Chapter 556 - In the Darkness

The Warbringers rose to meet the challengers.

The cultists’ numbers were few, especially after the opening artillery strike. Undoubtedly a score of them perished then and there before they knew what was going on. The heavily wounded were not few either.

They summoned demons to make up for the number deficiency.

Say what you would about the Warbringers, but they were good at fighting. Not only did they immediately shore up their defenses but they also didn't seem to lose any morale. They arranged themselves in battle groups that synergized their powers and their demons were not fighting mindlessly either, being directed effectively instead.

Tactical minds and strong warriors, such were the Warbringers.

But so what? They were not the only ones that was good at war.

War is a matter of vital importance to the state; a matter of life and death, the road either to survival or ruin. Hence, it is imperative that it be studied thoroughly.

This was an absolute truth and golden wisdom. No one could deny it.

And so Viers used the Art of War against them.

Which was why he ordered his troops to a full-frontal assault. His strategy was to hit the opposition with the proverbial biggest, hardest hammer he had.

Not very Art of War-y, wasn't it?

But it worked.

The battle went surprisingly well because of the quality of the Arcanum Club members. The likes of soul warriors and befriended monsters made up the meat of the army but the true crucial roles belonged to Farley and the others.

In a world where one person could rival the strength of an army, a lot of Earth’s war stratagems became obsolete.

Also, while Viers did not look down on the Art of War, it was truly a basic book about war 101, meant to educate Arrogant Young Masters from ancient times that didn't know that horses and soldiers needed to eat as they went marching and warring.

People who knew the entirety of the Art of War didn't mean they were guaranteed to win in battle, but they were certainly less likely to make a stupid mistake and die laughably because of it.

Boram, Paina, Farley, Sakuya, Faiya, Futon, Dia, they were all Level 4 now, and Level 4s were a veritable powerhouse. Considering how young they were, their future was bright.

They were still relatively new to wielding their Level 4 powers but they had proven to be a match for even Level 4 mid or high. Their affiliation with Viers and the club had a lot to do with it.

With their ascension, almost all the club members were Level 4. The exceptions were Croix the Emperor and Zerri the Empress. Barring some utter disaster, they too would become Level 4 in the near future.

Thanks to the core members, the attacker’s side had the upper hand.

The ambush itself was crucial too. The Warbringers had multiple defensive wards around their base, they also had detection sensors and magical patrols. Normally, the fact that a war host slipped through their detection net and blew up half of their base was completely unthinkable.

This was made possible because of sabotage. Viers was fond of wrecking things from the inside. An on brand cunning for a villain like himself.

Viers already gathered information on the enemy, softened their defenses, gathered an appropriate force to contend with them, what remained was the battle.

Know yourself and know your enemy and I shall not fear a hundred battles.

Easier said than done. How was he supposed to know the depth of his enemy? Pathseekers had their trump cards and hidden trump cards and then forbidden hidden trump cards. Even with all that Viers could do, even with soul search, completely getting all the intel about his enemies was impossible. What he could do was make an estimate of the capabilities of his enemy, backed with as much data as possible. After that, it was up to his skill with steel and magic.

The battle was like a hundred of various natural disasters erupting at once.

Black spheres of Imaginary Domains manifested and vanished. Colorful Artes fell like a deadly rain. Warriors pushed through into the enemy’s formation. Weapons raised and broken. Red flowers bloomed all over the ground.

Paina’s Arte sent a deluge of water across the battlefield, trapping enemies in the current. Seeing the wave coming, Boram opened the earth and swallowed them whole before shutting the huge crevice violently. A Rank 4 snake demon attacked Boram from behind, but it didn't escape his vibration sense. With a swing of his hammer, the demon was sent flying. It didn't get far before it was skewered by Farley’s spear. She darted around the battlefield with speed, spearing everyone with one thrust. The snake demon was still alive thanks to its unique quirk, but Dia’s fruit bombs that she threw away obliterated the demon completely. The flawless combination was made possible by Zerri’s shared overmind battlefield awareness.

Jessica tussled with three Level 4 cultists in close combat inside a Domain. Her fists like thunder, her kicks like lightning, her body like steel. With a roundhouse kick, she blasted one woman’s head clean off. The Domain collapsed with her death and they were back in real space. The force of their blows sent shockwaves all over their surroundings. Seeing all around her were enemies, Jessica erupted the qi and kinetic force she stored up that repulsed all around her. Anything below Level 4 in a ten-meter radius didn't survive, in a twenty-meter radius Level 3s got broken bones all over their bodies, despite their Unreality Field.

Carlo the Hanged Man directed a pair of wind vortexes to clean up a bunch of low leveled fighters. The ones trapped within experienced how it felt to be ground down by the power of the wind as their bodies broke down. He heard a beautiful song clearly despite the cacophony of sound of the battlefield and turned his head. Paina the Temperance was playing a flute, using it as a medium to utilize her sound affinity. Carlo felt an increase in strength welled-up from inside him and his vortexes grew bigger. Faiya went inside the pair of tornadoes and set them ablaze, making them an even greater menace.

