Dreltein had fully grasped Diogres’ intentions. He had suspected it from the moment Diogres abandoned the Tower of Dawn and made his way here, but seeing him entrenched inside the dungeon only confirmed it.

"He’s being blatant about wanting to settle this with just his elite troops," Dreltein said.

And it was understandable. A force of three thousand against a thousand was a hopeless disparity on open plains. Unless there was a severe difference in troop quality, morale, or the commanders’ skill, the larger army would inevitably win.

And the subjugation army and Diogres’ forces were not so different in terms of quality. But within confined spaces, the disparity could be narrowed to a meaningful level. Fighting within a dungeon was both a siege and urban warfare.

Since they could not deploy a large force all at once, the right tactics and strategy could allow the few to defeat the many.

In that sense, Diogres’ objective was clear. He would hold out within the dungeon, gradually depleting the subjugation army’s strength and forcing Elezar and Dreltein to act personally when the losses became unsustainable.

Drawing them into traps he had prepared, isolating them, and defeating them one by one would be the only way to overcome the current disparity in strength.

Elezar let out a bitter smile. "It’s hard to say it’s a wrong decision..."

Of course, they planned to step in themselves eventually, but only after they had pushed things as far as they could. Would they act directly once troop losses became unbearable? Conversely, that meant if they disregarded those losses, they could continue pushing without limit.

If they prioritized establishing a complete encirclement and sealing every possible escape route, there would be no issue with them stepping in personally. And yet, it was clear why Diogres had devised such a plan. He had likely assumed that Elezar and Dreltein would never sacrifice Imperial soldiers so ruthlessly.

And in truth, in this era, they probably wouldn’t have.

"This is a bit unfair to Diogres." The slaves of the Monarch of Death, returned from the future, wore cold smiles at the corners of their lips. "Because we aren’t the Elezar and Dreltein he knew."

***

Karnak let out a hollow chuckle when he received the report. "They’re exactly the Elezar and Dreltein I know."

The expedition force continued to push troops into the dungeon in a steady stream. It was a rather brutal method of troop deployment. Sending regular soldiers without aura or magic into a dungeon meant they didn’t care in the slightest about those soldiers’ lives.

Karnak wondered, "Aren’t these guys technically Tesranach’s subordinates? So why does it feel like they’re acting exactly like mine?"

Leven glanced around warily and sent a mental message.

—Shouldn’t you watch what you say? You never know who might be listening.

"What, over something like this?" Karnak waved his hand with a small laugh. "It’s fine. Everyone’s too busy to care."

And indeed, no one around paid the slightest attention to their conversation. They stood within the vast underground plaza located in the upper central levels of the dungeon, now occupied by Diogres’ forces.

It had once been a place teeming with monsters and wraiths, and turning it, even temporarily, into a place habitable for humans had been no small feat. Tents were set up, fires were lit, and wooden barricades were erected to prepare for enemy incursions, with everyone busily working without pause.

"Everyone really is busy." Leven turned back to Karnak and asked, "But according to your strategy, shouldn’t we actually be actively reducing the enemy army’s numbers?"

Yet for some reason, Karnak’s orders were entirely the opposite. They had instead prioritized keeping the enemy alive, ensuring they could retreat safely whenever possible.

"Isn’t this just making it so they don’t need to worry about troop losses?" questioned Leven.

"That’s not quite it." Karnak flicked his finger. "In a numbers fight, we’ll lose anyway. Our side won’t remain unscathed while we’re killing the enemy."

It was three thousand against one thousand. If both sides’ numbers fell at similar rates, Diogres’ forces would be the first to collapse. So the ones they needed to target weren’t the regular soldiers.

"It’s Elezar and Dreltein’s inherent weakness," explained Karnak.

Leven asked, "Their weakness?"

"Yeah. Though it seems they themselves haven’t realized it yet," said Karnak.

The current Elezar and Dreltein were the slaves of the Monarch of Death, returned from the future. The only difference was whether their master was Karnak or Tesranach. They were still minions of evil.

"But outwardly, they’re still regarded as humanity’s heroes."

***

Following Dreltein’s orders, the expedition force split into dozens of units, probing every corner of the dungeon. Among them was Sir Jayden, the Red Knight of the Kretas Order. He led a force of about a hundred soldiers, advancing from the southern sector of the dungeon.

The deeper they went, the thicker the malice grew. Wisps of blue spirit fire drifted between the collapsed stone walls, like ghosts weaving through the dark.

It’s too dangerous to push further.

They had already suffered two ambushes from monsters, leaving the soldiers thoroughly exhausted. They would need to regain some strength before they could continue.

"We’ll rest here before moving on!"

The soldiers cheered, leaning against the nearby walls and settling down where they could. Once they sat, fatigue washed over them in full force, and they quickly drifted into a deep sleep. Even the sentries began to nod off, their heads drooping.

Jayden was about to scold them but shook his head. Let them be. I’ll keep watch.

No matter how strict discipline was, pushing too hard only led to unintended consequences.

It’s not like we’re setting up camp, just taking a short rest. It should be fine, he thought.

And so, the soldiers sank into slumber. And then, they woke up. Those who opened their eyes found themselves in a place they longed for, a home where beloved wives and children waited.

"Daddy!"

"Honey!"

None of them questioned why they had suddenly returned home. Everything simply felt natural. At least, until the moment their loving families began to weep tears of blood and raised knives against them.

"Da-ddy..."

"Ho-ney..."

Their voices drew out, twisting into eerie tones. The beloved families transformed into monstrous figures and lunged at the soldiers.

"U-ugh, aaaargh!"

"What the hell is this, damn it!"

And that was not all. Suddenly, the surroundings ignited in flames. Blood pooled on the ground, and black ash fluttered through the sky. The dead rose, shrieking, reaching out with rotting fingers.

