Chapter 57: Human? (3)

Is it just a coincidence?

Ketal thought.

The place he came from was the White Snowfield—a Demon Realm that didn’t belong to the human world. On the other hand, Aron and Elene’s kingdom was a realm of pure humans. There shouldn’t have been any connection between the two.

And yet, something felt off. It was like having a pebble rolling around in his mouth.

Come to think of it, Aquaz mentioned this too,

he thought.

𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

When Ketal had met with Aquaz in the Barcan Estate, she also mentioned that the world had started twisting and growing strange at some point, and that distortion had been happening for about a year now.

Back then, Ketal hadn’t thought much of it. He had simply dismissed it as a coincidence. But now that he knew the distortion of the Lutain Kingdom had also begun a year ago, he couldn’t help but reconsider.

That guy did say some strange things...

Ketal thought.

He remembered the strange man he had encountered during his final Quest in the White Snowfield. At that time, he had dismissed the man’s words as the desperate ramblings of someone on the verge of destruction. However, Ketal started to wonder if he should’ve listened to the man more carefully.

As Ketal sank deep into thought, Aron watched him carefully. Noticing Aron’s gaze, Ketal shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. Keep talking.”

Speculating now was meaningless. For now, Ketal needed to focus on the present.

Aron resumed his explanation. “I don’t know who it started with, but my guess is that it was one of the servants who went on vacation at the time. People were being overtaken after they returned.”

The event had occurred incredibly fast. In the span of a single year, nearly everyone in the royal palace had been overtaken. There hadn’t been enough time to prepare any countermeasures.

“The princess and I noticed something was wrong and tried to figure it out. We secretly brought in mages and mystics from outside, but none of them could uncover anything. In fact, even they ended up being taken over.

“Is it some kind of infection?” Ketal asked.

“It’s a bit different. It didn’t spread widely all at once. It felt like each person was taken over one by one.”

“And you have no evidence to support this.”

From the sound of it, one could easily dismiss it as a delusion of Aron and Elene, just as Lukento had suggested. However, this was a fantasy world. Nothing was impossible here.

“How did you notice something was wrong?” Ketal asked.

“I can’t explain it precisely,” Aron admitted. “But the air surrounding those who were taken over felt different. Even though they talk and act as usual, the sheer sense of wrongness was overwhelming.”

“So, it’s just your gut feeling then,” Ketal remarked.

Aron spoke defensively. “It does sound unbelievable. That’s why I didn’t believe the princess when she first told me. But then something happened that I couldn’t explain.

Aron was the princess’s retainer, responsible for managing and overseeing the palace servants. One of those servants was a freckled girl with yellow hair named Cassie.

Cassie was timid and shy. She was the kind of person who would stay up all night trembling after hearing ghost stories told by the other servants, only to yawn her way through work the next day.

“Teasing her with ghost stories used to be one of my favorite pastimes. But at some point, she stopped reacting to my stories,” Aron continued. Cassie, who used to get fascinated and frightened by Aron’s ghost stories, no longer seemed scared. “I didn’t think much of it at first. I figured she had grown out of it—gotten older, maybe. But then something else happened.”

Aron’s expression wavered as he recounted the event.

Cassie’s job was to maintain the palace’s statues, which were massive and heavy, far beyond the strength of an ordinary human to move. She often worried about being crushed by them if something went wrong. And then, one day, a statue lost its balance and toppled onto her as she was cleaning it.

When Aron heard the crash, he rushed to the scene. There, he found Cassie pinned beneath the shattered statue. By some miracle, she had only suffered minor injuries—the statue had collapsed in a way that didn’t inflict severe harm.

However, if she were a little bit unlucky, she could have died on the spot.

“She made a fuss about breaking the valuable statue and worried about whether she would be punished. But there was no fear or shock about nearly dying—only concern about being reprimanded,” Aron said.

At that moment, Aron realized that the girl in front of him wasn’t the Cassie he knew.

“Interesting,” Ketal murmured, stroking his chin.

The timid, shy girl had somehow stopped fearing death.

“Her behavior didn’t change much. She still smiled, chatted, and carried on like normal. But... I couldn’t see her as Cassie anymore,” Aron said.

After the incident, Aron conducted a few more tests, and what he discovered left him deeply shaken. Most of the people he had known well in the palace were acting just like Cassie.

“And that’s why you ran away,” Ketal said.

“Yes, I was afraid I’d become one of them,” Aron said, his voice filled with despair.

“Your story certainly is peculiar. Could it be the work of a doppelganger?” Ketal asked.

“No, doppelgangers act alone, not in groups. They don’t replace entire communities like this. No known monster or race has shown such behavior,” Aron replied.

“Okay, but there’s something I want to ask. Why are you heading to the Denian Kingdom, of all places? If you needed protection, there are other kingdoms closer to yours,” Ketal said.

“The king of the Denian Kingdom has the power to make the Declaration of Humanity,” Elene interjected.

“The Declaration of Humanity?” Ketal’s interest was piqued. “What’s that?”

“A long time ago, humans lived alongside other races. But there was one man who hated this. He wanted a kingdom of humans alone,” Elene explained.

That man sought out an unknown god and voiced his desire. The god, pleased with his wish, granted him a single power—the ability to separate humans from non-humans.

Gathering other humans who had the same philosophy as him, the man founded a kingdom, and that kingdom became the Denian Kingdom.

