Chapter 87
Moving along following the Knights, I observed the surrounding environment.
A neat building interior.
Appearing somewhat modern, the civilization seemed closer to being advanced. It was like the hidden 4th Floor.
To begin with, the Knights' armor wasn't medieval but had a somewhat mechanical engineering design...
Above all, the Knights weren't Humans either.
The faces briefly visible through the gaps in their helmets had three eyes, and they were the exact same race as the Noble man who had spoken to me a little while ago.
I made various deductions.
First, my current situation was slavery.
And he had called it an excellent match.
...Slave Gladiator? Colosseum? Was it perhaps that kind of vibe?
The surrounding scenery changed into a musty space as we passed the neat Corridor and went down to the Underground.
The place we soon arrived at was a space like a massive Detention Facility.
Only then could I see perfectly normal humans with two eyes.
Grubby appearances were evident, and countless people were locked in the Prison wearing shackles. They were men, women, and children of all ages.
I was dragged to one prison among them.
Clank.
In front of the Prison, a Knight tried to put shackles on both my hands.
I debated whether I should resist even now, but decided to stay still for the moment.
It felt like I should just follow along as things progressed at first. I lacked too much information.
If things went wrong anyway, I could just leave.
“What are you doing? Get in.”
Wearing the shackles, I entered the Prison.
Gazes pierced into me.
The Knight left, and only two guards remained outside the Prison.
The people inside the Prison swarmed over to me and spoke.
“You're safe, Mr. Turo!”
“Is your body okay? Are you hurt anywhere...”
...Turo?
Was that my name for this role?
The people were looking at me with worried eyes. Some were even on the verge of tears.
Given their favorable reactions, it seemed these people were allies for now.
“You must be exhausted, so please rest, Mr. Turo. Who knows when those bastards will drag you out again...”
A man, glaring at the alien guards outside the Prison with eyes full of hostility, said.
Led by the people, I sat down leaning my back against one side of the Prison.
I needed to understand the Background Setting a bit...
The hostile Faction was the Three-Eyed Race, and the allies were Humans like me.
The Three-Eyed Race was imprisoning the Humans, and I had just returned from finishing a match.
I only have known this much so far.
“U-um, should I massage your shoulders, Mr. Turo? Or you can lie down and rest your head on my lap. You need to rest comfortably even a little bit...”
A woman who sat down next to me kept talking to me.
I checked my surroundings and whispered to the woman.
“Excuse me...”
“Yes, Mr. Turo!”
“Ah, no. Quietly, lend me your ear for a second.”
If I didn't know, I had to ask directly.
“I'm in a bit of a confused state right now.”
“...Yes?”
“I hurt my head during the match. My memories are jumbled, so could you tell me what this situation is right now?”
The woman looked at me in surprise.
“A-amnesia? What do we do...!”
“I'm just a bit confused. I think I might remember if you tell me.”
Would it work?
The Woman soon nodded with a stiff expression.
“A-alright. Exactly what part don't you remember?”
“How did we end up locked in here like this?”
“...F-from there? You don't remember anything at all...?”
“Hurry.”
When I urged her, she began to explain.
Her explaining skills weren't very good, but it wasn't to the point where I couldn't understand. To summarize, it was like this.
We were a People called 'Panlop', and that Three-Eyed Race was an alien race that invaded this Continent from outer space, called the 'Kalundi Tribe'.
Numerous nations and peoples fell to their knees before the overwhelming power of the Kalundi tribe, and they instantly turned the humans into slaves and conquered the world.
The matches were the Kalundi Tribe's entertainment and amusement.
They made the Human Slaves engage in a Death Match, and they enjoyed watching it.
This match's concept was dragging in countless Slaves, dividing them by their People, and having them kill each other while risking the fate of their respective People.
And I was the Warrior participating in the match as the Representative of this Turop Tribe.
In other words, the lives of the people locked in this Detention Facility depended on me.
“Hmm...”
“H-how is it? Do you remember a bit?”
“Yes, I think I remember a bit.”
I fell into thought after hearing the entire explanation.
I roughly understood the background.
If so, now I had to guess what the Clear Condition for the hidden was...
‘He said it was the final match.’
That Noble-like man said that only the final match was left now.
Then there was one match left from now on.
Would it be clear if I won the final match?
It would be nice if it were such a simple progression, but...
Based on my experiences so far, it didn't seem like the hidden would end that simply.
For now, I'd have to wait until the final match starts.
Ah, but wait a minute...
‘How long do I have to wait for this?’
I felt a sense of dismay.
The time flowing here was naturally flowing outside as well.
I had entered to clear the hidden things from my room.
If I couldn't go out for a whole day, my Family would think something terrible had happened.
The hidden ones so far had all progressed immediately, so I hadn't thought of this kind of situation...
I might foolishly have to blow one precious opportunity.
From now on, would I have to say I was going on a trip somewhere to come in and clear a hidden thing.
‘It can't be helped.’
If I had to wait too long, I'd just break out of prison and cause a refreshing mess, though it didn't seem like that would be the right answer.
But fortunately, I didn't have to wait that long.
Clank.
About half a day had passed.
