NOVPUB
Chapter 386: 386
Anyone with a clear mind, can understand that the empire no longer deems Gurnak service as something needed and has left him alone to fend for himself.
Gurnak was angry seeing how many mages who he lent his tower to leave him, clenching his fist Gurnak said nothing, he was going to defend this city and land, he will show the empire his value and all these mages who left him will pay the price.
Gathering of the civilians took a whole week, Gurnak hovering in the air, seeing everyone ready nodded as a huge portal opened up at the city square.
Civilians seeing the portal all began walking into it, Gurnak stayed for a while and saw the process was going well, he teleported back to his tower.
Sitting in his chair, Gurnak sighed as he flicked his hand. In Front of him opened up a sight that got him to slowly widen his eyes. He jumped back as he saw multiple eyes staring at him before it went all black.
Gurnak recoiled from the severed connection, stumbling back in his tower. His mind raced as he processed what he had just witnessed. They noticed me... and they changed. What kind of power are they drawing from?
Gurnak stood up from his seat as he walked to the window as he looked at a certain part of his city. Gurnak wasn’t even thinking when with a thought he made a huge magic circle above the part he was staring at.
A loud sound followed by an explosion that caught the attention of the civilians going through the portal. The explosion caused a dust wave that blocked the view but once it cleared.
The civilians saw how that part of the city cleared, leaving an empty space where a huge magic circle was floating just above the ground.
Gurnak stood above his city, his frustration mounting as he surveyed the uneasy progress. The explosion had rattled not just the civilians but his own confidence. Something was stirring, something beyond his control, and the sense of foreboding clung to him like a shroud. The empire had abandoned him, his fellow mages had deserted him, and now his city teetered on the edge of collapse—both figuratively and literally.
His booming command had spurred the civilians into action, but the sight of the scorched ground and the floating magic circle left a palpable fear in their hearts. Even as they shuffled into the portal, whispers of doubt and dread spread among them. Gurnak clenched his jaw and turned his focus beyond the city wall to see if the demons had begun moving, but he saw nothing out of the ordinary.
At his command, his ogre army began to mobilize, their thunderous steps echoing through the city as they took up defensive positions. His remaining mages, though few, gathered in the tower’s grand hall, awaiting his orders with expressions ranging from resolute to fearful.
"We have one task," Gurnak growled, his voice resonating with determination. "To protect this land and city until every soul is safely evacuated. Then, we will show those who underestimated us the true cost of their folly."
The mages nodded, though Gurnak could sense the underlying tension. He knew some doubted him, just as he doubted himself in fleeting moments of weakness. But there was no room for hesitation now.
Meanwhile, Sknull’s rise to power was accelerating underground. The platform and road stretching toward the cavern ceiling were nearing completion, the ratmen working tirelessly under the priests’ watchful eyes. The green acidic liquid carved through the rock with ruthless efficiency, softening the earth for the grotesquely modified drill-bearers to break through.
The priests, now elevated in prestige, moved among the laboring ratmen like shepherds among their flock, their every word imbued with the authority of the goddess. Sknull, though nominally their leader, felt their presence pressing down on him like an invisible chain. He had power, but it was power loaned to him under the pretense of divine favor—a favor he knew could be revoked at any moment.
One of the priests approached Sknull, their book clasped tightly in hand. "The goddess smiles upon our progress," they intoned, their voice echoing with reverence. "Soon, we shall breach the surface and bring her will to the world above."
Sknull nodded, though his expression remained tense. He looked up at the cavern ceiling, where the green liquid continued its relentless work. He didn’t need to see what lay above to know it was dangerous. He had been a fighter for long enough to sense when something was amiss.
"How long?" he asked, his voice gruff.
"Another day, perhaps two," the priest replied. "The drilling has been efficient, and the goddess’s blessings ensure our success."
Sknull grunted, his eyes narrowing as he watched the modified ratmen burrow through the softened earth. His gut told him that whatever waited above was prepared to meet them with force. He didn’t trust the priests, nor their unwavering faith in the goddess’s protection. Yet he also knew he had no choice but to press forward.
Today, the ratmen population stood armored up, filling up the spaces of the cavern.The cavern buzzed with anticipation, the ratmen’s collective energy palpable as the drilling continued. The hybrids stood as living fortresses, their grotesque forms armored and ready for war, while the mounted ratmen tightened their grips on makeshift reins. The atmosphere was thick with tension, every ratman holding their breath for the moment the ceiling would yield to their relentless efforts.
And then, a ripple of unease spread through the crowd.
It began subtly—a shared, instinctive glance among the ratmen. Their movements stilled, their chittering fell silent, and all eyes turned toward a singular figure among them.
A ratman small leader, clad in rudimentary armor and standing near the drilling machines, shifted uncomfortably under their collective gaze. He froze, realizing he was no longer the focus of his own will. The presence of another mind—a foreign, prying force—had latched onto him.
Back a few moments ago when Gurnak in his tower tried to see the progress of the ratmen. From his tower above, Gurnak’s presence flowed through the magical conduit, his vision tethered to the ratman leader. His spell had granted him a direct view of the cavern below, his mind observing the preparations with clinical detachment. He frowned, noting the sheer size of the ratmen’s gathered forces. An army. And hybrids... They’ve been preparing for war.
But as Gurnak probed deeper into the scene, something unexpected occurred.
The ratmen’s newfound connection through Vorenza flared to life like a blazing beacon. What had been a quiet, almost subconscious link among them suddenly expanded, snapping into sharp clarity. The presence of Gurnak’s mind stood out like an intruder in a sacred space, an anomaly in their shared network of faith.
The ratman leader’s body trembled, his limbs seizing as the connection overwhelmed him. Before Gurnak could react, the ratmen turned on their own, swarming the leader in a frenzied attack.
Flesh and bone tore under their claws and teeth as the leader was ripped apart, his essence consumed by his comrades. Blood soaked the cavern floor, and a primal energy surged through the ratmen, their devotion to Vorenza transforming them further.
Their eyes glowed a fierce, unholy red, their movements now synchronized as though guided by a single, unified will.
The priests, standing at the center of the chaos, raised their arms in triumph. "Behold the goddess’s power!" they cried, their voices reverberating through the cavern. "Her blessing flows through us all! Forward, children of Vorenza—our time has come!"
Below, the drilling ratmen broke through at last, a beam of sunlight piercing the cavern’s darkness. A deafening cheer erupted from the ratmen forces as the hybrids surged forward, their mounted riders urging them toward the breach.
The hole got wider as the ratmen soon noticed the large glowing magic circle blocking them from advancing.
Vorenza in the abyss through the eyes of the priest saw that as he laughed, the mage certainly reacted fast enough but it still was too late. "Today this city will be hers"
With a mental command, she gave order to her own army. The guards at the city wall who have been having it easy for the past weeks all tensed up as they heard the roar of the demon from the distance.
A message was quickly relayed to Gurnak, who looked at the magic circle he had blocked the hole before, Gurnak immediately relayed out quick order as he had the mages and some ogre soldiers take hold of guarding the hole while he focused on the advancing demon army.
At the same time he looked at the panicking civilians, he truly had the mind to abandon them but the empire made it clear that he was to make sure the civilians were brought to safety.
More portals opened up around the gathered civilians, as soon as they saw the portal, he could hardly speak as they broke the orderly line as they began sprinting towards the opened portal.
