Chapter 411 The Day Of Return (End)
The hall where Basil's supporters gathered was deafeningly silent. No one made a noise as they planted their gaze on him and basked in his profound presence.
His shining Pacifer Seal, the soul-piercing gaze of his golden eyes and the golden halo behind him made the people feel like they were facing a deity. The silence was perceived until Basil opened his mouth.
"You have done well for the past twenty days. I have heard a lot about your advancements from our formidable Warriors and I have to commend you for that," he intoned powerfully. "Few as we are, I suggest you feel no doubt. We have 70 peerless Warriors on our side and your undying spirit. Outnumbered as we may be; triumph remains guaranteed."
Basil didn't talk as if the world was going to end after he stopped speaking, which was what most public speakers did to convince people. He talked calmly and deeply without any raise in his voice but still managed to rile the people up.
Their hearts beat in excitement; they ignored the fact that they would be going against a huge number of people even though Basil had made it clear. There was something in the way Basil conveyed his speech that erased any feeling of doubt from their hearts.
Conviction—the sheer certainty he had in his tone, which the people knew wasn't fabricated, made them also see the future that Basil would make true. They would survive and triumph; therefore, they would prosper.
"Mine eyes told me all of you over-exerted yourselves. I shall give you two hours to recuperate. Let the Healers and the Warriors—anyone who is capable to treat you. We will return to the surface afterwards…and the world shall know our rise."
The last part of the sentence was directed at the Warriors but everyone felt what the Warriors felt. They didn't think Basil considered them part of the Pacifer but they were sure they stood on the same side as he did, so his rise was also their rise.
As Basil's supporters recuperated with the help of the Healers and the Mages who were capable of such; Tinuviel, Aegnor and the Cohorts they led to the 27th Obelisk were having a hard time. Although they had expected it, the number of Demons they had to fight in it was simply overwhelming.
According to the Guide's prediction, the day they entered the Obelisk, which was the day before, should have been when the Obelisk experienced an Outbreak. Their interference prevented the Outbreak from occurring but they suffered heavily for it in return.
"These bastards are just too strong!" Aegnor exclaimed in irritation.
"Has he arrived yet?" Tinuviel shouted.
"I think so. The backup should arrive in a couple of seconds, so we should hold on for the time being."
When Tinuviel and Aegnor realized that the situation wasn't in their favour, they immediately sent out the most agile person they had at their disposal. They wanted him to call for backup since any form of communication with the outside world didn't work in the Obelisk.
Since the chosen Elf was sent, two hours had passed. With the distance between the Obelisk and Padeitophys, he should have arrived at this point but Tinuviel and Aegnor couldn't help feeling unease.
The deeper they went—the higher they climbed the Obelisk, the stronger the Demons became. The number of Demons might be nothing compared to the ones hiding behind the Barrier the Obelisk erected but, with how much power they possessed, they posed a great threat to the Elf.
"We should have immediately gone to Braxtein and saved Lord Basil to prevent this from happening, darn it!" Aegnor cursed. "It has been two days since we enter the Obelisk and I don't believe we are already midways to the top!"
"Keep fighting! Don't show the Warriors your pathetic side!" Tinuviel scolded.
Basil knew a lot about the Obelisk. During the week he spent in Padeitophys, he had told the two Chieftains that Obelisks that were on the brink of Outbreak shouldn't be entered; it was better to let the Outbreak occur since the Demons in the Obelisk would be too powerful to endure.
Essentially, an Outbreak occurred when the Demons behind the Barrier were ready to ransack the world and bring hell upon its habitants. Because of that, the faster one entered the Obelisk the higher the chance one would clear it.
The Elf, unfortunately, didn't know when the Obelisk would have an Outbreak. They entered it just a few hours before the Outbreak occurred, so they were facing the best Demons who had been chosen to guard the Obelisk.
'Are we going to die here?' Tinuviel had sweat covering her face. She gritted her teeth as she swung her daggers, slicing up multiple Demons at once. 'No, I can't die here! I want to fight alongside Lord Basil—I want to see him again!'
Her hands that had been sore from all the swings she had done regained their power. Her Mana burst forth as she delivered the Demons coming at the Elf's Secret Art.
"[Falling Apart]!"
She swung her daggers horizontally in two opposite directions, causing roots the size of a rope to emerge from the ground. The roots agilely flailed around, binding the Demons within their reach and then mutilating them.
Organs and blue blood were scattered on the ground, adding more chaotic decoration to the already unpleasant-to-look-at battlefield. Despite so, none of the Demons showed any signs of backing down; quite the opposite, they showed more vigour than they did previously.
