A Core Ship From The Start

Chapter 131: Chapter 113 Narrow Path for Enemies_1

According to Kevin, the information he got from the necromancer was – this necromancer was a subordinate of Vampire Count Manfred. The vampire count was undertaking a terrible and evil task, that is, to resurrect the infamous necromancer mentioned in rumors, the creator of all undead creatures, the most powerful necromancer… Nagash.

The bodies he collected were for the army of the dead prepared for Nagash’s resurrection.

What’s even more terrifying was the message given to Kevin by the necromancer. This time Nagash was not simply planning to resurrect himself. He was also trying to become the God of Death with this resurrection! For this, Manfred even kidnapped a princess from the High Elves and the archbishop from the Sigma Temple, intending to capitalize on their blood, magic, and souls to ensure Nagash’s successful ascension!

“We must stop all this!”

Standing next to Duanmu Huai, Kevin was looking seriously at the mercenaries in front of him.

“If we can’t stop Nagash’s resurrection and prevent him from becoming the God of Death, this world will face even more terrible sufferings. Of course, I know this is not part of our agreement, but I hope you can…”

Listening to Kevin’s words, Duanmu Huai rolled his eyes silently. Perhaps to others, there was nothing wrong with what Kevin said, but Duanmu Huai did not see it that way.

If Kevin really were the emperor, he certainly wouldn’t be adventurering here— this is a job for adventurers, not for an emperor. Therefore, Duanmu Huai guessed that Kevin was acting this way because he must have heard about some sinister plan related to rumors here, one that deal with attracting corpses. So, he disguised himself as a nobleman, hired mercenaries, and planned to investigate from here.

On the other hand, even if the news of Nagash’s resurrection is true, it might be part of a bigger conspiracy… Alright, what’s it to him anyway?

Little did Duanmu Huai know, if Manfred knew his thoughts, he would probably be pissed. Actually, 90% of the reason why Manfred’s resurrection plan wasn’t going well was because of Duanmu Huai.

Firstly, Duanmu Huai reclaimed the magic wand at the monastery and the Crown of Witchcraft in the ruins of Todd’s, on the instructions of the Lake Goddess. This made Manfred’s trip almost in vain. Due to Manfred not having the ability to bore into subspace like Duanmu Huai, Manfred led his own army of the dead to have a real battle with the Chaos Warrior at Todd’s Ruins. After the Pyrrhic victory, when Manfred entered the treasury, the Crown of Witchcraft had already been picked up by Duanmu Huai.

As a result, Manfred was heavily scolded by Nagash from the netherworld. Later, to compensate for his mistakes, Manfred planned to rob the Dimension Stone that the Empire had brought back from Modheim, but he was again defeated by Duanmu Huai. Not only did Manfred not get the Dimension Stone, but another artifact known as the Blade of the Fallen, which was used to resurrect Nagash, was also taken away by Duanmu Huai. It was a pitiful loss both in people and goods.

Of course, Duanmu Huai didn’t know any of this. What he didn’t know didn’t happened, right?

In the end, the other mercenaries also agreed to continue with Kevin, to thwart the plans of the vampire count – not because they are noble, but because necromancers are the enemies of all living beings. On the other hand, the main part of this plan is to rescue the captives; amongst them were a princess from the High Elves and an archbishop from Sigma. If they could build relationships with these people, there would certainly be generous rewards.

Wealth, fame, and status are all within reach!

Yes, there are dangers. Because the place they’re heading to next was not just any place, it was Manfred’s lair, the land of undead creatures – Sylvania.

But for mercenaries, so what?

If they were afraid of danger, why would they be mercenaries? They might as well go home and farm.

So, after that, the group continued on their journey to Sylvania – the territory ruled by vampires.

“What a pity….”

Looking at the distant castle, Duanmu Huai let out a sigh.

“Pity? Sir Knight? Pity what?”

Hearing Duanmu Huai’s sigh, Ann blinked curiously and asked him.

“It’s a pity we’re here to save people. If we were here to kill, we could have just bombed it directly…”

Duanmu Huai looked forward again and shrugged helplessly. The distant castle looked lonely and desolate, no different from many of the old medieval spire castles in vampire movies. Dead trees were scattered around for dramatic effect. Paired with the crows and bats lingering in the distance, all it needed was some BGM and it could be used as the intro for a horror movie.

