The Nox enemies in this shadow army camp were definitely not as scheming as Rose, but they were just good enough to follow her plans for them perfectly.
The Judgement Order members spread in both directions from their original position and left traces that led to both periphery territories, which led to the following events progressing in such a way.
Valakos spotted a glint out of the side of his eye.
He immediately chased it down and landed on the ground, only to find nothing around.
A scan of his awareness offered no clues in the surroundings for unknown reasons, but he did get a ping from the ground below.
"Hm?"
He made a sound of curiosity as he used mana to clear the area.
'Traces of battle.'
Barely present mana fluctuations that had been covered after what was obviously a great amount of work appeared in his perception.
The meaning was obvious.
'These cunning brats!'
"Men, come!"
His voice boomed in the ears of nearby Nox, and several tens of them answered his call.
"Is this all of you?" He asked suspiciously.
"No, Sir. There are fifty more of us in the vicinity," a High Commander responded dutifully.
"Fifty…?"
Valakos frowned. If there were supposed to be more, more that he was unable to sense…
"These cunning brats move quickly. I will give them that much."
"Sir…?"
"Spread out and check for traces of battle. They will be hidden, but they should exist."
"Understood!"
The High Commanders moved by his command immediately, but that wasn't enough.
"Krato and the rest are still underground. How did they manage to fool us?"
High Commanders clearly weren't enough to do the job.
Unfortunately, Valakos didn't have the authority to command his fellow Executioners.
'I will start moving myself.'
He would join the fray.
"Let us see how long you can run."
Just like them, he understood the key point.
They could not escape from him if he was able to find them.
It was a game of cat-and-mouse.
Would strength win out?
Or would schemes show their worth?
With the passing of minutes, Valakos received information about the tracks that led to the Ghostly Plains and its fellow periphery territory, indicating only one thing.
'They split and decided to run away.'
What was he expecting from a group of children?
Of course they would only think to flee.
Nevertheless, it wasn't his problem anymore.
"Alert the surrounding camps. There are some rats coming their way."
No matter what they tried, they wouldn't be safe.
He wouldn't allow them such a privilege!
***
Well…
Valakos' efforts were definitely noble, but he was unfortunately on the wrong path entirely.
The journey to the rendezvous point this time was far easier, mainly because the Nox beings on the way had been cleared prior.
Currently, the Judgement Order stood at the very edge of the dark forest. Ahead of them was a large open plain on which the shadow army encampment was located.
The third step of their plan was simply termed "absolute concealment."
They were found last time because they were separated and exposed already.
When Rose used the distraction as an opportunity to blanket the entire group in her illusions again, they disappeared from any perception that could touch them at the moment.
Valakos wasn't able to find them with his search, nor would others be able to perceive them even if they walked directly through the spot they were standing!
The beauty of Rose's trickery didn't need to be explained further, because they weren't anywhere near finished yet.
Making it out of the dark forest was the easy part. They had an advantage once they grouped up and their enemies were dumb.
From this point on, no such thing existed.
"There are three Supremes and a Demigod in that camp. No matter what, we will not be able to avoid them," Rose said solemnly.
"The Supremes will sweep this plain with their awareness every so often due to their protocol. Our current goal is to make it into the camp."
"Once we get there…"
Once they got there, they were going to charge straight through everything until they reached their goal.
There was no other option!
Huu…
Rose deeply exhaled.
Things were going well so far, but she didn't like what that meant for the future.
This stretch of the trip was entirely on her. The rest would be relying on her concealment to keep them hidden from the gazes of those who could crush them with a single finger.
"Su Ren, Aishia, aid me with your perception. Don't spread your awareness outside my barrier, but if you sense anything intuitively, tell me immediately."
The duo nodded and came to the front.
Of the group, these two had the best natural perception. Aishia gained it from her status as a true-blooded Valkyrie, while Su Ren broke the limits of a human through the teachings of his master.
Slowly, the group moved forward.
1 step…2 steps…3 steps…
"Stop!"
Aishia spoke first, and they instantly halted.
A sweeping wave of domineering power spread past them like the pinging of a navigation device.
"Huu…"
"Huu…"
"Huu…"
They were under Rose's protection, but they all instinctively slowed their heart rates and calmed their breathing.
That was a terrifying sensation.
And to think it just came from a single Supreme's perception!
That kind of force was monstrous. It was common to say that Supremes could kill them with a single finger, but this power proved that to be a severe understatement.
A Supreme…
A Supreme could kill them with no more than a thought!
"Calm down. We haven't been detected."
Rose's words were firm, but her heart was shaking.
She realized something important.
They were fine when they were still, but if that Supreme was able to sense their movement somehow…
'Focus.'
She threw away her useless thoughts.
The outcome was death regardless, so there was no point thinking about whether or not it would happen early.
"Let's move."
10 steps…20 steps…50 steps…
They moved slowly for safety, not making any big movements so Rose could finely control the atmosphere.
The distance they needed to cover was almost a kilometer. Their current pace wasn't getting them anywhere.
However, moving faster wasn't an option.
"Huu…huu…huu…"
Rose could feel the sweat building on her brow.
The pressure of the situation combined with the absolute control she needed to have on her illusions was taxing on the mind.
The subtlest changes in wind, atmospheric pressure, temperature, and even subtle things like weathering that didn't show obvious effects for thousands of years had to be considered.
The perception she was facing could detect the slightest displacement in a single particle of grass hundreds of thousands of kilometers away.
Right now, that perception was concentrated in this one-kilometer radius because there were already troops protecting the area outside it.
No Supreme wanted to take on the lackey job willingly.
He was doing the bare minimum, sure, but concentrated range meant concentrated power.
A single atom being out of place could alert him.
How could Rose easily move while maintaining this control?
That perception passed by them every 10 minutes.
With their current speed, it would take at least an hour to reach the destination.
For the rest, it was like a horror movie, quietly tiptoeing past a beast of untold proportions.
But for Rose, this was a direct battle of even greater untold proportions.
A brutal challenge against the Nox Supremes, and against herself.
