Chapter 138
Chapter: 138
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>Translator: penny
>Chapter: 138
>Chapter Title: Labyrinth (7)
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>“Sigurd Sigursson. That’s the truly vicious part about him. Even when the avatars he controls retain their full consciousness, they often fail to realize that they’re nothing more than puppets moving at his will.”
Leonhard looked puzzled at Romain’s explanation and asked again.
“You’re saying they keep their consciousness but don’t realize it?”
“Yes. Because of the cunning methods he uses.”
Romain paused for a moment before continuing.
“He usually controls puppets in one of two ways. The first is by inflating a human’s self-esteem to the extreme and stimulating their desire to become something greater, making the puppet accept him of their own accord.”
“Hmm?”
“The problem comes after they accept him. Once their consciousness links with his, all the vast experience and knowledge he’s accumulated, combined with his mad ambition to become part of the great flow, elevates the puppet’s mind endlessly. At that point, the puppet believes they’ve become his ally and mistakes his powerful desires for their own, lending their body without hesitation.”
Romain and Leonhard.
The two were currently walking down a long stone corridor.
The weathered stone walls, thickly covered in moss, bore the marks of ages past, but the sparse blue torches illuminating them burned as brightly as if they had just been lit.
“The other method is even more vicious. He grinds a human’s self-esteem into the dirt or drives them into a desperate corner, making the puppet abandon their sense of self entirely. The puppet then moves completely according to his will. If it goes that far, the puppet might even mistake themselves for Sigurd Sigursson.”
Romain, who had been leading the way, paused at a fork in the path, glanced around briefly, then chose a direction and kept walking.
“In that case, the puppet lives on as Sigurd Sigursson in every way. Of course, the process of making them give up their self isn’t humane, so gaps inevitably form in the puppet’s memories from time to time.”
“Gaps in their memories? But how could they not notice they’re being controlled?”
“Because most of those gaps are filled the moment they fully connect with him. As I mentioned earlier, humans linked to Sigurd can’t escape the exhilaration from their hyper-stimulated mental activity. The sensation is so intense and seductive that they don’t even have a chance to notice the loss of some mere human memories.”
With that, Romain let out a low, hollow chuckle.
The corners of his mouth twisted beneath his half-mask, laced with deep bitterness.
“And so, the pitiful puppet, unaware of its true place, continues the delusion even after he leaves. That it’s not just some ordinary human—that it’s actually a demon. A dimension-crossing demon king, destined one day to be part of a great legend.”
“…….”
“Humans sink so easily into that fleeting high offered by someone else for their own convenience, after wallowing in deep despair over their own worthlessness. Isn’t it truly foolish?”
The emptiness in his voice felt like profound self-mockery, leaving Leonhard a bit embarrassed. He cleared his throat awkwardly and pretended to look away.
Fortunately, before the mood could grow heavier, they reached their destination.
Romain stood before a large door engraved with elegant reliefs and spoke to Leonhard.
“This is my base. To enter with me, Leo, you’ll need to join my party. As I explained earlier, just say you accept.”
The moment he finished speaking, a broken text window appeared before Leonhard’s eyes.
〚■■■ invites you to join the party. Accept?〛
〚Accept / Decline〛
Startled, Leonhard glanced at Romain’s face before nodding.
“…I accept.”
Another text popped up with a ping.
〚Party formed with ■■■.〛
“Whew.”
Leonhard shook his head and took a swig from his flask.
“I don’t know what to say. You explained it all beforehand, but it’s still surprising. This really is another dimension.”
The two had now entered the labyrinth.
Thanks to Sigurd Sigursson’s urgent login to the labyrinth for some reason, Romain had successfully regained some of his lost connections.
With a heavy creak, the door swung open, revealing another corridor lined with several rooms.
Unlike before, the interior was brightly decorated, and Leonhard’s eyes widened in surprise as Romain strode inside.
“I’ll grant you access to part of the base, Leo. From now on, you can come and go freely in the permitted areas.”
“Wow, Romain! I never even imagined this. It’s just…!”
Leonhard’s face flushed with excitement as he looked around.
“Isn’t this the perfect hideout? Can I bring others here?”
Romain turned to him with a look of disbelief.
“We came here specifically to evade the guardians of Delcross and the higher demon kings’ eyes. You think we can hide properly if you openly bring women in?”
“We can’t?”
“Of course not. Besides, with all the hideouts you have scattered across the continent, do you really need another secret spot?”
“They’re never enough. I don’t like going back to ones I’ve used. They smell like corpses.”
“…….”
Romain fell silent.
He looked like a perfectly normal young man on the surface, but in truth, this Leonhard was quite cruel.
As a child, the prince had brought small animals into the palace to torment for fun. As he grew older, he created secret hideouts and lured people there. Most of those he brought ended up as cold corpses buried in the hideouts.
If he weren’t a prince, he’d have been branded a demon worshiper or a once-in-a-generation murderer and executed long ago.
Then again, that unusual disposition was probably why he was fated to become the continent’s overlord.
