Chapter 302 - 302. The Fort Battle and the Red Brigade
It seemed I had been transported to an unfamiliar place via the magic circle. The texture of the walls and stone floor was different. The dark corridor smelled of old dust, just like the dungeon I had entered from Fam's shrine or Lily's shrine. I looked around, but there was no sign of Fam or the others. There was a wall behind me, and a stone corridor stretched out before me, with only one way to go. Further ahead, it grew dark, with dust floating in the air like a haze, making it impossible to see far. I couldn't imagine Fam and the others leaving me behind somewhere. During the transfer, everyone must have been sent to the same place. I didn't know if I was the only one sent somewhere else, or if everyone was sent to a different place. I waited for a while, hoping the other members would follow, but only the cold stone of the corridor crawled into my body from my feet. If this passage was a straight shot to the Area Guardian's room, I would have to fight alone.
"That's impossible..."
My soliloquy echoed emptily in the stone corridor. Considering the level of the Okita Soji I fought in Fam's village and the Bishop I fought in Lily's village, I couldn't defeat them if I couldn't use my goddess summon. I needed to assess the situation. I might encounter monsters, but even if I waited for Fam and the others, I should examine the situation to gather clues. If monsters appeared from the front, there would be no escape route. So, I checked my sword at my side and started walking.
How long had I been walking? The corridor was still just one passage, with no signs of monsters or change. I had been walking thoughtlessly with my companions, but the amplified sound of my own footsteps echoing in the hallway made me feel so out of place and lonely, and my anxiety grew. I was planning to keep going until there was some change, but I wanted to turn back and wait for someone from the group to come looking for me. Just then, a humanoid silhouette approached from the front. I thought it was someone from Fam's group, and let out a sigh of relief, but then I saw a red hood, and reached for the handle of my sword. The people with red hoods were clad in leather armor. They were all men. My heart began to pound like a drum. In the blink of an eye, I was surrounded by six mercenaries. The enemy had already readied their weapons and was ready for battle.
"Tch."
I drew my sword and glared at the one in front, aiming my blade at him. He was lightly armored, with a dagger hanging from his waist but not drawn. I wondered if I should capture him and use him as a hostage, but at that moment, the man vanished as if he had evaporated.
"Don't resist. We've captured your comrades as well."
A cold voice sounded from behind, and I felt the tip of a blade poking me in the back.
"Comrades?!"
Before I could finish muttering, one of the mercenaries took my sword. My arms were tied behind my back. Their movements were so smooth that I didn't even have time to resist.
"Be quiet and walk! I'll let you see them."
I had no choice but to obey. I was led away by them. I was looking for an opportunity to escape, but there was no chance, and I was surrounded by the six mercenaries, arriving at a hall with a large door. From that plaza, six roads stretched out in a radial pattern. One of those roads was the one I had taken. There were about thirty mercenaries with red hoods there.
"Mmmph!"
I turned to see a muffled cry, and saw Fam's figure. She was also tied up behind her back and had a bridle gag stuffed into her mouth. Misaki, Myra, and Marmie were bound and seated in the same way.
"You guys!"
My head went blank, and I lunged at one of the men, swinging at him, but forgot I was tied up and bumped into him with my whole body. Then, I was punched in the face by that man as a counterattack and fell to the floor.
"Stay still. Do you want to die?"
I looked up at the man, who was looking down at me. I knelt down and stood up, spitting out the liquid that had gathered in my mouth, mixed with blood. Then, I looked at Fam and the others again. Everyone seemed to be unharmed. Maybe they didn't resist much. However, how did they manage to capture Misaki and Myra, let alone Fam and Marmie? It seemed impossible for those here to capture Misaki. Did a mage use a sleeping spell, or did they give up fighting because they didn't want to hurt people? As I looked at Misaki, she also looked back with a strong gaze, but I couldn't understand her intentions. Then, I looked at Nefee standing at the door with her arms crossed. She was the only one who wasn't bound. The Red Brigade didn't seem wary of her. Her usual smile told me that she wasn't on our side. The Red Brigade was hired by the Leafclout family as a mercenary group. I could imagine that Nefee, who was in Clovis' party, had some connection with them.
"Did you know this would happen?"
Perhaps because I had been punched, I didn't feel a strong sense of betrayal. Instead, there was a feeling of emptiness, as if a hole had been bored into my heart. I wanted to say something sarcastic, but nothing came to mind.
"Of course, I didn't know this would happen. It's all a coincidence."
She shrugged playfully. Then, without warning, the mercenary who had taken me away carelessly threw my weapons onto the floor. Fam's weapons were also gathered there. I could only glare at them.
"So why did you capture us instead of killing us? Are you going to sell us as slaves?"
At those words, Fam groaned. When I looked back at Nefee, she looked behind me. He was lightly dressed. He was about the same height as me, but much thinner. His cheekbones were protruding, and his dark, murky eyes looked at me from the hollows. He looked old, but his straight back made him feel young.
"That man is Jinma, the leader of the Red Brigade."
Nefee's voice rang out. Come to think of it, Kaima also had similar dark eyes. I don't know who the original leader was, but Kaima died in the Migul fight. Jinma must be controlling the brigade now. His body seemed to disappear in a blink of an eye. I noticed Nefee was standing next to me.
"Teleportation? Is that your special skill?"
