Chapter 132
Chapter 132
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 132
Chapter Title: Kaisha's Tomb
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“Save us...? What do you mean?”
Irurin spread the map out on the table.
“Thanks to you, Sir Khan, we managed to end a battle that dragged on for over ten days. We barely repelled the demon spawn and completed the magic circle linking to the central continent, but the situation is still dire.”
Thud.
She placed a gargoyle-shaped piece on the map.
“The demons haven't even made their move yet.”
What they had faced were merely the demons' mutated monsters.
“This is the demons' stronghold.”
“Here...”
Woojin frowned slightly.
The piece was positioned on 'Roarheaven', the capital of the Brian Kingdom.
The kingdom among the Five Great Kingdoms known as the Holy Kingdom, home to the Glory Knight Sharlo.
“They've brazenly set up shop right there.”
Woojin could only shake his head at the demons' petty tactics.
“They see us as mere playthings. That's why they only sent demon spawn while we were building the magic circle to the central continent.”
They didn't want to smash a toy they had left to play with.
Anger welled up, but there was nothing to be done.
Irurin assessed the situation coolly.
“They're probably waiting for us to cross over to the central continent.”
“So?”
“The fact that they're underestimating us could be turned into a weapon for us.”
“What's your plan?”
“The most important thing is to establish a new stronghold on the central continent.”
She moved the elf army's flag from the magic circle's position diagonally across the border into the central continent.
“A labyrinth that even demons can't easily enter.”
The moment he saw where she placed it, Woojin narrowed his eyes slightly.
“...Kaisha's Tomb?”
“That's right. We plan to create a new stronghold there.”
“Has this labyrinth been cleared?”
“No. When the dragon hunters killed the dragons, all places imbued with draconic power were destroyed.”
'So there are more dragon-related places besides the labyrinth.'
“What about the burial chamber inside?”
“The burial chamber can never be opened. It requires the Black Dragon's key... which vanished when the dragon died.”
“...I see.”
Woojin nodded with a tense expression.
“After you disappeared, Sir Khan, we found this in Latan's lab.”
She pulled a small orb from her bosom.
“What's this?”
“They call it Bandarius's Tear.”
“Bandarius...?”
Woojin remembered that in this world, the Labyrinth Tower was called Bandarius's Tower.
“Related to the tower?”
“Something like that. Scholars who once studied the tower said it was like a tree. A massive dungeon grown from a seed taking root.”
“A tree...”
“And after the tower appeared, these orbs were scattered across the world.”
Hummm...
The orb emitted a faint glow, as if reacting to Irurin's mana.
“The orbs took root in the ground like seeds, creating new dungeons.”
“Creating dungeons...?”
“Yes. Rifts form when a dungeon is created, generating new space itself. That's why some call them something else.”
“...Rift Stones.”
Irurin looked at Woojin in surprise at his words.
“You even know that much?”
“Well, there are people studying rifts where I'm from.”
“Of course... You said your world is like our past.”
She nodded.
“We're going to use a Rift Stone to create a new dungeon in Kaisha's Tomb.”
She spread two fingers.
“When a new dungeon forms, the Rift Stone designates a boss fitting for it.”
“No way...”
“Yes. The boss there will be me.”
“Isn't that too dangerous? I've never heard of a human becoming a dungeon boss.”
“Me neither. But it's the way to protect the survivors we have left.”
She already seemed resolved.
“I'll turn Kaisha's Tomb into an even deeper labyrinth. It'll be land where we can fight demons and humanity's new home.”
“...What about the island at the northern wall? The Lion King's final bastion.”
She shook her head at Woojin's question.
“We couldn't find it.”
“Not in thirty years? Why? I heard there's a map marking its location.”
“There was. But every time, it was a dead end.”
Gulp.
Woojin swallowed dryly without realizing it.
Were they chasing a mirage that didn't exist?
“It takes three days for the Rift Stone to take root and activate the dungeon. We have to fend off demon attacks during that time.”
“That's where you need my help.”
“Yes, exactly.”
“Excluding the guards to protect the magic circle, the rest of the forces need to bring the clan survivors from the rear.”
“We'll go to the labyrinth with the minimal personnel so the demons don't notice.”
“Who?”
Luen pointed to herself.
“Irurin, me, Gowoon, and you, Sir Khan. Just the four of us.”
“Reminds me of old times.”
Everyone recalled the time they conquered Latan's lab.
I'm coming too!!
Setsuna shot her hand up and shouted.
Her high-pitched voice lightened the somewhat heavy mood.
“Your Majesty. The escort unit is ready. They say they'll depart immediately upon your permission.”
“We'll head out soon.”
The tent flap opened, and an elf soldier reported to Luen.
“Please continue your discussion.”
