Chapter 50: 50

Depths of the Otherworldly Labyrinth

[Translator – Mab ]

[Proofreader – ilafy ]

Chapter 50 - Their Devotions Each

After the hunt in the Labyrinth, I walked back to my house. 

The amount of EXP I gained in that one day was more than ever before, and the requirements for leveling up were met. I would have asked Lastiara to level me up, had she been here, but unfortunately, she seemed to be away. She was going to a country next door, after all, she probably wouldn’t be back anytime soon. With that in mind, I next looked for Maria. However, Maria wasn’t at home either. Learning that new magic probably took a lot of time.

No one was there. I felt a little lonely. I had become someone vulnerable to loneliness, it seemed. 

I looked out the window, pondering whether I had returned too soon. The sun was beginning to set, and a beautiful sunset was shining into the house.

A strange feeling of sadness washed over me, prompting me to leave the house.

With my EXP accumulated, I decided to go to church to level up to fill in time. It would save a lot of time to have Lastiara do it, but leveling up sooner would be better.

I also had an accumulation of magic stones, so I needed to redeem them for cash. However, it would be conspicuous if I redeemed a lot of magic stones at once, so I’d do it at the minimum amount necessary, after which I’d do some shopping for a change, and then perhaps go visit Dia.

I descended the hill and entered Varte’s downtown, firming up my plans. 

I walked along the streets lit by sunset that filled my entire field of vision. The edges of the jeweled streets gleamed a pale red.

I headed to church as I was enjoying the extravagance of this world’s roads with my eyes.

When I entered the building, the priest was just chanting, and the citizens were in the middle of their prayers. I wasn’t sure if I should join their prayers in the middle, so I just sat down on the edge of the bench in the back and imitated the prayer that I saw.

Time was moving at a crawl.

Every now and then I opened my ‘Status’ screen to see if I had leveled up or not, and when I knew I hadn’t, I prayed again.

The leveling up process in the church was much longer than when Lastiara did it. I passed the time by checking my ‘Status’ and looking at the stained glass windows—they were so sparkling that I couldn’t help but focus my gaze on them, and I was surprised to learn that they were made of gemstones.

After probing around the church, the priest finished chanting and took a bow; then the praying people also bowed, stood up sparsely, and began to leave.

I remained seated and checked my ‘Status’.

【Status】

Name: Kanami Aikawa

HP: 345/372, MP: 221/653-200

Class:

Level: 13

STR: 7.82, VIT: 8.02, DEX: 9.35, AGI: 12.01, WIS: 11.73, MAG: 29.78, APT: 7.00

Constitution: 

Confusion: 7.79

EXP: 20235/35000

Equipment: 

Araith Household’s Treasured Sword

Otherworldly Clothing

Sturdy Cloak

Otherworldly Shoes

After confirming that my level had risen, I wasn’t sure what to do with the bonus points.

Up until then, I had been allocating them to HP and MP out of necessity, but it might’ve been time to consider other parameters to allocate.

The next important thing after my durability and ability to keep on fighting would be firepower to defeat monsters. If I were being simply honest, STR or MAG should directly lead to more firepower. I gave it some thought, and then I chose MAG.

【Status】

Name: Kanami Aikawa

HP: 345/372, MP: 221/657-200

Class:

Level: 13

STR: 7.82, VIT: 8.02, DEX: 9.35, AGI: 12.01, WIS: 11.73, MAG: 30.08, APT: 7.00

Constitution: 

Confusion: 7.79

EXP: 20235/35000

Equipment: 

Araith Household’s Treasured Sword

Otherworldly Clothing

Sturdy Cloak

Otherworldly Shoes

When I increased my MAG by 0.30, my MP also increased, though only slightly. I was hoping for a 1.00 increase, but it didn’t seem to increase that rapidly. I had to try with other parameters to know if the next bonus point would also increase 0.30. I determined that I should allocate to STR next to determine whether the increase was the same all across the board.

