Chapter 86 - Bold Plan (2/2)

After returning to the camp, Gawain immediately summoned Rebecca, Byron, and Philip to his tent. After hearing the news, Pittman had also come over uninvited.

After considering that there were many things that couldn’t be concealed and the possibility that they might have to confront those monsters, this half-baked druid’s healing spells might become an indispensable help. Hence, Gawain didn’t chase this little old man away.

“There are even more aberrations. The number is close to a thousand. They are in the mountains,” Gawain spoke bluntly when everyone was gathered. “They are moving in this direction.”

Everyone was shocked by the news, and Pittman was the first to react. He swung his old druid robes and declared righteously, “I don’t need this month’s wages…”

“Stop! And why do you have the same reaction as Amber?” Gawain stared at the little old man and continued, “Wait for me to finish speaking. It will not be too late to express your opinion after you hear my arrangements.”

“Lord Duke,” Knight Byron said, “the combatants in the camp are less than a hundred… This includes the militia that we’ve just trained. After equipping them with the magic armors and weapons, the official soldiers and militias might be able to confront the aberrations, but for them to fight an aberration individually, it is a little…”

“I know.” Gawain raised his hand to interrupt Byron before saying, “Therefore, I am not planning to confront those monsters head-on.”

Rebecca stared with wide eyes. “Are we… going to give up the camp?” She made a sad face and obviously didn’t wish to hear that answer.

Even though this might be a barren wilderness, this was already the Cecil Clan’s final establishment, and it was also her new home. Be it the furnace that smelted the crystals or using Magic Web 1 to supply energy to the steelworks, it was all her hard work. This was the first time in her life that she was doing something that she liked, and no matter what, she didn’t want to give up on this place.

But if Gawain was really deciding to withdraw… she was already prepared to comply.

“No, we don’t need to withdraw. At least, we don’t need to be in a hurry to make the decision.” Gawain shook his head. “Those monsters will need two days to move close enough to sense the presence of the camp. Afterward, they will need at least another day to charge over, so we have at most three days to make preparations. I have a plan, but it will require large quantities of ‘Rebecca Crystals’…”

Gawain spoke of his bold idea and emphasized the feasibility of his plan.

Knight Byron and Knight Philip looked at each other in dismay. As two traditional military professionals, they didn’t pay too much attention to those ‘inventions and innovations’ that Gawain and Rebecca had been working on. Furthermore, they weren’t able to imagine the firepower of those exploding crystals. Pittman was even more confused. All these days, he would either be concocting medicine in his dwelling, moving around to provide exorcisms or blessings, or selling his useless ointments. He didn’t even know what the ‘Rebecca Crystals’ were.

Rebecca’s eyes immediately brightened up and she exclaimed, “That’s right! Those crystals will work!”

The Rebecca Crystals were her proud invention. Recently, whenever she had spare time, she would test the characteristics of the crystals and also the power of the explosion. It could be said that she had a full grasp of the crystals’ abilities. Gawain’s plan was seemingly opening the door to a new world for her. This young lady was extremely excited as she said, “All of you have to listen to me. Lord Ancestor’s plan is totally feasible! I know how incredible the explosive power of the crystals is… With greater quantities, the firepower will drastically increase! If we stuff them in the crevices and carve explosive magic circles on the rocks… it wouldn’t be a problem to blast down an entire face of a cliff!”

The two knights’ eyes finally brightened up together. But Knight Byron was still a little worried. “Will it really be able to kill those monsters? They have very tough vitality…”

“You have faced them in combat before and should know that those aberrations aren’t invulnerable.” Gawain smiled and said, “Furthermore, the aberrations in the range of the Dark Wave field and those that have wandered outside of it are two completely different entities. After losing the supplement of primal magic, they aren’t just slightly weakened. According to my observations, this group of aberrations has a Dark Wave ‘presence’ that is far inferior to the pollution at the Cecil territories.”

“That will be wonderful.” Knight Byron nodded repeatedly. “But what if the collapse of the cliff isn’t enough to kill them all?”

“I never expected all of them to be buried… If even half of the group can be neutralized with the first collapse, it will already be the best result.” Gawain laughed and then said, “For the rest, we will use traps. We will use ‘arts’ that will be buried in the ground to shave down their numbers. From the southwest corner of the mountain pass to our camp, we have a buffer zone to deal with them. The empty grounds and the fence in front of the camp will be our final defense line. But I am doubtful that those monsters will even make it to such a close distance.”

While speaking, Gawain looked up at Rebecca. “I have asked you to combine the rune triggers and the traps. It should already be done, right?”

“Of course, those things are simple. The easiest rune triggers are done by stacking slabs together. We only need to make sure that the runes are pressed into the explosive magic circles.” Rebecca looked very happy as she continued, “Furthermore, after you left earlier, I sent a few individuals to the furnace. There should be another batch of crystals that are newly smelted… Now that Magic Web 1 has started operating and as long as the crystals are in the vicinity of the energy-supply point, a large pile can be fully energized quickly. I will send people to shift the stored-up crystals to the steelworks. At the latest, tonight, we will be able to energize all of them…”

Seeing how Rebecca was blabbing non-stop with excitement, Gawain felt from the bottom of his heart that he truly picked up a treasure.

This young lady… was truly a talent.