Chapter 74: Get out alive (3)

Chapter 74: Get out alive
(3)

The
axe, stretched to its limit, slammed into the gaping maw of the
darkness.

-Kwaaang!

The
impact tore the dark being’s head off the ceiling of the Labyrinth as
the edge of the fifth floor vibrated violently.

The
dust from the ceiling, which had never been wiped, fell in torrents,
fogging the surroundings.

The
creature seemed unaffected by the impact, even as the Labyrinth
vibrated.

-Tsk,
tsk, tsk.

If
anything, it opened its mouth even wider and lunged slightly toward
the fountain.

The
axe that held its gills closed wobbled precariously, like a toothpick
in the mouth of a snake about to devour its prey.

“Fireball!”

With
a terrified scream from behind, two flame-encased spheres shot out.

-Pow!

The
rapid-fire spheres struck the creature on the roof of its mouth near
the blade of the axe, sending up a blast of hot air and black smoke.

Lammel
and Fusilini attacked in unison.

It
was a blow so powerful that it even subdued the eighth-floor shaman
minotaur whose [Darkness] had sunk into the shadows.

“⋯No
way.”

“Not
even the slightest damage⋯?”

The
fireballs scattered meaninglessly, having done no damage to the
inscrutable being in front of me that was [Darkness] itself.

I
kept my gaze fixed on it and shouted to the party around me.

“Everyone
out of the fountain! He’s going for the fountain!”

I
don’t know why, but he’s going for the fountain.

Its
giant mouth is gaping open, about to swallow the fountain into its
abysmally dark belly…and we are in the fountain.

While
the giant axe prevents its mouth from closing, I have to climb out of
the fountain to survive.

My
screams awakened the party from their shock and they began to
desperately scramble out of the fountain, each clutching their
weapons.

But
even that wasn’t easy.

The
eyes of the two priests, Hitolis and Hope, widened to tears at the
sight of the dark entity, and they shuddered, their mouths agape.

As
if confronted with something vastly beyond their comprehension, they
could do nothing but laugh and go mad.

Joy
Hog and Aldente each scooped one of them up and ran.

-Boom,
boom, boom!

The
surface of the fountain vibrated as they kicked at the healing water
and the rippling water signaled the urgency of the situation.

“Balkan,
what are you doing? You need to get out here!”

Jubeel,
carrying the slow-moving mage Lammel, shouted urgently.

Fuck.
Of course I want to run away.

-Kagagak!

But
it’s dangerous. That thing’s teeth were no joke.

Zirnier’s
axe rattled.

The
relic alloy blade still held, but the handle creaked as if pushed to
its limits.

‘If
I pull out the axe right now, we’ll all be eaten.’

If
the party was to survive, one of us had to hold onto this axe.

Besides,

[Blessing
of Radiance]

–
The light of the beginning of time is imbued in you.

–
It has an absolute effect on the darkness.

I
had a trick up my sleeve.

‘Will
it work?’

I’m
honestly nervous.

It’s
not the same as when I fought the Boss Minotaur.

That
darkness was more malicious and unpleasant than Diana’s curse.

‘No.
Don’t think about it.’

Worry
is a luxury. It will happen. I’ll make it so.

I
focused on the sensation in my fingertips, drawing up the blessing.

Immediately,
my hands were filled with white light, which spread up the handle of
the axe and began to bathe the great axe in a white glow.

[!!!!!]

Then
an unknown screech pierced my eardrums and something leaked from my
ear. Blood, perhaps.

The
axe blade, bathed in its full glory, gradually pierced the dark
mouth.

The
sound of piercing something, something I hadn’t heard before, rang
out clearly.

Seizing
the opportunity, I focused all my nerves on using the blessing.

‘It’s
a little bit, but it works!’

[!!!!!!!!]

The
brilliant light grew in intensity, tormenting the creature, but my
damage was not insignificant.

My
vision gradually turned red.

The
combination of enlargement and the Blessing of Radiance had taken a
serious toll on my body but I didn’t stop.

Even
when my head was pounding and my eyes were popping.

My
mouth tasted like vomit and blood.

Drops
of blood from my ears and nose dripped down my helmet, staining the
fountain’s healing waters red.

