Chapter 175
Chapter 175
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 175
Chapter Title: Piran’s Resolve
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The consciousness that had departed the Resonance World returned to reality.
Leyzon slowly opened his eyes.
There, he saw the sky already beginning to darken.
At his side were Syria and Eden.
Syria had reverted to her bat form, and Eden to his cursed doll shape.
Both had returned to their original states due to the aftermath of the undead fusion.
“Ah, Lord Leyzon!”
Hanok, who had been quietly watching over him, broke into a bright smile.
“Hm, you’re awake?”
Pauli approached as well upon seeing Leyzon stir.
“Ugh... my body aches.”
“I’m so tired...”
Leyzon slowly rose, cradling Syria and Eden in his arms.
In the distance, he spotted Flame Head, who had been giving Mosna a lap pillow.
“Flame Head.”
At Leyzon’s call, Flame Head opened his eyes.
He pressed a hand to his forehead as he sat up.
Flame Head’s eyes were tightly furrowed.
The situation had grown complicated.
He had finally restored the Resonance World, only for Firshran to fall into an Evil Vein rampage.
‘Firshran’s body died long ago.’
Without a physical form, a soul would eventually exhaust its power and dissipate over time.
To endure even a little longer, she had kept her consciousness dimmed.
But now, driven mad by the Evil Vein, she was pouring out her power uncontrollably.
One wrong move, and her soul might deplete entirely and vanish.
Leyzon wanted to prevent that at all costs.
Firshran’s Resonance World was made for her son, Piran.
A place crafted in the hope that Piran would one day enter it.
He couldn’t let such a place crumble.
“Pack up. We’re heading to Sahā Village right now.”
Time was of the essence.
Leyzon glanced back at Pauli while securing Syria and Eden.
“I don’t know what’s going on, but I’ll get ready immediately!”
Pauli began hastily constructing a mobile fortress.
In the meantime, Flame Head approached Leyzon.
“Abyss, do you know how to break a dark elf’s Evil Vein?”
The innate trait of dark elves, the Evil Vein.
It was akin to their ultimate technique, and the name wasn’t given lightly.
“Dark elves are the race that absorbed the most power from the transcendent beings.”
So that was it.
Only then did Leyzon understand why dark elves were born with the Evil Vein.
‘It was the same as with the evil dragon.’
The evil dragon had lost its reason as a consequence of absorbing too many nutrients.
Dark elves were no different.
‘Perhaps the dark elves’ innate affinity for darkness...’
It might refer to their affinity for transcendent power.
An affinity that allowed them to draw strength from the corpses of transcendent beings.
But the creations born from those corpses couldn’t handle that power.
As a result, the unique trait known as the Evil Vein emerged.
“The rampage of the Resonance World’s master stems from an excessive concentration of transcendent power. What do you plan to do?”
Flame Head conveyed that he had no idea how to stop the rampage.
“I don’t know either.”
And Leyzon didn’t know the solution either.
If he could resolve the Evil Vein, he wouldn’t have chosen to be a half-dark elf.
The very reason he opted for half-dark elf was precisely because he couldn’t deal with the Evil Vein.
But that didn’t mean he intended to sit idle.
“My human bloodline is the dominant one.
That’s why the Evil Vein never manifested in me, and I couldn’t research a way to suppress it.”
The reason Leyzon’s skin wasn’t like a typical dark elf’s.
It was because his human bloodline proportion was higher.
For half-dark elves, a higher dark elf ratio resulted in darker skin and inheritance of the Evil Vein.
Thus, Leyzon had minimized his dark elf side.
He simply had no clue how to handle the Evil Vein.
“Moreover, with dark elves nearly extinct, there’s even less opportunity to study it.”
Dark elves in this world were all but wiped out.
The Crawling Ossuary had slain them all.
Only one remained in the world now.
Yet exactly one.
Leyzon knew of someone born with the Evil Vein.
“The Resonance World’s master, Firshran, has a son. His dark elf blood is the stronger half.”
Piran could manifest the Evil Vein.
His deep skin tone was proof.
So Leyzon planned to find Piran and research a solution to the Evil Vein.
“Flame Head, you said the Evil Vein is transcendent power, right?”
“Yes.”
“Not long ago, I purged transcendent power from someone.”
Flame Head’s eyes slowly widened.
His expression screamed that such a thing was impossible.
But it was possible.
Recently, with the land beast Carmen afflicted by the Black Plague.
That Black Plague had been power planted by a malevolent transcendent being.
Auto-Evolving Undead Creation [?EX].
If he turned Piran into an undead, he could control the Evil Vein.
Of course, the situation differed greatly from the Black Plague case.
The Black Plague was a curse-like power.
Thus, changing the afflicted’s race had made it easier to cope.
‘There’s no guarantee it’ll work on the Evil Vein.’
However, Leyzon wasn’t acting without basis.
‘The Evil Vein doesn’t manifest when the dark elf ratio decreases against the human side.’
In other words, escaping dark elf nature would prevent the Evil Vein from manifesting.
If Firshran became an undead, she could escape the Evil Vein.
This story lent credence to the hypothesis.
Even so, failure remained a possibility.
Thus, testing it on someone else first was necessary.
“Of course, it depends on whether the kid agrees.”
He intended to ask the person himself.
It might be a cruel tale for a child.
But no one could remain a child forever.
Life’s crossroads of choice came to everyone eventually.
The decision was always theirs alone.
Especially if it concerned their parents.
“Lord Leyzon, it’s ready!”
In the interim, Pauli completed the mobile fortress.
A golem made of stone and wood stood there.
Its appearance evoked a rhinoceros.
As Leyzon approached, its belly opened, revealing stairs.
Without delay, he boarded with Hanok.
