Tale Of Unknown: Hero From Zero
19. Death of the Master of the Labyrinth
A month had passed since Riyan had toppled Moarleth, his body had recovered. Despite his recovery, Luctas forbade him from strenuous activities such as monster hunting, training, or anything like that. However, Riyan did not listen to him and practiced secretly.
A week later, Riyan recovered completely and began to do his routine activities, namely hunting labyrinth monsters. While he was hunting, Luctas prepared a furnace to burn the meat of the monsters that were coming soon. With his [Thunder Release] skill, he could make a fire without any effort.
[Thunder Release] is a skill or magic ability that has evolved. This skill came from the lightning magic Luctas possessed and could only be obtained by the owner of the lightning attribute of course. When one trained so hard that it reached its limit, his attributes would evolve. However, only a handful of people have managed to do it, even from time to time.
Unlike the other lightning magic that emitted blue-colored lightning, the [Thunder Release] lightning had a fiery red color. It can be said that the red color in this lightning is a typical color for owners of lightning attributes that have evolved. Other than the color, the magic power of the owner of the [Thunder Release] was extremely powerful. If Luctas wanted to, he could even destroy a city in an instant using one of his lightning magic.
For someone over two millennia old, Luctas's level of strength and status was very reasonable. This world knew no limits on levels, but the highest level known at the moment was level 400. This is the reason why Luctas chose to remain silent on the deepest floor of his own labyrinth, because there is a significant difference between the outside world and the underworld.
"Oi cake, I brought some [Dark Rabbit]."
"Yes, quickly skin it and roast it on the stove there."
Not wasting much time, Riyan immediately skinned his quarry using the [Chimera] blade. His current status did not prevent him from cutting and separating every single monster organ he carried. Rather than a hero, he looked more like a fresh meat merchant.
A few minutes later, his task was completed and he put all the edible meat on the grill rack in the grill. Because there is no salt or other kitchen spices, the meat is left without anything. After that, Riyan took out his knife again and began to cut the potatoes he had brought from the cave where he lived, then placed them on the grill as well.
Please note, Riyan has moved all the items in his cave to this place. Of course, Luctas' hidden room is much more comfortable than his cave, it is natural that he moved. In addition, he also brought along his extremely useful pet monster, [Cartoft Creadur], a humanoid monster that could produce potatoes just by consuming water.
"Old man, when will my reward be given? I've waited long enough."
"Ah that, tomorrow only. After killing me, you'll get it."
"You serious, cake?"
"Darius."
Hearing Luctas' reply, Riyan pensively for a moment, not believing what his ears were hearing. After a few seconds, he regained consciousness and walked up to Luctas who was sitting in the rubble of a stone door. It was like he was daydreaming, but his brain was thinking about the afterlife before arriving there.
"Why do you want me to kill you?"
As she asked that, Riyan sat beside her accompanying Luctas. He wondered why the undead creator of this monstrous state labyrinth intended to die blatantly. On the other hand, Luctas smiled as he let out a long sigh of relief.
"I've been living alone for too long in this labyrinth. I want to meet my wife and son who are in nature there."
"You got a family?"
"of course! I'm not a single person like you!"
Luctas answered Riyan's question firmly and loudly so that Riyan jumped in shock. His heart was pounding fast due to the sudden attack from Luctas, he needed to calm himself down for a while. After easing up, Riyan again sat down next to the undead grandfather.
"I had a very beautiful wife when I was alive."
'Well, he's starting to vent.'
Hearing the beginning of the interlocutor's sentence, Riyan exhaled while complaining in his heart. But he accepted it with great air, because maybe his story can give him inspiration and various events that he has never read in books. Finally, he listened to a short story about Luctas' life.
Two millennia ago, there was an ordinary, ordinary-looking young man, as well as ordinary abilities. Gray hair is very striking in the eyes of people around, so it is often ostracized. In addition to her hair, her brown eyes also looked like a dead fish, giving the impression of not having the spirit of life.
The young man is little Luctas Hadwin, who has now become both the creator and master of the labyrinth. At that time he was just a weak boy with no abilities that everyone underestimated, but no one knew how fate would roll.
