Chapter 20 The Two Heroes

1

Zara was transported to some unknown location.

A level-up occurred immediately, and his body was restored. His injuries were healed, and his exhaustion dissipated.

The place was dark, lacked any wind, and there were no signs of life. There were flat, circular stones in the center of the room, shining with blue light.

It felt like he was inside a labyrinth. But he didn’t know of any labyrinths with rooms that looked like this. It was shaped like the top half of the inside of a round fruit.

He checked his equipment. He had Bora’s Sword, Alestra’s Bracelet, Raika’s Ring, and Bolton’s Charm all equipped. Ende’s Shield and Kaldan’s Dagger were stored in his Treasury.

Zara waited for his body to become accustomed to the room. He had moved suddenly from the desert, where the sun was beating down, into a dark room made of stone, so adjusting would take some time.

He checked his adventurer medal and found that he had become level 80.

Wait. Is my Night Vision skill not working?

That was a skill he had obtained from defeating a monster in the Sazardon Labyrinth, and it automatically activated within labyrinths. If that hadn’t activated, that meant this was not a labyrinth.

It feels like a labyrinth, though.

He could not see an exit. The only thing he could see was the stones shining with blue light in the center of the room.

Zara made to move toward the blue stones. At that moment, he heard a voice.

“Zara?”

Before he could figure out where the voice came from or muster a response, he heard it again.

“It really is Zara. Don’t move. I’ll head toward you now.”

Before he had time to remember whose voice it was, a spectral figure emerged in the dark room.

It was the beautiful man he had met in the Elstoran Labyrinth one year ago. He was a rare sorcerer and a dungeon maker. He was also the husband of the dragon god Kaldan.

“Mr. Ghost. It’s been a while. How have you been?”

“It does indeed feel like some time has passed. I don’t seem to be doing well. My real body is dead. I have become a ghost in the truest sense. I only have a very short amount of time left in this world.”

“What?”

“There’s no time to explain. Do you know what kind of place this is?”

“No. I just heard a voice in my head saying that the time has come for me to fulfill an agreement and become a blade, and suddenly I was here.”

“It sounds like you really are here by the will of the gods. It was probably the same for the other person. Either that or they came here from a labyrinth after fulfilling the requirements. Anyway, I can’t believe they would use a human. Zara. This is a very unique place. It is a place where warped blessings are gathered.”

“Oh, is this the deva labyrinth? If it is, then I know that skills that should work in labyrinths won’t work here.”

“How did you come by that knowledge?”

“I heard it from a monk at Jan’Majar Temple.”

“Jan’Majar? Ah, that strangely amorous monk. If you already know that, then this will be quick. The reason you were summoned here is undoubtedly because the warped spirits have grown to the point where they can’t be ignored any longer. The gods have given you the role of killing them. Now that you’re here, you can’t leave until you have killed them all.”

“Did you build this place?”

“I did. But as I said to you before, I am not much of a fighter, and I can’t take on the warped spirits myself. For that reason, I made it so that they can’t reach me from within the labyrinth, and I can’t interfere with them from the outside. Do you know the structure of this place?”

“No. I heard that you can’t use items and skills specific to labyrinths; I know that it’s swirling with miasma and poison, and if you defeat the devas, the warped blessings will disappear. I don’t know anything about the structure.”

“This room is the entrance, and there are five lower floors. The warped spirits are born on each floor, but the number of them, the form they take, and their abilities differ each time. You do not gain experience for killing them, but after you defeat every enemy on the floor, you receive a level-up as a kind of bonus. At that point, the blue teleport stones will light up, and you will be able to move on. There is no other way to leave a room. The deeper the floor, the stronger the monsters. The one on the bottom floor is extremely powerful.”

“What are teleport stones?”

“They’re those stones over there that are shining with blue light. When you step onto them, you are teleported to the corresponding stones. In the case of this labyrinth, you can use them to advance to the lower floor. The way forward shines blue, and the way back shines red. All right, this next part is important. You have the five blessed items that Kaldan left behind with you, right? Equip all of them. Kaldan’s Dagger is especially important. Do not let it leave your body. If you drop it, you will likely die instantly.”

Zara withdrew Ende’s Shield and Kaldan’s Dagger from his Treasury. He inserted Kaldan’s Dagger into his belt and wrapped a leather strap around it tightly to ensure it wouldn’t fall.

The ghost continued to speak as Zara equipped the treasures.

“Someone entered the labyrinth before you. That person is probably fighting alone and ran into trouble with their advance through the labyrinth. I imagine that is the reason you were summoned.”

“So someone is fighting right now?”

“Yes. If anyone enters this room, it is treated as the highest emergency, and I am summoned. I somehow managed to appear in this ghostly form. This is the second time I have been summoned on this occasion. The first time ended abruptly. I had started to fade, but I was able to appear here again because I was summoned this second time. Truthfully, there is a hidden door in the tenth floor of the Sazardon Labyrinth that leads to the room where I sleep.”

“In the place that the minotaur came from?”

“That’s right. But I would like for you to keep this a secret. When Kaldan died, I went into an eternal slumber next to her casket. However, it seems that just recently, the container preserving my body broke down. I then died. The version of me here is essentially a mirage. I will soon disappear. Ah, don’t make that face. It doesn’t bother me. I had planned from the beginning to sleep for all eternity anyhow. I did promise I would give you a reward to repay my debt to you, though. I’m sorry I couldn’t fulfill that.”

“I appreciate your guidance more than anything.”

“I see. Thank you—you’re a nice person. Ah, shoot. I forgot about the most important thing. Once you defeat the enemies on the bottom floor, you will be automatically transported outside. Someone went in before you, but they have not come out yet. I am hearing quite a commotion from inside the labyrinth at the moment. That means they are still fighting.”

“Is that person alone?”