If Delcross had fallen to [Famine] as planned, he wouldn’t be wasting his days drowning in alcohol—he’d be in the thick of conquest wars right now.
“By the way, if the labyrinth is so good at avoiding prying eyes, why doesn’t the dimension storyteller flee here?”
Gulp, gulp.
Leonhard asked as he poked his head into rooms here and there, exploring.
“Sigurd Sigursson can’t leave the Delcross dimension.”
“Why? Because his main body died in Delcross?”
“No. The problem is that the moment his soul leaves the Delcross dimension, he’ll face the full wrath of the Holy Emperor, who has cast off all restraints. Didn’t he just lose one puppet as an excuse for briefly opening the labyrinth?”
Sigurd Sigursson had been the Holy Emperor’s target for years now.
The reason he’d survived in soul form until now was by possessing puppets and staying within human laws, exploiting the Holy Emperor’s constraints.
Now, he had only one way to gain freedom.
Hide among his few remaining puppets and wait for the day the Holy Emperor dies of old age as a human.
“Even that will require his puppets to have extremely long lifespans. He has only two left, and creating new ones would blatantly violate human laws.”
Though it was just a momentary connection, Romain had fully grasped Sigurd Sigursson’s situation and smiled confidently.
It was then.
“…Huh?”
Leonhard paused in front of a door at the end of the corridor and spoke.
“Romain, something’s off. I swear I’ve seen this place before.”
“What? That can’t be.”
Though Romain asked skeptically, Leonhard silently opened the door.
He felt an odd sense of déjà vu, as if he’d opened and closed this door many times before.
Creeeak….
The room inside was simple.
Basic furniture, including a small bed. And clean pastel wallpaper with a modern feel.
“That wallpaper….”
A strange memory flashed in his mind.
The faint warmth wrapping around his hands, and those eyes looking up at him.
Leonhard stared blankly down at his own hands.
Was it an illusion? It felt like he’d definitely strangled someone’s neck here….
Noticing his unusual state, Romain spoke with concern.
“The labyrinth is full of lingering thoughts and emotions, and they sometimes affect people. But those aren’t yours, Leo. Isn’t this your first time here?”
“…Yeah. It must be.”
He’d probably confused it with one of his hideouts in Rohan.
Leonhard tilted his head and closed the door.
* * *
As soon as Seongjin returned to the palace, he headed straight for the Holy Emperor’s office.
Though his siblings and Masain tried desperately to make him rest, he convinced them with these words.
“I’ll just ask Father to fix me up! Then everything’s solved, right? I can give my urgent report without delay, and train tomorrow without needing rest!”
Of course, Seongjin thought his condition was relatively fine, so this was just an excuse to avoid skipping training.
And fortunately, his persuasion worked quite well.
“Is that so?”
“That makes sense.”
“Well, if His Majesty wills it.”
Yes. The Holy Emperor cheat key was always unbeatable logic.
When Seongjin arrived at the palace, the Holy Emperor’s office was brightly lit late into the night, as always.
Perhaps from working late, the Holy Emperor looked a bit tired when he greeted Seongjin. He gazed silently at his son with an inscrutable expression before slowly speaking.
“Mores.”
“Yes.”
“Mores.”
“…Yes?”
“…….”
Seongjin answered again, puzzled, but the Holy Emperor remained silent for a while.
Just as Seongjin started worrying if something was wrong, the Holy Emperor beckoned him closer.
Sure enough, a brilliant light poured down, and Seongjin felt his condition improve in an instant.
He’d already been healed once by Logan, but apparently the Holy Emperor saw something lacking.
And the difference in his condition before and after was stark.
His power really did follow a different path from ordinary divine power.
“Sit.”
“Yes.”
Impressed, Seongjin sat across from him.
Luis promptly poured tea at the perfect temperature, as if waiting.
It seemed this man had anticipated my visit.
‘Well, if he already knows roughly, reporting will be easier….’
Thinking that, he took a big sip of the tea.
“So. How was the labyrinth?”
Pfft!
Seongjin nearly spat the tea across the room.
“…You knew?”
When Seongjin asked with a sheepish face, the Holy Emperor tilted his head.
“I thought you came to report it, but it was a secret?”
“No, no….”
Seongjin answered, breaking into a cold sweat.
Of course, hiding anything from him was impossible, but he’d still planned to avoid mentioning getting dragged into the labyrinth and nearly dying.
He’d intended to report on the suspicions about the Scartafino family and Riccardo’s true identity.
And ask about the oracle while at it.
“I’m sorry. I seem to have worried you needlessly again.”
As Seongjin bowed his head in apology, the Holy Emperor replied with an indifferent expression.
“No, it’s fine. I wasn’t overly concerned. You told me before that you dispatched the labyrinth monsters in one go.”
“…Pardon?”
When Seongjin blinked in confusion, the Holy Emperor’s eyes deepened as if recalling something.
“Yes. I don’t know how I could have forgotten until now. You clearly told me back then.”
“……?”
And the Holy Emperor’s lips curved faintly upward.
“You said you’ve become very strong now, so I should trust you and not worry about a thing.”