As the tentacle erosion grew more severe, Luna’s consciousness became increasingly hazy.
She could feel the viscous liquid stripping her strength inch by inch, could feel the fragments of the Goddess Armament falling off her like withering petals, dissipating in the night wind.
The fabric at her waist also melted, revealing a slender waist and smooth lower abdomen.
The white over-the-knee socks on her thighs had long been corroded into countless holes, shredded fiber hanging by her legs, exposing the fair skin beneath.
Several tentacles were coiled around her thighs, their rough surfaces rubbing against her bare skin, leaving streaks of red.
At this moment, the girl felt the pressure, felt death’s approach.
That suffocating sensation didn’t come from the tentacles’ grip, but from deep within her heart—a desolate feeling of helpless despair, knowing the end was near.
Luna slowly closed her eyes.
Those pale-golden eyes, for the last time, reflected the two scarlet monster eyes in the night sky.
‘Is this the end…’
The girl murmured to herself in her heart.
Those unfulfilled wishes flashed through her mind like a lantern show.
The promise with Hestia—to go shopping together, eat sweets together, become true friends in the Surface World.
They had linked their pinky fingers and made that vow of “one day.”
And the sisters in the group—Saya, Sylph, and Serene, the Serene Angel who spoke little but always silently cared for her.
They were still waiting for her news, still waiting for her to share intel about V.
And…
And that Arbiter V who had gotten her into all this.
That man wearing the white mask with the red V, who made her grit her teeth in hatred yet left her helpless.
‘He should be watching somewhere, right?’
‘Watching me fail, watching me die.’
‘Is this the result he wanted?’
‘You win.’
A bitter, despairing smile tugged at Luna’s lips.
‘I’m sorry…’
The girl silently said in her heart.
‘I’m sorry, Hestia.’
‘I’m sorry, sisters.’
‘I’m sorry…’ She hadn’t been able to fulfill that promise.
Tears silently slipped from her closed eyes, glinting for a moment in the night wind before being swallowed by the tentacles’ slime.
Then—just then.
A black shadow leaped up from below.
The speed was astonishing, like a black lightning bolt, instantly crossing dozens of meters to reach Luna.
Luna’s eyelashes trembled violently.
The pink-haired girl didn’t open her eyes, but she heard that voice—
That voice so familiar it made her clench her teeth, yet impossible to ignore.
“Mutual Slaughter of All Things.”
Four words.
Low, calm, yet carrying an indescribable chill as if from the abyss.
With those four words, a miracle occurred.
The seven or eight tentacles that had been tightly coiled around Luna, frantically secreting slime and eroding her armament, suddenly all loosened.
As if controlled by some invisible force, they abruptly turned and began attacking each other. One tentacle viciously slammed into a companion nearby, another tightly strangled yet another, squeezing madly.
Those thick, slime-covered tentacles tangled together in the night sky, biting, coiling, destroying each other.
In an instant, foul black liquid splattered everywhere, severed limbs and remains fell from the air, crashing into the ruins below with dull thuds.
This was “Mutual Slaughter of All Things.”
The eerie ability that had once made over twenty combatants instantly kill each other.
This time, its target was these mindless monster tentacles.
Luna lost her restraint, her body falling from the sky like a broken kite.
Her pink hair spread in the night wind, like a wilting flower. Fragments of the ruined Goddess Armament drifted off her, dissipating as specks of light.
She had no strength left, not even to open her eyes.
But the girl felt her falling body caught by a pair of hands.
Those hands steadily supported her waist and the crooks of her legs, pulling her entirely into a warm embrace.
Luna used her last bit of strength to open her eyes. What came into view was that familiar white mask. On the mask, the red “V” slowly flowed in the darkness, as if alive.
It was him.
Arbiter V.
The man who had gotten her into all this, the one who had now saved her.
Luna’s lips trembled for a long time, wanting to say something.
She wanted to ask why he saved her.
She wanted to ask why he had led her into a trap only to rescue her. She wanted to ask… who he really was.
