Chapter 92 – The Ring of Desire (2)
Fenry stared at Bjorn and continued speaking.
“Don’t you sll it? The stench of death? I realized it the mont I confronted him. That ring on the dwarf’s finger is the dium of the curse. It’s the starting point of the disaster that struck this mine.”
A naless altar discovered during the mine’s developnt.
It seed that one of the miners touched a ring that was inside the altar, and from there, it passed onto the previous lords of the family.
“So, what’s the plan now…?”
Fenry turned around and froze, letting out a hollow laugh. What she saw was him, sitting on the ground, head bowed low in silence.
That explained why it had been so quiet.
“Have I been talking to myself this whole ti?”
“……”
“Hah, this is driving insane.”
No response.
Sothing was clearly wrong.
As she moved closer to him, her pipe started acting up. The mana supply was being cut off. Fenry cursed under her breath, puffed on the pipe, and exhaled slowly. Green light mixed with her breath as it escaped, and she shook the pipe.
The mana had run dry.
She quickly opened the lid of the pipe and inserted a tiny erald gem.
The Elf Stone.
A precious gemstone imbued with the blessing of mana, crafted solely by the priestesses of the elf race. Its imnse value made it prohibitively expensive to produce, which was why Fenry was always strapped for cash.
“Damn it, this is such a waste.”
She had planned to use the Elf Stone for her body’s transformation but ended up spending it on sothing pointless.
This was the price of summoning the Shadow Fairy. To use high-level shadow magic, the aid of a Shadow Fairy was essential.
Her 5-star mana capacity wasn’t enough to sustain it for long.
Crack! Crackle—
“……”
The shadow spikes were being torn apart by the overwhelming force of the zombie horde.
Even the zombies from the tunnel had now joined the fray. Hundreds? Thousands? It was hard to estimate their numbers with piles of impaled zombie corpses blocking the view.
“Doesn’t seem like it’ll hold much longer, huh?”
At Fenry’s question, the Shadow Fairy ford a big circle with its tiny arms.
It wouldn’t last even five minutes. If Bjorn and the other lords joined in, the shadow spikes would be destroyed even faster.
“Every ti I get involved with this guy, it’s nothing but trouble.”
As she debated whether to toss a rock at him to snap him out of it, his voice suddenly ca from behind her.
“Can you hold them off for a mont?”
“What’s this all about? All of a sudden?”
“That existence… spoke to .”
“……”
Fenry went silent.
That existence.
Her gaze shifted to his heart.
It reminded her of the night he had cautiously asked a question while staying up late with Dorneth at the castle.
[“Have you ever heard of sothing called Retonicalus?”]
The Undying Retonicalus.
A being that lived more than ten tis the lifespan of humans, though neither elves nor dwarves had ever heard its na.
But Fenry acknowledged its existence as real. She had once faced that mysterious power in close combat when it borrowed his body to execute a bone-chilling technique.
“No ti for small talk. Get to the point.”
“I need to co into contact with the ring. Can you hold off the lords?”
“Damn brat, always asking for the impossible. What happens if you touch the ring?”
“I’ll break the curse.”
“You sure about that? Do you know why I got these injuries? It’s because I touched the ring.”
She had attempted to snatch the ring earlier, and the mont her hand grasped it, a wave of ntal panic overwheld her. It was a terror akin to the death of all her nerves.
“If not for the blessing of Darkrose, I might have beco the ring’s new master. The lords of Beneta couldn’t handle that ring, and neither could I. Are you sure you can?”
“Retoni… I an, that existence said it was possible.”
“What exactly did it tell you?”
“I’ll know for certain when I touch it. It wasn’t a guarantee.”
“So, you might die.”
“I won’t die from the ring itself. Though getting bitten to death by those zombies is another story.”
“……”
In short, he was asking her to protect him from the zombie horde while he worked to break the curse.
Fenry quickly calculated her options.
