Chapter 30
Chapter 30
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: Newbie Adventurer Bern (27) - Lich
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While Bern had intentionally fallen into the trap only to turn around and annihilate the waiting forces,
"Adventurers, halt your movements for now! Anyone who resists will be deemed a minion of the Lich!!"
At the Guild Master's declaration, the black-banded agents—who had until then been focused solely on controlling the adventurers—suddenly lunged at several parties among them.
Guild Guards.
They were a force of arms that represented the Guild's own will, not dispatched for commissions like regular adventurers.
The adventurers, caught off guard by the Guild's blades striking to suppress them, could barely even resist as they were sent tumbling to the ground.
One of the dozen or so captured adventurers bellowed, veins bulging in his neck.
"What the hell is this?! Have you Guild bastards lost your minds!?"
"The mad ones are you lot. Did the Lich's underlings really expect lenient treatment?"
"What nonsense is that!!"
"It's been ages since we burned every Lich apprentice we've captured on our side. Pretending otherwise won't help you."
At the Guild Master's words, the eyes of the captured adventurers shook wildly, while the others looked on in a mix of shock and suspicion.
In truth, the Guild Master's statement carried a bit of deception.
It was true that the apprentice Bern had brought in had spilled everything he knew, but that didn't mean they had identified every spy.
Thus, the Guild had outwardly pushed for a full-scale purge operation as if unaware of the spies' presence, while secretly monitoring and investigating key adventurers behind the scenes.
Before entering the dungeon, they had classified about seventy percent. Once inside, behavior, speech, and reactions to the recent trap had filled in another twenty percent.
That left just ten percent.
To secure certainty on that final ten percent, the Guild Master had bluffed by claiming, "We already know who you are."
And the prestige of the Guild Master's name was more than enough to make the perpetrators mistake that bluff for the truth.
"Damn it!! Kill them all!!"
With that shout from one of the captured adventurers, pitch-black mana surged from his body, blasting away a black-banded agent.
The other adventurers likewise unleashed black mana, resuming their combat stances.
They lashed out indiscriminately at the adventurers around them, and only then did the others realize these were truly the Lich's minions, swiftly moving to intercept.
Clang!
Thud!
"Wh-what the hell? What kind of strength...!"
The adventurers clashing swords with the Lich's apprentices were horrified.
Every adventurer here could at least reinforce their bodies with mana as a basic skill, but the traitors cloaked in black mana far surpassed them.
The black orbs in their possessions continuously emitted an ominous aura, bolstering the traitors' bodies and mana.
Had they struck from behind while everyone was caught in the trap or locked in a stalemate, the damage would have been incalculable.
But not now.
Thud.
Before they knew it, the Guild Master had closed in right before the traitors and swung his sword.
With an utterly indifferent stroke, the head of the warrior who had been wielding monstrous strength flew through the air.
The traitors recoiled in terror and turned their swords toward the Guild Master, but he pressed on calmly, unperturbed.
Slash!
The Guild Master's sword knew no hesitation.
Not in the sense of free action, but literally.
Swords that met his were cleaved apart, shields thrust forward were shattered along with their bearers.
Just as a 4th Circle practitioner who wielded sword aura overwhelmed those below, the Guild Master's 5th Circle aura sliced through the traitors' every defense like tofu.
Even the mages, unable to stand by, hesitated to unleash attack spells lest they hit allies—but it wasn't easy for them either.
Tree Burning Magic
Basic attack spell. Low power but relentless.
"Urk!?"
Tree Burning Magic was the most basic spell, and thus its power was equally low.
But no matter how weak, few mages could calmly cast while fireballs hurtled toward their faces—vital points on the human body.
As the other mages hesitated amid the chaotic melee, Blanca sniped the traitor mages with pinpoint precision, without a moment's delay.
To her, who had trained by crossing swords with Bern, this level of chaos was no obstacle at all.
The Guild Master shattered the traitorous warriors' formation, and Blanca's sniping prevented the mages from casting in time.
