Roger noticed his old friend's dejection and smirked.
He understood it was Steel Body's effect, but he was more interested in Reyn's words about Harken being immune to mental spells.
That meant Reyn himself had the same immunity.
As far as he recalled, only the Legendary element Truthful Will had such a powerful effect.
Seeing Roger's curiosity, Reyn didn't hesitate and admitted outright:
"I recently chanced upon Truthful Will and already integrated it."
Earlier, Harken's clone had mentioned the Legendary element in front of Zoltan.
Hiding it was impossible.
Though Roger and Zoltan might have guessed, hearing it straight from Reyn was still a bit shocking.
"No wonder Harken's clone acted like that," it dawned on Zoltan.
Even the usually unflappable Roger shook his head and sighed:
"Steel Body and Truthful Will... You're a very unusual battle mage. Now, even without spells, few could stand against you in close combat."
"Heh-heh, how interesting..." Roger's face lit up with anticipation.
He didn't press Reyn further on his secrets and said:
"We need to leave immediately. Harken's clone died here—he'll surely come after us."
"Surely?" Reyn was surprised. "Doesn't Harken know what happened to his clone?"
"Phantom Doppelganger control is range-limited," Roger explained quickly. "At mid-Legendary rank, max distance is five li. Beyond that radius, the clone acts autonomously. Only when it returns to control range can the main body access all its memories and sensations, and swap places freely."
"This clone was destroyed by us, and the Cunning Spirit Worm didn't escape. That means Harken is more than five li away. He'll sense the clone's death but won't know what happened."
"With his speed, he'll be here in under half an hour."
Reyn breathed a sigh of relief.
He'd been worried all this time. Harken knew his name, had seen his face... Reyn had feared endless pursuit from Harken now.
Legendary mid-rank Trickster, master of countless cunning tricks, and moreover the second leader of the Shadow Blade...
To say that Reyn wasn't afraid would be a lie.
He himself was a superhuman—if he couldn't win, he could escape. But what about his family?
Even though he didn't feel strong affection for them, treating them almost like strangers, he couldn't ignore them, because it was because of him that they might be in danger.
Fortunately, the worst scenario didn't come to pass.
The trio immediately set off. First, they returned to the temple with Zoltan to pick up his things.
Before leaving, Zoltan hastily muttered a few prayers before the statue of Moradin.
They exited the temple. Roger suddenly said:
"Wait."
He took a vial of liquid from his belt pouch and sprayed himself and his companions.
"This is a scent neutralizer. It will erase our tracks. Some Shadow Warriors and Tricksters have elements that sharpen their sense of smell, and they can track by scent. We need to be careful."
Reyn nodded.
Roger himself possessed an incredibly keen sense of smell thanks to "Keen Scent" (Elephant Trunk Technique) and was an expert in this field. He knew how to use scents for tracking and how to counter them.
Finishing the spraying, Roger sniffed and nodded:
"Done."
Determining the direction, they quickly left the place.
The Throne Hall Dungeon was the central zone of the fourth level, possibly the most important place in the entire Ironbeard's Hold. From here, numerous paths branched out—more than a dozen exits.
Roger deliberately chose the path opposite to the one they had come by.
However, as soon as they reached the edge of the dungeon and were about to enter the tunnel, Reyn heard noise from the far end of the hall.
He spun around sharply, listened for a few seconds, and quietly warned:
"Harken is here."
"So fast!" Zoltan was stunned and tensed slightly.
"He must have been nearby to get here so quickly," Roger's face remained impassive. He scanned the surroundings, thought for a moment, and said: "It's too late to leave now, too much noise. First, find a place to hide."
Not far from the tunnel entrance, in the rock wall, there was a carved-out chamber.
The stone room was half-destroyed, but the remaining part was intact. Moreover, it was positioned high enough above the dungeon floor to observe the entire hall from above.
The trio quickly took cover inside, holding their breath and peering out through a small window in the wall.
Several figures appeared on the opposite side of the dungeon. They moved as if they already knew the location and headed straight to where Harken's double had been killed.
Reyn, to avoid attracting attention with a direct gaze, watched them out of the corner of his eye.
There were four of them, all looking different.
One was a tall man in heavy, masterfully crafted armor, with a two-handed sword on his back. His confident stride betrayed a warrior who relied on close-combat strength.
Judging by the elements of his soul, this was a Grand Swordmaster!
The Grand Swordmaster, like the Steel Knight, was an advanced specialization of the Iron Guard. However, the Grand Swordmaster specialized in offense, while the Steel Knight focused on defense. Both were oriented toward melee combat.
The other three: a woman with an enchanted longbow—an Elemental Archer; a mage in a black robe—the rarest Dark Mage, that is, Dark Wizard; and the last—a middle-aged man in Shadow Warrior garb, with an unremarkable appearance and cold gaze. This was Harken himself.
Reyn immediately realized this was Harken's main body, a Legendary mid-rank Trickster.
His three companions were actually his Phantasmal doubles, taking different forms. Each possessed the power of a Legendary beginner rank.
It resembled a perfectly balanced adventuring party.
The Grand Swordmaster led, taking hits in close combat. The Dark Wizard provided magical fire support. The Elemental Archer attacked from afar. And the Trickster, aka Shadow Warrior, directed from the shadows, delivering surprise strikes.
Moreover, essentially, they were all the same being, acting with perfect coordination and clear role distribution.
Reyn fully felt the power and terror of a Legendary Trickster.
He involuntarily turned and looked at Roger.
"One Trickster equals a whole team. Several Legendary doubles attacking together... Master Roger managed to escape them alive. Incredible!"