Next, I pondered on the basis of how much MP was increased. Perhaps it was a linkage I commonly found in games. A fraction of MAG was added to MP, that or MP was given a bonus compensation for the added MAG. It was a small increase for sure, but it was an increase still.

Happy that my level up had made me stronger, I got up from my seat.

I went to walk out of the church, but then I stopped in my tracks.

There was a familiar knight just outside the church. I sensed him with «Dimension». Good thing I had been on alert after Hein-san’s attack thay morning and thus increased the output of my magic. Thanks to that, I was able to notice the knight before I stepped outside.

I strengthened my magic and dug up more information about the knight.

【Status】

Name: Palinchron Legacy

HP: 311/312, MP: 42/62

Class: Knight

Level: 22

STR: 7.90, VIT: 9.87, DEX: 11.89, AGI: 5.67, WIS: 7.34, MAG: 4.78, APT 1.80

Innate Skills:

Observation: 1.45

Acquired Skills: 

Swordsmanship: 1.89

Divine Magic: 1.23

Martial Arts: 1.87

Sorcery: 0.54

The knight’s name was Palinchron. As I recalled, I met that knight at the slave market a few days ago.

I dug up my memory and remembered him. He was the type of person who would deceive others and whistle with his lips. 

I gave up going out through the entrance and tried to find another exit. When I did, Palinchron suddenly made his move and entered the church.

He opened the door, revealing his tall stature to me. As usual, he didn’t look like a knight at all and more like a merchant with all those bulky clothes that made it difficult for him to move. It was only because of the sword at his waist that Palinchron could pass as a knight.

He approached me, his muddy brown hair swaying.

“Hey, what a coincidence to meet you here, Onii-san.”

He greeted me, brushing it off as a mere coincidence. I was sure it was no coincidence at all. He had been waiting for me outside the church. The only reason he entered the building was because I had deployed my magic over a wide area to look for a different exit.

“Yes, what a coincidence indeed. Have you been stalking again? Knights sure have a lot of free time.”

I responded with a stern tone of voice. I had always treated knights with respect, but for some reason, I didn’t feel the need to with Palinchron. Not to mention, the place we first met wasn’t exactly the best.

“Dang, you caught me red-handed… You have quite a good detection ability, too, Onii-san. I sure was surprised when your magic power suddenly swelled up, so I stepped in.”

Palinchron said ‘I too.’ This should mean that there was a high chance he had a detection ability similar to my «Dimension». The ambush and him tailing me before must've been done with said magic.

Perhaps it was related to his Sorcery Skill. I had never heard of it in all the intel I had gathered so far. It was an unknown genre of magic

“So what do you want? A duel?”

“That sounds dangerous, oi. I’m just here to talk. Onii-san, you fought off Sera, Ragne, and Hein, didn’t you? I’m not going to be a match for you, then. I’m basically fighting with old man Haups for the bottom, y’see.”

Palinchron shrugged his shoulders in jolly. I, however, didn’t let my guard down. I kept a constant distance from him and watched his every movement.

【Iron Sword】

ATK: 2

An iron sword with no special features.

He had no other equipment that he could use in a battle other than his iron sword 

Palinchron noticed that I was focusing on his equipment with heightened vigilance and tried to calm me down with a light tone.

“No, I mean it. I’m just here to have a little chat. I picked up this sword at random from a knight’s quarters.”

“Don’t mind me, I was only ambushed after chatting up lightly this morning, you see…”

 “Haha, I heard about that. Hein, am I right? I heard about it, that is why I’m here to have a look-see.”

As he laughed, Palinchron sat on the opposite end of the bench from where I was sitting. The crowd around me was getting less and less populated. The priest had finished his work and thus retreated to the back of the church.

Unnaturally, Palinchron and I were left all alone in the church.

“If you’ve heard about it, then guess. The credibility of you knights is in the gutter right now. You don’t want to enter my sword’s range.”

“I won’t, I promise… So let’s chat, okay?”

