Chapter 130
Chapter 130
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 130
Chapter Title: 54. The Unforgiven (5)
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Gert recalled the past.
His memories were hazy, like a grimy window, but he could recall fighting that demon flower long, long ago.
He hadn't won.
It wasn't something that could be killed in the first place.
It manifested on the earth, yet its essence resided beyond the phenomenal world, untouchable by any sword.
'I shall give you a command.'
A voice suddenly passed through his mind. Gert's eyes flickered.
That was it. He had fought for an endless stretch of time, obeying the given order. It was his sole reason for existence.
'Gert. My most loyal knight.'
Back then, it felt like he had been filled with some kind of emotion.
But now, he had no heart.
Like his skeletal frame, his soul had worn away completely, leaving him as nothing more than a wind-up doll repeating its programmed actions.
But precisely because of that, there was one task he could perform flawlessly.
The Great Library was collapsing entirely.
Perhaps that was for the best. Once a sanctuary holding all of Adelbine's knowledge, it had become a nightmarish maze that devoured human souls ever since it was tainted by black magic.
All because of profane books that had seeped in unnoticed, at some unknown time.
He shredded the tentacles bursting through the outer walls. With every swing of his sword, bundles of tentacles were severed at random, and the thick petals beyond convulsed, oozing blood.
The ravenous maw lurking beyond finally took notice of Gert.
Seeing its longtime nemesis after so long, it twisted into a furious grimace. Saw-like teeth ground against each other, screeching noisily.
Soon, long tendrils of dark mist sprayed out in all directions.
Gert felt the evil aura infiltrating him.
The demon flower could manipulate any being dominated by malice—and Gert was, after all, a creation of black magic. His body began to move against his will.
But.
The character embedded in his core ignited in blood-red flames.
Gert gritted his teeth. The force was too much—even the few teeth clinging to his jaw crumbled away.
Gert unleashed a blast of dark energy. The malice invading him scattered completely.
Dragging his sword along the ground, he advanced toward the demon flower once more.
The Great Library had now become total ruins.
Hovering above it was a monstrous, flower-shaped abomination.
For reasons unknown, he could sense an immense well of life force surging within it. Revived at the cost of countless human lives, the thing brimmed with vitality like never before.
In his fading memories, Gert recalled one scene from long ago.
Adelbine's people had wandered into it as if entranced, offering their own bodies willingly. Each time human flesh tore and crushed between its teeth, the demon flower glowed crimson, as if bathing in blood.
One child had gone in hand-in-hand with its mother, as casually as if they were off on a picnic.
"Gert!"
A voice called from behind, but Gert registered nothing.
He pressed forward, slashing indiscriminately at the tentacles lunging from every direction. At one point, teeth embedded in a tentacle smashed into him, shattering his ribs. He ignored it.
Limping on his fractured leg, Gert kept advancing.
"Take it slow!"
Humans attacked the demon flower.
Its attention divided, it could no longer focus entirely on him. Gert silently pushed toward the center.
Suddenly, one of the humans leaped to his side.
"Sir Gert, aren't you fighting alone a bit too much? Great momentum, though. Hahaha!"
A burly man.
Gert halted for a moment. Being called "Sir" was something from an age long past.
Worn memories began bubbling up from the depths. Things he hadn't recalled even once since becoming the Death Knight. They were too vibrant, too dazzling to fit inside his blackened void.
'Sir Gert, your face is way too stiff, don't you think?'
'Sir Gert's always so serious.'
'Sir Gert's a knight you can count on.'
'Sir Gert's smile is cuter than you'd expect.'
Not a good sign.
Memories like these interfered with his mechanical execution of duty.
He had to wander Adelbine for what felt like eternity. Perhaps a mission without end—so to carry it out, he needed to erase all emotion.
The past would only dull his sword.
But before he could dwell on it, the burly knight swung his blade.
"I'll join you!"
With the two advancing together, the resistance dropped sharply. Tentacles ripped apart with every swing of their swords.
Now they were closing in on the gaping maw at the demon flower's core.
Tentacles surged from all sides.
At some point, they completely enveloped the pair, blotting out all external light.
They were left fighting invisible tentacles in pitch darkness.
Then, in that moment—
Something pierced clean through.
"Huh?"
Gert looked down.
His core had been run through by a single, glowing red tentacle.
"Sir Gert?"
The blazing character "Command" above it began to dim. At the same time, the life force he harbored leaked out rapidly.
Gert swung his sword to sever the red tentacle. But it retreated swiftly. It was no ordinary tentacle.
Gert tore out his own ribs with his hand, then cupped the core nestled within.
He had to stem the outflow of life force.
His power was shrinking rapidly with every passing second.
He ground the bones into powder and smeared it thickly over the core, barely plugging the hole. But it wasn't fully restored.
The damaged character wouldn't revive.
His core no longer bore the character "Command."
He raised his head.
Beings born of darkness couldn't resist the demon flower's profane fragrance.
With his only safeguard gone, he'd be puppeteered by the demon flower, just like any human.
Gert said.
His vision blurred. Every single tentacle surrounding him now appeared as something else.
The mangled corpses of those slain by the demon flower, twisted into tentacle shapes, glared at him. Voices from every direction screamed for him to die.
The ground beneath his feet, the sky overhead—it was all the same.
Everything was formed from the starved bones of the dead.
