Read Summoning the Holy Sword - Chapter 65 - Rock of Lament online free - Novel Full
Chapter 65: Rock of Lament
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
"There's nothing strange about their movements so far." A black-cloaked man spoke as he carefully observed the tracks on the ground.
"Everything is going as planned," another black-cloaked man replied, feeling somewhat wary, "but, why do I feel that everything is going too well?"
The men were fully wrapped in a black cloth, and other than their eyes, everything else was concealed. Even their voices were suppressed. And whether they were male or female? No one could tell.
"According to our intel, this young man has an extremely cautious personality. Why isn't he alert now?"
"That's not surprising, I mean, after all, there's a beautiful woman beside him…" One of the black-cloaked men joked in a low voice.
The other three men chuckled. But they soon contained their laughter and began whispering again.
"We should do as instructed. Let's wait for them until they've within the depths of the forest, then we attack. Remember! We must do this cleanly."
"What about that woman?"
"Capture her alive whenever possible. Whether we knock her out, drug her or whatever, as long we retrieve her alive. However, if we fail, we must silence her. A mage is a tough opponent to handle. All of you must be careful."
The men nodded in acknowledgment. Of course, they knew how difficult it was to handle a mage. If they were determined to escape, almost no one could stop them.
"Eh?"
Suddenly, one of the men detected a slight movement nearby. He swiftly made a hand gesture to the rest and slowly unsheathed a dagger by his waist. Step by step, he trod lightly towards a cluster of bushes. The others behind him immediately crouched followed him with weapons drawn. Then, in a flash, the black-cloaked man nearest to the bush suddenly thrust his dagger forward.
Swoosh! The bush shook, and a frightened squirrel shot out, crashing into a nearby tree before frantically climbing up the trunk. For a moment, it turned back and stared nervously at these humans before disappearing into the canopy.
When the men realized that it was a false alarm, they merely glanced at each other, not speaking a word. Then, they jumped into the bushes, disappearing from sight.
Meanwhile, Marlene was in a gully, stamping her foot in anger.
"Argh!" Marlene gnarled as she held her clenched fists in the air. "These guys are simply too rude! Just they wait…"
Rhode did not like to be tailed by someone. But since he allowed himself to be followed, naturally he needed to find a way to track them back. This is the so-called 'cycle'.
Thus, after reaching the Rock of Lament, Rhode did not attempt to look for treasure just yet; instead, he requested Marlene to devise a method to counter the black-cloaked men's reconnaissance. His primary goal was to figure out their intentions in detail. Secondly, he wanted Marlene to realize that things weren't as simple as it seemed.
At first, Marlene didn't put these people in her eyes. She was a pure blooded noble from an influential family. As such, for most of her life, she was only exposed to the 'brighter' side, and regarding the other side of the spectrum, she wasn't very knowledgeable. In her opinion, these black-cloaked men were no more than sneaky thieves. So, when Rhode suddenly asked her to check the bushes, she complained incessantly.
But after checking carefully, she found several shadows hiding in the bushes. Marlene's face immediately paled, but her pride prevented her from saying anything. While she was proud, she wasn't stupid.
As a mage, she knew that being attacked from behind was one of her weaknesses. In a full-fledged battle, she would've cast a shield over herself beforehand so that she wouldn't have to worry about stray arrows or backstabbing. Mages' weren't able to protect themselves 24/7 — that would be ridiculously overpowered.
If she was caught unprepared when walking past the bushes, the result would be disastrous. Thus, as soon she saw these black-cloaked men, she stopped disregarding them and took them seriously.
Rhode carefully watched her and nodded satisfyingly. Since the beginning, he had already noted the strength of their foes. Based on level alone, they were much higher than him because as they were at the advanced level. Fortunately, their surveillance route and secret techniques were precisely the same as what Rhode had remembered it to be, giving him more confidence to finish these guys off.
On the surface, both Marlene and Rhode appeared somewhat passive. However, in the shadows, a great deal of movement was taking place. No matter how weak or powerful those men were, Rhode needed to find them first before they could attack. Therefore, as the one choosing the location of the ambush, Rhode had the advantage.
And during the process of finding the men, Rhode discovered an something interesting.
"An adorable familiar, you have," Rhode said, with a faint curve on his lips, uncertain whether he was praising Marlene or being sarcastic. And in the meantime, a squirrel scuttled onto her shoulders.
"Frankly, I thought a mage's familiar would be more unique."
"Unique?" Marlene raised her brows and glared at Rhode.
"You think that my familiar is as weird-looking as your summoned spirits? This little one is my baby! If it weren't for us traveling so far out, I definitely wouldn't have brought it here."
The poor and innocent summoned spirits were suddenly being thrown into the fire…
Rhode sighed and shook his head. He stared at the squirrel sitting on Marlene's shoulder. It was using its small teeth to nibble on a nut.
From a female's point of view, cute is justice. Rhode clearly comprehended this 'fact' since he had led a guild before. Many female players in his guild didn't choose their pet based on their skills, talent, income or combat power. Rather, they close the ones who were beautiful, lovely, and charming. It appears as though no matter which world he resided in, women always had this side in them…
"Let's go."
In the gully, overgrown bushes and shrubs spread onto the rocky walls. Whenever a gust of wind blew through, loose soil and dead leaves would fly all over the place.
"Can we really find a treasure here, Mr. Rhode?" Marlene complained, with one hand raised to her front, blocking the leaves from striking her face.
"How can this deserted place house a treasure?"
"'Deserted' is precisely the reason why a treasure can be found here, Ms. Marlene."
Rhode walked into the shadows and observed his surroundings thoroughly.
"Do you know why this place is called the Rock of Lament?"
Marlene shook her head. She wasn't a native Deep Stone City citizen, how could she possibly know about this?
"Long ago, there was a bandit camp built nearby. At that time, Deep Stone City hasn't existed yet, and all the mines were monopolized by large merchant conglomerates. Not only did these merchants exploit the miners, but they also did not pay them wages or give them adequate provisions. In the end, the bandits killed the merchants and returned the money to the needy."
Marlene's mouth twitched ever so slightly. As much as she hated ruthless nobles, she knew that it was the job for nobles to handle these situations. No matter what was the reason, for ordinary citizens to take up arms and fight for their own justice wasn't something that would make her feel happy.
With Rhode's acute perception, he obviously noticed Marlene's reaction, but he chose not to say anything. When he came to this world and interacted with the people, he found out that their culture and beliefs were vastly different from his. For example, just like now, if he told this story to the people of his world, most likely they would applaud and praise the people for their courage to fight against the strong. But it was different in this world.
While Marlene wasn't against this matter, she also did not think that it was something worthy of praise. Since she was a noble, her opinion differed from the common people. She had been raised to maintain a strong sense of noblesse oblige as well as to uphold their dignity. So, when hearing such a story, Marlene couldn't accept it completely.
For the citizens of a lower caste, they did not mind if the protagonist of the story was a thief or a bandit, as long as someone could solve their difficulties, they were a hero in their eyes.
Rhode did not intend to correct Marlene's ideology, and neither did he have the interest to change her point of view.
He began to recall the original description of the quest and continued, "in time, the bandits became famous among the people, which made the wealthy merchants jealous. Eventually, they retaliated and rallied the soldiers to surround the bandit camp. Although the bandits were outnumbered, their spirits did not waver. They fought against the soldiers courageously and perished with dignity. Later that night, after the soldiers left, the people mourned for the death of their heroes and erected a tombstone. Thus, because of that, this place is called the Rock of Lament."
"What a wonderful story… what happened to those guys after that?"
"I do not know."
Rhode simply shook his head, the quest description only introduced the situation, and did not mention anything like, "if you want to know what happened afterwards, read the next chapter."
"It was a wonderful story."
Marlene nodded her head, but she sounded a bit complicated.
"But, Mr. Rhode, according to what you've said, those guys, after all, are just bandits. They are a group of criminals, how could they leave any treasures?
"Well, Marlene, let me ask you a question. Why is the Senia family so strong? Is it only because of fame?"
"Of course not," Marlene replied snappily.
She did not like how Rhode stated it so bluntly.
"We, the Senia family, are not the kind that only possesses a glorified past. Hmph, if only you knew, Lize is the real—"
Marlene suddenly covered her mouth. Then, she felt slightly guilty while looking at Rhode. After discovering that there was no change in Rhode's expression, she felt relieved. At the same time, she secretly shook her head,
Lize… it's better if you openly reveal your situation to Mr. Rhode. Otherwise, not only you will have to be careful, even I have to pay attention all the time. This feeling is quite troublesome.
"These bandits are the same," Rhode said indifferently, as though he didn't hear what she said.
She didn't know whether did he actually hear it, or just pretending not to.
He continued, "don't you find it odd that they had the ability to contend against the merchants in the first place? After all, most people wouldn't dare to risk their lives to become bandits. Since they could obtain that amount of strength, they must have a someone backing them. If we can follow up on this point and investigate further, maybe we can find an unexpected harvest."
Rhode began to insert some half-truths into his narrative. Back in the game, many hidden quests derived from rumors, legends or even stories. Players were a sensitive bunch about this part because it was a virtual reality game. Therefore, the logic shouldn't be too far off from the ones in the real world. Any sentence contained within the game could be a trigger for a hidden quest.
In the game, the Rock of Lament questline activated when a player heard a bard singing a song in a tavern. The player's purpose of visiting the tavern was to seek an adventure, so they waited for the bard to sing to activate the quest.
Of course, Marlene was unable to relate to it — which was exactly why she was presently staring at Rhode with her eyes wide open. She was shocked at Rhode's ability to perceive information from a story. Marlene felt that the more time she spent with this man, the more she thought that he was becoming increasingly unfathomable. Could it be that nothing in this world was difficult to him?
Who is he actually?
Marlene's curiosity grew once more.
"It's here."
At this moment, Rhode stopped in front of a cave. He carefully examined the mouth of the dark cave and went inside. Marlene hesitated for a while, but she still picked up her skirt and followed behind.
The duo lit up their torches, illuminating the dim tunnel. The only sounds they could hear were the echoes of their footsteps. Occasionally, a drop of water would fall to the ground, producing a crisp, tapping sound. Just from a brief scan, there was nothing peculiar about this underground cave.
Not long after entering, Marlene, who was in the rear, suddenly screamed as she jumped forward.
"Aah!"
"What happened?"
Rhode swiftly turned around and looked at her.
"I-I felt like someone touched me from behind," Marlene said while she trembled slightly, clearly embarrassed by her sudden outcry.
"Touched you?"
Before he turned back to the front, Rhode thought of several possible reasons. But never would he had believed that it would be the most unrealistic one. He lifted his torch and waved it behind Marlene.
"There's no one."
"O-or maybe I am mistaken?"
Marlene also turned around, her face was flushed, and she did not know what else to say.
Rhode did not mind her. Soon, both of them continued walking. But after three steps, Marlene's voice sounded again.
"Aahh!"
"Eh?"
Rhode turned around again, failing to discover anyone behind her. But this time, he realized that Marlene's face was incredibly pale. Her whole body began to tremble vigorously as though she'd seen a ghost.
"N-no, this isn't right… there's something…! I don't know what it is, but I know it touched my back… Rhode, h-help me! What… what is it tha—"
Before Marlene could finish, Rhode discovered fur-like mandibles stretching towards her neck.
"Don't move!"
Whoosh! He swiftly waved his sword past her collar, quickly pinning the perpetrator to the wall. At that moment, both of them finally saw its actual appearance.
It was a palm-sized spider!
Although the spider's sternum was cleanly pierced through, it still desperately tried to twist its body to escape. Brown-colored blood spurted out from the wound, and it sprayed out a white thread from between its chelicerae as though it was in severe pain.
The sight of it was truly disgusting.
While Rhode had encountered much more revolting beings than this, his rare indifferent expression changed slightly. He flicked his sword slightly, and the spider was immediately torn into pieces.
"Sigh…"
After getting rid of the spider, he finally felt relieved.
"Ms. Marlene, are you hurt? How do you fee—"
Rhode was interrupted when a soft, fragrant body flew into his arms.
"…" Rhode was speechless.
"Sobs…"
Marlene clung to Rhode tightly as she buried her head in his arms. Although he couldn't see her expression, he could hear her sobbing faintly.
Was this missy actually crying?
Rhode knit his brows together in confusion. Then he stretched out his left hand and patted her shoulder.
Surprisingly, the young maiden did not react. Her arms remained hooked around Rhode's body. He had to admit; those two soft buns were really tempting.
"Ms. Marlene? Everything is alright now."
"Sobs…sobs… I-is that thing really dead? O-on my back, there's no more terrible monster? Mr. Rhode, please help me check, did that terrible monster leave something on my back?"
Rhode scrutinized Marlene's back with the torch. All he could see was a clean and tidy robe without any markings.
"There's nothing, Ms. Marlene."
Once she heard his reassuring words, Marlene finally felt relieved. Then, she raised her head and quickly wiped her eyes. She suddenly remembered something, so she gave him an embarrassed smile and said, "I-I have something to do, I will come back very soon, okay?"
"… Of course, no problem, be careful."
Her meekness was somewhat refreshing from the usual. Rhode didn't know what was going through her mind right now, so he could only watch as she swiftly ran over to a corner, acting suspiciously. Soon, the torch in the corner moved once again, and when she came back, she was totally refreshed.
However, not only did her expression return to normal, the usual luxurious robe that she always wore… also changed?
"Ms. Marlene?"
"Eh? It's alright. I'm sorry for acting so unprofessionally, Mr. Rhode. I panicked and slipped up… I'm okay now, let's get going."
"That goes without saying, but I have a question."
"What is it?"
"Are you actually…afraid of spiders?"
"Oh… ha ha ha ha ha…" Marlene forced a laugh when she heard Rhode's question.
"What are you saying, Mr. Rhode. You are so funny, do you know that? How can this lady be afraid of those black, rough, fur-like, eight-legged creeps? It's impossible. I was just a little shocked and slipped up, that's all. Those kinds of useless insects only know how to scare people with its tiny jaws. I'm totally not afraid at all!"
Sounds like she really is afraid…
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Chapter 66: Behind The Rumors
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
After the entire fiasco, the duo continued forward. But Marlene clearly didn't let her guard down. Not only did she cast a shield over herself, but she also stuck close to Rhode as much as possible, using her right hand to pinch his the hem of his clothes. Her pupils darted left and right continuously, seeking out any sudden movements. With this level of surveillance, perhaps not even the cloaked men could avoid her.
"Mr. Rhode, is it really here?" Marlene asked after she inhaled deeply, breathing in the cold, chilly air which sent a shiver down her spine.
As they went deeper into the cave, the ground became increasingly colder. Rhode was also fairly curious since he had never completed this quest before. At that time, he was completely focused on unearthing the potential of the Summoning Swordsman, so he was hesitant to activate this quest.
The reason why he knew so much about the Rock of Lament was because he read about another player's adventure on the forum. That player posted screenshots of his experiences as well as the loot he obtained at the end of the quest. His intention was mainly to show off, and many people ended up taking the bait. Before him, no one thought that listening to the bard would grant them a hidden quest, so after this incident, it spawned a revelation among many players to use similar tactics to seek out other hidden quests.
The situation right now was the same as what he has remembered in the forum post. But at that time, the player wrote, "After I walked through the cave for a while…"
…It ended there.
So… how long is 'a while'?
Only god knows.
In any case, it shouldn't be too long. Otherwise, that player wouldn't write it as 'a while.'
Damn it! It was a mistake not to research more about this questline.
Just as he said those words, a few moments later, the two of them finally noticed a change in scenery.
A bright light shone into their eyes as they left the narrow cave.
They found themselves in a wide, underground cave. Stalactites formed on the ceiling, and an occasional drop of water would fall off the tip. The wet solid cave wall also reflected the sun rays which permeated into the cave through several holes from the top. There were even some plants in the corners that tried to stretch its tendrils towards the light.
"It's beautiful…"
Rhode had seen plenty of underground caverns, so he wasn't surprised. As for Marlene, it was her first time witnessing such a sight. It wasn't as scary and dark as she imagined, it could be even described as charming and beautiful.
Marlene was completely immersed in this magnificent display of the power of nature. Meanwhile, Rhode shifted his gaze on a huge rock.
This rock matched exactly to what Rhode had seen in the forum post.
A huge inverted stalactite was carved into a smooth rock and many names were etched on it. It was the names of the bandits who had been killed. After their deaths, they were buried here, under the tombstone raised by the common people.
"They lurked in the nights and perished in the darkness, but they have brought us light."
Rhode muttered the inscription above the tombstone, then he bowed his head and glanced behind the rock.
A long time had passed, and the graves lost its original appearance. If it weren't because of those small mounds that were neatly arranged in a row, almost no one would think that this was a gravesite.
"What should I do next, Mr. Rhode? You wouldn't ask me to become a graverobber, right?" Marlene asked Rhode worriedly. No matter what, digging up graves wasn't a noble thing to do.
"Let's split up and check the area."
Naturally, Rhode already found the location of the treasure since he could recall the contents of the screenshots by the player quite vividly. But he wasn't silly enough to directly saunter to the treasure location and dig it up because that would indubitably trip Marlene's suspicion. He didn't want to create additional headaches for himself, so he decided to play it out naturally.
Marlene was relieved when she heard that Rhode wasn't going to order her to dig up the graves. She nodded her head and took the left side of the cave while Rhode searched the right. Up to this point,
everything was the same as the forum post, even so, Rhode couldn't help but wonder that if there would be any kind of divergence from the game.
But when he saw a dust-covered chest made out of bronze in the corner, Rhode finally felt relieved.
He walked towards the chest and lowered his body, studying the object before him.
Due to the power of time, the chest's surface had begun to weather. Rhode gently reached out and swept the dust off the lid. Then he skillfully patted several seemingly random spots with his right hand to confirm that it wasn't boobytrapped. After that, he held the lid and opened it.
Creak… Dust flew everywhere when he lifted up the lid as its aged hinges made a sad wail. After blowing the dust off the objects, his heart immediately jumped with joy.
Inside the chest were the weapons left behind by the bandits. Most of them had rusted beyond belief and already failed the test of time. However, there were a few which glittered amongst the others, as though they were brand new. This was a characteristic of magic equipment.
[Broken Fang (Dagger), Magic Equipment (Excellent), when attacking the target, it can trigger a chance of paralysis for 3 seconds]
[Forest Walker (Longbow), Magic Equipment (Excellent), by consuming Soul Power, it can activate the Hawkeye effect for 1 hour. ]
[Rock Hearts (Shield), Magic Equipment (Rare), when attacked, there's a chance of triggering Steel Body and absorb 4000 damage, resistance to magic attacks increased by 10%]
[Wild Wolf Oath (Sword), Magic Equipment (Excellent), when attacking the target, it can trigger chance of Bleeding, damage increased by 30%]
In the chest, Rhode found four types of magic equipment. He even found a spatial bag which made him incredibly happy. Spatial bags were very expensive and rare to find. In the game, all players automatically had one, but now he realized that it was a luxury to have one.
After the incident in the floating ship, he asked Matt about this issue. At first, he intended to order one from Matt, but Matt told him that the spatial bags belonged mostly to mages. Since space magic were high-level spells, perhaps most ordinary people wouldn't be able to get it in their entire lifetime.
Even as a traveling merchant, Matt had no way to acquire a spatial bag. Maybe only four to five people in Deep Stone City had one. Rhode just knew that Sereck and Marlene both had one each. Alas, the missy took things too easily. She thought that their journey here wouldn't be long and didn't bring it. Marlene's robe had a similar function, but it could not carry as much as a spatial bag.
Rhode had been craving for it ever since he arrived to this world. Back in the game, players would throw away their low-leveled 10-grid spatial bag because nobody wanted to buy it. But now, not even a 4-grid spatial bag for newbies could be found. It was such a tragedy…
Although he suspected that the loot here would be quite decent, it actually went past his expectations! To put it simply, he had planned to hunt for similar equipment, but that was only in the next dungeon. However, now he could get them all without fighting any enemy! Perhaps this was the reason why hidden quests were so attractive. Unlike ordinary quests, hidden quests tested the player's wisdom and observation.
Rhode immediately stored all the loot he found in the spatial bag without any reservations. After cleaning out the entire chest, he spotted a piece of cloth hidden at the bottom. A trace of excitement flashed in his eyes and quickly grabbed it.
On the surface, this piece of cloth appeared rather unappealing. Its dull grey colors made it seem like it was dirty. But at this moment, Rhode knew that this was the reason why the forum post went viral on the internet.
[Shadow Messenger (Cloak), Magic Equipment (Mysterious), wearing it can conceal your presence by 70%, Stealth passive effect]
This cloak was the first Mysterious-tier equipment he discovered in this world. This piece of equipment was a must-have for spies, thieves, assassins or rangers. In the game's auction house, the price of it reached 25 gold coins, and it had not been reduced ever since. Besides Ancient-tier types of magic equipment, there would be nothing better for these subterfuge classes.
Furthermore, there were only ten of these cloaks in the entire Dragon Soul Continent. It once belonged to an assassin faction with a long history. Only one player managed to acquire this cloak without passing the test set by the assassins. The rest of them had to kill monsters and go through rigorous questlines to obtain it, but still, they did not succeed in the end.
And right now, this legendary artifact finally fell into his grasp.
It was a pity that he wasn't from the thief class, this factor alone made the value of the cloak significantly diminish, but it was still better than nothing.
While Rhode was busy looting, Marlene, who was at the other side of the cave, stared at a strange part of the wall curiously.
"What's this?" She murmured to herself.
The wall that she was looking at was wrapped in vines, concealing whatever that was within completely. However, Marlene felt that there was something strange in it, so, she carefully raised her wand and cast a spell to untangle the vines.
When the vines parted, the first thing she saw was a face.
"Ah!"
Marlene subconsciously screamed and waved her wand back and forth. After a while, she realized that it was only a sculpture.
The sculpture portrayed a dignified man in full plate armor holding a sword in his hand. Although it was quite worn, the sculpture itself was fully intact, and it emitted a faint characteristic of courage.
"This… isn't this a statue from the Fassicarl Era?"
Marlene's curiosity was piqued. She walked forward and examined the sculpture. Then she reached out and touched its face.
And at that moment, Rhode's voice sounded out, "What happened, Marlene? What did you find?"
"Eh?"
Marlene was surprised for a moment when she heard Rhode calling her. The moment she turned around, a sound suddenly came out from the sculpture. Both of them were startled because they realized that the sculpture's face was actually shrinking back and its eyes were shining! Then, the sculpture spun around, slicing the vines with its sword.
"What the… Marlene! Be careful! Come here!"
Rhode was equally shocked because he didn't remember any of this in the forum post. And this was obviously a natural cave, how can there be a sculpture here?
However, he had no time to put his thoughts together and he quickly pulled Marlene behind him before unsheathing his sword.
Holy Soul above… it should not be those damned alchemy creatures again, right?
However, contrary to Rhode's expectation, the sculpture did not intend to attack. It put back its sword and went silent.
A moment later, a low sound echoed in the cave.
Rumble… The stone wall next to the sculpture suddenly began to shake. Then it shifted diagonally, revealing a three-meter high passage.
Rhode and Marlene glanced at each other, speechless.
How did things turn out like this?
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The passage to their front was in pitch darkness. Not even a speck of light could be seen from within.
Both Rhode and Marlene stared speechlessly at the entrance of the 'new cave.'
"So, Marlene, what did you do?" Rhode took the initiative to break the silence.
"I-I did not do anything," Marlene said with a slight panic in her voice.
Her expression genuinely revealed that she didn't know what happened.
Frankly, it was shocking to Rhode as well.
He was pretty confident that there weren't any posts about a hidden cave behind a sculpture. If there was something like this back in the game, it would've gone viral already. However, there remained another possibility — the player actually found the entrance, but since there was nothing, he didn't bother to spread the word.
But no matter how much he looked at the entrance, he couldn't think of a reason why someone would craft such a deliberate mechanism just for fun.
Even if it killed him, he would still trust his intuition. A secret passage and a trap appearing hand-in-hand? There is only one way to find out the answer.
Go in and explore.
But still, he couldn't help but feel slightly hesitant. If it were back in the game, he would immediately dive in without delay. But now, his situation was different; he no longer had a 'respawn' if he died. Moreover, he had no intel of this unknown passage. What if there were many traps or monsters inside? That would certainly spell trouble for him.
Nevertheless, it wasn't an impossible task for Rhode.
"Marlene," Rhode said softly, with a trace of resolution in his voice. "Stand guard at the entrance. I'll go in and scout. If I do not appear within twenty minutes or if you hear an explosion, you need to leave this place immediately. Understood?"
In the end, Rhode made a decision. He unsheathed his sword and swung it casually, causing a red card to materialize out of thin air.
Roar! A dark hound appeared beside him.
"How can I do that!" Marlene shook her head and disagreed.
Then she furrowed her brows and said, "Do you want me to escape by myself? If I do something like that, how can I explain to Lize afterwards? Moreover, my Senia family is no coward…"
Rhode waved his hand to interrupt Marlene, "It's not the matter of courage, Ms. Marlene. We don't know what lies within that cave. What if something happens and both of us got trapped inside? If one of us stays outside, then if something happens, there is still hope."
"That's true… but…" Marlene had mixed feelings over this matter and was frowning, but suddenly, she clenched her teeth and shouted. "I have an idea!"
"An idea?" Rhode turned to Marlene and looked at her in surprise.
"I-I have my family's heirloom. It is a type of magic equipment."
When Rhode suddenly stared at her, Marlene blushed slightly and stammered.
"No matter what kind of danger I face, as long as I'm willing, I can teleport out from any space at any moment to the Senia estate. Moreover, this can be used by a maximum of two people at the same time. As long you hold my hand, we can leave together at any moment, so you don't have to worry."
At first, Marlene's voice was like a squeak, but it gradually shifted back to her usual tone. Rhode was fairly surprised with what she said and stood speechless for a while.
He knew that mages had a vast array of life-saving skills and equipment, and since Marlene was the only heir to the Senia family, no matter what, he believed that she must possess some kind of trump card. But never would he have thought that she would reveal plainly it to him in this manner. One must realize that this kind of equipment or skill must be kept as an absolute secret. Until the last breath, it was something that must not be told to anyone. But now… she…
"T-That's why I insist to go with you, Mr. Rhode."
Marlene didn't know why she suddenly lost her courage again when Rhode stared at her, but apparently, she still insisted on coming along.
"Although it might be dangerous, as a mage, I have many ways to protect myself. If the situation gets out of hand, I can immediately leave this place. Isn't that reassuring enough?"
After listening to Marlene's reasoning, Rhode pondered to himself in silence. Frankly, he didn't wish for her to follow him. His current character wasn't the same as before. Back then, if the gods barred his way, he would kill the gods, and if the Buddhas hindered his path, he would slaughter the Buddhas! But right now, he was a puny level 10. Even defeating a few advanced thieves would require him to plan thoroughly. Was it safe if he went inside alone?
Rhode didn't know.
So, in the end, he agreed.
"Ok." Rhode nodded, "but I do hope you can protect yourself."
Since Marlene had a way to escape, he decided to trust her. At least the probability of surviving would be higher.
"Of course!"
There was no light source inside the cave.
Initially, Rhode was extremely cautious because based on his experiences, secret passages usually hosted many kinds of deadly traps. For example, a pressure plate trap. If he accidentally stepped on the wrong slate, it might set off a series of irreversible outcomes.
Unexpectedly, the secret passage was on level ground. And with the help of the torch, he noticed beautiful carvings on both sides of the wall.
"These are murals from Fascarl era, Mr. Rhode." Marlene was concentrating on examining a beautiful sculpture on the wall at the moment.
She could not help but feel amazed at how intricate the designs were. Most mages were well educated. Naturally, they had read about these historical stories before. However, Rhode clearly didn't care about that. He was currently expending all his energy on detecting traps… but it looks like there was no indication of any at all.
"Be careful and hold my hand tightly." Rhode grabbed her hand as they made their way deeper. And not far in front of him was the Flame Killer which was responsible for being the 'trap trigger.' After all, a dead summoned spirit can be summoned again. Moreover, this pitiful canine had already died more than twice, so what if it died once more? It should just get used to it.
The poor Flame Killer had a different opinion though. Unfortunately, it did not have the rights to disagree.
The black hound jumped in the air from time to time according to Rhode's command. There was a ring of fire circling around its body, creating a much-needed illumination for the dark passage.
After walking for a distance, Rhode began to sense something odd. He couldn't tell what exactly it was, but it kept nagging him at the back of his head.
Why would a secret passage appear here? What can we find here?
Currently, Rhode was in the 'player mode' thought process and wasn't paying attention to his surroundings. Marlene was also no longer observing the surrounding murals. On the contrary, her head was lowered as she stared at her hand which was held by Rhode. She didn't know whether it was because of the heat, but she knew that her face was burning.
Suddenly, the Flame Killer stopped moving. Then it circled the ground two times and ran forward.
"What happened?"
Rhode's heart tightened. He didn't stop the black hound. Instead, he took a step forward and stood in front of Marlene with his sword raised. Then, he scanned each and every detail around him.
But after a while, nothing happened.
Rhode frowned. Up until now, he was constantly on the alert, and it was straining his senses. If there were monsters or traps in this passage, he wouldn't feel weary as it was something familiar to him. But he found nothing so far… and that was too strange. Of course, since he had already made it this far, he didn't intend to retreat.
Finally, the duo made their way out of the narrow passage and found themselves at a stone stairway leading deeper underground. The Flame Killer wasn't too far away from them. When it noticed that its master had arrived, it arched its body and roared at the perpetual darkness below.
"Ms. Marlene, do you have any spells that be used as light?"
Rhode held the torch nearer to the stairway, but he still could not see what was down there. For safety reasons, he decided to use another approach. However, after a while, Marlene still did not respond. Her head was still lowered, staring blankly at her hand.
"Ms. Marlene?"
"Eh?"
Rhode called out to her once more and she finally recovered from her stupor.
"O-oh oh… Light magic right? I have it, please wait." Marlene said with a flush on her face.
She immediately loosened her hand from Rhode's grip in a hurry and closed her eyes. After a chant, a bright luminous sphere floated on her palm. The light emitted from the sphere ate away the darkness and illuminated the entire area.
And the scene that appeared before them left the duo in disbelief.
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Chapter 68: The Lost Palace
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
It was a ruin.
At first glance, the whole underground cave appeared cube-shaped. A gorgeous palace rested in the center. A moat filled with water surrounded the palace as though it was guarding it. The only way out of here was the stairway that the duo found previously.
"What in the world is this place…?"
Marlene stared speechlessly at the scene. Rhode fared slightly better because he had experienced much more than her. Compared to how Marlene reacted, Rhode stood still and silently recalled his knowledge about the origin of this ruin.
Although the two were considered the brightest amongst the youths, they were not omniscient beings after all. Rhode's knowledge was from the game, and Marlene's forte was magic. None of them were well-versed in archaeology. If there was a scholar with them, then perhaps he could figure out their location.
"Did you find any clues?"
Rhode calmed down. He waved his hand and signaled the black hound to scout ahead while they followed a distance behind. Nevertheless, Rhode didn't drop his guard even the slightest bit as he constantly swept his eyes over his surroundings.
The whole palace emitted a luxurious atmosphere. The pillars were intricately carved, and it appeared completely intact as though it was just built. A magic sphere was floating in the air. Under its brilliance, the shadows slowly melted away.
There were no corpse, no furniture, and no weapons.
Empty.
That was the first impression Rhode had when he toured the place.
In fact, the 'ruins' can't even be considered as ruins as they were largely intact without any blemishes. Strangely though, the place housed no everyday objects other than staircases, pillars, and sculptures.
Back in the game, Rhode had seen almost a thousand types of ruins. Although each of them was unique in their own way, at least they had weapons, armors or broken furniture lying around. All of them had traces of living activity of one kind of another. But this place is different. Everything was… seemingly dead. It was as if the entire area was devoid of life. Even the surrounding moat water didn't make a sound when it flowed.
"This place sure is strange."
Rhode put down his sword and walked to a nearby pillar. His eyes scrutinized the complex text and patterns carved into the stone. Unfortunately, he couldn't find any clue about their situation. Just a little behind Rhode, Marlene was doing the same thing as well, but she actually found a clue faster than Rhode.
"I think it was built during the Fascarl Kingdom's era, Mr. Rhode."
The Fascarl Kingdom was a mysterious kingdom at the beginning of the Creation Era. Despite being one of the strongest kingdoms at that time, it suddenly disappeared one day. Even in the historical records had only a few manuscripts about this kingdom.
The strange thing was how a country as powerful as they suddenly disappear in a puff of smoke. And no matter how hard the people searched, the Fascarl Kingdom's relics and ruins were nowhere to be found. Not even the Country of Light and Darkness had found the remains of the Fascarl Kingdom.
Regardless any country's wealth of knowledge, no one had the records of the Fascarl Kingdom even though the name of 'Fascarl' derived from a dragon spell in the Ancient Era.
A country that was this mysterious should contain valuable equipment.
"But there appears to be nothing in this place…"
With the help of the magic light, Rhode could see the end of the palace.
No treasure chest. No swords. No nothing. Only a lonely stone altar stood erect which made Rhode somehow feel sorry for it.
Just beside the altar were two knight sculptures. They wore a full plate armor with swords lifted towards the sky. It looked as though they were welcoming visitors as well as displaying their strength.
"Since there's nothing here, we should leave."
Rhode was the type who wouldn't leave empty-handed, but this place was just too strange, and it made Rhode feel uneasy. If he died in the game, he still could resurrect. But he couldn't do that now, so he felt that if there was nothing worth spending time on, then retreating would be the best option.
Marlene was slightly discontented with Rhode's unfounded wariness, but she still followed his order and kept silent. When she stood up and planned to leave, at this moment, her squirrel familiar appeared from the darkness and ran towards her, squeaking frantically. Marlene's expression immediately changed.
"Mr. Rhode, they are here!"
F*ck it!
Rhode cursed inwardly but still maintained his calm exterior. He had predicted that those black-cloaked men would follow them into the cave. Frankly, it was the best place to bury them once he killed them since no one would know. Alas, their timing was unfavorable. If everything went according to plan, there wouldn't be a problem, but now they had accidentally uncovered an unknown ruin which was a hidden factor that Rhode didn't anticipate!
Rhode turned his head and confirmed that there were no other exits. He guessed that those men were as clueless about this place. After all, only an omniscient being would know about the area that he hadn't explored yet.
"Ms. Marlene."
Rhode drafted a plan in his mind. He grabbed Marlene's hand, pulled her towards him and whispered in her ear, "I have a plan that requires your cooperation…"
A group of shadows appeared from the darkness, stopping for a moment before a cave entrance.
They glanced at each other silently and made a signal with their fingers.
The target is close.
Get into position.
Then, the black-cloaked men dashed into the cave.
Unlike Marlene who had spent her time gawking at the beautiful underground scenery, the men had no time for that. When they exited the narrow tunnels and discovered the large underground cavern, they pushed their bodies onto the walls and shuffled forward while hiding in the shadows.
After searching for a while, they did not find anyone.
It didn't look like there were other entrances. Did they fly away?
That was absolutely impossible.
Soon, they found the hidden passage behind the sculpture. It wasn't surprising at all since they were all professionals, and they weren't as hesitant as Rhode as danger was in their job scope.
But they still remained vigilant. They left two men behind to guard the entrance while the other three went inside the hidden passage to locate their target.
