Arifureta: From Commonplace to World's Strongest Vol. 6

by Ryo Shirakome

  “What?”

  Did someone actually manage to survive that explosion? Hajime followed Tio’s gaze, incredulous. Standing in the ruins of the church was a bald, white-robed man. He was staring directly at Hajime. Like Tio had said, there was something off about the man. “For one thing, he was translucent. For another, he was swaying back and forth like a stalk in the breeze.”

  The moment he felt Hajime’s gaze on him, the man silently turned around and floated across the mountain of rubble. He didn’t seem to be walking, nor did he seem affected by gravity.

  Just before he vanished out of sight, he turned around and looked at Hajime once more.

  “Does he want us to follow him or something?”

  “So it seems. What should we do, Master?”

  “Hmm. Honestly, I want to meet back up with Yue and Shea, but... supposedly one of the ancient magics is located here. It’s possible this ghost dude has something to do with that. Better not to let any leads slip past us.”

  “Hrm. Very well, let us follow him then.”

  Tio flew up to the top of the pile of rubble, let Hajime and Aiko down, and transformed back into her human form. She frowned as she noticed the stain on her back, and pulled out a replacement set of clothes from her own Treasure Trove. Hajime, too, changed out of his bloodied, vomit-stained clothes into something clean.

  “Ugh, I’m sorry... I got your clothes dirty...” Aiko seemed to shrink into herself as she apologized. Vomiting all over someone was one of the most embarrassing things there was.

  Though neither Hajime nor Tio seemed that bothered by it, Aiko still couldn’t get over her feelings of shame. Especially because she was coming to terms with the fact that she might be in love with Hajime. Vomiting on someone was bad enough without it being the guy you have a crush on.

  Hajime didn’t have time to wait for her to get over it, so he decided to change the topic.

  “Sorry, Sensei, but you’re gonna have to come with us. There’s no telling what might happen up ahead, but we can’t let this chance go. I wanna find out what that bald guy is.”

  “O-Okay. I understand, I’ll come with you.”

  She put an awful lot emphasis onto that last sentence. Hajime pretended he hadn’t noticed, and continued following after the strange bald man.

  The translucent man stayed ahead of them, guiding Hajime and the others through the maze of rubble. After about five minutes of walking, they arrived at their destination. The man silently turned back to Hajime and stood in place.

  “What exactly are you? And what do you want with us?”

  “.....”

  The bald man didn’t reply. Instead, he lifted a finger and pointed deeper into the rubble. Hajime couldn’t see anything special there, but it was clear that was where the man wanted him to go.

  Realizing he wouldn’t get anywhere questioning the man, Hajime nodded to Tio and started walking. As he arrived at the indicated location, the rubble around him began to float. The ground underneath started glowing. He looked down to see one of the labyrinth’s crests carved into the ground.

  “Are you one of the Liberators?” Just as he finished his question, the light from the ground enveloped him.

  A second later, they were standing in an unfamiliar room. It wasn’t very big. The walls were painted black, and there was a magic circle in the center. Next to the circle was an old pedestal, and atop that pedestal was a book. It seemed they’d been teleported straight to the end of the labyrinth.

  The three of them walked up to the magic circle. Aiko looked around, obviously confused by what was going on. Hajime took her hand and looked over at Tio. The two of them nodded to each other and stepped into the magic circle, Aiko following behind.

  Hajime braced for the usual memory-reading that happened when he stepped into one of these. However, this time, it was different. It felt like the memory probe was reaching far deeper into his brain, and he groaned in pain. He worried he might have walked into a trap, but that worry vanished a second later. He was verified as someone who had conquered this labyrinth, and the ancient magic of this labyrinth’s Liberator was imprinted into his mind.

  “Spirit magic?”

  “Hrm. It seems this magic lets you interfere directly with others’ souls.”

  “I get it now. So this is how Miledi was able to transfer her soul into that golem...”

