Chapter 157. March of the Dead (4)
The first basement level of the mausoleum was divided into several sections.
After passing through the straight corridor of Section 1, where a mass of corpses was enshrined, there was a passage leading into Section 2.
On the floor of such a passage, stairways were set on both sides, and in the middle lay a slanted ramp. A structure designed to easily move coffins.
And in the niches cut into the walls, stone coffins were set in place.
A silent, narrow corridor.
Calia's First Squad moved in secrecy.
The scout knight peeked past the wall, then raised his sword.
It meant there were enemies.
He followed with hand signals.
Two black magicians.
Eight undead of the Skeleton type.
Of course, no captures.
Black magicians of the Glory of the Dead could either lose consciousness or self-destruct at will. That had already been confirmed through Verden's testimony and when Vespa had led the subjugation of their hideouts.
The black magicians here could be different.
But there was no room to gamble on uncertain odds. After all, the purpose of this mission was to eradicate the foundation of the Orb of the Undead.
Step.
Verden took the lead.
As he stepped into the passage, he immediately stirred his magic power.
The black magicians sensed the presence of magic power and turned their heads at once, but the spell had already been cast.
Double Casting.
< Rock Fatal >
Crash! Crack!
"Gugh-ugh..."
"Urk!"
Their lungs were pierced by stone fragments that exceeded the speed of sound.
The two black magicians gasped for breath and fell to their knees in vain. The undead they commanded raised their rusted weapons and advanced, but the knight at the front charged in with his shield raised.
Bang!
The Skeletons, weak to blunt impact, shattered and scattered on the spot.
Immediately after, the scout and Calia, who were following close behind the knight, almost simultaneously cut the black magicians' throats. There was no wasted movement.
This was already the fifth time they had encountered and dealt with enemies. In the process, not a single member of the First Squad had suffered even a scratch.
The progress of the mission was far too smooth.
'Still, it is unsettling.'
Of course, Calia's method wasn't wrong.
Moving in a group, blindly forcing through could result in injuries or deaths. It was the responsibility of a commander to move quietly and swiftly against variables.
But if it had been Verden alone, he would already have reached the second level.
He had the skill and confidence to overwhelm any danger or trap. Acting merely as one of the party's mages left him with an undeniable sense of frustration.
'And aside from that...'
The black magicians and undead standing guard, their numbers were not small. If even one of the three passages had this many, then counting them all, it would be fitting to call this place a den of the enemy.
And yet, that was exactly why it was suspicious.
From all the information gathered so far, the Glory of the Dead was by no means a mere group. The Orb of the Undead, which even bishops could not purify, was proof enough of that.
And yet, the troops guarding the place where the Orb's foundation lay were just within the expected range, as if by the book.
In other words,
'Too ordinary.'
So ordinary it felt strange.
Calia flicked her sword to shake off the blood.
Looking at Verden's face, she quietly asked,
"Asher, do you have something to say?"
"No, I do not."
Verden shook his head.
At the moment, he had no evidence or conclusion to support his claim.
'Perhaps the enemy's main force is stationed in the second level.'
They hadn't even cleared the first level yet, it was too soon to voice his thoughts aloud.
"If any problem arises, do not hesitate to speak. If left unchecked, it may grow beyond what we can handle."
"I will keep that in mind."
Calia nodded and looked at the First Squad.
"We will soon enter the second level. Battle is to be expected, do not let down your guard."
"Of course."
"Good, then let's continue the search."
***
The scenery of the second level was hardly different from the first.
If anything, the passage was wider, and the number of coffins stored greater.
But strangely, it was quiet.
Compared to the smaller first level, it would be normal for there to be more black magicians and undead, yet not even ordinary Skeletons could be seen.
"It is oddly silent. My senses detect nothing."
"The same goes for me."
Verden scanned the surroundings.
Even with the Ring of Rune enhancing his senses, even as a mage, he could perceive no magical traps nor any undead hiding.
The other knights also shook their heads in the same way.
But naturally, they could not lower their guard.
Silence implied the possibility of a more cunning, more dangerous trap being concealed.
Inevitably, Calia slowed the pace, focusing more on guarding all directions.
The eerie stillness continued all the way to the center.
"…So, nothing happened after all."
