Chapter 131: The Slanted Ceiling and the Mountain of Laughing Corpses - 3
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 131: The Slanted Ceiling and the Mountain of Laughing Corpses - 3
“…I had a feeling that might be the case. So she was connected to the Sanctum.”
For a brief moment, a flicker of hostility crossed Tyr’s eyes as she watched the Regressor. It was a reflexive animosity.
A hatred steeped in blood and etched into her very bones, a loathing and hostility as instinctual as breathing, billowed up within her.
If Tyr’s heart had still been stopped, she might have joined forces with Earth Sage to attack the Regressor. But…
“…For someone like that, she was quite pure. What is she?”
They had spent a long time together. She had shown many sides of herself.
In all that time, Tyr had never once sensed hostility or contempt from the Regressor. Only a dry chuckle at her clumsy attempts at friendship.
Three months. To Tyr, it was but a fleeting moment, yet for her, whose heart had begun to beat anew, it had been a deeply moving experience.
And so, Tyr decided not to interfere in the fight.
See, Regressor?
I know what you were worried about, but I told you I wouldn’t get involved.
Just then, the Undying, who had landed on the sea of blood with Callis, muttered as he felt the wind whipping around him.
“Hmph! I thought she was connected to the Sky God, since she uses the power of the heavens, like wind and clouds!”
“The power the Sanctum wields is not that of the Sky God. The Sky God has never bestowed any power upon humans.”
Tyr’s words, spoken by someone who had clashed with the Sanctum more than anyone else in her life, were filled with conviction. Her crimson eyes followed the invisible sword as she spoke.
“They call themselves devotees of the Sky God, yet they revere the Saintess of Origin more than the god himself. All those who came to be called Saintess after her were known by other titles, like prophet or oracle.”
“Oh? Now that you mention it, that’s true! In that case, isn’t that rather impressive? It means they built such a powerful institution without the authority of a god!”
“The power of seeing through space and time is what’s truly absurd. Hmph, a cowardly lot…”
It seemed the old grudges remained even after her heart had started beating, as Tyr muttered with clear contempt.
“In any case, there’s no way Shei is a prophet. After the Saintess of Origin was nailed to the crucifix, only women could become the Saintess. Unless he was hiding his gender… unless…?”
Just as a sudden thought made Tyr tilt her head,
“Grrrrrrr!”
Azzy, clinging to a support like a bat, barked fiercely. To her, who felt an instinctual revulsion toward human corpses, this entire land must have looked like a minefield.
Since they were already dead, stepping on or breaking them wouldn't be a problem, but there was no need to force her down when she hated it so much.
“Alright. You stay there. If you don’t want to, don’t come down…”
“Grrrrrrrrrrrrr!”
But Azzy wasn’t just barking because she disliked the corpses.
Something stirred among the bodies. One of the searchlights, sensing the movement, quickly swiveled to illuminate it.
Thanks to that, I could clearly see a corpse in baggy clothes pushing itself up from its knees.
Of course, I wasn’t particularly grateful.
Death is the cessation of life, an involuntary act where the boundary with the world blurs.
Therefore, a corpse that has returned to the world should not be able to move on its own. It is supposed to become one with the world, starting with its skin being gnawed away.
Which meant that the corpse now staggering to its feet was doing something that was absolutely not recommended for a corpse.
“For fuck’s sake, really.”
My face twisted as I watched the corpse commit the number one taboo in a graveyard: ‘getting back up.’
“A vengeful spirit. Well, with 300,000 of them, it wouldn’t be strange for one or two to linger.”
Tyr reacted as if it were nothing.
This was the very reason the Gaian faith and its gravemen were needed, and why they had once enjoyed such prosperity.
Occasionally, a residual thought would cling to a corpse with a lingering grudge, causing the dead body to move or transform. A primitive form of body mediation magic, perhaps, manifested at the moment of death.
Of course, a mere residual thought could never be stronger than a living human, so most were easily dispatched. Still, having to dispose of a reanimated corpse was extremely unpleasant and inconvenient, so people paid gravemen to handle the burials.
In the depths of the earth, where even the living could not escape, a residual thought would stir for a moment before vanishing.
“A trivial thing. Wait a moment.”
Of course, to the Progenitor Tyrkanzyaka—the world’s worst vengeful spirit, who had been buried while still alive and emerged with a body closest to a corpse—it was nothing more than trivial.
“I won’t even need to use my own power.”
Tyr waved her hand.
A faint shape flashed in the darkness. In that instant, a jet-black sword burst through the vengeful corpse’s stomach with a squelch.
It was a dark knight.
After pulling out its sword, the dark knight kicked the back of the corpse’s knees, forcing it to its knees. The knight then lopped off the corpse’s head. Swish. The severed head flew out of the searchlight’s beam.
I applauded the dark knight’s performance.
“Wow! A dark knight! That’s its first kill of the season! It can finally shed its reputation as a freeloader on the combat power meter!”
“…Of course. As if a dark knight would lose to a mere vengeful spirit.”
