VOLUME 10: EPILOGUE

VOLUME 10: EPILOGUE

For a full minute, Lark fell silent upon seeing the destroyed murals on the walls and ceiling.

“…Master,” Chryselle said concernedly, “are you alright?”

Lark noticed her worried expression. He smiled, “Of course.”

Although Lark wanted to investigate who the perpetrator was, he believed that now wasn’t the time for it. Demons must have been coming out of the portals now, as they explored the labyrinth. They needed to get to the United Grakas Alliance as soon as possible.

“The hole Blackie made when we left the labyrinth should be nearby. Let’s go.”

With Lark at the lead, their group continued walking deeper into the labyrinth. Eventually, they reached the massive hole Blackie had created before leaving this place.

“This leads directly to the fourth floor,” said Lark. “We’re jumping down.”

Lark jumped into the hole, and without hesitation, everyone immediately followed suit. Their bodies blurred past the second and third floors of the labyrinth. Less than a minute after jumping down, they reached the labyrinth’s deepest floor.

Using wind magic, Lark cushioned everyone’s landing.

“What’s… this?” muttered Chryselle.

Even Anandra and Agnus were surprised upon seeing the fourth floor of the labyrinth. It felt as though they’d entered an entirely different world.

Their group landed on grassland, and from here, they could see a forest and a pristine lake nearby. The forest was filled with gigantic trees that nearly touched the ceiling, and numerous particles of light that resembled fireflies floated about, granting ample illumination to the entire fourth floor of the labyrinth. Even without torches or luminous artifacts, they could clearly see everything.

“Elven oaks,” said Agnus upon seeing the forest. “The Dwarven Mountains have a couple of them, but this is my first time seeing elven oaks this big.”

The roots of the elven oaks had covered the ground of the entire forest, a testament to how ancient they were. Agnus realized that most, if not all, of the elven oaks growing in that forest were older than him – maybe even his father.

“You can easily equip all of the soldiers in your kingdom with magic bows and arrows if you harvest the elven oaks in this place,” said Agnus. “All of them had already reached maturity. Moreover—”

Agnus surveyed his surroundings. “—this entire floor is abundant in mana.”

Elven Oaks were capable of harnessing the mana from their surroundings and use them to reinforce their bodies. These elven oaks, which grew in a place filled with so much mana, had trunks and branches as strong as iron.

“I don’t mind if we cut down an elven oak or two,” said Lark. “But I’d like to preserve the trees in that forest, which my disciples planted themselves, as much as possible.”

“How sentimental,” said Agnus. “Like a memento, huh?”

Although Agnus felt that not harvesting the elven oaks in this place was a waste, he decided to keep his silence. Lark’s firm voice had already relayed his stance on this matter.

As they were walking toward the place where the Dragon Vein was located, Anandra suddenly stopped in his tracks. He placed his hand on the hilt of his sword as he stared at a certain direction.

“Master,” said Anandra. “Somebody else is here.”

Agnus noticed it too.

“So, that’s where the nasty smell is coming from,” Agnus scowled. “It reeks of human blood.”

Everyone gazed in the direction where Anandra was looking at. It was the forest filled with gigantic elven oaks.

Lark did not question his first disciple’s judgment. He was aware that Anandra’s senses were sharper than his.

“In the forest?” said Lark.

“Yes,” said Anandra.

Agnus said in a cold voice, “Should we check? If they’re the ones behind the destruction of the Dragon Devourer’s statue, I’ll kill them.”

Agnus put more strength into his legs and started running toward the forest. Lark and the rest of the group also followed suit. They nimbly moved through the massive trees as they ran through the roots-blanketed ground. Soon, they arrived at a haphazardly built shack made of leaves and trimmed branches.

Outside the shack was an old man carrying a basket filled with fruits and herbs. He was about to open the flap, which served as the shack’s entrance, when Lark’s group arrived.

“Ahhhh!”

The old man dropped the basket he was holding out of surprise, and he fell down butt-first on the ground upon seeing Lark’s group.

Looking closely, the old man’s beard was long, his ashen hair was unkempt, and his clothes were in tatters.

“W-Who are you!” shrieked the old man. Herbs and fruits rolled on the ground.

“That’s what we’d like to ask you,” said Agnus. He seemed really pissed for some reason. “Be honored that I’m speaking to you, human. Speak. Who are you?”

When the old man met Agnus’ glare and Anandra’s cold gaze, he trembled. To him, the two looked like cold-blooded murderers. Only after seeing Chryselle, a gentle-looking woman, did he calm down somewhat.