Flame Head and Mosna followed behind.
Flame Head didn’t oppose Leyzon’s idea.
He had no better options anyway.
“We’re off.”
It was a long journey.
Time to return to the outpost, Sahā Village.
Pauli’s mobile fortress prioritized speed.
As such, it raced forward at tremendous velocity.
Yet despite the rough motion outside, the interior remained remarkably serene.
Pauli had considered internal stability in its construction.
“Better than Syria’s shadow wolf.”
“Oh? Say that again, Eden.”
As Syria and Eden bickered, Sahā Village came into view.
It was worth hurrying Pauli along.
They arrived far sooner than expected.
“Pauli, set us down nearby. We’ll switch straight to Syria’s shadow.”
“Got it!”
No time to go via the gatekeeper like last time.
He had sent a letter via Poison Spider on the way.
Piran should be waiting by now.
Leyzon pulled a mask from his bag.
He promptly secured it over his face.
“Ah.”
A sigh unexpectedly escaped from behind.
Turning, he saw Mosna there.
Realizing she had let it slip, Mosna covered her mouth.
“It’s just... such a shame.”
With the mask on, Leyzon’s face took on a fierce, ugly scowl unlike before.
Mosna licked her lips regretfully, her eyes full of longing.
Her eyes had feasted so pleasantly, only for it to vanish.
“Finally getting a taste for it, huh.”
Syria nodded vigorously beside Leyzon.
“Lord Leyzon is way cooler than that freeloading brother of yours.”
“Oh? I can’t let that slide. Sure, Abyss is impressive, but Rock Road’s looks are no slouch either.”
For some reason, Syria and Mosna began a staring contest.
Leyzon ignored it.
He simply rehearsed the conversation he’d have with Piran.
Afterward, the group safely infiltrated Sahā Village.
The Steel Wolf Guild members guarded it diligently, but Syria’s shadow was unstoppable.
They easily reached the back of the Steel Wolf Guild headquarters.
It was late, so the streets were quiet.
Even those working night shifts were heading in to rest.
Thanks to that, Leyzon moved without drawing eyes.
Sahā Village had grown enormously in that short time.
Pauli must have worked tirelessly on it.
The city’s scale itself had changed.
‘Hard to even recall its old dungeon village days.’
Noticing Leyzon’s gaze, Pauli puffed up with pride.
“Built to my designs, it’ll run smoothly for the next thousand years.”
The pride of a moving black castle.
“Good work.”
Leyzon praised Pauli as he opened the door to the Steel Wolf Guild headquarters.
The headquarters was unusually quiet today.
It was dawn, but Rafila had sent everyone home early.
The true master of the Steel Wolf Guild had returned.
No disturbances allowed.
“Lord Leyzon, you’ve arrived.”
“Safe travels from afar; you must be weary.”
Rafila and the Five greeted Leyzon personally.
Rafila’s under-eyes were dark from recent busyness.
But his face beamed.
He felt the Steel Wolf Guild’s growth daily.
“Lord Leyzon.”
Beside him stood a very welcome face.
Leyzon smiled warmly upon seeing him.
A strikingly handsome young man.
The Dragon King, Estelle Aragon.
Leyzon’s undead was there.
“Estelle, long time no see. Feeling freed from the nest?”
“Yes, much better.”
Estelle smiled back.
“Whoa, he’s really out here.”
“It’s Estelleee.”
“Hm, feels like a reunion after ages.”
Syria, Eden, and Pauli chimed in.
Thus, all former undead gathered except Tessa.
Leyzon felt immensely secure.
Though to others, it looked like a calamity clustered together.
“So, where’s Poison Spider?”
“Waiting inside. I’ll guide you.”
Estelle was the most courteous of the undead.
He politely led Leyzon onward.
Passing through the expanded Steel Wolf Guild corridors, they reached a guest room.
Leyzon entered through the door Estelle opened.
There, two familiar faces awaited.
One was the elf whose throat Leyzon had restored, Poison Spider.
The other, a young half-dark elf boy, Piran.
Poison Spider glanced pityingly at Piran before meeting Leyzon’s eyes.
“Ah, Lord Leyzon.”
“Poison Spider, it’s been a while since we’ve met face-to-face.”
“Yes, time flies.”
Leyzon had much to discuss with Poison Spider.
But other matters took priority.
Leyzon sat before Piran.
Piran sat rigidly in place.
He’d grown a bit since last time.
He seemed more composed now.
“Piran, you’ve heard the story from Poison Spider, right?”
He had informed Poison Spider in advance, so Piran knew of the crisis.
His dead mother faced peril once more.
To resolve it, Piran had to take the test.
“I won’t force you. Tell me your honest feelings.”
Piran silently stared at Leyzon for a moment.
Then he clenched his fists tightly.
“Lord Leyzon, when I was little, even when Mom left me with my master to save me, I couldn’t do anything.”
Piran had been even younger when entrusted to Poison Spider.
He hadn’t understood the situation at all.
But time revealed it was his last moment with his mother.
“Now, I have a chance to redo that regret from that day.”
Piran’s ash-gray eyes met Leyzon’s.
The boy’s resolve shone like stars in the sky.
A mother would pluck stars from the heavens for her son.
A son could become that star for his mother.
Leyzon smiled gently.
“Piran, your mother might scold you if she thinks your choice is wrong.”
Mothers always wished their children safe.
They’d do anything to keep their child from harm, especially for their sake.
“I’ll take all the blame.”
Children choose; adults bear the responsibility.
As an adult, Leyzon vowed to shoulder Piran’s choice.
“Let’s save Firshran.”
At Leyzon’s words, Piran nodded vigorously, overcome with emotion.
“Yes!”
Today, they would resolve the Evil Vein.