Chapter 95: Into the Darkness
"What are they doing?"
Inside a shuttle flying nearby, Leopard sat before the tactical map with a deep frown. He had been following the situation closely, yet nothing he saw made any sense.
At first, he believed Silas was simply trying to escape. Then, after watching him run in circles for a while, doubt began to creep in. Now, however, Silas had changed direction and was heading straight toward the mine.
"The dragon is nowhere to be seen... so why are you doing this?"
His fingers tapped rhythmically against the armrest as his gaze remained fixed on the holographic display. Something was happening, something he had failed to grasp.
Although his spies were scattered throughout the region, they could not monitor the entire mining area. There were still blind spots in his intelligence network, and his instincts warned him that whatever Silas was planning was unfolding in one of them.
"I can’t afford to let this slip through my fingers."
His expression hardened.
"Set a course for the mine. I want to know what is drawing Silas there."
Without another moment of hesitation, he ordered every nearby squad under his command to change course and follow him.
***
"He’s growing impatient."
Aboard another shuttle, Rachel watched Leopard’s icon and the forces accompanying him gradually shift toward the mine.
"But you’re chasing the wrong target."
Unlike Leopard, her intelligence network extended much farther. She had already tracked Cher’s location, her route, and the direction she was taking.
"I still don’t know what’s happening at the mine..."
She absentmindedly twirled a strand of hair while studying the tactical display. Part of her wanted to investigate the mine herself, yet she resisted the temptation.
"Cher is heading back toward Silas and Darius, but her father’s troops have completely cut off the path between them. They only have two choices: take a long detour around the blockade, which is extremely dangerous... or disappear."
She fell silent, her thoughts racing.
Her instincts told her Silas would never choose the slower route if another option existed. He would hide instead, vanish from everyone’s sight, and wait for the right moment to move again.
"And once they disappear... chaos will follow."
The realisation made her smile.
"If I can predict where they’ll hide, I can also predict where they’ll reappear."
To do that, however, she needed her father’s help once more.
Her eyes drifted toward her wristwatch, where a recent report showed that the reinforcements her father had dispatched would arrive in less than ten hours.
"So I’ll deal with them myself until then... and make sure Cher loses her two most valuable allies."
Without delay, Rachel sent her father another message, asking him to use every connection at his disposal to secure a privilege she urgently needed.
Only then did she return her attention to Silas and Darius, a confident grin slowly spreading across her face.
***
"Lara sent the signal."
While running beside Silas, Darius received Lara’s message. At almost the same moment, Silas received one from Cher.
[Go to this location.]
[You’ll find what you asked for there.]
Silas opened the map attached to the message and quickly traced the safest route.
"We’re heading northwest," he said after a brief glance ahead. "But first, we need to widen the gap between us and our pursuers."
Darius frowned.
"I can’t run any faster."
"I know." Silas glanced over his shoulder at the enemies chasing them. "That’s why you’ll head there first while I keep them focused on me. Once they’re far enough away, I’ll lose them and catch up."
He paused for a moment before adding,
"And don’t take a direct route to the destination."
Darius understood the warning and gave a slow nod. Without another word, he raised his fist, and Silas bumped it before the two separated once more.
Silas drew the pursuit away, leading every pair of eyes in a different direction while making it appear as though they were repeating the same tactic as before.
Half an hour later, Darius finally sent the confirmation. Silas immediately changed course and rushed toward the rendezvous point.
This time, he burned one Mana Crystal after another without hesitation, widening the gap between himself and the Dark Hunters at an astonishing pace. The sight drove them into a frenzy.
They split into several groups to check whether he had changed direction or doubled back, yet every trace pointed to him continuing in a straight line. Convinced they were closing in, they pushed forward at full speed.
"Are you sure it’s a good idea to leave the Dark Hunters on their own?" Darius asked as soon as Silas caught up with him.
"We don’t have much of a choice," Silas replied with a shrug. "We need to rest, and I’m sure a group like the Dark Hunters has more than enough tricks to survive the encirclement."
Darius remained silent for a long moment before voicing his real concern.
"I’m more worried they’ll give up and disappear while we’re asleep."
Silas considered it for a moment before shaking his head.
"They’re too greedy," he said. "They’ve suffered heavy losses without gaining anything. For people like them, walking away empty-handed would be more unbearable than the danger itself."
Darius nodded in agreement.
"Besides, their original plan was probably to wait until the dragon clashed with the forces at the mine."
Silas glanced at the sky before looking back toward the distant horizon where he had left the Dark Hunters chasing after him.
"The moment the dragon makes its move, they’ll retreat and sneak into the mine. If that happens, everything will unfold exactly as we planned."
His expression grew slightly more serious.
"But if they’re wiped out by the mine’s defenders, or if they decide this chase isn’t worth it and flee, we’ll have to find another way to replace the role they were supposed to play."
Darius understood exactly what he meant. For a brief moment, it seemed he wanted to say something, but in the end, he simply smiled.
"Whatever happens," he said calmly, "we’ll find a way to make it work."
Silas nodded.
’Even if fate refuses to follow my plan...’
’I’ll force it to.’
The determination behind those silent words was unmistakable, and Darius caught it without needing to hear them. A faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
Once the two regrouped, Silas slowed his pace, no longer needing to outrun an army. A few minutes later, they reached the location Cher had marked on the map.
’Dammit...’
’Another valley.’
A small, barren valley stretched before them, filled with nothing but jagged rocks. Even so, Silas instinctively frowned. Ever since escaping the dragon’s valley, places like this had left him with an uneasy feeling.
Suppressing the discomfort, he followed Darius deeper inside. Guided by the directions Lara had sent earlier, they soon arrived before a narrow opening in the ground.
It was the entrance to an underground tunnel, its steep slope descending into darkness like the side of a cliff.
"Let’s seal it together."
After descending far enough to avoid being buried themselves, Silas gave the signal.
Darius slammed his iron-tusked arm into the surrounding rock while Silas struck the edges of the entrance with his daggers. Cracks spread rapidly through the stone, and within a minute, the weakened ceiling gave way.
The ground trembled as rocks cascaded downward.
The two immediately turned and sprinted into the tunnel, escaping just before the collapse buried the entrance behind them.
Then, darkness swallowed the world.
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