Chapter 255. Expedition (2)
“The world really feels like it’s moving at full speed lately, doesn’t it?”
“Grrrr!”
Seok Taejun was walking down a hospital corridor with his chimera beside him.
“I was starting to worry that Pandemonium would launch a counterattack soon, and instead a disaster breaks out inside Pandemonium itself...”
“Is someone writing a Scenario behind all this?”
After hearing the details from Jason, Seok Taejun had been shocked.
The massive roots spreading through Pandemonium could potentially reach Korea.
Because of that, Seok Taejun had urgently gathered numerous Contractors and begun preparing countermeasures.
Despite how busy things were, he had still come to this hospital for one reason.
To check on Ha Mina.
“I probably won’t be able to come here for a while, so I should inspect the security situation once.”
“Grrr!”
Ha Mina, the former leader of the Morning Star Church, was considered a top-level threat.
The ‘Prophetic Magician’ who had been behind her had apparently been defeated by the ‘Nameless King,’ but the Eight Guardians still kept Ha Mina under special surveillance.
Daji, who had been monitoring Ha Mina for some time, had also disappeared at some point after saying she had received another assignment.
Now Seok Taejun had to inspect things carefully himself.
"...?"
But when he arrived outside the hospital room where Ha Mina was being confined...
something felt wrong.
He could hear the sound of wind from somewhere.
“Don’t tell me...!”
Seok Taejun hurriedly opened the door.
The bed where the unconscious Ha Mina should have been lying...
was completely empty.
And the window, which had been sealed with iron bars, had been completely broken through.
“The room was supposed to be sealed with magic... what the hell happened?!”
The guard assigned to remain nearby at all times was lying unconscious on the floor.
No matter how much Seok Taejun tried to wake him...
there was no response.
“Damn it...!”
He needed to tell Jason.
No...
he needed to tell the Nameless King as quickly as possible.
Seok Taejun rushed out of the room.
Egypt.
This region, also within Pandemonium’s sphere of influence, had been invaded by the rapidly spreading tree roots.
However, perhaps because there weren’t many demons living in the desert regions, the roots weren’t spreading very aggressively here.
“Christina.”
Sylvia called to Christina, who was sitting atop a pyramid.
“What are we going to do now?”
“Not sure.”
“We failed to take the Holy Grail... and there probably aren’t any holy relics left on Earth that we can use.”
After Siegfried and Beowulf disappeared, Christina and Sylvia had continued operating without Constellations.
But that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing for them.
Avoiding contracts made it easier to evade the Constellations’ pursuit.
They had been searching for holy relics in order to become stronger without relying on Constellations.
“We killed Alloces, Murmur, and Vapula too.”
“But that ended up being a waste of time.”
"..."
Christina and Sylvia had spent their time attacking Demon God-class demons.
They had received information that Pandemonium was gathering holy relics.
But they had gained nothing from those hunts.
“What do we do, Christina?”
Sylvia asked again.
“Should we just contract with some suitable Constellation and go back to being ordinary Contractors?”
“I don’t want that.”
Christina slowly stood.
“Did you forget my goal?”
“No.”
“An ordinary Contractor?”
“There’s no way I could ever be satisfied with that.”
Balancing her foot against a damaged section of the pyramid’s stone blocks, Christina continued.
“My goal is to become a Constellation.”
To become a Constellation.
That was Christina’s goal.
She wanted to become a transcendent existence looking down upon the Material Realm from beyond the distant universe.
“I’ll become a hero of the Material Realm and use those achievements to become a Constellation.”
"..."
“To do that, I need to become stronger.”
Unlike Kang Yujin and the others, Christina had volunteered for the modification surgery.
She hadn’t known it was meant to create a Vessel for Lucifer.
But even if she had...
it probably wouldn’t have mattered much.
Christina wanted strength because she wanted to become a Constellation.
That was also the only reason she had followed Merlin.
Unlike Siegfried, who had simply supported her in the standard way, Merlin had seemed capable of making her stronger through every possible method.
“Christina.”
Sylvia called her name.
“I like you.”
“Sorry. I have a goal of turning Kang Yujin into my slave and keeping him with me forever, so I can’t return your feelings.”
“I didn’t mean it romantically.”
“Oh. Right.”
Christina shrugged.
Sylvia sighed.
“I don’t really have any grand dreams.”
