Chapter 54

Chapter 54

Chapter 54 : Rescue Mission

Part 1

◆ Sword Maiden, Shirone

Going to Republic Ariadya was simple enough . Chiyuki-san prepared a Dimension Gate that led to the heart of Rena Temple, located in Republic Ariadya . However, we've never travelled through the Dimension Gate before . Because, in order to prepare the Dimension Gate, a room large enough to make the magic circle is needed .

Rena Temple was perfect for this . That's why, unless there was a similar place in other countries, we couldn't go there using the Dimension Gate . Perhaps, Veros Kingdom would be a good fit as well .

As for why Chiyuki refused to do so, it was apparently to keep Reiji-kun's frivolous nature in check .

Well, that's what she told me, not like I understand why she meant by it though .

The reason we constructed a Dimension Gate to Republic Ariadya was because the country was extremely wealthy . So Chiyuki-san wanted to turn into a second base for us .

「In short,you guys went back after escorting Reiji-kun till the 4th floor...」

「Yes, Shirone-sama . 」

I was questioning a girl called Leylia .

It was strange to have a girl who was supposedly older than me, kneel in front of me .

. Leila was the priest of Republic Ariadya's Rena Temple . And currently, we're in one of the rooms of the said temple .

Not a lot of people worshipped Rena in Republic Ariadya, thus the temple was much smaller when compared to Oudith's Temple .

Ariadya was a large country . Each city had about ten thousand citizens . Temples of various gods were spread throughout the country, with several priests working in each temple . Rena Temple had several dozen priests, who were led by the great priest . Leylia was one of these priests . However, she didn't work in the temple .

Leylia was an apostle . Rena was a goddess who protected humans from demons . Thus, many priests often became an apostle, who left the temple and went out to exterminate demons . In order to exterminate them in an efficient manner, she became a freedom fighter .

We came to Republic Ariadya and met Leylia .

I heard that she lived in the Freedom City of Teseshia, located in the north, and rarely visited Republic Ariadya . But she was here right now, and the reason for that was the person who turned Leylia into an apostle, Rena's Valkyrie . The Valkyrie ordered Leylia to cooperate with us .

And so, we came to Republic Ariadya and met Leylia .

She, her party, and severals party of freedom fighters were the one who became the guide for Reiji-kun in the Evil God's Labyrinth .

She was currently kneeling in front of us along with the great priest in this room .

She, her party and several other freedom fighters were the ones who guided Reiji-kun in the Evil God's Labyrinth . Right now, she was kneeling in front of us along with the great priest of the temple .

「I see, then may I ask you to guide me till the 4th floor too? 」

I asked leylia .

「Please wait a minute, Shirone-sama! ! 」

Kaya-san, who was waiting on the side suddenly interrupted .

「What's the matter, Kaya? 」

Part 2

Kyouka-san was surprised by Kaya-san's sudden interruption too .

「Milady, Shirone-sama . Our opponent is someone who captured Reiji-sama . Entering the base of such a cunning opponent without any kind of plan might put your life in danger . 」

「But, Kaya-san! If we don't hurry, then Reiji and the other's lives will be in danger! . 」

「That's right, Kaya . If we don't leave immediately, then Onii-sama might lose his life . 」

Kyouka-san agreed with me .

But, Kaya-san shook her head .

「You must not be hasty, Milady . There's still time till Reiji-sama's execution . We might be able to pull off something till then . 」

「Even if you say so... Who do you think can help us in this situation, Kaya-san?! 」

I unintentionally shouted at Kaya-san .

Her reasoning was rational, but I ended up losing my cool .

「It's going to be impossible to rescue them if we only rely on our own power . Our enemy has captured both Chiyuki-sama and Reiji-sama . If we recklessly storm the enemy's base, we'll end up getting captured as well . 」

Kaya-san spoke with an indifferent voice .

She was right .

Reiji-kun and Chiyuki-san were strong .

If I enter the labyrinth without any sort of strategy, I'll end up getting captured in vain .

But, I knew that I had to do something about this situation .

Now that I think about it, I always recklessly charge into a situation without thinking first . This must be why Kuroki's always worrying about my safety .

