Chapter 240
Chapter 240
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 240
Chapter Title: Rampage (3)
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What was the way to revert a being corrupted by something? Simple—just remove the cause.
Then, the method to restore the corrupted World Tree naturally began with finding the source of the "corrupting power."
The "Corruption Priests," who had been buried and forgotten amid the war for a while, now had some leads thanks to the ongoing investigation team quests triggering and being resolved one after another. Above all, Rokan had a way to track them down.
"Corruption Compass, use."
Whirr.
The compass Rokan pulled out spun around wildly before pointing in a certain direction. Numbers appeared.
[13km. B3]
"They even dug down to basement level 3."
It was a compass that pointed to the nearest Corruption Priest.
Corruption Priests typically operated around a chapel, so this allowed him to locate their bases.
Even though they moved in strict hierarchies, tracking the executive-level ones would soon lead to their main stronghold.
It was a fair distance—even on a Heavenly Steed, it would take some time—but that didn't matter. Rokan immediately spread out his magic map and gauged the route.
Swoosh.
A teleportation magic circle. By using it to jump to the nearest point and then proceeding on foot, he could cut down the travel time dramatically.
The location of the first Corruption Priest he found was astonishingly right in the middle of the city.
"To think there's a basement level 3 in a place like this."
It was unbelievable. Digging down to basement level 3 required the resources of a fairly large noble house or merchant guild, yet here it was in a rundown slum.
It was clearly a ploy exploiting the fact that no one in the slums would notice magical concealment.
"Stinks of filth right from the start."
Rokan headed into the house without hesitation.
"Huh, who goes there...?"
A slum dweller emerged from a shack pieced together from scrap wood and hesitantly tried to stop him, but Rokan ignored him completely.
It was ridiculous in itself—a slum rat trying to bar someone dressed so extravagantly.
On top of that, Rokan held a ducal title. His passive "Noble Dignity" made ordinary NPCs perceive him as someone special.
Even strangers would bow their heads and watch their step, whether commoners or merchants—yet this slum dweller dared to interfere. That alone was suspicious.
"Die...!"
As Rokan stomped around searching for the passage leading underground, the slum dweller's eyes flashed. He drew a hidden knife from his clothes and lunged at Rokan.
Splurt!
"Tch. I would've let you live if you'd stayed put."
But before he could do anything, Rokan's battle axe cleaved the man's head in two.
Rokan knew that those with nothing to lose fell easily into the Corruption Priests' grasp.
He couldn't entirely blame them for wanting to change the world somehow—even if it meant its destruction.
That was why he had no intention of slaughtering them all, but it didn't mean he'd forgive someone coming at him with a knife.
Without sparing a glance at the fresh corpse, he continued his search and soon found the hidden passage.
Creak.
"Here it is."
Rokan leaped straight down. He figured scum up to no good wouldn't settle for just one passage.
"Huh?"
"Who...!"
The first basement level was a chapel.
Slum residents offering prayers, with Corruption Priests reciting their ramblings as if they were scripture.
It was filled with innocent slum folk, who eyed the unfamiliar Rokan warily.
"Hmm."
Rokan glanced over them coolly, then pointed at one.
"You there."
"Y-Yes? You mean me?"
"Yeah, you. Come here."
A man shuffled over timidly. He looked like a starved stray dog from malnutrition. Rokan abruptly shoved a pouch into his hands.
"Wh-What is this...? G-Gasp!"
It was stuffed with a hefty sum of gold.
A pittance by Rokan's standards, but enough for these people to escape the slums and start anew. It was no wonder the man's eyes wavered.
"Think you can guide me? To the lowest level."
"O-Of course!"
He could've ignored them and pushed on, but the interior was too labyrinthine. Some magical effect must have been at work—the space seemed small from outside but was vast and convoluted underground.
Worst case, he could summon Digdog to burrow down, but that might alert them and let some escape.
That's why he'd bought the guide off, and it worked wonders.
Cold hard coin trumped any mirage of faith.
"Traitor!"
"Hansen! You dare betray the faith...!"
For reasons unknown, everyone flew into a rage at Hansen siding with an outsider.
The bolder ones snatched up anything that could serve as a weapon and started threatening him.
Pitiful attacks that couldn't even scratch Rokan, but he had no desire to stir up trouble from the first floor.
Clatter!
Instead, he pulled out a fistful of coins and tossed them carelessly onto the floor.
"M-Money!"
Unlike the gold Hansen had received, it was just coppers and silvers, but to them, it was life itself.
The frenzy aimed at Hansen shifted to the coins, dissolving the hostility.
"Let's go."
"Yes!"
Hansen led Rokan through several doors straight to the lower level.
Rokan's hunch had paid off. It wasn't random—he'd picked the highest-level one among them.
