Chapter 87: Mind Control
“Mind Witch” was the Western term for a psychic.
The Western Solomon Catholic Church forbade its followers from taking potions to become Transcendents, and those who were already Transcendents were treated as witches, subject to inquisition, burning at the stake, hanging, or immediate beheading.
However, the actual practice varied depending on the individual.
For example, physical Transcendents, such as those with “Sharp Weapon,” “Blunt Weapon,” “Strength,” or “Resilience,” only gained enhancements to their physical attributes and passive buffs. They were no different from ordinary people who had absorbed transcendental power.
The Church generally turned a blind eye to these physical Transcendents who were difficult to identify. As long as you didn’t go to the Church and report yourself, they generally wouldn’t bother you.
As for psychics with abilities like “Fire,” “Frost,” “Mind,” or “Life,” if you dared to show off your flashy abilities in public, you had to be prepared to be hunted down by a wave of witch hunters and Templar Knights.
Of course, this only applied to Transcendents without power or influence. Having powerful backing was a different story.
Within the Holy Solomon Empire, because Emperor Otto openly opposed and defied the Church, Transcendental forces were relatively more active. It was no problem for the Iron Cross mercenary group to keep a few Arcane Transcendents.
However, the “Mind” ability was rather sensitive. On the one hand, it was always associated with evil acts like “mind reading” and “brainwashing.” On the other hand, it was also the most common sequence among Eastern heretics.
Therefore, even the Iron Cross mercenary group didn’t dare to openly train Mind Witches… they only cultivated them in secret.
I can’t believe there’s a Mind Witch in Azure Longsword? A thought uncontrollably surged in Andrea’s mind.
Report her!
Medea, who was controlling the Snow Monster, suddenly sensed something, turned her gaze towards Andrea, and narrowed her eyes slightly.
Report me, oh?
The malicious thought swirled in Andrea’s mind before he forcefully expelled it.
Reporting her would be completely detrimental to himself, because now, any mercenary group of a decent size would try to cultivate a few Transcendental mercenaries.
If A reported B, and B reported A in return, the Church would investigate thoroughly, find both sides guilty, and then the Night of the Long Knives would ensue, with blood flowing like rivers. This kind of thing had happened many times in history, so there was a tacit agreement among the major mercenary groups:
Don’t be a snitch.
Once someone reported, it would lead to a chain of reports and mutual accusations, eventually dragging everyone down, making the report itself a completely self-destructive act.
If Azure Longsword were an unknown small mercenary group, then perhaps reporting them could cause some trouble.
The problem was, with the strength of this Captain Asker, even Hermann admitted that he couldn’t see through his mind. How could he be a nobody?
At worst, they would just stay in the East and never set foot in the Church’s territory, then turn around and report the Iron Cross mercenary group for having Transcendents.
By the time headquarters investigated and found the culprit, he might not even be able to keep his position as the leader of the Eastern division.
After considering the pros and cons, Andrea immediately dismissed the idea and nonchalantly turned his head to look ahead.
However, he subconsciously overlooked one thing: Medea wasn’t a pure Mind ability user, she also possessed the abilities of the Conspiracy Sequence.
Sensing his malice through Conspiracy, and then using her Mind ability to read his mind, wasn’t a difficult thing for this woman.
Medea’s eyes rolled, and she silently took note of this.
Hmph, I hold grudges… she muttered to Medusa in her mind.
“I see,” Andrea said to Hermann. “The reason they can achieve such high efficiency in focused fire is because their supernatural abilities complement each other, creating a synergistic effect greater than the sum of its parts.”
“Yes.” Hermann also saw the key. “At first glance, it’s the three girls’ focused fire attack that is clean and efficient, able to kill the Snow Monster in a short time.”
“Actually, the core roles are played by the red-haired woman and the masked girl. One is responsible for controlling the Snow Monster and bringing it into the encirclement, the other uses gravity to restrain the Snow Monster, making it completely unable to resist.”
“That’s right,” Andrea said.
Then the two fell silent.
Understanding this tactic didn’t mean they could replicate it.
First, did the Iron Cross mercenary group have Transcendents with similar Sequence abilities?
Yes, but they were all at the Iron Cross headquarters, acting as special forces to carry out covert operations.
At this point in time, with the magic tide just rising, traditional military strategists on the continent hadn’t yet realized the changes that the emerging supernatural powers could bring to the existing military system.
The Western Church’s hostility and restrictions on Transcendents also greatly hindered the militarization of supernatural powers.
So far, due to concerns about the Church’s attitude, most mercenary groups were only willing to recruit low-key, physically-oriented Transcendents.
The Iron Cross’s approach of specifically cultivating Arcane Sequences and attempting to build a dual output system of physical and magical damage was already quite forward-thinking and risky.
Even so, it was ultimately limited by the times.
And what Asker’s command displayed at this time was a more advanced tactical system from several versions later.
The tank compressed the battle line, controlled and pulled the enemy, and the DPS focused fire to kill. The entire system was as precise and efficient as a scalpel. Just like the Gulf War in 1991 that shocked the world, it opened the door to a new era for Andrea and Hermann.
So this is how Transcendents can fight!
“But what’s the use?!” Andrea exclaimed furiously. “More than half of our transcendental materials are going to fall into the hands of Azure Longsword!”
“How about offering to buy them from them afterwards?” Hermann pondered.
“You think our efficiency in killing Snow Monsters can’t compare to theirs?” Andrea glanced at him sideways.
“That’s right, that’s what I think.” Hermann said honestly. “Do you still want to try again?”
Andrea: …
He did want to explore the new tactic further. However, on the one hand, the front-line mercenaries were already exhausted. Just the previous operation of deliberately letting the enemy through had already caused significant blockage and stagnation.
On the other hand, the mercenary gunmen also had considerable resentment towards this tactic, feeling that deliberately letting the monster through the defense line was extremely disrespectful to the gunmen’s lives.
Even if the commander realized the shortcomings, the mercenaries below hadn’t changed their old way of thinking! If something went wrong and led to casualties or even the crippling of the team, Andrea would have nowhere to cry.
Therefore, despite his unwillingness, Andrea could only sigh helplessly and said with a seemingly firm resolve:
“Fine, then we’ll buy them from them after the battle!”
You may be willing to buy, but they may not be willing to sell… Hermann thought to himself, but seeing Andrea’s conflicted expression, he wisely didn’t mention it.
Leave a Reply