「That... Is there really nothing we can do in this situation, Kaya? 」

Kaya-san shook her head . Even she didn't know what to do in this situation .

「Our power alone isn't enough . That's why we have to ask someone else for help . 」

As she spoke, Kaya looked at Regena .

Regena was right here with us . For some reason, Kaya brought her along from Holy Republic Lenaria .

「Uhm, what's the matter? 」

Regena was startled as she felt everyone in the room gaze at her .

「Regena-san . Can you ask for Kuroki-sama's help? 」

Upon hearing her words, Kyouka-san and I were at a loss for words .

I see . So, the reason why Kaya-san brought Regena-san along was because she knew that we wouldn't be able to save Reiji-kun on our own . Thus, she realized we needed Kuroki's help .

Yes, Kuroki is certainly a powerful and reliable ally . His power is equivalent to that of a thousand armies . Regena still has some connections with Kuroki, so she should be able to contact him .

Why didn't I think of this idea? Even though I should've been the first one to think about this, my stupid mind didn't even consider this as an option .

「 Master's help, it is? That's impossible . Reiji-sama is my master's and Nargol's enemy, after all . Why must he go through all this trouble to save his enemy?」

Regena replied as she kept her eyes on the floor .

「 . E-enemy? It's not like Kuroki is our enemy . He's Nargol's ally only because of that witch, Kuna . 」

Despite my words, Regena still rejected our plea .

「Shirone-sama . I won't let him go to such a place . From what I know, the labyrinth's extremely dangerous, and you're telling me to ask my master to enter such a place? 」

. Regena turned her face away from us .

Despite Regena's rejection, Kaya-san smiled . However, the smile seemed to be a scheming one .

「Hey, Regena-san . Shouldn't you use this chance to meet Kuroki-san?Aren't you the one benefitting from this situation?」

Kaya's words left her dumbfounded .

Part 3

「 Ugh... How sly . Do you think I won't refuse if you say that...? Fine . I'll contact my master, but whether or not he accepts is up to him . 」

Reluctantly, Regena agreed with a downcast look .

「Fufu~ Thank you very much, Regena-san . 」

Kaya-san spoke with elation .

Seeing her like that hurt my conscience for some reason . However, seeing her act like that made my heart ache for some reason . Why did Kuroki teach Regena how to contact him? Why didn't he teach me instead? I felt that Kuroki was being unfair . I should've been the person to be taught this first!

But... I can meet Kuroki again this way . Although I felt bad for Reiji-kun and Chiyuki-san, I was happy that I had the chance to meet him again .

◆ Dark Knight, Kuroki

I was on my way to visit Heibos's abode . I always pass by his place whenever I visit Totona's library, but I never went inside to greet him since he didn't like to be bothered for no reason .

Which is why I ended up missing the news of Nut getting captured along with the hero and his party .

Heibos's parlor room was extremely messy, to the point that it looked like a warehouse . And currently, I was in the middle of the room, talking to Heibos .

「 I see... That underground place, huh? Well, it's called a labyrinth now . You're going to that place?」

Heibos talked with a displeased expression, as if he was recalling something unpleasant .

According to the emerald tablet, the labyrinth was the greatest cause of humiliation for Heibos . That's why, it was a taboo to mention the labyrinth in his presence, to the point that no one in Elios dared to talk about it in front of him in fear of his wrath . However, even amongst the dwarvens, very few were aware of why he was so angry about it . Not even could read the record written about the humiliation that's kept in Elios' library, after all . Even I wouldn't have known about it had Totona not specifically informed me of it .

「Yes, I need to save Nut . That's why I came to you to acquire more information on the labyrinth, God Heibos . 」

I bowed to him .

Nut was captured along with Reiji and the others . Those guys were trapped in the middle of Minon plains in the labyrinth . It was a given that Heibos, the creator of the labyrinth would know every detail about it .

「I understand . I'm indebted to that Nut fella too, after all . I'll help you as much as I can . 」

「Thank you very much, God Heibos」

I bowed to him .

「 But, Dark Knight, although it's true that I created the labyrinth, Labyrs might have modified it afterwards . I have no way to know what kind of changes he made after he took over the labyrinth . 」

Heibos spoke with a troubled face .

