CHAPTER 180

In a city shrouded in fog, there were three men cutting through the fog.

Leading the way was a swordsman, followed by the divinity and the mystery.

Though they differed in age, race, and origin, their destination was the same.

Towards the upside-down tree floating in the center of the city.

"We'll be there soon!"

Pierre's baton trembled as they approached the square.

The heretical inquisitor's baton, which rejects evil beings, already displayed fierce anger towards those present in the square.

"First, let's deal with the tree... Urgh!"

But as the group neared the square, the haunting melodies echoing through the fog became clearer.

"Ughhh..."

Nibelun was the first to falter.

Followed by Vlad, whose keen ears picked up the eerie tunes filling the air.

'What a damn song!'

A sound that shakes the soul.

Though the voice was clear and captivating, the sorrow and anger woven into the rhythm dredged up remnants buried deep within the heart.

".....This won't do!"

Priests who follow the will of the same God but walk different paths.

Pierre, the heretical inquisitor and exorcist, realizing he had no suitable response to the song, swiftly aimed his baton at Vlad and Nibelun.

"One strike should do it."

Yet, just as he was about to strike, a faint melody reached him from behind Vlad.

-Truly beautiful. The rising morning sun…

"Hmm?"

Only now did the young deacon, gathering all his strength, begin to sing with all his might.

While outright resistance was impossible, Jean's best effort in his song could at least offer some protection to the group.

-The distant blue peaks. My father's craftsmanship is truly profound.

A woman's song, eerie yet evidently based on hymns.

Jean wove his voice into the melody, rescuing the group from the evil curse.

"...I should have raised a deacon myself."

As Jean's song began, the hands of Vlad and Nibelun, which had been covering their ears, began to lower.

Their minds begin to become clearer as their emotions slowly subsides.

Earlier, it was Vlad's sword that led them, but this time, it was the divinity of young deacon Jean that watched over them.

※※※※

"Ugh!"

Even now, the false hymn continued to echo in the ears of the Holy Knights.

Some had even resorted to bursting their own eardrums, yet her voice reached not their ears but their souls.

The woman, who remained aloft, watched the agonized knights with a smirk.

'We're completely blocked off!'

Warm blood trickled from Günter's tightly shut lips.

He was caught in a dilemma where neither advancement nor retreat seemed viable.

They have always shown great power when it comes to evil beings, but this time they were completely thwarted by the opposing forces.

"...Listen well, everyone."

The Holy Knights huddled within a dense formation using themselves as walls.

But they knew that remaining like this would only lead to certain death.

Before the moment when he would have no choice, Günter decided to struggle with all his might.

"I'll strike with all my might. Gather the threads of divine power and connect them to me."

"But, Captain!"

"If someone must do it now, it's me."

The surrounding knights understood what Günter intended to do, and his resolve was already firm.

If one cannot avoid destruction, then choosing the lesser evil is the mark of a true leader.

"Let at least one survive to tell the tale."

If sacrifice cannot be avoided, then I shall make it.

Slowly raising his sword, Günter brought it close to his forehead, where the stigmata was etched.

As he sought to make himself a symbol of the church, the Holy Knights bowed their heads in resignation.

"...Yes, that's the only way."

And far away, the woman observing Günter.

As she watched his stance, she began to gather the headless knights, as if she had expected his actions.

"But even if you approach Him, He won't give you any response."

She knew well that when all paths were blocked, humans ultimately had no choice but to seek the grace of God.

But she knew from experience.

The will of God was too distant to approach easily, and as unforgiving as the grudges it held.

She was someone who understood this fact more deeply than anyone else in this world.

-Saint Rogino, the commander of the heavenly army.

In accordance with Günter's prayer, the swords of the Holy Knights were each pointed at one another.

-I believe you will guide me to the path of glory to Him.

And the divinity conveyed through the swords, each containing the divine world rather than their own.

Their divinity, flowing through the swords without any hindrance, began to coalesce into a radiant light at the tip of Günter's sword.

