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chapter 135




Hector coughed and said.
“Ahem! This is quite the powerful lineup. The Archlich, Eleventh Tower Master and…”
Hector’s gaze then turned to Frey and he paused.
“Uh… let’s see…”
He didn’t forget his face; it was just that he’d only now realised that Frey hadn’t given him his name last time.
“I’m Frey Blake.”
“Ah. I see. So Frey, are you here to pick up your stuff? Didn’t you come too soon? Isn’t there still some time till the deadline? Well. That doesn’t mean I was slacking off or anything.”
The words poured out of his lips at a rapid rate, and it took Frey a while before he could process everything Hector had just said.
He’d had a slight feeling last time, but now, Hector’s proud image as a Dragon had completely collapsed in Frey’s eyes.
Frey slowly shook his head.
“I’m not here for the Golem.”
“Then…?”
Instead of answering, Frey turned to look at Cairo.
Hector’s eyes narrowed.
“Hmmm…”
Cairo had definitely said that they’d come to rescue him.
It was at this time that Aeri returned with a cup of tea, but Hector smiled gently and gestured for her to leave.
“Please give us a minute, Aeri.”
“Yes, Master.”
Hector silently watched Aeri’s back until she was completely gone.
Then, he opened his mouth while playing with a strand of hair that had escaped his straw hat.
“What do you mean you’ve come to rescue me? Has it got something to do with the recent weakening of Lord’s influence?”
“Lord’s influence has weakened?”
“Yes.”
This was new information. Maybe they could also save other dragons as well.
Frey thought for a moment before saying.
“Then I’ll be brief. To put it simply…”
Frey explained to him the crisis the Demigods were currently experiencing, the likes of which had never happened in thousands of years, and the reason why Lord could not move easily.
As the story progressed, Hector’s playful expression gradually became more serious, and by the end, it became more serious than ever.
When Frey stopped talking, Hector didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he contemplated for a while before finally opening his mouth.
“I see. But there are many gaps in your story.”
“…”
“First of all, the reason why the three Apocalypses are so heavily injured is incredibly vague. You’re hiding something.”
He knew it.
No matter what happened, Frey knew it was impossible to cover the flaws in his story.
After all, there was no one in the world who understood the power of the Apocalypses better than the three in this room.
And now, not one but three such entities had been gravely injured at the same time.
“Hmm…”
Cairo also frowned.
He had definitely noticed this when Frey had asked him for help before, but he probably didn’t mention it because he got to know Frey.
“Hoo.”
Eventually, he sighed.
If he continued to hide it, it would be hard for him to avoid their suspicion.
If that did happen, distrust would slowly blossom, and in the worst case scenario, they would be unable to properly collaborate.
That was a situation that Frey wanted to avoid at all costs.
‘It can’t be helped.’
Frey looked at the people standing in the room.
Diablo, who had successfully slayed two Demigods, Hector, a former Dragon, and Cairo, the founder of Paragon.
They could be trusted.
Unlike the corrupt people in the Circle, these people all had clear identities and objectives.
Frey made up his mind.
“To put it simply, there was a traitor among the Demigods.”
“A traitor? Among the Demigods?”
“Yes. Riki, the Demigod with the power of the sword. He was the traitor.”
“An Apocalypse…!!!”
“Riki…”
[Hm!]
All three of them frowned at those words.
The former Circle Master, Cairo, might not have known him, but Frey believed that Diablo and Hector knew him.
No, wouldn’t it be strange if they didn’t?
One was a Dragon who’d fought against the Demigods for thousands of years, and the other was an Archlich who had been alive for thousands of years.
“A traitor among the Demigods… I never would have imagined.”
[At the least, it isn’t something that has ever happened before.]
“Wa-, wait. So what happened to that Demigod?”
It wasn’t strange for Hector to ask this question so hurriedly.
If a Demigod who had betrayed his kind joined their resistance, it would boost their power exponentially.
More importantly, he was an absolute monster who had injured three Apocalypses on his own.
Unfortunately, Frey couldn’t give them the answer they had hoped for.
“He’s dead.”
“Ah…”
“…I see.”
[…]
In an instant, the hope filled atmosphere once again became somber.
Frey shook his head and continued.
“Nevertheless, it doesn’t change the fact that Riki granted us a tremendous opportunity.”
“Indeed.”
Hector’s eyes lit up.
Three Apocalypses had been severely injured, and Lord was stuck healing them.
This was a chance that would probably never come again.
“The remaining Apocalypse, Leyrin, is also incapacitated. She will fall into hibernation soon if she hasn’t already.”
“Hmm? What do you mean by hibernation?”
Now that he thought about it, most people didn’t know about the Demigods’ hibernation.
It was Hector who answered Cairo’s question.
“If you kill an Apostle, the corresponding Demigod will fall into hibernation. Even, Lord wouldn’t be able to wake up from it. The time differs between individuals, but the Demigod will fall into a deep sleep for at least 100 years.”
“Ah…! I see! So that’s why the Demigods disappeared after we killed their Apostles!”
Cairo nodded and shouted in realisation.
Frey looked at him.
“That’s not all. Riki also gave me another hint.”
“A hint?”
“He said I could get the help of a Demigod named ‘Elliah’ from the Frozen Lands.”
[…Elliah?]
Diablo spoke up in a perplexed tone.
Cairo’s gaze turned to him.
“Diablo, you’ve lived in the Frozen Lands for hundreds of years now. Do you know a Demigod named Elliah?”
[It would be hard not to know her. She’s the reason winter in the north never ends… but I can’t believe the words Frey just said.]
Diablo shook his head.
“Why not?”
[Because as far as I know, she doesn’t have much interest in what happens in the world.]
“Riki said that too.”
Frey muttered as he recalled Riki’s words.
‘A weirdo who doesn’t care about the mortals or the Demigods. The only Demigod that Lord gave up trying to control.‘
Of course, this statement shouldn’t have been misunderstood.
She wasn’t as nice to humans as Riki was.
Her disinterest wasn’t much of an advantage, either. If they were to act too recklessly, she might very well attack them instead of listen to them.
“But the merit of bringing a Demigod to our side is enormous.”
[…]
With that said, even Diablo had no choice but to agree.
He sighed heavily.
[…100 years ago, Elliah contacted me. She asked if I would be her Apostle.]
Then he shook his head.
[I refused. Divine power and mana are incompatible. I want to continue walking the path of magical science, so I had no reason to accept… and then, she almost killed me.]
Cairo shuddered at those words.
[I suffered from heavy injuries and was put in a near death state. It took me over twenty years to heal.]
“Do you mean she’s a threat?”
[Well. It depends on how you look at it. Elliah’s attack on me was simply to vent the anger she felt.]
Diablo sighed.
[…so I hate Demigods. They don’t have dignity and grace befitting their ages. They’re just ignorant children who don’t understand the power they wield.]
Cairo fell silent.
He had known Diablo for decades but this was the first time he’d learned of the reason why he hated the Demigods.
[However, I will still cooperate as much as I can if you do intend to attract Elliah. Her strength is top tier among the Demigods. She’s at least as powerful as an Apocalypse. She would be a tremendous help if we managed to bring her in.]
Then he added after a moment of silence.
[Of course, there is no guarantee that things will go smoothly.]
“It’s better than nothing.”
Frey then turned to look at Hector.
“Anyway, that’s our current situation. Does that satisfy you?”
“It does.”
“Good. Then it might be a little late to ask this, but do you want to get rescued, Hector?”
Hector nodded without hesitation.
“Of course I do! This place is hell for me! I was waiting for a moment like this.”
“…”
When he said that, Frey, Cairo and Diablo gave him strange glances.
“I, I really mean it.”
“…anyway. There isn’t a problem leaving now, is there?”
“All you need to do is get rid of the barriers around the general store. But that shouldn’t be a problem for Diablo’s negation magic.”
[There’s an inscription on the staircase… it’ll take some time because it has Lord’s power imbued in it.]
With those words, Diablo turned and walked towards the basement stairs.
Hector shrugged.
“He said it’ll take some time… so do you wanna go see the Golem you requested?”
“Did you make it already?”
“I made most of its skeleton and appearance. It’s still empty inside, but you’ll get a rough idea of the result. Since you’re here, you can give me some feedback, and I can make adjustments so that it can be more to your expectations.”
His words made sense.
Even though he knew nothing about Golem creation, Frey was still curious about how they were made.
“Sure.”
Frey followed Hector, and Cairo decided to go with them since it would be better than just waiting in that spot.
After walking past the storefront, they entered a large room. It turned out that this underground space was many times larger than Frey expected.
The smells of metal and herbs filled the air, and anyone who came here would immediately be able to tell that it was an alchemy workshop.
Multiple Golems, who were dressed like maids, could be seen moving around.
‘It’s a well-made workshop.’
Not only were there a lot of potions being brewed, numerous furnaces were also blazing. This workshop was definitely on a higher level than any workshop owned by the magic towers.
It would be quite a waste to leave it.
They passed through the workshop as he had this thought, and they entered a very dark room.
“Wait a moment. The lanterns will light up soon… we’re here.”
Fwoosh.
As soon as the lanterns lit up, the room immediately became bright.
“…”
“…”
And as they saw the scene unfolding before them, Frey and Cairo became speechless.
This seemed to be the place where the Golems assembled. Naturally, if that was all, there wouldn’t be a need for their shock.
The problem was that all of the Golems were made with the appearances of beautiful women, and they were all in maid outfits.
Frey’s face became serious as he looked at the Golem in the middle.
“…is this the Golem I requested?”
“Don’t worry about it. I’m a pro. Putting personal preferences into your work is what amateurs do.”
Frey felt a bit uneasy because of his boast.
Finally, they arrived at the end of the room and found the Golem Hector had made for him. It had the appearance of a beautiful girl with long, silver hair.
“…what’s the difference?”
“It’s not in a maid outfit.”
“…”
“That is already a huge concession.”
Frey and Cairo exchanged looks and reached a conclusion at the same time.
This guy really was special.