Ashen Dragon

Charlotte felt a sudden pang of distress and said with a sullen face: "My mechanical dog! In theory, this thing could be used an infinite number of times, yet this one broke after just one use!"

Bright Moon was observing the enemy intently, feeling strong waves of Spell coming from the armor.

"This is... Activated Armor?"

"I know this thing, it's a Constructed Creature made with powerful Magic, designed to carry out its creator's commands.

They are usually programmed with scripted Language, capable of issuing warnings, demanding passwords, or posing questions. The more advanced ones can even engage in conversation."

"This thing seems pretty formidable..."

Charlotte carefully looked at the armor from a distance, noticing the name above its head, her face suddenly not looking too good.

[Thrace's Activated Armor]

Challenge Level: 12

Bright Moon, widely knowledgeable and known as the "Airez Encyclopedia" within the guild, naturally understood these peculiar magical creations.

As expected, before he had finished speaking, the Activated Armor dragged its Heavy Hammer forward in large strides under the tense gaze of the players, producing heavy sounds of steel plates smashing the ground and the friction between them.

"Clang... Clang..."

When it came within thirty meters of the players, it finally stopped and stared at them through the glowing gaps in the armor.

A cold mechanical voice emanated from the armor: "Outsiders, what is the password?"

Looking at the blood-stained hammer bigger than a human head, Charlotte tugged on Bright Moon's sleeve and whispered: "Bright Moon, do you know this...?"

Bright Moon replied irritably: "How would I know? These scripted languages are set by the creator."

Charlotte broke into a sweat. After a long contemplation while looking at the map obtained from the Earl, he finally mustered the courage and tentatively said: "Is Lord Donald wise and invincible?"

"Password incorrect!"

Immediately, the armor's gaps emitted blinding red light, it lifted the hammer with a threatening roar, as steam billowed forth.

"Intruders! Die!"

Bright Moon complained: "You damn idiot, why are you guessing without knowing the answer? Do you think you're that lucky?"

"Count Donald commands, all intruders must die!"

The Activated Armor raised its Heavy Hammer and charged towards the players, aiming a fierce blow at Charlotte's head.

"Such quick actions!"

Charlotte hastily executed Misty Step and became a puff of white smoke, vanishing.

"Boom!"

The Activated Armor hit nothing but ground, sending shards of stone flying, and a deep pit was smashed into the ground.

Thanks to the Spell, Charlotte suddenly appeared ten meters away, breathing a sigh of relief, but the Activated Armor turned around and charged at him again.

Bright Moon urgently warned: "It's locked onto you with aggro! It probably won't stop until it's killed you."

"Oh crap, don't just stand there, figure something out!"

Charlotte cast Cat's Grace and Mage Armor on himself, then staggered backward.

But in the narrow space, facing the advanced Activated Armor with superior strength and Speed, he didn't have many options.

"Intruder—"

"Boom!"

The hammer smashed down again, and Charlotte rolled backward, narrowly dodging another perilous attack.

"Attack this Activated Armor with all your might! We must protect the Guild President's life!"

"Right, try to use Lightning from Shaping Magic as much as possible, this kind of damage has an advantage against Constructed Creatures!"

Finally, Bright Moon lifted his Magic Wand, whispering a Spell Incantation.

Accompanied by the sizzling of Lightning, a glaring, electrically-charged sphere appeared at the tip of his Wand and swiftly flew towards the Activated Armor.

That was a Fifth Tier Spell [Spherical Lightning]

However, at the moment the sphere touched the back of the Activated Armor, a pale blue Shield unfolded, stopping it in its tracks.

"Hum—"

The Lightning burst, electric arcs flickered, but the armor wasn't harmed at all, and instead, it let out another roar.

"Under attack! Outsiders, you are all enemies!"

Bright Moon gasped in alarm, "The Activated Armor has an Anti-Magic Shield. The magical prowess of Thrace Kingdom is indeed high; even a mere Earl has such equipment!"

"Bright Moon, stop the damn analysis and figure out a way to save me! If it really comes down to it, we should retreat!"

Charlotte was already worn out from running for her life; the heavy hammer rained down like hail, and she could only rely on a variety of spells to dodge back and forth.

