Chapter 119
Chapter 119
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 119
Chapter Title: Affection Between Superior and Subordinate (7)
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"Preparations are complete."
"Yeah. Whether it'll work or not is up to the real fight now."
"I'm still feeling a bit uneasy, though."
After spending some time alone to recharge, I was back in a state brimming with energy for the first time in ages.
Human... Recharging really is precious. After wrapping up things with Svetlana and sending Karin back, I finally got a bit of rest.
I'd already devised a plan to capture Svetlana and made all the preparations, but the two key people who would make it possible hadn't arrived yet.
Reni, the mage under Yumin's employ, and Ermina, who I needed for a direct confrontation since she held an advantage against demons.
I'd contacted both and arranged for them to come, but for some reason, Ermina—who was usually so diligent—wasn't here yet.
Something must have come up. If it had, Reni would've flown straight to me to fetch me.
I finished gearing up to head out and waited a moment, when Ermina appeared with a sour expression and Reni looking nervous beside her.
This feels like we can't just charge in as is.
"Ermina."
"Y-Yes? Oh, yes!"
"Care to talk for a sec?"
The labyrinth was a place where I'd be entrusting my back to others, so any weird conflicts or hesitations could spell trouble.
And Ermina wasn't the type to show displeasure like that often, so I needed to find out what was up.
"Ermina."
"Y-Yes."
"You know why I wanted to talk, right?"
"Is it... that obvious?"
"Yeah. You usually go around with such a sweet smile."
In the cafe with just the two of us, Ermina covered her flushed face and spoke in a tiny voice.
"...That's not fair."
"Huh?"
"I'm helping you, Julius, and I want to help, and I think I can... but you never tell me anything."
"What do you mean?"
"I wanted to know if things improved between you and Yumin. I'm... involved in that too, after all."
"Ah."
She's not entirely wrong. Most of the trouble Yumin caused at the academy involved Ermina, so if I'd struck some kind of deal with him, it would've been better to give her a heads-up.
I figured she had a right to know anything involving Yumin, so I explained everything—from the abilities needed for Karin's sake to our preparations for capturing Svetlana.
"Are you okay with that, Julius?"
"With what?"
"I know you go through a lot normally, and this doesn't even really involve you personally, but you're seeing his face again because of it..."
"Not ideal. I do wonder if it has to be this way. But no choice."
"What do you mean, no choice?"
"Feels like my fate's tied to the demons, no matter what."
My status window kept popping up too, so it seemed the only way out was smashing the Demon God Cult completely.
In that case, finishing the job—completing my task—had to come first.
"Anyway, I'll set personal feelings aside for now."
"So you're still going?"
"Nah, I'm not. Well, I might cross paths with others occasionally, but that's it."
"I see..."
"So don't overthink it or worry. It's just an unavoidable deal."
"...If something comes up later, will you tell me too?"
"Of course."
Though I doubt I'd ever need to reconcile even slightly with a guy like Christoph.
I swallowed those last words and smiled. Ermina's anxious expression softened a bit.
There was more to say, but since we were about to head out, I pulled myself together and stepped outside.
Everyone eyed us curiously, wondering what we'd talked about, but I said nothing and we headed to the labyrinth.
Reni seemed to have some primal fear of the labyrinth, trembling a little on entry, but once inside, she perked up instead.
Probably thinking it wasn't as bad as expected. Half right, half wrong. The early parts aren't that impressive.
Her personal impressions didn't matter much. We pushed downward steadily. Combat would be me up front, Mina in support.
Reni and Ermina, who'd braced for battle, ended up looking a bit deflated at how smoothly things went.
In a total hour and a half—with the extra people slowing us a tad—we reached the layer where we'd been stuck before.
"It's really cleared through."
"The labyrinth's mysteries."
"Exactly. The interior... changed a bit? It's different from last time. The walls are a different color too."
"A bit redder."
After a quick discussion with Mina, we entered the layer. We cleared the surroundings fast, secured the area, then brought the other three in.
"How's the bracelet?"
"No reaction."
"Good. Let's clear this quick and head down again."
"Yes."
"This is insanely fast."
"We're not here for the labyrinth's drops anyway."
Reni looked around in wonder. I swatted incoming bug-type monsters, bursting them as I cleared the path.
This layer felt like a jungle. Normally, this climate would have floods, but Astraea's deserts made such forests rare.
Breathing in the phytoncide-scented forest air for the first time in a while, Karin tapped my back silently.
Svetlana's interference had limits inside the labyrinth, so we'd agreed to minimize info leaks while moving.
I slowly turned toward the arrow Karin finger-drew on my back. The clear daytime sky shifted to night, turning the atmosphere dim and murky.
Again.
Even a little deeper now triggered it instantly. In a standard progression, mid-to-late layers would make descending one floor a nightmare.
By game standards, my specs were near endgame now, so this pace wouldn't be possible normally.
Anyway, I signaled Ermina quietly to prep light magic, gripped my sword hilt with my left hand, ready to draw in one motion.
Through chats with Mina, we'd fully infused the goddess's power into Karin's bracelet, so adding the Demon God's power properly should trigger the same reaction as before.
Reni marked targets on Karin, Ermina handled debuffs or curses, Mina scouted and intercepted, and I blocked and subdued frontal assaults.
Obviously targeting Karin, we formed up around her and lured them in.
The moment Mina and I flinched, dirt hands erupted from the ground, lunging for Karin. Ermina threw up a light barrier, Mina bound the arms with manipulated trees, and I sliced the wrists clean off.
The seamless teamwork without a word was satisfying, but the monsters now swarmed openly, leaving zero room for complacency.
Our block-and-slash combos were clean, processing threats before they could touch Karin, but the endless assaults despite that screamed for another solution.
I slashed two hands closing in, leaped forward to sever one rising from the dirt, then jumped high to survey the forest.
No monsters on the path behind us. Flanks had hands active around Karin, but no sign of some greater force pulling strings.
We'd followed Karin's direction, so something lay ahead. I maxed my vision with mana, gathered sword aura infused with goddess power to blast the front trees away.
A blinding flash—even I winced—erupted ahead, vaporizing the dark trees and rising hands.
At the end of the cleared path loomed a skull atop an altar, vaguely human-like but not—its purple-stained bones pulsed with ominous black aura, and energy dripping from below birthed more hands.
"Ermina!"
Bracing for landing, I shouted. She got it instantly, unleashing a purifying beam that engulfed everything but the skull in light.
I landed with a thud, sighed in relief, and offered Karin my hand. Grasping it, we approached the skull.
'Believe me. I'll help you this time.'
I mouthed silently. Karin nodded, extending her bracelet hand toward the skull.
Black chains like before lashed out, seizing her. She didn't resist, vanishing as it pulled her in.
"Reni."
"Got it. No mistakes!"
If our guess was right, Svetlana would come running. That dopamine-crazed woman was convinced she couldn't die.
Leaving sweat-drenched Reni behind from tension, I slowly channeled power into the holy sword in my left hand.