NBAA Vol. 7 Chapter 4 Part 1
CHAPTER 4
—A few minutes later, Gonzo and Dain arrived at the Black Tiger Guild, accompanied by Hanzo.
When Reito explained the situation, the two of them graciously agreed to accompany him on the investigation, saying it was a request from their friends.
Thus, Reito, Hanzo, Gonzo, and Dain made their way to the sewers.
Each prepared and descended from a ladder on the city’s outskirts into the sewers. Then, they began to search for the remains of the undead.
“Wow… this is the sewer? It’s surprisingly spacious. The ceiling is high enough that even Giants can pass through, and it doesn’t smell that bad.”
Reito muttered as he looked around, and Dain responded to his words.
“There is a magic stone called Deodorizing Stone in the sewers. The magic stone, which is also used to make Decay Stone, is set up all over the place. Look, here and…”
When Reito looked at the place where Dain pointed, he saw that there was indeed a brown magic stone embedded in the wall. The appearance of the stone was very similar to the Decay Stone that Reito knew.
According to Dain’s explanation, the Decay Stone became a substitute for the Deodorizing Stone, which was created when the Deodorizing Stone continued to absorb foreign odors in a place like this. It appeared that soldiers from the kingdom visited the place periodically to replace the stones.
The Decay Stone was made by applying a special process to the Deodorizing Stone. Dain said that the Deodorizing Stone was the source of the Decaying Stone, and that it could not only absorb the stench of the sewers, but could also be turned into an item that would eventually repel monsters, killing two birds with one stone.
“Is that true? Dain-sama is a very knowledgeable man.”
Hanzo, who had been listening to Dain’s explanation, raised her voice in admiration.
“Not really, most adventurers know such things… Or rather, why are you wearing a mask?”
“I have a nose that is more sensitive than others due to my special training, that I have. So this place is tough for me. Thanks to the Deodorizing Stone, it is much easier, that I know…”
“Is that so? I don’t feel anything.”
Reito and Dain were human, and Gonzo, a Giant, did not feel any particular odor. But for Hanzo, the assassin, the environment seemed to be harsh.
Dain looked at Reito and asked, “But what are we going to do from here? We don’t know if we’ll encounter the undead if we move through the sewers by ourselves, do we?”
Hanzo answered that question.
“I thought you might say that, so I borrowed in advance copies of the reports of adventurers who entered the sewers in the past few days from the receptionists of three guilds.”
“Copies?”
Reito wondered if such technology existed in this world.
At that moment, Airis’ voice echoed in Reito’s head.
『Yes. In this world, there is a profession called “Appraiser,” and those people can learn the skills of “Speed Reading” and “Speed Writing. In other words, they copied the reports by hand.』
Satisfied with this explanation, Reito received the report from Hanzo.
A quick glance at the report revealed that several adventurers had seen undead in the sewers. Moreover, there was a bias in the location.
“…From what I see in this document, do people encounter the undead more often when they are exploring the central part of the city? Well, it’s probably just a coincidence, but it’s near the arena.”
After hearing Reito’s words, Gonzo and Dain also looked at the copy of the report.
“Hmm? Come to think of it, I see.”
“I don’t think the people who run the arena are breeding undead underground, do you?”
“Hahaha, Dain-dono does have some interesting things to say.”
“Hahaha…”
Dain’s unexpectedly sharp insights made Reito laugh out loud in a barbed tone.
Reito looked at the map he had prepared in advance.
According to the map, Reito and his team were in the north. If they continued south, they could reach the location of the undead that Garuru had encountered.
“Okay, let’s head south. We have to be careful not to get lost…”
“From what I have heard, this sewer system has existed since the Imperial Era. It was built into a labyrinth-like structure to protect against outside intruders…”
At Dain’s words, Gonzo’s eyes widened.
“Really?? That’s also the first time I’ve heard that.”
“Do you want to leave some signs so we don’t get lost?”
When Reito said this, Dain shook his head.
“It’s okay. If you look closely at the wall, you’ll see that the adventurer who entered earlier has carved an arrow, right? That indicates the location of the nearby entrance.”
“Oh, it’s true. Dain really knows a lot of things… so this isn’t the first time he’s been here.”
“S-So what!? I’ve been in a lot of financial trouble myself!”
Apparently, Dain had accepted several requests to deal with monsters in the sewers. The knowledge he had acquired earlier had also been passed on to him by a senior adventurer.
In order to proceed, Reito invoked the “Photosphere” magic spell, causing several orbs of light to drift around the area.
