Mujin weaved through the top of the capital wall, every thrust and flourish of his spear ended the life of a paladin in his endless violent dance. Half a dozen of the zealots charged towards him from all sides and he charged lightning in his palm, letting it backfire and surge over them all. The paladins fell dead from the impact but immunity kept Mujin safe.
A large blur barreled his way and in response he lunged with the surging aura of Greater Pierce at the head of a captain in sight. His spear stopped short on the familiar gong of Bastion and a Dynamic fist slammed into Mujin’s side, sending him crashing a short distance along the wall until he regained his stance.
Blood splurt from his mouth as Greater Dragon Scales couldn’t absorb the full impact on the blow, but at the other end, the captain spasmed in place as lightning surged over his body. The product of Greater Electric which delivered high voltage to anyone who made contact with him. Mujin lunged again, ignoring his injuries as the image of a dragon’s head wrapped around his spear and impaled the captain’s torso, the viciousness of true magic destroying his soul.
Four paladin spellcasters charged magic in the air towards him and Shin flickered in front. A swirl of mana violently consumed the blasts and streams of magic, but soon the skill was overwhelmed and the attacks broke through, tearing his mystic protection and his body with it.
[Greater Mana Absorption has reached lvl. 10. 250 Attribute Points rewarded.]
An arrow for each split open the heads of all the casters and Mujin burst left towards another captain. Shin regenerated in an instant and stepped to the side as a legendary berserker class paladin split open a ravine down the giant city walls with a swing of his greatsword.
Violent ripples wove into themselves as Shin compacted a layer of Pulse over his hands like gloves. The berserker swung with a surge of aura and the mighty blade repelled away with a flick of his hand. A palm slammed on the berserker’s chest, sending him barrelling through a crowd of paladins to devastating effect.
[Mana Harnessing has reached lvl. 10. 250 Attribute Points rewarded.]
Shin glanced around at the state of the wall vanguard. Basem was picking off paladins in rapid succession with no issue and a shadowy spectral monster reaped the souls of the ones below. The team at the back had no issue, so Shin hopped over to Mujin who was still faring just fine and cast Heal. A paladin lunged and he changed the nature of his pulse, popping the man to nothing more than a pool of blood. Shin kept his focus on the city, searching for his next target of importance once Mujin was healed.
The other seven members of the party watched from a safe distance, uninvolved with the battle on the wall save for Kamala’s High Wraith. Dante blinked without warning, his glowing tattooed body tapping away one of the church’s ‘Black Hands’ that tried to take Kamala hostage, and Ashley diced him apart in the blink of an attack.
A second cloaked assassin found herself holding a blade to the throat of a wooden puppet and Karla destroyed both their heads in a shatter of splinters and blood. The third found the only real success in taking Yen hostage but before he could even issue his demands, Yen took the form of flames, and the man burned to ash with it.
This system was one the party had found the most success in. The rearguard group essentially serving as bait and executioner for the troublesome covert agents who sought to take hostages from them, while those who were not needed were tasked with the siege on the capital walls.
Yen raised focused her mind on a spot away from the three head and failed sparks fell from her body once again, with a slightly annoyed expression. “This grunt work isn’t enough… We need to take more risks.”
“Yeah, it’s been nearly five minutes since one of us almost died.” Donny agreed in tone.
“Shut up. It’s Will that upgrades our skills and I’m pretty sure Will isn’t static. You all felt that at some point, right? So we just need to get in a situation that gives us a big surge of will.” Yen glanced in disapproval at Basem in the distance as he sped off to a new attack after several of his attacks failed to kill a regenerating target.
“Or we could try practicing the slightest degree of prudence.” Kamala suggested.
“Easy for you to say. At least you’re getting regular action.” Yen glanced at the high wraith now scaling through the walls. An undead monster intangible to physical attacks with clawed hands that inflicted nasty curses and more importantly soul damage, something the priestess upgraded from the Summon Wraith skill she chose for her third trial reward.
“Why’d you pick this anyway. Kinda fucks up the nature angel thing you have going on.”
“I do not have a ‘thing’...”
“Not with that attitude.” Yen’s attitude shifted in annoyance as she caught a glimpse of Basem’s arrow ricochet off the head of a captain who appeared to be indestructible, and once again abandon the fight with frustration swelling to a boiling point. “Hey, Baz, stop running away!”
“SHUT UP!” Light shattered off his body as the arrow he fired bored clean through a paladin’s head and destroyed part of the roof of a watchtower, disappearing beyond the cloudy sky. Basem clicked his teeth and continue on exactly how he was.
“See.” Yen gestured to the incident that just proved her point.
A thunderous clap from Shin in the form of a purple gorilla signalled the retreat of all three at the walls, and a swarm of paladins followed shortly after. Yen snapped into gear, swelling her spell to its most powerful and unleashed a Greater Combustion that blasted hundreds away. The result of her one mythic skill, Maximize, upgraded from Greater Channelling, which now at max level boosted the power of her spells tenfold, power which she could only handle with her Control thanks to her Loved by Magic trait.
