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Though the Hero Perishes, the Lake’s Beauty Persists – Part 04

On the day Skaer was born, his mother passed away and turned into an evil spirit, thus he became a Half Wraith himself.

As a result, his body didn’t grow much, but he wielded magic as effortlessly as breathing, and he possessed an exceptionally large amount of mana.

With the magical energy obtained from the cup—traded for Zappa’s soul—he could become even stronger. Even if he were to cast spells here like there was no tomorrow, he should still have enough mana to become a Perfect Double.

“I’ve wasted enough time.”

A blast of freezing wind enveloped Skaer, echoing like a raging blizzard. Several shards of ice formed, larger than the ones he previously launched, each the size of a human head.

Skaer saw Hikaru staggering as the wind buffeted him.

“Die.”

The ice shards flew. Let’s see if you can outrun them. I’ll go after you wherever you go. He conjured more as soon as the shards hurtled.

“Hmm?”

Suddenly, Hikaru removed his cloak and hurled it toward Skaer.

What a foolish idea, Skaer thought.

At a distance of over ten meters, there was no way the cloak could reach him. The shards hit the cloak, sweeping it away.

A shallow idea from a human. Beyond the cloak should be a black-haired boy covered in blood.

“What?!”

Skaer’s eyes widened. The cloak was gone, but so was Hikaru.

He escaped!

Skaer promptly sent shards in the direction of the forest. He must have crouched down and started running right after tossing the cloak. If he were fleeing, it would be into the woods. But he wasn’t there either.

“Where did he go?”

Skaer had poor eyesight, and it got worse without his glasses. But at night, his vision improved thanks to the power of his Wraith half, far surpassing that of an ordinary person.

“Where are you?!”

He couldn’t have lost sight of him that easily. Moreover, his sense of smell, hearing, and the ability to perceive presence were also heightened. There was no reason for him to lose track of the boy at all.

Something’s wrong, Skaer thought.

Something was definitely amiss. And by the time he sensed it, it was too late.

A shock coursed through his body.

“Ugh.”

Being stabbed from behind should not have been possible.

---

Once Stealth kicked in, escaping even from monsters was possible. It was logical to assume Skaer would fire blindly into the woods after he disappeared.

And so, Hikaru headed straight for the lake, over the frozen surface chilled by Skaer’s frost. Once he got behind him, the rest was easy.

Hikaru’s blade found its mark where a human’s heart would be.

Stealth into Assassination significantly raised the likelihood of inflicting fatal injuries, but this attack, thrusting a dagger into the heart, elevated it even higher, ensuring the target’s death.

An ordinary human would definitely die. Emphasis on ordinary. Skaer was a Half Wraith.

“Guh!”

Despite the blade in his chest, Skaer was able to move. He twisted his upper body to strike Hikaru with his elbow.

Hikaru had anticipated this move. He released his grip on the dagger, throwing Skaer off-balance.

“Hiyaah!”

Hikaru’s front kick aimed for Skaer’s right hand—the cup. His boot connected, and the cup flew, landing and rolling on the surface of the frozen lake before sinking into the dark waters below.

“Y-You bastard!”

“Don’t you underestimate humans, mongrel.”

Hikaru stepped forward and unleashed a flurry of attacks on Skaer, punching his face, kicking his knees.

“Haaah!”

When Hikaru kicked up the handle of the dagger embedded in Skaer’s back, he let out an inhuman scream. His body then crumbled and dissipated like mist.

“I will never forget this humiliation!”

With a resounding boom, Skaer’s body burst, the blast knocking Hikaru backward.

“Ow…”

When he rose back up, there was no one there. His dagger was buried in a small mound of gooey, translucent liquid glowing faintly on the lakeside sand. There was no blood, no flesh, only the remnants of Skaer’s clothes. Hikaru’s torn and dirty cloak lay up ahead.

“No way.”

Hikaru crouched down on the spot. His Instinct was telling him that Skaer was likely still alive.

---

“Whaaat?! Seriously?!”

When Hikaru recounted what happened last night, Paula jerked back in astonishment.

By morning, the lake’s icy surface had returned to its original state, and the roughened shore had smoothened out. Hikaru had meticulously gathered and buried Skaer’s equipment—the ones he could see—minimizing the chances of anyone discovering the events of the previous night.

“I should’ve expected that much, I guess. A stab with a dagger might harm his human body, but it won’t affect his wraith soul.”

“Well, that’s just not fair.”

“How I wish I had your magic back then. We could’ve dealt with him way easier.”

