Abyssal Chronicles

Chapter 537 - 538: Growing Unease [1/2]

Yumo And Mengxi’s new Illustration has been released in Chapter 01,

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The Dragon Loli looked a bit unsure and mumbled softly to herself.

"Also, to be honest, there’s a strange aura inside the church... it’s quite uncomfortable"

…

"Hey, Heretia, don’t you think something feels strange about this place?"

"Do you feel it too, Membeli?"

"You too?"

"Mm... even though Anze and the others don’t seem to notice, this place does give off a creepy vibe. The closer we get to the core, the more pronounced it becomes."

"What’s going on? The atmosphere isn’t strong, but it’s... strangely creepy. Even After the Demon King absorbed shadow energy to empower itself, it didn’t feel this creepy."

"I’m not sure. I took a closer look, and I didn’t find anything unusual."

"Huh? That’s really strange."

---

As she approached the headquarters of Asumos Church, Meliora couldn’t help but recall her past conversation with Heretia, the Supreme of Fata[Previous name of the three towers]. At that time, she felt a chilling air for the first time when she visited Asumos Church. Despite the absence of any formidable power in that atmosphere, it made Meliora, at the peak of the eighth level, feel uneasy. She instinctively went on guard and tried to find the source of this feeling. However, despite her search, she found nothing.

Aside from Heretia, no one noticed this unusual issue, not even Anze, the church’s hero. Unable to bear the atmosphere, Meliora eventually refused to attend the celebration feast and left the church early. Still, it bothered her, and after leaving, she continued to ponder and investigate the source of this atmosphere.

Sadly, she, Heretia, and Anze were killed by that female demon while investigating the Winter Forest soon after. Meliora, who later became the Heart of the Sacred Dragon, lost her ability to investigate further, and the matter was left unresolved.

Now, as Meliora once again arrived at the edge of Anvika’s inner city, memories of the past filled her mind. After faintly sensing the atmosphere surrounding the white buildings, Meliora stopped her charge, bringing Mengxi and Vinarola up onto the city wall.

Looking thoughtfully at the church’s headquarters, Meliora bit her lip,

"That strange aura... it seems... even thicker than before."

Trying to shake off the bad feeling growing inside her, Meliora looked worriedly at Mengxi next to her. She was unsure about sending her back to the church. Even though the church’s vibe didn’t seem harmful and Mengxi had been there for a long time without any issues, Meliora couldn’t help but feel uneasy for some unknown reason.

Moreover, would it be more appropriate to take the Girl of Destiny far away from the headquarters instead of going there?

"Um, Meliora?"

Noticing that Meliora had suddenly fallen silent, Mengxi asked in confusion.

"..."

’What should I do now?’

The Dragon Loli fell silent, her small head swaying as she wrestled with her thoughts.

"Um..."

However, just as she was pondering what to do, a familiar presence suddenly entered everyone’s awareness.

"Miss Mengxi? How come you’re here?"

"Hm?"

Hearing the voice, Meliora stopped her train of thought. The silver-haired girl in front of her instinctively furrowed her brows and then turned her head in confusion to look behind her.

At this moment, perhaps attracted by the explosion and impact, a group of church holy warriors, fully armed and dressed in immaculate white armor, anxiously crossed over the ruined walls, running toward where Mengxi was.

Leading them was a handsome man dressed in platinum Archbishop robes, with a golden braid.

The moment his familiar face caught her eye, Mengxi couldn’t help but call out his name.

"Archbishop Mokaro?"

Yes, the one leading the team to Mengxi was none other than Mokaro, one of the three archbishops of the Church.

"Miss Mengxi, are you alright?"

Rushing up to Mengxi with a worried look, Mokaro quickly knelt down to check her physical condition. After confirming that she was mostly unharmed, aside from some minor scratches, he let out a sigh.

"Thank goodness, you’re not hurt?"

"Archbishop Mokaro? Why... why are you here?"

"Me? I’m currently leading a team to evacuate the civilians."

Saying this, Mokaro looked toward the direction of the Luminous Royal Academy with eyes full of hostility, staring at the dark purple Shadow force that was gradually polluting the sky.

"Although I hate to admit it, that Sword Demon is extraordinarily powerful, far exceeding the likes of Deathwing and Snow Devourer. Even our church’s two Heavenly Apostles might not be able to stop that monster. If Sword Demon enters the city, it will bring catastrophe. To prevent this, I am organizing the evacuation of the civilians."

As he explained, Mokaro slowly gestured for his subordinates behind him to stop following him and to assist with the evacuation as quickly as possible.

"But, Miss Mengxi, weren’t you attending a ceremony today? You should be at the academy, right? How did you... end up here?"