“Huh? Ah, that’s right. It’s not impossible it could be more than one person. Hmm. I don’t know how many people there are. If there are two or more people, they would have all entered here at the same time. Anyway, moving on. In this labyrinth, you can’t properly see anything other than yourself and the things you brought with you.”

“I won’t be able to see anything?”

“No, that’s not what I meant. You see warped versions of things. What is solid may appear soft. What is white may appear black. A strong and beautiful person may appear ugly and frail. You will meet whoever arrived here before you, but they might appear to you as a terrifying monster, so you should keep that in mind.”

“Understood. That’s very valuable information. Thank you very much.”

“Don’t mention it. Lastly, I’ll adjust your body for you.”

The ghost approached Zara, opened his right hand toward him, and closed his eyes. Zara felt his body being enveloped by a warm sensation.

“Truthfully, your level of strength is insufficient to enter this place. Your level is not high enough, and what’s more, your capabilities are not keeping up with your level. This place was not made for humans to enter, after all. Even so, you have the five blessed items and Bora’s Sword, so you should be able to fight a little. What’s more, the warped spirits can only use a small fraction of their power in this place. I just blended your body and spirit with Bora’s Sword. I also filled Raika’s Ring full of magical power. Do your best.”

“I will. Thank you very much.”

“I also have one thing I’d like to ask of you. If you ever happen across my daughter, please tell her I love her.”

The fact that he couldn’t go say that to her himself showed how weak the ghost was. He had saved the last of his remaining strength for Zara.

“I promise I’ll tell her.”

“I’m glad. That is another reason for you to live and get out of here. Mm-hmm. The era of humans needing to rely on labyrinths may already be coming to an end, Zara. I despaired for humanity and turned my back on the surface. But meeting you at the very end of my existence has reignited my faith in humans, and I can now rest in peace. The journey you showed me before was truly incredible. Thank you.”

Zara wanted to say something but couldn’t figure out what would be appropriate, and then the ghost started to disappear.

Zara suddenly remembered something that he wanted to ask.

“What is your name?”

The ghost looked a little surprised, then grinned widely and gave his name.

“Alestra.”

He then disappeared.

Zara felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

He stared at Alestra’s Bracelet on his left hand and thought about all the people it had saved.

Himself.

His father.

Percival.

The people of House Mercurius.

Zara performed a knight’s bow in the direction of the disappeared Alestra.

“Lord Alestra. I had already received from you the best gift you could have bestowed upon me.”

He gave his thanks with a small yet clear voice and then stepped onto the blue teleport stones.

2

The minotaur opened its eyes.

There was air. It was as stale and muggy as ever, but the minotaur was thankful it could breathe.

The minotaur had reached the blue stones just before it ran out of strength, and it was moved to the next location. It then fainted.

It inhaled as it lay collapsed on the ground. Its rough breathing gradually settled, and it got up once its strength had returned to its entire body. The minotaur then saw it was standing on red stones.

It was not in bad condition. Its right ankle that had been bitten off by the monster in the water had been restored.

This room was smaller than the ones before it. It was a little less than sixty paces from one end to the other. The floor was even and covered with coarse white sand, so there was nowhere to hide.

It did not see any enemies. There were only two fan-shaped boards, facing each other from the right and left edges of the room. If a human saw them, they might have thought they looked like giant seashells.

The boards were crooked in shape. They were smooth and shiny and released a beautiful, flickering light.

There was a jewel in the center of the room in between the two fan-shaped boards. It was enveloped by a light that appeared either white or silver, or perhaps pink or purple.

The minotaur was bare-handed. It had lost the weapons it was holding in the previous room. It drew a wide longsword from its Bag and stepped off the red stones.

The red jewel quickly released a flash of intense light. The minotaur readied itself for a fight, but the jewel once again went quiet.

It looked at the fan-shaped boards and noticed something that had not been there before.

Shadows.

A shadow as big as the minotaur itself was imprinted onto each of the boards. Beyond the size, the shape of each also somewhat resembled the minotaur.

The shadow on the right roused and began to move. It gradually swelled and then forced its way out of the board.

It was an exact copy of the minotaur. Even the weapon it was holding was the same.

It walked toward the minotaur.

The minotaur walked toward it.

What the minotaur had thought was white sand actually seemed to be either cast-off skin of small creatures or small broken bones.

Once its opponent was in range, the minotaur lifted its sword high and struck. Its opponent did the same thing, and their swords collided.

The monster’s strength, speed, timing, and the way it swung its sword were all exactly the same.

The minotaur unleashed three consecutive attacks, and its opponent fended them off.

Its opponent then unleashed three consecutive attacks, and the minotaur parried them as well.

They both took one step back to collect their breath.

 

We have the same strength.

 

At that moment, the shadow on the left board also came to life. It, too, was an exact copy of the minotaur and was holding the same weapon.

It looked like the minotaur had to fight two imitations at the same time. The minotaur did not once consider the disadvantage it was at, facing two enemies with its same abilities and equipment.

The minotaur’s attention was directed toward the heads of the two fakes.

They both had only half of their right horn. The same as itself.

Seeing that filled it with an unreasonable, violent anger.

The enemy nearest it struck at the minotaur. Fighting spirit burned within the minotaur, and it forced the enemy back.

The other enemy was approaching.

After the minotaur had the enemy in front of it on the back foot, it leaped backward to give itself plenty of room and then used Burning Breath.

A few seconds later, the two enemies both used Burning Breath as well.

 

These enemies can do the same things as I can.

They can also return my attacks.

But they can’t move at the exact same time as me, and the way they swing their swords and blow their breath is not exactly the same. That means they are imitating me while each attacking in their own individual way.

 

As the minotaur analyzed the enemies, they approached and entered its space.

The minotaur moved the longsword in its right hand to its left and drew its Zweihänder from its Bag. The Zweihänder was longer and heavier than the longsword that was now in its left hand.

The two enemies also pulled out a Zweihänder.

