The moment my comrade shouted those words behind me, my mind went blank as if a light bulb inside my skull had gone out.
«New enemies have appeared!»
What... kind of shit is this...?
It sounded incredibly false, but acceptance came sooner than I thought.
New... enemies...?
I was sure it wasn't a joke. It couldn't be a misunderstanding either. Which meant Kaislan's report was the truth.
Aprieta.
My fists clenched. At the same time, my brain began to scramble for an explanation.
What the hell had I done to make something like this happen? There is no Hans in our group. Was there a Hans that I hadn't noticed? Not between us, but maybe the enemy?
¡A slap!
Before my thoughts could continue down that path, I slapped myself on the cheeks with both hands. Since slapping too hard could be dangerous, I did it hard enough to make myself come to my senses.
Hansu Lee, don't be ridiculous.
It was a kind of evasion mechanism, looking for a Hans every time something bad happened.
It happened, that's all.
In Larkaz's Labyrinth, when I ran into the Dragon Slayer by chance and even lost a valuable teammate, what was the cause? Was there a Hans then? And in the Crystal Cave on the first floor, when the Lord of the Abyss appeared? It was a miracle that there hadn't been a single Hans among almost a thousand people, but did that mean things had gone smoothly? In retrospect, it had always been that way. Whenever something really screwed up happened, there was no Hans, as if heaven itself denied me the opportunity to blame someone else.
...So, were the Hans actually a sign of good luck?
I came up with the idea, but I had no way of knowing. It didn't seem to be that either. But thanks to those useless musings, I felt much fresher.
I smiled.
Who cares if there is a Hans or not? I just have to do my job.
So, with that in mind, I got to thinking. I gave up hope of being rescued. I gave up food and even equipment. Even as we fled, I had to watch helplessly as my companions fell like flies. That was survival, surrendering and surrendering again. Fooling yourself into thinking that was the most reasonable option in an unreasonable situation.
«Yandel! Give us an order or something, quick!»
Now, what else should I give up?
Unfortunately, I already knew the answer.
«Jun, I'll temporarily leave this side to you».
I quickly handed over the baton and headed to the rear. As soon as I turned around, I could see the long-range unit running towards us from behind. The enemy followed us.
«Sir...!»
«¡Erwen!»
«There are about fifteen people! They don't look like knights, but they use auras! Mr. Gerod is containing them on his own right now!» Ventis Gerod was Team Three's special abilities user, a man everyone liked because he was always smiling and too positive.
«Thanks for letting me know. See below Akurava and only the main unit, quickly».
«…¡Be careful!»
After Erwen passed me, I reached the rear to find Gerod lying on the ground, dripping with blood.
¡Shaaaaaaaaa!
His blood smoked as it came into contact with the cold air.
So... another dead person.
If it weren't for this man, even more people would have been hurt and killed.
Hit.
My heart raced, but this harsh world I lived in didn't even give me time to grieve.
Slip.
I raised my head to look forward. I could see about fifteen enemies standing on Gerod's body. As soon as I saw them, I remembered a conversation I had had with the commander of Orcules.
«A human woman with a punch-shaped aura that appears to be specialized in daggers... All characteristics of the Order of the Rose».
This was a special unit that worked directly under the palace, responsible for secret missions such as assassinations, infiltrations and special maneuvers.
So, I finally get to know them.
Goteo, goteo, goteo.
A woman holding a dagger dripping with blood stared at me. It reminded me of my first meeting with Amelia. His eyes did not convey any emotion.
«Baronet Bjorn Yandel.» His totally expressionless tone couldn't even be described as boring. «According to our information, it has at least rank two defensive capabilities against swords. Our estimates put it two levels above each of us, so treat it with caution».
As soon as the woman finished reporting, they stood there ready to attack at any moment. It's been a while since I've felt this way about an enemy, but what I saw gave me chills. Someone who didn't know anything about me screaming that he was going to kill me wasn't scary, but that wasn't the case. These were experts trained solely in the art of murder.
¡Pum!
Although we had not yet exchanged any attacks, my warrior heart raced, sensing that a difficult battle awaited us.
Aprieta.
But so what?
«Has the marquis sent you?». I asked in a defensive position, ready to react at any moment. I got no response.
Wow, look what a look. You're not going to bother talking to someone you're going to kill in a minute, huh?
I practically gave up all hope of a response to their unwavering professionalism, but I wished they would tell me one thing. «How the hell did you know you had to wait here? As? Tell me. It's the only thing I can't explain. Come on, at least give me that. Don't you feel a little sorry for us?»
The woman's expression didn't even flinch at my joking tone. «We were just on the lookout because someone insisted we do it», he said quietly. «We determined that the chances of you coming were slim».
