Ch.173Chapter 173. Spirit World Escape No.1 (3)

Chapter 173. Spirit World Escape No.1 (3)

I left the Blue Moss tribe area, or more precisely, the region where Malak’s followers had gathered.

“We have a long way to go. Let’s hurry.”

Nikye took the lead, volunteering as our guide. She says she’s the only one who knows the location of the portal, having traveled throughout the spirit world.

“Hey.”

I followed behind her and asked something I’d been wanting to know.

How did she end up in that kind of(?) relationship with Lakan, what did she think about Lakye… you know, those kinds of things.

“Lord Lakan foresaw the end. He knew that the civilized people were up to something sinister.”

She says that while Ishtania had little interest in this world until the demon invasion, Lakan the Loa was quite concerned with earthly matters.

He noticed that the Empire’s leadership, specifically the imperial family, was making some kind of deal with the evil god Shamishir.

“Lord Lakan tried to inform the priests, but it was impossible. It was an era lacking priests with sufficient spiritual ability to hear a Loa’s revelation—specifically, those who could contact him without going insane.”

She says that even Muri, who was considered exceptional among Lakan’s priests, lacked such spiritual ability.

I wonder if making good totems has little to do with spiritual ability. Well, sculpture is the domain of craftsmanship, not supernatural powers.

“How is Muri doing? Is she well?”

Nikye, who had been explaining enthusiastically, inquired about Muri’s well-being.

Muri was the only person who showed kindness to Nikye, a civilized person, unlike other barbarians who rejected her. I understand why she’s showing interest.

She practically raised Lakye, Nikye’s daughter, all by herself. She took care of both mother and daughter. At this point, she’s practically a grandmother.

“She’s fine.”

Though she says she’s tired and spends more time inside than outside, that’s just because of her age. Still, she’s quite healthy for a woman her age.

“That’s good to hear.”

Nikye continued her story.

“Anyway, that’s when I appeared—a civilized child born with exceptional spiritual ability.”

Lakan appeared in her dreams after she became his follower, attempting to communicate. He failed many times but never gave up.

“Those were truly painful days. It felt like my head would explode. It’s still terrifying to recall.”

Despite her words, Nikye was smiling.

Lakan… hearing about him like this, he seems quite moderate and human-friendly for a god. What exactly was he doing when he had Lakye and then disappeared?

“Through Lord Lakan’s efforts, I came to understand his will. I came to understand him deeply in my heart.”

Nikye had the expression of a girl in love.

Unlike what I and Lakye and others knew, Nikye and Lakan seemed to be in love with each other.

“Lord Lakan wanted me to be a bridge between the civilized and the barbarians. He thought that if they joined forces, they could prevent the predicted apocalypse.

But I wasn’t given much time. I was born with powerful spiritual abilities, but in exchange, I was destined to live a short life.”

“Hmm.”

“A life that wouldn’t last long—I decided to dedicate it to the greater cause. Because death isn’t the end.”

Lakye was not only the fruit of Lakan and Nikye’s love but also a last resort to save the world.

But something seems odd.

“Why didn’t you explain this to Muri?”

Then Lakye wouldn’t have misunderstood that ‘that bastard Lakan sacrificed our mother’s life.’ Isn’t this all because of a lack of communication?

“By the time I decided to have Lakye, I had already lost the strength to communicate with the outside world. My soul was leaving my body.”

I see. It couldn’t be helped.

I have one more question.

“Why didn’t Lakan communicate with Lakye?”

As a half-deity, Lakye should have had sufficient ability to communicate with Lakan. If Lakan had explained things well to Lakye, wouldn’t the barbarians, if not the civilized people, have been able to cope better than they did?

“The birth of a divine being requires a lot of divine power. Lord Lakan used most of his divine power for Lakye.”

“Ah.”

“Still, occasionally, very occasionally, he tried to communicate using as little divine power as possible so as not to burden himself. All attempts failed, though.”

“Why?”

“Lakye didn’t respond. She didn’t notice… or perhaps I should say she pretended not to notice.”

Lakye once told me she sometimes felt someone watching over her. She said it might have been Lakan.

She said Lakan just watched silently, but the reality was that Lakye didn’t respond. She was unconsciously rejecting Lakan.

