That protagonist is trash; I could do better!

Ereshkigal greeted Hall when he saw him and sat down next to him: "Hall, did you do something to upset her?"

"I suppose so." Hall nodded and briefly explained what had happened.

Ereshkigal said worriedly, "Could she be that angry? She should be more worried about you than herself. Quetzalcoatl's target is very likely you. If you rashly accept Quetzalcoatl's invitation to go to her territory, she cannot guarantee that you will not encounter danger."

Hall nodded slightly and said, "I know, but even if we refuse Quetzalcoatl's invitation, he will still come looking for us."

“If that’s the case, there’s no need to worry. I can’t attack Quetzalcoatl because of the contract with the Three Goddesses, but Ishtar is the city god of Uruk. Plus, there’s Ishtar’s shrine and priests there, and with the blessing of her power, I should be able to barely hold her off.”

She's such a worrier; these two sisters are exactly the same.

Hall felt a warmth in his heart, but also a bit amused. He turned to look at Ereshkigal's pretty and dignified profile. "You don't seem too worried."

Ereshkigal smiled and said, "It's not that I'm not worried, but rather that I have confidence in you. You've already fought with Quetzalcoatl, so you should know her strength. Under such circumstances, you still accepted the invitation, so I can only assume that you've made ample preparations. Don't expect me to help you, though. I'm a member of the Three Goddesses Alliance, and I can't directly attack the Three Goddesses."

"I know."

"I don't know much about her. I know you probably already know what I know about her. All I can do is wait for you to come back. Don't lose to her. Don't forget that your soul belongs to me."

"I haven't lost yet, have I?"

"Humans simply cannot pass the Dark Soul Trial. Those two of Gilgamesh's subordinates have already proven that. Hmph, you've dug a huge hole for yourself."

Hall chuckled: "I've always believed that humans aren't as fragile as you think."

Ereshkigal pondered before replying, "Hmm... I can understand your thoughts now. Humanity didn't collapse in the face of the Three Goddess Alliance; they fought tenaciously and lived optimistically. That's the best proof... What's wrong?"

Something's not right.

Hall's brow suddenly twitched, and he stood up from the grass, hurrying towards the camp.

"I sensed a strange aura."

Hall's magic eyes glowed; the spell he had just used to sense auras had detected a magical reaction for a moment, just like an Assassin with a high-level aura concealment skill suddenly revealing their presence.

The moment an Assassin reveals their presence is often the moment their target dies.

Strange, there shouldn't be another Assassin-class Servant besides Fuuma Kotaro in the Seventh Singularity.

Back at the camp, Hall saw that one of the tents had been torn open and there was no one inside.

If Hall remembers correctly, this tent belongs to Anna.

Oops!

Hall felt a slight unease. His magic eye displayed a cross-shaped star pupil, and his "past vision" allowed him to see what had happened here.

A dark figure lurked in the shadows, stealthily approaching and opening Anna's tent flap. In the instant Anna became alert, the figure raised the beast claw spear in its hand and knocked Anna unconscious.

Such a unique design can only belong to one deity, a leopard-man, a lower-level deity.

The whole thing took no more than ten seconds.

Hall's Eye looked around and continued to use his past vision to find the leopard woman's trail. He saw her lead Anna into the dense forest, but his past vision stopped working the moment they stepped into the forest.

"It's not a concealment of aura, it's a more advanced skill or artifact for hiding one's aura. Even the Mystic Eyes can't track it. Does the Leopard Man have such an ability?" Hall was slightly surprised. The elemental spirit familiar was already searching the dense forest, but had found nothing.

Hall himself is also a gamer, and like most gamers, his attention is mainly focused on the rarity of characters and their card art.

The leopard-woman is only a three-star character, and she doesn't appeal to Hall's tastes, so there's a lack of basic understanding of this character. All that's known is that with a god-level spirit origin, her strength should be among the top-tier or even TOP-tier Servants, at least capable of dealing with Amakusa Shiro Tokisada and Fuuma Kotaro at the same time.

Before Fujimaru Ritsuka arrived at the Seventh Singularity, King Gilgamesh had sent these two Servants to explore the Southern Forest, and they subsequently disappeared.

Hall didn't recall the leopard man ever demonstrating stealth abilities in the game.

"No, it's perfectly normal for leopard people to have similar abilities. As a pillar of the gods in Central and South America, they possess primitive animal worship attributes."

"In mythology, the leopard man is a hybrid of a leopard and a human."

"Jaguars are nocturnal animals."

Even without relying on game memories, one can deduce relevant information based on a basic understanding of mythological civilizations.

Just as Hall had suspected, the leopard-men of the dense forest possessed Noble Phantasm correction.

Jaguar in the Black (The Dark Forest Where the Leopard Lurks)

Grade: B

Type: Barrier Noble Phantasm

Range: 0-20

Maximum catch: 20 people

The leopard lurks in the dark forest, becoming one with the darkness itself, waiting for its prey, and then transforms into the jaws of death to strike.

A Noble Phantasm that can only be used at night, it allows the leopard to briefly gain an attack bonus and a special [Presence Concealment] ability by taking advantage of its nocturnal nature.

