Chapter 152

The upheaval show orchestrated by Gundor, where a dragon appeared and many irregular small battles with the former troops during the Unification War occurred, ended with the victory cry of the Labyrinth City. A narrow victory for the Labyrinth City led by the Borgia family.

That said, a victory was still a victory. Even if to gain this victory, a great deal of sacrifice must be made. As of now, the number of confirmed dead and missing exceeded 50,000, and the number of injured reached 60,000.

Many of the buildings, the foundation of life, were severely damaged, and the logistics, the lifeblood of the city, were rotting and becoming dysfunctional. The Labyrinth facility that was responsible for the supply of meat and resources was damaged and had to be closed until it was restored. Even if the Labyrinth facility wasn't completely destroyed, the number of adventurers available to engage in exploration had been greatly reduced by the battle.

Three days after the end of the battle, the scars of the living natural disaster that had struck the city were still visible in various places.

Sanitary conditions in the city were rapidly deteriorating as the corpses and pieces of human flesh left behind in the collapsed houses continued to decompose. And a putrid smell lingered in the nose for hours, all over the city. It was a familiar smell, familiar to Walm, who had experienced the bloody air in his homeland.

The opening of the street had priority. Along the main street, where houses and stores were lined up, there were now only small mountains of rubble. The faces of those who passed each other in such a street were all dark. So were the people in the area. Some elderly people sat stunned on the rubble of a house that had been reduced to ashes, some blank-faced people rummaged through the rubble with their bare hands, and some children kept calling out their parents' names.

It was a common sight in today's Labyrinth City. Walm, who used the in the city to subdue the undead dragon, wasn't irrelevant either. The blue flame that burned the dragon's body devastated the city as well. Without saying, burned corpses lay in houses that had turned to ash. And he couldn't take his eyes off the scene.

At the time of the battle, citizens were trying to evacuate the city, but not all were able to do so. Walm only wished that those who couldn't be evacuated were already dead before the blue flame touched them.

That said Walm continued his steps, walking along an unfamiliar road that should have been familiar to him by now. As he walked, he noticed that the facilities connected to the labyrinth were also badly damaged.

The polished cobblestones were chipped and contaminated with blood and pus from the transported casualties. And the stone pillars, lined up in an orderly fashion, were bending and falling to the ground.

The guild building, which was based on white color and showed its splendor and magnificence to the visitors, was now stained light brown by dust. Moreover, the doors and windows were broken, and the shutters came off the window frames and leaned on the ground.

"Not even a shadow came to visit huh?"

The interior of the facility served as an evacuation center for citizens who had lost their homes, their livelihoods, but those who couldn't fit in and no longer find a place to stay poured into the premises. Many citizens sought shelter in simple tents they had built from whatever they had on hand.

The white smoke from the emergency soup kitchen filled the air, but it mixed with the various appetite-suppressing stench.

Walm walked around the back of the facility. There was a cenotaph where he had a talk with Lisi, and behind it, there was a monument dedicated to the martyrs who had contributed to the guild

Many of the dead were carried to the outskirts of the city and buried in masses. This was common practice on the battlefield. As people slowly dug for each grave, contagious diseases and undead could come to light.

Therefore, it was decided that the guild officials and some soldiers, including most of the corpses that had retained their original form, should be buried in a corner of the guild's memorial monuments. People weren't equal even after death. Sad but that was the reality. Walm, however, was not in a position to condemn the unfair treatment. On the contrary, he welcomed it positively. Because it was still a better treatment.

"I'm late, sorry."

Unlike most, who were buried in a messy, careless manner, Lisi's body was buried under what could be called a tombstone. Not very, but still, it was no way to die with dignity. Walm himself couldn't accept the way she died. But among the many who died, her body was treated well.

"I could only prepare something like this. Please forgive me."

Nevertheless, Walm accepted the reality and put his hands together at the tombstone. In the Labyrinth City, where logistics were stagnant, he had a hard time getting any flowers at all. Finding a single flower blooming in the rubble was lucky enough.

The light red color smeared with dust reminded Walm of crimson grass, but the flower's shape and color were far from it.

Walm closed his eyes, made an insignificant offering, and put his hands together. He recalled the memories he had with Lisi, whom he met every day, so to speak. One memory after another surfaced in his mind as if he were digesting them.

"Not even a single tear? What a bad person."

Whether it was because he was too accustomed to death, that he still couldn't fully grasp reality, or that he was frivolous by nature, not a single tear fell from Walm's eyes.

Walm, who had been staring at the tombstone with some lingering affection, turned to the coming visitor.

It was Lavinia, the receptionist, Lisi's work colleague. She, too, paid her respects and visited the grave of her friend who had crossed over into the Netherworld.

Lavinia moved her mouth as if she was out of oxygen, but not another word came out of her mouth.

"I heard, it was you who arranged for the grave. Thank you."

Walm expressed his sincerity.

Lavinia had gone to great lengths to ensure the quiet burial of Lisi, who wasn't a high-ranking employee. Compared to Walm had lost sight of her body in the turmoil and couldn't mourn her properly, Lavinia had done more than enough for her.

"......sorry."

Lavinia responded to Walm's words of gratitude with an apology that contained no embellishments or excuses. There was no doubt that she was apologizing for the remarks she had made in a confused state during the turmoil.

"It was a disastrous situation. Can't be helped. And, what you pointed out is true. I couldn't choose between the two. The result of not choosing was Lisi's death. I won't run away from that."

"That's not――"

Walm shook his head to interrupt Lavinia's words.

