27
Chapter 27
A perfect victory.
Asel smiled, savoring the joy to the fullest.
Just how did this happen?
Like a miracle, Asel was unaffected by the Demon Sword's curse.
In the end, that unidentified man failed to dodge the curse and died, leaving Asel as the sole survivor.
He didn't know the reason why... but did that even matter?
The only thing that mattered was that Asel had won.
'After looking down on me like that.'
Serves him right.
Wondering how it felt to be beaten by the very opponent he had sneered at, Asel kicked the man's corpse.
Could there be anything better than this?
At this sudden stroke of luck, the corners of Asel's mouth curled up so high they practically reached his ears.
But strangely enough, something even better happened.
"It's been a while, my son."
His Master suddenly walked in from behind.
A dead person—a corpse he had personally sliced open—had come back to life.
However, was that really important?
What mattered was that his father had returned.
Because of that, Asel smiled brightly and embraced his father.
For some reason, his mind was hazy.
He felt a strange sensation around his neck, but...
Asel didn't pay it any mind.
Why should he care about such a trivial thing when he was this happy?
It was surely nothing to worry about.
*****
'...Why the hell is this bastard smiling?'
I couldn't help but think that.
Because the scene unfolding before my eyes was completely absurd.
"I, I love you! Hehe... I love you so much!"
Asel spoke with a goofy, idiotic smile plastered on his face.
...Is he having a good dream?
His face was completely full of smiles.
In this current situation.
What I had to do was clear.
I approached the defenseless bastard and quickly twisted his neck.
For some reason, he hadn't even coated himself with basic mana. His neck bone snapped instantly.
Well, technically speaking, this is my first kill. But I didn't feel like dwelling on it with sentiments like shock or sadness.
That's only natural.
After all, I knew the meaning behind the number 1201 etched on the girl's neck.
I had killed a bastard who sacrificed over a thousand people; feeling guilty about it would be the real anomaly here.
If anything, I was actually a bit dumbfounded.
'Just what the hell was this guy?'
He yelled about how I brought this upon myself, acting as if he were about to use his trump card. I had even considered using an Amulet right then and there.
But in the end, all he did was throw a pathetic tantrum by himself.
It was like struggling to reach the Boss's final phase, only for the guy to just kill himself.
It almost felt anticlimactic.
'Well, I guess I got something out of it at least.'
As long as it was a Spell Formula from the previous game, and I could break the opponent's concentration to lower its level of completion...
It was possible to Dispel the magic before it even reached me.
At this level, I might actually be able to use it in real combat from time to time, depending on the situation.
Besides... there was one more unexpected harvest.
'I never expected the Healthy Body trait to be used like this.'
I suffered a bit because of the side effects... but considering the current situation, that much was completely worth enduring.
That goes without saying.
Concentrating all my Mana into a single point during combat.
A normal person's body would have obviously failed to endure it and exploded. Yet my fist was merely throbbing, completely intact.
The implication of this was clear.
The concept of "healthiness" was applying with an insane level of versatility, far beyond what I had initially thought.
I could chow down on Elixirs—substances no different than the legendary divine pills from martial arts novels—like popcorn and still be fine.
I could overwork my arm to the point where it should have blown up entirely, and I'd remain unharmed.
The description stating that it maintained a "healthy state" was even mitigating the recoil of the Self-Destruct Skill.
What this meant was clear.
Whether it involved going on a Mana rampage or ridiculously concentrating it into a single point.
I could use such techniques as I pleased.
It meant I could spam the Self-Destruct Skill while ignoring the risks.
'Well, if I use it too much, I probably won't stay unscathed, no matter what.'
Even so, this was completely overpowered.
Obviously.
Others had to risk their lives to use it, whereas I could get away with nothing more than a mild case of body aches.
It was a legal cheat, plain and simple.
A smile naturally formed on my lips.
'Back then, I debated until the very end whether to spend an extra 50,000 won on the Premium Edition or just order chicken twice...'
Thinking back, there was no better decision I could have made.
For the price of two chickens, I got one Healthy Body trait and one Sovereign's Grace trait.
The more I thought about it, the crazier of a deal it seemed.
That was especially true when I considered the fact that I would have died long ago without it.
'I really need to collect more traits somehow.'
I couldn't help but think that.
Rare traits were a dime a dozen.
