Chapter 108
Chapter 108
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 108
Chapter Title: Faceless
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The northern Demon Lord's territory, beyond the Duchy of Sachsen.
A domain ruled by the young Viscount Sachsen, as a proxy for his father, the great Duke Sachsen.
"Even in death, we die where we stand!"
"Never break formation!"
Within the Black Armor Company's lauded "unbreakable formation," one figure moved alone.
Facing the endless horde of ghouls, Viscount Sachsen… Dale raised his head.
The lord of the Demon Lord's territory.
The 'Black Prince' snapped his fingers, and a dark azure magic began to swirl at his feet. The 'Shadow Cloak,' disguised as a black surcoat, billowed, dyeing the area into a lake of darkness.
A moment later, just as the ghouls closed in on Dale.
「Kieeeeeeek!」
From beneath the lake of darkness, a crouching 'Shadow Lurker' let out a screech.
*Shwaaaak!*
The «Shadow Lurkers» unleashed their thorny tentacles in unison. Swirling like a storm from all directions, the tentacles began to butcher the flesh and bone of the ghoul horde.
Monsters that rarely stopped even after losing an arm or a leg, boasting speed and strength beyond that of ordinary undead. Even these ghouls, the most troublesome undead to face in the Demon Lord's territory, were helpless before the «Shadow Lurkers'» thorny tentacles.
An endless maelstrom of destruction raged, as if they were being torn to shreds in an industrial mixer. With every whip of the tentacles, they were crushed, leaving not even the minimal form required to operate a body.
It was said that an unknown dark power resided in the lands of the Demon Lord's territory. Yet even that darkness was pitifully insignificant before the darkness displayed by the 'Black Prince' standing before them.
A greater darkness that swallowed the darkness itself.
Witnessing the sight, the heavy infantry of the Black Armor Company held their breath. Fear, and awe.
"The Captain has annihilated the enemy!"
"Wipe out the remaining stragglers!"
"Never break the line! Even in death, we die where we stand!"
The heavy infantry of the Black Armor Company roared in unison. This was the power of their captain, the 'Black Prince' who ruled this Demon Lord's territory.
***
The Labyrinth City, Labyrinthus.
A fortress built by a past Duke Sachsen to halt the overflow from the 'Great Labyrinth,' a dungeon of unknown scale. As the new lord of the Demon Lord's territory, Dale had renovated and expanded the fortress into a city, making it the capital of his viscounty.
It was a key strategic point for pioneering the Demon Lord's territory, and the site of Viscount Sachsen's castle.
The 'Viscount Sachsen,' who had just defeated the ghoul horde, was crossing the city streets, accompanied by the Night Raven Knights—the symbol of House Sachsen—and the heavy infantry of the Black Armor Company.
A young lord who had just celebrated his fourteenth birthday. Dale of Sachsen, called the young Viscount Sachsen to distinguish him from his father, Duke Sachsen.
Yet in the Labyrinth City, no one dared to look down on Viscount Sachsen, the 'Black Prince.'
The Artifact Rush. Countless people gathered in the Demon Lord's territory, chasing after treasures that promised instant wealth, and such a pit of desire was bound to create a vortex of lawlessness.
Nevertheless, there was only one reason why the Labyrinth City of Labyrinthus maintained its own semblance of order.
It was the order of fear established by Dale of Sachsen, the lord of the Demon Lord's territory.
As his father, Duke Sachsen, was fond of saying, fear guaranteed loyalty.
***
Viscount Sachsen's Castle.
As the 'Proxy of Duke Sachsen,' Dale sat on the throne. He had left his father's ducal castle to become the lord ruling the Demon Lord's territory and the master of Viscount Sachsen's Castle.
Lined up on his left and right were his people, loyal to Viscount Sachsen.
At the side of the throne stood Dale's two loyal female knights.
Lady Black, the Sword Princess, Charlotte.
Lady Shadow, the Holy Maiden Orelia.
Hiding their identities behind black armor and helmets, ordinary people had no way of knowing who they were. And even if their armor revealed a feminine silhouette, no one dared to doubt their swords.
For everyone knew the fate of the drunken adventurers who had once picked a fight with them after learning they were 'lady knights.'
Above all, they were the swords that guarded none other than the renowned 'Black Prince.' Unless one lacked all common sense, no fool would underestimate their martial prowess.
Furthermore, Dale's trustworthy vassals were also there.
The elven mage Sephia, who always assisted him from the 'closest position' and offered him unstinting advice. And the Night Raven Knights of House Sachsen, loyal to Dale, led by Lord Veil of Baskerville.
Moreover, Dale was not the only one who had grown.
Lord Veil too had reached the level of an Aura Master, obtained an avatar, and become a part of the «Grave Guard». Nevertheless, he, along with the Holy Maiden Orelia, had become one of Dale's people, assisting the 'Black Prince.'
In addition, there was the deputy commander of the Black Armor Company, Lord Yones of Kennet.
With the pioneering of the northern Demon Lord's territory, the elite scout unit, the 'Winter Watchers,' had also taken up the banner of exploration and were carrying out their duties. The entire unit had been reformed into an intelligence squad directly under Viscount Sachsen.
Finally, though they did not officially show themselves at Viscount Sachsen's side… one could not forget the 'assassin's sword' that executed the 'Black Prince's' will from the shadows, never hesitating to dirty their hands.
The Shadow Court.
The enforcers of justice, spreading like an urban legend among the adventurers.
The Artifact Rush. The curtain had risen on the 'Northern Frontier Era,' igniting the desires of adventurers, and the development of the Demon Lord's territory was proceeding quite smoothly, at least within Dale's established order.
***
At dawn that day.
The night was deep, and Dale left a room in the lord's castle alone.