I
willed myself to strike him down.

‘I’m
going out!’

Out
of this fucking labyrinth! Out of this fucking labyrinth! Out of this
fucking labyrinth!

I’m
getting out alive!

-Poof.

Then,
the sound of piercing flesh echoed through the air.

I
jerked my head down, dazed.

A
reddened sword protruded, piercing my stomach.

[Worship]

A
searing pain boiled up from my back.

[Worship

I
could hear the mutterings of the Paladins through my mangled ears.

How
could they have been so dumb as to be brainwashed right next to me.
No, they’re Paladins, so it shouldn’t be possible, but at this time,
you fucking assholes.

“⋯!”

The
Paladin who had stabbed me in the back slashed at my stomach with his
blade.

Gritting
my teeth and enduring the pain, I kicked him with my right foot.

-Pooh!

[Worship]

Instantly,
the blade sank into my side. The sword entered from the left and
pierced my right pelvis.

At
the same time, I felt nerves burning from my spine to my brain.

The
pain was so intense that I lost consciousness for a moment.

[Worship]

[Worship]

[Worship!]

It
took less than a second, but the price was high.

Five
Paladins’ swords sank into my abdomen.

-Thud,
thud, thud.

The
axe that had lost its luster gradually began to return to its
original size.

“–Balkan!
Balkan!”

The
voices of the party members could be faintly heard in the distance.

Thankfully,
they were far away. At least they made it out of the fountain, that’s
good.

Now
I have to run, too.

I’m
not feeling strong enough.

I
stare up into the air, pierced by the Paladins’ swords, as dazed as
they are.

The
gaping maw of the great snake surrounded by darkness began to close.

I’ll
die here.

‘Just
here? So meaninglessly?’

I
had accomplished nothing.

I
didn’t even find my sister.

I
won’t even be able to fulfill my promise to Diana that I’ll be safe.

“No.”

I
straightened up.

I
will not die for nothing.

I
will die in old age, in a warm bed, surrounded by my wife, sons,
daughters, and grandchildren.

I
cannot close my eyes on the cold, dirty, disgusting, malicious dirt
of this labyrinth.

I
refocus my attention on the blessing at my fingertips.

As
much power as I can muster.

I
shoot it at him-

-Quack.

My
vision fades into darkness.

***

The
members of Joy Hog’s party stared at the inscrutable creature before
them.

It
looked like a snake the size of a house, or a blackened mass of fat.

Perhaps
because Balkan had blocked it with his axe, the inscrutable creature
failed to devour the fountain.

Instead,
it stood right in front of the fountain, chewing furiously at its
mouth, as if it were trying to swallow something.

The
seven investigators and Balkan, who bought the party time to escape
were a blur and then they were devoured.

The
voices of Hitolis and Hope’s frantic screams filled the silent fifth
floor.

-Gulp.

Then
came the sound of something swallowing. Something slurped down the
inscrutable being’s torso.

[]

The
being let out an unintelligible sound.

They
realized that the being before them looked like a beast that had just
finished a very satisfying meal.

The
creature stared at the fountain for a moment, then turned its
attention to them, its next prey.

Joy
Hog and the rest of Gellan’s party backed away, all pale and
breathless.

Even
if the fountain was at the end of the fifth floor, it was a long way
from the portal.

Even
if they run like hell, they’ll be caught by that thing.

“⋯Balkan
sacrificed himself for us.”

Having
made her decision, Jubeel raised her sword.

The
sword’s blackened hilt pointed at the inscrutable being.

The
tip of the blade trembled as it failed to point clearly at the enemy.

Joy
Hog’s eyes narrowed as she watched.

After
a moment’s hesitation, she swallowed hard.

“⋯Yes.
We’ll have to do something.”

Joy
Hog gripped her shield tightly and behind her, Lammel raised her
staff.

“Are
you guys serious?”

Aldente
muttered to herself as she watched them.

By
her standards, this situation was impossible.

If
you’re going to make a sacrifice, you should think about running
away. Why fight back, especially in front of something like that?

“Fuck!
We’re fucking tired, too, by the way.”

Jubeel
shouted, exasperated.

There
wasn’t a single sane person in this place right now.

