Chapter 67: Those Who Crossed the Line
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 67: Those Who Crossed the Line
“To a safe return.”
Sion raised his glass, offering a brief toast.
The party members clinked their glasses together, rejoicing in the fact that they had made it back alive.
Warm food and alcohol.
Under the dim lighting, they talked about the events of the expedition. They discussed how much they would get for selling the monster parts and wondered what would happen the next time they entered the Labyrinth. They talked about their shortcomings and shared opinions on how to handle monsters from the second floor and below in the future.
Everything was going smoothly.
The Labyrinth was a terrifying and dangerous place, but the blessings of mana adaptation and abilities were far too sweet. For those who sought power, these two gifts were like a luscious fruit that was impossible to give up once tasted.
The atmosphere grew riper.
Hoping that their next trip to the Labyrinth would be just as successful, they clinked their glasses for what felt like the umpteenth time.
Sion wasn't drunk, just a bit lightheaded.
The tavern was boisterous, filled with a cacophony of noise. It wasn't just Sion’s party; many others who had survived the Labyrinth were gathered here, tilting their glasses.
Soon, Leah subtly placed her hand on Sion’s thigh.
She was sending a signal.
Sion sipped his ale, quietly feeling the Young Lady’s touch. Her delicate fingers began to move more boldly, inching higher.
They were almost there.
She traced up his thigh, heading straight for his crotch. In a room full of people, Leah kept a perfectly straight face while stroking Sion’s groin under the table.
Finally, unable to endure it any longer, Sion whispered to her.
“Excuse me, My Lady.”
“Hmm? What is it?”
“If you keep... touching me like that...”
“Why? Do you think it’ll get big like last time?”
Sion couldn't even answer; he just gulped down his ale. Leah watched his expression and smiled with her eyes. He wasn't telling her to stop; he was just sitting there, feeling her touch.
Rien and Rika were laughing and chatting, while Erika glanced at them occasionally as if she had noticed something.
Leah was excited. She felt like dragging him to the restroom right now just to see that monster she had glimpsed the other day once more.
“Hey, Sion.”
“Yes...?”
“Don’t you need to use the restroom?”
“Huh? All of a sudden?”
“Yeah. Don’t you want to go into the third stall?”
“Ah, My Lady...”
Sion realized exactly what she was implying. She wanted him to wait for her in the third stall.
He fell into a state of inner conflict. If he went to the restroom now, there was a high probability he would end up doing it with her.
“You just have to get a Gold Badge within six months, right? Are you really going to keep me by your side and hold back? I’m going to tease you every single day. I’ll touch you and make you ache like this. How long can you endure?”
“...”
“Honestly, you want to blow a load right now, don't you? It’s already so hard. Your cock is certainly making its presence known. Are you going to reject me, Sion? If I were you, I’d already be in that third stall.”
“...Gulp.”
“Want to see my breasts? Lean your head down a bit. Look, I’ve pulled my top down. See? A young lady’s concentrated breasts. Want me to let you lick them?”
Sion blinked. He had seen them. He had seen her pink nipples.
‘I’m going crazy.’
Feeling like he couldn't hold back any longer, Sion stood up, intending to wait for her in the third stall.
But at that moment, a commotion broke out outside the tavern.
“What was that?”
“That... that was definitely a scream.”
“Uh, I’ll go check it out on my way to the restroom.”
Sion stepped outside to see what was happening. Immediately, he saw a brilliant light.
“What on earth is that...?”
“Fire! It’s a fire!”
Flames were soaring. The center of the city was glowing bright. Something was burning, just like the arson attack from before. A reddish inferno was swallowing the city.
Rika soon came out of the shop to assess the situation.
“Porter, what is that? What’s going on?”
“It looks like a fire. From that direction...”
“A fire? Wait—look out! Get down!”
Boom—!!!
Something flew in from the direction of the rising flames. Rika lunged at Sion, pushing him out of the way of the incoming projectile, and the two of them tumbled across the ground.
Covered in dirt and dust, they scrambled to their feet. There was no time to waste. Something had just smashed into the tavern where Leah and the others were.
“Are you kidding me?!”
A massive, unrecognizable mass had smashed through the wall of the tavern. Sion hadn't been able to get a good look at the object that had grazed past him, but he felt like he had seen an eye.
An eye the size of a human, engulfed in flames.
A giant eyeball.
—Aaahhh!!!
—What is that?!
—Guaaaah!
Screams erupted from inside the wrecked shop. The building shuddered from the massive impact. Simultaneously, the stench of blood filled the air—the smell of gore wafting from inside.
Soon, the people who had been inside the tavern came stumbling out, their faces masks of shock and horror. Not everyone made it out. Only a few managed to escape, and Leah and her party were not among them.
Something was rampaging inside the shop. Death was being scattered in every direction.
Sion felt a sensation as if thick tar had been poured over his head. A foul stench stung his nostrils.
