The flames were still raging.
Thick black smoke billowed high into the sky.
Even from afar...
the smell of burning wood filled the air.
"Over there!"
the villager guiding them shouted.
Everyone quickened their pace.
As soon as they rounded the final bend...
the entire village finally came into view.
"..."
Wooden houses were being consumed by blazing flames.
Screams echoed from every direction.
Some villagers ran while carrying their children.
Others desperately tried to put out the fires with buckets of water.
But...
the ones filling the village streets...
weren't just humans.
Dozens of Orcs roamed about, wielding stone axes.
Among them...
several giant red-scaled serpents spewed flames at the villagers' homes.
"Flame Vipers!"
Anneliese shouted.
"There are too many of them!"
Reind immediately drew his sword.
"Battle formation!"
"Freya!"
"Support us from the rear!"
"Matthy!"
"Prioritize the wounded villagers!"
"Dieter!"
"With me!"
"Understood!"
In an instant...
the five adventurers sprang into action.
BOOM!!
Anneliese's spell exploded among a group of Orcs.
The ground trembled.
Three Orcs were blasted into the air.
Before they could get back on their feet...
Freya had already released three arrows at once.
Swish!
Each arrow pierced the eye of a Flame Viper.
The monsters writhed in agony...
before collapsing lifelessly.
Elsewhere...
Dieter charged straight into the Orc horde.
His greatsword swung without hesitation.
Slash!
One Orc fell.
Slash!
A second followed.
Reind blocked the largest Orc's attack with his shield.
The violent impact shook the ground.
But...
only for a moment.
His sword flashed.
The Orc's head flew several meters through the air.
Matthy rushed from one victim to another.
A gentle white light shone from both of her hands.
"This wound can be healed!"
"This one too!"
"Quick! Get him somewhere safe!"
Meanwhile...
Cain stood frozen.
"..."
His village.
The place where he had grown up.
The place that held all of his memories.
Now...
it had become a sea of flames.
"Cain!"
a woman cried.
"Help!"
The voice snapped him back to reality.
"Right!"
He immediately rushed forward.
His great axe rose high.
But...
it wasn't aimed at a monster.
Instead...
it came crashing down on a massive wooden beam pinning down a house.
CRASH!!
With a single swing...
the beam, as thick as a man's body, split cleanly in two.
"Come on!"
"Hurry out!"
A mother and her young child crawled free.
Cain didn't stop.
He ran to the next house.
Splitting open doors.
Lifting fallen debris.
Saving everyone he still could.
But...
every time he pulled someone to safety...
he found someone else who was no longer breathing.
"..."
His hands began to tremble.
He kept working.
Kept running.
Kept swinging his axe.
But...
the number of casualties only continued to grow.
Not long afterward...
silence gradually returned to the village.
The last Orc had fallen.
The final Flame Viper stopped moving.
The battle...
was over.
Yet...
no one cheered.
The only sounds that remained...
were sobs.
A child called for a mother who would never answer again.
A man held the lifeless body of his wife in his arms.
Several homes had been reduced to ashes.
Matthy clenched her fists.
"...If only..."
"...we had arrived sooner."
Not far away...
Cain sat weakly in the middle of the road.
His axe lay beside him.
His eyes were empty.
"...I..."
he muttered quietly.
"I was always proud..."
"...of this axe."
He stared at his own hands.
"I thought..."
"...that as long as I could chop down trees faster than anyone else..."
"...I could protect this village."
A faint laugh escaped his lips.
A laugh devoid of any joy.
"...I was wrong."
His hands slowly curled into fists.
"I..."
"I couldn't protect anyone."
No one could find the words to comfort him.
Because...
everyone in the village shared the same grief.
Meanwhile...
Freya quietly examined the tracks on the ground.
Her brows furrowed.
"...Reind."
The party leader walked over.
"What is it?"
Freya pointed at the ground.
"Look."
Orc footprints.
Flame Viper tracks.
There were dozens of them.
Yet...
every single one came from the same direction.
Reind crouched beside her.
"...That hill."
Anneliese stepped closer as well.
She closed her eyes.
A few seconds later...
her expression turned grave.
"...I can sense mana."
"A tremendous amount of it."
"It's coming from the top of the hill."
