Ch.12942. You Are the Ones Who Made Us (3)

“This place hasn’t changed.”

Truly, it’s a place like hell.

Those who have nothing.

This is always how the powerless are treated.

He had been like that in the past.

Those he knew were no exception.

We are all cursed beings abandoned by the world.

If not that…

…how could such misery and suffering make any sense?

Unless God has cursed and abandoned us, this doesn’t add up.

So our resistance is both a rightful claim and duty to survive.

“Even rats sometimes bite cats when cornered. Even snakes and wolves bite back. But humans couldn’t even do that.”

So we only suffered.

At some point, we endured without even knowing why we suffered. We only ran away.

…We just curled up and covered our heads.

And after a very long time,

the devil revealed the reason.

It was called learned helplessness.

“What we needed was courage.”

The wretched weak.

Bringing down those they thought were invincible oppressors.

Hitting, biting, clawing.

Desperately charging and ramming, barely clinging to life.

Eventually leading them to death.

If not as individuals, then as a group.

If without hands, then ramming with heads.

If teeth break, then using bare gums.

With their entire bodies, they personally implant the most hideous and vicious curses into those they hate.

In the end.

If there’s anything we can do.

It would be to fire our wretched lives like arrows.

“Hey, you there. Are you alright?”

“Wha! Ah, ah… y-yes?”

The dazed boy was trembling, hidden in the alleyway.

His fear must have been overwhelming, as the smell of urine wafted from him.

The man looked down at him and asked again.

“Why didn’t you kill that old man?”

“What? Old man? Old… man? Th-that’s…”

The man the boy looked up at was not someone you’d expect to see around here.

First, his clothing was different, and his appearance was unusual.

Like ancient attire that temple dwellers might wear.

An old-fashioned yet strange outfit.

It had an overall red hue, but it didn’t look particularly luxurious or valuable.

He was meticulously wrapped in thick red clothing that resembled a combination of a woman’s skirt and top, like a one-piece garment.

But his skin was not just pale but snow-white, and his eyes were completely black.

Truly pitch-black.

“Everyone else is killing and torturing without hesitation, so why didn’t you?”

“Th-that’s… it’s, it’s, it’s strange, isn’t it?!”

The boy cried out in a suppressed voice, as if having a seizure.

But then.

“What is?”

The boy responded again to the man’s strange question, as if entranced.

“Why… would people do such things… to other people?”

“You’re asking me that reason.”

The man’s lips moved slightly.

“That’s something I really want to know too.”

The man extended his hand and asked.

“So, what’s your name?”

“M-me? I, I’m… J-Jacques…”

“Jacques? Jacques. You?”

With a sniff, the boy was pulled up by the man’s hand.

Looking down at the boy again, the man couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

“My goodness! Jacques the Butcher? You? The one who could chew raw human flesh without flinching was this fragile as a child?! The world is truly mysterious! Or is it? Perhaps that’s why you acted more cruelly? Knowing it was wrong but unable to stand apart when everyone else was doing it, so you became even more vicious?”

“Ex-excuse me? What are you… Butcher? Chewing human… flesh? Me? Me?”

“Ah, it’s fine.”

The boy who identified himself as Jacques.

Seeing the shadow that had suddenly fallen across his face,

he turned his head back.

CRUNCH!

A massive maw descended with the shadow onto the boy’s shoulders.

“It’s a future that will never happen now.”

CRUNCH! GULP!

The thing that easily bit off and swallowed the boy’s head was a massive beast-man with a ram’s head.

After chewing and swallowing the cloth, skull, brain, and cerebrospinal fluid whole.

“The air is quite nice.”

Strangely clear speech in the local language flowed from the ram’s mouth.

“Is it?”

“It’s quite an excellent venue for a feast to offer to our master.”

“Sigh.”

“Aren’t you pleased? Why the expression?”

The man let out a low, uncomfortable sigh at the ram-head’s question.

“I couldn’t find Delica.”

“Why not?”

“I wonder that myself. I’m terribly worried she might get caught up in the commotion.”

The pale man moved away from the alley and into the crowd.

“By the way, can you feel it?”

“Feel what?”

“The stench of the Three Generations.”

Three Generations?

