Chapter 56
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 56
Chapter Title: Promise
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Kang Seol asked Karuna,
"Do you know her?"
"She remains... in my memory. Ngh... "
"What's wrong?"
"Grrrh... "
The slight commotion had roused the sleeping necromancer, who began to stir.
"Ugh... Wh-what is it! Al... "
Thwack-!
Karuna swiftly closed in on the necromancer and knocked him out.
It happened too fast to follow properly, but it looked like he'd struck the man's neck with brute force.
"Is he dead?"
"I didn't kill him. Sorry for the noise."
"It's fine. We weren't spotted."
The man's breathing was faint but steady—he was definitely still alive.
Kang Seol turned his attention back to the documents.
- We were convinced. This was the Lion's Truth Church's chance to eclipse the Eternal Life Church and rise anew. We acted on it immediately.
From there, the document outlined the Lion's Truth Church's subsequent actions.
- We tried forcibly resurrecting the corpse as a necromantic vessel, but the corpse rejected it, leading to failure. Reviving it as such required an immense amount of vitality, so we relocated the ritual site all the way to the Great Forest.
However, the necromantic vessel ritual proved overwhelmingly potent, so we resorted to the Death Verdict Crystal. To date, 21 people have yet to emerge from it.
There remained the option of the Archbishop entering personally, but should even he fail to return, it would spell the utter end of our church. With no other choice, we informed the Eternal Life Church.
Nothing else followed.
Tuk.
Kang Seol set the documents down.
He fell silent for a moment.
'I get the gist of it.'
A mysterious corpse discovered by the Lion's Truth Church in the Desert of Mirage.
They'd attempted to resurrect it as a necromantic vessel, only for its immense power to force them to the Great Forest.
The ritual kept failing, claiming 21 lives in the process.
'No way they went in willingly... They were shoved in? Vicious bastards.'
It was a bold statement coming from Kang Seol, founder of the Eternal Life Church.
Either way, their leader—the Archbishop of the Lion's Truth Church—was due to arrive today or tomorrow to conduct the ritual. Time was short.
'So where's Chao?'
Had he pulled back midway when things went south? Or...
'Did he enter the crystal?'
No way to confirm. It was frustrating.
Anxiety had spiked ever since arriving here.
The mysterious corpse's resemblance to Karuna upon their first meeting. Karuna suddenly recalling memories and writhing in pain...
'Damn it... Should we pull back?'
Kang Seol glanced at Karuna.
Karuna stared back with eyes full of turmoil.
With that look locked on him, Kang Seol had no other choice.
"Let's check the corpse."
"Yes."
The corpse's location and crystal instructions were detailed in the document's early pages.
Kang Seol slipped past the watchful eyes surrounding the area and headed to the marked spot.
Rumble...
'Even the weather's turning nasty.'
Right where the rotting stench hung thickest, the darkening sky only amplified his growing sense of dread.
- It's chilling... Like a dagger plunging into my chest.
- But it'll be fine. Karuna's untouchable—he's ridiculously overpowered.
- Worst case, we blow the camp sky-high.
The guards had tightened up considerably.
'Gotta handle this before that necromancer wakes.'
Whether they checked it out and bailed or pushed deeper in.
"Karuna."
Nod.
Karuna nodded.
Now that they had a rough idea what kind of organization this was, there was no need to hold back.
Shing-
"Who's there?!"
"Enemy... Guh... "
Slash- swish...
Splatter-!
Karuna dispatched the ritual site's guards in an instant. Even Kang Seol was stunned by his swift efficiency.
'He's gotten monstrously faster.'
The destructive power to ignore defenses and cleave them in one stroke was impressive enough, but his stats had soared so high it was impossible to track with the naked eye.
'If Karuna were the enemy, it'd be a nightmare.'
The very thought only made his ally feel all the more reassuring.
"Looks like these were all the sentries here."
"Got it. Let's head in."
The closer they got to the ritual site, the thicker the stench of decay grew.
Kang Seol approached the site marked with a bizarre magic circle.
"This is it."
A stake stood at the circle's center, and atop it hung a corpse bound tight with iron chains.
"Karuna, you see it?"
"...I see it."
"If I'm not seeing things, the armor on that corpse looks awfully similar to the one you wore when we first met."
"......"
The corpse was female.
Her armor was in tatters, and the sword lying nearby had its blade snapped in half. And yet, Kang Seol couldn't shake the sense of similarity to Karuna.
'Entering the crystal's no big deal... The question is whether to go in at all.'
Best outcome: find Chao without entering. Worst: enter and still come up empty.
'What to do...'
One silver lining—the crystal pulled in the body too. If a body remained here, the Lion's Truth Church would've killed it. That made this somewhat hopeful.
'The crystal's return rate varies with the corpse's caliber.'
If it was nothing special, return wouldn't be an issue. But if it exceeded expectations, escaping could prove disastrous.
This was info Kang Seol knew from handling a Death Verdict Crystal before.
'What if its power's overwhelmingly strong?'
There'd still be a way out, of course.
Especially with two powerful summons at his side.
"Hoo..."
Kang Seol sighed and turned toward the corpse. Karuna had drawn closer.
Then something utterly unexpected happened.
"Who... who are you?"
