Chapter 118

Like many rural forests, Karmaine Forest wasn’t exactly a famous place.

For the animals and towering trees, it was a stroke of luck.

Thanks to that, they could live peacefully.

Until now.

After a dungeon tainted with dark energy was discovered, the Empire sent troops to block off the forest.

They waited for knights or individuals of knight-level strength to arrive and investigate the dungeon.

If I hadn’t taken the request, some imperial knights would’ve already headed here.

In the end, the animals roaming the outskirts of the forest became snacks for the soldiers, and some trees were turned into firewood, ending their long lives.

At the forest’s edge, soldiers armed with spears had set up makeshift barricades and were guarding the entrance.

This was to prevent reckless fools or fortune-seeking adventurers from getting themselves hurt unnecessarily.

When Damien, who was driving the carriage, showed them the orders, the surprised soldiers saluted and made way.

Their expressions brightened. The reinforcements they’d been waiting for had finally arrived.

After gathering our equipment, we got off the carriage.

From here on, we couldn’t proceed by carriage.

Unlike us, the horses pulling the carriage wouldn’t be able to withstand the dark energy.

We left the carriage with the soldiers and walked into the forest.

—

The inside of the forest was dark and quiet.

Tangled branches blocked the sunlight like a giant umbrella, casting pitch-black shadows on the weed-covered ground.

There was almost no sign of life. Not even squirrels or birds, let alone deer.

Looks like they all ran away. They must’ve sensed an instinctive threat.

If the dark energy spreads, they’ll all die anyway.

“This feels kinda creepy…”

Milia muttered uneasily.

After walking for about thirty minutes, the surroundings began to change.

The once lush green forest scenery was gone, replaced by blackened ancient trees and a dried-up sandy ground.

The air started to carry a pungent smell.

Proof that the dark energy was spreading.

This marked the beginning of a clearly dangerous zone.

“Damien, Milia, take this. Drink it whenever the dark energy becomes too much to handle.”

Freide handed them small pouches.

Inside the pouches, designed to be attached to their belts, were bottles of holy water.

Holy water.

A necessity when fighting monsters.

Properly blessed by priests, holy water has the power to purify evil.

Curses, poison, some diseases… and even dark energy.

That’s why holy water was one of the Church Order’s main products.

Though not all Church Orders could produce it.

The two thanked Freide.

“What about me?”

“You have anti-magic resistance, so you don’t really need it, right?”

True enough.

Anti-magic resistance. A power with clear pros and cons.

The user can’t use magic at all and barely benefits from enhancement spells.

But on the flip side, curses and binding spells don’t work well on them, and they can significantly reduce damage from dark energy.

For me, it’s all pros.

I never knew how to use magic anyway, and my bare fists are stronger than knights enhanced by magic.

I flexed my fingers and looked down at my left hand.

The power to shatter steel like glass and tear people apart with a touch resided there.

Not long after, the dungeon entrance finally came into view.

—

At the base of a massive cliff.

A huge crack, like a cave entrance, leaked dark energy bit by bit.

Shattered rocks rolled around the entrance.

Looks like they were covering the entrance before, which is why it wasn’t discovered.

Unsurprisingly, there were no living creatures around.

“I’ll take the lead. You and Milia stay in the middle, and Damien will cover the rear.”

“Yes, senior.”

It was a classic formation.

The two with wide attack ranges would guard the front and back, while the archer stayed in the middle.

With me, the wildcard, in the center to handle any sudden situations.

I could’ve just taken the lead and bulldozed through everything…

But then the others wouldn’t get to enjoy the fruits of their efforts.

Freide, with a mana lantern attached to her waist, took the lead and walked ahead.

—

The inside of the cave was dark and dry.

The pungent air stung my nose, but my anti-magic resistance held up, so I didn’t feel the corrosive effects of the dark energy.

The other three, though, probably weren’t so lucky.

“My nose is burning…”

“Ugh… I’ve felt this before, but it’s still uncomfortable.”

“Before? Oh, right, you mentioned taking down a monster in a simulation, right? Even a corpse raised by magic, bare-handed?”

“It was more like we both went down together.”

Damien shrugged.

Well, he did take it down, but he suffered near-fatal injuries in the process.

If it were a real battle, Damien wouldn’t have made it out alive.

“Taking it down is impressive enough. Anyway, it seems fine for now, but if breathing gets too hard, make sure to drink the holy water. Unless you want to suffer the aftereffects for the rest of your life.”

The two nodded.

The cave wasn’t as deep as I expected. To be precise…

Only the cave part.

After just five minutes of walking along the winding path, a large gate greeted us.

A rusty, red-stained iron gate.

The sound of wind flowing through the crumpled gaps sounded like weeping.

“This must be the real deal. But will it even open, all rusted like this?”

Freide, who had been silent until now, pushed the gate.

As expected, the iron gate didn’t budge.

Freide gave me a look, as if to say, “Put some muscle into it.”

I approached and gave it a slight push. It was definitely stiff.

I braced myself and pushed with all my might.

With a spine-chilling screech, the inside of the gate slowly began to reveal itself.

“Screeeech!”

As if waiting, something leaped out.

A monster. It had been hiding behind the gate, waiting for the perfect moment to ambush.

I headbutted the monster aiming for my face.

With a sickening crunch, the monster’s body slammed into the ground.

Its back seemed to be shattered, and blood gushed out, staining the ground.

“Monster…!”

Milia, startled, drew an arrow.

As if not dead from just a broken back, the monster sprang up and lunged at me, claws raised.

Its monstrous resilience seemed to help it move despite its shattered spine.

But hey, if one hit didn’t kill it, just hit it again.

I swung my leg at the creature.

The kicked monster flew like a cannonball and crashed into the cave wall.

Its upper body, with all its bones crushed, flapped like a piece of paper.

Milia’s arrow pierced through its skull.

—-

Up close, the monster’s appearance was bizarre.

About the size of Milia’s chest.

A frog-like head with three bulging eyes on each side and one in the middle of its forehead.

Inside its gaping mouth was another set of insect-like jaws.

A long, thin tongue hung loosely from its mouth.

Its rat-like ears and body were covered in stiff fur.

Its front legs resembled a crayfish, while its hind legs were like an eagle’s.

Its back had bat wings, already tattered from the first attack.

“Bat-frog.”

Freide, examining the monster’s corpse, spoke up.

“Bat-frog?”

“Yeah. Maybe the nickname ‘Imp’ is more famous? Among hybrid monsters, they’re at the bottom. So weak that some scholars treat them as mere simple monsters.”

Imp.

A monster that flies through the sky, ambushes prey, clings tightly with its limbs, and tears off heads.

One of the classic cannon fodder monsters.

Even as cannon fodder, monsters are monsters, so they have a bit of resilience.

“Some of them spit paralyzing venom, so just watch out for those.”

Imps that spit paralyzing venom are a bit dangerous. In more ways than one.

Those are the ones that aim for reproduction, not hunting.

—-

“This place… is unusual.”

The inside of the dungeon we finally entered was bizarre.

A vast underground space, as if carved out of a mountain.

Giant pillars supported the ceiling, and the walls and floor were neatly carved.

Crumbled statues lay scattered in every corner, with broken and rusted weapons strewn about.

“An ancient ruin. Not sure how old, though.”

Freide, answering nonchalantly, continued walking.

Soon, the sound of numerous creatures bustling about could be felt.

“Imps are coming! About twenty of them!”

“Everyone, get ready for battle!”

At our warning, everyone prepared for combat.

Freide drew her chain axe, Milia nocked an arrow, and Damien raised his greatsword as I picked up my bow.

Soon, the sound of dozens of wings flapping filled the air as a swarm of Imps poured in from the distance.

About 4 meters high on the rocky ceiling.

The clustered Imps circled in the air, eyeing us.

“Remember what I said? Just watch out for the paralyzing venom.”

Freide swung her chain axe like a windmill.

The Imps, seeing this, began to screech threateningly.

As Milia’s arrow shot down one Imp, the battle finally began.