Chapter 172

Adgon (3)

In fact, there were ways to find the run-away incarnate without having to mobilize me, such as using a more sophisticated sex detector.

Nevertheless, the Adgon species at the scene expressed their desire for me to come quickly.

‘Well, their real intention is obvious.’

The world where they searched with the sword god’s priest, ‘Aden,’ wasn’t affiliated with the Union.

It was the best condition they could get if they wanted to avoid the member dimensions’ eyes while disposing of certain things.

– Are you sure it’s going to be alright?

Adam anxiously asked the moment he called, but I had already solidified my determination.

“It’s an opportunity to reveal what the Adgons’ true plot is and their true colors to the Union.”

Even if I argued with the commissioners until my voice turned hoarse, my claims would only be an empty echo without evidence.

There was a method to turn the place where we found the sealed fragments of Igras-Sho into evidence, but they could simply play innocent.

There was also the possibility that they would retaliate against such notions, saying that we had trespassed. Hence, I had no choice but to save it as a last resort.

– Call me if the atmosphere makes you feel like it’s strange or if you’re put into a dangerous situation. That world is not a member of the Union, anyway. We would be able to send our troops at a moment’s notice however we want to.

Of course, they would have to brace for considerable friction if ever I asked them to take such drastic actions.

That went to show that he would sacrifice that much for me.

“Thanks.”

– But are you really planning on going alone?

Knowing it was a trap, it was absurd to take Nate or Hibiki, especially when taking the fact that they had yet to overcome their Mana capacity’s limitations into consideration.

The Dragon, Euclid, needed to help with their quest, so there was only one workforce left that could actually help.

“Hey, you need to go to some other world with me.”

Then the darkness in the golden armor spoke to me as if to protest.

– Wait a minute, didn’t you just say they’re waiting with traps planted? You said you wouldn’t take the others to avoid getting them caught up in the chaos! Are you telling me that you don’t care if it’s me that goes and dies?!

Instead of answering him, I asked Genograche a question in reply.

“Do you think you can even actually die?”

– … I honestly don’t know. But if this body breaks down, I’d helplessly get stuck in a sword again!

“Then you should do your best to help me sort this out. We have to work together to avoid such a situation.”

– …

A few days later, we tore up a pile of scrolls sent by the Adgon species and crossed the Gates that they led us to.

The place where they were searching for the incarnation was the planet that had a similar name to its home dimension, Darion.

When we pierced through the blue flash, the scenery of the strange world unfolded.

– Hmmm?

Around us, there were many fortresses and infrastructure that had collapsed half-way.

It was magnificent, but there was no sign of anyone living there as of the moment.

The scene was practically close to ruins.

Genograche murmured.

– What? It’s a ruin of a fairly advanced civilization, isn’t it?

I nodded in confirmation.

“Yes, it seems like it was a civilization that was well beyond Earth’s current science development stage.”

How could such destruction have happened?

War?

The ruins, which were already close to heritage, seemed to be burning crimson as it received the rays of the simultaneous sunset and sunrise of the two suns.

“Oh, Mr. Seo Jin-Wook. You’re finally here!”

A voice was conveyed by my interpretation magic.

As I turned my head, I immediately saw a spacecraft standing out among the ruins.

The door opened, and several aliens walked toward us.

The one on the lead wore a uniform of the Union headquarters staff.

Overall, they had a body type similar to that of humans, but I couldn’t see any body hair at all.

Their skin color was close to the hues of coffee, and their pupils were light gray.

He was a typical member of the Adgon species, the same as the ones that I had seen so far.

He approached us and introduced himself.

“I’m Talis, commissioner of the Union Headquarters. I’m currently on a mission to find an incarnate candidate here on planet Darion.”

I greeted in return moderately.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Seo Jin-Wook.”

The Adgon made a fuss with exaggerated expressions and tone.

It was a completely different attitude compared to the member of the same species who was blatantly acting hostile to me at the Supreme commissioners’ meeting.

Was it because he was of a different rank?

“I’m familiar with the rumor. I’ve heard that not only did you get recognition from the four gods, but you also became the first person in the universe to identify Mercadius and destroy an entity belonging to their species! Indeed, that is an achievement that will go down in history for a long time. It is such a blessing to live in the same era as someone like you!”

The commissioner that said such pleasant things quickly turned his glance when I didn’t seem impressed. He greeted the golden armor standing next to me.

“You must be the companion of Mr. Seo Jin-Wook! Excuse me since there was no mention in advance, but if I may be so upfront as to ask for your name…?”

