66. No Shackles (7)
66. No Shackles (7)
- 1 -
When consciousness returned, the place was an empty cave.
All that was visible was a single giant orb.
It spoke.
- Devour, and grow.
It was a space with no one else, and the orb endlessly shone light upon her. A light that—though she did not yet know what it was—the knowledge in her head suggested was like 'sunlight.'
It had been gradually pouring the necessary knowledge into her mind.
However, there had not been enough time.
"What the... Why is there a dog here...?"
"Hey. That's not a dog, it's a fox."
"Wait. This... this jewel. It's a dungeon core. Could it be this fox..."
"A dungeon... lord?"
- Grrrr...!!
Even before she could summon her first creature, she encountered humans and charged at them with surging hostility.
"Here, it's food. Eat it and summon right away."
"I'm truly curious who came up with the idea of controlling a dungeon like this."
"They say it was a sage. A sage. Thanks to that, we can offer up beast bastards and infinitely produce monster byproducts."
And the price was endless solitude and emptiness.
Not even suicide was permitted—merely endlessly providing labor and prey through the dungeon core's mana.
Without any hope or stimulation...
A reality that had reduced her to such a nonexistent entity.
"May I ask your name?"
Then one day, a change intruded upon that reality.
Whether it would grant eternal rest, or perhaps another form of pain.
- ... I don't have one.
If not that, then a change that might even be true hope.
- 2 -
Squeak... Squeak...
The uninhabited mine was dark and utterly silent.
The ore dust on the floor puffed up whenever someone moved, and the old oil lamps on the ceiling, unlit, swayed in the draft and made lonely sounds.
In short, it was a place where it seemed hard for anyone to even stay a single night, let alone make a living.
"So you people said you'd use this place, but I see you haven't even cleaned it."
"Clean... the mine...?"
"It's a mine to you, but to that child inside, it would have been a living space."
"A child...?"
Eleanor muttered as if she couldn't understand, and behind her, her family followed, thoroughly terrified.
Neither seemed inclined to answer my question, so I simply shook my head.
"Come forth."
Since we had already entered the dungeon, there was no need to hide, so I called out all my children.
- Clatter!
- Tak!
Chk. Cheolkeok.
They walked out wearing their respective armor and weapons: 'Warriors' wielding a single weapon, 'Soldiers' carrying shields and short spears, and 'Archers.'
Aside from the soldiers, all of them were at least official rank, so each possessed their own specialized weapon.
Including Mire and Axe, the upper entities numbered as many as twelve.
To create or summon upper skeletons, the core's mana had to be raised further, but I couldn't tell you how much trouble I went through to find sacrifices for mana when all the monsters near the dungeon had fled, leaving the area picked clean.
"Skeletons...?"
"Could it be... a summoner...?"
"No, but a summoner would..."
"Why only skeletons...?"
Anyway, one advantage of such summoners was that they could contract multiple summons and bring them out when needed. In a cave like this, it would be normal to bring out ghosts or zombies, not just skeletons.
That was why they were showing doubt, wondering 'why not do that.'
It meant they also held the stereotype that 'a dungeon lord would never leave the dungeon and act alone.'
"Axe and the jesters. Leave all the soldiers and archers here, have the adjutants guard the entrance, and check if the mine has another entrance as well."
- Clatter!
"Since the village is nearby, be careful of people's gazes, but if you are discovered, do not hesitate. You are my top priority."
- Tak!!!
I left all the soldiers, their superior entities—the 'adjutants'—and the archers behind.
If luck was truly bad, the demon who had aided House Claiamel might visit this place today, so I needed at least a minimum number of personnel for reception and defense... and perhaps to entertain them.
Of course, that was only if they showed up.
"Warriors, come with me."
- Clatter!
"Eve. I'll leave the rear to you."
- Tak!
Among the warriors, each carrying a specialized weapon, there were a couple who gave off a special feeling.
Those were the warriors promoted to upper entities: the 'fighters' and the 'berserkers.'
The fighters, specialized in 'technique,' carried relatively light weapons, while the berserkers, with enhanced 'durability/resistance,' carried heavy weapons, making them easy to distinguish even with the naked eye.
It was a rather uncommon case for someone to forgo a weapon and replace it with a 'trait,' like Shue.
"Ah. Wait a moment."
- Clatter?
I stopped Eve, who had been heading to the rear with the fighters among the upper warriors, and approached her as she looked back at me quizzically.
