I Inherited the Basement of the Tower - Chapter 75

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Inherited the Basement 1 of the Tower – Episode 75

Glug, glug….

“Phew.”

I exhaled roughly and slowly withdrew my outstretched hands.
The torrential lava that had been pouring down was completely blocked by a curtain of impenetrable Darkness and solidified entirely.
I consumed a considerable amount of Darkness stat, but it’s fine.
After all, it’s not me who will be dealing with them.

“…Persistent, aren’t you? Why don’t you stop now? There are barely any dwarves left alive anyway.”

The Solar Knight clad in white armor spoke with exasperation in his voice.
At those words, Eltos’s massive frame trembled with rage.

“How… How can you be like this! You call yourself a hero who saves the world! I didn’t even know, and I gave you my sword to help you…!”

At Eltos’s anguished cry, thick veins bulged across the Solar Knight’s forehead.

“If you hadn’t existed, there would have been no problem at all. I’m getting tired of this now. This place will simply be recorded as an unfortunate volcanic eruption. I’ll already be gone by then. Now, let’s finish this.”

Whoosh-.

At the Solar Knight’s gesture, the Mage, Cleric, and Warrior from the White Horse Tower stepped forward from behind him.

“…It feels wrong to kill those who aren’t the Demon King. But it can’t be helped. In distant times, when this is recorded in fairy tales, we can’t have it written that ‘the hero party ignored the dwarven village and fled.'”
“Forgive us, divine one, for this unavoidable sacrifice.”
“Don’t worry, young giant. We will surely slay the Demon King for you, so close your eyes in peace.”

It was nothing but a parade of bullshit.
I scoffed while grinding my teeth.
This is why all those hypocrites spouting light and righteousness must be filtered out.
True righteous people don’t wear the mask of virtue; they simply and quietly act on what they believe to be good.

“Yahwi.”
“Yes, Master.”

In the end, Yahwi and I stepped forward to block Eltos’s path as well.
We had no intention of standing idle and watching.
The clear condition for this fourth trial was ‘Eltos’s survival’.
At first, I thought it would be easier to protect Eltos from the volcanic eruption since the Solar Knight remained at the Blacksmith’s Forge.
I was completely wrong.
I never imagined those hypocritical bastards would become the greatest threat to the survival condition.

“If we cannot save everyone, we have no choice but to kill everyone. Understand our sublime destiny. To maintain peace across this continent with our name alone in the future, we cannot afford even the smallest blemish.”

The Warrior trudged forward, step by step, and raised a greatsword as large as his own torso.

“Die!”

Whoosh—!

With a sound that tore through the air, the Warrior’s greatsword descended toward Eltos.
But,
a short One-Eyed Dwarf blocked the way.

“Dad! No!”

Eltos gasped and reached out with his massive hand to stop him.

Clang—!

A heavy metallic sound rang out.
The fact that it wasn’t a scraping sound left the Warrior with a puzzled expression.
Soon, he looked down.
There stood a small dwarf, barely reaching the Warrior’s waist, holding his ground with dignity.

“What… what is this?”

Despite his diminutive stature, the Dwarf had deflected the Warrior’s massive greatsword in a perfect arc.

“Ah… Father?”

Eltos stared blankly at the dwarf with a bewildered expression.
The father he knew was a blacksmith who struck hammers, not a swordsman who wielded blades.
Yet he had perfectly deflected the warrior’s attack.
Of course, it was only possible because the martial artist Yahwi, who had lived his entire life with a sword, inhabited the body of that one-eyed dwarf.

“As expected, combat is more my specialty than hammering. This body is quite inconvenient, but it’s no problem. The Yahwi school is supreme.”
“…!”

The warrior visibly panicked at having his strike blocked.
But immediately after, the Cleric and Mage unleashed buff magic upon him.

“Haste.”
“Divine Blessing.”

Flash—!
Whoosh!

Light flickered twice, and the warrior and Solar Knight’s momentum became noticeably more menacing.
It was the power of buffs rooted in mana and divine force.
The Mage didn’t stop there, conjuring a massive white magic circle in the air and beginning to cast a large-scale spell.

“For a blacksmith dwarf, you handle a blade decently, but this is where it ends!”

Screech—!

The magic circle roared to life, unleashing tremendous energy.
An overwhelming luminous mana that would swallow the scorching heat of the Ignaar mountain range.

“Tch, I can’t handle this with a blade! Master! Please evade!”

Sensing the danger, Eltos positioned his massive body in front of me to shield me.
But I remained calm.
I even chuckled softly, casting my gaze toward the empty air.

“Elder, you here?”

Flutter, flutter—.

Far across the sky.
Something massive and dark was cutting through the heavens, descending toward us.
Bat wings as black as pitch, and curved horns sprouting from the forehead.
An overwhelming visage that seemed plucked straight from a fairy tale—the very image of the Demon King.
I had never seen him before, yet I recognized him instantly.
It was Barkalor in his Demon King form.

“Nullify.”

The Demon King Barkalor placed his hand upon the magical circle deployed by the Mage of the Hero Party.

Crash!

A single word.
Before the magical circle could even activate, it shattered like glass, crumbling to dust.

“My magic—reversed in a single breath!?”

The Mage was skilled enough to be selected for the Hero Party, a notable figure in the Empire’s magical circles.
Yet against Barkalor, the Empire’s greatest intellect and Demon King, he was utterly outmatched.

Softly.
Barkalor descended before me with an elegant motion.

“This old one greets you in most shameful form, Master.”
“Shameful? You looked absolutely magnificent, Elder.”
“Hahaha! Barkalor! What kind of display is this at your age?”
“Silence, you sword-swinging ape.”

