Karnak, Monarch of Death

Sores did, in fact, know about Edia. Contrary to expectations, she was a key target of the Wellad branch.

”So, Edia was the objective from the start? Not the Altas merchant guild?”

”Yes.”

Karnak’s group had assumed that this kidnapping incident was nothing more than a power struggle between merchant guilds. They had believed that Tecas merchant guild had simply used Owent as a pawn to swallow up a smaller firm. But the situation seemed a bit more complicated than that.

”The first target was Owent Altas. The higher-ups gave strict orders to recruit him into the cult because of his exceptional business acumen.”

Karnak frowned and pressed further. ”Owent is just a small-time merchant from a traveling trade family. Why would anyone think he’s an exceptional businessman?”

”I don’t know. It was simply an order from above...”

Karnak and Varos exchanged looks.

—This reeks of...

—Someone who knows the future, doesn’t it?

But once they actually brought Owent in, it turned out the man was far more foolish than they had expected. No matter how generously they assessed him, he showed no signs of being a brilliant merchant. Only after further investigation did they realize the truth. Edia was the real brains behind the merchant guild, while Owent was nothing more than a figurehead.

”So you kidnapped Edia instead, after figuring that out?”

”Yes.”

Because of this, she was now being personally monitored by Hugot, the highest-ranking member of the Wellad branch. She was forced to attend mass regularly, where they repeatedly cast enchantments on her in an effort to brainwash her into joining the cult. When awake, she was never left unattended. Even when sleeping, she was confined to a solitary room to prevent escape.

”If she’s kept in solitary, it’ll make it easier to sneak her out.”

Milia’s eyes gleamed. “Mister Leven, you said you found a map earlier, right?”

While the others interrogated Sores, Leven had been busy ransacking his room. As the manager of the residential area, Sores had kept plenty of documents and records. Among them, Leven had found a detailed map of the Maleficus Dungeon, as well as ledgers for food supplies and other daily necessities.

With these, they could estimate the gender ratio and total number of residents. By reverse-engineering weapon distribution records, they could also make a rough assessment of the cult’s military strength. Since Karnak’s original mission was to gather intel on the cult’s total combat power, this information couldn’t be overlooked.

Leven pulled out the map and asked, ”Where is Miss Edia being held?”

Sores, his mind completely broken, answered without hesitation. With nothing more to extract from him, Milia’s eyes started sparkling once more. ”So, Captain Karnak... where should we bury this one?”

She seemed to have developed quite a fondness for burying cultists alive. Of course, digging into a stone floor and making a racket wasn’t an option, so that idea was dismissed.

”Knock him out and shove him in the closet.”

With Sores out of sight, Karnak fell into thought. They now knew Edia’s location. All that remained was to wait until the cultists were asleep and then retrieve her. The problem was finding a good hiding spot to escape detection until then.

Karnak glanced around the room, then let out a wry chuckle. ”There’s no better place than right here.”

Sores had made it very clear that no one was to enter his room until morning. They all understood why, though none of them wanted to.

”As long as we stay here, we’ll never get caught. At least, unless someone ranked higher than Sores shows up.”

Fortunately, the room was spacious enough for the entire group to rest comfortably. Everyone settled into a spot to wait.

Without thinking much of it, Karnak turned to Milia and Lapicel. ”You two should rest on the bed. It’ll be more comfortable.”

Both girls’ faces twisted in horror.

”That bed?”

”Absolutely not.”

”Ah, fair enough.” Karnak nodded in understanding.

Then he realized—he understood.

—Wait, did I just relate to their feelings?

—Same here, young master. Maybe we really are becoming human.

Watching the two, Serati gave them an awkward smile. Did something as minor as this really mean they were becoming more human?

Well... I suppose taking the first step is always the hardest part.

***

The day’s routine had come to an end. Most of the magic lamps and torches had been extinguished, and a heavy shadow settled over the entire residential area. Edia was locked away in her solitary room. It was no different from a prison.

What should I do now?

Lying on the worn-out bed, she stared up at the ceiling. She struggled to keep her mind clear, but it wasn’t easy. As time passed, stray thoughts crept in. Maybe these people weren’t so bad after all. This was still a place where people lived, wasn’t it? Perhaps she could pretend to go along with them, gain their trust, and then escape later? She shook her head violently.

No, I can’t do that.

Regardless of what she truly believed, once she crossed that line, she would already be one of them. She would never be able to live as she once had.

Why do I keep thinking like this? Forcing herself to focus, she reminded herself, No. There’s no way these people are decent.

If they were, then why did they assign her a constant escort during the day and lock her in a solitary room at night? Of course, they had their official justifications. The person assigned to her wasn’t a guard, but a mentor. They were only an experienced guide for new believers.

And she hadn’t been locked up in solitary confinement. She had been given special treatment with a private room.

“Hah!” She scoffed.

If that’s really the case, then why is the door locked from the outside? If this were truly a private room, it would lock from the inside.

Just as she glared at the door handle in the darkness, it suddenly turned without a sound.

Huh?

It was so silent that, for a moment, she wondered if she had imagined it. But that wasn’t the end of it. The door creaked open. Still, there was no noise. Yet whenever she had opened it before, the rusted hinges had always let out an awful screech.

