NOVEL WEB Chapter 25
Already, the morning of Dennis’s class had begun.
Normally, there would always be a man wearing a Black Knight’s helmet. But when he wasn’t there,
“Licht, hasn’t come?”
the red-haired Mage was asking Kain.
“Uh..? I guess not. Have you seen Helmet Guy?”
“He dashed out from dawn, so I thought he left something in the classroom….”
Kainel frowned, feeling uneasy. He wasn’t the kind of person to just disappear without a word.
“..Maybe he won’t come during Drake’s lecture?”
“Where could he have gone? Helmet Guy..”
Ariel looked around, searching for Licht, but the only person in the classroom wearing a knight’s helmet was now Mardol.
“..Weird.”
Licht suddenly skipping class was unusual.
The white-haired girl intuitively sensed something. Wolf Ears were twitching slightly from under the helmet.
*
Hero Church.
To put it briefly, it’s a cult that still believes in the four summoned heroes from the past.
Why a cult, you ask? Because those guys have all fallen and become Demon Kings.
Seems like the namer really has a case of ‘middle school syndrome’. They should at least rename it to Demon King Church.
A great war took place because of it, and both [Night Heart] and [Black Heart] are often mentioned.
‘The ones who ended the war are the current Ten Heroes.’
Nex and I left the Academy and stood still at some place.
Like in the game, a massive boulder was slightly touching the school’s barrier, pretending to be out of place.
It was definitely a suspicious location. Were they using some kind of magic to hinder recognition? I thought, looking at the magic circle drawn on the rock.
“This is it.”
My body having a low affinity for magic was actually helpful in times like this.
“Isn’t there just… a huge rock here? Huh?”
“We need to smash this rock.”
Knocking on the boulder that was the size of a house. Originally, this part would fly away revealing a staircase.
“Wow, it’s true. When the junior touched it, something weird showed up.”
In the sunset’s secret place.
Just like the saying ‘it’s dark under the lamp’, there was a hidden instance dungeon right underneath.
There were clues that the Hero Church had been there, like a long explanation and the four Holy Swords of their insignia, and even pieces of white priest robes popped out.
Additionally, the name was ‘Secret Meeting Place’.
If someone vanished overnight from the Academy, this place would be the most likely spot.
“Should we… smash it? Or melt it with fire?”
“I’ll do it.”
Physically, my body was still too weak. No matter how strong the Phoenix was, it’s not a Holy Relic.
“Chirp..”
Plus, maybe it was due to worrying about Schartines, but I looked a bit worn out as well. If it were normal, I wouldn’t mind, but now seemed different.
“In the end, I’m using everything I’ve learned.”
I drew my sword.
Gold grazed against the sheath, making a clinking sound. This should be enough. I could unleash a Void Slash a couple more times.
‘Let’s use the Reverse Scale Stab now.’
Finding the most assured method, I took my stance toward the target. The ground scraped under my foot.
Drake Style 2.
The last remaining gap among the three basic swordsmanship movements: stabbing, slashing, and cutting.
A technique that strikes the dragon’s weak point. Designed precisely to pierce even the hardest parts effortlessly.
Every object has its weakness.
I had to focus on speed. The sensitivity in my fingertips heightened. I held my breath for a moment.
Touching the reverse scale would make the dragon furious, trying to kill the attacker, so it became the foundation of the sword pattern to thrust into the opening before it could retaliate.
For a rock like this, I could easily smash it. Normally, I would pierce through even the firmest dragon scales.
“Step back.”
“..Got it, Senior.”
I calmly told Nex. I couldn’t let mana flow through my body. I needed to push with my physical strength, so I had to concentrate as much as possible.
─Kaaang!
To protect the Nameless Saintess, I put forth all my effort. I couldn’t let it go to waste here.
The sound of metal striking stone echoed. Rocks crumbled with a thud. Time was of the essence. I needed to slice through even faster.
─Ching!
A little more, faster.
I mixed in Shadow Slashes, sending bouncing shards flying outward as best as possible. I poured in my flurry of attacks. The durability of the blade wasn’t something I could afford to think about now.
“Senior, what kind of swordsmanship is this?! It’s not even explosion magic!”
Just a bit more.
I was sick of facing scenarios where someone meets a bad ending.
─Kagaagagak!!
Like an excavator digging into the ground, the rock began to crack and crumble. The sounds of metal and stone exploded, vibrating the ground like construction noise.
“..It’s done.”
I exhaled slightly, feeling the tingling in my hands. It was tough, but bearable. I had undergone more severe training with my master for several nights and days.
“Wow.. you did all this..? So you really are a student of Drake?”
“Were you just fooling around?”
“Yeah, to be honest, there are many impersonators.”
