Novels online

Chapter 278

My Villains Episode 278

52. ancient gateway(6)

Looking back, ever since I fell into this world, I have always tried to accumulate knowledge, no, common sense..

It's natural. Understanding where you live is directly related to your ability to survive..

Learning was very easy. Once I jumped into society and studied through physical encounters, I had no choice but to learn quickly..

In addition, since he had the appearance of a local, a strong body, and the language skills of his native language, there was almost no obstacle in the process..

I even had a great teacher.

No matter what questions I asked, he would click his chin and explain things in an easy-to-understand manner. Thanks to the advanced education she received from a young age, she was much more knowledgeable than most nobles..

Thanks to his help, I was able to revive the knowledge that was dormant in Poynix's head and make it completely mine..

Oh, I miss you..

It's only been about ten days since we broke up, but when I think of the blue eyes, the wavy hair, the faint scent of lime, and the warm body temperature, my heart sinks and I feel a little out of breath..

During the last three days, I tried to comfort myself with the soft skin on my head and chest, my face twisted with joy, my new voice, my breath grazing my collarbone, and my white fingertips, but it wasn't easy..

anyway.

Through that study, I learned how the world's inhabitants understand it..

The world is made up of nine dimensions, and the 'middle world', the dimension where humans live, is located in the middle of the dimensions, as its name suggests..

Also, in the middle of Middle-Earth, there is a huge land where the Kingdom of Milanol and Mitergeland are located..

There was no special name for this huge land, so the people who lived here simply called it ‘continent’ or ‘land.’.

This huge land was once owned by an empire. And now, this land is divided and occupied by a kingdom established by the power of a conqueror, an empire created by the unity of electors, and a sultanate that rose up after defeating an oppressor..

These countries all inherited tangible and intangible heritage from ancient empires..

Intangible heritage is something that is incorporated into people's way of thinking, society, language, culture, and overall life, so it is difficult to feel it unless you pick it out one by one..

But tangible heritage is different. This road that our group is standing on was built during the ancient empire..

The road, which was built solidly by laying several layers of gravel or clay and covering the top layer with flagstones, has maintained its shape relatively intact even hundreds of years after the fall of the empire..

This road probably isn't anything special. This is because nine out of ten roads connecting castles, villages, and cities were still roads of the ancient empire..

The ancient empire left behind more than just highways..

Remnants of sewers underground in various cities, including South Harbor, towers and fortresses installed in places where monsters frequently appear, marble baths located in hot springs near volcanoes, and even lighthouses on remote islands in the open sea, all are remnants of the ancient empire. It was a mountain.

Now appears in front of our group

The gate was also the same..

“hmm. It's a wonderful scenery.”

“Well, I see..”

After appropriately responding to Utequai's impressions, I looked at the gate again..

The ancient gateway was located in a very remote area for a canyon. However, judging by the remaining traces, there was no doubt that this gate had once completely blocked the wide canyon..

The structure in front of us seemed to have been half demolished, as if such a large gate could not have been blocked by time..

The cylindrical tower was bent at the waist and exposed its flesh at an angle, and the arched gatehouse was noticeably tilted outward. The thick stone wall was dark with moss and soot, and although the high part was almost 4 or 5 meters high, the lower part was practically in contact with the ground..

“Nari, I don’t think there’s anyone here..”

Veteran Confire, who came to the side, said while fiddling with the handle of the true sword. Perhaps because the sun was slowly setting, his face was tense with caution..

“It's expected.”

“Yes, but I expected there to be at least some merchants staying or a band of bandits..”

“I didn't know that thief and anticipation were words that go well together..”

No matter how old it is, the gate blocking the road is clearly a military facility..

So, in general, if the lords had a gate in their territory, they stationed troops to manage it, and if they did not have the power to do so, they completely destroyed it..

This is because it would be a headache if it became a den of thieves..

