It’s Dangerous Outside the Dungeon, Master

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Before heading to recover what seemed to be Serika’s Dungeon Core, there was one task I had to accomplish here in Copgerin.

It was to resolve a ‘grudge.’

“They seem to think of this simply as unfortunate and try to move on…”

This was the kind of ‘everyday misfortune’ that often occurs in this world, something they fail to recognize.

This means that even if the parties involved consider it unfortunate, for the crowd that is just a little removed from the situation, it has already become something familiar.

However, I couldn’t think that way, as I wasn’t just any person in this world; I was one of those directly involved.

“Damn it.”

What I held in my hand was a photo of the perpetrator responsible for the recent raid on Copgerin.

In the picture was none other than the fallen noble, Elenore Claymel.

She was a strikingly handsome woman with a decadent appearance, and she was indeed a warrior with considerable strength.

Great looks. Fairly impressive talents. Although a fallen noble, she bore some wealth and connections accrued by her house.

If she had lived an ordinary life, she might have grown into quite an excellent figure within the kingdom.

“To have it all and yet throw it all away like this…”

“That’s right. I can’t make sense of it…”

“Of course you can’t. Talhan. It’s not that you don’t understand; it’s just that it is what it is.”

“Ah, yes.”

However, Elenore chose the path of a fanatic of the Demon Clan.

Driven mad by the desire for revenge against her family, she allied with demons and sought to attack the nobleman of the kingdom.

From that perspective, this situation might be a long-term stroke of luck for me. Although it certainly doesn’t feel that way considering the human collateral damage she caused.

[He will pay the price.]

No matter how I thought about it, the words she had uttered at the banquet nagged at me, and I had instructed Talhan and the Cerebrum Skull to investigate.

That investigation was already late, which frustrated me. It was the fastest decision I could make from my standpoint.

Immediately after the banquet ended, she initiated the incident that embroiled… well, precisely three people.

“The fact that this could be considered normal in this world is even more irritating.”

The most correct course of action for me in that situation was really to escape the city right after the banquet ended.

But how could that have been possible?

If someone discovered even a tiny fragment of the signs before an event occurred and predicted that it would explode into chaos, then that person would be akin to a character from a myth.

If I were to choose a character that suits me, I might as well go with a lowly rabble-rouser.

“Who… are you?”

Even looking at the mess I had created.

“Is your name Elenore Claymel?”

“Yes… but…?”

“You’ve certainly come to the right place.”

On the very evening I sent Leonis’s body off to the dungeon with Sonia and Maria, having started my task of ‘resolving grudges,’ I found myself in the prison where the culprit, Elenore Claymel, was held just one hour after beginning my work.

The other comrades who had been with me were either dead or had fled, and here I was alone with her.

Due to the heightened vigilance toward demons caused by her actions, I couldn’t use my necromancy or shadow magic, making the task more challenging… but it was still manageable.

“You have about 10 minutes left, miss.”

“Just get me out of here. We’ll talk afterward.”

“Yes.”

Even though the treatment had become ambiguous lately, in the past, messengers were the ones who brought all kinds of news on foot. And now those messengers had become Information Guild members in the modern age.

They were respected individuals in modern humanity, and as one of them, my subordinates managed to interrogate the perpetrator of the incident after just checking her magic capacity.

And since the Cerebrum Skull specializes in disguise and disturbance, it was possible to hide or completely scatter the demon’s magic possessed by its main body.

Thud. Whap!

“What are you doing…!”

“Stay still. Unless you want to die.”

The three undead spies disguised as Information Guild members started moving busily.

One pulled out a corpse from a pre-prepared expandable pocket and dressed one of them in Elenore’s clothes, while another began to scatter prepared blood, flesh, and bone fragments around the area.

“Lady. You are not meant to die here. We have come to rescue you.”

Lastly, Talhan shared the ‘truth’ with Elenore.

“… You are like me?”

“Yes. That’s right. We also serve the Great One.”

“But… how can I trust that?”

“Believe it or not, it doesn’t matter. The people of the city will execute you tomorrow, so your only chance to live is now. Haven’t you still not completed your revenge? The Count is still alive.”

This statement had no lies in it whatsoever.

