Chapter 593 - 587. Divide and Conquer
Carefully, stealthily, three groups took positions around the ruin of a Castle--or should they call it a Palace--while slowly rousing their mana. Steadily, so there would be no spike of energy detected in the environment.
On top of the palace, they could see three dark figures perched on the castle towers. Four more were hovering between the Castle and the dungeon gate, all turned toward the entrance. It seemed like the Fallen Star had no idea about the use of the star corridor, or perhaps, It just didn’t think the humans could use it.
Thanks to the aggressive firing of the energy attack, it was easy to figure out the Fallen Star’s location in the ruin. But well, it was never a difficult thing in the first place--of course, it would always be the throne room.
Ron could only see it from afar through a scope, but the Fallen Star was big enough to almost fill the Great Hall. Supported and suspended by twisting black vines, a mass of wriggling monstrosity was letting out undulating energy that was neither miasma nor mana. Limbs, mouths, and eyes were plastered together, as if someone had picked up damaged clay dolls and meshed them together. It was pulsing and screeching as the many eyes focused on the entrance of the dungeon.
"A chimera master alright," Zein muttered when he could finally see inside the Great Hall through the damaged roof. "It turned into a chimera Itself."
"Seems like the outside distraction worked," Han Shin whispered. "It must be scary sensing two energies similar to Bassena, huh?"
"Yeah; otherwise, It might sense us already."
Zein shifted his attention to the fragments, glancing at the hidden espers splitting up to either side of the Castle. On their far left, on the branch of the highest tree, a sniper lay in wait for Bassena’s signal. In her eyes, seven target points were blinking on different parts of the seven cloaked figures.
With a faint rustling sound, four espers took positions around the palace and near the path leading to the dungeon’s entrance, before informing quietly through the earpiece. [We’re ready]
[Wait until another attack] Bassena’s voice came through the earpiece, and just a few seconds later, a whistling sound and a searing energy heat crossed the path to the entrance. [Sierra]
The order came through her name while the field was still filled with the scattering leftover energy, and Sierra immediately pulled the trigger on her gun. A bullet shot out silently, shaded by the Fallen Star’s mana wavelength, and splitting into seven. They struck the seven fragments at the same time half a second later before those creatures could react to the sudden spike of mana.