“You demon! I'm going to kill you ten thousand times!”
Shucodo even forgot his chants, mindlessly spamming Fireballs one after another.
Li Xiuman, of course, was delighted. Having this guy lose his mind was the best possible outcome.
Dealing with a mindless commanding Mage was obviously much easier than dealing with a level-headed one.
As things stood, only Shucodo and a single Swordsman remained as the enemy's main damage dealers.
The remaining Heavy Warrior and Priest were nothing to be feared.
“Leader, calm down!”
“Dammit. O great Goddess of Light, let Your holy light guide those who have lost their way.”
“Tier 1 Spell: Calm Mind.”
The Priest raised his staff and pointed it at Shucodo.
Golden holy light showered down from above Shucodo's head, sinking into his skin.
Gradually, Shucodo's contorted expression softened, and his mind slowly regained its composure.
“Skeleton, I will make you pay for this.”
“Heavy Warrior in the rear, Swordsman in front, Priest on support! Maintain formation and withdraw from the dungeon!”
Having calmed down, Shucodo quickly assessed the situation.
Only four of them were left, with only two main damage dealers.
The tide of battle had turned; their only choice now was to retreat from the dungeon and wait for another opportunity.
Once they reached the surface, it would be noble territory. This skeleton wouldn't be able to run wild for long.
“Leader Shucodo, are you really just going to abandon your teammates' corpses like that?”
“If they knew from the afterlife, they would be so heartbroken.”
To be honest, even Li Xiuman felt he was being incredibly petty and shameless.
But being a complete troll on a whim was just so damn satisfying.
“You can have them,” Shucodo spat.
Under the effects of the calming spell, Shucodo refused to be provoked, calmly directing his team's orderly retreat.
Li Xiuman wasn't panicked in the least. He trailed behind the party, constantly harassing them with magic, denying the Hyena Adventurer Party even a single moment of rest.
Meanwhile, the Heavy Warrior guarding the rear grew slower and slower as his wounds accumulated.
Shucodo was also growing increasingly exhausted.
Even with magical support, he was becoming anxious and hysterical once more.
The atmosphere within the party grew grimmer by the minute.
To make matters worse, Li Xiuman kept shouting from behind: “Surrender, and you shall live—except for Shucodo!”
“Anyone who surrenders with Shucodo's head will keep all their possessions and walk away free!”
The remaining party members began to waver, and their aversion to the fight grew heavier.
Shucodo was in absolute torment.
He could feel his companions' resolve gradually shifting toward Li Xiuman's side.
That guy was a literal demon playing with human hearts.
He wasn't human at all!
“Shucodo, why are you keeping so much distance from your companions?”
“Are you afraid they'll kill you? Do you have no trust in your teammates at all?”
“To think you're actually terrified that the comrades you eat and sleep with will murder you!”
“Are you worthy of the trust they've placed in you?!”
The two lines Li Xiuman kept repeating finally changed.
But they changed into something that chilled Shucodo to the very bone.
“No! That's not how it is!”
“That demon is trying to drive a wedge between us! Even if you kill me, he won't let you off either!”
Shucodo hastily explained.
“My, my, look at him squirm! He's getting desperate!”
“Did you hear that? He's threatening you not to kill him, which means he already believes you will.”
“Alas, how cold and fragile human relationships truly are.”
Li Xiuman's demonic words made Shucodo's body run colder and colder.
“Shut up!!!”
“Shut the fuck up!”
“Just fucking shut up already!!!”
Shucodo's tightly wound nerves finally snapped. Brandishing his staff, he hurled several Fireballs at Li Xiuman.
Of course, Li Xiuman easily dodged them.
“Leader, calm down.”
The Priest stepped forward, intending to cast the calming spell on Shucodo again.
But Shucodo, his eyes bloodshot, instantly lunged back, glaring warily at the approaching Priest.
The atmosphere shifted in an instant.
“Look, look! He's on guard against you.”
Li Xiuman chimed in right on cue.
“No, it's not like that.”
“Don't listen to him! Don't listen to him!”
Shucodo's mind descended into panic.
He looked at his teammates, feeling for the first time that there was an immense distance between them.
When did this happen? Since when?
“Tell me, who do you think I want to kill the most in your party?”
“It's definitely Shucodo, right?”
“So why is he dragging you all along to retreat with him? Why?”
“Think about it carefully. Isn't it just so you can act as meat shields to block me for him?”
Li Xiuman's demonic voice echoed in everyone's ears.
No one made a move.
“If he were truly so selfless, why doesn't he have everyone scatter to escape? In a labyrinth like this, how many of you could I possibly catch besides him?”
“Shut up! Shut up!!!”
Shucodo grew completely frantic.
“Leader, we...”
“Don't come near me! None of you fucking come near me!”
Shucodo brandished his staff.
“See? This is the leader you trusted.”
“He is entirely unworthy of your trust.”
“...Kill him! Help me kill that demon!”
“Then we'll escape back to the surface, live like kings, and spend mountains of gold coins together!”
Shucodo tried to resume commanding the party.
“Run, run.”
“You, the guy in the heavy armor. You've been forced to guard the rear this whole time. You must be exhausted.”
“You're wearing a helmet, so I don't know your name or what you look like.”
“If you just slip away into the labyrinth, take off that helmet, and swap your armor, I won't even recognize you anymore.”
“Why play the meat shield? Aren't you tired?”
Li Xiuman looked at the Heavy Warrior bringing up the rear, whispers of temptation laced in his voice.
The Heavy Warrior's body stiffened slightly.
“Fondo Timand!”
“Hold the front!”
Shucodo bellowed.
“Tsk, tsk. Look at your wonderful leader, throwing you under the bus without a second thought.”
“But don't worry, I didn't hear a thing. I didn't hear anything at all.”
“If you leave, I won't stop you.”
Li Xiuman continued his sweet-talking.
Shucodo bit his lip so hard it bled, his grip tightening until his staff nearly snapped.
He wanted nothing more than to shred Li Xiuman into ten thousand pieces at this moment.
“Leader, we're parting ways.”
The Heavy Warrior spoke up, then turned and bolted into a side passage without looking back.
“Fireball!”
Shucodo hurled a Fireball at the Heavy Warrior's retreating back.
The Heavy Warrior had only been guarding against Li Xiuman. He never expected his former leader would throw a Fireball at him.
He spun around in utter disbelief to look at his leader.
“Ah, what a marvelous Fireball.”
“Leader Shucodo's hand is remarkably steady, tracing such a beautiful arc.”
“I'll give it a perfect ten.”
The remaining Priest immediately scrambled away to put some distance between himself and Shucodo, while the Swordsman cautiously turned sideways, warily keeping both Li Xiuman and Shucodo in his line of sight.
“Listen to my orders! That demon has been playing us since the very beginning!”
“He won't let any of us go! Not a single one! He is an absolute bastard of a demon!”
Shucodo screamed at the top of his lungs.
“Ah, what are you doing? Are you raising your staff to blast another teammate?”
“As if blasting two of your own wasn't enough. You really are ruthless.”
Seeing Shucodo raise his staff again, this time aiming at them, Li Xiuman quickly called out to the remaining party members.
The final two comrades instantly panicked, staring at Shucodo with deep suspicion.
Shucodo frantically tried to explain.
“I was aiming at the demon!”
“Believe me!”
Shucodo pleaded desperately.
He couldn't understand. Why was it that he couldn't even raise his staff anymore?
Rate on N.U.
