Chapter 353

To go or not to go into the labyrinth. Surprisingly, the answer came easily. The next day, Charlotte made a light decision to go into the labyrinth after hearing about it. However, Tana objected, saying it was too dangerous. Charlotte agreed that if she had planned to send someone else, she could have just given orders from the palace. But she came here to do it herself. Tana argued that they didn't even know what the labyrinth was and it could take years to figure it out. Charlotte replied that she didn't know how long she had until her condition worsened and she couldn't just wait around. Tana pleaded with her not to go, but Charlotte said that if she couldn't fully recover, it would be better to die. Tana was shocked and Charlotte realized what she had said and apologized to Reinhardt. Charlotte had gained the conviction that the soul inside her was that of the demon king, and if that was true, she had to go into the labyrinth to save herself. Therefore, Charlotte came to a natural conclusion that it might be too late and the demon king might fully resurrect through her body. She had been thinking that it might be better to die instead. However, it was too harsh to say that in front of Tana and me, who risked our lives to save her. Charlotte thought she had said something terrible and apologized to Tana and me several times. "Still... I think it's right for me to go myself." But her thoughts cannot be changed. If the demon king is trying to resurrect through Charlotte's body, it is right to die for the empire. She must take risks herself. Such thoughts of Charlotte stem from her heart that prioritizes the safety of the imperial family and the empire. We cannot criticize her for that. We cannot break Charlotte's thoughts, nor do we have a reason to. Charlotte's words were painful to hear, but I had to go into the labyrinth. Tana watched Charlotte quietly and let out a deep sigh. "Not everyone gets lost and dies or gets injured. Many people get lost a little and come back." It is true that there are injured, dead, and missing people. But it seems that they are not the majority. "If it's dangerous to go in for a moment, you can come out." In the end, Tana judged that she could not break Charlotte's stubbornness. It may become dangerous someday, but there won't be any devilry in the next few days. So it is possible to explore the labyrinth slowly while preparing for danger. Summary of previous part of chapter only for context: In this chapter, Charlotte is struggling with the idea that the demon king may fully resurrect through her body, and she is considering sacrificing herself for the safety of the empire. She apologizes to Tana and the protagonist for her thoughts, but they understand her reasoning and cannot criticize her for it. Tana tries to reassure Charlotte that not everyone who enters the labyrinth dies or gets injured, and that it is possible to explore slowly while preparing for danger. Ultimately, Charlotte's determination to protect the empire cannot be broken, and she decides to go into the labyrinth alone. While her words are painful to hear, the group understands and supports her decision. Tana and the protagonist will continue to explore the labyrinth slowly and cautiously, preparing for any potential danger that may arise.

Translation: Except for the commander, no one in the garrison knows that the princess is here. They are trying to solve Charlotte's very important secret in the labyrinth. Since it would not be good for many people to know about it, only the three of them decided to move. To reach the entrance of the underground labyrinth, they had to go down to the fifth floor through a circular staircase. "It's overwhelmingly large," Sabiolin Tana muttered in awe. The corridors and passages were much larger than usual, just like the large buildings of the demon king's castle, and the underground space was large and spacious. It was not the concept of a typical underground building. The size of each floor was so huge that they had to go down the circular staircase for a long time to go down one floor. The search of the labyrinth had already stopped, so although there were soldiers in the underground, they seemed to be spending time rather than searching. Although it did not feel like an underground city, it is estimated that the demon king's forces actually lived here rather than in external barracks. It was that huge. When they reached the fifth floor, the circular staircase finally ended. "It's going to be a job to go back up," Charlotte sighed as if she was exhausted just coming down. Of course, Tana and I were fine. The fifth floor was lit with fire in various places, and there were iron bars. "Is this... a prison?" Charlotte looked around at the iron bars and the space inside. Sabiolin Tana lowered her head while looking at the map. "It seems to have been a monster breeding ground." A space for breeding monsters. Charlotte nodded her head quietly at those words. "So the sizes were all different." "That's right." "Then what happened to the monsters here...?" "Most of them were mobilized during the siege, and the remaining monsters were all disposed of." "I see." The procession of prisoners I saw when I left the demon king's castle came to mind. The appearance of countless demon prisoners, including ogres who broke their chains and rushed to help me escape. It wasn't a very good memory. The countless demon prisoners, who were so many, lost their minds at the death of the demon king and died, putting all their hopes on me, the last demon king. I am doing something completely unrelated to the wishes of those demons. I think this is right. I betrayed Charlotte, and I will betray Sarkargar and even Darkland. Passing through the fifth floor's monster breeding ground, Sabiolin Tana looked at a small iron bar at the end of the monster breeding ground while looking at the map. It was a small room that felt like a prison rather than a monster breeding ground. "This is... the entrance to the labyrinth." A recently discovered secret door. Through the open stone wall, another circular staircase leading down was visible. Unlike anything else in the huge demon palace, the height of the descending staircase passage seemed to be a little over 3 meters, and the width was only enough for four people to pass. The circular staircase they had been descending had railings and was open on all sides, allowing them to see the underground space. However, the circular staircase in front of them was blocked by stone walls, and they couldn't tell where it led or when it would end. The walls of the circular staircase were illuminated by pale magical lights. Tana wanted to check for danger first, but Charlotte didn't allow it, saying it would be less scary to get lost together. They took their first steps down the circular staircase leading to the labyrinth. They came across a narrow passage with magical lights and a door at the end. They couldn't decide whether to go down further or enter the labyrinth through the passage. They couldn't be sure what was ahead in the next passage or behind the door at the end of the corridor. They might not be able to come back once they entered the labyrinth. Charlotte was hesitant to open the door at the end of the corridor, feeling like it was a trap. They eventually entered the door and found nothing out of the ordinary inside the labyrinth. Upon reaching the end of the narrow passage, Tana and Charlotte find themselves in a spacious room with a magical circle on the floor, weapons on display, and scarecrows scattered about. They wonder if this is the start of the labyrinth and explore the area, finding other circular rooms with connecting passages. "I think I know what's going on. We didn't enter the labyrinth. We went straight to a secret space without going through the labyrinth. We don't know what kind of labyrinth it is, but it's clear that it reacted to me or Charlotte. There is no exit in the labyrinth from the beginning, and it is clear that only the Archdemon can come straight to this place that is not a labyrinth. The passages connected to the common area led to rooms with various purposes. We moved slowly and checked each room one by one. A place that looks like a bedroom. A place that looks like a kitchen. A study. An armory. A room with countless potions of unknown identity. A cultivation site that seems to be able to grow plants. A storage room with reagents. A huge food warehouse. 'What is this place?' Charlotte and Tana didn't seem to know what this place meant. But I think I know what this place is. This is a bunker. Then the question was answered. Before I was possessed, Bali must have been coming here. This labyrinth would not have been known to the royal family due to the commander's dictatorship in the original work. No, even if it was known to the royal family, it would be useless. It's not a labyrinth in the first place. Whether it reacted to Charlotte or me, we can't reach this place without the Archdemon. Soon, this bunker is safe. All the war preparations I've been thinking about have collapsed. In the original work, if Bali came here. In the Demon War. Bali Junior. He wouldn't have died."