"Because Pale Elegy is quite active and responds eagerly to rituals, they have a considerable number of devout Death Believers in the Realm of the Dead."
To Lynch, this was secret knowledge, and he listened with great interest.
"So, I deduce that the Necromancer Anthony most likely cos from the Realm of the Dead, or at the very least, has deep ties to that place." As Annabella spoke, her gaze fell upon Lynch. "This mission is yours. We can’t let him run amok in the Empire, ruining the reputation of us Necromancers. We have to capture him and interrogate him thoroughly."
"Huh... ?" Lynch’s expression froze instantly.
’I was just enjoying the story, and now my ntor wants to go deal with that Necromancer?’
He pointed at his own face, an expression of exasperation on his face. "ntor, take a good look at your student. I’m just a pathetic little Tier One Mage. How could I possibly shoulder such a great responsibility?"
’That guy has a proper Copper Armored Zombie as a guard.’
You have to understand, above Black Corpses are Purple Zombies, and above Purple Zombies are Copper Armored Zombies. Anyone who can use a Copper Armored Zombie as a guard must be at least a Tier Four interdiate professional, if not Tier Five or even Tier Six!
’With my ager strength... I’m not even a snack for soone like that.’
"I’m not asking you to kill him." Annabella shot him an exasperated glare. "The mine is his stronghold. The environnt inside is complex, and there might even be secret escape routes. If I make a move myself and startle him into running, all our efforts will be for nothing."
"Your mission is to play the part of a reckless student who pretends to have accidentally discovered sothing unusual at the mine and co to investigate. You can absolutely get into a fight with the Draenei Brotherhood in the mine."
"At your level, as long as you bring just a few Skeletons, they won’t be too wary of you. Once the fight starts, you just need to alert that Necromancer and make him show himself to check on the situation or deal with you. Then, I’ll launch a sneak attack from the shadows and try to capture him in one fell swoop."
Lynch sighed in relief internally. ’Ah, so I’m just supposed to be the bait.’
However, even so, the risk factor for this mission was still extrely high.
The number of enemies in the mine was unknown, the terrain was unfavorable, and he had to proactively provoke a Necromancer far stronger than himself. Even if his ntor would intervene at the critical mont, it wasn’t entirely without risk.
After all, a high-level Necromancer was bound to have a few special tricks up his sleeve. Not to ntion anything else, just the sheer number of Curse- and poison-type Magic spells was enough to make his scalp tingle.
Then, Lynch looked over at the three girls.
’Doesn’t that Necromancer like to capture young girls for sacrifice? When it cos to being bait, they’re much more suitable than I am.’
’Besides, the Undead System can’t be doing all the dirty work while the other three systems just reap the rewards, can we?’
The three girls, who had been enjoying the show, saw his expression and a chill ran down their spines. They had a very bad feeling.
’He... He’s going to use us again!’
****
By now, the sky had grown dark.
About a kiloter from the entrance to the Storm Mine, a stretch of desolate ruins lay sprawled under the dim starlight.
This had once been the residential area for the mine workers and a pre-processing site for ore, but now only crumbling walls and overgrown weeds and bushes remained.
Suddenly, from the direction of a nearby gravel path, ca the sound of hurried footsteps and a young girl’s sobbing cry.
"Lilith, run! Run faster!"
"Ophelia, don’t worry about ! Just run! Go find our ntors and get help!"
"No! Lilith, we ca out together, so we’re going back together. Hold on to !"
As soon as the words fell, the figures of the three girls—Avril, Ophelia, and Lilith—stumbled out from the overgrown rubble.
Their once-pristine nun’s habit, warrior’s light armor, and Mage Robe were now covered in mud and grass, their hair disheveled.
To make the effect more realistic, the hem of Avril’s nun’s habit had even been deliberately torn, creating a sizable rip that exposed a pale calf, which was particularly conspicuous in the dim light.
Not far behind them, seven or eight mbers of the Draenei Brotherhood, wearing their signature Blue Scarves, were shouting and hollering as they gave chase, brandishing swords and ropes.
