Chapter 816 - An ambush

We leave the outpost to what almost seems like a crowd. I bet some of those assholes are betting on whether we all die, if only some of us die, or if all of us return.

I cannot even be mad, it is rare to see four S ranks head out into the night to do what seems like group suicide. After all, if your luck runs out, you can stumble upon monsters that pose a threat even to a Champion. The last time I crossed paths with a night creature, it was a monstrosity marked with four question marks, meaning level 450, or potentially much higher.

Of course, getting to level 450 does not mean you are a Champion, and there is a big difference between, let us say, a level 480 person and a level 480 person who just became a Champion. After all, once you become a Champion, the second stage of your attribute upgrade unlocks. And damn, it has been a long time since I got my first stage.

For me, I decided to go with upgrading Mana, more specifically Mana Amplification. My stages are Vast Mana, Omnipresent Mana, and the last stage being Limitless Mana. I suspect the third one might be reserved only for the most powerful jerks, someone like Rulers and such. Even Lissandra, back on Eladore, did not have a third stage upgrade.

Or maybe she did have it in the real world, and just her nerfed tutorial version did not have it. The Rulers must have been terrified of her. But perhaps 'scared' is too weak a word, judging by the state they left her tutorial replicas in. All those lobotomies, memory erasure, and such.

So anyway, my first stage doubles my mana, and I am already excited for the second one.

I am saying it in a roundabout way, but to shorten it, if we meet a true Champion with a second stage, we are likely fucked unless it is someone with a big weakness towards one of our strengths. And damn, even then, it would be dangerous. If we meet someone with four question marks but not a Champion, we will likely be able to deal with them. But the power levels there vary a lot as well.

Another example: you can have a monster of level 500 that took 500 years to get to that level, being patient, cowardly, and not ambitious at all. Let’s give that monster some random name. Something like Sav. So, our group would have such a granny of a monster for breakfast.

But what if we meet a monster that is 50 to 100 years old and already level 500? Let's call it Monsthaniel. Some monstrosity that spent its teenage years angry, constantly getting stronger and stronger, fighting for its life, and improving skills like the ancient corgi Archmages intended.

We would be the breakfast in such a case.

There is something to be said about the simplicity of a system where you would have your numerical power level, and the higher number always beats the lower number, with no environment, skills, or items needed to be taken into consideration. But it would be a very boring system.

So for now, we are careful. As much as we might seem like brainless lunatics, we have set certain plans and countermeasures, as well as roles during combat. We also mostly have an idea of the others' capabilities, so we know what to rely on.

And as much as some of us would like to beat each other up, I also do not think we would have a traitor who would leave everyone else to die on purpose. It is surprising, but I do not even think Savant would do that, nor do I think Brich would. As for Weslin and Morwag, I trust them wholeheartedly.

Zant is now gone, after delivering the message to us and after we exited the outpost. He just disappeared without any of us noticing how. I am still sure he is around, but I am also sure he will do as he said. He will not interfere, not even if one of us were about to die. That much is more than acceptable to me, though I am growing more curious about the tiny guy and what his being Diligence’s vessel actually means.

As always, when I get excited in expectation of a tough fight, my mind races and all these thoughts bounce inside, and many more. Still, even now, I continue to keep my attention up, searching for danger and ready to launch into a fight.

It is eerily quiet, and light akin to moonlight only partially brightens the rocky ground of the 3rd floor. There are no night animals, insect cries, or wind sounds at all, so every step sounds much louder, and every rock kicked under our feet almost sounds as if it echoes. We walk slowly, as there is no need to hurry, and it is better if we stay somewhat close to the outpost. There is also no place we are looking for, we just wander into the night looking for a fight.

Brich’s armor is now entirely quiet, and no sound comes from him, even though the entire day that armor kept clanging.

So, he’d been leaving it that noisy on purpose all along. What a guy.

I notice an interesting thing about Savant as well. The best I can describe it is that he is absorbing his own presence. There is no mana I could sense from him, no heat or kinetic energy either.

Though I have experience with that, so if needed, I could probably track him by looking for the lack of these things. It is something that would be more difficult to notice right away if I did not know about it already. I begin to compare it to Tacita and come to the conclusion that even if he improves it, it will not be comparable to hers. Still, it is another thing he has stolen, as that similarity makes me sure it is inspired by her.

Weslin walks quietly, and his heart beats slowly and calmly, though I can see currents of his mana ready to explode and to strengthen his body. Morwag, meanwhile, walks proudly and tall, his heart beating like a drum as his eyes seem to glow in the night and muscles bulge with each movement under his clothes.