Those guys are a bit tricky…
Rhode, who was also lurking in the shadows, felt a headache when he observed the black-cloaked men's movement. He wasn't worried about being discovered by the enemy as he wasn't new to this. In the game, he was often chased by assassins and thieves. If he could not do something like this, he would've died a hundred thousand times already. For insurance, he also activated the Shadow Messenger. This magic equipment definitely deserved its reputation. After using it, his body blended into the surroundings. Even if one carefully examined his location, it would still be difficult to find him.
Rhode was confident in his abilities. Not only he had the Shadow Messenger, he also wore the Dark Soul ring.
In PVP, both equipment and skills were equally important.
In a fraction of a second, Rhode disappeared into the darkness without a trace.
The three black-cloaked men walked past Rhode without detecting his presence. They also didn't know that Rhode had already unsheathed his sword while emitting a killing intent.
Hmph! I'll let you know who is the one being hunted here!
Although he had the advantage, Rhode didn't choose to act rashly. Based on the triangular formation they moved in, he knew that any one of them could easily support each other if something were to happen. If one of them suffered an attack, the other two would react and counterattack. Unless Rhode could kill the three at the same time, attacking now wasn't the best approach.
Furthermore, his current-self didn't have the strength to contend against all three of them together.
Thus, Rhode remained patient as he knew what the men were thinking as well as what were they going to do.
Quietly lurking behind them, he waited for an opportunity to strike.
A while later, the three black-cloaked men finally passed through the passage and discovered the stone stairwell.
However, unlike Marlene, they didn't have a spell to light up the darkness below. As such, when they saw a faint light flickering in the distance, it immediately caught their attention.
Ever so carefully, the men slowly crept down the stairway. And soon enough, they saw Marlene who was holding a torch and standing beside a pillar.
A good opportunity!
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Chapter 69: Who's The Hunter
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
An idea flashed in the minds of the three black-cloaked men.
Who wouldn't relish this godsent opportunity? A solo girl surrounded by darkness and currently preoccupied with something else… Even if she were a mage, she wouldn't be able to escape once they made a move.
However…
The three men scanned their surroundings with a slight frown on their faces, clearly a little worried about an ambush. They weren't here for on a stroll and had to be vigilant. But after contemplating for a moment, they concluded there shouldn't be much risk if they acted now.
Nevertheless, they were still rather puzzled. Why was this woman unguarded? Where was their 'primary assassination target?'
If he had died, the female mage wouldn't be so calm. Did he leave her here alone and venture deeper inside?
The three men glanced at each other and made hand gestures to communicate with one another. In the end, they couldn't think of anything else more possible than what they had already discussed. Based on their intel, this young man was quite skilled, so it wasn't surprising if he was confident about his strength and left the female mage here as he explored the ruins. While they couldn't see far in the darkness, they could at least make out a faint outline of a torch burning in the distance.
The leader of the black-cloaked men went silent. A moment later, he raised his head, revealing a pair of eyes gazing with resolution. He slowly lifted his right arm and swung it downwards in an arc.
Begin operation!
The other men dashed into the darkness stealthily once they received their orders.
Their well-honed killing intent began to surface.
Marlene stared at the intricately carved patterns on the pillar in front of her. She wasn't studying those patterns; rather, her head kept ringing with the words Rhode had delivered to her before leaving.
Those people will undoubtedly try to attack you. I will need you to act naturally and pretend that you don't know anything. Do not worry; I have a way of stopping them. Rest assured Marlene, I will not allow you to get hurt.
Rhode appeared to be 100% reliable when he reassured her, but to be totally cool about being the bait was completely rubbish. Therefore she could not resist secretly glancing at her surroundings once in a while.
Meanwhile, under the flickering light, a shadow shifted from time to time. If Marlene observed carefully, she would realize that someone was lurking nearby.
The pressure on her wasn't light at all. It was especially so when she heard the methods from Rhode about how they were going to deal with her. Her heart froze. Death was enough to cause fear in people. If was far better off being dead than to imagine what they were going to do with her after being captured.
Frankly, Marlene had considered summoning her magic sphere to brighten the area so she could see where the enemy was hiding. But in the end, she swallowed her fear and chose to believe in Rhode.
What an unreasonable man!
When she thought of herself putting total trust in a man, Marlene suddenly felt like she was becoming stupid. Why did she have to believe him? Why must her life dance in the palm of his hand? Was it because he convinced her? Or was it because of other reasons…
Even when facing her father, Marlene was never THAT obedient. So why did she listen to his every word? Somehow, before this man, every word he spoke was something that she was unable to oppose.
Is it because of the duel before? That shouldn't be it.
Although he is the first man to injure me, I'm not a weak woman who would become obedient once scared, right?
Marlene shook her head repeatedly, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get him out of her mind.
Then she berated herself inwardly. "Don't think about him anymore!"
Thus, in order to take her mind off him, she began to focus on deciphering the meaning of the ancient symbols on the pillar.
A woman mind is really complicated…
"….chosen knight…to protect the world…"
Her white and slender fingers traced the mysterious carvings, carefully examining the ancient symbols before her as she murmured to herself.
"….the source of power…came from…soul contract…under the void…"
Her voice became softer as her expression became increasingly focused.
Marlene completely neglected the danger around her.
A chance!
The black-cloaked men snorted coldly. As professionals, they did not make any rash moves. They knew that their opponent was a mage — and a genius one at that. Therefore, if they weren't 100% confident about capturing her, attacking her and losing their stealth advantage was a silly move.
Initially, they discovered that she was quite cautious, so they refrained from making a move. But they could've never suspected that her cautiousness was because she was anticipating their arrival. Instead, they thought that it wasn't strange for a young girl such as her to be entirely calm in a dark cavern — and furthermore, she was all alone. Now that she gradually immersed herself in deciphering the weird symbols on the pillars, they finally had the opportunity to close the distance.
One of the black-cloaked men stretched out his hand and pulled out a cloth. Then, he lowered his body and crawled towards her slowly.
Unfortunately, it didn't go as well he planned.
A sharp, scarlet blade pierced through his throat noiselessly. The man's eyes widened in horror as he almost lost consciousness. He gripped his neck and attempted to shout for his comrades, but he found that he could only open his mouth and wriggle his tongue wordlessly. At this moment, a cold metallic blade opened a gap in his body.
After that, darkness shrouded his entire world.
The body that had lost its vitality slumped to the floor, but before it touched the ground, Rhode grabbed it and gently laid it down. Then, Rhode gave a quick glance at his surroundings and quickly retreated.
Shadows swallowed his silhouette.
It's been a while, why hasn't he made a move yet?
The man who was hiding behind the pillar frowned to himself. He stared at Marlene's defenseless back and felt a bit annoyed. Based on their plan, one was responsible for the attack while the others were supposed to back him up if something went awry. But now, judging at how much time had passed, shouldn't he had made his move?
Or did something happened to him?
Perhaps it was intuition or instinct. The man turned around to inspect his surroundings.
But the only thing he saw was a red flash.
Bright, red blood sprayed from his neck, and he collapsed immediately. Once again, Rhode quickly shot forward to support the body and slowly laid the corpse on the floor. If anyone observed Rhode's swift actions right now, no one would have imagined that he was a swordsman.
Number two is down.
Once he confirmed that he obtained EXP, he prepared to retreat once again.
But suddenly, a swishing sound came from behind.
Rhode instinctively rolled to the side. He felt a cold sensation on his left shoulder when a black shadow shot past him.
As expected of a professional.
Rhode clenched his teeth to endure the searing pain on his left shoulder. He wanted to quickly get rid of the three of them so he could move on to the other two guarding the entrance. If everything went smoothly, they could've easily gone home after this. Unfortunately, the opponent did not give him that opportunity.
When the first attack failed, the black shadow didn't attack Rhode again; instead, he turned around and directly rushed towards Marlene.
Rhode quickly stood up and crushed a green card in his palm, summoning the Spirit Bird who immediately shot towards the last black-cloaked man.
All of these events happened in a flash. Even when Rhode got injured by the enemy's attack, Marlene did not discover anything wrong. But once the black-cloaked man gave up hiding, it was too late. Marlene turned around hastily and saw a dagger thrusting towards her. The gap between her assailant and herself was less than half a meter!
Marlene's protective garments activated their defensive spells, but she didn't expect that the man could easily penetrate it as though he was cutting a cake.
However, the very next moment, the only thing Marlene could hear was an explosion.
Boom!! A wind blast produced by the Spirit Bird hit squarely on the man's back. It was like an invisible fist punching the enemy, launching his body towards the ground.
Rhode sighed.
When he saw the man rushing towards Marlene, he already knew that his smooth sailing plan had come to an end. Obviously, this man was aware that his strength was able to pierce through Marlene's protective spells. He made the right choice to launch an attack instead of relying on her protective spells.
And it seemed like his decision was indeed correct.
But now wasn't the time to feel relieved.
Marlene dashed to Rhode's side, and at the same time, the black-cloaked man slowly stood up. Although it appeared as though the Spirit Bird's attack created a large impact, the damage wasn't fatal at all. Moreover, the man was an advanced level assailant. Killing him wasn't that easy.
Rhode's left hand shielded Marlene while his right lifted the sword.
At the same time, the black-cloaked man also whipped out a knife and a dagger, emitting a thick killing intent from his eyes.
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Both of them went silent.
Rhode stood in front of Marlene, raising his sword and groaning inwardly. He was afraid of facing advanced level enemies. The fact that they were of an advanced level meant that their level was beyond the average human's standard and that they had officially entered a superhuman state. Although spies were not known for their strength, it did not prevent them from being powerful. Not to mention, a spy's speed was extremely fast: most people wouldn't be able to react to it. Moreover… it was a human this time. It would have been better if the enemy was only an alchemical creature who had a little bit of wisdom.
But now, there was no use regretting it.
"Marlene, always pay attention. Don't give him any chance to attack, understand?"
"I will try."
Upon hearing Rhode's command, Marlene, who was always brimming with confidence, also became cautious. She had never seen such speed—plus the enemy could even get rid of her magic protective shield. This made Marlene sense danger. She took a step back and calmed down before raising her wand.
At that moment, the spy also made a move.
So fast!
In a blink of an eye, Rhode could see the dagger had already arrived in front of him. He was surprised and turned his sword around to block the dagger in front of him.
But then, he felt a huge force surge from the sword which sent him flying a few meters back, causing him to heavily fall to the ground. Even though the attack had dealt a very heavy blow, he still clenched his teeth and stood up. He brandished the sword in his hand and once again blocked the spy's dagger.
Boom!!
Rhode's body lost its balance and genuflected on the ground while the magic equipment in his hand issued a hoarse sound like a longbow.
Is he a barbarian or a spy!?
One of Rhode's hands was holding the sword's hilt while the other hand was holding the sword's body. He groaned inwardly.
This guy is really difficult to handle. His speed and strength are far beyond mine. If not for my experience, I would already be a goner.
"Eh?"
Looking at Rhode's miserable state, the spy was puzzled.
He was not underestimating Rhode. From the moment his two subordinates were killed in silence, he had seen that the young man was brave and had fighting experience. Rhode actually could feel his presence and dodged his surprise attack. This meant that the young man was not easy to deal with. That was why he was at a loss when his first attack failed and decided to leave the outcome to fate.
He never imagined that this young man's performance was completely beyond his imagination once he attacked again.
He actually was incapable of blocking his attack?
Looking at the young man who was resisting his attack, the spy was puzzled. Naturally, he knew a person who was not even able to block his attack definitely was not an advanced level. But how did a swordsman who had yet to enter the advanced level kill his two subordinates in silence? It was just too strange.
Generally, a person's combat experience and strength were bound to each other. When a person has a lot of combat experience, his or her strength would also be powerful. But although this person had a lot of combat experience, his strength was very weak. Why was that? The black-cloaked spy of course did not know that Rhode had gotten his combat experience from a totally different world. As a spy, being cautious was his nature. Since something was out of the ordinary and his enemy was acting so decisive and resolute, the scene before him might be fake. That's why he needed to be careful to not get caught in the trap, or it would be troublesome.
Thinking of this, the black-cloaked spy could not help but use less of his strength.
Aware of it, Rhode quickly reacted. Although he did not know why would the spy do something like that, he couldn't afford to let this opportunity slip away! Opportunity only knocks once.
He stretched out his left hand and directed it towards the sword.
A bright, red flame suddenly appeared from Rhode's hand and rushed towards the spy. Followed by the sound of a roar, the black hound once again appeared out of the flame, opening his mouth and rushing forward.
"What the hell is that thing!!"
Looking at the flame before him burning relentlessly, the spy was stunned. He quickly retreated to escape the flame attack. But the Flame Killer did not wait until the spy recovered from his surprise, appearing out of thin air and opening his mouth. His sharp, white fangs had also made the spy secretly stunned. But as an advanced spy, he still wasn't at the point of being afraid of this thing. Facing the black hound, the spy only coldly snorted. He waved his hand and two bright lights flashed through and slashed the Flame Killer body.
The spy moved his hand, intending to dodge the black hound corpse. His choice was correct, but he had only taken the Flame Killer's characteristics into account…
Boom!!!
A violent explosion ignited from the ground. Bright red flames emitted smoke and spread around; even the palace began to shake in its entirety. The spy miserably retreated, no longer as calm as before and his eyes even showed a little panic.
As expected! This young man is indeed strange!
He threw away the dagger that had already melted in his left hand and clenched his teeth. He had never seen such a strange summoning spirit spell. It could be directly launched without any chanting and preparation. Moreover, the summoned spirit could produce such a result?
Is this the power of some kind of magic equipment, or his own ability?
While the spy was busy speculating, a sharp light pierced the smoke and fly towards him.
It was a pure white sword!
"Damn!"
The black-cloaked spy had been through countless battles. He knew the situation he was facing had turned adverse as his opponent attacked him mercilessly. Moreover, Rhode's strange way of fighting also made things even more difficult. He brandished the dagger in his hand and threw it to block the incoming sword, then quickly backed down. Right now, the spy had given up on the offensive and temporarily focused on defending and retreating. There was still time; after all, it was impossible for them to stay here for long!
But at this moment, an unexpected occurrence happened once again.
When his dagger was thrown to block the sword, the sword suddenly transformed into a green, translucent bird. It floated in the air, then circled and rushed towards him.
What the f*ck is that thing!!
Even if he had gone through countless battles, he was completely stunned because the scene that presented itself before him was beyond normal. A summoning spirit that was able to explode, then a bird that was able to turn into sword? Or a sword that was able to turn into bird? Holy soul bless me, can it get even weirder?
Although he was getting very depressed, he did not show it. This was because he could clearly see that not far from the bird, Rhode's figure had passed through the smoke and rushed towards him with a sword.
"Hmph!!"
At this point, the spy no longer hesitated. His left hand drew a dagger from his waist and threw it at the Spirit Bird while his right hand clutched another dagger in front of his chest. After the confrontation from before, he had learned a lesson. If the bird he summoned was also able to explode like the hound from before, then would he not be very unlucky?
As expected.
Rhode was joyful when he saw the spy's reaction. When the spy retreated, Rhode was a little bit puzzled about him not taking the opportunity to kill him. Rhode thought that he liked to play with his prey. But now he finally understood: the truth was that the opponent was afraid of him!
Or to be exact, the opponent was afraid of how he fought.
With this in mind, Rhode immediately made a decision. After all, opportunity only knocks once. Since the opponent did not understand how he fought, he definitely had his considerations. In this world, there was no Summoning Swordsman, so they naturally did not have the experience of fighting one. It resulted in his constant hesitation. But it was definitely a good opportunity for Rhode: if the enemy had him figured out, then Rhode's death was only the matter of time.
Rhode was also not stupid; since the spy was very wary of him, he would not attack him directly. Rhode stopped and threw the red sword in his hand forward.
A light pierced through the darkness and flew forward.
What is he doing!?
Looking at Rhode's sword, the spy immediately threw the dagger in his hand.
Sword condensation, separate attack! He's clearly an advanced swordsman! I was deceived!! Look at his act, I almost fell into his trap!
With this in mind, the black-cloaked spy broke out in sweat.
Does this young man have a hobby of playing with his prey?
His speculation was the exact same as Rhode had thought of him a minute before.
Such a beautiful misunderstanding.
Facing the sword condensation, the black-cloaked spy went as far as blocking it with his bare hands. He jumped back to escape the attack, but the sound he heard after that had made his blood run cold.
Swoosh!!!
Because at this moment, Marlene had finally locked onto her target. She raised her wand and pointed it to the front!
Invisible wind blades appeared out of thin air and flew towards the target.
"Hum!!!"
A deep grunt sounded.
Although the black-cloaked spy's skill was not bad, his speed was limited as a human. He tried his best to dodge Rhode's surprise attack. Facing Marlene's wind blade, he no longer had the power to resist; the only thing he could do was roll on the ground and desperately try to dodge it. Even so, he was still hit by some blades.
When he stood up, his body was already covered in wounds. Even the black veil on his face had fallen off to the ground.
"Eh?"
After clearly looking at the spy face, Marlene was dumbfounded.
Because what hidden behind the black veil was actually a girl's face.
Currently, her pure white face wore a livid expression. Her blue eyes were burning in anger, unwilling to accept that her true appearance had been exposed. The spy no longer thought of retreating. She shouted and, holding a dagger, rushed towards Marlene!
"Marlene, attack!"
Although she had heard Rhode's command, and her magic had also gathered in the center of her wand, she was unable to raise her wand when she saw the girl in front of her. It was as if her short wand weighed a thousand kilograms that she could not lift.
That was a girl almost the same age as her! Do I really have to kill her?
This thought flashed through her mind and made her lose her concentration. In these few moments, Marlene had lost the best opportunity.
"Die!!"
Like a leopard, the black-cloaked spy had appeared in front of Marlene, shouting loudly while lifting her dagger.
"Damn it!"
Seeing the scene before him, Rhode clenched his teeth. He did not run towards them, and instead took a step back.
Next, the darkness engulfed his shadow.
"Ah…"
The girl's angry roar and the cold wind the dagger brought jolted Marlene to her senses. Although she tried to focus her attention, she saw that the grim reaper's scythe was already before her.
Waiting to take her life.
At this moment, Marlene's blood ran cold. She closed her eyes while tightly holding the wand in her hand. Her mind was completely blank.
Am I going to die?
That was Marlene's only thought at the moment.
The dagger had fallen to the ground and pierced through the shield, followed by flesh and blood.
"Rip!"
But Marlene could not feel any pain.
Am I dead already?
She opened her eyes in surprise. The first thing that appeared before her was a big hand and a sharp, cold dagger that had penetrated the hand.
There was only one owner of the hand.
"Mr. Rhode!"
"Hmph!!"
Rhode's one hand was blocking the spy's attack. He coldly snorted and waved his other hand that was holding a sword.
The girl's expression was unwilling and angry and her eyes bloodshot. Then, a crescent moon-shaped light flashed by her and her head fell heavily to the ground. The body that had lost its balance also fell to the ground. Bright red blood was spraying out from the neck, and the corpse did not stop twitching. The body looked like a dead fish, struggling to live with no more hope.
"Sigh…"
Only when he saw the enemy fall was Rhode finally relieved. He kneeled to the ground while clenching his teeth. Then he pulled the dagger out from his hand forcefully. After that he turned around and angrily stared at Marlene.
"I told you to attack, why didn't you move!"
Marlene staggered.
She had never seen Rhode angry. In the past, Rhode's expression was mostly calm, and at most he just frowned his brow and snorted. But this time, he was clearly very mad; his beautiful face looked somewhat ferocious, and his two eyes reflected coldness as they pierced towards her.
"Say it!"
"I-I'm sorry…"
Marlene felt that she was really useless, and facing Rhode's anger, she was speechless. If she followed Rhode's order at that time, then she would not have faced any danger. But she lost her focus and was unable to make any response. No matter what, it was her fault, and this had made her feel a deep frustration, a feeling that she hadn't felt for a long time.
"I… It's all my fault…"
Marlene lowered her head.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Rhode. I shouldn't have dozed off…"
"It's not like I don't know what you were thinking. But you have to know, at this kind of time, if you hesitate you might lose your life!"
As for Marlene's apology, Rhode did not verbally accept it, but neither did he verbally reject it.
"Fortunately, I am prepared, but what if it was Lize? What if the enemy's target was Lize? The moment you hesitated was enough for you to hold her dead body to cry for a lifetime!"
Marlene shrunk her body and could not say anything.
"…Since you know that you're wrong, I will be meting out punishment. You will accept it, right?"
"Of course, Mr. Rhode. What do you want me to do!?"
Upon seeing Rhode give her an opportunity to mend her faults, Marlene hurriedly looked up and asked. But the next thing Rhode did was give her a sword.
"Use this sword and behead those two corpses, then burn them."
"Eh?"
"If you are not used to killing people, then you can first kill dead people as practice."
To Marlene, it was indeed a very difficult to do. She hesitantly looking at the sword that Rhode given to her. She trembled while reaching out for it. In the end, she clenched her teeth and took it over.
"I hope that you can remember. If you don't kill them, then the head that is now on on the ground would be yours or your friend's… I hope that you remember this point."
Seeing Marlene take the sword and walk towards the two corpses, Rhode finally sighed. He leaned to the pillar and sat down while clenching his teeth. I have to say that it really hurts. The dagger was piercing through his palm. The intense pain was really hard to endure, and moreover the dagger was coated with highly poisonous toxins…
Fortunately, my vitality is high.
Rhode raised his left hand and saw a shocking dark-green color in the middle of his palm. He took a deep breath. He had seen the system information indicate that he had completely resisted the toxins. If not, he would not be so stupid as to waste his time to teach Marlene how to kill. Instead, he would have cleared the toxins.
But neither Rhode or Marlene noticed that the blood dripping on Rhode's left hand had fallen into the slate. But it did not dry like ordinary blood. On the contrary, the blood seemed to have a life of its own. It flowed to the sides of the palace lake and quietly spread forward.
Shrouded in the darkness, a place where no one could see, an invisible force had attracted the blood. It flowed upstream, ascended the stairs, pillars, and finally in the altar, it condensed and converged…
"M-Mr. Rhode, I'm done."
At this time, Marlene had also completed Rhode's command. Her face was pale, it could be seen that it was a hard blow to her. But Rhode did not say anything. He looked at the three corpses not far before him and stood up, then nodded towards Marlene.
"Well done. Make a preparation to leave this ghostly place; there are still two people outside, and we must finish them. Remember, do not do the same mistake…"
"Ah!!!"
Rhode did not finish his sentence. The scream from afar had interrupted him.
What happened?
Rhode vigilantly looked towards the source of the voice: it should be from the secret passage. Were two other spies killed? What was happening?
"Be careful, let's go!"
He no longer cared about bandaging his wound; Rhode immediately pulled Marlene and planned to leave. They had not gone far when suddenly a golden light flashed.
A mysterious and strange character appeared out of thin air, forming an indestructible wall that sealed all the passages. At the same time, Rhode saw that the two statues on both sides of the pillar were emitting magic light!
What the f*ck is happening…
As if they were replying Rhode's thoughts, the statues turned towards Rhode and raised their swords!
After that, a deep voice sounded in the air.
"Descendents of the Guardian Knight, have you finally come to accept the test?"
Test?
Rhode and Marlene glanced at each other.
What test?
"I-I read some information from the pillars just now, Mr. Rhode," Marlene stammered.
"It seems like this place was used for a knight to pass a test. They came here to train, then when they were acknowledged, they would be given a title of guardian… I don't know what are they guarding, but it seems precious…"
"No matter what are they guarding, it has nothing to do with us."
The pain in Rhode's left hand was excruciating. Lize was not here, so it could not be taken care of. Although Rhode had bandaged himself, but it was barely better than not treating the wound. It seemed that this was a hidden quest, but with Rhode's current condition, he was not interested in challenging it. He was injured and had wasted quite a lot of power battling with the spies from before. Not to mention, he had used the Dark Soul ring. In this kind of situation, no matter what test, he would have to refuse it.
"I'm sorry, we went the wrong way," Rhode said while patting Marlene's shoulder. "Let's go."
But no voice replied Rhode's answer. It only paused, then continued to say.
"As long as you are able to defeat the divinity, then you will take over their power and responsibility before inheriting the title of guardian."
…Isn't this a real world? Can't it be humanized? Must it be done like computer game graphics?
Even though he was criticizing, but Rhode also knew that this voice was probably left by damn predecessors and it was useless to talk with it.
"Marlene, activate your magic equipment. Let's go," he said, holding Marlene's hand.
"Sure, Mr. Rhode."
After she listened to Rhode's words, she nodded her head and closed her eyes. She stretched out her right hand and placed it in front of her chest. Soon, a white light appeared and wrapped them inside… But then, it suddenly dissipated and returned to nothingness.
"The space is sealed! Mr. Rhode, this space is being sealed!"
Marlene became nervous, uneasily lifting her wand and vigilantly looking at the surroundings, not knowing what to do. At the same time, the voice rang once again.
"Accept the trial, Descendents of the Guardian."
Following the voice, the two statues pressed forward. Each statue held a sword in one hand, with the other reaching out.
Wait, wait, this gesture is…
Rhode's expression changed.
As if it was replying Rhode's thoughts, a mysterious magic circle suddenly appeared from the hand of the statues. The two then began slowly rotating in the air.
Next, the statues growled and held up a card!
"Whoa!!"
The dust whirled around in the air, and two statues resembling cheetahs appeared from the ground, surrounding Rhode and Marlene. With widened eyes, they stared at Rhode intently.
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Chapter 71: The Holy Sword Resonance
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
Rhode didn't know how to react when he saw what was happening.
Goddamn!
There were two Stone Statues roughly two meters tall. Rhode clenched his teeth and took a deep breath. He knew right away that this palace was somehow connected to his Summoning Swordsman class.
According to the legends, the Summoning Swordsman was an ancient mythological class. When the player chose this class, he or she would be labeled as its only successor that appeared on the continent once again.
Wasn't the class description and prologue meant to give the player a false sense of superiority, thinking that their chosen class was the 'one and only' unique class?
Now, it was hinted that the Summoning Swordsman class wasn't created specifically for the player, but it was actually connected to the Fascarl Kingdom.
Though currently, it wasn't the time to be thinking about these things.
"Mr. Rhode!"
Marlene's voice sounded behind him. When he turned his head, he realized that a golden barrier had divided the both of them.
Marlene stood at the other end of the barrier, staring at Rhode with uncertainty in her eyes.
Ah… so it is a solo test… What a waste. I can't even bring a helper along.
Rhode didn't dwell too much on it since it was meaningless to spend his time deliberating on the inevitable. The only thing he was concerned about was how to get out of this place alive.
Four against one? Do you want to bully me with numbers?
"Hmph." Rhode snorted inwardly.
He took half a step forward while raising a sword in his right arm. At that very moment, strands of light streamed down from the sword's hilt to his hand, then to his entire body, and finally down to his legs. A beautiful formation expanded below Rhode. Floating around him was a green and red card, seemingly intertwining both elements of wind and fire.
The Flame Killer and Spirit Bird made a majestic opening scene. Both of them roared to flaunt their strength at the two Stone Cheetahs.
But that wasn't all.
When he completed the Pavel Cemetery dungeon, the EXP he received took him straight to level 10; just a tad bit would enable him to level up once more. After killing the three black-cloaked men, the EXP he received was pretty good, especially the leader who appeared quite young. Altogether, he earned 2000 EXP for killing them, and it brought him directly to level 12. Two levels in one go.
It might seem as though killing them was quite profitable, but…
Rhode glanced at the wound on his left hand and sighed.
He wasn't able to easily shrug off that kind of injury.
[EXP 6000/2500, Level Up, Talent Tree Unlocked, Level 10]
Level up!
Rhode immediately wanted to make a choice, but the next system prompt shocked him.
[EXP 3500/3000, Level Up, Talent Tree Unlocked, Received 2 Skill Points, Level 11]
[EXP 500/4000, Talent Tree Unlocked, Received 4 Skill Points, Level 12]
Obtained 2 Skill Points?
Rhode wanted to rub his eyes. He thought that he was dreaming, but the fact was that the system wouldn't lie. Indeed there was a '2' in front of him.
Huh?
If I remember correctly, players only get 1 point per level. Why did I get 2?
Did the system change? Or is there a bug?
Although his mind was filled with doubts, Rhode didn't hesitate to add his newly obtained Skill Points. What happened later can be discussed afterwards. But if he died now, he would lose any chance to do anything. So no matter what, if these 4 Skill Points were real, then he should just use it!
[Used 1 Skill Point to level up. Soul Resonance LV2 (Every 10 levels, the character's max number of Summoning Spirits will increase 1)]
[Used 1 Skill Point to level up. Soul Resonance LV3 (Every 10 levels, the character's max number of Summoning Spirits will increase 1)]
[Summoning Spirit 3]
[Available Summoning Spirit 4]
[Used 1 Skill Point. Summoning Master First Talent has been unlocked: Integration LV1 (Fusion of two Spirits to create a new Summoning Spirit, will consume 1 Spirit)]
[Received Permanent Skill: Integration LV1]
[Used 1 Skill Point to level up. Integration LV2 (When using Soul Core, it will not consume the Spirit)]
[Soul Core detected. Use Integration?]
Rhode stretched out his left arm.
In his hand, he held the Soul Core he obtained from the Necromancer. A dark fog swirled around the fragile gem.
"Fusion!"
Followed by his shout, the formation below him shone even brighter than before. Both the Spirit Bird and Flame Killer turned into cards once more and spun around Rhode. As the cards slowly closed into the center, at the same time, the Soul Core began to tremble. A black fog appeared and condensed into an astral object. The two cards attracted to one another as though they were magnets, and once they got close enough, it suddenly collided.
Swoosh!! A dense fog billowed and engulfed Rhode. Marlene was shocked when she witnessed this scene. Even the Stone Statues and the Stone Cheetahs also revealed some form of vigilance.
A while later, a black card appeared inside the fog. It slowly descended onto Rhode's palm. Above the card was an image of a Centaur Knight which donned a heavy, black-colored chest plate. On its head, it wore a fitting black helmet which hid its glowing red eyes. And in its arms, it held a sharp pike.
[Obtained Army of Abyss 1/5, Soul Hunter Knight]
[Soul Hunter Knight (Dark Element): Available for Fusion. Attack has a Corrosion Effect. Special Skill —— Charge (Pressing forward without looking back is the fate of a Centaur) LV5.
Received the baptism of Wind and Fire. Inherited the elemental characteristics.
Weak attacks are unable to penetrate its armor, Heavy Armor Type]
[Offense: 3, Defense: 4]
Nice!
Holding the card in his hand, Rhode felt a wave of assurance surging through his body.
And now…
When he was about to begin the battle, suddenly another system prompt appeared.
[Magic condensation completed, your sword has begun to resonate. A Soul Core will soon be absorbed.]
What is it doing?
Looking at the information on his system prompt, Rhode frowned. Although he had already acquired several Summoning Spirits, he still wasn't quite sure about the mechanics of the Holy Sword Deck. Previously, when he forced the deck to level up, the system prompt had informed him about magic condensation and he chose to ignore it. But he didn't even summon it right now, why would the prompt appear on its own? Why did it want to absorb the Soul Core?
Rhode understood that protesting was futile, so he decided to not think about it anymore. Anyway, the Summoning Swordsman class had always been a troublesome profession. He was absolutely certain about that.
The Soul Core on Rhode's hand was destroyed and turned to dust. A white card suddenly appeared on his palm.
[Please Select Swordsmanship Binding]
What the hell is happening?
If this had happened in the game, he would definitely record all of this information down and post it on the forums so everyone could analyze it together. But now he was obviously unable to do so. Moreover, the system didn't even give him the chance to choose 'No.' So, should he answer 'Yes,' 'Ok,' or 'Sure'?
He had no choice in this apparently.
[Swordsmanship Binding: Moon Shadow Swordsmanship]
Rhode cursed inwardly, but he still chose the Moon Shadow Swordsmanship since it was the best out of the bunch.
However, the next prompt made him slightly happier.
[Swordsmanship Binding completed, please choose 'Yes' or 'No'…]
Without hesitation, Rhode chose 'Yes.'
At that very moment, a light appeared.
The fog which shrouded Rhode previously was split apart by the light. In fact, it shone so brightly that Marlene was forced to close her eyes. A moment later, the light disappeared and everything returned to normal. When Marlene opened her eyes, she couldn't help but stare wide-eyed at the scene before her.
Rhode was still standing motionlessly at the same place. On his left was the black hound, and on his right was the two meters tall pike-wielding Centaur Knight. And as usual, the Spirit Bird perched on Rhode's shoulder, focusing its sharp gaze to the front.
But there was an additional figure amongst the summoned spirits.
A young, petite figure stood next to the Centaur Knight.
It was a girl, an angel, to be precise.
Her long and lustrous white hair fell upon her shoulders, accentuating her delicate and beautiful face. She wore a Valkyrie-esque helmet, and her deep, blue eyes emitted a cool aura. She was also donned in an intricately carved ornate armor which emitted a faint white glow, and the white wings on her back flapped ever so slowly as she slowly descended to the ground. In all, her appearance was just like a sword that left its sheath; sharp, yet beautiful.
She single-handedly raised her sword with an indifferent expression on her face.
"10th Ranked, Eternal Holy Sword, Star Mark heeds your call, Master."
"Very good."
When Rhode laid his eyes on her, he couldn't help but feel amazed.
But he still managed to hide his astonishment and nodded his head to acknowledge her. Then he lifted the sword in his hand and pointed forward.
"Well then, time to get started!"
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Chapter 72: Trial vs. Glory
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
It was an unfair battle.
And it stayed that way from the beginning until the end.
The Stone Cheetah rushed forward and pressed Flame Killer to the ground. The black hound retaliated by wrapping the enemy with the flames on its body, constraining the Stone Cheetah's movements. The other Stone Cheetah took the opportunity to attack the black hound from the side, but before it could sink its razor sharp teeth into the black hound's flesh, a violent whirlwind came crashing down from the sky, flinging the heavy Stone Cheetah a distance away.
After watching the cheetah slowly getting up, the Spirit Bird stopped attacking and observed it attentively with its eagle-like eyes. Apparently, it knew that it had successfully garnered the attention of the Stone Cheetah when it saw the two gleaming pupils of hatred. However, a split second later, a large shadow enveloped the cheetah's body.
The Centaur Knight trampled forward and snapped the Stone Cheetah's head. Its left hand gripped a heavy golden shield, while its right held a long pike.
Meanwhile…
Shik! The stone sword issued a sharp screech when it slammed against the floor.
Rhode had sidestepped the Stone Statue's attack, and at the same time, he slit a shallow gash on his left palm with his sword.
Blood smeared onto the blade, causing the crimson tinge on his sword to increase in intensity.
For a moment, the Stone Statue stopped attacking Rhode, instead, it held its sword close to brace itself for an attack. When Rhode had dodged its attack, the white-haired angel launched a surprise attack from behind. She swiftly closed the distance and slashed downwards like a falling meteor.
As her white wings fluttered gracefully in the wind, the heavy Stone Statue's sword began crumbling from the impact. At the same time, a bloodied blade appeared from behind, piercing straight into the Stone Statue's body. Immediately, the statue's movements turned sluggish, and before it could pull away from Rhode's sword, a silver light landed on its torso.
Boom!!! Its body couldn't endure any further and exploded into pieces, scattering everywhere.
