Death Notice Book 8: Chapter 61: Farewell

“Why are there so many undead? Is this a trap set for us?” Philip turned and glared angrily at Bonnie.

“Philip, calm down. This isn’t specifically prepared for us.” Robin’s pretty face was stern as she murmured, “The situation the Amnian cavalry encountered back then wasn’t much different from ours now. The undead’s intention to not let information leak has never changed. They probably did their best back then, but still failed to intercept Bonnie and the others…”

“Robin, do you think these undead, like us, just arrived recently?” Stark wore an expression of disbelief. Although he wasn’t clear about the nearby terrain, it had only been five or six hours since Bonnie escaped. It was hard to imagine how these undead came from the Twin Towers unless they could fly.

“Knight Bonnie, what was this valley originally used for?” Robin didn’t pay attention to Stark’s question. She grabbed Bonnie and asked urgently.

“This is just an abandoned place. Since the founding of Amn, no one has paid any attention to this valley!” Bonnie’s face was pale. He looked at the undead army before him and slowly drew the long sword at his waist. “Sorry, this time I got you into trouble. But I will try my best to help you break open a gap. Escape as many as you can. Just report the situation here to the nearby Amnian Guard.”

“Abandoned place?! Why call it an abandoned place, and not a wild valley? What was abandoned here?” Robin’s eyes lit up as she pressed on with her questions.

“Abandoned… I’m not too sure. I’ve only been here once before. There’s nothing inside except some ruins.” Bonnie said with a bitter smile. “I know what you’re thinking. However, those ruins aren’t a large structure, and there’s no underground part. It’s just some scattered stone platforms and steps. No one knows its purpose. It looks a bit like a small altar.”

“Altar? Can it be repaired?” A cool voice came from the group. Everyone turned to look and found it was the female knight Idria, who had always been somewhat aloof, a follower of Lady Loviatar.

“I didn’t say it’s an altar. I just said it looks a bit like one.” Bonnie sighed and continued, “The history of those ruins is very old. Hundreds of years? Thousands of years? Anyway, no one knows from which era the structure remains, and there are no records about it. Believe me, with that pile of scattered rocks, no one would know its original appearance. It’s impossible to repair.”

“Talk about what? Perhaps if we offer them a few dwarf blacksmiths, the undead will let us go!” The female knight curled her lips. She took off the large cloth bundle from her back and opened it. It turned out to be a huge double-bladed battleaxe.

This double-bladed battleaxe was entirely made of metal. Including the handle, it was about one and a half meters long. The broad axe head was almost big enough to use as a shield. Besides the sharp edges on both sides, the handle and the tip of the axe were conical. The sharp point glittered coldly, looking extremely “ferocious”.

“Hey, we dwarves didn’t provoke you, follower of Loviatar…” Lorlin, the preparatory prince of the Snowpeak Dwarves, muttered discontentedly. But before he could finish, his eyes widened as he stared at the giant battleaxe in Idria’s hands.

The others were also surprised. They had originally thought the large cloth bundle on her back was for ascetic practice. Loviatar was the Goddess of Torment, so it was normal for her followers to carry heavy objects to torture themselves. They hadn’t expected it to be such a “ferocious” weapon.

“What are you looking at? This is a family heirloom!” Idria coldly swept a glance over everyone. She pulled the fiery red ponytail from the back of her head to the front and held it in her teeth. Gripping the axe with both hands, she walked to the front of the group, standing together with Kelly, and glared fiercely at the three Death Knights. Her fierce demeanor made the males in the group break out in a cold sweat.

Kelly glanced at the female compatriot beside her, feeling slightly surprised. But when she saw the vicious weapon in the female knight’s hand, a faint smile appeared on her pretty face, and she nodded towards her.

“Robin, we need to decide what to do. Break out towards the rear, or continue forward deeper into the valley.” Stark asked calmly. Now that things had come to this, the big man who had always shouldered heavy responsibilities, instead let go of distracting thoughts, his expression appearing serene.

