[Human Soldier Lv.11 x13]
"Drop your weapons and state your identities!"
The knight shouted to us once more.
My comrades immediately put on worried and confused frowns.
"What's the meaning of this? Why are there people in this subjugation trial?"
Shanny asked. Her grip on her sword was loosening.
Jonah quickly threw his gaze toward the surroundings.
"Maybe the monsters are hiding somewhere? Waiting to ambush us?"
Upon his words that I dispensed my detection field.
My colorless mist of mana soon hit a transparent barrier just before the flanks of the paving road on the north and south, a few distance along the road to the east, and right before the giant gates to the west.
Across the allowed field I only sensed our party and the thirteen soldiers. Nothing else.
"The trial's field extends only from this road where we stand till the gates in front of us. There is no one else here besides us and the soldiers."
I stated to my comrades.
The 2-stars and Darius turned to me in horror.
"Are you saying those soldiers are our enemies?"
The former knight asked.
"We have to kill them to clear this trial?"
The former maid asked.
"But they're people! Not monsters! How can we kill fellow humans?!"
The former shepherd asked.
The Tsahanam mercenary remained quiet. Calm eyes over the veil were fixed on the soldiers whom were giving us deadly glares.
They never escaped my eyes too. I would not let them.
"Our mission in this floor is to annihilate our enemies, which happens to be those soldiers. We must complete the mission given to us no matter what."
I told my comrades composedly.
Jonah stared those fellow humans with agonized look.
"But, Fina. They are…people."
"So?"
I asked back while raising my hands toward the soldiers guarding the giant gates.
Jonah stammered when he continued.
"H-have you…k-killed a person before?"
Eyes still fixed on the enemies, I nodded to the shepherd's question.
"I have."
Maha Agni.
A blazing fireball burst forth from my palms and crashed to the row of soldiers in front of us.
Four of them died in the blast, reduced to blackened corpses. While the rest were scattered with serious burn injuries.
Had they been gathered a little closer and did not attempt to jump away, I would had killed more of them.
I continued to my comrades as the screams of the soldiers were echoing throughout the trial field.
"If you can't bring yourself to kill people, you may stand back and watch. But if you do so, you'll have to dismiss yourself from the raid team once we return."
My comrades flinched at my words.
I went on.
"I doubt this would be the last of us facing humans in a trial. If you aren't willing to give it your all, even against fellow people, then surrender your position in Party 1 to someone who would."
I was still committed in removing obstacles hindering our climb endeavor.
If my comrades were not willing to fight the enemies, then they would become obstacles.
We could not afford to have someone burdening us in the raid team. We could barely carry our heavy duty itself.
"I will fight."
Devisha spoke up suddenly, raising her scimitars against the remaining soldiers.
The enemies were still fighting my fire raging around the field.
The Tsahanam mercenary continued.
"I've killed people before, so it doesn't make a difference. And I will not hesitate to kill these soldiers if they are trying to prevent us from saving the world."
"I will fight too."
Darius said immediately after. He followed his words by sending an arrow to the previous knight who was now charging toward us.
The former knight went on.
"I've fought against bandits before. This wouldn't be my first time killing a person."
The two 3-stars then charged ahead and engaged several burn-scarred soldiers that were approaching us.
I turned to my remaining hesitant comrades.
Shanny and Jonah were simple common folks back in Dunia.
Battling people was not their way of living.
I would understand if they could not bring themselves to kill fellow humans.
But they needed to step away from Party 1 and the raid team if they surrendered.
Jonah held a special place in my heart now.
But I would not make exception even for him.
Perhaps because he was special to me that I would make sure he dismissed himself.
He would only get himself killed if he could not fight against the enemies.
Suddenly Shanny clicked her tongue.
"Bah! Whatever! It's me or them!"
The former maid's grip on her sword turned tighter. Intense aura burst forth from within her.
['Shanny (★★)' has gone berserk!]
The woman started to charge toward the soldiers, screaming.
"And I sure would always pick myself before any of these bastards!"
Darius had already felled two more soldiers. Leaving six opponents remaining.
Shanny was engaged against three enemies at once, while Devisha with the rest of the six.
