At first, Bastion believed that a hardened wall, slick ice, and a few pit traps would be enough to defend their position. But then a realization hit him, those defenses might work against their regular opponents, but they wouldn't hold up against Rank 1 or higher enemies. He needed something more reliable.
That's when he remembered his new toys.
The cannons didn't require a large line of sight or a wide space to be effective. In fact, the smaller the approach, the better. With that in mind, Bastion reshaped the terrain around them.
He manipulated the walls, ceiling, and floor to slope inward, creating a long, gradually narrowing tunnel that funneled enemies directly toward the autocannon mounted on a tripod. The path became tighter the closer it got to the weapon's position, ending at just the right height for the autocannon to fire without obstruction.
This design also served a defensive purpose. Any forceful attacks aimed at the hardened earth walls would be diffused and redirected along the sloped surfaces, making it much harder for enemies to break through directly. Additionally, the sloped ceiling and walls prevented anyone from simply leaping over or bypassing the defenses by scaling upward.
With this setup, rushing the cannon position became nearly impossible.
"How am I supposed to attack?" Lilia complained. "I can't see anything from here."
"Freeze everything on the other side of the tunnel," Bastion suggested. "Cover the whole area in ice to make it slippery and reinforce the walls."
Explosions echoed from deeper within the cave, signaling that the battle had started and enemies were likely to show up soon. Bastion and Lilia had no more time to refine their defenses.
Lilia quickly followed his instructions, unleashing a wave of frost that coated the far end of the tunnel, hardening the surfaces and making the approach difficult.
At last, their first guest announced their approach with echoing footsteps. A group of demon worshipers escaping the chaos at the main hall.
They rounded the bend and immediately tensed when they saw light coming from the far end of the tunnel. There wasn't supposed to be any light in the cave, which only deepened their suspicion.
"There is light. Someone is on the other side," one of them whispered.
"That's impossible. No one needs light to see after the baptism. It must be intruders."
"What are we supposed to do? The one at the auditorium took down a head priest. What if we're next?"
"There is no other way out. The entrance was under attack. We have to take the risk."
"Then we rush on three. One, two, three. Go!"
The group of demon worshipers rushed around the bend, passed the fork, and came to an abrupt halt at the sight before them. Instead of the wide, familiar passage they expected, it narrowed sharply, with the walls, ceiling, and floor slanting inward toward a single point. Every surface was coated in a thick layer of frost that shimmered under the faint light, casting a pale, icy glow throughout the space. The air had grown cold and heavy, and their breath emerged in visible puffs.
The frozen ground was slick beneath their feet, making movement difficult, and the narrowing path gave the impression of being funneled directly into a trap. The unnatural chill confirmed their unease. This place had been deliberately prepared for them.
Out of nowhere, the head of the man in front burst apart, followed by the others as their bodies erupted in violent explosions. In an instant, none were left alive.
"Works great," Bastion said. "It's incredibly stable, and the heat is dissipating properly. Even the Apprentice Rank bullets seem to hold up rather than shatter. Using the weakest of Seraphina's recipes was a great idea."
Through Bastion's view, a group of demon worshipers appeared at the far end of the tunnel. Using the magical sights, he lined up the crosshair with the one leading the group and pulled the trigger, bracing for the recoil.
There was barely any as the tripod had been bolted to the ground and buried beneath reinforced earth. In hindsight, that may not have been necessary, since the rate of fire was significantly lower than intended.
As for the bullets, even with the weakest fire crystal recipe and Apprentice Rank rounds, the weapon was still powerful enough to tear through Rank 2 enemies, let alone the rabble he had encountered first.
"It's loud!" Lilia screamed.
"Use a sound dampener spell to cope!" Bastion screamed back.
It didn't help that they were test-firing the weapon in a narrow tunnel, where the confined space made the sound incredibly deafening.
A few sound dampening spells later, and they were good to go. It was a perfect example of how versatile magic could be. There were so many spells that nearly any situation could be solved with the right one.
-----
Meanwhile, within the confines of the demon worshipers' sanctum, the remaining priests were in a state of panic, caught completely off guard by the sudden assault of the Saintess.
