Chapter 1301: The Promise of Corruption (5)
“Let’s prioritize the issues that need to be addressed during the Imperial National Mausoleum infiltration.”
Just before the pact between the Guido Cult and the Order Alliance was sealed, and they were about to depart for the Mausoleum.
Yaksha, looking up at the dozens of airships hovering above the rallying point, spoke before the leaders of both factions.
“As I said, to enter the Mausoleum, we must recover the Parasitic Flowers and dismantle the Distortion Field. However, there’s a serious problem in that process.”
“The problem, I presume, is if there are skilled individuals among the monsters spawned by the Parasitic Flowers.”
The Cardinal, sitting at the round table with eyes closed in prayer, replied.
“Even before our Cult began the expedition, many superhumans went missing in the Demonic Realm. If even some of them are being ‘used’ to guard the Mausoleum, that would indeed be a problem.”
“Precisely. The Annihilation Squad of the Ability Awakening Warband. The Mercenaries’ battle-hardened soldiers. Paragon’s Agents… Elites from across the continent gathered there and never made it out. They are all mixed in.”
Yaksha glanced away.
“But among them, the one we must especially beware of is the existence of Maiya Lonsdale, known as the continent’s finest Enforcer. You’ve all heard her name, I presume?”
“……”
The Yeonri Spell Master puffed indifferently on his pipe, and the Seventh Apostle let out a ghostly laugh, tilting her head at an odd angle.
Because there was no one, not even among colossal forces like the Order Alliance and the Guido Cult, who hadn’t heard her name and reputation.
“During the Mausoleum expedition, Cheonbeon encountered her, and the mercenary even fought her directly. I, too, saw her being consumed by the Parasitic Flowers, so meeting her as an enemy is as good as a foregone conclusion.”
Yaksha said with a calm expression.
“The problem is that the Enforcer’s abilities are particularly dangerous in this kind of battlefield. She is the best technician and specialist. Considering her reputation, she is highly likely to be the biggest obstacle during the Mausoleum infiltration.”
“The question, then, is whether the Enforcer’s combat capabilities have increased or, conversely, decreased after being consumed by the Dead Flowers.”
The Yeonri Spell Master spoke in a monotone voice.
“Mercenary. What was the Enforcer’s condition when you faced her?”
“Bloody difficult, wasn’t it? Is that even a question?” Arthur retorted gruffly.
“Her strength and technique haven’t faded at all, but her stamina and vitality are endless. She showed no signs of faltering or getting tired during the fight. I couldn’t even tell if she was breathing to begin with.”
“……”
“The only thing I noticed while fighting was that she didn’t use her Miniature Universe, but even that isn’t certain. The difficulty would vary wildly depending on whether she couldn’t use her Will-thought or simply didn’t.”
“If the Enforcer, consumed by the Parasitic Flowers, has become more plant-like than animal-like, it wouldn’t be strange if she lost the ability to use Will-thought.”
Aileen said, arms crossed.
“And if a plant-like Enforcer doesn’t breathe through lungs, there’s a possibility her respiratory organs themselves have mutated.”
“Due to the Distortion Field surrounding the Mausoleum, siege warfare or heavy bombardments are impossible. As long as we commit superhuman forces, it’s likely to devolve into a chaotic free-for-all where the Enforcer can run rampant.”
“The Enforcer was one of Pandemonium’s most valued blades. This will be a tricky business…”
“……”
Both the Alliance and the Cult seemed strongly wary not just of Maiya Lonsdale, but of Pandemonium itself.
The interesting thing was that even Arthur and Aileen didn’t question that fact at all.
Did that mean Pandemonium’s name held such a unique status even within the Central Front?
“Heeey~ How long are we going to keep talking about nothing?”
Scritch—
The Seventh Apostle let out a chilling grin, scraping her bright red nails across the table.
The vampire, whose vibrant eyes were rimmed with what looked like mascara made of red blood, looked around and spoke in an eerie voice.
“We don’t even know how many Enforcers are inside the Mausoleum right now, so what’s the point of discussing countermeasures? Aren’t we just wasting time?”
