Chapter 53
Chapter 53
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 53
Chapter Title: The Final Dance
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Rattle, rattle.
Dawn broke as two swords danced their final steps.
A dance so graceful and beautiful, it severed their own lifelines.
Amid the shower of stardust, their consciousnesses began to fade.
The rage coiling around their bodies and the voice of "That One" echoing in their minds receded like a lie. In its place, a memory from long ago surfaced.
An afternoon in the temple garden, the three of them—Alain and the sisters—carving wax dolls under the sunlight.
"Amazing! You two really are the best!"
"Praise won't get you anything."
"We're truly grateful for your kind words."
Those warm, peaceful days filled with sunlight—where had it all gone wrong?
The two beasts—no, the two people—reached out toward each other once more, with great effort.
But their hands fell short by just a little, never quite touching.
"In the end... this time too..."
"We had another chance..."
In their blurring vision, a beloved shadow extended a hand toward them.
Alain, their precious friend they couldn't protect. His rough hand bridged theirs together.
But it wasn't Alain.
[Oppa... why?]
[Why are you...]
The gray-haired boy who had defeated them.
"Just because."
The battered boy connected their hands in Alain's place.
"It feels like the right thing to do."
His calm voice lingered in their ears, and the red gems embedded in their chests shattered.
Their blazing red eyes took on the clear hue of fresh greenery.
"Oppa, what's your name?"
"Haribal Belder."
"And you?"
"...Cecilia Ren."
With tender smiles, they said,
"Haribal Belder."
"Cecilia Ren."
"Thank you."
"We're grateful."
Not as dolls, but as humans, they embraced.
Warmth enveloped them.
Amid the countless stardust falling like rain, the two sang their final song.
The sun will rise.
The moon will rise.
Dawn will pass.
And the sun will rise again.
Their song of reunion echoed across the rooftop.
"Roze... I'm so tired..."
"Yeah... me too..."
"Goodnight, Roze."
"See you tomorrow, Lilian."
When the song ended,
the two dissolved into dust atop the field of purple flowers, returned to the form they were first born in, merged as one.
This was the Temple of Repose.
A place that granted eternal rest to all.
⁎⁎⁎
With Roze and Lilian defeated, the demonic energy lifted, and the temple—once turned dungeon—regained its original form.
Among the clusters of flowers, the target item came into view.
[Abyss Core - Sun Shine]
Unfortunately, no other rare items were in sight.
Not that it mattered—they'd used up every bit of luck in that last battle. Expecting more would be downright greedy.
But something else remained.
[Alain's Letter]
The letter was a secret mission document from the Pontiff himself, ordering Alain to eliminate Roze and Lilian.
With the Pontiff's seal stamped clearly, it was irrefutable proof.
The fact that it dropped from them meant they had known of the Church of the Main God's betrayal in advance.
Yet they stayed in the temple, sharing the fate of those who sacrificed themselves before.
Alain, unable to betray his childhood friends and loved ones, must have rebelled against the order.
With this letter alone, they could at least expose the Church's dirty secret.
At that moment, a roar shook the temple.
Rumble...!
'What...? Isn't it over?'
Soon, transparent spirits began rising from the lower levels toward the sky, one by one.
Hundreds of them at a glance, emerging from the wax dolls.
"Could those be the souls dwelling in the dolls?"
With Roze and Lilian purified, the souls bound by their power were finally achieving nirvana.
Good thing.
But that thought didn't last.
Boom!!
"?"
The hundreds of souls converged into seven streaks of light, instantly obliterating the seven watchtowers around the lake.
At the same time, the final memories of the spirits surfaced over the waters of Lake Baekryeong.
Memories of countless devotees being led by the Church's priests to be offered as living sacrifices.
Cecilia and I stood on the rooftop railing, watching the entire scene from start to finish.
Proof, witnesses, plus the journal and letter we'd obtained earlier—the Church couldn't touch us now.
Of course, only if we could escape Erandar safely.
In the temple garden below, holy knights looked on in confusion at the spectacle.
Among them, a piglet-like figure screaming his head off.
'A priest I've never seen. Is that the boss?'
The boss himself was no threat, but the holy knights were another story.
Their numbers had doubled in the meantime.
"...What do we do?"
Anxiety laced Cecilia's voice.
So, what now?
We had all the evidence, and we'd witnessed that scene alone. This was no good omen.
If they wiped us out here, the truth would stay buried in darkness.
And Cecilia and I? We were beyond battered. That encirclement was inescapable, even in death.
That's when it happened.
A brilliant sun rising over the horizon.
But somehow, it felt like the sun was drawing closer to us.
'What the...? It's way too bright.'
A sun that dazzling in this world...
"Ah."
There was one.
"Time to head down."
"...What?! You sure?"
"It'll be fine."
Probably.
As long as I didn't get my ass kicked to hell and back.
⁎⁎⁎
'Damn it...! That punk Funeral Sword actually conquered the dungeon!'
As soon as Romus confirmed the temple's demonic energy had cleared, he rushed over with the holy knights.
Before his eyes lay a fully purified temple, destroyed watchtowers, and mysterious visions over the lake.
Just then, the visions showed a portly priest offering living devotees as sacrifices.
Romus recognized him instantly as one of his ancestors.
It was blatant human sacrifice—and likely the scandal the Church had hidden.
If this went public, Romus would lose not just his position, but his life.
But there was still a chance.
He could claim the visions were the Evil God's manipulation or lies spread by Funeral Sword's group to frame the Church.
His rank made that feasible.
Romus took it a step further.
'Taking out those two bitches here... we could claim the dungeon conquest for ourselves.'
A chance to become a hero.
He decided on the spot.
"Advance into the temple! Kill everyone inside!"
