"What should we do?" Serinda glanced at Kurion, but Kurion shook her head, directing her gaze towards the contemplating Iris.
"How many times can you use your destiny spell?" Iris said. She had checked the Virtual Space Ring and found that the ingredients were dwindling. "If we ran out of the materials, can you still do it?"
"My Seer Eye ability doesn't require any material, but its effect will be worse, and it will also exhaust my soul much more easily." Serinda counted her fingers. "The material we have can only last for two more castings. After that, I can cast it at least five times. I'm at the Transformation Phase now."
Iris nodded and turned to Artium, who also nodded, confirming Serinda's statement. Serinda might lie and overwork herself, but Artium would never allow it. Iris could relax knowing that she didn’t have to worry too much.
Kurion found Iris's relaxed complexion amusing and raised her hand. Everyone looked at her, waiting for her to speak. Though she was the newest addition to the group, she was the strongest and most experienced, being at the peak of the Transformation Phase, almost touching the Condensation Phase.
"You plan to go through the rifts between the worlds to avoid the Overseer's arrangements, right?" Kurion said. Everyone nodded. "This plan might work for the first time, but if this Overseer is the controller of the Legacy Ground, how can he not prepare for this? Unless he isn't as powerful as you think, he should be able to influence the worlds around ours, preparing a little everywhere."
"Our ultimate plan is to escape. It hasn't changed, but if we blindly try to escape, the Overseer will realise where our destination is and acts accordingly." Iris looked at the ceiling, gazing into the darkness. "I feel like it's better to rely on random chance; the Overseer won't be able to trap us if we don't have any concrete destination."
Iris signalled for Serinda and Artium to set up the spell formation. The two quickly drew an intricate magical array on the ground, preparing for the incantation and the material sacrifice. Before Serinda could cast the spell, Kurion pulled over Flamira and whispered to her.
Flamira intensely listened, her eyes beaming with understanding. Iris eyed Flamira and bowed lightly, giving her permission. Kurion saw this but said nothing, marking the interaction in mind.
"Serinda, Artium, Kurion has just told me that we should specify some condition for the spell." Flamira leant towards Serinda. Artium also joined in. "We shall search for the inner world where a Monster Girl was. We'll help as many as we could."
"But that's dangerous," Artium said. "It's naturally the best if we can save them, but if we fail, all of us are going to die. Sister Flamia, sometimes, we can't have everything."
Serinda said nothing, but her forced smile revealed her choice. If it were possible to save everyone, they would not hesitate. However, their odd was not good; they could still go through a few inner worlds, but they had no escape route, plan, or guarantee. If not for their faith in their mysterious Sister Iris, they would not believe they could leave this place alive.
Flamira grasped their hands and rubbed them gently. Her delicate yet firm palms pressed against their shivering hands. Behind her fierce gaze, the air of determination radiated, enveloping Artium and Serinda, giving them fleeting, illusionary hope.
Sister Flamira, Sister Iris, has a plan. She has a reckless, crazy, but effective plan. She is always like that.
"What do you want to tell us, Sister?" Serinda looked at Flamira, her eyes glowing in anticipation. "Though we have no plans, I still think that we should try to find a rift connecting to the outside. I thought it would be the best choice, but you seem to have a different idea."
"Not me, but Sister Kurion." Flamira glanced at Kurion, who was beside Iris, looking at the Cloak of Destiny Obscurity. "She wants us to gather more Monster Girls. The more members we get, the easier we can break away from the shackles of the Overseer. Compared to randomly going through the rifts, isn't this plan better?"
"But it is also riskier. Sister Flamira, you and your—Sister Iris are hurt," Serinda said, looking worried. "If we limit the worlds we could enter, it will also give the Overseer more advantages."
There were benefits and drawbacks to the plan, but no one was able to convince the others.
As the three chatted, Iris stepped in and patted Serinda's shoulders. Serinda fell silent, leaning onto Iris, blushing. Artium and Flamira stared at Iris, smiling, waiting. Kurion also kept her opinions to herself, guessing what Iris had to say.
"It is correct that the plan is reckless," Iris said. "I have nothing to add that could overturn your arguments. It is indeed a crazy plan—sorry, Sister Kurion, but it's the truth—however, can you trust me?"
"Of course, Sister Iris. You've created miracles twice; if not for you, we won't be standing here. As much as I hate to admit it, you're indeed the special one." Artium paused and turned to Kurion. Everyone did. "Kurion, Sister Kurion, you look confident in this plan. Could you tell us what your source of confidence is?"
"To be called Sister, this is the first time, but it is not a bad feeling." Kurion grasped Iris's cloak and lightly smelt it. "I indeed have a secret treasure that can help me survive this crisis once, but it doesn't mean that I can afford to waste it with a suicidal suggestion. I, too, have confidence in Iris, in her strange nature, in her specialness, in the things inside her, both tangible and intangible."
Kurion's hands were the personification of winter. Iris turned cold and stiff, tensing, shivering. The chill seeped into her body and froze her thoughts. She struggled to remain still, for the anxiety burst in her soul, threatening to consume her countenance with embarrassment. She lightly bit her lips, trying to suppress her surprises.
