Chapter 44
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 44
Chapter Title: Kingdom Mages Railly and Kina (2)
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Led by Railly and Kina, the two hundred soldiers wasted no time organizing their forces and set out the very next day.
Railly, at the forefront, had murderous intent swirling fiercely in her eyes.
She didn't seem to have any intention of hiding it.
The village chief Alcom, who had come along as their guide, struggled to calm his pounding heart as he walked beside them.
'What's with that terrifying glare?'
He wanted to keep his distance, but he couldn't.
Railly took a deep breath, forcing down her boiling rage once more.
She knew she had to stay calm, but it wasn't easy.
"Hoo."
She closed her eyes and exhaled.
"Ahem. This way, please."
Alcom cleared his throat awkwardly and took the lead.
"We march!"
The soldiers began to move.
Their target was the dungeon deep within Dibel Forest.
Aside from Railly and Kina, who knew the exact objective, the soldiers followed blindly, unaware of what was going on.
"What kind of dungeon requires this many people?"
"Beats me."
"Weren't dungeons supposed to be cleared by adventurers?"
They grumbled in complaint, but in the end, they obeyed their superiors' orders.
Even city dwellers followed the chain of command as soldiers.
Watching the procession were Railly and Kina with their opposing mindsets, along with the two hundred soldiers.
"They're mobilizing faster than expected."
"Shall we ambush them right away?"
Yulia, who had come out for reconnaissance with me, asked.
"No. With Amy and Rebecca absent right now, we can wait until they've entered the dungeon. For now, focus on gauging their numbers."
"Understood."
My gaze fell on the two mages leading the vanguard.
'Kingdom mages...'
The fury radiating from them was palpable even from this distance.
Fools simplified by rage were far too easy to deal with.
Gazing down at them, I mentally calculated our odds of victory.
"Hm..."
If I handled the two mages myself while Yulia and the others took on their soldiers, our chances outside the dungeon were about fifty-fifty.
'Wish we had a mage.'
In battles of one against many, mages offered the highest efficiency.
Their utility was limitless, depending on how you used area-of-effect spells.
'Tempting.'
They were mages—kingdom-level ones at that.
Capturing and corrupting them would make them incredibly useful.
The mage who'd come once before was too weak and broke too quickly.
If she'd held out longer, our odds would've been higher.
'What are the chances of capturing those mages unscathed?'
It would depend on how quickly my minions and monsters took out the soldiers.
My mental simulation put the odds at seventy percent on victory and capture.
Having assessed their numbers, I smirked inwardly and returned to the dungeon.
"This is it."
Alcom pointed to the dungeon entrance carved with a ferocious gargoyle face.
"I don't know the layout inside either. It would've been better to bring adventurers..."
"We already have the dungeon map, so no issue. Thanks for guiding us here."
"Thank you. Ha, haha."
"You can head back now."
"Yes."
Alcom bowed deeply and hurried away.
He couldn't bear to stay even a moment longer, gripped by an uneasy feeling.
Watching the mages enter the dungeon after organizing their troops, Alcom spotted a single rabbit twitching its nose toward the entrance.
"Huh? What's a rabbit doing here?"
The ominous demonic energy unique to dungeons swirled chaotically in all directions.
They pressed forward, piercing the chilling air.
They passed the so-called sex room the adventurers had mentioned.
Deeper still.
They had to proceed with utmost caution.
No one who entered had ever returned alive.
"Everyone, stay alert on all sides!"
Railly raised her hand and cast a light spell.
The brilliant glow illuminated their vision far beyond what the torches could manage.
Then, in Railly's expanded field of view, multiple shadowy figures appeared.
"Wha... what?"
"You've had a tough journey getting here. I should've gone out to the entrance to greet you, but guests coming this far in aren't an everyday occurrence."
A voice that squeezed her heart like a vise echoed through the dungeon.
Chills ran down her spine.
Her heart sank, cold sweat breaking out.
'Strong.'
Railly instinctively knew that voice belonged to the dungeon's master.
"Everyone, battle stations!"
Clack!
The soldiers gripped their spears in perfect unison.
"Interesting."
The voice's owner took a step forward.
"A... a demon...?"
A dazed voice rose from among the soldiers.
The figure was a head taller than an average man, with navy-blue skin and horns sprouting from its head.
The word "demon" didn't sound absurd at all.
"Demon? How rude to His Majesty the Demon King."
A woman emerged behind him.
It was too revealing to call priestly garb. More skin was exposed than covered, and a pale pink tattoo adorned her lower abdomen.
Railly swallowed hard.
This was no pushover.
'Need to brighten the area...'
She cast light spell again.
A Rank 6 mage's light spell blazed as bright as midday sun, illuminating the dungeon depths.
The view expanded further.
It revealed the others standing behind the demon and the lewd priestess.
"R-Rebecca...?"
As the woman in the back came into view, confused voices erupted from the soldiers.
Did they know her?
But the woman they pointed at and called Rebecca had eyes too hollow and dark to pass for human.
"Railly, we need to retreat. They're stronger than we thought."
Kina, standing beside her, whispered.
She was right.
They had come here for reconnaissance...
"It's been a while since mages paid a visit. The one who came with a swordsman before was useless, but I hope these two will prove more worthwhile."
Railly's vision blurred with rage at the Demon King's mocking words.
"What did you just say?"
A mage who'd brought a swordsman?
"You don't mean the silver-haired mage, do you...?"
