Chapter 344 343: Forwards



Chordeva PoV

Letting out a low sigh, I stood idly on the top of the Mage Tower we had just taken over and stared over the city of Goron, listening to the screams and clanging of metal that reverberated throughout the city.

Below, large swathes of some of the best humans this city has to offer are being killed off because they refuse to surrender, and while I am annoyed that they so readily throw away their lives in a battle that they simply have no chance of winning, that was also what made them the best humans in the city.

Considering that this would become our city in just a few hours, I would prefer to leave the populace as intact as I possibly could, mainly because when the occupational force comes they'll most certainly have a rather large portion that either seduce or get seduced by the humans.

That's just a fact; quite a few humans adapt to their situation and utilize lust to worm their way out of it, and I've already seen a few of the female humans try and use their feminine wiles on me.

Of course I wouldn't even think of bedding one of these humans - I can almost smell the ozone from here - but not many of the legionnaires or the occupational force would care if it meant having someone to warm your bed.

And from that, a lot of half breeds are going to be born, and I would much prefer them to be from the bolder, stronger stock of the human Praetor's instead of the normal citizenry...

Sighing again, I glanced over towards the south, where Jahi and her two fiancee's fought, and I wondered what they were doing.

"Marquess..?"

Glancing over my shoulder, I saw the giant Oni that I had conscripted into my own personal squad - both because she's of a rare lineage, but also because I was curious about seeing an Oni work up close - stare at me in confusion, her singular horn arcing out of her brow and tipped with a dark blue.

The other reason I had grabbed her was because she looked a little too much like a Demon as well; deep blue skin a few shades darker than mine, piercing sapphire eyes that were almost slitted, the horn, a penchant for violence...

There were rumors that Demons and Oni were one and the same, but Oni were simply too unruly to be allowed to live, while Demons controlled their vices much better than the Oni...

Curiosity overtook me when I saw this woman, so I conscripted her so that I would have something interesting to look at during this Crusade...

"Marquess, the squads report no more Praetors in the vicinity. Shall we begin to march towards the Alchemists Guild?"

Nodding, I retrieved my claymore that rested against the wall and walked towards her, gesturing for her to follow.

"Have the two squads that joined us begin a sweep of the surrounding buildings before joining us at the Guild. Make sure no Praetors are hiding amongst the populace."

"Very well Marquess."

Descending down the tower, I continued to think about the Oni's nature, rather intrigued by her actions so far. 

At least with her, Nirinia, Adelina, and Jahi I wouldn't find myself being bored during this Crusade.

~~~

Kat PoV

Rolling over, I groaned as I gradually awakened inside my comfortable little ice cube, sitting up and rubbing my temples as I recalled how swiftly I lost myself last night.

I was a little... sore and exhausted from my actions, but I was also able to think a tad bit clearer because of it.

And that clear thinking was currently bashing my actions last night as incredibly stupid and irresponsible.

What if someone or something found me as I was knuckle deep?!

Would I have been able to protect myself?

Probably... not?

Sighing, I summoned a sphere of cold water and dunked my face into it, waking myself up instantly.

Cleaning myself off and taking a few bites from the jerky I had bought, I began to walk down the road once more, giving myself a few minutes to warm up before setting off into a jog.

Then, I began to run, my feet pounding into the stone road once again as I resumed my journey.

Finally, I activated my various spells and sped up entirely, reaching the same pace that I had set the day before.

Recalling the map, if I managed the same exact speed from yesterday I would pass two different cities and wind up somewhere near a cluster of small hills, deep inside which was one of the monster zones.

That meant I would need to be careful tonight, as there was a likely chance that either Nevrokopi State guards, warriors, or adventurers could be nearby, but there could always be a monster outbreak.

Either way, I put my head down and continued to run, maintaining my mana and pace as the day slowly passed me by.

It was moments like these that made me miss my old world just a bit; a pair of earbuds and some music would do wonders for these long runs...

Chuckling wryly at that, I eventually reached the hilly landscape that I had predicted would be my stopping point, giving me a good guess on my speed and better hopes for planning my journey.

Settling down for the night once again, I made my ice cube and pulled out the map, plotting out the speed so far and getting an idea on how long I would be on the journey minimum.

According to a rough estimate of distance traveled, I was around the ninety mile mark at the moment, but I knew that I had managed to travel further today then I had yesterday...

Pursing my lips, I went over the map a few times before sighing, hoping that I could find ways to boost my speed further.

If I was correct, it would take me upwards of eight months to reach home at this pace.

That was the minimum, if I managed to average forty five miles a day...

I think; math was never my forte.

Anyways, the realistic timeframe would be a year to return home, but that made me almost go insane as I stared down at the map in silence.

A YEAR away from Jahi?!

No...

No, that couldn't be right.

How would I manage?

How COULD I manage that?!

Shaking my head, I turned instead to my system, scouring the shop for anything that could be useful.

There were stat boosting potions, which I could assume would be equivalent to a speed potion if I focused on agility...

Then there were various spells that I could purchase for speed enhancers as well...

Gnawing on my lips, I continued to look through the shop before one stood out to me, and I smirked a little.