Kyuste was the one who stood between Rei and Vel, the very man who had hindered him just a moment before. However, the light of will had vanished from his eyes. He stood before Rei as if shrouded in a fog, his own volition utterly absent.
"There. That solves the tank problem," Vel said from behind Kyuste, his face twisted into that same maddened grin.
"He might be a useful tank, but he’s still just Kyuste," Rei countered. He spoke provocatively on purpose while focusing his senses on the two unconscious women. "As you know, there’s an overwhelming gap in our raw ability. Do you really think he can stop me alone?"
Inside, Rei was calculating. If Elena and Ara were also under his control, someone with Vel’s personality would have bragged about it by now. He kept his attention sharp, scanning the entire room for any hidden threats, but Vel’s response caught him off guard.
"True, under normal circumstances, Kyuste is no match for you. But... what if he isn’t in a normal state?"
"What?"
"Think about it. If you use a magic potion to puppet someone’s mind, you can’t expect them to perform at their peak, right? They can manage movements ingrained in their muscles, but complex combat tactics are out the window when they’re being steered. Well, supposedly there are high-grade potions out there that can control a person perfectly, but the one I used isn’t that sophisticated. Honestly, the Bestia Empire is too obsessed with keeping their technology a secret. Though I have to admit, that Mantis was impressive."
"The Mantis...?"
The word sparked a memory. On the road from the City of Gilm to this dungeon, they had been ambushed by a massive monster. It had used optical camouflage to blend into the landscape and dissolved into nothingness the moment it was killed to destroy any evidence.
"I see. That was your doing as well."
"Hmm? Oh, no, no. That monster was definitely the work of a Bestia Empire alchemist, but I didn't have a hand in it. Even if I've betrayed the Kingdom of Mireana, if the Empire had a chance to kill the Princess General, they wouldn't hesitate to take it. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out which they’d prioritize."
"So you were just a throwaway pawn to them."
Rei continued to probe with insults, but Vel let them slide like the wind through a willow tree, completely unfazed.
"I suppose so. But that’s fine. If I’m the kind of man who dies as a pawn, then that’s all I ever was. Not that I plan on going quietly. Anyway, you’ve been trying to buy time, but Elena and Ara aren't going to wake up that easily. Besides, you aren't the only one waiting for a clock to run out. It’s about time."
With a smirk, Vel pulled a whistle from his breast pocket and held it up ostentatiously. The moment Rei saw it, a cold shiver of premonition ran down his spine.
"Set!"
"Guruuuu!"
At Rei’s command, Set unleashed a Wind Arrow. Rei dashed past Kyuste—who was parrying the gale with his Water Magic Spear—and lunged toward Vel as the traitor brought the whistle to his lips. Rei swung the Death Scythe, but just as he did, several egg-like objects erupted from the tentacles covering Vel’s body.
"Tch!"
Rei reflexively dodged or sliced through the projectiles, but the momentary distraction allowed Vel to leap backward and put distance between them. Vel took a deep breath and blew into the whistle.
A piercing, high-pitched trill echoed through the chamber. Set, who had been preparing another volley of Wind Arrows, suddenly abandoned his position and leaped away. An instant later, a thunderous crash shook the stone floor.
A human-sized figure slammed into the spot where Set had been standing a heartbeat before. If the griffon had hesitated for even a second, it would have been his spine, not the cobblestone, that was crushed.
"Is that another 'gift' of alchemy?" Rei asked, retreating to Set’s side. He kept his eyes on the newcomer while maintaining his distance from Vel and Kyuste.
"Exactly. This is a special piece lent to me by the Bestia Empire—a Golem. As you can see, it’s a high-performance model. It followed us all this way without you or even Set noticing."
A Golem. They were artificial lifeforms crafted from stone, earth, wood, or bone. To Rei, they were essentially robots—entities without will or emotion that mindlessly obeyed their master’s commands. However, the construct before him was unlike any he had read about in the library or seen in Zephyle’s memories. Most golems were nearly three meters tall, but this one was only about 1.6 meters—roughly the same height as Rei.
It’s less like a golem and more like an automata, Rei thought, leveling his Death Scythe at the machine. Estha Nor, the legendary alchemist of the Zephyle Clan, might have been capable of crafting such a thing, but Zephyle’s memories suggested she was far more interested in magic items than golems.
"Even with that thing, the advantage is still mine," Rei declared. "Set can handle the Golem while I deal with you and Kyuste."
"Hmm, that’s how a normal person would see it. But that’s only if you think normally."
Vel reached into his pocket again and pulled out a small, triangular pyramid jewel. It didn't look like a magic stone.
"Curious? This is how you use it!"
Vel swung his hand down, driving the jewel into the side of Kyuste’s neck.
"Gah... GAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"
The jewel sank into Kyuste’s flesh as if it were alive, and a beast-like scream ripped from the knight’s throat. Vel watched with the glee of someone enjoying a front-row seat at a theater.
