CH 70

There were numerous monsters that could be classified as giant types. All of them were violent, and they were even stronger than large carnivores such as gray bears. And among the giant-type monsters, the ogre possessed an unrivaled status. They possessed terrifying power capable of easily ripping apart intermediate-rank monsters such as trolls, and regular weapons could not even scratch their thick skin. Moreover, ogres were incredibly agile even though they were over four meters tall.

As such, regular soldiers and mercenaries stood no chance against the weaker, roamer counterpart ogres. Five or six heavily armed knights would be required to rival a roamer ogre.

Ogres residing in dungeons were much stronger than their counterparts, and a twin-headed ogre stood above all of its brethren. It was said that an ogre could only evolve or mutate into a twin-headed ogre by killing hundreds or thousands of monsters and consuming their mana stones.

Eugene was currently faced with a twin-headed ogre.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The titan slowly walked forward as if to announce its reign of power. It was undoubtedly the king of this dungeon.

The monster’s four, thick muscular arms were long enough to touch the ground, and they were as thick as the bodies of two or three adult men. The four hands were holding shields and weapons formed from the equipment of dead humans. Moreover, the monster was wearing armor crafted by connecting pieces and bits of plates and chains, as well as helmets for its two heads.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

“Hick! Hick!” Mirian hiccupped while hiding behind Eugene. The twin-headed ogre was exuding an overwhelming majesty.

Eugene sheathed Wolfslaughter before retrieving the javelins from his back.

“Hoo…” He collected his breath. Then, Eugene's whole body was engulfed in a soaring frenzy of Vampire Fear.

Kwaaaaaa!

The energy quickly expanded and enveloped the ogre, but the monster kept walking without care. It appeared that the monster was unfazed by Eugene’s Fear.

“As expected, undead monsters do not respond to… Hmm?” Eugene started muttering before suddenly stopping. He could feel something far beyond the ogre from his heightened senses, near the end of the spacious area.

The ogre suddenly picked up its speed and began running towards Eugene.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

“Kieeeek! Sir!” Mirian shouted with panic when the ogre took its third step, and a javelin was liberated from Eugene’s hand at the same time. It drew a straight line through the air.

Fwoosh!

However, the javelin missed the ogre as it ripped through the air. Instead, it passed between the monster’s arms.

“Kiek!?” Mirian was dismayed. Eugene had missed his target, even though he was usually accurate enough to shoot down a flying wyvern from the sky.

However…

Kuuuuuwaaagh…!

A piercing scream was heard from the far distance. The ogre suddenly halted less than ten meters in front of Eugene.

Papapapapat!

Eugene darted forward with a glimmer in his eyes. He completely ignored the ogre, which was standing still like a stone statue, and threw another javelin while maintaining his speed.

Thuck!

“Kiiyaaahk!”

Another scream broke out and Eugene quickly arrived in front of his target.

Fwoosh!

Wolfslaughter left behind a silver trail as it sliced. Less than five seconds had passed since Eugene’s first javelin. Eugene had moved as if he personified speed itself.

Thud.

The object rolled as it dropped to the floor. It was an incense burner emitting a dark red smoke from its many holes. It was crafted from elaborately piecing three skulls together.

“A holy knight…”

The being started to speak in a hoarse, raspy, and poisonous voice, but it was interrupted as Wolfslaughter flashed once again.

Slice!

The famed sword was carefully smithed and smelted together by mixing silver and meteoric iron. It emitted an eerie cry as it cut straight through.

- When dealing with wizards, you must end it as soon as possible. You must cut off their heads or destroy their sticks. Do not give them a chance to finish their words.

Eugene was faithful to Galfredik’s advice. He looked down at the kneeling, headless body. The javelins had pierced through the figure’s grey robes and body. The hand of the corpse was still tightly grasping a stick with an incense burner made of skulls. He was clearly a wizard, although he was already dead.

“Kiek!? W-was this man manipulating the ogre?” Mirian screamed.

“That seems to be the case. The ogre stopped moving as soon as my javelin found its target.” Eugene replied.

“Ha! But how did you know to aim at this guy instead of the ogre? How did you know that he was here without seeing him?” Mirian expressed her curiosity.

“My Fear reached him, but he must have assumed that I wouldn’t notice him because of the ogre’s large size,” Eugene explained.

According to the last words of the wizard, it was clear that he had considered Eugene to be a holy knight. Even if holy knights were armed with special equipment and possessed great amounts of divine power, they were ultimately human.

