Demon-Hunting Genius Mage

[Translator - Prøks]

[Proofreader - Prøks]

Chapter 47

Kayla confidently declared while looking at the passerby.

"About 10 years ago? For a short time when I was young. After that, I awakened mana and was scouted."

She winked at the survivor after saying that.

"Right, ma'am?"

It was a very subtle wink, thrown from an angle the passerby couldn't see.

The survivor, who was about to say something, stopped at the wink and swallowed hard.

"Ha, haha... Yes, that's right. It's already been 10 years. How time flies."

"Indeed."

The passerby looked back and forth between the two and nodded as if convinced.

"Hmm, I see. You're lucky. Mana awakening isn't a common occurrence... You must have done a lot of good deeds."

"Well, I didn't live a bad life."

I breathed a sigh of relief inwardly as I listened to their conversation.

'That went well.'

It was fortunate that Kayla was quick-witted; we almost aroused unnecessary suspicion from the start.

It would have been troublesome since we hadn't yet grasped his intentions or obtained any information.

But since we had safely navigated that, we would be able to avoid similar suspicions for a while.

"Shall we continue then?"

Just as we were about to set off again...

"Wait, what about the ma'am? Do we take her with us?"

Kayla stopped us.

Now that she mentioned it, it was something to consider.

"It's certainly dangerous to do that."

It was risky to continue taking the survivor with us when we didn't know what would happen next.

But we couldn't send the survivor back to the temporary shelter alone either.

Fortunately, we didn't have to think about it for long.

"Let's do this. For now, Kayla will take her to the temporary shelter."

"And then?"

"When we find another survivor, Barundel will go to the temporary shelter. Kayla will join us again after meeting Barundel."

"So we'll gradually increase the number of survivors that way?"

"I think that's a good idea. We should be able to manage the battles even if we're one member short."

"Hmm, alright. Let's do that. Is that okay with you, ma'am?"

"Uh, uhm... I'm grateful as long as someone protects me."

"Let's go then."

Once the decision was made, Kayla left the building with the survivor.

We resumed our search only after she was gone.

After that, it was a repetition of the same process.

Eliminating Imps, entering buildings, searching for survivors...

It was a shame that we couldn't find any more survivors after the middle-aged woman, but anyway...

After about three hours, we almost reached our final destination.

"We're almost there."

According to the passerby, there was supposed to be a temporary shelter set up by the survivors, but...

"Hup!"

From my perspective, that seemed unlikely.

The closer we got to that place, the more frequently demons appeared.

Moreover...

Growl, growl!

Screech!

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The types of demons appearing were becoming more diverse, including Basilisk and Imps.

"Hambu-rger!"

Crash!

"Yuhan! There's more behind you!"

"I see them!"

Zap!

The situation was gradually becoming more challenging.

Hiding our true abilities and fighting with only three members had a significant impact.

'This won't be sustainable.'

We needed to minimize the risk.

It was time to take action.

"From here on, let's lure the demons and fight them. If we can even out the numbers, it will be much better than now."

"Alright."

"I'll be the bait, Mr. First Place."

Thompson thumped his chest as if saying to trust him.

I also thought it would be better for Thompson to take that role.

"If you feel like you're overdoing it, retreat immediately, mister."

"Don't worry. I'm first-class when it comes to running away."

Fortunately, the strategy worked well.

Click, clack, click, clack!

"Now!"

Slash!

Zap!

Thud.

The demons that followed the fleeing Thompson were caught in our surprise attack, their necks cut and chests pierced.

Whoosh-

The demons turned into gray dust and became experience points.

The hunting speed slowed down, but stability definitely increased.

"If we keep this up, it will be fine."

After about 30 more minutes...

"Phew... We're finally here."

We stopped in front of an abandoned building.

This was the final destination the passerby had mentioned.

However.

"Did you get the location wrong?"

The appearance was completely different from what I had expected.

Contrary to what he had said about it being a temporary shelter, the building was on the verge of collapse.

No matter how I looked at it, there was no way people could survive in a place like this.

"No, this is the place. I heard the shelter is underground."

"Underground?"

"Yes, this way."

The passerby entered the building without any hesitation and abruptly stopped somewhere, pointing at the floor.

There was a square groove in the floor.

It seemed this was the entrance to the underground shelter he was talking about.

"Heave-ho!"

Thud, thud, thud!

The passerby, without any explanation, suddenly lifted the grooved floor. A hidden passage was revealed underneath.

It looked less like something man-made and more like a naturally formed passage...

"Please go in first. I'll follow you."

The passerby pointed at the passage with his chin, seemingly unconcerned about its appearance.

And I felt an unknown sense of incongruity.

'What is this feeling?'

I wasn't sure, but the current situation seemed very unnatural.

