Numbers x Casket-Chapter 29: Foul Stench

A few moments earlier, Efraim gasped in amazement after seeing how good the three equator's combination were, their controls on their respective elements were beyond the standard and his expectations.

'It looks like there will be no room for me to join the fray,' the appraiser thought while following the group in silence.

It was a smooth journey not until he felt something underneath, as if there were strange occurence happening on the ground. Thus, Efraim slowed down his steps and observed his surroundings. Then, after a minute of contemplation, the soil under his feet trembled.

This solidified his thoughts and sprinted to where the equators were. With several giant strides, he reached them in no time and his eyes went wide the moment he saw the cluster of spider-scorpion hybrids with their stingers facing at him.

"I expected more, but I didn't expect to have these numbers," Efraim uttered.

Then, he pulled out his blades, and without further ado, he charged forward. Like a flash of lightning, he swung his blade in a vertical slash, splitting the monster in half. Its blood splattered on his clothes, but he ignored it and glanced at the remaining monsters.

'That's quite soft compared to those lindworms,' Efraim thought.

Then, he held his blades in a reverse grip and darted towards the monstrous bugs; he aimed for their legs, thinking of cutting them to reduce their mobility.

However, the monsters didn't stand still, some spat webs towards the appraiser while the others lunged at him with their giant pincers.

Upon seeing this, Efraim darted back and forth to evade the incoming projectiles, with his nimble feet, he danced across the field, cutting some limbs during the process.

With all of their attention at him, he couldn't launch a sneak attack like what he did earlier though his tactics worked as the creatures started to back down, limping because of some missing legs.

Afterward, Efraim ducked and tumbled backward, dodging a pincer coming straight at his face. In that split second, he pushed himself above and placed the Serpetine Fang on his mouth to free his right hand.

Then, he clenched his fist and slammed it on the monster's head while falling downward. A loud bang echoed in the place and the creature's head was reduced to mincemeat after receiving the punch.

"Maybe I should consider learning how to proper fight with fists," Efraim uttered as he landed next the spider's corpse.

. . . . .

At the same time, the three equators felt mesmerized upon witnessing the scene that transpired before their eyes. Then, their mouths were left partially opened after the newly arrived individual punched a monster to death with his bare hand alone.

"Who is he?" Michael asked, curious about the person's identity though he already recognized him as a savior in his thoughts.

"I don't know, he appeared out of nowhere," Daniel replied.

Meanwhile, Nathan shook his head as he recovered from fear. He stared at the battle happening in front before glancing behind. He wanted to help the unknown man but they must needed to eradicate the thousands of hatchlings slowly getting out of their eggs.

"Let's handle these little ones," Nathan said before turning around, his voice sharp and collected.

This content is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

. . . . .

A few moments later, after thrusting the Seventeenth Shard on the last monster standing, the appraiser looked at the people who was about to finish the entire colony of spiders.

"Their composition is really great," Efraim commented before pulling out his blade.

The creature's body fell onto ground, next to the carcass of the other monsters. Drenched with blood, Efraim walked towards the group and they all glanced at him upon seeing him coming.

Though, they were thankful about his help, they still kept their guard. After all, they were living in a world where the strong devoured the weak. However, they were stunned as the man struck both of his blades on the ground, signifying that he didn't intend any harm. Then, he raised his hand in surrender to obtain the group's trust.

"Y-You! You're the person in the tavern!" Michael exclaimed all of a sudden in astonishment.

He failed to notice it earlier but after staring at the man's appearance, he recognized him as they sat along, back in the tavern.

"Pretty sharp memory," Efraim replied, his arms still suspended in the air.

"What are you doing here?" Daniel asked.

"I overheard your conversation earlier this morning, so I chose to tag along. At first, I wanted to propose cooperation, but you guys were looking for a pathfinder," the appraiser explained.

Then he gave a glance at Michael and spoke again.

"I intend no harm, but I'm interested in the relic you talked about," he added.

