Chapter 55: Encounter with the Monster of the Underworld

—The dead shall never smile again.
—And so, the gates of the underworld have opened.
—Warrior, rise before that which is precious to you is consumed.

---

“There’s a legend in this town.”

Rey, the older brother, was pulling his sister Lev by the hand as they ran through the pitch-dark night.

“…A legend?”

“Yeah. They say that long ago, this place was where a gate to the underworld once stood. Back in the age of myths, people who came to Ressal could talk to those who had just died.”

“…I’ve never heard of that.”

Lev tilted her head at her brother’s words.

She had never cared for local legends, so this was the first time she’d heard anything like that.

“…Yeah, well, that story was erased from history when Ressal converted to worship of Macro. It has nothing to do with the goddess Macro, so it was cut out.”

“That’s hard to believe. The town guards, the villagers—everyone’s alive, aren’t they?”

“Yeah. But only around this town can they still talk and act like they’re alive.”

Rey continued to explain in simpler terms to his sister.

“As long as they remain inside this town, they move about like the living.”

Apparently, this town had been cursed—turned into a place where “the dead don’t realize they’re dead.”

In ancient times, Ressal had been a place where the dead came to say their final goodbyes to friends and family. For some reason, that nature had suddenly returned in the present day.

“I don’t know why. But that’s the only way this makes sense.”

“…Why?”

“Near Ressal, even those whose heads you’ve lopped off return the next day, alive and well, back on the battlefield. Given the legend, that explanation fits best.”

Listening to this, Lev was baffled.

It was far too ridiculous to believe. She even suspected that maybe her brother had been tricked by someone.

Yes, she began to doubt him.

“…By the way, Rey. Why are you here in the middle of the night?”

“I’m here to rescue a captured comrade. A few days ago, one of us messed up and got caught. They were taken into Ressal.”

“…”

Rey said one of his companions had been captured. Lev had a pretty good idea who he meant.

Just a few days ago, Karl and the others had dragged a group of criminals into Ressal—criminals who had done vile things to Ilyu.

Could it be that the “comrade” Rey mentioned was one of those men who had humiliated and laughed at Ilyu?

“If you die in this town, you’re probably going to get absorbed into it. I wanted to save him before that happened.”

“I know who they are. Rey, those guys… they’re bad people.”

“…Yeah. They are.”

Rey frowned slightly as he said this.

“As you know, I’ve been tagging along with the scum.”

“Why…?”

“Because I had nowhere else to go. This town abandoned me.”

Faced with his sister’s innocent, unblinking gaze, Rey looked away uncomfortably.

It seemed he knew exactly what kind of people he was with.

“…Still.”

“Guess I should tell you. How Cain met his end.”

He cut off Lev’s attempt to press further.

Then, staring at the town with clear bitterness, Rey began to speak—half spitting the words out.

---

—Clinging to life. That’s what it truly means.

Reital and Cain had fought desperately, even as they suffered grievous wounds, and barely escaped from a horde of demons.

"We’ll be okay now, young master."

"…Don’t push yourself to talk. Cain, just get on my back."

"I’m still your mentor, you know. I’ve got too much pride to let you carry me like some invalid."

Exhausted to the point of collapse, they could barely walk. Their clothes were soaked in blood, and Cain was dragging one leg.

With no medical supplies, the two battered men had no choice but to keep walking, untreated.

They had no map, no food or water—just trudging forward, seeking a town.

"Young master. That—"

"Oh!"

By some miracle, they spotted a familiar landscape far across the horizon.

It was the plains where Reital’s hometown, Ressal, lay.

"If we make it there, we’ll be saved."

"We can reach home within a week."

That sight must have given them more hope than they could express.

After wandering aimlessly without direction, they now had a clear destination.

"Think you can walk, Cain?"

"Of course."

With renewed determination, the two of them set out toward Ressal.

---

"Hey, Cain."

"I'm fine, young master."

Several days had passed since they’d started walking. Reital’s older companion, Cain, had developed a high fever.

Looking closer, the area near his shoulder—where a demon had bitten him—was red, swollen, and oozing pus.

"This is serious… Cain, we need to stop and let you rest."

"No, no, we keep walking."

"But—!"

Seeing the painfully swollen wound, Reital was visibly shaken. At this rate, Cain might not make it.

Yet, despite his pale complexion, Cain forced a smile and tried to reassure Reital.

"If we leave it alone, it’ll just get worse. That’s why I have to keep walking—to survive."

"…Cain."

"Didn’t they say Ressal has a huge cathedral? There should be a healer stationed there too, right? That just gives us even more reason to hurry there."

They didn’t know how many days Cain had left.

