Chapter 15
Chapter 15
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Labyrinth (3)
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The labyrinth resembled ancient ruins, structured to descend underground.
It had the advantage of a simple layout, making it nearly impossible to get lost.
However, its vertical design came with drawbacks.
Escaping in an emergency was difficult.
And unleashing high-powered magic was a challenge.
'...The entrance area is quiet.'
As the scouting party's guide—or rather, their meat shield—I took the lead, walking at the forefront into the labyrinth.
The labyrinth wasn't just filled with monsters.
It brimmed with all sorts of traps as well.
And that's where the meat shield's role truly shone.
By stepping on the traps first, I revealed their presence.
"Hey, mutt. Get further ahead. You're too close to us."
"......Understood."
And sure enough, these guys were mindful of that.
They kept ordering me to widen the gap.
If a trap went off and they were nearby, they could get caught in the blast too.
But.
'Simple enough.'
Even so, I was a veteran player who'd earned the Pureblood Inheritance Trophy across all races.
Of course, a monster rush would be trouble, but labyrinth traps?
I could spot them as easily as if I had map hacks.
'That floor tile—step on it, and arrows shoot out.'
Tiny holes lined up along the walls on either side.
Step on the trigger tile, and arrows fired.
I casually skirted past that tile.
Without a word to the guys behind me, of course.
Then, moments later.
Click.
"Wha—...?"
The rearmost member of the scouting party, chasing after me.
An elf stepped right on the tile.
Whoosh!
"G-Gyahhh!!!"
"Damn it! Lumen!"
"Arrrghhh! My arm...! An arrow...!!"
He ducked in a panic, but an arrow still buried deep into his forearm.
"Tch...!! Hey, mutt!! Watch where you're going properly—!!"
The leader elf, Kairel, bellowed at me over his comrade's injury.
I replied with a blank expression.
"No idea... I had no clue there was a trap. If I had, I'd have stepped on it myself..."
"Urgh...!"
Kairel's face twisted at my words.
Well, what could he say?
He'd never suspect I'd spotted it beforehand.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Ancestor 'Eternal Teacher of the Fairies' sneers at her descendants! Ancestor 'The Creating Mortal' grins in delight! "Urghhh..., damn it..., it hurts...!"
"Endure it, Lumen. The Great Master will bestow her blessing upon those who overcome pain."
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Ancestor 'Eternal Teacher of the Fairies' sticks out her tongue! '...While that Great Master mocks them.'
These guys and their constant ancestor worship.
Whining over a mere arrow in the arm looked pathetic.
'That said..., the first floor is awfully quiet. Usually, monsters start showing up around now.'
While they tended to the wounded, I scanned the labyrinth interior.
From what I'd observed since entering, this labyrinth's difficulty wasn't that high.
It just had a massive number of monsters.
And when they all surged at once—that was the monster rush.
'...Even so, with that many, the first floor should be crawling with them.'
It felt like the calm before the storm.
Of course, maybe there was no monster rush, and the peaceful first floor was just luck.
'But if..., the worst happens..., can I overcome it with my current strength...?'
That's what made it a labyrinth—anything could happen.
And with most crises, my power was still too lacking.
'I haven't achieved any great feats yet..., so the only immediate source of power is...'
I pondered as I walked through the labyrinth.
The answer came quickly.
Summon another ancestor.
Of course, no guarantee they'd appear when called, or grant power right away if they did.
But in a dire crisis, it was my only option right now.
Otherwise...
I glanced back subtly at the party members behind my meat-shield position.
'...Lure them into a trap on the sly, wipe them out, and run?'
Then return to Parion and say:
Wahhh, the labyrinth was too dangerous. I'm the only survivor.
...Karga might let it slide without punishment.
These guys seemed like mixed-bloods anyway; no one would care much.
The pureblood client who posted the request might complain, though.
'No, the problem is taking them out first...'
Looking now, after that arrow trap, they were only watching the floors I'd stepped on.
Luring them secretly into traps would be tough.
That left ambushing them outright.
But in a fight: six against one.
Plus, they had the restraint magic tool switch.
No matter how I sliced it, a head-on clash was disadvantageous.
'Best I can do..., is snag the magic tool during a monster rush and bolt.'
But what if some survived the crisis?
Back in Parion, they'd report my escape.
'Urgh..., wait at the entrance and pick them off?'
But that felt too cowardly.
Though for survival, cowardice might be necessary.
Still, in my case, there were watching eyes.
Three ancestors.
...If I did something villainous, how would those heroes react?
If they got disappointed and left...
That'd be a huge loss.
In the end, all I could do now was pray nothing major happened.
And as I scanned the interior deep in thought...
"...Looks like stairs down. ...But they're blocked."
"Indeed."
We'd reached the only path down from the first floor.
And found it sealed by a massive boulder.
'What? Why so calm?'
Yet leader elf Kairel nodded coolly.
If their goal was scouting the labyrinth or treasures below,
They should show disappointment at being blocked.
'Something's... off...'
A strange vibe.
Unnatural.
Right after sensing it, Kairel pointed at something while looking around.
"Hey, mutt. That spot looks suspicious. Check it out."
"...What makes it suspicious?"
"Do I need to explain to a mutt like you?"
"......"
The spot Kairel indicated was a room away from the first-floor entrance.
'Nothing special about it...'
No signs of traps.
Why check that room specifically?
My body froze, refusing to move.
"Resisting?"
Kairel activated the magic tool in his hand.
Bzzz—
"G-Graaaahhh!!!"
"Heh, look at you squirm."
"Hey, mutt. Don't forget your role. You do as you're told."
The other scouts snickered at my agony from the restraint cuffs.
