Chapter 41

The atmosphere suddenly turned cold.

“Lies.”

It was the ripple caused by that word. Moreover, the one who uttered it was me, a mere rookie who got involved today.

Such a distant rookie dared to speak of lies. The residents of the underworld, who have seen all sorts of sights, had no choice but to be angry.

“What? Lies? Did you just say lies?”

“That insolent brat!”

“Just leave him be, and he won’t last a day before he’s dead, not knowing his place!”

The atmosphere went from cold to freezing. As if fists would start flying at any moment. It was Gwen who calmed the situation.

“Stop!”

Gwen shouted with a voice that resonated powerfully. His voice had the strength to suppress others. The residents, who had been talking with fierce faces, shut their mouths. Indeed, it was Gwen, the strongest man and leader among the humans of the underground 10th floor. He gestured to me with his chin.

“Let’s hear what you have to say. There must be a reason you spouted such words. Speak.”

Gwen seemed to be in a bad mood as well. But I didn’t care. I wasn’t intimidated at all. They might think they control the situation, but I had a card that could turn the tables.

“Well, it’s simple. The very statement that there is an exit here but one can never leave is a blatant lie.”

I spoke without hesitation. However, the reaction was different from before.

“Ha ha ha ha!”

Gwen suddenly burst into laughter.

“Chuckle, I wondered what nonsense you were spouting.”

“Ha ha, just a suspicious rat as always.”

The residents behind also laughed as if they couldn’t hold back.

“Why are you laughing and making a fuss?”

I asked, knowing full well the reason. It was a setup for the progression.

“Why laugh? Because the future is all too clear.”

“What future do you see?”

“How many like you do you think we’ve dealt with? 10? 20? Far more, to the point of tedium. So we know very well how it will end. That’s why we can only laugh…”

Gwen let out a scornful laugh.

“How will it end?”

I asked Gwen, looking straight at him without changing my expression. But to them, it seemed more like the last bluff of a rookie about to break. They still couldn’t stop laughing.

“That’s a very bad question.”

Gwen stood up as if kicking his seat away. Then he said to one of his subordinates behind him.

“Go bring ‘them’.”

“Understood, boss.”

The subordinate nodded and ran off somewhere. Gwen turned his gaze back to me.

“Follow me. Rookie.”

With that, Gwen turned his back and led the way. The other residents followed him. Their actions implied that we had no choice but to follow. Just as I was about to follow suit, Camian hurriedly approached me.

“What on earth are you doing?”

“As you see.”

“Do you really think they’re lying?”

“That’s what I’m saying.”

“If they were going to lie, they could have just said there was no exit. After all, only they know the truth. So why bother with the cumbersome lie that there is an exit but you’ll die if you leave?”

Camian spat out, unable to understand my thoughts.

“I think the same, senior. And I didn’t feel like they were deceiving us at all.”

Annette agreed with Camian’s opinion. I clicked my tongue.

“That’s why you’re still naive. Always be suspicious. Even if it seems trustworthy, doubt it. That’s how you live long. Especially you.”

I gestured to Camian .

“Why?”

Camian looked uneasy.

“It’s just his nature to be reckless.”

He fell silent, seemingly agreeing with my words.

“I’m sorry.”

Annette blinked her eyes and apologized.

Why are you apologizing?

“Because it’s his nature to be reckless.”

“Anyway, it seems you’re all wondering, so just watch. I definitely felt it. The tone was different when talking about the exit and when saying other things.”

“No, to judge based on that…”

“Let’s go.”

I cut off Camian’s words and moved forward. Eventually, the two of them followed me, as if they had no choice. Where they stopped was a spacious cavity. What was peculiar was that the sculptures in the shape of crosses, symbolizing the church, were broken and scattered about. Moreover, the structure that seemed to have been an altar at the front was completely shattered into pieces.

It was enough to guess. This place used to be an underground chapel. Neither a devout believer nor a believer in God, but the sight of the desolation seemed to weigh on Camian and Annette’s expressions.

“Why, is it uncomfortable?”

Gwen spat out.

“…It’s not a pleasant sight.”

Camian replied.

“Ha, it doesn’t matter. There’s no God anyway. If there was, he wouldn’t have left us to rot miserably in a place like this.”

Gwen asserted. The other residents nodded as if it was obvious. Some spat on the crosses rolling around as if they were looking at something filthy. Seeing their situation, Camian and Annette remained silent without a word. Then, as if struck by a sudden thought, they spoke again.

“Is the chapel being this deep underground related to the church and this underground space?”

A natural conjecture. Gwen laughed ambiguously.

“Well… maybe there’s a connection. But there’s nothing certain. Church followers could be anywhere, and they might have made this place on their own for worship.”

His steps stopped.

“Here we are.”

“Does that mean this is the exit?”

I asked, and Gwen grinned, showing his teeth.

“Ha ha, yes. Quite a remarkable technology, isn’t it?”

In front of Gwen was an elevator. An elevator powered not by magic, but by pure mechanical force. A work of the dwarves. If it weren’t for their craftsmanship, the machine would have already been broken by time and wouldn’t even operate properly.

“Then we should go up.”

“If you want to die, go ahead.”

Gwen provoked. The other residents laughed once more. That’s when it happened. From the other side, the subordinate who had left alone earlier came dragging something.

“Goblins…?”

