Chapter 48: Quest Change.
Nero blocked the path with a thick and tall Earth Wall and modified the wall with sharp spikes on all the surfaces. He made sure that only the flying demons could fly past the wall, and that alone was good enough. He then protected Katya and Violette as he escorted them so they could regroup with the others.
"I never thought your team manage to handle the demons, Nero," Katya said as she ran behind Nero.
"You know well when it comes to exploration and survival, I'm really a good pair with Ando. I'm the brain he's the muscle," Nero answered with a smile. "Also, we are paired with Hunter, and to be honest, those two work really well together," Nero pointed out and saw another Earth Wall he created in the distance in front of him.
"Right..." Katya said under her breath as she looked over her shoulder and watched the demons try to climb the wall.
Once they regrouped with Nero, Ando, and Hunter, Gratya thanked them all for letting her and her teams merge. Since Nero was the team leader, Ando and Hunter had no complaints since they were worried about the other teams.
Gratya explained to them what had happened and why they had to merge with Nero's teams. They were surprised when they heard there were giant demons because they hadn't seen them on their side yet. She made sure that Nero and the others knew how powerful the giant demon was, and that her message was received well from them.
"I just realized. You guys make your own fortress here, huh?" Violette asked as she held a cup of hot chocolate and looked at the Earth Walls around her.
"It's called outposts, and we need to gather information about the world we're in before we head in. We haven't fought these powerful demons, so it's better to take things slowly," Nero answered and sat down next to Ando. "Also, I have gathered enough information and created a map of this whole Archdukedom. Take a look," Nero pulled out a tablet from his bag and showed the photos of the city from above.
Gratya took the tablet and showed it to Katya, Violette, and Renata so they could look at it together. They saw how big the Archdukedom was, and it was in fact as big as West Dasmein. They wondered how they could clear the mission within 17 days and not to mention the mission. Was to kill all the demons.
"There are so many questions that I want to know, but the person who knows the answers is somewhere in the middle of the city," Nero said as he sighed and looked at the distance.
Everyone looked in the direction where they saw the blinding light earlier and wondered how Alseace and Sierra were doing.
(In the middle of the Archdukedom)
[0.007015% EXP]
[0.007122% EXP]
[0.006793% EXP]
...
...
...
[Strength has increased by 3.24 points]
[Vitality has increased by 3.11 points]
[Agility has increased by 3.31 points]
[Dexterity has increased by 3.27 points]
...
...
...
Alseace stood in the middle of the city which looked like a big town square with nothing but dead bodies. From different kinds of creatures and sizes which made him understand what kind of demon existed.
He sat down as he tried to loosen up the necktie since he had already reached his limit from fighting dozens of them. He never thought with the stats that he had, he would be overwhelmed by his enemies, and not to mention all of them were standing equally with him.
"You must be flooding with EXPs and status points right now," Sierra said as she offered Alseace a chocolate bar. "Eat this, you need a lot of sweet," Sierra sat down and sat next to Alseace as she fixed her sleeves.
"(Status)" Alseace said as he opened the chocolate bar.
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Name : Alseace LaRoze
Level: 6 (47.093194%)
Karma: 100/100
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Status
Strength: 288.94 (+23)
Agility: 286.08 (+23)
Dexterity: 283.26 (+23)
Vitality: 275.78 (+23)
Mentality: 266.13 (+20)
Sense: 209.42 (+20)
Magic: 219.31 (+20)
Stamina: 289.24 (+23)
Extra Point(s): 50
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Skill : [Leftover] [Leech] [Sword Art] [Spear Art] [Dagger Art] [Axe Art] [Staff Art] [Bow Art] [Martial Art] [Mana] [Pain Resistance] [Dragon Fear] [Poison Art] [Affinity: Holy]
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Sub-Skill : [Scavenger (E)] [Fire Magic (E)] [Water Magic (E)] [Earth Magic (E)] [Wind Magic (E)][Ice Magic] [Healing Magic (E)] [Enhancement Magic (E)] [Sword Mastery (E)] [Spear Mastery (E)] [Dagger Mastery (E)] [Axe Mastery (E)] [Staff Mastery (E)] [Bow Mastery (E)] [Inner Strength (F)] [Body Aura (E)] [Sword Aura (E)] ... ]
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Achievement : [The One Who Did Nothing] [Rebirth] [Wyvern Slayer] [Dragon Slayer]
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"I have spares of extra points, and I'm thinking about what I should do with it and which status I should be focusing on," Alseace said as he chewed the chocolate bar.
"Keep it that way and use it when you need it. You'll be in a situation where you wish you have a certain status to raise instead of the others," Sierra answered and realized the city had been so quiet. "I guess the time is now," Sierra said quietly.
