Chapter 77
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 77
Chapter Title: The Test
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The Elves.
An ancient, ancient race.
No matter how many races existed in the world, few were as eternally beautiful as they.
Her ancestors always said.
That they were once a race more noble and mystical than any other, beloved by the gods and companions to the spirits.
But… that was in the distant past.
A tale from the age of the old kingdoms.
With the adventure of the five heroes as their final chapter, the elves lost all their power and blessings, falling into ruin.
Now, among the hundred cities of Odobaekryeong, there was no place for them, and their glory and blessings remained only in the memories of the old.
All that was left was a life of wandering the lands, postponing their extinction, just like any other fallen race.
Was it fortune or misfortune that their unique youth and beauty at least fetched a high price?
She did not know the answer.
Sold to human hunters.
Selling their own bodies.
Being devoured by monsters while wandering, or surviving even as a slave.
No one but those who lived it could say which was better, and even if they knew, most had no choice in the matter.
In that respect.
She was one of the lucky ones.
To have awakened a 3-star combat class, to have found her way into the Unlight family, to have become an exclusive maid rather than a mere knight or concubine.
These were things an ordinary elf could only dream of.
But that was as far as it went.
Her luck.
When she realized how incompetent the master whose fate she was to share as an exclusive maid was, she understood.
In the end, she was a disposable piece.
A living sacrifice, meant to be buried alive with the youngest Gongja, who had no chance of surviving the succession war and thus had no applicants for the position of exclusive maid.
It was a predetermined fate.
From the moment she became his exclusive maid.
No, it was a result set in stone from the moment her clan forged a connection with the Unlight family.
Therefore.
She had to choose.
Whether to die meekly alongside Dion.
Or…
“…When did you realize?”
“Well, when do you think?”
A valley shrouded in dim darkness.
The glow of mana stones embedded here and there provided minimal visibility, yet it was still too dark and dreary.
In a corner of the [Abandoned Valley]☆☆, filled with the Labyrinth's characteristic gloom.
There, the dark elf maid, who had been reminiscing about the past, slowly opened her eyes.
And facing the faintly smiling boy, she spoke softly.
“Is that why you had me contact the Fifth Gongja's forces?”
“Ren-hyung was sending such earnest signals. He would've been disappointed if I ignored them.”
That Ren Unlight had concluded the successive attacks were the work of a traitor and was now on a rampage, trying to kill even his own relatives.
Recalling the rumor Naru had picked up.
Dion let out a smirk.
From the perspective of someone who knew the relationship between Parsha and Ren, it was an all-too-blatant signal.
—A declaration so very typical of Ren, telling the traitor to act like one and sell the information quickly.
And Parsha, who had relayed Dion's information as Ren wanted while the Vault Keeper was lost in the market, spoke coldly.
“This is quite a surprise.”
“What is?”
“That the Doryeonnim, who was less useful than a camel cricket, had such perception.”
“Hmm… Seems you had a lot of complaints about me.”
“Did you expect me not to?”
Even though her betrayal had been exposed.
Instead of making excuses or feigning ignorance.
She readily admitted it, her eyes colder and more subdued than usual as she looked at Dion.
“I'll be blunt.”
“Go on.”
“—As a master to serve, you, Doryeonnim, are the worst kind of trash.”
“…”
“So much so that since becoming your exclusive maid, there has rarely been a day I didn't feel regret.”
Whether it's master and servant.
Lord and vassal.
Or employer and employee.
No matter the hierarchy.
There is no such thing as a one-sided relationship in this world.
A lord protects his vassals in exchange for loyalty, an employer pays for service, and even a mere slave is guaranteed food, clothing, and shelter.
Even in relationships that seem absolute, there is always a price.
The exclusive maids of the Unlight family were no exception.
In fact, the very reason for their absolute loyalty was the great compensation that came with it.
Power and authority.
Wealth and glory.
Or even more.
Unfortunately, however, Parsha was unable to properly receive the compensation she deserved as an exclusive maid.
At first, it was fine.
Dion's mother, who held her in high regard for being exceptional among elves, provided her with the mana stones needed for growth and even allowed her to learn the Unlight's secret techniques.
But that only lasted a few years.
After Dion's mother was poisoned.
