Volume 2 - CH 17

「Hazuki-chan, here. The pendant your mother was wearing.」

Inside the retractable pendant was a family photo of Hazuki's parents and Hazuki as a child.

It showed Hazuki clinging to her mother's leg, with only half of her face showing.

「They were taking this picture, huh........... I don't remember at all ....... I was a recluse from those days. ......」

「This is the only thing I was able to retrieve, ...... but I thought it would be a nice memento.」

After shedding a tear, Hazuki forced a smile, hung the pendant around her neck, and carefully tucked it into her clothes.

「I was so sad, but I'm glad we were able to say goodbye and that I was able to keep my promise. We were able to see each other again in any way possible!」

「Let's get some rest. I'll be outside, so you can all go inside the treasury.」

「Why don't you come in, Master?」

「No, I just need a little time alone.」

「Nemu is outside too-nya」

Only Mars and Nemu remain outside, vigilantly resting Lilia, Hazuki, and Julis.

Julis's 『Absolute Protected Area』 will take about three hours before it can be used again, so this is a break that also takes into account the recharging time.

「Thank you, Nemu-chan」

「Nyaa?」

「You told Hazuki-chan to do it herself. I was thinking that too, but I couldn't say it.」

「Hazuki-nyan used to talk about her parents. If she loves them so much but lets someone else do it, she will definitely feel bad about it later.」

「Yeah, I'm sure you're right. ――That was tough. ...... the Necromancy shouldn't exist in this world.」

It was the worst kind of magic, Mars felt strongly.

It should not exist before the circumstances of the Tomb Guard's clan or the Norn's curse.

Mars was completely determined to extinguish necromancy, whether or not Norn the necromancer was moving.

「Why are there no monsters or undead in this layer?」

「I don't know ...... if it just happens to be a blank area or if the prince ahead of us has taken care of it.」

「I have accompanied him to the dungeon three times. In that experience, there was this air around the lowest layer」

There was an eerie calm.

Hazuki remained listless, as it was right after a sad goodbye.

She seems to be maintaining her composure, and Lilia can be seen to be in shock.

「I'm fine. It's no use worrying about the past! What matters is the future!」

「That's right-nya! Nya...... Nemu just heard a sound from over there-nya」

Nemu points to the end of the passage.

「Monsters? Undead?」

「Maybe...... human-nya. ――It's the smell of Kruse-nya!」

「Kruse-sama!?」

「Nyaaaaa! N-Nemu is shaking-nya!」

Julis grabs Nemu by the shoulders and rocks her back and forth violently.

「Mars! Let's move on!」

「G-got it.」

They all proceed in the direction Nemu said. Julis was faster than anyone else.

There was a hole so big that they could see it even without getting closer.

The rectangular hole was so large that they did not even know how long it was.

That was the way to the lowest layer ― In other words, it is the root of the dungeon boss.

The pitch-black cavern was indeed a path leading to the underworld.

「Kruse-sama!」

「――Julis?」

A man with tattoos on his arms, Kruse, and ten slaves was near the entrance.

Everyone is so full of wounds that it is obvious at a glance.

Even Kruse, a man of authority, was covered in blood and had a sword in his belt.

「You are safe! I'm glad......」

「You, why are you with that man!?」

「Th-that's ......」

Strangely, Kruse should dictate what happens afterward, since she was left behind.

The reality is that Julis would not be alive if Mars had not picked her up.

「It looked like she was in trouble, so we saved her. And I couldn't let her go alone, so we came here together.」

*glare* Kruse glares at Mars, then throws the same look at Julis.

Not surprisingly, Kruse seriously hit Julis in the face with his back fist.

The force of the big man's serious blow was so powerful that Julis was blown away by about three meters.

「W-What are you doing!?」

「How shameless of you to talk like my loyal subject, yet follow other men around! So you can't wipe out your lowly blood after all?!」

Kruse is furious, his veins almost torn out.

He did not seem to be able to see Mars.

It seemed as if all of his fatigue and frustration had erupted from Kruse.

In short, he was taking it out on Julis.

「K-Kruse-sama......」

「Are you okay ......?」

Julis' nose dripping blood as she reaches for Kruse's back as he leaves.

Mars feels foolish, wondering why she should be with such a man.

Even though he knows that people's thoughts are not motivated by rationality, she should have a better chance of living a happy life in her own place.

Following Kruse, who has gone ahead of the others in anger, Mars and the rest head for the deepest part.

Mars couldn't help but feel sorry for Julis, who was silently following after Kruse.

「It's the City of the Dead. ......」

「Th-This is probably the ancient Tomb Guard's village. ......! The altar over there, it's broken now, but I'm sure if it was done right, it will surely look like that. ......」

There was a city in the dungeon. He no longer even has an idea of its size.

