At that command, something seemed to change in the Knight Order’s eyes. The knights turned all at once.
They raised their weapons and began clashing with the Skeletons. They went beyond protecting Dane and actively swung their swords in response to his command.
The Skeletons began to be overwhelmed in an instant. Though the knights could not kill them, the Magic Beasts were being driven back by the Knight Order’s attacks.
A path began to open as though the sea were parting.
Dane ran down the path the Knight Order had created for him. Amid the ringing of steel from every direction, Dane’s gaze remained fixed on the Lich above.
Sharp Killing Intent rippled more clearly than Mana. The Lich seemed flustered, yet it still looked composed.
That was only natural, since there were no stairs leading to the upper floor. Even so, Dane did not stop running. He ran to the end of the narrow path.
Dane was looking at the knight standing at its end. The knight who held a large shield shining white.
He was kneeling on one knee. Holding the shield tilted at an angle, he raised it and faced Dane.
The knight was weeping, yet he was fighting against all this Lament.
―TANG!
The instant Dane stepped hard onto the shield, the knight put strength into his arms and pushed him upward.
Flight. Dane leaped high like a bird in an instant. The red mantle fluttered like the wings of a bird, like blood someone had spilled.
Before he knew it, Dane was above the Lich.
The Lich’s figure was reflected in Dane’s eyes, which burned like the sun. A panicked face. Lips about to chant an incantation. But Dane’s sword was faster than its lips.
―CRUNCH!
Dane drove his sword straight into the Lich’s chest. He placed the weight the knights had carried until now into his blade.
Oaths and convictions pierced the Lich.
The Lich let out a Death Cry. Amid the echo of that desperate wail, the master of the Dungeon scattered into dust.
The magic of Lament ended.
When Dane turned back, the Magic Beasts were collapsing one by one. The knights were still standing, looking up at him.
Dane spoke to them as well.
“Close your eyes in peace. Let us go home.”
At those words, the knights fell one by one. They had regained death and honor.
Dane took out the Subspace Cube. When he chanted a simple incantation, the Remains were drawn into it.
As silence settled over the Dungeon, he looked back at the place where the Lich had stood. Among the softly piled bone dust, a single red jewel was shining.
It was a jewel from which intense Mana could be felt. After taking it, he went out through the exit.
He was outside. He felt an open wind, not the stifling air of the underground.
Perhaps a long time had passed, for the sun was slowly setting. Before long, people began pouring out from the Dungeon Entrance.
“Master! Are you all right?”
Cesare and Xenia rushed over and hugged Dane tightly. Dane endured the pain that felt as though his waist might break.
“I am fine. Did anything happen to you?”
“No. We had to go look for you, Master, so we were arguing about that, and then the Corpse Dragon suddenly died. So we figured you must have done something, Master, and came out.”
It seemed that when the Lich died, the magic cast on the Corpse Dragon had ended as well. The people of Twilight Swallow’s Nest were staring at Dane in utter bewilderment.
Cassian was the same. He looked at the mantle Dane was wearing, then opened his mouth.
“What on earth happened?”
“I will tell you the details once we return. For now, please report to the Administration Office.”
Dane took out the Subspace Cube and handed it to Cassian. The Subspace Cube, which held the lives of around seventy people, was quietly emitting a black light.
“Tell them that all the Fallen have returned.”
For a brief moment, Dane had been their Commander. Since the knights had made a path for him, he too had to make a path for them.
The path home. It was their first return in decades.
Those Left Behind
Around noon, at the Horned Whale Inn.
The first-floor tavern was already crowded.
From midday onward, one table was noisy. It was the place where Mercenaries had gathered. Amid rough curses and the smell of strong liquor, Cesare was sipping only water.
“Damn it. I met the wrong Employer and got worked like a dog.”
“Exactly. Hey, Cesare. Must be nice for you. I heard you conquered Lament in a week. You joined a Domus and now you are doing damn well.”
“Oh, really?”
“It was a Silver Rank Dungeon, so you must have been paid a lot. Buy some new clothes with that money. You look shabby.”
“Oh, really?”
At his halfhearted replies, the Mercenaries’ gazes grew strange. Cesare himself looked indifferent.
Meanwhile, Cesare reflexively grabbed a liquor glass and then set it down. The Mercenary Captain frowned.
“What is wrong with this bastard? You have not touched a drink since earlier. You are ruining the mood. Have a glass.”
“Master and I decided to abstain from drinking.”
Silence fell over the table at those words. Soon, jeering laughter rang out.
“Master? Abstaining from drinking? Hey, are you really Cesare? Why have you changed so much?”
“Am I not allowed to change?”
Cesare fiddled once with his acorn necklace. Seeing it, the Mercenary Captain laughed as though dumbfounded. He tried to snatch the necklace.
“Why are you wearing something like this with that huge body of yours? It is disgust—ugh!”
At that moment, Cesare’s hand clamped tightly around the Captain’s wrist. The Captain groaned at the grip that felt as though it would break his bone.
“Did you forget I told you last time not to touch my necklace?”
“You bastard! I am the Captain!”
“So what? Are you my Captain? All I ever did was fill your empty spots from time to time.”
The Captain looked at his subordinates. Their gazes seemed to pity him and fear Cesare.
Gritting his teeth, the Captain shook off Cesare’s hand.
“Do you think joining a Domus makes you a decent bastard now? Licking the toes of a twenty-year-old brat and going on about a Master…….”
―SMACK!
At that moment, Cesare’s fist struck the Captain’s head. His eyes blazed fiercely.