“……”
“We won’t know until we actually go in. Both you and us, that’s how we’ve always done it, right?”
She wasn’t wrong.
Maiya Lonsdale was simply the powerful Transcendent they had encountered near the Mausoleum. It wouldn’t be strange if there were other monsters of equal caliber.
The number of powerful superhumans who had gone missing from various parts of the Central Front over a long period was immeasurable.
If even a fraction of them were consumed by the Parasitic Flowers and roaming around the Mausoleum, they would undoubtedly be formidable opponents.
As Lariata Armush said, without accurately assessing the forces around the Mausoleum, it might be a meaningless discussion, but—
“This isn’t just a problem limited to Maiya Lonsdale. Lariata Armush. It means we need to establish a manual for encountering difficult adversaries during the Mausoleum assault.”
Yaksha met the Seventh Apostle’s gaze.
“If we don’t decide beforehand who will face the Enforcer, the elites of the Alliance and the Cult, once deployed, will be slaughtered before they can even do anything.”
“……”
“To maintain the balance of power, we must clarify priorities. At the very least, it would be best to agree on who goes first.”
Yaksha, looking around with an unexpressive face, said.
“While it would be most efficient for the nearest Transcendent to take on the opponent depending on the situation, a sequence will still be necessary for the pact to hold. We’ll need an agreement on that point.”
“Hehe… You, ghost.”
Lariata Armush rested her chin in her hand, flashing a languid smile.
“If you call me by that name one more time, I’ll rip your mouth to your ears.”
“Each faction will designate a person to deal with the Enforcer in advance, and we will adjust the order according to the situation.”
Even under the Seventh Apostle’s icy threat, Yaksha didn’t bat an eye as he spoke.
“Regarding that, I’d like to select one representative from the Alliance, the Cult, and Cheonbeon’s side… Martinez. Do you have anything to say?”
“…No. Just one thing troubles me.”
Suddenly, all eyes turned to Lennok.
Everyone understood that the key and core of this operation rested with that wizard.
The Yeonri Spell Master and Lariata Armush’s expressions changed, showing different emotions, but Lennok didn’t even look at them as he spoke.
“I’m thinking about whether the Enforcer, consumed by the Dead Flowers, is truly Maiya Lonsdale herself.”
“What?”
“Her combat abilities and techniques are undoubtedly her own, but that’s precisely why her inability to use the Miniature Universe is incomprehensible.”
Lennok looked up.
“A technician who has reached that level of mastery can even pull Will-thought and Mind Imprints into the realm of technique and wield them. If she can use other techniques without issue even with a shattered mind, she should be able to use the Miniature Universe as well.”
“……”
Silence fell instantly.
They hadn’t expected the wizard who had personally conducted the Mausoleum expedition to question Maiya’s very existence.
“If what’s there isn’t Maiya Lonsdale, then perhaps the situation is even more dangerous than the Enforcer herself being consumed by the Parasitic Flowers.”
“…What do you mean?”
If Maiya Lonsdale herself hadn’t been consumed by the Parasitic Flowers, wouldn’t that actually be good news for the assault team?
For a moment, a void opened in their judgment, trying to comprehend why he asserted that was more dangerous.
“Ultimately, on that point, the Seventh Apostle was correct.”
Lennok rose from his seat.
“Either way, it’s a problem we won’t know until we verify it ourselves.”
Despite being wary of the Enforcer’s power encountered in the Mausoleum, it was a variable they could never have anticipated.
The unprecedented anomaly: Maiya Lonsdale, consumed by the Parasitic Flowers, was directly wielding the Grand General’s Armaments.
KWAAANGGGGG!!!!!
The colossal axe blade of the Satellite Shredder tore through the Distortion Field and slammed into the center of the massive temple.
With that impact, the entire temple building shattered and collapsed, mingling with the torn Distortion Field and unleashing a powerful shockwave.
The Enforcer’s incomprehensible action: swinging the axe to interfere with Yaksha, simultaneously smashing both the Distortion Field and the temple.
