Chapter 75 “A Beatdown!”

This Translation is hosted on bcatranslation.com

Upon closely observing the present circumstances, Duncan, who had initially mustered the courage to step forward and reveal himself as the mole, quickly pulled back. To anyone watching, his sudden withdrawal might have seemed as if he had remained unchanged in his resolve, almost indifferent. Rather than getting involved, Duncan chose to stand back and silently watch the unfolding drama of the meeting as if he were merely an uninvolved spectator.

As he did, an alarming revelation struck him: he wasn’t the only mole in this gathering. From the moment he had seen her, the girl dressed in a striking black dress had raised his suspicions. Her appearance – young and studious – seemed entirely out of place in such a sinister gathering, causing Duncan to feel there was something amiss. Initially, he assumed that perhaps her demeanor simply clashed with the dark undertone of this cult gathering. However, the subsequent events had taken a more shocking turn than he had anticipated.

In the course of the meeting, Duncan paid particular attention to two phrases uttered by the cult’s leader: ‘The dark hound’ and ‘The Annihilation Sect.’

It was evident that the term ‘dark hound’ referred to the eerie, skeletal giant dog that the girl had conjured. The phrase ‘Annihilation Sect’, on the contrary, didn’t strike Duncan as the name of a benign, community-centered group one would find being registered in the city’s official records. Was it possible that this girl was not actually an acolyte of the Sun God, as he had previously thought, but rather a representative of another equally sinister cult?

This realization led Duncan to wonder just how many such secretive, malevolent cults thrived in the hidden corners of the world.

While Duncan was lost in thought, the mysterious girl, now identified as the summoner of the dark hound, subtly raised her arm which was elegantly adorned with a black chain. As she scanned the room, her stance was unmistakably defensive, and a mocking smile crept onto her face. “The Annihilation Sect, you say? I must disappoint you. I have no affiliations with them. Unlike you, who find solace in worshiping some nefarious deity, I serve only my own interests!”

“The nature of your deceit is clear to us,” retorted the cult leader, standing imposingly at the gathering’s center. His voice was low and filled with menace as he continued, “Only members of the Annihilation Sect are known to summon creatures from the mysterious abyss of the deep sea. I suggest you give up any hope of resistance, outsider. You are now on the hallowed grounds of the Sun God. Even your dark hound’s magic won’t shield you here!” Fixating his intense gaze on her, he demanded, “Tell us! What drives you to sneak into our sacred assembly? While the Annihilation Sect and our Sun God have distinct beliefs, we’ve historically been neutral towards each other. What prompted you to breach our inner circle?”

Shirley, the girl in the black dress, responded with a smirk, the chains draped around her body producing a chilling, metallic sound. The links, eerily, moved as if they were alive. “I came seeking knowledge, hoping to extract some insights from your rather gullible ranks,” she began. “And, as I’ve stated, I don’t belong to the Annihilation Sect…!”

However, a sudden cacophony of crackling noises reverberated throughout the room before she could elaborate further. Without warning, the oil lamps scattered across the premises flared up in an intense blaze as if driven by some mysterious, unseen force.

The basement was bathed in an almost unnaturally bright light as the flames from the lamps transformed the underground chamber, giving it the appearance of broad daylight. Each lamp seemed to release a small but intensely radiant fireball above it. These fireballs hovered in mid-air, resembling miniature suns with pulsating, raw energy emanating from them.

The cult leader, positioned prominently at the center of this gathering, had at some unnoticed moment clasped his ornate sun amulet tightly. The amulet’s sharp, flame-like spikes pierced his palm. Blood started to ooze from the punctures, dripping into the amulet’s intricate grooves. Almost magically, the blood ignited like kindling, setting the leader’s entire hand ablaze. This startling transformation was perfectly in sync with the metamorphosis of the once-simple oil lamps around him.

It was evident that the veteran priest of the cult wasn’t merely engaging in casual banter. While distracting Shirley with words, he had surreptitiously triggered some sort of arcane power.

“Yield, blasphemer,” a voice, heavy with menace and authority, echoed from beneath the ornate golden mask the cult leader wore, “The Sun God’s might has sanctified and sealed this assembly area. I’m well aware of the abilities you Annihilation Sect members possess; the means to harness the magic of the very demons you call forth and turn those spells into lethal weapons against adversaries. The chilling aura of the dark hound you’ve summoned is, admittedly, formidable. Yet, in this sanctum, neither you nor your beast can draw power from the mysterious depths of the sea!”

Hidden in the shadows, Duncan’s fingers nervously fidgeted within his coat pocket. He weighed the decision of whether or not to intervene. While this confrontation seemed to be an internal skirmish between two adversarial cults, Shirley might possess vital information he sought. However, it was evident she was at a numerical disadvantage.