It was different from the reaction of the deer- Gorangsha, and the starfish in the fishbowl- Tongel, who didn’t even bother to ask, assuming that he was a devil who was being enslaved.

Since their treatment of me was different, their attitude toward my companion changed as well.

The devil’s sword in the armor answered with a brief mental wave.

– Genograche.

Then the commissioner’s eyes got a little bigger and quickly returned to his original expression. It was a lightning-quick change.

“Oh! That’s a great name. You are named after the legendary demon warlord!”

When I heard that, I thought he would be arrogant, saying, “actually, that’s me!” But the devil’s sword’s reaction was surprisingly calm.

– …

To be more precise, there was no reaction. He didn’t even bother to answer.

The other Adgons were standing silently behind them while the commissioner greeted us. They numbered a little over ten.

I checked the level of Mana that was blazing in their hearts.

Each individual was quite a strong Awakened.

They weren’t at a level wherein they would be pushed to the corner or ignored regardless of where they were dispatched.

However, it was unlikely that we would lose even if they rushed at us all at once.

‘That can only mean that that’s not the entire force. There’s a good chance that the rest of them are hiding within the planet.’

Next, my eyes stopped at an alien that was mixed among the Adgon.

Compared to sentient beings on Earth, his whole body was like a two-legged monkey covered with golden fur.

Looking closely, his clothes were unusual.

The shape on his shoulder was indicative of his high priesthood serving the god of swords.

‘Bachurka did say a low-rank priest is going to be accompanying us.’

The commissioner overreacted as if he had noticed my glance.

“Oh! I apologize. I seem to have acted densely. Let me introduce you. Mr. Seo Jin-Wook, this is bishop Briam.”

The golden-haired monkey then approached and bowed deeply.

“The humble Aden’s sword stands before the chosen one.”

His reaction was much more refined and calm compared to the maniacal reactions showcased by the god of magic’s priests.

‘A bishop.’

It was quite a high position, but the priest’s power that took the position wasn’t exceptional because the situation of the god of sword’s congregation was far from ideal.

The divine power felt from his body was weak compared to the priests of Igras-Sho’s congregation headquarters.

To put it bluntly, he was just equal to a normal priest of other churches.

“Now, let’s not stand around here and talk inside!”

Following the guidance of commissioner Talis, we all entered the airship.

I thought that they planned to do something to me right there and then, but as if they didn’t desire to reveal their fangs right away, he began to explain the current situation briefly.

“In fact, I am nothing but ashamed. It’s my species’s territory, yet we had to request Mr. Seo Jin-Wook’s deployment for help…”

Then bishop Briam’s face drastically darkened and intervened.

“The Adgons dispatched by the Union had done their best. It is our fault that we “lost” him.”

At that moment, I realized I hadn’t really heard the full details yet.

“What the hell happened?”

The commissioner resumed the talk, and bishop Briam listened with a face full of shame.

“This place we are in, planet Darion, had almost lost all of its glorious civilization of the past.”

Their situation was so dire that most of their planet had become inhabitable for natives to live on, and it was said to be comparable to Earth’s “lost land” concept.

It was at least fortunate that more than 70% of the population was an Awakened individual because of their long history.

They created collective dwellings of the size of city-states all over their world, and the Gates that appeared in them were desperately closed so that they could avoid extinction.

The problem was that there was no motivation or room to move between such city-states actively. Hence, exchanges with each other were almost cut off as if they were all living in isolated islands.

“That’s why it was difficult for bishop Briam to move out of his original city and search for the potential incarnate candidate that we can then use as a vessel for the god of swords.”

“And that’s why us Adgons came forward to support the search.”

“That’s right!”

Whether it was a transcontinental teleport or a flying artifact, Mana Cores had to be consumed to activate or utilize it.

For the residents of the world we were in, who had to spend most of their Cores on daily survival and Gate response, they couldn’t afford to invest in other things except for those.

The Adgons filled such a gap.

Through transportation provided by those dispatched, bishop Briam toured residential areas around the planet that had virtually changed into a post-apocalyptic world and carried on with his missionary work.

He had only spent a short duration, but it seemed like he already managed to gain a remarkable achievement.

Many talented individuals had been found, and the number of their congregation’s priests had increased significantly.

Some of them decided to follow the bishop. The rest were to stay in the region to increase the number of their god’s followers continuously.

Meanwhile, in a recently visited city-state, the bishop encountered someone who owned unimaginable enormous talent.

“That child… Certainly had enough talent to be an incarnation!”

The golden hair on the mouth of the bishop trembled.

