Chapter 222

Chapter 222 - Shambler (1)

For indoor expeditions like ancient ruins or mines, forming a unit with a small number of elites is basic. Because no matter how many allies there are, smooth communication like in open areas is impossible.

Above all, in a situation where one suddenly has to retreat, uncontrollable chaos easily arises.

- W-Wait, what is that?!

- It's a trap! A boulder is rolling in! You guys in the back, get out quickly!

In the worst case, a great disaster of getting squeezed together and crushed to death could occur.

Even if many troops are mobilized, due to spatial constraints, the load only falls on the few at the front, and pressure also comes to supply materials.

Therefore, the local Dwarf who will serve in the army as a guide was specially selected. An existence who knows the internal structure well, has outstanding combat power, and has the authority to control the knights if push comes to shove.

It is precisely the Dwarf Prince Baran.

- It is a matter where the honor of the Royal Family is on the line. I cannot leave it entirely in the hands of outsiders alone.

- I know. The best knights and even a highly renowned summoner are together. Father, please wait for the news of victory with a comfortable mind.

- Execute the unknown demon and protect the future of our Kingdom.

The Prince, who wore the Royal Family's best magical armaments, has a resolute face. Too many things hung on his shoulders.

Underground operations require many materials. Water and food, medical supplies, lighting, various consumable goods, etc. In particular, tools like shovels that are heavy and take up a lot of volume cause headaches.

However, this subjugation was pleasant. Because the Vertigos accompanied them and carried all the luggage.

Sniff sniff sniff!

Hueup! Hueup!

Those guys have a complexion of liking the smell of the underground. Like puppies taken out for a walk, they continually sniffed and rejoiced.

"Those are truly solid-looking scales. They're practically natural horse armor. It will be hard to pierce unless it's a knight's spear."

"I heard the ones who received help chattering throughout the banquet. Saying they are guys combining the strengths of a chariot and cavalry."

Just as Hind did, the knights of the peninsula and Barcia also revealed their greed towards the Vertigos.

Charging bravely while trampling everything blocking the way is a knight's virtue. The craving for a more outstanding mount is an unblockable thirst as long as one is born a knight.

The Vertigo is an existence that shaped the dreams of such knights. Of course, the temper that guy was born with was a far cry from sweet dreams, though.

"It's as beautiful as the scale armor passed down in our family. Let's see how the feel is..."

Grrrrr-!

Clack!

The Barcia knight who tried to touch the scales almost got his finger cut off.

"Th-This guy...!"

"Did you forget the Count's words? He said their temper is fierce and they shun the touch of strangers, so do not touch them."

Aaron pushed his enraged comrade back.

"Excellency. No matter how well trained they are, will it truly be alright? If by chance they run wild underground, it will be dangerous."

"Homi can perfectly control them so it's fine. Thanks to these guys, everyone can just wear their personal equipment, right?"

The knights could focus on combat with light bodies. Considering it's a place where horses or carts cannot be brought in, it is an exceptional advantage.

- The internal shafts will have many destroyed places here and there.

They have to dig out places that collapsed during the battles of warriors or the fleeing process of miners. The Vertigos also did that work instead.

Pababababak!

As they moved both hands like dogs digging the ground, the dirt and stones blocking the path disappeared instantly. Normally, they are things the subjugation squad would have had to clear away while sweating beads and using their stamina.

"They're doing the work of five or six able-bodied men alone."

The Dwarf Prince, who had trained in composure for decades while in charge of diplomacy, also couldn't hide his covetous face.

Human digging, consisting of the 3 actions of stabbing in, scooping, and throwing, is inefficient.

On the other hand, the Vertigo's digging, which scratches the earth as if clawing it, is integrated into a single action. They also have two shovels and their strength is incomparable.

The subjugation squad didn't even need lanterns.

"It is time to fulfill what was contracted. Illuminate our path ahead."

Two pixies summoned by Marbas drove away the darkness.

One formed a wide and gentle light source inside the gem attached to his staff. The other flew freely outside and illuminated the group's path ahead.

'There's a reason they haven't suffered a single defeat in the numerous expeditions so far.'

The Dwarf Prince admired anew. Isn't this an mobilization power capable of an optimized response to any operation?

Even Eugene's knights possess equipment, small tools, and even emergency potions and herbs issued on an individual unit basis.

This is something going beyond the degree of being wealthy or well-organized. He felt like he was seeing an army developed several centuries ahead.

"Good job. Step back now."

