CH 39

Inside the Fortress

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There is a large hole in front of us, which is the nest of a powerful monster controlled by the Lich. It seems to be a heavily trafficked area as a passage has been created.

After defeating General Zombie, we continued our journey towards the Lich’s nest by breaking down the rocky mountain. Although we were supposed to arrive within a day, we spent five days collecting rocks and practicing magic with Bell.

What we learned from the five days of magic training is that spirits are cheats. It’s hard to explain, but once they understand what you want, they can almost reproduce it in your own attribute. Well, they are low-level spirits, so their power seems to be incomparable to that of a high-level mage…which clearly sounds amazing. If I could contract with Sylphy, it would be the ultimate cheat.

To start, I asked Bell if she could create wind that could deflect long-range attacks. She tilted her head in confusion, but when magic and arrows started flying towards me, the wind began swirling around me and repelling them. When I suggested she try to deflect Rain’s water bullet, Bell asked what the name of the magic should be, as if he was creating the spell.

“How about Wind Wall?” I suggested.

“Okay! Wind wall!” Bell replied energetically.

As Bell chanted Wind Wall, a strong wind surrounded me… It was an incredibly powerful gust of wind, and it even seemed to shine with magical energy.

“Hey, Bell. Can you stop for a moment?” I asked.

“Sure!” Bell replied.

“The wind is too strong, and I can’t see where I’m going. Can you adjust it so that it only gets stronger when an attack is coming?”

“Hmm… Let me think.” Bell seemed to be unsure of what to do. After getting advice from Sylphy and making several adjustments, we finally completed the Wind Wall spell.

As a test, Rain fired a water bullet that hit the wind surrounding me about a meter away, and it was violently repelled by the strong wind. It was amazing, and I praised Bell excitedly. Bell puffed up her chest with pride, and it was adorable.

According to Sylphy, most magic and arrows can be deflected, but if a skilled opponent unleashes a high-powered attack, the power reduction is limited. Evading is important.

By the way, I asked what would happen if Sylphy used Wind Wall. Depending on the amount of magic power used, Sylphy smiled confidently and said that as long as it wasn’t a high-level spirit, it would never be broken. Sylphy is so cool.

It’s difficult to convey, but if you can communicate it, spirit magic is quite versatile. Regular spirit mages use lengthy and complicated spells, making it difficult for low-level spirits to understand. What would spirit mages do if they were made aware of this blind spot?

Feeling more excited, I discussed various spells with Bell, Rain, and Turu and tried to reproduce magic from manga and anime.

The problem was that I wanted to do my signature move, “TUEEEE,” but with spirit magic, I didn’t feel like I was doing it at all. I only gave instructions, and the magic flew out and defeated the enemy. It ended up feeling like this.

I didn’t want to rely too much on Bell and the others’ abilities because it would ruin the fantasy world, so I also developed support-only magic to help them focus on support. However, this magic development was very popular with Bell and the others, and it became a very fun game.

If I tried to convey to Bell how excited she was about being able to do something like this, Rain would get excited and flutter her fins while expressing something. Turu was the easiest to understand as he drew pictures on the ground and looked up at me with sparkling eyes.

Thanks to this, we were able to create some pretty impressive magic, but we also ended up making some cringey magic that was a little hard to muster up the courage for. Sadly, the cringey magic turned out to be better, and it was the favorite of Bell and the others. …I was very curious about Sylphy’s cool expression trembling.

We spent five days like that, and now they were about to step into the large hole where the Lich was waiting to confirm the results of our training.

“Okay, Sylphy. I’ll be back soon,” said Yuta.

“Wait, Yuta. I’m coming with you today,” Sylphy replied.

Yuta was surprised since Sylphy usually didn’t come along to avoid being a distraction. He wondered if the Lich was really that dangerous.

“Are you sure you want to come, Sylphy? It’s not just to see us fight with our newly developed magic, right? Do you have another important reason?” Yuta asked, suspicious of her intentions.

Sylphy looked away, and Yuta realized that he was right. He had a feeling that Sylphy was interested in their magic because she was fond of their “chuuni” style spells and had been eagerly giving them advice. She wanted to see them in action.

“The Lich is a tough opponent. I can’t help you fight, but I want to be there to support you,” Sylphy finally admitted.

Her expression seemed to waver between cool and an odd sense of anticipation.

“Let’s go together, Sylphy! Yeah!” cheered Bell.

“Kyu kyu kyu!” added Rain.

“We’ll do our best, so please watch us!” said Yuta.

Bell and Rain seemed thrilled, and Yuta couldn’t refuse Sylphy’s request now. He resigned himself to the fact that they would have to find another way for her to see their magic in action.

