Chapter 67
“Your Highness!”
Max, who came running in surprise, almost dropped the cleanser he was carrying.
“My lord!”
Yeniel managed to grab hold of the cleanser before it slipped from Max’s hand.
Sian was staring wide-eyed at the magic circle that had suddenly appeared.
I could see him belatedly pulling himself together and attempting to summon a spirit—
But then the space before our eyes wavered, and a hidden map was revealed: the third floor boss’s chamber, where the butler awaited.
A strange altar engraved with symbols came into view.
It was a room surrounded entirely by walls, without a single door.
Soon, the light surrounding our bodies flickered out, leaving only the Crown Prince and me in this place.
“So now Lady April and I are trapped here alone?”
The Crown Prince looked dumbfounded, glancing around to take stock of the situation.
“My lady. I shall protect you as best I can. It may be frightening and overwhelming, but…”
“I’m here too.”
A voice from behind startled the Crown Prince, who suddenly wore the expression of someone caught in an embarrassing moment.
“It’s the three of us trapped here: Lady April, Your Highness, and myself.”
It was the slave knight, Yurel, sounding oddly brazen.
‘What the—how did he get here?’
That startled me.
On second thought, I remembered Yurel had been nearby. He had been tailing me closely all along while following the heroine’s party.
Since he was an exceptionally skilled knight, it wasn’t easy to notice his presence.
“When did you arrive, Sir Yurel?”
The Crown Prince didn’t seem too pleased to see him.
“I’ve been here from the start,” Yurel replied impassively. “Ever since Your Highness said, ‘So Lady April and I are trapped here alone.’”
The Crown Prince’s expression stiffened at Yurel’s unruffled tone, but he shook his head.
“It seems the three of us are stuck here. I’ve no time to argue with you.”
“A wise decision.”
Though his face remained unreadable, Yurel lowered his head obediently.
It seemed an unspoken agreement had formed: first, resolve this situation.
The Crown Prince rose and scanned the room.
“Let’s plan how to escape. I believe this must also be a spell left behind by the Great Magician.”
“Why do you say that?”
Had Yurel noticed that I had activated the magic circle?
I couldn’t tell just from his face.
“Sian usually has two or three spirits clinging to me. In the Otherworld, the number decreases, but at times he attaches more than ten. In an emergency, one or two should appear. Yet now, not a single one is visible.”
“That makes sense. Only the Great Magician has the power to block high-ranking spirits.”
“Then let’s search the room and figure out exactly where we are. Lady Yeniel—don’t come too close, it might be dangerous—oh.”
He turned automatically to find Yeniel, then realized she wasn’t there, looking frustrated.
“I didn’t realize how used I’d gotten to having Sian and Lady Yeniel nearby. Without them, it’s terribly inconvenient. Well, let’s search the place ourselves.”
The hidden map was surprisingly spacious for a single chamber.
The only light came from candles scattered about; there was no ceiling fixture, leaving the place dim.
Shadows stretched long in the flickering glow, accompanied by a faint scratching sound from somewhere unseen, gnawing at the nerves.
As our eyes adjusted to the eerie gloom, the room’s structure became clear.
“Wow, Your Highness! There are no doors or windows. April’s room had a big door and pretty windows.”
I cheerfully remarked to the Crown Prince.
“I’m sure it was lovely. One day, do let me visit your space,” he said lightly—until he caught a whiff of something. His expression hardened.
“Wait… don’t you smell blood?”
The stench of blood had begun to fill the room.
It was sharp, pungent, stabbing at the inside of the nose.
Yurel, who had moved closer to a wall, examined it and spoke.
“Someone smeared blood across the wall. With their hand.”
The Crown Prince’s face turned pale in an instant, no doubt recalling a monster that painted walls with bloodied hands.
The only distinct structure in the room was the large altar in the center.
Yurel and I followed the Crown Prince toward it.
Fresh blood soaked the altar’s surface, still wet and glistening.
“There might be a monster nearby.”
The Crown Prince looked on guard.
Blood dripped from the altar’s edges, pooling on the floor behind it.
Then I realized:
The walls, the floor, the entire chamber was drenched in blood—that’s why it reeked so strongly and the interior seemed so dark.
The altar was engraved with strange markings.
‘What now?’
I debated whether to just smash it.
In the normal game mode, this altar was the condition for summoning the third-floor hidden boss, the Monster Butler.
Normally, it appeared half-broken, covered in dust and cobwebs.
[Yeniel: (Investigate the half-broken altar.)]
▶ Investigate it now.
▷ Look for other clues first.
When the player investigated, part of the altar would fall off—and the Monster Butler would burst out, startling the player. (My brother had screamed his head off back then.)
‘But… unlike normal mode, this altar looks too pristine.’
It wasn’t new and shiny, but it wasn’t old or broken either.
‘Does the Butler appear under different conditions here?’
I considered pretending to make a mistake and stabbing it with my halberd—but then I remembered how seriously my brother had scolded me.
“If you don’t know, don’t kill it. Don’t break it either. Don’t just kill monsters you’ve never seen before, dude. Not everything exists to be destroyed. Why do you think structures exist? Not to smash them, but to solve puzzles.”
“…Fine, I get it. But why are you talking like that?”
“….”
The Crown Prince and Yurel studied the altar closely.
After examining the strange engravings for a long moment, Yurel said calmly:
“It’s an inverted sigil. This must have been an altar for offering live sacrifices.”
“Inverted sigil? April doesn’t know what that is. But I know what an inverted temple is! …Maybe.”
I said innocently.
Yurel placed his hand on the markings and rotated them halfway around.
Click— The sigil locked into place.
Upside-down, the design somehow looked solemn, even reverent.
Then Yurel opened the engraved lid.
Inside, strange and unfamiliar letters were inscribed:
