Chapter 10: Infiltration.
Alseace's pupils were shaken when he got multiple notifications that his status had increased. He was so shocked that he didn't realize there was someone near him. He then sat still as he looked at a knight walking into the woods near him.
The knight was taking a piss and seemed not to notice there was someone near him. Alseace looked around and checked if there was anyone else around him, but it was just that knight. He then carefully drew his sword on his waist and dashed as fast as he could.
The knight heard a rustling sound from his left, but when he looked to his left, a sword was pointing at his face. That was the last thing he saw, and Alseace managed to kill the knight in a single attack with his sword pierced through the knight's face in between his eyes.
[Your Karma has decreased by 2]
"I might not be able to sneak around starting tomorrow because some of them have high sense," Alseace took the soldier's attire and sword. He kept them since he might need them for tomorrow to infiltrate the Cresta army military camp.
Alseace sneaked back in and leeched the rest of the EXPs before they cremated the dead bodies. He realized that his movements became a lot quicker than before, but he didn't have the chance to look at his status screen because he had to keep his eyes, ears, and senses wide open.
After there were no more EXPs to leech, he moved into the woods and went to the other side.
"Did you hear that?" A knight asked and looked at the woods to his right.
His friend looked at the woods and pointed his lantern at it. But he didn't see anything. "It must be the wind. We have a truce with the Sikar Clan as soon as the sun is down, there's no need to be on guard just rest for tomorrow," he looked at his friend and patted him on the shoulder.
[0.000421% EXP gained]
...
[Dexterity has increased by 0.17 points]
...
[0.000359% EXP gained]
...
[Agility has increased by 0.14 points]
...
[0.000377% EXP gained]
...
[Stamina has increased by 0.18 points]
...
[Your Sub-Skill [Scavenger] has ranked up!]
[Sub-Skill [Scavenger (F)] turned into [Scavenger (E)]!]
...
[Sense has increased by 0.32 points]
...
[Vitality has increased by 0.28 points]
...
[Magic has increased by 0.24 points]
...
[Strength has increased by 0.26 points]
"(Now I got 0.2 points instead of 0.1 from the dead bodies? My Scavenger skill now take 1% instead of 0.5%, but it gave this much?)" Alseace was shocked as he read the description of his [Scavenger] skill.
EXPs and Status Points were still flooding in front of Alseace and he couldn't believe that he'd got a perfect opportunity like this. He then remembered what Sierra said and finally understood what she meant.
After Alseace got all the EXPs, he didn't go back. Instead, he climbed a tree not far from the Sikar Clan military camp. He waited for hours until there were only a few soldiers left that were awake. He waited for an opportunity to find a perfect victim so he could steal Sikar's attire.
"Status," Alseace said as his eyes were focused on the military base and the knights.
---------------------------------------
Name : Alseace LaRoze
Level: 1 (45.077946%)
Karma: 98/100
---------------------------------------
Status
Strength: 37.36
Agility: 34.42
Dexterity: 30.32
Vitality: 29.58
Mentality: 30.18
Sense: 24.72
Magic: 22.22
Stamina: 29.74
Extra Point(s): 0
---------------------------------------
Skill : [Leftover] [Pain Resistance] [Leech] [Sword Art] [Spear Art]
[Dagger Art] [Axe Art] [Staff Art] [Bow Art] [Martial Art]
---------------------------------------
Sub-Skill : [Scavenger (E)]
---------------------------------------
Achievement : [The One Who Did Nothing]
---------------------------------------
"To think that I have no affinity for magic can be gained like this," Alseace smiled with joy as he looked at his status screen. "I'll ask Miss Sierra how to use magic once I get back," Alseace closed his status screen and looked at a knight entering the woods.
Alseace stood up slowly and watched the knight walk past the tree with a torch in his hand. He slowly climbed down the tree and kept his eyes on the knight. He then carefully followed the knight until the knight slowly pulled his pants down. He used the opportunity and stabbed the knight from behind and right through his chest as he covered the knight's mouth.
[Your Karma decreased by 2]
Alseace carried the body far away so they couldn't find it and then left after he took the attire. On his way back, he was surprised that the portal didn't appear. He waited long enough and didn't see any portal opening until it opened up. There were only 5,000 of them, but they all looked strong compared to the previous ones.
"I was right. The more I prolong this, the stronger both armies become. The system has predicted it. So their fate is to fight to the death, just like what Miss Sierra said. A living puppet," Alseace squinted his eyes as he walked away from the cliff.
On the third day, the battlefield was more terrifying than the previous ones because there were more mages on the battlefield. They used magic, spells, and skills thrown back and forth, killing those who couldn't keep up with the pace of the battle.
"If Miss Elenoir were here, I think she would struggle to stop them. I wonder what the fourth, the fifth, the sixth, and the seventh day would look like," Alseace watched the war as he ate a fruit that he found in the woods. "I guess I should prepare as well," Alseace walked back into the woods to wear Cresta Clan attire.
