Chapter 305: Inside
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 305: Inside
The assemblies of every labyrinth city were in utter chaos. Calax, in particular, was the most frantic.
"W-Why on earth is that person there?!"
"I thought she died in the previous battle..."
For some reason, Mystery Antoinette, who had reigned as the conqueror of Calax's Southeast for a long time, had joined the fray of the Hollow Breeze dressed in a bizarre outfit.
After the Southeast Subjugation War, word had spread that Mystery Antoinette was actually a member of the Succubus Species. They had been told she was eating away at Calax through subtle, sophisticated brainwashing magic that even a layman wouldn't notice.
—Was she always like that?
—No. She used to be much smaller than that.
While the murmurs within the Calax Explorer’s Guild Assembly showed no signs of dying down, another, even greater problem erupted.
"H-Hey! We've received word from the Roanmarie Assembly!"
"Headquarters is also calling constantly! They're asking if this is okay... How should we respond?!"
"I don't know either. Ignore everything until dawn passes."
The biggest issue right now wasn't responding to outside inquiries; it was how to prevent Yoo Eon, the precious Orichalcum-grade explorer born of Calax, from being branded a wanted criminal.
"To think he's using a Vampire and a Succubus as familiars..."
If someone wanted to make an issue of it, the controversies were endless. The sight of him fighting the mysterious, powerful Necro Lord Belmorak in a literal bloodbath was horror itself.
It was a difficult decision for the Guild Headquarters, which was in charge of the broadcast. There was a massive debate over whether they should display his grotesque combat scenes on the large screens in the middle of the city for men, women, and children to see.
However, if they didn't show Belmorak's whereabouts properly, that would create an even bigger problem. Not knowing where the creature was or what it was doing would only fuel the people's terror.
It might be slightly traumatic for children, but in the end, they had no choice but to broadcast the "shock video"—where internal organs and chunks of flesh were being sliced away—to every city without any editing.
* * *
Lilith Astaroth and Iris Albresto, former Legion Commanders of the Demon King, were currently in combat with Belmorak.
Belmorak was a being on the level of a Necro Lord. In the Demon Realm, his combat prowess was great enough to earn the Demon King's favor, placing him just below the Dragon Lord, who was said to possess combat power equal to the Demon King himself.
—Squelch!
The scar from the scythe, swung diagonally, tore through the earth and gouged deep into the ground. As the exchange of blows continued at speeds transcending human perception, the surrounding explorers couldn't hide their astonishment.
"That Vampire... she's spamming unbelievable magic..."
The mages from the Page of Arcana and Sharmana Anuyai were terrified as they watched Iris Albresto's offensive magic and her equally formidable physical combat abilities.
Furthermore, Lilith Astaroth's close-quarters combat was nothing to scoff at. Her spear, thrust with precision after covering hundreds of meters in the blink of an eye, was powerful enough to blow Belmorak—a being thought to be in an unreachable realm—dozens of meters away.
—BOOOOOM!!!!
Belmorak, who was holding his own against these two monsters single-handedly, was equally impressive. Hemeth Nefertiri felt a sense of skepticism regarding her own combat power as she watched the two mysterious women.
But.
‘Where on earth did he go...? Did he really die?’
She was curious about the whereabouts of Yoo Eon, who had disappeared somewhere, leaving behind two incredibly powerful companions. His appearance had been quite shocking.
His way of fighting was also bizarre beyond measure; it was as if he felt no fear against Belmorak, who was slicing his body to pieces. Despite shedding enough blood to dye the green plains crimson, his output continued to increase rather than slow down.
"Ugh, blegh...!!!!"
Seeing Skaeda Justitia vomiting nearby, Hemeth clicked her tongue inwardly.
‘She must have reached her mana limit. Well, it’s no wonder after spamming such high-level magic.’
Last year was Skaeda Justitia's first time participating in the Hollow Breeze, and it hadn't been this intense back then. It had been easy enough that the Orichalcum-grade explorers were given breaks in between.
‘No matter how I think about it, this is strange.’
The sky was still filled with monsters based on Synthetic Horus and Eldyokul. On the ground, there were dozens of grotesque Undead Killers. And those two women over there seemed to follow Yoo Eon, given the circumstances. The fact that they were continuing the fight even though he was dead meant...
‘Could he have run away?’
Hemeth didn't know. To be precise, everyone there except for Skaeda Justitia was so preoccupied with their own battles that they didn't notice the anomaly occurring deep underground.
* * *
"What are you doing?"
"I'm experimenting."
"What kind of experiment?"
"I want to know the exact timing."
Yoo Eon was creating synthetic monsters for use against the Necro Species, and Iris sat by his side, watching. Yoo Eon was repeatedly creating lumps of flesh, taking out his stomach, and storing them inside.
"Hmm... doesn't seem to be much of a difference."
"About what?"
"It's nothing. Iris, could you perhaps attack me?"
"Why?"
"Just because."
After repeating several strange experiments for reasons she couldn't fathom, Yoo Eon nodded.
"Let's go."
* * *
2:00 AM. One hour since Belmorak's appearance. About 20 minutes had passed since Yoo Eon disappeared, and in that time, Belmorak had continued his confrontation with Lilith Astaroth and Iris Albresto.
—Skreeeech!!
"Seriously...! You're such an annoying bastard!"