He then indicated his unwillingness to fight by placing the sword at his waist on the floor. I found his straightforward response to be, on the contrary, suspicious. There was no doubt he had the means to fight without a sword.

However, it would be dishonest of me to not even talk to him after he went so far. Besides, it wasn’t like I didn’t have my own questions regarding people from Whoseyards, Hein-san included. I sat back down on the bench. Of course, I kept my distance.

“Fine. Talking won’t hurt”

“I appreciate it. I would’ve been in real trouble if you refused to chat, you see.”

Saying, “yep, yep” to himself, Palinchron continued talking.

“So how is it? Have you defeated all seven of the Celestial Knights?”

Then came a question that I hadn't expected. Seeing no reason to lie, I answered truthfully. I was sure he could get the information himself if he wanted to.

“No, not all of them. I fought… Radiant-san, Haups-san, Ragne-chan, and Hein-san.”

“I see, I see.”

Palinchron asked happily about his own people’s defeat.

“My turn to ask. Do you know why Hein-san did what he did?”

“Yup, I know.”

He answered without a pause. I didn’t expect him to be so honest, so it took me off guard.

He looked at me, surprised, and laughed.

“Haha, don’t get surprised. You answered my question honestly, so I’ll be honest with my answers, too.”

“Tell me then.”

“Sure. I’ll give you the short answer. It’s because… I fanned him. Throughout the past few days, I’ve been putting on a fake front and saying, “Aah, the lady sure is having the time of her life with Christ-kun. She’s laughing as if she’s just an ordinary maiden”, or, “Poor her, being deceived from the moment she was born, fated to disappear without knowing a shred of happiness… I know it’s for the country, but don’t you feel sorry?” And I kept on tormenting him until I finally drove him half-crazed, then he went to save his master. Ha-ha, a job well done.”

Palinchron replied, a smile not leaving his face. It was like an innocent laugh of a small child, happy his prank was a success. The gap between his laugh and what he laughed at left me stunned.

“Y-you did what…?”

“I’m pretty well known for how agitating I can be, you see. Many of the magic I mastered are of that spirit, too.”

“…Wh-why would you do that?”

“Because it’s fun. Also because I want to bring Whoseyards some detriment, but it’s mostly because I find it fun.”

Palinchron laughed while I was speechless. 

I had never seen someone so proudly and brazenly talk about his evil, but that was a pretext. He was too pure in his malice for me to know how to respond to him. The fact that there were people who could drive others crazy with such ease was terrifying.

As I was silent in my stunned disbelief, Palinchron continued.

“My turn to ask. Nii-san, do you have any intention to save the lady… Lastiara?”

S-save Lastiara…? Does that mean that Lastiara is in a situation where she needs to be saved?

Palinchron’s words were like poison narcotics that were hard to get away from.

After all that he said, I was wary of whether he was using mind magic, so I checked my own ‘Status’. However, I found nothing out of the ordinary. That was all just Palinchron talking.

Just talking and he’s already given me such a headache…

“Saving in what context?”

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“Oh, Hein didn’t tell you? Well, can’t blame you if you didn’t know then. Let me lay it out for you, consider this a freebie. Let me tell you Whoseyards’ secret and the lady’s secret. Yup, can’t blame you for this.”

Disingenuously, Palinchron continued.

“I’ll make it brief… Lastiara Whoseyards is the sacrifice for the Holy Birthday. She is the vessel for the Saintess Tiara to possess, and she was created for that sole purpose. And if such a thing descended into her body, obviously, Lastiara’s ego would disappear. In short, in two days… she’ll die.”

And he said it, Lastiara would die.

He was saying loud and clear that she would die at the current rate.

My heart beat uncomfortably fast.

I’d felt that before, on that day… He was doing the same thing he did to me back then at the slave market—he was pushing me. 

He pointed at a girl about to fall into misery, and with that thin smile on his face, he fanned me. Are you going to let it happen? Are you going to turn a blind eye? Are you going to let that poor girl die? Are you…?

“Is… is that true…?”

