Chapter 324:

Chapter 324:

C324 - Assault on the Villa (3)

On reflex, Jin picked up the bead.

Upon closer examination, it resembled Solderet's recording device. The only difference was that it weighed slightly more than the previous ones.

"Wait, what is this doing here?"

The unexpected discovery left him speechless. Jin's companions looked equally puzzled, exchanging wide-eyed glances.

Joshua, where did he get this?

Could he have accessed Temar's tomb?

Temar's tomb was inaccessible without the proper "qualification."

And that qualification was none other than being Solderet's contractor.

Immediately, two assumptions came to mind.

First, the figure known as the "Prophet" must have used some trick to allow Joshua to enter Temar's tomb.

Second, Joshua obtained this recording device from a place other than Temar's Tomb.

Regardless of which one it was, the important question was whether he knows that this bead is a recording device.

Jin looked at the fallen demon.

The dead can't speak.

If it had been possible to revive the demon, Jin could have gathered quite a bit of information. But now, he had turned into a lifeless corpse, dark blood spilling from its throat.

A real pity.

However, it was an unexpected harvest. Compared to the near-death experiences Jin went through every time he acquired a recording device, this one practically fell into his lap.

"Young Master, it would be wise to collect the demon's other belongings as well."

"Yes, it seems worth investigating this demon."

Jin rummaged through the demon's possessions.

Apart from a stack of illegible ancient texts, demonic symbols, and a book, there didn't seem to be anything worth taking.

And then, almost unconsciously, Jin opened the book.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, the book emitted an ominous purple glow, and from within it, a peculiar voice resonated.

[You, who have dared to lay hands on the great duke of the demon world, the magical tome of Rontelgius! Rontelgius shall curse you forever. You shall turn into a stone statue while you are alive, and your body shall not die even if shattered, even if you turn to dust, blame yourself forever]

It was a voice different from the deceased demon's.

As soon as the curse ended, a translucent, purple chain with a peculiar vibration shot out from the book and ensnared Jin.

"Young Master!"

"Young Master Jin!"

Jin's companions reacted alarmed, drawing their swords. Naturally, the cursed chain did not yield to their swords.

And Jin, calmly raising his hand, signaled that he was fine.

"Do not be alarmed. After all, I am immune."

Solderet's Contractors were completely immune to all sorts of curses.

Valeria, before the regression, had described this ability as "excessively cheat."

And now, Jin was experiencing that power after a long time.

The chains that had bound Jin slowly seeped into his shadow, blending with it seamlessly.

The chains took no more than five seconds to completely disappear without a trace.

Jin's companions, unknowingly, silently watched in awe before asking,

"Young Master, are you really okay?"

"Yes, fortunately. If it had been someone else who touched this book... wouldn't they have turned into a statue? Unless Rontelgius had rigged this book with such a device just to scare us."

When the chains had enveloped him, Jin felt a chill.

Not because he feared the curse, but because Jin realized the terrible fate that would have befallen any other companion who had touched it.

"From now on, we must be more cautious when dealing with demons or those who wield dark magic. This time, we were lucky. We learned the name Rontelgius, presumably this demon's family."

Fssss...

The demon's body began to disintegrate.

"Understood. Make every effort to shorten the time as much as possible."

"We'll soon bring more satisfactory results."

"And provide more prisoners for Lamphen. His magic has proven exceptional."

Joshua smiled.

"Rontelgius Lamphen... If he can uncover the true nature of that pearl. I should also consider providing prisoners for my clones."

The power of the Shadow Pearl.

Joshua obtained it in the Runcandel clan's mausoleum.

It was during his early days as a cadet, on a day when he was as distracted as ever, losing to Luna as usual.

Instead of cursing himself locked in his room as usual, Joshua headed to the clan's mausoleum.

Even now, he couldn't remember why he suddenly went to the mausoleum. It was as if fate guided him or something possessed him.

And in the deepest part of the mausoleum.

In the empty tomb where the first patriarch, Temar, should have rested, he found the Shadow Energy Pearl.

"When I touched the power of the Shadow Pearl, the voice of that dog-like creature started to resonate."

The dog-like creature, the Prophet.

At first, it only existed as a voice. A voice that comforted young Joshua and offered him advice.

As Joshua grew, the voice took on tangible form.

It started as a nebulous apparition, like a ghost, and roughly when he became a Flagbearer, it transformed into the clear image of a woman, just as it is now.

"But the Prophet doesn't know that it awakened inside that pearl. She doesn't even know that I have the pearl."

Even in the days when Joshua fully trusted the Prophet, he never told her about the pearl.

It was his inherent instinct.

Even as a child, Joshua instinctively felt that the power of the Shadow Pearl could serve as a safety mechanism.

In other words, he thought it might be useful if the Prophet ever betrayed him for some reason.

"Nowadays, considering the Prophet's attitude, I have a feeling she could betray me at any moment. Either I deal with her as soon as I become Patriarch or I secure a means to control her before that, I have to choose one of the two options."

Joshua still clung to that old intuition about the power of the Shadow Pearl.

That's why, casually, or perhaps inevitably, he entrusted Lamphen, the demon, to figure out its purpose.

"I'll take my leave now, my lord."

As the Guardian Knight finished the report and saluted, preparing to leave, someone rushed in, urgently calling for Joshua.

"My lord!"

It was one of the hunting dogs that entered the room and bowed his head.

"What's going on?"

"The abandoned forest villa... was assaulted."

"What did you say?"

"Unfortunately, it happened precisely as we were heading to the eastern part of Ekan, based on the information we received from the demon."

Joshua suppressed the curse that rose in his throat.

The Guardian Knight who was about to depart also looked at the hunting dog, startled.

"...What is the extent of the damage?"

"The Thunder Dragon that was captured and the demon disappeared. And the two remaining individuals were found dead..."

The hunting dog couldn't ascertain for certain whether the demon was killed or simply vanished.

There were no traces left since there were no remains of the demon in the secret underground facilities of the abandoned mansion.

"We tried to track them, but they are exceptional. There are no traces. It's frustrating."

Phew!

Joshua took a deep breath.

In the end, he had no choice but to rely on the Prophet once again.

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