Reind immediately stood.
"Dieter."
"Freya."
"Anneliese."
"Come with me."
Matthy looked at him.
"What about the villagers?"
"Stay here."
"Help the wounded."
"Understood."
Reind turned his gaze toward the towering hill behind the village.
"If the source of the monsters is really up there..."
"...then we have to stop it."
The four of them immediately ran into the forest.
The higher they climbed...
the colder the air became.
A thick mist slowly spread around them.
Before long...
they reached the hilltop.
And then...
they all came to an abrupt stop.
Standing before them...
was a gigantic, dark cave.
A dark purple spatial rift pulsed slowly at its center.
Dense mana poured out without end.
Even the surrounding grass had turned black.
Anneliese swallowed hard.
"...This is..."
"...a Dungeon."
Reind tightened his grip on his sword.
His eyes never left the cave entrance.
"...This isn't an ordinary Dungeon."
"...This Dungeon has just been born."
Silence blanketed the hilltop.
And from deep beyond the stone entrance...
the thunderous roar of monsters echoed from within the darkness.
----
Silence blanketed the village.
The flames that had once raged were finally beginning to die down.
Thick black smoke still drifted high into the sky.
The scent of charred wood lingered in the air.
Several houses had been reduced to rubble.
Others were left with nothing but blackened frames.
Soft cries echoed throughout the village.
Amid the heavy atmosphere...
Reind, Dieter, Freya, and Anneliese finally returned from the hill.
Their expressions were far graver than before.
Matthy, who had been treating an injured villager, immediately walked over.
"What did you find?"
Reind let out a quiet breath.
"...A Dungeon."
In an instant...
the entire party fell silent.
Freya spoke next.
"It's not an old Dungeon."
"It was formed only recently."
Anneliese nodded.
"The mana surrounding it is still extremely unstable."
"Which means..."
"...monsters may continue to emerge."
Matthy's face immediately turned pale.
"...How dangerous is it?"
Reind looked toward the hill.
"We can't say for certain yet."
"But one thing is already clear."
He turned to face the villagers gathered nearby.
"You can't stay here any longer."
Several villagers exchanged uneasy glances.
An elderly man stepped forward.
"Why?"
Reind answered calmly.
"Monsters could come out at any moment."
"Today."
"Tonight."
"Or tomorrow morning."
"No one can predict it."
"Until that Dungeon is conquered..."
"...this village is no longer safe."
Silence fell once again.
No one argued.
They had all witnessed the aftermath of the first attack.
None of them wanted to imagine what would happen if a second wave came.
A woman pulled her child tightly into her embrace.
"Then..."
"Where are we supposed to go?"
No one answered.
The villagers simply looked at one another.
Their homes were gone.
Their fields had burned.
Their food supplies had been destroyed as well.
Even if they tried to rebuild...
the monsters from the Dungeon could return at any time.
Slowly...
everyone's gaze turned toward Cain.
For years...
he had been the one who ventured into the forest more than anyone else.
He knew the surrounding lands better than anyone.
Cain remained silent.
His eyes rested on what remained of his home.
Or rather...
the place where it had once stood.
The wooden fence he repaired every week was gone.
The little tree his mother had planted no longer existed.
The sound of his father's axe every morning had vanished.
All that remained...
was ash.
"..."
His hands slowly clenched into fists.
He remembered it clearly.
Just a few days ago...
in a place far more peaceful.
A man clad in black armor had stood before him.
"Those houses are still empty."
"I don't care who lives in them..."
"...as long as they follow my orders."
At the time...
Cain had thought it was nothing more than an ordinary offer.
Something he would probably never need.
But now...
he realized something.
It was almost as if...
that man had known that one day...
there would be people with nowhere left to call home.
Cain slowly raised his head.
"...There is still one place."
Everyone turned toward him.
"There's somewhere we can go."
A woman asked softly.
"A place?"
Cain nodded.
"A few days ago..."
"Sir Hax."
"The man who built the Black Fortress to the west."
"He offered..."
"...to let me..."
"...and everyone in this village..."
"...live there."
The villagers immediately exchanged glances.
"Black Fortress?"
"You mean that fortress that appeared recently?"
"Can..."
"Can we really stay there?"
