MV – Chapter 178: Vapula’s Intrusion and the Minor Villain

━━━ Five days later.

Lanpeach stood before the grand door leading to the heart of Vapula for the planned subjugation. Rows of fully armored rabbits sat beside him, while the Onodera clan, led by Bacchus, had also brought their elite troops.

This force, including the rabbits, was enough to overwhelm the Surface District. The soldiers couldn’t hide their tension, facing a dungeon that warranted such power, their faces were stern with focus.

The rabbits, however, were grooming each other and seemed entirely unbothered, significantly lowering the atmosphere’s tension.

“This Vapula subjugation is a joint operation between the Onodera family and Lanpeach-dono. Do not act recklessly and exercise maximum caution. Don’t waste your lives! Your families and loved ones wouldn’t thank you for that! If this operation succeeds, the rewards will be beyond your imagination!”

“Yeah, Bacchus-sama, banzai!”

“Glory to the Onodera family!”

“Please declare it won’t just be a few months of bonus pay!”

Bacchus raised his gauntleted hand as he made his declaration. The soldiers raised their hands in unison, cheering loudly. Though his promise of unimaginable rewards seemed exaggerated, they cheered along, reading the mood. Bacchus pointedly ignored the last speaker’s complaint, but the soldiers caught his subtle reaction, and felt a little disheartened.

“And now, Lanpeach-dono, anything to add? You seem particularly heavily equipped today.” (Bacchus)

Bacchus ignored the suspicious glances from some soldiers and addressed Lanpeach.

Lanpeach was clad in a spirit-infused suit of armor that no one had seen before. The full-body armor, with thick plating covering every inch, resembled a metal fortress. Even his eyes were protected by a visor, leaving no way to see inside.

The cumbersome-looking armor seemed difficult to move in, a sign of how perilous the area ahead was. Bacchus steeled himself further at the sight.

Lanpeach nodded silently, the heavy sound of his armor clanking as he stepped forward to speak.

“This battle will be harsh. Thus, once this operation ends, I promise the rabbits one month of paid leave, unlimited carrots from the carrot fields, and free brushing tickets from Boss at any time!” (Lanpeach)

“Kyuu-kyuu! I’m all fired up-usa!”

“Boss, banzai! Usa will do my best!”

“Looking forward to the brushing-usa!”

“Old chap, you’re so cool!”

Hearing this proclamation, the rabbits perked up their ears and began hopping energetically, raising their tiny paws with squeaky cries. Lanpeach joined in, jumping up and down with heavy thuds that dented the floor.

“…It seems you’ve captured the rabbits’ hearts, Lanpeach-dono.” (Bacchus)

Bacchus remarked, feeling a vague sense of unease. However, he shook it off as pre-battle nerves.

“Very well, let us move out. Everyone, follow the rabbits. Follow me!” (Bacchus)

Lanpeach trudged forward with his heavy armor clanking, leading the way through the grand door. Bacchus and the others followed closely behind. The passage ahead was dark, the door resembling a gaping maw ready to swallow the soldiers whole.

◇◇

The dead Vapula was a mine that regenerated infinitely. Its endless resources and lack of monsters because it is inside a corpse made it a dream-like place for mining.

However, that dream had now turned into a nightmare. The once-solid rock had become pulsating chunks of flesh. Every step on the red-black mass yielded a squelching sensation. The air carried a faintly rotting odor, and shadows darted about in the unlit darkness.

The unsettling scenery, seemingly designed to disturb human sanity, silenced the soldiers. They nervously illuminated their surroundings with flashlights as they walked.

“What a depressing place. If this kind of erosion -no, revival- spreads beyond this central area, it would cause a massive uproar.” (Bacchus)

The surrounding area housed numerous civilians and Onodera’s key research facilities and factories. If all of that were to be lost with the revival of Vapula, the Onodera family would be done for. Imagining such a future, Bacchus grimaced and tightened his grip on his Duststorm Axe, steeling his resolve.

The axe was a gift from Lanpeach, and contained unparalleled mana, giving Bacchus the confidence that he could vanquish any foe.

“This level of erosion… Vapula’s revival must be well underway. We must stop it immediately. I shall ensure it!” (Lanpeach)

“‘I shall’? Isn’t your way of speaking a bit different here?” (Bacchus)

“I thought it sounded cool. Or should I go with ‘This one’? …Anyway, it doesn’t matter now… They’ve arrived.” (Lanpeach)

Bacchus gave Lanpeach a quizzical look, wondering if something was off about him. However, Lanpeach pointed ahead, and following his direction, Bacchus refocused his attention.

“Uaaahhh!”

“Urrghhh…”

“Arghhh…”

Before them stood the grotesquely altered figures of soldiers who had gone missing during their reconnaissance. Their once-pristine spirit armor was now in tatters, exposing flesh gouged away to reveal white bone. Some had half their faces bitten off, while others had no internal organs remaining. They were undeniably lifeless forms.

