[Aura of ??? : 30 (+20)]
[Crystals : ~3000]
[Ghoul mother cores : 26]
[Ghoul golem cores : 17]
[Ghoul golem cores (broken) : 3]
Hikari sits against the cliffside.
She sees the troops set up their tents.
Enough had arrived to hold the line while the others rested.
The barrier is up.
There's enough lanterns to block off the mist.
The wall had been built.
Sentries lined it.
The cannons were mounted on the walls.
The troops in the back can even take off their armour and eat.
Hikari does likewise.
It had been a long defense.
Waves after waves of ghouls between rests.
She takes a bite at her dried rations.
Her second meal.
How long had she been down here?
Two days and a half.
She knows this because the captains keep track of time.
There is more than one captain in the area now.
Each hailing from a different house wearing a different emblem.
She can overhear them bickering about the timetable.
"The report is completely wrong. Look at the pile of crystals. How many more herds of ghouls are out there?"
"There can't be much more of it. I checked the mist level. It is as expected."
"Well, double check it again. Something is wrong here. If the next area has the number of ghouls we have just faced. I doubt we have the gun powder to clear it."
"You worry too much. We have accounted for more than thrice the last recorded concentration of ghouls."
"And when was the last record?"
Hikari sat quietly.
She takes whatever rest she can get.
The elevator comes and goes.
She lost count of how many trips it made.
The rumbling no longer disturbs her.
It might have gotten better after being warmed up due to the constant use.
The last few hours were quiet.
Nothing but single stray ghouls wandering too close to the wall.
It appears she had properly culled the herds in the area.
A trail of carts holding the blood red crystals waited in front of the elevator gate.
The last batch of many to transport the mass of crystals back up to the city.
Even she was astounded at the number she had killed.
It was tiring.
Two full days with staggered sleep.
Meditating between each ghoul wave.
Her sores were back.
There was barely enough room for her to stretch.
Another group of builders pushing carts.
These contained her throwing knives.
The runes had worn out.
The grey salt coating had been worn.
Towards the last waves, she had to use more physical force to drive the steel through the heart to land kills.
Some of the daggers had a layer of oil applied.
These must be the Silora enchantments Ria told her about.
They stun a golem cold the moment she plunges one into their flesh.
But it loses its effect after just one attack.
She keeps five in as backup.
The rest had to be repaired.
She holds up her bow.
The string had broken.
She lost count, but she went through at least four shipments.
She asked, but no one could answer how she could get a repair.
So, she just rests.
More and more troops and supplies had been arriving.
She figures that someone would arrange a repair before asking her to move out again.
She just focuses on her body.
She circulates her mana.
The barrier is strong enough to block out the influence of the mist.
She could meditate just like in her chambers back in the estate.
Her flow is normal.
She had used a lot of her telekinesis.
It was her best and most used spell.
She was able to use it more and more in the mist without suffering from the burn.
She checks her armour.
The outside was still fine.
Brief splats of acid from the ghoul mothers left stains but did little damage.
Shallow scratches on her boots by the ghouls.
Her insides were soaked though.
Her salamander skin absorbed most of the sweat.
She could feel the slim build up on her socks.
She couldn't regulate her body temperature with her wyvern heart like she practiced with Ella.
The effects of the Cilix potion had worn off by the end of the third day.
She looks at her water skin.
It was huge.
At least the water supply is decent.
It was big enough to supply the whole camp for a day at full capacity.
She had drunk a third of it.
Nothing more she could do than tough it out.
The elevator landed.
A familiar vehicle rolled out of the gate.
"Steam tanks?"
She remembers them to be the exact ones that traversed the wyvern peaks.
They were unwieldy and required constant coaling.
The steam core requires a constant spell.
But the grey salt coating and the lanterns hanging around it gives it protection.
The plating and the muskets that could fire through its slits would fare well against ghouls.
The cannon mounted on top could do some serious damage to golems and ghoul mothers.
