"Boss, we barely made it out of this cursed place alive. Are we really going back in?"
Kelu the archer-warrior stared at the murky mine entrance before him, lingering fear still gripping his heart.
Clad in leather armor, Hart was rubbing sword oil along the blade of his longsword. "The baron handed down his orders: if we don't dig out gold soon, every last one of us dies."
Daoba, a barbarian draped in bearskin, grunted in displeasure. "What baron? He's nothing but a green brat! What right does he have to send us to our deaths?"
He scoffed coldly, "If it weren't for the gold, I would've walked away long ago!"
"Exactly," Kelu chimed in. "If I'd known, I would've grabbed some gold and run off earlier."
Hart had finished wiping his blade. He stood up and spoke sternly, "He's no mere brat. Who could survive in this land after offending the Eagle of the North Wind? Do you really think you can outrun the Eagle Guards?"
Daoba snapped angrily, "To hell with whatever eagle he is! Even if a dragon showed up, they couldn't treat us like cannon fodder!"
Hart merely replied, "Save your breath. We've always lived with our heads tied to our waists. We finally landed a legitimate standing and latched onto a powerful backer—we can't just throw that away.
"What happened back then was just a freak incident. Even if there really is some monster in there, after gorging on so much, it should be hibernating by now.
"Besides—" His tone shifted. "I managed to get plenty of serfs out of the baron. Ah, no—according to kingdom officials, they're called 'honest, hardworking peasants'—to serve as miners."
He glanced behind him. Over a hundred gaunt humans carrying back-baskets trickled in, walking numbly under the overseers' cracking leather whips. The wages promised when recruiting them had amounted to just a few words: *Meals provided; you won't starve.*
Yet what awaited them was no livelihood that would keep starvation at bay, but a fathomless, pitch-black mine shaft and the unknown monster lurking within.
"Grab your own spears," Hart called out. "These were specially bestowed by the baron for your self-defense. If you encounter a monster, retreating means certain death. Don't be afraid—just hurl your spears at it. If anyone falls, fear not. The baron will remember his sacrifice, reduce his family's taxes, and compensate them with grain. Oh, right, take your pickaxes too."
These serfs were cannon fodder he had specifically requisitioned from the baron. For a place this dangerous, he naturally couldn't have his own men go in first, let alone lead the charge himself.
In his years of roaming the wilderness, he had learned that the best way to handle large monsters was hurling spears. As long as there were enough hands, even an enormous mammoth could easily be brought down.
And even if they failed, these expendables would buy them time. Once the monster gorged its belly on them, it wouldn't bother pursuing the rest.
"Get inside!"
"Move it! Stop dawdling!"
The duped miners took up weapons and shuffled messily into the cavern.
Even if some realized something was amiss and wanted to flee, under the overseers' merciless whips, they had no choice but to obey.
Yet why did dozens of armed men show no resistance against a mere handful?
Perhaps it was something deeply entrenched in their hearts...
Faced with the unknown expanse ahead, those forced to lead the way held their torches with trembling hands, creeping forward under the threat of whips and steel.
Bringing up the rear behind the serf contingent, Daoba clicked his tongue in wonder. "When it comes to slave-trading, these noble lords really take the crown. They don't even have to stock any merchandise before selling people off."
"Cut the chatter and get in."
Soon, Hart's entire party entered the mine, leaving only a few soldiers stationed at the entrance as lookouts.
Yet none of them realized that something else had quietly slipped into the mine behind them.
Nor did they realize there was a spell known as Invisibility, capable of concealing one's form entirely from ordinary mortal perception.
"Boss, something feels off," Kelu said.
His senses were fairly sharp, and he kept feeling that something wasn't right, yet looking around yielded nothing.
"Stop jumping at shadows," Daoba scoffed. "We've barely scratched the surface. There's a long way to go."
Hart merely lightened his footsteps from behind and muttered in a low voice, "Keep your voices down and watch what's ahead."
Following the crude trail markers set up previously, the group gradually made their way deep into the mine.
The cavern opened into a spacious chamber—the very place where the kobolds had formerly toiled. Broken pickaxes, transport carts, and accidentally dropped chunks of ore lay scattered across the ground.
One of the "miners" couldn't resist picking up a chunk of gold ore from the ground and slipping it stealthily into his coarse hemp clothes.
However, the sharp-eyed Daoba caught the gesture.
The barbarian strode forward, hoisted the man's frail body clean off the ground by the collar, and shook him twice. A chunk of glistening gold ore tumbled out.
"Vile trash, no better than a kobold."
With one hand, Daoba slammed him hard against the ground, stepped forward, and with practiced ease stomped down, snapping the man's arm. A bloodcurdling scream tore from the man's throat.
"Remember this: everything here belongs to the baron. You're here to mine, not to steal. Step out of line again... Heh, and you'll never see the light of day outside this mine again."
Daoba grinned maliciously. He relished the feeling of holding other people's lives in his grip; it was one of the few amusements from his days as a slave trader.
At the rear of the column, however, Hart was intently examining the signs of destruction throughout the cavern: wooden doors violently battered down, metal furnaces crushed out of shape, mangled human limbs, and fences torn apart by sheer brute force.
Studying these marks, cold sweat beaded across Hart's forehead.
*A terrifying monster. Its strength might well rival that of a frost giant.*
To him, this was an exceedingly high appraisal. After all, those giants that arrived on biting gales were among the most dread enemies of the Northern Kingdom.
Hearing Daoba blustering loudly nearby, Hart felt fury flare inside him. He rushed up and hissed under his breath, "That monster could still be right here. If you have a death wish, just say so, but don't drag me down with you."
"But Boss, our gold—"
The thoughtless, violence-loving barbarian was about to argue back when a strange noise echoed through the cave.
"Quiet. Listen," Hart said, frowning.
*Thud... thud...*
*Thud... thud...*
A heavy sound resembling footsteps echoed throughout the pitch-black mine, setting everyone's hearts pounding in their chests.
*The sound is coming from the rock walls,* Hart thought.
He scanned the cliff walls, but darkness engulfed everything around them.
"It's ahead."
"To the left."
"No, it's above us," Kelu said in a low voice.
The sound seemed to dart and circle throughout the cavern, making it impossible to determine its source or discern its direction.
All they knew was that it seemed to be drawing closer and closer...
The crowd descended into chaos and clamor. Soon, people were crying out to return to the surface, and this time, even the overseers grew visibly rattled.
"Don't panic! Grab your weapons!"
Hart's back was already soaked in sweat. He had never encountered the "monster" at close quarters before, and the chaotic scene unfolding before him had completely exceeded his expectations.
"Don't be afraid! Raise your torches!"
*We're finished. This is definitely no ordinary beast—it's a terrifying predator. It's deliberately sowing panic to wipe us all out at once,* Hart thought.
Chapter 21