The minotaur appeared to lick the handle of the Zweihänder, and then it instantly entered Berserk Mode.

The two imitations also entered Berserk Mode.

Berserk Mode was a state that significantly increased the user’s attack power in exchange for significantly decreasing defense and intellect.

It slashed at the first enemy with the Zweihänder in its right hand. The enemy blocked the attack with its longsword.

The minotaur slashed with the longsword in its left. The enemy blocked it with its Zweihänder.

The second enemy attacked from the left. It struck the minotaur’s back with the Zweihänder it was holding in its right hand.

The attack was strong enough to kill, but the minotaur jumped forward to lessen the impact of the blow and then swept the Zweihänder in its right hand horizontally from right to left.

The minotaur’s jump carried into the space of the first enemy, which stooped down to avoid the Zweihänder and then thrust the longsword in its left hand at the minotaur’s abdomen.

The minotaur had no way of dodging it. The longsword stabbed deeply into the center of its abdomen.

The minotaur threw its Zweihänder at the second enemy on its left. The enemy failed to dodge, as if it had not expected the minotaur to throw its weapon in that circumstance, and the sword pierced its right thigh and threw off its balance.

The minotaur then walked toward the enemy that had pierced its sword through its abdomen, and it stabbed the longsword in its left hand through the enemy’s throat.

The enemy was slow to respond, as if it had not expected the minotaur to move toward it while willingly deepening its own wound.

The enemy was holding its Zweihänder in its right hand, but that weapon was not fit for attacking an opponent who had charged into one’s space, and the second enemy was also blocking its sword. Not letting go of the sword that was stabbed into the minotaur’s abdomen was what sealed the enemy’s fate.

The minotaur buried the sword in its left hand deeper into the enemy’s throat. It twisted the sword and tore open the throat, then put its right foot to the enemy’s abdomen and used the strength of its leg to push it away.

The minotaur regripped the longsword with two hands and tried to attack the second enemy, which had gotten up and was moving to attack. The enemy was a hair too quick, however, and slashed the minotaur’s throat with its Zweihänder.

Even for the minotaur, that attack was strong enough to be fatal. Especially with its defense weakened due to Berserk Mode.

The minotaur lost strength and began to fall, and the enemy lifted its Zweihänder up high. Likely to deliver the final blow.

But the minotaur held its ground firmly and swiped the longsword from right to left with both hands.

The attack was so fast and powerful that one never would have thought the minotaur was suffering from a nigh-fatal wound.

The enemy tried to quickly bring its Zweihänder down. The minotaur was holding its longsword with both hands, and the enemy was holding its long and heavy Zweihänder with only its right hand.

Before the enemy’s sword reached the minotaur, the minotaur’s blade cleaved the enemy in half at the abdomen. The enemy’s top and bottom halves collapsed to the ground.

Once the two enemies were completely dead, the jewel in the middle of the room shattered.

Berserk Mode ended.

A level-up occurred and healed the minotaur’s wounds.

Its significant injuries had been healing to an extent before the level-up occurred. When the minotaur had drawn its Zweihänder out of its Bag, it also pulled out some immortal flesh, and it ate it throughout the battle.

Immortal flesh was an item that could be obtained from hydras on the one hundredth floor of the Sazardon Labyrinth. If consumed in a labyrinth, it would cause the user for a short amount of time to enter a state in which they would revive even after death. It would not give the immortal effect if consumed outside of labyrinths, but it would grant an extremely powerful recovery effect.

Red potions did not work in this strange place the minotaur was in. Some of the skills it had gained did not activate, either. For that reason, it was not confident that the immortal flesh would work, but it had put some in its mouth just in case and ate it when it felt death was unavoidable.

The minotaur thought for a moment that, in the end, it was the flesh that had made the difference between victory and defeat, but then it immediately rejected that.

 

They had no anger, no fear, no joy.

They had never met a powerful enemy. Never learned. Never grown.

Even when my heart was filled with anger, their hearts were empty.

They only had their attack raised and their defense lowered.

There was no way I was ever going to lose to them.

Even so, the strength of the enemies in this place increases significantly every time I advance.

I wonder what I will encounter next.

 

As that was going through the minotaur’s mind, it picked up its Zweihänder, put it in its Bag, and stepped onto the blue stones.

3

Zara was assaulted by intense pain the moment he appeared.

The thick miasma burned his eyes. He closed them immediately, but the pain did not quickly go away.

The air he instinctively breathed in stabbed the inside of his mouth, throat, and lungs.

His skin stung as if it had been ripped off. His entire body went numb and stiffened, and he fell to the floor like a log.

Kaldan’s Dagger’s blessing of removing status ailments and curing poison was very powerful. It was supposed to take effect immediately on poison, to the point that inserting it into your belt would make it feel as if you were never poisoned at all. The same could be said for status ailments.

So why was this happening even though Kaldan’s Dagger was equipped to his body?

It must have meant that the poison and status ailments he received during the minuscule amount of time it took for Kaldan’s Dagger to activate had this violent of an effect on him.

Zara was now fully aware of how dreadful a place this was.

He lay down for a period of time, unable to do anything else. Eventually, he started to gradually regain his senses and his ability to think.

He carefully inhaled while bearing the pain. Then, as he exhaled, he used a breathing technique he had learned at Jan’Majar Temple to collect himself.

After he regained his full consciousness, he activated a recovery technique he had learned at Jan’Majar Temple. A lengthy amount of time later, he regained full use of his body and mind.

Zara surveyed his surroundings. There were holes broken into the uneven floor all throughout the room. They were traces of an intense battle.

There were teleport stones next to Zara shining with blue light.

He said you move to the next floor by stepping onto the blue teleport stones.

What would the next floor be like? What kind of enemies would be there?

He might arrive in the middle of an intense battle. It would likely be full of miasma, just like this room.

Zara mentally prepared himself and stepped onto the blue teleport stones leading to the second floor.

