Chapter 645: Loli!

Ilya's reaction was faster than her mind.

When she saw Saber turn, her hand had already clasped Robin's waist.

Then she kicked the ground, launched herself into the air, and rose into mid‑air.

Saber's sword swept under their feet, cleaving the stone pillar in half.

The pillar, thick enough for both to embrace, snapped like a chopstick under the blade; the upper half slid down, struck the ground with a muffled crash, and shards of stone and dust burst from the fracture, blooming like a gray flower amid the ruins.

Ilya held Robin while flying in mid‑air, her heart pounding so fast that all she could hear was her own heartbeat.

Her hand clutched Robin's waist, fingers gripping so tightly the knuckles turned white.

Her long violet hair streamed backward in the wind, and her crimson eyes glowed in the dim light.

Robin was cradled in Ilya's arms, its two arms draped over Ilya's shoulders, curled up like a cat pulled from water.

Her mind was still processing what had just happened, events moving so fast her thoughts couldn't keep up, leaving her to be carried by Ilya through the air.

Saber chased from below.

She gripped the Curry Stick, the sword's scarlet veins shining like blood vessels; her feet ran on the ground, each step leaving a deep imprint in the rubble, her head tilted upward, eyes fixed on Ilya and Robin soaring in mid‑air, something flashing in her golden eyes—not murderous intent, but a painful discomfort.

"Ilya—run—!"

Her voice rose from below, choked by the wind, and Ilya heard it clearly.

Ilya did not look back.

She flew forward holding Robin, weaving around the black smoke rising from the ground, heading toward farther ruins.

Weiba Daye's Mecha stood beside the split stone pillar, the Flame on its tiny head flickering, its face shifting from anger to a speechless bewilderment.

It watched Saber chase Ilya below, then glanced at Gudazi standing by the pit, and cursed.

"What is all this?"

It did not follow.

Not that it didn't want to, but it couldn't keep up.

Saber's speed was too great; the controlled body moved like a full‑throttle machine, each step gouging a pit in the ground, each slash leaving a black afterimage in the air.

Its three‑meter‑tall Mecha, at that speed, was like a tractor chasing a sports car.

Gudazi stood at the pit's edge, a smirk curling his mouth.

"What are you running for?"

Its voice was soft, yet every word rang clear in the dim ruins.

"Loli."

When those two words left its mouth, Ilya felt a chill down her spine.

Gudazi leapt from the ground.

Its body arced through the air toward Ilya and Robin, its eyes shining like two lanterns.

Ilya's peripheral vision caught the small thing flying toward her.

She narrowed her pupils, her body reacted before her mind—she twisted her waist, spun in mid‑air toward the left, flying faster than before, so fast that the Robin in her arms was briefly wind‑choked and coughed.

Gudazi's hand brushed past Ilya, missing.

Its body paused mid‑air, then dropped, hitting the ground with a dull thud; but as soon as its foot touched, it sprang up again, leaping toward Ilya.

"Loli Loli Loli Loli Loli!"

The sound kept spilling from its mouth, like a stuck looped recorder that wouldn't stop.

It carried a hair‑raising excitement.

Ilya flew with Robin, her violet hair whipping wildly backward in the wind, her crimson eyes fixed ahead on the gray‑hued ruins; she searched for a place to land, a shelter, but below lay only rubble and broken tiles, endless ruins that seemed nowhere safe.

Gudazi chased from behind.

The little creature wasn't fast, but its leaping was absurd—one bound could clear several stories, another could close a great distance.

It hopped from the rubble onto the broken pillar, then onto the half‑collapsed wall, like a rubber ball tossed back and forth, never stopping.

"Loli! Don't run! Let Uncle hug you!"

Gudazi's voice came from behind, the excitement undiminished, only growing stronger.

Ilya's mouth twitched.

Uncle?

She turned her head and glanced behind.

Gudazi was still chasing.

The little creature arced through the air toward them, its mouth opening and closing, continuously shouting "Loli Loli Loli".

Ilya's hand moved.

The ruby spun once in her palm, the staff's tip pointed at the Gudazi behind, then a pink magic projectile shot from the tip, heading straight for Gudazi's face.

Gudazi didn't dodge.

The projectile struck its face, exploding into a burst of pink light.

Its body was blown backward by the light, flipping twice like a kicked ball, then falling to the ground with a muffled thud.

Ilya let out a sigh.

But before the breath left her, Gudazi bounced up from the ground.

A patch of ash clung to its face, yet the skin beneath was unscathed, without even a red mark.

It brushed the ash off, then lifted its head, looking at Ilya in mid‑air, that ash‑streaked face breaking into a grin again.

"Loli! What a huge force!"

It leapt again from the ground, chasing toward Ilya, this time jumping even more fiercely.

Ilya felt another chill down her back.

Her foot pushed off the wall, and she flew in another direction, faster than before.

Gudazi chased again.

This time it jumped to Ilya's side.

Ilya turned her head and saw the little person lying sideways in mid‑air, one hand propping the head, the other hand hanging at the side, legs crossed, the whole figure looking as leisurely as someone lying on a beach chair sunbathing.

"Pull yourself apart!"

The voice was sharp and bright, with a tone that was hard to tell whether it was teasing or serious.

Ilya's stomach churned.

Robin opened her eyes, saw the little person lying sideways in mid‑air, relaxed as if on vacation, and the corner of her mouth twitched.

Ilya's hand moved again, the ruby spun once in her palm, the staff tip pointed at Gudazi, and then a pink magical projectile thicker than before shot from the staff tip, hitting Gudazi and blasting it away.

Gudazi's body spun several times in mid‑air like a stone kicked away, tracing a long arc, then landed on the ground with a muffled thud, rolled several times before stopping.

Ilya cradled Robin and flew off in another direction.

But Gudazi chased again.

This time it didn't jump to Ilya's side, but landed in front of Ilya.

It stood on the tip of the crooked stone pillar, hands on hips.

"Two lolis!"

Ilya's brows furrowed even tighter.

She looked at the little person before her, and her stomach churned again.

Robin leaned against Ilya's chest, hearing the "two lolis," and the corner of her mouth twitched again.

She lowered her head, looked at herself—loli?

Does that count?