Welcome to the Impregnable Demon King Castle Chapter 203

203 – The Pitch Black 4th Stratum

The 4th Stratum was pitch black.

「I see, so it's going to be like this…」

Ex's voice.

A welcome unique to an Original Dungeon.

In a Dungeon Clear where it is important for the viewers to be able to enjoy it, even if there is a dark area, there would be no such thing as a pitch-black area.

In the 10th Stratum of the Demon King Castle, there was special lighting that maintained a balance of “A dim area where you can still have clear vision.”」

However, this 4th Stratum is engulfed in true darkness that makes it difficult to even tell the boundary between the space and yourself.

Even if Merlin and I are skilled in sensing Magical Energy and the top-notch Adventurers excel at sensing the enemy's presence, we still rely heavily on our vision.

「But this kind of thing is also very Dungeon-like and interesting. Isn't a Dungeon originally supposed to be a place where you go explore carefully while holding a torch?」

Merlin muttered cheerfully, then she created a fireball.

「You're not going to create a torch?」

「This is more convenient. You should also walk while holding up your Holy Sword.」

「My Holy Sword is not a torch.」

During the conversation between Arthur and Merlin, the other parties also brought out their own lights one after another.

Most of them are created from Fire-attribute Magic, but some people had lanterns.

In my party, Sitri created a light ball.

It wasn't part of the Four Major Elements, but I'm not surprised to see that, especially after considering Sitri's ability to recreate.

Rather than that, although I said it was a ball, it wasn't actually round. A heart shape was giving off the light.

「Now then, how should we move? What're your thoughts, Lem?」

Ex's faintly illuminated face turned to me.

Rather than just wanting to know my opinion, it's more likely that he's asking this to confirm whether our opinions matched or not. 

「If we believe that this place is the same as the precedent, that once we set foot in here then the structure will no longer change. Then it's possible for us to explore this place little by little, but…」

「I don't really want to spend too much time here. I want to go to the 5th Stratum by the afternoon.」

「If that's the case, I'll have to ask Ex or Merlin to work hard.」

「It'll be Ex. Hey, hurry up.」

Merlin answered immediately.

「You… sigh, I'll do my best. Then, everyone, I'll borrow your shadow for a moment.」

Immediately after we entered the Safe Room, all of our shadows were stepped on by Ex. Of course, he did this after receiving our consent.

It's called Group Shadow.

It is a state in which he controls the shadows of multiple targets.

There are a few magic spells that can be developed from this state.

In this case, the shadows take the form of small birds and animals and fly into the darkness.

This is called Birds and Animals Scouting. It allows the caster to explore the field with shadows that are shaped like birds and animals.

With the shadows of this many people, it should be able to cover quite a wide area.

As long as we move based on the terrain that has been explored, we won't waste any time.

「Eh, so cute…」

Sitri muttered.

There are certainly many cute silhouettes, such as small birds and rabbits.

「Thank you. I wonder if it's possible for you to recreate these as well?」

「That… I guess you can look forward to finding out that answer when you come to the Demon King Castle.」

Sitri said, while putting her index finger on her lips and tilting her head.

「…Ahaha, that's true. I have one additional thing to look forward to then.」

「Hey Ex, to think that you're looking forward to meeting the lovely maids… Good grief.」

「No, that's not what I meant.」

Merlin laughed at Ex, who had a troubled expression.

Even while they're talking, the shadow birds and animals were moving and Merlin was refining her Magical Energy.

We naturally formed a formation in which people with shields and excellent physical abilities surround the Wizards to protect them.

Then, I noticed that Ex's shoulders jolted.

「…The animals were trampled on. By something huge. The birds…disappeared, no, wait, they were erased?」

Those made from shadows will return to their original state even if they are crushed. It won't receive fatal damage because it is originally something that does not have a shape, the magic merely gave it a temporary shape.

As long as it receives Magical Energy, it can continue to explore the terrain.

But…it was erased?

Erased? That usually won't happen.

「So you're saying that it's not because you stopped supplying Magical Energy, right?」

Merlin asked.

「Yeah.」

「…Your Spirit Magic got erased. This is going to be troublesome.」

「…It's probably because of an Evil Eye.」

One of Lemegeton's subordinates, the Evil Eye Assassin Botis also possesses an Evil Eye, but there are a lot of different types of Evil Eye. 

