Boundless Chronicles

Chapter 41: The Spires of Aethelgard, II

The remaining two Blood-Hound mercenaries backed away along the frost-slicked walkway, their broadswords trembling against the howling abyss wind.

Seeing three squad members eliminated in under twenty seconds had shattered their discipline.

"Fall back into the tower interior!" the lead survivor shouted, his voice cracking beneath his steel visor. "The bottleneck favors us inside!"

The two mercenaries turned to sprint through the archway into the First Spire.

"Gideon," Noël said, stepping forward. "Don't let them retreat."

"Understood!" Gideon roared.

Whooooosh!

Gideon sprang forward like a silver arrow. His boots shattered the frosted stone as he channeled white-gold solar ether along his rapier.

"Solar Aspect: Radiant Flash!"

Kaaa-shing!

A streak of golden light erupted from Gideon's blade, slicing horizontally across the stone archway. The intense heat fused the stone doorframe shut in a shower of molten rock, blocking their escape route.

The two Blood-Hounds spun around in desperation, their backs pressed against the melted iron gates.

"Die, vagrants!" the larger mercenary screamed, swinging his broadsword in a frantic overhead strike toward Gideon's head.

Elara stepped in from the left flank, her Radiant Lancer spear blurring through the cold air.

Clang!

The spearhead struck the flat of the mercenary's broadsword, deflecting the heavy blade upward. Without missing a beat, Elara pivoted on her heel and drove her spear butt into his helmet visor.

Crack!

The mercenary stumbled backward, his head ringing as his visor cracked open.

Noël stepped forward, closing the distance before the man could regain his balance. He drove the pommel of his Aethelgard combat blade into the exposed joint beneath the mercenary's helmet, channeling a sharp pulse of physical kinetic force.

Thump!

"Gah...!"

The mercenary dropped his broadsword, clutching his throat as his stamina bar hit zero.

Tiiiing!

[Entrant 'Sterling Retainer #2' has been eliminated from the Trial!]

His body dissolved into a burst of green teleportation light.

The final Blood-Hound dropped his weapon onto the stone bridge and raised his gauntlets in surrender.

"Wait! We were only paid five thousand Tribute by Marquess Sterling! I yield!"

Julian Falcrest stepped forward, his face pale but his eyes burning with anger. He drew his gilded dagger and struck the mercenary's chest emblem with its hilt.

Flash!

[Entrant 'Sterling Retainer #3' has been eliminated from the Trial!]

The final Blood-Hound vanished in a flash of green light, leaving scattered weapon bundles and leather pouches on the stone bridge.

Tiiiing!

[All Hostile Ambushers Eliminated!]

[Loot Acquired: 12,000 Tribute Tokens]

[Item Acquired: 2x High-Grade Ether Elixirs]

[Current Tribute Balance: 65,900]

Julian let out a ragged breath, his hands shaking as he sheathed his dagger. He looked at the edge of the bridge, then turned to Noël with reluctant awe.

"You... you eliminated an entire Sterling Strike Squad without losing a single point of stamina."

"They fought like mercenaries," Noël replied, gathering the loot pouches. "They relied on ambush tactics and heavy gear. Against a coordinated team, heavy gear is just a burden."

Lyra stepped up to the melted iron gate, inspecting the fused stone with her brass tuning spanner.

"Noël, the main archway is sealed solid by Gideon's solar strike. We can't enter through the front gate."

"We aren't entering through the gate," Noël said.

He opened his left eye.

His pupil burned with deep violet light as the Gyre Eye activated.

Through his vision, the obsidian outer wall of the First Spire was lined with glowing blue conduit channels. Five feet above their heads was a rusted maintenance hatch, an old ventilation duct designed for Aethelgard mechanical golems.

"Elara, lift Lyra to the upper ventilation hatch. Lyra, unbolt the steam regulator."

"Got it!" Lyra replied, pulling out her spring-coils.

Elara cupped her hands and boosted Lyra upward. Lyra caught the lip of the rusted iron hatch, unholstered her tuning spanner, and jammed it into the release valve.

Click. Clang!

The heavy iron grate unlatched, swinging open with a rusty squeak.

"It's open!" Lyra called down. "The duct leads straight into the inner spiral staircase!"

They pulled themselves up into the ventilation shaft one by one, bypassing the trap-filled main entrance hall entirely.

The interior of the First Spire was colossal. A giant central shaft stretched thousands of feet upward, surrounded by winding stone staircases and floating platform conduits. High above, near the ceiling of the first tier, floated a glowing green pedestal holding the First Keystone Seal.

However, the staircases were already crowded with competing cadet teams.

Screams, clashing steel, and elemental explosions echoed through the hollow tower. Four cadet squads from the High Academies were battling a horde of stone gargoyle guardians guarding the lower stairways.

"The academy cadets are bogged down by the stone guardians," Gideon noted, peering out from the ventilation duct opening onto an upper stone ledge. "If we push through them, we'll draw the gargoyles' aggression."

"We don't need to push through them," Noël said, stepping onto the stone ledge.

Julian stepped forward.

"What now?"

"Draw your broadsword and stand by the ledge railing," Noël instructed. "Look like you're preparing to launch an aerial assault on the Central Platform."

Julian frowned.

"Why?"

"Because the academy cadets are watching the upper ledges," Noël replied flatly. "When they see House Falcrest's heir positioning for a drop, their squad leader will rush the gargoyle line to prevent us from taking the Keystone."

Julian stared at him.

"You're using me as a decoy?!"

"You're wearing golden armor," Noël pointed out. "You make an exceptional decoy."

Before Julian could argue, the squad leader of the leading academy team, an arrogant young nobleman in silver-and-blue plate, looked up and spotted Julian's glowing gold armor on the ledge.

"Falcrest's heir is above us!" the leader shouted to his squad. "Charge the stairs! Do not let them reach the Keystone Seal first!"

"Charge!"

The academy cadets bellowed, unleashing a wave of frost and fire ether against the gargoyles.

The stone guardians roared and swarmed down the staircases to meet the cadets in a chaotic brawl.

While the main staircase descended into a melee, Noël gestured toward a quiet, narrow maintenance ladder running along the back of the obsidian pillar.

"Move."

Gideon chuckled under his breath as he followed Noël toward the ladder.

"You really have no honor when it comes to competition, Noël."

"Honor doesn't pay entry fees," Noël replied.

They climbed the maintenance ladder in silence, bypassing the entire battle below.

Within three minutes, the party reached the high stone platform near the top of the First Spire. The glowing green First Keystone Seal floated on its marble pedestal, completely unguarded.

Noël stepped forward and touched the glowing seal.

Tiiiing!

[First Keystone Seal Claimed!]

[Team 'House Falcrest Auxiliary' has taken the lead in the First Spire!]

[Current Trial Ranking: 1st Place]

The green seal dissolved into a brilliant pillar of light, opening the upper sky-bridge leading directly toward the Second Spire.

Below them, the academy cadets stopped fighting the gargoyles. They looked up at the glowing pillar of light in absolute, speechless shock.

Noël adjusted his trench coat collar and turned toward the open sky-bridge.

"One down," he said. "Four to go."