Ch.269Black Dream

“Kieeeek!”

The headless body staggered backward.

The worms, sensing their host’s death, screamed and flared up in panic.

Unlike a simple Parashuvalier, Ernst’s body was a special creation that Isabella had poured her heart and soul into.

It was a masterpiece where muscles, flesh, bones, and even nerves had been completely replaced with worms.

Thanks to this, he had been able to overwhelm even a high-ranking Paladin and a seasoned Master despite them being his natural enemies… but keeping hundreds of worms fixed in human form and moving them was no easy task.

Having lost the head that served as the central control, it was now nothing more than a disorderly swarm of worms.

Like a straw doll collapsing, the human skin tore open as worms poured out in droves.

From parasites smaller than fingers to centipedes as thick as forearms, all manner of creatures fell, creating ripples on the water’s surface.

“Aaaaaaah!”

With a cry mixed with sobs, Leonore swung her sword endlessly.

She already knew. That Ernst, as she had known him, was nowhere to be found anymore.

Still, she couldn’t suppress her grief.

Boundless sorrow and endless hatred infused her blade as she swung it.

“Sovereign of Heaven, gracious Elpinel… grant peace to this pitiful one possessed by dark magic…!”

A curtain of radiance.

The final light emitted by Valkers, who had collapsed on the ground, swept through the waterway like a wave.

“Kiiiiiiii!”

The worms that touched the holy light screamed as they turned to ash.

As Valkers witnessed the merciful radiance that destroyed dark magic, his consciousness sank into darkness.

“Haa… haa…”

Leonore, who had swung her sword with all her might, sat down with an exhausted sigh.

She had cut down every demon she could see. Down to the last one clinging to the severed head.

A few that fell into the waterway might have survived, but they were now just weak worms.

Before long, their dark magic would be depleted and they would perish.

A body butchered beyond recognition, not even leaving a corpse behind.

That was Ernst’s end.

“Brother…”

Leonore wiped away her overflowing tears as she sheathed her sword and stood up.

This was no time to sit and rest.

She was merely tired, but the condition of the other two was serious.

Nigel, who had fought while enduring tremendous blood loss, and Valkers, who had burned his soul to emit light.

Both needed to be shown to a priest as soon as possible.

Leonore hoisted both of them up. Without their shattered armor, they were lighter than expected.

Given the situation, she needed to get up to the waterway and head to the church’s healing ward.

With Isabella still on the rampage, she couldn’t take the two unconscious men to the Saint candidate.

– Kugugung!

The underground waterway groaned and trembled again. The collapse was spreading.

What had happened on the other side? Were Haschal, Elmaine, and Lady Sigmillus still safe? Leonore had no way of knowing.

– Kwaaaang!

…At least it was clear they were still fighting.

Leonore gazed in the direction of the thunderous sound with lingering regret before turning away.

She wanted nothing more than to rush over and tear the witch to pieces. Her hatred had deepened to unfathomable levels.

But… she couldn’t. She shouldn’t.

‘Yes, right now…’

At least for now, treating these two was the priority.

Leonore walked toward the waterway exit.

=======[ Haschal ]=======

His momentarily darkened vision brightened again.

As expected, it turned out like this.

The familiar cityscape unfolded before his eyes.

A forest of concrete and steel.

The light from broken streetlamps flickered, illuminating the ruins.

The endless sound of explosions tore at his ears.

Overturned vehicles and torn bodies littered the broken road.

…When was this again?

“Lieutenant ○○○! Are you alright?!”

A young man with short-cropped hair grabbed his shoulder.

He wore a bulletproof vest over his uniform, with ammunition belts around his waist.

A thin stream of blood flowed from his cracked helmet, wetting his roughened cheek.

Who was this guy again?

“Max! Get the Lieutenant and fall back!”

Someone’s voice rang out. A sharp, high-pitched sound full of urgency.

Following that, fierce gunfire engulfed everything.

Ah, right. Max. That was his name. I’d forgotten.

Led by the man’s hand, he leaned against a collapsed wall. His body felt heavy and his head fuzzy, as if he’d been hit.

“…Fortunately, it doesn’t seem to be a serious injury. To have only this much damage when the vehicle was completely blown away—you’re really lucky, Lieutenant. Anyway, if we can just hold out here for a while, support will soon…”

“Ha, haha…”

Leaning against the wall, he raised his head and laughed.

Despite his dizzy state, he couldn’t hold back the laughter that escaped.

“Lieutenant Ha○○○?”

Max looked at him as if he were crazy. His worried blue eyes clearly reflected my image.

Long, glossy hair. Large breasts wrapped in bandages. Scale-covered fur armor, with a longsword at the waist.

Yes, I knew it would be like this.

After all, this was Isabella’s power, who only knew ‘Haschal.’ So naturally, my appearance in this power would have to be in this form!

“Max… yes, Max. I’m starting to remember now. Then this is Rotterdam. This is where you died, wasn’t it?”

“Died? What are you talking about? You’re still not fully conscious…”

“You died. In Rotterdam, trying to save me…”

Durandal, drawn from its scabbard, flashed like lightning.

A blue arc sliced through Max’s neck.

“…Your head was blown off by a sniper.”

The headless body twitched before dispersing into countless worms.

