The Price of a Fallen Knight

If there is a hell, this must be it. The Pale Riders were scorched by the inferno erupting from below. Their skeletal horses began to thrash about, their legs engulfed in flames, while the riders atop them scrambled in panic as their tattered robes caught fire.

Kieeeeeek!! The Pale Riders shrieked as they pulled themselves from the pit. With no way to keep them in check other than our long-range fire, the riders quickly dragged their skeletal mounts out of the hole. Then, they bolted toward the other side of the dungeon, chasing after the fleeing Furcas.

"Master, they're running away again!"

"They're too fast!"

As if the fire consuming their tails and bodies acted as a booster, the Pale Riders began to sprint toward the far side at a speed even greater than their initial charge. If we didn't kill them here, they would surely extinguish the flames and recover from their wounds.

"Damn it!"

It was a shame to let them slip away so easily, but I had to ensure I thinned their numbers as much as possible. I gripped the dagger handed to me by an adventurer and pointed at the Pale Riders closest to us.

"The five that are fully stuck in the pit! Kill those ones for sure!"

We endured the sweltering heat and unleashed our ranged attacks. Even as they burned, the Pale Riders swung their scythes to intercept our arrows, but they could not withstand the concentrated rain of projectiles.

Thwack! My dagger pierced through a Pale Rider's ribs and embedded itself into the crown of its skeletal horse. Following that trajectory, Ryun’s wind-arrow flew true, piercing the area around the dagger. As the skeletal horse dropped its head and perished, the rider collapsed as well, its joints falling apart.

"Nice!"

"Hoo..."

Ryun caught her breath, keeping her eyes fixed beyond the second interception chamber. Seeing her ears twitching in concentration, I patted her backside to help her release the tension.

"The battle is over. You can stop now."

"But Master, what if they attack before the time is up?"

"Don't worry. After getting beaten this badly, they won't be coming back. They'll probably return mixed into the third wave in six hours... no, five hours, just as you said."

Excluding Furcas and the Pale Riders who had fled in a panic, we had taken down nine. Having wiped out more than half of their force, there wouldn't be any more fighting until the third attack force arrived.

'Damn, this is exhausting.'

It had been a series of consecutive battles, fighting without a moment's rest. The adventurers were happy to have defeated the Pale Riders, but what they needed right now wasn't the joy of victory.

"Rest!"

"Huuuuh!"

The adventurers collapsed to the floor the moment I shouted. Some even sprawled out completely. Our battle hadn't even lasted an hour, but during that short time, we had been forced to gamble our lives on a battlefield overflowing with the aura of death, as if walking on thin ice.

"Eila, the casualties?"

"There are no fatalities. However, many have been wounded by the Pale Riders and require treatment. About twenty people will need at least a day of recuperation."

"It's a miracle they didn't die. Listen up, adventurers! Uh, no. Don't get up. If you're going to stand up with your legs shaking, just lie down and listen."

Since I wasn't going to make them fight again, I wanted to treat them comfortably, with genuine gratitude. No matter if the enemy was a monster, I couldn't treat those who had risked their lives for our legion poorly.

"You all return to Las Vegas with Eila. Eila, you should head back to Las Vegas as well. Thank you for guarding this place while I was away."

"......I will have them rest, and then prepare so that we can cross the portal immediately if the situation demands it. Listen, human adventurers! We will rest here for ten minutes, then move to Las Vegas! We shall wash off the sweat in the river there and take our rest!"

"Oooooh...."

The humans cheered with dying voices. They were now living in a city rather than a dungeon, but they seemed to lack the energy to cheer due to the heavy fatigue of battle.

"Master. ...Are you really going to be alright?"

"Ah, Lily. ...Are you hurt?"

Lily approached me, clutching her shoulder. There were no wounds on her limbs, but her leather armor on her shoulder bore the marks of a scythe slash.

"It's not that deep. I just need to apply some herbs and treat it. ...Humans don't have as good a recovery rate as you, Master, so it will take a little time to heal, though."