"Oh, a friend of hers perhaps? Name was Floa, I think? Her pussy was quite the delicacy. Resisting right up to the end was delicious. She ultimately couldn't withstand my power and broke, though."
His taunting words made her head spin with a ringing dizziness.
She shouldn't have asked.
Shouldn't have listened.
Then she wouldn't be this furious.
The rage she'd forcibly suppressed boiled over.
That was the bastard.
The one who'd killed their Floa and left her in ruin.
He hadn't been far after all.
She'd met her end in this dungeon.
Along with Jackal...
That guy.
That motherfucker.
Cold air swirled around Railly.
She began her incantation.
"O ancient chill, the mana-favored one earnestly desires..."
⟨ Ice Spear ⟩
Moisture in the air froze solid, forming ice spears.
The Rank 6 mage's mana dispersed the demonic energy filling the dungeon.
A massive spear.
"Railly, calm down, we need to retreat..."
Kina's voice reached her, but she ignored it.
Sorry, Kina.
I don't think I can calm down.
She'd always pretended to be the cool-headed ice mage, spouting lines like that, but...
'Not right now.'
I'll kill him.
Kill that so-called Demon King and take his head to Floa's grave to avenge her.
At that moment, applause rang out.
Boom!
"Kuhahaha! You lot? You'll be my workout partners today?"
A dragonkin covered in black scales and a tiny rabbit blocked their retreat.
And a massive gargoyle, over three meters tall, loomed behind them.
-GRRRROOOAAARRR!!
Uwaaaah!
The creatures lunged at the soldiers.
Rebecca and the mysterious lewd priestess up front, dragonkin, gargoyle, and a tiny rabbit in the rear.
The soldiers resisted, but it was their own who fell.
The acrid stench of blood assaulted their noses.
"Ah..."
"I'll clear a path from the rear, so..."
Kina's words cut off.
Boom!
"Where do you think you're going?"
"Kgh!"
The Demon King had closed the distance in an instant.
"Kina!"
"Got it!"
Wind from Kina's spell enveloped Railly's body.
Railly coated her ice spear with gale-force winds.
Wind and ice.
Perfectly synergistic attributes, like an ice storm shredding flesh.
That was why the two kingdom mages always worked in tandem.
Whoooosh!
Boom!
The spear, wrapped in storm winds, pierced the Demon King's shoulder.
"Guhk!"
Damn.
Missed the heart.
They needed to kill this thing fast and help the soldiers.
"The next one will hurt even more."
An ice storm gathered in Railly's hand, targeting the Demon King's head.
Kaboom!
Ice shards scattered, shattering the dungeon wall.
Dust clouds billowed, obscuring his position.
'Did it work?'
That one stung pretty bad.
'A-rank after all.'
Blood poured from the hole in my shoulder.
I'd let my guard down.
Didn't expect magic that strong.
Top-tier among A-rank spells.
Their combo meshed perfectly.
'Tempting.'
These girls will be useful.
A smile crept onto my face unbidden.
"Your Majesty, are you alright?"
Just before Railly's spell hit my head, Yulia stepped in front and cast a barrier.
That's how I survived.
I wouldn't have died, but it would've hurt bad.
"Sorry. I let my mind wander."
"Not at all. I'm sorry for failing to block the first strike. I should've protected you."
"Enough. It was my fault for not dodging. There are still too many strong humans out there."
Frederica charging headlong had been easier.
Mages required accounting for too many variables.
I could see my torn flesh regenerating rapidly.
Just wait for the smoke to clear...
"Yulia!"
A prickling sense of danger jolted my ki perception. I grabbed Yulia's waist and dodged sideways.
Boom!
Another ice spear demolished the wall.
"D-Demon King?"
"Annoying pests."
This just made me want to torment them more.
Gazing at the two mages firing spells from outside the smoke, I vowed to corrupt them in the most agonizing way possible.
"Railly, we have to retreat now."
"I know."
She knew.
But her feet wouldn't move.
Voices in her head screamed to kill the Demon King over and over.
She'd clearly landed a fatal blow.
Their combined spell had damaged him, hadn't it?
"We might be able to take him."
"What?"
"You saw it. That guy got hit hard by our magic."
"But we have our mission."
"Kina! Have you forgotten Floa died to that monster?"
Floa's voice echoed in her mind.
-Sister, kill that monster for me.
-Avenge me. Because of that monster, I...
-Kill it. Kill it.
Floa's desperate plea to be avenged right then.
"Railly, snap out of it. Floa's death is tragic, but we're kingdom mages. We can't forget our duty. Please..."
"I can't go."
Kina bit her lip at those words.
They had to retreat...
That's why they'd brought the soldiers.
Just as Railly had cherished Floa, Kina was fiercely determined to protect Railly.
Hearing the horrific sounds of soldiers dying behind her, Kina clenched her fists.
Fine.
If it means saving them at least...
"Got it. I'll help."
No sooner had Kina spoken than...
Boom!
Her body vanished from Railly's sight.
"Ki...na?"
The Demon King burst from the dust cloud and struck Kina, slamming her body into the dungeon wall.
She lost consciousness from the single blow, sliding down the wall and collapsing in a heap on the floor.
"A fine strike, but you forgot this is a demonic-energy-saturated dungeon."
"Ah... aaah..."
"I've given you plenty of chances to flee."
"You bastard!!!"
Railly reached out, unleashing her most powerful spell.
But it wasn't enough.
Railly's world faded to black.