But it seemed the activated armor understood the players' speech; it extended its right hand, and a thick wall instantly dropped down at the entrance to the secret passage.

A deep voice emanated from the armor: "Intruders... none of you shall escape!"

Bright Moon's expression changed drastically again: "It's not just a simple machine! Once it recognizes you as an enemy, it's capable of basic thinking!"

"Damn it, stop explaining and do something reliable, will you?" Charlotte cried out in dismay, once again avoiding the activated armor's hammer strike with the wind walking technique.

Inside the secret passage, the players from the Magic Coin Guild cast spells one after another; a barrage of fireballs, poisonous arrows, and lightning blasted toward the activated armor, only to be blocked by a pale blue film.

"President, I'm on it!"

The Sky Flying Witch shouted valiantly, raising the Wand of Wonder in her hand toward the towering activated armor.

A confident smile spread across her lips: "As long as the magic ring skill I release exceeds the shield's limit, I can directly destroy this armor!"

"My turn, draw a card!"

Instantly, all the players looked expectantly at the Sky Flying Witch, hoping she could show her prowess like before and draw either a ninth-tier or eighth-tier spell.

"Bang!"

A faint sound followed by a puff of white smoke, and under the focused gaze of everyone, the Sky Flying Witch transformed into a sheep with fluffy fur, emitting a somewhat embarrassed bleat.

"Baa~~"

Hearing the familiar bleat, and nearly having her skull crushed by the hammer, a disheveled Charlotte cursed this crappy situation.

Could this be the end?

After successfully deceiving the Earl, are they going to be wiped out by this Iron Lump? Is this failure?

Her spell slots were almost depleted. Charlotte clenched her teeth, grasped her magic wand in both hands, and shouted, "Hmpf, Iron Lump, I'd like to see you find me!

My title as 'Arena Ghost' isn't for show!"

[Advanced Invisibility]

In an instant, Charlotte's body became transparent, and then she completely vanished into thin air.

The voice of the activated armor still sounded resolute: "The master has commanded, all intruders... must be eliminated."

It touched its helmet with its hand, and the red light in the cracks swiftly turned white, sweeping from the bottom up ahead.

Bright Moon inwardly cried out in alarm: "That's most likely See Invisibility! President, think of something quickly to make it stop, or else it will find you soon!"

"Think quickly, what are the quirks of this activated armor's master—that Earl Donald!"

At that moment, Charlotte was running behind the activated armor. Hearing Bright Moon's words, she became somewhat flustered, her brain working furiously.

What kind of password would Earl Donald come up with?

What were his quirks? Or... his characteristics?

Thinking of the "Fat Pig Earl," who left a deep impression on her, a string of derogatory terms popped into Charlotte's mind.

Greedy for money and lust, vain, abuse of power, fearful of death...

That's it, fearful of death!

With that thought, Charlotte quickly seized the opportunity while she was in the activated armor's blind spot, taking out the recently used Shape-shifting Monster Cloak from her dimensional bag and wrapping it around herself.

"Swish, swish..."

The transparent fluid gradually came together, enveloping Charlotte's calves, hips, until it reached her neck as if she had put on a second skin.

Charlotte took a deep breath and tried her best to recall the ugly appearance of Earl Donald in her mind, while the gelatin gradually covered her face.

If she were not a Mage, such detailed impersonation would have been impossible.

However, this was no easy task – just thinking about it, Charlotte felt like she might develop a psychological trauma.

The transparent gel squirmed, swelling gradually to form a huge belly, bloated limbs, and the ugly face piled up with fat.

At last, she was the spitting image of Earl Donald from her memory, as if carved out of the same mold.

Charlotte promptly dispelled her invisibility, striding with head held high and full of energy, she shouted, "You beast, take a good look at who this is? Don't you recognize your old man?"

The activated armor froze on the spot, mechanical noises rumbling from within.

"High-level authorization identified..."

Then, following the sound of an iron plate hitting the ground, the activated armor actually knelt on one knee: "Master, welcome back."

"Phew, that was close..."

It was only then that Charlotte breathed a sigh of relief, wiping the sweat from her forehead, thinking that creature might have seen through the disguise.

Sure enough, the fearful Earl Donald had programmed his own appearance into the activated armor, not wanting to allow any threat to himself even in the slightest.