Chapter 52

“…What the hell happened…?”

Goldie muttered as if entranced, staring at the heap of intruders dumped like trash in the corner.

“Do you really need to ask?”

“…Newbie, you did this?”

“Who else? You think our ancestors crawled out of their graves to lend a hand?”

“I–I can’t believe it. There were two Aura Users. The rest weren’t pushovers either. Even a Blaster would’ve struggled, but you’re saying you, a so-called Novice, did all this…?”

I tossed the heavy staff over to him.

“Go on, line it up with their busted skulls. The pieces’ll fit together like a jigsaw puzzle.”

“Th–that’s impossible…”

“Enough nonsense. If you’re rested, we’re moving. Weren’t you the one dying to get deeper? At least floor six, right?”

He fell silent for a while, then bit down on his lip until blood welled up.

“…Sixth floor. Yeah. At least the sixth floor. Isn’t that right, Scala?”

“Y-yeah. R-right…”

Grinding his teeth like he was swallowing poison, he barked an order.

“Party. Pack your things… we leave now. We’ll rest a night in the floor-five hall town, then at first light… we head for the sixth floor.”

That night.

-I’ll kill him.

-Hank…

-I’ll kill him. I swear I will.

-Hank, can’t you think this through one more time?

-Think it through?

-You saw it yourself. The newbie isn’t just strong—he’s beyond what we expected. He wiped out an entire party that could’ve comfortably hunted around floor eight to ten, maybe higher. Alone. If something goes wrong…

-Shut up! Where’s the proof he did it? For all we know, someone else saved us, and he just woke up first and strutted around, acting like it was all him!

-What would he gain from—

-I told you to shut up! It was your plan, wasn’t it? Don’t you dare back out now!

-Hank…

-Haa… just answer one thing. Let’s say, fine, I admit he might be Blaster-level. If that’s the case… can your trap really kill him?

-…Yes. The standard difficulty of a Monster Summoning Trap is current floor level plus fifteen. So on the sixth floor… that trap is effectively a twenty-first-floor challenge. And from floor twenty-one onward, that’s deep-tier territory. Even a Blaster couldn’t solo that—it’s suicide.

-Too long. Just give me the conclusion.

-…High chance of death.

-That’s enough. We proceed as planned.

-Hank…

-Don’t look at me like that! A guy like him—he can’t be allowed to live! If he does… it makes me too damn pathetic!

-…

-He must’ve laughed at me. Mocked me. Watching me pant and wrestle with orcs while he strolled through like it was nothing—how much must he have sneered at me!?

-…Fine. When we reach the sixth floor, I’ll hand him the old map and put him on point. He’ll walk us straight into the trap. Calm down, Hank.

-And when that bastard dies in there… Illeia goes down with him.

-Goes down…? You mean you’ll force her?

-…Yeah.

-Hank, that’s insane. If she gets out and reports to the temple or the Guild—

-Then I’ll make sure she can’t.

-How?

-The same way I “trained” Selan.

-…!

-Don’t you remember? Selan was just as defiant as Illeia when she was little. Too mouthy for her own good. Then Father told me… ‘Lock them up and start beating. Within ten days, no one holds out. First comes anger and curses. Then they’ll beg for mercy. And finally, when their rage and hate are all burned out, they’ll feel grateful the moment you stop hitting. After that, if you soothe them right, nine out of ten become your plaything.’ That’s what Father said. And exactly as he said, that’s how Selan turned out.

-…Yes. That’s when she changed. From then on, she obeyed every order without question…

-Right. I’ll do the same with Illeia. She’s older now, and I’ve got better “tools.” It won’t even take ten days. A week. A single week in some dark corner of the labyrinth, and I’ll break her spirit worse than Selan’s.

-…And if it still doesn’t work?

-…Then accidents happen in labyrinths all the time.

-…Hank.

-Scala. My lover, my second wife, and my mage. You’ll help me, won’t you?

-…Fine.

-I love you, Scala.

-…I love you too.

After watching the recording artifact Shia had brought me, I let out a dry laugh.

Really? After all that, I’m the one who saved your life—and this is the thanks I get? You should be groveling at my feet, windmilling in the dirt with your forehead on the ground—and yet here you are, plotting nonsense? Locking up Sensible in the labyrinth, of all things?

“Hah… you guys are really hopeless.”

And then, the sixth floor.

I took the map they handed me and, without showing anything on my face, led the party in the direction Sparks was steering us.

“There’s a spring that way. Shall we stop by?”

Sparks flicked a glance at Goldie, then gave a calm nod.

“Yes. Let’s head there.”

I smirked and threw in a jab.

“We’re almost at the sixth-floor hall. Why take a detour to the spring? We could just go straight.”

“…Everyone’s tired. Better safe than sorry, don’t you think?”

“Tired? I’ve been taking down nine out of ten monsters myself. Who’s exactly tired here?”

“…W-we’ve used up a lot of water. In the hall, it costs money. If we refill at the spring, it saves us the expense.”

“Oh, please. Like that costs much. Funny, though—you still want to visit springs after what happened on the fifth floor? If it were me, I wouldn’t want to see one again for a while.”

“…Things like that don’t happen often. We can’t just avoid every spring forever.”

“…Hmm.”

Unable to hold back anymore, Goldie barked at me.

“We’re going to the spring! Leader’s orders—shut it and move!”

Shia tugged on my sleeve from my shoulder.

“Enough, my dear. Keep pushing and they’ll catch on. If they abandon their plan, it’ll only be more trouble for us.”

