Sorcerer’s Handbook

Chapter 350: Each Has Their Own Valued Thing

“Enough.”

Qenna pushed the dazed Ashe away, lightly scraped her lips with her fingernail, and said loudly, “I don’t know any Ashe Heath. I only know that I won’t allow you to take my clansman Ashe Senhaeser!”

Leite turned to the other patriarchs, “Do you all agree?”

“The Six Heraldry advance and retreat together, with aligned interests,” the man with glasses repeated. “Senhaeser would never act against the Six Heraldry. Her will is the will of the eight million people of Vamora.”

“Alright,” Leite said. “Cleos, our Pact is nullified.”

“Huh?” Cleos couldn’t help but open her eyes to glance at ‘Deadshot Red Hat,’ only to see Leite taking off his Red Hat uniform. “What do you mean?”

“It means, I don’t want my share of the profit anymore. As long as you capture Ashe Heath, you will be the number one on the National Red Hat Ranking.”

“But why don’t you—”

Before Cleos could finish her question, Leite had already answered with his actions. The Sanctuary sniper directly aimed at Ashe, who was hiding behind several rows of gaming pods, and multiple spirits appeared on the gun barrel.

Ashe, in the line of sight, felt a chill seep into his body from his spine. Despite his Wild Instinct running at 120%, his body couldn’t move. The air seemed to turn into an oppressive wall, trapping him in Qenna’s embrace!

Miracle: Target Killing Bullet!

Fix the target into an immobile state and then shoot — that’s the essence of Target Killing!

Bang!

Even though the Six Heraldry patriarchs reacted extremely quickly, the Sanctuary bullet still blasted through two gaming pods, creating large holes in the Senhaeser clansmen inside. The bullet stopped before the third gaming pod, spinning within six layers of invisible energy walls, releasing all its kinetic energy.

If not for the timely prayer to the Gospel Book by the Six Heraldry patriarchs, everyone in the line of sight would have been doomed to be pierced through.

“Do you realize what you’ve done?”

Regaining his ability to move, Ashe looked up and saw that Qenna’s eyes no longer held any trace of a smile. Holding the Gospel Book, she stepped forward. Her cold voice couldn’t hide her anger as she spoke word by word, “You actually murdered ordinary Senhaeser clansmen right in front of us?”

“More will die next.” Leite spoke calmly, showing no emotional fluctuation after killing: “Ashe must be taken away. I will stop at nothing—though there’s really no cost anymore, since I’ve already lost my Red Hat qualification and will soon become a target for other Red Hats.”

“Cleos, and all of you, even if it’s for the Gospel ranking, fight with everything you’ve got.” The Sanctuary sniper made a statement that no Red Hat should ever make: “I’ll take care of the innocent people standing in your way.”

When Ashe looked over, Leite immediately closed his eyes. Although he couldn’t make eye contact with this Sanctuary sorcerer, Ashe knew that his opponent’s pupils were filled with a resolute determination that left no room for retreat.

Despite becoming someone’s must-kill target for no reason, Ashe didn’t feel much grievance. After all, he had started out as a Cult Leader in prison and was long accustomed to the ups and downs of fate.

Since the Weaving Festival, the ‘Eternal Wanderer’ had been demonstrating his prowess, first getting notorious on the Art Ranking, then encountering the ruthless Empress’s heroic soul in the Virtual Realm. Compared to those, being targeted by a Sanctuary sorcerer was just dessert.

Oddly enough, if a normal person faced such continuous malevolence, they would likely become cynical or at least swear to the heavens, ‘Better I betray the world than let the world betray me.’ However, Ashe felt nothing. He simply helped Igor up and used a ‘Joy Sword’ to heal his broken ribs.

Igor coughed up some blood, “Gently!”

“Do you want me to carry you like a princess?” Ashe retorted irritably, “Sister Qenna, we’ll leave now so we don’t get in your way! Banjeet, let’s go!”

“Don’t even think about it!”

With a sharp cry from Leite, the Red Hats rapidly scattered to find cover and attack the native patriarchs, but they were all blocked by an invisible barrier.

Cleos’s dual guns performed a requiem, and the bullets all hit the ground. In an instant, the ground beneath the patriarchs disintegrated into particles, causing these wealthy family heads to fall into the night sky along with the rubble!

At the same time, Leite aimed at Ashe again, firing another Miracle bullet!

Bang!

The bullet stalled less than a meter from the muzzle, spinning furiously in the air as if it was throwing a tantrum in impotent rage.

The five patriarchs did not fall. Despite the ground being gone, they could still walk as if on solid ground. This might be the most degrading use of Gospel points—they were stepping on the Gospel points, using money to pave a stairway to heaven.

“Do you have a grudge against him?” Qenna asked calmly, holding the Gospel Book as she walked out.

“No, I actually know him quite well. His gaming skills aren’t great, but he’s a decent guy,” Leite replied.

“Then why are you doing this?” Qenna asked. “You can’t even be a Red Hat anymore.”

“For the Gospel.”

Ashe, Igor, and Banjeet reached the 71st floor and saw Harvey lying in a coffin with Alice about to close the lid.

“What are you doing… never mind, I didn’t ask.”

“This is another one of my Miracles.” Harvey, eager to explain his Necromancy Sect skills, said, “It allows me to temporarily become a corpse, letting most of my Miracles work on myself, doubling my combat strength.”

“Why didn’t you use it before?” Igor asked.

“It requires some preparation time and has a slight side effect, so I avoid using it if I can.”

“What side effect?”

“If used for too long, temporary corpse state might become permanent.”

“Alright.” Banjeet exhaled deeply, trying to suppress his inner anxiety. “We need to rescue the young lady now.”

Igor opened the Gospel Book chat group. “Annan hasn’t said anything yet, which probably means she’s in serious trouble. Instead of—”

Click.

The young butler pointed his dual ice spell-guns at the Con Artist, unlocking the safety.

“—instead of wasting time, let’s find her immediately.” Igor’s face was pale, likely from his broken ribs. “Or it will be too late!”

“I agree.” Banjeet holstered his guns.

Harvey shrugged and climbed out of the coffin, “Then I won’t turn into a corpse.”

“Wait.”

Ashe raised his hand, sweeping his gaze over the group, and asked curiously:

“Where’s Lise?”

At apartment 5603 on the 56th floor of the Senhaeser building, a knock echoed through the dark room.

Knock, knock, knock.

After three knocks, the automatic door suddenly lit up with a green light and slid into the wall with a swish.

Tap.

Steel boots stepped into the room, pressing down firmly on the floor, transferring weight to the toes, and then repeating with the other foot.

The strides were uniform, the steps crisp.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

The owner of the steel boots stopped in the center of the room, not turning on the lights or saying a word.

Inside the closet, the Substitute tightly covered Lise’s mouth, clamping down on her like concrete, suppressing her trembles to the minimum.

After an indeterminate amount of time, the sound of steel boots walking away and the automatic door closing was heard. The Substitute released Lise, and the white-haired girl collapsed onto the clothes, breathing heavily, releasing all the tension that had built up inside her.

As she finally caught her breath, Lise realized her legs were weak. “Carry me to the mirror.”

The Substitute carried Lise out of the closet to the vanity. The Little Witch turned on the lamp beside it, eager to discuss countermeasures with her sisters—

The moment the light came on, Lise saw herself, the Substitute, and the Black Knight standing in the shadows, reflected in the mirror.