In
all her years as an explorer, she’d never heard or seen anything like
this, much less experienced it.

‘It’s
frightening. I don’t understand it. I feel like I’m going to lose my
mind. I feel like I’m going to pee right now. I want to run away.’

But
more than those unpleasant, gross feelings.

“It’s
even worse to have lost a party member helplessly.”

The
Inscrutable One watched their resolve impassively.

It
almost seemed to sneer in response.

Then,
the darkness stirred.

I’m
floating in the darkness.

Am
I dead?

Is
this the afterlife I’ve heard about?

I
feel like I’m swimming in the excrement of unpleasant emotions.

It’s
dark. It’s cold. It’s stifling, unpleasant. I can’t even move my
body, like I’m being held down by scissors.

I
start to lose consciousness, like sinking deeper and deeper into the
ocean.

Deeper
and deeper.

Deeper
and deeper into the darkness.

As
I continued to sink, a strange sensation made me slowly open my eyes.

“⋯?”

There
was a tiny hole in the deep darkness and through it, a tiny ray of
light was shining.

I
swam toward it, mesmerized. It was instinctive.

Immediately,
the darkness grabbed my body.

The
darkness transformed into a human arm, a bird’s wing, a snake’s tail,
and many other forms as it struggled to hold on to me.

I
desperately shook it off, pushing myself toward the light.

My
efforts were not in vain. The harder I struggled, the closer I got to
the light.

Finally,
I reached the light.

A
pure white light radiated from a crack no bigger than a finger.

Darkness
was rampant in the world.

The
light was shining outward through a tiny crack, as if trapped in
darkness.

Inside
the hole, I saw a woman looking at me, [Her]

A
mysterious being bathed in light, who had warned me that multiples of
five were dangerous.

[I
told you that ■
is ■.]

The
woman, looking at me through the gap, sighed heavily, as if she
couldn’t stop herself.

The
light was so intense that I couldn’t even recognize it, but I
instinctively knew it was a reaction.

Her
voice was muffled, but she sounded concerned.

A
warm feeling settled strangely in my chest.

[I
don’t have any miracles left, so]

The
woman continued and the emotion seemed to be growing strangely
intense.

Immediately,
the darkness responded. As if to interfere, it began to enclose the
small hole from which the light was emanating.

I
reached out toward the darkness so that the light would not be
obscured by the darkness…so that I could hear [Her] more.

[Make
sure to survive and come to ■■.]

A
light pierced through the darkness, and it enveloped me.

***

“Ugh,
ugh⋯”

Joy
Hog looked around, stanching the bleeding from her torn-off right
arm.

Jubeel
had lost her left arm and sword, and had been thrown into the
fountain.

Lammel’s
right foot and staff had been chewed off and she was losing blood.

Hitolis
and Hope are still insane, and Aldente has been reduced to a bloated
slime.

Party
decimation was a common occurrence in the Labyrinth.

They
were all still breathing, but there was no telling when their lives
would end.

“Haha.”

I
laughed out of nowhere. Had I finally gone mad with fear?

‘I
guess that’s it for me.’

Joy
Hog turned her head away from the darkness that was writhing around
its massive body and slowly closed her eyes.

She
wanted to at least go in peace, to embrace death and reflect on her
life so far.

-Zzzzzzzzzz!!!

A
terrible scream shook the labyrinth and her eyes snapped open of
their own accord.

But
then she immediately frowned.

‘Light.’

A
blinding light was emanating from the inscrutable being shrouded in
darkness.

Or,
more precisely⋯on
its torso.

‘Axe
marks?

-Tsk,
tsk, tsk!!!

The
sound of flesh being sliced was heard once again.

[keeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!]

The
inscrutable being let out a scream as its huge body tossed and
turned, writhing in pain.

The
glare grew stronger as the beam of light emanating from the
inscrutable being’s body doubled in size.

Another
gap had opened up.

-Zzzzzzzzzzzz!!!

When
the third blast sounded, Joy Hog gaped in shock at the unbelievable
sight she witnessed.

An
axe enveloped in a blinding light that seemed to cover all the
darkness in the world cut open the inscrutable creature’s torso and
faced the world.