Chapter 163
Chapter 163
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 163
Chapter Title: The Tenth Ascetic
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Squelch-.
The ground was soggy and muddy from the magic Herteias had used.
It took several more steps before they were finally free of the wet earth.
"Ah, Golem Armor... I swear, I'm going to learn that flying magic no matter what."
Do-jae regretted deactivating his Golem Armor.
He grumbled, his shoes and even his pants splattered with mud.
Beside him, Herteias glided effortlessly through the air.
"This? I taught it to your golem, so just ask it to teach you. Hahaha. When it comes to magic, that golem is far more talented than you."
"Ahem..."
Do-jae felt strangely inadequate.
It was an odd feeling, being told he was inferior to an inanimate object he had created himself.
"How many did you teach Magolem?"
"About 500? It learned them on its own just by watching me."
Five hundred.
The number of spells Do-jae knew, including those he could use as skills, was less than fifty.
Yet in just a few hours, Magolem had learned ten times that number from Herteias.
"Haha... I guess it finally deserves to be called a magic golem..."
"Well, its master was a dragon, after all!"
"What master... Didn't you say you just showed it? It's because my golem is brilliant."
"Hmph, how many mages do you think can use 500 different spells?"
"Wouldn't there be a lot? All dragons can probably use as many as you, right?"
He'd read in a book that there were at least thirty dragon lairs.
And that was just the number known to the human world, meaning there had to be even more dragons in existence.
"Wrong! Only someone on my level can use this many. The number of spells known by me, the great Gold Dragon Herteias, exceeds one thousand..."
"Is the fun over now?"
"Urk..."
Herteias was struck speechless by Do-jae's thoughtless question.
He awkwardly whipped his head around and stalked off ahead.
***
"Ooh... This place is quite nice. Should I move here?"
Following the path led them to a vast, dome-shaped space.
And inside it stood a temple of tremendous size.
It was clearly not a temple for humans, but one built to the scale of a Titan's towering height and build.
"Looks like he went inside."
Do-jae spotted wide footprints leading up the stairs.
They had to be from the Titan, Harkes.
What was strange, however, was that he couldn't sense Magolem's presence anywhere.
"Let's head in for now."
Do-jae placed his foot on the high steps to enter the temple.
But then.
Zzzt-!
"What are you doing?"
Herteias, who was already several steps ahead, asked as he looked back at the motionless Do-jae.
"...What is this?"
With a bewildered expression, Do-jae lifted his foot again.
Zzzt-!
The moment the tip of his foot touched the step, a stinging, numbing sensation like an electric shock shot through him.
Do-jae grit his teeth against the feeling and stepped up.
Zzt-.
Zzzt-.
An unsettling feeling flowed through his entire body.
It wasn't unbearable, but the distracting sensation was enough to hinder his movements.
"I asked what you're doing."
"I'm coming, I'm coming..."
Thud-.
The unsettling feeling intensified with each step he climbed.
By the time he stood before the pillars built in the unique style of the Titans, taking even a single step felt like an immense burden.
Thump-.
Do-jae collapsed to his knees at the temple entrance.
He was panting, and a cold sweat dripped down his face.
"Hey, what's wrong?"
Herteias, who had been walking ahead without a care, returned to help him up.
Even so, the mounting pressure couldn't be relieved.
"Just a moment..."
Do-jae opened his Subspace and activated Golem Armor.
Stones poured out, flying toward Do-jae and adhering to his body to form the armor.
The moment the final stones sealed over his face like a mask, Do-jae could breathe a little easier.
"Cough..."
Once he was fully clad in the Golem Armor, the suffocating feeling eased slightly.
An inexplicable sense of repulsion still pressed in on him, but he felt light enough to move.
"What's happening to you?"
"I don't know. As soon as I entered the temple, things got strange."
"I don't feel anything."
"Really? Is it just me...?"
Do-jae checked the footprints behind him.
Harkes's steps were evenly spaced.
There was no sign that he had felt any discomfort like Do-jae had.
That meant both Harkes and Herteias were fine.
As he entered the temple, Do-jae suspected there was a connection between the unease only he could feel and the absence of Magolem's presence.
"Eurabia... what are you?"
***
Snap-!
Fwoosh-!
With a snap of his fingers, Herteias lit the torches mounted inside the temple, illuminating the surroundings.
As the darkness receded, Harkes's back came into view.
"Mister, what are you doing in the dark?"
Herteias asked as he approached Harkes.
But Harkes remained motionless, his head bowed, offering no reply.
Do-jae went over to check on him.
His eyes were shut tight, but thankfully, he was breathing properly.
"It looks like he's praying. Let's wait a bit."
"Praying? Mortals are always trying to lean on something, aren't they?"
Herteias said with a cynical tone, then sat down on the side, crossed his legs, and watched Harkes.
Meanwhile, Do-jae decided to look around the temple's interior.
'There's nothing special here...'
The temple was simpler than he'd expected.
