Chapter 37 - Javier’s Desperation, Conrad’s Restraint
Javier’s Desperation, Conrad’s Restraint
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Translator: Dusky90
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: Javier’s Desperation, Conrad’s Restraint
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The reason Otto opened the [Sanctuary] so abruptly was simple.
‘If I do it like this, no one can stop me. Hehehe.’
Otto knew perfectly well that Javier and Kujo would try to assassinate him.
Rather than remaining passive and allowing himself to be struck down, he chose to open the [Sanctuary] without warning and flee.
“Camille~ I’ll be back soon~.”
After saying that, Otto slipped neatly into the [Sanctuary].
"....."
Taken aback by Otto’s abrupt action, Camille found himself momentarily speechless.
He had claimed he would open the [Sanctuary] in three days….
“H-How could this happen?”
The knight commander asked Camille.
“Uh… well….”
“How could he just open the [Sanctuary] so suddenly!”
“My apologies.”
Camille offered an apology to the knight commander.
“It appears His Highness acted on impulse.”
“Hah!”
“Please forgive us… Our Highness does tend to act on impulse from time to time.”
Camille lowered his head toward the knight commander.
“This isn’t a matter of forgiveness. I’ll report to His Grace the Grand Duke immediately. All of you, from this moment on, secure the [Sanctuary] completely! Until His Grace arrives, no one is allowed anywhere near this area! Is that clear!”
“Yes, Knight Commander!”
Having given his orders, the knight commander rushed off to make his report.
“The [Sanctuary]… it actually opened.”
At that moment, unable to resist his greed and curiosity, a knight stepped toward the wide-open entrance.
“Wai—”
Camille tried to stop him.
*Bzzzzzt!*
A barrage of flashes erupted from the wide-open entrance of the [Sanctuary], followed by a massive surge of electricity that engulfed the knight who had approached.
"......!"
"......!"
"......!"
Camille and the knights of the Kuntachi family were struck with horror as they witnessed the grim end of the reckless man.
*Shhhh!*
The knight who had approached the entrance of the [Sanctuary] had been reduced to a charred, blackened mass.
‘Only the one who opens the [Sanctuary] can go in and out. Only the first person to open it gains that right. So even if it’s opened, I’m the only one who can enter. And I’m the only one who can obtain the authority.’
Recalling Otto’s words, Camille finally breathed a sigh of relief.
“C-Careful! Do not get anywhere near it!”
“Get the body out of here!”
As the Kuntachi family’s knights rushed to remove the corpse, Conrad arrived at the [Sanctuary].
“What on earth….”
At the sight of the [Sanctuary] entrance standing wide open, Conrad was struck with disbelief.
“So the [Sanctuary] has truly opened… is the secret sealed away for a thousand years finally about to be unveiled?”
As though mesmerized, Conrad stepped toward the entrance of the [Sanctuary].
“You can’t!”
“Family Head! Please stop!”
The knights hurriedly blocked Conrad’s path and explained the dreadful incident that had just taken place.
“If it’s just a barrier, I’ll break it.”
Conrad drew his sword.
His sword, crimson like blood, was a fearsome [Demonic Sword] said to drink the blood of its foes.
*Swoosh!*
Conrad swung his demonic sword, red energy spiraling around it, attempting to break the barrier.
But it was not a wise decision.
*Slash!*
As soon as Conrad swung his blade, crimson energy shot outward and washed over the entrance of the [Sanctuary].
“Aaaargh!”
“Kraaaagh!”
The rebounding crimson currents swept over the Kuntachi family’s knights standing near the entrance of the [Sanctuary], inflicting severe damage.
“This is a disaster!”
Even though Conrad quickly tried to rein it in, nearly ten knights were left sprawled on the ground, drenched in blood.
“What exactly happened.”
“I’m not sure either.”
Camille maintained ignorance in response to Conrad’s question.
If Conrad found out that Otto had lied, his anger would be inevitable.
“Perhaps the [Sanctuary] rejects anyone who doesn’t have the key?”
“Hm.”
“For now, it seems best to wait and see.”
Though Conrad found Camille’s answer unsatisfactory, he resolved to exercise restraint.
Rather than risk causing a larger incident by interfering with the [Sanctuary], he decided to wait for Otto to come back out.
* * *
Word that Otto had opened the [Sanctuary] spread in an instant.
“Oh my!”
“So it really did open!”
The Kuntachi family’s highest-ranking members hurried over upon hearing the rumors and were left stunned by the sight of the [Sanctuary]’s entrance standing wide open.
Yet no one was more shaken than Javier and his son, Kujo.
“T-That’s impossible!!!”
“Oh my god… the [Sanctuary] opened… the [Sanctuary]….”
The moment they saw the entrance of the [Sanctuary] thrown wide open, Javier and Kujo nearly lost consciousness.
Just a few hours earlier, they had been plotting Otto’s assassination. Never in their wildest dreams had they imagined that the [Sanctuary] would truly open in that short span of time.
“We have to break the barrier and go in immediately! We don’t know what could be happening inside!”
Javier shouted desperately, arguing that they needed to force their way through the barrier and enter the [Sanctuary].
If Otto were to emerge from the [Sanctuary] wielding the Immortal Emperor’s authority, their ambition to claim the position of successor would be doomed to collapse.
“Breaking the barrier….”
Conrad saw straight through Javier’s intentions and curled his lips into a grin.
“How do you expect to break a barrier that even I couldn’t destroy? The [Sanctuary] is a place that remained unopened for a thousand years. Do you really think shattering the barrier around such a place would be so simple?”
