The two mountains stood in the middle of a plain featuring many barren spots, especially near the shores of its small rivers. A thriving flora would normally fill that area, but the constant sunlight in the past two months had killed many of those plants. Dark-green grass still grew, but its appearance was far from healthy. The vegetation there couldn't survive the massive change.
Only the areas shielded by the huge mountains still had flourishing plants. Those tall and large structures were barren in the zones exposed to the sunlight and full of life in the others. The valley had barely gone through any changes during the crisis since only a few sunrays managed to reach its depths.
The army only needed one hour to reach the mountains, but they slowed down their pace on purpose to make sure that the scouts could arrive in their positions. Yeza made the group stop whenever she received an update on the valley, but her face didn't show any satisfaction in those moments.
The entrance of the valley was vast. The two mountains grew closer on the other side, which made it the harsher path to tread. The ground grew muddy as the group stepped on the shadows created by the two tall structures and began their slow advance into the enemy territory.
Utter silence disrupted only by the noises of the river and the faint winds filled the area. The march of the army added squelching noises due to the many feet digging into the mud. Only Khan, Ilman, and a few experts who practiced fitting techniques could avoid causing those disturbances, but their efforts were useless among their loud companions.
The army wasn't trying to sneak up on the rebels. Yeza had announced how they had probably already learnt of their arrival. That had even become a certainty now that her group had entered the valley. The careful approach had the sole purpose of avoiding eventual traps on the path.
Rare trees began to appear on the shores of the rivers as the army reached deeper parts of the valley. Annoying bushes also began to grow as the air dampened. The temperature fell, but it didn't stop the weaker underlings from sweating. Anxiety built up, but everyone showed firm resolve during the march.
The army had yet to assemble in a battle formation. The higher-ups led the underlings across the valley while keeping their senses alert. Yeza and other experts in the sensitivity field could read the mana in the environment like a book and uncover every secret that it hid. Their sole presence helped the young humans and Niqols endure their tension and filled their minds with confidence.
The river narrowed together with the valley, but the area remained quite vast. The annoying mud was the only issue capable of hindering the army, but that applied only to the younger troops. The higher-ups had ways to deal with that challenging terrain.
Multiple azure lights suddenly flashed among the army, and everyone immediately stopped. That was one of the signals planned before departing from the encampment. Yeza would use the cubes in the Niqols robes to convey orders through a simple code. The devices had blinked twice, which meant that Yeza had ordered a complete halt of the march.
Khan peeked past the higher-ups in front of him to inspect the situation. Liiza and his friends were near him, and they didn't hesitate to fall prey to the same curiosity.
Yeza and a few Niqols took careful steps as they separated from the rest of the army. They advanced for twenty meters before stopping and stretching their arms forward. Long seconds filled with deafening silence followed that gesture, but a series of rumbling noises soon resounded throughout the valley.
The ground shook for a few seconds before a series of explosions unfolded at some distance from Yeza's group. Mud and dirt flew in every direction as a long patch of the valley's floor detonated and left behind a line of red flames that hindered the army's path.
The explosions didn't manage to hurt Yeza's group, and the experts could soon move forward to deal with the flames. That fire seemed to have magical properties since it continued to burn on the wet ground without any fuel, but the Niqols dealt with it through similar methods. They tinkered with the mana along the fiery line until they deactivated the trap.
The fire quickly vanished, and Yeza's group could reunite with the army. The cubes flashed a single time, and the march resumed.
Khan and the other underlings couldn't help but stare at the large patch of charred ground when they crossed it. The area affected by the trap stretched until the other side of the valley and was six meters large. It would have killed many rows of troops if they were to activate it with their feet.
The trap announced the arrival into the area affected by the rebels, and the army didn't have to wait long before meeting more traces of their presence. Yeza ended up stopping the march multiple times since she found more defensive mechanisms that required her attention.
The army could witness more explosions, rows of arrows covered in venom shooting out of the rocky walls in the distance, deep holes filled with spears, and a strange patch of mud that acted like quicksand. Those traps appeared simple, but all of them could kill many experienced warriors if caught by surprise. They were deadly and placed in intelligent locations, but nothing seemed able to escape Yeza's senses.
The situation didn't improve when the castle finally appeared on the path. Its form was almost identical to the safe structure that the army had used before the travel, but moss covered a vast part of its surfaces. Moreover, the red symbols glowing on its black metal announced how the rebels had already altered some functions.
Yeza forced the group to stop again. A deep frown appeared on her face as her eyes darted among the environment. Khan and those with decent sensitivity to mana could immediately understand the nature of the issue. The mana in the area all around the castle was a mess that featured different behaviors and dark spots.