“Alright, now it’s much brighter.”
Then, Dain opened his mouth tentatively.
“Ah… Reito? I’m sorry, but my shadow magic doesn’t go well with holy attribute magic, so could you please dim the light a bit more?”
“Ah, that’s right. I guess it can’t be helped… Do you want to move ahead to an area where the light sphere can’t reach, Dain?”
“I told you I can only provide logistical support!”
“I have learned some skills in Night Vision and sensing, so please leave the leading role to me, that I can do.”
Hanzo’s suggestion was accepted, and she was left to lead the way for a while.
Reito adjusted the amount of light from the Photosphere so that Dain’s shadow magic would not be affected, and began to move south.
~
An hour had passed since they started moving through the sewers.
After moving through a labyrinth-like passage, Reito and his friends finally arrived at the place where Garuru was attacked. During their travels, they encountered no monsters or undead, which gave them an eerie feeling.
“So this is the scene… I see, you’re talking about that thing.”
A black wolf carcass lay where Gonzo had pointed.
Dain, familiar with monsters, approached the carcass and began examining it.
“Is this the undead wolf that bit him? No, it’s not a monster…it’s a normal dog.”
“Dain, do you know something?”
“I’m not a necromancer, but a dark mage…hah, I guess I can’t help it.”
Dain frowned as he began to examine the carcass in detail.
First, he checked to see if the Dead Soul Puppet had a Necrostone. However, as far as he could tell, there was no Necrostone in the body. There was no doubt that this black dog was undead, but there was no indication that a necromancer had manipulated it.
Dain reported this to Reito and the others.
“This one doesn’t have any Necrostones, and it’s definitely just an undead. However, it would be impossible to mutate it into an undead without using a Necrostone, unless you’re a very high-level necromancer…”
Gonzo’s eyes widened when he heard Dain’s explanation.
“Don’t tell me it’s the work of the necromancer who was manipulated the Rotten Dragon?”
“Hey, don’t say anything scary!”
“I don’t think that’s the case though…”
Reito, who knew the identity of the person who created the undead that appeared in the sewers, denied Gonzo’s prediction. Either way, the investigation of the sewers must continue. They resume their search for the existence of the undead besides the black dog.
While on the move, Reito communicated with Airis.
『Airis, just to be sure, even if an undead bites you, the number of undead will not increase, right?』
『No. This isn’t a zombie movie, so an increase won’t occur. However, if you are bitten, you will be cursed, which is dangerous, so you must act immediately. Garuru was also about to die from the bite…』
『The undead monsters at the time of the Rotten Dragon were created by the miasma released by the Rotten Dragon, right?』
『That is correct. Creatures exposed to large amounts of miasma turn into undead after they die. However, creatures killed by undead do not mutate into undead.』
Reito decided that all that was needed was to exterminate the undead that had been released into the sewers.
Reito would occasionally ask Airis to show him the way, and she would guide him along the route so that others would not suspect him as he searched for the undead that existed in the sewers.
After walking for a while, Hanzo, who was in the lead, suddenly stopped.
“Wait… My ‘Detect Presence’ skill has been activated, that it has.”
“What? There is no reaction to my ‘Detect Presence’ though.”
“The ‘Detect Presence’ skill of an assassin profession has a wider range than those of other professions. From here, you can see a presence about one hundred meters away from the front passage.”
“One hundred meters…that’s amazing.”
Reito was truly impressed by Hanzo’s words. His “Detect Presence” could not detect such a long distance. However, Hanzo also said that if the distance were too great, it would not be possible to detect the target’s exact location. At best, he could only sense the direction in which the target was located, and he could only get an accurate location within a range of fifty meters.
“This way. I want you to follow me, that I do.”
“I understand. But will it be noticeable if I leave the Photosphere activated?”
Dain answered Reito’s question.
“Well, that would be bad. Undead are sensitive to holy attribute magic, so they might run away…”
“But you can’t see anything without a light, right?”
When Gonzo said this, Dain replied, “Don’t worry.”
“It’s fine if it’s a normal light like a torch. They don’t like holy light, but they’re not afraid of ordinary fire.”
Reito immediately deactivated the Photosphere, prepared a torch, and lit it.
Even if they were seen, there would be no problem because the undead, who hate the living, would follow their instincts and attack them.
Reito and the others hurried on.
But Hanzo, who was ahead of them, suddenly stopped again. Then she put her back against the wall with a tense expression.
Reito and the others wondered why she did that, but they decided there must be a reason and said nothing.
Hanzo spoke to the three in a low voice.