Night Crawler (3)

A boy who still seemed young openly criticized them, which infuriated the soldiers.

“What did this brat just say?”

Though they refrained from attacking outright because Holy Knight Zebec was present, these were men who had already pillaged civilians. Their bloodshot eyes glinted ominously, betraying their thirst for more violence. If not for Zebec’s presence, they would have pounced on Ismail.

Ismail scoffed at their attitude and swung the sword hanging from his waist. His movement was so swift that, even as the soldiers shouted at him, they watched dumbfounded as he slashed their lower torsos.

From their abdomens, instead of blood and entrails, spilled necklaces, rings, silver tableware, and other loot.

“……”

“You sure have a lot of baggage for people running for their lives.”

Zebec added mockingly.

“Ah, well, this is just….”

“If left behind, it would turn to stone. It’s such a waste for valuables to get buried in ruins, so we simply….”

Though uneducated, the soldiers suddenly became eloquent when defending themselves. Zebec chuckled softly.

“For now, let’s return to our campsite and discuss. Don’t forget to bring the fish.”

“Even the outpost was attacked by the undead?”

“You see? I was right. It’s because the Light of the Crown is fading.”

Brand puffed up, confident in his assertions.

“No, there must be a particular caster behind this.”

Zebec countered Brand’s claim.

“Without a dark magician deliberately creating undead to attack, there’s no way they could organize such movements.”

“But you’re giving necromancers too much credit. Normally, even the best necromancers can only control a few undead at most. Yet now, they’ve created so many that they’ve defeated an army. Such a thing was impossible when the Light of the Crown was intact.”

“…Fine. Let’s say the Light of the Crown is fading.”

When Zebec conceded, the soldiers listening nearby were visibly shocked. A Holy Knight had just admitted that the Light of the Crown was weakening.

“By the way, what do we do about these soldiers? They’re disgusting looters.”

Ismail asked Azadine, who was casually munching on fish bones, crunching them between his teeth as he looked up.

“Do you want to kill them?”

“What?!”

“These bastards! What do you take us for?”

The enraged knight reached for his sword, but Mediam acted first. She delivered a sharp kick to his stomach, stopping him, then drew his sword herself and pointed it at his neck.

Before the other soldiers could react, Ismail’s curved sword and arrows were already at their throats. The arrowheads grazed their skin, drawing beads of blood.

“Stop. Don’t kill them.”

“……”

Watching the scene unfold, Shati clicked her tongue in disapproval.

‘Good grief. As expected of the Messenger Clan—truly living up to their name. Even their kids are this fierce. Escaping from them seems impossible, let alone stealing the Heavenly King’s Book of Truth from them.’

“You, did you kill the residents of Salasma and loot their possessions?”

“No, it wasn’t us who killed them and stole these things….”

“We just picked up what others killed and stole.”

“You know how much effort miners and artisans put into creating gold and silver? We couldn’t bear to see their hard work wasted….”

“Just as each grain of wheat reflects the farmers’ toil, each piece of gold and silver carries the sweat of miners and smiths.”

‘If only they stayed silent, they wouldn’t be so detestable. How do these clearly uneducated brutes become so articulate when making excuses?’

Azadine sighed and delivered his judgment.

“You’ll guide us to the outpost.”

“What? N-no!”

“That’s a death sentence!”

Azadine snorted dismissively at their protests.

“There are undead behind us anyway. Even if you retreat, you’ll still die.”

“What do you mean?”

“Last night, Count Lantarique’s forces were defeated by the undead. We barely escaped from there.”

“……!?”

Zebec clicked his tongue as Azadine spun another lie as naturally as breathing. The problem was that it wasn’t entirely false. By mixing lies and truths, Azadine effectively shattered the soldiers’ will to resist.

“Hmm.”

“You’ve already scorched everything near Salasma, haven’t you? There are no intact villages left nearby. And even if there were, they’d be guarded by Count Salasma’s soldiers. Do you think they’d spare you? So just do as I say.”

“Fine. We’ll guide you to the outpost.”

“Good.”

“But, if I may ask, who are you all?”

“Don’t you know Doneor?”

“Doneor? Are you referring to….”

“The former captain of Lantarique’s guards?”

“We heard he’s been doing some… unsavory things lately.”

It seemed they not only knew who Doneor was but were also aware of his role as a covert agent handling the Count’s dirty work.

