Taking the Mafia to the Magic World

"You want our support for that..." the weaker Leshy muttered as the three of them looked at Vicente and the others.",

"If we're going to defeat superior 5th stage vampires, we need as much support as possible. But from the first one we take down, we'll get stronger, even without new allies." Vicente said, hoping that at least one of these Archmages would accompany him on his journey north.

The two Intermediate Archmages looked at each other, and Victor sighed before saying, "I can join you. I've just come from the north, but I'm not afraid to face those bastards again."

Victor was a member of a force from the north of the continent that had fallen to Demien Bloodthorne and the Dark Path magicians who had betrayed the fellowship. He was a Beginner Archmage at the time, one of the elders of a Light Path sect.

Not all the organizations were homogeneous. There were forces on the continent that, even after the Congregation of Revelation had driven Dark Path magicians from the continent, still had such magicians in their ranks.

In Victor's case, he had been raised in his sect from a very young age and had lived as a Dark Path magician in that force for nearly a thousand years before the current disaster struck his organization.

He had fled the north after losing practically everything, but that didn't mean he didn't have the will or the courage to return!

'With the strength of a group like this, I can kill those bastards.' Victor thought to himself as a smile appeared on his face.

Seeing Victor's expression, Elmo wasn't surprised. For someone like the silver-haired human, the risk of going north was just a detail. The most important thing for this human was surely the chance to correct the injustice that had victimized his people.

Elmo was not in the same situation as this human who had lived in his tribe for a year and a half. But he couldn't help but think about Vicente's invitation.

'The superior vampires of the 5th stage will begin to awaken in the coming months. This is indeed the truth. He looked at the trees and felt the light breeze rustle their leaves. Most of them won't be a direct threat to me, but they would be to Garrin.' He looked at the Beginner Archmage beside him.

'If I travel north, I probably won't die and the tribe will be safe, at least until Demien Bloodthorne awakens. I'll be able to help this young man become stronger to face this monster before I return to the tribe.'

Demien Bloodthorne posed an immense danger to tribes like the group of about 90 Leshys who lived in The Pure Enclave. The most straightforward and significant threat was the ecological population imbalance.

Within an ecosystem, the various components played crucial roles, even if their importance wasn't immediately apparent. For instance, if a community had frogs, insects, and snakes, removing any of these species could completely disrupt the ecosystem.

If the frogs were removed, the snakes would lose their primary food source and die off, while the insects would proliferate unchecked. Eventually, the environment would become overwhelmed, leading to the collapse of the insect population as well. This chain reaction caused by the loss of frogs could devastate all living things in that ecosystem.

In the case of the Polaris Realm, the extinction of the magical community could lead to the uncontrolled proliferation of some magical races, creating an intense imbalance across the continent.

This imbalance would trigger fierce competition for food among magical creatures, resulting in widespread disaster. Whether they liked it or not, the beast races needed humans to control certain species that reproduced easily.

If humans were to disappear or be prevented from embarking on their magical journeys, some races might suffer greatly, even if vampires did not specifically target them.

Elmo understood this, so he wasn't naive enough to think that his race was safe simply because it didn't possess blood valuable to vampires.

"Very well, I will join you," Elmo said, his voice firm with resolve.

"But I won't stay by your side indefinitely. As long as you decide to fight enemies in the north, I will remain. However, once I feel the need to return to my people, I will leave your group." Elmo's declaration was met with understanding looks from Minos and Garrin, who knew that the alliance they were forming was as much about survival as it was about trust.

As beings who had been in this world for tens of thousands of years, the two had a very similar interpretation of the situation. Garrin didn't need an explanation to understand Elmo's decision.

"I'm counting on you, my friend."

"Do not worry. The tribe will be standing and intact when you return." Garrin said to his elder.

Vicente clenched his fists in satisfaction, having achieved far more than he ever thought he could in this place.

Two Intermediate Archmages were no small achievement!

Under the current conditions on the continent, these were probably the strongest allies he would have on his journey ahead!

Seeing that the situation was resolved, Victor asked the group. "Where do you want to go now? Are you still looking for more allies?"

"That was our plan." Bonfi commented to the human expert, "It would be good to have two or three more Archmages in the group."

Qiang said, "I talked to Vicente about the golem tribe. Even though they aren't that powerful, these creatures are invulnerable to vampires. Having one in the team would be a good defense."

Elmo heard this and sighed, "That's a good idea. Too bad the Golems were destroyed by the Water Elementals as soon as the current disaster began."

Vicente and his group mates narrowed their eyes, not expecting such a thing.

"Is that true? Aren't the Water Elementals beings of the Light Path who have sided with the Magicians Alliance for millennia?" Ayden asked in a rising tone of disbelief.

Garrin said after a sigh similar to the sound of strong winds escaped his mouth, "Vampires are smart, humans. They only moved when everything was in order. We don't know exactly how it happened, but the Water Elementals were somehow forced to ally themselves with the vampires."

Elmo said speculatively, "At some point in the last few centuries, the Water Elementals must have needed something that the vampires had. That must have put them in their current position."

The Water Elementals were spirit beings with the greatest ability to control the element of water on the continent, famous for their control of the element, their regeneration, and their high-level body transformations, among other extreme abilities. Besides being extremely talented, they were also part of a group of beings that had the power to counter golems.

Victor said sincerely. "The truth is, from now on, there aren't many with the potential to join us. Except for the Majestic Treefrog Grove, the other reserves of magical creatures have all been taken over by monsters and vampires."