Chapter 201: Reckless Youth
Skele-Lust stood at the edge of the mining pit, gazing downward.
This abandoned pit was far more massive than the intelligence reports had
suggested. The pit walls were riddled with tunnels, large and small, dense and
chaotic, resembling a colossal hollowed-out beehive. Many of the entrances had
collapsed, choked with earth and stone, but even more remained intact, revealing
pitch-black passages that seemed to lead into a bottomless abyss.
The Centurion stood behind her, respectfully reporting the known facts.
"Reporting to the General: According to available records, a major collapse
occurred in this pit ten years ago. The recorded death toll was three hundred
and seventeen miners."
"The local Lord at the time, driven by profit even as the ore veins neared
exhaustion, ordered the miners to dig into dangerously deep structures."
"Ultimately, continuous heavy rains caused groundwater seepage, the entire
supporting structure of the pit collapsed, and no one survived."
Lust listened to these old tragedies, the expression on her human face remaining
unchanged. "So these wraiths... they are those deceased miners?"
"That is our preliminary assessment," the Centurion confirmed. "Their resentment
before death was immense, binding their souls to this site. Furthermore..." He
paused, searching for words to make his phrasing less blunt. "Furthermore, the
energy fluctuations from your previous experiment, General, likely activated the
negative energy field here, triggering their mutation."
Lust pursed her lips and turned to look at her straight-laced subordinate. "You
may all return. I will take full responsibility for this location now."
The Centurion immediately bowed. "As you command." He didn't ask a single
follow-up question. He turned and left, simultaneously issuing a withdrawal
order via the soul link to all Arcane Legion units stationed in the perimeter.
The execution of the skeletons was beyond reproach. No questions, no hesitation.
Within ten minutes, the Arcane Legion forces that had cordoned off the pit
vanished entirely. Silence returned to the area, save for the whistling wind and
Lust standing alone by the precipice.
She cracked her neck, her bones emitting a crisp sound. "Finally, some peace."
Lust was about to find a gentle slope to descend when her ears caught a rustling
sound coming from the nearby woods. She turned her head, her gaze piercing
through the sparse trees to spot several figures peeking out.
They were adventurers. Judging by their appearance, they were young—likely only
just of age. Their leather armor was brand new, with no wear on the edges. The
weapons in their hands, however, were polished to a mirror finish, reflecting
the sunlight.
Rookies, Lust noted with a squint. What are these little runts doing, acting all
secretive?
Meanwhile, in the woods.
Several young adventurers were keeping their voices low, engaged in what they
thought was a discreet discussion. A tall, thin boy whispered with unconcealed
excitement, "Look! The Arcane Legion really pulled out! They're all gone!"
A shorter companion immediately chimed in, "See? I told you! There's no real
danger here! If it were as serious as the notices said, would the Empire really
just send the Arcane Legion to watch it? The Punishment Legion and the Fearless
Vanguard would have flattened this place by now!"
"Exactly," a third added. "I bet the Arcane Legion just wanted to snag some
wraiths for research materials, so they blocked the place off to scare people
away. Now that they're gone, it's our time to shine!"
The only girl in the group pointed toward Lust. "Wait, look. There's still a
woman over there."
The leader, a brown-haired youth filled with the arrogance of the young and
reckless, scoffed. "Who cares? Just a woman. Probably a passerby. Don't waste
time; business first! We need to get down there while it's still day. The
wraiths will be sleeping. We'll grab as many as we can! If we wait for
nightfall, we won't be able to compete with the veteran adventurers. The bounty
said two silver coins for a live capture! If we grab two or three each, our bar
tabs, inn fees, and new gear for the month are paid for!"
The more the youths spoke, the higher their spirits rose, their eyes gleaming
with the hunger for gold. After a quick consensus, they abandoned their cover
and strode boldly out of the woods, marching straight toward the pit.
Lust watched these ignorant, fearless fools and let out a sigh. Ah, youth. How
wonderful it must be to march toward death with such confidence.
She didn't move to stop them. She simply stood there, arms crossed, watching
with interest as they approached the massive crater. The brown-haired leader,
looking no more than eighteen, carried a longsword. He walked with his chest
puffed out, as if trying to display his bravery to Lust.
"Hey! You there, woman! Leave this place at once!" he barked. "It's dangerous
here! This isn't a place for civilians!"
Lust tilted her head, her tone playful. "Oh? Dangerous?"
"Obviously! Haven't you seen the bounties in the city? There are wraiths here!"
the boy lectured her like an ignorant child. "What is a lone woman like you
doing wandering around the wilderness? Get back to the city before something
happens and you become a burden to us professional adventurers!"
His companions chimed in behind him. "Yeah, our leader is right! This isn't a
game! Those wraiths won't show mercy just because you're pretty!"
Lust nearly burst out laughing. "And you? Are you not afraid of the wraiths?"
"Us?" The boy slapped his chest proudly. "We're professional adventurers! And we
came prepared!" He pulled a small vial from his belt, filled with a pale blue
liquid. "See this? Exorcism Potion! One drink and the wraiths won't dare come
near us! This stuff cost us five whole silver coins! It's the real deal!"
Lust looked at the "Exorcism Potion" and fell into thought. She recognized it.
It was a solution the Arcane Legion had developed during their spare time to
repel low-tier beasts. Its principle was simulating the pheromones of high-tier
predators.
As for its effectiveness against spiritual entities like wraiths... calling it
"ineffective" would be generous. It was utterly useless. At most, it would make
their corpses smell a bit more fragrant when they died.
"So, you plan to rely on that to catch wraiths?"
"Of course! With this, wraiths aren't even an issue! We're going to be rich
today!"
The companions cheered. Lust remained silent for a moment. She suddenly found
herself very curious about what kind of expressions these stupid children would
wear once they discovered the potion's actual effect inside the pit.
The scene, just imagining it, promised to be quite entertaining.
"Then, good luck to you," Lust said, stepping aside to clear the path to the
entrance. "I hope you make it out alive."
The boy paused, seemingly failing to grasp her meaning. "What do you mean 'make
it out alive'? Watch your tongue, woman! We're professionals! Dealing with a few
measly wraiths is child's play!"
Having said his piece, he ignored her and took the lead as captain, heading down
a relatively stable dirt slope into the maw of the pit. His companions followed
suit, giddy with excitement. Only the girl who had noticed Lust earlier lingered
for a second. She offered a quick, apologetic bow.
"I'm sorry. Our captain... he's just like that. Blunt, but he means no harm.
Please don't take it to heart."
Lust looked at her but said nothing. Seeing no reaction, the girl didn't dare
stay longer; she gave another quick nod and trotted to catch up with her team.
☆☆☆
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