Chapter 5
Chapter 5
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: The End of the Uninvited Guest
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Yuel was an apprentice priest of the White Church.
Strictly speaking, he just hadn't received his official ordination as a priest yet, but no one actually thought of him as an apprentice.
Yuel's ability was the Eye of Insight.
It allowed him to peer through objects and the minds of living beings.
The White Church utilized his ability to interrogate heretics or root out unbelievers within the church.
In fact, he was treated as practically on par with a saint.
For their church, the appearance of even one saint or saintess in an era was a blessing, and now they had both.
Aware of this, the church granted Yuel many privileges.
However, since he wasn't officially a saint, they required him to serve as an apprentice priest until he became a formal one. Of course, it was all just for show.
In reality, a Holy Knight had been assigned to accompany him.
And that wasn't all.
He had been given an inventory artifact along with a holy relic capable of dealing damage even to 5-star monsters.
What kind of being was a 5-star monster?
It was an existence said to be able to single-handedly wipe out a mid-sized city.
The fact that they provided him with a relic that could harm such a creature spoke volumes about how much attention the church was paying him.
Just by sitting idly, he would soon become an official priest.
This was a privilege that Yuel, a commoner by birth, could never have dreamed of without the Eye of Insight.
But Yuel found such privileges uncomfortable.
He knew there were people resentful of the way he was treated as nearly a saint.
Perhaps there were even more who felt that way. No, he'd actually used his ability to confirm it—they definitely were.
So Yuel had no intention of accepting the church's proposals as they were.
Even if he just waited around to become an official priest, it would only breed more discontent.
People would say he was a talentless guy elevated solely by one trait.
In the worst case, would anyone acknowledge him even if he rose to a high position?
To truly dominate the White Church in the future, he needed an opportunity.
All he needed was some event that demonstrated his worth.
If he resolved it himself, the rumors about him would die down.
With that in mind, Yuel wandered various places with the Holy Knight assigned to him.
He especially climbed the mountain range in the Sail Kingdom, known for frequent monster appearances.
There was no one to stop him anyway, so there were no issues.
How far up the mountain had they gone?
Just then, a perfect opportunity arose.
Text appeared before Yuel's eyes.
It was clearly just a forest path on an ordinary mountain trail.
Countless vines grew around the trees, making it look like nothing was there at first glance.
When Yuel approached and brushed aside the vines with his hand, a cave entrance revealed itself.
"I don't sense any dungeon energy."
Having confirmed it with the Eye of Insight, that cave surely wasn't a dungeon.
Yet the label "Nest of the Evil God" had appeared.
'Not a dungeon... could it be a heretics' hideout?'
Yuel's guess had some logic to it.
What was the Evil God?
It was the deity worshipped by heretics who denied the goddess revered by the White Church.
But the Evil God itself couldn't have descended directly into the world. Even if it had, an oracle would have come down beforehand.
At the same time, that cave wasn't a dungeon. No presence could be felt from the outside.
Considering all that, the cave was likely a hideout for heretics worshipping the Evil God.
The fact that they'd camouflaged it with vines suggested they were thorough.
"Fortunately, I don't sense any presence."
Yuel and the Holy Knight stepped into the cave interior. Unlike the outside, it was surprisingly spacious.
The tunnel stretching downward was so long they couldn't gauge its length.
The cave's darkness only amplified that uncertainty.
They hadn't even hung a single common torch on the walls...
"Priest, something feels off."
The Holy Knight leading the way placed his hand on his sword and spoke.
Yuel agreed with him.
No presence at all.
He'd wondered if it might be ruins, but there weren't even traps.
While relieved that nothing was happening, he couldn't shake the eerie feeling.
Perhaps it was already an abandoned place.
Still, just in case, Yuel kept advancing while fiddling with his artifact.
It was a holy relic provided by the church.
The Holy Knight had already drawn his sword.
As they proceeded cautiously, a woman's voice reached them.
"Oh my, we have visitors."
They turned toward the source of the voice.
"A m-maid...?"
"She has horns! Be careful, Priest!"
The owner of the voice was a woman dressed as a maid.
But spotting the horns on her head, they quickly realized she was a monster.
Yuel subtly activated his ability, but no information on her appeared.
'What trick is this?'
The Eye of Insight worked even on 5-star monsters.
He'd never tried it on anything higher, but it probably would.
He wasn't certain because even Yuel had never seen a 6-star monster.
Such beings were probably only rarely spotted in the demon realm, known as the land of death.
Yuel assumed she was using some trick to evade the Eye of Insight.
"Who are you! We are members of the White Church—I am Priest Yuel!"
Yuel shouted while presenting his church identification.
Normally he wasn't an official priest, but suppressing the unknown foe's momentum came first.
"Reveal yourself at once!"
Yuel yelled loudly on purpose, but contrary to his expectations, she remained composed.
She even smiled as she replied.
"I am a humble servant of the great one, Celia Ishar. Might I ask what brings you here?"
The being before him introduced herself as Celia Ishar.
Most importantly, she served a "great one."
"Great... one?"
He didn't need to hear more—it was obvious.
She was a heretic worshipping the Evil God.
He had to judge these heretics in the name of the church right away.
"Knight!"
At Yuel's shout, the Holy Knight charged forward, swinging his sword.
-Clang
But the Holy Knight's sword was blocked.
The monster before them neither dodged nor blocked.
She had simply stood still as the sword swung toward her.
"What...!"
As the Holy Knight recoiled to pull back...
"Not only do uninvited guests invade the great one's dungeon, but they attack right away? Is this how lowly humans are?"
