311. Goddess, and Empress (1)
311. Goddess, and Empress (1)
- 1 -
Kallin's party could not find any trace of a dungeon within the city.
No matter how hard they searched, the city was simply beautiful, prosperous, and bright.
Not a single suspicious sign of a monster had been detected nearby.
They had even visited the mine the old man had mentioned, hoping it might be something, but as he had said, only a few small-fry monsters lived there, and it was nowhere you could call a dungeon.
The only place left was the inner castle of Clarent, the lord's castle, but...
"No matter how high-ranking an adventurer you are, it's rude to enter the lord's castle without an appointment."
"And how would we explain ourselves anyway? We could just go and be treated as guests... but that doesn't suit your personality, Kallin."
"Well... true."
In the end, the adventurers could only sigh and admit it.
"It seems the noble sir was mistaken."
"I guess so. Surely he didn't do this just to screw us over on purpose?"
"Come on, the pay was so huge I thought the intel was solid..."
"Since we've come all this way, why don't we look around the city a bit more? We were so busy searching, we couldn't even enjoy these beautiful sights."
Just as they resolved to give up on the entire mission and enjoy some sightseeing to commemorate their trip to the Central Region before heading back,
and as the vice-captain and Kallin exchanged subtle glances,
'she' appeared.
"Wait, that, that person... isn't that... 'Nix'?"
"What? What kind of bullshit are you..."
Everyone turned to where one adventurer was pointing and froze on the spot.
Her skin, lustrous as black pearls, and her silver-white hair shone red in the sunset glow.
Beneath that silver hair, a strange pattern resembling a traditional design glittered.
A Dark Elf, a being not particularly welcomed by the masses, yet she walked with a proud stride, a straight back, and shoulders squared.
A black robe draped over her body, a slender figure revealed beneath it, and even a beautiful one-handed sword at her waist.
Whether adventurer or ordinary person, anyone would recognize her face—she was a member of the Continental Thirteen Stars.
"The 'Empress'... what is she doing here?"
As if sensing Kallin's party's gazes, the Dark Elf turned her eyes toward them, a cool light settling in her irises.
She gestured toward Kallin as if it were fate, and he approached with his back bowed.
"A face I remember. It's been a while."
Kallin was also a high-ranking adventurer and a party leader.
He was not someone even a monarch-grade adventurer could look down upon carelessly.
"Yes. It has been. What brings Lady Nix here...?"
Of course, that didn't mean he could straighten his back.
"It seems we received the same request."
At the Dark Elf's words, Kallin felt a chill run down his spine.
The noble who had requested their services was a duke, the highest of the five noble ranks.
A high-ranking adventurer's status was such that even if a request went wrong, a bit of compensation could smooth things over.
But these strongest adventurers were different.
They were the mighty ones who guarded the continent's borders, and to the unknowing masses, simply known as 'heroes.'
If such individuals went on a fruitless expedition, it wasn't a mere problem—it could escalate into a political one.
Therefore... it could only mean that a dungeon truly existed here.
Kallin was horrified by both the unknown Dungeon Lord lying beneath this peaceful city, and the fact that the 'Empress' had come here to find that Dungeon Lord.
Nix, 'Jin Soha,' gestured with her chin toward Kallin and spoke.
"Let's go together."
"Don't tell me you've already found it?"
"Yes."
Thus, Kallin had no choice but to hastily signal his party to follow the departing 'Empress.'
- 2 -
The place the Dark Elf led the adventurers to was the eastern foothills of the mountain near Clarent Castle.
About fifty adventurers followed behind her in a line, their expressions tense.
Kallin looked at the portable detector borrowed from the Adventurer's Guild, but it still showed no reaction.
Even hidden dungeons were supposed to trigger a response from the Adventurer's Guild detector when approached closely.
The fact that it didn't react meant...
"Lady Nix."
Kallin asked cautiously.
"Is this location truly correct?"
The moment Soha glanced back at him, Kallin flinched and stiffened.
All monarch-grade adventurers held immense pride. Even 'average' adventurers were touchy about their pride, so the temperament of the Thirteen Stars needed no mention. Unless you faced the 'Noble Three Suns,' you had to be careful opening your mouth before the 'Ten Mighty Moons.'
Fortunately for Kallin, Soha turned her face forward again without a word.
"... Phew."
"Watch your mouth. Are you trying to get killed?"
"S-sorry."
Leaving the voices of Kallin's party behind her, Soha raised one hand toward the cave in front of her.
From her fingertips, a tar-like substance began to ooze out.
It was an unbelievable sight, but it was clearly a 'shadow.'
'That's the Night Shadow of Nix...'
Kallin bit his lip with a tense expression.
He had felt an ominous sensation from the moment Nix, the 'Empress' of the Thirteen Stars, had suddenly joined their mission.
