Chương 60: Castle

[Health: 1210] [Mana: 825(456)] [Stamina: 1425] The system screen fizzles away as I push myself forward in heavy strides over the landscape. Healing this morning depleted much of my mana, but I'm not going to rely heavily on mana anyway with my budding mage abilities. The air speeding past my ears deafens me as I pass through the first difficulty transition. The castle walls look large from a distance. Maybe too large to jump. There's been an idea floating around in my mind since I saw the castle up close.

It's stupid, and will probably get me killed. Sadly, it's still the best thing I could think of. The wall curves around to the sheer cobblestone edge of the cavern, making a flank impossible. There are no forms of cover on the way to the castle, which leaves me a single choice. When I transition from cobblestone to stone brick encampments, I turn slightly. After a couple of minutes more, I step down hard with both legs and leap into an encampment on the edge of no man's land.

The inside is filled with corpses, but I expected that. This is the encampment where I killed the baron with the rapier. Sure enough, its body lies where I left it. Its head is crushed, and its weapon sits gently a foot away. I make my way to the soldiers and begin my plan. It's not complicated, but I've always thought that simple plans are better. The fewer parts something has, the fewer parts that can break. The quote from my father brings a sad smile as I work. Please, please be alive.

I rip miscellaneous straps from a few different bodies and fasten them together. I try to bind the axe to my back and make a holster, but my workmanship isn't nearly good enough. My best effort is a one-time-use fastener, where I can rip the weapon off my back. But given that the beginning of the siege will have me using it and not later, there's no reason to continue. I finish fastening everything and continue. A mace is ripped off a random soldier and attached to my waist via a belt.

Chewing on my tongue, I contemplate taking a knife and stowing it in my chestplate. I shake my head and toss it to the side. My fists would be better in any situation that needs a knife. The only way it would be better is if I were fighting an enemy with a lot of impact resistance. In a castle filled with presumably tight-muscled hobgoblins, there's no need. I pick a random soldier and rip its armor off. Underneath, I tear strips of cloth and wrap them around every part of my body that shows skin.

Feet, ankles, hands, and neck. As for the head… I walk over and pick up the helmet that the baron placed on the ground before we fought. Because of that, the surface is polished and undented. I hold my breath as I put it on, but thankfully, it smells like metal and leather instead of hobgoblin. Having to smell that for the next half-hour would've been a nightmare. After one last check to make sure I'm not showing any skin, I leap out of the encampment and begin my long walk to the castle walls.

Out in the bright and open. Plain to see. It becomes apparent how slow walking is now that I have to do it for the first time in a week. The entire cavern from home base to the castle is about ten miles. Moving at full speed, I can traverse that in eight or nine minutes. Walking the same distance takes a few hours. It really puts my leaping speed into perspective. Huffing in annoyance, I build up to a reasonable sprint speed.

Funny enough, sprinting normally now consumes far more energy, even though it's many times slower than leaping. The bindings on my feet are awkward, forcing me to readjust them several times. My heart picks up as I get closer to my destination.

"Kevin, move perfectly, fight perfectly, and focus on the upcoming fight." The anxiety and worry slowly fade from my stomach, with resolve welling up in its place. Seeing through thin slits in the helmet with an eye missing makes seeing hard. Even with the impediment, small, humanoid shapes make themselves out at the top of the wall. I was right. The wall stands over twice the height of the encampments, almost reaching thirty feet tall.

I wonder for a moment what they're trying to keep out with that giant wall, but I remember that this is a tutorial. Everything here exists for my life-or-death trial. The strongest crucible, or the cruelest prison. Shaking my head and taking a deep breath, more beings make their way to the top of the wall from a staircase or ladder I can't see. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Guards wearing leather with quivers on their backs number over twenty and stand at attention. Their bows are drawn and aimed at me. [(II) Hobgoblin Guardsman lv. 15] [Highest stat: Perception] [Lowest stat: Vitality] [(II) Hobgoblin Guardsman lv. 15] [Highest stat: Perception] [Lowest stat: Fortitude] [(II) Hobgoblin Guardsman lv. 15] [Highest stat: Agility] [Lowest stat: Fortitude] [(II) Hobgoblin Captain lv. 20] [Highest stat: Fortitude] [Lowest stat: Intelligence] Variants already.

This is going to be a tough one. The captain steps closer to the edge of the wall and shouts a warning. Instead of leather, it wears plate mail from head to toe, with a simple helmet that doesn't cover the face. I stumble to a stop a few dozen feet in front of the massive plated metal gate and rest my hands on my knees. Fake stuttering breaths come out loudly as I look up at them.

"Ak guhg krck cough kveck righ k- cough" I yell, mimicking the way they speak. Hopefully, the coughs will cover up the oddness in tone and pitch. They turn to each other and grumble in confused voices.

"Areck Areck! Krev kruch!" I point at the encampments in the distance, my movements frantic and my voice panicked. Please, please work. Not sure if it's because of the baron's helmet, but they converse with concern written on their faces. Some of the bows lower, their wielders releasing the tension on the strings. The commanding goblin turns and waves behind the wall, yelling at something. A sly smile grows under my helmet. It's that easy.

