Chapter Twenty-Two: The Downward Spiral

Because of the astonishing progress made the previous day, Eric was not particularly anxious to head down into the mine for clearing. However, by noon, the City Lord’s guards had finished their rest, and the Mother Superior indicated they were ready to resume the fight. Eric assembled the team and entered the mining area once more.

Mindful of the lessons learned the day before, Eric had decided early on that they would head out by nightfall, and he instructed the villagers responsible for hauling the corpses to remind them of the time.

With their backs to the sunlight, the group stepped into the darkness, delving deep underground.

The number of undead in the mine had dwindled as they cleared them out, and since it was virtually impossible to encounter enemies in the first half of the route, the atmosphere remained relatively relaxed.

"Is there something you need, Miss Sophie?"

As Alana caught up from the back of the line, Eric asked casually. He had seen Sophie pulling her aside to say something before they descended.

"It’s nothing major..."

Alana glanced at him, her expression complex. "Sophie said she wanted to come down and take a look as well. I felt it wasn't safe enough, so I persuaded her otherwise."

Eric turned his head to look at the corpse-haulers following behind the group. "If it’s just to come down and look around..."

Alana understood his implication; these commoners were able to follow them deep into the mine, so Sophie was no different from them in that regard.

"It’s just... I’m not at ease."

Eric looked at her again, signaling his understanding. "If it were Irene wanting to come in, I would stop her no matter what."

Thinking of his younger sister, a small smile appeared on his face. "But if I confirm that the mine is safe, I will definitely bring her down to see it... she hasn't really been anywhere."

Alana looked at him, feeling slightly surprised. She had assumed he would try his best to avoid mentioning the original successor to the Saintess in her presence.

"It seems Mr. Eric cares very much for Miss Irene."

"Who else is there? She is my only sister, and we even look exactly the same." Eric gazed into the dark depths of the mine. "Our parents passed away one after another before we had even learned to speak. Irene and I cannot afford to lose each other... and our uncle cannot bear to lose us either."

Alana’s gaze lingered on his face for a moment.

His words held a faint, underlying pessimism, as if loss were an inevitability—though the separation brought by death was indeed inevitable for everyone, few people at his age thought of such distant partings.

Was it because of his parents’ early passing?

Alana had originally intended to say something else, but after a moment of thought, she swallowed her words.

Eric remained silent for a while as well, and when he spoke again, he had moved on to a different topic.

The team continued to push deeper, passing several junctions. These were passages that had already been cleared, now simply blocked off at the entrances to prevent any undead from slipping in while they retreated.

"The structure of this underground mine is truly strange," Leslie remarked. "To be dug out like this—it doesn't look like mining for ore, but rather like constructing an underground prison, layer by layer."

*It’s just to provide the players of the closed beta with a sense of progression as they tackle it level by level,* Eric thought to himself, though he could not say it aloud.

"If the terrain is too complex, it’s a trouble for us as well," he replied, merely echoing the sentiment.

The Captain of the Guard nodded, his gaze falling upon the rock wall beside them.

Although the ground beneath their feet felt level and the incline was imperceptible, Eric had seen the 3D structural diagram of this underground mine in his past life. The main tunnel was a giant descending spiral, and the actual depth was quite considerable. The branching paths along the way, which hid mini-bosses, were all dead ends—you had to exit the same way you entered. Looking at the structure alone, it really did resemble an underground prison.

Judging by the number of mini-bosses they had eliminated over the past few days, they had already reached the lower-middle portion of this spiral. Further down, the end would lead to the final boss room.

Recalling the situation from yesterday, Eric suspected that the necromancer who had started all this had already awakened and was meddling in the shadows, but with no sign of him yet, he could only be more vigilant against any variables in the coming battles.

*Clack!*

A stone, kicked by one of the guards, struck the rock wall, ringing out once before fading into a dull thud.

***

The underground mine was deep and dark, yet far from quiet. Aside from the sound of footsteps, the tunnels echoed with a constant rattling—the sound of the carts pulled by the villagers behind them, used for hauling corpses.

Combat required skill, but hauling corpses was pure physical labor. If there were tools, one naturally used them; the less effort, the better. No one enjoyed the old-fashioned way of carrying bodies.

Delving deeper for a moment, Leslie, who was scouting the vanguard, suddenly came to a halt. He saw a rotting corpse lying on the ground ahead.

"We’ve reached the place where we finished fighting yesterday."

When they retreated yesterday, the cleanup crew had followed, but a few corpses had been left behind.

Returning to this point meant that the leisurely phase of moving through the map was over; it was time to prepare for battle.

The Captain of the Guard raised his torch high. "Those in the back, keep your distance! Everyone else, prepare for combat!"

"Yes!"

After a few prayers to apply the usual buffs, Eric waved the straight sword in his hand, and a golden radiance instantly coated the blade.

After several days of real combat, he had discovered that while certain fixed prayers had to be chanted aloud for the buffs to succeed, there were no strict requirements for the movements. Naturally, he chose to do it in the most stylish way possible.

