Chapter 5

[Translator – Prøks][Proofreader – Prøks]

Chapter 5

“From now on, let Weiss take care of Chichiron.”

Number Three of the Sein Family.

“Boss, but…”

“Whether it falls apart or gets snatched by others, it doesn’t matter. Do as you please.”

Sein was getting ready to leave.

“Take some weight off your shoulders, you’ll handle it just fine.”

The reason why Weiss, Number Three, was put in charge of the organization was simple.

Because Number Two, Darren, had decided to leave with Sein.

“Boss, come back anytime.”

The subordinates bidding farewell to Sein spoke with sincerity.

“What. Isn’t it better if I don’t come back?”

“What are you saying, Boss?”

Weiss, representing the group, spoke to Sein.

“In the back alleys of Chichiron, which is no different from a hellhole, Boss was a ray of light.”

“……”

“Still, thanks to the Boss, the ones crossing the line were somewhat quiet, weren’t they? Even the residents of the alleys were thankful for their safety.”

It was a time of hardship.

In reality, the environment given to Sein was the worst of the worst.

Chichiron was above all an equal place.

The problem was that the standard for this equality was based on strength.

Young and old alike were forced to kneel before the mighty and cry out in the alleys of Chichiron.

“We’ll be waiting while following the rules the Boss set. Please come back anytime, Boss.”

“That’s enough. It’s irritating.”

As Sein waved his hand, Weiss finally closed his mouth.

“Is that all you’re taking?”

Arin asked.

Although it was time to leave and prepare, all Sein had packed was a small bundle.

Even if Darren, a muscular fellow, carried most of the luggage, it was still a meager load.

“That’s all.”

But Sein seemed to have no regrets.

“This is Sein’s homeland, and yet, it’s not.”

All he needed to take were a few weapons and emergency tools.

“Darren, did you pack everything well?”

“Of course, Boss.”

Just a handful of coins scraped together from the alleys of Chichiron.

“Weiss, don’t let the kids go hungry. Deal with the thieves appropriately.”

“I’ll keep that in mind, Boss.”

After more than a decade of imprisonment, that was all he had.

A world painted with blood and filth.

A world tinted entirely in crimson for Sein.

“Boss!”

Windows in the alleys opened, and people shouted.

“Thank you for everything!”

Sein, at eighteen.

Though young, brought peace to the alleys of Chichiron.

“Ptuh! Don’t ever come back! You lunatic!”

Of course, that wasn’t the only thing.

“Weiss….”

“Yes, sir.”

“Deal with that bastard on your own time.”

“I’ll take care of it.”

And so, Sein left Chichiron, which was no different from his second home.

***

His steps were light and free.

“At last.”

Chichiron, trapped under the constraints of the tutorial.

It was a place where nothing pleased him, and each passing day felt like sinking deeper into a swamp.

So.

“Haha!”

Finally, he could be satisfied with escaping.

But even that moment of joy was short-lived.

“Indeed….”

A quiet soliloquy.

The rest went unspoken.

“Things have changed.”

Sein loved adventure more than anyone else.

The azure sky and beautiful land.

A world where nothing was not beautiful.

“It’s gloomy.”

The world he once knew was no more.

Even though the sun was still up, the world seemed dark, as if shrouded in mist.

“Chichiron may be rural, but it’s a domain.”

Arin explained.

“Since it was protected by barriers, is this your first time coming outside?”

“It is.”

A world of ash.

This is the current world.

‘Dark Sanctuary.’

A world that had lost its light, unlike the past when it was called the Sanctuary.

The once expansive territories of the continent had shrunk by nearly half, and even now, human domains were diminishing.

“It’s because of the fall of the ancient empire.”

The downfall of the ancient empire.

“The sacred light that once protected the continent disappeared, replaced by darkness.”

The great empire of Archipald, which once safeguarded the Sanctuary, had fallen.

No one else.

“It’s also because of the Ruiner.”

Because of their emperor.

“….”

It was a story heard.

Even though it was in the rural outskirts, it was not a story one would not hear.

The great empire of Archipald, which illuminated the Sanctuary, fell and perished due to the last emperor, also known as the Ruiner.

That’s it.

“Now it’s a story that’s been a hundred years.”

A story from a hundred years ago.

“The moment I opened my eyes as Sein of the alleys….”

Yes.

“A hundred years after I destroyed the empire.”

In the original Sanctuary, there wouldn’t have been such a time difference in past lives, but now it was a twisted world.

“Sein Demorus.”

Arin called Sein. Sᴇaʀᴄh the N0vᴇlFire(.)nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

“I’ve only set the destination for you.”

The destination is clear.

Demorus.

