The Dungeon Monsters Keep Offering Sacrifices

Chapter 115: For the New Kingdom (2)

The Dungeon Monsters Keep Offering Sacrifices – 115

EP.115 For the New Kingdom (2)

While Maru and Necros were in the midst of their meeting, Deputy Commander Riana of the Holy Knights was also busy.

“P-please, spare me!”

A noble staggered out of a grand mansion, barely dressed. Despite the importance of honor to a noble, Baron Traken was solely focused on escaping. A few soldiers followed him in retreat.

Seeing the fleeing noble and soldiers, a Holy Knight spoke.

“Deputy Commander, should we let them escape like this?”

The Holy Knight’s name was Beneric, a direct subordinate of Deputy Commander Riana. Riana also watched the distant figure of the fleeing noble.

“Just let them go. They won’t survive for long anyway.”

Riana responded nonchalantly. The place where she stood was a scene of utter chaos. Surrounding buildings were engulfed in flames, collapsing, and blood-soaked corpses were scattered all over the streets.

The streets were already filled with skeletons. Given the situation, how far could that noble possibly run?

Riana dismissed any further concern for the fleeing noble.

“What about the remaining family members and servants?”

Inside the mansion, the baron’s family and servants were trembling in fear, but Riana remained resolute.

“Leave them as well.”

A skeleton monster emerged from within the mansion. Normally, it would be appropriate to take the residents for questioning, but the kingdom’s current situation was dire. Moreover, the number of Holy Knights was not large enough to manage prisoners. It was a clean decision to abandon them.

“We’ve already investigated the baron’s mansion. Move on to the next!”

The Holy Knights assembled at Riana’s command. Their current mission was to investigate the mansions of the nobles in the capital. However, they did not seek permission; it was more akin to a raid. They had the authority to investigate the nobles. After all, the delegation from the White Order had come to Sael Kingdom for this purpose.

Priests and Holy Knights heading to Sael Kingdom had gone missing one after another. In response, the White Order’s leadership dispatched a delegation to investigate Sael Kingdom.

The investigations conducted by Deputy Commander Riana were all justified actions. The power of the White Order made such actions possible.

“……”

Riana surveyed the mansion of Baron Traken, who had just fled. There was nothing more to see here.

‘To think they would be here as well….’

However, her heart felt heavy. They had discovered skeletons in the noble’s mansion they had just investigated. It wasn’t just a simple discovery, the skeletons were disguised as knights. It was more appropriate to say they had infiltrated.

Not only Baron Traken, but most of the nobles they had investigated earlier had skeletons disguised as knights in their mansions.

“The words of the Goddess’s emissary were all true.”

Beneric’s words were accurate. Everything had happened as the emissary had predicted. The emissary must have foreseen this and assigned them the mission.

Riana had infiltrated the kingdom several days ahead of the White Order’s delegation. Thanks to this, she encountered a new opportunity during the investigation, Maru, the emissary of the Goddess.

His appearance was that of a skeleton, yet he possessed holy power. This was something no ordinary undead monster could have. It was undoubtedly a miraculous sight. Riana and her subordinates witnessed this miracle.

Such a miracle could only be possible if he were the emissary of the Goddess. Riana revered the emissary of the Goddess. She didn’t know why he had descended to the mortal realm, but it was all according to the Goddess’s will.

Having witnessed the miracle, Riana and the Holy Knights swore loyalty to Maru, the emissary. They vowed to act solely for the Goddess and her representative, Maru.

Riana was given a specific mission.

– Investigate the nobles of Sael Kingdom. –

Deputy Commander Riana and the Holy Knights had been investigating the nobles in accordance with Maru’s command.

“That’s right. Sir Maru foresaw this situation. To think they would dare commit such acts! They have deceived the White Order!”

This time, the voice belonged to Eric. Eric, also a Holy Knight, shouted in an angry voice. He was the only Holy Knight who could understand and convey Maru’s words. Conveying the words of Maru, the emissary of the Goddess, was like to conveying the words of the Goddess herself.

Therefore, Riana listened attentively to Eric’s words.

“Judging by these events, it seems the kingdom’s nobles might have set a trap to check the royal family.”

