Chapter 146: Chapter 146

"There are two routes to the Imperial Capital from here."

Rena rode her horse beside me. Even while training in swordsmanship for two weeks, she had been studying the map and planning our journey whenever she had the chance.

"The first route crosses the White Bridge and passes through Gillamore. It’s a long detour, but it’s safe—no dungeons, no bandits."

—That’s the kind of path a seven-year-old coward would choose.

Isaac interjected. But his words only reached Rena if I chose to relay them, which I didn’t bother to do.

—Hey! Why aren’t you passing on my words?!

Say something productive for once…

"A route without dungeons or bandits isn’t exactly tempting. We have enough strength to handle threats,” said Rena.

—Are you going to pass on what I said now?

I finally conveyed Isaac’s comment. Sensing that, he immediately resumed his explanation.

—The White Bridge was consecrated by Ilien, the Goddess of Light. If you don’t take that route, you won’t be able to cross at all.

Rena looked intrigued. Isaac muttered curtly.

I fell into thought. I’d barely given the goddesses any consideration. After all, the only divine beings to physically descend into this world were the Demon Kings.

Consecrated sacred relics and miracles manifested through saints and priests. The gods were real, and they exercised power—but that was all. I had never seen nor heard of their actual descent or direct intervention.

What were the gods? Were they the architects of everything? Or beings one layer beyond our understanding? Were they passive observers or active controllers? I had no way of knowing.

"I’ve never heard of anyone being unable to cross the White Bridge. Maybe humans are exempt, so it never became an issue?"

"Carts, pack mules, pets—they must have crossed too. Can we really trust Isaac's words?"

—You idiot! All of those are on that side.

"You talk big for someone trapped in a medallion. Don’t speak to my master like that."

—Damn it. Why do I even bother? Getting annoyed with you people is just going to make me lose my hair.

"Say things clearly. Don't half-explain and expect us to guess. You’re saying that those affiliated with magic can’t cross, right?"

"Alright, both of you, stop it."

"Understood." Rena nodded.

"Regardless, if Isaac is telling the truth, we can't cross that way. The river is three kilometers wide, and the current is incredibly strong."

We were still riding forward, but I had never actually studied the map in detail. I had only glanced at it briefly. If I had to make excuses, I would have been too busy teaching and learning. But if I was being honest, I had left all of it to Rena, trusting her to handle it.

She had memorized dungeon locations, run simulations of the journey, and prepared everything.

Rena explained, "The second route passes through Aman. If we want to reach Daliac, we take that path."

The name sounded vaguely familiar, but I couldn’t recall it precisely.

"It’s a temporary neutral zone for high-ranking informants and assassins. There’s only one main building… but it’s huge."

—You can’t enter anyway. You don’t have a Daliac membership. You won’t even be able to approach the area—you’ll just get thrown out. Do I have to spell everything out for you? There’s a reason it was once called the Unapproachable Lantern of Daliac.

"Is that so?" Rena smirked slightly. "That was three hundred years ago. They’ve since built a separate lodging area for non-members. Now, it’s called the Unquenchable Lantern of Daliac. They even hold public information auctions in the plaza, Master."

She deliberately ignored Isaac, looking only at me as she spoke.

—What? Information auctions? That’s ridiculous…

"Must be nice to be old-fashioned. So full of tradition."

—You little…! You’re the same brat who cried like a baby when your spells backfired. How dare you talk back?!

"Is that route significantly faster?"

Rena, as if she had never heard Isaac at all, smiled brightly and nodded.

"Yes. Much faster. But it's also slightly more dangerous. Not enough to be a problem, though. Plus, there are plenty of dungeons to explore along the way."

The dungeons she referred to were mostly the ones Isaac had revealed. He had likely suggested this route from the start with that in mind.

"Alright. Let’s head toward Aman, then."

It had been ten days since we set out for the capital. Rena and I cleared a dungeon every three days as we traveled. The third dungeon we entered was the Torture Labyrinth.

The dungeon boss—a massive creature stitched together from dozens of corpses—swung its enormous fist down at me.

The ground trembled violently. The monster was already shredded all over from my sword aura, significantly weakened. I dodged sideways and swung my greatsword toward its center.

[Skill: Frost Storm Lv. 1 activated.]

A storm of condensed white frost surged from the tip of my blade. I’d activated every magic circuit within myself. The massive zombie staggered back two steps, overwhelmed by the attack.

I immediately closed the distance and drove my greatsword straight into its heart.

[Skill: Blazing Flare Lv. 1 activated.]

Wind and fire entwined around my sword before erupting in a powerful explosion.

[Special Effect: Colossus Slayer Lv. 1 is being activated!]

[300% Critical Damage Applied!]

Chunks of stitched-together flesh burst apart like spilling entrails.

[Your Level Has Increased…]

[Boss of the Torture Labyrinth, Voodoo Golem, Has Been Defeated.]

[Difficulty Assessment…]

—Kukuku… You’ve really gotten used to this, haven’t you?

Isaac let out a low chuckle.

He was right. I had cleared the Sinister Scorpion Den, the Withered Ant Nest, and the Torture Labyrinth without a shred of hesitation. The way I slaughtered venomous scorpions, colossal ants, and stitched-up corpses—I looked just like a hero.

After clearing three C-rank dungeons, I gained Hero Points. This time, I used them to raise my Swordsmanship Talent to Lv. 3 in the Hero Exclusive Store. I also received a new Training Quest.

[New Quest Available.]

[Swing Your Sword 65.31 Million Times.]

[Progress: 0/65,310,000]

[Reward: Swordsmanship Lv.11]

…I don’t think I can do this one.

I quickly dismissed the overwhelming status windows and turned away from the boss’s corpse.

