How to Survive Against Villains Chapter 87

Chapter 87 – The Blacksmith’s Garden

“Tr-traps!”

“A-arrow traps? Watch ou—Kuaagh!”

The air echoed with screams that seed to go on endlessly.

Those lucky enough to survive gave everything they had to chase after the carriage. They had realized that stopping or turning back ant certain death.

Shrieking in desperation, the pursuers followed. anwhile, Dorneth nonchalantly picked at his ear, ignoring the chaos.

Once soone was deed an enemy, there was no rcy.

Well, he wasn’t a lord for nothing.

Thud!

“...!”

A faint tremor was felt beneath the carriage. Monts later, thick fog began rising rapidly from the ground.

The dimly lit cavern grew even darker, and as the fog snuffed out the torchlight, we were plunged into total blackness.

Darkness swallowed everything.

Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud—

“...”

Yet, the carriage continued forward, unaffected, as though the pitch-black surroundings didn’t matter. I blinked a few tis, but all I could see was pure darkness.

The only difference now was the sound.

Clang-clang—

The grinding of gears echoed from sowhere behind us.

The pursuers, panicked by the pitch-black surroundings, seed oblivious to the ominous sounds creeping toward them.

Fwoosh—!

“I-I can’t see anyth—!”

“Kuaagh!”

Screams erupted again.

The shrill cries gradually faded into the distance, until silence fell.

Now, only the steady clattering of the carriage wheels could be heard. I cautiously broke the silence.

“What just happened?”

“The traps triggered.”

“Are they all dead?”

“Probably?”

Dorneth’s calm, matter-of-fact tone made it all the more unsettling.

From what I’d gathered, the traps were dwarven creations, ticulously designed with brutal precision. Even the most skilled mana users would be impaled or shredded to bits if they let their guard down.

The traps were downright savage.

And to make things worse—

“The carriage… it is moving, right?”

“Of course it is.”

“Dorneth, can you see where we’re going?”

“For a human, this darkness would seem impenetrable. But for a dwarf? I can see perfectly fine.”

“What exactly are you seeing?”

“I can see the grain of the earth.”

He spoke as if it was the most natural thing in the world. As a species that lived and thrived underground, it seed dwarves were born with an innate ability to navigate even the darkest tunnels.

I was impressed, at least for a mont—

Rattle—!

“Na-Natone! That almost flipped the carriage!”

“...My apologies, my lord!”

“Do you want to drive the damn thing myself? Focus!”

“N-no! I can do it!”

“...”

Wait, the coachman was the knight commander?

The harsh breaths I heard suggested he was quite nervous. Apparently, not all dwarves were capable of reading the “grain of the earth.” Even one of Beneta’s top fighters seed on edge.

“So much for ‘natural as breathing,’ huh?”

Dorneth gave an awkward cough, proving he wasn’t immune to exaggeration.

anwhile, Fenry had gone unusually quiet ever since the darkness set in.

This was strange. She wasn’t one to keep her mouth shut, no matter the situation.

“Fenry?”

“Shut up.”

Her voice was sharp, almost like a hissing cat. Taking the hint, I decided not to press further.

I rembered reading sowhere that shadow magic users were sensitive to the absence of shadows. The total darkness must’ve been affecting her.

Through the oppressive blackness, the carriage continued forward without stopping.

It zigzagged several tis, occasionally leaning sharply to one side. The tunnel ahead didn’t seem to follow a straight path.

A maze?

It felt like we were traveling through an extrely complex labyrinth.

By this point, I had completely lost my sense of direction.

‘No wonder even the Butcher couldn’t find the Garden.’

Kal, who was obsessed with collecting artifacts, would never have left the Blacksmith’s Garden alone if he had the chance to claim it.

From the mont he seized control of this territory, he began extensive searches, mobilizing countless people to sift through rubble and dig up the land.

Naturally, he suspected the abandoned mine and investigated it. But with defenses like this, even if he had known the exact location, it would’ve been impossible to reach.

‘The book wasn’t kidding when it said the Garden was a place no one could set foot in without the dwarves’ permission.’

I finally understood why the novel had described the Blacksmith’s Garden with such reverence.

As the darkness dragged on, I began to adjust. My eyes grew accustod, and I could faintly make out the movents of the two figures sitting ahead of .

Then,

Whoa—!

The carriage ca to an abrupt halt.

Natone, the knight commander and coachman, climbed down from his seat, gathering sothing before opening the carriage door wide.

“Ugh, that’s bright.”

The light from his lantern was blinding at first, making instinctively turn my head. As my eyes adjusted to the brightness, I saw what lay ahead—a dead-end wall.

We disembarked and stood before a space sealed shut by solid rock.

Thump-thump—

I rapped my knuckles against the wall. It felt dense, as though no hollow space lay beyond.

“Are we there yet?”

“Beyond this wall lies the abandoned mine.”

“There’s space on the other side?”

How many layers of rock did they pack into this entrance? Even if you mined here your whole life, you wouldn’t be able to clear it.

Blasting through it seed equally impossible.

There was only one option left:

A secret passage.

I glanced at Dorneth, who held out his hand expectantly. Knowing what he wanted, I reached into my pocket and handed him the golden plaque.

Taking the plaque, Dorneth stepped back about twenty paces from the rock wall, stopping in a specific spot.

After surveying his surroundings briefly, he knelt down, brushed away so dust, and placed the plaque on the ground.

The mont the golden plaque touched the floor—

Thud!

The ground trembled, and the spot beneath the plaque suddenly gave way, sinking downward.

A hidden staircase revealed itself, descending into the depths below.

How far down did it go?

