Chapter 171
Okm“Form the barrier!”amVuE94
AKbFU1x“District 26 has been breached!”YpYygG
b0h“Hold the line! Fall back to the District 25 barrier!”jj9
mMonxThe dwarven city had no walls. There was no need for them.
But the dwarves were not naive.Aujf
bkUoQjEven though they lacked walls, they had designed the city to withstand an invasion in case of emergency.8YBUMH
PDkThe city was divided into districts and, when necessary, the buildings themselves would rearrange to form barriers.7FFK
QBxbZCreak—qmfjLMN
HhwTk8The mechanisms activated with a loud clatter, making the buildings slowly move and form a wall.RliXm
b5JsT31─!axJw
f0aYVAt that moment, dozens of Zikrik rammed their massive bodies into the barrier.iR8C8
IzSPThe impact caused part of it to collapse, and the dwarves screamed. Behind them, the Envif burst in.5AD
w1dKJ“Damn it!”tNM
UI4“We can’t let them through!”LRYVL11
NYWoSOAmidst the chaotic battlefield, the mayor and the councilors appeared.Fat
eueRzHundreds of citizens who had just been civilians were now armed warriors rushing to join.A8U
zHB“Reinforcements!”jdYXICH
XQr1W0“Uoooooh!”hoD
pwa0It was said that most dwarves were warriors, and the councilors were living proof of that saying.Ecvi
CwkksirOld and hunched, but with undiminished skill. With precision, they brought down the Envif climbing the barrier.W6PGxS
2m3And they shattered the heads of the Zikrik who made it through with their axes.2H8
pQ2But the one who stood out the most was the mayor.7Geq73B
fK0zx3“You think I’ll let the city fall? Never!”oyQPie2
5tC───!
A Turhel, which had been charging in a straight line and crushing everything in its path, stopped for the first time.qPU
olQubEiThe mayor’s muscles swelled as if they were about to burst, his brown aura burst out violently.dLIHYz
4piuThe Turhel, surprised, poked its head out of its shell—and the mayor’s battle axe didn’t miss the chance.5GW6Jll
uvZuvc9With a storm of axe blows, the Turhel let out a heart-wrenching screech.xAWizxR
oIF6QX“Uoooooh!”PmCeKgf
l3wj“Long live the mayor!”DhbM
Jh4The monster that had crushed the barrier in an instant was defeated, and the dwarves roared with joy.
The battle wasn’t over, but their morale soared.1mA40
R5sA“In person it’s even more chaotic.”cWhdf
IsSb3u“Shall we join in right away?”AfOd
6VaCON5“Of course. But first…”Txm
mstx9OCThe dwarves were not easy opponents.GdUfXLw
154G1The initial damage had been great due to the ambush, but with the mayor and councilors fighting, they would hold the line.7XCsHV
JdiE“We can’t let Adguif roam free.”l7bJug
pujOIt would be useless if they didn’t capture Adguif. He could attack the city again at any time.e61h
JwhXPm“Wooden.”GbbQU4d
lpbb— Kyuu?Y5trQw
MTjZyHe might be relying too much on him, but he didn’t care. What was the point of creating something if you didn’t use it?vQS
5ZoEFG3“Find Adguif and the dwarves among those monsters. This time do it the other way around—don’t look for corrupted mana, look for those who don’t have it.”ug3VuZJ
iHk— Kyu?mgw3L
cM6Me, alone?ovvj
NLwi9EI“Yes, alone. Can you do it?”lTc8Gn
zalbn— Kyuuu, kyu?Hxt
jN5“For now just locate them. Since we’re connected, I’ll give you new orders depending on the situation.”LC0ZZ
7En6Wooden nodded. He took off his collar and, avoiding all eyes, disappeared into the battlefield.iSt
nZ5kxoWHe had acted as a spy many times before—he knew how to move without being noticed.nR9
rm3“Then let’s go too, senior. The more dwarves we save and the fewer casualties they suffer, the more they’ll owe us.”2DrpU5
1cYMy“As long as no more Turhel show up, I can handle them. Though those giant ants are disgusting…”fShH7sn
cBTCeNC“They’re called Envif, senior.”26bWO
nu7V19X“Well, they look like cows, but they’re giant ants!”0dn1x
qRJEOdJIgnoring Gismond’s complaints, Fernan headed for the battlefield.T8m
us0Eoi“Wait, don’t leave me behind!”vow0WFm
pD5brxzHyde and Gismond followed him.9unj5
