Chapter 187: To Those Who Are Gone

Chapter 187: To Those Who Are Gone

The crimson eyes of the thief gleamed with a hatred so old that it became incomprehensible. More than Louis's blood on Mirscella's dagger, it was that gaze that unsettled Priam. The Tier 3 necro he had just faced possessed the same.

Shit!

With his mental attributes enhancing his thinking speed, Priam needed only a fraction of a second to make a decision. How and why were questions he couldn't afford to ponder.

Mobilizing his Mist Concept, Priam summoned a dense wave of mist to separate Mirscella and Louis. The old man lay collapsed on the ground, and the cobblestones of the forum prevented Log-a-rhythm from opening a Secret Passage to secure him.

Mirscella adjusted her grip on her dagger and thrust it towards Louis. The speed of the attack caught Priam off guard. The former thief was not weak, but she had never been this fast. More concerning, no corrupted minion moved so fluidly.

Ignoring his suspicions, Priam realized that his mist wouldn't arrive in time to prevent the strike.

Using the ancient Merits of [Moon Earl], Priam sacrificed a portion of his aether to merge with the ambient moisture. He reappeared between the two elders, just in time to intercept the attack. Mirscella's dagger collided with Promesses shaft with such force that Priam was forced to kneel to absorb the full impact.

Her strength surpasses mine!

A second attack followed. Drawing from his Potential, Priam focused on the information contained in [Parry]. Aided by divine inspiration, he optimized the placement of his block, overclocking his muscles to disperse the attack's energy to the maximum.

Lvl Up: [Parry] lvl 17

STR +1

The forum shook. Using his Domain, Priam attempted to kinetically immobilize Mirscella. Instead of her slowing down, he screamed in pain. A firebolt surged through his body as Priam tried to access his aether. One of his main meridians was still severed, preventing the use of active skills. Priam understood that he could only rely on his Concepts, Supremacies, and some passive skills for now.

As a third attack threatened to dislocate his shoulders, Priam summoned Pyro. Enhanced by Conquest, a geyser of flames erupted towards Mirscella. In a rage-filled scream, the creature leaped to the side to dodge.

Priam took advantage of the moment to rise. His Domain informed him of Louis's condition. A deep gash in the abdomen was bleeding profusely. Seizing the old man by the arm, Priam tossed him out of the forum. The grass opened a passage into Log-a-rhythm where he fell, but the martial artist executed a somersault to avoid it.

"No!"

"Get to safety!" Priam shouted, turning towards Mirscella, who was launching another attack.

He parried again, grimacing as he felt his body endure the assault. Mirscella's attributes were terrifying, and without his recent level-ups, Priam's constitution wouldn't have been enough to withstand the attacks.

"Don't hurt her," Louis yelled from behind him.

Blocking deadly attacks one after another, Priam almost burst into laughter. Without aether or life bonuses, he was the one in danger. However, he wasn't obligated to face the thief in a duel. The clash of weapons was sure to attract Kazuki's attention. I just need to survive until then.

As if reading his thoughts, Mirscella unleashed a barrage of attacks. Retreating under the violence of the assault, Priam felt his system communicate with Log-a-rhythm. [Identification] required the circulation of his aether but not his soul add-on.

[Information from Log-a-rhythm:

[Necro Envoy - Tier 0(3) - Marquess - Corrupted] - A high official of the Necromoon.

Adaptation to a new vessel temporarily occupies her soul. The Necro Concept will gradually increase the physical limits of the possessed vessel.]

Priam paled as he read the description of the Necro Envoy. Since Mirscella wasn't mentioned, it was likely that she had disappeared entirely. Priam thought he knew why, but that wasn't the most concerning part.

Before him stood a Necro Envoy capable of facing Sumstreh. Only her recent possession of Mirscella's body prevented her from wiping the floor with Priam.

Taking advantage of a new strike, Priam allowed himself to be pushed backward towards the forest. The Necro Envoy leaped after him before an onyx lance appeared in her path.

With a pirouette, the enemy avoided impalement and paused, analyzing her new adversary.

"This thing is no longer Mirscella," Priam warned.

"I can see that," replied Kazuki. "Should we capture it?"

Priam grimaced, glancing at Louis. Kneeling, one hand pressing his wound, the old man looked at Mirscella's possessed body, immense grief in his eyes.

"...If we can," Priam decided. Perhaps one of the rewards from the Sun Shop could bring back the old thief.

As Kazuki nodded, Mirscella opened her mouth.

"I don't think you can," she said in English before leaping towards the forest.

Stunned by the corrupted's speech, Priam and Kazuki reacted a moment too late. The Envoy's speed was terrifying, and she vanished between two trees. Only the characteristic sound of fractured bones confirmed to Priam that the creature's attributes were limited. She is using Micro!

Seeing Kazuki leap in pursuit of the Envoy, Priam rode his mist to intercept her. The corrupted dodged an [Unrelenting Thrust] without stopping. Priam crossed through the fog twice more before stopping as his severed meridian prevented him from recharging his aether.

Avoiding all the hidden bio-traps, the Envoy reached the Log-a-rhythm barrier in a second. A hoplite sentinel lunged at her, trying to slow her down. With a disdainful movement, Mirscella blocked the mech's metallic fist and slashed.

A dark aura covered the blade of her dagger as it effortlessly decapitated the armor.

With a slight nod, Mirscella evaded a javelin thrown by Kazuki's mech. Her body lost its colors, and the Necro Envoy passed through the barrier. Giving them a final mocking smile, she disappeared.

Kazuki screamed in rage.

"Mirscella Tsevskaya is dead," confirmed the Guardian of Secrets.

