Children of the Holy Emperor - Chapter 429



Only Noblemtl

429. The Immortal Secretary (2)

ping-!

A small pillar of light rises in front of you. This is the destination indicated by the status window.

Owen ran towards the light with a very excited heart.

‘Mores was Lee Sung-jin after all! Mores was that newbie!’

You’re such a heartless bastard! If you knew, you should’ve said something a long time ago. Why have you been pretending not to know until now?

At that moment, Masain followed at a fast pace from behind.

“…Brother Masain?”

“I don’t know what’s going on, but I’ll help you, Your Majesty!”

“… … .”

The excitement that had been building up for a moment subsided, and my mind gradually became clearer.

It probably wasn’t my brother’s voluntary assistance. It was definitely something Mores ordered me to do.

‘Come to think of it, the quest came out at this timing too… … .’

Could it be that the change was due to Mores’ judgment? Owen thought vaguely.

There is no specific basis for this. However, I can’t help but think that Status Chang is continuing to chase Mores and is trying to please him.

[Urgent Quest? Find and obtain important documents! new!]

[Quest Level: A]

[Get your hands on a precious document that a lord in the central region has kept for a long time. The document was once designated as a forbidden book under the pretext of bewitching humans. It was completely ignored even by the author’s descendants, but in fact, it contains a precious truth that magicians have been searching for for a long time. Perhaps, by discovering the document, you can expect unexpected additional effects.]

[Reward: 500P Cash]

[*This product is available in the Pangea Chronicles store window.]

‘The reward is incredibly generous for a status window?’

Thinking that he might need to relax a little, Owen pulled out the one-handed axe from his waistband.

Crack-! Crack!

As we neared our destination, we heard some unexpected sounds.

‘…mouse?’

It seemed as if all the rats that had been left in the underpass had gathered here.

The stench had also gotten worse. The already damp air was filled with the smell of something rotting.

“… … !”

The place they finally arrived at was a fairly wide space where waterways intersected. Owen and Martha were momentarily taken aback by the sight before their eyes.

“This is all… … .”

This was the laboratory of an evil wizard.

On one side are old bookshelves crammed with books and documents, and on the other side are stacks of cages of various sizes containing various animals.

On the walls filled with dirty foreign substances, you can see dense magic circles painted with unknown paint. At first glance, it is clear that it is evidence of evil heretical magic or devil worship.

And in the middle of it all, a man wearing a black robe turned over stood there.

“…intruder?”

He cried out in surprise when he saw the two people.

His face was completely covered by a hood, so I couldn’t see his expression, but there was an unmistakable sense of embarrassment in his voice.

“You guys, how on earth did you get here without any problems? There must have been a lot of traps set up to prevent invasion.”

“pitfall?”

For a moment, the image of Mores occasionally taking a detour from the straight path flashed through Owen’s mind.

Ah! So that means you avoided all the traps?

‘Of course! That guy is a newbie!’

When you were conquering the ‘Orc King’s Maze’, that skill of avoiding traps and alarms like a ghost hasn’t gone anywhere.

Owen, who was feeling proud for a moment, suddenly came to his senses at Marsain’s shout.

“Your Majesty! Everything inside us is dead!”

Martha’s face turned pale.

“Even those evil tricks are used on people… …!”

‘person?’

Owen’s startled gaze stopped at one of the large cages inside. It contained animals that were unusually large compared to the others.

Crack, crack.

At first glance, they look like beasts, having lost their wits and gnawing at the bars. However, upon closer inspection, they are clearly human figures with fully functioning limbs.

“… … !”

Owen and Martha realized it at the same time.

There must be a reason why that wizard chose to settle down in this harsh environment beneath the refugee camp!

“Phew… … .”

The black-robed wizard took a step back and let out a sigh.

“I thought I was finally seeing results, but I ended up wasting my precious samples like this. One-”

Flash!

An eerie glare shone through the dark robes.

“If you see this, I can’t let you live any longer!”

At the same time-

Taang!

A multitude of cages opened at once, and half-rotting animals poured out towards the two people.

* * *

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

At the same time, Sungjin was calming down Giacomo Milo, who was trembling with fear. To be exact, the devil he had made a contract with.

The karmic consequences of arbitrary contract breach were so frightening that one would not hesitate to commit another sin in despair.

In other words, the devil probably wants humans to take responsibility for the collapse.

‘I just found it, and now it’s suddenly breaking the contract and trying to run away. What on earth is that devil so scared of?’

In any case, if you give him even a slight possibility, the devil will try to keep his contract. So Seongjin decided to win the devil over and cautiously took a step closer.

“I promise. I will protect your contract. You don’t have to do anything. I won’t kill your contractor right here and now.”

But the devil still had no answer. Only Giacomo Milo rolled his frightened eyes here and there.