As they walked towards The Lich’s lair, Bell and Rain showed off their magic to Sylphy.

“You’re amazing. I’m really looking forward to this,” replied Sylphy with enthusiasm. She seemed genuinely excited about watching them in action.

“Ahem. Let’s go then,” Yuta coughed, signaling the start of their mission.

As usual, Bell and Rain led the way, and Yuta followed behind. However, this time, Sylphy was trailing behind him.

Since the fortress was buried underground, it had many rooms that were difficult to explore. Although the doors were decayed, and they didn’t have to worry about being caught off guard, it was still challenging to check every room.

Moreover, zombies and skeletons were walking around the corridors, and each room was packed with them.

“There’s no way we can infiltrate without being detected, right?” Yuta asked, giving up on the idea of hiding and speaking out loud. Several zombies and skeletons attacked them in response to his voice.

“I agree. With this many of them around, we’d be found out no matter how hard we try to hide,” Sylphy added.

It made sense. There were probably fewer areas without zombies or skeletons than with them.

Yuta crushed the skeletons and zombies that came toward them with his hammer, not caring if they were discovered or not. He just kept smashing them as they gathered around him due to the noise.

More skeletons and zombies emerged from the rooms as they proceeded. It felt like an endless spawning of enemies in a game. As they continued crushing them, corpses and bones piled up in the passageways.

“It stinks so bad. Bell, create some wind to blow it back there. Rain, use water to wash away the corpses and bones,” Yuta commanded, feeling disgusted by the smell.

Bell complied, and a gust of wind blew the stench and corpses back toward the rooms. Rain followed by using her water magic to flush the remains away.

“hiyah.”

“Kyuuu.”

The rain washes away the skeletons and zombies with water. Taking advantage of the brief lull, I give my tired body a break.

“Thank you, Bell and Rain.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Kyu.”

“Phew. Sylphy, do you know how many more are left?”

“There are still many. The lich has also noticed the intruders and is gathering its comrades in the hall.”

“Uh, that’s not good news.”

They must have formed a complete defensive formation by now. While we were busy defeating the zombies and skeletons, they must have been preparing more.

It’s a hassle. Oh, here comes another troublesome wave of zombies and skeletons. They shuffle and clatter their way down the corridor.

“Let’s do our best!”

“Kyu.”

“Good luck!”

We use the encouragement from Bell and Rain as strength and work hard to defeat the zombies and skeletons. When the corridor becomes blocked or we get tired, Rain helps by washing them away with water. After repeating this cycle countless times, we finally manage to rid ourselves of the zombies and skeletons.

“Ah, I’m tired.”

“Yuta, good job.”

“Thanks.”

“Kyu.”

“You did well.”

Bell, Rain, and Turu take turns being petted and comforted. This time, there were a lot more enemies than usual. Even though my hammer feels weightless, constantly repeating the same motion can still be tiring, even at a higher level.

“Sylphy, how does the lich look?”

“It seems to be fully prepared. It’s waiting for us in the hall, so maybe we can take a short break?”

It’s always a shame when Sylphy doesn’t come with us. She’s excellent at scouting. While Bell can scout, she seems to struggle with selecting useful information.

“I see. Let’s take a short break. But it’s strange that the lich isn’t trying to save the zombies and skeletons that we’ve defeated.”

“Well, I don’t think the zombies and skeletons are even considered allies by the lich.”

I guess they’re treated as nothing more than a meat shield, just like the general zombies. Although our forces were much stronger.

“Is the lich gathering them as a time-buying tactic? But there were no enemies until I arrive, right?”

“Zombies and skeletons gather under their superiors on their own. It’s a land of death, so if we leave it as it is, it will return to its original state in a matter of days.”

If they come to form a flesh wall on their own, I don’t think I want to help.

“Shall we go now? Sylphy, can we ask for your guidance?”

“Ask Bell. As they are gathering in one place now, Bell can guide you.”

“Okay. Then Bell, can you guide us to the Lich?”

“I will guide you!”

Bell energetically raised her hand and guided us while floating in the air, flapping her arms and legs happily.

This stone fortress is pretty sturdy. Maybe it’s because it got buried, but despite some parts being collapsed, the inside is relatively intact. The wooden door is completely rotten, though.

“Sylphy, should we collect the rocks from this fortress after defeating the Lich?”

“I wonder. If we move the rocks, the soil may flow in and cause trouble.”

Hmm. Resources are important, but it’s not ideal to obtain the stones of a fortress that undead have lived in for years through complicated means.

“There!”

As I was contemplating what to do, it seems we arrived at the Lich’s location. We’ll think about it after we finish.