Chapter 185: Ch185: The Divine Shaman

Early the next morning, the young shamans, Marco, Queena, workers, villagers, and several knights on white horses gathered at the graveyard.

They inspected the area, questioned the townspeople, and searched for any clues that might reveal what had happened.

"Students, does anybody know what happened here? Anyone?" Marco asked, his gaze sweeping across the group.

Most of the students shook their heads, including Daniel and Bernard. A few admitted they had heard loud noises during the night but hadn’t paid them much attention.

Many of the villagers shared a similar story.

They had heard thunder rumbling in the distance and assumed a thunderstorm was approaching, so none of them thought much of it.

Queena, who stood behind the students, narrowed her eyes."It looks like someone fought that creature."

Marco gave a slight nod and surveyed the battlefield.

Pale trees stood split apart as though struck by lightning. Others were blackened and scorched by fire, while several had been sliced diagonally in half.

Broken boulders lay scattered across the ground, and a huge hole in the earth remained half-filled with water.

Although it was clear that more than one person had fought the creature, there was nothing at the scene that revealed who they were.

The workers carefully cut away pieces of the creature’s shell and removed several of its claws before handing them over to the knights as evidence.

"How could something like this happen in our town?"

"I’ve had enough of this town. We aren’t safe anymore."

"You’re right. There have even been rumors that someone destroyed the Pilgrim’s Barrier."

"Why? Why would anyone do that?"

Daniel listened to the villagers without saying a word, keeping his ears open.

As the investigation continued and the knights examined the area, three brown horses galloped into the graveyard before coming to a halt.

Three figures dressed in purple robes dismounted.

"Everyone, it’s not safe to remain here. Please leave before someone gets hurt," one of the robed women said, her voice gentle and soothing.

*Clap! Clap!*

"Please, it’s for your own safety. Leave this place to us. Thank you," another robed figure announced, his voice calm and authoritative.

The two wore purple robes trimmed with white sleeves, while the third remained silent.

Unlike the others, the woman with gold-trimmed sleeves — curvy and pear-shaped, brown hair, brown eyes, with a sharp V-shaped ass and relaxed titties, walked straight toward the centipede’s corpse without a word.

She slowly extended her hand.

From her palm, a purplish beam of light emerged, filled with countless tiny white particles that shimmered like stars.

The villagers instinctively stepped back to watch, though a few had already begun leaving.

Marco stood at the front. Behind him stood the students, and behind them was Queena, her eyes fixed on the woman near the corpse.

However, after examining the corpse for a moment, the woman straightened up and turned her gaze toward Marco.

She walked over to him, lowering the hood that concealed her face.

"Hey, Marco. What a surprise. I didn’t expect to see you here," she said with a warm smile.

Marco’s eyes widened in surprise as he recognized her. "Lolita...? How— I mean... it’s been a long time."

The two shook hands with friendly smiles.

"And you must be Queena?" Lolita asked, turning toward her.

Queena nodded with a polite smile. "Yes. It’s a pleasure to meet you."

As they exchanged greetings, Molex stepped forward.

"Master, who’s this beautiful lady?"

Lolita let out a soft laugh.

Marco chuckled. "Students, she’s an old friend of mine, Lolita. We first met decades ago when we formed a party together. She was the sixth member of our group and possesses the Divine element."

"It’s a pleasure to meet you all," Lolita said with a respectful bow.

"Status," Daniel whispered under his breath.

——————

Name: Lolita Rhunet

Age: 41

HP: 5500/5500

Mana: 10000/10000

Description: A renowned Divine-element shaman known for her unwavering sense of justice. She serves as an instructor, training Divine shamans at the Royal Academy of the Eagle Kingdom.

——————

As Daniel finished reading her status, he noticed Lolita’s gaze resting on him for a brief moment before she turned back to Marco.

Daniel frowned.

That look... was it just my imagination?

"Lady Lolita, the workers have found something," a purple-robed woman reported.

"Lady Lolita, it appears to be an artifact," the purple-robed man added.

All eyes turned toward the workers.

Lolita walked over, accepted the palm-sized red crystal from one of them, and examined it carefully.

’What? An artifact?’ Daniel thought, his eyes narrowing.

"Far," Daniel whispered, activating his eternal eye ability.

——————

Name: Mana Crystal

Type: Artifact

Rarity: Epic

Durability: 38%

Description: A crystal valued for its exceptional mana recovery. It allows the user to restore mana at any time and can replenish a depleted mana pool to full within a few moments.

However, interrupting the recovery process causes the crystal to crack, permanently reducing its durability.

Once its durability reaches 0%, the artifact shatters and becomes unusable.

——————

’A red Mana Crystal?’ Marco murmured as he stared at the artifact in surprise.

Lolita gave a slight nod, handed the crystal to one of the purple-robed figures for safekeeping, then turned back to Marco.

"Isn’t that a Mana Crystal?" Marco asked, his eyes still fixed on it.

Lolita nodded. "Yes."

"A red one? I’ve only ever seen white, green, blue Mana Crystals, and used many blue ones. But a red one... that must be incredibly rare," Queena said in amazement.

The young shamans exchanged glances. Some pretended not to care, some stared at the red crystal, their eyes filled with undisguised curiosity, while others listened intently to every word, trying to make sense of the conversation.

Daniel, however, understood exactly what they were talking about.

...

"Marco, how about we continue our duel?" Lolita asked with a playful smile.

Marco chuckled and shook his head. "Maybe another day. We’re leaving for the next town today."

"What? Oh, come on! I only need a few minutes. You said the same thing the last time we met," she complained with a small pout.

Just then, one of the workers from the training grounds came sprinting toward them. "Marco!" he called out. "The wagons are here."