And after her maternal family also fell.
She, now a kite with its string cut, could no longer receive any support.
All that remained was the duty to protect and care for a master who had barely been weaned, and the cold shoulder from everyone.
Despite it all.
She silently fulfilled her duty.
She trained, forcibly supplementing the gaps in the secret techniques she had only learned for a few years with her own methods.
Sometimes, she fought for her life against assassins sent as if in jest.
Sometimes, she endured being doused in filth just to secure food and firewood.
Sometimes, she taught and trained Dion herself, without any teaching materials.
Even as other vassals and maids betrayed and fled, she continued to serve and provide for Dion.
“Why do you think I did all that, without receiving a single coin in wages?”
“Because you had no other choice?”
“That's right. Because I was your damn exclusive maid.”
If Parsha had been an ordinary maid or vassal, she might have at least had the option to flee.
But an exclusive maid of the Unlights was bound to their master, a community of fate.
They were beings for whom abandoning their master and running away was simply not permitted.
No matter how difficult.
Arduous and dangerous.
Hopeless and miserable.
She had no choice but to silently stay by Dion's side.
Clinging to the sole hope that Dion would awaken his Unlight talent as soon as possible, so that she might see the light of day later on.
But…
“Your hopeless incompetence, Doryeonnim, showed me just how futile my hope was.”
“…”
“So I simply chose the only chance I had left.”
Even nobles of modest standing revealed their innate talents from a young age.
Let alone talent, he was the shame of the Unlights, unable to even Awaken by his coming-of-age ceremony.
For Parsha, who knew his incompetence better than anyone, there were two paths left.
To die quietly with Dion.
Or to find another way.
This was especially true because Dion's reputation as the shame of the Unlights was influenced as much by his timid and weak character as by his lack of talent.
The good die.
Only the cold-hearted survive.
And the most vicious are victorious.
That was the most common and absolute law of the Unlights… no, of this Odobaekryeong.
Therefore, Parsha looked at Dion, her expressionless face tinged with an utter pessimism.
No matter how shocked Dion was.
No matter how he condemned her.
She could accept it without batting an eye.
…Yes.
At least, that's what she thought.
Until completely unexpected words came from the mouth of Dion, who was staring at her blankly.
“Yeah, I understand.”
“…What do you understand?”
“I'm saying if I were in your shoes, Parsha, I would've done the same.”
“…”
“Someone I know once said that baseless faith exists only to be betrayed.”
Saying that if a master works you without pay, it's not a crime to stab them with a bamboo spear and run.
Dion smiled faintly.
Back in his second life.
The voice that had guided his foolish and immature self always said.
There is no one in the world who does not betray.
Just as parents sometimes sell their children.
And children steal their parents' fortunes.
If given the opportunity and reason to betray, any intelligent species could become a traitor at any moment.
It was an extreme teaching, if you could call it that, but Dion followed it.
…Although, when he followed it so well that he retorted, "Then can't I just betray them first?", even the voice fell silent for a long while.
At the very least, without that teaching, Dion would not have been able to survive until the end in his second life.
“So I don't blame you, Parsha. In fact, I'm grateful for all the help you've given me until now.”
Even though she was a high-ranking Awakened One who could be treated with respect anywhere in Odobaekryeong, she had to endure a life harsher than most slaves.
Her betrayal was inevitable.
It was, in fact, rational.
It was only natural to think of escaping a sinking ship.
And just as he understood the Vault Keeper, who, as an examiner, was testing his qualifications and trying to kill him.
He understood Parsha in the same way.
Dion smiled brightly.
“In that sense, Parsha, help me just one more time so I can pass Shuttle's test.”
“…Do you really think that makes any sense right now?”
“Yep. I've simply made a rational judgment.”
“What part of that is rational?”
What part of her, a traitor, could he possibly trust to make such a request?
To Parsha's cold question.
Dion replied nonchalantly.
“It's rational in that if we can't deal with Shuttle, neither of us can return safely.”
“…”
Parsha fell silent.
It might be different elsewhere.
But this was the heart of the Labyrinth.
A hell where even the most powerful Awakened One would be doomed without purified water.
And the only way to obtain purified water here was to pass the Vault Keeper's test.
The problem was whether that was even possible.