Luctas was born orphaned, in an ancient kingdom that is now extinct. His mother was a psk who worked to live his life, which is why Luctas was born without a father. Luctas learned of this and he began working as an adventurer to reduce his mother's work. However, he was often beaten, squeezed, humiliated, and so on because of his gray hair.
Although bad things always happen to him, he is not desperate and always runs his job while training himself while fighting monsters. As a result, he was able to free his mother from the dirty work and lead an ordinary life without significant problems. Until the time finally comes.
One night, her mother was raped and murdered right in front of her own eyes. He was beaten by the same perpetrator and left in his house. From then on, Luctas was accused of being the one who killed his mother and was shunned more than ever. He did not accept it and trained hard to kill his mother's killer.
A few months later, he managed to avenge his mother and left his hometown. He went to the capital of the kingdom with empty feelings and spirit to wander there. In that city, he remained ostracized because of his different hair, but the feats that began to fall made people come to him, including his soulmate.
A beautiful, blonde-haired adventurer, comes to her and invites her to make a group. Luctas initially refuses to trust anyone since his mother died, but the girl continues to take him day and night without stopping until he accepts.
Luctas accepts the girl as a member of his group on the condition that she must be willing to be his bride. Of course the girl agreed to it as fast as lightning with a happy cry. Luctas did not expect a positive answer from him, but he could not retract his words anymore. Luctas was ultimately responsible and they married and had children in the next few years.
Various situations of danger come at a time of unexpected circumstances, fortunately Luctas can solve it. Once the capital of the kingdom was attacked by a terrible red dragon, then Luctas managed to kill the dragon and got the title of knight from the king. He was also chosen to be one of the heroes who would kill the demon king.
He and his group of heroes did not manage to kill the demon lord, but at least they managed to seal him in a volcano. Luctas was dying and eventually transformed himself into an undead. Among the seven members of the group of heroes, only he and one more survived.
He returned to his home and his family welcomed him happily, although Luctas was an undead. Within a few months, his identity as an undead had become known to the population and the riots to kill him and his family began. The king, who initially did not believe, was forced to give orders to kill him after seeing his own evidence. At that time the undead were very taboo and hated because according to them, the undead were one of the demon race.
One of the heroes who managed to survive the fight against the demon king other than Luctas was ordered by the king to kill him, and he accepted. The hero did take the king's orders, but did not kill Luctas. He knew that Luctas was forced to turn himself into an undead as a family awaited his return.
He and Luctas also perform skits and mock battles to convince the royal population that they are really fighting. Finished in theatrics, Luctas created a giant dome made of a mixture of stone and crystal, which is now a Hexaphilia labyrinth, as his residence.
Luctas left his wife and son to his friend for him. The hero agreed and persuaded the king to let the Luctas live. From that moment on, Luctas' eternal life in the empty room of his own labyrinth begins.
"Yes, that's how I used to be."
'So long! Why not just shorten it!? 'I was born orphaned. My mother was a psk who was killed by a killer. I managed to avenge her and went to the capital to wander, then met a girl who became my wife in the future. My prestige increased and eventually became a hero who had to kill the demon lord. Because of dying, I was forced to turn myself into an undead and hunted by the entire royal population, then I finally built this labyrinth for my hiding, 'finished!'
Finished hearing Luctas' life, Riyan complained in his heart. Unfortunately for being too long, Riyan summarized the entire story he heard in five sentences. Out of nowhere, he suddenly summarized everything into one paragraph.
"So, why tomorrow and not today?"
"Dead also need to be prepared to know."
Luctas immediately replied to the insinuating question from Riyan while hitting his head slowly. He did not exert force when hitting Riyan's head, so the parameters of his life did not decrease. Despite having such a terrible status, Luctas was able to control his energy so as not to injure others, as expected of a hero in the past.
On the other hand, Riyan just put on a sour face. He looked down at the stones on the floor scattered to and fro the chicken food, thinking about Luctas' past. His expression grew even more sullen as he understood his story deeper. Then he turned and saw Luctas looking up at the ceiling of the labyrinth.
'Not only was his status terrifying, but his heart far exceeded his own strength. Luctas Hadwin, you're an amazing man.'
