Chapter 212
Plop.
A gentle sound of water echoed.
I cast my fishing line, sat in my chair, and watched the flowing river.
The rippling water reflected the sunlight during the day and the moonlight at night. While Demetri gathered his resolve, I simply cast my fishing line and stared at the river for days on end.
It wasn't particularly meaningful. It was also because I had nothing else to do while waiting for him.
The day I dyed the Holy Armor as my own and incurred the wrath of the gods.
I was merely drifting aimlessly in the water like a baitless fishhook.
It was a kind of wandering.
From the moment I first set foot here, my goal was clear, my strides were progressive, and I endlessly cultivated my power.
No matter what situation I reached, I knew exactly where to go.
This was because I was the one who designed and created this continent.
However, at this very moment.
When an event I had never created loomed before my eyes, I lost my way.
Suppressed doubts swirled in my mind, and a hollowness crawling up from the depths prickled across my entire body.
Challenger. God. The Fallen and the Dragon.
The continent's public enemy. And Carpe.
The gods delivered an oracle, and from that, I became the continent's public enemy.
Carpe, where I had belonged, naturally fell into crisis, and unable to leave them be, I was leaking my location.
Amidst all that, the former Pope of the Hook—Mumen.
I met Demetri and was requested to help with the creation of a holy relic.
[Are you worried?]
"A little."
Rolling my eyes, I saw the Commander of the Ashen Legion.
A female knight exuding black iron armor and an ashen aura from head to toe.
Niol was by my side.
[It will be fine.]
"Why do you think so?"
[Carpe is strong. If they were weak, they would have perished long ago. Besides, your companions are there too, are they not?]
Companions.
She must be referring to the many connections including the Saintess.
"Come to think of it, I left without even greeting the Golden Lion."
Xenos had said that the Golden Lion wanted to see me since he couldn't cross the wall.
I left without even meeting him because of Rebecca.
'Rebecca...'
The Principality's princess, Rebecca.
Even her becoming Fallen was something not in my plans.
Fallen, huh.
Rebecca, who fell through Beria's scheme.
I reached into my subspace and took out the necklace where she was sealed.
[It's been 6 days, 3 hours, and 13 minutes!]
I immediately wanted to put her back in, but held back.
"Rebecca."
[Yes! I am Lord Callius's loyal holy slave! Rebecca!]
She must have lost her mind during that time. Seeing her spout nonsense.
'No, her mind was originally gone.'
That's not important though.
"When you fell. You must have seen a god. I want to know about that time."
The reason I took Rebecca out was to confirm something.
Originally, it was self-evident that getting entangled with gods should be avoided.
The gods here are not benevolent.
What they want are only strong weapons.
Such gods reacted to my power.
They even delivered an oracle telling them to kill me.
Therefore, to avoid dying, I had to prepare defenses, and it was right to know even a little about them. I needed to compare it with what I knew and check if my existing knowledge had any utility value.
[Oh my, it was a secret tryst between the god and me, but you want to know about it? Master, you had that kind of taste! You want to hear about the secret indulgence time between me and the god, right?]
Should I break it.
"Niol, do you know how to break the necklace?"
[I'm sorry, but I don't know. How about just throwing it into the river? If it sinks to the bottom, it will be stuck there for at least hundreds of years.]
"That's a good method."
[I, I'll tell you!]
"What conversation did you have with the god?"
Rebecca panted as if moaning, then answered.
[After my heart was pierced by my mother, my body was stretched and twisted as if sucked into something. And when I came to my senses, I was in front of a giant mace.]
Mother. And a mace.
There were many things that grated on me, but I listened quietly. Because she would be annoying if I made her spout nonsense.
[The mace was so huge that at first, I didn't even think it was a mace. I just thought it was a giant wall. But after a while, I realized it was a mace. It was a fascinating sensation. And humiliating.]
"Humiliating?"
[Because I could tell that if that giant mace fell on my head even once, I would simply cease to exist. I couldn't even bring myself to step away or lift my head.]
And then.
[And then... I heard a sigh.]
"A sigh?"
Does that mean the god sighed?
[And then I fell right away. I plummeted and plummeted. My clothes burned, my skin tore, my bones were exposed and entirely scraped and shattered. And the moment I felt I hit the bottom—]
I was reborn through the Fall.
That was what she meant.
"You couldn't even exchange a single word."
[Isn't just facing a god amazing enough?]
I immediately hooked Rebecca onto the fishhook and threw her into the river.
[Hey, that's not what you promised!!]
"I never promised anything."
Watching Rebecca disappear into the water with a gurgle refreshed my mind.
[Did you get the answer you were hoping for?]
"No different from what I expected."
However, that brought me a little peace of mind. I always did.
If it was the same, I was relieved; if it was different, I was anxious.
"I didn't think Rebecca would know anything in the first place. She just got lucky and fell."
It was impossible to extract information about a god from someone like Rebecca.
I didn't expect it from the start anyway.
"The promised seven days are already coming to an end."
[It's the time when Demetri's meditation will end.]
"Or maybe he's already making the holy relic."
[Are you planning to leave him be?]
Niol's voice was quite murky.
She was quite negative about Demetri.
"You seem to really dislike him."
[He blabbers about making the holy relic specifically for you, but you also know that's not true, my lord.]
"Well, that's true."
Demetri had said.
For his own desire.
To create a holy relic that no one had ever made, for an achievement that would last forever.
He declared he would make a scabbard for me, who was certain to leave a mark in history one way or another.
But that was only a superficial reason.
