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“2nd Squad! Sweep them away!”

“Meow!”

Facing the swarming skeletons, the cat librarians swung their large brooms.

The skeletons, being low-level monsters, crumbled easily upon contact with the brooms imbued with magical power.

The first monsters they encountered upon entering the underground archives were the skeletons.

Mindless creatures that simply attacked out of jealousy for the living.

Though their movements were sluggish, it was no time to let their guard down.

“2nd Squad, assist the 1st Squad and advance! 3rd Squad, follow and guard the rear!”

“Meow!”

Under the command of Head Librarian Myocheolsu, the librarians moved in perfect unison.

The fiercest battle was at the front, where the 1st Squad was positioned.

The librarians wielded their bookmark swords, steadily eliminating the skeletons.

And at their forefront…

[Izakhel Style]

[First Strike: Light Slice]

As Bella’s right foot moved, a flash of light shot out in a straight line.

It was a light that pierced through the darkness.

The skeletons in its path collapsed helplessly.

The overwhelming power left the surrounding librarians gaping.

Bella kicked aside the scattered bone fragments and asked, “How much further do we have to go?”

“Huh? Oh, yes! Just one more block, and we’ll reach the section with the cursed books.”

“Good. Let’s keep moving forward.”

The silver-haired princess, Bella, led the way, with the 1st Squad librarians following closely.

The long-abandoned underground archives were, as expected, teeming with monsters.

Mostly skeletons.

Judging by their forms, it seemed that the corpses of monsters had turned into skeletons.

But their numbers were anything but ordinary.

“…If all these creatures were alive, it would have been terrifying,” muttered Myoru, the 1st Squad leader, a blue-gray cat.

They had defeated many skeletons on their way, but more kept crawling out of the darkness.

More skeletons than books.

In other words, it was evidence that many monsters had once lived here.

“Did they run out of food and start eating each other?”

“Maybe…”

Bella looked around.

The underground archives, untouched by humans for years, had turned into a dungeon.

But it wasn’t a living dungeon. It was a dead one.

A dungeon is an ecosystem.

A living environment where monsters interact and influence each other.

In that sense, this place was clearly out of sync with that natural order.

The deeper they went, the stronger the stench of death became.

There was nothing alive.

Only heavy silence and bone fragments filled the space between the massive bookshelves.

Seeing this, Bella felt she understood why this place had become like this.

The blood flowing through her veins was telling her.

That ‘he’ was here.

“Miss.”

At that moment, a familiar voice came from ahead.

In the unfathomable darkness.

Blanshe, Bella’s bodyguard knight, appeared silently.

She had gone ahead to scout and now reported back.

“I found it.”

Just those few words, but no one asked what she had found.

Blanshe’s expression was too serious for that.

She led Bella and the librarians to a bookshelf.

“…An egg?”

The librarians tilted their heads in confusion.

It was a massive egg, easily over 10 meters tall.

The first strange object they had found in the underground archives filled with books and bones.

Moreover, the egg was oddly embedded in a half-broken bookshelf.

Only upon closer inspection could they discern its true nature.

“This… it’s bone, isn’t it?”

It was hard to describe.

A clump of bones from the surroundings, perhaps.

Or maybe a bone sculpture.

But Bella instinctively knew what it was.

From the moment she saw the mysterious egg, she felt a deep sense of unease.

The librarians began examining the giant bone.

They tapped it with their brooms, but there was no response.

“Squad leader, take a look at this.”

“Hmm?”

A librarian who had found something used magic to illuminate the bone.

As the light hit it, something drawn on the surface became visible.

“Hmm… I can’t really see it. What is it?”

“No, it’s the ‘Flower of the Abyss.'”

“Huh?”

The gazes of Myoru and the other librarians focused on Bella.

It was something very familiar to her, as a member of the Izakhel family, but unfamiliar to the others.

So she explained slowly.

“It’s a symbol all demons possess. The Demon’s Mark, or the Flower of the Abyss…”

“Then this is…?”

“Yes. It’s a demon.”

The librarians held their breath.

Unlike monsters, demons are on a completely different level.

Even for well-trained librarians, facing a demon was a daunting task.

Bella reassured them.

“Don’t worry. It doesn’t seem to be a high-ranking demon.”

The hierarchy of demons could be determined by the Flower of the Abyss.

The darker and closer to black the flower, the higher the demon’s rank.

Fortunately, the demon before them had a colorless flower.

‘Then…’

Bella adjusted her grip on her rapier.