The three people looked at each other, pondering if all the words that the person had said were the truth, but as they contemplated more, they realized that if he wanted to, he could just let them be killed earlier before moving on his own; however, he chose to help despite the difficulty.

Thus, they gave him a smile and lowered down their guards while thanking him from the bottom of their hearts. Then, they resumed walking deeper at the center of the ruins.

"You're an appraiser? With that movements?" Michael exclaimed the moment they asked Efraim about his class.

"I'm not buying it, you're joking!" Even Daniel widened his eyes in surprise.

Meanwhile, Nathan just laughed at their reactions, he was busy wiping his flute. Efraim's addition to their party made their journey smooth as ice. Even if several spider-scorpion hybrids appeared, they were killed in no time.

Then their advance came into a halt as they found a deep burrow underneath the ground.

'This kind of thing again,' Efraim thought as stepped forward and examined the hole.

It size was not that large compares to the pit leading to the underground lake that he went before but still, to see it covered with webs was enough for him to think twice.

'I'm not even sure if there's a relic lying inside,' he conveyed inside his thoughts.

The next second, he grabbed a piece of stone and fetched it downward while trying to assess how deep the dug was.

At the same time, the three people walked alongside the burrow to take a better look at it. Then, when Efraim stood up, they all glanced at him, waiting for his command. They didn't think of him as their leader at first, but when they experienced how wide the gap was between their skills, the more they treated him as one.

"Should we dive in?" Nathan asked, curiosity plastered on his face.

The appraiser gave each of them a glance before he nodded. Fear enveloped their hearts, but the thought of finding something worth enough to bet their lives on excited them and ate the terror they felt.

Without wasting any more time, all of them jumped into the burrow.

. . . . .

Extreme darkness without a single bit of light greeted the equators underneath, no glowing crystals or anything that emitted brightness.

Given this fact, Michael was forced to summon and maintain a ball of fire in front to be their guide when they followed the tunnel's path. The area was larger than the entrance's diameter, but aside from webs and soil, they spotted nothing noteworthy.

As they went deeper inside, the strong stench of rotten flesh assaulted their noses and even made Michael throw up.

"Are you okay?" Daniel asked, checking the state of his friend.

Due to this, the orb of fire levitating before them flickered until it died down the moment the mage vomited once again.

"Seriously, where does that smell come from?" Nathan asked, pinching his nose to lessen the foulness.

However, Efraim just shrugged off his shoulders while both of his hands were on the hilt of his blade. He heightened his senses in case something emerged from the curtain of darkness.

Then as soon as Michael recovered, they resumed their strides with the appraiser and the pathfinder leading in front. Nathan played a note on his flute, and the sound he created reverberated inside the whole tunnel.

With the use of his Flair, he was able to visualize the area that his sound had traveled to.

"There's no danger ahead, and I didn't find the source of the foul stench," Nathan informed his group.

Though the pathfinder assured them that the path they were traversing was safe, Efraim still held the Seventeenth Shard's hilt. But as they went even further, the horrifying smell became much more nauseating to the point that Michael and Nathan started to experience dizziness. It even began to affect their breathing as they found it hard to inhale.

"This feels like poison," Daniel stated; his nose had a piece of rolled cloth plugged in each hole.

Then the orb of fire vanished once more as the mage fell on the ground. Blobs of sweat covered his forehead while dark circles appeared underneath his eyes.

"Michael! Michael! What happened?" Daniel asked, his face laced with concern.

He crouched down and checked him up, but the moment his hand touched his skin, he felt like he was holding burning lava.

"His temperature's so high," he exclaimed.

But the next second, Nathan collapsed on the ground as well.

"What's happening to you guys?" Daniel asked upon feeling the same sensation he felt from the mage on the pathfinder.

Meanwhile, Efraim stared into the path ahead, his thoughts occupied when he heard a distinct yet very familiar sound.

"A monarch's relic is near the vicinity," the unknown voice coming from the casket rang inside his right ear.

. . . . .