Then and there, Ilya turned her back against the gate and ran in the direction of the main mansion.
The empty eye sockets brimming with rancor, that's what Ilya happened upon. The Bacharoth -- supposed to be dormant for a little while more -- was lying in wait for the Lady by the gate.
'It's too late. Though the Bacharoth will stay in its domain, there will come a time when it will disarm its domain and wreak havoc in a larger area. It won't be long before it can deal irreparable damage to the Empire.'
The domain that Ilya was pertaining to was the birthplace of the Bacharoth. Whether it's a small city or an entire continent, a Bacharoth could claim an area that was to its liking. Their domain, of course, would be surrounded by a barrier that only they could damage.
Their barrier could not be seen by anyone, even the most perceptive sorcerers. On the surface, their barriers displayed the area as they were last seen. But the interior would be a whole different sight.
One could only enter the barrier. Nobody was allowed to escape unless the Bacharoth dismantled it. The Communication on both sides would also have desisted.
As a consequence, the borders of the barrier would be known only until one was finally inside.
As she stepped on the confines of the mansion, Ilya stopped to assess her surroundings. She closed her eyes and left the task to her extrasensory perception. She furrowed her eyebrows as the second passed unrewardingly.
'I can't sense anything. Back in the lake, that Bacharoth's aura was leaking. I even sensed it when I encountered it by the gate. Did it not follow me?'
When the question appeared in her head, Ilya opened her eyes and looked around her. Contrary to her expectations that the Bacharoth would go after her, Ilya didn't get a glimpse of her enemy.
She continued to search for the Bacharoth, unconvinced that it didn't follow her. Her breathing started to hasten once more, making it difficult for her to keep a straight mind.
'Where is it? Did it use some sort of concealing magic? Is it trying to keep itself out of my gaze? That doesn't make sense though. Why does it have to hide itself from someone weaker? Is it toying with me?'
Discontented, Ilya made her way towards the west side of the estate. There was something that she wished to check for herself.
Far from her earlier struggle, she managed to reach the western edge of the estate without stumbling a single time.
Yet for a second time, the Bacharoth was waiting for her arrival. Instead of running away immediately, Ilya observed the Bacharoth with her quivering eyes. She could feel the heat rising to her eyes anew, but she didn't look away, not even for a brief moment.
At that point, she noticed something.
'This one is bigger than the other… is it?' She then turned her head in the direction of the estate's gate, 'Come to think of it, the one I saw by the gate had a small black spot on one of its ribs. The one in front of me doesn't have it. Though I wasn't able to scrutinize the one on the lake, that same black spot wasn't on that part of its ribcage. What's going on?'
Ilya didn't need to think thoroughly to come to a conclusion. And that conclusion didn't reassure her in the slightest.
"There are multiple of them." She muttered breathlessly retreating as slowly as she could.
Once she was at a certain distance away from the Bacharoth, it suddenly disappeared from her sight. She decided to step forward and she could see the Bacharoth again.
"So I have to be a specific distance away to see them." Ilya said as he measured the stretch with her eyes, "This is approximately five meters, no? Enough of that, it's more crucial to find out how many more of those Bacharoths are there. I have to determine whether they're merely clones or have an identity of their own."
With a heavy heart, Ilya walked along the border of the Hamlin Estate. She spent a couple of hours doing that alone. The entire time she was taking a stroll around the estate, she was hoping to find her companions, yet to no avail, they were unlocatable. She didn't even come across a single living being.
Upon landing on the same spot on the western border, Ilya heaved a deep sigh as she massaged her temples.
"I counted 236 of them, all with the Bacharoth crowns. However, each and every one of them has a distinguishable feature. The skeletons ranged from that of an infant to a six-year-old child. What I can't fathom is whether they are all Bacharoths, or just clones of the one from the lake."
The fact that the Bacharoths mimicked the appearance of children, even with only their skeletons, offended Ilya's morals.
Ilya clenched her fists and muttered, "Children are the model of innocence. They haven't done anything that made it worth tainting their image."
Loosening her hands, Ilya drew a deep breath.
"It's past the three-hour mark. The Obelisk Sorcerers should be outside of the estate."
Absent a second thought, Ilya began sauntering towards the gate. She might not be of help with regards to combat, she could make herself useful by providing information.
Ilya had long removed her shoes since they were bedraggled with blood and sweat. If she had an alternative, she would have also taken her clothes off. It was not time for her to think about her appearance, but the cloth sticking to her body made it uncomfortable whenever the wind descended.
The soles of her feet were burning because of the open wounds. If not for her perseverance, she would have been lying on the floor already to preserve her sanity.
Her gaze started to become hazy, her heartbeat skipping a beat. She only needed to traverse a few more meters to reach the gate, yet she was beginning to feel lightheaded.
Before Ilya knew it, her knees gave in and her body was about to fall to the ground.
Out of the blue, someone appeared just in time to catch her.