“By Three Generations, do you mean… Oh, could you be referring to the Great Demon Kings? The Three Great Demon Kings?”

The ram-head trembled as if in awe.

Its mind was already elsewhere.

As if merely mentioning it caused tremors, it shook for quite some time.

Then.

“This is truly a divine revelation. How can the energy of that be felt so strongly in this place where we’ve set foot?”

“…Instead of speaking in riddles, explain clearly.”

“One of the remnants left by the Great Demon King. It’s nearby. The smell is wafting strongly. Ah, it’s noticed us just now. It’s watching. Its gaze is scanning us.”

“……”

Remnants left by the Great Demon King?

Could it be…

“Are you talking about the legacy? The gold that was supposedly leaked to the middle realm?”

“Yes. The same thing your lord obtained. The power of the Great Demon King. His fragment. Proof of a Demon King candidate.”

“…So what happens to us?”

The man involuntarily thought of his lord and felt his body tremble.

If it’s an entity like that, it means death no matter what we do.

“It lacks depth. Still immature. A half-wit, you might say.”

The ram-head made a bizarre laughing sound.

Like a sheep bleating, a wolf howling, a snake hissing, and a crow cawing all at once.

“Perhaps we can offer a good tribute to our master before he arrives.”

Soon.

An unknown presence rapidly approaches.

The hair on their skin stands on end.

It began from the sky.

Two figures sliding down through the air.

Where they landed, transparent frost formed flower-like patterns.

It was a white woman.

Unlike the man’s marble-like skin and completely bleached white hair,

she was white in a way that transcended human categories.

To put it in fairy tale terms… like an ideal princess from the land of snow.

Yes. She had the appearance and atmosphere that such a being might possess.

“It’s you, isn’t it? The mastermind behind this situation.”

“When everyone else is in chaos and only one person remains calm, it’s obvious. Hmm… judging by the strong magical residue, there’s no need for further words.”

Despite people rushing toward Mines and Venus who had just descended,

no one approached that man.

As if, to the poor people in chaos, only that being remained undetected.

“Looks delicious.”

The ram-head next to the man grinned and leisurely approached the woman.

Though the massive figure glided across the ground,

for some reason, the man and woman seemed not to notice it.

Perhaps that’s why.

The gazes of the two remained steadily fixed on the pale man.

“Aaaah—!”

The ram-head opened its mouth wide above the woman’s head, ready to bite.

It was about to happily bite off and swallow her head…

but.

-CRACK!

“…?”

The ram-headed beast-man.

Its entire body rapidly froze.

And that wasn’t all.

“What the hell is that?”

A frost statue suddenly formed in mid-air, surprising everyone.

Even so, Mines seemed merely puzzled rather than threatened.

Even though the frost statue had been poised to devour his head whole.

“Hmm.”

More than that.

“Doesn’t that look familiar?”

Venus said, looking at someone standing at a distance.

That man.

Skin beyond pale, snow-white.

And both Venus and Mines.

They had once seen a similar being? Race?

Anyway, they had seen such a being before.

The dull-witted commander, Bargo Adedima.

The nominal leader of the remnants of the Demon King’s army.

The actual leader of those defeated troops.

That man had very similar distinctive features.

But he wasn’t the same being.

Only the race or species was the same.

Which means.

“A demon race?”

The ice statue of the ram-headed beast suddenly cracked and shattered.

CRASH!

Like precious glass destroyed by impact.

But strangely.

“Keh!”

Far away, a black form sprang up from the ground through the man’s shadow.

Before long, it took on a bizarre shape.

A massive form with a ram’s head.

But with no visible arms or legs.

…Truly a bizarre being.

“Damn! Was it Utpala?!”

Utpala?

“What’s that idiot saying?”

As Venus sneered.

“Who are you calling an idiot, you miserable creature!”

The ram-head’s body, suddenly increased in volume, charged straight at Venus.

Like a stone shot from a catapult.

But then.

CRACK!

“Huh?”

With a sword drawn from nowhere, Venus sliced through it completely.

The cutting sensation felt oddly unsettling.

As he instinctively pulled back his body and counterattacked reflexively.

“GWAAK!”

A bizarre roar followed by a reaction steeped in pain and bewilderment.

