Chapter 5: Let’s capture the Foolish Intruder
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「A-u-rrr-……」
A voice that sounded like it came from the depths of hell rang across the hallway, Lilu appears to be staggering. Her whole body was covered in blood and a dreadfully nasty smell was coming from body.
「What’s up? Have you finished your work?」
「Yes I have finished! Ahh mouu my whole body is sticky it feels so disgustingg!」
Lilu was yelling at Aur who did not even bother to turn around to look at her. However, when she arrived by his side, Aur unusually turned around and looked into her eyes.
「Oh you finished? That was faster than I expected」
Three days had already passed since Aur gave Lilu her orders of creating the skeleton minions. Hundreds of corpses had to be cleaned and their meat taken off, after which she had to carve a magic formation on the skeletons. Even taking into account the fact that she made the skeleton’s which had been successfully created to help her with the repetitive work, Aur presumed that it would take at least one week to complete everything.
「Well it seems that a lot of goblins wandered into the dungeon, so I applied my charm magic and got them to help me. More importantly, can’t you do something about this?」
Lilu showed Aur her body which was covered in blood and fat.
Goblins are a small type of species standing at about 50 cm tall. Although they look ugly and their power is quite weak, they have quite nimble fingers and when I think about it, they are certainly suited for such a job.
「Even so you performed faster than I thought. Very well, come with me then」
「Won’t it be just fine for you to use your magic as per usual and blast all the filth away……Eh? This is!?」
Lilu who was reluctantly following Aur as she complained to him, widened her eyes at the unbelievable scene in front of her eyes. A 10 meter square pit was dug out in the center of the big room and the hole was filled to the brim with water.
「I’ve found an underground water source and directed some of the flow into this room. Just wait a minute……..Golem, put a rock in the water!」
When Aur orders it, a stone like figure in enshrined in the corner of the room slowly began to stand up. Although it looks kind of similar to the Gargoyle, it’s existence is closer to the undead. It was a rock that was given temporary life by Aur’s Magic, it was a golem.
The golem thrust its own hands into the flame that was burning in the corner of the room and soon the rock in its hand began to glow a bright red color. For a human such a serious burn would be unhealable causing permanent damage, however to something like a rock golem, it did not have any sort of effect on it.
The golem then placed the burning rock into the artificial man made spa. Juwa! vapour steam raised in the air as the rock slowly sinked to the bottom of the bath tub. After about 2 or 3 rocks, the water in the bath tub was just the right temperature.
The burning rocks didn’t become cold too quickly. Moreover, the water in the pit gradually spilled over as a continuous stream of water went in, thereby creating a sort of fountain which made it so that the water didn’t grow too hot either. This was the bathtub that Aur was very proud of making as he was the one who adjusted it several times in the past few days.
「You’ve made a bathroom…..」
Lilu joined her hands together in front of her chest, and she had sparkling eyes filled with deep emotion. Aur swallowed the words “It wasn’t really specifically for you” back down his throat. In actuality, he did not expect Lilu to finish the work until much later, therefore, the bathroom was obviously not made in any connection to her. However, he decided to not say this out loud.
「…..Anyways…. Golem, burn a new rock. Now then, shall we enter? Don’t forget to wash off the filth with the bucket over there first, before entering alright?」
「Eh? Aur is also going in?」
Lilu asked Aur as she received the bucket.
「Yeah. Even though you are a demon, if you haven’t eaten anything for three days straight, don’t you feel tired?」
Lilu understood the implication in Aur’s words as she smiled sweetly at him.
「Then….I will enjoy both the meal and a bath〜」
A few minutes later, a coquettish voice echoed throughout the big bathroom.
「Hahh…..That felt good〜」
Whilst soaking her body in the hot water, Lilu muttered in complete satisfaction.
After flushing away all the dirt and filth with the hot water, Lilu received a good amount of Aur’s “energy” and she was now enjoying the hot bath.
