Chapter 43

Click, click.

Keirin and the Princess. The two of them were walking down the Left Hallway.

Not far ahead, at the end of the hallway, a large door was visible.

“So, you’re saying I have to block every single one from here? Can I really do it? I can only use lower-tier skills, you know.”

When Keirin replied, Princess Arlhardt nodded.

“Don’t worry. Keirin, you’re strong.”

“Since Your Highness believes in me, I’ll do my best!”

The moment Keirin answered, the door began to rattle violently.

Clatter, clatter!

– Kyaaaak!

The door shattered, and ghouls began pouring out.

“Ugh, there are so many, it’s disgusting!”

When Keirin swung his staff toward them…

Kwaaaaang!

A massive explosion erupted, and a pillar of flame swept down the hallway.

It was a lower-tier skill, but the user’s ability amplified its power.

He thought every last one had been annihilated…

But through the rising flames, two shadows emerged.

– Kyaaaak!

Two of them darted out swiftly from the fire.

They had minimized the damage by sticking to the corners.

They ran past Keirin at a considerable speed, escaping.

It was partly due to his carelessness, but also a mistake that came from only being able to use lower-tier skills.

“Ah! The ghouls…!”

Keirin shouted in a hurry as he turned around.

“Keep your eyes forward, Keirin.”

Princess Arlhardt held up her spellbook, staring directly at Keirin.

In front of her, the ghoul’s form was burning and turning into ashes.

“……!”

Keirin beamed brightly, his eyes sparkling.

The Princess tilted her head as she looked at him.

She had thought he would shrink back or get upset after making a mistake.

But instead, he responded with an even brighter face.

“……Why do you look so happy?”

“I don’t know, I don’t understand it myself… But it feels incredibly fun!”

Keirin had never achieved a goal together with someone since childhood.

That was because he was a genius among geniuses.

He had always shouldered burdens alone and had enough strength to endure them.

The Ice Dragon subjugation, the dungeon group project—he could solve everything alone.

But now, it was different.

“When I’m alone, it’s lonely. But together, it feels fun!”

“I don’t know what you mean, but if you’re happy, that’s good enough. ……Keep your eyes forward! They’re coming again!”

“Yeah!”

Keirin lifted his staff with strength and smiled brightly.

Meanwhile…

Step, step.

Luga ascended the Spiral Stairs.

At last, when he reached the ceiling, he sensed a presence.

A man wearing a wide-brimmed hat and carrying a sword was descending the stairs.

– Sob, sob, sob…

The moment he noticed Luga, the man’s arm moved mercilessly.

“So, you want to greet me with a sword.”

Luga smiled and drew his own blade.

Kaaang!

As their swords clashed, Luga let out a small laugh.

“Well, well, look who it is. It’s you? This is truly an honor.”

With just one clash, he could already tell what kind of man this was.

Even if their encounter had transcended time itself.

This Weeping Man was a legendary figure who had laid the foundation of Imperial Swordsmanship.

However…

“That swordsmanship is nothing more than outdated now.”

Kaaang! Kaaang! Kaaang!

Luga advanced with a calm smile.

Shadows traced the arm that held his sword.

Each time their blades collided, piercing clangs resounded and brief flashes of light flared.

Luga’s sword strikes were not only fast but also heavy.

The Weeping Man’s shoulders trembled violently. With each clash, his sword was forced backward.

“It has been over a hundred years. More than enough time for the flaws in that swordsmanship to be improved upon and surpassed.”

Within a short span, dozens of exchanges had already been made.

But not all of Luga’s strikes were blocked.

The Weeping Man’s coat was half torn, and one of his arms was already crushed.

As if struck by a bomb, his body was in tatters.

– Sob, sob, sob…

Once a swordsman who had commanded the world, now he swung his blade while weeping sorrowfully.

“Why do you weep so mournfully?”

He had supposedly been a cold-blooded man with neither blood nor tears.

This was different from how the records described him: a hunter of battlefields.

“Do you still have lingering regrets about this life?”

He was called the Father of Rekorox Swordsmanship, yet also known as the tragic man who took his own life in his forties.

“Unfortunately.”

Luga took a single step back.

“No matter how tearful a past you may have lived through, I will not sympathize.”