The Knights came looking for the Prison again.
“Come out, Number 199.”
At that, someone shouted in protest.
“...I-isn't this too much! Mr. Turo hasn't even been able to rest for a few hours yet!”
The Knight drew his sword and tried to approach the person who shouted.
That crazy bastard.
I stood up from my spot and blocked his path.
“I apologize. I will go.”
The Knight stared at me, then sheathed his sword and gestured with his chin.
Leaving behind the people looking at me anxiously, I followed the Knights.
The place we arrived at after leaving the Detention Facility was in front of a portal.
Next to it, a rack with various weapons hanging on it was placed.
The Knight unlocked the shackles on my hands and said.
“Choose a weapon and enter.”
...Am I doing the final match now?
After pondering for a moment between a sword and a mace, I chose the sword.
I rode the portal and entered.
Paaht!
The location changed, and...
I was standing in the middle of a massive arena like a Colosseum.
Waaaaah-!
Roars were pouring in from all directions.
The spectators in the Audience Seats were all three-eyed Alien Kalundi Tribe members.
[Now, it is the highly anticipated final match!]
A voice that sounded amplified by a microphone was heard.
Feeling like a monkey in a cage, I looked at the opponent on the opposite side.
The Host's voice was heard again.
[The final match is a One-on-One Duel with no complex rules! Number 199 and Number 21! The two best Warriors who survived to the end out of over 300 participants will now fight risking the fate of their respective peoples!]
The opponent was a huge man holding an axe.
A grim determination could be felt from his stiff expression.
There were cores at both ends of the Arena.
Behind me was a Blue Core, and behind the opponent was a Red Core.
[Victory goes to whoever destroys the opponent's core first! After the match ends, there is an event remaining to execute all the Slaves of the defeated side, so we ask the audience to please stay in their seats until the end!]
The sound of the roars grew even louder.
...It was just clear, but I didn't feel very good about it.
[Now, then! The match begins!]
The match began.
The man rushed toward me with a shout.
Clang!
I blocked the descending axe with my sword.
The man continued his attacks with fierce momentum.
I kept blocking and dodging the attacks.
The man wasn't weak, but he seemed to be in the Level 50s at best.
At Level 80, it was a level I could easily parry.
‘What should I do...’
I could counterattack and subdue the man right now.
Given how easy this was, it seemed winning the final match wouldn't end the clear after all.
Would something else start after the match ended? Should I just finish it first?
Having decided, I immediately counterattacked.
Kwaang!
When I swung my sword hard, the man's grip tore and the axe flew away.
The man who lost his weapon panicked for a moment, and I grabbed his arm and flipped him over just like that.
“Keugh...!”
Leaving the man slammed into the ground, I approached his core.
The Audience Seats went quiet for a moment before cheers rang out.
The fallen man hurriedly got up and rushed at me again.
I grabbed him again, threw him, and started breaking his core.
Kwang! Kwang! Kwang!
The man was also desperate to stop me from breaking the core.
I read the despair in his expression and could guess his feelings.
This person couldn't give up either.
If he lost, all the people on his side would die.
However, I couldn't afford to lose on purpose either.
I continued to throw off the man and finished destroying the Red Core.
Crack!
Soon, the man's core was destroyed.
[...Match over! It is an overwhelming victory for Number 199!]
Perhaps because the match ended anticlimactically, boos and cheers rang out simultaneously from the Audience Seats.
The man who kept getting up and rushing in like a roly-poly toy finally slumped to his knees.
At that moment, another voice rang out in the Arena as if amplified.
“Quiet.”
There were the two highest seats on both sides of the Colosseum-like Audience Seats.
The Kalundi Tribe man sitting on one of them had stood up and spoken.
At his single word, the Arena went quiet.
The man continued speaking.
“I, Patoum, the Third Prince of the Kalundi Empire, commend your victory.”
“...”
“Number 199, what is your name?”
I answered.
“It is Turo.”
“Turo, as promised, all of your captured People will live. Furthermore, as the victor of the match, you will shed your Slave Status and be granted Second-Class Citizenship of the Kalundi Empire.”
Cheers rang out in the Arena once again.
Whatever about Citizenship or whatever...
I silently watched to see how things would progress now.
The guy called the Prince spoke again.
“You may be proud. Do you have anything you wish to say as the victor?”
...Anything I wish to say?
There was no way I'd have anything in particular.
“Thank you.”
So I just answered with a greeting of thanks.
[You have failed the Nightmare Difficulty 6th Floor Hidden Clear.(2/3)]
[You are being removed from the Tower.]
What?
I was kicked out of the Tower and returned to my room.
Feeling dumbfounded, I sat on the chair.
“...What the?”
Why did I fail?
What did I even do?
I looked back on the moment I failed.
The Prince asked if I had anything to say, and I answered, 'Thank you...'
And then the Failure Message popped up right away.
...Was that wrong?
Did I perhaps have to give a different answer?
- I told you to just kill them all. If you hand over your body, I will kill all of the Kalundi Tribe or whatever they are.
I was dumbfounded and said.
“Do you want to ruin the clear? Why do you keep telling me to kill everyone.”
