Ch.136Resurrection Ritual Is Dangerous (4)

Since there was nothing more to check anyway, we released the concealment spell and began to move immediately.

This inevitably led to friction with the hunters stationed in front of the dungeon.

“Who are you? Did you cause this situation?”

“No, it wasn’t us. Something must be happening inside the dungeon.”

When Lee Jichul, who was taking the lead, pointed toward the inside of the dungeon, the hunters couldn’t calm down and kept looking back and forth between both sides.

And naturally, our identities were soon exposed.

“Oh, that’s the Saint of France…”

“And over there is the Seven Stars’ Count Xavier, isn’t it?”

“Strange, there was definitely no news about them coming here.”

Soon after, an urgent cry erupted from the Spanish agents who had been silently assessing the situation.

“These people have no entry records! They’re hiding something!”

“What?”

The atmosphere instantly turned hostile.

Although they recognized Xavier and Yesiel, they had several S-rank hunters gathered on their side as well.

Naturally, they didn’t seem willing to back down easily.

However, surprisingly, the standoff was resolved by an unexpected figure.

“Let’s calm down for a moment. We should hear their explanation.”

It was Sanada, Japan’s Sword Master, who had joined me in conquering the dungeon in America.

“I’ve seen it firsthand. We can’t match them with our current numbers anyway.”

“What? Whose side are you on?”

When fierce opposition erupted, Sanada narrowed his eyes sharply, stepped forward firmly, and said:

“Is there anyone here who is confident they can defeat me one-on-one?”

“…”

“Let me be clear: Baek Eunha from Korea over there is at least twice as strong as I am. Feel free to charge in if you want to die, but it would just be a waste of power.”

Since Sanada, known for his strong pride, went that far, the other hunters couldn’t easily argue back.

Taking advantage of the opening, Yesiel calmly explained the situation.

“I apologize for not sharing this information in advance. Right now, a secret organization that includes several Returnees has infiltrated this dungeon. And if we don’t stop them, something terrible will happen.”

“That’s impossible. Dozens of national agents have guarded this place since the dungeon was first detected, and high-ranking hunters have joined one by one afterward. If anyone had entered the dungeon, we would have noticed immediately.”

As expected, they weren’t easily convinced. From their perspective, they believed they had completely sealed the entrance, so it was understandable.

But unless there were more than seven S-rank hunters gathered like now, one or two S-ranks or national agents could find a way to breach the security.

There must have been a moment when a gap appeared.

“Ah, Astride.”

“…Yes, teacher.”

I had no intention of wasting time here.

Understanding my intention, Astride drew her sword and swung it forward.

Ping!

Swoooosh—!

For an instant, a very thin slicing sound echoed, and almost simultaneously, the black fog that had been permeating the surroundings scattered as if exploding.

Following that, a deafening roar pierced our ears.

KWAGAGAGAK—!

“Ugh!”

“W-what’s happening all of a sudden!”

The hunters were startled, but none of them were harmed. She had deliberately targeted only the fog, controlling the force of her attack.

The difference in skill level was clearly evident.

Faced with this blatant warning, the hunters froze with hardened expressions.

Taking advantage of the moment, Astride, who had taken the lead position, spoke:

“…No time. Move aside.”

And so, without giving them a chance to refuse, we entered the dungeon.

#

Whoosh.

Boom.

“There are no monsters around. Perhaps they’ve already been eliminated.”

Inside the dungeon, filled with dense magical energy and an ominous aura unlike usual.

Henesia, who deployed a large-scale detection spell immediately upon entry, shook her head and reported that nothing was being detected.

“So the enemy is in the depths, you say.”

“Well, they might already be conducting the ritual. Is it safe to proceed like this?”

Even Xavier showed caution in response to this unpleasant sensation that none of us had ever encountered before.

But we had no other options. We had to move forward, come what may.

‘…Damn it. If only I had my power.’

Truthfully, I didn’t care whether Gildeon was resurrected or not, but I couldn’t help feeling anxious since I couldn’t use my power right now.

That’s why we needed to hurry.

If possible, I wanted to resolve this situation cleanly before the resurrection ritual was completed.

“We… we have enough power. Let’s just push through.”

After moving at full speed for a while, we finally came face to face with individuals who appeared to be members of Hades.

They were blocking the entrance along with an undead knight who emanated considerable power, and beyond them, an ominous energy was flowing from the boss room.

“…You’ve brought quite a crowd.”

“Are you also acquainted with Beatrice of Italy?”

A middle-aged man wearing a robe and a young man with his upper body exposed, carrying a huge halberd.

Though they didn’t show it, they seemed taken aback by our unexpected forces.

Sensing their reaction, I quickly called out to my companions:

“We’ll win anyway. Don’t waste time testing them—just attack.”

At those words, Yesiel and Lee Jichul stepped forward, unleashing their magical power fiercely, while the two on the opposing side hardened their expressions in dismay.

‘Those two must also be among the founders.’

Of the four founders, excluding the Necromancer leader and Eric who died by my hand, the two people before us were essentially Hades’ last core members.

They probably had skills at least at the S-rank level, but that would only be about the same as Lee Jichul who had gained the power of the Dragon Person.

If there was anything concerning, it was the black-armored knight standing behind them.

I had seen him before in Jackson’s memories, which had been the catalyst for my entanglement with Hades.

His identity was likely a high-level undead created by Hades’ leader. And back then, Jackson had harbored great fear toward this knight.

“Xavier.”

“Hmm? What is it?”

“You take care of that undead.”

While I currently trusted Astride and Henesia the most in terms of skill, Xavier was not far behind.

“…Can you knock them away from the passage?”

“Leave it to me.”

As Xavier eagerly accepted my instructions and charged forward, I used the opportunity to have Henesia prepare a teleportation spell.

“You mean we don’t need to deal with the small fry? Understood.”

Lee Jichul, Xavier, Song Hayeon, Yesiel, and finally Seoha.

Leaving the five of them behind, the rest of us quickly headed toward the boss room.

“No!”

“Brago! Stop them!”

The two who realized our intention fired various attacks to cancel our magic, but due to the overwhelming difference in numbers, all their attempts were thwarted.

As we looked back at the black-armored knight who was caught by Xavier mid-charge, we successfully completed the teleportation and moved to the front of the boss room.

“…I’ll use a defensive spell in case of an ambush.”

Whoosh.

Creeeeak.

Rumble.

As we entered without hesitation, we saw an unidentified man who seemed surprisingly calm, as if he already knew the situation.

“Well, this is quite difficult to handle.”

Then, looking at me with surprise for a moment, he continued:

“Honestly, I didn’t expect this. You weren’t the type to make allies like this.”

“Is that so? How interesting.”

His attitude suggested he knew me well.

As Lee Jichul had said, he had definitely seen my previous self.

And that meant probably…

“…I’m guessing you’re from Thebes.”

“Correct. However, it seems you don’t remember completely.”

“…”

When I remained silent, he slowly removed his robe, revealing his face.

Somewhat faded blonde hair and eyes emanating a deep aura.

After carefully examining his face, I spoke again with a hardened expression:

“I don’t recognize you.”

At those words, my companions shot me suspicious glances.

Just as I was about to defend myself with an indignant expression, he suddenly let out a hearty laugh.

“It’s not strange. Compared to you, who was always revered as an extraordinary existence, I was merely a part of that place.”

Only then did I realize his identity.

Indeed, somewhere in my memories, I had seen his face.

“…You’re from the Straw Pile, aren’t you?”

The Straw Pile.

A group of undead creators among their necromancers who had an unusual interest in corpses and conducted countless research and experiments.

He came from there.