Chapter 434 (2/2)
Ace leaned over towards Lucifer, tapping the other man’s large sword. “Would be nice if we had something to talk about, eh?”
Lucifer just snorted, and folded his arms. But it was in such a way that it looked very similar to Clarissa’s pouty stance. Ace burst out laughing. Thea wasn’t sure if Lucifer had done it on purpose, so she only smiled slightly, watching his response. He barely even seemed to notice, however.
Ghousthound’s mouth twisted, and then he looked at Aratta. “How many of them are there?”
Aratta was sitting down, shaking her head. Thea grinned. Apparently, the shock of seeing them so easily deal with them had shaken her a little. Which she supposed was fine, but it was a little insulting. After all, their party was 10 people, 11 including Aratta. If two of them could suppress them… then what was the point of even going to their Eyrie…?
If that were true, the level of difficulty…
“There are… about a thousand per Eyrie.” Aratta looked up, but her voice sounded determined now. “These are just the foot soldiers, there are powerful Red Death Cultists, and then above them the Shadow Cultists. It’s rumored that each Eyrie has a White Death Cultist leading it, surveying the area, gathering all the treasures within its purview…”
Everyone, even Thea, perked up at the mention of treasures. After all, they still needed to find the Death Key before they could depart from this place. It was easy to forget, but outside of the Raid Dungeon the rest of the Zone was slowly starving, the very Aether seeping out into the void. If they didn’t move quickly…
But Thea anxiously hoped they still had time. Considering the time difference, it shouldn't have been that long since they came in here right? And during that time, there would first be Aether Sickness, so even if it was uncomfortable…
Idly, she wondered what Simon was doing. Whether he was laying somewhere, curled up, worriedly watching the rest of the Zone. Even though there was very little he could do, and watching only would make him more upset, he was the type of boy that would look anyway…
Shaking her head, Thea tuned back into the conversation occuring in front of her.
“So we just break down the door and charge right in? How unique and inspired.” Ace was saying, chuckling slightly. “Still, you know I don’t mind. I love a good entrance.”
“You must be extremely careful,” Aratta warned. “The Cultists… most of their physical strength comes from the forbidden rituals that they perform. If they realize an attack is coming, their leader will begin a very powerful ritual. Once you are within the Eyrie, you must rush to the central chamber. If they are allowed to complete it…”
The blind woman looked down, her fingers flexing. “...a hundred times… No…. Two hundred times the strength of the basic warrior…! Their bodies will be like a god’s….!”
Thea wanted to roll her eyes, and was pleased to catch the Ghosthound smiling like a wolf. So it wasn’t just her then, that felt the presence of a challenge as something incredible. The chance to feel the burning heat of battle, to lose yourself in that pure ecstacy…
Thea shivered.
“...Let’s cross that bridge when we come to it.” Rose said, looking around at the group, then up at the sky with a frown. “We’ve still got a fair bit of ground to cover before night, then let’s camp there. Tomorrow-”
“If you do not rush, they will come to you.” Aratta said urgently.
Rose just smiled helplessly. Lucifer chuckled, and began walking forward. Ace walked over to Aratta and patted her back, a sinister smile on his face.
“That’s what we are counting on,” Ace said. And then he stood and walked forward, heading North towards the Eyrie. Thea clicked her tongue and Chrysanthemum walked over towards her. She patted her partner’s side and hopped onto her back, following the rest of the group.