It's been nearly two years since I first stepped into this world, and some things are starting to blur. But there are still a few things I can never forget.
One of those things is the dungeon.
Memories carved into my body, rather than my mind, instantly flood back the moment I face that place.
Because of that, I can say this for certain: There is no way there’s any smell of blood in the dungeon where Ruel’s puppet waits. How could a dungeon watched over by a noble and meticulous paladin ever reek of decay?
Ah, damn it. Nothing ever goes according to plan. In a situation where I can’t even properly swing a weapon, this is just one more variable.
"...What’s going on?"
"What do you think? Another useless fool found this place first."
The condition for entering this place isn’t to "hold the holiness of the Almighty," but to "breathe the holiness into it."
The former is something only Faivy and I can do, but the latter is something that can be achieved in many ways.
Just raiding the Arteia family’s warehouse would be enough to gather countless entry passes.
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So, it wouldn't be that strange if someone else had discovered this place.
Especially when you consider that this is the Holy Land, filled with priests.
The problem, however, lies elsewhere. The puppet pretending to be Paladin Ruel is far more troublesome than my grandfather.
He wouldn’t stand by watching his home be ruined.
If someone had caused trouble here, Ruel would have certainly acted to eliminate the intruders.
But he didn’t stop them. He had no choice but to let the smell of death fill the underground.
Why? Because the intruder took down Ruel’s puppet.
"Maybe we should retreat for now. This place is enemy territory now. Who knows what might happen if we dig too deep into its secrets?"
Arthur's suggestion was perfectly logical. With the appearance of an unpredictable variable, it would be better to back off for now. Even though our strength is considerable, we can’t take on the entire Church.
I know in my head that this is the right call, but I couldn’t bring myself to say it out loud.
"Yeah... I suppose."
As I said that, my eyes couldn’t leave Faivy, who had her hands clutched over her chest, unable to look away from the scene before us.
"Are you scared, useless prince? Is your body shaking from fear, or is it just your legs trembling because you’re afraid to move forward?"
"It has nothing to do with my will. I just think it’s the best option."
"Which is just a fancy way of saying you’re scared."
Faivy probably saw her past underground. The memories of when she was made into the Saint.
She succeeded in confronting and overcoming the past she had forgotten, but that doesn’t mean she can erase the nightmare of that day.
"If you think you can’t win and are going to run, why are you still holding that sword? Wouldn’t it be better to walk around bare-handed? It might make you look more pathetic and evoke sympathy."
"Lady, I’m fine. So, let’s just..."
"Shut up, you useless Saint. I didn’t ask you."
I forcefully shut Faivy’s mouth, sensing she was about to stop me.
Not all of this is for you, Faivy.
This is also an opportunity to mock my grandfather, who’s been knocked around by these fools.
Even now, I can hear Garad’s hearty laugh mixing with my grandfather’s screams inside my head.
I can’t wait to see how much more fun this will get when the truth comes out.
"Are you sure you’re alright? Even if we’re fine, you’re in a weakened state, and if something happens, you could be in danger."
"Puhahaha! Are you worried about me, useless prince!? Right now, I could play with you using just one hand."
"...Why are your hands shaped like that?"
"What? Did I do something weird?"
She just pretended to hold the mace, so why was I clearing my throat?
Anyway, I got Arthur’s agreement, so I turned my attention to the other two. Freya was nervously holding herself back, clearly struggling to resist the urge to charge forward, and Joy had already set up several magic circles around her.
"Whatever’s waiting for us in here, it can’t be worse than the Fairy Forest, right?"
"Of course. The ones here are nothing more than trash, small fry."
"So what does it matter? It’s actually great. I get a chance to try out what I learned from Erginus."
Joy’s confident posture wasn’t exactly reassuring, and I honestly felt uneasy. The more confident she was, the more likely she’d make a mistake at a crucial moment. Her track record proved that.
"What’s with that look? You’ve seen how well I handle magic! Just trust me!"
"I didn’t say anything. Why are you freaking out already?"
"You said it with your eyes!"
"What the hell. Seriously, I wonder how a ditz like you even became a duchess."
"Ughhh!"
I lightened the mood by making Joy the scapegoat, then turned my attention back to Faivy.
Faivy looked at me in silence, then bit her lip and nodded. I could see her eyes reddening slightly, as if she was on the verge of tears.
"You all know, right? I’m weak right now? So focus on the orders I give. There’s no shield here to protect you from your foolishness."
If this were a game, my friends’ specs alone would be enough to toy with the final boss, but this is reality, and there are areas that cannot be reached by game logic.
We need to stay alert.