“Hey, don’t lie!”

Finally, Giacomo opened his mouth with a trembling voice.

“Protecting the contract? That’s all a lie.”

“No, I’m really not going to kill you here.”

“That’s all just a joke! I’ve already been sentenced to death! So you’re saying that you can lure me to a deserted place and have someone else take my life at any time? Do you think I can be fooled?!”

Hmm. Well, that’s true. What can you say to convince a guy whose miserable end is already set for him?

When Sungjin didn’t deny it, Giacomo Milo’s expression suddenly distorted. He shouted in a voice full of evil.

“Salos! Are you listening? Please protect me! If you do that, I will give you my body right now!”

[… … .]

“So, as per our contract, please grant us the power to defeat the enemy before our eyes! Abandoning the contractor’s risk would also be a grave breach of contract!”

Then the devil, who had been holding his breath until now, reluctantly responded.

[Giacomo… … .]

“Salos!”

[Look at this. This is not the time to talk about contracts. What do you want me to do with your body now? To descend directly before the representatives of the great monarchs. Are you telling me to disappear without a trace?]

Oh, yeah.

There was no reason for the demon to hesitate, even though he had the opportunity to take over the contractor’s body at any moment.

A fear so tangible that one would rather abandon the contractor and run away than be punished for breaking the contract.

‘The reserved ones… … .’

Giacomo looked up blankly at the boy in front of him. Despite his shabby appearance, he had a heavier presence than anyone he had ever seen.

[I just want to ask you one thing.]

While Giacomo’s mind was in danger of wavering, Salos borrowed his body to speak.

[Are you really going to keep our contract? Surely you won’t chase me all the way to the Demon Realm just because I offended you?]

… What? What the hell is that?

“How can I chase you to the Demon World?”

As Sungjin tilted his head, Giacomo Milo, no, the devil, sniffled with an uncomfortable expression.

[Well, you are prepared… ahem… … .]

The devil, who had been hesitating for a moment, seemed to have made up his mind and this time he began to plead with Seongjin in a desperate manner.

[Anyway, please, please promise me! I don’t dare ask you to put it into a contract! Just tell me that you won’t make a fuss about this, can’t you?]

When the devil came out in a more humble manner than expected, Seongjin thought for a moment.

What the? At this point, wouldn’t it have been okay to just break the contract and let him run away? If it were him, he would have just quietly backed off without causing a scene by releasing his magic in a fit of anger.

“…If you promise?”

[If you do that! Then I will keep the contract and never go against your will from now on!]

“… Salos?!”

Giacomo Milo came to his senses with a start at the devil’s sudden change of stance.

“What on earth are you talking about? Do you believe that?”

[Giacomo. For now, the current situation doesn’t seem to be a big crisis for you. So it’s not a breach of contract even if I don’t step in. Besides… … ]

“Don’t talk nonsense! In any case, the one who is prepared will drag me out and make me suffer! As a result, isn’t it clear that he is aiming for my life?”

[that…….]

But when the devil showed no sign of moving, Giacomo shouted in a desperate voice.

“Okay! If you don’t help me, I’ll kill myself right here! There must be a reason why he’s trying to tease me instead of killing me right away.”

It was a pretty sharp judgment considering he was cornered.

“Well, how about this? I have a secret weapon that can make even rotten corpses walk!”

Giacomo gripped the black elixir tightly and growled at Sungjin.

“If I die like this and my body decays, what do you think will happen? The empire will face the horror of spreading magic forever! That wouldn’t be a bad way to take revenge on the world!”

Seongjin’s gaze lingered for a moment on Giacomo Milo’s hand.

Indeed, were all the rotting, moving rats the work of this author? It seems he had some faith in them.

But you have to be careful about what you threaten.

“Don’t do useless things. If there were only a priest or a paladin, it would be easy to purify you alone.”

“In this stronghold of the Free Underground, I had no hope of finding a decent priest or paladin-”

“Why? There’s one right here. Even so, I’m an exorcist, a knight.”

“… What?”

A slightly impudent light appeared in Giacomo’s eyes, which had been filled with evil.

‘You? An exorcist? Where are you selling drugs now?’ This look clearly reveals the meaning.

“Hmm, you don’t believe me. I guess I have to show you some evidence… … .”

Seongjin took out the holy water bottle he had been keeping in his bosom. And in his other hand, he pulled out a flying sign. All of these were items he had received from Sir Robert.

Never let go of your exorcism tools, no matter what the situation. Isn’t that the attitude of a truly prepared exorcist?

“There are so many people nearby that you just have to be careful. I heard that the magic scattered by those who died from erosion is not as strong as you think. If you make a simple barrier with these tools, you can hold out long enough to call a priest to purify you.”

