This is crazy. This is truly, really crazy. I, Mara Vex, former traumatized healbot, now about to infiltrate the most toxic guild headquarters on the server. With level 999 stats. And with a plan that's more like a cheap heist movie plot.
Inside Mara's head, her own voice sounded like a whispering scream. But outside, in the world breathing with cold air and the scent of wet moss, Nyxaria stood perfectly motionless. Her black-steaming battle gown merged with the darkness, only the gleam of her red eyes occasionally catching the reflection of starlight, like two coals held in ice. Beside her, Seris crouched, her eagle eyes sweeping the valley with the methodical nature of a hunter. And on the other side, Lazarus—or rather, his shadow—stood as a transparent silhouette vibrating faintly, a projection from the sanctuary core he had left on guard.
"Outer patrol movement: two people, circular route, thirty-second interval," Seris whispered, her voice almost lost to the wind. Her fingers, wrapped in thin leather gloves, pointed at two moving heat points on the mental map only she could see. "They're too confident. Their perimeter barrier only extends to a five-hundred-meter radius from the wooden wall. Beyond that, they rely on night vision and ordinary tripwires."
Tripwire. Classic. Like in stealth mission tutorials I always skipped because I was lazy. But now... now I really have to do it. With a body whose one touch can crush iron.
"Lazarus," Nyxaria's voice came out, low and flat, cutting the wind's whisper. "Confirm retreat sensors. Any changes at the sanctuary?"
The necromancer's shadow vibrated, his voice sounding like an echo from a deep well. "All is calm, my Queen. This servant has deployed ten wraiths as virtual eyes on our perimeter. Nothing approaches. [Obsidian Aegis] barrier stable at 98%. But... this servant must remind once again. This servant's presence here is only a projection. If battle occurs, this servant cannot—"
"We won't fight," Nyxaria cut him off. That sentence was spoken not as hope, but as fact. A command to reality. "This is sabotage. Not confrontation."
Yes, please let that be true. I don't want to hear the sound of crushed bones or see expressions of fear on people's faces again. Once was enough for a lifetime—or this new lifetime.
She turned to the small figure clinging to her waist, wrapped in an oversized black robe tucked in so it wouldn't drag. Lumi. The child's heterochromatic eyes—one bright gold, one faded gray—stared straight into the darkness, as if she could see something invisible to them. Her gaze was empty, but focused. Like a scanning machine at work.
"Lumi," Nyxaria called, her voice slightly softer, a tone that only appeared when facing the child. "Look at our path. Show what's 'wrong'."
Lumi didn't answer with words. She only raised her small hand and pointed down, toward the steep slope filled with thorn bushes and loose rocks. Not to the clear path Seris was mapping, but to a narrow gap between two large moss-covered boulders. To ordinary eyes, it was just an obstacle. But Lumi tapped Nyxaria's arm twice gently—their code for 'hidden danger'.
Seris frowned, then pulled out a small monocle lens from her pocket. She aimed it, and her breath caught. "There... there's a magical sensor net. Very fine, almost invisible. Not the work of an average-level player. This... this has the touch of an enchanter specialist. If we touch it, the alarm will sound not at the guard post, but directly at the main tower. They'll know there's an intruder before we reach halfway."
Wow. So they're not completely stupid. But still, they rely on standardized detection systems. They forgot that in a world that's become real, there are anomalies like Lumi who can see the system code itself.
"We follow Lumi's directions," Nyxaria decided. "Seris, you lead. Avoid all contact, not just patrols."
The scout nodded, then like liquid shadow melting, her body slipped into the stone gap Lumi pointed at. Her movement was smooth, efficient, soundless. A true professional. Nyxaria followed, with one hand easily lifting Lumi, carrying her like a fragile precious package. Lazarus's shadow floated behind, silent and alert.
The journey down the slope was a test of piercing patience. Every step had to be calculated, every breath controlled. Seris stopped suddenly several times, pointing at invisible points: pressure traps camouflaged as rocks, life-detection runes hidden beneath soil layers, even a cluster of magical bats hanging above like living alarms. Without Lumi, they might have been detected three times.
This is like the most annoying stealth mission raid. But at least, the enemy is real. And we have a cheat code named Lumi.
After twenty minutes of crawling, they reached the valley floor. Here, the forest became denser, yet there was a clear trail—a logistics path frequently traveled by wagons. And in the distance, the Crimson Crusaders fortress began to appear clearly.
Not a magnificent stone castle, but an outpost enlarged in haste. Rough wooden walls five meters high, reinforced with iron in several parts. Wooden watchtowers with burning torches. Inside, light from dozens of campfires and magical lamps illuminated the local sky. The sound of metal forging, shouted commands, and coarse laughter carried on the wind. The smell of smoke, sweat, and roasted meat filled the air.
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
They're like children camping in the backyard, partying before the big 'game' tomorrow. They don't know that the monster they think they'll hunt is already at the door.
Seris crept closer, hiding behind a large tree stump. "Main warehouse is on the east side, near the blacksmith. Visible from here—long building with zinc roof. Minimal guard. They're too focused on offensive preparation. But there are two guards in front, and possibly someone sleeping inside."
Nyxaria observed. Her mind, Mara's mind, worked quickly. Two guards. Level... try to scan. She focused her attention, and in her field of view, minimal information from [THE INTERFACE] appeared.
[Human Male. Level 71. Warrior Class. Estimated Threat: Negligible.][Human Male. Level 68. Ranger Class. Estimated Threat: Negligible.]
Negligible. Disregarded. A cruel word. But that was the fact. I could disarm both of them before they could blink. But that would leave traces. Would create sound. That's not the goal.
"We won't go through the front," she whispered. "Lumi. Another door? Something 'forgotten'."
