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Chapter 34 - Chapter 5: Entry
The hammer hit the anvil.
The Thunder Light Anvil, that had been sleeping for thousands of years, woke up with a loud roar.
There was a surge of magic power. The wave roared through the atmosphere and woke up the servants of the Great Enkidu that had been sleeping for many years.
They opened their eyes and obeyed.
The trivial magic of the orc shamans that had been deceiving the eyes and ears of the swamp mammoths didn't last. The swamp mammoths were released from the delusions and obeyed the right command.
The first one who noticed was Vandal.
He wielded metal bars in both hands and smashed them against an orc's bones. Vandal recognized it. He wasn't a magician but he sensed it instinctively.
At this moment, the flow of the battlefield was changing.
There was no logic or rationale to it. Vandal just felt it and acted without hesitation.
"Ararararai!"
The ogre's unique battle cry caught the attention of everyone in the vicinity. Vandal, who had been acting as a barrier to protect his allies, became a tank. He trampled on the orcs of the Red Lightning tribe and rushed.
"Ararararai!"
"Ararararai!"
Vandal's ogre warriors acted in the same manner. The ogre warriors rushing forward destroyed the entire formation of the expedition army, but they didn't hesitate to run after Vandal.
The Red Lightning tribe warriors at the front were confused by the sudden rush. However, Yakuzan smiled from where he was observing in the rear. Vandal's charge was like a fleeting moment. Due to the broken formation, the damage to the expedition would only become larger.
However, Yakuzan's judgement was wrong. The swamp mammoths started trampling on the Red Lightning tribe instead of the expedition army. A few of them rolled over on the ground and crushed dozens of orcs.
Confusion spread like wildfire. There was a crack in the formation of the Red Lightning tribe.
Vandal plunged in through the gap and the explosive rush of the ogre warriors split the battlefield in half.
Now, even the soldiers felt it. Chris, whose body was tired and bloody, looked up towards the sky and shouted,
"The prince and princesses did it!"
It was enough. Chris, who grasped the situation, smiled like a demon. He gave a signal to the lycanthropes.
"Bushiberyeo!"
More than one hundred lycanthropes roared in unison and a magic blessing appeared over the heads of the expedition army.
It was magic contained in the Thunder Light Spear.
The magic spread through the swamp mammoths and aroused the strength of courage of the expedition army. The orcs belonging to the expedition force forgot their fatigue, suffering and fear.
It was the exact opposite situation for the Red Lightning tribe as a curse of confusion spread over them. Fear grabbed onto their feet and the unbearable sense of defeat made them unable to extend their weapons. The chiefs yelled at them but it was no use.
An army that had lost its enthusiasm was just a set of individuals. The confused and frightened Red Lightning tribe panicked and crumbled.
"We must flee!"
A shaman standing next to Yakuzan cried out urgently. As a magician, he could read the flow of mana from the swamp mammoths. This situation absolutely wasn't a coincidence. It was something that someone created.
This battle couldn't be won. The situation was so confusing that even a retreat couldn't be done properly. The only thing left was the annihilation of the Red Lightning tribe.
So, they had to give up. They had to run away, even at the expense of this battle.
"Tribe Chief must live! If Tribe Chief survives, we can stand up again!"
Yakuzan understood what the shaman was saying. He knew that fleeing was the best choice but he also knew that he couldn't.
He turned and looked at the centre of the battlefield. The orcs of the Red Lightning tribe were being trampled on.
"Ya-ku-zan-!"
The bodies of the shamans shook involuntarily at the thunderous shout. Yakuzan stared straight into Vandal's face. There were still more than a hundred warriors between Vandal and Yakuzan but that was meaningless.
"It seems like it is up to here."
Yakuzan laughed hysterically. The chief of the Red Lightning tribe raised the great iron sword that had been his lifetime companion.
"Tribe Chief?"
Yakuzan didn't respond to the call of the shaman. Vandal laughed wildly as he kept narrowing the distance.
&
"It is over."
In-gong said with a sigh. He could see the battlefield through the eyes of the swamp mammoths thanks to the anvil.
Vandal had killed Yakuzan, the leader of the Red Lightning tribe. Kairam and a few chiefs of the Red Lightning tribe still lived but they couldn't become Yakuzan.
Yakuzan's death broke the heart of the Red Lightning tribe. The orcs gave up fighting and either escaped or surrendered. The lizardmen, who had entered the battle as mercenaries in the first place, left early and traces of them couldn't be seen on the battlefield.
In-gong put the hammer down as Chris, who was bathed in the blood of the orcs, shouted with victory. His gazed moved naturally to the two people leaning on the anvil.
"We won."
Felicia laughed despite her nosebleed. Caitlin, whose cheek was pressed again the anvil, spoke with a blank expression.
"We won."
It seemed like she wanted to express her feelings more intensely but her strength was so weak that her shoulders sank. In fact, Caitlin needed to lean on the anvil. It wasn't a choice she'd made.
Felicia was in a better condition and she spoke after wiping the blood off her face.
"Shutra, put the swamp mammoths to sleep for now."
Currently, Shutra was the only one who could use the Thunder Light Anvil to control the swamp mammoths. They had caused trouble to the expedition army, so it was a good idea to put them to sleep for now.
However, In-gong didn't raise the hammer again.
"I already did it. That was the last command that I gave."
"Okay, then I will be able to sleep for the next few hours."
"Huh?"
Instead of answering, Felicia turned her gaze toward Caitlin. She tried to grab Caitlin's shoulder but her shoulders were shaking and she couldn't even lift it.
"It is too much. We'll speak later. Good night."