UgV***Zb6
iGnp1— Kyuu.fSrWEwn
KZQWooden solemnly entered the ruins.yhkQXP
KtFNZXdLately, he had found joy in spying, but this time was different.zy3AcCA
ZncWm1Corrupted mana was everywhere.SOiWxR
emGHtToo many things that shouldn’t exist in this world.M4X0J
SUHAs a forest spirit and heir of the World Tree’s energy, Wooden couldn’t bear such repulsion.cDTMGTn
bFVlZu— Kyuu. Kyu.sUMiK
rwsMonsters. Kill.5Om
LG8Corrupted magic. Erase.X2V6J8
V4K498NHe ran among ruins, avoiding gazes. By minimizing his presence, even the monsters didn’t notice him.yrBSuC
xVR— Kyuu.sqkaN
zwkeThere it was. The entrance.A9qhzh
Cb7The far eastern end of the city, where the attack had begun.QQB
Xpolj— Kyu?5X5M
3TSOWhat did the dwarves call it? District 30?V1Yvamq
QoR9udThe wall was in ruins. The only proof that a city had once stood there was the wreckage.pQrF
JBcEIWqWooden entered one of the tunnels dug by the Zikrik.apLy
SX6Since all the monsters had already exited, he didn’t sense any nearby living beings.JSJ4
ZcGQdaHe dug a bit, buried himself, and extended his roots.3MsQ
sba— Kyuu.xXpB
XTmI2KMany presences. Many monsters.VOrzB
3ta0He sensed them in the distance, but they were from the city, so he ignored them.fSN
CV4His roots stretched further into the tunnel.8frUXYy
NDzR7And soon, he found what he was looking for.tgb8
JgJNx— Kyuu?MnW
iTVoHuh? Over here?hKK
bAolHe didn’t even have to try. A weakened presence was slowly approaching the city.Flio
eoZ6— Kyuu?WQnMazu
Z47Now what?vtW
rIyuWooden sent his intent to his master.5mWt
BCAB‘Out of the more than thirty who disappeared, only one remains. Approach without being detected.’XYA
nY1He obeyed.Sm5C4
Ygtfl5“Haa, haa…!”Elu
mqYIt was just as his master had expected.Ydh
jOlGS6A‘Yes, it’s Adguif. But what a mess…’qhEe
sGF1GA dwarf drenched in blood, breathing heavily, clutching his massive axe.r9LeBQU
DAECAnd for a dwarf, he had barely any beard.5d9l
yphwuE— Kyuu.YOnM1
AUKpoyDeath. Soon.PBimVuU
DNfSHis body was full of holes, one shoulder nearly torn off, blood everywhere.jMogGs
FoCkXThat he was still alive was a miracle.f5ngT1r
eZdWooden thought no one could save him now.7h2
kxlU— Kyun?2ibGMe
GJErTWhat should I do?1BhO6
6vv7muF‘Wait a moment.’V5MMuaP
sWfjHUiThen Fernan’s thoughts flooded him.9bofnz
ROfB‘What if Adguif wasn’t the real leader? Or maybe he wasn’t a corrupt dwarf after all?’UDBZ
e9NaZ6L‘If he was allied with the corrupt, like Adolf, why would they attack him?’tMnw
5YbZR9‘Is there something I don’t know…?’IbK0ctS
YZ4— Kyuu! Kyuuu!hLLni
nJhKAIHEnough! It hurts!0VxjUZ
rFq7— Kyu!gTQpKG
moxJiMaster, are you dumb?8rxu9L
zbYWooden grabbed his head, dizzy from the wave of thoughts.lWh1t
yHbK‘Ah, sorry.’WIpsHn5
3UWFernan stopped his reflection. Wooden shook his head to clear the pain.AudN
kvV‘For now…’kxscuo
MTzxHThen he sensed another presence. Unlike Adguif’s, it was a monster.jYo
ORpPNr“So here you were, stupid dwarf.”7u0
cIHWoWFootsteps echoed.z88
tUCUThe creature looked human, but its pale skin and the corrupt mana surrounding it showed otherwise.FF5SJul
Elv‘Nasgrim, a level 2 monster?’rmRRZ1l
cCiOne of the most intelligent, used by demons as overseers.47qW
rmvuS5F‘Did the corrupt summon him to command the beasts? Then everything fits.’jnbyM8
obC4‘Or maybe, like Kimaris, a demon has already been summoned…’uyRI
mbdQ—Kyuuu!eOpo
Fx88Again!PKX
Aj8U0TT‘Ah, sorry. Just watch. I’m heading there!’AgVOEb
oMjWooden, holding his breath, crept close enough without being seen.BOD66Sq
Yh0sZ“Why did you rebel against the count? If you had kept delivering dwarves, none of this would be happening.”vDZob
qe3Ka“And you think I was going to let the city be ravaged?”Xm8
zyY53“Pfft, when you’ve already handed over hundreds, you’re just being stupid.”Oax
mi8hiGPNasgrim looked at him mockingly. Adguif clenched his teeth.IelUZ
cTWe“You’ll be the sacrifice for a great demon. Unlike the other dwarves.”AC89INh