Even so, Cain, putting his life on the line, urged that they press on toward Ressal.

"…Then let’s move, Cain."

"Yeah, young master."

There was no time to hesitate.

Reital steeled himself and quickened his pace toward Ressal.

—They had no food.

Their stomachs felt like they were caving in from hunger.

—The scorching sun was merciless.

Their throats were dry, vision blurry, and any lapse in focus would cause them to collapse.

—Their legs felt like lead.

Extreme fatigue and dehydration made every step scream in protest.

"Cain! Cain!!"

Halfway there, Cain finally collapsed.

His breathing had become shallow, his body burned with fever, and his skin was dry and cracked.

"Damn it… I’m not letting you die…"

Reital hoisted the unconscious Cain onto his back and kept moving forward.

It was dire. Death was written all over Cain’s face.

The last time they’d found water was two days ago. He could die from dehydration alone.

Cain truly was at his limit.

"Everyone else is dead… You’re the only family I have left…!"

…And yet Reital himself had to be near his breaking point.

But driven by his love for family, he forced himself onward—without sleep, without rest.

Eyes fixed firmly on the distant city of Ressal.

---

Two days later.

Completely exhausted in both body and spirit, Reital finally arrived at the city of Ressal, dragging his heavy feet.

"Please… help…"

In a voice cracked and dry, Reital shouted.

"Cain’s going to die. Someone, please, help────"

…But his cries reached no one.

No one on the street offered him a helping hand.

"Damn it…"

Was there no compassion in this city? Had it always been this cold?

Without even the strength to get angry, Reital gave up on seeking help and made his way toward the Grand Cathedral.

With Cain, burning with fever, still strapped to his back.

"The cost will be 20,000G."

"…What?"

That was the response he got when he pleaded for Cain’s treatment.

"That’s ridiculous! That’s highway robbery────"

"In that case, please leave."

It was extortion, plain and simple. The Grand Cathedral was supposed to be a place that saved the poor who couldn’t afford a regular healer.

At that price, any street doctor would be far more reasonable.

"There are no other medical facilities in Ressal. What will you do?"

"…!!"

He was told that the town’s doctors and private healers had all left.

Now, noble families monopolized all medical care as a source of income. That was the current policy in Ressal.

Reital thought it was absurd. But even so—

"There’s no time to go to another city!! Fine, I’ll pay it—just save Cain!!"

"Then, your payment."

"I’ll pay later! I swear I’ll get the money somehow, so please!!"

Even so, he begged the cathedral. Begged them to save Cain—his only remaining family.

"────Upfront payment only. If you run off after saying that, we’ll be at a huge loss."

"I can’t prepare the money right now."

"Then I’m sorry. Come back once you have the funds."

Those words left Reital speechless.

"Where’s Grandpa!? Where did he go!?"

"Oh, from this house? I think he passed away last month. Pneumonia."

"What…"

Reital ran around desperately, trying to scrape together the money.

"Look, this is good armor, right!? Buy it off me!!"

"…I’ll give you 100G."

"No way!! I bought this in Anat, the forge city—it’s top-of-the-line────"

"No one’s buying luxury gear like that in this town. If you want it sold, that’s the price."

Letting go of his treasured weapons and armor, he ran all across the city.

"Someone, please help! If this keeps up, Cain really will die!!"

But there was no way to get his hands on 20,000G.

Wherever he went, Cain’s condition was met with scorn and indifference.

"Lend me the money!! I swear I’ll pay it back, no matter what!!"

At last, Reital collapsed in front of the Grand Cathedral, clutching Cain in his arms, and screamed.

"I’ll become a slave if I have to! I’ll lick your boots if that’s what it takes!!"

He pleaded with the passersby.

"Lend me the money to save my family!!"

With a hoarse voice, holding his wounded brother close, the boy kept shouting.

"Please save Cain────"

That heart-wrenching cry of the boy—

—continued on until sunset that day, until the body in his arms went cold.

---

"────"

Cain was abandoned.

Even though they made it in time. Even though he reached Ressal while still breathing.

No one in the city tried to save him. Cain was left to die.

"────"

The moment Reital realized Cain had died, something inside him broke.

He himself had already reached his limit. Reital began to wither, as if following after his family.

"Two corpses, huh. What a nuisance. Let’s dump them outside the city."

Seeing that Reital could barely move anymore, one of the cathedral staff said that.

They then loaded Cain and Reital onto a handcart and dumped them in the corpse disposal site outside the city.

Just like Cain, Reital was forsaken by the city.

"……"

Cain wasn’t killed by a demon.

Reital will not die by the hand of a demon.

"……guh"

Cain, Reital... they were killed by Ressal.

