Chapter 83
Chapter 83
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 83
Chapter Title: Death King (1)
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After entering Kitten Forest and walking for a while, Logan looked around and spoke up.
“Is the talk about Kitten Forest just nonsense?”
He was probably referring to the stories about how any humans who entered the forest would be kicked back out at the entrance.
‘Well, no need to explain it to him.’
Normally, the Deolic family’s soldiers wouldn’t even be allowed to set foot in Kitten Forest. The fairies’ magic would have sent them right back to the entrance.
But since they were traveling with me, Logan and the Deolic family’s private soldiers passed through without any issues.
“It feels... a lot different from what I’ve heard.”
Kitten Forest, shrouded in darkness, had a gloomy atmosphere unlike its usual self. The Deolic family soldiers were visibly tense in the eerie vibe.
“Right here. There’s a ruin at the very bottom of this mine.”
“You’re not lying, are you?”
“What would I gain from lying?”
Logan’s face soured at my casual tone, but he didn’t push back as strongly as before.
“I’ll take the lead, so follow carefully.”
With that, I hopped into the mine.
Riya, who had been quietly following beside me, then spoke up.
“This seems like a good spot to take care of him without anyone noticing.”
She apparently thought I had led them here to deal with Logan out of sight.
“No, that’s not the plan.”
“...It’s not?”
She looked genuinely puzzled.
Her eyes seemed to ask why I’d bother bringing the Deolic family soldiers along if that were the case.
“They’re valuable spectators.”
At my quiet mutter, Riya’s eyes widened slightly.
Then, as if she understood instantly, the corners of her mouth curved into a gentle smile.
“I see... That does sound better.”
Meanwhile, Maria, who had been standing silently beside us, looked utterly confused. But she was sharp, so she’d figure it out soon enough.
I descended to the bottom of the mine and stopped in front of a familiar passageway.
“From here on, the moment I swing my sword, run straight through the passage.”
“What? What are you...”
Whoosh.
Rather than waste time explaining to Logan, I picked up a stone from the ground and tossed it into the passage.
Kwaaaa!
Boom! Boom!
No sooner had the stone rolled across the floor than traps triggered from all directions, pulverizing it to dust.
“...You think we can get through that?”
“If you follow my instructions obediently.”
Logan stared at me with eyes full of utter disbelief.
The soldiers behind him looked the same. They shot fearful glances at the passage, as if wondering how anyone could possibly pass through it.
“I can’t hold it for long, so I recommend running as fast as you can.”
With that, I swung my sword through the empty air.
The space split open, creating a pitch-black rift.
“W-What is that?!”
“Explaining would take too long. Better to just follow quickly. Like I said, it won’t last.”
I leaped into the spatial rift first, followed by Riya and Maria.
Logan hesitated for a moment at our actions but chased after us, with the soldiers and knights trailing behind hesitantly.
Not all of them, though.
A good number of soldiers fell behind, refusing to enter the rift I had created.
When I swung my sword again to exit the passage, the Deolic family soldiers had dwindled by at least half.
It was still a decent number, but Logan’s face twisted in rage at the sight of the soldiers who had chickened out and stayed behind.
“You lot! I won’t let you off easy when I get back!”
He bellowed furiously at the soldiers on the opposite side of the passage.
Their faces instantly drained of color.
Logan wouldn’t let soldiers who shamed the family’s honor go unpunished.
‘Whatever...’
I didn’t care about Logan’s outrage. What chilled me was the cold deathly aura emanating from the passage now that we had crossed it.
This was surely being suppressed by the Dalros Kingdom’s facility.
Mithril had long been used to purify undead or such deathly auras. And even with walls poured full of the stuff, this much aura was leaking out.
‘Well, it does stain the sky black, after all.’
Considering that, it was actually impressive that the aura wasn’t any worse.
Proof of the Dalros Kingdom’s terrifying mithril refining techniques.
“Clay... Hm?”
After passing through the aura-leaking passage and descending further, Damian appeared as if waiting to greet me.
But at the sight of the people lined up behind me, he frowned and placed a hand on his sword hilt.
“Sorry. A bit of unnecessary misunderstanding.”
“...I see.”
Damian seemed to grasp the situation from my curt excuse.
I had told him about the movements of nearby nobles like the Deolics and Belluns, so he likely had a rough idea of what was going on.
“D-Death Knight!”
The moment Logan spotted Damian, he cried out in shock and drew his sword. A fierce red aura blazed from his blade.
It was the prowess befitting one of Talua Kingdom’s top knights.
“Not bad. So you’re not just some random hack.”