As Luen left the two of them and exited the tent,
“Have you ever seen my grandfather?”
Irurin casually asked while folding the map.
As if it were no big deal.
But Woojin could tell her voice was trembling ever so slightly.
“...Aswell Balan?”
“Yes. You said so back then. Thirty years have passed in our world since then... but seeing you, Sir Khan, it feels like time has almost stopped in your world.”
“Yeah. Only about a month has passed there at most.”
Woojin's mind grew complicated as he watched Irurin await his answer.
Of course I have, Master trained under the Sword Emperor... Mmph, mmph...
“No one on the continent doesn't know the Sword Emperor. I've seen him from afar once.”
“When?”
“Around the time the Antarian Federation was about to start a war.”
“Ah... That time, huh.”
Irurin nodded, roughly gauging the timeline of Woojin's world.
She seemed about to say something, then shook her head and closed her mouth.
Why? It's not like you just know of him. Master even trained under the Sword Emperor.
Setsuna whispered to him so Irurin wouldn't hear.
Aswell in this world died long ago. I don't want to trouble her by bringing it up.
If she knew Woojin had ties to him, even knowing it's a different world, she'd try to change Aswell's future.
“Whatever you gain here means something you'll lose in your own world.”
Nisen's words from the elf forest lingered in his mind.
If revealing the past to change Aswell's future leads to something like what happened to Nisen...
Nisen had vanished after telling him about the past.
As if it were the price for revealing it.
I can't put her in danger when it's not certain yet.
“Irurin. After giving me this ring, did anything bad happen to you?”
“Oh, you still have that ring?”
“Of course.”
Irurin caressed the [Wolf Ring] Woojin handed her, reminiscing.
“Plenty of bad things happened.”
She gave a wry smile.
“Thirty years after you left. We wandered everywhere. To escape demons, to find surviving elves, and... to gather weapons to fight.”
Her darkened expression showed how much had happened in that time.
But that wasn't what Woojin was asking.
“Actually... before coming here, I met someone guarding the fairy forest.”
He relayed his conversations with Nisen to her.
“Equivalent exchange and causality...”
She nodded in surprise and understanding.
“Everyone who's told me about the future has died, for one reason or another.”
Raoul and Nisen.
Though the causes differed, both had vanished before his eyes.
“So that's why you asked. You were worried.”
“...Naturally.”
Irurin chuckled at his response.
“Fortunately, nothing happened to me personally. Maybe I was just lucky.”
She handed the ring back to Woojin.
“What happened in Fenrir's nest hasn't occurred in your world or here, so maybe that's why it was fine.”
“...Could be.”
“You should be careful from now on. Revealing the future breaks a taboo. As you said, the price could be your life.”
Woojin nodded at her words.
“We need to figure out the scope of these rules bit by bit. What about the others? Have Gowoon or Luen ever told you anything?”
“No. Though I've pieced some things together from conversations with them.”
Like the demon blood disease or the unexplored areas on Gowoon's map.
“Maybe it's the difference between knowing and not. Tricky.”
“Sure, it's something to be cautious about, but I'm not planning to cower indefinitely.”
“...Then?”
“Like you said earlier, if it's something that hasn't happened in my world or here... past or future, maybe it's okay to twist it.”
“In theory, yes... but will that happen? Your world is ultimately the past. Everything there has already happened here.”
“No. It has. And it's one of the things you just mentioned.”
“...What?”
“The tomb's burial chamber. You said it was never opened, right?”
“No way... Your world opened the burial chamber?”
“No. We couldn't open it in my world either. Let alone the chamber, the labyrinth hasn't been cleared yet.”
“Even the labyrinth isn't cleared... The past is the past, after all.”
Irurin looked at him with a knowing expression.
“But not being cleared means the labyrinth hasn't lost its power.”
Thud.
He pulled out the burial chamber key he'd received from Vensina.
“So this can exist too.”
Woojin met her gaze, eyes gleaming.
“No way, that's...”
“Right. The burial chamber key.”
“...!!”
“We're living in each other's past and future, but not in an identical world.”
She couldn't hide her shock.
“My world has already changed because of this one. So... now it's my turn to change this world.”
He slid the burial chamber key toward her.
“The Black Dragon said dragon knight armaments sleep inside. If we can open the chamber door, wouldn't it help you all?”
“Of course it would!!”
Irurin cried out.
“Dragon relics, no less!”
It was the first time.
He'd seen her so emotional.
“If we can obtain them, it might completely turn the tide!”
She clutched the key tightly in both hands and shouted.
“Good.”
Woojin soon found himself smiling, feeling like he was seeing her childlike self again.
Even if using this key brought new problems for him...
'I don't care.'
In a world heading toward destruction,
he had glimpsed a tiny spark of hope.