Chapter 33: The Abandoned Mine and the Dark Mage

Ethan addressed the kneeling militia.  

“Where’s the village chief’s house?”  

“Tch… it’s over there, sir!”  

“Guide me.”  

A few militiamen flanked Ethan, their eyes brimming with admiration.  

The man before them was a descendant of the famed Ardan Ducal House.  

When the Dragonkin invaded the Hydern Kingdom, this heroic family had led the charge to protect the realm.  

Meeting such a figure naturally made their every gesture cautious and reverent.  

With utmost respect, the militia hurriedly led Ethan to the chief’s house, urgently knocking on the door.  

“Chief! Come out quick!”  

“What’s the matter…”  

A wrinkled old man, the village chief, emerged. His gaze fell on Ethan.  

Blinking momentarily, his eyes widened like saucers upon seeing the identity plaque Ethan presented.  

He bowed deeply in a rush.  

“I… I greet the esteemed lord!”  

“Do you know who I am?”  

How could he not?  

The chief was already aware of the rumors spreading through the Barony.  

Baron Helmut, a vile noble known for exploitation, had met divine retribution at the hands of the Archduke.  

Combined with the golden emblem on the plaque, it was clear who stood before him.  

“You’re… the Archduke, aren’t you?”  

“You know.”  

It was indeed the Archduke of the Ducal House, once thought fallen.  

As Ethan nodded, the chief’s eyes welled with tears, and he shouted with fervor.  

“You’ve come to resolve our troubles! Truly, the heir of the heroic family is different! Thank you! Thank you so much!”  

Huh?  

Ethan was momentarily taken aback.  

The old chief, sobbing profusely, looked ready to kowtow and bang his forehead on the ground.  

Grabbing the chief’s shoulders to stop him, Ethan said, “There’s no need for such excessive courtesy.”  

“Y-Yes, I’m deeply honored.”  

“So, what exactly is going on?”  

“Well…”  

The chief began his tale.  

It was simple.  

The Abandoned Mine on Mount Mitron.  

For decades, it had been silent, but recently, strange noises had been emanating from it.  

“Noises from the mine?”  

“Yes. If you could wait a moment, I’ll fetch someone who witnessed it.”  

“Go ahead.”  

The mine.  

It was exactly where Ethan was headed.  

Could it already be undergoing dungeonization, with monsters taking root?  

It was an intriguing topic, so he nodded readily at the chief’s request.  

“Fetch Gillian! Hurry!”  

The militia rushed off and soon returned with a middle-aged man.  

“This is our village hunter. He roams Mount Mitron, hunting game. Gillian, tell the Archduke what you saw at the mine.”  

“Understood.”  

Swallowing hard, Gillian began recounting his experience.  

“I hunt near the mine. For some time now, I’ve been hearing… strange noises from there.”  

“What kind of noises?”  

“Like… a pickaxe striking metal.”  

Ethan’s expression hardened.  

The dungeon he sought was called the Abandoned Mine of the Metal Serpent.  

Metal Serpents were creatures that fed on metal.  

Without hands, they couldn’t possibly produce pickaxe-like sounds.  

“And?”  

“At first, I ignored it. But the noises kept coming, and I couldn’t resist my curiosity. I ventured into the mine… and saw something bizarre.”  

“What?”  

“Undead, wielding pickaxes, striking at metal.”  

“…Undead?”  

“Yes, I swear on my life! They were definitely undead! I nearly had a heart attack.”  

“One more question. Did you see what they were mining?”  

“It was too dark to see clearly, but it looked like they were extracting black lumps.”  

Ethan’s face stiffened.  

An abandoned mine was, by definition, a depleted resource.  

If pickaxes were at work there, it meant one thing.  

Damn it.  

Someone was already claiming the metal he sought.  

Irritation and anger surged, followed by suspicion.  

How did they know?  

The Abandoned Mine of the Metal Serpent wasn’t discovered until much later in his past life.  

How could someone be mining it now?  

Something’s off.  

Was it due to changes in the past, or some other variable?  

Nothing was certain yet.  

Undead mining metal…  

Two possibilities came to mind.  

Either a high-tier undead like a lich, capable of raising lesser undead, had ordered the mining…  

Or a dark mage was involved.  

The former was far trickier to deal with.  

A lich, a high-tier undead, was known to wield immense power.  

I need to check.  

He had to see for himself what was mining the metal in the mine.  

Ethan nodded.  

“I’ll take a look.”  

The chief’s face lit up.  

The village was only a day’s distance from the mine.  

Undead lurking so close was a major concern for a small village.  

“Thank… thank you! Truly, you’re nothing like the Baron!”  