Lumi gazed at the wooden wall, her eyes blinking rapidly, as if processing data. Then, she pointed to the southeast corner of the fortress, where piles of garbage and scrap materials were visibly mounded. "There," she whispered, her small voice nearly lost. "Broken lines. Hole the system crossed out."
"Drainage channel?" Seris muttered, doubtful. "That must be trapped or monitored."
"No," Lumi shook her head slowly. "The world forgot."
Glitch. Gap in rendering. Perhaps an old drainage channel whose data was never deleted from beta times, but visually covered by texture. A backdoor that doesn't exist on official maps.
"Guide us," Nyxaria commanded.
With Lumi as a living compass, they moved along the forest edge, away from light and sound. They reached the garbage pile—a pungent rotting smell filled their noses. Behind the pile of rotten wood and rusty iron, Lumi pressed her hand on an ordinary-looking wooden plank. Her hand sank slightly, like pressing a hologram. The plank vibrated, then faded, revealing a dark hole the width of a human body, emitting the scent of wet earth and mold.
"Old corridor," Seris hissed, amazed. "She's right. There's no magical trace at all. This... this is a gap in the world's architecture."
Nyxaria didn't waste time. With a signal, she had Seris enter first. The scout slid in like a snake. Nyxaria followed, carrying Lumi. Lazarus's shadow stayed outside, on guard. "This servant will be eyes outside, my Queen. If anyone approaches, this servant will give a sign."
The corridor was narrow, damp, and totally dark. But Nyxaria's eyes—and Lumi's eyes—were not disturbed. They crawled about fifteen meters, before the corridor climbed and ended at a rusty iron grate. Through its gaps, the warehouse interior was visible.
The warehouse was spacious. Very spacious. Wooden shelves filled the walls, packed with boxes, sacks, and crates. On one side, piles of gleaming weapons—swords, axes, spears, many still in raw unsharpened condition. On the other side, food supplies: sacks of wheat, dried vegetables, smoked meat in quantities that could feed a small army for a month. There was also a special section for armor, arrows, alchemical materials in bottles, and even several miniature siege engines—small catapults, battering rams.
This isn't preparation for a raid boss. This is preparation for a long war. They really plan to besiege the sanctuary and wear me down slowly. Classic strategy against bosses with long phases. They don't know I don't have phases. They don't know my one touch can...
She stopped her thoughts. Focus.
There were only two guards, as Seris said. One sat on a bench near the main door, nodding off. The other paced back and forth slowly, yawning. Snoring sounds came from a corner—probably a third guard who had fallen asleep.
"Lumi, stay here. Don't move," Nyxaria whispered to the child, who nodded obediently and curled up behind the grate. She turned to Seris. "You watch her. I'll go in."
"My Queen, let this servant—""No. Your aura, however small, could trigger high-level detection if they have it. I... can disguise it."I mean, my INT stat is 12,500. I'm sure I can control [World Edit] with micro-level precision. At least, that's what I read in its description.
Nyxaria placed her hand on the iron grate. She didn't pull or damage it. Instead, she urged the reality around it. The rusty iron vibrated, then began to evaporate like black smoke, opening a path without sound. She stepped inside, into the warehouse filled with war treasures.
She walked among the shelves, like a ghost. Her feet made no sound on the earthen floor. Her darkness aura was suppressed, compressed to only a thin layer on her skin surface. She raised her hand, her palm facing the pile of supplies.
[World Edit: Corruption] — but not the full version that transforms territories. This was a controlled, focused application, like an artist painting only one part of a canvas. She didn't want to destroy everything spectacularly. She wanted damage that was slow, invisible, and doubtful.
From her palm, a purplish-black mist almost invisible seeped out. Not like smoke, more like heat distortion, an abnormality in the air texture itself. The mist spread slowly, touching the pile of iron weapons first.
Nothing happened instantly. No explosion, no destruction. But to sharp eyes—Mara's eyes forcing themselves to focus—the change began. The metallic gleam on sword blades faded, replaced by brownish stains creeping from base to tip. Rust. Not ordinary rust, but rust as if aged decades in seconds. On arrows, their feathers dried and became brittle. On wooden handles, their fibers rotted as if touched by invisible mold.
She moved to the food pile. The thin mist touched the wheat sacks. From inside, a soft scraping sound was heard—like small insects suddenly becoming active. A faint rancid smell began replacing the fresh wheat aroma. On the smoked meat, its fat changed color to pale yellow, emitting a fishy scent.
Then to the armor section. Neatly stacked iron plates began losing their tension. Microscopic cracks appeared, spreading like spider webs. Leather bindings on leather armor dried and cracked.
She kept moving, systematically, like a farmer sowing seeds of destruction. There was no emotion on Nyxaria's face. Only deep concentration. But inside, Mara felt a strange vibration. Not pleasure, nor regret. But technical satisfaction. This is working. I'm damaging without destroying. I'm taking without stealing. This... is elegant.
She was almost finished when footsteps approached. The guard who was pacing back and forth was heading in her direction.
Nyxaria didn't panic. She only stepped back, merging with the shadows behind the pile of tall crates. [Mimicry Veil] was not needed; darkness was her natural ally. The guard passed, humming softly, completely unaware of the demon queen's presence less than two meters away, or the mist of death she had just spread.
After the guard passed, Nyxaria released the remaining mist to the miniature siege engines. The support wood immediately looked porous, its iron bindings loose.
Enough. She signaled Seris and Lumi behind the corridor. They retreated.
The exit process was faster. They returned through the corridor, closing the glitch gap by having Nyxaria 'reunite' the world texture around it. They traced the same path, climbed the slope, and finally returned to the initial observation point at the cliff.
No alarm sounded. No shouts. The Crimson Crusaders headquarters still bathed in light and low raucous sound, unaware that the heart of their supplies was dying in silence.