Chapter 30

“Wow...”

The moment he opened the chest, Woojin was lost for words.

It was packed not only with magical implements, but also with all kinds of artifacts and equipment. He couldn't view their status windows to learn what they did, but even at a glance, they were clearly anything but ordinary.

“Be careful. All of these are cursed.”

“Cursed?”

“Yes. You do need cursed objects as materials for dark magic, after all.”

Woojin smacked his lips in disappointment at Irurin's words.

'Could there be runes in here too?'

Cursed objects aside, runes were still the most efficient things he could obtain in this world. Equipment would eventually be replaced, taking its benefits with it, but the effects of runes were permanent.

“Hmm...”

Unfortunately, there were no runes in the chest.

“... What's this?”

Just then, something caught Woojin's eye. It was a large, apple-shaped gem.

“That's a Dragon Mana Stone.”

Apparently recognizing the gem in his hand, Irurin answered his question.

“It was kept in the Red Tower's basement... I thought it was strange when it disappeared. Just as I suspected, it must have been smuggled here.”

“What does it do?”

“Mages once called it the gem of their dreams. It heightens sensitivity to mana.”

“The gem of their dreams? If it's that great, why don't you use it?”

Irurin shook her head at his question.

“Once being the key word. Plenty of things better than Dragon Mana Stones came along afterward. Well, even these are hard to find now... But here's the problem.”

She lifted the Dragon Mana Stone and touched its surface.

HUM

Two red spots appeared on its surface.

“These are called blood spots. There can be up to ten. The more blood spots it has, the purer the Dragon Mana Stone.”

“Only two... So this one isn't very good.”

“That's right. Besides, once you consume a Dragon Mana Stone, you can't use other items that increase your sensitivity.”

She set down the [Dragon Mana Stone] as she spoke.

“I drank Fairy Water. It's made from powder obtained from fairies' wings, and it's far more effective than a low-grade Dragon Mana Stone.”

Irurin gave a small shrug.

'Fairies' wings... Fairy Water...'

Woojin nodded, committing her words to memory.

“What about fifty years ago?”

“... Pardon?”

“Would this have been any good fifty years ago?”

“Hmm. I wasn't alive then, so I can't say for certain, but back then...”

Irurin rested a hand lightly against her chin.

“People would have been scrambling to get their hands on it.”

“Good enough, then.”

At that answer, Woojin slipped the [Dragon Mana Stone] into his pouch without another word.

“By the way, where's Ruen?”

Come to think of it, she wasn't in the storeroom.

“Lady Ruen is tending to Camilla's wounds. We found a large magic circle used for summoning rituals at the back of the storeroom.”

“A magic circle?”

“Yes. Lady Ruen is modifying its formula.”

“Why?”

“To treat Camilla. Hmm... Elven magic is difficult for me to explain, too. Would you like to see for yourself?”

* * *

“Wh-what is all this?”

Astonishingly, a tree so enormous it evoked a forest had grown deep inside the laboratory. Grass flourished all around it. It was hard to believe this was the same dungeon that had been crawling with corpses.

“You're awake!”

Ruen spotted him and came running straight over.

“What are you doing here?”

“Camilla isn't in good shape, so I've been examining her. Fortunately, the high-level magic circle here has been helpful.”

A large magic circle was visible beneath the tree growing in the center.

'That... looks similar to the one I saw in the Goblin Nest.'

Woojin glanced at the circle drawn on the floor.

Beneath the towering tree, the Verdure, who had been in such agony, now slept peacefully.

“It's not exactly... an ideal place to settle, but nowhere is safer. It will be enough for her to stay here while she recovers.”

Woojin nodded.

“A tree of life beneath a place piled with corpses... It certainly is a strange sight.”

“Drink this. It's a medicinal solution made from Camilla's blood. It should help you feel a little better.”

Ruen handed him a small glass vial.

'Hmm?'

As she drew near, a familiar scent reached him.

'I feel like I've smelled that before.'

Woojin puzzled briefly over the grassy fragrance tickling his nose, then dismissed it and downed the medicine in one gulp.

“Anyway, I hear you're modifying the magic circle?”

“Yes. I didn't realize it at first either, but this circle... is elven.”

“... This is?”

At her words, Woojin looked at the magic circle once more.

“Weren't the elves on the central continent?”

In the game, set fifty years earlier, most elves had been living in hiding on the central continent.

“Not necessarily. The elven kingdom founded by Uldin was originally in the Dark Forest.”

“Really?”

“Two hundred years ago, there was an event called the War of Spirit Suppression. It was fought when the Dark Forest wasn't the Dark Forest yet, but the land of the elves.”

Ruen slowly rose to her feet.

“The war in which humans attacked Uldin and burned Elvenheim.”

“So that's why the elves fell.”

Her gaze shifted from Woojin to Irurin. The moment those cold eyes settled on her, Irurin's shoulders trembled instinctively.

Ruen was no longer a frail invalid.

Level 99.

Without question, she was the most powerful being here.

“Because of that, more remnants of the elves remain scattered throughout the Dark Forest than you might think.”

Ruen looked around.

“This is one of the elven ruins, too. Though it has been turned into a place for researching dark magic.”

Her eyes were cold, but held no murderous intent. If anything, sorrow was stronger.

“Anyway, is your Mana Vessel Disease completely cured?”

“Yes. I've struggled all this time, searching for all sorts of remedies... But in the end, it seems Camilla's blood alone would have been enough.”

