The walls of Purgatory were in sight just as light source was sending its initial rays into the sky behind me. I reached the gate where there was a summon monster outside.

“Open the gate in the name of Champion Michael!” I yelled out as I raced into the tunnel. I heard movement and the gate quickly opened. Soldiers in the red uniform of the RMPF quickly saluted me. A Captain came running out of the tower, half dressed. I saw several people in gray outfits standing around at the nearby buildings. Probably getting ready for an early day of grinding.

“Champion Michael!” The Captain saluted me.

“Listen closely, and transmit these orders to the plaza immediately under my authority. No one is to leave. The Ritualist will be here within a day or two at latest. Alert the plaza. Anyone with less than 100 Mind cannot be on the walls. Form up all Radiant Beam users to be here in eight hours for when I return along with summoners and anyone else capable of high speed running and fighting. Issue an emergency summons to Clarissa and General Smith at the plaza.” I took a deep breath and kept issuing orders. The Captain’s face paling with each sentence.

“Recall all hunting camps immediately. Send all the gray shirts to the plaza. Militia will be of little use. All Union teams are to be recalled and to be deployed to the East gate if they are available. Only token forces at the other gates. The majority of our defenses are to be here at the East gate. Sound all the alert bells. Repeat that back,” I said.

The Captain had a brain thankfully and quickly repeated my orders if a bit paraphrased but all the key points correctly. “Good, transmit them immediately, time is of the essence Captain,” I said and immediately rushed off towards the plaza.

I was really glad it was a straight road, since I was too exhausted to work out all the streets from memory. I heard bells ringing as I approached the outer loop. Soldiers saluted me as I rushed past the wall of buildings and into the plaza.

I immediately turned towards my home racing past a guard in a blue uniform who was rushing towards the East gate. Everyone was moving quickly it seemed. Clarissa was waiting for me outside my home. “Michael,” she greeted me. “The conference room is all set up.”

“Good, get water and food. After I speak, I am going to sleep for six hours. Wake me up after that. I need to lead an attack of attrition,” I said.

“Understood. Tell the kitchen to immediately prepare two platters of fruit and pure water and whatever fresh bread and butter is available for Champion Michael, at the conference room,” Clarissa told one of the guards who rushed off.

I followed Clarissa into the conference room. I could still hear the muted ringing of the bells through the walls. I took my seat at the head of the table, too exhausted to care who was here beyond General Smith and Clarissa.

“The Ritualist has around 2,500 level 3 hybrids and is about a day or two from our walls,” I said. There were tense faces all around the table. The tension level shot up. No one spoke. “I need to sleep and rest, and then I will lead an attack of attrition, with the Radiant Beam users and other summons. Hopefully we can do one or two of them before the Ritualist reaches the walls.”

“What about luring him into the city and using the City Shield?” General Smith asked. I let out a long sigh at that. It was the original plan if he showed up before.

“The Ritualist completely wiped the city of East Bastion, and it had a City Shield. He knows about them and how they affect summons and hybrids. And turned it into a factory for producing level 3 hybrids from new arrivals.” I noted Clarissa’s and Doctor Katz’s eyes grow wider at that. “No one with less than 100 Mind stands a chance. I would prefer to say 300, but no one but Naran and I have that.” There was a knock on the door. Clarissa looked at me and I nodded.

“Enter,” she called out. An older lady entered and set large tray of fruit, vegetables, bread, and cheese in front of me. Cheese, that was new. There was also a large pitcher of water.

“Thank you,” I said and waved her off. She bowed and quickly left the room.

“Where is Naran?” Clarissa asked.

“With the rest of my team. He will move in to attack the Ritualist from behind, once we are sieged.” I drank directly from the pitcher not caring about water pouring down my chin and chest armor. “I have been running for the last two days to reach here,” I said.

“Doctor Katz, weapons. Bombs. I need the most powerful force bombs we have. Easy to carry. Also all the other bombs we have,” I said.

“I will begin production immediately. There is only level 1 or 2 bombs at the moment. Do you want me to use the research crystals?” The good doctor asked. I winced at that.

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“Yes. Use everything and label it. If you don’t know for sure put your best guess with a question mark. I need bombs that are easy to throw and charge,” I said.

“A design has already been made,” Doctor Katz said.

“Good. Clarissa, is the City Shield ready and our reserves?” I asked.

“The City Shield is ready to activate, and we have around 750,000 points in our reserves,” Clarissa said.

“Save it for critical restorations. You have my permission to disburse it as necessary for the defense of the city,” I said, and Clarissa nodded. “Our best hope is to bunker the majority of our populace into the plaza while I engage in a war of attrition.”

“You sound sure the Ritualist will come and initiate a long term siege,” General Smith said. “It was war gamed out, that it would be far more effective for him to engage in hit and run strikes, using the other cities as resupply points.”

