Draconic Ascension - System Apocalypse Isekai LitRPG

Michael kept trying to figure out the best course of action.

I’ll wait for them to pass.

He needed to believe in Shroud’s ability to hide his figure. The patrol group moved slowly. He hid behind a rock, in the shadows cast by the glowing mushrooms. The closer the patrol group got, the faster his heartbeat became. He tried retreating deeper into the shadows, but his movement was limited. At that moment, one of the six men looked at him. Michael froze.

Fuck.

He flexed his fingers, preparing to cast twin Mana Spheres. The man’s brow furrowed. As Michael was about to dismiss the Shroud spell and attack, the man looked away. One of the other men turned towards him.

“What? What’s up?”

The man shook his head.

“No, nothing. I just thought I’d seen something.”

“An animal? Where?”

“No, it wasn’t an animal. Must have been a trick of the light.”

The other man clicked his tongue.

“Stay focused.”

“I know, I know.”

Michael let out a breath as the group passed him by. He walked out of his hiding spot after carefully observing the group. They were now far enough away. He kept moving. Finally, he arrived at his destination, looking around before dismissing the Shroud. He finished his chanting with a whisper.

“Mana Blade.”

Blue, ethereal blades coalesced around his hands. He actively made them less dense and sunk them into the stone, starting his climb. This was a crucial moment. His figure was obvious and could be easily seen by just about anyone who happened to look in his direction; as such, he tried to climb as fast as possible. Luckily, he reached the groove he was looking for without a hitch. Using the Mana Blades to create more space, he sat down in his makeshift hole in one of the big columns that held the underground ceiling in place.

In the distance, surrounded by a red hue, stood a Village. Michael looked at its entrance. It was too far away to clearly make out the people going through it, but he had a plan. It was something he had done before. He focused his mana on his eyes, imbuing it with the “intention” to improve his sight. It was the third time he tried this. Just like the second time, he immediately felt a difference. His visual acuity was massively improved, and it was as if he could zoom in on distant targets at will. He could easily see farther than before. At that moment, a notification appeared in front of him.

[You have acquired a new Skill!]

Michael smiled. His vision improved even further now that he had the actual Skill. Silently, he watched Redglow’s entrance.

Now, when will you come out?

Derek would avoid any confrontation with Michael, which was why Michael couldn’t show himself to bait the man out of hiding. Waiting was his best course of action, even though it vexed him.

Unceasingly, he kept trying to contact James. None of the Whispers went through.

***

Derek analyzed the map on the table in front of him. It had been delivered just a few minutes ago, making it the most up-to-date map he had. It specifically highlighted the Territories of Yellowbright and Greenwood. He gritted his teeth. The Territories had changed according to his predictions. Redglow and Greenwood’s Territories were roughly the same size, but Yellowbright’s had overtaken them. It now stood solidly as the Village with the biggest Territory in the area, mostly due to the efforts of an organization led by a single man. It was the kind of group that Derek’s ragtag crew of criminals and blackmailed people couldn’t compare to.

“Fuck.”

Despite his attempts to do so, he had been unable to halt Yellowbright’s advance. He felt as if there were a blade hanging over his neck. As if that wasn’t enough, he still needed to worry about Bluestone and Michael, who hadn’t stopped attacking Redglow’s Territory.

No matter how many guards I put on the Flags, he never failed to conquer them and never killed anyone else after that day.

Even though Michael hadn’t gone on a killing spree, the fear surrounding his image hadn’t been reduced. In fact, it had only grown. The survivors spread stories of how unbeatable Michael was, causing unrest and disorder within the ranks. Derek had even caught a rumor that said he was a dead man for standing up against the Monster of Bluestone Village. Try as he might, he could not stop that kind of talk from popping up. He ordered all of those who said it to be punished, but it was impossible to contain the spread of a story through that.

To begin with, only his organization’s core members and loyalists were a tightly-knit group; the others did not care about the organization in the least, and many would rather leave it. As the number of people in the latter group was much higher than the number of those in the core group, it was only natural for Derek to be unable to contain the aftereffects of having become Michael’s enemy. Now, his organization stood shakily, at the danger of falling to its knees the moment that monster appeared.

As his thoughts reached this point, he grabbed a rope by the side of the table. With one pull, a sound echoed. A man hurriedly entered the room and stood straight in front of Derek.

“Sir!”

Derek asked him a question, though he suspected he already knew the answer.

“Have we been able to extract any more information from James?”

It was a question he had been routinely asking since the capture and detainment of the young man.

“No, sir. As of yet, there have not been any new discoveries.”

Derek sighed and waved his hand. The other man bowed and left the room. Of course. He would have been immediately notified if James had spoken, but had decided to ask the question nonetheless. He was only anxious and restless. A bad feeling crept over him, one that he couldn’t shake off.

At first, the discovery that James was using Whisper to talk to an unknown Mage had felt like a godsend. Lohann confirmed that it wasn’t him, which meant that the young man was in contact with another Village at the very least. Derek’s thoughts had been different, however. He immediately thought of Michael. There was no evidence behind this thought and no particular reason for it, apart from the fact that Michael was the most powerful Mage that Derek knew. He hadn’t identified any signs pointing toward a connection between James and Michael. This thought had been a mere reflex.

Yet, once it appeared, Derek found himself unable to discard it. This was in part because the Whisper spell could only be learned by those who had reached the First Circle, like Lohann. This notion made him throw away the possibility of James just being in contact with an ordinary friend from another Village. Derek was certain there weren’t many Mages who had reached the First Circle, given that Lohann was the only one he knew, which narrowed down the list of possible people involved.

