novelElite #3
| ← Ch.027 | Ch.029 → |
There was immense pleasure the moment he obtained the spirit with his hand. However, he couldn't feel it like he did before. He also couldn't feel any depth.
The leader of the Orc's physical body was stronger than the giant that invaded before, however, they didn't have a lot of mana. They had a lot less and since Yong-Ho already developed his mana, it didn't help much.
But that wasn't the only reason.
The Kobolds died. Out of the four, three of them died. He wasn't sure if it was a coincidence, but it was the same one that attacked the armory with him.
It's only been a couple of days since they've become allies.
They weren't like Catalina and Eligor though.
And he didn't like them as much as Skull or Jon.
Despite that, he was getting angry.
Yong-Ho sensed where it was coming from. Greed was the cause of his anger.
They harmed something that belonged to him.
They looted his belongings.
They took away what was his!
Despite obtaining the spirit, he felt disappointed. Yong-Ho tightened his grip on Aamon and collected his breath. He tried to suppress the anger that Greed had.
.
Time was passing even during this moment. If his assumptions were right, the Orcs belonged to a dungeon, unlike the giant that invaded last time. There's a high possibility that they were spirits that belonged to a dungeon.
He had to find out. And prepare for it.
Yong-Ho closed his eyes.
He waited for Catalina and Eligor to return.
&
A couple of minutes after Catalina brought the Imp that she captured, Eligor and the salamander returned.
After checking the traps that they installed, Eligor imagined what happened and wasn't surprised by it. He took care of the things one by one in a calm manner.
Under Eligor's command, the Goblins cleaned up the corpses. Joon and Yon took the armor that the Orcs were wearing and Jon and Ron moved the Orcs and Imps' corpses into an empty room.
Skull moved the Kobolds' corpses into a different empty room. They prepared empty rooms out of the many rooms within the dungeon to put the corpses in.
Eligor let the Treant rest. After commanding the salamander to guard the entrance, he visited Catalina and Yong-Ho, who were in the prison.
An hour passed after the battle.
After suppressing his anger and agitation, he greeted Eligor with a calm expression. He wanted to rest since he used up all of his mana, but questioning the Imp was more important.
Imps were small, evil spirits that had green skin. They were smaller and weaker than a Goblin, but were more agile and smarter.
The Imp had a large head and thin arms and legs. As they rolled their large eyes, they glanced between Yong-Ho and Eligor.
"Begin."
Yong-Ho commanded and Eligor acted upon it. After opening the prison door, he roughly grabbed the Imp who was tied down by a rope.
"I'll talk! I'll talk! I'll tell you everything!"
As soon as Eligor grabbed them, the Imp shouted frantically. Yong-Ho just stood still and watched and Eligor looked coldly at the Imp that was flailing.
The Imp didn't even look at them anymore. They closed their eyes and spoke.
"The master sent us! Master Foras! To capture the dungeon! Sir Terak said it would be easy to capture it since there wasn't an owner! They also said it was to investigate!"
Eligor's expression changed when he heard the name, Foras. However, he tried not to completely display his emotion. He tightened his grip on the Imp's neck and asked.
"Who's Terak?"
"T-the dead Orc. The leader! The one that lead the Orcs... a-and they even said this! That if there was a new owner, they would check and return right away! That they would notify Master Foras and create an actual army!"
The Imp quickly explained and opened their eyes. They rolled their eyes and yelled again.
"I've said everything! I told you everything! I'm not lying!"
Yong-Ho thought so too. And all the important information was already contained in what the Imp said.
The one that sent the Orcs.
The reason why they did this. And the information about what they're planning on doing.
Eligor asked again.
"What about the size of the spirits that belong to the dungeon? Are there a lot of spirits like Terak?"
"T-there is! There's a whole bunch of Orcs! Over 40! There are three that's like Terak!"
Eligor slightly opened his eyes. He tightened his grip again and asked.
"And?"
"A-and! I don't know! I told you everything that I know! I did!"
It didn't look like they were lying this time either.
Eligor briefly looked back at Yong-Ho. He was asking for Yong-Ho's confirmation and Yong-Ho nodded his head. It's because he remembered what Eligor said when he returned to the dungeon.
He twisted the Imp's neck. He broke their neck and instantly killed them.
"They've been casted with a spirit confirmation magic. There probably isn't a tracking function, but... it's something we should be worried about."
