Chapter 95
Chapter 95
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 95
Chapter Title: Moving Black Castle
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There are countless legends surrounding the Floating Island.
An island said to hold the sky itself as its treasure.
An island where every medicinal herb in the world grows.
People always spun tales whenever they caught sight of the Floating Island.
Yet not a single soul had ever actually reached it.
The Floating Island was always spotted high in the distant sky.
It appeared like a mirage, only to vanish just as quickly.
Even if one hurried after it, all that awaited was an endless desert.
Thus, the Floating Island remained a legend, the dream of countless explorers.
Sunset Desert region.
Atop a dune piled high with crimson sands that glowed like the sunset.
A single Shadow Wolf took measured steps forward.
Riding atop it were three people: Rebon in front, followed by Hanok, then Leyzon.
The other five had been left behind in Swordless Village.
No one knew when or where the ancient dragon might appear.
So during Leyzon's time traversing the desert, they were tasked with gathering information.
'Hot as hell.'
Even with all their preparations, the desert heat was relentless.
Normally, they'd travel comfortably inside the Shadow Wolf.
But Rebon's fussing left them no choice but to ride exposed like this.
"Eyy, the most important thing when spotting the Floating Island is the sky. The sky!
You can't find it if you can't see the sky!"
You could see the sky from inside the shadows too.
But Rebon flat-out refused to enter, leaving them no option.
Even Hanok, whom he treated like a grandson, couldn't convince him—they'd given up.
"Water."
At that moment, Rebon finally tore his gaze from the endless sky and spoke.
Leyzon pulled a waterskin from his bag and handed it to Hanok.
Hanok passed it straight to Rebon.
"Eyy, here you go, drink up."
"Ah, yes, yes."
Then Rebon handed the water right back to Hanok.
The old man doted on his "grandson" above all else.
[Leyzon, that old geezer's getting on my nerves.]
Syria was thoroughly displeased.
The Shadow Wolf kept growling low in response.
Hopefully it wouldn't eat him overnight.
"The Floating Island, huh? I'd love to see it myself."
Was it because Rebon had shared all those legends?
Hanok's eyes sparkled with curiosity too.
"Eyy, we'll find it soon enough. Don't you worry. The herb to cure your illness is there too."
Rebon said this while staring intently at the sky.
Leyzon mulled over Rebon's tales in the meantime.
Rebon's grandson suffered from a rare congenital disease.
That was why Rebon had set out in search of the Floating Island.
In truth, the boy's illness was treatable at first.
But the key herb for the cure had gone extinct about a decade ago.
Already rare and hard to cultivate, it couldn't adapt to the changing environment and vanished.
So Rebon's grandson had no way to be cured.
In the end, Rebon embarked on his quest for the Floating Island, said to hold every herb in the world.
And that wish became the old man's obsession.
Even as dementia erased his grandson's death.
It had carried on to this day.
In a way, this was Rebon's final shot at observation.
He'd be more desperate than anyone.
"Snore..."
"Leyzon, Grandpa's asleep."
...More desperate than anyone.
Leyzon sighed as he watched the snoring old man.
Even trying to think positively in his Leyzon way.
Rebon's dementia had progressed further than expected.
It worried Leyzon too.
'I held back on sharing what I know about the Floating Island, thinking it might interfere.'
But seeing him like this, maybe he should hand over the notes he'd prepared.
[Leyzon.]
Just then, Syria spoke up.
Hopefully not suggesting they ditch the old man again.
[Found the Black Castle.]
They'd spotted the Black Castle before the Floating Island.
* * *
The Moving Black Castle.
Its fame stemmed from something specific.
Once, it had wandered the entire world.
Sightings of the Black Castle popped up everywhere.
No one knew why it roamed the world.
One thing was certain: at some point,
it ended its journey at the eastern edge, in the Sunset Desert region.
And it would appear and vanish there from time to time.
The Black Castle simply wandered, causing no real harm.
So even the Empire left it alone.
'Or rather, not that they didn't act.'
They'd been researching it with necromancers, planning to claim it later.
Aboard the charging Shadow Wolf.
Leyzon gazed toward the horizon.
Syria had located the Black Castle.
So now, Leyzon's group was heading straight for it.
"Found it faster than I thought."
[It's just so damn big to begin with.]
As Syria said, the Black Castle was enormous.
It was the fourth undead Leyzon had created.
The first being Syria Nosferatu.
The second, the dragon Sa-ryong, Estelle Aragon.
The third, the cursed doll, Eden Yuphéra.
The fourth was the Black Castle itself.
'Happened to be visiting them in the order I made them.'
Among them, the Black Castle had taken the longest to create.
Leyzon's sole intent in making it?
'I wanted a mobile undead fortress.'
Leyzon had seen the nation-building ending in a previous run.
