novelA Subsurface War (12)
| ← Ch.234 | Ch.236 → |
Everyone has a final card they can play. This is especially the case for people on the verge of a defeat that would spell their demise.
In Desir's case, space-movement magic was his final card.
Space movement magic.
One of the most advanced spells in the modern system of magic. It was a class of magic that allowed the wielder to completely ignore the constraints of space itself.
The formula was convoluted, and the amount of mana it consumed was enormous. Unless it was a magician who mainly dealt with space magic, it was a magic that even the most seasoned magician would struggle to even contemplate calculating.
*Whoo-woo-ooh*
* * *
A lab in a tower.
It was originally outfitted to test the power of magic equipment. Instead, it was now filled with numerous magic arrays and calculation tools to assist the caster.
It was a temporary teleportation gate. At the center of the space stood Zod Exarion.
The vast spell array unfolded before him. It was the first time he had invoked a spell of such magnitude since he battled the homunculus in the war on the Outsiders.
He had invoked a spell that was several ranks harder than any other spatial magic. Invoking this spell would shift the target to the caster, instead of the other way around.
A recall teleportation.
There were a lot more variables and factors to consider in comparison to normal space movement magic, which was already incredibly difficult.
It was a spell method only possible for someone at Zod's level. The calculations were onerous, even with aids, and the required amount of mana was something even the Seventh-Circle Zod was only barely able to provide and withstand the effects of.
He put it all on the line. Mana began to swirl around him. At the same time, particles began to cluster, one by one, at the center of the spell array on the floor.
The spell had been activated. Just as his mighty mana pool ran dry, figures finally formed. Desir, Adjest, and Crow Mask had appeared.
The spell had succeeded.
Desir and Adjest fell to the floor, losing all strength in their legs."That was a really close call."
"It was great timing."
"... I'm glad you're all alright, but I'd rather not be in a situation where I have to cast this spell again."
Zod Exarion breathed a sigh of relief. It was partly because the difficulty of the magic itself was high, but the situation itself was extremely dangerous too.
"If you hadn't gotten our signal, that would have been the end of us."
Immediately after Skull Mask appeared, Desir contacted Zod through communication magic. There was no problem in doing so because the tower's communication jamming spell had been lifted earlier. He didn't even have to say anything. All he had to do was send a predetermined signal. Thus, Desir dragged out the conversation with Skull Mask as much as possible, buying the necessary time for Zod to complete his recall teleportation spell.
"Zod, I need to tell you the important... urgh." "I think we'd better start with your treatment."
Zod replied after seeing Desir's face distorted in pain.
Although he pretended to be okay so as not to show his weakness in front of Skull Mask, Desir's injuries were certainly serious.
"Come in."
The door of the laboratory opened and a small army of medical personnel rushed in. They had been waiting outside the laboratory, careful not to disturb the operation of Zod's spell.
"Did you succeed, old man?"
The Saint came in along with the medical staff.
She was delighted to see that the magic had succeeded, but when she saw how injured Adjest and Desir were, her face soon turned pale and she immediately prepared to activate her powers.
The medical staff moved busily, stripping the completely worn out Clothes Lines, as well as wiping and disinfecting the wounds.
The Saint grasped the arms of Adjest and Desir. She had the ability to restore anyone at a rapid pace, far faster than any technology or medical practitioner could. That ability was nothing short of miraculous. In fact, that is actually what it was referred to as by many.
Dozens of wounds all over their bodies recovered at a speed obvious to the eye. Desir's right arm was even un-twisted and recovered.
Apart from the dizziness of losing too much blood, their conditions stabilized.
With the treatment complete to some extent, Zod pointed to the man Desir had brought along with him.
"Who is he?"
It was a man disfigured with burns, and crumpled disgracefully in a heap. The medical staff inspected him and had no idea where to start. It would not have been strange if he were to take his final breath at any moment. The Saint automatically reached her hand out to place on his chest to begin treatment.
"It's Crow Mask."
Hearing those words, Priscilla's hand stopped moving."What?"
"This is Crow Mask?"
Zod and Priscilla could not hide their embarrassment at not recognizing him immediately. Who was Crow Mask?
He was the single most wanted person after persistently plaguing the Western Kingdoms and Empire. He was in effect the greatest enemy that had single-handedly allowed the Outsiders to become so much of a threat.
