At the same time, not too far from the stream, under the shade of some tall and old trees, two figures were hiding behind a thick bush. It was Edith and Victoria who barely escaped the Grim Reapers after their initial ambush.
However, the two of them looked way different than before because of their disguise. They used the commoners' robes from their space ring and wore them to look like they were from a village. In addition to their raggedy clothes, they also smudged some mud over their fair skin to hide the glow.
In their disguise, it would be extremely difficult for someone to recognize them as royalty and noble.
The two of them kept looking around with frowns on their faces. They didn't dare to make a single sound.
"If I only had my cultivation" Victoria gritted her teeth.
"Whoever put the contract on our head would have sent more powerful reapers or they wouldn't have put the contract at all" Edith whispered.
Both of their cultivation was reset by a powerful spell. Absorbing the energy from the Cosmic Stream required the individual to start cultivating from the beginning. That was one of the reasons that either of them had no cultivation power. They were just at the Arch sensing stage.
"Who else knew about our trip? This is definitely an inside job" Edith tightly gripped her tiny hands and exclaimed while gritting her teeth.
"When I find out who, i'm gonna show how Thusians deal with traitors"
An intent to kill flashed past Victoria's eyes. She coldly replied, "They are definitely at the Core Formation stage, I can feel it" She then clutched the dragon pendant hanging around her neck. A din glow could be seen within the dragon pendant.
"That doesn't change anything. If they managed to find us…" Edith's voice trailed away as her expression became gloomy
"Hideo sent a distress signal before they killed him. We just need to hide from them until General Booth comes with the men and slaughters them" Victoria said with a cold tone.
Edith's tiny face turned pale in fear of losing some color, "What if they didn't get the signal?. Vikki, we can't hide here forever, we should make a run for it and look for a village of something"
Victoria went quiet for a while and sighed, "Edith, their target is only me. There is a village nearby in the north, I will run in the opposite distracting them, you make a run for the village"
"Victoria Barnes," Edith frowned. Instead of calling her Vikki as she used her full name with a stern look on her face.
Victoria tried to open her mouth but turned into a bitter laugh. She nodded, "You've always said that with my personality, I'll never find my guy who would want me. But with your temperament, you are not too far off from me"
Edith giggled, "No. I was just kidding with you in the past. In reality, many guys wish to court you. If all of them were to line up, they would definitely make a circle around the capital. It's just that you are interested in none of them."
"They might be the same age as me but the guys who tried to court me are either spoiled brats or weaklings. The highest cultivation among them was only Core Formation stage level 4. None of them were qualified to be my prince" Victoria replied unenthusiastically.
Edith lightly sighed, "why do you always judge people with their strengths? After you rebuild your cultivation with Cosmic energy, no one in the world would be on the same level as you. Alignment of hearts is more important in marriage life than the cultivation stage. Love Vikki, if he loves you and you loves him, it's enough" The two girls forgot about the danger for a moment and started to discuss life,
"You know, I heard about someone who might interest you"
"Who?"
"He goes by the name Ghost, apparently he's a 5-star Alchemist in the age of 21 and he's at Core Formation stage level 10" For a moment, Edith saw a glint of surprise emerge in her eyes,
"That is somewhat impressive but I've seen more talented people in Awor and i'm sure we will meet monstrous talents where we are going"
"So if you find someone with the qualities you look for there, you will take him as your husband?"
Victoria snickered, "I will still look for some qualities such as when I need him, he must always appear on time. It's not that I need his help but he should be at my side when I need him"
Edith couldn't help rolling her eyes, "For god sake Vikki. You are so complicated and stubborn. I doubt I would be still alive to see you get your ideal bodyguard"
"It's not like I have to get married, me and my father will reach immortality and rule over Thusia forever. I don't need to provide an heir for the throne after me" Victoria nonchalantly said,
"Look at your sister, did she marry anyone? A woman can get married but it's not a must, women should learn to live independently without needing a man. We don't need to be married or mothers to be complete"
"I dont overthink marriage like you Vikki. If I love someone and he loves me as much as I love him, I'll marry him and be happy "
Victoria, with creased brows, said, "I'm not against marriage Edith. I'm just saying it's better to marry the right person later than the wrong one earlier because our families force us to"
"Whoosh!" At this time, amidst their conversation, an abrupt movement could be heard from the woods ahead.
