A week passed by with the majority of townspeople working on the long outer wall that stretched all the way around the town as well several of the buildings far behind the castle keep.
Some things in the town were being neglected so that the wall could be built faster.
The rest of the workers not working on the wall were either working on other smaller projects or were frantically doing several jobs trying to keep the town running properly.
Akira watched from the high point of one of the arrow towers next to the front gate as the last few large stones were carried up a ramp by the Werewolf and Orc soldiers four to each large stone.
Of all the walls Akira had seen on his travels the wall was nothing extravagant but it did give off a feeling of security.
It looked solid enough and was built out of stones that the Dwarf miners had approved after making sure that none had any cracks or hairline faults that would cause problems in the future.
As planned each of the gates had an arrow tower on each side of the stone gatehouses which could house a large number of soldiers or guards.
The top of the gatehouse had enough room for a large ballista or a smaller catapult to be placed as a long-range defense against attacks on the city.
Unfortunately for them, they had nothing to put atop the gatehouse other than soldiers with bows, crossbows, javelins, and swords. Samuel had hinted a few times about the arrow towers being able to be upgraded in the future so he made sure that they had been built.
Ding!
-
The outer wall has been completed!
Town security has risen to 80%!
You must have 1000 active Werewolf soldiers and 200 guards to reach the 3rd tier city!
Akira closed the window. The 500 young warriors that were being trained now were already several weeks into their training and had the basics of basics down.
They were now working on strengthening their body and fighting power as well as their teamwork by hunting monsters and clearing the [Cute ice slime] dungeon as part of their training.
“Send an order to the officers that the soldiers can have the rest of the day off. Tomorrow we will begin summer hell training, so I want them to be well-rested,” said Akira to one of the messengers standing on the steps that led down to the wall.
“This wall… how do I put it… It gives off a sort of vibe. Never mind, I am just amazed at how well the town has grown. The completion of this wall just shows how far it has come,” said Varbu as he looked at the soldiers who were starting to dismantle the wooden ramps and carry the tools away.
“Now that work is done here, I have to go check up on the other projects as well as Klyn. You might want to get some rest as well Varbu. I wasn’t joking about the hell training tomorrow,” said Akira as he started to walk down the tower’s stone steps followed by Fluffball, Dolph, and Vilkas.
As Akira walked through the town he could see that it was just as busy as ever with people running to and fro trying to complete important errands. One thing after another there was a never-ending list of things that had to be done in the short warm months.
Akira stopped by Glola’s tavern which had gone under a massive upgrade.
It was now a two-story stone tavern with a large cool underground stone basement for storage of the wine and ale barrels along with certain food as well. There was enough room to house a large number of people in the basement as a place of safety if there was ever a need.
Akira turned to look at the General store that had received the same treatment and was also two stories of stone as well as having its own large basement.
He checked the two buildings off of his long list after he finished inspecting the buildings and went to his next destination, the Hot spring spa to see how it was doing.
“We’re almost finished. We only need to put up the wooden walls. After that, it will be ready to go. The only thing it will need is some workers to run the building and work on cleaning the place,” said the foreman of the project.
Akira nodded as he wrote down some notes to remember later about hiring a few front desk receptionists and janitors.
The last stop before Klyn and the goblins were the Barracks that had gone under a massive upgrade with its own stone wall surrounding the newly built two-story stone buildings that housed the growing number of soldiers. The buildings’ roofs were built so that they could act as a platform for fighting an enemy outside of the stone walls surrounding them. It was a fully functioning fort of sorts protecting the rear of the castle.
Akira passed through the rear gate and walked towards the fields that were already cleared and tilled.
He saw Klyn was overseeing the Shamen that had skills to boost the speed of the growth for the seeds that had been planted.
“How are things coming along?” asked Akira.
“The first few days were quite hectic with all the monsters popping up everywhere and coming out of the woods,” said Klyn as he wiped his forehead with his sleeve. “We have finished transplanting the winterberry bushes and the nut bushes. They are being watched over by the shaman skilled with plants to make sure that they don’t wilt. Now we are just focusing on planting as many fast-growing vegetables and herbs as we can for the long winter.”
“Good work,” said Akira as he pat Klyn on the shoulder and looked over the large amount of land that had been tilled. Several hundred Goblins were going about planting germinated seeds that had been given buffs by the shaman under Klyn. It was all quite an odd sight.
“There was something that came up, but you were quite busy and it didn’t seem to be that big of a problem. So I waited till now.”
“What is it? Now that the wall is finished I can look into whatever it is.”
“While the soldiers you lent me were clearing bushes and the several [Fragrant Sunflowers (Carnivore)] in the area nearest to the castle they found steps that lead underground. Some of the soldiers are keeping an eye on it but so far there haven’t been any monsters or anything suspicious exiting the hole.”
