Chapter 65

And so, after everything had settled down, I found myself stepping into a certain place. It was far to the north of Saloom, the site of the great rampage, but it was so distant that the investigation had been abandoned.

"Ugh, I can feel a chilling cold," I said.

"Yeah, it feels like we're descending into the depths of hell," Silfa added.

There was a dungeon there. I descended the narrow, yet incredibly deep dungeon stairs.

"Still, there was nothing like this the last time I came," I remarked.

"Have you been here before, Lloyd-sama?" Silfa asked.

"Yeah, about five years ago. It was just a vast, empty plain then, so I didn't think there would be any problem," I replied.

"Did Lloyd-sama do something again...?" Silfa wondered.

Grimo and Jiriel were taken aback.

No, it's not decided that it's my fault yet.

...But I can't deny the high possibility.

"Five years old... You were causing trouble even at such a young age. You should have played with dolls like a normal child," Jiriel said.

"Well, the last homunculus incident could also be considered a form of doll play... Oh, we've reached the bottom floor," Silfa added.

There was a large door indicating the boss's lair.

"Still, there are no monsters at all," I noted.

"They must have all been part of the great rampage. That means if we don't destroy this dungeon, it will happen again. ...Still, what a massive door," I added.

The door was towering. I had heard from Katarina that the strength of the boss is reflected in the sturdiness of the door. She had said that one shouldn't enter a door over three meters tall. This door was easily over five meters.

"Well, I'm going in."

There was no option to turn back now. It's not every day that Silfa and Albert are both away for a long time. So, I opened the door and entered. The sound of the door closing echoed, and something in the dimly lit hall moved. It was a creepy chair made of bones, and sitting on it was a skeleton in a robe.

"Is this... a skeleton?" I asked.

"It can't be just a skeleton. The overwhelming magic power... it feels familiar," Silfa said.

The two of them were puzzled, but I had a strong suspicion.

"Oh no."

I slapped my forehead when I saw it. The tattered robe, the torn shirt, and the worn-out boots were all things I had worn in my previous life. Yes, this skeleton was the skeletonized form of my previous body.

--- Five years ago, after learning necromancy, I immediately tried to control a corpse... but I hesitated. It seemed wrong to disturb the sleep of the dead. But I wanted to try. After much internal conflict, I concluded that it would be fine to use my own corpse. I quickly found and dug up my grave, and cast necromancy on my skeletonized body. The soul that should have remained in the corpse had already disappeared, or rather, had transferred to my current body. So, I created a soul using magic and implanted it, and the skeleton started moving. It was a strange feeling to see my own skeleton moving, but I took the opportunity to try various things. There were many spells in necromancy to enhance the controlled corpse, and I cast them all. I enhanced the bones with magical formulas, made it wear a dark cloak that would regenerate automatically, and taught it all the spells I had wanted to learn in my previous life... Gradually, it started moving on its own, and before I knew it, it was ignoring my commands and going on a rampage. I thought this was bad, so I sealed the bones in a barrier and left them in a place where no one would find them—specifically, I dug a huge hole and buried them here. But I didn't expect my skeleton to create a dungeon and try to attack Saloom with monsters. --- No, the target was me. The resurrected dead have a strong attachment to the living, and this attachment is stronger the closer they are to the living. It makes sense that it would target me, my current self, after reincarnation. So, I can't leave it as it is.

"Aaaaaa..."

My skeleton groaned and approached me.

"What kind of ominous magic power... It's so dense it's visible!" Silfa exclaimed.

"Unbelievable... It rivals the magic power of an evil god! To think such a thing exists as a dungeon boss...!"

My skeleton waved its arm, and a row of huge fireballs appeared.

"Flame Burst, to cast so many high-level spells..." I muttered.

"AAAAAAA!"

With a roar, the storm of fireballs was unleashed. I blocked them with a magic barrier. Yeah, it's quite a challenge. It's amazing how much I've improved since I couldn't use proper magic in my previous life. I sighed.

It would be easy to destroy it, but it would be a bit of a waste.

But I can't leave it as it is... Hmm.

After some thought, I nodded.

"Alright, I've decided."

I turned my back to my skeleton and faced the closed large door, concentrating my magic power.

"Y-You're going to break that door!? That door is incredibly sturdy! Even Lloyd-sama...!"

I condensed the concentrated magic power into a single point.

"Heh, you don't understand. Lloyd-sama's magic power has long surpassed the realm of common sense!"

The formulas etched into my bloodstream hummed, generating even more magic power. The magic power swirled, surged, and formed a small magic ball in my hand. I flicked it with my finger.

"--- Fireball"

I launched it at the large door. The moment the flame touched the door, it melted with a sizzling sound. It broke through the door and hit the wall, melting it further.

"W-What is this!? A mere Fireball destroyed that huge door in less than a second!? The boss door itself can't be destroyed... It has surpassed the realm of common sense...!"

The two of them were muttering with half-smiles.

They seemed quite surprised.

I hadn't had the chance to use serious magic in this battle.

I went all out, and with the combination of my custom bloodline magic and military magic for efficiency, the result was a terrifying amount of firepower. The Fireball I launched created a large hole in the wall beyond the door, piercing through to a distance where it was no longer visible.

Hmm, did I overdo it? But in the end, it's just a Fireball, so it should stop at some point.

"AAAA, AAA..."

Meanwhile, my skeleton continued to attack me.

If I stay here, I'll keep getting attacked.

I blocked the attacks and stepped outside where the door used to be. My skeleton stopped attacking and stood still, as if seeing me off.

"The boss is bound to the room, which is why it has such formidable combat power. But it's no match for Lloyd-sama..."

"Still, Lloyd, aren't you going to defeat it?" Jiriel asked.

"Hmm? Ah, I have some thoughts about it."

I glanced at my skeleton and left the dungeon, sealing the entrance with a powerful barrier.

"--- Phew, this should prevent another rampage and the overflow of monsters."

With such a large tunnel, monsters won't overflow easily, and the barrier will prevent them from escaping easily.

"I see, you're going to make this entire dungeon your own, Lloyd-sama."

"Exactly."

Over time, the monsters will likely return, and there were quite a few strong ones, which would be useful for various experiments. It would be a waste to destroy it.

"There are probably not many dungeons of this caliber in the world. To make it your own... Impressive, to say the least."

"Moreover, it's just a magic experiment ground. It's almost laughable."

With Grimo and Jiriel, who looked flabbergasted, I glanced at my former self.

"See you."

With those parting words, I flew away.

Well, it's great to have a good experimental ground.

Thank you for reading.

This concludes the fifth part.

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