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She was so good, in fact, at controlling aether that if her body had not been so weak, she could have expedited her absorption of her innate card so much that she could have reached the Initiate realm in a matter of days.

As it was, she had to slow down her absorption because her body could not handle the stress of it. Theoretically, once she reached the Initiate realm, she could then speed up the process and similarly reach Arcanist in a matter of weeks. Higher realms were not so easy, but at least until the Arcanist realm she could speed up her growth.

The reason why any of that was relevant to Nero right now was because her increased control of aether would be helpful in the ruins in case they needed to use any of the Eldrim technology in the basement. On their own, they might not be able to use it.

The last day before departure the base was in a flurry of activity as countless soldiers ran around and loaded various trucks with equipment and supplies. Nero and his team, however, were not required to do any of that. They only had last minute briefings and a couple sessions of teamwork building exercises.

It filled up their time and was helpful, but was not exerting in anyway. It was understandable that they wanted everyone to be in their best condition when they deployed. But for some inexplicable reason, Nero felt like there was a little more to it than that. He just couldn\'t understand what.

*****

Hubert Rodney could not help but laugh as he looked out the window of his study, the sound of his voice echoing through the halls of his house. Now, more than ever, he could feel the power he held. Now, more than ever, he was reminded once more that the path he tread was the correct one.

His son\'s foolish friend thought that personal, individual power was the ultimate power. If one could become a sage that might be true, but otherwise, who could compete with someone like Hubert?

Now that the Kolar war machine was waking up, and about to bare its fangs, who else could replace the influence of people like Hubert Rodney?

Outside his home stood massive containers, being filled by stacks of cards soldiers were carrying out of his home. There were tens of thousands of cards being carried out of the hidden basement of his home, each one of them capable of destroying the life of those who cling to that so-called personal power.

His contributions alone were equivalent to that of a whole battalion.

"Mr. Rodney, please follow me," said a man in a suit, standing behind him. "The preparations for your promotion to the Mystic realm are complete."

*****

Harvey Folten had his eyes closed as he meditated, ignoring the sounds of conversation around him. The only thing he paid attention to were the aether fluctuations around him, so when he suddenly noticed the aether density increasing around him, he finally opened his eyes.

Perhaps long years of keeping a stern expression as a teacher had made it a habit, so even now, surrounded by a group of people laughing and grinning, old Footer remained steely.

But these were not his students that surrounded him, but his comrades, so he did not need to give them any instructions. Even though they looked to have cavalier attitudes, they meant nothing but business.

"Is it time?" he asked, standing up.

"Almost," replied one of the men near him. "The standby order has been given. We\'re due to hear from-"

The man was interrupted by a flash of red light, which gave everyone in the room pause.

"Never mind. It\'s time."

The ground trembled after a few moments, as if catching up to the light that had flashed a few moments earlier. Everyone put on their masks and silently disappeared into the night. In the distance, bright red flames lit up the Twin rivers that served as the border between Kolar and Dolziya.

Kolar\'s retaliation had officially begun, but Footer was not a part of the first assault wave. No, he and his team had already infiltrated deep into Dolziya.

Too many had forgotten the dread of Kolar and had actually mustered up the courage to act against them once more. The Whisper Guard would remind them that in this cursed world, it was still them who commanded the most terror.

On the horizon, there was another flash of red. It seemed like Sage Gale was having a lot of fun.

*****

"How did you find me?" asked the man who lay on the floor, doing his best to resist the chill that had seeped all the way into his bones. All around him were corpses who had been killed in the most brutal way possible.

But even with severed limbs covering the ground and bodies with gaping holes everywhere, there was not a single drop of blood marring the beautiful home. How could there be when each wound was frozen, even as it was inflicted?

If anyone were to see the scene they would be shocked, not only because of the gruesome scene, but because each person dead was a person with great position and influence across Kolar. Some were heads of large civil departments, such as the AAB in their respective city or town, while others oversaw industrial complexes, massive agricultural projects, curse vaults and more.

But now, all of them were dead.

"You should not have messed with my son," the woman standing over him said with disgust. Unwilling to continue the conversation, she kicked the man, knocking him unconscious. She would have liked to kill this Clear Path scum once and for all, but someone still needed to pull all the information from her brain.

She had personally vanquished many cults before, and this one would be no different.

*****

On the West side of Kolar, a line of mountains acted as a natural border between it and Saint Codale. Only a very small piece of land connected the two countries, and that too was covered by a dense forest, almost acting like another natural barrier.

Ordinarily, this was enough to keep the two countries from interfering with one another. But in the recent invasion, Saint Codale cut through the forest as they made their way, and even built fortifications in case they were pushed back.

They were almost expecting Kolar\'s retaliation to push them all the way back, and had even prepared multiple surprises for them in the forest when they did.

But in their wildest dreams they had never imagined that when Kolar retaliated, it would not attack through the forest, using the path they had cut out. Or would they go over the mountains, which was virtually impossible due to its many dangers. Instead, Sage Christina would tunnel through the mountains, leading her armies straight into the heart of Saint Codale.

With their armies gathered at the forest, the country was unprepared for the wrath that was about to be unleashed onto them.

*****

In the dead of night, all was calm on the shores of Creta. The twin moons hung in the sky, though only one of them illuminated the waters of Lake Natura. There were no lighthouses to guide the way, nor any floodlights pointed towards the waters.

History dictated that any attempts to shine light on the ordinarily serene waters at night wrought only death and destruction. The perils of the lake were not few, even if its waters were the source of all life in the region. That was also why, even during long voyages, all ships were anchored come nightfall.

But a passing guard in the city of Emenfeild, the capital of Creta, saw movement out in the waters, and froze. He turned towards the lake, wary for any monsters that might emerge from the depths.

But it was not a monster wading through the waters, it was a ship. The guard breathed a sigh of relief, but did not let down his guard completely. No ships were supposed to sail at night.

He was about to ring a bell to alert the others about unusual activity in the waters when he felt a distant power envelop him and cause him to stop in his tracks, his gaze still locked onto the ship.

Others soon noticed the anomaly, but they too became locked under a similar power, right up until the ship reached the silent harbour.

Then a man flew up into the air, and under his command hundreds of heavily armoured soldiers exited the ship. Morphius Kade and his undying legion reached the shores of Creta.