A Ray of Light in the Darkness
THUD! BANG! BANG!
My entire body slammed repeatedly against the walls before crashing hard onto the stone floor. A groan escaped me a moment later as the pain struck.
“Ugh… That hurts….”
Agony pierced through my leather armor, making every part of my body scream. It must have been quite a fall.
‘At least I did not hit my head.’
Groaning, I slowly rose to my feet. I picked up the torch that had fallen nearby and examined my surroundings.
There was nothing but darkness. I sensed no one nearby, nor could I detect the scent of any living creature. Fortunately, I did not appear to have fallen into a monster’s nest.
Now I had to find a way out.
‘It does not look as though I can climb back up….’
I raised the torch above my head and illuminated the ceiling. The outline of the hole through which I had fallen was barely visible.
It was at least as high as a two-story building, and there was nowhere to gain a foothold. Climbing back up would be impossible.
Fortunately, this was not an enclosed chamber. A passage extended from one side. I did not know where it led, but I had little choice except to follow it.
‘This may also be part of the mine. If so, there should be another way out, provided it has not collapsed and become blocked….’
Clinging to that hopeful thought, I began walking in search of an exit. Only my cautious footsteps echoed through the silent cave.
“…This path keeps descending.”
At some point, I realized that I had been walking steadily downhill. I eventually retraced my steps, sweeping the torch from side to side as I examined the surroundings.
‘Remain calm. There must be another path.’
As I continued walking while steadying myself, something caught my eye.
‘What is that?’
The torchlight passed over the wall, and a sudden gleam flashed from its surface.
For a moment, I wondered whether I had imagined it, but the deep crimson sheen was clearly different from the firelight. Curious, I approached and discovered the source.
“…What is this?”
Countless crystalline formations clung to the surface of the wall. The dark red crystals, resembling both the color of wine and the hue of blood, were unlike anything I had ever seen.
[???]
[A deep crimson crystal. It appears translucent and highly durable.]
That was all the Status Window could tell me. Since I possessed no knowledge of the crystal, it could not provide its name or any detailed information.
Perhaps I could borrow Ragna’s knowledge. Since I did not know the object’s name, I would have to search for it manually rather than consult a specific record….
[Ragna’s Tip]
[Keyword: Ore]
[There are 4,862 search results.]
This was hopeless.
There was far too much information to determine the crystal’s identity immediately.
‘Then I should take a piece and investigate it later. It does not appear to be an ordinary mineral.’
I picked up one of the smaller crystal fragments scattered across the floor and placed it in my pouch before continuing onward.
I had momentarily forgotten that I was trapped in an underground cave. I would have to escape before I could have the crystal appraised or do anything else with it.
I was once again sweeping the torchlight across my surroundings when a sound emerged from the darkness.
CLANK, CLANK.
I flinched and stopped. The noise sounded strangely familiar.
‘Metal… No, that is the sound of armor. What is it?’
There was no reason for the sound of armor to be heard this deep inside the cave. I briefly considered whether it might be Hakon, but he was supposed to be waiting at the entrance. There was no reason for him to be down here.
CLATTER!
I threw the torch onto the ground, drew the mace from my waist, and pulled the shield close to my body as I assumed a defensive stance.
Whatever was ahead of me did not seem likely to be friendly.
The clanking of armor drew steadily closer, and a figure emerged beyond the firelight.
It truly was a suit of armor.
A rusted and broken suit of iron armor slowly staggered toward me.
For a moment, I wondered whether it was a Living Armor like Doumar, but I soon realized that it was not.
‘A Skeleton?’
Beneath the dented helmet was a skull rather than a human face.
I did not know why a Skeleton was wandering through such a deep cave, but it seemed unlikely that I could avoid fighting it. The Undead were hostile toward all living things, so it would not simply allow me to pass.
‘This is my first time fighting the Undead… However, Low-Rank Undead are slow and move predictably. It should not be difficult to defeat.’
That thought gave me confidence, and I took a step toward it.
At that moment, the creature’s right arm moved like lightning, thrusting the chipped sword in its hand.
CLANG!
Sparks flew with a metallic crash, and a powerful impact struck my shield.
My eyes widened at the speed with which it had closed the distance and attacked.
‘What is this? This is nothing like what I heard.’
Its speed and disciplined posture resembled those of an experienced knight. How could a mere Skeleton, one of the weakest kinds of Undead, move like this?
CLANG! CLASH!
As I blocked the Skeleton’s relentless attacks with my shield, a name suddenly surfaced in my memory.
‘If an Undead moves like this, could it be a Spartoi?’
I immediately opened the Status Window to confirm my suspicion.
[Spartoi]
[A Skeleton equipped with exceedingly ancient armor and weapons. Unlike ordinary Low-Rank Undead, its movements are as swift and precise as those of a human.]