“Yes. You could say I’m someone higher than Doneor.”

“…….”

Watching this unfold, Zebec couldn’t help but be impressed. Despite the tense situation, Azadine effortlessly lied without batting an eye, navigating the moment with astonishing improvisation.

Of course, it was easier to be confident when they had already overwhelmed the soldiers with superior strength. Still, the way Azadine manipulated the soldiers with his words was remarkable.

‘He’s frighteningly quick-witted when it comes to lying. How can someone like this be so genuinely devoted to saving the people?’

Zebec couldn’t help but feel admiration for Azadine once again.

“Understood.”

“We’ll guide you, but we’re exhausted and need some rest.”

“Alright.”

Azadine allowed the soldiers to rest and then turned to Brand.

“Let’s cancel the river crossing plan. The river must be swarming with undead, and a raft made from gathered planks won’t hold up.”

Originally, Azadine’s group planned to rest while collecting planks nearby to build a small raft. They intended to attach the horses and goats to the raft to cross the river. The Kora River, though typically large and wide, had receded significantly due to Salasma’s drought, making it seem feasible to cross with just a simple raft.

However, if corpses thrown into the water turned into undead, they could walk along the riverbed, pull people underwater, and kill them. Attempting to cross on a flimsy raft would likely end in disaster.

“There should be proper boats at the outpost. We’ll secure one to cross the river. Alternatively, we may need to defeat whoever is controlling the undead.”

By the time the soldiers regained their strength, it was night.

“W-we’re heading out to fight undead at night? That’s reckless.”

The soldiers protested, but Azadine furrowed his brow as he glanced behind them.

“There’s no time. The undead are closing in behind us, tightening the encirclement.”

“What?”

“It’s actually better to act now. The enemy isn’t just the undead. There’s a living caster controlling them, and moving under the cover of night will make it harder for them to keep track of us.”

Azadine suspected that the undead’s strategic movements indicated they weren’t naturally occurring but rather deliberately controlled by a spellcaster. While undead became stronger at night, a caster’s visibility and detection abilities were weakened, making it more advantageous to move after dark.

However, his assumptions quickly fell apart.

“Azadine.”

Mediam clicked her tongue as she sent out her scouting birds.

“There’s a similar reconnaissance magic being used here.”

“Oh?”

“Yes, a dead bird is flying.”

A dead crow was soaring through the sky, scouting the area. Approaching recklessly would mean immediate detection.

“Impressive. This necromancer must be quite powerful. Probably an orc.”

The mention of orcs sent a shiver through the group.

“You mean those clever monsters?”

“……”

“Hold on. I can’t let that slide.”

Shati, the naga, puffed out her chest proudly.

“We’re much smarter.”

She claimed that her naga race was more intelligent than orcs, but since some soldiers didn’t know her true identity, she refrained from revealing it outright.

“Yes, sure. Of course.”

Azadine ignored Shati’s statement and nocked an arrow to his bow.

“You’re going to shoot? Wait, you’re aiming for those birds flying so far away?”

The soldiers guiding them were alarmed. Even under a bright moon, judging distances at night was difficult. Hitting a stationary target on the ground was hard enough, let alone a small crow flying three-dimensionally.

But when Azadine released his arrow, the crow soaring high in the sky fell, struck by the shot.

“……?”

“What? What the…?”

The soldiers were stunned, amazed by his skill. Azadine didn’t stop there; he released more arrows, shooting down all the crows flying in the sky.

“That’s impossible.”

“Isn’t this level of archery only possible for the Messenger Clan?”

“……”

Zebec gave a bitter smile.

“Let’s move.”

Azadine raised his hand and pointed the way.

“Mediam, Ismail, head north and wait in the forest. If the necromancer comes this way to observe directly, they’ll appear there.”

“Understood.”

“Yes.”

Ismail and Mediam moved to the ambush point Azadine had designated.

“What about us? What should we do?”

“You’ll be the bait.”

“What?!”

“Let’s lure out the undead.”

As Azadine spoke, undead emerged from the outpost.

The shambling figures were once Count Lantarique’s soldiers, their attendants, and even villagers in worse condition. The sight of their staggering corpses was unsettling, and their numbers were significant.

“It’s like an army from hell!”

Brand remarked, gripping his spear as he stood beside the soldiers.

“Are you alright, old man?”

“Don’t worry. We have to do something.”

Brand said this as he prepared to face the undead horde.