I guess the labyrinth right now is not the same as the original one . Fearing Modes, Labrys probably changed the entire place into his palace . Of course, Heibos would have no idea about the changes Labrys made to the labyrinth .

「 The change shouldn't be that drastic though . I'll be fine as long as I know the basic structure of the place . 」

「I see... In that case, take this blueprint of the labyrinth with you . 」

「That's more than enough . Thank you very much . 」

I gratefully bowed to him once again . Heibos turned around and took a slate carved out of a gem from the cupboard behind him . It looked like the emerald tablet . Once again, I bowed as Heibos granted me that tablet .

「Your gratitude is enough . However, the most difficult part will come after you navigate through the labyrinth . Labyrs will be waiting in the deepest part of the labyrinth . He's extremely powerful . Are you sure you can defeat him?」

Part 4

I felt anxious . If even Heibos went to the extent of warning me, then Labrys must be extremely dangerous .

「Is Labrys... that powerful?」

「Yes, he is . He fought Modes and survived, after all . 」

「I see...」

I couldn't disagree with Heibos . If Labrys managed to survive a fight against Modes, then he truly was powerful . I'm not a match for Modes . I'm sure he's more powerful than me . In fact, if I ever fight Modes, I don't think I'll be able to survive .

My anxiety only worsened .

「 On top of that, the labyrinth supposedly supplies an endless amount of power to him . As long as he's inside the labyrinth, it'll keep healing any wounds you manage to inflict on Labrys . How are you going to defeat him when the odds are not in your favour?」

As I pondered over Heibos' question, I thought about how Modes seemed to be relieved when I said that I'd be fine . Looks like his worries were not for nothing .

「God Heibos, do you... have a plan that I can use to defeat him?」

「It's next to impossible to defeat Labrys in that labyrinth . Modes might be the only one who can defeat him, but I don't think it's a good idea to let him use that power of destruction . 」

Heibos said with a vexed tone .

A long time ago, Modes entered the labyrinth in order to save Heibos . Even then, Modes couldn't defeat Labrys until he went all out . Modes himself wasn't aware of the full extent of his power . Heibos had no other option than to stop the dwarves from exacting a revenge against Labrys, all due to Modes' overwhelming power . Heibos was the one who wanted to avenge the fallen dwarves the most, since they were his beloved children . But he was unable to do so, and thus, their deaths became a painful subject for Heibos .

「That's why, I think your best option would be to save Nut without confronting Labrys . 」

「Is there a way to achieve that? 」

「Nut's on the 5th floor of the labyrinth . That place was originally an underground garden, but looks like Labrys turned it into a prison for his human captives . The other humans he imprisoned must be there too . 」

According to Heibos, Labrys' subordinates, the minotaurs were capturing humans and turning them into slaves .

「 Do you know the safest way to rescue them from that floor? 」

「 I don't know... That floor was not a prison to begin with . I don't know what it looks like now, since Labrys changed it . 」

「I see...」

「 But one thing is for sure, the prison must be filled with loopholes, since it wasn't meant to be one in the first place . There must be a hidden path somewhere, make use of that . 」

「Well, I guess I'll have to start by looking for that hidden path . 」

.

「 Aside from that Unlike Rena's hero and his women, Nut won't be executed . Wouldn't it be better for you to save Nut after Labrys executes them?」

He's right . Labrys won't go as far as to execute Nut . I doubt he even cares about Nut's presence . It really would be better to save Nut after the Hero is executed or released .

「 Yes, you're right . Thank you so much for teaching me about the labyrinth, God Heibos . I guess it's time for to me leave . 」

「Be careful, Dark Knight . 」

Heibos waved his hand as he sent me off .

Part 5

I bowed to Heibos once again and turned around to leave . While I was leaving, I saw a huge pile of materials on the right side of the door . Every dwarfman's workshop usually had such materials left out like this .

「Will you come out of your hiding place now?」

I called out to the person hiding behind the pile of materials . I noticed that someone had eavesdropped on my conversation with Heibos . A figure revealed itself as the person came out of hiding, however, their face was covered with a hood .

