Chapter 83: Headless Nightmare
As soon as the Eternal Night took over everything, Edgar returned back to the patrol path.
His body was still a little sore from all the training he did with Gordon, but he was fine for the most part.
After upgrading the Central Tower, Edgar was debating which of the other towers he should upgrade.
’I can almost do four more before I need more Shin Glass Orbs...’
He looked at the other two options. One was the Flamethrower and the other was the Ballista.
’I should upgrade two at the front and two at the back.’
Thinking about it, Edgar walked along the patrol path aimlessly, with his gaze inside the Fortress.
He was looking for any type of weakness in his Fortress that could be used against him.
Although the towers covered most of the surrounding area, there were still small sections where their fields of fire overlapped poorly.
After making a mental map, Edgar returned to the path just above the stone slab gate.
Without wasting any time, he willed the Flamethrower Tower that was just beside the gate to upgrade.
A translucent screen appeared right in front of his eyes once again.
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Choose Your Path:
1) Increases the range of the flamethrower by over fifty percent. Can unleash a continuous torrent of fire capable of melting most White- and Green-grade Nightmares.
2) Compresses flames into countless burning projectiles before launching them high into the air. Bombards a wide area beyond the Fortress walls.
3) Creates a towering wall of golden fire in front of the Fortress. The flames linger for a short duration, continuously burning anything attempting to pass through.
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Edgar leaned on the battlement and looked through all the options available to him.
His first instinct was to choose the third one, which could really be helpful in case of an emergency.
’But if I do that, it will also make things harder later.’
Upon reading the explanation of the skill, Edgar noticed that it took five minutes before the skill could be used again and twenty Nightmare Stones to activate it.
’This is too much for the current me.’
After eliminating the third option, Edgar focused on the other two.
Debating with himself for a while, he finally decided to go with the first option.
Once he had decided, he quickly asked a soldier to bring the items for the ritual and a hundred Nightmare Stones.
The soldier was quick on his feet and brought everything from Oswald in just a few minutes.
Edgar initiated the process and watched as the tower changed before his eyes.
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The blond boy repeated the process with the other three Watch Towers that he had chosen.
For the Ballista Tower, he chose the rapid-fire skill that could fire ten shots in succession.
After spending nearly five hundred Nightmare Stones in a single day, Edgar was feeling dispirited.
He sat on the corner of the battlement and grumbled to himself.
"Managing the Fortress is such a pain."
Gordon, who was standing just by his side, nodded his head. "It sure is, my lord."
He rested both forearms on the battlement, his eyes drifting toward the darkness beyond the walls.
"A fortress is like a bottomless pit. The stronger it becomes, the more it demands."
Edgar glanced at him with a curious look on his face. He really had little idea of how much experience the veteran had.
The young-looking old veteran looked at Edgar with a smile.
"If you are really tense, then I can always tell you about the best brothels in the kingdom."
Edgar dismissed his words with a wave of his hand. "I am not that desperate."
The veteran didn’t say anything as his eyes shifted back to the Eternal Night.
Though the look on his face soon turned into confusion, which Edgar noticed as well.
The blond boy stood up and looked out over the night as well.
"What happened?"
Gordon pointed into the darkness.
"Is it just me, or is that a light?"
Edgar narrowed his eyes and followed Gordon’s finger.
A tiny speck of light flickered in the distance.
"...You’re right."
It was incredibly faint, like the flame of a candle being carried through a storm.
Gordon frowned. "That’s impossible."
There shouldn’t have been any light outside the Fortress.
Andrew, hearing the conversation, quickly climbed onto the battlements.
"What is it?"
Gordon silently pointed toward the horizon.
Andrew squinted his eyes, enhanced by the Three-Legged Raven’s Shard, and remained fixed on the distant glow far longer than either Edgar or Gordon.
After several seconds, he whispered, "...It’s moving."
Edgar’s heart skipped a beat. "Toward us?"
Andrew watched for another moment before slowly nodding. "...Yes."
The three of them turned silent, unable to make out what was happening.
The soldiers stationed along the wall gradually noticed it as well.
"My Lord..."
"What is going on?"
"Wait, what is that?"
The faint light soon became more prominent.
It was a green light, like a burning flame.
In the utter silence, the sounds of a horse neighing, rattling, and galloping echoed through the night.
The silhouette of the light became even clearer, and most of them could now make out its outline.
It was a knight riding on a horse, but he had no head. Instead, green flames rose from the top of his neck.
As the monster reached the range of the ⟨Unbroken Fire⟩, they could see him completely.
His breastplate was dented and scarred as though it had weathered countless battles.
A tattered dark cloak fluttered behind him despite the complete absence of wind.
The horse beneath him was no less disturbing.
Its flesh had long since rotted away in several places, exposing bleached ribs beneath taut, grey skin.
The headless monster slowed down and stopped right at the edge of the light.
His gaze was fixed on Edgar, who stood at the top of the wall, staring down at him.
Raising his hand, the monster slowly lowered it.
On cue, a growling sound echoed from the 180-degree area in front of the Fortress.
The darkness had swallowed everything, so all they could do was hear the sounds of Nightmares, unable to estimate their numbers.
The monster didn’t wait another second.
It turned around and vanished into the Eternal Night.
Edgar closed his eyes and tried to register what had happened when he heard another sound.
It was the voices of multiple ape-like Nightmares, shouting and howling.
"Haha."
Edgar let out a soft chuckle when it finally dawned upon him.
There were two distinct armies of Nightmares ready to attack the Fortress.