“If we’re willing to use any means necessary….”
“Then do it yourself. Just remember, you’ll be the one bearing the consequences of whatever backlash comes from touching the barrier.”
"....."
“I’ve given my permission, so I hope you achieve good results.”
Having said his piece, Conrad turned away from the [Sanctuary].
“If anything unusual occurs, report it immediately. And should that boy emerge from the [Sanctuary], ensure he is guarded without exception. Until I return, not a single hair on his head is to be harmed. Do you understand?”
“Yes! Your Grace!”
Conrad was a prudent man.
Rather than squandering time before a [Sanctuary] he could not enter because of the barrier, he chose to withdraw.
“W-What should we do?”
Kujo whispered quietly to Javier.
“Now that the [Sanctuary] has opened, our standing within the family will be shaken greatly.”
“For now, all we can do is hope that rat bastard dies inside the [Sanctuary].”
With no effective measures at hand, Javier and Kujo resigned themselves to something akin to a desperate prayer.
As things stood, the most favorable outcome for them was Otto meeting his end through an unforeseen accident.
* * *
Meanwhile, inside the [Sanctuary], Otto stood frozen in front of a circular basin laid out before him.
The basin was empty, with what looked like a faucet installed at its center.
In front of it, words were inscribed in ancient script.
Otto couldn’t read ancient writing, yet he somehow knew exactly what it said.
‘You who have entered the [Sanctuary]… a human body cannot wield a god’s authority… submerge yourself in this basin… and you will gain a body capable of containing divine power… was that how it went?’
Thinking back to the text he had seen in a game long ago, Otto grabbed the faucet and turned it.
*Creak* *Creak*
*Gush!*
Golden liquid poured out of the faucet, quickly filling the basin.
[Notification: The 'Body Modification' quest has been triggered!]
The quest details were as follows.
[Body Modification]
Objective: Enter the basin and undergo bodily reconstruction!
Type: Hidden Quest
Level Requirement: 70
Progress: 0% (0/1)
Reward: Divine-Magical Body
Notes:
- [Divine Magical Body] denotes a physique capable of freely mastering both magic and swordsmanship.
- There is a chance of death during the bodily reconstruction process.
The [Body Modification] quest marked the first step in turning the ordinary character Otto de Scuderia into a ridiculously overpowered one.
And the quest was extremely straightforward.
All he had to do was jump straight into the basin.
But whether the quest would succeed or fail depended entirely on luck.
‘From experience, the failure rate is under one percent. There’s no way I’d fail. I’d have to be insanely unlucky.’
Thinking that, Otto lowered himself into the basin filled with golden liquid.
*Bubble!* *Bubble!*
The liquid started boiling, and an overwhelming wave of pain hit him.
“W-What is this? Why does it hurt this much… ngh… aaaaaaaargh!!!”
A bloodcurdling scream tore from Otto’s mouth.
When performing this quest in the game, Otto had never known that such pain even existed.
Then again, it would be even stranger if a player could feel the pain of a game character….
“Graaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!!!”
As searing pain consumed his entire body, Otto writhed violently, screaming until his voice threatened to give out.
The pain was so severe that he nearly abandoned the quest and tried to escape the basin.
But his body felt heavy and unresponsive, like waterlogged cotton, and the agony only grew worse by the second.
It felt as though millions of fire ants were chewing through every cell in his body.
[Notification: Body Modification in progress….]
[Notification: 1%… 2%… 3%….]
[Notification: Time remaining: 58 minutes 11 seconds….]
“I... I can’t do this… ngh… I can’t… endure this kind of pain….”
The pain was so overwhelming that Otto’s consciousness slipped away.
No matter how much knowledge he had about this world, Otto was ultimately just an ordinary modern man who had lived in South Korea on Earth.
If anything, having the mental strength to withstand this level of physical pain would have been more unnatural.
Meanwhile.
*Szzzt!* *Snap!* *Crack!*
Otto’s body continued to melt and regenerate over and over within the golden liquid.
That wasn’t the end of it.
*Swirl!* *Whooosh!*
Mana began to surge out of control.
But Otto had no way to rein in the rampaging mana.
He didn’t even know how to manipulate mana, and he certainly didn’t have the mental strength to focus and control it while enduring such overwhelming pain.
“So this is… how I… die….”
Otto could no longer keep his eyes open as they slid shut.
A fatal miscalculation.
The incident occurred because Otto had failed to account for the fact that the game [Territory War] and the reality he now faced were fundamentally different.
As a result, he paid a terrible price, suffering a catastrophic ordeal as rampaging mana tore through his entire body.
To properly obtain the [Divine Magical Body], one was supposed to control the raging mana and ensure the body’s reconstruction went smoothly….
“Seriously… this is… complete crap….”
And with those thoughts, Otto’s consciousness finally faded away.
* * *
*Whooosh!*
The rampaging mana tore through Otto’s body at a terrifying pace even as it underwent reconstruction.
Mana that should have facilitated the process instead turned lethal, actively threatening his life.
Unconscious and utterly limp, Otto could not respond, and with each passing moment, the reconstruction of his body grew increasingly unstable.
Instead of being strengthened, Otto’s bones, organs, muscles, and skin began to liquefy into the golden fluid.
At the very moment he was on the verge of dissolving completely into blood and merging with the solution.
*Wooooong!*
[Kairos’s Punishment] rose into the air, releasing a powerful, humming vibration.
*Sssss!*
Moments later, a surge of powerful energy erupted from [Kairos’s Punishment], coiling around Otto’s dissolving body.