The next level down was where the "Corruption Believers," a rank below the Corruption Priests, gathered.
"Hansen?"
"Who let some intruder in here without permission?!"
"Shut your mouths!"
They immediately flew into a tantrum, but it was like wrinkling their noses at a caterpillar.
Low-200s weaklings at best, they trembled like they might wet themselves at Rokan's shout. He cut them down without mercy.
"Eek!"
His speed and clean strikes were so flawless that even Hansen watching let out a hiccup.
There weren't many to begin with, so clearing the Corruption Believers took less than 30 seconds.
"Next floor?"
"Th-That way, I think."
Hansen had never been to the lower levels, but from coming and going a few times, he had a rough idea.
Another staircase appeared where he pointed, leading to the long-awaited third level.
[Subjugate Corruption Priest][Quest]
Locate and subjugate the Corruption Priest. Fail to find him in time, and he may escape.
-Success Condition: Discover and subjugate the Corruption Priest
-Failure Condition: Corruption Priest escapes
-Time Limit: 5 minutes
-Success Reward: Massive EXP, massive fame, clue to corruption
"What a hassle."
The quest popped up the moment he entered the third level. Rokan left Hansen behind and dashed forward. The Corruption Priest must have sensed him.
But surprisingly, the passage was one-way.
Which meant traps were a given.
"Wing Mode!"
Traps and spells.
But Rokan had wings.
He could traverse the passage without touching or triggering anything.
[Exposed to Corruption Barrier.]
[Unaffected thanks to Unyielding Will title effect.]
The barrier was no different. The Corruption Barrier, meant to sow confusion and buy time, meant nothing to Rokan with his Unyielding Will.
Just like that, Rokan reached the end of the passage in one go. Far from five minutes, it took less than one before he faced the Corruption Priest.
[Corruption Priest Leyson][Lv 287]
"A named one, huh."
The figure at the passage's end wasn't just any Corruption Priest—he was a "named" boss. It felt like luck from his past life was pouring out all at once.
"How did you get here...?"
That was his last word. For a sub-300 spellcaster, Rokan didn't even need Berserk or Storm Incarnation.
He just walked up and pummeled him.
He barely swung his battle axe a few times, yet the guy's HP hit zero. He died cold without a final plea or cry for mercy.
"As expected."
Killing the Corruption Priest dropped several items. The basics like the Orb of Corruption and the higher-grade Essence of Corruption, plus that one item he'd regretted missing before.
[Prophecy of Ruin][????]
A prophecy tome containing the Prophecy of Ruin. Sealed by some special power.
Rokan had once tried forcing it open and ended up destroying it.
If only he could open this, he might uncover their true nature—but he still didn't know how.
'Should I take it to the investigation team?'
Maybe they could research and unlock it.
Rokan pondered briefly before shelving the idea. He recalled how the investigation team had hesitated to join the fight when the Corruption Conspirators held sway.
Not that he held a grudge. As a multi-racial alliance, they were bound to face political pressures.
But he wasn't convinced it was purely political.
If it wasn't—if there was a Corruption Priest or conspirator sympathizer in the investigation team—
Then digging into their backs might expose him and invite interference.
He wasn't scared, but he had no patience for delays.
"Essence of Corruption, use."
So Rokan forced the Prophecy of Ruin open once more.
Crack!
It refused to open again, shattering instead.
Rokan watched calmly, then gathered the fragments and pieced together the words inscribed within.
He cross-referenced them with the keywords from last time.
[Corruption... Ruin... Ancient... Spell... Perhaps... Resurrection...]
These were the keywords from before.
[Corruption... Ruin... Armageddon... Forgotten... Resurrection...]
And these were the new ones. Some overlapped, but others differed.
Still incomprehensible, but repeating this might yield something associative eventually.
With access to the imperial palace's grand library, Rokan decided to mull it over slowly.
Beating more Corruption Priests would reveal more, no doubt.
[Corruption Covenant][Unique]
A pact scroll where Corruption Priests inscribed each other's names in a circle to bind their loyalty.
It seems it can be used by inserting something into the central hole.
There was another reason Rokan had risked destroying items to force this. It was the last item the priest dropped.
A covenant listing not just humans but names from other races too.
A first for him, but Rokan had a good idea how to use it.
'This should do it.'
Click.
What fit perfectly into the covenant's center was none other than the Corruption Compass. Its size was a perfect match—no surprise for a veteran like Rokan.
The compass began spinning wildly again.
"A half-elf would be nice."
Rokan pressed his finger firmly on the slightly raised part above each name on the covenant. The compass spun on its own.
[473km. 2F]
"That way."
Rokan grinned in satisfaction at the normally functioning compass. West, 473 kilometers—straight to the half-elves' outpost.