The 'Shadow Cloak,' which usually took the form of a black surcoat, now mimicked the shape of a black robe to conceal Dale's identity.
A shadow fell beneath the hood, and the man in the black robe left the castle. Without a single guard to protect him, he departed Viscount Sachsen's Castle and headed for the streets of the Labyrinth City.
Despite the late hour, the city's lights rarely went out. There were mercenaries shouting boisterously in taverns after a day's work, and others who, now that night had fallen, intended to venture into the Great Labyrinth in search of 'instant wealth.'
In the Labyrinth City of Labyrinthus, at least, the distinction between day and night was not clear. At night, the flames that lit the city never died, and during the day, the darkness within the labyrinth was as deep and dark as night.
But during the day, Dale too had to perform his 'duties as a lord,' and only when he had finished his work and was finally alone could he begin his own adventure, stepping into the darkness of the Great Labyrinth.
***
«Faceless».
In the Labyrinth City of Labyrinthus, at least, there was no one who did not know that name.
An adventurer who had appeared out of nowhere one day and abruptly made a name for himself as one of the most skilled individuals in the Labyrinth City.
It had taken him only a few weeks to acquire his first adventurer's license from the Labyrinth City's 'Adventurer's Guild' and reach S-rank, the highest tier of skill.
There were even legendary tales of him venturing into the depths of the Labyrinth City alone, hunting high-level monsters one after another, and never returning from the labyrinth until he had obtained at least one artifact.
The one without a face.
A name given because no one had ever seen the face beyond the shadow cast by his hood.
Some believed without a doubt that he was one of the Seven Swords of the Continent, training in disguise, while others believed he was one of the continent's renowned 'monster hunters.'
The people of the Labyrinth City each had their own suspicions about the identity of «Faceless», and a surprising number of them had guessed correctly.
But whenever they voiced that correct answer, they were invariably ridiculed, with others scoffing at the idea that the great 'Black Prince' would enter the labyrinth without a single guard.
And yet, that was precisely the case.
***
Not much is known about the «Great Labyrinth».
In the past, it was thought to be merely an underground fortress built by the Demon Lord Balor, but shortly after the Hero defeated the Demon Lord...
The Empire, having finally advanced into the depths of the Great Labyrinth, realized it was not a mere structure built by demons. Furthermore, even the Empire's strongest, including the Hero, could not conquer the Great Labyrinth.
About seventy percent of the failure to conquer it was due to the political situation involved. The Empire, needing to force Duke Sachsen to bleed resources, did not welcome the idea of the darkness in this area being eradicated.
The other thirty percent, however, was because a threat lurked there so great that even the renowned Hero had to bear a significant risk.
In the first place, even now, labyrinths of various sizes, though incomparable to the scale of the Great Labyrinth, are appearing all across the continent.
Among the theories, the most plausible one is that labyrinths are 'structures built by ancient demons'... and that their appearance is caused by entrances being revealed on the surface through tectonic uplift.
Gossips still spoke in hushed, fearful tones of 'ancient demons' with power exceeding that of a Demon Lord, sleeping in the depths of labyrinths or the deepest parts of the Dark Lands.
***
There was a monster.
A monster wandering aimlessly in the darkness of the Great Labyrinth's depths.
These monsters have no proper names. Like the unidentified deep-sea fish that inhabit the ocean depths, their forms are all different, and it is rare to even witness two monsters of the same species.
Monsters in the truest sense. All had grotesque, aberrant appearances.
Here, one had to exert their full strength to hunt even a single monster, and the only fortunate thing was that they did not form groups.
It was a monster with six arms, much like an Asura from Buddhist lore. And each of its six arms held a different weapon.
Before it, the S-rank adventurer 'Faceless' drew his sword.
It was a knight's sword with no distinguishing features, but the concept dwelling within it was anything but ordinary.
The Hero's sword, Peacemaker.
*Clang!*
A strike lashed out from the Asura's six arms, six weapons swinging with off-beat timing.
Six Slashes.
Simultaneously, the power of Peacemaker twisted the physical laws of the area, and within those laws, the Asura's swords could not reach 'Faceless.' The «Forced Peace» that nullified all attacks.
But the power was only effective for a fleeting moment.
*Clang!*
The swinging Six Slashes shattered the «Forced Peace» that Peacemaker had imposed on the area. The transcendent power dwelling in Dale's beloved sword was countered and broken by a commensurate 'unknown power.'
*'This is it.'*
Demons may be included in the category of monsters, but conversely, not all monsters are demons. The term 'demon' does not refer to a specific race, but is merely a general term for monsters with a certain level of intelligence.
And this monster had no intelligence. It didn't form groups and create a tribal society like orcs, nor did it display any coordinated tactics.
At the same time, it possessed power incomparable to that of a 'mere demon,' an unidentified being that wandered aimlessly through the labyrinth.
As Peacemaker's ability vanished, a look of interest finally appeared on the face of 'Faceless'... Dale.
This was it.
*'The true nature of the unknown power these beings display.'*
And the secret hidden within the Great Labyrinth.
The reason why the one and only prince of House Sachsen, Viscount Sachsen, ventured into this labyrinth alone without any guards.
He recalled the memories Dale the Hero had experienced here long ago. Furthermore, he mulled over the 'unknown familiarity' he felt from these mindless destroyers.
*Fwoosh!*
Against the six swinging swords, Dale swung his Peacemaker. With every clash against the barrage of strikes, a memory dormant deep within him began to stir.
It was not the Hero's memory. It was something older, slumbering in the deepest recess of his subconscious. A sensation that should have been too faint to even remember was now reawakening.
The original power that made the current Dale, and by extension, the Hero of his past life, possible.
It was the power of the 'Monster Hunter (Hunter).'