Marshmallow and the Goat Horse stood before the immense archway of black obsidian, a portal so smooth and dark it seemed to emerge from cosmic depths. The edges of the monumental arch were covered with ancient hieroglyphs, engraved into the obsidian plates with extreme precision.
"Here we are..." Marshmallow's voice resonated calmly as he reached out to touch the polished inscriptions. "This is the Ultima Gate that Balor spoke of."
"I-I have a bad feeling about this place," the Goat Horse muttered with an uncertain voice. "That hooded woman said that no one has ever returned from these depths..."
A smirk of defiance spread across Marshmallow's face. "That's exactly why I must proceed. If even Raven failed to go all the way, then I will be the first to succeed."
Marshmallow stepped through the archway without further hesitation, with the Goat Horse following behind. As soon as they crossed the threshold, a blanket of almost solid darkness seemed to engulf them, so thick it appeared to have material consistency.
King Balor The Immortal defeated!
+ 25000 XP
Congratulations! You've just leveled up! You have +3 Assignable Points!
Congratulations! You've just leveled up! You have +3 Assignable Points!
Marshmallow had defeated Balor and received his rightful reward. However, he had to remain focused on the challenge ahead. An eerie and suffocating silence weighed on this unknown territory. Even the scorching heat of Vesuvietna seemed to have dulled into a cold, unnatural stench. The gloom was so complete that only a few flickering flames were visible in the distance, casting intermittent and shifting glows like spectral shadows.
Marshmallow inhaled a slow breath of that dense air as he watched the pulsing flames around them indifferently. "Remember when you thought Vesuvietna was the pinnacle of heat and darkness?"
The Goat Horse shuddered, its breathing growing more uneven as its eyes fell back on the dark, spectral vault. "M-Marshmallow... I-I really don't like this place..."
But Marshmallow was already striding boldly into the thick darkness with sure steps. Finally, a true adventure began, a daring challenge where only the strongest and most determined would survive.
The Goat Horse cast one last worried glance at the obsidian arch, then swallowed dryly and hurried to catch up with his daring companion before the darkness completely swallowed him.
As they took just a few steps beyond the Ultima Gate, a chilling sensation of death permeated the air, signaling the approach of a terrible presence. Marshmallow took a slow breath as a scene of slow devastation took shape all around.
They found themselves in a sort of underground crypt, with large arches of black and sizzling stone stretching upwards. Heaps of rubble and ancient debris cluttered the path as if they were in the remains of a city now buried. But the most unsettling elements were the dozens of abandoned corpses scattered all around. Some lay crumpled on the ground with distorted features and grimaces of agony, while others were abandoned in rigid poses against the cracked walls.
"What... the... devil...?" The Goat Horse froze, its nostrils trembling as it inhaled the aura of inhuman death.
Marshmallow approached one of the bodies, just as he noticed the corroded symbol still visible on the shattered shield: Crossed swords and a proud crown.
"Oh oh... it looks like we've stumbled upon Novgovian remnants," he murmured with a smirk of appreciation. He lifted one of the dented helmets to examine it more closely. "These were definitely skilled fighters."
"What?" the Goat Horse stammered with a trembling voice as its eyes wandered around the petrified shapes. "Does that mean they reached the Ultima Gate just like us? That they defeated Balor? How the hell did they manage that…"
"Indeed," replied Marshmallow, throwing the helmet to the ground with a metallic thud as his eyes roamed among the petrified figures. "It's no surprise, there were dozens of them. And there was surely some A Rank among them. But there's something strange, very strange. These defeated Balor. How is it possible that they all died like this?"
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Suddenly, an unexpected creak caught the Goat Horse's attention. One of the corpses semi-hidden among the rubble had moved imperceptibly, almost as if…
"Marshmallow? I think these aren't as dead as they seem…"
Before Marshmallow could respond, the debris began to quiver from every side as dozens of figures started to contort on the ground in unnatural movements. Slowly, almost laboriously, those putrid forms rose shakily, revealing faces of rotting flesh and eyes wide open in an expression of frozen pain.
At that precise moment, the first creatures began to advance, their gnarled jaws open in inhuman gasps, moving in unnatural jerks towards Marshmallow and the Goat Horse. Other figures joined gradually, some dragging themselves on hands and knees, others staggering as if just awakened from a millennia-old nightmare. They emitted cacophonous sounds, reminiscent of the sound of death.
