Chapter 30

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Translator: Ace

Chapter: 30

Chapter Title: Sowing Discord in Necropolis

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The ground trembled. Flames erupted, and smoke billowed into the air.

The site had become a total wasteland. Ddol Ddoli barreled through the flying dirt and dust, flattening everything in its path that tried to block it.

Notifications kept popping up nonstop. His head was ringing from them. Ian turned them off and surveyed the situation. Even if Ddol Ddoli was rampaging without opposition right now, there was no guarantee it would stay that way.

Necropolis was never some pushover city.

Even someone as fearless as Ian had to keep his wits about him here. Anything less, and successfully completing the mission would be a tall order.

'But... I think there was some other notification mixed in there besides Ddol Ddoli's. Or was it just my imagination?'

He could've sworn there was some other alert amid Ddol Ddoli's, but it wasn't important right now, so he calmly scanned the surroundings.

Ddol Ddoli had squashed everything flat, so there weren't any immediate threats. But enemies would swarm in soon enough.

Time was short, and he had to achieve the mission objective within it. He needed to hurry.

But rushing blindly wasn't the priority—staying calm and devising a plan was.

'I can't take them all out alone. So I need to use my head.'

Conveniently, he had just the thing in mind. A scheme that had never failed across history, no matter the country or world.

'Time for divide-and-conquer.'

Divide and conquer.

Simple enough.

Pit the five factions ruling this lawless city against each other.

Or even just two of them.

If he could redirect their aggression from him toward each other, the balance would tip, and the board would play itself out from there.

'Then I can't call Lara. It'll just be me and Ddol Ddoli.'

Summoning Lara to deploy Sanctuary would make it easy, but it wouldn't count as divide-and-conquer anymore.

Besides, Sanctuary's range wasn't wide enough to blanket the whole city, so better not to call her and find a way to stir the pot without getting his hands dirty.

Kieek!

A guttural screech suddenly came from ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠behind. Something was charging in fast—three ghouls. Ian snapped his fingers, casting a spell on instinct.

The 4th Circle defense spell, Reflective Shield. A translucent barrier that reflected attacks bounced the ghouls' assaults right back at them. The ghouls spat blood from the rebound force and flew backward at the same speed they'd charged in.

Ian casually dismissed the shield and, with Ddol Ddoli in the lead, headed toward the inner citadel. The inn was close by, so they arrived quickly.

At the gates, there were blockers as expected, but they weren't much of a problem. A few stomps from Ddol Ddoli turned them flat.

The real issue was that Ddol Ddoli was too damn big to fit through the gate.

"Ddoli. Let's smash through the wall and go in. Can you do it?"

-Not sure. But Ddol Ddoli will try.

Ddol Ddoli crouched slightly, like a track athlete in starting position.

Its bent legs straightened, and Ddol Ddoli shot forward like a bullet. Boom! A section of the wall crumbled in a heap, kicking up a massive cloud of dust. Ian gaped at the devastation.

'Whoa... is this even possible?'

When Ddol Ddoli had been massacring monsters earlier, its power hadn't really sunk in. But seeing this? Totally different story.

Even a decent area-of-effect spell would've struggled to breach that wall. And Ddol Ddoli?

One charge did the trick.

-Ddoli broke through the wall!

'That's a walking siege engine right there.'

Ian looked up at Ddol Ddoli. The golem's face was beaming innocently.

'Was creating Ddol Ddoli really beginner's luck?'

He was starting to think it might actually be true.

Ian was about to head into Bone Lord's base when he paused.

'Hold up. Don't go straight in—poke the Mad Alchemists first, then circle back.'

For divide-and-conquer to work, timing was everything.

To nail that timing, he needed to set the board.

He directed Ddol Ddoli toward Bone Lord's turf while turning himself the other way.

Quick in-and-out.

'Just blast a few bone spells at the junkie base and bail.'

Bone magic was typically seen as necromancers' territory, but that wasn't strictly true. Any mage could mimic it with the right mana arrangement.

The outside was chaos. Explosions boomed nonstop, screams echoing here and there. Bren, a top-grade necromancer of the Bone Lord Family, lifted his head from his rocking chair.

"Hey, what's with all the racket? Someone causing trouble again?"

"Yes, sir."

"Ugh, who the hell's screwing around this time? Tsk tsk."

Bren leaned back into the chair. The outside sounded like a warzone, but it had nothing to do with him.

Necropolis was a city that never had a peaceful day. Murders were routine, massive brawls like full-on wars happened daily.

An explosion or two didn't mean much.

As long as their own turf wasn't hit, nobody cared if you smashed buildings or killed people—that was Necropolis's way.

So Bren ignored the noise.

