Hunter of the Evernight
Chapter 680: Shaman

Chapter 680: Shaman

Archibald tried to free himself from Alex’s hold as he gasped for air but he was unable to do so, leaving him no choice but to continuously flail around while begging to be spared.

Furrowing his brows, Alex released his hold, allowing Archibald to drop to the ground before he remarked. "Explain, now."

"That..."

"Alex, they are almost finished." Victoria suddenly said, cutting Archibald off.

Alex glanced ahead to find that she was indeed correct.

The mutated villagers had collided with the barbarians and though they tried their best, they were only able to kill one out of the many they had attacked.

The rest of the barbarians, clearly skilled in killing, didn’t hesitate to round up the mutated villagers before slaughtering them like cattle.

It was a gruesome sight but Alex noted that though they were brutal, the barbarians were strangely methodical with their strikes, almost like they wished to avoid causing excess damage to the villagers.

Considering what he understood about the barbarian tribes that existed in Henos, Alex had a feeling that this act of theirs was significant.

He moved to act.

With a snap, a black hole appeared beneath them and devoured the barbarians before they got a chance to utilize the Quillion they carried.

Alas, the bodies of the villagers weren’t spared as they were sucked in as well, leaving behind a gaping hole by the time Alex undid the attack.

Satisfied that his attack had worked, Alex turned his attention elsewhere, towards the mobile city that started all of this.

Just as several fireballs were shot out from the city, Alex snapped again and this time, a white hole appeared right next to the city.

Boom

As Alex acted, Victoria was not idle as she turned her attention to the fireballs.

Following Alex’s strategy, she quickly created several layers of nets to catch the fireballs.

The nets were quickly ripped apart, but they helped to slow down the speed of the attacks, allowing Alex to snap again, conjuring a barrier of ice so thick that the fireballs only ended up creating holes in it.

Letting out a sigh of relief, Alex undid the barrier only to pause as he realized that the mobile city was still standing.

It was clear that the White hole had done some damage judging from the fact that a portion of the city was gone but it seemed the presence of Quillion aboard the ship had reduced the level of damage.

"What now?" Victoria asked with Alex responding.

"I’m considering asking for a ceasefire."

"What do you mean a ceasefire?" Archibald questioned. "Those bastards killed the villagers."

"I am not about to engage in warfare with an entire city." Alex shot back coldly. "If you wish to do so, then by all means, go ahead."

Archibald gritted his teeth but ultimately remained silent.

Just then, a loud thumping echoed across the valley, its source seemingly from the mobile city.

Alex was poised to snap as he kept his attention on the city.

The next instant, the city gates opened yet again, but this time, instead of warriors, those who stepped out appeared to be instrumentalists as they wielded drums and flutes instead of axes and clubs.

Alex frowned as he watched these barbarians play their instruments while letting out cacophonous sounds which he guessed was their brand of music.

"Do we attack?" Victoria asked with Alex shaking his head.

"Not yet."

The singing and dancing continued until an old man with a large physique appeared.

He had an old rag around his plains and a necklace of feathers and another of beads and another of Quillion while his grey hair was tied up in a bun.

Carrying a staff that had a Quillion Crystal placed at the top, the old man took steady steps forward with his eyes closed.

"I’m guessing that’s their leader," Alex remarked with Archibald replying.

"That’s a shaman."

"Are they powerful?"

"It depends. With blessings from the Berserk God, they can bless their subordinates, turning them into raging tanks. They can also bless themselves. Without the blessings, they are glorified priests."

It was clear Archibald was still angry though he had changed the subject of his anger from Alex to the barbarians.

The old man arrived at where the mutated villagers were slaughtered before shifting his attention over to where Alex stood.

"We don’t want any trouble. Let us go and we will be on our way." Alex said in Razan only to recall that the shaman wouldn’t understand him.

Then, he glanced at Archibald with the latter meeting his gaze.

"What?"

"Repeat what I said to them."

"Why?"

"Just do it."

"Tch."

"And you better not make things worse," Alex warned as Archibald got to his feet and repeated what Alex said in Impala.

The shaman shifted his attention to him before replying in a similar cadence.

Archibald’s expression shifted, revealing slight confusion regarding what he’d heard.

"He said no one leaves until the ritual is complete."

"What ritual?"

"Ritual to the Broken Saintess."

"Who, or rather, what is that?"

"I have no idea," Archibald said with a shake of his head. "The barbarian tribes worship the Berserk God and no one else. It’s the first I’m hearing of this Broken Saintess."

"Are we in danger?" Alex asked.

"Maybe?"

Alex went silent as he pondered his options.

He could either attack or let the shaman go ahead with the ritual.

What if the ritual was of no danger to him?... What if it was?

What if attacking would make things worse?... What if it didn’t?

Clicking his tongue, he quickly made his decision.

He immediately snapped, causing a deluge of black and white to arise from his shadow after which the domain, Eternal Night, made an appearance.

The next instant, Alex utilized its influence to force one to sleep, and its capability to slightly manipulate gravity while he melted into the shadows.

Victoria was also strengthened so she followed closely behind.

Meanwhile, Archibald felt something at that moment as he looked towards the sky, entranced by the sight of the pale moon hanging in the sky.

The shaman remained calm as the singing and playing of instruments continued.

Suddenly, He gripped his staff with both hands and raising it up, slammed it into the ground, causing a shockwave to erupt, dispelling Eternal Night in an instant.

Alex was left stunned as he stood in place only for the shaman to move his face to pay attention to him, allowing Alex to realize that he was blind.

Pointing his finger at Alex, he let out a terrifying scream that echoed across the valley.