Breaking the silence, a faint but familiar voice called out. ”Miss Edia, are you here?”

A group entered the room. When she saw the dark-haired man at the front, she doubted her own eyes.

”Lord Karnak?”

There was no mistake. It was Baron Karnak—the largest investor in the Altas merchant guild.

”How... how are you here?”

”We’ve come to rescue you. I’m glad to see you unharmed.”

Edia trembled faintly. ”Ah...”

She was a capable merchant. She understood all too well what would happen to Altas merchant guild if she disappeared. And yet, he had come all the way to this foreign land to save her? Simply because he believed in her worth as a merchant? Had anyone else ever acknowledged her value to this extent? Overwhelmed with emotion, she felt tears streaming down her face before she even realized it.

Leven clicked his tongue. ”Ah. You must’ve been through a lot.”

The others looked at her with sympathy. She must have suffered immensely to break down in tears the moment she saw her rescuers. That is, everyone except Karnak.

Wait a second... did her enchantment just turn in the wrong direction?

Edia had been resisting the cult’s enchantments for so long. But the moment she let her guard down, the blind loyalty the cult had been steadily building collapsed all at once. The problem was that it had redirected itself in another direction.

Uh... what do I do about this?

Karnak hesitated for a moment before coming to a conclusion.

Let’s just leave it alone.

It wasn’t like this was a bad thing for him.

If she’s going to be completely loyal to me, that’s not exactly a problem, is it?

As she checked the corridor outside, Serati urged, ”Let’s get her out of here.”

”Wait a moment.”

Stopping her, Karnak pulled out a magic wand. ”Better to check, just in case.”

Edia had been a high-priority captive and locked in solitary confinement. It wouldn’t have been strange for them to place some kind of tracking spell on her.

If I were in their shoes, I would have.

He scanned Edia’s entire body with the wand. But he was met with unexpected results. There were no spells or necromantic curses attached to her.

So she wasn’t that important? Or did they simply never consider that outsiders would infiltrate this far?

Either way, it meant she was safe.

Wait, are we not going to save Owent?

As he searched his memory, he recalled that most of the so-called righteous people he had encountered always insisted on rescuing both husband and wife. Just in case, he decided to ask.

Edia’s response was immediate. ”There’s no need.”

”What?”

”That bastard isn’t my husband or anything else. Leave him.”

Her expression was so cold and merciless that he didn’t dare press the issue. Instead, he turned to Serati.

—Are we... still acting like normal people here?

—Uh, well, I mean, for now?

He noticed that Leven and Milia were both nodding, as if this was the obvious course of action.

I don’t really get it, but if everyone else thinks it’s fine, then I guess it is?

Karnak gestured toward the door.

”Let’s get out of here.”

***

The underground passage was a mix of natural caves and carved stone walls. Karnak’s group moved silently through the dense darkness.

At the front, Leven scouted ahead before signaling with his hand. This way!

Up ahead, a lone cultist stood watch. He wasn’t a necromancer, just an ordinary lay follower. If they had been guarding the dungeon’s outer perimeter or the residential area’s borders, the cult would have assigned combat-trained personnel. But for something as minor as this night watch, they couldn’t afford to waste valuable fighters.

Karnak cast a spell on him. ”Sleep.”

Sleep was a minor spell. It was just strong enough to induce a sudden wave of drowsiness. Even a regular person could resist it with enough focus. But for someone already sleepy, it was more than enough to knock them out completely.

The cultist yawned and slumped against the wall before closing his eyes. He likely believed he was simply too tired and had decided to rest his eyes for a moment. Even as a group of intruders passed right in front of him, he remained oblivious.

As they moved past without issue, Leven whispered, ”Having a map makes this much easier.”

The most useful part wasn’t just the map itself, but rather that it also contained the guard duty schedule. Since Sores had been in charge of managing the residential area, he had also arranged the night watch shifts. Thanks to that, they knew exactly when and where the sentries would be stationed.

”That perverted bastard turned out to be useful in the end.” Karnak chuckled and kept moving forward.

After traveling a little further, they reached a massive chamber, likely an ancient auditorium. Beyond a collapsed section on the far end lay another uninhabited zone. From there, all they had to do was take down some wandering monsters, just as they had when they entered.

”Wait a moment.” Leven pressed himself against the wall before peering into the room. “Gargoyles.”

Necromantically petrified monsters were stationed throughout the chamber. Karnak focused his mind for a moment.

They aren’t set to react automatically.

He had suspected as much. A fully automatic response system couldn’t be used in a residential area. Otherwise, the statues would attack every time a cultist passed by. These gargoyles would only activate when triggered by a specific magical signal.

No need to mess with them and cause unnecessary trouble.

They could likely pass through without any issue, but overconfidence was never a good habit.

”I’ll cast an invisibility spell. Gather around for a moment.”

Only after taking this precaution did Karnak’s group resume their advance. They made it to the center of the auditorium without incident.

”Ah?”

A faint light suddenly flared beneath Edia’s feet.A glowing pattern emerged, drawing a black magic circle before sending signals toward the surrounding statues. The statues awakened with a deafening roar.

Varos turned to Karnak, wide-eyed. ”What the hell? Didn’t you check everything already?”

Karnak was just as shocked. ”I did! There was nothing wrong!”