“I’m just a woman who knows how to fight without thinking too much.”
“That’s why you looked so bright to me.”
“You had a clear goal and kept trying to become stronger.”
“I wanted to support you.”
“Thanks.”
“When you caught up to my strength, I wasn’t jealous.”
“I was actually happy.”
When they had first met, Christina had been far weaker than Sylvia.
But Christina had caught up with her in no time.
And now...
she had even surpassed Sylvia.
“So... no matter what path you choose, I’ll support you.”
"..."
Christina looked at Sylvia’s face for a moment.
“You mean that?”
“Yes.”
“Got it.”
Christina nodded, then looked toward a demon city visible in the distance.
There were writhing roots there.
But there was also...
a powerful presence.
It was watching them.
Almost as if waiting expectantly.
“Then let’s go, Sylvia.”
“All right, Christina.”
The two jumped down from the pyramid.
As Christina hurled herself into the desert, she spoke.
“To Pandemonium.”
Constellations were no longer useful to them.
So now...
it was time to make contracts with demons.
“I never thought I’d actually end up using my Constellation Armament.”
Jason muttered as he brushed back his hair in the sea breeze.
“My Armament is surprisingly useless.”
“Almost none of my Contractors ever use it.”
“Have you ever allowed a Contractor to use Maximum Manifestation?”
“No.”
“There was one person a long time ago, but he went out to sea and got killed by a Sea Serpent.”
“Why does that make me feel ominous?”
“Hey, we’re not Kang Yujin.”
“You don’t need to worry.”
Jason leaned back against the railing of the sailing ship.
“This Jason will safely guide you all the way to Jerusalem.”
“With the Argo!”
The Argo.
The very ship used by the ‘Argonaut expedition’ that Jason had led in life.
Jason had once set out on an expedition aboard this ship with heroes like Heracles, Orpheus, and Atalanta.
The Argo itself was Jason’s Constellation Armament.
“Jerusalem is inland, though. Jason can only guide us partway.”
“That’s true.”
“And does riding an old-fashioned ship like this even make sense in the modern era?”
“I wanted to ride Captain Nobody’s submarine too.”
The ones complaining were two original members of the Argonaut expedition.
The S-rank Constellation ‘Singing Hero,’ Orpheus.
And the B-rank Constellation ‘Hunter Favored by the Moon Goddess,’ Atalanta.
Orpheus had joined the expedition as a support specialist using music.
Atalanta was responsible for communication and scouting through her incredible speed.
“Don’t be so hard on him.”
“This ship grants various Blessings while crossing dangerous seas.”
The one defending Jason was none other than the S-rank Constellation ‘Invincible Hero,’ Achilles.
Achilles possessed combat ability near the very top among Greek Constellations.
He also possessed a shield as a Constellation Armament and had an immortal body, making him excellent as a tank.
He had long wanted to descend and fight demons directly in the Material Realm.
That was why he had joined this expedition.
“Ooh! Achilles! Well said!”
“Heracles isn’t here today, so I’m counting on you!”
“Still, I wanted to try that submarine too.”
“What was it called? The Nautilus?”
“Honestly, wouldn’t that be better?”
“Ghk! If something happens, everyone will drown!”
While listening to the Greek Constellations banter, a voice came from behind them.
“You’re all quite noisy.”
It was the S-rank Constellation ‘Pure-White Hero,’ Arjuna.
Using the divine bow Gandiva and various Astras, Arjuna would serve as the expedition’s primary long-range combatant.
“It would be nice if Odysseus were here to keep everyone under control.”
“It can’t be helped.”
“Odysseus is commanding the defensive operations taking place across the world.”
The one answering Arjuna was the S-rank Constellation ‘Prophetic Magician,’ Merlin, who was leaning against a nearby railing.
As the greatest magician, Merlin would support the expedition in every area...
attack, defense, healing, interference, and more.
“By the way, Nameless King, do you think Kang Yujin and Heracles’s group will arrive on time?”
“We’ll just have to trust Sinbad to guide them properly.”
Kang Yujin, Joo Minha, Heracles, and Alexandros were heading toward Jerusalem aboard Sinbad’s Constellation Armament, the Roc.
According to the plan, they would enter Jerusalem from the opposite direction.
“Don’t worry, magician!”
A loud voice suddenly came from behind us.
“Even without Kang Yujin, this Black Whirlwind Lee Gyu will protect the Nameless King!”