She infused it with light magic and stabbed the bone with all her might.

*Crack.*

But the hard surface didn’t even get a scratch.

Seeing this, Bella spoke.

“Hmm… It seems to be in hibernation. Or maybe in a state of suspended animation… But since it doesn’t react to light magic, we should be safe for now.”

“If you say so, Miss Bella, then that’s a relief. We’ll quickly search for the books now.”

“Please do.”

Under Myoru’s direction, the librarians split into two groups: one to search for books and the other to block the skeleton horde.

They were the elite librarians of the Wall of Truth, well-trained and efficient.

“Phew…”

Bella crouched down for a moment.

They had charged through so much that she couldn’t help but show signs of fatigue.

“Miss, are you okay?”

Blanshe looked at her with worried eyes.

She had also been at the forefront, scouting ahead, so her stamina must have been drained.

Yet, she was more concerned about Bella.

Bella smiled reassuringly.

“Haha… Of course. This is nothing.”

“Is that so…?”

It wasn’t really nothing.

Though they had only faced skeletons, their numbers were overwhelming.

Naturally, her magic power had been drained more than expected.

But she couldn’t show that in front of Blanshe.

“The scouting is done. I’ll escort you back.”

“That’s reassuring. So, all that’s left is for you to carry me back?”

“Shall I carry you?”

“No. Haha… Maybe next time.”

“There won’t be a next time.”

“How stingy.”

As they exchanged light-hearted banter, Blanshe glanced at the hibernating demon.

“But this is the first time I’ve seen a demon like this.”

“There are many types of demons. Not all of them have intelligence or take on human forms.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. In fact, those are rare. Most demons are closer to beasts, driven by instinct. Think about it, even some monsters have intelligence, right?”

“Ah, now that you mention it…”

Though lacking in intelligence, goblins and orcs can use tools and express emotions almost as well as humans.

Bella stabbed the demon with her sword and said, “If this one has a colorless hierarchy, it probably doesn’t even have ‘desires’ worth mentioning. At best, it might have simple desires like hunger or sleep. Nothing beyond that.”

“I see…”

“That’s why demons try to raise their hierarchy by devouring each other. The higher their rank, the more complex and numerous their desires become.”

Demons are beings that live on desire, forever tormented by insatiable cravings.

Freeing them from that torment and granting them peace was akin to the Izakhel family’s mission.

“Is this the Flower of the Abyss?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“It looks like a disturbing flower…”

“Haha… As expected of you, Blanshe. You have a talent for this.”

“Huh?”

“Ordinary people would vomit or suffer headaches just from seeing that flower. Some might even die from nightmares.”

At that, Blanshe quickly pulled Bella away from the demon.

“Hahaha… I’m used to it, so I’m fine.”

“Still…”

“It’s a trait of our family. At least among those here, I have the most resistance to demons…”

Wait a minute…

“Miss…?”

“Blanshe. Why is this flower ‘here’?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“Stay here for a moment.”

Bella quickly moved to the other side.

She used magic to light up the area.

This time, she expanded the range of the light.

“Ah…”

Finally, Bella let out a sigh as she discovered it.

She was standing where she had just found the Demon’s Mark, the Flower of the Abyss.

Just a few steps back, she could see the colorless flowers reflecting the light.

Yes. Flowers.

“Miss?! Are you okay?”

Blanshe’s voice reached her, but Bella couldn’t respond.

Seeing the Flowers of the Abyss blooming everywhere, Bella realized.

She had made a grave mistake.

A sense of unease washed over her.

The underground archives, where everything was dead.

This demon, no, these demons, were also already dead.

They had been devoured by ‘something,’ leaving only bones behind.

“Then this… could it be a cocoon?”

At that moment…

“We found the books!”

A librarian shouted.

“Oh, good job!”

“These are the cursed books you were looking for! We’ll take them down now.”

As the librarian pulled the books from the shelf…

*Crack.*

A sound of something breaking echoed.

Bella turned her head…

*Whoosh.*

The demon’s cocoon, which even her sword couldn’t break, began to crack.

Flames erupted from the fissures.

The intense heat reached Bella.

The bones that had encased the ‘creature’ like an egg began to crumble.

*Thud…*

The flames rose like a butterfly into the air.

The demon’s bones collapsed helplessly, revealing a naked woman within.

The woman, rising calmly amidst the flames, locked eyes with Bella.

“……!”

In that moment, Bella saw it clearly.

The crimson flower blooming on the woman’s forehead.

 

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