“What is that now?! Wasn’t he human?!”

“Why are you getting agitated?”

Despite the man’s complaint.

The ram-head suddenly wailed like a child.

“Cain! What is this?! Weren’t we just here to have fun?!”

“……”

The man called Cain looked at the sight with a smirk and shook his head slightly.

“This is getting chaotic. Let’s stop.”

“Fine.”

The ram-head quieted down as if its previous outburst had been a joke.

“They’re insane.”

Venus cast a cold gaze.

“It’s clear that neither of them is a normal being.”

Mines remained vigilant.

However.

“……”

Was there a need to talk?

Though they hadn’t communicated separately with Venus,

their opinions quickly aligned.

The surrounding ground instantly froze.

A frost storm swept through the area.

Those exposed to it froze in place regardless of who they were.

Looking around at the scene, the ram-head grumbled.

“Cain. You’re going to die.”

“The trials are indeed harsh.”

What malice does the world hold to have such beings here?

And at this moment, of all times.

“Killing me won’t resolve the situation.”

“Let’s discuss that after I’ve cut off your arms and legs.”

Before he knew it,

Venus had approached right in front of the man.

He calmly swung his sword down.

====

“Look at the map. Here, here. From here to here. The Relief Knight Order was detected flowing into the eastern continent, and then look at Kariel’s movements.”

A few days ago.

Geornia pointed at the map with her delicate fingers as she spoke.

Pausing on horseback, Rueldt, Geornia, and Hamern gathered their horses’ heads together and focused on Geornia’s explanation.

“Tedeo Village? The young hero Leo’s village. If we consider the news that his village has been normalized, doesn’t Kariel’s movements become largely predictable?”

“Teacher. It’s approximate.”

“Ah, my pronunciation might be a bit strong.”

“It’s not a pronunciation issue.”

“……”

With information from the Imperial Intelligence Department, several friendly nations’ intelligence networks, and the elves’ dense forest, wetland, and mountain information networks…

Based on the information gathered (Hamern: “It’s ‘gathered,’ not ‘alhumalhum'”), Geornia had already determined that Kariel was in the eastern continent.

The question was just where in the east.

She deduced the missing information by referencing the movements of the Relief Knight Order.

Especially the core members who were central to several factions.

Their movement routes and presumed current locations.

Of course, they hadn’t perfectly identified his whereabouts, but tracking and predicting traces wasn’t difficult.

“The conclusion is the Kingdom of Faceran. If it’s there, the location and destination are obvious. So why head to the city? It means the contact isn’t over, right? I don’t think the current Kariel would be manipulated by the Relief Knight Order. Well, let’s keep thinking about the details. For now, the problem is that if he’s there, the city is quite large, so if he decides to hide, things get very complicated.”

“What if we seek cooperation?”

Geornia readily agreed with Rueldt’s obvious question.

“Of course we should. But… can you ignore the atrocities that will unfold in that country when you go there?”

“……”

“If it were your normal self, I’d even consider erasing it from the map.”

“Is it… that terrible?”

“Do you know why we and non-human races don’t associate with those from the eastern continent? It’s because there are no decent humans there.”

He had often heard rumors.

About how horrific that country was.

Not just the city-state of Faceran, but many countries in the eastern continent were said to be like that.

Was it because of the Demon King’s army’s invasion?

That’s not entirely wrong, but…

“Our plan is to make Kariel the king of the northeastern kingdom, and based on that, we aim to integrate the power of the Empire, the Irenis Order, and the northeastern region of the eastern kingdoms.”

“……”

“That’s if he wants to do it; I don’t intend to force him. But if he encounters those atrocities, I wonder if that kind-hearted fellow will just stand by and watch.”

If he hasn’t changed in some way.

“Considering the story of how he stepped up to save the little Leo, it seems his kind-hearted nature remains intact, but I wonder.”

“We’ll find out when we meet him.”

It was already known that the eastern region of the continent was in a terrible state.

But if we got caught up in every issue… there would be no solution.

The most we could do was help those within reach to evacuate to the Empire.

While the Empire could assist with that as a gesture of goodwill,

it wasn’t something the Empire could lead.

