Chapter 166
The next day...
Fortunately, nothing happened, and we descended from the tree and continued on our journey.
‘What should we do if whatever this is is beyond Eleris’s power to handle?’
Of course, we could escape with the scroll, and Eleris could also teleport away.
Trusting in our own safeguards, we continued south. If we made good progress over the next two days, we would reach Altz Point, and from there, after observing the situation, we would be able to return to Saints Point, completing our mission.
After a simple meal, we kept up a solid pace. As expected from our experience from the day before, it seemed there were no zombies, but we couldn’t help but pay attention to safety. This time, instead of resting in a tree, we climbed a steep cliff and made camp on a flat area above.
It was more or less the summit, where we could observe the surrounding terrain.
However, no matter where we looked, the mountain range prevented us from seeing anything suspicious.
There seemed to be nothing out of the ordinary.
“...”
“...”
“It’s eerie.”
However, an eerie feeling of unknown origin tickled the back of our heads. It would have been better if something had appeared; the complete absence of anything made it feel bizarre.
***
The next day...
We departed at first light. If we only began our journey after the sun had risen, we would only arrive at Altz Point after sunset. We planned to reach Altz Point earlier that day, depart immediately, and begin the journey back at night.
“Let’s be more cautious, and if we face any serious issues we can’t handle before reaching Altz Point, we’ll turn back,” Ellen said, clearly tense even though nothing had happened yet.
We could intuitively sense that we were about to discover the root of the matter. We walked continuously, taking only brief rests in between.
It was around five in the afternoon.
“There it is... Altz Point.”
As we crested a hill, we saw Altz Point located at the edge of the hillside. We halted our approach and stopped to assess the situation.
“On the surface, it doesn’t seem like there’s any problem,” said Ellen.
I used my vision enhancement to examine the base, but outwardly, Altz Point seemed normal, aside from the complete absence of people moving around.
“I will use a Telescope spell.”
Eleris utilized a low-level spell for more certain long-distance observation. After a brief casting period, Eleris quietly observed Altz Point.
“It’s a little different from Klitz Point. There are no corpses. None, but....” Eleris muttered absently. “Rather than corpses, it looks more like remains... bones and fragments...”
Remnants that seem to have been devoured... Apparently, that’s what Eleris could see when the scene was magnified.
“What could have eaten them?”
“At this stage, it seems likely that it was zombies.”
The remnants looked like the remains of people devoured by zombies. However, quite some time had passed, leaving only bone fragments.
“There might have been footprints or other tracks if there was any foot traffic, but the recent rain hasn’t helped. There’s nothing at all.”
It rained the night of our raid on the bandit group.
While all previous tracks would have been washed away then, there should still have been traces of movement if they happened just recently, but there were none.
“It seems Altz Point has been empty for quite some time. If zombies emerged here too, they must have scattered to the surroundings.”
“They would have no reason to return to Altz Point since there are no living people to attack... Is that accurate?”
“Yes.”
If there had been a zombie outbreak, then they had all left Altz Point, leaving it empty for quite a while.
Altz Point was a gateway to the frontier points of Altz Points 1, 2, and 3, and was also the route through which those returning from those bases would take.
Ellen briefly organized her thoughts.
“No one has returned from the three points further out?” she said.
“That seems to be the case.”
The three points at the frontier might have already been annihilated.
None of us could deny the high possibility that that had happened.
“Let’s go, then.”
Since the place did not seem to have anything that immediately appeared abnormal, we decided to enter Altz Point.
*
By appearance alone, it was a deserted village that exuded a gloomy and eerie atmosphere.
However, the bright red blood stains splattered across various buildings naturally added a feeling of terror.
Additionally, there were human bones strewn here and there.
Altz Point was a waypoint to the three forward bases. Hence, it was three times larger than the Saints Point or Klitz Point. Despite it being such a large base, there was no one around.
We searched the vicinity of Altz Point with heightened vigilance. There were neither survivors nor zombies in sight, but we had no idea what might jump out, or from where.
There was the possibility of danger if we split up, so we searched the buildings together.
Even inside the buildings, there were bloodstains and bone fragments scattered around. The bones, already picked clean by maggots, were so dried up that they no longer even smelled of rot.
“Could they have been attacked by zombies?” Eleris asked with a serious expression, as she stared at the bone fragments that seemed to have been gnawed clean.