Farley descended from the sky, piercing Level 4 high cultists. Futon’s lightning rained down around her almost at the same time. But the enemy was strong, and fought back. His retaliation missed, because of Zerri’s psychic attack, causing him to have a severe vertigo. The young Empress might not have been a Level 4 yet but she was not helpless even against a Level 4 high. Farley’s powerful Arte severed the man’s legs and she jumped to the sky again, leaving the enemy to be finished off by the Viers’ soul golems. She arrived just in time to aid Dia as fire zombies burned her roots. The liberated Dia empowered Sakuya’s storm of flower petals that shredded enemies into cooking ingredients, giving it more power and range.

Clarissa watched it all from the sky with arms crossed and an impassive face. The Warbringers took a heaving beating after beating but their morale remained unbroken. On the contrary, drunk with the mead of war, they threw themselves into the crucible with an even greater intensity, becoming true berserkers. Quite often, the dead rose again as fire zombies, empowered by the intense desire of their Devil God for war eternal. The black deity demanded war eternal. The battle was not going to end anytime soon.

“A magnificent sight, isn't it?”

A man walked towards her as if the air was solid ground. He looked like a young man with black hair in the early twenties. However, appearances could be deceitful. All of Clarissa’s six instincts knew how dangerous the man in front of her was.

“You've brought us a wonderful gift of war. I am delighted and exasperated in equal measure. Who are you guys? Doesn't seem you are affiliated with the Church. You people have employed enough forbidden Artes that even the Church’s black ops bunch wouldn't dare to use.”

Just as expected, the Level 5 thought Clarissa was the leader of this attacking force. It was the logical thought. Clarissa herself didn't join the battle because her main priority was containing the enemy’s sole Level 5.

The Grandmaster of the Warbringers, Tequila Dragon.

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A Level 5 peak. One of the strongest people in the entire world.

“The silent type, huh? Suit yourself. We-”

“You did not ambush me,” Clarissa said.

Tequila Dragon made a slasher smile. “It’s been too long since my last good fight. I don't want to end this too soon. You’re way weaker than me, girlie, but I hope you can entertain me for a bit.”

“Or, your stealth skill is trash compared to awareness. You’re too used to stroking your own ego, old goat.”

Tequila Dragon said he was stronger than her. Clarissa agreed with that assessment. This was the second cult grandmaster that she faced. Although, unlike Dumuzin cult’s grandmaster, this one was not a clone with just a piece of his power. However, she wasn't consumed by fear. Calmly, and rationally, she would do her job.

“Oho, fighting words,” Tequila Dragon shrugged and sent a red beam of crackling light towards her all of a sudden. Clarissa slapped it to the side with a backhand. The beam landed on a distant mountain and the explosion took a sizable chuck of it.

Before the fight, a Hidden Boundary had been raised to prevent unnecessary attention, but something like that made it moot.

“Good. Good. More, show me more.”

“Hmph.”

Calmly, Clarissa pulled out a card.

The High Priestess.

“With this card, I pray for the radiance of victory.”

With the incantation, Clarissa’s invoked a deeper tier of the Arcana Path of Power that Viers created. She was the first person other than the creator that was able to access this power.

A massive amount of power suffused her being. Tequila Dragon’s eyes widened, beholding something unknown to him.

Clarissa... transformed. In less than a second, she conjured an ethereal snake that coiled around Tequila Dragon and raised him to the upper reaches of the sky. She followed closely behind. The cultist grandmaster could resist but he didn't. Their battle would destroy overmuch otherwise.

The combatant’s on the ground thought they wouldn't see their battle, which brought mostly relief and a slight disappointment. However, to the amazement of all, in this clear morning day, there were three suns in the sky.

***

Ciel Valentine was in the darkness.

She didn't know how long it had been since her capture, but she remembered eight times of her being drenched in sin vividly.

The very first instant was Red Eyes taking her to a room with ten frightened children.

“Say hi to your fellow people from Valentine duchy. Orphans, street urchins, school kids, what have you. They are our slaves now,” Red Eyes said, still lacking a hand.

“You utter scum,” Ciel grimaced. “Release them!”

“Sure, but only seven of them. You must kill three.”

Red Eyes offered her a knife.

“Wha...” Ciel couldn't believe what she was hearing.

“Kill three, and I let the rest of them live. If you refuse, I’ll make all of them snacks for the demons.”

“...You’re insane,” her fear seeped into her voice.

“Their life is in your hands. You have this long to decide,” Red Eyes then flipped a small hourglass.

The sands were falling.

How short was it? To Ciel it was like eternity. She looked at the knife in her hand then at the frightened children. The oldest of them was around twelve, while the youngest was around five.

Her mind was a mess. Kill three innocents to save seven innocents? How could she do such a thing? But what was the alternative? Would letting them be demons’ lunch with her inaction any less atrocious?

She was hyperventilating, her eyes were unfocused, she had cold sweat, her heart was racing, and her hands were trembling.

The sands were falling.