The enemies we’ll meet here are most likely the priests of the Church of the Almighty.
Specifically, probably Inquisitors.
If they’ve made this their base, they’ve probably set up many traps.
There may not be many enemies, but those few won’t fall easily.
From the moment they recognize us, they’ll likely engage in guerrilla warfare, trying to create a battlefield that favors them.
Their specs probably aren’t much different from what I know. Hmm. I think I have a good idea of what we should do.
"Let’s go. Trash."
Stepping into the underground corridor, I was sure my guess was right. The traps in the corridor were clearly designed in the Inquisitor’s style.
"Idiot Paladin. Get ready."
"Yeah!"
Ignoring the presence beyond the crossroads, I touched a trap, and the enemy moved.
They probably think we’ll fall into the trap and are waiting for an opportunity to strike.
"Ahhh!"
I screamed on purpose to lead them in. My loud, clear voice filled the corridor, and a man dressed in robes appeared from the other side.
"Puhahaha!♡ Were you expecting something!?♡"
As he prepared to throw a dagger, he stared blankly at my laugh, and in that moment, Freya, cloaked in wind, reached him in an instant.
The man, belatedly realizing his danger, turned his head, but by then, Freya’s sword was already at his neck.
"...Gghh!?"
Frozen by the sensation of death, the man was easily caught by a rope that shot out from his shadow.
He struggled to free himself, but the rope, made with the powers of darkness, was not something a mere Inquisitor could break.
How could something created with the powers of darkness be destroyed by human strength?
Hmm. This is too easy.
Even though he fell for my provocation, it’s a bit ridiculous that he didn’t even try to fight back.
Is this really an Inquisitor of the Church?
I tilted my head as I approached him, and kicked his groin a few times, making him foam at the mouth.
"...Well. I guess it’s good that we subdued him, but wouldn’t it have been better to interrogate him?"
"They probably won’t be able to talk. These idiots won’t respond to reason. Look at him now. He’s foaming at the mouth from enjoyment. Do you think we can get any information from such a perverted trash like him?"
"I don’t think he passed out from enjoyment though."
"As you said, it’s probably hard to expect any useful information. Inquisitors are trained to resist torture."
"Ah, I see. That makes sense. Of course, the Inquisitors would’ve been prepared for interrogation."
As I muttered to myself, I turned my gaze toward the darkness. There, I saw bones and remnants of flesh that once belonged to a person. The marks on the flesh were unmistakably bite marks.
...Cannibalism? Did they eat people?
<The one we just bound. He hasn’t been here for just a day or two. He’s in a complete state of starvation.>
<Look at the marks on his clothes. He could have killed the person, but he deliberately let him go.>
‘W-what does that mean?’
<These guys weren’t hunters. They were being hunted.>
Hunted? By who?
I didn’t need to ask the question. Thinking back on whose territory this underground was originally, the answer quickly came to mind.
<Haha. This just got more interesting. The corruption of Paladin Ruel? >
<That Erginus bastard. Can’t even make a proper puppet. In the past, he could suppress them harshly, but he wouldn’t have toyed with them like this.>
...This kind of variable wasn’t expected.
Ah, damn.
If my body were normal, I could check what happened by using Historical Verification, but right now, it’s impossible.
Historical Verification consumes a lot of energy. If I used it now, I’d collapse before even seeing the content.
After a moment of contemplation, I let out a bitter laugh. In the end, nothing will change. I’ve just come back to the starting point. If that’s the case, there’s no reason to retreat.
"...May the dead find rest."
Once I confirmed that Faivy had finished praying for the soul, I moved forward again to continue exploring the dungeon.
What we saw next was the very embodiment of cruelty.
Corpses deliberately torn apart to intimidate the living. The face skin of someone who had been screaming. Rotting chunks of meat. Inquisitors trembling in fear, defeated by us. The filth and black blood spread everywhere.
Faivy and I assumed the unsettling atmosphere of the underground was created by the sacrifice of innocent people, but the reality was different.
This hell was built on the deaths of those who were not innocent.
"An alchemist? This reminds me of when I entered that bastard’s dungeon."
"...That was really horrible."
"Who could have done this?"
As we moved deeper into the hell, I suddenly felt a chill run down my spine.
My grandfather raised his voice. Without realizing it, I grabbed my shield and tried to move my body. But my movements were meaningless.
Freya, rushing past me, knocked the mace away with her sword.
"They’re here. The creepy enemy."
Instead of responding, the enemy swung his mace again.
When Freya retreated, the mace, which had struck the ground, caused a small earthquake with its force.
"Trash. Get ready."
The broken puppet of Paladin Ruel is coming to kill us.