“You really can handle it all on your own?” Clarissa asked me.

“Yes. Even aerial combat. With my energy reserves, I can spam my skills and not have to worry about energy. But ten level 4 monsters would be the limit. And if they can counter my Acid Shot,” I replied.

“Well, I made the arrangements, so it will be all on you. Try not to break a pillar this time,” Clarissa said while sipping juice. We were enjoying breakfast together in private before the city upgrade happened. This meant being in the conference room, not the usual dining area, above the mess hall.

“Don’t worry, I can handle them in the air. So not a big deal,” I replied.

“We also have two people who have petitioned to join the Immortal Council. They brought level 4 monster crystals,” Clarissa said.

“Anyone I know and more importantly, any meta-points?” I asked.

“No and no. They presented several level 4 crystals of the same monster, so not a one off like Death had been. You want to form the Immortal Council?” Clarissa asked me. I considered the question.

“Two people, not their full team?” I asked.

“They were the only two to actually confront the level 4 monsters, as a team,” Clarissa explained. I shook my head.

“Put it off to day 750. That way if any more applicants show up, we can do it all then, or it won’t matter,” I explained.

“You don’t want to read them into our escape plan?” Clarissa asked.

“Would they go along with it and leave everyone else behind? We can’t save a large group and their stats are what, 1,500 in total?” I asked.

“Around there from what I have gathered,” Clarissa answered and I shook my head.

“The Envoy was around 10,000 stat points and the Divine Empress probably around 100,000 total stat points. They wouldn’t do anything, except die horribly. At the moment, I am the only combatant that can stand up to her minion,” I said with a heavy sigh.

“So, delay then and it won’t be a problem. Very well. The preparations are complete by the way,” Clarissa said.

“Oh, even the enchanted Astrolabes?” I asked.

“Yes. One had been hidden in each of the five cities, and five more out in various zones. The infiltration cells that have been set up know what to do once the alert goes out that Purgatory has fallen. The bad news, is that we can’t take stuff out of the city purchased buildings. Something stops us, just like we can’t take the Rod of Control out of the city,” Clarissa explained.

“That is unfortunate to hear. But not unexpected. It would be nice to relocate some key assets with us when we escaped.”

“There is more. Once the alert goes out, we are going to lose all our property inside the city. In case it can be used to track us and confirm our life or death,” Clarissa said.

“I had missed that. Good thinking. The esoteric methods of this people who have been here before us are the most concerning thing to be honest. Their understanding of energy far exceeds ours, better not to take any risks. The updated map?” I asked. Clarissa pulled out a sheet of paper from her pants suit and pushed it over to me. I unfolded it and looked at all the locations that had been marked.

I repeated them multiple times into my head. “Me and you are the only people who will know all the locations of our supply depots. For the astrolabes, the locations will be known by each cell. One for their city and the one outside their city,” Clarissa explained.

“Smart. Decompartmentalize all the information and knowledge we can. The cells know each other?” I asked.

“Each cell has one person that knows of another cell. That is it. So, information can be chained, but if it is broken, then it is still connected the other way. It will get messy. I have reformed the special operations unit. Once the Divine Empress acts, they will go with you to the West,” Clarissa said.

I nodded at that. It had always been our plan to counterattack. You can’t win by being on the defensive. “I will be moving to a top secret location.” Clarissa added and I looked at her.

“I am guessing you aren’t going to tell me in case I am captured?” I asked.

“Or mind read. I will be dispatching people to the various cells to direct them and moving constantly to avoid capture. If you wait at a cell or leave a message, it will find its way back to me. I am not taking any chances Michael,” Clarissa explained to me.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

“First Naran and now you. Everyone is planning to leave,” I said with a sigh.

“Go into hiding and we still haven’t told Naran. Are you sure you don’t want to?” Clarissa asked me.

“He made his choice and stopped his pursuit of power. That means he understands he is at the whims of the Systemic Lands and any tyrant passing through. He knows far better than most. But I won’t object if he gets a message once we retreat into the wilderness,” I said.

“I will make the arrangements. Any luck thinking of a way?” Clarissa asked me. I shook my head slowly.

“No. The issue is one of pure speed and danger sense. Those two things combined are near insurmountable. A large scale bomb?” I asked her.

“Testing is happening, but the annihilation effect does not stack. You can’t put two or even nine bombs together and get a much larger explosion than a single bomb. Based on our estimates it would take a level 67 bomb to encompass an entire city. Chaining bombs won’t work, since everything resets that isn’t in a building,” Clarissa explained.

