The Systemic Lands

Chapter 458: Day 901 (3) – It’s A Reverse Trap!

Chapter 458: Day 901 (3) – It’s A Reverse Trap!

“Zin Bin!” I heard the distorted and muffled words next to my head, but nothing triggered. At that moment I felt absolutely nothing trying to disable me. Hopefully that meant that the energy I had used around my ears and the damage I had done to my hearing was enough to stop a verbal disablement. I crossed my fingers, letting Captain Francis keep my protection detail back, as I collapsed to the ground without a word. The captain knew the sign. If he didn’t intervene, then no one else should intervene. It was a lot of trust I placed in him, but if things went poorly, I could always start shouting and giving orders.

There was a chance I had already gotten rid of the problem. So, playing along would only help. I felt danger approaching, and while I was on my back, I looked straight up and saw a ripple of energy. Acid Shot x5. Force Wave.

Whatever was coming at me from above meant a wall of annihilation. Their skill or attack consumed in my response, but I stayed on the ground, not moving as bits of burnt flesh and the occasional drop of acid rained down around me.

That was one threat down. I then noted plummeting humanoid golems. Massive metal warriors that reminded me of that one golem from the tower. There were six of them. They landed across the plaza, squashing several and causing the ground to shake. I could tell they were hybrids since they had human appearances that were colored with silver.

Squinting upwards, I noted an airship way up in the sky. The Avatar had made her move. It was not something that I was expecting, but using summons was an obvious method of attack. Air dropping high level hybrids was inspired. It made me wonder how she was able to create them.

A bell rang out, which was the signal for the soldiers waiting in a building that Clarissa had purchased right away and with the utmost of secrecy. She never visited and only a small group of highly trusted soldiers knew its location to prevent a person from disabling it. There was no possible way anyone but me could fight these hybrids, but it was enough to put us in check.

That was why we had to make a counter move to put our enemies in check. Also, why no soldier was using a summon during this event. A shame the airship wasn’t lower, or I might have thought about attacking it.

The city shield activated. A glowing white dome snapped into place around Purgatory for the third time in known history. The first was the Ritualist. The second was during the upgrade. And now a third time to counter the ploys of the Astrologer and Avatar. Everything turned monochrome and I felt an itch across my skin. The Avatar should be cut off at this moment, preventing any interference when things reached their climax.

It was something Clarissa had been planning in secret and let me know as discretely as possible. After getting the note I had just nodded at her and that was it. What our enemies lacked was absolute trust in each other and a large organization to call upon. Clarissa and I were going to use both to triumph and win. Also, if something worked, no need to reinvent the wheel. The city shield was a great way to mess everything involving energy up.

I could vaguely hear muffled shouting, but I was content to lay on the ground while my soldiers kept their distance around me. Beam attacks were unleashed across the plaza striking two of the hybrids. They were both blown apart in a gory mess. A third attack followed up and took out a third, leaving only three behind.

Already soldiers were forming up and lobbing skills at the giant half human, half golem monsters. They were struggling and screaming in pain.

“Team alpha. Secure the Emperor, we need to help!” Captain Francis shouted as loud as possible. I could barely hear him, but that was fine. Three of my protection detail rushed towards me, while the rest rushed off a short distance.

Now was the perfect time to strike. It was utter chaos I was lightly defended. If the Astrologer was going to make a move now was the time. It all came down to this moment, when things appeared to be at their worst. If he didn’t attack now, then he was content to just being an annoyance. This was the very moment he had to strike, if he hoped to kill me or replace me.

While the soldiers looked busy, I knew the Captains were ready to act at a moment’s notice. The hybrids weren’t the real threat. We needed to kill the Astrologer and if we got him, I might make a play at the Avatar way up in the sky in her little air boat.

I was helped up by two of my soldiers and took the chance to glance around. There was a bloody man being helped away by another person, who I couldn’t make out, with the bloody person being in the way. When I checked with my energy sense, I could see the energy fraying off the wounded man in a way that wasn’t happening to anyone else.

Was that the Astrologer? If I moved against him, then I would only have this one shot at taking him out. I needed to make a decision. There were soldiers running about and some civilians, but no one else stood out. If I was wrong, then everything would be a waste. The pain from the attacks I had taken would be a waste.

That was when I saw some hair of the woman and a brief side profile of her face. It was Ruth! That settled it in my mind. That was the Astrologer and she had somehow found her way into his bed. I needed to kill him, now no matter what.

