Chapter 93. In Search of a House with a Strange Rumor (2)

“I’ll go take a look inside.”

At Radel’s words, Cronin and the broker were simultaneously dumbfounded.

“You mustn’t do that, Your Highness!”

“It’s dangerous! If there are truly unholy beings inside… Oh, Supreme Deity!”

The broker strongly tried to stop Radel.

Cronin also couldn’t understand the prince who wanted to enter such a dangerous house.

It would be a big problem if something were to go wrong after he went in.

What would he say to his father, who had so earnestly asked him to serve the prince with all his heart?

However, Radel seemed unfazed.

“Don’t worry. It’s fine because I can use magic if need be.”

From Radel’s perspective, it wasn’t that dangerous right now during the day, though it might be different at night when the undead grew stronger.

No matter if there were ghosts or curse magic inside, there was no way a curse would work on Radel, who had Status Effect Nullification.

On top of that, he had the Troll’s Heart, so Radel had his own reason to be confident.

However, he couldn’t explain all that to the two of them.

He just had to push through.

“I’m just going in for a moment, so it won’t be that dangerous.”

Leaving those words behind, Radel entered the right-side house where the ghost was said to appear.

It was because the demonic energy was felt more strongly from that house.

“Yo-Your Highness!”

The broker shouted belatedly, but Radel had already disappeared inside the house.

‘No matter how cheap this house is…’

Cronin’s expression hardened.

He didn't know the 8th Prince would show such reckless behavior.

Was he confident in his skills, or was he simply fearless?

In any case, he was not a predictable person.

Creak.

After a short while, the door of the right house opened, and Radel poked his head out.

At his unharmed appearance, the broker let out a sigh of relief.

“You’re safe, Your Highness!”

Cronin also felt relieved, but only until Radel spoke.

“I think there is something here. I'll try to catch it, so please wait here for a moment.”

“Pardon? What do you…”

Before Cronin could ask anything, Radel disappeared back inside the door.

There’s something?

Cronin's complexion changed as he understood Radel's words.

At the same time, sounds began to be heard from inside the house.

Crash!

Clatter!

“Oh my! Supreme Deity!”

The broker trembled at the sound and clasped his hands together.

If the prince wasn't breaking things by himself, then what in the world was that sound?

Cronin stood blankly and stared at the house Radel had entered with a bewildered face.

* * *

Ding.

[Skill, Superhuman Intuition, is activated.]

As soon as he opened the door and entered, Radel quickly turned his head to the side at the skill notification sound.

Crash!

At the same time, a plate that had flown past Radel’s ear hit the wall and shattered into pieces.

If he had been a little late, his head would have been broken by the plate.

“Phew.”

Radel checked and confirmed that it seemed to have suddenly flown from mid-air.

It seemed the one who threw it was an incorporeal being.

He had also been flustered when a knife suddenly flew at him when he first came in.

After experiencing this situation, Radel realized that the rumor was true.

Objects flying in from nowhere?

He didn’t know if it was a ghost, but seeing the demonic energy felt inside the house, there was a high probability that there was an undead monster.

After confirming that, Radel had immediately conveyed his intentions to the two people outside.

He was also confident that he could catch the guys inside by himself.

‘I’ve seen worse things at the Marcellent temple, so this is nothing.’

Radel brought up the Basic Swordsmanship skill window.

Since it had come to this, he was thinking of upgrading his skill while dealing with the undead monsters here.

There was an item that needed to be filled to upgrade Basic Swordsmanship, and it happened to be a perfect match for undead monsters.

Basic Swordsmanship (C)

The most basic form of swordsmanship.

Horizontal Slash (22,000/22,000)

Vertical Slash (22,000/22,000)

Thrust (22,000/22,000)

Block (10,000/10,000)

Defeat Incorporeal Enemies (0/10)

For Radel, who practiced swordsmanship every dawn, it was not difficult to fill the other items, but the last item was different.

‘When it comes to incorporeal enemies, it’s got to be the undead.’

He had been wondering how to fill that, but this was a really good opportunity.

Just then, a notification rang in Radel’s ear.

Ding.

[Skill, Superhuman Intuition, is activated.]

As soon as Radel heard that sound, he moved his body.

Thud!

And just by a hair's breadth, the bookshelf next to Radel fell to the floor.

Someone had pushed the bookshelf and knocked it over.

But there was no one where the bookshelf had stood.

He could only feel faint shapes moving in the dark house far away.

Radel, who felt a dark energy even though it was daytime, grinned.

“So you’re coming out like this?”

It was a pity that Gusto, the apprentice holy knight, was not by his side at a time like this, but Radel had a trump card.

“As it happens, I have something like this too.”

Radel took something out of his bosom.

* * *

- Kieek!

Slash!

Radel slashed the ghoul that was rushing towards him with his sword.

As soon as it was cut by the sword, demonic energy spewed out from the ghoul's body, and it fell to the floor.

Thump!

Among the undead monsters in the house, there were some that were incorporeal, but there were also some with forms, like skeletons and ghouls.

However, whether they had a form or not, it was not easy to defeat the undead with an ordinary sword.

“But this changes the story.”

Radel took something out of his bosom and skillfully sprinkled it on his sword.

He had been sprinkling it intermittently whenever it felt like the sword wasn’t cutting well.

