Your Majesty, Dinner Is Ready. - Chapter 104

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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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Episode 104: Guild War – Moonlight (1)
– A soft thud.
A Divine Beast with a bright golden mane touched down gently on the earth and trotted toward me.
Its clear eyes brimmed with curiosity.
In most cases, a summoned beast would vanish into the distance immediately, forcing me to waste time tracking it down—but my bloodline spares me that inconvenience.
Crackle, crackle.
As the Divine Beast drew closer, my vampire body began to melt away gradually.
《Your remaining life force: 5/100》
《The Divine Beast does not heed intelligent beings! Distance yourself at once!》
My body was dissolving into putty.
Skin sloughed away, flesh blistered, veins burst open.
The Divine Beast of the sun was merely drawing near at a leisurely pace, yet the very elements composing my form were being utterly annihilated.
“…Please, come closer.”
I forced the words out, arms spread wide.
I was fine.
There would be no problem.
In this Dungeon where I could achieve something akin to immortality, however imperfectly, I was unlikely to die under ordinary circumstances.
《Your remaining life force: 30/100》
So long as the Divine Beast harbored no malice, I could endure indefinitely.
And this Divine Beast of Solmiran would not turn hostile toward me.
I couldn’t claim certainty, but at least it wouldn’t suddenly change its mind and crush me underfoot.
《Your remaining life force: 70/100》
My mind and body cycled through dissolution and recovery, leaving me wracked with agony—yet my spirit remained buoyant.
Did not excessive suffering become the seasoning for the fruit one finally reaped?
“Ahhahaha…!”
I laughed, the sound wrenched and labored.
Grow stronger, this pain.
Endure harder, this body of mine.
– A high, whinnying neigh.
The Divine Beast, now inches from my face, tilted its head before me.
“Would you like me to hold you?”
Carefully, I drew the beast’s long face into an embrace.
The final stage of Hidden Piece.
Communion with the Divine Beast.
There was no way to completely shield oneself from the radiant heat the Divine Beast emitted—a perilous act few Explorers would dare attempt.
“…Ah, ahhh.”
In an instant, every scrap of flesh and muscle across my body liquefied.
Normally one would bring specialized defensive gear tailored to each Divine Beast, but with high enough Stamina, one could brute-force it like this.
I was dying rapidly, yet stubbornly I continued to stroke the beast’s mane.
– A joyful neigh, bright and spirited!
The Divine Beast suddenly vanished without a trace.
Leaving only me, my body less than half intact, and a single golden rounded gem.
Thump.
My collapsed form picked up the golden jewel with arms now paper-thin.
A large, lustrous sphere radiating an otherworldly light.
Touching it quickly warmed the palm of my hand.
《Gem – Heart of Skinparksi》
《A jewel whose brilliance—bright enough to illuminate the entire world of Divine Beasts—has been compressed into a single point. It appears to be the original form of a Primordial Fragment.》
I waited for my dissolved tongue to regenerate, then gazed toward the hidden Broadcast Crystal and spoke.
“Well-behaved children should not attempt this.”
***
One corner of the Battlefield of the Moon.
“Damn it…!”
Crack!
The head of a human Warrior, writhing on the ground, was crushed brutally.
“………”
It was the moment an Explorer, wiping blood and flesh from their feet, reached down to seize the lone Primordial Fragment remaining.
A Gnome emerged from the shadows, reverse-grip dagger poised to strike downward.
A precisely calculated ambush through an opening.
“…What?”
A short sword sliced through the air.
I hadn’t even closed my eyes, yet I’d missed the movement.
Noom didn’t panic—he simply threw himself to the side.
Thwack!
A spinning throwing star flew toward Noom’s neck as he sprinted, burying itself deep.
The instant he was struck, his entire body went rigid, and he tumbled across the ground with unbroken momentum.
“…Ugh.”
Even as blood poured from his mouth, Noom struggled to cloak himself in a Secret Art—but a foot materialized suddenly and trampled him flat.
“How… how is this…”
“I’m not interested in conversation.”
Crack.
Another Guild War participant was ejected from the Dungeon, leaving behind only a dark-hued jewel.
The Explorer who’d dispatched two people in a single breath—a conspirator among the Six Apostles—collected the Primordial Fragment without hesitation.
That made eleven.
‘…Just one more to go.’
***
I stood before a golden tower that rose majestically in the Battlefield of the Sun.
《A tower leading toward the Inner Sanctum. Built from materials unknown in the modern age. It absorbs natural mana and shines eternally.》
‘It’s quite tall indeed.’
A tower that pierced through the ceiling that looked like the sky itself.
Looking up at such a height made my neck ache.
I put on an act of amazement while being mindful of the Broadcast Crystal nearby, then approached the main gate.
