episode_0065

I slung the arming sword over my shoulder and raised the shield.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The heavy footsteps of the hobgoblin warrior grew closer.

The figures of the hobgoblin group emerged from the darkness.

Clubs, spears, daggers, axes.

The bastards were holding various weapons.

They looked quite neat, considering where they’d picked them up.

“Gallerheim!”

Jeong Yushin shouted.

Thung!

Gallerheim fired a bolt.

Whoo-ee-ee-eek!!!

The bolt passed the hobgoblin shaman and disappeared into the darkness.

“Damn it!”

Gallerheim spat out a curse.

Jeong Yushin glared at Gallerheim.

Like the farter getting angry.

Seeing him miss and then get mad made me want to smack him upside the head.

[Haste]

Pyrion’s incantation finished. My body felt lighter.

I couldn’t afford to pay any more attention to Gallerheim.

The hobgoblin warrior was running straight at me.

Jeong Yushin gripped his sword tightly.

‘Come on.’

“Kueeeeek!!!”

The hobgoblin warrior charged and swung his club.

Jeong Yushin stepped half a foot to the side.

Crash!!!

The floor shattered, and stone fragments flew.

The hobgoblin warrior’s stance faltered because of the heavy club.

The hand gripping the club stood out.

‘An opening.’

I raised my foot and stomped on the hobgoblin’s wrist.

Thump!!!

Crack!!!

Jeong Yushin’s walker pulverized the hobgoblin warrior’s wrist bone.

“Kkeueeeeek!!!”

The hobgoblin warrior screamed and dropped the club from his hand.

‘A chance.’

I raised the arming sword and tried to stab the hobgoblin warrior’s throat.

Whoo-ee-ee-eek!!!

A bolt cut through the darkness and flew towards Jeong Yushin.

“Shit!”

Clang!!!

I raised the shield to block.

The bolt was blocked.

But.

Whack!!!

I was struck by the furious hobgoblin warrior’s other hand.

Jeong Yushin rolled across the floor and crashed into the cave wall.

The shoulder part of the light armor crumpled.

“Scar!!!”

Soline cried out.

Soline was struggling to deal with the remaining hobgoblin warrior and couldn’t afford to help.

Jeong Yushin bounced back up from the floor like a tumbler doll.

[Revenger]

Engraving activated.

Blue ghost fire streamed from the eyeholes of the helmet.

I charged once more.

The hobgoblin warrior grabbed the club with his good hand and swung it wildly.

Crash!!!

Crash!!!

Jeong Yushin dodged the club, jumping and running.

‘Knee.’

I thrust the sword straight in.

The sharp tip of the sword pierced the hobgoblin warrior’s knee cartilage and lodged firmly.

“Kueeeeek!!!”

The hobgoblin warrior’s body stiffened.

I didn’t stop.

Stepping in, I charged straight into the hobgoblin warrior’s arms.

I pulled out the dagger strapped to my waist and plunged it into the hobgoblin warrior’s throat.

The dagger pierced the jaw and tore through the brain.

Instant death.

The hobgoblin warrior’s body, drained of strength, slowly began to fall.

Jeong Yushin stepped back and pulled the arming sword out of the knee.

“Scar!”

Soline’s voice brightened.

“Snap out of it!”

I shouted briefly and raised the shield.

Crack!!!

The spear thrust by the hobgoblin scraped past the shield.

I lowered my stance and stabbed the hobgoblin’s belly with my sword and stepped back.

“Keek!”

The hobgoblin dropped its weapon and grabbed its stomach.

‘Drops the weapon?’

I kicked the hobgoblin in the chin with my walker.

Snap!!!

The hobgoblin, its jaw shattered, flew through the air for a moment before rolling across the floor.

Jeong Yushin secured the shield to his wrist and grabbed the spear.

Thwoom!!!

The faint sound of a crossbow string could be heard in the distance.

‘It’s coming.’

I quickly raised the shield.

Thwack!!!

The bolt that flew from the darkness lodged in the shield.

“Gallerheim! Try to hit something this time!!!”

“Ah, I got it!”

Gallerheim raised his crossbow. The target was the hobgoblin shaman.

Thwoom!!!

The sound of a crossbow string rang out in the distance.

The bolt’s target was Gallerheim.

The startled Gallerheim trembled.

“Shit!!!”

Jeong Yushin charged and swung his sword.

Clang!!!

The hand gripping the sword tingled.

Luckily, the bolt hit the sword blade directly.

The crisis was averted.

But the bolt that Gallerheim fired grazed past the hobgoblin shaman.

His composure was shaken, so it was natural that he couldn’t hit.

Jeong Yushin clicked his tongue and threw the sword on the floor, gripping the spear tightly.

The hobgoblin shaman raised his staff.

“Heeeuuuup!!!”

He twisted his waist with all his might.

