Chapter 72
HEL SCANS
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Inside the abandoned mine, in the workshop.
Noubelmag stood before the flames.
His wrinkled face was bathed in the red light flowing from the furnace.
Despite decades, or rather, nearly a century of craftsmanship, his posture exuded solemnity and tension.
His movements were ceaseless, swift, and precise.
Clang-!
“Phew….”
As the hammer moved, the metal transformed into elegant curves and sharp edges.
Continuous noise and vibrations filled the air.
When sweat streamed down his forehead and soaked his clothes, he abruptly paused, closing his eyes to assess the balance and weight of his work.
Eventually…
“Shit.”
Noubelmag threw the piece he had been hammering aside like trash with a clang.
It collided with other similar ‘failures,’ creating a loud noise.
Noubelmag, who had been glaring at them with fierce eyes, turned abruptly.
“Yeah. How long do you plan to stand there doing that?”
Nyhill, who had been silently observing the entire process, responded as she stood still.
“The Hero asked me to watch over Noubelmag.”
“Me? Why?”
“For protection. He was worried that you are the weakest among the Knights of Dawn and expressed his concerns. He asked for close protection when je is absent.”
“….”
Nyhill repeated the words exactly as the Hero had said.
…The weakest?
Noubelmag looked at her with an expression of disbelief.
But the girl just stared at him blankly, with an expression on her face that showed she knew nothing.
The old man sighed deeply.
‘The commander brought another strange kid.’
Nothing much had changed since the old days.
The commander always brought eccentric people along.
Noubelmag had long expected that the small girl, no bigger than a bean, would be extraordinary.
After all, he had been watching the monotonous forging process without a twitch for hours.
In the sweltering mine, where it was so warm that sweat would drip after just 5 minutes, he had had enough.
He clicked his tongue and looked at Nyhill’s messy, soaked hair.
“Let’s call it a day. Today’s work is done with this.”
“Understood.”
Nyhill stood beside Noubelmag.
Their heights were similar, so making eye contact was inevitable.
Innocent black eyes that sparkled like ore every time the furnace’s light shone on them.
Suddenly, memories of the past flashed through Noubelmag’s mind.
His son’s eyes were the same color.
Black irises reminiscent of the mother who had been a human.
‘Daig.’
25% Dwarf.
25% Fairy.
50% human.
Noubelmag, an artisan diluted by more than half.
Had he placed excessive expectations on him?
He realized that he hadn’t properly met those jet-black eyes since then.
“Father is insane! I am your child! I’m not some damn artifact placed on that shelf!”
The old man shook his head as if trying to escape old memories and looked at Nyhill with a puzzled expression.
“…Have you eaten?”
“Not yet.”
“Then follow me.”
“Yes.”
For the first time in a long while, smoke rose from Noubelmag’s cabin.
* * *
…Two days into reconnaissance.
The Hero tightly gripped the spear in his right hand, a weapon he had now become accustomed to wielding like a lifelong companion.
Shadow Spear, Umbra.
One of the 17 artifacts stored in Valber, it possessed the unique ability called ‘Shadow Tread.’
It was a powerful ability that allowed inflicting identical wounds on the opponent’s body when the attack hit their shadow.
‘I can’t blatantly use the Black Hope.’
The Black Hope was more famous among demons than humans.
Using it recklessly would only increase unnecessary suspicion from the administrator of the post.
Therefore, he used the weapons stored in Valber.
Even that was sufficient to deal with the remaining impish creatures.
Keyaaak!
He dodged the massive creature’s body slam.
There was no need to turn his body to attack the creature’s core.
As the spear pierced the shadow near its neck, the creature let out a final scream, writhing on the ground.
It was the last remaining monster.
Kwagwang!
Next, he swung the spear to break down the enclosure where people were trapped.
They hurriedly escaped, their bodies covered in dry bloodstains.
An old middle-aged man embraced a child who seemed to be his daughter, bowing his head.
“Thank you. Thank you.”
“Hurry and leave this area.”
