Chapter 84 – Sewer (1)

The Lord, who was huffing and puffing after chasing his son out, was startled. Soon, glancing at Belloc’s group, he spoke cautiously.

“Did you know?”

Seeing the flustered reaction of the Lord, Belloc felt that Cara’s guess had hit the mark. He spoke.

“Isn’t it that you want to entrust us with handling the killer lurking in the sewer? Am I wrong?”

The Lord looked around once and clapped his hands. Then, the movements of the band and the dancers who were setting a lively mood stopped abruptly. Soon, they bowed their heads and began exiting the room in droves. In the end, no one was left except for Belloc’s group, the Lord, and the man named Banzac, the steward who had guided them here.

Before they knew it, darkness was creeping in outside. The desert night had approached. In the room that had instantly become quiet, the Lord cleared his throat. He spoke.

“You are sharp. To be honest, yes, that is the case. I would like to ask you for this favor. No, to be precise, it should be seen that it has to be you.”

“It’s because of your saving face and authority, right? Since your army was neutralized in an instant due to the strength Belloc showed.”

The Lord grimaced at Cara’s words. Soon, he slapped his cheeks with both hands and nodded. Swearing at his son came out of his mouth again. ‘Damn it. Of all people to mess with, it had to be ones like these…’

“Indeed… As you would know if you heard the rumors, this place, Arian, is also a mess. No, it should be seen as on the verge of ruin. The number of cities that disappeared in the last few months is several, and the number of villages is more than double that. It is all because of the flooding of monsters. In times like these, I must solidify my authority. If you do not accept this work…”

“If we don’t? Are you threatening us right now?”

As Adel glared, the Lord let out a hollow laugh. He drooped his shoulders and looked at Belloc.

“By what means could I threaten a knight who neutralized a great warrior of the desert with his bare hands and calls down lightning? No, I am just devising other measures. I would just have to arrest three vagrants without status instead and hang them. And then dispatch my army into the midst of the monsters lurking underground.”

Monsters? So it wasn’t a normal killer. Did he control the rumors? While Belloc was thinking, Cara smirked.

“People wouldn’t be fools. Let alone us, who are foreigners and not of this country. Would they be fooled so easily?”

“I think so too. The citizens’ support would drop. But… what can I do? I am only devising the best method. And the best for me was to persuade you… though it doesn’t seem to have gone very well.”

Due to his son’s repeated atrocities, Adel’s fierce reaction, and Belloc’s dry expression, the Lord seemed to have already given up. He spoke in an even weaker voice.

“At any rate, I thank you for your mercy. Since you did not kill a single one of my men. You truly deserve to be called an honorable warrior. By the way, I heard from my subordinates that you are crossing the desert. I suppose you would need travel supplies and a map. I will prepare them for you. I will also provide travel expenses. If staying here is uncomfortable, you may go to the inn. I will send my man.”

Belloc was slightly surprised. That appearance might be a mask. It might be the excuse of a weakling who submitted to his strength. However, even excluding those things, the Lord of Altanis was a man with a fairly sound mind. Except for the fact that he was a fool for his son. ‘He is gradually differing from my first impression.’ Belloc spoke.

“If we resolve your source of worry, what can you do for us?”

The Lord’s eyes widened. It was because an answer he had not even anticipated came.

“There doesn’t seem to be anything in my warehouse better than the equipment you are wearing…”

He paused for a moment and then spoke.

“I will give you gold, silver, and treasures, along with a written guarantee of identity bearing my signature, and cloaks woven from the thread of sand spiders. It is a treasure that blocks heat. It will be essential for traveling in the desert.”

Belloc stroked his chin. The compensation was quite lucrative for just going through a smelly sewer once. Adding the experience points that the mysterious figures hiding in the underground passageway would give, his hesitation vanished. He spoke.

“Where is the location of the sewer?”

The corners of the Lord’s mouth drew an arc, which soon turned into a broad smile. Spreading his arms, he spoke.

“T-Thank you! Thank you, Sir! Please wait a moment. I will prepare my soldiers. As soon as dawn breaks tomorrow morning…”

Belloc shook his head.