The Vertigos obediently followed Homi's voice containing the mystery of beast domination.

The solid scales bear bizarre colors from the paint the witch applied. It is a shamanic pattern containing the power of warding off evil.

"There is a war dead over there."

The Barcia knight, who had his back to the light source, shone his red eyes in the darkness.

To the extent of taking it down a notch even for Fairy folk when it comes to dark vision, are Vampires. They can pierce through the faint veil and examine every nook and cranny of the underground. It is another reason the Dwarf Royal Family asked Marcus for help.

"Arin."

The Prince knelt in front of the corpse and grabbed his face. It is one of the Royal Guards who sortied for the subjugation of the demon.

Perhaps because of the underground environment or some other factor, there is almost no smell of decay. Because the corpse was being mummified.

"There are 4 punctured wounds and 2 stab wounds. Having the lungs pierced seems to have been decisive. Looking at the amount of bleeding, the pain wouldn't have been long."

Aaron grasped it simply just by scanning it for a few seconds.

Vampires are more sensitive to the smell of blood than any other race. With just the dried blood on the corpse, they can thoroughly infer when they died and what kind of injuries they suffered.

It is the reason Barcia is evaluated as a military powerhouse. Because with their racial characteristics, they become masters of night attacks and field analysis even without special training.

"If it's a battle by weapons, does it mean there are guys like Goblins or Orcs too?"

"It probably isn't a monster. There's no way guys who are always hungry would leave a corpse neglected like this. It must surely have been hard to even gather the bones. They would have looted the equipment too."

The knights whispered interpreting the Prince's mood.

"Could it be a spirit?"

"Just because it's a spirit doesn't mean it doesn't crave flesh and blood."

At Eugene's question, Marbas shook his head.

"To be exact, they like passions like fear or anger. What do you think is the most appropriate method to draw that out?"

"Hurting and tormenting them, right."

Spirits are not lovely like appearing in romantic stories. Spirits not subjugated to humans were far more dangerous than passable monsters.

"If a spirit inhabits a place deep underground, it would act even more gluttonously at a rare opportunity. It would have left traces messier than guys like Goblins."

However, the Dwarf corpses discovered afterwards also showed no scars other than from battle. As if they cleanly killed and were killed in a dueling arena.

"Excellency. It seems the monster is commanding undead monsters."

It is the conclusion the knights came down to.

An enemy that uses weapons but doesn't crave meat or blood and operates in an environment with nothing to eat? Undead is the most reasonable judgment.

Of course, there is still a questionable point.

'But where the hell did those undead come from?'

Because they couldn't answer this question.

Undead don't just appear from bare ground. Factors like infectious diseases or wars must overlap to cause a mass outbreak of resentful corpses. However, right now, deduction beyond this was impossible.

"It's an amazing bonanza."

Meanwhile, the members of the subjugation squad had their eyes stolen by the veins discovered frequently. Even though they hadn't even been processed yet, numerous prime points flashing in various colors appeared.

"The place we are right now is the underground zone under the mountain. There is a story that when they dug up the ground for several trees, they were sharing the same root. It's the same as that. Because this magnificent vein is connected to each other across the entire mountain range."

"A vein that flows like underground water... The reason the Royal Family could absolutely not give it up is understandable."

* * *

The Dwarf Prince pointed at the darkness spread out beyond the passage.

"From here on it is a path I do not know either."

The reason the underground of Khazad-dor is praised as a mine bestowed by God isn't just because of the abundant veins. The point that the exploration difficulty and profitability are very excellent was also massive.

Like underwater caves, paths were somewhat open even in unexplored places. The Dwarves just had to explore downwards and mine the veins.

The subjugation squad, which kept going down, discovered something unexpected in the unexplored territory. It might be something more amazing than gold or silver.

"A-A dragon?"

The knights were astonished at the magnificent fossil that revealed its appearance in the pixie's light source.

"No. Everyone look closely. It doesn't have wing bones or legs, right?"

"Then isn't it an earth dragon?"

"Do you think everything is a dragon just because it's big!"

Marbas's frustrated voice did not reach the knights' ears. They just kept chattering filled with excitement.

Dragons, like other creatures, also have various subspecies. Strictly speaking they are a separate race, but if they are large above a certain level and give off a reptile-like feeling, people just lumped them together as dragons.

Many people also called Sea Serpents sea dragons, and locals call Sand Worms inhabiting the desert sand dragons.