The moment he appeared in the next location, he was attacked by a chill and a headache that forced him to the ground.

He thought he had prepared himself, but the miasma on the second floor was significantly thicker than on the first floor, and it was a different kind as well.

He couldn’t even move for a while, and just like on the last floor, it took time for him to gather himself.

He looked around the room. There were no clear traces of a battle like there had been on the first floor.

But he didn’t doubt that an even more intense battle had taken place here.

Zara sat down on the floor, pulled out some preserved food and some water, and began to eat. He ate slowly, thoroughly chewing the dried meat and dried potatoes.

It’s a blessing that I can still enjoy food.

Dried meat tasted like dried meat, and dried potato tasted like dried potato. Water also tasted like water. The water was especially delicious after eating dried meat and dried potato.

His body gladly welcomed the food as it was digested.

This was what it felt like to live. On the next floor, or the floor below that, he could die. The odds of that were high.

This was not a battleground that Zara was ever supposed to enter.

Ha-ha. It’s funny. I got a big head when I was given the title of S-rank adventurer.

In this labyrinth, I’m less capable than an F-rank adventurer challenging the Sazardon Labyrinth for the first time.

I can barely stand, let alone fight.

Is it even possible for me to fight in this place?

In the battle at Bia-Dharla, he’d fought by abandoning himself to the madness of war.

His fight in Jan’Majar Temple’s Shrine of the Four Sacred Beasts was completely different. It was said that spirits sometimes entered the bodies of elite warriors, and he wondered if that was what had happened there.

I didn’t rely on items or special skills. I simply became one with my sword technique. I was my sword, and I was my moves. I want to be a part of that kind of fight again.

Zara stood up slowly. Deciding that he wouldn’t let the next room throw him off again no matter how poisonous the air was, he stepped onto the blue teleport stones leading to the third floor.

But there turned out to not be an ounce of air in the next room. That was because it was full of poisonous water.

Bubbles burst from his mouth, and the water he ingested made him feel pain and numbness, but he somehow managed to cling to the blue teleport stones leading to the fourth floor.

The fourth floor was somewhat brighter than the earlier rooms. Zara crouched from difficulty breathing and laughed at himself.

He hadn’t come across one enemy. He had done nothing more than move through the labyrinth. And yet the simple act of going from room to room had continued to take him off guard and overwhelm him.

What could he do but laugh?

He collected himself mentally and sat down cross-legged. He lightly clasped his hands together and set them on his feet, then relaxed his muscles and gathered his breath.

The teleport stones on the fourth floor were shining with blue light as well.

That meant that the warrior who had entered before him defeated all the devas on the first four floors and was now fighting the strongest enemy on the bottom floor.

Zara was an S-rank adventurer and had Kaldan’s Dagger and Bora’s Sword equipped, but this labyrinth had him as good as dead just from moving through it. It was incredible that this warrior was able to fight their way through and reach the bottom floor.

What kind of person are they?

It might have been a swordsman with the body control and brilliance of Percival.

A mighty warrior who could take on thousands like Panzel.

A wise sorcerer who had mastered the depths of magic like Gil Linx.

A priest with healing and support abilities on the level of Gondona.

No, I don’t think that’s right. It’s probably a party with each of those roles filled by a different member.

He wanted to meet them. He wanted to see that party with his own eyes as they fought against the strongest deva.

If possible, he also wanted to do his best to put his own skills to use in that battle.

Zara himself didn’t notice this, but while advancing through this labyrinth and fighting desperately to adapt, his mind and body had been stirred, polished, and sharpened.

His training at Jan’Majar Temple, his numerous matches in Aldana, and the various fights on his travels were all bearing fruit.

His capabilities were in the process of catching up to his strength, which had been raised by the mechanisms of the gods that were level and rank.

Zara, who was reaching greater heights than he ever had as a warrior, calmly filled himself with fighting spirit without any arrogance or faltering and stepped onto the blue stones that would lead to the decisive battle.

This time, he did not end up within a room. The teleport stones were on top of a circular rock five paces across and located in the middle of a hellish sea of boiling lava.

A thin path of rock extended forward from the circular rock on which he was standing, and beyond that, there was a large rock dome. The dome was floating on the sea of lava, and Zara sensed a greater degree of repulsiveness than he had ever felt before coming from it.

The final battle is taking place inside that dome.

He could tell that an intense battle was unfolding within the dome, though he couldn’t see it from where he was.

Zara focused power into his navel and slowly gathered his breath. He made his skin adapt to the overwhelming heat.

He then performed the secret vajra fighting spirit technique of Jan’Majar Temple. This was a technique that dramatically increased muscle strength for a limited time but also lowered sensitivity to temperature and pain.

He repressed the effect so he would be able to use it continuously.

Zara would not feel pain while using this technique. For that reason, he wouldn’t even be aware of it when he took damage.

He intended to heal injuries by using the blessings of Bora’s Sword. The moment Zara’s damage or the recoil from his skills surpassed the recovery effect of Bora’s Sword, he would die.

He would be walking a tightrope during the battle. But he no longer had any hesitation.

He walked onto the road made of rock and moved forward step by step. When he reached the dome, he found blue teleport stones in front of it.

I see. Stepping onto this will take me into the battle.

And so Zara did just that.

4

The minotaur was irritated.

The final enemy was even bigger than the aquatic beast on the third floor, the speed of its attacks surpassed the grasslike things on the second floor, and it even had regenerative powers on par with the orbs of the first.

It could take a variety of different forms and could even divide itself and join back together.

It was currently taking the form of a giant tree with its roots spread out across the stone floor. It had hardened the lower part of its body, rendering attacks ineffective.

It was no less than ten times as tall as the minotaur, and it had tentacles extending in four directions from the top of its body. The tips of the tentacles were also hardened and were as sharp as lances.

