Silence. An eerie silence that made my skin crawl.
Torch raised, I followed Boc into the Coastal Cave with Ishutobon, the "Ancient Knight," beside me.
This place was quite similar to the Groveside Cave. Beyond the initial passage lay a small cavern, with a winding slope along its edge formed by rocks curving halfway around it.
Farther down lay an even larger cavern, with another narrow path at its far end leading straight to a small island out at sea.
According to the game's enemy placements, six or seven Demi-Humans should have been guarding the small cavern, with a sneaky bastard hiding around the corner at the bottom of the slope to ambush us.
The stupid part was that before ambushing you, the Demi-Humans would shout, giving you a fright before getting utterly wrecked.
But now we had crossed more than half the cave without seeing a single Demi-Human. Only a few little withered trees remained, their branches trembling faintly.
"Strange. Where did all the Demi-Humans go?" Ishutobon grew suspicious too. "Aha! I know! They must have heard of our reputations, brother, and fled in terror! Hahaha-"
Uh... forget I said anything.
"I don't have much of a reputation, sir," I quipped, reminding Ishutobon to stay cautious.
Boc walked carefully at the front, muttering something too quietly for me to make out.
"Boc." I called him to a halt.
Just ahead lay the large cavern at the deepest point-the boss room.
It was dim and hollow inside. We could hear thin streams of water seeping through the ceiling and dripping onto the ground, forming puddles that covered almost the entire cavern. A bonfire burned on each of the dry banks at the near and far ends.
Beside the nearer bonfire, the Demi-Human Chief's towering figure stood in plain sight.
Boc took a deep breath, his voice trembling slightly but filled with resolve. "Let me handle this, Lord Zero."
With that, he walked toward the Demi-Human Chief.
Ishutobon and I exchanged a glance, then followed behind Boc.
Along one side of the cavern, a tall stone pillar supported the rock overhead, with thick weeds and shrubs growing around its base.
Our presence drew the attention of several small Demi-Humans by the distant bonfire. They picked up their weapons and approached as well.
"Chief, it's... it's been a while," Boc greeted the Demi-Human Chief.
Much as in the game, the Demi-Human Chief looked like a dog-headed humanoid halfway through its evolution. His limbs were lean and powerful, but he had yet to fully abandon a crawling posture.
A gray pelt draped his back, adorned with several beast horns of varying sizes-or something like them. They were probably symbols of his status as chief.
At the sight of Boc and us behind him, the Demi-Human Chief stood up.
Unlike Boc, however, he couldn't speak human language. He could only howl and growl.
Boc switched back to the Demi-Humans' language to communicate with him.
"It's been a while, and you've even brought back two pieces of prey. Well done!"
"N-no, Chief. I... I only came to get back what my mother left me. Lord Zero and the others have nothing to do with it... O-of course, if you're willing to submit to Lord Zero, he'll show mercy and spare everyone."
"Hmph. What a joke. You think I'll do as you say just because you found two Tarnished to back you up?"
Ishutobon leaned closer and asked quietly, "Zero, can you understand the Demi-Humans' language?"
"Hm? Not a word."
"Then just now, you..."
"Haha, I was just making things up." My answer left Ishutobon looking rather dumbfounded.
"L-Lord Zero would never lose to you!" Boc suddenly shouted. "And neither will I! Even if it takes everything I have, I'll get back what my mother left me! I won't give up-"
To my surprise, he drew a dagger and lunged at the Demi-Human Chief.
But his opponent knocked Boc back with a single sweep of his arm.
The next instant, the Demi-Human Chief drew the Twinblades at his waist and leaped up, like a beast opening its jaws wide, determined to swallow Boc whole.
But-
"Storm Stomp!"
A gale erupted, effortlessly blasting the airborne Demi-Human Chief away.
He deftly flipped backward in midair, landed, and glared viciously at me.
"Looks like negotiations have completely broken down, Boc!" I stepped in front of Boc and drew my Straight Sword. "But you said it well. If something's been stolen, you take it back. Anyone who only bullies the weak is nothing but trash. There's no reason to fear them!"
"Raaagh!" The Demi-Human Chief roared in fury.
In an instant, the shrubs in the cavern rustled, and another Demi-Human Chief sprang out of the shadows.
A crowd of Demi-Humans poured out behind him, shrieking as they moved to surround us.
But I had help too.
"Hyaaah!" The Cavalry Saber swept out with full force, driving the other Demi-Human Chief back in a single blow.
"To think there really were two big fellows here. Now this won't be boring!" Ishutobon rested his great saber on his shoulder and confidently beckoned his opponent with a finger.
"Graaaagh!" Demi-Human cries rang out from outside the cavern as well.
The few trees that had stood in the other small cavern had turned into Demi-Humans, waving cleavers as they blocked our exit.
Caught like rats in a trap. I hadn't expected these Demi-Humans to be clever enough to set an ambush... or had my preconceptions made me underestimate them?
A cunning gleam shone in the Demi-Human Chief's eyes.
It seemed anyone who could survive the dangerous chaos after the Elden Ring's shattering, and even carve out a place for themselves, had to possess some exceptional qualities.
"Commendable." I smiled faintly. "But it's still not enough."
Wolf howls soon rang out beyond the cavern. The White Wolf King arrived with his pack, Kale, and my Three Wolf Spirits, surrounding our ambushers in turn and catching the Demi-Humans blocking the entrance off guard.
The Demi-Human Chiefs looked slightly startled, while I spread my hands. "I'm a coward too, after all. Why would I stroll straight into your trap on purpose without making thorough preparations first...? Well, you probably don't understand a word I'm saying, so we'll just do as you wish. Let the killing begin!"
"Graaaagh!" Perhaps losing patience, both Demi-Human Chiefs roared at once and led the smaller Demi-Humans in a charge.
"Storm Stomp!"
"Weapon Skill-Gravity!"
Roaring winds and gravity magic mingled in the cavern, shaking and pulling at everything. Even the Demi-Human Chiefs struggled to keep their footing, let alone the other, scrawnier Demi-Humans.
The wolves and Kale also broke through the defenses at the cave entrance, charging into the water-covered cavern.
For a time, the roars of Demi-Humans and wild wolves rose one after another. Blades clanged and magic erupted in succession, plunging the entire cavern into chaos.
Amid it all, the lead fighters on both sides played an incomparable role.
The Demi-Human Chief might have been agile, but a tree that couldn't withstand a gale could only be snapped!
"Raaagh!"
He roared furiously, swinging the daggers in both hands as he attacked with frantic, digging motions.
But hey, don't blame me for spamming my easy-mode Weapon Skill!
"Storm Stomp!"
The Demi-Human Chief instantly lost his footing, his assault forcibly interrupted.
Seizing that opening, I lunged forward and drove my sword straight through his chest.
Critical strike-one hit!
The Demi-Human Chief still seemed unwilling to give in. With difficulty, he raised his arm, trying to bring his blade down on my back.
"Lord Zero!" Boc suddenly leaped up, clamped his feet around the Demi-Human Chief's head, and raised his dagger high before plunging it down.
[Enemy Felled]
When I turned, Ishutobon had already cut off the other Demi-Human Chief's head with his great saber.
Seeing their chiefs fall, the remaining little ones immediately lost their will to fight. One by one, they curled up on the ground, clutching their heads in surrender.
And just like that, the Coastal Cave was cleared with ease!
Before you continue