Beckford spread his hands slightly, and more figures appeared above him, one after another. However, compared to Beckford's illusion, which was nearly lifelike, these new figures were clearly just projections.
A dense array of figures flickered in the air above Beckford. For Brent, who had gathered the adventurers here, he could recognize most of them.
"The situation is very bad."
While Brent was identifying these people, Ethan noticed something else.
"These people don't seem to be held together. It looks like they're being kept in completely different places."
Beckford withdrew his outstretched hands, and the illusions above him vanished as well. Then he confirmed Ethan's guess himself.
"They are all held in various locations throughout the castle. If you attack any part of the castle, you could cause innocent casualties."
Ethan curled his lip. He had expected this. It was clear Beckford didn't want him to destroy the castle with a single strike, but wanted them to enter it.
"What exactly do you want?"
Beckford suddenly smiled. It was the first expression he'd shown since appearing. It was a friendly smile, but the moment everyone saw it, they felt a chill run down their spines.
"I want to play a game."
"…"
Ethan was at a loss for words. That line was far too cliché, and he had no desire to respond.
But Ethan wasn't the only one standing there. The one who was truly concerned about the lives of those adventurers wasn't him, but Brent—the man who had brought everyone here.
He felt responsible. Since he had brought everyone to this island, it was his duty to bring them all back safely.
"What game?"
"The game is simple. You rescue everyone and find the island's magic core. That's how you win."
Beckford didn't explain what counted as a win, because the answer was obvious.
No one asked what failure meant. Brent and Brad already knew what Beckford had been doing in secret. If they failed, they would also be trapped in the castle, and their final fate would be either death or being turned into undead.
And since becoming undead meant being controlled and enslaved by Beckford, death might actually be the better option.
"Why are you doing this? Why set up some kind of game?"
Ethan was genuinely curious. Why was Beckford suddenly doing something like this?
If Beckford thought he and the others were a threat, why not just come out and eliminate them directly? Was it because he wasn't actually on the island?
"Because I want to," Beckford nodded at Ethan. "That's all."
After saying that, Beckford's illusion disappeared. He had made his attitude clear—come and play the game. If they won, the imprisoned adventurers would be saved, and the island's magic core would be found. Whether they destroyed it or dealt with it some other way, this "massive island" blocking the trade route would vanish, and the route would return to normal.
If they failed... no one needed to ask. Everyone understood the consequences.
"I'll go in."
Brent was the first to speak up.
"I'll go in alone. I have a responsibility to rescue them all. But I can't ask you to enter such a dangerous place with me."
Ethan really wanted to say Brent was making a lot of sense. But the problem was, did he truly believe Beckford would let them leave if they didn't enter? Ethan seriously doubted it.
"Could it be that he wants to split us up?"
That wasn't out of the question. A concentrated force was always harder to deal with than a scattered one. Besides, Ethan couldn't just let Brent go in alone.
If Brent got trapped in the castle and Beckford later threw him back out and asked whether Ethan would save him, what was he supposed to do? Abandon the mission and retreat?
While Ethan wouldn't claim to be the most righteous person, he couldn't bring himself to do something like that.
"Even though we know it's a trap, I won't let you go in alone," Ethan said, looking at Brent and Brad. "Only by staying together can we maximize our strength. Even if we encounter a trap, I believe we can overcome it with our combined abilities."
If they split up...
Everyone understood the logic, but in the face of danger, many people wouldn't make that choice.
Ethan was different because he had enough trump cards and escape routes. There was no harm in trying it together.
"If he wants to play a game, then let's play along."
Brad might have had some doubts, but with both Ethan and Brent determined to enter the castle, he had no room to object.
Exchanging glances with Liz beside him, Brad saw the look she gave him, clearly suggesting something, but after a moment's hesitation, he chose to act with the group.
Just as Ethan had said, what if Beckford really wanted to split them up on purpose? If Ethan and Brent went into the castle and only Liz stayed behind, he didn't believe staying outside would be any safer.
"Let's go. Let's see what's so special about this castle. That lunatic seems to think that just by getting us inside, he's already won."
Everyone began moving forward again. This time, they were much more careful and had already drawn their weapons.
Logan still walked at the front, even keeping a slight distance from the others, to give them time to react if something happened.
But all the way to the castle wall, and even as they stood at the open gate, nothing happened.
Coupled with the light rain falling from the gray sky, it felt like they had simply come across a ruined castle on an ordinary, desolate island.
"If it weren't for those wandering undead, this castle would actually be kind of nice."
After living on a ship for so long, Ethan truly wanted a home on land. In his spare time, he had thought about many options, and a castle was naturally among them.
But he wasn't considering this one. Looking at the zombies that had already noticed them and were beginning to shuffle closer, Ethan definitely didn't want his future home filled with these kinds of things.
"Let's clear these zombies out first."
Normally, they would have just broken through the zombies and entered the castle. Once the gate was shut, the undead wouldn't be able to get in. Judging from how they moved, these low-level undead had no intelligence and certainly didn't know how to open doors.
But Ethan considered the possibility that they might block the gate. They were here to rescue people, and it would be awkward if, after saving someone, the way out was blocked.
He was used to clearing threats in advance. Even if it seemed like a waste of time, he didn't mind at all.
"We also have to consider that we're rescuing a lot of people. Some of them might not want to stick with us and might head back to the shore immediately. It'd be a shame if, after all that trouble, they walked out the door and got killed by zombies right away."
Everyone imagined that scenario and had no words. It was better to clear them out now. It wouldn't take much effort anyway.
After confirming that the front courtyard was safe, they pushed open the castle gate and entered one after another.
Just as George, who was at the end, stepped through the entrance, the open gate slammed shut. When he turned back and tried to open it, he found it tightly sealed, as solid as a wall. No matter how hard he pulled, it didn't budge.
"Not surprising at all."
Only Ethan hadn't turned around. He wasn't surprised this happened. Instead, he was studying the interior layout of the castle.
There was nothing complex in front of him. A staircase rose up to a platform, then branched diagonally to either side. From where he stood, he couldn't see what lay at the end of the stairs.
There were also several doors to either side of where he was standing, though he didn't know what lay behind them.
"This castle is enormous. Finding the scattered adventurers in here won't be easy."
"That's not the worst part," Brad, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke. "I just tried something and found that my combat suit's functions have significantly weakened. My magic stone weapons can't function properly either."
To demonstrate, Brad swung his longsword.
"Normally, my sword generates a sharp energy blade when I swing it, extending my attack range significantly. But now, it's no different from an ordinary sword."
Brent immediately drew his greatsword and swung it hard. The dazzling flames that had appeared in previous battles didn't appear at all.
"What's going on?"
Brent had never encountered this kind of situation before—he hadn't even heard of it. He could only look to Brad, hoping the adventurer from the Sea of Miracles could offer an explanation.
"I'm not entirely sure, but I've heard rumors that there are islands in the Sea of Miracles where magic stone equipment fails. I've never encountered one myself… Maybe Beckford figured out the trick and is using it against us."
With their magic stone gear suppressed, everyone's combat capabilities were significantly reduced. And now they were in a castle that Beckford had clearly prepared in advance. However you looked at it, this situation was looking worse by the second.
But despite that, Brent noticed that Ethan and his companions remained completely calm, as if they didn't care about the situation at all.
Of course Ethan didn't care. None of them relied on magic stone equipment. This strange suppression had no effect on them whatsoever.
(To be continued.)
***
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