At Pulhart's command, Yomode Stonebrow gathered several dwarves who had entered the cave with him. Using their individual impressions and memories, they pieced together a crooked map of the tunnels, though its reliability was highly questionable.
Soon, torches and other lighting equipment were ready. Several dwarves led the way into the cave, with Pulhart and the soldiers still fit to fight close behind. Unas and Erigor were naturally among them.
Everyone except Unas, who had just leveled up, was exhausted. But until the Dreadlord was dead, the battle would not be over.
Holding a torch and stooping slightly, Unas followed the group slowly through the tunnel. The stretch near the entrance was wide, but it grew lower and lower beyond that. Unas was only of average height, yet he was already bent nearly ninety degrees at the waist. He had serious doubts about how Pulhart, who stood over two meters tall, was managing to advance.
Sure enough, the group soon stopped, and an order to retreat came from the front. Fortunately, they had not gone in very far, and everyone was soon back outside.
Pulhart was dusty and disheveled. His large frame had become a hindrance inside the cave: at first he had bent over, but later he could only move in a crouch. According to the dwarves, there might be even narrower sections ahead, so he had no choice but to order an immediate retreat.
The Dreadlord could turn into a bat to pass through narrow openings, but he could not. It seemed the task of pursuing Bessarius would have to be left to someone else.
At his command, the taller soldiers were removed from the group. Of those who remained, the only one capable of leading was that rather unreliable lad. "Erigor, I'm leaving Bessarius to you. This demon is at its weakest right now. You must find it. If you can't kill it, drive it out here to me."
"Don't worry, sir. We'll definitely take it down." With great merit right before him, Erigor was rather excited. "Isn't that right, brothers!?"
"Yes!"
Erigor seemed quite popular. Many people shouted in response, and Unas was no exception. He had not forgotten the kindness of that beef jerky.
"Don't let your guard down. I shouldn't have to remind you how cunning this demon is," Pulhart warned. Then he waved a hand. "Go on in. Be careful above all."
The reduced group entered the cave again, with the dwarves still leading the way. After all, they had only just surrendered, and it was time for them to show their loyalty.
The two things dwarves loved most—ore and antiques—were both dug out of the ground. Ironforge, the kingdom of the Bronzebeard Dwarves, was even built within a vast mountain range. Most dwarves therefore spent their lives dealing with caves, and they ought to be the first to notice the slightest disturbance inside one.
The group advanced at a steady pace. The tunnel spiraled downward all the way, and the deep, dark cavern was like the gaping maw of an ancient beast, devouring every soul that dared trespass against it.
The farther down they went, the more likely they were to encounter an enemy, and the soldiers grew increasingly tense. Gradually, no one spoke anymore. Only the scrape of armor echoed around them. Affected by the oppressive atmosphere, Unas felt as though a shadow were weighing on his heart, making it somewhat difficult to breathe.
He was right behind Erigor. He nudged him in the waist and asked quietly, "There won't be any trouble, will there? Should we take a break?"
"More than a dozen of Bessarius's clones have been cut down. It must be extremely weak now." Erigor spoke loudly, seemingly to bolster everyone's courage. "We've already wasted a lot of time. We can't give it a chance to recover."
"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Bessarius has plagued people for years. Whoever kills it will be a demon-slaying hero. None of you had better fight me for it. There's a girl I'm trying to woo, and I badly need that hero title."
The soldiers burst into laughter. Everyone knew the "girl" he meant was Archmage Angela. The laughter relaxed them considerably, and Unas silently gave Erigor a thumbs-up. One harmless joke had dispelled the tense, oppressive atmosphere.
The group pressed on. After passing through a stretch of tunnel where they had practically had to crawl, the space ahead suddenly opened up. At last, there was room to catch their breath. As the soldiers arrived one by one, their torches lit the place up completely.
It was a spacious, domed stone chamber. Aside from the bags of earth and rock piled in the center, there was nothing in it. Two pitch-black openings lay in the opposite wall, one on the left and one on the right.
Before Erigor could ask, Jommod Stonebrow volunteered an explanation. "This room should be a transfer station for transporting earth and rock."
Erigor did not care about that. He pointed at the two openings ahead and asked, "Two paths. Which one should we take?"
"Um... we'll have to take a closer look."
Several dwarves began examining the two openings. One moment they were tapping at the walls; the next, they had disappeared into the tunnels. Finally, they gathered together and launched into a heated discussion. After all that, they still had no answer.
Erigor tapped the hilt of his sword again and again, feeling his patience wearing thin. At last, Stonebrow stepped forward to report. "Lord Erigor, according to our calculations, both openings were dug roughly half a year ago, but opening number one—that is, the one on the left—is newer than opening number two, the one on the right!"
"And?" Erigor was rather baffled. What do I care if it's new or old?
"The rock at opening number one is a little harder, but that difference can actually be ignored."
"..." Hard or soft rock? I'm not here to mine. What use is knowing that? Is this dwarf deliberately causing trouble? Erigor grew even more impatient, but he still had to rely on the dwarves for the way ahead, so he did his best to remain calm. "I need more useful information."
Stonebrow sensed that something was wrong with the atmosphere, but he continued nonetheless. "Judging by the marks on the ground, there should have been more traffic through opening number two, but that difference can also be ignored."
"Then why don't you tell me what can't be ignored?" Erigor suddenly raised his voice. These obstinate dwarves had nearly driven him mad.
"Um... that will require further investigation."
Erigor nearly spat out a mouthful of blood. After all that surveying and calculating, had the dwarves only come up with this useless garbage? And he had pinned all his hopes on them.
Which path should we take? Tossing a coin might be more efficient.
Seeing Erigor's troubled expression, Unas suggested, "Since there's no real difference between the two paths, either one could be right. Why don't we split our forces? One group is bound to catch the Dreadlord..."
"No." Hans suddenly spoke up, cutting him off. "What if we come to another fork later? Split up again? We don't know what's inside the cave. If Bessarius still has the strength to resist, we'll surely be picked off one group at a time if we keep splitting up."
How did this guy suddenly get so smart? That makes so much sense. For a moment, Unas could not refute him and could only pass the problem over to him. "Then what do you think we should do?"
"Uh..." Hans opened his mouth halfway, but could not get a single word out.
Sure enough, he's still a simpleton. He can't even change the subject.
"Let's split up once and go from there." Erigor struck his fist into his palm, having made up his mind.
Staying stuck here was a complete waste of time. The dwarves' research was bullshit; they might as well get moving.
The fifty-odd people who had come down together were divided into two groups. After hesitating for quite some time, Erigor placed Unas in command of the other group.
Only then did Unas realize with a start that, apparently, Erigor saw him as the warrior who had slain the Flesh Golem. That was also why Erigor treated him differently, giving him beef jerky and saving him when he fell from his horse. Now that Erigor trusted him so much, he could hardly refuse.
Besides, he was the one who had suggested splitting their forces, so he had to take on some responsibility.
Unas looked over his group. Three of the five dwarves had been assigned to his side, and both Yomode Stonebrow and Hans had been placed in his group. He could not help grumbling inwardly, Did Erigor take the opportunity to dump all the people he dislikes over here?
"Brother Unas, which path do you choose?"
From the information the dwarves had provided, Unas felt that the chances of encountering the Dreadlord were just a tiny bit higher through opening number two. So he did not hesitate in the slightest. "I choose number one."