Chapter Volume 1, 23: Lord of Underground Labyrinth?

Volume 1, Chapter 23: Lord of Underground Labyrinth⑨

Lambert brandished his sword as he ran through the passage, piercing the blade into the floor.

Putting his full force into the attack, he discharged the undead’s miasma, letting it dissipate into a smoky haze.

「O-old man, what are yo-… Hngh?」

Lambert flashed a glare toward Lloyd, silently telling him to shut his mouth.

After being exposed to Lambert’s miasma, Lloyd dropped his sword. He felt like he was being stared down by a giant monster, causing him to fall weakly on his butt.

Fiona, who was nearby, also shuddered due to the after-effects of Lambert’s miasma.

Three thunderous sounds resounded down the passage.

At the same time, three black slimes appeared and circled around Lambert.

Invigorated by his miasma, the monsters pounced at him.

However, this was all according to plan; naturally, Lambert intended to lure them out. Due to his status as an undead, he was able to sense their existence however faint.

「T-Three of them?! Be careful, Lambert-san! One of them is aiming for your blind spot!」

「Arghhhhhhhhhhhhh!」

Lambert sent a series of lightning-fast slashes, a speed far surpassing that of the black slimes, who couldn’t hold their own against his might.

The swings of his sword stirred up a storm, creating a wind barrier that stopped the black slimes in their tracks. Stunned, the black slimes were helpless against the series of high-speed slashes that eviscerated them.

The fight itself lasted just two seconds.

However, during the span of those two seconds, Lambert’s sword was a flurry of movement; barely visible, he must have slashed his foes over dozens of times.

「KYAAAAAAAA!」

The very scene was enough to make Fiona and Co., who were all staying away from between Lambert, scream.

After the gale had finally receded, the scattered slimes’ cores splattered across the walls.

「Um… My eyes have gotten used to this, but I suppose I’m still overreacting a bit, since I almost ended up going all out. Well, since I’m getting a hang of the position of their cores… I guess I can take care of them in five hits next time.」

「… I-I see.」

「Sorry, Fiona. Your clothes must be wet after getting splashed with all that water.」

「P-Please, don’t mind it…」

「The water also splashed me and Lily too… Nay, please, don’t mind us either!」

After Lloyd said so, he waved his hands in panic.

In short, Lloyd wanted to ask Lambert a certain question.

Why did he only care about Fiona?

「…………」

This was the first time Lambert realized he treated Fiona differently from the others. However, it didn’t take him long to arrive at the reason.

It was simply because Fiona greatly resembled Aurelia.

「Um, my bad, Lloyd, Lily.」

「Ah, no, I don’t really mind about my clothes, but still… Old man, just who in the world are you?」

「I told you before, right? I’m Lambert, a man who was killed for betraying his lord.」

Lambert replied to Lloyd and then continued on along the passageway.

Lloyd was stupified, staring dumbly at Lambert’s back. Lily bonked him lightly on his head with her cane and tugged him to follow after Lambert.

Lambert’s words caused Lloyd to sigh and recall what the 『 Spirit’s Dusk』’s guild master, Germain, had said.

Though Germain told Lambert that he might be ridiculed due to his name, Lloyd honestly couldn’t imagine anyone laughing at Lambert after they saw his raw skill and swordplay.

「… You might be even more powerful than the real one.」

Soon, they reached the end of the passage, which led into a huge room, similar to the previous one.

Lambert sent his miasma into the pyroxene, lighting the dark room.

It seemed that only the specific passage they were using was connected to this particular room.

However, the fact that there was nothing but a spacious room was beyond Lambert’s expectation.

After advancing several steps, Lambert waved his hand, signaled Fiona and the rest to come to his side.

「I can feel something strange in this place. This might be a little bit troublesome, so be prepared to escape at any moment.」

「B-But if even someone like you, Lambert, old ma-…」

「…………」

Lambert shook his head in silence.

「It’s because I might not be able to protect you guys. Retre-…」

Before he finished his sentence, Lambert felt the presence of five people approaching from the passage they just came from.

