Chapter 8 - Chapter 1: Entry #7
The stone door was large and solid but in the end, it was a stone tablet designed for opening and closing. Carack used his muscles and smashed it with the hammer.
It was obvious but the inside of the cave was dark. On top of that, it looked quite deep.
"The dwarves seem to have made this cave.”
Carack said with squinted eyes. In-gong had some questions.
“Dwarves? Are there dwarves in the Demon World?”
Just like how orcs were universally present in fantasy, Knight Saga also had dwarves.
They were a small species with thick shoulders and beards. Of course, they also had good strength, stamina and dexterity.
He’d been able to meet quite a number of dwarves when playing the human Locke. Right now, there was a dwarf among Locke’s companions.
However, it was different when playing Zephyr. Dwarves didn’t officially live in the Demon World.
Carack was dumbfounded by In-gong’s question. It seemed like he was surprised by something other than the question.
“Why?”
"No, you don’t remember your name but you know about dwarves.”
In-gong glared at him and Carack laughed awkwardly.
"I heard that they used to live here a long time ago. The Jishuka Mountains are slightly close to the Human World.”
"Did they move as a group?”
"That's what I heard. Well, it was a few hundred years ago, so no one knows why.”
It made sense. In-gong nodded and Carack continued.
"Well, I think this is a dwarf cave. After seeing the pieces on the door, does Prince think that it is impossible? Would orcs be able to punch through this cave?”
This place was the southern Jishuka Mountains. The cave required a large civil engineering work, not a simple labour force. The right skills were needed.
"Okay, let’s go.”
Looking at the state of the door, it seemed like the Red Lightning orcs were unaware of its existence. It meant they were unlikely to meet orcs inside.
‘If this is a dwarf cave, there should be dwarf weapons, right?’
Dwarf weapons were naturally expensive. They were expensive due to their good performance. In-gong had used many dwarf weapons when playing Knight Saga.
All of Knight Saga’s items were divided into five grades: common, uncommon, rare, unique and legend. It was roughly thought that every time the grade increased, the price would go higher by at least 10 times.
‘Yes, they also play a role in winning a war!’
If he was armed with a dwarf weapon, then even the weak Shutra could kill a person.
‘It would be better if higher grade weapons come out!’
In-gong felt his chest swell with wild dreams.
How long did they move?
‘Pant pant, over here.’
He found a hidden room due to the mini-map. It was a room that was like an arsenal.
However, there was one crucial problem.
[Your level is not high enough.]
[Your strength is not high enough.]
[Your magic power is not high enough.]
He kept on hearing similar messages when holding a weapon in his hand.
They were too heavy for Shutra’s thin arms. Some weapons also required a lot of magic power that Shutra didn’t have.
Of course, it was possible to swing them. However, it would be impossible to show the weapons’ true performance. A weapon that couldn’t be properly used would cause more harm than good.
In-gong’s fantastic dreams faded away. It was an inevitable result when he thought about it.
Would a red hare be able to defeat a white tiger? Nobody could draw Excalibur until King Arthur pulled it out. In order to use a good weapon, one had to be a good person.
'Although I can try one thing.’
In-gong picked up a dwarf weapon and placed it into his inventory. If he held it and thought ‘bag,’ then it would enter his inventory.
In-gong placed all the weapons into his inventory one by one. Carack stared at him from behind with wide eyes.
“P-Prince?”
In-gong grinned. It was natural to be surprised.
A weapon disappeared once In-gong held it. However, In-gong wasn’t shocked and just repeated the work silently.
"Takes the spoils. Later, it would be good if Carack... no. Carack, pick one right now and I will give weapons to the ones who show some merit.”
If an enemy appeared, Carack would be the one taking the lead in a fight. Naturally, Carack needed a good weapon.
Of course, it wasn’t the same for the other orcs fighting.
‘Then should I swallow it quickly?’
It was normal for the protagonist to get more of the loot. However, In-gong was currently a prince. It didn’t matter if Shutra’s status was slightly different from Chris and Caitlin.
Carack’s eyes shone as he picked a weapon, then went back to gawking at In-gong who was making the weapons disappear.
"Prince, are you really a magician?”
“A prince should know a few magic spells.”
He was a prince of the Demon World, not a magician. He needed to make Shutra grow.
