episode_0132

A room with curtains drawn.

Beyond the gently settled darkness sat a white-haired old man at a desk.

It was none other than the Dean, Gaston Gallimard.

He had his eyes closed, as if concentrating on something.

The teacup held at his fingertips simply grew cold.

…….

There wasn’t the slightest movement.

A uniquely heavy atmosphere.

To describe it in words, it was silence, but if one peered into its depths, it was closer to chaos or an inferno.

The old man stood amidst the violently shattering fragments of the future.

Afterward.

“……It has begun.”

The prophet murmured.

An ominous feeling emanating from deep underground.

Fear, rage, despair, sorrow… the beast’s roar, embodying all those ill omens.

He sensed the viscous stirring of evil.

It seemed.

The story was flowing on unchanged.

Ultimately, it could not escape the prophecy.

The hands of a clock turning according to a predetermined fate were like the execution falling upon a condemned prisoner.

The old man set down the teacup filled with black tea beside him.

The briefly wavering red surface resembled himself, sprawled before duty.

Aged lips spoke.

“Oh, traitor.”

To a certain boy.

The prophet uttered a request that would not reach.

With a complicated heart.

“Please… take care of that child.”

A fleeting voice dispersed.

The Dean, as if swallowed by a wave, fell back into silence.

***

Academy Underground.

Blood and corpses lay strewn about.

It was a space shrouded in jet black.

A ceiling so high its depth couldn’t be estimated, humid air that added to the eerie atmosphere, and finally, a horribly foul stench.

The temple’s scenery seemed to perfectly capture human depravity.

Truly, the bottom of sin.

We stood at its center.

A loud explosion!

With the sound of an explosion, the ceiling trembled.

A powerful surge of demonic energy.

It was firepower that seemed to unleash a storm throughout the entire underground.

Shattered magic, blood, flesh… fragments splattered everywhere.

Enemies swarmed.

“”O sheep, repay the Lord with slaughter!!!””

The masked figures, charging forward, chanted in unison.

Every single one was weeping tears of blood.

If a nightmare were to be painted, this would be the feeling.

I furrowed my brow, yet lightly swung my sword.

“Hmm.”

Swish!

I sliced through an arrow that flew right in front of my nose.

A peculiar tremor transmitted to my fingertips.

It felt more like cutting through a mass of protein rather than the distinct hardness of metal or wood.

Of course, because it was a weapon made from human bones and flesh.

‘Sacrifice… using life as a medium, perhaps.’

It was a disgusting method.

Muscles and intestines still writhing with life.

Furthermore, perhaps due to demonic energy contamination, corrosion was progressing where blood had splattered.

In many ways, it was a wretched sight that provoked unpleasant emotions.

I raised my sword.

“This is troublesome.”

As for me, I was in a position where I had to conserve power.

A spell cracked by the injection of demonic energy.

Because I had to restore the seal left by the ancient star.

Since I didn’t know how much power would be needed in that process, I had to limit my ‘lies’ more than usual.

A bothersome restriction.

Of course.

“Everyone’s being a nuisance, you know.”

That didn’t mean it was too difficult.

It was merely a complaint about the bother.

I’d even received personal lessons from the Sword Saint. It’s not like I’d be helpless just because I’m unarmed.

I’d experienced mud fights countless times, even from the bottom.

Years of accumulated experience.

I took a step forward.

Clang-!!

A lightly swung sword strike collided with the spear of a robed figure at the front.

Sparks flew in an instant.

I roughly broke through its defense and pressed it back.

Clang!! Squeal, grind…!

The moment a struggle of strength was taking place with their blades locked together.

Another robed figure, having somehow flanked me, launched a thrusting attack aimed at my neck.

It was a natural, fluid combination.

Of course.

But the fact that it was seen through meant it was out.

I lightly flicked my finger.

Snap!

Just slightly.

A ‘lie’ so faint it wouldn’t even register as power output.

A thin shadow covered the enemies’ eyes.

Vision blocked as if wearing a blindfold.

Their stance wavered.

“……?!”

Only one second.

But that fleeting moment disrupted the sword path.

Whoosh!

It was a missed attack.

On the cheek that was narrowly grazed, the lukewarm aura of bone fragments remained.

Perhaps due to their dislodged posture, the opponent’s stance collapsed.

I didn’t miss that opening.

Pushing away the robed figure I faced directly, I snatched its long, flowing hair.