Just a few minutes passed. I crushed the gigantic boulder that was standing like a cornerstone and threw it aside. I’d have to catch the Demon King later, but this was nothing.
What emerged was a staircase that radiated a creepy atmosphere.
As if to indicate it was a place we shouldn’t enter, it emanated a chill that sent shivers down my spine.
“..But how did you know this even though you aren’t a Sage’s student, Senior?”
“It’s suspicious, isn’t it? Who on earth would place such a rock in a flat Academy?”
“Is that so..?”
Did I finally succeed in covering up? No, it seemed like Nex was onto me. His amethyst eyes expressed suspicion as they glanced between the staircase and me several times.
“Well, it doesn’t matter now. This is the right place, right?”
“Yeah. That’s right.”
But soon, he seemed to dismiss his doubts. A serious expression, full of resolve, was directed toward me.
‘Is he trusting me even though he knows it’s a lie?’
Calling someone would be dangerous as I didn’t know what might come out from within, and waiting for the guards would take too long.
‘Status Window.. since it’s not showing now, we must have a chance.’
Since morning, the percentage had dropped to 47%, now it wasn’t visible in front of me. This must mean I was at a crossroad of choices. There was no time to waste.
“I feel like if we run into trouble, the Ten Heroes will come looking for us.”
“We don’t have time to hesitate. Let’s hurry down.”
“Understood. Senior.”
The two men dashed into the pitch-black underground where not a single ray of sunlight shone.
The party of a Knight and a Spirit Mage entered the instance dungeon.
*
“Creepy, isn’t it, Senior?”
“Still, with the Phoenix around, it’s a bit better.”
“Chirp.”
In the darkness, a violet flame flickered like a lantern. Thanks to that, the front was slightly visible.
In the game, lighting magic was essential for dungeon exploration like Merak… but I wasn’t doing so well now, right?
I remembered an incident from the day before. I knew that if another person used a medium instead of a circuit, I could use magic, but why did I learn it through the Crown Prince route?
My head throbbed. How wonderful it would be if my name appeared on the Status Window since it’s confirmed on the Saintess route. I still had so much to learn.
Currently, this dungeon felt different from what I knew of its structure.
“This path is too rugged.”
“I can’t deny that.”
The passage twisted and turned like an ant hill; after all, we were likely to have to navigate a maze ahead.
Normally, if you took the long and narrow route, you would see an open area at the end where the boss room was located.
‘The starting structure is more brutal than the original.’
I pondered this. Unlike my previous life, this time, it’s a matter of life and death for someone. I needed to find a way out.
Ah, I know the way.
“Nex, Senior.”
“What is it, Licht?”
Even though it’s a game, this world is real. I momentarily lost sight of that fact.
Structures aren’t invincible.
Originally, it would be impossible to destroy the dungeon structure, but this place is different.
“Let’s break through the wall.”
“..What did you just say?”
“We’re out of time. After this, it’s a maze anyway, like the path we just came through.”
I drew my sword again. I brushed my palm across the cave wall. Thankfully, this part was softer. But was this shielded by magic like a rock?
“I’ll make a path.”
“What..? Is that even possible? This spell has different incantations at every turn? A highly defensive magic….”
“It’s possible.”
It’s unfortunate for those losers from the Hero Church, but it doesn’t affect me.
If it were the same magic, I wouldn’t be able to, but I can’t even coat the blade in mana. That’s why my sword’s edge is dull.
“Hold your breath.”
I unleashed a Void Slash toward the front. With a sound like Boom─! several layers of rocks crumbled into dust.
“..What the? Is this your Majesty’s.. no, a Void Slash?”
Like a bomb going off, the maze blocking the way shattered into powder, creating a long path forward.
“..Chirp.”
Nex’s face turned pale. Even Sparrows were trembling while looking at me. Why were they acting like this? Without this, learning Drake Style would be meaningless.
It wouldn’t even reach the Demon King with this level.
“If you had such a thing, you should have used it earlier, Junior…”
“The durability is lacking. I thought about carrying a spare sword just for this, but the air pressure frayed it too.”
I wish there had been a sword I used in the old game here.
“..How did Drake use that?”
“It’s a sword made from dragon teeth. Do you think it’s a mass-produced item?”
Frankly, seeing something like this made me a bit envious of my master. I want some hidden pieces or even an overpowered item. Even a Holy Sword would do… wait, I’m not a Hero, am I?
“You can go ahead.”
“Sure.”
The wall came crashing down with a thud, revealing a spacious area. The wind blew in, ventilating the narrow passage.
“This seems like the right path, Senior.”
“Let’s hurry.”
Unlike before, where it was dark, now there were lights illuminating the exit.
But something felt off. With every step forward, an overwhelming sensation pricked my nose.
“Ugh, what’s that smell…”
“Rotting corpses… damn those bastards.”
