Chapter 54
Episode 5: The Second Base
It’s been a month since arriving in Cherimo, and the exploration of the Magic Tower has progressed smoothly, reaching the 36th floor.
The floor bosses encountered so far include a three-headed hellhound, 【Cerberus】, on the 15th floor; a humanoid plant monster, 【Alraune】, on the 20th floor; a winged lion-like creature, 【Griffon】, on the 25th floor; a headless dark knight, 【Dullahan】, on the 30th floor; and a muscular creature with the head of a bull, 【Minotaur】, on the 35th floor. Each possessed a magic core, allowing me to form Familiar Contracts with them.
After surpassing the 30th floor, where few adventurers dare venture, I released the familiars to train and level up.
Around the time things were going smoothly in Cherimo, communication started coming in from the 【Shadow】 stationed at various bases, so I decided to travel to set up teleportation magic circles.
This time, I’m heading to 【Cordoba】, a two-week journey by carriage from Cherimo, home to the challenging A-rank dungeon called the 【Jimenez Labyrinth】. As the name suggests, it’s a complicated maze-like dungeon, notorious for changing structure every month.
Unsurprisingly, it isn’t popular among adventurers, making it an ideal spot for familiar training, which is convenient, right? (Laugh)
Along the way, whenever we encountered guards or patrols, I had the familiars attack, slowly but steadily whittling down their strength until we reached Cordoba.
—
「Brad, we’ve been waiting for you! The base is this way.」
I was led to the Cordoba base. Like in Cherimo, it was a rental house on the outskirts, similar in size. I expanded the interior with Space Magic and set up the teleportation circle, making it possible to travel to and from Cherimo anytime.
Planning to enter the Jimenez Labyrinth the next day, I returned to Cherimo to see Mom.
—
「I’m back~!」
「Celestia, welcome home~!」
As soon as I returned, I hugged Mom and recharged on affection~.
「I’ll be tackling the Cordoba dungeon, but since there’s a teleportation circle, I’ll be coming back every day!」
「Hehe… you’ll be coming back daily to get spoiled, won’t you?」
「Yep, every day I’ll be back for all the pampering!」
After a bit of lighthearted chatter, I headed to bed to prepare for tomorrow.
➖➖➖ Selen’s Perspective ➖➖➖
I received a telepathic message from Celestia.
It seems she’s arrived at the second base, successfully set up the teleportation magic circle, and expanded her area of operation. Going forward, it looks like she’ll be expanding her influence while weakening the kingdom’s power bit by bit.
With Celestia working so hard, we’ll have to do our part too. I’ll let Slaine and Cantera know and give them a push!
–
Episode 6: Destroying the Fortress
We continued our progress through the Jimenez Labyrinth and cleared up to the 30th underground floor boss.
This floor boss also held a magic core, so I formed a Familiar Contract. I also used my Appraisal Eye to find and contract other magic core-holding monsters beyond the floor bosses. As a result, the number of familiars under my contract exceeded one hundred.
The familiars have been leveling up steadily in the dungeon, so I decided to test the strength of the familiar army by attacking a fortress. Our target was the Giel Fortress, which guards a critical route to the satellite cities.
The familiar army’s commander is 【Roha】, who evolved from a goblin to an oni warrior.
〚Master, I will show you the successful fall of Giel Fortress.〛
〚Roha, I have high hopes for your performance♪ Tell me each familiar’s traits so I can prepare the necessary equipment for them.〛
〚Understood.〛
After hearing about each familiar’s traits from Roha, I used 〚Alchemy〛 to prepare fitting equipment for each one. The materials I’d collected daily through 〘Daily Gacha〙 were finally coming in handy.
As night began to fall, Roha and the familiar army prepared to attack Giel Fortress. Near the fortress, I summoned the familiar army, and over a hundred familiars appeared in an instant.
〚Roha, I wish you all good fortune in battle♪〛
〚Master, we will bring down the fortress without fail!〛
〚Uooooh!〛
Following Roha’s words, the familiars raised a battle cry! I immediately returned to Cordoba via teleportation magic.
—
「Gyaaah!」
〚Heavy infantry, destroy the gate; airborne units, fly over the fortress walls and strike the soldiers guarding the inside of the gate!〛
When the guards heard the monsters’ roars, they looked toward the sound—and were shocked. Monsters were swarming the gate… Despite the massive crowd, the guards hadn’t noticed them approaching at all. Hastily, they rang the bell to signal the attack.
『Kang, kang! Enemy attack!』
If the monsters had been spotted further out, they might have been able to prepare, but the gates were already on the verge of being breached. On top of that, flying monsters like Griffons had already swooped over the walls, launching an assault on the soldiers defending the inside of the gate.
「No, the gate’s going to be broken!」
Right after that shout, the gate was destroyed, and the familiars surged in. The soldiers couldn’t hold them back and were mercilessly slaughtered.
Though Giel Fortress, connecting to the satellite cities, wasn’t in the capital, it was crucial. Yet, every soldier had been slain by the suddenly appearing monsters, and the gate and watchtowers were utterly demolished. Since the fortress wasn’t occupied, it could be rebuilt, but the extensive repairs would take a considerable amount of time, undoubtedly a serious setback for the kingdom.
And then, as swiftly as they’d appeared, the horde of monsters vanished with the fortress’s collapse…
This mysterious attack would be repeated again and again, slowly chipping away at the kingdom’s military strength.
–
Episode 7: Expanding the Range of Operations
After the fall of Giel Fortress, I’ve been expanding our operational range by heading to the towns where the 【Shadow】 is stationed and setting up teleportation magic circles to establish new bases.
We now have five bases.
Each time I install a teleportation circle, the 【Shadow】 stationed there departs to seek a new base. I’m truly grateful for all the work the 【Shadow】 does.
To weaken the kingdom’s military forces, the familiar army’s raids on fortresses and barracks are ongoing.
Roha, as the commander of the familiar army, issues precise orders, achieving results without losing a single familiar. When I praised his success, he said,
〚It is only possible because Master summons us to the most effective location for catching the enemy off guard. The one truly deserving of praise is Master, Celestia-sama.〛
Such loyalty is something humans might never achieve. When it comes to self-preservation, they can be quick to abandon loyalty—a cunning instinct unique to people. Without that, there would be far fewer pointless battles.
Then again, I am human… Maybe that’s why I seek revenge against the kingdom.
Perhaps what I’m doing is another pointless battle. Yet, Mom’s wish is my wish.
For Mom, who poured all her love into me, I will destroy the kingdom.
After that, I’ll pursue my dream: a world where humans and monsters coexist.
〚Roha, let’s go crush the soldiers’ barracks!〛
〚As you command!〛
And so, our area of activity continued to expand.
➖➖➖ Stratos’ Perspective ➖➖➖
With Selen gone… Team A disbanded…
I remained at the academy, but I lost the drive to keep pushing forward…
Feeling empty, I decided that there was no point in continuing to attend, so I made up my mind to leave and withdrew from the academy.
After leaving, I sorted through my thoughts.
I want to help Selen… It’s one-sided, and there’s no guarantee she’ll accept it, but I’m prepared to give my life for a chance to atone and see her once more. Even if she cuts me down on the spot or tells me to go fight the kingdom’s soldiers until I’m dead, I’ll gladly obey.
I’m heading to the Kingdom of Leone to find Selen.
—
On that day, Stratos set off alone toward the Kingdom of Leone. Facing countless life-threatening trials on the harsh journey, he pushed forward, driven solely by his desire to see Selen again.
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