In a high-spirited mood, Leo returned lightheartedly to his residence. He brought out the two Gothic Plates and quickly crafted two sets of Stealth.
"Come, come, come! Look at what your Captain has prepared for you." Leo stepped out to the campfire outside the tent and proudly presented the two armors to the women.
"Brother, where did you find two identical Unique items?" Majesty's joy was quickly replaced by shock; she felt things weren't that simple.
"Leo, this is Ancient equipment, isn't it? We Barbarians also possess the crafting method for one type of Ancient gear." A look of reminiscence flickered in Gerdie's eyes.
"Gerdie, are you talking about Ancient's Pledge?" Seeing that both women were stunned by him, Leo tapped his head with his finger. "Everyone has their strengths, and my specialty is possessing a wealth of knowledge that you can only look up to. Stick with me, and I guarantee you'll be living the high life."
Despite the awkward yet polite smiles on the women's faces, they couldn't stop stroking the Stealth armor in their hands. Leo knew that under his subtle influence, his position as Captain would become increasingly secure. He pulled back the tent flap and returned to his own quarters. With preparations complete, all that remained was to get some good rest for tomorrow's expedition.
Inside the Den of Evil, Corpsefire was currently fuming. These past few days, he had been focused on surrounding and annihilating invaders, only to have a massive number of his subjects slaughtered due to a momentary oversight. The resistance within the cave—the Brutes—had already been largely cleared by him; this could only mean there were new invaders.
He had once been a Knight Lord, loyal to his kingdom, leading his knights on campaigns to expand the borders. That was until he discovered the King was no longer wise, but faint-hearted and cruel. How could such a tyrannical fellow be fit to hold the throne?
It was only right to overthrow his rule so the people could enjoy a better life. After blood and fire, the kingdom moved in a positive direction, but that was only the beginning of the nightmare. Demons swarmed the land, the army was annihilated, and the vast majority of the populace died violent deaths.
Faced with the demonic invasion, he had been helpless; he could only kiss the dirt beneath the Demon Lord's feet and offer his agony and loyalty to the King of Demons. He and his people ultimately survived, and though the form of their existence had changed, they remained his most beloved subjects.
The invaders were cunning, having fled before he arrived with the news. If they dared step into the territory granted by his Master again, he would surely offer their agony to his Lord. Once their wails from the depths of their souls pleased the Master, the Master would understand his subordinate's loyalty and would surely help him increase the number of his subjects once more.
Undercurrents surged within the Den of Evil.
Before dawn, Leo's trio was already racing across the Blood Moor. With the mini-map as his reliance, he had no fear of losing his way. They rushed toward the cave at full speed, drinking Stamina Potions whenever they were too tired to run.
A Fallen manifested from illusion to reality, projecting itself right in front of the trio. Leo ran up and dealt with the obstructing demon in a few strikes.
Feeling the power coming from the Fallen was somewhat weaker, Leo opened his character panel. He silently noted his current experience points and killed another newly projected Fallen along the way. Sure enough, the experience from the new projection was one-tenth less.
It seemed that leveling resources were limited. Now was different from before; with large numbers of class members clearing monsters, the newly projected creatures lacked the time to grow. Being killed repeatedly would only make them weaker and weaker. If one wanted to stay in the top tier, they had to seize the time to claim leveling resources and keep everyone else behind them.
The three spent half a day and finally arrived at the Den of Evil. Entering cautiously, they found traces of battle at the entrance.
Majesty inspected the area carefully. "It seems our enemy is quite clever. Look at this ring of pits around the entrance; clearly, Zombies were lying in ambush here."
Leo counted the shallow pits—there were as many as 50. If his squad had been the first to enter, they would have been surrounded while caught off guard. Being surrounded by such a number of Zombies at this stage would have meant a certain end; he felt a sudden surge of relief that they had arrived late.
"The people ahead shouldn't have arrived long before us. The cold aura of the Zombies in the pits hasn't fully dissipated. They were likely surrounded immediately upon entering." Majesty continued to observe the marks on the ground.
Then, Majesty showed a puzzled expression. "There are no signs of a breakthrough. The footprints are too chaotic; all I can tell is that neither side suffered casualties. How exactly did they escape?"