He extended his left hand forward.

Pulling his sword back as if drawing a bowstring, his eyes gleamed.

“The wraith of the past, I shall lay you to rest.”

As he thrust into the air, a brief blue flash erupted.

“It was a pleasure to meet you.”

The sobs could no longer be heard.

…Of course, that was because the Weeping Man’s head had evaporated.

His body collapsed with a thud and slowly turned into black ash.

Like wind scattering dust, the ashes spread into the air and fell down into the lobby.

Luga sat on the Spiral Stairs, looking down at it.

“It’s nice being up here, I can see everything.”

The progress of the raid was visible at a glance.

The Left Hallway and the Right Hallway had been continuously defended even before the ghouls poured out.

Occasionally, mistakes happened, or irregularly large ghouls appeared.

But each time, firepower was focused, and they were instantly annihilated.

The danger had been completely cut off at its root.

‘So that’s why they stationed two or three people in each hallway.’

Luga stroked his chin with brief admiration.

The Black Mist Wraith at the Central Stairs was being handled by Heidel alone.

‘It’s certainly more efficient for him to face it alone than for multiple people to fight alongside him…’

Judging by Heidel’s indiscriminate style of attack, teammates would only get in the way.

He remembered how Heidel had been unable to show his full power during the first raid formation.

Placing him alone had been the correct choice.

“Nixie, you need treatment before you go!”

“No! There’s no time!”

Nixie rushed into the lobby from the Right Hallway.

She seemed to be returning after defeating the Noble Lady Wraith.

‘It hasn’t been that long, yet they managed to defeat it so easily.’

The Noble Lady Wraith was a monster with overwhelming ranged attacks.

‘Curio said Nixie specializes in charges.’

Villed had judged that if someone with charging ability closed the distance, it would make subjugating the Noble Lady easier.

It seemed that judgment was exactly right.

‘So now, eight of them will be dealing with the small-type enemies.’

The raid pressed forward as planned.

‘Are those really the same people who panicked after failing the first raid? They look like completely different people.’

They had divided roles and redeployed with the optimal number of people for maximum efficiency.

That alone was enough to reverse the situation.

Now, Luga’s gaze was fixed on Villed, who was facing the small-type enemies.

‘So in the end, bloodline is bloodline, is that it, Dedenkman?’

The head of the Dedenkman family, Doshik Deron, was also a legendary commander.

Just like father, just like son, Villed too was blossoming with the talent of a commander.

‘His ability to observe the enemy is at an astonishing level.’

They say, “Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will win a hundred battles.”

Not only his allies, but within a short time, he had also discerned the traits of the enemy.

He exploited the strengths of each cadet to strike at the enemy’s weaknesses.

For Luga, who valued restraint and efficiency in battle, that was particularly admirable.

Moreover, the restrained movements he had witnessed during their duel were being displayed even now.

‘From beginning to end, he deliberately avoided revealing his true strength…….’

That careless demeanor, that faint leakage of mana.

All of it must have been part of his plan.

‘Disguising himself as weak…… He’s using himself as bait.’

It was clear he was observing the enemy’s weaknesses, storing strength, and preparing for a decisive blow.

‘If I were a professor, I would have given him an A+ without hesitation.’

Without thoroughly grasping the abilities of all the cadets, such a raid strategy could never have been devised.

‘……I thought my own acting wasn’t too bad.’

At Yggdrasil, the only ones who knew Luga’s true identity were the Princess and her royal guards.

‘I thought I had restrained myself enough. I never expected to be seen through so easily, Dedenkman.’

Had he recognized Luga’s true level?

Perhaps even his identity as the Honorary Captain of the Imperial Guard, the ‘Black Demon,’ had been exposed.

‘Just how in the world did you find out?’

There was no way an ordinary student could notice such a thing.

Even Yggdrasil’s Headmaster and professors who were the world’s greatest in their fields hadn’t recognized Luga.

Only the Emperor, the Princess, and the heads of the four great families knew his true self.

‘……Did the head of the Dedenkman family tell him?’

Luga tilted his head slightly.

‘Strange. That man is known for keeping secrets. Was there any need to tell him that?’

The heads of the four great families were all cautious figures.

That he would reveal it to a child who wasn’t even the formal successor was questionable.