MDJBnr“The city will never fall…!”Blmi
XoVmzFM“Half-dead and still talking, huhuhu.”23wRlpe
Ca8k3Nasgrim snapped his fingers. More than ten Envif crawled out from the darkness.TOBU
8Sd“Is your body small and your brain even smaller? If you’d just obeyed the count’s orders, you could’ve lived under the protection of the great ones.”ZBe
Yg9“Shut your mouth, trash.”85bT6
JH2Puh— Adguif spat out blackish blood.3SWzS
Wcoc“My only regret is not preparing better despite foreseeing your malice, and letting those who trusted me and followed me die.”XhmrE8
LLntPBB“So dignified to the end. But the city will fall. Because of you. Because of your arrogance.”2jLaICI
JkVCvR“What a naïve dream. It’s true this disaster happened due to my mistake, but not even a few hundred monsters can destroy the city.”kGb
uRdgATSure, there would be damage, but it wouldn’t collapse.vP0
k7iOAdguif’s breathing grew even weaker.iuW
SpLi“Do you really believe that?”uX97IZE
K2uBFNasgrim pressed a finger into Adguif’s wounds, making him groan.GDg0
bjH3l“The Envif will collect all the bodies of the dwarves who died in the invasion. And with them, we’ll summon more monsters.”wRnsI7
NuSejSThen, with those monsters, they’ll attack the city again.3pEga
ySAAjThey’ll collect more corpses.dq58K
WNnOAwZAnd repeat the cycle again and again.bJhsn
UBGSgB“Do you think the city can withstand all that unscathed?”1uVX
BjY“…If you do that, you won’t be able to summon the demon.”zzm5
SOQ“Everything is already off track. The count is extremely displeased. Instead of a demon, he plans to devour the entire city and create a monster army.”CPEa
FgjLCAdguif’s face turned pale.CP3d
66C8Zk“Now that’s an interesting look. Well then, goodbye, stupid dwarf. Making deals with us without even knowing what it meant? Did you really think you could use us?”frUfAkt
45uNasgrim raised his hand, which transformed into a massive scythe.S38geg
dw3m1‘No! Wooden, buy some time, no matter what!’6ZI
7fBr— Kyu?Jqyg
KKIhkOTime? How?PiTP3VB
dIrW7kXHesitating, Wooden picked up a small pebble from the ground and tossed it.MVsKcf9
q1EBaTap, roll.p70A
xB4oDyThe stone rolled with a faint noise.dyNduL
9dr“…Hm?”14S
IKC0zvGrr—MZfJqqc
KGmmeJBut it was enough to catch Nasgrim’s and the Envif’s attention.Vm8
K3PSdI“…Who’s there?”VeC
pGWfNo answer. Not sensing any clear presence, Nasgrim gestured toward the Envif.Iq1L
Y1cN9The creatures began creeping toward where Wooden had been.wX0H
UWZRtaKill?bx2AaMQ
Gdhq7zHide?ESPz
L6oOBut his master had ordered him not to reveal his true form.j3v
qDKmko1— Kyu.wg83pV
CGcsViWooden had no choice but to dig underground and hide. The Envif stepped right over the spot where he had been, but found nothing.mjPq2q9
APc6zX2Kieeh?r8l
vlqS0“Nothing? Strange. Maybe the wind?”sylDu
WOUHThe Envif returned to their original position. At that moment, Wooden threw another stone.gKJ1P
5Iyj“…No. There’s something. Search!”QQj
GSaNasgrim’s eyes widened and he started approaching.vKWag3
3rfWooden, though he had no saliva, swallowed hard.VgBnu8V
IdEAnd then—bGR6
4oeLm2iStep, step, step.32nu
iG2JiFirm footsteps were heard.0S3Tl
J8Y“The fast sword…”zjH9b3
hviA voice Wooden already knew well.QEnwI
j4AytD“…is explosion!”CY3Gd
EELEbYThe aura flared.1kI
S6YaThe head of an Envif flew off in a single slash. The decapitated body collapsed.igLCXl
f1aI3TJA moment later—A1wmu
SDhcgKQRumble!72ER6Z
ceYjZThe ground rose, separating Nasgrim and Adguif.xkb
27WkDCR“Captain Adguif.”PZ46I
pb6aDV6Step, step.MyVVz5
l7tsFrom the darkness emerged a nobleman with red eyes.ysjq
hq7b2g“In Pellenberg, we have a saying. Whoever steals our money won’t escape—not even in the afterlife.”E43u
bajWhere do you think you’ll run after betraying your own race?5sajY
ORMx59“The mayor is eagerly waiting for you.”PHD3B6
iRrT“…That sounds terrifying.”adRm5tb
FE6Adguif forced a bitter smile, his face pale.0NiUxgf
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