96. Solitude (3)
96. Solitude (3)
- 1 -
[Yeah. That's a shame.]
The moment Libertas's final words fell, two things in that place evaporated.
Peok—!!
One was Libertas's left arm.
Puhwak—!!!
The other was the Arachne King's upper body.
A Dungeon Lord's body was, after all, one of the most magically efficient sacrifices in this world.
Libertas, who knew that fact well, had offered her own arm as a sacrifice to transcend her limits, then summoned and bound 'Darkness' to her body, using it to blow away the Arachne King's upper body.
[... Khuheok!!!]
The super-strike, carrying her full power, had obliterated the Arachne King's upper body before he could prepare anything.
Larger and far more powerful than what he had done to the Ant Queen not long before.
- Dalkak!
[Take that garbage... and dispose of it... I don't want to see it.]
That incident was the first case of Libertas voluntarily sacrificing her own body to amplify her mana.
[N-now, wait! So... sorry!]
Even though a certain sense of guilt prevented her from finishing him off at the very end—and even though she would later come to realize that had been a mistake—
that single impulsive act of violence she had committed remained etched into Evangeline like a brand.
- 2 -
Therefore, that scene did not manifest in this world.
"Die."
The super-strike shot toward the Arachne King, who had been laughing triumphantly with both arms raised, came from Shue.
Kaang!
"What is the meaning of this...?"
However, it was blocked relatively easily.
The Arachne King was also Elite grade. And among Elites, he was a powerhouse with far more accumulated years than Shue.
But the moment he recognized the attack, he should have immediately withdrawn from his spot and prepared for the next strike.
Because Shue's attack was merely intended to 'fix the direction of his head'.
Skak! Kagak!
"... Khuheok!!"
In the instant he paused his movement to block Shue's attack—a moment even the watching Libertas couldn't perceive—Evangeline carved out his head and heart.
After climbing onto his body, once for the head, twice for the heart.
With only two sword strikes.
As if his carapace didn't exist, or like water flowing, slipping between the gaps of his armor in an instant.
And before his body could even feel her presence.
"Kuha—cough...!"
"You people...?"
Just before Libertas's fury could boil over completely, the Arachne King met his mortal crisis at the hands of her summoned creatures.
Even though their base specs barely qualified them for the early stages of Elite, it was an extraordinary achievement for two summoned creatures the System still classified as 'Advanced'.
A summoned creature's burst mana capacity changed depending on its 'recognized grade', and as already stated, he was an Elite with veteran experience.
- Kishaaak!!
- Enemies!!!
The spiders, recognizing their king's death, began pouring out from all corners of the cave.
Of course, they couldn't reach Libertas.
The Spider King's living quarters were certainly spacious, but the entrance was too narrow for all those spiders to enter at once.
- Ttak!!
- Deolkeok!
When the dungeon's elites formed ranks behind a bone wall summoned by a Skeleton Mage, that alone was enough to hold back the swarming spiders.
"I'll guard this spot."
"I-I'll help too!"
Once Shue joined them, not only could no one enter, but Serha the mage also quickly grasped the situation and began moving.
"What... does this...!"
Even in the midst of this, the Arachne King was still alive, his severed head resting on the floor.
Thanks to the toughness and mana befitting a king of monsters, while his body had ceased activity, his head had not stopped thinking.
The dungeon master accepted the ghastly head Evangeline had brought her and held it up.
"... What a shame. Tigris."
Her expression was incredibly calm.
So much so that it was hard to believe she was the same person who, moments ago, had felt intense fury and hatred, triggered by a trauma.
This scene had unfolded because her subordinates, having come to understand their master's heart better than 'last time', had acted at an exquisitely appropriate moment.
Just before her heart could be completely distorted by rage, they had succeeded in resolving it.
"Until just... now...!"
"Yes. The mood was quite pleasant, wasn't it. Which makes this all the more unfortunate."
Whatever the cause, she had decided to kill him, and this was the result.
If so, then the cleanup afterward should naturally be handled cleanly.