“The path and method to reach the destination are solely your decision and journey.”

Arin is Sein’s guardian.

“I’ll watch over that and confirm if you’re worthy.”

“I understand.”

“Even if your life is in danger, it’s best to think that I’ll intervene according to my judgment, and it’s practically better not to expect anything.”

The day Sein faced Arin.

“On that day, you exhausted all the help you could get from me.”

As a knight/commader-level mercenary, the aid received from him was the only help available to Arin.

“It doesn’t matter.”

“You’re confident. The current world is far more dangerous than Chichiron.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

Sein repeated the same words.

“If you can’t overcome even that, nothing will change.”

Sein’s clear goal.

It is to survive.

And to see the end.

The outcome of this world is unknown.

But Sein was convinced because he had seen the end of the world once.

‘The end exists.’

And reaching that end was the only path he had to follow.

“To achieve that, I must make the most of what I’ve been given.”

His final life.

“A life as the successor of the Dark Sanctuary.”

A life filled with failures.

The only success was tainted by wrongdoing.

It was a chance to erase all of that and start anew.

“So….”

Arin spoke with an odd tone.

“Is this really your first destination?”

A dying forest.

“Yes.”

Monsters lurked within it.

*

*

*

“Squeak… Squeak.”

A faint cry echoed.

“Squeak.”

It was like they were communicating with each other through the cries.

They were hiding behind the dead trees, using them as cover.

Holding rusty spears, covered in mud.

“Peekaboo.”

It was a goblin, one of the lowest-ranking monsters in the Sanctuary.

The goblin was startled by the sudden noise and tried to thrust its rusty spear, but it was too late.

Swish!

A sharp dagger had already pierced through the goblin’s neck.

“Kikik!”

Another goblin, sensing the attack, shouted a warning, but it was also too late.

Swish!

Sein, who had approached unnoticed, plunged his dagger into its chest.

Around Sein, there were corpses of goblins strewn everywhere.

“It’s not as bad as I thought.”

The continent was engulfed in darkness, and the decrease in human territories was largely attributed to the influence of monsters.

In the past Sanctuary, the number of monster entities was extremely low, but after the darkness came, the number of monsters surged, and their level increased.

“No, it’s definitely different.”

Sein’s experience with monsters was limited to the corpses brought by mercenaries.

Encountering newly transformed monsters was a first for him.

“Kikik!”

A goblin, using a companion’s corpse as a cover, rushed towards Sein from behind.

“Seems they’ve become more cunning and stronger.”

Sein instinctively turned around and plunged his dagger into its throat.

The goblins’ coordinated actions were something usually seen in special events, especially using a companion’s corpse as a shield.

Coating rusted spears with poison or similar tactics were unheard of in the past.

“It seems somewhat organized now.”

A game turned into reality.

All of it had an unprecedented realism compared to the past.

“Schwack!”

“One left.”

Sein was surprisingly adept, despite facing monsters instead of humans, having spilled countless amounts of blood.

“Chyaaa!”

Writhing in the spear, soaked in crimson.

“It’s broken.”

He could adapt to all of this remarkably well.

At the sound of Arin’s voice, Sein turned his head.

“If it’s a sword, it’s still usable.”

It was a dagger he crafted himself, gathering the best materials available in the alleys, so he knew it well.

“It’s not a sword….”

Arin, looking straight at Sein.

But she didn’t finish her sentence.

“How long are you going to keep killing monsters?”

“Experiencing real combat is the best way to learn, isn’t it?”

“Humans have their limits, and you can’t just kill them indiscriminately.”

“…”

That was the reason Sein spat out to Arin.

Thud.

But there was a real reason behind it.

Swish!

Sein, starting the hunt again, moved relentlessly as if he would exterminate the goblins in the forest.

Even though they were low-level monsters, it might be challenging for beginners, but Sein was already living his fourth life.

And he could use Aura even before awakening.

Swish!

Goblins.

Even if they had become stronger, it was nothing compared to him.

‘It’s working.’

Furthermore, Sein was confirming.

His third past life.

-The Crown Prince of the Empire.

The life special privilege of the Crown Prince of the Empire.

A life special privilege was a very special ability given along with life.

It was a power like the roots supporting life, the foundation of life.

For the rightful successor of the ancient empire, Archipald.

Thump!

Dragon’s blood flowed.

As he awakened his magic, his pupils dilated like those of a lizard.

Within them.

Pah-aat!

Sein gained explosive power and slaughtered goblins.

“A hundred.”

Finally, when he slaughtered a hundred goblins, Sein’s world began to change.

A dark and mysterious universe.

“Stellar Beacon”

It was the second time he found the Stellar Beacon.

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]