Kays Translations

Chapter 59: The Guardian at the Deepest Part

At the deepest part of the labyrinth...

The flower garden surrounded by stone walls was bathed in sunlight. Despite it being winter, colorful flowers bloomed profusely in the field, and there was a single rock at the center.

Looking up, one could see the cut-off sky and the sunlight as if peering through a chimney.

"Isn't this the place where we fell when we were chasing the slime before?" Shaulia said with a sense of relief while remaining cautious of her surroundings.

Lucius began to examine the walls, noticing traces as if something had been peeled off from the smooth surface.

"Could this be the mark left by monsters?" he wondered.

"We can't be sure. But if it was a monster, it must have been quite massive," Shaulia replied.

Their attention soon returned to the flower garden. Behind the central rock, the black silver fake core they had missed before peeked its head out.

"It's the black fake core," Lucius said.

"It doesn't look like any other black fake cores I've seen. They're usually just black, but this one has a metallic appearance," Shaulia commented.

Both of them noticed an abnormal feature in the rock behind the black fake core.

"There seems to be a golem here... but I've never seen a material like that," Shaulia said.

It was a crimson black golem with an appearance that seemed to be two sizes larger than other golems.

"It's activated!" Shaulia exclaimed.

Lucius created a sword and shield from thin air, ready to face the approaching golem. The single eye of the crimson black golem glowed with a red light as it started to rise.

"It's a magic steel golem, isn't it? It's a formidable opponent even for an entire division of our army," Shaulia said.

Lucius charged at the golem, but the impact was tremendous. His body felt like it was about to be torn apart by the vibrations coursing through it.

The golem's counterattack shattered Lucius' shield, and the impact sent him flying into the dungeon wall, causing it to crumble.

"Are you okay?" Shaulia asked.

Lucius called upon the War God to empower himself. His body creaked, and his entire being was enveloped in magical energy.

A dark red form emerged from the rubble, its armor reflecting the sunlight. It was Chiyou .

"Shaulia, Commander of the expedition, provide support," Lucius said.

Without a moment's hesitation, Shaulia manifested her spear in her human form.

"I'm ready," she replied.

Lucius surrounded his sword with light and charged towards the Golem again.

Petals swirled in the air as he closed in on the Golem in its standing form.

With momentum, he swung his sword powerfully at the Golem's rising body.

The moment he struck, the scene trembled.

A tremendous red light filled the Golem's single eye, growing ominously intense.

The concentration of magical power within the light was so intense that it sent shivers down their spines.

They felt sheer terror as the light's intensity suggested a massive density of malevolent magic.

When the magical power reached its limit, a crimson beam was released.

The beam was similar in color to the Golem's body, a reddish-black crimson.

"Oh no," Lucius reacted.

He quickly summoned a shield with chains to intercept the light beam.

The shield caught the light beam, but in an instant, the chains attaching the shield to Lucius melted away as the wall behind him was liquefied.

It wasn't an explosive impact, but rather a quietly transmissive force.

However, the searing heat felt unbearable.

If it were a direct hit, even Chi You might melt away.

"It's incredibly hot... but," Shaulia said, lowering the scorching shield.

She once again ran towards the Golem, her snake-like lower body moving swiftly to approach the Golem from behind.

The crimson light focused on Shaulia as she neared, her figure now clear and visible.

The intensity of the light increased as if proportionate to Shaulia's presence, condensing into an attack.

The attack was a line of light, similar to a laser, and it was released.

The light was a reddish-black hue, much like the Golem's body.

"Watch out!" Lucius shouted.

In a split second, he anticipated the attack and manifested a shield with chains.

The shield intercepted the light, but it quickly turned red-hot.

The light's trajectory was diverted, hitting the wall behind Lucius and melting it away.

There was no explosive power, but rather the light transmitted its heat quietly.

However, the scorching heat was enough to cause concern.

"Amazing heat... but," Shaulia said as she lowered her searing shield.

Without wasting a moment, she ran towards the Golem once again.

The Golem's red-black eye glared at her.

"Now!" Lucius shouted.

He gathered an enormous amount of mana at the tip of his sword.

It was the all-out thrust he had used before to pierce Chi You's armor.

This time, however, he included Chi You's supernatural strength to achieve the attack.

"It's over!" Lucius declared.