While dodging the four tentacles that were flailing in all directions, the minotaur looked for opportunities to strike them above their hardened tips. It could not manage to sever them, but it was able to inflict considerable damage.

The problem was that the enemy regenerated over time. The minotaur also sometimes failed to dodge the tentacles and took damage itself.

When the minotaur first entered the dome, the enemy had assumed the form of a giant beast. It attacked the minotaur with incredibly dense physical and magical attacks.

But because the minotaur’s attacks were effective no matter what part of the monster it hit, it ignored the small amount of damage it was taking and used its footwork to focus single-mindedly on attacking consistently.

The enemy lost a significant amount of energy as a result. Its body actually seemed to be made of energy, and it grew smaller as the minotaur inflicted damage. It was still quite large at that point, but it had grown two or three sizes smaller than it was at the beginning of the fight.

Eventually, the enemy hardened the points of its body that the minotaur’s assaults could reach and took the form of a giant tree. It couldn’t move the parts of its body it hardened, so it became completely stationary.

It stopped using magic attacks, possibly for the purpose of saving energy.

The minotaur also stopped using Warcry, Burning Breath, and other magic attacks. The reason for that was because the enemy absorbed magic power and used it to heal its injuries.

The minotaur could use its leaping ability to strike the higher parts of the tree that were not hardened. But its actions were limited while in the air, and it could not dodge the enemy’s assaults. After a number of failed attempts, it quit leaping attacks altogether.

It also tried pulling items out of its Bag and throwing them. But that did not do much damage. Its explosive weapons were more effective, but it had only a limited amount, and it was saving them for when it really needed them.

The minotaur’s attacks could not get through the hardened tips of the incoming tentacles, but it could cut into the higher, more mobile parts. As a result, the minotaur inflicted a small amount of damage every time the enemy struck.

The minotaur needed to remain within the enemy’s range of attack for that reason. The tentacles hit relentlessly, so occasionally the minotaur got injured after failing to dodge.

The fight was in a deadlock.

But this deadlock was disadvantageous for the minotaur.

Its opponent was not a living creature. It likely did not experience exhaustion or pain.

Its reserves of energy seemed limitless, as if it could fight forever.

The minotaur may have been a monster born in a labyrinth, but it was also a being that lived for a finite amount of time. It gradually became more exhausted and would eventually be unable to fight.

This infuriating enemy caused the minotaur’s heart to tremble with rage.

 

This thing is ridiculous.

It’s intolerable.

It’s not even trying to fight.

It’s just waiting for me to die.

This thing is an enemy.

An enemy that insults all living things.

An enemy that brings shame to battle.

 

But the minotaur could not find a means of breaking the stalemate.

Unable to see a way out of this, the minotaur continued to swing its giant sword.

It was unsure of how much time had passed.

The minotaur’s sharp senses picked up someone entering the floor.

 

Something is here.

Something alive.

Is it a new enemy?

I can sense it. This one possesses blood, flesh, rage, and joy.

I welcome your presence.

Come here so I can kill you.

Come here so that I may spill your blood!

 

It did not occur to the minotaur that the new presence could be anything other than an enemy. That was only natural. It had never once gained an ally since being born in the labyrinth. Every human and every monster it encountered was an enemy. However, it had, on occasion, come across humans who did not want to fight it. In those instances, if the people did not challenge the minotaur, it would leave them alone.

The new enemy stood still for a while and appeared to be preparing itself to fight. The minotaur could tell from its presence that it was quite strong.

Eventually, the new enemy ran up to where the minotaur was fighting the monster.

It was a kobold.

The minotaur did not know the name kobold, but it had come across this monster on a higher floor of the Sazardon Labyrinth. The minotaur had just been born at the time and was still relatively inexperienced, but even then, they were totally worthless enemies that could not even leave a scratch on its body.

The minotaur was extremely disappointed.

However, as the minotaur continued to fight the monster, something drew its attention back toward the kobold.

It had round eyes, compact arms and legs, and drooping ears. It was holding a wooden shield in its left hand and a bronze sword in its right. It was equipped with boots made of cloth and light armor, and it even had protective equipment on its head and forehead as well.

 

What is this weakling doing here?

 

As soon as the minotaur asked itself that question, the kobold dashed forward and disappeared. Its footwork was that of a seasoned warrior, making the minotaur’s eyes go wide in astonishment.

With its figure still hidden, the kobold quickly circled around behind the monster. It could not currently be detected with eyes or ears, but the minotaur could still sense its location.

The minotaur did not rely on equipment or skills to fight. It became able to handle magic attacks by continuing to challenge opponents capable of using them.

It became strong enough to win by focusing on training itself. That was the minotaur’s style.

As a result, even though the kobold had a blessing that made it undetectable to eyes and ears, the minotaur could sense its movement. It would probably have been better described as intuition than sense. The minotaur was a warrior that had polished its intuition to the absolute limit.

Its figure still hidden, the kobold raised its sword and struck the monster’s roots. The minotaur could tell by the sharp sound the sword made that the dog was no ordinary swordsman and that the sword had a rare sharpness.

But of course, the attack did not injure the monster at all. It probably did not even notice it.

While continuing to dodge the monster’s attacks, the minotaur watched to see what the kobold would do next.

An arrow suddenly appeared and hit the base of one of the four wriggling tentacles. It was a magic arrow, and it pierced deeply into the monster.

The kobold released another arrow.

A small disturbance began to show in the monster’s movements.

 

Now!

 

The minotaur jumped without even taking a running start, reached the mobile part of a tentacle, and cut it down.

The section that was now squirming on the floor was thicker than the minotaur’s torso.

The minotaur slashed quickly at the rampaging tentacle.

Quickly, over and over again.

The monster now had two enemies to deal with, and as a result, its attacks were being spread out. This was a good chance to inflict some damage.

“Summon Comet!”

The kobold chanted a spell, and a comet crashed into the base of another tentacle.

