Goddess Kaleidoscope

Because of the primordial fire within him, Rudd is immune to all non-buff divine spells and artifact attacks, but physical damage still applies. The rainbow giant before him seems to be the same, also able to ignore divine spell attacks, but deliberately dodged Alvit's chainsaw sword.

Upon realizing the nature of the opponent's ability, Lud immediately devised a countermeasure.

"Shanis, transform!"

"coming!"

Upon hearing Lud's call, Shanis, who had previously served as a reserve to cover Trin's retreat, rushed back and transformed into her "true form" without a word—a tentacle monster even larger than the Rainbow Giant.

This body is the appearance that the old astrologer gave to Shanis, and it is also the culmination of that guy's twisted XP. At first glance, it makes people lose a lot of SAN value, but it is very suitable for use as a combat form. It is very useful for dealing with large enemies like the Rainbow Giant.

Thus, the style of this alley ambush battle instantly transformed into a monster battle with a tokusatsu (special effects) feel.

Shanis's sudden revelation of her true form startled the old skinner. He had no idea where this monster, who seemed even more like a villain than himself, had come from. Several huge, sticky tentacles quickly wrapped around him tightly.

With the situation escalating to this point, the battle between the two behemoths in the city could not possibly have been kept quiet, and the commotion nearly woke everyone up. When the townspeople crawled out of bed and opened their windows to check the situation outside, they were all terrified by what they saw.

"A monster!!!"

No one knew where these two huge creatures came from; they suddenly appeared in the center of town without any warning. After a brief moment of shock, the residents, regaining their senses, began to flee for their lives.

Especially in the neighborhoods near the battlefield, people didn't care about the freezing cold of the winter night; they hurriedly grabbed their valuables and ran out with their families, fearing they would be caught in the crossfire of the battle between the two giant monsters.

To the uninformed public, the two monsters fighting were clearly one good and one evil. The Rainbow Giant, due to its dazzling appearance, was prejudicially identified as a "good guy" by many. Although it was being whipped around like a spinning top by the tentacle monster, its disheveled state clearly showed that it was trying to protect the people from the tentacle monster's harm (just kidding).

The old skinner, who was being beaten, had no idea that the onlookers would mistake him for a good guy. The truth was, he realized he couldn't defeat the tentacle monster; its brute strength was astonishing, and every time he tried to run away, the monster forcefully pulled him back with its tentacles.

At this moment, a little boy who had accidentally gotten separated from his family ran in the opposite direction and rushed into the center of the battlefield, where he ran headfirst into the rainbow giant who was trying to escape. The little boy was so frightened that he covered his head and crouched down to defend himself.

However, after squatting on the ground for a while, the little boy found that he was unharmed. So he looked up tremblingly and found that the Rainbow Giant was standing in front of him, using his body to shield him from the terrifying tentacle monster.

The little boy was both moved and excited by what he saw. For a moment, he forgot that he was in danger and jumped up to shout at the rainbow giant.

"Go for it, Giant!"

"Get out of here! Get out of here!"

"Ah! So it's the giant sister?"

Mistaking Shanis's voice for the Rainbow Giant's, the little boy thought the giant was female and had a rather pleasant voice. But this reminded him that he had gone to the wrong place in his confusion, so he shouted "Thank you!" to the giant and ran away without looking back.

Only after the other party had run far away, and Shanis, who had been using her tentacles to hold the giant back to prevent him from crushing the little boy, suddenly exerted her strength and swung the old skinner over her shoulder, slamming him heavily to the ground.

The old skinner, who had been getting beaten up the whole time, was knocked unconscious by this fall. He thought he was invincible after transforming, but he didn't expect that he would run into this tentacle monster, who was his natural enemy, in less than five minutes.

His divine-level secret armor's most powerful ability is that it can absorb the power of magic and even divine arts, making him immune to all non-physical attacks. At the same time, he also has considerable close-combat skills, making him almost invincible against ordinary opponents.

But as luck would have it, he ran into the unconventional Shanis. The tentacle monster's main body was a pure physical attack, and its strength gave it an overwhelming advantage over him. Several large tentacles whipped him around until he was completely disoriented.

Realizing that he was about to die if things continued like this, the old skinner lay on the ground and waved his hands repeatedly at Shanis, shouting in a tone that was clearly pleading for mercy.

"Wait, wait a minute! I'm not a good person either..."

"Who told you I'm a bad guy?!"

Almost with intense rage, Shanis slapped the Rainbow Giant across the face, the sound deafening and creating a sonic boom. The giant, struck, immediately buried itself in the ground, motionless, its size shrinking rapidly until it returned to its normal size.

Shanis then transformed back into human form and came to the old skinner. There was a dark, unremarkable "eggshell" in the pit. Through the opening at the top, she could see a pool of viscous substance wriggling inside.

End of this chapter

Seeing that the battle was over, Ludwig returned to the battlefield, while the three-man Heroic Spirit squad stood guard on the perimeter to prevent any local civilians from getting close.

