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CHAPTER 217: ZOMBIE-SENPAI’S GREAT ADVENTURE ⑧

CHAPTER 217: ZOMBIE-SENPAI’S GREAT ADVENTURE ⑧

~ The Desert Country of Ordira, the Capital City Anushka’s Adventurer’s Guild ~

This is the desert country of Ordira.

The majority of the country is covered by the vast desert, and the environment here is harsh for people to live in, but thanks to the abundance of resources, the country has greatly developed over the years, and in the large cities, not only nobles but also many people live wealthy lives.

Also, the “Dangerous Nakva Mountains” that form the border and the “Great Ordo Desert” where giant worms run rampant have become natural fortresses that have kept other countries from invading the region for many years now, so no large-scale wars or acts of aggression have occurred around here, and historical materials such as books and buildings have remained in very good condition. As a result of that, there were more archaeologists and historians here than in any other countries around the world.

Meanwhile, Adventurers around here are always required to have high qualities to themselves, and the minimum requirement for people to become one around here is to be able to achieve a certain level of success even in such a harsh environment. And since regular Subjugation Quests of nearby monsters were pretty much essential for the country’s survival, it was the kind of profession that was highly valued in many places. Also, due to the nature of the land where risk and return did not match up all that greatly, the total number of Adventurers was smaller than in other countries, but the standard of Adventurers themselves, including their overall level, was way higher than in other countries, and there were many excellent Adventurers with broad perspectives who were highly motivated to pursue their dreams and naturally learn to hedge risks.

At the Adventurer’s Guild in Anushka, the capital city of Ordira, a certain Adventurer was out of breath and looking flustered as he spoke to the woman at the reception desk.

「T-This is bad! This is really bad! I can’t believe a monster like that appeared in this country……!」

「Please calm down! What on earth happened that someone like you is so flustered and panicked all of a sudden?」

「I-It’s the Skull Knight! An Undead Monster with enough power to cut a giant worm in half has appeared within a two-day walk from here! I was lucky to be spared by it, but if he goes on a rampage somewhere around here, this city…… No, this entire country will suffer a major blow!」

The man who was saved by Zombie-senpai from being eaten by a giant worm was called Viharn, and he was a veteran Adventurer who has been diving into dungeons solo for many years now, and has risen to A Rank because of that. After his life was saved in exchange for his Magic Bag, he desperately traveled for a day and a half to report the strange events and abnormal situation that had happened to him, and somehow managed to reach the Adventurer’s guild in the capital city, Anushka, safely.

「An S Rank Giant Worm…… Cut cleanly in two with only one stroke? So basically, a monster that’s confirmed to be at least S Rank has suddenly appeared!? Eh, but how could such a strong monster suddenly appear without any warning……」

「That thing controlled a Wyvern! And a Mutated Wyvern at that!」

「A monster controlling another monster…… is that even possible? But even if that’s true, then……」

「That’s why I rushed back here right after I nearly died! You should report this to the Guild Master first and —」

At that exact moment, Anushka’s Guild Master appeared at the scene.

「I have heard the story. Can you tell me specifically what kind of monster it was?」

「It was a Skull Dragon Knight wielding a giant flaming spear. Judging by its appearance, there’s no doubt it was an Undead Monster…… but there was also no doubt it had extraordinary strength and destructive power that could not be explained in words alone.」

「Hmm, is that? That’s interesting. So, what’s next?」

「The moment I saw it, I was confronted with an intimidating presence that made me feel like all the blood had been drained from my body at once. However, in contrast to that, I was given a sense of boundless intelligence and even elegance radiating off of it. How should I put it……? I can’t really put it into words……」

「Hmm, if it’s an intelligent monster, it must be of a very high rank, or at least some kind of special individual…… or maybe even both of those things at once. So…… Which direction did the monster go?」

「Well, I was so desperate to escape that I did not notice which direction it went afterwards. However, I encountered the Skull Knight near the oasis village of Neelah.」

「What!? That’s a key location for peddlers and merchants…… if that monster was heading for Neelah Village— 」

Just then, there was a knock on the door and the Guild Receptionist came into the room.

「I’m sorry to interrupt, but we have an emergency on our hands!」

「What’s wrong?」

「Neelah Village has been attacked by a horde of Army Ants…… Or rather, it has been completely destroyed by them.」

「…… What did you say……?」

***

As soon as the news of the destruction of Neelah Village reached them, the Guild decided to send an investigation team out there to get more information. However, the information had coincided with a sudden mass outbreak of Army Ants and the appearance of a Skeleton Dragon Knight estimated to be an SS Rank monster, so selecting personnel for a dangerous mission that required significant skills like this one proved to be extremely difficult.

