"Feliciana! What did you ever do to this Michelle? She's chasing us and keeps asking where you are. Sheryl and I can't hold on much longer. Think of something quick!"
Soon after, Mia kept sending me SOS signals through the Spiritual Network she set up. But how was I supposed to know what Michelle was up to? I hadn't had much to do with her since leaving Edenmere. Surely she didn't have some big grudge against me?
"What can I do? I'm busy too! Reed just came up with a plan to turn things around. Maybe we can use it to change our luck. You better focus on staying alive!"
After replying, I left the spiritual space. Looking up at the sky, I saw a red beam shoot across, forcing the two white dots to dodge far to the side. For some reason, I felt oddly satisfied.
Reed, who was also on the Spiritual Network, heard our talk. She didn't say anything, just glanced at me from the driver's seat and said, "I need more time to absorb light energy from around us. About 5-10 minutes. You'd better keep those monsters away so they don't bother me!"
Without us noticing, a few stray monsters had spotted the Midas on the ground and were quietly creeping closer.
"Why don't I handle it? I haven't used my Source Magic in ages. I just learned it, so I should show everyone what I can do!" Cyra got excited, stretching her arms and ready to rush out.
"No! That uses too many resources. If you overdo it, we'll lose the Midas. Stay here and protect Reed!"
It was just a few high-level monsters. No need to use a cannon to kill a mosquito! I hadn't forgotten how Cyra drained all the light energy at the top of Chromos Tower. I quickly stopped her and looked back.
"No problem, I'll take care of those small fry!" Adrian nodded, understanding right away. In a second, he jumped out of the cockpit and vanished.
"So I'm protecting Reed, but what about you? Don't tell me you want to fight little monsters with Adrian?"
Cyra was pretty smart. Her eyes lit up as she quickly caught on to what I was hinting at.
"Well..." How should I put this? I did have my own plans, but I wasn't aiming for the "little monsters" - I was going for the "big boss"!
After all, those two eight-winged angels couldn't have gotten too far. They'd been holding out for a long time. If I didn't go help soon, they'd end up dead at Michelle's hands. Even if Mia had ignored my call for help earlier, I'm still a good person! I couldn't just watch her and Sheryl get killed by Michelle.
"Anyway, I'll be back soon. Make sure Reed finishes the Forbidden Spell first. Don't wander around the battlefield!"
Having made up my mind, I didn't waste time. I quickly told Cyra what to do, then left the cockpit and flew towards the red dot in the night sky.
"Michelle! I heard you were looking for me? Well, here I am!"
Seeing the two white dots about to be caught again, I shouted out loud. My voice reached before I did. Before I got close, Michelle with her twelve red wings immediately sensed me. She turned and flew straight over, stopping in front of me in the blink of an eye.
"It really is you..."
Something felt odd. When she saw me, Michelle first looked a bit happy and surprised. But her face quickly changed. She hesitated for a long time without speaking, like she didn't know what to say next.
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"Um, what do you want?"
I couldn't help asking first, not sure what to say either. It wasn't the first time dealing with her, but she used to treat everyone very arrogantly. So this sudden 180-degree change and "special treatment" really caught me off guard.
"I heard from Fernando. He mentioned you can turn your wings blue. It's my fault for not noticing before. If I'm not mistaken, you must know we used to know each other..."
Finally, it seemed Michelle had figured it out. After a long pause, she slowly explained.
Hearing this, I immediately understood what she meant. She must have guessed from my blue-winged state that I used to be the Water Angel Gisphrael.
It's not surprising that the four Elemental Angels knew each other. It was expected! But unfortunately, I wasn't impressed by Michelle's apparent attempt to be friendly. She had done a lot of bad things before, killing many angels, including Norma who I used to know.
Thinking about this made me angry. I spread my blue wings again and pointed my Water Abyss Sword at Michelle's neck, explaining:
"To be honest, my soul isn't a complete Water Angel soul. I've lost all my old memories. So don't think you can use this to get close to me!"
"...As I expected, more or less!"
Hearing this, Michelle's face darkened, but she didn't point her weapon at me. Instead, she put it away and calmly told me, "There's a way to deal with this. If I can control the Cycle of Rebirth, I'll eventually find a way to help you recover your memories!"
Could the Cycle of Rebirth really help me get my old memories back? Hearing this, I was a bit stunned. But I still didn't back down, arguing back:
"You think Galadra will let you get away with that so easily? Besides, even if you begged me, I might not agree!"
"Hmph, that's not up to you. Come with me quietly. If you surrender, you won't suffer as much. Or do I have to use force?"
But she finally showed her true colors. Her temper wasn't to be taken lightly, and things quickly fell apart.
Even though she had put away her weapon earlier, clearly not wanting to hurt me, Michelle wasn't being overconfident. I knew very well that as the Fire Angel, her power was far beyond what I'd seen before. Except for the 12-winged Nicola from the future, everyone else was no match for her!
"We're here to help! If we all work together, we might have a chance!"
Afraid I couldn't handle her alone, Mia and Sheryl flew over from nearby to join the fight.
"What a joke! You're not worthy!"
Michelle had been patient with me, but she immediately turned nasty towards these outsiders. With a wave of her left hand, a blast of intense flames shot out, instantly engulfing Mia and Sheryl.
"Watch... out..."
I couldn't warn them in time. I could only watch helplessly as they screamed and fell towards the ground.
Luckily, angels have strong elemental defenses, so Mia and Sheryl weren't killed instantly. But even with their light element shields, you could clearly see their wings and limbs were badly burned. This showed that when Michelle was "chasing" them earlier, she had actually been holding back.
"So, do you really think you can beat me with just six wings?" Michelle glanced smugly towards the ground, once again "kindly" trying to persuade me.
"...So what?"
Since Mia was badly hurt, the Spiritual Network had automatically disbanded. I couldn't tell my friends in the Midas to rescue them. I could only stubbornly hold on.
To be honest, I felt really frustrated! I suddenly regretted it a bit. If I hadn't promised Galadra first, who would willingly get involved in this mess? It was like knowingly walking into a tiger's den. Now I was finally face to face with the strongest enemy, and I didn't know if I'd make it back alive.
"Or do you think Liana will come back from the future to save you again?"
Seeing that I still wouldn't give in, Michelle sneered again. "I can't believe that without your memories, you've fallen so low that you need her protection. Back then, neither of you would back down to the other. Maybe next time I should give it a try?"
"Who needs your protection?"
If she hadn't mentioned that, it would have been fine. But hearing it made me angry! What did she mean I could only rely on Nicola? Wasn't it enough trouble already? She just had to bring up the worst topic!
I didn't say anything more. I swung my sword straight at Michelle's head. This time, I was the one who attacked first.
"What a waste to use the Akeros Sword like that!"
As expected, Michelle easily dodged my first attack. At the same time, she reached out to grab my right arm.
She was still trying to capture me alive, not using her weapon but fighting barehanded. But even so, each of her moves came with intense burning flames! Even though it was just one hand coming at me, and she hadn't even touched me yet, I could feel the scorching heat from far away.
But I wasn't worried. I had expected this too. I thrust out the Water Abyss Sword again, not slowing down at all! At the same time, a faint red magic barrier suddenly appeared on my skin. It not only blocked the attack successfully but also greatly reduced the heat of the flames.
"This is... Have you already regained control of your powers?"
As soon as Michelle touched the barrier, she jerked back as if burned. She barely dodged the incoming sword, immediately flying far back. She stared at me in surprise and asked.