Demetri's true intentions were a bit different.
'God.'
The bastard was making a scabbard.
It would contain a little of my power.
By doing so, he aimed to create the first scabbard and become a god.
[It is his intention to preempt and steal an achievement that you, my lord, could also accomplish. If he succeeds, he might truly become a god.]
"Those who created the first weapons became gods. Do you know the reason?"
[I do not.]
It was natural not to know.
No one knew what became of those who created the first weapons.
They merely speculated that they became gods.
"Weapons aren't necessarily made by warriors. Could a mere farmer become a god just by making a hoe?"
[That is... not a weapon, is it?]
"Then is it truly a weapon?"
[.......]
Looking at Niol unable to answer readily, I summoned Garcia.
A Commander holding a shield in one hand and a spear in the other.
Garcia.
And the Commander Niol, holding a sword.
They were Ashen Knights with enough skill to face even a Master.
So I didn't need to worry about them.
"Gray Traitor."
Before I knew it, dozens of paladins had stationed themselves around the ferry.
There were those who escorted Demetri mixed in, but there were also the scythe, the mace, and the spear I had encountered nearby once before.
"Lord Demetri has permitted you, but we cannot."
"To borrow the traitor's power to create a holy relic, God will be furious."
"You are the one who will become a massive stain on the great future of Mumen. As the oracle dictates, we will bring divine punishment upon you."
Mumen, the nation of the Hook.
Unlike the former Pope, Demetri.
The current Pope seemed to have different ideas.
Otherwise, they wouldn't be saying such things right in front of the cave where Demetri was.
However, contrary to their majestic attitude, Callius still had his back turned to them.
Without even glancing at the paladins surrounding the ferry, Callius replied.
"So you brought those trash."
"Trash?!"
"An ugly bastard who incurred the wrath of the gods talks too much!!"
"Brothers! There's no good in mixing any more words. Let us bring divine punishment in the name of God!"
"Even if we die today, the names of the heroes will be widely known in history!"
"Uwaaaaaah!"
But then.
*Ting.*
The tune changed.
The harp sound, which had flowed leisurely like a calm river, suddenly changed to a sound ringing in the middle of a passionate battlefield.
Just listening to it made my heart pound and my blood feel like it was surging backward.
[My lord...!!]
[My body won't... move.]
The Commanders noticed it faster than those fools.
"Ugh! My body won't move!"
"P-power...!"
*Rattle, rattle!*
At the touch of the Fallen, who played the harp as if swimming through it, the paladins couldn't even move a single finger.
*Creak, creak.*
At least the Commanders tried to move, enduring their bodies being crushed, but even that was not enough.
The more they listened to the performance, the more severe their bodies freezing became.
"You cowardly witch!!"
*Ting.*
Suddenly, the performance stopped.
[You're noisy.]
Then, as she plucked a string of the harp.
With a *twang*, the harp string shot out and pierced a paladin's head.
"Kek!"
"Kugh!"
"Keok!"
Like a single spear. Or moving like a snake, it pierced the heads of all the paladins positioned nearby.
All forty-odd paladins in a single moment.
As if the string itself were alive, it pierced all their heads before returning to the harp and settling down.
*Thud.*
Along with a dull harp sound.
All the paladins stationed at the ferry collapsed.
*Thump.*
*Creak.*
The boat stopped at the ferry, and the Fallen who played the harp stepped onto the ferry.
[Nice to meet you. Gray Traitor.]
"I'm not particularly glad to meet you. What's your business?"
[Our side needs you... so I'd like you to come with me. I have no choice since it's an order too.]
"Sounds like you'll take me by force if I don't go willingly."
[There's no need to use force. If you listen to my performance, you won't be able to move for a while. Unless I allow it. Your knights can't move either, right?]
*Crack, creak.* Niol and Garcia's bodies trembled. The sound of something bursting inside them could be heard continuously.
Their effort to move even at the cost of injuring themselves was visible.
[What will you do? If you come without a word, I'll release you. Or should I just carry you away in my arms like this?]
The Fallen, approaching with a bewitching gait as if dragging her feet, reached out her hand from the shoulder to the chin of Callius, who was sitting.
"Are all you Fallen like this?"
[That's not it, but... we're a bit in a hurry too. Even if it's not me, others will come looking for you. You've become an indispensable existence to us.]
An indispensable existence, huh.
"Interesting."
[Your story is quite famous on our side. A strong one who subjugated the Weeping Fallen and the Undying Fallen. And yet, a forsaken knight who even incurred the wrath of the gods.]
Callius frowned at the Fallen's voice, clinging to him like sticky mucus.
"Who are you?"
[I am the Constricting Fallen. My name is Zellalin. Please call me Zella.]
The Constricting Fallen.
Callius nodded as if he had expected it, stood up from his seat, and instantly grabbed Zellalin by the neck.
*Crack.*
[Kek! H-how is your body...]
"It doesn't work on me because I'm someone who receives all the love of bards."
A unique and only talent.
*Bard's Blessing* was still valid, after all.
Attacks using instruments and the like did not work on Callius.
*Blaze.*
The sword made by killing the fire dragon, taken out at some point.
Doyumgeom - Erbiwe.
That spewed blue flames.
Instantly, a wall of blue blazing fire surged up around the ferry.
"Even if I kill you, the Fallen will flock here anyway. Isn't that right?"
[T-That's right. So there's no point in k-killing me, so could you just...]
"Since more will come anyway, it doesn't matter."
Why the Fallen want me.
"I'll just ask the next guy."