The 'Extra' Lord (Unlimited Plunder) - Chapter 75

The moment the sand seeped down into the stone like water through soil, Owen and his team rushed as fast as their legs took them to the mountain. They were too late, the serpents dominated the high ground above—but Owen expected that.

Owen kicked up a storm of sand, sending it tumbling up the hill. Rehan, with his radar ability, guided Draed and Gorath’s long range capabilities to devastating effect. Lightning struck through the sand cloud, reaching its target, electricity lancing to multiple different targets while the sound of Draed’s arrows thudding against scales echoed across the rocks.

While that was happening, the assassin duo: Justin and Mirrian, vanished from sight. The sound of screams from above told Owen everything he needed to know. 

Owen and Lome, as the strongest of the forces, blasted through the dust cloud. Owen grunted and slashed his sword with the might of Overpower hugging his blade, in a wide arc. It cut through four serpents all at once, and he moved instantly into the depths of their formation. 

Lome, unlike Owen who relied on speed and supernatural reflexes to dodge attacks, was an unstoppable tank of destruction. With the axe he had acquired from the orcen Lord, he shrugged off the venomous attacks of the snake's bows and blades and teeth as he swung his weapon like a wild storm. There was no technique, no grace—only a savagery that was born into him. 

With improved teamwork, without communication, they cut through their opponents. Owen was the first to crest the top of the mountain. He saw serpents in the hundreds all charging right for them. He saw it clearly; the haze in their eyes—one born from either potent drugs or powerful mind control. 

Owen held no hesitation. His blade had bled, oozed out any shred of hesitance he had within him. They were drugged, mind controlled perhaps, but right now they were the enemy.

Behind, Owen’s figure, and the entirety of the battle, was shrouded with his sand. No-one from the castle could see them. Rehan, in a heightened position, gave him the signal that there were no prying eyes.

Drawing in a sharp breath, Owen plundered all the corpses at once. 

Much to his dismay, he didn’t gain any stats from the serpents. Seems like I’ve reached the limit for these types of monsters, Owen thought, clicking his tongue. If he wanted any more points now, he had to kill even stronger monsters. His dream of endlessly grinding thousands of weaker creatures had been ruthlessly stamped into the dirt.

However, he wasn’t too distraught at it. He had expected it for a while now as he watched the amount of stats he gained per monster dwindle each time he used his Skill.

But when one door closed, another opened. And for Owen, that door was one of knowledge.

Skill acquired — Drug Resistance: completely resist the effect of any type of drug.

The Skill told him exactly what he needed to know. They weren’t mind controlled. His original thoughts had come true, and it was worse than he expected. 

Owen clenched his teeth and engaged in an onslaught of splashing blood and steel, narrowly avoiding venomous strikes with every breath. He let his instincts and reflexes take over as he thought about this whole situation.

They were drugged. The evidence was concrete. But who was doing it? The only thing that made sense to him was that it was another Lord using the serpents to grind down enemy forces. It was smart. The Owen of before would have said that it was barbaric. But the Owen of today could only agree with the method.

Why use your own troops, having them die, when you could use the lives of others?

Owen ducked underneath an oncoming arrow as they fought their way to the funnel system they had created yesterday, and killed another serpent with a thrust of his sword.

Then the question remained: who was the enemy?

He tried to think it through based on the flimsy knowledge of where he was, but he drew blanks. From these parts, he knew no-one. Not a single Lord. Well, it didn’t matter. Whoever the Lord was, he or she couldn’t be far. He just had to get past the troll to figure it out. 

By the time Owen had shaken his trance-like state, he had battered the serpent's back through the funnel. Then, it was Gorath and Draed’s turn. Using small battlements as points of elevation, they reigned down arrows and spells alike while Justin used the funnel itself to fuel his shadow lances, skewering anything that dared to enter.

From there, if before could be considered a one-sided smash, when Owen used the funnel—it was a slaughter.

The battle was over in fifteen minutes. They didn’t retreat. They only knew of attack. It went against everything he understood about the serpent's crafty nature. Owen’s chest rose and fell as he gazed at the carnage of the battlefield. Rehan gave him a signal. The warriors from the castle were coming. Owen paused for only a moment to catch his breath before he rushed to plunder the corpses—and paused. A sudden thought emerged. What if he plunders all but the meat? The corpse would remain. So that’s what he did.

