Chapter 42
Chapter 42
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: Beneath the Cliff
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***
“This is a sword like nothing I’ve ever seen.”
“Did you see that? It sliced through a tree trunk as thick as a grown man’s waist in one swing.”
“Where on earth did Young Master get his hands on weapons like these?”
The knights were thrilled with the armaments Arthur had given them.
They were sharper than their old weapons, needless to say, and didn’t even chip when struck against rocks.
It was the kind of praise that came naturally.
And for good reason—the weapons they’d received were forged by the artisan dwarves from Oriharukon, the hardest metal in the world.
These were the sorts of arms that only a duke or higher might handle.
Your average noble couldn’t just get their hands on them.
So it was no surprise they didn’t recognize the material.
Arthur was just as ignorant of the fact.
He’d simply assumed anything from a dragon’s lair had to be top-notch.
“Hmm.”
Arthur’s face hardened as he arrived at the cliff’s edge.
The Devil Squad members who had followed spotted it too, their expressions turning grave as they scanned the surroundings.
“It’s gone.”
“What kind of bastard could’ve done this?”
Every trace of the ogre’s corpse had vanished.
The only thing that came to mind capable of hauling off a mass that size was another ogre.
Tension rippled through them at the thought of ogres bursting from the forest.
The Devil Squad’s lips cracked dry.
Meanwhile, Hellot and the knights were utterly puzzled about why Arthur had come here.
Hellot led the knights over to him.
He proudly slung the mace—a bludgeoning weapon from Arthur—over his shoulder as he asked.
“Why are we here, Young Master?”
Arthur kept his gaze fixed below as he replied.
“We’ve scoured the western mountains this whole time and haven’t found a single monster. But they keep showing up.”
“I’ve wondered about that too.”
“There’s one spot we skipped during the search.”
“Skipped?”
Hellot tilted his head, puzzled. He’d thought they’d combed every inch, contrary to Arthur’s words.
“Is Young Master mistaken...?”
Arthur’s persistent stare downward only deepened the confusion.
“Why keep looking down there? That’s the forbidden zone, off-limits for a hundred years...!”
Hellot’s eyes flashed with sudden realization.
“You’re not thinking of going down there, are you?”
“It’s the only place we haven’t checked.”
“Young Master! No one’s ever come back alive from down there. Everyone knows it.”
“Has anyone actually gone in to confirm?”
“Pardon?”
“It’s all hearsay. No one’s gone in and come out to tell the tale, right?”
“Of course not. Why would anyone go where you can’t come back from? And only a madman would climb down a cliff.”
“Either way, we’re searching it. Get everyone ready.”
“Young Master!”
Hellot barked in protest, but Arthur shot him a cold glare.
“Get the ropes.”
“Y-Yes, sir...”
Overwhelmed by Arthur’s intensity, Hellot had no choice but to obey.
A short while later.
Arthur had tied the rope Hellot brought around his waist and finished prepping to descend the cliff.
Hellot and everyone else there watched him with anxious faces.
“Are you sure about this?”
At Dark’s question, Arthur nodded.
“I’ll go down and mark a path. Follow it once it’s set.”
“Understood.”
Dark followed Arthur’s orders without hesitation.
Hellot scowled at the sight and muttered.
“We need to stop him, and this is what you’re doing?”
“We trust the Captain.”
“You think I don’t trust Young Master? Is that why I’m saying this?”
Hellot glared as he shouted, and Mullan beside Dark replied.
“That’s how it looks.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“If you trust the Captain, you should follow orders.”
“You little shits have lost it. What if something happens to Young Master?”
“Enough.”
Arthur cut in, unable to hold back any longer, and told Hellot.
“If you don’t want to go, head back. Stop making a fuss.”
“Young Master, I...”
“I’m going down. Get ready.”
Arthur shut him down curtly and turned to Dark.
“Come down the moment I signal.”
“Yes, sir.”
Dark answered without a shred of doubt.
Arthur peered down at the cave entrance—his first destination.
“Time to start?”
He hurled himself over the edge without a second thought.
The sight stunned not just Hellot, but Dark and Mullan too.
The others rushed forward, eyes wide.
The coiled rope beside them unraveled endlessly downward.
Moments later.
The rope went taut. Mullan and Dark gripped it tight and peered below.
Arthur had landed safely amid some protruding branches.
“Truly incredible.”
“Yeah.”
Dark and Mullan were awestruck by his monstrous prowess.
“Is he even human?”
“How does he jump off a cliff like that...?”
Hellot and the vanguard Phoenix Knights stared blankly like fools.
“Come down!”
Arthur’s shout echoed up.
Dark descended the rope first.
Mullan, Perry, and Latel followed suit.
Once the full Devil Squad was down, all eyes turned to Hellot.
He scowled at the view below.
“Damn it!”
As he grabbed the rope to descend, the knights asked.
“You’re really going down?”
“We can’t just stay up here alone.”
“Young Master said it’s fine to return to the castle...”
“What do we tell the Captain? That we dropped Young Master into the forbidden zone and bailed?”
“Ugh.”
“No more chatter. Follow me.”
Hellot took the lead, gripping the rope and descending.
Meanwhile.
Arthur scaled the wall with a dagger from his subspace, hammering in pitons and securing the rope as he went.
