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Side Story Episode 2
"An ancient relic buried in the Ice Mountains."
Zeke cut a jerky with his dagger in the hideout while analyzing information gathered from his sources.
According to Kei's information, the mad Emperor was indeed doing something in the Ice Mountains.
Judging by the involvement of the Hounds, the Emperor's special forces, the excavation seemed quite large.
"Whatever they're digging up, intercepting it will certainly piss him off."
Though the relic was tempting, that wasn't Zeke's main concern. His goal was using it to draw out the mad Emperor.
Though he had trained as a Highlander under his master Nigel and hunted monsters, his fundamental nature was that of an assassin.
If the mad Emperor lost his composure and revealed himself, Zeke was confident he could assassinate him by any means necessary.
Only by killing the mad Emperor could Zeke end the nightmares that tormented him.
Just then, Zeke's heightened senses detected something.
A faint sound came from the security device he had set up beyond the forest.
With his extremely sensitive perception, Zeke caught the sound precisely, though others wouldn't even hear it.
Zeke rose from the forest cabin serving as his hideout and gathered his equipment.
He equipped his daggers and the sun sword Gram he had used since his Highlander days.
Though the sword was too large for an assassin, he couldn't leave it behind since Gram's special function allowed him to exert Red Knight-level power without using aura.
Equipped, Zeke pressed against the cabin wall and waited silently.
Soon, his senses detected over a dozen people gathering outside.
"They don't seem to be knights... perhaps sent by the Syndicate."
Kei couldn't betray him due to their oath.
But other Syndicate executives could certainly target him. They had always been wary of Zeke the trouble maker.
They feared his blade might turn against them at any moment.
It seemed the Syndicate boss had finally decided to eliminate him.
Zeke crouched, waiting for them to approach.
Soon he sensed someone cautiously approaching the cabin door.
Gripping his dagger, Zeke completely masked his presence.
Someone kicked open the door and entered the cabin, firing crossbows repeatedly.
PAPAPAPAPAK!
Dozens of arrows struck various parts of the cabin walls.
The Syndicate hitmen realized no one was in the cabin and lowered their crossbows.
At that moment, Zeke, hidden behind the door, threw daggers at them.
PAHHT!
The daggers infused with vital energy struck precisely between the hitmen's necks and brows.
THUD!
Leaving the hitmen who collapsed without even screaming, Zeke moved directly to the back of the cabin.
Opening the back door, he detected movements of other hitmen.
Zeke leapt onto the cabin roof like a black panther.
He approached the other hitmen assessing the situation from behind and slit their throats with his dagger.
THUMP!
The hitmen on the roof died instantly from Zeke's silent attack.
He took their crossbows and waited silently for other enemies to approach.
When there was no response from inside the cabin, other waiting hitmen gathered in small groups.
Zeke calmly aimed the crossbow and fired when they came within range.
PAPAPAPAPAK!
The crossbow bolts accurately hit all the hitmen's legs.
"ARGHHHH!"
As those in front grabbed their legs screaming, other hitmen shouted in confusion:
"He's onto us!"
Zeke deliberately aimed for their legs rather than vital spots to create confusion.
From the roof, he observed all the enemies rushing toward the cabin in disarray.
After confirming their routes, Zeke jumped from the cabin and climbed a large nearby tree.
He then took out daggers and threw them at the approaching enemies.
WHEEEEEEEK!
The daggers curved aerodynamically, precisely embedding in the hitmen's necks.
THUD!
Instantly, more than a dozen enemies collapsed as cold corpses.
Then another execution squad that had been waiting in the back revealed themselves. They had been hiding far back in case of emergency.
Zeke noticed a mage among them.
"They even brought a battle mage. The Syndicate means to finish this."
The execution squad's battle mage aimed his staff at the cabin.
WHRRRRRRK!
A massive fireball formed in front of the staff.
Just as the mage was about to throw the fireball at the cabin…
SLASH!
Zeke jumped down from the tree, charged forward with his claymore, cut off both the mage's arms, and dashed to the opposite side.
"UH, UHHHHH!"
The mage whose arms were severed couldn't properly block the backflow of magical power, causing the fireball he created to explode.
KWAKWAKWABOOM!
The execution squad beside the mage had no time to assess the situation before being engulfed in the explosion.
"ARGHHHHHH!"
Squad members wrapped in flames screamed as they were thrown outward.
Zeke, as if he had been waiting for this, threw daggers, killing all those trying to escape.
Thus, all execution squad members and hitmen who attempted to attack Zeke instantly became corpses.
WHRRRRRRK!
Zeke looked at the burning forest before turning away and disappearing somewhere.
Only a thick aura of death lingered where he had been.
* * *
"Hmm."
Castro Pollock, one of the Rom Empire's legion commanders and Northern Garrison Commander-in-Chief, showed his discomfort facing the captain of the Hounds unit sent by the Emperor.
Being from a noble family and an imperial legion commander, he was quite displeased with taking orders from an unknown captain of an unidentified unit.
The Hounds captain, sensing Castro's displeasure, took out a personal letter from the Emperor.
"This is a personal letter directly from His Majesty."
Castro clenched his molars and took the letter handed by the captain.
Upon examination, it was indeed a genuine letter from the Emperor.
He broke the seal and read the contents.
The content was simple.
Support the Hounds unit to excavate traces of an ancient ruin hidden in the Ice Mountains.
After reading, Castro spoke to the captain with a hardened expression.
"...What ruin is His Majesty seeking in the Ice Mountains?"
The captain shook his head at this question.
