Erik nodded. "That's the idea," he said. "With Hin under our control, we'll be able to, at least in theory, pull back the troops on Frant and cut off the blackguards' supply lines and halt their advance in our country. Etrium should in theory do the sa since the pressure on them will increase, and if we take control of the other countries simultaneously, they will pull off willingly. Of course, I think we will be in Etrium's governnt too at the end of these two months, so they will leave regardless."
"What after that?"
"When everything is under control, we will attack the blackguards. I still need to think about
the how, and I need more information to make the right plan. But that's the idea."
"We're with you," Mira said, her eyes blazing with fire. Amber and Emily nodded in agreent.
As they rode on, the sun started to set, turning the sky orange and red. The forest ca to life with nightti sounds-insets chirping and creatures hooting.
As it got dark, the group stopped to rest. Erik made camping easy.
...
...
...
The journey to Sleb Harbour took them two weeks, but in the end, they reached the city.
As the group approached the towering walls surrounding the place, they were struck by the sight of the city sprawling before them.
Despite its na, Sleb Harbour was not a coastal town with bustling ports and ships. Instead, it was a vast, landlocked tropolis, its towering buildings and winding streets stretching out as far as the eye could see, and, of course, gigantic walls surrounded it.
Erik and the others were currently on top of a hill so they could see the city inside.
Amber turned to Erik. "How are we going to get inside?" she asked. She had never done sothing like that, and she didn't see a way to do so. Erik was in the sa situation because of the Veritas Lenses.
"I didn't ask the Chimaeric Demons how they did it, but based on what they told , they found a way to let us enter undisturbed." Erik smiled with confidence in his eyes. "The Chimaeric Demons have been scouting the city for almost two months, and I got told they were also gathering information and preparing for our arrival."
"If you say so."
With that, Erik closed his eyes and focused, reaching out through his Instability brain crystal power. He sent a ssage to the Chimaeric Demons waiting within the city after a long ti searching for them, telling the clones they were finally here.
After an hour of waiting, with the sun painting the sky in orange, they saw soone coming in their direction.
Erik recognized the person in question. It was one of his clones, clearly. It wouldn't be possible to mistake soone that looked exactly like you.
The clone bowed deeply as it arrived.
"Master," the clone said. "We have been awaiting your arrival. Everything is prepared for you and the others within the city."
Erik nodded, a pleased smile on his face. "Excellent work," he said. "Lead the way."
The Chimaeric Demon bowed once more, his eyes gleaming with pride at his master's praise. "Of course, Master. Please follow . I will guide you through the safest route into the heart of Sleb Harbour."
With that, the clone turned and led the group down the hill. Erik and his companions followed behind, with the three won scanning the surroundings for any signs of danger.
As they approached the city's walls, the Chimaeric Demon led them to a secret entrance. How the clones found it was unknown. The weirdest thing was that the barrier wasn't working there. But just there.
"How did you find this?"
"We simply scouted around for a while... Hin does not know about this entrance, or better, it forgot since it was created a long ti ago."
"And the barrier?" Erik asked. "Why is there no barrier?"
"We managed to send a clone inside to scout by shapeshifting. Even if the Veritas Lenses is going to make it possible for them to find us, if we take the form of small animals, insects, and similar creatures and sneak our way in by taking advantage of people or the surroundings, they won't be able to find us. The clone took the form of a spider and hid under a soldier's clothes. He tinkered with the barrier and deactivated it on this portion of the walls. Of course, we put it back up as soon as we could. We ca in, and once we knew you were coming, we did the sa."
The clone led the group through narrow passages. Erik wasn't sure if these were inside the city walls or underground. It was quiet, with only the sound of their footsteps on the stone and tal floor echoing around them.
In the end, the clone led them to an area not so easy to reach.
"Where are we?" Erik asked. The clone imdiately understood what Erik wanted to know. They were basically the sa person, after all. "Underground, master. We should be around the middle of the city here."
The clone pushed open the door, revealing a dimly lit interior that seed to have been prepared specifically for their arrival.
The group entered the safe house, feeling relieved. They had successfully snuck into Sleb Harbour without being caught, thanks to the Chimaeric Demons' help.
Erik couldn't help but be shocked by how easy it had been, especially rembering all the hardships he had to go through to do the sa in the past, and even a recent one at that.
Erik realized it wasn't helpful to think about what he could have done differently in the past.
Instead, he turned his attention to what needed to be done now and in the future. Getting into Sleb Harbour without being caught was a good start, and he would not let his thoughts ruin the mont.
"Now we can start the real work," Erik said.
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