“What? Me? Ehehe.”

Realizing how essential she was, Paula wriggled around with a grin. She was both happy and embarrassed.

“All right, then. Can I ask you for something?”

“Sir! I’ll do anything as long as it’s within my power!” Paula gave an army salute.

“I-It’s nothing too difficult. I just need you to make a fire.”

“A fire? For what?”

“I’m not exactly thrilled about it.”

Hikaru told her he needed to dive into the lake.

---

On that morning, Scorching Goblet departed from the hamlet. Skaer’s absence wasn’t a concern, as several other members had also disappeared. With Zappa gone, internal disagreements about the party’s future arose, and they believed Skaer left for similar reasons.

Transporters from the Adventurers Guild carried the treasures from the dungeon, and with the dungeon dead, adventurers also left. Peace and quiet was slowly returning to the settlement.

“They’re finally gone.”

“Yeah. What a relief.”

Officers from Ponsonia and Vireocean arrived, each accompanied by their own troops. All in all, there were about fifty of them. They had sought reinforcements from their respective bases, determined to secure the dungeon at any cost.

“What?”

“The dungeon is dead?”

When the guild’s investigation team leader, a bigshot, informed them of this, they didn’t believe them.

“Nonsense! We’re not buying the Adventurers Guild’s lies!”

“That’s right! What a despicable bunch!”

“Why don’t you go and see for yourselves, then?” Angela interjected with a heavy sigh. “Check every nook and cranny.”

“Of course!”

“Let’s go!”

“The entrance is over there,” Angela indicated.

The two irate commanders led their detachments into the dungeon, and exited not even half an hour later.

“What’s going on?! It’s pitch dark in there!”

“It looks like the dungeon has gone dormant.”

“That’s what we’ve been telling you.”

Angela explained how Scorching Goblet had cleared the dungeon. It was a small one, with only two underground layers to begin with, therefore offering limited rewards. Killing the Boss at the deepest level had caused the dungeon to cease its activity.

“I can’t believe it.”

“So you destroyed the dungeon.”

“If you say so. We’ve got a catalog of all the treasures gathered here. The guild is ready to hand some over if you’re interested.”

“What?!”

“That’s it!”

The two commanders swiftly snatched the catalog from Angela’s hands—there were two prepared—and eagerly perused its contents.

“Angela, when did you hatch such a plan?” Freya asked.

“These folks wouldn’t back down if they lost face. So I contacted headquarters for approval using the Linga Quill.”

“Oh, impressive,” Freya said, and Angela grinned.

Freya had limited experience with behind-the-scenes maneuvering and political intricacies.

As per Angela’s plan, they settled by dividing the treasures that the Adventurers Guild obtained three ways.

“So regarding the ownership of this dungeon.”

“Give me a break. We don’t need a dead dungeon.”

“Exactly. Make sure to deliver the treasures quickly.”

With a dismissive snort, the two commanders left.

“Jerks.” Angela stuck out her tongue.

“…Hehe.”

“What is it? What’s so funny?”

“I’m just glad to see you doing well again.”

After Zappa’s death, Angela had been out of it and couldn’t move around properly for two days. She was actually serious in her pursuit of Zappa—for a guild receptionist, marrying a high-ranking adventurer was a practical and wonderful goal—so she had been very depressed.

Taken aback by Freya’s smile, Angela turned her face away. “A-Are you stupid? Shouldn’t you be rejoicing when your rival is feeling down?” she said, her ears turning red.

Freya only chuckled.

“Wh-What is it?! A-Anyway, let’s decide how to manage the dungeon. Since you’re laughing, why don’t you take care of it?!”

“Those are two unrelated matters. Scorching Goblet declared that ownership of the dungeon belongs to whoever clears it, and since they actually cleared it, it belongs to them. Now, since Scorching Goblet has relinquished all ownership obtained in the dungeon, Vireocean’s capital’s Adventurers Guild, which oversees them, will take responsibility for management.”

“Grrr…”

Freya’s argument was perfectly logical, leaving Angela without a retort.

Nobody wanted to manage an inactive dungeon. Typically, they just sealed it off and be done with it, but regulations stated that a check must be done once a year. Sometimes, mischievous and adventure-loving children would stray in if there were collapses or holes in the ceiling.

The only ones interested in such things were magic researchers obsessed with studying dungeons. However, if management was entrusted to them, they would poke around and cause unnecessary accidents. Therefore, the Adventurers Guild would never put it up for sale.

In short, an inactive dungeon was nothing but a nuisance for the Adventurers Guild.