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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: The Labyrinth
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"—Just what were you thinking, coming out to the Labyrinth?"
The Labyrinth.
From traps to monsters.
This inhuman, demonic realm, teeming with countless dangers, was a familiar place to the residents of Odobaekryeong.
But it was also an infinitely alien one.
Infiltrating the Labyrinth was something only Crawlers did. So much so that even slaves would rather sign away their freedom for life than enter the Labyrinth.
That was why.
Why Parsha, sprinting through the Labyrinth with Dion and Arsha tucked under each arm, spoke with such a cold expression.
But the reply she received was brazen.
"To escape, obviously?"
"Is that what you have to say after claiming you'd clear a path, only to lead us into the Labyrinth?"
"Parsha, is that any way to speak to the young master you serve?"
"This is no time to be concerned with my tone."
A testament to how furious she was.
From his position under Parsha's arm, Dion spoke leisurely as she snapped sharply at Arsha.
"What choice did we have? Running back to Soma Castle would've only made the situation worse."
He wasn't wrong.
They had only managed to escape the Purgatorium because Sirgal had tried to deal with Dion using only his own power.
If they had fled to Soma Castle and caused a commotion, they would have been quickly subdued by other members of the Alcan bloodline or their vassals.
Continuing the struggle in the Purgatorium would have ended the same way.
In fact, it was a stroke of luck that Dion had managed to break through the soldiers at all.
The proof was in Dion's appearance, covered in blood and wounds.
"So you entered the jaws of death to avoid a disadvantage?"
"It's better than fighting and dying right there, isn't it?"
"You mean becoming monster fodder like an idiot, or turning into a mutant creature?"
Despite it all, Parsha couldn't help but spit out her venomous words.
All manner of monsters.
Deadly traps.
An infinitely sprawling maze.
And above all, the tainted mana.
The Labyrinth, a mixture of all these things, was an inhuman, demonic realm that thoroughly rejected the survival of intelligent species.
Wandering the Labyrinth without so much as food, let alone purified water, was a suicidal act.
Even if they managed to shake off Sirgal's pursuit, it was obvious they would either die or degenerate into monsters from mana contamination.
"Don't worry, that won't happen."
"And on what grounds do you make such a guarantee?"
But even at Parsha's pointed question, Dion remained unfazed.
Just as he had brushed off the Voice's nagging, he simply wore a meaningful smile.
"Because I have a plan."
***
After Dion's party fled, Sirgal entered the Labyrinth with his soldiers without a moment's hesitation.
But his swift pursuit was in vain; he ultimately lost track of them.
The Labyrinth's complex structure had hindered the chase.
That was why Sirgal ended up bellowing.
"You still haven't found them?!"
"There is no need to be anxious. You know as well as I that they have nowhere to go."
"What if they get complacent and run into a wandering caravan or some Crawlers and get help?!"
"That is impossible."
The Black Knight flatly denied the possibility.
Caravans were merchants who traveled between territories with closed gates, so they had no reason to come to Soma Castle, where the gate was open.
And since unlicensed Labyrinth exploration was forbidden near the castle, they were unlikely to run into Crawlers by chance, especially with the number of guards he had posted.
It was absolutely impossible for Dion's party to escape elsewhere or sneak back into Soma Castle.
"Enough with the chatter, just find them already!"
It wasn't as if Sirgal was unaware of these facts.
Was it because of his anger?
His impatience?
Or perhaps because of the fear of the tainted mana seeping into his very being.
As Sirgal relentlessly urged him on, the Black Knight spoke in a low voice.
"In that case, please allow us to receive support from the castle."
"Absolutely not!"
"Young Master, now that things have come to this, the Lord of the castle will not turn a blind eye."
"The family head isn't the only problem! Do you think my siblings will let this slide if they find out?"
"That is…"
"No one else can know about this. Absolutely no one!"
In the end, the Black Knight could no longer request support from Sirgal.
While not to the same extent as the Unlights, the nobles of Odobaekryeong were the kind of people who could kill their own siblings at any time to inherit the family title.
If his brothers and sisters found out what Sirgal had done, they would cut him down with genuine pleasure.
Growing ever more anxious, Sirgal suddenly turned his head.
"What about Ruba? Any word?"
"The last contact was that he was searching for them."
"Don't tell me he's slacking off again, unable to break his old habits?"
"Even for the warden, that is unlikely."
"Dammit, if that sluggish bastard had just shown up sooner, we wouldn't have lost them like this…!"
Perhaps it was because he'd been forbidden from touching the dark elves until Arsha was captured.
Sirgal ground his teeth as he recalled the third high-ranking Awakened One of the Purgatorium, who had openly shown his displeasure.
If the man's skills had been even slightly lacking, he wouldn't have let it go, but his situation, where he had to appease even someone like that, fueled his anger.
This was especially true since they had tossed the dark elf tribe they'd held hostage aside like old shoes.
Pointlessly capturing and killing the dark elves for revenge would only be a loss for him, as he had planned to sell them for a high price.
It was then that a soldier came running up.
"We've found them!"
"Really?!"
"Yes. A search party has spotted the Unlight's shame and the dark elf chieftain and are in pursuit."
"Where? Lead the way, now!"
Even if he'd heard news that his dead parents had returned to life, Sirgal would not have hurried as much as he did now.