«Scarce, huh?»
I ended up laughing under my breath. Well, what were the chances that we would complete the mission after an arduous journey, abandoned by our allies in the middle of enemy territory, and still find a way out and make it this far? Especially being a squad that was meeting for the first time just days after being hastily assembled? «Little possibilities» fell short.
«... Why are you laughing?»
«I just can't win against you.»
After all, in what world did it make sense to deploy a unit like this to block even the most remote escape route? I felt like a big wall was closing in on me from all directions, like there was no way out no matter where I went.
«So this conversation has been a failure», the woman murmured.
«A failure?»
«The eyes of a person whose will has been broken do not look like this».
What, so he only answered because he wanted to crush my spirit?
«How strange», I said with an angry air. «I'm definitely very desperate right now».
«So you're going to die now?»
«No, I will continue doing my best not to».
«I see people like you from time to time. People who never treat death as the escape it is». The woman's expression changed for the first time. It was very subtle, but it almost seemed sad. Of course, he had no way of knowing if that was true. It could be a trick of the light. But even if I was reading right, it wasn't like it made a difference.
«It seems our conversation is over», I said. The woman did not answer. We both knew there was nothing more to say. «Behel-ahhh!»
Thanks to the essence I had to counter auras, Vol-Herchan, I had been able to evolve into any knight's nightmare. But that didn't mean he was invincible. There was no such thing as being invincible in Dungeon and Stone.
Cut, cut, stab!
It may not have cut like tofu, but every time its daggers touched my body, it accumulated small wounds. The priests had long since run out of divine power, so he couldn't expect any healing either.
[You have been poisoned by the Royal Poison. Your Physique is greater than 700. Your tolerance to poison is greater than 100. The effects of the poison are reduced by 70%].
It seemed like they had smeared a lot of things on their knives because the wounds went numb and a tingling sensation spread to the surrounding areas. Apparently there was some kind of wound exacerbation effect in the mix, because my natural regeneration was also inhibited. This allowed the wounds to increase steadily.
¡Whooom!
I moved the hammer to scare away the flies, but once again, it only pierced the empty air. I climbed walls, did somersaults in the air, stopped suddenly and changed direction, used skills that defied the laws of physics, etc. But my opponents evaded all my attacks and sliced me with their daggers whenever they had the slightest chance. Of course, the injuries themselves were not serious, but...
Rebelts, rebanada.
My body had already slowed down, but as it slowed down more and more, the number of wounds increased. If there was a little more space and the fifteen of them had been able to attack me from all sides, I would have been torn apart in a pile of ribbons on the ground a long time ago.
«...Ugh!» I staggered forward. Immediately, a dagger swung at my neck.
Yes now!
When the moment I was waiting for came, I pushed myself up through my feet and made a top cut on one of them with my hammer.
What... that didn't work either? Ugh, let me hit you!
It seemed like he was dealing with a robot, not a person. They were too good at this game.
[You have launched Soul Immersion. Your Soul Power will regenerate at a rate proportional to the amount of Soul Power you have consumed].
I first used Soul Immersion, which had used up its cooldown, and regained some of my dwindling PM.
«We will help!» Then reinforcements arrived. It was Ravien and Amelia, who must have been fighting Noark on the front lines.
«What about the first line? What happened there?»
«They withdrew from the Glacier Eye boundary and maintain a stalemate», Amelia reported.
So the enemy was recovering, waiting for us to waste our energy fighting them. Well, as long as they didn't know if the Order of the Rose was friend or foe, it was a wise decision.
Damn, why do we get stuck in the middle?
I raised my shield to protect my upper body.
¡Bum!
A dagger bounced as if blocked by an iron wall. But I noticed that even as the seconds passed, I didn't feel any accompanying pain in the lower half of my body. They usually took advantage of moments like that to puncture me down there, so what was happening? I watched as the Order of the Rose vaguely distanced itself and understood why.
Ah, it's thanks to these guys.
They distrusted Amelia and Ravien, so they couldn't snoop around like before.
True, you need a high Agility character to fight a high Agility character. That gives me a break.
I screamed loud enough for Akurava to hear me behind her. Now he had to fulfill two functions at the same time: tank and commander. «Akurava, tell the others to keep up the confrontation with Noark if they can!».
It broke my heart to give Noark time to regroup when all that was left was to finish them off, but there was nothing I could do.
Hey? But what is this?
Although I screamed, there was no response from the Order of the Rose. Not only were they ignoring me, but they didn't seem to hear anything.
«Emily, are there any team communication spells active right now?»
«Ah, I guess the wizards who came down used it».
«...Did they go down?»