The gateway in front of me was also old, but it still seemed to have some value as a defense facility. However, I didn't feel embarrassed because I was popular..

“Well, what kind of vampire would care about a mountain valley like this??”

Until recently, this region, Gistol, was under the rule of the vampire Count Mattianver..

Even the village of Seongha was devastated by hunting and predation on the local residents, and there was no way the gateway to such a remote place would be intact..

While I was chatting with the mercenaries, Munggi looked at the gate with his hand glued to his eyebrow. As the sun sets and dusk spreads, putting on a hand awning is definitely an appeal that you are doing your job..

W.O. ” =......•

The human radar, whose agility reached a whopping 41 points, stayed like that for a while before shaking his head. It means I can't feel anything..

Even though the bundle has been checked, somehow the foot does not fall. The shadow of the gateway at dusk gave off an ominous atmosphere..

“I smell blood.”

Heyla said, holding the reins of the black war horse..

Her favorite horse, Eltonidze, was saddled with Hrunting and a lot of miscellaneous luggage, but he showed no signs of fatigue..

On the other hand, Spotted, the horse that was chasing Oltonise's tail without a leash, looked like it was about to hit its nose on the ground at any moment..

“……smell of blood?”

“huh. Although it's very blurry.”

In response to Hayla's assertion, Mungchi moaned 'Eh-' and then closed his mouth. And I secretly twitched my nose..

He seemed to be sniffing around to see if he had missed something, but even if he was a human Ray, his sense of blood couldn't match Heila's..

“It's a level where we need to be on guard.?”

“well. The smell is so faint that I don't even know if it's a human trace..”

“okay? Hmm……

After thinking for a moment between the two long swords I took from Renka, 'Black Ice' and 'Morning Star', I chose the latter..

As the night quickly approached, the boundaries of the shadows became blurred. Thanks to this, the white blade of the morning star glowed faintly..

As a signal, the mercenaries also raised their weapons as I pulled out my sword. Some people approached the spotted cart, took out torches and lit them..

The mercenaries spread out in pairs, with me leading the way as they walked toward the arched passage ahead..

Golman, who was wearing a self-made round shield and holding a thick iron club between his teeth, looked at the trajectory of the light and then glanced back..

“……nothing,”

“ fizzle-”

The person who stopped him was a dervish, a heavy soldier. Wearing thick scale armor and a heavy iron shield on her shoulder, she was holding a torch and looking around with cautious eyes..

The dervish, holding a curved sword similar to that used by the Nudeans and wearing steel gloves, greaves, and a helmet with a chain dropper, looked completely different from usual. The mischievous yet arrogant appearance was everywhere, and even a glimpse of life was reflected in the dark yellow eyes..

Golman, frozen by those eyes, took a step back without realizing it. The dervish tapped him on the shoulder with his elbow and whispered.

“Don't be fooled and follow me. Shut up.”

“Yes, yep.”

Goleman, who happened to be in a group with the dervish, struggled to compose himself and adjusted his iron club..

If you made a mistake that deserves blame and ended up in the same situation as his friend Cabas, it would be a really big deal..

Having my whole body bent this way and that every morning under the weight of Mr. Hatanka's large body is an ordeal I don't even want to imagine..

The two searched under the old castle wall step by step, shining a torch..

Meanwhile, Goleman discovered some unusual things. There were large wooden boards spread all over the floor, and at each corner was a stone the size of a human head..

“Dervish, what is that??”

“It must be a well.”

“It's a well.?”

“uh. Pay attention and follow me, there are stairs here.”

After finishing whispering, the dervish moved to the front. But Goleman couldn't take his eyes off the boards covering what looked like a well..

So he walked slowly and approached the nearest board. And started removing the pressing stones and boards..

“……Only goals? what are you doing?”

Derby, who noticed Goleman's strange behavior, quickly ran to him..

In that moment, all the pressing stones and wooden planks had been removed, and a well with a diameter of two meters was opening its pitch-black maw wide toward the sky..

