Chapter 502 502 Deductive Reasoning
Chapter 502 502 Deductive Reasoning
Chapter 502 502 Deductive Reasoning
502 502 Deductive Reasoning
They stayed higher up in the cloud cover as they made their getaway from the army unit, keeping the throttles at maximum output to push the plane to nearly three hundred kilometres an hour.
That was more than it was ever intended to do without magic, and Wolfe could feel that the Mana draw had increased to keep the structure rigid, but they were on their way to the border and had every intent of helping their allies before the invasion could start.
They should have known that the Witches wouldn't keep their word or give time to evacuate, but somehow, Wolfe had hoped they would wait at least a few days.
"You know, going by the speed that these monsters are advancing, either they have some stronger curses out here somewhere, or they started dropping some of these before they sent the warning.
The ones I am detecting are taking over a day to go from Rank One to Rank Two, and at least four days to Rank Three. Now, some of them could have been close, so it might be a coincidence, but how many Rank Two monsters did you see on a regular basis? Not many. So, they've had a couple of days under the influence already." The Faerie noted.
"In short, they're not to be trusted, and they had lied to us from the very start. They were never going to let the locals relocate. They just wanted them to come out of their dens, so they would be easier targets." Wolfe realized.
"That's just dirty. We need to warn the locals. But how do we do it if the Witches are here with radios? They'll either attack early because we've caught on or block the signal in the areas they're targeting, so the ones in danger never know." The Witch asked.
"We will have them send runners. They still have some scouts out, at least for now. We will ask them to be extra careful with the Witches on the prowl and get the message passed around that the invasion is starting early. I had hoped we would have another chance to supply everyone, but it looks like that isn't going to happen." Wolfe added with a sigh.
"The density of the curses near here is higher as well. I think that these are the ones that have been making them, and they're distributing them as they move. Or at least, they're doing part of the work because they're putting quite a few of the Cursed Amulets around them.
I want to fix it, but that would draw far too much attention. The Witch that cast it should feel if a curse that close to her is being broken, especially ones that are this powerful and evil." The Faerie explained.
"And they brought a force that is stronger than I can deal with easily. If they split up into smaller groups, it might not be such an issue, but with that many powerful witches together, they could take on any force on this continent, possibly all of them at once, unless we broke out the Null Stone.
That might be our go-to plan. If we gather up Null Stone from the humans who are allied with us, we can use it against the Witches and remind them that they aren't impervious to their own trickery.
I suspect that the Grand Dutchies are going to do exactly that when the Witches come for their oil patch and mines inside the Frozen Wastes."
The Faerie flitted down from her seat to point at the map. "This is where we are now, almost to the Grand Dutchies border. In another sixty kilometres, they will be coming into the first signs of development.
The Mundane Army should have detected them by now, since they're using so much magic at once. Their equipment didn't have any problem finding witches from a distance last winter, and they are usually flying drones overhead.
So, I think that they aren't coming to the villages yet. That force is for the Grand Dutchies Army, to keep them in line."
That gave Wolfe a few ideas. He would warn the locals not to attack the Grand Dutchies right away. If the Witches were going to push them back out of the Frozen Wastes on their own, it was better for the locals to bury themselves deep underground and hide until the threat was past.
They were good at that, and excellent at evading detection by both humans and magical beasts. They could make it look like nobody was left here, and then they could emerge after the army had left to go about their lives as usual.
First, Wolfe needed to put some protective spells over the region, though, to keep out hostile forces. He would be sure to target those who were intending to invade the villages so that there would be no confusion or accidental activation of the spell that would alert the Witch army of their presence, but they would have to be fairly strong to do the job when they were called upon.
That shouldn't be a problem, as long as they were deep enough underground.
Being so close to the Grand Dutchies' borders, Wolfe assumed that they would be well hidden, avoiding any sort of high-tech sensor, but you never could really tell where a village would be.
"That is the drop point for supplies. I am going to hop out here. You two keep flying until you're across the Grand Dutchies border, then circle back through the mountains well away from here. I will be finished in an hour, one way or another, so you can come pick me up then." Wolfe instructed.
"Alright. We will do our best to lure anyone who is monitoring us into the Grand Dutchies. I've got Faerie Illusions on my side if they get too aggressive on the human side, so don't worry, we will be here to pick you up." The Fae assured him.
Wolfe gave one last look at the Witch in the Pilot's seat, then patted her head and whispered in her ear.
"Don't get shot down. That's an order."
Then, for the second time today, he jumped out of a perfectly good aircraft.