The staircase was narrow, just wide enough for one person at a ti, and the darkness below exuded an eerie, almost haunted atmosphere.

“Hey.”

“...Hngh!”

Dorneth startled by holding the lantern under his face, casting ominous shadows across his features.

“What’s wrong with you?”

“N-nothing. Are there any traps or guardians down there?”

“Wouldn’t be any fun without them.”

“Is there so treasure hidden in the mine?”

“Of course there is. Thought I’d let you have a little treasure hunt before reaching the mine proper.”

“What?”

Gesturing for Natone to stay behind and guard the carriage, Dorneth turned to us, one foot already on the staircase.

“If you don’t want to die, stay within one step of .”

“With my long legs, that’s basically half a step.”

“Want to break those knees for you, cat?”

Ignoring Fenry’s remark, Dorneth descended the staircase. Fenry yawned and lazily followed him down.

The Blacksmith’s Garden.

‘I wonder what it looks like.’

It was a location the novel had never described, making my heart race with a mix of anticipation and tension.

I quickly hurried after them, unwilling to be left behind.

Once all three of us had disappeared down the staircase, the opening above quietly sealed shut, leaving no trace of our presence.

***

Clink—clink—

Ahead of us, Dorneth’s hands moved incessantly, carefully pressing spots along the narrow walls. Each press was followed by a faint clink, the sound of traps being deactivated.

The staircase wasn’t as long as I had expected.

When it ended, we found ourselves in a cramped corridor. Dorneth placed his lantern on the ground and began walking with empty hands.

It wasn’t dark anymore.

The walls were lined with glowing stones, their soft light creating a surreal atmosphere.

They shimred like stars, giving the illusion of walking through a quiet, starlit universe.

By the ti we reached the end of the corridor, I hadn’t even noticed how far we’d walked.

What lay before was breathtaking.

The Blacksmith’s Garden.

“Unbelievable.”

The space wasn’t large—small enough to take in at a glance—but that only made its contents feel more concentrated.

Hundreds of glass sculptures shaped like flowers filled the room, casting an ethereal glow as the light from the glowing stones reflected off them.

The combination of craftsmanship and illumination created an almost otherworldly atmosphere.

Fenry brushed her fingers against one of the sculptures and muttered to herself.

“Just one of these could sell for tens of thousands of gold.”

Her obsession with money really knew no bounds.

Our attention eventually focused on the centerpiece—a massive glass sculpture resembling a dwarf.

Standing beside it, Dorneth lightly bowed his head before gesturing toward the items adorning the sculpture.

“These are the treasures of the Garden.”

They weren’t just treasures; they were masterpieces.

Weapons and accessories adorned the transparent dwarf sculpture. From the halberds it held in both hands to the equipnt strapped to its back and waist, every inch of the sculpture was draped in ornate, colorful rings and bracelets.

I could only describe the collection in one word: incredible.

Even Fenry, usually so composed, seed spellbound by the sight.

“If these were auctioned, you could buy entire territories with the proceeds,” she murmured.

She reached out, clearly entranced, but Dorneth grabbed her wrist and snorted.

“Don’t even think about it, cat lady. You’re not getting a share.”

“Geez, no need to be so stingy. Can’t I at least touch them?”

“You’re only here because he asked. You don’t have the qualifications, so be content with looking.”

Fenry shot him a glare but quickly returned to ogling the treasures. Dorneth, anwhile, turned to with a sharp nod.

“Pick one.”

“…What, right now?”

“Appraising the worth of these items is part of your qualifications. I can’t tell you what their abilities are. Choose one you want.”

It was as if he were offering goods off a market stall—but the truth was, these were the treasures painstakingly crafted by the Garden’s master artisans over generations.

‘I can’t tell what they do…’

Thankfully, there didn’t seem to be a ti limit.

I began circling the glass sculpture, carefully inspecting each piece of equipnt.

So of them looked familiar.

‘I saw these in my dream.’

Notably, the golden armor and black kite shield stood out.

They had appeared in my dream, albeit in a damaged state. Their ornate designs were unmistakable.

Even in the mont of Dorneth’s death—when the Butcher took his head—these pieces had left a strong impression.

It seed my dream hadn’t been just a dream.

If these items were real, that ant everything I’d seen was true.

‘Arena must’ve been insanely powerful.’

With these artifacts and the Black Rose on their side, they’d still faced mutual annihilation.

The combination of a completed Chira body and the heart must’ve been monstrously strong.

“These treasures… Why leave them locked away? They could change the tide of a battle.”

“They’re too difficult to use.”

“Pardon?”

“Each of these was crafted by a master, but none of them were designed with the user in mind. They’re all finicky and incredibly dangerous. Even I can barely handle one or two of them without suffering severe side effects.”

Ah, so that’s why he’d only used the armor and shield in my dream.

I nodded, glancing at the treasures again, only to notice Fenry’s expression.

Her eyes glinted with barely contained greed.

What was she looking at?

Following her gaze, I spotted a belt encrusted with a massive ruby.

It was clearly the most extravagant item here.

Judging by her reaction, it seed she’d already fallen for it.

‘Alright, I’ll leave that one alone.’

I had a feeling that belt would be the perfect bait for her later.

Instead, my attention was drawn to another piece—a weapon that seed out of place compared to the others.

It didn’t match the dwarf sculpture’s style at all, which only made it stand out more.

The mont I saw it, I knew: This is the one.

“I’ll take this.”

Without hesitation, I grabbed a massive bow from the collection.

Dorneth looked between and the bow, then tilted his head in confusion.

“You know how to use a bow?”

The weapon I had chosen was an enormous bow with an elegantly carved fra.