Everyone except Yahwi and I froze in bewilderment.
Even Eltos, who had no memory of the Temple, was startled by the sudden appearance of the Demon King and fell backward on his rear.
Of course, the Solar Knight was the most shocked of all.

“The Demon King…!”

The Solar Knight’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“How did you escape the Demon King’s Castle! Have you broken your contract with the White Horse Tower, Demon King?”
“Tsk. You wouldn’t understand, but I have already fulfilled that contract once. And I obediently died by your blade.”

Barkalor responded with a scornful smile, his tone leisurely and composed.

“Once you offered your neck, that should have been enough. Is that insufficient?”
“W-what nonsense are you spouting! Return to the Demon King’s Castle at once!”
“You have no need to understand. Nor do I care to make you understand. Simply put, that shallow contract of yours holds no power over me anymore.”

Ah, so that was it.
I nodded in understanding.
I had always found it strange that Elder Barkalor, with his strategic brilliance and magical prowess, would have fallen so easily to some mere hero.
In the original history, there must have been a ‘contract’ between the White Horse Tower and the Imperial Court, using the domain’s people as hostages.
But now, we exist in a space where memories are twisted—a distorted task.
Moreover, the Elder’s master has changed from the Border Count to me.
There was no way the old contract could retain any power.

“There was once a time when I truly believed you were virtuous. I thought you were a pitiful young man brainwashed by the filthy tongues of the White Horse Tower. But I was foolish to try to understand you completely through a brief conversation before death.”

Barkalor fell silent and looked down at the hero with cold eyes.

“You let our youngest perish.”

I smiled with satisfaction at the Elder’s righteous fury.
Yahwi and Eltos got along well enough as senior and junior.
Barkalor had always been too busy to interact much with Eltos.
Yet here he was, calling him the youngest and showing such affection.
As his master, I couldn’t help but feel pleased.

“Tch! It matters not! With this ‘Hero’s Sword’ in my hand, I can simply slay the Demon King again!”

The hero cried out arrogantly and raised the sword in his grip.
The incomplete holy blade that Eltos had struck dozens of times with his crude hammer just moments before.
Then, the Mage behind him called out urgently to the hero.

“H-hey! Wait a moment, hero! Something’s wrong here?”
“Silence! There’s no time for idle talk now! That creature before us is the Demon King we must subjugate!”
“No, look at your sword! That’s already-!”

The hero, his reason abandoned, failed to see the simple fact that even the Mage beside him had noticed.
But Barkalor grasped it immediately.

“Hmm. How strange. That’s not the aura of the Holy Sword I knew.”
“What?”
“It can no longer be called the Solar Knight’s blade. Show me. Telekinesis.”

Whoosh—!

As Barkalor extended his hand, a dense darkness manifested in an instant.
The Solar Knight’s blade, which had been gripped tightly in his hand, was drawn through the air by a fierce force and flew into Barkalor’s grasp.
Barkalor fluttered his wings and slowly turned his body.
Before I knew it, he had dropped to one knee before me.

“I present the Demon King’s Sword to you, my great Master.”

The blade that Barkalor held up reverently with both hands.
The sacred Holy Sword that was said to never break had completely lost its light as my darkness seeped into it through Eltos’s hammer work.
Now it had become a perfect “Demon King’s Sword” that scattered only deep darkness.
I grasped the weighty sword hilt and let out a low chuckle.

“A fine new blade. I like it.”
“W-what… Two Demon Kings…?”

The Solar Knight’s face twisted in confusion at the unbelievable scene unfolding before his eyes.
The Demon King he was supposed to vanquish was kneeling before someone else and presenting his sword.
Barkalor shook his head and declared quietly.

“I am merely a false existence created by the Empire’s political machinations. If one can distinguish between the real and the fake, then surely my Master is the true Demon King.”

I approached the Solar Knight slowly, the Demon King’s Sword hanging at my side as I tested the weight of my new blade.

“A Solar Knight without a Solar Knight’s blade.”

No, he was never a true Solar Knight to begin with.
Everything was nothing but a nauseating farce orchestrated and created by the twisted sense of justice of the White Horse Tower and the Imperial Palace.

“Well then, it’s time for your exit.”

Slash—!
Without hesitation, I swung the Demon King’s Sword and severed the Solar Knight’s neck.

“Gaaaahhhhh-!”

The Solar Knight’s final cry, dripping with hypocrisy, scattered meaninglessly into the volcanic heat.
And in that instant.
Brilliant System Messages flooded my vision.

Ding!
【Clear Condition: ‘Eltos Survival’ has been achieved.】
【You have perfectly cleared the fourth task.】
【You obtain ‘Temple Resident Summon Ticket (Rare~Legendary)’ as task reward.】

“Excellent.”

Finally, the summon ticket I’d been waiting for.
And such a high-grade one at that—capable of reaching even Legendary tier.
I hoped for a miner who could excavate moonstone in bulk for the next temple expansion, or perhaps a chef resident to handle my buffs.

The illusion gradually crumbled into darkness and scattered away.
I turned back and smiled warmly at my reliable family.

“Success. You all did well.”
“You’ve worked hard, my Lord!”
“I am honored to serve you, Master.”

Just as Yahwi and Barkalor bowed their heads and we were about to exit in this heartwarming atmosphere.
Another notification sounded from the void.

Ding!
【You have achieved a hidden condition by consecutively clearing Nix’s tasks.】
【You acquire the special stat, ‘Divinity’.】

“…What?”

My footsteps came to an abrupt halt.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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