Chapter 97

Chapter 97, Church of the Flame (1)

Everyone had already been convinced by Arlin and Eriel's explanation, so no one objected to what I said.

Even if they hadn't been convinced, their trust in me probably would've kept them from objecting anyway.

And so, we reached a conclusion.

One month from now.

Once that month passed, we would participate in the struggle to obtain Scq930, the Cloak of Erebus.

“Then we should start preparing immediately. The location is nearby too, so the circumstances are ideal.”

The prediction that the major factions wouldn't be able to intervene was highly likely, with plenty of evidence supporting it.

Still, there was always the possibility that some of those major factions would mobilize their power even if it meant suffering major losses.

A 900-series Mystery had that much value.

When people dealt with 900-series Mysteries, emotion sometimes came before reason.

Arlin said that even if only to prepare for such variables, we needed to establish our foundations in advance.

“Then should we divide up the roles?”

“I'll install trap spells throughout the area beforehand. Since my realm has risen, the range of magic I can use has expanded. That alone should allow us to secure a certain degree of advantage.”

Arlin intended to occupy the apartment complex, the location where the struggle would take place, in advance and gain the upper hand.

“Then I... what should I do?”

“You should stay home and swing your sword until the day comes.”

Hwa-ryeon offered to help Arlin, but martial artists weren't beings capable of using a broad range of abilities like mages.

Hwa-ryeon's true value came out in battle.

Because of that, she was excluded from the preparations this time.

With a dejected expression, Hwa-ryeon was assigned to remain in the Inner World.

That left me and Lee Yeonhee.

Considering the location, I had already decided to go.

So only Lee Yeonhee remained.

She thought carefully about what she could do, then suddenly brightened and said she would come with us too.

“I'll alter the environment so divine arts become stronger inside the apartment complex.”

The members going with me were decided quickly.

Hwa-ryeon and Eriel would remain in the Inner World, while Lee Yeonhee and Arlin would head to the apartment complex with me.

When we left the Inner World, we appeared right in front of the apartment complex.

It felt like it had been nearly half a month since I'd last seen it.

I had spent nearly half my life living in this apartment complex.

There was no reason it should feel unfamiliar just because I hadn't seen it for two weeks.

And yet it did.

It felt awkward everywhere, almost as though I were seeing the place for the first time in my life.

Perhaps that was because the entire complex had become darker.

Or perhaps it was because its structure had changed from what I remembered.

That's right.

The overall layout of the apartment complex had changed.

“There used to be an apartment building here...”

“Yes. I remember that as well. But it's gone.”

I waved my hand through the space where a building should have stood firmly.

My hand passed through empty air.

There had definitely been a building here.

Now it was gone.

I had lived in this apartment complex for more than ten years.

My memory couldn't be that wrong.

“...There too, and over there. The building that used to be there is gone too.”

I wandered through the apartment complex, feeling my shock grow larger with every step.

We had only been inside for five minutes, yet I had already found more than five missing buildings.

Was this another omen related to the Cloak of Erebus?

Or perhaps another Mystery was affecting the area.

My expression hardened.

Arlin, who had been looking around with me, also became serious.

“This is highly suspicious. Before we begin preparing, we should at least find out what happened here.”

She cast a detection spell to find someone who could explain the situation.

Her fingers snapped.

A pale blue wave spread outward.

Unlike before, I could now feel the intangible ripple that I hadn't been able to perceive in the past as it passed across my skin.

Arlin closed her eyes and began going over everything her detection spell had swept through.

Soon, she opened them.

A vivid blue light swirled in her eyes as she looked in one direction.

“There are 5,983 people inside the apartment complex... and 5,970 of them are gathered in one location.”

For a moment, I thought I had heard her wrong.

Only after seeing the confusion in Arlin's eyes did I realize I had heard correctly.

“...Good lord.”

“Five thousand people?”

“Yes.”

Five thousand.

Before we left this place, there had only been around five hundred people living inside the apartment complex.

This was far too many.

And out of those 5,983 people, 5,970 were gathered in a single location.

Naturally, I couldn't help wondering what exactly was happening here.

