When his eyes looked at the map in his hands that covered a third of the continent, Emery saw that there were a total of 50 marks indicating the existence of the Abyss nest. However, there was an empty spot on the map.
That blank spot existed because Rayne didn't return to the main base and report her findings at the previous gathering, so the map didn't include the Abyss nests found within the scope of her search area.
During her exploration, Rayne had found six Abyss nests around this area before she ran into some trouble with Arcana. Hearing that, Emery assumed that there were still several more not yet found Abyss nests further north.
Even so, the amount of Abyss nests that needed to be cleared would definitely be still not enough to share for two squads. Hence, he needed to think of another creative solution.
There was also the fact that he needed these acolytes to help him gather survivors, something that could not be solved by his Mineralized Warrior summons.
Emery paused for a split second as if he remembered something, then he shifted his gaze towards Arcana and asked, "Tell me, how did you lure the Abyss creature out of the nest?"
Hearing that, Arcana smirked and quickly pointed his finger to his forehead. The meaning of his gesture was clear. The reason he was able to lure the Abyss creatures out of their nest was because of his special ability [Eye of Mistra].
The rank 10 privileged acolyte's face looked extremely proud as he bragged how amazing his ability was.
It was thanks to his eyes that he was able to spot the stage 5 Abyss creature from hundred miles away and enchanted Rayne to carry out his orders obediently. The fact that he was able to bewitch the blonde girl meant that he could do the same to dozens of stage 3 Abyss creatures or a few stage 4.
Arcana's words once again stirred the crowd in the wrong way, as Rayne turned and glared at the kid-looking acolyte. Unfortunately, Emery's presence left her with no chance for revenge so she just spat out curses from the sideline.
Emery inwardly shook his head seeing this. This Arcana, not only his body that looks like a child, but also his personality. Still, with this new information, he quickly altered and formed a new plan.
And obviously, the two squads had no choice but to follow it through.
Without saying anything else, Emery cast [Spatial Gate] and created a portal, telling everyone to enter.
A moment later, Emery arrived at the hill overlooking the devastated settlement he had visited before. From above, one could clearly see there were still dozens of Abyss creatures scavenging dead bodies and roaming around the area.
"Should we attack, commander?" asked Yuri, the bald elite acolyte part of Arcana's squad, without even turning to his own captain.
Emery was silent for a moment before shaking his head. Turning his gaze away from the sad sight,
"Alright, gather up! Here's the plan, so listen carefully."
After deep deliberation, Emery decided to form a new group.
One would be captained by Rayne and filled by all the elite acolytes except Micah, Lodos, and Yuri, plus 20 regular acolytes.
That way, the blonde girl would lead a squad of 25 acolytes with enough firepower to go and clear all 6 nearby marked Abyss nests. Afterward, they would continue to move north to clean out the rest of Abyss nests that had not been found yet.
"Rayne, I need you to alternate between your squad and Arcana's when it comes to crushing the runic boulder." Seeing the expression on her face, Emery spoke again this time in a firmer tone. "Do you understand?"
The female archer clearly looked reluctant, but in the end, she agreed to his request with a nod. Of course, she didn't forget to cast a spiteful gaze at Arcana.
Emery then divided the rest of the 30 regular acolytes into three groups led by Micah, Lodos, and Yuri.
He then opened the map and marked three different locations in the surrounding area, which were suspected of having surviving bases or settlements. Lifting his eyes from the map, Emery stared at the three group leaders he had chosen.
"I need the three of you to lead your group and go to these three areas. I want you to rescue all the survivors, as many as you can find"
Emery was serious about this task and expected no mistake.
"Alright, everyone. I need all of you to come back here with tasks completed in at most 7 days! That's it!"
Neither of them questioned his plan and they quickly left the hill with their respective groups, leaving only one person standing behind him.
Arcana had been quiet since they arrived at the hill. He didn't even say anything as Emery divided his acolytes and formed three groups without including himself at all. Now that there were only two of them left, he quickly put his finger on his forehead.
Emery turned around and glanced at the anxious Arcana..
"Are you going to kill me?!" Arcana said to him while moving backward. At the same time, the third eye on his forehead was already half opened.
Emery just calmly replied, "No," while walking towards the edge of the hill overlooking the burned-down settlement. His voice was heard once again. "But I want you to be responsible for the deaths of these people."
Hearing that, Arcana shouted, "What!! You...You are crazy!"
Emery turned around and took a deep look at the kid-looking acolyte. He knew that if he didn't control this person properly, Arcana would always be a thorn in his platoon for the next 9 days.
He wasn't sure if he could beat the other party, however, he knew that Arcana would not kill him either if he wanted to pass the mid-test. Therefore, it was better for him and the rest of his platoon if this matter was dealt with swiftly.
"I know that you are itching to fight me one more time," said Emery calmly, catching Arcana off guard by how abrupt the words were. "Here's your chance. If you wanna beat me up, you have to do it now."
Emery stood there, and while Arcana was still hesitating, his figure gradually changed.
[Twilight Transformation]
"Aagghh!!" shouted Arcana in frustration. "NO! I won't be intimidated by the likes of you!"
[Eye of Mistra]
A shining blue light came out of the third eye on Arcana's forehead, as it once again enveloped Emery with its skill.