Chapter 8
Chapter 8
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 1
Chapter Title: Gotta Do What Needs Doing
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Blackened Greatsword
The greatsword of the Rotten Knight Veronine, who once served the Sun Maiden Heriel. The blood and screams of the Mortals he slew still cling to it. Not even its elegant decorations or golden prayers could wash away the slaughter, which sickened its master—and the blade blackened in his wake.
Sarabella began running her fingertips along the side of the greatsword. She let out a steady breath, as if lost in deep thought...
"We should express our gratitude to you, Mortal."
She turned back to me with a smile. Her red lips and cheeks stood out strikingly against her snow-white skin, creating an utterly unique and exotic aura.
"When he returns, I'll be sure to tell him all about you, Mortal. Thanks to you, this long-standing grudge has finally come to an end."
Sarabella referred to Veronine as a "grudge." This blue-tinted monastery seemed to walk a path opposed to the community Veronine belonged to.
Here, they summoned Mortals. Veronine and his forces killed them.
But it was still too soon to decide who were the good guys and who were the bad. It was true that the monastery folk had helped me level up, and it was equally true that Sarabella and the other nuns were stunningly beautiful...
"He'll be absolutely delighted too."
I couldn't judge rashly.
An unsettling aura still lingered in the monastery.
"Aaagh! No!"
A woman's scream even echoed from the end of the corridor over there.
The nuns walking past the vast great hall quickened their steps. They headed straight toward the source of the cry.
"No! Kyaaagh!"
Her piercing shriek reverberated through every corner of the monastery, and the smile on the abbess's lips vanished in an instant. Something was clearly going down.
I took the greatsword back from the abbess and started walking toward the screams.
"I'll come with you, Mortal."
Sarabella followed behind me. Not just her—all the other nuns around the great hall, dutifully carrying out their tasks, trailed after that voice.
"No! I said no!"
Finally reaching the source, the first thing that entered our view was a woman being dragged unceremoniously by two nuns, thrashing about pathetically.
The nuns were trying to haul her out, but she kept deliberately collapsing and flopping backward to resist.
Her clothes didn't suit the world of Deathcall at all. Tears streaming down her ruined face, she kept screaming and writhing.
"I'm not leaving yet! Let gooo!"
A modern human. One of the nineteen summoned alongside me.
I could roughly guess what was happening.
She'd realized the monastery was safe from enemy attacks and was throwing a fit to stay.
"Y-Yeah! I was gonna leave on my own once I was ready! Who are you to drag us out?!"
No, she wasn't alone. Two other men and women were already being evicted near the entrance, causing a ruckus.
"Let us back in!"
"We're not going yet...! You fucking bastards!"
Sarabella quietly rubbed her forehead with a wry smile. Then she turned to me, who'd been silently observing beside her.
"This is how it usually goes."
I gave an awkward smile in return. But I didn't find them embarrassing.
"Couldn't you let them stay a bit longer?"
"Impossible."
Even though we'd risked death to reach this place, the monastery folk were ruthlessly strict.
"This is a monastery, not a shelter."
The abbess Sarabella's serene smile only made me more uneasy.
"W-Wait! Just a sec! Waittt!"
The woman being dragged finally shook off the two nuns and desperately crawled right up to me and the abbess...
"Sis, c-can I become a nun or something? Then I could stay longer, right?"
She came up with a pretty clever solution.
But Sarabella didn't spare the begging woman at her feet a single glance. She showed her beautiful face only to me.
"Sisters? What are you doing? See these departing Mortals off properly."
Five nuns piled onto the wailing, tantrum-throwing woman. She couldn't resist anymore and was forcibly expelled from the monastery.
"Aaagh! You fucking bitch! You crazy whore...!"
But I hadn't been kicked out yet. The nuns simply stayed quietly by my side, awaiting the abbess's decision.
"Mortal."
Sarabella personally adjusted and retied the red scarf around my neck.
