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It was night time when it all began...
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Out of nowhere, strings of explosions occurred in multiple areas within District 13; strangely enough, the sound didn't spread out too much. Looking closely, there seems to be a bubble surrounding the area of the explosions, preventing the impact and the sound from escaping.
"Go, go, go!" Loud barks of officers roared within the areas, followed by multiple men charging straight into the thick of the smoke.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Shots were fired, and wails of pain and agony followed.
The cultists, caught completely unprepared, suffered immensely from the sudden raid of District 13's army.
This wasn't just limited to the police officers; their combat pros were called for the job too, and they're also doing their best to round up the criminals as quickly as they can.
"Dogs of District 13! How dare you!?" A roar of anger and defiance erupted from the depths of smoke and fire.
All of a sudden, a figure broke out of the zone's depths. It was an old man who's face and skin was peppered with black spots. His face morphed in anger and shock, clearly not expecting this to happen at all.
Alas, this was not the time to think. The old man realized that the situation was precarious for them, so without any hesitation, he raised a hand and yelled:
"[Fog of Doom]!"
Following this, a stream of black smog began leaking out of his sleeves. The fog was thick and inky black. It was so dense that as soon as it was released, it had already begun spreading around the area fast.
"He's trying to escape! Don't let him." One of the combat pros of the district's army yelled.
"[Light Prison!]
"[Light Spears!]
"[Light of Dawn!]
"[Blessing of True Sight!]
"[Dispel: Fog of Doom]!"
The old man's skill was immediately countered by Light-based spells and skills. The allies were also blessed with a buff that increased their perception stat, allowing them to see through the dense fog.
Someone even tried to directly dispel the fog at once, but that's going to take some time.
Seeing their quick response caused a vein to throb on the old man's forehead.
"They're prepare for me? How? How did they know? Who leaked our secrets?" The old man was confused an angry.
He swore that he'd figure it out, but only after surviving this. Now's really not the time for him to be distracted.
With a quick move, the old man took out his staff and began casting a string of spells to aid him.
[Blind], [Enervate], [Bind], [Echoes of Madness], [Paralysis], and [Crimson Thorn Wall].
The old man unloaded all of these in quick succession. And it certainly did many things to his enemies.
Some soldiers lost their vision, others felt weakened. Some started hearing voices that either fooled or lied to them, others were paralyzed. Then, a large coiling wall of thorns emerged from the ground, becoming an obstacle for his enemies.
The Combat Pros once again responded to this by negating the effects of his skill. Thanks to this, the casualties on the side of the District 13's army was kept to a minimum.
One particular combat pro had enough of being passive. With a speed that defied common sense, he disappeared from his position and reppeared right behind the old man with his palms stretched out.
Then he bellowed: "[Holy Script: Restriction!]"
"Urgh!!" The old man was caught off guard.
The man's skill landed on him and paralyzed him from head to toe. His body was surrounded by a golden script written in an acient language that prevented him from making any movement exept breathing and blinking his eyes.
Hate filled the old man's heart. Knowing his fate if they caught him alive, he immediately decided to trigger the last resort. He will sacrifice his life for the cult, he will not let the dogs of District 13 get what they want from him.
"Oops! No you don't!" A woman's voice suddenly interjected with his thoughts, speaking to him directly in his mind.
To the old man's shock and fear, the woman was already in his head, and he didn't even notice, and that was his last thought before he lost consciousness.
"There, he'd be unconscious for a while. But just in case, I'll escort him until the extraction just to make sure."
"Good. Let's go and wrap things up here."
**
Scenes like this happened in other areas where the cult's base were.
This entire operation was a surprise, one that these cultists certainly didn't see coming. It was all according to the plan.
And so, within just two hours, all the known cult bases had been raided and razed to the ground. The majority of the cultists died while some were kept alive and placed under strict observation.
Overseeing this entire operation was none other than the city lordess herself.
Her previous act of returning to her paper-pushing job was no more than a ruse to lower the cult's vigilance. It was her body double who did all that, the real City Lordess had always been geared up and ready to move at any given moment.
Standing above the disctrict she governed, her face remained indifferent and cold. Her arms were crossed on her chest as she spread her senses, surveiling every corner of the district just in case.
And that turned out to be a wise decision.
With a push of her heels, she disappeared from her spot and landed above a group of people who were fleeing under an invisible cloak. These people were, of course, members of the cult who managed to flee from the ambush.
Had it not been for her vigilance, these people could've escaped and warned their comrades.
With a swing of her hand, the enchantment of invisibility they had evaporated under her might, and the group collectively froze on the spot as if they were seized by an invisible hand.
Sneering coldly, the City Lordess carried them with her as she flew to the prison reserved just for them. Then, she unceremoniously dropped them onto her people and told them to restrain each one, making sure that they cannot kill themselves just in case.
She did all of this while keeping her vigilance all over the district; she continued even after the whole crew was done cleaning up the areas and made sure that there were no sightings of the cult anywhere.
Only then did she relax.
The City Lordess would love to keep this up perpetually only if she could, but the truth is she couldn't. This kind of surveilance, while very effective, was also very taxing for her. She might even die if she pushed this ability way beyond what she could handle.
So, for the rest, she could only rely on the security measures all over the district.
But with this, at least the cult has been settled, for now, once more. The City Lordess knows that this isn't the end of it. The cult is all over the world, scattered everywhere. Nobody has managed to accurately track down their headquarters, not even those who were way stronger than her.
The ambitions of the cult was also a mystery. All they know is that they're extremely persistent and that they have this alarming ability to discover desperate people who are willing to join their cause.
She knows that the peace she brought will only be temporary. One day, the cult will return again and they will start terrorizing people again.
But for now, this should be the end of it. At the very least, the next few years should be peaceful for her district.
"Begin the interrogations right away. I want to know if the 'Black Sky Pope' survived or if they found a replacement for him. I want that information as soon as possible, I don't care what method you use, I want results. Everything else is a bonus."
**
"What a mess..."
In the shadows of District 13, not too far from the City Lordess' office, a few people stared at the sky with grim expressions.
While the operation that happened just a couple of hours ago was silent, swift, and efficient, it didn't stop these people from learning about it.
"We should've killed that deranged vampire. If it weren't for him, our bases wouldn't have been destroyed."
"We also want him killed, but we were too late!"
"Alright, gentlemen, cease arguing; nothing good will come out of that. What's done is done. As much as I hate to say this, it's our defeat this time. But worry not, all is not lost."
"The archbishop's words are correct. We are still here. We lost many of our brothers and sisters, yes, but our mission was far from over."
"This will slow us down, but that's okay. Let them think that they won. We've got all the time in the world. We're not in a hurry."
Any further arguments were concluded just like that.
If the City Lordess were to see this, she'd probably have an aneurysm. How could she have known that there's another cult base hiding right under her nose?
Suffice it to say, the cult has been crippled, yes, but only in this district. Even then, they're not dead yet.
This matter was far from over...