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Chapter 29
The world itself was also one giant organism, and within it, various physical laws arose to form the order of the world. But if that organic chain were to break, then naturally even those physical laws would change into something different from before.
The problem was that inside a corroded region, no one could predict how those physical laws might shift. It was random, and sometimes outright defied common sense, making it completely unpredictable. To face monsters in such a place and still survive was something close to impossible for anyone. That was why Raked’s reaction was only natural.
“Wait a minute. Right now, the escort team is three people, and even if we count Aris as a combatant, that’s only four. I thought the detachment to deal with monsters would be at least the size of a squad. Isn’t that the case?”
“If we include the person who’ll rotate in to relieve Raked, then it’s three people.”
Everyone’s faces stiffened in disappointment. Paulo, who carried the role of captain, grumbled on their behalf.
“Where on earth are we supposed to get by with such numbers?”
“Let me finish. We have Aris. The master of the demon sword. The origin of the demon sword. Even if we don’t know the exact location of the sword, if we get close enough, it will resonate with him, and we’ll be able to find it.”
Aris replied in an uncertain voice.
“Originally, Fenidran and I were mentally linked, but that connection was forcibly cut off. So I don’t know if it will resonate nearby anymore. It’s been five years, and who knows what changes might have happened to that thing.”
“At the very least, you’ll be able to sense its direction. After all, the demon sword’s essence is your own mana.”
“That much… I suppose… more or less…”
“So you’re basically a compass,” Kundulen summarized Aris’s role simply. Aris wanted to object to that wording, but everyone else nodded in understanding.
“In any case, I never intended to just push you straight into the interior. Before entering Klein, we first need to set up the Sacred Power Circulator outside the corrupted zone.”
At those words, Raked unfolded the large map he had prepared onto the table. With his pen, he marked the boundaries of the dark zone and tapped at the pre-drawn circles on the map.
“As you all know, the official name is the ‘Magical Catalyst Divine Power Chain-Reaction Wide-Range Ritual Circulator,’ but since that’s absurdly long, let’s just call it the ‘Corrosion Purifier.’”
From the look on Laila’s face, she wanted to object to Raked’s merciless renaming.
“And while you’ve all seen the Corrosion Purifier in action, let me explain its principles properly. The Corrosion Purifier purifies polluted spiritual substances and restores those that had disappeared from the corroded region. How?…”
Raked connected the circled locations on the map with his pen.
“First, we’ll install magical devices for mana control at these points so that mana flows between them. Then, with Lam’s divine power activating the Corrosion Purifier, that divine power will spread widely, traveling along the mana connections like a spiderweb. During that process, divine power and mana don’t cancel each other out but rather stimulate one another, amplifying their effect. As a result, the unpolluted spiritual elements released from both will seep back into the corroded land, recreating a normal environment… Shio Midor, are you dozing off while I’m explaining this?”
Shio, whose pupils had gone half unfocused, quickly shook his head, wide-eyed. Raked clicked his tongue in irritation and went on.
“Anyway, the first regions where we’ll install Corrosion Purifiers total fifteen. At first, we’ll focus on purifying those fifteen areas, but once we recover the demon sword Fenidran—so long as the devices function properly—we could then use the sword’s mana to…”
Raked drew random lines between the fifteen points before finally sketching a large circle around the edge of the dark zone.
“…purify everything in one sweep like this. Originally there were over fifty candidate sites, but thanks to Publekins’s efforts, we narrowed it down this much.”
Laila, rubbing her sunken eyes and yawning, added an explanation.
“That means Aris and Rivielo will have to work harder. Reducing the number means the burden on the ritualists will be heavier.”
Aris himself didn’t mind, but he was worried about Rivielo’s divine power. With this scale, they might need a high-ranking cleric from the Grand Temple, and from Aris’s perspective, Rivielo’s divine power didn’t seem all that strong. Aris glanced at him with skepticism, but Rivielo only smiled brightly.
Raked continued his explanation: In Luad territory, flying an airship emblazoned with the Rashvalen crest would draw the emperor’s fury, and they probably wouldn’t even be granted entry. So instead, they’d travel by transcontinental train.