  Aiko crouched down and cradled her head. It was her first time receiving ancient magic, and the experience of something engraving itself directly into her memories was disconcerting. Hajime watched her for a few seconds out of the corner of his eye, before walking over to the nearby pedestal and picking up the book on top of it.

  He flipped through the pages. It appeared to be a memorandum left behind by Laus Barn, the creator of this labyrinth. It was written similarly to Oscar Orcus’ journal. The memorandum detailed Laus’ life with the Liberators, and what he did with his life.

  As Hajime had little interest in the Liberators’ lives, he skimmed over it. Laus Barn’s legacy didn’t interest him in the least. The memorandum mentioned why he hadn’t left his soul behind in this world like Miledi had, and what he’d had to repent for, but Hajime skipped through those sections.

  At the very end, it explained the conditions needed to clear his labyrinth. First, you had to have cleared at least two labyrinths. Second, you needed to have disavowed the gods of this world.

  Third, you needed to have defeated someone under god’s direct influence. Only then would Laus’ ghost apparition appear and guide challengers to this room. In other words, the theme of this labyrinth was to test challengers’ resolve. They needed to prove their desire to overthrow the gods was unshakable.

  Hajime guessed that if they had taken the normal route through the mountain, they would have faced a number of trials that tested their determination. Though Aiko hadn’t officially disavowed this world’s gods, she had always prioritized her students over everyone else. On top of that, she’d contributed to the destruction of the main cathedral. That had been good enough for Laus to consider her an official conqueror of this labyrinth too.

  Most native residents of this world would be hard-pressed to fulfill Laus’ conditions, but for Hajime and the others, it was easy to denounce the gods.

  Hajime took Laus’ ring and his book. Aiko had recovered from the shock of having her mind probed, and business here was concluded, so the three of them walked back to the magic circle that had brought them here. Laus Barn’s crest glowed, and they returned to the mountain.

  “You alright, Sensei?”

  “Ugh, yes. I think I can manage... I’m amazed that such magic exists though. If there’s something like this out there, then maybe magic that can take us back to Japan really exists too.”

  Aiko rubbed her temples and nodded to herself.

  The events of the past few days had taken their toll on her, but she was excited about the prospect of finding an alternative way home.

  “Alright, we know where the labyrinth is now. Let’s go meet up with Yue and Shea and bring them back here.”

  “I almost forgot! The capital is under attack right now, isn’t it? I hope everyone’s alright...” At Hajime’s prompting, the three of them began descending the mountain. Time was short, so they jumped off the cliffside where the lift usually was. That section had been carved smooth, so there was no worry of hitting jutting rocks.

  Aiko screamed the whole way down, but both Hajime and Tio ignored her.

  They landed safely, though Hajime had to support Aiko as her legs had given out. The capital was awash in flames, but Hajime’s first priority was getting Aiko to safety. So he ignored the screams coming from the streets and headed to the palace, planning to meet up with Kaori and Liliana.

  When he arrived at the meeting point... he found Kaori lying dead on the ground, a sword sticking out of her chest.

  Chapter IV: Betrayal

  Let us go back to a few hours ago. Right around when Kaori and Liliana had snuck into th
e palace.

  Craaaaaaaaash!

  “Huh!? What’s going on!?” Shizuku jolted awake as she heard the sound of shattering glass. She threw off her sheets, grabbed her katana, and jumped to her feet. Her instantaneous reaction made it clear that she was always on guard, even when she slept.

  “.....” Shizuku tensed up and held her breath, ready for an attack. Only after she had ascertained there was no one else in her room did she allow herself to relax.

  She had been even more vigilant than usual these past few days. People had started vanishing mysteriously from the palace.

  The disappearances had begun a few weeks after they’d been saved from death in the Great Orcus Labyrinth and Kaori had gone off with Hajime.

  Shizuku had been worried about them since day one. She couldn’t tell what exactly was wrong, but her sixth sense had told her that something wasn’t right.