“No, we will handle it right now. We will go by ourselves. Just guide us.”

“What do you mean by…”

Leaving behind the bewildered Lord, the three stood up from their seats.

#

—Hey, did we block this properly?

—It is double-locked. Do not worry. Besides… if they come out, we can just stab them right away. At any rate, aren’t there only two entrances, here and below the stairs?

—Shit. By the way, for dead bodies to come back to life and move. What on earth is happening?

—I also did not know the situation would become this big. Did you hear what the guys who went down underground and came back said? They said there are hundreds of mummies. Furthermore, there are also reports that they saw something like a huge monster with horns.

—Damn it, if those words are true, it is damn dangerous. Shouldn’t we set up some kind of countermeasure?

—Actually, I have heard something. You know those foreigners who caused a ruckus this morning, right? The one who used lightning… gasp.

The soldiers’ chatter stopped. It was because of the four people standing in front of them. One of them, the steward Banzac, who was one of the Lord’s confidants, spoke.

“Open the door.”

“Lord Banzac. But inside, the monsters…”

Banzac spoke solemnly, barely hiding his trembling legs and voice.

“T-These esteemed individuals will handle it. Open the door without any worry.”

The soldiers turned their heads. The foreigners they had just been speaking of were standing right behind Banzac. The main culprit who caused that commotion this afternoon. The Knight of Lightning. The soldiers nodded obediently. The locks that had been double and triple-sealed clicked open, and the iron door opened with a screech. A hot and humid wind blew with a whoosh, and the foul stench contained within it hit the party’s noses. It was as if they had set up a home. The rest of the people, excluding the party, gagged immediately.

“By this point, I feel sorry for my nose that has adapted to the smell of rotting corpses.”

Cara muttered and cast a spell. The light emitted from the staff illuminated the surroundings brightly. Below a small corridor that stretched straight out, a small ladder was attached. And on that ladder, a severed hand was hanging. Seeing the flesh with only the wrist remaining, Cara furrowed her brow.

“It seems they couldn’t escape and were eaten… How gruesome.”

“If they are lying in ambush down there, it could be dangerous. I will go first…”

Before Adel could step forward, Banzac spoke.

“You there, soldier. Go down first.”

The soldier hesitated at the meaning of becoming a meat shield.

“W-What…? You want me to…”

“My will is the Lord’s will. Are you refusing right now?”

The steward answered firmly. There was the pretext of accommodating the distinguished guests, but his inner thoughts were slightly different. This was, in a way, venting his anger. In order to check and monitor the work of Belloc’s group, Banzac had accompanied them in this operation. His life was suddenly hanging by a thread. Therefore, it was a remark made because he wanted to vent this anger a little.

‘Shit.’

Before the soldier, who looked like he was about to die, could climb down the ladder, Belloc stepped forward. He leaned over and looked into the hole. Below in the darkness, the floor where dried bloodstains and fragments of flesh were stuck could be seen. It looked easily over 8 meters deep.

“I will go first. If there are no issues, I will let you know.”

With those words, he leaped down. The ground rumbled, and the sword and armor he wore clattered. Gripping the hilt of his sword tightly, he scanned the surroundings. The cave, made entirely of yellow-ocher stones, was submerged in darkness. If there were something inside, the faint shapes would have been caught in his eyes. ‘No ambush.’ He spoke.

“Everyone, come down!”

With a cracking sound, the hanging wrist fell with a plop. Subsequently, the three of Adel, Cara, and Banzac climbed down the ladder.

“We cannot block every stray arrow for you. Take care of yourself.”

“…I understand.”

Banzac swallowed hard, and the party commenced their movement. Belloc was at the very front, Adel at the rear, and Banzac and Cara in the center. The party walked without bother of hiding their presence. Because their heavy equipment could not mask the noise even if they wanted to.

The cave was silent. Small creatures like sewer rats, bats, or centipedes that would usually be in a sewer were nowhere to be seen. And except for the wrist they had seen at the entrance, no human corpses were visible either. Belloc knew roughly what the situation was. It was not the first or second time he had experienced such things. Cara muttered.

“Necromancy? A demon?”