But the girl was too tired.
Her mana was drained to the limit, her body completely exhausted.
She couldn’t even utter a single syllable. Her eyes slowly closed, her consciousness receding like the tide.
In the last moment before darkness, Luna felt that hand gently brush her sweat-soaked cheek.
Then, everything fell silent.
In the night sky, those two scarlet monster eyes still flickered. The tentacles continued biting each other, madly slaughtering themselves.
Hell stood at the edge of the factory roof, holding the unconscious Luna, his black coat billowing in the night wind.
He looked down at the barely clothed girl in his arms.
At her ruined Goddess Armament, her exposed white skin, the still-damp tear tracks on her cheeks, and the dried blood at the corner of her mouth.
Under the mask, the boy’s expression was unknown to anyone.
Not long after, in the exclusive group chat “Watch Eden” for the Starlight Covenant—the Goddess Angel Academy City Eden IP—a message suddenly appeared.
That message was red, jarring against the originally pure white chat interface.
It was the color reserved only for emergency distress signals, the highest-level alert every Goddess Angel was repeatedly told about when joining the organization.
The sender was Artemis.
The content was:
“Sisters, emergency! I found a Crystal Corpse Manufacturing Factory on the outskirts of Eden City. Coordinates attached. A huge Crystal Remains Monster is hidden beneath the factory—form unknown, many tentacles. My mana is depleted, I can’t continue fighting. Requesting support! Requesting support!”
Beneath the message, a short video was attached.
In the video, several tentacles writhed above the blazing factory.
Only a few seconds long, the frame shook violently, but it was enough to make out those two scarlet giant eyes glowing from the deep pit.
The group chat instantly exploded.
Arc Light Angel Hestia replied almost instantly: “Artemis?! Hang on! I’m on my way!”
Silver Angel Saya followed: “Received. I’m departing now. Estimated arrival in fifteen minutes.”
Gale Angel Sylph: “Already on the road, ten minutes! Artemis, hold on!”
Messages kept popping up one after another, every familiar name responding, every word carrying undisguised concern and worry.
And just then, a deep black avatar slowly emerged.
Serene Angel Serene.
Her message was very short, only a single line:
“I’ll go too.”
The group chat fell silent for a second.
Then, Luna’s account sent a message.
“You’re still young. Focus on studying first.”
Immediately after, Hestia also spoke.
“Serene, don’t come this time. The situation is unclear, too dangerous. Wait until we find out more.”
Saya echoed.
“Yeah, you’re still young, you haven’t officially participated in combat yet. Let us handle it this time.”
Sylph sent a head-patting emoji.
“We appreciate your concern, little sister, but not this time.”
Right now, Seshi stared at those messages on the screen, at Luna’s reply, and was silent for a long time. Her finger hovered above the screen, trembling slightly.
The girl wanted to say she could do it—her strength and talent were strong.
Against this kind of monster hidden underground, she might be more suited than anyone. She wanted to say she didn’t want to just watch anymore, didn’t want to be the one “protected.”
But in the end, she said nothing.
Because those were Luna-nee’s words.
The words of the Goddess Angel she respected and admired most.
Seshi took a deep breath, her fingers slowly typing on the screen.
“Okay.”
“I’ll cheer for you all.”
“Be safe. Take care.”
Meanwhile.
Silver Angel Saya, Gale Angel Sylph, and Arc Light Angel Hestia had already set out simultaneously.
In the night sky, three streaks of light raced from different directions toward that burning factory on the outskirts.
This was the largest joint operation of Goddess Angels in Eden City in recent years.
Switching perspective to the abandoned warehouse.
Deep in the warehouse, beside a somewhat worn-out bed, Hell stood silently.
He was holding Luna’s phone—that pink phone with cute cartoon stickers. The screen was still on, displaying the “Watch Eden” group chat interface. He had just logged out of the group chat and turned off the phone. Then, he bent down and gently placed the phone back in Luna’s hand.