Crow Mask, one of their greatest enemies, lay in front of them completely defenseless."If you've subdued Crow's Mask, aren't the Outsiders pretty much done for now?"
"Even if you didn't get the information you needed, we might have a better shot at pressuring the Kingdom of Divide if we reveal that we caught Crow Mask here..."
"There's no time. We need to get out of Divide, now."
Hearing Desir's urgent, almost frantic tone, only served to inflate their curiosity further. They couldn't imagine just what had transpired in the tower.
"What the hell happened?"
They also needed a minimum explanation before moving. It couldn't be helped."The situation is volatile right now, so I'll explain briefly."
Desir gave Priscilla and Zod a bare minimum explanation of what had happened. He described his victory in the battle against Crow Mask, as well as the appearance of Skull Mask. He also revealed that the tower had an additional purpose, concealed behind the obvious manufacturing of chimeras.
Finally, and most importantly, he recounted the true goal of Skull Mask, and how it was closely related to the Shadow Worlds.
Zod and Priscilla, who had been listening intently to Desir, could not keep their jaws shut. Each time they got a hold on things, the next bombshell revelation would sweep them off their feet again.
Desir understood how they felt. He had also been surprised as he discovered these. However, while Desir shared everything they needed to know, this was only a part of what he had learnt. There was simply not enough time to go in greater detail.
"I'll talk about this more later. The problem is, right now, we need to get out of Divide as quickly as possible."
"I see. Now that I know this much, I'm not going to stay idle."
Understanding the situation, Zod nodded his head and agreed with Desir's judgement.
Until now, Skull Mask had not been able to move at will. This all changed after the Outsiders sunk their claws into the Western Kingdom Union, masquerading as the Kingdom of Divide. But now that Skull Mask knew that Desir knew about the tower and even managed to capture Crow Mask, hiding behind Divide no longer meant anything to him.
This was the most dangerous time to be here.
The Outsiders could move unpredictably without any inhibition or a need to be subtle. The tough fight was over, but there was no room for relief.
"So, that's why they took such action..." "What happened?"
He explained what had happened after Desir had left to aid Swan.
As a result of the battle at the tower, the noise cancelling magic had been disrupted and the participants of the Great Council noticed that some kind of battle was being waged within Pittsburgh. The King of Divide stopped the meeting, announcing that it was the work of the Outsiders yet again.
"And, after that, they blocked the way out of the country by teleportation gate. This all happened about half an hour ago."
"As an excuse, he said it was because he was concerned about the terrorists attacking the VIPs of the meeting as they made their way to the teleport gate."
'He is not going to let anyone escape. ' The Outsiders' goal was too obvious.
The teleportation gate was the easiest way out of the country. 'And Pierrot Mask was with us then. '
Without the use of space travel magic, it was an impossible physical feat to cross the borders of Divide. If the Outsiders mobilized Divide's military force, there was no chance of victory for the Allied troops.
"Where are the other kings?"
"They are all waiting in his abode, following the King of Divide's request to remain calm until the terror attacks subsided."
The whole picture was now complete.
Desir and Adjest readied themselves after tower staff handed over new sets of Clothes Lines it had been keeping in reserve for them.
As they did this, Crow Mask's treatment was mostly completed. However, they deliberately did not restore him to full health. His consciousness had not yet returned, so Desir put his hand on his back, feeling out his mana circles.
Desir put a restriction on Crow Mask's circles by injecting some of his now-recovered mana. After doing this, Crow Mask wouldn't be able to act hastily anymore.
'I must take him. '
Desir did not do this out of kindness. He was one of the key executives of the Outsiders and Desir was certain he would get a lot of information from him. This was the only reason why Desir was willing to bring Crow Mask, despite the security threat he posed.
"We need to rescue the kings of the Western Kingdom Union and get out of Divide through the teleportation gate."
Desir began to give instructions."In the end, this is what it comes to."
"I'm so glad you prepared troops in advance."
The Kingdom of Divide has significant military power and they wouldn't dare to compete with it if they had not prepared their troops in advance.
"Our power level is similar. We can win against them." "Even so, we should not let our guard down."
No matter how many troops the Allied Forces had on their side, it was only at a level that could cope with unexpected situations in the imperial capital. It was not enough to wage war with.
If more enemy soldiers were to gather in the capital, things would quickly get out of hand.
Furthermore, the power of the Outsiders themselves could not be ignored.
| ← Ch. 234 | Ch. 236 → |