Celia Ishar's hand gripped the Holy Knight's throat even faster.
"Kuh."
He felt his strength slowly draining from his body.
He couldn't hold out for even a moment, groaning under the vivid pain transmitted through his neck.
The sharp, straight holy sword that had aimed to cleave the monster before him had already slipped from his hand and was rolling on the ground.
'What is this?'
The pain choking his throat vanished.
The only sensation now was comfort.
'This is strange.'
A soft, warm feeling washed over him.
Then, suddenly, someone spoke to him.
'Daddy!'
It was his daughter's voice.
'N-no.'
No words came out.
Clearly, his daughter was right in front of him.
'Dear, you need to eat soon.'
And a voice from behind.
His wife.
His wife and daughter, who should have died to monsters, stood vividly before him.
Ah.
How hard life had been since his wife and daughter died.
Consumed by hatred for monsters, he had devoted himself to the church and swung his sword.
Tears suddenly flowed from his eyes.
'Mommy, Daddy's crying!'
'Dear, are you okay? Did you have a nightmare?'
Yes, perhaps everything until now had been a dream.
A cruel, horrific dream that shouldn't exist.
'You're happy now, right?'
His wife smiled and spoke to him.
He was happy.
He wanted to say he was happy, but strangely, no voice came out.
So what?
This moment was too blissful.
He wanted to spend eternity in this instant.
'You are happy now, aren't you?'
Yes, if this wasn't happiness, what was?
.........
......
...
"You are happy now, aren't you?"
Celia Ishar smirked as she released the Holy Knight's throat.
For some reason, the Holy Knight was smiling blissfully, tears streaming down his face.
"What have you done!"
To Yuel's eyes, it was an utterly bizarre scene.
The Holy Knight, who had been writhing in agony moments ago, was now laughing.
"I merely showed him a dream."
"A dream...?"
That was right.
Celia Ishar had used a skill.
A skill she gained upon reaching 6-star rank.
Dream Manipulation was a skill that manipulated the target's dreams to show them hope while draining their vitality.
The Holy Knight was still having his vitality sucked away in real time under the dream manipulation.
Unaware of that fact, Yuel realized from the word "dream" that Celia Ishar was a succubus.
He also recalled that the church had reported a succubus escaping from a sealing stone.
"You...!"
He immediately pulled a cup-shaped item from his inventory.
It was a high-grade artifact holy relic provided by the church for emergencies.
This was an emergency.
A monster that escaped the church's seal—the situation was dire.
The holy relic in Yuel's hand emitted light.
It contained holy power strong enough to eliminate even 5-star monsters.
In contrast, the opponent was merely a 3-star succubus.
Yuel was certain she would vanish without a trace upon facing the relic's holy power.
If he could deal with her, his standing would rise even a little.
But that expectation was short-lived.
As the light faded, shock appeared on Yuel's face.
He had definitely used the relic.
Yet the opponent stood there smiling as if nothing had happened, even muttering something incomprehensible.
"Ahh. My master must have foreseen even this outfit? Truly impressive."
Celia Ishar said that while looking at Yuel.
"Holy power has no effect on me."
-Smile
"This is all thanks to the great one's foresight. Hehe, isn't it amazing?"
Yuel's body trembled.
She wasn't 3-star.
'I can't win this...!'
He had to run now.
Report to the church.
She wasn't some mere 3-star succubus.
He never imagined such a being existed.
It was a monster in the truest sense.
If he could just escape this place, he'd quit being a priest.
He'd go to some rural village and live quietly.
He didn't want to die.
'Please...'
In the urgent situation, Yuel's thoughts jumbled chaotically.
He couldn't even understand what he was thinking anymore.
As if hearing his wish, Celia Ishar smiled softly and spoke.
"If you wish, go ahead, Priest."
The moment those words ended, Yuel bolted.
Anxious that the succubus might change her mind, he ran frantically.
He didn't ponder long.
He just ran blindly.
Driven solely by the will to survive, he kept running.
The Holy Knight?
Who cares? He had to save himself first.
Right, this wasn't abandoning him.
Once he got out alive, a rescue team could come later.
So it absolutely wasn't betrayal.
How long had he run?
Light appeared ahead.
Hope that he could finally escape surged up.
In relief, he leaped toward the light.
"Ah--"
At that instant, Yuel's vision cut off.
His consciousness severed, Yuel's body collapsed.
In truth, he never made it out of the dungeon.
A small altar created as the dungeon expanded.
Yuel's body had climbed atop it of his own accord.
Satisfied with the sight, Celia Ishar smiled.
Sudden alarms popped up.
Yi Kang-hyun looked at his phone.
"What the hell is this?"
Celia Ishar was the dungeon's lieutenant.
Of course, he'd set her to manage the dungeon, but this alarm was out of nowhere.
"Didn't I set up Dungeon Stealth? So where did this guy come from?"
The Dungeon Stealth effect had two parts: permanently concealing the dungeon's energy and hiding its location for 7 days.
With 6 days left, he hadn't placed any defensive monsters or traps.
An intruder appearing out of the blue was absurd.
Just a simple bug?
He decided to watch for a bit, and if it happened again, he'd contact customer support. Then he hit the close button.
"Why am I so tired, though?"
Sudden fatigue washed over him, and Yi Kang-hyun set his phone down before falling into a deep sleep.
The smartphone alarms continued ringing as Yi Kang-hyun slept.
Time passed, and soon 6 hours had elapsed.
However, still asleep, Yi Kang-hyun couldn't check the alarm.
The alarms didn't end there.
Collision Detected!