Chapter 77 – Information Warfare

“Don’t laugh! …You guys—whose side are you even on?! What the hell are you laughing at?! I’m a sixteen-year-old boy in the prime of his youth, dammit!”

Bolton, the rat-faced man, was hopping mad. His dusty complexion turned bright red, and paired with his pointy face, he now looked like a chili pepper.

But that only made his three teammates laugh even harder.

“A pretty boy? At the peak of youth? Hahahaha!”

Tears were practically streaming down their faces.

“Are you serious right now, Bolton?”

“So this whole time, that’s how you saw yourself? Prime-of-youth pretty boy? Hahaha—”

“You bastards! Keep laughing and I’ll use my Divine Authority on you!” Bolton waved his steel claws in a huff, furious.

“……”

That finally shut them up—but the way they struggled to hold back their laughter showed exactly what they were feeling.

“Alright, alright, enough fooling around. The prey took the bait. Time to get to work, boys.”

Seeing Bolton about to explode again, the Divine Child had no choice but to redirect everyone’s attention toward Teresa.

“Hey, Baldy. That blonde girl—is she alone out here?”

“Watch your tone. I’m your captain, dammit!”

The bald-headed man pouted.

“Psh, like I care. Just tell us if she’s alone. If she is, let’s hurry up and deal with her so we can reset the trap for the next sucker.”

“What’s the rush? Gotta say, she’s quite the looker. Wouldn’t it be a shame to just knock her out of the game?”

The skinny young man holding a bow stared at Teresa with a lustful gleam in his eyes.

“What, you wanna do something else with her? Don’t get any funny ideas. Even if she’s a knockout, that’s got nothing to do with you. You think she’d give someone like you the time of day?” the bald Divine Child rolled his eyes.

“Tch…”

As the group bickered, Teresa’s brows furrowed slightly.

Just from their mannerisms and the way they talked, she could tell this team—from the Divine Princess to the Divine Child to the Mage—weren’t nobles. Probably a team of upstart rogues: a grassroots Divine Child and a Wild Divine Princess.

From their careless chatter earlier, Teresa gleaned that they’d ambushed several teams already. They’d just failed this time—caught off guard when the ambush didn’t land.

Taking advantage of their quarrel, Teresa activated [Divine Appraisal] and scanned Bolton first.

Name: Bolton

Domain: [Shelter of Sand]

Physical Resistance: 4.5

Alchemy Resistance: 3.5

Magic Resistance: 3

Divine Authority Resistance: 1.5

Domain Effect: When underground, all resistances are doubled.

Divine Authority: [Crustal Burrow]

Grants the ability to burrow underground and move quickly through soil. Can launch a Divine Authority strike when emerging from the earth.

Next, she scanned the bow-wielding youth—also a Divine Princess.

Name: Endy

Domain: [Shelter of Explosion]

Domain Effect: Gains increased propulsion from explosive shockwaves.

Physical Resistance: 4

Alchemy Resistance: 3

Magic Resistance: 2.5

Divine Authority Resistance: 1.5

Divine Authority: [Bombardment Rhythm]

On physical impact, leaves a trace of Divine Authority on the target. After enough accumulates, it detonates.

With one sweep, Teresa saw through every aspect of the two—domains, resistances, Divine Authorities, and all.

So that’s how it was. Their strategy hinged on Bolton’s Divine Authority—ambushing passing teams with sudden underground strikes, bypassing Divine Princesses and instantly killing Divine Children or Mages before they could react.

This patch of sand was practically a natural camouflage for him.

As for Endy’s Divine Authority—it wasn’t anything special. Very ordinary. Nothing worth worrying about.

Just as Teresa expected, both were Wild Divine Princesses—lacking surnames.

“Hey blondie, what are you staring at me for? Now’s not the time for that. Once we’re out of this Secret Realm, you can stare all you want. I’ll let you take a good, long look—how about it?”

The bald Divine Child grinned, completely unaware that Teresa was currently using [Divine Appraisal] on him.

There had never been a known case of a Divine Princess possessing the Divine Appraisal ability—at least, none ever recorded.

“Everyone, follow my lead!” The bald man struck a flamboyant pose.

“Now then, watch me perform! Behold, my invincible [Divine Appraisal]—AHHHHH!!”

Before he could finish his bragging, the moment his gaze locked onto Teresa, he suddenly clutched his eyes and dropped to the ground, howling in pain.

Again. That made three in a row.

With three Divine Children already reacting this way, Teresa had a strong hunch why.

It was highly likely she carried some kind of mysterious protection—a veil that blocked all Divine Appraisal attempts made by Divine Children. Of course, it was also possible that their Appraisal skills were just too weak to scan her.

If someone with a high enough level attempted to appraise her, would they succeed?

That, she didn’t yet know.

“Yo, Baldy? Don’t fall apart on us at the crucial moment, dammit!”

The team stared in confusion, not understanding what had triggered their leader’s meltdown.

But the ever-changing battlefield waited for no one.

Teresa had already raised her longbow.

Her golden wings flared open, and with one fluid motion, she loosed a light arrow that sliced through the air.

Bolton dove underground just in time, avoiding the strike.

From above, Teresa sensed the earth below her feet shifting—something was tunneling toward her.

The rat-faced man was on the attack.

At the same time, Teresa detected the gazes of Endy and the Mage locking onto her.

If she jumped to dodge Bolton’s attack, the rear duo would immediately launch an aerial assault—counting on her lack of mobility mid-air.

It was a tactical setup—one they'd clearly practiced through multiple skirmishes.

But while they coordinated well, Teresa held a unique advantage.

Information.

She could strip them bare—down to the last detail—while they couldn’t even get a glimpse of what she was capable of.

After a brief calculation, Teresa made her move.

She bent her knees, and her silk-wrapped feet left the ground.

In that exact instant, Bolton burst forth from the dirt. The broken soil around him gathered on his claws, enhanced by his Divine Authority as he struck toward her.

But Teresa, who had already rehearsed this mentally, twisted mid-air and narrowly avoided his claws. She spun, arching her back, and with her feet like the tail of a fish, drew her bow in a highly acrobatic posture and took aim.

At the same time, as expected, Endy loosed an arrow and the Mage hurled a scroll.

Whoosh, whoosh!

A fireball spell and a volley of arrows slammed into Teresa—just as her light arrow found its mark.

The Mage’s eyes widened in disbelief.

He hadn’t expected to be the one eliminated first.

Without a Domain to shield him, the light arrow had pierced straight through his neck.

In that moment, he felt what it meant… to die.

The remaining three stood in stunned silence.

None of them had expected Teresa to not only dodge such a dangerous attack in mid-air, but to also retaliate with such precision.

It was supposed to be their turn to attack. And yet, in a single exchange—they were already one teammate down.

The accuracy of that arrow was so terrifying, they began to wonder—was it just luck? Or the effect of a Divine Authority?

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