Chapter 622 – Knights of the Cathedral

“…It’s no use. Helvorte and I have tried taking control of sectors and expanding my domain before, but…”

Claudia had been closing her eyes as if trying to detect something, but eventually lifted her head and spoke.

“So the Last Guardian’s presence means your domain gets taken back from the core area over time, right?”

“That’s correct. Since we gave up on defeating the Last Guardian for a while, all domain in the core area has shifted to their side.”

The labyrinth core is the Last Guardian’s domain. Therefore, even though we’re inside the labyrinth, there are areas where Claudia’s power doesn’t reach.

That’s why we’re taking the approach of first expanding our exploration range centered around the entrance connecting Claudia’s castle to the core area.

If we can reclaim the Last Guardian’s domain for Claudia during this process… we’ll be able to expand our exploration range more safely, in other words.

The structure of passages and such changes with the moon phase like a normal labyrinth… but apparently the important facilities scattered throughout the ship don’t change. Loot transfer also works fine, though Claudia needs to draw a transfer circle each time.

“Are the Guardians in the core area also special like Lady Helvorte?”

“The Guardians directly under the Last Guardian… I wonder. There are definitely some like Tears who only know how to fight, and even those capable of communication will only follow its commands as long as the Last Guardian is active. That’s why they possess high judgment capabilities.”

“One thing I can say is—by defeating the Guardian protecting a sector, or by reaching one of the important facilities scattered throughout the ship and having Lady Claudia use her technique, control of that sector will be returned.”

Claudia and Helvorte answered Grace’s question.

Since sectors shift with the moon phase, it seems impossible to say which Guardian is where.

Mapping becomes useless as the moon phase progresses, same as the upper labyrinth. But it’s possible to secure safe relay points for exploration and leave Points for teleportation… that’s the situation.

Anyway, it seems worthwhile to actively defeat any core Guardians we find. Even if we can’t recruit them to our side like Belius or Helvorte, we can place the sector under Claudia’s domain until the Guardian respawns.

Well, I understand the situation and what needs to be done. Let’s proceed with our formation.

The passage extending from the plaza—is spacious but has no cover.

The ceiling is fairly high, making three-dimensional combat easy… but conversely, that means avoiding combat might be difficult, I suppose.

The vanguard needs detection abilities, so it’s me, Sheila, Irmhild, and Seraphina. Grace follows that vanguard group, with Pietro behind her. Pietro can use his clones to distract enemies trying to attack the rearguard if needed.

Ashley, Marlene, Rosemary, and Claudia position themselves at the center of the formation. Lavigne and Eclair also wait near their respective masters. Ignis and Dullahan guard the rearguard members from both flanks.

The rear guard consists of the labyrinth natives Helvorte and Belius. Belius being at the very back is to utilize his high detection ability and long range to avoid attacks from behind.

If there’s an assault from above, Balor who’s moving above the formation center will handle it. Caduceus similarly protects the ground beneath the formation center. I can grasp the overall movements… with this arrangement.

“Then, shall we proceed?”

“Understood.”

Everyone nodded and advanced through the passage in formation.

No changes in sound, temperature, or magical power reactions. Though it’s a spacious passage, no sound echoes at all. Probably due to the nature of the magical floor serving as our footing. Sounds don’t carry unless you deliver a fairly strong impact.

“This is my first time in such a quiet place. Even if enemies approach, we might not hear their footsteps.”

Sheila said. Right. Then—

“—Awaken.”

Using Create Golem, I produced an Aqua Golem and had it advance slightly ahead of our scout group.

This should prevent surprise encounters at corners and such. It also serves as insurance if we miss traps on the floor or walls.

Marlene used her Lantern to cast an illusion over the golem, making it appear knight-like. Hmm. This should increase its effectiveness as a decoy.

The rear guard—two of Belius’s heads are turned back checking as we advance. Truly worthy of being called hell’s watchdog. Quite convenient.

“—Hold.”

We continued advancing, but I stopped the golem’s movement while extending my arm sideways to halt the formation.

“Did you find something?”

Rosemary asked.

“Yeah. The floor’s magical reaction has an area that’s different from elsewhere.”

There’s a range showing strange magical reactions spanning the entire passage starting from a certain point.

“…It’s wide enough that we’d definitely step on it if we advanced normally. I think it’s some kind of magic trap…”

“May I take a look?”

Claudia came forward and carefully examined the passage patterns.

“This is it.”

Soon after, Claudia pointed to a corner of the pattern.

Within the pale blue glowing floor pattern—was a distinctive triangular Magic Array.

“What kind of trap?”

“An alarm. If you step on the trapped area, security forces—monsters—will teleport to both ends of the passage and come running.”

“So we’d suddenly be caught in a pincer attack. That’s troublesome.”

Ashley’s eyes widened at Claudia’s words. …Setting this kind of trap right at the beginning of a long straight path, huh.

…If they want to intercept invaders without letting them penetrate deeper, they’d concentrate their forces to break them right at the start before they can spread out, I suppose?