- Tak!
Eve, who always moved with composure, froze. Just as my arms passed her sides and caressed her back.
"If you were sulking today, let it go with this."
- Cl, clatter!
"Hoho. Let's go."
"...What was that?"
I heard murmuring from behind, but naturally paid it no mind.
Of course, I didn't need to worry about the price they would later pay to my summons either.
"Um, if we're entering the dungeon, we should have weapons too..."
"Didn't you say the inside of the mine was emptied out, you people?"
"Th, that's true, but..."
Having come this far, the nobles seemed to have guessed the purpose of coming here, their expressions full of anxiety.
I knew only too well what they were thinking.
"I have no intention of feeding you all to that child. Don't worry."
The fallen nobles didn't seem entirely relieved by my words, but their expressions settled a bit.
Whether they believed it or not, this was sincere.
Depending on the circumstances, they might face a fate where simply being devoured by a dungeon lord would be the better alternative. I had no intention of deliberately torturing or tormenting such people to squeeze out pain.
Leonis and I weren't close enough for that... and, in the first place, wasn't there someone more suited to be the rightful master of vengeance against these people? Someone who should decide their treatment before me.
[Senior...!!!]
In Sonia's heart, this matter was likely not yet concluded.
Because that was how unprepared partings were.
It had only been two months since she lost her friend, and now she had lost someone who could have been a pillar of her heart. I worried she might break down if things went wrong.
'So whether it's revenge or something else, I need to make sure she reaches a proper conclusion.'
You say if it's revenge, Eleanor alone would be enough? You ask if making her kill her entire family too wouldn't be a burden?
Well.
I honestly thought the possibilities of revenge and forgiveness were fifty-fifty. I believed that bringing all the family like this would be a good choice either way.
Whether to use them as slaves or recycle them.
"Huh...?"
As we entered deeper into the mine like that, a voice full of puzzlement burst from Eleanor at some point.
It was right after a certain room appeared before our eyes.
"What's the matter?"
"No, this room..."
I examined the room Eleanor was looking at.
Overall, it was the appearance of an ordinary dungeon room. Empty, but looking as if monsters might leap out at any moment...
'An ordinary room? For a dungeon lord said to have been raised from birth?'
"Originally, there wasn't a room like this here, right?"
"Uh, uh..."
"How did this..."
By the time I noticed the anomaly, Eleanor had also confirmed it with her family.
Everyone gave answers confirming her doubt was correct.
"Warriors. Stay on alert. Enemies may appear. Shue, Eve."
"Yeah."
- Tak!
I changed formation.
I sent both of them forward and fell back to take position. On either side, the two berserkers who had originally been with Shue guarded me.
Rather than for my safety, this was the most efficient formation.
'Now that I look again, it is strange.'
These nobles had already said they were using manpower drawn from the dungeon for mine development. Yet so far, I hadn't seen that manpower at all.
As if they had gone somewhere.
"What kind of monsters were there originally? You said you were using them as manpower."
"That... they were zombies."
Eleanor barely managed to attach an honorific to the end of her sentence.
She probably began to guess my identity... well, she'd handle it. I hadn't decided whether to kill or spare them yet, so it didn't matter either way.
"Zombies... but didn't you say the dungeon lord was a werebeast?"
"Yes. That's correct. So I did think it was strange. They clearly had animal ears..."
"Animal ears..."
The dungeon lord ruling a dungeon centered on beastman demons on the Eastern Continent was a 'were dragon.'
However, this wasn't literally a were dragon because they were dragon beastmen; the title arose from directly translating the Western Continent's word for 'dragon.'
And dragons in this world were not necessarily fixed in the form of a long reptilian body.
'A powerful, clever, and divine/corrupted beast' was all called a 'dragon' in this world.
In other words, though they were called were dragons, in reality, they could be another animal from the Twelve Zodiac, or even an insect or cat human.
'However, such cases are rare.'
Because on the Eastern Continent, beasts that powerful were usually 'dragons,' or—even if the rank was lowered as much as possible—large species like lesser dragons, phoenixes, or krakens.
So it was strange.
Because dungeons usually generated a dungeon lord as an entity 'familiar to' and 'easy to gather fear from' on that continent.
On the Eastern Continent, there were almost no fearsome beasts with animal ears. There were some, but they were far too weak compared to species like the kraken.
Therefore, there were hardly any entities born as dungeon lords with animal ears.
