## Chapter 919 – Otherworld Dungeon

“Everyone, evacuate!!!”

I shouted to everyone as I retreated. When I stopped by the command post, the elven commander tried to stop me, but I just told her I’d explain later and bolted.

“Ugh, aaaaaaaagh!!”
“Aaaaaaaagh!!”
“Waaaaaaaah!!!!”

As we evacuated, the people who joined us along the way started screaming in panic. It seemed they thought everything was screwed because I was running away.

Anyway, since all troops except the elves were already retreating towards the command post due to the appearance of the Beast King, the evacuation order worked out pretty well.

Before long, everyone who had entered the palace was out.

“Squad leaders, check your numbers!!”
“Check your numbers!!”

As soon as they came out, the royal army and royal knights lined up in an orderly fashion and began checking their numbers. The elves seemed to be mostly out, and the rest of the Lormanza rabble seemed to be out too.

Around that time, the elven commander approached.

“What happened?”
“I killed the Beast King. That’s why I ran.”
“Then why… If you killed their king…”

Ah. She doesn’t know about that?

“I told you to run because the palace might suddenly disappear.”
“Ah.”

She nodded.

“Anyway, I’m busy now, so let’s talk later.”
“Understood… But what is that on your shoulder? Don’t tell me that huge thing is the Beast King’s head?”
“It is.”

Come to think of it, I’ve been carrying it the whole time.

I wondered why people were screaming earlier, but it must have been because of this. Anyway, after finishing the conversation, I took my women to the carriage.

“Risha, be careful when handling it. It could be dangerous.”
“Of course, I will. But… this seems quite unique.”

Risha, with her hand on the crown, licked her lips.

“What is?”
“A strange feeling… But as always, I think I can only give you an answer after I personally investigate.”
“That’s always been the case. Then let’s just keep it stored for now.”

Whatever it is, we can only use it after it’s appraised.

“Everyone, rest. It’s almost over anyway. I’ll go and talk for a bit.”

I unloaded my luggage and told them before turning around.

I killed their king, so that’s one less thing to worry about. Now I just need to go over there, sort out the situation, and hold out until the reinforcements arrive.

As expected, the commanders who had quickly finished organizing the troops were gathered.

“You’ve arrived!”

The General greeted me, and I naturally joined them. I immediately answered the countless requests to tell them what had happened.

“My party and I killed the Beast King. We fought as soon as we encountered him, and he teleported away when he was fatally wounded. Towards the elves.”
“Yes… There were quite a few injured and dead. I heard he was very big and strong…”

She wiped her eyes with her hand.

“Very. He was incredibly strong. But we were just that much stronger.”

She must be distraught.

“I regret the elves suffered losses.”
“It’s unsettling… The warriors…”

After speaking, she bowed her head to me.

“First of all, I would like to thank you for rescuing the warriors who were engaged in combat.”

Of course, she should be grateful.

“That’s right. You should be grateful to me. I suffered such humiliation, but I forgot all about it and rescued the elves.”

Anyone would be grateful for that.

“Make sure to spread this heartwarming story far and wide. Shouldn’t that improve the elves’ attitude a little? From what I can see, the elven warriors are also grateful to me. It would be good to make a formal announcement about this. It could be effective in reducing conflicts with humans.”

Some might say I’m showing off after saving people, but I have to say these things.

If there’s a heartwarming story, maybe the elves will be less likely to pick fights with people.

“Understood. I will definitely spread the word. The warriors are also grateful… It shouldn’t be difficult. Thank you once again.”
“If you’re grateful, it would be good to offer a reward.”
“A reward… Of course, we should give you one. I will definitely report this to the higher-ups. I will let you know when I hear back.”
“Good.”

It wouldn’t be bad if the elves gave me a reward.
I should take it if I can.

“Paladin, I am also grateful. Actually, there were various troubles, but in the end, we were able to eliminate the threat with your help.”
“Hehehe, I’m glad you recognize it. Well, now that their king is dead, that’s one less thing to worry about.”