On the other side, the Centaur Knight's pike had pierced through the other statue's torso. The relentless assaults from the Stone Statue weren't able to hurt the Centaur Knight other than leaving a few white scratches on its black armor.
Marlene was stunned silly. Her eyes widened and her mouth gaped. From her perspective, these kinds of battles would only happen in myths or legends. The king's trustworthy subordinates surrounded him, lifting their sword up high and rushing into battle without fear. They crushed any foe who stood in their path. If there were a hundred, they would kill a hundred; if there were a thousand, they would slaughter a thousand! Right now, although the enemy wasn't a thousand-man army, still, Rhode being the central command of his spirits gave an aura of an indomitable king.
However, that was just a perspective from an outsider. In reality, Rhode was feeling quite frantic. He summoned four spirits so that he could end the battle as soon as possible and couldn't maintain it for long. His first phase of attacks was successful in destroying one Stone Statue and one Stone Cheetah. Now, he wanted to commence phase two.
At the same time, the remaining Stone Statue waved his weapon and commanded the Stone Cheetah to attack Rhode.
But Rhode was faster.
Upon receiving Rhode's command, the Centaur Knight howled and went into a rage. It galloped towards the Stone Cheetah with Rhode, Flame Killer, and the white-haired angel following closely behind.
They looked like as though they were unstoppable.
However, Rhode knew that he had overdrawn his strength. He must quickly end this battle otherwise it would put him in dire straits. While he did not know what was the real purpose of this trial, according to his experiences in the game, his decision shouldn't be far off.
Screeeech! An ear-piercing sound echoed.
Rhode suddenly found out that his path was blocked by another four Stone Statues that appeared out of nowhere. Several Stone Cheetahs were circling them as well, biding their time for the right moment to attack.
Rhode didn't waste his time to think of the reason and chose to speak with his sword. The Flame Killer took to the front and rushed recklessly towards the group of Stone Statues. Its body was riddled full of holes in no time, sparking off an explosion which temporarily created a gap in the enemy's formation.
This gap was enough for Rhode and the others.
The Centaur Knight dashed forward and spun his massive pike, smashing it into any foe that barred its path. Due to the explosion and the impact from the Centaur Knight's swing, one of the Stone Statue lost its balance. At the same time, the Centaur Knight lunged its pike towards a Stone Cheetah that tried to launch an attack from the air.
"Finish them!" Rhode yelled as he ran past the Centaur Knight. After recognizing Rhode's orders, the Centaur Knight raised its pike and beat it onto its shield with an immense force as it swept its eyes at any nearby foe. The Spirit Bird was still circling in the air, producing whirlwinds which smashed into unsuspecting statues.
Stone fragments scattered everywhere.
From the beginning of the battle until now, only three minutes had passed. Rhode felt his stamina being drained rapidly. When he abandoned the Flame Killer, he was already extremely spent. Moreover, after allowing his sword to absorb blood, even though his attacks became more lethal, the excessive blood loss caused his face turn deathly pale. His limbs even began to tremble; it was definitely not a good sign.
Bang! Rhode took a step backward after blocking an attack. The invincible sword that could even cut through stone finally met its foe. An ear-piercing sound once again echoed in the air. This time, he has finally found his target.
It was the massive Stone Statue that he had met before. It was clear that the material on its body was vastly different from the others.
Rhode was in trouble.
The Stone Statue before him was much larger than the other Stone Statues. Fortunately, it wasn't holding a weapon. However, its presence was still an issue because its huge frame blocked two-thirds of the door behind it.
Anyway, no matter what, this guy wouldn't be easy to deal with.
"Show me your Glory! Successor!"
Only the ghosts know what you are saying.
Rhode grieved inwardly, but he didn't forget to signal the white-haired angel to come to his side. He knew that this BOSS wasn't something that could be overcome with brute force. It must have its own condition or weaknesses. If he faced a magic immune BOSS with a God-Tier magic spell, it would still deal no damage. On the other hand, if he used a wooden stick, he might be able to defeat it easily. Since the statue didn't attack immediately and even spoke to him, Rhode concluded that this BOSS couldn't be defeated through battle.
"Glory! Successor!"
The giant stone sculpture's voice echoed throughout the palace, causing a slight headache.
Glory? What glory?
Rhode's brain began to work. He recollected every detail about the Summoning Swordsman class. History, walkthroughs, quests… but he still couldn't locate the so-called Glory. In the game, the information about the Summoning Swordsman class wasn't plentiful. The players were more interested in the adventure rather than the story.
When all these thoughts were flooding his brain, the white-haired angel took half-a-step forward.
"Dear Guardian, I'm here to reveal my master's Glory!"
Followed by her words, her body suddenly emanated a soft light. Her two wings spread over a gorgeous magic circle. Then she began to float upwards, but the very next moment, a light flashed, and her figure instantly disappeared. What was left was a white sword bathed in a holy aura.
Star Mark.
This was the 'Glory'?
Rhode stared curiously at the sword that was floating before him. His heart felt strange; a humanlike lifeform turning into a sword wasn't something you see every day.
In the end, Rhode still reached out his hand and grabbed the hilt.
Mellow, cold and smooth, seemed to be no different than before. If he did not personally witness it, he would not believe that such a weapon could turn into a person.
While holding the sword, Rhode thought to himself.
What is my Glory?
Why is this sword my Glory?
Wait… does the Glory this guy refer to…
A spark lit in his eyes. Rhode no longer hesitated. He raised his sword and pointed towards the gigantic Stone Statue.
Yes…! How could've I missed it?
It's my past Glory!
The Glory that I've fought for and was acknowledged for!
… My past Glory.
MY FORMER GLORY!
At that very moment, a light shot out from the sword and flew into the Stone Statue's forehead, disappearing without a trace.
After the light entered its body, the huge statue began to collapse. Soon, its body turned to dust and disappeared into the air.
At the same time, a system prompt appeared before Rhode.
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Chapter 73: Inside The Ruins
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
[Trial Successful. Obtained the Holy Symbol of the Guardian —Recover the lost Glory, recreate the Glory of the past]
The system prompt was easy to understand, but for it to appear now was kind of weird.
Rhode, of course, knew what his Glory was. Especially considering that it was derived from his own effort. The series of trials he had to go through to attain the title of the most powerful Summoning Swordsman was no easy feat. He had to participate in a PVP championship with over ten thousand other players competing against each other via dueling. Everybody knew how the story went from then on; Rhode emerged victoriously and was crowned the title of the Top Summoning Swordsman in the entire Dragon Soul Continent.
Now, it seemed that the current quest was pushing him on the path to attain his past Glory once again.
But it was strange; he knew he wasn't in the game world any longer. There were no players, no game company, and unquestionably no global PVP championships. It was akin to being transmigrated to the Tang Dynasty era and then receiving a quest to win an F1 racing cup.
Rhode had seen the Holy Symbol of the Guardian before. In the game, many other classes had something similar to the Holy Symbol that he possessed. Mages had their magic circle, swordsmen had the Symbol of Bravery, Knights had the Code of Chivalry, and Clerics had the Holy Heart. Even Thieves and Rangers had a Magic Tattoo. These items were only obtainable after a test. The Summoning Swordsman class also had their own Magic Tattoo, but it wasn't equivalent to the Holy Symbol of the Guardian, instead, it was more like a Soul Contract than anything else.
Two lines of silver and black intertwined with each other, forming a complex, yet beautiful pattern on his hand. The pattern then linked with the summoning circle on his palm. When Rhode willed it, the pattern hid under his skin, concealing itself from sight.
[Holy Symbol of the Guardian (Recovered the Heart of Honor)
Heart of Honor: All Summoning Spirits consumption is reduced by a third; the duration of summons increases by a third (Mine Honor is my Life) ]
(ED: CN direct translation is Glory is my Life, but I think Shakespeare's quote feels better in this context.)
It's done!
Rhode finally felt relieved. He slumped on the ground and reverted the holy sword back into a card. Currently, Rhode was extremely spent; his face was incredibly pale as he had lost a significant amount of blood. The bloody gash on his hand already formed a scab. Indeed, Blood Tears was an extraordinary weapon, as long it absorbs enough blood, it could display a shocking amount of power.
…Though it'd be better if he didn't have to use his own blood.
"Mr. Rhode!"
Once the trial ended, the barrier that blocked out Marlene had shattered. During the fight, all she could do was anxiously watch Rhode battle against overwhelming odds, so now that the barrier had been destroyed, she quickly ran over to Rhode.
"You're injured?!" Marlene screamed out of concern when she saw Rhode's lacerated palm which was full of blood and flesh.
Rhode waved away her worry and said, "Just a minor wound."
He tried to stand up, but after losing so much blood, he lost his balance and fell back to the ground. Fortunately, Marlene caught his arm in time and supported him from the side.
Seeing him in such a weakened state, Marlene furrowed her brow and said softly, "You should rest. There are no more enemies around. After you recover, we can proceed on."
Facing her insistence, he did not say anything else. His excessive blood loss and overconsumption of Soul Power had weakened him greatly. It wasn't a good choice if he forced himself to walk, thus, with Marlene's help, he settled against a nearby pillar to restore his strength.
While Rhode was resting, Marlene wasn't idling. She fished out several crystalline gems and placed it beside Rhode before softly chanting a spell. Soon, a translucent hexagonal prism appeared and enveloped both of them.
"This is an intermediate protective spell," Marlene explained with her head slightly lowered, apparently aware of Rhode's gaze on her. "It can recover injury and strength to a certain extent. I-I think that you should take a good rest after going through so much. This is the Senia family's heirloom; it isn't something that anyone can break…"
Marlene's voice was trembling slightly when she spoke. From the two days they had spent traveling to the Rock of Lament, Rhode had constantly kept his vigilance. Once there was a bit of movement, he would react immediately. From time to time, he would command her to check on the men following them. Frankly, this made her extremely worn out as she had to sleep on the cold hard ground. The rough, jagged stones and the smell of bushes made her miss her fluffy bed in Golden City. She just wanted to lie around and not do anything; however, she knew that what she was experiencing was nothing but trivial when compared to Rhode.
On the surface, it appeared that everything had gone according to Rhode's plan. If there was a problem, he was there to solve it. But after traveling with him, Marlene understood how much effort he needed to put in to guarantee his success.
It could be said that she was quite similar to Rhode. Since young, she had many prestigious titles labeled after her such as, 'Pride of the Senia family', 'Magic Academy Genius', 'Magic Fairy'. From the perspective of outsiders, she was the genius that could memorize any kind of spell in one sitting, and her understanding of Soul Power was far more profound than anyone else. But they did not see how much effort she had to expend behind the scenes. When the other kids were playing outside, she sat in a room with piles of ancient books surrounding her. While the other young ladies were attending a banquet, she was alone in a cold, underground room practicing her spells over and over again.
Even when it was bedtime for the children, she would be busy practicing social etiquettes in front of a mirror. The latest example would be her current plight. At the moment, the nobles back in her hometown were practicing horse riding. As for her, she had to face several dangerous situations in this forest with Rhode.
Many people were envious of her. Naturally, accepted all the envy. She was proud of her talent and her ability because she was willing to work hard for it.
On the other hand, Marlene would not allow anyone to look down on her. In her opinion, if her hard work were demeaned by those who only knew how to play or complain all day long, it would simply be an insult to her.
That was precisely the reason why Marlene could understand Rhode. Even when he reprimanded her, she would accept his opinion and keep silent because she knew that the man in front of her was smarter, more talented and more hardworking than her. Since she couldn't accept anyone trampling on her effort, naturally she wouldn't neglect other people's effort.
Of course, neither did Rhode know what Marlene was thinking about, nor did he want to guess. Back then, when he was young and innocent, he had tried to simulate his ex-girlfriends thoughts. When she broke up with him, he was confused. He thought that he knew what she was thinking. Then his imagination started to go wild. Did she lose interest? Did she find another man? Were they not suitable for one another?
It was only until later when he found out the truth. The reason why she broke up with him was that he attracted a lot of attention from his looks, making her feel incredibly pressured. And for the average modern women of today, having a boyfriend that was more beautiful than them was nothing worth envying.
From that moment on, Rhode no longer cared about these things. Since Marlene had guaranteed their safety, he did not say anything else and closed his eyes to begin recuperating. Moreover, according to his knowledge, it was indeed a strong barrier.
Although the pillar was cold and hard, he did not mind at all.
"Mr. Rhode," a soft whisper entered his ears.
Rhode opened his eyes and turned towards Marlene. He saw her laying his cloak on the floor. Then he noticed that she was looking at him hesitantly.
Marlene's body froze for a moment when she felt his gaze.
T-that's right… this is n-nothing more than repaying my gratitude to him.
He was hurt because of me, as a member of the Senia family, I must compensate for it, and be proud of it.
Mmm, yes, yes! That's right. That must be it!
"…If you don't mind… you can lie here…"
Marlene gently patted the top of her thighs; her face was so red as if she was squeezing out blood.
"I-I think you can rest better like this. It's healthier than leaning on the cold pillar. An…and your hand is hurt, although I didn't help you in the battle, the least I can do is to help you treat it. My healing spell is not as good as Lize, but as a mage, I still know some basic spells…"
"May I?" Rhode nodded and replied after a while.
When Marlene saw him nod, she immediately stared at him and made a firm expression as though she was willing to do anything.
"Of, of course! N-no problem! This little act simply doesn't count as anything!"
"Okay then, sure."
He did not wait for Marlene to say anything else. He rested his head on her lap and closed his eyes. Because of Rhode's sudden move, Marlene's body turned stiff for a moment. When she recovered, he had already fallen into deep sleep.
"…how rude!" Marlene glared at the young man who was sleeping soundly on her lap.
After a while, she shook her head and sighed. Then she carefully took Rhode's left hand and placed it on her own.
Using her other free hand, she conjured a spell that brightened up the surroundings. When she saw his injury clearly under the light, she gasped once again. Other than his thumb, all of his other fingers were broken; his blood flowed down his arm, dripping onto the floor.
"It's actually quite serious…"
She knew that Rhode's wound wasn't light, but now that she could study it closely, she could not help but tremble. With great care, she slowly took out her handkerchief and gently wiped the blood.
As a mage, Marlene had learned some basic first-aid skills, but she had never used them before because she rarely got hurt. And even if anyone she knew got injured, they wouldn't be in a near-death state… at least that was the case for most of the time.
However, currently, as she realized her clumsiness in bandaging, she couldn't help but scold herself. If only she had learned how to bandage by looking at it Lize…
When she stared at Rhode's finger right now, it totally resembled a carrot.
Ahh…if only Lize were here…
Marlene's body suddenly stiffened.
Marlene did not know why, but when she recalled Lize's figure, deep down her heart, she felt a trace of annoyance. Why was she behaving like that? Lize was her best friend, and she was a cleric. If she were here, she would have easily taken care of Rhode's wound. Marlene did not know why, but when she imagined Lize healing Rhode's wound, she felt unhappy.
Is it because that I'm too tired these few days?
She frowned and pondered to herself. In the end, she could not find the answer, so she decided to put aside this matter and continue to bandage Rhode's injury.
In the ruins, only a magic light moved back and forth in silence…
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Chapter 74: Back to Deep Stone City
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
Rhode opened his eyes.
He had no choice but to admit that it was probably the best sleep he got after leaving Deep Stone City. The feeling of letting everything go and focus on relaxing was indeed quite addictive; it was particularly so when he had a comfortable and fluffy 'pillow' under his head which emitted a light fragrance.
After waking up, the first thing Rhode saw was Marlene's sleeping face. Her exhaustion was quite evident. She leaned against the pillar, eyes closed, with her hands on her knees. The light spell that she previously cast had already dispersed, and only the orange glow from the torch was left.
Rhode slowly sat up, but when he pushed his left hand against the floor, he realized that the sensation was quite peculiar. Subconsciously, he turned his head and looked at his hand. When he noticed the five 'carrots' which was supposed to be his fingers, he became utterly speechless.
As expected of a noble young lady…
Rhode sighed and shook his head helplessly.
He proceeded on to remove the bandage and discovered that the gash on his palm was almost fully healed. Whatever his race was, the self-healing ability was off the charts. If he were an ordinary human, perhaps this gash wouldn't recover even if he gave it two weeks.
At this moment, Marlene's eyelashes fluttered.
"Mmm…"
She made a soft groan and opened her eyes. Both her and Rhode's eyes connected.
Rhode chose not to avoid her eyes and returned her gaze. After interacting with her for the past few days, he had discovered some interesting thing about her. For example, she had low blood pressure.
For a mage, lightheadedness wasn't a good thing.
Frankly, when Rhode first found out about this, he was quite shocked. He wanted to wake Marlene up from her dream, but she hugged him tightly in her arms. Although she appeared quite fragile on the outside, Rhode knew how powerful her spells were. If it weren't for her being stuck in a dream, most likely she would've blasted him to death already. Furthermore, what was even more frightening was that she didn't remember anything about it!
(ED: I rearranged a few paragraphs so that you guys can understand better. But IMO, it's still quite confusing in the original TL and raws. What does it have to do with low blood pressure lol? I'm just guessing that the author is referring to lightheadedness, one of the symptoms of low blood pressure.)
From that moment on, Rhode decided to keep a distance from her — especially before she woke up.
Even now, both her eyes were blank, as though she was under hypnotism. She resembled an obedient doll, and in addition to her exquisite face, her current state could easily drive a male to act on their primal instincts.
But Rhode knew, that if anybody did that, they'd be dead in the next moment.
Because, the very next moment, her body began to sway like a pendulum.
One.
Two.
Three.
A short, stifled scream left her mouth.
"Ahhh!" Marlene's formerly sleepy eyes snapped open when she noticed Rhode staring at her. "M-Mr. Rhode, are you awake already?"
Seems like she's finally awake.
"Good morning, Ms. Marlene."
Rhode waved his hand to greet her.
"It looks like you had a nice dream."
"Well… I did not have much sleep last night," Marlene replied helplessly.
She swept her gaze around the area, but she then realized that it was underground, so she wasn't able to tell the time.
Marlene attempted to stand up, but her legs felt numb and she fell to the floor with a bump. "Ah, so painful…"
"Get ready to move out. We are returning to Deep Stone City."
"Okay…" Marlene lowered her head when she replied, apparently she was still quite embarrassed.
She stood up once again and made her way to the crystalline gem before picking it up and shoving into her storage. Suddenly, Marlene thought of something. She walked towards Rhode and took out a few objects from her pocket.
"That's right, these things…"
"What are these?"
"According to you, it would be referred to as 'loots.'"
She'd finally reverted to her usual self.
"I found these things on those assassins. I think it might be useful to you…"
"Eh?" Rhode was slightly shocked; he knew that she hated dealing with corpses and recalled that she previously claimed that she wouldn't do it ever again.
But what was this?
It wasn't Marlene's style to retract what she had said, or did the young lady had a change in attitude?
Marlene appeared to be oblivious to Rhode's doubt. Whether did she notice or deliberately disregard it, no one knew but her. She merely took out all that she found and handed it to Rhode with an 'it's all yours' expression.
Ah, what an arrogant lady.
Rhode sighed to himself inwardly and chose to keep silent as he received the items Marlene had looted.
Although Marlene hated to do it, she was still quite a decisive lady. Once she set her mind to it, she would accomplish the task meticulously. From the bodies of the three dead men, Marlene discovered four Magic Equipment. Most of them were fairly ordinary, which increased Sense and Intelligence. Rhode felt that it was better than nothing. Since the mercenary group was in its infant stage, these Magic Equipment could still be used or sold for money.
However, one Magic equipment attracted his attention. It was the dagger that the female assassin previously used. It had a passive attribute that could penetrate middle-tier protection magic. Moreover, it also possessed an innate paralysis poison attribute. The weaponsmithing was also rather exquisitely done; its blade was tempered with an iron-gold alloy which made it a perfect weapon to kill.
Unfortunately, Rhode's current roster had no thief, and his swordsmanship didn't allow him to fight with a dagger. It was a bit wasted, but according to his estimation, if he auctioned this dagger on the black market, he would surely be able to gain a significant amount of money. But he was worried that if he revealed this dagger to the public, it might bring him unnecessary trouble.
After checking his acquired loot, Rhode nodded in satisfaction and shoved it into his spatial bag.
Their quest was finally done.
When they were leaving, Rhode discovered the bodies of the two unlucky men who guarded the entrance. After Rhode and Marlene left the secret passage, the stone entrance automatically closed and the sculpture returned to its original place.
If he had a choice, Rhode wouldn't want to come back to this place ever again.
The duo dragged their exhausted bodies back to Deep Stone City. When they reached the city gates, it was already two days later in the evening. They immediately made their way to the Mercenary Association to submit the mission to Old Hank. After handing over the magic herbs, Rhode also passed the badge which he had found in the Twilight Forest. Now that Starlight had completed three missions, their rank rose to the 6th from the bottom.
Well, at least he finally managed to escape the last place.
"Kid, you did a good job." Old Hank patted Rhode's shoulder in a friendly manner.
"In only half a month, you managed to complete three missions and earned yourself five points. I really need to get those group of lazy mercenaries to learn from you. Hmph, if they don't work hard, they can only cry when they get disbanded!"
"It's nothing." Rhode shook his head.
He really did not focus on mundane matters. On the contrary, he was more worried about other things.
"How's Lize? She did not encounter any trouble, right?"
"Lize is well behaved… It isn't really a problem, but…" Old Hank frowned as his words trailed off.
After a while, he continued, "I don't know what happened recently, but all she did was lock herself in her room, claiming that she was learning new spells. Her daily meals were personally delivered by me, otherwise, I'm afraid that she might even forget to eat. I don't know why she is working so hard… she's still young and has much time to learn. Wouldn't it be a waste if she hurts her body in the process? Kid, help me persuade her. She will only listen to you."
"Okay, no problem."
Rhode nodded his head. He also did not wish Lize to fall ill because of her excessive training. Her ability only allowed her to heal physical wounds; if she fell sick, it would be troublesome.
Rhode waved to Old Hank and turned to Marlene beside him.
"Let's go."
"Okay…"
Marlene revealed a complicated expression, but she quickly slapped her face gently with both hands to freshen herself up.
When both of them was about to leave the Mercenary Association, suddenly a voice sounded from behind.
"Hey boy, you're finally back!"
They turned towards the source of the voice and saw Old Walker's flushed face as he walked out from the crowd.
"I thought that the wolves had already eaten you guys. But looking at both of you now, it seems like you guys have worked hard!"
"Mr. Walker," Rhode frowned and asked, "why are you here?"
"Me?"
Old Walker took out a jug of liquor from his waist and drank a mouthful of it. Then he narrowed his eyes and smiled while looking at the man before him.
"Thank me, boy. I've got the person that you are looking for!"
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Chapter 75: Good Deal?
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
Old Walker strolled towards Rhode and made a gesture to the bartender who immediately whipped up a large pint of cold beer. Old Walker grabbed the handle and gulped down in one go, wiping his mouth satisfyingly as he grinned at Rhode.
"It's done. The person you asked me to hire is waiting in our stronghold. Shall we go back and have a look? It cost us 300 gold coins… it's quite expensive…"
"I hope that the person you've recruited will meet my requirements," said Rhode as took back the money from Old Walker. "otherwise, I will cut your wage to make up for the loss."
"W-what?! Hold on," Old Walker's expression stiffened, "I did not hear you say anything about that back then!"
Rhode shrugged as though it had nothing to do with him."You didn't ask, so I didn't mention."
Then he stuffed the money back into his pocket, ignoring Old Walker's contorting expression.
"You actually dare to deceive me!"
"I did not deceive you, Mr. Walker," said Rhode nonchalantly.
"If the person you've recruited met my requirements, you shouldn't be worried. Or… are you playing with me?"
"O-of course not."
Old Walker stroked his beard angrily when Rhode accused him of not doing his job properly and chose to keep silent in the end. Indeed, if he was confident, he did not have to be afraid! However, the expression that he had, made him look like he had done something wrong!
When Old Walker thought of this, he shifted his gaze to Marlene who was silently spectating the drama. Since he already knew that she wouldn't back him up, it was useless for him to say anything else.
"Anyway, I'm quite confident that I've found the one you're looking for. Don't look down on my age, I'm no fool. You can verify it for yourself if you wish."
"Alright, that's good. Let's find Lize and return home."
Rhode didn't dwell on the topic any longer; he nodded his head and turning around.
The place that Lize temporarily resided in was just an average guesthouse in the Mercenary Association. According to Old Hank, she had shut herself in the room to practice her spells. In fact, she was so hardworking that even when Rhode's entourage arrived at her door, they could hear her muttering some kind of spell.
Rhode raised his hand to stop Old Walker from disturbing her. Once he heard no sound from behind the door, he knocked on the door twice.
"Who is it?"
"It's me, Lize."
"Eh?!! Mr. R-Rhode! Please wait, I'm coming!!"
When she recognized Rhode's voice, the pitch on the other side of the door immediately went one octave higher. After that, a myriad of sounds of multiple objects moving began to escape from behind the door; the wooden floor even trembled slightly as though an earthquake was occurring.
The chaos only lasted for five minutes. Soon, the door slowly creaked open which revealed Lize's beaming face, though some traces of sweat on her forehead were evident.
"W-welcome back, Mr. Rhode and Marlene."
Lize frolicked towards Marlene and held her hand in hers.
"It's great that you guys finally are back. I've been extremely worried! Is everything alright? Did anything bad happen? "
Lize began bombarding both Rhode and Marlene with questions, the worry on her face was evident. Marlene, however, revealed an unnatural expression, though Lize didn't seem to be aware of it. Her face was filled with joy as her worries were all swept away in one go.
Back then, after Rhode embarked on the mission with Marlene, Lize discovered that she couldn't sleep in peace. The constant worry in her heart prevented her from relaxing. Therefore, when she finally saw Rhode and Marlene unharmed, a huge load seemed to have left her chest. Although Rhode did tell her not to worry, she knew that the enemies were from the Country of Light. So how could she rest easy when she clearly understood what kind of power they had?
"Everything went as planned." Rhode nodded and smiled. "…But now isn't the time to talk about that. I will explain the details once we return to the stronghold. Go and pack your belongings for now."
"Okay!"
Lize nodded and made her way towards the bedroom to pack her belongings.
It felt quite odd; she had been living in this guesthouse for as long as she could remember, but now that she owned her own home, staying here wasn't as enjoyable as before. Although there were room service and three meals a day, she couldn't comprehend why she longed for her own home. Therefore now that she could finally return home, her joy-filled face was even more jubilant than before. She quickly packed her belongings and exited the Mercenary Association with Rhode.
Currently, it was late in the night, and the streets were no longer crowded. Instead, the only people on the streets were soldiers who were patrolling the area on their horses.
While strolling down the road, Rhode inquired about Lize's progress since he was also curious how much she could pick up.
"I'm still trying! Mr. Rhode, as long you give me enough time, I can definitely learn the Arrow of Light!"
Lize spoke with confidence when she described her progress. Studying spells weren't easy; let alone having a breakthrough. Frankly speaking, Lize wasn't weak. However, the lack of spells and skills suppressed her true potential. By learning more spells, Rhode was confident that her overall strength would breakthrough to the next level.
However, noticing her excited expression, he felt that it would be better not to tell her.
"Being hardworking is a good trait to have, but you still need to pay attention to your body. It can become dangerous if you're too rash. To become a good caster, you must learn how to keep calm. Take it easy; learn one step at a time." said Rhode, then he raised his brow and gazed into Lize's eyes. "I've heard from Uncle Hank that you didn't step out of the room for a few days because of studying. Although your perseverance is commendable, it doesn't necessarily mean that it's a good thing. You must understand that your position in the mercenary group is irreplaceable as a supporter."
"…Yes." Lize's excitement dimmed and she immediately lowered her head. Marlene quickly ran to her side to comfort her.
"Mr. Rhode is right, Lize. You cannot be anxious when learning spells, let alone Spirit magic. I can feel your resolve, but I believe that if you can calm down, it will be only a matter of time before mastering it. Take it easy, Mr. Rhode is thinking of your health."
"Yes, I understand. I was too excited. Thank you, Marlene." Lize smiled helplessly.
"No problem, but…" Marlene returned Lize's smile and then shifted her gaze to Rhode.
"Mr. Rhode, have you learned magic before?" she asked curiously.
"Of course not. But even as a swordsman, one cannot learn swordsmanship when anxious. I assumed mages must also be the same. Anyway, just be careful. Don't get too carried away otherwise the end could be tragic." Rhode answered her question indifferently.
He certainly hadn't learned swordsmanship before. As a player, they could just learn any skill by adding skill points. That was why they didn't need to feel wary about being carried away. The reason why Rhode cautioned Lize to be careful was because he wanted her to be safe, and also he had received a quest about a similar incident.
At that time, a female mage NPC was so incredibly desperate to breakthrough that she took the risk to practice a high-level summoning skill which ultimately backfired, causing her to summon an uncontrollable tentacle monster. What happened later… one could just imagine.
If it happened to a stranger, Rhode wouldn't mind feasting his eyes on it. But if it happened to someone he knew, then it would be a completely different matter altogether.
They chatted until the entrance of the stronghold. Under the moonlight, they saw someone standing by the door, as if enjoying the night breeze. Noticing the group approaching, the unknown person waved towards them.
"Ah, old man, you're finally back!"
"Pfft!"
Marlene and Lize tried to stifle their laughter, but they failed in the end.
Old Walker face turned pale. He glared at the unknown person and shouted. "How many times do I have to tell you, brat! Don't call me old man!"
"You can call Anne 'brat,' then why can't Anne call you old man?"
(ED: The unknown person is speaking in 3rd person.)
Everyone finally saw the appearance of the unknown person who had her hands on her hip.
Just by the door, was an energetic young girl with a charming face and golden, curly hair. Her eyes were lavishly green; and her long, slender legs were slightly leaning to a side. Back in Rhode's world, this girl could've easily been an idol or a celebrity.
The only thing that didn't match her appearance was a golden shield which was at least a meter in height. At one glance, Rhode could tell that it was the Shield Warrior's standard gear, the Charge Shield. It was a rather unique piece of equipment as its main body was divided into two different sections.
In most situations, the Shield Warrior would fight with the two parts attached. They would slip their arms between the enarmes to hold the shield in place. When faced with certain dangerous circumstances, they could activate a trigger near the enarmes and divide the shield into two parts, extending the base row further downwards. Additionally, a golden pole extruded out at the bottommost base point which granted the Shield Warrior the ability to dig the shield into the ground, giving them a chance to hold their position.
(ED: Enarmes is the strap at the rear of the shield. The Base Row is the lowest section of the shield.)
As a whole, it had a delicate structure, so the Shield Warrior must combine other regular shields to increase its defense. Otherwise, once the inside mechanisms receive damage, it wouldn't be able to function until repaired.
However, Rhode also knew that the Charge Shield was classified as the fifth most heaviest equipment in the whole of Dragon Soul Continent. Most people wouldn't be able to hold it as the shield's weight could rival two-handed swords. Even for the players, if they didn't choose the Barbarian or Dwarf race, it would almost be impossible for them to lift it up.
When Rhode saw the girl waving her shield around singlehandedly, it made him wonder if that shield was just a fake.
"Old Walker? Is this the person you're talking about?"
Rhode's face remained indifferent, but his question still showed revealed his attitude towards this matter.
"Who else can it be, kid?"
Old Walker immediately stopped arguing with the young girl and stood beside her, facing toward Rhode's direction.
"Don't judge a book by its cover. Let me tell you; this girl right here is strong. If it weren't because of the money, eh… you wouldn't be able to recruit her."
"…Oh? Then I want to hear how strong she is… And, why didn't you find a man?"
"Hehehe." Old Walker grinned mischievously and walked towards Rhode, whispering in his ear.
"Simple. Do you think it's easy to look for a Shield Warrior? If you could find it easily, then you wouldn't ask me to do it, right? And as for her gender…. heheh…, since you're a young man… what do you think?" Old Walker's grin widened, then he shook his head slightly and said, "You don't have to thank me. Since we're both men, I can understand. Just look at her appearance, the money didn't go to waste, right?"
Rhode immediately walked forward and ignored Old Walker. Before Rhode could say anything, the girl jumped towards him.
When she was right before him, her actual height was revealed in all its glory. Rhode was 180cm tall and couldn't be considered as short. On the other hand, Marlene and Lize only reached half of his head, but this girl — this girl was almost as tall as him!
The girl stretched out her hand for a handshake and said, "Are you the leader of this mercenary group? You look very young! Pleased to meet you, big sister!"
The air immediately turned frigid.
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Chapter 76: The Beginning of a Mercenary Group
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
People who associated with Rhode would undoubtedly know this one thing about him.
He absolutely hated to be mistaken for a woman.
After having interacted with Rhode for a period of time, Lize was naturally informed of his reverse scale. As for Marlene, after some time, she eventually realized as well. Even Old Walker did not dare to joke about it, because he knew that it was a boundary that he shouldn't cross.
And now, this unfamiliar girl had called him 'big sister' in a casual tone.
The icy-cold air made the three shiver.
"… I beg your pardon, Miss," said Rhode softly, "but I'm a guy."
Surprisingly, Rhode didn't blow up like they had thought he would. Instead, he just shook her hand.
The girl was equally surprised. "A guy?"
She began to inspect Rhode carefully while maintaining an innocent smile on her face.
Then she patted Rhode's shoulder and said, "Big brother, I didn't see that coming! You're too beautiful."
The faces of the trio paled further. The girl had progressed deeper into the land of no return when she called him 'beautiful.'
"Miss…"
"Anne. Anne Georgia. You can just call me Anne, big brother." The girl called Anne introduced herself.
"Then, Anne…" Rhode placed his hand on his forehead and paused for a while before continuing, "Although I've instructed Old Walker to recruit you, I've yet to accept you as a formal member of my mercenary group. First, you must pass my best, and only then would you be able to join. Otherwise…"
Rhode turned his head slowly and glanced at Old Walker who began to shrink back.
"I will cut his wages to make up for the loss."
"No problem!"
Whether or not the girl heard him, or perhaps did not plan to hear him, she immediately agreed to Rhode's conditions. Then she tapped the shield on her hand gleefully, revealing a confident smile on her face.
"Anne will accept no matter what kind of test it is!"
"Very well."
Rhode nodded, then he turned around and glared coldly at Old Walker once more whose face became increasingly paler.
"Then, Mr. Walker, you don't mind helping me, right? This is an order, by the way."
The old man rolled his eyes.
Since it is an order, why bother even asking me in the first place?
Rhode's test was simple. He asked Anne to protect Old Walker for a period of time. She would pass the test as long as she could hold out until the end. Of course, Rhode had his own reasons for doing this.
After arriving to this world, Rhode noticed that a lot of skills had subtle differences as compared to the game. For example, the tanking class. In the game, as long as the player used Taunt, the monsters would obediently follow them to their deaths. However, in this world, it wasn't as easy as before. Even low-leveled monsters would be drawn towards the person who dealt the most damage, and that didn't include beings of higher intelligence.
A good example would be the fight with the Necromancer. Rhode attempted to get the Red Hawk's tank to draw the Necromancer's attention. Unfortunately, no matter how hard he tried, the Necromancer wouldn't even look at him. Instead, the Necromancer focused on Rhode. Rhode didn't deal the most damage, nor was the most threatening in that battle… This meant that reality was somewhat different from the game although it did share some similarities.
