Given Role
by Afuhfuihgs
Pure white light vanished without leaving a trace. Like a flash of lightning, it appeared in an instant and disappeared without a trace. There was nothing left where the light had been. The countless goblins that had filled the meadow were gone without a trace.
I shifted my gaze to where the light had originated. It was too far to make out more than a human shape, but it was a familiar one. You don’t often see a greatsword that big. It was definitely Roel.
“…Ah.”
Like raindrops falling from the sky and being absorbed into the earth, Roel vanished from that spot in an instant. He had killed ten thousand goblins with a single swing of his greatsword and headed to the 3rd floor.
Roel had started running to get the Holy Grail. If I took my time, I’d be late. I, who am inferior to Roel in every way, would have to work several times harder just to barely keep up. Unable to contain my impatience, I shouted at Rael-lan.
“Roel has headed to the 3rd floor!”
Whether he didn’t hear me or not, Rael-lan summoned a giant snake with a wave of his staff, pushing back the goblins clinging to the wooden fence. I left Eli in charge and approached Rael-lan, grabbing his shoulder.
“I said Roel has headed to the 3rd floor!”
Rael-lan, his shoulder grabbed, stopped waving his staff and spoke to me in a voice full of annoyance.
“So what am I supposed to do about it?”
“…Aren’t you being too slow right now?”
The number floating above Rael-lan’s head was [4320]. At this rate, it would take several more hours to reach [0].
“You dumbass. Roel remembers reaching the 4th floor, so it’s only natural he’s faster than us up to there. We have plenty of time, and my plan is perfect. As long as no one messes things up by acting recklessly out of impatience!”
Rael-lan pushed my chest with the end of his staff and added as if spitting it out.
“Cool your head. You’re the one who said there’s a rest period starting from the 3rd floor. Have you forgotten that Roel won’t get ahead just because he met the conditions first?”
As he said that and turned back to waving his staff, I bit my lip. I was too excited by the sight of Roel killing ten thousand goblins in one blow. I should have known first that from the 3rd floor of the labyrinth onwards, there would be a rest period each time you headed to a new floor.
The rest period involves sending those who entered the labyrinth out of it for a set number of days, depending on the floor. But this is a cunning trap that stimulates people’s psychology, like the escape locations you can see throughout the labyrinth.
Returning ordinary life to someone who has been fighting monsters that appear out of nowhere while piercing through the darkness in an endless maze with no exit, fighting endlessly swarming goblins, and not being able to sleep or rest properly.
Even a shabby inn bed is heaven compared to the labyrinth. If you relax and eat honey beer and delicious sausages without a care in the world, the edge of your mind, which had been sharpened by the trials of the labyrinth, will become uncontrollably dull.
The longer the rest period, the fewer people will give up their peaceful daily lives outside the labyrinth and step back into hell. Because the abyss, where you don’t know what trials await you, awakens people’s survival instincts.
I should have been the first to realize that Roel couldn’t head to the 3rd floor right away. In the first place, I had planned to use the rest period to send the Golden King back to El Dorado today. It’s my fault for letting my emotions get ahead of me and not thinking calmly, as Rael-lan said.
“…Shibal.”
Suppressing the inferiority complex that made my stomach churn after a long time, I headed back to Eli’s side.
***
The vice-leader of the Order, Belker, gnashed his teeth as he watched Ards disappear before his eyes. Ards, who had been fighting the Golden King to his heart’s content, had become so engrossed in the fight that he released chaos while fighting, causing all the goblins nearby to die as a result, thus fulfilling the condition of killing ten thousand monsters.
“――Oops!”
“You stupid bastard!”
As soon as Ards disappeared, the Golden King immediately changed his target and flew towards Belker. Belker didn’t need to fight directly, but he couldn’t afford to waste the power of Confession on the 2nd floor of the labyrinth.
“Everyone scatter and kill goblins. I’ll deal with the Golden King myself!”
As Belker’s command was issued, everyone scattered in different directions. As if he had already set his sights on Belker, the Golden King didn’t chase after them and instead fired a massive amount of magic at Belker.
Golden light flashed, and a massive flash of light overturned the ground. Belker, who slightly altered the direction of the flash by twisting space to avoid it, brought his left hand to his face. Belker, wearing a mask containing the power of chaos, gritted his teeth and said.
“You stupid dragon… How dare you interfere with the Order’s plans!”
A massive amount of magic was condensed in Belker’s staff, and a flash of dark light was fired. Chaos exploded along the trajectory of the flash, unleashing a tremendous roar.
Kwaaaang―!
The Golden King, who didn’t avoid it and instead blocked the attack by covering his palm with magic from the front, struck Belker with a giant arm that had been constructed using only magic.
Kuuuung―!
Belker responded by releasing magic and pulling his body back, but the Golden King had already predicted his reaction and moved.