“This building, is it rigged to blow?” I asked.

“Yes. It has been made into a death trap. Hopefully we can catch the Divine Empress, but I am not going to count on it. There is one more issue.” Clarissa hesitated which was unlike her.

“What is it?” I asked.

“The mothers and children. What should we do with them?” My heart dropped. “We have sixteen children, ranging in ages from half a year to just over a year old.” I was remembering correctly the first birth was 400 days ago.

“You are asking me? You are the one who handles personnel management,” I countered, and Clarissa let out a sigh.

“It would be thirty-five people, the children, their mothers, and three fathers. That many people is a huge investment and it would slow down our escape from the city,” Clarissa said.

“Meaning it couldn’t be concealed, bringing children into the wilderness.” I lowed my head into my hands. What a disaster. This is another reason that children should never have been born in the first place here in Purgatory.

“I had thought the Astrologer was exaggerating with his talk of demonic babies, but after your report…” Clarissa trailed off.

“What is the trade off?” I asked.

“Our stockpile of crystals and points. That would be about twenty points per day per person for upkeep on average. So about 700 points per day. But the real risk are the numbers and the initial movement.”

“If we are going to save the children, we can’t hesitate or wait until things devolve into chaos. Neither of us can afford to be burdened with infants during that critical time period. That is just asking for a tragedy to happen. Round them up and ship them to Heaven. Then have them move into a new base outside of that city, to the Southeast near Scum Lake in the level 2 zone.”

“It is not next to any void zones except diagonally. And it far East. I would say the East Bastion, but no way they will survive a level 3 zone with the environmental effects. And let’s arrange for that today.”

“Even with the celebration planned? The absence of the babies will be noticed,” Clarissa asked me.

“Then first thing tomorrow morning. The fact the Divine Empress has diviners and they can sense from such a long distance, the city upgrade will probably send up an alert. I would expect a response within a couple of days,” I said.

“I hadn’t considered that. Very well, I will arrange for them to flee to the East. Maybe send Naran with them? He might like that?” Clarissa asked me.

“You handle it and do what you think is best. I leave the personnel management in your hands and Naran isn’t on my team anymore,” I answered with a hint of regret.

“Very well. That should be about everything, unless you wanted to bring up something else?” Clarissa asked me.

“No. But don’t disappear on me in the wilderness,” I said.

“I have killed monsters Michael and I have been investing into my stats.”

“How much do you have now?” I asked.

“Nowhere close to you. But I have over 1,500. Most in Mind, but I have been spreading them out recently in preparation for this evacuation,” Clarissa told me, and I nodded.

“If you die Clarissa and I have to manage everything, I will never forgive you,” I said and gave her a small smile. Once the city fell, there would be no time to say goodbyes.

“I don’t plan on it. Don’t get lost. I expect you to have at least three meta-points when you turn up again and joking how we made a big fuss over nothing,” Clarissa said in her usual dead pan, but I noticed she had a slight smile as well.

We weren’t saying goodbye, but we were saying goodbye. I didn’t care if it sent up a lot of death flags, once I left after the city upgrade, I would be grinding and there would be no way to send me any word with the properties transferred out of my name.

It was very likely the Divine Empress would act during this time and Purgatory would fall. With Clarissa hopefully escaping and establishing a resistance and then I would set out to the West to investigate the Divine Empress’s Empire and seek to undermine it, while gathering information on her combat level.

It was one thing to say a low level 5, but I had no idea what that really meant, or any tricks she might pull out. Information before the fight was even more important than the fight itself. I had worked so hard to establish this city and now it was all going to disappear.

I hadn’t asked Clarissa who she was going to save. That was her decision in the end. I couldn’t worry about any of that. The mental baggage would slow me down. I knew Clarissa was frustrated, angry, and so many other words to describe the rage she had to be feeling, losing quite a bit and being forced to run.

This wasn’t like a game where the Divine Empress would just stroll on in and we would all get to leave after being defeated. A high Body stat, meant no escape once she locked on. The only idea I had was about running into high level zones to try and throw her off or a tower, but that was like leaping out of the frying pan into an erupting volcano. Who knows, there might be volcanos in level 5 zones?

I got up and followed Clarissa outside to the store pillars. The broken one had already been repaired. Chests of crystals were brought out. I smiled at the small amount compared to what I had earned in my last grinding session. I began to cash the crystals in. It was time to see what a level 4 city was all about.