Eric cautiously conveyed his opinion, watching Riana’s reaction. Of course, this wasn’t his actual opinion. Eric was being controlled by a Banshee, merely relaying Celia’s orders.

The reason the Banshee controlling Eric could stand confidently before Deputy Commander Riana was thanks to the great Master’s enhancement. The Banshee possessed holy power, so Riana didn’t suspect anything about Eric. Instead, she nodded in agreement with his words. They made sense, after all. However, she couldn’t fully grasp the situation at the moment.

“That’s certainly a strong possibility. For now, let’s think broadly.”

Riana acknowledged his point, though she couldn’t shake a lingering sense of unease. There were many questions about what was happening in the kingdom. Why were there skeletons disguised as knights in the nobles’ mansions? This was the most fundamental question. Additionally, the streets of the kingdom were filled with skeletons.

‘Could it really be as Sir Eric says, the work of the nobles?’

Perhaps they had used monsters to plot a rebellion, but their plan had been discovered. Given the circumstances, this seemed likely. Skeletons had been found in the nobles’ mansions. Otherwise, why would they go to such lengths to disguise skeletons as knights?

However, another question arose.

‘Did they really think they wouldn’t get caught?’

With the White Order’s delegation visiting, would they blatantly summon monsters? The nobles claimed their innocence. While their stories weren’t taken at face value, Riana planned to investigate further once the kingdom stabilized.

‘…And could the kingdom really fall so easily to monsters?’

The street she stood on was in the capital of Sael Kingdom, the city where the royal palace was located. It was strange that the city where the king resided could be breached so easily. Though she didn’t want to believe it, she recalled one event that had occurred earlier: the sky being swallowed by darkness and the appearance of red dots. That scene clearly signaled the birth of a 7-star entity.

‘If that disaster is real….’

If the presence of the 7-star entity had manifested here in Sael Kingdom? Riana closed her eyes. Her mind was a whirl of thoughts. For her, it was the worst-case scenario. If a 7-star monster had indeed appeared in Sael Kingdom, then the current situation made sense.

‘I wish it were just a simple monster wave….’

An endless phenomenon from dungeons, the monster wave. Given Sael Kingdom’s geography, bordered by mountain ranges, it wouldn’t be surprising if a monster wave occurred. But the current situation was different. There was something unsettling about it, something that didn’t quite fit the pattern of a typical monster wave.

After organizing her thoughts briefly, Riana decided on their next destination.

“Let’s head towards the high priest and the commander! We should regroup and plan our next move!”

It seemed safer to regroup rather than scatter. Therefore, they needed to join forces with High priest and Commander Gerard. If, as she feared, a 7-star monster was in Sael Kingdom, it would be a tough battle. But she didn’t lose hope.

‘It’s a tale from hundreds of years ago.’

While the past was uncertain, the White Order’s power had grown stronger since then. The strength of the current Holy Knights far surpassed that of their predecessors. She believed that even if a 7-star monster appeared, they could put up a fight.

Deputy Commander Riana led the Holy Knights forward. Their destination was naturally set: the mansion of Count Bearton, where High priest and Commander Gerard were located.

‘Please, let everyone be safe….’

A sudden worry crossed her mind. However, the skills of High priest and Commander Gerard were among the best. She had faith in them.

“We will move quickly!”

The streets around them were already swarming with skeletons.

“Clack, Clack!”

“Clack! Clack!”

The eerie sound of bones echoed around them.

“In the name of the Goddess, we shall judge these filthy monsters!”

Riana shouted as she wielded her sword. The holy light emanating from her blade shattered the skeletons into pieces. With a single strike, dozens of skeletons vanished without a trace. Following her lead, the Holy Knights charged at the horde of skeletons.

Riana and the Holy Knights began to advance, pushing back the tide of skeletons with their holy power. In terms of the battle itself, the Holy Knights were overwhelmingly superior. Skeletons, as undead monsters, were inherently weak against the White Order’s holy power. Moreover, these were 1-star skeletons, the lowest tier. It seemed like an easy fight.

However, as the battle dragged on, the situation worsened for the Holy Knights. While they managed to reduce the number of skeletons, more kept pouring in to replace the fallen. Even now, skeletons emerged from every alley.