'Damn..., my legs are moving on their own...'
Magic effect from the cuffs—forcing my body to obey his command.
In the end, I had no choice but to enter the designated room and inspect it.
"...Nothing here, as expected. No notable features."
And that was the moment.
Fwosh!!
"What...?!"
A magic circle suddenly appeared on the floor beneath me, glowing brightly.
'A magic trap?!'
Not the kind you'd find in a labyrinth this level.
This was high-level stuff from far more advanced dungeons.
In other words—this was an artificial trap, set by someone.
Rumble rumble crash!!
Cracks spiderwebbed across the floor as it began to collapse.
"Graaaahhh!!"
Thankfully, just before it gave way, I grabbed the crumbling edge with my hand.
BOOM! Rumble rumble!
Kiiiiieeeeek—!!!
"What in the...?"
The floor caved in, leaving a massive hole in the room.
And from below came eerie shrieks.
I peered down.
—Teeming with countless monsters.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Ancestor 'Eternal Teacher of the Fairies' is shocked! Ancestor 'The Creating Mortal' shouts out! Ancestor 'First King of the Beastkin' perks up its ears! "Kuhuhu, kwahaha! Mission accomplished!! Now I can finally claim pure elf bloodline!"
And then.
Kairel's voice rang out, brimming with glee.
Step, step, step.
"This..., your doing...?"
Hanging from the hole, I glared up at Kairel and his comrades approaching.
They looked down with smug grins.
"Ah, first things first. —Order: Don't climb up from there."
Bzzz.
"Urgh...!!"
The magic tool in Kairel's hand flashed, and my grip began to weaken.
"You filthy bastards...!! What the hell...!! Why are you doing this!!"
I yelled at them, desperate for a reason.
Why go to such lengths to kill a worthless mutt slave?
Because their male pride was bruised by the pheromones?
No, that wouldn't cut it.
They had a clear purpose.
A reason to kill me.
"Hah, talkative trash on death's door."
Instead of answering, Kairel tried to pry my fingers off.
Then.
"Hey, wait!!"
"Hm? What?"
"He still has the axe! If he falls like that, what about the axe?!"
"Oh, right. Haha, forgot about that useless hunk of junk to us elves."
"Tch, you pointy-eared pricks! Hand over the axe first!!"
At the dwarf leader's shout, Kairel issued a cold command.
"Slave, hand over the axe in your left hand."
Bzzz—
The cuffs activated, pain surged, and my left arm jerked into motion against my will.
"Damn..., you...!!"
I didn't know the full story, but I could guess.
The dwarves wanted my axe.
Why? Morduin's blessing, obviously.
No need to overthink it.
But the elves' motive for killing me? Still a mystery.
"Uhahaha! So this is the axe blessed by the great Lord Morduin! Hah..., how can such a pathetic axe...?"
The dwarf receiving it inspected my axe closely.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Ancestor 'The Creating Mortal' sends a gaze of contempt toward his descendants! Ancestor 'Eternal Teacher of the Fairies' gazes at you with worry! Anyway, the situation was clear now.
Elves and dwarves had teamed up to drop me into a trap.
Soon, I'd fall.
And those monsters below would tear me apart.
What a shitty situation.
"Kuh, kuhehehe..."
"Hm? What? Haha, this mutt trash. ...Lost your mind as death nears?"
But.
—I got lucky.
Not a standard monster rush or boss spawn.
Betrayed by the so-called comrades I'd come with.
No better moment to call him.
'Thought I'd summon later, but...'
I smoothed my grinning face.
"Suuup..., haaa..."
Took a deep breath.
And looked up at the sneering bastards above.
Then, I launched into the performance of a lifetime.
Luckily, the circumstances made injecting real emotion easy.
"You bastards, how dare you stab me in the back—!!"
I bellowed at them with all my soul.
"I'll kill you—!! I swear it!! I'll kill you all—!!!"
Grinding my teeth, veins bulging in my eyes.
Clutching the cliff edge until my knuckles whitened.
Glared at them with pure murderous intent.
But powerless, my eyes trembled with resentment, tears welling up.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Ancestor 'Eternal Teacher of the Fairies' sheds tears. Ancestor 'The Creating Mortal' grips his hammer. Ancestor 'First King of the Beastkin' turns its head away. Thus, I screamed in utter despair.
Like a man overflowing with injustice in his final moments, shedding bloody tears.
I poured curses upon them.
"I'll rip off your limbs, flay your skin, and splatter your blood everywhere...!! You'll all die in agony...!! I'll make sure of it!! You hear me?! I'm saying I'll kill you—!!"
And watching my agony,
They.
"Puh, pfft...!"
"Kuhuhu...!"
Burst into leisurely laughter.
"Kwahahaha!! Pathetic mutt!! All that's left is your pride, huh?! Uhahaha!!"
"Kill us? Kuhuhu, how? You can't even climb up! A slave mouthing off."
"Ooh, I'm so scared my legs are shaking. Puhahaha! So when do I die? Take a century? Uhahaha!!"
Shriveled by male pheromones, they mocked me even harder.
"Filthy mutt trash!! Know your place!!"
"You think we'd tremble in fear?!"
Soon, they started yelling back in rage.
Pouring out everything they wanted to say, as it was the end.
But that was perfect.
"I curse you..."
These words weren't for them anyway.
"This mutt you call trash..., your trash..., —I'll never forget you."
I infused every ounce of emotion into my voice.
Praying this scream reached the heavens.
"Just you wait..."
And.
"I'll show you..."
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ "...how I'll kill you!!" In that scream, one being turned its gaze.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Ancestor 'Dragon that Scatters Karmic Flames' gazes at you.