Alseace furrowed his eyebrows as he looked at Sierra, and then he looked at the sky. He realized the sky had turned dark and the air slowly became thinner and thinner. He then looked at Sierra standing next to him and clenched her fists with an anxious look on her face.
"What's wrong?" Alseace asked as he gulped nervously.
"Remember what I said back then when I fell unconscious? I said something about God wanting me to be his puppet," Sierra said.
"Yes, but why do I feel like this is nothing like the one that appeared in the mining cave?" Alseace asked as he stood up.
"Because the Demon God also wants me to be his puppet," Sierra glanced at Alseace. "This is what I meant by making things worse if I enter a portal or a vortex," Sierra pointed out.
As soon as Sierra said that, a notification appeared in front of them.
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[Quest Change: Demon God's Arrival]
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[Difficulty: Death Wish]
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[Objective: Because of a certain Candidate that came to Archdukedom, Demon God is interested in that Candidate. Demon God believes it is his opportunity to take the Candidate and make her one of his most powerful Servants. Defeat the 7th Archduke Demon as soon as possible so that you can leave before the Demon God arrives!]
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[Failed Condition: On the 3rd day, if the 7th Archduke Demon did not die, Demon God will annihilate all the Candidates and manage to take the Candidate with him. The Candidate will be the most powerful and unstoppable Calamity]
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[Reward: Wish to God]
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[Timer: 3 Days 00 Hours 00 Minutes 00 Seconds]
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At that moment, everyone was speechless and dumbfounded by the notification. They realized what they had done and made things harder for them by bringing Sierra with them. But, none of them were blaming each other and accepted it since they were responsible for it.
"Everyone! Let's move forward and meet up with Miss Sierra!" Mihangel shouted as he pointed his sword at the center of the city. "If the objective changed, then all we have to be focused on is the Archduke. Let's go!" Mihangel used [Ice Path] and cleared the path for everyone and froze all the demons around it.
They all followed Mihangel's order and ran with him to the center of the city without hesitation. Mihangel wasn't the only one who thought that way, Lucretia, Gratya, Nero, and Elenoir also thought the same thing. They all went to the center of the city to meet with Sierra and Alseace since they had to work together if they wanted to defeat Archduke faster.
"Be ready, Al..." Sierra said as she stared at the giant castle in the distance with 4 towers that reached the sky.
Alseace slowly lifted his head and saw dots in the distance from all the 4 towers around the castle. He drew his sword and covered them with Aura and turned it into Holy Element.
"What are those?" Alseace asked.
"Archduke's loyal servants," Sierra answered. "They should be equal to you, so this might be a perfect chance for you to test your skill," Sierra pointed out.
Alseace tightened his grip on his sword and watched the dots fly toward him fast. Suddenly he heard roars from all over the city and it made his heart skip a beat because he was startled by it. He had never heard those many roars in his life and how they all sounded so excited and angry at the same time.
"Miss Sierra. If we failed, what would happen to you?" Alseace asked as he glanced at Sierra.
"Well..." Sierra sighed as she sat down. "I could ask God to rescue me in exchange for taking me into their arms and becoming their puppet," Sierra answered as she stared blankly at the pile of dead bodies in front of her. "But, that's the worst-case scenario, so it's not really what would happen," Sierra pointed out.
"So, what are we going to do now? I think the Archduke is trying to send all his army here. Should we run?" Alseace asked.
"No. You're going to fight his servants while I'm dealing with the demons. I'll make sure that you get all the juicy EXPs and points from them. So just worry about yourself and think about how to survive against them," Sierra answered and put a lollipop in her mouth.
Alseace looked at the dots and saw 6 people flying toward him and he could see that they were humans. But he wondered how they could fly like that, and how their presences were as overwhelming as Arisma, the Commander of Saintess Arzhela.
A minute passed and all the Archduke's Servants landed in front of Alseace and Sierra. 6 powerful humans, 2 women and 4 men that had turned against God stood in front of them, and they menacingly stared at them.
"Who would've thought that I would be able to see you again, Rishiart..." A white-haired woman in a red gown under her armor said as she held a blood-red sword. "You're still the same as the last time I saw you," she continued with a huge grin on her face.
"You're calling me with that name? I see that you have forgotten..." Sierra said as she stared at the white-haired woman. "Should I remind you what pain is?" Sierra asked as she stared coldly at the white-haired woman.
The white-haired woman took a step back and the other Archduke's servants glanced at her because they were surprised at how she was scared of Sierra. They all then looked at Sierra and thought they were facing a powerful enemy and had to subdue her under the Archduke's order.
"Relax, I'm not going to fight all of you since it would be an easy task. I'm not your opponent, at least not yet. Your opponent would be him," Sierra said as she pointed at Alseace. "He alone should be enough to fight all of you," Sierra chuckled.
Alseace glanced at Sierra and had no idea what she was talking about since he knew he would die if he had to fight all of them at once.