So the top-ranked clan, Asura Sato, was chosen for the job. From within them, one SS Rank Adventurer and two S Rank Adventurers who excelled at scouting were selected to be dispatched at once.

The next morning, the investigation team set out before sunrise, arriving at Neela Village half a day after departure to find an unexpected sight unfolding before their eyes.

There were the remains of a large number of Army Ants that looked like they had been devoured by something…… Trees with signs of being broken down and scorched, and then…… the footprints of a giant creature in the surrounding area.

「W-What is this……?」

「Almost all that remains of the Army Ant are their legs. Judging from these huge footprints and the surrounding scorch marks, I can only think that a Dragon has appeared in here……」

「Hey, come over here for a second! We have found the Army Ants’ den!」

One of the members of the investigation team, who were exploring the surrounding area while still looking confused, discovered the Army Ants’ den in the meantime.

The men looked at each other with frowned brows, but as the investigation team did not know anything in greater detail, they couldn’t just go back home. Even though they knew it was dangerous, they had no other choice but to move forward. So, just in case, they decided to leave one S Rank Adventurer outside and the other two would investigate the den itself.

They entered the den being more tense than usual and proceeded carefully, but all they were able to find ahead of them were the corpses of countless Army Ants.

While the situation was a relief for sure, it also stirred up even more anxiety and impatience in them.

「T-This is…… This might be worse than I thought.」

「In the first place, it’s not that easy for a mass outbreak of Army Ants to happen out of thin air, right?」

「Yeah, that’s right. I don’t think that’s the case here, but a special type of King species might have appeared……」

「Well, if that’s the case, then it’s extremely troublesome for us. Also, judging from the size of the footprints outside, the monster’s size was not big enough to enter here…… If that’s the case, who caused the disaster in this lair?」

「There was a report that a high-ranking Skeleton Dragon Knight had appeared in the region. The big footprints outside are probably the evolved version of its pet Wyvern, and it makes the most sense to think that the Skeleton Knight entered the lair on its own.」

「There were certainly some smaller footprints left behind on the surface as well. …… But a monster that can control a Dragon of that size…… it sends shivers down my spine.」

Having only the minimum amount of conversation to carry them forward, and preparing to escape at any time, the Adventurers proceeded to the very end of the burrow, only to be surprised for a third time.

What caught their eye was a gigantic Queen Ant that was slashed in half, countless burnt eggs, and the abandoned corpse of a King Crimson Ant.

「Wait, wait, wait! What is this situation!?」

「The Queen Ant is quite large, but what’s even more dangerous is this King Crimson Ant!」

Several types of King species of Army Ants have been confirmed so far. Among them, the King Crimson Ant was a species that was particularly specialized for combat alone, and its monster rank was classified as only slightly lower than SS Rank.

As such, it would take at least four or five SS Rank Adventurers to defeat it.

The sight of the exoskeleton of such a dangerous monster being partially deformed and mangled could only be described as “abnormal.”

「This thing…… What would have happened if something had not defeated it?」

「Looking at the sheer number of Army Ants here, it would have taken a National Extermination Force to do something about it. Even then, there would have been a fair number of casualties for sure.」

「In that case, the Skeleton Dragon Knight is even more dangerous than that……」

「Yes, that’s right. There are only a handful of people in the world who can do something like this. I think he’s on the same level as the Clan Master of “Asura Satou”, or maybe even higher. And considering that he’s even managed to tame a giant Dragon, even at the very least, this is nothing short of a catastrophe.」

「What a monster……」

「Anyways, we need to report this to the Guild right away. But before we do that, I should probably dismantle the King Crimson Ant and the Queen Ant and take them back with us. Of course, we will need them for the report, but…… If I make weapons out of them, I think we will end up packing something seriously nasty.」

「…… As expected, you are really cunning.」

「Of course! And since this place might still be really dangerous, let’s finish dismantling them quickly and get back!」

The defeat of the King Crimson Ant, which Zombie-senpai did out of curiosity and enthusiasm, sent shockwaves through the country of Ordira.

After that, Zombie-senpai was spotted all over the desert country of Ordira, and his actions were widely circulated along with the defeat of the King Crimson Ant. Rumors filled with various speculations and conjectures began to fly around, most of which were ominous or bad omens such as “the Grim Reaper who appears before the end of the world” and “the messenger of the evil god.”, and other things like that.

……However, the most famous story, “The Three-Headed Dragon and the Skull Knight,” which would later be told as a fairy tale, concluded like this:

「The Skull Knight who commands the strange dragon may actually be the secret Hero of Ordira.」