Chapter 258: Day 535 (7) – A Night Raid

Chapter 258: Day 535 (7) – A Night Raid

The Ritualist had not acted yet and I had seen him retreat. His monsters were constantly releasing various energy beams in my direction. It was getting quite dark, and the attacks were ruining my night vision.

I leapt off the wall and retreated into the city, heading directly for the Plaza. The Ritualist wasn’t going to make a move it appeared and was hunkering down for the night. The warning the Astrologer had given me echoed in my head.

The Ritualist was sacrificing long term potential for short term gains. That was not a trade I would have made. Unfortunately, I was on the receiving end of such a tradeoff. I reached the plaza, and the Eastern portion was a mess.

There were moans in the distance, which I ignored. I quickly made my way up to the top of the Airship Port which was where Clarissa had set up her command post. I noted the several guards in dark blue uniforms and the few in black uniforms.

General Smith was up here as well. A Radiant Beam cut through the night striking a flying monster that had gotten too close. “Nice shot,” the General said.

“More coming in,” another soldier said.

“Fire at will,” the General said. Beams of heat, light, and fire lit up the night sky. I could guess why activity picked up the moment I was at the top of the tower. The Ritualist was clearly tracking my position. I walked over to Clarissa who was illuminated by a lantern sitting at a table and looking at reports.Witness the debut of this chapter, unveiled through Ñôv€l--B1n.

“Nice HQ, surprised you have it up here?” I asked.

“It is easy to display flags and send runners. Sure, the elevator costs points, but nothing that serious. Also, it gives a good view of the battlefield. While we are fairly sure the ground gets harder to penetrate the closer one gets to the plaza, we didn’t want to take chances,” Clarissa explained, and I nodded at that.

“So, are we winning or are we losing this war?” I asked her as I took a seat.

“Winning slightly. We managed to turn away the Ritualist’s attack without having to resort to using the City Shield. Our estimates put him around 350 monsters at the other three entrances besides the East one, where he has about 600 hybrids left plus that super worm. You get his supplies?” Clarissa asked.

“Yes, I did. I also had an interesting conversation with a suspicious person who helped out, wounding the Ritualist. Have you heard of the Astrologer?” I asked Clarissa. She frowned and then shook her head.

“No, I haven’t. What does he look like?” Clarissa asked.

“A black robe with a silver rope belt, silver stars on his robe and the black glove on his left hand. He is missing his right hand. He can also fly and disappear,” I said.

“That is concerning. Should we prepare something?” Clarissa asked.

“It wouldn’t hurt to engage in more rigorous checks of all people in critical areas, but for now he is an ally, but not a friend. We can talk, but not share secrets,” I explained.

“Understood. He won’t be helping out further?”

I waited there underneath the wall, but the hybrids were slowly retreating back, some of them heavily wounded. The Ritualist probably found a way to handle the pain as well. I let out a sigh. He really was a pain in the rear. “Air Burst.” I prepped the skill and then went on top of the wall.

There were some summons up there that looked at me then went back to looking out at the woods to the West. I needed my rest. The battle would get complicated tomorrow. Air Burst. I shot off the top of the wall. “Air Burst. Air Burst.” I covered a lot of distance before I landed back on the street and running back towards the plaza.

I checked in with Clarissa, but there had been no movement from the Ritualist. I then immediately went to my room. I tossed my armor and clothes to the side to be cleaned. I enjoyed the food that had been laid out. I scarfed down the fresh bread and butter as quickly as possible before collapsing in my bed.

Before I could fall asleep, my mind drifted to think what the Ritualist could do and what he would come up with.

I looked around, everything was hazy. “Michael, I am you grandfather,” the Astrologer said as he swirled around me.

“Whaaa....” I tried to speak, but I couldn’t. I was in a dream. The realization hit me like a sack of bricks. I hadn’t dreamt since I entered the Systemic Lands. I had thought it was the stress, but it could be something else.

I was far more lucid than I had any right to be. There was a crying child. Why was there a crying child? “Acid Shot.” Nothing happened. The child looked up at me with white eyes. It was so sad. My heart clenched at the sight.

“Take. My. Hand,” the child whispered. The world around me bent inwards focusing on the child. It was the center of everything. Each tear that fell was another blow to my heart. I knew it had lifted up a hand. I felt myself automatically reaching out.

No. No! NO! I pulled my hand back. The child cried more, but I could see its deformed features now. It was no child, but an abomination was putting it kindly. Like something diseased and sickly that was a parody of child. Only the white eyes were unchanged. I felt something poking me. I spun around. Another poke.

I opened my eyes gasping for breath. “Michael!” Clarissa was poking with a stick and shouting at me to wake up.

“Wha-What is it?!” I asked.

“You were screaming. No one knew what to do,” Clarissa said. My mind spun connecting the dots and my heart plummeted.

“What time is it?” I asked.

“Almost dawn, why?” Clarissa asked.

“The Ritualist can attack through a person’s dreams apparently. A small weeping child. Anyone else having issues?” I asked.

“No, but let me check,” Clarissa said. The Ritualist had taken away one of our advantages and turned it into one of his strengths. Well played Ritualist, well played. Well hopefully the City Shield would give us a day to think and recover once we activated it.

The adrenaline was wearing off and I felt exhausted. Multi-day wars sucked big time. I forced myself to get to my feet with willpower alone and went to get ready for the day. I had a feeling it wasn’t about to get any easier.