Chapter 218: The South and the East
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 218: The South and the East
The Lancer.
The Beetle.
We even caught the Catcher Shark.
And to top it off, we took down our trickiest enemy, the White Lion.
Including the Dagger Raptor, a majority of the Inter-floor Lords were now dead.
“Though, the Eastern Emperor died too.”
“The Emperor is dead?” Bipa asked.
“Yes. He passed away during the battle. We’ve laid his body to rest inside the fortress.”
“This is a problem. Our mission was to escort him to the 10th floor, after all.”
“We can save him.”
“Me!”
Yernil suddenly shot her hand up.
“You mean we go to the Sanctuary of Souls, find the Emperor’s ossuary, and resurrect him, right?”
Yernil was really getting the hang of this.
We didn’t have a Resurrection Scroll, but that was fine.
Just think about how Rococo, the former cardinal of the Sanfriel Temple, performed resurrections.
Resurrection Scrolls were favored by the priests of Nathaniel, but healing specialists from other fields had slightly different methods of revival.
And we had the Spider Doctor and Bipa right here.
So we could bring him back, as long as we could retrieve his ossuary.
“But, little elf,” Bipa said, “the problem is that we don’t know where the Sanctuary is.”
“Searching the inter-floor villages blindly would take forever.”
“We tried to find out through the Catcher Shark, but we failed, Caleb,” Aimus said.
“I don’t know the Sanctuary’s location either.”
The Spider Doctor was also in the dark, though it seemed he had known the location of the White Lion’s fortress, which was essentially the entire Fairy Forest transplanted.
“I have a good idea, boss,” Back Attack said, raising his hand.
“We can do it like you did when you resurrected me. Find a treasure room, get a scroll, turn the Emperor into an undead, and then just follow him, right?”
“That’s one way, but it’s difficult to use right now.”
That was because the Compass of Greed had already been used.
“I had it track my memories from when I was in Bipa’s party, remember?”
“Ah…”
The compass could only be used once per Labyrinth entry. If we wanted to target a treasure room, we’d have to clear an exit room, leave, and then come back in.
“That’s not a bad option as a last resort, but I’d rather not leave and come back if we can help it. It’s a waste of time.”
Instead, there was another way.
“I think it’s about time for them to arrive. For now, let’s all sit down and get some rest.”
I plopped down on the floor.
I wasn’t faking it; I was genuinely exhausted.
I mean, I was the guy who’d just had his head chopped off.
“Okay!”
Yernil quickly sat down next to me.
“So, who are we waiting for?”
“The Emperor’s party members.”
*
Right after entering the 9.5th floor, on our way to the White Lion’s fortress, Bipa and Mugol had given me a rundown.
General Azure Dragon, General White Tiger, and General Black Tortoise.
The Emperor’s royal guard, adventurers known by those titles, had followed him here.
Naturally, I needed to understand their positions, skills, and spell compositions.
They could have joined the fight against the White Lion at any moment.
If that happened, I’d have to formulate a strategy on the spot, so it was better to know in advance.
General Azure Dragon was a warrior, like Mugol, and General White Tiger was a rogue.
And General Black Tortoise was…
“A wizard, you said?” I asked Bipa again to confirm.
“That’s right. He mastered Wyndham’s shamanism to a considerable level, then came to Sohen to study abroad and even expanded his memory book before taking it back with him.”
A top elite from Wyndham, I see.
“Though he never had a connection with the Deep Layer stairs, so he’s only ever made it to the 10th floor.”
With that much power, they would have come down to the inter-floor village long ago.
And they would have instantly figured out where to find the Emperor.
Anyone could see that the place where a Forest of Death was being cast—with massive black clouds gathering in the sky, torrential rain and blizzards raging, and the roars of fierce tigers and cannons echoing—was the most suspicious location.
“They’re coming!”
Yernil’s ears twitched, and she shot to her feet.
In the distance, the Emperor’s three party members were running toward us, their faces pale.
All three looked a little different than I’d imagined.
I’d pictured them as three grizzled men in their fifties with scraggly beards.
“Your Majestyyyyy!”
First, there was a young Eastern woman from Wyndham. That would be General White Tiger.
“Bipa! Mugol! Where is His Majesty?”
“He has passed.”
“Your Maj…”
The White Tiger clutched the back of her neck and staggered.
After she went to the fortress and confirmed the Emperor’s body, the scene devolved into a sea of tears.
“It is my sin for failing to properly attend to His Majesty!”
