Chapter 68
‘That should be enough.’
As Kraush deliberately broke Pendal down before he fully unleashed his power, he stepped off Pendal, who was blushing with apparent shame.
However, Pendal didn’t seem to have any intention of standing up.
In fact, it looked like he preferred to stay down and avoid further embarrassment.
Leaving Pendal in that state, Kraush shouted to the onlookers.
“I am Kraush Balheim, seeking a challenger to take on the eighth floor alongside me, so try your luck!”
All eyes focused on Kraush in an instant.
“Anyone well-versed in the Demon Bastion is welcome. If you wish to earn the achievement of conquering the eighth floor, step forward!”
With that, Kraush turned on his heel.
Although he could see Pendal’s gang rushing over to help him up, he didn’t pay them any mind.
Instead, he recalled a woman who had been watching him throughout the battle.
‘Lakradiyon.’
The swordsman who could be seen as the last hope of the Demon Bastion.
If Pendal was the darkness, she was the light of the Demon Bastion.
A light that everyone in the Demon Bastion admired, hoping that one day she would lead them to victory.
And she was also the swordsman whose name Kraush had heard the most during his year spent in the Demon Bastion.
Only, by the time Kraush knew her, Lakradiyon had already laid down her sword and become a faded figure.
While Pendal remained stuck in the darkness, Lakradiyon was light, and eventually, that light was snuffed out.
She had become just a merchant running a small shop in the Demon Bastion after putting down her sword.
[Are you sure it’s fine to leave him like that? He’s going to go wild seeking revenge, you know?]
At that moment, Crimson Garden perched on Kraush’s shoulder and asked.
Kraush chuckled lightly at the question.
“That’s exactly what I’m waiting for.”
[You sound like a real piece of work.]
Pendal’s skill, Lionor.
Kraush was determined to snatch away the powers of that dial, which Pendal could barely even use.
Pendal had three dials that appeared to him.
[Feel envious.]
The first was envy.
Ironically, that condition was already fulfilled simply because Kraush was from Balheim.
[Be acknowledged as a rival.]
The second was rivalry.
It meant Pendal had to genuinely regard Kraush as a rival in some capacity.
‘You’re just serving vagaries again.’
Pendal’s second dial hadn’t been unlocked yet from the last battle.
Just because he wasn’t acknowledging Kraush in his heart doesn’t mean he couldn’t fill this condition.
‘There’s always another chance.’
The moment that he acknowledges him more than just a rival.
Kraush decided to wait patiently for that moment.
After all, he would inevitably cross paths with Pendal until he finished up whatever was left in the Demon Bastion.
The reason Kraush sought a team to descend the Demon Bastion wasn’t just because it was a tricky place to navigate alone.
It was also to draw Pendal out.
During his days in the Demon Bastion, Kraush had endured similar trials due to being from Balheim.
Of course, back then, it wasn’t Kraush who fought against Pendal.
That fate was left to Nix Greiza, the archer.
After hearing the news about Bellokin gaining the Thunder King, Nix also led his group of Starons, including Kraush, to the Demon Bastion.
That day, Pendal naturally picked a fight with Nix, and as a result, ended up smashed by him.
After that, Pendal relentlessly pursued Nix in a desperate ploy to recover, only to escape from the Demon Bastion in tatters once again.
Because of that, Kraush remembered Pendal’s tendencies, skills, and traits quite well.
Such details were Kraush’s specialty.
Thanks to that, he was able to defeat Pendal with such ease.
If it was anyone else, it wouldn’t have been this straightforward.
‘But the situation is completely different now.’
Kraush thought Pendal was not very different from then.
‘If only greater results were to come, I’d be off the hook.’
Of course, those results wouldn’t be favorable for Pendal.
Kraush’s eyes shone quietly in the darkness.
＊ ＊ ＊
To get straight to the point.
The situation hadn’t been resolved that easily.
Kraush was staring at Bianca, who was engrossed in reading the new book he had just brought for her.
Unfortunately, no one had shown up for Kraush’s eighth-floor conquest.
