Chapter 90. Drifters #5
Ignis Ashbringer.
I had turned the one who called himself the Conductor of Flames, the so-called God of Destruction, into my puppet.
【Pururu】─Whoa, straight to being a puppet. Serves him right for being cocky.
【Mysticism】─A man who kills gods! 😮
【Rizenova】─A god-slayer, indeed.
Before I read the memories of puppet Ignis, I washed myself in the pond and called to Iara, who was beside me.
“Iara.”
“…Yes.”
“You heard that guy mumbling earlier, right? About bringing two of his comrades?”
“…Yes, I heard it.”
There were four drifters left.
Two with us, two elsewhere.
But since Ignis said his group had two members, it was certain that all of Iara’s comrades were dead.
Judging by her expression, she had also realized this and seemed to have fully accepted the deaths of her comrades.
【Pururu】─Hang in there, Iara…
【Bubble Bubble】─It’s sad. Accepting the death of a comrade is always hard…
【Yumi】─Stay strong, Iara.
【Mysticism】─🤣
【Pururu】─?? Are you laughing? Are you a psycho?
【Mysticism】─Ah, I clicked the wrong one. Really.
【Mysticism】─😭
【Mysticism】─This was the right one. Sorry.
【Pururu】─Shut up, you psycho.
【Rizenova】─Hmm. Personally, I don’t feel that sad. It’s the fitting end for traitors.
【Rizenova】─Iara has a good heart, but to be blunt, she’s a pushover. If you forgive and embrace those traitors, one day you’ll get stabbed in the back again. I wouldn’t say this to Iara, but honestly, it’s better that they’re all dead.
I felt similarly to Rize.
Of course, I didn’t say that out loud.
“Then, do you want to retrieve your comrades’ bodies before we head back, as long as it’s not urgent to return?”
“…Would that be okay?”
I nodded.
I could at least help with that much.
After all, she had given me the magic sword, a priceless artifact and symbol of a hero.
To be honest, a Transferable Return Ticket wasn’t enough to repay her for something so valuable.
“I can’t go with you myself, but I’ll send a strong monster to assist you.”
“Thank you…”
Her comrades’ bodies probably couldn’t be returned.
It would likely be impossible to carry them back anyway.
Still, she wanted to retrieve their bodies to bury them and pay her respects.
【Yumi】─But, why are you casually bathing together?
【Rizenova】─Why bring it up now? Haven’t you bathed together before?
【Yumi】─That was with monsters.
【Rizenova】─That’s monster discrimination. Apologize.
【Mysticism】─Right! Humans can become monsters too! So no discrimination!
【Pururu】─It’s fine since we’re wearing clothes. The important parts are covered.
【Bubble Bubble】─If you were fully naked and bathing together, I wouldn’t let it slide.
After finishing my conversation with Iara, I called over Ignis, who was standing idly outside the pond.
I ordered him to recount any useful memories he had.
Ignis began sharing several pieces of information.
The reason they came to the Ancient Labyrinth.
Details about his comrades.
First of all, Ignis’ two comrades were as follows:
The Fallen God, the Temptress of Twilight, Lilith Morphea.
The Creator God, the Author of the Abyss, Niara Nepensis.
Lilith was around Ignis’ level, but Niara possessed far greater power.
Lilith was about S-rank.
Niara was beyond that.
【Bubble Bubble】─A Creator God…
【Pururu】─A god stronger than an S-rank? Whoa…
【Yumi】─This Niara sounds dangerous.
【Mysticism】─Not dangerous at all! Oppa Geon will win everything!
As for why the celestials came to this place, this is what Ignis shared:
Lilith had been on her way to the Celestial Prison.
Niara and Ignis had been responsible for escorting her.
The three of them were en route to the prison when they accidentally discovered a Dark Portal.
Lilith fled through the portal, and the two escorts followed her through it.
Once they arrived here, they quickly realized they were in the Ancient Labyrinth.
It seemed that many in the celestial realm were aware of the labyrinth’s existence.
Niara had information that if they killed all the explorers, the drifters might become the next explorers.
In any case, they were excited at the prospect of gaining the opportunity to become supreme gods and agreed to cooperate until they became explorers.
Since they needed all the strength they could muster, fighting among themselves would be pointless.
Lastly, when I asked if he had seen a group of six humans, Ignis responded:
［I recently burned six humans to death.］
【Yumi】─???
【Mysticism】─😱
【Pururu】─WTF, was that bastard the culprit?
【Bubble Bubble】─Looks like it…
It seemed that Ignis was the one who had killed Iara’s six comrades.
“What was the reason for killing them? Because you suspected they were explorers? Or was it because you couldn’t tell if they were explorers or drifters, so you just killed them?”
［Neither. I killed them out of boredom. They were an eyesore… Ah, but this is merely a memory I’ve recalled. As Necro Puppetmaster’s puppet, I am no longer the trash that Ignis was.］
That’s what he said.
I cleared my throat and glanced at Iara.
“…Iara. You heard that, right?”
“Yes…”
“You can beat him as much as you want until your anger subsides. Though he’s a different being now, it’s still the face of the one who killed your comrades.”
［That’s right. I am ready to be beaten at any time. I fully accept the karma of my original self being trash.］
Ignis also agreed.
His personality had become pristine since being reborn.
There wasn’t a trace of the arrogance he had shown earlier.
Iara stared at Ignis, then sighed and looked away.
“No… It’s fine. After all, he’s a different being, and I don’t really see him as an enemy just because he killed my comrades. Besides, revenge isn’t really in my nature.”
Was she a saint?
Maybe she was an even more righteous hero than Elise.
Her abilities were lacking, but her character was impeccable, unmatched by anyone.
