Chapter 199: I Prepared to Fight a Champion

The old religious complex didn’t look like a place worthy of a battle.

That was exactly what Raven wanted.

There were no impressive statues, stained-glass windows, or vast central nave where two enemies could face each other beneath dramatic light.

There was stone.

A lot of it.

Thick walls, narrow corridors, broken staircases, two partially collapsed levels, old ventilation and drainage shafts, and three main entrances—although one was almost completely blocked by rubble.

There were also enough small rooms to turn an organized pursuit into something unpleasant.

Roland studied the place from the entrance.

"It’s ugly."

Raven nodded.

"Yes."

"Dark."

"Yes."

"Smells damp. Probably has rats."

"Also true."

Roland looked inside.

"So I assume you love it."

Valeria walked past them.

"Don’t be unfair. He hasn’t said he wants to live here yet."

Raven started forward.

"I don’t want to live here."

Roland smiled.

"That almost sounded offended."

"I was correcting inaccurate information."

The complex had been abandoned long enough for vegetation to begin reclaiming parts of the courtyards.

Raven moved slowly through it.

He wasn’t looking at ruins.

He was looking at angles.

Seventeen meters between that column and the side entrance.

Thirty-two from the upper corridor to the sunken courtyard.

A narrow doorway where only two armored people could pass side by side.

A staircase that could be blocked from above.

A corridor where a large barrier would have little room to expand.

Nothing was perfect.

Perfect looked artificial.

This only needed to be useful.

Roland caught up with him.

"What are we looking for first?"

"Exits."

"There are three."

"There are more."

Roland smiled.

"Knew you’d say that."

They found seven.

Three were actual entrances. Two were holes in the exterior walls that could be used if someone was willing to crawl. Another was an old service passage that ended behind the main sanctuary.

The last was a partially collapsed section of the northern wall.

Valeria looked down.

"That is not an exit."

"Yes, it is."

"You’d have to jump four meters."

"Yes."

"Onto rock."

"Yes."

"Raven."

"I didn’t say it was a good exit."

Roland looked over the edge.

"I vote we don’t use this one."

Raven marked the location on a piece of paper.

"Then it’s last."

Valeria folded her arms.

"I love that there’s a list where ’jump four meters onto stone’ qualifies as an option."

"It’s better than being surrounded."

"Marginally."

Raven kept walking, and Valeria caught up beside him.

"How many retreat routes do you need?"

"All of them."

"That still isn’t a number."

"Enough that losing one doesn’t change the plan."

Valeria looked at him from the side.

"That sounded like someone who used to do this for a living."

Raven didn’t answer.

Because it was true.

Black Hound hadn’t survived by expecting the primary plan to work.

There was always another.

Then another.

Until there weren’t any left.

That was when you improvised.

---

Roland received the second level.

Not because it was the best place to hide.

Because it was the best place to see.

A partially collapsed gallery ran along the central courtyard and ended at two stone balconies. From there, Roland could observe four different corridors.

Raven pointed out the positions.

"First."

Roland looked.

"Good line."

"Second."

"Worse."

"You don’t need to shoot from there. Just watch."

Roland nodded.

"Third?"

Raven indicated another section.

Roland grimaced.

"That’s too close."

"That’s why it’s third."

"Very reassuring."

Raven continued.

"Your job isn’t Elise."

Roland looked at him.

"That actually is reassuring."

"Watch her escorts. If they move together, tell us. If they try to flank, change sectors."

"Do I shoot?"

"Only if you need to slow them down."

"Eyes?"

"Weapons. Hands. Legs if there’s no other option."

Roland raised an eyebrow.

"We’re being nice."

"We’re avoiding unnecessary deaths."

"That sounded even stranger."

Raven looked at him.

"Do you want me to tell you to kill them?"

"No."

"Then."

Roland smiled.

"I’m just enjoying the personal growth."

Raven continued marking positions.

"If you lose contact with me, withdraw through route two."

"And if Valeria is still inside?"

"Look for her only if you can do it without losing the exit."

Valeria, standing behind them, heard that.

"How romantic."

Raven turned.

"It’s practical."

"I know."

"Then?"

"Nothing. I just enjoy remembering that your version of affection includes detailed instructions not to die trying to rescue me."

Raven took half a second too long to respond.

Roland smiled.

"That was uncomfortable."

"Shut up."

"Now that sounded natural."

---

Valeria received a different assignment.

Not a position.

Zones.