Jonah suddenly clenched his spear tighter than ever.
"I promised that I won't back down. I promised that I will stay by your side and keep on fighting. No matter what."
The shepherd took a crouching stance similar to a Kutub hunter's.
He continued.
"And I will do just that!"
With a relieved smile curled on my lips, I watched my lover charged gallantly toward the enemies.
I felt disappointed with myself that I was ever worried over my comrades.
I had seen them fight. I had seen their determination to survive.
They would do anything to complete our mission. They would do what had to be done.
No monster or people would ever get in their way.
These comrades in front of me would bring me to the top of the tower.
Alongside them that I would achieve victory.
Within them that my trust was found.
I had nothing to worry about as long as I had them.
Clang!
The sounds of weapons clashing resounded.
The soldiers were as skilled as how big city guards should.
But my fire had ruined their formation and their leader was killed by Darius earlier.
My comrades had sparred against fellow human countless times back in the lobby.
Most of the time they sparred with the intent to kill. For their enemies in the trial would not have any lesser intent.
Fighting this type of enemy should not be much different from their usual training. In fact, it should be exactly the same, if not easier.
Jonah and Shanny seemed hesitant to fight the soldiers earlier.
But as time went on, they turned more confident and ruthless. Killing the soldiers just as how they would goblins.
It helped that these soldiers did not bleed the same blood we did.
Instead of deep crimson matter, these human soldiers bled dark liquid. Like those spilled by the monsters we encountered on the eleventh floor and below.
Quite an oddity.
Slash!
Eventually there was only one soldier remaining.
He was already disarmed, collapsed on the ground, surrounded by my four comrades.
The others turned to me with wondering gazes.
I understood what they were trying to do.
"We've killed your allies. There's no point in resisting."
I told the lone soldier as I walked closer to him.
Having an intelligent enemy who could communicate with us was something we needed to take advantage of.
We had to obtain as much information as we could about the fifteenth floor.
"Who are you? And how did you come to stand against us?"
I asked the soldier.
He was huddling against his knees. Trembling.
"My name is Shelvane. I d-don't know…how I got here."
The shivering soldier said.
"You don't know how you got here? You mean you just suddenly found yourself in this place?"
Could he be the same as how most of the heroes found themselves in the forged land? Arriving without any recollection of the circumstances of their summoning?
"I just want to…go home."
"Home? Isn't this your city you're defending?"
I asked him.
He nodded.
"Y-yes. I recognize the place. It is my city. But I can't go anywhere else beyond the gates. Something's…stopping me."
"Why can't you go anywhere else? What's stopping you?"
I asked again.
Could he be referring to the invisible barrier around the border of the trial field?
"Some…thing is…t…ll…ng…m."
He mumbled under his breath.
"What was that?"
"Something is tell…ing…me…in…my head."
I frowned at his words.
"You're hearing voices? What does the voices tell you?"
The man's trembling grew worse. He began to chuckle.
"To…kill…all…of…you."
My comrades clenched their weapons tighter upon the soldier's answer.
He suddenly drew a dagger from beneath his armor and lunged at me. Screaming rabidly.
"For Jherendal! For the Eternal Throne!"
Davah Shashanam.
A sword on the ground suddenly flew up and beheaded the soldier in one smooth motion.
Pitch-black blood fountained up from the stump between his shoulders.
"I've heard enough."
I said as the corpse fell back to the ground, joining the rest of soldiers.
[Stage Clear!]
[MVP – 'Serafina (★★★★)']
[Reward – 35,000G, Iron Ore (C) x5, Leather (C) x3l]
The familiar bluish-white light soon engulfed us and returned our party to the mirrored chamber.
We all immediately turned to the shining mirror on our furthest left.
[Climb the tower and save the world!]
[Main Dungeon]
[Floor conquered - 12 -]
The trial completion confirmed that we were supposed to kill those soldiers earlier.
Something else was confirmed as well.
"Fina, what's on your mind?"
Jonah approached me. He noticed I was deep in thoughts.
I turned to him and the rest of my comrades.
"I think I know where the fifteenth floor will take place."