When playing Dungeons & Stone, internal conflicts were inevitable. And the cause of these internal conflicts was always money. Research might be the top priority for a financially secure wizard, but the reason explorers entered the labyrinth was to earn money…
So this foxy magician has just touched on this very delicate subject.
"Are you going to take all the guardian's loot?"
The dwarf no longer smiled kindly. He had lowered his voice, and his exposed eyes shone through his thick hair.
"Do I look like a damn idiot?"
The atmosphere turned freezing in an instant.
And feeling this,
clicked.
The human man placed his hand on the hilt of his sword. Of course, he wasn't just a porter. Breaking the heavy silence, Raven opened his mouth
"...Instead, I will give you all the mana stones that come out of the Rift."
"So you want us to eat the crumbs?"
"I think it's a reasonable estimate. The loot isn't something that comes up every time anyway."
Although she tried not to show it, the alarm was evident on Raven's face.
She probably hadn't expected such a hostile reaction.
Naive woman. You should have expected this reaction.
The guardian's loot was practically the cream of the crop of the Rift. Among them, the "numerical object" must be a treasure of incalculable value to a dwarf.
"I will not give up the numerical object."
"…Very well. Instead, I will take the guardian's essence. And please acknowledge my ownership of any objects we discover using my knowledge."
"Okay. Then we can both roll the dice and take the Rift Stone cleanly."
Haha. Bullshit.
The two of them didn't even bother to look at Ainar and me and started fighting over their own interests. Watching this gave me a headache. It even made me think it would have been better to cleanse the Rift with blood, sweat, and tears alongside other beginners from the first floor.
If things continued this way, he was going to have to pick up the crumbs. Being powerless was such a sad state of being.
"Bjorn."
"I know what you're thinking, but for now, shut up."
"Okay."
My job became clearer. I had to become stronger.
Whether those idiots want to guard the door or not, I have to find my own way to the top.
Only then could I protect my rights as they do. Of course, that shouldn't be a reason to give in today.
"Wait."
"...?"
When I opened my mouth, the two of them, who had begun to converse more softly, turned their eyes toward me
"Take the object of essence and the numbers. But we will take the Stone of the Rift."
"How greedy."
"Don't you think we'll have trouble clearing this map without two barbarians?"
His eyes on me were very sharp.
Damn, where did those friendly smiles from the first meeting go?
Yes, well, I was just testing the waters.
«Okay, I'll give up the Rift Stone. In exchange, give us priority to two essences apart from that of the guardian».
«Good. That's doable».
«It's fine with me too».
As expected, Raven and the dwarf responded quickly to my request.
This must be your Maginot Line. At his level, an essence of a monster other than the guardian would not be as attractive.
«So, shall we go now?»
«Yes, staying still makes my body itch! Hahaha!»
When the negotiations were over, the wizard slut and the dwarf acted like their previous selves and laughed.
Damn explorers.
***
How long had it been since we had started climbing the mountain road along the fortress?
When we reached the entrance of the fortress, we came across two sculptures of winged demons.
«It's a gargoyle statue».
Rank 8 Monster: Gargoyle Statue.
It was a complicated monster that normally didn't move, but when an enemy came into view, it used «Petrification» and started attacking. The common strategy for these monsters was to sacrifice one person to be hit by «Petrification», while the rest defeated the gargoyle statue to release the curse, but...
Unlike the usual groups, we now had a magician.
«¡Kyaaaaah!»
As the dwarf and I approached the statue, the gargoyle opened its eyes and spread its wings. At the same time, my lower body turned to stone, but it didn't last long.
«Artena Viar».
Raven recited the spell «Remove Curse», and the battle officially began. Ainar and I face one, and the dwarf the other.
¡Bang!
The short dwarf brandished his hammer like a madman and shattered both legs of the gargoyle. When the gargoyle fell to the ground, he crushed his head with the hammer as if he had been waiting for it.
Is this the dwarf's fighting method?
Taking down the enemy from below was a rather manly style. Well, it was the same on our part too.
«You guys are pretty good too!» the dwarf shouted.
There wasn't much difference in the time it took us to destroy the gargoyle statues. We also had confidence in hand-to-hand combat.
[You have killed a Gargoyle. EXP +2]
The two gargoyles turned into light and disappeared, dropping their mana stones, but there was no need to pick them up. They floated up on their own, and were propelled into a large burlap bag.
«I will save the mana stones and distribute them as we go». Raven said.