「Oh yeah, you mention that Goblins came into the dungeon? What did you do with them after you made them help you with the job?」
Perhaps because they were so relaxed after entering the hot bath, but Aur was asking her a question with an expression that was a lot more chillaxed than usual.
“If I am not mistaken the moment I met him, he always had a stern expression on his face” this is what Lilu was thinking. Although it wasn’t like an impatient or flustered expression, she thought that Aur had a very strict expression as if he was always judging himself.
After being soaked in the hot tub, Aur’s relaxed expression made it seem as though he was just your regular young man. Well with that being said, he is in fact an elderly person who far exceeds the age of 70…
「…….Lilu?」
「Ah, Umm, after I released them from my charm, they seem to have made a den near the entrance of the dungeon. So I just left them there」
Aur was questioning her as she stayed unresponsive, thus Lilu panics and answers quickly.
「Is that so, if that’s the case then it is good…..In the future more will come as they are attracted to the dungeon’s miasma and magic, there may be times when different species of demons and apparitions get lost and wander into the dungeon, and I don’t really mind just leaving it up to chance which monsters will come. It will be like a natural defense mechanism for foreign enemies that doesn’t cost us anything」
「Does this sort of thing happen often?」
To Lilu’s question, Aur nods his head.
「In the first place Goblins prefer to live in dark places such as caves, this is where they usually build their den. Other than goblins, there are plenty of other demons that prefer to live in dark places. Where blood flows, miasma will soon follow. Unlike outdoors which have wind and rain it gathers in one location. When miasma collects itself together and gathers in one place, it will become a comfortable place for a demon to live in. If it continues to build, different kind of beast species and even high rank demons will surely be attracted and come here」
「Ahh〜……..When you mention it, these days, I feel like my body feels lighter when I’m in the dungeon」
「it’s because you chopped up a huge amount of corpses within the dungeon. If the miasma continues to thicken, spirits and or apparitions will start to appear, it will even be possible for corpses to suddenly start moving again, as if they were possessed. If we prepare the dungeon in this way, we should be able to obtain guards to work for us without too much trouble」
「I understand….」
Within her thoughts, Lilu was smiling bitterly. The expression of the slackened Aur had completely returned to his original expression of seriousness, with only a slight smile floating across his face. Whenever he talks about the inner workings of the dungeon, he always had that kind of expression on his face.
「Moreover…..」
When Aur wanted to continue explaining the various intricacies of the dungeon…an unfamiliar sound of 『Jiririririri』which was piercingly loud, reverberated throughout the room.
「What’s this!?」
「…..It’s an intruder」
Aur’s expression continued to tighten even more.
「An intruder? What is this about?」
As they both hurriedly dressed themselves they headed towards the dungeon core.
「I dare say, that it is an adventurer. They must have taken a 『Contract』as requested by one of the nearby villages, in order to come and kill me. The ringing sound is a bell trap that I placed in the dungeon」
In the entrance of the dungeon, Aur placed a magic trap to act as an alarm bell for intruders.
「What about the deployed skeletons?」
「The map you passed me the other day had a symbol of bone’s being marked on it, I assigned them to the location as marked in the map…..」
「Alright, well done」
Pon pon, Aur lightly patted on Lilu’s head. Since this was the first time she received such a straightforward praise from Aur, Lilu cheeks reflexively got redder.
「Other than the skeleton and the goblin who was acting as the guards of our dungeon, there is also 4 Hell Hounds, 2 Golems and 382 Imps. Well I won’t count the imps to our fighting potential though, because they are at an elementary level, regardless of the case, with this amount of minions defending, it should easily be able to repel intermediate ranked adventures」
Without giving much more thought to Lilu, Aur proceed to the dungeon core and when he arrived he took out some magic. And using the magic which flowed from the core, he expanded his senses over the entire dungeon. When he did this, Aur was able to see and monitor the entire dungeon from this room.
「In terms of intermediate ranked adventures, how strong are they exactly?」
「The village chief in the village we conquered the other day, he was at high-end of the intermediate class」
Hearing Aur’s words Lilu’s face paled a little. They were barely able to manage defeating a single intermediate ranked warrior using a surprise attack. If several intermediate class adventurers were to invade, or worst yet a single advanced class adventurer were to attack, there wouldn’t be anything that she could do.