But what was happening wasn't something he could just tune out.

"Tell 'em to cut it out. The Grand Law's about to start—can't have bad juju now, right?"

"Yes, I'll warn the...m."

"Master!"

The door burst open as a subordinate rushed in without knocking. Bren's brow furrowed at the insolence, but then words that made him doubt his ears hit him.

"Bren, sir! Enemy attack! We've got intruders!"

"What? Enemy? Who?"

"It's... some giant! A giant showed up out of nowhere, started wrecking everything, smashed the wall, and now it's heading into our zone!"

"The hell are you talking about? You dreaming or what?"

"It's real! You need to get up now! The giant's coming this way! And for some reason, the junkies are rising up too! We need orders now...!"

Boom!

The ceiling collapsed in a roar of debris. Choking dust and acrid fumes assaulted his nose.

"Gah! What the—?!"

Bren barely staggered to his feet, dodging the falling rubble.

"Who the hell dares... Gah!"

He trailed off, eyes bulging. Not at the collapsed building—but at the massive something right in front of him.

A stone giant. Something towering with a distant gaze looked down at him. What the hell was that thing?!

A Stone Golem? But those weren't that huge.

"A-attack! Where's everyone?! Take that thing do... erk!"

He glanced around. Empty. He was the only one left to grab. Luckily, the giant hadn't spotted ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠him yet.

He gulped, gripped his staff, and muttered an incantation. Foul light swirled around the staff as the spell activated.

Shrrk! A pile of bones surged up, slamming into the giant's face.

It exploded, shattering into pieces.

A massive fireball. Vision-obscuring dust. Bren clenched his fist and grinned.

"That's right! No one withstands my magic!"

Big body, no substance—just a hollow monster. Whoever controlled it was trash.

"Heh heh, as expected of... me."

-Ddoli... hurts.

A low rumble shook his ears. Bren looked up as the dust cleared, revealing the figure—and he recoiled in horror. The rock body was utterly unscratched.

"Impossible! How?!"

He couldn't believe it. Bone Explosion's 5th Circle black magic was brutally destructive. Even a rock monster should've been pulverized.

Not a single scratch. This made no sense. How?!

The stone giant scratched its face like it was just an itch from the blast.

-Master. Face hurts. Why, Ddol Ddoli?

"Ah, looks like a mosquito bit you."

-Mosquito?

"Yeah. Real nasty ones. Enemies of ours."

-Mosquito, master's enemy. Master's enemies are bad. Ddol Ddoli kill mosquitoes from now on.

"Yeah. And one's right here."

-Mosquito... where...

Bren froze. Not from eye contact with the giant. A mysterious voice came from behind.

Then its owner pressed a blade to his throat. Bren went rigid.

"H-hey! Wh-when?!"

"When? Just now."

"N-no way. How'd you fool my senses...?"

"Oh, that? Invisibility magic."

"What?!"

Bren couldn't believe it. Invisibility magic? That useless crap had practical use?

"N-not that! Who are you?! What the hell is that monster... Gurk!"

"Hey now. Monster? Don't talk smack about our cute Ddol Ddoli. Right, Ddol?"

-Ddoli doesn't know. Ddol Ddoli does whatever master says.

Ian nodded. Classic non sequitur. Ddol Ddoli was consistent as ever.

That rigid, rock-solid lack of flexibility? Lovable.

'Our Ddol Ddoli's cuter the more I look at it.'

Ian had never gotten why people called big things cute, but now he did.

What made Ddol Ddoli adorable was its expressions. When it smiled, its gemstone eyes curved into cheerful arches. Irresistible.

"Look closely. Ddol Ddoli's just a baby. You gonna say mean things to a baby?"

"Wh-what're you... Gurk!"

Ian smacked the back of his head a few times. Bren winced, face twisting in pain.

"See? Looks just like a baby, right? Get it now?"

"Y-yeah, kinda starting to see it..."

"Good."

Ian bobbed his head. Bren rolled his eyes sneakily.

A quick spell might stab this lunatic in the back, but the giant was the problem.

How do you deal with a monster immune to 5th Circle black magic?

'Gotta call for backup somehow. Blood Reapers might smash that thing.'

Blood Reapers. Black mages specializing in blood magic, one of Necropolis's five great factions.

Their high-damage blood spells might work.

Or would they?

'Nah, they hate our guts. They'd cheer if we got ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wiped out. Corpse Handlers then? Or the crazy junkies? Or...'

Bren's mind raced faster than ever. Begging rivals was humiliating, almost as bad as dying.

'Damn it, why'd all our elite knights have to get wrecked now of all times?!'

