Chapter 238: Gained Precious Time
After successfully eliminating all members of the Night Blades, Irving and Nick could finally take a moment to relax.
Seizing this opportunity, Nick asked Irving about the details of his battle with the two elders of the Night Blades. "How did you manage to defeat the two Night Blades elders? While I did instruct Andy to draw numerous magical formations on the basement walls, those formations alone didn't have the power to seriously injure them. You must have relied on your own strength to defeat the elders, right?
It seems your abilities have improved significantly since before. I assume your next plans won't face any issues now?"
Nick's inquiry stemmed not only from concern for Irving but also from a desire to gather more information about him. In fact, he had asked this question due to Aron's orders. Although Aron was now willing to continue cooperating with Irving, he believed it was essential to collect as much information about Irving as possible during their collaboration.
Aron simply couldn't afford to let his guard down too much.
Irving sensed the trap in Nick's question but didn't pay it much mind. In his view, even if he revealed the method he used to defeat the two Night Blades elders, Nick and the others wouldn't be able to replicate it.
"I did rely on my own strength. However, it would have been impossible to defeat the two Night Blades elders in a direct confrontation with just my current abilities. So, during the recent battle, I used a little trick.
Both of them summoned powerful dark forces, and I took this opportunity to connect the dark forces with the magical formations in the basement using the power of the Taikoo Flame Pearl. This meant that the two Night Blades elders inadvertently enhanced the magical formations with their own power. The result was a significant increase in the effectiveness of the magical formations."
After listening to Irving's explanation, Nick finally understood. He couldn't help but express his thoughts. "It seems the Night Blades members were indeed a bit foolish. They didn't realize that they shouldn't easily tap into powers beyond their control during battle."
Nick's sentiment was not unfounded. When Nick had just joined the Angel Guild, Aron had warned him never to summon forces he couldn't fully control during combat. When your enemy's strength is comparable to yours, it means they have the capability to intercept your power.
Irving nodded. "You're right, so in the upcoming battles, you must avoid making such foolish mistakes." He still offered Nick some advice, as Nick would be providing assistance in Irving's future endeavors.
While the two were talking, Andy hurried over. "We've driven away all the members of the Night Blades. Although some of their members weren't eliminated, they can no longer pose any threat to us."
The members Andy referred to were, of course, the ordinary members of the Night Blades. The more capable members had already been eliminated in the recent battle by the combined efforts of Irving and Nick.
Irving glanced at Nick and ultimately signaled him to give the orders. Although Irving had been able to command Andy during the previous operation, Andy was a member of the Angel Guild. Once the action concluded, it was essential for the commands to come from the leadership of the Angel Guild.
Nick addressed Andy directly, "You did an excellent job, and so did the other members of the Angel Guild from the Starling City branch. I will inform the headquarters about your contributions. The rewards for your efforts will surely arrive soon."
Upon hearing Nick's words, a radiant smile spread across Andy's face. Although Andy himself didn't care much for rewards, he knew that his subordinates would be very concerned about them.
"What else do I need to do? Do you two still need our assistance?" Andy didn't intend to leave immediately, as he believed Nick and Irving still had some tasks for them.
Nick nodded. "You're right; there is indeed something very important that we need you to handle."
"What is it? Just tell me directly. As long as it's within our capability, we will give it our all!" Andy responded with a resolute tone.
"Please take all these storage devices back to the Angel Guild's base in Starling City. It's too unsafe to leave them here," Nick said, pointing towards the direction of the library's basement.
Andy paused for a moment, then hurriedly nodded. "I will send someone to retrieve all these storage devices as soon as possible. But do you have no other tasks for me? Is my mission already complete?"
There was a hint of disappointment in Andy's voice as he spoke.
Andy felt a sense of disappointment, as he thought that he had just participated in a battle. In his mind, facing the Night Blades head-on shouldn't have been so mundane. Although he didn't have the qualifications to fight the Night Blades elders himself, he should have been able to observe the battle between the elders and Irving as well as Nick.
Nick, slightly puzzled, responded, "Do you think there are other tasks you need to complete? This operation has already been successful. All you need to do now is take the storage devices back to the base."
Nick's words only deepened Andy's disappointment. However, he quickly adjusted his emotions. "I understand. I will take all the storage devices back. If there's nothing else you two need, then I'll get started immediately."
After receiving permission from Nick and Irving, Andy and his team began transporting all the storage devices back to the Angel Guild's base in Starling City.
Once Andy and the others left, Nick turned to Irving seriously. "What action should we take next? I remember you telling me earlier that our mission this time was simply to deal a heavy blow to Elders Howard and Kent. Now that we have accomplished that, shouldn't I be focusing on more important matters? Shouldn't the plan for the shelter's relocation officially begin now?"
Irving didn't immediately respond to Nick's inquiry. He felt that it wasn't the right time to make a decision just yet. He had successfully delivered a significant blow to the two Night Blades elders, which meant he had gained precious time for his plans. He no longer needed to complete the shelter relocation plan within the next week; he now had an extra three days.
Thus, Irving decided to use this additional time to make further preparations. "I know our time is extremely valuable. However, once the shelter relocation plan begins, we absolutely cannot afford to stop. Therefore, I want to ensure we are fully prepared before we start the plan. After defeating the two Night Blades elders, I have gained an extra three days of preparation time.
I want to use these three days to arrange all our plans more effectively."
Irving spoke with a calm yet serious tone. Nick nodded in response. "So, does that mean I have no further tasks? If that's the case, I hope I can return to the Angel Guild headquarters as soon as possible."
Irving nodded, "There's nothing else for you to do here. You can go back to the Angel Guild headquarters now."
After receiving the go-ahead, Nick quickly left.
Irving watched as Nick left, and once Nick was far enough away, he entered the shelter game. Irving believed that during the process of relocating the shelter, not only would the newly selected shelter location be targeted by the Night Blades, but the shelters that hadn't been moved would also come under attack.
Therefore, he needed to ensure that the defenses of all the shelters set for relocation were robust.
At the same time, Nick returned to the Angel Guild headquarters. As soon as he arrived, Aron summoned him to a secret meeting room.
"How did it go? Did Irving's plan succeed? Did you really deliver a heavy blow to the two Night Blades elders?" Aron fired off three questions the moment Nick stepped into the room.
In the meeting room, besides Aron, there was another person—Anna. She looked at Nick with concern in her eyes but didn't say a word.
"Irving's plan was successful. He indeed dealt a heavy blow to the two Night Blades elders. Although I didn't see the entire battle, I can confirm that Elders Howard and Kent won't be able to pose any threat to us for some time," Nick replied, which relieved Aron.
It was then that Anna spoke up. "How did Irving manage to do this? I remember that in the Desolate Canyon, he didn't have the strength to confront the two Night Blades elders."
Nick detailed Irving's entire plan. After hearing it, both Anna and Aron couldn't help but reflect.
"It seems I was indeed a bit overconfident. I actually thought that someone like Irving would target me over trivial matters. In terms of both strength and intelligence, he is far superior to me. He really has no reason to focus on someone as weak as I am," Aron said, a hint of disappointment in his tone.
Anna added, "It looks like Irving's plan to relocate the shelter should succeed. He should be able to prepare thoroughly."
After sharing their thoughts, the two began discussing Irving's plan for the shelter relocation. Although the Angel Guild would provide assistance, Irving hadn't yet told them how he needed their help.
"In any case, we just need to follow Irving's lead. His previous judgments have all been correct, so there's no need for us to dwell on this," Aron said, standing up to address Anna and Nick. He felt it was unnecessary to get caught up in the details; they would simply wait for Irving's instructions.