Kuro no Maou

The Asbel Mountains stretch greatly from the centre to the north of the Pandora continent, in an arc-drawing manner.

In the group of urban states, it boasts mountains and snow scenery so beautiful that it can be called synonymous with snow mountains, but the mountain also has a dangerous side designated as a Rank 5 dungeon.

Here and now, a certain adventurer party is stepping into early winter Asbel.

"... there was a cave here?

When the blizzard that closed his sight stopped, it inadvertently appeared in front of him was the entrance to a cave dressed in a freezing cliff.

The one who raised his voice was Jimmy, who was walking at the beginning of the line. The race was human, the age was nearly thirty. He lives in the village of Asbel on Avalonian territory at the foot and makes this Asbel Mountains a field of main adventurer activity.

Only in less dangerous areas, out of the habitat of rank 5 monsters such as White Dragon, Silver Wolf (Fenrill) and Snowfield Whale (Tundra Whale).

"Come on, you didn't tell me the guide was sober, Asbel managed to slap me in the garden or something, did you?"

It was Michael, the party leader, who showered the dialogue to ridicule Straight. golden brave, is a typical confident man (power idiot) who calls himself

It proves to be an idiotic idiot of authenticity because it actually has such ridiculous equipment that even adult aristocrats make golden whole body armor (full plate mails). By the way, the sword you carry is a platinum (platinum) blade.

However, even if he was ridiculed by a real idiot, Jimmy now had more confusing emotions than anger prevailed.

"No, I've certainly been around here many times. I clearly recognize this cliff, and I can tell it's the shortest descent route from here. But when I saw it before, there couldn't have been a cave this big."

Jimmy's rank is four. He is a man who can't get to the deepest danger zone but still has been walking across almost the entire Asbel Mountains for years.

Being in the Golden Age (Golden Age), a Rank 4 party led by this golden brave Michael, was simply temporarily hired as a mountain guide. Jimmy's knowledge of Asbel and his mountaineering experience is enough to give the Asbel Village Adventurer Guild an inkling as well. So to speak, he is a mountain professional.

"Then the monster dug it. Hehe, if you can dig a hole, you're a big guy!

There are numerous monsters with the ability to dig holes in the ground, such as Sandworm and Mad Mall. The champion of the rank 5 dungeon El Grand Canyon, the Land Dragon (El Grand Dragon), is enough to create a giant cave fifty metres in diameter there just by passing through.

But when it comes to this dungeon called the Asbel Mountains, there shouldn't be enough monsters with high drilling ability to form caves.

"No way, are you going to explore!?

"Oh, my God!

Jimmy immediately argues with Michael, who answers mightily with a face full of yall care.

"It's dangerous, you should stop it. We wouldn't even be ready to explore snow mountain gear, caves right now. If you really want to dive into this cave, once you're back in the village and ready..."

"Oh? That's such a long story! What if there's a big guy here, and we're back, and he gets ahead of us by another party!

It would be an astronomical probability to be in such a situation. Though in early winter, few adventurers bother to attack the mountains of Asbel that have turned into a frozen silver world where snow already falls deep.

Well, if a really big guy, a high-ranking giant monster, was lurking, it would be rare just to say the presence of a powerful party that could be crusaded as it were.

"No, you can't. It's just too dangerous. I'm not allowed to explore, and I don't want to go either."

"Oh, my God, I'm paying a lot of money to hire him, and what's with the heartbreak! Temé is still rank four like me!

"Well, well, calm down, Michael."

One young man gently stopped Michael, who was still beating him.

His name is Christopher. In contrast to Michael, who looks big and tough, he is a beautiful young man with a sweet mask with a thin line and a soft smile that suits him.

"In the meantime, why don't we just do a little research and Mr. Jimmy will wait here?

"Come on, Cliff, what are you doing? Take it easy. I have to meet the boss in the back. I'm not convinced!

"Barca, you still don't know if there's really a monster in this cave. There was nothing but diving, and then you didn't look like an idiot!

Gatun, and making a noise to put a painful kick in Michael's shining golden tibia is another member of The Golden Age, a girl named Jacqueline with a red dot.

Small and child-faced, she looks like a parent and child alongside Michael, but is surprised because she is the same age as this.

"What pain! Damn, damn, my only cry..."

"You must be full of weaknesses. How many times would I have died without Atashi and Cliff? Look, even when the silent sheep kicked me in the Ischian hills..."

"But it doesn't matter what we talked about when we were kids!

To Michael, who bursts into tears, Kerakera laughs Jacqueline. Christopher looking at it smiling. These three seem to be childhood tamers.

One woman for two men, which is a typical composition of breaking up as a party, but being here with me until I got to rank 4 would mean how well the three relationships are built.

"Then we'll dive into this cave alone. Right, I'll be back in an hour. I won't go any further, because even if Michael wastes time, I'll bring him back properly."

Leaving the noisy big man and girl alone, Christopher wraps up the story.