With that devastating destruction slowing down the capital’s full rally, Chariot made their escape as they had many times over these last few weeks. They couldn’t be sure exactly how well the other groups were doing, but little had changed on their end. No matter how many they killed, there was always more to replace them.
“We’re in a rut.” Yen spoke bluntly. “Siege work is for footsoldiers, we need to do something that makes a real impact.”
“Yes…” Kamala agreed to Yen’s surprise. The priestess herself glanced over and took the effort to explain. “If someone else delivers the final blow, this would all be for nothing. The other groups are rivals, not allies.”
“The city is still too strong.” Mujin informed them.
“So we can’t push in here…” Donny mused. “Might be time to check out the vampire base?”
“It may be good to scout them at least.” Kamala said, though she came to a stop along with the others as a dark blonde elf woman with lazy eyes and mellow demeanor casually approached them from the front.
[Half-Elf Shifter (legendary) - Greater Lord]
“Not here to fight.” She held out her arms with no sign of hostility or wariness. “The guilds involved here have been talking. Decided to hold a meeting, since it’s not going all that well. You’re invited if you want.”
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“...how much is the human guild of those who look like me involved?” Kamala asked.
“Ah… they’re not invited. Some have reservations about them, since they did attack another group. At least for now.”
“Where will this meeting be held?”
“Ten or twelve hours that way.” She gestured to the side with her finger.
“We will consider it.”
“Alright. I hope you join.” The half elf shifter flickered away in an instant, contrary to her air of calm lethargy.
“We actually going?” Donny asked.
“It may be worthwhile to broaden our options.”
“Honestly down for anything that isn’t just grinding siege, right now.” Yen said. “Let’s check it out.”
---
Chariot arrived at a small town late into the night. No guards or checkpoint of any kind manned the entrance, allowing the party to just stroll right in without issue. Lanterns and lamps covered the streets and buildings bustling with activity. Bartering, drinking, fighting, and socializing continued without end between the various races foreign to this world.
“You came.” The half elf from before called out to them from a table under the cloudy sky, a mug in her hand like most others around, which she downed before walking over.
“A refuge for otherworlders?” Kamala asked.
“Something like that. It was abandoned a while back, then the Stoneshield dwarves took it over as a base to sell wares and information freely. People call it Safehaven for now. An otherworlder capital basically. You should set up a gate here if one of you has it.”
“Is epic tier sold here?” Jean asked.
“Items, yeah. No shortage of that. Crafting material is harder to find. Not easy stealing from the city and everybody wants that.”
“What’re the rules?” Donny asked as he glanced around.
“Just play nice and try to get along. You can call me Lynn by the way.”
“Donny. Alcohol any good?”
“Can’t get drunk if you have immunity, but the taste is alright.”
“This meeting?” Kamala inquired their purpose for being here.
“Not long now. It’ll be at that townhall over there. They’ll ring the bell once to let people know.”
“Got some time then. Show me around?”
“Sure.” Lynn turned around with a welcoming smile and Donny followed next to her.
“Seriously?” Yen called after him.
“I won’t go far.” Ashley headed off on her own as well, to Yen’s further headache.
“As it’s come to this, we may as well divide our tasks.” Kamala spoke up. “Karla, Dante, and I will gather information. The rest of you trade for anything we can use.”
“Okay.” Shin agreed without question.
“Might as well…” Yen agreed with a trace of complaint. “Some of our stuff is obsolete.”
Shin, Yen, Jean, Mujin and Basem walked through the crowded streets with an atmosphere similar to the bazaar of the second stage. Stalls had been set up all over, even with all the buildings that could be repurposed as stores. Yen immediately headed over to one with a red silk vest that caught her eye.
“Anything else with Blink?”
“This dress.” The gnome running the stall withdrew an earthy green dress. “Don’t take coin.”
Shin handed out the cobalt spellbreaker sword he had outgrown, which the gnome gave a scan. “Four items of that quality. Swiftness one of them.”
Yen took out the remaining from her share of the horde they had plundered thus far. All of them had either the swiftness skill or an item for it already, and no shortage of extras. “Anything with windwalker?”
“Just this.” He showed her a pair of feathered anklets.
“Fits Karla perfectly.” Yen traded two more items for it.
“How many?” Jean pointed at a small pile of needles the same color as the spellbreaker sword.
“Little over two hundred. No enchantments. I’ll trade them all as one item.” Jean made the trade immediately and the group continued on.
They scoured the market and overpaid without hesitation for anything that caught their eye. New shoes for Dante. A yellow robe for Mujin with Lightning Affinity that Yen insisted he get. A quiver that conjures epic tier arrows for Basem that seemed to pacify his foul mood just a bit. And purple corinthian plate metal leg armor for Donny with the same windwalker trait as well.
They scooped up any and all material the crafters used as well, from rare to epic tier. Jean also bought a few bits and pieces here and there to serve as parts for his puppets. Ashley was much harder to buy for since she still hadn’t revealed a number of her traits, a fact Yen voiced complaints again over, though they guessed at the items she did use and found no better alternatives to them.
