Chapter 136
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 136
Chapter Title: The Abyss Flower Emerges
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2nd Squad! Sweep them away!
Nyaaat!
The cat librarians swung massive brooms at the oncoming horde of skeletons.
The low-grade monsters known as skeletons shattered easily upon contact with the mana-infused brooms.
The first monsters they encountered upon entering the underground archive were skeletons.
Mindless beasts that attacked out of jealousy toward any living being.
Even these sluggish creatures demanded caution.
2nd Squad, assist 1st Squad and advance! 3rd Squad, follow behind and guard the rear!
Nyaaat!
Under the command of Head Librarian Myoil, the librarians moved with perfect coordination.
The fiercest battle raged at the front of 1st Squads formation.
The librarians steadily eliminated skeletons with bookmark swords.
And leading them was...
Izarkhel Style
First Form: Light Slash
The moment Bellas right foot shot forward, a flash of light streaked in a straight line.
It pierced through the darkness.
Skeletons along that line crumbled away pathetically.
The overwhelming power left the surrounding librarians jaws dropping.
Bella kicked aside the bone fragments littering the floor and asked,
How much farther now?
Huh? Y-Yes, sir! Just one more block ahead is the section with curse-related books.
Good. Lets keep pushing forward like this.
With the silver-haired lady Bella at the forefront, 1st Squads librarians followed close behind.
As expected, the long-abandoned underground archive teemed with monsters.
Fortunately, they were only skeletons.
Judging by their forms, they seemed to be monsters whose corpses had skeletonized after death.
However, their numbers were far from negligible.
...If all these guys had been alive, it wouldve been a nightmare.
The navy-blue cat and 1st Squad leader, Myoru, muttered.
They had felled a great many skeletons just to reach this point, yet more kept crawling endlessly from the darkness.
Skeletons outnumbered the books by far.
In other words, it was proof that countless monsters had once lived here.
Did they turn on each other and eat one another when food ran out?
Could be...
Bella looked around.
The underground archive, untouched by humans for ages, had turned into a dungeon.
But it wasnt a living dungeon.
It was a dead one.
A dungeon is its own ecosystem.
An organic environment where living monsters influence one another.
In that sense, this place was utterly divorced from natures order.
The deeper they went, the thicker the scent of death grew.
Nothing lived here.
Between the massive bookshelves lay only heavy silence and scattered bone fragments.
Seeing it, Bella thought she understood what had happened.
Her blood told her so.
Something was here.
Milady.
At that moment, a familiar voice called from ahead.
From the unfathomable darkness.
Without a sound, Bellas guard knight, Blanche, appeared.
Having scouted ahead, she reported,
We found it.
Just those words, but no one asked what.
Blanches expression was too grave for that.
The place she led Bella and the librarians to was by a bookshelf.
...An egg?
The librarians tilted their heads at the sight of it.
A massive egg, at least ten meters across.
The first unfamiliar object theyd found amid the books and bones in the underground archive.
Oddly enough, the egg was embedded in a half-shattered bookshelf.
Only upon approaching closer could they discern its true nature.
This... its made of bones?
It was hard to describe.
A lump of fused bones, perhaps?
Or a bone sculpture?
But Bella instinctively knew what it was.
From the moment she saw the mysterious egg, an unpleasant sensation stirred deep in her chest.
The librarians began examining the giant bone mass.
They poked it with their brooms, but got no reaction.
Squad leader. Take a look at this.
Hm?
One librarian illuminated the bones with magic.
Something etched on the surface came into view.
Hmm... Hard to make out. What is it?
No. Its the Abyss Flower.
What?
All eyes, including Myorus, turned to Bella.
It was all too familiar to her of the Izarkhel family, but novel to the others.
So she explained slowly.
Its the mark all demons bear. The demons mole, or Abyss Flower...
Then this is...?
Yes. A demon.
The librarians gulped.
Unlike monsters, demons were beings of a higher order.
Even well-trained librarians would struggle against one.
Bella reassured them.
Dont worry. It doesnt seem to be a high-ranking demon.
A demons hierarchy was evident from its Abyss Flower.
The darker and more vivid the color, the higher the rank.