Of course, it was a bluff. There was no way to guarantee how effective the barrier would be against a moving target.

Besides, if you call another knight to the stronghold of the Freedom Underpass without permission, your relationship with the Blue Republican Revolutionary Front will be over that day.

“Surely not… … .”

But for Giacomo Milo, who knew nothing about it, that little hint was enough.

When his demon confirmed the divine aura that was inhabiting the tools, Giacomo finally seemed to feel relieved.

“… This can’t be happening!”

He screamed in utter despair.

“Why should I, why should I die? I have not committed such a great sin!”

“You made a deal with the devil and harmed people for personal gain. What other reason do you need?”

“A contract with the devil? What is that! If I want to survive as a merchant, if I want to survive against the clutches of other competitors, I have no choice but to become a contract with the devil myself! Can it really be all my fault?”

Giacomo Milo raised his head and looked straight at Sungjin. His face was distorted with fear and despair, and his inner anger and twisted joy were seething together.

“I didn’t cause much chaos on the continent! I didn’t slaughter people indiscriminately like others!”

“Because of you, many people have fallen victim to the Demon Realm.”

“That is the real accusation! The Dark Church was the one who summoned the Demon Beast! Rather, I, who lost everything, am the biggest victim of that incident! But why am I the one who has to take full responsibility for it?”

Khuhhhhh!

Hot tears well up in Giacomo Milo’s eyes.

“The same goes for the Sigmund estate’s medicine! I was just selling things that were worth money! The power of the penitents who control the North wanted to sell them, and the Sigmund estate’s head of household wanted to buy them! What choice do I, a merchant, have between the two?”

“… … .”

Seongjin got a little bored.

Yes. I can’t say that there are no parts that can be taken into consideration. But what on earth do you want me to do? If only my father knew, I’m not the one who judges the sins of humans while I’m alive.

That’s when I thought about it.

Beep-

Suddenly I heard a loud tinnitus and my vision became blurry.

And then, without even a moment to wonder, a vivid scene unfolded before my eyes.

There were living corpses, people in fear, and burning buildings. It was a gruesome sight, like hell, but if Sungjin’s memory was not wrong, it was definitely Regina’s street.

A near future that has passed by and will never return.

‘Ah, yeah!’

Seongjin suddenly realized.

‘This isn’t the end. As long as I live, Iza will continue to bring about a terrible future.’

It happened in a split second, but Sungjin made up his mind.

[Eek! Hey, Giacomo! This is your last acknowledgement as a contractor. Maybe this is your golden opportunity! So, listen to him as much as possible, and don’t call me any more aaaaaaaaaa… … .]

“Salos?”

For some reason, the demon suddenly screamed and disappeared completely beyond the demon realm.

Giacomo sat up in confusion, then froze. Even in the darkness, the silver eyes that shone brightly were looking down at him indifferently.

The air, already damp and heavy, became even denser and pressed down on his body.

“Hasoyeon, just give me the item and follow me quietly.”

“… … .”

Originally, it would have been right to refuse. This leap was like the last bastion he had.

But for some reason, Giacomo’s body was already following the order before he realized it. He could no longer resist each and every word, which seemed to be engraved directly into his soul.

“But… I, I… … !”

“You still don’t get it?”

Seongjin calmly informed the upper class who was struggling in hopeless helplessness.

“I’m giving you a chance, Milo.”

“Chance? Seo, you’re not going to spare me-”

“No, you will die.”

A firm answer came back, crushing any faint hope.

“But if you stop what you’re trying to do now, I’ll at least give your soul a chance.”

It’s pretty harsh to hold someone accountable for something that hasn’t happened yet.

So I will give you a chance to redeem yourself. So that your soul will not be dragged to the underworld after death, nor will it be sent to another place even more terrible than the underworld.

“… … !”

It was a short answer, but Giacomo could vaguely feel the weight of those words as a devil’s contract holder.

One of the reasons why demon contractors can be so bizarrely prevalent on a continent where the faith of the gods dominates is because of their deep despair about the afterlife.

-There is no salvation from the Lord. After all, once you humans die, you will suffer endlessly at the hands of the high-ranking demon lords who are more terrifying than the demons of the underworld. So, while you are alive, shouldn’t you use our power to enjoy power?

Giacomo also recalled Salus’ last words.

– Hey, Giacomo! This is your last acknowledgement as a contractor. Maybe this is your golden opportunity!

He was once kicked out of his family and ran a small business without any foundation. He was exceptionally good at instinctively judging which side was beneficial.

“…I will die quietly, wherever and whenever you want.”

Giacomo, who had finally given up on revenge, held up the elixir with trembling hands and bowed his head. At first glance, his posture looked like he was fervently worshipping something.

“So please, give me a chance at salvation!”