“Oh, I can’t believe I lost such a child!”

The bishop baptized a child named ‘Rosuelen,’ and she heard the voice of the god.

“Her divine power was newly sprouted, but it was phenomenal! It was to the point that since it was like that from the very beginning, we could expect her to be the perfect incarnation before long!”

The Adgon species thought they had carried out their duties perfectly and returned to the original world.

However, as soon as they left the Darion planet, an unexpected accident occurred.

Rosuelen ran away.

‘I don’t understand this part at all.’

I asked a question in a voice full of doubt.

“And it’s not that she got kidnapped by someone?”

The bishop shook his head.

“There was a letter she wrote left at the scene. It said that she was leaving on her own and pleaded not to look for her.”

“That can be easily counterfeited….”

“With the capacity of our species left in Darion, we won’t be able to find the child if she determinedly decides to hide. And no one has the skill to kidnap her.”

That was unexpected and strange as well.

“A priest who just opened her eyes to divine power already has that much ability? I heard that there are a lot of other talented individuals here since it’s an ancient dimension…”

They said that the secret to surviving the sterile environment was the Awakened beings.

The bishop replied.

“There’s a reason why we decided that she was the candidate for incarnation as soon as we saw her. She was born with great potential. As her divine power blossomed, we realized more certainly how intensely she had been blessed by the god.”

“Hmm.”

If she had received such a deep blessing from the god of sword…

She could be seen as a biological weapon that could unleash uncontrollable combat skills in a wild manner.

The bishop spoke in tears.

“Furthermore, her control over her divine power is so exquisite that even I can’t find her or even her trail with my senses….”

Eventually, they were forced to ask for help again from the Adgon species that had already left.

Commissioner Talis had hurriedly returned, picked up the bishop, and searched every corner of the planet as he did before but couldn’t track down Rosuelen’s traces.

“And that’s why you called me.”

“Yes, those who received the power of a god can exercise power to locate where the power of the same property lies. If Mr. Seo Jin-Wook searches for her, we thought that it would be more effective than my–”

“Then after I find her? Is there a way to persuade her?”

No matter how talented she was, what were they going to do if she said she didn’t want to be a part of it?

And what kind of logic was it to run away after the baptism?

“The child is confused and scared right now. All we need is time and sincerity. If she studies the doctrines of the great being properly, she will definitely be influenced.”

Influence her?

To be honest, I didn’t know how to feel about that part.

But there was no reason to insist on not finding her as well, so I decided to let my body drift with the flow.

“Wait a minute. I’ll take a look.”

“Yes, please!”

However, even if it’s me that we were talking about, there was no way for me to monitor the entire planet.

That wasn’t to say that I needed to start with nothing, however.

Whoong!

I concentrated my mind.

Then among the seals on the back of my hand, light emanated from Aden’s symbol, the god of sword.

“Oh…!”

Bishop Briam exclaimed his amazement.

As I focused on my senses, I could feel traces of the god of sword scattered around me.

Most of them were feeble.

It was faint to the point that the bishop’s sacred power in front of me was considered to be at the papal level.

Most of them were at that level, but…

“!”

I caught something.

‘… Wow! It’s definitely different.’

If the other reactions were a blurry stain, what I felt at that moment was like a clear and sharp light source, a laser shot from far away.

I set a direction and spoke.

“The trail leads to that direction.”

“Oh!”

“No way, that fast?”

I explained it to them.

“But I can’t measure distance, and it’s not that I have a precise azimuth. If we were to follow the trace recklessly, we might get farther from her, so it would be better to stop and scan every now and then throughout the duration of the trip. It would be better to move with this airship, right?”

“Yes! Please, use as it much as you like.”

The Adgon crew prepared to make the spacecraft depart immediately, following the commissioner’s commands.

Unlike the bishop who couldn’t hide his joy as if he had thought he could finally get out of the dead-end, Genograche was grumbling lowly, clinging to the wall.

– Damn, what a shitty fate mine is!

He had fled far away, frightened that he would come in contact with the sacred power I had to emit while scanning for tracks. The devil trembled as if he had foreseen the relentless pain he would suffer from due to the upcoming journey.

– You… Did you bring me with you on purpose? On a journey to find an incarnate candidate by releasing divine power all around, a devil?!

I didn’t really plan for such a situation to happen. Regardless, however, as a result, the worst environment was created for the devil. For those that considered sacred power as poison, it was like being in a hellhole where mines were laid, and bombs were constantly thrown all over.

“Well… what can I do?”

I just shrugged my shoulders.