HPDBC Chapter 132: The Dungeon Workers
Chapter 132: The Dungeon Workers
Chapter 132: The Dungeon Workers
The Dungeon Monsters Keep Offering Sacrifices – 132
EP.132 The Dungeon Workers
At dawn, a thick, cold mist blanketed the mountain. Dambi woke up and looked around. The campfire had long since died out, and Lils was nowhere to be seen. She had probably gone to scout the area. Dambi’s gaze then fell on Riche, who was still fast asleep, oblivious to the world.
“Grrr?”
The stew slime nestled in Riche’s arms reacted to Dambi’s gaze with a small growl. At that moment, Dambi’s keen sense of smell detected a faint scent of blood.
“I smell blood from somewhere.”
As he searched for the source, his eyes returned to the stew slime. Upon closer inspection, he saw that the slime was chewing on something.
“Grr. Grrr.”
The stew slime had swallowed a field mouse whole and was chewing it contentedly. It seemed the mouse was the source of the blood scent.
“How fascinating.”
All it took was a single drop of blood in the stew. Just one drop, and it had transformed into a living slime. Initially, Dambi had thought of Riche as just another eccentric vampire, but her abilities were genuinely unique and powerful.
‘Lils was right. We should take her to the master’s dungeon.’
With such abilities, Riche could undoubtedly be of great help to their master. As he pondered this, Lils returned from his scouting.
“There were no unusual signs around. If we leave now, we can reach Celia by the end of the day.”
Their original destination had been the royal capital. They had planned to accompany Riche to the capital and then take on more adventurer quests. However, after witnessing Riche’s abilities, they decided it would be better to head to the dungeon.
Moreover, Riche had already been abandoned by her group. Even if she rejoined them, there was no telling how long she would last, and in the worst-case scenario, she might be killed. The White Order was still hunting vampires.
‘If she gets caught, she’ll surely die.’
Though they hadn’t known each other long, Dambi didn’t want to see a fellow vampire die. It seemed better to give her a new life in the dungeon rather than let her face certain death.
“Unfortunately, the shadows won’t reach us for a while. It’s best to tell Celia about Riche’s abilities in person once we arrive.”
Celia had only a few shadows at her disposal. Thus, if the timing was off, there was no way to contact her through them.
“Let’s head out immediately. If we delay too long, we might attract unnecessary attention,” Dambi suggested, recalling the incident at the inn a few days ago. While they could handle such situations easily, it was best to avoid them altogether.
Just then, Riche stretched and woke up.Yôur favorite stories at novelhall.com
“Ah, refreshing!”
“Grr?”
The stew slime, noticing its master awake, spat out the mouse it had been chewing and quickly climbed onto Riche’s shoulder. Dambi and Lils exchanged glances, silently agreeing to take Riche to the dungeon without raising suspicion.
Their group, now consisting of four members including the stew slime, quickly packed up and started down the tranquil forest path.
====
***
====
“Impressive. Nobles are certainly different,” Celia said with a smile as she looked up from the documents she was reviewing.
The man standing before her nodded confidently.
“You flatter me. While the Rosenberg family has a long history in politics and diplomacy, we still have much to learn from you, General Manager.”
His words carried both confidence and humility. The man was Kazel von Rosenberg, a young baron of the Sael Kingdom. He had been one of the nobles arrested for siding with the noble faction. Despite his imprisonment, he never despaired. Instead, he saw it as an opportunity.
“Now, shall we discuss more specific matters?” Celia asked.
Kazel’s actions seemed to be the right choice. Celia nodded in approval. Ironically, the darker the dungeon, the brighter his future appeared. Even if that future was stained with blood, it didn’t matter to him.
====
***
====
In the 1st floor Area 4 of the dungeon, a group of people was seen working, covered in mud and sweating profusely. The workers ranged from middle-aged men to elderly individuals with white hair. They were all nobles from the Sael Kingdom. Having never done manual labor in their lives, they were now digging to expand the lake near the dungeon, following Celia’s orders.
For nobles, this was an unimaginable task, even shameful to call labor.
“Damn it, why do I have to do this kind of work!” one noble exclaimed, throwing down his shovel in frustration. The other nobles also stopped working, sharing his sentiment.
“We have dedicated our lives to the Sael Kingdom! This menial labor tarnishes our honor!” another noble shouted.
“Exactly! We cannot let this insulting treatment go unpunished. They must pay for this!” they agreed, even spitting at and insulting the adventurers among them.
“How can they assign such lowly work to nobles like us? This is outrageous!”
Despite being arrested by the kingdom, they were born nobles and expected to be treated accordingly. Being forced to do such menial tasks infuriated them. The nobles, filled with anger, raised their voices in protest. None of them were willing to work anymore.
“Kazel is just a whelp who doesn’t understand noble dignity. He betrayed humanity for his own gain!” they spat, directing harsh words at Baron Kazel, who had sided with the monsters. His actions were seen as an unforgivable betrayal and an insult to the noble society.
“In any case, we don’t deserve this treatment! We must refuse to work and assert our rights! They wouldn’t dare harm us!”
Complaining to their heart’s content, the nobles completely stopped working. Just then, a foreboding presence made itself known.
“......”
As if on cue, everyone fell silent. The terrifying overseer had appeared. Clad in pitch-black armor, wielding a sharp sword and an enigmatic shield, it was a Death Knight. Its mere presence was enough to instill fear.
The Death Knight wasted no time. Recognized by General Manager Celia for its authority, it felt no need to persuade them clumsily. It simply acted.
– Swoosh. –
The Death Knight’s sword flashed, piercing the heart of the noble who had first incited the rebellion.
“Gah...!”
The surrounding nobles screamed and tried to flee, but were blocked by skeletal knights. The sudden chaos was short-lived. The noble, whose heart had been pierced, began to rise again.
“Urrgh!”
It was the Death Knight’s skill, ‘Resurrection of Death’. Those killed by its sword were reborn as ghouls. The noble’s former appearance was gone, replaced by a ghoul, a loyal worker for the dungeon.
“Urrgh....”
Witnessing the horrific fate of their comrade, the remaining nobles trembled and picked up their shovels again. Seeing their fellow noble turned into a ghoul, no one dared to voice any complaints. In this place, rebellion meant death.
Once envied nobles, they had now fallen to the status of dungeon slaves. It was a miserable but necessary choice for survival.
Satisfied, the Death Knight nodded. As it resumed its supervision, it noticed new arrivals entering the Area 4.
It was Dambi and his group, individuals who had recently caught Celia’s attention. They usually operated outside the dungeon, so their presence here indicated they had business to attend to. Besides the familiar faces of Dambi and Lils, there were newcomers.
“Grrr.”
One of them, holding a peculiar slime that growled back at the Death Knight.
“Urrgh...”
As the slime growled, the ghouls echoed its cries. For some reason, the Death Knight had a strong premonition that the number of workers in the dungeon would soon increase.