Dark and damp, as if forever caught in the twilight just before rain, the alley was lit by dim yellow lights from disorderly sources that illuminated the mottled, aged signs of the shops on either side, brewing an especially eerie and sinister atmosphere.
The adventurer party stepped through the puddles by the roadside, checking every possibly suspicious detail in the alley while displaying practiced teamwork and individual competence as they advanced.
The stalker-assassin's figure vanished from Yu Sheng's sight from time to time, as if melting into the shadows of the buildings, only to suddenly emerge from a corner beside some house. She was as elusive as a spirit. The Wandering Mage summoned a pale-blue eye that floated in midair, constantly scanning the path they had taken behind them, while the swordsman walked at the very front of the party to guard against entities forming in the alley ahead of time. The odds were not high, but the Otherworld occasionally experienced deep fluctuations, so the possibility of any danger appearing early was never zero.
The priest girl holding a short staff walked at the very center of the party. She kept quietly muttering something that sounded like a prayer, and each round of chanting refreshed everyone with a faint, glowing blessing that provided Clear Spirit and healing effects.
Yu Sheng curiously moved closer to the priest girl who, strictly speaking, counted as one of the King's "summoned creatures." He heard that what she was muttering was actually just the same few lines repeated over and over: "...Holy light like the wind, blessings for kitty, holy light like a torch, illuminate kitty, only kitty, meow meow meow meow..."
It was ridiculously catchy.
Little Red Riding Hood was clearly already familiar with all kinds of combat units summoned by the King. Riding