I reforged the glory of the magic ring in Middle-earth

Chapter 30 Mulip

Roger could only blink and keep his mouth shut when D interrupted him.

Then, a believer of the Golden Law wearing gold and silver armor and a magician walked into the damp ruins.

"I think it's better not to touch these green sewage." Roger expressed his opinion as he looked at the shallow pools of water on the ground within the ruins, which were covered with green water and emitted a strange smell.

D, lifting his iron-booted feet and circling the pools, replied, "I'm not some curious kid on his first adventure. The places where the Deadborn live are often filthier than you might imagine. So, there's no need for you to remind me of this."

Roger shrugged, one hand on the hilt of his rapier, and followed D to inspect every piece of ruins.

In this ruin, the old road was covered with silt, and it was difficult to discern its original carvings and edges. They walked along the stone paved road, only to see the moss-covered walls, which showed the traces of time.

The ruins of the building eroded by time stand there quietly, looking dilapidated and lonely.

Occasionally, one or two lone, nameless black birds circled over the ruins, making mournful cries.

Everywhere Roger and D explored, the former prosperity and bustle were gone, leaving only weeds growing wildly between the cracks in the rocks and wild flowers blooming alone but no one to appreciate them.

Until they both stopped in front of a relatively well-preserved wooden house and looked at each other.

The wooden house is hidden in the dense greenery. There are only a few tiles left on the roof. The surrounding walls are weathered and the wood has taken on a dark brown color.

The carved designs on the door lintel were already blurred, and the outside was decorated with monster gargoyles. The door was ajar, and a cold, damp, and musty smell came out from inside.

The two peered through the doorway. The room seemed unusually dark, the sunlight outside unable to penetrate directly. They could only vaguely see a few pieces of worn furniture placed haphazardly, their surfaces eroded by time, their smoothness gone.

D sighed and said, "So this 'Mullip' monster thinks normal people would live in such a spooky, abandoned house in such a desolate place? Especially with these monstrous decorations at the door. It's almost like putting a sign saying 'Something's Wrong Here' on the door."

Roger smiled and said, "No normal person would come to a place like this. Only those who are lost in the wilderness would hide in a house like this to rest."

After listening to Roger's words, D was silent for a moment and asked, "Are you actually saying that we are not normal people?"

Roger had already drawn the rapier from his waist, and he reached out and touched the blade of the rapier, and a blue light appeared.

He raised an eyebrow after hearing what D said. "I think I'm a normal person, but unfortunately, I have to accompany a friend who insists on entering the ruins to see what kind of monsters are hidden in the ruins. So I don't seem like a normal person either."

D said nothing, but simply held his tightly interwoven twin swords of gold and silver in both hands, the golden light symbolizing judgment filling the swords.

"Bam—!"

D stepped on the half-open brown wooden door, and it groaned and cracked under D's force. The upper half of the door flew up like a kite with a broken string, raising a cloud of dust, while the lower half was vulnerable and shattered into scattered wooden pieces.

The black monster hiding in the shadow behind the door flew out along with the wooden door. It was suddenly exposed to the sunlight coming in from outside the door, and its blood-red eyes were filled with fear and resentment.

The black monster let out a shrill roar and threw the wooden door like a weapon.

D swung his sword arm suddenly, and the sword light was as delicate and swift as thunder, easily cutting the flying wooden door in half.

At the same time, Roger leaped out from behind D like a cheetah, the rapier in his hand and the magical shining sword that had floated up from behind him pierced into Mulip's body, which was like black mud.

The Mulipu's flesh began to crumble under the erosion of magic, as if being gnawed by countless tiny insects and ants. Its groans gradually turned into low, muddy gurgling sounds.

Roger did not give the opponent a chance to breathe. His movements were swift and precise, and every time the sword tip pierced the opponent's vital points accurately.

Mulip's struggles became weak, and he eventually turned into an unrecognizable pool of sticky matter, lying quietly on the cold ground.

But this is far from over.

In the cellar, the single pale candle burning illuminated a desolate scene.

The sewage gathered into a pool, the stench was pungent and nauseating. Suddenly, an unusual ripple appeared on the surface of the water, as if something was about to break through the calm surface.

