Chapter 72: Night Raid

The alarm blared, cutting through the night. Soldiers scrambled to man the fort as chaos erupted.

"All Magical Girls, prepare the tubes. We will extract the essence!" Freya's voice echoed through the intercom. The order left me bewildered, my body halting in confusion.

"What are you talking about? We're supposed to fight! The soldiers should retreat to Agneya. They aren't equipped to handle this level of anathema incursion!" another Magical Girl voiced exactly what I was thinking.

"All hands on deck. Soldiers, prepare your guns. Guardians, get ready to extract their essence. Guardians without extraction abilities will stand guard. Engage when they get close!" Lieutenant Gwen's firm voice dispelled any further confusion.

With the orders clarified, we began to move. Guardians rolled out in jeeps while soldiers manned turrets and prepared their weapons.

"Felicia... will we be okay?" I asked, my grip tightening on my rifle.

"We're adapting to a new battle strategy. It will take time to adjust," Felicia replied, her tone calm but measured.

"Damn it! Fifty meters? That's practically right before your face!" a ranged Guardian's frustrated voice crackled over the intercom.

Felicia chimed in, "I've also picked up similar complaints from the soldiers. They're saying Guardian Command is too greedy, prioritizing essence collection over safety."

I sighed heavily, swapping my sniper rifle for my shotgun. If we were going to engage in close combat, the shotgun's buckshot would serve me better.

The Anathema swarm appeared in the distance, a black mass surging forward like a tide. Their dark, sticky ichor glistened in the floodlights, and their white, jagged teeth gleamed menacingly. The swarm was nightmarish, a writhing wave of terror.

Turret fire lit up the sky, orange sparks tracing deadly arcs through the dark. The rhythmic thrumming of bullets became the battle's anthem, lifting the soldiers' spirits even as they braced for the swarm's impact. The barrage tore through the approaching tide, slowing their advance but failing to stop it completely.

Guardians in jeeps raised their vials high, collecting the swirling dark essence released by fallen Anathema. As the enemy closed in, I loaded buckshot into my shotgun and began firing. Each blast tore through the low-level Anathema attempting to overrun my position. The ichor sprayed, their bodies dissolving faster as their essence was harvested.

The battlefield was a chaotic symphony of gunfire, the whir of turrets, and the eerie howls of the Anathema. The soldiers fought valiantly, holding the line as the night raid dragged on.

I sighed in relief as the situation seemed manageable. Then, an explosion rocked the fort, an anathema's magical attack striking one of the towers and sending it crashing to the ground. I froze, the grim reality of our location sinking in—I had forgotten that we were in the Darklands, not an usurpation zone. There was a critical difference between the two.

Usurpation zones were controlled environments, measured and monitored by Zenith technology. The Anathema there could only spawn within a certain strength range. The Darklands, however, were a lawless expanse where Anathema from multiple usurpation rifts wandered freely. Low-level E or F ranks could mingle with dangerous A ranks. This was why every Darklands expedition required a team of A-rank Guardians.

Despite precautions, casualties among Guardians still occurred during ambushes, and today was no exception. A high-level anathema had just sniped the tower, killing the soldiers stationed within.

"Multiple C-ranked Anathema detected. Magical Girls of C rank and above are advised to stop extractions and engage the Anathema," came the warning over the intercom.

I continued firing, disobeying the orders as the soldiers around me began to retreat. The rhythmic thrumming of their guns slowed, replaced by the chilling howls of the encroaching Anathema. Summoning my clones, I directed them to fill the gaps in our defenses.

"Give me!" one of my clones demanded, reaching for my shotgun. Without hesitation, I summoned my naginata and tossed the shotgun to her. These clones lacked a shield aura, making them vulnerable to anathema attacks. If they were struck, they would perish. It was a logical conclusion, yet it irked me that the suggestion came from them, not me.

"Let me handle the essence!" another clone called out, producing a vial. Using my newly acquired Extract skill, dark essence began swirling into it.

"Fire! Die!" one clone let out a manic laugh as she unleashed a barrage of bullets from her assault rifle, mowing down hordes of Anathema. Another calmly reloaded her shotgun, treating the battle like a round of a video game.

"D-rank incoming. Watch out!"

"Real Lily, we'll leave that big one to you," one clone said, gesturing toward a hulking giant lumbering toward me. I gripped my naginata tightly, readying myself for the fight.

"A Fomorian Gloam. Its hulking body is tough, and its club attack can deal significant damage. However, it's slow. As long as you can dodge its strikes, you can whittle it down and eliminate it," Felicia advised.

"Roger." I dashed toward the massive gloam as it bellowed, raising its colossal club high overhead. At the last moment, I dropped into a slide, slipping between its legs as the enormous club smashed into the ground behind me, sending a plume of dust into the air.

"It's not that slow…" I muttered while coughing from the smoke. Despite its size, the gloam's speed caught me off guard. Its attacks weren't as sluggish as I'd expected.

"It's at the high end of D-ranked monsters, somewhere around level fifty. Don't underestimate it. While your official rank is E, your level is around the lower D rank. If not for you being a Dark Magical Girl with unique achievements and a Slayer class, you'd have trouble beating it," Felicia warned.