“No, I don’t think so,” replied Ellen, shaking her head. She was looking at the bloodstains splattered on the wall.
“If Altz Point had been annihilated by a zombie attack, there would be more bone fragments. While there are bone fragments here and there that look like they were picked over by zombies, it’s not enough to account for everyone who was in Altz Point.”
There were signs of scavenging, but the signs were too few.
Ellen continued, “Perhaps these were not devoured while alive, but picked over after they were already dead.”
Ellen quietly picked up one of the dry white bone fragments.
“A corpse with a severed neck wouldn’t turn into a zombie.”
There was a cut on the surface that suggested something sharp had sliced through it cleanly in one strike.
“Someone—or multiple people—wielding weapons massacred the people of Altz Point, and the zombification happened afterward.”
What had been devoured were not living beings, but corpses that couldn’t turn into zombies.
That was Ellen’s conclusion.
*
Traces of sharp cuts were visible on several bone fragments.
Though we didn’t know who the culprit was, whoever it was had a very sharp blade. A weapon sharp enough to slice through a human being in one strike.
Such a weapon was rare. Just skill alone wouldn’t have been enough.
We carefully continued our search inside the point.
“The Adventurers’ Guild office. Let’s go there.”
Ellen seemed to know exactly where to go within Altz Point and headed to the Adventurers’ Guild. There were bloodstains inside the guild house as well.
Ellen had a reason for heading to the guild house.
“We need to find the Adventurers’ Guild’s log. Most of what happened in Altz Point would be recorded there.”
Ellen already knew what to look for. There would be a high chance of finding significant clues there.
Ellen rummaged through the drawers and other parts of the office of the Adventurers’ Guild, and retrieved a large book.
“This seems to be the administrator’s logbook.”
“Let’s take a look.”
Ellen opened the logbook.
The last recorded entry was dated Tuesday, July 21st.
It was Friday, August 7th.
This meant the incident at Altz Point happened roughly three weeks ago.
—Imperial Year 323, Tuesday, July 21st.
We should never have sent people to that tomb.
Snoden will kill us all.
That was the last recorded entry, mentioning some tomb.
Could that tomb be the source of all this trouble?
And the name Snoden...
Ellen turned the pages, looking for the initial mention of that tomb.
—Imperial Year 323, Thursday, July 2nd.
A-rank Snoden, B-rank Paijin, and B-rank Lyge reported discovering an unusual structure about two days east of Altz Point. The sketch suggests it might be a sealed tomb. Since the party is highly reliable, there’s no chance of false information.
The information spread, and now it seems a large team is being organized for a thorough investigation.
The adventurers of Altz Point had discovered a tomb about a month ago. They organized a large team to investigate the tomb, not knowing what dangers might lie inside.
—Imperial Year 323, Sunday, July 12th.
An expedition of A- to C-rank adventurers, about twenty in size, returned from investigating the tomb east of Altz Point.
According to the report, the tomb had three levels, and did not contain any dangerous demons or threats.
They returned with a large amount of jewels and precious metals. It was a substantial haul.
There were also several items that appeared to be enchanted. Detailed results will be known after appraisal.
At times like this, fights over the loot can break out, leading to stabbings, but such situations must be prevented at all costs.
Interestingly, there was a sword inside a coffin on the third floor of the tomb.
It seemed that the leader of the expedition team, Snoden, decided to keep the sword. No one appeared to have any objections to this.
A coffin inside the tomb, and a sword...
Could the adventurers have tampered with something they shouldn’t have?
I have an unsettling feeling.
—Imperial Year 323, Tuesday, July 14th.
Fortunately, the expedition adventurers divided their shares without fighting. The reward was so substantial that there was no reason for conflict.
Two magical items were confirmed in total: an earring and a bracelet, which were taken by the other two who initially discovered the tomb, excluding Snoden.
The sword Snoden kept was also presumed to be a magical item, but Snoden said appraisal wasn’t necessary.
—Imperial Year 323, Wednesday, July 16th.
Last night, just like the night before, I had nightmares.
Strangely enough, everyone in Altz Point has had nightmares. The content varied and was incomprehensible, but how is it possible for everyone’s sleep to be disturbed simultaneously?
—Imperial Year 323, Thursday, July 17th.
Zombies suddenly rose from the marketplace next to the base and bit and killed three people. The situation was quickly handled, but why did this happen?
