The first room was relatively easy. And it was so because there was no treasure inside of it. If Jacob’s memory still worked, people would start finding something from the 6th room onward.
“Be careful,” he said to the last two people crossing the room at the end of their line. A smaller corridor separated every room. It was meant to give a little respite to whoever would challenge this nasty Dungeon.
There were multiple corpses on the ground of the first floor, showing that those murderers were not that smart. It made Jacob more comfortable with the fight in front of them.
He knew he could barely rely on Juliet and Frederick since they were both children. And all the others were as grees as they come. He was the only one with real battle experience, and he hoped he could put his hands on the sword before they came to blow.
How would that be possible, some would ask.
Well, the first secret room, the one with the sword, was inside the 5th room. There was a hidden mechanism that opened it and let in people challenging the traps of this temple.
The halberd was located in the secret room of the 7th room, instead. But Jacob was a swordsman, not an… halberdman? Halberdier, maybe?
Anyway, he re-focused on the task at hand and led people toward the second room.
“This one is tricker in a way, but also easier. The mechanisms resemble some old videogames; you just have to time your steps and avoid getting skewered.”
The people around gave him a deadpan look.
Boy, I really needed to work on my motivational speeches.
The second room was filled with giant axes swinging fast from the ceiling. Jacob could instantly tell where the best path was located. Unfortunately, the axes had not been placed optimally, and even though few blind spots existed, there were multiple places where the swings were not well synchronized.
This is going to be easy.
He turned toward the others and saw very pale faces.
Or is it?
Blood littered the ground together with limbs and bodies. A few of his men started retching, but their stomach was still empty after the massacre they had met at the temple entrance.
The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
He exhaled slowly and gave them a minute to catch their breaths.
All these traps might actually do my job, he thought. Those murderers could be killed before they reach any actual treasure in the 4th room.
He didn’t remember what was in the 4th room, but it was not anything of great value if he had to guess, probably just a few trinkets. Maybe a pill or two.
“Ok, listen to me. There are only twelve of you, so we are going to do it my way. I’m going to walk any of you while literally holding your hands simply. All you have to do is stop when I stop and walk when I walk. Do not pull, do not panic. If you do, you might kill both you and me. Objections?”
Geneva came up to him first, even before Juliet could move a finger.
“Let’s go,” she said.
Jacob saw some darkness in her eyes. The woman had enjoyed tearing apart the Demonic Wolves, but she had had a dark visage after seeing all those bodies before. If Jacob could guess, her mind was probably set on killing those bastards as much as he was.
“Remember: walk when I walk, stop when I stop. It’s not hard, okay? You might even close your eyes if it gets too bad for you. I’ll give plenty of time between swings, but a couple of junctures might need us to be fast.”
Jacob looked over the others.
“And you all, watch closely.”
He took the first step, and Geneva followed in tow.
Jacob chose to remain silent while walking and stopping. He might not have an ounce of talent in his body, but his mind was as sharp as it had been in his past life.
Everyone watched enraptured, astonished at Jacob’s calm and decisiveness. He looked like he was taking a stroll through a park.
He even started whistling a bit toward the end. It took barely a minute to reach the other side of the room, and not even once the massive blades had been close to him.
After bringing Geneva to the corridor, he realized he had actually made a mistake.
If these murderous idiots had a brain, they would have put a rear-guard around this very point. That’s what I would have done, anyway. A mistake like this with smarter monsters would have cost our very life.
He had thought of going back hopping on one foot, but the mistake soured his mood. He should have brought a stronger person first, Frederick or Juliet. Someone who could handle themselves. Geneva had impressive fighting capabilities, but her Qi cultivation was not that strong. Jacob was pretty sure that the majority, if not everyone, would find it impossible to harm Juliet’s body on their enemy side physically.
After going back, he grabbed the girl with a smile.
She clearly felt that something he had done soured his own mood through the Ancestral Bond, but she still didn’t say anything. Instead, he was focused on the traps.
After ten minutes, only Frederick remained on the other side.
He himself had left him last as sort of a rear guard. If the enemies had been smart enough, this place would have made an excellent ambush point. But, instead, he had fought against a great strategist that made his life miserable and killed some of his friends. In time, he became what they called a Great Strategist himself.
“Well, Jake, I hope you did not leave me as last just to kill me off,” the guy joked.
“I wish,” Jacob smiled in response and got ready to cross that room the last time.