It was the holy water he had received from Bishop Lambrado at the Supreme Deity Order’s temple in Marcellent.

Is this any different from a priest's blessing?

Radel hummed a tune and held up the sword, which had become damp after being sprinkled with holy water.

“Bring it on. Let’s start again.”

The undead monsters, feeling Radel’s spirit, flinched and then rushed at him again.

- Kiaaak!

“Oops.”

Radel dodged and swung his sword.

An undead monster with an indistinct form was hit by Radel’s sword and disappeared like smoke.

“As expected of holy water consecrated by a bishop, it’s different.”

Radel felt grateful to Bishop Lambrado and moved forward.

If it hadn't been for the holy water he had given him, he would surely not have been able to hold out inside.

Ding.

[Skill, Superhuman Intuition, is activated.]

Radel, hearing the sound of the skill activating again, slightly shifted his position.

Bang!

This time, a picture frame that had fallen, aiming for Radel’s instep, was stuck in the floor.

After several minor attacks using the surrounding objects were repeated, Radel was soon able to realize something strange.

That he didn’t feel any killing intent when ‘Superhuman Intuition’ was activated.

It meant that these were not attacks meant to really kill Radel.

On top of that, he felt a faint energy that was different from demonic energy.

Radel focused his mind on that energy.

And then, there was a sound that Radel could hear.

- Get out of here!

It was the sound of someone desperately shouting.

It didn't seem to be a person…….

- It's dangerous here! Get out of here, I say!

When he went to where the sound was coming from, a small-bodied fairy was stomping her feet.

“Why is it dangerous?”

At Radel’s question, the shouting fairy’s movements stopped.

- Because this place is contaminated……. Can you see me?

“Yeah.”

The fairy, surprised by Radel who seemed to recognize her, opened her eyes wide.

And then soon, tears welled up in her eyes.

- Y-you can see me?

“I said so. You’re the one who’s been throwing things at me and knocking over bookshelves, right?”

- Waaaaah! I’m sorry!

After she calmed down a bit, he heard the whole story. This fairy was actually a house fairy.

House fairies, when they find a house they like, go in and help the people who live there, but in this fairy's case, the things she did to help ended up causing trouble instead.

- At first, the chandelier was dirty, so I went up and cleaned it. Then the chandelier fell and…….

“Someone got hurt?”

- Yeah. But I was really just trying to help…….

Not all fairies are competent, I see.

Anyway, the fairy’s intentions were good, but as people kept getting hurt, bad rumors started to spread about this house.

It was the same for the people who moved in next.

The incident where the fairy tried to clean the kitchen and ended up breaking all the plates in the middle of the night, causing people to step on them and fall, and the incident where she slightly changed the position of a sculpture on the table because she didn’t like it, which scared people…….

It was as if the house fairy had driven them all away.

Radel, who was listening to the story, asked.

“Don’t house fairies usually stay out of people’s sight?”

- I-I was trying to!

Among house fairies, this one seemed to be very clumsy.

Especially, she seemed to be bad at hiding her presence.

“Then why did you attack me?”

- This place is contaminated with demonic energy now. I was trying to stop you because people could die if they come in.

No wonder he kept feeling demonic energy from inside the house.

Well, it's not like undead monsters would come out of an ordinary house.

Radel felt a blackish energy flowing from the house fairy as well.

“You’re contaminated too.”

- That's right. Because I lack power…… I couldn’t purify it.

She said that demonic energy had infiltrated the house at some point, and even the house fairy had been affected.

As the fairy’s power weakened, undead monsters had recently started appearing inside the house as well.

- I tried to stop them somehow, but those guys are getting stronger and stronger…….

Seeing the fairy whose eyes were welling up with tears again, Radel took out the holy water.

He didn't know if it would have an effect on the fairy.

“Will you come here?”

Radel sprinkled holy water on the fairy.

Flash!

And then, with a bright light, the black energy left the fairy’s body.

Before long, the house fairy regained her bright appearance.

- Thank you! There was no one who could see me, so I was almost giving up……. Sniff.

The fairy was very grateful to Radel, saying that no matter how much she shouted at people, they didn't see her.

As the fairy’s power returned, the house seemed to be getting a little brighter.

However, the inside of the house was still dark and eerie.

Radel asked the house fairy, just in case.

“Do you know where the undead monsters started coming from?”

- I can’t get close because of the demonic energy, but I think they’re coming from the basement.

For demonic energy to not only enter the house but also for undead monsters to come out was truly a strange thing.

‘At this rate, isn’t this pretty much an undead dungeon?’

Wait, a dungeon?

If he assumed that there was a dungeon in this house, then all the strange things he had experienced here so far began to make sense.

“Let’s go to the basement.”

Radel, guided by the fairy, headed to the basement.

Perhaps because the house fairy had regained her power, the undead monsters that had been roaming the house until a little while ago were nowhere to be seen.

When they arrived at the basement entrance, the house fairy trembled.

- It’s such a foul demonic energy! I can’t get any closer!

“I understand. I’ll go first.”

Radel, seeing the fairy’s reaction, held his consecrated sword and led the way down.

The basement entrance had also changed to look like a cave.

A suspicious energy was flowing out from inside the basement, which had turned into a cave.

It was a sight all too familiar to Radel, who had been a Hunter.

It was certain.

What was in the basement was a dungeon.