Yuri, dressed in a crimson suit and black shirt with a Red-Eyed Skull Tie, stared at Magician Gian with a puzzled look.
"I clearly locked onto 'Slaughter Line.' There was no way I could have missed... yet what I severed was this thing? Did some kind of material-level 'exchange' occur? At the instant the slash struck, this hat was swapped with the Nightmare's true body."
"That woman is already completely spent. There's no way she could have used such a refined ability."
"Have reinforcements arrived?"
Yuri showed no fear. He was just preparing to lead the Executioner Group in pursuit when—
Marco and Front-Side Martin, who should have been stationed at the rear, reached the front line at an unbelievable speed and placed their hands on Yuri's shoulders.
"Marco... why have you come to the front line?"
"Senior Yuri, since the enemy's reinforcements have arrived, we should stop pursuing them for now. The force behind them is just as we discussed before. It wouldn't be wise to clash with them head-on. Pursuing them this far is enough.
"Let me handle the negotiations later."
"Since you understand the situation better than I do, I'll leave the remaining work to you."
Yuri was quite considerate toward his juniors. Marco and Martin were the young prophets he thought most highly of, and deciphering the 'Hidden Street' this time had relied entirely on Marco's divination.
Yuri raised his arm high. The entire Executioner Group behind him stopped pursuing the enemy and concealed themselves among the treacherous mountain terrain.
As Marco stepped forward,
two figures gradually climbed up from the foot of the slope.
One was an 'acquaintance' Marco knew: Magician Gian, whose every movement was that of a gentleman. When the two met, they merely nodded slightly in greeting.
When the other person appeared,