Chapter 124
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 124
Chapter Title: The Malignant One
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What is fate?
Ask any sentient race, and the answer will vary.
An orc would say it is to die in battle, while a goblin would call it a useful tool for a swindle.
And the witch-kin saw fate as an inescapable process and conclusion, and thus held no lingering attachment to what had already occurred.
Nevertheless, she sometimes spoke of it.
If, on that day.
She hadn't found that place.
And hadn't touched that thing.
Wouldn't her fate have been a little different from what it is now?
Of course, for her, it was all meaningless, as she never had a choice to begin with…….
“Fate is a frightening thing.”
Chamgeomwon.
A small estate, even for a manor.
With only the bare minimum of buildings.
But for that very reason, it was light and fast, which was why the pirate lord had used it.
And now, after the Dragon’s Lair was half-destroyed during the Labyrinth expedition, it was being used for the war. At the highest point of that estate.
Dion, who had been observing the battlefield from a watchtower installed atop the head of the ostrich-like divine beast, the Axe Beak, suddenly muttered this.
Hearing him, the twin-tailed girl standing behind him looked puzzled.
“What is this all of a sudden, my lord?”
“It just occurred to me that what’s meant to happen will happen, no matter how much history changes.”
“……Did you eat something bad, my lord?”
As if to say, *what is this master of mine plotting now?*
Dion smiled warmly at the Vault Keeper's blatantly suspicious expression.
“Shuttle, human chair.”
“Eek…! This servant is not a piece of Vault Keeper furniture!!!”
Whatever she might say.
Her body was honest.
Forcibly prostrating herself due to the brand’s power, Dion sat cross-legged on the Vault Keeper’s back.
He turned his head.
And beyond the distant Labyrinth.
He looked at an estate so massive it was clearly visible even from this distance, resembling a rocky mountain.
Centered around Giamseong, dozens of pirate estates were arrayed around it. He licked his lips at the sight.
‘I thought that with this much intervention, the outcome might change for the better, but it ended up like this after all.’
He hadn't been arrogant.
It had already been several months since he came to the Deformed City.
In that time, Dion had accomplished much, and most of it was tied to Nangnangseong and the Dogwiryeon.
The war had started much earlier than it originally had, and the Anti-Bandit Alliance had gained the upper hand—many things had changed from the previous timeline.
It would have been more surprising if the outcome had been exactly the same.
But…….
‘Well, if it were that easy, we wouldn't have suffered so much in the second timeline.’
Just as a butterfly's wings can cause a typhoon, there are also trees that do not break even in an earthquake.
While some futures could be altered by the smallest, unintentional actions, some pasts remained unchanged no matter how hard one tried.
Those were the inflection points of fate.
The life or death of an individual.
The rise and fall of a city.
Or even the survival of Odobaekryeong.
Like an old man at the end of his life who will one day die, it was an all-too-natural and inevitable process, a pillar of the scenario.
…Just like how the Nangnang Knights went berserk and were annihilated during the war with the Dogwiryeon, driving Urk into a corner.
It couldn’t be helped.
Even though they had many high-ranking Awakened and had seized Nangnangseong under the leadership of a brilliant hero like Urk.
The Cortell clan, having risen to power overnight, lacked the foundation of an upper-noble family. It was almost inevitable that they would eventually make a mistake.
That was why nobles valued tradition and history so much.
‘I suppose it’s a little better that they weren't completely wiped out.’
The fact that the Nangnang Knights still remained, albeit with heavy losses, and that the Anti-Bandit Alliance still maintained its advantage.
These were the results of Dion’s efforts.
So there was still a chance for the ending to change, but…….
“By the way, my lord, isn’t it strange?”
“The order that just came from Nangnangseong?”
“Yes, my lord. To forbid all activity outside the estate during today’s battle… I don’t understand what they’re thinking.”
Still crushed beneath Dion’s backside.
The Vault Keeper grumbled.
She was still not used to Odobaekryeong being swallowed by the Labyrinth.
Even less so on this chaotic battlefield, where all combat—a mix of sieges, fleet battles, and field warfare—revolved around estates that moved like ships.
But even a low-ranking Awakened becomes a veteran in three years.
Even she could vaguely sense how bizarre this order was.
Especially with the absurd addendum to avoid looking at the battlefield as much as possible.
