17-6
Orpheus
Translator : PolterGlast
There was a man who
descended into hell in search of his deceased wife. I believe his name was
Orpheus. It is a tale of a journey through hell that exists in any world.
「I
intended to fight. I didn't think you would accept the White Duke-sama's
request.」
「Did
your plans go awry? My bad, I am this much of a massive idiot.」
「No, it
is worthy of respect... You are noble.」
「That
is just a way of putting things.」
Guided by the
Guardian, I descended the Abyss. At first, it was a cave. I saw the figures of
Abyss Ants, but as soon as they saw us, they fled. It was probably because the
absolute dominant species of the Abyss, positioned at the apex of the
ecosystem, was there. Passing through the world of rock, next was a world of
ice. There were starving Abyss Hounds and Ogres, but they too vanished in fear
of the man who called himself the Guardian.
「The
first Emperor also descended here.」
「That's
a shame. Because surely, part of the reason I came here was a sense of rivalry
towards him.」
「He was
a great man. Everyone in the Abyss harbors a sense of respect for him.」
To be liked even by
the people of the Abyss, the first Emperor truly was a strange guy. Through a
cold world that chilled to the core of the bones, I advanced while looking around
like Kachua. Writing a book might be good too. A travel book mixed with talk
about food. If I wrote about the Abyss, I'd probably be laughed at for it being
a tall tale. After that was a world of flames. A world like it was burning—or
rather, the world was actually burning and magma was flowing. It seems this is
the main habitat of the Abyss Ogres. The next world was a little strange. A
world enveloped in minerals, primarily amethyst.
「It is
fine now, but be careful on the way back. In this world, you must not look
back. Got it?」
「Starting
to sound like a ghost story, huh. Understood.」
Passing through
numerous hells (Abyss), I thought about the travel book I might actually write.
Eventually, we arrived at the destination. This must be the White Duke's mansion.
It was a heterogeneous world within the Abyss, dyed in a red twilight.
「Think
of it as playing house.」
「Playing
house?」
「It is
better not to eat the tea or sweets served. If you just make the gesture of
eating and drinking, the master will likely be satisfied.」
「...Understood.」
If you eat the food
of hell, you cannot return to the surface. I've heard such legends somewhere
too.
「But
it's a strange world. I don't know much about the Abyss, but it doesn't seem
like the Abyss. No, I guess the Abyss is the Abyss after all...」
Perhaps because it
was firmly managed, it was a relaxing space even within the Abyss. But I was
wrong. The stagnant air and sticky presence remained unchanged. In the
darkness, there were countless bloodshot eyeballs staring this way. I didn't
feel any malice. They were just staring intently at us. That was all it was.
「Duke-sama,
I have brought Ausar—Prince Ashley Gnosis Urgos.」
Ausar must be
something like a title or position. That ghost blacksmith had said it too. The
child of Ausar is Ausar. Be that as it may, in the garden where even the plants
and trees were red, there was an old man in a wheelchair. Sitting at a table,
his eyes quietly turned towards me.
「Thanks
to you, I can finally leave my duty as well. I am grateful.」
The Guardian said
only that and disappeared. Their request is a meeting. I sat at the table
opposite the White Duke. Tea and sweets were already prepared, so when I showed
the gesture of eating and drinking, the old man calling himself the White Duke
smiled.
「What a
reckless man. To accept the invitation of a Demon Noble of the Abyss and come
all the way to the bottom of hell... Heh, fufu... You are more than what his
report said...」
「Because
it didn't seem like there would be any other opportunities to travel the Abyss.」
「That
is true too. How is the tea?」
「It has
a nice fragrance. I can't believe this is the bottom of hell.」
It was such good tea
that it made me want to take a sip unintentionally. If I drank it, I might not
be able to return above. Perhaps with that property added, I was
unintentionally drawn to it.
「...So,
what do you want to talk to me about?」
「You
are young. Nothing, I just wanted to see that face and talk. Show me those
eyes, and that arm too...」
「Fine.
We are fellow monsters, after all.」
I removed the lens
bestowed upon me by Father and took off my glove. A white arm and a dragon's
eye. I no longer have any abominable feelings towards them. Surely it is
because I gained a compatriot named Zirant.
The White Duke placed his tea on the table and stared at me for a long time.
「To
want to meet someone like me, you are quite the eccentric too.」
「Am I?
You will understand too when you grow older.」
Since the White Duke
drank his tea looking like it was delicious, I became envious. Let's at least
burn the fragrance into my memory. Even if I said I went to the Abyss and
smelled the best tea fragrance, neither Aneue nor Aniue would believe me,
though.
「Sorry,
but unlike Yord and Julius, I won't stand on your side. Thanks to you guys,
things are a disaster over there.」
Let's advance the
conversation. Reading the old man's thoughts, I gave a warning beforehand.
Without returning a reply, he just quietly looked up at the sky of the Abyss.
The sky shone so brightly red that it became creepy. Is this a world where
evening never ends? The red shining sky, despite having no sun, unstably
flickered its light strongly and weakly. It was a much more unearthly and eerie
land than the ice hell or the flame hell.
「We had
two goals. Both were difficult, hard-to-achieve dreams...」
「In the
past tense?」
「Yes...
One of the dreams can no longer be fulfilled. What remains is only the dearest
wish to escape from this Abyss, unchanged since that day we were deceived by
Samael and cast down into this land...」
「That
is a problem. Over here, we are being troubled by the monsters of the Abyss.
Even if you wish to return, we have our lives on the surface. Coexistence would
be difficult.」
These guys are far
too strong to live on the surface. If it turned into a fight, we might end up
being conquered.
「Kukuku...
That is right. We are evil. Perhaps that is why Samael also betrayed us. He
ousted us gods and tried to become a god himself. Just to protect his own
precious ones...」
「Even
if you tell me such an old tale, I don't understand it. I am just a human, just
the adventurer Shinza.」
I looked up at the
red sky again, and when I got bored of that, I glared back at the eyeballs
staring from the shadows. I can't eat the tea or the sweets. It was starting to
become painful.
「I have
a request...」
「What
is it?」
「Even
in this polluted earth, there is a land where flowers sprout. A land that
drifted to this place hundreds of years ago, gradually becoming polluted, and
slowly beginning to wither. Descendant of Ausar, with your rare power, pierce
the vortex of impurity...」
That seems to be the
true condition for the exchange. Thinking it was an easy task, I stood up from
my chair, and guided by the old man in the wheelchair, arrived at a paradise
within the Abyss. It was unbelievably beautiful, a pure world despite being in
the Abyss. The White Duke seems to cherish this place more than anything else.
He seemed to be genuinely heartbroken at the sight of that land being swallowed
by the Abyss and gradually transforming.
We cannot coexist with the folks of the Abyss. Eventually, we will end up fighting again. But for me, who grew up confined in a tower, their feelings of desiring a paradise were not someone else's problem. Therefore, I sincerely fulfilled my duty, and returned to the surface without ever looking back. A ghost muttering "Samael, Samael" called out to my back, but that's not me. I am neither Ausar nor Ashley. Right now, I am the adventurer Shinza.
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