“W-What… W-Who,” stuttered the old man. When his gaze landed on Lark, his eyes widened. He whispered in a voice filled with disbelief, “Your Majesty?”

To everyone’s surprise, the old man abruptly stood up. He grabbed Lark’s hands and said, “Your Majesty! It’s you! W-Why…. What is the King doing here in this godforsaken hellhole!”

The old man held Lark’s hands for several seconds before exclaiming in surprise, “Ah! I apologize, Your Majesty. For someone like me to touch a royal….”

The old man bowed his head low. Lark noticed that the old man’s left leg was wrapped in a wooden splint.

“It’s alright,” said Lark. “And it’s good that you immediately recognized me. There’s no longer any need for me to introduce myself then.”

“I’ve been to His Majesty’s coronation,” explained the old man. “And it’s impossible for anyone in this kingdom not to recognize a member of the House Marcus.”

“Name?” said Lark.

For some strange reason, the old man seemed familiar. Lark felt that he’d met him before.

“Strabo, Your Majesty,” said the old man. “Former Chief Historian of the Royal Palace.”

“A historian,” said Lark. It was an unexpected profession to encounter in the deepest part of the labyrinth. “What is a person like you doing in this place?”

Strabo hesitated. He looked at the shack behind him, then at Lark. For several seconds, he pondered. He sighed.

“…It’s a long story, Your Majesty,” said Strabo. “Although it isn’t much of an accommodation, for now, why don’t we come inside my humble abode?”

“Alright,” said Lark.

Strabo opened the shack’s entrance, and Lark and his group went inside. Inside, they saw a man, who seemed to be in his middle thirties, lying on a bed of leaves. The man’s complexion was pale, his lips were cracked, and numerous cuts and bruises filled his body.

Seeing Lark’s gaze, Strabo explained.

“This man is Videl, Your Majesty,” said Strabo. “Chief Disciple of the Royal Court Magician, Nikolai the ‘Thunderlord.’”

Tears started forming at the corner of his eyes as Strabo gazed at Videl.

“This man is my benefactor,” said Strabo. “My savior.”

Strabo started telling Lark everything.

According to Strabo, over a year ago, Nikolai had fought against the Master of Wizzert Tower and horribly lost. Half of the Thunderlord’s disciples were killed, and even Nikolai himself barely managed to escape with his life.

His pride wounded and his body injured, the Thunderlord and his surviving disciples went into hiding in the forest near the Aden Territory. They hid for a long time, as the Master of Wizzert was insistent on killing all of them until the last man.

The injuries the Thunderlord had sustained in that battle was so severe that it took him several months to fully recover.

And when the Thunderlord had finally managed to lose their tails, he went back to the capital, only to find out that Lark Marcus had become the new monarch of the Kingdom.

“Lord Nikolai witnessed the magic you performed that day, Your Majesty,” said Strabo. “And after seeing it, he immediately searched for me.”

“He sought you, a retired historian of the Royal Palace,” repeated Lark.

“Yes,” nodded Strabo. “I’ve dedicated most of my life studying not only history, but also the languages of the ancient era. And Lord Nikolai sought my help to decipher the symbols and murals written on the walls and ceilings of this labyrinth.”

According to Strabo, it seemed that Nikolai believed that Lark obtained his strength after deciphering the words written on the walls of the labyrinth. Moreover, he also believed that it was the key Lark used to tame the seven-headed monster. The Lord of Thunder refused to believe that a young man not even half his age was capable of possessing such strength on his own.

With the help of Strabo, although it took quite a while, the Thunderlord managed to decipher the symbols in the labyrinth. But to his dismay, it contained nothing but the history of a forgotten era.

They even combed the lower floors of the labyrinth for more clues, but found nothing.

Enraged, the Lord of Thunder destroyed all recorded histories in the uppermost floor of the labyrinth. He even went as far as beheading the statues of the labyrinth’s creators at the entrance. He spat on them and crushed them, until they turned into nothing but pieces of rocks.

“The Lord of Thunder tried to silence me afterward,” said Strabo. “But his disciple, Videl, stopped him.”

Hearing this story, Lark finally understood everything. Why Videl, a disciple of the Thunderlord, was critically injured, and why Strabo, a retired historian, was trapped in this place.

Strabo fell weakly on his knees. “How pathetic. Someone so young nearly died to protect an old man like me. And I can’t even do anything to help him.”

Lark crouched and lightly placed his hand on Strabo’s shoulder. “You shouldn’t be too hard on yourself, old man. You did well surviving this long.”

