Chương 494: Chapter : 494

Karna landed softly on the rock next to Ken. The silver-eyed spymaster looked at the massive, screaming mob. The rain did not touch his sleek black jacket. He used a tiny aura to deflect the dark water.

"Boss," Karna reported smoothly. His voice was completely calm.

"The civilian population is entirely compromised. The black rain is a biological manipulation spell. They are attacking our forces. They are attacking the enemy forces. The battlefield is completely unpredictable."

"I can see that, Karna," Ken sighed lazily. He slouched his shoulders. He kept his concrete umbrella perfectly balanced over his head.

"They are making a massive amount of noise. My ears are ringing."

"What are your orders, Boss?" Karna asked politely. He placed his hands behind his back.

"Do you want us to eradicate the mob? We can clear the plaza in ten seconds." Ken stopped chewing his candy. He looked at the screaming baker. He looked at the angry teacher. He shook his head slowly.

"No, Karna," Ken ordered firmly. He did not use his terrifying Sovereign voice. He just spoke like a tired gamer.

"We cannot eradicate them. They are just normal people. They are innocent NPCs. If we wipe out the civilian NPCs, we get a terrible bad ending. I refuse to get a bad ending." Karna tilted his head slightly.

"A bad ending, Boss?"

"Yes," Ken nodded completely seriously.

"We are doing a pacifist run today. Zero civilian casualties. You must not hurt the normal people. You can destroy the Black Spirits. But you cannot use lethal force on the glowing red-eyed humans. You just have to knock them out or push them away." Karna bowed respectfully. He understood the command perfectly.

"A non-lethal subjugation protocol. It will be much more difficult. But we will execute your will flawlessly."

"Good," Ken smiled a goofy smile.

"Tell the rest of the team. I am going to stay under this rock. This rain is ruining my shoes." Karna opened his telepathic link. He broadcasted the new rules to the other commanders. The commanders received the message. They immediately changed their combat stances. Erana stood in the middle of the street. The fierce swordswoman held her giant, towering longsword. A frenzied blacksmith charged at her with a metal hammer. Erana raised her sword to slice him in half. She heard Karna's voice in her mind.

"Zero civilian casualties. Non-lethal force only." Erana groaned loudly. She flipped her giant sword around. She used the flat, blunt side of the massive blade. She swung the flat metal like a giant baseball bat. She smacked the blacksmith gently on the side of the head. The blacksmith spun around and collapsed onto the cobblestones. He was completely unconscious. He was totally safe.

"This is so annoying!" Erana complained to the sky. She dodged a flying pitchfork.

"I have a giant sword! I want to cut things! Using the flat side is completely boring! I cannot use my ultimate attacks!" If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. Samiha dashed across the plaza. She held her spinning screw-spear. The drill whined loudly. Five red-eyed citizens ran toward her. They yelled mindlessly.

"Non-lethal force," Samiha mumbled. She sighed. She did not thrust her drill at the humans. She pointed her drill straight down. She drilled a massive, deep hole into the dirt street. The five citizens ran blindly forward. They did not look down. They fell straight into the deep hole. They landed safely at the bottom. They could not climb out. They were totally trapped.

"Pitfall traps," Samiha noted proudly.

"Very efficient. Very safe. But totally lacking in dramatic flair." The chaotic battlefield grew even more complicated. The commanders struggled to balance the two entirely different enemy types. They had to use full power against the shadow monsters. They had to use extreme restraint against the human mob. It was a massive, frustrating juggling act. Ken watched from his rock. He let out a loud yawn. The pacifist run was officially underway, and it was going to require an intense amount of micromanagement.

The black rain continued to pour. The entire city of Bluemoon was soaked in dark water. The frenzied mob of citizens grew larger every single minute. The people swarmed the streets. They outnumbered the Black Spirits. They outnumbered the golden commanders. Ken Eliot crouched on his rock. He held his piece of broken concrete over his head. The black rain tapped against the stone. Tap. Tap. Tap. He slouched his shoulders. He watched the chaotic battle unfold.

"This is an escort mission," Ken complained lazily. He shoved his free hand into his pocket.

"Escort missions are the absolute worst part of any game. The friendly characters always run straight into danger. They have zero survival instincts. It is very stressful to watch." Down in the plaza, Joseph planted his massive boots on the cobblestones. The earth magician wore rugged brown robes. A large group of glowing red-eyed citizens charged at him. They swung wooden brooms and iron pots. Joseph did not punch them. He placed his rock-covered gauntlets flat against the wet ground.

"Stone Cages," Joseph stated in his deep, solid voice. The earth rumbled. Thick walls of solid rock ripped out of the street. The rocks formed perfect, square boxes around the charging citizens. The rock boxes closed at the top. The citizens were entirely trapped inside the stone cages. They banged their brooms against the rock walls. They were completely safe from the battle.

"This is literally a tower defense mini-game," Ken cheered from his rock. He gave Joseph a lazy thumbs-up.

"Excellent crowd control, Joseph. You are keeping the NPCs totally secure. Just make sure you leave some air holes in those boxes. We want them to breathe." Joseph nodded once. He created tiny air holes in the stone. Mirajane floated gracefully in the air. The elegant magician wore her dark purple gown. She dodged a flying wooden chair. A frenzied shopkeeper threw it at her. Mirajane smiled a polite, totally unfazed smile.

"These poor people are very tired," Mirajane purred softly. She waved her dark wooden staff.

"They need a nice, long nap." Mirajane did not fire her massive chaotic energy beams. She changed her magic completely. She summoned dozens of glowing, soft pink bubbles. The bubbles floated gently down toward the angry mob. The pink bubbles popped over the citizens' heads. A sweet, sparkling mist rained down on them. It was a highly concentrated area of effect sleep spell. The red glow faded from the citizens' eyes. They blinked slowly. They dropped their pitchforks and brooms. They let out soft, peaceful sighs.

They collapsed onto the wet cobblestones. They fell into a very deep, very comfortable sleep. They snored quietly in the middle of the war zone.

"Classic RPG sleep powder," Ken analyzed casually. He popped another strawberry candy into his mouth.

"Very effective against low-level mobs. It saves a massive amount of mana. Mirajane is definitely a top-tier support unit." Merlin walked calmly through the chaotic street. The spearman wore shining silver armor. Three Black Spirits leaped at him with dark swords. Merlin thrust his glowing blue spear. Bright blue lasers pierced the shadow monsters. The monsters turned into gray ash instantly.