The Sword Master’s Son-in-Law

– Golem (2)

Rednil, Asia, Lily, the dwarven rescue team, and myself.

Together, we sought out the collapsed quarry.

Upon arrival, the scene was utter chaos.

A multitude of people were working to remove the stones blocking the quarry entrance.

However-.

“Oi, don’t touch that stone.”

“Remove them while maintaining balance, setting up supports as you go.”

They were being exceedingly cautious, it seemed, to prevent a secondary collapse.

I turned to Rednil, questioning him.

“Will this even work?”

At this rate, it seemed like we would be far too late.

Even to my untutored eye, the work pace was agonizingly slow.

“Hmm…”

Rednil seemed to be sharing my thoughts.

He pondered for a moment, lost in thought.

Then, a flash of light shone in his eyes.

It seemed a good idea had struck him.

“There *is* that way.”

“That way, you say?”

“There’s an old quarry on the far side of this mountain. We can go through there.”

Go through there, he said.

If there was such a route, why were these people toiling away like this?

They could simply go to the old quarry.

“The old quarry is connected to this one?”

“No?”

“Then… why?”

He had claimed there was a way.

And yet, Rednil fixed his gaze upon me.

His eyes brimming with expectation.

“The old quarry and this place aren’t so far apart. You could break through, couldn’t you?”

“…”

It was a gaze that treated me like some kind of mining machine.

I…

“I suppose it’s possible.”

I could do it.

It would just be rather cumbersome.

“But I’ll need a weapon.”

Digging with my bare hands was far too inefficient.

“Don’t worry.”

Rednil’s gaze drifted toward the rescue squad.

More precisely, to the swords hanging at their waists.

“Swords are hardly lacking here. And those dwarves, they’re crafting quality. Should be able to withstand your mana two, maybe three times.”

A situation where refusal was impossible.

He’d laid the groundwork perfectly.

I couldn’t help but nod.

From the start, if the operation revolved around me like this, asking for favors becomes easier.

Just as we shifted our location to the old quarry.

A crack in the collapsed quarry.

A strange energy emanated from that place.

And, at the same time.

‘Hot…?’

The area near my wings began to grow warm.

Not unbearably so, but…

It felt distinctly unpleasant.

My wings…

Come to think of it, there was something peculiar about this place.

That exact spot seemed to be where the heat was concentrated.

‘What is this…?’

Just as I was pondering the reason,

Rednil, noticing my pause, called out.

“What are you doing? We need to hurry.”

“Oh? Right.”

Urged on by Rednil, I cut off my thoughts and moved toward the old quarry.

*

The laborers toiled endlessly.

Swinging pickaxes against the wall.

Unable to slack off because of the overseeing golems, they continued their work.

Some of the laborers were in pain from blisters forming on their hands.

“Haa…, my arm is starting to go numb. I’d rather use the little strength I have left to take out that golem…!”

“Enough. You’ll be the death of yourself.”

“It looks like we’re all facing death here. What are we to do?”

“Let’s just wait for now. We’re all still alive, aren’t we?”

The laborers, caught up in conversation, had unknowingly stopped working.

Belzit shouted towards them.

“Are you all looking to die? Get back to work, now!”

At Belzit’s cry, the golems stirred slightly.

The laborers, as if resigned to their fate, began moving their hands again.

After some time had passed once more.

“I truly think my shoulder’s about to pop out of its socket.”

“Endure it.”

They encouraged each other, desperately trying to muster strength.

It was then that they noticed a flustered look on Belzit’s face.

“Hmm? Could it be…? He’s noticed the back passage. This has become rather troublesome.”

Belzit, who had been watching the laborers while seated, rose to his feet.

He left, leaving only a handful of golems behind, and disappeared in an unknown direction.

At this sight, the laborers inwardly cheered.

“W-we’re saved. It must be that the rescue team is coming.”

“Let’s all just hang on a little longer.”

The laborers were overjoyed at the thought that it would all be over soon.

But-.

“But… will the rescue team be able to defeat those golems?”

At one laborer’s tactless remark, the atmosphere turned ice cold.

The foreman, sensing the change, yelled.

“If we want to live, we have to believe! What other choice do we have?”

Because there was no other option.

This single phrase.

It was just a word of hope, nothing more than wishful thinking, but the laborers found renewed strength.

