Vol 6. Chapter 149: The Insect Swarm Invasion

TL Note: Guys, it seems like the author made a mistake with the chapter numbering. I'll keep it as it is to avoid confusion later.

“You’re really close with Helena too.”

Taking the opportunity, Safina continued chatting with Noa. She had noticed that the child was particularly interested in conversations about emotions and relationships.

Whether it was about family or friendship, Noa always displayed a keen curiosity.

Even though she lived in a harmonious family like Leon and Rosvisser’s, she still earnestly sought to understand the diversity of human emotions and their significance to individuals.

“I heard from your dad that you once went up against a Dragon King-level opponent to protect Helena.”

Noa knew Safina was referring to the battle against Adam in the Devil’s Moon Forest.

But despite the compliment, Noa didn’t seem particularly pleased.

She just lowered her head, staring at her toes as she muttered, “It sounds # Nоvеlight # nice to say I confronted him, but in reality, I was just being chased around by Adam. And... and if it wasn’t for that old auntie helping out in the end, I wouldn’t have lasted until Dad and Uncle Constantine came to save us.”

Safina raised a brow. “That’s not the way to look at it. You were so young at the time — and you’re still young — yet you had the courage to stand your ground against a Dragon King-level opponent. That’s already incredibly impressive.”

She patted Noa’s shoulder, continuing, “Besides, no matter how you look at it, if it weren’t for you, your best friend wouldn’t have survived that life-and-death crisis. Right? You protected her well, Noa. That’s what matters.”

At that moment, Safina’s smile suddenly froze.

She lowered her gaze, muttering to herself, “Much stronger than me... I didn’t even get to see Anita one last time.”

Her voice was filled with regret.

Noa stared at her, stunned.

Until now, she had no idea that this lively, even somewhat noisy teacher had such a painful past.

A past centered around a regret so heavy it could never be compensated for.

Today, she was still bidding farewell to the people of her past. Every person or event lost reminded Safina of her Anita.

But all she could do was clutch her heart that was gradually slipping away and cherish the memories of her friend.

Noa didn’t know how to comfort her. Every time she opened her mouth to say something, the words would get stuck in her throat.

And so, she just silently listened as Safina spoke:

“You must protect your sisters, protect Helena, and protect everyone you love, Noa. Don’t end up like me, unable to do anything... unable to make up for anything.”

Noa’s pupils trembled.

“Teacher...”

Just as Noa was about to say something, a sudden commotion erupted outside the training hall.

The two of them exchanged glances and immediately sprinted toward the source of the noise.

Outside, the playground was in chaos. A group of elementary students attending outdoor classes were running in every direction, screaming and crying.

Something amidst the crowd was roaring and howling.

When they looked up, they saw a spatial rift over ten meters long tearing open in the sky.

On the other side of the rift was an eerie, abyssal world shrouded in dark mist. The black fog gushed out from the entrance, accompanied by hundreds of grotesque, ghostly creatures.

Noa’s face tensed as she stared at the rift.

“That’s... a Rift Breaker!”

She tore her gaze away, looking at the chaotic playground.

Most of the children there were elementary students — young dragons still unable to fully manifest their dragon forms.

“Damn it, Muse...”

Without thinking, Noa charged into the crowd.

“Wait for me!” Safina shouted as she ran after her.

Noa pushed against the fleeing crowd, scanning for her sisters.

“Moon! Aurora! Muse! Where are you?!”

She shouted her sisters’ names, but her voice was soon drowned out by a monstrous roar.

Noa turned in the direction of the sound, her small face full of worry and anxiety.

Gritting her teeth, she kept searching for her sisters.

Once Senior Guard grasped the situation, he immediately deployed personnel to handle the sudden crisis.

The younger students were gradually evacuated to a safe distance.

“Is everyone out of the playground?” a teacher asked.

A student glanced around, raised his hand, and shouted, “Teacher! Class B of Orzla’s class was doing outdoor training in the middle of the playground! They haven’t come back yet!”

“Got it. Guards! Continue searching the playground!”

The guards of Saint Heath Academy rushed back to the playground.

And sure enough, they found a class of students who hadn’t been evacuated in time.

From afar, they could see at least dozens of students still trapped there.

A swarm of bizarre, armored insect creatures surrounded them, steadily closing the circle.

