Battle for the North (Rogue Merchant Book #4): LitRPG Series by Roman Prokofiev (the dot read aloud .TXT) 📕

and once, he had lost it. In a fit of wanton rage, Captain punched the crystal. Why was it like that?

“Why can’t she leave?” He sharply turned to one of his clanmates keeping watch in the hall.

“Leave the Heart? They get used to it,” the player replied indifferently. “Everyone who leaves always comes back.”

The Heart was a merciless engine of souls, a giant Ancient artifact restored by Pandorum’s artifactors. This weird and scary machine was one of the most unconventional secrets held by the alliance.

Each keep, the main building of a castle stronghold, had slots for special artifacts fortifying the citadel. Depending on the castle’s level, their number could reach five. Like everything in Sphere, they came in five types: common, uncommon, rare, epic, and legendary. Clans usually fortified their castles’ defense or attack, while those who could afford it installed epic and legendary items with various abilities. Flaming aura, mass resurrection, clan attacks — there were many kinds.

Pandorum had become the first alliance to explore the Astral Plane and reap the benefits. Circle of Resurrection, Eyes of Colossus, Ancient Heart... Few people knew about the Heart’s features, as the leaders kept it secret. The crystal was a powerful resonator, significantly enhancing the abilities of creatures located inside. That was one of the reasons for Pandorum’s NPC hunt: it already contained hundreds of them. Primavera, the owner of the Ancient Driver archetype, had proved capable of controlling many battle machines across a great range. Aside from her, the Heart had several other NPCs with Ancient Gene; Captain wasn’t sure how many. It was they who had summoned and controlled the arachnid army that captured Condor.

Captain once again punched the Heart. Phantom must have known that the processes that the NPCs underwent inside the Heart were irreversible. There was only one way to take Vera away and help her regain her former self.

Destroy the Heart.

Chapter 18

THREE ITEMS. Only three items out of all deity-owned stuff? Why so few? Or maybe the others had durability and burned down in the beasts’ fire?

Tao confidently dove into the thick yellow-black substance. Magma dealt tremendous damage. Any other player would have died in his place, but the PROJECT leader had meticulously calculated the damage and the resistance values, picking out the right gear. He wouldn’t die, not him.

Just a little more. Just a bit...

There they were! The long silver thorn of Raghel, the goddess’ infamous silver sword, became the first to enter his inventory, followed by the crescent faction crown of the House of Darkness adorned with five razor-sharp points. However, it was not the time to study them. At last, Tao’s fingers closed around a pulsating crimson-black clot, beating like a heart ripped from the chest.

Dark God’s Blood. The key to the demigod archetype was within his hands! The long journey was finally over, but a new one began, much more dangerous and riskier: the quest for the keys to Sphere’s mysteries. Tao believed that Divine Blood would make him into a being on par with the powers that be, shaping the Balance as he saw fit — but only via in-game methods, whatever the procedural generator might think.

But something bad was going on overhead.

“Three objects, unidentified! Unclassified! They’re starting to attack!”

Strange ships, unlike anything ever seen in Sphere of Worlds, came out of the Astral Portals. Were they ships, though, or giant living creatures? No answer came, as the visitors’ names were listed as question marks.

There was something spiderlike about those black barbs the size of astral ships: maybe the glistening bulging armor or the sharp limbs stretched forward. Their shape and proportions, the smoothness of the hull-body — all of that seemed alien, as did the unusual grace with which the visitors moved.

Three “spiders” dove out of the Portals and immediately formed a wide semicircle, their speed and maneuverability surprisingly high. Evaluating the situation, they dove down, unerringly identifying their target — Tao’s entry point in the sea of lava.

“Attention! Emergency situation! Interface doesn’t respond! Objects cannot be scanned!”

“Hold them back! Use anything at your disposal!”

 

The glowing star revealed itself as the admins’ juggernaut and fired dozens of blinding bursts, but none of them reached the target, as the strangers dodged the blows in an astounding display of evasive skill. They turned and spun around, ignoring the laws of gravity and inertia and using propulsion unheard of in Sphere’s airships. An ordinary astral ship wouldn’t hold a candle against them.

The juggernaut descended, continuing fire and defending the spot of Ananizarte’s fall. The visitors split, cutting sharp curves through the violet sky of Infernis. The beasts paid them no attention, peacefully walking away.

Lilac fires lit on the black blades of the “spiders.” They turned around to attack and started circling the juggernaut. Flashing purple lights hit its dome point-blank. Easily evading the return fire, the three ships cut through the defenses of the clumsy monstrosity with odd energy blades.

However, Tao didn’t care about that battle anymore. Before the scorching rays of the spider-ships’ weapons started drilling the magma in search of the one who had disturbed the Balance, he was already teleporting home via a Soul Stone. Raghel, the Crown, and the Blood were his, which meant that he had won that round.

* * *

I couldn’t believe my eyes. The huge star — upon a closer examination, it turned out to be a ship illuminated by rays of light — was rapidly fading. Black spiderlike shadows flickered around it, their narrow purple blades piercing the blue protective bubble.

What a strange vessel. Going by its size, it was definitely an astral juggernaut, but I couldn’t identify its owner. All juggernauts of Sphere were well known and cataloged. Constructing each one was quite an occasion. So, where the hell had that one come from? The creatures attacking it didn’t ring any bells, either. What was going on?