A young girl zombie grabbed my ankle. It was the same one I had kicked aside on my way to the Torture Labyrinth's boss room. Even though the dungeon had been cleared, not everything had vanished. The dungeon’s eerie aura still held the corpses in its grasp.

Rena severed the zombie’s arm with her rapier. She methodically cut off its remaining limbs, plunging her sword into its lifeless heart several times until it stopped moving.

The path ahead was blocked. The zombies we had pushed aside earlier had risen again, now completely filling the tunnel.

Rena swung her sword. Her cuts extended beyond the length of her blade, creating an illusion of a wider attack radius. It was a result of her rapid footwork, allowing her to slice across multiple enemies in a single motion. Several zombies had their necks half-severed, their heads dangling unnaturally. Others, despite being completely decapitated, continued to lunge forward.

"These things really don’t suit your fighting style."

"…I have to admit that’s true."

Rena had many supplementary tools, but her primary weapon was a long, thin rapier. It wasn’t suited for enemies that had to be completely destroyed to stop moving. More than anything, most of the zombies looked like young girls. What had happened in this place?

Rena’s sword naturally aimed lower. Her expression darkened, even more so than when she had fought living enemies.

All around us, broken human figures squirmed toward us.

—Wipe them out. Why are you holding back your magic? That girl looks like she’s having a rough time.

I hesitated. Several memories, from just a few days ago, flashed through my mind.

Lightning Strike! Harder! You can do way better than that! Stack at least two types of energy! Shouldn’t you be expanding your attack radius?

Isaac had constantly urged me to amplify my magic. Every time I did, the dungeon walls cracked, floors shattered, and debris exploded outward. Scars were left everywhere. I couldn’t pinpoint exactly why, but something about it felt off.

Something about this feels contradictory.

But I couldn’t expect Rena to clear the way on her own. I activated all the energy flowing through my circuits.

[Skill: Frost Storm Lv. 1 activated.]

Using my greatsword as a conduit, I released the magic and swung with full force. A devastating wave of energy surged from my blade, instantly freezing over a dozen zombies in place.

I’ll let you rest in pieces.

The cave walls were coated with traces of blue frost. Some areas had been entirely torn apart by direct strikes from my greatsword, while thinner stone walls had been punctured, revealing the other side in full view. I cast a brief glance at the scene of destruction. This was all my doing.

"You’ve been using magic quite often, haven’t you?"

Was I being subtly influenced by Isaac’s constant provocation? Still, there was nothing particularly suspicious about it. The Lurium flowing within me, coursing through the circuit, was clearly under my control.

I spurred my horse forward, stealing a glance at Rena beside me. After clearing multiple dungeons together, her stats and job levels had improved significantly.

Swordsmanship Lv. 10 (new!)

A dense list of skills stretched below. At this point, she could tear through an entire squad on the front lines and return unscathed.

Of course, I had no intention of using her that way. I originally recruited her for intelligence gathering, which had become somewhat diluted over time.

The wind carried whispers of approaching winter. Pale yellow sunlight cast elongated shadows over the winding mountain paths, clinging close to the earth. We were making our way toward Aman.

Once we rounded that mountain, we would reach Aman—one of the most important cities in the central region. We would rest there for a day. After that, there was nothing left to do but head straight to the Imperial Capital.

Once Rena became the branch manager, my first objective would be complete. I had no special plans beyond that. For now, I intended to roam dungeons, collecting stats and Hero Points without restraint. Then, when war eventually broke out, I would wander the human battlefields until I found a powerful essence worth absorbing.

Of course, the strongest foes wouldn’t just conveniently die and present their corpses to me. I would have to hunt them myself. I would plunge into the chaos, systematically eliminating those called heroes, one corpse at a time.

It was still a vague plan. But if I continued ascending one step at a time, perhaps I could even effortlessly protect my former master, Lady Succubus, in twenty years.

This plan was nothing but slaughter and consumption. Every step I took was a path of pursuit, death, and plunder. And yet, I felt no hesitation.

As we slowly rounded the mountain’s base, a gust of wind blew past.

For a brief moment, a strange sense of unease washed over me. It felt as if someone was nearby.

Is it just my imagination?

I couldn’t detect any hostile gazes. No feeling of being watched. No killing intent. And yet, the wind felt wrong. It was an empty sky, but it felt as if something was blocking it, disrupting the wind’s flow…

Maybe I was overthinking. But having once been pursued by the marquis, I had learned to take these feelings seriously.

I scanned the surroundings repeatedly. Nothing.

"Yes, master? Is something wrong?"

She didn’t seem to have sensed anything. And honestly, if I hadn’t been standing directly in the wind’s path, I wouldn’t have noticed either.

"Let’s head to Aman. You mentioned an information auction, right?"

"Yes. You provide the keywords you want, and the people staying in Daliac offer fresh intelligence they’ve just acquired."

"What’s the risk of being tracked?"

"Low. Buyers only receive what the sellers choose to disclose. But…" Rena hesitated, trailing off mid-sentence.

"The pricing… is completely unknown."

"You don’t know how much others have bid. It’s an auction in name only."

"It’s basically a scam waiting to happen."

"Still, let’s check it out."

I spurred my horse into a faster gallop. That unshakable feeling of being hunted… Something was watching me. Even if I had to pay an outrageous price, there was one thing I needed to find out in Daliac’s information auction.

Leandro von Batyenne, Marquis of the Empire, the Blue Armored Swordmaster. What happened to him? The image of a man standing in a storm, demanding justice for Isabelle’s murder, resurfaced in my mind.

A chill crawled up my spine. Why had he not come after me this time? If he wasn’t chasing me, then who was he after?