Chapter 280: Hallucinations (1)

Chapter 280: Hallucinations
(1)

Karelos,
the Envy Worshipper, looked at the gauntlet flying toward her face
and the axe attempting to slice through her upper body and beyond
them, to the faces of those targeting her.

The
closest one was a black-haired, red-eyed cat beastman warrior.

A
squint-eyed woman and a snow-white cat beastman whose invisibility
had been broken, the ones who had sniped him.

Karelos
knew all of their names, that’s why she could notice that she had
fallen into a vicious trap.

She
didn’t wonder where the trap had begun. More precisely, she had no
time to think about it.

Swish—!

The
blue sky is reflected on the sharply extended axe blade.

‘This
is…’

A
beautiful aura. Her gaze briefly fell on the axe blade with powerful
magic firmly embedded in it.

As
if unwilling to give even the slightest opening, the axe enveloped in
a brilliant light grazed Karelos’ left eye.

Slash!

“Kuh—”

In
an instant, half of her vision turned red before going dark.

Red
blood splattered into the river that reflected the blue sky, staining
it murky.

Gritting
her teeth and enduring the pain of blindness, Karelos released the
magi she had extracted in that fraction of a second.

-Fwoosh!!!

Black
smoke spread in all directions instantly but these weren’t people who
would just stand still watching her.

Idelbert’s
fist immediately accelerated.

Whoosh—

The
simple but heavy punch pushed away the air along with the smoke, and
the black cat’s pursuit, hunting for its prey, headed toward the one
who had broken through the smoke.

“She’s
going to the fountain!!!”

At
the edge of the multiples of 5 floors, the fountain where healing
water springs forth and Karelos, who had been severely injured, was
being carried by a guard toward that place.

“Where
do you think—!”

Balkan
pulled out an artifact hand axe from his waist and filled it with the
magical power of cold.

Immediately,
the hand axe coated with a blue cutting energy traced a smooth
trajectory toward the fountain.

He
made an explosive throw that squeezed the muscles of the entire body,
including the waist, arms, legs, and torso.

-Whoosh!

The
guard protecting Karelos tried to turn her body to avoid the throw,
but.

“Don’t
dodge, block it!”

Following
the command that burst from her lips, the guard twisted her body
abnormally to execute her master’s order.

-Clang!

The
moment the guard’s sword collided with the axe blade, the guard’s
sword and the right arm holding the handle were covered in cold
magical power and instantly froze.

Karelos
glanced at the man wearing gray scale armor.

‘Clever.’

The
trajectory of the axe was aimed not at them but at the fountain.

If
that axe had passed through and stuck in the fountain they would have
been in a situation where they had to lick the healing water that had
frozen like ice due to the cold magical power but she had brainwashed
subordinates who would follow any dangerous order.

The
brainwashed ones willingly sacrificed their own bodies for their
master.

The
will of the brainwashed? Such a petty thing was meaningless.
Perfectly brainwashed servants could not defy their master’s words.

The
guard with a frozen hand and sword rushed toward Balkan swinging his
sword, and Balkan immediately swung his axe. And then.

“…I
don’t want to.”

Just
before the axe blade met the guard’s neck.

“I
don’t…want to die…”

Deep
in the dull eyes of the brainwashed person, he came face to face with
a woman crying out that she didn’t want to die like this.

-Stop.

The
axe blade halted.

A
piece of trash who tramples on others’ lives and free will,
exploiting them ruthlessly to fulfill her own selfish desires.

He
couldn’t kill someone who had become a sacrificial lamb for such a
being.

Balkan
barely managed to twist the axe blade.

The
suddenly redirected strike lodged in the guard’s shoulder, and the
brainwashed guard burrowed into Balkan’s embrace, stabbing him in the
abdomen with the sword.

-Clang!

The
sound was loud, but his abdomen was not pierced.

The
sword, frozen by the cold magical power, shattered instantly upon
hitting the Zirnier scale armor, and the brainwashed guard, having
lost both sword and one arm, still tried to grab Balkan’s ankle
somehow.

-Thud!!!

Balkan
raised his fist and struck the temple of the guard in his arms.

Not
killing meaninglessly didn’t mean he wouldn’t subdue them.

Though
the guard was wearing a helmet, the heavy fist that slightly dented
the helmet shook the skull, causing the guard to faint and collapse.

-Splash!

Hearing
the distant water sound, he raised his head and saw Karelos, carried
by another guard, reaching the fountain and quickly recovering from
her injuries.

The
mysterious healing water was a ray of hope for those in danger in the
labyrinth, and unfortunately, its infinite benevolence did not
discriminate between good and evil.

