Fire Mage (Web Novel)

Chapter 684: Astral Being

"Among the 45 people in the Close Range Attack Squad, only 24 survived. It isn't a good outcome." Nick said as he started storing the dead bodies in his space ring.

Although the death of 21 people may be a small sacrifice for Charles, the rest of the expenditure squad felt the opposite.

They had been seeing each other every day and staying in that small Fortress for more than a year. But seeing them dead without even achieving anything made everyone furious.

Charles also noticed the gloomy atmosphere but didn't say anything.

Even though he killed the Mutant Humanoid Wolf and helped others in a short time single-handedly, the other legend-rank people couldn't even defeat 400 Rank-5 Magical Beasts, which disappointed him.

'Nick, Heath, and the other four Legend Rank Mystics are the only one who is as powerful as Alistair and could be considered Expert Level. On the other hand, my power should be equal to Master Level Powerhouse when using Berserk State. But I also end up losing a few years of lifespan. So, it's not a good idea to use this ability frequently. As for others, their power should be only around Intermediate. Now that I think about it, not everyone is as powerful as Alistair in the Truelords Expenditure team. Alas, they are still strong enough to defeat Jinn alone. Hmm, I shouldn't have expected everyone in this group to be as powerful as Alistair.' A trace of disappointment appeared on his face.

'I should plan carefully with their strength in mind from now on.' But thanks to this battle, his wisdom power reached 900 points already, far surpassing any normal Legend Rank powerhouses!

"We can't stay in this place any longer. The blood of Magical Beasts might attract the attention of the nearby beasts. Also, it's almost evening." Charles paused as he saw Nick and others dismantling the beast corpses and added.

"Take only the magic stones from the Rank-5 Magical Beasts. Also, you can keep the spoils of four Legend Rank Humanoid Wolves. I will only take the mutant one." Saying so, he walked closer to the 3-meter-tall gigantic Humanoid Wolf and took the Legend Rank 'Fairy' Rank Magic Stone from its heart. It was as big as a human head and appeared crystalline blue color.

'A water elemental Magic Crystal, huh.' He quietly stored it in his space ring and also kept the beast's eyes, heart, teeth, and even skin.

Once everyone took their spoils of war, the group again marched towards the Fortress of the Grave of Souls.

As the sun descended below the horizon, casting long shadows across the landscape, the group began to discern the presence of a vast fortified town in the distant reaches of their field of vision. The town's imposing appearance immediately captured their attention, its features partially obscured by the towering trees that surrounded it like a natural fortress. These colossal trees, with their gnarled branches and dense foliage, formed a tangled, intricate canopy that veiled the town's walls and gave the entire scene an otherworldly and almost surreal quality.

Underneath the veil of nature's camouflage, the town seemed almost unrecognizable, its architecture hidden by the web-like intricacies of the foliage. The imposing walls that encircled the settlement were barely discernible, their stonework and fortifications merging seamlessly with the natural environment.

But what made Charles halt the expenditure was a strange, familiar energy in the surroundings. Although he couldn't pinpoint it, he decided to act more carefully.

"We will camp here tonight and explore the fortress tomorrow." Although Charles wanted to push forward, he knew that there might be even more dangers lurking inside and grew more alert.

Once they found a safe spot, Charles and others lit a large campfire, its flames dancing in the darkness, providing warmth and hope amid their losses.

Charles also cast the [Ignis Sanctuary] spell and protected the surroundings.

'I need to comprehend more lawful fire laws and perfect this spell. Although it's good for protection, it can't withstand a few blows from a Legendary Magical Beasts.' He muttered as he gazed at the towering walls and furrowed.

Even though the sky had only darkened a while ago, he suddenly noticed that the whole appeared as dark as midnight.

'Something doesn't seem right.'

'But I can't recklessly release my wisdom power and alert anything hiding within the Fortress. Should I go alone and scout myself?' Although the scouting squad was the most suitable for this job, he felt a strange sense of unease just by looking at the eerie place.

'Fortress of the Grave of Souls... Even the name gives me creeps. From what I've gathered information about this place, it was originally a main temple of an unknown god. At first, I thought that the strange Bone Tree was a fallen God, but it was only a Boss monster. It's the same as the Fallen Jinn and that strange Dog.' As he was in deep thought, the chubby-faced man named Nick walked closer to Charles and greeted him.

Even though Charles looked more like a young kid, Nick didn't dare to underestimate him.

'He is a terrifying monster! Even Commander Erwin needs more than a few minutes to win against that mutant Humanoid Wolf. But he just overpowered it and killed it in 20 seconds.' At that moment, he recalled the order Erwin gave him before they left for this expenditure.

'Once the mission is over, he asked us to kill him if an opportunity arises... Tsk, I can't even find an opening all this time, so there is no way we can kill him. What's surprising is he never shut his eyes once these days and always keeps his guard against everyone.'

"What is in your mind, Mr. Nick? You seem troubled by something." Charles didn't glance in his direction and spoke while zeroing his attention on the Fortress.

Letting out a deep sigh, Nick smiled awkwardly and spoke in uneasiness.

"What should we do about the tomorrow's expenditure? Thanks to your help, we have managed to come this far. But can we succeed? From what I heard from Commander Erwin, this Fortress is a Temple of a Goddess who rules over death and is hard even to go near."

"Have you guys ever explored this place before?" Charles asked in curiosity.

"Not us, but Commander Erwin once tried to enter this forbidden zone along with 200 Legend Rank powerhouses but stopped midway due to the complete disappearance of the scout squad. And he said that some powerful winged creature guarded this Fortress and was overwhelmingly powerful. Now that I think about it, he also said the more we try to get closer, the harder will it get." Nick said in a grim tone.

"Overwhelmingly powerful? Even Commander Erwin isn't a match for that enemy, huh?" Charles fell into deep thoughts as he heard Nick's words.

'Actually, I thought no being could match me other than the floor boss, but I'm deeply mistaken. If what Commander Erwin said is true, even the 'Madness Berserk' skill might not give me any advantage. Could it be that being is a Guardian? Tsk, what should I do now?' He furrowed his brows and soon made up his mind.

"Nick, I'll scout the area first and return in two hours. If I don't return, you can take your men and go back."

"Without your help, we might not be able to return, Sir."

Charles shook his head and touched the Dreamkeeper Pendant.

A second later, a small, tiny snake appeared out of thin air and slowly slithered to his shoulder.

He casually touched the Shadow Princess's head with his fingers and patted it.

"Things are going to get dangerous for a while. Stay with him for a while." Charles said as he pointed his finger at Nick and gave the pendant to him.

"Take care of my pet until I return." Saying so, he calmly grabbed the Shadow Princess and moved her towards the Nebulus Dreamkeeper Pendant.

At that moment, Shadow Princess sensed his worry and hurriedly went inside the secluded dream place.

Without delay, Charles enveloped his body in a crimson flame before turning into pure elemental form. The next second, he disappeared from where he stood and entered the astral realm.

But the next instant, he couldn't help but stiffen up.

At that moment, he saw a gigantic cloudy shape of a strange humanoid astral figure that appeared at the center of the Fortress. It was more like a giant woman with a spear in her right hand and a shield in her left hand. What fascinated him more was that the tip of the strange spear pierced a black void-like thing and seemed to push it to the deep void through a spatial crack in the sky. Even though the astral figure or the Black Void-like thing was not moving, Charles knew that strange being was not something he could face right now.

'But from the looks of it, is this look like the whole surroundings were under the influence of the 'Time Stop' spell?' A strange thought crept into his mind.

'Now that I think about it, the familiar energy I sense was the 'Present Time' power.'