1023. So you give up?
Encred walked for quite a while again.
I guess I can name it the Black Labyrinth.
Esther said that if any spell is standardized, it can be seen properly. Encred pondered a way to get out of here, and decided that the first step was to clearly view the situation he was currently in.
A spell that cannot be cut.
Just as a typhoon cannot be cut with a sword, and a lake cannot be dried up with a few sword strokes, some spells cannot be cut even by spellslayers.
“Is this what happens when the Lords of the Demon Realm set their minds to digging a trap?”
The word “counterattack” crossed his mind and vanished. For now, he had to get out of here to fight the Demon Realm, and to do whatever it took to those demons.
With that thought in mind, Encred continued walking. The malicious surprise attacks reared their heads sporadically. It would be more accurate to say they appeared just when he was about to forget about them.
It’s your fault!
Rem vented her resentment. Her tone hadn’t changed from when she first appeared until now.
Their tactics never change.
He feigned stepping back, then suddenly brought his axe down vertically. There was a gap in skill even when compared to the real Rem. Encred put force into his left foot, which he had been feigning to step back, and thrust the sword he held in one hand.
It was a thrust followed by a reversal action fast enough to leave a rippling afterimage of the body.
Phew.
The blade turned Rem into a gray mist. He vanished just like that. After walking for quite a while, Audin appeared.
Go to the Lord’s side and repent.
It’s nonsense again.
He lunged at Audin, using his fists as blunt weapons. After parrying and blocking, he struck down while shifting the blade’s direction left and right, gripping the top of the grip tightly with his right hand and the bottom with his left.
This was a technique called a “bending cut,” one of the basic forms of swordsmanship. Usually, one parries the opponent’s long sword and severs the wrist, but now he struck Audin’s fist and sliced his forearm.
With a loud thud, starting from the severed forearm, the illusion mimicking Audin scattered into mist.
Besides him, Sinar appeared, and Ragnar did as well.
Then, the blonde swordsman he had met in front of the Mirror of Darkness, with his shirt collar unbuttoned, blocked his path.
“I stake everything on a meaningless endeavor. Do people call that romance? I would call it foolish. Stand on the winning side. Did you say it was the dream you desire? You just need to shift your direction slightly. Are there only people in this world who absolutely must be saved?”
It is malice. Vivid malice.
The image of the blonde swordsman I had seen back then was vivid in my mind. The image of him I had seen in my childhood overlapped with his present self. On top of this, I recalled the devil’s words delivered earlier through the messenger’s mouth.
“What do you think when you see those who sold their children and killed their parents for their own gain?”
If I don’t like it, I’ll beat you to a pulp. His resolve remained unchanged. Encred raised his sword.
The skill of the blonde swordsman in his memories and the labyrinth was not the same. They were roughly similar, yet there were many gaps.
Above all, the self he was when he first faced the man was different from the self he is now.
In the meantime, he had been inducing changes in density, much like selecting bricks one by one to build a tower. It was a process of redefining the Will he originally possessed.
He didn’t know how long it would take, but he just started. Encred’s innate talent was too wretched to attempt this with an expected end in mind.
That is why he simply did it. The dense Will, built up and woven together, shone brightly. The Will coalesced from the blade and emitted light. The deep blue blade intersected with the golden blade.
As he stepped forward with his right foot and swung his sword in a diagonal slash, his opponent swung his sword with the exact same technique. Their diagonals met. Encred added strength and increased speed using the coalesced and tangled Will.
The blonde was faster than me.
Unless one deviates from this premise, facing an opponent is difficult. One step faster even in a world of silence.
If foul-mouthed Kahal and dwarf Tora achieved this through purity, Enkrid increased his density. He poured out every ounce of the Will of the inexhaustible well called Usuke.
He braced his blade against the opponent’s, then rotated it to leap over to the opposite side of the golden blade held by the blonde swordsman. At the same time, he extended his left foot diagonally forward to the left.
With this, he evaded the enemy’s counterattack while maintaining his line of attack. He blocked the top of the enemy’s sword near the ricasso, while aiming the tip of his own sword at the crown of the opponent’s head.
Bang.
The blonde swordsman pulled his sword back, pushed it away, and dodged it. Encred once again withdrew his sword and slashed in an arc opposite to the one from before.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
That was four times in a row. It was a series of strikes. The fifth and final blade struck the blonde swordsman’s neck.
puck.
The head floating in the air quickly turned into fog.
‘hmm.’
It’s not bad. Is this place built for training?
Escaping aside, I was actually glad to see the malice creeping in one by one amidst the tedious darkness and silence.
There’s probably no one else in the world as crazy as you.
The boatman’s whisper was heard.
He traps them in pitch-black darkness, then attacks by exposing only his malice. People from his memories emerged and resented him. Yet, he discusses training. He is truly a madman.
Encred did not reveal that there were several such madmen in his unit. He knew they would know without him having to say it.
As he continued walking, those who now resented him for their deaths appeared.
Because of you.
The child came out and resented.
“Hey, do you like it just because you’re the only one alive?”
“What about us, who died because of you? Huh? You die too. Please, just die.”
It was Ger and Pit, comrades from my days as a mercenary.
Some memories never fade. These two were one of them. He had set out to save a little kid, and the two had followed him. Behind them, the one who had expressed gratitude to him was crying out.
“It was fun fighting Nol, wasn’t it? Actually, aren’t you making a fuss just because you want to fight more?”
He is a vigilante leader from Saltenberg. His name is Deutsch Pullman.
“Did you really have to pick a fight and fight with the Demon Realm like that? Was that the right thing to do? Thanks to you, everyone living in our city is dead. It’s all your fault. If we had just left them alone, would those bastards in the Demon Realm have bothered us? Huh?”
