Chapter 91: Surrounded By A Flock Of Rot
Out there, traversing the deadly heights of the Stormlands, two figures marched onward.
A tall man with raven-black hair and square glasses moved at the rear, while a mutated creature took the lead.
Lacking any trace of hair, its physique consisted of ridiculously big muscles, while its ghostly pale skin made it look almost like a walking corpse.
"Wait a second, a corpse?" Leonard’s mind raced.
Beside Bao, who had been stationed at the dungeon entrance, he knew that the panda was part of the Fifth Gradeless Unit, which Malakor was also a member of.
Leonard remembered that the man was of the Necromancer class and possessed the ability to send corpses into dungeons where his own level was too high to enter.
Suddenly it all made sense. Malakor had been lying nearby, waiting to deploy one of his subjects in case something went amiss.
"I’m not sure who the man is, but given the walking corpse, they must be searching for us." Leonard exclaimed, feeling relieved to spot the rescue team.
Elizabeth pondered for a few moments, her icy eyes tracing the trajectory of their path.
"Then things are bad." She said. "Judging by where they are headed, they would miss us by a large margin."
Of course, Leonard had noticed that problem as well.
"The question is, do we signal our location? Although they might see us, the same holds true for any lingering monsters." He mused.
"Better do it. They wouldn’t have been sent if they weren’t capable of helping us." Elizabeth replied.
Leonard was the one to conjure a Fireball, since his was much higher level than Elizabeth’s. The skill wasn’t just extremely effective when dealing with the flying monsters inside the dungeon. It was also possible to use it as a flare.
"Here goes nothing."
He sent it up into the sky. The Fireball flew high, leaving a trail of smoke in its wake before exploding high in the atmosphere.
Boom!
The eruption echoed throughout the mountains, loud enough to cause the two figures in the far distance to halt and turn toward the source.
Leonard created another Fireball, though this one he held in his palm, using its burning flame to spell out their location.
Fortunately, the plan succeeded. The tall man adjusted his glasses, catching the light of the overhead sun, and waved in their direction before altering their course.
"Progress at last... The easy part is done. Now remains the hard one: finding a way to climb down."
Time was even more of the essence now. They couldn’t remain sitting ducks after the explosion Leonard had caused. Within mere minutes, monsters were bound to pounce on them.
Unfortunately, they arrived at a rather somber realization soon after. The mountain pass they were traveling on came to an abrupt stop, ending at the towering wall of the mountain. There was no cave or diverting path in sight.
Before either of them could come up with a plan, the earth beneath their feet shook, like they were in the middle of an earthquake.
"They came faster than expected." Leonard frowned as he gazed toward the beginning of the mountain pass.
His flare had alerted a group of ogres, who were now charging toward them like bloodthirsty bulls.
Dealing with one or two was well within their capabilities. However, there were dozens of them, and they were coming closer every second.
A frontal confrontation meant certain death, even for Elizabeth.
"No choice." Leonard took a deep breath and moved toward the mountain slope, the path steep enough to alarm him.
"We’re climbing down from here."
By focusing on the information inside his Bestiary, it wasn’t possible for a single known fact about ogres to escape Leonard’s mind, even in a moment of panic.
"Their bodies are bulkier than the average man’s, and that can be used against them. They lack the same mastery over their motor skills as we do, so if they try to climb after us, they’ll fall."
Leonard and Elizabeth made haste, gripping one protruding stone after another. They sought to create as much distance as possible.
ROOOOAAAAR!
When the ogres realized their prey was escaping, they weren’t pleased.
Their stomachs growled with the desire to taste human flesh, urging them to pursue them at all costs.
One ogre didn’t hesitate to pursue them, using his large fingers to search for secure handholds.
Crack!
Yet his weight was far too heavy. The rock he gripped gave way, and the monster plummeted to the ground with a frightening yell.
Another ogre had a different idea. Rather than climbing down like a coward, he simply jumped after them. The plan was to endure the descent and wait for them at the bottom.
Needless to say, things didn’t pan out as expected.
His body slammed against the cold wall of the mountain, rendering him motionless until the monster finally went limp and landed at the bottom.
"Crazy..." Leonard was at a loss for words as he climbed down.
His heartbeat pounded in his ears as monster yells echoed around him, all headed toward their deaths.
By the time he and Elizabeth reached the bottom, the surrounding area mirrored a morgue.
Dead ogres were piled on top of one another, their bodies bleeding profusely and giving off an unpleasant stench.
The monsters didn’t grant them any experience upon death, since they hadn’t fought.
Nevertheless, Leonard didn’t hesitate to store them in his Dimensional Storage, fully intending to sell their remains later for a profit.
Elizabeth did the same, though rather than using a skill, she used a ring instead.
They weren’t given a second to relax. The sound of flapping wings caught their attention.
Leonard’s gaze fixed on a monster that had been attracted by the recent ogre deaths.
He recognized the creature immediately.
It was a Rotten Crow. Unlike the Dire Eagles they had faced previously, these birds were much faster, harder to kill, and capable of inflicting hemorrhage every time they struck.
To make matters worse, it wasn’t just one Rotten Crow, but many. A whole flock had found them, circling around them and ready to pounce on their prey.
"Just great..." Leonard muttered sarcastically and dropped into a battle stance.
Escaping the flying enemies wasn’t an option. This was going to be a difficult fight.