The shadow belatedly lifted, and its vision returned, but.

It was already too late.

“Ta-da.”

Slice!

A silver line drawn in the air.

Immediately afterward.

A cleanly severed head was held in my hand.

The headless body soon fell.

As I subtly took a step back, the robed figure I had just pushed away charged at me again.

Its pupils, weeping blood, were filled only with madness.

A scream-like prayer.

“!!Never forsake us, our god!!!”

The robed figure swung its spear with a shout.

I held the sword blade at an angle.

As I smoothly deflected the descending attack, I gripped the severed head with my other hand.

Holding the long, tied hair, I swung it like a flail.

Whizz… Thwack!!

A dull thud echoed.

As the full-force thrown head struck its temple, the charging robed figure lost its balance and stumbled.

Without hesitation, I thrust my sword into its heart.

Rotten blood splattered.

Thwack!

‘That makes five, I think.’

A calm, deep breath.

Although I said I had to conserve power, it didn’t mean complete incapability.

If it was just to receive a little help in combat like this, I could use my ‘lies’ without putting a strain on myself.

I clapped my hands.

Clap!

Followed by a flickering vision.

The golden afterimage that had vanished momentarily reappeared in the middle of the enemy lines.

It was a short-distance teleportation, a light leap.

I formed hidden weapons with my fingertips.

“Where are you looking?”

Thwack, thwack, thwack!

I didn’t even give them a chance to turn around.

Jet-black fragments shot out in all directions.

The flower, unfurling into dozens of petals, pierced the enemies’ foreheads.

Blood and flesh were swept away like fallen leaves before the wind.

My breath slightly quickened as I sheathed my sword.

Indeed, fighting unarmed wasn’t very stamina efficient.

For now, it was only small fry, so there was no strain.

‘The problem is.’

There was no end to their numbers.

Malice relentlessly charged forward.

Even with their bodies pierced, cut, and even limbs torn off, the puppets continued to charge.

Such blind movements were unnatural.

As expected, they weren’t easy opponents.

I glared at the man positioned at the blood-stained center of the temple.

It was a familiar face.

‘The Puppeteer.’

Among the cultists, ‘mutants’ sometimes appeared.

Katasto.

A phenomenon where demonic energy mixed with an innate talent – such as performance, singing, drawing, or description – breaking fundamental frameworks.

A concept as rare as a [Star] in terms of numbers.

Each possessing a power comparable to a disaster.

In the original work, they often appeared as figures leading to the world’s destruction, hunting faculty or key personnel, or even collapsing the Grand Cathedral, which could be considered the church’s headquarters.

That man was one of them.

‘He’s appeared.’

The Puppeteer.

Commonly called Marionnette.

He was a villain who appeared from the mid-point of the original story.

He was one of the cult’s top forces and, at the same time, a grim reaper who produced countless corpses.

All the small fries seen now were his familiars.

“As expected… a troublesome ability.”

Forces that showed no sign of decreasing.

Puppets carrying out their master’s will.

Not only did he manipulate chimeras and humans, but he was now even moving the corpses strewn across the floor.

Therefore, the battlefield, far from being cleared, only grew more chaotic.

My breath came in gasps amidst the fierce battle.

It seemed it would be difficult without expending power.

‘Of course.’

If I wasn’t alone, the story would be different.

I signaled.

Towards the fox whose hair had by now turned bright red.

It was a call to condemn sin to immolation.

“Irene-yang.”

“Yeah.”

“Blast them away.”

“Leave it to me.”

Immediately afterward.

A streak of flame shot straight across the air.

Following that, an exploding inferno consumed the surroundings.

The explosive heat shattered corpses and puppets into mere handfuls of ash.

Only a deafening roar remained in my ears.

Deafening roar-!!

Firepower that threatened to crumble the temple.

I, who had removed the flames touching my cheek, then called out to the princess.

As if she had been waiting, the girl thrust her sword into the ground.

“Your Highness.”

“I’ve been waiting.”

Her lips uttered.

The single activation word that would turn the tide.

“Sword, be dyed.”

-Charlotte Ryu Domain Swordplay Secret Art-

‘Ashen Garden’

Rumble-!

Cracks spread across the marble-covered floor, and steel vines began to sprout one by one.

A feast of blades and roses unfurled, as if paving a path.

It was a gorgeously spreading garden.

