Chapter 12: The Mine is Dangerous

As we entered the mine, the air turned frigid.

A pall of death hung in the atmosphere.

The mana reactions are intriguing.

I frowned at the floating messages.

It seemed far from over.

"This is odd."

Gaion muttered.

I shot him a sullen look.

Being dragged here for free suddenly felt unfair, so I decided to act a bit prickly.

"What is?"

"Undead don't spawn this quickly. That means someone deliberately created them..."

He was right.

Especially mid-tier undead like ogre skeletons.

"Could it be related to the magic stones?"

"Possibly... Hold on, stop!"

Gaion halted abruptly.

His gaze locked onto one spot.

"Over there..."

A magic stone embedded in the mine wall.

It emitted a strange glow.

Not the clear blue light typical of magic stones.

Someone used this for...

No time to think.

The temperature plunged sharply.

Krurrruk...

"Seems like more are coming."

Gaion assumed a guarded stance.

But this time was different.

"No, this is..."

Skeletons crawled out from the mine walls.

The miners' corpses had turned into undead.

"Whew, lucky it's not ogre skeletons, I guess..."

I raised my Sunogi.

Regular undead weren't much of a threat.

And now I had proper holy water ready.

No problem at all.

Thwack-thwack— Thwack-thwack—

Arrows pierced the skeletons.

The enchanted arrows shattered their bones.

But the effect wasn't overwhelming.

"Impressive... What a weapon. No wonder you're proud. The lord will love it."

Gaion marveled.

But personally, I wasn't thrilled.

Definitely needs tweaks for undead.

Arrows that just punch through bones.

Undead shambling forward even with headshots.

If the holy water hadn't been perfect before entering, suppression would have failed.

Too many arrows wasted on undead.

And some charge even with arrows in their skulls... Stopping power is too weak.

I noted Sunogi's weakness.

But no need to share that flaw with others.

Especially not Gaion.

"Enchanted arrows work on undead too. And with holy water..."

Before he finished, more skeletons appeared.

No end in sight.

So I told Gaion.

"This will just drain our stamina."

"Then what...?"

"We find the source."

I scanned the surroundings.

Fixed my gaze on the direction the undead emerged from.

"That way."

The Hunter System shone in combat.

It was designed for endless battles, after all.

I pinpointed the location and pointed.

A narrow passage came into view.

"You sure? Mines are labyrinthine—even guides get lost."

"Yes. All the mana flow heads that way. That's gotta be it."

Gaion eyed me dubiously.

"Can you... see mana?"

"See mana? I just..."

Will he buy 'gut feeling'?

Lame excuse.

As I hesitated, Lena interjected.

"Theo-nim is extremely sensitive to mana. That's why he crafts so delicately."

"Crafting... Yeah, constant fine work sharpens mana sense without realizing."

Gaion nodded, convinced by Lena.

Apparently, such cases existed.

"Fine. I'll trust you."

Thanks, Lena.

She defused the situation unintentionally.

No need to explain tricky abilities.

The group headed into the narrow passage.

And there...

Now we're getting to the real thing.

A smile tugged at my lips.

Soon, I'd uncover what happened in this mine.

Blue light leaked from the passage's end.

Mana tangled like threads.

Intriguing magical structure.

"This is..."

Gaion's voice filled with shock.

"A forbidden ritual. Who the hell dares perform this in a mine...?"

A wide plaza lay at the passage's end.

A magic circle etched the floor, dense with embedded magic stones around it.

"Ritual to revive the dead... But something went wrong, it seems. Filthy vermin."

Gaion grimaced, venting fury at the culprits.

Failed magic circles and traces littered the area.

"They experimented here? Tried reviving a dragon corpse and failed...?"

"D-Dragon? How do you know that?"

"Look."

Dragon bones piled in one corner of the plaza.

Size and presence dwarfed the ogre skeleton from the entrance.

"Someone tried to resurrect a dragon, failed, and the backlash turned nearby corpses into undead."