“Can you take me to it? It would be best if we take care of it before something does happen,” said Akira.
“Yap!” said Fluffball, excited to explore a new place.
“Make sure you stay next to me. You’re growing strong enough to start fighting next to me in real battles, so you need to show that you can follow orders,” said Akira as he pat Fluffball before following Klyn.
The area he led them was inside of the newly built wall and was at the base of the hill at a part he had not been to when he had checked on the barracks.
Ten soldiers were guarding the stairs that led underground. When they saw Akira they stood ramrod straight and gave a military salute.
“Do you have any information on what the stairs lead to?” asked Akira.
“I personally descended 100 or so stairs but could neither hear or smell any monsters below,” said the officer of the ten soldiers.
“Fall in behind Vilkas and Dolph. We’ll go have a peek and if needed we’ll come back for more soldiers before making sure this place is safe,” said Akira as he equipped his shield and unsheathed his sword.
Dolph and Vilkas took up their positions on either side of Akira, their shields joining Akira’s to make a small shield wall.
“Let’s go,” ordered Akira.
Fluffball followed behind Akira leading the soldiers who had their own shield wall.
Ding!
-
You have entered the ancient underground refuge.
There was no need for a torch or lantern as the stone walls were giving off a faint, greenish-blue glow that got brighter as they descended.
After descending over 300+ stone steps they entered a medium-sized round room that had two large metal doors on the right and left wall.
On the far side of the room directly across from the stairs, was a large glowing statue that stood over 7ft tall.
Akira looked at the statue trying to figure out what it was. The lower half of the statue showed off two legs of a muscular bull with large hoofed feet that made Akira’s feet look small.
The upper body was that of an extremely muscular human. The head of the statue was a mixture of a human and a bull with two large and deadly horns pointing forward. In the statue’s muscular hands there was a massive two-handed Warhammer.
“Five of you check the right door, the other five check the left door,” ordered Akira as he walked up to the statue.
As Akira inspected the statue up close, the soldiers at each door called out to him.
“The door is securely locked. I see no way to open it. The door seems completely solid. We might need the Dwarves to help open it.”
“It is the same over here.”
“I think there is a door behind this statue, come help me move it,” said Akira.
As Akira and several of the other soldiers tried to push the statue out of the way, a notification window popped up before Akira.
Ding!
-
This statue is Unmovable and Indestructible.
In order to pass, you must first challenge and beat the guardian of the Ancient underground refuge.
Will you offer a challenge to the guardian? Yes / No
“Everyone step back and form a shield wall! Get ready for a fight!” ordered Akira as he accepted the option to challenge the guardian and moved away from the statue.
They formed two rows with Vilkas, Dolph, and 5 other soldiers in the front row and the last 5 behind them for support.
Crack!
Large fracture lines appeared on the large green glowing statue. The lines grew larger by the second with the loud crackling sounds and soon large pieces of the stone started to fall down onto the ground revealing the form of the Minotaur that the statue had depicted.
When all of the stone had fallen off of his body he was only slightly smaller than when he had been covered in stone and was still over 7 ft tall.
The large Minotaur stood still with its eyes closed as Akira and the soldiers watched it closely.
Its furry legs were a deep red that neared the color of dried blood. His chest and arms had a large amount of red hair. The hair on his head had been cut short in a simple military style. The two large dark red horns were even more deadly looking as they reflected the glowing green light of the room.
There was indeed another metal door behind him.
Blink. The eyes of the large Minotaur opened and looked at those that stood before him.
“I can’t feel my lord’s life force… has he died?” Muttered the large Minotaur as he looked at the werewolves in front of him.
Taking a deep breath the Minotaur slammed the butt of his large hammer into the ground creating a loud thud that vibrated the ground.
“Who has challenged I, Zundar Rockpelt the loyal guardian of the underground refuge!” he asked in a booming voice that echoed off the walls. [Zundar Rockpelt level 90].
His red eyes scanned those in front of him searching for the one who would step forward.
“It was I that challenged you,” said Akira, not taking a step forward to keep the shield wall whole.
Zundar’s gaze zeroed in on Akira. “Your name?”
“Akira, Lord of Kodria and commander of its army and navy,” said Vilkas before Akira could respond.
“Kodria…I have never heard of it before. I do feel in my bones that much time has passed… that does not matter.
Akira, I accept your challenge for a duel! If you lose I will kill you and all those next to you! If you win I will serve you as your most loyal servant!”
“We can not allow such a thing to happen. We have been charged with protecting the lord,” said Dolph wary of Zundar who was giving off an aura of extreme danger.
“Lord! We can not ignore the Grand elders’ orders and will protect you,” said Vilkas.
“Fear not younglings, I do not intend the duel part to be a fight to the death. You only have to pass my simple test if you fail… well that’s your fault,” said Zundar.
