Chapter 138

The moment purple waves burst forth explosively from the chieftain's entire body was almost simultaneous.

Crack—

But the trajectory created by the blue holy power split even those waves apart. Ian continued to swing his arm to the end. The moment the trajectory swept past the chieftain's neck, the magic, cut by the holy power, exploded.

Boom—

Ian couldn't avoid being swept away by it. Ian, who was slammed into the ground, bounced and rolled on the floor. The holy power, still burning and flickering, drew a dizzying curve following his movements.

Despite his entire body tingling, Ian managed to land and stabilize himself. The wounds on his face, which had been healing, reopened. His armor was also dented and broken in several places. His left arm hung limply, indicating a possible dislocation rather than a break in his shoulder. But come to think of it, it might have even been broken.

I didn't expect this. What an ignorant bastard...

Even so, it was nothing compared to the chieftain's condition. Its neck was a mangled mess, as if had been sawed off. The body, having lost its head, toppled backward like a log.

During that time, Ian, who had put the Sword of Judgment into his pocket dimension, grabbed his left arm and stood up. With a crunch, the dislocated arm was set back in place. It was a dizzying feeling, but there was no time to hesitate due to the pain.

The chieftain wasn't dead yet.

From the cut surface of its severed head, sticky flesh spread out like tentacles. The same was happening to the severed neck.

Boom—

Ian took a step and fired a Fireball at the head. But it only sizzled its skin a bit. He couldn't stop the regenerative movement.

To think that it doesn't even consider enduring the pain and fighting with such a body...

Ian, approaching the fallen head, swiftly pulled out the Ancient Meteoric Dagger embedded in its third eye. The blood pooled in the eyeball bubbled, having already pushed out more than half of the dagger's blade.

Ian's eyes, looking at the chieftain's body, sparkled. He used the Magic Detection.

Here it is.

It was the moment his gaze stopped on its right chest.

"...!"

The tentacles of the half-severed neck all lifted their heads simultaneously. The remaining eyes simultaneously radiated magic. His vision blurred and his senses were disrupted. It was a dizzying illusion. Ian, who was raising his magic power to shake off the curse, suddenly twisted his body to the side.

It was because his Intuition sent a warning.

Crash!

Along with the sound of the air being pierced, a long bone blade was lodged in the ground where he had been standing. It was a multi-jointed bone blade sprouting from the chieftain's shoulder, swung convulsively.

It wasn't just once.

The tentacles continuously radiated magic, and the bone blade swung, targeting Ian. It seemed to be an instinctive defense mechanism to protect its body.

Without a head, the attacks have become more varied.

But the attacks were not enough to strike Ian. Ian, who moved his body here and there to avoid them, quickly approached the chieftain's body.

Chaos power gathered on the Ancient Meteoric Dagger held in his hand and dropped directly onto the chieftain's right chest.

The chieftain's body jerked greatly. The twitching tentacles suddenly stiffened. By then, gray magic was already swirling in Ian's eyes. In the next moment, the purple light was added to the center of his pupils.

Thunk!

The chieftain's chest exploded entirely. Bones and flesh splattered in all directions. Despite being covered in the remains, Ian stared at the revealed black heart. It was still beating, full of purple magic. The flesh that stretched out like worms covered it instantly.

Without hesitation, Ian stabbed the dagger again.

Crack—

The Ancient Meteoric Dagger pierced through the heart. Ian pushed the chaos power in. Just a handful was enough.

The purple in the heart deepened, and the next moment, it burst with a flash. There was almost no physical damage—only sticky tar-like fragments splattered on his face and body.

The chieftain's remaining body slumped. The flesh that had been connecting to the head snapped. A chilling scream followed.

With a crack, a rift appeared in the air. Beyond it, purple light shimmered.

Well, I was wondering why it wasn't showing up.

A black soul was sucked in beyond that. A quest completion window appeared in the middle of Ian's vision.

"

Hah

...." He finally let out the breath he had been holding.

The quest reward was one ability point. It was stingy for a boss fight, but he didn't mind. It was a linked quest, and the altar quest was still left. Besides, he got a lot of experience points. At this rate, he would level up again soon.

Fatigue and pain spread like paint. His whole body felt tattered. Despite this, Ian considered himself fortunate. If the chieftain had been able to wield its power and abilities properly, the fight would have been much harder.

Moreover, he had cleared a quest that he couldn't complete in the game much earlier than back then. Of course, the changes that would result from this wouldn't be significant. That the outskirts would become a demonic realm wouldn't change.

More mutant kobolds or twisted trolls will prosper... new ones might pop out too.

There would be plenty to fill the vacancy of the hybrid goblin. He just hoped they would be less horrific and disgusting than these.

"

Screech— Aaaah!

"

"

Screech—

"

The scream, like it was scraping the brain, burst out at that moment. The tension that had somewhat loosened became taut again.

Ian's brow furrowed as he turned his head. The hybrid goblins were emitting purple eye light. Beyond them, he saw the party continuing the battle tenaciously.

"... Right, it's not time to rest."

Ian stood up, gripping the Ancient Meteoric Dagger anew.

***

The cleanup of the remnants ended quickly. It was thanks to Ian joining, but also because the hybrid goblins rampaged without distinguishing between friend and foe.

Above the thick fog, the corpses, slashed, stabbed, and dismembered, were scattered everywhere.

"

Phew... phew...."

In one corner, the party caught their breath without saying a word. Everyone was exhausted.

"Are you alright, Ian? Your injuries look serious. Come over here." Mev finally spoke.

Her full plate armor was still dark red. It wasn't holy power, but the fluids of the hybrid goblins. Among the party, she was in the cleanest state. Philip and Charlotte were covered in dust and flesh, and Ian, needless to say, was a mess.