Therefore he concluded that a tanking class in this world wouldn't be as effective as before. No matter if it was in current times or back in the game, a tank's job was to focus on defense. In the game, the tank could taunt the monsters so that he or she would receive damage instead of the team. However, currently, the tank could only act in a defensive role. This meant that they must have good reaction speed, good defensive capabilities and the ability to adapt to situations Otherwise, no tank would be able to live after their first few encounters.
And this was exactly what Rhode wanted to test.
"Hey, kid! You ordered me as a pretext to settle the grudge!!"
Old Walker face was pale. But Rhode had clearly made his decision, and no one could say no.
"This is a very fair arrangement, Mr. Walker. This young lady was chosen by you, so you must believe in her strength. You should just relax and let her do her job."
"Don't think that you can deceive me by using those sugar-coated words! Your wicked kid!"
Old Walker waved his fist angrily at Rhode, but in the end, he still shifted his gaze nervously to Anne who was standing in front of him with the shield on her right arm.
"Little brat, I'm leaving my life in your hand, you must protect me!"
"Rest assured, old man. There would be no problem. Probably."
"What?! Probably?! You better take back that word since I trust you this much!"
However, Rhode did not wait for Old Walker to finish complaining and made the first move.
He stretched out his arm and materialized three cards before him. The cards floated mysteriously in the air, and a summoning formation expanded below Rhode. In an instant, the Centaur Knight, Flame Killer and the Spirit Bird appeared at the same time.
"That was so cool! What are they?"
Anne stared at Rhode in disbelief; her widened eyes almost gave Old Walker a heart attack.
"Brat! Don't get distracted! That fellow only knows petty tricks. Jus focus! Don't touch that black dog; it can explode!"
"You have three minutes. As long you can hold out for three minutes and prevent Old Walker from getting injured, you'll pass the test."
After his explanation, Rhode glanced at Marlene and said,"Help me count."
"Yes, Mr. Rhode."
Marlene nodded and fished out a pocket watch. Then, Rhode snapped his fingers, signifying the start of the test.
"Attack."
The three spirits immediately rushed forward upon receiving Rhode's command.
As usual, in the vanguard, was the brave Flame Killer. After self-detonating so many times, it appeared to have developed some kind of masochistic personality. The poor dog now had an excited expression on its face when it faced its death. If the Flame Killer were a human, then it would probably be best to send him to see a psychiatrist.
Meanwhile, the girl who had been smiling throughout finally withdrew her grin and became serious. She bent her body and placed the shield in front of her, adopting a standard blocking stance. Then, followed by a 'clang,' multiple sharp hooks jolted out from both sides of the shield, reflecting a cold, hard light. The black hound acted as though it hadn't seen it and rushed forward menacingly.
Anne made a warcry and propelled herself forward, charging towards the black hound like a train.
The massive shield that weighed more than 10kg was swung with one arm as if it was light as a feather. However, the impact sound proved that the shield was indeed heavy. The Flame Killer didn't expect that the opponent would be so agile, and it was soon sent flying. It whined in agony as it soared through the air, and when it finally landed on the ground, it made a heartwrenching yelp.
At the same time, the Centaur Knight already made its way in front of her.
It swiftly lunged its pike forward, but before its weapon could collide with Anne's shield, she suddenly tilted her body and avoided the Centaur Knight's attack. Anne did a spin and followed up with a bash, which smashed into the Centaur Knight's flank as it was launching its pike towards Old Walker, causing it to stagger. The impact also caused the Centaur Knight's pike to miss its target.
Although the immediate danger had been removed, Anne didn't lose focus. On the contrary, after disarming the Centaur Knight, she immediately pulled her shield downwards and plunged it into the ground.
Kacha! The whole shield transformed; it expanded and wrapped around her body. At the same time, the Centaur Knight, who also possessed a shield in its other arm, used it to bash against Anne's bulwark.
Bang!! A deep sound caused their heart to jump slightly. The impact caused the Centaur Knight to take a few steps back. Meanwhile, the girl also backed off. But unlike the Centaur Knight, she had a different agenda.
The Spirit Bird who had been hovering in the air finally swept down.
As a wind elemental summon, the agility of the other two Spirits couldn't be compared to it. Only a flash of light could be seen shooting towards Old Walker.
This is the end.
Upon discovering the Spirit Bird shooting to his location, Old Walker knew that something bad was going to happen, but he wasn't able to stop it. After all, the Spirit Bird was way too fast; even if he wanted to react, it was impossible. At this moment, Old Walker was already crying inwardly.
Are my wages going to be cut?
Suddenly, Anne appeared and grabbed Old Walker's collar, pulling him to the ground. Then she used her shield to block his front.
Old Walker had no time to react; at the very next second, he realized that he was lying on the floor. However, this action caused the Spirit Bird to lose its target, though it did not immediately give up. Instead, it whistled and conjured a whirlwind to crash into the shield.
"Boom!!"
Woah!!
Old Walker felt a huge impact coming from the other side of the shield. The vibrations caused by the impact eventually traversed through the shield, to Anne, and finally to himself. The poor old man felt like a piece of flattened meatloaf as his breath was constantly being taken away. When he wanted to cry for help, he suddenly felt his body lighten. At that moment, he realized that the girl had already jumped up.
Time seemed to slow down. The girl was suspended in the air, her face dead serious. She faced the three summoned spirits and stretched out her left hand, revealing the secondary shield embedded in the Charge Shield.
Woo!! The sharp blades on the shield began rotating at high speeds, then it soon formed a whirlwind barrier which completely blocked the three summoning spirits.
Looking at this scene, Rhode frowned. Then he unsheathed his sword and rushed forward.
A light flashed, the silver sword pierced through the night sky and straight towards the whirlwind.
Boom!!
Followed by a loud burst, the sword also stopped moving.
Old Walker took a few steps back and plopped to the floor, the fright on his face was evident. Just next to him was a deep crevice with lingering traces of sword condensation.
In front of him, the girl still held her shield up, but he was shocked when he discovered the scars on her body.
At the same time, Marlene raised her pocket watch.
The three minutes was up.
"Not bad, Ms. Anne."
Rhode put away his sword.
"I have a rough grasp on your strength. Frankly, you've already met my requirements. But this is just a test, I hope to witness your performance in actual combat."
"Don't worry, big brother."
The girl put away her shield, and the energetic smile on her face emerged once again.
"I will not let you down!!"
"I hope so."
He nodded and turned his attention to Lize.
"Lize, let her choose a room. Marlene, you can go to rest. As for you…"
Followed by a pause, Rhode stared at Old Walker who was getting up from the ground.
"Mr. Walker, come to the study room later. I wish to hear your recruitment process."
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Chapter 77: A Big Net Quietly Spreading
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
When Old Walker entered the study room, Rhode turned to him and asked, "So, what really happened?"
"What? What happened?"
Old Walker was a little bit confused at Rhode's sudden question.
"Haven't you mention before that a Shield Warrior was hard to find? But you easily hired one with money?"
Rhode sat behind the desk and knocked the table with his fingers.
"Aren't you going to give me a report?
"Oh, so that's what you want."
Old Walker finally understood what Rhode meant. He sighed and sat down on a chair.
"To tell you the truth, I brought her from the Mark White mercenary group."
"Mark White?"
Hearing this name, Rhode frowned.
"Isn't that Deep Stone City's third-ranked mercenary group? How did you get her to join us?"
"It went like this…"
Old Walker began to explain how he recruited her. At the end of the report, Rhode finally understood why that girl called Anne would be willing to join them.
To put it simply, the whole matter was related to Mark White's internal power struggles.
In their previous mission, the leader of the mercenary group was mortally wounded and did not survive the journey back. Naturally, they had to elect a new leader, so the two vice-leaders who were the next in line for the position ended up competing against each other. As each vice-leader had their respective faction within the mercenary group, the competition between the two became rather messy.
Anne was caught up in the internal struggle and wasn't happy about it. She was an orphan adopted by the former leader and was inexplicably close to him. Now that he had passed, Anne trembled in fury when she found out that the members fought against themselves instead of respecting their deceased leader. Even when she had attempted countless times to mediate the matter between the two factions, it proved to be mostly fruitless. Thus, after some time, she gave up on persuading them.
Perhaps because she was picked up by the leader when she was young, she developed a similar straightforward nature. As the saying goes, what the eye doesn't see, the heart doesn't grieve. Since they weren't listening to her, it didn't mean that she couldn't hide from them. That was precisely why she decided to leave the mercenary group.
Even if Anne was the deceased leader's daughter, she had the right to leave whenever she wanted. Mercenary groups had no power to force a member to stay. While the relationship between mercenaries and mercenary groups were somewhat similar to staffs and their companies, in the Dragon Soul Continent, there was no contract to bind their members down.
Even that being said, typical mercenaries would stay in the group forever unless something major cropped up such being dissolved or being wiped-out in a dungeon.
After all, the risk of death while running solo was much higher. And at times, leaving a mercenary group was equivalent to betrayal, making them less desired by others group. Therefore, it a bold move by Anne when she decided to quit the group,
In her case, even if Anne wanted to stay, the two vice-leaders did not want her, just because she belonged to the former leader's faction. Such was life. Despite being a young, talented lass that had an unfathomable gift as a Shield Warrior, the two vice-leaders could not disregard her influence, especially so after she grows up. They were afraid. Afraid of her gathering her supporters and overthrowing their leadership. Yet, if a prominent figure such as her were to quit without warning, many people were going to gossip. Thus, they came up with a simple solution: if someone could afford her for three hundred gold coins, that person could take her away.
Three hundred gold coins wasn't a small sum for mercenary groups. They need the money to feed its members as well as maintain certain group functions. While the total rewards awarded after completing a mission wasn't little, the leader still had to distribute the money among its members, leaving each individual with an even smaller portion.
And even if the larger mercenary groups could afford it, those groups would be aware of the internal conflicts of the Mark White mercenary group. Regardless of who is the leader in the future, Anne wouldn't be able to stay for long.
Most large mercenary groups were associated in one way or another. Unless there was a bone-deep hatred, they wouldn't want to make an enemy out of each other just because of one person. It just wasn't worth it.
Although Anne's ability was nothing less than excellent, large mercenary groups often didn't lack manpower. The addition of one Shield Warrior to their team couldn't increase their combined strength significantly enough to warrant getting involved in Mark White's internal struggles.
Of course, the enemies of Mark White mercenary group also wanted to purchase Anne so they can take revenge. Unfortunately, Mark White's enemies were also Anne's, even though she was currently at odds with the mercenary group, she still wouldn't betray them by joining the enemy.
Lastly, there were those wealthy nobles who wanted to claim her as their concubine or escort.
Anne wasn't stupid enough to accept the proposal of these people. Other than mercenary groups, she wouldn't agree to join anything else.
During this incident, many groups exchanged information with each other. Naturally, Old Walker caught on the news as well, and he immediately recalled Rhode's intention to recruit someone who could hold their ground.
Anne appeared to be satisfied with Old Walker's invitation. A small mercenary group meant less pressure and less troubling situations. Since other larger mercenary groups didn't want her, she also didn't want to join them.
Anne was tired from the constant power struggle in Mark White; instead of thinking of complicated matters, she just wanted to live an ordinary mercenary life and complete missions to pass the time.
"So that's what happened."
After hearing Old Walker explanation, Rhode nodded with satisfaction.
"Then, let's talk about proper business… The thing that I asked you to investigate… How is it?"
"Well, the situation sure is a little bit strange, kid."
Old Walker immediately tensed up.
"Following your orders, I've investigated 32 mercenary groups, and you know what I found? Other than their current mission, all of their previous missions were all connected to dead spirits, and furthermore, all of them started at the same time!"
"All of the missions were accepted by them?"
"No, not all."
Old Walker shook his head and waved his hand.
"All the mercenaries understood how difficult it was to deal with the undead. Other than those larger mercenary groups, no one would be stupid enough to risk their lives. Based on what I've heard, these missions were entrusted by someone who had offered a large sum of money, so the mercenaries agreed to take the mission."
"How about now? What's the situation?"
"Only five mercenary groups came back alive. But most of them had suffered heavy casualties… similar to Red Hawk's situation. Hence, many of them are lacking manpower right now. I've also heard that many couldn't even complete the mission, leaving a deep wound on their morale."
"Do you know about the specific location and content of their mission? Additionally, is there any information on their client?"
"This… I'm not too sure, kid."
Old Walker helplessly spread his hands.
"What you've requested are all secrets. They wouldn't tell me even if I asked. But I believe that the Mercenary Association would have some record as these missions must be approved by the association. Anyway, the entire situation is really a mess. Usually, no one would offer so much money even if the mission involves eliminating the undead. Makes me wonder what is happening…"
"I can only speculate for now."
Rhode sat on the chair and pondered while tapping on the desk lightly. For sure, things weren't quite as expected. Rhode tried to recall what happened in the game and suddenly he thought of something.
Right! At one time, many players from the Country of Light suddenly appeared here. If Rhode wasn't mistaken, they came here to complete a very rewarding quest, but about the quest content…
Rhode began to frown.
So that was the case…! Rhode appeared to have remembered crucial, but he still had to continue the investigation to conclude his speculation.
"One thing is for sure, all these things are connected to one another. I will drop by the Mercenary Association tomorrow to look for some clues."
"Mercenary Association?"
Old Walker raised his brow.
"You want to deal with those guys? Don't blame me for not telling you but their lips are tightly shut. It's not going to be easy for you to gather information from them."
"I know what to do."
Rhode shook his head, then he closed his eyes and continued to think.
"Your next assignment is to find out what they are doing. Also, check for any unfamiliar mercenary groups that recently visited Deep Stone City."
"Unfamiliar mercenary groups? Those appear every single day. Deep Stone City is a big city. Isn't it very normal to attract new groups?"
"Indeed you are right. It is normal. But if many groups appear in a short period of time, then it's not normal."
"Do you mean…"
Following Rhode's sentence, Old Walker's face changed. He wasn't stupid; there were many strange things that Rhode asked him to investigate, so he had naturally formed his own speculation about the matter. But of course, he did not know who dared to do something like this.
"There's someone plotting against the mercenary groups in Deep Stone City? Kid, do you have any evidence of this?"
Looking at Old Walker's serious expression, Rhode rolled his eyes.
How could he have any news? If he were a regular joe, Rhode would've only felt that something strange was going on and not bother to take any action.
However, Rhode was a transmigrator. He knew what was going to happen in the future, which was why he was extremely vigilant towards 'odd happenings'.
"When I have news, I'll naturally inform you about it."
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Chapter 78: The Enemy is in The Light, While I'm in The Dark
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
There's nothing better than one's home.
That was the first thought that came into Rhode's mind when he opened his eyes. It was currently morning, and the sun had already risen on the horizon, sending a bright, warm ray of light through the window, signifying that a brand new day had begun.
Although it had only been one day since his return, Rhode didn't choose to relax but instead, he sprung up from his bed, changed, and went to the back garden to practice swordsmanship. It was a habit from the game that he couldn't easily forget. After logging in, he would search for a place to warm up and once done, he would find other things to occupy his time. This daily routine improved his basic statuses and increased his agility in battle. Therefore, after transmigrating, he still brought his habit along with him. At the very least, his routine would bring a sense of familiarity and put him at ease.
The stronghold was peaceful in the morning. On the third floor, Rhode occupied the largest room in the stronghold which was the study and his bedroom combined. As for the female mercenaries, all of them lived fairly comfortably in the guestrooms on the second floor. Only Old Walker slept on the first floor in the servant's room — but of course, this was only a temporary arrangement. Rhode wasn't satisfied with the current accommodations, but since they were low on cash, it couldn't be helped.
When Rhode was walking down the stairs, he could hear a lively voice calling out to him.
"Ah leader, good morning! You woke up so early."
It was that one girl who would dare to talk to him in that manner.
"Aren't you the same?"
Rhode shook his head and glanced at Anne who was standing by the balcony.
"I say, Miss Anne. Are you heading out with that kind of attire?"
"Hm?"
Tracing Rhode's gaze, Anne looked down at her clothes in curiosity. Right now, she wasn't wearing the light armor she wore last night. Instead, only a thin undergarment covered her slender body which 'proudly' emphasized her upper half. When the wind blew, Rhode could vaguely catch a glimpse of pink through the translucent cloth Anne wore right now.
"Hmm? It's fine, isn't it? After all, it's cool and refreshing having dressed like this."
As the girl spoke, she raised her arms and stretched her waist, revealing even more tender skin under the thin cloth. Rhode had to admit, Anne's figure was certainly ideal. She had the necessary curves while still being slender at the same time. Furthermore, her lazy demeanor could be somewhat tempting for certain individuals.
"Isn't it a little bit too refreshing…?"
About B…
Rhode's eyes fell on her chest and immediately made an evaluation, a second later, he quickly shrugged and said, "After all, this is a mercenary group. I hope you can mind yourself."
"Ah… that's boring! Back when Anne was still in Mark White, father would ask me to do the same. Now that Anne is here, leader is telling me the same thing."
Anne twitched her mouth in dissatisfaction.
Then she added, "Men sure are weird. Leader, Anne clearly didn't strip. But if she did, will guys be excited about it? For Anne, even if a man is naked, Anne wouldn't feel excited at all."
Black lines stretched on Rhode's forehead. When he first saw her, Rhode guessed that things wouldn't be simple, but now he was convinced that Old Walker had given him a big headache.
At that moment, a savior finally appeared.
"Hm…Ms. Anne? You've woken up? I heard Mr. Rhode's voice…"
While rubbing her eyes, Lize yawned as she staggered sleepily out of the room. When she saw Anne's clothing, Lize's eyes immediately snapped wide open.
"A-A-Anne! What are you doing?!"
"Eh? Anne was only going out to get some fresh morning air?"
"You'll catch a cold like this! That's not right, why didn't you wear any clothes?"
"But Anne is wearing clothes? You see, you see, isn't this clothes?"
"Waaaa, don't lift it up!! Mr. Rhode is here! Please behave!"
"But Anne is behaving? It isn't as though Anne is naked. This layer of clothes shouldn't be a problem, right? Only seeing beyond this layer of clothes is the problem, right?"
"That's not it!! M-Mr. Rhode, please leave. Ms. Anne, come with me, you absolutely cannot go out like this!!"
"Eh…But it's very comfortable like this…"
"No means no!!"
After staring at Anne who was being unwillingly pulled back into the room by Lize, he turned his head away, sighing. Anyway, he was lucky enough to witness such a 'beautiful scenery' in the early morning.
Rhode had to admit; she was indeed a unique individual. She had a cheerful, lively, energetic and straightforward disposition but was also someone who had close to zero social awareness. If she wanted to do something, she would just do it her way and would not think of how other people would perceive her. To put it nicely, she could be described as a bold and steadfast individual. On the flip side, she was someone who acts before thinking. Rhode finally understood why the two vice-leaders from Mark White wanted to kick her out…
Marlene and Lize also quickly realized this point.
After the 'incident' in the morning, everyone finally gathered to have breakfast. When Rhode and Lize were the only inhabitants of the stronghold, they could eat casually but now that there were more people, Rhode had to tidy up the table to have breakfast.
Old Walker took on Lize's duty of cooking three meals a day and surprisingly, his cooking was actually good! It was so good that Marlene even praised the food he made. Of course, everything would be perfect if he would stop drinking beer at every meal.
"All of you can have a rest for today," Rhode said and began discussing today's schedule while holding a piece of steaming hot bread in his hand.
"I need to go to the Mercenary Association to gather information. You guys can do whatever you like but just don't create unnecessary trouble. If anyone of you wishes to go out, please bring someone along with you."
"Mercenary Association?"
Marlene raised her brow as she picked up her handkerchief to wipe her mouth.
"Something happened?" she said.
Rhode shook his head. Even he wasn't too sure about what was happening, but it would still be good to give Sereck and the others a heads up.
"I cannot say anything for now. I'm just going to check the situation."
"Do you want me to follow you, Mr. Rhode?"
"There's no need. You must be tired after traveling together with me for so many days. You don't have to go today."
"….Mr. Rhode."
This time, Lize raised her hand timidly.
"Do we need to prepare for anything?"
"We will depart in two or three days; you can just prepare for that."
"Okay, I understand."
When everyone was busy discussing, Anne, who sat quietly among the ladies, suddenly interrupted.
"Big sister Marlene, Big sister Lize, Anne feels that this is quite weird. Why don't you guys call leader as leader?"
"Eh?"
Both Marlene and Lize were caught off guard for a moment.
"In Anne's former mercenary group, everyone called the leader as leader. Why are both sisters calling the leader by his name?"
"This…"
Both of them displayed an awkward expression, even Old Walker who was sitting beside also felt somewhat uncomfortable and raised his pint to cover up his expression. However, Rhode helped them out from their unspeakable dilemma.
"All of them have their own reasons. Marlene is only temporarily joining our group. As for Lize, I'm sure she has her own reasoning. Moreover, I don't really mind what you call me. It isn't mandatory to call me leader, so feel free to call me anything you like."
"So it's like that…"
Anne blinked her beautiful green eyes and took another curious glance at everyone. Then, she did not say anything else and once again focused on the food before her.
Lize, Marlene and Old Walker finally felt relieved, but they still had a hint of complexity in their eyes.
At this moment, there was a knock on the door.
Lize quickly stood up and got the door. She spoke with the people outside in a low voice for a few moments before accepting a letter. Then she returned to the table with an odd expression.
"What happened Lize? Did something happen?"
Marlene asked curiously when she saw Lize's expression. Lize passed the letter over and said, "Mr. Rhode, it's an invitation from the Mercenary Association. Mr. President and Sereck want to see you; they hope that you can go there to solve a dispute."
"Dispute?"
Rhode felt a little bit strange. How could there be any dispute between him and Mercenary Association?
"It's like this…"
Lize's current expression became even more strange, she looked at Marlene with worry, and then back to Rhode.
"According to the messenger, Mr. Clinton from the Country of Light approached the Mercenary Association and claimed that you had killed his subordinates. He asked us to give an explanation and compensate his loss.."
"That's simply outrageous!"
Before Lize could finish, Marlene slammed the table and stood up in anger.
"Those group of bastards… it was clearly them who had sent people to assassinate us in the forest. Hah. Now they're twisting the truth! Must we stay still and give up our lives to satisfy them?"
Then Marlene turned around and stared at Rhode with anger in her eyes.
"Mr. Rhode! Let's go to the Mercenary Association together! I want that bastard to understand that our Munn Kingdom isn't that easy to be bullied!"
"Enough. Marlene, don't get too worked up."
Rhode was unexpectedly calm. He reached out and took the letter from Lize, carefully scrutinizing the contents. After reading, he shoved the letter into his pocket and stood up.
"Go and have a rest. I'll go to the Mercenary Association by myself. I think there must be some kind of misunderstanding."
"Misunderstanding?!"
Marlene sneered.
"Mr. Rhode, how can it be a misunderstanding? Isn't it obvious? The people of the Country of Light have refused to let this matter go…"
"I have a different opinion about it."
Rhode waved his hand and dismissed Marlene's complaint.
"We've never done such a thing, that's why there must be some kind of misunderstanding. Clinton accused us of doing it, but I still don't know what is he talking about."
Everyone was speechless.
All of them stared at Rhode who was as calm as a cucumber, acting as if nothing happened.
(ED: Anne is adorable.)
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Chapter 79: A Small Warning
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
A lingering chatter droned on and on.
Peter stretched his body and distanced himself from the parchments in front of him. When he took off his glasses, he noticed his vision growing slightly blurry. But this was good for him… At least he did not have to see those annoying faces otherwise it would be difficult to imagine how he could continue.
"Silence, silence!!"
A deep voice sounded and drowned the noise.
"Please, everyone. We're not gathered here to quarrel."
A man who wore a luxurious robe stood up and spread his hands.
"In recent months, there had been a string of continuous attacks on cargo ships near the border areas which caused not only the dissatisfaction of the Merchant Association but also a rapid increase in price in the Country of Light. We must develop a countermeasure as soon as possible!"
"What else can we do?"
Another person put down the parchments in his hand and helplessly spread his arms.
"We have already sent out an investigation group, but we still have not received a clear report of the situation. We need to find out what is going on in order to catch the culprit behind it."
"It takes time. After all, we only have a few clues so we need to continue to investigate."
"There's no time! The price increase is drastically affecting our public support. We must think of a way to reverse this situation right now or the whole country will fall into chaos soon."
What's the point of saying that? You've might as well say nothing.
Peter pressed his palm against his forehead and sighed. They had been meeting every day, but they weren't able to find a solution. At this moment, a dark figure stood up.
"I have something to say."
Borde.
Hearing this voice, Old Peter suddenly grew interested. He quickly grabbed his glasses and readied the quill pen in his hand.
Borde was in his forties. His thick lips and golden hair meticulously combed to the back gave off a dignified feeling. Dressed in a simple black jacket, he stepped towards the podium, causing the noisy parliament hall to quiet down.
"I think this discussion is a waste of time. We should not be thinking how to solve it. No matter how we deliberate, we have to accept what already happened. Right now as we speak, the commodity price is still increasing. While the difference isn't big, it is still making the people unhappy. Haven't you guys heard?"
Borde proceeded to point towards the window.
"That's right. That's the sound of protest. We've been entrusted with a heavy responsibility — we cannot let them down now. While I agree that we still have to continue to investigate the attacks, our priority should be to stabilize the price to avoid further turmoil. This is what we're supposed to do!"
"But how do we do that, Mr. Borde?"
Hearing a parliament member inquire, Mr. Borde smiled.
"We can ask the Munn Kingdom for help. Let them solve our current shortage and re-stabilizing the market price."
"I object!"
"I also object!"
Someone immediately stood up and expressed their opposition.
"Our relationship with them is the same as before. There had been no response from the Munn Kingdom after such a long time. That simply means that they do not want to help us! If we take the initiative to request aid from them, they might use this as a foothold to force us to make future concessions and compromise!"
"That's right! That tyrant of a dictator… I don't believe that woman would be kind enough to help us without benefits."
"Why would she bother about whether we live or die? She's an evil being that wouldn't hesitate to kill her own people as long as she can stabilize her reign. How can this kind of person be an angel? It's just difficult to imagine. I object to this proposal, Mr. Borde. Our Country of Light's thrives on liberalism, I absolutely refuse to bow down to evil."
"Nevertheless, no matter what, the Munn Kingdom is ultimately still our ally."
Facing the majority opposition, Borde waved his arm passionately.
"We have no other option. The other countries neither have enough resources nor the ability to help us. We should send our messenger to express our goodwill to her Miss Lydia as soon as possible. As long as they are willing to trade with us with low rates, we can let them decide the requirements of the proposal. I hope everyone here can understand where I am coming from. Right now, our petty squabbles will put nothing on the table, and I'm sure you don't need me to remind all of you about the forecasted results of next year's election if we do nothing about this matter… I think all of you should understand what I'm saying."
Hearing this, those who opposed Borde's views appeared to quieten down. They looked at each other helplessly, seemingly unable to reply with anything constructive. However, there were still people who voiced out their opinion.
"But… but what happens if the people found out that we requested assistance from the Munn Kingdom? If this spreads, we will receive quite a heavy blow as well…"
"I think all of you needn't worry regarding this point."
Borde pressed his hands down.
"The people are mainly worried about the increasing prices. As long as we don't talk about it, no one would know where the food and goods came from. Bowing down to the Munn Kingdom isn't something to be proud of, but for sake of the people of our country, we must relinquish our pride."
Borde paused for a moment.
"They didn't know about our matters before, so naturally they aren't going to find out about this one now."
When the parliament members heard this, the anxiety in their eyes finally dissipated and was replaced by happiness. Indeed, this matter had bogged them down for so long; hence it was natural that they felt relieved. These members of parliament undoubtedly knew that as long as they could appease the public's anger, they would be able to clinch next year's election.
As for face? What's that? Can that be eaten?
"Then, Mr. Borde, the matter regarding the messenger…"
"I will go in person."
Borde puffed out his chest and said confidently, "I will show our parliament's greatest sincerity to Miss Lydia."
Then Borde held his head up towards the front.
"I hope the parliament will grant me this approval."
Facing Borde's resolution, the old man who was sitting on the top did not speak for a while. Then he sighed. After scanning the room briefly, he reluctantly nodded his head.
"I accept your request, the parliament will vote for it at the next meeting."
That old thing.
All the parliament members thought the same thing and glanced at the old man in disdain. He was already so old, how long did he want to stay in that position? Damn, if it wasn't for him, how could have the parliament become this passive?
Hmph. It looks like he's going to be pulled down on the next election. By that time…
As many of the members thought of this, they still maintained their attention on the man who stood confidently at the podium.
It might be the arrival of a new era.
At this moment, in the distant Deep Stone City, another scene was going on in the Mercenary Association.
"That damned bastard!!"
The mercenaries were surprised to see Billy. His face was pale as he slammed the door behind him. He stomped through the hall and left the Mercenary Association before entering a luxurious carriage just outside the building.
"What's the matter?"
A man who was hiding in the shadow asked.
"That guy denied everything."
Billy spread out his arms helplessly.
"Although I've have done it according to your request and showed every evidence and magical projection that could prove that he was the murderer, he wasn't moved at all and said that it was something that we fabricated!!"
Recalling Rhode's calm expression, Billy gnashed his teeth in anger. He really wanted to cut off Rhode's head by himself. He spent so much time, said so many words, and even revealed the evidence, but that guy actually reversed all of it.
"What's the Mercenary Association's response?"
"They said that they will continue to investigate."
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Chapter 80: Requesting Reinforcements
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
Old President and Sereck weren't dumb. Naturally they wouldn't want to be entangled in the hot mess between the Munn Kingdom and the Country of Light. Meanwhile, they were also grateful to Rhode for providing them the information regarding the mercenary groups and the undead. As they kept a record of commissions, they came to the exact conclusion as Old Walker, stating that it was truly an unusual occurrence.
The Mercenary Association could ignore the problem between the two countries, but they could not disregard the danger before them. As the highest-ranking members of the Mercenary Association, the President and Sereck had already caught a whiff of matters even before Rhode's warning. It was especially obvious when several mercenary groups came back with severe casualties.
"Looks like something is lurking in the shadows."
Putting down a parchment on his hand, Sereck's expression darkened.
"Something like this actually happened… I really did not expect it. If I knew it earlier, I would've stayed."
"It's too late to regret it now, old friend."
The Old President sighed and rolled his eyes towards Rhode.
"What do you think about it?"
"Perhaps it's because those undead creatures are valuable?"
Rhode was clearly ignoring him, causing the Old President to roll his eyes again. He sighed deeply in his heart, questioning himself why he even bothered asking Rhode anyway.
"The commissioners came from different regions. The only thing they have in common is that they're all not locals…"
Reading the record on his hands, Sereck expression became slightly more stern.
"I can't tell if it's a conspiracy or not from the information we've gotten so far, but even for a coincidence it's slightly unbelievable."
Knock knock knock!
At this moment, a rapid knocking sound suddenly came from behind the door and broke the dull atmosphere in the room. The three of them glanced over, and the Old President's expression turned solemn.
"Come in."
"M-Mr. President!"
The door pushed open and a mercenary drenched in blood rushed in with Old Hank following closely behind. From his clothing, it can be said that he resembled a thief.
"What happened?!" The President abruptly sprang up and asked.
The bloodied mercenary appeared using all his remaining strength to stand before the President, and it was evident that he couldn't hold on for much longer.
"S-Sir, our mission failed… I finally managed to escape… Please, please send reinforcements to help my comrades…"
"You are…"
Sereck quickly walked towards the mercenary. After carefully looking at him he said, "Aren't you Chad from the 'Victorious Wine' mercenary group? What happened to you?"
"We, we accepted a commission to the Silent Ridge. But, we didn't expect so many undead there… The vice-leader had already died and our leader barely saved our lives. However, they are being surrounded by undead right now as we speak… I don't know how long they can hold on…"
"What the heck? Silent Plateau?!"
Sereck no longer remained calm after hearing this.
"That's a five Star-Ranked mission! Your mercenary group isn't qualified to take this mission!"
"We, we know… But our mission was only to search for an item within the outer borders… so we thought that it wasn't going to be dangerous. Who knew that…"
"Forget it; there's no use saying these now."
Sereck sighed.
"Hank, take him to receive treatment immediately. I will think of a solution with the President."
"Yes, Sir Sereck."
Old Hank agreed and carried the mercenary back. When the mercenary left, Sereck shook his head.
"Foolish! How can they be that stupid! They actually dared to venture into Silent Plateau? That place is the Country of Darkness's border. Bunch of fools… just because of money they dared to disregard their lives."
"What should we do now?"
"Since they requested for reinforcements, we must help them. This is the responsibility of our Mercenary Association. Even if it was a casual group, as long as they've formally registered with us, they will be protected under our wing."
"But…"
The President's old face revealed a troubled expression.
"Firstly, let's not even mention how dangerous that place is. Even if we wanted reinforcements, there are only a few available mercenary groups left in Deep Stone City. Both of us know that they've just returned from a devastating defeat. Requesting reinforcements from them is practically impossible."
"So… should I go alone?"
"Don't joke, old friend."
The President immediately shook his head.
"What's the use if you go there alone? This is a five Star-Ranked mission! Yes, you are a master swordsman and you can guarantee your own life… but can you also bring the others back safely?"
Sereck did not answer.
He was clear of his own strength. Much of his talent lies within his swordsmanship, so he wasn't good at commanding mercenary groups. Going there to kill the undead wasn't an issue, but killing the undead while bringing a group of injured people back… Hahaha, gotta be kidding…
At this time, a voice sounded.
"I think you have forgotten that there's still a mercenary group without any injuries."
"Hm?"
President and Sereck immediately turned towards Rhode who had remained silent for the whole time. Right now he was crossing his arms while leaning against the chair, quietly watching them.
"You mean Starlight?"
The Old President shook his head and laughed.
"Kid… your mercenary group only possess five or six members right now… Even if you have twice or trice of that, Silent Plateau isn't a place for your level. Don't make things even more troublesome."
"That's your opinion, not mine, old man."
Rhode didn't back down. Instead, he moved his body to get more comfortable.
"I have confidence in my subordinates, and believe me — my familiarity with Silent Plateau is far more than you can imagine…"
"Oh?"
Both of them were stunned momentarily, then the Old President laughed and opened his mouth to say something. However, Sereck stopped him. He walked towards Rhode and carefully scrutinized the young man.
"Are you sure you can handle it?"
"I never take on a mission that I'm not sure of. Moreover, you're coming with me right? I have no doubts of your strength."
Rhode stood up.
"I have two conditions, however."
"What conditions?" The Old President was puzzled.
Rhode whipped out one finger.
"First, you must look for four clerics for me. There must be some within the Association, right?"
"There is, but…"
The Old President frowned and stared at Rhode suspiciously. He didn't understand what he was going to do with four clerics.
"What do you need them for? You should realize that those kids do not have much adventuring experience since they are mainly responsible for the Association's internal first-aid department. Let me inform you — they do not know any offensive spells. Don't expect them to help you kill the undead."
"That is my problem. You only have to wait for me to bring them back safely. You have my word. Now, I want to know whether you agree to this condition."
"Sure."
The old President didn't hesitate long before agreeing to Rhode's condition. Anyway, it wasn't a big deal, and he was also curious why would he ask for four clerics.
"I'll get them to prepare. After that, they'll follow Sereck to join you guys. What about the second condition?"
"The second condition is simple."
Rhode held out another finger.
"I want to know how many points I can get after this mission."
The Old President's face finally turned green.
"You greedy bastard! You can actually speak of this condition at this kind of time?!"
