Chapter 67
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: Vault Keeper
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“I should have expected this the moment the Jewel Market was turned upside down….”
The Underground City, a place with many enclosed spaces due to its spherical structure.
In a particularly secluded hideout that Naru had secured using the Guild’s influence.
The dark elf maid spoke with a deadpan expression.
“You were so confident you’d be right back, so why have you returned looking like a crawler that’s been chewed up by a monster?”
“Don’t you think that’s a bit harsh for someone who’s been through a lot?”
“You should be in a better state than a beggar before you say such things.”
Parsha pointed out coolly.
Dion was, indeed, a mess.
From his blood-soaked clothes, which had barely a clean spot, to his body, which was in even worse shape.
He looked worse than a soldier just back from the battlefield.
As his escort.
And as his maid.
She couldn't help but say something.
Especially since he’d gone to steal something from his fiancée, of all people.
“Well, something truly unexpected happened.”
“I can tell that much just by looking at you, who came back inexplicably dressed as a maid.”
“Th-this wasn’t what I wanted, there were circumstances…”
“There’s no need to explain.”
Perhaps because there hadn't been enough time to change.
After a brief, pathetic glance at Naru, who had returned in a maid’s uniform, and the battered Dion.
Parsha shifted her gaze to Dion’s hand.
“So, is that the item you mentioned?”
“That’s right.”
“To think you went all the way to your fiancée’s bedroom for that piece of junk. It’s truly enough to bring a tear to my eye.”
“Hmm, I admit it doesn’t look like much on the outside.”
So old and rusted.
It could hardly even be called an antique.
That was why it had tumbled around in the dregs of the black market for ages without anyone paying it any mind.
But it had eventually passed through Elise’s hands.
And into his own.
Dion smirked as he looked at the small, old-fashioned lamp.
It wasn't that Parsha, with her discerning eye befitting a maid of the Unlight family, failed to see the lamp’s true value.
It was because it reminded him of a memory.
Back in his second life.
When Dion himself had first seen it, he had been openly disappointed.
It couldn't be helped.
The Dion of that time was very different from the Dion of now.
‘I was so young back then.’
Indeed.
The first time he visited this Underground City, Dion had been powerless and inexperienced.
He hadn’t Awakened by then.
He had been cast out of his family.
Kidnapped by slave hunters.
And even after finally Awakening and escaping.
He had hidden in the sewers, lacking money and power.
He had leveled up by clearing 1-star Labyrinths on his own.
He had grilled the meat from butchered monsters to eat and collected magic stones one by one.
It was more enjoyable than difficult.
And rather than comfortable and satisfying.
It was inconvenient and frustrating.
But the memories of that time, when he had enjoyed freedom away from his family for the first time in his life, were special to Dion.
…Though not to the point of being nostalgic.
He had been inexperienced in many ways, and it had been a tough time.
If not for two great boons, he would have died without ever leaving the Underground City, or suffered a worse fate.
“Still, don’t be too disappointed. This thing is more amazing than it looks.”
That was why.
That was why Dion smiled so happily.
This lamp, along with ‘The Voice,’ was one of the two boons he had first obtained in his second life.
It was the reason why Dion, who was just a low-level Awakened One at the time, could survive the clutches of high-level Awakened Ones.
A treasure more precious than any artifact in Odobaekryeong.
And above all…
“This lamp is the legacy of the King of the Dark Grotto, who made the whole world tremble in fear during the era of the old kingdom.”
—As Dion smiled meaningfully at the old-fashioned lamp that sealed his first vassal.
Parsha looked at him with a skeptical expression, as if he were a child going through a late-onset puberty, and asked.
“…What’s a King of the Dark Grotto?”
“He exists, is all.”
“…”
“On that note, Parsha, could you get me some oil?”
What did she mean by ‘on that note’?
Though she couldn't understand at all, Parsha didn't bother to ask.
Thinking that Dion was just being Dion, she brought the oil with a stoic face.
