Chapter 375
Crack!
The blade's tip sank diagonally into the molten ground, the etched Mantra circuits flickering briefly before losing their glow entirely.
Ian crouched low as he landed, then hurled backward, rolling across the ground just in time.
Thud. Crash—
The massive beast's severed neck fell to the ground, fully detached from its head. Black ichor, thick as oil, poured from the jagged stump, pooling around the corpse.
Ian sprang to his feet, his gaze darting skyward. There were still enemies left—the draconic beasts.
Yet, as he looked up, his frown deepened, and his grip on his sword slackened.
The creatures hovered midair, their leathery wings beating in hesitation. Whether it was the massive beast’s death that unsettled them or their recognition of Ian’s strength, he couldn’t tell.
Whoosh—
A violet glow flowed from the slumped corpse of the massive beast. Shimmering like a heat haze, it slowly rose into the air. An ethereal mist flowed from the wounds Ian had carved into the beast. It was all the magic and chaos energy that the massive beast had contained.
The violet haze burst forth even from the severed head and neck, but unlike the rest, this mist didn't rise skyward. Instead, it spiraled inward, forming a massive vortex around Ian.
Thrum, thrum—
A deep reverberation from the fragment of chaos coursed through his body. Though his face twisted in discomfort, Ian made no move to resist. He had no choice. All he could do was prepare to suppress the fragment's greed by mustering his magic if it grew too ravenous.
This stuff is disgustingly sticky.
The encroaching violet haze wasn't pure chaos energy. The fragment efficiently sifted through the corrupted magic laced with chaos in the encroaching violet haze, absorbing only the chaos energy like panning for gold.
Ian's eyes twitched as a thunderous crack reverberated through him.
The sound came from the fragment. Chaos energy erupted from it, exploding outward in a sudden burst.
A sharp pain seared through his skull, his vision blacking out for an instant before snapping back. Violet smoke curled off his body, dispersing into the air. The haze that had wrapped around him was now rising skyward again.
Then, a new quest completion window appeared: Seed of Chaos. Like the previous one, it was a quest Ian had never accepted.
The description was brief—simply stating that the fragment had achieved a complete form.
Of course, nothing can ever be straightforward.
With that thought, Ian reflexively turned his attention inward, inspecting himself.
The fragment, now calm as if nothing had happened, had changed. Its shape felt more uniform, smaller even. Yet the chaos energy within it was more stable than ever before. It was no longer a mere fragment—it had solidified into a complete bead of essence.
This marked another step forward as a corrupted one.
It was unclear what exactly the fragment's completion meant or why it had happened now of all times. Perhaps it was a mere coincidence. Maybe the environment here fulfilled some necessary conditions. Either way, it was a question whose answer was unknown at the moment—and unnecessary.
At any rate, no other completion windows are popping up.
There were no changes to his stats, either.
After confirming his status window, Ian lowered the Platinum Barrier and opened his eyes. All the displayed values remained the same. If there were changes not reflected in the display, they were beyond his ability to verify.
Instead, his experience points had significantly increased, and he had gained one more ability point. It was likely the result of the recently completed quest and the beasts he had slain. Still, there was no additional quest, or question completion—not even for slaying the massive beast.
As expected, the creature wasn't designed in the game to be something meant for killing. In fact, this entire situation likely didn't exist in the game.
Screech!
A commotion broke out in the sky moments later. Ian looked upward. The draconic beasts, their wingbeats noticeably sluggish, caught his eye.
Did they get swept up in that haze?
Ian's gaze shifted past them to the rising violet mist. The undulating light, like an aurora, was soon obscured by the circling beasts. By the time Ian noticed their eyes had turned a violet hue, the beasts had already shifted direction like a flock of birds and moved away.
Ian tilted his head slightly as he watched them. It was because he realized the beasts were flying upstream along the valley. Beyond that lay nothing but a deep darkness shimmering like a shadow.
—They must have been enthralled by the whispers of the abyss.
