Chapter 14: “The Extermination Squad” – (2)
(I)
Only two days had passed, but the persistent headache that had been bothering me was now much diminished. The bones and muscles that had been stiff were also starting to feel more flexible.
Perhaps it was due to my high status as ‘Elzerba’, but my recovery speed was faster than I had imagined. At this pace, I should be able to leave the labyrinth by tomorrow.
I had already finished my preparations. I had packed all the useful items and had neatly put on the clothes that had been lost. My summoned creatures, Tina and Alfred, were also leisurely spending their time, tending to their weapons.
“Alright.”
After a good night’s sleep, I would leave for the nearest city, ‘Ermaile’, in the morning.
After having a delicious meal there and gathering minimal information, I planned to head to the capital of the kingdom where ‘Lilianel’ was located, ‘Aldiren’.
…It wasn’t detailed, but that was the general outline of my upcoming plan. Summoning the hero, ‘Vellius Varius’, would be reconsidered after I captured Lilianel.
“…Tina, Alfred. I’ll be sleeping well, so wake me up at the appropriate time.”
With the drowsiness overwhelming me, I covered the map I was looking at and yawned while speaking to my servants. They responded cheerfully.
“Yes, Master! Have a good sleep!”
“Sweet dreams, Miss.”
Their kindness was unlike any typical undead. I laid down on the makeshift bed made from overlapping adventurers’ clothes and slowly closed my eyes.
Boom!
—Kyaaaaah!!
…And then, it was at that moment, accompanied by a huge explosion and the screams of monsters, that I heard it. Still with my eyes closed, I muttered.
“…Uninvited guests.”
As a ‘Necromancer Lord’ with magical abilities, my range for detecting enemies was overwhelmingly vast.
Normally, I would see the enemies marked in red on the small minimap on the monitor, but now I could feel their presence instinctively.
There were nearly 200 humans approaching not far from here. They emanated a strong magical aura and seemed to be powerful enough to easily handle high-grade monsters, indicating that they were among the stronger humans.
Were they the second extermination squad that followed the previous adventurers? Or were they a rescue team dispatched to find the ones who didn’t return?
I couldn’t be sure of their identity since I hadn’t seen them directly, but the clear hostility they had was evident. They didn’t seem like guests to welcome with a smile.
“Humans…!”
“…It seems like a bunch of ill-mannered ones have arrived.”
Noticing the presence, Tina and Alfred quickly grabbed their weapons and got up. The zombie maid holding the large sword spoke to me with a serious expression.
“Master, please rest here! I’ll take care of this and come back!”
“No. Let them come up to here.”
I shook my head and got up from the makeshift bed again. Normally, I would just send Tina or Alfred, but this time the situation was special. I looked towards the entrance of the deepest part of the labyrinth where unknown enemies were approaching.
“…I want to test my skills a bit.”
I still lacked a database of data on people from a thousand years later. Since the extermination squad dispatched to the ‘Labyrinth of the Immortal’, which was rated the highest difficulty, were likely strong among humans.
Given their numbers, I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to fight them.
“…I’m sleepy.”
Despite my fatigue, I resolved to end things quickly, no matter who came.
(II)
—This is ‘Ermaile’. Can you hear me?
“This is Barbas of the Extermination Squad. I hear you well, My Lord.”
Barbas, the commander of the extermination squad that departed to hunt the ‘Progenitor Vampire’, communicated intermittently with Karseron, the lord of ‘Ermaile’, through a magical communication device.
—Don’t let your guard down. After all, the opponent is the ‘Progenitor Vampire’.
…The voice of the lord coming through the blue magical device was full of anxiety. Given the huge amount of money invested in this mission, and if the extermination failed, his territory would likely become the next target, his anxiety was understandable.
—”Do not worry, My Lord. I will bring you good news by today.”
—…Well, if it’s you, I can trust you with it. I hope you show the might of the ‘Stormhound’.
—”Yes, even the ‘Progenitor Vampire’ will be nothing more than a mere monster in front of us.”
—I feel reassured now. I will contact you again.
“….”
Barbas reassured him with confident words. The lord finally felt some relief and, after wishing them luck, ended the communication.
‘Hmph….’
Barbas handed the faded magical device back to his subordinate. As the subordinate carefully stowed the device away, Barbas shook his head.
“That cowardly fellow, worrying so much.”