「As expected of you, Kuroki . Is this the power of love?」

The person removed their hood, revealing an extremely beautiful face .

「You jest... . So it was you, huh, Goddess Rena . 」

For some reason, I easily recognize her presence whenever Rena's around . This was my third time meeting her . The first time was back in her temple in Holy Republic Lenaria . The second time was in Rox kingdom .

But, something about her was different this time . The way she was looking at me was even more coquettish than before and her body was covered with thicker clothes than before .

「 How did you know I'd be here, Rena? 」

I was extremely curious about it . Judging the way she eavesdropped on the conversation, she obviously knew that I'd visit Heibos' abode beforehand . It's not like she was already waiting in this place . I wonder how she managed to monitor my movement .

「Well, how do you think I did it?」

Rena smiled flirtatiously as she threw the question right back at me . Good grief, what on earth was this cunning goddess plotting now? I really couldn't let my guard around her .

「 Hey Kuroki . You're going to go into that labyrinth, right? Can I come along with you?」

She walked closer to me as she asked me that .

「I'm not going there to save Reiji . 」

I averted my eyes as I replied coldly .

There was rumour going around the entire world that Rena and Reiji were going out . But she'd never struck me as the kind of woman who'd fall in love with Reiji . However, now that I've seen how desperately she wants to save Reiji, I'm convinced that the rumour was true . As expected, Nut's information can never be wrong .

Honestly, I'm extremely jealous of Reiji . I mean, he has such a beautiful goddess as his lover while at the same time, he's being waited upon by other beauties like Shirone . I want to flirt with beauties too! I'm so jealous that I can shed tears of blood!

Or at least, that used to be the case but I already have Kuna . However, it's not like I can erase my envy towards his luck with women that easily .

That's probably why I don't want to save him . To think I was this petty...

Well, it's not like he needs my help either . His party is extremely powerful . The girls in his party, and Reiji himself, are strong . Anyway, since Reiji has Shirone and the other beautiful girls by his side, I don't think I need to save him . Shirone told me not to worry about her since she was with Reiji . So if I did help, I'd end up being a meddlesome third party . I should just do things in my own way .

「 Fufu, I'm not worried about Reiji, you see . I simply wish to be with you . 」

Rena shortened the space between us, her face close to mine, as she gave me a charming smile .

Part 6

WOAH! ! TOO CLOSE! ! TOO CLOSE! !

Although I was wearing my armor, my helmet was on my side, safely tucked away under my arm . So, my face was completely exposed .

That's why I was startled when Rena's beautiful face suddenly came up so close, just an inch away from mine . Is this one of her tricks to get me to help Reiji? She has no other reason to want to be with me .

「It's so unfair! Why do you only stay with that girl? You should be with me if that girl isn't by your side . It was extremely hard for me to slip out of Elios, you know? I didn't even know when I'd get to meet you next if I missed this opportunity!」

Rena suddenly wrapped her arms around mine .

「WOAH! ? R-Rena! ! ? ?」

I was extremely troubled by this move of hers, in various ways .

By 'that girl', does she mean Kuna? Since Kuna was still recovering, she was in my mansion in Nargol . It took everything I could do to finally get her to rest like a good child . She kept insisting on coming along when I told I'd be visiting Heibos to seek advice on the best way to save Nut .

But, how did Rena get to know about my plans?

「Let's go, Kuroki! If we use the dimension gate set up by Chiyuki, we can arrive immediately . We can begin the rescue operation right away!」

Rena pulled my arm, forcing me to follow her .

I haven't even agreed with you though...

However, for some reason, I couldn't bear to go against her .

Part 7

◆ Freedom Fighter Girl, Shizufae

「HA! !」

I swung the wooden sword at Novis .

「Woops! ! 」

But he parried my attack with his sword .

「HEYA! ! !」

Big Sis Keyna swung her pole, aiming for Novis' side . But Novis easily dodged that swipe by jumping away .

Both of us leaping back, opening some distance between us and Novis .

As expected of the person known as the Hero of Fire . Even the two of us together were no match against him .

「Let's stop...」

Novis relaxed his stance .

