Level Up Inquisitor [EN]: Chapter 200

200. Clearing a Path

An entirely unexpected face.

Eile stared blankly at Alisa, momentarily stunned.

But Alisa, gripping his hand tightly, pulled Eile up the cliff.

KWAHHHH!

Poisonous breath poured down behind him, completely melting the spot where Eile had been just moments before.

If he had been hit directly, he would have died instantly; it was a close call.

However, Regias, who had unleashed the breath, couldn’t bring himself to climb the cliff and chase after him.

Eile and Alisa had already entered the safe zone.

A pure white light enveloped them, and Regias, unable to approach the sanctuary where even boss monsters couldn’t tread, simply glared up the cliff like a dog chasing a chicken, growling.

“You got caught up in the scenario dungeon, right? I activated it to buy time in case pursuers came in… I never imagined you’d be the first to find it, Eile.”

“More importantly, how did you…”

Eile’s words trailed off as his gaze shifted unconsciously.

In the middle of the sanctuary, Seia was huddled in front of a bonfire, collapsed.

Eile rushed to her side, but she didn’t move at all and seemed completely unconscious.

“S-She’s not dead, is she?”

“Of course not.”

Eile let out a sigh of relief at Alisa’s words.

Fortunately, she was still breathing, and the last resort to turn the situation around wouldn’t be in vain.

“She’s been unconscious for days, but her life isn’t in danger.”

“What happened?”

“During the attack, there was a small accident while escaping the barrier around the royal palace. I treated her immediately with healing skills, but since her body isn’t suited for combat, she’ll need proper recovery to wake up.”

“Sigh, what to make of this.”

To think that the princess who escaped the royal palace was with Alisa of all people.

Eile was so taken aback by the current situation that he hesitated to speak, unsure of what to ask first.

“…You look quite different.”

The first words out of his mouth were somewhat irrelevant.

But it was true that Alisa’s appearance had changed significantly since he last saw her.

Her long hair was tied up tightly, and she was dressed in a red robe that was easy to move in, holding a long spear instead of a staff.

The weapon she held was a ‘magic spear,’ different from ordinary spears.

As the name suggested, it was a spear imbued with magic, possessing both attack power and magical power, mainly favored by hybrid classes that utilized both.

“Well, I made some changes to my combat style.”

Alisa shrugged.

He had already heard that she had left Eltris at some point and started working alone.

From the perspective of a healer who mainly played a support role, there was a significant difference between party play and solo play, so it was understandable that she would change her play style.

But even setting aside such minor issues, there were still too many unanswered questions.

“Alisa, can you explain this situation? I’m confused about everything, starting with you being with the princess…”

“Of course. But I should apologize first. I’m really sorry for deceiving you, Eile.”

Alisa sighed softly and bowed her head.

Eile was taken aback by her sudden admission.

“What do you mean…”

“It’s going to be a rather long story.”

And so, Eile and Alisa sat facing each other by the bonfire and began to talk.

But her story was more shocking than he had anticipated.

First and foremost, it was about the lies she had told.

In fact, she wasn’t a ranker from Tree World but a gamer from East Thorn.

She confessed that she had been a member of Alkione in the past, which was quite a shocking revelation.

He had felt several times that she was more extraordinary than a ranker from a minor game.

But he never imagined that she would be a member of that infamous guild.

It was a complete opposite of the image Alisa had shown while they were in a party together.

“At first, I didn’t care. Whether someone criticized or complained, it was just a game anyway. Villain or hero. Under the name of freedom, the system had opened up all possibilities, so it didn’t matter which option you chose. That was the guild’s overall mindset. But at some point, I began to feel disillusioned and quietly left the guild.”

“…So, you knew in advance that Apollyon would attack the royal palace and smuggled the princess out?”

“Yes, I know how the guild swallows up games. It was impossible to prevent the attack itself, though.”

Eile listened to her incredible stories and paused for a moment.

But the pile of questions had not yet been cleared up.

“How did you know about this underground dungeon? It’s not a place you can just stumble upon.”

“I taught you about it, Eile. How could you not know?”

“Huh? D-Don’t tell me…”

Eile’s eyes widened.

