Chapter 129: Individual Choices (Part One)

“You will immediately use the shadows to summon all the dark priests at every node. We cannot wait. Since the legion has already been alerted, Moore Rona will certainly take action. We need to concentrate our forces and launch a preemptive strike!”

The hooded figure in the main chair suddenly stood up, his voice slightly raised.

“Alexius Rona, are you once again going to raise your hand against your own kin?”

A seductive voice drifted in and out, sounding like fingers stroking a lover’s chest. The graceful figure flickered in and out of sight.

“Witch, why have you come again? Do you truly believe I cannot kill you?” Alexius fiercely threw back his hood, revealing a handsome face, though it was twisted with malice and fury.

“Oh, my dear Alexius is angry. Are you still blaming me? You know your father was willing to be killed by you, and you didn’t hesitate, did you?”

Hearing the Witch’s mocking voice, Alexius’s expression grew even darker.

“If you came here to mock me, then your goal is achieved. I do not care what conspiracy you and your master are weaving. Once the Darkness descends, all your petty tricks will be crushed by sheer power. This place will transform into an Abyssal Projection, and you, you vile wretch, I will transform you into the lowest form of succubus!” Alexius said, looking utterly insane.

“Seeing you so motivated, I am relieved, hehehehe.” The Witch was unafraid of Alexius’s threats. Perhaps she came precisely to provoke him. Accompanied by the drifting voice, the Witch slowly vanished.

“Do you want us to pursue her, Grand Leader?” the leading hooded figure asked, kneeling.

“There is no need. She is too cunning, and the abilities the Devil Archon granted her are elusive. Without a guarantee of killing her, we must not engage her.” Alexius said, suppressing his fury.

The hooded figure began chanting in the Abyssal tongue, transmitting the signal through the shadows. Soon, the priests at various nodes received the message from the shadows and immediately organized their people to attack Nobles in the fortress.

They could no longer wait for the ritual to be completed. They would strike first, sacrificing the blood and souls of the Noble Divine Descendants to the Great Lord of Darkness, and then immediately activate the imperfect ritual.

The mirror image Ace watched the hooded figures’ actions and informed the host body of his deduction via the Grimoire.

The host body Ace had already stored all the knowledge discovered in the underground magic laboratory into his Grimoire. Upon receiving the message, he secured the Glycerin Magic Tubes in the magic laboratory, preparing to detonate the entire laboratory once the Wizard Apprentices evacuated the fortress.

Subsequently, he took a preemptive step. Before the chaos fully erupted, he transformed into an insect and flew out of the fortress.

“For the apprentices to evacuate the fortress as completely as possible, the situation must be as chaotic as possible. The black-blood aura representing the dark worshipers is gathering. They are about to act. I must inform the legion.”

The mirror image Ace thought this as he landed on the ground.

He noticed his old acquaintance, Dikens Rona, leading a squad of soldiers on night patrol near the hospital.

The Night Owl cried out. The mirror image Ace activated the Soul Spell Advanced Magical Trickery.

Intention: A short, one-way mental conversation with Dikens.

Gesture: The Night Owl moved in time with the Mana pulse.

Incantation: The Night Owl produced a cry at a specific frequency.

Boom! Dikens felt as if something had struck his skull. He looked around vigilantly and suddenly heard a voice: “Darkness approaches. Third Street. Worshippers gather. Take heed!”

“Who? Who is speaking?” Dikens shouted. The soldiers under his command looked at each other in confusion, having heard nothing.

Dikens questioned his soldiers. After confirming he was the only one who heard the voice, he decided to err on the side of caution. He instructed his men to notify Hero Kent Rona and then went ahead to investigate himself.

“I must notify Bayen immediately. The situation is critical. I must guide the apprentices’ evacuation now.” The mirror image Ace thought, watching Dikens’s retreating back. He immediately composed a message through the Grimoire, transmitting it to Bayen via the cowlick on his head.

Bayen had just returned to his residence and was about to release Yorick the Slacker from the cellar when his Grimoire received Ace’s message.

【The situation is critical. The dark worshipers may act immediately and launch the evil ritual. All apprentices, please evacuate the fortress at once.】

“The situation has changed. It is not that I don’t want to release you, but it is too dangerous for you to come out now.” Bayen put Yorick the Slacker back into the cellar and sealed it. He set up a rune array so that the cellar would open automatically after three days, driven by Mana.

“The rest is up to your fate, Yorick.”

Bayen took off his clothes, transformed into a black cat, bit the dice in his mouth, and rapidly left.

The black cat Bayen did not immediately gather and guide the Wizard Apprentices. He stopped in a quiet place, tossed the dice, which emitted a multicolored glow, and the final result pointed to a location.

“That location should be safe for two hours. I will set it as the gathering point for the apprentices.” Bayen ran quickly, simultaneously sending a message to all Wizard Apprentices within the fortress via the Grimoire.

【Fellow Wizard Apprentices, dark worshipers have infiltrated the fortress, and a major upheaval is imminent. Proceed immediately to the gathering point at the first alley by the South Gate of the fortress. Follow the guidance of the Torch-Bearer’s Emissary, Bayen. Remember the fate of the outer Enchanted Wizard Apprentices. Proceed with caution. Do not be detected by the legion or the dark worshipers.】

Betty, experimenting with the Apprentice Model 1 at home, received the message. Her excited face immediately dropped. She and Donna looked at each other and then Betty said, “We can’t just escape ourselves. We have to take my parents and your father with us.”

“Yes, but the question is how to get them out quickly,” Donna replied.

“The back of my Apprentice Model 1 can open up. We can squeeze three people onto it. Your physical constitution has improved a lot. You can run behind me. My father is very stubborn, so we will knock him out first.” Betty said with a grim expression.

Subsequently, she quietly went downstairs and walked behind the Chief Magistrate, who was calmly reading a book. She knocked him out with a single chop and then carried her somewhat panicked mother onto the unique Apprentice Model 1 before leaving quickly to find Borg.

Borg, in the fortress marketplace, watched the two-meter-tall, bizarre Steampunk mechanical device and his daughter frantically rushing toward him. He felt as if countless salted fish were tumbling in his heart.

“No time to explain, Dad! Get onto the machine platform right now!” Donna grabbed Borg and tossed him onto the platform of Betty’s Apprentice Model 1. She then used strong ropes to tie the three of them onto the machine and rapidly drove away.

Outside the relief home, Ancestar and the two orphans also received the message.

“Melancholy Uncle, we have to wake up the children in the relief home! They will be in danger if they stay here!” Arno immediately said upon seeing the message.

“But Brother Arno, they won’t be able to run fast. It will be difficult for us to take them all with us quickly. And the more people there are, the easier it is to be detected,” Ollie said to Arno, worried.