Children of the Holy Emperor - Chapter 428



Only Noblemtl

428. The Immortal Secretary (1)

‘How about the one who is prepared?’

Giacomo Milo was literally out of his mind.

‘And how can you be here without even a single escort, looking so shabby?’

dump!

Giacomo Milo, completely taken aback, collapses on the floor in a daze. Then, Sungjin looks down at him with a somewhat ‘friendly’ smile.

“You’re ready for conversation. It’ll be quick.”

Unfortunately, that smile sent Giacomo Milo into a state of complete panic.

‘Ah, it’s over now! The one who is prepared is going to kill me here!’

Giacomo clutched the precious black elixir with trembling hands.

I just got this! I thought I could finally get revenge on those who ruined me and my company!

‘Salos! Why is there no response from Sallos at such an important time!’

As the contractor’s emotions grew intense-

Swish.

For a moment, a faint black fog seemed to rise from Giacomo Milo’s shadow.

[Watch out, Lee Sung-jin! That guy is leaking a little bit of magic right now.]

The Demon King warned, blinking his lamp.

[That guy, you said he was a devil’s contractor? That’s definitely a sign of a broken contract. It looks like the devil has decided to give up on the author!]

“Really? What happens if you give up?”

[Since it is not entirely the fault of the human side, the soul is not immediately dragged to the Demon World. However-]

The Demon King quickly continued his explanation.

[The demon who made the contract with him also has no obligation to protect the contractee from magic. The moment the demon completely cuts off the connection, that human will probably die immediately.]

Giacomo Milo has already been sentenced to death. So whether he dies here or is executed in the zodiac, it doesn’t really matter.

But it seemed like the story was a little different for the demons who made a contract with him.

[A demon who arbitrarily breaks a contract must pay a truly enormous price. It is a punishment so severe that adding a few more crimes is considered a trivial matter.]

And most of the demons who are in such a crisis try to cause an accident. The demons are not demons for nothing.

[They ignore the rules of dimension, turn a blind eye to cause and effect, and use the bodies of sacrificial humans as conduits to release as much magic as possible onto the earth. That alone can cause great chaos in the human world.]

In other words, the current Giacomo Milo is a time bomb of Magi that could explode at any moment.

There was a reason why Giovanni, the head of the Free Underground, was so reluctant to touch the guy himself.

“Then what if I kill that guy here first?”

“Eww… … !”

Giacomo Milo’s complexion turns pale.

[The souls of humans who fail to fulfill their contracts will be dragged to the Demon World. And their bodies will rapidly erode and disappear, leaving behind a considerable amount of demonic energy. You will be fine, but the humans around you will probably be affected to some extent.]

And humans will suffer from even the slightest magic and eventually die, the Demon King added.

“I see.”

Seongjin rubbed his chin and became lost in thought.

‘This is becoming a bit difficult.’

Either way, it is a foregone conclusion that the refugee camp will be exposed to the Magi.

It was a little different from the time when the giant demon species appeared in Bathurst Territory. At that time, the giant dinosaurs were causing chaos, but there were virtually no casualties.

But what about this underpass? Just a few meters up, isn’t there a tent village full of refugees?

From now on, it is nearly impossible to quickly mobilize priests and paladins to purify the magic. Even if it were possible, a terrible hell would already have unfolded in the refugee camp.

‘What this means is that we have to keep Giacomo Milo alive and well until we can move him to a safe place.’

In addition, I must calm down the demon that made the contract with him. I don’t want him to get scared and break the contract on his own.

Seongjin, who had made up his mind like that, slowly took a step towards Giacomo Milo.

“Don’t worry. I have no intention of harming you right now.”

It was a word spoken to both Giacomo Milo and the devil he had made a contract with. A truly leisurely attitude that showed no sign of inner turmoil.

But unlike his confident expression, like a grim reaper holding a scythe to the neck of a deceased person, Seongjin was secretly anxiously observing the signs around him.

‘It doesn’t seem like this situation will end quickly. Sir Marsain and Owen will have to do a good job.’

* * *

In fact, there were some twists and turns in the way Sungjin came to face Giacomo Milo alone.

So, a little while ago from now-

“… … ?”

While walking ahead through the complicated sewer system, Seongjin raised his head as he felt his concentration strangely dispersed.

