Chapter 22
I was led into the cave by Barie.
At that moment, BOOM!!! echoed through the cave entrance.
"Uuugh. Uuuuuugh!"
The ogre punched the rock several times, then soon fell silent as though it had grown bored.
Barie stared at the rock blocking the entrance and only sheathed her sword after confirming that the ogre's presence had completely vanished.
"Hoo..."
She slowly steadied her ragged breathing.
She had cut down countless monsters without rest to reach this place, and even a knight's stamina had finally reached its limit.
She sank to the ground without even having the leeway to worry about her dignity as a knight.
She removed her helmet.
Her sweat-soaked silver hair clung to her forehead and cheeks.
Her eyes gazed into the depths of the cave.
The Red Moon illuminated even this cave, which had not contained a single ray of light, disregarding the terrain.
"Is that the thing you mentioned?"
"Yes. My target is in there."
"...A dungeon."
There was a dungeon inside the cave.
The dungeon entrance was encircled by a vivid band of red magic that had seeped into its edges.
Like an ember eating away at dry paper, the power of the boss monster, influenced by the Red Moon, gnawed at the seal's entrance while waiting to be discovered.
"Let's rest for a moment before we go in while I explain the dungeon."
It was a single-room dungeon.
Since it existed solely to maintain the seal, entering the dungeon led directly to the boss room, where the boss battle could begin at once.
The boss's abilities affected the mind, so the challenger's mental strength was important.
"So you must steel yourself."
"Simple."
There was no way it was simple.
I finished my explanation.
Up to this point, one could make guesses based on ancient texts or legends passed down by word of mouth, but a more detailed explanation might make people wonder about the source of my information.
Unfortunately, I couldn't reveal the source, so this was all I could tell her.
While Barie rested a little longer, I went to the dungeon entrance and peered inside.
The red mist impaired visibility, but I could see a blurry shadow rising in the center of the dungeon.
Something at its summit was emitting light.
That was a sword.
A single sword had been planted there.
The blade, infused with red magic, burned dark crimson. Even while affected by the red magic, it continued to maintain the boss monster's seal.
'Vitalia.'
The magic sword Vitalia.
One of the legendary weapons that could only be collected on days when the Red Moon rose in the game.
A magic sword that consumed mana.
It was a desperately needed weapon for Eck, who lacked mana, as it stole the mana of whatever it cut and added it to its wielder's reserves.
But I couldn't simply pull it out.
I had to draw it only after following the proper procedure.
This was one of the places where such a gimmick existed.
'Because it was the seal's wedge.'
The moment the sword was pulled out, the seal would be broken.
The boss monster would inhabit the body of the person who pulled out the sword and use them as its host.
Elena had once pulled out that sword recklessly and been controlled by the magic sword.
Conditional debuffs were applied to all sorts of actions; she had to wear a gothic lolita outfit and go without panties. Her attack power increased and she attracted aggro more easily, but her durability became absurdly weak.
With buffs and debuffs mixed together, she had been forced to proceed through hard mode.
'I can't wear gothic lolita.'
That was why a procedure was necessary.
A procedure to avoid being bewitched by the magic sword.
Clank.
Barie stood beside me.
She looked up at the magic sword inside the dungeon, then stepped inside and let the helmet in her hand drop with a clatter.
"All I have to do is pull that out?"
"Sir Barie, stop."
"What sort of legendary weapon is that?"
"Sir."
"I wonder what legendary weapon it is. To think such a splendid sword was abandoned in a place like this. Wouldn't that be a national loss?"
"Barie!"
I grabbed Barie's arm to stop her from going any farther.
"You mustn't go in."
"If I show it to the young lady, she will surely be proud of me. Every knight will envy me. The young lady's standing will rise. The day my honor becomes the young lady's honor. I... I..."
"Can you hear me?"
Barie shook off my hand.
The knight's strength sent my hand flying.
My fingertips tingled.
"Tch. As expected, I can't withstand even a little of it."
The magic sword had been a wedge sealing away the boss monster, but after all these years, it had degenerated into an antenna that had merged with the boss monster and spread its power.
The boss monster's ability was Desire Domination.
It preyed on Barie's desires.
Magical resistance could not block it.
Because it interfered directly with the mind, it had to be blocked with specialized magic.
I had prepared by enchanting my armor, but Barie had not. Even though she possessed the outstanding magical resistance befitting a noble, the slightest mental interference was enough to end things.
Now that she had become like that, there was no way for me to stop her.
"I did add a condition in case this happened, but..."
I wasn't sure whether I should be pleased or not.
Beyond my reach, Barie climbed to the top of the hill and grasped the magic sword's hilt.
"Hahaha! The young lady is looking at me! At me, the conqueror of the dungeon! At me, the master of this magnificent magic sword! She'll be proud of me! If that happens, the young lady will surely grant me a reward herself!"
She tightened her grip.
"I am Barie, Lady Reator's knight! To bestow upon my lady the glory of a page in history!"
Barie drew the magic sword.
The moment it came free, the dungeon's magic pulsed. The reddish interior grew even redder, then subsided, repeating the cycle.
A vibration resonated directly through my mana.
Cold sweat formed along my spine.
'So this is the boss monster...'
A ghost from the distant past, sealed away because there had been no way to deal with it, was awakening.
The hill erupted.
The power of the boss monster, held back by the magic sword, burst throughout the room and filled it to the point of suffocation.
