Blacksmith of the Apocalypse

"What was that light!?"

Gin, Brock, and some others came running outside in shock. The sudden light in the middle of the night had not gone unnoticed.

"Nothing much. We had a visitor from Kozdam. I just took care of him."

One thing seemed clear, the orc kingdom knew about them and even kept taps on them. It seemed like it was time for Minas Mar to make a final move. After all, they wouldn't want to be stuck between both forces.

Thanks to Buzz and the golems they had a good understanding of the nest's layout. The only reason they had not ambushed the main forces and dungeon master was to train the Faer. Seeing how the orcs had picked apart the adventurers, it wasn't hard to imagine they would come to them, too.

Since a new army was coming to them, there was no need to keep holding back. Ceres, Wolfram, and Python were probably stressed, staying in Legion all the time. Time to show them, that they weren't the only ones that could strike with their full force.

A day later, they left the surface fortifications to the Boulder Guild and the about 50 Chimeras that had reached their max level. The rest of Minas Mar had boarded Python and Legion. They were going to directly charge into the heart of the nest.

Their plan was only possible because the Hive was a special dungeon. It didn't have any designated floors and boss rooms like other dungeons. The only countermeasure against invaders was the nest at the entrances and its labyrinthine nature.

The dungeon that was made up of rough runnels and various dead dungeon structures had only monsters and the traps left from conquered dungeons but were otherwise empty without even a door impeding their way. It was the same reason why their previous mission worked so well. If adventurers were bad when working together and strategizing, then the hive was bad at fortifying their position. At least in comparison to other dungeons. Seth and the others had already made maps and planned out their route based on the footage gathered by the golems.

Despite being confident in their strategy, the blacksmith could help to feel suspicious as they were blazing through the empty halls.

"Is this really alright?" Fin mumbled. The fairy and many of the others shared his doubts.

No matter how lax the hive was, not even meeting some random worker or foot soldier on the way was extremely odd, to say the least. It made them paranoid, that this was probably a trap.

"If it's a trap we can't handle, I will just put everyone into legion and run."

they all paled a little when he said so, but nobody disagreed. Seth had done a few things to Legion after its initial creation. For one, he had asked Karina to grow one of the building trees inside the space. Like the ones at the Tree Stations, it was now equipped with devices for electricity, running water, and plumbing.

It served as housing for the Faer if they weren't in Minas Mar and a place to store the ordinary golems. In addition, he had found a mana dispenser in the auction house, that allowed to further increase the density of mana inside the space pocket, which allowed for an even quicker recovery.

Still, people aside from the golems didn't really like spending extended periods of time inside. Although it was an environment where people could live for some time, the black sky and black ground messed with a person's mind. Even the Faer were happy to get out after the long travel in the adventurer guild's carriages.

For the same reason, they were traveling with Python, instead of everyone cramming into Legion.

It was confirmed that something was wrong when they reached their destination where they alighted Python. The core region of the nest, where the elite units were supposed to live and patrol, was absolutely desolate.

The architecture here was more thought out and intricate, but all the rooms and chambers were empty. After sending out the dragonfly golems they even found that the brood chambers and giant mother bugs had vanished. The only path that barred the golems' way was the gate to the boss room.

"I guess we have to go there... Everyone get in the ring."

"What?" "Why?" Lyxiss, Tekar, and some others protested.

"I want to see what kind of trap it is. Unless they are ambushing us in huge numbers, there is no point putting you in danger."

In the end, he was the guy with the legendary armor that made him almost immune to all kinds of damage. If there was a bunch of experience, he would release his army and if it was something they couldn't deal with, he could switch to the Helm of Hades and run.

Although Seth had decided not to carry all the burden alone and share it with his friends, everyone had to agree that this was the best solution in their current situation. Once everyone had entered the pocket dimension, it was only a lone dark knight traversing the empty halls.

His tall figure seemed rather small and insignificant as he stood alone in front of the massive gates to the boss room. He attempted to push them open with some force, but the massive wings swung open all on their own the moment he touched them a little.

It was a big throne room. An aisle lead to the throne in the back. Left and right was space for a court of advisors, while the far walls were lined with columns. The place was dimly lit by the moss, mold, and lichen growing at the ceiling. As he entered, the gates silently closed behind him.

There was only a single figure in the room, standing before the throne. It looked like a regal mantis, but Seth could immediately see that it was not actually a creature, but an illusion image. What was going on here? The illusion was not the only thing that perplexed him.

Thanks to Theia's Vision, the blacksmith was able to see creatures hidden in the shadows. Many creatures. But they all held names like <Subject XXXX89S# lv.87 (Elite)>. Despite seeming garbled, Seth was sure these were their real names thanks to the skill <Theia's Discerning Eyes>. Their attributes were roughly double that of a player of that level.

Seth waited in the middle of the courtroom in silence for a while.

"Sooo... Will you attack me or will you just stay hidden until I leave?" Seth asked into the room.

Belatedly a foe materialized from the shadows behind the throne. For the lack of a better word, it was a lanky man wearing a gaudy onesie. The thing's black, thin lips were stretched wide by a manic smile as its yellowed eyes observed the blacksmith. When the lips parted they gave a view of rows of needle-like teeth.

"I see. We are discovered. Where is the rest? Big Snake? Strong Warriors? This is not what is promised." it spoke fragmentary, as if using a word it was not used to. Unlike its gaudy exterior, its voice was devoid of any emotion, almost mechanical.

"A promise, you say? I don't know anything about that but I would like to know is where my ton of experience ran to," Seth asked a little agitated.

He didn't know what exactly this situation was, but one thing was for sure. The hive was gone and he doubted they left because of Minas Mar. Even if they didn't want to risk any more casualties, all they had to do was hole up in the dungeon, where they could constantly resurrect with the dungeon's energy.

It made little sense for them to do something like a retreat. Unless something else was going on.

"The insects... left."

"Why?"

Seth weaved in the power of his class and the <Voice of Seth> into his question. However, instead of answering it just cocked its head, as if it didn't listen to him. He frowned, it reacted similarly to a golem...

"If you don't talk to me, I will simply leave."

"You can't."

It was just staring at him, without any sign he could read. The shadows in the background started rousing with a slight demonic aura.

"Why not?"

"... It was promised."