However, it was only one less thing to worry about.

“But keep the worst-case scenario in mind. The General knows that otherworld structures can suddenly disappear, right?”
“…That’s right.”
“If the palace suddenly disappears, and all the monsters inside are released at once, that would also be a disaster.”
“…We need to prepare for that.”

He nodded.

I hope the reinforcements come quickly.
Honestly, that’s also a concern.

In that way, I finished talking about the circumstances of killing the monster, the dangers ahead, the ownership of the Beast King’s corpse, and the reward from the elves, and came out.

* * *

The next day.

The situation had stabilized to some extent, and the armies were preparing to fortify their defenses while preparing to surround the palace without entering it.

Ah, damn it… But.

“Honestly, I’m fucking scared, you know.”

I could go inside the palace and it could suddenly disappear.

That’s why we can’t do a full-scale exploration right now. The otherworld structure that suddenly appeared suddenly disappears at some point. There aren’t many records about this, so I can’t make a judgment.

Does it disappear as soon as the owner of the structure dies?

Or are there conditions for it to disappear?
If so, what happens to the people inside?

When I attacked the haunted house, the mansion disappeared like a mirage as soon as all of the Wraith Queen’s grudges were resolved. Looking back, I remember that the other adventurers who had been kidnapped there did not disappear and remained as they were.

Like that… Does only the building disappear?
Does it disappear even if there are visitors?

Exactly when?

Also, I haven’t heard that the items or artifacts collected there disappear.

Currently, the special artifacts collected from inside the otherworld structure are said to be scattered all over the world.

Rumor has it that they are used as collector’s items by the wealthy or as trump cards by famous warriors. They are so mysterious that there is little information.

But at least there was no mention of them disappearing at the same time as the otherworld structure disappeared.

But of course, it could be different in each case.

Nothing is certain right now. Just because the haunted house was like that doesn’t mean this place will be too. According to the lore known by combat mages, the otherworld building returns to the otherworld, and therefore the people inside also go to the otherworld, but of course, it’s just lore.

But the possibility is high.

“This is a really difficult problem.”

I’ve brought the Beast King’s head, at least.

Maybe this crown is also a type of artifact containing the power of another world. But more than what I’ve already obtained, I’m more concerned about the rest of the Beast King’s body sleeping inside.

If I could take that, I could get a considerable amount of wealth, just like when I sold the Deathworm’s corpse.

But taking it is a chore. The palace might disappear while I’m dismantling it. Anyway, it’s fucking ambiguous.

“Paladin! Urgent news!”
“Understood.”

While I was thinking about that and lazing around, a messenger came.

I immediately prepared and followed him.

“It seems the monsters, agitated by the loss of their king, have gone into a frenzy. They’re attacking even more fiercely than before.”

When I arrived, the General said in a calm tone.

“It seems that the monsters on all floors are coming down towards the entrance… That’s how I would judge it. There are so many that it seems like they’re coming from all floors.”
“Hmm.”

The monsters are rushing towards the main gate on the first floor… Honestly, it’s not a problem.

“So we stopped the encirclement operation, built a base at the entrance and the beginning of the first floor, and are focusing on defense.”
“I see. It would be impossible to surround the palace with just our troops.”

The General nodded and continued.

“And it’s about time the reinforcements arrive, so I think we can just fight a defensive battle here. No matter how many monsters come, they can’t defeat the knights and elven warriors who are assisted by the royal army infantry.”
“That’s right.”

They were useless when it came to catching the Beast King, but they’re really good at dealing with these small fries.

Ah, damn it.

That’s right, this is a big problem.

Since we’re just doing a defensive battle, it’s difficult to go inside. The moment I break through, I’ll have to fight over a thousand monsters, which is very tiring. And the Beast King’s corpse is still abandoned in the grand hallway on the third floor.

I thought about going quickly to get it, but I don’t think I can. And the palace hasn’t disappeared yet, but I don’t know when it will.