Aside from the large hall befitting a Titan's size, there were no empty spaces or hidden rooms to be found.
In fact, a closer look revealed many signs that it had been hastily constructed.
The tiger emblem, a symbol of the Titans, was rather crude, and despite being a place of worship, there were no paintings or decorations of Eurabia anywhere.
'This is a temple?'
There was no trace of Eurabia, making him wonder if she was truly sealed here at all.
Had the Titan's book been wrong?
Or was this place merely one of the paths leading to Eurabia?
While Do-jae was scouring every corner of the temple for Eurabia, Harkes slowly rose to his feet.
"Harkes, let me see those materials you have again. I don't think this is the..."
As Do-jae was asking Harkes to re-examine the ancient texts and maps, he looked into the Titan's eyes and noticed something was different.
"O, proxy of the Ascetic."
An unfamiliar voice emerged from Harkes's lips.
It wasn't the deep, heavy voice befitting the greatest Titan warrior, but the high, delicate voice of a woman.
"Why have you set foot in this place!"
Harkes shouted, his voice laced with anger.
Do-jae flinched and staggered backward.
The unsettling presence in the voice washed over him once more.
"Urgh... Haa... Are... are you Eurabia...?"
Do-jae asked, instinctively realizing the divine status of the being before him.
Harkes, his face scrunched in a frown, gave a stiff nod.
"Why... are you angry... with me?"
Harkes approached with stiff, heavy steps.
Do-jae kept backing away, pieces of his Golem Armor crumbling and falling to the floor with each movement.
"How dare the proxy of those who abandoned me appear with them in tow!"
Fwhoosh-!
Harkes's voice echoed, and Eurabia's wrath filled the temple.
Even Herteias, who had been sitting idly, shot to his feet, holding up his hands.
"Eurabia, stop! Calm down!"
"Dragon Herteias! Do not speak so carelessly, you mere bystander!"
Harkes's eyes flashed toward Herteias, who promptly sealed his lips.
"Why... Why did you abandon me and the Titans, Ruiden...!"
Fwaah-!
***
The scene of the temple instantly shifted into a wide-open plain.
Harkes's form had changed into that of a familiar female Titan, and behind Do-jae stood Ruiden.
Do-jae had thought Ruiden, a Shademan, was tall, but compared to the Titan, he looked as small as a human.
"Eurabia, wasting your divine power like this is..."
"Silence!"
Ruiden spoke in a calm voice, but Eurabia couldn't contain her rage and screamed.
"It's my fault. My brother and I were wrong. I sincerely apologize. So please, calm down."
"Apologize? After enslaving the Titans and imprisoning me here, you have the nerve to say such things!"
Do-jae moved away from Eurabia and Ruiden, deactivating his Golem Armor and heading over to Herteias.
Whether it was because the scenery had changed or because Ruiden had appeared in his true form, the unsettling feeling was gone.
"We had no choice... And we didn't enslave them, nor did we imprison you here. There were reasons for everything."
"Nonsense! You feared me. You ignored the sacrifices of the Titans and all my efforts!"
"No, you're wrong! We never thought that!"
"Then why did you do it? I, too, as the final, tenth Ascetic, worked for the peace of the continent. But not only did you strip me of my title, you erased every trace of my existence. And you claim you never thought such things after doing all that?"
Eurabia said passionately, her body trembling.
The final, tenth Ascetic, Eurabia.
Do-jae listened intently to their conversation.
"Eurabia, I'll explain everything later. I can't say it now. If I do, all the restrictions Han put in place will be broken."
"I don't care. You abandoned me anyway! It matters not to me whether those restrictions are broken!"
"Please... If the restrictions break, that human over there will return to being ordinary. The powers granted to him will all turn to nothing. Then..."
"What does that matter! Whatever happens to that human is no concern of..."
"Lady Eurabia!"
Do-jae, who had been listening quietly, interjected.
He thought he was about to hear about their history and their relationships, but now he was suddenly being told he would lose all his powers.
He couldn't just stand by and let that happen.
"Proxy, stay out of this! Someone like you has nothing to say."
Do-jae flinched as he took the full force of Eurabia's anger.
Fortunately, her rage didn't carry her divine pressure, so he didn't feel that unsettling sensation.
"Please, just listen to what I have to say. If you're still angry after hearing me out, I'll find a way to make Ruiden spill the whole story. Though I doubt hearing Ruiden's tale will appease you..."
"Are you trying to test me? Out of respect for my time as an Ascetic, I spoke without my power, but you dare...!"
As Eurabia spoke with divine power infused in her voice, that numbing, unpleasant sensation returned.
Do-jae suppressed the feeling of nausea rising from the pit of his stomach and opened his mouth.
"I'll... I'll get straight to the point. Lady Eurabia, please become my Ascetic."
At Do-jae's declaration, Ruiden's eyes widened.
Likewise, Eurabia's expression showed her surprise, her mouth slightly agape.
Seeing their faces, Do-jae forced a smile and spoke.
"I will grant your wishes!"