"That's exactly why I must talk about the conditions with you, old man."
Rhode put down his right hand and shrugged.
"After all, this is also a mission and we are risking our lives… Isn't some kind of compensation appropriate?"
In the end, the President agreed to Rhode's conditions. Old President could choose to bargain further, but he knew that this matter was urgent and thus relented to Rhode's conditions.
If Starlight could complete the mission and come back safely, the Mercenary Association would give them a five Star-Ranked mission reward together with gold coins and some magic equipment.
The reward can't be said to be abundant, but also can't be said to be meager for a five Star-Ranked mission.
After everything, they finally agreed to prepare to move out the next day at dawn. Rhode promptly left the Mercenary Association after the discussion.
"I really don't know what you are thinking!"
The Old President was in a huff as he slumped in his chair angrily, giving a dissatisfied look at Sereck who returned his glare with a smile.
"Do you really think that kid is telling the truth? I think that he's just uttering nonsense. Is the Silent Plateau a resort where he can choose to come and go as he wishes? He even said that he is familiar with it? Nonsense!"
"I don't think so."
Sereck smiled bitterly and shook his head.
"You must recognize his achievements as well. When the kid had just established his mercenary group, he immediately took on Pavel Cemetery and came back without any casualties while saving the Red Hawk mercenary group in the process. That young lad said that he is familiar with the undead… is it really a coincidence? He even felled the Necromancer who had lived for so many years."
"What are you trying to say Sereck?"
"I'm not trying to say anything…"
Sereck turned his head and gazed out the window.
"I just think that young man is a fascinating fellow…"
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Chapter 81: Heading Towards Silent Highland (6000 Words)
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
Before the sun rose on the second day, Rhode arrived at the Deep Stone City's entrance with his group. Sereck, who was equipped with his usual leather armor and magic sword, was even earlier than him. At this moment, Sereck indeed resembled a mercenary. Upon seeing Rhode's arrival, Sereck stepped forward and waved at them.
"You're just on time."
Sereck nodded in satisfaction. Then, he swept his gaze over Lize, Marlene and Old Walker. His eyes stopped upon resting on Anne, who made him surprised for a moment. Though he quickly recovered and greeted everyone with a smile.
"Looks like you're ready."
"Yeah."
Rhode answered calmly.
While the group might seem calm and collected, when Rhode dropped the bomb on them last night, everyone expressed their shock differently.
Lize felt worried for the safety of the group, naturally.
Marlene was full of spirit as she didn't know where Silent Plateau was.
Old Walker complained that Rhode was seeking death.
And Anne had no opinions on the matter as she had only been freeloading so far. Thus, her reaction was as though they were about to go on a field trip.
"What about the people I requested for?"
"They're here."
Sereck waved his arm and four young girls came from behind him. The oldest among them was about twenty-five years old, and the youngest was approximately around Lize's age.
Contrary to the veteran mercenaries, these four Clerics explicitly revealed their fear on their faces. It was not surprising as not many Clerics would be willing to follow a mercenary group out into the wilderness. Lize was a special exception indeed.
"All of them can cast healing spells and Barrier. Well, lad, I must remind you that they belong to the Mercenary Association. Although my old friend forced himself to agree to your request, it doesn't mean that you can send them to their deaths. I will make it clear right now — if anything happens to these children, I will leave with them immediately. As for the journey afterward, you can only rely on yourself."
"Not a problem."
Hearing Sereck's reminder, Rhode didn't say anything else and thanked him. Then he made his way towards the four Clerics who looked at him with skepticism and uneasiness. Frankly, they didn't want to go, but as a member of the Mercenary Association, they must obey their orders.
In some ways, Clerics were more fragile than mages.
"I think you guys should be aware where we are heading to." Rhode ignored their gazes and spoke calmly, "You should know that it's incredibly dangerous there and you might die. However, as long as you follow my command, you will be safe."
Rhode spread out his hands.
"Please remember to follow my command. If I tell you to do something, just do it and believe in the results. If you do as I say, you will not encounter any danger. I understand that right now, it's my word against yours, but the facts will soon prove my credibility. As such, I don't want anyone to disobey my command no matter what situation arises. I hope that none of you will do something that would make me unhappy."
Rhode paused for a moment and swept his gaze over the four Clerics who had various expressions.
"I will leave you to Lize. If you have any questions, you can ask her. I know that some of you might be superior to her in strength, but with regards to teamwork and adventuring, neither one of you can hold a candle to her. If you don't want to suffer, then you'd better listen to her instructions."
Rhode said no more and he signaled everyone to begin moving. Meanwhile, Sereck made his way towards Rhode with a bitter smile.
"Honestly… aren't you a little too harsh on these ladies?"
"I'm not interested in currying their favor."
Rhode shrugged and shook his head.
"We're here to carry out the mission. This is neither a field trip nor a blind date, so I don't have time to care whether they like me or not — I only need them to follow my command, that's all. In any case, I will have nothing to do with them once we complete this mission."
"Nothing is for certain." Sereck smiled."The way you talk is somewhat like an army officer."
"Is that so?"
Hearing that comparison, Rhode frowned.
"That's right, that kind of determination and decisiveness when facing a mission… Well, in my opinion, an ordinary mercenary won't have such a skill."
Rhode didn't reply as he turned around and walked to the carriage.
Silent Plateau wasn't a place near Deep Stone City; furthermore, there were people in the group who weren't accustomed to adventuring. Hence, Sereck arranged a caravan to be used for transportation. The caravan had six wheels and required eight horses to pull them forward. Since the Mercenary Association wasn't as strict as the army, caravans like this were often used as transportation for members of the Association.
Although there were strong offshore winds in Silent Plateau, the Mercenary Association forbid them from using a floating ship to travel there. The reason was simple. Firstly, because of the recent attacks on merchants, floating ships were wide open targets. Secondly, that place had no port and Rhode and his entourage had no experience in jumping from high altitudes. This world had no parachute, and even if they landed safely, they might be eaten by an undead instead.
Dying before accomplishing anything wasn't something worth boasting.
Thus, while a caravan might be slower, but it was far safer than the floating ship.
Unfortunately, things do not always go as planned.
The road to Silent Plateau wasn't fun — it was riddled with bumps and weeds as almost no one would dare to travel to this haunted place. Even Lize and Old Walker who were seasoned mercenaries could not take it, not to mention Marlene and the other four Clerics. They no longer cared about their image as they crawled out of the caravan and puked. Though oddly enough, Anne had a calm expression as she slept alone in the corner of the caravan.
According to their original plan, after reaching Silent Plateau, all of them would get off and move out immediately. Alas, everyone was currently blue in their faces, and their legs felt like jelly. They hadn't even encountered their first enemy… but were already on their fours. Rhode and Sereck had no choice but to rest for half a day before setting off.
"I hope that those guys can hold on until we arrive."
Rhode whispered to himself as he stared at the ominous clouds above the dark, eerie forest.
Night had already fallen, but the forest was abnormally still — not even a single animal sound could be heard from within.
Rhode knew what was ahead — it was nothing else but the aura of death. He really hoped that those people could hold on until they arrived.
But Rhode did not put much faith in their ability to survive as he had experienced plenty of similar quests back in the game. Most of the time, NPCs would succumb to death before their reinforcement arrive, which was truly a depressing matter considering how much effort Rhode had to put in to fight his way to the rescue location.
"No need to worry."
Sereck was more optimistic than Rhode.
"I know the leader of Victorious Wine. He is a vigilant young man; he won't die that easily. Even if his chance of survival is close to zero, we still have to try since we are all part of the Mercenary Association."
Responsibility.
Rhode didn't reply Sereck. The Mercenary Association appeared to be a strong organization on the surface, and they were highly-regarded among mercenary groups. However, it didn't mean that they had the power to forcefully disband a mercenary group to enhance their status. Power and responsibility always came hand-in-hand. The mercenaries would listen to the Mercenary Association's orders, and in turn, the Mercenary Association would aid the mercenaries whenever needed.
Requesting for reinforcement was one such perk members of the Mercenary Association had. Whether they were alive or dead, once the Mercenary Association receives their request, they will send people to their rescue.
This display of reliability proved to the far stronger than any contract; in fact, the reason why most mercenary groups dared to explore was also because of this.
Trust was priceless.
"I… I can't go on anymore, Lize."
Marlene sagged against the tree. Her legs wobbled like jelly, and her head was spinning uncontrollably. A nauseous sensation took over her body; it felt even worse than the magic plant she had accidentally eaten. She tilted her head upwards to suppress the vomit rushing up to her throat while Lize quickly cast a spell to alleviate her condition.
"Bear with it Marlene. Take a deep breath and rest for a while."
"Take a deep…urghh…!!!"
Marlene's body suddenly arched and her throat convulsed uncontrollably.
…It seemed like she had barfed last night's dinner.
The other Clerics fared no better than Marlene. Fortunately, they were blessed with healing spells. However, they still appeared to be haggard as they lay on the ground, exhausted. If anyone saw their plight right now, they would've thought that they had encountered an undead attack.
"Yawn…"
Only one person was totally unaffected by the ride.
Anne.
She yawned as she climbed down from the caravan and proceeded to stretch her stiff body. After stretching, she looked strangely at the people eyeing her and found that all the girls were staring daggers at her.
So unfair…
Then she turned towards Rhode and said, "Ah, leader, have we arrived? When should we start?"
"Three hours from now. Let them rest for a little bit."
Facing the girl who had hopped over to him energetically, Rhode quickly pointed towards the base camp and replied.
"You also should go eat something and take a rest. After that, we will start our mission. Don't forget your duty."
"Of course~ Rest assured leader. When Anne is here, there will be no problem!"
After answering him, Anne hummed her way to base camp and whipped out a few pieces of meat from the bag to eat by the campfire. Comparing this girl who had plenty of energy to spare to the half-dead Marlene and gang, it was quite… a contrast.
"I didn't expect you to recruit her."
Sereck took two cups of hot water and sat beside Rhode. At the same time, he handed one over.
"It looks like you have something up your sleeves."
"You know Anne?"
Rhode took the cup Sereck offered to him and asked casually.
"I have met her a few times before. While her personality is indeed quite troublesome, her ability is top-notch. Don't judge her by how easy-going appears to be, because when she gets serious, that girl can be really powerful."
"I think so too."
He hadn't interact with Anne often, but looking at her performance from the recruitment test, he could clearly see that her ability was unique, and…
"Do you know about her past?"
With that petite body, Anne was able to pick up a shield in one hand and throw it with ease. Rhode couldn't help but frown. He thought that his Vitality and Strength stat was already considered fairly high, but to pick up a shield that weighed dozens of kilograms was definitely not an easy feat. In fact, before coming here, Rhode had given Anne the Rock Heart Shield which he acquired from the Rock of Lament to add some additional impact to her attacks. And that shield certainly wasn't something light.
Anne was so ecstatic after receiving the magic shield that she even rushed over and kissed him. This made Rhode smile bitterly, but since her personality was like this, he could only leave it at that.
"I can't say for certain, but I do know that the Mark White mercenary group found her on the mountain. At that time, she was only one or two years old, and she lived together with a wild beast. That old fellow brought her out and fostered her. It sure as hell wasn't an easy thing… I recalled that she would bite anyone who touched her and that old fellow was bitten numerous times by her. "
"Frankly, a lot of people told him to sell this girl, after all, there was no use in keeping her. But that old fellow was stubborn and insisted on keeping her. Eventually, he taught her how to talk, write and learn like a human. Perhaps at that point, he already thought of her as his own daughter. The child gradually grew to resemble more like a human, but her personality…well, I've heard everything that happened to Mark White and leaving was a good thing. This child's strength is insanely strong, we've suspected that she was of a Barbarian descent, but…"
Then, Sereck smiled.
"I have never seen such a slender Barbarian in my life before. Even if she's a dwarf, she's a little too tall. Furthermore, she's also quite a beauty."
Sereck paused, and his expression suddenly turned serious.
"Alright, enough of the chit-chat, let's get back to the real topic. I want to know how you will bring us into the Silent Plateau safely. You said that you are very familiar with this place… I don't know whether it is true or not, but I believe in you. As your comrade, I want to know your plan."
"Of course, that's not a problem."
Rhode raised his head and revealed an expression of unprecedented self-confidence.
It wasn't just a false front; he truly had the experience to back his confidence. Back in the game, the Silent Plateau was a troublesome dungeon. Many players even called it the 'Holy Land of Guild Extermination,' and anyone who stepped into the area would face death. This was why everyone skipped this dungeon because according to many, the loots weren't lucrative either. Since the dungeon was difficult, yet its rewards were miserable, no player would want to run it at all.
As the King of First Kill in the game, Rhode had undoubtedly completed this dungeon and created a popular formation among the players called the '91 formation.'
The '91 formation' consisted of nine Clerics and a player with huge AoE attacks. In the dungeon, Rhode would protect the Clerics who used their holy spells to suppress the undead.
After that, the Silent Plateau that was once hailed as the 'Holy Land of Guild Extermination' became a place for Clerics to farm experience. Since they were only a supporting class, it was difficult for them to level up besides going to dungeons with other players or clearing Silent Plateau with the '91 formation.' Therefore, the dungeon became a Cleric's primary leveling spot. Whether they were aspiring to be PKers or PvE players, as long as they could complete Silent Plateau smoothly, they could be considered to have mastered their class in skill and experience.
As the guild leader, Rhode would often bring his Clerics to level up and practice in the dungeon. As for himself, he could probably walk through this place with his eyes closed.
There was another matter which was somewhat interesting. At one time, he brought some Clerics to clear the dungeon, and at the final stage, the BOSS somehow didn't appear. This left him no choice but to leave the dungeon to reset. After this incident spread, a lot of players said that the BOSS had been killed by Rhode far too many times and was scared to appear.
That was why although Silent Plateau was feared by many, Rhode had nothing to be afraid of.
This time, Rhode had brought five Clerics which clearly wasn't sufficient for the '91 formation', but he wasn't worried at all. After all, he was the one who developed this formation, so he knows the ins-and-outs of it at the back of his hand. Furthermore, the Mercenary Association wouldn't provide him with eight or nine Clerics, so four was adequate. Lize had an angel bloodline and could fill two slots in the formation and Marlene had AoE spells, so that was not a problem.
Lastly, Sereck also participated in this mission. A level 40 Swordmaster was enough to fill the remaining gap.
Thus, Rhode was extremely confident.
"For this mission, the Clerics will be our main source of damage."
"Clerics?"
Sereck couldn't help but feel slightly surprised.
"Although I have anticipated this… but lad, you have to understand that a Cleric isn't a Soul Knight. They do not possess offensive spells, and furthermore, these people have no combat experience. Do you really want to push them to face the undead?"
Rhode shook his head.
"There's no need for them to enter the frontlines. It's better for them to attack from the rear."
"So I hope Mr. Sereck can join them in the rear and protect them. Our pressure will surely lessen if you're there. However, I'm still slightly worried as you've said that they had never been in a battle before."
"Our pressure will lessen?"
Sereck was confused. He visited the Silent Plateau before and understood that the undead would endlessly rush them in waves. Even he, as a Master Swordsman would have difficulty facing the undead horde. So how can this young man say that their pressure will lessen if he went to the rear?
Perhaps he's not afraid of the undead?
Is he bluffing? Or does he really have a way?
Suddenly, as Sereck was deep in thought, Old Walker's silhouette appeared from the forest with a grim expression.
"I have found the tracks they left behind."
He walked to Rhode and said in low voice.
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Chapter 82: Entering Silent Plateau
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
Everyone finally recovered after resting for a while and began their journey into the forest.
The forest was dead silent; not even the sound of crickets could be heard.
As the group made their way into the dense foliage, their shadows quickly blended into the darkness. Most of the light couldn't permeate through the leaves, shrouding the whole area in darkness.
Since this area was in between the Country of Light and the Country of Darkness, it was considered the darkest place among the people from the Country of Light.
"There's someone over there!"
One of the Clerics was startled and quickly pointed towards a direction. Not too far from them, a pale face silently watched them.
"Ignore them, let's continue moving."
Rhode didn't bother to turn his head and continued to press forward. However, a lingering fear caused the Cleric to hesitate.
"But those evil spirits… they…"
"If you don't bother them, they won't bother you."
At this moment, Rhode felt like he was bringing along a bunch of noobs. Every time they witness something scary, they would scream. Especially those female players… though their expression varied among the first-timers. Some were indifferent, some were calm, some screamed their head off, and some just froze in fear. Rhode had seen them all. In the beginning, Rhode was kind enough to give them advice, but after several batches of newbies, he finally got tired of it.
They were just scaring themselves; if they could be distracted by these things, what would happen when they enter the inner areas of Silent Plateau? Wouldn't they have a seizure and fall to the ground?
"B-but…"
Seeing how Rhode nonchalantly dismissed her fears, the Cleric felt offended. From her perspective, evil spirits were the bane of the living. Since Rhode had the numerical advantage right now, why won't he give the command to attack? And now, as they walked deeper into the forest, the number of evil spirits began to increase. The evil spirits lurked in the shadows, flashing from one tree to another as they observed the group of humans with its dead eyes.
As they went advanced deeper into the forest, the number of evil spirits kept increasing. Even Marlene, Lize, and Old Walker couldn't help but feel nervous. They kept a constant watch on their surroundings in case an evil spirit would suddenly rush out and eat them. The four Clerics almost couldn't walk, if it wasn't because of Rhode's quick pace and the fact that they didn't want to be left behind, perhaps they would've already stopped walking in fear.
Only Rhode and Sereck remained calm. Rhode was confident that the evil spirits wouldn't attack them. Even though their numbers might appear intimidating, it was just a mask to hide their weakness. If no one provoked them, they wouldn't attack. Nevertheless, they would still become aggressive and prey on those who couldn't bear the pressure.
However, Rhode still assigned Sereck to the rear as a contingency plan. If any of the Clerics decided to flee in terror, at least Sereck could prevent them from committing suicide.
Though in the end, none of them were as cowardly as Rhode thought. Yes, they were scared, but throughout the journey, none of them chose to run away. Rhode was slightly impressed and his admiration for them rose. Perhaps it was due to their class which made their mental fortitude somewhat higher than casual players since they had seen real dead bodies before. For players, they might appear confident and brave when speaking about the deceased, but when faced with a real dead body in front of them? They were no better than the other next to them.
Alright, at least right now we won't have this problem.
Rhode swung his scabbard to clear the overhanging branches, revealing a magical scene in front of everyone.
The dense forest was akin to a thick curtain that blocked the backdrop of the stage. Now that the curtain had finally been drawn, everything was laid bare for all to see.
A vast prairie stretched out from end to end. Worn-out weapons and rotting equipment could be seen sprawling on the wide, open ground in the tall grass.
A long time ago, this place had been a tragic battlefield. The Country of Light and Darkness competed and fought for this prairie for two hundred years. In this long and arduous period, countless of people perished, and their blood nourished the prairie's soil. However, even after death, their presence did not vanish completely.
Whether they were the living or the dead, no one knew. Even the upper echelons of both the Country of Light and Darkness could not answer this question. In this wide open prairie, the souls of the dead were summoned once again as they wandered the land, fighting each other for all eternity.
And that was the current situation that Rhode was observing right now.
On the surface, it appeared like the prairie was empty, but in the distance, there was a light that would flash at certain intervals which lit up the darkness momentarily. One can imagine it as a ballroom with the lights turned off — whenever the light was turned on, it would sweep through the dark and reveal shadows of people clashing, shouting and killing each other.
Just at the front of Rhode was a shadow of a warrior whose body resembled an arrow pincushion. It crawled towards Rhode, slowly revealing its skeletal face that was devoid of flesh and somehow managed to produce an expression that clearly reflected its anger.
Suddenly, the warrior gripped its sword and dashed towards Rhode, swinging it downwards at frightening speeds. But as soon as it arrived right in front of Rhode, the light went off, and so did the shadow.
It was as if everything was just a show.
That was the most troublesome and challenging part of Silent Plateau. The undead would appear at random, unpredictable points in time and if the undead did not disappear, their attacks must be blocked. What would happen if the light suddenly chose to shine in the middle of the group?
They would just run…
In this place, the Mage spell Black Curtain was useless. The darkness here wasn't an ordinary kind of darkness; it was even different from the Country of Darkness. The dark in this place had combined with the light and completely turned into another element; it simply couldn't be described just how strange it was.
Then what should they do? To a lot of players, it wasn't a complicated thing.
The best way to avoid being passive was to take the initiative.
"Lize, Holy Light."
Rhode gestured towards Lize.
A magical ball of Holy Light immediately appeared on her palm and illuminated the surroundings.
The warrior who previously tried to attack Rhode once again appeared, but before he could swing its sword down, Rhode used the pommel of his sword to smash the warrior's skeletal body, causing it to crash to the ground and break into pieces. Then, pieces turned into dust and disappeared with the wind.
"All of you should be aware of the dangers of this place by now."
Rhode turned around and addressed the people behind him. Lize and the other mercenaries turned serious. They weren't fools; they understood Rhode's intent of showing them the dangers of the Silent Plateau. They thought that even if was a heavily-armed mercenary group, they would probably think twice before coming here.
"Well, I have good news. All of you don't have to worry about the random appearance of that odd light because I can assure that from this moment on, the enemy will appear from everywhere!"
Rhode didn't turn his head as his sword made a quick motion. A silver arc flashed in the darkness and sliced an undead into two.
"Which is why I need all of you to focus. Old Walker, you must pay close attention to the rear. Marlene, Lize, I need both of you to occupy the left and right side respectively. Anne, it's your job to protect them. Remember, do not stop moving! This place houses countless of undead, and as long as we can pass this prairie, we will win. Do all of you understand?"
"Yes, leader~!"
Anne was relaxed as usual. She smiled and waved her hand playfully as she answered Rhode's command. Her behavior made the others think that this young miss did not understand the gravity of the situation.
Especially those Clerics — initially, they thought that they could rely on the Shield Warrior for protection, but after looking at her behavior, it wasn't surprising why they were beginning to feel like Anne wasn't reliable.
If it weren't for Sereck, perhaps they would've already ran away.
"Follow me."
Rhode took a step forward.
The very next second, something terrifying happened.
The light which penetrated the darkness. Hundreds of undead who were clashing with one another appeared once more. After being exposed to the light, as though as they had been rehearsing for this moment, all of them screamed in unison and rushed towards Rhode's group at the same time!
This is it.
Sereck's expression drastically changed when he watched this scene unfold. Previously, when he had a trial in this place, the incident that left the greatest impression on him was this — the countless of undead that emerged endlessly from the darkness.
When looking at a vast army, though it may seem slightly hopeless, at least they could use their eyes to estimate how many people were there. However, in this ghastly place, one can never see the end of the waves of undead, and can only fight until they were exhausted. It was also because of this that many people weren't able to endure.
There's nothing scarier than the feeling of hopelessness.
Then how would Rhode deal with it?
Sereck couldn't wait to see it. He focused on defending the rear while periodically glancing at the battle to the front. He wanted to see what Rhode would do to 'lessen the pressure.'
When Sereck's eyes fell upon Rhode, he was surprised as Rhode wasn't feeling nervous at all!
"Lize, cast Divine Brilliance to the front."
Rhode calmly pointed towards a direction.
"Yes, Mr. Rhode!"
While wielding the Holy Light on her left hand, Lize stretched out her right arm, and soon a divine beam of light dropped from the heavens and enveloped the undead inside.
"The same goes with all of you. Cast Divine Brilliance at the same place."
The four Clerics was slightly taken aback when Rhode suddenly addressed them. Still, they followed his command meticulously and lifted their arms to cast Divine Brilliance.
A few beams of divine light enveloped the undead, causing their movement speed and reaction time to drop further. By the time when all the Clerics finally cast Divine Brilliance, the undead's movement was akin to an old grandma, seemingly unable to move as though trapped in a swamp.
"Marlene, Chain Lightning."
A crackle emerged from her fingertips, and in a blink of an eye, it shot toward the undead horde.
At first it was a single, faint arc of lightning, but when it hit its first victim, the lightning forked and struck a few undead that were close by. The lightning continued to spread from one undead to another, and soon, the whole battlefield dazzled in a brilliant light. After a series of explosions, hundreds of undead fell to the ground and stopped moving.
"What…?"
Marlene was shocked when she saw how potent her spell was. She looked at her finger absentmindedly as she tilted her head in disbelief. Chain Lightning was one of the lowest-level spells — each lightning arc didn't pack much power, and after forking to the next target, the damage of the spell would diminish slightly. Marlene initially thought that Rhode would've asked her to use a more powerful spell, but look at the situation now… she honestly doubted whether she was fighting a horde of undead or a horde of scarecrows.
Is such a way even possible?
Sereck, who was at the rear, also felt surprised. He knew that high-leveled Clerics and Soul Knights could use their spells to destroy the undead, but how could low-leveled Clerics do the same?
Hmm… That isn't right…
A high-leveled Cleric's Hammer of Judgement or the Soul Knight's Light of Sanction would destroy the undead within seconds, but all these low-leveled Clerics could do was slow its movement. However, it was sufficient.
Sereck could not help but glance at Rhode.
How did this young man figure out this method?
It wasn't only Sereck who was caught off guard. In fact, the four Clerics also felt pleasantly surprised! They reacted in the same way as Lize had when she first realized that her power could significantly influence the undead. Some of them even stared at their hands in doubt.
Unfortunately, Rhode didn't give them the time for them to slap themselves to check whether it was real or not.
"Now you know what you can do. Let's continue moving."
Facing the countless of undead that once again appeared under the light, Rhode raised his sword and pointed forward.
(ED: Healing Spell - Divine Brilliance)
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A fiery blaze roared past.
Then, an explosion erupted among the undead, sending waves of searing heat spreading in all directions. Anything the flame touched instantly turned to ash.
Marlene retrieved her hand; she could not remember how many undead she had already annihilated. However, never in her life had she been so exhilarated when casting a spell. Every wave of her of her hand would eradicate hundreds of undead. It gave her that awesome sensation of 'I can destroy anything!' She had seen her teacher wield the same kind of power, but the magic she used were high-level spells that Marlene couldn't cast. Now, Marlene was basking in the same sensation as her teacher; the only difference was that she was using a basic low-level spell.
Meanwhile, other than Marlene, the other Clerics also immersed in their role. Under Rhode's guidance, they launched Divine Brilliance one after another, sweeping its Holy Light to every corner and weakening the undead. Marlene, Rhode, and Sereck would then take advantage of their vulnerability to kill.
Old Walker stood in the middle of the group and shouted in several directions from time to time, pre-empting the group of which direction the undead was approaching from.
Anne also revealed her reliable side.
At the corner of her eye, she saw several skeleton archers launching a volley of Bluefire arrows towards them.
Anne swiftly reacted.
The shield on her right hand extended as she dashed to one of the Cleric's side. She lifted her shield in a timely manner and blocked some of the Bluefire arrows. Then, she spun around, twisted her body and threw her shield into the air.
The large, thick shield spun in the air, circling into the sky in an arc which swept away most of the arrows which were falling towards them. After that, the shield automatically circled back to Anne, who caught it easily with her right hand. The huge impact only made her lose a balance slightly.
Rhode didn't summon his spirits. In this place, the undead's strength relied heavily on their numbers; their individual strength was nothing at all. But if it was 'him' before, he might have to struggle quite bitterly here. Now, with the help of everyone, things have gotten much easier. After being suppressed by the Holy Element, the undead were as good as chicken sent to the slaughter. As they say, why use a sword to kill a chicken? Rhode didn't plan to waste his precious Soul Power on small fries.
Anywho, how did that Victorious Wine leader cross this treacherous path with his group?
If not because of him receiving the exact location from the survivor, he might think that he was bragging. If it was just a lone thief, perhaps it might not be too difficult to leave this place, but bringing a group of people? That was a whole different matter altogether. Still, Rhode thought that those were plainly lucky to be able to cross this place.
Unfortunately, good luck couldn't always stay with them.
"To the left!"
Rhode took out his sword and pointed in that direction. Everyone immediately turned around. He didn't pick the shortest straight line between two points because he knew that this prairie was a battlefield, and in the center, there were stronger types of undead. No, it wasn't just those skeleton archers or death knights, Rhode was referring to the spirits that had turned into magical beasts! Rhode didn't want to provoke these creatures unnecessarily which was why he chose to circle around the center. That way, he had a lower chance of attracting the beast's attention.
No one spoke, even Sereck. Everyone quickly turned around, Anne switched her position from left to the right while the Clerics also moved to another location under Lize's leadership. During the change of formation, the Clerics had to suspend casting Divine Brilliance temporarily, causing the Holy Element to diminish slightly. At this moment, a horde of undead rushed over from the darkness and pounced on the group.
A sword flashed in the darkness.
The flash of light formed a wall of swords, and when the undead clashed into the wall, all of them completely stopped moving. When the light disappeared, what was left on the ground were incomplete corpses.
Sereck's mouth twitched as he retrieved his sword.
His admiration of Rhode grew even further. He had no choice but to admit, Rhode was much younger than him, yet he could command the mercenaries to fight with such efficiency with his experience. In the beginning, he thought he was going to utilize the same method again to deal with the undead, but halfway through, his way of fighting changed all of a sudden.
Sereck thought that Rhode would yell at the Clerics to cast Divine Brilliance, but he was wrong. Instead, he dived right into the horde and dealt with the stronger undead which could pose a threat to the Clerics, leaving the less threatening ones to the rest.
It wasn't as though Sereck hadn't thought of it; rather, it was that he couldn't make such a brilliant decision and micromanage his assets in the midst of the battle. Unlike him, Rhode seemed to be familiar with every class. He made the right decisions and commands at the right time. Thus, the group could understand his orders loud and clear. Sereck could even feel the dissatisfaction from the Clerics gradually fade away as they tried their best to complete their role.
Now, they were already two-thirds through their journey.
"Hey, the four of you. How long more can you hold out?"
Rhode said as he stared at the dark forest that was in the near distance.
"I can still cast at least four more Divine Brilliance."
"Probably three more times?"
"I still can cast four to five times."
Hearing their answer, Rhode frowned. The speed was too slow. It was no surprise though, after all, there were only five Clerics… that number was clearly insufficient to overwhelm the countless undead.
"Everyone gather! We're going to rush in! Pay close attention to your surroundings — Anne, prioritize the Clerics, don't let any of them fall behind. The four of you! Wait for my command and watch where I ask you to aim Divine Brilliance. Now… three, two, one… RUN!"
Upon hearing 'run,' everyone quickly sprinted and followed Rhode as closely as possible.
After the Holy Element field dispersed, the undead which were formerly suppressed, suddenly regained their agility and immediately chased after them. They rushed towards Rhode's group in all directions. A few of the Clerics couldn't keep up and looked back at the undead who were quickly catching up. Fortunately, Lize and Old Walker kept an eye on them, so they weren't left behind.
"NOW!! RELEASE!"
A white flash of light swept around the undead horde four to five times consecutively. The undead which were nearby were forced back by Rhode. His sword sliced off an undead warrior's head that was blocking his way, then he flipped his sword and swung it forward. Followed by a sharp, whirring sound, a silver light emerged from Rhode's sword which enveloped the battlefield in an instant. In a blink of an eye, a large number of undead were immediately shredded, leaving a huge, blank space in the middle of the battlefield.
Meanwhile, Marlene's spell was finally complete. A condensed magic phenomenon gathered around the tip of her wand; at first it flashed, then it soon formed into a terrifying hurricane.
The hurricane cleared another huge bunch of undead that barred their path. For a moment, the undead could only stare at the terrifying magic torrent which suddenly appeared. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Rhode finally made their way to the edge of the prairie — which was the meeting point.
"Enter the forest, quick!"
Rhode stopped and pointed towards the dense forest. While the darkness within the forest didn't appear safe, it was at least much better than being chased by waves of undead.
However, not everyone had Rhode's stamina and speed.
"Ah!"
A Cleric slipped and fell to the ground. When the another Cleric saw her fall, she also quickly stopped advancing and moved back to help her. But she didn't expect that her legs would give way as well. From the very beginning, these Clerics weren't suited for extreme physical activities. Having walked for such a long time and facing several hours of high-intensity battles, these Clerics were already at their limits.
"Quickly!! Get up!"
Sereck who was following close behind them hastily turned around and formed a sword barrier which blocked the undead from advancing. He didn't have any other way to deal with the endless undead while protecting the four Clerics.
"I-I can't stand up!!"
The Cleric who fell shouted in a trembling voice and began to cry. She could see that the undead were almost upon her, and although her survival instincts told her to stand, fear ultimately caused her legs to disobey her will. The girl panicked and used her hands to force herself to crawl forward. She wanted to get away from the undead even just by a little bit…
At this moment, a rotten hand suddenly emerged from the ground and caught her leg. In another direction, the undead finally broke the barrier and dashed forward.
"No!!"
When the two of them screamed, a shadow suddenly appeared.
Anne dashed forward like a cheetah. She expanded her shield and smashed into the undead like a train. Meanwhile, on the other side, a red sword pierced through the darkness and cut in a straight line. The hand which held the Cleric was immediately sliced in half. At the same time, Rhode's voice bellowed.
"Lize, remove the spell!"
The white light immediately disappeared.
Everything turned into darkness.
The undead also disappeared.
"Sigh…"
Since the beginning, everything had gone smoothly… until now. Still, Rhode felt relieved. He lowered his sword and looked around.
"Are you guys okay? Is anyone injured?"
"W-We're okay."
The two girls that had almost died were trembling as they held each other tightly. They had never been so close to death before; it was as though they would die once they closed their eyes.
"Anne?"
"Anne is very energetic! There's no problem!"
"Mr. Sereck?"
"I'm fine, I'm not injured."
"Can the both of you stand up?"
"Umm…"
Although the darkness hid their expressions, judging from their hesitant voice, Rhode could already guess the answer.
Really troublesome.
"Mr. Sereck, you and I will take care of one."
"Okay."
Saying until here, Rhode bent his body to carry one of the girls. This made her startled, but Rhode didn't care.
"We must leave this place immediately. The journey ahead is still long… we can't afford to delay any longer."
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Chapter 84: A Helping Hand
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
Everyone was dead tired after entering the forest. However, Rhode didn't allow them to stop and rest. Instead, he carried the Cleric who couldn't walk all the way until he found a spring. It was only until then did he let everyone take a breather.
"Haa…!!"
Finally! They were allowed to relax. Many of them slumped to the ground, refusing to move an inch. Old Walker whistled in a low voice as he sat on a rock to relax.
Sereck and Anne were the only two who were unaffected by fatigue. Both of them stared silently at their surroundings and at that one person who was running back and forth to distribute rations from time to time.
"How much longer do you need before you can recover your power?"
Rhode asked as he sat on a rock next to the Clerics. Since this wasn't a game, their HP and SP couldn't be replenished by merely sitting around, eating bread and drinking water. Soul Power was something that came from one's soul; perhaps it can be said to be similar to stamina. However, the only difference compared to stamina was that if one runs out of Soul Power, one could face permanent disablement — or even death.
In the game, once the SP was low, the character's stats would drop by half and if they couldn't find a place to restore their SP, well, they would soon become a non-combat liability.
In his current world, Rhode found out that it followed the same law. That was why casters like Marlene and Lize rarely used their Soul Power. They knew that once they couldn't keep up with loss of Soul Power, they were going to die.
