When the Gossip Turned Out to Be About Him

Another month passed. Eros felt the power flowing through his body and let out a long breath.

He had finally recovered completely. The backlash from that spell had been incredibly difficult to recover from-it had taken him three whole months.

Barbara, however, seemed unimpressed. "It was a divine art, after all. Anyone else, even a transcendent, would probably have been annihilated outright. How could they possibly survive?"

Eros couldn't help marveling. Divine arts really were terrifying.

After savoring the power filling his body once more, Eros began itching to do something.

He glanced at the night outside the window, thought for a moment, then said to Wendy in the room:

"I'm going out for a stroll. Not being able to use spirit these past few months has been driving me crazy!"

Before Wendy could reply, his left eye turned pitch-black, and he stepped into the shadows.

This was, of course, Barbara's power. According to her, at her peak, she had been the ruler of shadows, wielding authority over them!

Although she was no longer at her peak, sneaking through shadows to evade the academy's detection arrays was hardly difficult.

He kept leaping between the shadows of various buildings along the way and soon emerged outside the academy. Looking back at its gates, Eros said in surprise:

"That was fast!"

Indeed, a journey that normally took him quite a while on foot had taken only a dozen or so jumps today, and he had avoided every detection array along the way.

Barbara sounded somewhat disdainful. "Once I recover a little more, I'll even be able to take you directly through the Shadow Realm."

Eros understood that the Shadow Realm Barbara meant was not the one belonging to his family, but the reflection of the entire world.

His family's Shadow Realm was a piece their ancestor had cut out of it through his own means.

After traveling a little farther, Eros felt the glowing skill orb in his soul representing "Divine Art: Nature's Protection" shine increasingly brightly as he drew farther from the academy.

Had the second passive skill activated?

This was the first time it had activated since he acquired it. After all, he had previously stayed either at home or at the academy.

This should have been his strongest state at present, with both powerful buffs now active.

Feeling the power surging ever more fiercely through his body, Eros said regretfully:

"Why aren't any evil spirits or cultists stupid enough to jump out at me right now?"

Hearing that, Barbara's lips curled slightly. "As you wish!"

Eros froze. What? There really were some? No way!

"If there really are some, where are they?"

"There are four people three kilometers ahead. You should find two of them interesting."

Barbara's mysterious manner suddenly piqued his curiosity.

There really were people up ahead? And he would find two of them interesting?

Eros rubbed his chin and hesitated no longer, immediately sneaking in the direction Barbara had indicated.

As for his safety, he wasn't worried. Since Barbara hadn't specifically mentioned it, that meant he was already capable of handling them.

Meanwhile, elsewhere...

With her red hair falling loose around her graceful figure, Natalia Romance stared at the daughter before her, looking startled and amazed. They had been apart for only a month, yet her daughter had visibly put on weight.

Feeling her mother's gaze repeatedly sweep over her, Ayesha Romance secretly gritted her teeth.

It was all that damned pervert's fault. Every single day, he insisted on dragging her out to eat, and he always forced her to eat enough for three people at every meal. She had gained so much weight in just one month.

Seemingly sensing her daughter's embarrassment and indignation, Natalia gave a light cough.

"It seems I don't need to ask how you've been doing at the academy."

The red-haired girl, who looked a little less mature than her mother, pouted. She dearly wanted to say that she hadn't been doing well at all.

For some unknown reason, that damned pervert kept pestering her.

But she only thought about saying it. Soon, she composed herself and said seriously:

"Mother, I've successfully located that Sealed Artifact."

At this, the thin, gaunt man who had remained silent beside them hurriedly asked, "Where is it?"

"It's still in the Containment Room. The Church's people seem to still be trying to decipher it."

Hearing this, the other, somewhat sturdier man looked nervous.

"Have they discovered anything?"

The red-haired Ayesha shook her head, sounding a little troubled.

"I can't be sure. The entrance to the Containment Room is always guarded by Officiants from the Three Great Churches. No one can enter without permission from the academy's heads."

Force their way in?

The Churches' Officiants were Sequence 6, and there was apparently a transcendent stationed at the academy as well.

Not to mention the presence of a Sacred Artifact. If their tiny group tried to force its way in, wouldn't they just be throwing their lives away?

All four fell silent for a moment. Natalia looked unwilling to accept this.

"Are we really going to give up?"

The two men also looked dejected. The sturdier one said:

"Unless Ayesha gets a chance to enter the Containment Room, or our church sends a few of its higher-ups to help, I doubt the few of us can retrieve it."

After the sturdier man finished speaking, the gaunt man's eyes shifted as an idea came to him.

"Haven't the Churches in the Imperial Capital been hunting one of the Night Remnants these past two days? Do you think we could use that?"

After hearing the gaunt man out, the sturdier man rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"You want Ayesha to apply to join this Subjugation Team?"

"That's a good idea. If she manages to kill that Night Remnant..."

"Judging by the Churches' past practices, there's a good chance they'll let Ayesha enter the Containment Room and choose an item as a reward for killing a Night Remnant."

The gaunt man nodded, excitement showing on his face. "Exactly. That's the idea."

"But how strong is that Night Remnant? And we don't know exactly where they are, either," Natalia voiced her doubts.

Everyone fell silent again. That was right-they still didn't know how strong that Night Remnant was.

If that person was much stronger than their group, wouldn't recklessly confronting them be suicide?

The thought gave them all a headache. In the end, the gaunt man spoke again.

"We don't have any other options right now. Let's give it a try. If it doesn't work out, Ayesha can abandon the mission and prioritize her own safety."

After considering it, the others nodded. For now, that seemed to be their only choice.

Just then, a voice suddenly drifted down from a nearby tree.

"Um, ahem, sorry to interrupt, but could I ask what you mean about that Night Remnant being hunted?"