"What the fuck are you two doing here?"
Edith felt a chill running through her spine when she heard the sudden voice coming from behind. They immediately turned around to see a golden-haired girl wearing a gray long coat and black turtleneck and black leather pants walking towards them. On her back, they saw a longbow and quiver filled with arrows.
She wasn't as beautiful as either of them but Edith noticed a grace in her movements. Her golden hair danced around her shoulder as she walked towards them.
Whoosh!
As they were staring at the girl, a man wearing a creepy wolf mask jumped out of the trees. The man looked at Victoria and Edith for a few moments. He looked as though he was scanning them. Thanks to their disguise, the reaper failed to recognize them. However, the reaper thought Gaya was the princess they were searching for as she looked clean and nobler than the other two girls.
"You!" the masked reaper raised his hand at Gaya,
"You, what you you you?" Gaya mimicked the reaper's voice to make fun of him. Meanwhile, Edith was standing by the side with face still in astonishment. Victoria was also surprised at the girl's courage to make fun of the reaper.
The reaper was furious as he leaped at Gaya with the dagger in his hand. In the mid hair, he cast a spell that enabled his dagger to be enveloped in bluish fire,
Bang!
The very next moment, Edith and Victoria saw the reaper's head explode into red mist in the mid air. They were unsure of what just happened. When they looked at the girl, she had the long bow in her hand instead of on her back. They were stunned by her lightning quick speed. They did not even see her taking out her bow, knocking an arrow and fire at the reaper.
"Space ring" Gaya noticed the space ring in the reaper's hand. She ignored the two girls to go loot the body.
After Gaya walked some distance away, Edith suddenly snapped out of her astonishment. She looked at Victoria and said, "Vikki, did you see that? She killed the reaper just like that. If we could ask for her protection, we might be able to escape from here"
Victoria frowned, creasing her brows, "If I, the dignified Princess, were to put down my pride and seek protection from a stranger, it would taint my name. Also, this reaper might be a scout with weak cultivation levels. Edith, General Booth would have already received my distress signal and is coming here to over. We should hide for a little while more!"
"This forest is so far from the outpost Vikki. Even if General Booth has sent help, it would take a very long time for them to reach here and locate us amidst the forest," Edith thought for a while and suddenly laughed,
"Vikki, I have an idea. What if we tell her the truth and tell her we would pay her handsomely if she escorts us to the outpost?"
After Victoria listened, as if a little swayed, she knitted her brows and contemplated.
"No Edith," She shook her head,
"No time for arguing Vikki, follow me" While talking, Edith pulled along her hand and walked towards Gaya who was busy looting the reaper
"Sister, could you please do us a favor?" Edith asked with a pleading tone,
"Just get out of here before more of these assholes come here" Gaya didn't even turn back to look at them. Which made Victoria clench her fist in anger.
Gaya would have recognized them as nobles if they hadn't reseted their cultivation level. According to Sarba, they were at the Arch sensing stage. Therefore, coupled with their disguise, Gaya really thought the two girls were commoners.
However, very quickly, she hid the bitterness. Her eyes regained their apathetic look and her expression became icy cold once again.
Regardless of Gaya's behavior, Edith continued to plead,
"To be honest, my… my sister and I are working for a young noble in the city of Cadena. A few days ago, we came out to collect herbs for our young master but were attacked by these guys on the way. They seemed like they were searching for someone. They killed the servants and guards but we managed to escape up 'till this point. The young master has an outpost nearby. Could you please protect and escort us back to the outpost? If we manage to return, the young master will definitely give you a satisfying reward"
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Just as Gaya was about to answer, she saw four reapers leaping out of the darkness and surrounding them.