Dark Wizard: Rise! My undead army!

After returning to the hotel, they ate dinner first.

The meal was a simple meal provided by the hotel: a serving of dark bread, a bowl of stew, and a glass of watered-down ale for each person.

The dark bread was baked a day in advance. It had a hard crust, and small crumbs would fall out when you broke it open. It needed to be soaked in stew broth to soften it before you could chew it.

The stew was made with potatoes and carrots, with a small amount of minced meat added. A few green beans were at the bottom of the bowl, and a thin layer of oil floated on the surface.

The beer is served in a ceramic cup. It has a slightly sour taste, not a noticeable bitterness, and a very faint malty aroma.

This meal, though not extravagant, was a rare treat compared to the starving masses.

The three people sat at a table by the window, each eating their own portion, and no one spoke.

Copperbeard finished the last drop of wine, swallowed it, laid the glass flat, wiped the inside of the glass with his finger, and then put the last few drops into his mouth.

Carl used the last piece of bread to scrape the bottom of the bowl clean, stuffed the bread into his mouth, chewed it a few times, and swallowed it.

Mia ate the slowest; she mashed the potato chunks in the stew with the back of a spoon and drank them along with the broth.

After finishing their meal, they returned to Mia's room and locked the door from the inside.

The room contained only a table, two chairs, and an oil lamp, and was filled with the fragrance of herbs and trees.

It was Mia's scent.

Carl took a deep, blissful breath.

That's it!

Mia glared at him, ignoring his lecherous look.

A faint light from the corridor shone through the crack in the door, illuminating the oil lamp on the table and the spread-out map.

Mia first reiterated the mission details.

"Exploring the Demon Gate has no level requirements, but you need to confirm its internal structure and return safely. The reward of contribution points is enough for us to advance to Silver level."

She flattened the parchment, pressing her fingertips against the edge, on which was the location of the demon's gate that needed to be explored.

Carl leaned back in his chair and asked:

"No level requirement? Are they sending us in as cannon fodder to scout ahead? How many people who go in through that door ever come out?"

Mia didn't answer directly, but simply said:

"According to my intelligence, seven teams have entered other demon gates in the past month, and four of them have returned."

"And those four teams not only returned, but also brought back many valuable spoils of war."

Karl asked curiously, "Since so many teams have returned and benefited, shouldn't everyone be willing to explore? Why is it our turn?"

Mia shook her head.

"You know how many lives the Demon Gate has devoured over the years."

"But every now and then, news breaks of lucky individuals who have received tremendous benefits and returned safely, and everyone has become immune to this kind of news."

Karl nodded knowingly and asked Bronzebeard for his opinion.

Copperbeard was silent for a moment, then said, "If we go in, we might not come back. If we don't go in, we might still be cleaning sewers in six months."

His voice was lower than usual, and it lacked any emotion.

Having said that, he shook the wine jug in his hand, which was already empty.

Karl slammed his hand on the table: "I hear bards singing in the taverns every day. Some people go through that kind of door and come out with completely different strength."

"The three of us are lucky and capable enough to make a safe return. Let's do it!"

Mia and Bronzebeard nodded, agreeing to the adventure.

...

The next morning, the sky was still gray, and the shops on the street had not yet opened.

Mia and her companions pushed open the guild's doors. Inside the hall, there were only two mercenaries dozing against the wall and a registrar flipping through the register.

Mia walked to the counter, took the parchment she had folded the night before out of her pocket, and placed it on the counter.

The registrar looked down, deciphered the words on the paper, glanced at the three of them, and asked, "Explore the Demon Gate? Are you sure?"

Mia said, "I'm sure."

The registrar opened the register, found the corresponding task page, filled in "accepted" in the status bar, and also wrote the team name and the time of acceptance.

One of the two mercenaries leaning against the wall opened his eyes and glanced in the direction of the counter.

Seeing the iron-gray badges on the three people, he couldn't help but chuckle and then closed his eyes again.

It was just a few more reckless fools who didn't know their own limitations.

Mia took the mission token and put it in her pocket.

As they walked out of the guild gate, the streets began to fill with people, who walked along the street leading to the city gate.

The city gate was already open, and the guards were lifting the crossbar off the bolt. The crossbar hit the stone slab as it was lowered, making a dull thud.

The three checked their equipment and medicines before leaving the city gate.

Since they had no money for a carriage or to buy a horse, they had to walk.

After traveling along the official road for three days, we arrived at the location marked on the map on the afternoon of the fourth day.

The stone archway stood on the gray-white gravel ground, and inside the door frame was a constantly flowing gray-white light curtain.

The grayish-white light curtain rippled a few times behind the three of them before stabilizing again.

The three encouraged each other, and then Bronzebeard, the shield-bearer, passed through the light barrier first, followed by his body.

After Tongxu stopped, he didn't rush forward. He first scanned the surrounding terrain to check for any dangers.

Above my head was a uniform layer of grayish-white light, with no outline of sky or shape of clouds.

There is a slight resistance in the air, and you can feel that the airflow is heavier than outside when you breathe.

Copperbeard was relieved and waited for the two people behind him to come over.

Karl was the second to pass through the light curtain. When he landed, his knees bent slightly to cushion the impact and stabilize his body.

He straightened up and turned to look at the edge of the light curtain, confirming that the entrance was still stable and showed no signs of closing.

Mia followed closely behind. She took a breath and then exhaled.

"The elemental concentration here is much higher than outside; even breathing feels like breathing energy."

Bronzebeard raised his shield to his chest and adjusted the angle of his grip.

He said, "Having too much energy isn't a good thing for us. If we encounter extraordinary magical beasts, the power of our spells will be much greater."

"I just observed something moving in the fog in the distance. I saw the outline just now, but it's not a rock."

Karl was startled by what he heard and drew his sword from its sheath. The blade appeared darker than usual in the grayish-white light.

"Form up the formation. I'll go in front, Bronzebeard will protect the flanks, Mia will provide support from the rear. Don't get separated, don't run away, retreat before advancing if you encounter anything. Move out!"

Karl walked at the front, sword tip pointing downwards, making sure each step was firmly planted before lifting his foot.

Bronzebeard followed half a step to his left, shield facing forward to the left, hammer handle in his right hand, hammer head down.

Mia walked behind them, a few steps away. She had already taken out her bow and nocked an arrow, but the string was not fully drawn, keeping it in a half-open state, ready to be released at any time.