606 Attacking the Vinewood Troglodyte
Mage Vortefier was a respected mage in the Zarefard Kingdom and the Tower Sword Kingdom. He was a known Captain, but luck was against him. He faced trouble after trouble, for those above him envied his potential. In the end, he met three other mages with whom he shared a kindred spirit.
All of whom were also known as powerful mages but were shunned by the elite.
Together, they shared what they had learned in their adventures about a mysterious grand temple that the ancient text and hieroglyphics they discovered referred to as an 'Abode.'
The knowledge they all shared surprised each other as there were many similarities and links, and soon, they uncovered a secret underground world of ancient times.
At the time, the mines were very small, and most of the underground region of the cave was not yet opened.
The four had to find ways into the depths of the mines and saw the massive space that could fit an entire kingdom with all of its territories.
Each of the four continued their exploration and found four temples that mapped out where the points of energy were.
All four worked in their respective places and tried to undo the seal and free the magic. In the legends, those exposed to this magic would become more powerful.
And indeed, they grew more powerful. But a terrifying curse befell them when they opened the seal. It opened the portals, and the army of monsters began to pour in.
Emeros continued to tell the story of the four mages to his team as they moved toward the location. The empty underground world was now peaceful as the orcs and the imps were recovering from the battles they waged.
"Amazing... To think there was such a story behind this mine!"
"Indeed. If Perment had explored the inside of the mine, he would have died." Emeros spoke with certainty.
The group looked at Perment, who was still shaky as he walked.
"Are you sure you're alright?" Wesret asked.
Perment had a slightly pale expression. Two poisons that caused him a drop of nearly ten levels were dangerous if not for Emeros.
"It's fine. I'm getting better thanks to all those potions I took..." Perment sighed as he walked ahead.
"But master, did Rorcast know who was the strongest among them?" Serena asked.
"As mages? I think they are all equal. But they're not mages now. Four Troglodytes were born from four different wood. Rorcast was probably the weakest with the high requirements that he had."
"What do you mean?" Perment asked.
"Each of them transformed into a Troglodyte with specific hunger. One needed blood, the other needed flesh, and another needed soul, while Mage Rorcast, who became the Deadwood Troglodyte, needed mana. Of course, these are all guesses based on the appearance and features I saw through Rorcast memories."
"Mana? So Dark Dependents need to refill their batteries, and Rorcast needed mana?"
"Yes. He became a rotting Troglodyte made up of vines and branches. It needed to keep feeding on magic or mana as a deadwood troglodyte."
"Then... he has the easiest job! The mana here is rich!"
"For survival, yes. While the magic within the mines could sustain his life, it was not enough for him to grow stronger. So although he was as great as the other four, his specific situation of needing magic caused him to be weaker compared to his peers. And so, Rorcast made a plot to target mages and magic users. But because of how few there are, he ought to be the weakest."
"He did kill a few Captains. I recall many mage Captains becoming lost in the mines. We all assumed they met a monster stronger than him. So it was Rorcast!"
"Yes. Now we're going after this one. I just hope... oh crap." Emeros saw it from afar.
The group was quietly walking through a wide open space. They all had camouflaged outfits that would make them nearly invisible if they all lay down.
But Emeros had stopped as he looked ahead.
He pointed to a certain place far ahead. To the eyes of everyone else, nothing was there.
"What's up?"
"Nothing above indicates that there is a secret room up there. But if I follow the energy conversion circle, the point where the second seal would be is over there. Therefore, the mage is hiding under that place."
"Did the mage seal the hole?"
"Yes. Using his vines. It's the perfect cover. The battlefield will be chaotic, and he could send his vines out to drink the blood or open the hole to bring in the corpses."
"So if we go there, he will know we are around... So I guess a surprise attack is out of the question." Don sighed. He was hoping for a surprise attack. This was how they defeated Rorcast.
"That's not just our issue. The location where the power source is a layer deeper than where we are standing. The mage borrowed in there and made a home. But I never would have guessed that the power source would be right in the middle of this place! Looking at the state of the battlefield, it seems we made a grave mistake in forcing the war between the imps and the orcs! The worst possible Mage is here!" Emeros cursed. The position of the mage was right in the middle of the battlefield.
"What's wrong with the state of this battlefield?" Wesret asked. He could see corpses, discarded weapons, and even limbs spread around the area.
"...No blood. I can't smell any blood here!" Serena answered.
Perment was the first to realize what this meant.
"The Troglodyte that feeds on blood is right under the imp and orcs' battlefield?!" Perment exclaimed.
"Wait! You mean to say that the vine that drinks blood is the one right under this place!?" Philip exclaimed.
"Yes."
"Should we retreat, master?" Brent asked.
"No. This momentary peace between the orcs and the imps won't last long. The orcs will soon discover that the humans are attacking and continue the war. If we ignore it, we could end up fighting a Champion!"
"Then we have to attack it! Don't we have bombs!? We put it in there, toss all the bombs inside, and blow it up!"
"It will alert the orcs and the imps. Besides, we need whatever this mage has or what he has learned." Emeros rejected the plans.
"Then what do we do?"
Emeros thought for a bit.
"I need to fight using my strengths... And my strength is that...!" Emeros decided on his actions.
"Here's the plan..." Emeros began to lay out the plans for the team.
Several minutes later, Emeros walked towards where the vine was.
"I have Mage Rorcast memories. I know the secret to this place." Emeros suddenly spoke in a loud voice.
He watched carefully at the ground.
Suddenly, some movements occurred as several snake-like things began to creep out.
"Mage Vivindel. The Bloodvine Troglodyte. I know the secret to the Abode. I know the name of that glyph which you all cannot read. And I know the way to open the seal. Only those who are black magic experts or who know the dark-dependent formula can break this curse!" Emeros slammed down a formation plate as the vines were moving toward it.
Emeros channeled energy to it; the formula was the seal breaker spell he had created.
The entire secret base of the Mage trembled as energy and magic within began to shake.
The vines suddenly stopped.
"Kill me, and you lose this knowledge. This formation plate is incomplete! Vivindel! I am here to propose equal trade. You and I will team up to kill the other two mages, and I will unseal the seal without killing you! You can bound a vow on me to do this!" Emeros called out.
There was silence for several seconds, and soon, a trembling occurred. Vine after vine began to seep out, and soon, the shape of a human emerged from the vines.
Emeros saw the vine but knew this was not the true vine form of the Troglodyte. Emeros had seen through Noxus's memories about an Eldrich with this power.
"You are the ones that killed Rorcast?"
"Yes. He planned to kill me. So I killed him first." Emeros chuckled.
The eyes of the mage glanced around the area, and he could see that his allies were a distance off.
"How brave of you to decide to go here alone." Vivindel extended his hands, and numerous vines shot out from his figure.
The vines began to wrap around Emeros, and he was being pulled in.
"Bravery and intelligence are two different things. I'm not brave; I know my information will be useful. What a curse, right? Those that break the seal would become the second seal. But what if... I can take it away?" Emeros asked.
At that moment, a strange suction of energy occurred.
The dark energy was being sucked out!
Vivindel was stunned.
And then, fire energy began to glow out of Emeros's hands.
The vines retreated as they were hurt.
On one of Emeros's hands was a surging energy of darkness. On the other was a bright orange flame.
"It seems you are capable. Hmp. Then again, you did kill Rorcast."
"I want to open the seal. You are the strongest one. I planned to kill you, but now that you have absorbed an army of imps and orcs, you should be close to being a Champion, right? Let's make a deal. Make a vow with me!" Emeros offered.
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