Chapter 14
Chapter 14
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: Troll Onslaught
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Chapter 14
The porters who also served as dismantlers possessed outstanding skills.
Even though kobolds were small in size, the three technicians dismantled each carcass in less than ten minutes per beast, sorting the mana stones and byproducts.
In the meantime, the mercenaries formed shifts to take turns standing guard while eating and resting.
“One with a sprained ankle, one with a broken arm. Fortunately, it’s the left arm, so it shouldn’t be a big issue for fighting.”
“One got bitten by a kobold, but we’ve applied emergency treatment, so he’ll be fine.”
“The one who got hit on the head just died.”
The total of twenty-six mercenaries were divided into four teams. The leaders of all teams except Partek’s reported in turn.
“Tch! Handle the dead guy’s gear yourselves and bury him roughly.”
Crema Galpredic frowned upon learning a casualty had already emerged just two or three hours after entering the dungeon.
Still, it was fortunate that they had slain far more kobolds than the number of injured.
“What about you?”
“No issues.”
“Hah! As expected of the men Sir Eugene picked.”
Galpredic grinned at Partek’s response.
It might have been due to their smaller numbers, but since he liked Eugene, the mercenaries he brought along looked good in his eyes too.
“In any case, if you fail to maintain formation and freeze up one more time in battle, I’ll crack your skulls. And the team at the front should follow Sir Eugene without question whenever he charges ahead from now on. Got it?”
“Yes, sir!”
The mercenary leaders replied in unison, their gazes naturally turning toward one person.
Awe filled the eyes of the leaders as they stared at Eugene, who sat apart, silently lost in thought.
In particular, Brin, the bald leader of the Black Sheep Mercenary Corps, gulped repeatedly to himself.
‘To think I acted cocky toward a knight like that. Even in Karlsberg, it’s rare to see one on his level. I nearly fucked up big time.’
Not just Brin, but all the other mercenary leaders’ evaluations of Eugene soared vertically.
* * *
“Ah~ The mercenaries are giving you hot looks, huh? They’ve totally fallen for our noble Eugene. So cute. Hehehe!”
As he listened to Mirian’s smug laughter, Eugene looked down at the now plump leather pouch.
The monster byproducts were carried by the porters, but the mana stones were to be kept by the knight without exception.
More precisely, by the subjugation leader or the strongest person.
In other words, Galpredic should have kept them all originally, but he had handed half over to Eugene.
And that action was a kind of declaration toward the mercenaries.
An official declaration that Eugene’s position in the subjugation force was on par with his own.
‘That mana stone I ate really was something enormous.’
The mana stones obtained from the kobolds were all the size of peas.
Mid-tier monsters’ stones were much larger, but still probably not as big as the red one Eugene had consumed.
‘I absolutely have to kill an upper-tier monster.’
Low- or mid-tier ones didn’t really matter.
Eugene’s most important purpose for entering the dungeon was to hunt an upper-tier monster that might possess a red mana stone.
“Upper-tier monster……”
Perhaps having heard Eugene’s low murmur, Mirian fluttered over and perched on his shoulder.
“Ah, it’s definitely there. And yeah, it’ll be bigger than that alligator bastard, but with your current level, you can take it down. You sucked kobold blood earlier too.”
As Mirian said, Eugene had secretly drunk the kobolds’ blood while slaughtering them alone.
After fully feasting on the swamp monster’s blood, his bloodlust hadn’t particularly arisen.
Still, quite some time had passed, so he had tried kobold blood just in case.
And the result was.
‘The swamp monster’s is incomparable, but monster blood is pretty efficient in its own right.’
He regretted not thinking of drinking monster blood in his previous life.
If low-tier kobold blood could restore his energy like this, mid-tier or higher would be even more effective.
Vowing to definitely try it when the chance came, Eugene’s ears caught Galpredic’s booming voice.
“Break’s over! Everyone, move out!”
The remaining monster remains from the dismantling were set ablaze, and the subjugation force resumed marching.