“Pfft—”

Karelos,
who spat thick blood into the fountain, looked around while caressing
her eyelid that had been cut by the axe.

Explorers’
Union Leader. Saint. Retired explorer.

A
strange warrior whose name she didn’t know but who had considerable
battle sense, wielded holy power, and carried an axe with powerful
magi…someone who couldn’t be summarized in one sentence.

Intense
curiosity boiled up, but now was not the time for that.

This
was too much force to gather just to catch one demon worshipper, and
it was a combination difficult to assemble under normal
circumstances.

In
other words, she needed to give her all to survive.

“Quite
impressive that such notable figures gathered just to catch little
old me.”

-Flinch.

The
moment Karelos opened her mouth, Balkan felt a throbbing sensation
near the crown of his head and his vision rippling.

As
Karelos opened her mouth, the dense magi emanating from her began to
dominate the surroundings.

‘Is
this what Idelbert warned about?’

[Karelos
Lv. 58]

[Currently
Karelos possesses 5 blessings and curses]

[Miracle
of Emotion Control]

[Miracle
of Fantasy Reproduction]

[Miracle
of Memory Distortion]

Based
on Cleassia’s confession and her experience, Idelbert had explained
several points to watch out for when fighting against the Envy
Worshipper.

“My
disciple. Look at how that wench is trying to run her mouth. It’s an
obvious trick to buy time. Don’t be swayed by the words spouting from
her heart, close your ears and pick up your axe first.”

She’s
a being who uses all kinds of deceptive abilities so he shouldn’t
listen to Karelos’ voice, which carried magi.

The
long tongue of the chameleon beastman was a cunning tongue that could
stir human emotions and pry into one’s heart.

The
voice that emerged from under that tongue was a sticky seduction to
some, a friendly request to others, and a stimulant that induced
unstoppable impulses to yet others.

—Master.
I don’t think we should be doing this right now.

The
voice of Denshi, who wasn’t present, came like an auditory
hallucination.

—It’s
dangerous. Shouldn’t we run away? I, I don’t want to go through that
again. Master.

That
voice was filled with a will to stop this fight.

Was
it pulling out the voices of precious people from memory?

—Because
of you, master, a huge hole was punctured in my chest. Are you going
to hurt me again? Are you planning to wound me? Are you going to make
me die again because of your selfishness?

Words
that Denshi would never say pierce through the ears and lodge in the
mind like needles.

-Crunch.

“That
bitch…”

I
gripped the axe tighter, grinding my teeth.

The
emotional disturbance happening now was surely not occurring to me
alone.

Idelbert,
Diana, Serif, everyone would be hearing similar voices from someone.

‘Thankfully,
I received the miracle of mental barrier from Serif.’

Without
it, I might have collapsed mentally the moment I heard that voice or
might have naturally nodded and retreated.

Idelbert
rushed first toward Karelos, who was recovering from her wounds.

The
sooner they subdued that person, the sooner this emotional turmoil
would stop.

‘So
there’s only one thing for me to do.’

Help
Idelbert catch that person as quickly as possible.

—Uncle!
It’s dangerous! Why are you trying to fight someone like that?!

-Splash!

As
I kicked away from a puddle in the glacier area, releasing cold
magical power, this time I heard Ellie’s voice.

—Let’s
just, let’s not do these rough things and live peacefully together.
Okay? There’s no reason for you to be in such fights! Instead of
rough places like the labyrinth, let’s get a villa in a quiet area of
the noble district, overlooking a lake, and live there together.

It
was truly malicious how the voice spoke differently to each person.

—We’ll
have about three children, spend cozy mornings together, and when
evening comes, you’ll come home, we’ll put the children to bed
together, and spend warm nights together. Can’t we live like that?
Why must we be in such a bloody place…?

I
ignored the voice piercing my mind, while gritting my teeth.

The
instantly frozen ice sheet naturally propelled my rushing body,
reaching maximum speed in a fraction of a second.

Moving
forward as if sliding, I crushed another guard who was trying to
ambush Idelbert from behind with a body tackle.

-Crunch!

The
second guard was an assassin wearing light armor and couldn’t
withstand the explosive rush.

The
sound of the second guard’s ribs being shattered was heard, but.

-Clang!
Clang! Stab!

The
guard was also a considerably skilled assassin.

After
the collision of bodies, I allowed as many as three stabs.

The
first and second stabs were blocked by the helmet and armor, but the
knife strike that precisely targeted the gap in the armor, which I
had reinforced inadequately earlier, penetrated my abdomen and
roughly ravaged the internal organs.

Overcoming
the momentary hollow sensation of powerlessness, I grabbed the
guard’s head.

The
guard’s expression suddenly turns to confusion as she tries to
retrieve her blade and distance herself using the impact of the
charge.