The Dwarf Prince would have shouted cheers if it wasn't for this kind of situation. Because such ancient bones also hold value rivaling gold in art or alchemy.

However, he, who examined the bone closely from nearby, soon got a disappointed face.

"It's completely decayed."

"Damn it. It only looks good on the outside but it's worse than an old man, right?"

Unlike its magnificent size, the bone crumbled straight away even when just touched. The knights, who tried to take at least one piece each as a souvenir, also spat out complaints.

"By the way, why is a guy like this buried in such deep underground?"

"Places that were oceans in the very distant past also become underground caves now. It's not something particularly strange."

During Marbas's geology lecture, a certain knight who was examining the skull side said.

"Summoner. Among dragons, are there dragons without teeth too?"

That knight sought to take the teeth that seemed the most valuable and sturdy, but couldn't discover a single one.

"Ah well, I told you it's not a dragon? It's not like someone pulled them out, there's no way it wouldn't have teeth... Wait, can it be!"

"Prepare for battle!"

The moment he realized something, Marbas widened his eyes. Eugene also reacted to the ominous presence approaching towards the subjugation squad.

Clatter.

From beyond the darkness, a skeleton warrior of sturdy build was approaching.

"It's a Wight!"

"It isn't a Wight!"

As the knights sneered as if saying they'll slice it in one strike, Marbas thundered.

"Look at the armor and armaments that guy is wearing!"

Clatter.

The skeleton warrior revealed under the pixie's light source had a thicker body than the knights wearing armor. The weapon it's holding is also made of solid bone.

"A Dragon Tooth Warrior! So this was the reason the bones from earlier had decayed and crumbled! As these guys stood up, the last remaining life force was entirely sucked dry."

Summoning requires a medium to be consumed. Since they summoned it using bones preserving the ferocity of antiquity as a sacrifice, it was understandable that even the tough Dwarf warriors were defeated.

Even though they are knights of good development having eaten well since childhood in noble families, the Dragon Tooth Warriors appearing one after another had bodies far larger than theirs.

'The skeleton itself is closer to an ape than a human. Since it's a summoned creature in the first place, is it meaningless to nitpick such things?'

A power that could never be belittled dwelled in the swinging of the limbs approaching leisurely. Some weapons were smeared with blood presumed to be of Dwarf warriors.

"Does silver work on Dragon Tooth Warriors?"

"It will be better than an iron sword, but the efficacy will be lower. Because that guy is an existence closer to a golem than undead."

The knights already pulled out silver-plated swords and spears from the Vertigos' luggage. Some aimed crossbows loaded with silver bolts.

"Everyone be careful. Because this battle isn't the end. A thick smell of magic is coming from the Dragon Tooth Warriors. It is certain that an unknown demon is commanding them."

It was a warning that wasn't very necessary.

"■■■■."

"■■!"

Unlike Wights that only let out meaningless groans like 'Heueooeo.', the Dragon Tooth Warriors were clearly speaking a language.

The knights here intuited transcending language that it was an application for a duel.

The skulls of the Dragon Tooth Warriors have an appearance that is essentially a helmet itself. 2 large horns grew from the forehead, and dried blood was smeared there too.

Warriors whose entire bodies are armor and weapons approach towards the subjugation squad.

"Excellency! Give the order to attack!"

Nominally, the commander of this subjugation squad is the Dwarf Prince, but once entering actual combat, the knights forgot everything and wished for Eugene's command.

"They are underlings of the demon. We must annihilate them when they are isolated."

At Eugene's commanding nod, the knights pulled the triggers.

Puk!

The silver bolts fired with fierce power lodged into the Dragon Tooth Warriors' chests and eye sockets. However, those guys only flinched for a moment and didn't stop approaching.

Chiii...

As Marbas said, those guys are existences that aren't complete undead. The reaction in places touched by silver is also entirely lukewarm.

However, the knights planned to see the match through in close combat from the beginning. Without anyone shrinking back, they rushed in murmuring their respective faiths.

The Dragon Tooth Warriors also opposed them swinging two-handed swords, two-handed clubs, and two-handed axes made of bone.

Kwang!

"Uaaag!"

"Be careful! Their strength isn't ordinary!"

The knights who lost in a contest of strength were pushed back a few steps. Rough scratches were engraved on their shields. If it were weak wooden shields used by conscripts, they would have shattered in one strike.

Even if the knights are pushed back in strength, they have the swordsmanship and spearmanship they have trained in so far. They responded to the Dragon Tooth Warriors brightly showing off the secret techniques passed down in their respective families.