The other squads had not arrived yet, and no one else was present.
Only the stone-carved decorations of the Church of Luas, used in cemeteries, remained. They took a brief rest while waiting for the Second and Third Squads.
But still maintained their vigilance.
Calia felt an odd sense of unease, but did not show it.
The search was not yet complete. A hasty judgment would only dampen morale.
Then, from afar, a presence was felt.
They readied for battle and waited for it to approach. Soon, from the left passage, the Second Squad appeared, with Vespa at the lead.
"I am glad you are safe."
"The same to you, Vespa."
Afterward, the Third Squad emerged from the right passage.
There were traces of battle, but no visible casualties. A brief report confirmed no particular anomalies.
Their strength remained intact.
Though they had descended quite deep underground, knights would not tire from just this much. Under Calia's command, even mages had undergone essential physical training.
'Now all that remains is the deepest chamber of the second level.'
A chamber accessible only from the center.
The very innermost chamber, the largest within the mausoleum.
Unless there was some hidden place elsewhere.
The foundation of the Orb of the Undead was surely stored in the innermost chamber.
Calia led Verden and the White Crest Knights into the final passage. The unsettling silence still lingered.
Before long, a steel door about three meters high appeared. No sign of tampering, firmly shut.
But.
"Someone is there."
A presence could be felt inside.
The breathing was audible, as if he had no intention of hiding.
One person.
Calia gathered white aura and swung her sword.
Her blade cut across the gap in the middle of the door, slicing the lock cleanly in half. The cross-section was not jagged, but perfectly smooth.
Creak.
The door opened, revealing the innermost chamber of the mausoleum.
At its center stood a lone black magician.
He raised his head to look at Calia, then chuckled and shrugged his shoulders.
"Ohohohot, guests have arrived."
***
'...Guests?'
Calia had raided the mausoleum in order to destroy the Orb of the Undead. Yet the black magician, far from being flustered, welcomed them as if inviting them in.
Whether it was bluff or genuine, it was only natural to question it.
But Verden could not move of his own accord. The commander was Calia, after all.
'Besides, there isn't even a trace of what should be the foundation of the Orb of the Undead.'
All that was here, was that black magician, laughing grotesquely.
Which meant, he was the only target from which they could extract information. To hastily subdue him, only for him to self-destruct, could turn everything into failure.
Calia seemed to think the same, for as she looked around, she asked the black magician,
"Where is the foundation of the Orb of the Undead?"
"Ohohot, of course, that's what you'd want to know, that's the question more suitable to the situation than pointing swords and spells right away, wouldn't you say?"
The black magician's tone was light.
As Calia's gaze sank coldly, the man waved his hands.
"Don't look at me as if you'll kill me, I was about to tell you anyway. But there is a problem."
"…A problem?"
"Yes indeed, a very important problem. Unfortunately, unlike Lord Kunel who was brutally slain, I was not born with the rare trait of being able to converse with the Undead."
Which meant, in other words,
"I cannot speak to you, since you are about to die.
And so, negotiations end."
At that moment, the floor of the mausoleum rippled, and a horde of undead revealed themselves.
Without any sign, without any magical reaction. As the knights faltered in shock, the black magician chuckled.
"Ohohohot! Look at your panic! Not even knowing the essence of black magic, and thus suffering this fate…"
"Asher!"
At Calia's signal, Verden unleashed his magic power.
< Thunder Strike >
A bolt of lightning shot for the black magician's leg. The intent was to subdue him for now.
But a bluish zombie suddenly leapt up from the ground and threw itself into the spell. Ordinarily, it should have been pierced through, yet even after taking the magic directly, the undead was relatively unharmed.
Then followed more zombies—some wreathed in red flame, others with hardened bodies, others exuding chilling frost—emerging one after another.
"Elemental Ghast, undead each immune to an element. No matter how powerful an elemental mage's firepower, you cannot annihilate them all, ohohot."
"You…"
"If you so desire the foundation of the Orb of the Undead, perhaps you'll find it better once you've become undead yourselves. Now then, farewell."
The black magician hurled himself into the pit from which the undead had risen.
It seemed to connect to some passage. They tried to pursue at once, but the number of zombies was far too many.
Cutting them down one by one would surely let the black magician escape.