Robin bit her lip, feeling unusually indecisive. Although they were heavily surrounded, there was a slight difference between the undead’s front and rear encirclement. The number blocking the rear was greater, making up sixty percent of the total. It was hard to imagine how those undead managed to get around from the cliffs. Most importantly, there were three Death Knights at the rear. These were genuine high-rank undead.

Logically, at this point there wasn’t much to think about. This was a gourd-shaped enclosed valley. Only by breaking out the way they came could they reach the only exit. But Robin understood why Stark suggested continuing forward.

The way these undead appeared was too strange. They couldn’t have entered the valley from outside; it was more like they emerged from within the valley. This suggested that the valley might have undergone unknown changes. Perhaps there was a path inside that the undead had opened up…

But this choice would decide everyone’s fate. Robin truly didn’t dare to take the risk.

Break out to the rear, or continue forward?

Breaking out to the rear would inevitably result in heavy losses. With the three Death Knights harassing them and so many undead cannon fodder, even if the Apostles used all their hidden cards, the outcome wouldn’t be good. Aside from Kelly, no one was confident of surviving. As for the storyline elves and dwarves, they would certainly be wiped out.

As for continuing forward, not to mention whether the passage Robin imagined even existed. Even if it did, it might not be a path to life. There was a ninety percent chance it led to a forbidden area occupied by undead. The hope was equally slim.

“Let’s go forward. Don’t you want to see the so-called Forbidden Zone of Life before you die? I’m very curious!” A clear voice suddenly came from the group. Everyone looked up and saw Qin Lun smiling as he looked at them. “Besides, the true mastermind commanding the undead hasn’t appeared yet. Elder Loier is right; we do have a chance to negotiate.”

Robin’s eyes lit up. Indeed, Death Knights also had the ability to command low-level undead, but this ability wasn’t as strong as that of Necromancers or Liches. The thousands of low-level undead here couldn’t all be commanded by these three Death Knights serving as the vanguard. There should be a Necromancer or Lich hidden inside the valley.

The most important point was that the mastermind behind these undead had changed its behavior that had lasted for thousands of years and planned to leave the Cloud Peaks. Whether this action was spontaneous or instigated by an outsider, at least they now had some degree of desire.

Undead with consciousness and desire would no longer be indifferent to falling. As long as they could capture the mastermind, then the group would have a bargaining chip.

Seeing the change in Robin’s expression, Qin Lun knew she had made a decision. The corner of his mouth quirked slightly as he quietly retreated to Iristin’s side.

“Sister Kelly…” Robin called out, looking up.

“I heard. You go ahead. I’ll stay behind to cover the rear!” Kelly said without turning her head.

“We’ll stay too!” Knight Bonnie waved his hand and, with a resolute expression, led the remaining seven or eight cavalrymen towards Kelly.

At the same time, those who understood began their final preparations.

…

“Nicole, Philip, you take the other members and go with Robin.” Stark sighed, then resolutely turned and walked towards Kelly.

“No, I’ll stay! Leaving aside Lady Kelly for now, with me here, you have a chance to retreat.” Nicole bit her lip, her face pale as she spoke.

“Nicole…” Philip cried out involuntarily.

“Philip, you’ve seen Stark’s performance along the way. No matter what you think, I now acknowledge his position as Leader.” Nicole said seriously. “I don’t want to lose another Leader. One such experience is enough.”

“Then I’ll stay too…”

“No, the remaining team members need a leader.” Nicole and Stark shook their heads simultaneously. “You must go with them.”

“Fine. Come back alive. Otherwise, I’ll disband the Fortress!” Philip said through gritted teeth, the words forced out between his teeth. He then resolutely turned and left.

…

“Lord Firal, is that right?” A gentle voice came from behind Qin Lun.

“Mage Angelo?” Seeing the figure approaching from behind, Qin Lun raised an eyebrow slightly and asked with a smile, “Is there something I can do for you?”

“Could you take my apprentice Elr with you?” Angelo narrowed his eyes, looking meaningfully at Qin Lun.

“You’re staying too?” Qin Lun’s eyes flickered, slightly surprised.

