Chapter 393 - Capturing the Gnome Noble

Three days later, the gnome noble led the 1,000 giant gnomes toward the mine. As they drew near, the army’s scout noticed that something was wrong. “My lord! Undead creatures lurk within the mine.”

The gnome noble froze in confusion. He had heard of the undead before. They were monsters raised from corpses. Any area that housed them was considered as ominous and would draw even more of their kind over time.

The gnome noble was in a dilemma. The mine belonged to the gnomes, and abandoning it so easily felt unthinkable. Yet, the presence of undead was an ill omen, and he dared not march into their lair without more knowledge. After weighing his options, he ordered the scout to monitor the mine and gather more information.

Another three days passed before the scout returned with a full report.

From the report, the gnome noble learned that the mine contained only the lowest-ranked skeletons, numbering no more than a few hundred. Even if their summoner was hiding within, the small number suggested that the other party was weak.

Encouraged, the gnome noble ordered an all-out attack, sending the entire army of giant gnomes charging toward the mine. As they closed in on its outskirts, the skeletons emerged to meet them, just as the gnomes had expected.

The skeletons were pitifully weak. One strike was enough to reduce them to splinters, and none posed any real threat. The army of giant gnomes reached the mine’s entrance without much difficulty.

“Attack! Kill the rebelling slaves!” the gnome noble thundered.

The 1,000 giant gnomes marched forward in single file and pushed into the mine. Han Wu, in the form of a Thunder Sparrow, observed the invasion unfold. He had already learned of the gnome noble’s advance when the scout was snooping around the mine. He then tailed it back and discovered the gnome army’s location.

A thousand giant gnomes were a daunting force for him and the slaves, but the mine itself gave him the advantage. With traps in place, he could whittle them down with ease. For three days he had driven the slaves to rig the mine and to wait for the gnome army to step inside.

The moment the giant gnomes entered, Han Wu let out a piercing cry. It was the signal that he had agreed upon with the human slaves, who lay near the mine’s vents waiting for his call.

Once they got the signal, they launched their retaliation. Akanzor leapt from hiding and drew the giant gnomes’ attention. This was all part of their plan.

“We found a slave! Follow him, and we’ll find the others,” the gnome noble shouted.

𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

The giant gnomes spotted him at once and chased after Akanzor, driving him deeper into the mine through the cramped corridor. None of them realized that they had walked into the slaves’ trap.

Akanzor reached a dead end, signaling the success of his mission. The giant gnomes chuckled when they realized he had nowhere left to flee. “Human, you have nowhere to run. Tell us where the other slaves are.”

Akanzor’s body was shivering as they slowly closed in but not from fear—excitement coursed through him. He crouched low and reached for the weapon that his god had bestowed him: the Overlord Sabre. He had hidden it there ahead of time.

The giant gnomes were shocked and edged back to put some distance between themselves and Akanzor. The sharper among them quickly noticed that his Overlord Sabre was no ordinary weapon.

“Human, hand over your weapon, and we will spare you,” the leader said and carefully approached Akanzor.

The others grumbled because they were one step too late. To them, a human was nothing to fear; even ten together posed no threat. The leader stood ten meters away from Akanzor when the latter shouted and drove the Overlord Sabre into the ground.

The stone floor split under the weapon’s force, and cracks raced outward until they widened into deep fissures before Akanzor. This was the slaves

’

trap.

The ground shattered beneath the giant gnomes, plunging them into a pit lined with razor-sharp spikes made out of hard stone. More than fifty of the giant gnomes were impaled and died, while the rest were heavily injured.

Akanzor smiled, swung the Overlord Sabre into the wall beside him, and revealed a narrow corridor barely wide enough for one person. He quickly escaped through the corridor.

The giant gnomes had fallen for Akanzor’s trap. Rather than pursue him, they turned back to retreat. They had barely taken a few steps when the ground shook violently. A cascade of stones and rocks fell from the ceiling and blocked the path to the entrance.

The giant gnomes all realized that they had been deceived. With no other path open, they were forced to funnel into the same corridor that Akanzor had taken, squeezing through one by one in a slow, constricted line.

At the far end of the corridor, hundreds of armed slaves lay in wait, ready to spring their ambush! The terrain gave them every advantage, and they held unwavering confidence that they could kill the giant gnomes if they emerged one by one.

A Skeleton Knight was standing among the human slaves. Its task was to turn the corpses into skeletons to aid the human slaves in their battle.

The gnome noble outside didn’t know that his army was in trouble. He had been waiting for several hours for news. Even the scout that he had sent in hadn’t returned.

He realized that something must’ve gone wrong. The giant gnomes could have died in the mine. Faced with the prospect of danger, he decided to flee.

When the gnome noble turned around, he found Han Wu was blocking the path. He raised his sabre and tried to intimidate Han Wu. “Human, do you know who I am? I am the nephew of the Gnome Lord who governs the deep mountains. If you dare lay one hand on me, you will suffer his wrath!”

In reality, the gnome noble was very afraid. His status as a noble made his life far more valuable than the worth of the giant gnomes and the Gnome Warriors. A thousand giant gnomes did not equal even a single joint of his fingers. At that moment, his only concern was his own safety, not the lives of the 1,000 giant gnomes. Once he returned, he would have to report the news to the Gnome Lord and request for thousands of Gnome Warriors to level this entire mine.

Han Wu ignored the gnome noble’s threats. He brandished a 2-Star God longsword and pointed it at the gnome noble.

“You dare point a sword at me? You shall die!” the gnome noble shouted. He understood that escape depended on defeating the man before him, so he struck first.

Unfortunately for him, the gnome noble was woefully inexperienced compared to Han Wu, who was a God. Even as a mere clone right now that couldn’t use his powerful Skills, he still retained his muscle memories and battle instincts. Within a few exchanges, he easily injured the gnome noble.

Rather than finish him off, Han Wu commanded two skeletons to drag him into the mine. The gnome noble’s life could be valuable to him right now.