Chapter 430 Ur

After Anna was captured, Hall wasn't in a hurry. Rather, he didn't know how to find the leopard man in the dense forest, so there was no point in being anxious.

Why did the leopard man kidnap Anna?

After thinking it over, Hall could only conclude that Anna was the weakest among the group.

Hall and Ereshkigal were together, and each of them alone possessed the strength to defeat the leopard man.

Merlin, a half-human and half-sleep demon, is undoubtedly a Grand-ranked individual when it comes to survival skills. Although his Spirit Origin strength isn't particularly high, it's still much better than Anna's.

Anna herself is not particularly strong, and without a Master to provide her with magical energy, her Spirit Origin reaction is weak. Her true strength is not third-rate, but it is not impressive either.

The most important thing is the leopard woman's motive. Although she is a lively character, she probably wouldn't do something so dangerous without Quetzalcoatl's authorization.

Quetzalcoatl must know Anna's true identity, and killing Anna would make it impossible for humanity to face the fact that Gorgon is a pillar goddess.

Quetzalcoatl is a joyful being who will temper and embrace humanity, but will never extinguish the last glimmer of hope for mankind.

And because of Anna's importance, regardless of whether they know her true identity, humanity must take her back.

Hall woke Merlin and told him that Anna had been captured. "Quickly use your invincible clairvoyance to see how Anna is doing now."

"Anna has been captured?" Merlin pondered, stroking his chin, then calmly shook his head: "The clairvoyance is too much of a burden for me right now. Besides, using the clairvoyance to spy on the goddess would definitely result in severe retaliation."

It's as if you've actually done it...

Considering Merlin's background as a voyeur, he might actually have done something like that.

Hall looked at the dense forest shrouded in night, his voice low: "We were a little careless. The magical barrier protecting the camp can only deal with ordinary magical beasts."

Regardless, Hall was partly to blame for Anna's abduction.

Merlin shrugged: "Rather than being careless, it's more accurate to say that the other side took completely unexpected actions. Are they trying to cut off our retreat? Their enthusiasm is almost annoying."

"What should we do?" Ereshkigal stared at the two of them, unable to join their conversation.

Merlin solemnly replied, "I have a method, and the only method."

"..."

Ereshkigal listened intently, holding his breath.

Merlin stretched and said loudly, "Go to sleep. Let's replenish our magic first. We'll find out what the Forest Goddess wants to do when we enter the Forest District tomorrow."

"What's this!"

Ereshkigal's face darkened: "She really is as unreliable as she said... Hall, what are you planning to do?"

Hall glanced at Merlin beside him: "Merlin may be unreliable, but his direct approach is indeed simpler and more effective."

Merlin smiled smugly: "Isn't that right?"

······

The following day, Hall and his two companions entered the dense forest area, and with the help of the map and magic, they managed not to get lost.

However, an enemy appeared that was both unexpected and yet expected.

Leopard Man.

A group of leopard-men.

It's not a deity, but rather a familiar-like being that retains animalistic features while also learning to use human armor and weapons.

Hall observed their spirit origins with great interest using his magic eye. In terms of strength, they were probably at the level of magical beasts, and perhaps even higher due to the field's advantage.

They dared not approach Hall and his party at all. Although they were the followers of the gods, they could still sense the terrifying divinity emanating from Ishtar.

The leopard warriors hid in the bushes, observing Hall and his group, following them without taking the initiative to attack.

On the contrary, Ishtar couldn't stand it anymore.

"How long are you going to follow me, you beasts?!"

Sitting atop Anna, the Skybow Horse, Ishtar muttered to herself in frustration. If it weren't for the fact that Anna had been captured, she would have blasted these leopard warriors to smithereens in an instant.

Suppressing her anger, Ishtar asked Hall, "Don't you feel uncomfortable?"

Merlin chuckled as he walked, "Why would I feel uncomfortable? Doesn't this intense gaze make me feel more noticed? I'm enjoying it."

Hall shrugged. "I don't care."

"Ahhh~ I can't hold back anymore!"

Ishtar leaped into the air, raised her hand, and ten golden orbs of light appeared around the Heavenly Bow Maana, each aimed at a different area. Her golden eyes flickered, and she coldly declared: "You will pay for your sins of spying on the goddess with your lives! You lowly beasts, turn to ashes!"

boom!

Ten orbs of light shot out simultaneously, falling into the dense forest and blasting all the leopard warriors hiding in the bushes into dust.

In the sky, Ishtar sighed with a relieved expression, "I feel much better now."

On the ground, Merlin whispered to Hall, "Look, even goddesses are such cruel creatures. Those adorable leopard warriors did nothing wrong."

Hall quipped, echoing Merlin's words, "How pathetic."

Ishtar stretched out her right hand towards Hall and the other man, golden light emanating from her fingertips, her rage palpable: "You! I've heard you all! Then turn to ashes together!"

boom! boom! boom!

Three magic bullets were fired in quick succession. The golden light struck the magic barrier protecting Hall, causing a violent explosion that uprooted the surrounding bushes.

Hall calmly dispelled the defensive magic.

Merlin, standing behind Hall, patted his chest: "That was dangerous."