Monsters could be considered the absolute enemies of the church, so the wizard must have assumed that Eugene would be oblivious to his existence due to the overwhelming presence of the ogre.

It was a reasonable and fair thought.

However, the wizard could never have considered one minor detail – that Eugene was an Origin Vampire, the highest-ranking noble of the undead.

“Kieeeeeeek! Sir! Did you just kill a black wizard!? Awesome!” Mirian started jumping around with excitement.

“You’re distracting me.” Eugene waved his hand with annoyance, pushing away the spirit before examining the dead wizard’s body.

‘Why is there a wizard inside a dungeon? And how long had he been here for? Why did he create an undead out of an ogre? Does Essandra or Edrique know of this?’

The more he thought about it, the stranger and more suspicious it was.

The incense burner caught Eugene’s eye. It was no longer emitting any smoke. The skull incense burner was the head of the stick used by the wizard, and Eugene had instantly noticed that it seemed to express powerful magic, which was why he had prioritized it.

‘It’s quite elaborate.’

Eugene didn’t know much about magical tools, but the incense burner was quite unusual even at first glance. It was very elaborately crafted, and strange shapes, as well as symbols, were densely carved on the surface of the three small skeletons.

‘Let’s think about it later. I’ll take anything valuable.’

Eugene searched the wizard’s body after storing the incense burner in his pack. Since the wizard was talented enough to create an undead out of a twin-headed ogre, he would certainly have a lot of valuable items.

***

“Maybe he’s already dead?”

“Probably. Haa! This is so boring. Why are we still waiting? We should head back already,” A soldier grumbled a response to his colleague while stretching his arms.

“Shh! What if Sir Megber hears you? Even though he’s not very fond of that knight, you know how much he values promises.” The soldier’s colleague whispered while bringing a finger to his lips.

“T-that’s true.” Both soldiers turned their eyes toward Megber, who was resting in the distance.

It was then when…

Boom! Boom!

“Aggh!”

“Oh my god!” The two soldiers fell to the ground with embarrassing shouts.

Boom!

Another roar resounded from the inside. Megber and the other soldiers rushed to the entrance.

“What is it!? Were you two responsible for that sound?”

“N-no! It wasn’t us. I-it came from inside the door, sir!” One of the soldiers answered while hurriedly saluting.

Megber’s eyes were filled with suspicion as he looked at the two soldiers.

Boom!

Another roar resounded from the inside.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

“…!”

Everyone’s mouths opened agape when they heard the loud sound. It had resounded exactly three times.

“S-sir? That was exactly three times. Shall we open the door?” One of the soldiers asked.

“Well… Just wait for now. It could be an evil monster trying to play tricks on us.” Megber answered after a moment of hesitation.

“…”

Although no one actually believed Megber’s ridiculous claim, all of them quickly shut their mouths. No one was foolish enough to question a knight’s words. While the soldiers and workers remained silent, a little bit of water started flowing from underneath the stone gate.

But no one noticed it.

A short moment later…

Neiiiigh! Neigh!

Silion started rushing to the dungeon’s entrance from a little distance away.

“W-what is it?”

Neiiiiigh!

The stallion pushed the humans away, then kicked the stone gate with his hind hooves.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Silion was clearly signaling for the humans to open the gate. Even the horse had noticed that his owner was waiting inside.

“Argh!” Megber bit his lips.

“All soldiers, prepare for battle, just in case. You guys open the door.” Megber continued.

“Yes, sir!” The soldiers answered in unison before raising their shields, and the workers slowly unclasped a large iron lock before opening the stone gate. Soon, the stone gate started to slowly inch open, and the unique stench of the dungeon rushed over them. The workers quickly stepped back.

A moment of silence ensued…

Krrrrrrr!

Someone pushed the stone gate open with great force.

“Hick!”

“Argh!” The workers and soldiers hurriedly retreated with shock.

Finally, Eugene walked out of the fully opened entrance.

“I-it’s him!”

“Sir Eugene!”

They quickly forgot their shock and started to greet Eugene. However, they were forced to flinch. Eugene’s plate armor was stained with blood, and chunks and pieces of flesh and organs were plastered all over his figure. It was truly a terrible sight.

“I thought I told you to open the door when I knocked three times,” Eugene took off his helmet while speaking in a cold voice as he looked around.

“I-I apologize.”

“Please forgive me, sir!” Everyone but Megber bowed after hearing Eugene’s reprimand. It was clear from his appearance that the knight had fought a desperate battle for life and death.

