Chapter 186

The relentless attacks from Sieg and the Labyrinth Suppression Forces buffeted the Wicked Hands of Creation. Trembling and spasming, the things grasped at air and earth. When the hands clawed at the seemingly empty air, they were most likely reaching after the magical power that filled that stratum. New monsters were still being born from the earthen clods, but their shapes had clearly become sloppy, as their necks were longer and thinner, and the number and length of their limbs differed from those of normal monsters. “Just a little longer!” Leonhardt and the others pushed harder, charging ever forward. Just a little longer and they could put an end to the creation of the deformed monsters that boasted no strength but that of numbers. Soon they would strike down the stratum boss molding those misshapen things to desperately defend this place. Just a few moments more and their attacks would finally strike home, ending the life of the stratum boss. Surely the soldiers had felt Mariela’s wish for them to keep fighting. Leonhardt led the Labyrinth Suppression Forces in a charge through the monsters protecting the stratum’s boss. 10 “The number of injured has suddenly increased. What caused this?” Robert, who’d been administering medical treatment on the Labyrinth’s twentieth stratum, posed his question calmly. “A bunch of weird monsters suddenly started appear— Owwww!” “Does it hurt? Hrm, that’s good. It’s proof you’re alive. There, you’re healed.” Robert was certainly healing his patients, but he did so quickly and with a physical roughness that was difficult to describe as courteous. It was probably unavoidable that he’d get angry over a sudden increase in the number of injured, but Robert’s words had called to mind a certain medical engineer. Did he resemble that man now because they’d been providing medical treatment together for a long time, or was such bluntness a common trait among those of this occupation? “H-heeelp!” Robert was currently in a provisional clinic established in the twentieth stratum of the Labyrinth. Although he had been afforded several adventurers who knew how to use healing magic—they’d all offered to help administer treatment—the place had originally been a potion distribution location. As such, soldiers and adventurers who’d used up their potions and suffered wounds were already gathering there, making things fairly convenient for Robert. Among those warriors were those fleeing from monsters. Normally, the act would have been an utter breach of conduct. “Gh, again?! And it’s a wyvern?!” The second-string soldiers of the Labyrinth Suppression Forces protecting the twentieth stratum dashed toward the monster chasing the adventurer who’d rushed in. More than half of the second-string soldiers were C Rank. A wyvern was a monster of around B Rank, a powerful enemy that was troublesome even for a group of fighters. Now that the areas around stratum stairs were no longer safe, this potion distribution location was one of the few safe zones in the Labyrinth and had to be protected. Especially since it was the main source of medical treatment. The strategic placement of the clinic on the twentieth stratum also allowed others to reach it via Teleportation Circle. As such a crucial bastion in their fight, the place needed to be defended no matter what. In the twentieth stratum, adventurers ranging from D-Rank youths to more intermediate-level combatants had gathered. Excluding those not combat ready, such as children and the elderly, these types of people made up the largest portion of the Labyrinth City’s population. If more powerful monsters flooded the twentieth stratum, there would probably be a great many casualties. “Grakakakakar!” Even a single wyvern was a challenge for the soldiers defending this place, but it summoned another two with a birdlike call. They came flying in, weaving their way between closely packed pillars. To make matters worse, one of the newly appeared wyverns had most likely eaten another monster or a person. The surface of its body had obviously blackened, and bloody saliva dribbled from its mouth. It was clearly an anomaly, more brutal and powerful than others of its kind. “Lord Robert, this place is dangerous. Please evacuate.” Robert’s guard concluded that the situation had worsened and urged him to evacuate in a voice low enough that the surrounding people wouldn’t hear. Robert quietly shook his head, however, and answered his guard without pausing his treatments. “I promised them, these adventurers, that I’d help them as long as they were still alive. No, this is a promise I made to myself. I won’t abide failure to save anyone anymore. This is clearly some kind of counterattack, or perhaps the Labyrinth is truly growing desperate. Truthfully, I suppose the reason doesn’t much matter. I want to see this with my own eyes. All of you should go on and evacuate yourselves.” It wasn’t that Robert had given in to despair or that he wanted to die. The doctor simply wanted to help. That was all he had. Seeing Robert continue his medical treatment, the soldiers at his side exchanged glances, then drew their swords and turned to face the wyverns that were mowing down adventurers. “If we live through this, please help us, too.” “We’ll be in your hands, Dr. Robert.” “You…” Robert lifted his head and looked at his guardsmen. He surveyed the adventurers