Genius Corpse-Collecting Warrior - Chapter 252

252

Flame of the Knights (6)

“Why don’t you put your hands away and talk about it?”

The pharaoh’s mask rising from the shell of a scarab was the first thing Kheph, the 14th king of the Sandstorm Dynasty, said.

“What hand?”

“Your right hand in your belt. “The ax next to it is very unsettling.”

This time too, I don’t want to end up with two hairs. Dallen chuckled at Pharaoh Mask’s worried words and took his hand out of his belt.

“Are you done?”

“Very good. “I feel a little more at ease now.”

“If that scarab gets damaged, it doesn’t really mean it will die.”

“But it’s a very similar feeling to real death. “Do you understand if I say that it’s even more terrible because you’ve died once?”

Dallen nodded. It was a reasonable story.

Why don’t people who have experienced love and heartbreak feel more pain when they see the same breakup scene in a drama?

Dying might be similar. In a sense, death is separation from life.

“Anyway, it’s been a while for both of you. Your power is now vaguely surpassing even your divine prestige. “The tree you serve seems to have regained a lot of its strength.”

[what? Me?]

“That’s right, tree. Buds are already sprouting from the cut stump. “The rotten parts have fallen off and a hard crust has covered them, but pain and scars are also part of growth.”

The Pharaoh’s mask clicked its claws like a claw. There was something strange about the beetle with its shell open and moving its claws.

“However, this is an accident that should not have happened… It is full of strange things. “The speed at which the end is approaching has accelerated by several steps, and the dwarf of retrograde fate has not invaded the territory of the Sandstorm Dynasty.”

“The Dwarf of Fate…are you talking about Enaxagus?”

“That’s right. “Do you know how to read heavenly records?”

Dallen shook his head. In his opinion, telling fortunes about fate was just nonsense.

Of course, I didn’t say those words out loud. The Sandwind Dynasty is a civilization that is as proficient in divination as it is in soul tailoring.

There is no need to make yourself uncomfortable when you are in a situation where you have come to get help. In response to his silence, Pharaoh Mask briefly explained.

“Cheongi is nothing special. Just reading the delicate whispers of the stars. “As the stars predict, when the end approaches, the doomsday heralds will come from the east, west, south, and north.”

[North, South, East and West? Are you talking about the evil spirits?]

“That’s right. To the north is the Palace of Destruction and to the east is the Palace of Welcome. From the south, the Land of the Dead and the Great Dragon Hall rise, and from the west…”

“The Interstellar Throne approaches.”

“You said you didn’t know how to read, so I guess you already knew?”

Dallen shrugged. It was just a setting I had heard several times on the other side of the monitor.

The reason this game was difficult wasn’t just because the enemies were strong.

In order to increase the sense of realism, being too stingy with the settings is also the main cause of the increase in difficulty.

These are already difficult mid- to late-stage crises, and in order to properly prepare for them, we had to find and interpret hidden legends and tales one by one.

One of them was the fortune telling or astrology that the Pharaoh Mask had just recited. Roughly speaking, it was a story about which route the five evil gods would take in the final half of the game.

“According to the heavenly records, Enaxagus, the lord of the Interstellar Throne, is approaching from the western border of the continent. “It is our ancient home and the land where I, my ancestors, and descendants still sleep.”

The jewel eyes were spinning. Dallen stroked his chin as he watched the computer loading cursor beeping.

‘That means it didn’t move in that direction either.’

Temomron and the Dragon God had already moved, and it was clear that Laphilem was active across the eastern sea.

Only two evil spirits, Enaxagus and Xun, were missing. Even if it was true that he was beaten up in the north, it made no sense for a guy who had been targeting the continent for more than a thousand years to be quiet.

‘…Later.’

Whatever it is, the urgent thing right now is to escape the dragon god’s siege.

It wouldn’t be too late to think about the rest while going down the labyrinth.

As if it guessed that Dallen had something to say, the Pharaoh Mask stopped shaking and its eyes sparkled. He said.

“Anyway, this isn’t the business you called me for. Speak, guardian of the trees. Since you treated our nobleman well, we will accommodate you as much as possible.”

“Good. “Then I hope you open the way.”

“road?”

Pharaoh Mask tilted his head. Dallen raised his finger and pointed upward.

“The dragon god has surrounded the earth and the sky. So we need an underground road.”

“I don’t think it will matter as long as you take the lead in passing. How many people are planning to pass by?”

“well. “Tens of thousands?”

“…Tens of thousands of people will step on the grave?”

Can’t it? The finger that was pointing upwards was slowly placed on the belt.

“They say it doesn’t matter when they rob. “Can’t I just pass by?”

“…….”

“I think the tomb owner said he crossed the Nehakara River a long time ago. “I will just pass by quietly.”

“…Sure. “I’ll tell the cemetery guardian.”

Dallen smiled in satisfaction. As expected, civilized people can communicate with each other.

***

Crack. widely.

The sound of footsteps echoing softly. The hallway of the underground ruins was dark.

But no one took out the torch. This was because there was no one in the group who could not see into this level of darkness.

Each person’s eyes shine with a variety of magic lights, and they move at a trot as if it were broad daylight through a complex passageway.

