The group came across a few more bone beasts, but they were smaller than the serpent they fought and a lot easier to kill. They managed to get a few levels which allowed Silver, Shaman and Elanor to catch up with Clara who was at the highest level.
[Shaman and Silver level 203 -> 207]
[Elanor 200 -> 206]
[Elysia 206 -> 208]
Shaman also spent her points since she wanted to start focusing on a single stat.
[You do know you can take back stat points right?] Rea realised that Shaman hadn't adjusted any of her points and wondered if she was even aware of that option.
'Wait I can do that?' Shaman was shocked to hear this since she figured it was permanent. However, this was the system, so really anything could be possible.
[Don't you see the minus sign?] Rea was perplexed as to how Shaman didn't notice.
'That isn't an aesthetic thing? Shaman looked at the small dash which just looked like it was there to make it look nice.
[Oh…. Okay yeah probably should have said something.] Rea noticed that it really wasn't that obvious since it didn't look like a button.
*Sigh* 'This is why I prefer more practical designs… Whoever made this menu focused way too much on aesthetics' Shaman wanted to yell at whoever made the UI for the system.
With this newfound realisation, she got back to re-arranging her attributes while they walked. Rea also informed everyone else since it seemed like no-one else knew of it.
[Attributes]
Unused: 210 -> 0
- Vitality: 1050 -> 900 +
- Agility: 1100 -> 1310 +
- Intelligence: 1160 +
- Strength: 1150 -> 1350 +
- Dexterity: 1110 -> 1260 +
- Defence: 1050 -> 850 +
"Wait, Shaman you didn't know you could move your points around?" After getting the message from Rea, Elysia chuckled to herself since she thought it was pretty obvious.
"N-no? It just looked like it was a part of the menu." Shaman tried to play it off and hoped Elysia wouldn't tease her. That however was not to be, as when Elysia heard Shaman's response, a smirk appeared on her face.
"Didn't the plus sign on the other side of the attributes make you think that there should also be a way to remove them?"
"Shouldn't the minus be next to it though?" Shaman understood that, but she would think the minus would be next to it, not on the other side of the word.
[Okay that's the system designer's fault, I can't tell you why they did that, but they thought it looked cool.] Rea agreed with what Shaman said since it did look good, but it failed to get the message across.
"Still though you never thought to try?" Elysia cursed Rea since she shot down any attempt at teasing Shaman.
"Hmph." Shaman pouted not wanting to fall into any word traps set by Elysia since the system already took the blame.
"Enough, we should be almost there now." Clara saw something that looked like a big gate in the distance and assumed it was Himeko's cave.
Having their attention drawn in front of them, they saw the gate that Clara was talking about. A gold insignia was visible, but a little too far to make out. Still, the rough shape was enough to suggest it was Himeko's insignia.
It was also apparent that there were no skeleton beasts around which seemed odd, raising the question whether there was something in place preventing them from getting close.
The group walked a bit closer when suddenly Shaman, Elysia and Silver felt their hairs stand up. Due to them being half animals, they were able to sense the sudden danger.
Elanor and Clara wondered what the hell happened as they saw them freeze on the spot.
"Okay, I see why we haven't seen any beast in a while." Shaman got a sense of looming doom coming from the gate. If she didn't know Himeko was there, Shaman would have already begun running. Silver and Elysia nodded vigorously as they felt that exact same thing.
"Seems like there must be a magic circle at play here. Come on you three, it will be fine." Clara was completely unaffected by whatever they felt and surprisingly Elanor was as well.
Clara grabbed Shamana and Elysia by the hand, dragging them down the path. They gave some resistance since their body told them not to go any further, but they didn't really put their heart into it. Meanwhile Elanor did the same but with Silver.
Surprisingly it was rather effective at alleviating their worries and made the overwhelming feeling of death bearable.
Elysia and Shaman hugged Clara's arm after realising it subdued their troubled feelings. Silver tried not to hug Elanor's arm out of respect, but his body moved on its own.
