Overgeared

""It has been too long since there has been a result. I wonder why the No Offspring Tomb hasn't taken any action even though it must be suspicious of the situation.""

The time in a tomb was bound to stand still. It was because it was a place where the dead were buried. The No Offspring Tomb was an exception. It was functioning as a huge organization. Thousands of local troops and tens of thousands of undead who were blindly loyal to their master hunted human gods inside and outside the tomb. It was for hundreds of years.

Yet recently—for more than half a year, the No Offspring Tomb ceased functioning. The hunters who came outside the tomb to capture human gods had been unsuccessful for a long time, and there was no news from the main force inside the tomb that was supposed to support them.

"Over there!"

""Those damn humans are already…""

It was a few days ago…

The conditions of the hunters, who missed capturing Dalvida, the God of Water, wasn't good. All parts of the skeletons, including the skull, were damaged. It was because Mir, the apostle of Grid, suddenly burst in and ran wild. The 'Long Sword' and 'Large Staff,' who lost the last of their troops to him, barely managed to retreat and were now being chased.

Step.

Sunset hung over the deep dungeon. It was the aftermath of the appearance of a man wearing orange divinity. The man was Damian. He was a tycoon who rose to the position of pope a few months ago and had virtually achieved religious unity. Damian was the one behind the recapture of the Yatan Church, which had been occupied by the No Offspring Tomb. Damian's power was unparalleled because he could use the Grid church members as his limbs.

"Hi, skeleton senseis."

""…….""

Long Sword and Large Staff were an elite death knight and elite lich. It meant they were the elite among the elites. They were undead, but they were high grade existences capable of expressing emotions with their facial expressions, which was a considerable strength. It could be used as a means to instill fear in the enemy and discourage them. But now, on the contrary, it acted as a weakness.

Their expressions were rotten due to Damian's low-grade words and actions that didn't match his presence. They expressed their agitation to the enemy.

The smile disappeared from Damian's face. "You are terrified."

""What? I was just speechless because it is absurd!"" Large Staff roared at Damian, who spoke nonsense in a low voice. He was a being who was a great magician during his lifetime, and became an undead of his own choice. The lich was an unconventional being who abandoned his humanity in order to satisfy his academic passion. His self-esteem was high, so he was surprisingly agitated.

Long Sword grabbed his neck as he rushed at Damian and pulled him away. The spear fell by a hair's breadth. It was a spear that would've smashed into Large Staff's skull if Long Sword hadn't intervened. It was 'Grid's Spear.'

"What a shame." Among Damian's subordinates, there were few women who used a spear as their weapon. Out of all of them, there was only one woman who handled a spear made by Grid that had his own name.

""Isabel…""

"Do you know me?"

""The name of the dog who betrayed her master is naturally famous. Shouldn't I remember it well in order to prevent getting hit in the back of the head?"'

"How dare you speak ill of Isabel-chan?"

His wife was insulted—Damian's eyes widened in anger while troops poured in endlessly behind him. They were members of the Grid Church, which used to be called the Overgeared God Church. They were monsters of the surface known to use Grid's sword dance. Even so, Long Sword didn't waver.

""Isn't this place too narrow to exert a numerical advantage?""

""In the first place, we were the first to settle here.""

Large Staff regained his composure and responded to Long Sword. He activated the magic circles installed throughout the dungeon, while Long Sword stood at the narrow entrance to block the advance of the church members.

""Everyone, die!""

The dungeon collapsed. The church members buried in the rubble became a wall, preventing Damian and Isabel from moving forward.

"Damn. We missed them."

"Their ability to run away is excellent."

"Yes."

There was no regret on Damian's face as he treated the injured. He guessed from the beginning that the enemy might've set up a path of retreat.

"Well, it is enough to catch them again."

Damian was the pope. He led the Grid Church while also supporting the churches of the three gods and the Yatan Church, who lost their gods and wandered. The unit was at least in the 'billions,' so it meant there was a huge number of troops he could move.

[The Pope, 'Damian,' has given a quest to all church members.]

[Track down the remnants of the No Offspring Tomb that have run away!]

An inescapable net spread out. The members of the Grid Church, the followers of the three gods, and the members of the Yatan Church flocked to the forest where the dungeon was located and beyond it.

***

""There must've been an external problem.""

The undead of the No Offspring Tomb had existed for at least hundreds of years and were meant to exist forever. To them, time was a very vague concept. They couldn't contact the hunters who had gone on a hunt for more than a few months, but they didn't think much of it.

Then doubts soon arose. The Specter seemed to be thirsty, so they became aware of the flow of time.

""Send forth the Great and Brilliant Staff.""

It was the Specter's favorite Staff, aka the Specter's Staff, who commanded the liches of the No Offspring Tomb. It was intended to support the hunters they lost contact with and assess the situation.

""Are you saying that the situation is serious enough for this body to come out? Huhu, okay. I'm looking forward to getting some fresh air after a long time.""

The Great and Brilliant Staff left the No Offspring Tomb with seductive steps that didn't look like a skeleton. There were as many as 20 liches following her. It was a force that could destroy a vast kingdom within a day. However…

""You have lost contact with the Great and Brilliant Staff? It can't be helped… send the Large and Curved Staff.""