It was rare for monsters to be able to speak the language of humans. It was also rare for monsters to be able to chant incantations and use magic attacks.

There was an impressive amount of magic power contained in that spell. However, the comet did not explode, and the energy was absorbed by the monster. Even then, the direct impact of the comet was powerful enough to completely sever the tentacle and send it flying.

Just when it looked like the tentacle was going to go limp, it made a low-pitched noise and then rose into the air and rejoined to the monster’s main body. Once it was reattached, it was a little shorter than before, but then the monster used magic to restore it to its original length and toughness.

The pieces of the tentacle that the minotaur had cut up split into orbs of an unpleasant color and were absorbed into the monster’s main body. New tentacles then grew from the places where the orbs had been absorbed, but they were only about a third as big as the original tentacles.

 

Did you see that, whelp?!

 

The minotaur called out to the kobold in its mind.

Any parts of the tentacles or the main body that were severed would quickly reattach, but the monster did become smaller the more they damaged it.

That did not work with magic attacks. The powerful magic attack the kobold fired at the monster definitely did damage, but it also gave it the energy to heal that damage. That was not a strategy they could afford to employ.

 

Now, surely you also understand what happens when you attack it with magic.

You surely also understand that it will pick up and reattach its limbs immediately if they are cut down.

 

That was what the minotaur thought.

The minotaur guessed that the kobold would have that level of observation.

The kobold lifted its invisibility, showed itself, and then began to run around. It fired arrows in succession as it ran, aiming for the base of the tentacles.

 

That’s right.

That is where attacks are most effective.

 

The minotaur was impressed by the speed of the kobold warrior’s understanding. It seemed that just by trying that one attack and observing the monster’s response, it was able to figure out what was and wasn’t effective.

The minotaur also had no doubt that the kobold showed itself in order to draw the monster’s attention.

 

The whelp is telling me to get to work.

 

The monster was clearly preoccupied by its new enemy.

The minotaur severed one more tentacle and then slashed at it.

The kobold continued to fire arrows while nimbly and casually dodging the monster’s attacking tentacles. Its supply of arrows was never-ending.

The deadlock had been broken.

 

This has gotten fun.

 

A savage smile appeared on the minotaur’s face.

5

When Zara arrived in the room, he saw a giant with skin the color of green, corroded copper fighting an enormous deva.

It was not a party or a group.

A single warrior was fighting against the strongest deva one-on-one.

There was no doubt that he had cleared the path to this room all by himself.

He must have been a tremendous warrior.

But what country was he from?

Zara had never seen a person with that skin color before. He had heard that some of the barbarian tribes that lived in the Jami Forest had strange skin colors, so that might have been where the warrior was from.

The top half of his body was bare, he was wearing a modest loincloth over his waist, and he was completely barefoot, so he looked just like a barbarian warrior.

The muscles throughout his body were well developed. His head was hairless. His lips were thick. His face was bony, and he had a protruding chin.

His eyes were large and contained a calm light that made it seem as if he had stifled his anger. His nose was long and thick.

What stood out more than anything was his weapon. It had the appearance of a long knife used to prepare large fish, but it was significantly bigger.

Zara was about five and a half feet tall, but the warrior was over eight. The blade was even longer than that. It was also slightly wider than Zara’s shoulder width.

The giant warrior was swinging around that fearsome lump of iron, which couldn’t even be considered a sword, as if it were a rapier.

It was an incredibly powerful sword, but there was nothing rough about the way he handled it.

His swordsmanship was polished, with no wasted movements. He had perfect control over his body. His muscles contained outrageous strength. He had a mastery of the sword that didn’t suggest a hint of showiness.

He was all those things, as well as limber. He was as graceful as a leopard, and his movements had a wildness and a uniqueness to them that Zara had not seen in any of the schools of swordsmanship he had studied.

Judging by Alestra’s words, the warrior’s skin and figure were probably not exactly as they appeared to Zara. But his movements, his presence, and his sound swordsmanship were definitely real. It was unbelievable that anyone could fight in a place full of miasma so thick that an ordinary person would be killed in an instant.

The world is a big place.

To think there is a warrior this strong in it.

This man is a hero.

The deva he was fighting overwhelmed Zara with its gigantic size. It had the shape of a giant tree that was thousands of years old.

Its four tentacles were powerful and quick. The thickness of each tentacle roughly matched the average person’s height. They also had enough destructive force to smash through rock. One blow from them would probably be lethal, even for the giant.

That the giant was able to engage it calmly was incredible.

The first thing Zara did was activate the invisibility of Bolton’s Charm and attempt to strike the hard trunk with Bora’s Sword. He didn’t even scratch it.

Next he stored his shield, pulled out his Tirika Bow, and fired an arrow. He learned that attacks were effective against the parts of the deva that could move.

The giant warrior cut down one of the deva’s tentacles. Then, without a moment’s delay, Zara hit the stump with Summon Comet. The blast claimed another of the deva’s tentacles, but that was the extent of the damage.

Why didn’t it explode?

Where did all that magic energy go?

The fallen tentacle gently rose into the air and rejoined to the deva’s main body. It was a bit shorter than before.

But a moment later, the deva’s body wriggled, and the tentacle returned to its original length.

No way… Does it absorb magical energy and use it to repair its body?

Zara lifted his invisibility and started to fire arrows while moving around. That way, he could distract the deva and make it easier for the copper-skinned warrior to fight.

While acting as a decoy, Zara went over what he had learned.

First, he absolutely could not use magic attacks with any significant amount of magic power against this enemy. However, attacks that had only a small amount of magic power like the Tirika Bow’s arrows were surprisingly effective. Even if they didn’t damage the deva, they could divert its attention.

The roots of the deva and the tips of its tentacles were hardened. This rendered them immobile but also impervious to attacks.

The giant warrior is relentlessly attacking the tentacle he cut down. Why is he doing that?