It was when the party had been passing by circular pillars supporting the dripping ceiling for quite some time. Along with a rough growling breath, the sound of something dragging along the floor was heard. Cara muttered something and raised her staff high. Then, the light intensified, and the blurry figures in front of them revealed themselves.

Rotten flesh could be seen here and there beneath bandages stained with blood and dirty water that had discolored to yellow. The same went for the face filled with red eyes. ‘Seeing it in person, it looks even more disgusting. Won’t those things trip on something while walking around?’ While Belloc let out a dry laugh, Adel gripped the shaft of her axe tightly and spoke.

“Are they… zombies wrapped in bandages?”

“It’s a style I’ve never seen before either. Is it the burial method of this country?”

When Cara asked, Banzac shrieked but spoke.

“Y-Yes. They are mummies. It is Arian’s unique burial method, where the internal organs are removed and embalmed…”

Even before his words could finish.

Kweeeeek!

The mummies let out a hideous shriek from beyond the bandages covering their mouths. That sound soon echoed like a resonance, summoning other monsters as well. The sound of shuffling resounded for a while, and the cave was soon filled with hundreds of mummies. Between them, brown-skinned soldiers holding weapons while spilling their intestines were also visible. ‘It seems they were gotten by them.’

The party faced the wave of monsters, standing back-to-back at a small passage. Among them, some burned with particularly intense hostility; judging from the bloodstains on their bandages, they seemed to be ones that had tasted human flesh. Right, the one who has tasted meat eats it better. Are you hungry?

“H-Hieek! Shatra!”

Excluding Banzac who had collapsed, Belloc, Adel, and Cara had calm expressions. It was natural. They had been through too many experiences to be flustered or frightened by something like this. They had already faced monsters worse than this.

Belloc reached for his waist. The throwing dagger engraved with strange patterns soon became a giant spear at his will. Leaving behind the blade that fit snugly in his hand, Belloc drew up the power inside him. Unlike before, he channeled it moderately, to a level he could handle.

Nevertheless, the lightning wrapped around the spear like a vortex. A mummy reaching out its arms was visible in front. It had approached right before him. Without weighing this or that, he threw the spear. His shoulder blurred, and a yellow line rushed like an arrow into the midst of the monsters.

Belloc’s monstrous strength, the penetrating power, and the weight of the spear. The blade, combining all these forces, easily pierced the bodies of ten monsters. Soon, the lightning spear caused intense sparks and began to burn everything around it. The darkness enveloping the cave dispersed in an instant. A brilliant flash of light flickered in its place. Dozens of monsters died like that at once.

“Useful.”

Belloc, smiling with satisfaction, reached out his hand. At that, responding to his will, the spear trembled, flew through the air, and landed in his hand. He loaded the lightning once more, and the lightning spear shot out. Of course, the monsters aiming for that gap rushed at the party. However, Belloc was not alone.

“Filthy monsters! I shall purify you!”

A whip with flames swept in with a whoosh. As the bandages full of pus were crushed, the mummies shrieked. The paladin, who dashed through them like an arrow, swung her halberd wildly. A blurry trajectory flew in straight and diagonal lines. In time with this, Adel’s slender leg greaves danced as if possessed.

The axe split the crowns of the monsters wide open and shattered the walls. Soon, trembling, it detonated the flames of holy power like a bomb. A powerful shockwave spread in all directions along with the hot wind. They killed the monsters like that. Without Cara even having to use magic, the hundreds of dead were turned to ashes in an instant.

“Ha, ha… Should I be happy that my work has decreased?”

As Cara let out a dry laugh.

Squeeeeeak… squeak.

From beneath the crushed and burning corpses, a sewer rat crawled out. It was a peculiar-looking rat boasting mysterious purple eyes. The rat’s expression was distorted like a demon, looking like a person with emotions. The rat spoke. No, the mysterious person in the sewer who had cast the familiar spell on it spoke.

—What, who are these crazy bastards… Where on earth did these guys spring from? First, I should escape…

The moment the muttering figure controlled her familiar, dark pupils stared intently at the purple eyes. The rat squeaked in surprise, and the figure gasped. Soon, a faint flash of light flickered.