Wolves of Hader

Chapter 134

About two hours had passed.

By the time my whole body was drenched in sweat and my armor was caked in dirt, someone shouted.

"The giants have all fallen!"

"Let's head to the sea and rest for a bit!"

"To the sea!"

Those who had been hunting monsters throughout the village rushed into the sea.

Even after two hours of fighting them, there were still plenty of the creatures left.

Everyone caught their breath as they looked back at the village.

The monsters couldn't enter the sea, and instead, they just let out guttural roars—"Krrr! Krrrrrk!"—and went wild.

"Allen! What are you doing!"

"I hate water!"

Only Allen kept charging around, refusing to join the rest.

He claimed to hate water, but the guy loved fire—enough to burn even his friends' hair.

"Tuji, how is it? It's much better, right?"

"Yes. My accuracy has improved a lot. Strangely, sometimes the distant ones looked close. Why is that?"

"That's because the elemental condensed your sight."

"I see."

Although Allen took down most of the rock ogres, the Tuji brothers got about ten each as well.

It seemed what I said while passing on archer techniques finally hit home for them.

The Tuji brothers gained new techniques this time.

Tuji got the Defender skill that used a sword.

Uson received assassination and buff techniques.

Both of them also learned separate archer skills.

The archery I passed on didn't match their bow skills yet, but over time, I figured it would have a huge impact on their accuracy.

And that was being proven in real combat.

Before, both had relied solely on their sight and sensations to fire arrows.

Now, with an elemental's help, everything changed.

If the elemental recognized the archer's intent properly, you could hit targets even more accurately.

As your level increased, your target looked enlarged—as if zoomed in.

"Eat this."

"Thanks."

I chewed on the jerky Donnie handed over.

Everyone's faces were bright, despite the exhaustion.

For many, this was their first experience, and they had seen their own improvements firsthand.

"Yahoo! Die!"

Allen smashed through the monsters lined up before us.

He'd come crashing down—boom!—crushing nearby monsters, and then—thud!—would bounce off and fly at the next.

"Allen's going to get tired out like that."

"Just let him be. He knows his own stamina."

I glanced at the officers.

"How's it going?"

"It's invigorating. I can see my skills improving as I fight. I feel myself getting faster, my leaps higher. I think I'm getting stronger, too."

All the officers felt the same.

As your skill rank goes up, the flow of magic power quickens. You handle more magic energy at once.

Repeat that process, and the body starts craving more magic power—the vessel prepares to grow. Then, at some point, the path opens right up.

Whether your body gets a shock of magic, or you reach some realization, the "gate" of magic opens in almost the same way. I just tweaked their bodies a bit, so that the gate would open smoothly.

"Bellen and Lok are coming!"

KUUOOO—

A real ogre's thunderous roar echoed. Birds scattered, and animals rushed away in fear.

"Special forces!"

"Yes, sir!"

"Lure the forest giant while taking out the rock monsters! We need to deal with the monsters first, then get it! That thing is just a big beast, it shouldn't be hard!"

"Understood!"

I looked at the rest of the group.

Everyone except the special forces will move in.

"Are you ready?"

"Of course!"

"We're going straight to the cave!"

Donnie and Hans dashed out first.

Swinging hammers to clear the way, they ran toward the cave leading to the Guardian's lair.

"Bellen! Lok! This way!"

"Yes!"

The cave that led to the Guardian's den had originally just been a narrow crack—with no real entrance. Monsters smashing through had created an opening.

"I'm coming too!"

Allen leaped down from above, racing ahead of us. Thanks to his Bouncy Boots, he moved at a full sprint.

We headed straight into the cave.

KUKWAKWAKWA—

Allen plowed through the pouring monsters, smashing everything as he pushed forward. With him clearing the path, everyone behind had it almost too easy.

"Allen! Aren't you burning too much energy?"

"Donnie! Are you worrying about me now?"

"I just thought you'd end up begging for rescue!"

"Donnie, you!"

Allen shot a glance behind him.

"Be my friend!"

I nearly burst out laughing.

"Are you crazy?"

"Roger-elder brother won't be friends with me!"

"You must've been really lonely!"

"Why does everyone keep leaving me out?"