She probably thought Lakan was the culprit who killed her mother and made her different from others, someone who couldn’t blend in.

“…”

Wasn’t Lakye’s hatred for humans and her chosen people ideology ultimately an expression of her inferiority complex toward ordinary people?

She wanted to believe she wasn’t a monster different from others, but a superior being. She couldn’t have endured otherwise.

This is just my speculation about how it might have started. The current Lakye doesn’t have such an inferiority complex.

“I see.”

“When you return to the ground, please tell Lakye. That her mother and Lord Lakan love her… and that we’re sorry we couldn’t be by her side.”

“I will.”

I encountered an unexpected truth in an unexpected place. For Lakye’s sake, to lighten her emotional burden, I should tell her when the opportunity arises.

“So that’s what happened. It would have been good if Chief Tur and Priest Bojak had known this.”

It was Nix who spoke, listening from the side.

Tur and Bojak. The leaders of the Golden Sun tribe who worshipped Lakan. When I first met them, they were losing faith in Lakan who didn’t respond.

I still remember the scene of Lakan’s totem falling to the ground. At that time, I was glad because I thought he was truly a bad guy.

“When I return, I’ll explain the situation to them.”

I decided to help restore Lakan’s honor.

If Lakan hadn’t formed a relationship with Nikye to create(?) Lakye, it would have taken me much longer to establish the tribal federation and exterminate the demons. Many more people would have suffered for a longer time.

He’s not just a bad guy like the other Loas. He tried to help.

Things just got a bit complicated and problems arose, but compared to guys like Tuga or Udan, he’s practically an angel.

“From here on is Lord Gapun’s territory. He’s not particularly aggressive or territorial, but be careful just in case.”

I followed Nikye into the jungle, along with Nix, Denzo, Gukbap, and other followers.

Gapun… I’ve heard the name. He’s a turtle Loa, worshipped by several tribes including the Autumn Leaf tribe.

“Hmm.”

The Autumn Leaf tribe was Charon’s tribe. Charon became twisted because the Loa never responded to his prayers.

In a way, this Loa called Gapun is practically responsible for creating the Charon we know today. Not that it justifies Charon’s actions, but still.

Let’s go see what kind of being he is.

“Huff, huff.”

I was walking, sweating profusely.

“That’s Lord Gapun. I’ll slow our pace.”

I looked in the direction Nikye was pointing.

“Whoa.”

A turtle larger than a mountain was stretching its snake-like neck to eat the leaves of enormous trees.

A powerful and gigantic being reminiscent of the Black Tortoise. I felt awe involuntarily, but also thought:

‘I wonder if this guy also shrinks like Udan when he comes down to earth?’

Looking at it that way, he doesn’t seem so special either.

Well, even a mutt acts like it owns the place at home. Being in the spirit world, the dimension of the Loas, probably makes him appear more powerful.

“It’s, it’s Lord Gapun.”

Though they primarily worship Malak, that doesn’t mean they don’t worship other Loas. They’re polytheistic to begin with. It’s natural for them to be excited about seeing Gapun.

“Water God Gapun!”

“So majestic…!”

“Ooooh!”

We moved while listening to the barbarians’ excitement. I carefully observed him.

He might notice that I’m Malak’s proxy. I’m being cautious in case he might be hostile toward me.

Of course, it was unnecessary worry.

Chomp. Crunch…!

He just kept eating plants with dull eyes, showing no interest in us passing right in front of him.

The reason he didn’t respond to Charon’s prayers was probably because he simply didn’t care about humans. Even if his follower lost his tribe and his child, it wasn’t his concern.

“Tsk.”

Honestly, he seems less like a divine being and more like just an extremely large beast. There’s not a hint of intelligence.

I wonder if other Loas are like this too.

Sighing, I entered the community. Messages had piled up.

[NotACatfish: There are some guys with a strange vibe. I wonder if they heard something personally from that corpse-stuffer?]

[PetitNoa: I’d like to believe not, but there might be possessed players who fell for Charon’s words. What should we do?]

What could they have heard that would make them side with that psychopath?

Well, there’s an obvious way to identify traitors or potential traitors.

[Call the Saint]

That’ll do the trick.