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56

We were very lucky - by the time the undead broke into the city, we had blocked all the passages and windows, remade the chimney, closed the fresh masonry with oak shields, and collected firewood and supplies. And, most importantly, while working, people gained the determination to fight, now there was no crying, but only quiet and calm conversations. The people who showed their leadership qualities during the work organized the sorting of supplies without mention.

            The breakthrough occurred in the evening, at which time the parapet¹ of the bodies reached the top of the wall, and an avalanche of undead flowed into the city. We could not watch everything, I wanted to go out in invisibility for reconnaissance, but there are so many undead that they will trample the invisible. Therefore, one had to sit and listen to the growling, the beat of thousands of feet shaking the ground, and the screams of people. I really wanted to help them, but there was no such opportunity, our shelter was packed, we couldn’t lie down all at once, because there simply wasn’t enough space. There would be enough food in the wild economy mode for a maximum of five days, and the realization of all this hit morale hard. I gave people hope, but I knew there was nothing I could do. Therefore, he hid in a corner, fenced off by a column, and listened to the cries of people behind the wall.

- You are not to blame for their death, do not blame yourself for what you are not to blame.

            It was Dmitri who approached imperceptibly. He stood in front of me and looked straight into my eyes, his voice was calm and composed. Realizing that he captured my attention completely, and sitting down next to me, he continued:

- Look at these people, they are all alive thanks to you. But both you and I understand that this will not last long. Very soon the food will run out, with such a density of living, people will get sick, and a local epidemic will begin. Therefore, do not worry about those whom you could not help, think about those who trusted you and believe in salvation.

            After finishing his speech, he stood up and, clapping his shoulder, went inside the building to his students. I thought about it, but he's right. Damn right! If now I start to fall into depression, then those whom I could save will also die, so I need to think about them first. To begin with, let's try to deal with the introductory ones, while the undead fills the city, it makes no sense to go out - they will trample. But when they calm down a little, I will go out and try to orient myself on the spot. Now I will not sit idle either. To begin with, he gathered all the old people and asked about one of his guesses.

            If this is an old mansion, then logically there should be a secret passage for escape in the event of an attack by enemies. And yes, they confirmed my suspicions. The nobleman was noble enough for an underground passage, and there were rumors that he often used it to travel to his mistresses. But at the same time, no one knew where he was, and did not even imagine where he might be. 

            The next step was to decide on an organized search for this very passage. He organized people to look for him, they still had nothing to do, but everything could not go well, there was an asshole that had to arise.

- What the hell are you ordering? A stranger came and started, do this, do that. And we are not your servants! We will decide what to do!

            I did not expect such a blow in the back, especially now. And the main problem is that you answer the wrong way or do the wrong thing, and the whole rescue campaign will fail. The first impulse was to put on a mask and give him a good shake. But there is one “but”, you can inadvertently scare everyone else, they are already on the verge of a breakdown, and an ultrasound shock can contribute to the onset of panic. So, we need to look for a different approach, I will try to play on the opinions of people, after all, they are more likely on my side than on his, from the whole crowd I saw only three who nodded in time with his words. 

- First, introduce yourself. Because right now I'm talking to a nameless being who has done nothing to save others. Did you bring these people together? Or maybe you organized the defense of this building? No, you were not here at all, when everyone was working, you were sitting and shaking, you dragged yourself at the end, when all the work was actually done under the protection of other people's work. You are insignificant. So shut up and don't show up. If you talk panicky and sabotage, I'll cut your head off.

            It should be noted that it worked, the man immediately somehow was blown away and dejectedly wandered into a corner. And this is the leader? The rest, seeing his indecision, began to search for a secret passage. The gloom that reigned in the building did not contribute to the search, they searched by candlelight. However, our labors were crowned with success, after seven hours a child's cry was heard. Our young researcher found a pebble that was different from the rest. There was a secret passage in the master's bedroom, which only confirmed the rumors about the walking lord. 

            A whole crowd came running to her cries, which looked with reverent awe at the blackening passage. 

- People.

            I got the attention of the crowd.

- The plan is such that the undead will calm down behind the walls, I will go in viz for reconnaissance ...

            But I was not destined to finish. Breaking through the people, our rebel shouting "Freedom!!!" rushed to the aisle. He ignored my roar about stopping and jumped inside. And now I already see how the crowd is ready to break after him, but an evenly severed head of our moron flew out of the opening. Such a return cooled their ardor, and they nevertheless began to listen to what I said to them. I picked up his head and continued.

- See what rash decisions lead to? Our non-rebel decided that he was the smartest, and went to the secret underground passage of the lord. Pay attention to the words "secret" and "lord". Such moves are used to hastily escape from pursuers. And what do you think, will there be traps in the narrow passage in which hypothetically your pursuers are walking, ready to kill you? This is a simple logical chain, but for him to think and listen to others was beneath dignity, and this is what happened from it. Therefore, I ask you to be patient, I stayed here to save you, and not to look at stupid deaths. 

- Do you care?

            A voice was given by one of those who nodded at the words of the rebel, but nothing, I remember them and will not take my eyes off them.

- If I didn't care, would I stay with you?

- You didn't have a choice. You are as much a hostage as we are.

            This is already a weighty argument, and it can plant doubt in people's bags. But I have something to oppose him. I went into invis and, standing behind him, patted his shoulder. You should have seen his drooping jaw.

- Whoa? I am a hunter, my ability to see the invisible is leveled up to the twentieth level.