Karuna began muttering to himself.
"Why... why are you here?"
"Karuna?"
"Who... am I?"
The situation turned dire.
Karuna's presence suddenly plummeted.
As if staring death in the face.
"Grrrh... Aaaaaahhh!"
"Karuna!"
No time to figure out what was happening.
Acting on instinct, Kang Seol rushed to his side.
"Aaaaaahhh!"
Rumble-!
Flash!
Lightning tore across the sky as light burst from the Death Verdict Crystal in Kang Seol's hand.
[Death Verdict Crystal activates.]
[Moving to the corpse's mental world.]
[Main details of 'Necromancers' Secret Ritual' have changed.]
['Necromancers' Secret Ritual' changes to 'Promise'.]
'Damn it...'
Kang Seol's vision went black in an instant.
His and Karuna's forms were sucked into the crystal.
Tuk.
Pouring rain...
Only the Death Verdict Crystal remained where they had stood, battered by the downpour.
Kang Seol's consciousness fragmented, as if passing through a dark tunnel.
'Huff... huff... Stay focused.'
Sudden as it was, if he kept his wits about him, it shouldn't be an issue.
Once Karuna calmed down, they could sort it out with Jamad's help.
As Kang Seol reined in his mind, his awareness gradually converged in one place.
"Karuna!"
"Master."
Karuna stood there.
Kang Seol breathed a sigh of relief seeing he wasn't suffering. Even more so that they'd linked up without getting separated.
But.
"Where... is this?"
"Probably the corpse's mental world."
"I get that. I mean our location."
"......"
They stood alone in the heart of a massive city teeming with life.
"Hahaha! So anyway..."
"I'd have bolted right then, you fool."
"That's why we're friends, right?"
Countless people brushed past them.
Diverse garb, diverse chatter.
The problem was, Kang Seol and Karuna could see them—but not vice versa.
The people passed right through them.
'Ghosts?'
Kang Seol looked to Karuna, who nodded.
They'd been stranded here, in the corpse's mental world.
'Creepy... Better get out fast.'
First, Kang Seol checked the updated adventure details.
Adventure 9-1. Promise
You tracked the necromancers' trail, hoping it would lead to Chao.
Your pursuit uncovered certain secrets.
The necromancers hid in the Great Forest for some grand scheme: to harness its vitality and revive a powerful corpse as a necromantic vessel. This claimed 21 lives.
You've reached the mysterious corpse at the heart of it all and possess the ritual tool, the Death Verdict Crystal. Yet for some reason, you've been instantly pulled into the corpse's mental world.
There's only one way out unscathed: comprehend the corpse's mental world. Or uncover what the corpse desires.
Failure means death.
Goal: Confirm the corpse's mental world.
Time Remaining: None
With even Chao unmentioned now, survival had become the absolute priority.
"Any idea where we are?"
"Memories... are surfacing bit by bit."
"For real?"
"Yes. This place is..."
Karuna scanned their surroundings and spoke with conviction.
"Where I grew up."
Whoooosh-
Crackle...
The world warped suddenly.
The people faded like a mirage, and the lively clamor vanished in a heartbeat.
Kang Seol and Karuna frowned at the sight.
'This is insane.'
Alone here, even he might've ended up like those 21 sacrifices, unable to return.
The scene refocused on what Kang Seol and Karuna were watching.
'A palace?'
It resembled a grand throne room, packed with ministers and knights. At the highest point loomed a massive throne.
A strikingly handsome man sat there, gazing down.
"So you're those children."
"Such lowly origins, Your Majesty! How can mere slaves sold off..."
"Silence!"
"Gasp..."
The minister who'd spoken shrank under the icy command. A woman in a mysterious crown beside the emperor spoke up.
"They're just children. Ease your majesty, Your Majesty."
"Haha... You're right. My mistake."
"His Majesty makes no mistakes."
"Ah, another one."
"Your Majesty..."
"Can't you lay off? The conversation's going nowhere."
The ministers bowed their heads, stifling chuckles. The emperor merely smiled at the irreverence.
His thundering dignity vanished, replaced by a playful expression as he regarded the children.
"What are your names?"
Kang Seol's gaze followed the emperor's to two children.
Ears unlike a human's, exquisite features. Bruises everywhere from abuse. Gaunt skin clinging to bone from malnutrition.
Kang Seol suddenly turned to Karuna with questioning eyes.
"Yes. That's me in my youth."
"The other one?"
"......"
The children answered.
"No... name."
"Never... had one..."
The emperor pondered, chin in hand, then blurted out,
"Blue-eyed one: Karuna. Red-eyed one: Karen. What do you think?"
"......"
"No objections? Then you like them."
Karen clung tightly to Karuna's hand.
They were twins despite differing genders, and strikingly similar in appearance.
The emperor asked them,
"Do you have any wishes for me?"
Karen, hesitating behind Karuna, kept trying to step forward as if she had something to say.
"No, don't."
Karuna held her back.
"Why not? She looks like she has something to say."
"......"
Karuna relented, and Karen stepped in front of him. She spoke clearly, in a fragile voice and blank expression.
With eyes ablaze.
"I want you to die. Emperor."
Clang-! Clang!
Child's words or not, the knights' swords were drawn in a flash.