Chapter 5

"Prepare for battle!"

As soon as Ivan's shout was heard, the party members dropped the items they were packing and raised their weapons. Without any prior arrangement, they naturally moved to their respective positions. The undead were now close enough for even the slowest to notice.

"Damn! Should we block the cave entrance and hold our ground?"

"There are too many! If we do that, we'll be stuck here! We have to break out, even if it's dangerous!"

After a brief exchange of opinions, the party members rushed out of the cave together. Fortunately, the undead's speed was not fast. If they could only defeat the enemies in front of them, they could escape.

"I'll clear the way! Stick close and don't fall behind!"

Ralph, who shouted this, took the lead of the group.

He turned his arm holding the sword behind his back and pressed the shield tightly against his body, then charged at the undead with a peculiar stance. [Shield Charge!] A basic tank skill that involves a short leap followed by a push with the shield.

The shield technique Ralph used was markedly different from the clumsy ones he had seen before.

Whoosh! Bang! With a powerful shockwave, the enemies in front were pushed back.

Taking advantage of this brief opening, Yulia rushed out to finish them off.

Her powerful strikes, the explosive speed from them, and the continuous combo attacks as she charged forward. Thud! Swoosh, crack, crack! Blue lightning shot out from Yulia's body, striking in all directions. With each punch, a thunderous sound echoed, and the undead fell. [Thunder Step!] [Thunder Punch!] The undead, whose bodies were half-rotten and oozing, exploded. Though they were already dead, the command cores that animated their bodies shattered, causing them to collapse.

"Quickly follow me! I can't use this skill continuously!"

Ralph, leading the group, did not look good. Using a powerful skill inevitably had a backlash. Without preparation time, he couldn't use it recklessly. If they didn't escape quickly, they would eventually be surrounded. Whoosh! Whoosh!

"Damn! Undead, they're a bad match for me!"

Sven, who was firing arrows behind, cursed.

Since the undead were already dead, attacking their vital points to destroy the core was the only effective method. It was extremely difficult to hit every arrow in the head or heart while moving so quickly.

The number of arrows was limited, and there was no way to recover them. [Magic Missile!] A few projectiles made of transparent magic flew and struck a zombie, causing it to fall.

"Right! This is what you get, mage! Keep this up and you'll die!"

The fallen zombie got up again.

Despite chunks of flesh falling off and its wrist hanging, it started running as if nothing had happened.

"Clearly, the power is insufficient. Is there no stronger magic?"

Sven, who was speaking, immediately closed his mouth.

He realized it was not the right time to say such things.

Emin, the blue tower mage, was panting heavily as he ran for his life. His face was a mess, and it was impressive that he managed to cast a few Magic Missiles amidst the chaos. Casting spells required extreme concentration and precise control of magic.

Unless they were battle mages specifically trained for this, it was difficult to cast spells while moving vigorously. This was not Emin's fault.

Mages were not meant to be used this way.

Whoosh! Thud! Ivan swung his sword. The head of a zombie wolf that was about to attack from the side rolled on the ground.

"Th-thank you!"

Ivan replied to Emin, who was expressing gratitude, in a low voice.

"Save your breath. We have a long way to go."

Swoosh! Thud! Every time Ivan swung his sword, an undead fell to the ground.

His extremely efficient swordplay, targeting only the command cores, was effective. However, his expression was not good. 'The speed is slower than expected.

They are catching up.' The party members were all skilled, but they were not familiar with fighting undead.

They were currently pushing through with sheer strength, but they would tire quickly. Emin's stamina was the biggest concern. His speed was already slowing down.

'There must be a command entity somewhere.'

These undead were not naturally occurring.

A mid-boss level entity must be controlling them nearby. Ivan scanned the surroundings with his sharp eyes. His eyes, filled with magic, could see as clearly as daylight even in the dark. 'Not that one, not that one, and not that one. Yes, it's you.'

Having identified his target, Ivan gripped his throwing axe in his right hand and invoked a blessing.

"Thor, Thor. Damn, cursed Thor. Lend me your power to crush my enemy's head."

Rumble- Far away, in a corner of the heavens that mortals could never reach, a transcendent being felt Ivan's gaze.

A power that was not his own surged within Ivan. The thunder god, who had no faith in his warrior, lent him his strength. Crush the head.

