Chapter 62
Chapter 62
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 62
Chapter Title: Reclaiming the Daughter Offered to the Transcendent Evil
-----------------------------------------------------------------
To Eden's regret, this was something that couldn't be carried out right away.
To reclaim her, several preconditions were necessary.
Until those conditions were met, it was impossible to revive her daughter.
"Leyzon, it's okay. As long as I can get her back, I'll do anything."
Eden no longer despaired.
She had spent decades in despair.
Now, she had finally regained hope.
There was no way she'd give up over something like this.
Leyzon smiled.
Just as one would expect from his undead—she was endlessly positive.
"To get her back, there's one crucial condition first."
In fact, it was practically essential.
"We need to find Tessa."
The ghost bride, Tessa Miriji.
He didn't know why she had told Eden that story.
But to interfere with the Transcendent Evil in the spirit world, Tessa was necessary.
Tessa was the one who had complicated things.
But Tessa was also the one who could resolve them.
The way to find Tessa, who roamed the spirit world freely.
"Let's think about that step by step."
Right now, even Leyzon couldn't think of anything.
Eden nodded.
For Eden, just receiving hope from Leyzon was enough.
"Come to think of it, I've only heard your story, Eden."
Leyzon gazed at her with a smile playing on his lips.
Now it was time for their story.
"Eden, let's evolve you."
"Huh?"
It was time for evolution.
Eden.
Eden was a doll of darkness and curses.
So, what was needed to evolve such an Eden?
Of course, Leyzon had already looked up Eden's evolution conditions in advance.
"It's a vial containing a Phantasmal Beast's curse."
Leyzon pulled out a vial of curse.
Among Phantasmal Beasts, there were rare ones that wielded curses.
Their curses could be contained in specially treated vials, just like skills.
The use for these curses was simple.
'Debuffs.'
Debuffs that whittled down the enemy.
In Dungeon Replay, debuffs had great efficacy.
There were even specialized classes like Curse Weavers for them.
Since debuffs were practically essential in the late game, Leyzon was quite knowledgeable about curses.
"I came in a hurry, so I didn't bring a ton."
Leyzon pulled out the curse vials one by one with a regretful expression.
"...Is this 'a little'?"
But in reality, the number of vials Leyzon produced seemed endless.
The curses he pulled out easily surpassed a hundred vials.
"I didn't know which curse would evolve you, so I brought as many as possible."
Earlier, Leyzon had evolved two undead.
In those processes, most of their evolution conditions involved Phantasmal Beasts.
'Or people like me.'
Syria had evolved by consuming Leyzon's blood.
This meant humans could also serve as evolution conditions.
From this, Leyzon drew several conclusions.
'Phantasmal Beasts and humans aren't all that different, aside from their forms.'
Humans wield skills.
Phantasmal Beasts embody skills.
Of course, humans grew stronger through the Ascension mechanic.
But Phantasmal Beasts born in dungeons were granted power similarly.
Dungeons were still enigmatic labyrinths.
The mechanisms for Phantasmal Beasts and humans weren't so different.
If dungeons dominated Phantasmal Beasts.
Then the Empire dominated humans.
'In a way.'
Leyzon looked up at the sky.
This world might be one giant dungeon.
A dungeon managed by the Empire.
'The Empire's downfall—does it mean someone clears the Empire dungeon?'
The Empire's downfall was still shrouded in mystery.
Leyzon continued stockpiling power with it in mind.
And for that, evolving his undead was essential.
"Here, try one."
It's delicious. Go on, eat up.
As Leyzon handed over a vial, Eden accepted it in her doll form.
Eden hopped down from Leyzon carefully.
Moments later, she returned to her humanoid form.
Eden donned the clothes Radis had gifted her.
They were stained with blood.
But Eden wore them preciously.
They were everything to her.
Eden uncorked the curse vial.
Then she began gulping it down.
The curse seeped into Eden's body.
"Hah."
After swallowing the entire curse, Eden let out a long breath.
She licked her lips with her long tongue and blinked.
"How is it?"
As Leyzon asked, Eden rubbed her belly.
Eden's face took on a languid expression.
Blood sugar spike.
No, curse spike?
"It feels like something's filling up inside."
Leyzon handed her the next vial.
"Want to keep going?"
"Sure."
Eden's response grew a bit more spirited.
She had noticed the change too.
Eden continued swallowing the curses.
After the fifth vial.
"Oh."
Changes began in Eden's body.
Straw started sprouting from Eden's arms.
Eden stared at her arms in surprise, where the straw had emerged.
Straw poked out from between her clothes.
"Ah, my clothes."
As Eden hurriedly tried to cover the straw.
"Eden, hold on."
Leyzon stopped her.
Then the straw began absorbing the bloodstains on her clothes.
Eden's eyes widened gradually.
Before she knew it, her clothes had returned to their original state.
Leyzon realized what it was.
'Restoration.'
A skill Eden had newly awakened upon evolving.
