Void Crowne - Book 1 - Chapter 65 (Patreon)

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Table of Contents

Click on the following link for the 1458 word Chapter 65:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1n6Sl_oOYU5WtN5ZY48LfIWeCcvcgPb0r1pck6fZD97M/edit?usp=sharing

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Somewhere on Furtruna

Rhetfel’s dwarven elites continue to lose four more of their number to just three more mimics over the course of the dungeon. Because they have to deal with the mimics even if they’re pretty sure they are mimics, otherwise they would have a monster lurking behind them as they travel forth. And attacking the mimic while it’s disguised doesn’t deal any damage.

The mimics just act as regular chests until they dispel their disguise, and System chests in dungeons are invincible.

He feels particularly ashamed, though, when they run into a sixth chest and set up numerous traps around it this time to deal with the mimic. All while placing shields around the scout trying to open the mimic and dispel its disguise.

Only for all of the buildup to turn out to be useless when the chest itself ends up being a real chest with rare equipment inside of it. Making all of the dwarves feel briefly embarrassed and awkward at the sight of their traps and protections compared to the chest full of loot.

The same happens when they find a seventh chest. And an eighth.

But by the eighth chest, the anger and shame fades away to greed thanks to each of the three chests having rare equipment in them.

I guess the danger must be balanced with good rewards for the System to judge it as fair…

Part of him feels irritated at the sight of the loot, though. Simply because they didn’t find any of the real chests until after finding five fakes and losing a total of six of their dwarves to the mimics. And the other part of his irritation stems from the realization that people from other System Cities trying the dungeons will still go after these chests and the dungeon the moment they learn the chests are all filled with rare equipment.

Every last one.

There isn’t a single piece of equipment in the chests that isn’t at least rare.

It’s utterly ridiculous in Rhetfel’s eyes. His entire System City only has several dozen pieces of rare equipment, and his city is focused largely on forging. Yet every dungeon by the First Ranked in the galaxy gives at least a dozen pieces of rare equipment. Since each chest has multiple pieces in them.

Even if they don’t find anymore chests and leave with just the loot they’ve received thus far, it would still almost make up for the fallen dwarves.

Rhetfel doesn’t let the loot distract him from the current urgent matter at hand.

They have barely run into any monsters for a while now. Just a couple blighted zombies at best.

There hasn’t been any blightlings, and there hasn’t been any signs of the golems or the boss either.

It’s just eerily quiet in the mineshaft tunnels.

“Keep yer guards up,” Rhetfel warns the dwarves when he notices some of them beginning to let their guards down thanks to the rare equipment they’ve obtained. “We’ve yet to find the major threats yet. If ya end up gettin’ beaten because ya let yer guard down, I’ll give you an even bigger beating when we return to the city.”

Rhetfel’s accent slips out harder this time thanks to his wariness, and his words snap the dwarves out of their reverie as they begin focusing more on their surroundings again.

As if confirming his words, a bolt of darkness suddenly shoots out from further down the tunnel the moment they turn a corner. And while the dwarf tries to bring up his great shield to block it, the bolt manages to graze right past the shield to smash into his arm. Devouring his entire shoulder in the process and leaving his arm to fall to the ground amidst the dwarf’s screams of pain.

Rhetfel’s eyes sharpen on the source of the bolt in the distance.

A monster made out of black mist in the form of solid armor. With glowing purple eyes behind the visors of the armor’s helmet.

[Level 66 Elite Void Golem]

A strong sense of danger fills Rhetfel at the sight of the thing before he shouts, “Use magic to kill it! The intel says physical attacks won’t work lest you hit the core!”

Immediately after he says that, the elite void golem throws a few more void bolts at them before beginning to back away. Sending warning signals throughout Rhetfel’s mind in the process.

But the warning signals don’t change the fact that his dwarves begin to push after it while throwing spells that the elite void golem either tanks or tries to dodge. Bringing back up their confidence when they see the damage they deal to it.

“Stay on yer guards!” Rhetfel shouts, feeling his instincts blaring at this point and not willing to suffer another shameful moment like against the mimics so soon.

Unfortunately for him, a loud screeching sound echoes through the mineshaft the moment he speaks. Followed by the wall of the tunnel breaking down and a flood of blightlings rushing out from the large collapsed wall.

His dwarves, who were all busy chasing the elite void golem with magic, quickly get overwhelmed by the blightlings rushing in and biting, scratching, and otherwise tearing into them. Infecting them one by one until the warriors in the back manage to push forward and knock the blightlings back again.

By this point, however, the majority of the mages in his group have all been infected with the blight.

“Hurry and cast cure spells! Use all of the antidotes you have as well!” Rhetfel shouts while throwing some of his own antidotes back at the mages and pushing forward himself with his battle axe. Cutting down numerous blightlings along the way as he dodges some void bolts from the elite void golem that is no longer backing away.

It was a trap! A bloody golem drew us into a trap!

Rhetfel continues to push forward, killing the blightlings and the blighted zombies that begin to pour out from the collapsed tunnel as well. But the commotion behind him forces him to grit his teeth and pull back.

Because, despite the magical cures and the antidotes, half of his mages still became blighted and are attacking his own. Forcing them to put the blighted down.

Their own clansmen.

And, when Rhetfel sees more blighted zombies, along with several more elite void golems all entering the tunnel, he finally gives in and orders a full retreat.

However, even the retreat proves difficult as they’re forced to fight against the monsters while retreating. With said monsters chasing after them and eventually killing an additional four dwarves by the time they make it out of the exit.

Leaving their group of elite dwarves cut down from thirty-one upon entry – including Rhetfel himself – down to a mere thirteen upon exit.

This wouldn’t have happened if he had just brought the full force of fifty dwarves that he could’ve brought into the dungeon. And to make matters worse, he soon receives news that Leonhart successfully cleared his own dungeon with just eleven casualties amongst his fifty shadow hunters.

“That bloody bastard!” Rhetfel roars while marching into his city with the injured behind him, shocking the other dwarves in the city in the process. “He purposefully hid the mimics from us, and now he’s just going to claim the rare items for himself?!”

“Forgemaster, we heard tha’ there was only a single chest in his dungeon,” the dwarf reporting to him says in a gruff tone.

Rhetfel’s mind pauses at that before he quickly comes to realize what’s happening.

The First Ranked must be experimenting with his dungeons, and we got the short end of the stick. Which means the next dungeons sent by him will be more dangerous than the shadow hunters’…

A faint grin begins to spread across Rhetfel’s face at that thought. Because it means a possibility of getting back at the shadow hunters for this figurative slap in the face.

“Tell Leonhart that out dungeon had no mimics in it and was in the same cave biome his was,” Rhetfel says, ordering his dwarf to lie. “Tell ‘im we were scouting it out and didn’t bring enough mages to deal with the elite void golems, so we left before finishing it.”

“Understood, Forgemaster,” the dwarf says with a nod before leaving.

Rhetfel feels much better at the thought of getting back at the shadow hunters for this, but that glee fades again when he looks back and sees his force’s losses. Losses that are immense, to say the least.

He turns around again and walks towards his City Hall while shouting, “Gather the elites! We’re selecting those to join for the second attempt now!”