Chapter 423. Temptress vs Masha
"Are ya dead?"
Masha hovered closer to the impact site, her blonde hair swaying gently as she floated above the jagged rocks. Her eyes scanned the still form crumpled against the mountain wall.
"What in tarnation? No breathin’... no aura... Well shoot, is she really dead just from that lil’ ol’ charm blast?" she muttered, scratching her head with the hand not holding the smoking star-shaped talisman.
She frowned, genuinely confused. "That’s all it took? Dang... I thought she’d at least twitch or somethin’. Manhunter’s gonna be all kinds of sad when she hears this."
Just as Masha started drifting closer, a sudden crack echoed through the abyss.
A thunder whip lashed out of the shadows—lightning crackling and dancing across its length. Masha barely managed to twist out of the way, but the edge of the bolt grazed her arm, sending a hot jolt through her skin.
"Yowch! That stung somethin’ fierce—"
"Oh... you dodged it," came a sultry, commanding voice from behind.
Masha whirled around to see Temptress emerging from the shadows like a ghost from a forbidden dream. She floated with poise, one hand elegantly twirling the thunder whip, her lips curled in amusement.
"Sorry to disappoint, sweetheart," Temptress purred. "But I don’t die that easily. You’ll have to try a little harder if you want to leave a scar."
Masha blinked, her gaze darting between the floating Temptress and the motionless body slumped against the rock. "Wait just a doggone minute... That there’s a decoy?! You let that thing just fall like a stone while you were hidin’ in the dark this whole time?!"