Anyway, In-gong continued to fill his inventory and managed to sweep up all the dwarf equipment in the arsenal.
‘This is just the equipment.’
He hung a dagger that Shutra, who was slightly stronger than Villager A, could use on the belt at his waist and wore a shirt made of thin chains. He tried to wear a helmet but he quickly gave up since it was too heavy.
"Prince, should we keep going?”
Carack, who was holding a big axe, asked with a face half filled with joy and anxiety. The passage was really crowded due to the 31 big orcs. No, it felt really difficult to breathe. In-gong looked at the passage that was four to five metres wide and nodded.
"From the start, our mission was reconnaissance. Let’s keep moving forward.”
Weapons and treasures could pop up again.
In-gong activated the mini-map and took the lead with Carack.
After approximately an hour, as they walked through the long passage, there were a few more empty rooms but no treasures or weapons.
In-gong scratched his chin and stared at the mini-map that seemed to go on forever.
'Isn’t this cave too long? Aren’t we just going through the mountain?’
It didn’t matter if they were penetrating through the mountain. The important thing was the location of the exit. If it was the wrong place, they might end up in the area of the Red Lightning tribe.
'Would that be bad?’
If they had the element of surprise, it might turn out well.
Of course, In-gong didn’t intend for the 31 orcs to jump in the middle of the enemy. He was just going to check where the exit led to.
‘By the way, I want to learn magic.’
Learning a skill didn’t seem that difficult after his experience with the Swordsmanship and Map Reading skills. The problem was who would teach him.
‘I should get a magician.’
He was a prince of the Demon World but no one around him knew how to use magic.
‘Can Chris and Caitlin use spells? They probably have many people who can use magic around them. Should I ask Caitlin to teach me?’
If he asked Zephyr to teach him magic, Zephyr would probably stab him with the sword. However, Chris and Caitlin were different. It was highly likely they would teach him.
‘I would prefer Caitlin instead of Chris.’
If they had the same value, he would prefer the one in the skirt.
In-gong was visualizing Caitlin’s pretty face when he saw something. There was still darkness in front of him that the torch couldn’t reach but the mini-map showed a stone door lying beyond that darkness.
"The exit.”
Once In-gong spoke, Carack stopped in place and raised his hand. The trained orcs stopped in place.
Just like the entrance, the exit was likely to be sealed. Should they break the exit and check the situation, or return?
In-gong folded his arms and thought for a while.
It was at that moment.
A loud sound was heard in the darkness. Light came leaking from the exit.
“Hurry! That mad witch is following us!”
"Calm down, Kaichin! I know of this passage despite never seeing it before. That witch won’t be able to come after us.”
The voices of orcs could be heard and In-gong and Carack stared at each other. There was a sound and the stone door collapsed. Their eyes had been accustomed to darkness when the light poured in.
In-gong frowned. Many things were rushing through his head.
Orcs had appeared at the exit.
Kaichin, a high ranking member of the Red Lightning tribe.
Beyond the mountains...
A crazy witch was chasing them.
‘Caitlin!’
As In-gong expected, the cave was connected to the rear of the Red Lightning tribe and today, Chris and Caitlin were attacking their camp.
In other words, Kaichin and the orcs were soldiers who ran away from the battlefield!
The orcs on both sides were surprised. Carack hesitated before he lifted his axe and his orcs also raised their weapons.
In-gong turned his attention towards the mini-map. The mini-map showed the number of enemies.
"Prince! Retreat!”
Carack shouted. In-gong heard it as something dug into his chest.
“Cough!”
"Prince!”
An orc aimed a wolfbone staff and cast something in In-gong’s direction. In-gong collapsed to the ground while Carack started attacking with a vengeance. The orcs followed him.
"Kuheok, keok!”
In-gong staggered while falling to the ground. He was in too much pain. It was fortunate he was wearing the chainmail shirt.
‘Magic?! No, psychic powers?’
There wasn’t a chant but there was a possibility it was a psychic ability.
However, now wasn’t the time to be thinking about something like this. He heard screaming and shouting as the fighting started.
‘Get up. I have to get up!’
In-gong got up. He zoomed in on the mini-map to check on the situation.
However, In-gong couldn’t concentrate. The clear voice of a woman rang in his head.
[Telekinesis Lv1 has been learnt.]
“Huh?”
Telekinesis.
In-gong looked down at his chest.