""We also lost contact with the Large and Curved Staff…""

""…….""

No matter how many times they dispatched new troops, the same thing was repeated. The servants of the great Specter went missing as soon as they left the No Offspring Tomb.

""Grid was a human god and ascended to an Only One God, right? It probably has something to do with him.""

In the end, they even came to the Specter's favorite Sword, who was in charge of the death knights.

""It is highly likely that he is protecting the human gods. I think we need to step out ourselves.""

""Grid… the guy who defeated the fake Martial God…""

""The guy? Pay attention to the title.""

""Damn… I dared to show disrespect to the great one…""

All the gods in the world existed for the sake of the Specter. One day, they would be the Specter's prey. It was only when a god was acknowledged as great that the Specter's achievements would be great as well.

""I'll go.""

In the end, the specter's favorite Sword, aka the Specter's Sword, stepped out directly.

Only One God Grid—his divinity would've expanded upon defeating the fake Martial God, so he would be extremely powerful. He decided that only he, as one of the Specter's executives, would be able to observe Grid's movements. After a while—

""……?""

The Specter's Sword led a small number of elite troops and became very shocked. It was because he encountered humans as soon as he left the No Offspring Tomb.

"This guy seems to have a higher rating?"

"Yes. This is a really propitious site for a grave."

Four human beings—there were bones all around them. These were the traces of the reinforcements who previously disappeared.

""Incompetent guys… you were hunted by mere humans, not the Only One God Grid.""

The prey of the No Offspring Tomb had always been gods. It was an unimaginable disgrace to be killed by a human being.

""Die…"" the Specter's Sword commanded. He stood in place without pulling out his sword and commanded his subordinates. They were a huge 10 elite death knights. It wasn't enough for four human beings to handle…

""…….!""

The purple light in the eyes of the Specter's Sword grew somewhat larger. He saw a white giant suddenly appearing and cruelly trampling on the death knights.

""A magic machine…? Additionally, the driving skills are out of the ordinary. You had something to believe in.""

The Specter's Sword drew his weapon and rushed forward. It was precisely aimed at Zibal. He judged Zibal to be the greatest threat.

"U-Uh?"

Zibal's face turned white. It was because the Specter's Sword was incredibly fast as he approached while narrowly dodging Raiders' offensive. It had been half a year since he settled at the entrance of the No Offspring Tomb. Zibal had fought against numerous death knights so far. From his perspective, the Specter's Sword was an opponent on a different dimension. It was only after a clear sword light was carved that there was a loud sound.

The moment Raiders' spear pierced through the empty air, Zibal got a large sword wound to his chest.

""Die…"" the Specter's Sword proclaimed as he jumped high and slashed down. The sword precisely reached Zibal's heart. However, killing Zibal was a tough task even for a dragon.

The power of the Seven Malignant Saints, Providence—Zibal had the strongest escape power in Satisfy.

""This power?"" Specter's Sword noticed Zibal's identity and reached out to the left. Immediately, a purple aura expanded and blocked Chris' surprise attack.

"Is this really a transcendent?" Chris clicked his tongue.

"Even the rating is high. It is better to retreat first." Hurent judged. He swung the legendary aura like a whip and bound the hands and feet of the Specter's Sword.

Haster was already activating the magic of the Red Sage. It was magic to put shields on his party members and return them to a place he remembered.

[Advanced magic has intervened in your magic.]

[Your magic casting has been canceled.]

"……!"

""Where are you trying to escape?""

The new enemy made Chris' group pale. Of course, Haster wasn't a magician. However, the Specter's Staff, who forcibly canceled Haster's magic casting, was probably a powerhouse on par with the Specter's Sword.

""These are the rat-like guys who have been making us suffer for so long.""

""Control your strength. I think it is better to capture them alive.""

""What are we going to do by capturing humans?""

""They are legends. There are even those who can use the magic machines and the power of the Seven Malignant Saints mixed in.""

""Huh…? You are amazing people. It is an honor to meet you. I will treat you with respect.""

"……"

[The time attack quest 'Escape' has occurred!]

[Run away within the time limit! You are likely to receive a huge penalty if you are captured by the enemy!]

"Zibal! Use Providence!"

"I just used it, so the cooldown time…"

"They look like crazy guys but they are really crazy."

It happened as Chris' group was making a fuss.

""……?""

The Specter's Sword and the Specter's Staff were the first to notice the anomaly. They looked up at the sky. They read it with their transcendent senses.

High in the sky—there was something lurking beyond the clouds. A hazy shadow loomed over the ground. It was a shadow that deepened rapidly as something huge started to emerge through the clouds.

""What is this…?""

An incomprehensible realm—something so big that it was impossible to guess the size was constantly releasing sparks. No, they were too big to be sparks. They gradually grew…

"XX! Scatter!"

The frightened Chris and the others scattered. This was one of the disadvantages of Meteor. It was hard to distinguish between friends and foes.

"Ah…" The captain of the Overgeared Artillerymen, Lost Justice, groaned as she belatedly realized her mistake.

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