Stuck as a Dungeon Mob

The sound of footsteps on the dusty stone flooring were not at all concealed, they were in fact augmented in the eerily silent crypt. As if the torches weren't creepy enough on their own, the darkness of the surroundings was only enhanced by the dim lightning.

The knights that traversed down these halls could then be praised as brave, the hardest apart about the dungeon was the toll it took on one's mind. The skeletons were easy prey.

With the simple swing of a blade, a dirty and old white skull would be sent back to the afterlife. This meant the hoards of 4 or 5 and in some cases 7 skeletons could be dealt with by a single person. Witnessing all of this, Stuart did not feel safe, however. 

He didn't fall for the false sense of security. It was a mistake that they had already committed when Balin was in charge of the whole company. Since they had lost such a powerful individual, acting wantonly was all the more ill-advised.

Everyone there except Brennan knew this to be true.

Currently, Brennan Bosque was the only one observing the surroundings with an eye of curiosity, he felt safe enough to have his mind wander. The main culprit was not the knights, but the monster inside him.

'Don't worry, I can guarantee your safety' W had transmitted this to Brennan and alleviated any worries he might have had.

"Tarin, was it? You seem rather experienced. How long until we leave?" Brennan was even in the mood to ask questions. The grizzly mage beside him was a little taken aback, he only looked experienced thanks to the stress he suffered as of late, but he answered promptly.

"That's right, your majesty, we should be out in 2 or 3 hours with this pace" Their party was not large enough to warrant taking any longer. They were also all the best of what was left and were spirited by the hope of leaving.

The king gave a dignified nod to acknowledge Tarin's answer before looking ahead. He suddenly received a warning.

'Danger is approaching, be careful' A timely transmission. Brennan's brows creased into a frown and his aloof kingly aura was gone and replaced by a hint of worry. He knew of the biggest danger in the dungeon thanks to Eon who had caught him up to speed.

"Stop!" Brennan decided to take this seriously. They couldn't continue the way they were traveling down!

"Your Majesty?" Stuart asked from the front of the group.

"This route doesn't feel safe, let's take a detour" The reasoning behind the switch was admittedly a bit lacking. To the knights, Brennan gave the impression of a man trusting a gut feeling. For the king of a nation... not a good look.

But he was the king of a nation, outright ignoring him seemed like a bad idea.

After a short deliberation, Stuart figured it was ok to move a couple of rooms over. Their current trajectory was rather standard. Just a direct path to the exit using as little twists and turns as possible. Now, they would just switch to a hallway two or three rooms over. 

With that thought in mind, Stuart stopped just before another corridor and turned to face them all.

"Ok, let's turn awa-!" Stuart's words were stuck in his throat after being suddenly suffocated by the oppressive heat that burst behind him.

He turned back around and saw a chilling sight. A corpse melting like wax under a blinding sea of flames. The entire corridor was bombarded by the smell of charred meat.

"Wh-" Some were speechless, but the king was mortified. His eyes bulged and his heart rate sped up, seeing what was before unthinkable. What did the king of Bosque who never left his palace know about death?

Something so gruesome could only trigger an urge to puke out all he had ever eaten with haste.

But Stuart was quick to turn away from the enchanting flames that danced in the corridor behind him. He started taking the detour the king had suggested.

"L- Let's go!" Stuart said before suddenly stopping. He cast a couple of simple spells in the direction he was walking in and then had the others follow him.

"Spread out a bit more, but remember to still protect his majesty" With a trap like that they had to keep some distance. Fewer people would be affected in the worst case scenario.

As they continued to proceed, they would always be warned by Brennan to avoid a near death scenario or a large coincidence like the roof caving in would stop them. One could plainly see that the party was plagued with good luck today.

But the humans were not put at ease by this, they were terrified and on edge. They didn't know when this luck would go away. Once it did, they could suffocate inside a bizarre trap or have their head chopped cleanly off their shoulders at a moments notice.

Psychological warfare.

