Chapter 19: The Unveiling of Angelina’s Ordeal

It seemed that following the carriage’s path offered the quickest exit from the forest. With everyone pressing on at a brisk pace, opportunities for conversation naturally dwindled.

Yet, even this couldn’t silence the red-haired Brook. While he rarely offered opinions when occupied, his chatter became boundless in his downtime. He would either regale everyone with jokes or engage Amos in discussions about martial arts. As someone not prone to excessive talking, I couldn’t help but feel that without his lively presence, the entire party would likely have fallen into a far more profound silence.

Now on our second day of travel, Angelina and I had diligently maintained our distance throughout. The previous night, unable to secure proper lodging, we had been forced to camp within the forest. Exhaustion from the journey had swiftly claimed everyone, sending them to sleep early, leaving no opportunity for us to exchange more than a few words.

“Mu Feng… no, Flora, can we reconcile?” Angelina, at some point I hadn’t noticed, seized a moment to dart to my side. With a pleading expression, she softly suggested in Chinese.

“Alright.” Hearing her, I nodded softly in agreement.

In truth, so much time had passed that my anger had long since cooled. Angelina was, after all, a vital companion who had crossed into this world with me, and she had often lent me her aid in the past. Maintaining a cold war between us would benefit neither of us. Moreover, I bore a share of the responsibility in the entire affair; it wasn’t solely Angelina’s fault. Had I not been so utterly infatuated at the time, I wouldn’t have been so easily lured into bed. A sigh escaped me as the memory surfaced, making my face flush with an uncomfortable warmth.

“So, could you tell me what exactly you experienced on your end during this transmigration?”

To claim I wasn’t curious would be a blatant lie. As fellow transmigrators, Angelina’s experiences and power level dwarfed mine. She had, like a true ‘Dragon Among Men’ protagonist, received divine artifact blessings and slain countless monsters. I, on the other hand, had barely encountered a single animal along the way, wandering for half a day before stumbling upon Tiffany and her group. I possessed no particularly formidable powers myself; my journey felt utterly unremarkable, devoid of any highlights, which was profoundly disheartening.

“Alright,” Angelina replied after a moment of contemplation. “In truth, even if you hadn’t asked, I would have, for there are many things I still don’t understand myself…”

“It all began when I was singing in a KTV private room…”

As she recalled that surreal night, her eyes began to glaze over, lost in memory.

“Suddenly, my vision blurred, and my entire body felt as if it were floating in the air, surrounded by nothing but a pure white expanse.”

I nodded, realizing her account of the situation closely mirrored my own experience.

“Gradually, I began to hear many strange sounds, like another language, which I couldn’t comprehend at first. I saw only a group of armored angels battling monsters, while I, along with many naked angels, floated together in the air. It wasn’t until a sudden influx of knowledge inexplicably poured into my mind that I abruptly understood everything, including the method for creating the Air-Condensing Blade…”

“Wait, everything before that matches my experience, but are you certain you received the method for crafting the Air-Condensing Blade at that very moment?”

I abruptly interrupted her narrative, my face a mask of envy, jealousy, and resentment, questioning her disbelief. Why had I not received any weapon crafting methods while she had? Could it truly be the power of pay-to-win?

“Yes, it truly must have been then, though I only realized it much later,” Angelina affirmed with absolute certainty.

“And did you witness everything that transpired at the time?”

At the time, I had only managed to pry my eyes open a fraction, leaving me with a limited understanding of my surroundings. Her situation, however, seemed far clearer than mine; she had even been able to discern that the voices emanating from around them belonged to angels.

Angelina nodded, then continued her account.

“Then, a massive meteor plummeted, and the knowledge infusion abruptly ceased. I witnessed many naked angels being struck, plunging the scene into utter chaos. Some of the armored angels who survived flew over, clutching their naked comrades, and began to retreat. I, too, was caught up in their midst, carried along with them…”

As she spoke, a somber expression involuntarily clouded her face.

“However, the enemy’s pursuit did not relent. The vast majority of angels, along with the companions they carried, were shot down by dragon-like beasts soaring through the air. My situation was no exception; the six-winged angel protecting me was swiftly struck by a beam of light, disintegrating into a shimmering dust that scattered into the sky, leaving only her armor to fall to the ground. As I plummeted, those monsters continued their relentless chase. It was only at that critical moment that I instinctively felt the wings on my back begin to move on their own, and finally, I managed to halt my descent in mid-air using my own power. By then, at least a dozen monsters encircled me, while on the ground, a pack of minotaur-like creatures, incapable of flight, watched with hungry, predatory gazes.”

“What happened then?” I asked, unable to stop myself. This scenario was essentially a death trap, despite my foreknowledge that Angelina would ultimately be unharmed.

