Chapter 57
Chapter 57
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 57
Chapter Title: Phenex's Liberation
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[Luck is infused into the acquisition of spoils of war.]
[Dungeon defense mission has ended.]
[Mission result: Manan and 4 others (deceased)]
[As a reward for the dungeon defense mission, you acquire the intruders' possessions.]
[You got lucky. You acquire 3,000 magic stones from the intruders' possessions.]
[You acquire a secret manual (Blood Phantom Demonic Fist) from the intruders' possessions.]
[You acquire blood serum residue from the intruders' possessions.]
[You acquire a large amount of gold coins from the intruders' possessions.]
[The intruders' deaths may have drastically altered their fates.]
[Tip: Rewards for defense missions may vary depending on the intruders' origins and circumstances.]
……
The Blood Cult's premature invasion didn't even reach my inner sanctum before crumbling at its doorstep.
Pity for them? Not a shred.
It was just astonishing.
‘Manan is a character who doesn't show up until the story has progressed quite a bit. For a guy like that to die so pointlessly here…’
Had the Rotten Roots Dungeon grown much stronger without me realizing it?
‘Well… Amon did almost all of it.’
In mobile games, there are occasionally characters that throw balance out of whack. Ones that perform far beyond their given rating, or characters designed with high risk for high reward who end up shining without any risk.
Amon was one such character.
The great demon who was the symbol and flower of the Remegaton gacha. It made sense that a character proudly in that league had astounding performance.
‘I never got this guy early on, so I didn't know… He's insanely powerful.’
Above all else, arming Amon with a magitech weapon unleashes a level of destructive power that screams, "This is what a great demon should be!"
That said, magitech weapons had only dropped once despite all the gacha pulls I'd done so far. With that one destroyed, he wouldn't be showing this kind of presence for a while.
‘Well… Even without the mechanic trait activation, his base skillset is monstrous anyway.’
Amon's unique mechanic trait only activates in do-or-die fights like that one. Normally, his thunderous magic would handle everything.
"Hmm…"
"I'll prepare more tea."
"…Please do."
Leisurely.
It had clearly been a life-threatening situation, but was it okay to be this relaxed?
- In my view, even if they were a ragtag bunch, this domain is one you built, and you are its rightful lord. A lord trembling in fear won't inspire his soldiers to fight properly.
Amon's words suddenly came to mind.
‘Right… This might be the proper demeanor for a lord.’
Unshakable, no matter the moment…
‘More importantly, the magic stones as a reward feel a bit skimpy.’
3,000 magic stones was just enough for a 10-pull.
As grateful as one should be for that, we all know Remegaton's gacha is brutally stingy.
It was obvious they'd probably just give a few pathetic familiars and a pile of trash weapons, then call it a day.
‘The gold coins are nice, but the blood serum residue and secret manual?’
The bosses at the end of each episode often drop special rewards. Last time with Kal Kurso's beheading, it was the Repentance Stone. This time, it seemed to be the blood serum residue and a secret manual.
The blood serum residue was a material used much later… in an update way down the line.
This garbage game was legendary for not including its core systems at launch and adding them via updates later. And then making the materials for those systems drop in the pre-update version to confuse players… No wonder it got so much backlash.
‘Anyway, nothing to worry about right now.’
And this secret manual was a rather unique item. It was one of the few redeeming qualities of this game: something that influenced its diverse skillset.
‘Training with the secret manual adds a new extra skill to the character's usable skills.’
Roughly speaking.
Naturally, players had tested them extensively, so if something wasn't worth it, they never used it from start to finish.
The same went for this Blood Phantom Demonic Fist manual.
It had harsh conditions and poor efficiency.
Still, it was a Blood Cult martial art in this world's lore, so maybe I could sell it for a high price on the black market or somewhere.
Slurp…
Sipping the tea Lucifer had prepared, I reflected on the battle.
It had been Act 2, blessed by luck in many ways. Starting from meeting Romwell at the black market…
‘Hold on? If I hadn't met Romwell at the black market, how would I have even encountered that unpleasant trio?’
Dismissing it as fate felt… unsatisfying. Something to mull over later.
Anyway, after that, Ruby joined and took out one of the trio… Manan impatiently chased us into the dungeon and collapsed on his own. Could there be a better outcome?
I'd gotten the dungeon rewards, fulfilled the deal with Romwell, and… another result I'd planned was waiting.
Rustle…
As I rose from my chair, Lucifer immediately stood by my side.
"The throne…"
Should I have Lucifer follow along?
It wouldn't hurt.
"Yes."
* * *
Crunch…
Crunch…
A desolate field.
The place Lucifer and I headed to was the Lava Cave, the second gateway to the Rotten Roots' inner sanctum.
I didn't care for the smell of cooled sulfur, but apparently its master found it nostalgic.
