Rivers of the Night

Four figures rushed out, surrounding Theron from all four cardinal directions.

Honestly, Theron was a bit surprised, not just by the boldness, but the fact there were so many willing to participate in such a thing. He wasn’t just some random nobody now, he was a Chosen of the Sect. The weight of his life and its value had completely changed.

’I guess this is what happens when too many new Chosens are conferred at once. It’s diluted the meaning. The fact it takes an entire generation for new Chosens to be selected as well means that this current batch of disciples never really understood the meaning to begin with.’

This obviously wasn’t the real reason these four were here.

Theron immediately recognized Tenn and the two law enforcement officers that had been with him that day. The fourth, though, he didn’t recognize, but this was the same young man that had pulled Tenn out of the bar and told him about Theron’s appearance at the tower: Oile.

’They’re here because of passion for their Sect. How interesting

There was something quite interesting he had noticed about the Sect. They were very… familial.

It was the best way for Theron to describe it.

The young woman he had come across that told him about the tower should have almost certainly not given him such important information. Maybe she was just a kind person, sure… but then there was the Sect’s reaction to Ironvale’s success.

It was easy to have a distorted sense of what the Sect was because of how he was treated when he entered, but he was the one that had killed their genius, and then came strutting forward to claim an even more prestigious title for himself.

They were right to hate him.

Maybe these four knew perfectly well just how heavy Theron’s title was to the Sect. Instead, they had just chosen to take the risk anyway.

It seemed that the inner workings of these things were far more complicated. Winning a game of politics wasn’t just about having more power or better schemes, sometimes it was just about controlling the heart and emotions of the people.

Even with all his caution, Theron had still underestimated the Patriarch.

To Theron, the Patriarch was a cold, heartless man, willing to do anything for the sake of his goals.

But to the disciples of the Sect, they would die for him and the emblem on their chests.

’I’ll have to observe more to figure out exactly why that is. Is he really so good at managing the Sect? Or are there other reasons?’

Either way, Theron slotted this information to the back of his mind. His thoughts were so distracted that one would have never guessed that he was facing off against four Silver Mancers.

The strongest of them, Tenn and Oile, were both at the Second Resonance, the other two being at just the first.

Not a single one of them had integrated an Echo before Silver Mancy, though. So at best, they had Fifth or Sixth Silver Resonance Echoes.

Theron’s palms lightly touched the hilts of his weapons, but to their credit, they reacted immediately in kind.

With a subtle relaxation of his legs, Theron sank into a readying pose, rocking to the balls of his feet and flexing his quads as his knees bent.

Faced with four attacks from four sides, there was no easy way to account for everything he needed to. Illusion techniques wouldn’t work, not when all four of his opponents had Third Eye.

In that case…

Veinsong.

SHIIING!

The color in Theron’s eyes solidified, a steely, cold blue radiating out as he unsheathed both of his weapons so seamlessly they sounded as though they were one.

He took a step at an angle, his torso twisting.

By now, his Immortal Jellyfish sensory domain had already been deployed and he could sense a tacit link between the four law enforcement officers.

They were used to working together, and likewise, they knew that launching four all-out attacks from all sides would also put themselves in danger of harming one another.

As such…

’Two attacks are just feints.’

Theron picked out the subtleties immediately. His understanding of the Luminescent Moon Sect’s methods had deepened considerably in these last few days.

He could feel the differences in their muscles, in the circulation of their Mana.

He could see through them.

Oile and Tenn were feinting.

Clever.

Just not clever enough.

DENG! DENG!

Theron actually met the attacks of two Silver Flux Mancers head on. With his arms extended out, spread to meet the angles of their slashes, his wrists and forearms trembled hard beneath the strain.

He was forced a heavy step back, but the weapons of Tenn and Oile had already pulled back, just like he expected.

Using the rebounding force, he was suddenly pushed into the space between the latter two, his mind flashing with runes and his Mana thrumming to life.

Two [Water Bullets] formed in the air, splitting in two directions and forcing them to block.

The two First Resonance officers lunged after Theron, pressing him so that he wouldn’t try to use an opening to escape, but Theron met them first.

He took a step to the side, allowing a blade to rush across the length of his shoulder as he closed in the distance on one.

Bending back, his torso flexing and his arm reaching out as though pointing a wand, he dodged the attack of the second, his short sword nearly piercing the latter’s chest before he managed to block.

DENG!

Theron spun, his body suddenly accelerating out of the first statue’s pose.

The line of blood from his shoulder formed another [Water Bullet], catching the First Resonance officer that injured him off guard.

Suddenly faced with three attacks, and still in the process of pulling his blade back, he didn’t stand a chance.

Theron’s spin brought both his dagger and short sword across his neck, splitting his throat open and sending spurts of blood gushing out.