A 'simple' plan suddenly occurred to her: using the rampaging spiders to deal with the ants and reduce that queen's standing...
'Simple methods always come with inherent danger.'
She immediately discarded that path.
As she'd said, while she had no intention of actively preserving her humanity, neither did she intend to let it go entirely.
So now, it was time to instill fear in those who had been her enemies, if only to avoid throwing away something greater.
Accordingly, Libertas raised one hand and aligned it with his five eyes.
What happened next was quite horrific.
Pujik—!
"Kuaaaaak!!! Aaaaak—!!!"
"Your eyeballs fit perfectly onto my five fingers, it seems. So convenient to hold."
She jammed her fingers into his eyes and fixed his head in her grip, as if lifting a bowling ball.
Simultaneously operating necromancy and healing magic to regenerate his nerves while carefully adjusting so his head wouldn't die, Libertas raised her other hand and pointed at the king's wives and children.
"Come forward. All of you."
Though this situation had occurred because of her subordinates' independent actions, the past was the past.
Libertas did not mistake the order of things that needed to be done.
'Who would be best?'
What needed to be done now was not interrogating or praising her subordinates, but first, settling the matter of these spiders.
Before any other spiders could come to their senses and start rampaging, declaring themselves king or general.
- 3 -
Though I had given the order, the Arachne royals did not react particularly swiftly.
"... The king..."
"He's dead...?"
"No, he's not dead yet, but..."
"You can't call that alive..."
Some of the young spiders simply stared blankly at the Arachne King, whose head and heart had vanished before their eyes, as if unable to grasp reality.
Judging by the fact they called Tigris 'that thing', it seemed his popularity among his own was rather lacking.
"Everyone. Let's move."
"She is calling us. The Dungeon Queen."
Fortunately, not all of them were like that.
The apparent eldest female Arachne among them began leading the rest of the family.
'That is...'
The black fur covering their spider lower halves was striking.
It was something that remained in my memory.
Depending on the person, that appearance was more popular than the original's vibrant blue, so I'd had to deliberate when gifting such a spider to an acquaintance.
If these Arachne had inherited the traits of the species from which they originated, that color would be proof of being the most genetically pure female among the 'Gooty Sapphire Ornamentals'.
"You must be the queens."
"Correct, my Queen."
In other words, now that the first Arachne King was on the verge of death, this color marked them as the highest-ranking creatures in this cave.
This meant they were the individuals most likely to become the rulers of the spiders in this cave, or the ones capable of producing another ruler.
And it also meant they were the first ones I needed to bring under my control.
"Q-queen...?"
"Dungeon Lord...? We... aren't going to die?"
"Kill us all for nutrients... Father did that too...! That's what a king is!"
"... It will be alright."
Of course, that didn't necessarily mean these queens could guarantee the complete stability of the other individuals, but it was better than them being completely frozen and unable to move.
"From now on, you belong to me. Not to your biological father. I have decided it is so."
Because of that, I made my declaration in the manner these spiders would be most familiar with.
Those who have spent their entire lives being owned and constrained by someone are, on the contrary, prone to finding a sense of relief in such a relationship.
"..."
As expected.
The Spider King's wives and children remained silent, watching my reactions with learned helplessness, and so I naturally gave the queens my instructions.
"You. Step forward first."
""Yes.""
Tigris's queens showed not a single sign of resistance. They walked out before me and knelt in a posture of deference.
Had he seen this, he might have screamed bloody murder, crying out for me not to steal his possessions.
"Kkeueueup..."
But his head was already in my hand, squeezed dry of the bloody tears it should have shed, unable to perceive the outside world.
"Starting with the first."
"Yes, my Queen."
The black-haired Arachne woman, who appeared to be in her thirties, stepped forward first.
As befitting a race living a beastly life, her hair and skin weren't well-groomed, but her base features were quite beautiful, suggesting Tigris's eye for beauty wasn't too bad.
The other wives also possessed their own form of 'human-like' beauty.
