Talon
The dungeon boss was writhing in agony, coughing up blood without pause.
"Guhhk! Wheugh!"
"…What the hell?"
My companions, who had steeled themselves for a brutal fight the moment they stepped inside, wore expressions of pure bewilderment. They had braced for a desperate battle — only to find their opponent already on the brink of death. Their bafflement was only natural; nothing about this had gone as expected.
I, on the other hand, allowed myself a quiet smile. Things were unfolding exactly as planned.
Break the magic crystal, and this is what you get.
In the game, this man had resolved himself to die and unleashed a demon's power upon the Agra family estate. The crystal had contained magic so immense it could only be activated by offering his own body as a sacrifice. Shatter that crystal, and the entire burden fell squarely on the contractor. Without paying a price equal to what the demon demanded, he would die in endless torment.
"I don't know the full story here," Via said, stepping forward as the one who had been attacked, "but you're the one behind what happened yesterday, aren't you?"
He was in no condition to answer.
"Kh-hh! You dare call yourselves a great house— uuph! Guhhk!"
Watching him cough blood mid-sentence, I almost felt a twinge of pity. He had probably rehearsed a whole monologue for this moment, only for the situation to collapse like this.
This is supposed to be our first real clash with Talon — a major scene — and there's barely any tension.
The secret society that called itself the Claws of the Abyss: Talon. In truth, they were demons belonging to a legion that formed one of the Demon King's army's core pillars. Every dark mage of Talon was formidable, a nightmare to face under normal circumstances…
"Um… what do we do?"
Via turned to me with a troubled look, which said everything about the dark mage's condition. Lowering the threat level was a relief, but if he died like this, the story would stall. Piecing together the information in this room would get us somewhere, sure — but certain quests only advanced through the man's own mouth. I couldn't just let him die.
No choice, then.
I stepped forward myself.
"Hah! For someone who calls himself a Claw of the Abyss, you look like absolute garbage."
"What did you say?"
My mockery got a reaction. I had no idea where a dying body found the strength, but the dark mage fixed his glare on me and snarled.
"You — how do you know that…!"
"You've got the damn tattoo right there on your hand and you thought nobody would notice, you idiot!"
It had been a while since I'd slipped into full Hex-mode, and the rough talk felt awkward as hell. The others were staring at me with puzzled looks — though, thankfully, the content of what I'd said seemed to hold their attention more than my delivery.
My desperate effort to keep the quest on track paid off. The broken chain of information started linking back together.
"Claws of the Abyss… you mean Talon?"
"Talon?"
"I've heard of a secret society by that name," Layla said. "People who made pacts with demons…"
With the well-read Via and Layla freely sharing what they knew, the quest settled back onto its proper rails. Kyle stepped forward with an uneasy expression.
"I don't fully understand the situation, but if you surrender peacefully, I will… try to spare your life."
At Kyle's awkward offer of clemency, the dark mage's face twisted. Being pitied by an enemy — and not just any enemy, but a Hero, the very thing the Demon King's army hated most — must have been a humiliation beyond endurance.
"Shut your mouth!"
The dark mage howled and slammed a button. With a tremendous clamor, mechanical golems emerged from every direction.
I pressed a hand to my chest in relief.
That was close.
Those things had been exactly what I'd worried about the moment I got swept up in the teleportation magic. If the dark mage had commanded those golems to attack us while we were isolated, Layla and I — with zero combat ability between us — could have been in serious danger. The fact that he was too wrecked to redeploy his elite golems was a genuine stroke of luck.
"Those golems look different. Be careful."
At Kyle's warning, the others nodded. It wasn't just their appearance — their stats were different too. In a situation where only physical attacks were available, these were the worst possible opponents: golems with physical damage reduction. And right in the center of them stood one far larger than the rest.
That's the boss from the magic-seal gimmick fight.
I'd wondered where a golem that size got its power — then I looked closer and spotted the steam engine mounted on its back. I couldn't help the quiet gasp of admiration.
That's so cool!
A dwarf-made steampunk robot! Suddenly I couldn't wait to visit a dwarf village. For the record, in the physical-damage-reduction gimmick version of this fight, the dark mage transforms into a half-demon.
Thoom. Thud.
The golems began lumbering toward us. Even their footsteps sounded different from the ones we'd fought on the way through the dungeon. The dark mage shrieked like a man possessed.
"Your deaths have come for you in this place!"
