How to Survive as a Dungeon Manager in Another World

Episode 16 – Hellhest

The corrupted World Tree, Mirkdrásil, was located in the western depths, specifically in ‘Westmarch,’ infamous for its bizarre terrain.

Westmarch, once a haven for the forgotten race of elves, had faded from memory with the corruption of the World Tree.

There was one reason I remembered it.

In the original story, the protagonist wandered around seeking fortuitous encounters and stumbled into Westmarch, where they discovered a giant tree exuding deathly energy.

The giant tree was called Mirkdrásil.

Grown fat on elven blood, it was a tree of apocalypse, referred to in the original as the corrupted World Tree.

The reason I remembered the existence of Mirkdrásil was that it was described in the original story as the only way to control Ludine’s fatal destiny.

From the office at the entrance of Blackmore to Westmarch.

Naturally, it was a very long distance, and therefore, the time it would take would also be considerable.

The terrain, not fit even for a wagon, left us with no recourse but to walk, endlessly.

And now.

“Luke.”

“…”

“This… feels like the path we took earlier.”

“…It does.”

Ludin and I were lost.

Or, more precisely, we didn’t know where *here* even was.

I checked the compass, pointing westward, and muttered.

“The direction… seems right.”

I had a rough idea, at least.

Even knowing Westmarch existed, I wasn’t confident I could find it without getting thoroughly lost.

Of course, that’s because this world *is* a world from a novel.

A chasm wider than imagination exists between places read in ink, and finding them in reality.

For a region as mind-bogglingly vast as Blackmore, that chasm could only deepen further.

Above all, the original story *skipped* the entire process of finding the way.

Through the convenient method of shifting perspectives, no less.

Since the whole road-finding journey was omitted entirely, getting lost like this was, perhaps, inevitable.

I turned my head, surveying the surroundings.

‘Lush thickets, fading light, withered blackwood, ash-tinged earth…’

It matched some of the descriptions, to a degree.

The direction my compass pointed agreed, too.

But the Demon Realm’s forest was immense.

Was it truly possible to find one’s way in this vast nature, relying only on fragmentary information?

Of course, I’d marked the path at every turn coming here, so retracing our steps wasn’t an issue. Still, I felt a disquieting unease.

And then.

Rustle.

Something moved in the undergrowth.

Grrrrraaa—!

A magical beast.

It resembled a bear, yet its frame was overly immense, and its forepaws were curved with a keenness akin to sickle blades.

Eyes, gleaming darkly in the gloom, turned this way.

Black saliva dripped, thick and heavy, from fangs revealed between its jaws, as though ravenous hunger gnawed within.

‘…Well, now.’

Ahem!

I feigned a composure I scarcely possessed, turning my head aside.

Rudyne’s form came into view, her crimson eyes now fully awakened.

“Rudyne.”

“Mn.”

*Swoosh—!*

It was but a blink.

I had merely called Rudyne’s name, yet her dagger cleaved through the air, and the monster’s torso was instantly cloven in twain.

“…Good work.”

The small mercy, at least,

was that we wouldn’t need to worry about monsters during the journey.

The deeper we ventured, the more frequent the appearance of monsters became.

As befitting a demon realm, each and every beast that materialized was at least of the ‘Strange’ rank or higher.

Monster species are classified into five grades based on the danger they pose to a target: Ominous, Strange, Demonic, Calamitous, and Annihilation…

The danger ostensibly increasing with each rank, but from Strange onwards, their peril multiplies exponentially as they manipulate demonic energy.

‘A Strange-rank is hardly a problem.’

I nodded, gazing at Rudyne leading the way.

Even though the Heavenly Murder Star hadn’t yet properly bloomed, she was a prodigy of natural combat.

Capable of dispatching Strange-rank monsters with relative ease.

‘Though Calamitous-rank will likely be difficult.’

Well, it’s not particularly important information.

Calamitous-rank monsters aren’t exactly common, and I don’t recall any intelligence indicating a Calamitous-rank monster appearing along the path to Westmarch.

*Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!*

Monsters, ambushing us constantly, were slaughtered by the sword aura Rudyne unleashed.

It was, quite literally, a one-sided massacre.

It was a marvel made possible by her crimson eyes, specialized for sniffing out the weak.

“Luke.”

“Hm?”

“I like it here.”

“…You do, huh?”

Her face splattered with blood, she smiled with a pure, untainted joy.

This place, where she could indulge in carnage without a second thought, pleased her.

‘…Truly deserving of the title, Heavenly Star of Slaughter.’

The hike went smoothly.

They lost their way at first, but as they continued onward, new paths began to reveal themselves.

They walked by day, made camp by night, and when the sun rose, they walked again.

If demonic beasts emerged, they were slain, and if hunger gnawed, they paused to sate its sharp bite.

Supplies were plentiful, and there was no immediate need to rush.

It was during this leisurely trek that it happened.

“It’s a cliff from here.”

Ludine stopped and spoke those words.

As she said, a precipice yawned before them.

“We came to the right place.”

“Huh? It’s a cliff, though?”

“Exactly. So we came to the right place.”

If they could just descend this daunting cliff before them, Westmarch awaited.

In truth, they had all but arrived, but the problem was how to descend this daunting cliff.

“It’s terribly high.”

“I know.”

“There’s nowhere to put our feet.”

“That’s true.”

“…We’d die if we just fell, wouldn’t we?”

They would die.

If they simply plummeted down with nothing but their bare bodies.

