Our Family Has Fallen

Hamlet, New Town.

It was a new day, and many adventurers sobered up from the taverns, casinos, and brothels, then prepared to head to the ruins for treasure hunting.

Recently, more and more news of people finding good things has spread. Of course, given those guys’ habits, picking up a copper coin can be blown into finding a Gold Coin, while some who actually find Gold Coins say they found copper coins.

Nevertheless, whether true or false, these reports inspire those hoping to get rich overnight, because many have indeed picked up some jewels, jewelry, Yellow Crystal scattered around the ruins, and of course, coins.

After days of clearing, the Skeletons on the outskirts have mostly been shattered, losing their evil power, the bones have severely eroded.

Originally tough bones now seem to have succumbed to years of wind and sun exposure, crumbling easily upon touch, turning to powder when stepped on.

These adventurers are adept at gaining experience and quickly adapted to the situation of the ruins after initial panic, and their awe of the ruins also faded quickly.

As long as nighttime direct confrontation is avoided, they can lure Skeletons out from buildings during the day and kill them, then go in and scavenge.

The ordinary adventurers or scavengers are still confined to the daytime, while some powerful Mercenary Corps are already spending the night in the ruins.

All it takes is clearing out a sturdy building from the Skeletons near dusk, sealing it up, and preparing enough firewood to camp.

A bonfire can dispel the evil aura lingering in the air, and the higher they are from the ground, the less they are affected.

More importantly, the bonfire can deter rats. The sealing can block Skeletons but not rats; one person even had their ear bitten by a rat.

”It’s daybreak, those skeleton racks should start retreating, everyone get ready.”

The window nailed with boards let in a sliver of light through the gaps, signaling that the Scorpion Mercenary Group had survived another night, their calm demeanor showing it wasn’t their first time.

Scorpion got up after speaking, walked to the window, and looked outside, noting they were on the third floor, almost the highest point of the house, though not very high in the surrounding area, indicating they were increasingly venturing into the ruins’ once prosperous areas.

What he said was apparent; as the sun rose, the Skeletons surrounding the building, longing for the breath of the living, started to retreat, seeking dark shadows.

”Leader, the supplies we brought can only hold out for another day. If we don’t find replenishment, we’ll have to leave time for returning tonight.”

The member in charge of inventory reminded, drawing others to chime in.

”We’ve been out here for three days, seeing bones when we open our eyes, and rats when we close them; aside from some bits and pieces, damn it, we haven’t seen any treasures.”

”This damned weather is getting colder and colder. I just want to soak in the bathhouse.”

”Why not be with a woman?”

”In this cold, a woman isn’t as comfortable as a bath. Herbal baths are out of the question, but a sauna after a dip would be great.”

”You sure know how to enjoy life.”

As they spoke, a relaxed expression appeared on their faces, and Scorpion understood that everyone was nearing the limits of their high-intensity exploration.

Seeing the distant spire of the church, Scorpion knew there wasn’t much opportunity left, so he decided to give up and said:

”Today, our main task is to search the surrounding buildings to gather some good things, then go back to rest for a day or two.”

Scorpion decided this because he also sensed something was amiss. Although they had discovered some things on their way in, there wasn’t the kind of rewarding finds one would hope for, instead, everyone felt high pressure.

Because active in the core area were not only Skeletons transformed by commoners, but also some soldiers and sheriffs. These Skeletons had armor or weapons.

Although manageable, the intensity of the battles was also increasing; Scorpion couldn’t afford to expend his squad here. He needed to rest and gather others’ information.

What happened in Hamlet back then, no one knows, but if so many Skeletons are left, it implies many didn’t leave. But why is the discovered wealth so scattered?

Scorpion suspected, as likely many did, but why did they only suspect?

Because it’s normal for the Lords to leave first. If something really happened, the lower echelons wouldn’t get the news, but those Lords would definitely sense something was wrong, so it’s possible they packed up early and fled.

But who cares about that? Hearing Scorpion’s words, the members of the Mercenary Corps cheered.

”Great!”

The low morale recovered a bit. They quickly packed up, moved aside the accumulated debris, and saw the door and nearby brick walls covered in various scratch marks, the Skeletons’ work from an entire night.

”Finish them off!”

...

Various reasons emboldened adventurers to stay overnight in the ruins, but Hamlet’s group remained conservative, returning by nightfall, even the Honor Guard and those heroes did the same.

Since they weren’t after eliminating Skeletons or treasure hunting, they naturally didn’t need to take big risks.

After all, those ”treasures” were placed by the Honor Guard; wouldn’t they know the situation?

Last night, as the Lord took Junia and a team of Honor Guard away, they left a batch of Extraordinary equipment. Some were kept for their use, and others intended to scatter low-grade items they couldn’t use.