Even Yeza struggled to understand how many traps the area had. The rebels couldn't take control of all those defenses, so they had placed new ones on top of them to create a messy and chaotic array that even the best experts would find hard to decipher.
Yeza could open a path, but the time required by the task was immense. She would need an entire week only to gain a general idea of the array of traps before even starting its removal.
The cubes among the army blinked four times and made those who had those devices pick them to hear the mental message. Yeza's voice resounded in their minds and compelled them to retreat by a few meters.
Khan and the other Niqols conveyed those others to the recruits before the army began the partial retreat. Only Yeza and Captain Erbair remained behind, but the soldier joined the group after a short conversation with the Niqols.
"Crouch and cover your eyes!" Captain Erbair shouted after the army stopped and glanced at Yeza in the distance. "She is about to trigger all traps at once!"
The explanation made the group search for a better spot. They approached one of the sides of the valley and created a line alongside its rocky wall before crouching. Khan and Liiza were using a small corner to hide their figures, but they both peeked at Yeza to inspect her actions.
Yeza checked that the entire army had reached a safe spot before turning toward the palace. She closed her eyes and stretched her arm forward as mana flowed toward the tip of her fingers. She seemed about to cast a spell, but the azure shades of her energy soon vanished.
"[My mother's element deals with feelings]," Liiza whispered. "[She can give them form and alter them. Most Niqols consider her a rare genius since her element gives her a natural advantage in our techniques]."
"[Is her element to blame for her lasciviousness]?" Khan asked.
"[Khan, we are our element]," Liiza explained without moving her eyes from her mother. "[Our mana takes the shape of our character and enhances its features. You are one of the few exceptions to this truth, but that won't last. Your element will eventually become a core part of your personality]."
The silence that followed those words worried Liiza since she knew how delicate the topic was with Khan. She wanted to turn to inspect him, but he promptly placed a hand on her head to reassure her. The couple could continue to focus on Yeza, but that didn't last long.
A tremor ran throughout the air around the castle. The event had been too evident to miss, but it had also been relatively invisible. The area had blurred for a mere second before returning to its normal state.
Nothing seemed to happen, but Yeza jumped back before continuing to retreat without moving her gaze away from the castle. An earthquake soon arrived as the ground around the structure lit up to show its azure and red shades. Multiple traps activated at the same time and made it impossible to keep track of the scene.
Explosions destroyed a large chunk of the muddy area and set it aflame, but an acid liquid soon came out of the ground and put an end to the fire. Spears and arrows shot from different spots of the rocky walls, but they also melted when they hit the toxic swamp that now surrounded the castle.
The temperature then rose and evaporated the toxic liquid, transforming it into a green cloud that started to spread in the valley. Yeza didn't hesitate to glance at some adult Niqols, and they immediately left their safe spot to face the incoming threat.
The three Niqols who had left their position stepped forward before pulling their arms back. Their palms opened as they started to push an invisible wall that made the veins on their foreheads bulge.
The scene felt strange. The Niqols were clearly struggling to push something forward, but they weren't touching anything. However, winds suddenly blew from behind the army and made the toxic cloud flow toward the other end of the valley. It turned out that the three experts had taken control of the air in the environment.
More traps detonated while the Niqols dealt with the toxic cloud. Boulders fell and rolled around the castle, holes opened to reveal sharp weapons, and the water in the river even surged to transform into a snake-like shape that slammed its head on the area.
Each trap made the walls or the ground shake. Many Niqols and humans had to glance above them to make sure that no boulder fell on their heads. Luckily for them, their area seemed stable enough to survive that mess.
The valley took a whole minute to return silent and even more to disperse the dirt and smoke accumulated around the castle. The area never became completely clear, but Yeza made the cubes flash once when only a thin fog separated the army from their target.
Liiza and Khan exchanged a long kiss before separating. The battle plan saw them taking their position into the formation once the castle was in sight, and their roles were far different. Liiza had a supportive role due to the vast area that her spell could cover, while Khan had to deal with the annoying assets that the rebels wanted to protect.
"[Leave the strongest to me]," Khan said when a familiar figure approached his side.
"[Only if you reach them first]," Ilman laughed, and the two exchanged a resolute nod.
More Niqols and two soldiers gathered around Khan and Ilman. Their group had the least troops compared to the other teams, but that felt natural when their role was so specific. They never had to join the fray unless they felt certain about taking out a troublesome asset. They were assassins who had to thrive in the chaos of the battlefield.