It was the scent of the Labyrinth.
A smell he thought he would never encounter on these streets. Yet, this was the second time he had smelled the Labyrinth in this city. He remembered it clearly. The heretics had definitely been giving off a similar scent.
Something that belonged in the Labyrinth had crawled out.
“My Lady!!”
Sion and Rika charged back into the shop. The interior was already a chaotic mess of blood and corpses. Those who had been directly hit by the projectile had been pulverized into chunks of meat. Bodies were strewn everywhere, and the metallic tang of blood saturated the air.
Leah and the rest of the party, unable to escape, were trembling in a corner of the shop. Sion also began to shake as he saw what was devouring the corpses near the entrance.
“Sion!! Run!!” Leah screamed at him.
Standing between Sion and Leah was something that should never have existed outside the Labyrinth.
“Why is that here...?”
Sion was at a loss for words. His initial glimpse had been correct. It was an eyeball.
The 6th Floor Crystal Cave. A monster from that place.
“A Watcher.”
It looked exactly like the information he had gathered through Monster Dismantling Savoring. Tentacles slithered out from a body composed of a giant eyeball, grabbing the fallen adventurers on the floor. Its body split horizontally, revealing rows of hideously grown fangs and a tongue.
Soon, people were being sucked into its maw. It was feasting on the dead.
It would likely set its sights on the living soon. If left alone, Leah, Rien, and Erika would surely be caught by those tentacles and eaten.
Sion had to make a decision.
Save them? Or run?
The Watcher was wounded. It seemed it had made an emergency escape from the place where the fire started and was now trying to recover by feasting on civilians. That meant the adventurers who had been fighting it might already be on their way.
If he could stall for time, there was a high chance that adventurers capable of killing the Watcher would arrive.
But here was the problem: could a mere apprentice porter who hadn't even earned a Silver Badge stop a monster from the 6th floor, a place considered the entrance to the Deep Layers?
It was impossible. The conclusion was reached instantly.
Sion judged that the moment he attacked, he would die. There was a 100 percent chance of death. He would be shredded by tentacles that could tear through iron. He would be smashed like a ripe watermelon and swallowed whole.
So, should he give up on fighting?
Leah was right in front of him. She was screaming for him to run. Even in this situation, she didn't ask for help; she told him to save himself.
The moment Sion turned his back and ran as she shouted, Leah would become that monster’s next meal. To save her, he had to jump in right now and draw its attention. But if he did, he would be torn apart so thoroughly that even resurrection might be impossible.
“Fuck it.”
He made his decision. Sion lunged toward the Watcher.
“Rika!!! The Young Lady comes first!!” Sion roared.
Rika didn't hesitate; she bolted toward Leah. Her duty was to protect her lord. Without even a moment to mourn Sion’s sacrifice, she headed for Leah. As soon as he saw Rika pass by, Sion fully opened his Inventory.
While Rika safely got Leah and the others out of the shop, he had to do everything in his power to draw the Watcher’s gaze.
This was his desperate struggle.
Items began to pour out. Everything from the trash he kept for blocking paths to all sorts of food and monster carcasses poured out like a tidal wave toward the Watcher.
The Watcher was a monster from the Deep Layers. Its understanding of human objects would be low. Sion banked on this. How would it react if he randomly dumped a mountain of mysterious objects on it?
It would judge them as a threat and turn all its attention toward him.
It worked.
Sion successfully drew the Watcher’s gaze. Furthermore, true to its nature of trying to analyze unknown things, the Watcher focused entirely on the items Sion was spewing out.
—!!!
Immediately, its tentacles lashed out, beginning to grind the falling objects into dust. Shards of broken items flew in every direction.
Sion poured things out even faster, and Leah was grabbed by Rika and dragged away.
“Sion!!!”
Leah struggled to break free from Rika’s grip. Rika didn't let go. Running back there now would only result in one more corpse.
“Rien! Erika! Get up now!”
“D-Dammit...!! Shit!!!”
Rien, whose legs had given out, forced herself to stand. She was in a state of panic, overwhelmed by the mana waves the Watcher was emitting. Erika was also paralyzed with fear, shocked by the thick malice and negative energy crawling up from the depths of the Labyrinth.
“Get up!”
Rika slapped Erika across the face. The shock was strong enough to snap Erika’s head to the side, finally bringing her to her senses. She stood up, sobbing. They had to escape quickly. Sion wouldn't be able to hold out for long.
‘This is the limit.’
He had nothing left to pour out. Moreover, the Watcher had realized that the items being vomited from Sion’s sub-space pocket weren't actually threatening.
The time he could stall was running out. Now, the one-sided slaughter would begin.
‘Ah, they made it.’
Just as he thought it was truly over, he saw Rika lead the party out of the blood-soaked tavern.
“Phew. Fuck.”
He had no more items to throw. The Watcher’s tentacle swung down toward Sion. If he was hit, he’d be split in half.