Maybe I should just be satisfied with getting the crown…

“For now, I have no choice but to wait for them.”

Let’s wait for the reinforcements for now.

* * *

A few days later.

The reinforcements finally arrived.

“Ooooooh!!”
“The reinforcements have arrived!”
“I can finally breathe a sigh of relief!!”

A group of royal army, knight coalition, paladin order, mages, and merchants advanced all at once. Seeing the large army arrive, it seems they have finally finished negotiating with the Merqudia Kingdom.

The commanders of the arriving reinforcements went to their respective forces, and I first looked for the commander of the paladin order.

“Welcome, paladin order!”

The scale of the Brass Celestial Angel Paladin Order was a large scale with as many as 50 paladins and over 100 priests and nuns.

This level of dispatch?
Amazing.

The Saintess must have used some power.
I have to go and praise her.

“Ooh, Paladin!! It’s urgent, so let’s skip the greetings for now! Tell me what happened!!”

The commander was a senior paladin named Jordel. Is his rank the same as Captain Vakerel?

Anyway, I skipped the greetings and immediately informed them of the situation.

“Is that really true…!”
“I’ve already heard about it roughly, but I didn’t think it was such a terrible existence…”
“It’s terribly evil!!!”

The paladins who heard the story groaned and grabbed their heads.

“Look. This is the Beast King’s head.”

I removed the cloth covering the cart I had brought.

“Heok!!!!”
“This!!!!”
“No way!!!!”

The paladins who saw the Beast King’s head were horrified.

“That crown looks very evil! It must have been created for an evil purpose!!”
“I think so too.”

I added a brief explanation and informed them of the seriousness of the situation. Now that the reinforcements have arrived, we must surround the palace. I don’t know when it will disappear.

It’s my job to tell them all this.

“Hmm… That’s what happened. I know about it too. That otherworld structures suddenly disappear…”
“Honestly, that’s what I’m worried about.”

The fact that the building might disappear is a very big deal.

If that vast, giant palace suddenly disappeared just like it suddenly appeared, and the monsters inside didn’t disappear and remained on this land, it would be fucking difficult. There are thousands of them, and no matter how much we create an encirclement, some of them will definitely escape, and if that happens, a disaster might occur.

I killed the Beast King, but the most worrying situation is this.

“Then.”

Senior Paladin Jordel, who had heard the explanation, said with a solemn expression.

“We must go in, even at the risk of danger. Isn’t that why we’re here?”

Go in.

“Of course, it would be nice if the monsters disappeared along with the palace… But when carrying out battles and operations, it’s better to move with the worst possible situation in mind. If you move thinking that everything will be fine and there will be no problems, you’ll end up getting hurt.”

He was an expert.

“Therefore, I think it would be better in many ways to assume that all the monsters will be released at the same time as the palace disappears.”

His attitude is without any hesitation.

“After asking them to surround the palace, I will have the paladin order advance. Rather than just waiting and facing the situation where the monster bastards are released, we should actively attack from the inside to prevent any possible damage. Wouldn’t you agree? If we reduce the number of monsters, we will be able to respond even if the palace suddenly disappears.”
“That is…”

That’s right.

“It will be very dangerous.”

But as much as it’s right, it’s dangerous.
If I go in and it suddenly disappears, I’m fucked.

“What we do is that dangerous thing. Above all, if the monsters are released, it means we’re released too, so there’s nothing to worry about.”

He grabbed my shoulder.

“You’ve worked hard, Paladin. Now that you’ve got the spoils, go back and rest. We’ll take care of the rest.”
“Paladin.”

I can’t do that!!

“How can I do that!! I have to go and destroy everything! Let’s go together!!”

In other words, it’s a time attack, but if I go in with 50 paladins, I can grind the monsters very quickly, and I can also collect the Beast King’s corpse.

It’s fucking dangerous, but I can’t not go when the paladins are going.

“Oooooooooh!!!”
“As expected!!!”
“Indeed, he is a Paladin…!!!”