52 Inside the Crystal Ball (2/2)

”Are those...” Varda began, but I finished with, ”Looks like cannon fire to me...”

”But then—”

I cut Varda off again by swiping the orb once more and changed the image to a new one depicting a closeup shot of a line of what seemed like a magical version of what ancient cannons looked like back on Mudgard.

There were eight in all. Each one had a large rectangular crystal with a pointed triangular tip mounted on a wooden carriage with two wheels each. The crystal tips faced forward in the direction of what I assumed the Darah Army was in. Only, from the look of them, the cannons were clearly damaged. Their crystal cores were either cracked or broken as if they'd been sabotaged.

Varda's eyes were wide when she looked over the picture. ”Someone broke these spell cannons good...”

Aura looked over to me for clarification. ”did someone do this? What does it mean?”

”It means your aunt's wilier than I thought... she's covering all her bases,” I said, laughing as I did. ”While she sent us here looking to raid the cannon's supply of ammunition she'd already sent another group to infiltrate and destroy the cannons on her field... smart.”

”Does that mean we can scrap our mission? No sense getting ourselves killed looking for something the enemy can't use anymore, is there?” ” Varda asked.

I pondered her questions in my mind. It was true that the cannons were out of commission but there was always a chance they could be prepared. This meant stealing or destroying their ammunition supply could make them useless for good. On the other hand, if we stayed where we were, the likelihood of discovery was getting more likely by the minute. Especially since we'd already encountered the enemy twice and have both hostages and prisoners to take care of.

My thoughts were interrupted by the two sprites vying for my attention.

”Can I go now, Commander?” Fila asked.

I nodded apologetically to him. ”Y-yeah, sure... sorry I kept you waiting.”

He sent me another salute before he flew off into the night sky.

Now, it was Nike's turn to grab my attention.

”I have a message from the Great General,” she piped.

”You couldn't have said that earlier?” I asked.

Commander was busy,” she shrugged.

I sighed. ”Alright, Nike. What's Darah's message?”

The next time Nike spoke, it was in the clear commanding tone of Great General Darah herself. ”Dapper, somethings come up. I want you to end your search for the cannon's ammunition supply. There's something else I need you to check on.”

I rolled my eyes. ”Now she tells me...”

”You remember that fool you and Rogers allowed to go free? Well, it turns out there are more fake immortals like your friend, Azuma,” Nike continued in Darah's voice. ”Several commander-level enemies in the Magesong army don't seem to understand how to die properly... They keep waking up from death. I want you to figure out the how and the why and then report back to me as quickly as possible. Invade their entire rear line and get some answers from their cowardly magicians if you have to. This is priority one, Dapper. Don't fail!”

I did a double-take as soon as Nike finished Darah's message. ”Did she just—”

”Seems like we completed our mission, after all, Commander,” Varda laughed. ”Aren't you lucky...”

I looked between Varda and Nike just to make sure neither of them was pulling my leg. Varda had a silly expression on her face but Nike was all serious so at least I could count on her to tell me the truth. It meant we had exactly what Darah wanted which felt like too much of a coincidence to me.

”I can't—”

”Don't fight it,” Aura recommended. She patted me on the back reassuringly while she was at it. ”I know you had your heart set on exploring the hills and ambushing every Magesong unit we could find but...”

I knew she was making fun of me now and I expressed as much in the scowl I sent her. But Aura knew just how to placate me. She grinned that beautiful grin of hers, making me soften up instantly.

”Let's not find fault in this simple gift fate sent us, okay?” she suggested. ”Just be happy that things worked out. Even if you hadn't planned for it.”

I sighed. Her logic, although unbelievably flawed in my opinion, made a whole lot more sense than sticking around to get caught by the enemy. We had the information the boss wanted. It was time to get it to her and hopefully find a cure for those kids. Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please click for visiting.

”Alright...” I conceded while still feeling unsatisfied by this sudden turn of fortune. ”Let's head back to the main army as soon as we're ready.”