To Barbas, a veteran mercenary of the Stormhound, the ‘Progenitor Vampire’ was just a mere monster. He believed that legends tend to be exaggerated over time, and the vampire’s power had been significantly inflated.
“Just enough strength to wipe out the ‘Red Moon’.”
…Against this 190-strong extermination squad consisting of top adventurers and veteran mercenaries, even the ‘Progenitor Vampire’ would not last long.
Moreover, they had brought along many ‘Serion’ saints, who were natural enemies of the skeletons she could summon, so there was truly nothing to fear.
“Everyone, increase the pace!”
Fueled by his confidence, Barbas urged the extermination squad to hurry.
(III)
The path to the deepest chamber where the vampire was located proceeded smoothly. As expected from the highest difficulty labyrinth, there was some worry about encountering high-ranking monsters, but since the ‘Red Moon’ had already paved the way, they encountered fewer monsters than expected.
“Thank you, ‘Red Moon’.”
Grateful for their efforts and honoring the spirits of those who had departed, Barbas led his squad to the lowest level of the labyrinth within half a day.
“Hmph!”
—Kyaaaaah….
After easily dealing with occasional A-rank monsters, they arrived at the entrance of a massive cavernous hall.
“The deepest chamber…!”
Barbas could sense it. This place was the deepest chamber of the labyrinth, and most likely, the place where the Progenitor Vampire, freed from its seal, was resting.
He turned around and shouted to his squad.
“Everyone! Only one final step remains! The opponent is a legendary vampire. But there is nothing we cannot overcome!”
…He raised his enormous axe towards the sky.
“Give it your all! Today, we will make history!”
—Waaahhh!!
In the labyrinth filled with monsters, the cheers of humans resounded. Confirming that fear had disappeared and only confidence remained in the hearts of his troops, Barbas finally took a step into the deepest chamber.
-“That’s…!”
And as they entered the deepest chamber, what they saw were only three humans. No, they were ‘monsters’ in human form.
A girl with ash-colored hair was lazily yawning in the center of the deepest chamber, sitting on a makeshift leather chair. To her sides, a woman in a maid outfit and a man in a butler outfit stood respectfully.
‘Undead, huh…’
The blue skin of the maid in the maid outfit indicated that she was already a deceased being, and the prominent fangs of the elderly butler indicated that he was a vampire.
Despite their appearance and the powerful aura they exuded, they were merely supporting characters.
The true main character of the deepest chamber was someone else.
‘Progenitor Vampire…’
The beautiful girl, leisurely seated and guarded by the undead maid and the vampire butler, was undoubtedly the ‘Progenitor Vampire’ sealed a thousand years ago, Barbas was certain.
From the murmurings of his subordinates behind him, it was clear that they had arrived at the final showdown.
—”Is that the Progenitor Vampire?”
—”No way, someone so beautiful?”
—”I was expecting a tentacled monster with just one eye….”
—”What kind of vampires are you imagining?”
Everyone was stunned by the Progenitor Vampire’s appearance, which was very different from what they had anticipated. This was true even for Barbas. Although he had been informed that the vampire would take the form of a young girl, he had never imagined she would look so much like an aristocratic young lady.
…It might be a cunning trick of a monster’s beauty. If the extermination squad were swayed now, their morale could drop before the battle.
They needed to execute their plan as quickly as possible.
-“Progenitor Vampire!”
Barbas aimed his axe at the legendary monster. When the leader spoke, the murmurs of his subordinates instantly fell silent.
The veteran mercenary known as the ‘Mad Dog,’ with his gray-haired appearance, glared sharply at the girl with silver hair.
-“By the will of our ancestors, we have come to subdue you!”
“….”
-“I will make you regret being freed from your seal!”
At these words, the 189 extermination squad members behind him all drew their weapons in unison. Their roar of rage filled the depths of the chamber.
—”Kill the vampire!”
—”Avenge the Red Moon!”
—”Kill that thing and get 20 gold coins! Change your fate!”
This extermination squad was powerful enough to easily destroy a small country. Though they were assembled temporarily, Barbas was confident that if they formed a labyrinth extermination squad with this number, they would surpass the Red Moon and become the strongest extermination squad in history.
“….”
-“Huh…?”
However, did the vampire not understand their language? Despite the intense roar, the three monstrous figures before them showed no sign of movement.
“Yawn….”
…The Progenitor Vampire even yawned as she looked at them with boredom.
-“Captain! Why are you waiting? She doesn’t look extraordinary, so let’s just kill her quickly!”
