I Was a Loner, but My Class Got Summoned to Another World…

Cautious about how Stella had been acting, Roland decided to move with only a few soldiers this time.

There were still many wounded humans she needed to care for, so she wouldn't be participating in the next fight.

From the hilltop, he looked down at a destroyed city, one that had likely once thrived with a flourishing economy. It was possibly the very city the nearby forts had been meant to protect.

It was a sad, eerie sight, the kind that lingered in the back of the mind. The massive surrounding walls were in ruins, and most of the housing had been reduced to rubble. Within the broken perimeter, Roland could see vampires and other demons peeking out, as if waiting for them to enter.

Being an enclosed space, he knew the battle would be difficult. But this was where his magic came into play. The light he could summon would drive the vampires back and weaken them. As for the other demons, his team would handle them.

So far, the city resembled a haunted ghost town. They entered through the most heavily damaged section, where a wide, three-meter gap had been blasted through the wall.

Roland used his magic to send out bursts of light at intervals, careful not to waste too much mana.

Still, nothing appeared. The demons clearly wanted to draw them deeper inside. Roland wasn't afraid for himself, but he remained alert for the sake of his troops. The unit, twenty-five strong, included eight half-bloods and sixteen humans, not counting himself.

"What do you think, Renar? Should we bite?"

Roland had advanced about twenty meters when he finally heard it, growls and snarls echoing faintly ahead.

They were recently turned humans.

He still didn't fully understand how vampires could turn others into their kin just by injecting them with their blood. It sounded more like a recipe for a dangerous virus or plague… but so far, no such illness had ever manifested.

"Just remember, they're trying to get under your skin. We should advance a little slower."

Roland nodded at Renar's advice. He knew it was the same tactic as before, but that didn't mean he couldn't control his anger.

He sent light blades from afar, his team assisting with the cleansing. Each death weighed on his conscience, but he was beginning to grow numb to it. The more the demons used these tricks, the less he was surprised by their cruelty.

Still, he didn't forget any of it. Every life taken was stored in his memory, a promise that for each one, he would take hundreds of demons in return, and in the most merciless way possible.

After clearing out the turned humans, they pressed forward. Roland could feel the demons watching from the shadows. He cast pulses of light to force them out. A few vampires had already fallen, shrieking in pain when the light struck them, making them easy targets for ranged attacks.

As he moved deeper into the ruined city, he suddenly felt the ground shift slightly beneath him.

Sand began to pour downward.

"What do you think, Renar—"

He was about to finish the question when the floor gave way. He barely managed to shove the three soldiers near him back before the earth collapsed entirely beneath his feet, dragging several buildings down with him.

"A damn crypt… but why is it here?"

As he fell, Roland tried to make sense of his surroundings. He conjured a ward mid-air to shield himself, and when he finally landed, rubble and broken stone crashed down nearby, but everything remained outside the protective barrier.

He unleashed light as strong as he could manage, flooding the darkness with radiance, before letting it dim just enough to reveal his surroundings.

They had really done something here.

A vast underground system stretched before him, built for vampires to live undisturbed. He could see thousands of them perched along the layered floors above, watching from the shadows. Their red eyes glowed faintly as they tried to retreat from the lingering light.

A few, caught in its sudden burst, tumbled into the pit with him, shrieking as they burned alive.

"Filthy creatures! What's your plan? If you're here to fight, then come at me all at once! I'll kill you all without hesitation!"

Roland's voice thundered through the massive chamber, his challenge echoing off the walls. The cavern was easily a thousand meters deep.

He didn't have any flight abilities, which meant getting out would require climbing the old-fashioned way, and he suspected that was part of their plan. Wear him down. Drain his mana. Trap him until he was weak and vulnerable.

And it was working.

He could already feel it, the heavy pressure in the air, a faint miasma that leeched his energy. The place was soaked in something designed to sap his strength.

[Elios, what do you think? How long can you stay with me in this place?]

He couldn't help asking his spirit for guidance. Unlike the others who had simply merged with him, Elios replied to him, often like a preacher, always opinionated and emphasizing his ideals.

[Can't say. Just climb, fast. The higher you go, the less this trap will affect you…]

Elios's voice faded after that, his energy receding. He no longer supplied Roland with extra power, only maintaining enough mana to keep his blade enhanced for combat.

Roland looked around. If he wasn't careful, he could fall even deeper.

He pulled out two mana crystals from his storage and activated them, ensuring they provided enough light for him to see clearly in the suffocating gloom.

Then he made his way toward the nearest wall, searching for a way to ascend.

He was sure his team would eventually attempt to reach him from above, and he hoped to meet them at least halfway.

As he crossed a narrow ledge, barely wide enough for a single foot, stones and debris began pelting him from above.

The vampires were doing all they could to keep him in place.

He was forced to use one of the crystals to cast a ward, the translucent shield deflecting the barrage of jagged projectiles as he edged closer to the wall.

Once there, he stored his sword and began scanning for grooves or holds.

He'd never climbed a mountain before. He knew he'd tire quickly if he didn't find a better path. What he needed was one of the vampire passages, those openings where the creatures had been peeking through. Hopefully, they hadn't sealed them off yet.

There had to be a monster, or someone, assisting them.

Vampires alone wouldn't be capable of constructing a cavern system this vast and complex, and they certainly weren't able to use earth magic now that the spirits stopped feeding mana to the demons.

As he climbed higher, he suddenly felt the stone tremble beneath his hands.

Without thinking, he drew his sword and stabbed it into a large crack.

A second later, a massive face burst from the rock beside him.

A giant earthworm-like creature emerged, its mouth gaping wide, nearly a meter across, lined with rows of razor-sharp teeth. It pierced through stone and soil with terrifying ease, aiming to take a bite out of him.

Roland could only use his sword to anchor himself, keeping steady to avoid falling all the way back to where he'd started.

With his free hand, he drew a smaller dagger, waiting for the creature to emerge again. As soon as it lunged, he slashed through its open mouth, a warning strike meant to deter it.

But it didn't retreat.

It seemed the creature was under some kind of spell. No matter how much pain it was in, it continued its relentless assault.

Roland sighed, slipping the dagger back into its sheath and drawing a larger sword. With one hand gripping his embedded blade for support, he used the other to cleave the charmed worm in half.

The creature let out a shrill, distorted scream, flailing violently before going still.

He gritted his teeth in frustration. Instead of clearing a path, the creature's massive corpse now blocked the tunnel it had burst from, its limp body wedged inside and sealing the entrance completely.

For a moment, Roland even considered storing the corpse in his inventory, but quickly shook the thought away.

Instead, he leaned against the narrow ledge to catch his breath and let his hands rest. He had no doubt this wouldn't be the last surprise the demons sent after him.

He took one final look up the towering cavern wall and steadied himself.

There was still a long climb ahead, and he needed to be ready.

His mana was nearing 70%, a noticeable drop of five or so percent in just half an hour. At this rate, he'd have to hurry if he wanted to escape before weakening enough for the vampires to gain the upper hand.

Elios returned a small portion of his magic, just enough to mend his injuries. The light coursed through him briefly, healing the worst of the strain before fading once again.

Roland slid both swords back into storage and prepared for the next stretch. His wards had already been broken, shattered by the barrage of projectiles and bursts of unfamiliar dark magic hurled from the upper levels.

Still, he climbed.

With scraped hands and aching muscles, he pressed on, one hold at a time.