“Cover me!”
With a roar, she took to the sky.
Thousands of vines shot downward.
Neo activated his Null Hour True Domain.
He decreased the number of vines by 20%, and Beelzebub slowed the rest by eating their time.
It gave Zera enough time to reach Ava when suddenly a giant arrow made from vines shot through the skies and pierced her brain.
Before more attacks came and Zera died, Elizabeth used her Concept of Time to turn back time by 10 seconds.
“Arrow from the sky. It is aimed at your head,” she said.
Her voice was low, but Zera could hear it clearly thanks to her high senses.
The Dragon God twisted her neck to dodge the arrow and grabbed Ava.
Countless more arrows fell from the sky.
Neo erased the ones aimed at Zera’s vital organs.
Elizabeth had just turned back time and couldn’t do it again so quickly.
Zera had to brace for the impact. She shielded herself and Ava, but quite a few arrows pierced her body.
She descended into the ground. Her injuries were light compared to the time she rescued Elizabeth.
“Thank you for helping me,” Zera said.
Elizabeth and Neo nodded.
Zera transformed back into her human form and pulled out a house from her Shadow Space.
They entered the house before laying the unconscious Ava on the bed.
“Looks like she will take time to wake up,” Zera said, noticing her condition.
True to her words, Ava woke up after an hour.
“Where am I…”
Ava almost shrieked and jumped out of the bed when she saw Zera’s smiling face.
“Ava, why did you sneak in here?”
“I can explain it, Aunt!”
She ran and hid behind Elizabeth, using her to shield herself from Zera.
“Why are you hiding, Ava? Talk with me face to face. Isn’t that what an adult is supposed to do?”
“Help me,” Ava whispered to Neo. She was on the verge of tears after she saw Zera.
“Why are you afraid? You were bound to meet her when you decided to sneak into the Abyss.
“I thought I would meet Uncle Vlad instead of her,” she answered meekly.
Neo had a strange expression, hearing her answer.
Ava normally remained expressionless. For her to be so afraid of Zera, what had the Void Dragon done to her?
“You are related to her niece?” Elizabeth asked.
“No…? We are both dragons; that’s why I called her Aunt,” Ava answered, only now noticing Elizabeth’s face. “Julie de Beaufort?!”
She turned her head to Zera.
“Where did you find her, Aunt—”
“You know my sister?” Elizabeth asked her before she could complete her sentence.
Neo and Zera exchanged glances. Neo had told Zera that Elizabeth was Julie’s twin sister, and she didn’t know Julie was here.
They hadn’t told Elizabeth about Julie yet and were waiting for a chance to break the news to her.
‘I should’ve known this would’ve happened,’ Neo thought.
“Sister? Aren’t you Julie?” Ava said. “Almost everyone in the upper ranks of Dragon Clans knows how you look. You were the one who escaped Tartarus a few years ago and came back.”
Elizabeth blinked.
She took time to process the information.
“My sister is here…?”
“Why are you talking like—”
“Ava,” Neo interrupted her. “Julie was from our world, and she had a twin sister who looked exactly like her.”
“Oh.”
After the brief introduction and the terrible first impression, Ava was taken away by Zera.
Neo and Elizabeth were left alone in the room.
“My sister is here,” Elizabeth mumbled and sat on the bed. Her eyes were unfocused as if she was recalling her memories.
She had always wanted to know where Julie had gone and why.
But to think she was in Tartarus?
Elizabeth had a hard time wrapping her mind around it.
“Can you use your blessing to find Julie, Neo? If everyone in Tartarus is searching for her and hasn’t found her, then she has to be inside the Abyss, among these people caught in the Nightmare.”
“I tried it already. The blessing doesn’t show her location.”
Elizabeth massaged her brows.
“Is she really here?”
“Yes.”
Neo was sure of it. Zera had come to Tartarus in search of Julie. The Void Dragon confirmed the news.
She seemed to have some history with Julie. When Neo asked her about it, she had diverted the topic.
“Let’s move,” Elizabeth said, a lot more motivated than before. “Tartarus definitely knows where she is. We need to meet the World Core.”
Neo and Elizabeth waited for Ava and Zera in the waiting room.
The two dragons came after a few hours.
Ava’s clothes were different, and she seemed to have healed, probably thanks to her natural regeneration.
“Were you…” Neo began but decided to give them the benefit of the doubt.
“I was testing her to make sure she is good enough to come here,” Zera said. “It’s one thing to sneak in with the Grand Expedition, but it’s another thing when you do it while being weak. We can’t be expected to be her caretaker.”
In other words, Ava had received a good old beating.
Neo was starting to suspect Zera got off from abusing others.
She was harsh on him and Elizabeth during training and used the first chance she got to beat Ava.
“Dear, are you thinking something rude?” Zera asked.
“I was just thinking we should go towards the tree tomorrow and take a rest today,” Neo lied with a straight face.
“That’s a good suggestion. We don’t know what we will encounter when we reach the tree’s base. It’s best if we rest and recover to our top condition before going there,” Zera nodded.
The injuries she got while rescuing Ava could be healed within a few days.
They decided to rest until then.
A year had already passed since they arrived in the Abyss. Taking a few more days to reach the tree was better than rushing at it unprepared. They had no idea what they would find there.