Perhaps angered by the vampire’s attitude, Barbas’s second-in-command, Kaira Rockheart, known as the ‘Princess of Mercenaries,’ stepped forward. She clashed her gauntlets and shouted at the silver-haired girl.
-“Hey, monster! Looks like you can’t even understand our words, but it’s an honor for me, Kaira Rockheart, to face you!”
True to her very combative nature, Kaira showed no sign of intimidation even before a legendary monster. She was so daring that even Barbas admired her courage.
-“This time, I’ll make sure my fist gets to your heart!”
Seeing the vampire still unresponsive, Kaira Rockheart became even more confident and continued to taunt. She had moved even further forward than Barbas.
-“…Kaira, return to your position.”
-“Seriously, are you really the Progenitor Vampire just because you look like a pretty face?”
-“Kaira! Return to your position!”
-“…You look more like an innkeeper’s whore. Are you really a vampire or just a succubus in disguise?”
-“Kaira! Kaira! Return to your position immediately!”
…Barbas called out anxiously to Kaira, but the ‘Princess of Mercenaries’ continued to hurl insults at the vampire with great enthusiasm.
This was both Kaira Rockheart’s strength and weakness as the strongest fighter in ‘Stormhound.’ She had a strong personality and was so fearless that she rarely listened to others’ words or commands.
‘That troublesome brat…!’
As usual, Barbas narrowed his eyes while watching her act independently. Kaira’s taunts grew more intense.
-“Why don’t you just lick us all if you’re a succubus?”
“….”
-“With that lewd tongue of yours, you’d surely be satisfied… …!!”
And then, suddenly, Kaira’s head exploded. Without any warning or sign, her brain and blood splattered as her head vanished without a trace.
-“Ka, Kaira…?”
“….”
Barbas called out to Kaira, who had fallen helplessly without her head. But no answer came. Behind him, the murmurs of his subordinates began again.
—”W-what? What just happened?”
—”Did anyone see? Kaira’s head just…!!”
—”Uuugh….!”
Everyone was unable to make sense of the sudden situation. Leaving his subordinates behind, Barbas looked up to see the Progenitor Vampire smiling with her hand stretched forward.
“Ah.”
A voice that was as clear as dew, as deep as the sea, and as cold as the river of hell echoed. At the unfamiliar voice, the depths of the chamber fell into silence once again. The gaze of the squad members was fixed forward.
“…Sorry. I don’t like noise.”
The Progenitor Vampire was speaking to them in their own language. Some of the squad members were thrown into a panic by hearing a legendary monster speak their language.
—”T-the vampire speaks our language…?”
—”Disliking noise? Could it be that she…?!”
—”No way! To kill people instantly without a chant?!”
“….”
Everyone froze. Seeing that the vampire had killed Kaira with her words, it meant that she had used chantless magic to kill.
This was something unprecedented in any historical record. A magic that took scholars centuries to study and never achieved, was used by this vampire without any incantation.
-“You vile creature! How dare you kill our princess!”
…Then, a brave mercenary stepped forward in anger at Kaira’s death. He aimed his sword at the vampire.
-“Stay right there. We will take your head right now… …!!”
“…?!”
As before, the head of the mercenary who stepped forward exploded, leaving nothing behind. Sticky, unpleasant blood splattered onto Barbas’s face.
“I told you. I don’t like noise.”
Looking straight ahead, Barbas saw the Progenitor Vampire with a displeased expression, her hand still extended and clenched into a fist. Barbas and the remaining 187 members of the extermination squad all instinctively understood.
It was the Progenitor Vampire who had easily exploded the heads of two veteran mercenaries without any preparation.
“…So, you came to subdue me?”
The vampire stood up from her seat. The small girl glared at them with a sneer. The legs of all the adventurers and mercenaries present began to tremble as if they had become weak.
“You must be prepared to die if you came to kill me, right?”
In the pitch-dark depths of the Labyrinth’s Deepest Chamber, illuminated only by torches, the Progenitor Vampire’s red eyes glowed ominously.
—”Ugh, ugh….”
—”My legs, they won’t stop shaking….”
—”It’s cold….”
Faced with the sight of a predator about to feast, the extermination squad members, who had been so confident moments ago, began to hesitate and retreat.
‘…This is a disaster.’
…With over 20 years of experience as a mercenary, Barbas, the ‘Mad Dog,’ sensed that something had gone terribly wrong.
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