episode_0134

Playing with the beads, Piya tossed them up and down, enjoying the sensation before repeatedly catching them. Suddenly, the old man clutched his chest and sank to the ground.

“Ugh, ugh!”

A dizzying sensation as if leaping from a high place!

Even though his feet seemed firmly planted on the ground, it felt like he was floating in the sky and endlessly falling. The old man’s face turned pale as if drained of blood.

While the sight of the old man struggling on the floor was horrifying, it presented a golden opportunity for Piya. She immediately rushed to the children, shaking them to wake them up. Though she wished to embrace and flee with them, four of the children were unconscious, making it realistically impossible for her to carry all four alone.

“Eh…?”

Fortunately, the children began to stir slightly, one by one, rubbing their eyes.

“Piya unnie?”

“Where are we…?”

“Mommy…?”

*Gasp…*

The children from the Nest organization remained calm, having faced various horrors before, but the village children trembled at the foul smell emanating from the dark cave. Even if they tried to stifle their cries, the children’s wails echoed off the cave walls.

Piya urgently covered the children’s mouths, signaling them to be quiet. The Nest children nodded stoically, while the village children covered their mouths with both hands, nodding in agreement.

Turning her gaze towards the old man, Piya observed him clutching his chest with his head still on the ground. As she watched the groaning old man twist his body, the children, unable to conceal their anxiety, quickly scanned their surroundings.

And then, they discovered it.

“Eek…!”

In a dimly lit corner sat a black prison, inside which lay a small skeleton attached to decaying flesh, a corpse still decomposing.

One child stared at one side, froze, and the others followed suit, gazing at the same spot, their bodies stiffening.

“Ugh… eww!”

One child couldn’t hold back the urge to vomit, turning away and retching. Only bile flowed out as there was nothing in their stomachs. Piya, who had properly assessed the exit route, turned to the children and said,

“Kids, come here.”

Piya lined the children up and stood at the back. She then pointed towards the faintly lit passage.

“If we go through that passage straight ahead, we can get out. If we move calmly, we can escape without anyone getting hurt. Understand?”

Perhaps due to Piya’s calm voice, the frightened children quickly managed to compose themselves. Just as the children nodded and prepared to move forward,

*Gasp, gasp…*

The old man, who had been curled up emitting dreadful screams, suddenly gasped for breath and collapsed, as if his suffering had ended.

It was thanks to Lian, who had grown tired of playing with the beads and carelessly placed them on the bedside.

“Run!”

Realizing the situation, Piya raised her voice sharply, prompting the children to focus ahead and start running. Piya followed behind the children, glancing back. The old man was slowly getting up, his jade-colored medallion gleaming brightly in his hand.

“Ugh… ugh…”

Breathing heavily, the old man groped his chest.

‘Intruder… Intruders have entered.’

The face that had been smiling was nowhere to be found, replaced by a twisted visage like a demon, peering down at me.

“Must go to the dungeon right away. Go and take my heart…!”

As he continued his thoughts, he suddenly looked around with a stern expression. He saw the children and Pia running ahead.

“We must not let that woman live!”

No matter how much power the old man possessed, when the guards swarmed in, there was no choice but to succumb helplessly. Whether it was getting one’s throat slit or being stabbed in the chest, it didn’t matter. After all, the heart was in the dungeon!

If buried in the ground, one could dig their way out; if left in a corpse disposal site, as long as one took care of their body, they could come out fine. Then, they could collect the dungeon and find a new village to start anew from scratch.

However, once the existence of the heart was revealed, the old man would most likely die. Staggering forward, the old man began to move.

Thud… Thud, thud!

His slow steps suddenly quickened as if arrows were being shot.

Thunk.

A strange pattern appeared on his ankle. The mark of a demon, enabling speeds unattainable by humans, but in return, his ankle turned a dark crimson as if choked.

As long as the heart didn’t break, the body would return to its original state, and the wounds in front of him, including the woman and children, would heal instantly if consumed.

“Child?”

Despite his twisted demonic expression, the voice flowing from the old man’s throat was unexpectedly gentle.

“It’s dangerous outside! Come here quickly!”

Pia broke out in a cold sweat, panting heavily. No matter how fast she ran, the children in front of her couldn’t keep up. The old man’s voice was rapidly catching up to her.

“I’m… trying… to… tell… you, hey!”

“…! Aaah!”

As the old man’s voice approached Pia’s ear, his sword gleamed. In an instant, Pia’s legs gave out, and she collapsed. The approaching blade of the old man was poised to strike at Pia’s neck with the agility of a snake seizing its prey.

Snick!

Just as Pia’s neck was about to be severed, his sword abruptly slid towards the cave wall, impaling itself. It was the power of sanctity. Pia gasped for breath as she looked up at the old man.

Trembling uncontrollably, perhaps due to the mad dash in fear, her legs were shaking.

“Sister!”

“Sis!”

“…! Kids, run away!”

At Pia’s desperate shout, the child running at the forefront burst into tears.

“Th-there’s a… wall here… this, wall… aaah!”

“What’s that…”

The child’s loud cry echoed through the cave. At that moment, the old man chuckled and said,

“Well, now you’re like a mouse caught in poison.”

Thunk, the old man’s left wrist contorted. It was the price paid by forcibly borrowing the power of the demon to create a wall blocking the passage. However, there was no regret.

In the bizarre sight of the old man, children either collapsed to the ground or cried. Some even wet themselves in fear. Faced with overwhelming terror, all Pia could do was seek salvation for herself.

“Lian… please, save us…”

“Yes, depart without suffering.”

Thinking Pia was emitting strong sanctity, the old man showed a merciful attitude, thinking she was seeking the god of dark fantasy. Worried about his heart, the old man, feeling like he might lose his mind, immediately raised his sword.

“Go to the side of God!”

His sword was about to pierce Pya once again.

Doruruk, twuok… Splat!

“Oops..!”

While inspecting the altar for any mechanisms, he accidentally dropped a bead on the floor. The bead seemed to have a fragile structure as it shattered into dozens of pieces upon hitting the ground.

Whooooosh!

As the old man’s heart broke, the magic he had cast began to unravel one by one. The bright light that illuminated the room faded away, leaving the room in darkness. Simultaneously, the dungeon seemed to be collapsing with sounds like Kugugugung! echoing.

“Oh no! It’s collapsing!”

Covering his head with both hands, Lian frantically looked around, trying to find an escape route.

‘If we’ve reached the end of the dungeon, there should naturally be a portal or exit leading out, right?!’

While complaining inwardly, his eyes diligently searched for a hole to escape through.

“…There it is!”

Among the blue glowing walls, there was a small door. Without hesitation, Lian opened the door and entered inside.

“Is this… a cave?”

Bending slightly at the waist, he entered and found a passage-like path stretching ahead.

Kurrrung, thud…

“Yikes! Let’s get out of here quickly!”

If he stayed there any longer, it would take ages to find a way out. Lian immediately started running along the path.

After climbing uphill several times, he saw a faint light in the distance. Without hesitation, he threw himself towards the light.

Crash!

“Yikes!”

The door opened roughly, and Lian tumbled on the ground a few times before hitting something. He quickly regained his senses and looked around.

“Where am I…”

Surrounded by overgrown trees and a village visible in the distance, he stood in what seemed like a place speculated to be behind the hill.

“Hmm… First, I need to go back to the village… Oh.”

Lian belatedly realized that he was nearly naked. His torn clothes were barely recognizable in various places.

“Phew… If I had gone down to the village like this, I would have surely been dragged away by the guards.”

Wiping off the cold sweat, he summoned his dark sword.

[Partner, it’s too late for dinner time….. Huh?]