Priam's heart tightened as he saw Louis lower his head in misery. The old man was holding his stomach, refusing any treatment until he had answers.

"How could a Necro Envoy reach the heart of our base?" growled Kazuki. His subordinate had been beheaded simultaneously with his mech, and the Champion was furious.

"The Tribulation erased Mirscella's mind," Priam theorized. "On a spiritual level, she was dead. Even though Log-a-rhythm's barrier absorbs much of the Necromoon's light, it's imperfect. Her physically healthy body made her a prime vessel for an Envoy... Am I right?"

"The Tribulation erased her soul rather than her mind, but you're correct about the rest," confirmed the Guardian. "From the description you gave me, her Tribulations were mental. These are particularly dangerous as the Concepts target any psychological weakness."

"Mirscella wasn't weak," murmured Louis.

The dwarf sighed. "Perishing to the Tribulations is not weakness. From Tier 1 onwards, they kill more than old age. Mirscella was the first to succumb, but certainly not the last in your group." He turned to Louis. "Her heart continued to beat, and her features weren't tense. She didn't suffer."

Louis remained silent.

"So, any death can awaken a corrupted," summarized Kazuki, looking at the pyre being erected behind him. The hoplites were watching their comrade's corpse, waiting to burn it. No other corrupted would wake up in the heart of their base.

"It's a good idea to burn your dead," confirmed the dwarf.

Priam watched the hoplites gather dead branches in silence. Rose, Myuri, Alain, and Blueberry hadn't triggered any Tribulation yet, but it would come. As if I would accept seeing them die without doing anything.

"You... You told Rose she could resurrect her mother." Priam refocused upon hearing Louis's voice. "Can Mirscella...?"

Secret Wallet: - 8 Iron Coins.

Priam had taken it upon himself to pay for the old man's questions. If it could help Louis sleep better at night, it was worth it.

"Everything is possible in this world," replied the Guardian. "However, some deaths are more final than others. Mirscella's soul wasn't corrupted by the Necromoon, so resurrection is possible. However, the Tribulations erase any spiritual trace. A ritual won't be able to restore her soul. She was a Tier 0, so you'll need a Mythical Resurrection Token."

Commission: 20%

Note: Merchants are not hostile to the Lord or their subjects at the time of their summoning. The System cannot be held responsible if strained relations lead to negative consequences.

"... Lets go with Ymir. If the System doesn't manage after-sales service, a Tier 1 can be a danger."

"And an ogress would clog our composting toilets in less than a week," added Priam.

A white sigil appeared on the forum floor in front of them. Drawing in the ambient aether, the symbol began to activate.

Ymir Saharn will be teleported to your territory in two hours.

"That must be to prevent users from hiring an army of guards or healers during a battle," Kazuki grumbled upon seeing the announced wait.

The Sun Shop was a tool, not a weapon.

"It might be for the best. It's time to pay our respects," said Priam, turning towards the clearing. A few hoplites were carrying their comrade's body towards the pyre.

"Now that Eiji fell in battle, I wonder who will be the second," Kazuki murmured. Mirscella's Tribulation had been inevitable, but Priam knew Kazuki blamed himself for his subordinate's fate. If they had been stronger, he would still be alive.

Priam remained silent. His encouragement would have sounded hollow.

In the center of the clearing, the wood crackled beneath the tall flames. The smoke wafting upwards seemed to tremble at the sound of Kazuki's voice.

"As the sun sets on the battlefield's embrace,

A warrior's journey finds a resting place.

In the hallowed grounds where heroes repose,

His spirit ascends on the path they chose."

The hoplite dirge resonated within Priam, stirring half-buried emotions. As the soldiers sang in unison, humans and Blueberry remained silent. All took the moment to reflect and mourn, lulled by the threnody.

On the pyre, a flower burned alongside Eiji Tanaka. Today, their group had lost two people, but only one body was freed from the Necromoon's terror. Louis, a bandage on his stomach, seemed determined to track down the second. Tears of rage and pain streamed down his weathered face.

While the music gripped his heart, Priam watched his loved ones. The Guardian had been brutally clear. Mirscella was the first to fall, but wouldn't be the last. The Necromoon, his rivals, the locals, or a Tribulation would claim them sooner or later. Who would be next? His father, a non-combatant? Rose, with a life ahead of her? Sphinx, sold to a tyrant?

Priam wanted to roar in the face of this inevitability. Despite the progress he had paid for with blood and tears, he remained weak. The more he loved, the more he had to protect.

The funeral song died on the hoplites' lips, and Priam locked eyes with Kazuki. The two rivals were thinking the same thing.

As the wood crackled, breaking the clearing's silence, Priam let the flames carry away his hesitations. In this world where anything was possible, there was only one way to defy fate.

I must become stronger.

Status:

PHYSICAL:

Strength 491 (+2)

Constitution 856

Agility 473

Vitality 765

Perception 685

MENTAL:

Vivacity 421

Dexterity 538

Memory 318

Willpower 925

Charisma 585

META:

Meta-affinity 418

Meta-focus 350

Meta-endurance 296

Meta-perception 204

Meta-chance 230

Meta-authority 30

Potential: 1941 (+1)

Tier 0

Sun points: 48 122 (-5 000)

[He Who Eludes Death] charge: OFF. Reloaded in 11 hours 34 minutes 40 seconds.

[Tribulation]: Three Tribulations pending.

Future Tribulations delayed until:

Time: 166 days 12 hours 7 minutes 33 seconds.

Next thresholds: 6 attributes > 600 / 3 attributes > 900/ 1 attribute > 1 200