Ur never expected to encounter someone here that he knew.
Though Ur had forgotten the name of the silver-haired girl before him, that didn't matter. Names were just labels, after all.
"Dio, stop! He's not our enemy."
As Ur's eyes met the white-haired girl's, she also noticed Ur. Pausing briefly, she spoke to the black-haired boy held in the Giant Lava Claw.
Dio: "???"
The black-haired boy, Dio, nearly thought he misheard. His eyes widened in disbelief, staring at the girl as if to say: Are you still on my side? Can you really say such nonsense?
In the end, Ur let Dio go.
The moment Dio hit the ground, he began coughing violently, spewing a significant amount of blood.
Ur hadn't kept count of how many punches he'd landed, but each one had struck the same spot. Everything Dio had in his stomach, meant or not, had been purged completely.
Dio's face was pale. Being beaten senseless for no reason left him utterly frustrated. At that moment, he needed comfort from a teammate, but seeing his teammate chatting happily with the person who had just beaten him nearly made him burst into tears.
Too unfair!
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"Long time no see. By the way, what's your name again?" Ur greeted the white-haired girl warmly.
Jelka's smile faltered. Her expression instantly froze. After a long pause, she took a deep breath and forced a smile without joy, looking at Ur. "Honestly, if you didn't speak, our conversation might have been a lot easier."
Ur: "······"
Women really do have dark hearts.
After some conversation, Ur still couldn't recall Jelka's name, and she didn't offer any reminders, but it didn't really matter.
Not long after, a surprised voice rang out. "Eh? Big Brother Pasfield, what are you doing here?"
The sudden voice drew everyone's attention, especially Pasfield. Following the sound, he saw a familiar face and couldn't help showing a look of surprise.
"Diana?" Pasfield walked forward, puzzled. "What are you doing here? Did the family send you?"
"Yes. Someone sent word back to the family saying there was news of the Azure Water. So the family dispatched you, our eldest sister, and me—all of us, to find it as quickly as possible and bring it back." Diana's eyes lit up seeing Pasfield, and she smiled warmly.
Diana was young, wearing a pure white fur coat. Her chestnut curls flowed behind her, and her bright eyes sparkled. She exuded both aristocratic grace and youthful vitality.
"I see. The family sent all of you, huh?" Pasfield's expression stiffened for a moment at her words, but it quickly returned to a smile, though this one looked forced and awkward.
As they walked further inside, Ur, Jelka, and the others followed.
In the blink of an eye, only Dio remained behind—alone, cold, and desolate in the wind.
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Since most of the people here were familiar faces, it didn't take long for everyone to understand the situation of this Vichy tribe.
It was similar to what they had already learned.
The ones who drove off the Seaweed Blade weren't strangers; they were from Angel's Wing. Diana had hired them to protect her group during this voyage.
Not many from Angel's Wing had come. Besides Jelka and Dio, there was also Balen, the blonde armored man who had accompanied Jelka to request aid from the Fairy Tail before. Additionally, Diana had hired an entire large-scale hunter guild to guide them, a whole professional guild. It just showed how different the wealthy think.
On top of that, there was good news: thanks to Angel's Wing's timely intervention, the casualties in this Vichy tribe were far fewer than expected. Even the Priestess had survived and was now waiting to be questioned about the location of the sacred site.
This news thrilled the dozen or so Vichy guides accompanying Ur. Seeing their families alive, they were nearly moved to kneel in gratitude to Diana and her team.
Night fell.
Ur, Pasfield, and Jangsen stayed alone in an ice cellar.
Pasfield's face was ashen, furious. "Damn it! Who, who leaked the information?" His voice twisted in anger, eyes burning as if the rage might erupt at any moment. The calmness he had shown during the day was gone.
For this mission to find the Azure Water, the Dori family had split into several teams sent across the world. According to tradition, whoever returned with the Azure Water would gain control over it, including all future rights related to the legendary wine.
So Pasfield's first reaction upon learning of the news was to seek a strong ally, Ur, instead of reporting back to the family. Despite the high rewards Pasfield had previously granted Ur, the stakes were now even higher. Yet he hadn't expected a traitor within his own team.
He could already imagine how difficult it would be to secure the Azure Water with some of his "dear brothers and sisters" involved in betrayal.
"Damn it! I've given them so much already, why would they betray me?" Pasfield fumed.
Ur, however, remained calm. Hearing Pasfield's rage, he thought silently. Noble circles are really messy.
What should have been a straightforward search mission had become so complicated. Sometimes, having more people isn't necessarily better.
Ur and Jangsen let Pasfield vent his anger. Once he was finished, Ur finally spoke. "So, according to you, Diana is also your competitor?"
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Next Chapter: Not Ruthless Enough
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