The population had swollen to 5,983.

And almost all of them, 5,970 people, were gathered together in one place.

It felt familiar somehow.

Wasn't this situation slightly similar to what happened back then?

When the Church of Nihility took control of the apartment complex.

‘We are endlessly grateful for your grace... The reason we have been waiting is because we wished to ask the Great Flame what name we should give our faith.’

‘How about the Church of the Flame?’

‘Ooh...! A name truly befitting the Great Flame. A name bestowed personally by the Great Flame, our three thousand believers will surely be deeply moved by this grace as well...’

The image of the old man who had created a religious organization worshiping me suddenly passed through my mind.

There was no way that memory had surfaced by coincidence.

I had a well-founded feeling that the current situation was connected to that old man.

I asked Arlin to guide us toward the place where those 5,900 people were gathered.

Arlin nodded and began walking ahead.

Lee Yeonhee and I followed her while looking over the surroundings.

A world painted entirely in gray entered my vision.

Because of the omen of Scq930, every color in the area had faded into ash gray.

The lively trees and swaying grass were the same.

The only things that still retained their colors were moving living creatures, such as birds and caterpillars.

And all of this was only an omen announcing that a single Mystery would soon appear.

If this was merely an omen, then how overwhelming would the Mystery's actual power be?

My determination to obtain Scq930 grew even stronger.

As I continued walking while taking in the scenery, I heard a sigh from ahead.

It was a sigh filled with exhaustion, annoyance, hardship, and several other emotions.

I raised my head and looked at Arlin.

“...Haa.”

Even while guiding us, she hadn't stopped moving her hands.

She looked almost like a conductor.

Every time she moved them, blue light flashed somewhere nearby and something appeared.

Sometimes it was a pattern.

Other times it was a small structure.

I guessed they were the magical traps Arlin had said she would install and watched carefully.

Her endlessly moving hands finally stopped when she began looking exhausted enough that I wondered whether I should support her.

“...Lee Yeonhee. Please heal me.”

Lee Yeonhee nodded and approached.

A thin trail of sweat ran down Arlin's face.

Apparently, setting up trap spells was no easy task.

Lee Yeonhee approached the visibly exhausted Arlin and released divine power.

After only a few seconds, Arlin's condition had already recovered.

As expected of a healer.

Once again understanding why healers were treated like nobility in so many games, I followed Arlin as we resumed walking.

A little while later, we began sensing the presence of countless people.

...

...

Voices could be heard from far away, sounding almost like the booming rhythm of drums.

The distance was considerable, so it was difficult to distinguish the exact words.

The reason we could tell they were voices was because of the emotions contained within them.

A sound overflowing with emotions close to fervor and madness struck our ears.

“The direction this sound is coming from is where the people are gathered.”

Arlin spoke calmly as she installed another trap.

This one was placed near the trunk of one of the countless trees surrounding us.

We were currently walking toward the lake at the center of the complex.

The very same lake where I had destroyed the statue worshiped by the Church of Nihility.

I felt a powerful sense of déjà vu.

Thinking repeatedly about that old man, I continued walking.

Soon, we entered a range where we could finally distinguish the words within the noise.

“We devote ourselves to the Flame!”

“We devote ourselves to the Flame!”

“I cast this body down as a single piece of firewood and devote myself to the Flame's blaze!”

“I cast this body down as a single piece of firewood and devote myself to the Flame's blaze!”

The booming noise we had heard until now was the sound of countless people repeating the same words together.

One person would shout, and everyone else would follow.

Listening to the chants, we continued forward.

Soon, we reached the lake.

What we saw there was an enormous crowd of people and a massive purple flame.

The purple fire towered toward the sky.

It gave off a sense of holiness, yet at the same time stirred fear somewhere deep within the heart.

The countless people filling the area stared at the flames and shouted their chants.

Every one of them wore the same clothing.

And every mouth praised the Flame.

“...What is this?”

“The Flame...?”

Lee Yeonhee and Arlin, who both had some idea of what this situation might be connected to, looked at me with deeply confused expressions.

As though they wanted an answer from me.

But I didn't understand the situation either.