“The orc uncle has made up his mind.”
“Made up his mind about what, my lord?”
“That is……”
*Rumble.*
It was at that moment.
Positioned as if to confront Giamseong.
But unlike Giamseong, which was at the heart of the Dogwiryeon, this estate of bone and leather stood at the forefront of the Anti-Bandit Alliance.
A heavy groan echoed from Nangnangseong, and a single bridge was lowered.
*Thud.*
“……?”
*Step, step.*
Slowly descending along that bridge was a single woman.
She was instantly recognizable from afar by her distinctive eye patch and black dress.
But it was her unique, ominous aura and beauty that stood out even more. Seeing the beautiful woman, the Vault Keeper, still serving as a human chair, blinked.
“Isn’t that… my lord’s second queen-candidate?”
“Yes, it is.”
“What is it? Are you sending an envoy now?”
Given that they were facing Giamseong, a battle could break out at any moment. It was a dangerous situation.
Seeing her step out alone, the Vault Keeper offered the most rational guess based on her own understanding.
But to her speculation.
Dion neither confirmed nor denied it.
He simply stared at Pandora’s form and muttered.
“It’s finally begun.”
“……?”
“Relay this to everyone, especially Parsha, Arsha, and the other dark elves.”
Unlike his usual composed self, his voice felt unusually heavy, making the Vault Keeper flinch.
Dion softly warned of a taboo.
“From now on, never look at Pandora.”
* * *
*Rustle, rustle.*
After quietly descending from Nangnangseong.
Pandora walked alone across the Labyrinth toward Giamseong.
Her actions puzzled others, especially the nobles of the Dogwiryeon.
Thus, after an envoy on a mount rode out from Giamseong, crossed the Labyrinth, spoke briefly with Pandora, and returned.
The bandit nobles sent out messengers.
The rumor that they had ambushed and decimated the Nangnang Knights yesterday was already known to all.
If the Lord of Nangnangseong, feeling disadvantaged, was proposing a peace treaty, they held a flicker of hope that the war might end here.
But…….
“She’s not here to negotiate?”
“No, my lord.”
“Then why is the Calamity Princess coming here alone?”
“She issued a warning.”
“A warning?”
“……That is.”
As if afraid to even report it.
The messenger, glancing nervously at the bandit noble, swallowed dryly and relayed what he had heard from Giamseong.
“She said that from now on, she will be taking the field, but she won’t bother chasing anyone who runs away……”
“……Are you saying she’s come to fight? That wench? Alone? Against us?”
“At least, that’s what she told the envoy.”
“Hah.”
The bandit noble let out an involuntary, hollow laugh.
Yes.
He could understand.
The Dogwiryeon had been unable to capture Urk and had been pushed back relentlessly.
It made sense that the Calamity Princess, one of the Eight Sects and Six Demons, would act so boldly.
*Pow!*
“She’s called a vile one or whatever, but in the end, she’s just a commoner-born brat from the new generation, how dare she…!”
That was why.
The bandit noble, who had smashed the messenger’s head with his fist, ground his teeth.
Even if he was a bandit.
He was still a noble.
He had lived his life priding himself on having the bloodline of a genius.
He might have tolerated it from an old monster like Urk, a Transcendent Awakened who had lived for hundreds of years.
But to be looked down on by a mere wench who hadn't even lived half a century, and a commoner at that, no matter if she was one of the Eight Sects and Six Demons.
It was enough to make him lose his mind.
As a bandit.
And as a noble.
He knew all too well that being seen as weak by others was the end.
“Prepare to ride out!”
“What? You’re going out, my lord? Without the Alliance Lord’s permission? On your own?”
His retainers beside him were aghast at his words.
Even if she was a rising star.
Their opponent was one of the infamous Eight Sects and Six Demons.
They couldn't dare guarantee they could take her down with their own strength, and even if they could, they would have to suffer immense losses.
Especially if they acted without permission from Giamseong.
“Hmph, don’t worry. I won’t be the only one going out.”
But the bandit noble confidently ordered the sortie.
And a short while later.
His words were proven true.
As if by agreement, processions of countless nobles emerged from Dogwiryeon estates all around.
He wasn't the only one enraged by the Calamity Princess’s warning.
*Thump-thump-thump-thump!*
“Die, Calamity Princess!”
“We’ll teach you the price of hubris!”