Suddenly, the golden-masked leader extended his flame-engulfed hand that tightly gripped the sun emblem. Muffled by the mask, his voice took on a hypnotic, almost entrancing quality, imbued with a mystifying power: “Cease your resistance. Repent in the sanctified presence of the Sun God and divulge all you know. The ever-gracious sun will absolve your transgressions… Bow down, young maiden… Your enchantments hold no power in this realm…”

Yet, Shirley appeared unmoved and unperturbed by the cult leader’s ominous warnings. Her gaze nonchalantly flitted between the now transformed, fiery oil lamps and the cult members surrounding her. They had already unsheathed an array of weapons – from gleaming daggers to menacing pistols and revolvers. In a tone dripping with cool indifference, she queried, “How taxing is it to sustain this magical barrier?”

With a disdainful snort, the cult leader began to respond, “The strength endowed by my deity…”

However, he couldn’t complete his statement, for Shirley lunged forward in a display of astonishing agility and might! Her right arm ignited with a haunting black flame, and the ebony chains attached to her resonated with a chilling whistling sound. Dangling from these chains was the formidable dark hound. Several times the size of an average hunting canine, the creature was swung overhead in a full circle by an unseen, powerful force. Then, with a thunderous crash, it was hurled directly into the cult leader’s torso!

The chilling echo of bones splintering filled the room. The cult leader, who had been using all his might to keep the force field intact, was caught utterly off guard. The violent impact propelled him backward, making him collide harshly with the wall on the opposite side. He then slumped to the ground, motionless.

Duncan blinked in surprise, thinking, “Well, I wasn’t expecting that.”

Events had unfolded at a breathtaking speed. The Suntists, who had been awaiting their leader’s command moments before, were now left in shock. Their chief, who had always seemed indomitable, was now sprawled on the floor. Before they could process this, the menacing whistle of chains slicing through the air returned!

Shirley brandished her arm again, and the chains attached to her emitted a sinister rattle. Channeling a supernatural might, she wielded the dark hound as if it were a massive meteor hammer. With each swing, the hound carved a fearsome arc in the air, and its impact against the cultists resulted in sickening crunches. Cultists were hurled away, many spitting blood from the force!

A realization finally dawned on the remaining cultists. Gathering their wits, they unleashed a collective roar and charged at the seemingly unstoppable Shirley, whose chains continued to slice through the air. A barrage of blades glinted menacingly, flying toward her. However, the airborne hound met their attack as well as Shirley’s enraged shout, “Perish with your deity! Worthless trash!”

With each lunging attack, the monstrous hound left behind a trail of broken and battered bodies. Shirley displayed an unparalleled mastery over her chains, moving with the grace and precision of a seasoned warrior. The once-solemn gathering had now descended into chaos, with the lethal dance of chains, the guttural growls of the hound, and the relentless movements of Shirley.

Suddenly, the distinct report of gunshots pierced the chaos!

Those Suntists equipped with firearms, realizing the futility of close combat against this superhuman adversary, took aim and fired. The bullets, shimmering briefly in mid-air, sped toward their target. Two were deflected off the chains, producing a brief spark. The remaining projectiles found their mark, piercing Shirley’s form.

She staggered, the force and agony of the bullets causing her to momentarily falter. However, just as the cultists began to sense a shift in momentum, the ominous whistle of the chains resurged.

“Dog! Numb my pain!” she commanded.

In response, the dark hound, now soaring in the air, unleashed an ear-splitting roar. In the following instant, a cultist who had dared to shoot found himself violently thrust backward, his skull colliding with a distant column and turning into a splat of gore.

The “Meteor Hound” was now more ruthless and unstoppable than ever.

Duncan discreetly retreated, doing his best to go unnoticed amidst the pandemonium. One of his primary concerns, somewhat comically, was avoiding any potential blood stains on his pristine outfit. After all, he had only just dressed in these clothes, and he couldn’t fathom explaining the mess to Nina upon his return home.

The entire skirmish was surprisingly brief. The young woman in the flowing black skirt, paired with her fearsome Meteor Hound, was a force to be reckoned with. Her speed and strength turned the enclosed basement into a personal hunting arena where her enemies became mere prey. Meanwhile, Duncan found solace in the mundane, taking refuge in the corner and mentally going over multiplication tables for the second time. Remarkably, before he could even finish, the tumultuous battle had concluded.

With the last of the cultists defeated, a haunting silence enveloped the room.

With a sheen of sweat on her forehead, Shirley paused to catch her breath. Grasping the chains that tethered the dark hound to her, she stood in the midst of the carnage, her chest heaving. As she regained her composure, her eyes began to scan the room and settled on an unexpected sight.

She had just spotted Duncan, the final “cultist” who had remained oddly unperturbed throughout the mayhem.

Her eyes showed an evident bewilderment towards the man’s calm attitude amidst the chaos. However, this didn’t deter her. With her hound in tow, she began to close the distance between them.

The air grew thick with tension, and her intentions were clear—she perceived Duncan as a potential threat.

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