And that was the end.
They had hoped to overcome their numerical and positional disadvantage with temporary spec boosts, but with even those nullified, victory was impossible.
The Guild Master tried to extract information about the Lich or the captured victims from the subdued traitors, but it was in vain.
Thorns erupted from the black orbs in their possessions, instantly piercing the traitors through.
"...Looks like someone's watching from somewhere."
Tsking his tongue, the Guild Master scanned the dungeon's corners with sharp eyes before approaching Blanca and bowing his head.
"Thank you. We squeezed out the pus with minimal damage thanks to you all. As for your comrade, however—"
The Guild Master trailed off.
Bern had volunteered as bait first, and the Guild Master had agreed, but the situation had turned tricky.
If it had been a simple physical trap or ambush, they could have cleared up and sent a rescue team immediately. But a spatial transfer trap offered no guarantee of reaching the same place if followed blindly—and they might lose lives one after another.
The Guild Master was just as unhappy about being unable to send aid to their top contributor, but as the leader guiding all the adventurers, he had a duty to secure the entire team's safety. Reckless rescue operations were out of the question.
Blanca bit her lip but soon spoke up.
"It's fine. Bern will be okay, so let's hurry onward. We need to press the assault before the Lich prepares new measures beyond the traitors."
Though she desperately wanted to follow Bern right then, it was Bern himself who had told her before entering the dungeon not to worry if she had to act separately and to keep pushing forward.
Blanca trusted Bern's judgment more than her own emotions.
"Understood. We'll settle the rewards later."
The Guild Master shouted to the adventurers.
"We're picking up the pace from here! I'll take point—follow behind!"
With no need to guard the rear against surprises, the Guild Master stepped forward himself to blaze the trail.
Excluding the trapped right path, that left the left and center routes.
A portion stayed to monitor the massive central door whose opening method was unknown, while the rest headed left, where enemies were said to swarm.
The blocking undead were formidable, but the adventurers' power was greater still. The traps that grabbed at their ankles were vicious, but not enough to rob veteran adventurers of their cool-headedness.
The deeper into the dungeon they ventured, the more their eyes gleamed.
'Stamina and mana are still holding strong. We can make it to the boss like this!'
'The Lich is estimated at 5th Circle. Stronger in his lair, sure, but we've got the Guild Master—odds are good.'
'Didn't expect our branch's Rank 4 to be a traitor, but this is our chance. If our party can take that spot...!'
The cautious adventurers who usually shied from risks were nowhere to be seen.
Even if their motives were personal glory or gain, in this moment, the adventurers were undeniably charging toward the unknown foe—embarking on true 'adventure.'
Just like the heroes of old sung by bards.
However, they must not forget.
The reason heroes are hailed and celebrated as such...
...is because so many perish before ever earning that title.
"—Noisy thieves, are you."
It was a low voice.
Not particularly angry, nor steeped in grudges.
Just a soft murmur, as if spoken to oneself.
Yet every adventurer who heard it felt chills crawl up their spines.
For that tiny sound rang out with crystal clarity.
As if whispered directly into their ears.
Whoosh...
From all directions—front, back, left, right.
Without warning from any one spot, sinister purple mist began seeping from every corner of the dungeon.
The Guild Master grimaced and shouted.
"Mages! Blow away the mist! Warriors, fall back so it doesn't touch your skin!"
Flames and gusts shot from the mages' hands, momentarily stalling the purple mist's advance.
Blanca seized the opening, unleashing a barrage of Rock Burning Magic toward the intense mana source beyond the fog.
Rock Burning Magic
Barrage fire. Piercing the veil.
Boom!
Kaboom!
"...Hoh."
Through a gap in the disrupted mist, the dungeon's master revealed himself.
Blanca swallowed hard.
This was the death mage who, in her childhood, had invaded her homeland.
The one who had stolen her precious family from her, now gazing at her with eyes gleaming in interest.