There was usually an example of what would happen to them in these traps. It wasn't just the burning body, it was the crushed old armor, the skewered zombie, no matter what their minds were not spared. They would always see what could happen to them with a wrong step.

After so much psychological torture, the moment they heard light footsteps in the distance they all couldn't help but jump in freight weapons held out and ready to fight.

A passing white skeleton froze, it noticed the dozens of weapons pointing at its figure.

Without warning the bows fired, the mages cast, and the knights brandished their weapons ready for a mana infused attack. The skeleton would be decimated!!!! ...if it was a normal skeleton.

Out of empty space came out a weapon. It was sleek and elegant, but this beauty did not take away from its sharpness. The green blade shone even under the poor lighting conditions of the crypt.

The dragon blade of that white devil!

The humans had not hesitated to attack instantly when they spotted it. But it was pointless, Ed swung his sword rapidly or as rapidly as his attributes allowed him, and…!

[You've been dealt damage. -28 hp]

[Swordsmanship has leveled up]

The sword split the attacks as if they were made out of mud. But the mud splattered and tainted Ed's body, causing him some damage. Nevertheless, this was a calculated risk. How would he, a skeleton lich, have the best chance of winning?

Magic! Magic was the easiest way for him to secure a safe victory! So that's exactly what he wouldn't do.

Ed's figure was armorless and exposed, but in a way this helped him become much more nimble. He rushed forward, dodging the long range attacks of the knights, who now swung their weapons with ferocity.

The wave of water that threatened to wash him away was as easy as stepping aside. The thrust of a spear that blasted forward a piercing gale met a wall in its path, and the lightning that coursed another water attack met a similar fate.

[You've been dealt explosive damage. -142 hp]

Ed was suddenly blown away by a burst of fire. He managed to grab himself with the earth however and barely lost any of his gained ground.

'U- Urgh!' Ed grunted from surprise. How fast! How cunning!

[You've been dealt damage. -28 hp]

Under the flurry of spells, a speedy assassin approached his position. Unfortunately, his attack was not much more than a tickle.

'Dodge to your left!' Ed declared before brandishing his sword with more familiarity than he had done previously. The swing came from over the shoulder and lashed down with a vengeance.

The armored assassin had the sword cut cleanly through their chest after they attempted to dodge right.

"Vile… Vile monster…" The human said before weakly collapsing to the floor.

[Requiem has leveled up]

'Wh- What?!?' Ed was dumbstruck by the new alert. Requiem? He was just trying to get the humans to put up a more convincing fight by dodging him a couple of times. Why did that level up? Was the system secretly judging him?

"Kill it! Kill it no matter what!" Someone roared tears blasting past their helmet.

"Stop! Remember the plan, take the king away!" Stuart shouted with much indignance. He didn't want to die here, but what could he as the leader do?

A couple of knights and Tarin nodded with a solemn face as they pulled away from the battleground.

"No! I will stay!" But before this group could do anything, the king made a shocking revelation.

'Great!' W transmitted to Brennan approving. Just a second ago, Ed's nonexistent heart had skipped a beat hearing that the humans planned on thinning their defense. It was all to protect the guy he had no intention of killing to boot!

He had promptly begged W to inform Brennan, who decided to trust W on account of having saved them from numerous traps already.

"""But your Majesty!""" The people could not just take these words lying down, however. Were their lives too unworthy to even protect the king? The answer was no... So why!?

"Fight! Fight for your own life! I will make sure to do the same!" The king was not a down to earth person, but he knew what to do. There was nothing more precious than your own life! Protect it with a fight!

The knights were thought to care not just for themselves, but also for the king and their comrades. Overcoming this was not highly likely in a matter of seconds. But there were still some who were sufficiently touched.

How could the king of a nation hold such a philosophy and apply it equally to their subjects? It was a surprisingly modern concept! It was great!

Morale was skyrocketing just like Ed's speed as he exchanged more and more blows with some knights. The dragon blade was leaving cuts in the various weaponry that swamped him.

The pressure was doubled the instant that this morale reached its peak. It was great! Just what Ed needed!