Normally, clearing an elite-grade dungeon required over a hundred personnel, but the story changed if a monarch-grade adventurer joined in. A single one could sweep through an elite-grade dungeon.
Why would such a being want to share military achievements with them?
"Here."
As her finger sliced through the empty air, space distorted and the cave entrance suddenly expanded.
Inside, the ordinary-looking cave had transformed into the entrance of an ancient ruin with a massive marble door.
Beeeeep———
Watching the detector suddenly begin wailing like crazy, Kallin's eyes trembled.
"So a dungeon really was here..."
A murmur rippled among the adventurers.
They, too, were beginning to sense that this mission was no simple dungeon subjugation.
A subtle fear spread through the group.
They had felt it in their bones—when expectations were upended during a dungeon raid, it often didn't bode well for their survival.
"Everyone, stay on guard."
Aside from Nix, there was a reason he took charge of managing the group.
Kallin was the second-in-command of this company.
And from experience, he knew that most monarch-grade adventurers didn't look after those around them.
"No matter how I look at it, this isn't a normal situation. Everyone, be careful."
Kallin encouraged his comrades while hiding his uneasy expression.
Having come this far, there was no turning back now.
"Let's go."
Once the adventurers' murmuring ceased, Soha walked confidently toward the marble door.
The door opened on its own, revealing the dungeon's interior.
The corridor was far more splendid and magnificent than its exterior had suggested.
On black marble pillars, patterns that glittered like metal were engraved, and an intricate, incomprehensible pattern was drawn on the floor.
And throughout the entire space, 'deep' mana flowed like water.
"Goddamn it. It's crazy beautiful. But places like this are always dangerous..."
"... Fuck. I've only seen this kind of scenery in count-grade dungeons."
"Did we come to the wrong place? This is supposed to be just elite-grade? It's not just me feeling this mana, right?"
Some of the veteran adventurers muttered.
The tension around them rose further.
The inside of the dungeon was eerily silent.
Most dungeons were bound to be filled with monsters or traps, but nothing of the sort was visible here.
"It's too quiet. By now, the first attack should have come..."
Kallin whispered.
Kung!!
And as if waiting for those words, a tremor was heard from afar.
The shaking of the walls and floor was unusual.
"That is..."
Before Kallin could even speak, Soha raised her hand to stop him.
"A battle is taking place."
Her finger pointed upwards.
"Hurry. It seems someone has arrived before us."
Kallin thought for a moment that Soha had smiled.
Though it passed so quickly he considered it an illusion, it was definitely not the composure of the mightiest being who had come to this dungeon.
'Strange.'
Even as he climbed the stairs behind the strongest adventurer—the one everyone should be able to rely on—Kallin felt a spine-chilling sensation run down his back.
The fear of not knowing what was happening in this beautiful dungeon weighed heavily on Kallin's chest.
- 3 -
Chararak...
I raised my hand and splashed water.
The water held starlight, and even after the water flowed away, the starlight remained on my skin, draped like the Milky Way.
Having begun the ritual, I was sinking into my inner world.
- Hoo...
In this place where the boundaries of time and space became meaningless, I laughed, savoring a sense of omnipotence and peace after a long while.
In this world, I could do anything.
I knew the lethargy that would come upon exiting and what I had to do, but right now, I simply wanted to enjoy this sensation.
After all, there was something I had to do here now.
- Why are you dawdling?
The green-haired woman, Arpina, looked up at the gigantic me and asked.
The one imprisoned in the cage within my soul.
An enemy who had once tormented me, but now a woman who had fallen to become part of my power.
Tormenting her had lost its meaning after time passed, so I left her alone, and eventually, she had become my pet tarantula in despair and resignation.
I tapped the cage imprisoning her with a tok and laughed.
Come to think of it, she was the starting point of the evil fate tied between me and Dantalion in this world.
- They are waiting.
I knew I had to get out of here quickly.
That out there, there were those waiting for me, and those coming to find me.
But I had to wait. For a very long time.
- Who? Or, what?
Arpina, who had asked that question, soon looked up at the sky as if sensing something.
Her eyes were filled with astonishment and terror.
- Something is coming...!
I too leaned back and looked up at the sky of the world within my consciousness.
Countless stars looked down upon me from there.
But they were not ordinary stars.
Before, I thought they were just a part of my inner world.
But now I knew.
Those were 'eyes.'
Not my own eyes attached to my 'wings,' but the eyes of other beings.
Chureureuk!
They were flowing ceaselessly, following some power across some surface.
I knew that even that sky was not just a black sky, but someone's skin or innards.
It was the flesh of someone embracing me.
The emotion filling the eyes looking at me was 'adoration.'
I didn't quite know why they looked at me that way.
But I vaguely guessed. That I was someone's child, and they were beings who worshiped that someone.
And that someone was.
『My child.』
Another Goddess from beyond, not of this world.
- It is an honor to meet you for the first time.
The one who gave birth to me, my 'mother.'