The Hero pointed in the direction they should go with his fingertips.
“If you go this way, you won’t encounter any monsters.”
“May I know your name, sir? We will definitely show our gratitude.”
“Kasim, I am Kasim.”
“Kasim! I will make sure your name echoes in every corner of the nearby taverns!”
“…Do as you wish.”
Watching them depart, bowing continuously, the Hero activated Valber again.
Tsutsutsutsu!
The spear, longer than the distance between both arms, quickly disappeared into a small hole.
‘Hu… the hostage rescue to disrupt their magi production is progressing smoothly.’
As guerrilla battles were frequent, Nyhill was deliberately left behind in Lonkers.
It was because he couldn’t afford to show off his skills, much below the level of a real Hero.
Additionally, it served as a safety measure, as they weren’t sure if the group of monsters would attack the village.
Noubelmag, the stoic, and Nyhill, emotionless.
Although there were some concerns, after hearing yesterday’s story, it seemed they had managed well without any major issues.
…Anyway, guerrilla warfare was the most suitable strategy for dealing with a small group against a larger force.
From the outskirts to the center of the stake, the Hero ambushed and eliminated the Malekia’s monsters escorting prisoners, repeating the process.
The strategy was effective because guerrilla warfare was best suited for dealing with a few against many.
As a result, in just half a day, he managed to rescue nearly twenty civilian hostages and significantly reduced the enemy’s forces.
Wiping the black blood that clung to his body, the Hero glanced at the comment from Laplace that appeared in his mind.
▼
Flames bloomed before those who wandered through the darkest moments.
▲
Rescuing humans destined to burn with just a handful of mana seemed to have changed the comments.
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Unfortunately, there was no reward, but considering the change in the comments about the “Furnace” yesterday, there might be something to look forward to soon.
‘It would be good if I could become a bit stronger before they start moving in earnest.’
One fortunate thing was that Euphemia had sent reinforcements.
Leaving Malekia’s stake alone would be a significant risk from her perspective.
[Don’t ever confront them head-on! Just stay stuck in the village for three days until the reinforcements arrive. Got it?!]
“Noubelmag asked to clear the stake….”
[A retired blacksmith’s words are being prioritized over the words of the current emperor, what a surprising little twist.]
“….”
Of course, there was no intention of facing the danger directly.
However, leaving Malekia’s influence unchecked was too risky.
Putting some pressure on them like now could prevent their power from spreading too much.
“….”
For now, this was the best option.
The Hero grasped the key in his hands.
* * *
Meanwhile, Lonkers.
“Move the iron over there a bit.”
“Yes.”
“Hold the end firmly.”
“Yes.”
“Surprisingly strong. Leave the forging to me.”
“…Yes.”
“Excellent. Now, go get the grinding material in the yard.”
Nyhill’s arms trembled.
* * *
Stakes are generally in the form of cylindrical buildings, efficiently utilizing internal space.
The structure is used primarily to extract mana from captured humans, with the exception of the top floor where the administrator resides.
The “Malekia’s Stake” near Lonkers followed this typical arrangement.
The top floor of the stake, overlooking the lower levels filled with horrific screams, echoed with the irritated voice of the “administrator.”
“… A rat is ruining the grand plan.”
His form resembled that of a human but was twisted in some way.
His hunched back and spiky protruding vertebrae characterized his twisted upper body.
The bare upper torso was engulfed in flames that seemed to consume demonic flesh, but the regeneration was faster than the speed at which the body burned and crumpled.
The administrator, a mid-level demon named “Verris,” was near Lonkers’s stake.
As he descended, the movements of the subordinates below became frantic.
“Aaaaargh!”
“Kill me… Just kill me, you bastards!”
However, Verris’s expression remained distorted as he observed the diligent activities of his underlings.
As he headed downstairs, the movements of the lesser demons became extremely busy.
“Ugh, damn it! One little rat is screwing up everything.”
He had been in an unpleasant situation for a few days now since the supply of human prisoners began to dwindle.
