Chapter 435. Unknown Intruder
"So you're saying someone easily sneaks into your house and is currently inside the teleportation hall? How on earth did that guy open the enchanted door? As far as I remember, without our blood, it would be impossible to open it.
And even if someone tried to force his way in, the noise generated during the process of breaking the door should be loud enough for half the town to hear, what do you think Mr. Gristle?"
No. 7, who was leading the way, with a cold tone while gritting his teeth, addressed Fatty, who was struggling to keep up with the group due to their fast pace, and had to jog to avoid being left behind.
"This also worries me the most. During this entire time, there wasn't a single sound coming from the basement. If it weren't for the explosion a few minutes ago, I might not have even known someone had sneaked in. But what concerns me most is the guard I assassinated. Instead of informing me, they actually joined forces with the intruder.
Now, whoever dares to approach them gets attacked and no one is able to get past them yet, I don't understand how they suddenly become so powerful. Anyway, this level of planning suggests this isn't as simple a matter as it seems. I think someone discovered our plan and is trying to sabotage it." Experience tales at empire
"But why did you wait for us instead of heading straight in and capturing the intruder? With the bracelet given by our master, it shouldn't be a problem to deal with a small fry, right?" No. 6 asked casually while taking a drink from a metal flask.
"I..."
"Alright, enough. Now's not the time for blame. We'll find out everything once we catch that mouse. No one can derail Master's plan, at least not right under our nose."
"Halt! You cannot proceed any further. Please turn back, or we'll be forced to kill you all!"
Just as No. 7 finished speaking, the two guards Myne hypnotized, who were casually instructed to watch the entrance, took their roles a bit too seriously. They stood before the final turn leading to the basement entrance, brandishing spears. Beside them lay the bodies of several guards that Fatty had dispatched earlier, all victims of the hypnotized guards' spears.
The other guards hadn't taken these two seriously, believing them to be joking since they had lived and worked together for the past ten years. It wasn't until the spears pierced their stomachs that they realized the guards weren't fooling around, but by then it was too late.
"You two ungrateful bastards! I was the one who raised you for ten years, the one who paid your wages every month! And in the end, you two f*cker, actually working for someone else behind my back?" Fatty's face turned purple with rage as he yelled at the two guards, who remained unfazed and expressionless in the face of their former boss's anger. They simply stared back at the group.
Compared to Fatty's attempt at emotional blackmail with his precious subordinates, the seven weirdos were much calmer. Upon seeing the hypnotized guards, they understood they were under someone's control and weren't acting of their own free will. Breaking this control would require some effort, and they knew the guards themselves wouldn't have any useful information, so they simply gave up.
Without No. 7 giving the order, No. 5, Mr. Bug Man, shot out a swarm of thousands of bugs from his hands at the guards. Like a dark cloud, they quickly engulfed the two poor guys, who didn't even have a chance to scream before becoming food for the countless bugs under Fatty's horrified gaze.
Dealing with the minor problem, the seven weirdos ignored the trembling Fatty and rushed towards the basement. However, when they saw the entire enchanted door missing, their calm expressions finally turned serious. Even No. 6, the most unserious guy in the group, put down his metal flask.
"Anya, next time remember to enchant the walls as well. I can't understand how you could make such a low-level mistake," No. 7 said coldly to No. 4, the only known female in the group, as he approached the entrance and began inspecting the severed area.
It seems whoever came here wasn't as simple as we thought. That guy used a Tier One water magic spell to cut through the wall and then stored the entire door in a dimensional device. If this person has escaped, it's going to be a big problem. Ben, did you close the space in this area? I didn't want to see that guy teleport away before we reached to him or just after seeing us.
If the higher-ups of this world knew what we were doing here, there would be wave after wave of trouble coming for us" No. 7 said with a frown, addressing the other six.
No. 3, the one called upon, swiftly retrieved a compass-like device, clicked on it a few times, and then nodded at No. 7.
"I've checked. The space-locking devices are functioning properly. For the next entire hour, no spatial teleportation spells can be used within a 500-meter radius of this house."
"Good. But still, place a few more devices in the tunnel as well. I don't want to take any risks. Now let's go, we had to catch that mouse before messes everything up." Without waiting for a response, No. 7 rushed into the basement, followed by the remaining six and, of course, Fatty, who was frantically searching for the magic lamp in his storage pouch.
Since they were the ones who built this entire "Hall of Horrors," they obviously knew where the traps were located. With No. 3, aka, Ben's guidance, it only took them half the time Myne took to navigate the narrow corridor. However, when they saw the open portal doorway, everyone's face turned ugly, as if they were forced to eat shit.
"It seems like the explosion triggered an automatic activation of the portal. Get moving, we had to close it quickly! Damn it, I hope it doesn't stay open for too long and hasn't consumed too much energy, otherwise we're in for a disaster," Ben spoke anxiously before slamming his feet on the ground. Blue flames erupted from his shoes, propelling him towards the platform like a cannonball.
The others weren't in the mood to waste time either. They employed various methods to reach the platform: No. 1 climbed onto No. 6's back, who then performed a powerful jump, enough to send him to touch the chilling and land directly on the platform.
No. 2 casually threw his silver hammer at the blood pool. But before it could land, its size visibly increased to four meters tall, providing a platform for No. 2 to land on. It then automatically started moving towards the platform.
No. 4 aka Anya, the only female among them whose appearance remained a mystery until now, obviously received special treatment. No. 7 grabbed her by the waist and effortlessly flew toward the platform without the help of any fleshing item. He was a literal example of a bird without wings.
As for No. 5, the bug man, he simply disintegrated into a swarm of thousands of bugs once more and calmly drifted towards the platform.
The unluckiest of the group was undoubtedly Fatty. He was currently sprawled on the ground, panting heavily. His entire body was soaked in sweat, clearly showing that the rapid movement, wasn't his cup of tea, and it took a great toll on his fragile body. However, seeing everyone else reach the platform, fear gripped him.
Thinking that the intruder might rush towards the only entrance and exit of the hall upon seeing the seven weirdos, and may take his life by chance, could only grit his teeth and force himself to stand up.
The fatty rummaged through his storage pouch again, retrieved a carpet-like object, spread it on the ground, and sat on it in a cross-legged position. He then took out ten mana stones, which were the ones Myne was familiar with, unlike the crystal-like ones he found in the village chief's house on the 6th Moon world.
After placing the mana stones on the carpet, they became embedded in it as if it were made of water. Slowly, the carpet began to levitate.
Once it reached a meter above the ground, Fatty grasped the front edge, and the carpet sluggishly started to fly towards the platform. The speed was disappointingly slow, at around 5 km/h. It looked more like a child's toy than adult stuff. After all which adult would like to fly on a carpet that slows as a turtle?
"Next time when I gather more mana stones, I will definitely bring a faster flying device from Ben. If I could get his flying shoes, that would be awesome," The fatty while daydreaming, leaned forward so that the carpet's speed could increase, which indeed increased as now it flew at 7 km/h.