Originally, mercenaries were, to put it bluntly, little different from sword-wielding bandits.
In a world where powerless commoners made up the majority, they took up the sword and made a living off it.
Wolves lurking among the sheep.
If you stepped just a little outside a city with good law and order, you could often witness mercenaries causing a ruckus.
But that is now a thing of the past.
Thanks to the awakened Adventurers’ Guild taking the lead, a system was put in place with clear rewards and punishments.
Though the guild was ambitiously launched under the name of representing adventurers and mercenaries, it was practically a hollow organization before.
Now, that same guild had become a massive force wielding influence across the entire continent.
It all began when the guild leader changed.
“The world’s gotten better, seriously. Back in my day, there were endless fights over clearing Abyss Dungeons first,” Kriton said, a mercenary at the Adventurers’ Guild headquarters.
A top-tier mercenary with a “Gold” rank.
In truth, he was a Bingija.
“I thought that was the content back then. Limited rewards, restricted time. Content meant biting and clawing at each other to get ahead.”
Walking side by side with him was Franco, also a Gold-ranked mercenary.
He too was a Bingija.
“Now, you can’t even see a single rat in here.”
“Who’d want to come to this horrible place, anyway?”
The two stopped on a small hillside halfway up an unnamed mountain and gazed ahead.
The air was vertically split as if the void had been ripped open, and thick darkness flickered within the eerie space.
This was the entrance to the Abyss.
“So, it’s normal that people who value their lives wouldn’t dare to approach when those terrifying monsters are swarming inside.”
“But it’s still early stage, so it’s easy enough.”
The hillside itself was strictly controlled by people sent out from the guild headquarters.
“I heard that the Black Fang might collapse soon?”
“Something about Jijoncheonma stepping in personally. Don’t know if it’s a rumor, but since the Empire declared war, even if it’s not a total fall, they’re bound to take a heavy hit.”
“Then it should be quiet around here for a while. Those leeches attached to Black Fang were a constant nuisance.”
“Right? Damn crazy people, honestly.”
They spoke like that, stepping boldly toward the darkness of the Abyss.
This was now a familiar routine for them.
A whoosh—vision blackened in an instant.
The air grew heavy.
A suffocating feeling like being underwater pressed on their chests.
They had entered the Abyss.
“Ugh… this place is so unsettling. Let’s clear it quickly and get out.”
The current target was the 10th basement floor, still early on.
Meanwhile, Bingijas had been coming here and growing stronger for the past three years.
More than that, based on the memories of several Bingijas, a complete strategy guide had already been made.
So the 10th basement floor was easily manageable by just the two of them, Kriton and Franco.
“But this time, Jijoncheonma really appeared?”
“That seems to be the case… though it’s not confirmed.”
“Stayed quiet all this time and now starting to act, huh.”
“Even Jijoncheonma must have found Black Fang irritating. Once Black Fang is gone, things will get a lot easier.”
“True.”
When Kriton placed his hand on the statue before them, a message appeared.
「There are a total of ten accessible areas.」
「List」
「Abyss Underground Floor 1」
「Abyss Underground Floor 2」
「Abyss Underground Floor 3」
「Abyss Underground Floor -10」
Without hesitation, they selected the 10th basement floor.
「Abyss Underground Floor -10 selected.」
「Portal is activating.」
Their consciousness was sucked in as if pulled, then lost momentarily.
When they regained their senses, they had already arrived on the Abyss 10th basement floor.
“Single monster. Let’s finish it fast and get going.”
The 10th floor was guarded by a single Abyss Monster, commonly called a Boss Monster.
Though stronger than regular Abyss Monsters, it was still an early-stage creature.
No problem at all.
Kriton and Franco had come well prepared, taking the monster’s traits and skills into account.
“…Was it always this long?”
They felt something was off soon after arriving and walking a short distance.
“Wasn’t single-floor floors supposed to be over immediately?”
Single-floor stages meant clearing the floor by killing just one monster.
Since there was only one monster in a large area, if one had enough power, it could be cleared quickly.
That was why Kriton said they’d finish soon.
But even after walking a fair distance, they sensed no sign of the monster’s presence.
One characteristic of monsters on lower floors was to flaunt their presence, yet here, there was none.
“Let’s turn back.”
Kriton and Franco didn’t act recklessly.
Upon sensing the slightest abnormality, they chose not to proceed but to retreat immediately.
It was their policy, but also an instinctive warning.
“Right. Let’s go back and report. The feeling’s bad.”
They turned around right away, but—
“The entrance….”
“…We’re screwed.”
The entrance had vanished as if washed away.
Though they hadn’t walked far, it was swallowed by darkness, impossible to find.
“Could it be… that thing?”
“That thing?”
Franco looked toward the entrance in disbelief and spoke quietly.
“The labyrinth.”
“…Does that even make sense?”
Kriton snapped his head to look at Franco.
His face scrunched in a frown, his tone overly certain that it wasn’t possible.
But the unease was creeping in.
“That only appears after floor 50.”
They were encountering an Abyss pattern that shouldn’t show up until at least a year later.
The difficulty of this early-stage Abyss had gone awry.
The destined future was once again disrupted.
「Achievement Unlocked! – Rest of Ba’al Forest.」
「Earned 47 points for achievement.」
The Empire’s military command decided to withdraw quickly.
They left only the forces needed for cleanup and returned swiftly via Eos.
The reasons were, first, Vitalianus’ condition was critical.
