3-meter-long mosquitoes. That's all that needed to be said. There was nothing special about these mosquitos except for their proboscis. Their proboscis was a meter long on its own.
"What kind of creatures do they suck from for it to be so long." asked Evan.
"No creature from our world, that's for sure." replied Thomas.
Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!
An incessant barrage of noise assailed their ears. It was the uncomfortable noise of a mosquito's buzzing. It was something every normal human dreaded hearing on a summer day. Those blood sucking insects are the worst part of summer if you don't count the heat.
"Uh, did you guys notice how hot it's been all morning?" said one of the nobles. He was short with brown hair and had a sizable, twirly mustache.
"Yeah. Thats odd. Isn't it still early spring?" said the nun as she adjusted her clothes.
"It's probably part of the spell they have cast on the city. It makes for a perfect environment for these bugs." Thomas inferred.
"Should we leave them be or take the initiative?" questioned the mayor to Evan. Evan was the expert on battles so they were relying on his decisions since last night.
"Leave them be. No need to take action when they are just sitting there. We don't know what abilities these monsters might have." Evan suggested.
He knows nothing about these familiar yet unfamiliar creatures. It was too risky for them to make the first move. They were already having a hard time keeping up with the endless amount of cloned cultists coming their way.
These clones only had tier 1 or 2 strength and were easy for them to handle but the sheer number made it tough on their mana reserves.
Even the nun who was helping them replenish theirs did so through spells that consumed her mana. She could only assist them for so long.
"If our soldiers don't find the source of the barrier or the 9th tiers don't arrive soon, we will all be buried here."
"We will be buried along with the entire city."
Two nobles were in a panic state as they were not as brave as everyone else here. Most of them have not been in prolonged battles like this. The last war was over a century ago, and all of them were not even born yet.
"We don't have much choice but to hold our ground. All we can do is pray." said Evan while breathing heavily. Even though his man was being kept at a stable amount, his stamina was taking a hit.
"Let's pray to our goddess Helena. Let's pray for the soldiers to find the source and destroy it. Let's pray that the 9th tiers arrive." the nun said in a hopeful tone.
She clasped her hands together and closed her eyes. She was praying to her goddess, hoping that she might give them a miracle.
Unlike her, the rest didn't have time to get to a prayer stance. They could only do so in their hearts. Most of them were religious men and women, adhering to the religion of Blue Gold.
The third largest religion on the Evansia continent. It is a religion that worships the golden haired, blue eyed goddess of Helena. A goddess who was known to have made the holy material called Blue Gold.
"I wonder why the cultists have not attacked the citizens yet. The few of us and the busy city guards can't protect them. This is their perfect chance.
And those mosquitos, they haven't moved since they came. Those portals haven't closed either. What exactly is their goal."
Thomas murmured while trying to analyze what was going on. He was more than capable of splitting his focus on multiple things, a perk of 7th tier and above mages.
He was utterly baffled by this bold turn of events. He was never expecting to the cult to make such a daring move. Such an open assault will finally allow the empire to have an excuse to move around their 9th-tier experts.
The 9th-tier experts have been restrained so far due to a number of reasons, both from inside and outside the empire.
"The nearby countries can no longer object to the mobilization of our high-end combat forces. This isn't good at all for the cult since wiping them out becomes 100 times easier.
I don't get why they would do this. You have any ideas about this Evan." Thomas was clearly lost in the absurdness of the cult's actions.
He hoped to get a second opinion on this. Maybe a militaristic viewpoint like Evans's would help him refine his political understanding.
"Uhh..."Evan started to think about what Thomas had just babbled about. He went silent as he analyzed the situation himself. A minute later, his eyes widened.
"If we mobilize our 9th tiers, we can no longer stop the other kingdoms from mobilizing theirs. They will be able to finally station their own 9th tiers to their borders. " he said.
"Could they possibly use their 9th tiers for internal problems?" Thomas asked in return as he was taken aback by what Ecan had suggested.
"Maybe but its not likely. None of the nearby kingdoms have any big issues that need much power to resolve." Evan revealed with a frown.
Hearing this, Thomas also frowned. The surrounding nobles also took turns graver than they already were. There was only one possibility left.
"War. They are preparing for war!" Thomas exclaimed. "The blood cult has allied with the kingdoms and is helping them set up for a war."
Clap! Clap! Clap!
Sounds of clapping responded from their surroundings. This clapping had drowned out the buzzing of the giant mosquitos.
"As expected of a Vornix. Your family never seems to disappoint. Your intelligence is always worthy of applause." said a hoarse voice.
Thomas and Evan recognized the voice in an instant. They gritted their teeth.