There are no enemies even after one hour, and that silence becomes unnerving. Every one of us is used to monsters screeching as they circle safe zones late at night, but today it is as if they have decided to stay back.

“Fine gentlemen, how about we return?” It is Brich who speaks first, “It might be my mind damaged by that many uploads talking, but it feels like every monster just left to bring some powerful ones to deal with us.”

We come to a stop. The air feels cold as I breathe in, but also fresh. If not for the current mood, it would be one of those nights that I enjoy.

“I mean, we could, but in between us and the city, there are currently like 100 monsters,” I say.

Morwag laughs, Weslin shakes his head, and Brich looks at me and then pulls out a folding telescope, which he expands to near comical length and looks towards the outpost.

“Wow, some of them are really ugly,” Brich breathes out. “You did not plan to tell us?”

I shrug, “Would it change anything? They are not too strong, and we went out to get into some fights. And I noticed them just a few seconds ago anyway.”

“They are not moving closer,” he notes.

“It is obvious they are waiting for their leader,” Morwag slaps his palms together, creating a small shockwave that echoes into the night and blows the dust outward.

The others seem to agree as Brich puts away his telescope and takes three sticks from his bag, which he then connects together and stabs the long version into the ground. On top of that, a small yellow light activates, and with some wires, he connects two small, fist sized boxes to the stick, causing the mana to flow through the device and expanding a sort of array based domain.

“Silverweave’s inscriptions, mana engines from Eldrin, and… I forgot what she called it, some fancy staff from Isolde,” Brich explains to me when he notices my look.

“What is a mana engine?” I ask curiously, and I gently kick one of the boxes he calls by that name.

Brich looks at me like I am the weird one. “I have no idea! Every time I tried to take it apart, it exploded and made Eldrin angry because they are difficult to make.” His voice lowers to a whisper. “Though I think the name is too pretentious. It is likely just some sort of mana battery which only shows a mana signature when it is generating mana, and until then, it is not detectable at all, unlike mana batteries based on mana stones or similar materials.”

“Huh,” I squat next to it and probe it with my finger. “Would it not be easier to use some mana shielding around a mana stone for the same effect and just open it if you need mana?”

“I asked the same, and his answer was: No, Brich, are you maybe a bit dumb? Are you actually this thick, or are you just putting on a show for me? Silverweave, come here, look at this. Is he even awake? Is there anything going on behind those eyes at all? Honestly, come here, there might be a serious problem with his uploads... ehm, anyway, he also gave me one of his looks, you know what kind.”

“I can imagine,” I agree.

The next moment, what looks like a bone spear flies high over our heads and stabs into the ground half a mile away from us. Right after, an explosion follows, which reaches us in a split second as I deploy one of my defensive barriers to surround our group.

The mana engine begins to hum and shake, and the mana output increases drastically to the point I am surprised where it is all coming from. The mana surges up through the staff, the yellow light glows brighter, and the array surrounding us strengthens, expanding beyond my barrier.

Multiple more bone projectiles follow, stabbing into the ground all around the area. Each explodes in an almost quiet way that generates no heat or sound other than rocks thrown into the air and shockwaves that shake the air in a way that seems to disrupt mana partially.

One of the lances pierces through Brich’s array and my barrier, stabbing into the ground next to Savant. For a moment, an orange light surrounds his figure as he grabs the lance, and in the next, it disappears. That orange light surrounding him expands further behind his figure like a steam engine releasing built up steam before it is pulled back. His eyes scan the area, and out of his hand, he draws the Sword of Aeons and rushes out, using a combination of kinetic energy and mana based reinforcement.

I pull the barrier surrounding us back to me, reforming it and concentrating it into a projectile. More of my mana seeps out, and the skill activates, turning it into [Empyrean Lance], which shoots into the night from where the bone projectiles are coming.

Unlike the others, Weslin is more of a team player, and he rushes towards the group of 100 monsters already rushing to attack us from the direction of the outpost.

Brich pokes the staff, which grows further in size, and the output of the mana engines increases even further with the array changing to something that feels, in some weird way, vile, and he also leaves to join Weslin.

Meanwhile, I follow Morwag, rushing through a rain of bone projectiles. Some of them crash against his body, exploding and throwing him all over the place, but they lack the piercing power to kill the demon binding himself together as his lips begin to slowly lift upwards.