S-Class Dungeon's Mistress

Chapter 81

The first thing she saw amidst the musty dust were blue eyes. They were exceptionally blue, like transparent glass beads, but also like cold ice. However, the sparkling iris in the middle was so eerie that it did not look human at all.

Just by seeing them, hair stood up all over her body. At the same time she could hear a loud ringing in her ears which caused her extreme fear.

‘Monster.’

Instinctively, that one word came to mind. They were undoubtedly a monster’s eyes.

It was not hard to figure out what had happened.

[Warning. An adventurer has invaded. Warning.]

Red lights flashed nonstop and the alarms rang and crackled. Adelaide’s face turned pale in an instant. Through her dizzying vision, she could see Caladium standing in front of her, and an adventurer standing in front of him. His face was obscured by dust, but his hair and eyes were easily recognizable.

Blue eyes and dark hair.

The Legend had invaded.

“Adela!”

Caladium’s ferocious voice awakened Adelaide’s rigid body. He didn’t explain, but she could read his thoughts just from his eyes as he looked back at her.

‘I’ll take care of that guy, so run away now.’ The silver-gray eyes said.

‘Run away?’ Adelaide stared back at him.

She then saw the appearance of her other demons.

The Skeletons, Bell, and the Durahans were in shock as they were blown away when the portal exploded. She came to her senses at the tragic scene in front of her. As the dungeon master, she had a duty to protect the demons that belonged to her. As she recalled this, energy returned to her helpless limbs.

“Guys, let’s go!”

Adelaide rose from her seat and lifted a fallen Skeleton. Bell groaned as she carried him, and she also glanced at Pia and the Durahans who were on the other side.

Fortunately, Caladium quickly created a shield, so no one was seriously injured from the impact of the explosion. She only fell so she only suffered minor scratches.

“Hurry!”

At her instructions, her demons hurriedly ran. There was no other way to escape because the only external portal had exploded. They had no choice but to take the inner portal and avoid the battle space. This way, they would at least not be a hindrance to Caladium once he fought.

Adelaide, who hurriedly moved her steps, looked back for a moment. The living room where they had spent leisurely time together had already been destroyed. It was difficult to even get close to it as strong energies raged, with Caladium and the adventurer facing each other in the midst of it.

‘Caladi…!’

Her heart pounded as she looked at his wide back. He seemed to be fully prepared for battle. His wings, which were incomparably large compared to Adelaide’s, fluttered on his back, his horn grew longer, and his silver-gray eyes glowed intensely.

The atmosphere was very different from when he dealt with the demons from the Boraca or the Sol Dungeon. He now seemed to be an untouchable being.

This meant that the current situation was extremely dangerous.

Adelaide bit her lip. She wanted to help and stay by his side. She wanted to keep her promise to treat him with respect.

But Adelaide knew the reality well. She was already struggling from the energy that was flowing from the battle and she would only be a nuisance and be of no help to Caladium. There was no one capable of helping Caladium here. So it was best to run away so he can focus on the fight. Even though she knew that there was nothing she could do, her footsteps felt heavy.

Adelaide embraced Bell tighter as she forced herself to turn her head away. Looking back at Caladium would only slow down her speed.

Then, her gaze met the creepy blue eyes again.

‘Huh…?’

For the first time, she saw the adventurer’s face in full view. His face, which she checked with a quick passing gaze, evoked a strange feeling. It wasn’t because he looked gorgeous like the long description from the Dungeon Newspaper. It was not the time to check whether he was beautiful or not. Rather, she felt a sense of déjà vu.

Those monster-like eyes were strangely familiar to her, even though it was definitely the first time she had seen them.

Kwagwagwang!

“Argh!”

There was no time for contemplation. The Durahan, who was running at the front, screamed and fell to the floor. A fierce sword strike flew like lightning and destroyed the way. If he had taken one step further, he would’ve died without even knowing it. Raham, who was running with Pia in his arms, hastily looked back. The adventurer who was far away until just now, rapidly approached.

“How…”

But before he could come any closer, Caladium moved. With one light gesture, flames soared and surrounded the adventurer. At the same time, a huge flame barrier rose between the adventurer and the demons.

“You should play with me.”

Caladium twisted his lips and grinned. His cold, sunken eyes quickly glanced at the other demons beyond the barrier.

Adelaide then regained her senses. Unknown to her, her feet moved faster than ever. The other demons were the same. They didn’t express their shock because they were in an urgent situation, but it seemed that everyone had the same thoughts, judging by their unnatural movements.

It was not the first time she had experienced a situation where her body moved involuntarily, so she quickly knew the cause. Caladium, who was too busy just to focus on the battle, still used his power to help them escape.

