Fire Mage

Chapter 678: Alistair

Baston Fort.

It was also known as the Fourth Layer's strongest Stronghold and stood as a remarkable testament to human ingenuity amid a challenging and dangerous environment. Nestled within a vast, featureless expanse of terrain, this unique human Stronghold was meticulously constructed with an unwavering dedication to ensure the safety and security of its inhabitants.

Although the human population residing inside this Stronghold was merely around 800, the magical equipment and the magical arrays inscribed all over the Stronghold were powerful enough to withstand even a blow from a Low-Rank God's true might!

Unless a true God descended to this Dimension, no magical creature, or even the Guardian, could enter inside.

It was around 5.00 A.M.

Even though the brightest sun-like star of this layer hadn't shown itself, the surroundings appeared more like a dawn sky.

At that moment, a lone human figure, around 40 years old with short blue hair, hazel eyes, and broad shoulders, walked on the rough terrain and slowly moved close to the towering fortress-like building.

He was none other than Alistair.

But unlike before, his current appearance looked miserable. He had multiple wounds, along with a large claw mark, on his chest and appeared tired.

Upon noticing the arrival of an unknown guest, two guards, who stood at the top of the fortress walls, suddenly jumped and descended towards the ground with weapons in their hands.

One was a blonde-haired man with a gigantic body, while the other one was a robed man with a lean physique.

"It seems this is your first time arriving. Which world are you from?" The blonde-haired man asked with a stern tone in rune language.

Although Alistair understood that the person was speaking in rune language, he didn't understand a word and stood with a confused face.

After a short pause, he gathered his thoughts and spoke.

"I'm Alistair, from Edhen World."

"Edhen? Which group do you belong to, Mister?" This time, the robed mage-like man stepped forward and asked in Naan Language.

'Thank goodness!' Alistair felt like he had finally met the savior of his life and responded politely.

"I'm the leader of Truelords Exploration team, Sir. But due to an unexpected accident, all our members got killed by a devil-like raven bird."

His words surprised the robed mage and the Muscular Guard.

"To think they would end up meeting the final boss without even coming to the base." The muscular guard said with a look of pity.

On the other hand, the robed mage let out a deep sigh and introduced himself.

"I'm Maverick, a member of the Holem Family. Come inside; I'll bring you to the stronghold leader and let him check if you have already gone through the process of sacred oath."

"Sacred Oath?" Although he didn't understand what he was saying, he vaguely guessed that it must be some procedure to keep everything happening here confidential.

At that moment, the tall gate behind them opened with a creak, giving a fresh air filled with pure mana from inside.

"Let's go." Maverick turned around and started walking into the Stronghold.

On the other hand, Alistair suddenly thought of someone and asked.

"Sir, did a young kid named Charles come by? If I'm not wrong, he said he came from a High Plane called 'Earth' and also mentioned a different level system."

"Earth? Different level system?" Maverick got intrigued by those words and asked.

"Can you explain more? Also, where did you meet him?"

Alistair didn't hide anything and explained about Charles and his facial characteristics.

"Hmm, this is the second anomaly appearing in the lower layers during the past few centuries. Well, it's not something we need to be worried about. If that kid named Charles manages to survive in this layer, he will come here before this month's end. So, don't worry."

As they converse, the trio entered the Baston Fort and soon moved to the center building.

...

War Castle.

This formidable citadel was yet another bastion overseen by the Demon Commander known as Pale Night. Enclosed within a robust stone fortification towering over 7 meters in height, it boasted six watchtowers strategically stationed around its perimeter, with a solitary gateway serving as its sole point of entry. 

Upon crossing the threshold, the interior of this Stronghold revealed a scene reminiscent of a miniature town. A prominent feature within the heart of this infernal settlement was a towering stone castle, its imposing structure commanding attention and awe. Surrounding this central building, an array of hundreds of dwelling units sprawled out like a cluster of beehives, each housing demons.

