Pannis had achieved the final victory.

The girls smiled, letting out sighs of relief. Their greatest fear was the sudden emergence of an energy belonging to someone else; such a situation would have been a heavy blow to their hearts. But now, there was no need to worry anymore. As it turned out, Pannis, the one they were most familiar with, was the survivor.

With the energy vibrations as their guide, finding Between the Rituals became much easier, especially since Pannis was clearly not moving. Carefully, the girls proceeded forward, holding up their Crystal Energy lamps, and soon, two large black doors with inscriptions of the Triclops language appeared before them. Unfortunately, with Pannis absent and Ava deep in sleep, none could decipher the meaning of the text.

Of course, this wasn’t important—at least, not to the girls whose hearts were now filled with joy. Having entered the heart of the Forest of Death with a determination to die if necessary, it was likely in their initial plan that only Pannis would leave this place alive. Now, however, they were all still alive; to the girls, this was undoubtedly a joy beyond measure. To be alive meant hope, and furthermore, it meant that not only did they have a future, but so did the bond between certain individuals—it was limitless.

Embracing joy and hope, Catherine, bearing Vivian, pushed open the doors of Between the Rituals. Upon opening them, they immediately saw Pannis sitting at the center of Between the Rituals.

Pannis looked quite ragged, his swordsman outfit tattered and torn, half of his blond hair scorched, his body covered with wounds large and small, blood everywhere, even a few through and through injuries that allowed them to see through to the other side. Yet the more battered he appeared, the happier the girls were, for his wounds signified that Pannis hadn’t died, at least not completely.

"You’ve come," Pannis said, the only one in Between the Rituals, surrounded by four corpses near the central altar—one gruesomely dead, while the other three seemed to have killed themselves with a lethal wound to the heart. Pannis didn’t even glance at those three; he just looked down at the empty ground in front of him and continued without turning back, "Once the barrier was gone, I sensed you’d come. So, I just decided not to move and waited for you here. And it seems Dillie has finished too, but he’s lazier than me. He’s still lying in the plaza, probably planning to wait for us outside instead of coming in."

In his voice, the girls couldn’t detect anything unusual, but those familiar with him felt that Pannis was behaving a bit off. Before they could question him, Pannis had already turned around. Startled upon seeing them, he frowned and asked, "What’s happened to you all? Especially those two."

Indeed, the girls’ appearance was equally ragged—Catherine had no armor left, or rather, she only wore shin guards and a single pauldron. As for the rest, judging by the tears on the lining, they had been forcibly hacked to pieces. The large patches of blood on her undergarment indicated that the enemy’s attacks weren’t merely slashing through armor, and if it weren’t for her tough flesh, she might have been torn to shreds herself.

Lina was neatly dressed, but the leather armor she had been wearing was nowhere to be seen, and it was clear that she had changed into a priests’ robe. As for the current state and fate of the armor she originally wore, it was probably not very optimistic, indicating the intense level of battle required her to engage in close-range, high-intensity combat. Of course, as a priest capable of fighting up close, her teammates would usually protect her and keep her behind the lines unless absolutely necessary. But seeing her now, staggering with each step and considering the condition of her clothes, one could easily imagine how dire the situation had become.

Watching the two young women supporting each other, Pannis nodded thoughtfully and first focused his attention on Ava and Vivian behind them. At the sight of Ava, Pannis couldn’t help but show an expression of mixed amusement and resignation, sighing as he said, "You’ve been playing with her again."

"Don’t talk nonsense, we didn’t use her for fun," Lina said, avoiding Pannis’s gaze and snickering before continuing, "She indeed helped a lot. After she went into an alcohol-fueled frenzy, she and big sister held off hundreds of enemies for several minutes. If not for her rage, the outcome of the battle would’ve been hard to predict."

"And then, Vivian began her performance?" Pannis stroked Vivian’s head as the mage girl lay unconscious on Catherine’s back. From previous tests, everyone knew that after casting ’Magical World,’ Vivian would fall unconscious due to the sheer energy expended, and even after waking up, she would have a period of weakness for three days. The cost was indeed great.

"I can understand their condition, but what about the two of you? And Freya also seems to be drained," Pannis asked, puzzled, "If the plan had gone smoothly, you wouldn’t be in such a disheveled state; and if it hadn’t, you wouldn’t have had the chance to come find me. No matter what, it shouldn’t be like this now. Did something happen that I’m unaware of?"

"It’s a long story," Catherine sighed, setting Vivian down to lean against Freya, who was feigning death on the ground, and began to explain the battle in a low voice. Although her description was brief, it made Pannis frown deeply as he listened.

"It seems you indeed encountered Elegance. Heh, those two bastards, if I have the chance, I’ll be sure to pay them a visit," Pannis snorted dismissively, "No matter what, what they did was a bit too much, especially Elegance’s assassination."

"You already knew Elegance was here?" Lina asked, surprised, "And you said ’two’ bastards? Is there someone else here too?"

"I will explain these matters to you in detail later," Pannis shook his head, "Continue, I assume that after Vivian successfully cast her ’Magical World,’ the victory should have been secured. Why did it turn out like this? Surely you weren’t idle and, despite her wide-ranging magic, you charged into melee combat with the enemy, right? Or was there some kind of conspiracy on the enemy’s part that disrupted your battle?"

"Actually, it’s neither. It’s just that some others barged in," Catherine said with a bitter smile, "And you know Freya’s habits. She fired at the third party immediately, and that’s what led to the current situation."

"Third party?" Pannis was taken aback, "There’s a third party involved here?"

"You can’t really blame Freya," Catherine shook her head, "because those intruders were also covered in the Energy of Death. Nobody could’ve guessed they were a third party."