Chapter 114
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 114
Chapter Title: The Mad Fallen King
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Of course, he had faith in himself.
With his elite squad members and himself as a master-level powerhouse, they were more than capable of claiming victory—even against something as formidable as Anaconda.
That was why they had pressed forward. Yet those grotesque beings were blatantly beyond anything they could have anticipated.
No way.
That thought crossing his mind, he spoke up.
"The mercenary corps massacre from just a little while ago... Don't tell me that was..."
"Hmm... How long do you plan to just stand there watching? My warrior awaits."
Before he could delve deeper into his thoughts, the armored knight who called himself emperor spoke up, prompting the captain to step forward.
"I'm ready..."
"No!!"
It was then.
The vermilion-haired, bob-cut spirit summoner girl named Rebecca—who had been silently watching the situation—rushed out with a face drained pale as death and grabbed the captain's arm.
"Rebecca?"
"N-No! You can't! If you fight here, you'll die!!"
Unlike her usual demeanor, she screamed with her face completely ashen, causing the captain's expression to furrow slightly.
"Don't worry. I'll definitely win this."
"B-But..."
Perhaps because it was so out of character for her, as she stammered uncertainly, Repel approached and pulled her back as if restraining her.
"We follow the captain's orders. Don't make a fuss and fall back, Rebecca."
"Let go! Something feels off!"
She had shed her usual cheerfulness and was desperately trying to stop him, but the other mercenaries couldn't loosen their tension amid the uncertainty.
"As long as you don't interfere, my soldiers won't punish you. I promise."
The emperor gestured leisurely, as if it were all a minor matter.
At the same time, the duel began between Captain Albion Vespada and the massive stone monster knight.
Albion struck first.
True to Rebecca's words, sensing that his opponent was no easy foe, Albion's sword path held no room for carelessness.
Claaang!! clang!!
At a speed like a flash of light, his aura blade—imbued with heavy destructive power—clashed relentlessly against the black-aura-infused stone greatsword, scattering eerie blue sparks.
Their speed gradually increased until even skilled fighters could no longer follow the flow of the battle.
During that time, I silently kept the so-called emperor in my sights.
Archivist.
[Confirmed]
'Have you seen that thing before?'
I'd never encountered anything like it in any of Labyrinthos's four halls.
Or... had I seen something similar?
As I puzzled over it...
[Yes. You clashed with that being multiple times in the Sword Hall.]
'Me? I don't remember... Wait a second. That thing couldn't be...'
[Correct. It is one of the beings you fought alone as a self-imposed master after your defeats.]
[The Mad King of the Fallen Kingdom, Sullivan]
Whoa. The armor threw me off—I didn't recognize him.
Among the many foes, only one matched that build.
If this was the Sullivan I knew...
Then Heracles' captain Albion... No, everyone in this mercenary corps was as good as dead.
He was a madman, after all.
Literally a king who had lost his mind.
I didn't know the full details, but his title alone—"Mad King of the Fallen Kingdom"—spoke volumes.
In my battles with him, I'd always judged him to be utterly unhinged.
And his power was far from mediocre.
From what I remembered, he was at least at the realm beyond Sword Master, wielding his own unique authority and swordsmanship.
A disaster this mercenary corps could never hope to overcome.
Of course, I'd never once spoken directly to him.
That only raised more questions.
What exactly were the criteria for the foes I encountered in Labyrinthos?
How do you explain cases where not just species or lifeforms, but specific individuals appeared?
Not that asking the Archivist would yield any answers.
Clang!! clang!!
After a barrage of strikes, the massive stone monster knight finally staggered back.
No matter the peril, no matter that he was only barely at that level, a Sword Master's prowess was never to be underestimated.
They weren't called strategic weapons for nothing.
Of course, the stone monster knight he faced was also presumed to be master-class.
"My god... It's holding its own against the captain..."
"Idiot. Look closely. The captain's biding his time."
As one squad member muttered in dismay, the elf youth Repel clicked his tongue in rebuke.
"It looks like an even exchange at a glance, but shocks are already stacking up all over that thing's body. It won't last much longer."
He was right.
Krunch.
A crumbling sound echoed from the stone monster knight's left elbow, and when Albion's sword clashed once more, it shattered under the impact.
Thud!!
Even without a direct slash, the lower arm from the elbow down broke off and fell.
...
No scream meant it probably didn't feel pain.
And in a contest of equal strength, such an injury was fatal.
"Hup!!"