...Unless it was due to such a 'preference' and they deliberately changed their appearance later. Meaning 'customization.'
"Why..."
A dungeon lord with animal ears and a dungeon capable of summoning zombies: this combination I knew of only appeared in one case.
'Why is a Western Continent yokai here?'
Only in the case of an Eastern-style (that is, this world's Western Continent-style) dungeon lord's dungeon.
Eastern Continent dungeon lords could also summon or create monsters of other species to handle them, but that was only after they had at least become upper rank and learned summoning arts or magic from other dungeon lords.
'On the other hand, in the Western Continent's case, these restrictions were somewhat looser.'
The monsters that appeared in their dungeons were entities they called 'yokai.' Meaning there was almost no standardized species for each dungeon.
Though it was similar in that the dungeon lord came to resemble the first summoned creature, unlike on the Eastern Continent, they didn't necessarily only summon the same type of yokai.
Thanks to that, they generally responded more smoothly in a variety of situations. Though they had the disadvantage of being difficult to organize into an army apart from 'Hyakki Yagyo.'
- Grrrrr...
Kwaak!
That conjecture turned into certainty upon seeing an entity we encountered as we entered deeper into the dungeon.
"It's a jiangshi."
"What's a jiangshi?"
"You don't need to know. Eleanor."
An entity clearly similar to a zombie, yet with stiffer movements, tougher skin, and clean skin as if carefully prepared after death.
People of the Eastern Continent wouldn't be able to distinguish it and would just call it a 'zombie,' but this was a 'jiangshi.'
Though it lacked the talisman on the forehead or the splendid Western Continent-style clothing as is commonly known, it was instead wearing something like rags.
But the clothes were slightly different for each entity.
"Why is a Western Continent entity here?"
"Um... that."
- ...
Shue and Eve's reactions bothered me.
Ever since they learned about the 'dungeon lord with animal ears' and the 'jiangshi' entity, the two had been deliberately avoiding eye contact with me.
They definitely knew something, those two.
It was fine since I was certain they wouldn't hide information harmful to me, but it stung a little.
What could they have so many secrets about from me?
- Grrrrr...
- Graaaah...!
Since it wasn't something to worry about right now, we continued deeper into the dungeon, and gradually the number of jiangshi increased.
The moment I noticed something strange was right after discovering the fourth jiangshi.
"Wait. Kids. Don't attack."
"Okay."
- Tak!
As soon as my command fell, Shue, who had been attacking and knocking down jiangshi, stopped in place and threw the jiangshi aside, while Eve pulled back.
Following them, the skeletons also retreated, and I walked forward instead.
I walked forward as the jiangshi froze upon seeing me, then immediately prostrated itself in a grand bow before me.
"Lady, it's dangerous..."
"It's not dangerous. You knew that, didn't you, Shue?"
"Uh..."
Though breaking into a cold sweat, Shue did not avert her gaze. Eve beside her was also not fully confident, but she didn't avert her eyes either.
Their lack of confidence was probably because they hadn't told me the information they knew.
Yet the fact that they didn't avoid my gaze meant they hadn't done anything truly guilty toward me.
Since the fact that the jiangshi hadn't attacked us at all after the first few encounters wasn't that important.
"It wasn't certain."
"Next time, tell me even if it's just a possibility."
"Okay..."
- Tak.
Leaving the two nodding behind, I circled the jiangshi and examined its state.
The jiangshi that had just emerged moved much more cleanly than the first ones I had seen.
Movements that felt as if they had some kind of will.
In the first place, I had never even heard of a jiangshi bowing.
"Let's go. They're inviting us in."
From that moment on, we continued moving deeper into the dungeon, maintaining only minimal alertness.
And at the end of it, we met 'her.'
"Ah..."
Even inside the cave, she stood with a building as her backdrop, one I could clearly recognize as akin to a shrine or a small temple...
She turned to look at me, her face filled with deep joy.
"My lord husband."
A black-haired, golden-eyed woman with fox ears atop her head and two tails trailing behind her.
"This lowly consort awaited your coming, longing day and night."
Her identity, as I had truly expected, was a two-tailed fox, a Western Continent entity.
A 'two-tailed fox.'
That is, a gumiho, or celestial fox, that had only grown two tails so far.
'There are no restraints.'
The shackles of binding that House Claiamel had supposedly placed upon her were already nowhere to be seen on her body.
...These fallen noble bastards were utterly incompetent.