Chapter 51

... So that's why the prison cell had those bizarre finger loops, that pure white room that could give you snow blindness, and that was a form of mental torture like not being allowed to see the time?

I turned my head, Lusien and Reynold...

Fortunately, they were also surprised; their mouths could fit Five-Star Old Man —I mean, Five-Star Old Man turned into a slime.

Our stunned, bewildered state lasted a little too long, and the warden, who loved to torture prisoners, grew a bit annoyed. She raised an eyebrow and said, "We've wasted a lot of time gossiping about my rank, so can we move on? My adorable cyborgs are waiting for my care."

So, those horribly mutilated cyborgs were used as stress-relieving tools for the druids Mourner?

--Looking at it this way, those cyborgs actually become respectable! They made outstanding contributions to preventing Mourner from degenerating into destroyers, selflessly dedicated themselves to the improvement of the legal system in modern society, reduced the workload of international human rights organizations by a great deal, and even sacrificed their precious lives!

I couldn't help but rub my forehead, feeling a sudden sense of disorientation.

I heard Lusien ask, somewhat worriedly, "Are you injured? After all, we found bloodstains without battery fluid at the scene of the battle just now."

Angela gave him a disdainful look. "Whether it's a normal druid's Natural Healing Spell or the Life Drain Mourner can learn, both can heal wounds. Besides, have you forgotten the small healing device that Federation officers are equipped with? So, are you an idiot for asking this question?"

Lusien blushed slightly, but he wasn't angry at being scolded. He obediently walked to the front and took on the responsibility of charging forward.

Ms. Angela snorted, vanished from the spot, and transformed into a jet-black Crow, perching on Lusien's shoulder.

Mel and I were immediately impressed. This was a great way to conserve energy! With a knight in the party, we should make the most of it! Druids' Natural Transformation was silent and stealthy, but our Arcane Magic Transformation as mages was more difficult, especially casting it on ourselves. It required more precise control, and after changing our form through Arcane Magic, like when we became birds, we needed to specifically learn to fly with bird wings, just like learning to drive. Unlike druids, who naturally understood the habits of birds after transforming into them.

Mel and I both turned into Crow —yes, we mages love Crow too!

Well, Mel flies better than me. I made too much flapping noise when I took off and even sent a feather flying.

The Crow, Mel, flies with such grace!

We folded our wings and perched side by side on Lusien's other shoulder. Compared to the Druid's Natural Transformation Spell, our Arcane Magic Magic had one more advantage: we could speak. Although our appearance had changed, we were still mages at heart. When Lady Angela turned into Crow, her vocal cords also changed to those of Crow, so she could only make bird calls.

"Thank you for your trouble." So I thanked Lusien.

Lusien, with three birds perched on his shoulders, seemed a little stiff, perhaps due to a lack of experience. After all, knights are skilled at fighting on horseback, not serving as mounts for three spellcasters who have turned into Crow.

Luolan protested from behind, somewhat dissatisfied. "Could some kind mage turn me into Crow too? I'm tired, and our Divine Magic of Light doesn't have that spell."

Oh, no problem. I immediately cast a spell to turn him into Crow, Mel used Levitation to place him next to Ms. Angela kindly made room for him.

"Hook your claws onto your clothes!" I reminded Luolan of some key points of the movement. Luolan learned quickly. Mel tore off the Levitation, and he also squatted steadily on Lusien's shoulder.

That's great! Plus, turning four people into four birds reduces the chances of being spotted by the enemy!

"Do you need it?" I asked Reynold, turning back to him.

Reynold shook his head violently, his face ashen.

"Then let's keep going. Didn't Ms. Angela say there were still enemies ahead? We need to find out why these attackers attacked this mine," I said.

Chapter 51

The cyborgs were relatively easy to track—this was a deep underground mine, far in the mountains, and after the miners left, it was extremely quiet. Even if the cyborgs lowered their voices, their mechanical parts couldn't remain completely silent. I guessed, perhaps like cell phones, turning off the ringtone would switch to vibrate?

In particular, one of our team members is a dark elf who grew up in the dungeons, so the sounds of those electronic components are like a roar to him.

We conducted a preliminary investigation discreetly, and it turns out there are quite a few infiltrated cyborgs.

However, we didn't actually fight at all. As soon as Ms. Angela saw an enemy ahead that she couldn't avoid, her eyes lit up, and she pounced. Then, some very vivid and suggestive sounds came from ahead. A moment later, Ms. Angela flew back and sat contentedly on Lusien's shoulder, grooming herself. The smell of blood filled the air, and without even looking, we knew that there was another scene ahead that was not suitable for minors to watch.

--Ms. Angela's eyes were so excited, her expression was similar to Moli's when she went to queue up to grab tickets to one of her male idols' concerts. Her indomitable spirit was truly awe-inspiring, so much so that Luolan flapped her wings, using both her claws and beak, and hurriedly moved from that shoulder to our side.

Good job, Lusien; his shoulder is now slumped.

Mel and I were both drowsy, as we were too embarrassed to interrupt Ms. Angela's entertainment. So we didn't need to lift a finger along the way. The Druid Mourner's fighting ability was very durable. Angela not only possessed some vicious evil magic, but also had regenerative abilities. As a high-ranking commander of the Federal Legion, she had excellent combat experience and skills. Moreover, the key was that she understood modern science very well, and disassembling the cyborg was incredibly smooth.

"Your Excellency Angela, please spit this out!"

We were awakened by Lusien's low growl, and Luolan gave Lusien a slap in annoyance.

... Well, that's the only problem. During the battle, Ms. Angela transformed into an eagle, and when she flew back, she was carrying a lump of something tightly in her beak... I'm guessing it's some kind of cyborg's kidney, and the eagle is about to swallow that live food.

Amidst Reynold's frantic vomiting, we had to revert to human form, pin Ms. Angela to the ground, pry open her beak, and then, with a stern expression, Lusien pulled the piece of flesh from Ms. Angela the Eagle's throat.

--I've already mentioned the side effects of this spell. Druids in their natural transformation state are too easily swayed by animalistic instincts. I don't think Angela in her human form would willingly swallow a cyborg's bloody kidney whole. Even eating sashimi isn't done this way.--This judgment can be easily drawn from Reynold's vomiting. Reynold's reaction is typical of a politician's first experience with a battle scene.

But Lusien clearly realized a problem. "Sir, how long has it been since you ate a normal meal?"

The giant eagle transformed back into human form. Ms. Angela wiped her face, removing the blood, and spat out the bloody foam in her mouth with disgust. She replied, "It's been about three days. There aren't many plants or animals in this mine; no matter what I transform into, I won't have enough to eat."

"... Have you forgotten that you can turn back into a human? Let's go to the city and find a restaurant..."

A fleeting look of obvious embarrassment crossed Ms. Angela's face. Lusien silently took out some compressed biscuits and nutritional supplements and handed them to her. So we all sat down by the wall and decided to rest and eat together.

It's difficult to tell the time in the pitch-black underground.

Well, because you have to grab Lusien's arm to see the numbers on that watch. I couldn't understand Luolan's watch; it was even stranger than an astrologer's chart. Luolan told me that this "retro-glamorous style" was all the rage lately... and then I had no idea what kind of antiquity they were referring to. After all, Mel, a mage used to things from four hundred years ago, had never seen a watch like this before: no numbers, the hands just spinning in circles, and strange lights flashing on and off. Heaven knows how those young people who like this design could understand it, or maybe all young people these days have a natural talent for astrologers?