Chapter 856: The Last (89)

It wasn’t easy to ask tacitly about something one had decided not to talk about, but I couldn’t do anything without resolving this question.

As I turned my gaze slightly, I saw Lee Kiyoung smiling, seemingly having lost his mind.

‘Why did you have to get involved with a guy like that…?’

If I had known it would turn out this way, I would have paid more attention to him.

Benignore and Belial hadn’t said anything yet, but the dice had already been cast. As I spoke again, they stared at me.

‘I have to say what I have to say.’

“I… I didn’t observe the Son of Light nonstop, but I’m certain that the dimensional sea in Mirror Lake isn’t an easter egg. It’s an obvious bug. It’s strange that they managed to enter and exit the dimensional sea with a tattered, man-made ship in the first place.”

“We can’t consider it as a bug, Lauren. That…”

“Yeah. That’s why he didn’t fix it… That’s what everyone might think.”

“…”

“That could be the will of the system.”

“…”

“The outer god was definitely out of the norm, so I thought the system gave a gift to the god of sunset and the Son of Light to combat them. I think that was a means to upgrade them for free. In fact, it could have been that way if he had chosen Longinus’s Spear. He would be an enemy in the end, though, so it would’ve been meaningless…”

“…”

“But that wasn’t what happened. I never saw that pendant used on the day of destruction or in the war against the outer god. It was hidden as if it didn’t exist in the first place and treated as if it had never been obtained. He can’t even remember it himself, let alone the followers of the Son of Light who went to Mirror Lake at that time, and the sunset god is in the same state. It’s not even recorded in the Continental Archives. Wouldn’t it make sense that someone intentionally deleted it?”

“Looks like you’ve dug up quite a bit. I can see your hard work.”

“That’s because I thought joining this place was a gamble. I needed to know what I needed to, right?”

“D-Didn’t you believe me, Lauren?”

“That’s not it. Since I was already coming here, I wanted to do things right. It was more for you than me.”

There were definitely a lot of strange things. This situation was so bizarre that simply saying that it was strange wasn’t enough.

‘What is that, anyway? Why can’t I see it?’

It felt weird not being able to check and confirm the item with my eyes, let alone with the Continental Archives. It couldn’t be explained by saying someone had intentionally blocked it.

Of course, it was easy to guess who’d done this. It was obvious who’d blocked the information about it.

“I think it’s Lucifer.”

“…”

“It’s probably her. Am I wrong?”

No demon would have been able to do this unless they were on the same level as her or higher, considering only high-ranking demons or gods could make this absurdity possible.

The question was, why had Lucifer done such a thing?

Why had she influenced not only the Son of Light but also his followers?

‘It’s a mythic-grade item.’

She chose it by throwing away Longinus’ spear, which could kill even the gods…

That extreme efficiency bug was still rotting that object? Wasn’t it Lee Kiyoung who’d chosen that pendant?

Why was it that the artifacts he would never use had been put aside under mutual agreement with Lucifer? What the hell was that item for him to even erase his memory for?

“I don’t know about Benignore, but I don’t think that garbage demon would have joined for no reason. You joined because you have a chance to win, right? Also, unlike me, you two thought that the Son of Light would keep watching. I’m certain that you checked that pendant before anyone influenced it. At least one of you must have known, but there’s also a high probability that both of you knew. So please tell me.”

“…”

“…”

“That’s…”

“Benignore.”

“Unnie, you have to tell me.”

“I can’t tell you that.”

“Why?”

“Lee Kiyoung told me not to.”

“What? What do you mean?”

“Lee Kiyoung doesn’t want me to disclose it. He said that the others shouldn’t know.”

“Isn’t that the item that he picked up?”

“I-I don’t know much about the details. However, before he lost his memory, Lee Kiyoung asked me not to tell anyone. He told me not to tell even himself no matter what happened… He said that it was all I had to do. I’ve never seen Lee Kiyoung so nervous. It’s probably going to be really important.”

“Do you know about it too, Belial?”

It looked like he did.

‘What the hell is it?’

His grin definitely looked annoying. The way he put his hand on my head felt like he was provoking me. I couldn’t think right.

‘Why can’t you tell me? Why don’t you tell me what even that demon knows?’

“Of course I know.”

I had no choice but to reflexively lift my halberd.

“Tell me, you damn demon.”

“I can’t tell you because I’m bound by a contract. And even if you learn of it, it won’t change anything. I don’t know exactly what the Son of Light and Darkness is thinking, but it’s all his choice and his will. Secrecy and security are originally meant to reduce variables.”