There is a trapezoidal pyramid in the center, surrounded by buildings.

「They brought the city ......? No, did they make it ......?」

「I don't know. ......」

「Nyaa ...... Nemu doesn't know what that means-nya」

With gaping mouths open, everyone stares at the pyramid.

It is no longer as if they are here for sightseeing.

At a quick glance, there are no monsters that look like bosses, and there are no moving Norn corpses.

Kruse and his slaves were about a hundred meters ahead of Mars and the others.

The slaves surrounded Kruse.

「Did you find anything!?」

「............」

When Mars calls out to him, Kruse does not respond.

Mars was completely recognized as an enemy by Kruse.

「What the heck ...... Everyone stays close to me. It's a strange place, but I think this is the lowest layer, so you never know what might happen.」

「I thought there would be real dragons or some legendary monsters, but ...... it's eerily silent」

「Nyaooooonnn! Dragon-nya?」

「If that's the case, I think it's kind of cute. ......?」

The tension is subtly diminished.

「?」

「Nyaa?」

Lilia and Nemu, who have good ears, turn their heads.

Soon after, Mars' ears also heard a sharan, sharan, a sound like metal scraping.

His eyes naturally fell on the top of the pyramid.

「Is that ......!?」

「――Norn」

It is impossible to have seen her because she is so long ago that she could be considered a fairy tale.

Yet all of them know who she is.

She had long black hair that swung from side to side and a long golden tin cane that she repeatedly thrust into the pyramid.

The small ring on the ring at the end of the tin can seemed to make a sharan, sharan\ sound.

The sound reverberated and grew louder.

Then a large number of undead appeared from the bottom of the pyramid.

Unlike the previous undead, they were clearly a well-organized and immortal army.

They were approaching in a circle, surrounding Mars and Kruse.

「Kruse! The situation is what it is, so why don't we work together!? This is seriously bad!」

「Kuhh ......! I'll give you permission!」

「Why are you so high and mighty!」

「Low-lifes! If you are surrounded, you are finished! You must help us break through the single point!　Follow my lead!」

The direction in which Kruse pointed his sword is the direction in which the pyramid is located.

「The necromancy will stop when the magician is defeated! So those who can attack at a distance, attack Norn!」

「Indeed.......We don't even know how many hundreds of them there are, and even then, it's only a matter of time before we were all wiped out against undead of such strength!」

Drawing her bow with all her might, Lilia fires an arrow at the Norns at the top.

The arrow, fired at a velocity exceeding the speed of sound, pierced the flesh shield of the undead who had climbed up and jumped up like a ladder over their companions and stopped.

「Red Lotus Formation 『Flame Spear Funeral』!」

Hazuki's flaming spear thrusts in a straight line toward Norn.

Even if it is an undead shield, it burns it and gains momentum.

The amplified power of Hazuki's magic is now at disaster level.

This could reach her.

Just when everyone thinks so, the situation suddenly changes.

And in the worst possible way.

「――Dragon」

Lilia muttered in a whisper.

With a single flap of its wings, a huge shadow creates wind like a storm.

The rolling sand cleared, and what was seen as an agile flying monster with the physique of a Hydra.

It easily caught Hazuki's magic.

With each flap of its wings, a piece of flesh fell to the ground.

――Dragon zombie?

What came to Mars' mind was a monster from a game he used to play.

It had no awareness of a strong monster, but the one in front of him, in reality, was not in the category of strong or weak.

The original boss of this dungeon must have been this dragon when it was decent.

It was thought that Norn had defeated it and turned it into an undead creature.

It was probably weaker than when it was alive.

After all, it could destroy its own body just by flapping its wings.

However, the fact that a jumbo jet could fly with such maneuverability, and then turn hostile toward them, made it an unusual threat.

In order to defeat Norn, they must also defeat the Dragon Zombie.

The threat of the surrounding undead is also formidable. Each and every one of them is comparable to Mars under normal circumstances.

-――This is bad, this is bad, this is bad. This is a deadly place.

I can't see a single clue to a solution.

Meanwhile, the undead is closing in around us.

「――Mars! We'll live, for sure!」

Lilia shout to the stunned Mars.

He suddenly regains consciousness.

「Yeah, you're right. We will live. If we don't get through this, we won't have a future.」

All the weapons in the treasury are taken out and thrust into the ground.

Using all the magical power he had, he multiplied his 『Body Strengthening』 to the limit.

This is three times as many as when he defeated Hydra, a realm Mars has never used before.

And it is also a realm that mankind has never reached.

Mars cannot predict what will happen to his body.

Still, this is the point where he has to stand his ground.