Pendal had indeed lost to Kraush.
However, that didn’t mean Kraush was someone who would just leave the Demon Bastion.
Pendal wouldn’t be disappearing from the Demon Bastion either.
So, no challenger was stepping up to join Kraush, who had firmly earned Pendal’s wrath.
“You got something on your face.”
But Kraush didn’t really care, and wiped the chocolate off Bianca’s face, which had gotten smeared after devouring the treat he had bought the day before.
Bianca tilted and turned her face, following Kraush’s hand.
It seemed she was getting accustomed to whatever Kraush did for her by now.
Then, Bianca turned her gaze back to Kraush.
“Are you still waiting for someone?”
“Something like that.”
The young Bianca wasn’t quite sure of Kraush’s purpose yet.
She was simply content to be by his side.
Though that felt nice, she often thought about wanting to help him out.
“Is there anything I can do to help?”
Kraush’s eyes widened in amusement before slowly laughing.
“What could you possibly help with?”
Unlike Kraush, Bianca had no knowledge of combat at all.
But curious about how this little squirt planned to help him, Kraush asked with interest, and Bianca immediately stood up.
Then she plopped herself right on the seat where Kraush had been sitting.
Just as Kraush froze in surprise at Bianca’s sudden action, her soft hair brushed against his face.
“They say human warmth helps ease tension.”
“… Did you read that in a book?”
“Yes.”
Her reply was blunt.
Though she seemed pleased, the legs of Bianca, visible underneath the table, slowly began to wag back and forth.
Kraush, wearing a bemused expression, gently reached out to pat Bianca’s head.
At that, her legs moved a bit faster back and forth.
The sight reminded him of a wagging puppy tail for a brief moment.
‘Seems like with her emotions unpressed, she’s becoming more expressive.’
Given that Bianca had lived her life suppressing her feelings, he felt a sense of pride watching her open up.
“Um…”
At that moment, a voice reached Kraush’s ear.
Realizing that the awaited guest had finally arrived, Kraush turned his head.
Standing before him was one woman.
With her hair mixed in black and golden hues, and a sword attached to her waist.
The only person who could stand shoulder to shoulder with Pendal in the Demon Bastion.
It was Lakradiyon.
Had she been training until morning?
Her clothes were covered in dust.
Yet her emerald eyes shone brightly.
Finally, the long-awaited guest had come.
Kraush held a neutral expression upon seeing her.
However, despite maintaining that expression, Bianca was still sitting right in front of him.
As Kraush lightly tapped on Bianca’s shoulder, she instinctively pressed back against him.
Not backing down, was she?
Kraush figured it was a little awkward, but he decided to go ahead with the conversation anyway.
“Did you come for something?”
Upon Kraush’s question, Lakradiyon cautiously opened her mouth.
“I want to help with the eighth-floor conquest.”
Just as expected, the words he had been waiting to hear came out.
Kraush slightly widened his eyes at the declaration.
“You know that would mean you’d be at odds with Pendal? Are you fine with that? That guy’s probably going to try to meddle.”
The idea that he’d succeed in the eighth-floor conquest after being defeated by Kraush before?
For Pendal, that thought would be utterly intolerable.
He wouldn’t let it slide, of course.
Lakradiyon was no doubt aware of that truth as well.
Yet her gaze remained unwavering.
“It doesn’t matter. Pendal and I are both cowards. Once the eighth-floor conquest is over, he’ll likely hide his tail.”
Once upon a time, Pendal and Lakradiyon had teamed up to conquer the Demon Bastion.
So both knew how they fell to the phantom of the eighth floor.
“And you, a coward too, want to join me on the eighth floor?”
“Yes, I want to become more than just a coward.”
That was good enough for Kraush.
“Alright. Lakradiyon, let’s go together then.”
“…You know my name, huh?”
“You know mine too. I doubt you’d be deaf to my name when you’re trying to conquer the eighth floor of the Demon Bastion.”
Lakradiyon didn’t deny it.
