My Goddess is Good at Pretending

Chapter 574: Returning the Arrow

The giant arrow, as massive as a towering pine tree, was hurled with terrifying velocity, ripping through the icy air at a hundred times the speed of sound. It shot across the frozen expanse like a comet of destruction as its speed warped the atmosphere around it.

The distant ambusher, hidden amidst the snowy peak, never expected such a retaliation. The same arrow unleashed to harm the newly arrived enemy was returned to him with an unimaginable scale and power of destruction.

When the arrow made contact with the snowy peak, the explosion was akin to an asteroid impact. A blinding flash illuminated the wintry sky as the ground trembled violently.

*Boom!*

The snowy mountain turned upside down, the frozen earth cracked open, glaciers shattered, and a fiery shockwave radiated outward, obliterating everything in its path. Snowstorms erupted in chaotic swirls, and the once-quiet permanently frozen mountain region was transformed into a wasteland of scorched ice and steam. The aftermath left an enormous crater as if a piece of the land had been torn from existence.

"Wow, that’s at least over 200 kilometers! The arrow obliterated that mountain instantly. Do you think the perpetrator survived the explosion, Ely?" Elena watched the explosion closely from afar.

She didn’t know if the ambusher could survive the apocalyptic blast, but since the damage was massive, surviving would mean serious or fatal injuries.

"No, there’s no need to hunt whoever it is. Our counterattack is already at apocalyptic retaliation, and that should be enough to warn them." Elysia prevented Zera and Ai before they would enter the void.

"So be it." Ai heaved a subtle sigh. Even though Elysia had said it, she couldn’t trust the possible enemies. Therefore, she entered Elysia’s shadow to get a better view of the surroundings, monitoring everything.

"According to your command." Zera remained seated, but she raised her wariness to everything around the carriage. She held Celestia in her hand, ready to draw her sword whenever needed.

"Ho-ho-ho!~" The coachman laughed, and the four mythical winged horses resumed their journey in mid-air, pulling the carriage across the land of snow with the forbidden area in the deepest region of the extreme north as the destination.

---

Meanwhile, right where the towering snow mountains once stood, the ground began to tremble as several sturdy creatures managed to survive the deadly blast, crawling out from underground.

"Velhalla!" A human-like giant clad in a gigantic polar bear’s fur outfit threw her punch upward, unearthing herself from the massive amount of snow. She was furious and pulled out the nearby gnomes to question them. "Who launched an attack on my tribe’s village?!"

"Chief Velhalla, we have no idea who it is, but it was obviously the invaders! They suddenly launched an attack on us. They should be heading north." One of the gnomes pointed to the northwest.

"It was them who launched the first attack? Unforgivable! Do they think they are invincible in my domain?!" Velhalla bared her teeth.

"Yes, it’s probably to warn us about their arrival. With such destructive power, they are definitely strong. Let’s just forget the revenge." A particular gnome proposed his idea with cold sweat.

"Since when did you become such a pussy, Goer? Everyone, use your gigantification! Those who can still move, go with me to crush the invaders to smithereens! We should make them pay the price with their death! They are just mere ants in our presence!" Velhalla raised her fists, shouting like a wild beast.

"Yes, chief!" The surviving gnomes also shared the same fury.

Their comrades and families were killed or buried deep under the snow. If the others could survive the blast and were only buried underneath, it would not be too late to save them later. However, the enemies would never get away with it, and they had to pay this blood debt this instant.

The surviving gnomes, each no taller than one meter and no heavier than twenty kilograms, soon used their gigantification to transform them into a group of snow giants as big as four elephants. They leaped into the sky to follow their leader to hunt down the invaders.

They came with a deep hatred and a strong desire for revenge, but unfortunately, they chose the wrong opponent.

"..." Velhalla wondered where things went wrong. As village chief, she protected her people, minding their business on their mountain, but someone came near their land and massacred her people for no reason.

She came with fourteen best warriors with the power to take down even a great dragon. They were determined to make the invaders experience a gruesome death.

And yet, it was just a sword slash that cleaved open the ground and sky, the invaders came out of the horse-drawn carriage with an unbearable demonic pressure, putting everyone prostrated helplessly on the ground like glued ants.