“Their strength is good, but without a magic class staying behind, they won’t be able to hold back so many undead. Besides, the impact force of those three Death Knights is strong. They need a mage to slow them down.” Angelo seemed not at all worried about his own safety. He shook his head with a smile.

“Oh? That makes sense too!” Qin Lun rubbed his nose. A cold light flashed in his eyes as he asked in a low voice, “But why me?”

“Besides being a Red Robe Mage, I also have some knowledge of astrology. I just performed a divination in secret.” Angelo was silent for a moment, then looked deeply at Qin Lun. In a voice only the two of them could hear, he said, “The result surprised me. It seems Elr can only be sure to survive if she follows you. It appears you have quite a few secrets…”

“Secrets? Likewise!” A sharp light flashed in Qin Lun’s eyes as he said with a faint smile, “This kind of divination that only concerns one person’s fate… It seems this child is very important to you.”

“For you, Sir, it’s just a small effort, isn’t it?” Angelo hesitated for a moment, then took out an exquisite metal box from his bosom and stuffed it into Qin Lun’s hand. “If that child survives, consider what’s inside as payment. The unsealing spell is only known to Elr.”

“Taking one more person out? Deal!” Qin Lun glanced at the metal box engraved with magical runes in his hand, smiled, and tucked it into his clothes.

Qin Lun indeed wasn’t afraid of perishing in the Valley of the Undead. Before entering the Toril World, Firecracker Rand, another serial killer like him, had given him an “Accompany Card”. The “Accompany Card” from the Hunter World could transport all personnel within a 20-meter radius to a designated location they had visited before, or a designated creature they had seen.

The Toril World was a world at the peak of mid-level magic, with many outer planes, and did not lack Space-Time Law. Qin Lun had examined this Accompany Card and confirmed it could be used here. However, without the additional laws of the Hunter World, he could only use his own Stamina/Energy Points to activate the card. Besides himself, he could probably take a few people with him.

Of course, even Qin Lun himself wasn’t sure of the exact number. At most four or five, at least only one or two.

However, he wouldn’t use it unless absolutely necessary. Anyway, his purpose in Toril was already accomplished. As long as someone from the Fortress Team survived and reported his performance to “Sky Float”, that would be enough.

…

“Elder Loier, must you really stay?” The young dwarf asked with a tearful face.

“Lorlin, you must remember, we dwarves never shirk responsibility. Those people saved us. Now it’s time for us to repay them!” The old dwarf hugged the somewhat bewildered young dwarf, then pushed him away. He lifted his battleaxe and, together with the remaining dwarves, walked towards the position where Kelly was covering the rear. “Go, descendant of King Dustin. Go find Mithril Hall and begin your own Legendary.”

…

“Prince Milleras, take care. Our time has come!” Aside from one companion who had returned near the Mir Forest to deliver a message, the remaining three Elven Rangers bowed to the Sun Elf Prince. “We beg your pardon, but we can no longer accompany you on the upcoming Ancient Path.”

“Hmm, perhaps we’ll meet again soon!” Milleras said with a light laugh, though a trace of sadness flickered in his eyes.

…

Kelly turned her head and looked at Idria beside her, then suddenly laughed. “You go with them. With your impact force, they will break through the rear interception more smoothly, and I won’t have to cover the rear for too long.”

Idria hesitated slightly, then nodded to Kelly, hoisted her large axe, and stepped back. “Alright then. Don’t die. I’ll buy you a drink later!”

“Hahaha, I like this girl. She reminds me of how I used to be!” Kelly laughed heartily, hands on her hips. Her ample bosom shook uncontrollably.

…

The time from their decision to their farewells was actually not long. Meanwhile, the silent undead opposite seemed to have completed their final deployment.

The three Death Knights rode their horses past the front of the undead ranks, like ancient generals reviewing troops before battle. They looked back at the humans, elves, and dwarves before them. Their cold gazes from behind their iron masks seemed to pity these living beings for the fate that awaited them.

Then, the Death Knights lost interest. They raised their Horse-Cutting Sabers high and swung them forward. The undead behind them surged towards the group like a tide…