Shadow Seer (Rogue Merchant Book #3): LitRPG Series by Roman Prokofiev (read ebook pdf .TXT) 📕

He was right; True Fire incinerated everything in its path, and each kill decreased the faction reputation. We broke into a run, trying to cross the large hall before the shadow shield fell under the onslaught. That moment was imminent, though. The Maidens’ weapons burned with cold fire as they circled us with furious cries, gracefully maneuvering. The shield’s health bar shrunk with each second. We had only a few minutes left, maybe even less, as more of the Maidens flew up, increasing the pressure.

With only a fraction of the shield’s health remaining, we rushed up the stairs, knocking down the double row of valkyries ready to defend their queen. We had to hurry, but I was wary of moving further—the barrier might refuse entry to a living body. The only way to finish our business was to leave the shield.

The open sarcophagus was a copy of the stone bed I had seen on the Isle of Madness. Inside, in a human-shaped hollow, rested a woman wearing the colors of the night sky. Her hands were stretched along her body, and a pendant shone on her chest: a seven-pointed star. Next to her lay a winged metallic mask, the image of which recurred throughout the fortress.

I saw a mole on her high cheekbones, black curls, and long arched lashes on her closed eyelids. I recognized those features and the dreamy half-smile on her face: I had already seen them on the walls of the citadel. She wasn’t conventionally beautiful, but something about her was bound to strike an impression: she had character. In her face, I also read iron will, a stubborn streak, and something else—a subtle peculiarity that made me slightly scared even despite her current condition.

The furious Maidens surrounded us. The shield had no more than a minute left to live, and I loudly told that to Svechkin.

“Got it,” the Gravekeeper replied, letting out a heavy sigh. The stars of his Key flashed blue and started spinning around along complicated trajectories.

“I have a defensive ability, but it will only stop them for ten seconds or less. Let’s do it this way: when your shield runs out, I’ll cover you, and you’ll wake her up! There will only be one attempt. Don’t fail!”

“How? How should I wake her up?”

“Like in the fairy tale,” Svechkin said with a chuckle, and I gave him a confused look. Still, there was no time for a conversation. The Shield of Shadows gave way, and the valkyries charged at us, only to be stopped by the sphere of True Fire formed by Rocky’s spinning shuriken.

How was I supposed to wake her up? What fairy tale had he meant? But Svechkin was cut off from me by the swooshing stars and completely focused on controlling them. There was nothing left to do but to leap to the sarcophagus.

Romanova’s body was warm but showed no signs of life, even when I pulled her by the shoulders and gave her a firm shake. A light pat on the cheek produced no effect, either. I remembered the instructions for reviving unconscious people and slapped her face with all my might. Lena’s face twitched helplessly, a red stain bloomed on her cheek, but she didn’t wake up. So what was I to do?

Something clicked inside my head. Just like in the fairy tale, Svechkin had said. I remembered our old home, the book my parents had read me in my childhood, its worn-out cover with a picture—a girl in a crystal coffin, a prince leaning over her...

I bent over the sarcophagus and kissed the sleeping beauty. Her half-open lips were soft and warm, and when I touched them, Romanova’s body moved. Suddenly, she answered my kiss, rising slowly from her stone bed, her eyes still closed.

“Maxim?” she whispered when I broke away. Her eyes opened wide, revealing the rare blue-green irises, and she pushed me back, standing up.

“You’re not Maxim!”

Her push turned out to be quite powerful. Unable to keep my footing, I fell down, and a second later, Svechkin collapsed next to me as the wall of True Fire dissipated. The Maidens’ spears glistened, looming above us. I clenched the Resuciato pyramid in my hands, preparing to cast Resurrection, but the sharpened tips froze an inch away from our bodies.

“Everyone, stop! I said, stop!” The voice of the awakened woman came from behind us, hoarse but nonetheless commanding. Romanova left the sarcophagus and stood up, frail and short, yet full of some kind of inner energy. Her face was already hidden by the silver winged mask.

“Stella, what’s going on here?”

A tall valkyrie wearing a raven-black tabard on top of scale mail stepped out from the ranks of bowing Maidens. She pulled off her helmet with an arrow-shaped visor and knelt down, bending her head with a crown of platinum braids.

“Greetings, First Maiden. These are trespassers!” The valkyrie’s blue eyes glared at us from her tattooed face.

“These miscreants broke into our citadel, destroying the Glowing. Following the order, the guardians of the outer circle woke up. However, they were unable to destroy or stop the invasion, leading to the rousing of the inner circle. The Elders woke up. Unfortunately, we couldn’t stop them either...”

First Maiden’s silver mask turned toward us, and I felt her gaze probing us, lingering on our faces, the silver hilt of Aelmaris, and the throwing stars clutched by the bandaged Gravekeeper.

“Lena, it’s me,” Rocky said, but the tip of the spear immediately closed in on him, forcing him to fall silent.

“Put them both into an Absolute-class cell. If they misbehave, kill them,” Romanova said. “Whoever you are, you came uninvited.”

 Interlude: Project Hell

Weeping Devil, PROJECT HELL Castle

“WHEN?”

“Raid call’s at half-past three, New Tokyo time. We’ll attack an hour later, at half-past four,” Tao repeated patiently. “Please inform your static groups, only those members you trust one