Six circular holes were carved into the center of the door, made of light-colored wood, arranged in a perfect circle—when all the Primordial Fragments were inserted, the path to the Inner Sanctum would open.
Whee-creak!
That exalted being had just delivered a rather low-brow joke about the mechanism.
《How crude indeed. I would recommend pretending not to understand.》
“Su’eje, I’m finding it so funny that I can’t concentrate on the Guild War. Please stay quiet after hearing this.”
I brushed back my disheveled hair and cast a vacant gaze into the empty air.
Lightning crackled violently from the tattoo near my collarbone before quickly subsiding.
“Thank you.”
Then, smiling brightly as a finishing touch, I pulled out the Heart of Skinparksi.
Whoomm.
The moment I held the Heart of Skinparksi over the circular hole, the main gate glowed brilliantly and slid open to the side.
This was the Hidden Piece of the Battlefield of Sun and Moon that was known to the public.
‘Which is why Yallen said it was meaningless.’
We’d labored so hard to obtain the jewel left behind by the Divine Beast—only for it to serve as nothing more than a key?
The door would open with just six Primordial Fragments alone, so why all the unnecessary struggle?
By now, not only those watching the Guild War but even those evil gods would be filled with doubt.
《Indeed, what will you do with that Divine Beast’s jewel? The Wisdom-loving one watches with great interest!》
“Ridni. You understand by now without my saying so. Please simply trust and wait.”
I spoke while gazing at the Broadcast Crystal hidden somewhere near the tower’s entrance.
“Ridni is always hungry for fresh knowledge. That’s why you demand your followers actively pursue knowledge in their Faith. If there’s anyone interested in Twisted Truth, please seek out the Socialite Kar.”
Since words alone would be insufficient, I made a heart shape with both hands and displayed it before ascending the spiral staircase inside the tower.
《Those who have passed through this place ahead of you toward the Inner Sanctum: 19 souls》
That count included the Ghoul.
Likely, those who advanced to the Inner Sanctum from the Battlefield of the Moon would have similar numbers.
‘Almost there.’
As I climbed the spiral staircase eagerly, another door appeared.
Before stepping out recklessly, I transformed only my index finger into black lightning and poked the door.
Screech!
Through the hole pierced to a proper size, I peered outside with my left eye.
“Hugu, deploy.”
Soon, a phantom identical to myself appeared outside.
“Me, appearing again!”
“Look around and report back.”
“Roger!”
The phantom saluted by placing a hand to its forehead, then disappeared into the distance with a careless gait.
《My buddy reports that reconnaissance is complete.》
I withdrew the phantom immediately, and the gloomy vista of ruins with most buildings collapsed flooded into my mind.
‘No enemies nearby. Everyone must be gathered somewhere.’
The Eye That Whispers Falsehood was originally a Secret Art designed for reconnaissance and intelligence gathering.
“Come back out.”
Another phantom appeared outside.
“The explorers from other guilds will be gathered in one place. Slip in naturally.”
“Leave it to me!”
I watched Hugu dash off, then withdrew my gaze from the hole and unfolded the Map showing the positions of guild members.
Five dots clustered together at a single point.
‘Not a single one eliminated.’
Given that all of the Ash Gray Wolf Guild’s intelligence had leaked to the outside, the fact that no one had been eliminated was remarkable.
– Elf! Elf!
– Half-elf!
I opened the door and stepped out carefully, and small creatures made of water flew toward me.
《Spirit (Water) — Naiades》
《A collective of multiple ‘Naiads.’ Their intelligence isn’t high, so complex tasks are difficult to assign, but they’re useful for simple errands.》
– Are you Kar?
– Kar, is it you?
“Yes, I am.”
I nodded, and two of the Naiades flew over my head and alighted gently.
– Lai told us to bring you!
– Bring you right away!
Lai is an Ash Gray Wolf Guild member—a pure-blooded Elf Spirit Archer.
“Understood. Please show me the way.”
– Let’s go!
– Now’s the moment!
The Naiades set off eagerly in some direction.
I followed quickly, glancing up at the sky.
In the midst of a sea of stars shimmering with crystalline light, a luminous sphere blazed brilliantly even at a distance.
《Divine Relic — Orb of Lumeran》
《A divine artifact left behind by Lumeran, who split into two and departed. The exact effects are unknown, but it’s certain that it harbors power capable of blocking both sunlight and moonlight. Which means Vampires and Ghouls are both after it, naturally!》
Clearing the Battlefield of Sun and Moon requires contact with that divine relic.
It was simultaneously the condition for victory in the Guild War.
Being a special space, flight-based Secret Arts cannot approach it; only a single person who has obtained a special item from the Inner Sanctum can draw near.
– Here! Right here!
After traveling some distance, I reached the front of a building with part of its outer wall collapsed.
