Elizabeth (4)
Yun-seok woke the gatekeeper who had passed out under the debris.
Staring straight into his eyes, he posed a very simple question.
"Shaman, huh? Then why'd you lock her up?"
"……."
The gatekeeper simply glared up at him with venomous eyes, saying nothing.
Whoosh!
Yun-seok infused his Patian Qi with a fire attribute and clamped down hard on the man's wrist.
Come to think of it, he'd heard somewhere once that burning alive caused the most intense pain a human could feel.
So what would it be like with twenty times that agony?
The gatekeeper's reaction provided a rough answer.
"Aaack! Aaaaack! Urgh, uwaaaack!"
Screams burst forth like a dam breaking.
It wouldn't have been strange for him to go into shock and die right there, but even that mercy was denied him. Every time his heart stopped, Yun-seok channeled Patian Qi into his body, forcing it to beat again.
How much time passed like that?
"She is our savior! And you ruined the ritual? You think you'll walk away unscathed?!"
After the wave of torment finally subsided, the gatekeeper, barely regaining his senses, screamed in fury.
Yun-seok simply tilted his head.
"…Ritual?"
It seemed she hadn't just been locked away—something had been in progress.
Maybe once the ritual finished, El would awaken as the final boss or something like that.
"Why'd you gouge out her eyes?"
"It was part of the ritual. Only then can she face this impure world with true sight."
"You fucking lunatics."
He was genuinely furious now, beyond restraint.
The young El had said she wanted to escape this place, begged for help.
"And you call this a savior?"
"Don't mock our sacred wish. Just kill me already. We've already contacted the main temple—you won't get out alive."
Yun-seok let out a laugh, as if it were absurd.
Kill you? I wasn't planning to let you live anyway.
"I'll kill you. All of you. Until your roots are ripped out."
This was a recreated world. Nothing he did here would change reality.
But Yun-seok resolved to do it anyway.
With Patian Qi, Yun-seok scooped up El in one arm and stepped out through the portal.
In a single leap, he rose to the surface—and that's when they appeared.
"It's that guy!"
"Kill him!"
Demons and heretics who hadn't shown their faces when he'd been searching now swarmed him. About a thousand in number.
But looking down from above, they resembled nothing so much as a writhing mass of grotesque insects.
He didn't even need to lift a finger.
Judgment of the Destruction Lord.
Judgment of the Destruction Lord
The sky turned black, and a pillar of light descended.
None survived before the judgment's radiance.
Yun-seok gazed indifferently at the spot where they had vanished without a trace, then turned away.
First things first—gotta move.
Carrying El, Yun-seok traveled a good distance.
He planned to leave this mountain range and find somewhere safe to hear her story.
But…
You cannot leave the designated area.
He couldn't exit the mountain range.
The Tower wouldn't tolerate such loopholes.
Heading toward the Trinity Church's camp would probably trigger the same thing.
Guess I just have to tough it out.
Returning to the mountain range's entrance, Yun-seok used Shaman's Law to conceal his presence from the outside.
He then infused Patian Qi into the unconscious El, soothing her battered body.
Soon, color returned to her cheeks, and the skin bruised purple from iron chains regained its original hue.
But her gouged-out eyes didn't heal.
"Mister…?"
"Sorry, but I'm not that mister you're talking about."
"…Then who are you? Where are we?"
Her voice carried a faint wariness.
Yun-seok pondered briefly before answering.
"Someone… well, someone with ties to you sent me to protect you. I don't know exactly where we are either, but it's safe for now."
"Someone with ties? You mean the mister? He sent you? To get me out of that hell? But then why didn't he come himself?"
Did she sense hope in his vague excuse? El bombarded him with questions like a storm.
It felt like giving a kid candy only to snatch it back—he felt a pang of guilt, but it only deepened his curiosity.
"Who exactly is this mister you keep talking about?"
"The mister saved me over and over. If I'd just listened to him, none of this would've happened…."
Clearly, he was a benefactor to her.
His interest was piqued, but there were more pressing matters.
"El, I won't force you to answer, and I'll help you anyway. But I have a few questions. Do you know High Priestess Kanna Blitz?"
"How could I forget her? She was the first one to pull me out of that hell."
Yun-seok then asked about the journey from Edinbaum Castle to Jaris Bay.
El said it was so long ago she didn't remember the place names clearly, but that sounded right.
"Can you tell me what happened from then until now?"
Reluctant memories, perhaps? El began to tremble.
But Yun-seok couldn't back down.
The previous mission's ending was just a recreation based on the original story.
He'd come here to learn what had really happened in the true history.
"Like I said, it was ages ago."
"That's fine. Just tell me what you remember."