Meanwhile, below, Harken and his doubles reached the site of the previous battle.
The three doubles spread out, while the main body picked up the bizarre shortsword cleaved in two from the ground. Harken examined it closely for a long time, saying nothing.
Pocketing the broken sword, he followed the tracks on the ground leading to Moradin's temple.
Moments later, the four Legends arrived at the temple and entered.
Harken and his doubles stayed inside for a long time. Silence fell over the dungeon.
Reyn and his companions exchanged glances, not understanding what was happening. Apart from rune knowledge, they had left no traces in the temple.
Zoltan was nervous, eyes fixed on the temple entrance.
This was one of the few surviving temples of Moradin after his death. He didn't want followers of an evil god to desecrate it.
Just as the dwarf's patience was running out, Harken and his doubles finally emerged.
They left the temple and, upon reaching the square in front of it, suddenly all turned around at once.
Reyn sensed something was wrong. Before the thought could fully form, the dungeon shook from a powerful explosion.
Boom...
The majestic Moradin temple collapsed under the blast wave. Stones flew in all directions, thick dust rose. A powerful magical shockwave swept through half the dungeon. The temple turned into a pile of ruins in an instant.
Zoltan froze, staring at it with a glassy gaze. Then he was ready to charge forward with a cry.
Roger reacted instantly, striking the dwarf on the neck with the edge of his palm and knocking him out.
Reyn caught Zoltan's limp body, preventing him from falling and making noise that might attract Harken's attention.
After destroying Moradin's temple, Harken didn't linger. The Dark Wizard double activated a magic scroll, and a portal appeared on the square.
Harken and his doubles entered the portal one by one and vanished.
The portal closed.
But Reyn and Roger remained silent and didn't rush out of hiding. As if by agreement, they continued watching the temple ruins intently.
A quarter of an hour later, in the darkness near the ruins, a faint glow flickered.
It was the bizarre shortsword. As if held by an invisible hand, it hovered in the air for a few seconds, then was hurled forward with force.
The sword turned into a dim light streak and flew two to three hundred meters.
Just before landing, a figure emerged from the sword's hilt, catching it. The man was in a semi-invisible state. Grabbing the hilt, he threw the sword forward again and vanished himself.
After several such "passes," the sword flew beyond the dungeon.
Reyn and Roger exchanged glances and sighed in relief simultaneously.
As a Legendary mid-rank Trickster, Harken was extremely cunning. Unless he had other Phantasmal doubles, he had definitely left the area.
At least, Reyn's Will of Truth no longer detected hidden targets.
Evidently, Harken had given up the enemy search. Ironbeard's Hold space was comparable to a city. Without clues, finding a few people here was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
Even with ten times more doubles, the search could take months with no results.
So Harken decided to destroy Moradin's temple.
Without the temple's rune array energy, people outside couldn't use the teleportation circle to enter the stronghold. And if the passage on the first level was guarded, those inside couldn't escape either.
At that moment, Zoltan came to. Opening his eyes, he jumped to his feet. Seeing the temple ruins, he couldn't hold back tears. They flowed from under his mechanical glasses, wetting his beard.
Reyn didn't know how to comfort him and just patted the dwarf on the shoulder.
After a long time, Zoltan wiped his tears. He took an ancient book from his metal box and began quickly writing in it with a brush. In a hoarse voice, he declared:
"By Mahal! I won't forget this grudge! My clan won't forget! My descendants won't forget! As long as my line endures, we will eternally avenge ourselves on Harken and the Shadow Blade!"
Reyn sighed. This was the dwarven Book of Grudges.
Every dwarf, every family, every clan had its own Book of Grudges. They recorded enemy names or events causing enmity and swore revenge.
If a dwarf couldn't avenge himself in life, the Book of Grudges passed to his descendants.
Zoltan entered this event into his Book of Grudges. If his clan recognized the grudge upon return, it would enter the clan's Book of Grudges, and possibly even the Great Book of Grudges of the entire dwarven people. Then all dwarves would be obligated to join the revenge.
An entry from the Book of Grudges was removed only when dwarves deemed the enemy had paid sufficiently.
Finishing writing, Zoltan closed the Book of Grudges and regained his composure.
Reyn looked at Roger and quietly asked:
"What's happening on the first level? Any chance to slip through unnoticed?"
"Very difficult," Roger shook his head. "The Shadow Blade and Dark Sun are working together. Several dark mages set up numerous magic traps in the outer passage. Legends are constantly on guard there. Can only pass by fighting, no other way."
Reyn groaned inwardly.
One Harken was already a huge threat, and there was also the high-rank Legendary Dark Mage Tinos, and a whole crowd of Loxi followers—all superhumans.
If even Roger with his power didn't dare break through by force, for Reyn it would be certain death.
Roger paused and said:
"Harken didn't find us. If he doesn't want unforeseen complications, he'll likely act on his plan ahead of schedule. We need to hurry."
Reyn nodded. This was almost certain.
He hesitated no longer. Taking out his communicator watch, he checked the time. It was evening; outside, it probably wasn't fully dark yet.
Reyn pressed the button and said:
"Captain, where are you now?"
Less than half a minute later, the watch vibrated slightly, and Pollock's voice sounded:
"I'm home, resting. About to have dinner. Reyn, something wrong?"
Reyn thought for a few seconds and replied:
"I have a very important and urgent matter, but I'm not in Longsand. Captain, could you go in my place? Head straight to Vigo Manor right now and find Lady Viola. Tell her to contact me."
"Got it," Pollock replied immediately.