Barie, standing atop the hill, was wrapped in the boss monster's power as it consumed her body, and she froze in place with the magic sword still in hand.
The ripples of power subsided, and the dungeon became silent as a tomb.
Clank.
Only Barie's armor made noise as it followed her movements.
"Yes, I am Barie, Lady Reator's knight. I'll make her mine. Keh heh. Khehehe. I'll grant that wish."
Barie's eyes glowed red.
It was then.
Rumble-rumble-rumble-rumble.
The hill trembled.
It raised the body buried in the ground and pulled out its two arms, which had been curled up into a ball.
It was a golem.
As the golem that had been crouched on the ground like a hill rose to its feet,
Whoosh!! Bang!!!
It swept through the dungeon with its massive arm and struck Barie without mercy.
Barie reflexively raised the magic sword.
As she blocked the golem's arm with the magic sword, her feet scraped across the floor and she was pushed backward.
"Hmph...!"
With only its upper body pulled free, the golem brought its fist down on Barie.
Boom!
The floor shook.
"Hahaha! Good, good! This body is better than I imagined!"
Barie burst into laughter.
Each time the magic sword blocked the golem's attacks and cut it in return, the golem's movements grew slightly slower.
The golem operated on mana, so each time the magic sword cut it, it stole part of its power source.
"Die!"
Mana imbued the magic sword, making it flare like a flame.
Silver flames burst forth and exploded against the golem.
The golem's upper body tilted.
Barie leaped high toward the tilting golem, her sword shining even more brightly.
The silver sword-flame was stained red.
Dark crimson silver flames poured down upon the golem.
Rumble-rumble-rumble!!
Within the dark crimson silver flames, the golem lost its shape and collapsed.
"Heh heh heh. If only the young lady had seen me. I want to hurry back, pounce on her, and make her mine."
Barie let out a lewd laugh, rubbing her chest and smacking her lips.
"Khehehe... What a fine body."
She spread and clenched her hand repeatedly as she examined it.
The boss monster occupying Barie's body removed her pauldrons. It threw off her arm guards, then undid her breastplate and flung it to the floor.
Clang! Clang! Clatter!
The armor rolled across the floor.
"How utterly hideous. How could anyone cover such beautiful flesh with lumps of metal? Beauty must be worshiped by all. For a beauty to be the one who awakened me is proof that fate favors me indeed."
She tugged at and tore the clothes beneath her armor as well.
Baring her white naked body, she flaunted the deadly weapons that had been hidden by the breastplate.
She fondled her breasts with satisfaction.
I blocked her path when she tried to leave the dungeon.
"Are you trying to stand in my way?"
Barie's reddened eyes curved in a mocking smile as she looked down at me.
"But you're too late. The guardian has fallen, and no one is here to help you. Or had you been coveting this girl's body?"
The corners of Barie's lips lifted.
Her eyes curved into crescent moons.
"How delightful. If that's what you want, swear loyalty to me and bow your head, and I shall personally give you my first time."
Barie touched her breasts and groin.
"Rejoice. This new body of mine is that of a pure virgin who has never once admitted a man's member. I can personally grant you that first penetration."
Her long tongue licked her lips.
She looked at me as though I were something delicious.
If I left her like this, Barie would become an unparalleled seductress and run rampant through the city.
"No, offer up your body. Get it up. Be honest about your desires."
"Hmph."
I laughed without meaning to.
"What an unpleasant laugh."
"Heh heh heh. Of course it's funny."
Even though her gaze made it seem as if she were looking down on me, I was physically the one looking down at her.
And in reality, there was a difference between Barie and me that went beyond the physical.
"You're just letting me gather power."
"To think you'd resist me with such paltry strength. How adorable."
Barie sneered as she watched the mana I had squeezed together.
As though mocking me, she thrust the magic sword at me with simple brute force.
A vicious thrust.
Driven by Barie's well-trained body, the thrust pierced the space where I had been standing at terrifying speed.
I slipped behind Barie and got behind her.
"Do you think it'll work?"
"Of course it will."
I didn't miss the moment when her guard was down.
I drew the mana sword from its scabbard, concentrating all the mana I possessed into it.
It happened in an instant.
In a split second beyond my perception, I exchanged blows with Barie.
The sensation reached me only afterward.
For an instant, I wielded power comparable to Barie's mana and overwhelmed her with swordsmanship.
Eck, armed with my experience and knowledge, slipped through the openings in Barie's habits and the boss monster's patterns.
"Dismemberment."
An arm flew off.
The magic sword flew away with her arm, and Barie clutched the severed limb.
"Aaaaaaaah!!!!"
She screamed as blood spurted out.
The boss monster clinging to Barie's body was torn away along with the flying magic sword, and Barie, having exhausted her strength, crumpled to the ground.
I caught her body as she began to fall.
"Ugh..."
"Are you all right?"
Barie somehow remained conscious.
She gritted her teeth in frustration.
"What happened?"
"It was nothing."
I slowly laid her down, then retrieved a potion from her armor, which had been thrown across the dungeon, and poured it into her mouth.
The potion worked well.
When I held the severed arm against the wound, it adhered like clay.
"Damn it...!"
She slammed her fist into the floor in anger, then flushed with humiliation as she swallowed it.
"Eck."
"Yes."
"No one must ever know about this. Understand? Absolutely no one."
"I will keep it absolutely secret."
Barie turned her head and spoke quietly.
"......Thank you."
I shrugged.
Once Barie had recovered somewhat, I went around the dungeon farming loot.