A trash trait that couldn't even block a single Sleep Magic spell was demonstrating this level of performance right now.
I had used up all my choices, but that didn't mean the methods to acquire traits had completely disappeared.
I'd gather companions and slowly build up my strength.
Reorganizing my plans like that, I stared at the bastard's corpse... and soon noticed something.
The sword that had somehow ended up in his grasp.
Only then did I finally understand the whole story.
I wondered why that bastard suddenly threw a fit and charged at me like a madman. So it was because of this.
Well, if it was that thing, it wasn't strange that I hadn't noticed it.
'Because I really am completely fine.'
Thinking back on how Asel threw a fit and Rubia's reaction last time, it seemed to be emitting a highly dangerous Curse.
From my perspective, it was just a broken piece of junk sword.
I couldn't feel any kind of Curse at all.
Because that sort of thing was all treated as a Mental Attack.
It wasn't for nothing that I chose the Sovereign's Grace trait.
This development company really does love Cthulhu-esque things.
Going insane just by looking at it, having your mind polluted... Just how many times did I experience that while playing the previous game?
As expected, Mental Attack resistance was essential.
Satisfied with the judgment I made last time, I looked back at the sword.
'So what should I do about this?'
It was only natural to think that.
The sword was radiating an ominous black light. I couldn't physically feel it, but a Curse was probably spreading throughout the surroundings.
I hoped the kids had escaped properly, but if they hadn't run far enough, there was a chance they could get caught up in it.
Which meant it was better to deal with it as quickly as possible.
And in my mind, there was only one way to deal with this.
'Well, I just have to Purify it somehow.'
It was an obvious conclusion.
Of course, I couldn't say the Holy Sword in this state was completely useless, but...
'Where the hell am I supposed to use a sword that gets stronger the more it curses the world?'
It was a feature that couldn't be used properly unless you were a seriously twisted individual.
I could probably use it as a Mental Attack by utilizing the fact that it spewed out a Curse, but...
That would just be a hassle.
Obviously.
How the hell was I supposed to walk around carrying a Cursed sword that killed everyone nearby?
If it were Ciel, she might somehow be able to endure it. But if it were Ms. Rubia, she would drop dead the second she got close.
Unless I planned to live completely isolated from society for the rest of my life, I couldn't exactly walk around carrying a sword like this.
Conversely, the Divine Power that the Holy Sword originally possessed was exactly what I needed right now.
If the world were to fall into danger, it would highly likely be tied to the Demon or the Demon King.
To oppose them, I at least needed a fully functional Holy Sword.
'...But how the hell am I supposed to Purify this?'
I felt like everything had gone dark before my eyes.
Even in the previous game, they showed how to corrupt it, but never how to Purify it.
It corrupted when the user cursed everything in the world, so should I try the exact opposite?
If I grabbed the Holy Sword with a heart full of love for everything in the world, would something change?
No, wait. It's not like I'm pathologically philanthropic in the first place, am I?
My head spun with all sorts of random thoughts.
However, since no other methods came to mind, I let out a sigh and grabbed the Holy Sword.
And then....
"......?"
A dark undulation suddenly crept up my arm.
Before I could even grasp the situation, the black aura had completely seeped into me.
The blade now radiated a soft, brilliant light.
The Holy Sword had been perfectly Purified.
...My mind went completely blank.
Why did this suddenly work? More importantly, what the hell just happened?
I fell into a panic, pondering over it for a long time... but in the end, no matter how much I thought about it, I couldn't figure out why this had happened.
The only thing left was the incredibly convenient result of the Holy Sword being Purified the moment I touched it.
I didn't feel anything wrong with my body, either.
Something about this kept bothering me, but....
That didn't mean I could spend my entire life obsessing over a problem with no clear answer.
I eventually stowed the Holy Sword away and set off to find the children.
Just why was it?
Saving slaves, disposing of villains, and Purifying a Holy Sword—I was walking the very path a protagonist should take.
Yet, I couldn't shake the feeling that I had taken a massive wrong turn somewhere.
I had absolutely no idea.
******
[Sovereign's Grace absorbs the energy of the Corrupted Holy Sword.]
[...Sovereign's Grace has unlocked the possibility of evolving into ■■'s ■.]
[Your Spiritual Rank approaches ■■.]
[A critical error has been detected.]
[Resetting the Destiny Path.]