Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 1131 - 244 Mud House

Chapter 1131: Chapter 244 Mud House

"The defensive strength of this camp has been reinforced," Catherine said as she looked around the dilapidated camp, "It seems they have learned from the lesson of the previous night and deliberately strengthened their defenses."

Indeed, the last campsite they saw could hardly be called a campsite; it was more like the remnants of a ring of trenches, and the ground inside was just a patch of ordinary lawn to most eyes, at most with a few tiny holes hard to detect with the naked eye, which were the only traces left by the tent stakes. Only survival experts and trackers like Pannis or Flare could keenly detect such traces and infer the exact position, orientation, and size of the corresponding tents. But the second campsite was different; the ease with which the Undead had breached it the previous night had made the expedition team of that year more vigilant, and so more time and effort had been spent on the construction of the camp.

The outermost part of the camp was still a trench several meters deep, but on the inside of the trench, instead of just traps, there was now a thick earth wall one meter high, presumably made from the soil excavated for the trench. Although the wall was now overgrown with weeds, the remnants still showed where numerous lighting and defensive devices had been installed to prevent the enemy from entering the camp undetected like last night. The interior of the earthen wall was not neglected either; as Pannis walked around, he discovered the traces of at least six different types of traps. Although forty years had worn them down to the point where they were hardly distinguishable, under Pannis’s serious inspection, they still stood out like lights in the dark night.

"There are definitely more than these six," Pannis said, stroking his chin, "Judging by the distribution density of the traps, I estimate that there could be at least twenty or more traps within this defensive wall. They want to turn their base into a battlefield and don’t seem to worry about their night patrol accidentally stepping on one. If that actually happened, well, adventurers dying to their own traps wouldn’t be the first nor the last, but I’d bet they’d be the ones with the highest status and strength."

Unconsciously, Pannis’s words were filled with a strong sense of ridicule, as if acknowledging that the attackers from the past were controlled by Nellie from afar solidified his stance on the attackers’ side, subconsciously positioning him against the previous expedition team. Of course, though he wasn’t aware of it, everyone else, including Dillie, could see this very clearly. No protests were made, nor were reminders given, for in the eyes of the young girls, Pannis at that moment resembled a sulking child, adamantly spurning all beings that stood as enemies to his beloved partner. This was the first time the girls had seen Pannis display such a childish side, which seemed endearing compared to his usual mature and reliable demeanor—except, of course, when he provoked fights intentionally. Perhaps it was only regarding matters related to Nellie that he would show this side of himself.

"Thank goodness, she’s only part of the past now." Although she had condemned herself countless times in her mind and restrained herself just as often, the knight girl couldn’t help feeling relieved, "We are not like that foolish queen, who fancied defeating an enemy that belongs only to the past. We don’t need to defeat the past because enemies of the past do not need to be defeated. We just need to seize the present and the future that don’t belong to you, yes, as long as there’s still a future. Ah, Lady Nellie, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t think like this, you are still my role model. But, but, but just on this matter alone, we will not yield."

"With just these traps, do they think they can stop our joint breakthrough? They’re underestimating our combat awareness," said Pannis, who naturally couldn’t guess the unspoken thoughts of the young girls. He had subconsciously immersed himself in the role of that small skeleton, retreating into his inner world where he once again lived through those days when he fought side by side with his beloved knight, days free of guilt, self-reproach, sacrifice, and death—the happiest days of his life that he could never regain. Perhaps it was because, amidst a century of self-reproach and suffering, his heart still unconsciously longed for the joy of the past, and this contradictory sentiment led him to construct in his own realm a Phantom that belonged only to the past, forever out of reach for his present self.

As if she could feel the deep pain and joy in Pannis’s heart, the knight girl couldn’t help turning her head away, her eyes slightly reddening. Giving him the courage to confront his past and thus step out of it into the future was what the young girls had been striving for. Still, the pain and sorrow that came with facing the past were negative effects they couldn’t bear to see, yet they couldn’t eliminate. All they could do was stay by his side and provide solace for his suffering with their presence. Hence, when Catherine turned back around, the tears in her eyes had faded, and she said with a smile as usual, "Grandfather and the others had no idea who their opponents were. In their understanding, the opponents were just two powerful Undead with Divine Wisdom."

