novelraw Chapter 96: Lurking Danger
Chapter 96: Lurking Danger
Azel’s breathing trembled.
"Axorhibis... Damn it..."
He clenched his fist, trying to calm himself. Marco, however, was more precise and level-headed. Scanning the surroundings for possible threats, he said:
"No one who’s come to this kingdom has survived, right?"
Monar shook his head.
"Unlike Holylight, I can feel that the curse here is four times heavier. Ironically, the place where the Mystery of Cinder originated was the easiest to survive in. The only real problem was the capital, where supposedly something was hiding—something that killed anything that crossed its path."
That statement frightened Mitsuki. Sure, earlier he had been determined to fight Elyndor because he knew he had the support of a team, and the beast wasn’t as powerful as the Master of Cinder. However, being in this unknown place, he could only think that there might be another monster like that black-armored knight who had "killed" him once.
’This is getting out of hand. We need to get out of here... We have to find a way. If this place is even slightly similar to Holylight, then we can run away since it’s still daytime. I remember that ash creatures, at least the statues, only moved at night. We have to take advantage of that.’
"Unfortunately, I have no idea what’s hiding here. It’s best if we hurry and get as far away as possible and think about our options," Monar added. "I suggest we stay in the light in case there are ash creatures that want to kill us."
’Good! That’s the most reasonable choice,’ Mitsuki thought. As if searching for an escape, he walked a bit toward the long, narrow stairs, observing possible routes.
Suddenly, a loud, dry crash echoed, followed by a deafening roar that made the ground tremble. A soft wave of wind swept across the entire capital as chills ran through the group. After a few seconds, the presence of the curse—heavy, suffocating, and desolate—increased.
The anti-curse shields activated in response, making Monar frown. It was the first time the elf made that expression, which filled Mitsuki’s heart with a deep sense of despair.
’Oh no...’
"We need to leave... right now," Monar said, rushing down the stairs.
The group followed him immediately. Then, they ran along the long cobblestone paths lined with beautiful houses in ruins, covered in ash and corroded by the passage of time.
Their hurried footsteps didn’t hesitate—they grew faster and faster.
"What was that, Monar?!" Marco asked.
"It’s most likely the ’anchor’ of the curse. There’s no way it has noticed we’re here, but to be honest, I can’t be sure. We’re practically making a discovery that no one has managed in over four hundred years, so we have no references or anything to guide us."
"My God. Azel, if we make it out of this alive, I’m going to kill you! You can be sure of that!"
Azel didn’t respond—his gaze darkened.
’Just one roar was enough to make our anti-curse shields tremble. What the hell is hiding here? That roar came from the castle, didn’t it? That can’t be a coincidence! There’s something like the Ash Master over there!’
Of course, he wasn’t going to get close to that place—it meant certain death.
’With everything that’s happened to me so far, it’s still absurd that I can run into even more ridiculous things. As if it wasn’t already stupid that I’m some kind of foretold tragedy. What else could there be in this world that would make me question my sanity?! I wish this were all just a bad dream!’
The group continued along the main street until they entered a section filled with smaller houses, a bit quieter. At that moment, a shadow darted from one alley to another.
Monar looked in that direction and gripped his staff tightly.
"Something is stalking us! Everyone! Get ready!"
Without hesitation, everyone grabbed their weapons as they ran.
"The exit of the kingdom is still very far. It’ll take us about six or seven hours to reach it without stopping since Axorhibis is the largest kingdom in Nemoria—especially its capital. If we have to fight, we’ll fight. If we have to hide, we’ll hide. Our priority is survival, so no one can be left behind."
As he ran, Mitsuki noticed a pattern in the group. When someone took the role of leader, no one questioned it—they simply followed without hesitation. The same thing had happened during the fight against Elyndor, when he took command of the battle to defeat the beast with his risky but effective plan.
’It doesn’t matter who it is—as long as you have the confidence to lead, others will follow you. Is that how it works?’
He wasn’t sure, and there was no time to reflect.
In the blink of an eye, a whistle cut through the air. Marco drew his sword instantly and cut down an arrow flying toward Monar’s head.
"There are archers!"
A rain of arrows followed the next second.
Azel tightened his grip on his bow, ran ahead of the group, and drew the string. There was no light arrow this time, but it wasn’t necessary. A bullet of wind shot out the moment he released the string, shattering the incoming arrows.
"Can you tell how many there are?" Mitsuki asked, pulling out his shotgun.
"Yes," Monar replied. "I’ll find out."
He waved his staff without stopping and summoned a gentle wave of mana that spread across the ground. His expression turned confused when he learned the truth.
"There are only two..."
Marco frowned at the answer.
"If they won’t let us pass, we’ll have to kill them."
"I’ll handle it," Azel said. He loaded four light arrows into his bow and aimed toward one of the alleys. "No one’s going to prove to be a better archer than me."
With his hawk-like eyes, he spotted the silhouettes of the attackers within the darkness of the alleys. Those entities moved at great speed, slipping from one shadow to another while aiming their bows.
Soon, another rain of arrows appeared. Mitsuki saw it and, despite the piercing fear, jumped using Ash Propulsion. He loaded the shotgun, aimed, and fired. A large portion of his mana burned away as a massive fireball exploded alongside the arrows.
Taking advantage of the opening, Azel fired. The light arrows traveled through the darkness and struck one of the attackers, but it wasn’t enough to kill him.
"Still not enough!"
He was about to fire again, but something stopped him.
’What the hell?!’ Mitsuki shouted inwardly.
At the end of the road, in a dead-end alley, a large and mysterious being stood waiting for them, a massive axe resting on its shoulder.