Botis's Evil Eye can petrify. It is not uncommon for the petrification speed, range of effect, and activation conditions to differ depending on the owner.

「Since this Dungeon tends to recreate the race rather than the individual, it's very likely it will recreate a race with the Evil Eye rather than an Evil Eye possessor who lived a long time ago. So, it's probably-」

Except for the lanterns, all the other lights have disappeared.

The problem is that no one undid their spell.

It was forcibly erased.

Boom…boom… The sound of the ground shaking.

The sound made it apparent that a being around the size of a Giant was approaching us. 

「Hmm… it's dark, our magic has been erased, and a group of Giants are approaching… This is fun.」

As an Adventurer, I don't feel that Merlin's way of thinking is odd.

It would be different if life and death were at stake, but encounters with the unknown and new experiences are exciting.

However, we will lose if we only feel excited and do nothing, so we have to quickly come up with a plan.

She looked at me.

「Lem, where do you think the enemy is?」

「Probably above. With the combination of this darkness and the sealing of our magic, it's a pretty advantageous position to be in.」

「Yes, but we can't detect it.」

「The Magical Energy density here is high. The Imitations and the Dungeon were made from the same Magical Energy, so it'll be hard to find them when it's so dense.」

「That's a problem. This means that we're no better than the non-combatants.」

She said, while not sounding as if she's troubled.

「First, Merlin should regroup with the combatants. Ex as well.」

「Ufufu, I'll do that then. Ex, you heard that, right?」

「Yeah.」

Ex's shadows seemed to have hindered their progress.

He and Merlin stood side by side and we gathered together with the two of them in the center.

As for the top, multiple shields were used as a ceiling.

A wall of people and a roof made of shields. This will protect us from the Evil Eye.

「U-um…! You're saying that we can't use magic? What's going on here…?!」

Someone shouted.

「Oh, sorry about that. I forgot to explain. This is probably the work of Gazers.」

Many of them were surprised, while others didn't seem to get it.

「G-Gazers? Aren't those Monsters that are often mentioned in books!?」「The huge eyeball-shaped Demi-Beast that was destroyed a long time ago…」「So the Evil Eye that can nullify magic actually existed…」「Even extinct species are starting to show up.」

It is now an extinct species that only appears in folktales and fiction stories.

It's not surprising that some of the current Adventurers have never heard of it.

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「I can't use my Summon Magic… Miss Furcus?」

「Mm, it won't extend.」

Maggie's prediction had hit the mark. The Gazers' Evil Eye negates even the special abilities of Magic Tools.

Including the divine protection granted to Arthur's and Ex's Holy Swords.

However, there is a condition. It can only be nullified when the Gazers have it inside their field of vision.

Black Magic and White Magic will not work on inanimate objects, but Avatars aren't exactly living things.

However, Black and White Magic is effective on Avatars. That's because they were configured to be so.

It seems that the Spirits also followed the human's rules and put a restriction on the nullification ability of the Gazers.

Otherwise, the body constructed from Magical Energy would have dissipated as well.

They probably wanted to make the battle as realistic as possible.

「Lem, do you have a plan?」

Merlin chuckled.

She's giving me a chance to think. If I didn't have a plan, then she would handle it.

Part of me wants to observe how she would handle this, but I can't waste this good opportunity.

It's not every day that I get the experience of dealing with an extinct species while receiving the support of this group of people.

「…It's a very violent strategy though.」

「Go ahead and tell us.」

I set the channel of the communicator to the whole group.

「Both I and Merlin can't trace the Gazers' Magical Energy signature. However, I think they are located on top of us. We're not sure how many of them are there, but all of us are currently in their field of vision. Right now, we should temporarily surround some of the members to shield them from the enemy's sight.」

「Hm… that's so unfair.」

The male Ogre had an indignant tone.

「Among us, Arthur and Furcus have excellent perception ability, except for sensing Magical Energy. Ex is ​​also proficient at it, but I want you to refine your Magical Energy…」

「Thank you for saying that, Lem. However, neither I nor Furcus can fly in the sky. Moreover, Miss Margret and Miss Milla probably also can't use their flying abilities now, right?」

It takes Magical Energy to summon Magic Tools and to manipulate blood. Now that our magic is sealed, we have no way to fly.

