Evan looked at the soldier’s status window and pondered.
‘That guy isn’t an ordinary human. There’s something going on.’
Information was displayed on his status window.
[Tendency: Evil]
[Race: Human (Revived)]
[Gender: Male]
[Affinity: 0%]
[Chaos Value: 520]
[Death Count: 10]
[Potential Ability: Revived]
[Acquired Skill: Succession Lv. Master
*Due to the Chaos Value, it is impossible to view the soul’s memory.]
The Chaos Value was well over 100.
This meant it was far more dangerous than anything he’d encountered in Tallin.
‘A Chaos Value of 500—an ordinary person could never reach such a level.’
Even if an ordinary person used a Chaos Item or resorted to all sorts of illicit means, it would be hard to achieve such a figure.
‘Unless you’re a demon or belong to the demonic realm, this is impossible.’
What was even more noteworthy was the “Revived” potential ability and the number of deaths.
‘Should I take “revived” literally? If so, that’s a problem in itself.’
Judging by the existence of a death count, it looked like he’d come back to life several times.
Common sense said humans shouldn’t be able to return from the dead.
From this, Evan could be sure.
‘Are they one of the factions plotting this scheme?’
Through his spiritual sight, Evan checked on the others.
Not all the soldiers were like that, but among them, there were a few Revived.
This meant either some faction members had infiltrated, or these individuals themselves were problematic.
It wasn’t good news for Evan.
Depending on how they were connected to the Roheim Duchy, the situation could change dramatically.
“This is truly atrocious.”
Rolten frowned and spoke to Evan.
Next to him, Vengor was biting his lip so hard it bled.
Rage filled his eyes.
Innocent people, who had done no wrong, were being killed.
A massacre conducted under the pretense of suppressing a rebellion.
“We should get out of here. Let’s not get ourselves involved.”
Rolten said to Evan.
Evan glanced around briefly and shook his head.
“Can you go ahead? There’s something I need to check. I’ll catch up soon.”
“Huh? What is it?”
“It’s nothing. It won’t take long; I’ll catch up quickly.”
“Ha, fine. Do as you like. Just don’t get us into trouble. I’ll take this guy and head out, so hurry after us.”
“Yes.”
Rolten led Vengor out of the village.
Left behind, Evan began tailing the soldier who’d killed the boy at the start.
A deserted alley.
Here, in what looked like a shabby slum, a few soldiers had gathered.
One of them, grinning broadly, praised the others as if he was in a good mood.
“You did splendidly. Once again, you’ve collected many souls today.”
“At this rate, His Majesty will be satisfied as well.”
The soldiers removed their helmets and began sorting through the situation.
“We’re almost at our destination. His Majesty does not tolerate failure, so make sure this is a success. After this, we’ll split up and proceed separately. Handle it swiftly.”
While they were talking among themselves, Evan listened in from a distance as he followed them.
‘Soul Collector and His Majesty… Could it be…?’
Even though he didn’t have enough information, just those two words were enough for Evan to draw some conclusions.
‘To collect souls means they have to sacrifice people first. And His Majesty—does this mean the royal family is behind all this?’
He still couldn’t be certain.
Perhaps “His Majesty” referred to someone else.
Still, an ominous feeling crept up on him.
‘If you call it a faction, they must be of this magnitude at least.’
In the worst case, he’d have to consider the royal family.
It would be best if things didn’t go that far.
And he felt a sense of déjà vu from these people.
The Revived reminded him of those he’d encountered in Tallin before.
‘The power of the dead. Those guys tried to come back to life too. If these people also revived, could it be connected?’
Evan used his spiritual sight to assess their abilities by checking their status windows.
He didn’t see anything particularly dangerous.
But for more concrete information, he needed to capture them.
Donning his mask, Evan selected a sword from his inventory.
Sword of Jormungand’s Fang.
He’d start by inflicting poison stacks on the enemy.
-The Sharpshooter Skill has been activated.
He took aim and hurled the Sword of Jormungand’s Fang with all his strength.
Swwweeeek!
With a sharp whistling sound, the sword flew in a straight line and barely grazed the enemy’s arm.
“Gah! Who’s there?!”
He’d aimed for a fatal wound but only managed a bruise.
But that didn’t matter.
‘They should be poisoned by now.’
Evan then drew his Elemental Sword and charged toward them, closing the distance in an instant.
Clang!
The opponent blocked Evan’s surprise attack.
He spat out curses, trying to counterattack Evan.
“Damn! Who brought this rat along?!”
But then, one of them recoiled in shock as he looked at Evan.
“Wait! That mask… It’s him! Run for your lives!”
It was as if he’d seen him somewhere before.
‘If he recognizes this mask, does that mean he saw me at Ever Castle?’
It seemed like hiding his identity had been the right decision after all.
“No choice! Everyone, retreat!”
They tried to fall back.
Evan couldn’t let them get away and activated the Ice attribute of the Elemental Sword.
‘If I can just slow them down—’
He slashed one of them with his sword.
“Urgh! I can’t believe I have to use this!”
And then, in the blink of an eye, they vanished.
Like a mirage, they disappeared without a trace.
“…Did I lose them?”
Evan clicked his tongue and stowed his swords in his inventory.
Then, he spotted something on the ground.
“What’s this…?”
It looked like something had been dropped during the fight.
A round iron badge.
Evan picked up the badge.
He recognized the emblem embedded in it.
A crimson Dragon Emblem.
