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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“If necessary…we’ll abandon Elvenguard. Keep that in mind.”
“…!”
Mia’s eyes widened. She stared at me, as if wanting to protest, but her words caught in her throat. It seemed there had been a misunderstanding.
“Of course, that’s a worst-case scenario. I’m not saying we’ll abandon it when we can still protect it. I’m saying that if the situation becomes dire, we’ll prioritize evacuating the citizens, even if it means abandoning Elvenguard. I know how important the World Tree is to the elves…but it can’t be prioritized over human lives.”
Elvenguard wasn’t just a location. It was the World Tree itself. Wherever the World Tree stood was Elvenguard, the land of the elves.
I knew the hardships the elves would face if they lost Elvenguard, but I couldn’t allow them to be buried alive with the World Tree in the face of destruction.
“Yes, I understand. I’ve also advised the citizens to abandon the World Tree and evacuate if necessary. I agree with you, Yoo-jin. People come first.”
“Promise me, right here, right now. If Elvenguard faces destruction, you will prioritize the evacuation of the citizens above all else.”
“Yes…I promise…”
Mia agreed, though she seemed puzzled.
I had secured her promise. She would prioritize saving lives, no matter what. Even in the worst-case scenario, a catastrophic loss of hundreds of thousands of lives could be avoided.
“And there’s one more thing we need to address. Who cursed the dungeon?”
“…!”
“…?!”
Jill, Yulia, and Yerina’s faces contorted in surprise.
That confirmed it. They hadn’t intended the curse. But their reaction to the mention of the dungeon curse suggested they were involved, directly or indirectly.
“H-How did you know?”
“How did I know? Every time I enter a dungeon, a chilling cold emanates from it, the monsters become stronger, and all hell breaks loose.”
“F-Four…? B-But…we…we confirmed…that…the curse…had no effect…”
“To be precise, it only happens when I enter.”
“Oh…! I-I didn’t…intend for that to happen…!”
Yulia frantically waved her hands, trying to explain.
Judging by her reaction, she was the culprit. It made sense. She possessed a talent for curses and was destined to become a curse user later in the story.
So, she had intentionally cursed the dungeon, but not to hinder me?
This was getting confusing.
“What do you mean you didn’t intend for that to happen? You didn’t curse the dungeon to stop me?”
“O-Of course not…! I-I did it…to…to help you, Yoo-jin…I-Initially…I wanted to…weaken the dungeon monsters…But…the demonic energy…malfunctioned…and…the curse had no effect…so…I thought…I had failed…”
After hearing her explanation, I pieced together what had happened.
Yulia had discovered that dungeons could be cursed and decided to use this knowledge to help me. It was known that dungeons extracted energy and sent it to the other world, and that enemies from that world were invading.
She had deduced that my dungeon raids were a way to combat these enemies. And she had figured this out during the time I was avoiding them, refusing to explain anything.
‘What if…we had done this sooner?’
What if I had gathered them, opened up to them like this, earlier? A pang of regret washed over me.
Of course, back then, we were all too foolish to reach this point.
“I-I’ll…I’ll try to undo it…”
“You can’t. It’s etched into the dungeon network. There’s no way to undo it unless we go to the other world. And even then, there’s no guarantee it’ll work.”
“…”
The curse couldn’t be undone. Its mechanics were inexplicable. And its duration was unknown. It was strange.
Even though the principles of curses were less understood than magic, demonic energy acting on its own accord, creating an unintended curse, was baffling.
Perhaps the answer lay elsewhere.
‘This is most likely Draken’s doing as well.’
There was no need for complicated explanations. If Draken had stolen demonic energy from the other world and applied the curse himself, it would explain everything.
‘I might even be able to use this to my advantage…’
The curse’s permanence was concerning, but I could see a way to utilize it. Of course, it was a last resort, something I hoped I would never have to use.
“I think we’ve cleared up most of the misunderstandings. There might still be some lingering resentment, but…let’s deal with the immediate threat first. Let’s all survive this, and then we can address the rest.”
“…”
“…”
“…”
A heavy silence filled the room.
My words must have sounded ominous. I hadn’t wanted to say it, but I had to.
Otherwise, these women, so willing to sacrifice themselves for me, might do something reckless…I might be cowardly and selfish, but I feared them sacrificing their lives for me.
“It’ll be meaningless if you’re not there at the end. Please…don’t do anything foolish.”
I wanted to celebrate with them after defeating the Heavenly Kings.
Of course, Draken would still be a threat, but at least the immediate danger to my life would be gone. It would be worth celebrating. And then, I would join forces with the heroines, defeat Draken, and spend the rest of my days in this peaceful world with them.
That was my dream.
…I should probably write a letter to Cornelia.
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|The Frost Duchess and Transylvania are outside!|
|The Frost Duchess? Transylvania? So what?|
|Don’t you understand?! They attacked me! They’ve joined forces with that man and are now our enemies!|
|…|
The Archdemon emerged from the abyss, his voice frantic.
Luna remained silent, observing the Archdemon’s demeanor. He seemed terrified. Having lost his numerous puppets and Draken’s protection, the Archdemon had never seemed so vulnerable.
He would probably be the first to flee when the fighting started. Luna decided to lower his expectations.
|It doesn’t matter. Even the Frost Duchess can’t breach this dungeon. The dungeon itself is an impenetrable fortress, and with the undead army stationed here…|
The undead army, a plague unleashed upon the world.
Though still incomplete, with new undead constantly being resurrected, they were more than enough to defend the dungeon.
This place was an impregnable fortress. Unbreakable, impenetrable. Not just difficult, but impossible. Luna was certain of it.
Unless the entire world united, unless all the superhumans combined their power in a single, focused attack…
|Presence detected…!|
The Archdemon flinched and retreated back into the abyss. He moved swiftly through the shadows, towards the dungeon entrance.
The massive stone gate slowly creaked open, a sliver of light piercing the darkness.
|Frost Duchess! Come in! I retreated earlier because I wasn’t in the mood for a fight, but here…|
He was confident in his ability to fight within the dungeon. He peeked through the opening, and his instincts screamed.
|…|
He reacted instantly, shedding most of his demonic energy and diving to the side. At that moment, a torrent of magical power erupted from the opening, a brilliant golden beam of divine energy, purging all that was unholy.
The demonic energy the Archdemon had discarded vanished without a trace.
The spot where he had stood moments ago was now a deep crater, all traces of his presence erased.
‘A Grand Mage from the Holy Empire?!’
He had confirmed the Frost Duchess’s arrival, but he hadn’t anticipated such a powerful force from the Holy Empire.
Stunned, he retreated into a small patch of shadow and began to weave hand seals, creating a barrier to repel magical attacks.
|Demonic energy…?!|
A swirling mass of black energy seeped through the opening, a suffocating presence closing in on him. The demonic energy embedded a totem in the dungeon wall, unleashing a wave of misfortune.
|Damn it, damn it, damn it!!!|
Creating a barrier against demonic energy was far more difficult than blocking magic. Facing a combined assault of magic and curses, the only option was to flee.
He left the defense to Luna and the undead army and made his escape.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
“Hey! We’re not done yet!”
|Where are all these monsters coming from?!|
Four strong hands grabbed his limbs, halting his escape. Transylvania and the Frost Duchess.
The Archdemon trembled, his body paralyzed with fear as he met their cold, merciless gazes.
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