Doubt quickly spread among them.
A middle-aged man slowly shook his head.
"We don't even know him."
"What if he drives us away?"
Another villager added,
"Or asks for a price we can't possibly afford."
Cain fell silent for a moment.
Then he took a deep breath.
"...I've only known him for a short time myself."
"To be honest..."
"I still don't really understand what kind of person he is."
He gave a bitter smile.
"But..."
"He gave me a job."
"He paid me more than fairly."
"He built dozens of houses..."
"...even though no one was living there."
"The doors..."
"...were already standing wide open."
"As if they had been waiting for their residents to arrive."
No one interrupted him.
Cain continued.
"I can't guarantee anything."
"But..."
"If I have to choose..."
"...rather than staying near that Dungeon..."
"...I'd rather place my trust in Sir Hax."
Silence descended once more.
The village elder, who had been sitting quietly on a large rock, slowly rose to his feet.
He was well advanced in age.
His hair had long since turned white.
He looked around the village.
One sight after another.
The burned houses.
The grieving people.
The land where they had lived for decades.
Then...
he let out a long sigh.
"...Our home..."
"...is gone."
The words were simple.
Yet...
they caused several villagers to lower their heads once more.
The elder then looked at Cain.
"If there's truly a place willing to take us in..."
"...I'll go."
A young mother slowly raised her hand.
"...So will I."
"I don't want my child to go through something like this ever again."
Before long...
one villager after another began to nod.
"I'm coming."
"So are we."
"We'd rather start over..."
"...than wait for the next wave of monsters."
It didn't take long.
The decision was finally made.
They would leave the village.
Not because they wanted to.
But because...
they no longer had a home to return to.
Reind watched the entire conversation without interrupting.
Once everything had been decided...
he walked over to Cain.
"We have to return to the Guild."
"The report about that Dungeon can't be delayed."
Cain gave a small nod.
"...Thank you."
"Not just for helping us fight the monsters."
"But..."
"For coming."
A faint smile appeared on Reind's face.
"It's our duty."
He then looked toward the hill.
"Let's hope the Guild sends reinforcements before that Dungeon grows any further."
Not long afterward...
the adventuring party left the village.
They carried news far more alarming than a simple monster attack.
Meanwhile...
the survivors began gathering whatever they could still salvage.
Some carried only a change of clothes.
Some brought family photographs.
Others...
had nothing left to carry.
As dusk approached...
the small procession finally began leaving the village.
Cain walked at the very back.
After a few steps...
he stopped.
He turned around one last time.
Toward the village that had been his home since the day he was born.
Now...
all that remained were drifting plumes of smoke and blackened ruins.
He lowered his head.
"...Goodbye."
Then...
without looking back again...
he walked after the others.
Toward the only place...
that still offered them hope.
The settlement they called Black Fortress.
----
Night had fallen over the western region of the Kingdom of Etravia.
The moon hung high in the sky.
On the walls of Black Fortress...
torches burned, casting their light across the courtyard.
The wooden puppets were still hard at work.
Some carried heavy crates.
Others arranged tools and supplies.
Several more assisted the villagers with whatever they needed.
The fortress was far livelier than usual.
Suddenly...
the air in the main courtyard began to tremble.
Bzzzz...
A black crack slowly tore open.
The space around it rippled.
Within seconds...
a Rift Gate appeared before them.
The villagers, who had never witnessed such magic before, stared in shock.
Yet...
the strongest reaction came from Anneliese.
The young mage's eyes widened.
"...Impossible."
Freya turned to her.
"Anneliese?"
She remained frozen, staring at the slowly opening black gate.
"That spell..."
"...Dimensional Rift."
Reind frowned.
"You know it?"
Anneliese gave a slow nod.
"I've seen illustrations of it in the Academy's library."
"But..."
"It's one of the highest-ranking spatial spells."
"According to the records..."
"...only Archmages of Rank Seven or higher can cast it."
The courtyard fell silent.
Dieter looked back at the gate.
"...Rank Seven?"
"That's Hero-class magic, isn't it?"
Anneliese swallowed.
"Yes."
"Not even..."
"...any of my instructors could use it."
Her gaze never left the Rift Gate.
"But..."
"...the one who just came through it..."
"...was a knight."