‘No, it’s impossible that he could have noticed my true identity on his own.’

If thought through rationally, that was the only possible answer.

Anyway, leaving that aside.

If Villed grew further, he would become quite a figure.

Whether in a good way or a bad way.

‘……I’ll have to watch closely to see whether he becomes our enemy or our ally.’

If Luga ever judged him to be an enemy.

Then he would mercilessly eliminate him, even if it meant turning the Dedenkman family into an enemy.

Back during their duel, Villed had been a figure of slight interest.

But now, he had been promoted to a figure of caution.

‘I was supposed to join the team soon.’

No one knew that Luga had defeated the Weeping Man.

Each team was fully focused on their own assigned roles.

After defeating the Weeping Man, he was originally meant to join the small-type enemy team.

‘But where’s the fun in that.’

Luga changed his mind.

‘Let’s watch a little longer from here.’

He wanted to see how Villed would overcome the next challenge.

……Again.

With blurry eyes, it stared straight at me.

A new Animal friend is within 10 meters!

The message, visible only to me, was noisily ringing out.

‘The only animal in this place is the sea otter, so is this some kind of bug?’

Of all times, it had to appear during an important moment just to get in the way.

I wiped my sweat and looked upward.

On the ceiling lit by the chandelier, there was a brown-haired child ghost and……

– Kyahahaha!

Several large tables floated in the air.

The child ghost pointed a finger and threw them at us.

I quickly twisted my body and dove into a safe spot to evade.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Each time the objects crashed to the floor, the noise stung my eardrums.

“Kyaaaak!”

Karin screamed.

It looked as though she had been attacked, but both Karin and Lapin had been placed safely in the rear.

‘Without a Totem, Karin can’t be used in combat, and if Lapin joined, she would just end up being attacked.’

The objects controlled by the ghost contained mana, making them troublesome to block.

Even if it drained stamina, dodging was the better choice.

Ren and Torono had good stamina, so they could dodge easily.

But with my lacking stamina, I was bound to run out of breath.

Torono glanced at me as I panted heavily.

“How long are we going to keep this up? Of all people, we had to listen to that lousy student’s plan……”

Ren wiped his sweat and spoke.

“Torono, stop complaining. We already agreed to follow his strategy.”

“No, you’re the weird one. You used to hate Villed, didn’t you? What got into you to suddenly side with him?”

“Torono.”

“Ah! Fine, I get it! Both of you, so arrogant despite being ranked so low……”

Torono answered half-heartedly, then turned his focus back to the fight.

This time, a piano rattled and slowly floated into the air.

I prepared myself to deal with it when suddenly…

“I’ve taken care of it! Joining in now!”

Nixie’s voice rang out.

Looking over, I saw Nixie’s team running toward us.

I pulled out a box of potions and tossed one of them to Nixie.

Nixie caught it and looked at it.

“……What is this?”

“Holy Water. I heard it works well against undead monsters.”

As Nixie questioned, Arowell, who had followed behind, answered.

“We’re the bait. You attack the small-type enemies.”

When I replied, Nixie nodded and sprinkled the Holy Water onto her sword.

Torono looked at me and Nixie with an exasperated face.

“I don’t get it. You’d rather give it to her than to me, ranked 9th……”

“Sounds like a dog barking.”

At Nixie’s response, Torono’s face flushed red.

“What? Did you just call me a dog?”

Nixie seemed to ignore Torono, but then…

“No, really. Can’t you hear it? A dog’s been barking since we came here.”

Nixie didn’t seem to be joking at all.

She meant it sincerely.

“Nixie, come on! No one else hears it but you.”

“That can’t be. This time, it’s really close by.”

Arowell dismissed it as just a swordsman’s intuition.

‘A swordsman’s intuition?’

No.

Even Nixie herself couldn’t distinguish it clearly.

It had to be something other than abstract intuition.

‘Some kind of clue…….’

My eyes were immediately drawn to the ‘ring’ on Nixie’s finger.

A red flower ring made by the ghost girl while she was alive.

Perhaps, that was the ‘answer.’

“Hey, Nixie.”

When I called, her crimson eyes met mine.

I held out my palm.

“Let me borrow that ring for a moment.”

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