Novel Full Chapter 458 - The Plan
"Are you going to share your plan with me?" Elizabeth asked with just a bit of forcefulness. Trying to make it clear that this wasn't just a question.
"Of course. I assume the watchfulness of both sides is either lax or extremely active, can you first tell me which one it is?" Eldrian replied, hoping that both sides had become lazy.
"Mmm..." Elizabeth pondered for a few seconds, "I would say it has become lax, but not extremely so."
"The undead have regular patrols of weaker undead, with some Unwilling not far behind ready to act should we attempt something. A few squads have been lost due to carelessness."
"I see, then we will have to be quick about things.."
"Ceph, you know Thora right?"
"Thora?" Titling his head questioningly, wondering if it is someone he should know. Eldrian quickly explained the purpose of the spell to Cephaphyr, who felt ashamed that he thought it was a person.
"I don't know it..." He said bashfully.
"Ugh..." Eldrian moaned as he realized he couldn't try to have Ceph also cleanse the forest while charging.
"Alright then, Elizabeth, I hope that you can act as a distraction while Ceph and I attempt to clear some of the forests. Do you think you will be able to do that without too many casualties?"
Placing her hand on her chin, Elizabeth thought about it deeply. Currently, they had 5 tier 4 players excluding her, with the rest all being Tier 3. In total there were 26 players active today and at the camp. This was a considerable force, though it wouldn't stand up long against even a single Unwilling.
"We will be able to be a distraction, but we can only handle weaker undead. If an Unwilling appears we will have to retreat."
"I see..." Eldrian paused as this meant they wouldn't be a distraction for long.
"Why not ask the commanders for some help. I am sure they will be willing to attempt something on a small scale." Ayden suggested.
"Who are the commanders?" Eldrian asked, if he didn't know them then he didn't think it will work.
"Pelaros is the high commander, but he is not in the camp. For the moment, he has gone back to the city to calm things down on that side."
'Shit, does that mean we have no Tier 8- No I remember that some of the other commanders with the king were... Either Tier 8 or 9?'
"Those in camp are Evale and Sodren."
'Sodren won't listen to me, he didn't like me and I aggravated that if I remember correctly. Evale might be willing to take the risk.'
"What about Evules?" Eldrian asked, recalling fondly the massive centaur.
"Evules, Evules...?" Ayden repeated it a few times before managing to recall who this was, "Evale's brother?"
"Yes, I hope he is alright," Eldrian said, Ayden's mumbling having caused a pit to form in his stomach.
"He is, if I recall correctly he had left to manage the refugee village around a month ago."
"Ah," Eldrian exhaled in relief, "That's a relief. Where can I find Evale?"
"She is normally on the wall watching the undeads' movements."
"Lead the way!"
...
Only Elizabeth came along, the other players all started to get ready for a tough mission. Naturally, they all wanted to help the kingdom reclaim their forest, and they also wanted to finish this quest so they could go do their own thing again.
"Evale!" Eldrian shouted as soon as he spotted the centaurette. She was standing under a makeshift tower, the floor of which provided nice shade for those on the wall. The tower was a simple scaffolding wooden structure built over the stone wall.
"Haru?!" Evale turned to their group in surprise, "So you are finally back. You said it would only take a few weeks!"
"Haha, yeah sorry. Things were a bit more complicated." Eldrian said, blushing a little which turned into a lot when Evale moved in to give him a hug.
"I am glad you are back, and I assume you have some sort of plan if you came to find me."
"Indeed," Eldrian smiled and finally shared what he had gone through, briefly, with everyone.
"So, I can now do this with ease." He said, casting three Frost Needles and having the spells morph and even merge to demonstrate his control.
"While that is amazing, how is this going to help our situation?" Evale asked.
"Because, my control over Thora is nearly as good. I wasn't able to practice it as easily, but I should be able to do something quite nasty. You see, I plan to first have my mana spread through the network of the trees."
"However, this will take far longer than a simple cast. Thus, I will need a distraction and which is why my friend Elizabeth is also here."
Elizabeth nodded her head in greeting and agreement before Eldrian continued, "I prefer having just Chosen be the distraction since death isn't permanent to us. However, we are still too weak to succeed if an Unwilling appears."
"I see," Evale smiled, "If you don't mind acting as bait, we can wait until the stronger undead reacts and then catch them off guard. This way we might be able to even deal some proper damage. However, losses will be unavoidable."
"That is fine, we don't mind losing some levels if it means we can fight back and end this stalemate." Elizabeth said with a smile.
"However..." Evale paused for a moment, "Haru, can you postpone doing anything for a few days?"
"Sure, but why?"
"I would like to first ensure our defenses. If we do this and the undead decide to attack in full force, they might be able to break through the walls and deal significant damage."
'Shit, I didn't think of that.' Eldrian cursed himself for his shortsightedness and quickly agreed to wait until the army was ready.
...
Three days later, Eldrian had managed to teach Cephaphyr the basics of Thora by practicing on the fallen leaves covering the forest floor. Winter was about to set in and thanks to that nearly no tree had leaves left.
"Are you all ready?" Evale asked.
Everyone had gathered at Phoenix's tent.
Eldrian had postponed contacting Vivian just yet, he didn't want to get her involved in what was certain to be a dangerous mission.
"We are." Elizabeth said, the three days had allowed her to also manage the guild and increase participation for this mission. Not only were all the Tier 4 players online, but there was also 66 Tier 3 players.
Compared to the NPCs, this number was pitiful. But it was an impressive force nonetheless, especially since all of them had gained plenty of combat experience in the forest. No one was a rookie.
"Then let's start, you will all exit through the central gate and start fighting the weaker undead patrolling near the corruption's edge. Haru- no Eldrian and Cephaphyr will then fly over while I use one of my strongest arrows as a distraction to try and ensure they aren't spotted."
"While we will try to support you, we won't leave the walls. Are you all sure you are ready?"
None of the players voiced their discontent. They knew that this was basically a suicide mission, however, Eldrian had told Elizabeth that all the rewards would go to the guild. At a minimum, Eldrian felt he would clear at least 10 areas, which meant 10 gold.
Evale had also promised to recompensate all lost items, which made death almost welcoming to the guild members. Outside of completing the quest, this would also increase their reliability and trust rating massively.
AN: A big thanks to everyone who continues to support this novel on WN.