The hobgoblin shaman opened his mouth.

Jeong Yushin threw the spear with every ounce of strength he could muster.

Whooooosh!!!

An enormous sonic boom echoed through the cave.

Thwack!!!

The spear, flying with incredible speed, pierced three hobgoblins at once and lodged precisely in the hobgoblin shaman’s Adam’s apple.

“Kuek!! Kuek!!”

The hobgoblin shaman stopped chanting, grabbed his Adam’s apple, and staggered backward.

“Stick to my back!”

Jeong Yushin picked up his sword, told the elf and gnome, and ran forward.

The place where Soline was.

Soline was fighting the hobgoblin warrior without giving an inch.

But the surrounding rabble of hobgoblins were constantly poking and prodding Soline, so she was gradually being pushed back.

“He’s here!”

“Scar!”

Jeong Yushin charged and swung his sword.

Splurch!!!

The sharp blade of the arming sword severed the hobgoblin’s neck.

Thwoom!!!

The bolt flew again.

The target was himself.

I immediately dropped flat on the floor.

Thwuck!!!

The bolt lodged in the forehead of the hobgoblin charging towards Jeong Yushin from the front.

The hobgoblin couldn’t even scream and collapsed on the floor like a powerless log.

I jumped up from the floor and swung my sword.

Each time the sword flashed, the heads of the hobgoblin bastards flew into the air.

Fountains of blood gushed from the severed necks of the headless hobgoblins. Gallerheim and Pyrion, who were following behind, screamed.

All the rabble were cleared.

The last bastard.

Only the hobgoblin warrior remained.

While Soline was facing him head-on, I went around to the back and swung my sword.

The target was the hobgoblin warrior’s ankle.

Slash!!!

The blade of the arming sword accurately severed the hobgoblin warrior’s Achilles tendon.

“Kueeeeek!!!”

The hobgoblin warrior screamed and swung his club wildly.

Crash!!!

Crash!!!

Stepping in, I dodged them all by a hair’s breadth and brought down my sword.

‘Wrist.’

Slash!!!

Blood gushed from the hobgoblin warrior’s wrist like spring water between the rocks.

“Keeek!!!”

The hobgoblin warrior dropped his club.

At the same time.

Bolts flew from the darkness.

Whoo-ee-ee-eek!!!

This time, three bolts.

The targets were Gallerheim and Pyrion.

I knew it instinctively.

I threw myself in front of my comrades, raised my shield, and held out my sword.

Clang!!!

Clang!!!

Two bolts hit the shield, and one hit the sword blade.

Gallerheim stuck out his tongue with a pale face.

“No, crazy!!! Are you possessed?”

“Later.”

Jeong Yushin replied nonchalantly and turned his body.

I had to kill the hobgoblin warrior first.

The hobgoblin warrior was out of his mind, swinging the arm that was still intact.

Then.

Soline charged and swung her greatsword.

Swoosh!!!

The greatsword split the hobgoblin warrior’s head in half and lodged there.

“Gheooo…”

Thud!!!

The hobgoblin warrior, leaking brain fluid, knelt on the floor.

Subjugation complete.

Shlack.

Soline pulled out the greatsword and slung it over her shoulder, saying.

“Scar, thank you.”

“Let’s do it later.”

Jeong Yushin looked down at the shield. Bolts were stuck all over it, making it tattered.

“Gallerheim, how much further do we have to go?”

Gallerheim unfolded the map.

His body twitched from time to time, showing that he was wary of the bolts.

“Are you worried that a bolt will fly at you? Don’t worry. What could be worse than death?”

“N-no, I’m not.”

‘Sure.’

Jeong Yushin muttered inwardly and walked through the hobgoblin corpses.

After being ambushed, I realized. These bastards were more like assassins than hunters.

Assassins targeting the Fifth Prince.

Even if we get out alive, it’s a problem. I can’t drag the embers outside the labyrinth city.

I thought about asking Ingrid, but I erased the thought.

Owe a debt to a person of power?

That’s like walking into the tiger’s mouth on my own two feet.

I’ll kill them here. All of them.

Jeong Yushin made up his mind and opened his mouth.

“Hey!!!”

The surroundings became quiet.

“W-what is it?”

Pyrion stammered and asked.

Jeong Yushin waved his arms.

“I’m not talking to our party, so don’t look at me like I’m crazy.”

“A-alright.”

Pyrion barely answered. His expression didn’t change.

“You rat bastards squatting in the darkness, listen up.”

Jeong Yushin spat out a word and strode over to pick up a torch.

No sound was heard from the darkness.

“You poor bastards. It’s obvious without even looking. You’ve probably lived your whole lives cowardly ambushing people. You’ve been killing people regardless of their status, high or low, just because you were told to. Right? You’re the dogs of the powerful. There’s no meaning to your lives, so what’s the point of living any longer? Bark like dogs and die. Woof woof.”