"Lady Tinuviel! Don't use your Mana carelessly!" Nissena, Tinuviel's right hand, shouted incredulously as she looked at what her Mistress was doing.
"I won't die here!" Tinuviel paid no attention to Nissena's warning and kept attacking with vigour.
Nissena clicked her tongue at that and then dashed to Tinuviel's side. She could tell Tinuviel was too carried away by the adrenaline rushing through her veins, which was why she didn't even seem to think about allocating a portion of her Mana as a means to escape when things got too much to handle.
Boom!
After blasting a Minotaur nearby with her mace, Nissena put her hand on her Mistress'. "Lady Tinuviel, it is over! We can no longer fight against these Demons!"
"No! We shouldn't back down! We can't let the people suffer from the Outbreak!" Tinuviel rebuked intensely.
"You can't die here, Your Highness! You are the future Empress of Padeitophys!" Nissena countered. "Many of our citizens will suffer from the Outbreak, but it won't be for long since the Outbreak will be concluded quickly. We have many competent people outside!"
For the first time, Tinuviel turned her head towards Nissena; her lips trembled as she looked at Nissena with a wavering gaze. "But…but! What is there to my worth? I have sacrificed many of our Warriors already—how can I return with failure!?"
"Because you can do better in the future! …. You will not be able to make up for your failure if you die, Your Highness…. Live; live and bear the shame of being a failure until you become a winner!"
Tinuviel was stunned to silence; she had never seen Nissena showed so much emotion. The indignation clouding her mind disappeared and she instantly regained her usual self: calm and logical.
The battlefield stressed her too much that she couldn't think straight. The desire to prove herself made her reluctant to accept reality and she was ashamed of that.
"You are right…. It is time for us to pull out."
Seeing that her Mistress had regained herself, Nissena smiled pleasantly and nodded her head. She turned around and was about to order the Cohort she and Tinuviel commanded when the person who had been sent to call backup returned.
Likewise, the other Cohort Commanders also turned their heads toward the Elf. Said Elf was looking ecstatic, so they wondered what would come out of his mouth.
"A MESSAGE FROM LORD BASIL!!! RETREAT AND WAIT FOR MY ARRIVAL! FRACHTENHEIN SHALL HELP YOU DEFEND YOUR HOME!"
The loud declaration immediately riled the people up. They had forgotten they were in a dire situation as soon as Basil's name was mentioned; upon hearing that he would come, they were absolute Padeitophys would be safe.
"Ah, also…RUN AWAY! THE CHIMAERA IS APPROACHING!"
With good news came the bad news. Just as they thought things would be easy for them from then on, the Elves were faced with another ordeal.
The Chimaera that Dantalion had made, which hadn't been present when they entered the Obelisk, had shown itself. It was rapidly coming at them, spitting fire out of its goat mouth meanwhile its lion's mouth was sending out destructive soundwaves.
Despite the predicament, still, none of the Elves was down. All of them were optimistic since their saviour was coming; all they had to do was survive and the triumph they would get.
….
Two hours had passed since Basil made his announcement. His supporters looked as healthy as horses—even the Warriors who had been eating low-nutrition food for two millennia had achieved the best shape in their age.
All of them were lining up before Basil, hearts thumping as they saw Basil control the seventy-eight Sealing Swords that he, the Warriors, Iliana and Ione had gathered for the past twenty-two days. He was opening their way out of the Dungeon, which would lead them to the closest exit to Padeitophys.
Since he had finished his seventh Magic Circle, Basil decided to help the Elf take care of the Outbreak first instead of immediately going to Huaxia to lift his Curse.
From the very beginning, he wanted to lift his Curse because he didn't want to rely on his Core too much, which was the strongest source of Energy that he currently had, to help the Elf. It would be dangerous to do that with the Curse still on it since it would trigger a breakthrough.
Now that he had become a Seventh Circle Mage, he didn't have to rely on his Core so much. He would help the Elf and then leave some of his supporters there, so there wouldn't be many of them following him to Huaxia.
"The time hath come! Those who have been buried shall come out of the earth, the sinner shall shall clear their names and the betrayed...shall take revenge," Basil declared. "You know the plan; act accordingly."
"Hooh!"
When the Runes carved on the 78 Sealing Swords that he was controlling shone brightly, the people scattered in four directions, leaving Basil, Iliana, Ione and Xander behind. They took 13 different tunnels and came out in 13 different places that were outside the territories of the Five Kingdoms.
The event terrified many people since the Warriors were exuding immense pressure. It wasn't until Basil was spotted, however, was the event called The Day of Return…
The Lord had returned!