The Oriole Behind

Although he didn't know what was happening over there... the antlers realized that "Thunder's" screams might attract giants.

Therefore, his first reaction was to randomly block three road gates that he had not opened before.

He didn't know exactly where these doors led.

They hadn't yet found the kitchen or the Banquet Hall —the place where the "Magic Cauldron" was located. They also hadn't found the giant couple's bedroom. To avoid blocking the path to the "Magic Cauldron," the antlers hadn't sealed any room doors.

But they have clearly explored more than one safe route.

Even when chased by giants, they had their own escape routes.

In this situation, blocking any door you've never seen before is definitely not a bad idea.

I don't know if the giant can be blocked... but at least it can block the way for other squads to arrive, or block the way for Thunder and his men to escape.

—If you're lucky enough, you might even be able to trap the strongest Aleister in a dead end!

With everyone unfamiliar with the area, further compressing everyone's space for movement... This is undoubtedly an advantage for their team, which consists of assassins capable of stealthily moving through such dark environments and necromancers who can convert corpses into immediate combat power.

As a spellcasting profession, necromancers are highly dependent on mediums. The mediums for necromancers' spells are related to bones, either bone staves made of bone, such as shinbones or spines; or spell implements made of skulls; or shields made of bone fragments.

Without a medium, his spellcasting becomes extremely slow. He must perform lengthy incantations or rituals to cast spells.

After a low chant lasting seven or eight seconds, a dark yellow, semi-transparent beam of light shot out from his hands, piercing the darkness he had gradually grown accustomed to.

The beam of light shot towards the door at incredible speed, leaving a distinct petrification mark on the bronze door. Using the faint light provided by the beam itself, the antlers aimed the Petrification Ray at the doorknob. After petrifying for about two or three seconds, until the doorknob had completely turned into stone even more brittle than bronze, he stopped casting the spell.

How much mana do you have left?

Lily suddenly asked.

"There are still many."

The deer antlers calmly replied, "Resurrecting a fresh corpse consumes almost no mana; the longer the body has been dead, the more mana it consumes."

His words carried a hint of warning.

He keenly sensed a hint of malice in Mr. Gray's voice. To dispel his temporary teammate's idea of harming him, he reminded him, "You must have some trump cards too, right? I have mine too—don't forget I was the first one here."

Mr. Gray did not reply.

Lily had decided to kill him, but now she was still waiting. Waiting quietly, like a spider in its web.

When Gray and Antlers arrived, they found that the giant had not yet come.

Surprisingly, there was a faint light. This was the first light Lily saw as she entered the ritual. After her eyes adjusted to the darkness, the light was even a little dazzling.

There are three people here.

One of them had fallen unconscious and lay to the side. The other, with an unpredictable expression, squatted next to the unconscious person.

Another person, who didn't seem to be in good spirits, stood calmly away from the firelight.

He leaned leisurely against the wall, only his chin slightly illuminated by the light. He raised his hand and greeted the approaching antlers and the "King" beside him with a friendly wave.

Glancing at the quiet "King," the man's lips curled into a slight smile, "I think you are the antlers, aren't you?"

Upon hearing this, the young soldier who was not unconscious looked up.

"... Thunder?"

"I asked tentatively," the deer antlers asked.

"No, I am a knight."

The young man replied, "Thunder has already fallen unconscious... all because of this Dark Cloud."

"How can you blame me for this?"

The dark cloud chuckled and retorted, "Not a single secret I told was a lie. And you're still keeping your head up, aren't you?"

The knight gave a cold laugh, remaining noncommittal.

Lily could clearly sense that the atmosphere surrounding the knight had changed slightly.

It's not about depravity, nor is it about madness. It's more like someone waking up from a dream, or a child suddenly growing up.

What secret did he overhear? How could he have changed so drastically in such a short time...?

But suddenly, the deer antlers reached out and touched its forehead.

This was the code he and Lily had agreed upon, meaning that Lily should kill one person first.

"Who are you going to kill?" Lily looked up.

A gray spiderweb, visible only to her, spread out from beneath her feet.

Thunder fell into a coma, while the Cavaliers were just young men. And they were still protecting the comatose Mr. Thunder.

The most threatening one is the one the knight calls "Dark Cloud"...

Lily gradually faded into the shadows and glided away at high speed.

The next moment, gray threads silently appeared on the neck of the dark cloud.

An immense force, seemingly from nowhere, dragged him backward at breakneck speed, disappearing into the darkness in the blink of an eye.

"—The Strangulation Gang?!"

The knight frowned and blurted out.

At that moment, the "King," who had been standing quietly beside the antlers, suddenly rushed over and punched the knight in the chin.

None of them had weapons. But they were all incredibly strong.

Compared to the somewhat stiff movements of the "King," the knight's movements were very agile.

He slightly tilted his head to dodge the punch, reached out and grabbed the linen cloth at the "King's " collar, shoved him backward, and then suddenly pulled him, causing the "King" to lose his balance.

As the "King" staggered, the knight grabbed the back of his head with both hands and simultaneously raised his knee, slamming it hard into the bridge of his nose! — A blow that would have knocked someone unconscious.

Therefore, the knight raised his head and looked warily at the antlers.

Compared to the King, who was the last to enter the ceremony, the antlers, as the first to enter, must have had something to offer.

The deer raised its right hand, seemingly pointing it at itself.

The knight slowly strode to the side—he was ready to dash away the moment he saw the object, then rush to the antlers and punch him! But at that moment, his mind suddenly went blank.