"An hour... okay, let's do that"

As for the drop, Jimmy thinks it's reasonable.

It would be cruel for this young adventurer, just over twenty years old, to put up with not stepping in front of a cave with no sign of mankind. If you were the same age, you must have jumped joyfully and bravely.

"Okay, I'll give you this comms machine. I'll report on the situation inside, one by one. And if any monsters come back to twist this cave, please let me know. so we can rendezvous right away."

Jimmy gratefully received an expensive crystal ball magic device (magic item) that allows for the telepathic communication offered.

"Come on, then, let's go! One page of the new legend of the golden brave Michael will be carved here now!!

"Ugh, go quick!

"Well, I'll be there"

That's how the "Golden Age" threesome stepped into the cave.

Jimmy starts communicating with his members at the entrance to the cave, alerting them to the monsters from outside.

"- What do you say, Mr. Jimmy, can you hear me?

"Oh, it's sensitive"

The crystal comms are working fine, too. It hasn't been long enough to get in yet, but for now Jimmy asked how it was going.

"You just see a plant on the wall that looks like a rose crawl, and you can't find anything else. There's no sign of monsters in or out."

There is no plant green in this extremely cold Asbel. I also wonder if there are botanical monsters like Wood Golem and Doriad, but all of those kinds are vulnerable to the cold.

At least, it's never been confirmed in the Asbel Mountains before.

"Be careful, there may be unknown monsters lurking"

The words of caution I sent just in case were erased by Michael's big voice.

"Shit, Shiitaya Cancer, it's not more like this crystal or a crisp!

"You're not gonna get out!

Apparently, this telepathic communications machine shares with all its members. Of course, if strongly remembered, the message is conveyed, and in an open channel state, the statement is heard as it is.

If it's in an unknown cave but it's a little too noisy, it's going to be cautious, but I close my mouth thinking it won't be necessary.

They are already rank four, far above themselves if only pure combat ability, and promotion to the highest rank is not a dream either. If you're so obsessed with chatting that you're alarmed, you must have lost your life a long time ago.

"In the meantime, there's no sign of monsters showing up this way. The weather is stable now. Well, proceed with care over there."

"Copy that - oh, that's a split. Two left and two right, both about the same size. In the meantime, I'll go left."

Maybe they have a complex internal structure that branches out as many as an ant nest.

"Don't forget to mark it."

"Yes, of course."

I feel a little anxiety about the branches that appeared quickly, but after that, the search went smoothly.

Then Jimmy quietly waits for the hour to pass as he hears reports from Christopher every few minutes of "unusual nashi" and Michael and Jacqueline's softly smiling chatter.

"- Again, you have nothing but spreading. Looks like it's been 30 minutes since I've been in there, so I'm turning back now."

"Hey, this is still going pretty deep."

"Blah, you're tired of this, aren't you? Too much for nothing."

"Ooh..."

In the meantime, Jimmy is relieved that the members seem to be coming back without being able to rub it. There was nothing on the way, the entrance was on my watch, so the monster never came in here. The branches are only at the beginning, and there is no way to get lost.

Security is guaranteed for sure - it should have.

"... haven't you come back yet"

From my last correspondence that I'm going back, it's already past thirty minutes. I don't carry a luxury item such as a watch that an individual has, so it's a guess due to my sense of time as an adventurer and how the day tilts, but it's unlikely that it's a big step off.

I won't send you any correspondence because I won't report it to you again. I know there's no danger on the way home, and if you think about how Michael and Jacqueline are, you might just be walking around in a daze with bickering.

I can think of as many reasons for the delay in returning. But it is also certain that wrinkles and anxiety spread throughout the chest.

Fortunately, though, Jimmy has an item that can instantly confirm their safety. The point is, you just have to contact me here.

"Er, how do you use it..."

I heard the explanation once, but I'm not too sure about the operation because it's an unfamiliar piece of magic (magic item), or because of my age? I want to believe it's the former.

"- Hey, can you hear me, Christopher?

"Yes, what is it, Mr. Jimmy? What's wrong with you?

Relieve the voice you hear from the crystal sphere. That one word was enough to see that there was no anomaly over there.

"No, I thought I was going home a little late, just checking it out just in case"

"I'm sorry, I'm going back now, so don't worry. Oh, we're back at the divide, we'll be at the entrance soon."

Apparently, he was worried.

It was also because of my age that I felt so worried...

- Mr. Jimmy.

Communication from Christopher enters. It hasn't been a minute since we cut off the communication just now. Is there something I forgot to say? Not particularly distrustful, Jimmy responds.

"Oh, what's up?

"Seems like we've already been in and thirty minutes have passed, so I'm turning back now"

"... what?

The dialogue was heard thirty minutes ago. I don't know what that means.

"What are you talking about?

Is it some kind of joke? Even so, I'm not going to hang out with you now.

But it wasn't Christopher's words of apology that came back from across the comms.

"Hey, this is still going pretty deep."