Adelaide and her demons soon entered the inner portal safely. After confirming that they had disappeared, Caladium faced the adventurer. His opponent had a serious expression and seemed to understand that killing Caladium was the priority.

The adventurer rushed in quickly. With an expressionless face, he attacked at a speed that was hard to believe was human. The sharp blade aimed to pierce Caladium’s neck. Caladium frowned at the ferocious energy that engulfed him.

‘This is quite…’

Truly, the Legend was a talented person whose title truly fitted him. He was stronger than any other adventurer Caladium had ever faced. He was also superior to every other demon he had fought against. It was even more surprising if one was to consider that humans could not display their abilities in a place with such dark magic. He couldn’t believe this wasn’t his real strength. If they fought in the human world, he might really lose. He bitterly evaluated.

The adventurer who had been fiercely attacking with his sword without break suddenly disappeared within Caladium’s flames. Hellfire was usually used as a cover which would melt ordinary people’s skin just by touching it.

A wrinkle formed between Caladium’s forehead. He didn’t look like he had gone towards the inner portal, but he also couldn’t figure out where he went.

It was then. A vivid energy suddenly burst from behind him.

Caladium hurriedly turned his head. The adventurer’s sword was getting closer. In a moment shorter than an instant, the conversation he had with Lisianthus a while ago flashed through his mind.

“5 minutes.”

Lisianthus, who was preparing to leave Greenville Dungeon, suddenly opened his mouth.

Only Lisianthus and Caladium were left in the living room, but since they didn’t interact much, Caladium didn’t even notice what he was saying to him. He was just sitting comfortably on the sofa and was concentrating on chewing biscuits.

Lisianthus stared angrily at Caladium and repeated his words.

“That is the time you have to endure.”

“… Are you talking to me?”

“Do you see any other demons here besides you?”

Caladium frowned at the sudden quarrel. In the past, he would have quickly fallen for that provocation and growled, but he was patient now. He was in a good mood because the annoying b*stard would be away from Greenville for a while.

Caladium erased the frown on his face, and beckoned him to say more.

“The S-Class warp ability is a good ability to reach anywhere quickly, but it has two drawbacks. One is that, as I said, once used, it cannot be used for 100 years, and the other is the activation time.”

Lisianthus explained it in as simple a way as possible, in consideration of Caladium, who was a bird brain. The soft tone, as if speaking to a child, sounded more like ridicule than consideration.

“After using the power, it will take 5 minutes to move. Even if I check the artifact and use my powers right away, it will take five minutes.”

“Ha.” Caladium smirked. He almost understood what he was talking about. He understood, but at the same time he didn’t.

‘How dare you mock me like this? For more than 300 years, there has never been a demon that despised me like this. There were some ignorant and rude guys, but this is the first time that I’ve been treated so unfairly even though you know my skills.’

“You want me to hold on for just five minutes? Is that what you mean?”

“I’m glad you understood. Even a kid like you can earn that much time.”

Lisianthus mocked Caladium with his elegant face. Eventually, he could no longer stand his attitude, but just as he was about to shout at him, Adelaide came out of her room. Because of that, the conversation ended there.

Caladium burst into laughter as he stared at the adventurer who had advanced in front of him in the blink of an eye.

“Always a gloomy b*stard.”

‘Five minutes, how dare you look down on me.’

At the same time as the curse words flowed out, Caladium’s energy fluctuated violently. Suddenly, a vast amount of magic came out like a dam bursting.

Sensing an ominous sign, the adventurer quickly pulled away. It was the first time he had encountered a devil, but he thought that if he only had that level of skill, it would be easy to kill and eliminate him.

However, the devil whom he thought had revealed its true appearance suddenly changed.

The wings, which were still large, gradually increased in size, and all the feathers turned into flames. It wasn’t just the wings. Even his red hair and clothes were ablaze. It was like looking at a living red flame.

The title ‘The Great Devil of the Red Flame’ was not something he earned just because of that.

He had killed so many high-level demons who had challenged him that it was enough to build mountains with their corpses.

Devils were no exception. Some devils were jealous of him, who rose to the ranks of a devil at a young age. They sent their subordinates to take care of him before he could grow older and stronger.

Once he had killed them, he even went and visited their masters. Of course, they became ashes in the hands of Caladium and returned to the arms of the Creator.

After the relentless slaughter, Caladium rose to a position that many would call the best. He was not a Demon King, still, he was in a position that was not much different.

The Western part of the Demon Realm.

It was the location with the thickest concentration of dark magic. A place that symbolized survival of the fittest. It was where only the strong could survive.

He was the last ruler of Kronatan.