Chapter 47
Chapter 47
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 47
Chapter Title: Twice as Much (2)
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We’d been walking for about twenty minutes into the Kalchis Mountains, heading for the summit.
“It's an alarm spell.”
Seamus, who was scouting ahead, raised a fist, halting the squad in their tracks.
“The fact that an alarm spell is set up here means…”
“That we're not heading in the wrong direction, at least.”
“Adness?”
“It's a very simple spell that sends a signal inside the moment the line is crossed. It'll be triggered no matter what we do. Whether we disarm it or just cross it.”
Ironically, because the spell was so simple, there was no easy way around it.
“Hmm… There's a saying Lord Prometheus often used. 'First strike wins.' It's an Eastern phrase, but it left an impression on me, so I know its meaning well. 'Strike before you are struck. And do it thoroughly.'”
“Oh. He said something like that…”
“He had many wise words.”
Peri Batoni drew his sword, his mana surging as if ready to cut down an enemy at any moment.
“Reinhardt will be the tank on the front line. Kratos will be the off-tank, handling both offense and defense. Seamus will disrupt the rear, and Adness will provide ranged support. I will be the main DPS, focusing on attack.”
“Uoooh-!”
That's not it. No! Don't!
I mean, the roles are correct, but I have no idea why it's so embarrassing. These aren't the kind of words you use in a serious situation like this. 'First strike wins,' 'tank,' 'off-tank,' 'DPS'... all of it.
Sigh, I guess this is all my karma. Who else is there to blame?
“We're charging straight in. Kratos, do you sense anything?”
“I feel something straight ahead, about a two-minute run from here.”
“Perfect. We'll finish this quickly!! Don't give them a single opening!”
The squad members drew their weapons and charged forward.
KRA-KOOOM-
Peri Batoni's sword swung horizontally, unleashing a smooth blade of aura that began to destroy everything in its path.
“It's an attack! An attack!”
“Report the situation to the lab!”
Isn't this the beauty of 'first strike wins'? A chaotic situation. Enemies running around in confusion.
However, there were no knights or mages, the kind you'd expect at a research facility of this scale. Most were just soldiers on guard duty and ordinary researchers.
In that case!
“That cave entrance over there!”
At Kratos's shout, Peri Batoni unleashed another volley of blade auras before following Kratos into the cave.
It was obvious at a glance that the entrance area wasn't a place where they would do anything to the kidnapped people.
Once the entire mercenary squad was inside, Kratos swung his hammer and completely collapsed the cave entrance. To ensure the enemy couldn't clear it easily.
The underground lab was connected deep within the cave. They would be defenseless if attacked from above while descending.
“We can clear the entrance on our way out. For now, the priority is to stop them from trying anything funny while we head down.”
Seeing that they even had an elevator powered by magic stones, they were astonished and grew more tense.
“An elevator? What in the world are they doing here?”
It meant this facility was important enough to warrant installing such an elevator.
Grrr-
The single elevator connecting the surface to the underground began its descent, clanking and creaking ominously.
“What happened here?”
“I don't know for sure, but it seems certain a chimera escaped from here.”
“Don't let your guard down. This place seems more dangerous than I thought.”
Long gouges, as if clawed into the elevator's outer wall, made them tighten their grips on their weapons.
“Prepare for battle.”
When the elevator reached the bottom, a recently installed-looking steel door split open vertically, revealing a corridor bathed in the bright red light of an emergency alarm.
It was a completely different sight from the crudely made log door on the surface. The lab was impeccably clean, with a long, white-painted corridor stretching out before them.
These meticulous bastards. Just like at the ruins, they hadn't left a single mark related to the Empire. So much so that anyone looking would think it had no connection to the Empire at all.
“Kratos to the front. Reinhardt, take the rear.”
Kratos spread his spiritual power wide, a hammer in one hand and a sword in the other.
“Moving forward.”
***
“What's the infusion status?”
“It's almost finished!”
“Increase the dosage and finish it quickly! You worthless insects! How dare they come here! We should capture them all and use them as materials!”
“If we increase the dosage now… We've already pushed it too far.”
“Shut up and increase it! I'll take responsibility!”
Victor Braak, the director of the Kalchis Mountains research facility, shoved the hesitating researcher to the floor and cranked the infused demonic energy to its maximum level.
“I don't care if it fails! They should be grateful to be used as materials!”
If only the materials had arrived properly, this historic achievement could have been advanced significantly. But on that day.
The day the materials were supposed to come through the portal, but instead, a worthless test subject came through and a bomb went off.
Everything went wrong. Everything!
The explosion caused significant damage to the lab and its research data. Of course, if that had been all, it would have been manageable.
Personnel could be replaced, and more test subjects could be procured from elsewhere. That level of loss was a problem that could be handled.
But the bigger problem was that the explosion damaged the lab's security system, allowing several test subjects to escape.
Not only did they escape, but one of them left the mountains, killed someone, and was discovered.
On top of that, the demonic energy incident in the capital delayed the research, and cleaning up the mess took forever.
Naturally, the Empire was furious, and several members of the facility were disposed of. And that led to the current situation.
“It's fine. I just need to complete this, just this one thing. Then I can make up for everything. I can get it all back!”
Even amidst the chaos, he continued his research, and thanks to the timely supply of materials, he was able to achieve results.
Fshhhh-
As he nervously brushed back his fallen bangs, an indelible scar from that day was clearly revealed. A scar that was, in a way, hideous.
“Infusion complete!”
“Damn it-! Then begin the stabilization process!”