Albion surged in an instant, swinging his aura blade straight for what he judged to be the monster's weak point: the neck.
The stone monster knight reflexively raised its arm to block, but with the limb already gone, it was futile flailing.
Booom!!!
Finally, the sharp aura blade struck true at its neck.
Severing its head.
If he kept his word, Albion would have saved the mercenary corps.
But.
"C-Captain!!"
The stone monster knight's headless body began to rise again.
And the shattered head fragments gathered, regenerating.
"What in the..."
"What's this? The fight's not over yet."
The self-proclaimed emperor Sullivan's voice rang out.
The eerie ringing from before was gone, replaced by a voice that was ordinary yet chillingly cold.
At the same time, he casually lifted the visor from his face, revealing a strangely human blue lower jaw.
Was that visor what distorted his voice?
Creak...
A madness-laced smile matched the glow in his helmet, sending chills through everyone.
"What is this...? I won!"
"What are you talking about? My warrior hasn't fallen yet."
"What do you..."
"The condition was until one side is completely dead. My warrior isn't dead yet."
"You cheating bastard!!"
The young elf Repel raged and moved to intervene.
As the monsters near Sullivan stirred in unison, Albion urgently shouted.
"Everyone, stand down!! The terms have changed, but we still have to defeat the enemy."
"Oh?"
"Promise me. No more changing the rules."
"Fine, I promise. I never changed them to begin with. My warrior simply won't die that easily."
"..."
What a petty prick.
It hadn't regenerated on its own.
Unlike Albion, who had expended some energy, the stone monster knight fully revived with power bestowed by Sullivan, recovering its strength entirely.
The once-balanced fight inevitably began to tilt.
Whether Albion realized it or not, endlessly reviving no matter how many times it was "killed" would wear anyone down.
A chilling dread permeated the air.
Some mercenaries had already averted their eyes from the horror, while others bit their lips until blood welled up, fists trembling in fury.
It was brutal.
Albion's body was covered in wounds unlike at the start, soaked in blood.
The stone monster knight didn't bleed, so all that blood was his.
A Sword Master-level powerhouse.
The captain of a grand mercenary corps, once a knight commander himself. Yet against an endlessly resurrecting stone monster knight, fatigue bred openings.
The first round was even. The second, he was pushed back slightly but overcame with experience.
By the third and fourth, everything unraveled.
He couldn't hold out any longer. Albion could barely stand.
As everyone stood helpless before the gruesome sight, Albion mumbled repeatedly like an automated response: that they should stay back because he could handle it.
He'd lost most of his vision, and tinnitus likely drowned out his hearing.
One arm was pulverized, his legs broken and unresponsive.
His proud aura blade no longer manifested; even raw strength was beyond him.
The monster, meanwhile, was unscathed.
"Impressive, truly impressive. I didn't expect this much. Let me change the offer. Join me, and I'll spare you."
"The others' lives... come first."
"That won't do."
He shrugged as if regretful, but his face never lost its manic grin of amusement from start to finish.
And as the stone monster knight's weapon swung toward Albion's defenseless neck...
Whoosh!!
Sudden flames disrupted its motion.
"Stop!!"
Tears streaming down her face, the vermilion-haired bob-cut girl Rebecca burst from the mercenaries' midst.
She threw herself over the collapsed, unable-to-rise Albion and screamed.
"You devil! Stop this right now! This isn't a duel or anything! I know you're the one resurrecting that monster every time it dies!!"
As a spirit summoner, she apparently saw what others couldn't.
No, thinking back, it made perfect sense. She'd warned from the start that something was off and they absolutely shouldn't do it.
The mercenaries looked stunned by Rebecca's sudden intrusion.
The monsters near Sullivan tensed to move, but he lazily raised a hand to halt them.
"I."
Then he spoke, still wearing that mad smile.
"Never permitted you to speak."
Crack!!
Space tore behind him, and a grotesque black lightning spear emerged, hurtling toward her in an instant.
Too fast for anyone to react—they could only watch wide-eyed.
Rebecca sensed death and squeezed her eyes shut.
But the black spear didn't pierce her.
Another intruder had snatched it mid-flight with one hand and casually tossed it aside.
"I was just watching to respect the client's position, but if the client dies, that's a problem. Gotta get paid for the work, after all."
Muttering something odd, the intruder flashed a grin, his sky-blue eyes glinting.
"Captain Albion."
"..."
Unable to even open his eyes, Albion dazedly lifted his head.
"You..."