It might be right from a humanitarian perspective,

but diplomatically, it would be beyond discourtesy and could be seen as an outrage, possibly escalating to interference in internal affairs.

Eventually, it could even be viewed as an invasion.

They would have such conversations while resting their horses and taking breaks themselves.

The Empire’s capable intelligence agents would have already infiltrated, so Rueldt’s group just needed to show up.

At this rate, finding Kariel’s whereabouts would be quick.

“If we change horses and continue along the path, it’ll take two days at most, or one day if we’re fast…”

Days passed like this.

As dawn broke again and they hurried to depart, observing the rising sun,

they were taking a breather by a stream to water their horses.

The premonition came truly out of nowhere.

The three suddenly held their breath at an unknown presence? Energy?

Something like that.

It was still quiet.

But.

Something was coming.

“Teacher.”

“I know.”

The group restrained their horses, which were instinctively trying to bolt.

Rueldt dismounted and handed the reins to Hamern.

“Hey.”

“Stay back.”

As Geornia called out, Rueldt extended his hand backward as if to restrain her.

This isn’t normal.

What could be approaching to create such pressure,

even before any signs are felt?

Just a few seconds felt like minutes as the air grew increasingly heavy.

And then.

The blue sky and clear air

seemed to turn blood-red in an instant.

No.

Perhaps it wasn’t an illusion but reality.

It was definitely reality.

“A barrier?”

No, how could there be a barrier without any signs?

As Geornia was dumbfounded,

suddenly the night sky opened in mid-air.

Against the dark night sky, countless stars were densely embedded like grains of sand.

Among the various white, dark, bright, clear, red, blue, deep, and twinkling lights they created.

Something emerged.

First came a hand.

A black hand.

Next came a foot.

Eventually, it slowly pushed through that space like the night sky, as if extracting itself from a sticky swamp.

And jumped into our world.

“What…”

Geornia frowned, her expression moving beyond bewilderment to tension.

It was something wearing black armor.

It wasn’t large in stature.

The armor wasn’t particularly thick, nor was it bulky overall.

But it was pitch-black and somewhat faded, as if rusted and covered in dried blood.

“Who is this?”

Rueldt asked, placing his left hand on the pommel of the holy sword hanging at his left hip.

…

The pitch-black, dim helmet on its head

was attached like a crown, truly like a crown.

Blood-red hair.

Pale skin.

And burning above all else.

A blood-red sun.

Like a star or sun filled with blood, it was something that fatigued the eyes just by looking at it.

If only fatigue were all they felt, it might have been fortunate.

“T-tea-teacher?”

“……”

Hamern, who directly gazed at it, couldn’t control his trembling body.

Instinctively closing his eyes tightly and looking away, he reflexively turned his gaze toward his teacher, Geornia.

“……”

Geornia was also trembling as if in awe.

On the other hand.

“Huu.”

Rueldt merely exhaled.

But rather.

…

The being, upon encountering Rueldt, seemed to stiffen with tension.

Was it an illusion? Or did he see correctly?

He wasn’t sure.

Space distorted, and the world’s colors turned blood-red.

…The dimensional gate like the night sky behind that being was still undulating irregularly, as if with its own will.

But setting all that aside and looking at the essence,

it was clearly a woman in armor.

And she seemed very fragile…

-Gwanghwi.

A voice both sweet and somehow like metal being crushed and grinding.

-Your bloodline… us…

From her dark, black hand, bones stained black suddenly poured out through the dimension like the night sky.

While some transformed into the shape of a sword,

the remaining bones, like her faithful soldiers, wandered through the air like cruel reapers from stories,

casting empty gazes at Rueldt’s group.

“It seems dialogue isn’t the goal here.”

But showing no agitation, only a bitter expression,

Rueldt calmly and composedly drew his holy sword.

And.

Like lightning rising from the ground.

An intense radiance surged.

The barrier that had turned the world red shattered in an instant.

Even the black skeletal soldiers and numerous knights in black bone armor

were exposed to the light and crumbled instantly.

Like black dust or ashes.

-ǓǤǣǢǚDžƨƩƪ-!!!

A scream, a wail in an unknown language scattered across the world.

The world, the earth shattered.

Even the sky collapsed.