"W-we need a-at least half an hour…"
Rhode frowned. That was too slow! One must realize that this place was nowhere safer than the battlefield from before. He didn't voice it out as he wanted to keep the morale strong, but he knew that the evil spirits in this place were different from the ones before. They would lurk in the shadows and attack at any moment. Their spirit characteristic made them difficult to catch, and the group would need the help of Clerics — especially Lize's Holy Light to hunt them efficiently. Alas, at this moment, Lize was leaning on Marlene's shoulder with her eyes closed. Rhode knew that she wouldn't be able to recover in a short period.
With so many delays… can those people still be saved?
Sereck caught Rhode frowning to himself.
"What's wrong?"
Rhode raised his head and saw the Swordsmaster smiling at him.
"I'm just a little bit worried that we wasted too much time."
Rhode shook his head.
"Wasted?"
Hearing him say that, Sereck couldn't help but break into a fit of laughter. Then he shook his head helplessly at the young man and remained silent for a moment. He just didn't know what to say at that moment!
In his opinion, what Rhode did was already perfect. From the time after entering Silent Plateau until now, their group didn't even take more than four hours. Even the battle on the prairie can be said to reflect his exemplary performance. There were neither any casualties nor injuries… only a bunch of tired people. Perhaps no one in the whole of Deep Stone City could match Rhode's skills in commanding.
When he saw Rhode frown, he thought that he was worried about some big problem. But in fact he was just disappointed because the group's progress was too slow?
If word of this spread out, many mercenary group leaders would ashamed of themselves…
"I think that what you've done is already quite good."
Sereck didn't know what was Rhode thinking about, so he smiled and tried to console Rhode by patting him on the shoulder.
"Even when I'm alone, it's basically impossible for me to reach this place in such a short time. The fact that you can bring all of them here safely proves how strong you are as a mercenary group leader. At least in Deep Stone City, I've not seen one as reliable as you. But what makes me curious is…"
Sereck narrowed his eyes and scrutinized the young man in front of him.
"When did you figure out that the Cleric's Divine Brilliance could weaken the undead? It shouldn't be something that you've just thought of recently right?"
"When I was in the Eastern Plains, I've fought countless of the undead. As you already may know, in some situations, people have no choice but to try various ways to try and survive."
Rhode conjured a lie without batting an eyelid. But not all of his words were without basis. The Eastern Plain was situated along the border of the Country of Darkness. Though it might be the most secluded place in the Munn Kingdom, the conflict against the Country of Darkness never stopped. Due to the harsh nature and survival conditions, that place gave birth to a special class — Soul Hunter.
These warriors grew up in the Eastern Plain and can be said to have acquired a multitude of experiences when dealing with the undead. Stories told that when they first wield a sword, their first kill would be an undead. The battle between them lasted for a century, but both sides remained at a deadlock. Eventually, everything was solved in private, so the conflict didn't blow out of proportions.
Sereck nodded. He didn't doubt Rhode's explanation since he knew Rhode's background. Instead, he was curious about why someone like him would leave that secluded place. Everyone in the Munn Kingdom knew that the Eastern Plains were a mysterious and solitary bunch. They didn't trade with other towns, and it was difficult for an outsider to enter their territory. They just stayed in their land and minded their own business, not caring about the outside world.
Sometimes Sereck wondered whether Rhode was that kind of person, but seeing it now with his own eyes, he realized that Rhode and the people of the Eastern Plain in his imagination had a vast discrepancy.
"I've heard rumors of the brave warriors of the Eastern Plain who battled against the undead day and night. Seeing one in person now… seems like the rumors are true."
Sereck was smart and chose to not linger on this topic any further. He shrugged and scanned the surroundings once more.
"This isn't a safe place."
Clearly, the Swordmaster could sense danger lurking in the forest.
"I know, but we can't do anything about it."
Rhode furrowed his brows. Honestly, he didn't want to reveal too much of his power because that generally wasn't a good thing. But now it appeared that he had no choice as the group's overall strength was at an all-time low.
Using Holy Element power is the easiest to deal with this situation, then…
Rhode stood up.
"Where are you going?"
"I'm going to find a friend; I will come back right away."
Sereck didn't ask further as he knew that Rhode didn't plan to explain anything. As a Swordmaster, he admired Rhode's attitude.
Old Walker, Marlene and the rest also planned to stand up and follow him, but Rhode quickly stopped them, gesturing them to sit down. Then he told them that he had something to do and will come back shortly.
After watching Rhode leave, some people had doubts in their hearts, but they still obeyed his command and rested. After spending so much time with Rhode, they began to trust him unconditionally. That was why they followed his command without a word.
Rhode scanned his surroundings in the nearby forest. Once he confirmed that no one else was around, he stretched out his right hand.
A summoning circle formed on his palm and a white card floated down slowly before him. Suddenly, the card transformed into a beautiful sword that floated in the air.
[The Holy Sword has been detected. Transform to human form?]
Yes.
Rhode nodded. Then, the beautiful angelic sword shone brilliantly. White rays of light shot in all directions and dimmed almost immediately after. The particles of light swirled into a vortex and formed a beautiful girl once again.
"Master, I've answered your summoning."
The beautiful girl half-knelt on the ground before Rhode, and her right hand held her sword that was firmly stabbed into the ground. She then gazed into Rhode's eyes solemnly. Her eyes were crystal clear, and a faint golden light reflected off her irises, giving off a slightly seductive charm.
(ED: No idea why it would be seductive…)
Contrary to Lize, this girl was a true pure-blooded angel.
"Stand up, don't act on ceremony."
He wasn't accustomed to the girl kneeling before him. Although there were multitudes of female spirits among the vast sea of summoned spirits, most common female summoned spirits were Water and Wind Spirits — who, by the way, were very popular among players.
However no matter what form they took, in essence, they were still spirits. It was the first time that Rhode saw a summoned spirit taking the form of a sword that could transform into a girl. When he thought of it this way, he couldn't help but feel slightly odd.
"In the next battle, I will require your help."
Since he summoned her, he didn't have to be modest.
"You should be able to feel the undead aura nearby. These guys are quite troublesome. Do you think you will die?"
"I will not, Master."
Hearing Rhode's inquiry, the angelic girl smiled and nodded.
"I'm a very pure existence, that's why I'm not afraid of death. As long as you can maintain your power, I will continue to exist."
"That's good."
Rhode nodded in satisfaction.
"I'll bring you out after a while. Remember, from now on you are…"
"… do you have a name?"
Rhode found out that he didn't seem to know whether she had a name or not.
"I do, Master."
The girl saluted with her right hand over her chest.
"I'm the 10th Eternal Holy Sword, Star Mark. While I'm in my human form, you can call me Celia."
"Well Celia, you must remember that you must not reveal your true identity in front of other people. If you have any questions, you can just ask me. Do you understand?"
"I understand, Master."
Rhode nodded and turned around, heading back to the spring.
When he reached the spring, everyone had more or less rested.
"Eh, boy, where did you go?"
Old Walker slipped his jug of wine onto his waist and asked curiously. When he saw the heavily-armored girl behind Rhode, he froze immediately.
"…Mr. Rhode?"
Lize was also surprised. She quickly stood up and scanned the new girl from head to toe curiously. The same went for the others in the group. It wasn't surprising though, not only did Rhode bring back a girl out of nowhere. That said girl also sported a large pair of wings on her back. It was as though implying she was an angel…
It was common knowledge that angels were noble creatures within this continent. Most of them held high ranks — even the lowest-level angels had high statuses among common people. In the remote Deep Stone City, not even the City Lord had seen an angel before. But what now? Rhode just went out for a stroll and brought an angel back?
Who is she?
Sereck's mind was filled with countless questions.
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Chapter 85: Land Of Fear
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
"Introduce yourself."
Rhode ignored the strange stares from everyone and gestured to Celia to introduce herself. She held her sword in her right hand and made a knight's bow.
"I am Celia, Master's subordinate."
After that, the girl raised her head and kept silent as if her duty was complete.
But everyone was still shocked by her short self-introduction.
Master's subordinate.
While the girl didn't explicitly reveal who the Master was, everyone knew just by looking at her behavior. Their gaze slowly turned towards Rhode.
Angels were noble creatures who were far above them in status — who would've thought that one would actually call a human 'Master?'
Who is this young man?
"Mr. Rhode, erm…"
Lize hadn't figured out what was going on. On the other hand, Marlene frowned and stared at Celia. She could vividly remember Rhode summoning her at the underground ruins, and now she appeared again.
As she thought of this, she looked at Rhode with a complicated expression. On the other hand, Rhode seemed to have figured out what she was thinking, so he nodded to her in response. Even though he didn't say anything, Marlene understood what he meant.
"We will move out now. Our pace will be almost equivalent prior to our journey here."
When Rhode thought of this order, he had already planned to not entertain any questions.
Soon he began to issue commands and assign each individual their respective tasks.
"As we now have Celia, rest assured that her power is sufficient to protect all of you. Anne, your role is to work together with Celia. The fighting style of angels differs quite a bit to humans, so I hope you can quickly adapt to Celia's attack patterns. If you are unable to do so, please do let me know, do you understand?"
"Yes, Anne understands!"
Anne, as always, raised her hand to show that she had clearly understood. Still, she stared curiously at Celia. Apparently, she was fairly intrigued with this young woman with wings.
"Since everyone is ready now, let's make a move."
When Rhode clapped his hands, everyone quickly got to their feet and assembled into formation before marching off into the depths of the forest.
"Lad, you're growing more and more mysterious each second."
Sereck's lips curled upwards as he whispered to Rhode.
"If I could, I'd rather be inconspicuous."
Rhode replied calmly at Sereck's attempt to test him and turned around to the front. When Sereck saw that, he went silent smiled wryly to himself. Eventually, he took out his weapon and followed behind Rhode.
Sharp screams tore apart the stillness of the forest. Countless white shadows phased through the trees; their eyes were pitch black and burning with hatred. They stretched out their long, slender arms, trying to grasp at the living entities before them. From a distance, they could sniff the foul stench of humans, and the way they clawed at these people appeared incredibly desperate as though they had lost something precious.
Then, a brilliant light flashed.
The angel blocked the evil spirits, and after sampling the bane of their existence right before them, they quickly retreated in fear. Celia's beautiful face showed no emotion as she grasped her sword which was engraved in ancient Holy symbols. She waved her sword mercilessly and sliced the evil spirits into half, completely erasing their already meager existence.
Rhode could tell that there were a lot of people staring at Celia. It was no surprise though since he appeared to have just casually gone for a stroll and brought back an angel with him. It would be even stranger if no one paid any attention to her.
Even though Celia was the center of attention right now, she didn't seem to be affected by it at all. She just plainly followed her orders given by Rhode.
Sereck stopped looking at her.
As a Swordmaster, he had seen his fair share in life. This woman was definitely a real angel and not some illusion that was projected by the undead. Although there were rumors about high-level undead disguising themselves as angels, they could not replicate the Holy Aura surrounding Celia.
The calm and comfortable aura that soothed the mind was proof that Celia was an angel. However, what Sereck found most interesting was the swordsmanship that she used. Judging from her consecutive attacks, he noticed that the swordsmanship she used was the same as that young man.
It seems like there's some sort of relationship between them.
A moment later, Old Walker suddenly stopped and called out to Rhode, "Boy, hold up."
Old Walker bent his body and pressed his hand on the ground. After a while, he stood up and faced Rhode.
"There's a human trail here. About seven to eight people traveling to the north. And judging from the freshness of these traces… I would say approximately no more than three days."
When everyone heard Old Walker's analysis, they were thrilled. Finding human tracks in this dense forest was like looking for a needle in a haystack. If not because of his experience as a Ranger, most likely they would've traveled around in circles for days.
Contrary to the others, Rhode wasn't excited at all. After hearing Old Walker's report, his expression immediately turned dark.
"Are you sure it's north?"
"Well… yes, I'm sure. It seems like they were being chased by something fast… and their group is a little bit disordered, but it seems…"
Old Walker walked around once again and replied with confidence.
"It seems like no one got left behind."
Rhode didn't answer. He stared at the path towards the north. Under the veil of darkness, nothing but shadows could be seen in that direction. Even the Holy Light couldn't penetrate that far out. However, Rhode could easily guess what was in that direction. Withered forest, dark cave, and…
"Sigh… there's a path to heaven, but they chose the entrance to hell instead."
Rhode immediately thought of giving up; he wanted to turn around and tell everyone to pack up to go home to sleep. But he knew that it was only his fantasy. This world wasn't a game anymore, and he had no way to escape the harsh reality. Thus, he could only bite the bullet and continue moving on.
"Everyone follow me. Our next journey will be extremely difficult. Don't fall behind!"
After addressing his group, Rhode looked at Celia.
"Go check the situation ahead, but don't stray too far."
"Understood, Master."
Something changed within the dark forest.
Even the slowest-witted person would be aware of this change. If the lush forest from before was silent, then the forest now was dead and creepy. The bushy trees were replaced with thin, withered trees and their twisted branches grew in awkward angles, creating a rather creepy form. When one stared closer at it, it was like an arm of a person that was struggling for help.
Celia walked in the front, the boundless darkness didn't affect her the least. She didn't care about anything else other than to complete her Master's command.
Suddenly, she made a quick movement.
When she turned around, a huge shadow fell from the sky. Although she reacted in time and lifted her sword to block, apparently there was a gap in strength between her and the shadow. She could only hold her ground for less than a second before being sent flying in the air.
"Miss Celia!!"
Lize screamed. At that moment, as if it heard her voice, that huge shadow turned around and looked at her with coldly. After locking her gaze with that terrifying shadow, Lize couldn't speak another word as though some invisible force was constricting her body.
"Clerics! Cast Divine Brilliance now! Sereck, guard the rear, these things are very troublesome!"
Rhode wasn't surprised at the ambush. He raised his sword and commanded his group while rushing forward. When Rhode finished giving his orders, he was already at the huge shadow's side.
As if it could sense the threat before it, the huge shadow lifted its arm and smashed downwards. However, Rhode was already a step ahead of it. The very moment its arm came smashing down, Rhode retreated to the back.
The huge shadow's hand smashed into the ground and shook the earth.
At this time, the Holy Light finally revealed the monster's true appearance. When everyone including Sereck saw what it looked like, they couldn't help but hold their breath.
"Holy Soul bless me! What the hell is that!?"
The huge shadow was actually a Giant Baby.
Its shape was almost the same as any ordinary baby. Bald head, two big beady eyes and the fats on its naked body made it look quite obese. However, the creepy part was that it had a sea-green colored skin and various scars on its body. If it was an ordinary baby, clearly it should have died.
But, it was alive.
It seemed to have absorbed all the evil aura surrounding this place, which turned the small, fragile infant into a three-meter terrifying monster. It rumbled as it turned around; the eyes that had lost its luster reflected the shadows of everyone. When the Giant Dead Baby opened its mouth, there were no teeth at all, but what came out next was a low roar.
"Mooomm…. Moooooommm…"
Hearing that deep, eerie voice, every female in the group felt their hair stand on end. They shivered in fear and fright. Even the undead or the evil spirits didn't break their resolve, but one roar from this Giant Dead Baby caused them to hold on to each other in terror. Anne who was usually carefree and smiling also had a grim expression on her face.
Damn, I knew this would happen.
Rhode studied everyone's expression and frowned. However, he didn't stop moving. By the time the Giant Dead Baby's fist hammered the ground, he had already activated his Shadow Flash. The sword in his hand reflected a red light and pierced towards the Giant Dead Baby's neck.
The putrid-looking skin was harder than steel. Even though Rhode had used all his strength to attack, it only created a small wound. The injured Giant Dead Baby screamed like a child who was bullied and used its hands to catch Rhode.
"Old Walker, use Fire Arrow and target its eyes. As for the others, hurry up and cast Divine Brilliance, what are you guys waiting for!"
Rhode shouted angrily and woke the others up from their stupor. The old Ranger quickly retrieved a bow and arrow from his back and lit the tip of the arrow in flames. He pulled back the bow and shot it towards the Giant Dead Baby, piercing its eyes with pinpoint accuracy.
"Ouch!"
The sudden intense pain caused the monster to fall to the ground. At that moment, a concentrated holy pillar of light fell from the sky and crashed into the monster's body, causing it to writhe in agony. It struggled to lift both of its hands in an attempt to resist, but Rhode's Blade of Destruction had already pierced through its head. Disgusting dark liquid splashed out from the wound and fell onto the ground, creating a wisp of smoke whenever it touched something. Finally, the angel appeared once more to deal the finishing blow. Her sword thrust into the Giant Dead Baby's heart with full force.
A wave of holy flames emerged from the sword and enveloped the monster's entire body. In a blink of an eye, it turned into ashes.
At that moment, several low roars echoed from their surroundings.
Soon, a few huge shadows slowly emerged from the darkness.
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Chapter 86: Breaking Through The Encirclement
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
"Gather into ring formation now!"
(ED: See Igel (hedgehog) formation.)
After hearing the multiple roars, Rhode immediately tensed up.
"Anne, take the left side! Extend your shield and hold your ground! Marlene, support the right with your level 5 Ice Shield now! Sereck, the rear is yours. No matter what, you cannot let them pass through!"
"Clerics, prepare to cast Guardian Shield — I want four charges in three seconds! Lize you are to cast Divine Brilliance in the center of the formation and Old Walker, you are responsible for filling in the gaps if there are any."
"Understood!"
Everyone responded in unison after receiving their orders.
Anne took two steps forward and released her the latch on her shield. A crisp sound echoed, and the boss that covered the exterior of her shield slid down, revealing a sharp, metal drill. The heavy shield then smashed into the ground, producing a muffled impact and causing Anne's body to crouch. She pulled a short metal handle within the concave side of the shield and suddenly, multiple razor-sharp spikes shot out from the shield's exterior. Now the entire surface appeared like a hedgehog.
On the opposite side of Anne, Marlene was equally serious. She lifted her wand in an unfamiliar way and chanted. A thick ice wall emerged and stacked over each other layer by layer. Then, as if the spell reached its climax, Marlene chanted louder, causing sharp icicles to protrude from the ground towards the front like spears.
Celia spread her wings and flew towards Rhode. It was unknown when, but now she wielded a sword in both hands. Her face was chilly, and her pupils shone even more brilliantly than before.
Sereck didn't appear as tense as Anne and Marlene. After hearing Rhode's command, he didn't move at all, but if one carefully observed his expression, it was clear that he was dead serious. He narrowed his eyes at the monsters, and the hand that was holding the hilt of his sword began to slowly move…
A splendorous golden light flashed.
Meanwhile, the Clerics eventually finished casting Guardian Shield and a circular holy barrier wrapped the four of them. Lize also began casting while focusing her attention on the man before her.
The low roars were getting louder and nearer.
"We cannot afford to fail. No matter what you see, don't panic! You absolutely cannot fall out of formation!"
At this point in time, all Rhode could do was to remind them. This place was the most troublesome area of Silent Plateau, and frankly, newbies shouldn't be here. If it wasn't because of their inexperience, perhaps this place could still prove to be suitable for training, but anyway, he couldn't expect a group of preschoolers to take a postgraduate examination, right?
The huge shadowy figures were getting closer. Their appearances were slightly similar to the Giant Dead Baby from before, but their movement was much quicker than its predecessor. Soon, they appeared from in between the dead trees. Marlene clutched her wand tightly and didn't dare to breathe. Their disgusting rotting skin filled the cold air with a foul stench which made the group gag… it was indeed a brutal punishment.
"Ignore them, don't track their movements."
Rhode didn't need to look back to know that the group was trying to study the monsters' movements.
"Just focus what's in front of you. Our area of exposure is minimal so they don't have many opportunities to engage us. Don't lose your focus; just deal with anything in front of you and leave the rest to the others. Mr. Sereck, I will need you to support both sides because we don't have enough people. I believe that wouldn't be too much of a problem for you."
"I'll try my best."
The sword of light appeared once more and shone magnificently in the darkness.
The shadows were getting increasingly faster — it was almost impossible to predict their movement now. However, everyone still focused on their immediate front, including the four Clerics. Rhode had already instructed them to cast Guardian Shield whenever necessary.
"Fu…fu…"
Followed by a heavy breathing sound, the huge shadowy figures vanished.
A sudden silence fell upon the group. In a blink of an eye, the creepy sounds disappeared as though nothing was there in the first place. However, the prevailing rotten stench still lingered in the air, albeit getting stronger every second.
"Ten, nine, eight, seven…"
Rhode was counting in his mind. He lifted his sword and stared intently at the empty space before him.
"Three, two, one… Lize, cast Divine Brilliance now!!"
Upon receiving his command, Lize quickly raised her arm. She immediately cast the spell that she had prepared beforehand. The Holy Element burst out into a bright light, enveloping everyone inside. A warm aura dispersed the eerieness from before. And at this moment, a pleasant sensation filled all of their five senses.
The black shadows suddenly rushed out.
As anticipated, when the shadows rushed towards them, Lize's Divine Brilliance had already covered everyone inside and at the same time illuminated the surroundings. When the shadows touched the light, the Holy Element caused them to suffer.
They still tried their best to break in, but it can be seen that they were struggling against their greatest weakness.
While it was insufficient to kill them, the group felt that it was enough.
Sereck snorted and waved his sword, summoning a rain of swords which pierced through the darkness. The 'light show' was as dazzling as lightning. His swordsmanship had always been like this — flashy. Regardless of its damage, Sereck's skills were always pleasing to the eye.
One of the Giant Dead Baby closed its fist and threw a punch the spiky shield.
If it was a living creature, perhaps the pain would've caused it to retreat. But as an undead, it could not feel pain and thus, it wasn't much of an obstacle. The Giant Dead Baby shook its body and raised its right fist once again.
But this time, Anne stretched her feet and kicked the bottom of the shield with full force.
The part of the shield which was buried in the ground flipped upwards. At the same time, sand and dirt flew up into the air, temporarily creating a mini smokescreen. Because of that, the Giant Dead Baby's sight was blocked. Then, taking advantage of its momentary blindness, Anne pressed the switch on her shield again.
A violent surge of air swirled at the edge of the shield. The thick, metal drill flew into the air and pierced the Giant Dead Baby's head.
Boom!! The headless monster finally lost its strength. Its body swayed to the left and fell to the ground, never to move again.
Marlene raised the wand in her hand.
Like a river flowing forward, a thick layer of ice quickly spread outwards from her feet. A weakened Giant Dead Baby who was already under the effects of Divine Brilliance stepped onto the cold, slippery ice and fell to the ground.
The layer of ice broke and turned into many sharp icicles which pierced the Giant Dead Baby's body. Before the monster could touch Marlene, its whole body had already been riddled with countless holes which had sapped its remaining life. Its blank face stared at the girl, unknown whether it was smiling or angry. Facing this terrifyingly gruesome monster, Marlene had a calm expression on her face unlike before. She lifted her wand and cast a spell that was condensed at the center of the ruby.
"Airy, ari!"
A flame enveloped the Giant Dead Baby's body, swallowing its lamenting wail and everything else with it.
As the black shadow fell from the sky, Celia was already prepared as she raised her sword.
This time, she didn't get blown away like before; instead, a sacred symbol formed into a shield which blocked every attack the enemy made. The Giant Dead Baby that fell from the sky pounded on the shield but wasn't able to penetrate her defense no matter how hard it tried.
Rhode took out his sword and swiped his left palm on the blade of his sword.
Once it absorbed his blood, a red light glowed brilliantly and the smell of blood made the undead go crazy. They roared again and increased the intensity of their attacks. Even the Guardian Shield could no longer maintain its form and began to distort.
Celia withdrew her barrier and retreated. It wasn't because that she couldn't hold on, rather…
Blade of Destruction shot out from Celia's side and collided with the undead. The powerful impact caused them to back off. While their disgusting skin appeared tattered and torn with blood and scars, to the undead, it wasn't a big deal. It rolled its eyes and issued an evil snicker.
But then it suddenly froze.
A silver moon-shaped arc slashed through its neck and disappeared in the darkness.
In the sky, the angel was holding her sword, her expression devoid of any emotions.
Everything went back to silence.
"They've temporarily retreated."
Rhode recovered his sword and wiped the blood on his hand. Rhode expression didn't change for the better.
"Continue moving forward. Hopefully we can find those idiots before we encounter another one of their surprise attacks."
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Not long after the undead retreated, Old Walker finally found a new clue.
"They left a trace!"
Old Walker and Sereck became excited once they saw a strange marking engraved on a nearby tree trunk.
"They're nearby… I think they should be over there!"
Old Walker pointed towards a dark cave not far away from them. Even if Old Walker didn't point out to them the similar symbols engraved on the cave surface, everyone could guess what happened from the undead corpses scattered at the entrance. A messy trail of footprints also revealed that there was some human activity though it was evident that something wasn't right.
"Let's go."
Rhode didn't want to linger in this forest for too long so he quickly beckoned his group to move. While the journey had been fairly smooth sailing so far, they were only about two-thirds through Silent Plateau. They still had one-third more to travel once they rescued the mercenary group.
However, other than Sereck, everyone else appeared to be exhausted. The short rest from before couldn't recover much of their strength. Looking at their status right now, Rhode felt like they were similar to those NPCs that didn't want to hinder the player and would sacrifice their lives to help pave the way to conquer the final boss.
Rhode certainly didn't want things to turn out like that. Attempting to fight the final boss alone without teammates was just suicidal. Thus, he quickly prompted the group to follow closely behind him as he entered the dark cave.
Woosh! When Rhode entered the cave, all of a sudden, a dagger flashed in the darkness and ruthlessly lunged towards Rhode's neck. Clearly that attack was meant to kill.
If it were anyone else, perhaps their life would end right there without any resistance. Unfortunately, the hidden assailant didn't know that Rhode was different. As the top player in Dragon Soul Continent, Rhode often encountered sneak attacks from PKers. As such, the moment the hidden assailant attacked, his automatic reflexes kicked in.
He used his sword to parry the dagger and counterattacked immediately. The hidden assailant was slightly surprised that its attack was seen through and quickly attempted to retreat, but Rhode didn't give it a chance to do so as he thrust his sword towards the direction of the dagger, stopping directly before its throat.
"Stop! Rhode, it's an ally."
Sereck quickly stopped Rhode when he recognized the dagger. Lize ran forward and illuminated the cave with Holy Light.
Finally, Rhode could see the appearance of his assailant.
Half of her face was covered in a black mask. Her tight, black leather armor accentuated her slim figure and emphasized her well-endowed chest which moved up and down due to her ragged breathing. Her long ears trembled as her eyes focused on the sword at her neck.
It was a half-elf.
"Are you the member of Victorious Wine mercenary group?"
Rhode retrieved his sword and asked emotionlessly as if the person who attacked him wasn't her.
"Yes, I'm a member of Victorious Wine. Are you guys from the Mercenary Association?"
"That's right."
Sereck walked forward.
"I am Sereck. We've received a reinforcement request from one of your members and rushed here as fast as we could. It seems like we've arrived on time."
"Y-you are Mr. Sereck!"
The half-elf girl's eyes lit up.
"You guys really came! Great!! Quickly save my comrades!!"
She grabbed Sereck's hand and pulled him towards the depths of the cave.
"We followed our leader's orders to flee here…"
As she led the way, she briefed the group about their current plight.
"Initially, our leader didn't plan to enter the depths of Silent Plateau because we know how treacherous this place was. But when we were at the outer borders, we were attacked and surrounded by the undead. We decided to flee — but by the time we realized, we were already in the depths. Although we did try to break through the waves of undead, we never succeeded. So… we had no choice but to venture deeper to look for a way out."
"Well, you know the rest of the story. Many of us got injured and our leader had to send someone to ask for help. Fortunately, you guys arrived so quickly… otherwise…"
You guys sure know how to choose the most dangerous place.
Rhode frowned and thought to himself.
"Who is it?"
When everyone arrived at the end of the cave, a deep voice echoed.
"It's me. The people from Mercenary Association have arrived!"
"What?!"
That deep voice immediately went one octave higher.
"They actually came?! Quick, quick bring them in!!"
Soon, a deep, rumbling sound shook the cave slightly. A boulder at the end of the cave rolled to the side, revealing a hidden passage. At the same time, a tall and muscular man came out from the entrance. When his eyes met Sereck and the others, his face lit up with joy.
"Mr. Sereck? I didn't expect you to come here personally. We are eternally grateful…"
"Don't mention it. It's something that the Mercenary Association should do."
Sereck waved his hand and smiled while turning towards Rhode.
"If you want to thank someone, thank him. We wouldn't be here if not for him."
"Eh?"
The man was slightly taken aback when he heard what Sereck said. He stared curiously at Rhode for a moment before shifting his attention back to Sereck. He thought that Rhode was merely Sereck's subordinate… but that didn't appear to be the case now…
After a while, he stopped trying to analyze Rhode and invited the group in.
"Everyone quickly come in. It's dangerous outside. Those undead are seriously tough opponents."
For a mercenary group to be named Victorious Wine, one would think of their exceptional fortune. Unfortunately, its members didn't seem to be blessed by its name. After entering the tunnel, the scene before them caused Rhode's group to take a deep breath.
Five to six people were heavily injured and were leaning against the wall of the cave. They were covered with blood and scars — some of their wounds even had rotting flesh dangling out! Continuous groans of pain filled the cave, but when they saw Rhode and the others enter, a spark of hope lit in their eyes.
"Lize."
Rhode didn't need to say much. Lize and the four Clerics understood their roles. They hastily rushed towards the mercenaries and began to heal their injuries.
"I'm Kudla, the leader of the Victorious Wine mercenary group."
The muscular man used his superhuman strength to shift the boulder back in place before walking forward and politely bowing.
"On behalf of my mercenary group, I want to thank all of you from the bottom of my heart. Frankly, I didn't think that we could survive until now. Mr. Sereck, thank you…"
Then the man called Kudla turned towards Rhode.
"…and he is?"
Kudla couldn't help but study the young man in front of him. From Sereck's previous explanation, it was this young man who was the one that saved them. Who was he?
"He's the leader of Starlight. I think you might've heard his name before?"
"He's the leader of 'Starlight' mercenary group, I think you have heard about him before."
Sereck smiled and introduced him. After hearing Sereck's introduction, Kudla showed a surprised expression.
"He is the rumored… But… Why…"
"The Mercenary Association lacks manpower at the moment."
Before Kudla could finish, Sereck filled in the blanks. His face also turned dark.
"You might not be aware but every mercenary group in Deep Stone City were sent to destroy the undead though none of them succeeded. Five to six mercenary groups returned, but they faced multiple casualties. Other than that, there's no news about other groups."
"How could this happen!!"
Kudla was shocked.
"I thought…"
"The Mercenary Association is currently investigating about the commissions and commissioners. What kind of commission did you guys get?"
"We were tasked to retrieve a keepsake of a traveler."
Sensing the seriousness of the matter, Kudla's expression also turned solemn.
"I heard that a traveler died at the outer borders of Silent Plateau. The commissioner claimed to be the older brother of the traveler and he was worried because his brother didn't come back, so he asked us to look for him. I disagreed initially, but the person appeared to be very sincere. He even gave us a deposit of three hundred gold coins…"
That last sentence was the key point.
"Was he from Deep Stone City?"
Sereck asked.
Kudla went silent for a moment before shaking his head.
"No, from what I've heard, he seemed to be from the South… Anyway, he certainly not a person from the Paphield Region. He also said that he often traveled and didn't live here for long."
As expected.
Sereck and Rhode exchanged a glance; both of them understood what each other mean.
It seemed like Victorious Wine was also one of the victims. That traveler's keepsake was also fictitious — similar to Red Hawk trying to find a sword that didn't exist. In the end, it was just an excuse to deceive them to go to high-risk areas. But, taking into account that they must've spent hundreds of gold coins to do this… how could they be so generous?
What are they trying to do?
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Chapter 88: Resting In The Cave
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
Accompanied by Rhode and Sereck arrival, the member of 'Victorious Wine' mercenary group finally relieved. In fact, after they asked for reinforcement, they only thing they could do was to wait. But in this world there's no phone satellite, although mage could communicate from the distance, but it surely wasn't something that a small mercenary group could afford. They didn't even know whether the person that they have sent could escape from Silent Highland safely. Sometimes, they would look at the darkness before them, they would even somewhat hopeless, Thinking perhaps the person that they have sent was unable to escape and fell in the corner of the darkness. Then what's the point for them to live? It's only increasing the pain.
But when they were lifting their sword trying to commit suicide, they could not suppress the human instinct to live on their heart. Maybe the person that they sent has successfully escaped from here and people from Mercenary Association were rushing here. If that's the case, as long as they persist, there's still hope!
For them who were in danger, these few days was an unimaginable torment. Survival and death, hope and despair. Every time they opened their eyes, they couldn't wait for them to come, to prove that they did exist. Day by day, the food supplies were decreasing, these people were suffering even more. In the Silent Highland where everything were undead creatures, beside corpse they couldn't find anything to eat. Even if they went crazy and eat the corpse, those corpses that have already rotten, deteriorated, and smelly could only push them into death even closer and not extending their live.
They were already at their limit, if Rhode didn't appear maybe they have already went crazy because of despair and pain of losing.
Fortunately, this possibility has been eliminated.
Under the spirit masters treatment, the mercenaries injuries were soon healed. After eating the food they have brought, the mercenaries could finally relax on the ground and had a good dream. Different from before, because of the suffering and darkness, they wasn't even sure whether they would have the opportunity to wake up.
Those exhausted Spirit Masters too, finally have the opportunity to rest. After all beside Lize, all of them has no adventuring experience. Although they have rested for a few times before, but these spirit master weren't able to be calm, they were always worried about those terrible undead creatures would come from somewhere. In addition, Rhode has always been asking them to hurry up, that's why they didn't have time to adjust their composure. Until now, after they gave treatment to the injured, the finally were able to relax.
Marlene was a lot better than these Spirit Master. Although after arriving in Silent Highland she also contributed a lot, but it was still not as much compared to those Spirit pared to those Spirit Masters who were 'physically and mentally exhausted', she was only a bit tired because she strained herself too much. Right now she was sitting on the corner of the bonfire, eating food while talking with Lize in low voice. Anne who was energetic before also came beside the two of them and slept. Looking at her peaceful sleeping face really did made people doubt how her brain works.
Old Walker wasn't together with these girls. He sat on the other side on the corner, drinking his wine while looking at the bonfire before him in a daze, didn't know what was he thinking about.
It's really a group of strange people.
Looking at the people before him, Kudla couldn't help but wonder. Frankly, he never seen a mercenary group that has such a strange member constitution. According to the general mercenary group, melee occupation like swordsmen, thieves, ranger, and warriors were the most important role. On the contrary, there's a lot of mage and spirit master. Firstly, these occupation were very rare and difficult to be found. Secondly, no matter mage or spirit master, they wouldn't like to be mixed with each other. Because mages were noble and didn't want to reduce their worth by hanging out with those vulgar people. Moreover, mages were confident in their own intelligent, even they forced themselves to follow mercenary group, they would still want to have the authority to command and the latter was because of their own identity restrictions, it was difficult for them to move together with a mercenary group. After all, spirit masters couldn't use much skill to protect themselves. If the whole team was in crisis, they would be the first one to collapse.
This was also the reason why many dangerous mission related to undead creatures in Mercenary Association were all located in Silent Highland. Undead creatures were not afraid of death and injury, they were nemesis to melee occupation. Like a police who couldn't stop zombies attack with firearms, it could be imagined what the result would be when this mercenary group used a normal weapon to face those endless undead creatures.