He smiled while muttering that in his heart. His heart was relieved to know that there was someone who knew what it was like to be ostracized, just like him. Not only that, he was also very happy to listen to the sad story wrapped in happiness. He understood what this undead grandfather's sorrow and heartache was like.
***
Without feeling it, tomorrow has come. As usual, Riyan and Luctas finished the baked potatoes which was their breakfast every day after waking up from a break. Even though it was a little hard, they still ate it because that was all they had right now. If he wanted to, Riyan could hunt monsters and turn them into food, but Luctas refused. Perhaps because today was his last day, he did not want to bother Riyan any further.
In a blanket of anxiety, many times Riyan turned to look at Luctas whose face was drawn by a satisfied expression enjoying the fourth piece of potato. He wondered, Why on this last day Luctas seemed so calm and content. Then he remembered his life story and understood why Luctas wanted to die so quickly.
"Riyan, at that time you said that you were a human from another world who was summoned here to defeat the demon lord, right?"
"Yes, why?"
"Then I have to give you some information I know about demons."
Hearing his answer, Riyan was slightly pensive, but he quickly nodded in agreement. In the book he read, the information about demons was insufficient thus overwhelming the humans and other races. Gaining Riyan's approval, Luctas tells him everything he knows.
The devil has one kingdom that is ruled absolutely. Their strength was clearly much stronger than ordinary humans. Their population is not much and continues to decline because strength is the main thing for them. However, that was not what made them feared, but a special summoning skill.
There used to be one great war involving an entire race that is currently called a race war. This war occurred about 3000 years ago, where the beginning began because all the kingdoms were in conflict and eventually led to a major war. At the end of the battle, the ones who managed to dominate were demons and humans, the cruelest race and the most races.
Humans are the most populous race in the world. Although there are some other races, about 30%-40% of them are human. In contrast to demons, they were only about 4%-6% of the total. Although few, their strength really cannot be underestimated.
Demons were divided into two groups, ordinary demons and elite demons. Ordinary demons were the ones whose strength could still be said to be natural, whereas elite demons were extremely difficult or even impossible to defeat. The elite demons were not as many as ordinary demons, their number was not up to twenty, including the strongest demon lords. Only super strong people from super strong are able to defeat those elite demons.
"Either way, it feels a little hard for me to digest everything, despite using [Comprehension]."
"That's knowledge."
Riyan who listened to Luctas' explanation complained. He understood the difference between demons and humans, but he did not understand how terrifying demons were compared to humans. From the story he heard, according to him humans can survive until now because of the quantity is too much so that makes the demons hassles and retreat.
"One more thing, if you want to kill the demon lord, you must gather all nine gemstones that seal him and destroy him simultaneously."
Hearing that, Riyan was surprised. His eyes were slightly widened as he knew how to kill the demon lord that was predicted to rise. His face gradually changed, from surprised to sour.
'It looks like it's going to be a hassle.'
A few seconds after complaining about it in his heart, it suddenly flashed across his mind what he had forgotten. This time his expression changed from sour to relieved.
'Really, I'm not part of that group of heroes anymore. Why would I do such a troublesome thing as collecting and destroying the nine sealing gemstones that even the location is still a mystery?'
True, he was not a member of the group of heroes from another world summoned by Alestein. He was a commoner who fell into the abyss of the labyrinth and was presumed dead. He seemed happy to know the benefits of falling on this floor.
"By the way, it's time, right?"
"Hm? Ah, true. I forgot you wanted to get out of here."
After finishing the baked potatoes as breakfast, the two of them got up from the ruins of the door and walked towards the stone throne located not far from there. Luctas sat on his throne and took a deep breath preparing for death, while Riyan was puzzled by what he had to do at the moment.
"What's my job now, cake?"
"Waiting for what I promised you, and then killing me."
Luctas immediately answered Riyan's question without hesitation. Shortly after, there were footsteps from behind that grabbed her attention so that Riyan turned his head automatically. Behind him were two undead zombies carrying a box and a sword with a sheath.
The two zombies approached Riyan and handed the item they held onto him without saying a word. After Riyan received it, the zombie instantly turned to ashes due to Luctas' wishes. Curious, Riyan was about to ask what box had been handed to him, but Luctas answered first before his question was thrown.