If Duanmu Huai were not here to save people, he could’ve directly launched an aerial carpet bombing that would reduce the whole castle to flat land before dealing with the rest.

But the pity… they were here to save people.

“But, Sir Knight, I feel like you’re not in a good mood? Do you dislike ghosts?”

“Well, I wouldn’t say I like them.”

“But, Sir Knight, you are very powerful! Those ghosts all ran away when they saw you! You were amazing!”

“…Stop talking.”

Hearing what Ann was saying, Duanmu Huai’s expression darkened. After entering Sylvania, the group naturally encountered ghost and spirit attacks. Out of nowhere, Ogis suggested that Duanmu Huai could scare away these ghosts, and from then on Duanmu Huai had to leave his helmet behind and continue onwards. As it turned out, since then, the group encountered no more attacks from ghosts and spirits, and they arrived at their destination smoothly.

But this only made Duanmu Huai feel even worse.

When he takes care of all this, he would definitely have a good chat with Ogis, about what she can say and what she can’t.

What did she mean by “Master’s face is unbelievably effective in driving away ghosts”?

“Is my face some sort of demon repellent?!”

Forget it, there’s no time to ponder meaningless topics now.

Duanmu Huai dismissed his train of thought and turned his attention to Kevin.

“Alright, what’s our next move? Do we have a strategy beyond a frontal assault? Or are we going to resort to the same old tactics and divide our forces?”

“For now, it seems that’s the only way.”

Kevin nodded with a bitter smile.

“If you can divert their attention, we might have a chance to sneak in from behind, find the captured prisoners, and rescue them.”

“Alright then, we’ll handle the main entrance, find your way in.”

Duanmu Huai didn’t care much, his tactics always remained the same when cooperating with others. Given his size and prominence, it was basically impossible for him to do anything besides a frontal assault.

Perhaps sneaking in a large wooden box could work?

But where would he find such a large wooden box?

Once the plan was determined, Duanmu Huai, Ogis, and Ann made their way to the castle’s main entrance, while the others led by Kevin moved around to the back. Whether they planned to use the sewers or scramble over the walls, it wasn’t Duanmu Huai’s business.

The castle gate was shut tightly. As soon as Duanmu Huai arrived at the entrance, the ground in front of him flipped open, and several weapon-wielding Skeleton Guards climbed out. However, the moment these Skeleton Guards raised their heads to see Duanmu Huai’s grim face, they screamed in horror. The soul flames in their eye sockets abruptly extinguished, and they once again collapsed into piles of broken bones, motionless.

[You intimidate the Skeleton Guards]

[Skeleton Guards attempt to resist intimidation… resistance failed]

[Skeleton Guards plunge into chaos]

[Skeleton Guards die]

……Damn it.

Duanmu Huai turned away, no longer looking at the system prompts in front of him. He then glanced at Ann beside him.

“Blow up this gate for me!”

“Ah, yes!”

Ann, who had been watching from the sidelines, was stunned when she heard Duanmu Huai, then hastily nodded and fired a huge fireball towards the gate. The next moment, the castle’s gate was blasted to smithereens, and Duanmu Huai, gripping his War Hammer, rushed in with a steely expression on his face, followed closely by Ogis and Ann.

The castle’s main hall was in disarray, not a soul to be seen, only a long table with several goblets, no food —as vampires didn’t need it.

“Such barbarism.”

From the second-floor balcony, a cold voice sounded. Duanmu Huai looked up, several figures were hiding in the shadows.

“Who gave you the courage to come to this castle? You ignorant barbarians are nothing more than hastening your steps on the road to death. Soon you will understand that in the face of the great Power of Death, you are nothing but…”

However, before finishing, the figure fell silent, gazing at Duanmu Huai with surprise before suddenly stepping back.

“What kind of creature are you!”

“You’re the bloody monster!!”

Upon hearing this, Duanmu Huai was infuriated. They were clearly the monsters here, yet they dared to call him one?

“Die!!”

At that moment, anger sprouted from Duanmu Huai’s heart and soared to his guts. He roared as his jetpack blasted, propelling him across the hall. He clenched his War Hammer and ferociously slammed it down onto the vampires standing on the second-floor balcony!!