The bishop, realizing the meaning a step too late, flinched and turned his gaze.
“Good heavens, could it be…!!!”
KU-GU-GU-GU-GU!!!!
The torn Distortion Field coiled and warped around the house-sized axe embedded in the temple’s center.
The Distortion Field and the Mausoleum’s temple building collapsed and intermingled, transforming into a colossal black spot in the middle of the manor.
“She’s blocked the temple’s entrance itself, preventing us from entering!!!”
The Distortion Field protecting the Mausoleum was the Grand General’s Will-thought itself.
Thus, the Distortion Field, coiling around the Grand General’s Armaments, warped the entire shattered temple, distorting it like a black hole.
From the very beginning, the Enforcer’s intention was to destroy the Distortion Field and the temple, preventing anyone from entering the Mausoleum.
CLANG!!
The moment others fell into a panic, Maiya drew two short swords from her waist and turned around.
Immediately regaining their composure, the Alliance’s spellcasters instantly chanted their spellcraft and charged forward.
“Protect the Advisor!!”
“A rotten corpse dares to…!!”
KWAGWAGWAGWANG!!!!
The Alliance’s high-ranking spellcasters were walking bombers, possessing firepower that surpassed entire armies.
The sheer firepower they could unleash in a short amount of time was something no central faction could easily match.
But Maiya didn’t evade the explosions raining down from all sides; instead, she drew upon her mana.
KAKAG!
She spun the short swords held in reverse grip in both hands, scattering her arms out in all directions as if flicking them.
Shockwaves, piercing sharply through the air, rotated like drills and were launched at supersonic speeds.
They instantly blew up the heads of the spellcasters who had fired their spellcraft, scattering fragments of their corpses.
“Guh…!!”
PUPUPUPUPUM!!
SPLISH!!
Piercing through the helmet of a Rectification Knight charging forward in white armor, splattered with blood and flesh.
Kicking away the headless corpse, Maiya’s form accelerated past the falling body.
She began to slaughter the spellcasters and priests who were focused on adjusting the distortion points around Yaksha at an incredible speed.
CRACK!!
CHWAJAJAJAJAK!!!
“Stop her!! Narrow her path to restrict her movement!!”
“No, we can’t hold out long against her head-on…!!!”
Flesh tore and limbs were severed, flying into the air, as screams and death throes intertwined.
She cut through the dozens of elites from the Alliance and the Cult without hesitation, blowing up dozens of heads in rapid succession.
It was a grotesque sight: veterans who had survived the Central Front dying without even a struggle at a single gesture from Maiya.
“Damn it, I knew things were going too smoothly!!!”
CLICK!
Arthur, thrown far by the Satellite Shredder’s shockwave, cursed loudly and scrambled back to his feet.
If this continued, the Alliance and Cult forces would be massacred in droves before they could even open the Mausoleum’s gate.
“Where are Chain Smoker and the Vampire? Why aren’t they showing their faces?!!”
“They’re engaged in combat simultaneously in the northern and southern parts of the Mausoleum.”
Lennok said, his eyes closed.
Lennok quickly cast out his Magical Perception, grasping the moving presences all around, then turned his gaze.
“It seems the worst-case scenario we anticipated has come to pass precisely.”
“Monsters with abilities similar to the Enforcer’s were guarding the area around the Mausoleum.”
SWISH!!
Aileen, cutting down a corpse of the Annihilation Squad and extracting a Parasitic Flower, said in a cold voice.
“If they’re capable of tying down the Grand Spell Master and the Seventh Apostle, then the Cardinal, who’s in charge of the west, must be in a similar situation.”
“…Hah, I’ll take care of that for now, so you two go.”
Arthur spat and walked forward, shotgun in hand.
“I’m just here to finish the request anyway. I’ll just retrieve the corpse and get out, so you guys handle the rest.”
“It won’t be as easy as you think. The feeling is completely different from last time.”
Lennok said that, then heightened his Magical Perception to observe Maiya.