However, if it's skills, the Dragon Tooth Warriors also equipped them.

"Fall back!"

Aaron shouted to the Barcia knight who protruded somewhat during battle. However, it seems a beat late.

The Dragon Tooth Warrior, who was in a 1-on-1 duel with that knight, suddenly retreated one step and moved to the left. Another Dragon Tooth Warrior that appeared from behind stood on the right.

Bung!

Buung!

Two-handed swords flying in simultaneously from both sides.

"Ugh?!"

The blades of the Dragon Tooth Warriors were too long to dodge, and if he tried to duck and dodge, it was a cooperational attack treacherously aiming at the top and bottom simultaneously.

"■■?"

At that moment, the two Dragon Tooth Warriors stopped taking a huge shock.

The blue flames burning in the empty eye sockets wavered perilously like a candle before the wind. Their limbs also convulsed like shaking aspen trees.

"Now! Quickly finish them!"

Marbas's Turn Undead magic had struck. Because they aren't ordinary guys, it stopped at the degree of neutralizing them for a moment, but a gap of that degree is enough.

The silver-plated mace Aaron immediately swung destroyed their cervical spines and skulls. Then, the Dragon Tooth Warriors collapsed just like that.

However, the other frontline is still continuously in a tight duel.

Kwang!

"Keuheok!"

At the Dragon Tooth Warrior's surprise kick, the knight holding a shield tumbled backwards.

"This guy!"

As another knight who filled the gap heavily struck the Dragon Tooth Warrior's wrist, bone fragments scattered.

Kung!

At the appearance of dropping the bone two-handed ax, the knight smiled a smile of conviction and delivered a finishing attack.

However, the barehanded Dragon Tooth Warrior ducked like a frog to dodge, then immediately rushed in and pounced on the knight.

The knight, bewildered by the surprise attack of fighting like a person and suddenly rushing like a four-legged beast, rolled around entirely becoming one tangled lump.

Kkiiik!

As the murderous teeth tried to bite the knight's face, they got blocked by the helmet, making a goosebump-inducing sound.

"Uaaaaaa!"

However, the knight who had his mount position snatched away even dropping his weapon had nothing he could do.

Then suddenly, a shadow was cast over the Dragon Tooth Warrior and the knight.

Kwak!

Homi's thumb and index finger dug into the Dragon Tooth Warrior's eye sockets. Her other hand grabbed its shoulder and her foot is stepping on that guy's back.

Burururu.... Ppogak!

As she exerted force just like that, the cervical spine snapped and the Dragon Tooth Warrior whose head was yanked out dropped limply.

"Th-Thank... Heot!"

"Greetings later."

Homi, who grabbed the knight by the collar and pulled him up in one breath, joined the frontline again.

The Dwarf Prince realized that amidst everyone fighting hard, Eugene didn't even show a single hair of his nose. And that reason was soon revealed.

"Everyone has worked hard."

Aiming at the gap when they were out of their minds due to Marbas's magic and the knights' hard fighting, Eugene sneakily returned to the hill in the back.

Huuuung!

At the sound of a black, heavy lump falling, the Dragon Tooth Warriors looked up behind. A giant guillotine fell on the skull of the guy who was at the very back row among them.

Kwadudeuk!

The knights discovered Eugene taking a horizontal slash posture among the bone fragments shattering to pieces and flying about.

The giant axe blade of Blackout is pulled far back. Only Eugene's slanted left knee and left shoulder are seen.

"■■■■!"

All the Dragon Tooth Warriors in the back row rushed towards Eugene in unison.

"Sir! It's dangero..."

It was a dramatic surprise attack, but it was too reckless. The strength and technique of the Dragon Tooth Warriors lacked nothing even compared to those of a knight. On top of that, tireless stamina and the characteristic of not knowing pain.

However, the Dwarf Prince's warning was swallowed by a giant tsunami of violence.

The axe blade refined by hellfire and the fluttering Wendigo cloak. It was as if all the light in the battle scene was being sucked in.

Kwadududeuk!

Crash!

The Dragon Tooth Warriors swept away by the slash were 7.

Going beyond their upper and lower bodies being dismembered, even their limbs shattered and flew apart from the shockwave.

Pitter patter!

Suddenly hit by a baptism of their comrades' bone fragments on their backs and back of their heads, the center and front row Dragon Tooth Warriors.

"■?"

"■■???"

These guys let out bewildered voices for the first time.