The Return of the Limited-Time Sword Master

Chapter 112 – Noble Duty (4)

The monster that typically roamed the 43rd floor was the Obsidian Golem.

True to its name, its entire body was made of obsidian, renowned for its formidable defenses.

Yet, in the footage, that very Obsidian Golem was—

Crunch!

—being savagely torn apart by a manticore.

Its chest area was continually shattered, and soon enough, a black mana stone was revealed.

The manticore, as if it had been waiting for this moment, bit down and swallowed it whole.

Roooaaar!

In an instant, a burst of black energy erupted from the creature’s body, and it grew even larger.

It had absorbed the Obsidian Golem’s mana to enhance its own strength.

“Why on earth is a manticore here?”

“Shut up and keep it at bay! What are the mages doing? Pour every ounce of magic you have into it! Miss a shot, and you’re dead!”

One of the adventurers was directing those around him.

Following his orders, the mages gathered their mana, unleashing a barrage of fire, lightning, and other spells upon the manticore.

Some adventurers, manifesting their unique abilities, worked to amplify the magic’s power, while those skilled in martial arts unleashed their auras.

Boom! Boom!

The powerful attacks combined, triggering a series of devastating explosions.

The man leading the adventurers clenched his fist as he watched.

“Did we get it?”

To descend to the 40th floors, one had to reach at least the 4th Circle.

Each adventurer there took pride in their skills, and there were over 20 of them.

With so many working together, even a monster from the 50th floor should’ve taken some damage.

Or so he thought…

Swoosh!

Suddenly, something shot through the dark smoke at an astonishing speed—a countless swarm of black projectiles.

They rained down on the adventurers.

“Aaagh!”

“Arrgh!”

Horrific screams echoed from all sides.

The leader swung his sword desperately, deflecting as many as he could, but a spike eventually struck his left side.

“A… a thorn?”

A black thorn had embedded itself in his side.

The wound itself was bad enough, but an even more serious issue emerged.

His skin around the injury began to turn pitch black.

“Damn… poison!”

Desperately, the man reached for an antidote from the pouch on his belt and drank it.

Yet the deadly toxin continued to spread within him.

Instead of neutralizing, the poison intensified, rapidly blackening his entire body.

Ugh!

In the end, he coughed up blackened blood before collapsing to the ground.

Meanwhile, the manticore emerged unscathed, advancing toward the fallen adventurers to feast on their corpses.

Watching this, Martin shook his head.

The sheer absurdity of it all was almost laughable.

‘It seems intentional. It’s poisoning them to absorb their strength.’

If they were dragons with distinct hearts, perhaps it would be different, but humans couldn’t absorb monster mana so recklessly.

The properties of mana were so incompatible that attempting to absorb it could lead to uncontrollable outbursts.

The same principle applied when monsters tried to absorb human strength, yet the manticore had cleverly poisoned the adventurers.

The deadly toxin corrupted their mana, allowing the manticore to absorb the externalized energy.

‘This is the worst-case scenario.’

The manticore, originally the Monster Lord of the 50th floor, was one of the most powerful non-draconic creatures.

Already formidable, it was now absorbing mana stones from other monsters and human mana alike.

Who knew how much stronger it would grow?

While he pondered this, the video continued, showing the manticore’s gaze shifting toward Winfried for the first time.

“Run! Everyone, run!”

At that moment, Winfried and his companions screamed, fleeing in terror.

The screen shook violently, making it hard to discern details, but the manticore’s roar was clear.

And with that, the recording ended.

“How did you survive?” Martin asked.

“Well, luckily, we were at a distance, and a group of other Obsidian Golems appeared. The manticore charged at them instead, allowing us to escape.”

“A monster that chooses to attack other monsters over humans…”

While Martin was deep in thought, Winfried and the other adventurers bowed their heads.

Seeing this, he raised an eyebrow.

“What are you apologizing for?”

“Helping an adventurer in distress is a code of honor among adventurers. By rights, I should have fought alongside them, yet I only recorded the scene…”

“It’s understandable to feel guilty, Winfried. But if you and your companions had stayed to fight, I would’ve learned about the situation much later, delaying any chance of response. In that time, even more lives would’ve been lost.”

Winfried fell silent at Martin’s words.

But it was clear to anyone watching that he still felt a profound sense of regret.

His companions shared that sentiment.

“In the face of fear, you recorded this video as evidence, ensuring that Varehein City’s citizens would be warned. That action alone saved lives. I’ll make sure this contribution is properly rewarded later.”

“Oh, no! I couldn’t possibly accept anything when we left our comrades behind…”

“I understand what you’re saying. But you and your companions have played a crucial role in protecting Varehein City. As the city’s steward, I insist on showing my gratitude, so don’t refuse.”

“…Understood.”

“Now, on another note, may I ask you a favor?”

“Anything. Just say the word, and I’ll make it happen.”

“When you and your team reach the first floor, show this recording to the guild leader there… Ah, does this artifact support voice recording as well?”

“It does.”

Winfried pressed a button on the artifact, pointing it toward Martin.

“In the name of Martin Adalbert, I hereby declare an emergency in Varehein City, effective immediately upon the guild leader’s viewing of this recording. All knights of the Adalbert family and adventurers ranked C or higher within the guild are to gather at the dungeon.”

After finishing, Martin nodded. Winfried turned off the artifact and tucked it safely away.

“Show this to Chief Beyren on the first floor. He’ll take care of everything from there.”

“I swear to carry out your orders, Acting Head.”