"I was Rescued here by them."

"Rescued?"

While saying this,

Mokaro followed the gaze of the silver-haired girl.

After seeing Dragon Loli, who was hiding her true power, Mokaro just gave her a polite smile. But when he locked eyes with Vinarola, his face lit up. He walked up to her, shook her hand, and said, "Ah, I get it now! Headmaster must have helped Miss Mengxi to get out, right? Thanks a lot, Lady Vinarola!"

"Huh?"

Faced with Mokaro’s gratitude, Vinarola was slightly stunned. After glancing at the many civilians and Asumos Church holy warriors around them, she understood his intention.

He was fulfilling his promise to help hide the identity of Dragon King...

Thinking this, Vinarola politely returned his smile.

"Archbishop Mokaro, it’s my duty to do so. But since you’re here, why don’t you take Mengxi to a safe place?"

"Sure, I’ll make sure the Girl of Destiny is safe. What about you? Want to come with us?"

"Well..."

Vinarola hesitated and looked toward the direction of the Luminous Royal Academy. After all, she was the headmaster and a well-known Magic Saint. With the academy in such a crisis and the fate of countless teachers and students unknown, her sense of responsibility wouldn’t allow her to easily withdraw.

Even if she couldn’t participate in the battle against Sword Demon, she believed she could still assist with the rescue and help evacuate people from dangerous areas.

"Thank you for your kind offer, But as the headmaster, I can’t just abandon my subordinates and students. Now that I’ve brought Mengxi out, it’s time for me to go back and rescue the other students."

"I understand, that’s reasonable."

"Mm."

After a polite nod and some quick pleasantries, Mokaro turned toward Mengxi, while Vinarola approached the blonde Dragon Loli. She lowered her voice cautiously and said:

"Your Majesty, the Dragon King, they are not evacuating toward the main church, but to an eastern military fortress. Archbishop Mokaro and I both think you should go there with Miss Mengxi, It’s best not to get involved with Sword Demon."

"East, huh?"

Glancing at the mountains to the east, Meliora slightly nodded her head. If they weren’t heading to the core church, she wasn’t so opposed to it.

"Ok, I get it. You be careful too. Stay away from the fight. That Shadow energy is dangerous."

"Thank you for your concern. You should also be careful to conceal your identity."

"I know, I know! I’m the great Dragon King, after all. Hiding my identity is a piece of cake!"

"Of course, Your Majesty is the most powerful."

Both women understood their respective roles and the weight of the situation, preparing themselves for what was to come.

Patting Meliora’s small head, Vinarola looked at her with a smile that had a touch of motherly love. Ever since Meliora turned into a little kid, her majestic vibe started to feel more like cuteness. Even if it sounds weird, Vinarola, who’s a mom herself, started to see Meliora almost like her own kid.

At first, Meliora wasn’t happy about this, but she got used to it. Maybe because of her new form, she found head pats pretty comforting.

Looking at the adorable Meliora, a loving smile slowly formed on Vinarola’s face.

"Then take good care of yourself, Your Majesty"

With those words, Vinarola didn’t say anything more. She stood up and started chanting a spell at high speed. Three ’High-Level Magic - Wings of Light’ emerged behind her, accompanied by the formation of a magic circle.

After casting a glance at Mokaro not far away, Vinarola leaped into the air under the watchful eyes of the Holy Warriors and Meliora, turning into a streak of white light, heading back to the Luminous Royal Academy.

Vinarola felt pretty good about leaving Meliora with Mokaro. At first, she didn’t trust Mokaro. He was from the church and had stepped into places he shouldn’t. But after finding out that he also had a contract with the Dragon Tribe and had helped the dragons a lot, she started to like him. Especially since he helped Meliora get her new form—even if it was as a little kid. Vinarola felt thankful for that.

As for Mokaro resurrecting the Dragon King, she was grateful.

As for Mokaro turning the Dragon King into a little loli...

Well, she was still grateful, much to her own surprise. (Meliora: Hey!!!)

Moreover, Mokaro had kept his promise, not revealing Meliora’s existence to anyone and even helping to hide her identity several times. This increased Vinarola’s favorable impression of him. In her mind, she tagged him as ’reliable’ and ’trustworthy.’

That’s why she dared to leave Meliora in his care while she wholeheartedly rushed back to Luminous for the rescue.

It should be like this...

However,

"Strange..."

While she was flying super fast, Vinarola put her hand on her chest, feeling confused. Her peaceful inner world started to feel all shaky. A bad feeling started to grow inside her for no clear reason.

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:3 Hehehe~ All the piece is now in its place, it’s Time for some action and drama :3