Although ranger could attack undead creatures from long range, but a creature that has long been dead wouldn't care less being shot by one or two arrow right?
On the other hand, looking at Rhode's mercenary group could be said was varied. Mage, spirit master, swordsman, range, shield warrior, looking at it, it didn't seem to look like a mercenary group. Not to mention…
Kudla looked at the girl who closed her eyes while standing beside Rhode. The white wings behind her was like a beautiful cloak.
An angel.
Kudla could swear by holy soul that he has never seen an angel who joined a mercenary group. At first, he thought that the angel girl was Sereck's acquaintance. Since Sereck's has a high status and was one of the important person in Deep Stone City's Mercenary Association. To a small mercenary group, it's not strange for an important person to be mysterious and unpredictable. But when he looked at Celia who politely called Rhode as ' Master, this barbarian mixed race who dared to fight with those terrible undead almost fell to the ground.
Who is this young man actually?
Kudla didn't know and tried to ask Sereck ambiguously. But this master swordsman didn't give him an answer, making him felt that Rhode was getting more and more mysterious.
However, no matter what he still need to thank him, and…
Thinking until here, Kudle stood up and walked towards Rhode.
"Mr. Rhode, I'm very grateful that you participated in this rescuing operation. I am here to show you my utmost respect for you and your mercenary group."
Although this appearance was big and tall, but hearing Kudla's speech, it clearly shown that this barbarian also has a cautious side. Also he kept remembering Sereck's warning, to not to mention anything about Rhode's face, or else… it would be difficult to guess what will happen next.
It's also not difficult for Kudla to understand what Sereck meant. Just when the first time he saw Rhode, he was also shocked, but now…
"We, 'Victorious Wine' won't forget the help that your mercenary group has given to me. Please rest assured, after we go back we will definitely give you enough compensation… For brothers who have sacrifice for us, we won't let them die in vain!"
What is this guy talking about?
Rhode looked up and felt puzzled looking at the man before him. He completely didn't understand what was he talking about. At the same time, Sereck smiled and spoke.
"You are wrong, Kudla. To tell you the truth, from entering Silent Highland until now, there's no one got left behind. Don't underestimate his commanding skill. Frankly, in my opinion, you can't be compared to him. That's why don't curse him by saying something like sacrifice and die in vain. Be careful, he might turn against you."
There's no one died?!
Hearing until here, Kudla was shocked. This time looking at Rhode, his eyes was full of fear. No wonder, what kind of place was Silent Highland, all the mercenaries clearly knew it. Let alone small mercenary group, even if it's a fully armed Mercenary Association, they would still have to made mental preparation in case someone died.
But now, Sereck actually told him that no one injured and died!
How does this young man do it!?
If it's someone else who said this, Kudla might not be able to believe it. But hearing it from Sereck's mouth who was one of the strongest people in Mercenary Association, of course there's a credibility in it. Thinking until here, Kudla was panic. After all, he was also a mercenary leader, the knew the taboo between mercenaries. Speaking something like that in front of others was clearly not a good thing.
"I'm sorry, I…"
"You don't have to apologize to me, Mr. Kudla."
Rhode calmly stopped Kudla's alibi. He really didn't care about those small things, moreover he didn't do it on purpose, he didn't really mind it.
"But I have my own condition."
"Please say, Mr. Rhode."
Hearing Rhode has changed his tone, Kudla also relieved and exposed a warm smile.
"Just as Sereck has said, I can ensure everyone to get out safely from Silent Highland. But I have my own condition, I know that you're also a mercenary leader, but frankly I didn't believe in your commanding skill. So my condition is, before we leave I want all of you, including yourself to obey my command unconditionally. If you can promise me this one thing, I can ensure that everyone of you will safely get out of here. But if you're unable to do so…"
Saying until here, Rhode paused and looked at Kudla's face that began to darkens.
"Then, to protect everyone, I have to make some sacrifice."
He believe that Kudla must be able to understand what he meant.
Of course, after hearing this words, Kudla expression kept changing. At first it turned blue, then it turned red. He clenched his fist then let it go, and once again clenched it. Currently, there's no more smiling expression in this barbarian's face. He gloomily and silently looked at the young man who was younger than him by almost twenty years.
The truth, he couldn't accept what Rhode has just said. He thought that there's no problem in his commanding skill, or else he wouldn't be able to keep his people to persist until now in this Silent Highland? But thinking thoroughly, he also admitted that Rhode's words weren't wrong. After all, if he could bring everyone here without any casualties, it has clearly proven this young man commanding ability. Although taking into account of Sereck's strength as master swordsman, but his help would still be limited, as a qualified mercenary group leader, Kudla clearly understood that part. Sereck was just only one person and couldn't take care many aspect of a mercenary group.
Then what should he do?
"I understand, I will tell it to my subordinates."
In the end, Kudla nodded, turned around and leave. The politeness and respectfulness from before has been gone at this moment.
"You shouldn't have treated him like that, Rhode."
Looking at Kudla's figure, Sereck bitterly smiled and shook his head.
"I'm just talking about the inevitable thing."
Rhode didn't look back and gave an answer. The reason he was this rude was because this matter couldn't be discussed and another reason was because Rhode was not happy with this Kudla. If it wasn't because of he brought his mercenary group to come into this dangerous place, they could complete the mission easier and faster in the first place. But now… thinking until here, Rhode couldn't help but be angry. Although strictly speaking it has nothing to do with Kudla, after all it's his first time coming to Silent Highland, so he didn't know which place was dangerous and which was not. However, to him, ignorance was never a good excuse. Not to mention there's no slightest psychological burden in his anger… In the game, Rhode already experienced it before, as long as someone caused danger to his mercenary group, then whether they did it voluntary or forced, intentional or unintentional, good or malicious, regardless of their motives, the result still wouldn't change.
Since the result wouldn't change, then his explanation to him was meaningless.
Just suck it up and move on has never been his style.
Hearing Rhode's answer, Sereck didn't continue to say anything. Since he was from Mercenary Association, it's not good for him to get entangled between two mercenary groups. Moreover this young man was prideful and confidence, he wouldn't let anyone to doubt this part of him.
This made Sereck felt somewhat familiar but unfamiliar. Familiar, because he saw a strong commander that this kind of persistence. It was actually a necessary cycle, only people who believe in themselves would be able to persist until the end and wasn't affected by one to make a decision. Although sometimes it might not be a correct decision, but it's still a very authoritative move.
Unfamiliar was because he never saw any young man who did that. They either arrogant or ignorant, and didn't even know what was fear. This made them showed a blinded self-confidence, and this fake self confidence could made people confused at first. It's just like a paper made tiger, when they're on the real combat, they would show their real character.
However, Rhode was different. From him, Sereck could feel an aura that could only be felt from a real commander. If he knew that Rhode was once the strongest guild leader in the game, maybe he would understand why Rhode would have that kind of aura, confident, and persistence.
After replying Sereck's words, Rhode didn't say anything more because right now he has a more important thing to do.
Silent Highland as a high level dungeon, although the equipment looted from it was a bit too shabby, but there's a lot exp point to gain. After he brought everyone passed through the light and dark battlefield and blocked those undead creatures attack, the experience Rhode gained has made him broke through level 15.
To Rhode, it's a very good news. At the same time he also got another system prompt.
After he passed through level 15, the system finally prompted him that he has met the second sealed swordsmanship requirement and it's unlocked.
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Chapter 89: Swordsmanship: Starfall
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
Rhode didn't think that he lost much even after transmigrating to this world. Other than his inventory and swordsmanship skills, he somehow managed to salvage the rest such as his memories and the holy card deck which was now mostly a memento.
Rhode couldn't retain his swordsmanship because he lost the prerequisite stats to use them. However, he felt that it was fine because he knew how to obtain them back. Some were learned through accumulating reputation points, some were found in ancient ruins, and some rarer skills even needed to fulfill certain conditions before he could learn them. But after adventuring for several years in the game, he could pinpoint the location and requirements of most swordsmanship skills.
Nevertheless, no matter whether the skill was hard or easy to learn, Rhode knew that the hardest part was always the beginning. And since now he had the opportunity to reduce the time to learn, naturally he would be elated. Now all he had to do was work hard to reach the prerequisites of the skill and he would unlock the skill.
Of course, as a former player, Rhode could vividly recall the prerequisite conditions to unlock the skill. Unfortunately, there was a major problem.
He couldn't check his stats.
Rhode hadn't unlocked his bloodline so all of his stats were in '?' Before reaching level 10, he could still roughly guess his stats, but after unlocking the talent tree, his stats had been increasing with his level which he eventually lost track of. This was because each race had a different stat growth rate and thus, he had to leave everything up to fate to give him a matching swordsmanship skill.
The skill that Rhode wanted to obtain was 'Dark Dance.' As the name suggests, the skill was a stealth-type swordsmanship. It would drastically reduce the user's presence while amplifying their damage and critical chance at the same time.
As the Summoning Swordsman class was somewhat a hybrid, Rhode would preferably refrain from fighting head-on with other pure melee classes especially if they were much higher level than him. So, Dark Dance would fit him perfectly. The only downside of this skill was that it required high dexterity. The skill originated from fallen elves as an evil technique, so it naturally inherited elven characteristics. Without having a nimble body, learning this swordsmanship skill would be a fleeting dream.
Alas, it was a pity that it didn't go as he wished.
The swordsmanship Rhode obtained was not the 'Dark Dance' he was looking for, but instead it was 'Starfall.'
Rhode stared at his newfound skill; frankly, he was feeling quite depressed. While it was true that he named his mercenary group as Starlight, it didn't mean that he wanted to attract words beginning with 'Star.' Well, nevertheless a skill was still a skill.
As a rare swordsmanship skill, Starfall eclipsed Moon Shadow in both strength and value since the latter was a basic swordsmanship skill.
Other than that, there was one more thing Rhode couldn't understand. Every time he leveled up, he always received two Skill Points. Previously in the ruins, as he was busy in the middle of a battle, he didn't think much of it. But now he still couldn't find an answer even after thinking for half a day.
In the game, he had overheard that someone managed to obtain a random bloodline that could increase stats and Skill Points when leveling up. So all he could do now was to assume that his mysterious bloodline would be somewhat related to that 'random bloodline' that person mentioned.
He faced the system prompt before him.
Without the slightest hesitation, Rhode used the Skill Points. A familiar system prompt appeared once again.
[Used 1 skill point, 'Starfall Swordsmanship' unlocked, rank E —— Special skill: Wrath of Judgement]
After receiving this information, Rhode felt a warm feeling emerging from his chest which quickly spread to his entire body. Then another prompt appeared before him.
[Wrath of Judgement: Using the sword as the instrument of death, guide the power of the soul so that the enemy will tremble before your wrath — the power of absolute destruction…]
Rhode clenched his hand in glee, and his eyes flashed a trace of confidence.
Everything went smoothly.
As for the other five skill points, Rhode chose to keep it. Suddenly, he thought of something. If everything went as smoothly as this, maybe he could make another attempt…
But Rhode didn't have that much time because there was trouble in front of him.
He didn't know when, but everyone finally recovered. The mercenaries who had been covered in injuries were totally healed and the Clerics who were exhausted had also regained their stamina. While they wanted to stay in the safety of the cave, the rational part of their mind told them that was just a delusion.
In the end, they still have to leave.
Although reluctant, Kudla kept his word. He gathered his members and instructed them to follow Rhode's orders. While Rhode could tell that he didn't obtain their 100% cooperation, they still respected Kudla enough to keep quiet and follow his orders.
Still, there were always one or two black sheep.
"I disagree."
A clear, sharp sound echoed in the cave. A female walked out from the crowd; apparently it was the thief that was almost killed by Rhode from before.
Even though her face was hidden behind a black mask, it still couldn't conceal the doubt in her eyes.
"Leader, I think you've done well so far. Everyone here is still surviving because of your leadership, but now you want to leave our lives in the hand of a stranger? I will not agree! I will only believe in my leader."
"That's your problem."
Rhode didn't even raise his head.
"Whether you agree or not doesn't matter. If you want to escape this place safely, follow my orders. I've already faced so much trouble just to come here and I don't intend to bring a bunch of corpses back. I don't wish to see my hard work in vain. So whether you protest or not, it won't affect my decision."
"You… Mr, Sereck, are you also…"
Hearing Rhode's answer, the girl clenched her teeth. She looked to Sereck for help, but he only revealed a wry smile.
"I'm sorry, but I think it's better like this. Just as Rhode had said, we can't afford to fail after the amount of effort taken to get here. Since we've found you, we will help escort you back to Deep Stone City. Since Kudla had requested us for help, it means that he is unable to bring all of you back safely. Otherwise, why would you seek us out for help?
She was speechless for a moment. Indeed it was so. If Kudla had the power to bring them back safely, why would they need the Mercenary Association for help?
"B-but we don't know this man…"
"You guys don't believe in our leader!"
Suddenly, another voice interrupted the girl. The mercenaries turned and found out that the voice belonged to Anne who was quietly standing by the side. Contrary to her usual joyous expression, her face was now ice cold.
"Anne believes in our leader. If leader says he can bring all of you out safely, he definitely can do it. Since you guys can't do it yourselves, then stop wasting time alright?"
"What did you say?!"
The thief was angered as she jumped and revealed two gleaming daggers in her hands.
"Are you looking down on us?"
"Anne is just telling the truth since you can't see it even if it is right before your eyes!"
Anne snorted coldly and raised her chin. The shield on her hand immediately glowed when she took a battle stance.
"If you don't believe me, then go ahead and try!"
As the conflict was about to reach its peak, like a bucket of ice water Rhode's cold voice drenched the two heated women.
"Both of you shut up and stop."
Rhode's voice wasn't loud, but somehow after hearing it both of them couldn't help but tremble. Anne pouted and retrieved her shield. Since her opponent also put away her daggers, Anne also chose to stop.
"I'll say it one more time."
Rhode's hand pressed against his forehead.
"This matter is already decided. All of you don't have the rights to refuse. I won't use Mr. Sereck to pressure you, but do understand that Mr. Kudla and I already agreed on this. If there's someone who is still unsatisfied with this decision, you can go look for Mr. Kudla. We can't afford to waste any more time right now, and if both of you do similar things in the future, then I will leave you behind to join the undead family."
The atmosphere was tense, but fortunately no one else objected to Rhode's authority. Finally he could move on to the next step.
Both Sereck and Kudla had suggested to return using their path from before. But Rhode's plan was different.
"That's a foolish decision."
Rhode said coolly.
"Why?"
Sereck stared at Rhode, puzzled.
"It's true that we're already familiar with that path, and if we returned from there we would be faster…"
Rhode then shook his head.
"… however, we won't be able to pass through the prairie again."
"But when we came…"
"It's different from before."
Rhode thought that Sereck's skill with his sword was outstanding, but as for his other aspects, he was still lacking in various areas.
Rhode waved his hand and explained to him patiently.
"Previously, I had carefully arranged our numbers before setting out and five Clerics were already barely enough to support the group. Now that we have another six, our formation would surely expand. This means that we have more ground to protect with the same number of Clerics. If they run out of stamina halfway, it would spell death."
"So that's why."
Sereck's eyes lit up after understanding Rhode's point. Kudla who was standing quietly by the side also nodded his head as if he was thinking of something. Then he asked doubtfully, "So what should we do next?"
Facing his doubt, Rhode answered without hesitation.
"Continue to move forward."
"What?!"
Both Sereck or Kudla were shocked. They looked at Rhode in disbelief wondering if they heard him wrong.
Oh Holy Soul… just to travel here was already so dangerous. Why would this young man want to press forward instead…? Why…?
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Chapter 90: Move Forward To Retreat
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
After noticing the doubt on their faces, Rhode quickly explained, "We simply don't have sufficient strength to go back that way."
"Each undead by itself isn't a problem, but it gets tricky when they rush in a horde. Since our group got bigger, we have to increase our protection radius and that would mean that we have to face more enemies. If we press forward, although the strength of each undead would rise, at least we won't have to deal with a large number like before. Moreover, high-level undead tends to roam alone and rarely work together which gives us a better chance of survival."
"But some high-level undead have the power to command low-level undead…"
Apparently Sereck knew quite a bit about the undead.
"Don't worry, that won't happen."
Rhode held his sword and drew a simple map on the ground. First, he drew a circle and then followed by a line.
"We are here. Fortunately, this place is considered to be the along the borders so we should be able to leave quickly as long we speed up a little. Then we will pass through here…" Rhode pointed at the line near the border and continued, "then we will arrive at another area of the plateau. There's a valley here and as long as we pass through this valley, we can leave this place."
"How do you know?"
Kudla couldn't contain his curiosity. He stared at the young man before him thinking that he might just be uttering nonsense.
"Because I've visited this place before."
As usual, Rhode didn't elaborate further and merely replied Kudla monotonously.
"There are two kinds of undead in the valley. The first one is the Giant Skeleton… I think that most of you can guess what it looks like by its name. It is a giant frame of bones that possess monstrous strength. What it lacks in agility is made up for by its strength."
"It has a unique ability to self-destruct at critical moments. Even if the battle seems like it's over, don't assume that you've already won. The numerous bones on its body can attack you even if separated from the main body. It has a weakness though — there is a Soul Fire hidden within its skull, so as long as we crush the skull, we can defeat the monster. The Giant Skeleton doesn't possess high intelligence, if we work together and dodge its attacks, we should be able to defeat it."
Rhode explained the strengths and weaknesses of the Giant Skeleton in a clear manner. Sereck and Kudla nodded their head after understanding how to deal with it.
"Next, near the end of the valley is the Death Knight's territory."
Rhode used his sword to draw another circle.
"The Death Knight is incredibly powerful. You can imagine its strength to be similar to Mr. Sereck. Also, as Mr. Sereck had mentioned previously, it is a high-level undead that has the ability to command low-level undead. The minions that he will command are those Giant Skeletons."
Rhode's hand stop moving.
"Which is why we must clear all the Giant Skeletons as soon as possible. Although the Giant Skeletons cannot telepathically alert the Death Knight even if it were attacked, if the battle becomes too loud and the Death Knight picks up the scent of us… then even a fool will understand that is a problem."
Kudla was slightly surprised and couldn't help but agree with Rhode's strategy. At first, he thought that Rhode was too young to be a commander, but now after hearing his detailed breakdown of the monsters and how to defeat them, all of his previous doubts washed away entirely.
Rhode revealed a way of instructing the group that he had never seen before. First, he would explain what kind of attacks the enemy would make and teach the group how to counter these attacks. It was so detailed that he even stated the type of skill needed to be used. What was even more admirable was his intricate grasp of these skills and seemingly immaculate knowledge of it.
In this area, Kudla knew right away that he wasn't of Rhode's caliber because he knew no other mercenary group leader utilized this method of command. At most, a regular mercenary group leader would just give the order to attack, defend or retreat and Kudla had firmly believed that was the way to command a mercenary group. He thought that the tricky part of commanding would be the mercenary leader's reaction speed and his subordinates' tacit understanding of each other. However, Rhode opened a new world to him.
Kudla was shocked. It was simply unimaginable.
Each mercenary had a different skill level, and their fighting style wasn't the same. Thus, it was almost impossible for the commander to teach them what to do individually…
Without a doubt, if Kudla were a player, he wouldn't be making a mountain out of a molehill. As Rhode had said before — prior to fighting any BOSS, every player will have to make their necessary preparations.
"Well, that should be it."
Rhode clapped his hands.
Back in the game, after his briefing, Rhode would usually add something like this: "If you don't pay attention, I'm gonna directly kick you out later." But since he wasn't playing a game right now, even if something went wrong, there would be no chance for redemption.
Rhode had no interest in arguing with dead people.
After finishing his discussion with Sereck and Kudla, Rhode gathered everyone and explained what kind of danger they would face as well as administer their individual responsibilities. This time, the formation was slightly different. Rhode, Celia, and Sereck would lead the main offense while Anne would be responsible for protecting the Clerics. As for the mercenaries, they didn't bear any heavy responsibilities because Rhode wasn't familiar with them. Instead, he arranged for them to guard the rear together with Kudla since he was already briefed on how to deal with the Giant Skeletons. Rhode saw that he was a smart person, so there shouldn't be any problems.
However, there were two significant changes this time.
"What about me? Do I not have to attack?"
Marlene frowned.
"Your large area of effect spells will cause a great disturbance to the surroundings. Our objective is to finish the battle in the shortest possible time without drawing much attention to us."
"I see…"
After hearing Rhode's explanation, Marlene nodded. Then, after a moment, she added, "If that's the case, why not let me cast Silence? That way, I can prevent the enemy from hearing anything."
Rhode was subtly surprised for a moment.
"You can cast Silence?"
"Of course!"
Marlene nodded as if the sun had always been rising from the east.
"Aren't you an Elemental Mage?"
"I'm proficient in elemental spells, but I'm also fairly well-versed in illusory and arcane spells."
Rhode stared at Marlene who proudly raised her head. Rhode finally understood why the people called her a rare magical genius of a hundred years… No wonder many players complained about not being able to defeat her. This young miss was simply a copy of a BOSS in the making.
"Kid, I know what you want me to do…"
Old Walker fondled his chin and revealed a complicated expression. His previous role was to scout and detect enemies from afar. To put it bluntly, he didn't participate in battles at all. However, Rhode decided that he needed to contribute his strength this time.
"You want me to attract that monster's attention, aren't they very sensitive?"
"That's right."
Rhode nodded.
"But don't worry, I will tell you what to do."
As for both Anne and Lize, their role didn't change much. He didn't even have to tell Lize what to do and merely asked her to master the attack rhythm. Not only was the upcoming battle a test, but it was an excellent opportunity to gain more experience. Lize had been rather consistent in combat, so he didn't have to worry about her.
Rhode didn't have to say much to Anne as well. But he finally understood why the vice-leader of Mark White wanted to find an opportunity to kick her out. The way she expressed her thoughts was too direct. Most of the mercenaries were glaring at her right now, let alone the half-elf thief who would've killed her if she had the chance.
Still, under this tense atmosphere, Anne had the guts to continue humming a song as though nothing was wrong, albeit unintentionally. Have to say… she truly deserved to be called a tank. The way she pulled and held the aggro was top-notch.
After pushing away the boulder, a cold wind blew in and made everyone shiver.
"Let's go."
Rhode said coolly as he walked out from the cave with everyone following closely behind him.
Perhaps lady luck was blessing them as they didn't encounter an ambush when leaving the withered forest. When they finally left the forest, everyone felt relieved, but before they could relax, they immediately fell upon a new hurdle.
Boom! Boom! Lize immediately snuffed the Holy Light. They were now at the edge of a cliff, quietly looking down at a huge shadow that was moving back and forth in the valley. Everyone could feel a chill when they saw the monster.
Giant Skeleton.
As their name suggested, they were giants without flesh. They towered over three meters tall, and their skeletal structure didn't seem weak and brittle at all. But all they did was mindlessly wander around the valley, only turning its huge head to look around from time to time. Inside its empty sockets was the Soul Fire that gave it life. It shone like a small sun, emitting a green light that swept around the valley like a lighthouse.
Facing such a powerful enemy, can they really win?
No one had the confidence.
"Okay, listen to me closely."
Rhode took a deep breath and lowered his voice. He turned around and gestured to Old Walker.
Old Walker quickly bent down and came forward. Two shadows quietly stepped towards a huge boulder near the valley.
"See that?"
Rhode pointed towards the Giant Skeleton not too far away from him. It wielded an enormous bone club as it sauntered back and forth. Old Walker traced the area where Rhode pointed to and nodded.
"Shoot the arrow there. Remember, don't at shoot it, but near it. About five meters away from it."
"Yes."
Old Walker nodded. Then he pulled his bow and aimed towards the target with intense concentration. Everyone else couldn't help but hold their breath while watching him.
When the Giant Skeleton looked back and walked towards the other side of the valley, Rhode shouted.
"Now!"
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Chapter 91: Giant Skeleton
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
Whoosh! The arrow shot whizzed through the air and collided into a pile of stones not far from the Giant Skeleton. The minute sound made by the arrow caused the Giant Skeleton to turn around and investigate the disturbance. Its fearsome, empty eyes emitted a dazzling light and shone at the pile of stones.
Holy Soul… what a quick reaction!
Old Walker swallowed his saliva subconsciously. He thought he had already mentally prepared himself but the Giant Skeleton's reaction speed still overwhelmed his expectations.
How can such a giant frame of bones have such a keen sense? That's just too terrifying!
Just as he was about to take a deep breath, Rhode's low voice sounded beside him.
"Retreat."
Both of them slowly traced back ten steps. Then, following Rhode's orders once more, Old Walker shot another arrow which hit another area.
The Giant Skeleton lumbered forward to the noise.
From afar, it seemed as if its movements were tremendously slow, but it only looked that way because of its massive body size. In just a few steps the Giant Skeleton already arrived close to the group. It opened its mouth and revealed the terrifying boundless darkness within. Then, it leaned over and scanned the surroundings with its two fiery eyes.
Rhode raised a finger.
That was the signal.
Marlene raised her wand and a gray light shot out in a straight line towards the Giant Skeleton. Within less than a second, the gray light formed a hemispheric barrier which enveloped the Giant Skeleton like a bird trapped in a cage. The barrier then flashed for a moment before disappearing into thin air. However, a thin line remained connected between Marlene's wand and the Giant Skeleton. In a blink of an eye, everything went deathly silent.
"We have 30 seconds!"
Marlene gripped her wand tightly while channeling the magic spell. She then quickly reminded the group of the duration of Silence. For such a massive monster like this, 30 seconds was already her limit.
But 30 seconds was more than enough for Rhode, Celia, and Sereck to reach the Giant Skeleton.
The Giant Skeleton's acute senses immediately picked up the enemy and raised its head. Its intense gaze met the angel's Holy Aura which made it furious. In a flash, it raised its giant club and roared at its eternal nemesis.
As though wielding a toy hammer, the Giant Skeleton swung its bone club and pulverized a few large boulders near the cliff. Some loose rocks rolled off the precipice and smashed to the ground below without creating any sound. It was quite a strange occurrence… somewhat like watching a mime perform.
Celia swung her silver sword to meet the Giant Skeleton's club. Although no sound came from the clash, the many sparks revealed the intensity of the battle. Initially, the Giant Skeleton's immense strength caused the angel to stagger, but she quickly used her wings to unleash a jet stream which propelled her forward, leading to a stalemate. Clearly, the Giant Skeleton wasn't going to give up as it took a step forward and lifted its club to launch another attack. It just wanted to pummel this small insect to death as soon as possible.
But it was unable to do so.
A rotating blade sliced at the giant's arm, forcing its attack trajectory to tilt and miss Celia by a hair's breadth. Although the strong wind still caused her to stumble, at least she escaped from being crushed. Then, the Giant Skeleton shifted its attention to Rhode who suddenly appeared at its feet.
This provocation made the Giant Skeleton even more furious. As the Death Knight's minion, it clearly wasn't a creature with high intelligence. The purpose of its existence was to destroy life which could grant it a brief respite after each kill. However, after such a long time, nothing of that had happened. This made the Giant Skeleton angrier and desperate. Now that it had finally found an opportunity to vent its anger and hatred, it would stop at nothing until either itself or its foes were dead.
The Giant Skeleton lifted up its club once more, ready to turn Rhode into minced meat. Sensing an incoming attack, Rhode retreated a few steps back to dodge.
Meanwhile, a pillar of Holy Light fell from the sky and wrapped the Giant Skeleton.
Lize lifted both of her hands. She bit her lip nervously as she concentrated on her spell. Just beside her were the other Clerics who were also casting Divine Brilliance to weaken the Giant Skeleton.
Marlene was still holding the same position. She clenched her wand in slight displeasure as she couldn't help the group with anything else. According to the plan, she wasn't allowed to use any powerful elemental spells because the impact might attract other undead. It was quite a distasteful position for her.
"20 seconds!"
The Giant Skeleton's club smashed into the ground, propelling pieces of stones and debris in all directions. Some stray debris managed to hit Rhode's body.
Rhode could dodge it, but he didn't as he was charging an attack. Sword energy began to condense around him when he consumed his Soul Power. After a moment, Rhode took half-a-step forward and raised his right hand before slashing down with all his might.
On the surface, the attack appeared rather ordinary, but when the sword was in mid-arc, the tip suddenly lit up. When his sword touched the ground, the brilliant light that condensed at the tip suddenly burst out. The flat ground immediately split apart as though a giant sword divided the earth. Everyone was shocked at the light which instantaneously spread to their immediate surroundings.
That was the new Swordsmanship skill in 'Starfall' — Fury Trial.
Compared to Moon Shadow and Dark Dance which utilized intelligence and agility respectively, Starfall was a Swordsmanship based on pure strength. Starfall didn't boast flashy or quick moves, but instead, it flaunts its raw destructive power. Even though the Giant Skeleton's strength was nothing to laugh about, Rhode was confident that this skill would be able to contend with it.
The Giant Skeleton who was in the midst of an attack couldn't block the incoming strike. Its massive body lost its balance and tipped backward, but before it could regain its footing, another light already aimed towards its unprotected torso.
Silence swallowed all sources of sound. And at this moment, the Giant Skeleton's body was no longer intact. After the violent attack, its ribcage cracked and the rest of the bones shook as though it would break at any moment. It appeared that they were on the verge of victory, but Rhode knew that this was the most dangerous moment.
"10 seconds!"
"Sereck!"
Sereck, who was hiding, finally appeared after making his preparations. His entire body turned into light and rushed forward — his sword in his hand burst out with glorious brilliant circles which shot towards the Giant Skeleton. Both Celia and Rhode followed up and attacked, sending two crescent moon slashes towards the Giant Skeleton.
When it detected the aura of the Swordmaster, the Giant Skeleton reacted. It instinctively stretched out its left hand in an attempt to block the attack but failed miserably.
A full-power attack from a level 40 Master Swordsman wasn't something that could be easily blocked by a mid-level undead. In fact, Sereck's sword had not even touched the Giant Skeleton's hand and it was already showing signs of disintegration. The next moment, Sereck's sword pierced through its mouth.
In a blink of an eye, the giant's skull blew into pieces. Everything from the lower jaw to the chin was missing, and the rest of the skull was filled with cracks. The Soul Fire flickered as if it was about to do something, but at that moment, another crescent moon slash passed through it and completely extinguished the flame.
Followed by the loss of its life source, the massive body crashed down to the ground the same time Marlene's Silence spell ended.
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Chapter 92: The Melancholy of Anne Georgia
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
After defeating a few Giant Skeletons, the group slowed down even more.
During the briefing, Rhode had warned them that they were rushing against time and had to hurry up, so everyone assumed that they would be running all over the place defeating enemy after enemy then moving on to the next.
But that wasn't the case.
The whole group moved as slow as a turtle. Whenever they took three steps forward, they would take two steps back. It was painfully slow — even slower than taking a casual jog in the forest. But when encountering an enemy, Rhode would suddenly speed up and kill them as fast as lightning, roughly finishing the fight within thirty seconds before quickly hiding and repeat the process on the next enemy once more.
To be honest, these kinds of guerrilla tactics weren't well-received by some in the group — it could even be said to be downright embarrassing.
"Hmph."
The half-elf snorted in disdain when she saw Rhode stop abruptly and proceeded to sneak around like a criminal.
"Just look at that man creeping around. That's so not impressive. Leader is obviously much more honorable than him."
"Anne thinks that you're full of nonsense."
Of course, Anne had a differing opinion.
"If not because of Anne's leader, with your inadequate abilities, it would be impossible for you to defeat these Giant Skeletons.
"Hmph. It's not like I would've followed this stupid plan to come here in the first place."
The half-elf couldn't care less about Anne's retort.
"If our leader was in charge of the group, we would've gotten out of here already."
"Since you think of it that way, you don't have to follow Anne and the rest."
Anne's lips curled, her eyes cold.
"You only know how to flap your lips. If you guys had the ability to escape by yourselves, your leader wouldn't have chosen to follow my leader's command."
"Don't joke around. Our leader is only following him because you guys heeded our distress call. We aren't ungrateful brats."
The half-elf turned around in a huff, refusing to speak any more. She stared at the dark, eerie valley which brought an unknown chill to her but even so, she refused to look at the person beside her.
"Hmph…"
Anne didn't want to stop though. She glared at the half-elf and took a deep breath.
"So for the sake of pride, you will even abandon your life. Such foolishness. You really deserved to be trapped here."
"You!!!"
That string of words somehow caused the half-elf to snap. She couldn't keep her calm any longer and glared angrily at Anne. Anne, however, also didn't back down and returned the favor.
Anne still maintained a smile on her face, but the half-elf thought it was terrifying. She felt her face turn cold as though the one staring at her wasn't a human but a dangerous beast instead.
Suddenly, the face before her warped into a shape of a ferocious monster with razor-sharp fangs. The half-elf immediately grabbed her dagger out of instinct, but luckily her rationality told her that it wasn't smart to make a move at this time.
"What are you guys doing!"
Marlene's voice broke the tense atmosphere. She stopped walking and turned towards the two girls behind her.
In some ways, Marlene acted as the mercenary group's vice-leader. She would take care of matters that Rhode couldn't afford to waste time on. While Lize and Old Walker were also senior members of the group, one of them didn't dare to take charge and the other just didn't have the patience to manage the group.
Since Marlene saw the hostile atmosphere between the two girls behind her, she certainly couldn't sit idly.
Marlene shifted her gaze to the mercenaries next to them who appeared as though nothing had happened. Indeed, it was the right decision for them not to poke their noses into places that they didn't belong as both groups ultimately walked a different path.
"Sister Marlene, she…"
"We are in a dangerous situation right now."
Marlene interrupted Anne. While she wasn't exactly close to Anne, she could somewhat figure out Anne's peculiar train of thought.
Usually, when normal people interact, it is because they have something in common or their personality matches with one another. Even if they can't get along, at least they will choose to maintain a reasonably passive relationship. Marlene is a good example. Even if the man in front of her is as ugly as a pig, if he were her friend or relative, she would still display a polite smile. That was how 'mature' people conversed with one another.
Anne, however, was totally different. She didn't care whether her actions would bring her any benefit or not. She simply chose her friends based on instinct… like an animal. To put it cutely, like a puppy, it would wag its tail at a person it fancied even if he or she didn't give it any food. On the flip side, it would bark at the people it disliked even if it were the owner who fed it every day.
What a headache…
This was the reason why Marlene didn't bother to persuade the both of them to stop quarreling because it was pointless. Besides, she was more concerned about other more important things right now…
"Whether you guys like it or not, we've already come this far and there's no turning back. We have to keep moving forward, so I hope both of you can focus on the task at hand."
Without saying anything else, Marlene turned her head to the front and continued walking. The displeasure on the half-elf's face was evident, but she still chose to keep silent as she was dealing with a Mage. In this continent, Mages were a dangerous group of people that shouldn't be provoked. Rather than to put herself at unnecessary risk, it was better for her to shut up.
Rhode didn't notice the small dispute. Right now, he was busy hiding behind a boulder as he studied the area before him with a gloomy expression.
They had already spent five hours clearing the Giant Skeletons one by one and the sky was still dark. There was no difference between day and night along the borders between the Country of Darkness and Light as the whole region was mostly in perpetual darkness. But that wasn't why Rhode frowned.
Right now, there were two Giant Skeletons left in the valley who were fairly close to each other.
Previously, Rhode could successfully lure the Giant Skeletons one at the time because they were far apart, but these two were different. Like gatekeepers, one stood on the left and one on the right with their backs facing one another. Although the two Giant Skeletons still did wander off a little from their positions, they still weren't far apart enough for Rhode to employ the same tactic as before.