***
A moment later.
Dion placed the lamp in the center of the hideout.
He filled it with oil.
And lit the lamp.
He pricked the tip of his finger with a knife and held it out.
And the moment a drop of blood trickling down his slender finger fell upon the quietly burning lamp.
*Fwoosh!*
—The change began.
The lamp’s flame, having absorbed the blood, swelled explosively.
Normally, as a fire grows, its light should intensify, but.
The [Lantern of the Dark Grotto King] was different.
The larger it grew.
The more light it swallowed.
Deepening the shadows.
And when the ever-growing shadow had completely covered one side of the floor.
*Sssk.*
“Huh?”
“!”
Naru, his eyes wide, let out a gasp, while Parsha tightened her grip on her steel gauntlet.
It wasn't just because the shadow on the floor had begun to ripple like the surface of water.
It was because of the figure slowly rising from within it.
Chains binding its neck and wrists.
A black lock hanging on its chest.
Purple hair that reached the floor.
And an outfit that revealed much of its skin.
A girl with a peculiar appearance and an even more bizarre aura.
She appeared on her knees and, remaining in that posture, bowed her head with utmost reverence and spoke.
“—I have awaited.”
“I have waited, and waited.”
“Earnestly have I awaited the one who would one day inherit His will.”
As quiet as a whisper.
Yet clearer than any shout.
A mystical voice echoed through the room, seeping into their minds.
“After so long a wait, I feared, despaired, and fell into hopelessness, thinking I would be buried thus.”
“But at last, the promise is fulfilled. The foolish girl who lost faith was wrong.”
“Welcome, my lord.”
“This humble Vault Keeper greets the successor of the great one…”
Kneeling.
With her head bowed.
In an overly archaic but.
Exceedingly polite and respectful manner.
The girl who was offering her courteous greeting suddenly fell silent as she slightly raised her head.
Then, her eyes.
Darted left and right.
After taking in the dumbfounded maid and the expressionless dark elf.
Her gaze finally landed on Dion, who was smiling brightly despite his tattered, bloodied state, and her eyebrows shot up.
“…And who is this frail little brat?”
***
After the Labyrinths eroded the world, swallowing the sun, the moon, and even the stars, the only light left in Odobaekryeong was from magic stones.
Following the flow of mana.
The time when magic stones were bright was considered day.
The time when they dimmed was night.
Roaming the Labyrinths accordingly was the common way of life in Odobaekryeong, but…
There are exceptions to every rule.
In some Labyrinths and cities, remnants of the sky still remained.
One of them was the Crescent Moon City.
A city that drifted eternally beneath a crescent moon, predominantly inhabited by races of the night.
And in the heart of that Crescent Moon City.
Among all the splendid buildings, in the largest and most luxurious mansion.
In the inner sanctum of the Vlad family, the rulers of this city, a girl was reviewing a ledger.
*Rustle.*
An elegant and neat black uniform.
Hair so blue it was almost translucent.
Eyes as red as blood.
Though not dazzlingly brilliant, she naturally exuded an air of grace just by being there, like a single rose.
A girl with an exceedingly mature and calm demeanor.
Sometimes drawing a line beside an entry.
Sometimes writing down numbers.
Her hand, which had been organizing the ledger without a single movement, was stopped by a vibration from below.
*Vmmm.*
A small, gentle.
But distinct vibration.
Feeling it, she put down the pen she was holding.
Instead, she opened a drawer, took out the crystal ball inside, and placed it on her desk.
“Report.”
[…The ‘wolves’ have been annihilated.]
“What of the prey?”
[It is alive, for now. But it has certainly been damaged by the ‘light’.]
“I see.”
As if she had expected it.
She nodded.
Then she opened the ledger and drew a line through the list of names under ‘wolves’.
Although everything was going according to plan, she needed to make sure that the final payment would not be necessary.
“Any other unusual developments?”
[There are.]