"B-But, Your Excellency... If it's those inside, they're the ones who conquered this dungeon..."
"Shut up! They're wicked villains trying to disrupt Erandar's balance! Are you defying the Main God's will now?"
Under Romus's glare, the holy knight could only nod grimly.
As the holy knights raised their weapons and gathered holy power to breach the temple doors,
their heads snapped toward the bridge in unison.
"What are you doing? Advance already!"
Unlike the martial holy knights, Romus couldn't sense presences.
So he had no clue.
That a radiant sun, blinding all eyes, had appeared on the bridge.
"Gathered bright and early, I see. Holding mass or something?"
A lazy voice drifted from the bridge, finally turning Romus's head.
"So packed together, no one would notice if I sliced one or two."
Romus recognized the figure at a glance.
After all, only one woman in the Empire dressed like that.
"The Empire's Greatest Sword...?! Why are you here at this hour?!"
"Me? Chaperoning some delinquent students."
Adelrin Windsor.
She strolled toward Romus's group, hands casually in her pockets, expression serene.
Everyone present gulped.
This was bad.
Her presence here meant she'd seen the horrors over the lake too.
Realizing that, Romus's eyes gleamed with a chill unfit for a cleric.
'No choice now. Have to take her out too.'
Fortunately, he knew her history.
They said she was an eccentric who never used Abyss Cores.
Even the Empire's Greatest Sword couldn't fell this many trained holy knights without a core and shards.
"That woman's with the villains too! Clearly lost her mind to the dungeon's demonic influence!"
"Hah?"
Romus raised his voice higher.
"If we don't eliminate these villains here, their lies will engulf the entire Empire! No hesitation! In the Main God's name, annihilate them all!"
As the holy knights raised their spears and swords,
Clang!!
A clear, ringing sword cry echoed as a golden arc descended upon the garden.
In the wake of the dazzling flash, dozens of holy knights collapsed like marionettes with cut strings.
New Belhart Style Form 3: Golden Slash.
Adelrin's signature move.
"...Huh?"
A dazed mutter escaped Romus.
"You recognize me and still pull this crap?"
The voice came from behind him.
Turning, Romus found Adelrin standing there, expression unchanged.
Sword already sheathed, as if nothing had happened.
"This... can't be...! You don't have an Abyss Core...!"
"Core? This one?"
Adelrin casually pulled one from her bosom.
[Abyss Core - Rising Sun]
"I do have one, though?"
With that innocent tone, Romus lost consciousness and crumpled.
That's when the temple doors opened, revealing the battered Haribal and Cecilia.
"Ah...! Instructor Adelrin!"
"Cecilia. And... Haaaaribal."
Adelrin's brow furrowed.
Both were covered in far more than ordinary wounds—clear signs of a brutal fight inside.
Even so, Haribal opened his mouth with shameless ease.
"Sis. Thanks a ton. You saved our—"
Whack!
"Bullshit."
He'd remembered her saying to call her "sis," but she had no intention of forgiving this brazen student.
Not this reckless disciple who'd thrown his life away without telling her.
As Adelrin's knuckle chop descended on Haribal's crown, he passed out instantly.
Slinging him over her shoulder, she turned to Cecilia—who'd been edging away.
"Cecilia."
Cecilia flinched.
'Am I next?'
"You've had it rough cleaning up after this troublemaker."
"Y-Yes?"
But instead of a chop, came words of genuine praise.
For the daughter of House Ren, being recognized purely for herself—not her name—was a first. Her cheeks flushed.
"No more suffering because of him. I'll etch it into his thick skull good."
But those follow-up words tugged at her heart.
'No more, huh.'
So she murmured very softly.
"A little more... looking after him wouldn't be so bad..."
"What was that?"
Adelrin asked while sorting Haribal's gear.
"Oh, nothing!"
She must not have heard.
"Anyway, a second Evil God's Abyss. You two are in for a world of busy from here. Steel yourselves."
"Yes. We're ready."
"Good enough."
Adelrin patted Cecilia's head once before walking ahead.
Cecilia called after her.
"But how did you get here, Instructor?"
She hadn't expected Adelrin to arrive right at their moment of crisis.
"Was it Sis? Or Mine...?"
The only ones who could have told her about the Doll Dungeon were Senia.
Or maybe Mine, with her Erandar ties.
"Oh, that."
But an unexpected name slipped from Adelrin's lips.
"Luna Grace tipped me off."
⁎⁎⁎
Christoph An, departing Erandar for Neivil.
Haribal and Cecilia were dead to the world, fast asleep.
After pulling an all-nighter in the Doll Dungeon on top of a life-or-death brawl, exhaustion was inevitable.
They'd sleep through being carried off right now.
Haribal hadn't woken since Adelrin's chop, and Cecilia had conked out the moment she boarded Christoph.
Adelrin snorted at the sight of them dozing with heads together.
"Kids like these, heroes? Even a stray dog would laugh."
She draped blankets over them.
'A little more... looking after him wouldn't be so bad...'
Who was Adelrin Windsor?
Her senses were unmatched.
Of course she'd heard Cecilia's earlier mumble crystal clear.
'Must've grown close fast through follower class and this dungeon run.'
Cecilia stirred in her sleep with a soft groan, her head burrowing deeper into Haribal's shoulder.
Adelrin's eyes narrowed slightly.
'Well, well. Forbidden romance on campus.'
As an instructor, she couldn't allow it.
For real.
She crept up to Cecilia and gently shifted her head to the opposite side.
"This position's comfier."
For real.
Now Haribal's head lolled without support.
'...No helping it.'
Adelrin sat between them.
Thud.
Haribal's head settled perfectly on her shoulder.
Only then did she flash a satisfied smile.
Rattle. Rattle.
Thus, the month in Luidel sped by like a train.