Scela began:
"Don, a little over a month ago, those filthy creatures from the west shore attacked many demi-human tribes, including our Moose Centaurs tribe."
"The old chief died on the way… He and others were turned into those flesh monsters. We had no choice but to destroy them."
"The tribe was completely destroyed in that night raid by the flesh monsters. If you hadn't arrived in time, we would have been like headless flies."
"You quickly gathered us along with many other demi-humans and brought us into the ancient labyrinth castle. It is because of this castle that we finally had a chance to catch our breath."
"But more than a month has passed, and the flesh monsters have been besieging us ever since. The food supplies we brought here are almost gone."
"The water we drink has to be drawn and purified from the sea of blood. Sometimes we manage to get some rainwater, but that's never a reliable solution."
"More and more demi-humans are growing dissatisfied with the current situation. They believe staying here is just a death trap."
"At the same time, they don't understand why you and I refuse to lead everyone in a breakout charge. They have begun to doubt us."
"They secretly formed a powerful faction. They don't want to wait to die; they want to fight their way out using their own strength."
"We cannot let that happen."
Don said immediately upon hearing this.
"Find a way to convince them. Just wait a few more days. It should only be a few more days."
Scela shook his head.
When he spoke in the moose centaur language, he always stuck out his tongue and made strange puffing sounds.
"I have been trying hard to do that, but the situation inside the castle is getting more severe. Supplies are growing tighter, and conflicts are becoming more frequent."
"The cracks of doubt are widening. Relying only on me and Kioris—my brother—is not enough to control the crowd. Once trust collapses, it's impossible to repair... Don, you have to do something."
Don understood Scela's situation and the meaning behind his words.
He thought for a moment but still insisted:
"I cannot show myself. Even talking face-to-face with you like this is risky."
"No. I don't want to wait any longer while the strong fortress is broken from within."
Don's words had two meanings.
One was the risk of chaos and conflict inside the ancient labyrinth castle.
The other was his "Flesh Curse."
He didn't want to spread the "Flesh Curse" to any of the demi-humans here.
That would be catastrophic.
Scela also had his own insistence.
"Then at least strike like we did last month against the 'Bloodthirsty Apostle' to lift everyone's spirits."
At the end of last month in the Six Continents calendar, the 'Bloodthirsty Apostle' resurrected in the sea of blood.
To establish his authority and stabilize the people's morale, and also to obtain the precious "Herb for All-illnesses" to treat the seriously ill demi-humans in the castle, Don took action and killed the "Bloodthirsty Apostle."
He furrowed his brows again and said, "If the situation demands it, I will take action."
Only then did Scela breathe a sigh of relief. As the leader of the small demi-human Alliance, he had done his utmost, but the current situation was beyond his ability to handle.
At this moment, Don stepped away from Scela and slowly walked to the balcony.
He pointed toward the edge of the sea of blood, at the relentless flesh monsters and the "Botanical Weapon Brions" that fight day and night.
"Scela, do you know why, despite the shortage of supplies, I still refuse to lead you all to break out of this encirclement?"
"You worry about heavy casualties, and you can't protect everyone."
Don put down his cracked, blood-red hand and sighed.
"That's just one reason. Actually, there are two more reasons. Scela, you just mentioned you sensed two things. What was the other?"
Without hesitation, Scela replied immediately,
"That group of monsters fears the blood sea that can dissolve their limbs, so they have been trying to dismantle the stone pillars of the Ancient Labyrinth to fill the sea and make a passage."
"We have been on high alert. Patrol teams we sent out, once they discover the monsters trying to fill the blood sea with the pillars, try to drive them back, destroy the pillars, and move the large stone blocks beneath our castle."
"But Kioris reported to me that he found one patrol team neglected their duties and let the flesh monsters on the opposite bank fill the sea halfway with the pillars."
"We discovered and thwarted the enemy in time, and captured all those patrol members for interrogation. But we faced opposition from the forces I mentioned earlier."
"Though the situation is temporarily suppressed now, I still feel quite uneasy…"
Don hadn't noticed this matter before—perhaps it happened while he was suffering under the 'Flesh Curse' and was too distracted to pay attention.
Now that Scela had explained everything, Don also sensed something was wrong.
"You mean this patrol team has already colluded with the flesh-and-blood monsters across the river, planning to open the gates from inside?"
"I'm saying they were corrupted." Scela emphasized. "They're all fierce warriors, but last night, they felt unfamiliar to me."
"So, I'm saying something has corrupted them, affecting their minds."
Don understood why Scela linked those two matters as possibly one thing.
Coincidentally, what he said also matched Don's second reason for holding back.
"That's right." Don explained. "Scela, there really are monsters that corrupt the mind on the other side. Your intuition is correct."
"Who is it?"
"A so-called 'Prophet'... but he's not the worst of it... It's because they're in the ancient labyrinth that I've had to endure this for so long."
This was the first time Scela had heard Don reveal such a truth, and he asked nervously, "That 'Prophet'—is he stronger than the 'Bloodthirsty Apostle'?"
"Yes." Don answered. "His companions... those two monsters are all stronger than the 'Bloodthirsty Apostle.'"
Scela's hairs stood on end, and his breathing quickened.
After a moment, he asked, "You said there were three reasons. What's the last one?"
"I've already said." Don replied. "I'm waiting for someone. He will definitely come."
Hopefully, in time.
Before Scela could ask for more details, a sudden noisy disturbance came from the blood sea, followed by a powerful and evil aura blast!
A buzzing hum—
In that instant, he nearly collapsed and vomited.
Don's expression turned grim:
"It seems those two monsters are also waiting for someone, and that person arrived first... Four of them... They're launching a full assault."
In sight were several ancient labyrinth stone pillars suddenly breaking off at the base, as if freed from gravity, flying into the air.
Boom! Boom! Boom!—
One after another, they crashed down into the reed-filled blood sea, instantly forming a bridge!
The tide of flesh-and-blood monsters effortlessly broke through the "Botanical Weapon Brions" defense, stepped onto the stone pillar bridge, and howled eerily as they charged toward the ancient labyrinth castle!
*******
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