ALL NOVEL Chapter 44
Chapter 44: Monster Wave (1)
– The person who destroys the core of the Monster Wave will be granted the former territory of the Rustal family and will become an independent lord.
– Those without unique abilities will receive a reward equivalent to the value of the land.
Unlike the previous event when commissions were waived, this time, not all adventurers could benefit.
Only one person, the one who destroyed the core, would receive the reward.
Moreover, the most important reward—territory—could only be obtained by those with unique abilities, meaning only nobles.
Despite this, Martin’s declaration was more than enough to shake the Altaria Empire.
The reason was simple.
He had ignited the desires of the nobles.
A thousand years had passed since the founding of the Altaria Empire.
Naturally, all the desirable land had long since been claimed.
It wasn’t as if territorial expansion through conquest was happening either.
In fact, ever since the Great War about 200 years ago, the territory of the Altaria Empire hadn’t grown.
While the number of lands remained limited, the number of nobles continued to increase day by day.
Those who couldn’t secure land inevitably harbored dissatisfaction.
Amidst this situation, Martin made his declaration.
He announced that someone could become the lord of the former territory of the Rustal family.
Thus, nobles with ambitions flocked to Varehein City.
* * *
“This is the last chance to separate from the Adalbert family.”
Adel von Bitenfeld stared at her father, Oliver von Bitenfeld.
“As you know, father…”
“This is an official matter. Address me properly.”
“Apologies. As you know, head of the family, the young lord’s power has grown rapidly. Those who were previously watching the situation are now aligning themselves with him. There’s no benefit in competing against someone with so much momentum.”
“Even if we win, we’d suffer immense losses.”
“Yes. Of course, if we become the head of the Adalbert family, we could recover quickly. But the Gustin and Fezek families won’t just sit by and watch. I think it would be much more beneficial for us to seize the Rustal family’s territory and declare independence.”
“Focusing on destroying the core is indeed the rational choice.”
Oliver’s expression was calm as he spoke.
However, Adel detected the displeasure in his tone.
“I also have no intention of recklessly pursuing the family’s long-held wishes. As you said, one wrong step could cost us everything.”
“Thank goodness…”
“But the time and place weren’t appropriate, Adel von Bitenfeld. As the head of the family, I have officially stepped onto the battlefield. The members of our family are watching me. Did you really need to say something to lower their morale in such a place?”
Oliver looked around.
Fifty members of the Blue Dragon Knights, the pride of the Bitenfeld family, stood nearby.
Adel promptly apologized.
“I’m sorry. I’ll be more careful.”
“And the chance to become the head of the family hasn’t completely disappeared yet. Many high-ranking nobles are displeased with the young lord’s actions. Just yesterday, didn’t the Second Prince personally issue a warning to him?”
The Second Prince, Theodore Altaria, had sent an official letter.
No, it was closer to a warning.
It stated that if Martin continued to recruit more adventurers, he would come to regret it.
Martin had scoffed and ignored it, but Oliver saw this as an opportunity.
“Nicholas von Royce, the leader of the Second Prince’s faction, has openly expressed his hatred for the young lord.”
“Because the young lord killed his cherished grandson, Stefan Rustal.”
“That’s right. Although the Monster Wave delayed things, he will undoubtedly take action soon. When that happens, the situation will change.”
“Indeed.”
“We must do our best while there’s still an opportunity. Remember, nothing can be achieved with a mindset of compromise.”
“I fully understand the grand ambitions of the head of the family. I will do everything I can to fulfill our family’s wishes.”
“You better. If you don’t want your younger brother to take the position of heir.”
His words were hardly those a father should say to his daughter, but Adel calmly bowed her head.
Then, she turned around.
Before her stood a swarm of Diamond Armadillos, monsters that frequently appeared on the 15th floor.
Their appearance was similar to that of ordinary armadillos.
However, they were more than ten times larger, and their shells were as hard as diamonds.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The moment the Bitenfeld family members came into view, the monsters curled up like balls.
Then, they charged at full speed, spinning furiously.
Their charge, with their hard shells at the forefront, was powerful enough to shatter the dungeon’s terrain in an instant. However, Adel calmly stepped forward.
Roar! Roar!
Two enormous Diamond Armadillos flew through the air and descended toward her.
Boom!
But their attack only shattered the ground behind her.
She hadn’t dodged.
The monsters had passed through her body.
It was her unique ability—Phantomization.
By placing her body between the cracks of space, she could render all physical contact meaningless.
It was one of the most difficult spatial abilities to master, but also one of the most threatening.
Whirr.
Adel, having used spatial movement, now stood atop the back of one of the creatures that had tried to target her.
She immediately thrust her sword downward, and the blade effortlessly pierced through the diamond-hard shell.
When her sword reached the center of the monster’s body, Adel retracted the blade and unleashed a surge of blue aura.
Crack!
The hard shell shattered from within, splitting apart.
Adel moved forward, her sword slashing through the back of the Diamond Armadillo.
The creature, its body now more than half severed, lost its life.
This marked the beginning of a massacre as Adel tore through the monsters.
‘My father is truly an idiot.’
For someone who had no talent other than swordsmanship, it was laughable that he aspired to become the head of the Adalbert family.
Until recently, she had been willing to let it slide.