“But I’m at the entrance of the Demon Bastion. The place is filled with traps, and I doubt you can disarm all of them alone.”
“I have a friend who’s an expert in those.”
Seeing her quick wit, Kraush couldn’t help but grin.
In fact, he wasn’t unfamiliar with the entrance of the Demon Bastion either, but he didn’t know every trap, not by a long shot.
“Perfect. Please take care of your friend as well.”
With that, preparations were complete.
Now, all that was left was the actual conquest.
It was time to take down the phantom, and in turn, grab Pendal’s skill too.
＊ ＊ ＊
News spread like wildfire that the light of the Demon Bastion, Lakradiyon, had teamed up with the lineage of Balheim.
And it made sense, considering Kraush was always waiting for a challenger, and now Lakradiyon had come directly to him.
After the team that included Lakradiyon and Pendal, Icarus, had been obliterated by the phantom, she had focused solely on honing her skills and not entered the Demon Bastion again.
Everyone believed she would eventually find her way back, yet she never did.
Just when her fame began to fade, she decided to re-enter the Demon Bastion alongside the direct descendant of Balheim.
“Didn’t Pendal just get smashed by Balheim’s direct line?”
“Is Balheim’s direct line really that impressive? Maybe Lakradiyon is just looking to climb back to fame through Balheim?”
Some downgraded Lakradiyon’s glory like that.
However, those who knew how formidable she once was in the Demon Bastion and understood the terror of the phantom shook their heads in disbelief.
If that were the case, she would have entered long ago.
It was evident Lakradiyon had seen some new hope through the lineage of Balheim.
That was what everyone thought.
Crash!
And upon hearing that news, Pendal slammed his fist on the desk in front of him.
In the sunlight filtering through the dark curtain, he was grinding his teeth, a band-aid on his chin.
“Ra, Lakradiyon! After seeing me like this, she’s teaming up with that little brat?”
Pendal felt a sense of betrayal from Lakradiyon.
After experiencing defeat in front of the phantom, she was instantly cozying up to Kraush.
He simply couldn’t wrap his head around it.
Unbeknownst to himself, Pendal carried feelings of inferiority towards Lakradiyon.
While he had stooped to lowly deeds in the darkness, Lakradiyon had always wielded her sword, shining bright like a light.
Though she too had been broken like him, the mere sight of her wielding now felt both sentimental and terrifying for Pendal.
If she were to stand again after having fallen with him, Pendal would surely plummet to new depths.
And now she claimed she would enter the Demon Bastion again.
With none other than Balheim’s direct descendant, crowned with that shame.
Crunch!
Once more clenching his jaw, Pendal raised his fist.
Then suddenly, he smashed his own face with a resounding Boom!
“Damn it!”
It was time to let go of the inferiority complex.
Those incidents with Balheim’s direct line were one thing.
“…You really think I’m just going to keep quiet about this?”
His singular goal had always been the same.
One day he would defeat the phantom.
That was the reason he had been living, making his way as Pendal Road.
He wouldn’t allow the phantom to fall to anyone else.
‘The hesitation ends today.’
Ironically, with the news that Lakradiyon and Kraush were challenging the phantom, Pendal’s resolve to challenge the phantom rekindled in his eyes.
He pushed past the broken desk and flung Bang! the door open.
As he did, the gang members surrounding him quickly scrambled out of his way.
“…I’m heading into the Demon Bastion.”
At that moment, as Pendal’s next words resonated, one by one, his gang started looking back at him.
Even though he’d previously created Pendal Road to challenge the phantom, he had always hesitated up until now, but finally, the words had escaped his mouth.
The eyes of Pendal’s gang shifted.
“Boss, you’ve finally made up your mind.”
“Ha ha! We can’t let them snatch our prey away!”
“Boss isn’t just ugly; he’s got his good sides too!”
As the morale of Pendal Road soared instantaneously, he swallowed a laugh of disbelief and glared with wide eyes.
“Right! We’ll take down the phantom before they do and claim the Thunder King for ourselves!”
That was the moment the entire Demon Bastion began to stir.
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