Bitter Struggle

Of the three present, Leonard could use poetry to put others to sleep, Angel was familiar with Mrs. Sharon, and the Phantom Phosphor Eruption in her hand could easily reveal invisible targets. But the greatest threat to Mrs. Sharon was undoubtedly Daly, the "Medium," who could control Blue Spirit Bodies and burn away the Invisible Silk Threads she used.

The instant a fresh Phantom Phosphor Eruption revealed Mrs. Sharon's figure, she launched an attack on Daly as well.

Angel did not believe Daly could withstand an Assassin's full-force strike, especially when the latter had her back to the enemy and was completely unguarded.

In her urgency, she raised her hand and fired at the incoming figure. At the same time, she shifted sideways, placing herself between Daly and the attacker.

Just as Angel expected, the hurried shot was easily dodged by the attacker. But the barrier formed by Angel's body also prevented her from getting through, forcing her to turn and attack Angel instead. The two engaged in close combat.

Even at such close range, Mrs. Sharon's invisibility remained effective. Angel could only vaguely make out her outline through the Phantom Phosphor Powder clinging to her, which undoubtedly had a tremendous effect on close-quarters combat.

Seeing the powder-outlined figure throw a punch at her, Angel raised her left hand to block while continuing to press toward Mrs. Sharon with the gun in her right hand, preparing to fire at point-blank range and limit her opponent's room to dodge.

Just as her left hand was about to intercept Mrs. Sharon, Angel's heart tightened. Her Assassin's intuition warned her that doing so would be extremely dangerous.

Without the slightest hesitation, she chose to trust her instincts. She immediately pulled back her outstretched left hand, shifted the muzzle in her right hand, aimed at the very center of Mrs. Sharon's outline, and pulled the trigger.

Bang!

Flames burst from the muzzle, carrying the bullet toward Mrs. Sharon. But at that instant, it was as if someone had yanked Mrs. Sharon sideways, causing her to change direction at an unbelievable angle and evade the bullet fired from so close by.

This also caused her strike at Angel to miss.

The warning from her spirituality had been absolutely correct. If Angel had used her left hand to block that "punch," her arm would have been severed by the dagger that had turned invisible alongside Mrs. Sharon. Only at the moment of attack did the dagger, burning with black flames, appear in midair. It sliced silently past Angel before vanishing without a trace.

It seemed Mrs. Sharon had not truly come to ambush them empty-handed. Compared with firearms that would create a greater disturbance, she had chosen a dagger more suited to an Assassin's attacks.

An invisible weapon was difficult to defend against, but once Angel had seen the dagger's shape and length, the pressure of close combat was greatly reduced. As a fellow Assassin, she feared nothing, even if her opponent had a higher Sequence.

Moreover, from the corner of her eye, she saw that Leonard had already broken free with Daly's help and was raising his pistol toward them.

Mrs. Sharon had clearly noticed that Leonard, who had been trapped by Invisible Silk Threads, had regained his ability to move. Her outline-only figure quickly retreated several steps, twisting aside to evade Leonard's hurried bullet. At the same time, several black flames appeared around her, tracing complex paths through the air as they flew toward Leonard and Daly.

Unable to keep firing, Leonard displayed speed no less than an Assassin's. He grabbed Daly, rolled behind the sofa, and avoided the incoming black flames.

The black flames struck the sofa's fabric like bullets, yet did not ignite it. Instead, they rapidly dissipated into the air like phantoms that did not exist in this world.

Seizing the opportunity, Angel raised her gun again and fired the last two bullets in the cylinder at Mrs. Sharon's outline, speckled with Phantom Phosphor Powder.

Mrs. Sharon, who also possessed an Assassin's ability to foresee danger, dodged the bullets. Her evasions seemed not to come from her own exertion, but as though an invisible giant hand were shifting her rapidly about. The two bullets struck the wooden partition behind her in succession, punching two irregular holes through it.

An invisible giant hand... It seems the threads that bound everyone earlier can also be used for movement...