Look—even Mother Superior Alana couldn't help but stare for a few moments.

Of course, Alana wasn't impressed by his "stylish" little motions; what she was truly concerned about was the brightness of the golden light on the straight sword.

She was certain she hadn't seen it wrong or remembered incorrectly: that radiance was indeed brighter than it had been before.

*"Mr. Eric is a pious and good man..."*

Sophie’s words echoed in her mind. Alana remembered that she hadn't answered at the time, because she hadn't known what to say.

As for piety, she had her own standards, but those standards didn't seem to apply to this unconventional young noble.

If anyone else had engaged in such outrageous behavior, they would have been executed as a cultist, yet he seemed genuinely favored by the gods. He could not only foresee the unknown but, like her, could borrow the power of the gods—and he was becoming increasingly proficient at it...

Her judgment, besides interfering with her own emotions, couldn't decide anything.

Only the judgment of the Saintess could decide everything.

Calculating the time, the letter she had written to the Saintess had been sent three days ago. If there were any decisive response from that side, the reply should be arriving soon.

Perhaps she should have Sophie go to the monastery again today...

As soon as this thought occurred, Alana felt it was unnecessary. If a letter from the Saintess were truly received, the monastery would be far more anxious than they were; they would likely have sent a messenger flying their way directly.

"Enemies ahead!"

Before more thoughts could arise, they were crushed by a sudden, sharp shout. Alana snapped back to reality to see several wandering undead appearing in the tunnel ahead.

A ball of light the size of a fist flew forward, clinging to the rock wall of the ceiling. It wasn't overly bright, but it was enough to replace the torches and illuminate this section of the tunnel.

That was the illumination spell Eric had learned from her yesterday.

As for Eric himself, he had instantly appeared before the undead, stabbing one through the heart with a single thrust.

He quickly withdrew his sword, rotated his body, and the sharp blade swept across the necks of two other corpses with incredible speed.

*Throat-Slitting Combo!*

*Thump, thump.* The corpses fell one after another.

Leslie, who had lunged forward at almost the same time, also quickly dispatched his target before he couldn't help but glance at Eric.

*Storm Footwork, followed by a Throat-Slitting Combo... he’s using all my techniques!*

"There are more ahead." Eric didn't look at him, staring instead at the tunnel ahead as he threw another ball of light.

Leslie immediately followed, slashing at every corpse he saw. There was no need to hold back now; clearing them out as quickly as possible was what mattered most.

With the number of undead relatively low, and with Leslie and Eric taking the lead, the others had almost no chance to intervene. Although Alana had pulled out her dagger, she didn't step forward unless necessary.

The team moved forward slowly. As the corpses continued to fall, it was the turn of the villagers behind them to play their part.

They loaded the corpses onto the carts until they could hold no more, and a few men would pull or push the carts back out, while another group of villagers immediately caught up with the team in front.

The speed of hauling corpses could never keep up with the speed of clearing them, but fortunately, the areas they had already traversed were cleared and posed no danger.

The vanguard occasionally stopped to rest, ensuring the distance between the two groups didn't stretch too far.

Reaching another junction, Eric and Leslie temporarily split up, continuing along the main mine tunnel and the branch path respectively.

"Illumination!"

The light ball stopped against the rock wall, illuminating the tunnel. Eric’s surroundings were already clear, and he looked ahead, seeing no other undead.

To be safe, he continued forward a bit further, cleared a few more undead on the road, and then turned back to the junction.

"You two, stay here."

He pointed to two guards, leaving them at the junction to protect the villagers and prevent any accidents. "If anything happens, come in and notify us immediately."

"Yes!"

Following the branch path inward, Leslie had already cleared a section of the road, and Eric quickened his pace to catch up.

The deeper they went, the shorter these branch paths became—a design choice aimed at improving the player experience by reducing the frequency of encountering mobs they were already tired of killing, making it easier to reach the mini-boss at the end.

They didn't pursue for long before the glow of torches appeared ahead. Eric wove through the team from the back; Leslie and the Mother Superior were waiting for him.

"Young Master."

The Captain of the Guard stepped aside, showing him a stone window carved into the tunnel wall. His face wore a rare, solemn expression. "It doesn't look like an easy fight."

Eric leaned over. The Mother Superior had already cast an illumination spell inside, revealing a relatively spacious hall below. In the center, a fat, massive creature, four or five meters tall, was tilting its head to look at the ball of light, remaining motionless for the moment.

"So we've reached this point, have we?"

Eric recognized the mini-boss with its distinct features at a glance. He felt a mix of nostalgia, relief, and a bit of a headache.

Reaching this point meant they weren't far from the final boss, and this massive entity, composed of fused corpses, was the most difficult mini-boss on the lower level.

"I remember the recommended challenge level was 30 or above..."

Eric muttered, looking at Leslie.

A Tier 5 warrior should be able to hold his own, right?

"Captain, it’s time to show your courage."