Chapter 109: The Demon from the Labyrinth
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 109: The Demon from the Labyrinth
About two weeks ago.
Maria visited Sohen and snuck into the dormitory in the middle of the night.
The Labyrinth Eruption incident twelve years ago had killed an enormous number of wizards, leaving the dormitory with more empty rooms than students.
There was a security office at the entrance, but the guard was fast asleep, leaning back in his chair.
“Khuooo…”
Listening to his loud snores, Maria slowly crossed the lobby.
Even if the guard had seen her, he probably wouldn't have stopped her.
Why?
Because in the nearly empty dormitory, it was common for students to bring their lovers or friends over to spend the night. The elf archer in the genius wizard’s party in Room 308, for instance.
Maria reached her destination, the door to Teramond’s room, 301, with surprising ease. She pulled out the dagger she had hidden in her clothes and hesitated for a long time.
If she knocked, Teramond would come out.
And then I’ll stab him to death.
She had come here with firm resolve.
She felt that if she didn't kill him, she wouldn't be able to move on with her life.
It had to end here.
But despite her determination, her nature was surprisingly soft, making it difficult to act.
That was when she met the demon.
“You’ll never do it if you keep hesitating like that.”
At the end of the hall. In a blind spot untouched by the moonlight filtering through the window.
The silhouette of a man emerged from the darkness, dressed in a wizard’s suit like the professors.
He was tall with broad shoulders.
“Shall I help you?”
But as he stepped into the moonlight, an overwhelming pressure and grotesque horror made Maria shrink back.
What sat on his shoulders was not a human head, but a lion’s.
A magnificent white mane flowed richly down to his chest.
“First of all, that door is magically secured, so you can’t open it. You need to use magic to unlock it.”
The lion-headed man strode toward Maria and held out his palm.
“I’ll give you a gift.”
In his palm was a gently shimmering vortex.
The White Lion reached into it with his thumb and forefinger and plucked something out.
It was a parchment scroll.
[Unlock Scroll]
“And after you kill him, you’ll need to clean up.”
The White Lion pulled out several more scrolls in quick succession.
[Corpse Explosion Scroll]
[Object Memory Wipe Scroll]
[Object Memory Wipe Scroll]
[Object Memory Wipe Scroll]
[Object Memory Wipe Scroll]
“Erase the memories along the path you walked, from the dormitory entrance to here. If you erase the memories all the way to the main street, you’ll be safe.”
“Who…”
Maria felt her breath catch in her throat.
“Who are you…?”
“I’m a professor at the university. One who dislikes naughty children. Just like you, isn’t it? You dislike naughty children too, right?”
“…”
“You want to kill the student in this room, don’t you? Go on, do it!”
The corners of the lion’s mouth curled into a cunning smile.
“Go on and kill him. I’m here, so leave all the cleanup to me. Right, you’ll probably need this too.”
The White Lion produced another scroll.
[Bleaching Scroll]
“It’s a type of practical magic. It will remove all the blood from your clothes. And, hmm. You’ll need this as well.”
[Silent Night Scroll]
“It’s a spell that blocks all noise within a certain area. No matter how you torture that student inside, no one will hear his screams.”
Pressing the bundle of scrolls into her hands, the White Lion gently stroked Maria’s hair.
“It’s only hard to start. Once you do it, you’ll find it’s easy.”
If Caleb had been bizarrely rational when escaping the club, this White Lion was chaos and madness incarnate.
This was not human.
Maria knew it instinctively.
As a country girl, Maria had seen beastfolk only a handful of times, so at first, she wondered if this man was one of them, but she knew that wasn’t it.
This was a monster.
Or something that could be called a demon.
“I… I can’t do it… I’m sorry…”
“Hmm.”
Seeing Maria’s fear, the White Lion bent down to meet her gaze kindly.
He didn’t press her.
“Yes. It’s alright, child. I understand.”
“…”
“Shall I take you home?”
“N-no. I checked into… an inn…”
“Where is it?”
“The Union Inn No. 2…”
“Hold my hand tight.”
The White Lion grasped Maria’s hand, and she was sucked into the vortex in his palm.
When she came to her senses, she was in her inn room.
*
“After that, he came to the inn a few times. In the middle of the night. At first, I thought he was a monster, but as time went on, he seemed more like a professor.”
“…”
“He said he didn’t like the mages who were former slaves either, and that he would help me if I decided to do something. But he said if I was going to do it, I had to kill them all… And after thinking about it for about a week, I…”
“You murdered Teramond.”
It was a good thing I got Maria out of there and talked to her first.
I’d asked her about the White Lion on the off chance she knew something, but this was a bigger haul than I’d expected.
He pulls scrolls out of his palm?
Like pulling tissues from a box?
Seriously, what the hell? Isn't that completely broken?
And he teleported Maria to her inn?
The Union Inn No. 2 was near the Labyrinth Union, which was nowhere near the dormitory.
Could Bipa’s Chakbyeokingwang [Wall-Piercing Light] send someone that far?
Is it a gate?
The thing in the White Lion’s palm.
Maybe.
After all, wasn't the elevator an artificial ‘gate’ based on the structure of an exit room’s exit gate?
If humans could build one, it was only logical to assume a monster from the Labyrinth could as well.
“Um…”
Maria spoke hesitantly.
“What… what should I do now?”
She fiddled with a vial of poison in her palm.
“First, give me that poison and all the Corpse Explosion Scrolls you have on you.”
I confiscated fifteen scrolls and the poison from her.
“I’ll tell the Public Security Headquarters that you calmed down after leaving Sohen and surrendered peacefully. So it can be taken into consideration.”
“Arrested…”
Maria’s face fell.
What?