The interrogation regarding Elenore had already concluded, and based on the testimony from the Count regarding the signet ring she possessed, it was ‘decided’ that all her actions stemmed from his grudge.

In reality, it was fine by me, but it was also true that once Elenore’s identity as a Claymel was revealed, all inquiries into her case faded away.

She was aware of this situation too, and it wouldn’t take long for her, pretending to be composed while looking at us, to break.

Moreover, every demon does indeed serve the ‘Demon Lord,’ so there was no deceit in that regard either.

“… Ha. At least it won’t get worse.”

These words from the fallen noble elicited flames visible to the naked eye in her gaze.

Hatred.

‘Of course.’

The tattered dress and the skin revealed beneath it. Yet, the flames of grudges remained unextinguished.

For me, this served as a minimum rationalization regarding the existence of this woman, who appeared to be no more than in her twenties, now turned into a terrorist.

‘I figured it wouldn’t be a simple situation.’

Those who have gained much find it difficult to cast everything they own away.

Nonetheless, this woman had everything from birth but became entangled in past grievances and committed acts of terror against nobles.

It was only natural she had plausible reasons for that.

Having grown up indoctrinated by her family from a young age, or perhaps she herself had reasons to hold a grudge against the Count.

A plausibility to harbor such a rotten grudge.

“It’s all over.”

Once the undead operatives completed their scene manipulation, only ‘Elenore with her head cursed off’ and ‘an Information Guild member killed by the curse that decapitated Elenore’ remained in the prison.

“I’ll see you next time, miss.”

“Take care. I still haven’t decided what reward to give you.”

“Of course.”

Boom -!!!

Two of the three headed for the secret passage they had identified in advance within the prison, and we blew up the scene as we took one of Elenore’s forms and escaped.

“What’s going on – !!”

“Is it a monster?!”

“Elenore just self-destructed! Damn it, one of our members is dead!”

The process was surprisingly smooth.

It was only natural that Elenore’s gaze toward us shifted after witnessing it.

“I never thought there would be brothers like you in the Information Guild… otherwise, I would have contacted you sooner.”

“Unfortunately, we only managed to succeed recently, so the news hadn’t reached anyone. It was just an unfortunate coincidence.”

“I see…”

Having seemingly recognized us entirely as her allies, this mad avenger began to unfold her past while walking along the road of our journey.

Roughly, her memory began long after her family had fallen.

Her mother had fallen into dementia at a young age and still lived within the memories of her noble past.

Her beloved sister was rumored to be a spinster feared by the Juheil family, and thus she was growing old.

Her younger brother, who was born with a congenital disability, suffered from the curse of Juheil.

In the midst of this, one of the elders of her family contacted demons to regain his youth.

And this was the first time she had emerged from her family.

“You weren’t the first contact, were you, girl?”

“That’s correct. Sister.”

“Then that brother must be protecting your family now.”

“I believe so.”

Elenore seemed to completely regard me as her superior, paying no mind to my casual speech or her honorifics.

Of course, he was said to be at least elite-level as a swordsman, so he must have faintly sensed my magical presence.

Perhaps she believed I was capable of the same level of power.

Moreover, to an outsider, I looked far too young to not see me as someone from a mysterious lineage.

“Were you trying to commit suicide…?”

“Yes… indeed.”

Apparently, she originally intended to unleash demons within this castle and then take her own life.

She was worried that she might inadvertently reveal the location of the family members hiding due to the torture.

However, what returned was indifference upon learning of her identity, and it seemed this attitude led her to realize one more thing.

“If I die like this, they’ll just view me as one of the trash. I should have been more careful… I should have pierced deeply…”

“What you say is true, Elenore. Revenge must be fatal.”

I agreed with her words.

Revenge must be executed as lethally as possible.

To ensure that the grudge does not give birth to another grudge, it must be crushed thoroughly.

“So sincerely, thank you. For giving me another opportunity…”

“Right.”

“By the way, what’s the name of my benefactor…?”

“Angelita.”

“Oh, it was Lady Angelita.”

So now, I was going to show her a prime example of what she had just realized.

That the shackles of grudges are something only the weak take upon themselves.