"It's classified information, I cannot tell you."
Castro frowned at the captain's words.
"You're saying you cannot tell even me, an imperial legion commander and Northern Garrison Commander-in-Chief?"
"His Majesty has designated this ruin as top-level classified. I cannot disclose anything about the excavation to anyone, including yourself and the imperial executors."
At the captain's rigid response, Castro could only clench his fist.
Though their identities were unknown, the Hounds were the Emperor's direct personal guard.
Being tasked with all manner of the Emperor's dirty work, even Legion Commander Castro couldn't treat them carelessly.
Though his pride was hurt, he had no choice but to nod.
"...I understand His Majesty's will. Let me know if you need anything. I'll dispatch it from the Northern Garrison."
At Castro's words, the captain rose, nodded slightly and said:
"Thank you for your assistance. That will be all."
The captain delivered his message and promptly left.
Castro had to endure even this rude behavior.
KWAAANG!
Only after the footsteps faded did Castro strike his desk to calm his anger.
"Damn it... First Abel Draker and those Jiemens bastards grating on my nerves, and now even dog-boned fellows like that disrespect me?"
Castro Pollock, from a noble family of the Rom Empire and a thoroughbred racial discriminator, had established himself at Himonas Castle as Northern Garrison Commander-in-Chief.
He had captured Bird tribe people staying in the northern regions and sent them to mines or southern pioneering areas.
While he appreciated the position for being able to deal with the Bird tribe, he was inevitably far from the central power due to the region's remoteness.
During his distance from central power, Abel Draker, the new head of the Draker family, and the Jiemens family supporting him were establishing solid positions within Rom by playing major roles in subjugating the Central Kingdom.
He was growing increasingly anxious, stuck in the harsh northern wasteland while they claimed all the prime territories in the central region.
Yet the Emperor showed no intention of recalling him to the center, instead inexplicably sending the Hounds unit to excavate ancient ruins in the Ice Mountains, driving him to the brink of rage.
Castro Pollock rose from his seat with a hardened expression.
"This won't do. I might grow old and die trapped in this northern land. I should visit Rom to assess the situation."
After muttering this, he left his office and headed somewhere.
As he departed, leaving the office empty, a shadow rippled in one corner.
It was Zeke, who had been watching him in hiding, revealing himself.
Zeke went to Castro Pollock's place and examined the Emperor's personal letter handed by the Hounds captain.
'Only instructions, no information about what kind of ruin it is.'
The fact that they were preventing information leakage even to the Northern Garrison Commander-in-Chief showed how much attention the Emperor was paying to this excavation.
Though the Emperor had been obsessed with ancient ruins before, even Zeke, who had observed him for a long time, had never seen him invest such effort.
'That means intercepting it will have a greater effect.'
First, it was crucial to find out what the Hound Unit was trying to excavate in the Ice Mountains.
Zeke, who had extracted all the information from Castro Pollock's office, melted back into the darkness and concealed his presence.
* * *
"Move faster! Go!"
The Northern Garrison of the Rom Empire roughly shoved the chained Bird tribes into cages.
Dwarves, as well as Naga and Beast tribes, were being loaded into the cages.
The cages containing the Bird tribe were soon placed on carts and began moving somewhere.
The Bird tribe trapped in cages had no choice but to follow the garrison's orders, not knowing where they were being taken.
Those imprisoned were transported somewhere on carts for several days.
There was no consideration or help for them, and there was no way to block the biting cold of the north that penetrated through the cage gaps. Eventually, some had their hands and feet frozen with frostbite, or if unlucky, died unable to withstand the severe cold.
"Get down! Hurry!"
The Bird tribe who were dragged like that could only escape the cages when they arrived at the ice wall of the Ice Dragon Valley, still chained like animals.
Many Bird tribe slaves were already working there, breaking the ice wall.
The Bird tribes had been mobilized for excavation work of an ancient ruin hidden somewhere in the Ice Dragon Valley.
They had to suffer through hard labor without proper food in the freezing cold.
As a result, most died within a few weeks. But the Rom Empire's garrison didn't care at all.
If they ran short of people, they would just bring more slaves from below to replenish them.
It was solely an effort to find the ancient ruins as per the Emperor's orders.
The Hound Unit, overseeing the excavation, was stationed in a camp created near the excavation site.
As the unit commander entered the camp, other Hound Unit members stood up and bowed their heads toward him.
The commander immediately sat at the head seat.
Then he spoke to his subordinates in a low voice.
"Progress."
At the commander's brief question, his subordinates couldn't easily open their mouths.
The Aide standing beside then answered to the commander.
"Although we're expediting the excavation work by mobilizing slaves, there's still no significant outcome."
The commander frowned at those words.
"Is it so difficult to dig a path to the ruins entrance?"
The entrance to the ancient ruins had already been found by the Draker family long ago. However, they couldn't enter because they failed to dispel the magic blocking the entrance.
In the end, the Hounds were desperately having slaves dig to find an alternative entrance.
The commander slammed the table and shouted at his subordinates.
"This excavation work is what His Majesty is most concerned about right now! By whatever means, create an entrance within this month!"
At his outburst, the subordinates bowed their heads and quickly rose from their seats.
Left alone in the command room, the commander clenched his molars, trying to calm his anger.
"Damn... All this insanity over some ‘Elder Dragon ruins’."
Feeling sudden fatigue, he sighed and left the command room.
At that moment, the ceiling of the command room rippled, and Zeke revealed himself.
'Elder Dragon ruins.'
At last, he had discovered what the mad Emperor was trying to find here.