NOVEL NEXT Chapter 247: Info on the Borders?
Once making their way around the mountain, they eventually met up with their team member, who just so happened to be in the middle of a hunt.
A woman of average height stood on the surface of a pond of lava. This woman was Lula Magna.
She had long, fiery red hair with golden streaks of yellow that were tied into a ponytail, which fell to the centre of her back.
And currently, she was watching as a pack of lizards became scorched and roasted under a blanket of molten stone that washed over them.
This smell that came from this travelled through the air. It was a mouth-watering smell as the scent of the lizard's fat became cooked. But it soon turned to an overwhelming one as smoke masked it.
Millis and Gram slowly scooted back, minding their steps as the lava slowly flowed towards them.
After reaching a far enough distance, Millis waved and called out towards her:
"Lulaaa~! We're back!"
The woman turned, smiling at them, "Leave me here on my own, would you? You guys aren't very nice."
She placed her hands into her pockets and walked towards them, stepping over the surface of the lava beneath her, which glowed an intense orange and yellow.
"Pfff..." Millis waved her hand dismissively at her, "Ya looked like you were fine. Gram was the one that was meant to protect you anyway."
Gram, looking at Millis as though he was betrayed, threw his hands into the air.
"How me protect lady, if lady is around hot things?! Me can't get close to lady!"
Lula slapped the side of Gram's shoulder repeatedly, laughing maniacally, "Don't sweat about it! I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself anyway."
She then shrugged.
"And didn't you guys take out two of the three on the opposing side already?"
Millis nodded, "Umu." before adding, "This team isn't as strong as the one Lillian fought. It's a bit disappointing..."
The Heroine folded her arms behind her head, leaning into it with pouty lips.
***
Lillian smirked, watching as Millis's face became pouty.
And she wasn't wrong to do so. She did put her up against the easiest team to go up against in this part of the tournament.
In the game, the only difficult thing about this part of the competition was the arena, which made it horrible if you didn't have the right people competing in it.
Not only that, but the enemy team had at least one Item for traversing over the rocky terrain. For example, Reuben, with his boots, allowed him to fly for an amount of time.
But did Millis need to know about this?
She internally shrugged.
'Of course not. Winning is all that matters. She can't fault me for putting her up against a drastically easier team compared to mine... right?'
She thought for a moment and came to a conclusion.
Millis definitely would fault her for it, but most likely after laughing about it.
Lillian then looked towards the VIP box that held the royal family. She stared at its glassy surface, which her eyes couldn't penetrate.
She couldn't help but wonder:
'What are they talking about?'
***
"The appearances of Gates are increasing?"
Reph asked, seated on a red couch as he looked towards his father, who nodded.
"Snippets of this information had been shared on the news. But I don't suppose you watch them very much."
"I... You're right." Reph nodded guiltily, then asked, "Is that the reason why my brother is still stuck there?"
The king went silent for a moment. Then, he replied:
"It's a partial reason why your brother can't come here."
The king rested his elbows against the armrest of his chair and interlocked his fingers. Whilst resting his hands together, he leaned into the backrest of his couch.
He stared up at the ceiling, recalling the information he was given.
"The borders on the frontline had also become much more unstable as one of the corrupted beings passed through into our world."
Reph widened his eyes.
Corrupted beings?
"Are you saying that a corrupted variant... is currently residing on our planet? Of what corruption are they?"
The king shook his head, expressing disappointment.
"We have no idea. And neither do the neighbouring kingdoms. All we know is that we currently have information on it as it begins to spread."
He then sighed.
"And all attempts to retrieve samples of the corrupted land led to the loss of soldiers. Even Saving talismans aren't of use within the corrupted area."
"H-hold on..."
Reph placed a hand against the side of his head, slowly moving it back and scratching the back of his scalp.
"Wouldn't that imply that space is nulli—"
Before he could finish speaking out his inquiry, a young and cheerful voice erupted from the entrance of the door.
"We're back!
The king and his son craned their head over the backrest of their couch, looking towards the door.
Reph, looking back, was immediately met with a dark shadow as something leapt over his chair.
He lazily widened his eyes, feeling as though time slowed down before being knocked out of his seat. Something clung to his chest as he rolled onto his back.
Once stopping, he looked at the thing weighing on his chest and found a petite girl with golden hair tied in long twin tails. She had brown eyes and wore a small and rather charming dress.
This was his little sister, Celestine.
"Me and Mom are back! Did we miss anything cool?"
Reph stared at his sister before looking towards his mother, who was looking over him with a slight smile.
"I'm curious as well. This is one of your friends, right?"
Reph turned his head towards the glass wall, looking through it. He stared at the holographic cube, which displayed Millis and her team members.
He then turned back and muttered:
"Yes..."
Leonardo, having gotten up from his seat to go retrieve a separate seat for his wife, looked towards his son.
"You also had another... Lillian, was it? That was the girl that fought in the first match, correct?"
Reph nodded.
"It..."