Chapter 143
‘Fallen? Me?’
Nonsense.
It is a demon’s temptation.
A sophistry born of vulgar malice.
I cannot acknowledge it.
I must not acknowledge it.
That I have fallen.
That I am the same as the monster before my eyes?
It was absolute drivel.
"Nonsense."
[Anyone can fall. You humans. Even those lofty dragons. And even gods.]
Everyone falls.
Falling is equal.
It is done by one's own will.
Or through the interference of others.
[Those whose goal was to end the war, what is it you desire now? You who desired peace, what were you crying out for?]
"……."
The war eventually reached its end.
The end of a war built upon the corpses of countless dragons, demons, and humans.
It was no one's victory.
And no one's defeat.
All that remained was countless death and destruction.
Amidst it all, Titeo cried out.
For vengeance.
Against the dragons and demons who started this war.
Against those who brought us suffering.
A cold, yet burning vengeance.
[You rose up to end the war, but are you not now trying to start one?]
If so, then that...
[If not corruption, what is it?]
Titeo's breath caught.
But the demon's tongue did not end there.
[And would they know? Even though they sacrificed their lives to protect you, you actually desired death. How truly ironic.]
"No…."
Titeo shook his head.
But the demon calmly opened its mouth.
[You fell long ago. You simply haven't realized it yet.]
"No."
[You say you want to die but cannot? That is the real nonsense. You could just end your own life, so why? Because of humans' vulgar concepts? To prove your own worth? That is your kind's trait. Trying to assign meaning to death.]
Ironically, however, that is what prolongs their lives.
From the demon's perspective, Titeo was no different.
[Your corruption sickens those around you and claims their lives. Funnily enough, you will weep in sorrow. If this is not complete corruption, nor making a mockery of their deaths, then what is!]
Realize it. Perceive it. Acknowledge it.
[O sorrowful corruption.]
Titeo stumbled backward.
His facial muscles moved irregularly.
He twitched as if having a spasm.
He could not refute it.
‘Corruption.’
Have I already fallen?
The will to end the war with a noble spirit was nowhere to be found.
All that remained for him was peace in death and vengeance for his comrades.
But an unbridgeable gap prolonged his life and brought death to those around him.
If this was not corruption, then what was?
The right to mourn their deaths.
‘Do I even have it?’
The hands that had raised the sword and shield quietly dropped.
There was no strength in the hand gripping the sword.
His mouth gradually opened.
From his parted lips, a cracked voice leaked out like a groan.
Thud.
His knees drove into the ground.
The tears flowing down his cheeks dried up.
Blood flowed from his dry eyes.
Tears of blood streamed down his cheeks.
[You have the right to grieve. If not you, who else would mourn the deaths of your comrades that you brought about?]
Heh heh.
The malice hidden within the vulgar laugh softly illuminated Titeo.
[Grieve. Corruption is not a sin. Even gods fall. Let alone humans, how could they not fall? Corruption is equal to all things. Think carefully about what made you fall.]
What created the corruption.
The reason he fell.
[You have already fallen.]
Its voice kept echoing in his ears. For some reason.
Titeo could not deny it.
He should have denied it.
Not denying it would only prove that his comrades' deaths were in vain.
But he couldn't.
He could not do it.
The deaths of those who saved him.
Titeo had rendered worse than a dog's.
"Aaah…."
Guilt rushing in like a tide.
Contempt and loathing for himself.
Its culmination, for some reason, was directed toward the vast earth and the clear sky.
"Why do you inflict such trials upon me!! What did I do so wrong! Why!! Why! To me…!"
I only fought.
Just to save the people.
Even a little. To save even one more person.
That is why I took up the sword.
That is why I stepped forward with my comrades.
But since when.
My footsteps were for death.
My sword was for my own satisfaction.
I recognize it was wrong.
But I did not want to admit it.
I had to deny it.
「Even if it was the truth」
Titeo wept and grasped his sword.
He soon tied the shield's strap tighter around his severed wrist.
And thus, he made a resolution.
He did not want to make their deaths in vain.
This was atonement and a desperate resolve.
Even if dragons trampled him, even if demons mocked him, he would seek an honorable death.
To give value to his comrades' deaths, he would find his own honor.
"I will end this war."
He had fallen, but he was honorable.
He knew the value of life.
His resolve reached the heavens, and even after years of war, he grew and made a name for himself.
A knight who transcended humanity, slew dragons, vanquished demons, knew right from wrong, and found vengeance for his comrades and his own worth.
That was Titeo.
He was a knight, and someone's hero.
* * *
Kuuuuuu.
The door opened before Kalias, who had just opened his eyes.
It was the door leading to the 4th floor. He did not think deeply about what he had just seen.
He immediately stepped down.
4th floor.
Like the 3rd floor, it was a door engraved with intaglios depicting even more of the demons' cruelty.
He immediately opened the door.
"As expected."
As soon as he opened the door, a viscous demonic aura poured out.
Demonic energy flooded out as if it were seawater filling the room.
The 4th floor was the same as before.
There were Death Knights.
Five in total.
And about ten individuals who looked like demonkind were standing.
[For what did you take up the sword?]
[For what do you march forward?]
[What is corruption to you?]
The demonkind questioned him.
They were demonkind with gray skin and black and red glowing eyes.
Their questions touched the roots of humanity and shook its very foundation.