"Why..."

"Why did you kill me!"

"Why did you have to kill me!"

The subjugation force consisted of elite imperial soldiers, veterans of many battles. To have survived so many battles meant they had killed countless people to do so. Now, in the nightmare of those they had slain coming for them, the soldiers screamed, again and again.

***

With a snort, Jayden swung his aura sword. The crimson blade of aura swept away the dead before him in a single stroke. With explosions, not only were the dead shredded, but the landscape itself split apart and was torn to pieces.

At the same time, black sand scattered in all directions, and reality returned. The black sand took the shape of horses, howling before scattering into the air.

Jayden muttered, "A nightmare, huh? What a nuisance."

It was one of those dungeon monsters that induced nightmares. For an aura user like him, this level of mental attack was nothing, but for ordinary soldiers, it was a terrifying monster. The black sand lingered above the heads of the fallen soldiers. If left alone, it would drain them of all strength, leaving them exhausted to death.

"First, I need to scatter the sand..."

Jayden raised his aura sword to strike again, then froze, his expression hardening. Over a hundred of his subordinates had fallen to the nightmare. It meant he alone would have to handle the nightmares clinging to all of them.

It was a laborious task that made him sigh. At this rate, they’re more of a burden than allies.

But he could not abandon them, so he gathered his aura. He prepared to cut down the nightmare clinging to his lieutenant first.

At that moment, a strange voice echoed from the darkness. "Why did you abandon me?"

It was a soft, young girl’s voice, completely out of place in this location. "Why did you abandon me?"

A chill ran down his spine, every hair on his body standing on end. Another monster?

Jayden raised his sword, vigilant. Soon, the owner of the voice stepped out of the darkness. It was a girl in a blood-stained white dress, with hair dyed red with blood. Her face was so covered in ash that her expression was unrecognizable.

It was a sight all too common on battlefields. War was always especially cruel to children and women. That scene tugged at an old memory within Jayden. "Emily?"

It was the same little girl he had saved when he first stepped onto the battlefield after being newly knighted. She had lost her entire family to bandits, and her mind had been shattered. Seeing her had filled him with both rage and he had felt a sense of pride at having saved her.

But he had not been able to protect her to the end. No matter how strong one was, there was no way to save those beyond the reach of one’s hands.

No, there’s no way Emily would be here!

It was clearly another form of nightmare.

Jayden focused his mind and drew out his aura sword fully. "Begone, you monster!"

The crimson aura that could split rock shone brilliantly. But it was effortlessly blocked by a light even brighter.

"What?"

The filthy girl raised her right hand and stopped his aura sword. It was impossible for a bare hand made of flesh to block an aura sword—unless that hand was enveloped in purple aura.

A monster... using aura?

Jayden knew it in that instant.

This was a dream. There was no other explanation for how a young girl could wield the level of aura mastery he had only dreamed of achieving in his lifetime as a purple knight. He slashed wildly in every direction, trying to wake himself from the nightmare.

The girl moved lightly, stepping forward as if the storm of blades that split trees and sliced through stone was nothing more than a gentle breeze. She whispered softly, "Why did you abandon me?"

"I didn’t abandon you! There was nothing I could do!"

No matter how hard he tried to remain calm, he couldn’t. Jayden screamed madly. And then, it happened. The girl vanished from his sight. Not just the girl. The black sand that had been engulfing the soldiers disappeared without a trace.

When? How?

It felt as if he had been possessed by a ghost. No, it was probably exactly that. It had to be the work of a powerful specter or monster, strong enough to ensnare even an aura user like him.

Jayden made up his mind. "We need to retreat."

There was no way he could continue pushing forward with the ordinary soldiers in this state. They would be of no help, and it was obvious he would end up dying a pointless death if he tried. He hurriedly shook the soldiers awake, then cautiously led them back the way they had come.

Before long, the subjugation force was gone, leaving only darkness swirling quietly within the dungeon.

A head popped up from behind a stone wall. "Oh, they’re gone."

It was the blood-soaked girl from earlier. She wiped her face clean, shook the blood from her hair, and mumbled to herself as if in wonder. "It really worked, just like Lord Karnak said it would."

Lapicel could understand why she had to do something like this, dressed in such a way. To provoke guilt, to confuse them, and to drive them to retreat on their own. It wasn’t a difficult tactic to understand. What amazed her was why it worked so well.

How could Karnak have known whether the opponent had ever failed to save a young girl or not, to force them into this kind of mental collapse?

Karnak’s response had been simple.

—Do you think anyone who’s lived long enough to awaken aura and wield a blade has managed to save everyone they ever wanted to?

No one in the world was that lucky. Everyone inevitably lost someone.

—That is the burden of those who take up the sword.

She voice her question.

—Still, did it have to be a young girl?

Karnak answered immediately.

—If the victim is an adult, the guilt just doesn’t bite as deep. That’s human instinct.

That was why using a young boy or girl was the most effective, but there was no need to disguise Lapicel as a boy.

Lapicel brought up another issue.

—What about the face being different?

The answer was simple.

—It’s going to be hidden under hair anyway, so who cares? Blood-soaked, white clothes, hair hanging wild— they all look the same at that point.

—Is... is that really so?

She had been doubtful when she heard it, but in the end, it worked perfectly. Of course, it still felt like it was crossing a line somewhere in her conscience...

But in the end, we made them retreat without killing anyone, didn’t we?

For Karnak to have gone this far, it was truly something remarkable.

Lapicel found herself admiring him once more. I thought he was someone who could never change, but... he’s changed this much.

And then, she felt a moment of confusion. Huh? What was I just thinking?

Something had flashed through her mind, only to vanish immediately. Even the fact that she had remembered something began to blur.

Whatever. I should head back for now.