Chapter 58
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 58
Chapter Title: Raiding Party
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"Lord Fallen. Is there really any need to move so ostentatiously like this?"
"Hm. What do you mean?"
The dungeon raiding party was en route to Delron. Among them, the spear-wielding hero 'Peace'—who had charged at Fallen during the previous Fallen enlistment exam and been appointed his adjutant for his sheer grit—sidled up to Fallen on horseback and posed the question.
"I'm aware that quite a few demons disguise themselves as humans and hide among us. And if we announce our approach to the dungeon so publicly like this..."
"Demons... You mean the dungeon side might catch wind of our movements and prepare countermeasures?"
"Exactly."
Fallen caught on to Peace's concern and let out a hearty laugh.
"In a normal situation, you'd be right. There's no stupider move than openly telegraphing your position to the enemy."
"Then why..."
"There are two issues at play. Have you heard of the dungeon merchants?"
Peace tilted his head at the odd pairing of 'dungeon' and 'merchant'.
"Dungeon merchants? Do they buy and sell dungeons or something?"
"Hm, not quite. They're a race called 'Gord'—ambiguous whether they're monsters or demons—and they... do business with the demons inside dungeons."
When Fallen explained how these merchants brazenly traded with dungeon masters, selling food, troops, and even 'information', Peace was floored.
"What the hell... What kind of lunatics are they?"
"No one knows."
Though Peace pressed for more, Fallen just shook his head. In the long history of the continent, these dungeon merchants had popped up out of nowhere.
Unlike any known race, they appeared one day with abilities like subspatial storage for hauling goods and teleportation for long distances—making them a bigger headache for humans hostile to all dungeons than the dungeons themselves.
"Anyway, those cheeky bastards sell info on humans to dungeons too. So no matter how stealthily we move, if the dungeon masters want to know, our intel's exposed anyway. Unless we'd operated in total secrecy from the start—but recruiting you all was pretty public... It's already out there."
"I see..."
"And the second issue is that the citizens are overly anxious."
After explaining the dungeon merchants, Fallen moved on to the second reason.
"The temple stepped in to quash the shady rumors... But lately, fresh dungeon gossip has reignited in Delron. All sorts of horror stories tied to that newborn dungeon are spreading."
"Horror stories...?"
"Hm. Whether it's unbelievers stirring it up or demons pulling strings, anxiety's spreading fast among the people. We needed some way to reassure them, by any means."
"Got it. So you're moving big and bold to give the people hope!"
"Right. And... not that it's a problem, but there's one more reason we can march openly."
"What's that?"
As their talk wound down and Delron's walls came into distant view, Fallen grinned.
"Even if they know about us, they can't stop us."
"Dungeon Master!"
While positioning the weapons procured by his kin in key spots and coordinating trap setups with the Red Demon Tribe, Murtal—who'd been sent to the city—returned.
"The heroes have arrived in the city."
"Phew... Took about a week, right on schedule."
Eugene and the others in the ruins wore slightly tense expressions. The unflappable ones? Just two: Erzsebet and Rio.
"No matter how many come, we just sweep 'em away, right?"
"The Master can beat them all!"
Erzsebet brimmed with confidence in herself, while Rio trusted Eugene implicitly—neither seemed worried. Rio... Honestly, that puts a bit of pressure on me, you know...?
"Ugh... Can we really pull this off...?"
And Lilith, tasked with a key role, looked pale, clutching her stomach like she might hurl.
'Sorry to dump something so tough on you when we just met.'
Right now, every resource had to be deployed. Lilith, with her crowd-control powers and cheat-like illusion manifestation, had a lot riding on her.
In exchange, he'd let her siphon a bit of essence from sleeping kin and Red Demon Tribe members, and swapped their bland demon grub for tasty [Shop] cuisine. Starved as they were, good food kept them compliant.
"Erzsebet. Got enough blood?"
"Master. Do you know how foul goblin blood tastes? And you want me to drink that...?"
Eugene had doled out portions of everyone's blood from the dungeon interior to Erzsebet. She grumbled about goblin blood but understood the stakes, sipping enough to prepare for battle with only mild complaints.
Before executing the plan... Eugene said darkly to Rio.
"...Rio. You don't have to step up."
"No way! I can fight too!"
Rio, usually obedient, was resolute this time—clutching the [High-Pressure Cleaner] gift, burning with determination.
"I... I'm gonna fight too!"
Up close, she trembled, eyes misty. Memories of fleeing her burning village, powerless...
"...Alright. Thanks."
Eugene swallowed what he wanted to say, forcing out empty words. All he could do was pray Rio stayed safe in the coming fight.
"Info on the heroes?"
"Yes! All heroes are tough... but we got details on a few big names!"
Eugene patted Rio's head, then scanned Murtal's intel.
'The real problem's this Fallen hero.'
The others were no pushovers, but this 4-star was the worst. His past exploits left solid records on his abilities...
"Hm. A body that shrugs off any weapon, even aura..."
Even the known info made facing him daunting.
"...Erzsebet. Can you pierce it?"
"...I'd love to say 'easy', but if that defense stems from a 'Holy Relic', even my attacks might struggle, Master."
That level of defense likely no-sold his [High-Pressure Cleaner], golems, or other demons' powers.
The others could at least be stabbed down eventually—but this guy...?
"Drown him in water?"
"Drown him?"
As they pondered, Erzsebet made a solid suggestion: lure him into a pit trap—like the one she'd fallen into—and flood it.
"That... But Fallen has other abilities. Reports say it'd likely fail."
Murtal shook his head. The hero's kit wasn't just defense; he had survival skills for various scenarios.
"...Hm. Tricky bastard. No way to kill him... Bind him or exile him far away, that's it..."
"...No, wait."
Erzsebet hummed thoughtfully on neutralization as Eugene latched onto her 'pit' mention, an idea sparking.
For foes with insane defense...
"...Lilith. You said you can make walls and floors too?"
"Huh? Y-, yes!"
"This is it. The dungeon entrance...!"
"Hm. Stirring up old memories."
After resupplying in Delron, the heroes pressed straight for the dungeon. There, in the forest heart, stood an ornate door.
"Mages. Traps or barriers?"
"No traps. Just an intruder-detection barrier. Dispelling now..."
"No, save your mana. They already know we're here."
Dispelling an established barrier took time and mana, so Fallen stopped the mages and raised his fist instead.
"Hah!"
-Crack!
He smashed it barehanded—no aura even—and the mere sensor barrier shattered pathetically.
"Good. Move out. First... you, you, you. Guard the entrance. Demons might be lurking outside and hit us from behind."
After that absurd feat, Fallen calmly assigned guards: three 1-star heroes, two mages, one priest.
Then, with the rest, he plunged inside.
Advancing cautiously, confirming no ambushes nearby.
Thus Fallen and the main force delved deeper, guards sealing the entrance tight—when
-[Fast Movement]
-Flash!
"Wha— Mmph!"
The utterly unforeseen ambush struck; guards couldn't even signal inside before a white-haired figure downed them.
-Rumble...!!
Moments after they all collapsed, the entrance door slowly shut, fully sealing it.
"Ready?"
"Yes!"
-Roar...!!!
With even smoke unable to escape, the entrance fully blocked—a petite figure suddenly appeared in the dark passage, sparks flying red-hot from the gloom.