Come to think of it, the dark knight was a kind of vengeful spirit itself—the lingering will of the knights Tyr had killed. So a knight would naturally be stronger than a common soldier…
Just as I was thinking that, thud, something grabbed the dark knight’s ankle. The dark knight looked down through its black helmet, only to be pulled to the ground by the hand gripping its foot.
Countless more hands appeared, crawling over the dark knight’s body like a swarm of ants, their fingers tearing, pinching, and scratching at the darkness. The dark knight, completely restrained, struggled for a moment before being torn to shreds and reduced to dust.
Under the searchlight’s beam, there was nothing but a sea of hands.
As everyone stood speechless for a moment, I coldly retracted my earlier statement.
“I take it back. Getting annihilated after taking out one target is a pretty pathetic record for a knight. From now on, how about we call it a Dirt Pawn instead of a Dark Knight? No, ‘Dark’ sounds too strong, so let’s go with Dirt Pawn.”
“Is this the time for wordplay? Stay close to me. It’s not dangerous, but something is amiss.”
As if to punctuate Tyr’s words, a warning siren blared throughout Tantalus.
WEEEEEE—.
The sharp, artificially synthesized noise pierced my ears.
The searchlights gave up their pursuit. There were simply too many human figures, too many moving targets.
Instead, the searchlights wailed fiercely as their beams grew wider. The light, once sharp as an arrow, spread out, and simultaneously, lights erupted from the perimeter of Tantalus.
I thought the single daytime light was the only proper illumination, but I was mistaken. Small lights hidden along the edges of Tantalus shot up in unison. Individually, they were far dimmer than the main light.
But when the lights rising from the perimeter all turned on at once, a dazzling brilliance flooded the Abyss.
A low ceiling, and shadowless light blasting from sources surrounding us on all sides.
Thanks to them, the mountain of corpses was now clearly visible.
A mountain made of clothes, flesh, arms, and legs, with the occasional head. The sight of curved human forms piled high upon one another to form rounded ridges was no longer just horrifying; it evoked nothing but the discomfort of looking at a low-quality piece of art.
That discomfort was fleeting, as an even more gruesome sight appeared before my eyes.
At the edge of the corpse mountain, in the sea of filtered blood.
Along the shoreline of that bloody sea, corpses in baggy clothes were beginning to rise in unison.
An army of vengeful spirits. Facing it, Tyr showed a hint of tension.
“…It’s bright. Difficult to manipulate shadows. Instead…”
The sloshing blood rose at her call.
Although her Bloodcraft didn’t manifest well outside her body after her heart started beating, she could still control blood this close.
Tyr floated a crimson orb of blood in the air and said,
“Stay by my side, Hu.”
With a flick of her finger, a fan-shaped wave of blood erupted, sweeping away the corpses in a single blow. The vengeful corpses left no trace of their existence, not even a hint that they had ever been there.
Even so, Tyr couldn’t relax.
Because she wasn’t afraid of the vengeful corpses; she was afraid that I might get hurt.
“I will protect you, no matter what.”
So reassuring. I gave her a thumbs-up and shouted.
“The Dark Rose is better than the Dark Knight! No, better than the Dirt Pawn!”
“Do you have no sense of tension whatsoever?!”
In the distance, Callis and the Undying were battling the vengeful corpses. The Undying threw a continuous barrage of punches, and with each one, corpses were either shattered or sent flying.
But it was a bad matchup. Though the Undying was tireless, he only had two hands. Even if he took out three corpses with a single punch, dozens more would swarm in to fill the gap, forcing him to gradually retreat.
Having someone to protect made him even more defensive. The Undying shouted.
“Callis! Stay close to me! Don’t you dare leave my side!”
“No! I’m joining the fight!”
“What do you mean, joining the fight? You’re injured! I don’t get tired, so don’t worry! These things are no match for my fists!”
Callis suddenly yelled back.
“You idiot! It was all an act! Try to catch a hint already!”
“Huh?”
The moment the Undying hesitated became the distance the corpses closed. Biting her lip, Callis inserted a combat arm packet into her bio-receptor.
“Call to Arms!”
Clank, clank.
With a flash of alchemical light, a steel gauntlet enveloped her left arm. Now equipped, Callis threw a punch at an approaching corpse. Crack! The corpse’s skull shattered, and a tooth flew out. Callis snatched the tooth with her right hand and swiftly inserted it into a groove on the back of the gauntlet.
Then, taking aim, she shouted.
“Set, Re, Re, Re, Pascal, Heaven!!”
Normally, the groove would have emitted steam. But instead, compressed air violently propelled the tooth forward.
Thwoomp.
A kind of blowgun. The tooth shot out like an arrow and struck an approaching corpse in the head. With a sharp thwack, the corpse’s neck bent back slightly.
But that was all. The corpse continued to walk forward as if nothing had happened.
“Tch! The specifications don’t match! It’s not heavy enough…!”
“Well, it’s a tooth, isn’t it?”
