"Bangul!"
Chomp! Bangul opened her mouth wide and ate a large chunk of soil in one big bite. And there it was. Something black filled the space where the soil had been. Up until now, Bangul had been chomping on nothing but dirt. Occasionally, gray rocks appeared stuck in the soil, but this was different.
"It's bituminous coal. Hey, Bangul. Stop!" Lloyd quickly ordered his summon partner. At last, the seam of coal appeared before them. This meant everything in the walls of the mine was precious coal. It was too valuable for Bangul to eat.
"The important part of our job starts now. Everyone stay focused."
He calmed down the workers, who were about to let out a cheer of excitement. Disasters and accidents would take place the second they let their guard down. That moment would have been now if everyone let loose just before reaching their goal. Reassuring himself that now was the time to focus, Lloyd quickly told everyone, "We're not done yet. We just made it to the threshold of the coal deposit. We can cheer later. The celebration can happen once we make this score. Okay? So, good job everyone. Time to change shifts and tell the guys to bring the support pillars."
They needed to start careful excavation work now. Lloyd sent out the exhausted workers and called in a fresh crew. While he was waiting for them to come down, he held a blue sunflower seed out to Bangul.
"Hey, Bangul?"
"Bangul!"
"Yes, you did a very good job. I mean it when I say that. We couldn't have dug down this far so quickly without you."
"Bangul! Bba-bangul!"
"Haha, okay. I'll feed you something good once we go back up. But right now, will you be happy with this?"
"Bangul!"
He put the blue sunflower seed in her mouth. Bangul happily swallowed it. Gulp! Three seconds later, Bangul became small again.
"Bangul!"
"All right! Good job. Thank you." He took her in his arms. The new workers finally arrived, carrying support pillars over their shoulders.
"As you can all see, we finally found the coal. This is the most important part. We're going to expand this end of the mine along the seam of coal. It's a dangerous job, so you have to follow my instructions carefully. Am I clear?"
Everyone nodded.
Lloyd activated his intermediate surveying skill.
"Measure."
Crackle! A faint light flashed before his eyes. Then, information about the mine and the coal appeared as he looked around.
Thankfully, the ground near the coal is firm. We can do without the shield, and the place won't collapse. The coal seam is stretched to… okay, this way. Lloyd turned around and faced the workers. "Okay, so we'll dismantle the shield. As slowly and carefully as possible."
The shield was no longer needed, but they couldn't push it up to the ground. So, the only available option was to dismantle it back to its component parts.
"Okay, grab that part. Two, three, pull!"
Clunk! Lloyd ordered, and the workers moved. One by one, they disassembled the shield.
By the time they were almost done with it, Lloyd shouted, "Bring the support pillars!"
Three workers who were waiting for his command jumped to their feet right away. They carried the support pillars and the upper and lower planks over their shoulders and headed into the blind end of the mine. The planks and pillars were set up where the shield had been installed seconds ago. The makeshift device was meant to prevent the blind end from collapsing.
"Let's get started with the reinforcement work. Don't forget what we practiced!"
"Yes, sir!"
Everyone worked together like parts of a machine. They shoveled along the walls. The end of the tunnel was widened. Temporary supporting planks and pillars were installed. They worked to secure more mining space.
Meanwhile, Lloyd continued surveying. He kept an eye on the walls and ceiling at all times for signs of crumbling. They would have to evacuate everyone if they should collapse. Fortunately, the work proceeded without a hitch or any hints of a cave-in.
It's done. The most difficult part was over. It was time to call it a day. And if they continued the reinforcement work tomorrow? At this pace, they would be able to mine the coal starting next month. "Whew." At last, he relaxed with relief. The worn-out and sweaty faces of the workers brightened. The mine was dug out at last.
"All right, you guys did a good job. Let's go up. Tonight, we're going to party. There'll be meat, booze, and a hefty bonus."
Work hard, play hard. That was Lloyd's motto. Such a principle was already known to the workers who had been with Lloyd for many months now.
"Woah! It'll be a good bonus this time too, right?"
"Where should I spend all that money?"
"Wait for me, Rosalia. Your brother will pay for all your tuition!"
Digging the mine was more difficult than any other project. The heated flooring system and road paving were nothing compared to this. So that meant the bonus for this job would be larger. This put a big smile on everyone's face. They sashayed around as they arranged the tools. Their hearts felt lighter as if they were already out of the mine.
But just at that happy moment…
Thud.
