Your Majesty, Dinner Is Ready. - Chapter 20

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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 20: E-rank Maze – Tomb of the Earth Elves (1)
“…….”
A noticeable shift appeared in Rosaria’s eyes, which had maintained the same calm expression throughout.
Interpreting the meaning contained within it came down to this:
‘Have you lost your mind?’
“Kar, have you lost your mind?”
Marlin also flinched, her tail thumping against my back in protest.
“No. I’m perfectly sane.”
My mind was clearer and sharper than ever before.
I hardly had time to go mad when I was too busy looking forward to exploring this Maze.
“So… you’re trying to die with a clear mind?”
“How could I? If I’m going to die anyway, I should finish my life in an S-rank Maze.”
“…….”
The silent pressure emanating from Marlin’s gaze as she looked at her savior evolved to another level entirely.
If I kept teasing her, she might even attack me out of sheer ingratitude, so I quickly activated a Mystery.
Whoosh.
A thin, weightless barrier enveloped my entire body.
The Wound Deferral Barrier.
A Mystery that slowed the rate of Health loss.
“Now you can cut my body with the Short Dagger. Just don’t slash — use that Mystery that applies to dagger technique. And don’t forget to modulate your power so it causes extreme pain without dealing lethal damage!”
The assassin elf regarded me silently for a long moment, then withdrew a Short Dagger from her pocket — its blade as bright red as her hair and eyes.
Compared to the basic template Ritual Dagger she’d given Marlin, it was a weapon of incomparable elegance.
Though unnamed, its quality was flawless — a masterwork.
Swish.
Rosaria’s hand vanished and reappeared, and the next instant, excruciating pain erupted in my throat.
Not just my neck, but my entire body throbbed with a sharp, stinging ache.
“…Hmm. There was no real need to slit the throat. You don’t dislike me, do you?”
“Kar, are you… are you alright?”
“If we don’t hurry, it might not be. Hand me a Health Potion.”
My cooperative assistant immediately produced a Potion from her leather pouch and handed it over.
As I calmly drank about three gulps of the Potion, a wound slowly formed at my neck and blood began trickling down.
“You’re… you’re bleeding!”
“Can you pull out that Medicine Bottle we bought earlier and collect it?”
“Yes…”
By the time the empty Medicine Bottle was filled with blood, I’d consumed all the remaining Potion.
The bleeding then stopped completely as I recovered fully, though the sharp pain still lingered throughout my body.
“That’ll do. Let’s go now.”
“…But if you needed blood, couldn’t you have just cut your thigh or something?”
“This wasn’t about the blood. Wasn’t it time for you to accept whatever I do without flinching?”
“How am I supposed to accept calmly something a person says while asking to be cut? That’s absurd!”
Since her objection had merit, I simply turned away and headed toward the ruins without a word.
“Look at him running away because he has nothing to say!”
As Marlin laughed triumphantly, I gently tilted her hat askew, and Rosaria followed quietly behind us with unhurried steps.
The ruins — the Wasteland’s only structure — appeared intact from a distance, but grew closer revealed a half-collapsed state.
“Marlin, the moment we step through that entrance, we’ll become targets for the creatures within. So stop fooling around and approach this exploration seriously.”
“As long as Kar stops saying strange things, I will.”
“Fair enough. I’ll be careful too.”
After soothing my assistant, I turned to address the taciturn assassin.
“Please don’t engage the creatures yourself. Hide in my shadow instead.”
“…….”
“Why? If you defeat everything, we won’t be able to grow our souls, will we?”
When allies of significantly different Levels hunt creatures together, all the Experience flows only to the higher-Level side.
It was a system designed to prevent players from powerleveling one character rapidly while abandoning the rest.
“Marlin and I are planning to reach Level 2 this time, so please cooperate.”
“…….”
“In return, you’ll step in to help if things become critical, yes? I’m fine with that arrangement.”
“Wait, how are you two communicating so smoothly like that? Sister, are you really understanding what Kar’s saying?”
Rosaria regarded Marlin quietly for a moment, then activated the Mystery Shadow Folk and slipped into my shadow.
“What did that sister just do?”
“You just scolded me for not knowing that myself.”
“Don’t be ridiculous!”
“But this time it was real….”
