Chapter 11 of the Rift on Basement Level 1.
Or rather, by my count, it's Chapter 3, but anyway.
The clear condition for this chapter is simple.
After rescuing Elwen and me, we just have to survive until night inside this city, and that's it.
By the way, this information came from the navigation ability of the mage Gavhin Vesilarius…
"…You say you just 'intuitively know,' but can you explain it in more detail?"
"Heh heh, I would like to… but with my literary skills, I cannot express it any better."
"Then don't express it—just answer my questions. Yes or no only. You can do that, right?"
"Well, since we have to wait until night anyway, go ahead."
"Do you hear a voice in your head or something?"
"Hmm, no."
"Then do you have to see something for it to come to you?"
"No, it's not that either. Each time the location changes, I just feel like I instantly know what to do… Oh, of course, sometimes when I gain clues or information, I get that feeling too."
"I see."
As I kept firing questions like twenty questions, I understood why this old man could only call it intuition.
'It's almost like his sixth sense stat is maximized for rift exploration.'
If I had to explain it, this is the limit even for me.
Of course, there's no doubt it's a convenient ability.
But my overall judgment was that relying only on this could lead to serious trouble.
"By the way… Baron Yandel, you have an incredible curiosity. I'm truly surprised. Heh heh heh…"
Gavhin Vesilarius smiled kindly and said that to me.
Literally, it could be shortened to:
'Stop bothering me already.'
Why do nobles always like to talk in such roundabout ways?
"One last question."
"…What is it?"
"Can you tell me what happens if we leave the city before night without waiting?"
"This doesn't even need a yes or no answer. You can't leave the city in the first place."
"Can't leave?"
"A highly advanced dimensional magic surrounds this city, invisible to ordinary barrier magic. Others might have passed normally, but we cannot."
"I see… That's all the questions I have, as promised. Thank you. Now rest."
"Heh heh…"
As if it was the words he wanted to hear, Gavhin said nothing more and went to sit in a corner.
Watching him carefully crouch while holding his back was both amusing and puzzling.
'Why does this old man look the same as ever?'
Because of that, I couldn't fully immerse myself.
Elwen, who plays the younger sister, has become a child, but why is this old man just unchanged?
'No, how did he even attend the academy like that?'
He was the only old man in school uniform among children, yet no one seemed to look strangely?
I got curious about what happened to Gavhin in Chapter 1, but decided to ask later when I had time.
If I asked now, he'd probably be annoyed…
And I'm not lacking conversation partners.
"Archbishop Hestaya."
"…Yes, Baron. What brings you?"
"Just wanted to have a quick talk."
I plopped down next to the archbishop, who moved aside as if uncomfortable and gave me some distance.
"There's nothing more to say about my abilities beyond what I mentioned earlier…"
"That's fine. I didn't come to ask about that."
"Then…?"
The archbishop glanced at me with a suspicious look.
Apparently, she expected me to be as bothersome as I was with Gavhin earlier…
But that's not what I wanted to ask.
"There's one thing I want to ask about the Reatlas Church's internal affairs."
"Internal affairs of the church… you say?"
When I hinted at it, her expression immediately stiffened.
If she had been a kindly neighbor just moments ago, now she gave off the pressure of a business partner at a negotiation table.
"Just… say it."
Neither a clear acceptance nor refusal.
So I began by testing the waters.
"I'm curious about Sven Parab's standing within the church."
"Sven Parab's standing…"
The archbishop faltered for a moment and stared at me.
Her gaze was too fierce for a religious person.
She didn't seem willing to answer such a probing question.
So only one option remained.
"Archbishop, it seems you and the other members dislike and harass Sven Parab. So—"
"Did Sir Parab tell you that, Baron?"
"He didn't say it. It just looks that way to me."
"Hmm, is that so?"
She seemed thoughtful for a moment, then fixed her eyes on me and answered.
"That's a misunderstanding."
"A misunderstanding…?"
"Yes."
"But from what I see—"
"Even if it looks that way to you, it's just a misunderstanding. So please, Baron, focus only on what you must do."
"Uh…"
"It's church business anyway, right?"
Though her tone and expression were displeased, I didn't show much and took a step back.
"…Understood."
I was quite surprised by her strong reaction.
And secondly…
'It's suspicious that she reacts as if it's a sacred taboo.'
That reaction alone was valuable.
If she was just a demon intended to be a disposable pawn, she wouldn't have reacted like that.
'So there must be another reason…'
Hmm, what could it be?
While I pondered, I saw Gavhin leaning against the wall, glancing at me.
Apparently, our conversation with the archbishop was bothering him.
"Ahem."
Our eyes met; Gavhin turned his head awkwardly and closed his eyes.
'…I should rest too.'
After that, I went to rest beside Elwen.
How much time passed?
"Sir Vesilarius, it's well past nightfall. How much longer do we have to wait?"
As nothing happened by midnight, we decided after discussion to leave the basement and go up to the first floor.
Gavhin had a feeling we should go up…
"Here you were hiding! We've been looking everywhere!"
A knight wandering alone in the empty house spotted us—or rather, Gavhin—and approached with ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) arms open.
"Who might you be…?"
"Haha! Who else? Don't you recognize a friend's face even after such a long time?"
The knight greeted warmly and removed his helmet.
"…"
From his expression, Gavhin still didn't know who this was.
But…
"Sir, I've met that person. The imperial knight who helped us escape from the village. That knight."
"Haha, the little girl hasn't grown much since then, has she?"
Elwen was familiar with the mysterious knight.
And…
"Yandel, your situation seems similar too."
Coincidentally, I was familiar with him as well.
[Escort the girl. Ensure she reaches her destination.]
Though aged with time, this was the knight who commissioned me as a bodyguard in Chapter 1.
This wasn't particularly surprising.
Hiding Elwen in the cave and commissioning me as her escort? That was reasonable.
That he was friends with Gavhin, who played the older brother role, was also plausible.
The real surprise came next.
"Oh, there are some people meeting us for the first time, so introductions first."
The knight smiled cheerfully and announced his name.
"Ravigion Kemmelvi Lapdonia."
To anyone from this world, that name didn't sound like a person's.
As soon as I heard it, groans like death rattles echoed everywhere.
"Ah…"
"Uh…"
"Hmm…"
…This man is the Immortal King?
Immortal King, Ravigion III.
The one who saved Lapdonia, once a mere territory, from destruction and made it the continent's final stronghold.
The chief belittled his achievements by saying it was all just because he had 'good friends,' but the truth of his historicity remains.
However…
"Everyone just calls me Ravigion. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. And a friend of a friend is a friend, isn't that so?"
Because of that, his sly attitude felt very strange.
In my mind, the Immortal King was a monster exuding overwhelming charisma and an intimidating aura.
"Well then—."
"Wait! Wait, can we discuss this first? Or rather, should we?"
Gavhin, still playing the 'friend' role, cut him off with his confusion.
"Discuss… Please make way for a moment."
"No need… Magic can do it."
"Do as you wish. But it's best to finish quickly. We don't know when the imperial army will arrive."
"Don't worry. It'll be over soon."
Gavhin, with the knight's permission, immediately activated voice control magic and began speaking.
"A-Are you all really real? The author's, uh, that, that statement…!"
The archbishop was the first to answer.
"Perhaps it's just a coincidence of the name. The third Ravigion means there were also the second and the first, right?"
"Ah, yes… that's right. That's right…"
Finally, his mind seemed to clear somewhat.
Gavhin muttered to himself, as if organizing his thoughts.
"I heard the first and seventeenth lords used the name Ravigion. Being an ancient lineage before the final stronghold was built, the middle name is unknown… Yes, it might be one of those two…"
Gavhin's words strongly felt like he was trying to gather any evidence to deny reality.
Though the chief cut him off without mercy.
"Calm down, Sir Vesilarius. It's already the era of the witch. It can't be Ravigion I or II."
"Ah…"
"If you're curious, ask what his wife's name is. Well, if the author is impersonating the Immortal King, it won't matter."
"T-Then I'll deactivate voice control magic for now."
Gavhin turned off the magic.
But trembling and unable to meet eyes, I spoke instead.
"Ravigion, what is your wife's name?"
"Oh… I guess you suspected someone disguised as me?"
"Answer first."
"Karnon. That's my wife's name. She's currently away, managing the territory instead of me. The tasks you asked for are underway too."
"Tasks I asked for…?"
Gavhin looked puzzled, and the chief cleared his throat and gave a warning glance.
'Ah, I remember. In the previous chapter, behaving oddly sometimes caused things to go wrong…'
There was no need to cause discomfort to the Immortal King, who seemed like an NPC ally.
"Anyway, take this first."
"What is this…?"
"Hmm… You're acting strange today. Isn't this what you asked me to bring, calling me out all this way?"
"Ah… Y-Yeah?"
Gavhin took the black gem with a dazed expression.
Then immediately—
Swoooosh—!
Black mist started seeping out of the gem.
