How come this arcanist is invincible?

Chapter 62 Tactical Advocates

The carcass of the rotting, centipede-like crawler was being cut into pieces and loaded onto handcarts by the city guards.

This bizarre scene attracted the attention of many passersby who covered their noses as they stared at it.

Members of the Lantern Bearers squad were also among them.

A second-tier spellcaster in the squad, dressed in a robe, glanced at the Night's Watch badges on Kane and the others' chests, nodded slightly, and then turned and left.

Serena's eyes were full of approval, but Orion's face was full of doubt.

"These carrion crawlers must have mutated; my arrows couldn't even pierce their hide. What happened to that Night's Watch squad...?"

Before he could finish speaking, his tone was full of incomprehension and resentment.

"Orion, put away your arrogance and take a good look at that corpse."

Serena interrupted him in a low voice, pointing to the dismembered remains.

"There are marks from heavy crossbow bolts, a strong smell of alcohol, and scorch marks from flames. Now you understand, right?"

She paused, then slowly explained:

"This Night Watch squad took advantage of the carrion crawler's diet, first using a wild boar carcass soaked in alcohol as bait for it to swallow."

"Then lure it to the pre-set ambush point, use the heavy crossbow that is difficult to move but has great power to break through its defenses, and finally use magic combined with close-range attacks to finish it off."

"This is a rather ingenious and reasonable tactical arrangement."

Orion stared blankly at the marks on the corpse, speechless for a long time.

Serena turned to look at Reed, her tone sincere:

"Captain Reed, your tactics fully demonstrate the wisdom of spellcasters and the power of teamwork."

"Please forgive me for not being able to accept the cooperation proposal yesterday."

Sensing the other party's goodwill, Reed's tense expression eased slightly, but he shook his head:

"This is not my doing; the entire tactic was Kane's suggestion."

Upon hearing this, all the lantern bearers present were taken aback.

A clear look of surprise flashed in Shar's eyes as she turned to look at Kane.

Orion's eyes were complex and hard to read, showing shock and resentment, but he managed to suppress them.

Kane nodded slightly and joined the others in helping the city guards deal with the crawler's corpse.

Just then, Shar stepped forward and asked softly:

"Kane, can we find somewhere to talk?"

Kane agreed after a moment's thought. He knew that Shar had many doubts in her heart, and he had already prepared his explanation.

He asked Reed for a short leave of absence.

Reed was in a good mood and waved, "Go ahead."

He even patted his shoulder hard.

Watching the two figures walk away side by side, Orion's face turned pale and then red, and finally he lowered his head in despair, his eyes filled with an indescribable sense of loss.

His sense of justice wouldn't allow him to do anything out of line.

Sienna, standing to the side, hesitated, shifted her feet, but ultimately remained where she was.

Gavin looked at his teammates' expressions and sighed.

"When I was young, I also hesitated about a relationship... Just as I was wavering, she eventually started a family with someone else."

Sienna's lips twitched slightly, her expression somewhat uneasy.

Braden, however, added inappropriately:

"Gavin, didn't you say that she chose to marry that merchant guild manager because she felt the Night's Watch lifestyle was too unstable?"

Gavin abruptly stopped speaking and glared at his teammate with annoyance.

Sienna couldn't help but chuckle softly, but a Nordic proverb surfaced in her mind:

Those who dare not reveal their true feelings will ultimately miss out on what they truly want.

……

Meanwhile, Kane remained oblivious to his teammates' unspoken criticisms.

After changing his clothes, he followed Shar to a restaurant in the fourth district.

The environment here is quite quiet, and the head chef is from Susas Elf Court, one of the six kingdoms.

The pointy-eared half-elf waiter politely took down the order.

Before long, several exquisitely presented and fragrant dishes were served.

After a moment of silence at the table, Shar finally spoke first, her voice very low:

"Kane... how did you get into the Night's Watch? My intelligence says you jumped off a cliff with your mentor in your arms..."

Here it comes, Kane thought.

"I survived because of some accidents."

He said calmly, "And that mentor is dead."

He deliberately emphasized the word "that person," but Shar didn't notice and assumed he had only survived by sheer luck.