After doing all that, Hell straightened up and looked at the sleeping girl on the bed.
By now, Luna had reverted to her ordinary appearance due to depleted mana.
She was no longer the “Annihilation Angel” Artemis floating in the night sky.
No halo, no turrets, no pure-white tight combat suit. She was just an ordinary seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl.
A gray blanket covered her from collarbone to ankles, revealing only her pale cheeks, slender neck, and one hand outside the blanket.
That hand was very white, almost translucent, with a few faint red marks on the back—marks left by the tentacles.
The pink-haired girl lay on that somewhat old bed, her breathing steady and deep. Her chest rose and fell gently, the blanket faintly outlining her figure.
Her eyelashes cast faint shadows in the dim lamplight. Her lips were slightly chapped from the earlier battle but still retained a pleasing shape.
She wasn’t in danger.
Hell stood quietly by the bed, looking down at this sleeping girl.
‘I didn’t expect… that Crystal Corpse Factory hid such a powerful Crystal Remains Monster.’
‘Those tentacles, that slime, those scarlet eyes—I saw everything clearly from the shadows.’
‘Looks like sending Luna alone for this operation was still a bit too much.’
‘But it’s okay… at least my “Mutual Slaughter of All Things” worked.’
‘Whose fault is it that the Crystal Remains Monster had so many tentacles?’
One, two, three… over a dozen, each one reaching toward Luna, each one marked as a target of “Mutual Slaughter of All Things” the moment he activated his ability.
Those tentacles began attacking each other, tangling together, buying precious time to rescue Luna.
However… Hell couldn’t completely destroy that monster with “Mutual Slaughter of All Things.”
Because the monster itself was a whole; his ability could only affect those tentacles, not reach the core.
So, Hell could only send a distress call to her companions in her stead.
‘Indeed, this world is just a big shoddy stage.’
The exclusive chat software for Goddess Angels, “Starlight Covenant,” surprisingly had no special verification mechanism. Using Luna’s fingerprint—he just gently held her hand while she was unconscious and pressed her slender finger to the fingerprint sensor—and entered easily.
Then, he saw all the messages in that “Watch Eden” group chat. Saw the avatars and nicknames of those Goddess Angels who cared about Luna. Saw that deep black avatar with the nickname “Serene Angel Serene.”
His little sister, Seshi.
Hell’s fingers tightened for a moment.
As a Transmigrator, he naturally knew that Serene was Seshi.
She was his “little sister” he lived with day and night, a Goddess Angel under the same roof, the black-haired girl who was cold as ice to him yet had softened slightly last night.
So when Seshi proposed to join the fight, he—using Luna’s account—was the first to refuse.
“You’re still young. Focus on studying first.”
That message was sent by him.
He used Luna’s tone, Luna’s manner, that gentle but firm attitude.
He didn’t know what motivated him.
Was it selfishness?
Did he not want Seshi to get involved in this dangerous battle, not want her to face a monster even Luna couldn’t handle?
Or was it that the current “Serene Angel” was too overpowered, and if she joined the fight, it would disrupt his plans?
Hell himself couldn’t say. He just stared at Seshi’s last message—”I’ll cheer for you all”—and was silent for a long time.
Then, he logged out of the group chat and turned off the phone.
Now, three Goddess Angels—Saya, Sylph, and Hestia—were heading to that factory. With their combat power, the threat from that monster should be dealt with soon.
Hell turned around and walked to the broken window of the warehouse, looking out at the night sky dyed red by the city lights.
In the distance, three streaks of light were faintly visible, speeding toward the outskirts.
He said nothing more. He just stood there quietly, his black coat gently swaying in the night wind seeping through the window gaps.
Behind him, the sleeping girl on the bed still breathed evenly. She didn’t know what had just happened. She just slept quietly, like a wounded beast that had finally found a haven.
Hell did not turn back.
All he had to do now was wait—wait for this Goddess Angel to wake up.
And then continue executing his plan.