The Oracle Paths

"So... what's the project?" Elduin broke the oppressive silence after a moment.

These Guilties excelled at making people uncomfortable. Ever since everyone had taken a seat, they'd been staring at each other, squinting like they were in a cowboy showdown. Jeanie, Trash, and the two Rank-A adventurers who were enduring the awkward atmosphere barely dared to breathe.

"Good question." Jake cracked a phony smile. "Wyatt, what's your reason for being here? Let me guess. Our plans are pretty similar. The big question is, are they complementary?

Wyatt swirled his wine glass aloofly, then resting his ageless crimson eyes on Jake, he put all his cards on the table.

"Let's not play dumb." The Vampire smiled patronizingly. "We all want to get on board the Celestial City, but you and I are ambitious and our mission difficulty is adjusted accordingly. If it were just me, I'm confident in my ability to secure a place on the Celestial City, but I have to think about my faction as well. The journey will be long and fraught with obstacles. I want to establish myself in Laudarkvik, become an authoritative figure to take advantage of its population and military strength during the final migration."

Jake nodded in approval. His plan was no different. When the first concrete signs of the apocalypse occurred, there would be widespread panic.

Those with the ambition and hope to survive would form alliances amongst the strong before carving a bloody path to the Shatug Empire where the Divine Academy stood. By then, there would likely be no weaklings left alive.

A few hours earlier, Jake might have considered simply regrouping with his faction members, but after getting a taste of Laudar's fighting prowess, he wasn't so optimistic anymore.

Lodunvals was a remote city, near the Empire's least threatened border. Under normal circumstances, it only had to deal with the occasional horde of monsters slipping out of the Wilderness. Its military forces were therefore understandably inferior.

Ret'Asi had 16 provinces like Icarden's and therefore at least 30 cities of comparable affluence. In Kanui, the capital, the Rank-S Warriors, Mages and Adventurers were counted in hundreds and the Rank-A in thousands. In addition, there were not only ordinary humans, but also exceptional figures with superior gene pool, such as the High Human Abbikesh sitting on Laudarkvik's Council.

The Ret'Asi Empire was an insignificant empire on the scale of Quanoth. Even the emperor could not confidently claim that he would make it through this Armageddon. To reach the Celestial City, one would have to cross the Mirik maze controlled by the Shrons, the Serinese Theocracy ruled by the Schwazens and last but not least the Shatug Empire where the Drurs reigned supreme.

Each of these three nations was an invincible behemoth. The Shrons had unmatched reproductive abilities and a hive mind making their cooperation flawless. The Schwazens... Rumor had it that they were a super-sized angelic species created by Aurae and there were strong clues that they might have a part to play in the coming apocalypse. As for the Drurs... They were the final hurdle and their unique combination of technology and magic was so great that their armies could hold their own against the whole of Quanoth.

On top of that, they would also have to compete with the elites of the other kingdoms and all those monsters inhabiting the Wilderness who would not quit without a fight. In this context, even the invincible Shatug Empire would surely be wrecked.

Without an army, it was a foregone conclusion. This Ordeal was designed so that there would be only a fraction of survivors, no matter what. If Jake and Wyatt could secure a place on the Celestial City by themselves, without a fight, it would go against the precept that an Ordeal should always be difficult.

It made Ulfar's insulting luck even more hateful...

'I really hope the Oracle System fucked him up with an impossible mission to make up for it.' As Jake visualized the King of Beskyr's smirking face, he couldn't help but wish him the worst.

"At first I thought I could take over the city with my Vampire Progenitor powers, but I changed my mind." Wyatt continued as he placed his empty glass back on the table. At that moment, his face became solemn. "I am indeed the only Vampire Progenitor Player in Laudarkvik, but there are already several hundred Players infiltrated here. Every faction in the city, from the Were-beings to the Metamorphs to the Demons, have all admitted several exceptional Players.

"This is Quanoth, this is not a normal Ordeal. At least one Player out of 10 is an Ordeal finalist. The remaining 9 are their subordinates. Jake, now that you've joined the Mutants, all the factions on Laudarkvik are on equal footing."

Jake felt the pressure as he listened to Wyatt's alarming speech. Clearly, the vampire was better informed than he was. He must have been getting support from his clan to know so much.