-I dedicate myself. Through me. To infinite glory.

The first step towards God through sacrifice. Ain Soph.

The divinity created by the Holy Knights became a shining staircase and sent Günter next to the commander of the heavenly army.

-Now...!

Günter, seeking to ascend beyond the confines of the flesh to the higher realm.

He was planning to burn the evil beings with the light that would stay on the ground for a very short time.

-Huh?

In an instant, his eyes caught sight of a twinkling star.

Although it was shaking precariously in the pitch-black night sky, it was clearly a star shining brightly.

"I can't bear it anymore! The three of you are too heavy!"

"But we have to go on, what else can we do!"

There were three men swaying on the carpet.

Pierre, who is completely white, and Nibelun, who is struggling to move around while clutching the carpet.

Unlike the carpet used in the prison, it was much larger and more colorful and was gradually approaching the tree floating in the air.

Straight up into the sky.

"...If I fall here, I'll still reach it."

Seeing the writhing tree beneath his feet, Vlad resolved himself, starting to breathe quietly as if confirming his decision.

A golden light began to emanate from Vlad's left eye as he looked down at the inverted tree.

"Here I go!"

"Damn it all!"

Pierre, keeping his eyes tightly shut to avoid looking down, began to murmur a small prayer.

From Pierre to Nibelun, and then back to Vlad.

Three worlds that seemed impossible to overlap began to slowly lean towards each other once again.

[What is the trick to a one-hit kill?]

"Unexpectedness."

[What about suppressing it?]

Vlad answered quietly in response to the voice's question.

The more he recalled his teachings from deep within, the thicker Vlad's golden light became.

"Gloriously."

[Good.]

Vlad, who had taken over the light of divinity and mystery, stepped out of the carpet.

A single starlight began to fall as there was nowhere else to reach.

It didn't start from a great height, but it was undoubtedly a beam of light cutting through the pitch-black night sky.

"No!"

A dazzling golden light that seemed to catch anyone's gaze.

Although the woman below shouted in confusion, Nibelun's mystery had already deceived her eyes and sent the single starlight beneath the ground.

"Hmph!"

Vlad fell because he had no wings, but he was the only one who picked up the tip of the falling sword.

It started as a small spark, but when it met, it became a massive burst of light.

The meeting of worlds was sometimes the beginning of a great struggle.

"What in the world! Why are they doing this!"

Vlad's triangular pyramid, sharpened by anger, fell towards the writhing tendrils of the tree.

Divinity, mystery, and the world of the sword converged on the triangular pyramid.

And at the very base of it was a world of pure white, more righteous than any other.

"Did you kill them, you bastard!"

Because it is sharp, it cannot be stopped, and because it is righteous, it cannot be rejected.

Graaaaah!

Deaaaaaath!

From where the knight's sword pierced, a massive wave of fog began to surge forth.

It was a huge wave, so powerful that it seemed as though the bell in the adjacent bell tower might shatter.

Where there's a will, there's a way.

Vlad's sword, finding a way instead of dwelling on what couldn't be done, pierced through the woman's fog and plunged into the heart of the upside-down tree.

※※※※

-Let's turn, let's turn.

-Let's go around the matches.

-Huh? What is that?

Vlad, slowly descending, saw the black children circling around the tree below.

The children, who had been circling around the tree, started to tilt their heads as they saw Vlad descending through the sticky darkness.

"Are we in another dream?"

[No, this is the world of the tree.]

This time, it was not Jean's dream but the world within the tree.

Quijano was indicating that Vlad had reached the source of the curse.

"What do I do now?"

[You must cut it down. That creature.]

There were children below, circling around with nowhere to go.

As Vlad descended, the children raised their hands as if the brightness of his presence dazzled them.

However, their gaze was solely focused on Vlad, shining brightly.

"If I cut down the tree? What about the children?"

[······They'll be cut along with it.]

Vlad had a reason for asking Quijano about the children.

