When half the team members that could still fight got into the space behind the inner wall, the mages floated behind the inner walls and started shooting their magical attacks at the moving trees, the swamp lotus flowers and the tall slim two headed and three-headed humanoid monsters crawling out from the mausoleum to cover for their teammates that were behind.

“We’re in! Seal the breach!” Carol Summers floated above the wall and ordered.

“We still have people out there!” One of the warriors said, pointing at some straggling warriors and mages that were trying to get to the breach.

“They’re gone now. There’s no point.” Soren Lupei shook his head: “Seal it!”

“Seal! Seal!” three mages chanted at the same time, and threw small pieces of clay up in the air, which grew to much bigger sizes and patched up the breach from within. Within just a few seconds, the clay hardened and became darker in color. What was more, was that it detected the broken defensive spell that was placed upon the wall, and the energy contained inside started mimicking the energy signatures of the spell.

“Let’s do a head count and go in.” Carol Summers conjured up a 3D holographic map with her hand into the space above and in front of most of the team members: “You can be at ease, if the information I have is correct, the hardest part of the invasion is over now.”

“We lost eight.” Melkan, Soren Lupei’s trusted lieutenant, reported to Soren Lupei and Carol Summers with a solemn voice.

“We lost seven.” Carol Summers’ maid, now in a suit of slick blue and black leather armor and carrying two swords, one straight and double-edged while the other was curved and had a spike on its back and single-edged.

“When we get back, make sure their families are well taken care of.” Carol Summers sighed: “Now let’s proceed.”

According to the intelligence acquired, the teams of Carol Summers and Soren Lupei will head to a courtyard at the back of the main castle building next, and in which they could find the ruins of a bunker, and under which they could find a tunnel to an underground armory. According to the one who sold her this intelligence, this was the tunnel through which some of the remaining members of the Hellinger family tried to escape, but they were struck down by a team that was out there waiting for them.

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The inner ward of the castle was intentionally isolated from the outer areas, and after the clay was set and merged well into the walls, the tall, slim humanoid monsters and the other moving trees could only wail and bark behind the walls and were not able to get in.

The entrance of the tunnel was but a pretty narrow metal door, not at all hidden probably because the last ones who used it were killed the moment they got out and had no time to hide the exit, the width of which would roughly let two adult humans through shoulder to shoulder. The tunnel itself seemed mostly intact even through the battle, and there were still magical lights that still gave off very dim light.

Carol Summers conjured up her six spinning orbs, and after the beams from the robs formed a complicated pattern in the air, a single condensed ball of light was projected down the tunnel, serving both as a source of light and a scout to detect what was ahead of them.

“Boom!” A faint shock emerged somewhere from the center of the castle, and a stream of black smoke rose from the heavily damaged top parts as if some powerful furnace was just kick started.

“Your intelligence didn’t mention something like that.” Soren Lupei frowned as he looked at the dark smoke: “Sounded like a beast of tremendous size.”

“Well, it was information from that many decades ago, can’t count on it being right about everything.” Carol Summers sighed, then she looked at the entrance of the tunnel and said to everyone: “ I will head first. I need a volunteer to go with me.”

“Ms. Summers, it will be an honor to go with you.” Carol Summers’ maid immediately said.

“Good. Let’s go.” Carol Summers went into the tunnel with her maid. Then Soren Lupei followed them with his lieutenant Melkan, then the rest of the two teams went in in twos.

The tunnel was steep and winding, but luckily for Carol Summers, Soren Lupei and their teams, the tunnel was not occupied by anything dangerous, only some tiny snakes and insects, which they quickly disposed of.

Carol Summers took back the ball of light when they were close to the exit of the tunnel to avoid their presence being noticed by whatever awaited them on the other side. And just when they were about to get out, they heard some low but rhythmic noises from the exit.

“Halt!” Carol Summers raised her hand and delivered an order to the rest of the team.

“Sounds like animals sleeping.” Carol Summers’ maid said: “Let me take a look.”

“Go, be careful.”

Carol Summer’s maid slowly crouched forward, and when she reached the edge of the exit, she saw some dim magical light coming from the other side of the underground armory, clearly someone else was in this grand underground armory.

There were also a number of beasts of formidable sizes laying around in different places. Carol Summers’ maid could tell that they were giant and slim wolf like creatures with huge wings on their backs, and each had a long tail with hard fur and a pointy hardened tip.