Chapter 176

I was lost in my thoughts as I  followed the map; before I knew it, I had reached my destination.

This is the room of the people who had sent the attackers to the first room I had arrived at.

[39]

Contrary to the previous room which could only accommodate seven people, this was a room that could house quite a few members.

They had that many more combatants and were stronger.

That meant that they had a force capable of protecting the room.

I was walking around nearby, and a demon who appeared to be the gatekeeper approached me.

Just by looking at him, you could tell that he didn’t have the attitude of a guard.

“Who are you! This room is full. If you don’t want to die, go back and take a different path.”

“A different path?”

“Yeah, you can’t pass through this room!”

I spread out the map and checked the paths in the surrounding area.  

If I don’t go through this room, I’ll have to walk back quite the distance.

Honestly, it isn’t an issue to me.

Especially because I have business in this room.

I heard the sounds of screams echo out from inside the room as well as the smell of blood, so I was sure that I came to the right place.

“This is my last warning. Get lost! We also have an alliance with the Kraagor group. You won’t die painlessly if you start an argument pointlessly!”

It seems like I did come to the right place, as expected.

I didn’t need to go through the hassle of checking, since the gatekeeper so kindly told me.

“Ahbooboo.”

[My name is Ahoubuch, Warrior.]

The holy sword slipped out of the sheath, and started flying again.

Whether there are five enemies, or thirty-seven, it was all pointless before the holy sword, which was clad in aura and flying at high speeds.  

It didn’t take very long before the demons within the room were all incapacitated.

I approached the gatekeeper demon that the holy sword had deliberately left alive.

I asked the demon, whose shoulder had been pierced by the holy sword and embedded in the wall.

“So, how do I find that Kraagor or whatever group?”

The half-panicked demon shook just from my approach, but I was somehow able to calm him down and get him to mark the map.

After telling me the location, the embedded holy sword promptly took care of him.

There were three other demons inside the room, who looked as though they had been captured and  tortured.

I passed out a few potions to them.

They came into possession of a vacant room, so they wouldn’t die as long as they stayed here.

They also wouldn’t have to worry about the group exacting their revenge.

Since I’ll take care of everything.

That’s what I told them, but the three demons just kept shaking.

They couldn’t even look me in the eye, so I couldn’t be sure that they understood me.

I left the room and started walking again.

And I resumed pondering over the concerns that I had briefly pushed aside.

To be exact, I was looking back at my memories, and was watching them in third-person.

It was like watching a movie.

I analyzed myself, as if I were inferring a main character’s values and troubles within a movie.

As I recollected how I had thought and acted in the past, I needed to figure out how I had changed, as well as how I was changing.

At the end of that long retrospection, I could focus on one thing.

From a while back, I had helped those who were weak.

There were a lot of memories of me doing so.

Or did I not?

There was a small difference between helping other people, and trying to help someone.

Maybe not.

Let’s think about it a little more.

I needed a lot more time than I had expected to retrace my past.

I had soon arrived at one of the rooms that those Kraagor group guys were staying at.

The demon that I had met just a little while ago said that the Kraagor group possessed more than ten rooms, both large and small.

This was the room that was closest.

[24]

Their numbers were a slightly smaller than before.

“Hey you, stop right there. Where are you trying to go, all bloodied like that?”

“This is a room where the Kraagor group is staying, right?”

“That’s… true, but what business do you have here? Have you perhaps come to see the Room Leader?”

I found the right place again.

“Ahbooboo.”

[I told you, it’s Ahoubuch!]

It took less time for the holy sword to clean up than it took to walk over to the room.

As a result, I could head over to the next room without even pausing.

Since I already knew where all the rooms that were a part of the group were located, I didn’t need anything else.

When I thought about it, rather than helping the weak, it seems like I had a different goal.

After crossing a certain line, I couldn’t just let someone I considered an enemy go.

It wasn’t just in the Tutorial where I had to kill my enemies; it was on Earth as well.

Those hostile or deceitful towards me.

Even if they didn’t directly try to inflict me any harm, if I see the people around me get hurt, I would gladly intervene.

Of course, the result of that wasn’t always great.

Though I could say that I had more interest in those who would become my enemies than those who were weak, my desire to help the weak was earnest nonetheless.

Let’s go back to square one.

Do I correct my weakness or hold onto it?

That was my concern.

Let’s assume that I fix my weakness.

I’ll put aside whether fixing it is possible for now.

It would certainly be to my advantage in clearing floors if I didn’t have to differentiate between killing the virtuous and the wicked or the weak and the strong.

It would also reduce the level of danger.

Let’s take a look at the current situation. If I were to have killed all the demons indiscriminately, I would already have more than a thousand tokens.

However, the amount of tokens that I had gathered up till now only numbers one-hundred and seven.

If I wasn’t selective about killing and focused  on clearing quickly and safely to grow…

There’d be a high chance that I’d go insane.

And if I were to not deal with my weakness?

It’d conversely become that much more dangerous.

Let’s think about this carefully.

My current idleness leads to danger and a crumbling morality, and I tried to figure out which side the balanced scale would lean towards when I added this element of danger.

* * * * * *

“Ahhh!”

“Boss, boss! We have to surrender before we all die! Boss? Hey, where’s the boss!”

“He’s over there running away by himself, you dumbass! Catch him!”

“Hey! Catch the boss over there!”