He broke through the Golem's armor, the blade penetrating deeply into its head.

In an instant, the Golem's arms and eight legs lost their strength, and it fell to the ground, its functions disabled.

"We won... against the Magic Steel Golem," Shaulia muttered, astonished.

As she unwound her snake-like lower body from restraining the Golem's arm, she collapsed onto the flowers.

"We did it… you used the Dragon's spell, didn't I? Lucius, you're not suited to be a knight," she said, still catching her breath.

"I have no intention of becoming a knight. My goal is to become a noble baron," Lucius responded.

"Even so, ruling over others means sacrificing someone. I've sacrificed many. I never thought I would be the only one to survive," Shaulia said.

"It's alright. It's best not to have any sacrifices," Lucius reassured her.

Shaulia smiled, "You're right."

When the Golem's knee gave way and collapsed, a blue slime with violet streaks on its dark-colored body peeked its face out from a crevice.

"The black False Core," Shaulia identified.

The slime trembled and showed signs of trying to escape immediately.

In an instant, Lucius caught the black slime with his hand.

He gently enveloped it with Chi You's grip, careful not to crush it.

"I finally caught it," Lucius said.

The black iron-colored slime squirmed desperately, trying to escape his grasp, its body resembling that of jelly.

But Lucius wouldn't let it go.

He released Chi You's manifestation and drew the black iron-colored slime closer.

He could clearly feel it in his hand.

The False Core, reflecting a faint light on its dark violet-black body, contained an enormous amount of magical power.

It had more magical power than the white False Core he had seen before.

"It has more magical power than a Class 1 Magic Core," Lucius remarked.

"Then, isn't it a Special Class Core?" Shaulia asked.

"Does such a thing exist?" Lucius replied.

"I've never heard of one. But if it's higher than Class 1, it could be a Special Class Core. The next enemy might come soon. Absorb it quickly," Shaulia advised.

"You're right," Lucius agreed.

Lucius lifted his shirt and placed the black False Core against his navel.

Soon, the faintly glowing False Core, black with violet streaks, gradually seeped into Lucius' body through his navel.

The cold and viscous liquid invaded his body, causing an uncomfortable feeling, but at the same time, it brought a sense of relief, like the umbilical cord connecting a child to its mother's womb.

The slime he had held in his hands disappeared.

Now, he knew exactly where it was.

It seemed to be located around the coccyx or the end of the spine.

A strange sensation spread through him, as if an additional magical core had suddenly emerged within him.

It was true; it wasn't a false core.

Even though it was a False Core, its magical power was increasing.

The magical power throughout his body was more abundant than ever before.

"Now, I feel relieved. Let's go and report back," Shaulia said.

"You're right," Lucius agreed.

Overwhelmed with relief, Lucius sat down on the flowers.

He felt the threat of being consumed by the Evil Dragon had receded, at least for now.

Excitement swelled within him as he turned his attention to his left hand.

However, what he saw was far from his expectations.

"...A black circle."

The black markings remained, and instead of fading away, they seemed to expand even more.

It had become a perfect circle.

"Why... I had enough magical power..." Lucius said, perplexed.

Suddenly, his left hand began to ache.

"'Give me power,'" he heard a voice.

It felt like those words were directed at him.

Along with the pain in his left hand, the presence of the Evil Dragon seemed to grow larger.

Shocked, Lucius clenched his hand tightly, his shoulders trembling.

"Lucius..." Shaulia tried to say something, but she was at a loss for words.

She couldn't figure out how to respond to the situation.

He took a deep breath, exhaling slowly, and resignedly spoke.

"Commander Shaulia, please run away. Now. There's a chance the Evil Dragon might appear at any moment... I won't go back to the surface."

In the depths of the earth, he would quietly await his death.

Just imagining it made his stomach turn cold.

However, he couldn't involve the people on the surface.

"Lucius..."

Shaulia didn't know what to say.

How could she approach him at a time like this?

Breathing slowly, she decided to speak calmly.

"Commander Shaulia, listen. The Imperial Army is invading Tact Territory! Hurry back!" a man's voice echoed through the surrounding blue bird, which fluttered around Lucius and Shaulia.

The voice belonged to Karan, the tense division commander.

"Invading Tact Territory...?" Shaulia's face drained of color, her lips turning blue.

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