“The Baron? You mean Helmut?”  

“Yes! We sent dozens of letters, but he never sent aid or even an investigator.”  

“When did you send the first letter?”  

“A year ago.”  

Ethan tilted his head.  

Helmut was greedy enough to ignore minor incidents.  

But dozens of letters over a year should’ve left some record.  

While managing the Barony, Ethan hadn’t seen a single mention of this.  

Strange.  

Unless the records were deliberately erased…  

Ethan’s eyes narrowed.  

Did that bastard really erase the records?  

If so, why?  

Even as a mere Baron, his title wasn’t so trivial that he’d need to hide ignoring a village chief’s pleas.  

There was no reason to go through the trouble of erasing records.  

And that wasn’t the only oddity.  

A lich or dark mage camping in the territory, and he ignored it?  

If Ethan were the Baron, he’d have at least sent an investigator.  

Ignoring such threats could lead to bigger problems later.  

Something stinks.  

And it was a foul stench.  

Ethan looked at Gillian.  

“Can you guide me to the mine? I’ll pay you well.”  

He pulled out a gold coin from his pocket.  

Gillian’s eyes gleamed at the sight.  

One gold coin was what he’d earn hunting for half a month.  

Guiding near an undead-infested mine was daunting, but for a gold coin, it was worth closing his eyes and taking the risk.  

“I’ll guide you.”  

“Reach it within half a day, and I’ll add another gold coin.”  

“I’ll do my best!”  

After hiring the guide, Ethan turned to the chief.  

“I’d like to leave my horse here for two days.”  

“Of course! We’ll take good care of it.”  

Leaving the horse in the village, Ethan set off with Gillian toward the mountain.  

Ten hours after climbing Mount Mitron, they reached the mine’s entrance.  

Clang!  

Clang!  

The sounds were faint but noticeable if you listened closely.  

Interesting.  

As Gillian had said, the mine echoed with what sounded like pickaxe strikes.  

Either someone had occupied the mine before it became a dungeon and was mining metal…  

Or they’d cleared out the Metal Serpents and were now extracting it.  

Either way, to Ethan, they were no different from thieves stealing his target.  

With a grim smile, he handed Gillian another gold coin.  

“Thank you, Archduke!”  

Fantastic pay for a single day’s climb.  

Gillian’s grin reached the skies.  

“What should I do now? Wait here? Or guide you inside—”  

“You can go.”  

In his past life, Ethan had fought the Dragonkin across countless terrains.  

Memorizing a mountain’s layout was child’s play.  

Following the sound to its source in the mine would be simple enough.  

Taking a guide would only be cumbersome.  

At Ethan’s words, Gillian sighed in relief.  

He’d encountered several monsters on the mountain’s shortcuts, and though the Archduke had dispatched them with a single strike, guiding into an undead-filled mine was terrifying.  

“Then I’ll head back. Please, stay safe…”  

As Gillian descended the mountain, Ethan entered the mine.  

Half-collapsed tunnels, stale air, and rusted pickaxes scattered about.  

It was undoubtedly a long-abandoned mine.  

Ethan followed the sound of the pickaxes.  

After about twenty minutes, he saw it:  

Skeletons wielding pickaxes, striking at black metal.  

Among the mining undead stood a figure in a black robe.  

A dark mage.  

The figure’s build, scent, and occasional voice confirmed it was no undead but a human.  

Good news for Ethan.  

A dark mage would be far easier to handle than a lich.  

What to do?  

After a brief pause, Ethan decided.  

Subdue the dark mage first, then think.  

As he drew his sword, a voice rang out.  

“Who’s there?!”  

With a voice like scraping metal, the robed figure turned.  

Dark energy surged above their hand.  

Seeing the immense dark mana, Ethan’s eyes gleamed.  

As a Transcendent in his past life, he’d witnessed countless sights.  

That’s almost like…  

It resembled how the Dragonkin wielded their power.  

The Dragonkin had no structured techniques or rules.  

They were beings who slaughtered humans with overwhelming strength and mana.  

That’s how it was.  

So why did seeing this dark mage fill him with such disgust?  

As if he were facing the Dragonkin themselves.  

Ethan’s eyes narrowed.  

He was certain.  

It’s definite.  

The Dragonkin’s methods.  

The dark mage before him was wielding dark mana in a way that blended human techniques with their style.  

An unexpected encounter with traces of the Dragonkin.  

Ethan tossed out a question.  

“Where did you learn that technique?”  

“Die!”  

A whip-like tendril of dark energy shot toward Ethan’s body.  

It seemed he wouldn’t get an answer easily.