‘The Black Crystal I got from the goblin specimen, and the one I saw from the Nightmare…’
Immediately, Evan took out the Black Crystal from his inventory.
The emblem on the badge was identical to the Dragon Emblem on the Black Crystal.
Evan narrowed his eyes.
These people were connected to those monstrous beings.
‘Were they the ones who created them?’
‘…This Main Quest might be on a completely different scale from any quest so far.’
It felt as dangerous as the False Goddess.
‘So the sense of incongruity I felt really was the key clue.’
Like interlocking gears, each conflict set off the next.
In the end, it led to the many sacrifices that those people wanted.
‘If their goal is to collect souls, then all of this fits.’
This massacre was orchestrated by someone.
He didn’t know their purpose, but one thing was certain—if left alone, it could lead to disaster.
“Lupes Royal Family, huh…”
Evan pocketed the badge and slowly walked away.
***
Clyd was currently tormented by the reports coming up from within the Earl’s Territory.
All over the territory, people clad in black armor—presumed to be Lamakria People—had appeared and launched surprise attacks.
The problem was, they were incredibly difficult to deal with.
Undying, immortal soldiers.
That’s how they were described.
He managed to grasp the situation somewhat through an urgent carrier pigeon sent by Rolten.
Even more serious was the scale of these attacks.
Not just the Earl’s Territory, but the Roheim Duchy was also under attack.
In fact, according to reports, the entire Ruphes Kingdom seemed to be in chaos because of them.
Because of this, there was a strange tension among the Lamakria People currently in the Earl’s Territory.
A growing perception that the Lamakria People were trying to bring down the Ruphes Kingdom.
Of course, Clyd did not see it that way.
There were knights, guilds, adventurers—many Lamakria People were present.
He was grateful for the many contributions they’d made for the development of the territory.
He had no intention of condemning all of them together.
But if things went on like this, public sentiment would sour.
This was troublesome. If it continued, bloodshed was inevitable.
And to make matters worse, refugees from the southern Lamakria region continued to flow in from the border.
The Lupes Royal Family had opened the gates and accepted all refugees, with no restrictions.
As a result, refugee numbers increased throughout the kingdom, and the greatest influx was into Kerthen County.
Unfortunately, with tensions running high, the continuous arrival of Lamakria refugees only heightened the chaos.
For Clyd, it was hard to make a prompt decision regarding the situation.
The royal family was accepting refugees with open arms.
He could not oppose this decision; all he could do was watch and wait.
To find a solution, Clyd decided to consult with Darwen.
‘I also need to discuss some matters regarding the territory’s businesses.’
He wanted to borrow his wisdom and experience as an archaeologist.
He wanted to know if there had ever been such an incident in history and how it had been resolved.
Lost in thought while waiting for Darwen, that’s when—
Knock, knock.
Someone rapped on the door from outside.
There was only one person who would come now, so Clyd let him in without a word.
“Come in.”
Clack!
The door opened and Delian rushed in.
“Father! This is terrible. Those guys have appeared around Valles as well. Sir Darwen is currently holding the front line.”
Clyd jumped up from his chair.
“What are you saying?! What about the guards and the defense system?!”
When he raised his voice, Delian shook his head, apparently unsure.
“It seems there were spies on the inside. I think it was the work of Lamakria People—right now, all of Valles’s defense facilities are down.”
At the word “betrayal,” Clyd was filled with rage.
It seemed the knights on watch had opened the castle gates. The enemy had prepared meticulously.
And this incident was clearly no ordinary matter.
Even the facilities built by the Magic Tower were rendered powerless—that alone showed how high-level the enemy was.
Clyd grabbed his sword and prepared to move.
“Delian, be prepared and follow me.”
“Yes, sir.”
Clyd took Delian and hurried out.
When they arrived at the entrance to Valles Castle, they saw Darwen and the knights fending off the advancing Dark Knights.
Watching the scene, Clyd immediately drew his sword and gathered his aura.
“Marquess! Fall back. I’ll handle it from here.”
So you’re here. I was stalling for a bit. I couldn’t use high-level magic in case it destroyed the city.
“I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s alright. I just got lucky with the timing.”
Clyd formed his sword aura and charged forward.
His blade, now nearly twice as long due to the aura.
A Sword Master—one of the kingdom’s very best.
Every time Clyd swung his sword, the sword aura cut the Dark Knights in two.
The difference in level was insurmountable.
“Everyone! Press on!”
With a mighty shout, Clyd led the knights from the front.
Delian also helped lead part of the Order of Knights and pushed forward.
Soon, the Dark Knights began to be driven back.
With a single strike, five, six—no, even more Dark Knights were swept away by Clyd’s sword aura.
The tide of battle seemed to reverse instantly.
“They’re retreating!”
But then, an unexpected result occurred.
The enemy, who had been fiercely attacking, suddenly began to withdraw.
It was almost laughably easy to drive them off.
Darwen let out a hollow laugh, dumbfounded.
“Huh? What are those guys up to?”
“Marquess, it looks like a feint. They might be pretending to attack here while aiming elsewhere, or maybe they have another objective.”
“Well, I think so too. Don’t let your guard down.”
It seemed as if the situation was over.
But then, a royal messenger came rushing in through the castle gates, forcing Clyd back into a state of alert.
A messenger with the royal flag strapped to his back.
This was a method reserved for emergencies only.
“Count, His Majesty has issued an urgent summons. All heirs are to be included. No exceptions.”
The messenger spoke sternly.
An emergency summons from the kingdom—enforced at that. Something was amiss.