“…”

I ignored the party members’ gazes that were searing my face.

“You pathetic bastards.”

I glared at the darkness where there was no response.

I was annoyed, so I scratched at them a bit.

I hoped the provocation would work. I hoped they would get angry and not be able to hold back, and only fire bolts at me. That’s the only way my party would survive.

Jeong Yushin turned his head and looked down at the snub-nosed gnome.

“Gallerheim, I think you’ve finished calculating by now?”

“If we go about five more hours from here, we’ll be there.”

‘Ha.’

Jeong Yushin swallowed the sigh that was about to come out.

“Let’s go.”

Jeong Yushin said, holding the torch.

The party members stuck closer to Jeong Yushin than before and carefully moved through the darkness.

Jeong Yushin looked at the darkness and opened his mouth.

“Gallerheim.”

“What is it?”

“Tell me about that clown named Oswald or whatever.”

“I-I don’t really know.”

“Stop sticking your nose in the air and tell me a lie. Seriously.”

Gallerheim hurriedly brought his hand to his nose.

I couldn’t see it because he was wearing a nose mask, but there was something I could feel without seeing it.

“…”

“Do you think Oswald will save you? Is that why you’re not talking? You’re saying it’s okay if the party members all die as long as you survive?”

“…”

Gallerheim became mute.

“Please tell me.”

“…”

Gallerheim scratched his head.

Jeong Yushin remained silent and waited quietly.

“Haa. I understand. Oswald’s engraving ability is…”

Gallerheim finally gave in. But he was still afraid, glancing at the darkness and opening his mouth.

He whispered in a small voice, afraid someone would hear.

A time for a cup of tea passed.

The party’s atmosphere grew heavy. It was because they had heard about Oswald’s ability.

“…What should we do?”

The elven priest Pyrion muttered heavily.

“…Huu. That’s why I told you, didn’t I? It’s useless even if you know.”

Gallerheim sighed deeply and replied.

I could see that the party members’ steps were gradually slowing down.

Jeong Yushin organized his thoughts in silence.

Oswald, a human with paint on his face.

An executive of the Eastern District’s underworld clan, the Shadow Clowns.

The known engravings are.

[Veil of Darkness]

So-called Veil of Darkness, an engraving that extremely enhances not only his own stealth and noise cancellation abilities, but also those of his party.

He has unrivaled abilities in assassination and reconnaissance.

[Deadly Back Strike]

An engraving that deals critical damage when attacking from behind.

Oswald probably has more engravings, but Gallerheim only knows these two.

Jeong Yushin clicked his tongue.

These bastards aren’t easy.

Is there no way?

A way to safely save the party members and bury those bastards here at the same time.

Especially Oswald.

A bastard specialized in backstabbing.

Seeing a bastard with overpowered engravings doing things like that made my stomach ache.

My head was getting hot. Thinking so hard between life and death was a pain in the ass.

“Heeok!!!”

Gallerheim screamed.

“What’s wrong?”

Jeong Yushin asked.

“Kueeeeek!!!”

Instead of Gallerheim’s answer, the screams of a monster came from far away.

“Prepare for battle.”

Bolts hadn’t flown for a while. I didn’t think it was a good thing. I guessed that some kind of plot was definitely hidden.

“Kueeeeek!!!”

Jeong Yushin’s eyebrows twitched.

The monster’s sound was a bit different. It wasn’t a hobgoblin.

“It’s a human-faced centipede!!!”

Gallerheim shouted.

“Haa.”

Jeong Yushin sighed.

Eldritch Wave.

A new rule that has been created in the labyrinth.

A phenomenon discovered by suffering with Karin’s party.

A situation that overwhelms me without even giving me a chance to think.

It was as if the whole world was trying to kill me.

Jeong Yushin looked around at his party.

They were trembling with fear, as if they had heard about the Eldritch Wave.

They didn’t seem to be able to snap out of it. The weapons they had raised were gradually being lowered, as if their fighting spirit had been broken.

This won’t do. If their hearts are broken, they will collapse.

The party will easily fall apart, and all that will be left is a miserable death.

I can’t let that happen.

Jeong Yushin took a deep breath and shouted.

“Snap out of it!!!”

The shout echoed through the cave.

“Trust me!!! There’s a way to survive!!!”

The party members, who had been dyed with despair, were startled and looked at Jeong Yushin.

“…Scar, what’s that way?”

The elven priest Pyrion asked.

Looking at his face, I could see a faint glimmer of hope.

Jeong Yushin looked at Pyrion and opened his mouth.

“The way is…”

There isn’t one, actually.

“Kueeeeek!!!”

The monster’s shriek was getting closer.

Jeong Yushin slung the arming sword over his shoulder and turned his body.

“I’ll tell you later.”