  At first, she had just chalked it up to stress. Her best friend wasn’t by her side anymore, the demons were far stronger than they had expected, and everyone was struggling with the problem of whether or not they could really kill. It was possible she was just on edge.

  But eventually she realized her senses weren’t deceiving her. Something was definitely wrong.

  It wasn’t until today until she had proof though.

  Three days ago, Aiko had returned and told Shizuku that she’d had something important to tell everyone that night. Right after that, she had disappeared. Dinner came and went, and she was nowhere to be found.

  Furthermore, Liliana vanished that same day. The palace guards and servants were panicking.

  Two people Shizuku knew well had vanished without a trace. Yuka and the rest of Ai-chan’s guard squad started searching frantically for them. Kouki and the others helped out, of course.

  It was then that Ishtar had shown up and told them that Aiko had gone up to the Divine Mountain to make their argument against Hajime being declared a heretic.

  Naturally, Shizuku and the others had demanded Ishtar let them join her, but he’d refused. The lift heading to the main cathedral at the top of the mountain wasn’t working, and there was no other way to the temple.

  They took their complaints to King Eilheid, but he simply told them that Aiko would return in three days and that they should just wait. Reluctantly, the students backed down.

  Shizuku’s worries continued to grow. She still had no proof that anything was happening, but she was certain something bad was. Worse, Captain Meld had vanished too, so she couldn’t ask him for advice either.

  Three days. If we just sit tight for three days... Three days had passed, and the morning of the invasion dawned.

  Neither Aiko nor Liliana returned.

  Ishtar and the other priests had vanished as well. Not only that, the guards they’d assigned Aiko, David and his squad, had disappeared too. The lift to the main cathedral still wasn’t working.

  Both the king and the prime minister refused to meet with the students.

  In another day, it would be four days since Aiko and Liliana disappeared.

  However, it seemed only Yuka and Shizuku were worried about that.

  Though Kouki did think it was odd Aiko hadn’t returned, he couldn’t fathom that something dangerous might be going on within the palace itself. He thought the discussion about Hajime’s heresy was just dragging on.

  Shizuku could tell Kouki’s conflicted feelings regarding Hajime were clouding his judgment. Moreover, his mind was too preoccupied with thoughts of Kaori, and whether or not he could really kill, to think about much else.

  Since most of the other students still looked up to him, the fact that he wasn’t worried about Aiko was enough to reassure them that they didn’t need to be either. If he said she was okay, she was okay.

  So Shizuku had decided to consult Yuka and her friends. They were the only other students who shared her sense of unease.

  They decided that if Aiko didn’t return by tonight, they’d scale the mountain, lift or no lift.

  After finishing her preparations for tomorrow’s climb, Shizuku had climbed into bed fully alert. Aiko hadn’t returned, and she was growing suspicious of everyone in the castle. Which brings us back to the present.

  Shizuku silently put on her equipment and slipped out of her room.

  She silently cursed as her door made a slight squeaking noise when she pushed it open.

  Looking down the hallway, Shizuku noticed that Yuka, Taeko, and Nana were standing outside their rooms as well. They were standing stock still, timidly examining their surroundings.

  “Ah, Shizucchi!” Nana spotted Shizuku and called out to her without thinking. Shizuku instantly put one hand on her sword. Yuka and Taeko bopped Nana on the head, furiously whispering “Idiot, what if that was an intruder!?” “Don’t be so careless, idiot!”

  Nana apologized tearfully, while Shizuku waved her hand to let them know the coast was clear.

  Yuka and the others stepped into the hallway while Shizuku jogged over to Kouki’s room and knocked.

  The door swung open immediately. Kouki was standing there, fully dressed. Behind him, Ryutarou was in the process of getting up. It seemed the sound had woken them as well.

  Shizuku sighed, and looked at Kouki with a pained expression.

  “Kouki, you really need to be more careful. Don’t just open the door for anyone who knocks... Look, you should at least make sure the person on the other side is a friend. What if I’d been an enemy?”

  “But we’re in the palace. Why would there be enemies here?”