She then pointed to the fork on the left of the cave. "The battle traces extend deep inside."
"Prepare for combat. We're following them to see what's going on," Leo reminded the two women. He then activated his Might aura, causing a ring of rotating golden blades to appear at his feet. Raising his shield to protect his vitals, he led the way.
The women also activated their buffs and followed Leo in a triangular formation, tracing the battle marks. Moving inward, they didn't have to worry about the direction; Fallen and Zombies lay dead along the way, serving as signposts.
The sounds of combat echoed from ahead. The three quietly approached the site, and the scene of the battle came into Leo's view.
A female warrior was fighting dozens of Zombies. Her movements were graceful and her attacks crisp, like a butterfly dancing through flowers, fanning out shadows of her blade. She fought while moving, preventing the Zombies from forming an effective encirclement. Standing to one side were a dozen taller Zombies; the leader had ice-blue skin and was roaring loudly.
> Corpsefire: Level 39. Spectral Hit, Magic Resistant, Cold Enchanted.
>
Though there were many Zombies, they were being toyed with by the stranger. Regarding combat technique, Leo admitted he was far from her level. She seemed to hold every minute change on the battlefield in her mind, making the most rational responses. Leo sighed inwardly; it seemed this main quest would truly have to be conceded to someone else.
Corpsefire was even more furious. He had devised a meticulous plan, only to have a new invader arrive. This woman was exceptionally agile; his clumsy subordinates simply couldn't keep up with her pace, and his targeted layout had completely fallen through.
Watching his subordinates fall one by one, Corpsefire could only humiliatingly lower his head and initiate his backup plan. With an unwilling roar, firelight appeared in the distance as a massive number of Fallen poured in from other tunnels, clogging the passage completely. Over a dozen Fallen Shamans also waddled out from the tunnels, standing before Corpsefire.
The two types of monsters seemed to be communicating. Corpsefire roared angrily at first, then lowered his voice in an unwilling growl, until finally, some sort of agreement was reached between them.
The agile Fallen surged into the battlefield while the sluggish Zombies gradually retreated.
Corpsefire roared in a language no one could understand: "You're dead now. You'll be buried here in the most shameful way, then become food for the Fallen along with those seven women."
The female warrior suddenly found herself in a hard fight. Although she could kill a Fallen quickly, they were much faster than Zombies. She had to expend more stamina to maneuver, and with the Shamans constantly resurrecting them, the effort of killing a Fallen often went to waste.
Leo saw the female warrior beginning to pant heavily under the Fallen's onslaught. Sensing she was in danger, he could no longer stay on the sidelines. He jumped out from the hidden tunnel and sent a party invite to her. Simultaneously, he let out a great shout: "Your grandpa is here! Come and meet your death!"
Seeing a shiny "tin can" jump out from behind, the Fallen—though they didn't know what he was saying—felt a strong urge to beat him. However, this was different from the Shaman's orders. With their lacking intelligence, the Fallen didn't know how to act and froze in place for a moment.
Leo seized the opportunity and used Charge to tear into the demonic formation, his short mace swinging wildly. Fallen blood flowed like a river. Gerdie cooperated perfectly, constantly using Find Item to destroy the Fallen corpses so they could never rise again.
Seeing the Fallen formation in disarray, Leo prepared to continue the charge to help the female warrior break out. To his surprise, the woman saw the opening, instantly accepted the party invite, and then teleported directly into the gap Leo had cleared.
A faint, cool fragrance drifted into Leo's nose. The female warrior had her black hair tied up and possessed a tall, well-proportioned figure. Her yellow skin and black eyes gave Leo a strong sense of familiarity. He couldn't help but check the party log: Incest has joined your party.
Seeing Leo dazed, Incest—thinking her teleportation had startled him—spoke up to remind him: "Thank you for the rescue. They are too many; retreat for now."
The cold voice lingered in Leo's ears, and he reflexively followed Incest in retreat. Wait, how does a warrior-type class have the Teleport skill? He quietly glanced at Incest's chest. A green emblem—it seemed he was right; she was the Green Warrior who had accepted the quest. But the pattern on the badge was slightly off; it was a book symbolizing knowledge. This should be a Sorceress's badge.