Chapter 188: The Confessor

Chapter 188: The Confessor

That strange Afternoon Town had invaded the real Afternoon Town? Derrick vaguely understood what the Chief was saying and formed a rough guess as to why such a thing had happened.

He suspected that when Mr. Fool had pulled him out of that strange Afternoon Town, the balance there had been broken, allowing its power to seep out.

That also explained why nothing had happened when Demon Hunter Colin Iliad repeated his attempt.

While Derrick was still thinking about what kind of change this would bring, Colin, Chief of the Council of Six, had already taken a handful of faintly glowing powder from a hidden compartment in his belt and scattered it into the air.

The powder suddenly burst apart, spraying silver-white radiance upward. In the gray, sunken, dark environment, it was exceptionally conspicuous.

Derrick, Joshua, and Heinm all understood the meaning of that signal very clearly: do not run around, remain where you are, guard against possible attacking enemies, and wait for rescue!

Without question, this signal was aimed at the exploration teams scattered throughout other parts of Afternoon Town.

Demon Hunter Colin released the signal three times in succession during the gaps between lightning flashes. Then he turned sideways to Derrick and the others.

“We will meet up with them in order, from near to far.

“Be careful on the way.”

“Yes, Chief!” Derrick had already forgotten the grievance from earlier. He only hoped to help his companions as quickly as possible.

Following Colin’s instructions, he walked on the left side of the team. On the other side was Joshua, wearing a crimson glove and carrying an iron-black straight sword. The relatively stronger Dawn Paladin, Heinm, brought up the rear, about three steps behind the Demon Hunter in front.

High above, lightning flashed in fairly quick succession. The gloomy Afternoon Town alternated between brightness and darkness, while candle flames reflected in various windows swayed gently, peaceful and quiet.

Derrick was no longer the rookie he had once been. Although he was tense, the palm gripping the Axe of Hurricane was not sweating. His gaze moved back and forth with practiced ease, watching for monsters that might suddenly dart out from the buildings on either side.

A bolt of lightning passed, and the world returned to darkness. The candlelight of Afternoon Town became scattered points, as if waiting for travelers in need of lodging.

The light from Heinm’s beast-hide lantern was dim yellow, spreading outward but unable to reach far. It was less effective than Derrick’s own night vision.

Its only apparent function was to drive away the thick darkness nearby.

Just then, a chill suddenly appeared at the back of Derrick’s neck, even though no cold wind was blowing around them.

Instinctively, he did not turn his head directly. Instead, he took a diagonal step, half-turning his body and looking backward from the corner of his eye.

He saw Heinm, who was nearly 2.3 meters tall, staring darkly at him while swinging the large, broad straight sword downward!

Bang!

Derrick curled into a roll, dodging the strike. It seemed as though the intense sound of wind still echoed beside his ears.

Immediately afterward, he heard the Chief’s voice.

“What happened?”

“Heinm attacked me!” Derrick rolled to his feet in the direction of Demon Hunter Colin.

“Me?” Heinm held the beast-hide lantern in one hand and the large straight sword in the other, asking back with a face full of confusion.

Colin looked at Derrick.

“I did not detect any abnormal movement from him.”

As he spoke, two dark-green symbols appeared in the Demon Hunter’s eyes.

He looked around and said, “The attacker can transform into Heinm’s appearance?”

Before his words had fully fallen, the silver straight sword in his right hand thrust violently backward.

Pfft!

Amid a silent collision, a figure emerged from the dim, sunken environment. The figure had messy, gray-white hair, deep…