Chapter 116
Chapter 116
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 116
Chapter Title: Superior-Subordinate Romance (4)
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"In the end, he did send the history books."
Along with a message begging me to forget it all, seven worn-out tomes appeared through the transfer gate. He's weak to booze but doesn't black out completely, huh.
Thinking of His Imperial Majesty periodically drowning in shame brought a wry smile to my face, but for now, I gathered the books and headed to the bookshelves with Mina sis.
"Yeah. The victor's record."
Mina sis flipped through the thick pages made of animal hide as she spoke.
The Pallan Empire had indeed grown by swallowing up the petty states from the western continent to the center, plus the old church territories shoved to the far west. Naturally, the records they'd leave behind would paint things in a favorable light.
And historically speaking, real-time chronicling like the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty was a rare exception. Usually, you had to piece together scattered accounts from here and there to reconstruct the past.
I glanced sideways at sis, who was lazily skimming through the books with her usual drowsy expression, then turned to the one I was holding. The archaic language thinned out as the eras progressed, making it easier to read.
By this point in time, Astraea was just starting to take shape as a city, but instead of a lake, the desert was beginning to spread from that central spot.
As a result, exchanges between the Empire's north and south dwindled. The southern nobles got pushed further south, sparking friction with the elves.
"From this angle, the Empire looks like the root of all evil..."
Back when the lake existed, there was no labyrinth. People thrived around it without water shortages, the Empire's territory wasn't split by desert, the southerners' living space wasn't forced south by sand, and relations with the elves stayed cordial.
Estimates pinned the lake's drying—imbued with the goddess's power—on the Empire's conquest of church lands and expulsion of its people. So maybe the king back then, before it was an empire, had overreached with his ambitions.
Of course, what exactly happened at the dried-up lake site to mix in the demon god's power and birth a labyrinth remained a mystery.
The most promising lead among the surviving records was a tale of war and massacre.
So, had the demon god's influence already been at play, causing that tragedy? Or did the event itself plant the demon god's power far from demonkin lands?
"At least we're getting somewhere."
"Yeah. Lucky we have some clues."
"Let's push a bit harder."
Instead of answering, sis grabbed a slim book, dragged a chair over, and lay down with her head on my thigh. She held the book up to read.
I gently smoothed her pretty golden hair to keep it from tangling, then dove meticulously into my own stack of materials.
**
"This is suspicious."
Svetlana grimaced in the sweltering heat. She couldn't abandon the labyrinth and Pingdduck's situation to return to the Demon God Cult's temple just yet, so she stayed in Astraea. Julius, who rarely stepped out of the cafe, had moved to a spot too elusive to track. And the mental barrier on Pingdduck was rock-solid—she'd risked probing it directly, but got zilch.
It only left her body faintly itchy, reduced to scratching near her chest. Annoying.
For a mere plaything, her connections were carrying her.
Anyway, her intervention attempt meant the magic on Pingdduck had basically exposed her. His shift to a hard-to-detect location screamed preparations.
Given how Julius had ruthlessly culled demonkin he deemed enemies in the past, it was surely something threatening to her. But with her unkillable body, she even looked forward a little to the scenario of her defeat.
A demonkin losing to a human and getting collared? Thrilling.
Imagining him savagely breaking her deathless form while scorning her lifted her mood again. She fired signals wildly at Pingdduck.
The weak response was disappointing, though.
"What to do? Go all-in with something bold?"
The cafe was fortified too, making it tough to snatch Pingdduck directly. Especially that Reimi woman. Her skills were sharp—she'd reverse-engineered Julius's magic tools, blocking Svetlana's approaches and spells in a way distinct from Lebedev's methods.
Time for a different tack, then. Luring her out from outside seemed the most feasible.
Altering her appearance was easy enough; impersonating an acquaintance to draw her out could work.
So, who to mimic? Among the locals, who could make Pingdduck open the door without suspicion?
"...Nobody."
Does that mean even extraction's off the table? Unless Julius underwent some massive change, he'd have preempted Karin heading out alone.
Simple tricks won't cut it.
"Ah, screw it. Give up. Wait till she transfers back to that space next time. Play the long game."
Next up: tracking Julius's movements. She couldn't tolerate a crushing defeat. How would he target her regenerating body against her will? What schemes did he have? All intriguing.
For now, ignore the toy unless heading to the labyrinth. Her familiars' scouting showed two key figures missing from Astraea right now.
Julius Lebedev and Mina Elkart.
Both could borrow goddess power, making them real threats. Needed to pinpoint their activities.
Simple: undetectable meant not in detectable spaces.
Just scour the map her familiars mapped for empty spots.
"It's wide open."
The surface had no inaccessible areas. So, underground. Beneath a massive building.
The big ones here were guild HQs. She sent familiars toward the Adventurer Guild basement—Julius's old haunt.
"Found you."
Couldn't enter, but the passage held footprints: one set narrow-strided and small-footed, the other wide and large-footed, side by side.
Matched Julius and Mina's builds perfectly.
Thorough scan confirmed the room beyond was a library. The Adventurer Guild's archive—chronicling the labyrinth and history together. Brilliant choice.
"Ugh. I'm dying to know too."
But no way to investigate. Returning to the temple might yield labyrinth records, but round trip would take too long.
Pingdduck's event could end by then. Disaster.
Risk versus reward call. Sticking around offered labyrinth and Demon God secrets, prime corruption bait in Pingdduck, and a shot at provoking Julius.
Risks? Getting caught, cult losing its center and reverting to old days?
That's a no-brainer to stay.
Octolis handled duties competently; no catastrophes while she was away.
"Alright. Time to craft a proper divine vessel and settle in."
Last name... high chance Julius was wary now. New name, new look, register as an adventurer.
The labyrinth's Demon God power didn't pull her, nor did the goddess power repel her.
Meant demonkin could enter too.
A space tangled with both powers treated humans and demonkin equally.
Just that humans exploited it since it sat in their territory.
Toppling the Empire for reclamation sounded meaningful, but war—not mere battle—meant overwhelming numbers disadvantage. Near-impossible occupation.
Church hated demonkin guts, and Empire wasn't cozy with church... yet human animosity toward demonkin made alliance pipe dream.
If cult execs raided the labyrinth for gains, they could aim higher...
But most lacked skill even to polymorph as humans. No dice.
"...Guess I'm solo-grinding usable loot and intel again."
Damn Demon God Cult. If not for that revelation as a kid, she'd have roamed free, ruining weak humans and demonkin alike, cackling at their misery.
Gourmet hunts made her salivate.
Too late for regrets now.
Svetlana slipped into an alley, shifted her form, and checked her innocent smile in a glass window.