Manor Lord of the Elf World

Chapter 62 The Mine
After quickly settling the lily root doll, Raven immediately set off for the mine.

When he arrived there, he saw a group of miners digging clay from the ground with tools such as picks and shovels.

Freshly dug soil is loaded onto carts pulled by buffalo with frizzy heads, and then transported back to the territory.

Wild small fist-shaped rocks could be vaguely seen on the surrounding mountain paths, but the miners' work area was some distance away from them, so they were not attacked.

"Where is that snake-like monster?" Raven asked, looking at the huge ore in front of him.

Morrick pointed to the ridge in front of him and answered with some fear:
"Right there, that monster came out from there earlier. The earth was rumbling like there was an earthquake! But it didn't attack us and quickly disappeared into the mountains."

Listening to Morric's description, Raven thought to himself: It really is Onix.

The mine in front of them had already been opened up by miners led by Morrick.

The cave was very dark, so the miners lit torches for illumination.

But when Raven went inside to check, he was surprised to find that there was actually a lot of space inside!
The mine is a complex network of interconnected passages, with some even extending underground.

"You dug this out?" Raven asked, somewhat surprised.

“No, of course not!” Morrick shook his head: “We can’t do that with our strength alone, but judging from the size and shape of these holes and passages, they are very likely to have been made by that huge serpent beast!”

Raven nodded. He looked around and saw that there weren't many Pokémon on the outskirts of the mine, only some Geodude and Rockruff.

“Our workers have discovered traces of iron ore and coal down there, but it’s very dark down there, and terrifying monster roars can be heard from the depths. We dare not go any further at the moment…” Morrick said.

Monsters living underground...

It's probably the evolved forms of Rockruff, such as Mantle Rock and Crabtree & Evelynn.

"I'll go down and take a look." After a brief moment of thought, Raven made his decision.

"Your Highness, you mustn't!" Morrick quickly stopped him. "The investigation below hasn't been completed yet. It would be terrible if you were in danger!"

“Don’t worry, I can protect myself,” Raven reassured him.

Both iron ore and coal are very important resources for their territory.

We can't give up so easily.

“Your Highness…then may we go down with you?” Morrick said after a moment’s hesitation.

“No need.” Raven shook his head: “The passage below is narrow, and too many people will only make things worse. Give me a torch, and you can just wait up there.”

Left with no other choice, the others had to follow Raven's instructions and bring him a torch.

Raven reached out and took them, then led Snivy and Dratini into the mine.

The underground mine was pitch black, but the torchlight illuminated the surroundings.

Here, Raven saw a Pokémon ecosystem completely different from that on the ground.

Besides the pangolin that curls up into a ball and rolls along the ground, you can also see the rock maggot and the rock crab.

Continuing on, Raven spotted another wild screw gopher not far away.

The gopher was attracted by the commotion. Upon seeing him, it panicked and dug a hole with its claws and disappeared in no time.

"Hmm, most of the Pokémon on this floor aren't very aggressive. If we don't provoke them, there shouldn't be too much danger," Raven thought to himself.

However, at that moment, a terrifying roar suddenly came from the depths of the mine.

The sound immediately alerted the Dratini and Snivy.

Raven heard the voice as well, and he immediately frowned.

Is that the roar that Morrick was talking about?

The sound didn't seem like Onix's cry; instead, it sounded like a Pokémon Raven had heard before.

The shame of the dragon race, the Crimson-Faced Dragon!
"Judging from the sound, it seems to be some distance away from us," Raven thought to himself.

Even so, he couldn't guarantee that the red-faced dragon wouldn't come this way.

Because of their ferocious and cunning nature, the Red-faced Dragon Pokémon will steal the nests dug by other Pokémon and use them as their own. They won't even spare the tunnels dug by Excadrill or Onix, let alone those dug by Diglett and Dugtrio.

Who knows when that red-faced dragon might come here and attack the miners who come to mine?

"Teng Teng?"

At that moment, the Snivy beside Raven seemed to sense something and turned its gaze toward a tunnel.

Raven followed its gaze and saw a giant rock with strange patterns carved on it.

Half of the stone was exposed, while the rest was buried in the soil.

Raven was stunned when he saw the ancient patterns on it.

That is……

The pattern resembled some kind of ancient design. Raven glanced over it and noticed an ancient symbol that somewhat resembled the sun.

Could it be a trace left by some earlier civilization?
As far as Raven knew, their current timeline roughly corresponded to the Middle Ages in the real world.

But before that, some even more ancient civilizations had emerged in this world.

For example, totem civilizations similar to primitive tribes.

Looking at the ancient stone tablet, Raven couldn't help but wonder: Could it be that the inside of this ore contains the ruins of an ancient civilization?

Just then, a small geode slowly floated out from a passage.

At first, the little Geodude didn't react, but when it saw Raven and the others, it immediately waved its two fists and angrily charged towards them.

Raven: "..."

As expected, it is known for its bad temper, stubbornness, and violent and easily angered nature.

"Vine snake, vine whip."

Snivy stood in front of Raven and lashed out with its vine whip at the little Geodude. With a fourfold elemental advantage, it sent the Geodude flying with a single blow.

"Boom!"

It seemed that the commotion had attracted the attention of some being, for another loud noise came from deep within the mine.

Immediately afterwards, a huge figure rolled rapidly towards them from the end of the mine.

That's... Geodude's evolved form, Golem!
Raven's expression changed slightly. In such a narrow passage, if that rumbler were to come crashing down, they would have no way to avoid it!
At that moment, the rumbler also noticed the little fist rock that had fallen unconscious.

It immediately turned its angry gaze toward Raven.

Seeing this, Raven gave the order without hesitation:

"Mini Dragon, Tornado, Snivy, Vine Whip!"

"Woo!"

"Fujiteng!"

The two attacks were launched simultaneously, but they seemed to have little effect on the hard rock body of the rumbler, instead enraging it even more.

Seeing this, Raven turned around without hesitation: "Back off!"

"Boom boom boom!"

With its huge, thick fist pounding its body, Rumble Rock roared to the sky and then rolled violently toward Raven.

Fortunately, at the crucial moment, Raven successfully returned to the upper level of the mine with Dratini and Snivy.

The rumbler roared loudly from below.

Looking at the group of miners whose faces were filled with worry, Raven spoke:

"Let's not go down to mine for now. Let's finish mining these veins in the upper layer first!"

(End of this chapter)