"C-Captain, isn't that unfair for just being a few minutes late?"
I tried asking with a smile but only earned a frown from him.
"Make that 20%."
He corrected himself.
Noticing that he wasn't soone to be reasoned with, I just laughed it off as we lined up amongst the other rcenaries. Lucky for him, we're not in need of money; otherwise, I wouldn't have let him off.
The white-haired captain gave a short speech before briefing us about our mission. Well, rather than a motivational speech, his words were more like an attempt to kill our hearts instead. Just listening to his talk made so of the rcenaries wear dark expressions.
Our job this ti was to be the cleanup team for the previous battle. It was as simple as going around and taking the essence crystals from the defeated demons. Since only undead-type demons vanish without a trace after subjugation, it's usually a bother to gather essence crystals. Although so demons drop items from ti to ti, it's only for those above the 6th level.
The battlefield we were going to was where a ton of 5th-level demons died. The attack squad had already confird that no demons were left and that it was safe to start retrieval.
The regular mbers of the battalion quickly boarded their large tad beasts, like a giant mammoth or a phoenix, and quickly headed for the place of work. The rcenaries, similarly, rode on their own large tad beasts and followed the others. Only we, the Masked Brigade, were running on foot as we followed from behind, being the slowest and technically the weakest of them all.
It took us about an hour just to catch up with the group ahead. And with that much ti lag, we ended up having nothing to do upon reaching the spot. Every essence crystal was already gathered; nothing was left for us to pick.
"Oh, look, here cos the slowpoke!"
One mber of a rcenary group from before shouted. The others laughed and pointed fingers at us. Even the white-haired old captain shook his head before muttering, "You won't be getting a share this ti."
Well, it was partly our fault for being slow. I simply shrugged my shoulders and was about to celebrate having nothing to do on our first job.
"...?"
However, sothing caught my eye.
Under the ground, a large mass of energy was swarming as it made its way upward. It was extrely disgusting; the squirming energy looked like worms rolling around themselves. However, this pattern looked extrely familiar, and I almost instantly rembered why. We saw this type of demon not too long ago.
"Everyone! A swarm of demon ground worms is coming! Retreat!"
I shouted as I ran with the other three. Based on the size of the swarm, there should be thousands of them. With the fixed gun, though, I could easily eliminate such a swarm. However, using such a unique weapon would imdiately reveal our disguise. In short, I can't show my most powerful card here.
"You just ca here and you're running away already? La!"I think you should take a look at
The sa guy from before added once more; however, I had no ti to play along with his badgering. The space below him was the first location where the demon ground worms burst through. Surprised by the sudden appearance, he couldn't react in ti and got his head swallowed in a single gulp.
Save him? Why should I? I already warned them of the incoming threat; it's their fault for not believing.
Soon, the whole battalion was surrounded by the demon ground worms. Of course, that included us too, who weren't able to outrun them. So of the rcenaries with flying beasts tried to escape through the air but were dragged down before they could even soar.
A massacre quickly started, with us being the ones getting massacred. In less than a minute, almost half of the 24 tars were eaten. Desperate shouts and screams of despair echoed all over.
For the rcenaries, only three groups out of the previous eight, including us, managed to last long enough. One group is made up of five female tars with female tad monsters. They were fighting back in a stable manner, not letting a single strike hit them. I think their having 5th-level power was the bigger reason why they managed to last this long.
The other rcenary team was composed of about a dozen male tars. They were basically using brute force to create a path to leave the encirclent. They were powerful at the 5th level too, but they lacked the brains to think about their stamina usage.
For us, we used the sa strategy as last ti. With ember blocking the other three directions, we forced the worms to only pass through one entrance. With Ember's improved skills, there's no fear of getting the barricade destroyed anyti soon.
The ones who entered were quickly handled by Igni. With a swipe of her claws, the hard, rocky skin of the demon ground worms quickly cracked. A few more hits, and they would get sliced into two.
"Ugh, I wish it was undead instead. These blood splashes are so icky~,"
Fang muttered in her created persona.
Of course, we didn't forget to do our roleplay. No matter the situation, we should ensure that we protect our real identity from others. As I have the Administrator Privilege of the Taming System, I can lock the information of the three girls, making it so that they can't be appraised.
Furthermore, with the addition of Igni, we aren't a group of one tar and two tad beasts but instead a group of four. Unless the trackers from the Luo had thods to trace us without relying on tracks, then we should be able to stay here for quite a while.
A few minutes later, when only four remained from the battalion, the backup finally arrived. The attack squad made quick work of the remaining demon ground worms and saved us from danger.
In the end, the white-haired captain survived, although he lost an arm. He had a look of despair, which honestly made pity him a little. Only a little, I say.
"Hey, nice fight."
One of the rcenary groups that survived called . When I turned around, the woman who seed to be their leader extended her hands toward .
"I'm Yulia, the leader of the Lily Knights. May we know which family you're from?"
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