He didn’t know if it would succeed, but it was easier than he first thought. With the words plunder everything but the meat and bones of the serpents, it worked. He gained a Serpent Spectre—of which he’d later sell as he had no use for it—and another Skill, cold blooded. He kept that for later.

Owen cancelled Sandstorm Fury and glanced over his shoulder to see the warrior Hannah emerge. She looked at the funnel creation in shock, then scanned the corpse-scattered battlefield. To his surprise, the warrior-ess stomped forwards, her brows knit, face turning red. 

“What the hell’s the meaning of this?” She asked, clenching her fist around her axe.

Owen shrugged. “Doing what we were hired to do. To kill the enemy. Honestly, your reaction surprises me. On all metrics, we’ve completed our mission with exemplary results. No?” 

“You—” She said, grinding her teeth. “Tomorrow, don’t do this. We need the serpents at the wall.”

“For what reason?” Owen asked, unperturbed. 

“You ask too many questions.”

“And you don’t provide nearly enough answers,” Owen shot back.

“It’s Lord Larian’s orders,” she replied, voice sharp as a blade. “The men need to be forged. Can’t do that if you extinguish the fire.”

So she said, and Owen couldn’t help but detect the still remaining shock evident in her eyes as they twitched back and forth to the battlefield. Owen didn’t blame her. For seven people to defeat an army of a hundred or so serpents… they’d have never believed it unless they had seen it with their own eyes. 

But with Lome and especially Owen guarding the front, chopping up the enemy into pieces, it allowed the ranged and stealth users to kill to their desire. The funnel also helped tremendously.

“Consider it a little break for them. A reward,” Justin said, appearing from the shadows. Hannah jumped. Justin chuckled. “Afraid of ghosts? Strange, considering there’s plenty of them hidden inside these walls.”

Hannah tensed but regained her composure a moment later. “Just do as you’re told, and we won’t have any problems,” she said and left with her team. 

Owen shook his head. “Justin, what did you discover last night?”

Justin leaned against the wall of the mountain. “Nothing big. But the little things add up,” he explained pointing at the blood pooling, forming a tiny river as it descended down the mountain pass. “The blood. The fighting within the castle. They said that the so-called founders killed monsters, but what kind of monsters? The blood splatters are too little to be the serpents, or something else their size. The battle evidence; the scars on the walls done by swords, the odd arrowhead laying around—the shadows.”

“The shadows?” 

Justin lounged his hands behind his head. “The shadows,” he repeated. “If you look closely enough, they begin to tell a story. And it’s not one of fairy tales or the supernatural. It’s one of men.”

Owen frowned. “You’re saying they didn’t fight monsters, but other people?”

Justin shrugged. “I can’t be certain. But like I said, the little things add up. We should ask them what monster they killed back when they claimed the castle. If it’s the serpents or something bigger, I’ll know they’re lying. Something too small, I’ll know they’re lying. But that’s not all—” 

Owen listened. 

“That Larian… I’ve noticed a few things wrong with him. First, his leadership skills blow. I mean, he was in charge of claiming the castle, leading these people up until this point. You’re telling me there’s no-one better to lead than that? That Hassan guy seems way better, yet he seems almost… subservient to Larian. Two, he always looks to the others for answers. Hassan, Hannah, Jonah. He seems incapable of making his own decisions which goes against the impression he leaves. Thirdly, during that first battle, I noticed… fear. Not the fear of seeing a strong opponent, but a fear someone has that’s never been in a fight before.”

He’s right, Owen thought, nodding along. Everything Justin had discovered, Owen had already thought of it all. It wasn’t adding up. 

“Regardless, the others seem to agree with his leadership,” Owen stated, pinching his chin in thought. “We need something more concrete.” Owen changed the subject. “Any sign of a Gateway?”

“None so far. I’ve gotten as far as the crypts below, but still nothing.”

“Keep looking, but be careful. After this stunt, they’ll be paying more attention to us than before. ”

On the way back, Owen levelled up again, reaching Level 44. He placed his accumulated points into Dexterity—not that it made a noticeable difference. If a score of 10 in any Stat was peak Olympic level, each point added beyond that began to show diminishing returns.

At this stage, it would be the mastery of his Skills that made the real difference. That was easier said than done.