It ought to level the odds once the troops move out into the open area.
"Hope there's more."
The elevator gate closes.
A rumbling sound.
The troops hardly paid any heed.
It was the first crucial arrival of reinforcements that was a nail biter.
Hikari takes the last bite of her dried rations.
She tried to sleep.
The pattern had been irregular.
Like most of the troops on the ground with her, she couldn't fully sleep.
The waves of ghouls were large enough to overrun even the current amount of defenses.
She closes her eyes again.
The elevator rumbles.
She senses the gates open.
Armoured troops.
These ones are better equipped.
She could sense the mana in their instruments.
The air around them seems to freeze.
But she could quite make out what they actually do.
Back to sleep, she thought.
She hadn't received any word from above.
She wasn't anxious for any.
It was clear that they would have to march forward towards the ruined city once enough troops and supplies had been gathered.
And a good number had gathered.
She thinks it might not be enough from the hordes of ghouls she had seen.
She continues to try to sleep.
She'll pull through.
The elevator arrived.
She opens her eyes.
This one catches her attention.
Three RazenHeir scouts show up.
The stable hands hauls the crates with the RazenHeir emblem towards her.
They open them.
Supplies for her.
Her regular ration packs.
A special ration pack containing wheatgrass and the other herbs she needs.
A pack of mana mixture made from ground ivory berries.
A bottle of the Grudel elixir.
More throwing knives and ballista bolts.
"Letter from her lady."
Hikari opens her palm.
The scout opens the letter and places it onto her hand.
I hope you're doing well down there Hikari.
Good job securing the mouth of the elevator.
It's sad what happened to the first groups that went down.
But don't worry, just keep going.
You'll get through this in no time.
And I can see that you are doing very well in fact.
That's a nice huge mass of crystals that had been coming up the shaft.
It makes me and a lot of people sleep well at night.
It is concerning however, that the number of monsters are much larger than we thought.
Stay vigilant, something strange is going on here.
It still shouldn't be a problem for you.
The monsters get stronger the deeper into the mist you go.
Scarier monsters that can blend into the mist and are immune from physical attacks from what I've read.
But you'll mainly be ferrying supplies towards the first abandoned encampment.
It is the primary staging ground for raids on the ruined city for a long time.
I hope most of the old runes still work.
The mist concentration is still very low.
The difficulty shouldn't be anymore than the hives you cleared around Carla.
Ghoul hordes should pose no problem for you.
Watch out if you encounter a guardian ghoul.
They regenerate much faster in the mist than the ones you faced on the surface.
Once the encampment is secured, there will be time for you to scout the surrounding areas.
It sucks that what you find will mainly be used to fund the cost of the raid itself.
The crystals at this mist level are mostly of low quality.
But given the sheer volume, who knows, maybe there'll be enough to buy you a nice dress.
I hope this letter wasn't too long for you.
I made it longer because we have been out of touch for a while.
You probably have little to do at the moment so I hope my words can cure your boredom if only a little.
Now that the base encampment is secured, a mail man will be coming down with every elevator.
Shorter and more frequent letters.
Though I guess once you move out, you won't get to read them until you return to the base encampment.
And you will be moving out soon. I'm sure you can see the steam tanks rolling out of the elevator gate.
I sure am looking at them being loaded from up here.
Based on the timetable, I'd say you got about half a day more to rest up.
Make the most out of it.
One last thing, I won't keep pinging you through the lodestone as I don't want to disturb your rest.
Do send a ping up to let me know how you're doing.
Even if it's in the middle of the night I'll still see it.
I know the night and day cycles are completely jumbled up down there in the mist.
Be safe and return soon. Ria.
Hikari looks up.
She raises her arm and looks at her lodestone.
The RazenHeir scouts take the signal and keep the letter.
She pulses.
After a few moments, the lodestone turns green.
She smiles and goes back to sleep.