The reason he hurriedly came out of the furnace, where he had been to properly harness the vast amount of magi accumulated, was also because of the sudden halt in the supply of human prisoners.
‘…At this rate, we might not be able to meet the delivery quota.’
The delivery date had crept up to three days away.
Although they had relentlessly squeezed mana out of humans since the stake was set up, the total production of mana was sufficient to fill the delivery quota.
However, Verris, who had been a mid-level demon for a very long time, didn’t want to deliver these valuable manas straight to the upper echelons.
So, he had sneakily tampered with the magi that was supposed to be delivered.
‘Anyway, if I capture more humans in the meantime, I can make up for it.’
Thus, when he entered the furnace, he didn’t hurry his subordinates outside.
Little did he imagine that a supply problem would arise.
Verris reluctantly headed downstairs.
‘If I lose my position as an administrator because of this…’
He would return to the demon realm, possibly even to the maelstrom.
He couldn’t stand the thought of that, despite all the criticism from the upper ranks.
‘How did I let this opportunity slip away?’
…Maelstrom.
There were too many demons there, especially an abundance of mid-level demons.
Trying hard as he might, he would only end up scavenging leftovers from the higher-ranked demons.
The prospect of promotion was a distant dream.
Verris thought coldly.
‘If we keep going like this, even if we capture and torture all nearby travelers, we won’t be able to meet the delivery quota.’
Due to the injury suffered by the Demon Lord from that cunning human Hero, all administrators at the stakes had been assigned much higher quotas than before.
Therefore, they needed a vast amount of magi.
Verris’s dry eyes gazed down at the ‘production tools’ at his feet.
Just as one of them woke up after fainting, gasping painfully, he begged,
“Just kill me… Please, I beg you. This is enough, you monster!”
“Death, you say….”
Verris slowly raised his arm, holding a blood-stained dagger that had been drawn at some point.
The man’s eyes reflected a sense of relief.
“No.”
However, the dagger didn’t end his life; instead, it sliced through Verris’s palm, and black blood poured onto the man’s body.
The man, with an astonished look, stared at the black blood pooling on the wound.
Soon, he let out a desperate scream.
“Uaaaah! Huuuaaah!”
Whether it was due to intense pain or extreme fear, the man convulsed with his eyes rolling back.
Bubbles began to form over the wounds on his body, and slowly, they began to heal.
Regeneration.
It was the ability that Malekia, the Queen of Agony, willingly bestowed upon her offspring.
Verris, looking down at his healed palm, quietly murmured,
“You shouldn’t die yet. Replacement candidates haven’t arrived yet.”
And he smirked.
“Start over.”
Leaving the man behind, Verris walked away.
He stopped precisely in the middle layer of the stake, staring with an ecstatic gaze at the ‘core’ of the stake.
Thump, thump.
It was an empty space, and a fleshy mass resembling a heart pulsated, trembling.
Woo-woo-woo-woo-woo-!
As the core contracted and relaxed, mist-like gas spewed out in all directions.
Woo-woo-woo-woo-woo!
With each contraction and relaxation of the core, a misty gas-like substance spewed out in all directions.
Verris’s long tongue slithered out, licking at the air, and emerged from his mouth.
“…Hot. Incredibly sweet.”
Once he tasted this, there was no turning back.
Given the circumstances, there was only one option available to him.
Paaaat!
As Verris reached out, a nearby map materialized in light before his eyes.
After scanning the surrounding villages, his gaze ultimately settled on Lonkers.
He had been cautious not to act recklessly before gathering enough strength or facing potential human reinforcements.
But now, there was no time to wait.
If he could conquer that village, extract all the residents, and squeeze out their mana, not only would he meet the delivery quota, but he could also extract enough mana to elevate his rank.
“Now is the perfect time while the humans are distracted in the east.”
Decision made, Verris summoned all the magi within him.
The stake trembled violently with a massive vibration.
It was an all-out assault.
Producing as many demons as possible and then striking Lonkers.
That was his plan.
HEL SCANS
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