in the vicinity. All around, an extremely disastrous scene was unfolding. A mere three wyverns were routing adventurers left and right; many among them were faces Robert knew. They were people who’d broken free of the slums and returned to being adventurers thanks to potions and Robert’s medical treatments. Every one of them was covered in blood, but not a single one fled. They knew this was an important place that needed defending to the last. A blow from a wyvern sent an adventurer flying into a wall. Robert recognized him as the man whose leg he’d healed. The leg he’d gone to such lengths to fix was bent in an unnatural direction, and the adventurer appeared to have lost consciousness as he fell into a puddle of his own blood. The occasional twitch meant the man was likely still alive, but the presence of the wyverns prevented Robert from rushing over. If the adventurer couldn’t return to him, Robert could do nothing to save him. Don’t die. Please, don’t die. Someone help them… Was there anyone to hear such a prayer? “My left arm is a pedestal for flames; my right arm a pedestal for thunder. Abide in me! Dual Sword Elements!” Fire surged and wind danced. Flames, undulating as if they were a living creature, engulfed the wyverns. Their wing membranes burned to nothing in an instant, and the wyverns fell to the ground. On the way down, they tried to attack using their powerful legs, but before they could, blades of wind whirled around them and cut into their necks one after another. That frenzy of flames and wind was more than enough to overpower both the normal and evolved wyverns. The fearsome monsters were rendered little more than hunks of meat. “Incredible…,” muttered one young adventurer after witnessing the power of an A-Ranker. As if in response, the man who’d appeared in this hour of crisis looked back at the adventurers and gave them a dauntless smile, because that was simply who he was. His dramatic entrance seemed to say “The hero always arrives late!” “The hero always arrives late!” Then Edgan went and ruined it by actually saying it. “Uh…say, who is that guy? He’s kinda pathetic, isn’t he?” “Yeah. He’s kinda… Well, maybe not entirely pathetic. Who is he?” Edgan, the young A-Ranker who’d made such a gallant appearance at a pivotal moment, cut quite an attractive figure, though likely only because of the heat of the moment. Many of the adventurers in the twentieth stratum were young women. Edgan ought to have been grateful to the wyverns he had so thoroughly defeated. “Hey? Didn’t you get too far ahead of us, Edgan?” “That’s right. It’s important to act as a group.” Yuric, Grandel, and the other members of the Black Iron Freight Corps appeared in succession after him. “Whoa, Edgan’s nostrils are flaring?! Gross!” “Yuric! As much as I hate to say it, it’s improper to call the captain ‘gross’!” Evidently, Edgan was fairly full of himself after receiving the adulation of female adventurers, and his nose was twitching. His fellows in the Black Iron Freight Corps likened him to a monkey. The raptors Yuric brought along were practically stacked with the wounded, and the beasts hastened to retrieve the adventurers that fallen prey to the wyverns. Edgan was standing arms folded, with one foot atop a wyvern in a contrived pose. The rest of the Black Iron Freight Corps seemed perfectly content to ignore him and instead dropped off the many wounded at Robert’s clinic. “Good, they’re still breathing… I’m grateful for your aid with the wounded.” Quickly assessing the status of those injured the Corps had transported, Robert expressed his thanks to the members of the Black Iron Freight Corps, save Edgan. “We gave them all basic first aid, but that’s all we could do for them. We need to keep moving, so we’ll entrust them to you,” said Franz, the healing magic user. The Black Iron Freight Corps took their raptors and headed for the stairs leading to the lower strata. “Onward to the next stratum.” Despite the seriousness of his surroundings, Grandel used his umbrella as a walking stick as he sauntered along in his usual lightweight equipment. He struck a sharp contrast to Donnino, who walked with a heavy hammer over his shoulder. Behind them, Newie and Nick carried so many umbrellas they looked like umbrella peddlers. As Grandel was unable to carry a proper shield, his strategy likely consisted of cycling through disposable umbrellas, discarding one when it broke and picking up a fresh one. A magic-wielding swordsman, a heavily armed warrior, a healing magic user, and an animal tamer. The group was a bit lacking in long-range skills, but Grandel, the “legendary hero,” had fashioned himself a fairly balanced party overall. Though the four were just members of the Black Iron Freight Corps, in that moment, they truly appeared to be the companions of a legendary hero. Perhaps because their real leader was a captain who defied all meaning of the word. “I didn’t know the Black Iron Freight Corps were in the City…” “Isn’t that Edgan?” “Is he the new captain?” Female adventurers whispered to one another as they assessed Edgan. The man himself turned his back to them in an affected manner, as though to suggest he had no interest in the likes of them. He was, in fact, listening with keen interest to their conversation, however. As evidence of this, his ears twitched, and his face was plastered with an idiotic