A dark energy flickered over the scar, but Victor Braak paid it no mind, ruffling his hair irritably.
“Stabilization complete!”
As black demonic energy escaped the cylinder like steam, Victor's heart began to pound rapidly.
Clank-
The steel cylinder shuddered violently.
THUD-
The cylinder convulsed again, denting significantly.
“Hehehe… It's finally complete. With this data, that's all I need. I can improve it further.”
A large hole appeared, and a hand emerged with the demonic energy from within, tearing the steel cylinder to pieces as it came out.
Billowing crimson-black smoke. A massive, overwhelming figure.
“Haaaah—”
With every exhale, crimson-black energy poured from its nose and mouth.
“This power… is incredible.”
“Ooh… It seems the experiment was a success.”
“Is this the power of a Sword Master? I feel like I can do anything.”
At Victor Braak's words, the knight-turned-test-subject clenched his fist. He could feel strength incomparable to before. A sense of omnipotence, as if he could do anything.
“There are intruders.”
“Intru… ders? Here?”
“I don't know who they are, but it could be because of those test subjects we caught a while ago. Or… it could be the ones who did that to you.”
“That incident… those bastards.”
As soon as he said that, an explosive wave of demonic energy erupted from the knight.
The reason he, once a promising knight, had lost even his human form and completely surrendered his body to this energy.
“Isn't this the perfect stage? I bet you're dying to use that power right away. Don't you want to tear them to shreds?”
Victor Braak pointed to a massive greatsword leaning against a wall. It wasn't the ordinary longsword he had used before the experiment, but given his current body, it suited him much better.
Fwoosh-
He swung the sword with enough monstrous strength to create a windstorm.
“Good. Very good. Where are they?”
“The prison where the materials are gathered.”
The test subject from the cylinder moved slowly in the direction of the intruders, ferociously brandishing its crimson-black demonic energy.
***
Following Kratos, they arrived at a location. Seeing the horrific situation there, Peri Batoni gave orders without delay.
“Reinhardt! Hold the front! The rest of you, rescue the people!”
“Break them all! All of them! Quickly!”
Peri Batoni ran around himself, starting to break the locks on the cells holding the kidnapped people.
This place was less a prison and more like a warehouse for storing living materials.
People were crammed into the small spaces like luggage, left with no room to even lie down properly. They were skin and bones, and some had physical deformities.
“These inhuman bastards!”
“How could they do this to people…”
“Squad 3! Where is Squad 3!”
Peri Batoni moved through the large prison, scanning the faces of the people inside for any sign of Squad 3, but he couldn't easily spot them.
“Vice-Captain! Over here!”
Peri Batoni raced to the dampest, darkest corner where he'd heard Seamus's shout, and clenched his teeth at the sight.
“What is this…”
He prided himself on having seen countless atrocities and filthy sights in his nearly twenty years as a mercenary, but he was at a loss for words before this scene.
“Len… what in the world…!”
It was Len, the captain of Squad 3, looking like skin and bones, as if all his life force had been drained away in the past two weeks.
The condition of the other squad members was no better. Their wounds were festering, and their eyes were vacant, unable to even focus properly.
“Vice… Captain.”
“We came to rescue you…”
“Of course! The White Mercenary Corps never abandons its members!”
What in the world had been done to them here to end up like this in just two weeks? Their condition was so poor he wasn't even sure they could be treated if they made it out alive.
Still, getting out of here alive was the priority. They had to live to fight another day.
“We need to leave immediately. Call the others.”
The original objective was to rescue Squad 3. Now that the objective was met, escape was the priority.
However, the elevator they came in on could probably hold a maximum of about forty people at a time.
Considering the number of prisoners, it would take at least three round trips. And that was assuming the facility's security forces wouldn't interfere in the meantime.
“How are we going to get all these people out?”
“Hmph. We have to take as many as we can in one go.”
Fewer than thirty people could walk on their own. But they couldn't just leave people behind. They had to save everyone.
Especially Squad 3.
“Enemy-!!!”
Doug Reinhardt's shout echoed loudly from the entrance.
KABOOM-
The lab wall shook violently, and by the time Seamus and Peri Batoni reached the prison entrance.
“Reinhardt!”
Doug Reinhardt was sent flying, spitting blood as he crashed to the floor.
A massive figure swung its sword.
“Get down-!”
At Kratos's shout, everyone ducked just as a crimson-black sword wind swept across the wall.
The creature stood over two meters tall, its body plated with a rough, unfamiliar metal.
Black demonic energy streamed from both its eyes, and with every breath, more of it spewed from its nose and mouth.
Literally the very image of a heinous and repulsive demon from hell.
“Grrrgh-!”
Leaping to his feet, Kratos clashed weapons with the creature, entering a contest of strength. He thought he could overwhelm it, but far from being overwhelmed, it wasn't even being pushed back much by his strength of 101.
“You're a pathetic one.”
“You're the pathetic one. All that bulk and that's all the strength you have? You're all show.”
“You bastard!”
The monster-like creature suddenly eased the pressure on its weapon, throwing Kratos off balance, and kicked at his abdomen.
“Kuh-!”
The hand that blocked the kick throbbed with pain. This was certainly the strongest enemy he had ever faced. Its skill was at least at the level of a Sword Master.
No matter how much it had been artificially enhanced with demonic energy, it meant the creature had possessed genuine skill to begin with.
He glanced back. Peri Batoni and the squad members were charging, unleashing their blade auras, while the kidnapped people were unable to move.
Come to think of it, didn't I say I'd do my part? By offering my opinion at crucial moments?
And it really looks like now is that moment.