NOVEL WEB Chapter 162
Karem wasn’t that worried, really.
The horde of Undead, filling the pure white horizon, couldn’t even breach the walls of Present, and now I wondered if the forces pouring in from beyond the mountains could actually make it over Afterglow Fortress.
The fortress was tall enough to dwarf even modern buildings, piled upon one another like layers of a cake blocking the ridge. It was simply impossible by any rational standard.
As Karem was about to lose his breath climbing the fortress stairs, Gordon patted his shoulder.
“Ugh—wha, what is it? Hah!”
“Look over there.”
“Huh? Wha—”
The idea it was impossible meant that if they employed absurd methods, it could work.
Karem, still panting heavily, unconsciously opened his mouth.
An illogical army was approaching slowly.
Thud—thud—thud—thud—
A Mammoth, rotting and revealing its bones.
A Lindbloom with torn skin and flapping flesh.
A Wyvern, unable to fly, using its wings to touch the ground as it approached.
A Troll and Ogre dragging their arms across the ground, dropping bones and flesh along the way.
Amid the colossal Undead approaching, people, animals, and monsters showed a chilling indifference as they headed straight for the fortress.
“This is insane—”
“Will being dumbstruck resolve the situation? Get a grip! Hey, guide them to the command center, quick!”
At Catherine’s bellow, the stunned party regained their senses. The pale-faced servant hurriedly led them to the command room at her urging.
“Trolls and Ogres, I can accept, but a Mammoth, Lindbloom, and Wyvern? That’s quite a variety they’ve gathered here.”
“Fungusbee and Narque look like child’s play in comparison.”
“Narque? Whoever that is, if they pile up with those big monsters, things will get serious.”
“Huh? What do you mean by pile up? A—”
Following Catherine’s words, Karem’s mind flickered with memories from the past.
The high walls and tall buildings that everyone believed would keep them safe.
And the scene of monsters rampaging, building stacks and climbing over.
Though it was now a faint recollection of a game and a movie, the images of that madness were chilling.
“Ah, please stop with the creepiness.”
“I’m being serious. How do you think that horde of corpses aims to besiege the fortress? You don’t actually think they’ll break it physically, do you?”
“Typically, it would require internal cooperation… ah.”
Gordon recalled the screams he had heard in Catherine’s room moments ago. Just ahead, Catherine snapped her fingers.
“Right. We’ll have all troops in the fortress prepared with Holy Water and the—”
As she thought of the alternative, Catherine shook her head, still looking uneasy.
“Having stirred up some beans for Garum stew, surely that’ll take care of the Undead and Demon Tribe.”
“Yes, they say the third batch was the last.”
“Third? When did you even ask about that?”
“Mary overheard it at the door, right?”
At those words, Mary nodded quietly.
“Not sure if it was an Undead or Rowan that was a Demon Tribe though.”
“By the way, kiddo.”
“Yes?”
“Do we have enough of that bean Garum?”
Karem tilted his head for a moment before estimating the remaining amount of soybean paste in the barrel before passing it to the kitchen.
“Uh… I guess there’s at least enough for hundreds?”
“Then we can dilute it with water in an emergency. It’s absurd to think that it bears Divine Power, enough to serve as a substitute for Holy Water. How on earth? Why?”
“Well, I prayed and sacrificed offerings every day while making the soybean paste.”
It was an ordinary routine with nothing particularly special about it.
Had they thought a bit more, they might have realized the shocking truth that perhaps God had answered their prayers, but there was no time for that.
As they pushed through the door, a booming voice resonated as if welcoming them.
“What? No room for the elevator? Are you all muscle-bound decorations? If there’s no room, move your bodies!”
BANG! With that last shout, bear-like warriors quickly rushed out of the command center like a gust of wind.
“Kids these days, all looking for the easy path. Oh, we have guests! Why are you standing out there?”
Richard stood at the center of the command room, leaning on a table that filled a wall with a giant barrel.
“How’s the situation?”
“There’s not much to say yet. The battle hasn’t even started. But I actually want to ask you something.”
With that, Richard lifted his gaze from the tokens on the map laid out on the table.
“Sir Atanitas, Lord Stark. While I’ve been cooped up in Iceland, you two must have seen and experienced much more than I.”
“Uh, Your Grace? Thank you for your words, but—”
“No need for pleasantries. Just tell me anything you’ve observed, even if it’s trivial.”
Richard gestured for the group to sit.
“Well, there is one thing that concerns me.”
Gordon touched the pommel of his longsword hanging at his waist.
“I didn’t see the ones charging towards us. Not just the large Undead, but not even Ghouls or Wights.”
“That’s expected in Iceland.”
As Richard flopped into a chair, the tokens on the table vibrated.
“Winter’s approaching and the winter mistress’s grace covers Iceland. Even if it were spring or summer, Undead growing weaker wouldn’t have the strength to exhibit themselves in this season. Even if they were Undead created by outsiders.”
That was why even Lindblooms and Wyverns, which would typically fly as advanced Undead merely by rising as Zombies, crawled along the ground.
“However, I can’t help but feel uneasy that they all look too natural and maintained in their dying forms.”
“One thing’s for sure.”
At those words, the gaze in the command room turned to Catherine.
“The one responsible for raising that army—”
“Yeah. I saw a giant, like a rock golem, casting spells from a distance. There was a collaborator too—a Grizzly Beaver that seemed like a Wizard or Shaman.”
