The Dungeon Monsters Keep Offering Sacrifices

The Dungeon Monsters Keep Offering Sacrifices – 166

EP.166 Dark Wizard and Celia

 

Drakon ran towards the Sael Kingdom with all his might. His heart pounded as if it would burst, and his breath came in gasps, but he couldn’t stop. He had to escape from here immediately and inform the Order of a critical fact. Dark wizards had appeared in the Silent Mountains!

The dark wizards didn’t stop there. With immense power, they summoned countless undead legions. It was a sight that still made his flesh crawl. Rynell and his fellow holy knights risked their lives in that horrific battle to give Drakon a chance. He had to inform the Order as quickly as possible, if only to ensure their sacrifice wasn’t in vain.

As he ran frantically, he noticed a familiar armor. It was another holy knight like himself. Why was another holy knight here? However, Drakon was in no state to question it.

“Brother! Something terrible has happened! Over there… dark wizards have appeared!”

He felt a slight sense of relief that he wasn’t alone. Drakon greeted the other holy knight, who introduced himself as Eric. Drakon also introduced himself and then moved on to the main topic.

“Brother Eric, I just witnessed… a horrifying scene.”

His voice trembled. Meeting Eric had eased his tension, causing his emotions to surge even more. Still, he desperately continued to speak.

“Our holy knight brothers… were massacred by the undead legion. Sir Rynell tried to protect me…”

Drakon’s voice faltered momentarily, trembling. It was as if the deaths of his comrades were vividly replaying before his eyes.

“We must inform the Order immediately! The continent of El Dorad is in danger!”

They needed to quickly report the appearance of the dark wizards and the undead legion and prepare for it.

“Oh my… you’ve been through something truly horrific.”

Eric placed a hand on Drakon’s trembling shoulder as he listened.

“But brother, please calm down and tell me the details. Understanding the situation is of utmost importance right now.”

Eric’s words were gentle, but his eyes held no surprise or sympathy—only emptiness.

“Now, what exactly happened? What do you mean by an undead legion?”

As he questioned Drakon, Eric placed his hand on the sword at his waist. Eric’s true identity was that of a Banshee controlling the holy knight. The Banshee had a duty to protect the Great One’s dungeon. If the human before him had suspected anything, he intended to kill him immediately.

‘An undead legion…’

An undead legion had appeared in the mountains. And there were dark wizards as well. Several possibilities came to mind.

‘Could it be that Sir Necros has made a move?’

Necros was an Arch Lich. With his skill to resurrect corpses as skeletons, he could quickly form an undead legion. Given his robe, it was easy to mistake him for a dark wizard. However, Eric shook his head. Necros had recently been granted a new dungeon by the Great One. He would be too busy managing it to leisurely lead undead against holy knights.

It didn’t make sense. And Necros wasn’t the only one capable of commanding an undead legion.

‘Could it be that Sir Death Knight has made a move?’

The Death Knight also had a particular ability—the power to turn those he killed into ghouls. Sometimes, if the will of the deceased was strong enough, mutations or more powerful ghouls would emerge. With these abilities, creating an undead legion wouldn’t be difficult. Moreover, the Death Knight was the mid-boss of the area 1 of the first floor. Utilizing the troops from the area 1 made it a plausible scenario.

‘No, that’s not it either.’

But Eric shook his head again. The Death Knight was currently overseeing fortification construction within the dungeon. There was no way he would be wandering outside.

‘Perhaps it’s the Assault Corps.’

The Assault Corps was a recently established unit by General manager Celia. It was composed entirely of undead monsters, an elite force that charged at enemies, undeterred by death. Leading the Assault Corps was a Dullahan.

‘Not as strong as Sir Necros or the Death Knight, but still formidable enough.’

A Dullahan would have sufficient strength to overpower holy knights. With this thought, Eric prepared to draw his sword. Regardless, if this information reached the Order, they would undoubtedly lead their forces to the mountains. To prevent such a disastrous situation, he had to kill the holy knight before him and bury the truth.

Just before Eric could act, Drakon spoke again.

