Chapter 344: The Show Begins

Dongmu City·Reality·Late‑night Street

Ailisi Feier was wandering aimlessly down the empty street.

Her silver long hair was a bit disheveled in the night wind, and her white dress was dusted with grime.

Her red eyes were full of confusion and unease.

Not long ago, she had still been in a daze after being rescued by a black fellow.

Then… pink mist spread out, and the people around fell one after another, their gazes hollow, as if they had slipped into a deep sleep.

Only she, inexplicably, remained conscious.

"Qiesi… Saber… Ilya…"

She couldn't help whispering her family's names, but no one answered.

The whole city was dead silent.

Streetlights still glowed, the shop's Nihong signs kept flickering, and some houses even emitted TV program sounds—yet the people had all collapsed.

Fallen by the roadside, fallen inside cars, fallen at shop entrances.

As if a pause button had been pressed.

Ailisi Feier tried shaking a middle‑aged man lying on a bench: "Sir? Sir, wake up?"

He gave no response, breathing evenly, as if merely asleep.

She checked a few more people; the situation was the same.

(What on earth happened…)

Panic clutched her heart like an icy hand.

She wasn't a combatant; although, as an artificial being of the Einz Beren family, she possessed stronger physical attributes than ordinary people and some basic Magic knowledge, she was utterly powerless against this city‑wide bizarre phenomenon.

At that moment—

"Rustle… crack… crack…"

A sound like a hard mouthpart chewing something came from the corner ahead.

In this absolute silence, the noise was so grating it made the scalp tingle.

Ailisi Feier held her breath, tiptoed to the corner, and angled her body to peek—

Her pupils suddenly contracted.

In the middle of the street, a gigantic insect the size of a small truck was tearing a… human body with its scythe‑like forelimbs.

Under moonlight, dark blood snaked across the ground, forming a shocking red‑black pool.

The insect's carapace was jet‑black, gleaming metallically, its compound eyes flashing greedy red light in the darkness.

It seemed completely unaffected by the pink mist, enjoying this "buffet".

(Insect… insect… how can it be this big…)

Ailisi Feier clamped her mouth shut, preventing a scream.

She felt icy all over; when she tried to retreat, her steps froze uncooperatively.

What was worse—

"Clang!"

Her heel accidentally knocked over an empty soda can leaning against the wall.

The metal can rolled on the ground, emitting a crisp, loud noise.

The chewing sound abruptly stopped.

The giant insect jerked its head up, its compound eyes locking precisely onto the corner where Ailisi Feier stood.

Though it lacked sight, it clearly sensed the breath of life.

"Sss—!!"

It let out a sharp screech, dropped the debris clutched in its claws, and six segmented limbs slashed across the ground, charging toward the corner!

Ailisi Feier turned and ran!

But after a few strides, she despairingly discovered—at the far end of the street, several slightly smaller yet equally ferocious insects were emerging from an alley, blocking the way.

Attacked from front and rear.

She was surrounded.

Back against the cold wall, Ailisi Feier watched the approaching swarm, her red eyes filled with Despair.

She was unarmed, and her Magic was only half‑baked…

(Qiesi… Ilya… I'm sorry…)

She closed her eyes, crouched, and hugged herself tightly, awaiting the pain of claws or mouthparts tearing her body.

The swarm's screech grew nearer.

A foul, fishy stench hit her nose.

Just as Ailisi Feier thought death was certain—

"Aaaahhh—!!!"

A scream that ripped the night sky came from directly above her head!

Ailisi Feier instinctively looked up.

In the night sky, a "meteor" blazing with golden flame was plummeting straight down at astonishing speed!

"Help— aaaa—!! Boom！！！！！！"

The "meteor" struck precisely the open ground between Ailisi Feier and the swarm!

The massive impact gouged a several‑meter‑wide crater in the asphalt, hurling debris, and sending clouds of dust swirling!

A few insects near the crater's edge were blown away by the shockwave!

Ailisi Feier was shaken so hard that she fell to a sitting position on the ground, covering her mouth and coughing violently.

The dust and smoke slowly dissipated.

At the bottom of the pit, a pale hand trembled as it reached out and clutched the rim.

Then, a figure struggled to crawl out of the pit.

It was a seemingly young girl, her orange long hair tied into a side ponytail, now dust‑covered and somewhat disheveled.

She wore exotic attire of red, white and cyan, adorned with golden patterns—a sleeveless short top, separate sleeves, multilayered skirts, and several flowing red ribbons at her lower back.

Black high‑cut tights and long boots, with a golden thigh band on her right leg.

The overall look was as flamboyant as stage costume, starkly out of place amid the dead‑silent street.

"Sss... ouch ouch ouch..."

The orange‑haired girl rubbed the back of her head, gritting her teeth, "What the hell was that teleport! No buffer at all! Bad review! Absolutely a bad review!"

She muttered as she stood, brushed the dust off herself, and only then, belatedly, lifted her head to look around.

In an instant, she froze.

Her amber eyes widened, staring at the giant insects crawling up from the ground and regrouping, as well as the vague Insect Shadows farther down the street.

"... Eh?"

"What's going on?"

"Why so many insects?"

"And they're this big?!"

The Insect Swarm was clearly more interested in this suddenly appearing new target radiating strong life force.

They abandoned the encirclement of Ailisi Feier, hissing, and all turned toward Gui Naifen.

"Wait, wait a moment!"

Gui Naifen instinctively stepped back half a step, waving her hands before her chest, "We can talk! I'm not tasty! I haven't bathed in three days!"

The insects didn't understand.

They only know how to charge.

A few giant insects lunged first! Their scythe‑like front limbs tore through the air!

"Careful!" Ailisi Feier shouted.

Just as an Insect Limb was about to slash Gui Naifen—

Gui Naifen's body moved.

It was an almost instinctive reaction honed by years of street‑performer practice.

She performed a nimble backflip, narrowly evading the slash, planted one hand on the ground as she landed, spun her body, and left the other hand poised in the air as if grasping nothing—

Golden Flame gathered in her hand!

A long spear, ornate and entirely crimson, its tip entwined with leaping Flame, materialized in her hand!

Over two meters long, the shaft was neither wood nor metal, neither gold nor iron, etched with dense runes, and its tassel burned with Flame.

Gui Naifen herself was startled for a moment: "... Eh?"

But the insects' attack did not cease.

Another one lunged from the side!

Gui Naifen almost reflexively swung the spear in a horizontal sweep—

"Boom—!!!"

Raging Flame erupted from the crimson shaft!

A crescent‑shaped Flame shockwave howled out with the spear's thrust!

The charging insect was hit head‑on, its carapace blackening instantly, its massive body blasted away, crashing into a low wall by the road, convulsing a few times in the Flame before falling still.

The other insects were stunned by this sudden Counterattack, and their assault temporarily eased.

Gui Naifen, holding her new weapon, stared blankly at the Flame dancing on the spear tip, then glanced at the charred insect.

(I... am I this powerful now?)

(This spear is so luxurious!)

(Is this Flame much fiercer than the one I used for performances before?)