Oath

I opened my eyes and hurriedly sat up. What I saw was Lykan’s grim face.

Did I lose consciousness?

I frowned, feeling a headache. Lykan, who was looking at me, stroked his chin and opened his mouth.

,You screamed when you saw the corpse and fainted. As I said before, there are often cases where those who dreamed of becoming knights realize the reality after seeing an actual corpse and give up their dreams.”

Lykan’s words reminded me of the nameless mother and daughter’s corpses.

I bit my lip at the pain that felt like someone was stabbing the corner of my heart with a needle. Lykan sighed and ran a hand over his face.

,If you can’t overcome today, you might as well quickly drop out and look for another path.”

I met Lykan’s brown eyes. Emotionless eyes that had no expectations of me. Lykan sincerely thought it would be better for me to drop out.

,Whether you’ll collapse at what you saw today or take a step forward is your decision. Whatever you choose, it will be a major turning point for you.”

Lykan, who couldn’t stay serious for long due to his personality, put his hand on my shoulder and left his last words.

,The cleanup will be over soon. Think carefully when you return to the academy.”

Watching Lykan’s retreating figure, I felt a deep sense of inferiority at my pathetic self and lowered my head.

***

After finishing my meal, I returned to the dormitory and sat on the edge of the bed, pressing my palms against my eyes.

I knew that Ross’s personality had a big impact on me, but if it was to this extent, it was a really big problem. Was it due to a nervous breakdown? I still felt guilty about the image of the mother and daughter that I couldn’t erase from my mind.

,…That guy fainted, so Povel and I cleaned up the corpses instead.”

,Really? He fainted after seeing a corpse?”

,He’s a real burden.”

My headache worsened at the sight of my roommates talking about me in loud voices, as if they wanted me to hear.

I looked through the setting book, wondering if there was a way to solve this nervous breakdown and inferiority complex, and burst into laughter at my own stupidity.

I already knew the method.

*

When night came and I could hear my roommates snoring. I slipped out of the dormitory and out of the academy through a hidden passage.

Thanks to the secret passage setting that Roel used to spend hot nights with the heroine, I was able to get out, and I hurriedly moved towards my destination.

If the fact that I went out without permission is discovered, it could be a big deal. Of course, it wouldn’t be enough to get expelled, but I didn’t want to see Roel’s face again, worrying and looking for me.

After walking downstream along the river that flows on the outskirts of the capital for a while. Warning signs came into view.

*Caution*

This is a village where Stone Thorns disease patients live.

Unauthorized entry by the general public is prohibited.

If you get poisoned by the Stone Thorns plant, your body hardens like stone over time, as if you’ve seen Medusa’s eyes. It was a terrible disease that eventually turned you into a statue.

It’s a story that Roel solves when he becomes a third-year student, but there is still no solution, so the empire only puts the patients together in one village.

The reason I came here was to find the relics of the witch who was called the Saintess in the village.

Later, a grave robber visited the village, heard the word Saintess, dug up the tomb, and the relics were put up for auction.

It was an item that was mentioned in passing when Roel participated in the auction, but it was a relic that was later used as bait.

I walked around the outskirts without entering the village. Before long, I was able to find a tomb where statues that looked like they were made by a skilled sculptor were gathered.

I held up a torch and checked the statues, and finally found a statue with its eyes covered with cloth.

Using the end of the torch like a shovel, I scraped the ground in front of the statue and dug it up. I was able to find a small iron box.

I stuck the torch next to me and dug out the box with my hands. I shook off the dirt and opened the box, and saw the witch’s relics. I brushed aside things like jewels, magic stones, and rabbit’s feet with my hands. I was able to find a ring with a small purple jewel embedded in it.

As I put the ring on my right index finger. A familiar status window popped up.

===

[Ring of Oath]

―A ring imbued with the power of the oath ‘Geas’.

It is a magical restraint and a curse, but an airtight Geas gives powerful power.

◆ No current oath

◇ No current restrictions

===

I wasn’t interested in the other things, so after taking out only the ring, I closed the box, put the box in the ground, gathered soil with my feet, and buried it. Just in case, I pressed down hard with my feet.

Going back to the dormitory like this, I was worried about touching other people’s belongings because of Ross’s nervous breakdown. I did a 合掌/hapjang as if confessing my sins to the witch’s statue.

,I will definitely use the relics for good. It’s not really a price, but I will definitely find a way to eliminate Stone Thorns disease.”

If I was feeling guilty, I would obviously toss and turn again because of my nervous breakdown. It was a word I said to relieve my guilt even a little. Suddenly, an unexpected message popped up.

[ The witch’s curse is applied. ]

[ Geas is forcibly activated. ]

[ The witch’s curse has been postponed. ]

===

[Ring of Oath]

―A ring imbued with the power of the oath ‘Geas’.

It is a magical restraint and a curse, but an airtight Geas gives powerful power.

◆ Current oath

– Promised ‘Witch Spleen’ to find a way to eliminate Stone Thorns disease as a price for the relics. / Additional 3P when the oath is fulfilled.

◇ Current restrictions

– Witch’s curse / Death if a way to eliminate Stone Thorns disease is not found within 3 years.

■ Current 1 oath.

– Witch Spleen’s oath 1P.

===

Only then did I understand the situation. A curse was placed on me as a price for touching the witch’s relics, but because of the words I said in front of the statue, Geas was forcibly activated and the curse was postponed.

