Chapter 331: Old Acquaintances

After that, Axel left the girls to their own devices.

Instead, he visited the two dragons to "borrow" one of them, Bellachrona's help.

Of course, Fafnir was worried at first. Only after Axel said, "I'm not interested in your dragon girl, so don't worry. I won't steal her from you," did he quiet down.

Technically, Bellachrona was pretty for a dragon, but to Axel's eyes, she couldn't compare to Eve or Ria at all, much less to Fenrir. Thus, Axel truly didn't feel attracted to her. Not one bit.

After arriving back at the laboratory, with Bellachrona shifted into her human form to fit inside, he explained the plan to her.

Basically, all she needed to do was cast her magic over the entire laboratory. To let Axel, Navi, and Mimir work in accelerated time, speeding up their reverse engineering process.

Bellachrona literally didn't need to be present there at all.

She could return to her post as soon as she finished casting the spell, only coming back to reinforce it from time to time!

"Alright, let's start!"

And with his signal, Axel and the two spirits began their long-term project.

A year inside that time-accelerated space. A week in real time. They would be out of contact for that long. However, he'd already told the girls as much, and they didn't seem to have a problem with it either.

It was just a week, after all.

On the other hand, the girls were busy.

They had to hand over their duties to their protégés, after all. Especially Beatrix's job, since the entire kingdom would grind to a halt if nobody did it in her place.

Basically, she let her juniors handle everything except the things that needed the system's help. They would be out for just a week, after all, so it shouldn't be much of a problem.

"Don't worry, you girls should do fine."

She whispered, patting the shoulders of her students.

"When I return, and if you did a great job managing things in my place, I'd even reward you girls with anything you want."

Of course, since the girls were among the original members of the Valkyrie Knight Order, their trust in Beatrix ran deep.

"Please leave it to us!"

"We'll protect Axevaria Kingdom in everyone's place!"

"Please be at ease and have a safe trip, Lady Beatrix!"

Hearing their words, Beatrix smiled appreciatively.

"Then, I'll leave everything to you girls with peace of mind." She said, then smiled and walked away.

Arianne's handoff was even simpler.

She simply told her second in command, Karen, to continue their usual daily routine until her return. With Angela helping her sister Karen out, there was no way they would run into trouble or make mistakes.

Maria and Cherry also finished handing off their jobs to the other maids. But with the castle practically empty, there wasn't much for them to do other than cleaning.

Eve, Teruria, and Ethernina had no duties to speak of whatsoever, so they had nothing to do but wait, along with Fenrir.

Only after two hours did everyone gather at the teleportation array, geared up and ready to set off.

Arianne, Beatrix, Eve, Maria, Cherry.

Ria and Nina.

And Fenrir.

Apart from them, Queen Sharika tagged along as well, along with a handful of her guards.

The group entered the Interdimensional Teleporter, with Beatrix keying in their destination with a few quick button presses.

The next moment, a bright flash consumed all of them.

Then, when they opened their eyes, they were already in the AZF Dimension.

Right—this was the place the girls had all wanted to visit, the frontline dimension of Axevaria's war against the demon invasion!

After arriving, they wasted no time heading to the rooftop to check the situation.

As expected, the cockroach-like demons still came in droves, filling the entire ground beyond the walls.

"So this is where we'll be training?" Eve whispered in wonder. "I thought you'd take us somewhere more... special."

At the end of her question, she turned to the one who'd suggested this outing in the first place—Fenrir.

"This place is good enough." Fenrir muttered. "And at the same time, it's perfect. Since the one we'll be asking for help is also a resident of this place."

"Asking for help...? Resident...?"

Everyone felt question marks starting to float over their heads.

After all, Fenrir had only told them they'd be training to get stronger. As to how, she'd never said. But now they finally had a hint, and after a bit of thinking, realized who Fenrir meant.

All eyes turned to the only "foreigner" in their ranks.

Feeling every gaze land on her, Queen Sharika felt pressured instantly.

"M-Me?" She asked. "But I... I don't know how to make anyone stronger..."

"No, not you—" Fenrir answered, shaking her head.

Then, she walked closer, staring straight into her eyes behind the veil. "But the one watching the mortal world through your eyes."

"You mean...?!"

After realization hit, Fenrir nodded, confirming the girls' guesses.

"Exactly." She nodded. "The Egyptian Sun Goddess, and the one who helped us defeat Divron yesterday."

Fenrir took a deep breath, then whispered her name.

"Sekhmet."

Queen Sharika's eyes opened wide for a moment. Then, the next instant, a powerful wave surged from her body, sending everyone stumbling back a step or two. The air grew heavier, nearly driving the others to their knees, forcing them to grit their teeth just to stay standing.

Fenrir didn't falter, staring right into Sharika's face the entire time.

She didn't even blink.

[What a rude welcome, you brazen mutt...]

Then, Sharika's voice—but not hers—echoed loudly through the air.

A voice that exuded command, a power that would make anyone listen without question.

But Fenrir's response was a wild grin.

"And what a fancy way of putting us under a debt of favor, you sunburnt bitch." She snapped back. "Can't even come here in your real form, can you? How far you've fallen."

[Hah! You're one to talk! Now, you're not even at the ranks of a god anymore. Shouldn't your attitude toward me be a bit more respectful~?]

Hearing the two's banter, it didn't take half a brain to figure out something—that Fenrir, and the goddess borrowing Sharika's body, knew each other.

But it was no surprise either.

After all, Fenrir was once a Goddess herself. With power unrivaled in the universe, capable of devouring even the top seat of the gods with ease. So powerful, in fact, that all the gods had colluded to chain her down, leaving her in her current state.

"Stop with the chitchat."

But despite their reunion after over a thousand years, Fenrir hadn't forgotten that Sharika was bearing the burden of Sekhmet's existence.

If they wasted time, she might end up weakened, if not dead.

"I think you know why I came here and called for you, right?" Fenrir started.

[...As brash as ever, huh?]

Sekhmet sounded exasperated, then scanned everyone's faces.

A thin smile crossed her lips as she did.

[But well... I suppose I should praise them for remaining standing in my presence. So? Do you really want all of them to take on the challenge?]

"Of course."

Fenrir nodded, speaking cryptically.

"This is the only way we can ensure everyone remains safe. That we all could stay together, without losing anyone! That we could help fight with Master, and not be just a burden!"

[I see...]

Sekhmet didn't bother with Fenrir's use of the word "Master," nor did she waste time either.

She could feel that Sharika's body was reaching its limits, after all. Any longer, and she might kill her last priestess by mistake!

[Well then, everyone. Let me welcome you to the test.]

Clap!

When she clapped her hands, the surrounding scenery began to warp, as if everyone had suddenly grown dizzy.

The world twisted and turned, and nothing but Sekhmet's voice echoed clearly.

[Challengers. Welcome to the First step to Ascension.]