Chapter 119
Th research facility farthest from Erich's headquarters.
In front of it, two Watchmen belonging to the research unit, standing guard, chatted quietly.
"... Did you hear that rumor?"
"What rumor?"
The member who spoke first glanced around, and after confirming no one else was present, continued.
"I heard Lord Albrecht has been branded a traitor."
"... A-are we going to be suspected as well? We haven't done anything wrong."
The unsettling rumor was circulating even among the research unit's members. However, it was merely fueling a sense of foreboding among them—no one could confirm the truth.
― Grururur.
At that moment, dead wandering nearby flashed their white eyes.
Though the members of the research unit were aware that, in a sense, they were on the same side as those dead, they instinctively felt repulsed by them.
Being with the dead was naturally unpleasant, even for these people. But there was nothing they could do about it.
They hadn't joined the research unit out of some great calling; they were simply assigned here.
Just then, a vague shadow appeared in their line of sight. The silhouette cutting through the snowstorm gave rise to a strange tension.
"... What's that?"
"Members from another facility?"
The members met each other's eyes. But as this was such a remote place and information was limited, they—the low ranks—knew almost nothing.
So all they could do was grip their swords as they tensed up.
At that moment, what emerged from the snowstorm was another member of their own research unit. The badge on his black cloak proved it.
Five members in total were approaching. A relieved guard spoke to the man at the front.
"S-scared me... What's your unit?"
"... Unit 3."
The voice was low and subdued. The guard's face was buried deep in the black cloak, making it hard to see, but his lips moved in the shadow.
The guard tilted his head.
"Unit 3? Didn't all the members from that facility come together earlier?"
"They must be late arrivals. Just let them in."
Another member urged them along. After all, their orders were to block outsiders—not to stop members of their own research unit.
So, the members from Unit 3 passed inside. Once they had entered, one spoke to the others.
"... Proceed with the plan."
The others nodded and quickly concealed themselves. Their true identity: the Shadows.
Their specialty was disguising themselves so thoroughly that even up close, no one could recognize them.
This was the facility furthest from the others. That's why King himself came here, bringing only the minimum number of members.
Heading deeper inside, King felt the dead staring at him quietly. For some reason—be it a spell or something else—the dead did not attack those with the unit's badge.
'Good thing I found that out in advance.'
The Shadows always experimented with different infiltration techniques. Even after encountering the dead, they tried to learn their patterns.
By the time he arrived here, though the heir might not have known, King had tested the dead as well. What they discovered was simple: these things 'do not attack those who have the badge.'
King made use of that finding. He strode forward, his steps unchecked. No one dared speak to him, his presence blending seamlessly into his surroundings.
But then—
― Thump.
Footsteps stopped behind him.
"Wait."
"... Yes."
A man with white hair. At first glance, his expression was cold, but his lips held a relaxed smile. King knew his name.
'This must be Albrecht.'
Recalling seeing him from afar, King remembered the name. Now the enemy of his own lord.
Internally, King measured the distance between himself and Albrecht.
If it came to it, he considered stabbing his dagger into the man's neck—
'No, that isn't my order.'
Erich's command was to thoroughly investigate this research facility and report back.
Thus, there was no need to exceed that order. A tool does not need to think beyond its function.
Albrecht frowned and stared at the melted snow clinging to King's cloak.
"All the other facility members have returned, haven't they? Are you just coming in now?"
"Destruction of records at Unit 5 took a bit longer."
King referred to Unit 5—the facility Erich had visited first. Some members there hadn't returned, so this excuse was plausible.
And, as expected, Albrecht nodded slowly.
"Seems not everyone made it back. Where's Carlin?"
"I only destroyed my own section. He said he'd stay a bit longer."
"Wouldn't be surprised if he defected; that's just like Carlin."
Albrecht's prediction was correct.
Carlin from Unit 5 had surrendered easily to Erich. King sensed Albrecht's level-headedness.
Albrecht started walking again.
"Go get some rest. Glad you made it back."
"Yes, sir."
