Infinite Paths: The Raging Phoenix

"I guess she needs to be close to them to control them, and she also plans to use them to defend the city… this might be a bit hard," Rain thought.

Rain thought of some methods to free his father. Killing the woman seemed the best option to end the brainwashing, but it might keep Roan in that state forever; there was a chance for that. Take down all of the brainwashed soldiers that made her guard, but it was dangerous since Rain didn't know if his uncles were among them.

The final option was to separate his father from the others without alerting them. Still, he didn't know how he could do that exactly.

"Nothing says that either of those options is a surefire way to solve the problem… nothing but doubts on my path, huh," Rain thought and then sighed.

The sun was about to rise, so Rain decided to return to the tunnel and wait until night to rescue his father. He needed some time to think of how to proceed afterward, after all. After sleeping for a couple of hours, Rain, with a refreshed mind, made his decision and then waited until night to move again.

This time, he left as soon as it got dark and then headed toward the mansion where his father was. He arrived just in time to see the woman and the guards move toward the wall again.

"It is time to learn a few things…" Rain thought.

Rain followed the group while moving from rooftop to rooftop while using a bit of magic. The group followed the main street of the area, so plenty of people saw them, so Rain couldn't do anything while he was there. In the next wall as well, it seemed that they were only guarding a single area with an elite group, but there were other groups around that would react fast if something were to happen.

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In that direction, they could see the human camp. It would have been helpful if Rain could rescue his father and head there, but he couldn't since he couldn't trust anyone there either.

"It would have been great if the humans attacked the city tonight... I would have the perfect diversion," Rain thought.

Unfortunately, the reality wasn't that convenient, so nothing happened that night. Still, just like before, the group began to move one hour before sunrise and headed toward the mansion. Rain already knew the route that they were following, so he was waiting at the right place.

It was an area that had few people moving around since it was an area that had taverns and inns that had closed off since the city was taken.

"... Now," Rain said while he was hidden in a dark alley.

Despite the fact that Rain had gotten used to moving around stealthily, the woman still looked at the dark alley when he decided to make his move. Rain was lucky that she kept her eyes closed. Otherwise, he might have fallen for her brainwashing as well. Either way, it seemed that she sensed his mana when Rain used his magic to open holes in the ground and make them fall toward it.

He immediately covered them on the ground up to their mouths and covered the woman's eyes with an earth ring as well before pushing them to the dark alley. The guards immediately began to move, and with their high strength, cracks began to appear on the ground.

"Sorry about this," Rain said and then hit their temples with an earth hammer and knocked them out.

Rain only left the woman conscious since he needed to ask her a few things. At the same time, he took the helmets out of the guards and confirmed that his father was among them. He looked normal; Rain was expecting to see him in a far worse state… covered in dirty, smelling, hungry, and bruised all over.

The only wound that he had was the one Rain had caused just now. In any case, his uncles weren't there, and while that was sad, Rain couldn't afford to worry about them. He used half of his mana with just that, and he couldn't waste time.

"I want some answers from you, so I will grant you the chance to talk a bit," Rain said. "If you do anything aside from answering my question, I will snap your neck."

The brainwashing woman was still trying to move her head and body despite Rain's words. She wasn't afraid of him since he had the voice of a kid. Trying to make his voice sound rougher would only make him sound more silly; that was why Rain didn't try that. Still, he didn't imagine that she was foolish enough to resist and ignore his warnings.

She either had balls of steel, or she didn't mind dying at all. Maybe Rain could have phrased that better.

"How do you dispel the brainwashing?" Rain asked.

The woman stopped struggling, and it seemed that she wanted to say something, but Rain didn't like that sudden change of heart. Still, he didn't have time to waste, so he made her move upward a bit. Still, she took a deep breath, and then she opened her mouth with all her might… Before she could scream, Rain hit the temple with an earth hammer as well.

The woman was knocked down instantly, and her face began to get swollen slowly but surely.

"Fucking bitch… I guess I will have to try this the hard way," Rain thought.

Rain couldn't kill her and the guards, but they will suffer quite a bit until someone finds them. Just to be safe, Rain made sure to bury them a bit deeper and hardened the earth around them.

Rain left the dark alley while his father was covered in a layer of dirt that would hinder his movements. After that, he began to cross the city while making him levitate with his remaining mana before the sun could rise. When Rain and his unconscious father reached the tunnel, he felt like his head was about to explode. He had exhausted his mana already, and he forced himself to keep moving.