Stepping inside, a foul stench wafted through the air. The acrid smell of decaying flesh. The lingering stench of blood. All of this signified one thing.
A place resembling a coliseum surrounded by barbed wire appeared.
“….”
Nex and I stood in silence before the horrifying sight revealed before us.
Two piles of people dressed in white clothes were stacked on either side.
Hands and feet intermingled haphazardly, forming a grotesque mass.
“Crazy…”
“I expected this, but it’s absurd.”
Blood was still flowing out from beneath, slowly soaking into the ground. Just stepping forward left bloodstains beneath our feet.
We advanced towards the coliseum-like location, and Nex looked to me, confused.
“..Corpses? But why are they dead among the Hero Church?”
“Because they stabbed each other to death.”
I had known this would come out in the sequel, but here, there were no skeletons.
My face wrinkled. I felt breathless and dizzy.
“It’s a common punishment.”
“So, this isn’t voluntary?”
“If you get labeled a heretic, this is what happens.”
I’d seen it plenty in the game. Describing villains didn’t require lengthy explanations.
“They called the Hero the Demon King.”
Hero Church? But why do such scenes flash in my mind?
[Black Heart].. I had seen it there. It was a foreshadowing moment.
Regardless, this guy really loved cruel narratives. It was just glossed over in the original.
If you got involved with those guys while clearing quests, there were plenty of sad stories.
I sighed, feeling melancholic.
“Putting them in a coliseum… forcing each other to fight to the death.”
“..And they enjoy it? Why on earth?”
These were seriously deranged people. They claimed they would revive the dead, provide wealth and honor, reveal the future, and grant immense power, but in return…
“Unless they do that, they won’t even let you join.”
A cult that demands thorough faith according to its standards.
Nex, seeing my knowledge about the Hero Church, seemed to have questions bubbling up.
“..I’ve heard rumors about reviving the dead. But is that real?”
“It’s just a copycat of the real person.”
“And the future?”
“If you want to go crazy, I’ll recommend it.”
“..I’ll pass, Senior.”
The truth was that it was all an illusion. Because it was the Demon King’s power, not a Hero’s. There was no way it would be applied correctly in this world.
“They’re just garbage.”
“Now you see why the Ten Heroes have been so still.”
“The truly vile ones turned out to be them. So, if they notice us here…”
“They could attack the Academy, knowing the heroes are absent.”
Nex, the purple-haired man, nodded slightly.
He understood why he had to run around begging for Schartines’s help even when the Ten Heroes rejected him.
“Surely, it was right for just the two of us to come.”
“I feel like I’m about to throw up… how are you staying so calm, Senior?”
“I’ve lived through some rough patches too.”
Even Nex, who descended from the Ten Heroes, was losing his composure and was about to vomit.
My judgment of not bringing Kainel and Ariel was correct. They would have struggled to maintain their sanity.
Looking at it this way, calling the Crown Prince as an ally was also a miscalculation.
‘Demon King, thinking about it, everyone here is alive.’
In a world like this, it seems my wish for a happy ending might have been a bit excessive.
“You too fell victim to the Hero Church.”
“..It’s similar.”
That wasn’t a lie. Ever since I possessed this body, I’d stood at the brink of danger, surrounded by a wolf pack.
I’d seen countless bad endings where the Nameless Saintess dies, even after catching the Demon King. My chest felt heavy like a lump of lead.
“Let’s go, the Schartines senior should be ahead.”
“She’s alive, right..?”
“She should be. That’s just her nature.”
I bit down on my lower lip. She was obsessed with counting lives. She wouldn’t kill anyone without at least considering it first.
On the contrary, she was thorough in that aspect. The Status Window still showed no response. If I had failed, there would have been an alert immediately.
“Chirp.. chirp..!”
Nex’s Phoenix flapped its wings anxiously. By now, it should have received some information from the family head. The spirit was expressing excessive worry.
“..Is the Demon King ahead?”
“No, if that were the case, we wouldn’t even have found this place.”
“What do you mean?”
“Probably just a single Apostle.”
That fact was undeniable. He was likely observing from afar while placing his subordinates.
I raised my head and looked ahead. There was a red-painted door.
That should be the boss room.
If my memory served correctly, the remnants of the boss left in the dungeon were not the Demon King but one of the Apostles.
He wouldn’t be one to easily come out himself.
“…”
There could be another Demon King, but why do I think this way?
Among the Ten Heroes, the one who manages a library often referred to as the Akashic Records, was Laplace.
The power that rendered seers unable to see uncertain futures was,
‘Demon King of All Knowledge.’
The final boss of [Night Heart].
There was no one else.
“I’m certain we can rescue her. That means we’re still outside Head’s calculations.”
“..I’ll believe you, Licht.”