“Is it because she’s using the Grand General’s Armaments? Something has fundamentally changed.”
“No, what could have changed that much to-”
Suddenly, Arthur’s words cut off as he saw Maiya’s crouched movement in the distance.
Because a powerful ‘Will-thought’ began to flow from her low, prone stance, with the short swords held in reverse grip.
GOOOOOOO…
Maiya Lonsdale’s Will-thought, which Arthur had never sensed during their previous fight in the Mausoleum.
The fact that it could now be felt tangibly from over there meant, that is—
“Get awaaaaay?!!”
Inner World Miniature Universe
Mindscape Technique Activated
[Eight Vacuums]
[Single Principle Pierce]
SHWAAAAAAK!!!
Sword-light, divided into three and converging at a single extreme point, pierced through space and horizontally skewered the Mausoleum.
“Fuck, she’s using her Miniature Universe!!”
Arthur, who had barely dodged by firing his shotgun the moment he read the signs, lay on the ground, muttering with a bewildered expression.
“Last time, she clearly couldn’t use it. What happened?”
“You’d better get up if you don’t want to die.”
Lennok, who had landed beside Arthur, said.
“You said the consumption of stamina and vitality stopped after she was consumed by the Dead Flowers. Wouldn’t the same apply to Will-thought?”
“…Damn it, no way?”
“I don’t know why she couldn’t use it last time, but if she can use it now, the situation isn’t much different, is it?”
The moment Lennok grabbed Arthur by the collar and drew upon his mana.
Maiya once again activated her Miniature Universe and began unleashing sword strikes wildly in all directions around the Mausoleum.
[Eight Vacuums]
[Single Principle Pierce]
[Single Principle Pierce]
[Single Principle Pierce]
[Single Principle Pierce]
TATATATATATATANG!!!!!
The sword strikes fired from her whirling short swords were crushed by sword pressure, exploding into a terrifying storm of blades.
Within the scattering sword energy, spellcasters’ bodies were ground into blood. The blessings of praying priests were severed, their heads split from the crown, exposing their organs.
Following Maiya’s flashing gestures, blood hotter than body temperature danced and poured into the murky air of the Mausoleum, at that very moment.
Yaksha, wielding a medium-sized axe, appeared from the side and slammed directly into Maiya’s flank.
KWAAANG!!!
“You ghost, you were alive!!”
“This body has been dead for a long time, so whether it’s alive or not isn’t really up for discussion.”
Yaksha, his entire body pieced together with metal fragments, rose and muttered.
His upper body was crushed and his lower body severed by the aftermath of Maiya’s sword strikes, a gruesome sight, barely held together by metal fragments.
But on Yaksha’s rag-doll face, not a trace of pain or fear could be seen.
“This has become tricky. A monster that uses Will-thought without limit and spams Mindscape Techniques…”
THUDD!!
He discarded the axe, broken from the brief clash, and pulled out new metal fragments, manipulating them to coil around himself.
The moment Yaksha turned toward Maiya, Arthur rushed out with his shotgun.
KWAAANG!!!
“It’s surprising that Yaksha held on, but he looks like he’s struggling to even use Iron Spirit Spellcraft right now.”
Amidst the scattering roar, Lennok turned his head toward Aileen.
“If his body is that damaged, it’ll be difficult for him to remove the Distortion Field again. We’ll have to find another way.”
“I’ll do it.”
Aileen, approaching the Mausoleum’s entrance, placed her hand on the ground and closed her eyes.
“The Enforcer tore the Distortion Field with the Grand General’s Armaments, creating a fissure. If I can just remove a little more of the field, we should be able to enter the Mausoleum through that darkness.”
“You mean to bypass and overcome that dark environment itself by passing through a consciousness space. Is it alright if you don’t start from the location we discussed earlier?”
“With the entire temple building looking like this, what does location even matter?”
“……”
KUOOOOOHHH!!!!
The shattered temple building and the Grand General’s axe were intermingling with the Distortion Field, twisting and rotating like a black hole.
