CHAPTER 263: MELODIES OF STEEL [PART 3]

Inside a place called the Echo Forge, Alex currently held a steel hammer in one hand and a cracked Everguard in the other.

As the gates fell, a monster came into view. The Minotaur-like creature, equipped with a war axe, stepped inside the smithy and looked around.

It seemed to be looking for someone, but no matter how thoroughly it looked around, there was nothing aside from broken weapons and shields—the vast hall was completely empty.

The three-meter-tall Minotaur entered the room, followed by six Barbarians, each holding either a sword or an axe.

"There’s nothing here," one of the Barbarians said after taking a quick look in the room. "They must have gone out to defend the East Gate."

"Foolish dwarves. The diversion we made easily tricked them." Another barbarian chuckled. "They should have sent more defenders to their west gate. It’s more fun that way."

"You should be thankful we managed to break through without much resistance," commented the Barbarian who seemed to be their leader. "Let’s go. We need to make a detour and complete our mission of capturing Princess Yvraine."

"I don’t know if the Barbarian King is serious about making her a concubine or not, but a trophy in the form of a beautiful dwarven princess is certainly nice."

The barbarians laughed at the same time as they left the room together.

Except for the Minotaur—it sniffed the air in suspicion and narrowed its eyes.

It paid close attention to its surroundings, especially the dwarven statues lined up along the walls of the forge.

But seeing that nothing seemed to be out of place, the Minotaur finally left and followed its allies to infiltrate the Dwarven Fortress.

Ten minutes later...

One of the statues opened up slightly like a coffin.

During that tense moment, Alex heard a voice inside his head.

———

Synchronization Rate increased by 12%

Current Synchronization Rate 12%

———

He was initially confused about what it meant, but he could roughly guess what happened after a flood of memories assaulted his senses. Thanks to the information he gained, he learned he could hide in one of the statues, as the Founder of the forge had deliberately designed it that way.

While the information certainly saved Alex, the timing had been very tight.

In the memory he gained, he found himself being addressed by one of the blacksmiths. A solemn expression immediately appeared on his face, for he had been called a supposedly unfamiliar name—Kael.

"I’m not Kael," Alex muttered. "I’m Alex."

The young man tried to shake off the feeling of anxiety that had clung to his senses. For now, he needed to find Latifa, Lotte, Lumi, and Dim Dim, who seemed to have disappeared after he opened his eyes.

With a determined gaze, he straightened his back and made his way toward the broken gate, peeking out of it to check if there were any enemies around.

He didn’t possess his storage ring, nor could he use any of his skills and special abilities.

The only thing that he could use to fight and protect himself was a cracked Everguard and the dwarven hammer he took from the forge.

What were his chances of winning if he stumbled upon a raiding group of Barbarians?

Zero.

———

Synchronization Rate increased by 3%

Current Synchronization Rate 15%

———

Alex shuddered as visions of the dwarven princess, Princess Yvraine, appeared inside his mind.

However, instead of a dwarf, the princess he saw was Latifa, which made Alex forget how to breathe for a brief moment.

’Oh no!’ Alex instinctively knew that they were in danger.

Although he didn’t have any proof, there was a high chance that Latifa was also under the effect of "synchronization," which would force her into the role of the princess the Barbarians were looking for.

’Damn it!’ Alex cursed internally as he made his way to the fortress, using a path only known to blacksmiths.

As he neared the Princess’ room, loud explosions reverberated in the surroundings.

The siege grew more intense as Alex ran through hallways continuously getting hit by spells that had bypassed the defensive walls.

After a few minutes of sprinting, he finally reached the princess’ room, only to find it drowning in flames.

At the sight of the dilapidated area, worry poured into Alex’s heart, knowing Latifa must’ve been unable to use her powers as well.

Compared to an ordinary human girl, the foxkin was certainly stronger. But her strength meant nothing against a naturally strong Barbarian, let alone those who are part of the military.

Based on Alex’s experience, Latifa certainly couldn’t use the abilities of her Job Class, Celestial Walker, either, so he couldn’t help but worry.

In his eyes, Latifa was now a helpless lady out of her element and could be easily defeated by one of Dim Dim’s brittle vials!

"Latif—Princess! Where are you?!" Alex shouted in the hallways, trying desperately to search Kael’s memory of where the princess might have gone.

Just as he was thinking of what to do next, he heard hurried footsteps running in his direction.

Alex immediately raised his hammer and shield, ready to fight whatever was about to meet him at the end of the hallway.

He was like the string of a bow that was pulled to its limit. The moment that string was released, he would either fight or run away as befitting of the situation.

Suddenly, over a dozen dwarven warriors appeared in the hallway, each wearing light armor and carrying weapons like hammers, maces, and swords.

"Kael!" one of the Dwarves recognized the young man. "It’s good that you’re alive. Where is the princess?!"

"She’s no longer here when I arrived," Alex replied as he tried to recall the name of the dwarf that was talking to him.

As if humoring him, he heard a familiar notification inside of his head.

———

Synchronization Rate increased by 5%

Current Synchronization Rate 20%

———

"F*ck..." Alex cursed after hearing that his synchronization rate had gone up."

"My name is not F*ck, It’s Fokar!" the dwarf named Fokar corrected. "Did your head get hit by one of those spells that destroyed these walls? Snap out of it if you’re a dwarf!"

"But I’m not a dwar..."

"Shut up and come with us! We’re going to beat the crap out of those barbarians who infiltrated the East Gate!"

Alex frowned. "But the Princess?"

"Look, Kael, I know that you and the princess are... rather close despite your gap in status, but you need to look at the bigger picture," Fokar said calmly. "Her Shield Maidens will make sure to protect her. Kara and Runa might be young, but those lasses are stronger than you.

"So stop dazing like the apprentice smith you are, and start swinging that hammer! Come with us now!"

After saying what he wanted to say, Fokar led the dwarves to that path that Alex had taken earlier.

This was the fastest way to reach the west gate, so they all headed there with determined looks on their faces.

Alex was torn between finding Latifa and fighting alongside the dwarves who had treated Kael like a true friend.

In the end, he decided to follow them. Getting rid of the invaders would ensure the princess’ safety as well.

As soon as they arrived on the lower floors of the fortress, they met a barbarian raiding group, and a battle immediately commenced.

The dwarves fighting alongside Alex might be short, but they were no pushovers.

They were Dwarven Reavers, which was a rank higher than ordinary warriors.

The Ranks of the Dwarven Military were Dwarven Warriors, Dwarven Reavers, Chosen, and Champions.

Alex was the apprentice of the smith, whose main role was to forge weapons, armors, and shields.

But despite all that, Alex could feel strength within his arms, which he had never felt before.

The hammer in his hand didn’t feel like a stranger but a friend that had accompanied him all his life.

Familiar words escaped his lips as he raised his hammer to attack the Barbarian who was charging in his direction.

"Hammer of All Seasons First Form!" Alex roared.

"Bone Breaker!"

Alex swung his hammer after evading the war axe of the Barbarian by a hairsbreadth.

A resounding crack reached his ears as his hammer smashed at the Barbarian’s armor, denting it deeply, soon followed by a loud cry in pain.

But Alex’s attack didn’t end there.

As if he were forging a weapon, his hammer hummed in both excitement and fervor as its Master connected his follow-up attack with a backhand blow that hit his opponent’s head, giving a resounding crack.

Alex didn’t even need to look because he was certain that the Barbarian was now dead.

His blood boiled as the battle lust took hold of his senses.

With a roar that came from the very depths of the dwarf named Kael, Alex swung his hammer once more, the melodies of steel echoing within the fortress where Dwarves and Barbarians fought to the death!