Camian muttered with a questioning look. As he said, what was being dragged by a sturdy leash were goblins. Three of them. Even weak monsters were enough to threaten humans, but since their hands and feet were tied, there seemed to be no problem.

“Good timing.”

“It would be nice if you showed us what you’re going to do with those goblins.”

“I was planning to do just that.”

At my words, Gwen signaled to his subordinate. The subordinate forcibly put the three goblins into the elevator.

“Kieek!”

“Kieek!”

Screaming in agony, they resisted, but bound, they were powerless. Clang! Eventually, the elevator door closed with the goblins inside.

“Lift it.”

“Yes, Captain.”

A subordinate operated the device, activating the elevator. Rumble!! Soon, the elevator carrying the goblins began to ascend. Upward, higher and higher, The elevator, blurring from view, soon disappeared. It had gone up to the surface.

“Definitely the exit.” Camian muttered.

“What… what will happen?” Annette swallowed nervously.

How many seconds had passed? It was certainly a very short time. The elevator began to descend again. Camian and Annette’s eyes widened. On this side, they had only sent the elevator up, nothing more.

Besides, the goblins’ hands and feet were tied they couldn’t operate the device themselves. That meant… Someone unknown above had operated the elevator to send it down again.

“Someone’s up there.” Annette shivered as if chilled to the bone.

“Let’s watch.” Camian maintained his composure.

Thud! The elevator descended again. And then, The iron door opened.

“They’re… dead…” Annette stepped back, covering her mouth.

“Ugh.” Camian groaned, his eyes shaking.

Three goblin corpses, their heads severed, lay where their bodies should have been. Their eyes and expressions, frozen in terror, spoke of the emotions they felt in their final moments.

“Hahaha!” Gwen burst into laughter.

It was a triumphant laugh, having dealt a proper blow to the insolent brat.

“How about that? This is it. This is reality. No being of flesh and blood can leave this place alive… Huh?” Gwen’s speech suddenly stopped.

His dumbfounded expression was an added bonus. The others wore similar expressions. They stared at me with eyes wide in disbelief. Because I had entered the elevator of my own accord. Clang! I even closed the door myself.

“Rot here all you like. I’m going up.” I said calmly.

This time, they couldn’t even muster a sneer. It was a mad act, not something one could do out of mere bravado. They looked at me as if I were the craziest of lunatics.

“Wait, Senior! Get off! Please get off first!” Annette hurriedly tried to dissuade me.

Such a kind soul.

“Are you crazy? Get down now! Get down!” Camian shouted vehemently.

Yes, I’ll consider you a kind soul too.

“Come with me, you too.”

“What nonsense are you spouting? If you want to die, die alone.”

You’re not a kind soul after all.

“Ah, just let the madman go. It’s less of a headache.” Gwen shook his head dismissively and operated the device from outside.

It was actually better since it saved me the trouble of operating it from inside.

“Wait a moment!” Annette tried to stop it, but it was too late.

Rumble! The mechanical sound echoed again. The elevator quickly ascended. The view from above unfolded. ‘Nice view.’ I smiled. Whoosh. The wind blew fiercely. The shadow put on its helmet again and threw the decapitated goblin corpses far away. But could that really be called a shadow?

The towering figure, over 2 meters tall, seemed closer to an ogre than a human. Covered head to toe in black armor, without a gap. Gauntlets on the hands, sabatons on the feet, not even a needle could penetrate.

A walking fortress. That was the presence it exuded. Rumble! The sound of the elevator moving was heard. The armored figure’s gaze turned toward the entrance of the elevator. As if it had found its purpose.

His hand reached for an enormous greatsword. Clang! The door opened. And a man came out. It was Max celtrine. The armored figure shook its head as if it had lost interest. The greatsword was released from its hand.

“Phew.” Breathing in the fresh air, I took a deep breath.

The air, incomparably fresher than underground, cleared my mind. ‘But that guy… He doesn’t even think to hide.’ I chuckled at the armored figure sitting idly in the distance.

The so-called armored person, or armored monster. An enigmatic figure, shrouded in mystery. None of the users, including myself, knew his true identity. But a few things were certain.

First, he was the one who brutally killed those who ascended from underground to the surface. Human, undead, monster, it didn’t matter. Once on the surface, they were sliced by the armored figure’s merciless greatsword. A monster with superhuman abilities, once on the surface, anyone was as good as dead.

Normally, I would have been dead by now… ‘But there’s an exception.’ Students of Saint Lepheria Academy are not killed. The most important exception. Without this condition, the quest itself would have been impossible.

That’s why I could ascend to the surface without any hesitation. ‘And another condition’ Even if you’re a student of the academy, revealing the existence of the underground space to others means death. Many users who blabbed without knowing at first proved this fact by dying.

Well, that’s something I’ll have to warn Camian and Annette about thoroughly later. ‘It’s almost 10 seconds.’ If I want to shock those below, I better go down quickly. I got back on the elevator and closed the door. Perhaps I’m the first to operate this device and go down on my own.

“Hey, take care.” I waved at the armored figure.

The armored figure didn’t even pretend to hear and kept looking down at the ground. Quite a Shy fellow. ‘Enough.’

Click.

I operated the elevator to go down.

Rumble!

The familiar mechanical sound and the elevator quickly descended. I smirked to myself. I couldn’t help but laugh at the thought of how Gwen and the other residents would react. ‘Now the tables have turned.’