Her power, which had defeated even the Soma Knight Order, was not something a few high-ranking Awakened Ones could handle.
Thus, to the silent Parsha, Dion spoke with a smile.
“Don't worry about how. I have a plan to take down Shuttle, as long as you cooperate.”
“…”
“Besides, you taught me, didn't you, Parsha? That only one thing is most important.”
“…”
“—How to survive.”
Survival.
Before that absolute proposition, it didn't matter who was an enemy or what the circumstances were.
After silently gazing into the boy's blood-red eyes, which were deep and sunken unlike his beaming face.
She finally spoke softly.
“If it's for my own survival, I will betray you again, Doryeonnim, without hesitation.”
“That's fine.”
“…”
As if to say that as long as they didn't backstab each other until the Vault Keeper was subdued, that alone would be enough.
She had cared for him his whole life.
He had been so incompetent and pathetic.
But now, he had become so unfamiliar.
The dark elf maid, staring with an expressionless face at the boy whose inner thoughts she could no longer fathom, finally made her decision.
* * *
Ssshk.
Like a snake slithering across the floor.
Or like a wolf stalking its prey.
An army advanced through the dark tunnels.
Exploring the dark Labyrinth without even a mana stone lantern was something even a skilled crawler would fear.
But the demon soldiers, who had become more like monsters than intelligent beings, scoured the [Abandoned Valley] without hesitation.
“Kugh…”
In fact, at this moment.
The ones groaning were the demonologist and the legion commander of the Soma Knight Order.
The demon soldiers, who could be kept in hell as living sacrifices and summoned whenever needed, were an incredibly convenient existence.
Especially since, unlike familiars created by taming monsters, they required no money or time for maintenance.
However, there was a drawback.
Their summoning and control had to be shared by two or more high-ranking Awakened Ones, and they constantly consumed mana while active.
Using them for a short time wasn't a big problem, but that was when the Knight Order was intact.
After falling into the [Crucible Fortress], losing half the Knight Order, fighting Dion and Parsha, and then battling the Vault Keeper to the death.
In his current near-death state, even maintaining a mere hundred demon soldiers was a struggle.
So much so that permanent aftereffects might remain if he didn't rest soon.
But he did not stop.
No, he could not stop.
“Still haven't found them?”
“…We are searching.”
“You'd best find them quickly. My evaluation of you will change depending on the result, you know.”
The girl with purple twin-tails.
The Vault Keeper spoke leisurely.
There was not a hint of impatience in her attitude.
*‘If they can escape my slaves here, I might even have to praise them, tee hee.’*
The Vault Keeper giggled.
Once the contract was made, Sirgal could not disobey her commands.
That was the power of the King of the Dark Grotto.
The authority of the king who, in the dazzling age of the old kingdoms, had stood alone against the entire world.
No matter what incredible abilities Parsha and Dion possessed, confronting her was impossible.
Of course, there was a slim chance they might escape from here, but…
It didn't matter.
Even if they did escape.
In fact, it would be more advantageous for her after they left the Labyrinth.
In a way, this Labyrinth was a place where her power was weakened.
In that sense.
For the Vault Keeper, this was just a game.
It wasn't even a hunt; it was more like a one-sided prank, a bit of fun.
“Ugh!?”
“Did you find them?”
“…Another demon soldier was taken down by a monster.”
“Hmph, don't make such a fuss over something so trivial.”
And so, she scoffed at the demonologist's pained report.
Even if it was only a 2-star, this was a Labyrinth.
A demonic realm teeming with countless monsters.
It was common for demon soldiers to drop dead, and whenever it happened, he could just summon them again.
Though each time, the complexions of the demonologist and the other Knight Order members watching him grew even more deathly pale.
It was then.
“Kuh, wai—what is this.”
“Didn't you hear my order not to make a fuss over such things?”
“That's not it!”
“What's not it?”
“Monsters!”
“?”
Were Dion and Parsha finally making a forceful breakthrough?
She had asked with a sliver of anticipation, only to receive an incomprehensible answer that made a question mark pop up over her head.
The demonologist and the legion commander revealed the source that was mercilessly sweeping through their demon soldiers.
“Monsters are swarming here in hordes!!!”
“…?!?!”