Chapter Two: The Slave Den

One demon falls, and more demons appear.

I deeply regret this now, because I would rather watch an uninteresting teen drama than be trapped in an impotent nightmare, watching Salvador use clumsy techniques to save his life.

These young squires are actually tall and sturdy. Although their swordsmanship is substandard, they have plenty of strength and robust bodies, meaning they won't die simply from being scratched a few times by a demon. Recovering their wits, four or five of them swarm forward, pinning a demon down firmly, while another frees a hand to pick up a side sword and thrust or hack away.

Naturally, they cannot cut through skin as thick as armor, but this is at least a good sign—they now have work to do instead of blindly being eaten as a midnight snack by the demons.

Salvador screams, gripping his sword with both hands and diving into the crowd. Taking advantage of the moment the others pin down a demon, he drives his sword into its head. A demon’s skull is no soft matter either; doing this injures them, but it is difficult to kill them outright. However, after Salvador stabs several times, the demon grows deathly weak and finally perishes.

Someone turns on the lights amidst the chaos. Orange light and shadow merge together, and the young squires are utterly astonished to see that it was Salvador who helped them kill the demon.

Salvador shouts, "Keep pinning them down! I'll do the killing!"

The young squires muster all their strength to control the demon, rendering it utterly immobile even with the strength of an ox. Channeling power through both arms, Salvador thrusts his long sword straight ahead. The blade gleams as swiftly as a bullet, and blood splashes, staining the beds and walls crimson.

He kills two more demons. Just then, six other demons appear, roaring at the youths.

Gao Zhi says with a trembling voice, "No! This must be a dream!"

Salvador shouts, "I'll hold them off, you run!"

Gao Zhi shakes his head, draws his sword, and says, "Let's fight to the death."

Salvador takes a deep breath and says, "Alright, let's fight."

Suddenly, the demon blocking the door bleeds from behind and falls to the ground dead. A warrior clad in armor charges into the thick of the demons. His swordsmanship is fierce, vigorous, and sweeping, yet full of unpredictable variations, turning the tide of battle in the span of a few short moments.

The squires shout, "Count Cerska!"

Surrounded by demons, Cerska parries left and right with a relaxed expression, smiling at the youths: "These lowly beasts delayed me for a moment. All of you, proceed immediately to the cafeteria and gather there."

Salvador says, "We'll help you!"

Cerska barks, "I am not so weak as to need squires to save me! Obey my command, retreat immediately!" With those words, he sweeps his blade in an arc, his mind-blade slicing open a ring of demons and forcing them to retreat.

Helsing never taught me that mind-blade technique; I could stand to learn it.

Obeying his orders, the youths head toward the cafeteria, the ground along the way littered with demon corpses. Overwrought with anxiety, fear renders them somewhat numb. Some youths, dodging corpses, accidentally lose their shoes and are forced to run barefoot.

I heard that the bunker of the Sword and Shield Society is guarded with impenetrable security, not even letting a fly slip through—where did the demons come from? It seems rumors are just rumors after all.

Inside the cafeteria, the young squires from the other platoons have already arrived. Mierce walks toward Sammy and says with relief, "As long as you're alive."

Salvador asks, "What on earth is going on? How... how could demons get in?"

Mierce says, "No one knows yet. The bunker is as huge as a maze; perhaps a breach appeared somewhere, allowing these wandering demons to show up here."

A girl says loudly, "No! No! This isn't an accident! This is organized and premeditated!"

It is Nili. They are wearing very little right now, but this is hardly the time to appreciate the scenery; instead, it feels rather tedious, much like watching a beauty have a diarrhea attack right in front of you—instantly knocking her off her pedestal.

Mierce asks, "Why do you say that?"

Nili seems excited just to speak with Mierce. She says, "These white demons aren't attacking the officers and lords; they are coming straight for us squires. That's because we're easy to deal with. If they attacked the officers, red demons would probably show up instead."

Cerska's voice echoes from outside the doorway. He is seen carrying five heavily wounded youths on his back, moving at a flying pace. He calls out, "Mierce, give me a hand."

Mierce shouts, "Yes, Count!" They gently lay the injured on the ground and take out secret healing elixirs to feed them.

Cerska asks, "Where are the other instructors?"

Mierce replies, "They haven't returned yet, but if there are only white demons, they are hardly anything to fear."

Cerska says, "Nili is right. The enemy knows us well; they are targeting our successors, the future of the Sword and Shield Society. Those cunning bastards."

He walks over to a wall and triggers a mechanism, revealing a secret storage room. He pulls out some military uniforms for those whose clothes were torn or who lost their shoes to put on, and then places a large map on the table.

This gives me a chance to examine the bunker's layout for the Sword and Shield Society, but since this dream is mostly my own fantasy, looking at it probably won't do any good anyway.

That reminds me, when will this dream end? Even watching a movie allows for bathroom breaks.

This is not just a bunker, but an entire underground city. They are currently located in the South Training Camp for Recruits, while the marquises and dukes are likely deep down in the lower levels.

Cerska says, "The West Plaza and East Outpost of the South Training Camp are iron plates cast from ember crystals, impenetrable to demons. Only the corridors leading to the central axis, the recruit dormitories, and the slave pits are made of ordinary stainless steel."

