The Invaders of the Large Tomb

Even though they referred to this as a small crypt, it was only small in comparison to the large mausoleum in the center. Up close, its size and majestic architecture could be clearly seen.

The white stone walls were smoothly polished. Although a lot of time must have passed since its construction, there was no sign of any damage from the wind and the rain.

Beyond a flight of three steps made of marble was a thick metal door. The door was polished so well that there were no rust at all. Even the black steel was shining.

It was clear how carefully they were maintaining the building.

—Which meant that it was confirmed that the cemetery was occupied.

While Greenham came to this conclusion, his thief comrade went in and slowly investigated, starting from the stairs.

Greenham received a signal to back away—necessary because of ‘Silence’—and retreated slowly.

This was to avoid area-effect traps.

The thief searched patiently for traps. It couldn’t be helped even if he was feeling impatient.

Souls resided within the body of men, and when that body begins to rot, the soul would be summoned away by the will of the gods. That was why the dead had to be buried immediately, with underground burial as the norm, but it was slightly different for those with special status such as the nobles.

If the dead were buried immediately, they would need to dig the corpse up to confirm that the body was decomposing. To see evidence of the decomposition, the corpse would be set aside for a period of time before being buried. However, the corpse would not be placed in the nobles’ home.

What they would use would be a crypt at the cemetery. After placing the bodies there for a period of time, the priest would judge if the body was rotting and the soul had been summoned by god before burying it.

The place where the corpses were laid to rest was the communal space of the crypt. This spacious area had several stone platforms where the bodies lay in state. The scene of several rotting corpses lying in a row was creepy, but that was natural from the common sense of this world.

Things were different for great nobles who had authority and wealth. Instead of the communal crypt, they would use a family crypt passed down from their ancestors. The room where those with authority were summoned by god and their final resting place—crypts like that were owned and passed down the family as symbols of power.

It was normal to find household appliances and treasures as well. This meant the crypts were a treasure vault for tomb raiders. And therefore, it was also a place built with dangerous traps to deter intruders.

That definitely held true for such an extravagant crypt. Greenham’s thief teammate checked the place carefully.

After the thief completed some of the checks and went to the door, the sound suddenly came back.

The duration of ‘Silence’ was over. It was just the right time. The thief silently stepped in front of the door and searched carefully. Finally, he placed something like a stethoscope and listened.

After several seconds, the thief turned his head Greenham and his other teammates and shook his head.

Which meant ‘there is nothing’.

The thief himself thought it was strange and tilted his head.

It was a mystery why it wasn’t locked, but since the thief couldn’t detect anything else, it would be the vanguards’ turn next.

Greenham went to the front and the thief reached for the door. Behind them was a warrior with a shield.

Greenham pushed the door handle down and slowly opened the door. Maybe it was well oiled or perhaps the caretaker of this place did his job seriously, but the heavy door opened easily despite its appearance.

The warrior who was ready for action stood between Greenham and the door, raising his shield to defend against sudden attack or traps.

However, there wasn’t anything like an arrow being shot over. The iron door was completely open and a deep darkness appeared before the Heavy Mashers.

“「Continual Light」.”

The arcane magic caster summoned a magic light. The brightness of the magic light could be roughly adjusted. The crypt was illuminated. With another spell, the weapon of the warrior was shining too.

What the light was shining on, was a room that could be easily mistaken for the chambers of a noble.

In the center of the room was a stone coffin normally seen in a temple. It was 2.5m long and engraved with intrinsic carvings. Four alabaster statues carved into the shape of fully armored and armed warriors, with swords and shields over full plate armor, stood at each corner.

And so—

“—Hmm, does this emblem match anything in your memory?”

“Erm, I don’t know.”

Hanging on the wall was a banner with golden edges, bearing an emblem no one had seen before.

The Kingdom might be a foreign nation, but the thief and magic caster had memorized the heraldry of many nobles and kings. Since they couldn’t identify it, it was safe to assume it was foreign in nature.

“Could it be some nobles before the founding of the Kingdom?”