"In the box were things when I was human. My wife used to come here a lot and at the end of her life, she brought me all the tools that helped me in the past."
Riyan nodded slowly getting the answer he expected. Knowing the contents of the box, he turned to a sword handed over by the two zombies earlier. He pulled the sword from its sheath and watched it closely. Glossy silver iron, sturdy handles, edges and edges that look very sharp, as well as a chunk of crystal at the intersection of the handle and blade.
"Holy sword, Garantia."
'Holy swords? This one?'
Riyan was a little surprised to hear the word 'holy sword' from Luctas, but he never knew the holy sword named Garantia, not a single sentence in the book offended this sword. He began to doubt Luctas' words while looking at the old undead with a look of disbelief.
"If you don't believe me, you can throw it away. After all, the sword and the contents of the box are what I will give you."
Luctas said so looking at Riyan's gaze. He acted as if he did not care, but in his heart he knew for sure that Riyan would not throw away the sword he gave with a bet of his own life. As expected, Riyan sheathed the sword and placed it beside Glayster.
"Now all I have to do is kill you, right, old man?"
"Yes." Yeah."
Riyan walked up to Luctas who was sitting relaxed his body on his stone throne. Then, he pulled the Glayster and smoothed it right into the undead's left chest. Even though he was dead, the undead heart still functioned to drain mana throughout his body so that it could move, and Riyan knew this.
"By anyways, Riyan, after this smash the wall behind me. There is a place containing magic [Transportal Gate] that can move you directly to the entrance of this labyrinth on the first floor there."
"Well, thank you for telling me at the last moment."
Riyan simply replied to her words with a small smile that she rarely showed during her life. Without wasting any more time, Riyan pushed Glayster into the chest of Luctas, the master of the Hexaphilia labyrinth, to break through the throne stone. Luctas let out a small groan and a pitch-black blood, but he returned the last smile he saw.
Slowly, crack after crack was etched into Luctas' body, from foot to head, then gradually turned into dust. Time after time, Luctas' consciousness began to disappear and eventually his vision was filled with white light.
'The fruit did not fall far from the tree. Isn't that right, Rudeus?'
After saying that in his heart, Luctas Hadwin left this world completely. He is a strong, kind, wise undead who loves his family more than anything else. Finally, the curse he had placed on himself had been lifted by a young human named Riyan Klaint.
On the other hand, Riyan closed his eyes and reminisced about his precious experience while inside this labyrinth. Then, he sheathed Glayster while reopening his eyes. There was no sadness at all that emanated from the glare of his eyes, but rather the highest honor he could give.
"Thank you, Luctas Hadwin, you're a great undead."
***
In a dimension, in a different realm, stood a human being shrouded in white light. He opened his eyes and was a little confused by what had happened to him. He lifted up and looked at his hands carefully, there were no more wrinkled skin or rotten open wounds there.
"Luctas!"
"Dad!"
Hearing the cry that called out to him from behind, he turned to the source of the voice. There was a beautiful woman with graceful blonde hair and a little girl who had the same hair color as the woman next to her. Seeing that, his eyes let out tears and started flowing down his cheeks, then immediately stepped closer to them.
It didn't take long, he finally reached where the two people were standing. He was greeted by a low hug from the woman and the little girl, which made him kneel. He returned his arms with a stream of tears of happiness.
"Thank you guys still waiting for me, Hexana, Philia."
"The duty of a wife is to wait for her husband's return home."
"Philia is glad you've come home."
Luctas was silent to the words of his two interlocutors. But he didn't care about it and kept smiling.
"I'm home, Hexana, Philia."
""Welcome, baby/dad.""
After a slight miss, he took off his embrace and stood up. Having not long met the little girl who was his son, Luctas also carried the only child he had. Then, he walked towards a white cloud in front accompanied by his wife and son.
"Hexana, will there be food? I'm hungry."
"There are, a lot of them. I've prepared everything for you."
"Thank you."
While walking, Luctas recounts the whole experience he had after his wife and son were not due to the mass destruction caused by the onslaught of demons on the royal capital he occupied at that time. He also tells the story of Riyan, a young man who he thinks is extraordinary.