「Eh, what's the matter, Novis? 」

「It's not enough . I won't improve if my training opponent is Shizufae...」

「What did you say?! You're the one who asked me to spar with you!」

「 I mean, It can't be helped, you know . I'm not close to any other swordsman other than Shizufae . Moreover, I'll come out unscathed in spar against you anyway, so I don't even feel the need to go all out . This doesn't even count as training . 」

Though Novis said those words with disappointed voice, there's nothing I can do to made him change his mind .

Novis spoke in a disappointed voice . Nothing I could do now would change his mind .

「 Geez, even if you say that now, you knew that I wasn't a match for you from the very beginning . So why did you suddenly ask me and Big Sis Keyna to spar with you?」

I'm curious . This has never happened before . All of a sudden, Novis wants to become stronger? What's with that?

However, Novis refused to answer my question .

「That's because he saw the hero of light . 」

「Big sis Keyna!」

Big Sis Keyna laughed as she hugged Novis from behind .

I let out a sigh upon hearing his reason . Looks like he still considers Reiji-sama to be his rival . But, no matter what, I can't imagine him winning against Reiji-sama . However, it's still a good thing that he wants to become stronger .

Even Madi felt the need to work harder after she saw Black Haired Sage-sama . That's why she went to the Sorcerer's association in Ariadya .

Currently, we were sparring in the rear garden of the Ishtar Temple . The garden was only supposed to be used by the shrine maidens of Ishtar sama, the goddess of love and beauty, to hang their laundry . However, since I completed a lot of requests from the Ishtar temple, I get along well with the shrine maidens . So I'm allowed to use this place .

The shrine maidens of Ishtar temple are extremely open-minded . They warmly accepted me, a follower of Faeria . If someone who followed another faith visited the Faeria temple, they would urge them to convert to their faith .

It's rumoured that Faeria and Ishtar's followers are on bad terms with each other . But I know the truth . It's just the Faeria's followers' unjustified hatred towards Ishtar's followers . The reason lies in the difference in the two faith's teachings . Faeria's faith taught that one should only give their chastity to their husband, who in Faeria-sama's case is the God King Oudith-sama .

On the contrary, Ishtar-sama, goddess of beauty, was the lover of several male gods . In short, their teachings contradict each other . Thus, Faeria's followers hate Ishtar's followers .

But, I don't give a damn about their hatred, even if I myself am Faeria's follower . Moreover, unlike Republic Ariadya, the freedom city Teseshia was the heart of Ishtar's faith . Antagonizing the followers in their own city is a bad idea anyway .

Part 8

Keeping aside their doctrine, the shrine maidens were nice and easygoing . I came to this city when I was a child and have been indebted to them since then . That's why, I have no right to comment on them .

I mean, aside from me, even Big Sis Keyna and Novis get along with the shrine maidens . Although, Novis seems to have hit it off with them too well . Some of the shrine maidens were obviously intending to approach Novis romantically . After all, even though he's nothing in front of Reiji-sama, Novis is still an amazing man .

「 Ha~ Don't you think you should start by looking for a proper teacher first? 」

Novis shook his head upon hearing my words .

「I tried that option long ago . But ever since I fought with my previous swordsmanship teacher, every single training place has rejected me . 」

「Come to think of it, something like that did happen, huh? How about looking for a teacher in this city then?」

A long time ago, Novis destroyed a swordsmanship training place . That place didn't suit Novis' personality, but because of that, every other training place refused to train Novis .

「 You should try asking the hero of light to teach you, young man . He's strong, so it won't be a problem if you go all out against him . 」

I looked towards the direction of the voice and found Nora-san approaching us .

「Please stop calling me that, Nora-san . I'm not a young man anymore . 」

「Ah, my bad . I forget how fast a human grows in such a short time . 」

And from Nora-san perspective, all human were children . I have no clue how old Nora-san is . She's probably well over hundred years old . From Nora-san's perspective, all humans are children .

「 Novis, I think Nora-san's advice is great . 」

But, even if Reiji-sama's strong, whether or not he'd be willing to teach Novis was another matter . Well, it would be better than having Novis spar against us all the time .

「You're right . But somehow, it just feels...」

Novis seemed reluctant .