A quiet murmur echoed in Ian’s mind as Yog reformed on his shoulder.
"The whispers of the abyss?"
—Yes... it seems you can't hear it. The sound of that darkness calling out.
Ian stared at the writhing darkness. He heard nothing, but the sight alone reminded him of the monsters and beasts that had crossed the Black Wall.
Every one of them grotesquely mutated and entirely consumed by madness—it had utterly overtaken even the priest, a member of the demon race.
So they weren't corrupted during the crossing of the Wall.
Rather, they were drawn by its call after being entirely consumed by madness.
Ian's lips curled into a faint smirk. He felt as though he finally understood why such a diverse mix of monsters, beasts, and even other species had been thrown together.
—The weaker they are, the easier they're ensnared. Unless they're beings born of chaos like me. Yes, that's probably why you can't hear it either.
The creatures, ensnared by madness, wandered the darkness until the time came for them to be expelled—like waste, discarded when they were no longer useful.
Perhaps that was the fate awaiting everything that existed within.
—And that colt-like fellow is safe as well.
The murmur drew Ian's attention downward. In the distance, Lucia was running toward him, her eyes glowing faintly red.
—It wasn't nearly as easy as I thought. It was completely different from usual, you know.
Of course.
Ian replied with a brief scoff instead of words.
Lucia paid no attention to Yog's murmurs, keeping her eyes fixed on Ian as she came to a stop in front of him. "You were amazing! That spell, and the way you took down that massive beast! And all without Karha's help—Sir Ian!" Her excitement turned to alarm as Ian swayed, nearly collapsing backward. She darted forward, catching him as he staggered. Supporting his weight, she steadied him against her side.
"I'm fine," Ian muttered, gripping her shoulder. "Just felt a little dizzy for a moment."
The dizziness and headache were simply the tension leaving his body. He had no concern about passing out; the throbbing pain spreading through his entire body ensured he couldn't.
Had his body been completely wrecked, it might've been a different story, but this time, it hadn't come to that.
Looking down at Lucia's worried eyes, Ian added, "More importantly, I think you should calm down first, mage."
"Ah. Yes, of course," she replied, taking a deep breath. The faint magical glow in her eyes dimmed, and she returned to her usual stoic expression. "Apologies for not warning you earlier. Things were… chaotic."
"There's no need to apologize. You did nothing wrong."
"The amount of overlapping magic feels far greater than what I remember. It's sharper, more precise, and easier to control now. I'm not sure why."
Ian shrugged at her explanation. "Well, becoming an apostle of the gods probably has something to do with it."
It wasn't likely the stigma itself that made the difference. It was more likely that her body and soul had been strengthened and restructured by divine blessing. Ian knew firsthand how this enhanced his ability to use magic.
"Let's save that discussion for later," Ian said, patting her shoulder before stepping back. He sheathed his Truesilver Steel Sword back into his pocket dimension and turned.
"If we stay here too long, we might run into more creatures lurking in the borderlands." His gaze lingered on the massive beast's corpse as he limped forward.
"Okay," Lucia replied. She strapped her flail to her waist and glanced at the faintly glowing sky above. Then, without another word, she followed him.
Left behind under the swirling, multicolored sky of the borderlands was the wrecked valley, littered with destruction and the massive corpse of the slain beast.
***
Ian limped his way down the valley for hours without stopping. He only came to a halt when he reached the remnants of a wall that had once divided the valley.
The wall, once a protective barrier, was now a crumbling ruin. Sections collapsed and tilted into disrepair. Yet, despite its desolation, there wasn't a single monster or demonic beast in sight. Perhaps this, too, was an outcome of the earlier clash between the colossal beasts.
Regardless, it seemed like the perfect place to spend the night—a secure hiding spot. However, the real reason Ian chose this place as his campsite was something else entirely.
"Ugh… cough, cough… ah…" Lucia, whose complexion had grown increasingly pale as they traveled, had finally staggered.
Following Ian's lead, she barely made it to the shelter behind the wall before collapsing to her knees and retching. Once again, she vomited black blood.