"Anton, you conniving scum! Show yourself!" Evan yelled with pronounced anger. If he could use spells, he would definitely be spewing fire.
"Hahaha." Anton London chuckled in response. "I would show myself if I was as strong as you. Unfortunately, I'm just a weak mortal."
His voice sounded honest to them but they couldn't dare believe him. Once trust has been broken, preparing would be hard no matter how honest one sounded.
"Well then, I don't have too much time gentlemen. We can only delay those freaks of nature for so long. Let's get straight to business." Anton said after getting only silence in return for his honesty.
"Freaks of nature? You mean the 9th tiers. That's why they are so late. You...what have you done." Evan demanded an answer.
"Nothing really. We are not enough to hurt them, only enough to slow them down. Hahaha." Anton chuckled once again. He can't fathom hurting humans who are monsters themselves.
The people present in the city center had nothing more to say about this. They couldn't believe how the cult had enough resources to slow down those beings.
9 tiers were closest to transcending the very existence of humanity. they were the ones closest to becoming another species altogether. Slowing them down wasn't something possible for a cult like theirs.
"Now then, business. We only need one thing today. After we get it, we will take our leave. You won't see our cult for quite some time so savor the moment."
Thomas glared at the sky above and asked "What is it you want?"
It would be good if they could give up some items or resources and then send them on their way. Negotiating with cults was not something the empire liked doing but in a situation like this, there was not much of a choice.
They couldn't rely on ending the source of the spells that put them in this crisis nor might the experts arrive in time. They could only hope the demand wasn't high.
"Nothing much, just the blood of 10,000 adults." Anton said as if it was nothing of value.
Everyone turned their attention from the cultists around them as they had stopped moving. The fighters in the center of the city raised their heads and glared at the sky.
They hated the fact that they had to talk to an opponent they couldn't see but at least he could see them.
"Hahaha, don't look at me like that. Don't worry taken enough to put them to the brink of death.
And if you are worrying about whether the people will agree, it doesn't matter. They don't have a choice. Either you say yes or these mosquitoes will take it themselves.
If they move themselves, I can't guarantee how many people will be sucked dry, I have no idea how much blood will satisfy them if let loose."
"Fuck!" Evan cursed. It was obvious that they had no choice but to agree.
There was no way they could take on the flying thousands of flying insects when they didn't have enough mana.
Thomas just sighed and took a deep breath.
"How can we trust that you will keep your word." he asked.
"Uh...I have one of the leaders of the cult here. Talk to her." Anton said.
A new voice sounded seconds later. It was feminine yet heavy.
"Greetings noble men and women of Zlatan empire. I am Dina Bloodborne. The leader of the Zlatan empire branch of the blood cult.
In the name of the Blood God, you have my word. We shall leave that empire as soon as the blood offering is made. We will not return till the chaos in this empire has receded. "
Dina's voice was monotonous yet filled with authority. It made one think that she really as was someone they could trust the word of, for now.
"Given that her last name is Bloodborne, she is indeed a leader. She also invoked their god's name. Even the the cult is rife with crazy bastards, these two things are taken quite seriously." Thomas explained to the nobles.
Right now, they were confused. They were not very high ranked or part of the military. This is why they didn't know much about the inner workings of the cult.
Both Thomas and Evan however were from more powerful families and had high positions. They knew much more about the cult's intricacies.
After hearing his explanation, the nobles sighed with relief.
"Does this mean you agree?" Dina's voice asked.
"Yes. As the mayor of Sofenia and a representative of the emperor, I Marcus Vanderson agree to your terms."
The skinny and tall man, with red and a red beard with red eyes is the mayor of the city. Someone who is both strong and has management skills trusted by the emperor.
A mayor's words are weighed in gold.
"Alright then. Your 9th tier won't arrive for at least another 5 hours. I will give you 3 hours to gather the 10,000. The collection won't take long and we will leave right after.
We will return the city to the state it was before." Dina said in her emotionless tone.
She indicated no sign of whether she was glad that the deal went through.
"Alright. we will start now. I would appreciate it if you took back the clones." Marcus sighed as patted his hands on his fancy clothes. He was very tired.
He was glad a deal was made. Forget about 5 hours, they wouldn't even be able to last another 2 hours.
Even though 10,000 people might be on the verge of death at the end of this, they could be kept alive with enough preparation. It was better than the over 45,000 citizens of the city dying.
"I shall." With that said the clones slowly disappeared in thin air as all that was left was a red mist.
This mist disappeared into the air in seconds. The blood and bodies around them along with the blood on their bodies reacted the same.
If it wasn't for the tired and huffing faces, no one could guess that a fight had taken place.