“Thank you.”

“Yes, sir!”

Winfried’s response rang out confidently, and with his team, he quickly headed back up to the surface.

Martin watched them disappear before turning back.

Despite his brief absence from the battle, Sien and Adel were still fearlessly engaged with the centaurs.

‘They’ll likely win as things stand…’

But now there was no time to waste.

Even at that moment, the manticore continued its ascent to the surface.

Whum!

Martin drew up his mana, and an aura blade emerged around the holy sword Karadyl.

He thrust the blade into the space before him, and a radiant light bloomed, forming a massive cube around them.

It was a technique that created his own dominion with his sword—Spatial Sword had been activated.

Dozens of beams of light encased not only Martin and his companions but also the centaurs.

“Haahp!”

Martin gripped Karadyl with both hands and swung it with all his might.

Inside the cube, the light surged, and countless golden blades materialized, pouring down like a torrential rain.

Neigh!

Screech!

The beams precisely cut down the centaurs alone. A few tried to flee, but escaping from the indiscriminate onslaught was impossible.

Ten seconds.

That was all the time Martin needed to eliminate every centaur in the area.

“Phew.”

Retracting his Spatial Sword, Martin took a moment to catch his breath.

His arms tingled slightly, but the pain was manageable.

‘My body’s really gotten tougher.’

Reaching the 8th Circle had certainly contributed, but he felt he owed much to the wyvern’s dragon blood he had ingested.

However, there was no time for idle admiration; Martin turned his attention back to the two women approaching him.

“Judging by the looks on your faces, I’m guessing something happened?”

“What happened?” asked Adel.

“Something… well, something pretty troublesome.”

Martin proceeded to describe what he had seen in the recording.

As he explained, both women’s expressions grew increasingly grim.

“Do you really think this is another monster wave, Martin?” Sien asked.

“No, it’s not,” he replied confidently.

Adel looked puzzled.

“What makes you so sure, Acting Head?”

“If it really were a monster wave, every creature above the 50th floor would be in a berserk state. But the centaurs we just fought, and the monsters in the footage, all retained their instincts.”

“That’s true.”

“And that’s not all. In a monster wave, creatures usually display heightened hostility toward humans. But that manticore abandoned its pursuit of humans to target other monsters instead.”

“So, that manticore is an anomaly?” Sien concluded.

“Yes, that’s how I see it,” Martin affirmed.

Both women nodded, sensing the logic in his assessment.

Sien then spoke up.

“So, what’s your plan?”

“There are adventurers on the lower floors. I want to rescue as many as possible before the manticore reaches them. And if any wish to fight alongside us, I’ll accept their help.”

The dungeon widened as they descended further, making it challenging to locate every person individually. But Martin had a distinct advantage.

With Spatial Detection, he could pinpoint their locations easily.

“With you at the 8th Circle, I don’t doubt we stand a chance. But since you’ve already summoned the adventurers and the main family forces, wouldn’t it be better to wait and join up with them?”

“It’s not a bad idea, but it won’t work against that thing.”

“Why not?”

“It’ll take some time for the adventurers and knights from the surface to reach this depth. The same goes for us going back up. In the meantime, there’s no telling how much stronger that manticore will become. It’s better to gather the adventurers here and face it now.”

“I think the Acting Head’s right,” Adel agreed. “If that creature grows any stronger, the situation will become far worse. But there’s just one thing I’d like you to promise.”

“What’s that?”

Martin turned his gaze to Adel.

“If things get too dangerous, promise us you’ll retreat.”

“Oh, I agree with that,” Sien added.

“There’s no point in taking unnecessary risks. I promise,” he assured them.

With that settled, Martin led them further down to the next floor.

* * *

As they descended deeper, Martin’s group encountered several other adventurers. Each time, he gave them a choice.

“Those who wish to leave, head straight up to the surface. If you wish to fight, follow me to the lower floors.”

Not a single adventurer chose to leave.

Each one expressed their determination to fight alongside Martin, and soon, the number of adventurers exceeded forty.

With the increased numbers, navigating to the lower floors became easier, and before long, they reached the 40th floor.

What they witnessed there was a shocking sight.

Roar!

The Monster Lord of the 40th floor, Lindtbroom.

A member of the dragon species, it was known for its massive body, immense physical strength, and the deadly poison that could corrode even the toughest alloys.

With its formidable intellect, it was notoriously difficult to confront—so much so that it had earned the nickname “Harbinger of Death.”

Considered too dangerous, it was the main reason why so few adventurers ventured to subjugate the 40th floor.

Yet, there it was, covered in wounds and letting out pained cries.

Though that wouldn’t last much longer.

Crunch!

A monster twice its size, the manticore, clamped its jaws around Lindtbroom’s neck.

Stretching nearly ten meters from head to tail, its enormous body was as imposing as a house.

The dark spines running from its back to the tip of its tail were menacing, dripping with poison potent enough to make anyone shudder.

“It’s already made it this far? How is it so fast?!”

“And it’s grown that powerful in such a short time? How is that even possible?!”

The unexpected scene left the adventurers in a state of shock.

Sien and Adel were equally stunned, but Martin kept his composure and activated Spatial Shift.

Whum.

Disappearing into the spatial rift, he reappeared instantly above the manticore’s head.

‘No matter what, I can’t let it absorb this one.’

The manticore had already amassed formidable power.

If it absorbed the strength of Lindtbroom, a member of the dragon race?

The thought alone was horrifying.

To stop it, Martin swung the holy sword Karadyl downward.