Two more days had passed since Iron'Heits and the Alliance's army went into full motion, with the Alliance intent on taking the city in one decisive sweep, while Iron'Heits prepared its defenses both visibly and invisibly to withstand the onslaught. Tension was high and work needed to be done.
Other than sending the infected soldier on rounds for water, Erik had done everything humanly possible to brace for the coming storm. But how much can one man truly prepare against such overwhelming odds? With just over 2,000 soldiers under his command, he stood before a staggering force of 20,000—a ratio of 1-to-10. And these weren't hardened war veterans, seasoned by countless sieges; they were defenders facing their first true taste of battle. The enemy, meanwhile, was a machine of war. Their ranks were filled with advanced realm experts. Their siege weapons would cast long shadows over the city walls, while Iron'Heits could muster only four such masters.
The disparity was massive, a clash between a fragile spark and a looming inferno. The Alliance had the numbers, the power, and the weapons of destruction at their fingertips. Victory for them seemed not just probable, but inevitable. For Erik and the defenders of Iron'Heits, it was a fight not for triumph, but for survival. It was a battle that would be sung about not for its victory, but for its defiance in the face of hopelessness. If they could survive, that is.
Erik stood in the war room with his four advanced realm experts, even if he didn't want to rely on all of them. Now was not the time for preference.
His eyes flicked to the two experts standing before him. The first, Gablis Novakon, was draped in a crimson mage's robe, a stark contrast to the soft glow of the firelight. His square face bore no distinguishing marks, but his sharp brown eyes and neatly combed black hair gave him a sense of understated authority. A well-maintained beard and mustache added to his composed, dignified appearance. As an advanced circle fire mage, Gablis was no mere caster of spells; he was a force of nature, capable of reducing entire companies to ashes with a single, devastating incantation. Fire mages were infamous for their sheer destructive potential, and Gablis carried that reputation with quiet confidence.
Beside him, Brema Crast was a strikingly distinct figure. A knight of towering stature, Brema stood nearly seven feet tall, with the type of broad-shouldered frame that seemed to defy reason, as though he were aiming to reach nine feet before hanging up his swords for good. His brown hair fell messily around his rugged face, his beard half-formed into a rough goatee that hinted at more battles than grooming sessions. He wore custom armor that fit his massive size perfectly, with a broadsword slung across his back and another strapped to his waist. Brema's presence alone was enough to intimidate, but it was the way he stood—arms crossed, unwavering, his brown eyes fixed intently on the map dotted with red and blue markers—that spoke volumes about his readiness for the coming storm.
The last two present were Collum and Mallory, both scrutinizing Erik as he rearranged the red figures across the map. This map was particularly detailed, showing the terrain around Iron'Heits, and made one wonder about the skill of the cartographer who created it. The map's true marvel, however, was its interactive capability. Erik placed his thumb and ring finger together, then stretched them apart to zoom in on a location. Pointing at a specific spot, he asked, "What about this position?"
Mallory shuffled through a stack of papers beside her, pulled out a document, and scanned it before shaking her head.
Erik zoomed back out and adjusted the red figures, placing them in a different spot. As he moved the figures across the map, they seamlessly merged with the terrain. It was like the red figures were part of the map that he had torn out and now they becoming part of the layout like they'd always been there. To a casual observer, it looked like the red markers had been etched into the map itself.
Once he was satisfied with the placement, Erik moved on to the blue figures, far fewer in number. As he arranged them, the room remained silent, though not out of agreement. Questions arose when he separated a single person from a 100-man company.
"Using him might not be a good idea, young master," one of them pointed out.
Erik shook his head. "It is necessary." He explained the reasoning behind his move, which made everyone's brows furrow in concern.
"How did you—" Collum began, but then stopped himself. He clenched his fist, looking down, embarrassed by the question he was about to ask.
Collum winced internally, wanting to cry out in frustration. A sharp heel was pressing through his steel boot, burrowing into his foot like it was trying to make a home there. He shot a pleading glance at Mallory, but she ignored him. Despite their difference in rank, the two had been friends for so long, having served under Kendrick, that she often took advantage of their bond. If it had been anyone else, Collum would have sent them flying, breaking every bone in their body.
Erik noticed, but ignored it. He already had a child to handle and didn't want anymore. And continued to place the blue figures. After finalizing their positions and how much they needed to do before arriving there, Gablis and Brema left the room. As soon as the door closed behind them, someone emerged from the shadows—Valcroy, who had been hiding there all along. Even if Gablis or Brema had used their spirit sense, they might not have detected him, and because of the circumstances, they didn't dare. Neither of them knew Kendrick was missing, and Erik intended to keep it that way.