KU-KWAKANG—

Allen barreled through the monsters as though exploding with pent-up grief.

Donnie shouted again.

"You don't even have friends back in your homeland, do you?"

"I do!"

"You got ostracized there too, right? After you set your friends' heads on fire as a kid, you never made another friend, did you?"

"That's not true!"

"You don't have friends, so you lash out at others! Everyone's so scared of your grandfather that nobody dared rein you in!"

"It's not true! It's not!"

"So you came into the world, and still no one likes you! Why do you think that is?"

"What do you want from me?!"

"Look ahead!"

A giant suddenly lunged at Allen, but Donnie and Hans struck its belly and side, moving in first. Thanks to them, Allen was safe.

"Come with us! Buddy!"

"Screw off!"

Donnie and Hans opened the path, Allen followed clearing out the rest, and onward we went. Running beside me, the officer Mango cautiously asked,

"Was young Dran always like this?"

"It's just Allen."

"Is he mentally ill?"

"Probably."

"Hahahaha!"

The members who'd been holding back burst out laughing. Bellen sighed, Lok snickered, and I couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for Allen—maybe he'd really been deeply lonely.

Is there anyone without a wound in their heart? People can look odd, but everyone has their own circumstances. If you know those circumstances, you can understand—but not knowing is what makes it strange.

The same was true for me.

In my previous life, I grew up without my parents, dropped out of high school. I was so poor, I obsessed over success.

I became a founding member of a major guild, and stepped down on a lot of people. I was seriously obsessed with money. I did succeed that way in the end, but there came a moment when everything felt empty.

That was when Ailin left this world. She died in an accident, and not long after, even my comforting dog "Loki" passed away. Only then did I truly look at myself.

I failed to protect love and happiness.

No one was left around me.

Money brought no comfort to my life.

Even now, it hasn't changed much.

My obsession with success has only grown. The only difference is that now, I know who I am; before, I didn't.

That's why I never forget.

Never to repeat my previous life.

"Stop! We walk from here!"

"We'll move on foot!"

The number of monsters following us had decreased, so we slowed down. We couldn't keep running all the way to the Guardian's lair. The outflow of monsters had lessened too.

Donnie, Hans, and Allen led at the front.

The rest of the members held off the monsters at the rear.

Brai asked,

"Have you been here before?"

"Yes. About three hours in, a beast will show up."

Mango added,

"You've been through so much at your age. It's boring as hell in the capital or with the Goon. I wish I could've had adventures with the boss too."

"Yeah, really."

"During training, we'd hear about Captain Roger and the Hader House every day. It felt like being told an epic. So much has happened."

Everyone laughed at Brai's words.

Things had been... eventful for us.

There were far more good days, though.

The officers had heard most of what we had done—founding the share-based merchant guild, heading blindly to the Robe, toppling the Order, fighting Syren, and more.

It was a constant stream of surprises, they said. Now I knew why Count Watts introduced me the way he did. That's probably why they agreed to call me "Captain," as promised.

Maybe that's why. The officers seemed to consider meeting me a stroke of luck. Not only had they drawn closer to us, they saw the real possibility that we could be the Sword of Light.

The number of monsters pouring out at once decreased drastically. It seemed most of the Guardian's subordinate monsters had been outside. Maybe it deliberately sent so many out.

That was when it happened.

"Roger-elder brother! Something's coming!"

I sensed it, too!

"Danger ahead!"

Something came tearing in!

ZZZJJJJJJK—

Cracks started racing across the ceiling. Stones started falling, then in an instant, the whole thing collapsed.

I hurriedly put up a barrier.

KWAKWAKWANG—

/ / /

Fortunately, we weren't completely buried.

My body was pinned beneath rocks both big and small. The officers near me were trapped as well.

"Everyone okay?"

"Yes! We're fine thanks to the armor!"

"Lok and I are alright too!"

Thanks to the barrier, the big rocks didn't fall on the party. But now the way ahead and behind was blocked.

"Donnie! Donnie, answer me!"

No response.

"Donnie! Hans! Allen!"

I strained my ears for any answer, but nothing came back. Were they completely buried? Thanks to their armor, they shouldn't have died.

"Clear the rocks and open the way up ahead!"