“…”

He took a bite of an apple after sitting on the edge of the desk.

“I don’t think you can create unexpected variables, but he’s a cautious person, so much so that he even erased his own memory. There’s no assurance that you won’t do anything unnecessary with the card that he has.”

“He erased his memory to…”

“Of course, to win the bet with Lucifer. In reality, it is to nullify the bet by expediency. Perhaps he was feeling pressured by her. He decided that it would be best to lay the rails ahead of time as the Son of Light and Darkness, so his job became simple. He erased his memory and put the train on the rails. It’s really simple, isn’t it?”

“Psycho bastard.”

“There is no reason to be happy if unexpected variables occur. Without them, the train would run on a set rail and eventually reach its destination safely.”

“I am not going to be a variable. I need to know if this will harm Benignore… and even if it will, I won’t do anything. I just want to be prepared for when anger strikes.”

“L-Lauren.”

“…”

“I don’t mind. Even if the plan fails, Lee Kiyoung said that he would take care of it.”

‘How do you know that’s not a lie?’

I had to protect her.

It felt like watching a child being thrown into the water. Seeing her holding my hand tightly as if she was moved, I got worried that she had been really deceived, and it was hard to turn a blind eye to seeming injustice.

I thought it was important to know this, even if we went to hell together.

Even if I could no longer step out, I had to join them for now.

‘She can’t escape anymore anyway.’

It would be the least I could do to stop great anger from coming from her. Belial smiled brightly and held out the contract.

I’d known it would be like this, but it felt worse than I expected. The thought that I might be making the problem bigger ran through my head, but I couldn’t help but watch him point out where to sign with his eyes twinkling.

There was basically no problem about it except for the basic confidentiality clause, the penalty for revealing the secret, and the seal of Belial, but the act itself felt shameful.

After looking at him once more, I picked up the pen.

It was then that Benignore, who had been silently observing the situation the entire time, spoke.

She did so as if it weren’t a big deal.

“It’s the legacy of Altanus.”

“What?”

“The name of the mythic-grade pendant is the Legacy of Altanus.”

“…”

“A pendant that makes wishes come true.”

“…”

“The penalty is the extinction of the user.”

“…”

“To put it simply, it is a pendant that will make his wish come true with the disappearance of the Sunset Swordsman.”

“Why… Why did he choose that?”

She wouldn’t know that much. But questions filled my head. In an instant, my thoughts became complicated.

“Why did the Son of Light choose an item that penalizes with the death of the god of sunset? Why did he agree to wear the pendant he gave him?”

I didn’t ask the question to gain answers. I needed to take some time to think for myself.

“Why…?”

Lee Kiyoung and his followers would have been completely unaware of the penalty. There was also a possibility that it was a penalty that only the owner could confirm after being chosen by the item.

However, the eyes of the Son of Light were special. I didn’t know about his followers, but he should have been aware of the price. It wouldn’t make sense if he weren’t.

Had he been installing rails since then, or did he just hate the Sunset Swordsman? Did he suddenly want revenge?

“Has Lucifer been intervening from that point on? When exactly did he erase his memory, and when did the bet start? Why… Why can’t the god of sunset check the items he is wearing? This is strange. Why can’t he even be aware of the existence of equipment that he himself is registered as the owner of? It is possible to confuse his followers, but not to infringe on the rights of the owners.”

“…”

“Of course, it would have been possible back then. At that time, he was just a mortal. But he’s different now. Considering his level, doesn’t it seem strange that he can’t recognize items that have come into his possession? Even with Lucifer involved, that’s impossible. It’s not an item that she gave him. It’s Altanus’ legacy. I’m sure the system won’t allow it…”

Regressor Instruction Manual.

“Regressor Instruction Manual?”

“…”

“…”

It would be possible with the power of the Son of Light.

“Regressor Instruction Manual…”

With the power that he possessed, it might be possible. No, he would definitely be able to control it.

To completely delete the pendant from the head of the god of sunset, make him unaware of it, and make it completely disappear from its existence.

It was something that even Lucifer couldn’t do, but it was easy with his ability.

However, I still had some doubts.

Lots of them.

Still, one thing was for certain.

“The content of the bet was not whether the god of sunset would kill the Son of Light. It… It was a bet about whether he would use the pendant to save him.”

“You may be right…”

“The reward they were supposed to receive was not the resurrection of the Son of Light.”

“…”

“It was the resurrection of the Sunset Swordsman. The reason we are gathering divinity is not to save Lee Kiyoung, but to save Kim Hyunsung…”