Instinctively, I tried to step back, but my body wouldn't move.
'What, could this be betrayal?'
That possibility flashed through my mind, but thankfully the Immortal King's face was full only of sincere concern.
"Honestly… I still don't really understand."
"…?"
"Even if this thing works properly and we reach the Great Magic View intact, and finally face the Evil God…"
The sudden story started.
Even without the mage's navigation function, I understood immediately.
"There's no guarantee that evil god will grant your wishes."
So that's the mission of the next chapter.
"I'll leave now before the imperial army arrives. Good luck."
With that voice, the world went completely dark.
-x-X-x-
The fifth layer of the Labyrinth, Daemagyeong.
This layer holds quite a monumental meaning for explorers.
That's because it's from this point that explorers truly start operating in clans as groups…
"The treatment changes."
For humans starting out, taxes basically stop being a worry from the 5th floor onward.
Because of that, the residents of Lapdonia consider 5th-floor explorers the best marriage candidates.
It's like getting hired by a major corporation, you could say?
In reality, most 5th-floor explorers enter the Labyrinth as if going to work. And once they reach the 5th floor, they always go to their usual hunting grounds and mine magic stones without rest until the Labyrinth closes, receiving rewards proportional to their results.
Well, many dislike that and choose not to join clans, instead running their own teams…
"Those kinds are probably best seen as successful self-employed."
Anyway, all things considered, the 5th floor remains the number one groom choice.
But…
"It's quite ironic, really."
Preference for spouses is highest at the 5th floor, but from the 6th floor onward, preference actually gradually declines.
Ah, by the way, this information comes from a book in the library.
They surveyed over ten thousand residents directly and compiled it into a book…
The reasons for the decline in preference here are somewhat interesting.
First, they think it's too dangerous.
Second, realistically, meeting would be difficult.
Third, they think they're cranky.
Regarding the third place, you might wonder what that means, but it's actually not an unfounded prejudice.
The flow of time for explorers is different from ordinary people.
Mental wear is different, and from the 6th floor and above, the stress index from exploration rises sharply.
Because of that, among famous explorers, many are known to have cranky personalities—
"Baron, what are you thinking about?"
Hearing the village chief's voice, I ended my reverie.
"Ah… I was just checking the surroundings for a moment."
It wasn't an excuse to brush off the question; it was true.
I really was looking around, and eventually my thoughts led there.
The fifth layer of the Labyrinth, Daemagyeong.
Despite its terrifying name, this layer is relatively safe.
But…
"This is a little different from the place I knew."
The place where we opened our eyes was slightly different from the usual 5th floor we often passed through.
The terrain and overall atmosphere were the same, but there was one decisive difference.
"There shouldn't be any Grade 3 monsters in Daemagyeong."
One of the paths leading downward was completely blocked by a single Grade 3 monster glaring at us.
"Sir, that's a half-demon, right?"
Half-demon.
A 'rare species' monster that's hard to encounter due to some spawn conditions.
I haven't gained any experience points from it yet.
'Since essence isn't required, there's no need for the three of us to waste effort trying to take it down…'
At first, I tensed up the moment I saw it, but for some reason, it only looked up at us from below and didn't approach.
"Gahwin, do you have any idea which way we should go?"
"…Not at all. I don't have any intuition at all. Since the moment we arrived here, it's as if my abilities have disappeared…"
Hmm, I see…
"But still, I can't shake the feeling that this might be the final trial."
"Uh… isn't that just your wishful thinking?"
"Baron… that sounds a little… well, I can't deny it…"
Gahwin sighed deeply and complained.
"It's about time this ended. We've already been here for over half a year!"
I, who woke up in Chapter 11 right after finishing Chapter 2, couldn't offer any consolation.
After all, my playtime was less than 24 hours.
"Enough. Let's put our heads together. To summarize, it seems like we need to find that evil god here. Which direction do you think is best to go?"
Jerome cut through the chaotic atmosphere and organized the situation.
And then…
"Of course."
"No need to think twice."
Gahwin and I answered Jerome simultaneously.
What the hell now.
"Gahwin, you speak first—"
"Baron, you speak first—"
We tried to yield, but our words overlapped again, making the situation awkward.
"..."
"..."
We were both trying to yield, but should I just speak? What if the other side thinks the same and we overlap again?
While hesitating and watching the other,
'Alright, now.'
Seizing the timing, I pointed toward the route blocked by the half-demon and opened my mouth.
But…
"I—"
"I—"
No, why does this old man keep doing this?
So annoying.
"Gahwin, are you doing this on purpose?"
"N-No way!"
When I glared, Gahwin looked back at me with an aggrieved expression.
The village chief calmed us down with an expressionless face amid this ridiculous farce.
"Don't act childish over this. Since both of you just pointed to the same place, it seems you're thinking the same, right?"
"Well… it seems like that…"
"I agree."
Again, Gahwin and I spoke simultaneously.
"Of course—"
"Of course—"
If our lines are the same, now it's actually kind of irritating…
Ah, whatever.
Deciding not to care, I spoke, and unfortunately, Gahwin did the same.
"We have to go there."
"Just avoiding that place should be enough, right?"
After a brief silence, our gazes met once more in the empty air.
"...?"
"...?"
Man, I really don't get along with this old man.
"There's something dangerous over there, so wouldn't it be wiser to go somewhere else?"
Surprisingly, the point where Gahwin's logic started was similar to mine, but the conclusions were completely different.
The reason was in the way we think.
"No. Because it's dangerous, that's why we should go there first."
This chapter is about finding the evil god Karui.
And in my view, Karui was likely located in one of the four types of canyons.
Treasure is usually hidden in such places.
"There's even a helpful signpost, so why would we waste effort going somewhere else?"
"It's too early to conclude it would be wasted effort. It might be a method where after searching the other three places, we find the object we need!"
"What if the攻略 gets harder over time? A wrong choice might lead to irreversible consequences."
"T-That's a huge leap!"
"Gahwin, you have to keep all possibilities open and be cautious in the fissures. Especially since this is the first time entering here. But hearing such careless words…"
"...?"
"You really are a mage, not an explorer."
"W-What?!"
Watching Gahwin's face flush red, I recalled the time on the library island when we debated which Grade 1 monster to summon.
Back then, we had the exact same kind of back-and-forth.
"Anyway, no matter how much we talk, the decision is made by the Count, right? Count, you decide."
Since there was no reason to waste time, I left the decision to the village chief, and naturally, the result was already set.
"Hmm… I think it's best to follow the Baron's opinion."
The chief pretended to ponder for a moment, then raised my hand, ending the discussion on this topic.
"T-That…!"
Gahwin didn't seem happy with the decision but didn't openly argue with the chief, the person in charge.
'Okay, then the route is decided.'
Gahwin gave a wry smile and stepped back. This probably worsened my relationship with the old man, but that was probably for the better.
No, it was rather satisfying, I'd say.
I approached the archbishop, who had been on my mind.
"Archbishop, why have you been staying /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ apart alone since earlier?"
"Ah… ah! I was just thinking. About that evil god. I wondered if there's a chance we might meet that evil god here."
"Why would it be awkward to meet?"
"Well… I don't know."
The archbishop looked very troubled.
Well, maybe that's the kind of anguish only a devout religionist feels.
As a non-religious person, I couldn't understand, but that wasn't something I needed to be concerned about.
"No matter what you worry about, don't let it trip you up by daydreaming. Understand?"
"…I'll manage it just fine."
What a talker.
Anyway, after checking on the archbishop's condition, we briefly explained about the half-demon.
By the way, it was Gahwin, not me, who took the role of teacher.
He might lack an explorer's mindset, but his knowledge was not lacking.
'He misses some details…'
Well, it should be fine.
If I explained in detail, it'd only look strange.
…Also, I was a bit lazy.
"Half-demon defeated. EXP +7."
The fight against the Grade 3 monster half-demon was not particularly difficult. That's because we were all wrapped up in ridiculously strong buffs.
The priest's infinite holy power.
The knight's doubled stats.
The mage's powerful ancient magic.
Even considering that I couldn't reliably fulfill my tank role as before, this amount of bonuses made it easy to cut through a Grade 3 monster.
'Should've tried to take it down with all three of us…'
The loot from the half-demon was only one magic stone, but I wasn't too disappointed.
Those trivial things don't really matter much.
What bothered me more was something else.
"That's not particularly hard. Why is someone at your age so scared?"
"…Baron, what did you say just now?"
"Nothing."
"It wasn't nothing! You just said that to me."
"But you're not exactly young either, right?"
It might seem a little childish, but I held my ground against Gahwin.
Because…
'Since when did you start getting so cocky? Even though you're a noble without a title.'
I needed to put him in his place at least once—
"Sir…"
Just as I was about to reprimand Gahwin further, Elwen called me.
"…Why all of a sudden?"
"J-Just…"
"Just what? Hurry up and say it."