Inside the shack, Lark could see several dried herbs and dried fish hanging on the walls. It was a testament of how desperate Strabo was to cure Videl. Despite his age and broken leg, it seemed that he’d been combing the entire fourth floor every day for anything that could cure Videl’s body.

Although he was trapped in this labyrinth, the old man didn’t give up and continued persevering.

“Y-Your Majesty,” said Strabo in a pleading voice. “Please…”

He choked the words out, “…Please help me.”

“Of course,” said Lark. “Your efforts have paid off—”

Lark smiled gently, “—it’s time for you to finally get out of this place, Strabo.”

***

[Endless Forest]

Blackie had been finding itself bored to death lately. After beating Vulcan and Shahaneth to a pulp several months ago, it obediently went back to its Lair in the Endless Forest.

Although Blackie knew that protecting this territory, particularly Blackstone City, was an important task, it still couldn’t help but be envious of those who were personally accompanying Lark.

It wanted to be of more use to Lark. It wanted to fulfill all of its orders.

“Lord Blackie! The mighty and loyal Scylla of the Forest Border! Creator of the Grand Road! Protector of God’s Castle! Servant of God Evander!”

From outside the barrier protecting the Lair, a desperate voice was heard.

“Please grant us an audience! At the very least, please relay to His Majesty, King Lark, that the portal has opened!”

It was the voice of the messenger who’d come here to relay Priestess Siofra’s message.

After the portal opened, the God of Earth fulfilled its promise and gave the elven priestess a revelation. The God of Earth told the priestess that the demons had successfully duplicated the portal and opened it in two different locations.

This revelation caused an uproar in the Elven Kingdom. Even now, the elven warriors were being mobilized as King Melandrach prepared for the upcoming war.

“How many days has it been?” said the sixth head.

The first head hissed angrily, “They’d been spouting about that revelation nonsense for quite some time now! Bah! How annoying! God Gaia this, God Gaia that! God Evander is the only one true God!”

All seven heads bobbed their heads in agreement at the last part of that statement.

“Those blasphemous elves are really testing our patience! Should we kill one of them as an example?” said the fourth head.

“Let’s do it!” said the seventh head.

“That’s right! Let’s teach them a lesson!” said the second head.

“Leave them be,” said the third head in a relatively calmer voice. “Think about it. Now that two portals connected to the Demon Realm have opened, it would only be a matter of time before we hear our God’s voice again.”

“Ohh!”

“You’re right!”

“It should only be a matter of time!”

“If it’s God Evander, surely!”

The eyes of the Earth Scylla glimmered in excitement. Now that they’d thought of it, everything the third head said made sense. The Earth Scylla’s tail started wagging as it longingly thought of Lark. Slowly, it sunk into the quagmire of its imagination.

The Earth Scylla started daydreaming about Lark riding its back.

It started daydreaming of annihilating the demons with its breath attack.

And once the tasks were done, Lark would smile at it, stroke its snout, and say, “Blackie, I knew I could count on you. Good job.”

Ah.

What a blissful dream.

All seven heads couldn’t stop grinning.

“You’re the best, Blackie,” mumbled the first head. Like the other heads, it was still lost in its imagination. “Kehehe. Since my head is the softest, he’ll pat me first.”

“Yes, God Evander,” mumbled the second head. “I’ll kill all of those demons for you~”

“I’ll do it,” mumbled the fifth head. “I’ll take care of them, My God.”

And the Earth Scylla snapped back into reality after hearing the shouts from the outside.

“Lord Blackie, the mighty and loyal Scylla of the Forest Border, creator of the Grand Road, protector of God’s Castle, servant of God Evander!”

“Please hear us!”

The first head rose and its eyes turned sharp and predatory. It trembled in rage at the foolish elves who’d brought them back to reality.

“Those damn elves,” hissed the first head. “I’ll murder them!”

“I’ve had enough!” spat the seventh head.

“Let’s kill them!” growled the sixth head.

The Earth Scylla willed the illusion barrier protecting the Lair to open, revealing the elves outside who’d been prostrating on the ground all this time. There were nine of them, and all were high-ranking officials of the Elven Kingdom.

“F-Finally!” exclaimed one of the elves upon seeing the Earth Scylla come out of the barrier.

“Lord B-Blackie!” exclaimed another elf.

The first head breathed in deeply. It roared, “YOU DAMN FUCKING APE-MONKEY FRUIT-SUCKING LONG EARS!”

It was amazing how the first head managed to piece together so many insults in a single sentence. And it wasn’t even done yet.

“YOU DAMN MAGGOTS, PILE OF DUNG, INSECT, BRAINLESS PIECES OF SHIT! HOW DARE YOU DISTURB OUR REST! HOW DARE YOU DISTURB OUR—”

The first head stopped midway through its burst of outrage. Together with the other heads, it froze. It stared at the communication crystal Lark had given to it before.

