Chapter 265
Chapter 265
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 265
Chapter Title: Labyrinth
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It was true that the labyrinth was a place where a demon was sealed away. However, the demons sealed in each labyrinth were all different, and among them, the Iron Labyrinth housed none other than Asmodeus, one of the Seven Deadly Sins. It wasn't shameful to fear her, even if one didn't fear the demons in other labyrinths.
"Uh...."
Judah wondered if there was any need to tell them that and crush their morale. He trailed off awkwardly before forcing a laugh.
"You're right. Haha."
After exchanging a few more light words, he opened the door to the tenth room. The room was pitch black, with no sign of life. No rough breathing from monsters either, but Judah knew what lurked inside.
Among the words engraved on the iron door, 'Watchman' referred to a golem. The labyrinth was named the Iron Labyrinth because of these watchmen.
To secure visibility first, he pushed Arhil's orb of light into the room. In the wide chamber appeared enemies not yet marked on the .
The golem stood firm on two legs like a statue, towering well over 2 meters. Its crude exterior was flawless in its sturdiness, its entire body forged from metal.
"As expected, that's what 'Watchman' means."
Lime nodded.
"It'll have innate resistance to magic, so Lime, stick with Arhil on defense and support. I'll handle the golems with Iris. Sound good?"
At Judah's question, Iris paused as she reached for her notepad, then nodded confidently as if to say leave it to her.
"Alright. Let's go."
He knew the first pattern: upon detecting intruders, it stomped to unleash a shockwave, stunning or knocking out the entire party.
The moment Judah's group entered, the open door slammed shut on its own, and five golems activated. Their eyes flashed as their bodies moved. Powered by magic, they moved smoothly without a hint of rust despite the ages, which was fascinating.
As the golems opened their eyes, five red dots appeared on the .
The one directly ahead bent its knees, then sprang into the air.
"Huh?"
An unexpected move. He hadn't anticipated a golem leaping off the ground. With its massive metal body, its weight was immense. It clasped its two fists together overhead.
It planned to smash down. Just as Judah thought how dynamic it was for a golem and opened his mouth to shout a warning, Lime cast her spell from behind.
"Protect!"
A hexagonal shield materialized in the air, blocking the golem's attack.
Boom!
But the mass and force were tremendous—the barrier cracked with a sharp sound and shattered. It had fulfilled its role by blocking one strike. As the fragments rained down like broken glass, Judah, now wielding his yakal drawn from the <Bag>, activated a skill toward the falling golem.
Shadow Sword 2nd Form
Slash
The buffs like Demon Eye and Potential Release had been active for a while. Black aura formed by Judah's mana enveloped and slashed along the yakal's blade. A line was drawn across the golem's torso as it slid down after breaking the shield.
The instant its feet hit the ground, the golem split vertically and collapsed lifelessly.
'Not sure if I'm strong or if the weapon's good.'
Maybe both. Having dispatched one watchman easier than expected, Judah gained confidence and moved left toward the approaching golem that shook the ground with thudding steps. Naturally, Iris went the opposite way.
Four golems left.
Two each.
Lime and Arhil just needed to watch. No need for them to step in—helping might even hinder.
For some reason, the golems wielded their massive fists with agility belying their bulk, swinging over wide arcs.
Judah and Iris easily dodged the crushing blows and destroyed the cores in the golems' torsos.
Judah had the spirit sword, so it made sense, but Iris surprised Lime.
She evaded the fists like a dancer, slipped lightly into their embrace, and shattered the cores.
She looked like a frail, mute girl, but she was actually a skilled assassin.
Lime eyed Iris with faint fear, thinking she truly was from the Shadow Kingdom, and waited for the golems to fall.
As if her wish reached the heavens, it didn't take long.
It was quick.
Ordinary adventurers or mercenaries would have freaked out at the golems' defense and their number—five, no less—and lacking the skill, they'd waste time in reckless challenge only to end up flattened. He could picture it.