The plan was to spend three months scouting the surroundings of the dark zone, set up Corrosion Purifiers, and gradually purify the land with rituals, starting from the outer edge to secure safe zones. Then they would approach deeper into the dark zone, locate Fenidran as quickly as possible, and, before monsters could spill out, use the sword as a medium to purify the entire zone in one sweep.
This way, they would avoid additional damage from the monsters inside Klein while also recovering the demon sword—two birds with one stone.
“What about the emperor’s subjugation squad?”
“If they’re dumb enough to crawl in on their own, just let them die.”
Raked’s blunt remark made Mireia and Shio grimace. Kundulen, who had been quietly listening, finally spoke up.
“The emperor won’t just sit back and watch. He’ll surely make an issue of it.”
Mireia agreed.
“Exactly. Who in their right mind would ignore us rampaging around on another country’s land? Even if it’s for a good cause, we don’t have Luad’s government approval. Can we really just barge around like this?”
But Paulo and Sephiros seemed to think differently.
“That’s why we do it secretly. Until we purify the entire Klein all at once with the barrier, no one will notice anyway. Before we find the demon sword, we’ll only purify tiny fractions of that vast place. Even if the emperor catches wind of it, by then we’ll already have the sword and be gone. Meanwhile, the chairman will provide enough smokescreens to cover us, right?”
“Besides, what’s the problem? Klein was stolen, and now we’re returning it. The demon sword belongs to Aris personally.”
At Shio’s words, Raked shook his head.
“The emperor could still come up with hundreds of excuses to object.”
“Then we just lop his head off before he can complain.”
Everyone except Sephiros turned wide-eyed at Aris’s casual remark.
“Why are you all looking at me like that? Sephiros clearly promised me the emperor’s head.”
“Wait, Chairman? You never told me that! You’re joking, right?”
Snapping irritably, Raked pressed Sephiros, but Sephiros only smiled gently.
“And if I wasn’t joking? Is that a problem?”
“Of course it’s a problem!”
“Not for Rashvalen. We’ll be purifying the land, and the demon sword will be retrieved by its rightful master, the deposed duke. Those circumstances are none of our concern. Why should we interfere in another household’s political struggles?”
As Raked was left speechless, Mireia sprang up in protest.
“So you’re saying you’ll just abandon Aris? We’ll purify the land and recover the sword, and then what? Toss Aris into the tiger’s den and quietly wash our hands of it?!”
“Tiger’s den?”
Before anyone else could respond, Aris raised a crooked smile and answered in a calm tone. Unlike the agitated Mireia, his face showed no emotion. His emerald-like gleam and chillingly calm blue eyes met in midair before Aris slowly closed his eyes and turned away. The sight of him avoiding her gaze left Mireia’s chest heavy.
Aris spoke slowly.
“A tiger’s den… Who do you think the tigers are? Who reduced the Panidraun family name to only two survivors in this world? Between them and me, who is it that should be feared?”
He let out a chilling laugh.
“Whether I slaughter a hundred or a thousand, my infamy remains unchanged. What difference would a few more lives make? All I need is the emperor’s head. Whether it’s still on his shoulders or rolling on the floor, the suffering I endure won’t change—it will only take a different form. So, wouldn’t it be a small happiness for me if I’m the one to hold that head?”
Mireia swallowed hard. This man was clearly misaligned with ordinary people in some profound way. The Aris she had seen these past few days didn’t look like the ruthless monster the world gossiped about. He laughed easily, spoke lightly, teased her often, and delighted in her reactions—but always stayed within the line where others wouldn’t feel offended. He carried himself cheerfully, with decorum even in frivolity.
But at times, his mindset diverged greatly from society’s norms. Aris himself wasn’t unaware of it. Because he was self-conscious of it, he could maintain boundaries in dealing with others. But he didn’t seem to believe that the social idea of “morality” was the only correct path.
This distorted side occasionally surfaced—and given his upbringing and the circumstances he had endured, it wasn’t strange at all. Mireia herself had once been unable to escape a sorrowful past. Back then, the whole world looked black and white. With nowhere to vent her resentment, she had beaten her own chest, denying the world.
