Chapter 121: Ancient Dungeon (4)
I had requested the demon worshiper to summon a demon for two reasons.
The first was similar to when I had deliberately let myself fall under the spell of the Black Magician Vivian. I wanted to use a confrontation with a demon as an opportunity for growth.
I was already soone who thirsted for growth.
But now, that desire was even stronger. It was because I had t Sword Master Heitz.
Having seen with my own eyes that there were countless people in the world stronger than , I had no ti to rest on my laurels.
Of course, to most people, this alone would make seem like a madman.
No matter how much I wanted to rapidly improve my swordsmanship, to go so far as to request a demon summoning?
But that was just the thinking of ordinary people.
My thoughts were different.
“Are demons really such bad beings?”
This very thought was the biggest reason I had requested the demon summoning.
When I thought about it, the world was already full of bad people.
Even in the village, it was like that. Thugs and bandits were much the sa—beings who manipulated others as they pleased, hard them, and stole their possessions. They were exactly the kind of “oppressive” people I despised.
In comparison, what about demons?
My knowledge was limited, so I didn’t know for sure, but I had heard that they were beings who operated through “contracts” and “deals.”
For example, they might grant imnse wealth in exchange for lifespan or imnse power in exchange for a soul.
“That’s pretty straightforward, isn’t it?”
To , that thod felt rather gentlemanly.
Of course, I had no intention of doing sothing foolish like giving up my lifespan for money, but I figured it was all a matter of negotiation.
If the conditions were agreeable, I’d make the deal.
If not, I’d walk away. That’s all there was to it, wasn’t there?
“No matter how I think about it, there’s nothing to lose. It was definitely the right call to make the request.”
Fortunately, the demon worshiper seed to understand my intentions and began the summoning. While that was happening, I started thinking about what I might trade with the demon.
Should I ask for a sword?
Or perhaps request knowledge of swordsmanship?
Was that too big of a request? What if they demanded too high a price?
What about asking for a sparring match? That wouldn’t co with too heavy a price, would it?
…And so, I was mulling over these various thoughts.
Whoosh!
Rustle…
“…”
The mont my eyes t the “black sothing” that walked toward , possessing the body of the demon worshiper, I realized sothing.
There was a reason why people feared and dreaded demons.
“This won’t be easy.”
It wasn’t showing hostility.
In fact, I got the sense it was showing so kind of fondness toward . It was just a gut feeling.
The problem was, despite that, the being I presud to be a demon felt profoundly unsettling.
Like how a reptile feels more alien than a mammal.
Like how an insect feels even more alien than a reptile.
It was as if I was facing the most distant and unfamiliar being from humanity, and a creeping sense of unknown fear and discomfort welled up within .
Because of that, the black sothing’s subsequent actions struck as even more shocking.
Swish.
Fizzle…!
“…”
After gifting a black necklace, the black being vanished like mist.
I stood rooted to the spot for a long while, trying to decipher its intentions.
“What was that?”
In a room where everyone was fast asleep, released from the chaos magic, I muttered quietly to myself.
No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t figure out the reason.
I could understand the demon worshiper’s death as part of so deal they had, but I hadn’t made any deal with the demon.
That’s right. This was unmistakably a one-sided gift, an act of goodwill.
Why?
Why on earth would a demon give a gift without expecting anything in return?
“Was it not a demon to begin with?”
“But the aura… it definitely seed like a demon, or at least sothing on that level.”
“The strength I felt wasn’t inferior to Heitz. What else could such a being be if not a demon?”
“What’s this necklace?”
“Is it safe to wear? Could it be dangerous?”
“If I show it to others, would they know what it is?”
“Who could I show it to? The rcenary King? Sheratiya? Or… maybe the beggar old man?”
“…”
I didn’t know.
No matter how much I racked my brain, I couldn’t reach a conclusion.
In the end, I decided to put the necklace in my pocket instead of wearing it and moved on to the next room. I figured soone I might run into could recognize it and cause trouble.
“…Still, it wasn’t a bad experience.”
The fact that I couldn’t fight the demon directly was a big regret.
But just encountering it had given sothing.
The alienation, fear, and discomfort I felt when facing it—if I could incorporate those into my swordsmanship, it would surely make a much more formidable opponent.
“Alright. Once the dungeon exploration is over, I’ll have to train diligently.”
I nodded to myself.
Leaving the unconscious adventurers collapsed on the floor behind, I quickened my steps.
***
My five senses were superhuman. I could map out most spaces the mont I entered them, so the idea of getting lost was unthinkable.
But the dungeon was different.
Was it because of the magical barrier enveloping the entire dungeon? Or so other chanism? I couldn’t easily find the place I was looking for—the real treasure room, not a fake one.
Fortunately, there were no trials arduous enough to halt my progress.
Because of that, I was able to reach the deepest part of the dungeon within an hour of my encounter with the demon.
The problem was…
Clatter!
“What’s that?”
“Soone else ca in.”