“The legends still hold to this day. Descendants of the Denian royal line can make the Declaration of Humanity,” Elene continued.

“That’s fascinating,” Ketal said with a smile. “This world never ceases to amaze me. And I assume you’re trying to find solid evidence with the help of the king’s power. It’s not a bad plan.”

“That’s everything we know,” Elene said, closing her eyes. From here, it was up to Ketal to decide whether to continue on the journey or leave her stranded in the forest. “What will you do?”

“As I said before, nothing changes. I will escort you to the Denian Kingdom.”

“K-Ketal...!” Elene’s voice trembled with emotion.

“However, since the nature of the request has changed, the reward will have to as well. I won’t be cheap,” Ketal said lightly.

Elene, however, responded earnestly. “Of course. Once this task is complete... whatever you desire, as long as it is within my power. I will grant it.”

“Looking forward to it,” Ketal replied nonchalantly.

***

Ketal stood guard by the campfire while Aron and Elene slept. Given the circumstances, they needed to leave as soon as possible, but sufficient rest was essential before moving forward.

Sensing a presence behind him, Ketal spoke. “Patrick, it seems I have dragged you into some sort of an awkward situation.”

“That seems to be the case,” Patrick replied.

“It’s safer if we travel together to our destination. I apologize for the trouble.”

“It’s fine. I was prepared for this when I left home.” Patrick sat down across from Ketal. “It seems like you’ve been caught up in some strange situation as well.”

“That I have,” Ketal admitted.

Ketal had known that Elene was hiding something before they left for the journey. He had realized she was a princess during their journey. However, he didn’t realize that mystery and alienness were woven so deeply into it all.

Is this what it’s like to be in a fantasy world?

Ketal said, smiling. It was the exploration of the incomprehensible—the pursuit of the unknown and the strategy to conquer it.

Seeing things like the Swordmasters and demons, and learning about Aura—concepts he had only known through knowledge—was thrilling in itself. However, unraveling something as inexplicable as this brought its own kind of joy. It felt like killing two birds with one stone.

Patrick, noticing Ketal’s expression, broke the silence. “Do you believe her story?”

“I’m not certain, but it’s possible.” “The Knights of the Blue-Green Order are definitely human. You, of all people who clashed with them, should know that best.”

Lukento had wielded Aura, and so had his knights. Aura was the power of humans. No being other than a human could wield it. Even if it was possible, taking over so many knights with imposters was simply inconceivable.

“I agree with you,” Ketal replied. From what he had seen from the fight, Lukento had undoubtedly been human. “But could we really dismiss the possibility? I can’t deny it outright. After all, I didn’t notice how they arrived here in the first place.”

Patrick didn’t dispute this. He, too, hadn’t been able to discern how the knights had arrived.

“Still, whether her story is true or not, this journey is not something a mere mercenary can handle.” Patrick’s eyes darkened. “Mr. Ketal, you've made an enemy of a kingdom.”

The princess had fled the kingdom, and the knights had come to take her back, only to be driven away by the mercenary guarding her. Now, Ketal stood as an enemy of the Lutain Kingdom.

“Even if her story is true, that’s another problem. They will kill you just for knowing such a secret,” Patrick continued.

“Is that so?” Ketal asked calmly.

“Are you really continuing the journey to fulfill the contract?” Patrick pressed.

“That’s part of it.” Ketal wasn’t lying, but he wasn’t telling the entire truth either. He continued as he smiled. “It’s just such a fascinating story. Wouldn’t it be a waste to miss out on it?”

“Fascination you say...,” Patrick muttered.

“What more could I need?”

Patrick, the Tower Master, realized something about Ketal. Wealth, power, beautiful women, or any material possessions meant nothing to the barbarian in front of him. The only thing that held any significance to Ketal was his own curiosity.

As long as that curiosity could be satisfied, he would undertake any task, no matter how disadvantageous, with a smile. But if it didn’t pique his interest, he would reject it outright, no matter how profitable.

This man...

the Tower Master wondered. There was no doubt in his mind that Ketal was human. However, his way of thinking was far from ordinary. It had to be a value system born from the White Snowfield.

Ketal’s voice brimmed with excitement. “It’s intriguing that there is a being that can replace people without anyone noticing. Utterly unique. It’s going to be a fun journey.”

Patrick found himself chuckling despite himself.

I think a barbarian who catches a sword infused with Aura with his teeth is more interesting.

Aura was the crystallization of Myst. It could tear through steel effortlessly, cutting even magic itself. No material of this world could withstand it, except for substances imbued with Myst, like Mithril or Adamantium.

And yet, Ketal had caught Aura with his teeth. Not only that, but his teeth hadn’t even been scratched.

Patrick knew that Ketal had faced off against Kain’s materialized Aura with his bare body, and emerged unscathed, but he didn’t know that Ketal couldn’t wield Aura.

It was inconceivable for someone powerful enough to subdue a Swordmaster to lack the ability to wield Myst. Patrick had assumed that Ketal used Myst in some other, unseen way.

However, he realized that wasn’t the case. Ketal didn’t use Myst. He had endured materialized Aura with nothing but his physical body.

Kain hadn’t given it much thought, being a swordsman who utilized Myst without delving deeply into their workings, but Patrick, as a mage, was different. A proper mage always sought to uncover the mysteries of the world, to understand and contemplate them.

And so, he couldn’t help but marvel at the barbarian.

A body capable of withstanding Myst... Maybe that body itself is a Myst,

Patrick thought.