“…It was filled with ghouls and skeletons. But that’s not all!”

Fear intensified in Drakon’s voice.

“There were dark wizards there. They were the very ones who summoned the undead legion! We must inform everyone of this fact!”

Eric’s expression subtly contorted at those words. It felt slightly off from what he had been considering. Drakon, observing Eric’s expression, assumed they were on the same page and continued.

“That’s right, Brother Eric. The Eclipse has returned. That notorious group of dark wizards has revealed themselves to the world again!”

“Eclipse…!”

The Banshee controlling Eric was taken aback. There was one reason for its confusion.

‘What is Eclipse?’

The Banshee did not know exactly what this ‘Eclipse’ that Drakon mentioned was. Even as a Banshee, it could not extract the memories of the puppet it was controlling. The only relief was that the entity that had clashed with the holy knights was this place called Eclipse, which seemed unrelated to the Great One’s dungeon.

‘Eclipse, huh…’

Piecing together the conversation, Eclipse was likely a group of dark wizards. Beyond that, the details were unclear. However, it was evident that they had encroached upon the Great One’s territory.

‘How dare they invade the Great One’s realm…’

Eric, filled with rage, began to tremble with anger. Drakon interpreted this differently.

‘He must be angry at the news of Eclipse’s return.’

It was a situation that would incite anger in any holy knight, especially those affiliated with the White Order. Drakon felt reassured that he had brought up the matter to Eric.

At that moment, Eric spoke up.

“This is a grave situation, brother. Let’s head to the kingdom immediately! Vice Commander Riana is there, and she will surely provide us with valuable insights!”

Eric gritted his teeth, feigning composure. Riana was the vice commander of the holy knight order. With the commander having been killed by a seven-star Death Knight, she was being considered as the next commander. But that wasn’t all.

Riana had witnessed the miracle of ‘Maru,’ who guarded the Great One. Maru was a skeleton who wielded holy power. Although all of this was due to the Great One’s power, she mistook Maru for the appearance of a saint and became an ardent follower of Maru’s tales. Of course, the stories of Maru were actually concocted by Celia and relayed by Eric, but she was unaware of this.

‘Using Riana to counter Eclipse would be perfect.’

It would serve as punishment for encroaching on the Great One’s territory and simultaneously divert the Order’s attention. ‘All for the Great One—’

Eric devised a plan to redirect the Order’s focus towards the group known as Eclipse.

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Dark energy emanated from the holy knight’s body. The pure white armor gradually turned black, and the golden patterns on it seemed to ignite into a fiery red. The holy knight let out a scream filled with agony.

“There is no goddess, there is no goddess! We’ve all been deceived!”

It was a cry as if his very soul was being twisted. Sharia and Lucas were at a loss for words at the sight unfolding before them.

“……”

Just moments ago, he had been fighting while invoking the goddess, but now he exuded a completely different aura.

‘They corrupted a holy knight…’

Not only that, but the other seemingly powerful holy knights were subdued in an instant. No, could it even be called subduing? It was more accurate to describe it as a massacre. The holy knights were annihilated. Those who fell were torn apart and crushed without even a chance to resist. The rest were obliterated by the charging skeletons, leaving no trace behind.

The corrupted holy knight continued to mutter incomprehensible words.

“The goddess does not exist, the goddess never existed. It was all a lie. It was all a lie…”

There was no trace of holiness left in him. Lucas, who had been standing in a daze, spoke in an excited voice.

“Did you see that, Leader? This is the true power of the Apostle!”

To corrupt a holy knight was indeed a remarkable feat.

“All of this is a sign of the resurrection of the Evil God. The day when our Eclipse will witness that great moment is not far off!”

Lucas bowed his head towards the Apostles. A new era was about to dawn. His eyes shone with the light of fanaticism. Sharia was no different.

“Indeed, it was the right decision to offer donations to the Apostle!”

Sharia whispered with a face flushed with excitement. Although the money for bread and ham had disappeared in an instant, witnessing a miracle created with money left no room for regret. She almost shed tears of gratitude.