Alisa smiled and nodded.

She was the user ‘Lotus’ who had been sharing high-quality information about Warlord on various sharing sites.

Until now, he had unconsciously assumed that she was a man, and he couldn’t help but laugh at this incredible coincidence.

“Since when… no, wait.”

Eile shook his head, stopping himself from speaking reflexively.

He barely suppressed the urge to ask when she had known about him and why she hadn’t told him sooner.

They didn’t have much time, and trivial stories had to be put off until later.

Above all, if her explanation was correct, one question remained.

“You know this area well, and I’m sure you could have shaken off the pursuers and escaped. Is there a reason why you stayed here?”

Alisa was silent for a moment before answering Eile’s question.

“I can’t lie twice, can I? I was actually hesitating between two options: whether to smuggle the princess out, or leave her here and leave.”

“……!”

Eile was startled and flinched.

If Seia was left here in this state, isolated in a dungeon swarming with chimeras, she would surely die.

It was no different from cutting off a variable that could turn the situation around.

But Eile soon understood why she had been contemplating such a thing.

Even though she had completely cut ties with Alkione, handing Seia over to a hostile guild would be like directly confronting her former guild.

Alkione and Apollyon.

Even though the names were different, the members were the same.

This was not as simple a problem as a third party might think.

Eile and others, who did not know the details of what had happened when she was active in Alkione, could not understand.

That’s why Alisa, who had been anticipating what Apollyon would do, had succeeded in taking out the princess, who was an important key, but was hesitant to take further action immediately.

“Then…”

“No, you don’t have to worry. It’s all settled now. And seeing your face, Eile, has made me even more certain.”

Alisa smiled and stood up.

On the surface, her expression seemed truly relieved.

But even with Eile’s keen eye, he couldn’t easily tell whether she was just pretending to be okay or if she had truly made up her mind.

“Can you tell me more about Alkione?”

Eile asked her cautiously.

Alkione of East Thorn.

It was a famous guild that everyone knew, but there was very little information known about Alkione.

This was partly because the guild was particularly careful about maintaining security, but also because they basically wore masks and did not reveal their faces.

This was a very difficult point for Eile, who was now hostile to them.

Whether or not you had prior information when facing a user or fighting a boss was one of the most important factors.

But Alisa, who had been directly active within the guild, would have known much more.

“I’ll tell you the details as we get out of here. Getting out of this place is the priority right now.”

“Understood.”

Eile nodded silently at her words.

Now that he had secured Seia, who was his goal, it was important to move her to a safe place as quickly as possible.

Before Apollyon, who always showed unexpected moves, could make another move, they had to completely escape this area filled with rankers.

That was why Eile had held back as much as possible from asking her more questions while listening to her story.

‘If we can let everyone know that the real princess is alive, the situation will be completely reversed.’

A lot depended on the success of this operation.

It was true that Apollyon, who raided the royal palace, had caught everyone off guard, but the risk of failure was still very high.

If the truth was revealed, a great backlash would occur, which could bring them down to the bottom.

Eile, who had gotten up from his seat following Alisa, picked up his longsword.

However, there was one remaining problem in escaping the dungeon as it was.

KIIIIIIEEK!

The loud cry of Regias was heard from below.

He still seemed unable to let go of the fact that he had missed Eile, spraying breath everywhere and spewing poison.

Other innocent chimera monsters who had come to the sound were melting away one after another due to his rampage.

“The problem is that guy is holding out,” Eile said, looking troubled.

It seemed that he had no intention of leaving this spot until Eile came out of the sanctuary.

Considering the movements Regias had shown, it would be difficult to shake him off with the princess unconscious.

‘Then the only option left is…’

Unless they eliminated the boss, they couldn’t get out.

“…….”

As if they had planned it, Eile and Alisa turned their heads at the same time, their eyes meeting.

The phase-by-phase patterns boasted extreme difficulty.

The ridiculous specs that encompassed both magic and physical resistance.

He was clearly a formidable opponent that even Eile had to give up on and turn his back on.

But even the difficulty of the boss, which seemed impossible to solve, changed when two people joined forces instead of one.

“Shall we go?”

“Let’s.”