[Record No. 689 - Spartoi: An Undead created by a Dragon, also known as a Dragon-Tooth Soldier. Its movements are nearly as swift as those of a human, but its durability is no greater than that of a Low-Rank Skeleton. It can therefore be easily defeated with a blunt weapon.]
One particular line among the descriptions immediately caught my attention.
The Spartoi were beings created to guard the domains of Dragons. If that was the case…?
‘Is this cave a Dragon’s Lair?’
A chill swept through me, but I quickly reminded myself that I could not be certain.
If a Dragon truly lived here, the entire Bricks Territory would have been reduced to ashes long ago.
Moreover, most Dragons had been subjugated and driven into hiding in the distant past.
They had fallen at the hands of my ancestor Ragna.
‘That can wait. First, I need to smash this thing apart!’
The Spartoi thrust its sword at me again. I blocked the attack with my shield, stepped forward, and slammed the shield into its body.
CLANG!
The armor collided violently with my shield, producing a heavy metallic crash. The Spartoi staggered.
Seizing the opening, I swung my mace with all my strength. The creature reeled even farther backward.
The breastplate I had struck had not merely crumpled. It was nearly torn away entirely. The old, rusted armor could never withstand a mace, a weapon specifically designed to crush protective equipment.
I approached the Spartoi before it could recover its stance and delivered the finishing blow.
CRUNCH!
With a deafening crash, the Spartoi shattered from its shoulder to its pelvis and collapsed onto the ground.
The broken fragments of bone no longer moved. Just as Ragna’s record had stated, its durability was no different from that of an ordinary Skeleton.
“…Was that all?”
Worried that there might be more of them, I listened carefully. However, I could no longer hear the clanking of armor.
That did not mean I could lower my guard. I needed to leave this place as quickly as possible.
I picked up the torch I had dropped and continued onward, leaving the defeated Spartoi behind.
After passing the Spartoi and continuing through the cave, I eventually found a path leading upward.
Before long, I saw an exit in the distance.
The light pouring inside was so bright that I furrowed my brow as I stepped through it.
A green forest and towering trees greeted me. In their midst, Hakon was arguing with an unfamiliar group.
“Listen, I already told you that I do not know when he will return! How many times must I repeat myself?”
“How can you say such a thing? Did you not claim to be the lord’s knight? Take us to meet him at once!”
Puzzled and wary of the unexpected situation, I approached them. Everyone immediately turned toward me.
“You have returned, my lord. You were gone considerably longer than I expected.”
“I lost my way inside for a while… More importantly, what is happening? Who are these people?”
“I do not know. They appeared a short while ago and asked for you. When I told them that you had entered the cave, they insisted on waiting until you emerged.”
Hakon explained while glaring at them cautiously.
There were around ten strangers in total. Each carried a bow and wore light clothing. Even at a glance, they did not appear to be ordinary villagers.
‘Come to think of it, I was told that indigenous inhabitants have lived in the Bricks Lowlands since ancient times.’
These people appeared to be among them.
I had heard that they rarely interacted with outsiders and lived in secluded communities. There had to be a reason they had come to find me of their own accord.
Just as I reached that conclusion, one of them spoke.
“Are you Lord Vermont?”
It was the man standing at the front of the group. His powerful build suggested that he possessed considerable strength, but he also carried himself with a dignified air.
“I am. My name is Dieter Vermont. I am the rightful lord of the Bricks Territory, and I reside at Bricks Castle.”
“And you are the one who slew the Drake that descended from the mountains several days ago, are you not?”
His gaze shifted toward the Drake-scale shield in my hand. I held it forward for him to see as I answered.
“Yes. This should make that obvious.”
“S-So it is true!”
“The rumors were correct. I cannot believe it.”
“Did I not tell you that my daughter saw it herself? She saw this young man and his servants harvesting the Drake and Griffon before carrying them away on a cart!”
The indigenous people exclaimed in astonishment and began whispering among themselves.
It had been approximately a week since we killed the Drake. That was more than enough time for rumors to spread throughout the surrounding region.
“Now it is my turn to ask questions. Who are you, and why were you looking for me?”
I kept my mace and shield raised as I spoke. I sensed no hostility from them, but they were still armed, so I could not afford to lower my guard.
“Speak. You must have come because you need something from me. What do you want?”
Instead of answering, the man who appeared to be their leader stepped forward.
He placed the axe he was carrying on the ground, lowered himself, and dropped to his knees.
THUD!
“Please save our village, my lord!”
He threw himself flat and bowed his head. The others immediately followed his example, discarding their weapons and dropping to their knees.
“We came after hearing that the new lord had slain the Drake! Our village desperately needs your strength! Please help us!”
His voice was filled with heartfelt desperation.
I did not yet know what had happened, but there had to be a grave reason for them to humble themselves to such an extent.
‘Furthermore, these people are indigenous to this land. Establishing relations with them and earning their goodwill can only benefit me.’
My confusion lasted only briefly. After making my decision, I lowered my weapons and answered.
“Very well. I do not yet know what has happened, but I will hear you out.”