641 – This is really horrible. (1)
Episode 641: It’s really horrible. (1)
A huge obelisk stood tall amidst the lush greenery.
This massive structure has endured thousands of years, worn by wind and rain and covered in moss, but it has retained its majesty.
Most of the patterns and ancient letters carved on the surface had worn away, but traces of the deeply dug areas still remained.
“Wow… … .”
Everyone looked up at the obelisk with their mouths open, for it was a structure they had never expected to find in the forest.
“People lived in a forest like this?”
“Was it worth living in the old days?”
“Could it be that monsters created civilization?”
The soldiers talked and made various guesses.
However, Jisel and his entourage were not surprised, as they knew that this was the stronghold of the Salvation Church, which was called the Demon Realm.
Jiselle looked around. The collapsed stone walls and foundation stones were faintly visible above the ground.
It was a trace of an old village buried under a pile of dirt that had piled up over time.
Most of the half-buried tombstones lying here and there were so weathered that it was difficult to recognize their original appearance.
However, on some of the steles made of solid stone, ancient letters and pictures that seemed to depict the rituals of the old Salvationists remained, however faintly.
‘There must have been a battle here.’
What particularly caught the eye were the intense sword marks that seemed to run across the tombstones.
The scars that a thousand years of time could not erase were evidence that a fierce battle had taken place here at the time.
Most of the relics of the Salvation Church have already disappeared, becoming one with the earth, but the sturdy buildings and stone structures they left behind still tell the story of that era.
In particular, traces of buildings centered around the obelisk suggested that this was not just a village, but a religious sanctuary.
Most of the wizards gathered around the obelisk, because it had the most writing and traces left on it.
“Oh, if I translate this, I’ll know what kind of place this is.”
“It might give us a glimpse into the life of an ancient empire.”
“It’s very weathered, but there are still quite a few letters left.”
The wizards who gathered around to watch had excited eyes. This was because they harbored a longing for ancient civilizations.
Giselle asked Jerome, who was examining the obelisk.
“Do you know what it says?”
“Wait a minute… … There’s some writing that breaks the rules. It looks like it was hastily written next to each other without being aligned.”
“Really? What does it say?”
Jiselle also showed interest. Could it be a note left behind by someone during the battle?
Jerome is the most skilled in interpreting ancient languages among all the people here. He slowly and alone deciphered the disjointed letters.
“This, this is… … .”
“Why? What does it say?”
“Kids these days… … have no shame.”
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“… … .”
“Oh, it was just someone’s graffiti. I guess people’s lives were the same in the old days.”
It was understandable since Salvation Church is a place where people live. It’s just like that when you get older.
Jiselle first set up camp nearby.
The wizards were also excellent scholars. They were all familiar with the ancient languages, since magic had often been transmitted in the ancient languages up until now.
The wizards looked around here and there, carefully examining the ruins.
Jisel also spent several days examining the ruins. The ruins, which held a thousand-year-old mystery, were quite impressive to him.
‘You didn’t write this on purpose.’
There was no mention of the relics in the duke’s journal.
If you think about it, it’s only natural. They would want to hide everything about the Salvation Church.
While the archaeological investigation was in progress, workers carefully cut down the surrounding trees to make a path, and soldiers spread out more to stand guard.
Since the investigation of the ruins was left to the wizards, there was nothing for Giselle to do. He simply watched the surrounding work or meditated.
‘Wait a minute, come to think of it… … .’
Then suddenly a memory came to mind. In his previous life, he had accidentally discovered a relic in a different area.
It was a trace of an old village, weathered by wind and rain and buried underground, just like here now. And inside the metal box I found there, I obtained a half-magic book.
Thanks to the box, the air was completely blocked off, and perhaps because it had been specially treated with drugs, the magic book appeared to be relatively unharmed.
And Jiselle was able to improve her mana cultivation method by taking inspiration from the magic book.
‘Now there’s no need to go looking for it… … .’
