Chapter 285: Lainella's Fate is Decided by Lainella (78)
Chapter 285: Lainella's Fate is Decided by Lainella (78)
There was at least one piece of good news.
The emergency treatment was finished, so I no longer felt like I was on the verge of death.
Even so, the metallic scent of blood was rising in my throat once more.
I forced my leaden body to its feet, swaying unsteadily.
Yuren hurriedly drew his sword and shouted.
"Ian, run! These things aren't interested in me anyway!"
He was right.
The corpses were already baring their teeth and surging toward me.
Because of the thick mist, I couldn't expect any long-range support.
I raised my hand axe and smashed the skull of one of the corpses.
Splat. Blood sprayed everywhere, releasing a foul, putrid stench.
Then, dragging my heavy legs, I began to run.
I dealt with the corpses that lunged at me from time to time using my sword and axe.
Even this would have been impossible without the Saintess's assistance.
Of course, no matter how hard I tried, I was still nothing more than a critically injured patient.
Eventually, unable to handle the swarming corpses, I had to throw myself aside.
Thud. The corpses' claws slammed into the spot where I had just been standing.
Still sprawled on the ground, I hurled my hand axe.
Pop! Pop! The heads of two corpses burst satisfyingly. Catching the returning hand axe, I staggered back to my feet.
Before I knew it, the corpses had surrounded me.
Unpleasant sounds scraped through the monsters' throats.
I let out a dry chuckle.
Just when I thought it was finally over, it seemed I was wrong.
The corpses lunged off the ground, and I spent a long time grappling and rolling with them.
Every time a silver arc was drawn, corpses were sliced apart.
The severed pieces wriggled, waiting for their bodies to regenerate. I crushed the skull of another lunging corpse with my hand axe.
I threw the hand axe to take down two more while simultaneously swinging my sword.
Yet, there was no end to them.
Finally, my stamina hit rock bottom, and I collapsed to my knees, gasping for air.
There were still dozens of corpses left.
I thought reinforcements would arrive if I held out, but it was taking too long. That point was deeply questionable, but I soon stopped thinking about it.
A desperate crisis was right before my eyes.
Even at the very end, the Corpse Giant was of no help to me.
Just as I gripped my sword hilt tightly with trembling hands—
One of the corpses charged at me like a battering ram.
Even though I swung my sword, I couldn't prevent the severed corpse from slamming into my body. While I was stumbling back, other corpses lunged and swarmed over me.
Squelch. My sword pierced the chest of a corpse that had climbed on top of me.
I hurriedly shoved it off, but the remaining corpses were far too agile.
In the end, I had to kick them away and retreat hastily.
My body was already a wreck.
I caught my ragged breath and tried to steady my fading consciousness.
Dozens of corpses approached me, their blood-red eyes gleaming.
If only I could get rid of them... just them.
Then I could wipe away every trace of the Evil God from my home.
Just as that regret failed to align with my blurring mind—
My nerves suddenly stood on end.
It was a strange sensation.
Dozens of corpses were aiming for me right in front of my eyes, yet I found myself looking behind me instead.
It felt as if time had stopped.
No, it wasn't an illusion.
A slash tore through the frozen spacetime.
A pure white severance.
The thick mist was completely swept away.
The scene revealed beyond it was nothing short of hideous.
There were at least dozens more corpses approaching from behind me. The corpses that had made up the body of the Corpse Giant were that numerous.
But those hundreds of corpses couldn't even manage a twitch.
Pure white trajectories were etched across their bodies.
I was the only one free from those lines that cut through the world in straight paths.
Amidst the corpses that had lost all momentum, the sound of footsteps echoed.
Someone was walking toward me.
It was a middle-aged man clad in a jet-black uniform.
He held a single sword in his hand, and it was clear that he was the one who had orchestrated this miracle.
My intuition told me so.
The man adjusted his leather gloves and apologized to me.
"……I am sorry."
And then, the blocked flow of time resumed.
Blood and flesh scattered like fireworks.
Yet, not a single speck of filth touched the clothes of the middle-aged man walking through the gore.
The erupting blood and flesh almost looked like a fanfare welcoming him.
Eventually, he stopped in front of me.
"I ran here with all my might, but it seems I am a bit late."
With those words, the man silently surveyed the surroundings.
The traces of destruction left everywhere bore witness to the desperate struggle that had taken place here.
Finally, a faint smile played on his lips.
It was a smile of satisfaction, yet one that carried a strange sense of competitiveness.
"That was an impressive performance, Ian Percus… On my honor, I will surely reward you."
Blood pattered down like rain as the mist dispersed.
The severed corpses showed no signs of regeneration.
Unable to endure any longer, I collapsed onto the ground.
I never did learn the identity of that middle-aged man.
I simply thought to myself as my consciousness faded—
If the 'Masters' I had only heard stories about actually existed, surely he was one of them.
And so, I lost consciousness.
It took a full month before I opened my eyes again.
Without knowing anything that had happened in the meantime.
It was a short dream.
While I was lost in a deep slumber, my hazy mind drifted upward.
Before I knew it, I had reached an unfamiliar space.
It was a place where neither light nor darkness existed.