“Then it must be a giant. Still quite clumsy with power.”
Catherine stated with confidence.
“To put it bluntly, it’s like a child who possesses excessive strength.”
“Huh?”
Karem stared blankly at Catherine. The same went for Mary, Gordon, and Richard.
Clumsy? Managing a legion of corpses? What? A child with too much power?
“Uhm, Sir Atanitas. They’re bringing an army that can’t even be compared with Narque’s squeaks and chirps. How—”
“Necromancy dealing with corpses tends to be heavily criticized, but it’s merely a branch of magic. Just one school of thought.”
RUMBLE—! RUMBLE—!
Catherine’s words were abruptly cut off. The command room vibrated, and a sound like an explosion echoed from outside. Soon after, a distant sound of crushing Undead was faintly heard.
“A Necromancer who can summon an army of that scale must certainly be a Grand Wizard. They’ve likely cultivated their skill for decades or perhaps even longer. But isn’t it strange?”
“What do you mean?”
“Dullahans, Death Knights, Flesh Giants, Abominations, Narque, Alghoul, and all kinds of aberrations aren’t even a hint of presence.”
Catherine crossed her arms and tilted her head. Her golden hair flowed like silk as she did.
“To me, it just looks like a horde made up of slightly larger Zombies.”
“Indeed… that’s true. Even a lesser horde produces malevolent spirits or ghosts sometimes—”
Gordon, who was staring at Catherine with a dumbfounded look, began to realize something strange as her words went on.
He had been so transfixed by the large monsters, thinking that just by resurrecting, they would become advanced Undead.
“It’s fortunate we’re at least surrounded front and back.”
“I believe the horde from Present is likely an extension of the horde beyond the mountains.”
“…I received a report about suspicious Undead crystallization from Hartman—don’t tell me—”
“Yes. It seems the Necromancer Giant did something that stirred it all up… hmm?”
Catherine nodded, then suddenly turned her head.
“Sir Atanitas? What’s wrong all of a sudden?”
“…This situation seems worse than I anticipated.”
“Huh?”
Catherine abruptly kicked the table and stormed out of the command room. Karem, taken aback, followed her with Richard a pace behind.
THUD—! BOOM! CRASH! WHOOSH—!
While the fortress’s various siege weapons were attacking the advancing Undead, Catherine gazed intently at the center of the army.
“Sir Atanitas! What are you—”
“There was a truly dangerous one after all!”
Catherine grabbed the staff hovering beside her with both hands.
As she slammed the staff onto the ground, the pumpkin hanging from its end glowed with light.
BANG—
The staff reacted with the snow-laden ground, forming a massive magic circle like a mysterious emblem.
“Sir Atanitas! What the heck is this—”
“There’s someone on the opposing side with skill equal to mine.”
“What?”
The snowflakes falling from the sky reacted to Catherine’s magic, rising along with her golden hair.
As the powerful magical aura began to gather around the glowing pumpkin, a potent chill began to radiate from the magic circle, synchronizing with the power from Afterglow Fortress and its surroundings.
WHOOOOOOOOOO—
A sound of unusually powerful winds howled above, but Karem felt no pressure from it. It was just like before.
Even a regular person like Karem could discern that the extraordinary noise above and the softly glowing particles of magical energy centered around Catherine were impossible to ignore.
A magic user like Gordon saw even more than that.
Natural magic clashed as it existed in its raw state.
CRACKLE—SQUEAL—RUMBLE—
A colossal will descended over the battlefield as the battle for dominance over the magic began unseen in the skies above.
“Wow, I never thought I’d witness a battle for dominance between Grand Wizards here.”
“A battle for dominance?”
“Yeah. Oh, you won’t see it right now.”
As Karem looked at Gordon with a questioning gaze, Gordon shook his head and looked up at the sky.
While the sound of unnatural winds and rupture raged, the two masters of magic were fighting in their silent duel, striving not to relinquish their influence.
*
*
*
In the center of the Undead army beyond the mountains.
Crunch—
Ignoring all damage, the giant directing the army turned his head.
– Chief. Weren’t you preparing a spell? What’s taking so long? –
There, the skeletal Grizzly Beaver, whimpering as it dyed the snow red with blood, was shaking its trophies flailingly and tapping the ground with its staff.
Squeak! Squeak! Heeheehee—squeak!
– …That’s unexpected. –
A Grand Wizard could halt a legion by themselves, and unless another Grand Wizard intervened, there would be no means of stopping it.
And angrily, the leader Grizzly Beaver snarled at the giant.
The Grand Wizard was in the Tomb Fortress.
– If that’s the case, you’re basically powerless. –
The giant looked at the sharp magical tensions swirling around and shook his head.
While it was unexpected, it didn’t matter.
What was most critical were the internal collaborators.
He wouldn’t expect there couldn’t be any hints of being discovered, but with the battle on the brink, there wouldn’t be time to ascertain those details by playing with priests. There wouldn’t even be a thought for that.
– Can we send a signal? –
Chirp—!
– Then let’s begin immediately. –
The trembling Grizzly Beaver tossed aside the wolf skull it had been wearing on its head and gripped its staff to concentrate once more.
“HOAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”
A scream akin to a dirge reverberated from the center of the army to the fortress.
It was a signal sent to the infiltrators.
However, there were no collaborators to respond to that signal anywhere.