"Hehe~." Finding it adorable, Elanor giggled and patted his head, unable to hold back.
Silver blushed, but it was super effective and a great distraction.
*
Finally, they made it to the gate and the ominous feeling subsided. Shaman, Elysia and Silver fell to their knees as it felt like they hadn't been breathing for the last 15 minutes of walking.
"Good thing it doesn't affect demons or elves." Clara assumed that since this was in the Demon Lands, Himeko didn't want any curious demon accidentally finding this place due to the pressure it exerted. There was also the fact that half-animals are not meant to be here in the first place.
"How the hell is Freja able to walk through this? I know she is tier-10 but at this point, it feels like a cheat being that powerful." Shaman ended up laying down on the ground as she complained that such an awful thing exists. Undoubtedly it was a great way to keep you safe from beasts and demons, but it sucked for them.
"Hopefully this should be the only time we come here." Elanor figured they wouldn't have to come here often since Himeko wouldn't be reincarnating every third month.
"True unless she has a death wish." This was the only saving grace for everyone as coming here once was already one time too much. Unless Himeko had a death wish this would be their only visit.
"Alright, let's go say hello." Shaman got up from the ground and helped Elysia up. The day was close to ending, so they needed to get some shelter before the night.
"Will you be okay Clara?" Elanor felt bad for putting Clara on the spot earlier, so she hoped Clara would be okay.
"Yeah, I've had time to think so I'll be okay." Clara appreciated the sentiment, but she was ready to have this talk with Himeko. Elysia smiled, glad that Clara took her advice to heart.
Seeing that everyone was ready, Shaman walked up to the gate. Just like she did back in Ebonscale, she put her hand up against the phoenix insignia. Once Shaman covered her hand in fire, the gate's crystals lit up and its gears began to move.
The gate slowly moved to the sides opening up to reveal a cave opening. Light filled the room and in the middle was a couch. On that couch was a woman enjoying a cup of wine seemingly waiting for them.
***
<Outskirts of the Demon Lands>
Klaus was napping as they travelled to the border by beasts but was woken once they got close to enemy territory. All the other admirals followed him on their own beasts. Few were happy to have come here and some were even tempted to run away.
However, they knew if they tried the Pope would hunt them down and even their cities would not be safe from his wrath.
*Yawn* "Finally." Seeing the dark clouds close by, the border of the demon lands was clear to the eye, so as soon as they entered it would mean war.
Already by the border were soldiers of the Demon Lands and they were ready with their weapons. The soldiers at the border were actually prisoners and were used as bait for information. As soon as they saw the small entourage coming towards them, they pulled out a clear gem and smashed it. This alerted the higher-ups of the Pope's arrival and put into motion a plan.
"Tsk, how annoying." Klaus hoped to have the element of surprise, but it seemed that the queen found out he was coming.
Clicking his fingers, light arrows appeared above his head and shot at the speed of light towards the prisoner soldiers. They instantly died, but they had completed their job so it didn't matter.
"Looks like the war has begun, let's hope the queen plays nice and gives me what I want." Klaus smiled since he knew the prideful queen would rather die than give anything up, so he anticipated some fun.
*Sigh* 'Do we really have to do this.' Jane, the woman that was friends with Himeko, didn't like where this was going. She was aware that Himeko has a base here, so she could only hope that Himeko herself isn't here.
"I know it sucks Jane, but orders are orders." A rather old-looking dude wearing a black uniform tried to comfort Jane.
"Yeah I know Bartholt, I'm just worried that some of us will die for no reason. I mean what stops the Pope from going alone? He is perfectly capable of handling it." Jane would rather be elsewhere and work on her own projects than invade a territory.
"I'm afraid we may be bait, but let's try our best to survive." Bartholt accepted the reality that they are just pawns to the Pope, so the only thing they could do was survive.
"I guess so." Jane wasn't looking forward to it, but all she could do is watch for now.
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