  Kouki tilted his head in confusion. Though he’d heard the noise earlier as well, he still seemed to believe the palace was completely safe.

  Judging from his bleary eyes, he wasn’t fully awake yet either.

  “Well something’s not right, so stay on your guard.” Ryutarou called out from behind Kouki. “Alright, alright. But I think you’re just overthinking things, Shizuku.” Neither of them made any move to get ready.

  “Anyway, Shizuku. What was that noise just now? It sounded like something shattering...”

  “I’m not sure. I’ll go wake the others up and see if anyone knows anything. I have a bad feeling about this...”

  Shizuku turned back to Yuka. Yuka nodded and she and her friends split up to wake the others.

  Unsurprisingly, those who were constantly fighting on the front lines were already up and ready. Jugo Nakayama, Kentarou Nomura, Kousuke Endou, Ayako Tsuji, Mao Yoshino, Daisuke Hiyama, Reichi Kondou, Shinji Nakano, and Yoshiki Saitou answered Shizuku’s summons immediately.

  The rest of Aiko’s bodyguard squad was out before Shizuku even got to their rooms.

  Sadly, the rest of the students weren’t so prepared. Those who hadn’t fought in months were extremely slow to respond, and some were still asleep. Shizuku had to beat a few of them awake. Others, she had to coax out of their rooms because they’d heard the noise and were too scared to come out.

  “I’m sorry for waking you up in the middle of the night, guys. But most of you guys heard that noise, right? It should be safe inside the palace, but I think we should go see what’s going on still. It might be dangerous, so let’s all go together.” Kouki’s words breathed life into the students, and those who were still half-asleep finally woke up.

  They all nodded nervously, wondering what could possibly have happened while they were sleeping.

  Just then, footsteps approached the group from the end of the hallway.

  The students all turned around and saw Nia, Shizuku’s personal maid, running toward them. The one who’d reprimanded the other students earlier for relying too much on Shizuku.

  “Nia!”

  “Shizuku-sama...”

  Nia’s tone was forlorn.

  It was surprising to see her so openly depressed. Nia was from a family of knights, and she was normally much more calm and composed, like Shizuku.

  Shizuku opened her mouth to ask what was wrong, but before she could say anything, the words spilled fr
om Nia’s mouth.

  “The barrier’s first layer has been destroyed.”

  “Wh-What!?”

  The reason for her unusual solemnity quickly became clear.

  “The demons have launched an assault. They have an army outside the gates, and they’ve already broken the first barrier.”

  “How did they...”

  Nia’s report was so shocking that even Shizuku couldn’t remain calm.

  The other students broke out into an uproar.

  All of them had believed the demons would never make it as far as the capital. It lay on the northern tip of the continent. Everyone had assumed the demons would need to conquer all of the other human cities and forts before they could assault the capital.

  And even if they did reach the capital, the students had believed the barrier would hold. After all, it hadn’t been breached in centuries.

  Their shocked reaction was only natural.

  “Nia. There’s a total of three barriers protecting the capital, right?” Kouki asked with a grim expression.

  There were a total of three barriers, with each successive one being smaller and sturdier than the last.

  “That is correct, Kouki-sama. The demons destroyed the outermost layer with a single attack. It’s only a matter of time before they break through the rest...” Kouki nodded and considered his options. After a few moments of deliberation, he decided to strike.

  “We’ll go out and try to buy some time. In the meantime, evacuate all the residents. If we can just hold out long enough for the soldiers and knights to get into formation...” Only a few students looked like they agreed with Kouki’s proposal; just the other frontliners and Aiko’s guards.

  The others looked away, ashamed. They had long since lost the will to fight. Their spirits had been crushed that day in the Great Orcus Labyrinth.

  Even if it was just a defensive battle to buy time, they didn’t have the confidence to face an entire army.

  Kouki realized he couldn’t force them and closed his eyes in resignation. We’ll just have to do what we can with the few people we have. Before he could say as much though, Eri interjected.