yasinovel Chapter 1192: Under the Weight of Mana (4)
Chapter 1192: Under the Weight of Mana (4)
Chapter 1192: Under the Weight of Mana (4)
Heavy rain poured down on the Law Gate, droplets drumming against the metal and stone surfaces. The cold water flowed in rivulets down the fortification's walls.
The group gathered around the melted remains of the Vindicators. Metal and flesh had fused together into dark, viscous pools that steamed in the rain. Pieces of armor and weaponry lay scattered among the puddles of liquefied bio-matter. Somehow, they survived the corrosive fog. It was a grim scene.
Blood, burned metal, and chemical residue created an unpleasant atmosphere that persisted despite the rainfall.
Amber's corrosive gas lingered around, but the rain was making everything disappear. Even the rest of the Vindicators were being washed away by the rain.
Mira shifted back to her human form, rolling her shoulders to work out the tension. "Is everyone ok?"
The Chimaeric Demons checked their injuries. The battle had been tough, and they had been forced to be aggressive in order to pressure the Vindicators enough to prevent them from killing their comrades. Though they had already healed their wounds, the memory of the pain lingered.
"Minimal damage to report," a clone said, examining the scorch marks and healed gashes on his arm. "Our healing powers closed the worst injuries. We still have some surface wounds, but nothing critical."
Emily lowered her rifle, her hands trembling. She was utterly exhausted.
To survive this ordeal, she had to use a lot of mana, and now not much of it remained, while the mission was still at the beginning. There were at least four other Vindicators to kill and the barrier generators to destroy.
Emily had been on a rollercoaster of emotions-fear during the initial attack, panic when she realized she lost her radio, relief when June found the others, and now exhaustion as the adrenaline faded.
She had never been this close to death before, and it was an experience she didn't want to experience again. The memory of those bullets suspended in time, meters from her face, would haunt her for a long time. She shuddered, pulling her jacket tighter against the cold rain.
"We burned through a lot of mana, though," she said. "At least I did."
Emily looked terrible-her face was white, her hands shook, and exhaustion showed in her hunched shoulders and the bags under her eyes.
"What happened exactly?" Amber asked. "We tried reaching you on the radio, but you didn't answer."
"I lost it during the first attack," Emily said. "I was keeping an eye on you when I heard shots. I immediately slowed time down, only to find two mana bullets aimed at my head, and June was on his way to intercept them."
Everyone turned to look at the clone, unsure whether to feel proud or angry about June's stupid stunt. It was a reckless move that could have gotten him killed, but also an incredibly brave act that would have saved Emily's life if she hadn't realized what was happening.
"If June didn't find you, I would be dead by now." The clone shrugged, as if that was the most natural thing to do.
"Thanks," Emily said. June simply nodded and then went back to monitoring the surroundings.
"We need to move," one of the Chimaeric Demons said.
"But security knows we're here now. The whole fortress will be on alert. Moving around will be much harder than before."
Everyone nodded in agreement. However, everyone knew that the Vindicators finding them out was inevitable.
The Vindicators were elite soldiers whose expertise matched their powers. While Emily and the others could hold their own in a fight, they lacked formal training and experience. The same went for the Chimaeric Demons-their infiltrations owed more to their brain crystal powers than skills. Without these, they would have struggled far more than any trained operative on such a mission.
"Erik's not going to like this complication," Mira said.
"We'll deal with that later. Right now, we need to disappear," Amber said. The group moved toward the building's far side, away from where the battle had happened.
Emily glanced at June as they walked. "Next time you want to take a bullet for me, give me some warning."
June smiled. "Where's the fun in that?"
Moving through the shadows, Emily couldn't shake the memory of those suspended bullets and June's willingness to sacrifice himself for her.
"We need to be more careful moving forward," Mira said, turning to the Chimaeric Demons.
Emily frowned. "Are you sure the barrier masters are our best option? There might be more
valuable candidates out there."
Amber nodded.
"After we destroy the generators, we could send them to reinforce the main battlefield. The
army needs protection from the artillery units."
She paused. "I don't know how the situation outside the walls is, but I bet we lost a lot of
troops."
Nods of agreement rippled through the group.
"Go take the bodies, then we are going to create teams again," Amber said. "One Chimaeric Demon scouts with Mira. Another stays with Emily and June, another with me."
The Chimaeric Demons headed back to where they had killed the barrier masters. The area was chaotic-the earlier assassination had already drawn attention, and Erik's ongoing fight had only made things worse. Though soldiers swarmed the location, the Chimaeric Demons were confident they could handle the situation.
Emily slumped against a wall. She needed to rest. "Did you expect all of this when we
started?"
Amber shrugged. While she had anticipated hardships, she hadn't known exactly what to expect. Mira, on the other hand, did.
"In my mercenary days, we faced worse. Thaids make these Vindicators look tame by comparison. There's a reason mercenaries hunt in groups."
While the Vindicators were more powerful than the Thaids Mira had faced with her mercenary
group, the tactical approach needed was similar, especially considering the power disparity
was almost the same.
"Hunting needs perfect strategy," she said. "And even better escape plans when things go
wrong."
Emily and Amber exchanged tired sighs. The rain intensified, washing away blood and debris from their earlier battle.
Minutes later, the Chimaeric Demons returned, each carrying two barrier masters' bodies.
Amber examined their recovered bodies, then motioned toward the fortress's center. "Let's
move. The generators won't destroy themselves."
The clones resurrected the six.
The group moved out, hugging the shadows of buildings while using the rain as natural cover.
One Chimaeric Demon led alongside Mira.
Then the two shapeshifted and went scouting ahead.
"Protect Emily and June," Amber said.
The Chimaeric Demons formed a protective circle around them.