When I turned my head, I saw Jerome having a serious conversation with Vanessa while examining the ruins.
As I got closer, I could hear the two people talking.
“Wow, have you been there? There’s a new shop that opened recently. It’s a place that a lot of nobles go to. I heard the fruit tarts there are really delicious. They’re made with a lot of honey and butter.”
“Oh, really? I haven’t been there yet because I’m busy.”
“It’s the most popular restaurant in the capital city. There were so many people that I only went once, but it was really delicious.”
“Oh, I want to go too.”
“… … .”
Jiselle blinked. She wasn’t talking about magic or relics, but just everyday life.
Well, I searched through the ruins for several days, but I didn’t find any useful clues. It would be right to say that it has no use other than historical value.
Having been in this forest for several months, I could miss those things even more.
Jiselle wrote down the location of the ruins she had seen in her past life on a piece of paper and handed it to Jerome.
“Huh? What is this?”
“There is a good treasure there.”
“Treasure? What are you talking about all of a sudden? What is treasure?”
“Magic book.”
“Huh? There’s a magic book here?”
“If you go there and roughly dig the ground, you’ll find something. I’ll send someone over, so go and come back after this development is over.”
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“Why… … is the magic book buried?”
“I don’t know. I just heard it from someone. Anyway, it’s a good magic book, so I thought it would be good for you to get it.”
“Yeah, okay. Thanks.”
Jerome looked puzzled. He was puzzled by the sudden gift of a treasure map(?).
But there was no way Giselle would give something like this for no reason. There had to be something really good there.
Giselle thought the book would be helpful to Jerome, because even though it was only half-written, it contained fairly sophisticated concepts.
Even I, who didn’t know anything about magic, was inspired by it and overhauled my mana training method.
There is no special magic formula written down, but Jerome’s level is such that he would be able to see it and gain enlightenment.
The investigation of the ruins continued for several days after that. Unfortunately, however, the ruins were so old that there was little to be gained.
It was just a glimpse into the ancient way of life.
It was worth it. A thousand years is a long time that would be difficult for anyone to endure.
The only income I could give was what was written on the obelisk.
Jerome scratched the ball and said to Giselle.
“There were some missing letters, but I was able to guess from the context. I guess it was easier because I knew the content in advance thanks to Erenes.”
The content written on the obelisk was the myth that Erenes had spoken of. It was written from the perspective of the Salvation Church, so the details were slightly different, but the fundamentals were clearly the same.
[… … The goddesses of this world have betrayed our god. Because the goddesses broke their promise and closed the gate, the god’s people have been trapped in the dimensional rift and will suffer forever. We must not forget that it is our mission and the god’s will to save them… … .]
“Hmm… … .”
Jiselle nodded, looking at the paper Jerome handed her.
It was no different from the myth Erenes had told. It really seemed like this myth had been common knowledge a thousand years ago.
The Salvation Church appears to have engraved the most important parts of their scriptures on the obelisk.
So that I don’t forget the content by looking at it every day.
Parniel still did not accept the myth written on the obelisk. As soon as she heard the interpretation, she tried to destroy the obelisk, and everyone had to dissuade her.
In particular, wizards were the most active in dissuading them.
“Whoa, whoa! It’s just a local myth!”
“There’s no need to worry about all this!”
“You can think of it as a historical relic!”
Only after such a fierce struggle did she finally calm down a bit. With everyone blocking her path and clinging to her, Parniel had no choice but to suppress her anger.
Jiselle stopped investigating the ruins because it seemed like there was nothing more to gain for now. Parniel was also very angry.
Instead, I planned to preserve this place and have scholars study it. Even if it didn’t contain any clues about the Salvation Church, it had sufficient historical value.
“Now let’s get moving again.”
The Northern Army began to advance again. As they approached the center, fewer but more powerful monsters appeared.
That’s why superhumans continued to take the lead in fighting, while soldiers were mainly responsible for dealing with relatively weak monsters or guarding the laborers.