I continue to look exhausted for a few seconds before a loud, grinding sound emanates from the gate as it opens inwards. With no more weapons aimed at me, I jog to the opening in staggered steps. The gate opens slowly, but I eventually squeeze through the gap and meet the commanding hobgoblin with a group of guardsmen behind it. The concern on their faces and the weapons stowed on their hips tell me that they've fallen for my ruse.

A mostly empty courtyard goes on for a few hundred feet before it meets the castle proper. Only a few scattered buildings dot the courtyard, with a few hobgoblins on and around them. They lead into the distance, all the way to the sheer wall of the cavern itself.

"Kurck rick luck!?" The captain asks as it steps toward me. (What is it!? What's wrong!?) I imagine it says.

"Grah! Grah!" I say, frantically stepping in place and moving past him. (It's important! I have to move quickly! Can't talk! Gotta go!) I point at the castle multiple times. Thanks to my legendary species, I burst into a sprint I know they can't hope to match.

"Kruk!?" it yells as I speed away. (What?) It stands with confusion written on its face. I snicker as I make distance. Unexpectedly, there isn't a gate on the castle itself. There are large doors inside equally sized tunnels. On the side of the tunnel before the door, there's a small opening to the left. The setup is eerily similar to guarded entrances to things like country borders and power plants on Earth. Sprinting to the door, I push with all my might.

The door doesn't budge, and a thick keyhole on one side tells me what I'm supposed to do. Metal frames the entire door. If I were able to break it down, it would be way too loud and take way too long. Sighing in annoyance, I turn around. I walk inside the small room and see a single guardsman with its feet up on the desk, reading a book. It wears leather armor even lighter than that of the archers on the wall.

Papers are scattered in a chaotic/organized manner over the room with several bookshelves lined against the wall. [(II) Hobgoblin Guardsman lv. 15] [Highest stat: Wisdom] [Lowest stat: Strength] It looks up casually, face lighting up with alarm as it sees me. It quickly sets down its book and pushes to its feet, stepping toward me.

"Kuuhrk, grack krung krack?" (What is it? What do you need?)"Grah, grah kring krang!" I say, continuing to look like a seven-year-old who needs to poop while pointing at the door outside the room.

"Kruk? Righkt giftk klak." it looks at the wall where I'm pointing. (What? You need to get inside?)"Yes!" (Yes!) The guard's eyes narrow as it crosses its arms.

"Krlick kruck krrrkcuk." (Something smells fishy here) My hands wave circularly, indicating the urgency of the situation.

"Krack! Krack!" (Hurry! Hurry!) The guard's eyes narrow further.

"Krucks rack struck klruck," it says suspiciously (This isn't working, just kill me so you can get inside) My eye rolls at the guard's stubborn nature, and I reach over my back. I rip the large axe from its restraint and swing down in one powerful motion. The guard realizes what's happening far too late, eyes widening at the last second.

Packed with almost triple-digit strength and a skill-augmented body, the axe enters at the shoulder and rips violently through the guard's body, exiting through the crotch and crashing against the cobblestone floor. Chime Awe of my strength is washed away by the command. I reach down and check several pouches on both halves of the guard before finding a comically sized key. Snatching it up, I rush out of the room and stick it in the door. It takes a few seconds of wiggling before I align it right and get it opened.

A staircase stands at the end of a hallway with multiple openings in the side. A memory flashes into my mind. In history class, I learned of cities that were intentionally made confusing to make invasion more difficult. The inhabitants of the city knew it well because they lived there every day. My gaze passes through every doorway, but there's no way to know what goes where. Before I continue, I close the door behind me and reach into my pocket, gripping the rock inside.

My eye closes, mana carefully prodding the inside of the rock and mapping out the spell.

"Kevin, become the mana." Like the night before, I form the mana into a replica of the spell. With a clicking sensation, the mana evaporates, and I know I've done it.

"In front of the door, in front of the door," I speak to myself. A grinding sound, far quieter than I expect, comes out as a pillar rises from the wall a couple of feet in front of the door. Not close enough, they might be able to squeeze through. Frowning, I try again, reforming the entire spell and repeating the action. A second pillar pulls itself from the ground near the hinges, which wouldn't stop the door from opening.

"Block the door, Kevin," I say with my eye closed. The spell is rebuilt and activated a third time. I open my eye to see a pillar growing directly under the door instead of in front of it. Metal bends and wood cracks as the pillar fights the integrity of the door, causing it to bend in on itself. After a few seconds, only a few inches of circular stone come out and cram the door against the doorway. I grimace at the sight, but shrug and keep moving. Eh, good enough.

There were other doors, so this should only buy me a few minutes. Still, something is better than nothing. Stepping carefully, I check each opening individually. One leads to a hallway. The next leads to… another hallway. The third, hallway. My head dips as I sigh. I hurry through the musty interior toward the stairs. The treasure's always at the top of the tower.