TSADT 19

Chapter 19: The Ashen Gaze (1)

“Excuse me, Lieutenant Colonel.”

“Mm.”

The officer knocked on the open door and immediately received permission.

He quickly stepped forward to the desk where the lieutenant colonel was sitting and gave a sharp salute.

“Today’s patrol report, sir.”

“Which battalion was on duty today?”

“The 2nd Battalion, sir.”

If it was the 2nd Battalion’s rotation day, that meant today was Wednesday.

The lieutenant colonel let out a short sigh, brushing back his golden hair as if surprised by how fast time had passed without him noticing.

“Damn… working even on weekends is making me lose track of time.”

“Well, just because it’s a holiday doesn’t mean the protesters go out drinking instead, sir.”

The officer tried to lighten the mood with a small joke, but all he got in return was a sharp glare and a deeper sigh.

“Anything unusual?”

As always, Lieutenant Colonel Calton Bryers, operations officer of the Calpheon Defense Force, flipped through the report as if only skimming it, searching for the final signature page.

But the serious voice of his subordinate made his casual motion stop.

“Nothing major, sir… but there was one report that caught my attention.”

“A problem? What is it?”

“The last page, sir.”

Calton’s hand stopped just before the signature section.

And as soon as he read the first paragraph, he understood why the officer had brought it to him.

“…Purchasing black crystals… Is this related to the Sian Merchant Guild?”

“No, sir. We confirmed the individual is not connected to them. He’s a private alchemist from Florin Village.”

“A private alchemist buying black crystal fragments? Why?”

“That’s the issue. We couldn’t determine why he’s collecting such worthless black crystals.

We reported it since it’s a monitored item, but… they’re barely useful even as firewood, so what he intends to do with them is…”

“…Hmm.”

As the report stated, most of the “black crystals” available in Calpheon were of embarrassingly low quality.

The only usable ones were all controlled by the Sian Merchant Guild.

Everything else, just like the officer said, was barely fit to be used as fuel.

Low-grade fragments that were worth less than wood of the same size and weight.

But regardless of their actual value, they were still “black crystals,” and that alone was enough to attract the guard’s attention.

“Current location?”

“He’s staying at Herva Inn, sir.”

“…Of all places.”

Calton unconsciously bit his lip.

The owner of Herva Inn, Fredelles Herva, was well known—friendly to adventurers, but anti-council.

There was no way he would cooperate if asked about his guests.

After thinking for a moment, Calton put down the quill he was holding.

“Don’t increase patrol forces. Keep things as they are, but assign one or two men to watch that alchemist.

Make sure they’re quick and subtle. Don’t provoke him.”

“Yes, sir.”

After handing back the signed report, Calton watched the officer leave the room with a salute.

On the surface, it was nothing more than a small, ordinary incident.

But for some reason, Calton couldn’t shake off the unfamiliar name written in the report.

“…Rotem… from Florin Village…”

[This is seriously awful.]

The Black Spirit spoke the moment Rotem stepped down from the carriage.

Since it perfectly matched his own thoughts, Rotem simply nodded.

Northwest of Calpheon—

A region sealed off due to the outbreak of the “Ashen Plague.”

True to its name, the “Abandoned Land” was a quarantined zone where both escape from inside and entry from outside were strictly restricted.

Only priests of the Elion Church, or alchemists and staff directly employed by it, were allowed inside.

Yet Rotem—who had no connection to the church—managed to enter.

And the method was surprisingly simple.

“Hey, newbie! Why are you just standing there?!”

“Ah—yes!”

One of the giants who got off the carriage with him shouted loudly, snapping Rotem back to reality.

Rotem immediately began unloading supplies with his “coworkers.”

The boxes and leather sacks they carried were all supplies for the Church.

The dwarf shopkeeper Menkes had chosen a simple way to get Rotem into the Abandoned Land—

As a laborer.