Angel tracked Mrs. Sharon's figure with her eyes as she silently speculated.

With this kind of movement, shooting from a distance was nothing but a waste of bullets. She flicked open the revolver's cylinder and ejected the empty casings. Her left hand tossed aside the now-useless ladies' pistol, and she swiftly loaded fresh rounds with a speedloader. Leonard cooperated well, firing from behind the sofa to keep Mrs. Sharon occupied, but his shots were equally ineffective.

Black flames appeared beside Mrs. Sharon again. She waved her hand, and several black flames drifted toward Angel this time.

Angel knew these black flames could not pass through objects. She directly flipped over the table beside her, sending the teacups and kettle rolling across the floor, then crouched behind it. With several muffled pops, the black flames struck the table and vanished, causing her no harm behind it.

It seems a Witch's Beyonder abilities are far too restricted. They can't compare to a Nightmare at all...

She crouched behind the table, letting her thoughts wander, when her heart suddenly tightened. She lunged forward.

The spot where she had been a second earlier was struck by a transparent Ice Spike that had pierced through the wooden table. The solid ice lodged in the tabletop, its tip piercing straight through the carpet. Waves of cold spread outward, making the surrounding environment feel like the depths of winter.

Affected by the chill, Angel felt her movements becoming somewhat sluggish. Using both hands and feet, she quickly moved away from the wooden table now covered in frost, dodging several black flames that flew at her like bullets.

Not far away, Mrs. Sharon held an Ice Spike formed from thin air in one hand. More black flames than before circled around her as she prepared to launch another round of attacks.

Suddenly, a gust of sinister wind seemed to sweep through the chaotic reception room. The circling black flames froze as though someone had pressed pause, and Mrs. Sharon's waving arm stiffened in place. Beneath the glow of the Phantom Phosphor Powder, which had begun to fade, a figure gradually emerged.

Unlike the graceful, beautiful Tingen socialite from Cole Granger's memories, the person before them now wore a short-sleeved shirt and fitted leather trousers. One hand held a black-flame dagger, while the other raised a Frost Spear. An unhealthy gray-white color spread across her long bare arms and exquisite face, and her expression contained both anger and panic.

Just like the Nighthawks who had been restrained by Invisible Silk Threads a minute ago...

Angel's thoughts stirred. She shifted her gaze toward Leonard behind the sofa and saw the surprise on his face. Then, as though suddenly understanding, he looked at Daly Simone beside him, who held a pendant in her hand with her eyes tightly shut.

It seemed this was once again the work of the Medium.

Angel no longer allowed herself to be distracted. She raised the reloaded Revolver, aimed at Mrs. Sharon, who could no longer move and had lost her invisibility, and pulled the trigger.

This time, Mrs. Sharon, restrained by the Medium, had no chance to dodge. The bullet struck her head squarely. Her entire head... no, her entire body shattered like an ice sculpture. Before the fragments could hit the ground, they melted into the air. The black flames circling her, having lost their controller, scattered along erratic paths and went out with soft pops upon striking obstacles.

The huge decorative mirror hanging on the wall beside them shattered as well, breaking into fingernail-sized pieces. Some clung to the frame, while others fell down the wall to the floor.

Another Mirror Substitute... Angel's gaze swiftly swept across the reception room. Seeing several other decorative mirrors of various sizes, she immediately aimed at one and fired two consecutive shots, shattering it.

"Watch out!" Leonard's panicked, shrill shout came from behind her.

With no time to turn around, Angel dove forward and rolled away from where she stood.

A dagger burning with black flames silently slashed through the spot Angel had just occupied. Mrs. Sharon, her entire body likewise shrouded in black flames, appeared behind her.

Her complexion had returned to normal, clearly showing that the effect restraining her had been removed.

"The black flames drove back the spirit body." Daly's warning came too late. "Give me another twenty seconds."

At the edge of Angel's vision, Daly directly tore the crystal pendant from her wrist, clasped it between her joined hands, and her eyes became deep and unfathomable.