This was difficult.
Even though the group was fairly well-versed in fighting Giant Skeletons by now, facing two at the same time was a different scenario altogether.
If it were only two Giant Skeletons… then perhaps it was still possible. With Marlene in the rear utilizing her powerful magic ability supporting him and Celia, he could see himself taking down one Giant Skeleton. Then Sereck could take on the other and everything would be fine and dandy, but…
Unfortunately, the reality wasn't that simple.
Rhode knew what was behind that valley…
The Death Knight.
He knew for sure that if Marlene cast a magic spell at this distance, the Death Knight would immediately detect it. High-level undead were exceptionally sensitive towards surges of magical energy, which was why even if they used Silence, it would be impossible to escape detection.
Judging from the past battles with single Giant Skeletons, Rhode knew that the group wouldn't be able to finish off those two Giant Skeletons in time before the Death Knight arrived. Besides, even if they could deal with the two skeletons in time, they still had to confront the Death Knight immediately afterward without a rest.
Frankly, Rhode was very reluctant to confront the Death Knight directly. Although its level was lower than Sereck, it was merely a five to six level difference. This gap was simply negligible when the battle was between humans and undead monsters.
For example, even if a knife stabbed into the torso of the Death Knight, nothing much would happen. But what would happen if Sereck was the one being stabbed by the knife?
It would be best if he'd quickly penned down his last words to the woman he loved throughout his life.
Rhode's original plan was to get Sereck to hold the Death Knight's attention while the others escape, then he and Sereck would quickly leave afterward once everyone safely exited Silent Plateau. Once they left the area, the Death Knight wouldn't be able to follow them. This method was way safer than attempting to defeat the Death Knight.
However, no matter how hard he tried, he knew his plan was clearly going to fail. If the Death Knight came to them instead, then based on the terrain, the new plan would be called 'one man hold back a thousand man army,' and that 'one man' would be referring to the Death Knight.
They were in a narrow valley right now, which meant that the Death Knight would totally bottleneck their way forward if it were drawn here. But Rhode didn't have an alternative; he couldn't forcefully proceed, yet it was also impossible for him to turn back.
What to do?
It wasn't as if there wasn't a way out, After defeating the Giant Skeletons, all he had to do was to use a bait to lure the Death Knight so that the rest could escape. As long as that person could hold on, Rhode and Sereck would immediately rush back and fight the Death Knight together, at that point, everything would be just as planned.
But who will be able to it?
Rhode turned around and looked at the group.
Both Marlene and Lize were casters, so asking them to be bait was equivalent to sending them to die. Sereck possessed the most strength; thus, his role was to deal with one of the Giant Skeletons. Even so, it would be difficult to say whether he could defeat the Giant Skeleton before the arrival of the Death Knight. In previous battles, Rhode and Celia helped him to divert the monster's attention and Sereck would deal the final blow, but now he will have no one to help him, so he had to figure it out by himself.
Old Walker? Kudla and his mercenaries?
What a joke. These guys can't even block ordinary undead. To ask them to tank the Death Knight was simply sending them to their deaths. Furthermore, Rhode's objective was to bring them back safely, if they died here then why would he even bother coming here in the first place.
Then…
Rhode went silent for a moment; then he waved his hand to the back.
"Anne, come here."
"Leader, what's the matter?"
Hearing his call, Anne immediately ran towards him. Her two beady eyes focused only on him, the only thing missing right now was a tail wagging behind her…
Ahh, she does really look like…
"I have a plan."
Rhode said as he walked closer towards Anne. Then, he lowered his body and whispered. After a while, he raised his head and looked at her with seriousness.
"Do you understand the gravity of what I've said? Are you willing to take on this duty?"
"Of course!"
Anne did not hesitate and nodded quickly.
"I will do anything leader ask me to do."
If it was the usual, Rhode wouldn't have bothered to say anything more, but this time, perhaps because of the severity of the situation, he frowned and said, "The Death Knight is about level 35. It has a strength close to a Commander. If you think that this is too much for you, please let me know now and I won't have you take on this risk. If you can't handle this but still insist on going, the risk will be even larger."
"I understand, leader."
Anne nodded.
"But I believe this is the reason why I am here — because I'm confident."
Looking at her clear eyes, Rhode went silent. He studied the girl before him for a while but still didn't understand where she got that confidence from.
Rhode wasn't good at woman psychology. Besides, he had only interacted with her for only a few days.
But still, that was no reason to send her off to die.
In the game, if the party's tank died, then so be it. They could easily resurrect later and have another go again. In this continent, everything changed. There were no second chances. Rhode didn't want to send her out, but now it looked like there were no other choice.
Meanwhile, Lize and Marlene observed the two of them quietly at a distance. They were feeling uneasy because they didn't know what Rhode was whispering about. But since Rhode didn't attack, they knew that there were some changes to the plan.
"I will finish it as soon as possible. But before that, you need to hold on."
Rhode patted Anne's shoulder.
In the face of the possibility of death, the girl revealed her usual energetic smile.
"No worries, leader, I'll be fine."
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Chapter 93: Double Kill!
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
After receiving Anne's 'consent,' Rhode called the rest and briefed them on the current plan. Once they heard what Rhode was planning to do, everyone was surprised.
"Why am I not the one to take on this dangerous task?"
Naturally, Sereck questioned.
"You'll have to face the Giant Skeleton alone which is already quite different from before."
Rhode shook his head and answered Sereck before shifting his gaze to Marlene.
"Ms. Marlene, you won't have to use Silence anymore since the Death Knight will notice us anyway. For the upcoming battle, I will require you to use your offensive spells on the Giant Skeletons. They have quite a decent amount of magic resistance, but I believe you will have your way to deal with it."
"I will try my best!"
Unknowingly, Marlene clenched her fist and raised her voice. The pressure on her was indeed quite significant; not only would the battle be difficult, but also…
Her thoughts trailed off as she turned her head to glance at the group of people before resting her eyes on Anne.
"Lize, once the two Giant Skeletons are down, we will need to find Anne immediately and assist her. This is of utmost importance."
"Yes, Mr. Rhode. I will try my best."
Lize clenched her fist tightly and nodded.
"Mr. Rhode, what about us?"
Standing behind Rhode, Kudla couldn't help but ask.
"We also can…"
"Our mission is to save you guys. Now, we are only one step away from mission success; therefore I cannot let you take this risk. Moreover, someone needs to protect the Clerics. If you guys take part in the battle, who are they going to depend on for protection?"
Kudla was at a loss. He looked at the nervous Clerics beside him and immediately knew that they wouldn't be able to make it to the exit without help. He was also unsure whether he would be able to delay the Death Knight. According to Rhode, the Death Knight was almost as strong as Sereck and it was a high-level undead that was on the verge of the Commander level. Kudla felt pretty certain that he wouldn't be able to block a full-strength attack from a monster like that. So, he quietly nodded his head and gestured towards his mercenary group.
"Alright, everyone! Get into your positions!"
Rhode clapped his hands and shouted. Then, he glanced at Celia who was beside him.
"After defeating the enemy, fly over immediately. Remember you must protect Anne at all cost. Do not let anything happen to her."
"Understood, Master."
If Anne died, no one would be able to resurrect her, but if a summoned spirit died, Rhode could still resummon it later. If not because of Celia's passive ability that was incredibly useful to help kill Giant Skeletons, Rhode would rather send Celia to delay the Death Knight instead of Anne.
Sending Anne was the best decision Rhode could make based on their current situation. Even though Rhode had a rough gauge on her strength due to the test he had given her, their time together was simply too short for him to realize the true extent of her power. Therefore, all he could do now was trust her as she was the only person that had the highest chance of succeeding.
The spark to start the battle was no different from before.
Old Walker shot an arrow and lured the two Giant Skeletons as per normal. Both of the monsters lumbered slowly towards the noise. This wasn't a good sign because it confirmed Rhode's fears.
Although Rhode wanted to keep using this tactic to lure these two Giant Skeletons as far as possible, as if detecting something was wrong, the monsters suddenly stopped.
Once Rhode saw this, he knew that it was time to begin. He clenched his teeth and shouted.
"Move!!"
Marlene raised her wand and shot a spell at one of the Giant Skeleton's skull. The very next moment, grey, tumultuous clouds formed above the skeletons.
The battle-starved Marlene who had held back for the past five hours finally released all her pent-up frustrations with a humongous lightning bolt that fell from the sky.
Craaack! Countless streaks of lightning came crashing down onto the helpless Giant Skeletons. The sound of the electrostatic discharges caused a few people to tremble, and the ground shook along with the thunderous impact. For the sake of her comrades and victory, Marlene didn't hold back her power. She depleted most of her Soul Power for that one single destructive spell.
As a result, the Giant Skeletons that were caught unprepared appeared to be under significant pressure.
Even if they had flesh no more, they still had a decent resistance towards magic. But it wasn't unlimited. After ten seconds, the Giant Skeleton's body began to crack under the immense pressure of mother nature.
One after another, bolts of lightning assaulted the two Giant Skeletons. It roared loudly in pain and anger, but it was futile as they were still trapped within Marlene's 'thunderbolt prison.'
More… just a little bit more!!
Everyone stared at the miserable monsters that were being pounded by millions of volts of electricity again and again. They clenched their fist and silently prayed that everything would go smoothly like this until its death, but unfortunately, that was only their wishful thinking.
The thick gray clouds suddenly dispersed. Marlene's arms slumped down, her face pale. At the moment, she was leaning against a tree with her face full of sweat; she found out that both of her hands were trembling uncontrollably and wasn't able to lift them up. She might be a magical genius, but there was still a limit to her power after all. The spell she cast consumed a lot of Soul Power, and to channel it for such a long duration was already an incredible feat.
Sssss!
Wisps of smoke trails rose up into the air. Their bones were filled with fractures and covered in a thick layer of soot, but they were clearly still standing.
"Damn it!"
Rhode cursed under his breath. A trace of disappointment flashed across his face; but as an experienced leader, he knew it was pointless to complain.
He swung his sword and pointed forward.
"Go!"
Immediately after saying that, he shot forward with Celia towards the leftmost Giant Skeleton. Meanwhile, Sereck also made a move on the rightmost Giant Skeleton.
Before it could recover, the duo was already before the Giant Skeleton. One holy sword and one crimson sword slashed down in concert one after the other.
As Celia had wings, her flying speed was faster than Rhode. She reached before him and swung her sword at the Giant Skeleton. As the Giant Skeleton hadn't recovered fully from the lightning attack, it didn't think much and used its hands to block. This time, Celia wasn't thrown back by the impact; instead, she ignited her sword with holy flames and burned the Giant Skeleton's hand.
At the same time, Rhode arrived from behind!
Celia waved her silver sword and sliced off the Giant Skeleton's right leg. After losing its support, it roared angrily and fell to the ground. However, that didn't mean that it gave up, on the contrary, the moment it fell to the ground, all its bones scattered everywhere on the floor.
F*ck!
Rhode cursed again. From his countless experiences, he knew what was coming up. Unfortunately, the one thing he wished not to happen was about to become a reality.
Rhode clenched his teeth and held out his palm. A red card materialized and flew out, forming into the flaming black hound who immediately rushed towards the skull.
Suddenly, the scattered bone fragments that were idle a moment ago began to swirl rapidly around the skull. After a while, it formed a huge whirlpool in the air, creating an impenetrable fortress that blocked Rhode's attack.
Rhode waved his sword and sent a Blade of Destruction towards the whirlpool. However, the light was eventually swallowed and disappeared without a trace. Meanwhile, Celia fluttered her wings and tried to enter from above, but when she was halfway through, the spinning bone fragments blocked her way forward.
This is going to be troublesome…
Rhode panted as he stared at the whirlpool of bones before him. The only thing he could do now was to wait.
Then, a sudden dazzling light fell from the sky and crashed into the whirlpool. Due to the impact, the bones shook violently, and together with a loud roar, a faint explosion surfaced from inside the bone fortress. Soon, the bones began to slow and several fragments were strewn to the ground. Apparently, the black hound had used its self-destruct on the skull which took out half of its face. The Soul Fire in its remaining half was evidently dimmer than before.
Although Marlene's spell couldn't destroy the Giant Skeleton, the damage that it had done was considerable. At this moment, it finally had shown its effectiveness.
"Celia!"
The angel rushed forward without hesitation. While in mid-air, her sword transformed into a silver light and pierced through the Giant Skeleton's skull. The surrounding bone fragments finally fell to the ground and stopped moving once its life source was destroyed.
Rhode didn't bother to watch Celia finish off the monster because he had already rushed towards the other side in with full speed. Sereck was in the same situation as he, fighting the Giant Skeleton's whirlpool defense. Rhode knew that they were already running late on time, so he had to finish it fast!
But he was still too late.
"Hiss———!!"
Suddenly, there was a sharp, resounding neigh of a horse in the distance.
Rhode froze.
The Death Knight has arrived!
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Chapter 94: Anne Georgia's Determination
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
Darian slowly opened his eyes.
Dark skies and white fog surrounded him. The Death Knight silently scanned the area as he caressed his horse's mane below him. Nightmare, his horse, felt his touch and neighed softly in response.
It was said that an undead's world was colorless. When they chose to abandon their fleshy husk and enter eternal life, they also forsook their ability to witness the beautiful world. No matter how brilliant or extravagant the color was, it was only black and white in the eyes of an undead. Also, this was the reason why the undead were always so bloodthirsty and aggressive. In their eyes, nothing was worth remembering or cherishing anymore — only death and destruction could give them the feeling of superiority.
Darian was once a knight belonging to the border army of the Country of Darkness. He had violated the military rules and was forced to flee the country before settling down in this desolate valley.
For two hundred years he had been wandering around this valley. To most humans, this was a very long time, but Darian knew that with regards to other 'immortal' undead, two centuries was nothing but a fleeting moment.
It was still too early for him to go back to the Country of Darkness. If he went back now, he would've probably gotten himself a death sentence.
Must I stay in this desolate place forever?
In the beginning, Darian asked himself this question repeatedly. But after a while, he found himself no longer caring about these trivial matters anymore. Ever since becoming an undead, his human desires slowly faded away, and so did his flesh. His concept of time, loneliness, and needs completely disappeared. From a certain point of view, the undead were like puppets with consciousness.
Darian was an exception though; he still retained some of his human emotions which was why he was able to violate the order from his superiors.
Darian trembled slightly.
He could sense the aura of his subordinates, the Giant Skeletons, weaken. It was an unusual situation that had never happened before ever since he stepped into the Silent Plateau. These Giant Skeletons didn't originate from the Country of Darkness, instead, Darian tamed the 'native species' of undead after arriving here. Although their strength wasn't even one-tenth of the Skeleton Guards in the Country of Darkness, he was confident that no one would be able to rival them in this desolate place.
But now, something was wrong.
A surge of magical energy spread in the air.
Darian turned around and saw thunderbolts falling from the sky.
Someone is attacking!!
Darian immediately turned vigilant. He picked up his lance and a giant shield by the side before shutting the visor over his face. Then, he pulled Nightmare's reins and steered it towards the battlefield.
As a high-level undead with consciousness, he could easily detect the chaotic magical surges in the air. Just like a raging tidal wave in the ocean, it smashed into his dormant heart that had been dead since a long time ago.
Huh, a Mage? A middle-circle Mage? Were they people sent by the Country of Darkness to kill me?
An alarm rang in his mind, but it soon disappeared. He was just a minor figure in the army who didn't know any military secret. The Country of Darkness wouldn't send an assassin just to kill someone like him.
Then there are the undead mages, but they wouldn't have this kind of power…
It's the aura of the living…
Is it an adventurer?
Darian felt somewhat nervous, but at the same time, he was feeling eager. As an undead, he derived satisfaction from slaying the living — watching their flame of life gradually fade away brought him joy and happiness comparable to living beings giving birth to a new life.
Darian was no exception.
Nightmare began to gallop towards the direction of the disturbance.
It's coming!!
Anne stood in the middle of the valley with a focused expression. The little figure's eyes met the gaze of the monster in the darkness. For someone who even smiled in the face of danger, Anne sported a serious expression.
It wasn't because she was afraid; rather, the aura of the dead always brought an uncomfortable sensation to the living.
She knew that she could no longer escape.
With her shield in her hand, she stood upright and steadfast.
As Marlene had guessed; Anne wasn't uninterested in relationships, but the way she determined friend or foe was solely based on her instinct. After the death of her old leader, her mercenary group made her very unhappy. What people didn't know was that Anne actually didn't mind a change in leadership, she just wanted a place to stay that made her feel happy. When the old leader was there, everyone in Mark White seemed to like her and cared for her. They were able to tolerate her behavior and problems, so Anne was also willing to work hard to guard her happy life. In every single battle, she would put in her 100% and stand bravely at the front. This way, she would receive praises at the end of the mission, and for Anne, that was more than enough.
But after the passing of her old leader, the entire mercenary group seemed to change. The happy days from before gradually disappeared as the people who used to smile at her distanced themselves. The older mercenaries who had nurtured her told her to grant the old leader's unfulfilled wish.
But Anne didn't understand! The old leader left peacefully, how could there be any unfulfilled wish?
What did these people actually want? Anne was clueless.
What she knew was the previous lively and warm home had now turned into a cold and broken place that she didn't like.
She also didn't think that the old leader wanted her to do anything, so she decided to leave. And in the end, she arrived at Rhode's Starlight mercenary group.
Starlight had the same atmosphere as her old Mark White mercenary group. While Rhode's face was always one-toned, the way he talked still made her feel some warmth. It was the same as the old Mark White — she would always get scolded by the old leader, but she knew that he didn't hate her at all.
Being with Marlene and Lize also put her at ease. The two sisters were older than her but they didn't have the 'fake' aura that she felt from the many female mercenaries in Mark White. It was something that Anne couldn't understand at all.
In all, she was glad that everyone was genuine and didn't exclude her from anything. No one distanced themselves from her, and nothing was complicated. Everything would be fine as long as long as she does well in her mission. Anne cherished this kind of life.
So, it was natural that she didn't want to lose it once again.
When Rhode called her out and asked her to take on this heavy responsibility, she didn't hesitate at all and quickly agreed.
Not only did she want to preserve her current lifestyle, she also wanted to protect everyone — and Anne was confident that she could do so.
Even after attending Rhode's earlier briefing, she still didn't understand what a Commander level monster or non-Commander level monster was. But when she heard the ground tremble and the sound of the incoming hooves, Anne knew that it was a dangerous foe.
But she didn't feel afraid at all. She only felt her blood pump rapidly like a raging inferno.
She lifted the shield up and formed a fist with her left hand. Then she hammered her shield multiple times.
Boom… boom… boom…
War drum?
Darian was surprised for a moment when he heard the sound, but at the same time, he also saw a flame of life burning before him.
The Death Knight felt that this light was a little too dazzling, and he discovered that the drum sound was also being emitted from there!
You want to challenge me? Interesting!
The Death Knight couldn't help but sneer. He pointed his lance forward and shouted.
Nightmare recognized its Master's command and immediately accelerated. In a fraction of a second, only four burning hoove marks were left on the ground; the rider and the horse were nowhere to be seen!
Darian leaned over and aimed his lance at the flame of life which was still at the same location. At this point, he couldn't help but imagine how it would look like after being pierced by his attack… the expression of despair and suffering would be extremely tasty…
Anne also noticed that the enemy suddenly accelerated and immediately reacted by extending her shield. The long metal drill flew forward while countless sharp spikes appeared on the surface of her shield. This time, she didn't bury the shield in the ground like before, instead, she actively dashed forward to attack!
Darian saw what she did, and he couldn't help but feel excited. His lance aimed directly at Anne's shield as he rushed forward.
Come!!!
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Chapter 95: Anne Georgia's Wavering
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
The Giant Skeleton fell before Rhode.
Sereck stood up, relieved. With his strength, defeating a Giant Skeleton wasn't too difficult, but to kill it within the time limit was another story. If he was at Legendary, perhaps he would be able to disintegrate the Giant Skeleton with one wave of his sword.
Done!
Rhode confirmed its death when he received his EXP points. He once again appreciated the usefulness of the system prompt. As long as he had this, it was almost impossible for an enemy to fake its death before him. But he had no time to celebrate as…
Boom…boom boom…boom!
At that moment, a deep drumming sound came from afar and broke the silence.
War drums!?
Rhode was shocked.
He was really shocked.
What is Anne doing?! That wasn't in his plan!!
Many believed that duels could only be held between knights because they naturally associated them with honor and glory; but in fact, not only knights had those traits.
Because there was a class that could rival their prestige!
The Shield Warrior!
Swords and shields were always opposite each other, like how offense and defense were eternal nemeses.
The war drum was a signal that a Shield Warrior would declare when they requested a duel with a knight. Rhode remembered that he had seen a battle record a long time ago in the game. It was a brilliant battle between a large country and a small country. The former had a sizable cavalry while the latter had no horses and no weaponry. Out of desperation, the weaker country built a barricade layer after layer to buy time for their final confrontation. They had no weapons, but at least they could use this barricade to slow the invaders down.
The two armies finally collided; the larger country's army was spirited and overconfident as their heavy armor shook the battlefield. And as for the weaker country? They hid behind their construct, trembling in fear as they waited for the calvary to clash with their defenses.
Pale-faced and frightened, no one believed that they would survive.
But suddenly, out of nowhere, a drum sound echoed.
Boom, boom boom…
The low and deep sound reverberated around the battlefield, penetrating into the hearts of the frightened men. Those fearful souls who heard this sound suddenly felt calm and began to knock their shields according to the beat of the war drums. As time passed, they beat increasingly louder… and soon, without them realizing, their expressions turned from fear to confidence.
That fateful day, when the resounding beat of the war drum reached its peak, was the first time the invincible calvary felt overwhelmed. It was as though the tiny blockade in front of them transformed into a towering bulwark.
After that battle, the Shield Warrior became a selectable class in the game. The war drum became an iconic trait of the Shield Warrior and, at the same time, also the knight's humiliation.
There was no offense they could not stop once they displayed their shield on the battlefield! No matter if it was a Mage or a powerful Ranger, they could only rely on the sturdy fortress, aka the Shield Warrior, to defend their front.
Buuuut… no offense that could be stopped…eh? Right now it had completely turned into a joke.
Ever since then, the knights and the Shield Warriors had become eternal nemeses. The knights thought that Shield Warriors were wrongfully dishonoring them — and that was precisely why the Shield Warriors felt gleeful as they had broken the legend of the 'Undefeatable Knights.'
To put it nicely, the war drum behaved like a sort of taunt towards the knights as well as an indication of a duel.
But in the game, the inhabitants took it as…
"Hey you, knight brat. Your shield grandpa is here. Come and see if your huge toothpick can break through grandpa's shield?"
It's an intolerable insult to any knight.
Thus, when Rhode heard the drum war, he was surprised!
What was Anne trying to do? That was a direct declaration of war! He clearly instructed her to hold her ground against the Death Knight, but right now she was actually provoking him…
Damn it!
Rhode quickly gave Celia an order by telepathy. Then he quickly turned around to face the others.
"Kudla, lead your group to the exit immediately. Follow the direction I've told you previously. Move!"
He then shifted his gaze to Lize, beckoning her with his hand.
"Lize, come with me!"
Rhode no longer wasted any more time and threw out a black card. Soon, a centaur appeared out of thin air, causing the mercenaries to gasp in surprise as Rhode had never shown his summoning ability along the way.
Rhode ignore them as he had more important matters to attend to right now. In a swift motion, he mounted the centaur and pulled Lize behind him. Fortunately, the Centaur Knight's back was broad enough for two of them. Then, he patted the centaur's shoulder and signaled it to move at full speed.
Sereck, who was by the side, was equally surprised. He didn't ask anything unnecessary and followed Rhode closely behind.
"Mr. Rhode, what happened?"
Lize asked with a hint of anxiety in her voice. She had never been in such close contact with Rhode. Her rational mind told her that Rhode wasn't trying to take advantage of her and that probably something dire had happened, but she couldn't help but turn red slightly.
"That fool…!!"
Rhode didn't answer her. Instead, he frowned and creased his brows.
By doing so, Anne would undoubtedly attract the Death Knight's attention, but it was equivalent to a death wish. She could just pester him with regular attacks… and that would be more than sufficient… so why would she make this kind of decision?!
A Shield Warrior's honor?
Rhode refused to think that Anne would care about that. It was just that her personality was far too skewed for him to believe that she would care for something such as honor or pride. But why would she make this move?
Since this was her first official mission after entering the mercenary group, Rhode didn't think that she would regard Starlight as her home yet. Perhaps if she was a senior member of the group, then maybe he could understand why she would make this move.
This was completely irrational!
Though mercenaries acted on orders, they weren't soldiers. A soldier's primary objective was to follow orders; even it meant their death. But mercenaries weren't the same. They could choose not to follow orders based on their thinking!
After a short while on the centaur's back, Rhode finally saw what was happening.
Anne clenched her teeth; her usual smile had disappeared, replaced with a serious expression. She was holding up her golden shield that was embedded with Rock Heart. Needless to say, Rock Heart was handy for absorbing damage.
In front of her, the Death Knight held his lance while glaring at the center of the shield. Countless sparks scattered around as he threw lunges at the shield one after another.
Celia, who had already arrived, didn't choose to attack. Instead, she floated in the air as she watched the battle.
"F*ck it!"
Rhode cursed. Of course he knew what Anne was trying to do. It was the most frightening skill of a Shield Warrior ——— Reverse Block!
To put it simply, when a Shield Warrior used the skill, he or she would spin around and entangle with the enemy's weapon, forcing them to fight one-on-one. If the enemy wanted to withdraw their weapon, they would be pushed forward and sucked towards the front of the shield.
That was how she could maintain her aggro with the Death Knight. According to the players, it was a skill used to mock others, and it was also a skill where it was extremely difficult to break out from.
It was a skill that defies the law of physics. Rhode also didn't understand how it worked, but every class was afraid of getting entangled with this move. Once this move was used, the battle would only end when either one fell.
That was why Celia didn't make a move. Though the Death Knight was being thoroughly engaged and wasn't vigilant of its surroundings, she could indeed inflict heavy damage on it if she attacked right now. But her attack might also affect Anne who was concentrating on her opponent. If she lost concentration, the consequences would be unimaginable.
"W-wha…"
Lize was stunned when she saw them fight. It was as if time had stopped; the way they were still moving was eccentric. She really didn't know what to say.
"Lize."
At that moment, Rhode spoke with a gloomy face.
"I will count later. When my count reaches 'one,' you must cast barrier on Anne and heal her at the same time."
"Yes, I understand."
Lize nervously clenched her fist and bit her lip.
After speaking to Lize, Rhode took out his sword and narrowed his eyes, focusing on the Death Knight's most vulnerable location. Rhode knew that both of them were competing in endurance and concentration. With the Death Knight's perception, he should be able to notice him. If he lost his focus, Anne's winning chance would be higher. After all, having someone stare at your most vulnerable part wasn't a pleasant thing.
Meanwhile, Sereck finally arrived. He looked at what was happening and was equally dumbstruck. But soon, the Swordmaster immediately calmed down. He held his sword and began to study the Death Knight carefully. Apparently, he has the same idea as Rhode.
Kudla and the others continued to run out from the valley. When he looked at the battle, his expression also changed. Still, he didn't stop running. Instead, he made a hand gesture and signaled his subordinates to lead the Clerics to run to the other side quickly. According to Rhode, as long as they get out from that area, that they would leave the border and Silent Plateau.
But time was something they lacked.
Rhode's expression darkened. He could see that Anne's hand was trembling and her face was drenched sweat. She could no longer keep up anymore. It was no surprise though—after all, her opponent was a Death Knight! If it was any other ordinary Shield Warrior, perhaps he or she would've already been sent to heaven. But Anne was able to hold for so long before showing signs of losing; it was already considered to be quite good!
Unfortunately, no matter how well she did in the process, she still eventually lost.
Right now, Rhode wasn't thinking about how to win. He was thinking about the current biggest problem, which was how to protect Anne's life!
Clang!! Suddenly, the frozen time finally returned to normal.
The shield on Anne's hand was flung aside, and the very next moment, a sharp lance lunged towards her body at frightening speeds.
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Chapter 96: Anne Georgia's Transformation
Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
The moment the Death Knight sent the shield flying, Rhode, Sereck, and Celia had already made their move.
The trio had plenty of fighting experience. They wouldn't wait for Anne to lose before beginning their attack. In fact, they had already approximately estimated how long she could hold before losing.
They dashed towards the Death Knight in different directions, aiming their weapons towards its weak spots.
Facing three opponents at the same time wasn't something easy even for the Death Knight. However, as an undead, he had a natural home ground advantage which he unhesitatingly utilized.
Darian's right hand held out his lance to the front, and at the same time, he waved his left hand and blocked Celia's attack. As for the other two, Darian ignored them, giving both a chance to slash his shoulder and abdomen.
Celia's attack was naturally imbued with the Holy Element; Darian turned his head and noticed that a silver flame was burning on his left arm. However, he easily shook it off and threw the residue sparks towards Rhode and Sereck.
The both of them intended to take advantage of this moment and critically injure the Death Knight, but they couldn't help retreat when the Death Knight counterattacked.
That was the most troublesome part of the undead; they didn't feel pain. If Darian were a living creature, even if he didn't die, he would have at least became disabled. But to a Death Knight, an attack of this caliber was only enough to leave scars on his body.
While the Death Knight repelled the three attackers, at the same time, his right arm thrust his lance towards Anne as if it was a different entity altogether.
The sharp tip shot through the air and lunged towards Anne's body. A golden barrier appeared before her, but it only lasted less than two seconds before shattering apart.
A silver light silently passed through her body.
"Anne!!"
Lize almost fainted when she saw Anne impaled by the lance. Anne curled her body while her legs began to fall to the ground as though she had no strength left to stand.
However…
"Hmm…?"
The Death Knight narrowed his eyes and glanced towards the fallen Shield Warrior. That was the first time he lost focus to look at a living creature that was apparently supposed to be dying.
The next moment, a dazzling bright light shot up into the sky, penetrating through the layers of dark clouds.
Anne wasn't kneeling on the ground.
Instead, both of her hands were grabbing onto the tip of the lance as blood streamed down her arm and face. She lifted her head slowly and stared at the Death Knight with resolution in her eyes, even the smile that she always had was now back on her face.
"I finally caught you."
"What!?"
The Death Knight tried to retrieve his lance, but he realized that it wouldn't budge an inch. He was shocked; he even thought that the person before him wasn't human. Even after using all his strength, he couldn't cause her to move.
Meanwhile, Rhode didn't have time to admire her courage. Any slightest hesitation on his part might cause Anne's effort to go down the drain. When the Death Knight was distracted, he activated Shadow Flash and appeared beside the undead. The bloodied sword in his hand soared through the air and slashed towards the Death Knight's chest.
The Death Knight sensed that this move was dangerous, so he decisively abandoned his main weapon and unsheathed a sword on his waist to parry the incoming attack.
Clang!! Sparks flew all over the place. Faced with the immense strength of the Death Knight, Rhode was sent flying and only stopped after rolling on the ground. However, even though his attack failed, there were no panic or uneasiness in his eyes. On the contrary, he had a smirk on his face when he saw the Death Knight's left shoulder. While he hadn't been able to mortally wound the Death Knight, he still managed to leave quite a deep gash on it.
"Damn you living creature! I will make you taste eternal…"
Before the Death Knight could finish, Sereck made his move!
After losing strength in one of its arms, the Death Knight couldn't entirely block the next attack.
A torrent of swords fell from the sky like lightning bolts. However, Sereck wasn't a fool, he knew that though the Death Knight had lost a little of its strength, he still couldn't be underestimated.
Thus, before the rain of swords landed on the Death Knight, he condensed them into one thick bolt of lightning before thrusting it out.
Sereck's moves had always been flashy. These moves were highly effective on creatures that were easily prone to fear, like humans. But when facing against undead who were often resistant against fear, flashy moves were mostly meaningless. To put it simply; it was akin to showing a blind man a Van Gogh painting.
The Death Knight reacted quickly by lifting his sword to block the lightning bolt. He could feel the feedback from resisting the attack, which meant that he successfully directed most of the damage away from his body. Then, as long as he could…
A terrifyingly huge tear appeared on the chest of the Death Knight.
Darian stared at his chest, and at the sword that was burning with holy flames. Then, he raised his head and looked at Sereck's attack that he had blocked. Though it was too late, he had finally realized what happened.
First, this cunning living creature was just a decoy.
Second, he forgot about the angel.
Third, he is finished…
The silver flame on his chest suddenly burst into an inferno. The Death Knight tried to open his mouth to let out the final throes of his existence, but the fire had already engulfed most of his vocal cords.
Darian then laid to rest for all eternity.
The silver flame spread to the sky, even the clouds were shining brightly under its light.
However, Lize wasn't in the mood to watch this beautiful scene. When the Death Knight gave up his lance, Lize already ignored the danger and dashed to Anne's side. Although she already prepared her heart, Lize still couldn't help but hold her breath.
Anne had already fallen to the ground. After the Death Knight gave up his weapon, she had no more strength to harass him. The thick lance left a shocking injury on her abdomen. When Lize arrived beside her, she saw Anne clenching her teeth while she pulled out the terrifying weapon that was lodged in her body.
Puff! The lance was finally out, but it was followed by a huge wave of blood that gushed out from the wound. Anne bit her lips and reached out her trembling hand in an attempt to plug the wound.
"Anne!! Don't move, quickly lie down!!"
Lize screamed when she saw Anne trying to move. She immediately cast several healing spells on her, but it somehow didn't seem to work. One hand was pressed against her wound, while the other supported her body. Then, out of a sudden, a roar escaped from her mouth.
From Lize's perspective, it was only natural as the pain must be unbearable. She ignored it and continued casting healing spells on her.
However, Anne's body was starting to lean towards the side. It didn't seem like she was disturbed by the pain; instead, it was as though she was desperately trying to flee.
"Don't…come…near…"
Anne growled, but the intense pain made her unable to continue. Even her voice subconsciously distorted.
"Don't…co…he..a..Big sis…go..go aw…"
Her right hand clenched tightly onto the dirt.
"Go, go away, quick, qu,qui!!"
"Anne?"
At that moment, Lize finally realized that Anne was acting strangely. She raised her head to look, but at that moment, Anne used whatever strength she had left to push her away.
"Get away from me!!"
"Wuaaa!!"
Lize, who was caught off guard didn't stand against Anne full power. She flew quite a distance and fell to the ground.
"That hurts…"
Lize was in a daze. She couldn't even figure out what was happening. Wasn't she helping Anne to cure her wounds? Why is she here? That's right? Anne?
Lize quickly lifted her head. After that, what she saw caused her to be dumbstruck.
Anne crawled on the ground, her body trembling. She didn't know whether she was imagining things but Lize saw that Anne started to grow in size.
It wasn't her imagination.
Her beautiful green pupils changed, replaced with a green slit reflected the moonlight and brought an indescribable coldness. Anne kept staring at Lize like this, then she looked up to the sky and opened her mouth.
"Aaaa————"
Followed by a cry, her armor ripped apart; her face began to change, and a layer of fur grew on her naked body. After a moment, what was left of her was a three-meter-long black giant wolf!
It stood up and looked up at the sky.
"Woo———!!"
The sudden howl echoed throughout the valley, giving everyone a terrible shock.
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