Ravien responded as he dodged a dagger aimed at my shoulder. «As soon as the ambush began, the priest and the wizards used Flotation spells and fled down here.».
«Did they flee? Were there enemies up there too?».
«Yeah. Priest Roita Mamander died in the ambush».
«I see...» Somehow, the bad news kept coming. Not only were there more than fifteen new enemies, but one of our priests was killed.
That makes nineteen people now.
Our squad of thirty had shrunk so much. At this point, even if we managed to get back alive, it would be with less than half of our original members.
Aprieto.
The anger I had been suppressing welled up in my heart. We kept sacrificing and sacrificing ourselves, and it wasn't like we imagined a rosy future while doing it. We were giving our blood, sweat and tears for a future that was no different than wallowing in dog shit. So why were we subjected to all this nonsense? He wanted to curse and blame the gods at that moment.
«Ahhhhhh!» I vented my anger in a scream and forced myself to dissipate the heat that was fogging my head. What our team needed right now was not heated anger. At least right now, he couldn't give in to that. «Akurava!»
«Yes, I hear you!»
«There is no need to help here, all of you recover as much as you can. You're going to have to try very hard soon.»
We only had one chance to do it right.
***
It was a ridiculous plan. If they followed him, they would all die. Nobody told me those things at that time.
«...Okay. I'll do what you say». Akurava immediately carried out my orders and the other squad members did the same. It seemed that I had finally been recognized as the leader of this expedition. If that was the case, I was a little proud. That meant that my hard work had not gone completely unnoticed.
«¡Become-aah!»
When support from the rear ranks ended, the Order of the Rose intensified its attack.
«Yandel is fighting more than ten enemies alone! Hold them!»
To make matters worse, Noark finished regrouping and also ended the confrontation to officially start attacking again. We could only do one thing.
« Resist!»
In a situation where our priests had run out of divine power and long-distance support had ceased, we had to buy time and maintain a battle line ahead and behind.
«¡Aaaaaargh!»
Although we were surrounded and mistreated on both sides, it was surprisingly more manageable than I thought.
Now they treat us like corpses.
Both Noark and the Order of the Rose, who had accepted our annihilation as inevitable, engaged in a silent war of nerves.
If we all die, they will have to fight each other later.
It didn't matter if I felt left out. The enemy's carelessness worked in our favor. Thanks to that, the time finally came.
Dddddd.
The canyon shook with what looked like an earthquake.
¡Shaaaaaa!
A pure white chill emerged like a mist from the dark abyss beneath the cliff.
[You have been exposed to the Cold of Hate. Additional effects will be applied to all status effects cast by the Cariathea Glacier Mage].
The Wizard Glacier Cariathea had finally ascended from the bottom of the Glacier Eye.
Although I hadn't planned to use it like that... I guess this is what they mean when they say that plans never go as expected.
«Damn! Forward!» An urgent cry sounded from Noark's ranks.
Although they were much calmer, the Order of the Rose was also unhappy with this development. «Let's get this over with as soon as possible».
I ended up chuckling.
I can't believe I'm the only one here who calculated when the boss would arrive. Well, that must be why they were so relaxed.
«Gruhhhhhh!» Thousands of skeletal arms emerged from the fog. In the center, the elderly lich Cariathea looked at us with red-hot eyes.
«Yandel, we are ready!»
The big request he had made to the long-range damage was fulfilled just in time. Now all that was left was to try it. «Shoot».
[James Calla has released Penetrating Light.]
[Erwen Fornacci di Tersia has launched Elemental Synthesis.]
[Titana Akurava ha usado No. 1911: Rails of Bolsillo Roto de Fabler.]
[Versyl Gowland has cast the rank 3 attack spell Evil Destruction Flame].
[McKelly Rayothers has cast the rank 3 Punishment attack spell].
[Riard Ashed has cast the rank 3 Magic Ray attack spell].
Everyone who had at least one ranged ability, and not just the rangers, tried their best to launch attacks with all the power their cooldown and MPs allowed, not towards Noark or the Order of the Rose, but towards the old lich who had sneaked into the party.
¡Kablam!
[The first Soul Chest of the Magician Cariathea Glacier has been destroyed.]
It seemed that his firepower was sufficient.
«Kyeeeeeek!» The Banshees pulled out of the mist screamed in pain and went into a frenzy.
Rattle, drag, rattle, rattle.
The old lich restored his shattered bones in an instant and extended his hand towards us.
[Maga Glacier Cariathea has launched Soul Extraction].
Soul Extraction was the pattern used in Phase Two. I caught my breath and closed my eyes. «Ugh...» It was the only thing I could do. The dice had already been rolled.
[All characters within range will be knocked unconscious].
I could only hope for a good result.