Felicia spoke to Caitlin, who was behind her, before falling unconscious. Caitlin glanced from Felicia toward In-gong.
"Sorry."
Caitlin said one word before closing her eyes as well.
'I'm sorry.
In-gong remained silent. Now that the tension was released, the fatigue overcame him and he found it hard to keep his eyes open.
'I should stretch out. '
The moment that In-gong thought so...
[Your level has risen. ]
[Your level has risen. ]
"Huh?"
In-gong made a surprised sound as he levelled up. White light shone around him and his stamina and strength, that had been exhausted by the Thunder Light Anvil, quickly recovered.
'Is this the achievement experience?'
There were occasions in Knight Saga when finding artifacts or achievements would give experience.
'Well, at first I levelled up just by running. '
The anvil was an artifact belonging to Enkidu, one of the six elder dragons, so it was natural to get a lot of experience.
He had gained one level during the battle they had lost, so In-gong was now level 13. However, this wasn't the end.
[The level of Conquest has risen. ]
"What?"
In-gong cried out unintentionally and hastily activated his skills window. The level really had increased.
[Conquest Lv2]
[Below the King's Flag Lv2]
[The King's Knights Lv1]
'The level of Below the King's Flag also rose. What is the effect? Is the effect stronger? Maybe the number of people I can buff has increased. '
He wanted to try it out right now. However, there was something more important than that.
The King's Knights Lv1.
There was also a skill. It wasn't a passive skill like the skills related to Protagonist Correction. It was an active skill like Below the King's Flag.
'Just by the name... Is it a summoning skill?'
He briefly saw knights in shining armour flashing in front of him.
After the brief delusion, In-gong sighed and leaned against the anvil. Thanks to the level up effect, both his physical strength and magic power had been restored. However, the mental fatigue still remained. It felt like when he had used Below the King's Flag.
'Punishment, obedience, governance. '
It was the golden-crowned female with white hair.
This time he didn't simply see her. It was just for a moment but they shared senses.
It was probably the influence of Conquest's level.
Who was she? Was she In-gong's power of Conquest itself?
His head, that had become lighter due to the level up effect, started becoming heavy again. His eyes could barely stay open any longer and he was on the verge of collapsing.
This was his limit. In-gong's body slumped slightly and he turned to look at Carack.
"Carack."
"Prince! Did you see? We won!"
Carack exclaimed as he stared up at the windows of light showing the image of the expedition army. In-gong sat down in front of the anvil.
"Please."
And he fainted. He was knocked out fast enough to be called a skill.
"Heok? Prince? Prince?"
The confused Carack rushed over to In-gong but he had already fainted. Seira approached Carack and said,
"Warrior Carack, I will take care of the princesses. You should deal with the prince and the dark elves."
Delia and Katuin were also collapsed around the anvil. Carack and Seira were the only ones who hadn't fainted.
"Understood."
Carack answered quickly and hugged In-gong.
&
The white-haired woman was smiling softly.
Her red and blue eyes stared at In-gong as she whispered.
"Conquest Knight, you are my-"
She kept speaking but her voice was out of reach. The white woman licked her lips and smiled again.
It wasn't the time yet.
Darkness twisted around the white woman.
"Oh, Prince. Have you regained consciousness?"
As soon as he opened his eyes, he heard Carack's voice above him. Just like most people, In-gong sat up and rubbed his eyes.
"Carack."
"Drink some water."
Carack extended a canteen filled with cold water. He took a sip and asked,
"My sisters?"
"They are next to each other."
Carack grinned and pointed to an area. Caitlin and Felicia were lying side by side.
'Did I wake up first?'
He thought that Caitlin, the most physically superior, would be the first to wake up.
'Ah, the level up effect. '
It was probably because his level had gone up. In-gong's body had been restored, so it was normal for him to wake up first.
'It has only been two hours. '
In-gong looked away from the mini-map and towards Caitlin and Felicia. Seira was sitting next to them and she said to him,
"The princesses seem to be tired. They need to take a break for a while."
"The dark elves are in a similar state. Still, there doesn't seem to be any risk to their lives."
Carack pointed to the dark elves lying on In-gong's left side. Just like Carack said, their lives weren't at risk but they were making pained expressions.
Anyway, no one had died. The mission had been completed successfully.
"You have obtained a decisive victory. Congratulations."
Seira recognized In-gong's merits. Carack glanced at him and imitated her words.
"Congratulations."
"Thank you. It is also thanks to Caitlin noona and Felicia noona."
Seira smiled at his reply. She seemed more agreeable after hearing his words about Caitlin.
In-gong then spoke to Carack,
"It was also thanks to you."
"Hoho, you know it already."
Carack laughed.
Delia and Katuin would have frowned at Carack's rudeness, but Seira was already accustomed to orcs. She spoke in a slightly more friendly tone than before.
"It seems like more time is required for the princesses to wake up. Prince should take a break as well."
Caitlin and Felicia seemed like they would be unconscious for three or four more hours, so In-gong nodded.
"Yes, yes... Wait a minute."
"Huh?"
Instead of answering, In-gong looked around. The light from the Thunder Light Anvil had disappeared and there was a door beyond it.
'This place is a ruin. '
It was a ruin related to the wyrm, Enkidu. When he had arrived here while playing the game, he had skipped the intermediate process, so there was no change in the room.
Exploring the ruins.
It wasn't easy. There were various traps and powerful guardians.
'But what if I am the ruler?'
The dungeon was originally intended to defend the anvil and In-gong controlled the anvil.
"Carack, carry the bag and follow me."
"Huh? Prince?"
In-gong didn't reply to Carack and got up. He was looking at the door beyond the altar.
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