Lily's eyes were still fixed on the second interception chamber, where fireballs were surging from the ground, and beyond. It seemed she was quite bothered by retreating to the rear when the battle wasn't even completely over yet.

"Don't worry. It would have been more dangerous without your help. I owe you a great debt. The rest is now the work of the demons."

"Master, I...."

Lily lowered her voice, whispering to me cautiously so others wouldn't notice.

"May I continue to lead the adventurers...?"

"Hmm."

Lily was a woman with a significant desire for status. If she ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠were merely incompetent, I would have had to be wary, but Lily was sufficiently capable as a subordinate. Above all, considering the children I had sired through her, I couldn't help but be considerate of her.

"When we have some breathing room, let's try to make a younger sibling ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠for Lancelot."

"Pardon? Wasn't that no longer possible for me...?"

"If the Orcs increase, the squad leaders must naturally increase as well. Let's use this opportunity to build a knight order together, you and I. Hehehe."

There was a system that could even turn an elf into a queen; how could I not evolve Lily? I had intentionally suppressed the growth of the humans, but it was a different story for those who had entered under the banner of Las.

"Just wait for the evolution. ...Well, it'll probably just end with you looking younger-"

"I will definitely wait for it!!"

Lily's eyes sparkled as she kissed my neck and left. I was momentarily dumbfounded by Lily's display of affection, and Ryun watched Lily with warm eyes, smiling contentedly.

"It's a good thing to become younger by receiving the Master's love. Heehee."

"...Is that so? Wait a second, Ryun. Come here."

I abruptly grabbed Ryun's ear. Ryun licked her lips, glancing at the other humans.

"You must be thirsty after the battle, right?"

"That's true, but I'm checking something else for a moment."

"Tch."

Ryun pouted her lips, and I held her ear with one hand while inserting my other hand into her mouth to punish her tongue. As I gently pressed down on her tongue with my index finger, Ryun made a tearful, playful expression.

"Hahohaehoooo... slurrrp."

Ryun began to practice by swallowing my finger as if it were my junior. And I steeled my heart, examining the information floating above Ryun's head.

Ryun. Lv.66. Only 4 levels left until evolution. Her growth was so exceptional that one could now call it "soon." To the point where I thought she might even catch up to me.

"Ryun, for now, let's finish the construction work and then quench each other's thirst."

"Yes. Slurrrp. But construction?"

"Yes. ...It'll be makeshift, but a place where those fleeing Pale Riders won't be able to cross easily."

Seeing the hell-pit equipped in the second interception chamber gave me a good plan. And before setting that plan in motion, I checked the war situation elsewhere.

"Shaitan. You already know, but we've repelled the enemy on our side. What happened with Gremory's side? There are no problems elsewhere, right?"

"Why?"

Shaitan's voice held more of a sense of awkwardness than anxiety. Thanks to that, I wasn't worried that Gremory had been defeated, but I was concerned that Gremory might have done something strange.

"Surely she didn't try to block it with her own body, did she?"

"......I was just talking about a meat-shield attack? Ahem, like a suicide bombing using a clone or something."

I could tell just by looking at her eyes. Just as I had thought of such things with a "what if" mindset, it seemed Shaitan hadn't entirely ruled out that possibility either.

"Ahem. Well, surely even Gremory wouldn't do that. Right, what is happening in the Gremory Dungeon that you say is a problem I need to see for myself?"

"What?"

The news Shaitan delivered left me in shock and awe.

"Holy crap."

While I was holding off Halpas's legion, Gremory had already suppressed the rebellion.

* * *

"Still, I'm facing a stronger opponent right now, so it's impossible for me to go. Don't you think?"

"That's true. I'm also quite flustered on this side."

Gremory had sent a clone. With Furcas right in front of me, my forces weren't fully intact enough for me to step away.

"Explain it so I can understand simply. What happened?"

"While the Orcs were buying time, Galahad captured Amy."

