episode_0082

A few days ago.

Charlotte received a piece of news from her intelligence network. It was news that a certain branch of Risht had been attacked.

Though it was a small branch, and the incident wasn’t widespread enough to become publicly known, the fact that black mages were behind it warranted a serious assessment.

Upon hearing the report, Charlotte immediately set out to investigate.

“Are you going again this time?” “We know Your Imperial Highness is working for ‘Rose,’ but using them to cure the illness is too dangerous a notion.” “The political situation is already chaotic as it is.” “Please be mindful of the responsibilities on your shoulders.”

As usual, she heard nagging, but largely ignored it.

Having tracked the traces of cultists for several months now, she headed to the scene without hesitation this time as well.

She did not inform the Imperial family of these actions. There were very few people she could trust.

Charlotte moved with only a small number of escorts.

‘This is difficult.’

The girl arrived at the branch. She proceeded to seal off the cathedral and investigate, but there was almost nothing to be found. Only the abundant bloodstains reported earlier remained.

Despite such a gruesome scene, no corpses or flesh could be seen anywhere, which was utterly bewildering for the investigators.

Charlotte pondered with her characteristic stoic expression. Had the missing people truly been spirited away externally? If so, where should she look for them? Should she change the search route to surrounding cities right now?

It was while she was mulling over these continuous thoughts.

“What in the world…?”

While she had briefly left to make contact and returned, all the guards protecting the cathedral had been knocked unconscious. Even the close aides she had brought as escorts were unconscious. The cathedral doors were wide open. It seemed something unusual was happening.

Charlotte held her breath as much as possible and moved her feet towards the inside of the cathedral, where she sensed a presence. She did not forget to grasp the sword at her waist.

“……”

A dark corridor where only an eerie aura flowed. She walked, following a faint light. As she stepped onto the stairs leading to the basement, she saw unidentified figures standing beyond the corner. Every single one was clad in a pure white robe.

‘Those are…’

The figures seemed to be searching for something. Charlotte, who was closely observing their busy movements, soon noticed a familiar face among them. Her red lips unconsciously murmured the boy’s name.

“……Yuda Snakers?”

A person Charlotte had always been interested in. Several months ago, through a chance encounter, she learned that Yuda was hiding a chilling power, and since then, she had been circling around him, observing him.

Of course, it wasn’t out of caution. It was merely curiosity. Such power should naturally exude a foul odor, yet the boy gave off no dangerous scent at all. Rather, he carried a refreshing winter fragrance, to the point where she wanted to keep smelling it.

‘Why is he here…?’

Could he be involved in this incident? Charlotte hid herself behind a wall, continuously peeking at the unfolding scene.

As a brief moment passed.

“Shatter.”

Suddenly, the boy uttered a single incantation. The fired projectile hit the dead end wall, then shattered countless barriers, revealing a hidden space. It was a moment when traces invisible even to Charlotte’s eyes were exposed.

“Such petty tricks won’t work.”

With a light murmur to himself, the snake stepped into the unknown corridor. The other figures followed behind him.

Charlotte hesitated on the spot. Logically, it would have been better to retreat here, but her intuition kept pulling the girl’s hand. It felt as if she would miss something crucial if she didn’t follow.

‘Perhaps… I might gain a clue about Rose.’

After a brief deliberation, Charlotte took a step as if she had made up her mind. She suppressed her presence as much as possible.

The pure white robes of the figures fluttered. A long, crimson corridor stretched ahead. A strangely lingering musical sound echoed in her ears. It was a somewhat bizarre scene, but the young princess did not hesitate in her steps. Thinking of Rose, who awaited her among the stars.

***

We strode through the corridor with unhesitating steps. A path that was both wide and long. Perhaps because everything was red, it was a very aesthetically displeasing sight. Then again, what could one expect from those cultists?

“Master-nim.”

As I looked around the empty surroundings, the girl beside me subtly spoke. It was Neria, who had been sifting through documents earlier. She seemed to have roughly grasped the situation.

“I examined the cathedral’s blueprints, but there was nothing particularly special. The corridor we are currently walking through should not exist normally. It seems to be a space created directly by the cultists.”

