Despite fighting with their lives on the line, for the Nephirid veterans, this was enjoyable. A battle so intense, so thrilling, that they could bask in its glory long after the dust settled.
Though they had failed to capture Malvek alive, they had still won. It had been a long time since they'd faced a fight , not just one that risked their lives, but one that mattered, with high stakes and lasting consequences.
Victory tasted different when it shaped the future. After the fight, the Nephirid group rejoined Zarnak to take care of the aftermath. Meanwhile, Ben was already back in Vlontera. Right now, he was with Elvira, showing the projection of Malvek.
"I'm sure of it. Your guess is correct. This is the power armor she brought out."
Ben nodded, then started thinking through the implications. But Elvira was quicker.
"So someone really is triggering the fight in my clan… all to create more chaos."
"What do you think the reason is? Daemon?" In his mind, that was the only possible cause. Not long ago, they had uncovered tactics to sacrifice human life to summon daemon. Although they were privy to some details, like which daemon Malvek planned to call, whether it was Apophis or something else remained uncertain.
But Elvira shook her head. "Daemon are nothing more than tools. Just remember the history that Lady of the Lake told us, even throughout the epochs, they were always a byproduct of ambition and greed. And later, when everything went wrong, they didn't give up. They used war as a pretext to keep the research going."
As a mage and researcher herself, she knew better than most how much allure there was in studying something that didn't exist yet. But that didn't mean she agreed with how it was conducted, and even less when her whole clan had become the experiment's victim. Taking a deep breath to steady herself, she added, "No matter what, their goal is still the same, and it will only stop if we destroy them at the roots."
Ben nodded slowly. In truth, he didn't want to have anything to do with any of it, but he had no choice. With the system and everything else, he was already pulled into the vortex. And it wasn't like he could just walk away after all this. "Should we change our plan, then?"
"What about our scouts heading to the surface?" Elvira asked, starting to sound impatient to return.
She wanted to thwart this scheme and protect her clan. No matter how much injustice and bitterness she had endured there, it was still her home, and she refused to be the last survivor of her species.
Ben closed his eyes, trying to connect to the base on the upper layer through the hive mind. Without the system, the process took longer now.
"The process is still going, but it's slower than before. They're trying to avoid detection, and they've had multiple contacts with other species."
"Hmm. Can't we make it faster? Let's forget about going in stealthily. Even in my last life, no one took massive action until it was too late, when the Nephirid came. Instead of focusing on the invader, each clan tried to use it to their own benefit."
Despite how calmly she said it, Ben could feel the impatience radiating from her. "Are you sure about this, Elvira? I feel you're getting emotional. It's not that I blame you, but think again, is getting there in a hurry really worth it?"
In Ben's mind, even now, the problems on their layer still hadn't finished. They wanted to conquer and build their own underground kingdom, but things kept getting complicated.
"Don't forget, in the end, the biggest problem comes from this layer. As long as we conquer it, those templar options will be limited."
"Templar… Crusader… Both of them are no different in my eyes, Ben. And you're right, I am getting emotional. But just think—if you were them, when they can't pull something here, won't they grow impatient and try something up there instead?"
"That's possible… but Elvira, the chance of that happening is very low. If anything, they'll just send more people here to figure out what's wrong. They've waited thousands of years already—what's waiting another hundred?"
Hell, in reality, it was more than thousands. The experiment had been going on for entire epochs. But Elvira still felt the same. Based on all the information she had gathered so far, she was convinced the experiment was nearing its end, and it was very normal for researchers to grow impatient at this juncture.
"I know what you're saying, but I just…"
Elvira wanted to say more, but Ben cut her off. "How about this—I'll focus the base on creating more scouts. That way, the progress will be faster, but we'll still avoid detection." He let out a sigh. "I just want to avoid the worst case, Elvira. If they find out about the Krell, then pull their links to the ones here, they'll spare no resources to hunt us down."
"I'm sorry. I should think things through." Despite saying this, Ben could feel she was still impatient. But he didn't press further. He knew it was pointless unless somehow he found a way for her to reconnect with her clan.
"I'll focus back on my research. Maybe I can make the golem even stronger." She said it quietly before turning to leave the room.
"…But this is your lab…" he mumbled with a heavy sigh, staring at the machines still humming. Now her laboratory looked more like a modern facility from his old world than any mage's workshop.
Seeing all of it, Ben couldn't help but say, "She'd make a good leader in peaceful times."
Even with access to so much technology, Elvira had always focused on research to improve civilian life. She'd only started looking into golems when she felt they needed more military force.
His gaze turned complicated as he looked at the spot where she'd stood. "I need to do something."