「……I see it! The skeletons are fighting against the intruder….however, this is…….What the!?」
An unusually flustered expression runs across Aur’s face. Lilu could not see what Aur was currently seeing and it made her even more anxious.
「Wh-what’s going on?」
「….Ten Skeletons got destroyed in one attack. ……..Moreover, there is only one intruder. This fellow is at least at the advanced rank」
Aur separated his hands from the dungeon core and grabbed the staff that was leaning against the wall, he then proceeded to summon the Golem from the bathroom.
「I’m afraid that even the hell hounds will be no match for this intruder. We will hold off the opponent ourselves. The opponent is a magical swordswoman. Whilst you and the golem hold her off, I will cast my magic on her」
「…….I understand」
Lilu nods her head seriously. Lilu will probably be butchered in one sword strike, but her body is only a temporary one anyways, it isn’t her real body. Even if she dies, the worst that can happen is that her spirit returns to the devil kingdom.
「……If you win, summon me back here okay? There is still a mountain of things you need help with right?」
「Of course. …….Here she comes!」
Just like Aur said, a single lone woman appears from the passageway. Her hair was red and made into a ponytail, whilst her age was around 16-17 years old. Although her appearance did not seem like she was an advanced ranked warrior, the intensity of her aura was without a doubt befitting of someone who had considerable power.
「…..You are, 『The Wicked Magican Aur』?」
The young girl aimed her sword at Aur who was hiding behind Lilu and the golem. Aur doesn’t bother answering her and immediately cast his magic incantations.
「I will take your silence as an affirmation. Prepare yourself!」
The moment she said muttered out the words, the girl ran towards Aur at a terrifying speed. Trying to intercept her Lilu extended her fingernails and the Golem raised flings up its arms upwards. However, for the girl such exaggerated movements were way to slow. The girl slips past both Lilu and the Golem like a gust of wind as she instantly appears in front of Aur.
「Shi-t…….!」
The moment Lilu turned around, all she could see was the girl’s sword piercing through Aur’s neck as his head flew into the air. Blood gushes out of the neck wound and his head drops to the ground as it rolls on the floor. A moment later, his body also falls to the ground. At the exact time, the Golem which was being supplied with Aur’s magic crumbled to the floor with its arms still in the raised up posture.
「……You are….not a human, right? After all, wing’s are growing on your back. Are you the type to seek revenge for your fallen master, perhaps?」
The young girl raised her sword in Lilu’s direction as she remained vigilant. Lilu raised both of her hands in a surrender pose.
「…..How can it be? I was only bound to him by a contract. If the master dies, then the contract also becomes invalidated. I will immediately return to the devil kingdom」
「Is that so? Then allow me to ask you, the person I just killed is called 『Aur』is this correct?」
The girl wipes the blood off her sword as she places it back into her sheath. Nonetheless, she doesn’t just carelessly come near Lilu either. It was evident that if Lilu attempted to make a move on the girl, she would immediately unsheathe her sword and bisect Lilu in half.
「Yeah, it is…you got him. His personality is reallly bad, his treatment of humans let alone demons is also really rough. His true age was 70 years old and despite being so old, he is absurdly lewd, and all he could think about all day was how his dungeon could do this or that…He is a dungeonidiot」
「Ahaha, looks like demon-san has also experienced a lot of hardships too?」
The girl laughs cheerfully.
「However, he isn’t an unpleasant man to be around, my master…」
Hearing Lilu’s statement, the young girl feels a little sense of uncomfortableness. The moment she looked around trying to find why she felt an ominous feeling, Lilu regrew her sharp nails and tries to perform a sneak attack.
「Uwaa! You said that you wouldn’t take revenge, you liar!」
The young girl manages to easily avoid the attack without any difficulties as she pulled out her sword from her sheath again.
