Chapter 128

“…So, I stopped Damien from trying to destroy the door. I wasn’t sure if it was the right call, but… turns out it was the correct decision after all.”

Freide smiled and shook her head slightly.

It was indeed the right call.

I absentmindedly touched the bandage on my cheek and glanced at Damien, who was sleeping soundly, completely oblivious.

That reckless idiot.

He was just going to smash the portal? If Freide hadn’t been there, it would’ve been a disaster. Seriously.

I almost…

A shiver ran down my spine, like I’d swallowed an icicle.

Does that guy even realize what he almost did? Probably not. No way he’d get it.

These portals, if one side gets destroyed, they immediately go haywire.

The magic itself breaks down, either failing to activate or, even if it does, you don’t end up on the other side.

Instead of arriving… you’d get caught in the gaps of space and torn to shreds in an instant.

Starving to death or being torn apart.

Both are equally horrifying ways to go.

In other words, Freide is basically my lifesaver.

Not that I plan to tell her that, though.

I can already imagine how much she’d milk it if she found out.

“You did well. Your judgment is as sharp as ever. Is that the wisdom of an elder or something?”

“Elder? That makes me sound so old. There’s only a year between us, isn’t there?”

Freide, with her arms crossed, tilted her head slightly and gave me a sharp look.

She tapped her arm with her index finger… Seems like she’s really not happy with the “elder” title.

“A year is still a year, though. So, what happened after that?”

“Hmm… Changing the subject, huh? Fine, I’ll let it slide. After that… we decided to explore the rooms on either side first. There might’ve been a passage leading further in, and even if you were going to reappear, we had no way of knowing how long it’d take.”

So, they must’ve been wandering around in the meantime.

Seeing as they’re resting here again, it seems there wasn’t any passage after all.

“The left room was like an armory. Old weapons and armor were scattered everywhere. Everything was broken and rusted, so there was nothing worth taking. There was a passage that seemed to lead further in, but the ceiling had collapsed, blocking it.”

Freide shrugged and pointed to the right door with her finger.

“So, we came back out and headed for that door. There was a long corridor that stretched on… and then monsters started popping out.”

Freide was about to continue her explanation when…

“Um, Senior Freide?”

Milia, who had been wrapping my wounds with bandages, called out to Freide.

“Huh? I’m in the middle of talking with Ha-shal-leur. Do you have something to say?”

“It’s about that story. Do we really need to talk about it here? The magic is still lingering… and Ha-shal-leur’s injuries need proper treatment from a priest.”

An undeniable truth.

“You’re right. There’s no real need to talk about it here… Hmm. Should we head back then? The monsters deeper inside must’ve been taken care of by Ha-shal-leur anyway. We can talk more on the way back.”

Freide nodded and stood up.

Naturally, she assumed I’d cleared out the entire dungeon and returned.

“About that… I didn’t finish them off.”

It was an embarrassing confession, but it was a problem that needed to be addressed. For the sake of what comes next.

From my perspective, this dungeon absolutely needed to be sealed off.

“What? I think I misheard you. Can you say that again?”

Freide looked at me in disbelief.

Milia, who had been trying to wake Damien, also stared at me with a puzzled expression.

“I didn’t finish them off and had to retreat. That place deeper inside is pure hell.”

I shook my head vigorously, as if I never wanted to set foot there again.

And honestly, I didn’t.

At least not until I was strong enough to take on that Undead Knight.

“Hell? What on earth did you face? You said earlier it was just some mid-tier monsters.”

“Of course, I took care of those. The problem is, that wasn’t the end of it.”

“There were more monsters? That’s way too many.”

Exactly.

At this point, any dungeon we find should only have one or two mid-tier monsters at most.

But this dungeon, accessible only to those with skills beyond the mid-tier, was completely unbalanced.

“Have you heard of the warriors of Baltir? Seven of them, and on top of that, an Undead Knight as strong as all of them combined. A monster that could destroy the ground with a single swing of its sword.”

“Baltir… Baltir… Oh, right. I remember now. Those monsters that look like beastmen. They appeared in the north about ten years ago… There were seven of them? And an Undead Knight on top of that? Good grief, to think you had to face that…”

“Half the Empire’s masters would be needed for that. It was pure luck that we managed to escape.”

Freide let out a sigh. It was indeed something to be surprised about.

Thanks to them fighting among themselves and falling together, we could escape. But if they had united and attacked me, I probably wouldn’t have lasted long.

“That’s right, the Undead Knight and those guys were fighting each other. It was strange, but it saved my life.”

“Monsters fighting each other? You’re not joking, are you?”

She seemed skeptical.

I get it. I couldn’t have imagined such a thing happening before I saw it myself.

I’ve never even seen monsters attacking each other in games.

I didn’t bother to answer and just kept a serious expression.

Sometimes, a simple expression can be more persuasive than a hundred words.

Sure enough, after seeing my expression, Freide seemed to accept it as the truth and let out a deep sigh.

“…I guess you’re serious. So, what do we do now…?”

Freide bowed her head as if pondering.

Deep wrinkles formed on her furrowed brow.

“I have one plan in mind. Want to hear it?”

“A plan? What is it?”

As the saying goes, if you can’t beat your opponent, trap them.

“We bury this dungeon entirely. Break the doors and collapse the passages so nothing can escape.”

It was a crude but somewhat realistic solution.

Even if the Undead Knight could destroy the ground, compared to this rocky mountain, it would only be a small part.

Once we collapse the passages, swinging a sword to dig out would be impossible.

If they tried, the ceiling would collapse from the shock before they could swing a few times.

No matter how strong that Undead Knight is, what can a single sword do against a collapsing mountain?

Unless it has the destructive power to pierce through this rocky mountain in one strike, it won’t be able to escape.

“Are you serious? I don’t think you fully understand, but the value of this ruin could change human history. It would be better to inform the Empire and gather as many masters as possible to exterminate it…”

“Only if this technology doesn’t leak out. If a method to permanently activate magic without a magician falls into the hands of other races, imagine Suin legions using magic to invade. How many people would die? It’s too dangerous.”

“That’s true, but…”

“Even if it’s not monsters, this ruin should be sealed anyway. The inside is irreversibly contaminated.”

I told Freide about the lake of magic.

Even if we somehow manage to exterminate the Undead Knight, purifying that lake would be impossible even with ten Lacys.

In the end, the best course of action is to collapse it to prevent the magic from leaking and seal it off as a forbidden zone.

I didn’t mention it, but the phenomenon that occurred before the Warriors of Valtir appeared also bothered me.

The approach of a god-like being. Summoning monsters to kill me suggests it’s not a benevolent god.

Fortunately, it ended without incident, but… it was a bizarre experience that’s hard to explain.

Would such a thing only happen to me? I can’t be sure.

It might not just be me; it could also target others who come here later.

This place is dangerous in many ways.

Destroying it is the right choice.

“Hmm… Ugh… You might not be wrong…”

Freide, deep in thought, kept fiddling with her hair.

From her perspective as an Imperial, it must feel like a waste to give up an opportunity to make the Empire stronger.

But hey, what can you do if I insist?

If Freide keeps opposing, I’ll push through forcefully.

Our relationship might sour, but… fighting with a friend is much better than watching the world go to ruin.

“But Ha-shal-leur, how do you plan to collapse the passages even if the doors are broken?”

Milia, who had been listening, quietly spoke up.

Well, I’ll just smash them on my way out.

It shouldn’t be too hard. Just break the parts that support the weight.