The Azure Dragon, a Kappa warrior, drew his sword as if to commit seppuku.
“I shall repay this debt with my life! In the heavens, I will fulfill my duty properly…”
“Calm down.”
The Wyndham super-elite, Hyunmu—who was hard to classify as either a shaman or a wizard—flicked both of them on the crown of their heads.
His race was the most surprising of all: he was a Lizard.
“I never would have guessed that someone who learned Eastern shamanism and studied in Sohen would be a Western Lizard.”
Aimus, intrigued, struck up a conversation.
“Wyndham is a city without discrimination. Unlike Sohen, where they discriminate against Easterners and secretly murder and sell off Fox Spirits.”
The Lizard’s eyes flashed as he spoke.
“Wyndham isn’t like that. It even accepts a Lizard from the far west. That’s why Sohen will soon lose its title as the continent’s central city to Wyndham.”
“…”
“And I’ve also studied what you did in Sohen, wizard,” Hyunmu said to me.
“You once retrieved an ossuary from an inter-floor village’s Sanctuary of Souls to resurrect someone, didn’t you? Your thesis was impressive. If His Majesty met his fate here, wouldn’t his soul be in an ossuary as well?”
“That’s right.”
That’s why I was waiting for you.
I’d heard a little from Bipa about the magic you possess.
“We’re trying to find that Sanctuary. Would you be willing to cast Speak with Dead?” I asked, pointing to the White Lion’s corpse.
*
Quite a few sentries appeared on the way to the Sanctuary.
But there were nine of us, all adventurers at the 10th-floor or Deep Layer level.
We had more than enough people, even with one person dedicated to carrying the Emperor’s body.
After about a three-and-a-half-hour walk, we came upon a small village. In its center, a flag was fluttering.
The flag of the White Lion.
And on one side of the village stood a massive, cathedral-like building. The Sanctuary of Souls.
Click.
As I opened the door and stepped inside, I saw a dwarf startle and jump into a defensive stance.
“Prime Minister Halfling.”
We had finally met the survivor who had been hunkered down in the Sanctuary.
I knew he’d be here.
“We’ve come to rescue you. And to resurrect the Emperor while we’re at it.”
“Th-thank you. So the Emperor really is dead!”
The Halfling’s eyes went wide.
He was one of the leaders of the Southern Artisan Fortress. The other had been the Catcher Shark.
The Halfling Prime Minister had been the leader most opposed to the Consul’s planned Labyrinth Master subjugation campaign.
“What are your thoughts now?”
“…”
The Halfling’s expression darkened.
“Are you still against closing the Labyrinth?”
“To be honest…”
The Halfling bit his lip.
“It’s quite a shock. To think that dwarf fool had such a secret.”
“…”
“He was my companion when we adventured in the Labyrinth in our youth. We were together from the 1st floor. We crossed the line between life and death countless times, and he protected me from innumerable crises.”
The Halfling looked somewhat resentful.
“To think he played me for a fool. He actually possessed power beyond the Deep Layers… An Inter-floor Lord? And on top of that, even this time…”
This time, the dwarf had suggested to the Halfling Prime Minister that they reform their old party. Let’s go down into the Labyrinth and bring back proof that the Spider Doctor is wrong! he’d said.
But once they went down, he backstabbed everyone, killed them, beat the Halfling Prime Minister half to death, and then took him to the Primitive Altar.
“It’s truly unbelievable… that he would do such a thing.”
There was one thing I had to tell the deeply heartbroken Halfling.
I didn’t want to say it, but he deserved to hear it.
“He probably didn’t intend to harm you.”
“Then what?”
“He likely intended to protect you, and only you, from the impending Great Labyrinth Eruption. By turning you into an Inter-floor Lord.”
“…”
“So you don’t have to tarnish the friendship the Catcher Shark built with you during his time as the Dwarf Governor. It seems he was sincere with you.”
The Halfling scowled.
“That’s not what sincerity means, wizard,” he said.
“Did he think I’d be grateful if he saved me alone while our entire Southern Fortress was wiped out? If so, he never knew me at all. That’s just another disappointment.”
“…”
“That foolish dwarf. If I had gained the power of an Inter-floor Lord, the first thing I would have done is kill him.”
He grumbled with theatricality.
“Caleb. From now on, the Southern Dwarf Fortress will cooperate with the Consul to pursue the subjugation of the Labyrinth Master and the complete closure of the Labyrinth.”
“Thank you.”