“He wants to kill me. He will only run if he gets desperate. If he runs we win, since a battle of attrition is one we can win. He has to break Purgatory and kill me. If he does, then nothing stands in his way. A lot of my strength comes from this city, while his strength is based on his ability to develop an army of hybrids,” I said and ate some food.

What I didn’t say was that it took time to ramp up a consumption chain like the Ritualist had done in East Bastion. That was why he had to win. If he didn’t I would grind him down. If he forced me to flee, he could build back up and I wouldn’t be able to easily defeat anymore. This was the best chance for me to win and he had to win otherwise he would lose through attrition.

There would be no retreat this time from the Ritualist. If he retreated, he was sure to know I would hunt him down and kill him. There would be no future wars. If I was forced to retreat, then I would be unable to beat him in any kind of direct confrontation going forward. I would be on the retreat and defensive, always looking over my shoulder.

“General Smith, you will see to our defenses at the East gate and prepare people to leave with me. Only a token force at the other gates. If the East gate is overrun, which will probably happen, then fall back to the plaza and draw the Ritualist into the city. Forcing him to commit as much of his army as possible,” I ordered.

“I will make the arrangements,” General Smith said.

“Everyone leave, I wish to speak to Clarissa alone,” I said. Everyone quickly left while I had some cheese and bread. In under a minute it was just Clarissa and me.

“Your super soldiers, where do we stand?” I asked.

“I have a unit of ten people available with 900 stats and enchanted gear. Do want to take them?” Clarissa asked.

“No. Hold them in reserve for after the City Shield is used. If I die or the city falls, Naran will be at my rendezvous spot, where I did my grind sessions East of Neo Brasilia,” I said.

“You want me to send runners to our satellite cities?” Clarissa asked.

“Do they have anyone with over 2,000 stat points?” I asked and she shook her head. “Then it is not worth it. At best they would be a distraction. At worst the Ritualist would add them to his army.”

“We can go nuclear and release consumption to the general public. Bill it as superpower rations that we have developed,” Clarissa said.

“Do it. Enough to get our key fighters over 100 stats in Mind at the very least. Say that it is experimental with unknown side effects. Make it optional,” I said.

“I will make the arrangements. Do you want me to make arrangements for you?” Clarissa asked. I hesitated. I really didn’t want to, but I could use a massive power boost. There were unknown risks.

“Anything long term come up?” I asked.

“Not yet, but we haven’t had the method of consumption for that long,” Clarissa replied. I let out a long sigh and drank some more water right from the pitcher, washing down the cheese and bread.

“No. I don’t trust something like that. I haven’t done negative energy training, and I am not going to eat hybrids,” I said.

“You could die,” Clarissa said.

“I could. But ingesting weird things for power, just seems like a very bad idea. We might even be crippling our people long term by doing this,” I said with a sigh.

“I have another trump card, I have prepared. It took a lot of work and arrangements. But I have one person with the skill Mind Jab with ten upgrades. Should I have use consumption?” Clarissa asked.

“How did you manage that?” I asked, shock radiating from my voice. Clarissa had gone above beyond.

“With great difficulty. Since summoners are weak to mental attacks through their monsters, I thought it was prudent to prepare another avenue of attack at one of their critical weaknesses. I even had the skill tested against someone who used consumption. Crippling headaches through their summons up to a Mind stat of 400 and then nothing by 800,” Clarissa explained.

“That is probably how the Ritualist has his Mind stat,” I added. Clarissa nodded at that.

“I know, so I thought on the issue. Upgrading the skill is too risky for what will happen if the cost goes up. But there is another way to make a skill stronger,” Clarissa said.

“Imbue type skills?” I asked and she nodded.

“Exactly that is also why I have two people, one each with Imbue Cold and Imbue Fire. The skills can stack. The mental attack deals physical damage as well. Unfortunately, those two people haven’t had the skills upgraded besides the first power upgrade,” Clarissa explained.

“To strike at him directly,” I muttered as I considered the possibility. “The issue is his high stats with consumption. The impact is limited. Mental attacks require less stats to block compared to other types of attacks, even if they are instant.” I had considered stacking imbues when looking at all the skills available, but the number of skill slots used up for a single attack was unacceptable in my mind. Depending on other people for my attacks, was also unacceptable. It worked for someone like Clarissa who could organize people.

“But there is an effect and damage is transmitted when tested through a summon or a hybrid. While it is minor, it is painful and distracting to feel your brain on fire and freeze at the same time,” Clarissa said.

“Keep it in reserve. With your special unit. They will all help with the push after we use the City Shield, now I need to get a quick shower and sleep,” I said and stood up. I was exhausted and needed to sleep.