Second, prolonged fighting in the fog had drained the soldiers’ morale and physical stamina beyond expectation.
“I have things to do, so I’ll return later.”
At Hio’s words, Damon of the Royal Knights nodded.
“I will convey the message.”
Bowing his head, Damon departed.
***
After finishing the search of Gray Castle, the wealth and Artifacts stored there were confiscated as expected.
They thoroughly investigated the castle’s nooks and crannies before preparing to withdraw.
Of course, no one had found the Mage’s House hidden deep underground.
“I didn’t recover as many Artifacts as I thought.”
Left alone in Gray Castle again, Hio muttered.
The Empire’s forces hadn’t gotten to the Artifacts yet because Hio had already taken them.
[It’s natural in a way. Most of these Artifacts were left unattended for ages…]
And there aren’t many that would suit your level.
“That’s true.”
Putting aside magical skill, you possess three top-tier skills.
Unless you use those skills lavishly, your magic power isn’t severely lacking.
You’ve steadily invested your earned fame points into your magic power.
Hio meant that there weren’t many Artifacts worthy of his notice.
“So these are really remarkable Artifacts, then.”
He meant that the Artifacts he had stealthily taken before the Empire got their hands on them were exceptional.
“But if you say so, the Emperor would probably give them up willingly… so why sneak them away like this?”
“…You’re like a ghost without any romance.”
***
After brushing aside Furnel’s reasonable objection, he equipped the first Artifact.
「Bracelet of the Flame Guardian (Unique)」
「A bracelet worn by the clan who guarded the Flame Orb. When they were annihilated, the Flame Orb’s power was engraved into the bracelet.」
「Fire attribute magic casting speed +10%」
「Fire attribute magic power +7%」
「Judges the wearer’s danger and protects them on its own.」
His hands were enveloped in fiery energy.
A warm sensation guarding something spread from his throat throughout his body.
The aura of flames drifted around, casting a faint red glow.
“I’ve heard there was a tribe that revered and guarded the Flame Orb, but they were wiped out. Since it was a sacred object, the effect must be reliable.”
“That’s why I chose it. I’m short on defensive skills anyway.”
“That’s true. You have no defense compared to your offense. It’s a miracle you’ve survived this long.”
“By some chance…”
This was reality, not a game.
If you value your life, you prepare defense first.
But somehow, I ended up evolving only offensive powers.
“This time, I’ll evolve it as a support.”
His endurance was almost at its target.
Now, instead of increasing attack skills, he needed to evolve other auxiliary magic.
“Anyway, the main thing is this…”
He rummaged through his pockets and found the second Artifact.
While the Flame Guardian’s Bracelet was excellent, this was incomparable.
“Didn’t expect this to be here.”
With Furnel’s admiration, the Artifact revealed was an amber-colored lantern.
「Soul Harvester’s Lantern (Epic)」
「An otherworldly item.」
「Soul Absorption: Absorb souls to permanently increase stats. The increase varies by soul’s rank.」
「Soul Storage: Store souls without damage. Souls kept long in the lantern can be controlled by the user.」
「Soul Recovery: Consume stored souls to restore mana or health.」
「Soul Extraction: Extract the purest darkness from souls and convert it into dark attribute magic power. This is the source energy of all black magic.」
An Epic-grade item.
More remarkable than the effects was Furnel’s explanation.
“It’s much older than my era.”
An item of the great archmage called Kreutzvalt, the progenitor of all necromancers and black magic.
To think such an item was in this small castle…
The Soul Harvester’s Lantern, according to Furnel, was one of the relics of Kreutzvalt, the greatest necromancer and black mage in history.
Since discovering it, Hio had harbored a suspicion.
“Maybe this isn’t the Mage’s House at all.”
Even if the Black Fang was the continent-wide symbol of terror, why would such Artifacts gather only here?
From the Fog of Ba’al Forest’s miasma-inducing Artifact to the Soul Harvester’s Lantern—
Perhaps this place was.
The hidden dungeon of a black mage.
One unknown even in-game or in reality.
The dungeon of Kreutzvalt, the greatest black mage, necromancer, and archmage of all past, present, and future.
Whatever it was, it was time to verify it.
“The Soul Harvester, huh…”
Raising the amber lantern to eye level and peering inside, Hio saw a small, dormant soul only visible to him.
One of the lantern’s powers—soul storage.
Inside rested a soul peacefully asleep as if exhausted from crying.
“I wish there was an answer on what to do with you.”
The soul was filled with regrets and remained still.
It was the soul of an Airlights.
“We decided to leave it be. It was going to vanish naturally over time anyway.”
If turned into undead, it would only be a low-level Specter or Banshee at best.
Indeed, the Airlights’ soul started lingering around Hio as soon as it was freed from the confusion of memories.
Yet it couldn’t become undead because it wasn’t as noble as Teordo’s soul or as high-ranked as Atawolf’s.
The Airlights’ soul wasn’t low-ranked, but Hio’s necromancy level was too low.
With no other choice, he planned to leave it until it ascended.
In the meantime, he found the Soul Harvester’s Lantern and, with the Airlights’ consent, stored the soul.
Well, whether it consented was uncertain, but that was the feeling. The feeling.
“Tch, you’re too sentimental for no reason.”
“What… maybe it’ll be useful someday. Let’s head down to the castle basement for now.”
Gray Castle’s underground.
Whether this was just one of many Mage’s Houses, or, as Furnel said, the dungeon of a legendary black mage.
To find the answer, Hio moved toward the entrance.
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