The children, she saw them all crying. They called for their mother and father. Some hugged each other, siblings. They knew her by name. They cried out to her for help, to save them.

Help. Help. Help.

Ciel wanted nothing in this whole world except to help them.

But she was powerless. Her powers were suppressed. Even if it wasn't, she was alone in the middle of enemy territory, surrounded by hostiles. And she realized there were many cultists watching this sick show.

The sands were falling.

Ciel prayed to Estelle, for help, for guidance, anything. She was given two impossible choices. She desperately needed help.

“Cease you praying, Legionary. Your Goddess is powerless here,” Red Eyes chuckled.

“Kill me!” Ciel screamed. “Kill me instead of them!”

Red Eyes’ reply was a silence accompanied by a smirk. Ciel felt her heart was pierced with an ice spear.

The sands were falling.

NO! So little time was left. She had to make a decision. She had to act!

Both choices were impossible. So there was only the path of resistance. She was okay with dying fighting but the children... What about the children?

Without her relaying it, someone took her hand with the dagger. One child, one of the older girls, stabbed herself with the dagger while it was still being held in Ciel’s hand.

“Ah...”

Warm blood drenched her hand. Her head was blank from shock. When Ciel realized what was going on, the girl looked at her with a pleading eye.

“Please, save my brother.”

The girl fell, and the girl’s brother wailed.

After that, two other children... volunteered.

“Lady Ciel, this isn't your fault.”

“I don't want to die, but better than all of us dead.”

And so there were three children’s corpses around Ciel’s feet before the last sand fell.

“Time’s up.”

Ciel’s head was a mess. At least... at least the other children will.

“I told you to kill three of them. That looks like three suicides to me. Demon chow it is.”

The cultists broke out with a laughter of mockery.

“You vile bastard!!!” Ciel attacked Red Eyes, with eyes full of tears and a permanently scarred heart.

Alas, she was subdued.

And made to watch as demons feasted on the rest of the children.

But the day wasn't over.

After the massacre, she was put in a pit. There, she was inflicted by all kinds of curses. Insects that she had never seen poisoned her and she was exposed to demonic corruption. Her soul felt like it was burning in oil. Her mind was filled with excruciating pain. Her body felt like it had shed all drop of her blood.

But she wasn't dead.

At some point, she had passed out. Once again, she woke up in a dark room. She didn't feel good but miraculously, she wasn't dying after such torture.

Ciel was trying to face the traumatic experience in the dark. She cried, prayed, and begged for forgiveness for the ten souls that she failed.

Then Red Eyes took her out again for another insane performance.

It repeated for eight times, so Ciel thought it had been eight days. The performance was different each time, but the sick vileness that went beyond the pale was consistent. The torture was more or less the same, though Ciel was too overwhelmed with pain to comprehend.

In the darkness, Ciel lay sideways on the cold, dirty floor. Eyes staring emptily into the void. Her sanity was barely hanging by a thread. In a mere eight days, she had thought death was a better fate than this, but the geass on her prevented her from suicide.

“Goddess... Why have you abandoned me?”

Ciel’s heart was like a fractured glass. Her faith was in a similar state. Why did this happen? What great sin did she do to deserve this?

“Justice is a lie. After your heart shatters to pieces, darkness will swallow you whole. You’ll weep in the dark and pray for salvation but not even Estelle’s light can reach you in your black prison.”

Ciel remembered the prophecy or a curse that was given to her by the Grandmaster of Wicked Tempters in Valkut.

It came true.

The Church had blessed her in the aftermath, but it still came true.

With a strand of her Victa, she tried to make a flicker of light. To remember the light, and she longed for warmth.

Even that was taken from her.

Instead of a white light, the tip of her finger sparked a purple and devilish light.

Ciel thought it must be the experiments. She could feel she was changing. Strangely, Ciel felt no great distress from it. After all that had happened, this was trivial in comparison.

Covered in sin and innocent’s blood, bereft of Estelle’s light, Ciel who had lost everything, closed her eyes in despair.

In the dark... warmth?

What was this sensation on her hand? Was this warmth?

“It’s okay now. It’s okay. I am here. Your nightmare is over.”

“...Viers.”

Her eyes shed a tear, her very last one. She fell asleep. Hoping if this was just her imagination, let her never be awake again.

***

All warfare is based on deception.

Viers used the war outside as a distraction while he sneaked into the base, to the dungeon where Ciel was imprisoned.

When he finally lay his eyes on her. He feared he was too late. At any rate, the first priority was getting her out of here. With gentle care, he lifted her up.

“Yo. That’s my property. Kindly get away from her, please?”

A voice came from behind him. Without turning, Viers knew he was Red Eyes.

Red Eyes were standing in a corridor full of corpses. Cultists that Viers butchered on his way here.

“You must be with the crowd outside, yes? Did you really do all this for her? Who are you? What’s your relationship with her?”

Viers slowly turned around with Ciel in his arms.

“Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You hurt my girl. Prepare to die.”

Killing intent as vast and deep as the sea emerged from Viers.