Gooooooo… … .
Before I knew it, the wind began to blow through the trees, making an eerie sound.
As they advanced, the atmosphere gradually grew darker, and Jiselle muttered.
“Are we almost there?”
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There were no warning signs yet, but it was clear that the center was not far away.
The closer we got to the center, the more ominous the forest’s atmosphere became.
The branches were twisted as if trying to grab someone, and rotten, crunchy leaves crunched wherever you stepped.
Even the air had changed. With every breath I took, a cold, heavy air seemed to seep deep into my lungs.
A faint mist crawled across the ground, wrapping itself around my ankles, and the dense branches of the trees completely obscured the sky, making it seem as if I was walking in eternal twilight.
The advancing soldiers also noticed that something had changed in the atmosphere. It was already an ominous forest, but now it seemed as if they had entered a completely different world.
“I keep getting goosebumps… … .”
“The smell is getting weirder and weirder.”
“What’s inside?”
The soldiers looked around with an uneasy look on their faces.
I wasn’t worried because I trusted Jiselle, but the feeling of rejection rising in my chest didn’t go away easily.
Gooooooo… … .
The forest originally had almost no sounds of birds or insects, but now there was none at all.
Only the sound of human footsteps and the terrible sound of tree branches swaying in the eerie wind filled the silence of the forest.
The mossy trees had turned a dark green color, like old corpses. The sap seeping out through the cracks was dark red, like blood.
Even the faint light shining through the branches was unnaturally pale.
Gooooooo… … .
Everything was twisted and sickly, as if something in this place had eaten away at the very life of the forest.
With each step taken, a chill ran up the spine, warning the people that this was no longer the domain of the living.
And soon the soldiers began to exhibit strange phenomena.
“Ugh! I think I’m going to throw up.”
“I feel dizzy.”
“There’s a strange smell… … .”
A faint stench began to waft. Giselle raised her hand to stop the advance, then immediately turned her head and spoke.
“You’re too close. We’ve got our bearings, so the entire force will move back.”
At Giselle’s command, the soldiers retreated. Only after they had retreated considerably did Giselle speak.
“We’ll set up camp here and set up a perimeter. Only I and a few others will go to the center.”
The area near the center was off-limits to anyone, because the most powerful being in the forest was there.
The strange phenomenon that the soldiers were seeing now was also related to that existence.
Not all superhumans could go because they had to prepare for unexpected situations.
“Let Tennant and Kaor guard the camp.”
Kaor’s mouth stuck out. Thinking about it, he had stayed behind when he had gone to rescue Gordon in this forest before.
He tried to persuade her to go with him, but Jiselle’s expression was serious. Kaor knew that if he provoked her at that time, she would only get cursed at, so he grumbled and quietly backed away.
Giselle and Julian, Farniel and Belinda, Jerome and Vanessa, and Gillian and Piote moved towards the center.
Clink, clink.
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With every step I took, rotting leaves and rotten moss crunched under my feet.
The disgusting stench that stung my nose became even stronger.
Before I knew it, the surroundings were covered in a fog of purple and black. Even the sunlight that occasionally filtered through had a sickly, yellowish glow.
The huge trees that looked to be hundreds of years old were blackened and rotten, their bark falling off like rotten flesh.
“Oh my… … This is really horrible. How did it all get so rotten?”
Jerome made a disgusted expression. It was the first time he had seen such a grotesque and disgusting forest.
In the cracks between the trees grew ominous, glowing purple mushrooms, which were constantly releasing spores.
Chunk, thunk, thunk.
There were pools of black sap here and there. The bones of the monsters that once lived here were rotted and stuck in the ground.
The closer you get to the center, the more severe the corruption becomes. Those heading there soon hear a faint sound.
thud.
thud.
thud.
The intermittent sound was getting closer.
Everyone stopped walking and held their breath.
Five red eyes began to glow slowly.
