Chapter 107: Raid (3)

"Have two of you wait in the living room on the first floor, and one stay close to Heo Sang-hyeon-ssi. The rest of you, come out and intercept them."

Screech!!

A sensation of dizziness accompanied by the huge drain of magical power.

Ugh, the transmission efficiency of my magical power decreases with distance.

I'll consider improvements later.

"If you've absorbed my magical power, come out quickly!"

Creak creak creak creak!!! Crack crack crack!! Crack!

The windows of the mansion burst open at the same time as shadows of bizarre shapes poured out.

Monsters with bodies created by a tangle of random items such as toys, decorations, furniture, tools, and dishes scattered into the darkness.

I remembered the figures of these "workers" proudly wielding brooms, mops, and dustpans, while they busily cleared dust inside the building. But now they were unrecognizable.

Saws, hammers, kitchen knives, broken vases, scythes, hand axes, and even huge chunks of metal from unknown origins.

They've transformed into functional and dangerous shapes prepared for a unified purpose.

The dreadful noise of the necromancy golems moving was accompanied by screams.

"Aaaaaah!!"

"What, what is that!"

"It's a monster! It's a monster!"

"Don't back down! They're just puppets!"

"The Living Flame blesses and protects us!"

These weren't the same necromancy golems that were previously managed in an unreasonable manner by the Hollow Lord.

They moved with surprising agility and intelligence while pushing back the cultists who outnumbered them more than three to one.

Among the necromancy golems, there were specially modified ones, for example—

Creak, crack, crackle. Crackle, crackle.

One necromancy golem with a huge maw fashioned like a bear trap gnashed its teeth and made a grinding noise.

Its mouth was filled with three layers of ghastly teeth made from bone fragments that had been rolling around the mansion.

A surprised cultist swung a large axe at it, but the creature simply chewed up and tore apart the axe blade.

Grrrrrrr!!

Whirrrrr!!

At the same time, a hook and a menacing chainsaw attached to its right arm began to spin violently.

"Aaaargh!"

A huge necromancy golem then hurled its entire body into the ranks of the cultists.

This one was different from the other necromancy golems in both size and weight.

It was a monstrous figure that stood nearly 3.5 meters tall. What might be called its shoulders, if one could call them that, were about 3 meters wide.

Boom!!!

As expected from a haunted house that has existed for 150 years, there were all kinds of random items in the storeroom of the hungry mansion.

I found several large stone mortars in the storeroom behind the mansion and attached them all to that guy's arms.

Boom! Bang! Bang!

Each time it swung its arms, someone was sent flying.

"Fire! Don't get close, just shoot!"

From the rear ranks, the cultists could be seen aiming their shotguns at the necromancy golems, but gunmen were on our side as well.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Ratatatata! Ratatatatatatata!!

"Aaagh!! Get down!"

Creak, creak, creak...

A necromancy golem with four spider-like legs.

It had already taken up a position in the dark forest and was perched atop a tree.

I had loaded it with all the guns I had collected during my requests.

Three submachine guns, two assault rifles, one sniper rifle, and seven pistols.

In general, these were guns that the mutants of Gamaksan Mountain possessed.

I had even attached grenades and claymores to its chest.

"Stop messing around, you bastards!"

Of course, there were some exceptional figures among the enemies, as these cultists were not mere street thugs, but were people backed by beings from the abyss.

A large figure who seemed to be a head taller than the other cult members stepped forward and stretched his arms toward the sky.

"Grant me your protection!"

Whoosh!

A huge green burning flame wrapped around his body like a cloak. And then...

Crack!

With tremendous force, he uprooted a nearby tree!

The tree soon caught the green flames and turned into a giant torch before he charged towards the necromancy golem.

Boom!

Against the backdrop of a dark night sky, an impressive display of sparks and debris exploded in all directions, creating a spectacular scene.

"Wow!!"

"Vice Captain!"

It was indeed a convincing demonstration.

In response to that counterattack that was as grand as the feats of mythical heroes, the cultists momentarily regained their morale.

However.

Whirrrrr!

A strange noise rapidly approached from a distance. Some of the cultists were confused and looked up at the sky.

Thud!

The thing that fell at the center of the cultists was a strangely shaped necromancy golem with a shining golden body.

Even though it fell at an incredible speed, it still stood upright.

"Wh-What is that!?"

The cultists instinctively realized that the necromancy golem that had just appeared was completely different from any other golem they had seen before.

Click.

His or her mouth opened.

"Kyahahahahaha!!!"

I had a bit of trouble making that one.

The necromancy golem that was crafted by attaching the head of a completely intact golden dancer to the fragmented body parts of another was something beyond a mere necromancy golem.

Whirrrrr!

The golem (dancer) began to spin in a dazzling movement reminiscent of a ballet pose.

The silks attached to the dancer's arms fluttered, casting beautiful beams of light in all directions that simultaneously became blades sharp enough to cut through steel and attack everything around.

Squelch, slash, swoosh...

"Gah...?"

"Ah...?"

The cultists couldn't even understand what had happened to them and collapsed while spewing blood.

"A heretic's puppet!"