No trace of the original entrance or corridors remained, only endless darkness peeked through.
Without pushing one’s body directly into that darkness, even approaching the Mausoleum’s basement would be impossible.
“The Distortion Field caught in the black hole is currently entwined around the Grand General’s weapon, which is slammed into its center.”
Aileen slit her wrist and smeared blood onto her fingertips, saying.
“If we can just push that axe aside for a very brief moment, the Distortion Field will be pulled along with it, creating an opening into the darkness. Can I ask you to do that?”
“Crushing it with force wouldn’t be difficult.”
Lennok began to gather his mana, hands clasped together.
“Leave it to me.”
—!
Did Maiya, fighting Arthur, sense something the moment she saw Aileen’s True Blood? She snapped her head around.
She shifted her weight back and lowered her stance, simultaneously evading Arthur’s shotgun.
She parried Yaksha’s axe blade, which struck her flank, with her short swords, using the force as a rebound to spring away.
PAAANG!!!
Maiya’s form flew at immense speed between the eerie tombstones, accelerating at hyper-speed as if merely brushing past them.
With each swing of her short swords, blood erupted from the necks of spellcasters and priests all around, and they fell like dominoes.
Yaksha and Arthur, instantly grasping the situation, simultaneously clung to Maiya.
“We have to stop her.”
“F**k, if you’re a plant, just stand still!!”
CRASH!!
Yaksha, carrying an axe weighing over several hundred kilograms, charged forward like heavy machinery, unleashing a powerful shockwave.
Arthur, leaping from the recoil of his shotgun, accelerated by sliding between the tombstones, chasing after Maiya.
Arthur, flying over Maiya’s head at incredible speed, flipped his body halfway, grabbed his shotgun in reverse, and fired.
He scattered hundreds of shotgun pellets onto Maiya’s back at supersonic speed.
KWAAANGGG!!!!
A devastating point-blank bombardment so powerful that the ground was crushed, creating a massive crater from the impact.
But where the shotgun hit, only a half-shattered short sword remained.
Arthur, looking at Maiya’s form speeding ahead in the distance, sharply turned his gaze.
“Damn it, using the short sword as a foothold…!!!”
SHWAAAAAK!!!
Maiya’s form, holding one short sword in reverse grip, crossing her arms and holding them close, increased her speed.
Becoming a streak of light, she pierced the air and rotated at supersonic speed, brandishing her short sword within her accelerating consciousness.
The moment the glowing white blade, faster than the speed of perception, pierced Lennok’s Adam’s apple and was about to plunge into Aileen’s crown.
“I knew you’d come.”
Lennok whispered, not even turning to look at Maiya.
“Fall.”
The Sun Ship, which had crashed from above the Mausoleum, slammed into the black hole, unleashing a tremendous explosion.
KWAAANGGGGG!!!!!!
—!!!
Maiya tearing the Distortion Field allowed the flagship, which had been hovering in the sky, to enter the Mausoleum.
Lennok, knowing this, had not used the Sun Ship until the very end because he was certain such an opportunity would present itself at some point.
KWAAANGGGGG!!!!
There was no answer.
As Maiya was swept away by the shockwave, the Grand General’s axe, which had collided with the Sun Ship, was pushed out of the black hole.
The moment the Distortion Field, coiled around the axe, was pulled away in unison, a blackened black hole revealed itself before Aileen’s eyes.
The darkness that had unfurled beneath their feet gaped open and swallowed everyone standing around the Mausoleum whole.
WHOOSH!
In an instant, the ground vanished, the landscape inverted, and an eerie sensation of the air turning frigid.
Aileen, plummeting into the endless darkness, held Lennok’s hand and concentrated, moving her steps.
From within the directionless void, the moment she positioned herself and Lennok in a consciousness space, entering the Mausoleum in an astral state.
If he left it to Aileen, they would surely reach the depths of the Mausoleum safely, achieving their original objective one way or another.
But Lennok, despite knowing this, was staring not at Aileen, but somewhere else.
More precisely, at the [Demonic Realm Travelogue], which was radiating dazzling light from within his grasp even at this very moment.