grin. Again, Edgan’s subordinates commented on his monkey-like behavior. Whether or not the female adventurers noticed Edgan’s unflattering expression, they didn’t seem to mind. After all, Edgan had demonstrated considerable strength, far beyond that of the other adventurers fighting in the stratum. Plus, he was good-looking—so long as he kept his mouth shut—and managed a successful business. “Umm, thank you very much for your help.” “I’m Anja. How about I give you a little token of my appreciation later?” “Hey, no fair butting in. I’m Mirke.” Though they were still in the monster-filled Labyrinth, a few female adventurers ran to Edgan to express their gratitude. They even took his hands in theirs, hoping to leave a more lasting impression. Perhaps Edgan’s true golden days were yet to come. Who could’ve said what sort of life awaited him after defeating the monsters overflowing from the Labyrinth? “Hey, Edgan? Come on!” “Rar! Grr!” “Wah! Hey, raptor, don’t bite me. Leggo, leggo of my ass…!!!” If he managed to make it back to the surface, of course. Ridiculous…, Robert thought. He’d been on the cusp of expressing his own wish for the safety of those who’d been fighting so bravely when Edgan had butted in. What an absurd charade. Although situated in the middle of a deadly battlefield, Robert continued to conduct himself with an air of nobility as he treated the wounded. In truth, he was getting more acclaim from the adventurers than Edgan was, but Robert wasn’t taking notice. All he wanted was for everyone to make it through this alive. Conversations about the future could wait until everyone had safely made it back to the surface. Their tomorrow still lay just beyond the defeat of the Labyrinth. 11 “So they really are here.” “These sorts of abnormalities have a pattern to them. They seem to be few in number because they’re high-ranking monsters. Nick, Newie, an umbrella, if you please. Take care not to leave my side.” The Black Iron Freight Corps hadn’t gone into the Labyrinth after Edgan, the man willing to do anything to meet someone, anyone, for a date. Even Edgan himself hadn’t come to the fight merely looking for a chance romantic encounter. The Black Iron Freight Corps’s destination was the Labyrinth’s twenty-third stratum, the Shores of Eternal Night. This stratum was one normally enjoyed the gentle glow of moonlight and the sounds of babbling streams. Today, however, all anyone could hear were the echoing cries of armored lizardmen. One had to wonder if the lizardmen had gone mad, as they struggled against a single paler creature despite some truly gruesome wounds. The monsters were trying to eat their comrades-in-arms. The alabaster monster, a death lizard, was gobbling down the torso of an armored lizardman with no regard for the other lizardmen snapping at it. Perhaps it was because the magical gems of armored lizardmen lay somewhere in their intestines. “Those’re some really disgusting monsters, aren’t they?” Yuric spat. In most of the strata, there were a few monsters one rank higher mixed in with the ones that normally appeared. However, death lizards were actually two ranks higher than armored lizardmen. The death lizard continued to tear through the armor-like scales of the lesser monsters as though they were butter. It consumed one lizardman’s intestines while seemingly paying no heed to the many other armored lizardmen trying to eat it—a clear demonstration of how much stronger a death lizard was. The A-Rank death lizard was probably still far from achieving a full incarnation, no matter how many C-Rank armored lizardmen it consumed. Still, it continued to eat mindlessly, as if it had been starved for months. Without warning, the death lizard suddenly turned its neck halfway around to look directly behind where it was standing. The monster’s mouth split into what appeared to be a smile. It had spotted prey of much finer quality. There were seven humans and eight raptors. Although the strength of humans clearly varied, to the death lizard, the Corps were first-rate food when compared with the C-Rank lizardmen. The monster barreled toward the Black Iron Freight Corps with the armored lizardmen still chomping at its body. The creature’s strange gait—four long, thin limbs carrying an undulating torso—called to mind a strange insect more than any reptile. Edgan took a step toward the approaching death lizard, his eyes narrowed. “I know you’re not the same monster that killed Lynx. This isn’t revenge. I’m just venting a little anger.” Edgan charged his dual swords with magical power. The Black Iron Freight Corps had made sure to exterminate the death lizard that had killed Lynx after they’d received news of his passing. This death lizard had only recently appeared; it couldn’t have been the one that had attacked Lynx and the others. However, it was because death lizards appeared on this stratum that the Black Iron Freight Corps had chosen it as their hunting ground should they ever venture into the Labyrinth. The day they’d lost Lynx, the members of the Corps had talked until sunrise. “We’ll make sure Lynx is avenged. Let’s kill the Labyrinth,” they’d sworn. Unfortunately, few among the Black Iron Freight Corps were fit to battle alongside the Labyrinth Suppression Forces. Only Dick, Malraux, and Edgan had the necessary strength. The rest had the solo fighting power of second-string