As slender hands twisted the sword plunged into the ground, thousands of flower petals whirled like sharp blades.

The extending fragments pierced the puppets’ hearts.

Blood stained the flowers.

I watched and murmured.

‘The flow isn’t bad.’

I calmly assessed the situation.

Two allies.

Each seemed to be keeping the puppets well in check.

Of course, given the opponent, it seemed difficult to completely overpower them, but the small fries were definitely being dealt with.

The continuous chorus of flames and vines created a straight path.

A path leading directly to the altar.

“Now I see it.”

Beyond the smell of burning flesh and the remnants, the Puppeteer was visible.

He had his hand placed on the seal.

He was staring at us with cold pupils.

As if he had recognized our presence.

‘Looking at the altar’s state… the progress is still less than 50%, I wonder.’

There seemed to be quite a bit of time left.

For now, I planned to prioritize clearing the vicinity.

I wrapped my hands in jet black.

The opponent was not to be underestimated.

Although not quite on the level of the ‘Conductor,’ known to have reached a [Star], this guy was still among the top-tier villains.

He was not an opponent to face lightly, especially with my power output limited.

I compressed the thinly spread ‘lie.’

Just as I was revealing my murderous intent and preparing to leap.

“Yes… I understand.”

Suddenly, he spoke from over there.

His pupils were fixed in direction.

In his madness-tainted eyes, only a golden snake was reflected.

The man spoke as if he had realized something.

“About the being who has blocked our will from before.”

I tried to ignore him roughly, but.

The next words made my steps falter.

“It was you, [CENSORED NAME].”

Words referring to myself.

I flinched.

How did that guy… know that name?

My brain instantly hit the brakes.

“Wait, what did you just…?”

“I cannot defeat you.”

And rightly so.

How could a mere creature challenge the vessel of a god?

But.

This plan cannot fail.

For His will.

“Therefore… I shall sacrifice everything.”

Crunch!

Immediately after, the Puppeteer acted impulsively.

Perhaps because my mind was momentarily distracted by the fact that my [name] had been called, I uncharacteristically missed his suspicious movements.

The bastard bit off his own tongue and simultaneously scattered demonic energy around him.

A dark red light slowly seeped out from the altar.

‘Suicide sacrifice…!’

He had offered his own life.

The soul of a Katasto with unique talent, one of the continent’s foremost strong individuals—that was enough to shatter the already cracked seal completely.

In an instant.

Crash!

A sound like shattering glass echoed.

The seal shattered into countless pieces.

Simultaneously, a jet-black light erupted from the temple floor, and soon, demonic energy fierce enough to obscure all vision raged throughout the area.

Amidst the scattered fragments of blood and corpses, it was difficult to even steady one’s body.

I formed a curtain of shadows to protect my companions.

Roooar-!

A merciless storm of demonic energy raged.

The temple was already nearly annihilated.

The Puppeteer’s body, which had broken the seal, was torn to shreds, and even the surrounding puppets had melted away without a trace.

I gradually increased the output of my ‘lie’ and withstood the fierce winds.

How much time had passed?

Just as the ferocious surge was gradually subsiding.

The true disaster revealed itself.

“……Damn.”

I clicked my tongue.

The scene before my eyes was truly dreadful.

Slowly, I raised my head and looked up.

Growl-!

A sound that seemed to scrape against one’s eardrums.

The head of some creature barely touched the ceiling, which had to be at least 50 meters high.

Its enormous wings and tail completely covered the ruined temple.

Black flames flickered between its jaws.

Although it was clearly a living creature… it didn’t at all fit the word ‘vitality.’

Because its heart and various parts of its flesh were rotting.

[EP23. Stirring Evil]

-Boiling blood and malice, life crying out for death-

The episode’s boss monster.

As specified in the lore, it was [Sa], meaning ‘death,’ and… an ancient dragon stained into the form of a chimera.

Translated into modern terms, it was a Death Dragon.

We stood before a catastrophe.

Roooar-!!

A roar that seemed to shake the entire underground.

Feeling the chill that ran down my spine, I muttered a complaint.

“Well, I suppose there’s no helping it.”

I clenched my fist once more.

What I gripped with both hands was a sword carved from shadows.

My closed eyelids slowly opened.

My fully revealed white pupils were dangerously glowing.

The serpent declared.

“Hunting isn’t my preference, but I suppose I have no choice.”

It seemed.

I would have to bring out the second plan.