The large man called vice captain rushed at the necromancy golem (dancer) with his cloak of fire billowing behind.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaah!!!"

Instead of countering the attack directly, the necromancy golem (dancer) unleashed a magical scream; it was a terrifying cry imbued with the properties of necromancy that shook the psyche of humans.

Struck by the shock, the Vice Captain's face bled from every orifice and his posture crumbled.

Crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch...

At the same time, another necromancy golem (Teeth) approached from behind and bit into the nape of his neck.

They couldn't be stopped now.

Several other regular necromancy golems surrounded him and launched a relentless assault.

"He-Help me ...!!"

It was a horrific scene where it was impossible to tell the heroes from the villains. Amidst the grotesque and alien horror caused by the necromancy golems, a bewildered look appeared on the cultists' faces.

"Ah, Aaahhh! Monsters, they're monsters!"

"I, I was wrong!!"

"Run!"

This marked the beginning of the cultists' escape.

Huh? They're running away?

To the unaware they might seem like ordinary people, but these were indeed cultists.

Fanatics who were impossible to subdue or persuade from the beginning. These were crazy people who sold their humanity long ago for the sake of alien ideology.

Now that I think about it, their reactions were a bit odd, right?

I wonder why those who also summoned and controlled monsters themselves were making such a fuss about monsters.

Ah, I had thought there were too many of them; perhaps they had brought in some hired thugs from somewhere.

But why would the cultists do that? The descendants of Fomalhaut are not a small group.

"Well, I'll ask them later and find out."

It was a one-sided battle from the start.

I ordered the necromancy golems to scatter those who were running away and then turned my head.

"Guuuugh..."

Between the dense trees spread the [Mist and Dew Spider Web]

And between this huge net formed of mist and dew, a man hung upside down.

"Earlier, a big guy was called the vice captain; are you perhaps this vice captain then?"

"Monster..."

While the necromancy golems were in action, I captured the leader of this torch-bearing group. He was the one summoning the burning ones earlier.

He seemed strong but he wasn't particularly memorable.

The magical flames that had clung to the end of his staff had vanished, and blood was spurting from his abdomen and legs. Moreover, his limbs were bound, making movement difficult. Yet the madness and resolve in the expression of this leader (perhaps?) hadn't diminished at all.

Yes, that's the demeanor of a cultist.

"Are you the leader? If not, just say so."

"Does that matter...?"

"True, it doesn't matter either way. But your friends have all fallen or fled; do you still intend to fight?"

While I was speaking, he bit his lip and drew blood. Perhaps in response to that action, magical flames erupted from the extinguished end of his staff.

Whoooosh!!

Eventually, a new fireball came flying toward me.

"Ah, seriously."

[Elution]

From the barren ground, a tremendous amount of water suddenly surged forth.

Swooooooosh!

The water that was expelled with such high pressure and velocity that a direct hit could easily tear off an arm intercepted the fireball.

"This monster... how can you continuously cast such powerful magic?"

"I ate a lot of herbal medicine when I was young. But in your case, it seems like your body deteriorates every time you use your power, doesn't it?"

He noticeably weakened every time he cast a spell from a certain point.

He looked as if he was on a rapid diet. Perhaps that staff was wringing out his life force in place of the insufficient magical power.

"Ugh, what exactly is your reason for interfering with us like this?"

"What are you talking about? Who threw the first punch?"

Wait, did I throw the first punch? But they were the ones who tried to start the raid on my house, so I'm not in the wrong.

Oh, but wasn't I the one who stole the ring from their sanctuary first?

Thinking back, I indeed had thrown the first punch.

But that doesn't mean I can give up this ring.

"Sorry, but I can't give you this ring. Try looking for something else."

There's no artifact anywhere else in Paju that boosts your strength by three points without any questions or complications.

"A ring? What are you talking about?"

"Huh? It's not about the ring?"

"Eeeek...!! You cunning heretic! You try to bewitch me with your wicked nonsense! I do not know why you choose to help the owner of the hungry mansion, but millions of our believers will target you!"

"What are you talking about...?"

Ah, ah! Now I understand.

I thought Park Kwang-lim had betrayed me and sent them to attack me, but that wasn't the case. I misunderstood. Sorry, Park Kwang-lim-ssi.

"Did you come because of the hungry mansion? You cultists should just stick together."

"Stick together? Stop your nonsense! That skinny, worthless skeleton attacked us first! And then it committed the vile act of stealing our relic!"

"Ah. The Hollow Lord did that? Bad skeleton."

That aggressive lunatic skeleton. It must have been causing trouble with other cults before I dealt with it.

"Yes! That's why our Red Beacon Order came here for revenge! We will destroy the hungry mansion and take T's clock!"

"T's clock? What's that?"

What's T? A clock?

It's an artifact I don't know about. Ah, why does this keep happening? Stop adding new information, you fools.

The uneasy leader(perhaps?) rolled his eyes anxiously and then suddenly shouted in a bizarre direction.

"O living flame! O lord of Fomalhaut! Grant me the power to strike down this cunning heretic! Take my life if need—."

Ah, damn! These crazy cultists, I tried to resolve this through conversation!

"Hey, don't die on me!"