Chapter 109: T’s Clock (2)
The mechanical devices began to operate in a way that was too complex to comprehend its structure.
“Is that the T’s clock? What does T stand for? Time?”
Creeeak...
Several springs shifted out of place, revealing a hidden dial.
But it was not just numbers.
Chinese characters, Roman symbols, Egyptian hieroglyphs, discs depicting Christian saints, runes, Tibetan script, and languages of civilizations long vanished.
A complex interplay of designs each from different origins and texts.
Though their expressions differed, the symbols and patterns focused on a single theme.
Stars and constellations.
It wasn’t accurate to call it a clock.
“Rather than a clock, it’s more like...”
An astronomical observation tool created in a very complex way?
A celestial globe for predicting the directions of celestial bodies?Follow the latest novels at novelhall.com
It might also have been a computer created in a very primitive manner.
“Do I really need to lie down in the coffin to see this?”
I wasn’t sure if this should be called a consistent concept or a shitty preference.
But soon, I discovered why it was essential for this device to be operated from this place.
A peculiar change began at the window at the center of the machinery.
Click! Creak!
Through the large window, various symbols, golden rings, and meaningful metal rods started to converge.
And against the backdrop of the night sky beyond the window, specific information began to take shape.
It looked like a treasure map marking a special secret location.
“What is that?”
Nine golden rings aligned along a trajectory in the night sky. At first glance, they seemed randomly placed, but they were arranged in a pattern that I recognized.
“So...”
Remarkably, three of the nine rings had stars hanging at their centers. These were stars that shone ominously and vividly in the dark night sky.
And so, there are six empty rings and three rings that are shining because they are filled with stars.
“Ah, is that T?”
T? The shortcut T?!
“Ah! It really is T?!”
That! That is T!
T!
“T!”
I lay in the coffin for a moment while flailing my arms and legs. Just to be clear, I wasn’t having a seizure or anything of the sort
“So, that’s what’s the T of T’s clock means. It really was T?”
This scene was not new to me.
No, I had seen it all too often, whenever I was bored or had nothing else to do.
A landscape created by complex machinery hidden in the attic. The scenery created using nine metal rings, rods, windows, and stars was none other than “T”.
No, this was one of the special screens you could see while playing [Cthulhu World].
You know, like when you press M and the whole screen shows a map.
Right now, this was the view you could always get by pressing the T button on the Cthulhu World game screen.
I don’t know why it was T or what T stands for. But pressing T brought up this very scene before my eyes.
This screen is a crucial indicator in the game.
Cthulhu World is fundamentally an open-world game.
If you play an open-world game absentmindedly, you might spend all your time without even touching the main storyline.
To force players who dabble in other activities to focus on the main scenario, they created this system.
That’s the T.
Each time a major event in the game progresses, a dangerous incident threatening to destroy this world approaches, or the end draws near, one of the nine rings fills up.
The captain and vice captain were meticulously tied to these pieces. It must have been Heo Sang-hyeon who bound them.
The vice captain who was surrounded and beaten by necromancy golems was in a critical condition, but the captain was quite lively.
“You heretic! Torturing us is useless! Our pain will fuel the living flame, and my death will complete my faith.”
“No, I don’t intend to torture you.”
I had no intention of torturing them.
Even if I tortured these masochists, they would just be pleased and think they were undergoing some great ordeal.
I didn’t particularly enjoy inflicting pain either.
“Then why are you tying us up like this...? What do you intend to do?”
“Huh? You’re oddly focusing on the wrong part of this. Sorry, but it’s just a communication error. I’m not into that sort of thing.”
The captain trembled with anger.
“Are you trying to insult me?!”
“No, I’m not...”
Haah... I was getting tired.
What would I gain from tormenting an old man like you?
Besides, cultists of this level were no different from madmen. Engaging in a long conversation with a madman would only be a loss for me.
“Tell your master! Insulting me like this won’t gain you anything!”
“Hmm...”
By master, he probably meant the Hollow Lod.
They attacked thinking Heo Sang-hyeon was still alive and didn’t realize the owner of the building had changed.
“Well, there’s no special information to extract from you, and persuading you not to come back won’t work, will it?”
So, I had prepared something.
I spread my palm and showed it to him.
In my palm lay a small lump of flesh that writhed in a disturbing manner.
A tiny caterpillar-like lump of flesh with no eyes, mouth, legs, or anything else.
“W-What is that...?”
“Go in.”
[Witness of the Contract]
As I cast the spell, the lump of flesh jumped up quickly and forced its way between the captain’s lips.
He clenched his teeth and tried to resist with all his might, but this wasn’t the kind of magic he could stop that way.
“Ugh! Cough! Gah!”
“Stop it, it won’t come out just because you’re doing that.”
“What have you... what have you done to me...?”
“What did I feed you? Don’t worry, it’s not the kind of thing that will make your body hot or give you strange sensations.”
“You bastard, are you still trying to insult me?!”
“No, let me show you what it is.”
I created a magic circle on the floor of the room.
“See the magic circle? There’s a growth acceleration spell cast on it.”
“......?”
I took out another lump of flesh and threw it into the magic circle.
Swoosh!
The moment the lump of flesh came into contact with the magic circle, it began to grow rapidly.
Crack, crack, crack, crackle!!!
It wasn’t just growth; it was more like an explosion. The small lump of flesh that was barely the size of a fingertip suddenly grew to almost the size of a person.
It didn’t just become enormous.
It randomly sprouted huge tentacles, spikes, horns, and claws all over its body.
Yes, that pitch-black lump of flesh was created based on a part of the [Wriggling Slime] found in the secret location in Unjeong Station.
“Grrrrrrrrrr!!”
Witnessing its monstrous and terrifying appearance up close, the captain’s face turned completely pale. It was a sight that could drive someone mad, but since he was a cultist, he managed to avoid a complete breakdown.
“You get the rough idea, right?”