Akatsuki Translations

Spiral Library, 73rd Underground Floor, Forbidden Section

The abrupt start of their dungeon attack naturally led Echelle and her companions to form an impromptu three-person party. A three-man cell wasn’t a bad combination for dungeon attacks.

However, the member composition was quite unusually skewed.

“Three monsters approaching from the front!! 【Winged Fiends】! Be careful of their speed!!” Eckstein called out.

Among the three, Eckstein was the most reliable.

As a member of the knight order, he had proper training and skills. With his magic eyes of 【Transcendent Sight】, he had a wide field of vision and was capable of both close combat and long-range magical warfare. Eckstein understood that he naturally had to be the center of this three-man cell.

“I’ll guide their direction. 【Guldin of Stone】,” Kalkara announced.

Next was Kalkara, manipulating the blessing of the stone spirit.

A priest spirit user participating in a dungeon exploration was quite unusual in itself. In dragon-derived dungeons, spirit blessings wouldn’t function well to begin with. It was a small fortune in their misfortune that this place wasn’t dragon-derived and that the power of the stone spirit could be used.

Thankfully, although her rank was the lowest, Nuu, her skill as a priest was excellent. She extended stone pillars from the ground, unilaterally striking down the monsters. Furthermore, she blocked narrow passages with stone walls, accurately guiding where they would come from. She demonstrated reliable power as a rear guard, even more so than a mage.

She wasn’t the problem. The problem was—

“Echelle-sama, please focus only on 【Reflection】 for now. Activate it on my signal,” Kalkara instructed.

“I-I know…!!” Echelle replied nervously.

Echelle was the issue. However, she wasn’t dragging them down.

『GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!』

“Now!” Eckstein signaled.

“…【Mirror Spirit Miralphyne!】” Echelle invoked.

With the signal, she released her power. The activated 【Mirror Spirit’s】 【Reflection】 power created a mirror that repelled force in front of the three approaching 【Winged Fiends】.

『GYAAAAA!!?』

It was enormous. Large enough to cover the entire library passage.

The 【Winged Fiends】, which had been flying straight towards them with claws extended in the narrow passage, suddenly saw a mirror appear before their eyes, reflecting themselves raising their arms and bringing them down towards them. Then they collided.

『G…!!』

It wasn’t just a collision with a large wall. The bodies of the monsters were clearly marked with “deep claw wounds”. The monsters couldn’t even understand that it was from their own attacks. And then,

“Hah!!” Eckstein cried out.

『GA!!?』

The fallen 【Winged Fiends】 met their end by Eckstein’s swordsmanship.

Looking at the result, one could say it was a smooth coordination. But the problem was still Echelle. It was fine that she lacked combat experience and was somewhat awkward in coordination. Eckstein alone could cover for such minor fumbling. The real issue was,

“Echelle-sama! Are you alright!?” Kalkara rushed over, concerned.

“Y-yeah. I’m fine. Totally okay,” Echelle nodded, looking a bit puzzled.

Watching this from afar, Eckstein was astonished.

She wasn’t inferior. She was “too strong”.

“Are you both alright?” Eckstein asked.

“Yes… Vice-captain. I believe you understand,” Kalkara replied, her gaze filled with strong caution.

Eckstein nodded solemnly at Kalkara’s wary look.

“As Greylei-sama said, Echelle-sama, please use your power without concern. I have no intention of speaking about what happens here to anyone else.”

“…Really?” Kalkara questioned.

“I swear by my guardian spirit Fynellian and my superior Greylei.”

Eckstein had already surmised the matter of Echelle Loine Raleigh possessing an evil spirit from Greylei’s deductions when explaining the information about the 【Uuga Incident】. Therefore, while surprised, he had no particular intention of exploiting it.

To begin with, in this small-scale dungeon exploration, with barely any equipment or preparation, unnecessarily suppressing one’s power would be nothing short of suicidal. Eckstein himself didn’t particularly want to die. There was nothing good about being overly cautious.

