The mission had begun under the cover of night, and ten figures moved with quiet precision. The group was composed of the branch head, Baines, Tasha, Roy, the head of the shadow units, and five other shadow unit members. A deadly silence hung over them as they stood at the entrance of the cathedral gate. The branch head, eyes flickering with concern, glanced around before nodding to the shadow unit leader.
Knowing how vital they were, the leader had already tried requesting more of the plants for the mission. As an assassin himself, he understood their value.
But the orders were clear: no one would ask too many questions. Baines wasn't talking, and Tasha had made it clear—"If she says no questions, then there will be no questions." It was a command that came directly from Tasha's father, and in the shadows of this covert operation, it was unquestionable.
The atmosphere tightened, and with a signal from the branch leader, they all chewed the plant. Moments later, the air around them seemed to hum, and they became intangible. Except for Roderick and Roy, the rest couldn't even sense the person beside them. It was like they had turned invisible.
And the shadow unit's leader sneaked in through the walls of the cathedral. The system in place didn't get a whiff of his aura, talkless of his presence.
'We really have to get our hands on this plant.' He said after stuffing another plant in his mouth. With ease, he had sneaked in and performed his role.
Creak...
The cathedral's heavy gates creaked open with the sound of a guard yawning.
"Hmm…who opened the door?" A voice drifted lazily.
The guard barely looked up from his post as he ambled over, reaching for the handle to close the door.
But before he could fully close the gates, the group had passed by him, undetected. A soft, near-silent breeze followed them, with the guard not knowing a thing.
Who would believe a group of people would sneak into this holy land? No one. Not even the deplorable brothers.
With another Bang, the door closed behind them.
Their hearts hammered in their chests as they stood behind the gates, breathless, inside the cathedral compound. They exchanged quick glances, uneasy with the unease they felt despite the success of their stealth.
But Baines was unfazed, walking with a nonchalant air that made the rest of the team wonder what would have happened if the pill had failed, especially since the guard they had just bypassed was a 5th-star sword master.
Was this really possible?
But there was no time to dwell on it.
The branch leader, his voice soft but authoritative, broke the tension. "Now, we search the cathedral for evidence. We move in twos, don't forget to eat the plants before the effects wear out, and if anyone finds anything, use the communication device."
He glanced at the towering cathedral, then spoke again, "Let's start with the cathedral."
The cathedral had more to it than just the worship hall. The church knights, priests, helpers, orphans, and offices were located in the same cathedral. So, despite checking the worship hall, they still had a lot to search.
Chewing the plant again, they moved into the cathedral, met with the head of the shadow units before moving on.
Their nerves all time high as, at almost every corner, they ran into a new person.
Thankfully, Baines's partner was a shadow member, meaning he had time to carefully do what he wanted.
So, he closed his eyes for a moment and placed his hand on the wall and floor, and asked Eye.
'Eye, can you sense any disturbances?'
[LOCATION: 10 METERS UNDERGROUND]
'Underground?' Baines focused, then concluded, 'Well, that is one place they would go to'.
Minutes passed, but still nothing, so they moved on, heading toward the cathedral's lower floors. Where the offices, storage rooms, and places no one would suspect were located.
Soon, they all converged outside a room. This was the head-priest's office.
Since they were disguised as the head-priest, they had to find a clue in his office, right?
After a brief glance at each other, and entered the room.
However—
"Nothing," the branch head sighed after thoroughly searching the room. The documents on his table were piled up, giving them stronger evidence that the head priest was missing.
Their last hope was the storage before leaving the building and searching other places.
The cathedral was a dimly lit room, with the sharp scent of old wood and dust filling the air. The storage room, tucked away beneath the church, seemed to beckon them with its eerie silence.
"This is the last room," the branch leader muttered, his eyes scanning the space, flicking between shelves lined with abandoned relics and faded banners.
Then, Baines' eyes narrowed.
'Eye, where is it?'
[PLACE YOUR HAND ON THE GROUND]
Baines didn't hesitate. He knelt and placed his palm gently on the cold, cracked stone floor.
Pschzch…
Then, a small electric spark crackled from his hand into the ground and a ripple occurred.
"Huh? Why—" The branch leader started to question, but his voice trailed off as his eyes fell on the floor beneath Baines' hand.
"Hoo," the head of the shadow unit muttered, kneeling beside Baines and tracing the edges of the floor. His fingers brushed against something, a barely visible circle of runes etched into the stone.
"That's a teleportation circle," he observed, his voice carrying the weight of recognition.
Without a word, the head of the shadow unit pulled out a small device from his coat, a magical relic that could activate such circles. He placed it in the center of the rune circle.
Whirr…
The air around them grew thick with magic,
"Stand on it," the shadow unit leader said, "It'll take us to their location."
After another look around, they got on the circle.
Seconds later, the world seemed to twist and warp, the sensation of movement shifting everything around them, before—shing—the blurry chaos cleared, and they found themselves deep underground.
...
Back in the blood-soaked chamber beneath the cathedral, the Deplorable Brothers stood at the edge of their pool of blood.
The elder brother's hands trembled as he gazed at the pooling red liquid. It had taken time, meticulous effort, and the sacrifice of countless lives, but the blood orb was nearly complete. Only a few more minutes.
Suddenly, his sharp senses caught a disturbance in the air. A low rumble echoed from the distance.
"How…" he muttered in disbelief, his eyes narrowing. His thoughts were interrupted by his younger brother, who rushed to him, eyes blazing.
"What happened?" The younger brother was already shifting into a battle-ready stance.
"They found this place," the elder muttered darkly. His mind spun with possibilities.
The younger brother didn't need to hear more. His face hardened with resolve.
"Take this." The elder handed his brother a blood-red pill, "I'll support you when it is done. Don't lose"
The younger brother nodded and bolted into the shadows, leaving the elder to stand before the almost-complete blood orb, an evil grin spreading across his face.
Luckily, he had found a page of an old treasure. Just a page, and he was able to make the pill he had just given to his brother.
The advanced version was what he was currently forming.
He had a plan.
'After I absorb it, I will raze this church to the ground, followed by that branch. Then I'll unite all the underground organizations and go for the main family.' He smiled but was quickly interrupted by the loud vibrations from the battle.
'I better hurry,'
Though the plan might sound childish, the power he would gain from this blood orb was unimaginable.
...
As their visions cleared, the first thing that came to their sight was the darkness.
They quickly lit up the place with their aura and moved forward.
"We need to find the survivors before anything else," the branch leader murmured, his voice tense as he moved ahead.
They weren't far into their search when they encountered their first obstacle.
A massive, hulking figure with blood-red eyes stood before them. Its towering form emanated an unnatural, terrifying power.
The branch leader's breath hitched.
'6th star?' His pulse quickened. He hadn't received any reports indicating the brothers had achieved such power.
"Yes…" The figure spoke, its voice low, guttural, and began laughing. "This is it. This is the power I always sought."
Without warning, the beast lunged, throwing a powerful fist toward them.
"Dodge!" the branch leader barked. The group scattered, but the leader and Roy stood firm, preparing to block the incoming attack.
The impact was deafening.
Boom!
The force of the blow sent both men skidding backward, their hands rattling from the intensity of the strike.
The branch leader gritted his teeth. "Peak 6th star…" he murmured. "This is bad. We're not prepared for this."
"Oi, Oi, you can't go down on me like that, you came here, didn't you?" The figure didn't give them a moment to breathe. Its fists glowed bright red with destructive energy. With a wild roar, it lifted both fists and slammed them down at the group.
Boom!