"Well… for some reason, you didn't seem like yourself today…"
Her cautious words somehow made me chuckle.
"What do you mean by 'not myself'?"
Now that I think about it, everyone always expected things from me on their own terms.
Her, Amelia, Misha…
"Oh, why is this not the side you like?"
As I took a step forward, Elwen stepped back, looking at me.
It was the first time I saw her expression filled with fear.
"What the hell… is this?"
Seeing that expression, I instantly snapped out of it.
At the same time, the torrent of emotions that had been swirling without pause became clearly felt.
It was such a natural transition that I hadn't realized it until just a moment ago…
"Damn it."
Now fully aware of my condition, I put the hammer I was holding down on the ground.
And then…
KWAAAANG!
I bent over and struck the hammer with my forehead hard.
"Phew… now I'm coming to my senses."
The moment we entered Daemagyeong, something happened to my head.
Or perhaps…
"Barbaric…"
"..."
"Why, why are you suddenly looking at me like that?"
Maybe I'm not the only one with a problem.
[Character has entered a special area.]
[Field effect – Daemagyeong is applied.]
[Control steadily decreases.]
-x-X-x-
What should I call my current state?
First of all, it's definitely not a status abnormality like 'fear' or 'frenzy.'
But it's certainly not normal.
Thump!
My chest feels tight.
"What, what! You don't mean to hit someone with that—"
"Gahwin, shut up for a moment. Let me think."
It felt as if the filter of my consciousness had disappeared.
Impulsive thoughts kept popping up, and before I could control them, they spilled out of my mouth.
"Sorry, Elwen. I didn't mean to scare you."
"No, no! I'm not scared!"
"…Not scared, huh."
I should probably apologize again, right? That thought barely crossed my mind before I spoke out immediately.
So, what is the cause of this phenomenon?
'It must be the field effect.'
I don't know the detailed description of the effect.
It's likely a mental-type debuff…
"Does it get stronger as time passes?"
Hmm, seems so.
I was fine when we first arrived here.
From the start point, as time passed, my mental state became strange.
And…
"So the old man is similar, huh."
"…Old man?"
"Ah, sorry. I was just thinking silently."
"What the hell are you thinking? Why did you suddenly bang your head on your hammer, and what were those things you just said—"
Ah, annoying chatter again.
"I'll tell you, so be quiet."
I really wanted to just start by smashing him with the hammer, but I held back with patience.
"Something is wrong with my head. Strong impulses keep rising, and it's getting worse over time."
"Impulses? What kind of impulses?"
"They change all the time."
"Can't you give an example—"
"Right now, I feel like hitting your head with a hammer."
I answered shortly, and Gahwin recoiled in fright.
Then he made a face of realization.
"So that's why you hit your own head with the hammer earlier…!"
"That's right. I thought it might help."
Actually, that method worked quite well.
It snapped me out of it and allowed me to look back at myself.
And in that sense…
"But somehow, it seems you might have a problem with your head too?"
"…Me?"
Gahwin feigned ignorance like an innocent person, but I was almost 100% sure.
Sure, Gahwin was a bit cranky old man, but not someone who would cross such a line.
Even back when we had conflicts before, he thought rationally and apologized afterward.
"Elwen, you seem fine. Why don't you say it? Do you think that old man is normal now?"
"…No. He seems strange."
"That's what I thought."
Even Elwen joined in, and Gahwin had to admit defeat.
"It's not to the point of being a problem. Unlike the Baron, I don't get impulses to hit someone!"
Well, that was a relief.
Getting worked up and raising your voice like that doesn't build trust.
"Anyway, it's confirmed that both of us have problems. Count, Archbishop. Are you two okay?"
I checked their states afterward, and although it was hard to say they were normal, it wasn't enough to be noticeable externally.
"Hmm, then is it just a difference in mental strength?"
The chief is a monster who has lived thousands of years, and the archbishop is a devout religious person. It wouldn't be strange if their mental strength was stronger than mine.
But…
'Maybe the intensity of the debuff differs slightly by role.'
The basis of this hypothesis is Elwen.
Elwen, who plays the 'witch' role, was the only one not affected by the debuff.
"Then we have to hurry up."
At my muttering, Gahwin challenged me again.
"Hurry? You don't mean to just leave this problem and continue the journey?"
"Yes."
There's no other way.
Sitting still won't make it better, so it's right to move forward as quickly as possible—
"I really can't believe it! What if someone loses their mind and attacks from behind?"
"Don't worry. There is a solution after all."
No need to verify this.
"Why suddenly… was the hammer raised during our conversation…?"
Ah, that?
"Your voice got louder, so it seemed like you lost your mind."
"…"
"Oh, you quieted down, so your mind must have returned."
"…"
The hammer can control a person.
One day, two days, three days, four days…
We continued down the canyon path.
Unlike the fifth-floor Daemagyeong, monsters of at least Grade 4 appeared here, but the battles themselves were not difficult.
Swoosh—
If we were hurt even slightly, we were quickly healed by infinite holy power.
Crack!
My mercenary strike was fatal even to high-level monsters.
Shreek—
The village chief's combat power radiated dazzling aura.
Together with Gahwin's ancient magic, and even Elwen who confused monsters and turned them into minions to aid in battle, the fights were so easy they were almost boring.
Yes, the battles.
[Control is decreasing.]
On the journey along the canyon path into the abyssal underground, there was no conversation at all.
This rule had been applied since yesterday.
All chatter except for strategy discussions was completely prohibited.
"…"
"…"
There's a saying that words are seeds.
In other words, if no words are spoken, no conflict will arise…
"…How long will you keep up this ridiculous behavior?"
As in all things, there were rebels who were dissatisfied with the rules even here.
Well, it wasn't a big problem.
"Baron! I don't think this helps at all—"
"Shh."
The wizard frowned and raised the hammer, and suddenly regained composure.
"S-Sorry. I got excited again because of this damned curse… I'm really sorry. This won't happen again—"
"This is your final warning."
"…Understood. I'll be careful."
Maybe it was because I really hit him once yesterday?
My eyes started to sharpen faster.
Still, aggressive words came from my mouth first.
"Don't just be careful, do well. It's just keeping quiet. Is that so hard?"
"Um… Sir…?"
"…I got a bit excited too. From now on, I'll keep my mouth shut."
Phew… that's also why chatter is banned.
In such an impulsive and sensitive situation, no stimulus at all is the best.
'I'm going crazy.'
It's so hard I feel like losing my mind.
If I lose focus for a moment, aggression surfaces.
I wonder how the chief and archbishop can stay so normal.
Honestly, the chief is understandable, but the archbishop didn't look mentally that extraordinary.
"Sir! That's a flower over there!"
"Wasn't it my turn this time?"
The moment Elwen pointed somewhere, I hurried over, picked a flower growing on the cliff edge, and put it in my mouth.
Simple reason.
[Control slightly increases.]
This flower alleviates mental abnormal symptoms when ingested.
By the way, I was the one who discovered it.
I had fed it to Gahwin because it looked suspicious whenever I saw it.
"…Sir, you must be really struggling, right?"
"…I appreciate the thought, but please try not to talk to me if possible. It doesn't sound good in my current state."
"Ah… I'm sorry."
Now that I think about it, Elwen is quite something.
Before she lost her essence, every moment must have been similar to my current state—
"Uh? Everyone stop for a moment!"
Then Gahwin shouted loudly and stopped us.
"Did you hear something below? Something down there?"
"Am I starting to hear hallucinations now…"
I sighed and lightly raised ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) the hammer, but the chief stopped me.
"Baron, put the hammer down for now. Lord Versilus's words are true."
What? There really was a sound?
I gestured to Elwen to confirm, but she just shook her head.
It seems the stat reductions caused her not to hear anything…
"Focus. Then you should be able to hear it too, Baron."
Closing my eyes and focusing on the sound, I faintly heard something through the breeze brushing past my ears.
[This way…]
Something was whispering, calling me.
"Finally, something has come out."
This might be chilling for someone, but to me, it was very welcome.
After all, how many days had I been suffering?
I just wanted to clear this chapter and leave here as soon as possible.
"What will you do?"
"What else but check what it is?"
This time Gahwin didn't oppose my words.
Well, I guess the old man wanted this to end quickly as well.
"Follow me closely."
After increasing our speed, the noise coming from below became clearer.
[Good…]
[Come this way…]
[You have a very beautiful soul.]
Even though I didn't like having to move as if entranced while hearing such blatant lines, there was nothing I could do.
Whether it was a mid-boss or the real boss, I had to capture it first for something to happen—
"By the way, Baron…"
Someone spoke to me then.
"Have you ever thought of serving something other than your ancestors' spirits?"
Surprisingly, it wasn't Gahwin, but the archbishop who said this.
Somehow I chuckled.
"Heh heh…"
I thought he was holding up well, but maybe this old man was reaching his limit too?
"Trying to proselytize to barbarians is extremely rude, you know?"
"…"
"But given the situation, no need to make excuses. I'm not that angry."