“Besides, you two got caught up in this because of me in the first place, so I’ll take responsibility,” Eckstein added.

“That’s absolutely true, so you’d better do your best. If Echelle-sama gets hurt, I’ll kill you,” Kalkara warned.

“…I’ll do my utmost,” Eckstein replied solemnly.

She was a terrifying protector.

However, even more terrifying was the very person the protector was guarding.

“I-It’s okay, Kalkara. This time I’ll control it better,” Echelle assured.

Echelle Loine Raleigh, the wielder of the evil Mirror Spirit, showed her enthusiasm, perhaps to dispel her protector’s worries. Her attitude was admirable and touching. However, she didn’t seem to understand what Kalkara was fundamentally concerned about.

“…Has her power always been like this?” Eckstein whispered.

“…She only unleashed her power recently,” Kalkara replied quietly.

“…I see, so that’s why…”

While maintaining their initial three-person formation, Kalkara and Eckstein exchanged words discreetly. As a result, their surprise only grew stronger.

It was natural for the power of spirits to cause phenomena beyond human understanding, but the power she wielded was clearly strong. Too strong.

She generated mirrors that filled the entire passage, reflecting all the monsters that would appear in the middle layers of a deadly Dungeon of Sin, and repelling them. It was certainly a reckless fighting style befitting a spirit’s blessing, but normally, such power that deviated so much from the physical laws of reality could only be handled by high-ranking priests.

And without a path connecting her to the Temple, that power had to be maintained solely by the magic power generated from prayer. The more one used it, the more fatigued they would become. In fact, even now, Kalkara was showing slight signs of exhaustion.

“Hmm… a little more… like this, concentrate… how do I concentrate?” Echelle muttered.

But Echelle showed no such signs. She was as energetic as ever.

Perhaps regretting using too much power earlier, she was now practicing her movements, thrusting her hands into the air, trying to control it somehow. At any rate, she was full of energy.

Originally the eldest daughter of the Caraleigh family. Was this possible for a Shinra? However—

『――――――』

“Hah!” Eckstein raised his sword again.

The forbidden books stored in the library moved and generated magical power. Whether this was the books’ own defense mechanism or a malicious attack meant to degrade those who touched them was unclear, but the frequency of monster appearances was certainly worthy of being called a dungeon.

『KIIIIIIIIIIII!!』

“This time it’s a herd of 【Uni-Horned Hares】! I can’t believe they created and abandoned such a place in the middle of the city!!” Eckstein shouted.

“That’s why it’s the forbidden area, I suppose!! 【Come forth, O Magic! O Lightning!!】” Kalkara invoked.

While scorching the terrifying monsters that were charging at incredible speeds, aiming their sharp horns at their necks and hearts, Eckstein roared. He knew places like this existed, but it was far more dangerous than he had imagined.

“A-Anyway, where did that 【Heavenly Demon】 go?!” Echelle cried out.

Echelle’s scream was justified. Indeed, he should have the power to brush off monsters of this level with ease. However, when Eckstein searched for his position with 【Transcendent Sight】,

“…He’s gone quite far ahead and is casually reading a book he picked up.”

“Can I punch him?!”

“If you’re okay with being splattered like the monsters, go ahead.”

His superior was as free-spirited as ever.

                  ◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆

“The bookshelves are blocking the way…” Kalkara muttered.

“Ah, this part is an illusion. Look, like thiiiiIIIIIIIIS—?!” Eckstein’s explanation turned into a shout as he suddenly vanished.

“Eckstein fell!” Echelle gasped.

“【Guldin of Stone】” Kalkara’s voice echoed.

“A hidden passage entrance that’s immediately a trap is too malicious…” Echelle commented.

“Kalkara, there’s a very beautiful book here. Oh, it jumped at Eckstein.” Her observation turned into surprise.

“【Guldin of Stone】” Kalkara chanted again, this time with urgency.