This Yangban was also a Nightmare Climber, so how did he do the Hidden Clears?
- Is there a need to care about such things? Whether it cleared or not, I just killed them all.
“...There are rewards on the line.”
- Trivial things like Skills or items are of no use to me whatsoever. My power has already reached the status of a Demigod.
“You are amazing. But why couldn't you climb the Nightmare to the end?”
Ignoring the throwing-a-fit Ma-Wang, I fell into thought.
Seeing how the Failure Message popped up as soon as I answered, it seemed the answer was indeed the point...
What in the world was there to say there?
After pondering for a long time, I organized my thoughts and went outside.
“Where are you going?”
“I have drinking plans with friends. I might be a bit late.”
[Will you enter the Nightmare Difficulty 6th Floor?]
I went out, got a motel room, and entered again.
Now, let's go for try 2.
Cleared the 6th Floor, got dragged by the Knights to the Prison, came back out, and entered the Final Match Arena.
He subdued the same pitiful opposing man and smashed the core.
“...I, Patoum, the Third Prince of the Kalundi Empire, commend your victory.”
I returned to the point of the conversation with the Prince again.
“Do you have anything you wish to say as the victor?”
The Prince's exact same question.
I answered.
“...Could you give me a different reward instead of Citizenship?”
At that, the audience murmured.
The Prince laughed as if intrigued and asked.
“A different reward? What do you want? The survival of your People is confirmed separately from the reward.”
I glanced at the man kneeling in despair on one side of the Arena, then answered.
“I would like you to show mercy so that the people on the opposing side can also live. That is the reward I desire instead of citizenship.”
What could the Clear Condition for the 6th Floor be?
I had thought about it a lot.
The only background information given to me was a match risking the survival of each other's People, and that was it.
Then wouldn't the answer just be there?
The thought suddenly occurred to me... that perhaps saving not only the people on this side but also the people on the opposing side was the Clear Condition.
Because there was no way the Clear Condition was killing all these Aliens like Ma-Wang said, and there was no way that was possible either.
“...You also want the survival of the Opponent Race?”
The Prince stroked his chin.
“It is an incredibly trivial reward compared to Citizenship, but that goes against the grand premise of this match that only one People survives... Hmm, I am conflicted.”
“...”
“What are the Princess's thoughts?”
The seat on the opposite side of the Arena.
At the Prince's question, the Kalundi Tribe Woman sitting there stood up.
She looked down at where I was, smiled brightly, and answered.
“I like the spirit of a slave making a bold demand, Older Brother. Are you giving me the choice?”
“Since it pleases you, I shall do so.”
“Then this Maiden will make a decision by tomorrow. How about you suspend the execution of the slaves until then.”
The Prince nodded.
“Understood. Turo, my Younger Sibling Princess Latium will decide whether to accept your demand or not by this time tomorrow. Until then, the execution of the defeated side's Slaves is suspended.”
The Failure Message did not pop up before my eyes.
I cheered inwardly.
‘Did it work...?’
Was this the right answer after all?
I turned my head and made eye contact with the opposing man.
He, who had been despairing until just now, was looking at me with surprised eyes.
He bowed his head as if thanking me. I also gave a light nod.
Amidst the chaotic atmosphere as the spectators seemed to be exiting the Arena...
The Knights approached me and said.
“Follow us.”
I was dragged somewhere by the Knights just like that.
- If you were going to save both sides, there is also the method of saving them by killing off all these three-eyed mutts, yet you ask for suffering.
I answered Ma-Wang's voice.
‘Hidden Clears are done while thinking like this, Demon Lord. Is it okay to do it so ignorantly.’
- Shut up.
‘Then don't keep raining on my parade. Can't you see it's progressing very smoothly right now?’
But where am I going right now?
Entering a Palace-like building, I soon arrived in front of a fancy room door.
The Knight who guided me knocked on the door and stepped back.
Then the door opened.
A fancy and spacious room adorned with all sorts of sparkling jewels.
The one inside the room was... the Princess.
“Come in.”
The Princess, who was sitting leaning obliquely against a chair, opened her mouth.
The Knight who opened the door went around to her back and stood like an Escort.
Hmm... What is this?
Did the Princess tell them to bring me?
I entered the room. The door closed again.
“Come closer.”
At the Princess's words, I stepped closer to her.
She blinked her three eyes, looked me up and down, and let out a laugh.
“Slave, you said your name was Turo?”
“Yes.”
“I liked your spirit. And I quite like your face too.”
“...”
“Turo, if you satisfy me, I shall show mercy and grant your request.”
...Satisfy? How?
I was thinking if persuading the Princess here was the key to the Final Clear...
“Take it off.”
“...Yes?”
The Princess licked her lips with an alluring smile.
“Did I not tell you to satisfy me? Take everything off and come here.”
Then the Princess stood up from her seat, went to the bed on one side of the room, and laid her body down.
Uh...
My thoughts stopped for a moment.
- Puhahahahahaha...!
Ma-Wang's laughter rang out in my head.
Holy shit...
I never imagined a Crisis of Chastity instead of a life-threatening crisis.