Chapter 44
Chapter 44
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 44
Chapter Title: The Veteran's Stage - 4
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The Cowardly Emperor was a character you couldn't talk to in the game.
When the player reached his chambers, he was already a cold corpse.
Judging by the dagger placed beside his body, it was clear he'd taken his own life.
He'd chosen suicide before the assassins could get to him.
Across countless playthroughs, I'd never once seen the Cowardly Emperor alive.
"You may enter. But leave your guards and weapons outside for now."
The Cowardly Emperor, alive and kicking, opened the unfair final gate for me.
I was genuinely flustered by the sight of him greeting me with a smile.
"Isn't this a trap?"
"...Probably not."
I remembered there were no additional traps or devices in the inner sanctum.
A paranoid emperor like him wouldn't keep any dangers in his own bedroom.
Forget activating a forgotten trap—he'd die a pathetic death worse than any other.
I set aside my doubts and stepped into the Cowardly Emperor's chambers.
"At first, I was skeptical. I couldn't believe someone else shared my exact fate."
"Are you talking about me?"
"You're not my subject. No need for formalities—speak freely."
"Got it. So, 'same fate' means me?"
"You already know who I mean, don't you? No need for answers."
I realized it was a stupid question and held my tongue.
Looking back, Heinz had been fated to be assassinated, just like the Cowardly Emperor.
Surprisingly, the Cowardly Emperor and I had a lot in common.
"You've realized your question was foolish, haven't you?"
"I hate to admit it, but yeah."
"No need to admit it. Your guards are strong—you'll outlive me by far."
"You're still kicking, aren't you?"
The Cowardly Emperor burst into laughter at my words, as if he couldn't hold it back.
He laughed heartily, yet somehow it looked forlorn.
With his back turned, he dropped a bombshell.
"Regrettably, I'm already a dead man."
"What?"
"As the prophet foretold, I met my end at the hands of assassins. When I opened my eyes again, I found myself trapped in this inexplicable rift in time and space—not the afterlife."
The Cowardly Emperor personally brewed the tea and handed me a cup before sitting at the table.
He took a sip to wet his throat and gave a bitter smile.
"So for you, this place is like the afterlife?"
"I'm not sure, but it's definitely not the world where I once lived."
"Why's that?"
"Just compare our attire. The era I lived in is nothing like yours."
Black dragon robes with long, dangling sleeves and a crown to match.
Clothing closer to ancient China than Europe.
In this medieval European fantasy world, it was an utterly alien style.
I nodded in agreement with the Cowardly Emperor.
"My soul fell into a crack in time and space, trapped here. I can't leave, and my loyal generals lost their selves, reduced to puppets that exist only to repel intruders."
"So you weren't controlling the sentinels?"
"If I could control them, you never would've made it here."
"Why not?"
"Do you think your strategy—using the traps I designed—would've worked?"
"Fair point..."
I'd momentarily forgotten that the Cowardly Emperor was the labyrinth's designer.
If he could control the sentinels, my plan would've failed spectacularly.
What's more, he'd have had them move in groups, coordinating attacks.
The thought of sentinels swarming in packs was terrifying.
Especially if they came at me from all four paths at once—I'd be dead.
"More importantly, how'd you know we used the traps?"
"I don't know the principle, but I can observe everything that happens in the palace. That's how I've been watching your every move."
"Voyeuristic emperor, huh. Tough gig."
"V-Voyeur?! Try being trapped here for centuries! You'd crave news from the outside world too!"
A brutal prison of mind and time.
Locked in the palace for over a century, he'd probably welcome an assassin with open arms.
It was that grueling.
"You never even tried suicide, though."
"Strangely, the urge never came—until now, when I feel it's fine to die."
Apparently, he couldn't kill himself until an outsider reached the inner sanctum.
Made sense—if the Cowardly Emperor died too soon, the sentinels would have no reason to fight to the death.