…His vision darkened again.

His consciousness gradually sank into a dream.

Well, what’s next?

—-

“…Lieutenant, have you ever thought about what you’ll do after leaving the military?”

On a cheap hotel bed, the blonde woman lying next to me whispered as she looked at me.

The blanket felt rough, and the old lamp dimly flickered as if about to go out. An unintelligible song played from the old radio by the window.

“…I’ve never really thought about it. What about you?”

Right. Back then, I hadn’t thought about it.

I didn’t know any other path besides this one.

“Well… maybe I’ll open a bar? That sounds fun.”

The woman smiled like a boy.

Her naked body, wet with sweat, was marked with scars here and there, but she was beautiful nonetheless.

“A bar? …You?”

A woman who drank strong vodka like water opening a bar…

Wouldn’t she drink all the displayed products herself?

“‘You?’ What a rude thing to say. I’ll have you know I can make all sorts of cocktails.”

“Well… I suppose it would suit you.”

I laughed, imagining her dressed in formal attire. It seemed like it would suit her quite well.

Under the bar’s LED lights, she would surely shine brilliantly.

“Right? If you have nothing to do after discharge, come visit me. I’ll be generous and hire you. Employees get Julia’s special cocktails for free!”

Right. Julia. That was her name. She said she was born in a rural part of Italy.

She found me quite fascinating, saying she’d never met someone from the Republic of Korea before.

“Pouring vodka, whiskey, and beer together however you like doesn’t count as a cocktail. Besides, I don’t know much about alcohol.”

“I’ll teach you everything. Anyway, you’d earn your salary just by standing at the bar. I bet there’d be plenty of female customers coming just to see your face.”

“Well… I’m not sure about that.”

“Just trust me. It’ll definitely be fun.”

Grinning, Julia snuggled up to me.

Perhaps it was her warmth, but I felt drowsy. Like I might fall back asleep. My eyelids were heavy.

“Are you still tired…? …Then let’s sleep a bit more. We still have plenty of time until morning.”

Julia’s body wrapped around my upper body.

Her chest and mine pressed softly against each other.

“…No, I need to get up now.”

My hesitant left hand finally grasped her nape.

“Huh…?”

“…Yes, Julia. It would have been fun indeed. The bar would have had many customers, and every day would have been interesting. From day to evening, we’d be busy making cocktails for countless customers. My drinks would be amateurish, and yours would be too strong… but the customers would have loved it anyway.”

That’s surely how it would have been.

“And when night came, we’d close the shop and talk while drinking the leftover alcohol. Wondering what kind of customers would come tomorrow, what cocktails we’d try next. You’d come up with another strong concoction, and I’d laugh saying I’d pass out if I drank it. Such a life, looking at each other and laughing until we fell asleep… as you said, it would have been very enjoyable.”

Yes, if only it could have been so.

Living with her in Italy wouldn’t have been bad at all.

I might not understand the language, and the weather might be too hot for me… but none of that would have mattered.

“But you died, Julia.”

Captured by terrorists… in such a horrific way.

I remember it clearly.

With my own hands, I collected each piece of her body decorated on the wall and buried them.

After that day, I started drinking strong alcohol, something I rarely did before.

“…I don’t understand what you’re saying. Why are you crying, ○○○?”

“…I don’t know either.”

Crack.

Haschal’s body broke her neck bones with ease.

…The swarm of worms scattered.

—-

And the next dream.

An eighteen-year-old boy, Han Siwoo.

He said he wanted to play all the games he’d missed, staying up all night, after completing his three years of service.

He didn’t even last half a year.

The child who had handed him ice cream, saying it reminded him of his younger sibling, exploded right before his eyes.

Durandal pierced his heart.

Next.

A deserter from the Chinese Empire, Yu Wei.

She never told me what she had experienced, but she hated her country terribly.

Yet she could never quit smoking her homeland’s cigarettes.

She became a madwoman who shot at anyone with the same blood flowing through their veins, endlessly killing soldiers from her homeland that had become the enemy… and eventually lost her life by my hand.

It was the same this time too.

…The cigarette she handed me was terribly bitter and strong.

Next.

Next.

Next. Next. Next…

How many times had he rummaged through old memories?

How many beloved faces had he cut down with his own hands?

Having lost count and continued on…

…finally, the nightmare ended.

—-

The world crumbled like shards of glass.

Beyond the shattered hallucination and nightmare was a space that was simply pure white.

The sky of unknowable height and the ground that stretched to who knows where were both dyed in pure white.

“What, what is this…?!”

The witch was there.

Her hideous face, with barely any trace of humanity left, was filled with shock at encountering something incomprehensible.

The fact that she was right before me… means I’ve safely overcome the first hurdle of the “Black Repose,” I suppose.

Durandal, gripped tightly, trembled.

Boiling hostility growled with hatred.

And then.

“I’ll kill you…! I’ll definitely kill you…!”

The thick smell of blood brushed against my nostrils.

Anger without end. Crimson bloodlust whirled like a storm.

“I’ll tear you to shreds, you worm-like monster!!!”

A cry that was both my voice and not my voice shook the world.

Hersella.

The woman who had been dwelling within my consciousness finally revealed herself.

Emitting waves of killing intent as deep as an abyss.