“Hah… hah…!”
[G-GOoOo…]
A Demon knelt, its exoskeleton failing, flesh exposed.
Dragging the weakened blade, I raised it overhead—
“Burning my army… I’ll just rebuild. Do it.”
Her last Demons charged on command.
Deaf to their thunderous advance, I focused on the crippled foe.
This Demon was likely a lost explorer’s fate.
But hesitation died long ago.
The Corpse King in me howled.
I’ll avenge you with this life—
The sword pierced its hide—unnaturally soft—
Blood geysered.
I twisted the blade—
Authority Unlocked.
Ability:
[Blessing of Death] Total: 3,100
Authority Unlocked per lives taken. [0/3,000]
Lv1 Pain Null [100/100]
Lv2 Fear Immunity [1,000/1,000]
Lv3 Path of Corpses [2,000/2,000]
Path of Corpses. A simple, vital power.
It raises all my physical abilities in proportion to the number of lives taken.
That’s all there is to it.
“A futile struggle. I’ll put you to work as my slave.”
Ose bowed mockingly.
[GUOOOOOoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooAAAGH!!]
Beside me, a Demon’s arm mutated—swelling grotesquely before swinging down.
The crushing blow would’ve pulverized me.
So—
—CLANG!!
I uppercut the blade, deflecting the fist skyward.
“……Huh?”
The idiot Ose’s voice echoed oddly in the space.
He must have thought I had no magic left.
And he was right.
That wasn’t magic—just raw physical strength swinging the sword.
[Tch!?]
The Mid-Rank Demon, staggered back, its arm forced upward. I closed the distance in one step, wedging my blade through its supposedly impenetrable hide, then dragged it downward in a smooth slash, carving through its body.
[GYAAAAAAHHH!!]
The demon screamed in agony, swinging its arm wildly to shake me off, but its sluggish attacks were easy to dodge.
I weaved past limbs that could kill me in one hit—deflecting, ducking, slipping into its blind spot. Thanks to overcoming fear, my legs didn’t falter.
In seconds, I inflicted irreversible wounds: stabbing, slicing. My body moved in perfect sync with my fluid thoughts.
[BWAAAAAAAAHH!!]
Then, another Demons roared, charging with its massive jaws to crush me.
“Hah!”
As it lunged, I pivoted and delivered a full-force horizontal slash straight into its maw.
The demon’s jaw shattered. Blood erupted from its body as the shockwave rippled through it.
“Wha… what the…”
I barely glanced at the result, already dodging and cutting down other demons.
“……WHY?! WHY WHY WHYYYYYYY?!!”
Ose clawed at his head in panic, eyes darting as his underlings were slaughtered.
I knocked them down, stabbed through them, kicked them airborne, crushed their skulls mid-leap.
After butchering the strength-proud demons, only Ose remained—backing away.
No escape. He designed this place himself,
ensuring his prey couldn’t flee.
“Too bad. This wasn’t a cage for humans—it was yours.”
“Ghh… STAY BACK, STAY BAAAAAACK—GAH!? HYEEEEEEEEEEEE!!”
I severed his leg.
As he writhed and screamed, I shoved my sword into his mouth, silencing him.
“Quiet. Screaming is a trauma trigger for me. Stay still, got it?”
“Ghk… Uuuugh…”
I leaned in, coldly interrogating.
“You know the name Helheim?”
“Hk! Hk!”
“Oh, you do.”
Ose nodded frantically, blade still in his mouth.
Before my next question, I sliced off the hand he’d been inching toward me.
“……!? GUOOOOH…”
“Don’t struggle. Now—do you know Helheim’s true form?”
“……Hk… hk…”
Ose shook his head.
I glanced at Garm. She nodded firmly.
As a Wolf Beast, she could detect lies by heartbeats—inaudible to humans. According to her, he wasn’t lying… probably.
“What the hell, you don’t know…? A wasted trip… No, wait, maybe you’re not informed because you’re just a low-ranking underling…?”