The tentacle the giant warrior was attacking was eventually absorbed back into the main body and returned to its original position, but it was clearly smaller than before.

Oh, I understand what he’s doing!

Basically, he was focusing on building up the total amount of damage inflicted. By doing that, they could whittle down the deva’s body and weaken it.

Zara increased the intensity of his arrows and drew the deva’s attention.

Mana was required to form the arrows of the Tirika Bow and fire them. But Bora’s Sword had a continuous mana regen blessing, so he could fire as many arrows as he wanted.

The addition of Zara changed the state of the battle significantly. It was happening slowly, but the deva was clearly shrinking. The balance of the battle was tipping toward Zara and the giant warrior.

The battle continued in this way for some time, and then the deva began to transform. With the sound of rock being broken apart, the roots that were spread across the ground retracted and turned into two giant legs, each landing with a thud as it started to walk. Every one of its tentacles split in two, making eight in total.

It was much more flexible than before and was capable of a greater variety of attacks, which made it much more difficult to deal with. But this transformation was welcomed by Zara and the giant warrior.

They were in greater danger of getting hit, but they also had more opportunities to deal damage. The part on the ground had been completely invulnerable, but now they would undoubtedly be able to injure it.

The giant warrior attacked the deva’s right leg.

It got smaller!

He jumped back to dodge the tentacles, then instantly attacked the right leg again. He performed that action repeatedly.

Zara felt inspired by the persistence of the giant warrior.

While diverting the deva’s attention with arrows, Zara waited for a specific timing. The moment he was waiting for came when the deva lifted its right leg in order to kick the giant warrior.

“Summon Comet!”

Zara summoned a comet and smashed the rock in front of the deva’s left leg. The deva’s balance was thrown off significantly, and it stopped moving.

Then, as if they had discussed this beforehand, the giant warrior and Zara charged simultaneously and sliced at the bottom of the deva’s left leg. The deva swayed dramatically and collapsed.

Zara and the giant warrior then slashed at the deva quickly and repeatedly. The first thing they did was cut off six tentacles, which was all of them except for the two hidden under its body.

The deva let out a strange roar and got up. But in the small amount of time it spent on the ground, they had already inflicted a significant amount of damage.

Its body had become considerably smaller.

We’re doing it!

As soon as the thought came to Zara’s mind, the deva’s body split into a countless number of tiny clusters and flew up into the air. They floated just below the ceiling of the dome, dividing and rejoining repeatedly.

They then took the shape of thousands of flying orbs with the color and pattern of internal organs, and they began to shiver. The orbs swooped down at the giant warrior and Zara and attacked them from every direction.

Zara retrieved Ende’s Shield and ran up to the giant warrior. They both stood with their backs to each other and repelled the orbs of the deva as they flew at them.

The smallest of the orbs was about the size of Zara’s head, and the biggest was as tall as he was.

The orbs coming from overhead were moving a bit slowly. The deva would probably take damage if they crashed into the ground. That meant the orbs they needed to pay attention to were the ones attacking quickly from in front of them and to the sides.

The giant warrior and Zara entrusted their backs to each other and focused on tearing open the orbs and knocking them to the ground.

Zara had Ende’s Shield. He could use it to repel the big orbs. The shield’s blessings reflected physical damage and reduced recoil, so Zara shouldn’t have been getting pushed back at all, but every time an orb hit the shield, he felt like he was going to get lifted off his feet. The impact was also being reflected back onto the opponent, of course, which should have been inflicting great damage to the deva.

He repelled smaller orbs with Bora’s Sword. But because the massive number of orbs attacked without pause, there was no way he could block all of them.

The orbs appeared as if they would be soft, but they were actually as hard as metal. Some scraped against his side and waist, some knocked him off his feet, and some injured his elbows and shoulders. The injuries were healed by Bora’s Sword’s Health Leech ability, and he continued to focus all his attention on fighting off the flying orbs.

If either Zara or the giant warrior received a direct hit and had their timing thrown off, it was likely they would both have been immediately overwhelmed by the tornado of orbs and killed. Zara’s heart pounded hard in the middle of this life-and-death battle.

No orbs came at Zara from behind. The giant warrior was blocking all of them.

Unfortunately, Zara’s defense was not so perfect. The giant warrior was much taller than him, and as a result, a few orbs were getting through and injuring the giant warrior from behind. But the giant warrior didn’t utter a word of complaint and continued to handle the orbs in silence.

They weren’t simply standing in place. They were also stepping to the right and to the left and making use of their entire bodies for defense and attack.

Zara drew his left foot back deeply; then, while turning counterclockwise, he waved about his shield and used centrifugal force to send the orbs flying with his sword. Then, with effortless coordination, the giant warrior matched his timing brilliantly and turned with him, and the two switched places.

The two warriors moved in perfect sync, as if they were professionally trained dancers. It was a dance of death, where one missed step meant certain doom.

Zara did not feel the least bit of despair.

Normally when fighting with a party, your movements were restricted somewhat because you had to pay attention to your companions, but he didn’t feel that restraint at all in this fight. His partner picked up on his every movement and responded accordingly.

Zara felt as free as if he had been given wings, and while feeling immersed in the joy of the greatest battle of his life, he watched as every move he had ever learned came flowing out of him.

The orbs then suddenly stopped attacking. They lifted high into the air and combined together.

It was clear the deva had taken no small amount of damage. It had also been fighting out of desperation.

Zara scolded himself. He was breathing heavily and felt like he would fall to his knees.

The giant warrior had also been cut up all over his body and was in terrible shape. But he looked calm as he stood and stared at the deva, and it seemed as if he felt no pain or hardship at all.

Zara thought he looked just like a king.

No.

He had to be a king. There was no doubt that this warrior was a hero revered by the people of his tribe.

Zara was fighting with the five treasures of House Mercurius and Bora’s Sword, all of which contained impossibly powerful blessings, but this proud barbarian warrior who was wielding nothing but a single sword was still stronger than him.