“Sir Eugene, let’s take the front together.”
“Very well.”
The formation had changed slightly from the initial entry. Eugene, who had been midway between Partek’s team and the subjugation force’s center, now advanced to the front alongside Galpredic.
“The monsters you first encounter after entering a dungeon are usually the weakest ones. They’re the ones pushed out from the core. So……”
Galpredic, who had participated in a few subjugations as a squire serving a knight, freely shared his knowledge on dungeon subjugations.
“……in the end, the deeper you go, the stronger the monsters get. Well, it won’t be an issue for a knight like you, though. Hahaha, where did a knight like you even come from?”
Galpredic was extremely pleased with Eugene.
His skill in butchering the kobolds was impressive, but Galpredic valued even more the courage of charging in without fear.
“But you should pay more attention to your stamina. We’ll be here for another four or five days.”
“I appreciate the advice.”
Eugene had already fully recovered his energy by drinking kobold blood, but he nodded.
Dungeon subjugation was just beginning, as Galpredic said.
* * *
About a day and a half had passed since opening and entering the dungeon.
With no sunlight, the exact time was unknown, but they could roughly track it via a sandglass checked intermittently by one of the porters.
In that time, the subjugation force had fought several more battles.
A pack of around thirty kobolds, larger and stronger than the first ones encountered.
Then a pack of ‘gnolls’ resembling shaggy dogs.
The gnolls were bigger than kobolds and smarter, but they were no match for the subjugation force either.
However, unlike kobolds who fought head-on, the gnolls employed hit-and-run tactics, causing the number of minor injuries in the subjugation force to increase.
Moreover, with monsters potentially ambushing from the darkness at any moment, the mercenaries’ nerves were on extreme edge.
“The mercenaries’ morale has dropped too much. You holding up alright, sir?”
“I’m fine.”
“Well, you have good night vision, so it doesn’t bother you. I wish I had an elf in my ancestry too.”
Eugene had explained his unique appearance and ability to see far through darkness as due to having an elf among his distant ancestors.
Elves mixing with humans weren’t that rare, so Galpredic and the mercenaries all accepted it without question.
“Since the gnoll attacks have stopped for hours, they must have gotten scared of us and retreated deeper in. That means mid-tier monsters should start appearing soon.”
Eugene listened intently to Galpredic, who had joined dungeon subjugations three times with a knight he formerly served.
“The presence of gnolls and kobolds means there are definitely goblins in this dungeon too. They love burrows more than anyone. But we haven’t seen a single goblin nose. Know what that means?”
Eugene, entering the dungeon for the first time, had no way of knowing.
Galpredic grinned like a teacher instructing a student and continued his explanation.
“It means mid-tier or higher monsters are commanding the goblins. As labor and food. No doubt hundreds are swarming deeper in, serving their master.”
“Does that happen with all of them, or just gates that opened late? Or ones with infrequent subjugations?”
“Sir Eugene, the smarter you are, the better. Exactly. Whatever it is, the mid-tier monster here will definitely bring goblin footsoldiers.”
Eugene agreed with that.
Because a foul stench different from kobolds or gnolls had begun wafting faintly from the unseen depths of the dungeon.
‘Around two hundred meters? Similar footsteps numbering over thirty, and three heavier ones.’
Using his keenly heightened senses to estimate the monsters’ rough numbers and sizes, Eugene casually suggested.
“Then how about the mercenaries handle the goblins, and we take the mid-tier monsters?”
“That’s the plan. Oh, right, do you know how to use a spear?”
“If it’s throwing.”
“Take one. Spears are better than shortswords against mid-tier monsters. Hey.”
At Galpredic’s gesture, one porter hurried over.
A dedicated porter assigned by House Tiwin since Galpredic had no squire yet, he carried five spears slightly longer than a longsword.
“I brought an atlatl just in case too, so use it. You know how, right?”
Eugene nodded.
Of course he did. He had used a wooden spear and atlatl he carved himself while hunting beasts in Broadwin Village.
