Jackal felt as if she were being stared down by a natural predator, as if her throat were being squeezed, her blood frozen solid.
Cold sweat trickled down her back. She had the strong feeling that if she had dared to make a move just now, she would be dead.
"...Who in the world... is she?"
As an executive of World Serpent, Jackal had been to the [Elysian Realm] before, but not everyone was lucky enough to encounter one of the Flame-Chasers.
This was especially true for the reclusive Mobius, who spent her years holed up in a dark laboratory.
"If this continues… the Divine Key hidden in the folded space will be discovered soon. Tch, why did some unknown person have to show up out of nowhere."
Jackal gritted her teeth, preparing to withdraw.
She had received intelligence from Gray Serpent that Schicksal's S-rank Valkyrie, Rita Rossweisse, had come to London to investigate the legends surrounding King Arthur.
Hidden within those legends were clues to a Divine Key.
Therefore, Jackal had been dispatched to monitor Rita's movements. And if things went smoothly, with the Third Divine Key, the Seven Thunders of Retribution, that she had brought along, there might be a chance to eliminate the Schicksal Overseer.
After all, the "bait" of the Second Divine Key was too tempting, enough to lure out the Overseer who always hid behind his Valkyries to the scene himself.
However, no one could have predicted that before the Schicksal S-rank Valkyrie could find anything, an existence like this would crash the party.
"Gray Serpent, Gray Serpent!"
Jackal pressed her hand to her microphone.
She was so far away from the green-haired woman that it was impossible for her to be heard, but Jackal still couldn't suppress the fear in her heart, lowering her voice into a tense call.
Almost the second Jackal called out, a snake-like electronic voice came through her earpiece.
Before Jackal could ask, Gray Serpent spoke first, "I'm already aware of the situation on your end. I saw the operator of the drones through the street-level cameras."
"Who is she? What should we do?"
Jackal could clearly sense Gray Serpent pause.
That hesitation and confusion could be felt even through the communicator.
Jackal found it incredible. That Gray Serpent, who always maintained an elegant and composed demeanor, would actually reveal such an emotion.
Then, she only heard him say, "For this operation, use your own judgment based on the situation on the ground."
"Then..."
Beep—
Jackal had just started to speak when Gray Serpent had already hung up.
"?"
What the hell?
Jackal was dumbfounded. You could at least tell me who she is.
What about the Third Divine Key?
And what's the situation with Schicksal?
"Fuck!"
Jackal couldn't help but curse.
Although Gray Serpent and Jackal were nominally colleagues, both executives of World Serpent, Jackal had been recruited by him. If the legendary Sovereign was not present, then in practical operations, Gray Serpent was their supreme commander.
The higher-up had spoken, telling her to use her own judgment.
What did that mean?
It was very easy to understand: if something went wrong, the blame would fall entirely on her.
"..."
Jackal fell silent.
This didn't align with Gray Serpent's usual principles.
While Gray Serpent was cold-blooded, rational, and even insane, he was also a responsible superior who wouldn't shift all the blame.
So…
Jackal gripped the Third Divine Key and looked once more in the direction of the Tower Bridge. This time, she didn't dare use the Divine Key for assistance. With her naked eye, she could only see the two distant spires of the bridge over the Thames.
But she knew that an extremely terrifying existence was there.
Gray Serpent definitely knew her and was deeply wary of her.
Reason told Jackal that retreating now was the optimal solution.
But… many things in the world go wrong because of that "but."
Jackal was incredibly curious about the green-haired woman.
And, from the looks of it, she seemed to have already pinpointed the location of the Divine Key.
She had heard that the legendary Sovereign, in order to prevent mortals from touching the Divine Keys, had created an avatar with one percent of his power to guard them.
All who dared to seize them would be crushed by the Sovereign's will!
From a long time ago, under Gray Serpent's influence, Jackal had been filled with curiosity and… reverence for that Sovereign.
She naturally wanted to witness the will left behind by that great figure with her own eyes.
The foot she had been about to step forward with was pulled back. She wasn't leaving.
"Besides, there's still Schicksal. They won't allow anyone else to get their hands on the Divine Key either. They're bound to take action."
Right, staying here might allow me to wait for an opportunity, to sit back and watch the snipe and clam fight it out.
Jackal took several deep breaths, trying to stabilize her heart rate.
Bzzzz~~~
At that moment, the space above the River Thames suddenly began to tremble.
A perfect, transparent cube was cut out from space, reflecting the river water and the blue sky.
CRACK—
The space shattered like a mirror.
A magnificent and grand mechanical creation broke through from within.
At first glance, it resembled a giant locomotive.
"Is that the Second Divine Key, the Cosmic Juggernaut?"
Rita, having changed into her most advanced 3rd-generation Valkyrie battlesuit, had also rushed to the bank of the Thames.
Wielding her giant scythe, she gazed at the mechanical torrent that had torn through the sky, its metallic luster reflecting a soul-stirring sheen in the sunlight.
Rita did not act rashly.
She looked up at the sky. Lady Durandal's support… should be arriving soon.
Equipped with the newly developed 4th-generation Valkyrie battlesuit, Durandal could reach here from Schicksal HQ at top speed.
An event as major as the appearance of the Second Divine Key could not possibly be left for Rita to handle alone.
Just as everyone's attention was drawn to the Second Divine Key, a green figure floated down.
At the same time, due to the extreme altitude, the ordinary citizens on the riverbank failed to notice another figure that had appeared alongside it: a white-haired doll about 50cm tall.
"It's the Sovereign's avatar!"
Jackal saw it, her eyes flashing with excitement.
However, in the next second, the excitement in Jackal's eyes was not just extinguished; it was filled with incredulous dread.
What did she just see?
The Sovereign's avatar, meant to crush petty thieves who coveted the Divine Key, had simply been beckoned by the other party and floated before her like a subject before its ruler?
"What in the world… is going on?"
Unable to comprehend the situation, Jackal felt that staying here was extremely dangerous.
It was as if a blade was hanging over her head, ready to fall at any moment.
There was a reason they say a "Jackal's" senses are sharp.
Ye Feng was also watching the scene at this moment. With one hand resting on Ji Lin's pale, slender waist, he said to Mobius:
Snake-snake, since you're already there, you might as well retrieve the Seven Thunders of Retribution too.
"Hm? Is that you, Father?"
Mobius was taken aback.
Without a doubt, the voice that had just echoed in her mind was Ye Feng's.
It was definitely not a hallucination.
That's right, it's me.
"...Eh? You, why..."
This is the bond between us. Not even two different worlds can sever our connection.
Joy had just begun to blossom on Mobius's face when she heard an extremely suppressed, faint moan.
She narrowed her eyes and said, "Let me ask you something. When you're transmitting your thoughts to me, is it only your voice that comes through, or does all the sound from your environment get transmitted as well?"