'Camilla's blood alone would be enough?'

“We were lucky. If the blood had been drawn from Camilla's corpse, I couldn't have guaranteed the outcome.”

At Irurin's words, Woojin looked at the sleeping Verdure.

“Could I take some blood with me, too?”

It occurred to him that if he took the Verdure's blood back from here, he might be able to cure Ruen's Mana Vessel Disease right away.

“Not right now. The Verdure's blood only works for those the Verdure has accepted.”

“But Ratan used the Verdure's blood by force, didn't he?”

“And that's why he became a monster.”

“... Then I'll have to wait until Camilla wakes up.”

Woojin smacked his lips in disappointment at Irurin's answer.

“Now that your illness is cured, Your Majesty, it is time to restore the royal house.”

Goun placed a hand over the chest and bowed respectfully to Ruen.

“I wonder... whether a royal house has any meaning now, with the world dying...”

Goun had spoken with hope in their voice, but Ruen's expression was far from bright.

“Why not go to the Lion King's stronghold?”

“Pardon?”

“The man who helped me was trying to get there, too. He said it was humanity's last bastion...”

Just then, Woojin recalled what the collectors had said.

'They said it was nothing but a groundless rumor.'

But the Raoul he knew wasn't someone who would be swayed by mere rumors.

“I can't be certain it really exists either. But... without anything to lean on, people fall apart.”

“But if even that hope falls apart, we might never be able to get back up.”

“Isn't falling apart later better than falling apart now?”

Ruen looked at him, her gaze wavering.

“My teacher said the Lion King's stronghold was on the island of the Northern Wall.”

He then turned toward Irurin.

“Won't you come with us?”

“There's somewhere I have to return to.”

“Are you going... to your homeland?”

“No. To the world I originally came from.”

Their expressions asked what on earth he meant.

“You mean you came from another world?”

“That's right. Well... it's complicated to explain. It's a world that's similar to this one, but different. I suppose you could call it the world of about fifty years ago.”

Their faces grew even more perplexed. It was a natural reaction, so Woojin smiled wryly.

“I know it's hard to believe. To be honest, I'm still figuring out what happened myself.”

Irurin looked as though she wanted to ask him more, but soon nodded as if accepting his explanation.

“I suppose that's possible.”

“... You believe me?”

Now it was Woojin's turn to question her in bewilderment.

“That brand you used. I didn't recognize it at first without any context, but it's one of the ancient arts that have since been lost.”

“Do you know about Sarbandin?”

The power he had gained in the Goblin Nest. Yet even Woojin, the one who possessed it, didn't properly understand it.

“Hmm... Do you know that this land we live in, Akedonia, was formed from the blood of three gods and the first human, Sarban?”

That was the final passage of The Light of the World, the first of the three books he had read in Parta's library. Woojin nodded.

“Sarban. It is a power called will. Formless, yet not formless... A power that exists everywhere in the world, in many forms.”

Irurin continued.

“Some of the humans touched by that power could command gods, or even create them.”

“Are you talking about... the Sarbant?”

“You've heard of them?”

Irurin made no attempt to hide her surprise at his answer.

“That's right. And humans weren't the only ones touched by that will. Plants and animals touched by Sarban's will are called Sarbandin.”

“Ah...”

Hearing the explanation of Sarbandin that he hadn't been able to find in Parta, Woojin let out an involuntary exclamation.

“They're also said to be emissaries created by a god to punish the Sarbant, the foreign people who tried to command gods. Just three Sarbandin brought about the Sarbant's destruction.”

“Three... So there are still two more? Do you happen to know what the others are?”

Irurin shook her head.

“I don't know that much. Perhaps I could have found out if the Red Tower's great library were still standing, but it all burned down.”

'The Red Tower...'

“I don't know how you learned an ancient art, but be careful.”

“Why?”

“Sarban is will. Those touched by that will gain immense power, but it's said that in the end, every one of them was devoured by it.”

“That might be true.”

When he had obtained [Soul Imprinting] in the Goblin Nest and summoned Sarbandin's soul, it had tried to devour his body, too.

“I'll keep that in mind. Still, thanks to you, I finally have some answers. Thank you.”

“You're very welcome.”

“Your Majesty, I'll be on my way, then.”

While they were talking, Goun, now wearing a backpack, said farewell.

“Where are you going?”

“I intend to bring the remaining elves here. It looks as though we'll need to stay here for a while.”

“Even if we do move on, I want to wait until we've treated the Verdure before considering it.”

Woojin nodded at their words.

“Oh, there's something I want to give you.”

“Hmm?”

After Goun left, Ruen broke the silence, in which only Camilla's breathing could be heard.

“Here. Take this.”

She took something from the magic circle where Camilla slept and stood before Woojin.

“How is this possible?”

Astonishingly, it was the [Philosopher’s Stone] that had been completely shattered in the battle with Ratan.

But something about it had changed. Twigs wrapped around the broken pieces like bandages.

“I remade it.”

“What?”

Woojin stared in surprise at Irurin's answer.

“You did this?”

“To be precise, I activated the summoning circle using Camilla's spiritual power and imbued the broken stone with life in the process.”

“What do you mean, life? A golem is...”

Nothing more than a machine made through alchemy.

THUMP. THUMP. THUMP.

“...?!”

Astonishingly, he could feel a pulsing inside the stone, like a heartbeat.

“W-wait! This...”

Woojin asked her, his face full of shock.

“Is it really alive?”