“Ludine, come here.”

“…Huh?”

“Come here and let me carry you on my back.”

“What?”

Ludiné’s eyes narrowed as she looked at me.

It was as if she were saying, ‘What kind of preposterous nonsense is that?’

“Don’t you trust me?”

“…”

“Falling from this height, even with magic reinforcing us, is dangerous, you know? So don’t be stubborn and just get on my back.”

Ludiné hesitated, shifting her feet.

Her hesitation seemed almost… endearing.

I lowered myself, bending one knee.

“Quickly.”

Ludiné slowly approached and leaned against my back.

A soft sensation touched my skin.

The hesitant, careful way she wrapped her arms around me was like a small kitten.

“…Am I heavy?”

Why was she trembling so much, so unlike herself?

“No.”

I answered curtly and gripped her legs.

Lighter than I expected.

Too delicate for a born killer cursed with a Heaven-Slaying Star.

And…

“Hold on tight.”

*Whoosh!*

The descent was instantaneous.

*Swaaa—!*

The wind clawed at my ears, a raging tempest that enveloped my entire being.

The faster we fell, the quicker my vision blurred.

The surface of the cliff flashed past.

The brown and grey rocks swirled like smeared paint.

“…!”

I could feel Rudine’s breath on my neck.

She feigned composure, but the body pressed against my back trembled ever so slightly.

Below, a dizzying drop to the unforgiving earth.

We plummeted with the ferocity of a thunderclap, but it wasn’t a matter of grave concern.

‘Not yet.’

In the distance, through skeletal trees, a ruin materialized.

Westmarch.

Ten meters to the ground.

My heart hammered in my chest.

Five meters.

Rudine’s arms tightened around my neck.

Three meters.

“Accelerate.”

The tattoo beneath my right eye pulsed with an azure light.

An ethereal haze bloomed from my entire being, enveloping Rudine and me in its embrace.

The crushing weight of compressed time bore down on all within.

And then.

One meter.

“Reverse.”

In that instant, everything around us stilled.

The air, gravity, time itself.

And even Rudine and I, hurtling downwards with unstoppable force.

*Kwoong.*

The aftershock of the halted momentum rippled outwards.

Ash-grey dust swirled and settled across the desolate landscape.

‘Augh, my heart.’

…Almost lost it for real.

I swallowed a sigh, mentally releasing my power.

Only after a feather-light landing did Rudine finally dismount my back.

“……”

Ludine stood frozen, staring off at something.

I followed her gaze, but saw nothing of particular note.

Then, Ludine opened her mouth, speaking softly.

“…Something’s there.”

Her voice held a quality, as if locked away.

And then, she suddenly began to walk.

‘What’s wrong with her?’

Was she that startled?

Well, it wasn’t something I paid much mind to.

We had, after all, finally reached the destination we’d been searching for.

‘Where is she going?’

I leisurely trailed behind Ludine.

Ludine, with her acutely sensitive senses, wouldn’t react like that without a reason.

Just as unease began to creep in.

I was rendered speechless by the overwhelming sight unfolding before my eyes.

“…Damned.”

It was a horse.

Its body was gaunt, skeletal, with skin barely clinging to the bone, and even that hide showed clear signs of rot.

A creature from memory.

A nightmare crawled up from the underworld, a curse dragging lost life in its wake.

A Horse of Pestilence, a Hellheist.

A Calamity-Grade Magical Beast.

‘What is it?’

Ludine’s frozen pupils wavered.

Her crimson eyes pierce to the very essence of living things.

But from the creature before her, she felt nothing.

Neither through her spiritual senses, nor with her naked eye.

It was a situation she had experienced before.

It was the same when I first met the woman named Arkan.

An overwhelming stature, so profound I couldn’t even sense her aura.

Though I gritted my teeth and unleashed the magic in my crimson eyes, blood instead trickled down my face from the oppressive force gripping the space.

‘…Dangerous.’

Rudine was shrewd.

Therefore, she knew it instinctively.

That thing was a monster.

Completely different from anything she’d dealt with before.

A vast and profoundly pure aura, impossible to fathom.

‘What in the world…’

The monster’s gaze turned towards her.

Simply meeting its eyes was enough; the immense pressure made her legs buckle.

The will to attack didn’t even arise.

Rudine enjoyed the hunt, but *that* was not her prey.

Escaping this very moment was the best course, yet her feet remained glued to the ground, for some reason.

And then.

“…Luke?”

Luke, who had been standing silently, slowly extended his right arm.

Simultaneously, he murmured a familiar incantation.

“Acceleration.”

*Whoom*.

A shimmering, azure haze flowed from his fingertips.

A swirling energy, undulating like waves, rushed toward the monster in a spiraling assault.

“Return.”

Fragments of light, embroidered across the void, aligned themselves with a will of their own.

Light connected to light, forming lines, and lines connected to lines, forming planes.

Before I knew it, a pure white sphere, pulsating with light at a rate of seconds, had imprisoned the monster.

“Time.”

Fragments of light haphazardly carved through the space.

And between those fractured spaces, the overwhelming currents of time writhed.

Space, time, they adhere.

And then, Luke’s lips curled upward.

“The End.”

Screeeeeech!

Space distorts.

The pressure of adhered time rips through the fabric, compressing it into a single point.

And.

“!!!”

It was but a fleeting instant.

The monster’s immense body shriveled like a mummy, becoming ash scattered by the wind, and vanished.