Inheriting the Novel

Lucky Day (1)

It had been about three days since I started living in Vinshad.

At first, even Monet, who used to walk around terrified, now walked the streets without much fear—if anything, her boredom was obvious.

"Young master, aren't we going to end up trapped here and starve to death?"

"That won't happen, so don't worry."

Since there was no way to know exactly how long the conquest would take, I had naturally prepared for food supplies.

A bag that Riya had personally made was enchanted with spatial expansion magic, so we could store an enormous amount of food.

'But as expected, the real problem is stress...'

At least Riya was holding up well, but Monet and Maria, who had physical abilities no different from ordinary people, obviously looked quite exhausted.

[The demonkin who went ahead are stopped right now, you know?]

'Really?'

At first, Monet had chased after the demonkin who went ahead of us in a flash, using a shortcut.

But strangely enough, she could never overtake them. From a certain point, she'd simply been maintaining a set distance, unable to catch up.

As a result, two days passed with virtually no progress, as we wandered the labyrinth.

"It seems like we haven't made any real progress for days now,"

Maria said softly, having noticed it as well.

At her words, Monet looked at me, a little anxious.

"Um, young master, is it really okay if I keep looking for the way? Like Maria said, it doesn't really seem helpful..."

"It's okay. This is something only you can do, Monet."

But I wasn't worried at all.

Monet's ability—Miraculous Luck.

I was sure it had shone brilliantly in the original work as well.

"You know, sometimes I wonder if you really believe in Monet, Clay?"

"Well, since we've been together since we were little—she's basically family. Of course I would."

I'd already explained Monet's luck, but Riya didn't focus on that alone; instead, she seemed more interested in my relationship with Monet.

"Then... I'll keep going..."

Apparently embarrassed by my words, Monet flushed slightly and started walking again.

It was at that moment that Monet's steps started heading toward the demonkin.

"Eek!"

After a few steps, Monet suddenly screamed.

It was because countless monster corpses littered the path ahead.

"L-Looks like someone fought here."

Shaking, Monet didn't stop but kept moving forward.

[More bold than expected.]

'She may seem timid, but she's got backbone.'

Anyway, it was certain that the demonkin had passed through here.

Until now, Monet had been looking for routes other than the paths the demonkin used, but for the first time, the path overlapped from the start.

'Maybe the demonkin haven't passed through here that long ago?'

The Calamity of Labytrinth, vinshad, regularly changed the labyrinth and absorbed living beings inside it as nourishment.

If a lot of time had passed since the demonkin traveled through here, there wouldn't be any monster corpses left.

Just as I was pondering the situation, trying to get a read on things—

"Hm?"

Maria tugged at my sleeve, having noticed something belatedly.

"Clay, over here..."

"Shh."

I gestured for Maria to stay quiet.

There was no benefit in distracting Monet right now. I needed to let her do things her own way.

'Grancesia, what's it like with the demonkin right now?'

[It seems like they're fiercely fighting something.]

'Fiercely fighting?'

If I recalled the Calamity of Dreams, it was highly likely the demonkin here for the Guiding Sword Ragal were of comparable strength. There was almost certainly a demonkin noble among them.

But if they were currently fighting intensely... it meant whatever they were fighting was immensely strong as well.

It was as if Monet, sensing some invisible timing, drifted near the demonkin's group before moving on.

Monet, who'd been idling nearby, soon stepped into a downward-sloping path.

And then—

Boom!

"Kyaaah?!"

No sooner had we entered the corridor than an explosion thundered from afar.

"Y-Young master! I think we went the wrong way!"

"No, we're right on track! Let's go to where the sound came from."

"What?!"

I led Monet in the direction of the echoing explosions and bestial shrieks.

Moving in time with Monet's hesitant steps, we slipped through a half-collapsed gap and discovered a gigantic open space.

"Gasp, huff...?"

Inside, countless demonkin corpses lay strewn about, and a battered demonkin—one of count rank, by the looks of his profile—was gasping for air.

'Perfect. This is it.'

I tore my gaze away from the demonkin and scanned the surroundings.

At the entrance to a path leading downwards, a massive monster corpse was sprawled.

All I could do was laugh.

It was, in every sense, perfect timing.

* * *

Noble demonkin of count rank, vendela and Giltion, felt as if they were about to burst out cursing.

'Why does it have to be now, of all times?!'

It had taken countless sacrifices just to reach this place.

The location of the Guiding Sword Ragal was at the very heart of Vinshad.

They'd only discovered the path to the heart yesterday.

But even having found the way, entry was no simple task. There was a formidable monster guarding the path.

The thing summoned and controlled hordes of other monsters, each one powerful in its own right.

Under Vendela and Giltion's lead, the demonkin had somehow fought through the monstrous horde to finally slay this gatekeeper.

They'd lost all their subordinates in the process, leaving only the two of them, but their goal was within reach.

Yet—

"Man, you really had it rough. Thanks for your hard work."

How could this happen?

Vendela stared at the man who was even clapping with a bright grin.

It was a familiar face. Every demonkin already knew this person's features.

"Swordmaster, what are you—! Why now, of all times, do you appear!"

"No point asking me—I just ended up here along the way."

To Vendela's rage-filled shouts, the swordmaster, Clay Vanhart, merely shrugged his shoulders.

"Seriously, great job. Thanks to you, I'll be able to head down without a hitch."

"You bastard...!"

Even injured, vendela was still of count rank.