“Then something peculiar occurred,” Angelina said, her expression still tinged with confusion, as if she herself couldn’t fully grasp what had transpired. “Far ahead of me, an intensely dazzling blue light suddenly erupted, illuminating the entire forest and sky, almost melting them into a single expanse of azure. I then watched as many of the monsters surrounding me were drawn towards it, significantly thinning the enemy ranks in an instant.”

“Even though my strength and stamina had suddenly increased dramatically, I was still no match for the remaining monsters. My hand-to-hand combat skills could only barely keep me afloat. In truth, I found them utterly useless, as my entire body felt profoundly uncoordinated. Due to this, I nearly got caught by the tail of a manticore-like beast several times, saved only by my aerial agility and quick dodging.”

She seemed to still be relishing her narrow escape from that perilous situation.

“Just as I felt I could no longer endure, and desperately needed a weapon to defend myself, the method for crafting the Air-Condensing Blade suddenly surged into my mind. It felt as if it had simply bloomed there, naturally, requiring little conscious understanding for me to know exactly how to proceed.”

“…And soon after, the Air-Condensing Blade was in my hand. From that moment, the tide of battle turned. The monsters that dared to attack me were sliced into multiple pieces as easily as cutting a watermelon. To vent my frustration, I even chased a group of Cyclops for a long time; they scattered like a headless swarm. The monsters that had gone to investigate the blue light eruption never returned, and eventually, it seemed I was the only one left in the forest.”

“Only then did I have the leisure to assess my own condition, discovering that I had transformed into an angel, and furthermore, into a woman…”

A shadow of sorrow began to dim Angelina’s expression.

“But I was helpless, left only to aimlessly hunt down stray demonic beasts to vent my frustration. I didn’t even know if it was due to slaying too many, but another pair of wings suddenly sprouted on my back, right where the original ones were. Eventually, I thought to return to the place where it all began, and that’s when I encountered all of you…”

After she finished speaking, I remained silently contemplative for a moment before reaching out to gently pat her shoulder.

I deeply empathized with her subsequent ordeal. The lonely, terrifying sensation of traversing that vast, boundless forest alone was something I could still vividly recall. Was this, then, how angels ascended in rank? I wondered if I, too, could ascend in the future, but the thought of needing to slay so many monsters instantly eroded my confidence.

“So, did you just pick up this armor?” I asked, surveying her attire. When I first saw her, I hadn’t given it much thought, unaware of her identity, merely finding her appearance striking. Now, however, it seemed she, like me, must have started without clothes.

She nodded.

“This was left behind by the angel who was carrying me. I found it later in the forest.”

A clearer understanding dawned on me; from a certain perspective, that angel had indeed saved her life.

“Actually, Tiffany and the others gave me my clothes later. So, if we were both among those naked angels back then, it’s pretty much confirmed that the battle was connected to our transmigration. And perhaps even more…”

A sudden conjecture struck me, one that I found momentarily difficult to accept.

“Could it be that…”

Angelina, too, had reached the same conclusion, and her face turned incredibly grim.

“The number of naked angels, including us, was roughly twenty—close to the number of people who attended the class reunion…”

“Even more, everyone in our KTV private room might have transmigrated,” I stated, though I truly wished I didn’t have to voice such a shocking hypothesis. For it implied that the vast majority of them were likely already dead.

“How can this be?!” Angelina cried out, clenching her fists in sorrow and indignation, her wings even manifesting from her back, unable to be concealed by her surging emotions.

Yet, for a moment, she didn’t know whom to blame. She hadn’t been the one to initiate the class reunion, and even if she had, it wouldn’t be fair to fault her, as no one could have foreseen such a cataclysmic event. For now, it seemed the only scapegoats available, until the full truth and the masterminds behind it were uncovered, were the demonic beasts—but she had already slain more than enough of them…

“We can only hope that other classmates managed to escape,” I offered, my voice laced with resignation.

I could only offer her comfort amidst my own helplessness. Yet, I too found myself unable to fully calm down, for among those classmates was a figure I could never forget, and I desperately hoped they were safe…

Why exactly did we transmigrate?

If our personal experiences suggested we were summoned, then who were the masterminds behind it?

If it was the armored angels who summoned us, then what purpose did our summoning serve them?

Were they our allies or our enemies?

Far too many questions remained unanswered, and I felt as though every turn was fraught with mystery. Of course, if I could ponder these things, Angelina must have considered them too, yet neither of us could provide any answers.

“You two are lagging too far behind! Hurry up!”

Tiffany’s voice drifted from ahead, urging us forward. Our conversation had, without our realizing it, caused us to fall a considerable distance behind the others.

“Coming!”

I called out in response. Angelina fluttered her wings a few times before concealing them once more, then quickened her pace to catch up with me.