City of Sin

Book 5, 6

Unlikely Allies

As a sub-legendary mage in Faelor, Mito was more useful in strategy than in direct battle. So long as he didn’t make a move, the opposing sub-legendary warriors couldn’t either. Mages possessed far more destructive potential at this level, so revealing their locations would make them an easy target to kill.

However, the reverse was true as well. Once Mito’s location was revealed, he would be swarmed with countless opponents and killed off. If the grand mage had to go to the frontlines despite this fact, it was obvious how far the situation had devolved.

“Where’s Richard? Why aren’t you calling him back?” Raymond went wide-eyed. His army had destroyed Lutheris’ church when they first entered Faelor, and Richard currently had about the same military power. How could he not even take care of an intermediate deity like Neian?

Mito sighed, “We’ve already sent out six batches of messengers. There’s no news.”

Raymond turned solemn. He immediately understood that Faelor was currently time-locked, that the messengers likely wouldn’t even realise how much time had passed until they reached the other side and returned. However, he hadn’t thought just a regular holy war could cause such a thing.

He pondered over it for a long time, “Magister, are you sure you want to go out? Things shouldn’t be so dire yet, and the moment you’re seen you could be surrounded by enemies and killed off. While Faelor doesn’t have runes yet, their martial arts are quite decent. They won’t hesitate to kill you, regardless of the cost.”

“I am aware,” Mito smiled slightly, “But we have no way out. This time our opponents are natives, not another Norlander. They will figure out our identities once we surrender, and then we’ll be killed off anyway....”

After Mito left, Raymond hesitated for a few minutes before sending out a summon in his mind. A short while later, the enormous mosquito flew into the courtyard and stopped in front of him. Its proboscis actually vibrated, making sounds of Norland’s language, “What have you called me for? It is not yet time to replenish the fluids keeping you alive.”

“Are you the broodmother, or should I call you a cloned brain?” Raymond asked as he stood up.

The giant mosquito went silent for a while before speaking again. This time, its voice had changed from an emotionless grating to something more gentle and effeminate that was just as authoritative, “The broodmother now. You surprise me, Raymond Joseph.”

Raymond smiled, “Mages of Solomon have always been known for seeking the truth of the world. Seeds of war and destruction might be rare, but they are not unique. I already had my suspicions after the war, and the mosquito keeping me alive confirmed them.”

“So I assume there was something you wanted of me.”

“I believe we could cooperate....”

Within the courtyard, Raymond and a giant mosquito discussed matters for a long time. Nobody knew what kind of deal they made, but as dusk fell a group of humanoid knights came over and escorted him out.

......

Mito went to the frontlines as well, but not towards Kellac as was the original plan. He instead joined Andrieka’s army alongside a mysterious person dressed in black robes whose face was covered with a mask. Hundreds of new humanoid knights set off from the Land of Turmoil and joined the army as well.

That very day, Andrieka’s troop usage had changed completely. The army was now entirely unpredictable, the general’s control of the battlefield now bolstered by consummate strategy and tactics. They constantly escaped view before setting up ferocious ambushes that wore away at the 20,000 men they were facing. The allied soldiers now found it difficult to sleep; nightly attacks were now so common they had to be armoured at all times.

Neian’s powerhouses determined Mito’s whereabouts and started gathering, but Andrieka’s troops suddenly disappeared for multiple days without a sign. This was completely unthinkable, Neian’s allied forces should have been able to track anyone in the Bloodstained Lands right now.

Just as they were wondering whether the army fled, Andrieka appeared 200 kilometres away and ambushed a dukedom’s forces. Over 10,000 soldiers were immediately immersed in chaos, and Mito’s spells cut of all commands to amplify the effects. The army was utterly crushed, sinking into extreme terror before they scattered with all their might once they knew who they were facing. Andrieka never took prisoners.

After this battle, Kellac handed control of the entire army to Andrieka; Richard had given the broodmother the power to take over. The situation in the Bloodstained Lands changed completely. What was once mostly barren desert with a few oases now turned into a maze shrouded in thick fog. Richard’s troops appeared and disappeared without warning, always finding the weakest point of the allied armies and exterminating them ruthlessly.

Left with no choice, the allied forces gathered together. However, they were met with continuous attacks along the way and their supplies were eventually stolen or burnt. 30 kilometres from Bluewater, the troops were left with no choice but to stop and wait for resupply. Even an infinite army was useless if all of its soldiers were too hungry to fight.

However, that very night over 10,000 soldiers had gathered from Bluewater and attacked. Neian’s army hadn’t expected it at all, and despite the advantage in numbers they lost to sheer coordination. With all strategy complete, the cloned brain was showing its own prowess.

Raymond had formed a good synergy with the broodmother. He constantly sought out opportunities for battle, and she took care of the rest. When hundreds of armoured crows that were designed after the Forest Plane’s woodpecking crows flew out of the nearby swamps, the allied forces soon found themselves on the back foot.

The powerhouses serving Neian eventually found a long-awaited opportunity to fight Mito, but the grand mage from Norland exhibited power that those of Faelor just could not fathom. With the armoured crows distracting them with suicidal attacks, these sub-legendary warriors fell one after the other. Even more terrifying was the cloned brain. Its mind flaying was exceedingly dangerous; even though it could not kill directly, anyone left dazed would soon find themselves swarmed by armoured crows.

The broodmother herself made an appearance in this battle. Mito sustained grievous injuries, as did the cloned brain. Nearly all of the armoured crows died, while the broodmother herself was left with countless holes in her armour. However, two-thirds of the allied soldiers had been killed and the son of Neian sustained great injuries. He was only saved at the cost of nearly all of Neian’s paladins sacrificing themselves to stop the armoured crows.

After the battle, Mito returned to Oasis City to recover, while the broodmother returned to the Land of Turmoil. The cloned brain stayed, but only to function as an intermediary for the broodmother while she recovered.

However, Neian’s troops didn’t give up so easily. Another Child of God that nobody knew of silently approached the Land of Turmoil, chasing straight after the broodmother’s whereabouts. Multiple battles had proved that the Beetle Queen was the biggest threat amongst Richard’s subordinates, and this Child followed by three sub-legendary experts and ten saints sought to exterminate her.

All of Neian’s children were quite similar to himself, tall and handsome with flowing golden hair. Each inherited different abilities, and this one could buff his followers greatly and wouldn’t lose strength in a battle before he was killed. However, the Land of Turmoil was mysterious and full of danger. The beautiful strips of light in the sky only served to remind this party that this was a dead land filled with destruction, requiring great caution. Even Neian himself could not withstand running into too many spatial tears.

When they finally passed through the region with the most concentrated turbulence, they had lost two saints while a sub-legendary expert had lost one of his arms. However, what they came across was an enormous being with dozens of compound eyes floating in the sky, looking at the Child as though he was a glorious meal.

The Child halted his footsteps, feeling his entire body go cold as he felt fear for the first time in his life.