Fortunately, this one bore an achromatic flower.
In that case...
Bella adjusted her grip on Laevateinn.
She channeled light mana and thrust hard at the bones.
Crack.
But not a single scratch marred the solid surface.
Confirming that, Bella said,
Hmm... It seems to be in hibernation. Or maybe a coma-like state... Either way, no reaction to light mana, so we can relax for now.
If Lady Bella says so, thats a relief. Then well quickly search for the books.
Yes, please do.
At Myorus order, the librarians split into two groups: those hunting books and those blocking skeleton hordes.
It was the disciplined display of the Great Wall of Truths elite.
Hoo...
Bella crouched in place for a moment.
Having blazed through to this point, fatigue showed despite herself.
Milady. Are you all right?
Looking up, Blanche gazed down with worry.
She too had expended much stamina scouting ahead.
Yet she worried for Bella first.
Bella smiled leisurely.
Hehe... Of course. This is nothing.
Is that so...?
Truth be told, it wasnt nothing.
Just skeletons, but their numbers had been overwhelming.
Mana consumption exceeded expectations.
But she couldnt show it in front of Blanche.
Recon is done now. Ill carry you back.
Thats reassuring. Does that mean I just have to hitch a ride on our Blanche?
Piggyback?
No. Hehe... Next time.
There is no next time.
Youre no fun.
After that brief warm exchange, Blanche eyed the hibernating demon.
But Ive never seen a demon like this.
There are many kinds of demons. Not all have intelligence or take human form.
Is that right?
Yes. Those that do are rare. Most demons are beast-like, driven by instinct. Think about itsome monsters have intelligence too, right?
Oh, come to think of it...
Goblins and orcs might lack wit, but they wield tools and express emotions like humans.
Stabbing at the demon with her sword, Bella continued,
A demon with an achromatic hierarchy like this one probably lacks not just intelligence, but any complex desires. At best, simple ones. Appetite, sleepbasic stuff, nothing more.
I see...
Thats why demons devour each other to climb ranks. Higher ranks elevate their very existence, letting them crave more complex things.
Demons live on desire, eternally tormented by insatiable hunger.
Freeing them from that pain, granting them restit was akin to the Izarkhel familys mission.
Is this the Abyss Flower?
Yes, it is.
It feels unsettling...
Hehe... As expected of our Blanche. Youve got talent if you sense that much.
Pardon?
Ordinary folk would vomit or get migraines just looking at it. Worse, nightmares that could kill.
At that, Blanche swiftly pulled Bella away from the demon.
Hehehe... Im used to it, so its fine.
Still...
Its our family trait. Of everyone here, Im the most resistant to demons...
No. Wait a second...
Milady...?
Blanche. Why is this flower here too?
Pardon? What do you mean?
Stay here a moment.
Bella dashed to the opposite side.
Then she cast light magic.
But this time, widening the illumination range.
Ah...
A sigh escaped Bella upon finally spotting it.
She stood where theyd found the demons mark, the Abyss Flower.
Just a few steps back, reflected in the light, gleamed achromatic flowers.
Yes. Flowers. Plural.
Milady?! Are you okay?
She heard Blanche but couldnt respond.
Seeing the Abyss Flowers blooming everywhere, Bella realized.
Shed made a grave mistake.
Dread washed over her.
The underground archive where everything was dead.
This demonno, these demonswere long dead too.
Devoured by something, leaving only bones.
Then this is... a cocoon?
That was when it happened.
We found the books!
A searching librarian shouted.
Oh, great! Good work!
These are the curse books you wanted! Well take them down right away.
The moment the librarian pulled books from the shelf.
Crack.
Something shattered.
Bella turned...
Whoosh.
A crack formed in the demons cocoon, unyielding even to her sword.
Flames erupted from the fissure.
Scorching heat reached even Bella.
The bones encasing it like an egg began crumbling.
Rustle...
Flames danced like butterflies in the air.
The demons bones collapsed limply, revealing a nude woman within.
The woman rose calmly amid the blaze and met Bellas eyes.
In that instant, Bella saw it clearly.
The scarlet flower blooming on the womans forehead.