The night sky was boundless and dark, a thin layer of mist veiled the hazy crimson in an ethereal dream. A towering statue of the Virgin Mary stood before a grand and luxurious hotel, its warm light spilling onto her pristine plaster, sacred and solemn.
On the rooftop terrace, the small door was suddenly flung open. A woman stumbled out, leaving a trail of blood in her wake.
She was beautiful, with deep, sculpted features like a doll. Her blue eyes flickered with terror and helplessness, like a fawn lost in the darkness, desperately running towards an already foreseen, even more despairing end.
"Save me." Lilia had reached the edge of the building. The ceaseless flow of traffic below, like a swarm of locusts, only amplified her fear. She hadn't expected to encounter such a situation simply by delivering something.
"You'll come for me, won't you?" Lilia crouched down, covering her face, trembling with fear.
Behind her, two dark figures were closing in. They also possessed striking, yet somewhat ordinary features – an old man and an old woman.
"No one will save you. Evil power must be eradicated," the old woman scoffed. On her shoulder, a small green dragon bared its teeth at Lilia.
"Though it's not our country's affair, lending a hand is only proper," the old man snorted. He spoke fluent English, though his accent was a touch rounded. Even so, it couldn't hide the chilling undertone of his voice.
Lilia retreated in terror, stepping backward until she nearly stumbled and fell, letting out a small gasp.
She didn't want to die. She had children, and Korola. What would become of them if she died? They would be so sad.
She still had competitions. She wanted to stand on the podium with Korola, to skate together and retire together.
"Enough of this nonsense, let's get this over with," the old woman waved her hand impatiently. "If we delay any longer, someone might come."
"What's the rush? Just a few words of explanation," the old man grumbled, but without hesitation, purple light flared in his hand, and fragments of purple quickly assembled into a colossal axe. The axe handle was a full five meters long, its blade shimmering with purple light as it swung down towards Lilia.
Lilia squeezed her eyes shut, feeling a wave of cold spread from her heart throughout her body. She had already done her best to stall for time after calling for help.
But she was just an ordinary person.
Time fell into silence. She thought of many people and events, of her past with her husband, Korola, of moments spent with her children. A familiar scent wafted to her nostrils, reminding Lilia of the girl she had seen at the ice rink, a girl of astonishing beauty who, at such a young age, could stand beside a prominent figure of Country Z.
A scent?
Lilia started, turning her head back in disbelief. The smooth, beautiful profile leaped into her heart.
It wasn't an illusion. The air had truly fallen silent. A slender, jade-like hand was grasping the blade of the giant axe. The arm was delicate, but the beautiful muscles flexed with power. Her long hair seemed to blend into the night itself.
Though it was only for a moment, Lilia was certain that this was someone she knew. In this moment of near despair, Lilia was willing to call her a god.
In that instant, Lilia understood the meaning of hope. She practically threw herself into Bai Cha's arms, the first person she had done so with besides Korola.
"Elpis." Lilia suddenly felt so wronged. She hadn't cried when she was inexplicably chased, nor when she was cornered on the rooftop, nor when she had almost been split in two by the axe.
But now, as this stunning girl embraced her shoulders, she finally couldn't hold back the tears, which welled up in her eyes.
"...Forget it. You can call me Bai." Bai Cha smiled helplessly, releasing Lilia's shoulders. She placed a finger to her lips. "Close your eyes."
Lilia obediently nodded, turning her back, closing her eyes, and covering her ears like a well-behaved rabbit.
Bai Cha couldn't help but laugh. She quite liked this young girl. She had rushed over as soon as she received the news and had been standing nearby for a while, but unfortunately, she hadn't heard any useful information.
However, while the atmosphere here was pleasant, the old man beside them was not. He had sensed something was amiss the moment his axe was caught barehanded. He knew how heavy his axe was; he had forged it himself, and even after a lifetime, he could only wield it with two hands. What was this business of catching a blade barehanded?
Catching a blade barehanded was one thing, but gripping the blade so tightly! The old man strained with all his might, his face turning the same color as the axe, yet he couldn't pull his axe free.
"Hellfire."
Fire elements were ripped from the air, condensing into crimson flames that were then rapidly dyed black, imbued with an intense chilling aura as they climbed up the axe.
The old man tried to retreat, but as he lifted his foot, he found it had sunk into a black swamp, rendering him unable to move.
At this moment, the old woman beside him finally sensed something was wrong and stepped forward. But then she saw the mysterious woman in front of her withdraw her hand. In the space of a single breath, her companion had turned to ash. By the time she recovered, she saw the mysterious woman embrace Lilia and leap from the high building.
The old woman rushed forward, only to find that both of them had disappeared.
They had killed her companion and then fled?