He didn't answer my question, but glared at me as if sizing me up. He must be showing off his skill to show that he could use it repeatedly. He was hinting that I had no way to escape. Fam and the others may have been captured by his special skill as well.
"I want to make a deal. We can't get out of this dungeon. We've been staying here for days. We've sent several parties inside, but there's no word from them afterward."
It was a low voice. Jinma pointed to the back with his thumb. There was a huge door there. Beyond that was the Area Guardian's room.
"Can't get out?"
Jinma nodded at my words.
"Are you the ones who released the giants in this mountain range? I don't know if that's why, but the shrine in this fort reacted."
"It's not like we released the giants because we wanted to."
"I know. When we tried to touch the shrine, the shrine shattered, a black hole opened, and we had to fight the monsters that poured out from it. And before we knew it, this fort became a sealed space."
Jinma glanced at Nefee. They already had information about what we had done in the dog-eared race village. I felt real anger towards her for the first time. What were her actions until now, then? And as if she noticed my anger, the mercenaries around her were giving me such hostile looks that I regained some composure and returned my gaze to Jinma. We met the mercenaries who had been fleeing from the monsters a few days ago.
"We've been trapped in this dungeon for days. How have you guys been surviving?"
Jinma replied. A possibility was that the shrine contained something related to the Holy Oil Vial. In the old world, the contents of that vial were food. Perhaps the contents of the vial were filling their stomachs, just as monsters overflowed. I tried to rub my stomach, but realized I couldn't move because I was bound. I twisted my body to check my stomach, but I couldn't tell if I was hungry or full.
"If you have teleportation, couldn't you leave this dungeon?"
Jinma simply snorted at my question. There seemed to be some restriction, but he didn't seem to want to answer. I let out an exaggerated sigh.
"So you're telling us to defeat the Area Guardian? Why don't you defeat it yourself?"
Jinma didn't answer this question either. He should have two more special skills besides teleportation. Maybe he's cautious, or maybe he doesn't have any trustworthy subordinates he can rely on.
"The stone monument on the shrine should have some letters. You can read them, right?"
"Does that have anything to do with anything?"
"Didn't you hear it from Nefee? Only those summoned by the gods can read the letters on the stone monument. And the Area Guardian protects the shrine with the words related to it."
Jinma stroked his chin and glanced at Nefee. Still smiling as ever, Nefee quietly nodded to him.
"Yakumo Tatsu Izumo Yaegaki Tsumagomini Yaegaki Tsukuru Sono Yaegaki o"
Hearing those words, I looked at Misaki.
"Can you take off her bridle gag?"
Hearing my words, Jinma clicked his tongue. One of the brigade members removed Misaki's bridle gag. Misaki coughed. Then she stared at me. She was wondering if she could tell me everything. I nodded back with just eyelid movements.
"That is what is considered the earliest Japanese poem in the country we lived in. It was sung when the god defeated Yamata no Orochi and built a palace."
I didn't know it was the first poem, but it was the same knowledge I had. I wonder if they teach such things in school. Or did she learn it out of curiosity?
"Then the Area Guardian is... the Yamata no Orochi?"
"Or, the god who defeated it..."
At her words, I swallowed my saliva. I didn't want to fight that kind of black giant monster in a sealed space.
"However, the things related to this place's shrine should be related to the Holy Oil Vial. And what was written on that stone monument was related to the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi... the Staff of Dominion."
The Staff of Dominion should be the battle-axe that became Myra's weapon.
"But, they had prepared eight jars to defeat Yamata no Orochi and filled them with sake. And it is said that Yamata no Orochi is a symbol of the rough river flowing through that land."
"I see..."
Floods sometimes wash away people's lives, but they also bring nutrients to the land. Thinking about it, Yamata no Orochi could also be said to be the Mana created by the one god. Misaki didn't say anything more, but I think she thought it was understood. I turned my gaze back to Jinma.
"I can't defeat the Area Guardian by myself."
"Don't worry. I'll release your comrades. Unlike the other dungeons, there's no need to destroy the Crystal Core. You just need to defeat the boss to release this dungeon, right?"
Nefee must have told him. I glared at her, but she pretended not to know. Jinma’s plea to use us is annoying, but we can't let the Red Brigade stay in this dungeon forever, no matter what. I have to accept his demands. Since we are the ones who will defeat the Area Guardian, we will be able to leave the dungeon first. Then, I can contact Tulsa outside and annihilate the brigade. However, there's no way Nefee didn't tell Tulsa about her existence. At that moment, Jinma distorted his mouth as if he had read my mind.
"I'm taking out insurance. One is Nefee. The other is..."
So saying, he turned his gaze to Fam. One of the brigades approached her and pulled down her arm guard.
"No!"
There was a slave mark engraved on her arm.
"We're no longer going to stay in this fort. And we can't show our faces in Migul anymore. We're also heading to the Demon Kingdom. If we reach the Demon Kingdom safely, we'll erase that slave mark. If something happens to us, that dog-ear will die."
"Jinma... you...!"
"Is it okay to aim murderous intent at me?"
"Guh...!"
My teeth ground. I mustn't aim murderous intent at Jinma now. However, even after the momentary killing intent had passed, I couldn't take my eyes off him.
"Well, you're our allies for now. Pleased to meet you."
Jinma smiled frivolously.
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