Since he was a model elder who never caused trouble, I tried to pass it off coolly.
But despite my efforts, the archbishop just looked at me with an unpleasant smile.
Maybe because of that?
"…?"
I noticed the change late.
'The voice…'
Words wouldn't come out.
It felt as if something blocked my throat.
When I quickly checked around, I soon realized the problem wasn't only mine.
"…"
"…"
The surroundings were too quiet.
Not just because of the chatter ban.
No breath, no footsteps.
Not even the sound of the wind blowing from below during the journey.
[This way…]
Except for the mysterious voice, there was perfect silence.
The moment I realized this precisely.
Thump—! Thump—! Thump—!
A short murmur and vibrations from my toes.
The vibrations from below the cliff were growing stronger.
"…!"
"…!"
Looking around, everyone had stopped with their mouths slightly open.
They seemed to be saying something, but it was hard to understand.
I cautiously approached the cliff edge and looked down.
Thump-!
Darkness without end.
Nothing was visible yet.
But…
Thump-!
Soon, 'it' appeared from the darkness.
It looked up at me with chilling eyes and was crawling up the cliff.
'Uh…'
The moment I met its gaze, my body froze like stone.
I couldn't understand it at all.
Thump-!
Before I entered here.
Thump-!
The wizards who had thoroughly investigated the portal insisted that beyond it was definitely a fissure…
[Character has entered the range of [Silent Curse].]
[All essence skills are sealed.]
[[Gigantification] ends.]
Why is the Floor Lord appearing here?
-x-X-x-
A wild mane covered his face as if he wore a wig.
And through that tangled hair, one eye was visible.
Thump-!
His height was about six meters.
Although well beyond the standard for large monsters, his perceived size was even greater thanks to his overly long arms.
Well, he was probably still smaller than Hiphramagent.
Thump-!
Still, the pressure he radiated was on another level.
That was because I knew that guy better than anyone else.
The Lord of Silence, Silriat.
The fifth-floor Floor Lord armed with tricky gimmicks.
To me, an 'explorer' who uses essences, he was a calamity.
Like when I faced 'the traitor' Ricardo Rühenpraha who possessed his essence, it was impossible to counter with 'binding' magic…
'Why is he here?'
Despite the question, my actions were immediate.
Tap-tap.
The moment I locked eyes with him, I stepped back and pulled Elwen close.
And then…
"…!"
Replacing my voice that wouldn't come out, I gave a simple signal.
At the same time, I looked at the mage Gahwin who met my gaze.
'Attack.'
'Very strongly.'
If the clan Anabada members were here, I could have sent more complex signals, but whining wouldn't change anything.
Fortunately, Gahwin immediately obeyed the order.
「Gahwin Vesillus cast the ancient spell [Katuka's Thunderstorm].」
Katuka's Thunderstorm.
One of the ancient spells Gahwin, the 'mage' role, could cast, an instant spell with no casting time.
Naturally, its power was far from lacking.
Flash!
Several flashes like the sky was collapsing covered the entire canyon.
Ruuuuum!
Not a sound, but a massive vibration struck the skin.
And simultaneously,
「Character has exited the range of [Silent Curse].」
The Lord of Silence, Silriat, who was climbing the cliff, fell down and the sounds returned.
"Ugh…"
Gahwin, who had used the spell first, had a somewhat dumbfounded look.
"Hmm… a fascinating monster."
The village chief was unperturbed.
Ah, now that I think about it, maybe there were no Floor Lords in the Labyrinth in this man's time?
According to the records engraved on the Stone of Honor, Floor Lords began appearing in the Labyrinth only after the Abyss Seeker Remenin reached the 10th floor.
"Lord Vesillus, do you know the identity of that monster?"
"If I saw correctly… the creature we just saw is the Floor Lord of Daemagyeong…"
"Floor Lord…?"
The village chief tilted his head, unfamiliar with the term.
But there was no time for a kind explanation.
"What are you waiting for! Follow me quickly!"
First, we had to get out of here.
Even if we had to kill that guy someday, this narrow canyon wasn't a good place to fight him.
Besides, I needed time to organize my thoughts.
"Elwen, hold on tight."
"Yes, yes!"
I pulled Elwen close and quickly moved forward.
Tap-tap.
As we started running seriously, I noticed another change. No matter how the monsters appeared, we had tried to break through somehow.
'Maybe a small mercy…'
Perhaps due to the appearance of the Lord of Silence, the monsters blocking the path vanished without a trace.
"Baron, at least tell me where we're going!"
"Downward."
"Downward…? But the Floor Lord will be waiting below!"
"That's why we're going. If we fight, flat ground is better than the canyon."
"Are you seriously planning to fight him?"
Gahwin shouted as if ★ ★ it was absurd, but I only had one thing to say.
"Then is there any other way?"
"Damn it, a Floor Lord! The kind that kills people even when hundreds prepare to fight! And you want five people to take him down? And that fairy here can't even pull her own weight?"
It wasn't a reaction I couldn't understand.
The Floor Lord's infamous reputation was well known.
The harsh words were probably because of the field effect.
Since I had no time to treat wounds with the hammer, I decided to let it slide this time—
"Gahwin Vesillus!"
At that moment, the village chief's shout echoed through the canyon.
I had never heard the chief's voice so stern.
"Y-Yes…?"
Gahwin, completely stunned, looked at the chief, who spoke firmly.
"Stop complaining and follow the Baron's orders. This is an order."
"Eh? B-But…"
"Do you intend to disobey?"
"N-No… I just thought there might be another way besides fighting him—"
"Answer yes or no only. Be careful though. Your answer today will determine your future."
"…I will obey."
Thanks to the chief stepping in on time, the situation calmed quickly.
If command wavered at a time like this, there'd be no hope. Fortunately, the chief seemed aware of that.
Tap-tap.
The chief then increased speed and approached my side at the front.
"Judging from that guy's reaction, he seems a very tough enemy. But I guess he has some sense?"
"…Of course."
More precisely, he was still thinking.
Anyway, it was not yet a situation for despair.
The essentials for the raid were already in place.
'Priest, mage, knight.'
The most important human resources for raiding the Lord of Silence. Though five people was still too few…
Unlimited holy power and ancient magic.
The chief also showed overwhelming presence all chapter, maybe due to his inflated stats.
That met the minimum conditions.
'The problem is me and Elwen…'
Still, thinking positively, there's a high chance of some 'role' in the raid.
The [Dungeon & Stone] game I know was like that.
'When the boss fight starts, we'll run the raid with those three and coordinate.'
The most important here is the priest.
If he uses infinite holy power well, survival is possible—
"N-Nooo-!! Stop right there!!"
Suddenly there was a commotion behind.
Stopping and turning around, I saw Gahwin and the archbishop already stopped.
Well, more precisely…
"The archbishop suddenly stopped and isn't moving!"
Gahwin looked at the archbishop with concern as if he was entranced.
"Step aside for a moment."
I put down Elwen and approached to check, but the archbishop just stared blankly into the void.
Something was clearly wrong.
'What is this?'
The Lord of Silence didn't have such a pattern.
Is it because we're inside the fissure?
If so, that adds too many variables—
"Baron."
Suddenly the archbishop spoke.
'Whoa, that startled me…'
While quietly soothing my shocked heart, I calmly checked the situation.
"Archbishop, are you alright? What just happened?"
If it was a problem, we needed to urgently find a solution—
"Don't worry. I'm fine. Actually, I'm in better condition than ever."
What now?
"…What does that mean?"
"Literally. The miracle of God fills my entire body. I can't remember ever feeling so fulfilled in my life…"
Judging by his eyes, the archbishop was still a mess.
Damn, there's no time to waste.
"Baron."
As I was pondering how to handle the archbishop, he shifted his gaze to look at me.
"Have you ever thought about serving something other than your ancestors' spirits?"
The same words he said to me before the Lord of Silence appeared. But this time, the moment I heard it, I felt an unease.
Not sure yet, but…
"I'm asking just in case."
I needed to confirm.
"The 'other something' you mentioned—is it Reatlas?"
The archbishop was silent.
But as if answering for him,
Swishhhhhhh—
Thousands of black particles rose from the darkness of the Labyrinth. They gathered around the archbishop like a blessing.
Unfortunately, I knew the identity of that effect.
It was the effect when becoming Karui's priest.
Swishhhhhhhhhh—
The archbishop smiled brightly and reached out toward the black particles.
Denying it any further was meaningless.
"It's visible, isn't it? The grace of God?"
The archbishop had become Karui's priest.
「Eden Hestia has succumbed to temptation.」
「You can now use Karui's powers.」
My mind went blank.
Suddenly, the priest of our team became Karui's priest.
What should I do?
'Should I kill him right now?'
Looking at his defenseless state, it didn't seem entirely impossible.
No, I even thought there might be no better chance.
I had to decide quickly.
If the archbishop with infinite holy power turned enemy after becoming Karui's priest, it would be a big problem.
