Charlotte, Isabella, Balutak, Estizel, Celina.

I gathered all the members of the dungeon and pointed at Cecilia with a flourish.

“Let me introduce you to our new dungeon member, Cecilia.”

Clap, clap, clap!

Cheers and applause erupted from around us.

Contrary to the atmosphere, Isabella and Balutak wore pretty sour faces.

“W-welcome, Miss Cecilia…”

“Kirik…”

They looked like they’d seen a ghost.

Well, it was understandable given that Cecilia had sent them packing almost to the River Jordan, and I secretly felt the same.

Only Charlotte shot glances at Cecilia, seemingly unfazed.

Cecilia scanned her subordinates with half-open eyes.

When she looked at the others like this, her dim eyes seemed devoid of emotion.

Even her tone held no highs or lows, making her come across as an emotionless ice princess, even more so than Charlotte.

In the game, Cecilia had been that kind of character too.

“Cecilia.”

“Did you call for me?”

Strangely, whenever she looked directly at me, her eyes sparkled, and her voice carried a noticeable emotion.

No matter how much I thought of her as a student, it was just plain fascinating.

What, does she have a hidden emotion switch? Am I the trigger?

Shaking off my absurd thoughts, I gestured toward my subordinates.

“From now on, think of them as family. Get along without fighting.”

“Yes, Master.”

The introductions were done, but I needed to assign Cecilia a formal title.

Everyone had a title like sentinel or lieutenant, and it wouldn’t do for her to be the only one without one.

[Lv. 93]

Hmm. In practical terms, she is the boss of this dungeon, but still.

The common notion is that the right-hand woman of a dungeon boss is a mid-boss, while the left-hand one is a lieutenant.

“Mid-bosses are a bit ridiculous, though.”

In my opinion, that combination of words felt a tad ridiculous.

At least, in the Sanctuary of Faith, there’s no such position as mid-boss.

After thinking for a bit, I decided to gauge Cecilia’s thoughts.

“What title would suit you in the dungeon?”

“I’d like to be Master’s disciple.”

That’s not a title, though.

As I silently stared, Cecilia stroked the back of her neck and sighed.

“I think Master’s knight… the guard knight would be nice.”

“That works.”

Cecilia, the dungeon boss level, is my guard knight?

Just having her beside me felt more reliable than an army. Of course, that was under the assumption she was entirely on my side.

‘Still, as long as nothing major happens, she should be on my side, right?’

Cecilia, who had only been observing my subordinates, was the first to approach them.

As she moved closer, Balutak and Isabella visibly flinched.

“I’m sorry about what happened back then.”

“Ahaha… It’s, um, okay. It was a good experience…”

“Kirik! If you kill someone and apologize, it doesn’t count! I don’t like Balutak!”

“Nice to meet you, Knight! I’m Estizel ranked 50th! I used to be 72nd, but my skills have been going up lately, so I’ve been climbing the ranks…”

In contrast to those two, Estizel showed no signs of fear and boasted about her rank instead.

She probably only heard about Cecilia’s fear but had never witnessed it.

If she had, she would have been cowering behind the other two like a mouse.

Meanwhile, Cecilia gazed thoughtfully at the young witches.

Was she admiring them for their cuteness, or just pondering? Her gaze lingered before suddenly turning towards me.

“Why are those witches here?”

Was she not looking at them just out of cuteness?

Her one line carried a straightforward skepticism.

Why was I keeping around those little witches who were of no help at all?

This was a dungeon where useful monsters were recruited. So, it was a perfectly reasonable question.

However, that was the case for other dungeons; I, being human, had no desire to pursue mere practicality.

“I brought them here for protection.”

“…Protection?”

“They are children who almost got killed by the Great Sage. The outside world seems dangerous, so I decided to take care of them here.”

No sooner had I finished speaking when I felt a slight jolt in my shoulders.

Cecilia was looking at me with a sweet smile.

“You haven’t changed, Master.”

Where did that come from? I tilted my head unknowingly.

At that moment, Cecilia’s eyes quivered, and her mouth opened slightly.

“…Have you forgotten everything?”

She kept saying things I didn’t understand.

It felt like she was asking if I had completely lost my past memories.

‘Half true, half false.’

I possessed the memories of my past life, just not those of this body.

Fortunately, there existed a comforting setting whereby the Undead forget their previous lives.

There was no way she’d suspect me of feigning amnesia.

But to claim I had completely forgotten would be untrue as my current self and actions have been quite strong.

To avoid suspicion, I decided to embellish slightly.

“I don’t have most of the memories.”

Merely saying those few words brought all of Cecilia’s actions to a halt.

She looked up at me with her eyes still swirling.

“Master, what is your name?”

“I don’t know.”

“Ah…”

With a sigh, her eyes filled with regret.

Before I could register what was happening, Cecilia suddenly wrapped her arms around me.

Oh great, I might have just gained another toy from the Hell Spawn.

“Why are you doing this again?”

“Just… you seem so pitiful, Master.”

“….”

“I’m sorry. It’s all my fault. If I hadn’t been there, you would still have your memories…”

All I could see was the top of Cecilia’s head.

Even though I couldn’t see her face, it was clear she was probably sniffling.

“Your name is Lucas. The Hero of the Empire, Lucas.”

“Hero?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

After that, Cecilia continued to talk about me, unknown to me.