Just as the helpless girl Blanca had grown into an adult, the Lich's form had changed somewhat too.
His ashen bones were tinged pale purple, and what had been a normal human skull was now grotesquely twisted with horn-like protrusions sprouting here and there.
Before the Lich, Mortius Varmor, could utter a word, the Guild Master charged.
As a veteran adventurer, he knew well that giving a mage time was the height of folly.
The knight beside the Lich emitting black mana caught his eye, but the Guild Master ignored it.
An inferior sword aura couldn't hope to block his own anyway.
Clang!
Yet as if to deny that certainty, the Guild Master's sword was halted by the Death Knight.
Groaning at the sight of the oily, murky mana coating the Death Knight's blade,
"Aura...!"
It wasn't the pure 5th Circle aura the Guild Master wielded.
Rather, it resembled sword aura densely compressed, treated with some spell.
The imperfect aura screeched and chipped on contact with his sword; given a moment, the Guild Master could overwhelm it—but the Lich wasn't standing idle.
Two more Death Knights emerged from the purple mist behind him, charging at the Guild Master.
Even for him, facing multiple upper 4th Circle elites in relentless assault left no room to mind elsewhere.
"What are these things?! Swords aren't cutting through!"
"W-wait, my limbs... they're numb...!"
"Don't inhale the mist! It paralyzes you!!"
Meanwhile, the other adventurers meant to support the Guild Master were faring no better.
The undead horde appearing with the Lich was stronger than before, and above all, the purple mist severely hampered their movements.
Expelling inhaled toxins via body reinforcement wasn't impossible, but fewer than ten percent of those present could manage it.
Grind.
Blanca clenched her teeth.
The scene evoking past trauma obliterated the remaining in her mind.
Raging crimson wave, consume the violet haze!
Inferno's tide, sweep all before you!
⟨ Apocalypse Flame ⟩
Roarrrrr!
A wave of red flames erased the purple mist.
Overwhelming firepower that blanketed the entire floor.
Half the undead horde was incinerated in an instant, the rest felled by adventurers now free to move.
Rank 4 adventurers among them rushed forward, peeling off the Death Knights pinning the Guild Master.
Not missing the opening they created, the Guild Master—his body now covered in minor wounds—charged the Lich.
The Lich tried to block with a wall of bone, but the blue aura-clad sword cleaved it like tofu and bore down on him.
Slash!
At last, the Lich's chest was deeply gashed, the orb at its heart shattering.
Sensing he had pierced the enemy's core, the Guild Master was certain of victory, and the other adventurers' eyes lit with joy.
"...These pathetic worms."
A growling voice, as if etching itself into space itself, sent shivers down spines.
As Blanca shuddered in foreboding, immense mana gathered around the Lich's body.
And exploded.
KABOOM!
A torrent of thick curses and toxins, felt even from afar.
The Guild Master, his skin turned black and blue as if gravely poisoned, convulsed on the ground where he had been flung.
"What a pity, such a waste. Not content with squandering some sacrifices, you force me to expend my cherished heart as well!"
At the explosion's epicenter.
Purple mist converged anew, slowly taking physical form.
Opulent robes. A staff of skull and spine in poor taste. A twisted skull with glowing blue eye-fires.
The only void was where a heart should be in the chest—but even that was filled by a grotesque, intensely mana-charged objet flying from deeper within the dungeon.
The resurrected Lich Mortius Varmor hurled six black orbs at the fallen Guild Master.
Each embedding in heart, head, and limbs, they morphed into black armor, fully encasing him.
"I ought to rend your soul and flesh to dust for satisfaction, but I shall grant you the honor of serving as my knight, having noted your prowess."
Clank.
The Guild Master—no, the Death Knight—dropped to one knee, pledging loyalty to the Lich.
A new emotion filled the adventurers' eyes.
Not anger, not greed.
Pure, unadulterated terror.
Blanca squeezed her eyes shut.
'Bern...!'