'But… if I kill him, then what?'
Putting aside moral doubts about killing the archbishop so easily.
Without a priest, the Floor Lord was impossible to defeat.
Yet my head was in turmoil.
'Maybe I shouldn't kill him.'
I still didn't know the strategy for this fissure.
But if the archbishop turned priest played a key role?
An impulsive choice could bring irreversible consequences—
「Character cast [Swing].」
When I came to my senses, my hammer was already swinging toward the archbishop's head.
Not a carefully considered decision, but an instant judgment.
Crack!
With all my strength, my hammer struck and half of the archbishop's head flew off.
But he still stood.
I wasn't surprised since I knew Karui's priests could enter half-head mode.
"W-What… are you doing!!"
But maybe Gahwin, who watched, was different.
"A-Attacking the archbishop! Are you truly insane!!"
Ah. He just didn't understand the situation.
There was no time to explain.
'One more time.'
I swung the hammer again, but unfortunately, tentacles growing from the archbishop's body blocked it.
The sight was disgusting and unsettling, hardly holy magic.
"W-What on earth is going on?!"
I struck a few more times but gave up after the tentacles counterattacked and briefly explained.
"The archbishop has become Karui's priest."
"What?"
"Look. Even with half his head blown off, he's still alive."
"T-Then shouldn't we finish him off quickly?"
That same guy who scolded me for attacking the archbishop earlier.
"Count Saintred, will you try?"
After quickly issuing the command, the chief drew aura and swung his sword without objection.
But…
Kraaaang!
Even the aura was blocked by that shell.
Yet the chief showed no disappointment.
"If I go all out, it might be possible… but after that, I'll have to be considered gone. It's a finishing move. Do you want me to do that?"
The chief looked at me as if everything else was my choice.
That deepened my dilemma.
Since he was so sure, he'd probably keep his word…
'If even the chief disappears, only the mage will remain.'
I had to consider what would come next—
"You all…"
At that moment, the archbishop's mouth opened.
"You still don't understand me at all."
His voice was void of any emotion, like the chief's former tone.
"Don't worry. Soon you will understand."
As the archbishop's ominous declaration ended,
His chest, bent backward like receiving a command ritual, opened wide.
Kakakakakakak!
I recognized the skill immediately.
「Eden Hestia cast [Unstable Vessel].」
Unstable Vessel.
Karui priest's strongest finishing skill.
The effect was simple.
For the casting time, he becomes temporarily invincible…
'Then explodes.'
In terms of range and power, no skill in [Dungeon & Stone] could match it.
'It's already too late to dodge.'
I made a decision.
Even if I had to give up on the chief, I had to stop that first.
Just as I was about to speak with that thought,
Thump-!
Vibrations from the ground erased all sound.
「Character has entered the range of [Silent Curse].」
On top of everything, the Floor Lord I had dropped earlier appeared again in this situation…
'Attack.'
'Very strongly.'
I urgently sent the same signal I gave Gahwin to the chief. But the chief just shook his head with a troubled expression.
Ah… maybe essences can't be used when sealed?
'Damn it.'
So I hurriedly changed the signal.
'Run with all your might.'
'Anywhere is fine.'
'Survive.'
A survival signal I was using for the first time in a long explorer life.
Once I confirmed everyone understood the signals, I lifted Elwen and stood at the cliff's edge.
Of course, I had no certainty.
Would we survive if we fell here?
'Still… it's more likely than getting hit by that skill.'
Just as I was about to push off to leap,
Thump-!
A huge hand appeared below the cliff.
I tried to jump without caring, but the hand's movement was strange.
It didn't seem to be aiming for us.
'Uh…?'
The creature draped its upper body over the path and crouched as if hugging the archbishop tightly.
And…
"…"
For a moment our eyes met.
Then.
Plop.
It relaxed its grip, holding the archbishop, and fell down the cliff.
「Character has exited the range of [Silent Curse].」
About three seconds later, the distance grew and [Silent Curse] was lifted.
And after some time.
Kwaaaaaaaaaaaang!
An explosion like a nuclear bomb erupted from below.
"Everyone! Hold tight!!"
Daemagyeong began to collapse.
-x-X-x-
Gripping Elwen tightly in preparation for the fall—
Boom—!
The ground beneath our feet collapsed, and a sensation of floating surged through my whole body. But it was distinctly different from the feeling of falling.
Whoooooosh—!
Defying gravity, my body rose above the crumbled earth.
It was a levitation spell.
"Everyone, are you alright?"
I quickly scanned around and saw Gahun and the Chief also floating in midair.
This time, I praised sincerely.
"Thanks to you, we survived. Well done."
I was so flustered that I couldn't even give orders properly, yet they reacted like this on their own.
"…It's not something to be praised for."
Ha, the old man is embarrassed.
Maybe because we were bickering just a moment ago and now he feels awkward?
I didn't know, but first things first—I needed to confirm something.
"How long can the magic last?"
"It should be enough until we land safely."
Alright, that means…
"Good. Then from now on, descend slowly… no, descend quickly enough not to get seriously hurt."
I decided this because if something happened while levitating, proper resistance would be impossible.
Once I gave the order, Gahun finally regained his senses and began descending.
Ka-BOOM! Crash! Rumble rumble rumble…
The surroundings were literally like a hellscape.
Everything visible was collapsing and crumbling, with huge falling rocks threateningly rushing past us.
And then…
"Now it finally feels like an exploration."
The Chief, while descending like falling, looked around with eyes full of curiosity.
It was probably the first time I'd seen such lively eyes on him.
That guy always seemed a bit off his rocker, but I had no time to care about him.
"What was that just now?"
The Hierarch had grabbed the Archbishop moments before a massive explosion and dove underground.
That guy, who I thought was our enemy, somehow acted like he was helping us…
"Elwen, did you control him? Tell him to hold the Archbishop and fall?"
The first possibility I checked was this, but unfortunately, it wasn't the case.
"No. I tried, but it didn't work."
Huh, so the Hierarch acted on his own?
"Maybe that monster wasn't our enemy after all."
The Chief must have heard our conversation because he muttered something.
Well, it wasn't entirely wrong.
When I saw the Hierarch, I thought he must be the boss monster.
But…
"Thinking back now, maybe he was an ally."
Like the Hamshik we met in Chapter 2.
More than that, higher beings seemed to show favorable behavior toward Elwen, which was a hint.
Ka-BANG! Boom!
As I mulled over this during the descent—
Ka-Booooooooooom!
A giant boulder slammed down on Gahun's head.
It was a dizzying situation, but thanks to the protective shield we'd spread out in preparation for falling rocks, not a scratch was made.
But the problem was…
"Ah…"
That 'ah' sounded so ominous.
Sure enough, bad feelings rarely miss.
"What happened?"
"Th-the levitation spell's formula just broke."
"The formula broke? Explain that in a way I can understand—"
Do it.
Just as I was about to say more—
"Ah…"
Our descent stopped, we briefly hovered—
"Kyaaaaaaah—!"
And we fell straight down.
My head aches.
My lungs feel stabbed by something, suffocating, and my spine won't move properly.
But…
'I'm alive.'
Then what about the others?
The last thing I remember was seeing the ground while falling, clutching Elwen, and taking the impact on my back…
"…Ah, ah… damn it! Damn it! My words… Riese…?"
Elwen's urgent voice crackled like a broken radio inside my ringing ears.
I also heard the Chief's voice.
"Don't move… wait… I've given you potions, so soon…"
"Sir! Sir!"
"They're not responding at all…"
Feeling voices gradually becoming clearer, I slowly lifted my eyelids.
"Sir…!"
"I'm… okay… stop."
"Ah, ah! Sorry!"
Only then did Elwen get off me, making it a bit easier to breathe.
"Hold on a bit more. Judging from your recovery, you'll be able to move soon."
"How long was I out?"
"About five minutes."
"And Gahun…?"
Trying to grasp the situation, I asked, and the Chief pointed somewhere.
Turning my stiff neck # Nоvеlight # sideways, I saw Gahun lying with broken legs.
"He's not dead. Looks like he used magic at the end to slow the speed as much as possible. I gave him potions, but I don't know when he'll wake up."
Right, that's what I thought…
"And you?"
"I'm fine. Kept my senses until the end and minimized the impact properly."
Lucky.
If only my defense stats had been intact, my body wouldn't be this wrecked.
"…The enemies?"
"For now, no one's around, so focus on recovering without worries."
"Understood. But your tone…"
"Well, I'm older and higher rank anyway, aren't I? We went through a life-or-death situation together, so I can speak comfortably."
Well, that's true.
Even if his tone changed suddenly, no one around would really suspect.
"Then I'll rest a bit more…"
After that, I closed my eyes and lay down, and before long, I recovered enough to move on my own.
"Want some water?"
"Ah, thanks."
I drank a glass and got up. The Chief asked like he'd been waiting.
"So what's the plan now?"
