Chapter 122: Fishing in Troubled Waters (Part I)

"Humans are going to attack Brandon Stone City?"

Kadok’s eyes widened, staring at Verna in disbelief. He did not even notice the pastry that had slipped from his hand and fallen to the floor. The news Verna brought was simply too shocking for him to process.

Kadok had long been aware of these humans lingering near Brandon Stone City. However, he had been uncertain of their intentions, which was why he had used a decoy to lure Jan into helping him investigate. It was not as if Kadok hadn't considered that these humans might attack him; although the power disparity between the surface and the Underdark was vast—with Brandon Stone City’s military might being more than enough to wipe out a small surface nation—the problem was the complete lack of understanding between the two sides. To the denizens of the Underdark, surface visitors were like beings from another world. Coupled with the lingering legends from the Second World War, the residents of the Underdark grew increasingly wary and anxious about surface travelers. It was much like how Earthlings might react if they heard that aliens were high-tech lifeforms exploring Earth in UFOs; they would never confuse such beings with primitive apes.

Although they had engaged in a few skirmishes with humans before, the gray dwarves’ cautious nature had prevented them from gauging the enemy’s true strength. This made Kadok increasingly paranoid, and the fact that Jan had gone silent for several days only added to his alarm. If the enemy were truly powerful enough to eliminate a necromancer, could his Brandon Stone City even be defended?

Just as Kadok was filled with apprehension, his scouts brought more bad news: the humans had gathered and were now encamped not far from the city. Upon hearing this, Kadok’s heart hammered, though he still harbored a sliver of hope that they were here to communicate—perhaps they had heard of the city’s reputation and wanted to trade with the gray dwarves. Of course, if they needed the gray dwarves’ assistance, that wouldn't be impossible, provided the price was right...

Unfortunately, the news Verna brought crushed his last remaining fantasy. Were these humans truly about to ignite a Third World War?

At the thought, Kadok trembled. He could already envision his city being utterly destroyed by these evil races from the surface.

What should he do? What could he do?

Kadok tossed the pastry aside, stood up, and paced back and forth, furrowing his brow in agitation. He had no good plan. If those humans were as formidable as he feared, Brandon Stone City could never hold! But... were humans really that strong? From the encounters the patrols had reported, their strength seemed quite average... No, no. He had heard their equipment was lackluster; perhaps the surface powers were just sending slaves to exhaust them, like the dark elves did with goblins. If that were the case, they must have elite troops hidden behind the vanguard...

Kadok paced, thoughts flashing through his mind one after another, but he could find no secure solution. He even considered abandoning the city with his kin before the attack began. Fortunately, the inherent greed of the gray dwarves prevented him from acting on this seemingly insane idea. Regardless of anything else, this was the city of the gray dwarves; surrendering without a fight was simply not in their nature.

"Wait, where is the mage?"

When the thought crossed his mind, Kadok was surprised to find that Verna had vanished.

What was going on? Why had she left before finishing the conversation?

"M-my lord! Something terrible has happened!"

Just as Kadok was feeling bewildered, a frantic shout erupted from outside. A gray dwarf soldier stumbled into the reception room. Before the magistrate could fly into a rage, the soldier spoke, his face deathly pale.

"The humans—the humans have already breached Brandon Stone City!"

"What? How is that possible? What is going on?! How did they break through the defenses, and why was I not notified? What are you all doing!"

Kadok leaped to his feet. This was no joke. The defenses of Brandon Stone City were incredibly tight; even the dark elves could not infiltrate them easily. He hadn't received a single report of defeat from the front. Could these humans truly be so powerful that they had breached the defenses so effortlessly?

"No, Magistrate. They did not break through the walls."

Seeing Kadok’s explosive rage, the soldier was startled and hurriedly explained with caution.

"They didn't break the walls?" Kadok’s anger only intensified. "If they didn't break the walls, how did those damned humans enter my city? Did they dig a tunnel?"

"That is exactly what happened, my lord! They dug a tunnel into Brandon Stone City!"

"What did you say?"

Upon hearing this, Kadok’s mind went blank. He stared at the guard, unable to believe his ears. In the entire Underdark, the gray dwarves were the greatest architects; they understood the stone of this region better than anyone, which was why they had survived until now. Their sensitivity to stone was unparalleled. Under normal circumstances, it would be impossible for someone to undermine them without them noticing. Yet, these humans had managed to dig a secret passage right under the noses of the gray dwarves!

These passages were, of course, not dug by Lox and his men. While humans on the surface had a history of mining, they lacked the skill to tunnel under the watchful eyes of gray dwarves. In reality, these tunnels had been planned by Jan long ago. Once he decided to bring Brandon Stone City under his control, Jan had sent goblins to quietly dig them. While the gray dwarves’ tunneling technique was legendary, even they were bound by the laws of nature. Jan’s goblins, however, were not. Using a "system skill" that allowed them to excavate a tunnel with just a few swings of a pickaxe, they were far faster than any gray dwarf.

Kadok could not possibly know of Jan’s treacherous intent. The shock of having his city tunneled through was immense.

"Where are those humans?"

"The garrison is fighting them now. Their strength is not great, and I believe we can—"

"Idiot!"

Unable to restrain himself, Kadok lunged forward and struck the soldier hard. "Those humans are merely scouts! There must be elite troops behind them! Send men to wipe them out immediately, then seal that breach! Deploy all reserve forces, declare a state of emergency, and order all women and children to stay indoors. I am going to the front myself to see what those damned humans are trying to do!"

As Kadok aggressively led his guard toward the front lines, he did not notice a pair of eyes watching them intently from the Black Stone watchtower outside the city.

"Kadok has left the magistrate’s residence."

Watching the retreating back of the gray dwarf, Verna hummed softly and turned to Jan. "The soldiers are searching and patrolling. I believe this is our best opportunity."

"It’s almost time, but this will do."

Faced with Verna’s comment, Jan sneered and turned to walk toward the stairs of the watchtower. "The rest is up to Patilina. As for those gray dwarves... you know what to do, Verna. Rest assured, if everything goes well, I expect that once this farce is over, you will be the leader of Brandon Stone City."

"I hope so."

At these words, a triumphant expression flickered across Verna’s face. She glanced at Jan’s back once before withdrawing her gaze to look at the dark, gloomy city ahead.

Now, it all depended on whether Patilina succeeded.

Meanwhile, as Kadok and his soldiers puffed their way to the front, outside the walls of Brandon Stone City, Lox frowned, looking gravely at the young girl beside him.

"Lady Patilina, are we truly to launch an attack on Brandon Stone City?"

Lox knew nothing of the identity of this peculiar girl in armor. He only knew that she had suddenly appeared by Jan’s side, and Jan had never mentioned her origin. However, her immense combat power and the magnificent armor she wore led many paladins to believe that Patilina was an envoy of the God of War—a Valkyrie descended from the divine realm.

"Of course!" Patilina shot him a look of disdain and raised her lance. "These are the Master's orders. We must defeat these vermin of the underworld and show them our might! Besides, as a warrior, since you are already here, do you intend to run away from the fight?"

"This..."

Lox was left speechless. He had to admit that Patilina’s words were perfectly in line with the teachings of the God of War—that for a warrior, the most important thing is to have the courage to face battle.

Even Lox himself now believed that Patilina must be an avatar of a Valkyrie.

"Very well!"

Seeing Lox no longer resisted, Patilina flashed a triumphant smile. She leveled her lance and pointed it forward.

"Then, let us throw a grand fireworks display!"