Nodding, I circled the beast. With a precise slash, I cut through the tendons of its leg, forcing it to kneel. Suddenly, the hulking beast's head snapped back and fell, raising another cloud of dust.

"Bullseye," my sniper clone announced through the intercom. I didn't need to see her to know she was striking a victory pose. With the beast stunned, I dashed forward and leaped onto its neck. Using an overhead slash, I cleaved through the thick muscle of its neck.

I wasn't sure if this monster had a carotid artery, but blood gushed from the wound like a geyser. A kill chime rang in my ears as the beast began disintegrating, dark essence flowing into the vials. My clones moved closer, efficiently extracting the remaining essence.

"Let's return," I commanded. One of the things I appreciated about my clones was their ability to understand me without talking. Their movement toward me now was likely to ensure the Anathema's essence was fully harvested.

"Tactical magic incoming," Felicia alerted. "Freya is preparing a lightning hurricane spell in this area. We need to evacuate—head toward the back."

I signaled my clones, and we retreated to safety as the sky began to crackle ominously above us.

The wind began to howl, and lightning illuminated the clouds above. I could see swirls of mana emanating from Freya. Mana was a relatively new force in this world, and we Magical Girls were granted the right to wield it by the Zenith.

Most magics were more subtle. Usurpation zones were usually confined to buildings, and many Guardians preferred to focus their skills and magic on specific areas or single targets to avoid friendly fire. However, at A rank, Guardians had access to high-tier skills where such concerns became trivial. She might pick that spell just now for testing for all we know.

The wind swirled violently as tornadoes touched down, crackling with lightning. The electrical arcs leaped out, frying every Anathema caught within the storms.

"Alright, situation under control," Freya announced confidently.

"So, this is what an A rank can do… just one step below Pink Heart," I muttered, surveying the wasteland of destruction left in the spell's wake.

"Well, that's one vial filled," one of my clones remarked. I turned to her, raising an eyebrow.

"One vial? Did we really kill that many?" I asked, comparing the amount collected to what we'd managed earlier in the day.

"That C-ranked Anathema sealed the deal. Extracting essence immediately after an Anathema's death is the most efficient method. Even a ten-second delay can result in a more than 20% reduction in essence. A twenty-second delay diminishes it further, cutting it in half."

"We've been doing it wrong this whole time…" I sulked.

"That's correct. But this is a valuable learning experience. The Zenith is pleased that humans are making strides toward fighting Anathema on more equal footing without relying entirely on Guardians."

"You call that equal footing? We were nearly wiped out," I grumbled.

"Given time, with better equipment and more advanced enchantments, soldiers will become stronger," Felicia said calmly.

I swallowed my frustration, knowing she was right. Everything takes time. I needed to be patient. I was leveling up steadily, and rushing wouldn't help.

"Well, let's not dwell on that. Here's your progress from today's battle."

[You have leveled up to Level 33!]

[You have defeated a horde of Anathema! Below is the summary of points received. Consult Familiars for more info.]

[Reward: 460 Points]

"Alright, good work, everyone. Unfortunately, the fort was damaged, so we'll sleep inside Agneya tonight. Tomorrow, we'll repair the fort and continue our hunt!" Freya announced, her voice firm but encouraging.

"Dammit! This enchanter class sucks. My attack power is reduced!" I overheard a Guardian complaining in the cafeteria.

"The points are terrible too," another Guardian chimed in, clearly sharing the frustration.

"Well, without your main class, your power is bound to drop…" Shining added with a sympathetic nod. She hadn't changed her class, unlike Sapphire, so Shining had performed notably better today than others.

"Alright, everyone," Freya addressed the room, her tone calm but commanding. "We've managed to fill three full vials today. It's less than we hoped for, but it's still progress. We're getting there." She smiled as she made the announcement, with Lieutenant Gwen standing beside her. As the highest-ranked Guardian present, Freya was the de facto leader of the expedition. However, Guardians, being inherently independent, didn't hide their dissatisfaction.

"What the heck. Acting all high and mighty. If it weren't for your wide-area attack, we'd have gotten more points. And why let soldiers kill the Anathema in the first place? They're stealing our points!" a disgruntled Guardian muttered loudly enough for others to hear.

Freya didn't lose her composure. She kept smiling, but I recognized that smile—it was the same strained smile I used to wear. Before she could respond, Lieutenant Gwen stepped forward and took the blame.

"Some B- and C-ranked Anathema were sighted," Gwen began, her voice steady but apologetic. "We have several F-ranked Guardians here, and as you all know, Magical Guardians are the cornerstone of our civilization. We couldn't risk Anathema harming them. That's why I made the call for Freya to use her signature annihilation magic. It was my decision, and I take full responsibility. I apologize for any inconvenience it caused."

Lieutenant Gwen bowed deeply, his genuine humility cutting through the tension in the room. The Guardians, seeing his sincerity, held their complaints. The cafeteria fell into an awkward silence as everyone quietly reflected on the day.

As I lay in my bunk later that night, my thoughts lingered on the soldiers who had died during the raid and how everyone praised that no Guardians died on this expedition. Despite the relative success of the mission, their sacrifices weighed heavily on me. None mentioned the soldiers who died today.

"They're human too…We are humans too..." I whispered to myself, staring at the ceiling of my bunk. The quiet hum of Agneya's engines was the only reply.