"Wait... Bastards!" The old woman lunged to the edge of the high building, but there was no trace of Lilia below. Both her aura and her figure had vanished. Fury ignited within her, and she roared at the sky, "Bastards! Are you all idiots? Why didn't you act?"
"Tch, don't act like it's our obligation," a pink glass orb gradually materialized in the air, cracking at the bottom. A small pink-haired girl leaped out.
This little girl looked mischievous and spirited. Her pink hair was loosely tied at her back, and her pink hime cut suited her perfectly. Her pink and white form-fitting outfit accentuated her curves, making her look like a little pink fairy.
However, her cute little face held a trace of disdain.
At this moment, seven or eight people gradually appeared in the sky. Some were farther away, some closer. They glanced in this direction before gradually departing. Only a golden-haired woman jumped down and stood beside the pink-haired girl.
These two women were virtually identical. The same face and features, the same hime cut, but their temperaments were vastly different.
If the pink-haired woman was a cute, spirited fairy, then the golden-haired woman was a noble and proud queen, beautiful, dignified, and possessing an extraordinary aura that seemed to command the submission of any thinking being. She wore a robe of gray, black, and white, with a cluster of peculiar keys hanging from her waist.
"Alright, Freya, why waste words with such vermin?" The noble, golden-haired woman glanced disdainfully at the enraged old woman, as if even a second glance would taint her eyes. She waved her hand, "Just annoying mosquitoes."
"Oh~ I know, Freya, my dear sister~ I just wanted to see the show," Freya embraced Freya's arm, turned and grinned at the trembling old woman, "Isn't it precisely because of these arrogant, rude, and unreasonable creatures that our reputation has suffered so much with the 'Balance Beam'?"
"Enough, Mr. Asteria specifically instructed us not to pay attention to these people," Freya snorted. A golden magic circle appeared beneath her feet, and she disappeared into the night sky first.
"Oh! Dear sister, you're walking too fast!" A pink magic circle appeared beneath Freya's feet, and she cheerfully followed, leaving the old woman standing there with a green complexion.
The night sky became quiet, soon returning to its usual state.
"Elpis, no, Bai... Your Highness?"
Bai Cha: "?"
The wind howled. Lilia's address of "Your Highness" startled Bai Cha so much that she almost fell from the sky.
Bai Cha's mouth twitched. She looked at the woman in her arms, who, though shorter than her, was several years older. She felt speechless and, using Lilia's native language from Country E, retorted, "Miss Lilia, I believe we don't need such strange titles between us."
"Oh... Thank you. You can speak our language?" Lilia pouted, hugging Bai Cha's slender waist tightly and nuzzling her shoulder with her pitifully cute face. "I haven't been resonated with. I promise. I haven't undergone the baptism of dragon blood. I'm still an ordinary person and can participate in the Olympics."
Was this a voluntary confession?
Bai Cha raised an eyebrow. She hadn't expected Lilia to be aware of Korola being an evil dragon. Before she could even try to question her, this little girl had already let it slip.
"I know." Seeing that no one was pursuing them, Bai Cha finally breathed a sigh of relief. "Foreign athletes and the entire Olympic venue are under my jurisdiction from before the Winter Olympics began until their conclusion. At least during this period, if anything happens, you can call me directly."
The Winter Olympics was an important and grand event. With the venue and resort as the center, several people would be constantly monitoring everything around them.
Therefore, when Lilia entered with two people behind her, an informant had already sensed something was wrong. The intelligence from the informant and Lilia's plea for help arrived almost simultaneously, which is why Bai Cha had arrived in time.
"However, you've arrived too early. Who arrives nearly a month in advance?" Bai Cha sighed, switched the arm holding Lilia, took out her phone, checked the coordinates, and changed direction.
"I... I'm sorry. I wanted to come to Country Z so much that I secretly ran over with Korola," Lilia said with a blushing face, embarrassed. "Although I might get scolded by my coach when I go back..."
It wasn't just a possibility, it was a certainty. Their athlete had suddenly disappeared with her spouse. The coach's reaction was anyone's guess.
Lilia was about to say something more when she heard Bai Cha's low complaint.
"Working overtime again tonight."
Lilia blinked, a little confused. She didn't understand much Chinese and could only remain silent. However, for some reason, a spot on her chest was getting hotter and hotter, and even Bai Cha felt something was amiss.
"Wow, it's so hot," Lilia's expression changed.
"Excuse me." Bai Cha had no choice. She also felt the scorching heat from Lilia's chest. Before Lilia could react, Bai Cha reached into Lilia's clothes.
Lilia froze, letting Bai Cha's cool little hand caress her skin. She never imagined she would be taken advantage of by a girl like this one day.
Soon, Bai Cha withdrew her hand, holding a small, dark blue, fan-shaped scale. The scale was emitting a faint blue light, and its temperature was rapidly rising.
"What the hell?"
Bai Cha accelerated, charging forward at an even faster pace.