King's tension eased. For now, he seemed to have slipped out of Albrecht's grasp. Then he walked deeper inside—intent on carrying out Erich's orders.
But as he went further into the facility, he stopped.
'... What's this?'
King narrowed his eyes. Images from previous facilities flashed through his mind. All the research in those places had been for this.
King, who had no expertise in this kind of experiment, still instinctively sensed the danger in Albrecht's work.
But then—
― CRASH! BOOM!
A tremendous sound came from where Albrecht had just passed. And a member shouted loudly.
― Intruder!
King instinctively realized: at this moment, his subordinates who had headed down another route had been discovered.
His gaze turned to the huge dead, bound in place. He had to let Erich know.
The enormous trap Albrecht was setting here—
If he didn't get the warning out...
They might face the loss of the heir.
***
Erich sensed the snowstorm abating. The snow was falling less heavily, and visibility was increasing. In his experience, the storm would dissipate soon.
Yet Erich sensed something was wrong...
"Are you the only ones who made it back?"
The group of Shadows nodded. But their leader, 'King', was not among them.
'The place King went must have been the farthest facility.'
The Shadows who had inspected the other facilities said they'd found them all empty. They brought back whatever remains they could find.
Erich drew a conclusion.
'Albrecht must be at Unit 1, the farthest facility.'
In the worst case, King might have been caught. Erich passed the retrieved records to Ceres. Her face lit up when she received them.
"How did you manage to bring these?"
Erich didn't answer, but Ceres didn't care about the method—as long as the data was intact. She immersed herself in research until the storm had completely ceased.
Just before departure, Ceres called Erich back. She spread out the records he'd given her and spoke.
"In the first place we visited, we nurtured a seed of power from a half-dead barbarian, right? In the next place, we implanted it in a young barbarian to make a headhunter. In the third facility, there was definitely a link too. The data showed the power extracted from a young headhunter being transplanted into a grown barbarian warrior."
"... So it's as we thought."
Erich nodded. Germinate the power, grow it, and then implant it into an adult barbarian—turning them into a headhunter.
This was likely how Ungrim had managed to form his army of headhunters.
Erich asked hurriedly,
"Then what about the fourth facility?"
"But the fourth is a little strange. It's less connected to the others. This place seems to have focused on studying the dead. There wasn't much data left, so it's hard to guess."
"... It's hard to guess? Please do your best."
Ceres smiled, her red lips curving upward.
"You ask the impossible. My best guess is, this place was used to grow dead."
"To grow dead? By using their blood, maybe?"
"No, rather, it seemed to be a place where corpses were cultivated. Compared to the others, the dead found here were larger and had superior physical abilities. It may be related to that."
As she spoke, Ceres made no attempt to hide her lack of interest. This research was completely unrelated to her focus on energy sources.
But Erich narrowed his eyes.
'... A place where they shaped the flesh of the dead?'
Erich pondered the matter. Units 1 through 3 showed clear consistency—all were designed to produce headhunters.
Therefore, facility 4 should also be related. But Erich still didn't understand the connection between the dead and headhunters.
'There's no way the experiments here aren't connected to the dead as well.'
Just then, Frederick burst in, breathless and flustered.
"B-boss, you'd better come out and see this."
"... Did King return?"
"How'd you know? He's practically a bleeding chunk now..."
Erich narrowed his eyes. From the circumstances, Albrecht was at Facility 1. If King returned wounded, the cause was clear.
Erich hurriedly left the barracks. There, on the white, snow-covered plain, King was dragging himself, leaving a trail of blood.
"King, what happened there?"
King barely parted his lips. But he was too weak to speak; still, Erich noticed his lips repeating the same shape.
O.
A?
Erich tried his best to decipher King's words. Then, after a moment, he understood.
Escape.
Erich slowly stood and looked out at the snowstorm.
In the distance, endless black figures surged across the white plain. The sight overlapped with memories from the past.
A horde of dead, swarming without end.
That familiar scene filled Erich's eyes once more.
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
I'm guessing, after making barbarian head hunters, they will be turned into death knights.
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】