Chapter 450
Chapter 450
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 450
>Chapter Title: The 31st Horse Overturns the Game Board
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Karen stared at the flame that wielded a unique power and asked.
“…What is this fire?”
- The flame used when creating the Jins. Pure and powerful.
Jian muttered.
“The legend that Jins were born from fire wasn’t a lie after all….”
Karen was captivated by this power, yet at the same time, she harbored doubts about Raijin’s intentions.
“Raijin, why did you create the Jins?”
- …….
Fwoosh…
Raijin flickered and shrank back.
- One more time….
The guardian star of Montrra longed for something.
- I wanted to return to that time, just one more time.
“…Ah. So the Jins were made by imitating the guardian stars.”
Raijin yearned to go back to that era when there were many beings like itself.
To the time when it didn’t have to be special. To the time when it could just be ordinary.
Karen snickered.
“So, what’s your take on it?”
- Jins are powerful beings, but they’re different from guardian stars. They only follow my intentions and lack the purpose that guardian stars possess.
“…I see.”
The reason Raijin felt a strong sense of kinship with Karen and Karuna. It was because they had once united under the powerful premise of protecting Montrra.
Those who revered the Jins often called them wise. However, to be precise, that was incorrect.
Jins simply weren’t foolish.
They lacked the dedication to devote their hearts to something, unlike Raijin, and had no such will.
That was why Raijin felt lonely.
Sssss…
Plop…
A red crystal fell into Karen’s hand.
- That crystal will guide you. It’s been a week since those seeking the fragments headed to the sealed location. With no word yet, something must have gone wrong.
“Anything I should watch out for?”
- If the door is intact, leave the seal as is. If there’s something wrong with the door, kill the Jin. That’s what I told him.
Hummm…
- Karen, I’ll say the same to you.
Plop…
Karen pocketed the red crystal at her waist and grinned broadly.
“Easy.”
Karen turned back, flashed a cheeky grin at Kang Seol, and was about to set off to fulfill her mission when something occurred to her, and she asked Raijin.
“Hey, Raijin! Mind if I ask something?”
- Is it important?
“Could be… or not. Might even be childish.”
- That sounds like you. I’ll answer.
Karen scratched her head sheepishly, deeming the question’s caliber embarrassing even for herself.
“I used to be so sure before, but meeting you has me second-guessing. Hey….”
The question she posed to Raijin was remarkably simple.
Yet Raijin sensed a resonance within it. And another thread connecting to her.
- I’ll answer your question, Karen….
* * *
Crunch…
Crunch…
Screeeeech—!
A red snake dropped from the ceiling, jaws gaping wide. Its momentum suggested it aimed to swallow the man below in one bite.
Flash—!
Fwoooosh—!
The man raised both arms upward, then wrapped them in mana.
Whoooosh…
Eerie gray mana swirled, blurring the shape of his arms.
And then something astonishing happened.
Kee…
Pffft…
The snake crumbled into dust and vanished before it could devour him.
The massive monster rotted away in an instant.
“What a damn irritating place.”
Where the snake had fallen, traces of his path lay preserved.
Even the corpses of the monsters that had tangled with him and his subordinates.
Naturally, no living creatures remained.
The man was alone now, and he accepted it.
His subordinates had been nothing but a nuisance from the start; he shared no special bonds with them.
Lüge of Decay.
Heir to a northern fringe kingdom that failed to join the Federation. Now destroyed, but Lüge’s name had spread quietly through the region.
And when that name reached the Federation, an enormous bounty hung over his head.
He was currently with the Council. The one granted a chance at Raijin’s fair trial was also Lüge.
“I get those crazy bastards now.”
Raijin’s trial was cruel beyond vicious. The heart of the crater sealing the fallen Jin was more vivid hell than any Lüge had known.
In a week, all his subordinates save himself had fallen. Half in combat.
The other half collapsed from mental anguish.
“If I hadn’t dragged that baggage from the start, I’d have gotten here way faster.”
That was Lüge’s sole sentiment after losing all his men. And objectively judging his subjective take, it wasn’t wrong.
Only after his subordinates died did his pace quicken. Not having to mind anyone allowed Lüge to unleash his abilities fully.
His power was vast and lethal.
“Next time, I’ll say I’m going alone.”
He muttered as he stood before a door grooved by red streaks.
The massive door looked impossible for any human to open.
“The door’s intact. How anticlimactic.”
Then, a sinister voice echoed from within.
- Has Raijin’s lapdog arrived….
“…You can talk?”
- I’m a Jin, after all. I can master your human tongue in minutes.
“I see. Impressive.”
Lüge smirked.
“Trying to sweet-talk me?”
- You? Why?
“Because you can’t get out. Usually, you trick foolish humans into opening the door, right?”
- Heh heh heh… That only works on those on my level.
“…Meaning I’m not?”
The Jin’s voice was far calmer and more serene than Raijin had described.
- My power isn’t for inferiors like you, who can’t even digest what you possess.
Inferior.
Lüge’s sore spot.
When his kingdom fell, his father the king’s dying words by the sword still haunted him.
If only you’d been a bit more exceptional.
“…Nonsense.”
- Power over life and death surpasses all else. Just as Raijin’s flame birthed life to create all Jins, a fitting power can destroy them all.
“My power… is that great?”
- I speak only of potential. As you are now, you’d die the moment you face a Jin.