Not that I was trying to compliment her.
She was a pushover to a fault.
【Yumi】─She’s an incredibly kind person.
【Pururu】─For real, her barbarian-like appearance doesn’t match her personality. But she is pretty. She’s the perfect example of a strong and beautiful woman.
【Mysticism】─It’s “example,” not “Japchae”! You grammar noob! 🤭
【Pururu】─What the hell, you moron.
【Bubble Bubble】─I’d like to be friends with her.
【Rizenova】─If she were from Lumina, we would’ve done everything to recruit someone of such character.
Anyway.
We found out where Iara’s comrades’ bodies were.
Since we knew their exact location, I’d help recover the bodies tomorrow.
It shouldn’t take long to find them.
—
48th day in the labyrinth.
On our way to retrieve Iara’s comrades’ bodies.
“Oh? Who are they?”
Once again, we coincidentally encountered a drifter.
At the very spot where we ran into Ignis yesterday.
“I came looking because you were taking so long to return, and here you are, hanging out with some strange folks. You couldn’t have betrayed us… right?”
Even just looking at her made my heart flutter strangely.
She was that beautiful.
And her danger level was B-rank.
In reality, her threat level was S-rank.
“Ignis. That woman is Lilith Morphea, right?”
［Yes. She is the Fallen God, Temptress of Twilight.］
Her appearance was more demonic than godlike.
She looked exactly like a succubus.
“Hm… Something’s off. Why can’t I sense any souls? And now that I think about it, my powers seem weaker too…”
Suddenly, Lilith’s eyes turned pink.
Her gaze swept over each of my monsters.
“Huh? What’s going on? My allure isn’t working…?”
Lilith’s eyes wavered in confusion.
This time, her gaze landed on me.
“Then, on that man─”
In that instant.
Fwoosh!
Ignis swiftly pulled out a flamethrower, and a fierce burst of flames shot toward Lilith.
“Oh my! How warm!”
It didn’t work.
Ignis, you’re even more useless than I thought.
Ignis blocked my way and spoke, showing his back to me.
［Don’t look into Lilith’s eyes. You’ll be bewitched.］
“I figured as much. Thanks.”
［I’m just doing my duty. Lilith’s allure is powerful enough to bewitch even those stronger than her, so be cautious.］
【Pururu】─Is she a succubus?
【Bubble Bubble】─But why didn’t the allure work on the monsters?
【Mysticism】─Because tamed monsters will never! Ever! Betray! 😝
The way to break the allure was simple.
Just don’t make eye contact.
If you did, even the strongest being could be bewitched instantly.
“Hmph. It’s not betrayal…”
Lilith muttered as she stared intensely at Ignis.
I assumed Ignis was avoiding her gaze. I couldn’t see since he was in front of me, but I figured as much.
【Pururu】─LOL 😂
【Mysticism】─🤣🤣🤣
【Yumi】─Can’t he just lower his gaze? Why make it so awkward?
【Bubble Bubble】─His eyes are pointing in different directions. How interesting.
【Rizenova】─Seems like a squint.
“You’re not Ignis, are you?”
Lilith immediately figured out Ignis wasn’t who he appeared to be.
“And if my allure doesn’t work, I’ve got no chance. There are too many monsters for me to handle…”
She sighed deeply.
Yet even that gesture was oddly attractive.
As our monsters surrounded her, Lilith pretended to be scared and raised her hands in surrender.
“Wait, wait! I surrender! Don’t attack!”
As expected of a god.
Lilith quickly assessed the gap in power between us.
“Hey, Muscle Guy? You’re an explorer, right? I mean, it’s pretty obvious?”
Lilith called out to me in a soft, sweet voice.
Not taking any chances, I lightly covered my ears.
Her voice alone might be enough to cast her allure, so I decided to listen faintly.
“I’m really not interested in hunting explorers! Ignis and some wicked woman forced me to do it! I had no choice but to follow along!”
She then went on to say that, like Ignis, I should accept her as an ally.
She swore she had no ill intentions toward me.
That we should work together to defeat the wicked woman.
That, in fact, she had fallen for me at first sight.
Et cetera.
Lilith kept spouting nonsense to save her life.
Her lies were quickly exposed.
［She plans to kill that man the moment he lets his guard down.］
Necro Puppetmaster used telepathy to read her mind.
［After killing him, she’ll defile his corpse until it rots. That’s what she’s really thinking.］
“What… What are you talking about?”
［She’s thinking, ‘How did he find out? Could he have a mind-reading ability?’］
“No… That’s not what I was thinking…”
The expressions of the monsters surrounding Lilith turned grim.
Each one wore a face full of rage.
Sensing the danger, Lilith stammered.
“Um… Everyone…?”
She tried to plead for her life with a pitiful look as she glanced around at the monsters encircling her.
“Can’t you just spare me…? If you let me live, I’ll genuinely reflect on my actions and promise never to appear before you again…”
［If I survive, I’ll bring Niara to kill them all. My priority is survival, even if it’s disgraceful. That’s what she’s thinking.］
“Ah…”
【Pururu】─Why lie if you’re just going to get caught?
【Yumi】─She’s a truly awful woman.
【Bubble Bubble】─Let’s kill her already. She’s not worth keeping alive. Raping corpses? What a psycho.
【Mysticism】─🤬🤬🤬
【Rizenova】─Farewell.
Hiccup.
Lilith hiccupped.
Angry attacks rained down on her from the monsters.
—
『Number of Drifters: 3』
■Fallen God: Temptress of Twilight (Lilith Morphea)
─Real Danger Level: S-rank.
─Current (nerfed) Danger Level: B-rank.
─Ability: Allure.
─Special Notes: Originating from the celestial realm.