And that's how our squad budget was spent. Narukami lampooned inwardly as his face remained unfazed.
He diverted his vision to Ryu, "chase him!" As he pointed out where Asahi escaped. Ryu still had many questions in his head yet he didn't have the chance to say them.
"Okay!" Quickly chasing after him, Ryu crouched down before he jumped. His body jolted upward as though a spring.
Swoosh!
He left behind a deafening sound and web-like crack. Narukami then said to Aya, "stay here. I'll be right back!"
Aya simply nodded. With her current situation, she can't do much even if she wanted to help.
"I understand, my liege." She nodded politely, somewhat reluctant to stay here. Narukami wasn't in a hurry to chase Asahi as Ryu already did it for him.
Furthermore, Asahi's condition suggested that he wasn't in danger.
Narukami quickened his pace to the exit and Tin approached him to ask what was going on but didn't get any answer as Narukami fell in deep thought.
What he had to figure out was Asahi's state. He never saw anything like it before.
Narukami then recalled, after Asahi touched Crystal Veins, he went under an extreme mutation or rather, evolution.
Before that, however, Narukami saw baby hands extended out of the Crystal Veins! He never knew that such materials were in truth contain spirits.
To which, this hand appeared to be attracted to Asahi. It quickly touched his index finger and his spiritual energy poured out as it went into the crystal.
Numerous speculations appeared in his mind as he walked.
While Narukami in his way to the branch's exit.
Should I increase my Anomaly foul so I could evolve and help him? Aya considered this and quickly put it on the back of her hand as she shook her head as what she was planning was dangerous.
Her current goal was to get her heart back and try her best to be like a supporting character, not act when needed. Not involving herself.
.
.
Crystal Veins were crystals that formed after dense and thick spiritual energy condensed in one spot for many years. Despite its richness in spiritual energy, sorcerers couldn't think of any way to exploit it but using it as money.
The more rich the spiritual energy was, the more valuable it was.
The Crystal Veins Ryu gave to Asahi was an ordinary one, the ones you always saw on the market.
What makes this crystal different from the others? Narukami asked himself.
Without him knowing, he had exited the branch. It appeared that he was too caught up in his sea of speculations that he lost track of time and place.
How strange, he said interestingly after knowing something was wrong with him. It was very rare for him to be in such a state.
"I can easily track Asahi's smell and teleport myself a few meters away from him so as to not alert him." He arranged himself a plan and after examining it that nothing was wrong, he nodded.
But, before he could take a step forward. He felt a heavy and dangerous presence of an Anomaly from his right side.
The branch was located between a park and a middle-class condominium. Bordered by bushes, trees, and roads.
Narukami approached the park and passed the road, he looked around first before he did so.
"This foul quality, it can corrupt a sorcerer's mind of rank three below. Judging from the presence alone, it's about to ascend to rank four!"
By eating a certain amount of human souls. Anomaly's rank could increase with ten as the highest. It was quite different from the sorcerer grading system.
The Anomaly was human-sized and a bit larger with a white face that looked like a mask but it was no mask and abnormally long four legs. The Anomaly stood with its four feet like a dog.
Narukami was about to finish it and go along with his plan but stopped the moment he heard a battle cry of a woman.
He hurriedly hid in the bushes.
Why am I hiding myself? He said self-deprecatingly with his flat face that appeared to contradict what he was feeling.
"Die, you insolent wrench!" The woman swept her hands from right to left and many cards floated in the air.
These cards then changed to talisman papers as blue flame engulf them.
A concealed talisman? Narukami was intrigued about the woman and squinted his eyes to get a better look.
Delicate features, hair reached her back and a bit curly, wearing a jacket with a white shirt under it.
It was the same woman Narukami just met!
Coincidence sure is scary, Narukami silently acknowledged that fate was strange and ridiculous.
Shortly thereafter, each talisman shot at the Anomaly one by one in near order, from left to right.
It happened so fast that the Anomaly didn't have the chance to retaliate! As soon as the talisman hit the Anomaly.
After planting itself on the body, the talisman exploded after the woman snapped his fingers.
The explosions caused many side effects. Some spread a chilling cold on its black body, some let out a fiery flame that could evaporate a lake and one talisman caused the Anomaly to lose balance and fall! This talisman caused a strong wind akin to that of a storm!
Not bad but it's not the end, Narukami murmured
The woman or rather Egasaki, smirked upon this and approached the Anomaly but then. The Anomaly faded away as if it was an illusion!
Egasaki became tense as her eyes rapidly motioned, searching for the danger and as her focus wasn't on the ground.
Black eyes with a row of teeth appeared beneath her! Its mouth was smiling showing its white teeth, an indescribable evil smile!
Her pupils constricted and she hurriedly jumped yet a second late, a black hand extended from the ground as it grabbed her right ankle.
"!"
She tried to shake the grip off of her leg but its grip was extremely tight. Her facial expression gradually turned grim and dark.
"Let go! Help! Someone!"
Then, after her plea. Something cut the hand and because she exert her strength when the hand was cut off, resulting in her body falling to the ground.
After her buttocks hit the ground, she lifted her head to see who was her savior but when seeing who it was, her face stiffen.
"Brother…"