Ancient City (3)
They spent the night near the dungeon entrance. The next day, they finally stepped inside.
As they descended the underground path, glowing stones dotted the walls here and there—curious lights that nonetheless could never hope to push back the absolute dark on their own. Roy simply raised a light with elf magic, unbothered.
"It's my spirit's power."
That single line settled every question. Noah pouted that Roy only sold his name whenever something was inconvenient to explain, but Roy already knew the spirit wasn't truly upset. You didn't spend day after day with the little guy without learning that much.
The knights split into two groups and took the front and rear. If monsters suddenly came from behind, the commoners—already short on mana—would have no way to hold them off. They hadn't brought any particularly strong mercenaries or mana-rich hunters, so protecting the party was, of course, the knights' responsibility.
They traveled a long while until the path finally refused to go any deeper. Soft magical light spilled across what lay ahead: dense rows of ancient buildings stretching away to either side. The taller structures had their upper floors buried in earth and stone, only the lower levels still visible. These were the traces of a civilization that had once stood upon this land in ages past.
Roy's mouth fell open as he took it all in. It was a new world.
In his previous life he had been a coward—nowhere near brave enough to enter an underground dungeon with the meager mana he possessed. So this was, for all practical purposes, the first time he had ever set foot among ancient ruins.
A civilization from thousands of years ago... Even seeing it with my own eyes, I can barely believe it.
The children reacted much the same.
"How does a city this advanced end up buried underground?"
"Maybe they incurred the wrath of the gods?"
"The gods, huh... Well, burying an entire city underground isn't something just anyone could do."
Roy found structures that looked more advanced than anything of the present age. Looking at them, he finally understood why ancient magic had been so formidable.
The civilization itself was on a completely different level.
Perhaps the magical knowledge he had always prided himself on was nothing more than a tiny fragment of what these people had once wielded. Humility rose in him without end.
In a society like this, I wouldn't even blink if someone told me they could mass-produce something like Dragon's Breath.
Maybe the ancient mages had crafted all sorts of Dragon's Breath, drunk them down, and gained power beyond imagination. The thought struck him unbidden.
At last the long supply train trailing behind them finished filing down into the underground. Confirming it, Freddy raised his voice.
"From this point, we establish base camp. The location is already decided. Before we pitch the tents, we will clear the surrounding monsters—noncombatants, gather in one place."
Convenient as always. Someone else handles everything.
This expedition would not end in a day or two. They would have to spend days—perhaps longer—in this pitch-black underground city. Beyond the base camp, they would need to plant guide markers at intervals so no one got lost, and establish several outposts as they advanced. Protecting water and food for the entire duration was critical as well. The underground was cool, yes, but it was still midsummer. Even left alone the supplies might spoil—and if monster saliva or blood got on them, they would have to be thrown out on the spot. That would end the expedition then and there.
"Roy, what do we do?"
"I already told you. For now, just look around. But watch carefully what everyone is doing—and figure out why they're doing it."
"Okay. Got it."
His three assistants nodded in unison. Cute kids who actually listened to their leader.
"There shouldn't be any major problems around here. I doubt some powerful monster is going to jump out of nowhere."
"How do you know?"
"I have my ways."
Naturally, the area around a dungeon entrance had been trampled by generations of people coming and going. Seasoned excavators knew the terrain cold, and decent maps already existed. For today, watching the knights work from behind was enough. They were the experts.
"Hmm. Humans truly do have so much to busy themselves with. Unable to see an inch ahead in the dark... when all they need is to go that way."
"Noah. And if you go that way right now and run into a powerful monster, then what? You won't get a single drop of that mana you love so much."
The count had said as much—and so had the excavators. Inside this dungeon lived everything from weak monsters to creatures so strong they would make an ogre look like a child. The darkness, the underground, and the fact that they were standing in the middle of an ancient city only made those enemies harder to face. Until such beasts were brought down, there would be no mana vein, no experiments—nothing.
That was why Roy had been so sure no powerful monsters would appear near here. The mana vein. Their current position was a long way from its heart. The stronger a monster, the more it grew drunk on dense mana. The real threat would almost certainly have claimed the very center of the vein for itself.
"Monster!"
"...!?"
But something was wrong. Had Roy's prediction failed? They had barely entered the dungeon, and already a powerful monster had appeared.
—BOOM!
A tremendous noise rolled through the dark, followed by the sound of something collapsing. A building somewhere underground had clearly been destroyed by a monster. Tension bloomed across every face. Shouts flew back and forth—the voices of the knights.
"Is everyone unharmed!?"
"For now, yes! But it's too dark—we can't identify the thing!"
"Use Lighting! Get those torches up, now!"
Roy wanted to know what was happening, but his first priority was keeping his assistants safe. He couldn't simply chase after the noise for a look.
"You three, over here. Herd people to one side. The sound came from that direction, so we'll hold the opposite one. Leave that side to the knights—they'll be fine."
