Chapter 173

Adgon (4)

The Adgons' means of transportation were built on the premise of space flight, just like the Tactical Fortress. Hence, such a planet could be explored easily by it within an hour.

Nevertheless, we were flying at a fairly slow speed.

"There's nothing we can do in this situation."

We were in a situation wherein we didn't know how far away we were from the incarnate candidate named Rosuele, and we couldn't precisely calculate her location's angle like a computer either.

If we knew the exact coordinates, we could've just gone to her with a speed that was close to teleporting to the destination, but we didn't have such valuable information. That was what they used as an excuse to mobilize me in the first place.

We had no choice but to retrace her path like a hunter following the trail left by animals as they moved.

The spaceship's speed was reduced as a result of correcting the direction in the process, which relied on my senses.

If we moved faster, we could have missed her because even the slightest angular mistake would cause us to derail a lot from the right direction.

'No, regardless of her divine power as an incarnate candidate, how is it even possible for her to move in this hellish land alone?'

I looked at the landscape on the ground lit by the hologram. It was inevitable for thoughts like those to pop out of my mind due to the planet's state.

Most of the planet's area was unhabitable by sentient beings and was occupied by monsters that most likely have poured out of multiple Dungeon Breaks.

It had been turned into a world full of lost lands.

Genograsche replied bluntly.

- When an assassin reaches a certain level, they should be able to hide their position. Wouldn't it be that she had amplified such exquisite principle?

That meant such a state could originally only be achieved through intense training, yet she could do such a feat simply because a god had blessed her.

'It's not stealth made possible by magic, but stealth gained through the complete control over one's body and mind? That's almost to the level of a superhuman.'

- If she's truly a representative of the god of swords, that much should be possible.

"She's more formidable than I thought."

Why would a child who could use such power run away from the protection of the congregation? Why would she rather dare wander through the wilderness?

I looked at the ground for a moment and muttered.

"It's nothing but chaos down there."

Only dungeon monsters filled every acre of the fields below us.

They were freely stirring from place to place and attacked and ate among themselves.

The observation suddenly made me wonder.

"Wait, does the Red Gate open here as well?"

The dimension we were in had already completed the tutorial.

Then the monsters much more powerful than normal dungeon monsters... wouldn't the residents of the void have the capability to appear on the planet as well?

"How can they still continue to survive in a situation wherein the base of the civilization itself had utterly collapsed? They're not even a Union member dimension, either. Don't tell me that the Union Headquarters is willing to conscript Awakened beings and dispatch them here as well should a quest beckons them to..."

The answer came from behind.

"Unfortunately, the Union does not hand out such charity."

"Bishop."

It was Bishop Briam who approached us.

"There have never been any instances where they dispatch Awakened beings to our dimension."

If ever a Red Gate opened anywhere on their planet and monsters crossed over, the content would be added on the Main Quest.

However, the Awakened beings of any alien world would actively and naturally avoid that kind of quest, and... the Union wouldn't forcefully order a dispatch to subdue it.

"Then that just confuses me even more than I already was. How the hell are the residents here holding out?"

The bishop then smiled bitterly.

"It's paradoxically our miserable situation that has helped us survive this forsaken reality for so long."

"?"

"The planet's population density was extremely low. If a Red Gate opens near the residential area because of bad luck, the residents of the area will be unconditionally exterminated."

That was because members of the same species that lived in other areas wouldn't be able to come to help and no alien, who would act as their savior, ever came.

"But most of the time, Red Gates open in places where people don't live."

In terms of the residents of the void's behavior, their top priority had always been to kill the Awakened beings first.

But what if there was no Awakened in the vicinity?

What if they still couldn't find anyone that had a Mana Core after traveling long distances?

At that point, I could finally understand the bishop's reasoning.

"I see. If they can't find any Awakened individual nearby, they must kill the nearest creature first."

"Yes, they attack the monsters that came out of the normal dungeons that have already collapsed. Meanwhile, another Gate would collapse, and more Dungeon monsters would appear. The Red Gate monsters became so busy fighting the normal monsters that they can't get close to the residential areas."

It was nothing but ironic.

On the other hand, the Dungeon Monsters, which threatened the lives of the Darion residents, served as a shield against the inhabitants of the void's brutality.

Up to that point, it might have seemed like a safety device had been placed, but...

'They wouldn't be able to last a thousand years this way. They said the frequency of Red Gates continues to increase. What if the number of Red Gates connected to the void increases and exceeds the number of the planet's collapsed dungeon Gates one day?'