*

I couldn’t make sense of the situation.

When I arrived at the old quarry, for a moment I thought this place, too, had collapsed.

The entrance to the old quarry was piled high with what looked like stones.

But those stones were moving.

Moving stones, you say?

Could it be golems?

The golems were blocking the entrance to the old quarry.

I asked Rednil seriously.

“Did you people happen to disturb some ancient ruins?”

“Absolutely not.”

“But… what *is* this golem?”

Rednil stated firmly, “I don’t know either. But there are absolutely no ancient ruins here.”

Judging by his certainty, Rednil’s words were likely true.

If that’s the case…

*’This must be someone else’s scheme.’*

Then what’s happening now isn’t an accident, but an incident.

If I had to guess, it’s the work of an outsider aiming for the rare mithril.

And an outsider who possesses the now-lost technique of golem creation.

*’Incredibly suspicious.’*

To possess a lost technique…

The height of suspicion.

Dealing with the golems was the first priority.

“Give me five of the rescue team’s swords for now.”

“Alright.”

Rednil handed over five of the rescue team’s swords.

All of them were good quality, above average.

Just like Rednil said, they should withstand my mana at least three times.

For now, there were two golems blocking the entrance.

Just as I was about to deal with them…

“Haa… Let me handle one of them.”

“Arthas, oppa, what can I do?”

Asia and Lily were showing their competitive spirit.

To be honest…

*’I want to do it myself.’*

But these two have reached the intermediate level of Sword Expert.

I don’t know how strong the golems are, but they should be able to handle them.

Frankly, I also wanted to see how capable these golems were.

With that in mind, I decided to leave one golem to them.

“Then, I’ll take care of the one on the left. You two take the other one.”

Finishing my words, I rushed towards the golem on the left.

From appearances, the material was stone, with a bead embedded in the center as the core.

*’The golem’s weakness is usually the core.’*

I thrust my sword at the openly exposed weakness.

However…

*Clang!*

The sword was deflected away just like that.

Even the stone parts of its body couldn’t be damaged by an attack without mana.

“Why is this thing so hard?”

I can understand the core, but even the stone body is this tough?

It seemed the core had somehow strengthened the entire body.

Only by shrouding my blade in mana could I even begin to damage the golem’s frame.

However—

*Clang!*

I aimed for the core once more, but was deflected away.

The core even repelled a sword imbued with mana.

“Do I seriously need to use aura for this?”

What on earth was it made of to act like this?

Could it be—

“Is that some kind of rare mithril fused with a magic stone?”

That would mean.

‘If we take down these golems, we could get a ton of materials!’

After helping this much, they’ll at least share the golem byproducts.

Thinking that, I felt a little lighter.

Maybe that’s why.

I didn’t notice the golem’s fist until it was right in front of my face.

I desperately rolled away, narrowly avoiding the golem’s blow.

A lapse in focus during battle.

The old man would have given me hell if he saw that.

Evading the golem’s wild attacks, I moved toward its core.

And then—

*Thwack—*

My aura-imbued sword pierced the core with ease.

Simultaneously,

My aura twisted, shattering the core along with the blade.

‘Huh… the core’s in pieces, but if I glue it back together, it’ll be alright, right?’

I thought, heading towards Lily and Asia, who were still grappling with a golem.

They looked to be barely holding their ground against it.

I grabbed a fresh sword and smashed the core of the golem they were fighting.

One sword for one core.

Not a bad trade.

As the core-less golem crumbled, Asia and Lily collapsed to the ground.

They looked more exhausted than I expected.

‘Right… they can’t use aura.’

They could only block the golem’s attacks using mana.

Just a war of attrition.

But the golem’s stamina was limitless, so it was simply a disadvantageous battle of endurance.

Still—

“Good work.”

They successfully bought time without taking any damage.

Honestly, the dwarf rescue team we’d brought along was more of a burden in this situation.

Mostly novices in sword expertise.

Some couldn’t even channel mana.

Trying to fight while protecting these people from the golems would’ve really put me in a bind.

Thank heavens Asia and Lily could handle a golem each, allowing me to analyze their construction as we fought.

It was during a much-needed respite that…

A tremor resonated from the depths of the old quarry.

And then-.

Once again, a burning sensation bloomed from the mark on my wing-shoulder.