Not a mage's robe.
Not a magic staff.
Not the insignia of an Archmage.
Instead...
he wore jet-black armor.
Freya murmured,
"...A knight..."
"...who can use Rank Seven magic?"
Anneliese slowly shook her head.
"...I've never heard of anyone like that."
The black gate gradually closed.
Leaving no trace behind.
Silence returned to the courtyard.
Yet...
the same question filled the minds of all five adventurers.
What exactly...
was Sir Hax?
The moment Hax's feet touched the ground...
the Rift Gate behind him slowly disappeared.
Leaving no trace behind.
Hax paused for a moment.
His gaze swept across the courtyard.
"..."
The System immediately responded.
[Population Increased]
[Unknown Individuals Detected: 41]
[Minor Injuries Detected: 12]
[Critical Injuries: 3]
His attention shifted toward the villagers.
Their clothes were covered in dust.
Several faces were stained with soot.
Some children had fallen asleep in their mothers' arms.
And...
many were still crying silently.
"..."
Something had happened.
Before Hax could ask...
Nocelle stepped forward.
She bowed gracefully.
"Welcome back, Your Majesty."
Hax gave a short nod.
"Report."
Just a single word.
Yet Nocelle immediately understood.
"While Your Majesty was away..."
"...several incidents occurred."
She began her report without leaving out a single detail.
"Yesterday afternoon..."
"Black Fortress was attacked by over a dozen Wyverns."
"Every threat was eliminated."
"There was no significant damage."
Hax simply nodded.
"Continue."
"Shortly afterward..."
"...a party claiming to be adventurers arrived."
"They were on a mission to hunt the Wyvern flock."
"They requested some of the monster materials as proof of mission completion."
"I granted their request."
"Continue."
Nocelle continued in the same calm tone.
"Later..."
"...one of the villagers came seeking help."
"The village where Cain lives was attacked by Orcs and Flame Vipers."
"I did not leave Black Fortress."
"Because Your Majesty's orders were to protect this territory."
"Instead..."
"...the adventuring party went to assist them."
Hax's expression did not change.
"You made the right decision."
The words were brief.
Yet...
Nocelle's eyes softened ever so slightly.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
She continued.
"The attack was stopped."
"However..."
"...there were many casualties."
"They also discovered a newly formed Dungeon on the hill behind the village."
Nocelle stepped aside.
Allowing Hax to see the entire courtyard.
Dozens of people.
Standing there in silence.
Their faces were filled with exhaustion.
Many carried only a handful of belongings.
Some had nothing but the clothes on their backs.
Silence filled the courtyard.
Several seconds passed.
Hax observed them one by one.
The System activated again.
[Empty Houses: 27]
[Food Supplies: Sufficient]
[Water Reserve: Sufficient]
[Risk Assessment: Acceptable]
A moment later...
Cain stepped forward.
He lowered his head deeply.
"...Lord Hax."
Hax looked at him.
Cain clasped his trembling hands together.
"...Is..."
"...the offer you made before..."
"...still valid?"
Silence returned.
No one spoke.
Every survivor looked nervously at the man in black armor.
Their future...
depended on his answer.
Hax looked at them for a long moment.
Children clinging to their mothers.
Elderly people who had lost their homes.
Men whose faces were covered with wounds.
Then...
he answered in his usual flat tone.
"...Come in."
Just two words.
Yet...
several women immediately covered their mouths.
Tears slowly rolled down their cheeks.
Lyra, who had been standing not far from Nocelle, immediately stepped forward.
Compassion filled her face.
She looked at the children clinging tightly to their parents.
Their clothes were stained with soot.
Some weren't even wearing shoes.
Lyra clasped her hands together.
"...Your Majesty."
"May I help them?"
Hax gave a brief nod.
"Do it."
Lyra's face immediately brightened.
"Yes!"
Without wasting another second...
she hurried toward the survivors.
"Children..."
"Come over here."
"Don't be afraid."
She helped a small boy climb down from a wagon.
Then gently stroked the head of a little girl who was still crying.
"It's alright."
"You're safe now."
"From today onward..."
"...you're safe."
Not far away...
Arven also approached several of the village men.
"Come on."
"Let's carry your belongings."
"It may not be much..."