So for a future nation-building ending,
he'd imagined how useful a moving fortress would be.
Drawing from an old anime he'd seen, he created the Black Castle.
'The problem is.'
Undead growth was notoriously slow.
Leyzon traveling solo ended up more efficient than relying on a fortress.
[Been a while. Can't wait to see it.]
Eden reminisced lazily about the Black Castle.
It had set off on its journey early on.
So it had spent little time with the other undead.
'Someday, we'll all gather together.'
When that day came, it'd be lively.
[That thing's always covered in weird junk. Probably dangling even more crap now.]
[Hope it doesn't freak us out with something new.]
Syria and Eden gossiped about the Black Castle.
Suddenly, Leyzon recalled a long-held dream.
A harmonious family, laughing and chatting.
Leyzon had always wanted that.
Born from his father's gambling addiction and neglect of the family.
Perhaps that's why Leyzon poured such care into his undead.
Proof he wanted to achieve that dream, even if just in the game.
'Family, huh.'
Leyzon was pushing toward Dungeon Replay for the ending.
That goal included returning home.
Positive as ever, Leyzon lacked certainty in this one aim.
Early on, the nights brought vague fears.
The dread of never making it back.
But he'd spent considerable time in Dungeon Replay now.
'A year's passed.'
He was growing accustomed to this world.
Syria, Eden, Hanok, Estelle, the five others.
His bonds with them wove into his life.
Lately, the fear of not returning home had faded.
His goal remained unchanged.
Even if it failed, it wouldn't be the worst outcome.
'If I see the ending but fail to return.'
He could just set a new goal.
That's how it felt.
'Getting positive.'
Leyzon smiled faintly.
Thanks to those around him, no doubt.
[Leyzon, you seem in a good mood?]
Syria noticed his smile.
"Guess so. Must be thanks to you, Syria."
[Heh heh, I am pretty damn competent!]
Competent indeed.
'Still, gotta achieve the goal.'
Once decided, he'd see it through.
Leyzon's iron will.
"Zzz..."
The problem? The very man meant to find the Floating Island was out cold.
Rebon snored loudly, leaning on Hanok.
Utterly failing at his role as spotter.
'This is worrying. Real worrying.'
They'd veered toward the Black Castle first,
but with their guide like this,
Leyzon fretted about what lay ahead.
"Leyzon! Look, over there! Is that it?!"
Just then, sharp-eyed Hanok pointed to the horizon.
Leyzon looked up.
At the edge of the horizon, a pitch-black tower came into view.
A massive tower standing alone in the desert's heart.
A colossal spire thrusting toward the heavens.
"It's grown way bigger than I remember."
Big enough to rival a mage tower.
[Right? Feels like city-scale now.]
Syria confirmed it.
Leyzon tilted his head.
It was huge, sure. But city-scale?
Not quite that big, was it?
That was when Leyzon thought that.
Rumble rumble rumble!
Suddenly, the entire desert shook.
The sands surged toward somewhere en masse.
Like an earthquake.
"Syria!"
At Leyzon's command, the Shadow Wolf swallowed the three.
Leyzon tumbled into the shadows.
"Eek!"
Hanok rolled around inside.
At least they'd grabbed Rebon safely.
"Snore..."
Even in this chaos, Rebon slept on.
The hard-of-hearing elder wouldn't wake easily once out.
Leyzon hurriedly looked up.
Crimson sands surged like waves.
A sand wave crashed toward the Shadow Wolf.
Syria's Shadow Wolf stomped the ground and leaped high.
It nimbly dodged, trampling dunes.
Mere sand couldn't halt Syria's shadow.
Moments later, the sand wave finally subsided.
"What the hell just happened?"
Leyzon squinted, still piecing it together.
The sand waves had kicked up a massive dust cloud.
Visibility was shot.
Whoosh―
A timely wind blew the dust away.
Soon, the scene cleared.
Leyzon's jaw dropped slowly.
"Whoa..."
He wasn't the only one gaping.
Hanok stared blankly outside the shadow too.
Beyond the shadow.
An unimaginable sight unfolded.
A fortress.
Undoubtedly a fortress.
One that encompassed an entire city.
From horizon's end to right before them.
The fortress sprawled.
A tower stood at its center.
The massive tower Leyzon had spotted was just a tiny part.
Negligible.
Leyzon stared in a daze.
Now he got why Syria found it so fast.
And what she meant by city-scale.
The quake? The Black Castle stirring, shaking off sand.
Buried long in dunes, it had merely risen briefly to dust itself.
That alone caused the tremor.
The Black Castle hadn't ended its journey.
It had simply grown too vast.
Forcing it to linger in the Sunset Desert.
'My kid's gotten too big.'
Too big to even recognize.
Moving Black Castle
Pauli Poatrice
This was the moment Leyzon reunited with his fourth undead.