As soon as the sun went down, Alseace climbed down the cliff in Cresta Clan attire. He also brought Sikar Clan attire with him and hid it in the woods near the Cresta military camp so he could move swiftly from one place to another.
Alseace entered the camp so casually and immediately blended in with the knights. He helped them carry the dead bodies and stacked them up.
"It was as the Saint predicted. The war will last for 7 days, and he believed on the 7th day we will be victorious," A knight said to his friend as he guarded the camp near the battlefield.
"Yeah, and tomorrow we will be exploring the surrounding areas for vice commander Zurbrugg Scaltor and his army. I heard there's a river on the west side of this place, and we are going to take that side while the Sikar army takes the east side up the cliff," The other knight replied as he ate the bread that he dipped in hot chocolate.
"Right, captains from 5th and 6th regiments are currently scouting there," The first knight pointed out.
Alseace overheard their conversation and realized his stuff was still in the woods on top of the cliff. He had no reason to go back up there since it was already too late, and the most important item he had was the sword that was on his waist. He then continued helping the knights carry the dead bodies into the pit.
After he got all the EXPs, he went to the woods and changed his attire as soon as possible. He went to Sikar military camp and managed to infiltrate without a problem.
The information he got from the Sikar knight was similar to the one he got from Cresta Clan's knights. Sikar Clan was about to bring the Vice Commander onto the battlefield as well, with 60,000 armies and 10,000 elite knights that belonged to the Vice Commander.
[0.000694% EXP gained]
[0.000543% EXP gained]
[0.000591% EXP gained]
[Strength has increased by 0.28 points]
[Sense has increased by 0.3 points]
[Agility has increased by 0.32 points]
[Dexterity has increased by 0.3 points]
Alseace got the last bit of EXP and decided to stay low on the side to check on his status screen.
---------------------------------------
Name : Alseace LaRoze
Level: 1 (74.613762%)
Karma: 96/100
---------------------------------------
Status
Strength: 51.94
Agility: 55.18
Dexterity: 50.96
Vitality: 51.08
Mentality: 51.72
Sense: 31.98
Magic: 34.94
Stamina: 50.98
Extra Point(s): 0
---------------------------------------
Skill : [Leftover] [Pain Resistance] [Leech] [Sword Art] [Spear Art]
[Dagger Art] [Axe Art] [Staff Art] [Bow Art] [Martial Art]
---------------------------------------
Sub-Skill : [Scavenger (E)]
---------------------------------------
Achievement : [The One Who Did Nothing]
---------------------------------------
"It's not as much as yesterday, but that's given because there weren't as many knights as last night," Alseace closed his status screen and looked around the camp. "Since I have no place to go, I guess I should stay here until the morning and go into the woods before they notice," Alseace checked his surroundings and looked at the area that wasn't heavily guarded.
A portal opened up and all the knights were standing in line to welcome the vice commander. Alseace decided to join in and hid his presence in between the knights. Even before anyone came out of the portal, Alseace already felt a terrifying presence coming from the portal.
"(This feeling. It's similar to what Miss Sierra used when she was in bad mood)" Alseace's eyes were fixed on the translucent portal.
A man in black full-plate armor came out of the portal with a shield and a lance in his hands. His long black cape was blown by the wind as he walked past hundreds of knights that were saluting him. Based on the information that Alseace had gathered, his name was Bretnach Cregeen, and his rank was Third Ring of Redemption.
It was as the knight said, and the information that Alseace got. There were 60,000 armies that came with Bretnach, and the 10,000 elite knights were Apostles. To be exact, they were all First Ring of Redemption, but Alseace didn't know exactly what their level was, but they knew Bretnach level was around 400.
"(If I got caught here, I won't be able to survive)" Alseace watched as the elite knights in blue armor prepared their own tent near the cliff. "(Thankfully they're not staying in the military camp. I might be able to leave before they march into the battlefield)" Alseace continued and hid near the woods.
The morning came even before the sun rose, and Alseace managed to hide in the woods. The sound of the trumpets could be heard, and all the knights started to march into the battlefield. There wasn't a single knight that stayed in the military camp or at the cliff.
"Let's see what Zurbrugg Scaltor looks like," Alseace jumped from one rock to another and climbed the cliff faster than before.
Both armies were facing each other on the battlefield. Alseace saw Bretnach standing at the front, and he was staring at a knight in all black armor with broad shoulders holding a spear in his right hand and a round shield in his left hand. He had another spear on his back and his metal cape that looked like sickles at the bottom part.
As soon as the trumpet sounded again, both of them disappeared and reappeared in front of each other. They thrust their spear and lance at each other, but they blocked each other's attacks with their shields. The shockwave was fierce that it shattered the ground around them, but the elite knights on both armies weren't affected by it. The elite knights started charging and clashing their weapons against each other.
The ordinary knights were too scared to advance because the battle of the elite knights was so fierce that it turned the ground upside down.
"Even Miss Elenoir would lose her composure if she saw this," Alseace said as he hid in between rocks.