The communication crystal glowed, and a familiar voice spoke. It was the voice they’d been longing to hear all this time.

“Blackie.”

All murderous intent from the Earth Scylla vanished entirely. Its tail started wagging, and it even forgot that the elves before it existed.

“G-God Evander!” said the Earth Scylla in a trembling voice.

“T-To finally hear your voice after so long!”

“Please tell us! What are your orders!”

The Earth Scylla shivered in excitement. Time seemed to slow down as it waited for its God’s next words.

“Come to the outskirts of Blackstone City,” said Lark. “I need you to accompany me to the nation of beastmen, the United Grakas Alliance.”

Ah, such heavenly words.

Finally, the time to serve its God had come.

The Earth Scylla replied in a heartbeat, “Gladly!”

The Earth Scylla closed the barrier behind it. It spread its wings wide, creating a strong gust of wind. It stomped its feet on the ground, and jumped up. It flapped its wings and flew toward Blackstone City.

It did not even bother to cast one last look at the elves prostrated on the ground.

***

“How are you feeling?” said Lark.

Lark’s group had just arrived at the outskirts of Blackstone City. After healing Videl, Lark replenished the mana reserves of the Sword of Morpheus, and immediately flew to this place.

Videl, who’d been fully healed with the help of a middle-grade potion, respectfully bowed his head. “My body has been fully healed, thanks to Your Majesty.”

Lark smiled. “I’ve heard of what you did from Strabo. How commendable of you to stand up for your principles.”

Videl shook his head. “Not at all, Your Majesty. Honestly, I am ashamed. Not only did I disobey my Master, I also fought against him to the death.”

It must have been a dilemma.

Although the time he’d spent with Videl was short, Lark was certain of the man’s undying loyalty to the Thunderlord. Until now, Videl had never once spoke words that would disparage his master despite the things that had transpired.

“Once again, thank you, Your Majesty, for healing Lord Videl,” said Strabo. The old man also bowed his head. “I will never forget this favor until my dying breath.”

Lark joshed, “You still look young to me. Isn’t it too soon to be talking of death like this?”

Strabo chuckled. “Please rest assured, I have no plans of dying soon. I plan to live for another decade. I want to witness my great-grandchild grow up!”

“A great-grandchild?” said Lark.

Strabo happily nodded. “That’s right, Your Majesty. It’s the child of my granddaughter, Elaine Garios.”

Lark felt that the name was familiar. “Garios? How is she related to the former martial arts instructor of the military academy, Mikael Garios?”

“Oh,” said Strabo. “You know my son, Your Majesty?”

Lark didn’t expect such turn of events. It seemed that retired historian he saved was the father of Mikael Garios, the knight who’d been tasked to observe Lark before, back when he was still a candidate for the throne.

So, this was the reason for the strange familiarity Lark had felt back then when he first met Strabo. Looking closely, the old man indeed resembled Mikael. Although the old man’s face was filled with wrinkles, they both had the same sharp jaw, and even their eyes looked similar.

“Hahaha!” Lark genuinely laughed. It felt good that Mikael’s father survived. “Come visit me sometime once you’ve returned to the capital, old man. And bring Mikael with you too.”

“I will do so, Your Majesty,” said Strabo.

Lark gazed at Blackstone City from the distance.

“Although none of you knows Nikolai’s current whereabouts,” said Lark. “You should be safe here in Blackstone City.”

Not only was the city enclosed in a massive wall and a barrier, it was also being protected by the Blackstone Knights made from the essence of the basilisk. As long as they were staying in this territory, even the Thunderlord shouldn’t be able to touch them easily.

“This is where we’ll be parting ways,” said Lark.

“You’re not entering the city with us, Your Majesty?” said Strabo.

“I wish I could,” said Lark.

Honestly, Lark wanted to stay in Blackstone City for a day or two. He wanted to see how much the city had grown since he’d ascended the throne. But alas, they did not have leeway for that. Time is of great essence, and they needed to get to the United Grakas Alliance as fast as they could.

“But we do not have the time for that,” said Lark.

“I see,” said Strabo.

Strabo and Videl bowed their heads once again. They said, “Then, we are truly grateful, Your Majesty. May our paths cross once again.”

The two bade their goodbyes to Lark’s group and entered Blackstone City.

Half an hour after Videl and Strabo left, the Earth Scylla finally arrived at the city’s outskirts.

“God Evander!” the seven-headed monster excitedly shouted upon landing on the ground.