And then, just a few steps away from the Demon King’s lamp, I looked straight into the pitch-black tunnel where I could see nothing.

‘… What is this? I feel a little confused.’

Dribble, dribble, dribble… … .

Seongjin focused his senses on the front, letting the gentle sounds of the sewage flow out through one ear.

‘Yes. I know which way to go. I wasn’t confused even at the fork in the road. But now, somehow, I have a feeling that the path won’t be the one I expected.’

It was when Seongjin was tilting his head at that strange premonition.

[Lee Seong-jin, look at that! There’s something strange over there!]

The Demon King suddenly flew out of the lamp as if he had discovered something. Then he began to circle around under the water channel where sewage was flowing.

[Look at this guy! He’s clearly dead, but he’s still moving!]

In the place where the Demon King had shined his light, there lay the corpse of a rat completely torn in half.

“… … ?”

But that wasn’t the end of it. Horribly, the rotten rat was still twitching its front paws intermittently.

Wiggle. Wiggle.

Then, Masain, who was checking the scene below the waterway over Seongjin’s shoulder, took a deep breath.

“…My Lord! What kind of wicked trick is this?”

It was a trick of the wicked. It was definitely a sight that could not be explained by common sense. It was difficult to see it as a normal post-mortem muscle spasm, because the rat’s body was already half-rotted and the bones were almost exposed.

And by then, Sungjin was able to realize some of the reasons for the discomfort he felt in this sewer.

‘Aren’t there any living rats moving around nearby?’

Why did I say that all I could hear was the quiet sound of running water, but there was no sign of any rats that would normally be found in the sewer?

‘Isn’t this just a sewer? A space where even rats can’t set foot? What on earth is going on here?’

While Seongjin was lost in thought for a moment, the Demon King started to move around the corpse busily and shouted again.

[But look at this too, Lee Sung-jin! It’s faded a lot, but I can feel a faint trace of the Gyu-sang world here!]

Seongjin, who had been concentrating his powers, happened to discover a faint fragment of broken text.

?TY□E_m_und□□d_no297□402?

?err! Unable to find the appropriate object!?

?err! ge□ah!$2ㅗThe server cannot be confirmed.?

?err… … ?

Well then, that’s right. If you think there’s a phenomenon that can’t be explained by common sense, nine times out of ten it’s the result of the laws of the world interfering.

But that law is not functioning properly, it is in a state of serious errors, broken and fragmented… … .

‘… Ugh, I feel sick.’

Seongjin stopped thinking and quickly turned his head away from the corpse.

For some reason, as I continued to look at it, I began to feel a strangely unpleasant feeling. It felt as if something inside me would burst out at any moment.

“I feel bad about just leaving it. I don’t like seeing it, so I’ll just burn it.”

As Seongjin furrowed his brows and gave instructions, the Demon King answered cheerfully.

[Okay! Got it!]

He seems very happy to finally be able to prove his worth after a long time.

Hurrruk!

The rat’s corpse was instantly engulfed in flames. Seongjin glanced at the corpse burning fiercely, and when the Demon King returned to the lamp, he hurried his steps again.

‘I don’t like this or that. It’s been a long time since I’ve had such a vague feeling.’

It was really strange. It was so clear where I had to go, but why on earth did I have this unpleasant feeling all along?

But soon after, Sungjin was able to find the answer to his discomfort on his own. With his keen senses, he began to sense the presence of two people at the same time.

‘Ah, there were two goals!’

At first glance, they both seem like ordinary people with low aura activity.

There was no doubt that one of them was Giacomo Milo. Although his aura activity had weakened slightly compared to before, Sungjin still remembered the presence of Milo’s superior that he had sensed from afar when the Demon World Waters appeared.

The problem was on the other side.

Looking at Aura’s activity, he doesn’t seem to be particularly strong, but strangely, I keep getting the feeling that my nerves are on edge towards that person.

‘Who the hell is that?’

Judging from the fact that they are together, he is probably acquainted with Giacomo Milo.

As for the people he would meet in this free underpass, the only ones that come to mind right now are the remnants of the Church of Penance.

‘I have a feeling that’s not the case, though.’

Anyway, I hope I can catch both of them. Sungjin thought as he hurried his steps.

