Chapter 121. To the East (6)

Can only humans become zombies?

This was a question that had been a point of debate in countless novels, movies, comics, and in the imaginations of those who explore the possibility of fiction becoming reality.

The most popular theory was that zombification was a symptom of a viral infection and that it only manifested in humans.

Especially in movies, animals usually didn't become zombies.

Personally, I thought it was for the sake of balance.

Considering that the setting of a typical zombie movie was a so-called apocalyptic situation where the military and government were paralyzed and society had lost its function.

In the wild, animals were stronger than humans.

Small animals had excellent survival skills, while medium to large predators were superior in every aspect, including reflexes, speed, and strength.

It was difficult enough to deal with humans turned into zombies, but let's assume those wild animals became zombies too.

Like a lion that didn't fear gunshots.

Or a pack of man-eating wild dogs that didn't feel pain.

There was no way a mere group of survivors, armed with flimsy civilian firearms, could handle that.

It was something that should never happen in a movie or drama where humans were the protagonists.

Of course, in Warlord Conquest, where humans were closer to extras, it was possible.

Here, wild dogs, leopards, elephants, and even giants or dragons could become zombies.

Although, with more efficient options like Necro Ogres, Bone Giants, and Skeleton Dragons readily available, there was no reason to go out of one's way to make them into zombies.

"...This is unusual."

In that sense, a Ratman zombie was a rare breed.

"First of all, it doesn't seem to be a zombie created by necromancy."

That was the Dwarf Balkan's assertion.

Old man Brol asked.

"Why is that?"

"This one was bitten here, and its entrails were eaten out from the back. These are traces of being devoured by zombies. A necromancer with a sound mind would preserve the corpse they plan to reanimate as completely as possible."

"Couldn't they have made a mistake? Like not having the time to look back during a battle."

"Then they would have just used it as a ritual sacrifice. Or at least recycled it into a Necro Ogre. This is a naturally occurring zombie. The mana of necromancy must have seeped into the corpse that was left abandoned after death."

The Dwarf Balkan knew a lot about necromancers and the undead.

It was because they had frequent conflicts with the Vampire Archduchy.

"The minions of that bastard, the Vampire Duke, used to come in and out of our Everlasting Mountains Hold's territory like it was their own backyard until a hundred and fifty years ago. We all got sick of it. But since that Duke bastard either kicked the bucket or went to sleep and disappeared, those corpse-lovers have quieted down a bit."

"The Vampire Duke has woken up again."

"Is that so? Thank you for the information, elf lady."

"Ye-Yes?!"

Karen's face turned pale.

It seemed to be information that should not have been revealed.

I decided to look into this later.

I quickly interjected while the dwarf was tilting his head.

"The fact that a Ratman became a zombie means they fought a battle at or near Tubon Fortress."

This was the Vampire Archduchy.

It was obvious who they fought against.

They must have fought against the decoy undead forces that Duke Yulister and I had agreed to leave behind.

Since I heard reports of undead in the fortress, it didn't seem like the Ratmen had taken it over, but...

"There might be an unexpected enemy. Let's inform the soldiers and depart."

There was no harm in being prepared.

* * *

From Karnburk Fortress to Tubon Fortress.

The expeditionary force marched for four days after resupplying.

Contrary to our worries, there were no Ratmen.

However, reports kept coming in that zombies, transformed from their corpses, were found everywhere in small groups along with stray undead.

"...A total of fourteen minor engagements with groups of stray undead. Approximately five hundred undead eliminated. No casualties, except for minor injuries."

"Tell the lightly injured to get treated by the priests. We have a battle ahead."

"Understood, Viscount."

"Good work, Damas. You may go."

On a hill overlooking Tubon Fortress.

While we rested for a day to relieve the fatigue of the march, I had them bring the corpses of the Ratmen zombies that the expeditionary force had dealt with.

It was autopsy time.

Our erudite sugar-addict, the Outer God Kkumteuli, was also in attendance.

It seemed he was short on snacks lately.

"They seem to be from the Technopriest Council. What do you think?"

'It's hard to be certain since they are slave soldiers. But judging by the blackened teeth and the body not being greatly distorted... I think it's the Technopriest Council. Tick-Tocky, any thoughts?'

'Tick-tock.'

'This friend seems to think so too, master.'

'Kkiiing?'

'Hey punk, your seniors are talking. You're not senior enough to butt in.'

The hierarchy in the subspace was solid as ever today.

I allocated a few snacks and half of a small sugar cube pouch to the hard-working Outer Gods.

'Slurp! Hehe, this is it! This is why I live!'

'Tick-tock......!!'

Watching tentacles squirm and a spear shaft bend over a few pieces of snacks, I sometimes felt like my own sanity was being corrupted...

But I guess what's good is good.

Anyway, there were factions among the Ratmen.

The Technopriest Council was one of the top three most troublesome ones among them.

However, they shouldn't have any business with the vampires.

It was a mystery why their traces were found here.

'Hehehe.... Take your time, master. After we capture the fortress tomorrow, won't there be time to dig into the truth?'

'Tick-tock-nom......'

The next day, the conquest of Tubon Fortress began with a baptism of consecrated cannonballs.

Toong- Toong-!

The undead army melted away with pillars of light.

Tugwagwagwang!

The castle gate was shattered to pieces by the organ gun's bombardment.

[The Nameless Knights deploy [In-Depth Breakthrough].]

[The Spearman Squad deploys [Spear Wall].]