“It’s fine since you all opened the gate in the end. Everyone, prepare to enter the dungeon.” Eugene said.

“What do you mean?” Megber gave a hurried response with an incredulous expression.

“What else could I mean? We need to dismantle the corpses and gather the by-products. Why are you asking such an obvious question?” Eugene answered in an irritated tone.

“Huh! You want me to believe the words of a man who came back after just one day, let alone three days? I think it’s about time to stop with the bluffs… Hmm!?”  Megber started speaking with a frown but was promptly forced to shut his mouth.

Thud.

Megber’s expression underwent a massive transformation. After taking it out from his pack, Eugene was spilling the contents of a leather pocket on the floor.

“Mana stones!”

“H-how many is that?”

The small mana stones continued to pour endlessly. It was clear that there were about a hundred at first glance.

“Sir. If you continue to doubt my honor and spew bullshit one more time, I will not stand still anymore.” Eugene declared.

“…!” Megber raised his head with a blank expression. The moment he saw Eugene’s red eyes, he came to a realization as he started to tremble.

The man standing in front of him was no longer an arrogant, insane knight. He was an extraordinary, rare talent and the first man in history to subjugate an evil land by himself.

“If you understand, then let us go in,” Eugene spoke.

‘H-how could this be…?’

Megber followed the workers into the dungeon. His eyes continued to quiver with shock. However, this was just the beginning. The mana stones that Eugene had dumped on the floor were those collected from the exploding bats. They were only a fraction of Eugene’s total kills, and there were still hundreds of corpses waiting to be dismantled.

***

“My lord! Lord Edrique! Sir Magber and Sir Eugene have returned!” A guard captain hurriedly reported.

“What!? It has only been two days since they left for the dungeon, so what are you talking about?” Edrique shouted as jumped up from his seat. He had been leisurely enjoying a glass of wine while his slaves gently fanned him.

“Did he run away from the dungeon? I knew it! Even if he talked big…” Edrique started shouting rather triumphantly.

“T-that’s not it, my lord!” The guard captain interrupted.

“What do you mean that’s not it?” Edrique asked with a frown.

“The subjugation was a huge success! They have returned with materials belonging to more than three hundred monsters! There are five completely full carts, my lord!” The guard captain shouted excitedly.

“Huh!?” Edrique ran to the balcony with disbelief.

It appeared that the rumors had spread already. The people of the castle were already in the courtyard to witness the unbelievable sight. While receiving the gazes of countless people, Eugene jumped from Silion and took off his helmet before raising his head. 

Eugene met Edrique’s eyes before speaking, “I stopped by on my way back to give you my greetings, my lord. By the way, I must return all the way to the territorial border… Could I ask for your continued support with the workers?”

“O-o-of course! Of course! I will support you with anything you want, sir! H-however…” Edrique stuttered a response. As a direct descendant of a marquisate, Edrique quickly came up with ideas. He continued with an expression of concern and anticipation.

“Please tell my darling sister, whom I respect and adore, that I, her beloved brother Edrique, gave my full support to you, Sir Eugene!”

Edrique had demanded 10 silver coins per person from Essandra to allow her passage to the dungeon. Considering the sizes of normal subjugation groups, it was a rather unfair condition.

However, since Eugene succeeded in subjugating the dungeon alone, Edrique would have to continue receiving ten silver coins to allow him passage. If he attempted to modify the conditions, his eldest sister would surely become furious.

“That’s not a difficult request, my lord. I will do so.”

“Thank you! Thank you so much, Sir Eugene!”

It was clear that Edrique’s time of impartiality between his sister and brother was finally over after more than a year. However, he wasn’t dismayed. What could Gabriel possibly say, when the cause of his change was a knight with such ridiculous achievements? In fact, this was the best possible outcome for Edrique.

“Hahaha! Sir Eugene! To celebrate, I will hold a banquet, so…” Edrique started to speak.

“Lord Edrique! Lord Edrique!” Several nobles of the castle shouted while belatedly rushing into his office.

“We heard of Sir Megber’s return. Did he retrieve the body of that arrogant man? Ah! Should we start the funeral process right away?” The nobles continued to shout without realizing the current situation.

“…”

Edrique’s expression underwent an immediate change. The nobles could not see Eugene standing in the courtyard without making their way to the balcony.

“We will have to hold a big, fancy funeral to satisfy…” 

The nobles continued without care.

“Perhaps we will be holding your funerals today, sirs. Shut up and prepare a banquet!”