"Blah, you're tired of this, aren't you? Too much for nothing."

"Ooh..."

It was the same. Michael and Jacqueline, the interaction between the two, is exactly the same as what I heard thirty minutes ago.

"Hey, what's going on!? Bad nature for a joke -"

"... what... Mr. Mee..."

Back to Jimmy's screaming inquiry was uninterrupted audio. Barely, I can tell it belongs to Christopher, but I don't know what's at stake.

"Become, what!? Hey, what's up, Christopher, come in!

From the crystal sphere, instead of his voice, I can only hear the creepy sounding noise of a therther. Finally, complete incommunicado.

"Damn, it breaks down at a time like this!? This is why he can't be trusted with magic equipment!

Jimmy called Un Ten Years Starting an Adventurer. Such a veteran's reckoning makes me complain that the current situation is in crisis at an irrevocable level.

Same message as thirty minutes ago. A suddenly broken comms machine. I have overlapping bad luck with boring jokes, I'm not as optimistic in character as I seem to be.

"Damn, what are we gonna do..."

But there is also resistance here that I cave in and pick them up.

At least, I'm pretty sure they look safe. It doesn't look like he was attacked by a monster, or injured in an accidental accident.

Still, some anomaly is happening. The scariest thing is that unusually they don't realize it themselves.

"Christopher, come in. Michael, Jacqueline, can you hear me?

There was no way to take cheap action, and in the end Jimmy had to keep calling toward the broken comms.

Communication was not completely interrupted, it is noise-mixed, but sometimes something like the voice on the other side can be heard several times. We can only hope that communications will recover now.

"Please, come in!

- Mr. Jimmy.

At that time, the noise finally disappeared and the clear voice returned again.

"Connected! Hey, Christopher, what's your situation?"

"Ah, we're back at the divide, you'll be arriving at the entrance soon"

Something abnormal is happening, it has changed from an understanding, to a certainty.

"Hold on, Christopher! I'm telling you the same thing! Goddamn it, wake up!

Remaining in a gushing sense of impatience, he desperately transmits a screaming anomaly.

"Come on, then, let's go! One page of the new legend of the golden brave Michael will be carved here now!!

"Barca, you still don't know if there's really a monster in this cave. There was nothing but diving, and then you didn't look like an idiot!

But only a repeat of the dialogue returns. Besides, there's not even a conversation connection between Michael and Jacqueline anymore.

It's crazy. The only thing Jimmy could understand was that.

"Damn, what... what happened? - Ugh!?

I was confused by too many anomalies, but from behind the cave I stared at, the smoke came in unexpectedly. It was not black smoke that arose as a result of burning, but rather creepy smoke, stained with bright peaches.

"What is this, poison gas!?

It was the first thing I saw in my long adventurous life. But even the children of the village would recognize the danger if we put forward a shocking pink smoke that can only feel this poisonousness.

So is Jimmy. He had nothing more to offer than to escape the cave.

From the peachy gas that stands instantly up to the entrance, we succeed in using 'Disease Drive' to somehow make a critical escape.

It was about the same time Jimmy threw himself out into a pure white snowfield as the smoke gushed out of the entrance as if a major fire had broken out.

"Ha... ha... Christopher, Michael, Jacqueline... come in, come in..."

Remaining asleep on the snow, he sends a voice to the crystal sphere that he grips in his hand, no good.

There is no noise. Communication status is stable. Only words coming from the other side, however, were even 'anomalies'.

"Oh Mama... Mama... Look, I, I've become a brave man... I'm the strongest, shiniest golden in the world, the best in the world, I look good... so Mama, praise me, praise me more, gi, hug me"

Is it Michael that this toddler has a sweet voice? From his harsh appearance and arrogant attitude, it is an unimaginable dialogue, but it shows that its wild voice is definitely him.

"hehe, uhh... stop, both of you... don't argue for me... I just want to be friends with the three of you, like when I was a kid... I'm glad you feel... hehe, I'm sorry, I made you mistake"

What followed was Jacqueline's voice. It's like a dialogue like a silly woman who's wondering at the same time pretending to be in trouble when two men tell her to. Are you talking about Michael and Christopher? It's not the earliest way to be sure.

"I'm glad, Michael... you finally realized how I felt... yeah, yeah, yeah, I don't need that woman anymore, from now on it's just the two of us, just the two of us... love you"

Christopher, is that voice his sincerity? I'm sure you want it to be a mouth-watering falsehood because you're in a crazy mental state right now, and I won't stop hoping.

"Ha... Goddamn it, guys, it went crazy -"

Jimmy gets up gently, leaking a dry laugh.

At first glance, the pink smoke that erupts from the cave has completely healed, returning to the way it is opening its mouth back to normal. At first glance, as if it were a cave without any weird philosophy.

"- Goddamn it! What happened to cancer?

Everything, I don't know wacky.

Only one thing is for sure: never again will those three promising young adventurers return alive.