The number of high-ranking Awakened who swarmed out was over sixty, and including their soldiers, the force numbered nearly a thousand.
It was no wonder the bandit nobles leading such a massive force were brimming with confidence as they charged toward the Calamity Princess.
Sixty high-ranking Awakened was a force that would make even Urk retreat.
If things went wrong, they could simply fall back, and if they got lucky and captured the Calamity Princess, they would achieve incredible merit. This knowledge made them brave.
But, even as.
She watched the charging horde.
Pandora was not afraid.
Like watching moths fly into a flame.
She simply looked at them with eyes full of many emotions, then slowly raised both hands.
And as her pale, slender hands reached her eye patch.
“……?!”
*Flinch!*
The bandit nobles froze.
It wasn't just because their mounts suddenly stopped running.
It was because the moment she touched her eye patch.
The instincts of a high-ranking Awakened began screaming warnings, raising goosebumps all over their bodies.
And so.
Before they could decide.
To retreat.
Before they could act on pure instinct.
And flee.
Just after she slid off her eye patch, revealing pupils as deep and dark as the abyss.
—The anomaly began.
*Krrrrk?!*
“W-What is it?!”
“Calm down, I said calm down!”
Cave wolves, eight-legged horses, sprinting birds, and more.
The mounts suddenly began to convulse and thrash wildly.
They tumbled to the ground.
They clawed at their own bodies.
They gnawed at their own feet.
Until their fur lost its sheen, blisters rose on their scales, their claws and teeth fell out, and bloody tears streamed from their eyes.
As they struggled to soothe their crazed mounts, the riders suddenly felt it.
*Pop.*
A blister rising.
*Grind.*
Bone tearing through flesh.
*Hiss.*
Skin swelling up.
Something was wrong.
Only then.
At last.
Finally.
They realized.
Before they could flee.
The countless bandit nobles.
Finally understood.
There was a reason their mounts had panicked and thrashed about, and…….
……it was already too late to escape.
As this truth dawned on them and they froze, the mounts they had been riding were no more.
Only disgusting masses of flesh and pus writhed in their place.
And naturally.
This utterly gruesome transformation.
Was not limited to the mounts.
The soldiers they had so proudly led out, now collapsed and contorting on the ground.
Above all, the gut-wrenching stench and the pus-filled blood trickling down their skin told them.
That they were treading the same path.
“K-Kill her!”
“Kill that witch!”
And so…….
In the blink of an eye.
From majestic soldiers.
To writhing piles of flesh.
Even amidst their fallen subordinates, the nobles who had led the charge desperately rushed forward.
They instinctively knew that the only way to stop this curse was to eliminate her.
One by one.
These warriors, each worth a hundred men.
Even as they charged and fell.
A few managed to reach Pandora and attacked her.
……Or rather, they tried to.
*Splat!*
Their eyes met Pandora's.
They inhaled her fragrance.
And the gnarled, swollen hands gripping their weapons twisted and burst.
One chakra user, who had blocked his sight and smell and approached Pandora using only his instincts, finally managed to swing his weapon, but…….
It was not a stroke of luck.
It was a misfortune.
*Tap.*
Pandora reached out.
And grabbed his arm.
The moment her bare skin touched him.
His already contorting mutation accelerated dozens of times over.
“Grrrraaargh?!”
*SPLATTER!!!*
And so…….
As they watched the mass of flesh, which had twisted and swelled until it burst like a balloon.
All who remained in the Dogwiryeon and all who watched from the Anti-Bandit Alliance could not help but realize, in instinctual terror.
Just by seeing her.
Just by being seen.
Just by approaching.
Just by touching.
She brought inevitable ruin.
That was why she was the Calamity Princess.
The Daughter of Three Fathers, who brought immense wealth and glory to her family, only to repeatedly destroy her benefactors.
Among the many prodigies of the Demonic Spirit Domain, she had surpassed the level of a rising star, becoming one of the Eight Sects and Six Demons, the Malignant One whom even Transcendent Awakened dared not face.
She was living calamity.
A cursed witch.
Knowing this was one thing, but feeling and understanding it made them tremble.
……All except for two.
A girl who was blinking while being used as a human chair.
And a boy who, from the moment she took the field, had been watching with deep, sunken eyes as the purified water in every estate, friend and foe alike, began to rapidly dry up.