Whoosh—

Mrs. Sharon, who had been preparing to continue pursuing Angel, ignored the target right before her. She condensed a Frost Spear in her hand and hurled it at Daly, who was channeling a spirit.

Angel hurriedly fired the remaining bullets in her cylinder, accurately striking the Frost Spear in midair. The powerful Storm Convergence tore through the solid ice and shattered it into pieces. Several ice fragments grazed Daly's body, but she did not move, as if what brushed her face had been nothing more than a summer breeze.

"Reload!" Angel flicked open her Revolver's cylinder and began replacing the bullets. Seizing the chance, Mrs. Sharon advanced two more steps, her dagger trailing black flames as it stabbed forward.

Bang bang bang—

Leonard fired several shots in succession, forcing the aggressive Mrs. Sharon back.

He knew that the most important thing now was buying time for Daly to once again control Mrs. Sharon through a spirit body. Otherwise, if they continued to wear each other down like this, once their bullets ran out, they would have no means left to deal with her.

To keep Mrs. Sharon occupied, Leonard rushed out from behind the sofa, rapidly pulling the trigger and emptying every bullet from his cylinder in one go.

As before, Mrs. Sharon used Invisible Spider Silk to pull her body about, swiftly weaving through the room and avoiding every bullet. Looking at Leonard charging toward her, a trace of disdain flashed through her brown eyes. As her snow-white arm waved repeatedly, Leonard's movements suddenly stalled. Distinct lines appeared beneath his trench coat as Invisible Silk Threads wrapped around him once more, making his movements difficult and slow.

Mrs. Sharon swung her dagger, about to finish off this overconfident man with a single strike, when her expression suddenly changed. Pulled sideways by silk threads, she evaded a bullet fired from her blind spot.

"Tsk."

The failed ambush left Angel unable to suppress her anxiety. Mrs. Sharon also possessed an Assassin's combat instincts, and with the control of Invisible Silk Threads, Angel simply could not hit her even with an attack from behind. By now, they had reloaded twice. Apart from striking Mirror Substitutes, Mrs. Sharon remained completely unharmed.

Only by allowing Daly to complete the spirit channeling, letting the spirit body restrain Mrs. Sharon, and then shattering every nearby mirror to prevent her from using Mirror Substitute could they have a chance to kill this Beyonder with endless means of preserving her life.

But how long had those twenty seconds been? Seven seconds, or eight?

Thoughts raced through Angel's mind, but her hands did not stop. She pulled the trigger again and again, forcing Mrs. Sharon to dodge in every direction.

Bullets continuously flew past Mrs. Sharon. Though they could not hit her, her movements and evasions also left her no time to condense black flames or a Frost Spear for an attack. As the seconds ticked by, Mrs. Sharon's face darkened. She actually charged straight at Angel.

With a bang, Angel accurately hit the panicked Mrs. Sharon, but the sound of another mirror shattering immediately told her that she had been fooled again.

"Daly!" Sensing trouble, Angel hurriedly called out a warning. Looking toward Daly, she saw a faint figure emerge beside her. Mrs. Sharon, who had used Mirror Substitute, appeared out of thin air. She still held the dagger burning with black flames, a victorious smile on her face.

Daly, clad in a black robe, still had her eyes closed and clutched the pendant in her hands, as if unaware of the approaching danger.

Without hesitation, Angel raised her hand and fired. Yet only the crisp sound of the hammer striking the primer rang out. This large-caliber Revolver could hold only five bullets, and the shot that had destroyed the Mirror Substitute had been the last one.

A breeze swept past everyone, as if someone had hurried by their side. Angel could not help shivering, and her thoughts grew sluggish for a moment. She steadied herself and looked again toward Daly and Mrs. Sharon.

The Medium, Daly, opened her eyes once more. The depths of her gaze returned to their jewel-like emerald green. Mrs. Sharon's skin beside her once again took on that unhealthy gray hue. Her raised dagger froze in place, unable to swing down.