Chapter 28: 8-5. The Purple Phoenix and the Vampire Saintess.
“Kyaa-haha… Glory to the Hero Cult…”
Servi pressed her hand against a wall, causing a square-shaped brick to slide in with a faint sound.
─Rumble…
The ground began to shake violently. That could only mean one thing.
A self-destruct mechanism.
In the game, this would trigger if the player made a mistake solving the puzzle and got caught in a trap.
“Have you gone mad, Servi?”
Was she planning to bury the apostles along with herself? In the game, it would simply mean a game over, but here, real people would die.
“Of course! The prophecy must not be derailed…!!”
The pink-haired succubus laughed maniacally. The Hero Cult was filled with lunatics. I pressed my hand to my helmet’s forehead in frustration.
The ceiling and floor were shaking, and the candles that once lit the chapel-like space were now toppling over and going out.
Boom!
The entrance we came through was now blocked by falling stalactites and rocks. The cultists screamed in terror.
“Save us…! Please, I don’t want to die!!”
“I don’t want to die!!”
“Apostle, are you abandoning us?!”
The artificial sun overhead remained alight, casting an eerie glow. Despite the desperate cries of the Hero Cultists, Servi merely looked at Nex and me with a smug, satisfied expression.
“For the revival of the Hero Cult… consider yourselves fortunate to be sacrificed, you worthless trash… hehe…”
Blood dripped from her mouth as she laughed. Even in her dying moments, she was consumed by this fanatical belief. I could somewhat understand if it were a genuine hero like Kainel, but this was incomprehensible.
“Tweet-!”
“Junior, should I handle this?”
As Nex’s purple phoenix spread its wings wide, it seemed he was preparing to shield me and Charitines. Was he planning to use the Phoenix Cradle?
“Stop, senior. Don’t use the Phoenix Cradle.”
“…But now that my spirit has matured, I should be able to use it.”
Phoenix Cradle was a powerful technique that created an impenetrable shield around the user and their companions. Now that his spirit had grown, it was indeed possible.
But the drawback was too severe—once activated, they would be trapped inside, unable to leave.
“We’d end up buried alive underground.”
The priority was to escape.
“What? Junior, is that true?”
“…The spirit has its limits too.”
Even if we tried generating more oxygen through magic, we’d soon run out of mana. It wasn’t worth the risk.
The phoenix was strong, but this wasn’t the time to use it. I racked my brain for another solution. What hadn’t I tried yet? How could we escape this dungeon without anyone getting hurt?
“Junior is right. Maybe if I were the head of the family, I could pull it off, but not me.”
“That’s because you’re not one of the Ten Masters,” I commented, glancing at the purple bird. No matter how strong the phoenix was, it couldn’t melt the entire ceiling to allow us to escape.
Maybe if it were Asha Aureus, the living sun, she could do it. But Nex didn’t have that level of skill.
Spirit arts were complex, and even with a matured spirit, it required a great deal of mastery. In the original game, this skill would leave Nex incapacitated for a long time. I stroked my chin, thinking.
“Fine, I’ll trust the intellect of the Hero of Wisdom. Junior!”
Nex smiled brightly at me, clearly expecting another brilliant solution. His faith in me was unwavering, as if I were some kind of genius strategist.
“Junior… You do have a plan, right?”
It seemed I was being seriously misunderstood. I wasn’t a chosen hero or anything like that.
Sure, the status window from Black Heart’s creator was visible to me, but that didn’t make me a hero. No wonder no one suspected me of being involved with the Hero Cult.
“…”
Even if I compared my skills, I wasn’t anywhere near the level of the Demon Lords. I would need some kind of ultimate technique or, at the very least, the weapons I used in the game.
“Ugh… My head hurts.”
I scanned the surroundings again. I couldn’t afford to lose focus. I needed to assess the situation clearly.
‘Retreat is impossible. Flying out on the phoenix is also a no-go… Is there any way out?’
The path we came through was blocked, and the exit was sealed off by the brick Servi had triggered.
What should I do?
I had two options left.
“Can you communicate with your spirit, senior?”
“What? All of a sudden? You might not be able to move, right?”
“I don’t know my spirit’s full capabilities yet… but I’ll give it a try.”
The emotional bond I had developed while thinking of her—maybe it could help here. I didn’t have many choices. It was either this or swordsmanship.
Size didn’t matter when it came to spirits.
If I recalled the sharpest memory of recent times, there was only one. I couldn’t use magic or holy power, so…
“I thought of something after seeing your phoenix, senior.”
If I looked at my weapon, I could probably pull off one more *Vacuum Slash* before it shattered completely. After that, I’d be out of options if anything else happened.