Therefore, mere moments after the report had reached him, he had ordered James to be captured. There hadn’t been a big fight or anything of the sort. The young man had complied. Derek had attempted to ask who James had been talking to but was met with no response. As such, he had allowed his men to rough the young man up. He hoped to find something that connected James and Michael, or to discover the identity of the mysterious Mage on the other side of the Whisper call.

As his thoughts reached this point, Derek frowned. He was unwilling to use more severe methods of torture. He could kill at the drop of a hat, but felt like intentionally inflicting inhuman amounts of pain was too much. His men also knew this, which was why he wasn’t too worried about James’ well-being. However, there were those among his ranks who were truly dangerous individuals. If James continued to withhold what he knew, things could get very ugly very fast. It wouldn’t end at just a few beatings and cuts.

At the same time, Derek had no hesitation in sending his men out against Michael, knowing fully well that they could die. He didn’t find this contradictory or strange, nor did he pay it any more thought. He wasn’t an evil man, so it was only natural that he would be uncomfortable about torturing someone. His men were expected to die for the cause, so that was also a matter of course. There was no need to waste his time thinking about these things.

Instead, he should be thinking about how to deal with Yellowbright Village and with Michael, who was now attacking Redglow’s undefended back. He had hoped that the young Mage would give up after Derek gave up on attacking his Village, but for some reason, Michael continued to doggedly pursue Redglow. It wasn’t simply a matter of geographical proximity. There had to be a reason.

If only I had a weakness…

If he had something, anything, that could be used against Michael, he wouldn’t hesitate. Why was Michael so intent on attacking this Village? How had he become so powerful?

And who was James talking to?

Derek felt as if something had physically clicked into place within his brain. He couldn’t help but let out a mutter.

“Of course…!”

He almost cursed at himself for not figuring it out sooner. He had been suspicious of it since the beginning, but only truly understood it once he thought about why Michael kept pursuing him. The fact that James hadn’t said anything that could link him to Michael had served to hinder this thought process as well. But, no matter. He was certain of it. The Mage he was looking for was Michael.

Derek hurriedly stood up from his makeshift throne.

I need to talk to James myself.

James had been thrown into a base outside of Redglow, where he could be harmed and tortured without interference by the NPCs, who wouldn’t allow that to happen.

Michael must be in Bluestone.

Given what Lohann had said and done, it was likely that Michael was stuck in Bluestone, trying to find a way around Lohann’s decree. To be frank, Derek didn’t expect him to; Michael was nothing but a young man from Earth who had somehow achieved more power than others. He had been willing to kill his enemies, but he wouldn’t be able to sacrifice innocents, and there was no way for him to enter Redglow Territory without being seen. His hands and feet were tied. As such, Derek wasn’t afraid of leaving the Village. He would only be gone for a short time, anyway.

He walked out of his room.

***

Michael’s pupils dilated as his eyes zeroed in on the figure of a single man walking out of Redglow Village, escorted by twelve others. He whispered.

“There you are, you son of a bitch.”

He stayed in place for a few seconds, watching the group’s path, before he climbed down and cast Shroud. Moving as fast as he could, he made his way towards Derek’s group without getting too close to the Village itself. In his mind, he kept replaying the group’s movements, drawing their predicted path. If he wanted to catch up, he needed to anticipate their movements. Carefully, constantly keeping an eye on his surroundings, Michael finally saw the backs of the group’s men like a bird of prey.

From here on out, I just got to follow them.

It was too early to attack them. They were still too close to Redglow, and he didn’t know what had happened to James. It wouldn’t be too late to fight them once they reached their destination; Michael was confident in his ability to handle all of them. It wasn’t blind arrogance, but instead, confidence based on everything he had seen. He was the strongest human he had seen. At that moment, a name crossed his mind. He frowned. He still didn’t know how powerful Lohann was. He was an enemy that shouldn’t and couldn’t be underestimated.

Michael’s footsteps made no sound. He hid behind rocks and in the shadows as much as he could while keeping up with Derek’s group. Shroud remained active the whole time. Soon, the group entered what seemed to be a cave. Several men guarded its entrance. As Derek walked in, Michael narrowed his eyes. As he didn’t know if the cave had another exit, he should act quickly.

He stepped into the light.

***

A splash of cold water awoke James from his slumber, soaking the pole he was tied to. His hands were tied over his head, and his wrists felt like they were on fire. He let out a curse under his breath. Water drops made their way down his shirtless body, over his cuts and bruises. They stung. A particularly nasty cut went from his left shoulder all the way to his waist. Thankfully, it wasn’t too deep, but it hurt like hell. His vision focused. A smiling man stood in front of him.

“Wakey wakey, sunshine.”

The surrounding men laughed. There were a total of four of them in the small room. James spat out saliva and blood. Less than a second later, he was met with a punch to the face. Another came from the opposite side, and then an uppercut hit his chin. His sight wavered and blurred. He had to blink hard to keep himself conscious. The pain also helped with that. More water was thrown at him. Ironically, it helped him clear his head. He looked straight at the nearest one of his offenders, who had bloodied knuckles.

“You punch like a little bitch.”

The atmosphere in the room froze. The others looked at the man in question, who was turning red with rage. He let out a suppressed laugh.

“I think… We can start with a fingernail today.”

James flinched. It wasn’t the first time that his torturers decided to rip out a fingernail; he was very aware of how painful it was. He wanted to stay strong and not show any weakness, but dread grew within him. He wanted an alternative, but there was none to be found.

The man waved at two of his goons.

“Grab his hands and keep them steady.”

After saying that, he unsheathed a dagger from his belt. James tried to let out a confident smile, but even he could tell that he was a sorry sight; a pretender. Internally, he prayed to whatever god ruled over the System for something to happen. For a way for him to escape from this predicament.

At that moment, a piercing scream echoed throughout the room and the corridor that led up to it. The torturers stopped in place. They exchanged a few nods before one of them moved toward the door.