The two stood by the pit, looking at the strange thing in front of them, which looked like the opening of a raw egg, with a puzzled expression. Lude picked up a stick he had found nearby and was about to stick it in to stir it up when the viscous substance suddenly spoke in a human voice, shouting in a terrified tone.

No, no!

"Vernon the Skinner?"

"Yes, it's me! I surrender!"

Under Ludwig and Shanes' astonished gaze, a human face emerged from the viscous substance inside the eggshell, extending two sticky, mimicking hands to give them a "French military salute."

Looking at Vernon in this form, Ludwig suddenly knew what he was.

"A shapeshifter, a rare species!"

The so-called shapeshifters are extremely rare and unusual creatures, which can be considered as a subhuman race, and they possess a considerable level of intelligence.

This creature's true form resembles a giant slime, capable of freely changing its shape to mimic other creatures of its kind. Nowadays, it typically transforms into a human and lives hidden within human society.

It was an unexpected discovery that Vernon the Skinner, one of the six elders of the Black Hand Brotherhood, was actually a shapeshifter.

At Ludd's command, Vernon, now in his true form, crawled out of the black eggshell, then wriggled back into the shape of an old man, prostrating himself before Ludd and begging for his life, completely devoid of his previous arrogance.

Seeing that Vernon had surrendered, and considering that he was the most senior elder in the Brotherhood of the Black Hand, Rudd thought that this guy must know more inside information, so he would take him back for a thorough interrogation.

But at that moment, Lude suddenly sensed a murderous aura. Almost instinctively, he raised his hand to cast a holy light barrier around himself. Then he saw a black poison needle hovering less than five centimeters from his face, which was blocked by the barrier.

Lude was immediately struck by a cold sweat. If his reaction had been even 0.01 seconds slower, he might already be dead.

Seeing that his sneak attack had failed, Vernon, who had feigned surrender, tried to escape, but Ludwig caught him by grabbing the top of his head with a swift hand. Before Vernon could return to his original form, a white, blazing holy flame suddenly appeared in his palm, burning Vernon and causing him to scream in agony.

"Hmph hmph ahhhhhh!!!"

Without the protection of his armor, Vernon was no match for the divine magic and was instantly reduced to ashes by Rudd's holy fire. Vernon's feigned surrender made Rudd realize that even if he were to return, he probably wouldn't tell the truth.

During the burning process of the sacred fire, Lude also discovered that there were traces of a divine contract signed in this guy's soul, and the object was probably that fake.

After Vernon died, the black eggshell left at the scene immediately changed, shrinking again until it became a small silver ball with a smooth surface and no patterns.

When Shanis reached out to pick it up, the moment her fingertips touched the surface of the sphere, it clung to her hand as if it were alive.

Just like a rare piece of equipment dropped after defeating a BOSS, the silver ball recognized its owner the moment Shanis touched it. It could freely transform into any form according to the user's will. Shanis immediately fell in love with this little toy and played with it to her heart's content.

"Master, this thing doesn't seem to be a divine artifact."

“I don’t know either. Maybe we can ask Kumirad when she comes back. Let’s go, we should go back too.”

After a quick cleanup of the battlefield, Lud and his group returned to Pinetown before dawn. The operation was neither a success nor a failure. Although they hadn't managed to spread the false information, they had unexpectedly killed a Brotherhood elder; his death would certainly cause quite a stir.

And indeed, as Ludwig had predicted, less than a week later, Hume, far away in Flamewood City, sent a message saying that news of Elder Vernon's death had been transmitted back to Flamewood City through the Brotherhood's intelligence network, and that it had been changed to "the necromancer killed the skinner." Members of Vernon's faction had declared that they would tear Dick, this "great traitor," to pieces.

Upon learning of this situation, Lude felt it was a good opportunity. He should take advantage of this momentum, seize the chance to launch a preemptive strike, and go directly to Yanmu City to completely stir up trouble.

Trin, however, was somewhat uneasy about this, worried that if he returned as a necromancer at this time, he would definitely become the target of everyone's attacks and be relentlessly hunted down by various factions within the Brotherhood.

“Master, everyone in Yanmu City thinks it was me… uh, the necromancer who killed Vernon. If I go back at this critical moment, wouldn't that be like walking into a trap?”

"No, quite the opposite. First, you brought back the artifact of the God of Thieves, which proves you have made a contribution. Second, you killed Vernon, which proves you have the strength. With both merit and strength, who would dare to touch you? Don't be afraid. Just tell the truth. It was that shameless old man Vernon who lacked martial ethics and tried to cheat and rob you, a junior, to take the artifact you had worked so hard to find. You killed him purely in self-defense."

"W-Can anyone believe this?"

"Why don't you believe me? Do you think Vernon can come out and confront you? I deliberately burned him to ashes with holy flames; he can't even be a ghost!"