Since the Halfwit Team days to the Anavada Clan, whenever something happened, that was the line.
People always ask me for answers. It used to be frustrating, but now I just see it as my fate.
I also don't want to pass all responsibility to others and just follow orders.
"Will we wait until Sir Vesilrus wakes up?"
Well, I don't know what's best either.
It's the first time this kind of rift has appeared.
From its unusual progression to the Hierarch priest Karui…
Honestly, it's headache-inducing.
But…
"No, first I'll take care of Gahun and start searching the surroundings."
Let's do what we can.
If we drag things out, the situation might get worse.
"I'll take care of Elwen and Gahun, Count, you lead the way."
"That I will."
Though it was the most dangerous mission, the Chief obediently followed my order.
Not because he thought he was most suitable for the task.
"Keep your promise."
For helping in this rift, I promised to bring 'Karui's Heart' to the city.
"Don't worry. I have no intention of breaking my promise."
"That's a relief. Also, if things go wrong later, check your notebook."
"Notebook?"
"I put it in your backpack when I gave it to you. It has everything you might be curious about, so it will help on the journey."
I didn't know there was a notebook.
I got the backpack just before entering the rift. I even left it outside because the Chief suggested, just in case.
'I'll check the notebook as soon as we get out of here…'
We moved for quite some time over the broken ruins.
"…"
"…"
At some point, the sounds ceased, and silence arrived.
Now, no one was unaware of the reason for this phenomenon.
"The character has entered the [Silent Curse]'s range."
"All essence skills are sealed."
A Hierarch is nearby.
Should we avoid it then?
I didn't know the answer, but I gave a signal to the Chief, who seemed to be waiting for orders.
'Continue.'
Since I knew nothing about this chapter, we had to get information by direct encounter…
'It might even be an ally.'
Even if an enemy, it was unlikely normal after hugging the Archbishop right before the explosion and falling.
"…"
After continuing straight without changing direction, we found the Lord of Silence, Silierat.
"…"
"…"
In the suffocating silence, the creature was half-buried in rock.
As expected, it was not in good condition.
Of its three exposed arms, two had bones showing, and it had no strength to move, blinking its eyelids weakly while buried in the debris.
"…"
Relieved that it posed no threat, yet a chill ran down my spine.
I already knew its power, but to have a Hierarch reduced to such a state with one blow…
If we'd been caught in that explosion head-on, what would have happened?
"The Archbishop… isn't here."
I scanned the area, then gently put Elwen down and slowly approached it.
Lord of Silence, Silierat.
It didn't move even as I neared.
It just looked at me with tired eyes.
"…"
Reaching out cautiously, I touched its face.
It remained quiet even on contact.
As if it had no reason to be hostile.
'Why did you help us?'
I wanted to ask, but no voice came out.
Even if I could speak, I doubted it would give a proper answer.
So I answered myself.
'…Yeah, you must have your reasons too.'
Now I know something about this labyrinth.
Rift guardians, Hierarchs, were real beings with their own stories.
Maybe not just them, but all monsters here are the same.
In a way, they're even more pitiful than me, dragged into this strange world and causing havoc.
I withdrew my hand and stepped back; the Chief gave me a signal.
'Kill it.'
A simple gesture with that meaning.
I quietly shook my head and made a gesture to step back.
"…?"
The Chief looked puzzled but obeyed, perhaps because of our promise.
As soon as we left its territory—
"Why didn't you kill it?"
The Chief asked.
"Seeing it like that, it didn't seem dangerous."
I'm not sure.
Why did I make that choice?
"Because it helped us for now. Killing it hastily might cause problems. We can kill it after getting more info."
What I told the Chief wasn't a complete lie.
But…
"Hmm, that could be true."
Unlike the Chief who accepted easily, I was confused.
The Hierarch's essence.
The Hierarch's relic.
The Hierarch's stone used to open rifts.
Maybe killing it would have given us those rewards easily.
But I didn't.
'It's definitely not sympathy…'
Hard to explain.
I can only say it was an impulsive decision—
[Come here…]
Then, once again, an unknown voice echoed, ending my thoughts.
The sound came from the exact opposite direction from where the Hierarch was.
So one thing was clear.
'That sound wasn't from it…'
The weird dialogue that called us like a pervert to lure us wasn't from the Hierarch.
Well, it was odd since the in-game character had no lines.
"Then we just head toward where the sound is coming from?"
I nodded; the Chief took the lead.
Following with Elwen at some distance, soon we saw the source of the voice directly.
[Right…]
[Yes, come here and hold me…]
It was a completely unexpected existence.
"Soul Eater…?"
A Grade 5 rare species.
Only one spawns in the Great Demon Mirror when the labyrinth opens, granting between 100 to 200 experience randomly when defeated.
[I will grant you the wish you desire…]
What is this?
Wasn't this supposed to be the boss monster or something?
"Soul Eater has summoned [Soul Cavalry]."
It seemed the skill was basically the same as the original…
[Kyaaaaaaah—!!]
The Soul Eater was cut in half by the Chief's roughly swung sword and defeated immediately.
"Soul Eater defeated."
Up to here, it was surprising but no problem.
Like a MacGuffin in a novel.
Something that looks important but actually is just a normal mob.
You could interpret it that way and move on.
But…
'What the hell is this now?'
The following scene left me dumbfounded again.
[Guardian Defeat Bonus. EXP +3]
A rainbow-colored essence meaning 'guardian' floated in the air where it had been.
Whoooosh—!
A portal appeared, indicating the rift was cleared.
Red and blue.
For some reason, there were two of them.
-x-X-x-
When the guardian is defeated, the rift clears and a portal opens. Riding that portal allows return to the original entry point.
Well, at least that's how it had been so far.
"Two portals…?"
And they're even colored red and blue.
This isn't some kind of pill.
"If we pick the wrong one, do we end up somewhere strange…?"
Unexpected situations made me think a lot.
Somehow, nothing on this underground first floor ever proceeds normally.
Really feels like everything is shrouded in mystery.
'Including this essence…'
The portals opened after clearing the rift don't disappear over time.
Though, whether this rule properly applies here is uncertain.
Anyway, I briefly took my eyes off the portals and examined the essence.
"A truly mysterious color…"
The Chief's eyes were still full of curiosity.
Well, since he was from a time before Hierarchs and rifts, it was probably his first time seeing a rainbow-colored essence.
NovelFire
"Baron, can you explain what kind of essence this is?"
"I don't know."
"Oh, so even you are seeing this monster for the first time?"
"No, that's not it…"
Feeling frustrated, I sighed deeply and continued.
"The Soul Eater normally doesn't drop essences."
Not that I just haven't gotten one yet.
Soul Eater is a monster that gives a huge amount of experience. Even if skipping other monsters, I always hunted this one when leveling a new character.
But not once has it dropped an essence.
Even with Beginner's Luck, Melton's Soul Clover, and max essence drop rate buffs, the result was the same.
So I thought it simply doesn't drop essence…
'Didn't expect there'd be another way to obtain it like this.'
Then what's the effect of the Soul Eater essence?
At least I expect it to include the active skill to summon 'Soul Cavalry'…
But I'll have to experiment after acquiring it.
Oh, of course, I don't plan to consume it myself.
"Gahun! Get up!"
I put down Gahun, who had been carried on my shoulder, and gently slapped his cheek. Since the essence dropped, there was no time to wait leisurely.
The essence must be placed in a test tube within 30 minutes.
"Gahun! Gahun! Gahun!"
So I increased the slapping intensity gradually.
It wasn't comfortable to do this to someone who had collapsed in pain…
But essence comes before people, right?
"Ugh…"
Luckily, by the time his cheek had swollen, Gahun regained consciousness.
"Ba…ron? I'm… dizzy…"
He seemed still dizzy from the fall's impact as he spoke vaguely.
I briefly said the essentials.
Handling mages is similar anyway.
"While you were unconscious, the Soul Eater appeared as a guardian, and after killing it, guardian essence dropped."
"W-what…?!"
As expected, Gahun's expression instantly changed, and he jumped up. Right, how could a mage tolerate a new guardian essence?
"Uh… I can't get up."
"Obviously. Your legs are all twisted like that. Even a barbarian couldn't move with those legs—"
"…Eeeeek!!"
Only then did Gahun check his legs and make a strange noise.
Still, he seemed to value the essence more than his broken legs.
"Move me… move me to the essence. I can't walk."
I brought Gahun to the essence and handed him the test tube as requested.
How much time passed, I don't know.
"Phew… it's done."
The essence slipped into the test tube, and Gahun carefully placed it in the essence storage box, ending the extraction.
"But… what are those portals…? Why are there two…?"
"Oh, that? We'll think about that from now on. We don't know yet either."
"I see…"
"So, what's your opinion?"
"If you ask me what I think—"
"Anything, just say what comes to mind."
"Hmm… I think one of them definitely connects to where we originally were…"
Gahun, randomly sharing his opinion, suddenly trailed off.
