NOVGO.NET Chapter 106: Barely A Dent
"Before the king’s family sprang their insurrection, most protested, most of us here amongst them."
The scarred woman continued, unaware of Malik’s thoughts.
"Many were mortals. They knew the king was wrong and knew that his family was corrupt. But they were either killed or kicked out for speaking against them."
She gestured at the small community thriving in the cavern.
"We formed this settlement for those who survived. They called us traitors while we were only refugees and those that helped them."
Malik absorbed her words with a frown.
The people here were definitely not his enemies. Rather, they were victims of the same traitors he had executed.
They had been cast out for refusing to join the insurrection, for staying loyal to the Sultan even when it cost them everything.
So they had asked about Malik earlier to know if he worked for that kingdom or not.
They needed to know if he was a threat.
’Hm, so I can be truthful. At least a little.’
Deciding that, he finally replied to her:
"Thank you, young lady."
The scarred woman smiled.
It softened her features and made her look younger than she was.
"Call me Zayna."
Malik was surprised a second time, but he did not show it.
He had thought that she looked familiar earlier, but with the name, he now knew just who she was.
Zayna was a former member of the Guard of the Fifth.
One of his shadows.
Apparently, after a severe injury, she had retired.
But no, she still fought, and she was here.
"You’ve done well, Zayna."
She blinked, confused by his tone, but said nothing.
They reached a makeshift medical tent at the edge of the settlement.
The tent was patched in a dozen places, but the inside was clean and organized.
Rows of cots lined the walls, bottles of medicine sat on a wooden table, and a brazier burned in the corner, filling the tent with warmth.
The men set the stretcher down on an empty cot.
Zayna pulled a blanket over him, tucking the edges beneath the mattress.
"Rest now; we’ll get you back up soon. Our main healer is returning from a mission."
Malik nodded at her.
"Thank you."
She smiled once more, then turned and left the tent, pulling the canvas flap closed behind her.
He was alone.
Now, healed back up a little, he felt like checking his gains.
Ding!
—
╔═══════════════╗
║YOUR FEAR SPREADS...║
╚═══════════════╝
[Order (Class One) - 16 → 20 % Increasing!]
[Southern Cross (Class Three) - 22 → 75 % Increasing!]
[Phoenix Faction (Class Four) - 20 → 36 % Increasing!]
[Owls Faction (Class Five) - 38 → 50 % Increasing!]
[Red Dragon Faction (Class Five) - 23 → 46 % Increasing!]
[Kalahari Faction (Class Five) - 24 → 40 % Increasing!]
[Walkers Faction (Class Six) - 45 → 61 % Increasing!]
[Maharajah Faction (Class Seven) - 49 → 70 % Increasing!]
—
’Wow. Me killing an Angel sure seems to have terrified them.’
Every faction had jumped. The Order had climbed four points. The Phoenix Faction had surged sixteen points. The Owls were at fifty percent, halfway to breaking. As were the Red Dragon, the Kalahari, and the Walkers.
Meanwhile, the Maharajah was closing in on the threshold.
Yet, it appeared that he didn’t terrify them enough.
Even though Southern Cross’s very Angel was killed, they remained below the threshold.
As expected from a higher-class faction, he couldn’t kick them out so easily.
Ding!
—
╔═══════════════╗
║FACTION TERMINATED║
╚═══════════════╝
[Unnamed Faction (Class Ten) x 8 — Terminated]
[Unnamed Faction (Class Eleven) x 6 — Terminated]
[Unnamed Faction (Class Twelve) x 5 — Terminated]
[Reward: 39 Fear Points!]
—
’Hm, we’ve already driven off nineteen factions?’
Malik was surprised at their efficiency.
His army had been busy while he fought Mata.
The campaign was progressing faster than he had expected.
’But the reward is quite bad. Though... that is to be expected, considering how weak they are.’
Class Ten, Eleven, and Twelve were barely above mortals.
They were not worth much Fear.
Not worth much at all.
Ding!
—
╔════════╗
║OVERFLOW!║
╚════════╝
[You’ve felled an Angel.]
[Fear Points: 10 → 101 → 140 → 1140]
—
The Sultan was stunned beyond it all.
Yes, he had just killed an Angel.
Yes, it had been a battle that shook the planet and scarred the sky.
But a thousand Fear Points?
’...nice.’
Malik began to trace the numbers.
First, he had gotten a hundred from fear spreading further in the factions. Then another boost from the terminations. And then, finally, a literal thousand from the Angel’s death itself.
’It’s a lot, but if I think about it more...’
A thousand was not much, was it?
It had gotten him closer to the next Class, but he was sure that what came next would be twice or maybe even thrice as expensive.
The pattern had held so far.
Each rank demanded at least twice as much as the last.
The curve was steep, and it would only get steeper.
A thousand was nothing when compared to that.
So he couldn’t help but think:
’Just how many Angels would I have to kill?’
Rather, what was his past self planning for him to do?
The Sultan who had left him this impossible burden—what had he seen coming?
What threat required a man who could kill Angels by the dozen? By the hundreds?
It was almost unfathomable.
—
{Quests}
[First Main Quest: End Corruption’s Reign — 0% Complete]
[Second Main Quest: Drive Out The Invaders — 4 → 5% Complete]
[Sub-Quest: Annihilate Khaybar — 0 → 2% Complete]
—
As was this Main Quest.
Despite all their efforts and the death of an Angel, they had barely made a dent.
’One percent.’
The mobilization of all they could mobilize, the destruction of nineteen factions, the terror spreading through the invaders’ ranks, and yet, it was only one percent.
Devil’s Maw was massive, and the enemy seemed to populate it like ants.
For every base they destroyed, ten more existed... that likely held true for Angels as well.
Rare as they were, before him, he was sure that would no longer be the case.
’I’ve got a lot of work ahead of me.’
Malik closed his eyes and let the darkness take him.
All this trouble he’d leave for the future him.
For now, he needed to rest.
He was not wicked.