But Judah and Iris dispatched the so-called watchmen with ridiculous speed.
The cores weren't even exposed. They sliced through magic-reinforced metal and destroyed what lay within. Even watching up close, it was hard to believe.
"Good work."
Lime said to Judah and Iris as they returned after taking down two each. But Judah's expression was grim.
"Your face doesn't look good. Something wrong?"
Hm.
At Lime's question, Judah looked troubled. How could he explain feeling empty because the labyrinth, designed with some challenge in the game, was being cleared too easily?
"No, no problem."
"Then...?"
"Too easy?"
As the creator who'd put effort into this labyrinth, admitting a bit of emptiness would get him labeled crazy. Sensing something odd in Judah's words, Lime fell silent. Arhil picked up as if understanding.
"...Ah, I see. The inscriptions on the iron door scared us plenty, but it was too easy, so it's suspicious, right?"
He hadn't meant it that way. Lime interpreted it differently, but he didn't correct her.
He glanced around.
They'd felled the watchmen guarding the last room on the second floor. On the first, traps meant to block demons bursting from the demon world had been wasted. The named monsters in each second-floor room had died long ago, leaving scraps.
The five watchmen that tormented players with stun effects were neatly handled by Iris and Judah. Things were going so smoothly that the third-floor boss demon didn't seem tough.
'Organ's bothering me, though.'
She might not be an enemy. With Cain dead, this could be a chance to recruit her. Thinking positively instead of worst-case, it was possible.
Wasn't the new inscription at the tenth room's entrance hinting at that? Judah felt his heart lighten a bit.
"Let's go."
He said to the waiting group and headed for the exit. As he approached the door, black flames flickered at Iris's feet. They erupted explosively. No warning, no presence—just visual.
"Iris!"
He shouted her name and yanked her arm. It might have been unnecessary. She was higher level, higher stats, and had a fragment. She'd dodge an ambush effortlessly. But he couldn't calculate that in the moment. He saw danger and reacted on instinct.
"!"
He grabbed her wrist. As expected. Iris had noticed the flames at her feet and was turning misty like fog. The moment Judah seized her wrist, she turned and got pulled into his arms.
Whoosh!
Crimson-black flames licked the air regretfully, spewing heat.
Whummm!
"You okay?"
Reacting in the same instant, Lime erected a barrier. A wall of mana rose before Judah and Iris, blocking the writhing, snake-like flames' heat. For now, Judah was fine.
"You okay?"
Lime asked, but Judah repeated it. Iris looked up at him with startled eyes from his arms, then pulled away, checked herself, and nodded. Just surprised. No burns or injuries. She pulled out her notepad.
-I'm fine. Thank you for the help.
No mention of it being unnecessary, thankfully. If anything, he worried he should apologize. She could've dodged alone, but grabbing her might've put her at risk. He felt sorry.
They avoided the sudden crimson-black flames and opened the sealed iron door. As it slid open, Arhil frowned.
"Huh? Wait. Something... familiar from below."
"?"
"It's holy power...? Someone set up a barrier with holy magic. A really powerful one."
-She said she was blessed by the Holy King. Probably her.
Iris wrote her thought on the notepad. Rather than speculate here, they decided to descend and meet the person.
'It's gotta be Organ.'
Fully opening the door revealed not a spiraling stair like from first to second floor, but a straight one descending.
At the bottom shimmered a golden barrier.
Holy barriers and magic exerted extra power against impure beings like demons, fiends, monsters, ghosts, so humans could pass. Touching the barrier at the stair entrance, it parted easily, and they entered.
"This is..."
The third floor was a vast hall. Spacious enough not to feel cramped, with a high ceiling. But more shocking: the cavernous space was filled with metal weapons of every kind—swords, spears, axes, shields, arrows—stabbed into the ground. The silver-gleaming weapons shared the same uniform color from hilt to tip, as if forged from one material.