I don’t know if it’s the Moon Ship’s defense program or the Last Guardian intentionally doing this… but it’s quite troublesome.

We came intending to gauge the strength of the monsters inside the Moon Ship, but the first battle might become large-scale. I’d prefer to find a small enemy group and fight them first.

Well, since it’s been a straight path this far, we have to proceed past this trapped floor…

“To avoid stepping on these—it might be better to always fly through.”

“That’s right. We can proceed that way.”

Irmhild smiled brightly. Right. Then we can advance without worrying about the trap’s detection range or anything.

Once decided, things proceed quickly. Everyone moved upward, flying over the trap and advancing through the air.

Then—after flying forward a bit, we saw a square frame drawn in the same pale blue patterns as the floor and pillars on the passage wall.

“A side path.”

Helvorte said. The first branching path we’ve encountered since starting down this passage.

“No abnormalities in magical reactions.”

“Mm. No sounds or smells either.”

“Likewise, I don’t feel any temperature changes.”

Well then—but just because we don’t sense anything doesn’t mean nothing’s there. Armored soldier-type monsters are difficult to detect as long as they remain still.

Therefore, considering the possibility of enemy troops waiting around corners and to avoid preemptive attacks, the main force stopped while the golems went ahead.

And the moment two golems stepped into the side room—

One was pierced through the torso by something like a crystal lance flying from deep in the passage, while the other was swept down from above by a flash of light. Seems there was one waiting above the door leading to the side area.

“Fairly large—! Something else is approaching too!”

Sheila braced herself.

The first thing that leaped out was—a streamlined object about the size of a human head. Probably the one hiding in the upper part of the passage. Not large-sized. A different enemy from the lance that flew from deep in the passage.

A floating metallic body. It had a teardrop-shaped torso with hands as large as the torso itself attached to both sides. When those hands spread sideways, pale blue magical blades extended from what would be the fingertips. They spread out like wings and came slashing at me at the front.

When I blocked the magical blades with Ouroboros, sparks scattered around. The thing deployed a Magic Circle behind it, then ejected magical power—trying to push with force disproportionate to its small body. I also supported my body with Shield and crossed blades with the twin swords on the spot.

“Tears! Be careful!”

Claudia’s warning voice echoed.

Tears, huh. I already received a briefing from Claudia.

Their appearance is special but—you could say they’re floating golems with no smell, sound, or temperature.

Their equipment apparently varies—this one seems to be a type equipped with close-combat blades. There are two Tears, including the one I’m dealing with. The other seems to be a type equipped with projectile weapons on both arms, and Sheila is already moving to engage it.

Then slightly delayed, the monster Sheila described as large also appeared.

A monster whose entire body was composed of thin, bone-like parts. Its overall form was close to an Arachne. It felt like a humanoid upper body mounted on a multi-legged torso.

One arm had a Shield. The other arm was equipped with a crystal-like Spear. Apparently called a Bone Trooper. The head also resembled a Skeleton—but judging by the magical lines running across the surface, the bone appearance is probably just for show.

When the Bone Trooper leaped out from the entrance, it clung upside-down to the passage ceiling with its multi-legged feet.

“—Let me measure your strength.”

The one who leaped out with those words was—Ignis. It had Rosemary’s created Magic Slaves accompanying it, but Rosemary herself didn’t come forward.

The Bone Trooper thrust the crystal Spear it held in its right hand toward Ignis. What seemed to be well outside its range—extended with tremendous force and closed in on Ignis.

Ignis used the gauntlet on its left hand to deflect it greatly. Without stopping, it charged in. In an instant, the crystal Spear in the Bone Trooper’s hand shrank to sword size.

High Stance. The Bone Trooper received the hammer’s Strike.

Ignis is perfect for conducting a strength reconnaissance. Since Grace defeated a deep floor monster in close combat last time, now we’re having Ignis alone measure the strength of a core monster.

“Then, I’ll take up defense of the rearguard.”

As if understanding the situation, Grace flew back. The enemy is small-scale. No need to construct defensive positions, and we can observe the combat power difference in one-on-one situations.

Since the battle with Ende Wiles turned into large-scale combat, I was wondering how this would go—but it’s a small unit for conducting surprise attacks. As opponents for our initial battle to gauge combat strength, they’re quite suitable.

I swung Ouroboros at close range, deflecting the Tears’ Slash Attacks. The Tears flew around while wielding the magical swords in both hands freely.

Quite a decent response. They seem fairly capable in close combat. But—

“Too slow—!”

I poured magical power into Ouroboros and struck them down. When both weapons were knocked aside leaving their guard open, I drove a Palm Strike into the gap, sending a Shockwave inside. In the moment its movements stopped—Ouroboros infused with magical power drew a large arc on its own as it flew in, delivering a striking blow from High Stance. A Palm Strike from below. Getting hit by Ouroboros’ Strike from above.

