Chapter 210 Moving Deeper (1/2)

The mercenaries quickly acknowledged Rhode's command and coated the flaming agent onto their weapons. Then, they made a flicking motion which ignited the agent, lighting their weapons ablaze. Soon enough, a series of flames brightened the dim tunnel.

Rhode made a subtle gesture and the group of mercenaries quickly gathered in a circle with him in the center. Marlene readied her wand and narrowed her eyes with a solemn expression. It seemed like after the training, their standards had indeed improved by leaps and bounds, but…

”Don't just blindly look to the front, don't forget to look above you as well.”

Rhode's indifferent voice echoed in the tunnel. The mercenaries felt his mocking tone and raised the torch above their heads.

Perhaps it was due to their pride or whatever other reasons, the mercenaries didn't immediately scream when they saw the horrors that lingered on the ceiling. Marlene and Lize couldn't help but cup their mouths to stifle their scream.

”Wha-what are those things!”

”Wahhh!”

Even the experienced mercenaries were shocked, and some of them stumbled backward.

”These eggs have been dormant for quite some time.”

Celia's first sentence made everyone slightly relieved. However, her following sentence caused them to freeze in terror.

”But they've been fertilized about four to five days ago.”

Four to five days…!

The mercenaries looked at each other after hearing the news. Once again, they lifted up their heads to count how many eggs were there, but after a minute, they began to despair. There were just too many of them.

Meanwhile, it was obvious that Celia didn't care about the mental state of the mercenaries.

She turned towards Rhode and said, ”These are Blogg eggs, master.”

”Blogg?”

Marlene repeated the word in shock and turned towards Rhode.

”Aren't Bloggs the devils that resided in the Nine Layers of Hell? How did it appear here?”

”The devils can sometimes breach the boundary. It isn't rare for it to happen.”

Celia explained to Marlene calmly while slowly unsheathing her sword. Then a silver flame suddenly emerged from the blade, blinding the mercenaries momentarily and flooding the entire tunnel with a brilliant light.

”Judging by the condition of these eggs, the devil must have been sealed for many years, only to be awakened recently. Master, I think…”

”Celia, that's enough. Analyzing the situation isn't your job.”

Rhode waved his hand to interrupt Celia who respectfully lowered the sword in her hand and folded her wings obediently. The newer mercenaries were bewildered as most of them never interacted with an angel before. When they first saw Celia, they panicked slightly, not knowing what to do. Furthermore, they weren't exactly on best terms with angels. Although the senior mercenaries had preempted them about Rhode's association with the Celia, the newbies didn't seem to believe them. Instead, they speculated that both of them must be in some sort of companion relationship rather than a master-slave contract. But it was clear as day now; Celia's docile behavior was unlike the haughty battle angel they had expected her to be.

”Si-sir.”

Kavos swallowed his saliva and tiptoed to Rhode's side. Although he didn't catch on fully what Celia had said to Rhode, he was absolutely certain that he heard the word 'devil.' To ordinary humans, this word was a taboo.

”Ar-Are we gonna fight a devil?”

”Maybe.”

Rhode replied as he turned his head and stared deeper into the tunnel.

His expression was calm, albeit too calm for comfort. If it weren't for the interactions with him a few days back, Kavos would have concluded that his leader was an expressionless man. He even suspected that this leader of his knew what was going to happen.

”Why do you ask? Are you afraid?”

”Mercenaries only desire for money; even if we have to wade through the depths of hell, we will still go for it!”

Kavos focused his thoughts and regained his composure once he realized that the rest of the mercenaries didn't have any reaction to Rhode's question. After all, the senior mercenaries in Starlight had already experienced the terrifying Wind Serpents, dauntless undead, and other frightening creatures. Compared to that, a devil that had been slumbering for centuries was just a piece of cake. Kavos' band of newcomers were obviously shaken, so he had to cough to conceal his awkwardness and surprise.

”I was just but a little surprised, sir.”

”Good,” Rhode said. Then he turned away and extended his right hand outwards before swinging it towards the ground.

Scorching flames erupted from nowhere which soon formed a silhouette of a huge, black hound. Just before this mission, Rhode used another Gargoyle's Heart on the hound, causing it to level up once more. In the past, the hound was just a large dog, but now, it finally lived up to its name as the Flame Killer. It was at least a meter in height, with fiery wisps emanating from its jaws each time it breathed, and it had a string of embers as its mane, spanning from the top of its head all the way to the end of its tail. The black hound had transformed entirely into a monstrous figure.

Alas, despite its fearsome appearance, its defense was still just as abysmal as before.

Rhode's eyelid twitched when he saw the size of this hound. Based on the mass of its humongous body, its self-detonation ability should rival a medium-sized missile by now. If he had a better choice, he would never summon it in a narrow tunnel. It was akin to placing a walking time bomb by his side.

Rhode snapped his fingers and the black hound immediately shook its body vigorously. At the same time, a circle of flames erupted and enveloped everyone in it. Other than the well-prepared Rhode, and Anne, Marlene and Lize who had a defensive shield up, the rest of the mercenaries felt a singe on their skin. Instinctively, the attempted to avoid the flames, but they quickly realized that they were in a different world.