“Kill the bloody man. Astrologer. Priority target. I am fine,” I hissed out. Ruth was nothing. She was complete and utter garbage and a nothing threat. But the Astrologer, I couldn’t let him get away when he was this close. I kicked off the ground towards him, hoping to pressure him into acting. He moved towards me at nearly the same time.

“Gar mar!” The words sounded out loudly. I felt them in my very bones. That was when I collapsed like a puppet whose strings had been cut to the ground for real this time. Dammit, I had been hoping my countermeasures had worked, but the last time was just a ploy. Not that it mattered. I always knew it would come down to this.

The soldiers guarding me quickly split up and retreated away from me as one used a light orb skill at the Astrologer. He completely ignored it, but that was all part of the plan. I knew I wouldn’t be able to counter him myself. That was why I had been putting this confrontation off for as long as possible with the hope to avoid it entirely.

But my hand had been forced, so I decided to take a risk and gamble. This was it. The final bet as we both used our remaining trump cards to try and win.

I would be disabled on the ground and the Astrologer closing in. One thing I had noticed in the tower, that him touching a person, or being close provided a lot more leeway for his skill Imbue Life. I had enough stats, which meant trying to take me out at a distance wouldn’t be quick.

It had taken a lot of thinking and consideration, but I knew what needed to be done. If I got back to the palace, I would be sealed away and safe. But out here, in the plaza, I was vulnerable, but so was he. I could feel the tumor inside my head perfectly now and the issue with my energy.

The stupid thing had a stealth mode, but I was already putting the corrections I needed to in place, so I could act and remember what I needed to. I tried to slow him down with an annihilation attack, but he split it easily and was almost on top of me.

Even as he rushed towards me. The city shield and his focus close to him would be his undoing. Tunnel vision was very dangerous, and the signal had been sent. I was just an actor playing a role for my final trap. The soldiers for the final maneuver had been waiting the entire time.

The one good thing about the long war with the Dragon Empire was a large reserve of soldiers who could use beam attacks. They were considered the best skill for conflicts and for protecting the city. Every single one that was available that wasn’t a governor or vice governor had been recalled to Purgatory.

While most were one shot and then spent, when you had enough people with the skill that didn’t matter so much. Also ambush tactics had been perfected during the constant fighting and then hiding from the Divine Empress. We had proof that certain methods worked to hide from the Sense stat.

This was all part of the original plan. I had confirmed when the hybrid golems had fallen down and I had moved towards the Astrologer, that their position hadn’t been ruined.

Hands stuck out of gray enchanted blankets that were covering soldiers up at the buffet tables that had been prepared at the edge of the plaza for the victory celebration. The reason my soldiers retreated was that this was going to be very close.

Only the best of the best had been selected for this role. This was far more critical than my pretend attack plan to make the situation appear more dire than it really was. The one rule about a battle of wits was always have one more trap than you think you could possibly need, since the other person will have something as well. Also, to never go against a Sicilian while death was on the line. While I wasn’t Sicilian, I had stacked the deck in my favor so to speak in every way that I could.

The moment the Astrologer was present in the plaza he had lost no matter what, unless he could pull something out that was completely improbable. I didn’t put it past him. Whatever he had done to Esperanza was very concerning, but I couldn’t let fear hold me back.

Beams of energy lanced horizontally across the plaza, just above body height just as the Astrologer was about to reach me. “Null Refraction!” His quick speak trick was clever and the beam that was going to hit him split apart into a light show between us. I could see the hate and anger etched into his Astral Projection’s face.

That was when a beam attack struck him directly in the back. He fell towards me. I hadn’t isolated the tumor fully, but I could still use my skills. Air Burst. Acid Shot x5. Force Wave. I shot backwards just above the ground as I attacked him.

The annihilation blast hit him head on. Soldiers rushed in from all directions. Air Burst. Air Burst. I forced my body away as skill after skill was lobbed in his direction. This team had been on standby the entire time. Even with the hybrids rampaging, they were not to act until the Astrologer was revealed. It was a sacrifice that my people had to make to draw him out and kill him once and for all.

There was suddenly a massive burst of energy, and the nearby soldiers were blasted backwards. The Astrologer was standing there in his child body breathing heavily, with the Astral Projection visibly fraying and breaking apart. This was his end.