The
knife that had pierced my stomach was caught by the muscle and
wouldn’t come out.

“Where
do you think you’re going after stabbing me?”

I
pulled the guard’s head closer, smiling grimly.

-Thud!!

“Kagh!!”

Along
with the heavy headbutt sound came the guard’s scream.

The
dragon scale helmet is a bit rough, so colliding with a smooth
forehead would cause quite a bit of damage.

“Well
done, my disciple!”

Throwing
away the assassin guard who had fainted with a caved-in nose, I
nodded at the praise coming from afar.

Idelbert
was deflecting the combined attacks of Karelos and the remaining
guard.

Support
fire came from the distant Diana and Serif, with ice holy power
arrows pouring down, cutting through the wind.

Everyone
was in combat, and there was still more to do.

I
couldn’t lie down and rest just because my abs got stabbed a bit.

Kiiing—

Activating
the blessing of radiance, I scraped together the holy power
accumulated in my core and poured the miracle of healing onto my
belly.

As
I was staggering, raising my body, with my skull slightly shaken from
the impulsive headbutt.

—You
did well, Balkan.

Diana’s
kind voice was heard.

“Of
course. Ugh. How are things on your end, Diana? Is the second arrow
ready?”

—The
battle is over. Let’s go home now.

Looking
around at that gentle voice saying all fighting had ended.

—What
are you doing, disciple? Come follow your master quickly.

—Hehe.
Balkan, really. You did great today. What would you like to eat first
when we get back?

—First,
shouldn’t we relieve the fatigue? That, purification ritual…?
Ugh… ah, it’s nothing…

Idelbert,
who had been fighting with Karelos just moments ago, was heading
toward the portal with her unconscious body on her back.

Diana
and Serif, who had been providing sniper support from afar, were
naturally following behind Idelbert and looking at me with eyes that
seemed to ask why wasn’t I following.

I
felt a sense of being left alone in a place where all battles had
ended and goosebumps started to rise all over my body.

‘Am
I seeing things because my skull is shaken?’

It
was a fantasy so natural it made me have such delusions.

The
wildly beating heart, the heated muscles, the taste of blood
lingering in the mouth, even the adrenaline explosively gushing from
the excitement of battle gradually faded away.

I
was engulfed in the illusion that all battles were over and now he
only needed to return to a peaceful daily life.

[Wake
up. It’s all an illusion.]

Bunny,
gripped in my hand, trembled and released a voice.

The
tension that was unconsciously about to loosen tightened again, and I
realized once more that the battle was not yet over.

[That
guy seems desperate too. She’s using the power of Envy, burning even
her own life. Is she about to be ‘assimilated’? It’s a difficult
state for lowly beings to achieve, but that guy is truly a special
dish.]

-Gulp.

At
the sound of Bunny swallowing saliva, the surrounding scenery began
to blur like a watercolor painting that had water poured on it.

Even
though I thought it was a fantasy, I almost wavered.

The
battle was not yet over.

As
I was about to move forward, gripping the axe with my recovered body.

—Oppa.

The
affectionate voice made him stop in his tracks.

—Are
you really going?

I
know it’s an illusion but even knowing, my steps halted.

My
sister’s voice, which I could no longer hear and along with that
sweet voice, soft arms wrapped around my neck.

—I’m
here. You don’t have to look for me anymore. Now, we can live here
together.

She
embraced my head warmly as cool hands gently stroked my hair.

Slap—

I
immediately struck away that touch.

—Oppa?

Looking
at the hallucination questioning in surprise, I couldn’t help but
laugh mockingly.

Until
now, I might have been confused, but this was just ridiculous.

“My
So-eun hands are really warm, you know? You piece of dream trash.”

At
my cold voice, the frozen corners of the illusion’s mouth twitched
upward.

—There
are very few beings who can resist my brainwashing like this without
possessing magical energy of the same level.

The
creature, fiddling with the rejected hand, shamelessly extended a
hand of reconciliation.

—I
felt it from the moment I saw that axe. That you’re one of us. I’ll
forgive this attack. So even now…

The
one who had been muttering closed her mouth.

Clearly,
it was because she saw the large toffee raised in front of her face.

“F*ck
off, you chameleon-headed bastard.”

Raising
the axe imbued with magical cutting energy and the blessing of
radiance, I declared as I swung it toward the empty illusion.

“You
have done something you should never have done.”

That
creature had defiled my most precious memories and all the
connections I had formed in this world.

-Slash!

The
illusion that had been deceiving my senses was cut away by the
roughly swung axe blade.

As
I completely removed the whispers of brainwashing, the landscape
filled with traces of battle began to reveal itself.