“Do not touch my family. Unless you want to die.”
When the Captain collapsed, the Mercenaries all rose to their feet. Among them, someone spat and said,
“Family? Is that Domus your family? After we were kind enough to let an orphan bastard hang around…….”
“You must have had such a hard time playing with an orphan bastard.”
At that, Cesare let out a faint laugh and clenched his fist.
“But I am not an orphan anymore.”
Five Mercenaries charged at him. Every time Cesare swung his fist, a Mercenary went sprawling. The fight ended in an instant.
Even the vaunted Mercenaries were hit once each by Cesare and left crawling on the floor. Cesare handed the Innkeeper the money for his own food and said,
“Hey, take care of cleaning that lot up.”
“Still, you were a bit tame today, weren’t you? Usually you leave them as bloody pulp.”
“That is because I am not just Cesare anymore. I am Cesare Balanus.”
At that moment, the door to the establishment burst open and someone came inside. It was Xenia. Cesare stared at her blankly.
“Huh? Why are you here?”
“I came to get you, Brother. The Administration Office called for us. Master is already there.”
“Wow, so they must be paying us now? We heard nothing all week. Let us go.”
Xenia glanced toward the inside of the establishment. She saw the Mercenaries sprawled out on the floor.
“Did you do that to them, Brother?”
“No, this was self-defense, something like that! Do not tell Master.”
“Buy me snacks.”
“I will. I will!”
Cesare left the establishment in a fluster. The fallen Mercenaries groaned as they watched his back.
The two of them headed to the interview room at the Administration Office. Dane, who had been waiting inside first, asked,
“What did you do? You smell of blood.”
“There was, well, a bit of self-defense……. More importantly, are they finally giving us our money? I wonder how much it will be.”
He desperately changed the subject and grinned broadly. At that moment, a woman entered the interview room.
It was the Administration Chief. She smiled kindly and said.
“You are Balanus Domus, correct? And those two are Mr. Cesare and Ms. Xenia?”
“Uh, right.”
“There have been some reports coming in lately. For assault and property damage.”
When Dane quietly looked at him, Cesare grew flustered. Xenia turned her head away, pretending not to know anything.
Only Dane wore a composed expression. He asked.
“Did you call us here regarding punishment?”
“Ah, there is something I need to confirm regarding the Supporter work. I heard something from Cassian, you see.”
At the mention of Cassian’s name, Cesare’s eyes turned fierce.
“What, did Cassian file a complaint? That we failed the job?”
Instead of answering, the official set down the box she had brought with her. It was a shallow, wide box.
“Please check for yourself.”
At those words, Xenia cautiously watched the mood, then opened the box. There were three items inside.
One of them was a check. Xenia spoke in an excited voice.
“Wow. It is thirty million Batz. It was originally three million Batz, was it not?”
“Yes. Reward money from the bereaved families was added. They asked me to convey their thanks for recovering the bodies.”
Cesare’s face also brightened at once. Then his gaze went to the items left in the box.
“Is this not the jewel Master brought out? The name was…….”
It was the jewel Dane had taken from the Dungeon after defeating the Lich. Because all rewards from a Dungeon belonged to the requester, he had handed that jewel over to Cassian.
“Transcendence Stone. It is a stone that strengthens Mana. It is precious, but he yielded it to us.”
Dane said that and looked at the third item. There was a copper-ore metal plaque engraved with the name Balanus.
“After discussion, the Administration Office has decided to promote Balanus Domus to Bronze Rank.”
“What?”
Cesare let out a foolish sound. Dane was also a little surprised. Only Xenia looked around, as though she did not understand the situation.
“Master, is becoming Bronze Rank a good thing?”
“It is. It can take at least a year to be promoted to Bronze Rank. This is a special case.”
The official nodded at Dane’s words, then opened her mouth.
“The opening of the third underground floor that had remained undiscovered for twenty years. The recovery of the Fallen’s bodies. The handling of the second Boss as well. We rated your overwhelming abilities highly.”
The woman turned over a document and spoke.
“Your character has also been verified. The Nidus Hirundinis Crepuscularis Guild evaluated you favorably, you see. Cassian was also the one who yielded that jewel.”
“Cassian did? That bastard is not the type to do that…….”
At those words, the official narrowed her eyes and looked at Cesare. Since she seemed suspicious, Dane quickly spoke up.
“Perhaps because they are the same age, Cassian and Cesare seem to spend their time bickering. The two are very close.”
“I am? Ah, no. We are close! I am close friends with that bastard!”
When Dane sharply pinched Cesare’s side, only then did Cesare begin to play along.
The official smiled in a way that made it impossible to tell whether she had accepted it or was merely pretending to.
“That is all I had to convey. And before you leave, please stop by the Request Desk. I will look forward to your next performance.”
The three of them gathered all the items and went down to the first floor. Cesare raised his voice in excitement.
“Wow, damn! Thirty million Batz, a promotion, and even the Boss reward is ours! Master, let us eat something delicious today!”
“Let us. And ‘damn’ is also profanity.”
“Damn……. Ah, no! I will not use it.”
Unable even to curse properly, Cesare grinned broadly. Meanwhile, Xenia hovered beside them and said,
“Now let us go to the Request Desk. The lady from earlier told us to go.”
When they went to the Request Desk, a familiar employee was there. He handed over a document and said, “You are Balanus Domus. A Designated Request has come in.”
“Designated? From whom?”
“Well…….”
The employee also looked at the document and spoke as though he found it unexpected.
“It is a Request from a noble family.”