Shar nodded and asked further:

"Then how did you come to be a Dead Apostle of the Night's Watch?"

Kane said frankly:

"It's already lucky that someone like me, who murdered both parents, was made a death row inmate instead of being hanged."

A complex emotion flashed across Shar's face, a mixture of regret and relief.

Finally, she raised her head, her golden eyes shining with sincerity:

"Thank you for being alive, Kane."

"You chose to return to the base so that I would leave... I can never forget that."

Kane smiled faintly and said nothing more.

The reason he dared to return to the Demon Cult's stronghold was because he had already prepared multiple escape routes.

After all, unless he is killed dozens of times in a row, he will be difficult to truly perish.

Unless the patriarch intervenes personally...

Looking at Shar's face, which was slightly glowing with happiness, her golden hair shone softly under the light.

Kane broke the silence:

"Shar, do you remember the corpse that was eaten by the carrion crawlers?"

The atmosphere around the dining table instantly became heavy.

The smile on Shar's face vanished instantly, and she nodded, saying:

"It's the Demon Cult. They've already extended their reach into Nord, and have even begun to lay their hands on this war city."

"The half-demonized characteristics of that corpse indicate that the other party used the 'Stigmata Ritual'."

Kane nodded slowly.

He recounted the experiences of the warrior Marcus and the necromancer Flynn that he had encountered earlier.

Shar listened quietly, her gaze growing increasingly serious.

Kane looked at her and asked:

"You were once an executor. Can you tell me exactly how the demonization caused by the Stigmata Ritual and the Possession Potion works?"

Shar frowned slightly, a look of reminiscence appearing on her beautiful face:

"Believers must carve one mark every seven days, collecting thirteen marks, and then take a possession potion, sacrificing their souls..."

Finally, on the night of the full moon, they drank the magic potion, welcoming the arrival of the demon.

"What if we don't follow the ritual, but only use the potion or just carve the stigmata?" Kane pressed.

Sharon paused, a hint of melancholy in his voice.

"The Abyss itself is chaotic and disordered. Doing so might arouse greater interest from the Abyss, causing the sacrificer to mutate prematurely... but it is also possible to still receive a reward."

She added in a low voice:

"Since the gods disappeared, our understanding of the Abyss... has become less and less."

Kane seemed to be deep in thought.

Combined with Shar's explanation, the previous clues suddenly became clear.

The Abyss itself is like a mad plane of consciousness, and the established rituals are the proper means.

But for that "madman," doing things unconventionally might actually attract more attention.

He looked up at Shar, his tone serious:

"Could you use your Lantern Bearer privileges to investigate the recent missing persons in the Fourth District?"

"Especially those involved in professions—whether they are city guards, night watchmen, lantern bearers, or people from the mage tower."

"You mean, that half-demon corpse in the sewers might be...?"

"I'm not sure, but it's highly likely."

Shar nodded knowingly.

"I understand, I will investigate as soon as possible."

"Protect yourself while you are investigating."

"Um."

Kane, having achieved his goal, said no more.

He got up, paid his share of the bill, and prepared to leave.

"etc!"

Shar suddenly called out to him.

Kane stopped and turned to look at her.

Shar's cheeks flushed slightly. After hesitating for a moment, she asked:

"That girl named Sienna... are you really just teammates?"

Kane answered without hesitation:

"Not just that."

Just as a hint of unease appeared in Shar's eyes, he continued:

"She's my friend, just like you."

After Kane finished speaking, he turned and left.

Shar paused for a moment, then a slight smile appeared on her lips as she murmured to herself:

"Friends...?"

……

After leaving the restaurant, Kane went straight back to his residence.

He took out a notebook, which was filled with Chinese characters.

The notes revolve around several keywords:

Marcus, necromancer Flynn, Possession Potion, Carrion Crawler, Unknown Demon Corpse, Demon Cult...

These clues are like scattered puzzle pieces, and he vaguely sees a large net that is tightening.

Kane's fingertips traced the words "Demon Cult" on the paper.

He murmured softly, his tone carrying an undeniable firmness:

"No matter where you hide, I'm not far from you."