He found that humiliating, but at the same time, it made him feel strangely encouraged and joyful. This was the height that people, that warriors, could reach.

The deva was growing more and more compact. It then stuck to the roof of the dome and stopped moving.

Zara was shocked when he realized what it was planning on doing.

The deva is going to quit fighting and wait us out!

The deva could wait for a thousand years. If it waited, then more fragments would be sent its way, enabling it to regenerate and build up its strength.

They, however, would not be able to leave this place until they killed the deva.

Zara wasn’t sure about how the giant warrior was faring, but Zara would soon die from miasma poisoning if things continued like this. The only way for Zara to survive was to continue fighting and absorbing health from the deva.

The deva was shrinking and trying to harden itself. When it had collapsed to the ground earlier, it did not attempt to harden itself right away. It could soften in an instant, but hardening took time.

We need to get it down from there and kill it quickly. We won’t be able to damage it if we give it time to finish hardening.

Zara looked at Raika’s Ring. There was still light in it. He could fire one more Summon Comet.

He held up Bora’s Sword in his right hand to establish his aim for Summon Comet, but then the giant warrior threw something.

It hit the ceiling right next to the deva and exploded, cutting into the rock. It looked like a bent animal bone, but it was probably an exploding sword. That was a blessed weapon obtained on the ninetieth floor of the Sazardon Labyrinth.

I can’t believe he threw it so high. This warrior’s strength is not normal.

The giant warrior threw one exploding sword after another at the deva. Cracks formed in the rock that made up the ceiling of the dome.

Zara counted fifteen explosions before the giant warrior stopped throwing them. It seemed like that was all he had.

The giant warrior then looked at Zara, who answered his wordless demand with a nod, and raised Bora’s Sword to the ceiling.

“Summon Comet!”

A huge comet appeared and collided with the ceiling. There was a massive explosion at the point of impact. Cracks spread quickly, and the ceiling began to crumble.

The deva then fell. It crashed to the ground with an enormous sound.

It had become shockingly small compared to the beginning of the fight. It was trying to condense and harden itself, but its hardening was not yet complete.

With a leisurely motion, the giant warrior swung his sword horizontally. The deva’s body was larger than the sword’s length. But the giant warrior didn’t worry about that and swung his longsword anyway.

That technique!

That circular movement!

This sword movement that looks easy but is guaranteed to cut anyone who enters its inviolable arc!

This was a secret technique handed down in House Mercurius. Zara had learned it from Pan’ja Raban.

While wondering how this giant warrior knew that technique, Zara swung his sword as if being invited to do so. They surrounded the deva from perfectly symmetrical positions and drew two circles.

The circles were different sizes, but they traced exactly the same arc. The two swords penetrated the deva’s body easily, the tips passing each other as they did so.

By the time the giant warrior’s and Zara’s blades returned to them, the deva’s body had been cut in two, and it collapsed to the ground. Its shape then melted into something that looked like sand, which absorbed into the ground and vanished.

They had killed the strongest deva.

The ground began to tremble.

Softly at first, then it grew gradually more violent.

The rock dome was beginning to collapse.

The deva labyrinth would probably remain in ruin for a time, then be re-formed and wait for the day it began to collect fragments again.

The giant warrior disappeared.

Zara also disappeared.

6

It saw a familiar ceiling.

It had returned.

The minotaur tried to get up and realized that it could not move its body at all.

Judging by its healed injuries, it seemed like a level-up had occurred while it was unconscious.

All except for its right horn.

But it could not move.

After experiencing such an exhausting battle, this was not surprising.

That left it no choice but to rest.

The minotaur took a deep breath and assumed a resting posture.

 

That whelp was really something.

Its swordsmanship was sharp and polished.

The speed of its movements and attacks surpassed mine.

It could also use powerful magic attacks.

Above all, its defense was awe-inspiring.

I thought it would be sent flying when it was hit directly by a tentacle, but it was able to repel those powerful attacks and remain composed.

It seemed like its shield had special blessings, but its shield technique was very impressive as well.

It also had courage.

It should have been impossible to bear such relentless attacks for such a long period of time with skill and stamina alone. Its mind was thoroughly trained.

I had a thought as we fought…

After we defeat this monster, I want to fight the whelp next.

 

The minotaur’s wish did not come true. After they defeated the monster, the minotaur lost consciousness and was transported to the one hundredth floor of the Sazardon Labyrinth.

The minotaur was robbed of the battle it had eagerly anticipated.

But it had absolutely no regret. On the contrary, it felt a sense of satisfaction greater than any it had ever felt before.

The minotaur wondered why it was in such a good mood, and after a while, it got its answer.

The minotaur learned how to fight from humans. It studied their technique and then polished its own skills. But there was one technique, just one technique, that it thought was really nice but was unable to replicate.

That was coordination.

The minotaur did not have any companions, so even if it understood the advantages of coordination, it was unable to put them to use. But deep in its heart, it had always wanted to try that coordination for itself. That was a wish that could never come true, of course.

But then in this battle that it never could have seen coming, the minotaur and the kobold warrior had fought while entrusting their backs to each other.

The minotaur reflected on the battle with the final monster.

It reflected on every action the tiny kobold had taken after it entered the battle.

Then it had a thought. It had seen extraordinary coordination from humans many times, and its coordination with the kobold in this fight was not inferior to what it had seen on any of those occasions.

 

No.

Actually, it was the best.

It was the best and the strongest.

No one could top the coordination the whelp and I showed today.

Hmm.

But I never would have imagined there was such an individual among those whelps.

I’ll have to travel upward every now and then.

But for now, I’ll sleep for a little while.

 

That was what the minotaur thought.

Its body was totally spent. It needed a long, long rest.

Overcome by the sense of fulfillment wrought from a great battle, the minotaur went to sleep.