Our Family Has Fallen

”Watch your step!”

The team stopped at Amanda’s words.

”What is this thing?”

”Could it be the vomit of a crippled Pigman?”

Listening to their conversation, Lance held up the torch and moved forward. Under the torchlight, everyone saw an indescribable lump on the ground—a dull, flesh-like, pinkish-gray slime.

Lance, not minding the filth, crouched down and pulled out a Short Sword to poke at it.

”Doesn’t seem like it. There are no food residues inside, and its viscosity far exceeds that of vomit.”

”A Flesh Devourer?”

Amanda quickly recalled Lance mentioning an Extraordinary monster in the Beast Lair that devoured flesh and blood.

”Look, it’s not corrosive.” Lance raised the Short Sword that had just touched the slime, adding, ”The bodily fluids of Flesh Devourers are corrosive, even to metal.”

”Who cares what it is? I’ll chop it dead with one swing of my axe.” Boudica disliked such guessing games.

”We still know too little about the Beast Lair.” Lance, also uncertain, used his Short Sword to scoop the strange slime into a glass bottle.

Collecting peculiar things had always been Lance’s hobby. As for their usefulness—that was a task for Paracelsus and their team.

”Let’s move on. I have a feeling we’ll find answers ahead.”

With the changing situation and the significant unknown risks ahead, Lance, fearing Boudica might struggle to cope, took the lead. He had the other three follow and support each other.

Maintaining formation was no longer necessary. Real combat required adapting flexibly to environmental changes.

As Lance had guessed, more signs of battle were found as they delved deeper.

”Judging by these sharp-pointed tracks, it must be Flesh Devourers.” Lance shone his torch on the ground, revealing numerous small, sharp pits.

”Traces of blood, Pigman weapons, but not a single corpse... not even bones left.”

”True, those Flesh Devourers must have had an encounter with the Pigmen here, and in considerable numbers. It seems they’re also part of the ecosystem.” Lance picked up a Shield, standard equipment for a Pigman Hookhand, recognizing the all-too-familiar circular, mouth-like corrosion marks on it.

Examining it further confirmed his earlier guess, but the situation wasn’t that simple. He noticed that the cart ruts and the Flesh Devourers’ crawling tracks overlapped.

But before Lance could examine it closely, Alhazred, who had been silent for a long while, suddenly spoke up.

”The power of corruption... an evil ritual is being performed up ahead.”

His words further unsettled the already bewildered team, and a sense of pressure began to envelop them.

”Forward!” Lance had no time for idle talk. He dropped the broken Shield and quickly led the team onward.

However, what also troubled him was that the direction Alhazred indicated was the same as that of the Pigman food carts and the Flesh Devourers.

What exactly happened up ahead...?

They advanced some distance further. Surprisingly, no Pigmen blocked their path, and progress was smooth. But then Lance, who was leading, suddenly stopped.

”Boss, what are you doing?”

”Quiet! Listen!” Lance raised a hand to calm the impatient Boudica, gesturing with his head toward the front.

”That’s Pigman shrieking! Are they fighting?” Amanda, having also noticed something, blurted it out almost instinctively.

”Be careful.” Without further words, Lance took the lead and crept forward.

It was a corner. After turning it, they found a passage leading straight ahead and upwards—the source of the sounds.

Lance and his companions hugged the wall as they drew closer, peeking at the bizarre scene unfolding inside.

Several thick worms were battling the Pigmen inside.

Lance had initially expected a fierce battle, especially since the disappearance of the Pigmen earlier attested to the Flesh Devourers’ strength.

But in reality, the Pigmen had the upper hand.

From Lance’s perspective, the Pigmen seemed to be consciously hunting the worms, while the worms attacked purely on instinct, showing no signs of intelligence.

He could see Pigman Butchers and Pigman Mobs taking the brunt of the worms’ attacks, drawing their attention.

Pigman Hookhands provided support from the flanks, using their Shields to block. Once their hooks sank into a worm’s flesh, they began to pull.

Meanwhile, Pigman Concealers activated their stealth and rushed forward, plunging their twin knives into the worms’ flesh. However, slicing through the tough hide with those ragged blades was hardly realistic.

The truly significant damage came from the Pigman Butchers’ Serrated Butcher Knives. They slashed forcefully, their strength creating gruesome tearing wounds. This made the worms writhe frantically.

Even the Pigman Mobs’ hammers couldn’t achieve this effect. Blunt impacts could suppress the worms but didn’t elicit much of a visible reaction.

Thus, it seemed the Pigman Butchers dealt the most direct damage.

Initially, Lance didn’t understand why the Pigman Butchers’ weapons were so peculiar. Were they specifically designed to counter Flesh Devourers?

Even stranger, the corrosive fluid leaking from the worms’ wounds didn’t seem to cause much of a reaction when it touched the Pigmen’s skin.

It seemed that in the harsh environment of the Beast Lair, the Pigmen’s skin had evolved resistance to such corrosive damage. Perhaps some research is warranted, using Pigman skin as material for corrosion-resistant gear, Lance thought.