3rd Person POV
"Divine magic: Eyes of the gods." Lucas chanted, causing his eyes to glow up.
The spell allowed him to see everything past the snowstorm and check the inside of the base. And it seemed like there was already a leak as he could see figures armed and readied at every door of the base. Lucas was at a vantage point with Bryan while the rest are spread out surrounding their secret base, which was holed up into a mountain.
"Bryan, it seemed like there are no slaves at this base...unless the slaves are also armed." He commented.
"I see...then the possibility of just blowing it up entirely is still on the table." Bryan responded, "Because their strongest should barely survive the blast, and we can capture them then."
"Not only that...you all mobilized within a day, we got a mole, a good one too."
"Can you regroup everyone for a second?"
"To check for the mole? That's a -"
"I know, but I just want them all in one place. I want no one to leave the area, and this information should only be shared between you and me. I'm going inside to check."
"Alone?"
"Yep, I should take...let's say 7 hours. Rest until then, we'll attack in 8 when they're tired from waiting."
"Should I at least leave a few to surround their base? I'll make sure to keep an eye on them from afar at all times."
"Sure."
"Last question, the slaves have brands on their necks, right?"
"Yes. It's at a spot that is visible to everyone and doesn't compromise their looks."
"Spectral magic: Phantom Step." Lucas cast as he then vanished into thin air."
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Lucas moved through the base unseen and each room he entered was the same: soldiers standing on high alert, weapons drawn, scanning their surroundings and waiting for the order to attack. But there were no signs of branded slaves, not a single one. The eerie silence gnawed at him.
"Not a single mark," he thought, his eyes narrowing. "If they're hiding them, it's deeper than I thought, either that or...they've moved their assets."
He made his way past barracks, supply rooms, and a few hastily constructed workshops. The soldiers were disciplined, though none seemed to possess abilities that could detect his presence. Still, he stayed cautious, keeping his movements slow and light. When he reached the largest room at the center of the base, he paused. It felt empty and full at the same time. He considered slipping inside but decided against it. If there were any traps or alarms, they'd likely be concentrated there.
He confirmed it with his divine sight, it was empty, apart from one piece of magic equipment inside, used to fool treasure hunters. The room was more than likely trapped, however, there were none elsewhere. And the members of Famus weren't that strong, maybe a few whose strength rivaled Bryan's.
"No slaves, no detection spells, and no defenses that are specifically countering invisibility. They're confident...too confident." he thought, "I could kill while doing this, but a death of one would cause this place to go into lockdown, being trapped might get me killed."
The walls of this place also contain a lot of mana and are made of materials that are rarer than that of a royal palace. It was way too strong, not only that, but he found several mana generators that powered this place up. A base of any kind would have such generators, a suggestion on blowing this place up is reckless, that's never the plan unless you're desperate.
A captain is smarter than that.
"But these generators..." Lucas thought, "There's too many of them, turning them off is also impossible as I don't understand such technology that well...and a wrong move would blow me up."
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Lucas returned to the vantage point where Bryan waited, his expression guarded as he rematerialized. Bryan flinched for a bit, but he calmed down after a while. It's been 5 hours, faster than he thought.
"Anything?" Bryan asked.
"No slaves," Lucas confirmed. "I checked every room I could without tipping them off. Unless they're hiding them in a pocket dimension or buried underground, they're not here. The place can be blown up."
"Then we go with the plan."
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
"No...we'll fight head on, I want to preserve the base. Spread everyone out and surround the base. Tell them to stay at least fifty meters away. The mole should flush them out, if not...In 2 hours, have them cast their spells simultaneously."
"Understood," Bryan said, "What happens the mole flushed them out? I'm very confident in our skills, but they outnumber us by 10 at least."
"Don't worry, 99 excluding the mole is more than enough to fight them head-on. I'm here."
"Overconfidence can-"
"Just don't get your necks cut off, I can't heal death, so don't fight recklessly."
"How will you know not to heal the traitor?"
"If there's one, he'll be dead before you have any time to worry."
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Lucas did not sleep throughout the night as he continued to monitor the area.
"Divine Magic: Divine Hearing." he chanted.
At first, it was nothing but idle chatter and nervous breathing, the kind of tension that built before an attack. His eyes roamed across the positions he'd memorized earlier, finally settling on Bryan, stationed at another vantage point. Something about his stance felt off. Lucas frowned. He did suspect it a little bit.
Bryan should've reacted more when he'd mentioned the possibility of a mole earlier. His lack of offense, his measured calmness...it didn't sit right. If anyone accused the groups of having traitors, he should have demanded more proof or pushed back immediately. But Bryan? Nothing. The thought lingered like a bitter taste in Lucas's mouth. Corruption had been a growing problem lately, creeping through the ranks like a slow poison. Lucas had kept his eyes open, watching for signs even within his trusted circle. So far, there had been no proof, no slip-ups. Nothing.