Suddenly, one after another, Muleeps twisted their muddy bodies, their roars accompanied by the sound of water rushing up the passage leading to the first floor of the wooden house from the cellar.

But a figure wearing gold and silver armor stood between the exit and the seven or eight Mulips. It was D.

He and Roger knew from their previous experience that this monster called "Mulip" liked to hide in the cellar, so when D saw Roger deal with the Mulip on the first floor, he found the passage to the cellar.

Facing this group of hideous Mulips, D turned his wrist and the tips of his tightly bound twin swords pierced the head of the nearest Mulip accurately, the golden light on the swords blooming in the darkness.

The Mulipu's roar suddenly stopped, and the evil aura dissipated instantly.

Then, an illusory and sacred golden law mark began to emerge from D's other hand. The prayer called "Holy Law of Correction" lit up a dazzling golden light in this cellar full of filth and evil.

"Those who defile must die."

D's words of disdain echoed in the narrow cellar passage. When the golden light faded, these Mulips, like their companions on the first floor, turned into an unrecognizable pool of sticky matter.

Then, three magic swords passed behind D and quickly sank into a pool of mud.

The puddle of mud rose and fell a few times, and then fell silent with an unwilling roar.

Without even turning around, D said, "I found this Mulip that escaped by hiding behind its companions. You don't have to worry about me, Roger."

Roger's somewhat innocent voice came from above the cellar: "The Magic Shining Sword is an automatic enemy-seeking spell. It sensed the enemy's presence and moved on its own. I didn't do anything."

Having said that, Roger waved his staff again, and several magical swords reappeared at his shoulders.

Then Roger walked down the damp stone stairs, and with his other hand holding the staff, he gently shook it, and the basic pyroxene magic [Starlight] used for lighting was used. The bright blue light instantly filled the entire dim cellar.

A small ball of azure light floated on Roger's wizard's pointed hat. He frowned after seeing the scene in the cellar clearly.

Inside the cellar, besides a half-meter-deep layer of rotting water, there were also withered, yellowed skeletons floating around. Some belonged to animals like rabbits and deer, while others were clearly human. These skeletons were also severely damaged, and it was unclear when their owners had been killed or how long they had been in the cellar after their death.

D knelt on one knee on the damp and filthy steps, one hand supporting the tightly bound twin swords, the other hand resting on his chest: "May the deceased rest in peace, and find eternal tranquility on the other side of gold."

Roger did not disturb D's prayer. Instead, he took off his wizard's pointed hat and placed it on his heart, silently mourning for the victim for a few words, and then put the hat back on.

Although he wanted to tell his friends that the deceased had no faith in the Golden Tree and that there was no need to mourn them with eulogies based on the Golden Rule, he knew with his high emotional intelligence that saying so would do nothing but make D even angrier.

So while D was still praying for these lost innocent people, Roger, with the light brought by the starlight magic, discovered a treasure piled up in a corner with shallow water, consisting of silver cups, gold coins, gems, pearls and other rare items.

Next to this pile of treasure, there was a pale candle that had been extinguished by the accumulated water.

Well, as expected, these monsters are just as marked on the map. They often hide in cellars illuminated by only one candle, and count their treasures by the pale candlelight.

Roger took out the map from his arms and put a small black dot on the simple sketch of the house that he had marked not long ago, meaning: There is treasure here, remember to come and get it.

Next to the other simple drawings of houses on the map, there are four marks that also have small black dots next to them.

The remaining three did not, because in these ruins, Roger and D did not encounter the evil man-eating monster like Mulip.

However, the two of them found a large number of almost weathered human skeletons in the ruins of the three towns. Judging from the fact that these skeletons were neatly placed in the open square, Roger speculated that they might have been caused by the great plague recorded on the map long ago.

The plague spread to these towns, causing a large number of residents to become ill and die, and they gradually became deserted.

Roger was sometimes curious about why Tanes chose this land as the starting point for rebuilding the golden tree. After all, there were floods and plagues, and it made one feel how miserable the humans who lived on this land a long time ago were.

But even if Roger really asked Tanes, Tanes could only answer: Don’t ask, if you ask, it means I have been appointed.