「In addition to Josh's and Merlin's White Magic, I will borrow her strength.」

The one I picked was the Rabbit Demi-Human.

「Eh, did you call me?」

「Yes. First of all, the two people that are shielded from the Gazer's field of sight will cast White Magic on her, then she'll jump while bringing Arthur and Furcus with her. She'll be able to exert greater leg strength when we time the shield to be removed right before she jumps.」

「Hmm? That's fine with me, but wouldn't all three of us fall to the ground and be forced to leave the field though?」

「Before you fall, we'll get Arthur and Furcus to defeat all the Gazers there.」

I could see all the clan members gasping.

Gazers can erase magic. Its effects as well. That's why it's impossible to fly with Wind Magic.

I have also considered this point of having the magic nullified right after she jumps when I chose to enhance her jumping strength. It doesn't matter even if the enhancement is nullified after she jumps.

I'm not even sure if this strategy can be called a strategy.

However, it's a different story if these two people are the ones doing it.

If it is the Knight Lord and the Reaper Knight, it's not an impossible feat.

「Hm, I understand.」

「Since my junior believes in me and thinks that we can pull this off, as his senior I'll show that we can do this.」

The two people in question weren't surprised and just directly walked to the center of the group.

The Rabbit Demi-Human soon followed.

「If that's the case, I'll even jump to the moon. The moon hasn't come out yet though.」

We proceeded with our preparations.

「I'm telling you now, even though I'm a Great Wizard, I'm not proficient at White Magic. Because I have a different aptitude. Don't have high expectations.」

Saying that I shouldn't have a high expectation, what a Merlin-like thing to say.

「Uh… Lem…」

By the way, since Sitri is also in the field of sight of the Gazers, she returned back to her original appearance, which is a small leopard with wings.

She seems to dislike that appearance, so she has taken an emergency refuge in the chest pocket of the Black Sorcerer robe.

「It's okay.」

I said to reassure her.

Milla was also nonchalantly standing in a position where she could cover Sitri. She has also retrieved Sitri's clothes.

「We're ready. It's time to launch the Knights.」

Arthur is a Paladin and Furcus is sometimes called the Dark Knight.

「Are you ready, Josh?」

「Yes…!」

The footsteps that shook the ground are getting quite close. On top of that, there are multiple footsteps.

They might be right in front of us.

To attack while being surrounded in total darkness and with no magic is rough.

The role of supporting the shields held above was now taken over by tall people, including the male Ogres.

We decided that with their height, there would still be enough time even if they remove the shield immediately after her jump.

「Let's go.」

A Rabbit Demi-Human held the two of them and crouched down.

Then…she jumped.

A hole was created in the ground along with a thunderous sound.

The timing of removing the shield was perfect.

「If they can't beat the Gazers… the three of them will…」

I heard someone feeling anxious.

After a while, something crashed into the ground.

Some people were surprised to hear the sound of the impact.

Right at that moment, the lantern light illuminated the figure for a moment.

A huge sphere large enough to fit a child inside.

It was a huge blackish eyeball. 

A Gazer.

The enemy groaned and then dissipated into magic particles.

「I wonder how many are left.」

Merlin and I are refining our Magical Energy while being protected by the shields.

「…I missed the chance to hear the explanation before. Can someone tell me how they can beat the Gazers in the middle of the air?」

「The Imitations are the same as Avatars, they dissipate into magic particles instead of dying. Conversely, they will continue to exist as long as they don't die. So we need to inflict a fatal injury on it and then jump to the next one before it dissipates.」

Ex said in a light tone, but there's not a lot of people who can actually pull this off.

On top of that, they are doing this while being surrounded in darkness, only relying on the enemy's presence while not even knowing how many of them are actually there. 

「Maggie.」「Milla.」

「Yes.」「I'm ready.」

Maggie and Milla responded to the voice of Merlin and I.

「Everyone, it will be bright soon and don't be surprised by whatever you see.」

Merlin continued to pour out a small amount of Magical Energy to check whether it would be erased or not.

If it stopped being erased, then the plan was successful.

「Okay, let there be light.」

Like a firework being launched, it bloomed in the sky.

It's like a small sun.

It illuminated the darkness and we could see what exactly was making the ground rumble. 

What we saw was…

Chapter end