“Work fast if you don’t want to die gruesome deaths.” Otto spoke lazily to the conscripted laborers below, though his voice carried farther than normal.

  The laborers needed little motivation. They pushed themselves hard without rest, their faces filled with anxiety and dread at the calamity approaching.

  A series of trenches and ramparts were being carved out of the farmland surrounding the town. The focus was mainly on the western side where the monster wave would come from, though the other walls were not being neglected.

  The vast majority of the town’s now 3,000 population had been gathered outside and forced to build the fortifications as Otto detailed. It was a simple defense, one designed not to fend off enemies, but to slow and funnel them through key points.

  A logical approach to dealing with a horde, however this was nothing more than a fundamental requirement to allow this hopeless rabble a chance of survival.

  Otto watched the mob of trash scurry around like ants with a smile on his face as if none of this mattered to him at all.

  “I’ve brought them.” One of his enforcers announced as he walked up the steps of the wall, with Banda and Eres trailing behind cautiously, though they tried to hide as much.

  “Is this your first monster wave?” He asked them.

  “Yes.” Eres answered plainly, giving away none of her deeper thoughts on the matter. Banda didn’t respond and his demeanor showed no inclination either way.

  “It’s larger than you expect.” Otto continued without care. “Thousands, tens of thousands of monsters all gone berserk. Charging these walls without care for themselves. Most will be weak, but a sea of thorns is worse than a sword.”

  “I thought monsters couldn’t enter sanctuaries?” Eres asked.

  “Normally. But it all stops working when enough monsters come near. That same mana that whips them into a frenzy disturbs the barrier. But you don’t need to worry much about that.” Otto turned to face them. “Shamura will take command of the east wall, and you will escort her. If she dies, so do you.”

  Eres’ eyes deepened. This was a prime opportunity to kill Otto within the chaos of disaster. She suspected that was why he was sending them away, under the watch of the only person he could trust.

  But that too, was an opportunity. They could cut off his right hand and leave him as vulnerable as he’d ever be. However, they couldn’t do it alone.

  With the Soul Seed art, Otto could cripple the two of them by himself. They needed to coordinate with Scar, and they needed to do it before this window of opportunity closed.

  ---

  Barosa’s core underlings gathered around him in the cover of his chosen dwelling. Six Rank 2s aside from himself and a dozen peak Rank 1s, all initiates of the Abyss.

  The loss of one of his Rank 2 retinue was worthy of nothing more than a passing acknowledgement. Such pawns could be easily replaced.

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  All preparations had been made and the stage was set for another offering of souls. All that remained was to wait, and so Warlord waited patiently with an eerily bold smile.

  A shadow flickered to the group and dispersed into the air, revealing a man in roguish attire. “The horde is here.”

  Barosa’s presence grew. “With this town, our devotion will finally be rewarded.”

  He flung off the thick carpet on the floor, revealing a wide hole, and jumped down without hesitation. The others followed him at once down the crude earthen tunnel they had secretly constructed.

  It took only a few moments to reach the light at the end, and Barosa emerged from the cover of brambles to the fog of the Misty Forest, with a smile wider than ever.

  But no sooner had he taken a step into the fog, that the sounds of monsters approached from the east.

  A spinning axe shot out of the fog straight for Barosa’s head, but he easily knocked it away with his own. Scar followed after, catching his axe without missing a stride as he sprinted back towards the town.

  “Ignore him!” Barosa ordered.

  The first of the monsters charged into sight and set their eyes on the group. And Barosa cut them down in a frenzy. The rest of the underlings followed suit. They slaughtered the small swarm as quickly as they could but several cascades of roars emerged in the distance around them.

  Barosa burst to the outskirts of the forest and saw the state of the land clearly. Clawing lines of monsters enveloped them from all sides, led by Otto’s hunters.

  The wretched fox had sent his pawns to pull streams of the monster wave away from the main horde, in order to surround the whole town on all sides. And he had perfectly timed it to their escape.

  This was not something that could be done in mere reaction. Otto had planned this with knowledge in advance.

  Killing intent pierced into Barosa, and he spun around to see the two slumlords lunging at him. Their expressions were mindless, barren of any thought or awareness.

  But that observation did not slow Barosa’s response. He raised back his battleaxe to cut them down. And their bodies swelled with violent surging aura, as iridescent light flared out from the cracks.

  Barosa’s eyes widened and dark red infernal mana covered his body just in time before the two slumlords exploded.

  The dirt and grass settled quickly, revealing Warlord’s light injuries and his displeased scowl. His eyes drifted over to Silik’s mangled corpse, which would have been his fate had he not used his Infernal Scapegoat art in time.

  “That wench…” A cursed slipped from Barosa’s mouth without his intention. Mind Control to the extent that could command another to take their own life was not a paltry art, nor was detonating one’s spirit.

  Otto was likely the source of the detonation, but the enthrallment had to come from a Mystic. It could only be Shamura, which meant they both had to have been observing this all unfold.

  That purple-eyed girl had managed to deceive him.

  Roars in the distance pulled his attention for a moment. The horde at this side was still small, but they were already found. It was only a matter of time until the monsters pursued them in greater and greater numbers.

  Barosa took assessment. Eight Rank 2s had been reduced to five, and he had used a large chunk of his aura against that attempt on his life just now. His chances of survival had sunk too low.

  “Return!” Barosa bellowed.

  He charged back through the tunnel with what was left of his retinue and collapsed it once they were back in his manor. Barosa rushed out and over to the wall without lingering a moment, as his scowl deepened.

  The ritual for this town was ruined. He had no choice now but to cooperate with Otto to defeat the horde, and then kill him.

  The failure today could be rectified with the next town, and Otto’s soul would likely pacify his patron long enough to wait until then. But only just enough. He could not afford any more mistakes.

  Barosa dug his feet into the group and lept into the air, landing close beside Otto on the town wall. Near him, stood Shamura, the purple-eyed girl, and her savage.

  “Barosa. I was worried you had ran away.” Otto spoke with a trace of mockery, just barely insufficient to expose his charade. "You're just in time for the battle."

  Barosa spared no effort to hide his foul mood, but he did nothing in response. He needed Otto to survive this disaster, and likewise, Otto needed him. All that remained was to wait for an opportunity to kill him, and so he waited with smoldering resentment.