All official plague-related work was handled by the Elion Church.

However, due to concerns that the infection might spread to Calpheon soldiers, military deployment was banned by Delphad Castillion, the military representative of the Kalis Council.

As a result, basic tasks like transporting supplies and building camps had to rely on hired workers from commercial districts and slums.

And recruitment was largely controlled by the Adventurers’ Association and Herva Inn.

Since Menkes was close to Herva, he was able to slip Rotem in among the workers without much trouble.

Of course, Menkes made Rotem promise beforehand—

Not to draw attention under any circumstances.

“……”

The giants carried loads as big as their bodies, walking through muddy roads where carriages couldn’t pass.

What they saw along the way was only a small fragment of the disaster in this land—

But even that was enough for Rotem to feel the heavy darkness in the air.

Charred remains scattered everywhere.

Piles of corpses still burning, releasing a foul stench.

Workers digging graves across the plains.

And nearby, church soldiers standing guard—

Watching in case any “corpses” tried to move again.

The “infected” Rotem had encountered earlier on his way to Calpheon—

They likely came from those very piles.

After walking through such horrific scenery for a long time,

Rotem and the giant workers finally reached the church outpost, marked by red banners.

Under the orders of a stern-looking priest, they sorted and distributed supplies across numerous tents.

They returned to the carriage, carried more goods, and repeated the process three times—

Only then did they finish unloading everything.

“Hey—what are you doing?”

As Rotem stepped out of a tent, wiping sweat from his forehead,

A priest approached him with an irritated expression.

“Pardon?”

“Your face covering! Who said you could take it off?”

“Ah…”

Rotem quickly realized the priest was referring to the cloth mask he had lowered under his chin.

He hurriedly pulled it back up.

But the priest’s gaze remained cold.

“As you were told, outsiders must never come into contact with the infected—or even corpses.

The moment you do, you’ll be classified as infected and never allowed to leave this place.”

“Yes, I understand.”

But after a moment, Rotem couldn’t suppress the question that came to his mind.

“…How do you determine if someone has come into contact with the infected?”

“What?”

The priest turned, clearly annoyed.

But Rotem didn’t back down.

“If anyone who makes contact is quarantined, that means there’s a way to distinguish them, right?”

“……”

“Could you tell me what that method is?”

The priest stepped closer, casting a shadow over Rotem.

Still, his expression remained displeased.

He likely couldn’t understand why a mere laborer—especially a “giant”—was asking such a question.

But that same fact also stroked his pride and lowered his guard.

“…Hmm. Well, you’ll be tested before leaving anyway, so I’ll tell you.

It hasn’t been officially announced yet, but there’s exactly one way to detect the Ashen Plague before symptoms appear.”

“What is it?”

The priest smiled slightly, as if pleased by Rotem’s dull expression.

“You cut the palm and examine the blood.”

“…Blood?”

“Yes. Even if there are no visible symptoms, infection can be confirmed through blood.”

“What kind of change appears?”

“It looks like unmixed paint—something gray tangled within the blood.

And the moment that gray fully blends into the blood, symptoms begin to appear.”

“I see. Then if that gray substance can be removed before it fully mixes… it means the infected person could still be saved.”

Rotem’s conclusion was correct—

But the priest only sneered.

“If that were possible, these people wouldn’t be suffering like this.

The moment even a trace of that gray appears in the blood, that person is already as good as finished.”

“…I see. Thank you for the explanation.”

Rotem bowed politely.

The priest waved his hand and walked away.

Left alone—

But not truly alone.

[Based on what he said, it seems close to our assumption. What do you think?]

The voice came from a flickering shadow in the air.

Rotem looked around briefly, then slowly shook his head.

“It does… but we need to be more certain.”

[…More certain? How?]

“Isn’t it obvious?”

Rotem’s face remained calm, as if it were nothing.

But the Black Spirit’s grin stretched wide—

Unsettling and ominous.