No matter how advantageous their attributes or superior their skills, there was no answer to the sheer numbers. The endless waves of skeletons were beginning to wear down the Holy Knights.

“Deputy Commander, something’s wrong! There are too many monsters!”

Beneric shouted as he swung his sword. Riana frowned at his words. No matter how many skeletons they killed, their numbers didn’t seem to decrease. In fact, they appeared to be increasing. This was far too many.

‘There must be an Arch Lich.’

An Arch Lich could infinitely generate skeletons as long as there were corpses. Given the worst-case scenario that a 7-star monster might be in the kingdom, the appearance of a 5-star monster added to the dire situation.

‘Surely there isn’t a 6-star monster as well?’

If that were the case, it would truly be the worst possible situation. Hoping it wouldn’t come to that, Deputy Commander Riana pressed on.

====

***

====

Baron Traken ran desperately, consumed by fear. As he continued down the dark, narrow alley, the surroundings grew quiet. Fortunately, there were no damned skeletons in sight.

“There, over there! Hide in that building!”

A building that hadn’t been burned down appeared in the baron’s view. Shouting to the soldiers following him, Traken ran towards it. If they could hide inside, everything would be over.

The baron quickly led the soldiers into the building.

“Quick, barricade the door!”

Using nearby objects, they blocked the entrance completely. Once the soldiers had secured the door, Baron Traken finally felt a sense of relief.

“Phew. That was close. What on earth were those things?”

Baron Traken had fled from the Holy Knights. He had no idea why there were skeletons in his mansion. However, he knew that if he were caught by the Holy Knights, he would undoubtedly be branded a heretic. So, he ran without thinking of the consequences, driven by the hope that he could somehow survive if he kept running.

As he fled towards the outskirts of the capital, he noticed that there were no skeletons in this area. It was a fortunate turn of events.

“If we can just survive here, everyone stay alert!”

The baron shouted to his soldiers. It would have been better if a knight capable of using aura had accompanied them, but for now, he was grateful to have soldiers with him. Feeling more at ease, the baron began to inspect the interior of the building.

“Huh?”

In the center, he saw a stone statue.

“What is that?”

It was a grotesque statue of a winged demon. Its appearance was bizarre and unsettling. The baron led his soldiers slowly towards the statue. Just then, someone emerged from behind it.

“Who, who’s there?”

It was too dark to see clearly, but the figure appeared human.

“Don’t be alarmed. I am a Dhampir.”

It was a man’s voice.

“Dhampir?”

Fortunately, he didn’t seem hostile. The baron relaxed his tense expression and spoke to the stranger.

“I am Baron Traken. The situation outside is chaotic, so I hope you don’t mind if we take refuge here for a while.”

The baron revealed his identity. This place seemed relatively safe, and he intended to stay here until things calmed down, so he decided to make his intentions clear.

Baron Traken never considered the possibility that he, a noble, might be turned away. However, the man’s response was unexpected.

“Well, this is troublesome.”

Troublesome? What could be troublesome? Could he really be thinking of turning away a noble like himself?

“I am here on the orders of my master, and no humans are allowed here at the moment.”

Master? Humans? What was he talking about? The baron understood at least one part of the man’s words.

“Your master? Who is this master you serve? A noble?”

But the man ignored the baron’s question.

“This is troublesome. Lord Necros had planned to drive the humans towards the princess. I’ll need to ask what to do. Please wait a moment.”

The man continued to speak in cryptic terms. Baron Traken finally sensed something was amiss. As the man mumbled to himself, one of the soldiers approached the baron.

“Um… Baron?”

The soldier spoke in a low voice.

“I don’t think Dhampir is his name…”

“Not his name? What do you mean?”

The baron listened closely to the soldier’s words.

“Dhampir refers to a hybrid born between a vampire and a human.”

The baron frowned at the soldier’s explanation. It was a term he had never heard before.

“Are you joking in this situation?”

“No, sir! It’s true. Dhampirs are extremely rare, so it’s understandable if you haven’t heard of them—”

But the soldier’s words were cut short.

“Ah, I’ve received a response. According to the message through the shadows….”