The Arachnes had eyes resembling human eyes, aside from the three on their foreheads, so looking only at their upper bodies minimized any sense of awkwardness.
"「Child of the demonic. Do you swear subjugation to this body, Libertas, the Dungeon Lord?」"
"「I swear.」"
"「You give to me your loyalty and devotion. I give to you desire and life. Here and now, the contract is sealed by a Demon Lord Candidate.」"
Hook—!
Contracts with beings who were originally demonic monsters were much simpler than those made with humans.
There was no need to obtain the Demon King's guarantee, and thus no need for a demonic realm contract.
Only the magical effect existed, subordinating those who had surrendered or voluntarily wished it under the Dungeon Lord's command.
While its behavioral compulsion was weaker than a human contract, it was a semi-permanent contract maintained without significant mana consumption.
"First, you are to calm the other spiders. I have things to discuss with your children."
This was the first instruction.
The necessary changes could be implemented slowly over time. What mattered now was minimizing unnecessary casualties.
""Understood, my Queen.""
After the contract was completed, the queens conferred with one another, then each headed in a different direction to begin settling the spiders.
- Chiririri...
- Skak...
- Kiiii...!
Though the pace was visibly slow, it would gradually pick up speed.
Simply put, while the Spider King had been alive, they had never needed to activate their ruler pheromones. So the queens, now freed from him, would soon grow accustomed to it.
Having confirmed this by watching them for just a moment, I now turned my gaze to the king's children.
"Are... we going to be okay...?"
"If we weren't, she wouldn't have made a contract with our mothers..."
Seeing their mothers' safety guaranteed, they were already much calmer.
Thanks to that, the mood was now suitable for conversation.
"Tigris's... no. Just the eldest among you. Step forward."
Eight sons and ten daughters. The king's children numbered eighteen in total.
Among them, one son and two daughters stepped forward.
They looked quite nervous, as if they instinctively knew what I was about to do with them.
One of the two daughters was so tense she stumbled on her way out...
'No, she has a disability in her legs.'
"You. Come forward."
"Wh-what? M-me?"
"Yes."
The woman hesitated as she approached, as though she couldn't believe the fortune that had befallen her.
The largest pair of eyes, located where human eyes would be, sparkled, while the other three eyes above them, gleaming jet black, carefully gauged my reaction.
Come to think of it, I had once read that a spider's other eyes were for detecting danger.
As the phrase 'detecting danger' crossed my mind, I recalled Evangeline's sword strike from earlier.
'So that's why Shue's attack fixed the direction the back of his head would face, and then she struck from directly behind.'
All three of an Arachne's eyes, except for the largest pair, were spread out toward the edges.
It must be for properly detecting danger from all directions except the front. That was likely also the reason the Arachne King could cast multiple spells simultaneously without getting confused.
'In other words, she had accurately grasped the Arachne's weakness.
So, to exploit the blind spot in that danger detection, she had approached precisely below the back of his head and carved out that skull first.'
'... As if she had fought one before. ... And as if she knew how I would act.'
If I had properly unleashed the fury I felt this time, I wouldn't have been able to maintain my composure, and then I wouldn't have been able to settle these spiders in time.
Even if Evangeline or Shue tried to handle things in that state, without a Dungeon Lord's contract, they couldn't have completely tied them down.
If that had happened, some spiders with different ideas might have emerged from the survivors.
"Evangeline."
- Dalkak.
In short, Eve's action had come at an exquisitely fitting time.
But even so, this was the correct thing to say.
"When we return, prepare to be scolded. What is the point of blowing off your conversation partner's head without any orders?"
- Ttak.
Evangeline accepted my words with a somewhat sullen look.
But there was absolutely no hint of defiance or rebellion. Instead, there was only joy, and a subtle relief she hadn't managed to hide.
I tapped the side of her head and finished my sentence.
"... Good job."
- Dalkak!
As always, she reacted simply, as if pleased by my praise, but...
'As I thought.'
What had once been a mere suspicion had now solidified into a firmer conviction.
The reason she had stepped back and watched.
That question still remained.