CHWARARARARARAK!!!!!
The moment they entered the Mausoleum, the pages of the Travelogue fluttered wildly and began to glow.
The Travelogue’s radiance, which had never shown such a special reaction since he first entered the Demonic Realm.
A series of phrases flashed by at an incredible speed on the rapidly turning pages.
[Deepest part of the Four Archangel Demonic Mirrors. Second entry into the Grand General’s Mausoleum confirmed.]
[Trigger activated. Last page of the Demonic Realm Travelogue accessed.]
[Book of Revival activated.]
[Restoring all lost data recorded in the Travelogue.]
The Book of Revival.
The existence of the scroll that had been enclosed with the Ghost Travelogue when he acquired it in Yorta.
Was it possible that what had contained Ethan Bajour’s talent for a single use also existed within the Demonic Realm Travelogue?
Activating the Book of Revival on the Travelogue’s last page, with the condition of a second visit to the Mausoleum.
And what it revived through that, was not a specific living creature or a spiritual beast, but—
[Lost exploration records restored. Mausoleum exploration records opened.]
[Last visited spatial coordinates re-updated.]
[Would you like to view?]
‘This is—’
As he fell beneath the Mausoleum’s entrance, Lennok felt his consciousness being powerfully pulled somewhere.
A pull of the soul that he could refuse using Targeted Resistance, yet at this moment, it called to Lennok more strongly than anything else.
The spatial coordinates Ethan Bajour, author of the Demonic Realm Travelogue, had last visited within the Four Archangel Demonic Mirrors.
The moment Lennok, feeling it, grasped the Travelogue tightly after a brief hesitation.
Lennok felt his consciousness being drawn beyond an immense sanctuary and closed his eyes.
PWAAAHAT!!!!!!
“Kuh…!!”
TATATANG!!
Beyond the consciousness space, Lennok, unable to overcome the pull, tumbled and slid through the dark cavity.
Even though he was only moving his will in a consciousness space, not reality, there was a powerful sense of realism, as if it were tangible.
After rolling on the floor several times, Lennok finally came to a halt as he fell into a shallow lake that reached below his knees.
SPLOSH!!
“…Water?”
A sensation that was hard to believe belonged to a lake existing in a consciousness space.
The realistic touch of water, which couldn’t possibly have been reproduced using spellcraft or Barrier Spellcraft.
As Lennok, drenched from head to toe, stared blankly at the lake’s scenery, lost in thought.
He suddenly caught his breath, discovering a massive altar located in the center of the lake.
OHHHH!!!
A mysterious altar, surrounded by countless candles, floating above the dark lake.
A majestic and beautiful form, as if thousands of exquisite thrones were stacked upon each other.
“……”
SPLISH-SPLASH…!!
Lennok, rising as if possessed, waded through the water toward the altar.
At the same time, a beautiful golden melody coiled around the altar and resonated outwards.
Perhaps this was what it looked like if one offered incense upon the Imperial Throne of an ancient empire, honoring the passage of time.
Everything now faintly obscured, even its great glory and authority faded, twisted by only regret.
Upon that altar, a glassy eye, wreathed in a golden ring, floated and rotated by itself.
“…This is.”
The moment he faced it, Lennok, too, understood.
The core maintaining this colossal and mysterious consciousness space.
The reason the Demonic Realm Travelogue ‘revived’ its exploration log records, even using the Book of Revival.
The true meaning of the spatial coordinates Ethan Bajour had last visited within the Four Archangel Demonic Mirrors.
The moment Lennok realized that fact, simultaneously intuiting the nature of the power resting on the altar.
On the last page of the Demonic Realm Travelogue, a new inscription finally began to appear.
[Seeing the reason of the heavens, hearing the principle of causality, and interpreting the melody of fate, one arrives here.]
[Engraving the tilting of the scales here, it remains as the fourth promise.]
[Ars Nova Imperial Palace 5th Key Armament.]
[Quasi-Authority: Corrupted Golden Rule]