On the other hand, in an underground prison(dungeon). The soldiers lay fallen on the floor, lifeless bodies scattered around.
They were all defeated in an instant when they tried to fight against the sudden attack. Without warning or notice, they did not realize that tonight was the night they would meet their end.
Trembling bodies lay still. Their trust in luck vanished in a moment as they witnessed their comrades fall one by one. The deepest fear gripped the entire prison as it all unfolded. They could only wait their turn with a chilling sensation in their chests.
"Why are beasts like them here?! Arghhh!" shouts one soldier before being scratched upon by Eruplions who suddenly teleported into the underground prison.
***
At the entrance to the prison, Micah and Camel cautiously tried to open the door. Their awareness arose due to the lack of guards at such an important location. There was not a single guard in sight.
"Could this be some kind of trap or something?" Micah asked.
"I think so. They wouldn't just leave the wife of the rebel leader guarded haphazardly."
Micah opened the entrance door to the prison, immediately aiming his pistol into the room but no one greeted them.
"How odd (lowering his weapon)..."
"Where are they?"
The prison was very dark, with no lighting at all. Torches in the room seemed to have forgotten to lighten or perhaps they just didn't care.
*Crack...
Micah stepped in. The air instantly felt cold, causing sweat to bead on his skin.
"Camel, a torch!" (Micah)
Camel handed the torch to Micah. The atmosphere that was once cold now turned warm, but it did little to stop the sweat from pouring down.
The two of them ventured into the dark underground prison alone, accompanied only by a torch for illumination. They still hadn't found any signs of life in the place.
"Where are they?"
"It's too quiet here for a trap. There's nothing here except stone walls!"
"So, have they perhaps learned of our plans and finally taken Lady Juno away?"
"Now would be the perfect time to ambush us. So your assumption is clearly wrong."
"Then maybe there's another enemy attacking, causing their minds to split in two?!"
"Stop making up scenarios! We're on a rescue mission! If you make noise, we'll be discovered!"
Ignoring how loudly Micah spoke, Camel's voice sounded even louder.
"Hey! You're the noisy one!"
"What?!"
"Grrghh!"
"Heh?" (Micah and Camel)
As they fought, a sound from the beasts echoed from the darkness of the prison corridor. Just by hearing it, both of them instantly recognized the sound. It was a dangerous creature, particularly in confined spaces due to its volcanic ash.
"Eruplions?!" Camel directed the torch towards the source of the sound.
"Just one?"
"No..."
Not just one, but around 5 of them were approaching.
"Why? Why are they here?"
"Hey, looks like our friends are quite full. Look at their mouths! Covered in blood like that."
The mouths of the Eruplions were smeared with fresh blood.
"If they're here... Does it mean?!" Camel's eyes widened. His body felt a sudden chill, freezing him in place.
"Lady Juno? I'm not sure that's happening. Hold your anger for now (placing a hand on Camel's shoulder), let's investigate this place first."
Micah walked ahead of Camel into the corridor without the aid of the torch. He raised his pistol and prepared to aim at the wild Eruplions.
*Bang! *Bang! *Bang!
Three shots hit one beast. His shots were intended for three, but the agility of these creatures was different from the ones they fought in Hun Village before. Here, they were more trained and agile.
The two surviving beasts ran up the stone walls. As they got closer, the two Eruplions leaped and lunged at Micah.
"Damn!"
Micah aimed his pistol at one Eruplion. *Bang! and managed to bring it down. But there was still one Eruplion left. He couldn't fend off the other's attack.
*Thud!
Just a split second after Micah shot, Camel, who was behind, stepped forward and struck the airborne Eruplion on the head.
"Too close!" (Camel)
"Not yet! There's still one behind! Let's finish them off!"
Camel nodded in agreement.
They both approached the two Eruplions, but every time they took a step forward, the creatures took two steps back.
Confusion gripped them. They tried to advance again to make sure.
"Grrrgh!"
The result remained the same; the closer they got, the farther the two beasts retreated.
There was no clearer conclusion other than they were scared now. Seeing their three friends killed had diminished their courage.
As they retreated, the two could see more clearly what was really happening in this underground prison.
Initially, they only saw scattered blood, but the deeper they went, they eventually found several lifeless soldiers.
*Bang!
Micah shot one Eruplion right in the head.
"Grrrgh!" The shot startled the surviving Eruplion, who then fled past Micah and Camel.
*Bang! *Bang! *Clack!
Micah tried to shoot the fleeing Eruplion, but its agility outmatched him. Plus, he ran out of bullets, leaving him unable to do anything but watch the Eruplion escape from the prison.
"How strange, just dealing with three of them was enough to scare them. Why did the soldiers here lose?"