「Those five people seem like measly thieves, but… Will you go back and fight them, or will you follow me to fight against an unknown monster? Please understand that I’ve no intention to be distracted by that monster lurking here.」

Fiona, Lloyd, and Lily exchanged glances with each other and then nodded.

「We will go with you…」

The three of them declared without a shred of hesitation.

There was no way the three of them could survive a frontal clash with the five people who were following them through the fourth floor.

Thus, they rather stay with Lambert, who could at least guarantee their safety to some extent.

「I see. Then come with me for a bit more, and in case a monster appears… Make sure to stand back and give me room.」

「I-Is the monster you’re talking about such a dangerous creature, old man?」

「Well, that fella aside, maybe it’s somewhat of a last guardian of the research facility. That fella could never have used that kind of monster before, but… I see there’s a high chance that person has a successor, huh.」

「W-What are you talking about?」

Lambert didn’t even bother to answer Lloyd’s question; he just went on ahead while unsheathing his great sword and dropping the scabbard.

Despite standing at the ready like that for a few minutes, there was no sign of enemies leaping at him.

「… I don’t see any monster coming at you, old man.」

After he said this, the sound of footsteps coming from the passage they came from became louder and more distinguishable.

「So, you’re that armored bastard, huh? I wanted to meet you so much.」

The one who appeared first was a muscular man equipped with claw-like gloves in both of his hands.

His bright-red, bristly hair combined with his prominent sideburns and beard made him appear like a lion.

He chuckled as he looked at Lambert, like a predator eyeing his prey.

He wore white clothes and a red mantle.

It was a modified version of 『Dragon’s Enchanted Metal』’s formal uniform.

He was followed closely by another four people.

Everyone wore the standard uniform of 『Dragon’s Enchanted Metal』, and amongst the four was the figure of Cradle, who got his ass kicked by Lambert.

「N-No way. Don’t tell me you guys were following us the entire way up until this place?!」

Responding to Fiona’s words, the lion-like man ― Titan, the guild master of 『Dragon’s Enchanted Metal』 — opened his mouth.

「Indeed. It’s moi. It seems you guys have offended earl-sama. Thus, earl-sama sent me to hunt you guys down. Though… I, myself, am interested in you, armor weirdo.」

Lambert lowered his great sword and then turned around to see Titan.

「Oops, you better not be thinking about escaping from this place alive. Aside from us, there’s another fifty people of 『Dragon’s Enchanted Metal』 standing by in this labyrinth, waiting for the signal.」

Cradle went one step ahead of Titan, his bandaged face sneering at Lambert.

「Remember what I told you before? I warned you, right? The meaning of making an enemy of me!」

Cradle glared at Lambert as he spoke, an eerie smile on his bandaged face.

「Now, behold. By making an enemy of me, you made an enemy of the entirety of 『Dragon’s Enchanted Metal』, the largest guild in this city. Even more so, you made an enemy of this city, the Ainsaz itself. Have you prepared yourself for that?」

Lambert, paying no heed to Cradle, was carefully surveying the room.

（Great, that monster has yet to make its move… I guess I’ll take care of these people first.）

As Cradle was preparing to attack Lambert’s companions, Lambert approached Titan and his followers.

「Leave them to me. You guys make sure to escape through the passage during that time.」

Lambert was even more vigilant at this moment, ready to fight the monster that had yet to appear, but Cradle’s nose flared, mistakenly believing that his speech finally cornered them.

「You’re going to go easy on them as usual, right, Titan-sama?」

「Still looking down on your opponent, huh? Armor bastard… That guy is my prey. Do not disturb our battle. You guys may kill the other three.」

「HA!」

Titan’s subordinates then surrounded the entrance of the passage, completely blocking it off.

Titan sent a sidelong glance toward Fiona and the rest of Lambert’s companions, but finding them uninteresting, he returned his gaze toward Lambert and smacked his lips.

「The battle between true men is naturally a one-on-one battle, right? Stop thinking about boorish things. Let’s enjoy this, shall we?」