“It’s too late to catch him, you idiots. We have to fight on our own.”

“Who are you calling an idiot? How are we supposed to fight that…”

[Hahaha! Burn! To the point where the blood in your body boils! Make your blood even hotter for me!]

[Holy Light! Burning Field! Fire Wall! Poison Fog!]

The holy sword flew around erratically, casting all sorts of different spells. One of the spells created a poisonous mist, which immediately created an explosion.

It seems like the poison mist had contained flammable gas.

Of course, the holy sword hadn’t been affected by the explosion whatsoever.

The demons also hadn’t been hurt much by the explosion in the air, but its sudden roar and piercing light intensified  their fear.

[273]

This was the headquarters where quite a few demons of the Kraagor group resided, but the holy sword took care of them all while playing with some here and there.

While coming to their headquarters, I had a chance to eavesdrop about the Kraagor group’s wrongdoings from the demons that were a part of the group.

However, at least at this very moment, the enemy demons looked pitiful.

I looked at the crazily radiant holy sword.

It seems like he’s finished cleaning up.

He had taken care of all the demons that could be called enemies.

It was quite a large room, and each demon was extremely powerful and skilled.

However, they weren’t very dangerous.

If they were at the level where they were single-handedly annihilated by the holy sword, which simply loved killing people, there would’ve been no real danger if I had intervened myself.

I’m sure of it.

This wasn’t dangerous for me.

I had already become a lot stronger, but I wasn’t satisfied with that because I wanted to grow even further.

I’m confident.

Regardless of what difficulties show up along the road, I’m confident that I won’t die in vain.

As I thought, it doesn’t make sense for me to give up subjectivity just because of an increased risk of danger.

Using any means necessary and throwing away the last shreds of your morality was the way for the weak to survive.

I also did so.

I had sliced my arms and legs with a dagger, and had placed my hand into a bonfire.

For faster growth, I had to overtax my body, and my mind.

When I had first met Idy, who had been stronger than me, I took advantage of her kindness and attacked her.

When I had killed the goblins on the 4th floor, I had killed them all, regardless of whether they were injured or had surrendered.

Even while assuming that they were a conscripted militia.

Back then, that was correct.

If I hadn’t done so, I would’ve been the one to die.

However, is that still true?

It’s certainly not.

I’m currently standing in the position of the strong.

I’m this relaxed right now, so I didn’t need to be unnecessarily cruel or meek.

I didn’t really need to kill all the enemies who weren’t my enemies, and frantically gather the tokens.

So long as it’s not a situation where I don’t have enough tokens, and I have no choice but to kill them.

Of course, the risk of danger will increase since I’m limiting my means.

However, I’m in the middle of wishing that the difficulty of the current stage was harder.

I actually welcome that increased risk of danger.

Someday, I’ll definitely come face-to-face with a something that I can’t handle.

Therefore, even if I were to drop down to the position of a weakling, I’ll overcome that obstacle no matter what.

That’s what this strength and my effort is for: that time.

I’ll protect what I must at that time, and it’s a strength that will let me think ‘I was right.’

That’s what this stage clear is for.

That’s what I thought, and pledged again.

[Hoo. Hoo. Hoo. The bells of ruin are ringing out! Warrior, the purification ritual ended with a blessing from the sky.]

The holy sword said, as he flew in front of me, blood dripping from his blade.

There were definitely demons nearby that weren’t dead, who were crying out and closely lined up.

I had been told about the wickedness of the Kraggor group, and those demons who performed such wicked deeds were strewn all over the place and dying.

The line of my morality may seem extremely deep underground, but it’s probably better than not having one.

I’ll just keep doing what I’ve been doing.

After setting aside my concerns, I was refreshed.

[The God of Devotion feels sorry for someone.]

[The God of Adventure is satisfied somehow.]

[The God of Slowness is extremely happy.]

* * * * * *

“I-I’m not connected with this place. I-I was dragged here against my will. It’s the truth. Please believe me.”

“I know. I already know.”

I watched the trembling demon as I cleaned the demon blood off the holy sword.

If I could, I would’ve just sheathed the holy sword, but it would smell if I did that.

“I-It’s the truth. It really is the truth.”

I thought about what I could do to make the trembling demon, who was pleading his innocence, understand that I trusted him.

There weren’t any suitable methods that came to mind.

There were a few demons inside the Kraagor group headquarters that weren’t related to the group.

Of course, those demons were all unconscious; the only demon who had regained consciousness was right before my eyes.

“D-Do you want a token by any chance?”

Perhaps he thought that I wanted something else since I was silent.

Honestly, I want information more than tokens.

There were a few demons that were unrelated to the group within the Kraggor group rooms.

I wanted to know the reason that the Kraagor group would capture other demons and put them in the rooms, even though it would take some of their space.

“Ahem… This is the only token I have. Please be merciful…”

When I saw the demon suddenly dig deep into his pants, and take out a token, I hurriedly took a step back.

Why were you hiding it in such a dirty place?

This is driving me nuts.

I didn’t even have a clue as to where he had hidden the stone piece, when he didn’t have any pockets…

No, I can guess where he hid it.

The angle at which his wrist and elbow were bent gave away the location of his hands in his pants.

The demon seemed a bit tormented as he retrieved the token, and his scream had a bit of pain mixed in.

Also, that demon was a man.

I felt disgusted.

I didn’t want to touch a token that smells like shit.