The squad followed the path he blazed.
After about thirty minutes.
Arthur touched down and swiftly scanned the area.
Vines stretched endlessly like a sheer wall, as tall as a man.
It felt like a boundary line had been drawn.
Dark, Mullan, Perry, and Latel hurried to his side and eyed the vines.
“What is this?”
“What vine grows that big?”
“Stay sharp. Full alert.”
Arthur approached the vines and swung his dagger hard.
As expected of a dragon lair weapon, it sheared through effortlessly.
But the vines seemed endless, no matter how many he hacked.
“What kind of vines...?”
Arthur’s face set grim as he kept slashing.
Finally, after much effort, he broke through.
“This is...!”
The bizarre vista before him left Arthur stunned.
It wasn’t just the vines—trees, flowers, even the grass and weeds on the ground were all gigantic.
“What is this place...?”
As Arthur took it in, the squad emerged one by one from the vine thicket.
They were just as baffled by the alien scene.
Once the entire search party was out, Arthur gathered them.
“As you can see, anything could pop out at any moment.”
“I’ll take point.”
Hellot volunteered, but Arthur shook his head.
“I’ll lead. You guard the rear. Prep for a retreat if things go south.”
“Got it.”
Arthur heightened all his senses, surveying the surroundings.
It was deathly quiet—not even a bird’s chirp.
“Hmm.”
His brows furrowed.
A faint sound came from the nine o’clock direction.
Only he could catch it—so subtle.
“Let’s move.”
Arthur headed straight for the source without pause.
The squad trailed him, footsteps muffled.
Fortunately, no obstacles like the vines impeded them.
Arthur suddenly dropped low and raised a hand. The group halted in unison.
They gripped their weapons tight, awaiting his signal.
Arthur’s face twisted at the sight ahead.
Two ogres were tearing into something—Cardrazin, the one that had fallen with him from the cliff.
And these were far larger than any they’d seen before.
Around ten meters tall, at least.
Dark sidled up and gaped at the ogres.
“Og-ogres...”
“I’ll handle them quietly. You watch our flanks.”
“Captain alone—”
Before Dark finished, Arthur bolted toward the ogres.
The beasts, savoring Cardrazin’s corpse, whipped around at his presence.
Spotting him, they rose with deafening roars.
Kieeeaaah!
“Shut up.”
Arthur channeled mana, golden aura coiling around his dagger.
The squad watching from behind gasped.
“What? Young Master’s aura...”
“Sword Expert upper tier? But that aura...”
“No way!”
Hellot’s eyes shook violently.
He knew even Skevin, a top Sword Expert, couldn’t match Arthur.
Sword Master naturally sprang to mind.
Sword Expert was one thing, but Sword Master wasn’t achieved on a whim.
No matter Arthur’s talent, reaching Sword Master in under half a year of training was impossible.
“How do we even process this?”
As Hellot muttered, Arthur locked onto one ogre.
“You first.”
He dodged the incoming fist, kicked off the ground, and leaped.
He sprang from its knee, then plunged the dagger into its throat.
Stab!
Kieeeak!
The ogre thrashed, roaring.
Arthur rode the motion up to its shoulder, jamming the dagger into an eye.
Then he shifted to the nape and drove it deep.
It all happened in a blink.
Kieeeaaak!
The ogre wailed in agony.
Arthur yanked the dagger free with his left hand, summoning his pistol.
A golden Sig Sauer appeared in his right.
“First one down.”
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Kieeeaaah!
The ogre bellowed before crashing like a felled ancient tree—right toward the search party.
“Scatter!”
At Hellot’s yell, they dodged nimbly.
But that exposed them to the second ogre.
Kieeeaaah!
As it roared and charged,
Bang!
Green blood sprayed from its ear.
Kieeeak!
“Where you slacking? You’re with me.”
Arthur closed in, swinging his dagger fiercely.
The ogre’s leg half-severed; it staggered sideways.
Arthur pounced, pressing the muzzle to its eye.
Bang! Bang!
Aura-enhanced, the beast rolled wildly, thrashing.
Nearby trees snapped, rocks flew, debris pummeling the party.
“Damn it! Spread out—max distance!”
At Hellot’s order, the search party retreated far.
But the Devil Squad couldn’t abandon Arthur.
“What do we do?”
Mullan asked Dark; Perry and Latel looked to him too.
“Damn! This is insane.”
Dark ached to rush in, but orders bound him.
“Maintain watch.”
“What? Leave Captain to fight alone?”
“Just following orders!”
Dark clenched his dagger, fighting the urge to charge.
Then—
Rat-tat-tat-bang!
Gunfire rang; the ogre’s frenzy halted abruptly.
Golden light pierced the dust cloud.
Soon, as it settled, Arthur emerged.
“Captain!”
Dark rushed to him.
Arthur nodded.
“Anyone hurt?”
“Our side’s fine.”
As Arthur turned to Hellot—
Boom! Thud! Thud!
The ground quaked like an earthquake; something massive approached.
Its aura dwarfed the ogres—ominous.
“Move!”
Arthur pointed opposite and told Dark.
“Don’t look back—run.”
“What about you, Captain?”
“Got something to check.”
Arthur sprinted toward it, praying inwardly.
“Please... don’t let it be...”