Klaus could not hide the shock on his face. Of all the imaginations that had come into his head, he had not expected Vincent to kill his own men.
Not only was Klaus surprised, but Joanna also felt the same way. The blonde-haired girl frowned as she tended to Hugo.
Of course, Klaus did not immediately swallow what Hugo said. There must be an explanation behind this abnormal situation. No matter how bad a leader was, they would not kill their men when they were in battle.
"I don't know Vincent or am close to him. But I'm sure a leader of the top five guilds in the US would do that."
"Yup, you're right," Hugo replied. "He's a jerk but not a madman. He's under the influence of magical powers, I guess."
Naturally, Klaus raised one eyebrow.
Hugo took a deep breath before he started to tell the chronology. His face darkened, implying his horrible memories.
"We wandered through this castle for several days. We got lost and kept going in circles. I had advised Vincent to cancel the raid, but he insisted. Thanks to his stubbornness, we managed to find the alpha."
After exhausting and mentally draining exploration, they reached a gate with unique carvings. Inside was a large chamber like a soccer field with giant pillars supporting the ceiling.
They were stunned to see the interior of the chamber. Besides being spacious, almost every side of the room was black marble. However, the chamber's charm did not captivate them for long when a giant snake appeared.
When they saw the monster, they immediately knew that the lord of this castle was a Wyrm—one of the species of monsters still descended from dragons.
Hugo said the wyrm appeared from the side of the room, stalking them with a predatory gaze. Its size was large and long, like a train. The wyrm had black scales and crescent-like eyes. With its tongue hanging out, the wyrm looked at Vincent's group like it was prey.
The awakeners felt tremendous pressure—a pressure they were used to when facing an alpha.
However, the horror of the monster was not enough to stop Vincent.
The title of S-Class was more than just a name. Vincent was fearless. He threw himself first, initiating the battle.
The blond man fought bravely and was able to organize his men well. He fought aggressively and willingly became a decoy so that the awakeners could land attacks on the monster.
With his [Gravity Manipulation] talent, he could render a legendary wyrm helpless against a group of humans.
"Vincent, that bastard is insane. Regardless of how much of an asshole he is, I must admit he is a great war general. We cornered the wyrm and managed to inflict deep wounds on its body. We almost won."
However, the flow of battle changed when it came at the last second.
The wyrm was severely injured. Its entire body was riddled with elemental damage and slash wounds. The slithering monster was just waiting to receive the final blow before death. And Vincent saw his chance.
He jumped on the monster's head to drive his spear into its skull.
As Vincent raised his spear, he suddenly froze. He didn't move an inch as if something had changed his mind. At that moment, Hugo realized that something wrong happened.
Vincent canceled, plunging the spear into the wyrm's head, and turned to his men. His eyes were red, and his expression portrayed hatred. Then, he used [Gravity Manipulation], making about 2000 bend the knee on the floor. Hugo was no exception.
And a tragedy occurred.
Vincent jumped off the wyrm head and slaughtered his men like cattle. They could do nothing but scream. Their feet and hands were stuck on the ledge as gravity pulled on their bodies, stopping their mobility. In less than ten minutes, Vincent had killed nearly a quarter of his men. And even worse, the wyrm was still savage despite the wounds all over its body.
Hugo was moved. He offered himself as bait to distract the two monsters from killing his men and buy time for them to escape.
"It was really like hell. Screams and madness echoed in the air. I did what I could do. I distracted the enemy, buying time for my men to escape. And at the last minute, I smashed a pillar and crushed them with rubble. And I was direct."
Hugo hissed as the story ended. Regret and shame were written all over his face. Even if this man was a supporter, he was still a guild master. He failed to save his men and got lost in this dungeon.
Joanna, listening to his story, stroked his hand to equalize him. Meanwhile, Klaus was just the opposite.
He had a flat expression and looked at Hugo with a skeptical gaze. He needed to confirm the truth before believing the tragic story.
"Laplace, did you see something that man was hiding?" Klaus muttered
<Yes, my liege. I saw his heartbeat was unstable when he told me some stories. But, the rest of the time, he tells it like it is. I think he was traumatized.