Raven had redrawn the complex several times until its layout started making tactical sense.

He pointed to three sectors.

"Here."

Valeria studied the map.

"Southern corridor."

"Yes."

"Courtyard."

"Yes."

"And this room."

"Yes."

"What exactly do you want?"

"Pressure."

She looked up.

"That’s still broad."

Raven indicated the first sector.

"If Elise enters here, I want you to force her barrier to concentrate left."

"With what?"

"Whatever you prefer."

Valeria smiled.

"Thank you for not trying to teach me Blood Magic."

"I couldn’t."

"I know. It’s part of why I enjoy working with you."

Raven ignored that.

"In the courtyard, you don’t need to penetrate."

"Just make her spend mana."

"Yes."

"And here?"

Valeria pointed toward the central chamber.

Raven took a moment.

"Here, I want movement."

"Hers?"

"Yes."

"Toward where?"

He marked one corner.

"That corridor."

Valeria studied it.

"It’s narrow."

"Exactly."

"Her Halo would have less space."

"And I’d have a direct line from above."

Valeria looked back at the plan.

"So you don’t need my magic to hurt her. You need it to change where she can defend comfortably."

"Yes."

She smiled.

"That I can do."

Raven looked up.

"I know."

Valeria went still for a second.

"Was that another compliment?"

"Yes."

"Two in one week."

Roland shouted from above.

"Something terrible is happening!"

Valeria laughed.

---

Raven distributed the ammunition afterward.

Not all in one place.

That was a bad idea.

A small box in the second corridor.

Two specialized rounds hidden in a cavity behind a broken altar.

Standard ammunition near the western gallery.

A reserve behind the northern wall.

Valeria watched him work.

"What if you reach a box that doesn’t have the ammunition you expected?"

"I use what’s there."

"Aren’t you worried about confusing the rounds?"

"They’re marked."

She picked one up.

"One line."

"Penetration."

Another.

"Two."

"Higher mass."

"Three."

"Partial Black Mithril."

Valeria looked up.

"And in the dark?"

Raven took the round and ran his thumb across several small notches.

"Touch."

She went quiet.

"You already had that prepared."

"Yes."

"Since when?"

"Since I started making variants."

Valeria slowly shook her head.

"Sometimes I worry about how comfortable you look doing this."

"Preparing ammunition?"

"Preparing places to kill people."

Raven looked at her.

She wasn’t accusing him.

Only observing.

"It’s more comfortable to prepare beforehand than during."

Valeria sighed.

"That was exactly the answer I expected."

---

The traps took longer.

Raven didn’t want mines.

He couldn’t have made enough even if he did.

What he wanted was separation.

A door that could drop.

A section of floor that would give way under weight.

Hidden ropes.

An old support that could collapse part of an arch without bringing the entire structure down.

Nothing designed specifically to kill.

Roland examined one of the ropes.

"What does this do?"

"Closes the corridor."

"With what?"

Raven pointed upward.

Roland raised his head.

A partial stone door was being held by two timber supports.

"Ah."

"Don’t cross it once things start."

"Thank you for mentioning that."

"That’s why I’m explaining everything now."

Roland looked at him.

"I don’t want to know how you learned that was important."

Raven continued.

"If the supports fall, don’t try to recover them."

"And if people are trapped on the other side?"

"That’s the point."

"Right."

Valeria appeared behind them.

"Are we sure this won’t kill someone?"

Raven looked at the structure.

"If nobody is underneath when it falls."

"That was not reassuring."

"Roland warns us before triggering it."

Roland raised one hand.

"Suddenly I have a lot of responsibility."

"Yes."

"I want to renegotiate my pay."

Raven looked at him.

"No."

"Had to try."

---

By the end of the day, the place no longer felt abandoned.

Not because they had repaired anything.

Because every section now had a purpose.

Raven walked through the complex alone.

First entrance.

Too wide.

Easy to observe.

Second access.

Good for forcing a split.

Courtyard.

Poor cover.

Which meant Valeria could control it.

Gallery.

Roland.

Narrow corridor.

Mk.I firing line.

Broken staircase.

Secondary position.

Northern exit.

Retreat.

It wasn’t a fortress.

That would have been worse.

A fortress made you think about defending it.

Raven didn’t want to defend this place.

He wanted to use it.

If a section stopped being useful, they abandoned it. If a corridor became dangerous, they withdrew. If Elise destroyed a wall, the map changed.