'What should we…'
While Calia hesitated, Verden stepped forward.
"I will catch him."
"What?"
Magic power surged from Verden's entire body.
He swung his staff, twisting the mana. Of course, he adjusted the force so as not to collapse the mausoleum.
< Vortex >
A small gravitational whirlpool shredded the mass of undead ahead. Even if they were immune to elements, they did not have complete resistance to sheer physical force.
Having cleared a path, Verden used Flight and dove into the pit in an instant.
Seeing that, Calia gripped her sword tightly.
"Reckless…! Vespa, hold the formation and face the undead! I will follow Asher!"
"It is too dangerous, Lady Calia!"
Vespa tried to dissuade her, but Calia did not listen.
Slashing through the zombies before her, she hurled herself into the pit as well.
***
"Ohohohot!"
The black magician flew through the dark passage, Skeletons swarming all around.
'Just as Lord Nosa planned!'
Though their arrival was sooner than expected, the outcome was the same.
They would be buried under the horde of undead. Even if they survived, it did not matter. The moment they reached the outside through this passage, the plan would be complete.
Whatever happened, Calia and the White Crest Knights could not survive.
'But that mage… Asher, was it?'
The mage said to have sown discord in the Union to Calia's benefit. He hadn't heard that one would come here as well…
'But there can't be any variables.'
Even if known as a lightning mage, in the end it was elemental magic. No matter how he struggled, against the Elemental Ghasts—numbering in the hundreds—he was destined to be devoured.
At that moment, a sound of destruction erupted behind him.
"…What?"
The black magician turned his head.
Boom! Crash!
A gray-haired mage was smashing Skeletons apart with his staff, rushing toward him at terrifying speed.
"Wh-what?!"
The black magician hastily drew on his magic power.
But Verden's speed was greater.
In the blink of an eye, Verden closed in behind him and swung his staff.
"Urgh!"
The black magician was struck in the back and slammed into the ground.
Due to the speed of Flight, he tumbled along the floor for a long stretch. Small stones beneath tore and broke his body, blood spilling forth.
"Guhhh… wh-what is this…"
The black magician staggered to his feet.
But it was not over.
With practiced maneuver, Verden reversed direction and aimed the Oculus at the black magician.
Triple Casting.
< Multiple Ice Arrows >
Fifteen arrows of frost rained down upon him.
A mana barrier sprang up at once, but to Verden it was weaker than tofu.
"…!"
The barrier shattered, his mana circuits overloaded, and the following arrows pierced the black magician's limbs. The Ring of Permafrost strengthened the chill, freezing his arms and legs solid.
Losing his balance, the black magician collapsed onto the floor.
Verden immediately pressed the Oculus against his neck.
His airway gradually blocked.
The black magician's eyes filled with terror.
"Ghh… guh… h-how, so fast…!"
"Where is the foundation?"
Verden pressed harder.
The black magician's face flushed red, twisted in pain.
Yet still, he did not speak.
As if he would die if he spoke, his eyes still shone with desperate will to live. And yet, there was also mockery in them.
'What on earth…?'
Something was missing.
The information from the diocese.
The foundation of the Orb of the Undead.
The holy equipment borrowed from the Church.
The number of black magicians and undead guarding the mausoleum. The black magician's demeanor, as though they had expected their arrival.
And above all, the absence of the Orb's foundation.
Everything was tangled together.
What was truly hidden?
As Verden held the black magician down, lost in thought, Calia appeared from the passage, cutting down Skeletons.
"Asher, you're safe!"
At that same moment, the black magician's eyes turned toward Calia. An instinctive reaction.
The instant Verden saw it, he knew.
< Crush >
Stone fragments burrowed into the black magician's neck.
They exploded, erasing his head without a trace.
Calia's eyes went wide.
"What are you…!"
"Lady Calia."
Verden's voice was grave.
"This is a trap."
At once, immense mana welled up from the corpses of Skeletons all around. Just like when the Elemental Ghasts had suddenly appeared in the innermost chamber.
How black magic manifested without warning, he did not know—but he knew what this spell was.
In an instant, Verden wrapped Calia within his protection.
< Mass Corpse Explosion >
Kwooooom!
The curse-laden blast engulfed the entire passage.