"Damn it…"

His rasping sobs melted into the plains.

"Goddamn iiiiiiiiit…!"

Reaching out with a hand stained in hatred toward the gates of Ressal—

Reital eventually lost consciousness.

---

"……"

The next time he awoke, he was inside a modest tent.

"……?"

He was alive.

Looking down, Reital saw that his body had been treated—simply, but treated nonetheless.

Someone had even wiped him down afterward.

"…Could it be… someone saved me?"

Reital slowly sat up.

He felt like he was dying of hunger, but still—he had more strength now than when he collapsed.

Looking nearby, he noticed a bucket and a damp cloth.

"So they let me drink some water too…"

It seemed someone truly had saved Reital’s life.

---

"You’re awake, big bro."

"…You’re the one…"

As Reital stepped outside the tent, a woman stood nearby.

"…You’re the one who saved me, aren’t you. Thank you."

"No need for thanks. I only saved you 'cause I figured you’d be useful to me. Don’t get the wrong idea."

"I see. Then just say the word. If it’s something I can do, I’ll help however I can."

He couldn’t quite tell how old the woman was. Her speech felt old-fashioned, but her appearance was youthful and strikingly beautiful.

"Right, then you’re my underling now."

"Underling…?"

"Yup. Well, take a look around you."

With a mischievous grin, she flashed her teeth—nishishishi—at the confused Reital.

"You’ll figure out soon enough who it is that picked you up."

"Hmm…?"

Saying that, she disappeared back into the tent.

"Hya-ha-ha! Booze! Meat!!"

"Mind if I call for a woman? I’m feelin’ real fired up right now!"

"You just had one, didn’t you? Damn, you never change!"

All around him, an unbearable scene spread out.

"Oh, so you’re awake, bro?"

"You’re strong, right? Boss said she picked you up 'cause you’d be useful."

"Who the hell are you people…!?"

"Huh? No one told you? We’re the living embodiment of evil in this rotten world."

The crude, rowdy men laughed cheerfully and introduced themselves.

"────They call us the Scoundrel Clan."

---

"I’ve been with the Scoundrel Clan ever since that day."

"……"

"I thought about it. Was there any obligation to wipe them all out right then and hand them over to Ressal’s guards? If I owed them my life, would falling into villainy truly be so wrong?"

At that, Rey quietly pointed toward the outer wall of the city.

"That’s enough talk. We’re getting out of here—everyone."

"…Wait. Karl’s still inside the city."

"I’ll make sure we have a chance to reach him later. Trust me, Lev. Right now, I want to focus on getting you and the others out safely."

Rey stayed on high alert, keeping watch over the area.

Meanwhile, his subordinates swiftly and efficiently prepared the rope route for escape.

"This part of the wall’s rotten and cracked, see? So we just hook the claw in right here like this."

"Even without passing through the gates, this will get us in and out. Come on, Lev, go!"

"Uh… um…"

Lev hesitated.

She was overjoyed to see her beloved brother again. But joining the Scoundrel Clan… was that really okay?

Besides, Karl and the others were still in the city. She didn’t want to be separated from them.

"…Brother, I…"

"What are you hesitating for? Hurry up—we don’t know what could happen in this city."

"But I still… I want to stay with Karl…"

"I’ll take care of that later. Right now, you need to get out! This city’s ‘night’ is dangerous!"

"Ah, um—"

Reital pressed her to go.

And faced with the intensity in his expression, Lev nodded almost reflexively.

"Good, go! I’ve had a bad feeling for a while now. Worst case, we might be dealing with demons from the underworld!"

"O-okay…"

And indeed, Reital’s bad feeling proved right.

Just as Lev placed her foot on the rope meant for escape—

A terrifying aura crept in, and a monster appeared before the Scoundrel Clan.

"…Gh, it’s here!!"

"W-What the hell is that!?"

Silently, shambling forward step by step, came a ‘creature.’

The moment it spotted Rey and the others, it picked up speed and charged straight at them.

"Damn it, you guys go! I’ll hold it off—!"

"—MukyAAAAAAA!"

At last, the creature slithered into view before Reital and his group.

"…Hii!?"

"W-What is that!?"

"Ki-ki-ki…"

In the darkness, the bandits saw it.

—A ragged figure clad in light leather armor.

—A suspicious being with the grinning face of a monkey.

—With a bizarrely high-pitched voice, it struck strange poses as it closed in.

A deformed lifeform: the Monkey Man.

"The guardian deity of Ressal’s twilight—behold! From the race of littlefolk… the Masked Monkey, has arrived!!"

"UWAAAAAAAH!!"

So creepy, so suspicious was the creature that Rey let out an involuntary scream.