The first head sneakily moved its head closer to Lark. And to its utter delight, Lark started patting its snout.

“T-This snake!”

“Y-You damn traitor!”

The other heads hissed indignantly upon seeing Lark stroke the first head’s snout affectionately. The first head smirked, and it closed its eyes in happiness.

“Me too!”

“Touch me too, God Evander!”

The rest of the heads moved closer to him, and Lark gladly petted each of them. Lark chuckled, “It’s good to see you again, Blackie.”

The Earth Scylla trembled upon hearing the words it had longed to hear. Ah, finally! As expected, nothing beats being in God Evander’s presence!

“We missed you, God Evander!”

“We’ve prepared a new seat for you on our back!”

The Scylla lowered its body, revealing the large chair made entirely of gold strapped on its back.

“We used the gold the elven king gave us to make this seat, God Evander!”

“We’ve yet to complete the cushion, but it should be more comfortable than sitting on our scales!”

The chair was so large and grand that it looked even more expensive than the throne in the king’s castle at the capital. Lark couldn’t even refuse to sit on it, for he knew how much effort the Scylla put into making it.

“Thank you,” said Lark, smiling. “I’ll use it well.”

“Ohhh! Such words! We are unworthy!”

“It’s only natural for us to provide such things to God Evander!”

“Once we get the appropriate materials, we’ll make a cushion for it next!”

Agnus, who’d been silently watching everything until now, couldn’t believe the spectacle.

This was the Earth Scylla his father, Vulcan, told him to be wary about?

The Scylla who defeated both Vulcan and Shahaneth at the same time?

The seven-headed did not look scary at all, despite its size. On the contrary, based on its current demeanor to Lark, it looked nothing but an oversized puppy.

After the Earth Scylla’s excitement died down somewhat, it finally noticed Agnus.

“Oh, what is this?” The first head didn’t bother to hide its displeasure.

“Another lizard,” mocked the sixth head.

The seventh head moved closer to Agnus. “You smell like Vulcan.”

“That’s right,” said Agnus, unfazed by the hostile gaze of the Scylla. “I am his son.”

The seventh head snorted. “You’re still a kid. A hatchling. You’ll just get in our way. Go back.”

Agnus glared at the Earth Scylla. Mana started oozing out of his body and turned into flames. He growled, “What did you say?”

“Even your father failed to defeat us,” the first head also snorted. “And now, you want to fight? How amusing.”

All heads of the Scylla except for the third head cackled. They laughed, as though it was the funniest thing in the world. This, in turn, only worsened Agnus’ mood.

Agnus started to undo his polymorph. Noticing this, Lark finally decided to intervene.

“That’s enough,” said Lark. “Blackie, it was my decision to let Agnus come along with us. And that is final.”

“So, the brat’s name is Agnus,” said the first head. “Although he’s an eyesore, we shall follow God Evander’s will.”

“This damn seven-headed lizard!” snarled Agnus. “If not for King Lark—”

“—Then what?” spat the first head. “Consider yourself lucky, brat. We would have already killed you if not for God Evander’s command.”

Lark sighed.

As expected, the two didn’t get along very well.

Still, at the very least, he was confident that Blackie wouldn’t kill Agnus as long as he was with him.

“We do not have much time,” said Lark. “Let’s go, Blackie.”

“Yes, God Evander!” said the Scylla. Its tail wagged once again.

“Agnus, you’re riding on top of Blackie, too,” said Lark.

Agnus was stunned upon hearing this.

“The citizens of Blackstone City are already aware of Blackie’s existence,” said Lark. “But the Dragons are an entirely different story. It’ll cause unnecessary panic if you undo your polymorph here. Not to mention, it’ll cost you a lot of mana to revert to your Dragon form. So, just get on.”

Agnus groaned.

Everything Lark had said was reasonable. Still, Agnus couldn’t bring himself to ride on top of that despicable seven-headed creature.

“Kakaka!” laughed the Earth Scylla. “Just get on, hatchling. Your father wouldn’t have much problem reverting to his Dragon form, but it’s different for you, right?”

Agnus trembled not only from rage, but also embarrassment. What the Earth Scylla had said were correct. Unlike an adult Dragon, hatchlings like him had a relatively limited amount of mana in their bodies. And reverting to their Dragon forms would cost them a significant portion of it.

Left with no other choice, Agnus reluctantly rode on top of the Earth Scylla.

The first head glanced at Agnus and snorted. It said to Lark, “Should we go, God Evander?”

“Yes,” said Lark. “Go—”

The Scylla spread its wings wide.

“—To the United Grakas Alliance.”