The crash of the wooden door echoed through the gray fog like thunder.
The sound carried unbelievably far.
The deathly silence around the city wall shattered instantly.
From the mist, distorted howls began to rise.
Field glanced at the small map.
Skull icons were rapidly gathering.
At the same time, faint roars echoed from the fog.
Even Field couldn't help but sweat a little.
Damn… how many of these things are out there?
Inside the barracks, the two rotten soldiers hadn't even reacted yet.
Ashina was already moving.
Her blade flashed.
The long knife sliced cleanly across one corpse's neck.
Blood burst out like an arrow, splattering the wall.
Black-purple gore sprayed across the room.
Before the body even collapsed—
The second corpse lunged forward.
Its face was split wide open, the mouth torn all the way to its ears.
If that thing bit someone, it would tear off half their flesh.
Ashina simply stepped aside.
Effortlessly.
Her wrist turned.
The blade reversed.
With the terrifying strength granted by a Chosen, the corpse's head exploded apart.
Half of it vanished instantly.
Filthy blood poured from the shattered skull, spreading across the floor into a thick pool.
"ROAAAR!"
The fighting noise had already drawn attention.
A flood of corrupted soldiers suddenly poured out from the corridor.
Their milky white eyes rolled upward.
Dozens of them pushed through the narrow passage, rushing forward in a grotesque wave.
Behind Field, the slaves waved their farm tools nervously.
But not a single one dared step forward.
The monsters alone were terrifying enough.
Now they were wearing armor too.
"Damn it," Field cursed under his breath.
"How many people got infected here?"
"Fire."
Ashina snapped her fingers.
The Dragon-Blood Wolf appeared instantly.
Its massive body nearly blocked the entire corridor.
Magical energy gathered in the air like a flowing galaxy.
The wolf opened its jaws.
A torrent of eerie blue flame erupted forward.
The charging corpses were swallowed whole.
From outside, only a few twisting silhouettes could be seen struggling inside the fire.
Then—
Nothing.
Only piles of ash remained.
The slaves stared in silence.
Some of them had just been debating whether to fight or run.
Before they could decide—
The battle was already over.
A few people barely caught a glimpse of the burning figures.
Most could only stare blankly at the ashes on the floor.
"That… that's the power of a Chosen?"
Field whistled softly.
"Shame the loot got burned too."
Confidence surged through him.
With power on his side, his courage suddenly expanded.
"Alright."
"Let's make some noise."
"Draw the rest of the corpses out and wipe them all."
Hearing the order, the slaves immediately began smashing things.
They banged on doors.
Kicked furniture.
Threw debris everywhere.
The noise echoed through the fortress.
Corpses kept gathering.
And every wave that appeared was instantly destroyed by Ashina and her wolf.
Before long—
The entire barracks area was completely cleared.
Field finally gained a much clearer understanding of what a Chosen was capable of.
This… is basically a walking war machine.
Field rubbed his hands together.
"Now."
"Let's search for valuables."
His greedy grin returned.
"Especially weapons… and gold."
The slaves scattered to search.
Not long after, one of them ran back excitedly.
"My lord!"
"We found survivors!"
Field didn't look happy.
Instead, he slowly scanned the surroundings.
"Ashina."
"Recall the wolf."
Now was not the time to reveal their full strength.
They hadn't had enough time to grow yet.
If news spread that he possessed a Chosen…
That was basically asking to be assassinated.
His stepmother would absolutely send killers.
And Ashina would simply end up serving someone else.
The slaves were different.
They were always under his watch.
With a single command, he could wipe them all out.
Field thought for a moment.
Survivors might know where the supplies are.
The survivors were hiding inside a hidden bunker built into the city wall.
The entrance had been splashed with Purification Potion, barely holding back the gray fog.
When they heard living voices outside—
They finally dared to open the door.
"Thank the Valkyrie," said a bearded officer with a laugh.
"I thought we'd be stuck here for a week."
"By then we'd probably be surviving by eating each other's shit."
The joke was disgusting.
He straightened his uniform and smiled at Field.
"Let me guess…"
"You must be a newly appointed knight?"
"I'll definitely report your achievements to Baron Bull."
"Just doing my duty," Field replied casually.
He tilted his head, trying to look inside the bunker.
Two soldiers immediately stepped forward and blocked the entrance.
Inside were ten soldiers under the bearded officer's command.
"All inside."
The officer glanced at Field's group.
Especially the slaves holding farm tools.
His eyes were full of contempt.
"And where are your retainers?"
Field shrugged.
"I'm not a knight."
"I'm Baron Field."
The officer blinked.
"Oh?"
"Baron Field… the one without even a single guard?"
"When you sent donations before, your men mentioned your name."
His expression slowly became strange.
He exchanged glances with his soldiers.
A faint smirk appeared.
"Well then, Baron."
"I've heard you're a very kind man."
"Perhaps you could do us a small favor?"
Field raised an eyebrow.
Something's off with that tone.
The original owner of this body really had been a good person.
Field scratched his head and played dumb.
"What kind of favor?"
The bearded officer sighed dramatically.
"We got drunk and forgot to light the Fog-Repelling Lamp."
"So the gray fog flooded into the barracks."
"We lost control of the garrison."
"That's… a serious problem."
"Baron Bull is extremely cruel."
"If he finds out, we're dead men."
Field blinked.
…Why are you telling me this?
"So…" Field said slowly.
"You want to defect to me?"
The soldiers burst into laughter.
They gripped their weapons tightly.
"Defect?"
"No."
"We're running."
"But before that…"
"We need a noble's entire fortune."
"And if we kill you…"
"No one will know we're still alive."
Field's face darkened.
"You treat your savior like this?"
To be honest, Field had originally planned to recruit these survivors.
If they refused, he wouldn't mind killing them.
But being openly threatened like this still pissed him off.
The bearded officer sneered.
"If we had a Fog-Repelling Lamp we'd have already escaped."
"Who the hell do you think you are?"
Field suddenly laughed.
A sharp, quiet laugh.
"What are you laughing at?" the officer demanded, raising his saber.
Field shrugged.
"Honestly…"
"I was planning to loot this place anyway."
He smiled.
"Now it's even easier."
"If I kill all of you…"
"There won't be any witnesses."
"Ashina."
"Do it."
One soldier suddenly lunged forward.
His dagger stabbed straight toward Field's chest.
In the blink of an eye—
A blur of deep blue flashed past.
The soldier's arm flew into the air like a ripped-off grasshopper leg.
For a moment—
The entire corridor froze.
Then the dagger clattered to the ground.
The soldier collapsed, screaming in terror as blood sprayed from the severed stump.
"My arm!!"
"My arm!!!"
The Dragon-Blood Wolf stood in the corridor.
Its massive armored body blocked the entire passage like a living tank.
"Monster!!"
Several soldiers nearly wet themselves.
"What the hell?!"
"Wasn't Baron Field supposed to be useless?"
The bearded officer's face went pale.
Right now he wanted to hunt down whoever spread that rumor and skin them alive.
Field licked his lips.
"Ashina."
"Break their limbs."
His eyes turned cold.
"The original Baron might've been a saint."
"But that has nothing to do with me."
Then he looked back at the slaves.
"Here's your chance to grow some guts."
"Kill one man."
"I'll pay one silver coin."