And from the direction of the mine, a series of RUMBLING sounds could be heard, as if so behemoth were approaching.
"Quick, stop them! Don’t let them get away!" shouted a Blue Scarf mber who looked like a leader, exasperated.
Another Blue Scarf mber shouted as he ran, "Hey, little sisters, stop running! We’re not bad guys. We just want to invite you to be our guests! We guarantee you’ll be well-fed and have plenty to drink!"
The three girls turned a deaf ear to his words, running for their lives.
In their panic, they ran headlong into the area of complex, ruined terrain.
Suddenly, Avril, who was in the lead, tripped on a protruding piece of broken brick. "Oof!" she cried out as she fell forward onto the ground.
"Avril!" Ophelia and Lilith cried out in alarm, quickly stopping to help her up in a fluster.
Avril seed to have twisted her ankle. Her eyes welled with tears from the pain, and she could only hobble forward, leaning on her two companions, their speed greatly reduced.
In that brief delay, their pursuers closed in.
Two of the faster, more agile Blue Scarf mbers took the opportunity to flank them, quickly circling around to block the three girls’ path.
Soon, all their escape routes were cut off. The seven or eight Blue Scarf mbers closed in with nacing grins, cornering the three girls in a clearing in the center of the ruins.
The three girls stood back-to-back, each raising their weapons in a combat stance, their faces filled with despair and fear.
In the distance, hidden in the shadows, ntor Annabella took in the entire scene, the corner of her mouth twitching uncontrollably.
’I told Lynch to be the bait, and this brat pulls a "bait-within-a-bait" sche, pushing his three juniors to the front line... While it’s tactically more sound, if their three ntors ever found out, they’d hunt you down and kill you, kid.’
What surprised her even more was that these three girls, all from extraordinary backgrounds, had actually been convinced by that boy Lynch with just a few words to undertake such a dangerous mission as bait.
And watching their entire performance—the pathetic escape, the panic in the face of danger, supporting one another, and finally making a last stand...
’Isn’t it a little too practiced? A little too realistic?’
The fear and despair in their eyes, the detailed body language, the sudden "accidental" fall... one thing after another, acted out so well that she was almost convinced it was real.
How could ntor Annabella know that when these three girls used to hang around with Lynch, they were often assigned all sorts of tasks to lure enemies and draw fire?
After acting it out so many tis, their skills had long been honed. Not only was their performance full of detail, but their coordination was also flawless.
Just as the three girls were "trapped in a desperate situation" and the Blue Scarf mbers were smugly preparing to seize them...
Suddenly.
BOOM! A loud crash echoed.
A behemoth smashed through the low wall blocking the way and charged into the ruins.
Fragnts of the low wall went CRASHING to the ground.
A chanical Puppet, over three ters tall and with a heavily worn exterior, appeared before everyone.
The chanical Puppet was riveted together from mottled tal plates and looked like it had been cobbled together from scraps. Large hydraulic rods and gears were visible at its joints.
The front of the puppet’s left arm was a giant tal clamp, while its right arm was attached to a huge chainsaw that was spinning at high speed, emitting a harsh WHIRRING sound.
On its "chest," right in front of the cockpit, a line of Continental Common was painted: "[Goblin Mining & Demolition United, Inc. - Model ’Wasteland Roarer’ Mod 3]."
As the chanical Puppet ca to a steady halt.
Inside the cockpit, a green-skinned, big-eared goblin wearing goggles smoothly pulled back a control lever.
It switched on a loudspeaker and shouted with an arrogant expression, "WAKAKAKA! Three units of female human resources located. This is the hunting ground of the ’Wasteland Roarer.’ Surrender obediently."
’What the fuck!?’
This scene left even Lynch a little stunned. ’A goblin’s engineering chanical Puppet? They actually have one of these things here?’
...
(9,000-character update. The next Chapter will be at 7 a.m. tomorrow.)
User Comments
0 comments from readers