Nothing was sacred.

Not even the plan.

---

Valeria found him sitting in front of the old altar after dark.

Not praying.

He had a disassembled round between his hands.

She sat beside him.

"How much longer?"

"Two adjustments."

"I wasn’t asking about the bullet."

Raven looked at her.

"Then ask better."

Valeria bumped her shoulder lightly against his.

"How long until you’re satisfied?"

"Never."

"That sounds exhausting."

"It is."

They sat quietly for a while.

Valeria looked around the ruined sanctuary.

"This place must have been beautiful once."

"Probably."

"You don’t care."

"Not particularly."

"You picked it because it was useful."

"Yes."

"Not even a tiny part of you appreciated the irony of fighting a Saint inside an abandoned sanctuary?"

Raven considered that.

"No."

"How disappointing."

"We can mention it afterward if that accomplishes something."

She laughed.

Then became serious.

"Raven."

"Yes?"

"What do you do if all of this fails?"

Raven looked back at the round.

He didn’t answer immediately.

There were plans.

Primary.

Secondary.

Variations.

Routes.

Signals.

But Valeria wasn’t asking about any of those.

"Improvise first."

She waited.

"Run second."

"Good."

Raven began assembling the projectile again.

"Dying isn’t on the list."

Valeria smiled.

"I’m glad you finally learned reasonable priorities."

"I always had them."

"I’m not arguing about that tonight. I’m in a good mood."

Raven set the round down.

Valeria watched him.

"And Elise?"

"What about her?"

"If you get the opportunity."

Raven knew exactly what she meant.

"I don’t want to kill her."

Valeria said nothing.

Raven continued.

"If I can avoid it."

"Of course. That part always has to be there."

"Because it matters."

"Why don’t you want to kill her?"

Raven started automatically.

"She has information."

Valeria raised one finger.

"One."

"She has influence within the Church."

"Two."

"Killing her would make some factions stop considering capture or investigation."

"Three."

Raven looked at her.

"What are you doing?"

"Counting."

"I noticed."

"Continue."

Raven breathed through his nose.

"She hasn’t used civilians against us."

"Four."

"She hasn’t deliberately tried to kill us."

"Five."

"When she could have pursued us at Bellcross, she chose not to because doing so would have endangered others."

"Six."

Raven frowned.

Valeria smiled a little wider.

"That’s a lot of reasons."

"It’s a complicated situation."

"Of course."

"What are you implying?"

"Nothing."

"Valeria."

She tilted her head.

"I just find it interesting that when you want to kill someone, you normally need one reason."

Raven waited.

"And when you don’t want to kill Elise, you just gave me six."

Raven went quiet.

Valeria’s smile grew slightly.

"That’s all."

"They’re valid reasons."

"I never said they weren’t."

"Then."

"Then nothing."

Raven picked up the round.

Valeria continued before he could return to work.

"Do you like her?"

"No."

"Fast answer."

"Because it’s easy."

"Do you trust her?"

"No."

"Do you think she’s a good person?"

Raven took too long.

Valeria noticed.

"Ah."

"That means nothing."

"I didn’t say anything."

"Your face did."

She laughed.

Raven shook his head.

"She’s sincere."

"That wasn’t what I asked."

"She helps people even when it disadvantages her."

"Still not what I asked."

"She doesn’t use her power indiscriminately."

Valeria leaned a little closer.

"Raven."

He looked at her.

"Do you think Elise is a good person?"

Silence.

Raven thought about Edrin.

The girl in Brackenford.

Her mother.

Elise spending mana when she could have continued pursuing him.

The fact that she genuinely seemed to believe purifying Raven meant saving him.

"Yes."

Valeria stopped smiling.

Raven continued.

"That doesn’t mean she’s right."

"No."

"Or that I’m going to let her make decisions for me."

"Also no."

"And she’s still dangerous."

"Extremely."

Raven nodded.

"Then."

Valeria smiled again.

"Nothing. I just wanted to hear you say it."

"Why?"

"Because you’ve spent days trying to turn her into a tactical problem."

"She is a tactical problem."

"She’s also a person."

Raven didn’t answer.

Valeria stood.

"Get some sleep."

"I still have—"

"Raven."

He looked at her.

"Four hours."

"Six."

"Five."

Valeria considered it.

"I’ll accept five."

"I didn’t need permission."

"And yet you just negotiated with me."

She walked away before he could answer.

Raven watched her go.

That woman was becoming far too good at doing that.