「I didn’t tell you a lie, you know? I told you that I wouldn’t take『revenge』」
The moment she realized the implications of Lilu’s words, it was already too late. Aur pointed the staff at the girl who was about to turn around, and muttered an incantation.
「『Sleep』」
As her consciousness fades away, the girl notices the true colors of her suspicious feeling.
When Lilu was criticising her master, she did not use a single word of past tense.
「You did well to notice it」
Holding on to the young girl as she fell, Aur light pats Lilu’s head.
“I’m not a kid you know” Lilu replies.
「You told me didn’t you? If the master dies, I will immediately return to the devildom.
Because I didn’t return there, it was obvious that you hadn’t died yet」
Being able to return to the Devildom was not up to Lilu’s intentions. It was dependant upon the contract. “Did Aur think about what the contract would cover to this extent?” learning this about him, Lilu once again revaluated just how careful Aur was.
「By the way, what’s with that?」
Lilu pointed at Aur’s neck which was already sealed without a wound and no sign of blood to be seen.
Being able to rejuvenate himself and turn young again, Lilu could understand if he could recover his physical strength or heal major injuries, however being able to return alive after dying was not something she thought he would be able to do. Moreover, it wasn’t like he was resurrecting someone else’s dead body, it was his own body.
「It’s not really an unusual magic. It’s just that I left my life force in a different location, thus, no matter how badly injured this external body becomes, I will never die. On the other hand, even though this body doesn’t take any damage, if my life force is somehow destroyed, I will immediately die」
「Ahh….I see」
It goes without saying that he hid his life force in a very safe location. It was the very thing that Aur values the most in this world…..In other words, it was inside the dungeon core.
「…..So, what are you planning on doing with this girl?」
Lilu pointed at the girl Aur was holding in his embrace. It was obvious that he didn’t kill her and that she was merely sleeping. The girl was breathing regularly as she lightly let out *Suu, Suu* sounds.
「Hmm…….Apparently this girl was born under the 『Hero’s Star』」
「The Hero’s Star?」
Parroting his words, Lilu asked him to clarify and Aur nods his head.
「It is an extremely rare occurrence. The fact that a human is born under some sort of predetermined fate. Such human beings will usually develop remarkable abilities at a young age, that far exceeds that of the average human being and when they do grow up, they will become a first class expert at whatever path they were destined to be in. However, their lives will never go by uneventfully, Without fail they will either draw in a huge amount of good luck or great misfortune」
「Ehh…..Aur don’t tell me that you were born under the 『Devil King’s Star』?」
「Of course I’m not, how could that be? If that was the case, I would have already completed this dungeon or I would have already died long ago」
Aur evaluates himself as a person with “not much talent but not incompetent either” he was just a man who worked his hardest for many months and years in order to make up for any lack in talent. The one thing that was lucky in his life, was the fact that he survived long enough to complete the dungeon core and that he discovered the location of the Dragon Veins.
「So, in the end, what will you do with this child?」
When Lilu asks him again, Aur’s expression becomes a little cloudy.
「She was born under the Hero’s Star. Even if I wanted to kill her, it wouldn’t be that easy to accomplish. Moreover, if I wanted to apply brainwashing magic on her, the effects would be too thin. At the critical moment, she might break free of my control」
Because she was sleeping so soundly, Lilu was thinking “can’t we just kill her in her sleep?” however after all she was someone born to be a “Hero”. If you were to attempt to kill her apparently, a miracle would occur and she would somehow survive. A person born under such a powerful star would only die, in the last years of their old age, when the power that governs over them becomes weaker. Moreover, it was likely that they would experience a brutal and disastrous death. This was the eternal curse placed upon a person whom was born under such a star.
「Then what’s the plan? It’s not like we can just put her in a deep sleep forever right?」
「……It can’t be helped, I didn’t really want to do this because the success rate is not that high but, there is no other choice」
With a bitter expression Aur makes a determined decision.
「We’ll train her」(Light Novel Illustration (Full Color!): Yunis the Magical Swords-woman)
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