Were the soldiers of the Hamud Kingdom so weak that they couldn't even fight off such fearful creatures? A question lingered in Micah's mind regarding the current situation.
And from how Camel reacted, glancing sideways upon hearing that question, Micah could deduce that there was something being hidden from him.
"Seems like you want to play secrets?" Micah sarcastically remarked.
"You think?"
"I don't know, you play secret, the Hamud Kingdom plays secret, I~ have no idea what's true here (spreading his arms as if dismissing Camel)."
Camel briefly pointed at Micah while raising both eyebrows as if to say, 'You already know, why ask?'
"Damn!"
Micah stared into the dark prison cells. There wasn't much movement inside.
"It seems Lady Juno isn't here (gritting his teeth)."
"Wow, weren't you panicking over Lady Juno earlier? Now you act as if nothing happened. What if-"
"Shut up! You work for me, so I'll give you what you want, that's our deal, understand?"
Micah fell silent, yawning as if he didn't care. Nevertheless, he still cared about his two friends. He didn't want to mess up here, especially when they weren't with him now.
*Clang! *Clang! *Clang!
Camel struck the cell bars with his mace. The buzzing sound seemed to awaken something.
Micah looked into the nearby cells. There was some movement inside. Though dark, their movements were clear.
"Is anyone alive?!" A cell called out.
The person emerged from the canvas covering him. It was an old man with only rugged pants. His mustache and beard were white and messy like he never cleaned or washed them. His body was very thin, even Micah could see the old man's bone.
"Ah, old man! Do you know where Lady Juno is?" Micah asked Camel.
"Ju-Juno? Who cares?! Let me go! I don't want to die! Let go-!"
*Bang!
Micah shot right next to the old man (he had reloaded after seeing the last Eruplion escape). He tried to silence the talkative man and get the information he wanted.
"Good, now who's gonna take your life now?" Micah smiled cruelly at the frightened prisoner.
The old man nodded, trembling. He didn't dare speak further knowing his life was on the line.
"Now... Do you know where the person I asked about earlier is?"
"Ju-Juno?! Yes, I remember! She was taken out by the soldiers along with Count Tumbu!"
"Count Tumbu?"
"He's the Count of this city! How did you-"
*Bang!
"Thanks for your answer... But, what I asked is WHERE IS JUNO?!"
"I-I don't know! That's all I know!"
The prisoner spoke the truth. Trembling in both hands showed how he didn't dare to lie in front of Micah.
"Enough Micah! The man has said what we need." Camel intervened to prevent Micah from going further.
"We need it? What?!"
"Count Tumbu (glancing at the entrance and exit of the prison corridor)... That means we just need to regroup with the Elia group."
"Oh, Seriously?!"
Camel left, leaving Micah behind, seemingly disregarding his complaints. But in truth, he just didn't want to get into trouble being around that madman any longer. He had a premonition that madness awaited them outside the prison. A madness that could turn Micah into a wild beast.
"How about me?" the prisoner asked Micah.
If classified, that person is considered brave because he dared to challenge death (talking impudently to Micah).
Micah turned slowly, glaring at the prisoner. He pointed his pistol at the cell door, and...
*Bang!
The padlock shattered into pieces. The cell door swung open.
"Get out! I don't care who you are, but you've paid."
Without looking back, Micah walked away, following Camel, who was far ahead.
The prisoner was left alone without explanation. He slowly stood up, gripping the iron bars. His right hand held his ear slowly and said, "Boss, can you hear me?"
"Yes, I've made it out."
"My magic is working again."
*Nods.
"Good! I'll continue my mission immediately!" he said coldly and flatly.
"Want me to take care of them? What do you mean by having me kill those who just saved me?"
*Breathes a sigh of relief.
"Oh, I thought you asked me to kill..."
"Watch over them?"
"Okay! I'll do my best!"
The prisoner sounded like he was talking to someone with his magic. What he discussed with the person on the other side remained a mystery. Additionally, the prisoner was planning something here.
***
Back to Camel and Micah. They stood in silence where they stood.
In front of the main gate of the underground prison, they were greeted by dozens—hundreds of soldiers in front of them.
"Ah, score!" Micah unintentionally raised the corners of his lips.
Camel didn't know what Micah meant by 'score,' but he believed it was something bad and related to the lives of those soldiers.
"Follow me! I know a shortcut!"
Camel grabbed the madman's hand and hurried away before it was too late.
"They've escaped!" The soldiers chased after them.
"Why are we running now?!"
"Don't party yourself! Wait for the others!"
"Oh, are we going to party with the others? Got it!"
Although that wasn't what Camel wanted to convey to Micah, the man still nodded, as he had to persuade Micah into not being rash no matter what.
They headed towards the castle where Rudi, Lydia, and Elia were.
What would happen there? Just as before.
What would happen next? It's in the next chapter.