"...but let's make sure nothing gets left behind."
Several villagers looked at him hesitantly.
Arven simply smiled warmly.
"I only became a resident here recently myself."
"Trust me."
"His Majesty doesn't speak much."
"But he isn't a bad person."
Hearing those words...
the tension on several villagers' faces gradually eased.
Cain let out a long breath.
As though the weight crushing his chest since that afternoon had finally become a little lighter.
Hax said nothing more.
He merely raised his right hand.
A faint glow from the System appeared before him.
The Inventory window opened.
A moment later...
Whoosh...
Large wooden crates began appearing one after another throughout the courtyard.
Then another.
And another.
Within seconds...
dozens of crates had been neatly stacked across part of Black Fortress's courtyard.
The survivors stared in astonishment.
"...What are those?"
"So many..."
"...crates?"
Hax raised his hand once again.
This time...
sacks of wheat appeared.
They were followed by sacks of flour, rice, salt, smoked meat, dried vegetables, and fruit.
Then came blankets, clothing, tableware, cooking utensils...
even farming tools and crop seeds.
Everything appeared out of thin air...
as though the empty space inside Hax's Inventory had no limit.
No one could find the words to speak.
The reason Hax had left the fortress that morning...
was because he had traveled all the way to the capital of the Kingdom of Etravia.
There...
he had spent most of the money he had previously earned...
buying supplies for the territory he was building.
It was almost as if...
he had prepared for the villagers' arrival...
even before they themselves knew they would lose their homes.
Hax turned toward Nocelle.
"Nocelle."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Organize the distribution."
Nocelle bowed gracefully.
"With pleasure."
She softly clapped her hands.
Dozens of wooden puppets immediately moved in perfect unison.
Some carried sacks of wheat.
Others brought crates filled with clothing.
The rest distributed blankets to the children and the elderly.
Meanwhile...
Reind and his four companions simply stood there, watching everything unfold.
Freya narrowed her eyes.
"...For some reason..."
"...I feel like I've seen that armor before."
Anneliese slowly nodded.
"...Me too."
Matthy frowned in thought.
"Wait..."
"Could it be..."
Reind's eyes suddenly widened.
"...I remember."
The others immediately looked at him.
"That's him."
"The knight in black armor."
"The one rumored to have fought alongside the Kingdom's Hero..."
His four companions froze.
They looked back at Hax.
Now...
they finally understood.
Why someone could build a gigantic fortress in only a matter of days.
Why Nocelle had been able to eliminate more than a dozen Wyverns by herself.
Why this place was filled with impossible abilities.
Because...
the master of Black Fortress...
was no ordinary noble.
Reind slowly stepped forward.
He placed a hand over his chest.
Then bowed respectfully.
"Thank you."
"For your help..."
"...in Eisenvald."
Hax looked at him for a moment.
"..."
He didn't recognize their faces.
After all...
the battle in Eisenvald had been only one among countless battles he had fought.
"...There's no need."
"It was merely a coincidence."
That answer made all five adventurers exchange glances.
To them...
saving an entire city was an achievement worthy of a lifetime of remembrance.
Yet...
to the man in black armor...
it had been nothing more than chance.
As the courtyard finally grew quiet again...
a System window suddenly appeared before Hax.
[New Threat Detected]
Location: Northwest
Object: Newly Formed Dungeon
Estimated Distance: 8.4 km
Status: Active
Hax slowly turned his gaze toward the northwest.
Toward the mountain range, now nothing more than dark silhouettes beneath the moonlight.
A few seconds later...
he closed the System window.
"...Tomorrow."
That single word...
was enough for Nocelle to understand his intentions.
Yet...
for some reason...
the air around him suddenly felt much heavier.
"These people..."
"...are under my protection now."
"...They made a mistake."
He shifted his gaze toward the mountains where the Dungeon lay.
"...By daring to threaten my people."
Silence instantly fell over the courtyard.
Cain froze.
Reind and his companions fell silent as well.
Even several survivors who had been receiving food slowly stopped what they were doing.
"I hope those monsters..."
"...won't regret their decision."
For a brief moment...
the purple flames burning behind the visor of Hax's black helmet slowly grew brighter.
Their eerie glow pulsed in the darkness.