“…What kind of unusual developments?”
[There was outside intervention.]
*Halt.*
That was why.
The unexpected answer to a question thrown out merely for confirmation was why she paused her quill.
But it was only for a moment.
She asked calmly, without much agitation.
“What kind of outsider?”
[I’m not certain, but… it is presumed to be the White-Masked Young Master.]
“The White-Masked Young Master appeared in the Underground City?”
[Yes. Thanks to his help, the damage to the prey from the light seems to be less than expected.]
Hearing that.
She fell silent for a moment.
She tapped the crystal ball with her finger before speaking.
“And?”
[Pardon?]
“The White-Masked Young Master’s objective. His movements. His identity. Have you found out anything else?”
[That is…]
“Which means you haven’t.”
It was to be expected.
The White-Masked Young Master was an enigmatic figure even in the City of Deformity.
Why he had suddenly appeared in the Underground City to help Elise and interfere with their plans.
It was an unforeseen turn of events from start to finish.
It was impossible to have gathered any more information in the midst of it all.
However…
“Do you know what I hate most?”
[…]
“—Those who lack discernment.”
No matter how elegant the flower.
No matter how noble the moon at night.
To a pig that lacks the discernment to recognize treasure and considers anything inedible to be trash, they are useless.
Speaking softly, she toyed with the ring on her finger and continued.
“If you had the discernment to assess the situation, you would have immediately put a tail on the White-Masked Young Master.”
[I wanted to do so, but…]
“Do not make excuses about it being impossible.”
If you lack manpower, hire it.
If you lack money, borrow it.
She had at least given her subordinate that much authority.
Of course, if that authority were misused, there would be punishment.
But to not even use that authority properly in a situation like this was proof of his lack of discernment.
After pointing this out coolly, she continued in a low voice.
“I will not blame you further for your incompetence. So just carry out your existing mission properly.”
[…Understood.]
Perhaps because he knew her personality.
As her contact, who had finally given up on making further excuses, quietly ended the connection through the crystal ball.
She was lost in thought.
An unexpected variable had appeared, but if the holy relic had been used properly, that was enough.
Barring a miracle, Elise would not be able to avoid being eliminated as a candidate for succession.
However…
‘…That is, if there are no more variables.’
Elise had suddenly stopped pursuing the annulment.
Instead, she had eliminated the spies planted around her overnight.
And Ren Unlight’s rampage had served as a catalyst to strengthen the security of the City of No Night.
Several prepared plans had become useless due to the series of variables, and the losses incurred in the process.
Others could not even imagine.
The only reason this plan could be executed was because she herself had left the City of No Night.
If this plan also failed, it might become difficult to act for some time.
There was only one way to prevent that.
To stop any more variables from appearing.
Of course, a variable was a variable precisely because it was unpredictable…
Fortunately.
Or perhaps, naturally.
She had a countermeasure to block even that variable.
*Knock, knock.*
“Agassi. The esteemed guest you were expecting has arrived.”
“Let them in.”
A short knock echoed.
The closed door opened.
The person who carefully appeared was a somewhat unexpected figure for a guest.
“Ah, hello. It’s been a while.”
A complexion as pale as a corpse.
Prominent dark circles under her eyes.
A frightened expression and slumped shoulders.
And above all, a perfectly fitted maid uniform.
A delicate maid who looked more suited to serving guests than being one.
“Welcome.”
“Y-you don’t need to greet a mere maid like me so formally.”
“But I do.”
However, she rose from her seat to greet the maid politely.
She had to.
For this maid was the collaborator she had prepared to secure her hold over Elise.
“—If I were to treat the agent who gifted me a holy relic so poorly, I would lose face before the Iron-Blooded Mad Demon.”
Thus…
Elise’s older sister.
The girl closest to becoming the next head of the Vlad family.
The Cold-Blooded Princess, Christina Vlad, spoke calmly as she looked at Laira, Ren Unlight’s personal maid.