From Human to Skeleton: Revived with Infinite System Crystals
Chapter 129 - 129: A Cave's Emergence?

Ty and Todd, shifting away from their playful banter, directed their full attention towards Armond. The gravity of the situation was immediately apparent from the pained expression in Armond's eyes and the blood stains on his armor.

"It's been a rough time out here," Armond began, his voice carrying the weight of recent struggles. "I'm not going to lie, I'm happy they finally sent some backup. Even I won't complain about any help I can get."

His acknowledgement of their arrival as a much-needed reinforcement painted a clear picture of the dire circumstances at the front.

"I know you both can fight, so your assistance will be very valuable," Armond continued, eyeing them with a mix of relief and assessment.

Ty, understanding the seriousness of their role, responded promptly. "Well, I can, but Todd is still a bit banged up," he said, glancing towards his friend to acknowledge his current state. "I spoke with Lady Amaris earlier, and she mentioned that our main objective was to defend against any monsters trying to breach the gate. Is that correct?"

"Initially, yes, that was the plan," Armond began, his tone heavy with the burden of recent events. "But we've lost over 50 men in just the last day alone." His eyes flickered with a mix of grief and frustration as he continued, "I don't know what's going on this year, but ever since the rise of a giant cave, the number of monsters surfacing from the ground has increased dramatically."

He paused, the memory of a particular incident clouding his expression. "I sent an escort team to inspect the cave, but all I heard were light screams before there was nothing but silence."

Armond's revelation hinted at a deeper, more ominous threat than they had anticipated. "I've sent a letter to the higher-ups, but their response has been slow," he added, a note of disappointment in his voice.

Ty, processing this new information, interjected with a sense of urgency, "A giant cave just appeared from the ground?"

Armond nodded slightly, confirming Ty's query. "That's right, though not much else has been known about it."

Ty, puzzled by the lack of information, remarked, "It's odd, though; this is the first I'm hearing of it."

"Perhaps they don't want to cause panic or unnecessary worry," Armond speculated, suggesting a possible reason for the lack of widespread knowledge about the cave and its emerging threats.

Ty, considering the situation, proposed a seemingly straightforward solution. "Well, why don't we just blow up the cave? Wouldn't that stop any creatures from getting out?"

Armond, visibly exhausted and grappling with the enormity of the situation, raised his voice in response, his frustration evident. "No, that's not the problem. No monsters have actually come out of the cave. But creatures more powerful than I've seen since Legato defeated the last great threat Dragoon – creatures like these haven't been surfacing until now!"

Ty, trying to understand the nature of the threat, offered a comparison, "It's almost like a dungeon then, in some respects?"

"I don't really know what that means," Armond admitted, his experience with caves limited to smaller, less threatening environments. "Most caves I've seen just house small animals. I've requested further inspection of this one, but for now, our focus is on building a defensive wall along the line to stop any monsters from reaching the Bridge."

He then directed them with a clear task, "Please head a mile straight up and defend the front-line gates from any monsters breaking through."

"Sounds good, but what will you be doing in the meantime?" Ty inquired, his curiosity heightened by the situation.

Armond, clearly at the limits of his endurance, leaned heavily against the far right pillar of the bridge. "I just need a moment to rest and heal," he confessed, his voice trailing off. "I've been fighting for two days straight..." His words faded as his eyes closed, succumbing to the overwhelming exhaustion.

With his helmet off, sweat lined his brow, a testament to the relentless effort he had been putting in.

Recognizing the need for immediate action, Ty turned to the guards. "Let's get a move on. Hey guards, get him some water and bread or something," he instructed, concerned for Armond's well-being.

One guard looked at Ty, a bit incredulous at taking orders from a skeleton, but the urgency in Ty's voice prompted action. "I will head to grab some," the guard said, rushing down the bridge.

The other guard, left alone, expressed his concern, "What if monsters get through? I can't do it on my own!" His voice carried a sheepish fear.

Ty reassured him, "No need to worry about that. Just make sure Armond is ready to go when he wakes up." As he spoke, Ty tossed two gold pieces toward the guard. "Get whatever he needs to heal up," he added, making sure Armond would be taken care of.

Todd, observing the exchange, asked Ty, "Where did you get gold coins?"

"Oh, I grabbed them from your bag while I was getting the black dice," Ty replied casually, showing the dice held between his skeletal fingers, the gap where his index finger should have been evident.

Todd, slightly perturbed by Ty's casual generosity, reminded him, "Hey, don't be giving those out like candy. That's supposed to last us until we get the sword and dip out of here, you know."

Ty, understanding Todd's concern but confident in his approach, explained his strategy. "Of course, there's still a large pouch of them, and a bunch of silver ones too. I thought it would help build some rapport if we gave some out at random times. You give one man a gold coin, and word spreads. Suddenly, we go from being feared to being seen as caring creatures."

He crossed his bone arms, a skeleton attempting a posture of assurance. "It's all about skewing the perspective of the general population," Ty added, his tone suggesting a deeper understanding of social dynamics.

Todd, intrigued by this unexpected display of insight, questioned, "That sounded very formal. Where did you hear that from?"

Ty's response revealed a past life far removed from his current skeletal existence. "Oh, I watched a bunch of videos and took a lot of business classes before I became a skeleton. Though, I never got to put them to much use."

Ty shared a crucial detail from his past, "But I got jumped and even kidnapped by that same group the night of the Cathedral attack. Before they knocked me out to send me back here, I planted my finger into the stone rock of their floor. It might serve as a beacon, considering my weapon's ability to somehow always find me."

Todd, listening intently, was taken aback by Ty's foresight. "That's a good idea, but how will you be able to sneak up on them?" he asked, intrigued by Ty's plan.

Before Ty could respond, their conversation was interrupted by distant screams reaching their ears. Ty's focus immediately shifted. "That's to figure out later," he said quickly. "Right now, I really just need to find a way to get an entire day off without being interrupted."

Activating his ability, Ty took in a small shard of a creature's soul he had killed the night Lady Nanako admitted her feelings for him. This act heightened his senses to an extraordinary degree. The hint of blood in the air became almost tangible, and he could see through the dense brushwoods with uncanny clarity.

"Stick close to me; we're going to speed up a bit and jump right into it," Ty instructed Todd, ready to leap into action.

As Todd observed Ty, he noticed something different about his appearance. Ty's eyes burned with a bright green flame, more intense than usual, and a light aura seemed to emanate from his skeletal frame, a visual manifestation of his heightened abilities.

With a swift and calculated move, Ty leaped onto the side of a tree, his gaze locked onto a specific point in the distance. Todd, understanding the urgency, readied himself and followed suit. Together, they leaped from the tree, propelling themselves into an open field.

Below them, a line of sandbags formed a makeshift barricade about three feet high. Behind this barrier, a dozen soldiers armed with bows and arrows were positioned, while another group of men and women, equipped with shields, stood in front as a frontline defense.

As Ty and Todd soared over the heads of the soldiers, one of them shouted in alarm, "Two monsters overhead! What do we do?" This exclamation highlighted the confusion and surprise at the sudden appearance of Ty and Todd.

Landing about 20 feet away from the defensive line, Ty and Todd quickly assessed the situation. Ty's gaze was drawn to a giant cave in the distance, perhaps a mile or two down the path. It was from this cave that monsters seemed to be emerging ty thought before recalling it should be easy to get into.

Though our job is really to just defend these people but how about we let loose a bit Todd, unless you wanna rest up a bit?