The man placed his hand on the stone statue.

“Humans acting outside the plan are to be killed.”

At that moment, the eyes of the stone statue glowed red.

“Argh!”

What happened next unfolded in an instant.

The statue moved and, in the blink of an eye, was biting the neck of one of the soldiers.

“When did it—?!”

The statue that had been in front of them had suddenly approached and attacked the soldier. What was even more shocking was that the statue could move freely. The suddenness of the attack caused the baron to fall to the ground in shock. Blood spurted from the soldier’s neck, creating a grotesque scene.

To survive, he had to do something.

“There’s only one of him! If we break through him, we can escape!”

Baron Traken pushed a terrified soldier forward. The soldiers, having no choice, raised their weapons and slowly approached the man. If what the soldier had said was true, then this man was not human. At least he was alone. Maybe they could defeat him if they tried hard enough.

The soldiers advanced cautiously with their weapons.

“Ah!”

But this time, it was Baron Traken who screamed. Something had bitten his leg. Looking down, he saw a small creature writhing on the ground. It was a snake, but it had three heads. Before he could even process what it was, excruciating pain shot up his leg, as if it were melting.

“Oh, that’s a Hydra that my master has taken in. Fortunately, it’s not fully grown, so you won’t die.”

The Hydra bit the legs of the other soldiers as well. All they could do was scream in agony on the ground.

“P-please, spare me! I beg you!”

The baron pleaded desperately for his life. But the man didn’t even pretend to listen.

“Gargoyle, I don’t have a weapon, so I’ll leave the rest to you. Lady Celia’s orders are to leave none alive who deviate from the plan.”

The interior of the building was soon filled with the sounds of slaughter. The people inside were torn apart beyond recognition. Blood stained the floor a deep crimson. The gargoyle, which had been tearing through the humans moments ago, slowly returned to its place and turned back into a statue.

As if nothing had happened, the gargoyle stood still. However, its mouth was stained with fresh blood.

“I’ll take care of the rest,” the Dhampir said, licking his lips before moving. The building fell silent once more.

====

***

====

“Hehe, that way leads to the royal palace!”

Count Bearton, holding a pickaxe, walked down the street. Behind him followed the Death Knight King. The streets were filled with skeletons, but they paid no attention to Count Bearton. They passed by as if he were invisible.

‘As expected!’

The count felt a surge of triumph.

‘Swearing loyalty to the monsters was the right decision!’

He believed that pledging loyalty to the monsters was why the surrounding creatures didn’t attack him. With that thought, he continued walking towards the royal palace. He didn’t know why the streets were filled with skeletons, but he saw it as an opportunity.

‘All I need to do is storm the palace!’

With the power of the monster behind him, he felt he could achieve anything. Becoming king was no longer a distant dream. The count envisioned a glorious future.

‘Hehehe. With the power of that monster, I can rule the entire continent!’

He was confident that he could seize control of all the nations on the continent. Count Bearton marched forward with a confident stride.

After walking for some time, he saw a procession approaching from a distance.

“Are those… Holy Knights?”

Count Bearton was the first to react. At the front of the procession was a familiar figure.

“Isn’t that Deputy Commander Riana?”

With a sly smile, Count Bearton spread his arms wide. He made eye contact with the Holy Knights led by Deputy Commander Riana. Riana also recognized Count Bearton and immediately pointed her sword at him.

At the same time, she felt a sense of confusion. Why was Count Bearton here?

‘Wasn’t he supposed to be with the high priest?’

More than anything, the dark presence standing behind him was deeply unsettling.

“What on earth have you done, Count?”

Riana’s voice wavered slightly. She trembled at the strange power emanating from the being behind the count.

“Hehehe. This one here will make me a king!”

Count Bearton laughed maniacally in response to Riana’s question.

“Bwahahaha!”

His crazed laughter sent chills down Riana’s spine.

“You’ve completely lost it, Count.”

She remained vigilant and commanded the Holy Knights.

“Gather the light! The count is not in his right mind! Be especially wary of that monster behind him!”

She had a bad feeling about this. Quickly, Riana enveloped herself in holy power. The Holy Knights pointed their weapons in unison. However, they too were gripped by fear at the sight of the figure behind the count. It looked as if it were a concentration of pure darkness—grotesque and terrifying.