The B-rank Constellation ‘Murderous Fiend of Two Axes,’ Lee Gyu, had already stacked up several barrels and was drinking heavily.
Skilled in close combat, Lee Gyu had joined the expedition as my personal guard.
“Lee Gyu, why are you already drinking until your face is that red?”
“Brother, my face is always this color!”
“Oh. Right.”
Lee Gyu had missed the previous battle in India.
He had been eagerly waiting for a chance to really cut loose this time.
“This is noisy.”
“I never thought I’d move with this many people.”
The A-rank Constellation ‘Divine Child of Three Heads and Six Arms,’ Nezha, muttered from where he sat in a corner.
Despite being A-rank, Nezha possessed combat power exceeding most S-rank Constellations.
In this battle, he would serve as one of our main frontline attackers.
“Nameless King, are you sure Christina and Sylvia went toward Pandemonium?”
“I’m sure.”
Apparently, Merlin had placed tracking magic on Christina the last time they clashed.
The signal was gone now...
but it was certain they had entered Pandemonium’s territory.
“I don’t know whether they’re heading to Dis City to steal Lucifer’s power or whether they have some other objective.”
“Then I guess I have no choice but to go there too...”
While we were talking, another voice came from behind.
“Honestly... the more I look around, the less I understand why I’m here.”
The only Contractor in the expedition was Alexei Sivedov.
He had once been contracted with the B-rank Constellation ‘Young Man of Red and Black.’
Now...
he was contracted with me.
“Alexei, you’re an important asset.”
“I brought you because we need you, so don’t think like that.”
“Yeah, fine.”
Alexei possessed the Awakening Skill [Status Inspection].
It was practically a cheat Skill that allowed him to freely inspect another person’s status window.
It could also reveal identities.
The first time we met, Alexei had immediately seen through the fact that I was a Constellation.
“Your Majesty! There doesn’t seem to be any particular danger in the nearby sea!”
A voice came from overhead.
The A-rank Constellation ‘Handsomest Knight,’ Astolfo, had returned from aerial reconnaissance on his Hippogriff.
“Good.”
“Jason, then let’s get moving.”
“Got it!”
“Princess Longji, please.”
“Yes.”
The A-rank Constellation ‘Fairy Who Controls Water,’ Princess Longji, who had been waiting apart from the others, raised her hand.
Water rose and began wrapping around the Argo, gradually concealing its appearance.
“I can’t make it perfect without interfering with the ship’s movement.”
“If we get discovered, assume it can’t be helped.”
“Yes. Understood.”
While we spoke...
the ship began moving.
“Then let the new Argonaut expedition begin!”
“Stop naming things however you want, Jason!”
Atalanta immediately scolded the triumphant Jason.
I can’t believe we really are starting from almost the same place as the original Argo.
We were currently departing from southwestern Greece.
Coincidentally, it was near Iolcos, where the mythical Argonaut expedition had begun.
Of course...
we weren’t following the Argo’s original route north of Turkey in search of the Golden Fleece.
We would cross the Aegean Sea, move south of Turkey, reach Israel’s western coast, and then head for Jerusalem.
Creating a Gate inside Pandemonium territory was impossible.
Traveling by land would expose us to attacks from the roots.
So this was the best route.
We could have traveled through the air like Kang Yujin’s group...
but being sniped out of the sky would be dangerous.
In the end, we chose the sea.
Those guys could probably survive falling from the sky somehow.
We definitely can’t.
And so we would approach Jerusalem from east and west...
and enter Dis City, the capital of Pandemonium, from both sides.
Once we reach Dis City...
all the unanswered questions should finally be resolved.
Thinking that...
I looked out across the beautiful Aegean Sea.
== Argo Team ==
Merlin (S-rank Constellation)
Arjuna (S-rank Constellation)
Achilles (S-rank Constellation)
Orpheus (S-rank Constellation)
Nezha (A-rank Constellation)
Princess Longji (A-rank Constellation)
Astolfo (A-rank Constellation)
Jason (B-rank Constellation)
Atalanta (B-rank Constellation)
Lee Gyu (B-rank Constellation)
Alexei Sivedov (Contractor)
== Roc Team ==
Heracles (S-rank Constellation)
Sinbad (A-rank Constellation)
Kang Yujin (Contractor)
Joo Minha (Contractor)
Alexandros (Contractor)