He made a somewhat blank expression for a moment, then—
"The blue portal…!"
He shouted with certainty as if he'd realized something.
"If we take the blue portal, we return to where we originally were!"
Clearly, his intuition, which had been sealed entering the Great Demon Mirror, reactivated.
"Then what about the red portal? Do you know anything about that one?"
"Well… not really. It feels ambiguous. Dangerous, maybe… but not necessarily a bad choice."
"Dangerous, but sure to have a reward… is that your interpretation?"
"Uh, yes. I have years of experience with Dungeon and Stone."
Like clockwork.
Thanks to Gahun, the options narrowed down to two.
…Well, technically it was always two choices.
Take the safe blue portal and leave.
Take the red portal and try for extra rewards.
Before deciding, I had enough info to judge properly.
'Since clearing underground first floor is top priority, leaving now isn't bad…'
Never forget that entering the rift is just a stepping stone to escape the first floor.
And the rift is already cleared.
But…
'Just taking one Soul Eater essence and leaving feels a ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) bit dull…'
I haven't been here a week, but the scale was such that three, including the Chief, were trapped here for over half a year.
Is this all the reward?
I don't know the Soul Eater essence's power yet, and the Archbishop became the Karui priest and disappeared without a trace.
"Time to decide. You decide. I'll follow wherever you go."
"Me too."
The Chief and Elwen left the decision to me, while Gahun urgently tried to persuade me.
"Baron, give up greed. We lost the Archbishop already; pushing further is overambitious. Who knows what's beyond?"
Gahun had a point.
But this isn't just my personal greed.
The additional reward beyond that portal?
Fine. Whatever it is, it will help.
But I can live without it.
What I'm expecting from the red portal is something else.
'If we cross there…'
Maybe we get closer to the labyrinth's secret.
Maybe it helps to escape the first floor.
Also—and most importantly…
'It's too easy.'
The difficulty is way too low.
Yeah, we lost the Archbishop along the way…
But even considering that, it doesn't add up.
'…Still, something feels off.'
From experience, situations like this usually have traps mixed in.
So—
"For now, decision is postponed."
"Postponed…?"
"If we return now, we don't even know what will happen to the Archbishop."
"That's true, but…"
Gahun trailed off.
He nodded at 'We don't know yet,' but both of us knew.
Returning now would most likely end it all.
"But it can't be helped. Every event requires sacrifice. Several have already died since coming down here… If we die here, their sacrifices will have been in vain."
A logically sound opinion.
Though there was a petty undertone prioritizing self-preservation.
I'm petty too.
"Regardless of the Archbishop's fate, before taking the portal, we should explore more. We must have missed something on the way here."
Four gorges.
The field debuff that messes with the mind.
The Lord of Silence and Karui's priest.
The anticlimactic boss battle.
Though the rift cleared and portals opened, I'd missed so much.
And if I leave now, I might never find out.
"…Is that really necessary? I can barely move now."
"Don't worry. I'll carry you well and protect you."
"Sigh…"
Having heard many sighs before, I immediately recognized Gahun's as consent.
Okay, persuasion done…
"Now, let's go."
I memorized the portal location again and set off, leading with the Chief.
"This isn't the direction where that monster was?"
"Yes."
The Lord of Silence, Silierat, was buried there.
Before full exploration, I intended to return there once more.
Because now Gahun was with us.
"That intuition still works, right?"
"For now… yes."
"You won't be able to talk near it, so investigate as best as you can. Don't be too scared since it can't move."
"Y-yes…"
Gahun seemed eager to jump beyond the blue portal immediately, but someone who couldn't even walk wasn't escaping my shoulder.
Soon, we entered its domain.
"The character has entered the [Silent Curse]'s range."
"All essence skills are sealed."
Seeing the sound disappear, luckily, it still seemed alive.
Soon, the Lord of Silence buried in debris appeared.
"…"
"…"
It still looked at me with weak eyes, and I approached, bending down so Gahun could see.
"…!"
At first trembling, Gahun realized it wasn't dangerous and even reached out to touch its skin.
Some time passed.
Tap tap.
Gahun tapped my shoulder, signaling to leave.
"How was it?"
After quickly leaving the area, what I heard was simple.
"…It definitely doesn't seem like our enemy. When our eyes met, an alarm rang in my head not to kill it."
…Hmm.
"My guess is… maybe the guardian was weak because of your actions, Baron."
"My actions?"
"You didn't kill it but passed by. I think that's the cause."
Simply put, if we had killed it, the boss battle might have been much harder.
'If true, it explains the easy boss fight…'
Then what about the Archbishop?
Suddenly he switched to being Karui's priest and disappeared.
Is that a planned event?
Or something we could have stopped with better handling?
Feels more like the latter.
If it were the former, it'd be too unreasonable.
Ka-BOOM!
Suddenly, an explosion from afar shook the ground.
The source was near the Lord of Silence.
"The Sealant Silierat has died."
What the hell was that?
I got the answer from Gahun's mouth, carried on my shoulder.
"The Lord of Silence, Silierat, has died."
And…
"We have to run! Now is no time to worry about what we missed!"
"Calm down and explain properly—"
"The portal's closing soon!"
"No way!"
No need to ask how he knew.
Surely, his intuition was active again.
"Run!"
There's still time to think later.
For now, we sprinted full speed toward the portal.
"Sir! Behind! The Archbishop is following from behind!"
As expected, it seemed that the Archbishop was the one who killed the Lord of Silence.
"How's the speed?"
"About the same as us… Be careful!"
Careful of what?
I don't know, but twisted my body a little.
And at that moment—
Thud!
Something sharp pierced my left shoulder.
The wound wasn't deep.
I was carrying Gahun on that shoulder after all.
"Ugh, ugh!"
Blood Gahun vomited dyed my upper body.
"Uh… huff… huh…"
Gahun was barely breathing, but it wasn't a big problem.
Luckily, the portal was right in front.
Once through, intense treatment from numerous priests could save him.
So then…
Thunk.
As soon as we reached the portal, I pushed Gahun's body inside.
Whoooooosh!
It was about half the size from earlier, but thankfully the portal worked properly.
"Elwen, you too."
"Sir! What about you—!"
Before it shrank further, I quickly pushed Elwen through.
"And you? Why aren't you going?"
"No matter how I think, this doesn't feel right."
I turned and saw the Chief frowning, and beyond him, the approaching Archbishop.
The Archbishop's spine was grotesquely bent, surrounded by tentacles, floating in midair.
Just looking was horrifying.
"You don't plan to take the other portal, do you?"
"First, I need to check one thing."
"You're consistent, even now. What do you need to check?"
"Earlier… you said if I go all out, I can kill the Archbishop… Is that still possible?"
The Chief paused a moment before answering.
"Well…"
Though he said that, his eyes showed no doubt.
"No one else will see this. No matter how wrecked the body is, once you die once, you'll be fine again…"
"Get to the point."
"Hmm, looks like you can."
The Chief shrugged and asked me.
"But why the sudden thought? It'd be easier to leave now, right?"
"Didn't I say? I have to check. So will you help?"
"…Promise to keep it."
As he said that, aura bloomed over the Chief's sword.
Whoooosh!
The pure white aura was Count Saintred's trademark.
But the Chief's aura was a bit different from the original owner's.
'What the—?'
The aura around the sword kept growing.
As if it had no limits.
Whoooosshhhh!
Even the Archbishop, who was about to lose control and rush madly, stopped briefly.
And…
"How is this possible…? Can you really use your living powers?"
I muttered unknowingly.
"Well, if that's called living powers, then yes."
The Chief chuckled.
"The knights of this era are terrible, you see."
"…?"
"Aura isn't meant to be used like that, you know."
After that—
——————!
A flash of light.
[Special Condition – Third Record Achieved.]
-x-X-x-
The aura isn't meant to be used like that.
With that arrogant remark, the Chief swung his sword, proving firsthand that his words were no exaggeration.
It wasn't the power of the essence.
He cut with nothing but a highly honed skill and a single sword.
Aimed at his target.
More precisely than anyone else.
"Tsk, still couldn't kill it."
As the radiance of the pure white aura faded, surprisingly, the Archbishop was still alive.
His body was sliced nearly in half along the sword's path, but from the cut surfaces, writhing tentacles squirmed toward each other.
As if trying to reattach themselves.
"What will you do now?"
Though the sight was rather stomach-turning, the Chief asked me coldly without flinching.
So, was my job done here?
"If you delay any longer, you won't be able to leave through the portal."
I had to decide quickly.
Had the Chief completely failed, he would have taken the portal without looking back, but this situation was too ambiguous to call failure.
Step by step, I passed the Chief and approached the Archbishop.
I forced open the nearly fused body and tore a scroll inscribed with high-level fire magic, setting it aflame.
"No hesitation at all."
"…"
"Come to think of it, you did clash with the Archbishop once before, didn't you?"
The Chief seemed to misunderstand something.