There is a growing sense of foreboding.
—Imperial Year 323, Friday, July 18th.
Snoden’s behavior has grown strange. It’s reported that he holds the sword from the tomb even while sleeping. He talks less and doesn’t eat anything, almost as if he’s become a different person. Snoden’s companions have reported that the sword seems to be cursed.
They plan to investigate this tomorrow.
—Imperial Year 323, Saturday, July 19th.
When confronted with the possibility that the sword might be a product of dark magic, Snoden gave no response.
He just smiled bizarrely and muttered some strange things. It didn’t even sound like proper speech.
It’s clear that Snoden has been cursed. When we tried to forcibly take the sword from him, He killed three guild members, including two of his long-time companions, before fleeing.
The situation has become increasingly terrifying.
The sword Snoden has is undoubtedly cursed. We’ve started organizing a search party to track and kill Snoden.
—Imperial Year 323, Sunday, July 20th.
As soon as the search party organized to kill Snoden left the base, they were massacred by Snoden in front of our eyes.
After Snoden slaughtered the entire search party, he disappeared.
We knew Snoden was skilled, but not to such an extent.
Everyone is in a state of panic. Some are trying to escape the point, while others believe they will be killed by Snoden if they do.
That tomb...
That tomb is the root of all this trouble.
“...”
Having understood the whole situation, we looked at each other. We could roughly comprehend the catastrophe now.
The adventurers had meddled with something that they should not have.
They retrieved a cursed sword from a tomb, and the adventurer Snoden, who possessed the sword and had been driven mad by it, was the main culprit of this disaster. He had committed the massacre at Altz Point, and a curse that turned the dead into zombies was spreading throughout the area.
“It might be a type of sword that controls the owner’s mind,” Eleris speculated with a grim expression. She clearly saw the sword as the main catalyst.
Ellen placed the logbook in her backpack.
“Let’s go back. Our task here is done,” Ellen said.
Our mission was to identify what happened at Altz Point, and this logbook served as proof.
With that, our mission was complete.
Our mission wasn’t to resolve this issue, but to understand the full story behind it. Now that we knew the identity of the one who annihilated Altz Point, we could leave the rest to others.
A cursed sword... And an adventurer driven mad by it...
It was a disaster brought about through meddling with something that should have been left alone.
We exited the guild office and headed towards the outskirts of Altz Point. We knew that this area was surely dangerous, and our plan was to leave the vicinity of Altz Point as quickly as possible, without resting for the night.
“... So it’s come to this after all.”
Someone was standing at the entrance to Altz Point, where we had entered from.
A man with disheveled white hair, empty eyes, and grayish skin stood there.
He held a single sword and stood quietly at the entrance, as if to prevent us from leaving.
This man had to be Snoden, the main culprit behind the Altz Point incident. He didn’t approach us nor move away, but merely stood there, blocking the entrance.
“... He doesn’t appear to be alive.”
That was Eleris’s assessment.
Indeed, the man showed no signs of free will or self-awareness. His hollow eyes said it all.
He was already dead, and was merely being dragged around by the curse on the sword.
And it wasn’t just that.
—Kweeeek!
—Grrrr! Grak!
“... Zombies as well?”
Zombies began to appear one by one at the opposite entrance to Altz Point.
It was a dangerous situation. Ahead of us stood Snoden, cursed by an unknown force, while zombies were starting to gather behind us.
Being surrounded by zombies meant certain death. At Klitz Point, we managed to take them down individually, but we couldn’t fend them off if they attacked in a horde.
Fortunately, there didn’t seem to be that many zombies yet.
“We need to break through.”
Though the one blocking the entrance was the bearer of an unknown curse, he was still one man.
If we didn’t break through, we would die. It seemed Ellen wasn’t considering the Teleportation scroll yet.
She believed that leaving Rellia behind would mean certain death for her. After all, Eleris had never mentioned that her “secret weapon” was an escape method.
Eleris nodded, then asked, “Whatever your secret weapon is, do you think it can stop those zombies?” Her expression was tense.
“... Let’s give it a try. But if it gets too dangerous, you must escape. Don’t worry about me.”
“... Okay.”
It seemed Eleris had decided not to argue against Ellen’s risky choice.
Shing!
Ellen summoned Lament and looked at me.
“Let’s flank him.”
“Alright.”
We had only one opponent.
His combat strength was unknown, but it was two against one.
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