Were you seriously planning on just going home?
Her circumstances were certainly tragic, but I couldn't just let go of an attempted mass-bomber.
Besides, even if I did let her go, she wouldn't get far before being caught.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
I could already hear the footsteps of constables running toward the city gate just around the corner.
Huh?
No.
I need to correct that.
Those weren't the footsteps of constables, and they weren't running toward the gate.
CRASH!
Mugol leaped over the city wall, a pale-faced Bipa tucked under his right arm.
He had used a skill to scale the wall.
“Hmm.”
Mugol landed and looked back and forth between me and Maria. I showed him that I had all of Maria’s Corpse Explosion Scrolls and poison in my hands.
“You really handled it alone.”
“I just talked some sense into her.”
“By summoning all these clouds and wearing a magic coat?”
He just doesn't get that this is my way of communicating.
“Caleb.”
Bipa slipped out from under Mugol’s arm and straightened her disheveled hair.
The Deep Layer Taoist from Wyndham seemed quite intrigued by the scene before her.
“I never knew you well, but you’ve changed so much from what I remember.”
“…”
“Did Hyedam do something to you?”
“I wonder.”
I honestly didn't know myself.
“In any case, we have no intention of harming you as long as you’re not a possessor. Hyedam would be happy to see you living a healthy, wonderful life.”
“…”
“But that’s only on the condition that you keep your promise, Caleb. Where is the elevator?”
Things never go as planned with Deep Layer adventurers.
When I tried to negotiate with Krom, he just flipped the table and lopped off Enver’s head right in front of me.
And these two were no different.
My original plan was to trade the elevator's location for information about Hyedam and the inter-floor village…
So it’s come to this.
It couldn't be helped.
Right now, I was far more worried about Dalstream. I had no idea what the White Lion was planning while the attention of the Public Security Headquarters and the Magic University was focused on the bombing he’d instigated through Maria.
I considered asking these two to help me in case a fight with the White Lion broke out, but they would obviously refuse, right?
“I’ll tell you.”
Then go to Ingelam’s hideout, take over the elevator, and be my insurance.
“Do you know the Mist Cliffs, about five kilometers northwest of here?”
“Is it there?”
“Probably.”
“Weren’t you certain?”
“I’m almost certain.”
“Hmm.”
The Mist Cliffs was a magical zone that scrambled the senses of anyone who entered.
According to the game’s lore, one of the gods devoured by the Labyrinth in ancient times had originally built a temple there.
“For now.”
And both in the game and here, it was a very remote place.
“It’s certainly a difficult place for anyone to approach.”
There were no monsters, but once you entered, you were very likely to get lost. The terrain was rough, and it was full of dangerous poisonous plants.
That’s why it was the number one candidate on my list.
Building an elevator as an individual would have taken a very long time, and it needed to remain hidden from the outside world during construction.
*
At the same time the large-scale explosion at the Blackdog Club was about to occur.
“Heehee!”
A cozy scene was unfolding in the underground archives of the Public Security Headquarters.
Yernil felt at ease after meeting the elderly elf, who was old enough to be an elder.
“I want to read this one next.”
It looked like a grandfather and granddaughter reading a book side by side.
Though in reality, it was more like a great-great-great-great-granddaughter.
“What kind of document is it?”
Dalstream, who also seemed to enjoy the role, had dropped his business-like tone and adopted the kind and gentle expression of an elder speaking to a young elf.
“This one.”
[Investigation into ‘Henry,’ the Target of the Labyrinth Eruption Incident. Based on Interviews with Surviving Acquaintances and Financial Activity.
-This document has been classified as Level 2 Security due to the potential exposure of personal information and privacy of many citizens-]
“If it’s about Henry, there will likely be many proper nouns that you’ll find difficult to understand.”
But Dalstream was someone who knew all of them.
“Let’s look at it together.”
The benevolent professor had even set aside his own research for a moment to comfort Yernil.
“Okay!”
As Yernil opened the first page of the report, her ears suddenly twitched.
“What is it?”
“Upstairs… something’s…”
But the underground archives were well soundproofed.
So much so that it was difficult to grasp the exact situation.
“It just seems a little noisy.”
“Don’t you worry about it.”
The professor opened the report.
“I’ll teach you, so study well and tell Caleb all about it.”
“Okay!”
*
For the past three years, an adventurer had been living alone in the southern slums of Sohen. He was a student at the Magic University and an avid adventurer who delved into the Labyrinth every two weeks.
However, he was not particularly skilled, and in three years, the farthest he had reached was merely the 2nd floor.
Evidence that he was a possessor has been found in several places. For example, the following testimonies from his neighbors can be referenced.
[He was looking for the city hall and started walking toward the plaza. But the city hall was moved 50 years ago, wasn’t it? It’s strange enough that someone so young would know the old location, but to just head there without a second thought… (Priest Nathaniel Belnier)]
[We were drinking at a pub, and after he got drunk, he said it was actually his first time drinking. And he’s in his late twenties. (Former party member, Rogue Jenny)]
[He felt, how should I put it, mentally immature. For his actual age, I mean. The way he talked, how he’d get excited easily or cry often. (Ronan, who lived next door)]
[Every time he entered the Labyrinth, he would tremble with fear, saying he wasn’t cut out for this kind of work. He even said he missed his mom once. (Former party member, Fighter Cleo)]
According to the data obtained by the Public Security Headquarters, the name of the soul that entered Henry’s body was Thomas.
He was a middle school student from a country called America.
He was 14 years old at the time of possession.
But despite his young age, he was so responsible that he delved into the Labyrinth every two weeks without fail for three years.
Except for his final two weeks.
This document focuses on Henry’s activities during those last two weeks.