Entering and climbing to the upper level, I was finally reunited with the Ash Gray Wolf Guild members gathered closely in one room.
“Welcome.”
Targon, a large gray Orc leaning against the wall, greeted me without fanfare.
“Kar, tribesman! Sit here!”
Brunelda, her hair tousled, patted the spot beside her insistently.
I hurried over and sat demurely, and the Northern barbarian woman wrapped her arm around my shoulder with forceful warmth.
“Dran, explain the situation.”
“Yes, understood.”
Dran, a bipedal Sheep Humanoid Monk, spoke in a measured tone.
“The total number of explorers remaining is seventeen. Excluding us, that leaves eleven.”
Slightly less than half of the Guild War participants remained.
Six of them were guild members of ours.
While it seemed overwhelmingly advantageous, the situation was not actually so encouraging.
“The problem is that the other guilds now refuse to fight at all.”
Dran the Monk narrowed his eyes slightly.
“If numbers shrink further, they can’t contain our guild, and they’ll have no way to access the Orb of Lumeran. So from now on, they’ll avoid betraying each other as much as possible.”
– ROOOAARRR—!
Just as Dran was about to continue the briefing, a ferocious cry echoed from the depths of the Inner Sanctum.
Brunelda pulled one corner of her mouth into a grin.
“Right on time. The guardian of this ruin is stirring.”
The guild members’ gazes turned toward the shattered windows beyond.
Boom!
Not far from here, a colossal wyvern swept its tail through the nearby buildings indiscriminately.
《Light Wyvern (Level 6)》
《A wyvern suffused with sacred light. The final guardian left behind by Lumeran. Defeating it grants you the means to soar toward the Orb of Lumeran.》
With a Spirit Rank of Level 6, it carried the designation of a Boss—a formidable demon-type being.
To meet the conquest condition, the creature must be defeated, yet with the explorers’ levels fixed at 5, it cannot be brought down by a single person.
“Target the wings! That’s the weak point!”
“Kee-hee-hee!”
The slaughter ghouls leaped into the air and began clambering onto the wyvern’s neck and torso, launching a furious assault.
The sight of them frantically swinging their arms and stabbing at the wings was almost endearing.
“That won’t even come close.”
Targon snorted.
An accurate assessment.
— Kuooo!
The wyvern, shaking off the ghouls clinging to its body through acrobatic flight, spewed a beam of light from its jaws.
Kwaaaaa—!
Building debris and floor fragments scattered like popcorn.
Mixed in among them, surely, were flesh and blood from the slaughter ghouls.
“Instant death.”
Brunelda cleaned her ear and spoke in an offhand tone.
“Kar, do you know that no matter how tough a ghoul is, if its body is reduced to pulp entirely, even a ghoul’s superior regenerative ability cannot restore it? Of course, we who became vampires face the same limitation. Truly a formidable demon-type being….”
“So that’s why it’s more fun to fight it?”
“Kra-ha-ha-ha!”
Brunelda grabbed my jaw and shook it vigorously.
“This cute one! You really do know something!”
“That’s what I was going to say.”
Since arriving in Pletika, I haven’t met anyone I could converse with this naturally—not since Bartimir.
My good demon-type daughter’s disposition is, in essence, something I myself shaped, so in a sense, she was the only one of her kind.
— Kwaaaah!
The triumphant wyvern soared off to somewhere.
It had sensed the movements of the invading ghouls and flown out to exact vengeance; otherwise, the Light Wyvern remained docile within its nest.
“…As you can see, it’s still very much in peak condition.”
Dran’s briefing, interrupted by the brief ghoul execution spectacle, resumed.
“The explorers from other guilds haven’t yet launched their assault. They’re being extremely cautious—their numbers are meager, after all, which makes them nervous.”
The minimum number of explorers needed to defeat the Light Wyvern is roughly nine.
Thus it is a type of raid boss that requires explorers from multiple guilds to join forces.
However, the Ash Gray Wolf Guild’s situation is somewhat different.
“Pathetic wretches.”
Brunelda, her hand resting on my head, clicked her tongue.
“Eleven of them and they can’t manage a single level-6 demon-type creature? We alone—just the guild members gathered here—are more than sufficient.”
The Ash Gray Wolf Guild was the only one with the capacity to eliminate the Light Wyvern without relying on aid from other guilds.
After all, they possessed Targon—one of the Twelve Heroes, the Moving Mountain.
“I have no interest in the explorers of other guilds. I’ve fought every one of them at least once.”
The massive grey orc spoke in a deep voice, slowly clenching his fist and then opening it again.
Because of that trivial gesture alone.
The air in our gathered space grew heavy in an instant.
“However, that spy is still alive.”
Targon’s voice turned glacial, as though the very air near his ears had grown cold.
“Until I thoroughly crush that bastard, I will not end the guild war.”

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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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