“A newbie?”
“He’s alone? How did he get here by himself…”
“Wait, isn’t that him? You know, the…”
“Who?”
“The guy who opened the dungeon entrance. The one with the incredible lock-picking skills…”
“Oh, that young man? He’s pretty impressive for his age.”
“So what? Unless he’s an archaeologist or historian, he’s not going to be any help here.”
“Yeah, that’s true.”
“…”
The deepest part of the dungeon was already filled with people.
It couldn’t be helped.
No matter how skilled I was, it was hard to beat soone with sheer luck. It seed these people had been fortunate enough to reach this place without getting lost.
“Hm.”
I surveyed the interior of the room.
It was a massive space that I could only describe as the “deepest part.”
The walls were engraved with all sorts of geotric patterns, and sothing glowing brightly was embedded in the ceiling, illuminating the room. A few adventurers were trying to pry it loose, but they seed to be struggling.
However, the real focus of everyone’s attention was elsewhere.
At least a dozen people, most dressed in luxurious clothing, were clearly nobles.
They were closely examining a stone tablet erected in the center of the room, and naturally, my interest was piqued as well.
Swish…
I suppressed my presence.
For so reason, I felt I had to. I had a hunch that if I openly tried to look at the tablet, I’d get complaints about waiting my turn or being told I wouldn’t understand it anyway.
That hunch turned into certainty monts later when a rcenary trying to look at the tablet got into a scuffle with a noble.
“Hey, you! Let take a look too!”
“What’s that, you punk? How dare you approach where nobles are standing…”
“Oh, co on! This isn’t so ancient era where nobles get to call all the shots… I’m a Silver Plate rcenary, you know! If I wanted, I could easily get a knight’s title! Got it?”
“So what? All you can do is swing a sword!”
“What? This guy…”
“This is a tablet inscribed with ancient records. An ignorant fool like you looking at it won’t help anyone, so wait until we’re done deciphering it.”
“Deciphering? You lot aren’t getting anywhere either!”
“Hmph! We’ve already determined that these characters belong to the ancient kingdom of Delkaro in the southern continent. Just a little more ti, and…”
“It doesn’t seem like giving them more ti will solve anything.”
Watching the rcenary and noble bicker, I wore a skeptical expression.
It was only natural.
If you could read the characters, you’d read them. If you couldn’t, you couldn’t. What difference would ti make?
Of course, the sa applied to . The only scripts I could read and write were the continental common language and the cipher used exclusively among Godok peers.
“Still, should I take a look?”
I nodded to myself.
I’d co this far, hadn’t I? With no leads on the treasure yet, I wanted to see the clues with my own eyes.
Discreetly, of course.
I had no desire to get caught up in argunts with nobles, so I further suppressed my presence.
I was just about to stealthily move to a position where I could see the tablet clearly when…
“You there.”
“…”
“I’m calling you. You’re the young man who opened the dungeon entrance, right?”
“Oh, you were calling .”
“That’s surprising.”
I genuinely looked surprised.
Sure, I wasn’t exactly hiding myself and was moving openly, but I had lowered my presence to the extre.
Yet, this person had pinpointed and called out to .
I couldn’t help but think they were quite skilled.
What was even more curious was that this skilled individual didn’t seem much older than .
“At most, thirty? Or maybe late twenties?”
Despite their skill, which seed at least at the Graduate level, they looked remarkably young.
Of course, I was only 21, and my Godok peers were also in their early twenties… but I had co to understand sothing. A Graduate in their twenties was common in the village, but that wasn’t the norm in the outside world.
Anyway, while I was lost in these thoughts, the man who appeared to be a noble spoke again.
“Could you take a look at it?”
“Huh? At what… Oh, the tablet?”
“Yes. We’ve been trying hard to decipher it among ourselves, but it’s not easy.”
“Lord Grantz! What are you…”
“How can you ask such a thing of a young nobody like him!”
Nobles and knights alike protested against the young man called Grantz.
It wasn’t just them.
The rcenary who had been bickering earlier and the surrounding adventurers also scoffed, but I wasn’t particularly offended. It was sothing I was used to.
What I was curious about was why this noble young man was showing such kindness…
“It’s not like looking at it will wear it out, is it?”
“…”
“…”
“This young man opened the dungeon entrance wide without anyone expecting it. He has the right to look at the tablet.”
“Hm, ahem.”
“Well, that’s true, but…”
Sohow, a rather favorable atmosphere had ford around .
I bowed politely to the noble young man called Grantz and approached the tablet.
Of course, I had no expectations.
I was just curious.
Having co this far, it felt unfair to leave without doing anything…
“…”
I could read it.
To be precise, I could only read about 60 to 70 percent of it, and the rest I couldn’t fully understand… but it was enough to roughly grasp the aning.
That wasn’t the important part.
A flood of question marks filled my mind.
“Why do the characters inscribed on the tablet of an ancient dungeon… resemble the cipher of the Godok peers?”
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