Was this how the boy who cried wolf felt when the beast finally came for him?
Reflecting on the shameful past of casually spinning lies, I stepped through the entrance where one pillar had crumbled, into the ruins beyond.
“Take out a Mask and put it on. I’ll give you mine too.”
The interior was enclosed, yet sand gusts swept through in thin currents.
This sand was far more treacherous than mere dust and fine particles—inhale it and you’d suffer continuous DoT Damage until death claimed you.
“Cough, y-yes!”
I donned the Mask, which did nothing more than protect the airways, then pressed deeper inside.
Pillars stood at regular intervals along the walls, and at the far end stood a stone statue with its upper half partially collapsed.
《A statue erected by the foolish Earth Elves who worshipped Meteorud, the God of Nature. The ruined state suits them perfectly. How I miss those days!》
Behind the statue lay a narrow corridor.
Darkness and sand gusts conspired to rob us of any clear sight.
“…Something feels ominous, doesn’t it?”
“Good instincts.”
The second fundamental rule every explorer must master.
In a Maze, darkness is the most dangerous enemy.
Just as I’d done before, I lit a Candle and secured it to Marlin’s hat with a cobweb, then advanced slowly.
“I’ve been thinking about this—wouldn’t it be easier if you just carried the Candle yourself, Kar?”
“Fair point.”
“Is there no particular reason for this?”
“Sometimes living without thought is the path to a richer life.”
She tried to tear the Candle away roughly and thrust it at me, so I soothed and placated her as we walked.
The walls of the corridor, narrow enough for both Marlin and me—neither of us particularly large—to walk abreast, were covered in murals.
《Paintings left behind by the Earth Elves, now nearly extinct. Clearly they’ll just be praising the God of Nature, so there’s no point examining them closely. Explanation omitted.》
“Don’t complain. You need to look carefully at things like this to earn your keep.”
While my right eye grumbled, I ordered it to pay attention, and Marlin too began studying the murals intently.
“It’s hard to make out. It seems to be praising the deity they served… but parts of it have been painted over in black to hide them.”
《A mural boasting of how dignified and refined Meteorud, the God of Nature, is. I knew as much. But the object of all this praise—Meteorud himself—has been completely obscured.》
A few steps farther on, a particularly large black bird caught my eye.
An eagle—the symbol of Suedje.
《Filthy clouds have smothered Meteorud’s dignity. A hobby of Suedje, who presides over such sordid authority.》
The Tomb of the Earth Elves was a Maze set in a period nearly identical to the Fire Ant Nest.
An age that could truly be called the era of evil gods.
Though treated nowadays as beneath even a stray alley cat, even the God of Nature dared not dismiss evil gods carelessly back then.
Tzzzt.
Pleased at experiencing her glorious past, Suedje sent a current of positive emotion through the Mark.
The lightning was far more violent than what manifested outside.
“Oh, Exalted One who dwells higher than any other divinity, it stings quite a bit. Please have mercy on your beautiful adherent.”
In the Tomb of the Earth Elves, which embodied the era when the Filthy Celestial Cult was expanding its influence, even Suedje—who ordinarily deferred nervously to the other gods—could exercise formidable power here.
By exploiting this well, one could devise strategies impossible for other classes.
– Stand back.
Just as we neared the corridor’s end, a voice suddenly rang out.
So it was beginning at last.
I spoke to my young assistant, who was charging ahead eagerly.
“Marlin, there’s one aspect of this Maze’s weakness I haven’t yet mentioned.”
“…What is it?”
Marlin’s tail shot straight up as she gripped her Short Dagger.
She’d grasped, from our experiences so far, that nothing peaceful ever came to pass.
Whoosh.
The moment we emerged from the corridor, the Candle flame that had been burning steadily just moments before suddenly went out.
“The Tomb of the Earth Elves is fine in most respects, but there’s one thing I find objectionable.”
I relit the Candle, and the flame flickered precariously, as if threatening to extinguish once more.
There, right beside Marlin, stood a shadow—a figure charred black from head to foot.
“Shriek!”
Marlin let out an uncanny cry and wildly swung her Short Dagger.
Scrape.
Her blade struck true, aimed directly at the throat.
A horizontal wound opened across the figure’s neck, and the jet-black shadow staggered in place before toppling forward.