“Count! Have you made a pact with a demon?”

Riana shouted, her voice filled with anger. But the count only laughed.

“Haha! A pact? This one is my new master and god!”

The count raised his hand, pointing at the monster.

“Now, my god! Use your power to kill these filthy Holy Knights!”

In that instant, the monster’s eyes glowed red. Riana sensed the danger and shouted to her subordinates.

“Everyone, fall back! That’s not something we can handle!”

The Holy Knights tried to retreat, but it was too late. A massive shadow shot out from the darkness, enveloping the knights. Horrific screams echoed, and blood splattered through the air.

“No… this can’t be….”

Riana staggered backward. The monster slashed through her subordinates as if they were nothing.

“What in the world….”

Riana’s entire body trembled as she raised her sword high. But fear was consuming her mind.

In the end, she dropped her sword.

“Oh… Goddess….”

At this rate, she was going to die. She could feel it. She finally understood. That being was the 7-star disaster. The disaster had manifested in Sael Kingdom. And High priest and Commander Gerard must have met their end at the hands of that monster.

As Riana squeezed her eyes shut, ready to accept her fate, a voice rang out.

“Stop! Servant of the demon!”

Another presence appeared. It was Princess Irena, leading the knights.

====

***

====

The Death Knight King followed Count Bearton without a thought.

“Hehe, that way leads to the royal palace!”

He had been ordered to stay quiet, so he was suppressing his power as much as possible. However, if his identity were discovered, he planned to eliminate any witnesses as per General manager Celia’s orders. But Count Bearton was an exception.

The reason was simple. There were certain humans who were not to be killed as part of the plan, and Count Bearton was one of them. Given the situation, the Death Knight King had handed Bearton a pickaxe. The count had laughed as if he had received a grand gift.

“……”

To be so delighted with just a pickaxe. The count must be a valuable asset for construction work, the Death Knight King thought. This made him develop a certain fondness for the count. Normally, he should have stayed at the count’s mansion. But since the count insisted on coming out, he had no choice but to follow.

The Death Knight King intended to take the count back to the dungeon once this was all over, so he made sure not to lose sight of him. But then—

“Isn’t that Deputy Commander Riana?”

“…What on earth have you done, Count?”

A new group appeared ahead. It was the Holy Knights of the White Order.

The problem was that among the group was a person who must not be killed—Deputy Commander Riana. The Death Knight King found himself in a dilemma. Clearly, in terms of importance, Deputy Commander Riana ranked higher than Count Bearton. However, losing Count Bearton, who seemed to have exceptional talent for fortification work, would be a significant loss. Bearton was meant to be the one to succeed him in such tasks.

“Now, my god! Use your power to kill these filthy Holy Knights!”

Count Bearton, who seemed to have a knack for fortification, was making a desperate plea.

“……”

The Death Knight King’s deliberation was brief. Perhaps he could just kill the other Holy Knights and leave Riana alive. With that thought, he dashed forward and began tearing through the knights at the rear. He planned to inflict just enough damage to not disrupt the overall plan and then retreat.

Finally, Deputy Commander Riana lost her will to fight.

“Oh… Goddess….”

Thinking his task was done, the Death Knight King prepared to leave. But then—

“Stop! Servant of the demon!”

A new, unwelcome guest appeared. It was Princess Irena, a key figure in the current plan.

“……”

What was going on? The sudden turn of events left the Death Knight King bewildered. At that moment, Necros appeared from behind. Necros nodded at the Death Knight King and then scribbled something in a notebook.

– Death Knight King, why are you here? –

According to the original plan, the Death Knight King wasn’t supposed to appear here. Even Maru, standing next to Princess Irena, looked puzzled. Necros quickly tore the page from the notebook and handed it to a shadow. The shadow took the paper and vanished, only to reappear shortly after, handing the paper back to Necros.

The paper contained Celia’s orders.

– Plan revised. Tell the Death Knight King to show as much power as possible and then pretend to be dead. This plan will make Princess Elena both queen and saint. –

Given the circumstances, Celia intended to use her to establish connections within the White Order.