I had planned to string them along and mock them until we got there, but Shia was right. If they realized I knew, they might drop the plan, and that would be inconvenient.

“Oh, leader’s orders. Right. And I did agree to follow those. Fine—let’s go.”

And so, we reached the spring. I walked inside without hesitation.

Behind me trailed Sensible and Timid. The other three hesitated at the entrance, reluctant to come in even after I’d gone deep inside.

That told me everything I needed to know.

‘As I thought. Only Goldie, Sparks, and Oxhead were told about the trap. Seems Timid isn’t trusted much on their side either.’

Still playing dumb, I crooked my finger at them.

“What’s the holdup? Aren’t you coming in?”

After exchanging a look, the three of them finally followed.

The moment all five party members stepped into the spring chamber—

KWAANG!

A massive boulder slammed down from the ceiling, sealing the entrance shut.

“Wh-what!? What’s happening!?”

Normally, everyone should’ve panicked. But the only one who actually screamed was Timid.

Sensible kept her composure, as usual. The other three, knowing full well what was coming, weren’t surprised at all.

Then—gurgle, cough, SPLASH!

The clear water gushing from the spring suddenly turned crimson, spraying out in torrents of blood.

“B-blood!? The spring’s overflowing with blood—it’s flooding out—whaaa!?”

Grrrrrooooaaann…

Kyeaak! Hhhkkk!

Gururururururu…

Uwoooooooohh!!

Kururururrrrk!

From the lake of blood, countless monsters began to claw their way out.

At the nightmarish sight of endless creatures swarming forth, Timid’s face drained white and she let out a piercing scream.

“Kyaaa! A trap! Monsters!!”

‘Right on schedule. Guess it starts with Sparks, huh?’

Sure enough, using Timid’s scream as the signal, Sparks unleashed the spell she’d prepared—not at the monsters, but straight at me.

“Flaming wall of Jericho! Flame Wall, Third Tier!!”

A towering blaze erupted before her and came roaring my way. I clicked my tongue and dodged easily, only for the wall to twist in a zigzag pattern, cutting me off from the others—separating me and the monsters from Sensible and Timid.

At the same time, Goldie and Oxhead lunged forward, each grabbing one of the girls by the arms and dragging them toward Sparks.

“Illeia! This way!!”

“Wh-what is this, Young Master!? What’s going on!?”

“Shut up and move!!”

“Cheche! Cheche! What’s happening!? What is this!?”

“It’s the Young Master’s order—just move!!”

And waiting for them was Sparks, holding a softly glowing stone.

“Hank! Hurry! Everyone has to touch the stone before it activates!!”

Dragged along in the chaos, Sensible suddenly recognized what it was and her eyes widened.

“A… return stone…?”

The moment she saw it, the clever priestess understood everything.

“Hank, you bastard! You set this up! You lured us here just to abandon Oppa and use the return stone to escape!”

“Shut up! I told you to shut up!!”

“Ahh!”

Pain lanced through her arm under Hank’s crushing grip, but Sensible thrust her free hand into her robe.

Her fingers brushed against something hard.

‘So that’s why… That’s why Oppa gave this to me…!’

She grit her teeth, recalling the conversation from that morning.

A few hours earlier.

“Here.”

As soon as they’d left the fifth-floor hall, the young man had slipped something into her palm. When she glanced down, she tilted her head.

“This is… a mana stone?”

“Not just any stone. It’s enchanted with fire magic.”

“…Ah.”

On closer inspection, she saw faint rune-lines etched into its surface.

“Don’t worry about it being expensive. It’s just something I put together with a stone I picked up here.”

“You… made this? But how? You’re a physical mage. How could you possibly craft an artifact?”

“I’ve got a knack for this kind of thing. Nothing complicated yet, but simple ones like this, sure. Just take it.”

Still confused, she asked again.

“Alright… but why give it to me?”

“For protection.”

“Protection…?”

“Yeah. Hold it and say ‘Kenaz,’ and it’ll fire off a directional blast in front of you. It’s a one-use item, so keep that in mind.”

“…I see. Thank you.”

“Keep it close, don’t tuck it away. You’ll probably need it today. If not—well, better safe than sorry.”

She hadn’t understood then, but now it was clear.

‘He knew this would happen!’

“Let me go, Hank!”

“I’m doing this for you! Why won’t you understand my feelings!?”

“I’d rather die than be with a coward like you!”

“You bitch—!!”

His face twisted with rage. Even in the middle of an emergency, he raised his hand to strike her. But before he could, she pulled out the black stone the young man had given her and shouted with all her strength.

“Kenaz!!”

BOOOOOOM!!

“Kyaaaaaagh!!”

Goldie’s sharp scream brought a smile to my face.

“So, she used it.”

I casually swept aside the wall of fire with my staff, clearing my vision just in time to see the aftermath of the blast: Sensible and Goldie blown in opposite directions.

Goldie tried to scramble back toward her, but was cut off by Sparks’s panicked scream.

“Hank! Too late! Forget it! Five seconds left!!”

Torn between rage and desperation, Goldie clicked his tongue, spat on the ground, and bolted toward Sparks instead.

“Damn you, bitch! You’ll die here with him! I swear it!!”

“Return!!”

A flash of light swallowed Sparks, Goldie, and Oxhead—then they vanished without a trace.

For a moment, Sensible sat in shock, trembling, before scrambling upright and running toward me.

“Oppa!”

“Oh, there’s my Sensible. I told you you’d need it, didn’t I?”

“Now’s not the time for jokes!!”