“That was startling…. What is this thing?”
“A Earth Elf, charred by the lightning of Suej’e.”
《Earth Elf Corpse (Level 1)》
《Already dead, yet risen by its own will to wander the surface as Undead. The repugnant stench of Suej’e clings to it thickly.》
“This maze is classified as a ‘Terror Maze.’ These creatures will keep popping out of nowhere to greet us, I’m afraid.”
A maze where monsters suddenly burst forth from the darkness, catching explorers off guard.
Still, I don’t recognize this as a true Terror Maze—it relies far too heavily on jump scares alone.
Even if something that appeared suddenly in the dark turned out to be a cute puppy like a bulldog or pug, you’d still jump in fright, wouldn’t you?
“…Wasn’t this supposed to be a straightforward, easy maze?”
“It is easy. You just wander around and hunt whatever monsters pop out occasionally. I deliberately brought candle sets instead of a portable Mana Stone Lantern—figured it might be less scary with one of those. Good call, right?”
“Really…?”
“No. Mana Stone Lanterns don’t work here.”
This was a maze that could only be navigated by the faint glow of candlelight alone.
“Let’s move now. Follow me.”
“How do you know the way… Oh, the demon god Lidnia must have shown you, right?”
“That’s right.”
Moving slowly to ease Marlin’s nerves, I took the opportunity to brief her on the expedition’s objective.
“As I said before we entered, the clear condition is to hunt the Boss Entity. It’s in the depths—there are four underground floors total.”
“We’ll find the Hidden Piece before hunting it down, won’t we?”
“You’re ready to stand on your own now. Fair warning though—we’re taking everything we can find here when we leave….”
—Fall back.
Before I could finish speaking, a jet-black monster suddenly plummeted from the ceiling.
“Gaaah! Die!”
Marlin reacted instantly, severing the Earth Elf Corpse’s head in one clean stroke.
“Valiant.”
“…It’s not as scary as I thought.”
“Right?”
“What kind of Terror Maze is this? Nothing to it.”
I pretended not to notice her tail coiling around my arm.
Moving carefully and dispatching the occasional Undead creature that lunged at us, we eventually reached the stairs leading downward.
Now the real trial begins.
“Watch your step.”
As I descended slowly to the first underground floor and set foot on the ground, the already meager candlelight dwindled further.
‘About time it showed up.’
Scratch-scratch-scratch-scratch.
Something in the darkness ahead was moving toward us rapidly.
Marlin gripped my arm tightly with her tail and lowered her stance.
“It’s another burned corpse, right?”
It wasn’t.
—Kyahahaha!
An Elf with wild, disheveled hair crawled toward us on all fours, letting out a grotesque laugh.
《Earth Elf Cultist (Level 1)》
《A follower of the Filthy Celestial Cult who forsook the nature god to serve Suej’e. Their mind has melted away—communication is impossible.》
“Welcome, senior.”
I shielded the terrified Marlin behind me and extended my left hand, meeting the approaching monster’s eyes directly.
“Please allow your junior’s Experience to benefit from you.”
—Kyaaaagh!
Even as reason collapsed, the maddened senior seemed offended by the junior’s brazen words—it leaped forward with terrifying speed and bit my left hand with razor teeth.
Crunch-crunch.
Even with the Wound Deferral Barrier holding, my health was plummeting rapidly.
—Grraaagh…!
Soon the Earth Elf, still gnawing on bone and flesh, suddenly let out a horrible shriek and began writhing violently.
“What—what’s happening?”
I pulled a Health Potion from Marlin’s leather satchel and drank it, watching the monster collapse slowly to the ground.
“When the assassin cut my throat earlier, they applied a poisoning Mystery to the wound with their Short Dagger.”
The fourth-rank Mystery of the Assassin class: Vile Dagger Technique.
My body is currently drenched in deadly venom.
“…Are you in your right mind?”
“They adjusted it so it only hurts without being fatal. I’m fine.”
“That’s not the issue—you’re in pain!”
“What does that matter.”
From my index finger, I drew out a thick, taut thread in one short motion and drove it into the brow of the creature thrashing on the ground below me.
“This is the easiest, most efficient way to hunt.”
That’s right.
My build, the Immortal Cultist, suited this perfectly.

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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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