Half an hour passed and as promised, the town bell rang once. The party all regathered at the hall along with several to a full party each from various guilds, only vaguely recognizable, if that. Ashley arrived last with a quiet smile as though she had added another secret to her vault. Dante put a silence around them so they could talk freely amidst the crowd.
“Haymaker. Blink. Windwalker. Also Windwalker.” Yen told the others what items they had gleaned for them, which all switched for.
“Nothing for me~?” Ashley leaned by her.
“We did look… It’d help a lot more if you told us your build.”
“Nevermind then~”
“The other guilds are taking more losses than they can bare, the fair skinned elves and goliaths aside. Hence this attempt to find a solution."
The representatives of each guild started entering the building and Chariot followed, finding a spot for themselves on the row of long tables that had been arranged for an equal council. Needless the say, Chariot was unfamiliar with the others, though some did stand out.
Lynn was present among the elves, though it seemed another woman with a dark blue bobcut led them, her class Shadowhunter. A drearily dressed Witch Healer noticeable among them. Joining them in presence was a large muscular goliath Berserker, bald and clean shaven, an arrogant young blonde with long ringlets bearing the Enchantress class, accompanied by nine zealous eyed men, and a red haired dwarf with a thick beard and the Warlord class.
The dwarf rose to speak, though his height didn’t change from his seated one. “The city is too strong to fight independently. We need to coordinate.” Words of approval returned from most.
“Coordinate how?” The smug enchantress asked. “With you giving the orders?”
The fiery haired dwarf shot her a glare, though the leader of the elves spoke first. “The leaders of each can decide the general strategy to follow. It’d be better to stick to our groups in battle than to try and fight as an roughshod army.”
“So you can take the main prize yourselves?”
It was the elf’s turn to glare this time. “Then we prevent anyone from taking advantage of battle and heading in too deep.”
“Someone still has to win. What if the outcast guild exploits our hard work… or one of the groups here doesn’t follow the rules.” She glanced confidently over at Chariot.
“You must have been asleep for the tournament to be acting this bold.” The bearing of a queen took over Yen as she spoke.
“Oh my. Such overt threats are a sign of lower class, you know?”
The tense staredown was broken by an elf barging through the town hall doors. “Velduin is dead!”
“What?!” The dark blue haired elf exclaimed in shock. “How?!”
“We do not know… It seems he was assassinated in vacant chambers.”
“Was he strong?” The goliath asked, his voice more measured than his appearance would suggest.
“One of our strongest…” The elf leader replied. “The old necromancer. You’ve met before.”
“Ah~” Ashley spoke up. “That was me~”
Silence filled the room and hostility mounted towards her from fair elves. “...why?” Their leader strained out composed words.
Ashley gave a bashful smile in response. “You shouldn’t ask a girl her secrets~”
“You!~”
“Okay, slow down a bit.” Yen dropped her persona. “I call for a trial.”
“What trial, she has confessed!”
“Shin, you’re the judge.” She glanced over to him, ignoring the elf’s sound logic.
The elf broke her table from the sheer power she that slipped from her hand in her ire. “Do you mock us?! A needless trial with one of your own presiding!”
“Right of the Champion. Anyone who wants the spot can fight him for it.” Yen flippantly decreed as she glanced at Jean. The puppetmaster understood her silent request and quickly fashioned a simple gavel for Shin. “I will be representing my client, the frequent murderer Ashley Gray. I take it you will be the prosecution?”
“What in the nine hells are you talking about?!”
“I’ll go first to give you time to gather your case.” Yen poised herself to the crowd, most of them confused and guarded. “My client almost certainly without question did kill the creepy old man… However she is clinically insane and therefore cannot be held accountable for her actions nor is her testimony valid in a court of law, thus she is innocent and free to go.”
“Okay?” Shin was met with silence at his decision. He tilted his head in thought then tapped the gavel on his table. “Dismissed?”
Ashley giggled at the absurdity of his personality, which only served to further incite the shadowhunter. “Are you down playing this sick game…?” Her words now seethed rather than stormed. “He was a valuable asset and we have been slighted. You will compensate us.”
“I guess…” Shin supposed she had a point.
“Hey, you already closed the case~ You can’t change your mind now~” Shin looked to Yen for confirmation.
“You did close the case.”
“If she will not pay then you must. A legendary item for a legendary life.” The elf leader directed at the invoker.
Shin stared at her blankly. “Why?”
“Why? Your person has wronged us, you must rectify this grievance! How can we trust you with this hanging over our heads? You need this alliance too!”
Shin looked at her as though she just said something foolish. “No?”
Mujin rose to his feet, thoroughly annoyed with the conversation that held too many words he was unfamiliar with, and started to leave. “This is a waste of time. I’m going to train.” Basem silently followed after with a scowl at the strangers.
Ashley rose too with a lighthearted smugness behind strangely deep eyes. “Bye~”
With that, Shin glanced at the other parties with pleasant nonchalance. “I need to train too.”