A skill that repaired everything broken.
Originally for equipment with heavy durability costs.
But now in reality.
The clothes gifted by Radis activated the Restoration skill as equipment.
"Ah."
A sigh escaped Eden's lips.
The tattered, blood-soaked clothes.
Had become like new.
A white shirt topped with a black jacket.
And a gray coat enveloping it all.
The impeccably neat suit suited Eden perfectly.
It was truly made just for her.
Eden raised her head.
Deep within her pupils.
The memory she had recalled countless times resurfaced.
Radis gifting her the clothes.
The radiant smile full of happiness on her face.
It filled Eden's eyes completely.
Drip—
A tear fell from Eden's eye.
It had once been murky with debt.
But not anymore.
Her tears now shone clearer than anything in the world.
"...Thank you."
Eden finally smiled in front of Leyzon.
"Leyzon, thank you so much."
A flower of laughter bloomed amid her tears.
Leyzon smiled along with Eden.
Indeed, nothing was more precious than a smile.
Leyzon's third undead.
The moment Iden Ufera completed her evolution.
The evolved Eden returned to her small doll form.
The clothes she wore were carefully stored in Leyzon's bag.
She didn't want to dirty the now-clean clothes just yet.
Suddenly, both Eden and Syria sat on Leyzon's shoulders.
Whenever Leyzon shrugged.
They balanced perfectly without falling.
Hanok watched them, tail swishing.
It seemed the cat's instinct to knock things off high places was kicking in.
If they fell, Hanok would die to the two of them.
Never let them fall.
"Then, on the way, let's check something. Eden, what skills do you have?"
Eden didn't yet know that upon evolving, her skills would be shared with Leyzon.
So, despite her confusion, she patiently explained to Leyzon.
After hearing all the skill descriptions, Leyzon raised his hand.
"I see. So it's like this."
At that moment, darkness rose from Leyzon's grasp.
Darkness Descent [C].
And one more.
Leyzon snapped his fingers.
Letters infused with curses adorned the sky before vanishing.
Curse Inscription [C].
The two skills connected.
Surprise flickered in Eden's eyes.
Soon, she turned to Syria.
"Hehe, I was the first to share my skills with Leyzon!"
Syria puffed out her chest proudly.
It was just a tiny bat acting smug.
But it was cute, so it was fine.
"Then the skills Leyzon was using."
"Yeah, Estelle shared hers upon evolving too."
Leyzon demonstrated Aura of Deception and Dragon Scales as a test.
He was completing a glass cannon build by combining these skills through elemental fusion.
"And Restoration is shared too."
Straw sprouted from Leyzon's arm.
As an equipment-related skill, it wouldn't see much immediate use.
But thinking ahead, it had plenty of applications.
'Above all.'
There were a few things worth testing with Restoration.
If that succeeded, it could yield unimaginable results.
"Are my skills helpful?"
As Eden asked cautiously, Leyzon grinned suspiciously.
"Heh heh heh, shall we test it?"
He itched to try it right now.
Leyzon finalized his new necromancer glass cannon build.
As it was an entirely novel build, Leyzon was immensely interested.
Leyzon laughed like a scientist obsessed with explosions.
I want to fire it.
I want to blast it.
I want to blast anything!
Grip—
Hanok restrained such a Leyzon.
"Leyzon, elves are coming from ahead."
Hanok's sensitive nose had picked up the elves' scent.
Leyzon regained some rationality.
He looked up, spotting two elves approaching from afar.
Elf Search Captain, Zid Agrasil.
Poison Spider, Niafrine Agrasil.
With the dark clouds that blanketed the sky gone.
They had come to check if things were finished.
Leyzon raised his hand toward them.
To signal that the job was well done.
"Hey."
At that moment, Search Captain Zid spoke up.
"The Empire forces are coming!"
Leyzon froze the hand he had raised upon hearing his voice.
On the way from Nosys to here, Eden had caused major disturbances in several villages.
Of course, Eden hadn't killed anyone.
She had only sought out necromancers to check if they were Leyzon.
But the darkness and curses she spread instilled terror in the people.
As a result, massive uproar ensued.
'A natural progression.'
Until now, the commotions had been confined within Nosys.
But this time, Eden had moved openly outside.
The Empire forces had no choice but to mobilize.
Still, Leyzon had no intention of leaving the World Forest immediately.
After all, a dungeon remained in the World Forest.
'Above all, I need to squeeze more out of these elves while they're desperate.'
However, if they were Empire forces after Eden, they'd likely have considerable numbers.
"Eden, can you shake off the Empire forces and come back?"
Leyzon asked Eden, and the doll perked up.
"I absolutely won't get caught."
Eden flashed a spirited smile with her languid voice.
She had fully returned to her old self.
That confidence was enough.
"Poison Spider."
Leyzon called out to the Poison Spider.
Her eyes widened as she rushed toward them.
"See you in ten days."
The moment Leyzon said that, he was enveloped in darkness and vanished.