Chapter 121: Mountain Devils

Atlas listened to Siavash as he spoke with Mitra before Babak returned with his breakfast, which was several juicy-looking sandwiches that made his stomach grumble. The older man placed the dish in front of him.

After thanking him, Atlas began eating the breakfast with relish. The moment the food touched his tongue, an explosion of flavors delighted him. As he savored each bite, he listened intently to the adults discussing recent attacks along the merchant road near Tajariyah City.

'There are people attacking the Achaemenid army?' Atlas mused with a small smile. 'That's Good. They deserve it, and I will make it worse for them while they are in their empire.'

Ten minutes passed, and Atlas was nearly finished with breakfast when the stranger unexpectedly turned to him with narrowed eyes and questioned in a confused tone, ''Boy, are you from Aridonia? Your aura reminds me of a childhood friend.''

"No. I come from the Everglade Kingdom in Astoria. Why do you ask?" he answered.

The archer gazed at him and explained, ''You give off the aura of a Monster Slayer, but you're too young to be one as they accept disciples over eighteen.''

Atlas nodded, ''I'm just an adventurer trying to rank up so I can explore stronger dungeons,'' he said before taking a mouthful of the ale Babak brought over.

After speaking before pushing the bowl away while standing up, he exclaimed, ''Thanks for the breakfast, Babak. It was delicious!''

Mitra took them with a smile, ''What do you have planned for today, Atlas?'' she asked.

"I have a quest to complete, and then I'm going to try the two dungeons," he answered the older woman before standing up.

After that, Atlas left the inn and started going toward the western square, where he had to report to the commander in charge of the quest. He soon arrived and noticed dozens of adventurers lingering around as a group of Achaemenidian soldiers stood off to one side.

He approached the older man, who he assumed was the person in charge. He had tanned skin and a bald head and stood at an imposing six feet tall. With a raised eyebrow, the man peered down at Atlas and asked, "What are you doing here, boy?"

Atlas produced his guild card and held it up for the man to see. "I'm here to guard the bridge that the city is building," he explained.

While speaking, he noticed the soldiers looking at him strangely, 'They're looking at me like I'm some sort of monster,' he mused with a smile.

"Where are your weapons and armor? You can't defend the workers without anything, or are you one of those hot-headed mages?" the commander inquired.

Atlas summoned his gear, which instantly appeared on him, shocking the surrounding soldiers and adventurers. When the commander saw that, he smiled before holding his hand, ''I'm Commander Davos; I lead the city's construction unit that builds the bridges and defenses.''

He nodded before replying, ''I'm Azhar'Zul, and I'll be happy to help kill some monsters to gain experience.''

As Atlas approached, another soldier spoke up, his tone skeptical, "So, you're a leveler, are you?"

Atlas adjusted his helmet, meeting the soldier's gaze with a determined expression. "Yes. I'm looking to grow stronger and gain experience by facing both monsters and men."

Davos's curiosity was evident as he asked, "How old are you? Also, what's your rank and level?"

''Level eighty-eight Apprentice,'' he revealed, which shocked the soldiers.

Atlas used Void Sight on four of them to see the general level and rank of the Achaemenidians.

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[Race: Human]

[Age: 32]

[Level: 223]

[Rank: Journeyman]

[Amir Khatami]

[Race: Human]

[Age: 19]

[Level: 89]

[Rank: Apprentice]

[Navid Hosseini]

[Race: Human]

[Age: 23]

[Level: 117]

[Rank: Adept]

[Fariba Hosseini]

[Race: Human]

[Age: 21]

[Level: 102]

[Rank: Adept]

'I'm closing in on them,' Atlas thought with an evil smirk that the soldiers couldn't see due to his helmet.

He shook his head before asking for the instructions, ''Where do you want me to guard? I can go up front?''

The commander nodded while rubbing his chin, ''The Mountain Devils and Roaring Harpies are securing the Screaming Pass; you can aid them, Azhar'Zul,'' he said.

Following that, the soldiers rounded up the other adventurers, and Atlas noticed nearly fifty of them. Once they were gathered, the Achaemenidians led them out the western gate and along a mountain ledge until they spotted a construction site.

More Achaemenid soldiers guarded this side of the bridge, but there was a small wooden scaffold they had to cross to reach the opposite ledge covered in a veil of mist. Atlas crossed the bridge while holding his blades as they were ready in case any monsters attacked.