There was no light source, yet objects were clearly distinguishable. In fact, various scenes were playing out through the countless fissures surrounding the area.
Even looking closely, I couldn't tell what those scenes were.
However, the sounds coming from them were consistent.
Cries, screams, or noises filled with regret and a deep-seated grudge.
When I suddenly came to my senses, someone was sitting in front of me.
His black hair stood out.
It was a back that had become familiar by now.
The man didn't seem interested in me. He kept his back turned.
He was simply staring silently at a certain fissure.
Among the countless gaps surrounding the space, it was by far the largest.
Strangely, no scenes were being reflected in that one.
Nevertheless, the man was observing it intently. As if he were trying to read something within that darkness.
The man remained silent for a long time.
It was only after that he spoke to me.
"……Have you properly mastered Binding and Unbinding?"
He cut straight to the point.
It was a question that skipped even the most basic of greetings.
I considered giving a blunt response, but decided against it.
This was just how the man was.
Instead, I replied with a bitter voice.
"……Roughly?"
"If you don't fully understand Binding and Unbinding, there is no next step."
With that, the man spun his chair around and turned his gaze toward me.
I wondered how he had even created a chair in this empty space.
But I didn't make the mistake of asking about it.
The man was blunt and incredibly unkind.
He wasn't the type of person gentle enough to resolve every single one of my questions.
As always, the man had a weary look in his eyes.
"It's the same no matter how much I dig through my memories… The more profound a technique is, the more it contains a corresponding logic. From now on, shortcuts won't work."
'Profound techniques,' huh.
I recalled the things the man had mentioned before.
He had talked about the 'Esoteric Arts of the Sword Circle' and the 'Secrets of the Dragon Blood Runes.'
To be honest, I was curious, but I suppressed my questions once again.
For the same reason as before.
It was obvious he wouldn't tell me anyway.
I would only be able to receive the man's help after I had completely mastered 'Binding and Unbinding.' For now, there was no way to break his stubbornness.
So, I decided to ask a more fundamental question.
"……Where is this?"
"A gap in spacetime."
The man's answer was short and simple.
Of course, it wasn't long enough to satisfy my curiosity.
When I continued to look at him with a puzzled expression, the man added an extra explanation.
"I am an outsider to your world. Naturally, there is a limit to how long I can stay there… But I can't just return to my own world whenever I want, so I'm staying in a halfway place like this."
"Then why did I come here?"
"Obviously, it's because you peeked too much into my memories."
There was a faint trace of reproach in the man's voice.
"I told you, novice… I am nothing more than an outsider. The closer you get to me, the more you will inevitably be alienated from that place. Eventually, you might even be exiled here."
"……Can I not go back now?"
"No."
The man's voice was firm as he answered my follow-up question.
His tone carried a strange certainty that made it even more persuasive.
He let out a deep sigh and said, "You'll probably just drift in once in a while… and you won't be able to stay for long."
As he spoke, he gestured toward my lower body.
It was just as he said.
My lower body was already flickering hazily. Like a mirage on the verge of vanishing.
The man let out a long breath and bid me farewell.
"……Let's meet here from now on, novice."
Just as I was about to ask how I could find my way back here—
A fierce headache pierced my mind like an awl.
I tried to stagger backward, but my body had already scattered like smoke.
Then my vision flipped,
The world spun,
And immediately after all consciousness was submerged in darkness—
Gasping, I opened my eyes.
My dazed gaze swept across the surroundings.
It was a bedroom.
My bedroom, located within the Percus Mansion.
Only then did a sigh of relief escape my lips.
I was back.
Seeing that the Percus Mansion was intact, the territory must have also escaped destruction.
Perhaps because I had been lying down for a long time, my entire body felt weak.
It was the aftereffect of muscle loss.
It seemed I would need quite a bit of time to get my physical condition back to normal. Despite the splitting headache, I fumbled to push my upper body up.
I was thirsty.
I felt like I could drink a whole canteen of cold water right now.
But just as I was feeling frustrated because I couldn't see a water bottle anywhere—
The door opened and someone walked in.
It was a lovely girl with brown hair and blue eyes.
A woman whose large pointed hat was her most striking feature.
She was carrying something with a sorrowful expression.
A tray. On it were a wet towel and other items needed for nursing a patient.
It didn't take long for my eyes to meet Senior Elsie's.
The girl froze in her tracks.
I wondered what I should say.
In the end, I offered my usual greeting.
"……It's been a while, Senior Elsie."
Clatter! The tray Senior Elsie was holding fell to the floor.
And then, tears began to well up in her blue eyes.
She seemed to be trying to suppress her sobs, but soon, unable to hold back, she threw herself into my arms.
The scent of the girl as she buried herself against me was sweet.
I gave a bitter smile and hugged Senior Elsie back.
"Ev-everyone… hic, said you m-m-might die… I thought you were going to die, waaaaaah……."
As I stroked the back of the sobbing Senior Elsie, I thought to myself.
She thought I was going to die?
For a moment, an ominous premonition crossed my mind.
Though I shook it off, telling myself it was a useless worry.
It was a problem that wouldn't help to worry about now anyway.
For the time being, it seemed I would have to focus on comforting Senior Elsie.
And so, I returned home.
A homecoming in the truest sense.