Chapter 230: Midnight Siege

Luke stood before the door that led to the mechanism chamber. A crescent moon was carved into the stone, watching like an unblinking eye. He pressed his palms against the symbol and pushed. The door didn’t budge. Charlie stepped up beside him. They shoved together. Nothing. It was like trying to move a mountain. Then a system notification flashed into view. But before he could read it, a metallic echo drifted from one of the corridors. Luke glanced over his shoulder.

“Oh, perfect… right now of all times… a Midnight Warden.”

Charlie slid into a battle stance. Luke’s eyes flicked to the notification. It was linked to the door.

[Special Event: Midnight Siege]

Description:

The Midnight Wardens have sensed your presence. Your intrusion has not gone unnoticed. They remained hidden, lurking within the fortress, waiting for you to wander deeper into their domain. Now they march, intent on hunting down and eradicating anyone who dares defile their stronghold. Their forces, led by their commander, have begun their assault to reclaim this territory.

Objective:
Eliminate the leader of the Midnight Wardens and secure control of the fortress.

Status:
Event in progress.

(Warning: Access to the mechanism will remain locked until the territory is fully secured. The door will only open upon completion of the event.)

It was that last line that made him grit his teeth.

“You’re kidding me… it only opens after the event’s over…”

The footsteps grew louder. And not just from one corridor. From all around. Heavy, synchronized. Armor groaning. Metal scraping against stone. He tried the door again, channeling stamina into his arms. Nothing. Turning into mist, he attempted to seep through, but there wasn’t the smallest gap to exploit. The door wasn’t a door. It was part of the wall, just with a decorative carving. No way to break it. No way to bypass it.

Luke turned. Three shapes emerged from the darkness. Black armor glimmered faintly under the sparse light, battered but unbroken. Slits in their helmets burned with crimson light, fixed directly on them.

[Midnight Warden – Lvl 40]

[Midnight Warden – Lvl 40]

[Midnight Warden – Lvl 40]

The trio advanced. Two drew longswords from their inventories. The third kept its spear, then hurled it without warning. Charlie raised a barrier. The spear slammed into it, sending a sharp crack through the air. The swordsmen closed in immediately after.

“Charlie,” Luke called, kukris already in hand.

She caught one blade with her own. The other swung for her, but Luke stepped in, blocking the strike. More footsteps echoed. They were surrounded. Of course. They had been allowed to go this deep on purpose.

“They were upstairs the whole time… just waiting,” he muttered.

Another spear cut through the air. Luke snatched it mid-flight. With his free hand, he hurled a kukri. The blade punched clean through the Warden’s helmet, shoving it back until it toppled to the floor.

[You have slain a Midnight Warden – Lvl 40]

More metal-clad footsteps followed. He glanced at Charlie. She was holding her ground against two of them.

She’s strong. But not as strong as me.

Luke recalled his kukri and flung the other one, burying it in the arm of the Warden locked with her. The impact knocked it back. Charlie tried to drive her sword in, but the creature deflected. Another swung for her head. That was the problem. Luke could channel stamina into his weapons. Charlie couldn’t.

More Wardens emerged from the side corridors, their black armor swallowing the light, crimson eyes burning in the gloom. The formation tightened until there was nowhere left to run. They stood still, spears in hand, watching.

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“We just need to take them out. Then the fortress is ours.”

Charlie gave a sharp nod. The Warden she had been fighting lunged again, and she shoved her hand into the gap in its helmet and unleashed her Flame. The creature recoiled, startled. Chains of spectral energy lashed out from her other hand, coiling around it before she hurled the armored body into the cluster of Wardens ahead. She stepped to Luke’s side, sword ready, fist raised.