Realm of Myths and Legends

'I didn't expect that the closer we got to the Nigth Lord's Crypt, the more difficult it would be to manipulate the surrounding earth. Initially, I planned on digging directly underneath the Night Lord's Crypt. But, if we continued on at that rate; it would have taken us hours to proceed any further. Since I don't know what's waiting for us inside the Night Lord's Crypt, I must conserve as much mana inside of my artificial mana pool as possible. This will have to be close enough.'

After he met with Bellum, Izroth went over a plan to get the 9th Division close to the Night Lord's Crypt without attracting too much attention to themselves.

The plan involved Izroth's use of Molding Earth and Bellum's ability to manipulate an object's matter.

By utilizing Molding Earth, Izroth was able to dig a tunnel underground, which was the same method he used to avoid the Cursed Grounds at the Tempest/Malentansium border.

However, Izroth could not recklessly waste the mana in his artificial mana pool; therefore, he entrusted Bellum with closing up the path behind the 9th Division.

Since Bellum was capable of using her magic in a similar way to Izroth's Molding Earth, they were able to ensure that no other members of the allied forces accidentally fell through the areas they dug.

What Izroth did not anticipate was that upon getting closer to the Night Lord's Crypt, for some unknown reason, the cost of manipulating the surrounding earth increased exponentially.

Eventually, it reached a point where if Izroth and Bellum had decided to proceed onward, they would not have made it a few meters before running out of mana.

As the remaining members of the 9th Division were still making their way out of the underground tunnel, the skounaes that protected the Night Lord Crypt's entrance had already started to rush over.

"Trespassers! Don't leave a single one of them alive!" One of the skounae that stood guard near the entrance shouted.

NPC Name: Viscount Belos(Rare)

NPC Level: 51

"Sneaky humans. Without the barriers in place, there's nothing to stop them from traveling underground and getting this close. Regardless, they will soon be surrounded and outnumbered. They're merely rushing to their deaths!" Viscount Belos scoffed as he charged forward as well.

"The Earl has entrusted us with guarding the entrance into the Night Lord's Crypt! We cannot allow these humans to enter as they please, Belos!" The male skounae that followed next to Belos stated.

NPC Name: Viscount Saogin(Rare)

NPC Level: 51

Including the two skounae Viscounts, there were a total of twenty-five skounae—most of which were hunters with a few Barons mixed in.

Additionally, the moment Izroth and the others were discovered after they exited the underground tunnel, numerous skounae were rushing over to their location.

At the current rate, it would not take long until they were completely surrounded on all sides by hundreds of skounae.

Izroth, "Remember not to become too caught up in individual head-on confrontations. Our main goal is to enter the Night Lord's Crypt."

Izroth reminded the 9th Division over voice chat.

"Young master, please allow us to clear a path ahead for you," Jol'Kil said as he stepped forward next to Izroth along with Zel'Kan.

'I am curious to see what these two are capable of firsthand. I suppose this is as good of an opportunity as any.'

Izroth gave a small nod of approval to Jol'Kil's request. Even though he would be missing out on a few contribution points, Izroth understood that there would be plenty of other opportunities ahead of him.

Right after Izroth conveyed his approval, Jol'Kil and Zel'Kan raced ahead to meet the skounae without hesitation.

When he first examined the two Seventh Demon Clan members using his Energy Vision Sense, Izroth determined that their strength was somewhere around the same level as a skilled War Brigade Commander. However, this was only in terms of the quality and quantity of the "flames" Izroth saw with his Energy Vision Sense. In reality, their actual strength could be higher or lower than he initially speculated based on their personal skill levels or combat experience.

"Should we help them?" Niflheim asked as he walked up next to Izroth.

"No, they'll be able to handle themselves. Prepare to lead everyone to the entrance as soon as the path forward is cleared." Izroth replied calmly.

"Leave it to me," Niflheim said before he left to make sure that the 9th Division was organized and ready to move out at a moment's notice.

Niflheim did not know much about the two cloaked figures who followed Izroth around; however, they seemed to obey his orders and even referred to him as "young master". Izroth also informed him that they were members of the Seventh Demon Clan—the same name that Tal'Nis mentioned to him in the crusade.

Niflheim swiftly pieced things together and realized that Izroth must have received some kind of quest back then from Tal'Nis. But he did not pry any further than that. After all, he knew that the quest must have had its own restrictions considering Izroth was likely the sole person to acquire it. Not to mention, there were more pressing matters at hand.

"I will gain the rights to undergo the Night King's Rite!" One of the hunter skounae yelled as he arrived within striking range of Jol'Kil.

Woosh!

The hunter skounae lashed out with the two-handed mace in his hands that resembled a morning star and aimed directly for Jol'Kil's head!

At the same time, three wisps of dark red flames appeared—one on each of the hunter skounae's shoulders and the last on the surface of the mace itself.

BANG! Thud!

Without warning, the hunter skounae's body crashed into the ground as the earth beneath his feet cracked. Simultaneously, the hunter skounae's arms sunk as his legs started to tremble.

"Can't move-" The hunter skounae growled as he tried to lift his mace to defend himself; however, his arms and mace felt as though they had abruptly become significantly heavier.

Swoosh!

In one smooth motion, Jol'Kil swept past the hunter skounae's neck with his hand and cleanly separated his head from his body. In the blink of an eye, the hunter skounae had perished!

'Oh? Those dark red flames... Its power seems to be similar to the Concealed Heavy Wounds inscription bound to my Sword of the Storm. That being said, it appears to be much more effective overall.'

Izroth noticed that the areas or objects marked by Jol'Kil's flames seemed to suddenly grow in mass.

On a battlefield, even a slight second of delayed reaction could lead to one's doom, let alone being completely thrown off by an unexpected weight increase. This was even more so considering that the flames had the ability to affect specific areas and create an uneven distribution. This would work to further throw the one under its effects into a state of mental chaos and panic.

After he had effortlessly slain the first skounae, the other hunter skounaes were reluctant to engage Jol'Kil head-on; however, they were under direct orders from the Viscounts.

In the end, the hunter skounaes could not go against the restrictions of obeying those of a higher bloodline than them. So, they did not halt their attack. In fact, once the hunter skounaes accepted their new reality, their level of aggression grew. They threw away all thoughts of defense and diverted their entire being to offense.

Sssssst!

"Raaaaah!" One of the skounae cried out as a light violet flame engulfed their face before rapidly spreading to the rest of their body.

The pained cries of the skounae only lasted a brief moment as its entire head corroded at a frightening pace before melting into a thick bubbling light violet liquid. This corrosion process swiftly occurred on the remaining parts of their body wherever the light violet flames touched.

As the light violet liquid spread on the ground, the other skounae who stepped in it soon found themselves engulfed in light violet flames and following in the footsteps of the one before them.

"Avoid the liquid on the ground! Do not step in it unless you want to die!" Belos barked angrily.

In less than a breath, their forces had been reduced by a breathtaking sixty percent due to those bizarre dark red and light violet flames! If things on this way, then-

"?!" Belos' eyes widened in shock as he looked down at his hand with an expression of horror.

He had been on high alert this whole time, but somehow his hand was now covered in those dangerous light violet flames!

Woosh! Plop!

Without hesitation, Belos cut off the infected hand to avoid being consumed by the flames.

However, just when the Viscount thought he had escaped his fate, a ring of light violet flames formed around his neck.