Last time, the war with Blood Reapers trashed all their Skeleton Knights, leaving them combat-ineffective.

Those guys would've made short work of a golem like that. Death aura would've sliced rock like butter.

'If only the Lord hadn't stepped out...'

"I can hear your brain grinding, asshole."

"Wh-what do you... Gurk!"

"You were thinking of stabbing me, huh?"

"No sir! I'd never!"

"Hoping for backup? Dream on. Ain't happening. You know how this place works."

"Urk!"

Bren deflated. The guy knew Necropolis well—nobody cared about citywide chaos unless it hit their turf.

"Who the hell are you?"

"What, you gonna do something about it?"

"You think you'll get away with this?"

"Yup. Cleaning up you boneheads? No biggie."

Bren's face hardened.

'Not an outsider.'

Had to be. No way an outsider would've dropped "boneheads" so casually—that was their slur.

"Who sent you? Blood Reapers? Payback for last war?"

"You think I'd work with those blood-crazed freaks?"

Suspicion solidified. Definitely local.

But he'd never seen this guy or the giant before. What gives?

Didn't matter—not an outsider, so probe away.

Had to know for revenge.

"Got it. Corpse Handlers, then."

"That's even more insulting. You think I'm a zombie fetishist? No wonder you losers suck."

Bren's expression tightened. Two down. One wasn't even humans, so only one left.

Mad Alchemists. Crazed, evil-tainted alchemists—one of the five great factions.

"You crazy junkie bastards. Finally drew your knives, huh?!"

"Heh heh, you're slow as hell. Took you this long?"

Ian grinned sleazily. It all clicked for Bren.

'Crazy junkie shits. Heard they were secretly crafting a masterpiece. That's the monster.'

If it was a real golem, it explained everything.

They built a massive golem to wipe out Bone Lord Family.

'You mad bastards! You'll learn once you taste blood...!'

The thought didn't last. Ian held a crimson potion.

'Explosion Potion!'

Explosion Potion. One of Mad Alchemists' masterpieces, infamous across the city.

"Y-you psycho! What're you doing?!"

"What else? Killing you."

"That blows up, we're all dead! You know that?!"

"Eh, fine by me. You die, I die. Whatever."

Bren paled. Death didn't faze him. Classic junkie madness.

"P-put that down. What do you want?"

"Wants? Got one, but you got it?"

"Y-yeah. Just... put it down."

"Heard you stole something from the Empire recently. Some core?"

"G-gah, that."

"Hand it over. Needs to fuel our great research. With it, Dark Elixir's within reach."

"O-okay. I'll show you. Just set it down."

Ian lowered the potion.

'Heh. Gullible fool.'

It was a healing potion—same color as explosion ones, though. Fooled him perfectly.

'Just pulled it out to test, and he bought it?'

Made sense. Mad Alchemists' signature explosion potions terrified Necropolis's bottom-feeders.

Once bitten, twice shy—or whatever.

"Follow me."

"Yeah. Try anything funny, and boom. Got it?"

"Got it."

Bren led the way meekly. But inwardly, he seethed.

'Junkie scum. Won't let you off. Who do you think you're messing with?'

Bren slyly pulled an emergency communicator from his pocket. A one-use orb that sent ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a preset magic message when shattered.

When Ian wasn't looking, he hurled it outside. Crack. Mana flowed out and zipped away.

Emergency comms successful.

"What was that? What'd you do?"

"N-nothing! Really."

"Tsk. Said funny business means death."

"I know. I'm not crazy."

Bren wiped sweat from his brow. Close call.

'Keh heh. Lord got my message. You're dead meat.'

Ian eyed him and thought,

'Sigh. So hard pretending not to notice.'

They soon reached the destination.

A cramped room, barely half a ping. In the center, an Ethereal Core sat displayed like a trophy.

"That's it."

"Oh, thanks. Actually guided me straight. No lies."

Ian darted in and reached out. Bren smirked inwardly.

'Idiot. Don't touch that barehanded. Super unstable—mana backlash guaranteed. Unless you're a pro mage, you're dead.'

That's why he'd cooperated. Knew they couldn't handle it.

'Heh. Mana surge'll kill him slow. Golem control lifts once he's gone.'

He touched it. Mana boiling, backlash incoming. Just watch him writhe.

"Heh. Die nicely... Hm?"

"Die what?"

"Uh, er, well."

Bren swallowed hard. Rubbed his eyes. What just happened?

'The Ethereal Core... vanished?'

Gone the instant he touched it. Perfectly. And the guy? Not even backlash. What the hell?

"How'd you make the core disappear?"

"Oh, didn't make it disappear. Put it in my inventory."

"In... ventory? What's that?"

"Got one. Super handy."