He was now aware that he was not there by accident. The Oracle had probably anticipated their decisions to some degree before placing them in this remote area.

As for Jeanie, Trash and Elduin, they were speechless. They had a Vampire Progenitor at their tables and they had no idea. And he was also a Guilty. Several times his words had become incomprehensible as if they couldn't wrap their minds around them and that was a typical feature of these otherworldly intruders.

"So I gave up my original plan to seize Laudarkvik." Wyatt admitted frankly as he crossed his arms. "Not completely, but I've scaled back my ambitions. Even dominating the Vampire Faction is a pipe dream. The three Vampire Ancestors leading the three great clans are as old as my grandfather and even feeling their aura from afar I felt insignificant.

"So my plan now is this: First, I must become a pillar of the Vampire Faction, ideally establishing a fourth major clan. If one of the Vampire Ancestors dies, I will take his place. Your position, Jake, is a little more favorable, you only have to watch out for Aisling, but if she was weak she would never have been able to establish the Mutant Faction. The downside is that you'll also have to deal with Aisling's countless enemies, who are looking for the Mutants' demise.

"If you can gain Aisling's trust and become a respected Mutant, I propose an alliance. Your cousin Kevin will do his best to do the same for the Were-beings, but it will be even harder for him than it is for me. In all honesty, I'm not optimistic about his odds. Regardless, if nothing happens to us we will have at least one foot in three different factions. When Ret'Asi sets out on the mass exodus, we'll be able to make our voices heard in Laudarkvik.

"So what do you say?"

Wyatt, held out his hand with a neutral smile, but Jake remained thoughtful for a long while before he shook it. The Vampire's slender hand was a little cold, but compared to Ruby it was night and day.

"To our alliance!" Carmin toasted cheerfully as she raised her glass.

"To our alliance." Jake, Wyatt, Ruby, Seren and Carmin clinked their glasses with an enigmatic grin.

As they celebrated their new alliance, the five Guilties suddenly changed their expressions.

"Hm? Don't you find the inn a little too empty?" Lily, Carmin's little sister, expressed surprise as she sipped her juice.

"Jeanie thinks so too." The Minmin echoed in as she rubbed her bloated belly from eating too much.

"The tables have gradually emptied over the last fifteen minutes." Bhammod disclosed in passing.

He was the only one who had fully devoted himself to his pint of beer since their arrival in the inn, but it turned out he was paying more attention than one might have thought at first.

"I hadn't noticed anything." The teenager muttered sheepishly.

Jake rolled his eyes.

"Don't worry, I didn't expect anything from you, Trash."

The kid didn't detect the sarcasm and immediately felt better. As for the others, their expressions became more and more grim as the minutes passed.

"Now I don't even hear noises outside." Jake stood up and slowly drew his saber.

What he didn't dare mention was that his scan had detected 27 auras comparable to Laudar's, one even more formidable. Nonetheless, they all had an Oracle Device. It wasn't necessary.

Wyatt produced a majestic gold-hilted sword with a ruby-studded pommel. The blade was shimmering, with a pure red sheen.

Seren cocked two stylized rose-patterned revolvers with barrels almost as long as shotguns, while Carmin took her sister's hand and took hold of the scarlet whip wrapped around her waist as a belt.

Recognizing the dire situation, Elduin also drew his scimitars and Bhammod lifted his hefty battleaxe. Trash nervously clutched his dagger, and Jeanie promptly ducked into Jake's mantle. The only person in the group who didn't move an inch was Ruby, who was casually sipping her drink with her legs crossed.

Slightly irked, Jake's lip twitched and he scolded through clenched teeth,

"Ruby... First warning. If you keep that attitude, I will order you to fight them alone and hold them off until we are far from here and I issue a counter order. Am I clear?"

A glint of anger flashed in her lovely eyes, but uncrossing her legs and whipping out a machete, she complied.

"It's very clear."

Clap, clap, clap.

Jake and the others turned toward the applause and saw a one-horned young woman with crimson hair and eyes covered in mythril armor walking steadily toward them. Simultaneously, twenty-six other individuals wearing equally glamorous armor streamed into the inn through the other entrances. Back doors, windows, chimney, cellar, in the blink of an eye all exits were completely blocked off.

They were surrounded.

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