There was a faint sound coming from the coal seam. Lloyd turned toward the source of the sound. What was that? Rocks falling?
And then another…
Thud…!
This time, the sound was louder.
Lloyd looked down at the ground, but there were no fallen rocks. And the thudding noise came again from the other end of the coal seam. What is that? Something felt odd. He felt something was seriously wrong. No sound should have been coming from there.
By reflex, Lloyd activated his survey skill.
"Measure."
Crackle! He studied the coal deposit, and his eyes widened in surprise. What?
Lloyd saw a cave about ten feet away. It wasn't there before. The cave, which was about six feet wide, was getting bigger as he watched. What the…? Is something collapsing? No.
Nothing's sinking. Lloyd realized that something was burrowing a hole in his direction. Whatever it was, it was digging fast.
Whip!
The mysterious burrower popped its head out.
It was a gigantic ant. Its head was twice as big as a watermelon. Its elongated mandibles extended longer than a human arm.
"What? Argh!"
Lloyd fell down on his butt as he hurriedly backed away. Lucky that he did.
Clack! The ant swooped ahead and snapped its mandibles shut right in front of Lloyd; so close that it almost touched his nose. Its mandibles — as sharp as saw blades — glistened in the torchlight.
If it bites me, it's taking an arm or a leg off… or two, for sure… A chill ran down his spine.
"What is that?! Why is there an ant here?!"
"Ackkk!"
Panic-stricken shouts erupted from the workers. They were terrified by the sudden appearance of the ant and the sheer size of it. It was as big as a wolf. They had no time to stop and think about that. Lloyd fumbled around on the ground, trying to grab anything that would help. He managed to grab his pure steel shovel. Lifting it up high, he swung it in the direction of the ant.
Wham!
The sharp head of the shovel dug into the side of the ant's head.
"Kieek!"
The stricken ant shrieked. It shook its head in pain. A transparent fluid spurted out of its head and splattered all over Lloyd's face. The spray snapped him out of his trance.
"Everybody, run!" he yelled by instinct. The petrified workers rushed toward the entrance of the mine. Lloyd tried to get on his feet, but the ant didn't let him.
"Skreee!"
Now, clearly pissed off by the attack, the ant hurtled toward Lloyd. Its mandibles opened again, aimed straight at Lloyd's neck. Lloyd was still rooted to the ground.
Argh!
Lloyd was desperate to avoid its counterstrike, but he was in no position to do so. He could feel the danger drawing closer, the mandibles inching forward to chop his head off. Damn.
Just then…
Slash!
He saw a flash of silver light above his head.
Swish! Swoosh!
The fierce mandibles got sliced off.
Wham!
Another silver flash dove deep into its forehead. The sword penetrated the ant's head, the blade driven into the ground like a nail. As the sword twisted, the crunching sound of the ant's head shattering to pieces followed.
"Skreee!"
After some wriggling, the ant hung limp. Lloyd saw the sword being pulled out of the monstrous ant, and someone offered a hand in his direction.
"Are you okay, young master?"
The firm calloused palm. The calm and composed expression. It was Javier. He was holding out his hand.
Lloyd quickly grabbed it and sprang to his feet.
"What in the world is that?!"
"I don't know, but…"
"But?"
"I speculate that they are the beast ants that inhabit the wilderness across the mountain range."
"Beast ants? What are they doing here?"
Lloyd was seriously baffled. Supposedly, these giant ants lived in the eastern wilderness across the mountain range. So it made no sense for them to show up underground. The whole thing didn't make any sense.
"The ant cave must have expanded underground near this area without our knowledge. If that's not the case…"
"Well?"
Just then, another giant ant climbed out of the coal hole. As soon as it laid its compound eyes on the two, it charged toward them, swinging its thick antennae like baseball bats.
"They must have heard us tunneling and snuck up in their own holes to attack us."
Whack!
Javier's sword swung in a flash of silver once again. The ant's head was split in half vertically. However, there was another one right behind it. Lloyd suddenly realized that the ants would continue to come out of the hole one after another in an endless stream.
"Aw, shit."
Javier's second assumption sounded plausible. When he first discovered the seam of coal a while ago, he didn't see any caves behind it. He was certain. He had used the surveying skill to keep a close eye on their surroundings. There wasn't any sign of ant caves. It was only later that he discovered the ant cave and the giant ants.
What should I do? This took him by surprise. It stung that he didn't prepare for this. There wasn't any record of ant caves in the former baron's records. I should've been more careful and prepared for it. He did know that preparing for undocumented circumstances hardly sounded plausible. It was an impossible job, but regardless of that, this happened. So, he needed to find a solution.