“Y-Y-YOUUUUU!!”
Apparently taking great offense at being called an underling, Ose screams with eyes wide open. Not caring that the corners of his mouth were tearing, he began shrieking words that could be described as death throes.
“E-Even if you kill me… nothing will change! You humans will all be powerless when the Demon King revives again!”
“Huh? What? That guy’s coming back to life again?”
“…What?”
“Ah, so that’s the purpose of the fake Helheim…”
“W-What are you…”
“Okay, I got what I wanted to hear. Thanks, President. See ya.”
“Guhbuh!”
Piercing through Ose’s head from the mouth, I end his life.
His body goes limp, losing its form like mud—clothes and all—melting into the ground of the dungeon.
All that remains is a crystal-like object made of black so deep it doesn’t reflect light.
Greater Demon materials sell for a high price, but… it would definitely be more useful to process it into equipment.
Picking up the material and turning around, I see Garm wagging her tail enthusiastically and Nifl breathing unusually hard.
“King! King! That was so cool!!”
“Ah, that was truly the Corpse King who brings death, your true form…!”
Yeah, Nifl definitely has that cult-like creepiness… though my former self is to blame for that…
Putting my burnt and tattered hood back on, I turn on my heel.
“Well, let’s go home… we’ve gathered plenty of information too.”
I said that intending to leave, but the two don’t move from their spots. Their eyes looking at me were filled with heat and expectation.
It’s clearly written in their gaze.
Do that thing, they want.
These kids, really… oh, come on…
But looking at the two who seem like they wouldn’t budge even with a crowbar, I hide my flushing face and mutter softly under my breath.
“…H-Helheim… returning.”
” “HAH!” “
“──WAIT!”
A woman dropped down.
Her slender frame matched the rapier she pointed at us, eyes sharp.
With her black hair tied back, she stood boldly and declared:
“I heard it. You just said [Helheim].”
Oh no.
She heard that?! That exact timing?!
God, life’s just gonna get harder now… Humans will die of embarrassment someday…
“I came investigating commotion and hit the jackpot. By Explorer Rank 8 authority, I’m taking you to the Empire.”
I exhaled in awe.
Explorer Rank 8.
Only those who are deemed capable of engaging in battle with the Greater Demon are allowed to rise to this level.
In other words, it is a sign of surpassing human limits.
“Artel Nanoar . Remember the name of the hero who’ll capture Helheim!”
My face burned with shame and panic.
Not wrong, but not like this…
■
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Explorer Rank 8, Artel Nanoar .
Born to commoners, she bloomed in just a decade,
Artel rising meteorically as an explorer. Dubbed [The Onyx Valkyrie], she earned a “Color Title”—a mark of the elite.
Fortem Empire—
World’s largest nation that shows no signs of decline, victor of the global war sparked by resources from the dungeons.
Several hundred years after the rise of demons put a temporary end to human conflicts, it is also known as the country of explorers.
Having grown up in this country since childhood and established numerous military achievements, she was often summoned to the castle from a young age due to her accomplishments.
Because of this, she enjoyed deep trust and friendship with the imperial family.
During this time, the empire was thrown into turmoil.
The twins, the empire’s Fifth Prince and Seventh Princess, who had been friends with Artel since childhood, were kidnapped—
by a mysterious group calling themselves Helheim.
The empire issued orders to all explorers and knights, desperately launching a search for Helheim.
However, while the name spread widely, their true nature remained elusive as fog. After about a month had passed, news reached the Fortem Empire that the distant Griffil Forest had frozen overnight.
From information that those calling themselves Helheim dealt in forbidden magic, the Emperor of Fortem connected these events and ordered Artel’s explorer party, “The Valiant Lance,” to investigate.
Artel, a close friend of the twins who was particularly close to the princess—like real sisters—readily accepted this mission and led her party into the territory of the Holy Nation of Griffil.
Stopping at a town called Gart, they heard rumors of a Demon appearance in a dungeon.
“A Demon in a Level 3 dungeon?”
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