Her tone was muffled as her face was buried against my body, but I could understand most of it.

Cecilia claimed that I, her master, was the former hero Lucas. A tragic hero executed for saving a witch.

‘Who the hell is Lucas?’

Even I, with my 30k hours of gaming experience, had never heard of him.

If a hero was executed, he must have left a big mark on the world.

Yet, it was strange that I, someone not new, didn’t know him.

Was he a character missing from the game, or was a real person removed from the game?

No matter what, overthinking would only deepen my curiosity.

According to what I heard, the high-ranking officials of the Empire likely knew about this but had hidden it.

There hadn’t been a single mention of Lucas in the newspapers I’d glimpsed through.

Well, if a former hero returned as the boss of the dungeon, it would be chaotic for sure.

I thought it was scary, but how scared must the citizens of the Empire be?

They must have hidden it to avoid that kind of disturbance.

‘But I’m not Lucas.’

If I were truly the hero Lucas, I wouldn’t be a puny Death Knight.

Yet the more I listened to Cecilia, the more I understood why she was mistaken.

The Undead wielding a holy sword and all the circumstances combined indicated the world was pushing me to be Lucas.

Anyway, I’m saying I’m not Lucas!

“It’s okay even if you’ve forgotten everything. I’ll remember it all for you.”

“…Grr.”

“Master’s memories can be rebuilt. We’ll be together for a lifetime─”

Her words were abruptly cut off as Cecilia’s body was lifted back.

She floated slightly in the air, the intangible force clearly the telekinetic magic of Charlotte.

As expected, Charlotte shot Cecilia a sharp look.

“This is a sacred territory. Don’t touch it with your filthy body. There’s a limit to my leniency.”

“…Hah.”

Like sparks flying in the air, their gazes collided.

Seeing Charlotte’s level made it clear why she was on high alert.

I wasn’t clueless like a typical subculture male protagonist; I was just an Undead without male anatomy.

It wouldn’t be embarrassing if a catfight broke out over an alpha male, but being an Undead with no biological assets made things awkward.

From bone-wielding witches to heroes, this world was definitely going haywire.

Necrophilia is the most off-putting thing in this life.

As I noticed the level colors of the two, my head started to spin.

“My lord. This girl has a high possibility of betrayal. You know that humans are a treacherous species, right?”

“Aren’t you human as well?”

“…That girl is the hero of the Empire. Our natures are different.”

“No, that’s not it. I’m Master’s disciple first and foremost. You were Master’s student before any of that.”

“That’s just your misunderstanding. This person here is the lord of the Sanctuary of Faith.”

Intervening between them is like a shrimp caught in a whale fight.

I scanned the surroundings for help, but where the heck did those guys go?

I spotted Balutak and Isabella making a hasty retreat in the distance.

In fact, the rest had dispersed and disappeared long ago.

This is a real mess. Are they even my subordinates?

“A talkative witch. I should have killed you back then.”

“Are you saying I tried to kill the boss?”

“…Damn it.”

A murderous tension hung thick between the two. I was the only one caught in the middle, gasping for air.

The so-called subordinates just passed the buck to me… Man, dungeon management is chaotic nowadays.

“Let’s call it a day.”

“Come out right now, or I’ll rip your head off.”

“Rip my head off? My, such vulgar language. No wonder your mouth is as vulgar as your brain.”

By now, Cecilia had raised the Moonlight Blade.

From Charlotte’s side, a dark magic circle began to integrate like gears.

At this rate, the dungeon could collapse in an instant.

“You’re exiled. Get out.”

I spoke with half conviction.

If all they were going to do was fight, what purpose was there in having them around?

Finally, the two looked at me and sheathed their weapons, stopping their magic.

“I’m sorry. I won’t do it again.”

“…I apologize.”

“You should have done this earlier instead of wasting time.”

Sighing heavily, I feigned seriousness and lifted my chin.

“As part of the higher-ups in the dungeon, maintain your composure. There won’t be a second chance. If you clash again, both of you will be exiled…”

I trailed off, distracted by an unfamiliar sight that caught my eye.

A pink portal stood out to me. The only pink portal I remembered was one.

…My ominous premonitions never turn out to be wrong.

Soon, a tall woman dressed in a red dress emerged from the portal.

As a man, my eyes instinctively drifted to her more impressive chest than face.

[Lv. 93]

Her level color blended with the portal’s protective hue.

The owner of that level, Roseha, locked eyes on me first.

With her trademark sly smile, she waved her hand playfully.

“Hey there! I heard the news and came right away.”

Her gaze wandered away from me to survey the surroundings.

The instant her eyes landed on Cecilia, they sharpened.

“It’s you, huh?”

Cecilia reacted by raising the Moonlight Blade.

Clang!

As the ethereal force struck the blade, the impact made Cecilia stumble backwards.

The ground beneath us dented in response. The friction happened in a flash, leaving me no time to intervene.

Clip-clop, clip-clop.

Roseha moved leisurely, making dainty sounds. Her blood-red eyes fixated menacingly on Cecilia.

“You’re the human who tried to kill my husband?”

“…Roseha of the castle.”

“You know me well. Then you must know what will happen to you.”

A surge of ethereal energy rose, enveloping everything with a bone-chilling pressure.

At that moment, Roseha’s smiling face hardened into an icy glare.

“You should experience death once too.”

Ah.

Why do all the women around me look like this?