«That's worth it to me! Hahaha!» the dwarf replied.
The dwarf didn't seem worried about the wizard stealing the stones. True, there was no way for a wizard to hang on to such a small amount of money.
«So, let's go!»
The dwarf broke the old wooden door with a hammer and cleared the way.
Is this the beginning of the real dungeon?
A strange sensation came over me and I followed him inside.
«We're going to need some light».
«Leait».
A sphere of light floated above Raven's hand, illuminating the dark room. The space we were entering was the outside checkpoint. It was a place that would have performed various administrative tasks, such as checking the loading of cars and the identity of passers-by before entering the castle.
«Guhh...»
Attracted by the light and sound, rotting corpses approached from inside the wall cabinet and under the table.
«He's a dead man».
Deadman.
A rankless monster that didn't even spit out mana stones, not to mention experience points. Their bodies don't even disappear in the end, except when they release an essence.
«Since these monsters only bite and scratch, I will save my mana here».
Even without the help of magic it didn't take long to clean the entire room.
«Can Mr. Murad and Mr. Yandel go check the upstairs while I open the door?»
«We will be back soon! Hahaha!»
As I followed the dwarf to the second floor, a space that looked like an ordinary bedroom appeared before us.
Likewise, there were about ten dead, but since the room was larger than the one on the first floor, it was easier to take care of them.
Hit! Hit!
We cleared the second floor in an instant and climbed the stairs to the roof of the third floor without much conversation. There were a dozen deadman soldiers in rusty armor and a commander deadman with a slightly taller stature.
He couldn't exactly be called the first boss monster, but he was one that had to be gotten rid of in order to advance across the map.
«He's big, but he doesn't look like any of the others, so let's get rid of him! Hahaha!»
Once again, we quickly cleaned the surroundings and checked the dead commander's clothes and took a horn. When we went back down to the first floor, the iron door on the other side was already open.
«It is very reassuring to have a magician with us».
As light came in from both directions, the windowless room became quite bright, but meaningless. All the work that had to be done at the outside checkpoint was over. Now, it was time to cross the 160-foot-long bridge.
«Watch your steps, Lady Raven.»
«Oh, thanks.»
The bridge stopped in the middle, leaving about 20 meters from the gate. It wasn't eroded, that's how it had been designed.
Booooooo!
When the horn we got earlier was honked, the drawbridge began to descend with a rattling sound.
No just exo…
[A magic circle of water that had been dormant for a long time was activated.]
«Bjorn! The water is rising from below!»
El foso.
Water began to rise from the furrow that had been dug around the fortress walls to avoid foreign invaders.
Dark, crimson blood.
That is why this place was called the «Bloody Citadel». The sky was red and so was the ground. But there was something else that increased this macabre atmosphere.
«Bjorn! Hand! There's a hand waving over the water over there!»
«Don't be nervous, they are dead men.»
«Hmph, who said I was nervous?»
As soon as the blood rose to the bottom of the bridge, the dead who had been fighting on the surface of the water climbed onto it. The drawbridge had not yet gone down even a fifth. The concept of this part of the map was simple.
[-Stay alive until the drawbridge goes down.]
If we were in the game, this was the message that would have appeared.
«Guhh...»
There were no specific instructions, but everyone knew how to respond and pushed the dead man or hit him with their gun.
¡Coups! ¡Coups! ¡Crunch!
Although the opponents were the dead, rankless monsters, they were a rather difficult opponent on the bridge.
If you fell, the game was over.
«It's all done.»
After a minute, Raven completed the magic spell.
«Utern Dertu!»
If I had to translate the name of the spell directly, it would be «Blade Storm». A strong gust of wind spread around us in a dense formation and crushed the dead like a mixer in an instant.
Learn.
Instantly, the bridge was covered with corpses. The dwarf exclaimed,
«...Amazing.»
«They're just dead men, after all».
Contrary to his humble words, Raven's eyes were filled with pride. But it didn't seem like arrogance at all. This was not a part that could be overcome so easily without a mage with extensive skill. Once we continued to turn the dead who had climbed the bridge into mush, the slowly descending drawbridge finally came into contact with the bridge.
¡Bum!
The first chapter of the Bloody Citadel was over...
ridiculously easy.
***
Once the drawbridge was crossed, three chapters remained:
the battle on the outer city wall, the inner wall dungeon, and the demon worship hall inside the lord's castle.
«Esto es interested in».
Raven's eyes lit up as soon as she entered the castle and glanced at the ruins. It was as if a treasure had appeared before his eyes.
