Rising god
Chapter 33: Strategic Silence

Chapter 33: Strategic Silence

Moments Before...

As the sun dipped beneath the canopy of tall whispering trees, casting a burnt-orange hue across the dirt path, tension stirred among Tasha’s squad. Dust kicked up under the hooves of their horses as they approached a forest clearing, only to be met with another force, an allied unit composed of armored knights from the Church.

The meeting was abrupt and cautious. Lined in polished armor that shimmered under the last rays of daylight, the Church’s detachment was formidable: four 3-star knights, ten 4-stars, five white-robed priests, all under the command of a battle-hardened 5-star knight. Their polished gear and organized discipline contrasted sharply with Tasha’s squad’s awkward appearance.

Their paths intersected awkwardly, like streams forced to cross by an unnatural current. Just as they were exchanging a curt greeting and readying to continue in their respective directions, a calm but firm voice sliced through the air.

"Wait," Baines said, his voice neither loud nor aggressive, but commanding enough to halt both squads.

Tasha turned towards him. "What is it?" she asked.

"I’m not certain, but..." he hesitated, scanning the terrain, "...can we wait? Just for a moment."

Brows furrowed. The Church knights shifted uncomfortably in their saddles, irritation flashing in their eyes.

The 5-star commander of the Church unit eyed Baines suspiciously. "What are you suggesting?"

Baines stepped forward, his cloak brushing against the long grass as he pointed toward the direction both groups were heading. "If my guess is right, the kidnappers are moving civilians from multiple villages. They’re converging—likely to a central location where blood essence will be extracted."

A murmur ran through both squads. The Church knights, trained to trust only in facts and divinity, balked at acting on speculation.

"You’re proposing we gamble lives based on intuition?" the commander asked incredulously.

Ronick narrowed his eyes and asked. "What makes you so sure?"

Baines’ response was measured, cold even. "Would you share the very method that made you powerful with a temporary ally or someone you barely trust?"

The words struck a chord. Silence fell as the implications hung in the air. Even those who doubted him a moment before found themselves nodding inwardly. It was true, would the deplorable just teach his method to just anyone? Even if he really wanted revenge, he wouldn’t just give away that leverage he had.

The Church’s 5-star knight was the first to break the silence. "What do you propose, then?"

Baines reached into his bag and pulled out bundles of greenish-brown plants. "We follow them. Take ten each."

Ronick took one and examined it skeptically. "What is this?"

"Chew it," Baines instructed. "It cloaks our presence for about twenty seconds. Enough to move undetected."

With a fluid motion, he dismounted and tethered his horse to a stick wedged into the soil. Demonstrating, he chewed the herb, then vanished from sight, an eerie silence replacing his presence.

The squads gasped.

Even Tasha looked on with wide eyes. When he reappeared moments later, the value of the humble plant skyrocketed in their minds.

They obeyed, dismounting and taking up positions in the dense underbrush midway between the known village and the assumed convergence point.

Hours passed like whispers. The woods were alive with chirps, rustles, and the distant sound of hooves.

Then, as though summoned by fate, figures began to appear. Dark-robed captors guided bound civilians with their mouths gagged, wrists chained, along paths that led toward a desolate building in the center of a hidden basin.

The squads remained deathly silent, but inside, anger boiled.

"They were really taking them to the same location," Tasha whispered, eyes narrowing.

"If we had gone on ahead," muttered one of the priests bitterly, "we’d have saved only one village."

The realization was chilling. Like that, they followed them to their hideout, staying at a distance.

"So... what now?" the Church commander asked grimly.

From their vantage point, they could see the building now, half-buried into the hillside, flanked by guards at every chained civilian’s path. Groups of captors maintained discipline with whips and staves, herding the villagers like cattle.

"There will be two battlefronts," Baines began, "Here, and inside the building. I’ll create a disturbance to lure them here. While we engage them, the rest of you flank from the back and breach the compound to free the civilians."

The plan was direct, but risky.

"You mean... the strongest among us remain behind to distract them?" the Church knight asked, clearly displeased.

"Yes," Baines answered without hesitation. "Now go."

"But shouldn’t we—"

"Torrential Slash!"

His bladeless sword spun without hesitation as tendrils of raw energy whipped like branches from trees and slammed them into the ground with thunderous force.

An explosion rocked the woods, sending birds screeching into the sky.

BOOM!

"Shit! RUN—NOW!" yelled the Church knights, unable to refute any further.

As smoke and chaos engulfed the forest, the majority of both squads peeled off toward the basin’s rear, guided by flank leaders.

Then, Baines, Mark—the 5-star Church knight, Ronick, Tasha, and another 5th star from Tasha’s squad stayed behind.

...

From the enemy’s hideout, the explosion was like a flare.

The chief, suspicious and alert, motioned a group forward. "Follow me. The rest of you, double security. If anything happens to those materials, heads will roll!"

They moved fast.

Smoke trailed upward, visible from hundreds of meters away.

When the chief and his men arrived at the blast site, they were met with five silhouettes emerging from the fog. His blood chilled.

"Three... 5th stars?" he murmured in disbelief. "Who are you?"

However, Mark moved first, lunging forward with a swift strike.

Clang!

The clash of weapons rang through the trees. The chief barely parried with his axe, overwhelmed by the precision of Mark’s attacks.

’Damn it... Did they follow us? How?! I knew I was having a bad feeling today, was this it?’

Golden light burst from Mark’s blade.

"You know to kidnap, huh. Eat this, Holy Cross!"

A shining cross carved through the air and surged forward.

It wasn’t just mana or aura, it was pure, holy energy, divine power.

Even from a distance, Baines felt the spiritual weight of it. It was his first time seeing divinity in action, but he immediately recognized it. ’So, this is how it looks.’ Baines muttered. Though the level of divine power was low, too low, it didn’t change that fact.

The attack blasted the chief backward, slamming him into his own men.

"Ughh...!" he groaned, coughing blood.

"Chief, are you alright?"

"C-Chief"

"..."

He raised a shaking hand, telling them to stop and sent a mental command to his men:

"One of you—report to the boss. Now! I’ll hold them."

Without a word, one turned and ran. Tasha made a move to intercept, but paused and glanced at Baines.

’Why?’ She asked no one in particular.

Was there a reason to let the messenger go?

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