Chapter 607 – Taking Up A Defensive Position.

Multiple decahedron-shaped devices hovered through the air, glowing brightly as they released concentrated blue beams of mana. The beams collided with an invisible wall that did not ripple or falter against the intense magical light. After a moment, the floating constructs ceased their assault and instead began to circle the area.

They spread apart, sweeping across the endless grounds of the outer palace. In the distance, the sounds of battle echoed, accompanied by strange shrieks that resembled monstrous cries. The earth trembled briefly as something massive clashed, yet the devices pressed on with their new task. Soon one of them drifted into a large watchtower, its artificial eye narrowing as it focused on an anomaly.

The golem paused, observing a cloaked figure seated before a small obelisk. The object was an abyssal relic placed upon the ground within an occult circle. Symbols covered the floor, and at the center of a pentagram, the relic rested. As the construct advanced, a sudden swishing sound cut through the air, and its metallic body was sliced cleanly in two.

From the side emerged a monstrous creature resembling a mantis, its bladed arms retracting after striking the construct. For a moment, several more of the same creatures appeared, standing guard around the cloaked man and the obelisk before him.

‘There you are.’

Roland thought to himself as he analyzed the footage from his defeated drone. It had captured an image of a cultist meditating or praying in front of the relic. The man was inside one of the watchtowers, and Roland’s other drones quickly confirmed that all six towers were emitting a signal. If he hoped to awaken everyone in the castle, he would need to destroy every one of them.

‘The targets are there, but…’

At the moment, Roland was locked in a fight with a powerful witch. Even when he used several of his magic tricks, his opponent managed to shrug them off. The armor he wore was designed mainly for defense and physical damage, but this enemy resisted both with ease.

Matters grew worse as multiple cultists swarmed in from outside. Roland could not understand how they had entered without being noticed. Because he was unable to use a proper runic suit, his scanning capabilities were limited. If he had been wearing the right suit and not concealing his full abilities, he might have prevented this situation. The woman responsible had stood among them all the time, but her disguise had seemed unbreakable. Only after he struck her with a heavy blow did the occult energies begin to seep through, and by then it was too late.

“Arthur.”

“What is it? I am busy over here.”

“I know where the other relics are, but I am not sure I can reach them on my own.”

“What do you need me to do?”

Arthur was locked in a defensive fight as well. The Duke wore a bracelet, and so did one of his personal knights, but that was the extent of their preparations. Roland had crafted several bracelets for such an occasion, yet he had not imagined the situation would become this dire.

The cult had gone further than he believed possible, and he never expected seven relics to be activated at once, each discharging a signal in a different location. He had assumed that disabling a single relic would be enough to end this kind of threat. To make matters worse, his plan for the Duke to eliminate the enemies had failed, and now they even had to defend the man from harm.

There were several ways Roland could approach the situation, and much seemed to depend on him. The people he had awakened had no clear understanding of what was happening, and there was no guarantee they would cooperate. The man guarding Theodore would probably remain inactive, which made it fortunate that Arthur had chosen not to awaken his second brother. As a result, the large man was forced to fight off the cultists, who focused on attacking anyone who had awakened from the illusory dream.

For now, the nobles who had fallen under the spell were ignored and remained gathered in a few locations. The grand hall was spacious, and Arthur and the others had moved to a side area where no people were present. It made things a bit simpler as he didn’t need to defend the other nobles, but eventually their lives would probably be at risk.

Taking out the towers by himself was possible, but he did not know what would happen to the people here if he stormed out. If the witch decided to chase after him, then things could be fine. If not, Arthur might be in danger. This cultist was powerful enough that he was not sure he would emerge from their confrontation unscathed. To minimize the damage, it was best if the monsters focused on him instead. For that, he would need to convince them that he was the most important target, not the weakened Duke himself.

“I will take this battle outside. You need to convince the others to help you take down the cultists at the watchtowers. Each one has a relic, and they must be destroyed.”

“But I am not sure I can achieve this alone…”

Arthur replied, hiding behind the knight commanders his brothers commanded. Lady Bernadette was cutting through the monsters, and so was the Bestial Warden. Both were much stronger than he was and far more suited to the task.

“I know. Lady Bernadette will probably help you, as will the mage who came with Tybalt. They are your most likely allies. If they refuse, I know how to persuade them.”

“Very well. Just be careful, my friend.”

“I will.”

A semblance of a plan had been formed, but now it was time to carry it out. The first step was to drive this monstrous witch out of the grand hall and into the open, where he could unleash his full power without the risk of the castle collapsing on everyone inside.

Roland slammed both maces into the marble floor, releasing a burst of concussive force. The shockwave shoved the witch back for a moment, giving him just enough time to take aim. Keeping his center of gravity low, he launched forward. From his back, a surge of energy burst out and propelled him with explosive speed. All four of his shields snapped into position, intercepting the counterattack that came his way.

He did not stop. His charge carried him straight into the massive armored arachnoid body of his opponent, slamming her into the wall. The impact was immense, fueled by a large portion of his mana. Though the wall was built to endure, cracks spread across its surface until, with a thunderous crash, both combatants broke through and spilled into the open air outside.

The two combatants tumbled into the outer courtyard, rubble cascading around them as the witch’s shriek rattled the night. Roland staggered to his feet, his armor dented, but his visor still shone with streams of tactical data. The witch scuttled up the side of the broken wall, her malformed limbs stabbing into the stone as her eyes glowed with abyssal fury.

“It matters not what you do, my victory is all but assured!”

The witch screamed at him as she stood. In her eyes, he had already lost, and at first glance, it seemed true. His armor was cracked, his shields partially melted, and even his weapons showed signs of damage. The monster before him, however, remained uninjured. Her form regenerated endlessly, as though defeating her was impossible.

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“You think so?”

Roland activated a new sequence. Circles of light spun into place around his arms and shoulders, and his fractured maces and armor parts reconstructed themselves through raw mana. The witch stared in disbelief as his armor reformed piece by piece.

“As you can see, you are not the only one who can regenerate. This battle is far from over.”

The woman screeched at him.

“It matters not, the Duke will die. My flock will see to that!”

“Are you sure you should be worrying about the Duke? Are you not forgetting something?”

The cultist’s mouths twisted in confusion. She followed his gaze upward and saw multiple floating constructs surrounding the six watchtowers where the relics were held.

“Stop stalling. Those things cannot destroy the sacred relics!”

“Are you sure about that? Did I actually have to destroy the last one?”