“Hey, you bastard. what are you doing?”

“yes? No, I just always felt that scooping up snow and boiling it to eat is a bit of a hassle. All you have to do is pump water from the well..”

He continued speaking gibberish as he looked down into the deep, dark well..

“But there is no bucket. Even the pulley. Well, let's lower a rope if we feel like it.?”

“What kind of bullshit are you talking about?-”

Goleman was staring down the well without even looking at the dervish. Sensing that something was wrong, Dervish violently pulled Goleman's shoulder with the hand holding the curved sword..

“……Holy shit.”

What she faced was Goleman's eyes, which were pitch black and had no whites. As the startled dervish retreated, swearing, Goleman collapsed like a doll with its strings loose..

“here-! Everyone check this out!”

At the shout that shattered the alert silence, the mercenaries scattered throughout the gate immediately drew attention..

“Damn it, wake up! hey!”

The dervish urgently checked Golman’s condition. I shined a torch on his face, but he was still talking incomprehensible nonsense with his eyes stained black..

“Hey, golman! Come to your senses, Keek-” Just as the mercenaries noticed what was happening and approached, Gollman suddenly stood up and stretched out his hand. The suddenly strangled dervish opened its eyes..

“The apostle of death will reach the last monarch. Death is for me, lack, agony, pain, obsession, and life is ecstasy for me, singing a song at the promised time, regardless of what is precious on earth, in heaven, or in heaven.,”

Wow!

It was the gasping dervish who ended Gollman's incoherent muttering. After being hit with such force by an iron-gloved fist, Gollman fell down on his side with his eyes blown out..

“Ugh, sir, what kind of power is this??”

“dervish!”

Surprised mercenaries rushed towards us, and Poynix stepped forward, wading through them, and asked with a stern face:.

“Dervish, what is it? Why is he like this??”

“Me too, *cough* I don’t know. X8 suddenly opened the well and started making strange noises, like a child possessed by something. I guess that well-”

«0 water2”

Phoenix strode up to the well and held out his long sword..

Is it because of my mood? As it got closer to the well, the light emitted by the white blade seemed to gradually become stronger..

“……What is this?.”

“It's the devil.”

Utequai, who was now shoulder to shoulder with Phoenix, knelt down on one knee and looked down deeply into the well..

“It's the devil?”

“be right. The devil's land beyond the forbidden river. It's the same as there.”

“……It can't be the devil - no, it can't be. Why already,”

While Poynix was uncharacteristically embarrassed, the man with his wrist crossbow stretched out and holding the unsword he had drawn in reverse opened his mouth..

“I can hear you.”

“what are you talking about?”

“The sound of movement. There are a lot.”

Heyla, who had been silent in the confused atmosphere, put on the Milky Way gloves and approached the well. Then, he slightly narrowed his eyebrows and unleashed his magic..

“There is a terrible smell of blood. I need to get ready.”

“shit.”

Poynix immediately turned around and shouted at the mercenaries..

“Dust proof! Ready for battle!”

The mercenaries, who had sufficiently raised their tension, began to unite without any sign of embarrassment or surprise..

They dragged the stunned Gollman and his horses and hid them in a half-demolished tower, and used carts and surrounding structures to build a shield wall..

Ta-da-dak, ta-da-dak.

I began to hear unusual signs. It was a sound like a ball of water-soaked thread tapping on a dry stone wall..

Then, 'Chik, chik!' A faintly heavy and loud sound was also heard..

“……Where have I heard this before?.”

Phoenix muttered like that, bleeding through the Death King's scale handcuffs. A handful of blood flowed out, forming a large circle and hanging on my wrist..

Hayla, who was watching the scene intently, slowly stretched out her hand toward the well..

Bullfighting-!

The star bullet shot out through the tip of the index finger and jumped into the black maw. Seeing the bullet flying a little slower than usual, Phoenix thought of a flare..

