Chapter 74: The Labyrinth of the Bandit King #5

Chapter 74: The Labyrinth of the Bandit King #5

Empty eye sockets glared at me.

Dry brown hair. Skin shriveled and parched.

Life no longer resided in that body. Only remnants slowly crumbling away remained.

Inside the golden door stood a mummy, seemingly about to weather away and be carried off by the wind.

It was Akasha.

She had suffered from paranoia and various mental illnesses since childhood, and was an unfortunate Bandit King who never found peace, even at the moment of her death.

“It’s been a while.”

I gave Akasha a lonely smile.

This girl and I are old acquaintances.

Here, in the world of “Nine Stars,” I would have faced Akasha as Estel.

Outside the world, in reality, I was with Akasha as the player who controlled her.

I remembered Akasha’s every move. I also knew what she liked and what she feared.

Memories surfaced of how I had poured all my effort into controlling her mental illness symptoms throughout the game, which had plagued her life.

“In a way, it’s my fault. If I hadn’t controlled you, Michael would no longer have been interested in you.”

The unstable Bandit King would have become useless after Michael ascended to the position of Hero.

She was essentially discarded in a way that was close to being profited from, and her mental illness would have worsened from then on, leading to her current state.

I approached Akasha’s mummy.

Given that “The Labyrinth of the Bandit King” was covered in hellish traps, players would be most tense in the final room of this labyrinth…

There were no traps in this room.

Once one reached this point, there were no further obstacles.

Perhaps that’s why the name of this room is ‘The Room of Peace.’

Perhaps she wanted to distance herself from traps and find peace of mind, at least here, to be free from the world’s fears.

I gently closed Akasha’s vacant, open eyes.

Then, I laid her body in a soft blanket and placed it in the pocket dimension of the Ring of Preservation.

“Please. Help me one last time.”

With this, I had successfully recovered the bodies of two former members of the Hero’s party.

Eden and Akasha, who were once Michael’s pawns in life.

Michael would meet them soon. His former comrades, now turned enemies.

“I’ll use the staff well.”

I also retrieved the staff leaning against the golden chair.

The Staff of Guidance, the objective of this exploration.

With this, the artifact that would light my way was in my hands.

Towards Carmilla’s castle, where my sealed power awaits.

***

Inside the Palace of Light, the heart of the Empire.

Within the palace, which stretched out like a maze, a colossal chair was placed in the deepest hall.

By classification, it was a chair. However, in reality, it was too grand to be merely called a chair, and excessively large.

The backrest, adorned with all sorts of ornate decorations, soared high enough to seem to reach the ceiling, and it was wide enough for two people to sit comfortably.

It was a chair that only one person in the Empire could sit on. In other words, the throne.

Currently, an elderly man was leaning askew on it, his body sunk into the seat.

The Emperor.

The pinnacle of existing power.

The ruler of the world, the master of the throne.

However, contrary to his grand titles, the Emperor’s appearance was quite unappealing.

His old, wrinkled skin was stained to a color close to black, beyond brown, and his belly protruded while his limbs were thin.

Wearing only a loincloth to cover his private parts and a thin robe over it, the Emperor’s appearance was not very attractive, no matter how one tried to see it positively.

“Kekekeke.”

The Emperor laughed with satisfaction.

The women leaning against the Emperor’s feet eagerly offered fruits and snacks, fanned him, and fawned over him in every way.

The women’s appearances varied. Some had white skin, others black.

There were those who were over 190cm tall with large breasts, but also a girl so small that her head barely reached the Emperor’s waist, making her look like a child.

From this, one could infer that the Emperor’s taste in women was that diverse-

And that the Empire’s power had spread throughout the world, enough to gather unique women from all corners of the globe.

“A golden age.”

The Emperor was satisfied. Everything in the world was proceeding smoothly.

At least, that’s how the Emperor felt.

The voices of those who opposed the Emperor never reached the depths of the palace.

Only the sweet whispers of women were always heard by the Emperor’s side, and a sweet fragrance lingered day and night.

“Your Majesty.”

Heavily armed guards approached and knelt in a disciplined manner. The women’s curious gazes lingered on the soldiers.

“Knight Commander Michael requests an audience with Your Majesty.”

“Hmm, Michael, Michael…? Who was that… Ah, right, Michael. Has it already been a month? Yes, let him in.”

The Emperor blinked his dazed eyes a few times. Purple smoke continuously wafted into the air from the incense burner placed beside him.