"No need to look. I'm fine."

"That was an incredible battle. There's no way you're–-"

"I understand your concern, but I'm really fine."

"... Alright. I see."

When Ian added, Mev awkwardly turned her gaze. Since her faceplate was still up, her expression couldn't be seen.

Ian shrugged and turned away. He was really fine. He was able to endure it. Of course, he felt headaches and lethargy, but the physical wounds were healing quickly. The wounds on his face were already scabbing over.

It was likely thanks to the Primordial Vitality skill, maxed out to the highest level, rather than the increased health stat.

In the game, it was a skill that increased recovery and recovery speed as health decreased. Now that it had become a reality, it wasn't strange that severe wounds healed faster. As Ian headed toward the tree where the horses were tied, Philip jumped up.

"Sir, I apologize. I couldn't protect all the horses."

"I can see that," Ian replied indifferently and stopped.

He didn't intend to blame Philip or Charlotte. It was a miracle that any horse survived the earlier battle.

If we had just left them... they would've all died, anyway.

Ian took in the state of the horses. The two that had come from the north were terrified and exhausted but seemed uninjured. One of the other two was already dead. The remaining one was unconscious, barely breathing.

Whether it would survive was honestly uncertain.

"... Anyway, we can't ride immediately."

"Were you planning to go right after this?"

"Of course. Look around."

Ian added, straightening his bent back.

"The demonic realm still exists."

"Ah." Philip finally sighed.

The surroundings were still dark, and the fog was thick. Ian approached Charlotte, who was leaning against the tree.

"Can you move?"

"With no problem."

Charlotte stood up, gripping her ax. Her orange eyes scanned Ian's wrecked body.

"You look terrible. There might still be some left inside. Are you alright?"

"You don't look great either. Don't worry."

"But I seem better off than you. I'll lead and take care of the rest." Charlotte said, ignoring Ian's reply, and walked toward the slope.

Mev followed beside her. "I'll help too. I still have strength left."

If you insist...

Ian, who chuckled softly, followed them.

Philip's voice continued. "Wait, sir? What about the horses?"

"There are none left nearby. If you're so worried, you can guard them." Ian said without looking back.

Philip hurriedly ran over. "I can't do that. I need to see what's inside with my own eyes."

The party soon entered the slope. The chieftain's corpse, which had turned into a chunk of meat, was getting closer. Its flesh was already rotting.

"The demonic realm is truly, in various ways, terrifying. To turn goblins into such monsters." Philip muttered as he passed the corpse.

Ian shrugged. "You'd better get used to it. It's not like we stepped into the one and only demonic realm out of sheer bad luck."

Not only Philip, but Mev, who was walking ahead, also flinched momentarily.

"Are you saying there could be multiple demonic realms forming like this?"

"There's a good chance. As I said, it's wartime now."

"... But we haven't encountered a demonic realm once while traveling along the main road."

"It's not strange, Philip. The madness of the Black Wall accumulates in remote, less populated areas first." Mev added.

"If the tainted land increases, eventually, even the main road won't be safe."

Philip's face finally hardened.

"If that's the case... we must stop the war immediately. We can't let death and madness continue to overflow."

"Do you think the kings who had gained or lost their land will listen to that? Or the lords who have already endured enormous troops and expenses?"

"...."

At Ian's indifferent words, Philip licked his lips and fell silent. Even if they were told that the demonic realm was emerging, they wouldn't care.

They might even try to push their enemies into the demonic realm. They wouldn't think about the consequences. Conveniently, they would conclude that they could simply ask the Imperial Church for assistance.

"... What about informing the Empire? What about the Church?"

"If the Empire cared about the frontier, they wouldn't have permitted the war in the first place."

It was Charlotte who spoke unexpectedly. She turned to Philip and added.

"The Empire won't help the frontier. There's nothing to gain. To move the Emperor or the Prince, a considerable price is required. That's the Empire's way."

"But... eventually, it will also threaten the Empire... Well, they can deal with it when it comes. Because it's the Empire...."

While Philip muttered with sunken eyes, the party entered the village.

It seemed to have been either originally a ruin or a small mountain village, without even a proper fence. Only various dilapidated buildings stood here and there. The mist flowing between them was eerie.

Thud.

The sound of rough breathing and footsteps approached shortly after.

"...!"

Charlotte, who had taken a battle stance, frowned for a moment. Several large beasts resembling a mix of dogs and boars were charging, accompanied by small creatures about the height of goblins.

"There were a lot of offspring, too." Muttering in disgust, Charlotte leaped forward.

Mev followed behind.

The two cut down everything coming at them without mercy.

Ian calmly bypassed the edge and headed toward a closed building in the distance. From the moment he entered the village, he had been using Magic Detection. He sensed contaminated magic from several buildings, including this one.

The building appeared to have been originally used as a stable or storage.

Philip, following behind, murmured. "There's nothing normal here. What are those beasts? And what happened to make the already hideous goblins turn into such grotesque figures?"

"It's better if you continue not knowing."

"Excuse me...?"

Ian slowed his steps and nodded toward the door ahead.

"Stay back. I'll open the door."

"I'll open it, sir."

"You?"

"It's a squire's role to handle such trivial tasks, isn't it?" Philip, confidently declaring, quickly moved ahead.

Will he be alright?

While Ian licked his lips, Philip, who had adjusted his shield and sword, kicked the closed wooden door. The door flung open, followed by the sound of rough breathing and fluttering.

Briefly, Philip held his shield high and peered into the darkness beyond.

"Damn, Lu Solar...." Philip's face contorted.