When stepping onto the ledge, Commander Davos reached the other side, saying, ''Most of us will guard this side while a group will clear the path ahead until you reach the Screaming Pass.''

Everyone nodded before the older man continued, ''The Mountain Devils and Roaring Harpies will scout ahead while securing the area until the bridge is finished construction, which means we will be staying out here for a few days.''

Afterward, Davos addressed the two groups: three men and two women representing the Mountain Devils and three women from the Roaring Harpies. They were all Adept Ranked and looked strong.

While they were speaking, the two leaders turned to look at him. Atlas chuckled at their incredulous expressions. 'Idiots, they're doubting me,' he thought.

Davos called Atlas over, and when he got close, he heard the parties laughing because he was covered in his armor. He stopped walking as the commander introduced him to the leaders and vice versa.

''Azhar'Zul, this is Afsaneh, leader of the Rank C Roaring Harpies,'' Davos said, pointing to the pale-skinned woman with long blonde hair and glowing red eyes.

The woman regarded him with curiosity as her eyes narrowed. Still, the older man continued with the introductions as he motioned to the smaller man with spiky black hair and green eyes, ''This is Javad, leader of the Rank D The Mountain Devils. These two parties will be accompanying you into the Screaming Pass.''

"Are we just meant to stop monsters from getting past us?" Atlas asked. "What about the Night Demons?"

When the two parties heard those words, they shivered, but a green-haired mage from the Mountain Devils stepped forward, ''We have Runes for those creatures and will be able to keep them away from our camps.''

Atlas nodded acknowledgment as the other adventurers busied themselves, setting up their camp. He positioned himself at the entrance of the pathway, which was wide enough to accommodate three carriages side by side.

While standing there, Atlas heard someone approaching from behind and turned around only to spot Javad; the older man nodded before speaking, ''I can see you're a speed fighter, Azhar'Zul. Do you mind scouting ahead? We will follow behind to look for a good place to camp?''

''Okay,'' he replied before readying his weapons. ''I will return by sunset.''

Atlas started walking down the creepy-looking path. Ten minutes later, he activated the Dungeon Conquerer Skill and summoned five Rank E Death Spiders before giving them an order, ''Scout the path ahead; if you find any monsters, bring them toward me.''

The spiders hissed in response before scuttling off. Once they were gone, Atlas let out a breath as he felt half of his mana drain, causing him to pull out a few High Mana Potions and quickly down them.

He felt seven hundred fifty mana points return, allowing him to have enough to fight in case any monsters appeared. After that, Atlas continued down the path, which was covered in a thin layer of mist.

'Why is the city building a road here? Maybe they will secure it,' Atlas mused as he came to a bend.

Something told him not to make that turn, causing Atlas to stop walking while taking out his blades just as a cackle was heard. It sounded human, but something about it was wrong, causing shivers to run down his spine.

Atlas braced himself for battle as massive figures emerged from the bend. They resembled oversized, menacing hyenas, their forms grotesquely exaggerated and their eyes gleaming with malevolence.

What unsettled him most were their eerie, human-like cackles and laughs, which put him on edge. Atlas quickly scanned them to determine their rank. Explore more at m|v-l-NovelFire.net

[Mountain Devil]

[Rank: D - 300 Exp]

[Ambusher Hunters - Look behind you]

Atlas spun around and cast Void Guard as a hyena-like creature pounced on him from above. When the azure shield appeared, it stopped the monster's jaws from clamping down, allowing him to thrust Nightblade through its head.

Once it was dead, another dozen lunged at Atlas, who started dodging the attacks as the monsters tried to bite him. He started countering their strikes as they got closer, using magic and his blades.

While this unfolded, three Death Spiders pounced on the Mountain Devils and sunk their fangs into the monsters. Atlas stabbed another creature through the eyes while hitting another with a Void Blast.

By the time the battle concluded, only one spider remained, though it was gravely injured. Atlas dismissed it, only to sense the final two spiders being defeated not far off. Deciding to take a moment to recover from the skirmish, he then summoned a Blood Bat to aid him.

He sat on the mountain's edge, peering into the pitch-black abyss below. The utter darkness gave him the unsettling impression that something was lurking just out of sight, waiting in the shadows.

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