Chapter 159: I Woke Up in Hell
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 159: I Woke Up in Hell
“Ugh...”
Just how long had I been out?
It felt like I’d lost consciousness almost immediately after successfully completing the summoning ritual for the Three Villainesses.
My entire body ached, and every joint in my fingers throbbed with such pain that it was hard to even move.
“Sion! You’re awake!”
“Uh... Yuria? Huh? What... what’s going on...?”
My vision was blurry. I rubbed my eyes, but the sight before me was even more bizarre.
Why were monsters swarming toward us?
And what was that over there?
“The Saintess?”
Wasn’t she supposed to be out hunting heretics? Why was she here?
No, seriously. What the hell happened...? Wait.
“Lafnel?!”
There was Lafnel, receiving treatment from Paramel, and the Druid Club President, who was pushing himself up while spitting out blood-streaked saliva. Was he... even alive?
BOOM—!!!
“Urgh!”
An explosion so loud it felt like it would burst my eardrums rang out.
It looked like the Tower Lord had just slammed a massive fireball, like a concentrated bomb, into the monster the Saintess was fighting.
The heat was staggering.
‘What the hell is that thing?’
How could it take a hit like that and remain unfazed?
What kind of monster could go toe-to-toe in a slugfest with the Saintess?
It looked like a giant-class creature at the very least, but looking closer, it almost seemed human.
—Sion. Sion, can you hear me?
“Helena? What on earth is...”
—A Demon King ascended from the 7th floor while you were unconscious. It is a Demon King I have never seen before. It appears to be a calamity born from an adventurer who drifted down to the 7th floor, though I cannot be certain.
“What? No, why would something like that be here...? Even if it’s based on a human, can a regression happen that easily?”
—It is likely because we provoked the Labyrinth first, making it easier for it to ascend.
She explained that because we had summoned the Three Villainesses into the Labyrinth to forcibly stop the Great Cataclysm and interfere with the monster spawn rates, the Labyrinth had responded in kind.
The result of that response was that Demon King.
—We have learned something new from this. If we provoke the Labyrinth by forcibly altering its laws, the Labyrinth will react. I suspect the Malice of the Labyrinth acts much like an immune system.
To put Helena’s words into a modern perspective:
The Labyrinth was one giant living organism. The Malice of the Labyrinth, which tormented adventurers, was its white blood cells. The adventurers who entered and poked around as they pleased were viruses or bacteria.
Interfering with the laws of the Labyrinth was essentially like a cancer cell taking root. In response, the Labyrinth had taken measures far more drastic than usual—and that was the Demon King of Regression currently rampaging over there.
“That’s not the important part right now! What about these monsters? They just keep coming!”
—The Saintess manifested a portion of the Goddess inside the Labyrinth to stop the Demon King. As a result, it seems the Malice of the Labyrinth now has even greater power to intervene against adventurers. It appears the Labyrinth considers calling upon a god to be cheating as well.
“So, the more we cheat, the more the Labyrinth cheats back?”
—Precisely. That is it. You understand perfectly.
Our attempt to manipulate the Labyrinth by bringing in the Three Villainesses was the first foul, which gave the other side the justification to summon a Demon King. And now that a Goddess had been called upon, the Labyrinth was intervening on an even larger scale.
It sounded complicated, but the conclusion was simple.
While I was out, a Demon King had ascended from the 7th floor. If we could just hold out for about two hours, the Demon King would either weaken or descend back down.
The problem was that holding out for two hours was nearly impossible, so the Saintess had cheated again by manifesting the Goddess. In response, the Malice of the Labyrinth had begun churning out monsters and sending them our way.
“Then the goal of those monsters and the Demon King must be to destroy the pillars, right?”
—No. Their goal is to kill you.
“What? Why?! Why me again?!”
—Because you are the medium that brought the Three Villainesses here. Their objective seems to be to eliminate you and erase the possessor of the Spiritual Eye.
“Son of a...!”
Me again? It was always me.
Why was it always me? Why was the world so obsessed with killing me?
I felt tears of frustration welling up. Every time I tried to accomplish something, this godforsaken world threw some fresh bullshit my way.
“For now, I’ll help Yuria.”
—Yes. That would be best.
Honestly, I didn’t dare interfere with the Demon King. Getting caught in a fight between monsters like that would just lead to a dog’s death.
Besides, that Demon King seemed to be watching me strangely. If I got too close, he’d probably risk everything just to take me out. It was better to keep my distance.
“Yuria! I’ll help!”
As I drew closer, I saw Lady Leah and the rest of the party among the adventurers.
“Where are Roy and Rosier?”
“Roy is dead!”
“What?!”
I saw the shattered fragments of the Black Iron Golem scattered about.
I didn’t think the monsters of the Underground City could have smashed the Black Iron Golem Roy was possessing into that many pieces.
Did the Demon King do that?
—Rosier was blown away toward the Garden Section. She is likely still alive.
‘This is insane.’
So much had happened while I was unconscious.
—Focus on the monsters in front of you for now.
‘Right...!’
All sorts of monsters from the Underground City were mixed together, charging toward us.
In the front, Yuria was swinging her chain sword to cover as much ground as possible, but it wasn't enough.
We were being overwhelmed by sheer numbers. Monsters were pouring out of the gates connected to each section like a flood.
The Saintess and the Tower Lord were busy holding back the Demon King and couldn't help. The Labyrinth Vine Beans had been torn apart for some reason and were struggling to block even a single gate.
I summoned the Hypercube and commanded it to automatically intercept any nearby monsters.
“Aaaaaagh!!!”
“Dammit!!! My Lady!!!”
In the meantime, Lady Leah had been surrounded by a pack of Hobgoblins. She was in immediate danger; I had to save her.
