Chapter 291: Execution Ground of Hunger and Thirst (1/2)

“Shadow Bind!” [Remilie]

Something akin to black ropes shot out from right under the feet of the two armor and took away their spear, then like a pair of puppets whose strings have been cut, they collapsed.

“Capture complete.” [Remilie]

“That was fast.” [Ryouma]

The spears bound by ropes of shadows weren’t being held by anyone or anything yet they were going wild as though they were. I could tell through my Mana Perception that the spears were emanating more mana than the armor themselves, so they must be the main body of the monsters.

I’ve heard of an undead monster that floated on their own and attacked other creatures known as Roaming Weapon, so that must be what these are. Apparently, weapons that have been stored in places abundant with mana, or those that have slain many people or monsters have a tendency to become a Roaming Weapon.

“Those prison guards were armed, and now there are these armor. Just where are all these coming from?” [Ryouma]

“Zombies and skeletons regenerate when they’re harmed, right?　Similarly, these higher undead can produce their own equipment. They are considered a part of them.” [Reinbach]

“You could take it as them trying to look like they did when they were alive.” [Sebasu]

“I see.” [Ryouma]

The Roaming Weapons continued to rampage while we talked. But after Remilie-san shot a Light Ball at them, they stopped moving, and when she undid their shackles, they fell to the floor lifeless. Although the monsters were in the shape of a weapon, Light Magic remained effective all the same.

But more importantly…

“Was that Shadow Magic just now?” [Ryouma]

“Shadow Bind. As you can see, it’s a spell that conjures a rope made out of shadows. It’s hard to use, but it’s convenient because you can freely manipulate it to some extent. You could use it to shackle your enemies, use it to fix an object into place, and it can also be used as a safety rope in times of emergency.” [Remilie]

“Oh, I’d love to learn it.” [Ryouma]

“I figured you’d say that. I’ll tell you more about it after we get the Everlasting Darkness (Herb). Oh, and take a look at this.” [Remilie]

Remilie-san cast another spell on the spears lying on the ground.

“Dispel.” [Remilie]

A faint light enveloped the motionless spears, and after awhile, it vanished into them.

“Roaming Weapons become just weapons after they’ve been defeated, but occasionally, dark mana would linger and harm their bearer mentally and physically in the form of a curse. You use dispel to undo the curse. If you use this spell and properly do away with the curse, the weapon will be safe to use, and you can use it for yourself or sell it back at town.

By the way, curses can also be cast with Dark Magic, so it’s a good idea to learn some countermeasures. I’ll teach it to you later along with Shadow Magic.” [Remilie]

“Thank you. I’ll look forward to it.” [Ryouma]

The Execution Ground of Hunger and Thirst was just up ahead, so I was hoping to get that herb already, but… Apparently, it wasn’t going to be that simple. I could pick up a lot of mana coming from beyond the door.

“There’s an enemy up ahead, huh.” [Ryouma]

“It’s expected. It’s the place easiest for undead to spawn from, after all. Ryouma and I will take the front, while the remaining three of you will provide cover from behind. And Ryouma, leave behind an emperor slime here to keep us from getting flanked.” [Schieber]

“Definitely the most important part.” [Reinbach]

“Very well, I’ll leave the close combat to you two then.” [Remilie]

“I have no complaints with that formation.” [Sebasu]

“I agree too. I’ll have the slimes split out a king, and then I’ll leave the rest to protect our back.” [Ryouma]

After that, we braced ourselves and carefully opened the door.

「「「Kahhhh!!!」」」 [Ghouls]

The three ghouls from in front reacted to our presence immediately and attacked with a scream, so I calmly cut them down with my light enchanted katana and advanced into the execution grounds while unleashing a barrage of Lightshots.

Inside was exactly as I’ve been told. There was a spiral staircase that extended downward in a counterclockwise fashion. Each step was wide in order to accommodate the shackling of the death row prisoners. Overall, they were about 7 meters wide and 3 meters long each. As we made our way down, I noticed that there were also larger landings that appeared in regular intervals. With plenty of room for our footing, fighting here shouldn’t be a problem.

If there’s anything to pay attention to, it would be the empty center of the spiral staircase. I’m sure there had been railings in the past, but right now, there’s basically nothing keeping us from falling. I should stay close to the walls as much as possible so I don’t get pushed out of the stairs.

“More are coming!” [Remilie]

I commanded the King Scavenger to take on the undead coming from below, but three shadows jumped past it.

“Lightshot!” [Remilie]

Remilie-san immediately shot one down, while the remaining two ghouls were taken care of by Schieber-san and me. Meanwhile, ghouls continued to climb up from below. Apparently, most of the undead here were of the higher variant.

One of those rushing at us tried to cut me down with its claws. But while they’re indeed fast compared to zombies…

“They’re still too slow.” [Ryouma]

Before its claws could even descend, I mowed down its body, then I lopped off its head, causing it to fall behind, motionless, unable to even regenerate. A sword enchanted with light-attribute mana was effective even against the stronger variants of the undead, so as long as I took care not to be surrounded or fall off, fighting them wasn’t a problem.

“Let’s keep this up and take them out at the next landing. Get your slimes to take care of the bodies by our feet, will you, Ryouma? It will be hard to fight if they start to pile up.” [Schieber]

I did as Schieber-san instructed and defeated the undead one after another as we made our way for the landing. Meanwhile, Reinbach-sama, Sebasu-san, and Remilie-san supported us from behind by whittling down the enemy with their spells.

And to make sure that none of the ghouls approached them, I made sure to keep a steady outpour of my light magic and always kept moving. This is the most dangerous battle we’ve fought since coming to this Town of Departed Spirits. Yet despite that, I’m not worked up at all. My whole body feels good as though all the tension has been relieved from it. It was just like when I was fighting Schieber-san.

…But it’s still not enough. Just like that time, there’s still a slight awkwardness to my movements and my magic.

“Ryouma! Don’t use your magic and sword at the same time! Use them alternately!” [Schieber]

“!　Understood!” [Ryouma]