Crush the enemy's head and celebrate with a festival of rotten blood. The violent, destructive, and brutish thunder god seemed satisfied and bestowed his blessing. Rumble- Crack, crack! Ivan, holding the axe as if warning someone to be careful, threw it at his enemy.

"Thooorrrr!"

Whoosh! Thud! White lightning split the rotten troll's body and embedded itself in its head. A black barrier tried to block it, but the axe, blessed by the god, shattered it and embedded itself in the skull. As the arrogant warrior pointed at his enemy, the arrogant thunder god laughed.

He personally struck his hammer for his warrior.

Flash! Boom! For a moment, night turned to day. A bolt of lightning from the sky struck the axe's handle, burning the rotten troll's body.

Not only that, but a few undead nearby were reduced to dust.

The party members were speechless at the destructive scene.

They didn't fully understand what had happened, but the fact that the axe was thrown, lightning struck, and the undead were swept away was enough to leave them speechless.

"Did you really need to do all that to sweep them away by yourself?"

Ralph, looking shaken, asked. Ivan shrugged.

"Do you know how many more enemies there are? I can't always do this."

"Well, that's true, but—"

"Stop talking and clear the way. We need to get out of here as soon as possible before night ends."

The Shield Charge Ralph used next was strangely weak.

Clang! Rattle, thud! Day broke. Ralph, who had been running all night, threw his weapon and collapsed on the ground as soon as he found a suitable cave.

"Damn, it was a tough night."

The night was so exhausting that even a warrior with strong stamina like Ralph cursed.

They had to repeatedly break the heads of the undead that appeared from all directions and run without rest.

Emin, the weakest in stamina, was already half-crazed with wide, unfocused eyes.

His legs were trembling, and he looked like he would lose consciousness if touched.

Ivan, who had preserved his stamina, stayed at the rear until the end, circling the area before entering the cave.

"They're all gone. The sun is up, so the undead must find it difficult to move."

"That means they'll appear again when night falls. Damn, I didn't sign up for this."

Sharp gazes were directed at Emin. When unexpected events occurred during a mission, it was natural for the client to be blamed first.

At least, it ended with a sharp glare, which was a very gentlemanly attitude. If they were not high-level mercenaries recommended by the mercenary guild, one of them would have already drawn a sword and pointed it at the client's neck.

"What do you know from the Blue Tower? Don't think about hiding anything, mage. We need to know the situation."

Ivan's tone was clearly more aggressive than the day before.

Emin, after gauging the situation, cautiously spoke.

"A few days ago, our tower detected unusual magical movements deep in the forest. There was an old ruin there, but it was known to be nothing special. However, when magical reactions appeared and the forest's monsters became more aggressive, it was suggested that there might be something hidden in the ruin."

Ruin.

As soon as the word was mentioned, the mercenaries' eyes changed.

It was a very dangerous place, but it could also be a place where a life-changing jackpot was hidden.

"Is it just you moving to investigate the ruin? There must be others who would be interested, right? Especially other mages?"

Yulia's sharp question.

Emin smiled bitterly.

"The idea that there might be something more in the ruin is a minority opinion. The place has been known for hundreds of years, and the older mages in the Blue Tower don't think there's anything special there."

At least, that's what the upper echelons of the Blue Tower, the old mages, thought. Only young and adventurous mages were excited by such rumors.

"The undead that attacked us were not naturally occurring. They were clearly created by someone. Is this related to the ruin?"

"I don't think so. If it were related to command magic, it would have been discovered in the past few hundred years."

"Wasn't the investigation commissioned because of that 'unlikely' thought? It's uncertain."

The old ruin in the eastern forest, what was there? Ivan furrowed his brow, trying to recall.

He was not the type of player who delved into the game's lore, so he was weak in this area.

"So, are we going in or getting out?"

"Normally, avoiding such danger would be the best choice. But—"

The idea of a ruin was nagging at him. If it was truly an undiscovered ruin, it would be worth taking a risk, even if it meant risking their lives.

"Still, entering immediately is dangerous. It might be possible after we set up with undead-specific equipment."

Ancient spellbooks, enchanted artifacts, gold coins, and gems.

Greed began to cloud their judgment, making their eyes glaze over.