"They didn't notice a thing," Valcroy said, followed by a grin as he stepped forward. Erik nodded as his eyes briefly flickered with a silvery light before returning to normal. Valcroy had been exuding the abyssal miasma, which made him appear like a walking black void to Erik's senses. They had just done an experiment and concluded that that no advanced realm expert could perceive the miasma surrounding Valcroy if they were not intentionally looking for him, though he didn't realize that even master realm experts would struggle to detect it. But there were still many things they needed to consider.
Collum and Mallory exchanged uneasy glances. Valcroy gave off a dangerous vibe that made their instincts tingle. Though the feeling was subtle, it was enough to grab their attention. Unfortunately, there wasn't much they could do about him; Valcroy was protected under the metaphorical umbrella of Erik Frostborne.
Valcroy had recently discovered a new use for his miasma. During an experiment, he released an immense amount of black miasma, which began devouring the mana around him like a ravenous predator. The crucible experienced the brunt of his experiment. As soon as the miasma left his body, it clashed with the surrounding mana, consuming everything it could reach to.
At first, Valcroy believed the miasma would endlessly devour mana, but it eventually stopped. The mana, although being consumed, pushed back, and the miasma dissipated slowly—perhaps because of Valcroy stopping his supply of it. He learned that as long as he continued to produce the abyssal miasma, he could create a "null zone," devoid of mana particles aka Manons.
When he told Erik about this discovery, Erik found a practical use for it. Erik instructed Valcroy to stand in the corner and dim the room's lighting. They held meetings at night, further dimming the atmosphere. The result was an effect that rendered Valcroy practically invisible.
"Try it again," Erik said, then turned to Collum. "Close your eyes and find him."
Collum raised an eyebrow in confusion. He glanced at Mallory, who shook her head, which pointed out that she had no clue what Erik was talking about either. Collum sighed, turning back to Erik, who patiently waited for him to comply. With no answers coming forth to present itself, Collum reluctantly closed his eyes.
He figured Erik didn't know that Collum was a master realm expert and thought that he wanted to impress him with Valcroy's skill of hiding himself.
Collum humored Erik and used the mana pulse.
Truunn*
The pulse emitted from his body, striking the objects around him and bouncing back to form a clear picture of the room, forming a clear picture in his mind about where everything was. Collum smirked and was about to open his eyes when he paused. He was missing someone in that picture. He remembered where Valcroy had last been standing.
Truunn*
Another pulse shot out, sweeping through the room and bouncing back. An image of the surroundings formed in Collum's mind, but when he focused on Valcroy's last known position…
'Hmm?'
Collum's eyebrows shot up as he turned his head, searching. No matter where he directed the pulse, he couldn't detect Valcroy. It was as if he wasn't even in the room. His frown deepened.
He thought Erik had sent him out and became a little angry. They were on the brink of war and here was Erik playing pranks. Collum opened his eyes, prepared to scold Erik for wasting time, but the words caught in his throat. His eyes widened when he saw Valcroy standing right where he had been the entire time.
Even Mallory, who had secretly sent out a pulse of her own, was left stunned.
Erik watched their reactions, satisfied that the experiment had worked as expected.
With that settled, Erik explained Valcroy's role in the upcoming events, and Val nodded in understanding. Collum and Mallory had many questions but withheld their tongues for now.
Like Erik, mysteries surrounded Valcroy. But this was not the time to unravel them. Instead, they all went over the battle plan one more time. Collum and Mallory had lingering doubts about dividing their already small army or placing soldiers in seemingly random locations. So far, Erik had only explained the rationale behind sending out the one-man company, keeping the rest of his strategy to himself. Perhaps he had spies embedded within the enemy ranks, but just how deeply embedded could they be to provide him with such detailed information?
Erik, however, offered no further explanations, and the others didn't press him. They chalked it up to the fact that he was a Frostborne. With that, Erik finalized the plans. Collum and Mallory nodded, but before they left the room, they looked at each other. There was a hesitance in their eyes. Erik saw that and waited patiently for them to say it. After a lot of hesitations, Mallory was the one who stepped forward and said it. When Erik heard that, his eyes narrowed, and he turned toward Collum, who nodded in response.
Erik looked at the map once again and thought for a while before saying, "Then prepare your 10 most trusted people and...." He told them the plan which made Collum and Mallory feel a deep respect for him and they left the room, preparing to fulfill his commands. Now only Erik and Valcroy were left in the room to prepare for something else.
After a moment of silence, Erik asked, "Can you do it?"
The more Valcroy heard, the wider his smile grew, but then it faltered the next instant. The miasma surrounding him vanished, letting the mana let out a breath of relief. His eyes dimmed, and the corners of his mouth, once lifted, gradually sank. His jaw tightened as if the weight of his words pressed down on him. The brightness in his expression faded, leaving behind a shadow of uncertainty, as he quietly said, "I might not return sane from this."
Erik stood silent for a while, keeping his eyes on him, then said, "Better now than after Dorian."
There was only silence that followed as a stifling pressure engulfed the room. Sacrifices were going to be made, and some things were going to be kept under wraps, like they were meant to.