Ugh.

The starlight that cuts through the darkness brightens up the dark stomach..

Black and yellow mottled fur, a long beard and tail, a body that could be half that of a human, a red rusty spear blade, and an uncountable number of people..

“Rat Man.” No sooner had Phoenix finished muttering than a star bullet pierced through three of the hordes climbing up the well..

Squeak, crackle!

profit-!

Some impatient ratmen lost their senses prematurely when they smelled blood. Instead of climbing toward the ground, they launched themselves at their comrade's corpse..

At that moment, Hayla snapped her fingers..

A red flower bloomed inside the well. The flower rotated violently, plowing all over the place, and grew in size by swallowing the resulting products..

The spinning red flower descended into the darkness. The terrifying chorus of ear-piercing rodents gradually faded away..

15Haley, who had destroyed hundreds of lives in what seemed like seconds, was just looking down the well in silence..

“this.”

Utequai, who was holding a war hammer of shock in his left hand and a whip of hellfire in his right hand, muttered with a dejected expression..

“Is it over??”

“……Oh, this guy really.”

Phoenix lamented, and at the same time, Munchi grabbed his arm and took a step back..

“poi, back.”

“why? No way, really?”

“not one.”

Mungchi continued as he attached a small glass bottle to the arrowhead of his wrist crossbow..

“Well.”

“……Uh, then.”

Before Poynix could finish speaking, ‘Ta-da-da-da-da-dak!’ A loud presence filled the room. At the same time, the pressing stones and wooden planks scattered here and there began to rattle..

“Huh, wrong. It's not the end.”

Utekwai summoned magical power and planted both feet on the ground. The zelkova tree root tattoo flashed and steam began to rise from his shoulder..

“Heyla?”

Phoenix felt an inexplicable sense of emptiness and turned around to find Hayla standing behind the mercenaries' phalanx..

“••••♦•What are you doing?”

“A little bit of a mouse.”

“A little bit of a mouse?”

She had an expressionless face, but her already white face had turned as pale as a sheet of paper, and she calmly opened her mouth..

“huh. I don't like it very much.”

“……I don't think it's that much.”

Just before Heyla could open her mouth to say something, the wooden plank near the gateway split in half and a huge figure popped out..

“……He said he was a rat man. What kind of rat man is that??”

“Oh my,”

The mercenaries looked bewildered when they saw the giant human-like monster..

A bald head with gaping mouths and no hair, a protruding nose, a stature that appears to be over 3 meters tall, long arms extending below the knees, and a fat body with large muscles..

“That's an ogre!”

Fritz was only half right. That wasn't an ogre, it was an ogre and a ratman..

Chick, crack!

On the back of the ogre's neck, which was giving off a foul smell, was a figure much larger than an ordinary ratman, holding a long spear that was more than two meters long..

“Ugh, gross..”

After looking back at Mungchi's words, I realized that Ogeo was in a much more dire state than I thought..

In the empty eye sockets, there was a rope of unknown origin..

The large ratman was holding the rope like a rein, but instead of letting out its characteristic roar and pounding its chest, the ogre was crawling on the ground on all fours..

And what's even more surprising is,

“Y/n! give, eat—!”

The truth is that Ratman, also known as 'Ogre Rider', was speaking human language and making threats.!

“crazy,”

That time when the mercenaries looked dumbfounded, forgetting about the loud presence that filled the room..

“Athar- Marta (Mother-God)!” With a roar that echoed through the mountain valley, chains wrapped in red-hot flames struck the Ogre Rider..

The ratman, who was trapped on his side by thick chains, died without even making a sound, and the ogre who was hit on the top of his head fell forward, spilling out something grayish from his broken head..

“Umm-!”

As he adjusted his flaming chain whip, Utequai let out a sound that could be either a laugh or a growl..

Then, wooden planks broke everywhere and countless rat men came pouring out at once..