“For that to happen, you need to get me out of here. I must return to the Southern Fortress and organize an army.”
“Understood. But before that.”
I pointed to the Emperor’s body, slung over Mugol’s shoulder.
“We resurrect him first.”
The ossuaries were gathered together.
The Halfling Prime Minister had smashed the Lancer’s ossuary after receiving my first message, but he had preserved the rest.
That was because the Emperor, the White Lion, the Beetle, and the Catcher Shark had all arrived in a rush, and he didn’t know the order and couldn’t distinguish between their souls.
“I will distinguish them for you.”
The Spider Doctor examined the ossuaries one by one.
He read the souls and sorted them in order.
“The White Lion. The Beetle, the Catcher Shark.”
“…”
“The Emperor.”
When the last ossuary was identified, the two members of Wyndham’s royal party started making a scene again.
“Your Majesty!”
“We are so sorry, Your Majesty!”
“Please, kill us!”
The Kappa and the human woman sobbed and bowed repeatedly before the ossuary, the Lizard sighed, and the Spider Doctor immediately began the resurrection procedure.
“Soul Thread.”
The soul thread attached to the soul within the ossuary and pulled it out.
In an instant, the Spider Doctor inserted the soul into the Emperor’s body and sutured it shut with the thread.
“Tissue Regeneration.”
Bipa restored the damaged tissues in the Emperor’s body.
“Detoxification.”
She also removed any potential debuffs and toxins.
“Your time is not yet over.”
The Spider Doctor cast a healing spell I didn’t recognize.
I’d never even seen it in the game. It was a 9th-tier spell.
“Complete Resurrection.”
The Emperor’s eyes flashed open.
*
“So that’s what happened. I…!”
A slight misunderstanding had occurred, but I just let it be.
“I killed the White Lion!”
The Emperor believed that he himself had killed the White Lion by shoving the Oasis Bottle into its mouth.
“Ooh! As expected of Your Majesty!”
“To see Your Majesty grow so brave, I can now face the former emperor in the afterlife with pride!”
“Ha…! Hahaha!”
The Emperor, delighted, clapped me on the shoulder.
“Caleb. Your incredible strategy and courage have left a deep impression on me. And I have seen the Inter-floor Lords with my own eyes.”
He continued.
“And I heard the plan for the Great Labyrinth Eruption from the White Lion’s own mouth. My personal journey deep into this Labyrinth has proven its worth.”
The Emperor was a civilian, not a Labyrinth adventurer.
The reason he had personally descended into such a dangerous place was that closing the Labyrinth was a grave matter upon which the livelihood of all of Wyndham depended.
Before making such a decision, the Emperor had wanted to see the truth with his own eyes.
This emperor might be a bit of a coward and slightly arrogant, but he also had a strong sense of responsibility.
“Now, everything is crystal clear. Generals. There is no need to descend to the 10th floor. Let us return to Wyndham. I will personally raise an army and subjugate the Labyrinth Master. From this day forward, Wyndham stands with the Consul of Sohen!”
The Emperor and his generals waved to us and departed first.
“Bipa, Mugol.”
I entrusted the Halfling Prime Minister to the two of them.
“We need to head down to the 10th floor.”
“Don’t worry. We’ll clear a 9th-floor exit room and escort the Prime Minister outside,” Bipa replied.
“Besides, there’s still more to be done, isn’t there?”
There was.
First…
‘White Lion.’
I had to destroy his ossuary.
CRASH!
With the sound of shattering glass, the soul was extinguished.
The Labyrinth Master’s right-hand man was now gone forever.
SHATTER!
The Beetle met the same fate.
According to Bipa, he was a monster capable of starting a monster wave all by himself. In any case, I was glad those two had finished him off for good.
Next.
“This one… would you like to do it yourself?”
I handed the Catcher Shark’s ossuary to the Halfling Prime Minister.
“Hmph.”
The Halfling slammed the ossuary onto the floor with all his might, shattering it.
“Don’t look down on us. The dwarves of the Artisan Fortress are a resilient people.”
“…”
“Bipa, Mugol. I am different from the Emperor. I am no civilian. I, too, am an adventurer of some renown,” the Halfling declared.
“Now, let’s clear an exit room and get out of here.”
He led Bipa and Mugol away.
“The crowd is thinning out quickly,” the Spider Doctor remarked.
“Indeed it is.”
Well then, shall we move on to the final piece of business?
“Spider Doctor. Where is your body?”
After all, that’s why he came here.