Chapter 49: Howling Darkness Part 4

Kieek!

Scrape.

The zombie spider, which had charged in while screaming, split in half, spraying yellow fluid.

The spider twitched a few times before collapsing, no longer moving.

Amon shook off the sword, making sure no fluid had stained it, and returned it to its sheath.

“Be careful not to step on the fluid.”

Those who used magic tattoos carefully crossed the corridor, avoiding the spider’s fluid, while the others just stepped right through it.

The dungeon raid centered around Amon began the day after he confessed his divine power.

The advantage of specialized monsters was their absolute influence in their designated class.

The downside was that they became incredibly weak against non-specialized opponents.

Thanks to this, Amon’s dungeon raid went smoothly.

Undead, specialized in Divine power, could not even exist in the first place.

Scrape.

Amon easily sliced through the undead, as if cutting butter with a heated knife.

The party members watched Amon’s massacre with uncomfortable expressions.

“Do we really need this?”

[Isn’t she our porter?]

The others couldn’t argue with the words of the water buffalo tank and the mute sniper.

Of course, they weren’t just sitting around doing nothing.

When it came to undead that they could handle, they were each doing their part.

But when specific specialized monsters appeared, some members felt useless, as they had nothing to do.

[But I still want to do something…]

The mute sniper sulked every time they faced an enemy that bullets couldn’t penetrate.

However, since bullets were also consumables, she and the ogre heavy artillery were excluded from combat for the time being.

If it had been a selfish party, they’d probably have been glad to save on ammo, but this party wasn’t like that.

***

After every battle, the party members carefully observed Amon, treating him like a superior.

“Are you thirsty? There’s water.”

“Oh, thank you.”

“Are you hungry?”

“I’m not really hungry… Just leave some blocks.”

The suggestion from the dual magic user was kind, but Amon politely refused.

Though the mage could create drinking water, magic was still a resource, and the food blocks didn’t need to be mentioned.

In the atmosphere where Amon was treated almost like a master, Amon awkwardly spoke up.

“Please don’t treat me like that. Everyone is doing great.”

But even this time, the surplus member, Cassie, didn’t accept Amon’s comfort.

“But it’s true that you’re carrying all the weight.”

“It’s not like that, so stop. Just now, with the spider, Vox helped out.”

Vox chimed in.

“I was useless in the previous battle!”

“Vox. How can you say that when I’m defending you?”

“I’m an ogre, I have some dignity! If Cassie says it, I must be useless.”

“Stop saying that. You guys saved me; without you, I would have died long ago.”

As Amon said, even he couldn’t stand up against sheer numbers.

Without support from the others, he probably would have been overwhelmed and perished.

Moreover, as they went deeper, more specialized undead appeared.

In the end, it was a dungeon where everyone had to do their best to clear it.

“Alright! Enough with the low self-esteem! Let’s head down again!”

Amon urged the team forward, saying that arguing about this kind of thing was ridiculous.

The party quickly resumed their dungeon exploration.

Afterward, the party encountered many more specialized undead.

Each member took care of their designated undead, while Amon swept through them with his non-specialized power.

Whenever they got hungry, they would eat food blocks, and when fatigue piled up, they would return to the surface for a break.

Before long, the party reached the officially reported highest cleared layer.

“This is El Dorado.”

The water buffalo tank, while exploring an uncharted layer, marveled at a technique no one had claimed yet.

It seemed the magic technology company wasn’t joking; they had discovered an undocumented technique.

It wasn’t full regeneration, but a magic inscription that could heal HP during battle.

Since the method of inscribing was different from the commercially available ones, it could be patented.

If they sold this technique, they’d be rich in an instant.

Applying it would make someone a named mercenary.

When such techniques were discovered, parties usually split into factions over how to distribute them, and it was common for conflict to arise.

But Amon’s party remained calm.

“The party leader should decide, I think.”

[Right, right.]

In agreement with the water buffalo tank and sniper, other members nodded as well.

However, Amon decided to postpone the issue of distribution.

“They don’t know we’re the leaders of the pack yet. We shouldn’t make a target of ourselves by drawing attention. Let’s deal with the Lich first.”

Everyone in the party agreed with Amon’s words, and they put the discussion about the magic inscription on hold.

The party continued to discover more techniques.

According to the dual magic user’s calculations, these discoveries were worth around 8 million dollars.

But even then, there were no conflicts within Amon’s party.

“The person who contributed the most is our party leader. That’s only fair.”

Even the dual magic user, who understood the value of the magic inscriptions best, said that, and the party remained peaceful.

Of course, they were human too.