"What do you mean, Sister Kurion?" Iris mumbled. She felt the gaze on her back piercing her membrane, landing on the Shadow Hear Core. "What have you seen in me? What do I have that could instil confidence in you?"
Kurion leant onto Iris's back and grasped her chin, caressing it. Her cold, sharp fingertips grazed the bouncy membrane, moving up to the reddened cheeks, then stopped at the trembling lips. Despite the intense exaltation, Iris could only feel the freezing danger of getting suppressed, of being completely exposed. She wanted to resist, but the difference in their strength was too vast.
Artium and Serinda couldn't feel anything and looked at the two intertwining Monster Girls with their eyes drooling. The quietude gave them anticipation for the sounds that Iris would make, but nothing would come out no matter how long they waited. Flamira understood the situation and tried to ease the tension.
"Are you talking about the Cloak of Destiny Obscurity?" she said. "The Overseer could observe us and arrange his plans accordingly. But now that we have the cloak, it would be harder for him to predict our movement. It is a legendary artefact after all."
"Yes, the Cloak of Destiny Obscurity is one of the reasons I want us to find more Monster Girls." Kurion let go of Iris, who quickly went to stand beside Flamira. "But the most important thing is the power inside you, Iris. I could sense that spark of Faith, that hint of Divinity. I have no idea how you acquired it, but it is enough to ensure the success of our plan."
Serinda and Artium understood what Kurion was talking about. After all, they had witnessed that moment when Iris unleashed impossible power, capable of tearing through the fabric of reality. They didn't know what power Iris used, but Kurion's words matched their expectation.
Only the power above mortals could cause such grand destruction.
Iris blinked, staring at Kurion. She tried to find the extent of what Kurion knew, but the faint smile, smug, on her face concealed her thoughts. Iris could only slap her cheeks and collect her manner.
From the look of it, Sister Kurion doesn't seem to have any desire for the power of Faith. After all, no ordinary Monster Girl can wield the power of Faith.
Still, is Kurion ordinary? Hardly.
"Sister Kurion, I'll be frank," Iris said, her voice dry. "What is your objective?"
"My objective? To gain worldly experience and to explore the unknown." Kurion smiled. Her bright smile eclipsed the oppressive aura Iris felt, leaving only the child-like innocence, which permeated the atmosphere, helping Iris relax. "It is more exciting if we try to go against the Overseer. Maybe we could uncover the secret this Legacy Ground holds. To overcome the limit, it is not impossible."
Her words radiated pure arrogance, but no one doubted her, especially Iris. Her perspective had already been twisted by the truly powerful. Kurion was just like her, a Monster Girl with extraordinary encounters. If she didn't fall before she could mature, she was sure to achieve much, maybe even more than Iris could dream of.
"But why are you so carefree? The Faith inside me isn't an end-all-be-all power. If the Legacy Ground wants me dead, my trump card will find it hard to protect me." Iris shook her head. "There is a limit to what borrowed power can achieve. If it were too powerful, I would die before I could use it."
"Because this is the best possible way to win. I might be insane, but I'm not wrong, right?" Kurion extended her hand forwards and pinched at the darkness. Crackling noises resounded as the fabric of reality quivered, cracking. "I might not be able to force my way out of the Legacy Ground, but I could help you go through any inner world you want. With my power, we can hunt the Floor Guardians and receive grand rewards. Once we're strong enough, the Overseer will be powerless to stop us."
Iris smiled, not objecting. She naturally didn't trust Kurion completely, but she trusted in herself and the treasures she had with her. Kurion's plan aligned with hers, so she accepted it. It was better to save as many Monster Girls as possible.
Serinda and Artium knew Sister Iris had accepted the plan; they too fantasised about a scene where they, with other Monster Girls, charged through the Legacy Ground, battling their way out with ample artefacts.
It will be beautiful; it will be heroic; it will be fruitful!
Without delay, Serinda channelled her Corruption Power. The formation array glowed with countless light, consuming the exotic material Artium threw. The multi-coloured light congregated into a ray of pure white light, which revealed a hazy scenery of a vast, neat garden.
Somewhere in the maze of bushes and flowers, a Plant Girl danced among the trees, her figure breezing along with the current of the winds, moving through the falling leaves. The colourful petals flowed according to her gesture, playing a soft tone, mimicking the sounds of instruments.
Her enemy was the Floor Guardian, a floating sphere of intricate design, comprised of seven layers of revolving golden rings. Its main body was a mechanical eye, silver irises, white pupils. Flying around it were four pairs of robotic wings, greyish, electrical, and thunderous.
The Monster Girl fought against the Floor Guardian, but she could not defeat the mechanical endurance and defence. No matter how many times she destroyed the revolving rings, she could not destroy all of them at once, and they would reassemble in mere moments.
The Floor Guardian folded its wings, violently shaking. The bright blue sky turned dull as electricity converged towards the mechanical eye. Its heavenly wings produced muzzling sounds as they accumulated the vast energy in their metallic feathers.
Before the vast energy ruptured, Serinda forcefully terminated the future vision, breathing in and out roughly, trying to calm down. The white light of destiny disintegrated into countless sparks, but Serinda didn't suffer any damage, for she knew her limit.
"Sister Iris, what should we do?" she said, looking at Iris.
