Parallel (A Virtual Gamer's Story) [Vol.1 - Vol.4 Complete]

Chapter 178: Probing Charge

Somewhere in Kirkcour Woods.

04:23 a.m. 15th Banem, 1092.

Dudududu...

A centurion of centaurs galloped out of the forest led by Kashi, Shadow, Larsial, Darian, and Agamios. The leaders pulled to a stop at a clifftop overlooking a vast encampment in the valley below.

Kashi keenly studied the kilometer-wide stronghold to devise a plan of attack. His lips curled up in a challenging smile as he realized the headquarters was much stronger than he initially suspected.

The stronghold did not appear to be a temporary investment, suggested by the 15-meters-tall circular wall that surrounded the perimeter. Intriguingly, Kashi counted five wooden pillars placed strategically around the wall. Each pillar ran alongside the wall's internal part and had man-sized, pyramid-shaped mana crystals encased at their apex.

A final, sixth pillar was erected at the heart of the encampment. A thin translucent film seemed to originate from that pillar and spread to the others.

The valley itself was populated by tall trees that blocked off most of the compound from sight. Kashi highly doubted this was a coincidence. The boss of this place was undoubtedly brilliant.

However, two places in the valley could not be covered by the trees. The first was a large building that housed the sixth pillar, and the second, and most interesting was a giant pit with a diameter of at least 200 meters.

Dark energy and aura billowed from the pit like a sick, cursed volcano and spread to the surrounding forest. Kashi felt his skin crawl just from looking at the smoke. He instinctively knew he had found the Blight's source.

Kashi turned from the pit and once again observed the film surrounding the camp. 'It can't be.' Kashi thought to himself as he dismounted and picked up a smooth stone from the ground. He flung the rock and watched with bated breath as the projectile sailed through the air.

Clang!

"No way," Kashi muttered in shock as he watched the stone bounce off some invisible barrier. The daeben picked another rock and threw it at the wall. He breathed a sigh of relief when the stone crumbled against the wall. Good, so the shield only protected the skies against airborne attacks.

Kashi admired the barrier technology with the utmost respect. Say what you will about these Chaos Order's ethics, but their technology was undoubtedly leagues ahead of the continent. The daeben was grateful for their advancements in magitek (magic technology). It would undoubtedly save the Maggots several months, or even years, worth of research.

That's right. As far as Kashi was concerned, the technology was already his.

"Kashi-dono, over there," Darian prompted and pointed at the large building with his spear.

Kashi utilized [Keen Eyes] to zoom in on the building and spotted an aged centaur chained to the ground in front of the mansion. Judging from the slow rise and fall of the centaur's chest, he appeared to still be among the living. However, Kashi could not tell how long that would last, especially now that the final battle had commenced.

"I see him," Kashi confirmed and then took stock of the security personnel. Just as they thought, most of the base had been emptied, leaving only a few hundred monsters behind for protection. But Kashi was more concerned about the dozens of humes leisurely patrolling the vicinity. He could not accurately predict their exact numbers because of the trees, but he estimated there should be at least a hundred or more.

Kashi turned around and looked at Agamios and the rest of the centaurs. "This is it, ladies and gentlemen. The final push." Kashi pointed at the gaping hole. "That over there is what we need to destroy. Everything we do henceforth is for that one overarching goal. The faster we complete the objective, the quicker we can save those at Lymar."