"The Blessed Land is diseased. Blessings aren't given equally and fairly to all. That's just how the world works."
Her touch was gentle.
"Where eternal life and blessings rain down more intensely, only suffering and tragedy grow. Go south, Mortal. There are beings waiting for the death you'll bring them."
Had she said the same to the other Mortals who'd come to the monastery?
Could I trust her and this place?
"Head to Lord Magius's domain. It's overflowing with corrupted blessings. Please grant them death—and bring those blessings back here?"
Sarabella waved me off. The nuns gathered behind her bowed their heads silently in farewell.
"We'll be waiting. If you truly bring back that corruption, then I'll tell you much more, Mortal."
I slowly walked out of the monastery.
There was no reason to stay, and no way to linger anyway.
Leveling up was done, and I'd already figured out Deathcall's main goal.
According to Sarabella, places where blessings gathered thickest hosted powerful bosses.
I had to defeat them, seize the corrupted blessings, and bring them back to the monastery.
"..."
Of course, I had no intention of buying into such surface-level objectives. I'd uncover new truths as my journey continued.
I might even end up opposing the monastery.
But for now, I moved forward.
South toward the monastery, into the territory ruled by a lord named Magius, to investigate the events there and take down the boss.
The monastery had its shady corners, but it was clear Sarabella and her nuns helped Mortals. If I showed "results," they'd see me off warmly like today and remain allies.
But conversely, if I achieved nothing or lost the will to fight, I'd end up treated like those three players expelled from the monastery.
"Sob, ugh..."
Just then, those three came into view. Barely across the bridge, they sat slumped in the field ahead, drowning in despair.
One of them even glared at me fiercely.
But the one who spoke first was the woman who looked least composed.
The one who'd wailed and raged to the bitter end, refusing to leave the monastery.
"Hey."
She approached with a face twisted between tears and laughter. Her quavering voice dripped with self-mockery and emptiness over our plight.
"You're human too, right? I know you. You're that guy who came with us. The one in full armor from the start, like some monster."
Good memory. But she wasn't greeting me warmly—she shot to her feet and marched up, mocking me with a shout.
"Checked the internet yet? Get your head straight and listen up. We're all fucked. It's game over for everyone. Haha! Ugh!"
She clearly didn't like how casually I'd strolled out.
I tried slipping away quietly to avoid provoking her...
"The devs are killing themselves, and some are even missing! Hear that? You listening? Huh?!"
She yelled at my back like a parting shot.
The two others sitting nearby hung their heads, heaving deep, dark sighs.
"And now there's a fire at the company—game recovery's impossible! Servers are glitching too! Hahahaha!"
...Useful info.
I hadn't had time to check online, so she'd given me a bit more intel.
I'd planned to head straight south, but her words made me pause.
What did that mean? Was something happening in the real world too?
"So if you don't wanna wander and die, think about busting back into that monastery with us first. We can't survive outside. If we die wrong out here, we'll turn into those crazy monsters too!"
The woman spewed her realizations in a jumble.
"Yes. Thanks for the info."
I listened to it all, turned briefly to thank her for the heads-up, then resumed walking south.
"Heehee, hic... Fuck... Those monsters trying to kill us? They were people. You know that? You and that pig, the guys—you killed people who came before us! We'll turn into that if we keep dying. You murdered people! Murderer...!"
Yet she followed, railing at me accusingly.
She hated how calmly I just nodded and tried to leave.
"..."
But as I stood silently watching her, her tirade finally petered out.
She stared at me wide-eyed in disbelief.
"...You're not even fazed?"
"No. It's really sad and confusing. But gotta do what needs doing."
Unfortunately, there was only one thing I could say to her.
"So you roll and fight smart too, ma'am. If that's too tough, stick to ranged weapons."
Everyone fights their best.
Strive to clear the game.
"Anyway, stay safe and don't turn into a Wraith. Rest up when it's rough. Fighting to you three."