"Malrik the Withered is dead!" one of them said. "He was caught in the blast of one of those accursed explosive potions!"
"Mother Nyzara has fallen as well. She was beheaded while fleeing through the first escape route."
"What are we going to do?"
Of the five head priests, only three remained. These were the ones responsible for maintaining the ritual meant to strengthen the Demon Lord.
They had originally planned to use human sacrifices from the academy to perform the ritual. However, after repeated failures, they were forced to sacrifice their own resources and, at times, even their own followers.
Now, they could not even manage that much. The Saintess and her party were always one step ahead of them. Even so, the cult was not without a few small victories.
"The strengthening ritual will likely stop today. We are no match for the Saintess and her domain."
"What about the dungeon breaks? Have they been empowered enough?"
"They've been significantly delayed, but they will still break. Just not on the scale we originally planned."
"How is the unsealing progressing?"
"On schedule. They still haven't discovered our ritual to desecrate the Sword of Power."
"Then our duty is fulfilled. We may not have advanced the timeline by much, but the seal should still break within a few years."
"That alone will deny the heroes a chance to grow. Even the Saintess will still be a mere whelp at Rank 1 by then. She will never be able to reseal the Demon Lord."
"Still, the two of you must escape. Thorrak, Erelith, I will remain behind to buy you time."
"Thank you, brother."
"Your sacrifice will not be in vain."
"For the Great One."
"For the Great One."
As Drazhûn watched Thorrak Bloodchant and Erelith of the Blighted Eye vanish down a hidden passage, the High Seer turned toward the double doors that led to the main hallway. He would give everything to delay the enemies of the Great One.
He turned to the strengthening ritual and tossed in new ingredients, splitting the energy into two streams. One flowed toward the Demon Lord, while the other coursed into his own body.
"I apologize, Great One. I must delay our enemies," Drazhûn whispered in prayer.
As streams of corrupted magic surged through him, he felt power unlike anything he had ever known. His muscles swelled, his bones lengthened, his frame grew taller, and his skin thickened. He was becoming more powerful with every second, sacrificing his own lifespan in return.
"GRAAA!"
Drazhûn bellowed, a guttural roar that shook the chamber walls, then thundered toward the main hall where his enemies regrouped. There would be no rest for them, no breath to catch. He would not allow it. Fueled by dark power and the certainty of death, he would bring the battle to them with crushing force. This would be a final reckoning before the end.
He punched open the heavy double doors and was promptly blown back by a series of powerful Rank 2 explosive potions, his dramatic entrance cut tragically short by Seraphina's classic door trap.
Before he could assess the damage, a radiant holy aura enveloped him, immediately disrupting his corrupted energy. The divine light clashed with the dark magic sustaining him, draining his strength with every passing second. Worse still, that stolen power was not simply lost.
It was being converted into uncontrolled energy that rampaged violently through his body. Muscles spasmed, veins glowed, and his limbs trembled under the unstable surge. He was not just weakening. He was being turned into a conduit for his own destruction.
"Right on time. I knew the real world wouldn't give the heroes a break at this point," Seraphina gloated.
In the game, players had plenty of time to rest between battles. But this wasn't a game. In reality, the enemy would be foolish to let the heroes recover before the next battle.
So Seraphina, anticipating the obvious, planted bombs all over the ominous double doors and used the remaining time to quietly regain her mana.
She also knew the strengthening was temporary, so instead of confronting the suicidal boss head on, she chose to fight on her own terms in the main hall, where plenty of traps were ready to intercept the enemy.
Aurelia bombarded Drazhun with Brilliant Smite. Cyrus and his phoenix unleashed waves of Fireballs. Tobin hurled Wind Slashes, Emberlyn launched spear after spear, and Seraphina casually tossed more Rank 2 explosive vials that trivialized the boss fight.
In the end, Drazhun collapsed without landing a single blow.
"So much for the boss fight," Seraphina said with a shrug. "That just leaves the last two priests. Bastion should be able to handle those two."
Aurelia inspected the ritual, then flooded it with holy power, cutting off the strengthening process before storing the unused materials.
"What now?" Aurelia asked.
"We're pretty much finished here. Come on, let's take care of the ones still asleep."
-----
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