Until now.
Bryan moved suddenly, lifting something in his hand...a call crystal. Lucas's breath caught as he watched the man activate it. Still, a sliver of hope persisted, the smallest flicker that perhaps he was mistaken.
"Now." Bryan hissed to the crystal.
The single word shattered Lucas's hope, confirming his worst suspicions as men started to flood outside of the base, running at him.
"A bit cliché, don't you think? The most trusted being the traitor." he joked silently to himself.
But what truly surprised him wasn't Bryan. It was everyone else. The men stationed around the base, all one hundred of them, began to join in the attack with no hesitation toward Lucas' position in perfect coordination. Bryan wasn't the only one. They were all in on it.
"Spectral magic: Phantom Step."
He vanished and reappeared silently behind Bryan.
"You should've been more upset when I mentioned the possibility of a mole," Lucas said while coldly glaring at him, "So tell me, Bryan. Are you all in on it with Famus?"
"Does it matter?" Bryan asked flatly before lunging forward, his blade arcing toward Lucas.
Lucas sighed, stepping back to avoid the blow with ease. His hand reached up to the necklace he wore, a small trinket designed to suppress his power, and tore it off. A surge of energy erupted from him. The air grew heavy, and an oppressive pressure forced even the sturdiest men to their knees. The soldiers froze, their eyes wide with shock as the immense power bore down on them, a weight that felt like gravity itself. Even Brayn had to kneel down as the pressure crushed him from above.
"Chain Magic: Lockdown."
Chains flew from his body and latched onto their targets, one by one. Chains wrapped tightly around their bodies, binding their arms and legs, incapacitating all the soldiers and the raid target. Only Bryan wasn't, but that's only because Lucas had another spell ready.
"Chain Magic: Prometheus' Chains."
Thick, glowing chains erupted from the ground, far larger and more intricate than the ones before. They shot toward Bryan, wrapping around his arms, legs, and torso with a force that shook the ground. He struggled, but the chains tightened, glowing brighter as they locked him in place. This was Lucas's strongest locking spell, the same one that had once held the Demon Lord.
No amount of strength could break free. Bryan glared at him, teeth clenched in frustration, but Lucas's expression didn't change. He stood firm, staring down at the man trapped before him.
But before he could do anything, he felt death. He then turned to the soldiers and back at Bryan as all the soldiers suddenly bit down on something. A golden liquid spilled from their mouths, glinting unnaturally under the moonlight. One by one, they collapsed to the ground, lifeless.
"What...?"
He was certain no poison could escape his senses, yet here it was, hidden right under his nose. How did they conceal it? His thoughts raced as the golden liquid began to seep from their bodies, pooling together and dissolving their armor, weapons, and flesh into the same glowing substance. The liquid moved unnaturally, defying gravity as it surged upward, forming a floating orb of gold in the sky. The sight set Lucas on edge.
"Lightning magic: Zeus' Fury."
Lucas shot a barrage of lightning bolts toward it. But before they could reach it, more golden liquid from the bodies below shot up, merging with the orb and growing larger and took no effect from the spell. The spell fizzled out upon contact, unable to stop the transformation.
The orb pulsed once, then detonated. A blinding, golden explosion erupted outward, consuming everything in its path. The ground trembled violently, cracks spiderwebbing across the earth as the shockwave tore through the landscape. Trees ignited instantly, their leaves and trunks reduced to ash in the searing heat. Rocks disintegrated, and the once-solid terrain melted into glowing molten craters.
The force of the blast hurled debris miles into the air, shards of earth and fragments of incinerated structures hurtling like projectiles in every direction. The glowing remnants of the explosion created a fiery haze that painted the night sky gold, its light visible from miles away. The shockwave traveled fast, carrying destruction to the capital walls, even causing a tremor in the area.
Debris rained down upon the capital of the Northern Peak Kingdom like meteors, crashing against the walls and startling the soldiers stationed there. They braced themselves, staring in horror at the golden glow fading into the distant horizon.
And then they saw it.
A massive shadow began to take form within the golden haze, its figure towering above the ruins of the explosion. A figure so enormous it seemed to pierce the heavens themselves. Its silhouette was otherworldly, its presence exuding an overwhelming sense of dread. The soldiers on the wall froze, their breath hitching as they stared at the colossal being. It loomed over the horizon like a living nightmare.
From within the golden haze, a voice spoke, shaking the air like thunder.
"Finally..." it boomed, "Not as strong as my true body...just as I expected."
The figure then started to move.
"But it feels good to be free."