It wasn't hatred that made me not try to save the Archbishop.
I simply thought it was futile.
'No matter what we did, it'd be hard for him to come back.'
The Archbishop becoming Karui's priest was inevitable.
Once he became Karui's priest, he could never revert to a normal cleric.
But such a major event forcibly fixed at the moment of entering the rift?
'No way.'
The [Dungeon and Stone] I knew wasn't like that.
Though the game seemed irrational when I knew nothing, the more I played, the more I realized that what seemed unfair was only due to my ignorance.
Flare!
Watching the Archbishop's body ignite, I reflected on recent events.
'I messed up.'
I could sugarcoat it as ignorance, but it was a clear mistake.
When the mental contamination happened, seeing both the Chief and the Archbishop unharmed, I had doubts but didn't dig deeper.
In fact, they weren't right in the head from then on.
'…That flower too.'
There was a flower here that lowered mental contamination.
At some point, the Archbishop, who initially accepted it well, began to say he could hold out and even yielded to us.
In hindsight, that was a warning sign.
'What if we had given the flower to the Archbishop and cared for him thoroughly?'
Well, that's a pointless fantasy now.
Unless we come back to this rift, we'll never know.
'Still, I gained knowledge.'
If it were the country I knew from gaming days, I'd add this info about the underground first floor rift:
Upon entering as a cleric, possible to advance to Karui's priest.
Most skills unlocked from the start in exchange for sacrificing party members.
How to use this? To be considered later—
"Now, are we done with checks?"
"…Not yet."
I glanced once at the shrinking portal and looked down again at the Archbishop.
The writhing tentacles wrapped in blazing red fire gradually ceased moving.
"Do you think something will happen if the Archbishop dies?"
"Yes."
My honest answer made the Chief chuckle bitterly.
"It's strange to say, but you really aren't sane."
"Should I take that as a compliment?"
"Well, interpretation is yours to make…"
The Chief, playfully responding, suddenly fell silent.
No need to ask why.
[You have defeated the Tempted Priest.]
Finally, the burning Archbishop stopped moving.
And…
[Special Condition — Third Record Achieved.]
The Archbishop's body dissolved into a halo of light.
[A No.???? Crown of Agony has been generated.]
An item of unknown purpose dropped.
NovelFire
"So it really happened like you said."
It was a crown worn on the head.
The flowers' colors were black and white.
Not split half-and-half but alternately placed one by one…
"Do you know what this is?"
"I don't."
At first, I thought it was a Numbers item, but no such crown form existed among Numbers items.
Then, what is it?
'…Investigation later.'
I took the crown first and checked the portals.
Luckily, there was still time.
The red portal remained fully intact, and the blue portal was now less than a third of its original size.
"As advice, choose the blue portal. From now on, I'm basically a nonentity."
"Nonentity?"
"I'll be brief. The way I used mana for the aura just now differs greatly from the original owner of this body. Because of that gap, my body is completely wrecked."
…So it wasn't unconditional power.
Somewhat relieving yet chilling.
It means if properly tuned, I could show such power anytime.
'Anyway, not a problem to think about now…'
Summarizing the Chief's words:
I can go through the red portal, but then I have to face all the trials alone.
'Is that really possible?'
The once infinitely holy priest had become corrupt and needed killing, the mage was incapacitated and sent out first.
The strongest knight lost his power.
Whoooosh!
Opening the portal was lucky, nothing more.
Clearly far from a textbook clear.
I had to admit it.
Though it was my first time challenging the rift, no surprise there…
"I'm leaving this place."
I had failed the underground first floor rift conquest.
Only a moment passed, just enough to close and open my eyes.
When I opened them, I was already back.
Not in the ruined, humid air of the Great Demon Mirror's center, but where the guardian statues were gathered.
"Yandel!"
"Bjorn!"
"…Captain!"
As soon as I exited the portal, everyone called me by their own titles and approached.
"Thanks for the concern, but we'll talk later."
Though I appreciated their greetings, I had things to check first.
"Sir! How could you throw me like that!"
Elwen was unharmed.
Her shrunk height returned to normal.
"What about Gahun?"
"The clerics are treating him."
Luckily, Gahun seemed safe.
I didn't know the severity of his injuries, but it was just physical. With multiple clerics attending, it wasn't impossible to save him.
"Baron!"
Someone asked me then.
"Where is the commander? Where is he?"
Jillan Evost.
Brother of Baron Evost and vice-commander of our exploration force.
"Why hasn't he come out yet—?"
I interrupted the vice-commander and explained why the Chief had not yet emerged.
"Count Saintred died."
By his own will, apparently.
He said there was no more natural opportunity to exit than that.
[Better that way. I was thinking about heading back to the city soon, but I needed a plausible reason.]
At first, I thought it absurd, but it was a serious matter from the Chief's perspective.
He couldn't just commit sudden suicide.
Being killed by monsters is no easy thing.
It's hard for others to [N O V E L I G H T] accept, and even if they do, it remains a dishonorable stain.
The Chief didn't want to discard the life he built as Jerome Saintred.
That means—
"The opponent was Karui's priest, armed with powerful authority enough to easily defeat the Hierarch. We bought time to escape but were ultimately defeated."
For the Chief, dying honorably against a formidable opponent everyone could understand was best.
"Karui's priest? Could that be related to Archbishop Hestia's absence?"
"I'll explain later. But there's something else I'm curious about…"
I looked at not only the vice-commander but all gathered members.
"How much time has passed?"
"Exactly 30 days today."
"A month…"
No wonder it felt like we'd set up a whole new base rather than just a day or two passing.
'Still, that's not bad.'
A month is a long time.
Especially underground first floor, where time flows continuously unlike the surface floors.
Still, it wasn't the worst.
'They said everyone except Elwen and me was trapped here for over half a year.'
On the other hand, we saved about five months.
Ah, but from my perspective, that was a definite loss.
I'd only spent about a week inside the rift.
"Well then, tell me what happened inside—"
Why is this guy so impatient?
"Check something first."
I pointed at one spot.
It was something I'd wondered since waking up, though it had been pushed down the priority list.
"Was that stone gate always closed?"
"Yes. When five people entered a month ago, the portal disappeared and the gate closed with it."
I woke up in the middle of this stone chamber.
The portal open like a side door spit me out, then vanished immediately.
'…I'm sure we cleared the guardian and escaped, so why isn't the exit open?'
This was a bolt from the blue for me, who firmly believed the exit would open after clearing the rift.
'What? Because I didn't choose the red portal? Does that mean we have to start over from the guardian statues?'
Countless hypotheses swirled in my head, confusing me.
Rrrrrrrr—
Mocking my impatience, the firmly closed stone gate slowly began to open.
Beyond the open gate was a sealed room.
Three large statues about the size of figurines lay on the floor, and in the center floated a shimmering portal.
'The portal must be the exit…'
The wizard who followed me and the other soldiers peeking from behind showed eyes full of hope and desire.
Well, they'd been here for over a month, so the weariness was understandable.
"Raven! I grant you authority. Lead the mages and investigate this place. Find out the portal's nature, what these statues are, and if anything else is hidden."
"…Yes?"
"And vice-commander! Gather all heads of departments. I'll explain what happened inside."
Though clearly stepping beyond his authority, no one objected to my actions.
Only some politically aware individuals cast worried glances.
Naturally, Raven was among them.
'Is this okay?'
I exchanged silent looks, a brief conversation: 'Don't worry, just do your job.'
I left the chamber, and while the vice-commander prepared the meeting, I reunited with my comrades.
Oh, I didn't mention the rift during this.
"Why hide it…?"
"Not hiding, just lazy to say it twice. You'll come to the meeting to hear it anyway."
"Is that… your call?"
Amelia pointed out I was only the temporary leader of the 4th squad.
But…
"You'll see soon enough. So how was it here? Nothing special?"
While hearing their stories and passing the time, preparation finished, and we moved to the meeting hall.
A large military barracks with 30 seats.
"Ah, Baron, you're here. But what about them…?"
The vice-commander looked at my comrades, trailing off.
"I brought them so they could listen together. Is there a problem?"
"No, it's fine. The meeting's purpose is to hear what happened inside. But please understand that I cannot offer seats."
Even without titles, nobles are nobles?
They made it clear they would kick us out once the meeting started.
"That's fine. Standing and listening isn't hard, right? You're fine with that too?"
"…"
"Good."
With that, I entered the tent, noticing two empty seats.
Two vacant seats.
Step.
One was the commander's seat.
And the other was mine, opposite the vice-commander.
Step—
An obvious fact.
My seat today was already decided.
"…!"
"…!"
The moment I sat down, the officers' gazes rippled like waves.
The vice-commander was no different.
"Explain what this means, Baron?"
He asked, trying to stay calm.
"What does it mean?"
I smiled and answered.
"You already know, Vice-Commander."
"…?"
"What this means."
"…!"
It was time to unleash my true Barbarian Legion Commander mode.