"Oh? Was the shock too much? Did you actually wake up?"
Kyuste’s eyes snapped open. The haze was gone, replaced by a clarity of pain. He looked at Vel, his memories of the betrayal rushing back.
"Vel, you bastard! ...What!?"
Kyuste tried to thrust his spear through Vel’s chest, but his body refused to move from the neck down.
"Vel, what have you done to me!?" Kyuste roared, his gaze burning with enough murderous intent to kill a lesser man on the spot.
"What? Don't you remember? You drank from my canteen a few times, didn't you? It was laced with a magic potion. I’m fine, of course—I took the antidote."
"You... what do you want!?"
"Isn't it obvious? If I want to be welcomed by the Bestia Empire, I need a gift. Bringing them the head of the Princess General who’s humiliated them for so long will ensure I’m treated like royalty. It was quite a chore, honestly. Between Elena’s intuition and the constant guard you and the rest of the Knight Order provided, I couldn't find an opening. Then the news of the Altar of Inheritance broke. I knew this ritual required a small group. I even had my father influence the mission requirements to limit the escort to D-Rank adventurers to ensure I’d be the strongest one there. My only miscalculation was that the 'D-Rank adventurer' turned out to be an outlier like Rei."
The sound of grinding teeth filled the air.
"You... have you no pride as a noble!?" Kyuste spat.
"Pride? To me, pride is worth less than the dust on my boots. It was that 'pride' that stopped me from killing whoever I wanted unless we were at war."
"Ugh!"
"Well, enough talk. It’s time for the finale."
Vel snapped his fingers. Kyuste’s body lurched forward against his will, leveling his Magic Spear at Rei.
"What!?"
"That’s the potion at work. And there’s more..."
Vel snapped his fingers again. Kyuste’s body blurred, closing the distance to Rei with frightening speed.
"Dammit, get back!" Kyuste screamed, even as his arm thrust the spear forward.
Rei barely had time to react.
"What!?"
Both Rei and Kyuste cried out in shock. The spear moved with a speed incomparable to anything they had seen during the dungeon crawl. Kyuste’s body was moving faster, sharper, and more powerfully than he had ever thought possible. Rei reflexively swung the Death Scythe to parry the strike.
"Ahahaha! Surprised? Kyuste’s physical ability has been boosted to double... no, triple his normal limit! This is why I can afford to be so calm," Vel boasted.
Rei focused, blocking and dodging the relentless flurry of spear thrusts. Nearby, Set had engaged the Golem. The griffon darted around the construct’s longsword, his Eagle Claws leaving deep gouges in its shield.
"Vel, you bastard! Forcing my body to move like this... I’ll never forgive you!" Kyuste roared. Vel ignored him, watching the struggle with casual amusement.
"Now, now, shouldn't you be focusing on the fight? Your body is trying its best to kill Rei, after all."
"Ngh!"
Kyuste unleashed a Three-fold Thrust, aiming for Rei’s stomach, chest, and throat in rapid succession. Rei parried every strike with the shaft of his scythe, the momentary shock from earlier replaced by cold focus. No matter how much Kyuste’s stats were boosted, the control was still crude. Vel couldn't replicate the years of spear techniques Kyuste had mastered.
He’s using that jewel to forcibly override Kyuste’s limits and make up for the lack of finesse, Rei realized.
Kyuste swung his spear in a low sweep. Rei planted the shaft of the Death Scythe into the stone floor, using it as a pillar to block the blow.
"Gah!"
The Death Scythe weighed over a hundred kilograms, and Rei possessed the strength to wield it with ease. When Kyuste’s magically enhanced strike hit the immovable shaft, the recoil sent a numbing shock through the knight’s own arms.
But he didn't stop. Using the momentum of the recoil, Kyuste spun, bringing the spear around in a horizontal slash from Rei’s left. Rei stepped back, letting the tip whistle past his chest, then lunged forward to close the distance.
"Don't die on me," Rei muttered.
He slammed the shaft of the Death Scythe into Kyuste’s solar plexus. It was a precise, heavy blow meant to knock the knight unconscious and end the puppet show.
"Ga—ha!"
To Rei’s surprise, Kyuste didn't go down. He was wearing full plate armor, but the force of the strike had been enough to crumple the steel. Under normal circumstances, any man would have blacked out instantly. Instead, Kyuste remained standing, his face contorted in agony.
"Ahahahaha! It’s no use! Kyuste won't pass out—he can't. The reinforcement won't let him. I’m sure the pain is unbearable, though. How does it feel, Kyuste? To be trapped in a body that won't let you sleep? For a proud man like you, it must be the ultimate humiliation."
Vel doubled over with laughter.
"...ll me."
"Hmm? Did you say something? I hope it’s not more whining about wanting to die," Vel mocked.
Kyuste looked at Rei, tears of pain and rage in his eyes. "Kill me... and kill him! Rei!"