“I don’t lie. Well, the decision’s in your own hands, Onii-san.”

I had no reason to believe him. A liar wouldn’t call himself a liar. However, if I considered everything that Lastiara and Hein-san had told me, it all added up.

“Tell me more.”

I wish I could say he was just a liar. I had to find any inconsistency in his story, thus I asked him for more details, wishing I could say it was just a lie.

“Very well. I’ll tell you as much as you want. You have the right to know, Onii-san.”

Palinchron’s lips curved up and he leaned in a little closer to me. His smile was like that of a spider grinning at its prey. It wasn’t the bloodthirsty smile of a mammal or reptile, but rather the cold, unfazed smile characteristic of an insect.

“First off, know that Lastiara is not a human being. She wasn’t born from a human womb and isn’t even a proper living being. She is a human made of magic stone created by kneading human flesh and gemstones. We call a creature like her a Jewelcruz. Did you know…? That brat is three years old at that size.”

He lightly revealed that Lastiara wasn’t a human to open up.

But I already knew that. Lastiara herself had told me. I was surprised that she was three years old, but I had a dim feeling that she might be around that age. Her body and mind not in a proper balance was already Lastiara’s identity. It would explain her mental immaturity.

Nevertheless, I still had something to ask in that regard.

“Lastiara herself said she was around sixteen.”

“Ah, we establish that her physical age is sixteen. It would probably confuse people if we frankly said she’s three years old, so we chose an age close to how she appeared.”

At the festival, Lastiara added “supposedly” when she answered she was sixteen. Inwardly, I noted that Palinchron was probably right about her age. That wasn’t yet a major contradiction.

“Go on…”

“As for the reason why Whoseyards are making those Jewelcruz dolls… it is to reincarnate the great men of the past.”

Palinchron continued to talk happily with his hands outstretched. Every word of it stabbed me in the heart.

“The blood of the Saints from the past is preserved in its entirety in the cathedral. Apparently, Saintess Tiara, the founder of magic, tried many things in order to come back to this world once more. What caught her attention was the nature of the blood of a magician. Blood could retain many magic formulas. If so, she wondered if she could retain her personality in her blood as a magic formula. She’s tenacious, I’ll give you that.”

I felt no respect for the saints from Palinchron. Of course, neither from myself. From how this story unfolded, this blood—

“In other words, the mission of Lastiara the Jewelcruz is to drink up the blood of Saintess Tiara and surrender her body to her. The blood that circulates through her body right now is chock full of the formula for receiving magic formulas. She was born to be the vessel of someone else’s rebirth.”

—would be the blood to kill Lastiara.

Already, Saintess Tiara was an enemy of mine.

“The rebirth of Saintess Tiara is prophesied in the Levant Holy Scripture, and it is this year. Whoseyards is acting accordingly. The citizens of Whoseyards are also looking for the prophecy to be fulfilled. This year’s Holy Birthday will be a touch different, and with it coming up in two days, the lady’s life is running out! What shall you do, Christ Onii-san?”

Palinchron finished his coherent explanation, turning his clutching eyes to me, expecting my response.

I squeezed out a vital question.

“…Is Lastiara fully aware of all of this?”

“She should have been told that she’ll become one with the Saintess, at the very least. It was ambiguous, but I’m sure she anticipated being fully annihilated. Her educator was Hein, so I don’t know the full details, but… eh, I’m sure it was easy enough to brainwash the lady when she was innocent and had just been born.”

Palinchron suggested the possibility of brainwashing while stifling a laugh.

Lastiara must have fully accepted to become Saintess Tiara during the Holy Birthday. She wouldn’t be so carefree in our exploration if she hadn’t. Anyone with normal, working sensibilities would have run away right away. Hein-san was right, we should have gone far, far away.

“Are you saying that Lastiara has no qualms about accepting the ritual?”

“To be more precise, she’s been conditioned to? Lastiara’s life is already set by the great plan, and it is her fate to have her life adjusted to the plan.”