「Well, you aren't willing to ask the hero of light, right? How about asking the Maiden of Sword to teach you?」

Big Sis Keyna grinned as she suggested that .

. I don't know why, but I think Big Sis Keyna hates Reiji-sama .

「The Maiden of Sword? Who in the hell is that, Big Sis Keyna? 」

「 What?! I can't believe you don't know about her, Novis! She's the hero of light's comrade, you know? I heard that her swordsmanship is better than the hero of light's . 」

「Is that true, Big Sis Keyna?!」

Novis yelled .

Come to think of it, Chiyuki-sama told me about this . Other than the girl who dove into the labyrinth back then, there was another girl called Maiden of Sword in their party . If I'm not wrong... Her name's Shirone . Her swordsmanship is known to resemble a dance . Last I heard, she was on the move by herself . I think she should be in the northern lands right now .

「 But... What will you do to get her to teach you? Right now, she's in a distant place, you know?」

「Ah, Shizufae, I heard she was in this region . It seems that Leylia personally met the Maiden of Sword . 」

「Eh, seriously?! 」

I was told that Leylia-san went to Rena's temple in Republic Ariadya for religious reasons . I didn't get the chance to ask why she needed to visit the temple, but I never thought that she was summoned by the Maiden of Sword .

Part 9

「I see, so the Maiden of Sword is in this region, huh? She must be a beauty, right? Ehehe~」

Novis' worldly desire was evident .

Good grief, what the hell are you thinking about, Novis? It's extremely vexing . Well, I don't think Novis stands a chance because of Reiji-sama anyway . But there's one thing I'm worried about . Just what kind of a person is the Maiden of Sword? I wanted to take swordsmanship lessons from her too . I wanted to become stronger, being weak was absolutely miserable .

The Maiden of Sword Shirone-sama... I wanted to meet her .

「NOVI~S! ! 」

A familiar voice called out to Novis . It was our old acquaintance!

「「Justy! ! 」」

Novis and I called out her name .

Justya . Justy for short . She's our childhoof friend and the shrine maiden of Ishtar-sama . Since we're of the same age, we became acquainted after I came to this place . We used to play together with Madi and Novis .

Justine made a beeline towards us .

「You should've told me you were back the moment you returned from your mission, Novis!」

She hugged Novis tightly . It seems she hadn't met him after he returned from his mission in the north .

「GUFUU! ! 」

It seemed like Novis was in pain .

Justy's quite chubby and her raw power is enought to make a man lose his face in front of her . That's why Novis was in pain instead of being delighted about being hugged by a woman .

In fact, Justy is Godan, the hero of earth's, little sister . We got to know about this matter only a few days ago . I was extremely surprised when I first heard it . Although, I couldn't deny it since she resembles her brother so much .

「Oh my, Shizufae . You're here too? 」

Justy asked as she kept clinging onto Novis . She's always had a thing for him and for some reason, she assumed I was her rival in love . That made her hostile towards me . But something like that is impossible .

Keeping the matter of her hostility aside, I'm not pleased to hear that she didn't notice me despite the fact that I was standing right next to Novis .

「 You didn't realize I was here the whole time, Justy? Ah, my bad! My body isn't as big as yours, after all . 」

I smiled as I subtly glanced at her stomach .

「That's right, Shizufae . Since your breasts are so small, I could barely see you!」

「HAAAH! !」

My breasts definitely aren't small . They're at least bigger than Madi's or Nora-san's . On the other hand, Justy was just oversized!

It's not like I'm annoyed by that though, since her body itself was oversized . I'm just vexed about her comment...

「What are you so proud about?! Yours are just a lump of fat!」

「I'm not fat! I'm just chubbier than the average girl!」

Justy and I glared at each other .

「Wait! Please wait! YOU GUYS ARE KILLING NOVIS!!」

Big Sis Keyna suddenly interrupted our quarrel . Upon a closer look, Novis, who was still in Justy's embrace, had started foaming at his mouth .

「KYAAA――――NOVIIIS!!」

Justy immediately released him from her bear hug and shook him by his shoulders in an attempt to wake him up .

Justy... You're too awesome . You almost strangled the hero of fire to death .