It was an illusion stirring up memories. Encreed ignored all of those illusions. They were all no different from the barking of a dog with a human face. Then Krang appeared.
“Did you really believe I would look out for you? Really? Oh my, you naive friend.”
It was the same smile as usual, and the same tone of voice as usual. However, the content was different from usual.
* * *
Esther closed her eyes, positioned her knees outward, and sat with her ankles resting on her thighs. It was the posture she used for meditation. Each time she closed and opened her eyes, she spoke of the space where Encred was entangled and what malice was targeting him.
If the Master of the Tower of Magic Books or Astrail had been here, they would have been terrified.
That is just how extraordinary what Esther had just done was.
It was like finding one’s way on an unfamiliar path without a single lamp, let alone a signpost. Was it luck? It was a result achieved through luck, her talent, and the recent shift in her perspective on the world.
The only regret was that this alone was not enough to save Encred.
“So, since that place is similar to another dimension, it’s going to shake your mind, and there will be actual threats, right?”
Rem spoke as if summarizing. It was a combination of the words and sentences Esther had been muttering until now.
“How long can I last?”
Saxony asked. The captain he knew could hold out for three days and nights in such an environment without a hitch.
However, there was a clear limit to enduring without any support, help, or rest. Everyone dies.
“I can’t gauge how much time a day here would be over there.”
Even continents and empires differ in climate, people, and way of life across the Fenhanil Mountains.
The difference between the world where spirits exist and the world where physical bodies exist is even greater. Time is different, and space is different.
Of course, the place the Lord of the Demon Realm has established is a type of labyrinth, so it is not a true alternate dimension, but it was certain that the flow of time was different.
A trickle of blood trickled from Esther’s nose. Sinar took a green cloth from his bosom and wiped it against her face.
“Open the door. I will go in myself, find them, and bring them back. I can hold out.”
Temares stepped forward.
Even if you wander your whole life, it’s fine as long as you find it.
He added: “He is Yongin. He has no limit to his lifespan and survives longer than anyone else even without sleep or food.”
“In that case, I should go myself. Since he will still be wearing his cloak, I just need to find the traces of the spirit. There.”
Sinar spoke, raising her left palm upward and spreading it open. Flames rose above her hand and transformed into the shape of a lizard.
I also have a guide friend in a place called the Spirit Realm or the Other Realm.
“I’m saying I’ll use everything I have if necessary.” What Sinar brought out was a part of a salamander.
Esther caught her breath for a moment and shook her head.
No one can find the person inside. The trapped person has to give the signal first.
Esther thought for a moment. Is that possible? Inside, the world created by the Lord of the Demonic Mirror is expanding and changing in real time. That is why they cannot be found.
Therefore, the person trapped inside must wave their hand toward this side, even for a single moment.
Could one really find just one person amidst such a vast expanse of starlight? It was impossible. The same goes for the trapped person sending any kind of signal.
So you give up?
Encred’s voice was heard. Esther steeled her resolve.
I can’t do that.
While Temares insisted on being let in, Rem and Saxon’s eyes met. Although
they believed he would return, preparing for the possibility that he might not was a habit as natural to them as breathing.
“What are you going to do?”
Rem asked. Saxen stared at him intently. It was a look that asked if an answer was needed.
You devious bastard anyway.
Rem muttered. “I have no intention of leaving. If my captain were to die over something so preposterous…”
Well then, whatever.
I have to dance for those bastards, whether it’s the Demon Realm or the Lord of the Demon Realm. A very exciting dance.
Saxony thought the same.
If, by any chance, it turned out to be the worst possible outcome.
“Just because I am the Lord of the Demon Realm, won’t I die?”
There is no such being in the world. It is a conviction that became even clearer after meeting the Emperor.
If the Emperor and the Devil are on the same level.
He can also kill that Emperor himself.
I regret it.
Sinar opened her mouth. Everyone except Esther turned their gaze toward her.
“If I had known it would turn out like this, I would have shown everything I was hiding.”
I had gathered and obtained quite a lot from what I had gained from the Empire. I had to show that.
The same goes for me.
Rem replied. “Indules and Enobatio—changes in nature and changes in purity.
By combining those two, my magical power has changed. With that, I now have so much to show you when fighting. But
Enkrid disappeared before I could show it all. I was planning to surprise him on the way back.”
“No matter what happens, he will come back. I believe that.”
Krang displayed blind faith. To be honest, he didn’t have the confidence to handle everything that was about to happen without Encred.
That Mad Knight Order would get out of control right away.
But should he bring Lord Cyprus, who had sworn all his oaths to the South and held out, to fight? Just
when things with the Empire seemed to be going well, something like this happened so quickly.
To put it coldly, those bastards of the Lord of the Demon Realm really set a trap.
“Just because of that, are you going to meekly take it? Really? Enki, come out quickly. Everyone here is waiting for you. Don’t make us any more anxious.”
Although he did not reveal his true feelings outwardly, everyone read his mind.
Learvan, too, prayed earnestly to the gods. “Oh Goddess of Fortune, look upon him.”
Esther closed her eyes again, maintaining her meditative posture. She devised a spell to transform into a spirit and traverse worlds. The various
experiences she had gained at the Tower of Magic Books had been of great help. However, if she transitioned into a spirit from here, she would be trapped, and it would be the end.
If things go wrong, do we end up living and dying trapped together for the rest of our lives?
Well, that wouldn’t be bad, but since that man has big dreams he wants to achieve, it would be the right thing to do to support them for now.
So Esther waited. Waiting for something he would show her, having endured inside without dying.