"No need to be so kind. Your name's, Lavinia, right? I don't hold any grudge against you. I'm just disappointed in myself. Showing an appearance as if I would help her, only to end up as a lie. I wonder what would happen if I could go back in time. Even now, I don't know."

Amidst the constant hustle and bustle, there was silence in the area.

Was it productive to express one's heart drowning in sentimentality? No, of course not. Walm himself knew that and did it anyway.

"......I'm sorry. I've nothing else to say about this here, in front of the grave. I'm going now. You should mourn her in peace. Please pray for her happiness in the next world."

Lavinia bowed her head in response, and then saw Walm off until he disappeared from sight.

Walm slipped through the waves of people and advanced to the guild house. One room was assigned to the Trimagitack party, including Walm. After all, the current Merrill had received the title of the hero, after her achievement for knocking the Undead Dragon to the ground.

The Republic army that had gathered at the border stopped its movement at the same time that the Undead Dragon was defeated. And the fact that the Undead Dragon returned to the Netherworld so quickly had to be considered a miscalculation.

Although the Labyrinth City had suffered tremendous damage and the military forces had been extracted, at the very least, they still had enough number of troops for the border garrison. Moreover, there was an individual in the city who could shoot down a dragon species in a short time. This must be another reason that kept the Republic from going to war.

"They, won't be rewarded either huh."

Walm had no intention of agreeing with Fausto's distorted obstinacy, but from the result alone, the rematch for which the ghost of the Gundor family had been waiting couldn't be fulfilled even in a rematch a century later.

As Walm went deeper down the hallway, a passing man raised his hand and bowed his head to greet Walm. Of course, Walm returned the greeting as well.

In peacetime, Walm was treated like something uncanny, but after the crisis, the people's behavior changed completely. It might sound calculative and somewhat convenient, but a mysterious bond was formed between those who stood side by side in that deadly moment, sharing the same battlefield.

Continuing his steps as he avoided the supplies piled in the hallway, Walm reached the drawing room he used to use, opened the door, and went inside. The room looked like a private room, for many things had been taken in from the half-destroyed rented house.

KNOCK!! KNOCK!! KNOCK!!

Knocking on the door of the innermost room, Walm spoke.

"I'm going in."

Walm entered after receiving a brief response from inside.

Merrill, who must have been resting her body on the bed, straightened half her body.

"You'd better get more sleep."

"Walm is sure overprotective."

Contrary to the smiling Merrill, the movement of the left half of her body was sluggish. "Hydra", was said to possess the deadliest poison of all the dragon species. Even with one of the three miraculous treasures, the poison that eroded Merrill still left an aftereffect in her body.

Sensing Walm's intentions, Merrill continued.

"So, you went to visit the grave...... Sure, due to the influence of Hydra's poison, my body can't move the way I want it to. That said, thanks to the crimson grass, I'm still alive... But, because of that, you couldn't help Lisi, and Walm's eyes, are still rotting."

Merrill was also injured both physically and mentally by the upheaval.

"It was a ceremony, a surprise attack that no one expected happened there. If it wasn't for Merrill, the others, they'd have died on the spot."

In a short period of time, Merrill formed an ice wall while protecting her comrades.

Once again, Walm was reminded that his could only burn people and things. Had he been in Merrill's position, the other party members would have been wiped out.

"Somehow, you're kinder than usual."

Said Merrill, trying to lighten the mood.

"Do you think I'm a demon or something?"

Merrill laughed innocently at Walm, who narrowed his eyes.

"Fufufu, just kidding."

Then, Merrill tightened her expression as if she had made up her mind. Her heterochromia eyes stared at Walm.

"......According to Hari and the guild's healing magician. If I continue the therapy training, it seems that the paralyzed half of my body will heal. And next time, I'll have Walm use the crimson grass for sure."

Even though gloomy dusk has fallen over the city, the vividness of her eyes hasn't diminished in the slightest. No, no, this is a serious talk.

Walm, whose gaze was captivated by the brilliance, pushed his unnecessary thoughts into a corner and continued to listen to Merrill's thoughts in silence.

"Walm, I ――"

The words were forcefully stopped, as a knocking sound echoed in the room.

Many visited Merrill, so it was nothing new to her. But, what an untimely visitor.

To the knocking sound, Merrill could only let out a sigh.

"Wait, I'll open the door."

Walm opened the door.

A man stood there. He was well groomed, but his armor was covered from head to toe with countless scars. Cloth and metal rubbed against each other, and the luster of the joints was discolored. An appearance peculiar to the battlefield one could say. In today's Labyrinth City, he should have been nothing more than a common soldier.

Nevertheless, Walm's heart leaped with surprise, even as his body froze on the spot.

"I've been searching for you, Escort Captain, Walm."

The rank Walm had in the past, was mentioned, and it resounded in his ears.

The words were spoken by a man in a familiar Highserk armor, who was one of those under Walm's command at the Dandurg Castle, which was swallowed up by the monster's rampage during the Great Outbreak.

"Huh? Company Commander... Friug?"

It was the Company Commander (Wartime) to whom Walm had entrusted the command of the walls of Dandurg Castle as he set out to a one-on-one fight with the Ogre Lord.

Before someone whom he believed shouldn't be alive, Walm experienced vertigo and his feet became unsteady. Words stopped leaking out of his mouth, and yet, his heart continued to beat, faster than usual.

TN : Friug is another person other than Moritz who kept searching for Walm when he was inside the Tyrant Worm until the last minute before the survivors decided to leave the Dandurg Castle.