What was it?

It didn't take long to find the answer.

'He's suddenly being proactive.'

This was a man who, under the pretext of not knowing how to fight, always stayed in the back, whether we were searching or fighting.

But now he was entering the building first, even lifting the floor himself... He had become strangely proactive.

As if he wanted us to go in there.

He must have been up to something.

'...What should I do?'

However, one thing bothered me: my heart wasn't pounding.

If this man had malicious intent and that malice was dangerous, my heart would have been pounding.

Only one reason came to mind.

'Does this mean he's not dangerous?'

If that was the case, there was no need for this concern.

If it wasn't dangerous, there would be no problem.

Rather, it was a good opportunity to figure out what the passerby's intentions were and what he was up to.

Making that judgement, I moved to the front, just in case.

"I'll go in first."

If a problem arose, I would be the one who could respond the quickest.

The moment I entered the passage with that thought...

"Huh?"

Woof! Woof! Woof! Woof!

The world suddenly spun, and a strange sound and a jolting sensation washed over me.

Then, the surrounding air changed.

No, the space I was standing in itself changed.

Instead of a dark passage, I was in a space with large stone walls extending on both sides.

The moment I saw those walls, I realized.

'A dungeon!'

That this was a dungeon in [Demon Fantasy].

That the passage was the entrance to a dungeon.

***

Dash!

Thompson, who was standing right behind Yuhan, stumbled backward in surprise.

He had seen it with his own eyes, but he couldn't believe it.

"Wh-what?!"

Barundel was equally surprised.

"What is this...!?"

The situation that surprised them both was this:

Yuhan, who had entered the passage, suddenly disappeared.

Thud!

"You son of a bitch...! What have you done to Mr. First Place?!"

Enraged, Thompson grabbed the passerby by the collar, veins bulging on his forehead.

Barundel held out his double-edged axe and placed it against the passerby's neck.

It seemed like he was about to slit his throat at any moment.

"It would be wise to confess honestly."

At this critical moment, where the situation could change in an instant, the passerby opened his mouth.

"Puhahaha..."

Instead of answering, he let out an unpleasant laugh.

For a moment, Thompson and Barundel hesitated inwardly.

'Should we kill him?'

'Should I just cut him down?'

But neither of them put their thoughts into action.

They knew that rash actions would only bring harm.

The standoff continued for a while.

Then the passerby opened his mouth again.

"You'd better follow him quickly. Otherwise... your leader. You might never see him again."

"...What? This bastard!"

Just as Thompson, unable to control his anger, was about to throw a punch...

Thump.

Barundel grabbed his fist and stopped him.

"Dwarf! What are you doing! We need to beat this guy up..."

"...Thompson, he's right."

"...Do you know something?"

At Thompson's question, Barundel nodded with a serious expression.

"I've heard it before. About the existence of 'dungeons' in this world. The current phenomenon is exactly the same as what I heard back then."

"...Dungeons? What are those?!"

"Simply put, they are spaces in another dimension. Various strange phenomena occur within them, and monsters that don't exist in this world inhabit them. And the most important thing is..."

Barundel swallowed hard and continued.

"...that if you don't escape within the allotted time, the dungeon will be closed."

"...Closed? What happens then?"

"You'll wander inside forever. Like a lost child drifting through space."

"This is crazy...!"

Thompson's pupils trembled.

He looked like a child who didn't know what to do.

It was understandable, considering the man who was supposed to fulfill his dream was in danger.

But there was no time to calm him down.

"There's no time. We need to go in and find a way for Yuhan to escape."

‘If we hesitated, we might really lose Yuhan forever, just as the man had said.’

Thompson, who had grasped the situation to some extent, let out a deep sigh.

"Sigh... So you're saying if we go in there, we can meet Yuhan?"

"That's right."

"Alright."

That answer was enough for Thompson to make up his mind.

Whack!

Thompson shoved the passerby he was holding hard.

The passerby fell to the floor helplessly, and Thompson glared at him and cracked his knuckles.

"Hey, skinny. I'll see you later."

With that, Thompson started walking.

Without a moment's hesitation.

Whoosh!

Thompson disappeared into the passage.

"...It would be best to run as far away as possible. We'll be out soon."

Barundel also threw a word and followed Thompson.

Whoosh!

The two who had been threatening him disappeared, and the building became quiet again, as if it had never been noisy.

The passerby, who was lying on the floor, got up with an expressionless face.

He leisurely dusted off his pants and grinned.

"...It doesn't matter if you come out or not. My target isn't you anyway. Haha!"

At the same time...

Whoosh!

An eerie mana flowed out from around him.

"It's time for a feast."

It had been a long time since he had such delicious hearts before him.

[Translator - Prøks]

[Proofreader - Prøks]