The knights of Eos were in particular a bigger problem than the rest. I still remembered well the saintess of Eos and her guardian knight. Both of them were people who marched to their own drums.

They were the only people who did not look at me with disdain in their eyes while I was at Crimson for my lack of abilities. Or should I say, they were the ones who didn’t look ‘only’ at me with disdain in their eyes. Anyone who had not proven their worth was trash for them. Some trash might be better than other trash, but trash was still trash.

I bit my lips. There was no option here. Dozens of trained knights? There was no way I was going to win.

My best option was to leave this place. It looked like they had come here prepared to sweep the entire labyrinth.

“That’s why they weren’t up there last time. Dispell.”

Hiding behind the trees, I unsummoned the Skelians and peeked out. The paladins were making their way closer. What was worse, they had already spread out in a wide arc to cover all spots from the cave.

Should I pincer through? It might be possible if I targeted a knight, but the risk was far too great. It was an unfortunate outcome, but leaving the labyrinth was going to be the best way to avoid them right now.

I didn’t fear dying. But if any of them recognized me as the hero who was supposed to be dead, gathering any kind of strength would become impossible. I had to leave—

My train of thought was interrupted. A chill ran down my spine. I sharply turned toward the cave, and then at the paladins circling the spot.

“Danger—” My voice wasn’t louder than a whisper, and like a whisper, it went unheard against the heavy boom of air. Blood splattered everywhere as one of the paladins fell from the center.

His intestines flew up and his blood fell on the blue armor of the one on his left, and again.

—BOOM!

“A-ambush!! It’s an ambush!!”

The paladins panicked and started running toward each other to change formation. This was my chance. I quickly turned back and set off. Running past the trees on the sides, leaving the artificially made clearing behind.

Just once. I glanced back and closed my eyes.

‘That’s right… these people deserve this.’

The paladins were still falling one after another. Just like me, they too thought the enemy was in the cave. Its presence was unmistakable.

“How are these attacks possible!?”

“Go behind! Go behind the cave!!”

The paladins haphazardly ran around to circle the cave. At the same time, magic circles formed in the air as they gathered their wits. The tankers and warriors protected the wizards while some went with the healers to gather whomever they could save.

Third Circle… Fourth… A collaboration spell involving multiple fourth circle spells formed above the caves. My eyes widened in awe…

This was the clear difference between fighting individually and in a group. The ability to merge spells of the same level with different casters to increase its power by many magnitudes…

“Insane. That’s supposed to be fourth circle?”

Together, the seven casters bombarded the cave with a rain of flames. It felt like a ton of TNT blasting off. My body instinctively fell to the ground as the shockwaves spread, rustling through my hair. When I looked back, only a charred rock remained in place of the cave. Everything had been burnt down. No… exploded.

Debris from the explosion had lodged into the trees as far as I was.

Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

“Is it over…?” one of the paladins asked.

“Nothing can survive that…”

The ground propelled me forward, it was time to leave.

“GAH!”

A scream. I looked back yet again.

The paladin who had posed the first question was split in two from the center, vertically. Its body fell to the ground as the others watched on.

“R-run!! Regroup at point F! Everyone split into squads and run!”

How… how was this possible? Just where in the hell is that damned being?

I took the knights’ signal and dashed off myself. All of them started running in different directions, much like the tactics Skelians had used with the bear.

And much like that time, the being seemed to be coming in the same direction I was in. Two groups of four paladins were running my way as one of them lost his leg, alongside three trees next to it. The other paladin immediately swooped in and grabbed his friend.

They were getting closer. Over and over, the trees were being chopped through.

This was troublesome, exceedingly troublesome.

The last thing I wanted with the paladins around was to be killed by something I couldn’t even see. I kicked off the ground with all my might. Mana flowed into my feet and sent me rappelling forward. The paladins noticed me and ran as well.

“Hey, you! Are you an adventurer!?”

“There’s no time just run!”

I knew the forest better than the others. It had become my dwelling all this time.

“Just use a return stone and leave!” One of the paladins said.

A return stone? What the hell was that now!? I looked back at the paladins but they weren’t going to give me an answer. Another gust of wind spread through as more trees fell, the being was right on our tail.

There was no other choice. I had to make a tough call and one that I wasn’t going to regret. Since I knew the topology way better than the rest…

I could use them as bait and leave. I turned back to trick the paladins, but they spoke before me.

“Adventurer! Don’t worry about your party members, the other paladins will help everyone out of the labyrinth!”

“Hey…? Wait wait wait! I don’t have any—”

The paladins behind me all pulled out a stone. “Leave and meet us outside!” They said.

At that moment, a blue light engulfed everyone and they all disappeared from the dungeon…

I almost wanted to stop running. The people I was planning to bait for my escape escaped first.

This wasn’t how it was supposed to be! They didn’t even hear me out! My raging got no chance to continue as a lock of my hair fell, followed by the tree right behind me sliding off to the ground.

The cave-dweller was here. I once again started to run with all my might. The blue stone that they had pulled out.

I knew it. I had seen it. From the very first time I robbed a grave, I found a carefully contained blue stone. Maybe this was the reason everyone entered the labyrinth legally instead of like me.

“[Return to Hell]!” The Skelians returned from the ground right behind me. “Distract that thing! 13, you come with me!”

Skelian 13 followed me while the others formed a wall. They used the immobile Skelians as a shield and tried to hold off the Cave-dweller. One by one, their bodies crumbled from the cave-dweller's strikes, but the time they bought was enough.

13 and I ran toward my base, the spot where all the bags we had gathered were piled up. After a final turn, I and 13 jumped out from the midst of a thick growth of trees and landed on the dirt. Stones flew up as I skidded to a stop.

In front of me, hovering over the bags was a giant scorpion made of human flesh. Very much like the scorpion I had first killed, right near this spot. Without hesitation, I stretched my hand outward.

“13 find the stone! Water orbs!”

Six orbs of water formed behind my back. The giant fleshy scorpion turned my way and raised its claws.

The orbs of water merged into one and crystallized from the front. Their size increased to half that of the scorpion itself. The scorpion could only watch as the spear dashed forward with a flick of my wrist.

[Water Magic: Ice Spear - Variation Gigant (3rd Circle)]

The ice spear dashed through the head of the scorpion. It poked through the carapace on its head, tearing into its body, and then came out of the other side. The ice spear and the scorpion gouged through the ground before it fell limp.

I didn’t bother to spare it another glance and turned back. The being from the cave was far scarier.

Mana coursed through my body. Using a weapon here was impossible, I couldn’t even see the being. But that meant I should be able to attack it.

“13!? Did you find it?”

“Return stone…? Do you have it?”

Since when could the Skelians talk? In my surprise, I glanced at 13 and froze for god knows which time today.

Behind me, near the bags, 13 was stopped in its tracks. In front of it stood a being with ashen skin and a crimson-red horn. Black blood seeped out of its stomach and its mouth as it tried to crawl toward my loot.

“A-a… demon?”

An injured demon. Gravely injured.

“I won’t harm you, dark mage if you help… We are the same kind. Do you have a return stone…?”

There was no time to be confused. Our lives were on the line. I snapped back at it. “Help the undead! It should be in the bags.”

“What are you doing?” The demon asked, as if angry that I wasn’t helping.

“I am planning to take care…”

A gust of wind struck us as the trees I had crossed earlier broke apart. A long, straight line stretched in front of us, devoid of any trees from the forest. Only the remains of the woods and the skeletons were present on the ground.

“… Of that.”