I had to aim for everything in one go.
“Got it. I’ll trust you, junior!”
Nex nodded and placed his hand on my back once more. He was preparing for a spell, something his family had used in moments of crisis when a spirit was needed.
「Be reborn from the flames.」
As he finished speaking, a black Pomeranian burst forth from my chest.
“Bark!”
The little black spirit was named “Kkamang,” and I already felt a connection to it. Adorable.
“It’s been a while…”
The wave of fatigue hit me like a tidal wave. I exhaled deeply. Could I really manage a Vacuum Slash in this state?
“Woof!”
Should I acknowledge my emotions here too?
I looked at the black wolf-like spirit, its eyes sparkling as it gazed at me, and fell into deep thought.
What hadn’t I acknowledged yet? What could serve as a trigger?
Just then,
“Grrrrrr…”
My spirit started growling fiercely at Servi.
“It’s just a bit of anger.”
Was it influenced by my emotions? Considering she had even imitated our saintess, it wasn’t surprising. Still, it was strange that it had no problem charging toward the crown prince earlier—why now?
“Woof! Woof! Grrrrr…”
I couldn’t quite understand it. Maybe I should have used spirits more in the game. Since I had only seen them through Nex’s experience, I was at a loss.
“Junior, now that I’ve seen your spirit, I’m sure you’re not with the Hero Cult. I’m relieved.”
“If I were, do you think I’d have come here to save Char?”
It wasn’t my fault; the developers had chosen not to include spirits on the saintess route. The other heroines’ routes all had spirits appearing.
“I can see why Mardol liked you so much. Now that I look closer, your spirit is quite cute…”
Please, no more crown prince route flags.
The dungeon was about to collapse. My head throbbed.
“Stop it, Kkamang.”
“Pant.”
I called back the spirit, which had been threatening Servi. It responded immediately. Maybe Lupus really was the protagonist. Looks like the name “Kkamang” will have to stick.
“…We don’t have much time. Can you do something?”
“Whimper.”
The little spirit shook itself vigorously, almost like a dog fresh from a bath. Oh, wait—could it be?
“A drill…? Is that what you’re saying?”
“Woof!”
The Pomeranian responded with a gleeful smile, confirming my guess.
If that was the case, there was a way. I needed to act quickly before the aftereffects of spirit communication overwhelmed me.
“Senior! I’m going to launch a *Vacuum Slash* forward, so be ready to move!”
The ability to dig through the ground—if it was a canine spirit, it should definitely be possible. Phoenixes could burn things or fly, so it made sense.
I drew my sword, already fragile and cracking like glass.
This was my one and only chance.
I adjusted my stance, knowing this would be the final strike, and stared at the shimmering silver steel inside the cave.
‘Thank you for your service, Pure Love Injector.’
I aimed at the direction where the exit should be. The tunnel was narrow compared to the one we came in through, and without the spirit clearing the path, it would be tough.
“Woof! Woof!”
Kkamang. I believe in you. You are the embodiment of my feelings for the saintess.
─Crash!!
Once again, a burst of wind erupted from the sword, and it began to carve out a path toward the escape route.
“Junior!!”
“Oh my… junior?”
Cold sweat poured down my face. This was my third *Vacuum Slash* today. There was no way I could handle this without suffering consequences. On top of that, the debuffs from spirit communication were piling up.
“Please… Kkamang…!”
With those final words, my strength gave out, and I collapsed.
***
─Boom.
On the back mountain of the academy, a large pile of dirt was pushed up.
“Woof!”
Emerging from the ground was
the black Pomeranian.
“…We barely made it out alive. The apostle kept dragging us down until the very end.”
“Is junior… going to be okay? He seemed to have pushed himself too hard…”
***
“Don’t worry, my phoenix is guarding him. He doesn’t look well, but he’s not injured.”
“The healing magic isn’t working on him… What’s going on with his body?”
“Could he have been used as an experiment? By the Hero Cult, perhaps?”
Two figures looked down at the unconscious knight, wearing a helmet, with concern. Part of them wondered just where this strange “hero” had come from.
After all, he knew the layout and structure of the dungeon perfectly and even managed to see through the succubus’ dream trap. There was no holy sword in sight, but the possibility was strong.
‘I’ve heard stories of a rural boy named Kainel being chosen as the Hero of Light…’
Nex recalled what he had learned before, but the man lying before him—Licht—was different. No records of his family background could be found.
There was only one reason why someone this powerful could remain unknown as a hero.
“…It’s sad, really. Both Princess Phine and Licht… the Hero Cult must have done something to them.”