Even then, Roy still failed to grasp how serious the situation was. He assumed the monster that had appeared wouldn't be that strong. They hadn't even reached the outer edge of the mana vein—how could a truly powerful monster show up here?
"Protect the food first. If we lose that, this entire expedition is finished."
"Understood."
Roy shouted at the stunned crowd, bringing order as best he could. All the while, the sound of buildings collapsing continued on the far side. The underground space was broad, but it was a closed chamber of earth and stone. When those ancient buildings fell, massive clouds of dust would rise—and they would not settle easily. Lighting spells and torches alone would struggle to secure any real visibility.
"Priests, stand by. We may have wounded."
"Understood."
One of the expedition's sorest shortcomings was how few priests they had brought. August was almost upon them, and between preparations for baptisms and coming-of-age rites, they simply hadn't been able to spare many.
CRASH!
"Roy... isn't this actually dangerous? How strong is this thing if the knights still haven't finished it with that many of them on it...?"
"It's just a visibility problem. Don't worry."
He said it, but the crease between Roy's brows deepened. Quite some time had passed since the monster appeared. He had heard that most of the knights could use Aura Blade. A few strikes should have severed the limbs of nearly any ordinary beast—should have taken its head clean off in an instant. So why was this taking so long?
Unease began to settle in his chest.
"Master! It's coming!"
Noah's urgent cry rang out—and then:
Thud. Thud.
Heavy footsteps shook the ground. A monster emerged from the direction where Roy stood.
"What the hell is that?"
BOOM. RUMBLE—!
The creature's shoulder merely brushed a building, and stone that had endured thousands of years came crashing down in a roar. It was the same monstrous ape they had seen outside the day before—only several times larger. Its face was so hideously contorted it looked more like a demon than an animal. Strangely, a gaping hole had been punched through one shoulder, and black blood poured from the wound.
"GRAAAAAAH!"
It bellowed and charged straight at them. Roy ripped his sword free and lunged forward. If he failed to stop it here, the food—and every person behind him—would be slaughtered.
Crimson energy flared along the drawn blade, and aura rose with it.
"Hah!"
He slipped the charge by a hair and carved through its thigh. The height difference left him no better option. Magic weapon and aura together—the monster's thigh offered no resistance at all and split clean through.
THUD!
Blood erupted in a torrent as the beast lost its balance and smashed into the building beside it. Dust billowed so thick Roy could barely breathe; he coughed hard, again and again.
"Master! That one isn't the only one!"
"Damn it—how many are there!?"
Just as Noah said, Roy sensed dozens of the apes nearby. He activated his Golden Eyes and sought out their mana. He had been conserving it until now, but the situation had grown too dire for thrift.
Roy shouted as fast as he could.
"There are more than a dozen of the monster apes—dozens! Everyone, be careful! Chloe! Anna! Protect the food and the people no matter what it takes! Priests—prepare your blessings at once!"
He issued the orders one after another. On the far side, the noise of collapsing buildings and the knights' shouts had not stopped. Their situation was no better than this one.
"Golden Knights! I'm trusting you! I'll go help the other side!"
"Yes! We'll hold here!"
Freddy, the knight-commander, must have heard Roy's shout—he came running hard.
"What happened? Is everyone all right? Roy—what did you just yell? There are more of them?"
"Yes. Not one or two. Nearly thirty."
"Is that another of your spirit's abilities? This is bad... They're not that strong individually, but the numbers are the problem."
"I'll handle them."
When Roy volunteered, Freddy's eyes went wide.
"You mean to face that many alone?"
"As long as I don't have to fight them all at once, I'll be fine. The real problem is whether any of them rush this position while I'm away..."
The giant monster apes were numerous, yes—but each one was also stronger than an orc giant. He could handle them, but he worried for the people while he fought. He simply could not take on that many simultaneously.
"Right. That's the problem. I'd heard rumors of monsters running wild lately, but I never imagined beasts like these would be swarming in packs."
"We don't have time."
"...Then I'll take them on. You hold this position."
"......"
It wasn't a bad judgment. But Roy had no idea how strong Freddy truly was. In pure mana volume the man was probably a little short of Roy himself—but then came the differences in weapons and charms, in experience, in wisdom, in usable magic and spirits. By every measure that mattered, Roy was the stronger of the two. He just couldn't say so out loud.
This is genuinely a problem.
Roy's mind raced.
Isn't there some good way to lure them all to one side?
The other apes were still some distance away. He had to find a method before the whole pack closed in.
"Master, what are you doing? Another one is coming."
Thanks to Noah, Roy sensed a second monster ape approaching in advance.
"Let's do this. I'll take this side—Freddy, you take that one."
"...That puts far too much on you."
"There's no time to debate!"
The monsters were closing from three directions. One side was blocked by the passage leading up to the surface; of the remaining three, the knights were already holding one. That left two approaches—one for Roy, one for Freddy.
"Fine. Chloe! Watch Roy's back!"
"Yes, Brother!"
With the people and the food at the center, Roy and Freddy's desperate fight to defend them began.