In any case, we were here to meet that master now.
"…She's not here."
Phenex wouldn't revive in the Garden of Rebirth this time.
Why?
Because she'd slaughtered Manan and the two Blood Phantom Jiangshi without a scratch. Her unique trait, Indomitable, had simply turned her into flames to accept her fated defeat.
"……"
"…I'll look for her."
"No, I think I know where she is."
The Lava Cave was desolate, but not entirely empty.
- Keeheeheehee!
As we approached the traveling circus tent, a ticket seller that seemed to be part of Santou stood there.
I called it "part" because I'd confirmed that Santou could split into multiple entities inside the traveling circus tent. A bizarre existence in many ways, but then again, all the guys staying in my dungeon were like that.
- Keeh!
No ticket, but it seemed to recognize me as the dungeon's master and gestured for me to enter.
The large tent was vast enough to stack elephants into a tower. The interior was incomparably bigger than it looked from outside—another of Santou's bizarre powers, apparently.
‘Even as allies, there's so much I can't figure out. If we'd met as enemies…’
It would've been a real headache.
- Keeheeheehee!
A figure balanced on a giant ball on one leg, holding a long pole.
It spun a plate on top, whirling it around. I'd been here a few times, and the plate-spinning part dragged on quite a bit. All while adding more poles in the gaps between spins.
"……"
I scanned the audience seats and took a spot in an appropriate location.
- Keeh! Keehee!
Calm…
Quiet atmosphere.
The traveling circus tent was filled not with laughter, but silence.
- Keehyooot!
Then, as Santou bit a rod in its mouth to catch the plate, there was a reaction from the audience.
"Ha… haha…"
If you're going to laugh, laugh properly—don't half-ass the imitation.
"Sob… ugh… uuugh…"
Of course.
Who wouldn't want to cry?
"……"
"Milord, look…"
Phenex was in the audience seats.
Sitting alone, blankly staring at the stage with empty eyes.
"I tried so hard this time… I really did…"
In Act 1 of the episode featuring Kal Kurso's appearance, and now in Act 2 where she had to fend off the slightly altered Blood Cult forces, Phenex had underperformed back-to-back.
To be precise, her unique trait Indomitable was her shackle.
"It's true. If there's a next time…"
"…Phenex."
"I…"
She turned toward me, bursting into tears.
"Don't… don't discard me."
"……"
"I'll do better, I promise… Next time, I'll definitely win… so…"
She might have been sinking for a very long time, bound by Indomitable's chains.
Into an endless ocean depths.
Into an abyss untouched by the sunlight of stability.
"Phenex."
"Ugh… I… I'm…"
"What do you fear?"
"……"
"Is it recognition you crave? Validation of your worth?"
She hung her head low.
"Because… then you won't discard me."
"……"
"Because… I'll have a place to belong."
I closed my eyes quietly.
"What do you think I expect from you?"
"That's…"
Phenex seemed to desperately rack her brain for an answer.
But she was wrong from the start.
"Nothing. At all."
"…What?"
Phenex's eyes went vacant in an instant.
"I expect nothing. Nothing at all. No… From the beginning, I expect nothing from anyone."
"That's…"
"So be free."
"……!"
"My expectations are merely your fear. So I have none. Exist as yourself."
She stared at me blankly.
"I simply need you, Phenex."
"Milord…"
"You need no reason or need to be my sword. Just be a sword."
I turned to her and declared.
"Never forget that it was this Faust who took you in. No matter what form your sword takes, the one wielding it will be…"
Swish…
I stood and turned away.
"Me."
Phenex's lips trembled up to her nose as she fought back tears.
"Waaaaaah, Milord!"
Naturally, Lucifer—whom I'd brought for exactly this—was between us.
"Please calm down, Phenex. Your snot is smudging… Gah, wait… no, stop…"
"Waaaaaah!"
Instead of me, who needed to stay aloof, Lucifer would soothe her cries.
Lucifer had no choice but to embrace Phenex, who clung desperately, unable to hold back her sobs.
"Haa…"
[The Demon of Revival Phenex's affinity toward Faust increases.]
[Current affinity: ♥♥♡♡♡♡]
Affinity increased.
Because I comforted her?
No.
It rose only after she experienced profound instability and was liberated from it.
This was the fastest way to raise Phenex's affinity—a tricky condition unlike with the other demons. Simply treating her kindly would see it rise far too slowly.
She was always obsessed with proving herself.
But she never realized there was nothing to prove. I made her realize it with a massive shock.
"Waaaaaah… sob…"
Manan had handled Phenex's strike far better than I'd anticipated, so even though he was dead, I offered my faint thanks.
Someone's death.
Someone's heart.
All according to my design.
Muttering to myself as I left the tent alone.
"…All that's left is Romwell."
I had something to collect from him, too.