If I hadn’t said those words in front of the statue to relieve my guilt because of Ross’s nervous breakdown, I might have died from the witch’s curse.

,Am I lucky….”

My nervous breakdown helped me for the first time. Even the restriction of finding a way to eliminate Stone Thorns disease within 3 years was not a difficult task.

Because Roel was scheduled to find a cure for Stone Thorns disease according to the flow in just one year.

I let out a sigh of relief and decided to return to the dormitory for now.

***

Fortunately, no one noticed that I had left the academy.

I ate breakfast as if nothing had happened, and organized my thoughts against the background of the professor’s boring lecture.

The setting of Geas was not created by me. It was a setting from Celtic mythology, and I added the setting to the story because the setting of oaths and restrictions seemed 괜찮아/gwaenchanha (okay).

Later, a count named Celt, who becomes an underling of the Demon King, uses the relics purchased at the auction to activate ‘Geas’ and gain airtight power.

He dies when his heart explodes because he cannot keep his oath to kill his opponent when he draws his sword due to Roel’s escape.

Geas was a double-edged sword. The stronger the oath and restrictions, the more you can gain. In Celtic mythology, it was the source of the superhuman power of heroes and the cause of their destruction.

Touching the Ring of Oath and thinking about the power to choose. A status window popped up as if selecting abilities in a game.

[Dragonslayer] – 10P

[Fountain of Healing] – 7P

[Combat Continuation] – 4P

.

.

.

After checking the abilities that appeared in front of me, I could understand why Geas had destroyed so many heroes.

The more oaths and restrictions you make, the stronger the power you get.

Heroes would naturally be tempted. No matter how strong a hero is, it is almost impossible to kill a dragon with power comparable to a god alone. If you get the Dragonslayer ability with 10P, it was possible.

What I needed now was the ability to overcome my personality penalties and the magic power to use Patulga’s magic book.

While checking the abilities related to that, I organized the oaths and restrictions I could make in my head.

*

An unexpected big problem arose.

,I will never eat chocolate cake!”

,I will not assassinate strangers!”

,I will save the world!”

,”Ah, shit. I won’t swear.”

I have no idea how an oath is activated.

Was it a punishment for thinking naively that everything would be solved if I got the Ring of Oath? I sighed as my plan was blocked in an unexpected place.

While thinking that I should find out about the activation conditions, I was eating alone in the corner of the cafeteria. Someone sat across from me.

I unconsciously raised my head and met black eyes like obsidian, and I was embarrassed and shut my mouth tightly.

,Hello, Ross.”

It was just a simple greeting. My heart started pounding as if I had run with all my might. Just looking at Ellie made my mind go blank.

,”He… Ahem! Hello.”

When I opened my mouth for the first time today because I had no one to talk to, my voice was hoarse and a strange voice came out, so I cleared my throat and greeted her again.

I felt embarrassed at Ellie’s smiling face at that action, but I felt a strange satisfaction that I had made Ellie smile.

,I was also busy adapting to the academy. I didn’t have time to talk like before. I’m sorry.”

,No, it’s okay. Adapting comes first.”

I waved my hands hurriedly, feeling sorry as if I had done something wrong at Ellie’s words that sounded apologetic.

,”Haa, Transcendence Academy is definitely outstanding. Everyone is better than me.”

I wanted to comfort Ellie’s grumbling, but I, who was at the bottom of the combat department, had nothing to say.

,The old days were better. When you, Roel 오빠/oppa (older brother), and I went together.”

For some reason, I felt a strange anxiety in Ellie’s expression, which seemed bitter.

,Roel 오빠/oppa (older brother) seems busy and doesn’t have time to talk. Even if I go to see him, the way the women around him look at me isn’t good….”

I remember well the setting of Ellie becoming Roel’s heroine.

As a cute academy junior, she is quick-witted and smart, and has a natural talent for manipulating situations in the direction she wants.

The heroine in the position of a young sister who has liked Roel since she was young gained a lot of popularity even though she joined Roel’s harem late.

For reference, the past stories about Ellie and Ross are not mentioned in the novel. It was only subtly revealed to the readers that Ross had a crush on Ellie when Ross saw Roel and Ellie kissing, and Ross’s inferiority complex exploded and he confronted Roel.

,Is Ellie even trying to take her away from me?”

In Ross’s story, Roel was embarrassed and tried to clear up the misunderstanding at Ross’s appearance, but Ross, whose inferiority complex had exploded, succumbed to the Demon King’s temptation and tried to kill Roel and possess Ellie as his own, but ended up dying.

But now that I’ve become Ross, I have one question about Ellie.

Could the quick-witted Ellie really not have known Ross’s heart, who smiled with a stupid face whenever she saw him?

,I heard you can go out on weekends. Shall we go out together with Roel 오빠/oppa (older brother) for the first time in a while?”

Looking into the black eyes like obsidian that were looking at me with innocent eyes, I realized one thing.

Just like Ellie is quick-witted. There’s no way that Ross, who has a quick understanding, wouldn’t have known Ellie’s heart.

Ellie was using Ross’s heart, who liked her, to approach Roel, and Ross was unable to give up Ellie even though he knew that.

,Okay…. I’ll talk to hyung (older brother).”

,Really? Ross is so kind.”

I felt an emotion that I didn’t know whether it was joy or despair at Ellie’s bright smile, and I could only give a bitter smile.