The devs' scripting had turned into a curse preventing his suicide.
"If I could've, I'd have ended it without hesitation. But before dying, I wanted to talk to you one last time."
"Because I'm such a pushover?"
"That's part of it, but mainly because you knew my traps and mechanisms inside out."
The Cowardly Emperor's eyes sparkled as he placed a cord-bound scroll on the table.
He sliced the cord with a dagger from his sleeve and unrolled it wide—the palace blueprints.
"You knew over 80% of the devices shown here. I want to hear how!"
"Even if I told you..."
"You won't say it was luck, will you?"
I was at a loss for how to explain.
Telling the truth risked who-knows-what, but I had no good excuse to hide it.
Sorry to the friendly Cowardly Emperor, but I'd have to call it a secret.
"I won't make you spill it for nothing. Take all my blueprints—they'll let you trap any building."
"Truth is, I'm a possessor."
Tempted by the enticing reward, I spilled the beans.
About how he was fictional in my old world.
And how that fiction had become my reality.
The Cowardly Emperor started puzzled but soon nodded, accepting it as truth.
He chuckled at my twisted fate, widened his eyes in surprise at parts, and overall seemed delighted by the novel tale.
"I've heard many storytellers in my life, but none with a saga as epic as yours."
"You think I'm making it up?"
"Pure admiration. Your fate is far grander than I imagined."
Amused, the Cowardly Emperor suddenly grabbed an axe from the wall.
I flinched, thinking he'd kill me—but he smashed the floorboards.
Hundreds of scrolls emerged from the splintered wood.
His promised trap blueprints.
"My legacy and treasure. Take them all."
I'd thought the warehouse treasures in his chambers were the real prize.
These hidden blueprints under the floor were the true hoard.
I regretted never thinking to smash the floor after clearing the dungeon.
But on the flip side, it thrilled me that this was a reward earned only through talking to him.
'I said it was fine, but I was a bit salty when Maribel mastered blood magic...'
With the Cowardly Emperor's blueprints in hand, blood magic was forgotten.
Some might question their value, but they'd be wrong.
In the mid-to-late game, cults and monsters swarmed the player's base relentlessly.
We split companions into raiding parties and base defenders, steadily powering up the latter.
Players griped that the devs added base defense to force grinding.
'Losing 80% of your inventory on a failed defense was infuriating...'
We'd even seriously debated turning the Cowardly Emperor's palace into a base.
Its defenses were that solid—and now I could build something comparable.
Especially since my base would be Lunaria, the Nidhogg Cult's hideout.
His legacy was the perfect reward.
Imagining the cultists dying in traps, my lips twitched into a grin.
"You sure about handing over everything?"
"Why hold back from someone who recognizes its worth? Besides, it's my wish."
"Your wish?"
"I couldn't escape my fate, but I hope you overcome yours. And someday, if your tale reaches posterity, I can claim some achievement too, no?"
"...Should I say the Builder Emperor's blueprints saved my life?"
"Builder Emperor?! No, anything but! Call me something else!"
"How about Builder Emperor then?"
"Hm, not bad. Fine—everything I have is yours!"
The Builder Emperor and I clasped hands, sealing the deal.
A new goal was added.
To crush the Nidhogg Cult and survive to spread the Builder Emperor's legacy.
"Go now. I don't want you seeing me die."
The Builder Emperor drew his dagger with resolute eyes.
About to take his life, just like in the original.
I moved to leave, but something clicked.
"Right! The warehouse treasures—are they all mine too?"
"...I let in a greedy merchant, not an assassin."
"You said everything!"
"Tch! Fine—at least take plenty of gold."
Better to end on affectionate banter than bitter goodbyes.
I stuffed my bags with rune fragments and treasures from the warehouse, then piled gold coins in front of the chambers.
Transferring fire from a lantern to the room, I earnestly wished the Builder Emperor rebirth in paradise.
"Thanks."
My one and only friend, who knew my secret.