The branches of the tree were entwined around the ankles of the children.

Unfortunately, the children's souls were already tightly bound to the branches of the tree.

It was a curse so powerful that they couldn't escape it.

[If you don't cut it here, the curse will continue to spread. You wouldn't want to turn the entire north into this, would you?]

"······"

Vlad's sword trembled slightly at Quijano's words, suggesting that even the children had to be cut down.

"Is there no other way?"

[······Ha.]

Quijano's sigh was deep, but Vlad was not hesitating out of mere sense of justice.

"I didn't come all the way here for this."

[······Yes. You're right.]

Vlad was someone invited to dreams that only children could have.

Vlad, who could still be a boy because he dreams of becoming something, wanted to portray another possibility instead of the harsh reality.

[Then this is the final lesson.]

If that's the case, then it must be taught.

Even if it meant walking a difficult path without bending.

[I am an existence that encompasses a world. A precious potential that cannot be replaced by anyone.]

The world begins with me.

Starting with knowing who I am.

[The sword is equivalent to the brush. The various colors painted with a swing become a tool to express the person you are.]

The starting line of the world is from the sword.

The beginning of a knight is announcing that their world is here through the sword.

"Ugh!"

Vlad, avoiding the writhing tentacles, slowly began to thrust the sword towards the upside-down tree.

From the moment the sword touched, the tortured screams of the tree began to echo loudly.

[And if you have been painting your colors so far, now is the time to complete it.]

If you've created a canvas through dots and lines, now is the time to paint it with your own colors.

If you can bring out the world you've drawn, your own world can become one that everyone recognizes.

[A person who can complete their own world on top of the world. That person is called the Sword Master.]

"······!"

The words were teachings, but the feeling was guidance.

Following Quijano's words, Vlad began to forcefully twist the sword handle inserted into the tree.

To straighten out a world that has been turned upside down.

"Ahhhhh!"

Geaaaaaa-!

The children, burning themselves in this dark and murky world, were pitiful.

Even though Vlad may not be able to revive them, guiding these children in the right direction is the world he is creating.

Wooodddddck!

As Vlad twisted the sword, the deeply embedded branches began to emerge.

The roots that soared into the sky began to sink.

"Aaaahhh!"

Vlad's movements, trying to overturn the world through the inserted sword, were evident.

It was the knight's struggle to scratch away the pitch-black world painted by the woman and reclaim its original color.

※※※※

Crumbling!

Slowly, the darkness was lifting from the sky above the Mosiam, which was once pitch black.

And what emerged above was the rainy clouds that should have been there originally.

"What in the world..."

Günter, enveloped in divine light, was the most radiant figure here, but now he was not the one shining the brightest.

"No!"

As the rain poured down heavily, the fog was being washed away.

And from beneath the falling rain, a tree was slowly moving.

"Give me back my children!"

"Now's the time! Everyone, charge!"

The woman was in a hurry to point out the beast, but now the Holy Knights, who had finally seized the opportunity, were jumping in.

Günter's entire body was shining with holy power, as if he had never been so close to the sky before.

The roots went down to the ground, and the branches reached up to the sky.

Everyone was returning to where they should have been originally.

Following the slowly tilting tree, they finally started to hear the laughter of children heading towards the sky.

"······Dragon. Vlad."

Vlad's world was being painted over the pitch-black picture drawn by the woman.

The realization of the status.

A tree that Vlad had drawn began to slowly fall to the ground of Mosiam.

It was a picture so splendid, with a golden color more brilliant than anyone else's, that even a distant white-haired man could recognize it.

[······Well then, shall we?]

And the greatest trace that occurred within that picture.

[Since all the children have fallen asleep, shall we adults have a talk now?]

Although the sword he held was the World Tree's sword, what was drawn was a silver sword.

Vlad was now asleep with his strength drained, and someone else had risen in his place, smiling.

In the sky he had drawn instead of Vlad, suddenly white lightning was striking down.

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