A massive golem arm came swinging down at us.
The battle ended without incident.
There had been a few moments — the dungeon boss offering everything to a demon, transforming into a fiend, and firing beams; a three-stage mechanical golem fusion — but none of it really mattered.
"Hmm."
Beyond hummed thoughtfully as he examined the dark mage's belongings we had brought back.
Fragment of a Corrupted Soul
Dark Mage's Journal
Secret Orders
— Items that lead into the linked quest revealing Talon's true nature —
The rest of the party wore serious faces, clearly sensing the gravity of what we had uncovered. I, of course, already knew all of it, so none of this particularly moved me.
Once he had finished reviewing everything, Beyond let out a long sigh.
"Talon, is it."
Even Beyond — head of the Agra family and a mage of the highest caliber — knew of them. Anger flickered in his eyes.
"So they dared to target Via."
The Agra family specialized in magic tools and enchantments, and even operated a magic workshop capable of mass-producing high-quality artifacts. To the Demon King's army, that made them a serious threat — which meant the Agra family had to be dealt irreparable damage. That was what the dark mage's journal said, word for word.
"This one will take some time to decipher."
Beyond set the scrap of secret orders down as he spoke. Written in ancient demonic script, it was the item that connected directly to the linked quest — and it would not yield its secrets easily.
He looked at Kyle.
"You've done us a tremendous service. If there is anything you want, name it. I will grant whatever is within my power."
I had never heard those words when playing the game. In the original route, while Beyond was away, the estate had been reduced to rubble, Via had died, and even the magic workshop had been terrorized. A Beyond who had lost everything and burned with nothing but vengeance would never have spoken of rewards.
"We didn't do this expecting a reward," Kyle said.
Beyond shook his head.
"When a man does a job, he is entitled to demand payment. Uncompensated goodwill only breeds a sense of entitlement. That is simply how people are."
A brutal truth bomb dropped squarely on the world's most generous doormat of a Hero. Kyle didn't look convinced, but he couldn't argue either. He had seen far too many people demand help as if it were their natural right during his travels.
"So go on. Speak. Even if the request is somewhat unreasonable, I will hear it."
I couldn't help but be impressed. Who would have thought Kyle's doormat energy could put us in such a strong negotiating position? Combined with Beyond's fundamentally decent nature, the result was better than I could have hoped. I shot Kyle a look. He sighed as if he had no choice and turned to Beyond.
"In that case… please give us a Fragment of the Clock God."
A Fragment of the Clock God. A material used for permanent enchantments — one of the Agra family's treasures. A top-tier ingredient you normally couldn't obtain until the late game.
Beyond's eyes went wide. He had been dealing with a pure-hearted boy, only to be hit with an outrageous demand out of nowhere. Of course he was stunned.
Will he actually give it?
I had told Kyle to ask for it, but honestly, I figured the odds of getting a yes were low. I had just gambled on Beyond's love for his daughter, his character, and Kyle's sheer earnestness.
Kyle hurriedly bowed his head.
"Ah — that was too much to ask, wasn't it? I'm sorry."
"No, no. After everything you've done, a reward of that caliber is only fair."
"Thank you!"
I caught Beyond turning his head and muttering under his breath. Probably cursing Kyle for being shrewder than he looked.
Kyle seemed to feel guilty about making such an unreasonable demand, but this was one of those times when a little guilt was worth swallowing. We needed that fragment for Kyle's escape from his… size problem.
Alone in his room, Beyond sat deep in thought. He turned over the investigation team's report in his mind, murmuring to himself.
"A man who prepared all of that… made a mistake like this?"
Talon's dark mage had been exceptionally skilled. He had commanded a demon's power — Creatures of Darkness — to assault Via, and he had installed a teleportation magic circle. Either of those alone would have been impressive. On top of that, he had set up a magic-sealing barrier and commanded dozens of dwarf-made mechanical golems. For someone with that kind of capability to be in such a state at the most critical moment?
If he had already been like that before attacking Via, he would have postponed the plan. Which means he sustained those injuries after the assault…
Injured by the inherent instability of dark magic. It was a plausible explanation. But in cases like this, the less likely possibility often turned out to be the real one.
For instance… if someone had done something that disrupted the plan…
Beyond stopped himself there. Anything beyond that was pure speculation. Besides, he had materials that could give him answers.
If I examine these, the truth should come out.
Beyond began deciphering the dark mage's journal and the secret orders.