Damian seemed slightly surprised by Logan’s aura.
“Clay Banheart! So you were plotting something here after all! What’s your connection to that monster you call a Death Knight?!”
He had already branded Damian and me as accomplices. But the extraordinary aura emanating from Damian kept him from charging recklessly.
“Sir Damian, how much longer until Rugal revives?”
“About thirty minutes.”
It was well past the point where he could show up at any moment.
“Logan Deolic. To start off, this is Sir Damian Viet. You’ve heard the name, right?”
“...What?”
No knight hadn’t heard of the first of the Seven Heroes.
Sure enough, agitation spread instantly among the surrounding soldiers.
“Sir Damian... one of the Seven Heroes...?”
“But he’s a Death Knight?”
“He’s a Death Knight, but he’s talking. If he’s a Sword Saint, maybe it’s possible.”
The Deolic family soldiers and knights buzzed among themselves, staring at Damian.
Naturally, their faces were full of doubt.
“You expect me to believe that?”
“At your level, you should be able to tell I’m not lying.”
Logan clamped his mouth shut, at a loss for words.
As a fellow knight, he could sense more clearly than the others just how terrifyingly advanced Damian was.
And the pure mana emanating from him proved Damian was no evil Death Knight.
“Follow that passage down, and you’ll find the culprit spreading this deathly aura around us.”
Damian, who had been quietly watching Logan, finally spoke.
“The culprit?”
“You brought all these soldiers, didn’t you? To deal with the culprit threatening this territory’s lord.”
“Th-That’s not true! I was merely exercising my rightful authority as a neighboring lord!”
Damian smirked at Logan’s hasty excuse.
As a Sword Saint, he had met countless humans. Types like Logan were a dime a dozen.
“Logan Deolic.”
I addressed the flustered Logan in Damian’s stead.
“I’ll give you a choice.”
“A choice?”
“Like Sir Damian said, you can sense the deathly aura pouring out from below, right?”
The thick deathly aura infesting this cavern.
The energy that would knock out any mana-less human in an instant was flowing from the passage to the side.
Logan couldn’t possibly miss that clear presence.
“I’m heading down with Sir Damian from here. Follow if you want, or if you’re scared, just sit tight.”
My voice echoed clearly through the empty cavern.
Loud enough for everyone present to hear.
“What’ll it be?”
“Guh!”
Logan gritted his teeth and glanced at his soldiers.
The Deolic family soldiers and knights awaited only his command.
‘I can read his mind.’
For the sake of face, just sitting here waiting wasn’t a good option. If word spread about what happened here, it would be a massive loss of prestige.
Moreover, Riya was by my side.
Showing a pathetic display in front of the imperial princess—and if she told the Talua Kingdom’s king or foreign figures about it—would have repercussions beyond imagination.
‘So he’s probably thinking he can kill us and slip away in the worst case.’
But that wasn’t possible anymore.
First, he needed my power to pass the passage. Second, even if he tried a sneak attack, Damian was with me.
Attacking both the princess and me would be tough enough, but with Damian as our ally, they wouldn’t dare.
“Logan Deolic.”
In the end, Logan had only one choice.
His excuse for coming here—to investigate the incident—had tied his hands.
“You’re not planning to bail without a proper investigation, are you?”
At my mocking words, Logan ground his teeth.
“I’ll... go with you.”
“That’s more like it.”
He might have impure motives, but he was one of Talua Kingdom’s top powerhouses. Plus, the Deolic family knights and soldiers were among the kingdom’s finest elites.
‘Free labor? How could it get any better?’
I hadn’t asked our family’s soldiers, knights, or even Blackskull for this because it was far too dangerous.
But the Deolics? I could use them without a shred of guilt, no matter the risk.
“Looks like it’s settled. Follow along.”
Damian, who had been watching with arms crossed, began walking leisurely.
Watching him, a thought suddenly crossed my mind.
‘He’s different from how he was in the Synopsis.’
In the Synopsis, Damian had been quite tense before his battle with Rugal.
But now, he seemed utterly relaxed. If not for the overflowing deathly aura around us, he would have seemed no different from usual.
[It can’t be helped.]
Gransesia spoke in a tone laced with amusement.
[You’re the one by his side now.]
Originally, Fabian had been the one guarding him.
And Damian had warned Fabian to flee if things got dangerous, even though Fabian was a Sword Master.
That was how uncertain victory had been against Death King Rugal.
But Damian had given me no such warning.
[You’re definitely stronger than the protagonist Fabian right now.]
Gransesia’s words thrilled me more than any praise.