At this time, D finished praying and looked at Roger, who was marking the map. He said, "Let's explore the rest of the area and then continue on our journey."

Roger put the map away and nodded. "It should be another two days before we reach the Greywater River. Our destination, Longdedale, the Great Port, is just across the Greywater River."

The two men left the gloomy wooden house. Before leaving, Roger sealed the cellar and left a magic mark so that when he came back again, he could bring people to take away the treasures.

D waited until Roger had finished all this before he couldn't help but ask, "You sealed those treasures in the cellar and marked them. I can't remember when you became so greedy, Roger."

Roger looked at D and explained as he asked him to leave: "Of course I haven't become greedy, Dallion. These treasures we found are all left for Tanes."

Roger's words left D even more confused. He followed his lead and asked, "Leave it to Lord Tanes? From what I remember, he wasn't someone who would be captivated by a mere jewel."

D was silent for a moment before adding, "It's just that sometimes he inexplicably collects worthless things, like mushrooms, shards of glass, and Roya fruit. I think if you're just trying to curry favor with him by surviving, why not bring back some flowers and plants? He might be more interested in those."

Roger opened his mouth in surprise and wanted to refute something, but he found that what D said was not much different from Tanes' behavior in his memory, so he could only shut his mouth again.

He explained helplessly, "You misunderstood me, Dallion. Although Tanes's collecting habits can sometimes be described as... eccentric, he is definitely not someone who would be impressed by a few jewels. As for currying favor, that's nonsense. I marked those treasures because I thought that there was no telling when Tanes might need them. Those treasures may not be that important in our eyes, but in the eyes of the people in this world, they may be priceless..."

Two days later, near dusk, Roger and D finally appeared by the Graywater River.

The river winds towards the sea like an angry dragon, with rolling waves, and the river water sparkles with golden light in the afterglow of the setting sun.

On both sides of the river, the reeds swayed in the wind, making rustling sounds.

In the distance, a huge port stood silently on the opposite bank, its outline looking particularly old and decadent in the sunset.

Roger stopped and asked D behind him, "Darian, why don't we rest here for the night and then find a shallower place to cross the river tomorrow?"

D came to Roger's side, took off his helmet, and looked at the surging Gray River.

The sun gradually sank toward the horizon, and the sunset began to paint a brilliant picture across the sky. Under this evening sunlight, the river roared all the way south, eventually merging into the boundless blue ocean in the distance.

Wherever D looked, he couldn't find a suitable place to cross the river.

"You're right, Roger. It looks like we won't be able to cross the river before dark, so let's just rest here for the night." D nodded in agreement.

Roger smiled and pointed to a raised mound about ten meters ahead. He said, "Let's rest there. It can also block some of the cool night wind for us."

As dusk deepened, the last rays of sunlight sprinkled on the river like golden light and gradually disappeared into the distance.

The sky turned from orange to dark, dotted with stars, and the moon slowly rose, casting a hazy silver light, like fine pieces of glass scattered on the quiet water.

Because D was wearing armor, Roger, who moved relatively easily, helped pick up dry grass, branches and a few stones. He used the stones to form a small circle, piled the dry grass and branches in it, and then took out some kerosene from his arms, spread it on the circle, and ignited it.

But D was not idle either. While Roger was preparing the bonfire, he was preparing the ingredients for dinner.

However, just as D took out a piece of cured bacon from the backpack they shared, he saw Roger suddenly stomp out the campfire he had just lit.

Although D had not been polite to Roger along the way, he knew very well that his old friend would not do anything meaningless.

Therefore, D did not ask Roger what happened, but directly reached out and touched the tightly connected twin swords behind him.

Roger grabbed a handful of dirt from the ground to cover the smoking fire, then made a "hush" gesture to D and gestured for him to look at the abandoned port of Longdedale across the Graywater River.

D looked over and his eyes fixed.

Because in the Takidare Harbor, which was supposed to be abandoned, there were actually some lights of torches.

The light from the torches also shone on the owners who held them, exposing their dirty bodies and hideous features to Roger and D's eyes.

Roger whispered:
"Oak."

(End of this chapter)