“… … !”

But for all his impatience, Sungjin soon felt that his targets were splitting into two.

It was a disaster.

‘We can’t let them go like this! We have to split up and chase after them both.’

After all, the person who was concerned was not Giacomo Milo, but someone else. That was why Seongjin wanted to chase after him himself.

‘But Giacomo Milo is a demon contractor. I don’t think we should let two people who are not resistant to magic encounter each other.’

However, there was something that was a bit awkward about sending just the two of them over there. It felt like they didn’t have enough power to finish the job cleanly.

If only he had gotten Dasha’s help, or at least had been able to come to the group himself and cover himself up, the outcome would have been very different!

‘I was originally planning to bring Max here.’

It was really difficult. Why didn’t things go exactly as planned lately?

“Damn. The sound splits in two.”

At that time, Masain also seemed to have faintly sensed the presence of people ahead.

Seeing him being so alert and on guard, Sungjin finally made up his mind. Perhaps he had decided the outcome of the future.

‘I guess there’s nothing I can do.’

And almost at the same time-

“Huh?”

Owen, who was following behind, stopped walking in surprise.

“Wait a minute, isn’t this so sudden? Why an urgent quest at a time like this?”

When Sungjin and Masain turned around, Owen was staring blankly into space with a dumbfounded expression.

“What’s going on?”

Marsain asked worriedly. It was not that he was not in his right mind, as he stared into the empty space.

but-

‘That’s the status window… … .’

Sungjin’s eyes now saw a faint, foggy shape floating in front of Owen.

I couldn’t read the contents clearly, but it was clear. That must be the bad-tempered Mr. Status Window.

“lowering…….”

Once again, Masain notices the strange flickering light in Seongjin’s eyes, and looks at him with a slightly anxious expression.

Seongjin waved his hand to reassure him, then asked Owen curiously.

“Why? What on earth does the quest say?”

“Hmm? Uh, so you’re asking me to find some important document? Let’s see… A precious document that a lord in the central region has kept for a long time… … .”

Owen, who had been explaining in detail, suddenly looks at Seongjin in shock.

“…Huh? You?”

“huh?”

“No, I mean. What you just said… … .”

Surely you never thought that Seongjin would directly mention the quest.

But Seongjin was shameless.

What? Why? What?

When we locked eyes, Owen hesitated and rolled his eyes here and there.

Yes. Mores, you knew about it, didn’t you? You came to me knowing what I was doing. And you knew that I already knew who you were, and you knew that I vaguely knew that.

So now that I know that you know that I know that you know, you, knowing that fact… … .

Owen’s pupils, in confusion, start to shake violently. Sungjin finally lets out a soft sigh.

‘This guy is out of his mind at such a crucial moment.’

As the time was right, Seongjin responded quickly.

He decided to do what was right, in the most appropriate position, without caring about what anyone else thought, following his heart’s lead.

WHEEK-!

Taaak!

A tremendous impact reverberates through the quiet tunnel of the underground passage.

Marsain’s eyes widened-

“Eww!”

Owen, who had suddenly been hit hard on the forehead, held his forehead with an extremely shocked expression.

“No! Why are you hitting me all of a sudden? It hurts!”

“There’s no time to be like this right now. Don’t you want to come to your senses?”

“Uh, yeah?”

“Go quickly. If you want to do the quest, you’ll have to hurry, right?”

“Huh, huh? Yeah!”

Owen nodded absentmindedly, his face suddenly brightening.

“okay!”

And then he started running down the sewer in a panic.

‘Well, there’s no lamp or torch from the Demon King, but that guy’s eyesight should be enough even in the dark.’

Seongjin, who had been watching the scene for a while, turned his head and looked straight at Masain.

“Sir Marsain.”

“… Yes, my lord,”

As expected, Masain Kyung’s face had already darkened as if he had anticipated what was to come next. Now, he had become completely accustomed to Sungjin’s impulsive actions.

And finally the order was given.

“Go and help Owen. He’s going to have a hard time on his own if you don’t come with him.”

“… … .”

For a moment, Marsain seemed to be in a fierce conflict. But it was only a fleeting moment, and soon a firm determination appeared on the loyal knight’s face.

“Yes, Your Majesty. Whatever you command, I will follow your will.”