The Savior of the Beastmen (1)
The day before the entrance ceremony at Lichten Academy, which was also the first day the Labyrinth Tower had opened.
Having entered the second floor of the Labyrinth Tower, Beast King Brigand pressed onward toward a colossal structure that felt strangely familiar for reasons he couldn't quite place.
Boom!
As he swung his fist infused with overwhelming force, a massive explosion erupted.
"Kieeeek!"
The giant scorpions caught in the blast flipped over, twitching violently before going still.
"Hoo. That should do it."
Brigand surveyed the monster corpses strewn around him, most of them shattered beyond recognition by the aftermath of his domineering mana.
"Compared to the monsters scattered across Luddera, these are definitely stronger."
The levels of monsters throughout Luddera ranged from 1 to 10 in beginner zones, climbing higher in advanced areas—but even in the central continent's most treacherous wilds, they topped out in the 50s.
Here, though, the desert beasts Brigand faced were in the 60s, far surpassing that threshold. In real-world terms, they equated to A-rank elite monsters like ogres—fierce and formidable.
"A place guarded by beasts of this caliber. I wonder what trials and tribulations await inside."
Grinning fiercely, Brigand strode toward the pyramid's entrance.
"Shall we see?"
He faced the massive stone wall sealing the pyramid's mouth, clenching one fist and drawing it back.
Fist of Crushing Force
A low rumble filled the air as mana surged around his fist, coalescing into raw destructive power.
"Haaah!"
He thrust forward.
Boom!
Rumble rumble rumble...
The explosion crumbled the stone wall in a shower of debris.
Crunch crunch.
Brigand stepped over the rubble. This inexplicable sense of intimacy, drawing him deeper—what was it? Something in this place called to him, like an instinct buried in his beastman blood, aching with longing.
To uncover its source, he ventured slowly into the pyramid's heart.
The gaping hole in the stone wall let in enough sunlight to make out surroundings near the entrance, but deeper in, absolute darkness swallowed everything—no trace of light.
"Dark in here."
Mana gathered around his eyes. With the beastmen's unique vision amplified by vast power, even pitch blackness became as clear as day.
"This is..."
He spotted a massive wall.
"A mural?"
It bore an enormous wall painting in a flat, stylized human-like form.
"Beautiful."
It was a style Brigand had never encountered, yet he instinctively found it stunning—like a radiant relic of a fallen ancient civilization.
"A lost art form from antiquity, vanished like our own history."
He traced the wall, admiring the artwork. An ancient people advanced enough for such sophisticated art and monumental architecture that modern magic and tech could scarcely replicate. Superior even to known human or elven empires.
At first, he thought it some obscure human or elven ruin. But...
"These figures... not human. Not elves."
The beings depicted had cat ears. Unmistakable—beastmen.
"Beastmen!? Impossible!"
Beastman history had been utterly erased long ago, leaving nothing but scorn from other races. They mocked beastmen as inferior, incapable of even forming a proper centralized nation.
That was why Brigand had united them himself, forging a kingdom to shatter those prejudices.
Yet this mural suggested this pyramid was a legacy of a beastman nation—more glorious, more beautiful than any elven or human realm.
"Is this... our lost history?"
Brigand delved deeper. Towering statues with animal heads lined both sides, dozens strong.
He was certain now. This structure belonged to beastmen.
No human palace, no elven world tree temple could rival its splendor.
To reclaim his people's forgotten past, Brigand entered the pyramid's innermost sanctum—the profoundly deep "King's Chamber."
"This place..."
As he scanned the room—
Rumble rumble rumble...
The chamber shook violently, and the door sealed shut.
You have come, my warrior.
A hologram flickered into existence in midair.
"You are..."