“Perhaps because it’s been dead for so long, the tooth is brittle and has no alchemical resistance! In that case!”
‘Instant Alchemy!’
When Callis clenched and then opened her right fist, a tooth transformed by alchemy appeared. The shapes and sizes were all different, but their thickness was uniform.
Callis inserted the perfectly sized, ground-down tooth into the groove and fired. Fwoosh. The sound of the wind was even quieter than before.
“Heaven!”
The tooth flew and pierced right through the right ankle of an oncoming corpse. The approaching corpse lost its balance and collapsed.
“I’ll provide support!”
“Uh, um. Don’t overdo it, alright?”
She hadn’t had a chance to shine while surrounded by monsters, but a trained officer was a precisely engineered war machine. The Military State would be in trouble if she couldn’t at least do this much.
Of course.
No matter how impressive she was.
“Skyblade Art, Thunderbird!”
“Mother Earth!”
It was nothing compared to them.
Flash.
Lightning struck. A bright yellow bolt originating from Chun-aeng shot down toward Earth Sage.
But Earth Sage dodged it by ducking and running. Her speed was slower than the lightning, but the bolt couldn't track her, who had become one with the earth.
Thump. Earth Sage stomped her foot, and a vibration traveled through the corpses. It spread out like a ripple, converged beneath the Regressor’s feet, and then, at that very spot, a corpse exploded upward.
The corpse flew toward the Regressor at a speed comparable to a shot put. Whether by chance or design, its spinning arm aimed precisely for the Regressor’s side. The Regressor lightly leaped into the air, gently stepped on the corpse, and jumped again.
Tch. Has she already adapted to this land of corpses? I thought I’d have the advantage since there’s no ground beneath her feet…!
“Did you think you would have the advantage because this land is not made of soil and rock?”
Earth Sage saw through the Regressor’s thoughts.
“The earth is the body of Mother Earth herself. No matter what trivial things lie beneath, they all originate from the earth. I do not distinguish between one ground and another!”
“Aren’t you full of yourself…!”
The grumbling Regressor landed on the inverted ceiling. Her mastery of Qi Arts allowed her to walk on the slanted surface as if it were solid ground.
Earth Sage could likely do something similar, but she wouldn’t be as agile as the Regressor. More importantly, Earth Art required one’s feet to be on the ground…
It didn’t take long to realize that was a misunderstanding.
“There is no sky in this land either. Just because a great expanse of earth has become the ceiling does not mean it is on your side!”
Earth Sage declared firmly and thrust her fingers into the empty air. The veins on her fingertips bulged.
To an observer, it would have looked like she was miming, straining against nothingness.
But it wasn’t a mime. A mime pretends something is there when it isn’t.
“Feel my wrath!”
Earth Sage’s power was real.
Her hand, seemingly grasping something, swung. Simultaneously, the concrete ceiling was sliced into a grid, and square blocks of it hurtled toward the Regressor. Even without her feet touching it, the earth obeyed her will.
To be this powerful even without Jizan!
Should I say they shot up, or fell down?
In any case, the hard, square-cut concrete blocks grazed the Regressor. Even though she had jumped to avoid a direct hit, the shockwave washed over her body.
“Tch…!”
Nowhere she set her foot was safe. The Regressor landed far away, breathing heavily.
In contrast, Earth Sage walked on with the same composure she’d had from the start.
“This is disappointing, Champion. Do you lack the ability, or do you lack the will? Why do you stand in my way without possessing either? A sense of duty? Or is this the only path to the future you desire?”
Earth Sage looked at the Regressor with deep, somber eyes.
“If you will not fight, then I ask you to step aside. I have no wish to fight one who bears no ill will.”
The Regressor retorted.
“…The ones you’re about to face, they won’t have any ill will either.”
“I will avoid such people. I am only here to demand accountability for their sins. They must confess and atone for the wickedness they have hidden.”
“But I’m not going to step aside. They have a duty to protect their sacred site. Just like you.”
A clash of duty against duty. Wasn’t another name for that a pure tragedy, with neither good nor evil?
The Regressor, despite her lack of eloquence, tried her best to convey that meaning.
Earth Sage frowned for a moment, but her deliberation was short. She had already reached her conclusion.
“…Then, I will simply remove you and proceed.”
“That’s why I’m trying to stop you. Because you… yes. You won’t fall. Even if it means knocking everyone else down.”
That was the Regressor’s duty: to protect the future. She raised her sword again. As if she had steeled her heart, the tip of her blade no longer trembled.
Earth Sage, looking at her determined opponent with dry eyes, composed her emotions and declared calmly.
“I will ascend to the top and take the Grand Master’s relic. This is as inevitable as a boulder rolling downhill. If you intend to stand in my way, prepare yourself accordingly.”
Her words were aimed squarely at the Regressor. It was a kind yet firm proclamation, telling her to make a clear choice rather than maintain an ambiguous stance.
“You will not be able to stop me without destroying me.”
And so, the one who would not fall began her climb up the mountain of corpses.
Straight toward the summit.