«Blacksmith shops, taverns, inns, churches, stables used by merchants... Most of these remains appear to be public facilities».
The dwarf smiled.
«Is it that surprising, Miss Raven?».
«Of course. Neither on the mountain road we climbed nor in the castle were there farmlands or homes. Which means there were no farmers. Not curious? What did all the inhabitants of this fortified city, built in such a remote mountainous area, eat to survive?».
«Isn't there an alchemist in this dimension too? They must have turned the stones of manna into bread like us. Hahaha.»
«...Truly, among scholars, that hypothesis is the most probable».
«Hahaha! Is that true? Even educated people think the same!»
«But, Mr. Murad, that's not the only interesting thing. With the long drawbridge and high walls, this citadel was built to be very practical. But who was his enemy?».
As the conversation dragged on, the dwarf showed his dislike and began to distance himself from the wizard.
«I don't understand why you ask such a thing. After all, isn't everything man-made?».
«A created space, those who have not learned dimensionalism might think so-«.
«Stop, Miss Raven, the monsters are coming».
As we headed into the city, monsters appeared before long. From dead to skeleton archers, wizards, ghouls, to a rank 8 monster, the demon of death. The level of the creatures that appeared was not much different from that of the Land of the Dead, but there was a big difference in scale. Each group had at least several dozen monsters.
«Everyone, gather next to me».
Furthermore, when we faced a group, the others heard the sound and gathered. A minute after facing the first group, hundreds of monsters surrounded the surroundings.
But at that moment, the «Storm of Swords» we had seen before swept the surroundings again.
¡Shhhhhh-!
Like a magic spell made for mass slaughter, it couldn't pierce them all. Some ghouls survived with a severed limb, not to mention the defense and regenerative power of the death demon.
But...
«Please incargate the remaining monstros».
There was no doubt that by slaughtering the dead and skeletons that made up more than 90% of the monsters, Raven had done the job of more than one person.
«Ainar!»
I screamed and Ainar ran away.
Our target was the demon of death.
And, the hunting method was...
Well, it didn't require a verbal explanation. One look at each other is enough.
«Behell-ahhhhh!!!!!! »
We had fought hundreds of monsters together and now we had reached a point where we barely made any mistakes.
It was time for him «(True) Barbarian Double Attack».
¡Boom!
The dwarf watched us in amazement, raising both legs in the air and hitting the demon of death to the ground, and then opening its head.
«... Did you normally hunt like that?»
His eyes seemed to say: «Who are these barbarians?
«Is there a problem?»
«No. Quite, quite exciting, like a barbarian! Ha ha ha!»
There's no point in being embarrassed now, but it was a little ironic. The dwarves' fighting method was also not particularly elegant or sophisticated.
«Raviod Eheltun.»
There were only seven death demons left, but when Raven cast one on them «Wound Exacerbation Curse», they were easy to hunt. The demon of death, who had the innate passive «Preservation of the Body», was not such a difficult monster.
Ainar murmured in an empty voice.
«I think I can see why everyone thinks wizards are cool...»
Did he feel the need for a wizard in just two battles?
Raven didn't answer, but when I looked, I could see her lips moving. She seemed pleased to be admired.
The dwarf also added a word.
"Ha ha! Certainly, having a magician changes the scope of what you can do."
I agreed. If the Bloody Citadel had been attempted with a group of five novices, such a close-quarters battle wouldn't have been possible. Even if it had taken us dozens of times longer, we would have been working to reduce the number of monsters in the outskirts.
"Hmm, well... This is what I've studied so much for. Of course, you also need talent."
Raven grew uneasy at the successive compliments.
Little by little, I began to get an idea of her character; a gifted little magician girl who pretended to be humble, but who loved to show off, and who was even more passionate about magic and research.
I was also starting to get an idea of how to treat her.
"So I'm going to take a walk and gather some research data for now. If it's okay with you all, can you lend me a hand?"
"We have all this time thanks to you, of course we should help. Hahaha"
"Thank you."
Afterward, we roamed the city's ruins, collecting antiques, books, earth, metal, and the flesh and bones of the dead
"Thanks to all of you, I've finished early. So let's move on to the next one."
I was stunned for a moment.
Huh? Wait, are you done? You defeated all the monsters and searched everywhere, so why don't you just take it?
"What are you doing there! We're leaving."
Could it be… that they really don't know? What about the object that's so easily found once you break the fountain statue?