I grabbed Ouroboros and wound it up, blowing the Tears toward the ceiling where it hit once before tumbling into the passage. It didn’t float back up.

The armor is decent. But when shock is transmitted inside, it’s surprisingly fragile. However, the true value of Tears, same as Little Soldiers, probably manifests in group battles and surprise attacks. Individually they’re not that impressive, but still shouldn’t be underestimated.

Looking toward Sheila’s direction—she was exposing herself to a barrage of pale blue Light Bullets.

Sheila’s movements, appearing and disappearing, disappearing and appearing, couldn’t be tracked by the Tears.

“Still—Theodore’s training is harsher.”

Sheila slipped through the scattered Light Bullets and closed in on the Tears. She drove a water blade into the joint between armor and arm. The Pearl Sword’s tip struck the joint, and the water enveloping the blade permeated inside the Tears’ armor. As Sheila kicked the Tears and flew back, she unleashed a Lightning Strike—and this one also tumbled to the ground and stopped moving.

Flooding then electrifying, huh. An effective method against opponents with armor. The Lightning Strike probably damaged the internal control mechanisms.

As expected—individually, there’s no problem with their combat capabilities.

That leaves the Bone Trooper. Against the bone cavalry soldier maneuvering using walls and ceilings as footholds, Ignis charged head-on.

Physical strength is about even without Rosemary’s Enhancement. They exchanged weapons while flipping through the air with tremendous force. The metallic sounds reverberated through the labyrinth core.

For a moment. The Bone Trooper’s technique shone. While stepping into the War Hammer’s diagonal Strike, it deflected with its Shield, and the Spear that had been pulled far back was thrust toward Ignis’s throat with tremendous force.

Normally that would be the end. However, Ignis isn’t a living human. Ignis charged in regardless. The hammer that should have been deflected rotated with the entire upper body, striking the Bone Trooper’s shoulder with even greater speed than before.

“—Pity.”

Rosemary’s voice sounded mocking. Simultaneously with the Strike, Puppet Strings from the accompanying Magic Slaves entangled the Bone Trooper’s arms and hind legs. Riding the impact of the Strike, Rosemary’s Puppet Strings took control of the Bone Trooper’s limbs.

Into the opened guard—Claws hooked into the sternum area. The next moment, an explosion sounded. The Pile Bunker that shot out from the gauntlet shattered the sternum, crushing the skull from inside toward the crown.

From where the Pile Bunker was withdrawn, a War Hammer was swung down from High Stance. With that, the Bone Trooper also fell Silent.

Since they’re all inorganic types, it’s hard to tell… but judging by the magical reactions, they don’t seem to be pretending to be inactive.

The Bone Trooper probably also had mechanisms necessary for control inside its sternum or skull. They might have been crushed.

“They’re sufficiently capable. For a scout force of this scale, there don’t seem to be any problems.”

Rosemary glanced at the motionless Bone Trooper and voiced that impression.

“I agree. But that extending Spear is one thing, and since Tears are small, we need to be careful about surprise attacks.”

Saying this, Marlene nodded with a serious expression.

We investigated the interior of the side room. Using Light Magic to create mirrors, we examined the inside without entering—hmm. It seems to be just a small room prepared solely for ambushes. Nothing else remains.

But… the method of sending golems ahead works. Once the enemies move, Sheila can detect their presence from sounds and such.

Good. For now—let’s proceed while avoiding surprise attacks.

“Sheila? Are you injured?”

“Mm. I’m fine.”

“Ignis is also fine. I deliberately had it target the thickly armored areas.”

After confirming there was no significant damage, the next step was harvesting. I transferred the Bone Trooper’s spear and one Tears unit outside, then extracted the Magic Stones from the remainder.

Then I reformed our formation and advanced deeper inside.

As we proceeded down the passageway—I saw a large gate in the distance. A pale blue square frame blocked the far end of the corridor. Claudia stopped in her tracks.

“Beyond that door… it’s there. The Guardian.”

“Placing a large chamber at the end of a single path with no detours, huh. Just as I thought—it’s designed for certain interception.”

So the policy isn’t to outsmart intruders, but to overwhelm them with force. Perhaps this reflects the nature of the Guardian overseeing this sector.

“…It noticed us too—! Here it comes!”

Along with Claudia’s words, something glittered at the far end of the passage.

From the distant end of the corridor—something came flying toward us. A white-based flying object.

With its sharp-angled Form, it approached us at tremendous speed while expelling Magical Light backward. Then, when it came within clear visual range, it transformed. At that moment—excess Magical Power surged like a wave, sending a tingling, stinging sensation across our cheeks.

What had appeared like a large, decorated Tears unit now unfolded into a humanoid shape—resembling a white Knight in Armor. Was this… what you’d call a variable-type Golem?

“Paladin…!”

Claudia uttered. The central Guardian… a Paladin, then.

As I took Stance with Ouroboros and concentrated my Magical Power, the creature fixed its gaze on me and positioned the blade mounted on its right arm before its chest—just as a Knight would.