"…Okay."
El slowly recalled and began to speak, while Yun-seok listened without interrupting.
The recreated world diverged quite a bit from reality.
For one, the real mercenaries weren't as strong as challengers.
Around day seven of the escort mission, the mercenaries failed to hold off the heretics and lost El.
But…
"A few days later, the mister saved me."
While being dragged away by the heretics, El was rescued by a man.
His name: Rick Gersey.
"He was one of the mercenaries protecting me and Kanna. He said he'd come alone at her request."
"Rick… Gersey…?"
The unexpected name made Yun-seok freeze.
If memory served, that was the name he'd used in the previous mission.
Is the mission carrying over what happened there?
The sudden suspicion arose, but it was a ridiculous leap.
The events had played out completely differently from the start.
Back then, El hadn't been kidnapped, and Kanna had reached the port with her.
"Do you know him?"
"…No. Just an unusual name. Could you continue, if it's okay?"
"Sure…."
F-rank mercenary or not, Rick Gersey was strong.
Not to Yun-seok's superhuman degree, but enough to desperately fight his way through, rescue her, and return to base amid pursuit.
But when they arrived, Kanna Blitz was gone.
In the end, Rick took El and spent three whole years on the run from the heretics.
"But I messed up. If I'd just stayed home like the mister told me…."
El disobeyed him, got captured, and ended up locked in that stone chamber, enduring eternal agony.
Naturally, she had no idea what became of Rick afterward.
"He's alive, right? He has to be. He didn't get hurt because of me, did he?"
El's breathing quickened, her shoulders shaking with sobs.
With it, blood trickled from her mangled eye sockets instead of tears.
Drip.
Yun-seok pressed down on her bleeding, staunching it.
One reason was to let the exhausted girl rest easy for a bit.
The other was…
"Quite the crowd."
What was about to unfold wouldn't be good for a child's sensibilities.
Yun-seok dispelled Shaman's Law and stepped outside.
No need to go looking—they were swarming like maggots.
* * *
Night passed, and morning broke.
He had no idea how many demons and heretics he'd slain overnight.
He hadn't bothered counting.
But the area around where he'd stood vigil was littered with destruction, as if divine wrath had scorched the earth.
Day eight now, huh…
Watching the sunrise, Yun-seok turned to El.
The bleeding seal should've worn off by now, but she was still deep in oblivious sleep.
Well, she must've been exhausted…
Leaving her be, Yun-seok stepped beyond the domain of the law.
Clop. Clop. Clank.
He hadn't summoned them, yet guests were approaching early in the morning.
A group from the Trinity Church—not too many, around three hundred.
Among the detachment-like force was the 'Red Wolf' mercenary band.
"Wh-what are you doing here…?"
Had he been promoted in the meantime? Miller, standing at the front like their leader, gaped upon spotting Yun-seok.
There was no particular debt between them, but Yun-seok explained anyway.
Not in exhaustive detail—just that he'd been wandering, found the girl, and picked the option that popped up.
Miller, listening silently, rubbed his forehead.
"I was wondering why the scenario suddenly changed—and you're the culprit. Hand her over. We won't kill you if you do."
"I'll pass. Like I said, protecting her is my mission."
From the tenth floor on, coins vanished.
Fail the mission, and you died for real.
Miller let out a frustrated groan.
"Why the hell would you pick that option?!"
"That's none of your business."
Miller's face hardened at Yun-seok's nonchalant reply.
"Once that girl's in the holy site, her position is relayed to us in real time. Not just us—them too. You really think you can survive?"
That explained how the previous night's uninvited demons and heretics had tracked him.
Grateful for the intel on his nagging question.
But nosy meddling? No thanks.
"I'll take responsibility for my choice."
"Responsibility? Do you even know what that means?"
"Yes. So why not just head back?"
This was genuine consideration from Yun-seok.
The mission was to fight for forty-five days—sending them away wouldn't fail it.
Sure, as fellow challengers, he got the greed for the extra challenge reward with El.
But Miller didn't know.
Refuse this offer, and the only responsibility he'd bear was a single outcome.
"I knew you were weird from the start, but a few screws loose? Didn't see that coming."
Miller let out a hollow chuckle.
Not unfamiliar by now.
Most reacted that way until he drew his sword and showed his true colors.
Shing.
Yun-seok drew his blade and traced a circle on the ground.
No more wasting energy on pointless debate.
"Cross this line, and I'll cut you down."
Clear intent.
Ignore it, and the consequences were on them.
But Miller smirked.
"Talking like you can take us all alone?"
Yun-seok grinned back from beneath his mask.
A question that didn't even deserve an answer.