---

Roland woke Raven before dawn.

Five hours.

Exactly.

Valeria had probably threatened him with something.

Raven didn’t ask.

Roland had information.

"Movement west."

Raven sat up.

"How many?"

"Don’t know yet. I saw signs along the road."

"Time?"

"Maybe half a day."

Raven nodded.

Valeria appeared shortly afterward, already dressed.

"Is it today?"

"Probably."

She looked around the complex.

"Then I suppose this is my last chance to say we could simply leave."

Raven pointed toward the northern exit.

"We can."

Valeria raised an eyebrow.

"Seriously?"

"Yes."

"Now?"

"Yes."

Roland looked at him too.

Raven continued.

"If either of you wants out, this is the time."

Valeria went still.

"Don’t do that."

"What?"

"Talk like you’re going to stay behind alone while nobly giving us an escape."

"It wasn’t noble."

"It sounded noble."

"I only need to know who’s still part of the plan."

Roland rested his bow over one shoulder.

"I am."

Raven looked at him.

"This could get complicated."

"I noticed about forty Chapters ago."

Valeria laughed.

Raven turned toward her.

"Valeria?"

She looked almost offended by the question.

"I spent hours preparing blood zones inside a damp ruin."

"That doesn’t answer me."

"I’m in."

"Good."

Valeria folded her arms.

"Besides, someone has to stop you from eating the Saint if everything goes too well."

Raven looked at her.

Roland started laughing.

"One point four," Raven said.

"Exactly why I’m staying."

Raven picked up the Mk.I.

He didn’t say thank you.

That still felt strange.

But he didn’t try to convince them to leave again either.

That was new.

---

They spent the morning checking everything.

Once.

Twice.

Raven didn’t do a third pass.

Three was starting to become nervousness.

Ammunition.

Positions.

Signals.

Exits.

Traps.

Water.

Medical supplies.

Roland carried additional arrows to the second level. Valeria positioned small blood reservoirs where she could reach them without carrying everything on her body.

Raven inspected the rifle.

FORGE found no immediate faults.

Good.

At noon, Roland returned from the outer elevation.

This time, he wasn’t joking.

"They’re coming."

Valeria stopped what she was doing.

Raven looked at him.

"Number?"

"More than ten. Less than twenty. Couldn’t see all of them."

"Elise?"

Roland nodded.

"Platinum hair. Hard to miss."

Raven took a penetration round and placed it at one of the prepared positions.

Not in the rifle.

Not yet.

Valeria approached.

"Nervous?"

Raven considered the question.

"Yes."

She blinked.

"That was surprisingly easy."

"It would be stupid not to be."

"That’s new too."

"Not particularly."

Raven checked his sword.

Roland came down from the gallery.

"Any last instructions?"

Raven looked at both of them.

He had already given plenty.

Too many.

They didn’t need another list.

"If something changes, don’t wait for me to tell you what to do."

Valeria raised an eyebrow.

"Does that mean you trust us?"

Raven hesitated for only a moment.

"Yes."

Roland smiled.

Valeria didn’t.

Her expression softened in a way Raven preferred not to analyze right then.

"Good," she said. "Because I was going to do whatever I wanted anyway."

That felt more familiar.

Raven looked toward the western entrance.

The Church was coming.

A Champion was coming.

A woman forty-five levels above him.

Stronger.

Faster.

More mana.

Better defenses.

More experience with her own power.

In any clean fight, Raven lost.

That was why he had spent days making sure the next one wouldn’t be clean.

He touched the Mk.I.

Walls.

Corridors.

Ammunition.

Angles.

Valeria.

Roland.

Exits.

Everything was prepared.

Not to turn Raven into a Champion.

He didn’t need that.

He only needed Elise Veyra to spend a few minutes fighting in a place built around the things Raven could control.

The distant sound of hooves reached them from outside.

Raven raised the rifle.

"Positions."

Roland disappeared upstairs.

Valeria headed toward the southern corridor.

Before separating, she turned.

"Raven."

"What?"

"Remember the list."

He looked at her.

Valeria smiled.

"Improvise. Run. Don’t die."

Raven nodded.

"In that order."

She disappeared into the corridor.

Raven remained alone in the central nave.

For several seconds, everything was silent.

Then he heard the first voices approaching the ruins.

Raven settled the Mk.I against his shoulder.

He had spent days learning how to run from a Champion.

Now he was going to find out what happened when he stopped.