"Why did you kill my people?!" Velhalla gritted her teeth, struggling to raise her head to look at the enemy’s face. Sadly, she couldn’t move even an inch, she could only see the approaching female human legs.

"We wouldn’t care about something as insignificant as you if you hadn’t attacked us first. We returned the favor, and you received your own pine arrow. Question. Why did you attack us?" Zera sheathed Celestia, staring in contempt at the snow giants before her.

"We never attacked you first! It was you who unreasonably unleashed that meteor fall to my mountain!" Valhalla shouted with hatred.

"Hm, Ai will never miss her aim since the trajectory is clear. You may deny it all you want, but your life ends here." Zera pointed her finger at the fallen snow giants, about to reduce them to dust particles.

When the fallen snow giants closed their eyes, knowing they would die there, an angelic voice came from the horse-drawn carriage.

"Zera, let them go." Elysia called out.

"Yes, master." Zera retracted her attack and turned around. "You’re lucky, snow giants. Don’t let us see you again."

"..." The fifteen snow giants gasped for breath as the pressure gradually vanished.

"That giant pine arrow came from your mountain, and we returned it. If you have no idea about things, then you should investigate it further as the arrow landed in the exact direction from which it came. You should manage your people properly, or you can never imagine the consequences." Elysia gave a little explanation and advice.

She felt it was a bit regrettable, but it was also the snow giants’ fault for intentionally attacking her group from a distance. Ai only returned the arrow with a hundredfold power amplifier. Who would have thought that a snow giant tribe was living in that snow mountain?

After saying that, the luxurious horse-drawn carriage sped off again toward the north, leaving the dumbfounded snow giants behind.

"It’s a group of deities... What are they doing here?"

"Why are they heading toward the extreme north’s forbidden region?"

"Regardless, the lady master in that carriage already graced her mercy. We need to investigate who released the pine arrow to harm them now."

"Yeah! If it was really an attack from our people, then we truly kicked the iron plate."

"We wouldn’t suffer like this if it weren’t for this fool bastard who ambushed them! Let’s investigate it further and find out who did it."

The snow giants were talking about it with anger and resentment. They couldn’t take it out on the deities, but they had to make the perpetrator who attacked the deities take full responsibility for everything.

There were also still many survivors buried under the thick snow. Therefore, they transformed back into gnomes and immediately returned to their destroyed snow mountain with impressive speed as they had to rescue the others and investigate the pine arrow incident.

---

Two hours have passed since the encounter with the snow giants. Elysia no longer thought about that matter because she had already entered the forbidden region, a place of extreme death zone with eternal cold temperatures that were always lower than -100 degrees Celsius.

The carriage stopped around the border because Elysia had to wait for Yuuki to wake up.

When Yuuki showed signs of waking up after the foundation fortification was complete, Elena returned to the Elysian Realm and Zera joined Ai inside Elysia’s shadow as they had to give Yuuki some personal time just for today.

Yuuki stirred from her slumber as her foundation and spiritual sea had been fortified by her master’s help. Her delicate, fox-like ears twitched as she blinked open her golden crystalline eyes, gazing fondly at her beloved master beside her.

Nestled comfortably in her master’s embrace, her nine fluffy tails curled protectively around them both, creating a cocoon of warmth and affection.

With a tender nuzzle, she pressed her delicate nose to her master’s cheek. Her affection and gratitude were clear in her gesture. She shifted slightly, laying her head gently on her master’s chest, listening to the steady heartbeat that had lulled her into such peaceful sleep meditation.

As the carriage began to move, she purred softly. Her tails swayed in contentment as she savored the closeness and warmth of the one she cherished the most, feeling utterly safe in her master’s arms.

Elysia replied with a tender smile as she was used to receiving such a floof moment. Yuuki was similar to the other fluffy sisters, and they would show their gratitude with affection and intimate skin contact, occasionally rubbing their bodies to hers.

"Mm~" Yuuki closed her eyes as her master stroked her waist and back with one hand, and rubbed her head with another hand.

"Your foundation is now perfect for divine ascension. We’ve arrived at the extreme north’s forbidden region. Where do we start our exploration?" Elysia reminded Yuuki about it as it began to feel ticklish when Yuuki start sniffing her around.