He was confident he wouldn't lose easily, even to a member of the Seven Heroes—and besides, there was another count-ranked demonkin, giltion, here.

They were both badly wounded, but if they attacked together, even the swordmaster would have a hard time—

"Riya, do you mind handling the other one?"

"Of course."

At Clay's casual words, a beautiful woman replied.

This woman had a pair of horns on her head, though one was broken.

Again, a familiar face.

"... Riya Asktalin? Princess of the empire?"

"Oh my, I'm honored that you know me."

With a little laugh, any trace of anger left Vendela's face.

It was hard enough to face a swordmaster, but now the imperial princess who could use Dragon Tongue?

It was impossible, by any measure.

'No wonder my luck's crap from the start.'

Not a single thing seemed to go right.

Vendela gave up thinking altogether.

* * *

"Phew, I guess a count's still a count—even dying, they're not easy to bring down."

If I hadn't learned the Heaven-Slaying Arms, it would've been a tough fight, but I managed to win with little trouble.

'And the past few days of training really helped.'

Grancesia had been right.

For the past few days, I'd taken Riya's Dragon Tongue head-on without using Eye of Insight.

As a result, my senses had become even sharper, and I was now beginning to perceive flows and presences I couldn't before.

'Just seeing and feeling are two different things.'

It was obvious. It was amazing enough that I could just see, but once I started to feel things as well, I could vaguely anticipate what my opponent might do next.

[It's almost like precognition, right?]

'That's exactly it.'

[The Eye of Insight lets you see the flows of all things. But to truly wield it perfectly, even your body needs to keep up.]

In the past, I wouldn't have grasped the difference, but I think I understood now.

"How about you, Riya? Are you alright?"

"Yes, this was nothing for me."

Sure enough, there wasn't a mark on her.

She'd practically beaten the count-ranked demonkin one-sidedly.

'... And just their luck.'

Unfortunately, the demonkin were low on magic power after fighting the gatekeeper at the heart.

With little magic power left, resisting a dragon's Dragon Tongue was nearly impossible.

Unless they could see or sense the flow as I did with Eye of Insight, Dragon Tongue was almost an invincible force.

[If that girl's power grows or she becomes more skillful with Dragon Tongue, reading that flow probably won't be easy.]

'Why not?'

[You often see it with young dragons. When they use Dragon Tongue very straightforwardly, the flow's easy to read. But if they start mixing it up, it gets quite tricky.]

I see. Mersaya's Dragon Tongue was also easy to read.

'I should tell Riya this later.'

Riya growing stronger was a big benefit to me, after all.

'You wanted to tell Riya yourself, but it felt awkward so you told me instead, didn't you?'

[Wha—what?! N-no, that's not it!]

Grancesia stammered, trying to explain.

[I just can't leave things like this alone—oh?]

'What is it?'

[...]

As if cut off mid-sentence, Grancesia's strained voice suddenly went silent. I was puzzled, but got no immediate answer.

[Altair.]

'... What?'

[I can sense Altair's power.]

I sucked in a breath at her words.

Altair was the chief god of this world, and a "calamity of the gods."

'Don't tell me a calamity of the gods has descended to the ground?'

[No, it's not that—its power is faint. I think... it's only temporarily descended into another's body. If that's possible...]

That brought a certain incident to mind.

Violette, who had descended into an Inquisitor's body through a corridor in Linken.

Could Altair be doing something similar right now?

[I think so too. Since the normal way doesn't work in this Vinshad, maybe it's lending its power directly.]

'... I'd better hurry.'

[Right. There's still some distance, but they'll catch up fast. I sense strong Demonic Energy next to Altair.]

'Demonic Energy—so a demonkin. What class?'

[At least marquis level.]

Marquis level.

That was one of the very highest ranks, even in the demon realm. I had gotten much stronger, but I couldn't say I was confident I could defeat even a single marquis yet.

"Young master, shouldn't we be heading down soon too?"

At that moment, Monet asked nervously.

It seemed her luck was also urging us to hurry.

"Yeah, let's get moving. I don't have a good feeling about this."

"Did Lady Grancesia say something just now?"

My face, which had been smiling until a moment ago, must have suddenly turned serious, because Riya noticed and asked right away.

I nodded in response.

"A marquis-level demonkin is on our tail. And with an Inquisitor... God themself seems to be helping them."

"... That's not a good situation."

"Right. That's why we have to conquer Vinshad quickly and find Ragal."

If we collapsed Vinshad, we could use the Sword of Boundary to escape. I signaled to the others and stepped into the corridor leading to Vinshad's heart.

Immediately, the surroundings went dark.

'What's this?'

The place where we'd fought the demonkin a moment before was nowhere to be seen.

As soon as I set foot in the corridor, it was as if every light in existence had been extinguished.

"Watch your step so you don't trip..."

I turned to warn the others, but fell silent.

Those who had been by my side just a moment ago were nowhere to be seen.

[Don't worry. Everyone's safe.]

A light shone in the Eye of Shimosha that was fitted around my finger.

Unlike the others who had vanished, only Grancesia remained with me, still dwelling in my hand.

'What's going on?'

[The moment you entered the corridor, each of you was isolated into an independent space. Use the Eye of Insight and you'll see.]

I activated the Eye of Insight at Grancesia's suggestion and definitely, the flow around me was completely different from before.

The swirling and rotating flow was severed from all else, and it was holding me in place to keep me from escaping.