With an explosive dart, Marshmallow lunged forward while wielding his Titan Hammer with a lethal swipe. The first undead was inexorably cleaved in half, but before its remnants could hit the ground again, another five creatures were already at Marshmallow's heels.
"Light!" Marshmallow roared, attempting to create an explosion of light to reduce all the zombies to ashes. But the light, though intense, failed to overcome the surrounding darkness, which soon completely swallowed it.
"What the hell...?" Marshmallow growled. "That should have dissolved them all!"
"Light doesn't work, Marshmallow!" the Goat Horse shouted. "We need to try a different strategy!"
With a quick maneuver, Marshmallow vigorously swung his Titan Hammer to find a new combat stance. "Let's see if they like this!"
With a roar full of determination, Marshmallow gripped the Titan Hammer firmly, spinning it above his head in swirling circles. The huge metal head left a trail of incandescent sparks as it increased in speed, hissing like a fiery bullet.
"Die!" Marshmallow yelled as he surged forward with his Titan Hammer.
The weapon transformed into an incarnation of devastation, a smoking vortex that smashed into the first line of the undead with unstoppable fury. The nearest zombie was swept away brutally, and its rotting body exploded into a cloud of blood and bone fragments as Marshmallow's attack passed. Shreds of decayed flesh and pieces of organs were hurled in every direction, as the vortex relentlessly moved on to the second, third, fourth undead.
The Goat Horse watched with wide eyes as Marshmallow mowed down the undead like wheat. His hammer spun in ever-widening circles, creating a vortex of destruction around him. Every approaching zombie was swept away with disarming ease, their limbs flying in all directions as their bodies were reduced to mush.
Yet despite his impressive show of strength, Marshmallow felt a sense of dissatisfaction. Each enemy he felled, every strike he dealt, awarded him no EXP. It was like fighting against phantoms, against creatures that didn't really exist.
"Why aren't they giving me EXP?" he growled to himself, as he crushed the head of another zombie. "They should be strong enough to give me at least some points..."
The Goat Horse, hearing his question, replied with a trembling voice. "Maybe... maybe there's something wrong with them, Marshmallow. Maybe they're not even real undead..."
Marshmallow looked at him with an expression of doubt. "Then what the hell are they?"
The Goat Horse shook its head, unable to provide an answer. The two continued to fight, with Marshmallow mowing down the undead one after another, and the Goat Horse pushing and flinging them at Marshmallow so he could better disintegrate them.
The battle continued for what seemed like an eternity, with Marshmallow carving a path through the zombie horde with his Titan Hammer. But no matter how many creatures he killed, no matter how many blows he delivered, he received no EXP.
Finally, the last zombie fell to the ground, its body reduced to a heap of shapeless flesh. Marshmallow stopped, his breath heavy as he looked over the battlefield with an expression of disappointment.
"It makes no sense..." he murmured, gripping the handle of his hammer. "There must be a reason why they didn't give me EXP..."
"M-Marshmallow... I think we have another problem..." The uncertain voice of the Goat Horse caught his attention. The animal was frozen in place, its eyes wide and legs trembling imperceptibly as it stared at something beyond Marshmallow's shoulder.
With a rough huff of impatience, Marshmallow turned in the direction indicated by the Goat Horse. At that moment, a look of astonishment spread across his face.
Marshmallow stopped, his heart pounding in his chest as he observed the two figures in front of him. They were human, or at least they had been once. But now, for some reason, they had transformed into monstrous creatures, three meters tall, with worn and rusty armor.
The rust had eaten away at their armor in places, revealing the putrefying flesh beneath. Their helmets were now dull and cracked, with fissures that revealed burning red eyes inside.
Marshmallow knew these beings were no longer human. They had been corrupted by something, transformed into monsters by the dark forces lurking in this place. The two beings did not move, but their red eyes glowed in the darkness, staring at Marshmallow with an intensity that made his skin crawl. Marshmallow knew they were enemies, and that he would have to confront them. But there was something strange about them, something that made him hesitate.
"What are you?" Marshmallow asked, trying to keep calm. "What happened to you?"
But the two beings did not respond. Instead, they just stared at him with their red eyes, as if trying to read his soul. Marshmallow knew there was no hope of reasoning with them. They were corrupted beings, devoid of reason and any form of humanity.
Marshmallow gripped his Titan Hammer tightly, angrier than ever. But before he could make any move, the two beings moved in unison, lifting their rusted swords and preparing to attack. With a roar, he lunged forward, spinning his Titan Hammer above his head.
CLANG!