Viers had a lot of experience breaking and entering into enemy strongholds. First, it was from video games. After that, first hand experience in the real world. Most times, stealth was paramount. Then again, he had his fair share of experience when things became FUBAR and he had to fight his way to the objective, killing everyone in his path.

Either way, he got a window of opportunity to freely move after escaping the dungeon. While his first instinct was to escape the hell out of here where some Level 5s were around, he was unwilling to leave without his material wealth.

His inventory item contained most of his wealth in this world so he got to take it back.

If he had to choose between his life and his Thousand Treasures Casket, he would choose his life in a heartbeat but the situation had not deteriorated to that point yet.

Now then, where's my precious?

Viers went into some kind of supplies storage so he could concentrate and sense his things. Staying in the open was ill-advised.

In games where the hero got captured and their inventory got taken, it is usually nearby. Easily recoverable. Doesn't seem so in this case. How inconvenient. Hope the Thousand Treasures Casket is not carried by Rostov but he's in a fight with a Level 5 peer so it's not likely. It would be extra baggage.

Storage items with contents weren't able to be put into other storage items. It was the rule.

Since Viers soul marked his Thousand Treasures Casket in case he lost it, he could find it from afar. It was part of his contingencies. It was a bit difficult with how little Victa he got to work with.

Found it! Rostov left it behind! But it's in the castle's main area... Must be where the big wigs of the Empire live.

Viers mulled his options.

It's midday but the weather is pretty dark due to the snowstorm. It's really falling down now. There's only one Zami fortress left flying above but the weather is still changing. Either way, Vanish in Abyss should be pretty effective but I got no Victa to utilize it. Then let's do this. It's been a while.

Using the small pool of Victa he accumulated, Viers caused a magical change in his body. He lost his human form, grew extra limbs, and became smaller.

The rags of clothing that he was wearing had fallen to the floor and from it, crawled a spider. Its body was transparent and glass-like.

Viers polymorphed and became a Water Ghost Spider. This monster form specializes in stealth.

Khukhuku. I still got it.

The spider was a Rank 4 monster. It wasn't at first, but Viers ate a lot and evolved it to Rank 4. The spider form was quite weak for Rank 4 monster standards, probably only as strong as a Level 2 Pathseeker, but it was because he channeled most of its evolutionary energy towards a stealth build.

Futon looked at Viers with a fascinated eyes. Viers wiggled and checked his transformed body. He crawled to the wall then stopped at the ceiling, upside and down. Somehow it felt normal for a spider. He was more than Spider-Man and became a fully fledged spider, sans the man.

The slave seal is not affecting me! As expected, since the monster didn't get marked... But Baharir's curse still has me unable to convert my Victa to water, which is troubling. Why, though? I can use the spider's innate water ability just fine but not my water artes?

Viers theorized that the ability to cast Artes came from his human side. Normal monsters didn't use Artes but their own innate abilities.

Viers decided not to think too much about it. He gestured to Futon using his spider legs since he couldn't speak and using soul telepathy would waste his already thin puddle of Victa. It looked a bit funny but thankfully Futon seemed to understand it.

"Here! The monster signal came from here!"

Just as the pair was about to leave, a group of soldiers came like a SWAT team. They found the V-spider since there wasn't any room to run and started blasting him off. The spider was weak combat-wise. Just as he worried his spider would suffer too great an injury and die, causing him to lose access to the spider form like a perma-death in games, Futon acted.

Unfortunately the investigating group was pretty strong. Unlike the previous instance in the dungeon where Futon had charged his electricity for almost a full day, he wasn't able to instantly kill the Rank 3 soldiers. If they took too much time, more enemies would be alerted and come here.

But Futon's fight gave Viers the time to play his next card. Viers went back into human form, butt-naked, but he didn't care. He pressed his palm on the two Level 3 soldiers.

Arte - Proof of Death!

The Level 3s died from internal damage; all their organs were ruptured, and their bones broken. The four wings magical mark on the back of Viers' left hand became three wings.

Proof of Death was an Arte where Viers stockpiled the blood of the ones he personally killed as pure power but this was only one half of this Arte. The other half was where he released the stockpiled power.

Just now, Viers destroyed two Level 3s Pathseekers without using any Level, Domain, Victa, other Arte, or item. Just the blood power of Proof of Death Arte. It was as if a normal human killed two Level 3 Pathseekers. Which was so outside the norm.

It was technically a blood type Ixi Arte, which Viers could not use because of the water seal but the Arte's gimmicky nature bypassed the seal.

What a waste. It took so much blood to form even one wing.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

The discharge was more powerful than he thought and he wasn't able to use the Horizon boost. Because of the situation, Viers drew too much power. A wing's worth of power could probably kill ten Level 3 Pathseekers but Viers wasn't taking any chances.

The Harkelans probably had erected a magical array that was able to detect monsters in the premises of Grandia Castle, therefore, Viers couldn't use his monster forms. Since Water Ghost Spider which specialized in stealth was detected, the others would too. Viers hesitated turning into the combat-oriented orca or dragon form. Again, there were hostile Level 5s out and about.

With that option off the table, Viers speedily looted the outfit of the soldiers a la Hitman for disguise and masqueraded as a soldier.