soldiers at best. Yuric specialized in handling beasts like the Corps’s raptors, and Franz possessed demi-human characteristics. This had made it difficult for them to integrate with a human group, even if it was the Labyrinth Suppression Forces. Likewise, Grandel and Donnino had both transferred out of the Forces because the group’s fighting style didn’t cater to their specific talents. You could say it was the iron carriages that had really let them come into their own. The Black Iron Freight Corps’s frequent trips between the Labyrinth City and the imperial capital by way of the Fell Forest were vital to both the Forces and the City itself. That was why only Dick and Malraux had returned to the Forces. The remaining members of the Corps supported the subjugation of the Labyrinth in a different but no less vital way. As it happened, Edgan had already surpassed Malraux in terms of strength. Edgan had ostensibly remained with the Black Iron Freight Corps to defeat the occasional powerful foe, but in truth, it was for a far more foolish reason: he’d cultivated too much of a reputation as a philanderer during his time in the Forces, so he couldn’t return. There was no two ways about it; Edgan was reaping what he’d sowed. The promise of working with people who thought better of him, if only a little, made the decision to stay with the Black Iron Freight Corps an easy one. The remaining members of the Corps had their own reasons for staying with the trade group. Today, however, they’d all been contacted in advance about the Labyrinth Suppression Forces’ expedition and had been on standby in the Labyrinth City in case of the unlikely worst-case scenario. While it was unfortunate that a stampede had begun, it was incredibly fortunate that the Corps, usually preferring to help only in discreet ways, chose to get involved. “With our fighting power, around the twentieth stratum is probably the most we can handle. No matter what, if we fight, let’s do it on the stratum where Lynx fell.” After someone among them had said that, the members of the trade group headed for the twentieth stratum, which, unbeknownst to them, was in need of aid. With several armored lizardmen chomping on it, the death lizard’s movements were more sluggish than they would have otherwise been. The members of the Black Iron Freight Corps watched its approach as bloody saliva dripped from its quartered mouth. Edgan charged his dual swords with magical power to strike down the monster. “My left arm is a pedestal for flames; my right arm a pedestal for……” “Now that the anchor is set, heave-ho, Shield Bash. It’s done, Donnino.” “Right. Mega Hammer!” There was a loud thud, followed by a whomping noise. Before Edgan had been able to strike down the death lizard in style, Grandel had opened his umbrella and thrust it into the ground handle-first in place of an actual anchor. Then Nick had driven the “anchor” into the ground with his hammer. With Grandel’s weapon now firmly rooted in the ground, his Shield Bash sent the attacking monster flying. Grandel’s slender build meant he could never repel a death lizard on his own. Knowing this, he’d angled the umbrella he was using as a shield diagonally to deflect the impact of the attack. What was more, the handle had remained anchored against the attack. After the setup, all Grandel had to do was simply open and close the umbrella. Despite being rather gaunt and enervated, Grandel had definitely manned an attack of “legendary hero” caliber. Newie recovered the umbrella, now in tatters after sending the death lizard flying, and handed a new one to Grandel. Apparently, this was a system that had been worked out in advance; Nick was in charge of setting the anchor, and Newie was in charge of reloading. The Shield Bash knocked the death lizard toward the ceiling, and when it fell back down, Donnino’s hammer turned its head into ground meat. Donnino boasted incredible strength, but his speed and accuracy meant he needed help to strike at opportune moments. Apparently, the death lizard was still alive in some form after the attack, as it twitched from its spot on the ground. Perhaps that was to be expected of a high-ranking monster, but its head had been flattened. Were death lizards’ brains somewhere other than their skulls? The armored lizards attached to the death lizard had gone flying with it and fallen off partway through its soaring arc, but they were unconcerned with that. They armored lizards quickly resumed gnawing at the other monster with little regard for anything else. “Surfeit Heal.” Franz used a peculiar type of recovery magic on both the chomping armored lizards and the death lizard to heal the bite wounds on the now-distorted head Donnino had crushed and to glue all the armored lizards to those injuries. This resulted in a single mass of monster meat. A skill that forcibly manipulated parts of creatures’ bodies in such a way could hardly have been called “healing.” This technique that transfigured the flesh of a living thing wasn’t something humans could use. Only a demi-human like the masked Franz was capable of it. This inherent ability of Franz’s went beyond mere recovery, and he had only ever dared to show it to the Black Iron Freight Corps before. The joined mass of monsters, with both their fangs and their claws impeded, was now little more live bait awaiting the finishing blow.