“I don't want to die!”
Sion twisted his body. Driven by the pure will to live, he managed to dodge the Watcher’s tentacle once.
Crash!
The floor of the tavern shattered. With tears in his eyes, Sion dodged the follow-up attack.
“Huh?”
It was a divine evasion. Even he didn't understand how he was dodging. All the potential remaining in Shaka’s Remnant was being pulled to the surface. Sion had felt something similar once before.
“Kid! Are you insane?!”
The head of the Substitute Doll, which had been shredded and was rolling on the floor, shouted. Since it was still daylight and difficult for the Three Villainesses to act, he hadn't taken the doll out of his inventory, so he hadn't expected help. However, because they were outside the Labyrinth, they were able to assist him.
“Just dodge for now!”
Possessing the Substitute Doll, they did everything in their power to help Sion. He was the only one who could fulfill their wishes. They desperately pushed Sion’s potential to the limit to ensure he wouldn't be killed in a single blow.
A bizarre exchange followed. Sion moved on instinct, not even fully perceiving how he was dodging every attack, while the Watcher continued its assault, unable to understand how the insect before it was evading its tentacles.
“Hey!!! Close your eyes!!!”
Just as his muscles were reaching their breaking point, the Villainess within the Substitute Doll screamed again. Sion immediately squeezed his eyes shut. A moment later, the Watcher’s eyeball glowed, and a spell was unleashed.
Eeeeeeeee—!!!
A mental domination spell. By closing his eyes, Sion halved its effectiveness.
“T-This...!!!”
However, a split second was all it took to kill him. A tentacle flew toward his throat. This was the end. The insect’s struggle finally met its death.
‘Maybe I shouldn't have played the hero. I wanted to do it with Lady Leah at least once before I died.’
The Watcher’s tentacle dug into his neck. Flesh was sliced. Blood sprayed. Soon, Sion’s vision began to spin.
“Sigh... I’m sorry. I’m too late. Because of those damn heretics...”
A blood-covered Moira whispered as she caught Sion in her arms.
“Freya! Heal this boy! Save him!”
As his vision faded, Sion saw Moira’s back as she charged toward the Watcher. She ran forward without hesitation and began to mince the monster. She parried and sliced through every incoming tentacle, and within moments, the Watcher was split down the middle like a crushed pumpkin.
So it was that easy to kill. I guess that’s what a Platinum Badge is.
Sion felt his body growing cold. Death was approaching. Too much blood had poured from his neck.
“Just endure a little longer. I’ll save you.”
Saintess Freya poured divine power into him, forcibly reattaching Sion’s neck. As long as he hadn't stopped breathing, she could save him. As Freya’s divine power enveloped his body, Sion felt a deep drowsiness washing over him.
“Freya. How is he?”
“He’s fine. He’ll be walking around perfectly in three hours.”
“Those damn heretics. Those bastards crossed the line today.”
Moira had seen it. Countless citizens of the city were dying at the hands of the heretics. What was even more horrific was that the bodies were mutilated beyond the point of resurrection.
Moira was furious. She also felt the need to completely revise their original plans. Due to the economic stagnation caused by the increased difficulty of the Underground City, hunting heretics had been pushed down the priority list.
But now, it was different. The heretics had become the number one target for elimination.
“So, is it finally starting? Hehe. I’m quite looking forward to this. Slurp. Hunting heretics after all this time... Heh. Hahaha...”
“Don't laugh like that, Freya. It’s creepy.”
“Oh my, I’m sorry. It’s been so long since I’ve killed anyone. I got a little excited. Sorry, Moira. Don't be mad. Fufufufu.”
There are people like that sometimes. The kind of thrill-killers who can't stand not killing. Saintess Freya was one of them. However, because she held the position of Saintess of the Goddess Church, it was difficult for her to engage in slaughter as she pleased.
In this situation, the heretics—whom she could kill at will without facing any condemnation—had returned from the depths of the Labyrinth after decades.
“I’m looking forward to it. To think I can get rewarded for killing people.”
“They can no longer be considered human like us. So, Freya, I’m begging you—don't enjoy it as if it’s murder.”
“But they look just like us, don't they? That’s enough for me.”
“...You crazy bitch. Fine. Let’s not talk about it. I’m taking the boy back to the guild, so follow me.”
“Great. It’s been a while since I visited the guild!”
“You’re the one person I never wanted to let back into the guild. Sigh.”
Moira found it hard to understand Saintess Freya. However, she understood that the strongest mace the Church possessed was the Saintess.
Soon, judgment would fall.
An all-out war against the heretics who attacked the city. The scheduled Underground City subjugation campaign would likely be canceled. A full-scale heretic hunt was about to begin.
To erase the darkness that had crept into the Labyrinth and become one with it, the city’s Inquisitors would raise their hammers.
And at the center of it all, a certain porter would stand.