Snicker…
Lüge laughed.
“Pretty convincing pitch. For something wasting away trapped somewhere. Didn’t Raijin subdue you in the end?”
- Raijin fears me.
“Heh… Raijin fear a Jin she created? Make sense….”
- You’ve been deceived. She created all Jins—except one.
“…What?”
Lüge faltered.
He’d witnessed Raijin’s power up close; it was worthy of the first Jin. He had no choice but to accept she created them all.
Yet the Jin beyond the door claimed otherwise.
- I am Bishin. Remember my name. I was not born from Raijin’s embers.
“Then….”
A grating, metal-scraping voice came from beyond the door.
- I am the embers.
Bishin claimed itself as the embers.
“…You expect me to believe that?”
- Believe or not, it matters not. Raijin used the embers to create Jins, but infinite creation defied reason. The embers rejected Raijin after Kunna’s creation. And then… I awoke from the embers.
A secret history that was no secret.
- The embers symbolize life. Many lives were born within. Yet paradoxically, death capped it—the birth of this Bishin.
“…Intriguing story. I heard you out.”
- Good. Now that you know the truth, get lost. Sharing this was mere kindness to a fool.
Bishin kept prodding Lüge’s reverse scale. Lüge harbored no competitive spirit or gambling fever. He simply craved validation of his existence.
Yet Bishin wickedly denied him that.
“…What if I just leave? What then for you?”
- Unnecessary question. Irrelevant to you.
“I’m asking. What’s your plan?”
Bishin savored each word.
- I endure. Awaiting one who grasps the truth. To that one, I’ll pledge all glory obtained.
Lüge blurted unthinkingly.
“You saying… I’m not worthy? You, struggling with this puny door?”
- Deluded fool. I could open this pathetic door anytime.
Rumble… rumble…
The door shook.
Creeeeak…
Its form warped slightly.
Like vision blurring with tears, the door hazed over.
- Doubting my power when Raijin herself avoids seeking me? Insect-level intellect.
“Shut your mouth! What do you know?!”
- I know well… The inferiority and crude presence writhing inside you.
“Stop… You’re fallen. I won’t listen.”
- Fallen? Nicely packaged. Didn’t you see Raijin’s black flame? Don’t judge us by your human standards. It’s nauseating.
“Acting like you know everything is pretty good….”
- Your father resented you, Lüge. If you’d been a better seed, the kingdom wouldn’t have fallen.
With that, Lüge’s emotions erupted.
“Arrrgh! You bastard! That mouth… your mouth….”
- Perfect, lucky for the simpleton.
“…What?”
Something was off.
Lüge sensed foreboding and glanced around. Only then did his hazy vision sharpen.
“…My god.”
He was opening the door.
Pushing with all his might.
The door he’d deemed impossible for humans now cracked open, revealing the darkness beyond.
For the monster beyond, it was more than enough.
- Humans are easy to handle. Faith shrinks, doubt swells. Weaknesses inflate, strengths are sidelined.
“What did you… What did I do….”
- You were right. Bishin couldn’t open this door and was trapped. Until just now.
“Why would I….”
- Your mind was corrupted on the way here. Your very arrival was my design….
Facing the writhing entity in the darkness, Lüge grimaced and shouted.
“W-Wait! You said I lack qualification! So don’t use me….”
- The moment you opened the door, nothing else mattered.
“Damn….”
Pitch-black Jin wrapped around Lüge’s body.
- Take it well.
Craaack…
“Gaaahhh!”
* * *
…Aaaagh!
“Hm?”
A bizarre sensation swept through the space, as if someone’s scream had overrun it, crawling up her body.
Karen picked her ear with a bored look and muttered.
“Did I hear wrong?”
Plop…
Fwoosh…
Karen kindled a flame on her index finger to light the surroundings.
Following the red crystal’s guidance toward the crater’s heart, the area soon darkened.
Rustle…
Kee…
A fire-spewing monkey stirred from a rock crevice.
Shing…
Spurt—!
Without even drawing her sword, the monkey was bisected.
“Crude. Artificially made monster? Why here?”
Karen kicked the monkey corpse aside and pressed on along the path.
About an hour later.
Plop…
“What… is this.”
The monkey she’d slain earlier lay in the exact same spot.
Following the straight path brought her back to the same place.
Kee—!
Slash…
Plop……
The same monster appeared in the same spot.
Another corpse stacked atop the first.
The mirage that had driven Lüge and his men near annihilation.
“Illusion.”
Sizzle…
As she exhaled heat, the space distorted.
Soon, a crudely hidden path revealed itself.
“Found it!”
Karen, who found in less than a day the path Lüge had struggled a week for, hummed a tune as she entered.
Then a sticky, unpleasant sensation assaulted her.
Whoosh…
Karen extinguished her fingertip flame and assumed a stance ready to draw her sword at any moment.
Sssss…
[Mental Corruption Heat invades.]
[Mental Corruption die is rolled.]
[Mental Corruption Resistance die shows 3.]
[The seasoned knight possesses strong mental fortitude.]
[Mental Corruption die gains +1.]
[Immune to the heat.]
[Mental Corruption die gains +2.]
[Karen perfectly resists the Mental Corruption Heat!]
[Location of the caster can be briefly detected.]
Fwoosh…
Subtle flames flickered over her armor.
“…The door’s open?”