Since we didn't know when the Ratmen's machinations might pop up, the battle proceeded with lightning speed.

Melting most of the undead inside the castle with artillery and breaking down the gate with the organ gun instead of a battering ram was all in the same vein.

It would be a pain to repair the gate later if it was destroyed.

Cleaning up the traces of the bombardment would be the same.

But the opponent was the opponent.

Assuming the Technopriest Council was the enemy, it was best to attack before they could pull any tricks.

But was it a needless worry?

What I had been concerned about didn't happen.

After a smooth capture, only the lord's castle remained.

"Let's form a conquest team."

I had roughly counted while conquering the castle, and the number of troops was less than what Duke Yulister and I had arranged beforehand.

That meant the rest were inside the lord's castle.

It wouldn't matter if we blew it up with explosives, but that would make it difficult to find traces of the Ratmen.

Because if my prediction was correct, the Ratmen had crawled out from inside this castle.

"I understand that the underground space of Tubon Fortress is as vast as its surface area. It is said to have been built with the help of dwarf artisans."

Referring to the explanation of the jack-of-all-trades Bart, I organized the conquest team.

The lord's castle could be considered a type of dungeon.

First, I selected Karen and a few rangers who could substitute for reconnaissance with their excellent five senses.

For combat power, I chose personnel from among Alina, Randal, Olif, the Nameless Knights, and the Paladins.

Unfortunately, the artillery corps would have a hard time playing an active role.

In this world, teeming with superhumans who transcended mortals, swords were more advantageous than guns in confined spaces.

[Deploying [Warrior’s Insight].]

[Skill Acquired.]

[Randal’s Log Splitting (Level 1)]

Kung!

We smashed the gate of the lord's castle with Randal's axe swing and entered.

"Enemies in the courtyard."

Before long, we encountered a group of undead along with the boss of this dungeon.

"Wights, Banshees, forty Skeleton Soldiers, and numerous zombies."

It was a considerable force.

A number and type of troops that would have been burdensome in the early days when I was leading a mercenary band.

However, things were much better now.

Even though we came with only a fraction of our elite forces, facing that number was no longer a battle.

It was a cleanup.

Kwang!

"It's over already."

"Randal, let's move."

Dealt with in three minutes.

We moved to the next area.

Enemies were hiding everywhere.

A narrow corridor.

A banquet hall where the chandelier had fallen.

A hall filled with dusty audience seats, a roofless hall that was once a museum.

The former lord of this castle must have been a lover of the arts.

It was certain from the broken and shattered sculptures and the rotted musical instruments covered in cobwebs in the storage.

"By Luark!"

[Deploying [Warrior’s Insight].]

[Skill Acquired.]

[Judgment of Radiance (Level 4)]

Perhaps if the artists he had employed were alive, they would have gained inspiration just by watching the battle unfolding here.

It was something I often felt whenever I was in a real battle, but the role of a hero in this world was incomparable to that on Earth.

The fact that the opponents we fought were not human was one reason.

Orcs, Ratmen, Beastmen, vampires, ogres, wyverns, and so on.

Races stronger and faster than humans, with inherently violent appearances, were everywhere.

Going beyond just boosting morale, functioning as a practical tactical and strategic weapon was also a primary role of a hero.

"Get crushed and die, you filthy corpse-lovers!"

Surprisingly, the Dwarf Balkan's performance was considerable.

Royalty often didn't stand at the forefront of the battlefield, and that wasn't much different in this world.

The life and death of a monarch were as good as the key to victory or defeat in a battle where thousands of troops clashed.

"You dregs! You're not even worth the scraps from a furnace and hearth!"

Balkan was different.

He moved a dark-colored exoskeleton the size of a grown man, swinging a two-handed axe, and sometimes directly smashing the undead with his feet or fists.

It was a sight reminiscent of a hero in steel armor I had seen in a movie series as a child.

'If I attached something like a micro-missile, it would be game over.'

'Missile? What is that, master?'

'You know, like a Hellfire Rocket.'

'Don't be ridiculous. How would you attach that to something like this?'

'Just make it small and attach it.'

Kwajik!

A battle axe the size of a grown man's height split a Necro Ogre's waist in two.

Udeuk!

As if competing, Randal, who was fighting nearby, grabbed a Wight's spine with his bare hands and pulled it out.

The battle ended in an instant, and as we moved on, we soon reached the final part of the lord's castle.

It had been thirty minutes since we cleared the entire surface area and descended into the basement.

"There is a large, empty space. Its purpose is unknown."

"Enemies?"

"Wights, Necro Ogres... and there's a corpse pool."

We entered the cavern.

Just as Karen had said, a corpse pool was visible as soon as we entered.

You could think of it as a literally living pool.

A small lake where corpses clumped together, rotted, and stuck together.

Similar to a Necro Ogre, it was a mass of moving corpses, but it was closer to crawling on the floor like a slime rather than moving on limbs.

I heard that the reason the elephant was the largest land animal was due to gravity.

I remember seeing on YouTube that if an animal were larger than that, its muscles and bones would have difficulty supporting its weight biologically.

There was also the story that the blue whale, the king of the sea, would be crushed to death by its own weight if it came onto land.

The size of the corpse pool was twice as large as a blue whale brought onto land.

Of course, we had Paladins and priests.

The kind who were said to receive miracles directly from their god after a night's sleep.

[Deploying [Warrior’s Insight].]

[Skill Acquired.]

[Divine Punishment (Level 6)]

I even acquired a high-level miracle.

Now, let's catch our breath and investigate.