However, even in the midst of her elation, there was something she couldn’t quite understand.

‘Why did they let one escape?’

In this battle, one holy knight had managed to escape.

With the Apostle’s power, they could have prevented anyone from escaping. Why had they let one go? They didn’t even show any signs of pursuing the runaway.

“Um… Apostle?”

“Clink!”

As Sharia cautiously approached, Necros smiled contentedly. Despite her impoverished appearance, she was the human who had given him gold coins. Showing kindness was only natural.

“I hope it’s not too presumptuous to ask, but is there a reason you let the escaping holy knight go?”

After a moment of thought, Necros responded.

“Clink, Clink, Clink. Clink, Clink. Clink!”

Necros seemed to be explaining something, tapping his bones rhythmically. To Sharia, it sounded like nothing more than bone noises.

‘There must be a reason.’

She didn’t mind. The Apostle served the Evil God. She believed there was a reason beyond her understanding.

“Clink.”

(That’s how it is.)

Necros completed his response, regardless of how she interpreted it. Everything happening in the mountains was part of Celia’s plan. Celia had explicitly instructed him to ensure that intruders kept coming to the dungeon. In those instructions, Necros realized something important: if they killed all the intruders, eventually, they would stop coming.

By allowing some to survive, rumors would continue to spread, leading to more intruders. This cycle would ensure that intruders would keep coming to the mountains.

“Clink.”

Just thinking about it made Necros feel good. If intruders kept coming, it meant more income. However, it wasn’t all joy.

“Clink…”

Necros was now the master of a new dungeon. Unfortunately, the dungeon was located in the Sael Kingdom, not the mountains. The distance made frequent visits burdensome.

“……”

So, he pondered. How could he make more money? Although he was already earning a lot from the monster arena, Necros wanted even more. More money was always better than just money.

“Clink.”

After a brief moment of thought, Necros issued a command. He could think about the future later; for now, immediate cleanup was necessary. At his command, the skeletons and ghouls began to gather the equipment scattered across the battlefield. Most of the holy knights had been incinerated in the explosion, but they meticulously collected the remaining debris and equipment.

Necros, along with the undead legion carrying the spoils and corpses, began to move. He planned to distribute the harvest and send a portion to Celia. Necros always valued distribution; hoarding everything for himself would surely cause problems.

“Clink, Clink.”

Necros was in a good mood today.

“Wait, take us with you, Apostle!”

Sharia and Lucas hurriedly followed behind him. Once they left, the forest returned to its eerie silence. A cold wind carried the scent of blood as it swept through the trees.

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Necros and the Death Knight returned to the dungeon. Following them were ghouls, skeletons, and two dark wizards. Celia observed the humans with curious eyes. As the dungeon’s general manager, humans were merely tools with various uses to her. Some would gain the honor of being offered as sacrifices to the Great One. Others would have the opportunity to serve by producing monsters to guard the dungeon. Some might even end up working as laborers within the Great One’s dungeon.

“Sir Necros, who are these humans?”

Celia’s question carried the underlying meaning of “What are their roles?”

“Groooar.”

(They are just insignificant humans.)

A mutated ghoul answered thoughtlessly.

“Quiet, Ghoul.”

Of course, it was dismissed immediately.

“Groo, groo.”

(Sob, sob.)

Necros, however, was different.

“Clink, Clink.”

(They are benefactors.)

The dark wizards had given money to Necros, so his statement wasn’t incorrect.

“Benefactors, huh…”

The word “benefactors” made Celia’s eyes gleam. Among the humans she knew, there were special individuals like Kazel, the dungeon’s first human lieutenant. She became intrigued.

At that moment, one of the humans stepped forward, trembling.

“O, Apostle of the Great One! My name is Sharia. The Great One is soon to be my master! I am a dark wizard who despises the Order and eagerly awaits His resurrection!”

Celia smiled warmly. A human who longed for the Great One’s descent and declared themselves as His servant. Such loyalty and devotion were admirable.

Celia gladly welcomed the humans.

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