According to Gremory, the Orc unit Eila had sent fought fiercely alongside her. Because the farm was right behind them, the Orcs fought for their lives. To protect the countless non-combatants and eggs, the Orcs fought with the mindset of killing one more enemy even if they were wounded, and the damage the Orcs sustained was immense. The number of surviving Orcs was only fifteen. Among the deceased Orcs was Arthur, whom I could call my eldest son.

"Arthur is dead? How?"

I quickly checked the list of Affinity Summons. Most of the Orcs were registered as Gremory's subordinates, but my children, the squad leaders, were registered in my dungeon. And Arthur's name was on the list of the deceased in the Affinity Summon roster.

Galahad smiled bitterly.

"He sacrificed his own life to help Galahad's holy power reach Amy. In fact, that was the only way. I'm sorry."

Gremory explained in detail how Arthur had fallen in battle. Using water magic to clash with the fire-whips Amy was using, he created steam, and in that opening, Galahad gathered holy power to try and pierce Amy. Still, as the owner of the 58th dungeon, Amy didn't fall easily. Therefore, someone's sacrifice was necessary, and Arthur had drawn her attention, only to be strangled to death by a fire-whip.

"Where is Amy?"

Perhaps because I had heard the details, I felt an urge to run over right now and strangle Amy to death. Gremory pointed upward with a face that seemed to fully understand my feelings.

"In my dungeon. I'm putting her to very good use."

"Use? How?"

"As a hostage."

At Gremory's words, my anger subsided slightly. I liked that she was still alive because I wouldn't kill her cleanly, and I liked even more that she was being used as a hostage rather than a prisoner.

"Who are you using as a hostage? Amy herself?"

"Yes. The enemy subordinates had surprisingly great loyalty, didn't they?"

Gremory placed a crystal ball in front of me and drew up ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠her mana. As if the vision were linked, the sight of the monsters confronting each other at the entrance of the portal in the Gremory Dungeon came into view at a glance.

Amy was writhing in agony on the floor like a bug, her limbs bound. Galahad was threatening the monsters crossing over from the portal on the other side, his sword aimed at Amy's neck.

"I see. Since you're continuously spraying holy power, Amy can't run wild. But for that, she seems to be in quite a lot of pain?"

"I put that thing behind her. Hehehe."

Gremory twisted her lips and mocked Amy. Her finger pointed toward her own backside, and despite the fact that Amy had killed Arthur once, I felt a slight bit of pity for her.

"They say absorption through the rectum is quite immense."

"Really? I didn't know that. Then try experimenting on me next time."

Gremory was relaxed enough to talk about future events.

"But what did you put in there?"

"I filled the Skatology with slime mucus and made it crawl backward."

"......Well done, Gremory. She killed Arthur, so just beating her to death isn't enough."

Amy's virginity had been eaten away by a bug.

"So, Gremory, what is the problem I need to judge?"

"This is Galahad's suggestion. It's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠quite decent, too. As you've felt, just because the scramble is over doesn't mean you have days to recover, right?"

"That is true."

Even I, right after looting Vapula's dungeon, had the scramble with Halpas start as soon as it ended.

"Even if we defeat Amy, couldn't another one from Halpas's legion come right away? Then how about this?"

Gremory pointed at Amy in the crystal ball and drew her hand across her throat.

"We hold Amy hostage like that and hold out. And after your war ends, we kill them all. Then at least the rear won't be attacked, right?"

"......Not bad. Shaitan, is there any possibility that more than two portals will open?"

In other words, as long as the portal with Amy is connected, the enemies attacking the Gremory Dungeon are essentially the end of Amy's forces.

"That's good. It's a good plan. But let's add more to it."

I took out a slime that was in the middle of construction work on the floor and handed it to Gremory.

"First, let's pour the concrete. So Amy can't get out. And...."

I pointed at Amy's subordinates who were screaming at the top of their lungs toward Galahad, and drew my hand across my throat.

"Kill everyone except Amy."

"...Perfect."

Gremory smiled brightly at me. That smile was much more vibrant than when she went for five consecutive climaxes.

"That's my Master."