As all the hunters of the Fire Bird Guild left the dungeon, only Maru and I remained.
There was no need to worry about where or how to find the darkstone.
This was because one minotaurus approached me.
“Moo?”
(Master?)
It glanced at me and Maru once.
When I nodded, it lowered its head and greeted me.
“Moo. Moo-”
(I am the Minotaurus Chieftain. I was originally the owner of this dungeon.)
Ah.
The Minotaurus Chieftain, who was the original owner of this place.
But it was past tense.
Because Baalcherit, whom I had dispatched, had taken his place.
“Are you perhaps resentful of me?”
As I spoke, Maru drew the Demonic Sword.
No, Maru, why did you suddenly draw your sword?
“…?!”
The Minotaurus Chieftain’s eyes widened in surprise at Maru’s actions, and he lowered himself.
“Moo!”
(Absolutely not!)
The chieftain, denying any resentment, then spoke to me and Maru.
“Moo, moo.”
(Lord Baalcherit instructed me to mine the darkstone. If you are looking for it, this way.)
He’s quick-witted.
He began to guide me in a direction the hunters hadn’t taken.
“We are going even deeper underground.”
“Moo, moo.”
(Yes, to the deepest level.)
After descending for a long time, the minotaurus finally stopped.
The dungeon walls began to change. Black stone lumps were embedded in the walls everywhere.
No, rather than being embedded in the walls, it would be more accurate to say that the walls themselves were made of darkstone.
“Are all of these darkstone?”
I never thought so much would be buried.
The Minotaurus Chieftain nodded and opened his mouth.
“Moo.”
(Yes.)
Before he could finish speaking, a wide space opened up before my eyes. Dozens of minotaurs were holding pickaxes and striking the walls.
“Ugh-Moo!”
(Hit harder!)
One minotaurus shouted, and the other minotaurs simultaneously increased their pickaxe swings.
However, the darkstone embedded in the wall did not budge. Instead, it felt like the pickaxes would break.
The chieftain sighed at the sight.
“Mo-moo…”
(As you can see, the darkstone is too hard to mine…)
“Indeed.”
Their efforts seemed to yield almost no results.
Some had collapsed on the ground, exhausted.
The chieftain was no different.
Even though the A-Rank Monster, the Minotaurus Chieftain, swung his pickaxe with all his might, the wall only showed a slight crack, and mining was impossible.
“Moo, moo…”
(Lord Baalcherit ordered the mining of darkstone, but this is impossible…)
The Minotaurus Chieftain’s words made me fall into thought.
‘He said even A-Rank had difficulty cutting it?’
I knew that darkstone was the hardest among the dungeon minerals. However, even if they were both A-Rank, humans and monsters have different physical characteristics.
To think that the Minotaurus Chieftain, with his muscular body, couldn’t cut it.
I thought the Minotaurus Chieftain would be able to cut it easily since Maru did it so effortlessly, but my thinking was wrong.
I looked at Maru.
“Maru.”
“Clap?”
Maru turned his head.
“Cut that for me.”
Maru drew the Demonic Sword once more.
“Clap!”
As Maru slowly approached the wall embedded with darkstone, the minotaurs stepped back.
Maru stood in front of the wall, seeming to catch his breath for a moment. His black robe fluttered slightly.
And then, in an instant.
Swish-!
The Demonic Sword slashed through the air, disappearing from sight and reappearing.
At first, it seemed like nothing happened.
“Moo?”
The minotaurs looked at each other with bewildered expressions.
Then, slowly, very slowly, a crack began to form on the wall, centered around the darkstone.
The crack widened, and finally, with a thud, a huge chunk of darkstone fell to the ground.
“Wow!”
At the sight, the minotaurs let out surprised cries.
“Clap.”
Maru turned back to me and spoke.
I nodded with satisfaction.
“Good job, Maru.”
Awe spread in the eyes of the Minotaurus Chieftain.
“Moo!”
(Amazing! I’ve never seen such a large piece of darkstone!)
The Minotaurus Chieftain immediately shouted at his subordinates.
“Moo, moo! Moo-!”
(You all, transport this carefully! You will be punished by Master if you break it!)
At the chieftain’s roar, the minotaurs rushed over to lift the chunk of darkstone, but it was not easy even with their strength.
The darkstone was much heavier than its size suggested.
“Moo…”
(Oh no, it’s too heavy…)
Just as the Minotaurus Chieftain was about to express his bewilderment, Maru stepped forward again.
“Clap.”
Maru raised the Demonic Sword and swung it at the darkstone once more.
This time, the darkstone was neatly divided into several pieces.
‘Is it about 1 meter?’
Although still large, it seemed suitable for the minotaurs to transport.
The Minotaurus Chieftain’s eyes sparkled.
“Moo!”
(Thank you!)
He immediately ordered his subordinates.
“Moo! Moo, moo-moo!”
(Now, collect all these pieces of darkstone! Check them carefully, and don’t miss a single one! Master is waiting!)
The minotaurs quickly began to gather the pieces of darkstone.
* * *
As the Fire Bird Guild was engulfed in chaos, the El Dorado Continent was also experiencing a series of upheavals.
The Sail Kingdom had taken over the Free City Alliance, arresting all its leaders.
The Free City Alliance, without its leaders, was instantly absorbed into the Sail Kingdom.
The territory expanded rapidly, but no country dared to speak out against it.
Because to deny the Sail Kingdom’s actions at this point would be to become a heretic themselves.
If they denied it, they would be subjected to intense investigations by the Inquisitors, just like the mayors and councilors of the Free City Alliance.
In fact, they were as good as dead.
Therefore, no one dared to argue about this matter.
They simply followed the trend.
Then, Queen Irena, wearing a golden crown, stood in the central plaza of the Sail Kingdom.
The moment the Queen appeared, even the air seemed to stop. Her red cape fluttered in the wind, and the crowd was so awestruck that they couldn’t even breathe.
Knights were lined up beside her.
“People of Sail!”
Irena’s voice echoed throughout the plaza.
“We are about to turn a page in history today!”
As she raised her hand, hundreds of flags fluttered and descended, adorning the entire plaza.
They were flags bearing the crest of the Sail Kingdom.
“The disorder and chaos of the Free City Alliance are now over. The heretical faith they worshipped has been purified under Sail’s light.”
The people gathered in the plaza nodded silently.
“Our territory has expanded, and we have become stronger.”
A smile spread across Irena’s face. It wasn’t a warm smile, but the smile of a victor, a conqueror.
“From today, the Sail Kingdom no longer exists.”
Surprised murmurs rose from the crowd.
“Instead, the Sail Empire will take its place!”
As Irena raised both hands to the sky, the knights drew their swords and raised them high.
“I, Irena, as the first Empress of the Sail Empire, pledge to ‘Him’ to bring peace and order to this continent!”
Queen Irena.
No, Irena, who was now Empress, declared, and the crowd knelt in unison.
* * *
– Special Mission ‘To Make the Kingdom a Great Empire!’ successfully completed!
– Reward: The Sail Kingdom is upgraded to the Sail Empire. Accordingly, the behavior range of dungeon monsters will be expanded to the entire Sail Empire.
As the price of jewels rises, causality will be lifted, removing the limit on purchases.