The scene before her was hellish, but escaping wasn’t impossible.
‘If only I had enough Elf Stones.’
She had just two Elf Stones left. If she used one to help him, only one would remain. That made her uneasy—this last one was practically her lifeline.
“Fine.”
Fenry nodded.
With one Elf Stone left, she decided to go along with the guide’s plan. If things went south, she could always grab him and run.
After all, escaping was her specialty.
And she wasn’t planning to do it for free. The magic she was about to use would require proper compensation.
“I’ll hold them all off for you. But I have one condition.”
“What is it?”
“A share of the mine. When the curse is lifted, you’re bound to get a portion. Your share will belong to the Black Rose.”
“Take it.”
“…You sure are quick to decide.”
“You said we’re short on ti.”
There was no doubt that the mine’s shares would be worth a fortune. But to him, money was simply a ans to gain power.
And that ring on Bjorn’s hand seed like an item that symbolized the pinnacle of power.
[‘The Ring of Desire.’ One of the tools that destroyed my body.]
A ring that had once obliterated the Undying’s body.
He didn’t know why Retonicalus had chosen to destroy its own body or how the ring’s power worked. But it was said to be the very ring that the absolute being had used in its final monts during ancient tis.
A mythical-grade item, beyond even top-tier artifacts—sothing he had never seen before.
This ring, hidden in the abandoned mine, was never even ntioned in the novel.
He would have given up not just his share but the entire mine for a chance at it.
“Do we have a deal?”
“If you back out later…”
“You can kill .”
Satisfied, Fenry clamped her pipe between her teeth and held out her hands.
As she pressed her palms together, the Shadow Fairy leapt onto them.
The tiny creature adjusted its cloak with its adorable little hands, then shot him a resolute look. It was almost too cute. It looked like it might burst into tears if he so much as flicked it.
“That thing’s way too cute to be yours.”
“Wanna touch it? One breath and you’ll be a pile of at.”
“…What do I need to do?”
“Wait for the lords to attack. That’s when we strike.”
Nodding, he gripped The Ring of Blood. The pristine white bow slowly began turning crimson as it resud siphoning blood.
Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a fast-charging function for this thing?
If he could reach full power quickly, it would be a massive help. He made a ntal note to study the bow’s chanics more thoroughly later.
The standoff between the zombie horde and the shadow spikes didn’t last much longer.
Thud— Thud— Thud—
Heavy footsteps echoed, distinct from the other zombies.
The lords.
As he slowly drew the crimson bowstring, he glanced at Fenry.
Fenry held the Shadow Fairy cupped in her hands and closed her eyes.
Monts later—
Crack! Crash!
The shadow spikes groaned in agony.
A massive hamr smashed through the spikes, sending shadows scattering back to the ground. The pile of impaled corpses collapsed rapidly.
Roaaarrr—!!
Bjorn shoved his face through the gap, letting out a horrifying screech.
Milky, clouded eyes. Rotting flesh.
Seeing him up close, it was the stuff of nightmares.
Behind him, the other lords swung their weapons, leading the zombie knights in breaking down the remaining barricades.
Boom! Boom!
With relentless blunt-force attacks, the shadow spikes were obliterated.
The wall of corpses crumbled.
With the defenses broken, the swarming horde of zombies surged forward like a rotten tidal wave.
It felt as if just being swept away by it would make you rot along with them.
Fenry’s eyes snapped open.
“This isn’t going to last much longer. Finish it quickly.”
With that, Fenry spread her hands wide. The Shadow Fairy dissolved into her body, and her hands turned pitch black.
The shadow ford into black gloves around her hands.
Her eyes darkened, and black smoke began to flow from her.
It was clear what ability she was about to unleash.
She had promised to hold them off completely and was now revealing her hidden trump card.
The ability to summon a part of the Shadow King’s body.
“King of Shadows.”
At Fenry’s incantation, the shadows cast by the zombies began to ripple and coalesce into a single mass, from which enormous hands erged.