Lilith Astaroth screamed as she faced Belmorak, but that didn't change the situation. Her orders were simply to hold Belmorak back so he wouldn't kill other explorers until a certain plan was completed.
She didn't particularly have the goal of fighting hard to suppress him. In the first place, if it weren't for her cooperation with Iris Albresto, the power gap was so great that a proper exchange wouldn't even be possible.
"Hey! Mosquito! How much longer do we have to do this?!"
"I don't know...!"
Lilith Astaroth didn't even have her proper Treasures, and Iris Albresto couldn't even exert half of her original power. Even if Belmorak had weakened, there was no possibility of victory for them through direct combat.
"Kh...!?"
Despite blocking the swinging scythe, Lilith Astaroth was sent flying far away by the powerful impact.
Iris, who had been providing backup, also allowed several effective hits. They were struggling against Belmorak, who maintained the same level of power throughout the Hollow Breeze.
:: Pa... thetic. ::
"Huff, huff...!!"
Belmorak approached Lilith, who was sprawled on the ground like a pile of laundry. The horse tail attached to his lower body was engulfed in green flames, and his massive great-scythe lunged toward her like a flash of light.
—Clang!!
:: You are.... ::
A pitch-black blade erupted from the ground. As Belmorak sensed something wrong and tried to retreat hastily, an arm suddenly shot up from the earth and grabbed his front leg.
—Swish!!!
CLANG—!!!!
When the restrained Belmorak tried to move using the Necro Species' unique teleportation, his magic was jammed, causing a momentary stutter.
Then, the sword swung once more, severing Belmorak's wrist with exquisite skill, and the handle of his scythe fell to the ground.
—Thud...
The figure of a man crawled out from the ground, dusting himself off as he stood up.
"I never imagined I would be resurrected in such a way."
It wasn't Yoo Eon. His movements were more deliberate than usual, and his stance with the sword was more formal.
Draped in a faded, tattered navy cloak, he held a massive sword and shield in his right and left hands, respectively.
:: Knight... Lord. ::
"A pleasure to see you."
Following behind him, another figure emerged from the void.
:: The Infinite... Witch.... ::
By dismantling and analyzing the thousands of Necro Species that poured out of the Hollow Breeze, Yoo Eon had discovered the principles of their creation and reverse-engineered them. These were Necro entities that no longer existed.
"Y-You guys..."
"Succubus Lord. It gladdens me to see you in such a helpless state."
"Tch... even though you were devoured just the same..."
—Rustle...
As Amelia slowly leaned into Hersha's embrace, her lower body partially merged with his, and the two siblings became one. A mana core containing infinite mana, combined with the body of a knight possessing supreme skill.
It was a replica that inherited 100 percent of the original's functions, something that had been impossible until now.
"We shall join the fray. We won't be providing any help, so survive on your own."
"Hmph... how arrogant...!"
The situation reversed in an instant. Amelia's power constantly placed restrictions on Belmorak's magic, and the Knight Lord joined in, exerting power nearly equal to Belmorak's in close combat despite the inherent weakness of being a Necro Species himself.
Iris Albresto was greatly shocked, but she didn't let it show.
The Knight Lord, Hersha, also said nothing upon seeing Iris Albresto.
Fatigue was piling up for Iris and Lilith due to the continuous fighting, and the Knight Lord's very nature as a Necro Species was a weakness. Belmorak's scythe had the ability to absorb Necro entities, so this could only serve as a temporary measure to buy time.
But the Knight Lord knew. He knew the true intention of Yoo Eon, who had created him.
‘I will lure him to the southwest. Is that what you intended?’
‘I like how well we communicate. I’m counting on you.’
Hersha felt like a hollow laugh would leak out of his non-existent throat. When he was in the south, he would fight defensively to draw Belmorak in.
When he was in the north, he would push the creature hard, nudging him downward bit by bit.
The confrontation with Belmorak lasted for dozens of minutes. Before they knew it, they were far away from the Hollow Breeze portal and the explorers fighting there.
"Could it be...!"
Lilith Astaroth sensed something strange in the surroundings, and her heart began to thud.
It was subtle enough that even Belmorak might not notice, but from her perspective, she couldn't help but recognize this scent of blood.
"Ha, haha...!"
A heavy silence enveloped the area. A bizarre vibration traveled from the ground to the tips of their toes.
—Rumble...!!!
The earth began to twist and heave, and suddenly, a massive wall of flesh began to rise from the ground, trapping the four combatants.
:: Inevit... able.... ::
A living biological cage, hundreds of meters high, enclosing a vast area one kilometer in diameter.
"Haha! This is seriously insane...!!"
The Knight Lord, Lilith, and Iris, who were facing Belmorak, squeezed out their last bits of strength and charged toward him.
"Is it possible, Necro Lord?"
The Knight Lord asked with a mocking question.
:: ...Impossible. ::
"Yes, I suppose so."
What surrounded them was a massive 'Stomach Wall.'
Through his experiments, Yoo Eon had discovered that it took exactly 8.8 seconds to store something that had entered the interior of his stomach. This was the time shortened by the increased output from Bleeding Berserk.
It was impossible to shake off three powerful opponents and escape over the vast stomach wall in that time.
:: Regret.... ::
Belmorak, who tried to shake them off and flee with all his might, could not surpass those 8.8 seconds.
"Welcome to the monster's belly."
Along with Lilith Astaroth's mocking voice.
"The inside is cleaner than you'd think."
Belmorak's body was 'stored.'