“There! Let’s go!”

“Yes!”

However, just as the guards prepared to advance, a massive shadow abruptly dropped to the ground, blocking their path.

The enormous creature’s body was pitch black, covered entirely in layers of hard, armor-like exoskeletons, forming an impenetrable shield.

A chilling aura radiated from it, a level of menace that even the battle-hardened guards had never encountered before.

“Everyone, shift to dragon form! Our main objective is to rescue the children. Bypass this behemoth as quickly as possible!”

“Understood!”

The guards transformed into their dragon forms and engaged the colossal armored beast in combat.

Meanwhile, at the center of the playground, the trapped students huddled together, backs against each other, as the insect swarm closed in.

“What... what are these things? They’re so gross!”

“They’re not any known dangerous creatures. I’ve never seen anything like them...”

“It’s coming! It’s coming!”

One of the insectoids lunged at a terrified girl.

At such close range, a young dragon with no real combat experience had no chance of dodging.

The other students instinctively shut their eyes, unable to bear witnessing the scene.

But the next second, all they heard was the screech of the insect.

The girl cautiously opened her eyes, only to see a pink-haired silhouette rising slowly, striking a superhero pose.

Then, the figure turned slightly, her voice soft but clear: “Are you hurt?”

The wind lifted her pink hair, revealing her determined eyes, her fierce expression, her heroic stance.

“Teacher, next semester I want to sit next to Orzla!”

“Aurora! Watch out!”

With that shout, Aurora snapped back to reality.

The insectoids lunged toward her.

She locked onto their trajectory, then leaped into the air, spinning mid-flight and delivering a flying kick that sent one insectoid flying.

Upon landing, Aurora quickly gathered her dragon flame and hurled it at another insectoid.

The flames roared forward.

Aurora thought that would be enough to take care of the creature.

But the insectoid’s body was so tough that the fire left only a few charred marks on its shell, doing no significant damage.

The insect screeched and charged at her again.

“Damn it!”

Aurora stepped back, preparing to open the Nine Hells Gate to enhance her physical abilities again.

But unlike her elder sister, she couldn’t sustain the technique as easily.

She had already used it once to save the girl. If she pushed herself too far...

Before she could act, a bolt of lightning struck down from the sky, electrocuting the insectoid mid-air.

Aurora froze, then turned to the side.

“Second Sister...”

Moon stood nearby, trying her best to imitate their father’s signature cool pose.

“... Got it.”

Moon rushed to Aurora’s side.

“Where’s Muse? Is she and Hefei safe?”

“They had indoor classes today. They didn’t come outside.”

“That’s good... That’s good — wait! No, not good!”

Moon’s eyes widened as the insectoids shifted their attention to her and Aurora.

The swarm seemed to have realized that these two little ones had combat abilities and were now targeting them directly.

The sisters took a step back, their faces tense.

Moon swallowed nervously.

“Looks like it’s time to use that move,” Aurora said sternly.

Moon took a deep breath and nodded.

“Alright!”

“One!”

“Two!”

“Three!”

Moon & Aurora: “Big Sis, save us!! ٩( ๑❛ᴗ❛๑)۶”

The insectoids paused at the sound of the sisters’ shout, momentarily confused.

They glanced at one another, waiting as if expecting something to happen.

But nothing did.

The lead insectoid shook its body, almost as if mocking the sisters’ futile cry for help.

Then, the swarm resumed its advance toward Moon and Aurora.

In that tense moment, a crescent-shaped energy beam suddenly descended from the sky, striking the insectoid closest to Moon and blasting it away.

The next second, Noa landed in front of the two sisters, striking a true superhero landing pose.

“Sis! o(T---T)o!”

Moon rushed forward and threw herself into Noa’s arms, crying pitifully.

“Sis, I was so scared just now! That bug almost bit me! Wuwuwu~”

Aurora stood to the side, watching the scene with a blank expression.

“Second Sister, you literally just electrocuted one of them with a thunderbolt...”

Moon peeked out from Noa’s embrace and glared at Aurora.

“Zip it!”

Aurora silently covered her mouth, making a gesture of pulling a zipper across her lips.

After comforting Moon, Noa turned her gaze back to the swarm of insectoids, her brows knitting together tightly.

“The seal on the Void... is it getting weaker?”