Eventually, the entirety of their world would be dominated by the inhabitants of the void.

The stage they were currently in was only a transition period.

I asked what I was curious about.

"Since when was the planet like this?"

Bishop Briam replied with a grim look.

"According to oral history, the planet Darion originally boasted a magnificent civilization. I'm sure you've already deduced that much from the historical sites you all have seen."

Back then, the congregation that served the god of the sword was said to be extremely powerful.

Despite the difficult conditions of gaining divine power, several individuals overcame the ordeal.

"The glorious civilization collapsed after the last crowned prince of the dynasty that ruled this place took power."

"The prince?"

"Yes, he was a genius filled with madness."

When the prince Awakened, the whole planet was said to have been put in a festive mood.

It was recorded that not only did he possess Mana that exceeded the limits of their race, but he also had extraordinary unique skills. His brain was extremely sharp as well, and he had so much charisma that it didn't fit his age.

However, such a crowned prince had a fatal flaw.

He suffered from a madness that could not be cured even when all of their best doctors joined hands.

I had no choice but to feel a sense of deceptiveness when I heard that part of the story.

'Wait a minute. This story is completely....'

It's about Seo Jin-Wook before I possessed him!

"Even though the king was still alive, the mad prince grabbed the authoritative power and had the military force following him at his beck and call. After that, the era of his tyranny continued. It was said that his reign was an unprecedented brutal and violent rule in history."

In the end, the citizens who could no longer endure his corrupt sovereignty joined forces with the congregation of the god of swords to plot his dethronement.

Standing at the vanguard of the rebels was the last incarnation of the god of swords in history.

"We were able to smite down justice to the crowned prince and his forces thanks to the fact that the god of swords sent us his incarnation since it pitied us. But the problem was that too many Awakened died during the final battle. Eventually, even the incarnation fell together with the crowned prince."

I squinted my eyes.

"A mere Awakened had an equal fight with the incarnation? To the point where both of them lost their lives together?"

"It only meant that he had such a dangerous talent."

I was getting a hold of the flow of the story.

The crowned prince... Could it be that Mercadius were manipulating him?

There was also the possibility that the seed had already bloomed, and he had turned into a complete Mercadius.

If they had searched through the System at that time, they might have been able to find out that a strange species had invaded their lands- no, their very own ruler.

Whatever the truth was, it didn't seem to have been left in history.

"By the time when the crowned prince took power, the Union had already withdrawn, and there were not enough Awakened beings to handle the dungeon breaks."

In the end, it led to the current situation of the planet.

"The madman."

After asking a few additional questions, I was able to be certain of it.

'Mercadius had attempted yet failed to destroy this world. The decisive factor was the involvement of the incarnation.'

It wasn't a perfect happy ending.

The collapse of the species had been avoided, at the very least. However, their civilization was crushed to the point where it could hardly function.

I had more questions, but I had to stop talking there.

"Huh?!"

Genograche and the bishop asked me curiously.

- What's wrong?

"What's the matter?"

Shadow cast over my face.

"The trace of the incarnate candidate had been cut off right where we are! No, should I say it's been mixed up?"

- What are you talking about?

I explained it using a parable.

"I've been following the drip marks leaked on the ground so far to track her. But I can't track her anymore because the ground is soaked far too much for me to determine which direction she went to."

I hadn't confused the incarnate candidate's trail with the other priests so far because Rosuelen's aura was very clear and intense in comparison.

However, the moment we reached that specific location, I suddenly felt that divine power closer to the source, which was different from that of the priest, was overflowing across our entire vicinity.

It was something that I didn't feel until I finally got close to it.

"Oh, could it be?"

The bishop's expression hardened when he checked the hologram that reflected the outside scenery.

"This place is..."

Strange words popped out of his mouth.

"Grave of Incarnations!"

*

As I relayed the information I had to the Adgons, they hurriedly landed the spacecraft.

Bishop Briam explained to everyone why my tracking was cut off.

"This is the graveyard where the incarnation that saved our planet in the past was buried."

The divine power that couldn't be recognized from a distance was only caught when I got near enough to it. It was flowing out from the stone gate made on the cliff.

The commissioner gave me a recommendation.

"Would you like to take another round around here? Even if the trace is cut off here, wouldn't it continue again if we move a little further away from it?"

I shook my head.

"I've already checked. Rosuelen's track was cut off here. It seems like she's in there."

I pointed at the stone gate.

"But that place is..."

The members of the Adgon species' faces became clouded.

