Chapter 187

Chapter 187

Thinking about it, it didn’t seem entirely impossible. After all, these were beings he would end up killing, so there was nothing to lose if he failed to gather information. Of course, the Round Table Parliament included individuals who were not corrupted, but since he was assisting Mev with her fundamental revenge, he would encounter many corrupted ones.

Even if he didn't know how many there would be, if he kept trying, he might find one who could answer some of his questions.

Even if they all fail, well, there will be no end to the corrupted ones.

Having reached this conclusion, Ian shook his hands. The fireball he released from his grip illuminated the torch and scattered upon hitting the cave wall. The cave's interior came into view. Despite fighting a void monster, there were no traces of it. The only evidence of the event was the skull in his grasp and the now-empty shards of chaos.

So, it really was a separate space.

Thinking this, Ian finally opened the information window for the skull. It only took a few seconds for a bitter smile to spread across his lips.

All void spell levels increased...? Void spells, huh? It would have been nice to get an increase in chaos power recovery or something like that.

Well, the original purpose of dark relics was for the corrupted. It wasn’t surprising for such an option to appear. Besides, all other options, except this one, applied to him as well.

Besides boosting his Health and Mental Fortitude, it also slightly increased his relatively low Intelligence by one and came with various resistance options. Picking up the storage box that had fallen to the ground, he finally stood up.

There was no need to put the Skull of the Rift Walker back into the storage box. It appeared to be specifically made for securely sealing cursed objects, making it useful if he kept it on him.

At the very least, I can sell it to an imperial merchant.

Having tossed the storage box and the skull into his pocket dimension, he moved forward without even carrying a torch. He had no sense of how much time had passed. Whether only a few minutes or several hours had gone by, it wouldn't be surprising either way.

"...?"

Ian’s brow furrowed as he saw the cave entrance in the distance. The faint sounds of battle cries and shouts, the sharp clash of weapons, reached his ears. The unmistakable stench of monsters wafted to his nose.

Time wasn’t the problem.

Ian let out a wry chuckle as he propelled his body forward.

"Ugh, ugh—"

"Stop advancing, Thesa! Maintain your position!"

The cries of the monsters. The shouts of his companions became clear. As he dashed toward the cave entrance, Ian’s brow furrowed even more. The screams and shouts of the monsters weren’t just from one or two kinds.

There shouldn’t be many other monsters near the cave troll's nest.

Typically, such an unlikely event wasn't a good sign. Kicking off the ground and exiting the cave, Ian drew the Black Sword of the Third Apostle. The cool touch of the scabbard met his hand as the blade glided out smoothly and silently.

... As expected.

Ian surveyed the scene in an instant. It was exactly as he had heard. Not only goblins and kobolds but also beasts driven mad, like man-eating wolves and giant bats, filled the area.

Additionally, there were undead, like ghouls and skeletons. Creatures that normally killed each other were now mingled together, surging forward. Even around the companions standing with their backs to the cave entrance and the carriage, there were already heaps of remains of these monsters.

Normally, these creatures would have scattered in fear long ago, but now they charged relentlessly, as if bewitched.

... What, are they under some kind of dark magic?

"My lord! Finally...!" Philip turned around and shouted with a bright expression.

The other members, who were holding their positions, also turned their gazes.

"Well done," Ian muttered as he passed through them, immediately swinging his black sword.

Slash!

With a single swipe, the blade effortlessly sliced the charging goblin in half, as if it were nothing more than a piece of paper. The blade sliced through effortlessly, barely causing him any sensation. The goblin, now collapsing in a heap, let out a final, pitiful groan.

That guy. He really doesn’t know when to stop.

Ian, clicking his tongue and lowering his head, quickly narrowed his brows and shrugged.

"Indeed, that’s true."

"Right? Even though they're not as big and monstrous as the ones we saw in the demonic realm, the goblins have an exceptionally well-built physique. Maybe only the stronger ones have survived near the Empire..."

"More likely, the environment has become more suitable for them," said Ian, kicking aside the corpses around the campfire.

"What do you mean by ‘more suitable environment’?"

"I told you, the entire frontier is being tainted by the madness of the Black Wall."

Ian added as he rekindled the campfire with a flicker of flame. "It’s affecting even the monsters outside the demonic realm."

In the game, when the borderlands turned into a demonic realm, even the regular monsters became bigger and stronger. It wasn’t surprising for a game to recycle old monsters with new colors or larger sizes. Now, similar changes seem to happen in reality.

Does it really need to be this realistic...?

Philip nodded as he sat across from Ian. "So... the Black Wall is the reason monsters are rampaging across the continent."

"The Empire might not be safe anymore. Monsters move in packs when their numbers grow. They’ll spread across borders."

Mev, sitting by the campfire, took off her helmet and placed it beside her. Thesaya dropped a bag next to Philip immediately after.

"What's the difference? Those bastards are everywhere, and we'll just kill them as we see them. Haven't we always done that? Stop talking nonsense, I'm starving to death, so hurry—"

At that moment, a flash of light streaked across the distant sky, casting deep shadows on Thesaya’s face. A beat later, thunder rumbled. The horses neighed and stomped, and Thesaya, frowning, stood up and approached them. Again, the distant sky flashed, followed by more thunder.

"... Should we head into the cave? It looks like it might rain." Philip, who had been taking a bottle from his bag, looked up at the sky and asked.

Charlotte, who had stopped mid-sit, stared at the distant sky and said, "No. It won't rain."

"... With this thunder?"

"I’m a beastfolk. I can tell what the weather will be like today. It won’t rain. This thunder isn’t the kind that brings rain."

As if to answer Charlotte, the night sky flashed noisily. And it wasn’t just one thunderclap that followed.

The sky gave the impression of collapsing as a series of roars followed one another, from far away to relatively close.

"W-well, definitely. It doesn't seem like normal lightning–-" Philip, who had been speaking in a deliberately light tone, froze.

This time, even the dark clouds above their heads flashed brightly. Philip, whose whole body seemed to shake from the roar, mumbled in a daze.

"Did I see it wrong? Or did the clouds really flash purple...?"

"... I saw it too, Philip," Mev answered in a subdued voice, and as Charlotte was about to frown and confirm his words,

"It seems like something is happening," Thesaya said in a flat voice. She had been calming the horses, but now she was gazing at the distant northern sky.

Her voice continued, "I saw something strange. Far away, beyond the clouds."

"What exactly... Did you see?"

"I'm not sure. It's gone now. But I definitely saw it."

As she spoke, Thesaya turned her head toward the campfire.

By then, veins had sprouted along the corners of her eyes, pulsating. A faint magical power flickered in her eyes, which were deep green like a swamp.

Looking straight into Ian's eyes, she added, "It was a gigantic shadow. Wriggling like fingers."