"That’s true too," Pannis nodded in agreement, no longer dwelling on the issue of traps. He squatted beside a few mounds within the camp, poking the dry, hard soil with his fingers, "They didn’t use tents this time, probably because the light would easily shine through the tents, revealing the positions of the people inside, and a tent is also too easily slashed and torn. They actually used the leftover soil to construct several tent-shaped buildings. It seems like there are natives from Neville Western Wilderness in the expedition team. This style of construction is a standard technique in the Western Wasteland, which doesn’t require any wooden or brick structures for support and can be built just with clay."

"And the rooms have gotten a lot denser," Catherine observed the positions of the collapsed buildings, "Dense construction is easier to defend against enemy raids, but it’s more problematic if you face large-scale magic attacks. However, with grandfather in the team, and a Demigod Mage at their defense, it’s not difficult to ward off large-scale magic attacks, so it’s not really a shortcoming."

"Hmm, and none of us are good at offensive magic," Pannis nodded. "They probably saw this from our performance last night, so they used densely packed buildings to increase their defensive capabilities."

"It’s a pity all these rooms have collapsed," Lina interjected with regret. "It’s my first time seeing such cone-shaped mud rooms, I’ve only read about them in books before. They don’t seem as sturdy and durable as the books say."

"No other option, though the water resistance of mud treated by special methods is indeed quite good, the Forest of Death is just too humid and rainy. Plus, after more than forty years, collapsing is normal," Pannis said, nodding toward the side. "Aren’t there still two rooms over there that haven’t collapsed?"

"That’s true, we can’t expect too much after all this time," Lina nodded and turned her curious gaze toward the two intact rooms. One was already in a dilapidated state, as if it could collapse at any moment, while the other was relatively intact. Despite its uneven surface, the main structure seemed undamaged. However, these two rooms were rather small, hidden among the other collapsed structures and not easy to spot. The priestess’ eyes lit up with excitement, "I’ll go take a look inside. Vivian, come with me; I don’t want to step on a trap."

"Stop messing around, you dummy. All the traps were dismantled when they left. That’s a basic requirement for adventurers camping in the wild," Vivian rolled her eyes at Lina, but even though she said this, she still followed her. After all, this was not their home but a dangerous wilderness filled with risks, and although the dangers were much reduced in the Forbidden Land of Living Souls, it was still better to be cautious.

Lina took Vivian’s hand, and against the mage girl’s protests, they ran to the side of the mud tent, ignoring Vivian’s disgruntled look from the sudden run. Lina peered through the low doorway with curiosity, inspecting the dark space inside. The mud house had no windows, just an arched hole as an entrance. If what the books recorded was correct, after entering the room and sealing the entrance with a metal net or thick wooden board, it became a closed, comfortable space. But that small house certainly had no closed entrance now, and the gaping darkness revealed its internal structure.

The two girls had no intention of actually entering the room. No matter how curious they were, their ample experience as seasoned adventurers wouldn’t allow them to carelessly barge into a room that hadn’t been thoroughly investigated, even if that room lay in the Forbidden Land of Living Souls where life could not exist. Thus, they simply peeked inside from the entrance, gazing from a distance to satisfy their curiosity.

Just as the girls were surveying the inside of the mud room, a "rattle" came from behind them—not the sound of a trap being triggered, nor footsteps. Strictly speaking, it was the sound of bones grating together. Also coming from behind was Pannis’s loud warning: "Watch out behind you."

The two girls reacted very quickly, the first action was not a foolish look back, which would have been tantamount to suicide. Upon hearing the noise and Pannis’s warning, Vivian’s first reflex was to roll forward fiercely into the entrance of the house where she was sure there were no objects. She didn’t enter the room; instead, she used the walls to block from left and right. Meanwhile, Lina, already bolstered by Divine Spell, shifted her body to guard the entrance, protecting Vivian behind her, while swinging her mace with all her might.

With a "clang," the priestess only caught a glimpse of a white shadow before a massive force was transmitted to her hand. Despite being strengthened by Divine Spell, Lina couldn’t resist the formidable force and involuntarily retreated, bumping into Vivian and causing the two girls to tumble in disarray. However, as they rolled into the room, a massive Fireball suddenly flew out from behind Lina, carrying intense heat as it surged out of the mud house’s entrance.