Creating a distinctive path around the War Castle, a four-meter-wide circuit meandered its way from the outermost ring of houses, connecting all the residences and ancillary structures to the imposing entrance of the central Castle. This circular roadway served as a vital artery, facilitating the movement of the Stronghold's denizens and forming a vital nexus.

Although it was a military base of Demons, it had a unique atmosphere. Demons with different battle attire entered and exited the Castle from time to time and gathered near the center. There was even a marketplace to sell and buy materials near the Castle, making the atmosphere more lively. Creepy laughs and shouts of demons echoed everywhere. If someone observed the Demon stronghold closely, they would notice it was actually a village of rowdy demon adventurers. There were no military rules like the other fortress, nor did any strict order. Most demons would wake up early in the morning, check their equipment, and go hunting in the Ancient Trinket forest in groups. Some elite Demons hunt in the Forest for days, while many return before nightfall. Only a few Demons stay inside the Castle and watch over the outpost.

One of them was a Demon named Bornaz. Due to his weak strength and cautious nature, he only hunted weak monsters near the Castle and barely earned enough abyssal stones to survive in this forsaken place.

At that moment, the young blue-skinned humanoid demon stood on the northeastern outpost, suddenly looked up in the southern direction, and sensed something from a faraway place.

'It's time.' A smile appeared on his face.

He was none other than Charles in disguise. After taking over this demon's identity, he decided to lay low in the War Castle and took the guard mission along with four other demons.

'Alistair finally reached the Human settlement. Now, I only have 5 more days until the perfect time for the great 'Disaster' to occur.' Charles muttered inwardly.

From what he understood from previous disasters, he could confirm that these Disasters were occurring due to his presence and also at a specific time interval. Even if he didn't act and stay silent, it would happen on its own and cause significant damage to this whole layer. As for how big this disaster would be, not even a Divine can predict. The only thing he could do was to gather information through the future images he gained from the 'Causality Manipulation' skill and alter the future events to his benefit.

'So far, I already found two clues of the earlier images.'

The first one was the Winged Demon named 'Azgan.' From what he had heard about him from other demons, he belonged to an Assassin squad called 'Vanquishers' and never really cared much about missions, nor did he listen to the Commander. He was a heavy alcoholic and always got into a lot of fights. There were even many demons who called him by the nickname 'Imperial Fool.'

'But the most interesting thing about him was that no one knew when he came to this War Castle. Some even said that he had been staying here even before the current Commander took her position. Although I tried to talk to him more than three times in the past two days, he didn't even respond properly.'

Then the second thing was about the 'Sealed Coffin.' After staying in the War Castle, Charles had gone through many books related to the Fourth Layer and marked a total of five places as possible locations to find the mysterious sealed coffin. Those locations were basically unexplored for more than a millennium by Demons and other races and were highly dangerous to explore alone.

There were three locations in Ancient Trinket Forest: one located 200 miles away from the Human Fortress, and finally, the last place was the base of the Devil Crow.

'I can't go to the deepest core of the Ancient Trinket Forest alone, nor can I go near the base of the Devil Crow. So, my first destination should be the place near the Human Fortress.' He also felt that going to the Human Fortress would benefit him more.

'Anyway, I must take that Sealed Coffin before the time of the disaster. As for what it can do or how I can benefit by obtaining it, I know nothing of it. But one thing I'm sure is that I must follow these clues to achieve my goal.' Muttering solemnly, Charles looked at the faraway ancient Trinket forest region shrouded by fog and suddenly asked in Abyssal Language.

"Have any of you gone near the deepest part of this Ancient Trinket Forest?"

"That's impossible. Even if we go by group, it would take almost a week to reach the inner Forest. As we move further, we will also encounter Legend Rank Magical Beasts in groups frequently. Why are you asking this suddenly, Bornaz?"

"I'm just asking out of curiosity," Charles said and went silent. For the next 10 hours, he took turns with other demons to watch the surroundings and was finally relieved from the duty.

After that, he left the outpost along with other demons and started walking towards a pub located in the southern direction.