"Could be. But a dragon... They're insane."

"How'd they even get dragon bones? You can't just buy those."

A dragon, no less.

Honestly, first time seeing one.

Dino-like bones made me guess, thanks to Hunter-era knowledge.

Dragon bones... Shame. Would've been nice to snag some.

But the bones were nearly dust.

All energy drained—useless trash.

Anything else worthwhile?

I scanned for useful items or clues.

Gaion's eyes sharpened too.

His curiosity outweighed caution after spotting the dragon traces.

Unexpected gains. These will be useful.

Seemed the operators amplified their mana here.

And purified themselves from undead taint.

Krurrruk...

"Theo-nim, more coming."

Lena whispered.

Skeletons gathered from the far passage.

Endless undead horde.

"Gaion-nim, if we leave it, they'll keep coming. We need to destroy the magic circle..."

"Tch, right. Shame, but no choice."

Gaion stepped forward.

Red mana surged from his hand.

"Be careful. The mana is unstable..."

Before I finished, his spell activated.

Unstable mana was no issue for him.

A true 3rd-class mage.

"Flame Storm!"

Boom!

Fierce flames engulfed the magic circle.

But...

"Wha— Everyone, take cover!"

My shout coincided with the magic circle's runaway.

Its blue glow shifted to red.

Boom-boom-boom!

I instantly deployed a defensive barrier.

Lena's defense ring activated too.

Kaboom!

The magic circle exploded.

Unstable mana detonated all at once.

"Th-this... Cough! You okay? Respond! Cough, cough."

Gaion coughed, scanning around in shock.

Bigger explosion than expected.

The mine's confines amplified it.

Without the barrier, no one survives.

"You're alive. Thank goodness. You really should switch to combat mage. Prepared for this too..."

"No, just luck."

"You prepped a defense spell instinctively? That's combat mage talent..."

Gaion kept pushing the switch, oblivious to the mood.

Persistent guy.

Actually, it was the system's warning, not prediction—but no need to explain.

Not the time for chit-chat.

Lena looked dazed, still stunned.

"Th-Theo-nim!"

She threw herself at me.

"Wha—? Y-You're okay? ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠No injuries?"

The explosion scared her badly.

She wasn't acting like usual.

Her fingertips trembled—she hadn't calmed yet.

"I survived thanks to the ring you gave me. Without it, I..."

"Glad it worked. It's broken now, unfortunately, but I'll make another. Don't be too down."

"You'll make another one like this...? Theo-nim, you're..."

She seemed about to say something but held back.

Instead, her eyes hardened with resolve as she bustled about busier than anyone.

Like she was repaying a debt—almost pitiful.

Right... Lena's no fighter. I've been thoughtless.

Lena wasn't a combat slave.

I rescued her from becoming a sex slave.

Forgot since she kept up well—but I needed to look after her.

"Lena, rest. Others will handle cleanup..."

She ignored my concern for her well-being.

But her efforts bore fruit.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Before the explosion's aftermath settled, she whispered close.

"Theo-nim! Look at this!"

Something in her hand.

A small box—from who knows where.

"Where'd you...?"

"It surfaced after the blast. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I grabbed it before anyone saw."

"Nice. Pocket it for now!"

I slipped the box into my spatial pouch.

Small enough to fit easily.

As the dust settled, blue light glinted from one plaza corner.

A pile of mid-grade magic stones.

"Half-mined stock, probably."

Gaion called his men.

With the circle destroyed, no more undead.

Time to clean up the mine.

Still chaotic, though.

And chaos is opportunity.

"This much won't show."

I pocketed ten mid-grade stones.

Pile was huge—no one would notice.

Now I can craft info-gathering magic dolls.

A smile crept on.

This fight yielded plenty.

Solidified my standing in the territory, plus mid-grade stones.

Not bad for me.

Just curious about Lena's box.

Hoping for valuables—but probably not for show.

From an undead-infested illegal experiment site.

Unlikely to be legit.