Panting heavily, she lifted her head. "I'm sorry, Sir Ian. I've caused you trouble ag—ugh." Before she could finish, another wave hit, forcing her to vomit again.
Ian, leaning against a chunk of the wall's ruins, glanced at her back. "We're nearly at the bottom anyway. I was hitting my limit as well." His words might have sounded like an empty comfort, but they were anything but empty.
When Ian had found the ruined wall, he felt a mixture of tension and relief—contradictory emotions surging simultaneously.
With a hand resting on his aching side, he spat to the side, the blood-tinged saliva carrying a dislodged tooth that rolled across the ground. One by one, the teeth that had broken during the fight were now falling out. It would take a few days for them to grow back fully.
At least three or four fractures, but nothing completely broken. Could’ve been worse.
Glancing at his tattered sleeves and worn boots, Ian let out a faint sigh and turned his attention away, casting aside any lingering regrets.
Whoosh...
The valley was nearing its end.
With his back resting on the ruined wall, faint forms were just barely visible to him through the swirling darkness and fog beyond the valley. Twisted, jagged forms rose in the distance—a forest of the demonic realm. It was all too clear what kind of creatures inhabited such a place.
Of course, that wasn't the only option. By moving to the edge of the valley, it was possible to ascend an unnaturally protruding ridge, leading to a mountain whose end he could not see.
Oddly enough, that way seems even more dangerous.
With that thought, Ian rifled through his pocket dimension and pulled out the Black Sword of the Third Apostle and the Truesilver Light Sword, planting both into the ground.
Next, he placed a metal storage box in front of him. Straining slightly, he opened the lid and reached for a bottle of alcohol.
"Haah... haah... phew…" Lucia finally wiped her mouth with her arm and turned to face Ian. Her pale complexion was striking as she spoke. "I don't understand why this keeps happening… I've been trying so hard not to collapse from exhaustion."
"That's because it's not exhaustion," Ian replied, taking a sip from the bottle and grimacing at the sharp pain in his mouth.
Lucia, wobbling as she stood, tilted her head in confusion. "Not exhaustion?"
"It's the opposite. There's more magic here than outside, but it's also contaminated."
To Ian, her symptoms resembled magic intoxication. Unlike in the game, the contaminated magic here didn't trigger status effects like confusion, fear, or disorientation—those were likely symptoms unique to mages.
Even without divine intervention, Lucia was still an apostle. Instead of becoming addicted to the corrupted magic, her body seemed to reject it, exhibiting adverse reactions instead.
—Pretty clever. My friend.
A languid whisper echoed in Ian's mind, causing him to pause as he rummaged through the storage box.
"I thought you were asleep."
—I was—until you started pulling things out of there.
Ian figured it referred to his actions of opening the pocket dimension.
Such a fuss for something so minor.
He smirked faintly at the thought.
"You must be terrified that I'll shove you back in there again."
—Let's just say I dislike it. I don't feel fear, after all.
As if, Ian thought, stifling a snort.
Meanwhile, Lucia, who had sunk to the ground in front of him, broke the silence. "Does that mean this will keep happening? Every time I use magic?"
"Who knows? Probably." Ian handed her a water pouch as he spoke. Lucia frowned slightly, but accepted it.
As she took a sip, Yog's whisper resumed.
—One day, you might consider this kind of pain a blessing.
"What do you mean by that?" Lucia's frown deepened slightly as she unscrewed the cap of the water pouch.
Ian, still rummaging through the storage box, paused and glanced down at her.
—Your body is rejecting the impurities. It means you're purifying the contamination on your own. But if that stops happening…
"You'll end up accumulating magic in its corrupted state," Lucia finished, her tone quiet but resolute.
As Yog let out a chuckle, Lucia murmured in understanding. The creature flicked its tongue lazily.
—Exactly. And perhaps, even now, you're no longer purifying it completely. Tiny traces of residue may already be clinging to your soul and body, too small for you to notice.