Chapter 1272 - Secret Infiltration (1/2)

As a genius alchemist, Lapis was talented in many areas. But if there was one thing she was really good at, it was ‘explosion’. The Plane Destruction Bomb was the most destructive among all the alchemical weapons she created. It forcefully fused Order and Chaos and used their collision as an explosive attack that was almost as powerful as a nuclear bomb. Not only that, but if Rhode were to lay out the Plane Destruction Bombs in a circle and set them off at once, the damage would be enough to create a dark hole-like existence that would suck in everything. When that happened, be it Order or Chaos, everything would be destroyed. Nothing would remain; no Chaos, Order, or anything that could be defined. It would obliterate all matter.

Rhode’s idea was to place the Plane Destruction Bombs all over the Darkness Capital, lure Ion over, and set them off. This way, he could kill two birds with one stone. Not only could he take down Ion, but Chaos would also be unable to rush into the Dragon Soul Continent for the time being. Even though this method sounded simple, unfortunately, it was a tactic that ‘killed 1000 enemies, while hurting 800 allies’. As the Plane Destruction Bomb was too powerful, Rhode was mentally prepared for the first layer of defense to be completely devoured. Besides, no one knew whether the ‘dark hole’ created by the explosion would pull the entire continent in. If that were to happen, Rhode would be finding trouble for himself. In that case, for safety’s sake, he could place the Plane Destruction Bombs in the center of the Darkness Capital. This way, it would only hit the first outer layer of the continent and decrease its damage to the maximum.

However, this was only in theory, after all. Considering the dangers, Rhode wasn’t willing to risk trying the Plane Destruction Bomb on the Dragon Soul Continent. If things went too far, perhaps he would destroy the continent before Chaos did it.

But now…

“There are some troubles in the Darkness Capital right now. Seems like we can only act according to circumstances now.”

Rhode said, taking a glance at the Plane Destruction Bomb in Lapis’s hands again.

“Lapis, how many did you bring this time?”

“… Erm…”

Upon hearing Rhode’s question, Lapis lowered her head in some embarrassment. Then, she blushed and said softly.

“… Sir Rhode, I made 50 of them and brought them all here. I wonder if that is enough…?”

After hearing Lapis’s bashful reply, the corner of Rhode’s eye twitched. For some unknown reason, this shy and innocent alchemy elf in his eyes suddenly turned into a nuclear arsenal that was counting down the days.

“… Didn’t you say five is enough?”

“Yes… But even so, I’m afraid they aren’t enough. That is why I brought all of them…”

Lapis responded, gazing at Rhode with blush and lowering her head quickly. Rhode’s expressionless face perfectly depicted his emotions. He looked at the worried Lapis, opened his mouth slightly to take in a deep breath, and extended his arm to pat her shoulder gently.

“Well done, Lapis. But you must be careful. If you miscalculate, we may also be swept into it. For safety’s sake, you must be more cautious.”

“Yes, I will take note, Sir Rhode.”

Upon hearing Rhode’s words, Lapis nodded obediently, lifted her head, and gazed at Rhode. Then, she continued.

“Erm… I don’t mind. As long as I can be with Sir Rhode, it doesn’t matter even if an accident were to happen…”

“Cough, cough. Alright, now isn’t the time for that. Let’s move out. We’ll have plenty of time for that later. Let’s focus on accomplishing our task now. Alright, get ready and we’ll move out straight away.”

Rhode let out a cough, interrupted upon realizing that Lapis seemed to be heading into another topic, and gestured to the rest. Upon hearing his reply, Lapis didn’t have any reaction, but also ‘coughed’ gently and followed closely behind him. On the other hand, Icy Snow and Lesa looked curiously at the alchemy elf. However, after staying silent for a while, they also followed Rhode without raising any questions.

But this didn’t mean that others also remained silent.

“… Rhode, pardon me asking, but how do you usually treat Lapis?”

At that moment, Canary’s concerned voice sounded in his head. Even though they weren’t transported to the same place as Lesa, the ‘signal transmitter’ was around, so Canary and Mini Bubble Gum were also aware of what was happening on Rhode’s side. That was why they naturally heard the conversation between Rhode and Lapis.

“… Not too bad, I guess.”

Facing Canary’s question, Rhode answered in an uncertain tone. Frankly, Lapis’s presence was too insignificant. She was also busy most of the time, so she spent much less time with Rhode. It was usually Canary, Mini Bubble Gum, Anne, Christie, Marlene, and Lize who were always by his side. On the other hand, Lapis only headed out once in a while and spent most of her time researching in the lab. Only when she came up with some new gadgets would she step out of her nest, scuttle to Rhode to show her invention, and both of them would spend the night together. Come to think of it, they seldom interacted with each other apart from that. Lapis was a true geek who always stayed home. Besides, she had a gentle and quiet personality and basically never spoke her mind…

All of a sudden, Rhode felt a chill run down his spine.

“… Leader, for some reason, I have this feeling that I’m gonna die in the hands of our own people. In order to prove to me that this is just an illusion, please make sure you treat Big Sister Lapis well…”

Mini Bubble Gum’s tone of voice didn’t sound like she was cracking a joke. Rhode was also aware that this time, this young lady wasn’t joking at the slightest.

Yes, illusion. Everything is an illusion. It doesn’t scare me.

At this thought, Rhode shook his head, tossed that bizarre thought to the back of his head, and focused on the current situation. After all, they only had one goal now, and that was to raze the Darkness Capital to the ground while Ion was out attacking with his armies. In this way, the consequences of Ion and his armies were predictable. But Rhode wouldn’t be that foolish to think that Ion wouldn’t leave behind any forces. After all, he wasn’t a pure Chaos creature who would only look ahead and not look back. Moreover, Rhode also wouldn’t let his guard down even if he were in a true Chaos nest as it would be more terrifying than a heavily guarded fortress. Because one had no ways of knowing whether there would be anything left behind by Chaos Lords ‘accidentally’. Or perhaps a Chaos Lord returning home to sleep after an exhausting battle, only to trap the intruders inside its home… Such instances had happened more than once in the game.