“Adjusted… fate….”

Something about those words stuck with me. It is because I, too—

“This is all according to Whoseyards’ plan, you see.”

Palinchron continued to talk, paying no heed to my fluctuating facial expression. I shook off the feeling and concentrated on what he was telling me.

“Plan? What plan?”

“Aah, open up your ears wide. This is such a fun plan, I just can’t help but want to share it. This is how the plan goes: ‘Lastiara oh so happily partakes in the ritual and thus becomes Saintess Tiara, and she will be unveiled at the peak of the Holy Birthday to the delight of the public. What follows is truly a heroic tale. With her miraculous power, she pioneers the Labyrinth, extends the Main Road, and inherits the title of the Strongest from Glenn. By the way, Glenn will become her ally. Later on, Saintess Tiara will win the championship in the Wardance Tournament. She will have made a name throughout the continent and triumphantly return to her home country. Whoseyards, exhaling her miraculous power in various places. She will partake in the much-awaited war in the northern part of the continent, and the living legend, the Saintess, will descend on the front lines as the general-in-chief. With all her prestige and power, victory belongs to Whoseyards! Wow, what a hero!’ —Haha, that would be a great story to tell, and the plan is already set in stone.”

Palinchron described the future that awaited Lastiara as if he were recounting the life of a hero. The plan sounded exactly the kind of epic that Lastiara liked to hear. At first, I thought that Lastiara must’ve be glad to know about it, but then I realized how oddly convenient it was.

It made me suspect that Lastiara’s preferences were tailored.

Perhaps… Lastiara didn’t want to be a hero because she admired heroic tales but because she was born a hero and might have been educated to admire heroic tales.

If so, that would be… sickening.

“A life planned like that is wrong… it’s not right…”

I absentmindedly muttered my discomfort.

“Right?!”

When I did, Palinchron agreed with me loudly. With the same momentum, he invited me to join him.

“That’s why, Onii-san, let’s save Lastiara!”

With a big smile on his face, Palinchon came forward with a proposal and a good heart. As for me, I was afraid.

I was afraid as it was the malicious Palinchrone who made such a well-meaning proposal. I retorted violently, trying to shake off my fear.

“And that’s how you goad me…! What’s your objective…?!”

“What do you mean, “what”? I want to save a life, what else? I want to give my lady a real, human life! I want to save her from the delusional sacrifice for a monster like Saintess Tiara!”

Palinchron replied, a twinkle in his eyes.

I could tell that he genuinely thought that Lastiara’s fate was trivial. He found that it was boring to just go along with the established plan as it was.

He thought it would be fun to give Lastiara a helping hand.

That was all. That is all he is. What an obvious desire for chaos.

“I want you to prevent the rebirth of Saintess Tiara. To be more specific, I want you to destroy the biggest festival of Whoseyards, Saintess Tiara’s Holy Birthday.”

Destroy it… so he invited me.

However, that was against my policy.

I was angry when I learned about Lastiara’s situation. That was a fact. However, there’s only so much I could do. I had no room for such an adventure. …None.

“Doing that only warrants me getting captured. Even if I have goodwill, that still makes me a criminal.”

“You won’t get captured. You have a real ability to stay in the wind. You’re strong enough to fight off the Celestial Knights, the strongest personnel Whoseyards have, countless times and come out unscathed.”

“Even so, the whole country will target me, and I will have to live as a criminal… Too much impact on my life.”

“If that happens, just flee the country. You will be safe in a country hostile to Whoseyards, where Whoseyard’s influence cannot reach you.”

“I’m a Labyrinth explorer with no relatives. I don’t want to leave here, and I don’t have anywhere else to go.”

“You will be okay in any of the two southern countries. Even Valte has bones to pick with Whoseyards. Someone as powerful as you won’t run out of places to shelter you.”

“The very idea of having to be a fugitive and hop shelters is crazy. I can’t just—”

“Aah, you mean you could save her, but you don’t want to because you treasure your own safety more?”