Then Bishop Briam spoke as if it was unexpected.

"What do you know about that place?"

"... People can't go in there unless they're a believer, right?"

"Yes, that's correct."

As I had just explained, the Grave of the Incarnations allowed nobody to enter unless they were given permission to by having the god of sword's divine power.

Then the next step that I had to take was obvious.

"Then us two, the bishop and I, will go in, search, and return with Rosuelen."

"Would you do that?"

Genograche was naturally unable to enter, and even if it was possible, he seemed to have no desire to follow us, so he remained with the Adgons.

I sent telepathy to him before proceeding to the Grave of Incarnations' entrance.

'Keep an eye on these guys. If there's even a hint of suspiciousness in their movements, you know what to do, right?'

He also replied through a mental wave that only I could hear.

- Yeah, if I think they're up to something insidious, I'll turn the place upside down.

*

It was so clean inside that it was hard to believe that a long time had passed since someone had visited it.

Different artifacts placed in various places also continued to function as they should.

I asked the bishop a question, admiring the vast space and beautiful interior decorations.

"It seems that the civilization was strong when they built this place."

"It mustn't have been easy since it was right after the rebellion, but wasn't it only proper for them to build something by giving more than they had to honor their savior, the incarnation? It's a good thing it's at least still intact, unlike other heritages."

It meant that the place hadn't been a target of looting by the remaining survivors on the planet.

Only those who served the god of swords could enter, and if one had such deep faith in the first place, their conscience wouldn't allow them to do such a blasphemous act.

"Can you feel something?"

I shook my head.

"There's so much sacred power spread everywhere... Where the hell is this power coming from?"

"About that... Actually, it's the first time I've entered this place. There are rules that prohibit access unless we have a particular reason, and the planet's dire situation isn't making it easy for us to get here in the first place."

While I was moving along, listening to the explanation...

"!"

I stopped in my tracks and stared at one part of the hallway.

I still couldn't detect the divine power of the incarnation candidate.

However, the fundamental forces present in that world weren't only divine power.

'Mana!'

It was indeed flawless stealth.

I wouldn't have figured it out if I were using my ordinary senses.

However, [The Successor's Eyes] visualized and relayed every Mana that existed around me.

For example, the little kid hiding under her breath over that pillar.

And even the blue flashes that spread out of her heart!

"...!"

I moved quietly for a moment.

Paht!

I then launched myself forward.

"Argh!"

Crash!

The alien fell down with a brief scream behind the pillar.

Like Briam, she had the appearance of a monkey covered with golden fur.

However, her size was much smaller.

The bishop screamed with surprise and delight.

"Rosuelen!"

I found the incarnation candidate.

Rosuelen, who was forced to sit on her bum, looked at me with a devastated glance.

In fact, the moment I flew behind the pillar, Rosuelen realized that her stealth had been broken. She retaliated against me and tried to run away again.

I didn't know if Bishop Briam noticed, but there was a battle between us at the speed of light at that short moment.

But eventually, she was suppressed by me and had fallen on the floor.

She stared at me in disbelief.

"... How?"

The bishop tightly held the hands of the child on the floor as tears rolled down his cheeks.

"I mean, how could you go alone to this far land... what were we to do once you run away like that?! Do you know how worried we were?!"

Only then did Rosuelen turn to look at the bishop.

Her lips were shaking.

"... I'm sorry."

"By the heavens, what's the reason behind your actions? Did we do anything upsetting? Or did you suddenly become scared to hear the god's voice?"

Then the young monkey shook her head in fright.

"No! Absolutely not. It's not like that! It's the luckiest thing in my life to serve a great being!"

That told me she didn't run away because she was overawed or pressured, at least.

Then the bishop asked as if he couldn't understand it at all.

"Tell me then. Why?"

Only then did the child who had been chosen as an incarnation spoke of the story behind her actions.

"The god has given me a prophecy."

"?!"

The bishop's eyes widened.

"What?"

Soon his face filled up with compassion.

"You mean you received an oracle?!"

An oracle of the god of swords that the bishop had never heard of-

The bishop was about to dance. An oracle had been sent by a god that had been silent and cold for ages, after all. It was as if he was never in grief in the first place.

However, the continued words made the air around us freeze.

"I had no choice. The god had spoken to me that I shouldn't stay there. That he will let me know of a safe place, so I should evacuate myself. Otherwise, I'll be... killed!"

At that moment...

Bang!

A roar rocked our surroundings along with a tremendous shockwave.