Eligor spoke as he pointed to the small magic circle that was drawn on the Imp's forehead. It was similar to the magic circle that appeared on the salamander's forehead.
"Eligor, do you know about the owner, Foras?"
"They're one of the owners in the southern part. They're located not that far from this dungeon. We could get there within a day or two by horse."
The Orcs probably ran all the way here. Yong-Ho didn't know exactly how big of a difference there were between riding a horse and running, but he could assume.
"And the strength of their power?"
"Based on all the dungeons within the southern part, they're not the strongest, but they're not the weakest either. When the previous owner was alive, they would sometimes contact each other."
Yong-Ho questioned him due to the unexpected information.
"Were they close?"
"No. They didn't fight against each other, but... they would show their desire to obtain this dungeon and would provoke him from time to time."
"And they've made their move."
Yong-Ho spoke, but Eligor couldn't answer.
The enemy attacked them.
They weren't some insignificant spirit that they could get rid of with one fight. They were an owner of a dungeon.
Yong-Ho started thinking. He tried to look at the bright side of things despite the hopelessness of the situation.
"It's not the worst situation. We prevented them from providing intel. If we consider the time it takes the Orcs to get back after taking over the dungeon, we still have a couple of days to spare."
They were moving anyways.
However, there was a difference when moving based on precise information and based on assumptions.
Since Catalina captured the Imp, the enemy didn't get the information. They didn't know how powerful Mammon's dungeon was and how their troops were killed by the spirits that were in Mammon's dungeon.
The time his troops needed to go back. The waiting time. The time needed to make a decision based on limited information.
If the Orcs successfully finished their job, then they've obtained more time. About six to seven days. Yong-Ho could do a lot during that time.
He knew the enemy was coming.
So what was he going to do?
It was simple. He'll strengthen their defense to repel the enemy.
What can he do now?
He had a couple of days to make the best decision.
Yong-Ho started thinking. He decided to start with what he thought was the most important.
Yong-Ho looked at Catalina.
&
If there was no battle, then everything would've progressed quietly.
After leaving the Imp to Eligor, Yong-Ho entered the throne room with Catalina. Since there wasn't a table they could sit at and talk face to face, they sat on top of the carpet.
Their conversation was short and concise.
It was Catalina's current condition.
The possible routes for evolution.
Through the advancement, they could choose between a Dark Elf and Succubus.
And the third route was a hybrid.
Yong-Ho explained each point in detail and cautiously. Catalina was paying attention.
She already experienced the Power of Evolution once, so she had to listen to him very carefully.
"This is all I can tell you. I'm sorry, but I can't give you a lot of time. Think about it tonight and tell me your decision tomorrow morning."
It was impossible to increase the number of their soldiers right now. In that case, strengthening the current soldiers was the right thing to do.
Yong-Ho didn't know a lot about Catalina.
Like how she became one of Mammon's spirits and what kind of history she had.
Despite that, he trusted her.
Catalina didn't answer right away. Instead of saying she would think about it, she closed her eyes tightly once and after fixing her posture, she spoke.
"With all due respect."
She stopped talking. Her blue eyes showed that she was nervous, but it was only for a moment. Catalina continued talking.
"I want to take the hybrid route."
Is it because she didn't want to give up the Succubus and the Dark Elf blood?
Or because she wanted to keep the advantages of both sides?
There could be a lot of reasons. However, Yong-Ho just nodded his head and stopped questioning.
He let Catalina decide, so all he had to do was follow her decision.
On top of that, the hybrid route had the same amount of potential as the others. Her agility was already at level two and since she had potential to develop, it might be the route that had more possibility.
Since Catalina made her decision, there was no need to waste any more time. Yong-Ho pulled Catalina up from her seat.
"Close your eyes. Just like before, relax."
Yong-Ho spoke as he stood in front of her. Catalina closed her eyes as she relaxed her body.
Yong-Ho commanded the Spirit of the Dungeon.
"Transfer the remaining mana that the dungeon has to me."
"Understood sir."
The dungeon's mana filled Yong-Ho's body. Yong-Ho instinctively circulated the mana. He condensed it into one and split it into two again.
Yong-Ho placed his hands that was enveloped in mana between her waist and pelvis. He activated the Power of Evolution.
Hybrid development.
It was a greedy decision that didn't give up either race.
Yong-Ho's mana pierced through Catalina's body.
It pulled out Catalina's potential.
| ← Ch. 027 | Ch. 029 → |