Palinchron laughed disgustedly. He poked me exactly at the sore spot.

My face contorted at his apt point. I had no choice but to admit my narrow-mindedness.

“Yes, exactly… You are exactly right…”

I couldn’t argue. So what? Everyone put themselves first.

But then Palinchron looked at me in disappointment.

“…Guess I can’t bait you so easily this time. It was easy back then with the slave, though. Is my lady not to your taste? Or is the slave actually more special to you?”

“…!”

And that time, he aptly poked me at the very bottom of my heart, a place no one else had noticed. Trying to mask my agitation, I answered.

“…You’ve heard my answer. Back then, I could solve it easily with money, but now’s different. You guessed it right, I don’t like Lastiara that much.”

Upon hearing my answer, Palinchron observed me closely as if his eyes were glued to my skin. With a gaze that appeared to see through me, he was trying to see past my lie.

After a while, he replied with a laugh.

“Ha-ha. Well, I’m the one who absurdly asked you to be prepared to make enemies of a country. I won’t force you. As far as I’m concerned, I got Hein to lose his mind, so this is still a great success for me. I shan’t be greedy. But then—”

On the surface of his words, he seemed to have given up on me.

“—I thought you’d make a run for it, Onii-san.”

But Palinchron still looked at me as if I were prey in his web.

With those words, Palinchron stood up.

“Well then, time to go into hiding. My creed is secret maneuvers, you see.”

With that, Palinchron gave me a small wave and turned to leave the church.

I hadn’t expected such an anticlimactic ending. I had expected him to be more persistent in soliciting me. Or did Palinchron think I would make a move on my own if he told me that much?

The guy had already shown his back to me. I couldn’t see his expression, so I couldn’t gauge his true intentions.

Thus, in the quiet of the church, I exhaled deeply.

I dragged my body, heavy like lead, and turned my feet to head home. Every limb felt as heavy as my heart

I was unable to bring myself to go shopping or visit the sick.

I went straight home and looked for Lastiara. However, Lastiara wasn’t home. No matter how much I looked for her, she wasn’t there….

The only one who was there was Maria.

She approached me with a concerned look. It was a commendable bearing. However, once I thought that her bearing might be due to her love for me, I found it hard to deal with.

“What’s the matter, Master…?”

I wasn’t sure if I should tell Maria about Lastiara.

From what I had seen, they got along well. Although Maria often shunned Lastiara with cold words, I saw it as communication between close friends. I wondered if Maria already knew about Lastiara. Perhaps they had talked about it when they were alone.

“No, you see… In two days, Lastiara…”

“Two days? What’s with Lastiara-san?”

“On the day of Holy Birthday, she…”

“Yes?”

Maria waited for me to finish my words. She didn’t show any particular emotion when I mentioned ‘two days’ and ‘the Holy Birthday.’ It seemed that she knew nothing about it.

‘Should I tell Maria the details?’ Maria and Lastiara were friends. As friends, it was only right for Lastiara to announce it herself. Not to mention, the information I gained wasn’t from Lastiara. I heard it from Hein-san and Palinchron.

…

No, those are all but excuses. It’s just that I was feeling overwhelmed. I was too languid to explain it all.

Just like when I met Maria in the slave market, it was a painful topic to bring up.

I swallowed the words I was about to say and produced a lie in their place.

“She invited us to hang out again on the day of Holy Birthday.”

“…Yes. That sounds good.”

Hearing me covering it up, Maria simply nodded her head. Her eyes were still seeing straight through me.

Perhaps Maria pretended to buy the lie I told her. After all, she knew what I had in mind and would choose not to pursue it. She often took a step back in consideration of me. When I thought that it was also due to her affection for me, I felt ashamed of myself.

I limped to my bedroom, dragging my even heavier body with me. Various things swirled around in my head, making me feel sick. I wrapped myself in a blanket, hiding.

That day, even after dinner came and the night passed, Lastiara didn’t come home.

『Day Thirteen Finished』

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