Klaus snorted. "This guy is a bastard who has been through many battles in the dungeon. He wouldn't be traumatized by something like that. There's a good chance he's slipping up a lie to cover up his cowardice."
When Klaus was talking to Laplace through thoughts, Hugo looked at him with an astonished look.
"Alright, take a break first. We'll continue our search for a while and hunt down the alpha and rescue Vincent," Klaus said.
Hugo opened his eyes wide as he heard Klaus' words. Then, he laughed bitterly. "Are fucking kidding me? Didn't you listen to me? That damn snake is controlling Vincent's mind! The strongest guilds and high-class awakeners were killed! If they lose, you're going to die too! We have to stop this raid and gather strong awakeners."
Klaus chuckled. "I didn't expect those words to come out of guild master Sunstrike's mouth."
"You-ugh!" When Hugo was about to hurl a curse, an excruciating pain stung in his stomach.
"Ah! Sorry, I didn't mean to!" Joanna pretended to panic. She deliberately pressed the wound on Hugo's stomach to make him stop talking.
And Klaus noticed his sister's actions. He smiled at her, and Joanna returned it with a wink. Meanwhile, Hugo whimpered in pain.
Klaus immediately left them before Hugo opened his mouth again.
After the awakeners finished scavenging monster cores and precious organs from the komodos, Klaus gathered them with Noah's approval. In front of them, he told them about the terrible fate that befell Vincent and his men.
He told them exactly the same story as Hugo, but with a dramatic delivery. So that the people who heard it felt like they had just listened to a heroic tale.
"We must rise and continue this search. To avenge the deaths of our comrades and save one of the heroes. The wyrm is very weak after facing the battle with them. We can defeat that monster, ending all this nonsense!"
Klaus gave a fiery speech, raising the morale of his men to walk in death path with him. To give them more confidence, he touted Gavin as their ace.
With a bit of nonsense and hope, Klaus managed to make them believe in continuing the raid.
It was a big moment that he could not miss.
They continued their search. With Hugo as their guide, the awakeners marched towards the chamber where Wyrmm was. He refused at first but agreed after seeing Gavin at their party.
Every step brings them closer to Vincent, the man responsible for the Morning Star massacre and the castle's mysteries.
After traveling through twisted hallways and silent rooms, they finally arrived at a large gate adorned with ancient carvings and gold plating.
"We made it. Don't be sorry; I warned you."
Desperate words came out of Hugo's mouth when they arrived at their destination. This man caused Noah some anxiety, but Klaus assured his cousin everything would be fine.
On the other hand, the awakeners seemed tense. They could feel a strong mystical aura from behind the gate in front of them.
"Open the gate. And prepare for battle."
The gate creaked as they pushed it. The awakeners gulped and held their weapons tightly in their hands. They entered, and their eyes widened soon after.
"Look."
Tension enveloped the awakeners instantly.
The hundreds of dead awakeners they saw in the altar light project were displayed before their eyes. These corpses were exactly the same as the images in their heads, horribly dead.
In the center of the room, they saw Vincent, a dashing figure with mysterious strength.
Vincent stood on a platform floating in the air. His blond hair was flowing, and his eyes radiated an odd power. In his right hand, he held a spear with strange carvings.
Klaus and his group could sense the presence of a powerful gravitational force around Vincent, as if this man could control and manipulate gravity itself.
However, what horrified them was the monster behind the man.
SHEEEESHHHHH!
A wyrm raised its head above Vincent. Its large, long body hid in the shadows. Sticking out its tongue, the wyrm emitted a magical aura around it.
The alpha stood there without a scratch on its body. Its condition was 180 degrees different from Hugo's story.
"Damn it! You said the wyrm was badly injured! Why are you lying, Klaus!" Noah cried in fear.
Klaus was silent.
"Klaus is not lying," Hugo chimed in. "And I'm not lying too. The wyrm is dying! I swear!"
ƥandasnovel.com They were screwing up. Not only was Vincent their opponent. But also a wyrm in its prime.
Amidst the panic, Vincent swung his spear and created a gravitational field that destroyed his surroundings. The room became chaotic, objects flew, and the ceiling collapsed.
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