- Answer your own question. And tell everyone, could I leave town if I wanted to?

- I have to admit that I could, I'm sorry.

            It seems that I have made an ally out of an enemy, at least for now. It is worth consolidating success, so again attracted attention:

- The plan is this: As soon as the undead calms down, I will go in invisibility to reconnoiter, I will go alone, because this way I will definitely not bring my tail behind me. Now we're all splitting up. Rest, we may have to make a big march. Hunter, come, we need to talk. 

            As soon as he approached, I asked:

- Can you recognize traps with your ability?

- You can do it too.

- I have no ability to see the invisible.

- Why? With your skill level, you should have unlocked this side of the ability a long time ago.

- You see, I don’t have a standard inviz, and I couldn’t find a teacher for this business.

- Well, I'll help with that, at least I'll thank you for helping us survive. This, of course, will take some time, but we still have it. 

            First, the Hunter told me about all the common traps, how they are masked, what hiding places look like, how you can detect invisibility. Then he put his hands on my forehead and whispered something for five minutes, as soon as he removed his hands, I was notified by a notification:

            “The rank 48 Vanish in the Shadows unique skill has been modified. Obtained the passive skill "See the Invisible". The skill level is calculated by the formula (skill level "Disappearing in the shadows" / 2)".

            After reading the notification, he thanked the hunter and went towards the fireplace, there is most of the light there, you need to familiarize yourself with the information on the undead. I spent almost six hours on this case, there is a lot of information, and not all of it was useful. What I noted for myself is one semi-erased note written after the entire text. 

            About five hundred years ago, there was a similar attack by the undead, it almost ruined the whole state. Only the magicians of several states were able to stop this wave of death. But what is most important is that the tactics of the attack were described there. The undead covered the walls of the city with corpses and climbed them, it filled the city with a dense avalanche and destroyed all living things, turning them into their own kind. We stood in the city for exactly a week and moved to the next city. It is impossible to recapture the city from them, the strongest raids perished. Attacking them during the transition is also not the best idea. It is almost impossible to kill them, but they pursue tirelessly and at a good pace, drive and kill. The only option is before them to liberate the cities from civilians and fight them off the walls, and, when there is no longer any urine to hold on, leave by teleport. This tactic allows them to reduce their forces without the possibility of replenishing them. It is worth noting that this army is led by one powerful Lich, the battle with which many paladins lost. Then he retreated and went missing, but now, apparently, he was able to gather an army and decided to repeat the approach. In all cities, he occupied a place in the main town hall and stayed there all week. The period of time is due to the fact that it took exactly a week to raise all the corpses in the city. It was possible to bring him down only once, but this did not bear fruit. This was during one massive attempt to recapture the city. The scouts reported that the undead stood strangely and motionless for a long time. Then they gathered a percussion fist and hit the open gate. At first, the elite fighters went through like a knife through butter. The undead ignored them. But once they had killed enough of the warriors, the Lich was distracted from the raising ritual, and then the undead arrived. The battle was long, no one left, and exactly a week later, the scouts reported the withdrawal of the undead troops from the city, in front of which their already undead heroes were moving.

            Gives reason for discussion. And behind the walls, it seemed to be just quiet. I warned Dmitry that I was leaving for reconnaissance, and asked to remain in charge. Armed with a torch, I began to quietly sneak along the corridor, now that I have the ability to see the invisible, I see all the traps. First, a spinning sword passed, where our fugitive lay, then a wolf pit, a magic trap, liquid stone, arrows, poisonous jets, a fiery geyser ... The previous owner decently secured his escape routes. Approximately in the middle of the way I found a disguised door, it turned out to be quite simple to open, only I almost ran into a trap, the fishing line was stretched across the passage, and I almost gawped it. In the room that opened up to me, I found several expensive pieces of magical weapons, a chest with precious stones, two chests of gold, and, surprisingly, a fifty-liter barrel of wine and the same whiskey. Judging by the markings, they have the right exposure, more than two hundred years. I was lucky that my carrying capacity exceeded all conceivable and unthinkable limits. Three hundred kilograms is no joke. Everything fit, but as they say, to the top. In total, in addition to alcohol, three staffs, two wands of unknown characteristics and the same misericord fell into my property. But if I took staffs and wands because of their value, then I liked the misericord - a clearly forged trihedral blade, and not a simple triangle, but a triangle with slightly concave sides. The sharpest edges converging to the tip of the needle. Slightly marked guard against slipping of the hand, the handle is made of dark leather, pleasant to the touch. The only thing that spoiled the feeling of the ideality of the weapon was that it shone. It was an amazing brilliance of a beautiful weapon, but not my style. However, I have heard of craftsmen who can make the blade matte black, after this operation it will be a great addition to my equipment. 

            But okay, I admired it and that's enough, I still have a task that requires immediate fulfillment in the name of the life of people who trusted me. Ahead of me was the path to the city filled with enemies.

Characteristics at the end of chapter 15:

Level - 89 

Life 6800/6800

Energy 218/218

Mana 380/380

Strength - 61 (50 frozen stat points)

Agility - 70 (15 frozen stat points)

Intelligence - 77 (15 frozen stat points)

Wisdom - 64 (15 frozen stat points)

Constitution - 68 (15 stat points frozen)

Free Attribute Points: 455

Secondary characteristics:

Wits - 2

Skills:

Chains of Frost rank 8

Fade into the shadows rank 48

A parapet is a mound in a fortification. In the text there is an analogy of the accumulation of undead with the meaning of this word.