When faced with expensive items, greed could arise, and they might want to claim them for themselves.

But what kept them from acting on those desires was the strong bond between them, and the fact that the dungeon was still ongoing.

They would continue raiding the dungeon, so turning against Amon would be like cutting open the goose that laid the golden egg.

For this reason, they carried their bond on one shoulder and reason on the other, suppressing their desires.

***

Two months into the dungeon raid with the twisted energies of the Netherworld, Amon raised a concern.

“Are these techniques really safe?”

The company responsible for these inscriptions had already created undead out of people once before.

There was a possibility that these newly discovered techniques had been corrupted.

“Then let’s sell them to a large corporation and confirm it.”

A reasonable thought from the dual magic user.

But that only applied if the corporation was well-meaning.

“What if they kill us off and steal the zombie-making technology for themselves?”

“Ah…”

At Amon’s pointed question, the magic user fell silent.

The other party members chuckled at the conversation.

It wasn’t really a serious discussion; they hadn’t decided yet whether they would sell the inscriptions or use them themselves, so it was more of a half-joking exchange.

In the midst of these trivial jokes, the party continued their journey.

They fought their way through the familiar specialized undead, heading forward without stopping until they reached the Lich.

But that day was different from the others.

At the dead-end of a featureless corridor, Cassie suddenly struck the wall with her spear.

“Hey, this wall seems weird.”

Everyone looked at her, puzzled.

Even Amon couldn’t detect anything odd about the wall.

“A wall? It’s just a wall, isn’t it?”

Cassie, however, gave a knowing smile and replied, “Wait for it.”

“No. This is a technology usually used in large corporation laboratories. If you push this part like this—”

Kiiing—

The wall slid inward, revealing an iron door with a card key reader on the opposite side.

“Ta-da~”

Cassie spread her arms, proudly unveiling the door.

However, contrary to what she expected, the party’s reaction was rather lackluster.

“Wow.”

“Good job.”

Clap clap

The party members clapped their hands.

They acknowledged her success, but for some reason, watching her so confidently made them feel like messing around a bit.

“Tch.”

It wasn’t until Cassie pouted that the party properly praised her.

“Cassie, you’re the best.”

[As expected, our sub-party leader.]

“Cassie is way better than Vox!”

“Cassie, you’re amazing!”

Surrounded by compliments from the party members, Cassie regained her confidence.

Meanwhile, Amon was inspecting the iron door.

“So, Cassie. How do we open this?”

“You can tell. You need to use a card key.”

“Do you have one?”

“Do you think I have one?”

“I had a feeling there would be one, after seeing you push the wall.”

“I only found it by accident. You have to open the iron door the normal way.”

But Amon didn’t seem convinced by her explanation.

Thump, thump.

He knocked on the door a few times before nodding.

“I think this might work.”

“Vox, you know how to make thermite, right?”

“I’ve memorized the recipe.”

“Then, put thermite here and here.”

At that moment, the rest of the party realized what Amon was planning.

The party’s firepower specialist, and the hardcore pyromaniac ogre, smiled widely.

“How much do we need?”

“As much as possible.”

In his past life, a soldier once said, “Strength is light, and wisdom is power.”

Amon murmured this as Vox eagerly placed thermite along the hinges of the door.

Once the setup was complete, the party members stepped back.

“Ready to fire!”

Szzziiing—BOOOOM!

The bunker door was ripped apart.

As the door was torn off, a loud noise echoed from the opposite side.

“Eaaaymeeeeeen!!!”

A dagger flew and severed the lich’s wrist.

“Aaaaargh!”

Although the lich’s body had long lost any sensation of pain, it still screamed in agony as if the pain was real.

In the meantime, Amon, who had rushed into the bunker, drove his sword into the lich’s shoulder and thigh before stomping on its chest with his foot.

“Heh. I’ve been waiting for this, you corpse.”

Despite it being their first meeting, Amon’s eyes gleamed with murderous intent.

He pressed down on the lich’s chest with his foot, infused with holy energy, as if branding it.

“I’ve hated seeing the undead organize in front of me. I’ve been waiting for this moment.”

“C…Cough! Who—Who are you—”

“My mother told me that those who desecrate peace should be decapitated and hung in the town square.”

“E…Aaaaargh!!”

Before the lich could say anything more, Amon began to break its limbs.

Watching from behind, Cassie muttered.

“Wow, how did he hide that personality until we got here?”

Although Cassie knew about Amon’s personality, the other party members did not.

“Graaagh!”

The bunker was filled with the lich’s screams.

“We need to be careful with how we talk about holy power from now on.”

An unspoken agreement formed among Amon’s party members.