Suddenly, eyes materialized in his mind. The instant their gaze fell upon him, Gert could resist no longer.
His hazy memories began to turn red.
Everyone was bleeding.
Yuri furrowed his brow.
"This looks seriously messed up."
Gert was charging headlong into the demon flower, fighting recklessly. It seemed too solo an effort, so Yuri had sent Hose to back him up.
With the two of them together, their firepower doubled.
Tentacles shredded away like wood under a plane.
But they'd gone too deep. The moment they reached the demon flower's core, tentacles wrapped around them both—and something happened inside.
Gert's core had been pierced.
If it had just been weakened, that would've been fine. But the exact thing Yuri had feared came to pass.
"Cory."
"Yes."
"Can't save Gert?"
"He's a Death Knight to begin with, so my protection doesn't reach him. I'm doing everything I can, but..."
Cory was shielding the group from the demon flower's wicked energy. That was why Yuri's party could fight back without being controlled like the mercenaries.
But it didn't seem to affect Gert.
Cory sweated profusely, repeatedly shifting his mudras. Yet Gert showed no sign of change.
He simply stood there blankly, his sword hanging limp.
Yuri's eyes delved into the Heart-Soul Realm.
He shouted at Hose.
"Hose!"
"Yes!"
"Run!"
"Pardon?"
The words had barely left his mouth when Gert lunged at Hose.
Hose blocked in panic and fell back. But tentacles waited behind him.
With the demon flower and now Gert piling on, even Hose was struggling to hold. He parried repeatedly, but wounds started appearing.
"Damn it."
Yuri dashed forward. Rolang and Jared followed.
"Sir Hose, fall back!"
"How about calling it a 'tactical retreat' instead of just retreating?"
"Tactical my ass—it's a survival retreat!"
As Gert pressed the attack, Yuri's group had no choice but to withdraw. Yuri slashed tentacles alongside Hose as they fled backward.
Rolang and Jared held Gert off.
"Nngh..."
Overpowered, Rolang locked swords in a test of strength, twisted the flat to create an opening, then leaped back.
"Jared, let's retreat."
"Right."
They unleashed sword qi to stall Gert, then turned and bolted.
"First, put some distance between us and that flower!"
"Yes!"
Yuri's seven comrades sprinted through the ruins of Adelbine.
The demon flower moved slowly, but Gert was a different story.
He'd been a reliable ally just moments ago—now, as an enemy, there was no more terrifying foe.
"Damn..."
"Escape's tough. He's way too fast."
"We have to fight. Everyone, stay sharp."
"Hoo..."
Yuri peered at Gert through the Heart-Soul Realm. If he could just sever the black magic controlling him... but it felt different. No clear link presented itself to cut.
The only darkness visible to his eyes was Gert himself.
"Must be because that character vanished."
The "Command" that had glowed in his core was gone.
He didn't know the principle behind it, but that seal had kept Gert from succumbing to the darkness.
Yuri examined Gert again through the Heart-Soul Realm.
The form was damaged, but traces of the character lingered. It was just a stroke broken where it'd been pierced through the middle.
Proof of that: every so often, when Gert unleashed his energy, a faint light flickered before fading away.
"Your Highness."
Cory said as they ran together.
"Yeah?"
"What did the character in his core originally look like?"
Yuri looked at him. An unexpected question.
"You can see it?"
"Yes."
Cory said.
"Faintly. And..."
He hesitated, then continued.
"Let me try fixing it."
"You?"
"Yes."
As the two conversed, Gert caught up to the rear guard. His sword plunged toward Simon's head. Hose dove in, saving him.
The two knights' blades clashed repeatedly, exploding with force.
Yuri gazed at Cory. He met Yuri's eyes without flinching.
This was the kid who used to avert his gaze.
Now, Yuri could read the resolve in his eyes.
"Got it."
Yuri used Guilty to carve the character into the ground.
Cory nodded upon seeing it.
"Your Highness. I'll give it a shot."
He used to fret endlessly over the fear of failure. Now, he shouldered the weight. Yuri grinned and ruffled his hair.
"Yeah. I trust you."
Cory knelt and stared down at the character, lost in thought.
Yuri turned away.
The rest of the group was locked in a fierce melee around Gert. No one but Hose could withstand his strikes.
Each swing of his sword sent someone flying, only for another to step in—a brutal war of attrition.
Yuri gripped Guilty and stepped forward.
"Right—we came here to take down Gert anyway."
Heart-Soul Severing erupted like flames. He threw himself into the fray at once.
The instant Hose and Gert's swords met, Yuri's blade arced toward Gert's waist.
Gert blocked with his knee, then lashed out with a kick to Yuri's chest. Yuri flew back, gouging the ground. He spat blood-flecked saliva and charged again.
The three wove together, the air ringing with ceaseless sword clashes.
Cory stared at the character "Command," overcome by an inexplicable sensation.
He looked up at Gert.
The fading form of the character in his chest stood out with eerie clarity.
For some reason, he felt like he could do something. A premonition.
But he had no idea how.
Cory desperately fixed his gaze on the character, searching for an answer.
Suddenly, he spotted the Third Prince—the one who had saved him—sent tumbling across the ground by Gert's blow. His heart raced.
But he forced himself to stay calm. A mage must never lose composure.
His mind and mana resonated.
One single character.
The magic it contained.
Unknowingly, words slipped from Cory's lips.