“Eckstein and the book went flying!!!” Echelle’s voice was a mix of astonishment and concern.

“【Book Mimic】 It’s a monster,” Kalkara identified.

“K-Kalkara, the books are breathing fire… from both sides…” Echelle pointed out, panic creeping into her voice.

“And for some reason, the passage has become a narrow path with an abyss on either side,” Kalkara noted..

“…Well, surely that must be an illusion trap… Eh, it’s not? It’s really Hell? In a library???” Eckstein’s disbelief was palpable.

“Eckstein, you’re getting more injuries. Are you okay?” Echelle asked, worry etched on her face.

“Well, that’s the job of the vanguard, so don’t worry about it. I have recovery potions on hand,” Eckstein reassured, though his voice was tight with pain.

“…I wonder if I could use 【Mirror Spirit Miralphyne】 to reflect an uninjured Eckstein and heal him?” Echelle mused aloud.

“That’s the kind where the mirror version of me takes over, so please don’t,” Eckstein quickly responded, his voice laced with a hint of fear.

“—Is this really a library?!”

To Echelle’s scream-like shout, Kalkara and Eckstein silently nodded. Half an hour into their dungeon exploration, they had faced numerous approaching monsters, countless traps, passageways designed to induce confusion, and bizarre terrain.

It might be possible for a dungeon, but this was supposed to be a library.

It went far beyond just making it difficult to find books. What were they thinking when they created this?

“I told you, it’s become a dungeon,” a voice suddenly said. “It warps even the original terrain and changes its shape. A large number of magical books with such effects are stored here, and their leaking magical power is colliding.”

“Greylei-sama… When did you…”

Before the exhausted group, Greylei had suddenly reappeared. Around him, various monster corpses were piled up and decomposing, but he didn’t seem to care at all. He was casually seated in a chair that had been placed there, sipping tea from a cup that he had produced from who knows where. They felt like punching him.

“Well, it wasn’t a bad spectacle to observe. Though the guardian was a bit overprotective,” Greylei commented.

“…”

Greylei stared at Kalkara, but she didn’t have the energy to react. Even Echelle could see how exhausted she was.

Kalkara’s power had been extremely useful for rear support, monster vigilance, and even dealing with traps. And because it was so useful, she was the one bearing the most burden in their three-person group.

Eckstein seemed to be aware of this too, and was trying to support her, but there were limits. He was also more on the supporting side.

Echelle wanted to help somehow, but she knew from her long association with Kalkara that if she pushed herself too hard, it would only put more stress on Kalkara’s mind and body. So Echelle remembered to restrain herself.

However, she wanted to end this difficult situation as soon as possible.

As if seeing through Echelle’s thoughts, Greylei looked at her and once again showed that grinning smile.

“Don’t worry. We’re almost at the goal. You’ll soon have what you desire,” he said.

“Really…?”

“It’s just ahead.”

They followed him. The path led to a room with a dome-shaped ceiling. It was a spacious area, different from the narrow, oppressive passages they had been through earlier. But for some reason, they still couldn’t shake off the feeling of pressure squeezing their bodies.

The three naturally tensed up, lowering their postures.

“–However,” Greylei began.

However?

Before they could hear the rest of his words, a strange sound like wind echoed through the library. It was a growling, writhing sound. What was it? Before they could confirm, Eckstein, who was at the front, shouted:

“Above!!”

『ZLIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!』

From above, the roar of a monster that had sounded like wind descended upon them. A massive body. Thirteen legs spreading across the entire dome-shaped ceiling. On its swollen belly, patterns resembling human skulls bulged out, and a head with ten eyes and fangs writhed.

“It’s a 【Hexlord Spider】…!” Eckstein exclaimed.

“Treasures always come with guardians. Now, do your best!” Greylei said cheerfully.

The giant spider, lurking in the depths of the sealed books and feeding on insects attracted to the light of the tomes, bared its fangs at them.