Do we need to stop them here? The confusion and fatigue. The stifling heat. He frantically racked his brain. There was only one thing he was certain of. If the ants get out of the mine, we're done for. The exit led to the fiefdom, and disaster was inevitable if the ants crawled out of the mine.
The soldiers wouldn't be able to protect the place. The sheer number of ants made it impossible. Worst-case scenario, the entire place gets wiped out. The situation would get completely out of hand.
I can't let that happen. The mere thought of it caused him to sweat. But Javier seemed to have misread Lloyd.
"Master Lloyd, pull yourself together."
Pop! Javier softly punched Lloyd in the gut, winding him.
"Ack…!" Lloyd panted for air. Javier probably meant to give a light tap, but the surprise punch hurt a lot.
"Hey, what was that for?!"
"You cannot let fear get to you in situations like these."
"I'm not scared! I was just thinking about what I should do next!"
"Then, please give me a solution."
Swish! Crack! Even while Javier was fending off the army of ants, he was calmly responding to his young master. Javier wasn't out of breath in the slightest. Each time he swung, Javier either split or chopped off an ant's head. But his upper torso was thoroughly soaked in sweat. Having already removed his shirt, his sweaty muscles shone against the light.
This is bad. Yes, it's Javier, but he still has his limits. Lloyd knew this by instinct. Javier was strong, of course. But the place they were stuck at was the blind end of the mine with crippling ventilation. Even Javier would eventually reach his limit as he fought endlessly with an army of angry ants.
I need to come up with a solution while he is still holding up. How should I block the ants without leading them to the barony in the least damaging way possible? Should I just collapse the mine? No, that's impossible. The metal walls are too robust, and damaging the structure in one or two places would barely do anything. Besides, the ants dig way too fast even if I succeed in destroying the mine. Lloyd shook his head.
One wrong move and everyone could get wiped out by the colony of giant ants. This won't work with a half-assed plan. I need something to firmly block the ants and get rid of them in one blow… Eh? Hold on. Then a solution hit him.
Lloyd lifted his head. He looked at Javier, shouting, "Hey! Javier! Do you think you could break through them?"
"Break through?" Swoosh! "I do not understand what you mean," Javier said as he sliced off a charging ant's antennae in one clean sweep.
Lloyd shouted, "Of course, you know! Breaking through these ants and charging ahead! Can you do it?!"
"Charge through these ants?"
"Yes."
Javier turned to look at Lloyd. His face silently told him to stop spouting nonsense when he was busy enough fighting ants.
This time, Lloyd shouted more nonchalantly, "I think it's the only way to save everyone and stop these ants! Can't believe it? Or scared? Run away if you're scared!"
"Are you insinuating that I am scared?"
"Of course."
"Such misunderstanding is not welcome."
"So? Can you do it?"
"Of course. But break through them? How far?"
"Right into the ant's nest!"
"Wait, into it? Until the end?"
"Yes."
"Do you have a plan in mind?"
"Sure thing! I've got a brilliant plan! What? Can't trust me?"
"No need to ask such an obvious question."
"Hey! Really? Now's not the time…"
"I pray that your brilliant method is not something insane."
It appeared he made a resolution. Or it could be that he resigned and realized he had no other choice but to obey Lloyd. Crack! The grip around his sword tightened. His voice grew more menacing.
"Make sure that you stay close behind me. Do not wander and get lost."
Javier's blade flashed in such a lethal manner that it looked like his sword was brewing a storm.
Swish! Slash! Slash!
Lloyd admired the glimmering sword that danced in Javier's hands. Five ants rushing toward them got sliced into pieces. Javier jumped in between them. His movement reminded Lloyd of a silvery beast. Lloyd ran after his knight with a torch and steel shovel in his hands.
"Run! Don't stop!"
In a split second, he entered the inner part of the ant nest, beyond the hole in the coal seam. Thankfully, the colony of ants didn't crawl up toward the entrance of the mine. Instead, they turned around and pursued the human intruders. Javier and Lloyd sliced and chopped down the ants that blocked their way. They ran without stopping into the ant nest.
"Continue running down!"
Lloyd obsessively scanned the ant cave with his survey skill as he ran.
This is the only solution right now. I must give it a try no matter what.
There was only one thing Lloyd was looking for: the methane gas layer deep in the ant cave.
Translator: https://bettertranslation9.wordpress.com