It was as if he had blacked out from being drunk... When his vision returned, the King he had knocked to the ground was already there beside him like a ghost.

He showed no signs of having been attacked; his movements were exceptionally agile, and his eyes remained completely still.

But I clearly broke his nose!

Then the "King" pulled something out of his robes—and in the next instant, thorns, as if alive, sprang from between his fingers and transformed into three whips.

The King suddenly raised his hand, and the thorn whip flew over, attempting to entangle the knight.

Seeing this, the knight tried to retreat, but his retreat speed was no match for the speed at which the vines were growing.

As he was about to exit the light, he finally couldn't resist raising his palm like a knife and trying to slash at the vines with all his might—

The sharp wind severed the vines, and just then, the knight seized the opportunity, his entire body bursting with lightning, transforming his palm into a fist, and slamming it heavily into the King's chin!

A burst of lightning crackled and exploded where the knight's fist had landed, burning the knight's own fist as well.

Fortunately, this time the King was struck by a few sparks of electricity, staggered a couple of steps, and finally collapsed.

The knight had just breathed a sigh of relief.

Then, Deer Antlers snapped his fingers and calmly gave the command.

"—Rise again."

He finished speaking.

The fallen "King" recovered from his injuries as if time had reversed, and then got up again completely unharmed.

The antlers thought to themselves that they had roughly exhausted the knight's stamina.

He placed his hands together, fingers touching, in front of his chest and began to chant a petrifying spell in a low voice.

At that moment, Thunder finally woke up.

As soon as he woke up, he saw someone attacking the knight—

He suddenly raised his hand, and a dazzling light exploded in the air.

Antlers, the knight, and Lily, who had just strangled that man, were all caught off guard and struck at the same time.

Everyone was blinded by his brilliance, losing their sight. The antlers' spell and the knight's parry were interrupted simultaneously.

Only the "King" continued to act normally, attempting to launch an attack.

"—The undead!"

He shouted loudly and suddenly rushed forward, shoving the King aside with his shoulder.

His fists gleamed with a hazy white light as he unleashed a series of incredibly powerful punches. He knocked the King down in less than three seconds, then reached out and pressed his hand against the King's face.

A burst of white light erupted from his palm. The light pierced directly through the King's head and exploded in all directions.

After the thunderbolt's hand was removed, the King's head began to burn silently. He tried to move, but gradually fell silent. The King would never rise again.

What's your profession?

The antlers weren't in a hurry to attack; instead, they asked curiously, "I've never seen anything like it before."

"... Holy Warrior".

Thunder answered briefly. His voice was hoarse, and he seemed quite listless.

The antlers pointed to the lights behind them. "Speaking of which, how come your lights are like this..."

Halfway through the conversation, Thunder suddenly lowered his head and bent over, raising his left arm—forming a roughly circular light shield on his forearm, completely absorbing the Petrification Ray that Deer Antler had instantly shot out with his raised right index finger.

"I guessed it, Your Excellency."

Lei Ting's lips curled up slightly. "You still need to practice more... Your intentions are too obvious."

"—And what about mine?"

A sinister and evil voice rang out.

The black hunting dog suddenly rushed out from a blind spot.

Upon seeing the hunting dog, Deer Antlers abandoned "Gray" without hesitation and turned to run away.

Thunder immediately turned around and used his shield to block, but the hound bit the light shield without hesitation—it only held on for a moment before shattering it.

The instant the light shield shattered, countless urchin-like blades suddenly shot out from the hound's body, piercing right through Thunder's body! Thunder's entire body burst into white flames as he slammed his fist down on the hound. But the hound suddenly melted before his fist could touch it, falling to the ground and disappearing without a trace.

A figure, dripping with black liquid shadows, slowly approached and came into view within the light's range.

He was shrouded in shadow, with only a pair of eyes that gleamed with an eerie purple light visible. A Shadow Hound reappeared from his shadow, circling him incessantly. Beneath his feet lay a large area of shadow that shifted and bubbled like boiling mud as he moved forward.

"What a coincidence, everyone's here."

Aleister murmured, "It saves the cat time from catching mice... doesn't it?"

"You wicked beast!"

Thunder roared, then turned to the knight and shouted, "Run—find the Holy Lance!"

The knight hesitated for a moment upon seeing this, but finally nodded.

Aleister did not pursue him.

He simply put his hands behind his back, looked at Lei Ting with some curiosity, and asked, "What secret did that man tell you? Can you tell me?"

"I have nothing to say to you, you demon!"

Thunder answered loudly without hesitation, "Go eat shit with your demon master!"

The next moment, a sharp spear formed from shadows pierced through Iver without hesitation from the boiling swamp of shadows beneath him, instantly penetrating him. The shadows, capable of corroding the Grimoire, instantly corroded and disintegrated Thunder's entire body, leaving no trace of his remains.

Silence fell again around them.

Iver crouched down, reached out and petted the hunting dog, and said helplessly, "Don't get so excited..."

"... There should only be the two of them left."

Lily appeared silently behind Iver: "Should we chase after them and kill them?"

"No need, it's just the first Promotion Ritual. If it's just about winning, it's not difficult at all."

Iver shook his head. "The goal is to seek lost history from the Dream Realm and obtain stronger entries... I'll see if I can get a higher level of Shadow Affinity."

"Besides that, I'm planning to go see the Holy Lance —do you want to come?"

"I'll go with the young master."

Lily said softly, "Wherever you say we want to go, I'll go."

There was a hint of sadness in her voice.

7,000 words, update complete!