“…Did they die here and become zombies? But…zombies don’t just form naturally. If they did, this world would already be overrun with the undead.” (Lanpeach)

Corpses were often found lying around in the slums, but there were never rumors of them becoming zombies. Even in areas saturated with mana, the dead remained unchanged, whether in dungeons or elsewhere.

Yet the presence of zombies here could only mean one thing…

“Are you implying a necromancer must be at work? A blasphemous creature that manipulates the dead?” (Bacchus)

From behind the shambling zombies, whose groans filled the air, a sinister, wavering voice emerged. Though quieter than the collective moans, the voice seeped into everyone’s ears like a creeping shadow, sending chills down their spines and putting them on high alert.

“A lich! So, one of those troublesome monsters was guarding this place?” (Bacchus)

Bacchus gritted his teeth, narrowing his eyes. A lich -capable of reviving the dead to create an endless army- was a calamity class monster. While Bacchus had only heard of them in records, they were said to have been defeated long ago. One such battle had reportedly reduced the Surface District’s forces by thirty percent.

The lich before them wore a robe forged from malevolent magic, carried a staff made of gathered bones, and hid its fleshless skull beneath a hood. Each step it took left decayed footprints, spreading the stench of rot.

It was the King of the Dead, a lich. Legendary among monsters.

“Rabbit Mini-Cannon, fire-usa!”

The lich and the zombies were obliterated in an instant, consumed by a massive explosion of light particles.

“Yippee! Did you see that-usa? This is the custom cannon Boss gave me! Now Tete can fire cannons anytime-usa yo!”

A rabbit hopped around joyfully, waving its fluffy tail and twitching its nose with excitement, all while carrying a cannon that looked like a massive pipe.

“Wait… What about our grief? The sorrow of fighting our former comrades who have become pitiful undead, wielding new weapons in a tragic struggle?” (Bacchus)

Bacchus slumped his shoulders and cast a skeptical glance at the rabbit.

“Hyahaa! Time to reload! There’s still plenty of spare rounds-usa yo! Hmm, how do I open this again? Press these buttons simultaneously? Reloading is such a hassle-usa… What’s this loose screw for-usa?” 

The rabbit sat down, dismantling the pipe-like cannon, leaving the soldiers to doubt whether a second shot was even possible.

“W-Well, at least we got to witness the Underground District’s firepower—”

“Kukuku, just as expected. Of course, the first one would be easily taken down by a trump card.”

“Who said there was only one of us?”

“It’s precisely because our master foresaw such a scenario that we were prepared.”

Once again, the same ominous voice echoed, and Bacchus’s group widened their eyes in shock. From the depths emerged another lich, identical to the one they had just defeated. And not just one… A whole battalion’s worth.

“A legion of liches… It seems we underestimated this dungeon.” (Bacchus)

Bacchus and the others braced themselves for the true battle ahead. Meanwhile, Tete the rabbit tilted its head and fiddled with a loose spring, clearly unreliable.

“Now, let your corpses serve as loyal vassals to the King of Death!”

“How can there be multiple Kings of Death? Doesn’t that contradict the concept?” (Bacchus)

“Silence! Even kings can form alliances! It’s perfectly logical to have many kings, don’t you think? My reasoning is flawless!”

The liches’ somewhat pitiful arguments made Bacchus smirk slightly, but he still raised his axe.

“Then perish by this!” (Bacchus)

[Sands of Oblivion]

With a mighty swing, Bacchus unleashed a cloud of enchanted sand that rushed toward the liches. He already knew its power. This sand eroded everything in its path, even enchanted tanks with reinforced durability, dissolving them like melting ice.

“Do not underestimate me, mere dwarf! Witness my magic!”

[Hellfire]

The lich summoned flames from the infernal furnace to counter Bacchus’s sandstorm. The two forces collided, their opposing magical energies causing a massive explosion that sent shockwaves rippling through the area.

“Follow Bacchus-sama!”

“Let’s show these liches what we’re made of!”

“Feel the strength of humanity!”

The soldiers drew their swords and cast spells, charging forward with renewed determination.

“Usaaa! The rabbits are joining the fight too-usa yo!”

“Attack! Attack!”

“Shoot everything-usa!”

The excited rabbits opened fire, adding to the chaos as flames, ice shards, and bullets filled the air.

The battlefield turned into a cacophony of explosions, shockwaves, and energy blasts, shaking the ground with their intensity.

“Kukakaka! I was tasked with weakening your forces, but I might as well finish you here! Die—gah!”

One lich’s triumphant laughter was cut short as a bullet shattered its skull, reducing its body to dust. Yet another lich appeared from the depths to replace it, and the unending battle dragged on.

“Somebody fix this~ Boss, help me~”

A rabbit holding a loose spring sniffled, tears welling up as it lamented its broken cannon.

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