An atlatl allowed throwing a spear much faster and stronger than by hand alone.
“It’s custom-made to my strength, so it’s on the heavy side. But with your power, it should be fine.”
Meanwhile, the monsters were steadily closing the distance, so Eugene took the atlatl.
‘About sixty meters. And……’
Eugene glanced sideways.
Invisible to the mercenaries, goblins were just rounding a bent corner far ahead, entering his sight.
“Goblins.”
“What?”
Galpredic whipped around.
No glow grass in the area, so all he saw was darkness.
But as a knight with far superior instincts to ordinary people, he sensed something and shouted to the mercenaries.
“Monsters incoming! Everyone, battle ready!”
The mercenaries swiftly formed up.
Realizing the subjugation force had prepared for battle, the monsters abandoned their stealthy approach and charged.
Kyaaak! Kakak!
Wooorrrraaah!
A troll’s roar echoed through the dungeon amid the goblins’ menacing shrieks.
“Urk!”
“Ugh……”
Mid-tier monsters weren’t frightening just because of their size.
Their eyes and roars contained a bizarre power called ‘fear.’
That was why those with weak mental fortitude froze at the mere sound of their cries.
“They’re coming!”
Kyakyakak!
Goblins just over a meter tall surged forward.
As the mercenaries blocked them with shields and cut them down with shortswords, Eugene and Galpredic loaded spears into their atlatls.
“Throw the torches!”
Several rear-line mercenaries hurled pre-prepared torches far ahead.
The flying torches momentarily illuminated the trolls, and upon confirming them, Eugene and Galpredic leaned back sharply.
“Hah!”
With fierce kiais, the atlatls launched spears piercing the darkness.
Thwack! Krroooaaargh! Kurrgh!
As the trolls bellowed in pain, Eugene charged first.
He slashed down a charging goblin with his shortsword and leaped toward the smallest of the three trolls, whose chest was impaled by his spear.
The agonized troll swung its massive club, but the vampire’s reflexes easily dodged the wounded beast’s attack.
He then clung to the back of the troll—which was nearly two meters tall even as the smallest—and slit its throat with his shortsword.
Kueeeek!
The troll thrashed wildly, but Eugene was strong enough to endure even the swamp monster’s struggles.
Moreover, he was far stronger now than then; it was a force an immature troll couldn’t withstand.
Crack! Crunch!
The troll’s power rapidly drained as half its cervical vertebrae were severed.
Eugene secretly drank the blood spurting from its neck. A power even stronger than from kobold blood overflowed through his body.
Krrooooaaaar!
Were these its parents?
The eyes of the two adults, each a meter larger than the one Eugene felled, gleamed with murderous intent.
The slightly smaller one couldn’t contain its rage and charged straight at Eugene.
Eugene shoved the nearly dead juvenile at it.
Instinctively catching the juvenile, it created an opening Eugene didn’t miss.
Leaping over the smaller one—whose shoulder was pierced by Galpredic’s spear, preventing it from using both arms—he clung to its back as before, slicing its throat while clawing open its chest with extended nails.
Kueegh!
As the smaller one roared, the largest immediately tried to charge.
But an atlatl-launched spear embedded in its abdomen first.
“Sir!”
Seeing Galpredic, Eugene quickly retracted his nails and continued sawing the smaller one’s neck with his shortsword. No, hacking it.
Kuworrrgh!
The smaller one writhed madly, but Eugene didn’t budge.
“Take the other one!”
Before Eugene finished speaking, Galpredic rushed the largest, which was just pulling out the spear from its gut.
Almost simultaneously, the smaller one dropped to one knee, and Eugene ripped its head clean off.
Crunch!
The entire head came away, dragging part of the spine with it.
“……!”
The mercenaries, having felled goblins and approached the knights, all flinched without exception.
In the dark dungeon, the red-eyed knight holding a troll’s head didn’t look human for a moment.
Demon King.
No one voiced it, but all the mercenaries thought the same.
(To be continued next time)