[You have already fallen.]
[No different from us.]
[A fallen sword.]
It was not just drivel they were spouting. It was a voice imbued with meaningful magical power.
Mental-type sorcery.
It was the Voice of Corruption.
Even a highly skilled knight who had trained his body, if he answered their words even once, would fall into corruption.
He would lose his sword.
His goal would waver, his resolve would shatter, he would lose his direction and wander endlessly.
However.
[Mental attack resisted.]
It had little effect on Kalias.
Even as the demonkind spat out their words one by one, Kalias strode forward with long steps.
The demonkind standing on either side, and the Death Knights standing in the center.
The one in the center held a sword in a reverse grip, resting it on the ground, while the others held swords, shields, spears, and such.
The aura they emitted placed a meaningful pressure on the entire 4th floor.
The Death Knights' red glowing eyes looked down at Kalias.
[What dwells within your sword?]
The voice was small.
It was a voice that hummed and echoed in his mind.
Unlike before, Kalias could not let it slide.
Unlike the guys chattering beside him.
Because a heart was imbued within the Death Knight's words.
It was not a crude sorcery.
It was a knight's question.
"……."
What dwells within your sword?
Kalias could not easily answer that question.
Originally, that was the very reason for this journey. What to put into his sword.
It was also to make his sword clearer and more distinct.
Thus, he pondered for a moment.
[Honor?]
[Wealth?]
[Comrades?]
[Yourself?]
If not that.
[God?]
Clank. Clack.
The Death Knights split left and right.
A single knight appeared between them.
A Death Knight wielding a spear and shield.
[Titeo's sword was imbued with the deaths of his comrades.]
The Death Knight speaks.
His words held will.
Knowing that his soul could not leave his dead body, he stood blocking Kalias with his own will.
The momentum felt from his voice.
His presence was extraordinary.
[He denied the demon's temptation and became a knight.]
It was undoubtedly corruption.
What else could we call an old hero who sought to prevent war but started one himself, other than fallen?
That is why everyone called him a demon.
The whole world called him evil and sought to kill him.
Sought to stop him.
They sought to shatter the conviction imbued in his sword, his twisted obsession.
They criticized and condemned him, and ultimately, they broke his sword.
However, there were certainly those who could not call him evil.
His anger. His sorrow.
Those who watched his struggles.
Those who fell while protecting Titeo.
However, their souls remained, and those who were by his side could not condemn Titeo's actions.
Because they knew Titeo was truly shedding tears for them.
Even if the color of his sorrowful tears was stained with corruption, they knew the heart contained within was no different from before.
They remained by his side.
To reclaim his honor.
For the one who would deliver the honor he would find.
And so, they asked again.
What dwells within your sword? What is contained within it?
Looking at them.
Kalias thought.
‘There is no such thing as a perfect strategy here like on the 2nd floor.’
There is no weakness like Vlad's, who couldn't break the shield.
The demonkind will dig into Kalias's sore spots with their three-inch tongues, and the skeleton knights who died because of Titeo were demanding proof from him.
Titeo, who had possessed an incomplete conviction.
Paradoxically, he despaired from the demon's whispers, but rather ended up completing an unwavering conviction.
‘But he fell.’
The flashback scenes shown so far indicated that his conviction was completed, allowing him to break through the wall.
But what was the result?
He fell.
Therefore, they ask.
Even with such resolve and determination, Titeo despaired once more and wept in sorrow.
Yet, someone like you.
Could you be any different?
They were asking if he could overcome it.
And so, Kalias answered.
"There is nothing imbued in my sword."
Ecstasy filled the faces of the demonkind.
The glowing eyes of the Death Knights wavered.
"Because of that, anything can dwell within it."
Whether it be humanity, dragons, or evil.
Or.
Gods.
"I am a pilgrim."
A pilgrim is one who embarks on a pilgrimage.
Or one who seeks their own sword.
And.
"I am one who seeks my own path."
It was said that fools wander the path, but the wise embark on a journey.
I am embarking on a journey.
There is no wandering on my path.
For the end of the journey will head toward the end of the story.
The pilgrimage is the act of filling my vessel.
Therefore, there is nothing imbued in my sword.
Because I am still searching, because I am still filling it.
Therefore, I can become anything.
[At the end of humanity there are gods, at the end of dragons there are gods, and at the end of corruption there are gods, but at the end of gods there is only corruption.]
[Are you facing that directly?]
Kalias nodded.
[Does your path head toward the end?]
"It does."
There is no hesitation.
For my desire is but one.
[What lies at that end?]
Kalias pulled up the corners of his mouth.
I am a pilgrim.
A pilgrim's end is but one.
"My sword is there."
Finding one's own sword.
That is the meaning of the pilgrimage.
And the reason the stepping feet do not break.
Huuuuung!!
The momentum of those standing on the 4th floor changed.
A gale blows.
[Prove it.]
The knight's spear pointed toward Kalias.
Right behind him, the sword and shield.
And finally, the mace and axe stood.
Kuuung!!!!
The atmosphere shook at their stomping.
His skin grew numb at their iron-wall-like momentum.
But a challenger originally.
Is one who proves.
Kalias had to prove himself.
He had to make them understand with his sword.
[In your sword that has nothing.]
[That Titeo's will can dwell within it.]
Prove it.