Mierce says, "It's also possible this was caused by an overlapping of different spaces."

Cerska asks, "You suspect Lady Vasilisa's Mirror of Ivan caused all this?"

Mierce shakes his head and says, "The cause of space overlapping is unknown. The Mirror of Ivan merely makes the phenomenon temporary and controllable, though there are other methods to induce it. No, how could it possibly be Lady Vasilisa?"

As they speak, two other instructors return. Cerska asks, "Where are Hody and Kay, who went to the slave pit?"

No one answers. Mierce says, "Something's wrong. They should have returned by now."

At the entrance of the cafeteria, a blood-soaked warrior slowly approaches. Mierce shouts, "It's Kay!"

Several squires hurry to help him inside. Kay says, "I've... taken the elixir, I can... hold on. In the slave... slave pit, there is a... red demon, a big one. Hody is... she's in danger."

Mierce says, "I'm going!"

Cerska says, "Both of us will go. Everyone else stays here, no one is allowed to leave."

Taking advantage of their inattention, Salvador dashes out the door and follows behind Mierce. Mierce turns around and asks, "What are you doing here?"

Salvador says, "I've seen a red demon before. I want to help."

Mierce looks at Cerska, who says, "Your life is your own, decide for yourself. But I won't save you."

The slave pit is where the Sword and Shield Society houses its slaves. Although the knights of the society consider themselves the protectors of humanity, their hierarchy is strict; those who wish to seek shelter under the society without any potential for a mind-blade end up as slaves. Life for the slaves is not tragic—as long as they work hard, they receive clothing, food, and basic educational classes—yet their status is low and they command no respect.

Why take risks for these slaves? Are they worth it?

Suddenly, I understand Salvador's feelings. Just like me back then, he wants to prove himself to Orchid and make Dalia look upon him with favor. And what about him? He wants to perform meritorious service, integrate into the Sword and Shield Society as quickly as possible, and stop being seen as an outcast, a... spy. For this, he is willing to pay any price.

Deep down, he wants to prove himself to Betty, which makes him extra eager to get ahead.

Be careful, Sammy, be careful not to make mistakes out of excessive impatience, just like Orchid did back in the day.

As they approach the slave pit, a massive roar shatters the air—truly a thunderous sound designed to startle and awe. Cerska charges into the room first, followed closely by Mierce and Sammy.

Sammy catches sight of the large red brute along with its white minions. Some slaves are dead, and the demons are feeding on them, while Hody, a warrior of the Sword and Shield Society, lies on her side with blood ringing her like a carpet.

Cerska's face is contorted with rage as he shouts, "Beasts, I'll send you to hell!" He charges straight toward the red demon leader, delivering a heavy downward slash that forces the red demon to recoil in pain. Cerska kneels down to check a slave's breath, his expression growing even more ferocious. He screams, "You killed her! You ate her! You maggot in Satan's excrement!"

Cerska turns out to have unexpected sympathy for the slaves; that is truly rare. He collides with the red demon, blocking its sharp claws with his sword. A red light ignites on his blade, and an arc of energy strikes the red demon, injuring it. With a backhand blow, the red demon sends Cerska flying backward. Just as he is about to crash into the nearby slaves and break their bones, he plunges his long sword into the ground, halting his momentum by sheer force.

Mierce first activates Stone Cedar to cut down two white demons, then uses Shepherd to push a group of white demons back. He shouts, "Sammy, take her away, as fast as you can!"

Salvador cradles Hody in his arms. The female warrior is also very young, under twenty-three, with jet-black hair and skin like smooth jade. Even with her eyes closed, it is easy to see she is exceptionally beautiful.

Salvador has landed a fortunate task, but right now he has no time for distractions as he rushes back toward the cafeteria.

Halfway there, another white demon leaps down from a hole in the ceiling. The demon claws at him, but Salvador turns his back to shield Hody, taking a chunk of flesh torn from his own body by the demon's sharp talons. Fortunately, his immature mind-blade prevents him from being severely injured.

Salvador draws the dagger I gave him from his waist and thrusts it backward into the demon's eye, killing it on the spot. Sammy looks pleasantly surprised and says, "Langji, thank you."

He speaks as if I can hear him, though indeed I can.

In actual combat, he is improving rapidly along the way, using the dagger to kill two more off-guard white demons. Warriors from the cafeteria come out to meet him, and a baron inspects Hody's armor. The screen on the armor displays her injuries, and he says, "Several of her ribs are broken, but she's alive. Bring the secret elixir."

Salvador retrieves his dagger and, without lingering, charges back toward the slave pit. Anxiety grips my heart, and I feel this kid is acting far too recklessly.

Arriving at the place he fled from earlier, he sees Mierce and Cerska joining forces to deal with the giant red demon. This creature is exceptionally robust, quite unlike the other red demons. Cerska is covered in wounds, yet he stubbornly withstands the red demon's fierce onslaught, preventing it from harming any of the slaves.

Just as Salvador is about to step in and help, Mierce uses Dancing Cherry Blossom to leap onto the red demon's head, plunging his sword down to finish it off.