“I accept!” said Akira.
“Commander!” “Lord! Please reconsider this, the Grand elders….”
“If I can pass his test we will have another strong ally,” said Akira as he stepped forward followed by Fluffball.
“What’s with the small mutt next to you?” asked Zundar pointing towards Fluffball.
“He is my fighting companion,” said Akira before a dark mist surrounded him as he transformed into a taller, furrier, and more muscular werewolf form emanating an aura that had a small amount of killing intent of his own.
“I see, I knew that there was something different about you since there was no way those weak humans could reach me. I guess the rest of you are also werewolves,” said Zundar as he tightened his grip on his large two-handed war hammer that was just as tall as him.
They did not answer and just silently transformed, ready to jump forward and protect Akira if there was a chance that he would fail.
“Let’s begin!” shouted Zundar as he took a large step forward so that he had enough room to swing his large Warhammer.
“Fluffball do you think you can handle dodging his attacks? He looks quite strong,” growled Akira.
“Yap!” said Fluffball full of confidence.
“Okay, now is the time to show off your skill we have been practicing.”
Akira turned to Zundar and gripped his sword and shield tightly before using the skill [Pounce] to jump towards him with Fluffball following right behind him.
Swish! Bang!
Akira’s first attack was blocked by Zundar using the metal shaft of his large hammer as he stood still, solid as the stone statue he had emerged from.
Akira used the shaft of Zundar’s weapon to jump back and retreat a few steps. Zundar chose to attack as Akira was just landing, sending the large hammer hurtling towards his head.
“Awoooooooo!” Akira let out a fierce howl activating the skill [Howl] Interrupting the attack.
The wind from the attack still continued on and slammed into Akira who had braced himself.
He silently used the skill [Shadow chains] to immobilize Zundar as his legs and arms were caught by the shadow chains.
Fluffball made his move and let out an icy breath that created a layer of frost on Zundar’s legs before nimbly hopping back behind Akira.
Akira activated the skill [Shield slam] to charge forward. He held his shield in front of him as his muscular legs pushed him forward at an extreme speed.
Zundar who was still being restrained from the chains received Akira’s charge by lowering his head and headbutting the large shield.
BAM! Akira’s charge was forced to a complete stop by Zundar’s hard head and he was even sent sliding backward from the rebound of the attack.
Zundar’s sharp horns had been only a few inches away from piercing Akira’s head.
Zundar shook his head to clear it. Akira used the short pause in his attacks to regain his footing. As he readied for another charge Nox 1 and 2 jumped out from his shadow.
“Attack him from the sides!” ordered Akira.
Akira again used the skill [Shield slam]. Zundar was ready for the attack and aimed his horns to impale the charging Akira.
Fluffball let out another icy breath sending another coat of frost Zundar’s upper body slowing his movements even further.
Bam!
Akira and Zundar clashed again. This time just as they clashed Akira used [Shield bash] on Zundar’s head as he was pushed back stunning the Minotaur.
Nox one and two latched onto his legs and began gnawing on them trying to tear through his tough leather skin.
Zundar still dizzy from the attack roared and snapped one of the shadow chains restricting his arm and then the other. He reached down and tore off the gnawing shadow wolves and threw them at Akira. And then broke the chains latched to his frosty legs.
With large steps, he charged towards Akira raising up his large Warhammer to slam it down on Akira. While charging forward he received another ice breath attack from Fluffball and had Nox one and two latchings onto his arms.
Akira took a sturdy stance and braced himself with his shield held to block the hammer hurtling towards him. Just before the attack reached him he activated the [Harden skill].
Boom!
The impact of the attack sent a shock wave into the ground and caused the dust in the room to fly up into the air as it was pushed to the side by the shock wave.
The werewolf soldiers behind Akira readied themselves to jump forward to help if Akira showed the need for it.
For over a minute the two stood still locked in the same position neither one moving an inch.
Zundar was the first to move out of the two of them.
Thud!
“You have received my full attack, and have shown me that you have a powerful set of skills that can be skillfully used. I accept you as my Lord and I will faithfully follow you,” said Zundar as he slammed his hammer into the ground and knelt before Akira.
Akira stood there silently unblinking.
Zundar waved his hand in front of the silent Akira.
Fluffball pushed on Akira’s leg to get his attention causing Akira’s stiff body to fall backward. Fluffball hurriedly went to Akira’s face and started to try and lick him awake.
“Huh? What is going on?” asked Akira as he came to.
“Yap!” said Fluffball.
“That’s right I was in a duel,” said Akira as he pushed Fluffball away and sat up looking at the smiling Zundar.
“Yep, I may be on the older side but I still got the strength to make people faint from my attacks!” said Zundar as he flexed and showed off his muscles.
