Atlan finally figured out why that feeling was so familiar. When he felt the air change, he felt a part of himself resonate with it.
After all, Atlan's bloodline was part Angel. He was the Angelic Reaper of Souls. And if that construct was somehow part Angel, then it would make sense why he could feel it.
He found it interesting that Canzers seemed to have a weakness with Angelic powers.
Will my SSS class Cherubic Retribution work on them? he wondered.
Fortunately and unfortunately, he wouldn't get a chance to use it.
But he found it fascinating to know that Operators could somehow harness a power similar to Angels.
This made him intensely curious about how constructs were made. How were they able to use an angel's power? Was it a replication?
Operators are much more complex than I thought.
He didn't have much knowledge about what Operators did and what made them so special. However, his encounter with this construct left him more curious to know about this second specialty LifeSkill.
"Operators make constructs that specifically target and weaken Canzers. You bring that construct with us. And that helps us Vanguards kill the Canzers and purge them from the Remedium.
Do you see how important your job is now? You are the link between the two specialties."
Atlan nodded. Without that Construct, he could see them eventually getting dead tired from constantly fighting a regenerating Canzer.
"Usually, we set up the construct early in the fight, but I wanted to teach the youngsters a valuable lesson."
Atlan looked at the youths and saw them heave a sigh of relief when they saw the weakening Canzer. It had no more energy to even fling green goo towards them.
"Don't get complacent," warned Neumann. "Kill it now or will I have to deprive you of that honor?"
They all gathered and watched as the archer notched a flaming arrow in his bow. He took a deep breath and shot it accurately in the Canzer's forehead.
THUMPP
The Canzer finally stopped moving. Its long tongue lay lifeless on the pavement.
And for good measure, the pugilist punched the arrow deeper into the Canzer's head till it came out the other side.
The Destruction Canzer was dead. Mission completed.
"We did it!" They cheered. The scout and the tank jumped in celebration while the rest slumped on the ground, exhausted from the fight.
After half an hour of hard fighting, they finally vanquished the Canzer. They didn't come out of it unscathed though, as they all gained numerous injuries on their body.
But it was all worth it in the end. They would gain experience from this fight.
[You have reaped the death of a Canzer: Deiztruphia]
[Due to your Trait, you have multiplied your experience by 10]
[You have gained 2000 experience]
Atlan didn't think he'd get that much experience just from this mission. He didn't even do anything; he just stayed in the backline and watched everything unfold.
His mysterious trait, the one he gained from reaping the death of the First Savior, turned out to be a tremendous gift of luck. It was able to multiply his experience by 10!
He was already getting a ton of experience just by reaping any deaths he came across.
He only got a small amount of experience from that, but this trait would make him have an excess of it. He didn't hate it though.
"Congratulations on completing your first mission," Neumann clapped. "I know it's been hard, but I commend you all for finishing it in just half an hour."
They all celebrated this win by giving each other a round of applause.
The youths thanked Neumann for his protection and his much-needed advice during the fight. If it wasn't for him, they weren't even sure if they could have defeated the Canzer.
They also thanked Atlan for his part, which made him feel awkward. He did the least out of all of them, but they still appreciated him nonetheless.
"What happens now?" asked Atlan.
Neumann looked up at the sky and said, "Now, the god will send down his rewards for our mission. He'll give all of us experience points equally."
The youths rejoiced when they heard that. The reason why they worked so hard for this mission was because they needed the experience.
They all waited patiently for something to happen, but nothing did. Ten minutes elapsed, yet there was no sign that the god would send down the rewards.
"Why haven't we gotten the experience yet?"
"Isn't there supposed to be a pillar of light that comes down and blesses us with rewards?"
"It's supposed to come down immediately after we defeat the Canzer though…"
They all looked towards Neumann and gauged his expression. He had a steady face to prevent further fear from the youths, but on the inside, he was panicking.
In all the years of his experience in the Remedium, he never saw a delay this long.
Something's wrong, Neumann thought.
He looked back at the stone tablet and rechecked the Canzer Report. It said that there was only one Deiztriphia Canzer present in the Remedium. The mission should be over.
Yet it didn't.
DUM…DUM DUM…DUM
Atlan heard it again. This time, it was getting louder and more intense.
DUM…DUM DUM…DUM
DUM…DUM DUM…DUM
It's getting closer! Atlan panicked. "I think we should leave."
The rest of the youths were a little bit reluctant with this as they wanted to get those experience points. They already killed the Canzer; they deserved the rewards. And if they left now, this would put a stain on their records.
But, they all agreed that it was better to retreat now. If there was something they knew, then it was better to be safe than sorry. The Remedium was always unpredictable.
The youths all got to their battle stances and walked back from where they came.
This time, Neumann was on his toes. He stayed close to the youths.
After a few minutes, they could see the black portal swirling in the distance at the end of the street. They were close home.
The youths relaxed a bit, feeling the safety of seeing the portal.
But then Atlan noticed something.
DUM…DUM DUM…DUM
The thumping was coming from the direction of the portal!
"Run!" warned Atlan. But it was too late.
The ground quaked until the fibers on the ground came loose. They felt helpless as the ground that they stood on caved in and they felt the weightlessness of free fall.