The large ivory door of the hall opened, and Michael entered.

The women’s gazes changed. While their gazes towards the guards were merely curious, this time they were filled with blatant admiration.

The women also knew how to look at men. They were the Emperor’s concubines, but they weren’t captivated by the Emperor’s masculinity.

On the other hand, Michael’s face, his broad chest and wide shoulders, his confident gait – each aspect was like an aphrodisiac that stirred women’s hearts.

“It is Michael. Thank you for granting me the honor of seeing Your Majesty today.”

“Oh yes… Time flies. So, nothing unusual happened this time either?”

“Yes. It is all thanks to Your Majesty’s blessings bestowed upon this land.”

Michael replied without any change in his expression. The Emperor gazed at Michael’s handsome features with languid eyes.

He was very pleased with this holy knight. He was indeed a man worthy of being called a hero.

Since appointing Michael as his second-in-command, the Emperor had been freed from troublesome official duties.

He no longer had to rack his brain discussing matters with his ministers every day.

As long as he entrusted it to Michael, everything was handled properly.

And, his beautiful face, which perfectly suited the Emperor’s taste, was also a significant factor.

Looking at Michael, the Emperor’s eyes were delighted, as if he were gazing at a rare work of art.

“Yes, yes… You’ve worked hard.”

The Emperor was satisfied with Michael’s single word, “Yes.” He didn’t ask anything further.

If Michael said so, then it was so.

Thousands, tens of thousands of affairs, big and small, of the Empire were thus buried beneath the surface without any issue, all with Michael’s single word of “Yes.”

The Emperor yawned widely, like a hippopotamus. It was almost time for his nap.

The women busied themselves preparing his bed, and Michael quietly rose.

“Please rest. I shall take my leave. May your imperial body be at peace.”

“Mmm…”

The Emperor was already half asleep.

Michael spared no effort for the Emperor’s happiness.

Incense that made the mind hazy and liberated one from all worldly suffering.

An aphrodisiac mixed with wine three times a day.

A pleasure agent applied to the fingertips and injected into the skin with a massage before going to bed in the evening.

Every day must have felt like floating in warm water, blissful.

Michael sincerely wished for the Emperor’s happiness. At least, he had to be happy like this until the time he was waiting for arrived.

That way, he wouldn’t look beyond the palace.

Michael glanced back at the Emperor as he left the hall.

‘It’s still going according to my plan. The Emperor’s trust remains unchanged. As always.’

The Emperor was unaware.

Outside the palace, the ministers relentlessly attacked Michael day after day.

The Empire’s second-in-command was always the target of all political attacks, but the current situation was quite unfavorable for Michael.

However, with the Emperor’s trust, there was no need to fear any of those crises.

The Empire belonged to the Emperor, and power originated from the Emperor.

As long as Michael had the Emperor’s strong backing, the checks from other powerful officials would not be able to inflict fatal damage on him.

That was it. The whispers about the disappearance of Eden, the High Priest of the Sun Temple…

The Garden massacre, and the evil deeds of the ‘Hero’ party, which were only now beginning to be discovered…

‘What am I supposed to do? It was all done out of necessity.’

Michael snorted dismissively. No matter how much the insects barked and clamored, there was no slight disruption to Michael’s plan.

There was only one thing that bothered him.

‘Given that his whereabouts have been unknown until now, it’s reasonable to assume Eden was defeated. If so…’

The person Eden was tracking at the end.

The Lich, Estel Frostwind.

This secret mission was ordered by Michael himself.

He didn’t feel responsible for Eden’s death. All humans die someday.

For Eden, that moment had simply arrived a little earlier.

Michael was not bound by such trivial emotions. He was already thinking of the next move.

‘The Lich has regained enough power to defeat Eden.’

Michael’s eyes tightened with determination.

The person sitting opposite Michael’s chessboard was not the Empire’s powerful officials.

The Lich, that audacious girl, was clearly the greatest threat now.

Although I don’t know where she’s, the Lich is surely taking one step, then another, closer to Michael at this very moment.

‘Come quickly.’

Michael walked, his white cloak fluttering.

Sunlight reflected off the palace’s marble, like a mirror, illuminating Michael like a holy radiance.

‘I will be waiting. I will not run or hide. The moment you appear before me, I will cast you back into the depths of hell once more.’

Michael felt a premonition close to certainty.

The day was approaching when he would once again cut down Estel with his sword.