Under Lude's persuasion, Terin gradually felt more confident. Lude decided to wait a few more days until the news spread further, and then set off for Yanmu City to meet this fake Thief God.

Although Aina hasn't broken through to the fourth tier yet, she's already at the peak of the third tier. Meanwhile, Shanis and the three sisters have also successfully advanced to the third tier, and the Goddess of the Hearth, Marigish, is steadily recovering. Add to that Hydra and the already formidable Heroic Spirit squad, and they're ready to go.

Over the next few days, Lude secretly began preparations for the "expedition." This time, he planned to concentrate all his elite forces, pretend to have something to do and go deep into the Void Forest to investigate, then circle around to the south and personally lead a team to Yanmu City.

Rudd had long heard of this bustling, sinful city, but had never seen it with his own eyes. This trip would be a good opportunity to broaden his horizons.

Upon learning that her master was taking her three senior sisters on a long trip and might not return for several months, Romian was quite worried, but at the same time, she had faith in her master's abilities. As for Olivia, upon hearing that she wouldn't see Lude for a long time, she almost burst out laughing.

Seeing this, Lu De patted her shoulder and said with a forced smile.

"Olifia, your master will be gone for several months. Will you feel lonely?"

"Pfft... Yes, yes, I really miss my master."

"Well, so I'm worried you'll be lonely with nothing to do, so I've prepared enough homework for you to do for three months. During my absence, your senior sister Luo Mi'an will supervise your studies, so you have to be a good student and finish it all!"

End of this chapter

After making arrangements back home, Lude boarded a giant dragon and flew north early the next morning, watched by many people in the town. He then circled around a bit, picked up Terin and the Heroic Spirit Squad, and turned back south.

The three sisters will remain in their hometown for the time being, continuing production and awaiting further instructions from Lud.

Thanks to the dragon's speed, the group set off in the morning and arrived at their destination by dusk. Nidhogg dropped them off in a mountain hollow about ten miles from Flamewood City, then flew back alone. Although the two sides had a close relationship, precisely because of this, Ludd was extremely careful when asking Nidhogg and Tawawa for help, and would not ask the couple to fight for him unless absolutely necessary.

After landing, the group changed into pre-prepared civilian clothes and entered the city on foot in batches, posing as travelers and mercenaries. This was the first time Lude had witnessed a truly large city in this world since his transmigration, and the towering and majestic walls of Flamewood City left a very deep impression on him.

The group passed through the city gate smoothly without encountering any deliberate obstruction. Although Yanmu City was rife with corruption and local officials from top to bottom were colluding with criminal gangs, these thugs clearly followed the "law of evil" route. At least on the surface, things were well-organized, the city appeared prosperous, and it even had the rather artistic reputation of being the "Opera Capital."

However, Ludwig knew that beneath the city's prosperous facade lay an extremely sordid side. You could find any illegal activity here, whether you knew it or not.

It is precisely these illicit incomes, beyond the imagination of ordinary people, that have forged the seemingly glamorous facade of Yanmu City.

After entering the city, Ludd quickly found the hideout where Hume and Fallen Leaf were staying, according to the address obtained during their regular communications. It was a rather dilapidated tavern in the western part of the city's working class, with the words "Rat Tail Tavern" faintly discernible on its crooked sign.

Looking around, Lude gestured for the heroic spirits disguised as adventurers to keep watch near the entrance, while he led Shanis inside to check the situation.

The two entered the tavern. In the lobby with only six tables, there wasn't a single customer in sight. Only an old woman who seemed to be the bartender sat behind the counter. When she saw Lud and Shanis enter, she glanced up at them and spoke in a clearly impatient tone.

"If you want a drink, turn left when you go out."

"Auntie, I didn't come here to drink."

"Turn right at the prostitute's place."

"...Hey, can you stop playing around? I didn't disguise myself."

"cut!"

Realizing she had been exposed, the bartender visibly began to regain her youth, transforming into Hume in the blink of an eye.

"You came very quickly!"

Where are the fallen leaves?

"I've gone out on some errands and won't be back for a while. Call all the people you brought in. There are plenty of empty rooms in the back of this bar; it shouldn't be a problem to accommodate twenty people."

Soon, the others who had been keeping watch outside were called in. Hume then transformed back into the old lady, limping to the door, closing it, and hanging up the "Closed" sign.

Lude was curious about the identity she was using to infiltrate the city. Hume told him that the original proprietress of the tavern, the old woman she was now impersonating, had once helped her. She had lived in Flamewood City for many years, and the tavern had been barely surviving. So Hume gave her some money and had Fallen Leaf secretly escort her out of the city to the countryside, while he himself disguised himself as her and remained in the city.

“You must be careful when you’re in the city. This is the headquarters of the Black Hand Brotherhood. They have a lot of informants in the city, especially those little beggars. Nine out of ten of them work for the ‘Beggar King,’ so they can easily be targeted by them.”

"The Beggar King?"