Dallen, who was moving at the front, suddenly turned his head. I could hear the sound of ruins moving in the distance.

Kurrrrrr….

‘Are they widening the passage?’

No matter how huge the ruins of the Sandstorm Dynasty are, expansion of the passage is inevitable as long as 10,000 troops are passing through.

Fortunately, the cemetery guardian guarding the ruins was able to move all of the ruins’ facilities. Everything goes beyond simple traps and doors to floor and ceiling passages and room structures.

‘Thanks to you, I had a hard time in the past.’

He almost died trying to fight off the ruins themselves as they came to life and tried to devour him.

A time when we didn’t even know how to open up the territory. If it weren’t for the holy sword and the regenerative factor of the dragon’s blood, he would have been buried between the stones and not even his bones could be recovered.

If you think about it, it was kind of funny. At that time, they were trying to get inside the Holy Knights, but now, on the contrary, they are using the underground passage to get out.

The ruins that had tried to kill him at the time were now cooperating with him and widening his escape route.

Grumble. Kiriririk-

The sound of engine equipment is heard again. Dallen’s sensitive senses were able to pick up noises and vibrations from beyond.

The regular canter of paladins and crusaders. Panting due to lack of oxygen. The chirping sound of mechanical beetles rising to the ground.

[――――――!!]

And even the roar of the dragons echoing from the ground above my head.

The gist of the operation was simple.

The moment Knight Commander Edgar lifts the sacred law barrier, the dragons’ attention will naturally be focused on the main group.

The key point was that while they were attacking the main group, the entire force of the Holy Knights was divided into two, abandoned the main group, and escaped.

Daelon’s group, including Lucia and Farn, went inside the rift, and the rest of the Holy Knights headed beyond the Wall Mountains.

The guardian of the ruins, who recognized Dallen as the new owner, would open up the most efficient and safe path in the process.

“Dallen.”

“Speak.”

“If nothing else, will you have enough time?”

It was Bjorn. Dallen nodded.

“It will be enough. “They said they would give us as much time as possible.”

“You mean the guardian statues of the ruins? Of course, these are all great achievements of ancient civilizations. But the opponent is a dragon. “Not just a dragon, but an army of dragons.”

“It’s okay because the Holy Knights’ defense system is still alive. “The sacred law barrier must be maintained by the leader himself, but the rest can be operated unmanned.”

The dragon’s roar was heard again from overhead. Bjorn twitched his beard and closed his mouth.

Dallen turned his head when he saw that. He thought, drawing a black and white map of the ruins in his head.

‘It might be a little bit dangerous.’

In fact, he also had the same subtle anxiety. In the first place, this is limited to the fact that there is enough time.

To be honest, I couldn’t guarantee that there wouldn’t be any tracking here either.

If that’s true even for a small elite of less than ten people, what about the main unit of the Holy Knights, which operates close to 100,000 troops?

With a force of that size, there were countless variables to consider, so it was difficult to be confident that they would be able to completely evade the dragon army’s pursuit.

“…In any case, we cannot remain trapped inside the Wall Mountain Range indefinitely while the power of the dragon army grows stronger day by day.”

“you’re right. And it is unclear how long you will be able to hold out if you only believe in the holy law barrier like now.”

Lucia helped.

“Even if the main team catches up, there is nothing to worry about. “The leader said he would join us as soon as possible.”

Although his condition was said to have worsened over the past few months, Edgar was the leader of the Holy Knights who had maintained the crack for two hundred years, both in name and reality.

Not only did he defeat Cheonglin in his prime when he was young, but even after losing his eyes and arms, he broke the barrier and rose to the 6th rank.

It was the same beyond the monitor. Edgar Reinhardt was a strong player who surpassed the Tsarina of the North in every episode.

Nevertheless, what is the reason for the subtle anxiety that tickles my mind? Just as I was about to shake my head,

“Lord Lucia.” The knight commander. “Did you really say you were joining the main force?”

“yes. He said he would follow up immediately after lifting the sacred law barrier. “With a warning to move without slowing down.”

“I see…”

For some reason, the response was lukewarm. What are you thinking?

When I secretly sent a message, Felber responded with a low smile.

[Do you remember when you fought Cheonglin in the rift?]

‘I remember.’

This is the moment when Dallan awakened to dragon blood and the time when Felber fully brought out the power of the realm.

At that time, Felber ignored his own safety and changed Cheonglin’s timeline.

His body was already broken, and the fight against Cheonglin was a fight that he had to win even at the cost of sacrifice.

[Cluck. That’s not all. Of course, it was a sacrifice for victory, but that wasn’t the only reason.]

‘What do you mean?’

[When we reach old age and face the twilight of life, there is a thought that comes to everyone’s mind. I’m thinking about how I can use my little remaining life in the most meaningful way.]

The old man’s gaze passed over the two people for a brief moment. One is Dallon. The other was Tommy Valentino.

[At that time, I wanted to use the last of my life for you, who had a bright future ahead of me, and for my students. I was thinking that would be the most meaningful exit.]

‘…….’

[Perhaps the leader would think that way too… I just had that thought.]