"Yes, sir!"

The members and officers pushed to stand and move the rocks. Unlike with rock monsters, real rocks don't break easily even when hammered—it just hurts your hand.

"Are the three at the front alright?"

"They probably passed out. Air could become an issue, so we have to hurry."

We began digging out the totally blocked way ahead. I hadn't realized the Guardian's telekinesis could reach this far. I thought it would just pick up nearby rocks and attack.

Now I understood why the monsters had been sent out. When their numbers exceeded its ability to control, it sent some out deliberately. A tougher Guardian than expected.

Was the Guardian also holding the collapsed boulders in place? It was hard to break through the blockage. You couldn't even see ahead. And with oxygen running low, we couldn't light a torch.

"Ah."

I'd completely forgotten.

Magic gloves.

I pulled the magic gloves out of my backpack and put them on. I'd never imagined I'd use these so soon; I thought I'd never get a chance in my life.

"Step back and line up on the left!"

"Understood!"

The team fell back, hugging the left wall.

Once everyone was clear, I grabbed the massive boulder blocking the way and heaved with all my might.

KWA-RRRR—

Pulling out the big rock at the bottom, the whole mass above it crumbled at once. Still, the way didn't open up.

These gloves let you lift heavy things—they have decent power, but it's only about as strong as Allen when he really uses his strength.

I rolled the displaced rocks back, kept pulling up more, and pushed them backward. How far had the collapse gone? No matter how much I pulled, rocks kept pouring down.

That's when it happened.

THUD—THUD—

I heard something from further ahead.

"Donnie!"

Straining to listen, I caught a faint shout.

—Young lord! Are you safe?

It was Donnie calling for me.

"We're all fine! What about you guys?"

—We're fine, too! We'll dig you out! Allen is working hard—watch out!

KU-KWAKANG—

From up ahead came the sound of collapsing rock.

—Damn it! Why does it keep caving in!

—The earth's pouring in! Get out of there!

—Help me! I'm buried!

—Should've grown taller!

—Are you making a race joke right now?!

We resumed breaking through the blockage.

This cave is pretty long, so if we keep getting held up like this, it'll be hard to reach the Guardian's lair.

—Ah! Young lord! Monster! Monster!

A monster?!

Where?

Right at that moment—

A sinister energy seeped into the pile of rocks I'd been excavating, and it started to move.

"Lok! Light a torch!"

"Yes!"

KURRRRRNG— KWAKWAKWA—

The blockage ahead began to tremble and shift. Wind burst in from above and ahead.

Suddenly, something pounced.

THUD—

I shoved the incoming monster into the wall. Stones cracked and fell in a cascade. At that moment, snap—the space was suddenly lit up.

"Damn!"

A groan rose among the officers.

The rock piles blocking the tunnel were growing bigger, gradually forming into the shape of bears.

It wasn't just one or two. They weren't able to move fully yet, but soon. On top of that, the upper part had been punched through—the Guardian had collapsed part of the ground above the cave at once.

"Lok! Go check up above!"

"Yes!"

Lok dashed in, kicked the ground powerfully, and shot upward. Meanwhile, we started smashing the soon-to-awaken rock monsters with hammers.

"Unbelievable! Roger-elder brother!"

"What?"

"There are stairs here!"

"What do you mean? Stairs?!"

"See for yourself!"

There was a secret chamber above the cave?

Stairs, of all things, out of nowhere?

"Everyone, head up! I'll toss you up one by one, starting with Bellen!"

"Yes!"

I crouched and interlaced my fingers for a boost. With the gloves' strength, I could toss everyone up to the upper chamber.

THUK—

I supported Bellen's foot as she ran up and boosted her. Next, the officers. Meanwhile, the Tuji brothers and members battered the rock monsters.

"Get up there now!"

The Tuji brothers went first, then the members went up one at a time. Soon, a rope dropped down.

KRRRRK!

Dodging the swipe of a monster's hand, I caught the rope. The members quickly pulled me up.

"Whew!"

Exhaling hard, I looked ahead.

Everyone was standing there, dumbfounded.

I was shocked, too.

It wasn't a natural cavern.

It was a palace, with marble laid on the floor.

An unimaginably huge palace.