Upon finally hearing the long-awaited news, Sirgal moved at once.
***
A short while later, however.
Sirgal's face contorted once again.
"To find them only to lose them again, are you spouting nonsense?!"
"My apologies. They fled so quickly…"
"Silence!"
"Compose yourself, Young Master. They are rats in a trap, regardless."
The Black Knight restrained the agitated Sirgal.
Unlike Sirgal, who had rushed off blindly, he had already ordered the surrounding search parties to form an encirclement.
Indeed, the reports from the messengers who arrived in quick succession proved that his strategy was working.
"Squad 17 has engaged the fleeing targets! In pursuit!"
"Squad 19 has engaged the targets. Three casualties, but they were repelled with support from Squad 18!"
"Rendezvousing with Squad 15's pursuit team!"
"Tie them down! All you have to do is buy time until I arrive!"
The reports came faster and faster.
The number of pursuit teams grew.
Perhaps because it finally seemed like Dion would be caught.
Sirgal excitedly spurred on the chase, and the soldiers picked up their pace at his urging.
The Black Knight, however, wore a peculiar expression.
'…Something's not right.'
The encirclement being repeatedly breached?
That was to be expected as long as Parsha was with them.
The multi-layered encirclement itself was a measure designed to wear down Dion's party, on the assumption that it would be broken through, and his strategy was working perfectly.
With each encounter with a search party, Dion's party was slowing down.
And yet, as he puzzled over the source of his unease, one report snapped the Black Knight to attention.
"Squad 4 has discovered the bodies of the annihilated Squad 6!"
"What does that matter? Just hurry up and chase them…!"
"Wait, Squad 6?"
"Yes!"
"Squad 6's designated area should have been on the opposite side. Why were they wiped out?"
"W-well, they were already corpses when we found them… Perhaps they encountered a monster?"
"Wiped out without a single survivor, just at the Labyrinth's entrance?"
The Black Knight frowned.
This area was near the entrance of the Labyrinth, where 1-star monsters were the strongest they would encounter.
It was absurd to think that armed soldiers could be annihilated without even a chance to escape.
If so…
'…Don't tell me?'
A certain possibility flashed through the Black Knight's mind, and he mentally retraced the events.
After confirming a certain fact, he hastily grabbed Sirgal, who was leading the charge.
"Young Master, we must not follow them."
"What kind of crazy talk is that!"
"They aren't fleeing! They're showing themselves on purpose to lure us in."
"What?"
Perhaps because the words were so unexpected.
As Sirgal turned around.
The reason the scouts only mentioned 'the Unlight's shame' and 'the dark elf chieftain', but never the most dangerous target, 'the dark elf maid'.
And the reason reports from numerous search parties had suddenly ceased, the Black Knight revealed with a twisted expression.
"Our soldiers are the ones being hunted."
—That these madmen, just three of them, were waging a guerrilla war against a force of 300.
***
*Crack!*
It happened in the blink of an eye.
She broke the neck of the soldier leading the way with a magic stone lamp.
She smashed the skull of another soldier, who was about to let out a warning cry, down into his torso with a steel-toed boot.
She kicked a third soldier, who was reflexively about to thrust his spear, sending him and another soldier crashing into a pulp of flesh and bone.
In the end, *clang*.
Before the magic stone lamp dropped by the first soldier could hit the ground, she had killed half the soldiers and finished off those who tried to flee.
The one responsible for it all.
The dark elf maid paused as she went to wipe the blood from her cheek.
She glanced at her steel gauntlets, already caked with blood and flesh, with a blank expression before launching herself forward.
She had no time to dawdle.
And so, as she raced through the complex Labyrinth, senses heightened in search of her next 'prey', Parsha once again contemplated Dion's plan.
'If we can't escape, we'll just kill everyone chasing us… You truly are insane.'
Just how mad did one have to be to come up with such an idea? Even for her, who was slowly growing accustomed to Dion's reckless acts, it was dumbfounding.
Even more so because he had designated her, his guard, not as a shield but as an attacker, and prepared bait and diversions.
She had accepted the plan for two reasons.
One was that, being in such a dire situation anyway, they had no other choice.
And the other was…
"The Labyrinth is a dangerous place."
"And that danger applies to everyone."
"In other words, here in the Labyrinth, we have the advantage over them and their useless numbers."
"—Above all, I'm confident that in the Labyrinth, no one can catch me."
Why was it?
The Labyrinth was a place feared by even Crawlers and high-ranking Awakened Ones.
Yet Dion, who had never once set foot in a Labyrinth in his life, could make such a bold claim with such confidence.
She, who had practically raised Dion, knew better than anyone.
It was undoubtedly nonsense.
An impossible bluff.
And yet, his blood-red eyes were so calm they were tranquil, and the playful smile on his face was so full of leisure.
Unable to refuse his plan in the end, Parsha bit her lip slightly.
'…If you fail to keep your confident promise that everything will be fine, know that you will die by my hands, even if you survive this.'
*Boom!*
"Gah?!"
"Aargh!"
And so, reducing another search party to gore, Parsha stormed through the Labyrinth.
Whether Dion and Arsha would be caught.
Or whether Sirgal's soldiers would be annihilated.
Everyone's fate would be decided by which came first in this life-or-death gamble set against the backdrop of the Labyrinth.
—The chicken race had begun.