Two massive shadowy hands, mirroring her own shadow gloves.
Fenry clenched her gloved hands slowly, and the massive shadow hands did the sa.
She then swung her fists fiercely through the air.
Whooom—!
The massive shadow fists sliced through space with terrifying force.
Crashhhhhh!
The shadow fists swept across the ground, crushing and scattering the zombie horde like insects.
“…That’s terrifying.”
“Hurry up!”
Fenry’s strained voice snapped him back to focus, and he dashed toward Bjorn.
Even from a distance, she looked like she was at her limit.
Summoning the Shadow King was clearly an ability too taxing for a 5-star mana user to sustain for long.
Thud—
As he closed in on Bjorn, one of the massive shadow hands reached out and gripped the dwarf tightly.
Bjorn thrashed and scread, but he was firmly held.
Thwang—
An arrow shot out and struck Bjorn with a deafening crash, snapping his head back.
Yet, the lord wasn’t fazed, roaring again as he extended a hand toward the attacker.
With a bitter laugh, he pulled out a dagger and stabbed at Bjorn’s right wrist.
Stab! Stab! Stab!
“…This is ridiculously tough!”
Bjorn’s violent thrashing made it hard to target the ring finger, so he focused on the wrist. Even though Bjorn couldn’t move thanks to the shadow grip, it still took repeated stabs to sever the wrist.
Behind him, the other lords swung their weapons wildly at his back, but their attacks were intercepted by another shadow hand.
The massive hand snatched the two lords and hurled them into the zombie horde, crushing dozens of zombies like a catapult.
Each ti the shadow hands moved, chunks of the zombie horde disappeared.
Though exterminating the horde would’ve been ideal, the endless stream of zombies pouring out of the tunnel made that impossible.
Fenry used the Shadow King to block and push back the tide of zombies as best as she could.
Huff—!
She sucked on her pipe, her face contorted in pain.
Even as the Elf Stone replenished her mana, the strain of mana depletion was visibly taking a toll on her.
This power was far too much for a 5-star user to maintain.
“It’s done!”
At Arthur’s voice, Fenry let out a battle cry and swung her arms wide.
The shadow hands swept away the surrounding zombies, clearing a space within a radius of dozens of ters. With a heaving breath, Fenry collapsed onto the ground.
Sweat poured down her face, and her trembling hands struggled to swap out the spent Elf Stone in her pipe. She inhaled deeply again, exhaled a puff of smoke, and turned her gaze to him.
Arthur was inspecting the ring from Bjorn’s severed wrist.
Carefully, he pulled the ring free.
The mont he touched it, no signs of panic appeared.
But when he slid the ring onto his finger, he froze.
It was as if ti had stopped for him.
Rrrghh— Rrrghh—
“……”
The cries of the dead began to echo again.
Fenry silently watched the unmoving Arthur and chuckled softly.
The situation was absolutely absurd.
She staggered to her feet and walked over to his side.
His eyes were wide open, unfocused.
Whether the ring had consud him or he was breaking the curse, she couldn’t tell. Only now did she understand his earlier comnt about dying from zombies, not the curse.
“How long are you going to use like this, huh?”
Arthur hadn’t told her how long it would take to break the curse.
It could take a mont, or it could take an entire day. Either way, she couldn’t stay idle.
Looking around, she saw that the dead were closing in on them.
Bjorn, now missing a hand, along with the other lords and knights, were closing in from all sides.
Fenry silently slung Arthur over her shoulder and sucked on her pipe once more.
Whooo—
Exhaling a thick cloud of smoke, she turned toward the exit.
“Let’s hope this Elf Stone holds out.”
The hourglass Dorneth had given them still had plenty of sand left, aning they had a long way to go before it ran out.
Until then, she had to survive in this damned place.
As the smoke scattered, Fenry’s figure disappeared into the shadows.
User Comments
0 comments from readers