“So it is.”

“What do you think, Master-nim?”

“Seeing that they’ve created such a wide space and even concealed it with barriers… it seems there’s something beyond that.”

“Indeed, the deeper we go into the corridor, the denser the demonic energy in the air becomes.”

“For now, we’ll continue forward. Let’s not lower our guard.”

“As you wish.”

We once again began to walk through the blood-stained corridor. How long did we walk? After about 10 minutes had passed.

“Master-nim. Someone is collapsed ahead.”

Someone was sprawled out in the distance. It was a man covered entirely in black. Judging by his priestly robes, he seemed to be one of the individuals who went missing during the last attack.

“I will check his condition. If he’s still breathing, I’ll immediately call for a medic to treat him…”

“There’s no need for that.”

“Pardon?”

“Just wait where you are.”

Even after spotting the man, I did not allow my subordinates to approach. There was a reason not to hastily draw closer. Those who had experienced similar situations during the Great Extermination period seemed to have already noticed. This was because his originally pure white attire was now stained pitch black.

‘I hoped not.’

A faint music seemed to be playing from somewhere. At the same time, the collapsed priest twitched a few times, then suddenly stood up and charged towards us. His face was covered in crimson blood. His pupils, which once shone, now contained only pitch black.

“Screamed!”

Though it certainly came from human lips, the scream heard was not human at all. It resembled the cry of a beast wandering through hell. Corrupted blood-water flowed like tears. A priest tainted and fallen by demonic energy. Having succumbed to fear, embraced despair, and lost his faith, this was the price for abandoning one’s devotion. The priest, having lost his reason, violently swung the mace in his hand.

“……”

Swish!

Following the monstrous cry, the rosary in his pocket swayed. Upon the cross, which once loved God, now lay an indelible sin.

I quietly flicked my finger. And then.

Slice.

With a somewhat lifeless sound, the priest’s head flew off. The body, having lost its balance, swayed for a moment, then collapsed onto the floor in utter wretchedness. A shabby body crumbling down.

“……My ominous premonitions never seem to be wrong.”

I muttered as if chewing on the words. I slowly surveyed my surroundings. Thinking about it, it was a familiar terrain. Though this was my first time visiting this branch, including my previous life, I had cleared stages with similar configurations many times before. It likely seemed to be the ‘work’ of the same individual.

“Vice-Captain.”

“Yes.”

“Henceforth, all priests we encounter will be killed. We will only proceed with rescue if their minds are fully intact. Any target showing even the slightest abnormality will be eliminated.”

“Understood.”

Neria nodded without a word. I flicked off the lingering shadows from my fingertips and looked down at the corpse sprawled at my feet.

The priest, eyes rolled back, steeped in demonic energy.

‘I didn’t expect them to start activity already.’

Then, the faint music began to be heard. A maddeningly beautiful melody, flowing with abominable greed. Amidst the unknown performance.

I murmured its name. ‘The Conductor.’

A mid-boss appearing in the latter half of the original work. A self-proclaimed artist. And at the same time, the nightmare that left the most casualties during the Great Extermination five years ago.

We were stepping into the world he had designed. If the structure of this place was similar to the other stages I remembered, then we didn’t have much time left. The lives of the missing collaborators were hanging by a thread.

“From now on, we’ll break through with full force.”

“I’ll take the lead.”

“Irene-yang?”

“Minor clean-up will be faster this way.”

Whoosh!

Irene stepped forward, setting fire to the tip of her sword. Subsequently, her orange hair turned crimson. Her eyes, which had held a deep black, also transformed into a fiery red and began to blaze.

The girl then unleashed a sword strike.

Swish!

“Screeching!”

Another priest charged from the opposite end of the corridor. What had already turned black and become irreversible was exposed to the crimson thread shot forth, and immediately after, its entire body was engulfed in brilliant flames. It was the flame of life purifying corruption.

Whoosh!

“Let’s go.”

Flames danced vividly even in the darkness. The fox silently turned to look this way.

I and the members, who had briefly stopped, soon nodded and began to push off the ground. Behind our dashing footsteps, only pure white robes fluttered.