Martin hadn’t manifested his unique ability, and because of that, the heads of the branch families had believed they were more qualified to become the head of the main family.
‘But that reason is gone now.’
Martin had completely proven his qualifications to become the head of the family, and he had nearly secured full control.
On top of that, he had even won over public opinion.
Yet, Oliver still clung to false hopes, which was nothing short of laughable.
‘If things continue like this, the family will be ruined.’
Martin Adalbert, having fully bared his fangs, would never forgive those who defied him.
Genuinely concerned for the future of her family, Adel contemplated the path she should take.
One thing was certain: neither her father nor her younger brother had a place in the future she envisioned.
* * *
With the influx of noble-born adventurers, the defensive lines had become stronger.
Thus, Martin could head to the dungeon without worry.
“How do you feel? You’ve single-handedly shaken the entire power structure of the Altaria Empire.”
“I don’t feel much. It just shows how stuck the Empire has been all this time.”
“Aren’t you scared? You’ve drawn the ire of the high-ranking nobles. Even the Imperial family sent you a warning not to keep recruiting adventurers.”
“If they were bothered by it, they should have prepared in advance. They couldn’t respond properly because they were too busy with their internal power struggles. I don’t see why they’re whining to me about it.”
Martin’s expression clearly showed how annoyed he was.
Sien clicked her tongue.
“I bet you’re the only person who isn’t afraid after receiving a warning from the Second Prince. Even Marquis Royce is grinding his teeth over you.”
“So what if they’re mad? As long as the First Prince and First Princess are still in power, they can’t touch us.”
The Second Prince’s faction was doing well, but the First Prince’s faction was still ahead among the three.
That didn’t mean the First Princess’ faction was weak, either.
If the Second Prince rashly deployed his forces, it could upset the balance of power, so he wouldn’t act recklessly.
This warning was likely just to appease the nobles under his control.
That’s why Martin had ignored it without hesitation.
“So, the greatest immediate threat is someone else destroying the core, not us. Especially if the branch family heads get to it first—it’ll be a pain.”
“Isn’t that why we’re descending so eagerly?”
“That’s funny, considering you’re leaving most of the fighting to me.”
“What can I do? If I use too much power in a place like this, I’ll burn out quickly.”
“You sure know how to talk.”
Sien muttered with a slight frown.
The two had already descended to the 16th floor.
On the 16th floor, the beginning of the mid-tier levels, large monsters with regenerative abilities resided, so they had to stay alert.
Though that didn’t apply to Sien.
Roar!
Boom!
A troll, towering over 3 meters tall, swung its massive stone club at Sien’s body.
Ordinarily, this would have left Sien crushed into a bloody mess.
However, instead of that happening, the stone club shattered into countless pieces.
“Get lost.”
With a low kick, Sien struck the troll’s left calf.
Boom!
That was all it took for the troll’s left leg to explode.
Caught off guard, the troll lost its balance.
Sien extended her right fist toward the falling creature’s head.
Even though her punch was a
predictable telegraphed move, its power was devastating.
Boom!
Not only the troll’s head, but nearly half of its upper body exploded.
No matter how strong its regenerative abilities were, there was no way to recover from that. The troll was dead.
“Why don’t you learn the Rothar Martial Art, Sien? You’d probably become the strongest in the Empire.”
“I’ll pass. The Rothar Martial Art requires too much thought. Martial arts are supposed to be all about striking with power.”
Sien’s face was filled with annoyance as she responded.
She acknowledged the destructive power of the Rothar Martial Art.
But that was it.
“I can destroy anything I want without learning the Rothar Martial Art. It would be inefficient for me to learn it.”
“Hm. It’s a shame, but I can’t argue with that.”
“As long as you understand. So, the 20th floor, right? That’s where we’re supposed to meet the others.”
“Yeah. As long as we arrive within three days.”
“Three days… Easy.”
“Getting to the 20th floor is no problem. It’s after that that things get annoying.”
Sien nodded at Martin’s response.
The mid-tier levels began on the 16th floor, but the real difficulty started from the 21st floor.
This was due to the increase in monsters with special abilities.
That was why they had arranged to meet Lucas Hoffman, Philip Alofs, and Oriana Flores on the 20th floor.
But Martin had another task to take care of.
He had to move in sync with the Bitenfeld family’s movements.
‘Repaying debts is such a hassle.’
The primary goal was to destroy the core.
That was the only way to end the Monster Wave.
There was also another reason.
A more personal one.
Adel von Bitenfeld.
He owed her a debt.
In the previous timeline, she had saved his life.
He knew it didn’t hold much meaning.
Adel in this timeline had no way of knowing that.
‘But a debt is still a debt.’
Even while slaughtering monsters, Martin kept an eye out for members of the Bitenfeld family.
‘The event takes place on the 34th floor.’
There could be trouble if the Bitenfeld family got there first, but he wasn’t too worried about that.
Given the current situation in the dungeon, it was more likely they would meet before then.
If they stayed in sync after that, he could repay his debt.
“That being said, let’s not let our guard down.”
“Of course.”
With renewed resolve, Martin and Sien continued their advance.
Three days later, they arrived at the designated meeting point.
Everyone had arrived on time, and fortunately, there were no stragglers.
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