Dammit, the Young Lady is about to die! Where the hell are Rika and Rien?!
‘Ah...’
I saw Rika, beaten to a pulp by the monsters.
And beside her, Rien lay dead, slumped over.
The area around them was covered in signs of a desperate struggle. They had taken dozens of Werewolves down with them, fighting until their strength gave out and they died.
—Those whose wills were broken... they have all perished...
I heard that the Sanctuary of Resurrection had been created by the Goddess the Saintess summoned.
This sanctuary affected the entire Central Section, and it was said that anyone within its influence could deny their own death.
Inside the Sanctuary of Resurrection, even if you were technically dead, you could refuse to accept that fact, allowing you to delay your demise for a short time.
But how could that be easy? Those who couldn't deny their death collapsed.
The moment one's will broke, the Sanctuary of Resurrection ceased to function for them.
The Inquisitors were holding on through sheer willpower even as they were being decapitated.
But it was too much to expect that kind of transcendent endurance and fighting spirit from ordinary adventurers.
Most people, once a blade pierced a vital organ, would instinctively think they were dead.
And so, everyone who failed to deny their death had died.
Those who chose death to escape the pain also failed to delay it.
The majority of the adventurers had been swept away by the surging monsters, and I could see many of their bodies being desecrated.
Annihilation was right around the corner. I had to at least save the Young Lady.
“Hyaaaaaah!!!!”
I didn’t pick up a shield.
I didn't need a shield anymore.
I lunged toward the charging Hobgoblins, moving faster than they could react. I wouldn't give them an inch.
I was going to kill them all.
“Kieeeek!”
A Hobgoblin bared its teeth and swung a club. Just before the club could strike my head, I swung my left hand, snatching the weapon away as if parrying it.
The club entered my subspace pocket and I pulled it right back out, slamming it into the creature's face with the same momentum it had intended for me.
The Hobgoblin’s blood, shredded facial tissue, and teeth sprayed everywhere, blurring my vision. But I didn't have a second to wipe the blood from my face.
“You bastards!!!”
I shoved the falling corpse of the goblin into my inventory to clear the way and threw an axe, burying it in the head of a goblin that was about to stab the Young Lady in the back.
At the same time, I thrust both hands forward and unleashed the arrows I had stockpiled in my subspace pocket.
These were arrows Roy and I had spent all day collecting. Retaining their kinetic energy, the arrows flew toward the goblins surrounding Lady Leah, turning them into pincushions.
After clearing the goblins around her by firing dozens of arrows in an instant, I rushed to her side.
“My Lady!”
“Sion... ah...”
There was a long gash on her left arm.
And her stomach was stained crimson.
She was covered in stab wounds and slashes. Her complexion was ghastly. She had lost too much blood.
She, too, had slaughtered countless monsters, but there were simply too many of them.
“We need to ask for help...”
There was no one here to help us.
All the primary combat forces were occupied with the Demon King, and while the Vine Beans were pushing back the monsters, they looked like they were at their limit.
“My Lady. Just a moment. If... if I bring Erika, you can live...”
“Erika is... right here...”
“Ah... ahhh....”
Erika was already dead.
Had the healers been wiped out?
Where was Paramel?
—He is currently healing the Tower Lord.
“My Lady. Drink this for now.”
I pulled out every healing potion I had.
I couldn't let her die such a futile death.
‘What I have to do now is...’
Collect the bodies of the adventurers so they wouldn't be desecrated further.
And gather Yuria and the surviving adventurers to protect them.
“We have to regroup with Yuria first. Can you stand?”
“Yes. I feel better thanks to the potion.”
“Then, My Lady. This. Put this on.”
“Huh? This is...”
“It’s a Ring of Intangibility. Use it to escape if things get critical. Don't worry about the side effects, just use it.”
“I understand. What about you, Sion?”
“I’ll be fine, so go to Yuria. And we have to find Rosier, who was blown to the Garden Section.”
“Okay. I’ll—”
BOOM—!!!
“Shit...”
As if things weren't bad enough, the situation took a turn for the worse.
A thunderous roar erupted from a direction away from the Demon King and the Saintess.
Standing at the source of the sound were three massive monsters.
—A Manticore... a Chimera... and even a Minotaur...
The boss monsters that governed each section of the Underground City had emerged.
“Ha. Haha....”
A hollow laugh escaped my lips.
Most of the adventurers were already dead.
The Saintess’s decision to call upon the Goddess was correct, as they would have all been killed by that unknown Demon King otherwise.
However, because the Labyrinth had responded with a monster wave, the ordinary adventurers were now facing slaughter.
No, they were already dead, so the concern now was that their bodies would be so badly damaged that they could never be resurrected.
—This is no time to hold back. Make your choice.
At Helena’s words, I stopped hesitating.
There was no more time to save resources or stall.
“I hope this works.”
I pulled out a scroll and tore it without a second thought.
Gon had once told me this:
If a battle turns into a chaotic melee where friend and foe are all mixed together, just boldly turn the situation into an even greater mess.
He said that if your side is clearly being pushed back, creating chaos is a better way to increase survival rates and create variables.
The scroll I tore was ‘Spirit Summon.’
The vengeful spirits of all the adventurers who had died in this vicinity would now gather here.
Fine, bring it on.
If you’re going to pour monsters at us, I’ll respond with the souls of the dead adventurers.
“This isn't cheating.”
I didn't call a god, nor did I try to change the laws of the Labyrinth on a whim.
This was a legitimate tactic.
—Kieeeeeeeeek!!!!!
The resentful shrieks of the vengeful spirits echoed through the Labyrinth.
The howls of monsters, the death rattles of adventurers, and the ghostly wails of spirits all blended together. It was a living hell.
Right here, right now, the boundary between life and death had collapsed.