Belker belatedly tried to wave his staff, but the Golden King, who instantly released his presence and crushed Belker’s soul with pressure, pierced Belker’s chest with a fist filled with magic.
“Keueok!”
Belker’s body, his chest where his heart had been completely gone, flew backward. The Golden King didn’t let his guard down and moved his wings to follow, intending to smash his head with a fist.
「That’s enough.」
“….”
The Golden King’s fist stopped as if it had been caught in mid-air. The Golden King narrowed his eyes and glared at the mask Belker was wearing, at the formless force binding him. The voice didn’t come from Belker’s mouth, but from the mask.
「Lumiel, if you interfere with the story, I will intervene as well.」
As the mask vibrated, the Golden King felt the causality of the world fluctuating. Realizing that it was an intervention that could change the great flow, the Golden King removed the magic he had gathered and lowered his fist.
The Golden King opened his mouth as he silently watched the chaos flowing from the mask fill Belker’s pierced chest.
“Leader, how do you know my true name?”
The Golden King could recognize the existence that knew his true name. But the Leader had never been recognized by the Golden King even once. Not even now, after saying his true name.
In response to the Golden King’s question, a displeased clicking of the tongue was heard from the mask.
「Parents never forget their children.」
Light flowed from the mask of chaos, creating a small black piece of paper. Finally, the fluctuating causality of the world calmed down.
―■―
Despite the ominous energy contained within, the Golden King didn’t hesitate to press the paper with the tip of his finger.
A breath escaped from Lumiel’s lips. Lumiel, who lowered the finger he had been holding up, understood everything he had experienced in an instant. Also, that he should no longer interfere with the story.
There was a reason why the causality of the world had fluctuated. It was a story created by breaking through the storm of plausibility. Interfering with it was not something Lumiel should do.
「Observe, for that is your complete role.」
As the Leader’s words ended, Belker, who had been healed of his fatal wound, sprang to his feet. Belker, who glared at Lumiel as if to kill him for a moment, picked up the staff that had been rolling on the floor and left.
Lumiel, who was slowly organizing his thoughts, felt an approaching presence and turned around. It was those who had come to the labyrinth with him.
“…What happened?”
Conrad, called the coordinator of the world, seemed to have sensed the abnormality even from afar. Lumiel shook his head instead of answering. Rael-lan, who understood that he didn’t want to answer, said.
“We’ll reach [0] soon. Let’s go back together as promised.”
The Golden King nodded, checked the number floating above his head, and stretched out his hand to the side, releasing a massive amount of magic. While everyone was watching the Golden King rapidly reduce the number, a huge roar suddenly flowed out of the mountain.
Kwaaaang―!
“Is a volcano about to erupt?”
At Rael-lan’s words, Eli poked Ross in the side with her elbow. Eli, wearing a playful smile at Ross’s appearance of turning his head away pretending not to know, continued to nudge Ross.
Looking at that scene, Lumiel was finally able to realize what Nelson had asked of him before their final farewell.
“You too, huh… You’re a bad guy.”
The Golden King muttered in a self-deprecating voice.
***
Eli, who had killed ten thousand goblins together before the volcano erupted and escaped from the 2nd floor, looked at the letters floating before her eyes.
[You have reached the 3rd floor.]
[The labyrinth’s blessing makes you permanently stronger.]
[It is a rest period. 72:00:00 remaining until re-entry into the labyrinth.]
As the letters disappeared, the basement of the Imperial Palace that she had seen when she entered the labyrinth came into Eli’s view.
While Eli was wearing a satisfied smile, feeling the increase in magic from the labyrinth’s blessing, the Golden King gestured for Eli to come closer. As Eli approached with a puzzled expression, the Golden King grabbed Eli’s wrist.
“What…?”
The Golden King, looking at Eli with half-closed eyes as she tried to pull her hand away, said.
“A gift.”
Magic rushed in from the wrist that was being held. Eli tried to resist the magic that was intruding as it pleased, but she could only blankly stare at the Golden King at the information that was coming to her mind.
“…This is.”
The Golden King completely closed his eyes instead of answering. Before Eli, who bit her lip, could say anything again, Ross, who had escaped from the labyrinth, approached Eli.
“Are you okay?”
“Y-yeah! It’s nothing.”
“…Something’s fishy.”
“It’s not.”
At Eli’s serious face, Ross shrugged his shoulders and turned his gaze to the Golden King, who had closed his eyes. Eli, who secretly let out a sigh of relief, turned her body and touched her forehead.
There was a reason why she didn’t tell Ross the truth. Because this was something only she could do. Eli, who wore a bitter smile, turned her body back to Ross with a bright smile as if nothing had happened.
Thinking that she might be destined to betray Ross until the very end.
0 Comments