People should call me Viers the Resourceful. Gufufufu!

Now that he had a matching dress code, Viers made his way to where his inventory was waiting for him. The soul mark allowed Viers to always know the direction he had to go. The castle was big and the layout was a bit complicated. The war outside was fierce and seemed closer than yesterday.

What was important was that the Level 5s on both sides were busy.

Finally, a bit of luck.

***

Rostov the Blanket was facing Duke Sterling Valentine.

They had been exchanging Artes for hours. For Level 5s who could move with super speed, the fight felt much longer than it had been.

The battle between them had created storms of energy. If they were on the ground, maps would have to be redrawn because of the changing of terrain.

Few people were qualified to watch a serious match between Level 5s without suffering repercussions from it.

Rostov felt something was different about the Duke today. He had faced him on the first day of battle but today, it was as if he threw away his face as a calm and collected war general and became a savage warrior charging headlong into the thick of battle.

Sven and the others are also tied down by their respective opponents. What's going on?

"No need to be hasty, O Duke," Rostov's ice Arte trapped the Duke in a massive glacier of ice. "You seem rushed. Going somewhere?"

A metallic gryphon broke through the glacier from inside. Rostov evaded the thousands of metal feathers it shot with flaps of its wings.

"If I prolong this war, my daughter will kill me," the Duke replied.

"Huh?" Rostov almost doubted his ears.

***

Viers arrived at the location where his precious waited.

The journey wasn't without obstacles. Even though he did his best to do it stealthy. Guarded checkpoints and enemy patrols, Futon and Viers were forced to use force.

Proof of Death Arte only had two wings now and the second wing marking was faint.

But he had arrived.

"My preciousssssss."

He paid no attention to the ground, where the bodies of the people tasked to unlock his Thousand Treasures Casket lay in pools of their own blood.

Viers carefully lifted the small casket in the middle of an enchantment-breaking magic circle like it was made of bubbles, gently and softly.

"Shhh. The bad guys are dead now. They can't hurt you anymore. It's over now. There, there. Good girl. May we never be parted again."

"Fuu!" Futon agreed.

As its rightful owner, the casket accepted Viers' access like an open door. The first thing he pulled was a necklace.

When he put it on, he felt the slave seal effect begin to fade. It was still there but temporarily disabled.

Viers flexed his Victa, knocking the furniture in the room against the walls from the wind pressure.

"O, it's good to be back!"

"Fuu!"

Futon also looked happy.

Viers didn't bask in his glory for long. The next second he had already taken the other inventory items in the room. There were a lot. The inventory items that the Empire took from fallen Latias Knights were brought here for the lock-breaking.

Viers picked the Paragon option, he would return these belongings to the Latias command.

Viers picked the Renegade option and pocketed them for himself.

No muss, no fuss.

With his inventory item recovered, Viers made his way to the exit. Of course, he looted everything of value during the way. Dead bodies, dead souls, cabinets, silver plates, statues, paintings, the whole keep if he could do it.

When he was almost outside, he sensed the situation. The Level 5s were busy and the castle was in chaos.

...It isn't in my nature to give the other cheek when slapped. The Empire owes me.

Viers was in a revenging mood. He craved vengeance.

REVENGEANCE!

"Futon, what say you we have a blast here?"

"Fuu!"

"Good boy."

Arte - Soul Gear Liquid!

Lights gathered around Viers' body as he was fitted with full-body armor.

***

Because of the intense assault from the Latias Kingdom, the Empire defenders had their hands full.

"Blyat! It's only been a few days since the siege began. Are the tin men really launching an all-out assault!?"

"S-seems so, Comrade Commander. We're being pushed back on all fronts. They are hammering us with all they've got! Ahh! I think Comrade Commander Davao got killed just now!"

"Faaah! Send reinforcements! We can't have his position overrun by the enemy. Mobilize the 16th company!"

"The 16th is already fighting on the south wall, Comrade Commander!"

"Then the 17th, 18th, whoever you can find! Why are you still here, Comrade? Hurry up!"

"Da!"

The Commander saw the young messenger run to convey his orders but he saw the messenger get an arrow to the head midway.

"Blyaaaat! Must I do everything around here myself!?"

The Commander ran out of men to send so he went himself. To not share the last messenger's fate, he used the indoor path. After navigating the corridor of the ancient castle, he bumped into someone when turning at a corner.

It was a man in mostly dark green armor. His face was covered by a dark visor. He had something in his hand; that something had two barrels.

The Commander lost his life from the shotgun-shot. Viers went with a hip shot. The Commander tasted the metal bite that the demons of Hell fear with his torso. The blazing twin barrels of steel spewed out smoke after doing their duty, ready for the next.

"In the name of Doom, amen."

Viers blessed the departed imperial with the sign of the cross while heavy metal music was playing in his head.

He reloaded the shotgun he named Doom Gun. There was a satisfying sound when he nocked the fully-loaded weapon of death that demons fear.

The next thing Viers did was jump to the busy courtyard below, into the midst of enemies. The snow on the ground scattered when he landed.

Without word, hesitation, or remorse, he started blasting.

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