Chapter 217: 9:1 (12)

A quiz show? What the hell is he talking about?

Flap!

After leaving such a cryptic remark, Isaac launched into the sky with a strong beat of his wings. He climbed higher and higher, accelerating as he ascended, higher than I’d ever seen him fly before.

I looked around in all directions, but there was nothing. Unlike what he’d claimed, no quiz opponent was in sight. Even with Detection, not a single living thing registered. There was neither a scorpion, nor a snake. Only endless waves of sand dunes stretched out before us.

"Sir Isaac’s heading toward that dune. According to the map, Yemera’s temple is just beyond it... It’s strange."

"What’s strange? The temple?"

"No, the dune. Look, none of the other dunes we’ve seen so far were drawn on the map. But this one is marked exactly in front of the temple."

She was right. That dune ahead was huge—visibly larger than the others. Still, sand dunes shift with the wind. It shouldn’t be fixed enough to appear on a map. And unlike the typical wind-carved ridges, this one had a completely different shape. It wasn’t just a dune. It was a rounded, massive hill—more like a small mountain.

"And..."

Rubia glanced at Isaac circling above with a worried look. He was maintaining altitude, flying wide arcs over the dune in front of the temple.

"What’s he doing?"

"Didn’t Sir Isaac say he was cursed by Yemera? It’s like he’s deliberately provoking something in front of her temple—"

RUMBLE.

The desert shook. The giant dune—at least twenty meters high and two hundred meters across—suddenly surged upward, flinging sand into the air like a waterfall. Sand around it erupted violently in all directions.

RUMMMMBBLLE!

The still desert roared as it trembled. I leapt down from the horse, holding Rubia close. Cracks and gaps began forming along the dune's surface. We retreated far enough to get a better view. The desert wasn’t cracking—it was something buried beneath the sand finally revealing itself.

"What in the world is this...?"

POP!

From the front of the dune, a long, black, knobby ridge burst upward. Each grain of sand shot out like a bullet—fast enough to feel it. Given its sheer size, there was another way to interpret its movement. That enormous ridge wasn’t fast, it was lethargic. It stirred sluggishly, as if annoyed. Then, it opened its eyes.

"Wadluth is tired..."

The dune didn’t speak with its mouth. Instead, a booming voice exploded directly into my mind, like a thunderclap.

[Temple Guardian: Statue Wadluth]

[Rank: S-]

[A hidden creature. It was forcibly awakened from deep slumber after detecting an unimaginably blasphemous presence.]

"What... what the hell is that?!"

I stared at the status window in shock. Until now, the strongest enemy I’d encountered with a visible rank was the B++ Ashworm. The one I fought at Leraie’s sanctuary didn’t display a rank—and frankly, it was too much for me to claim I beat on my own, so it didn’t count. I’d never even seen an A-rank, and now this—an S-? Even setting aside the rank display, the overwhelming presence of the dune in front of me was undeniable.

Tucked safely in my arms, Rubia pointed with a trembling hand at Isaac, still circling above the dune. "Somehow... I feel like he might know."

"

Haha!

So the stupid turtle finally woke up! It’s been four hundred years!"

As the massive dune creature shifted, its hardened surface cracked and rained down cascades of sand.

SSSSHHHAAA!

And yet, the statue had only half-emerged. The rest of it remained buried beneath the sands.

I stared up at Isaac and asked, in all seriousness. "You don’t expect me to fight that thing, do you?"

"You can do it! Hang in there! Those who succeed are the ones who find hope even in despair!"

"You insane bastard..."

Isaac flapped his wings even harder, retreating farther upward, higher than ever before.

"Sir Isaac! You summoned it, and now you’re flying off scared? You’re dumping this on us, what the hell do you think you’re doing?!"

"Believe in yourself~ If it seems impossible, make it possible!"

Bullshit. If it’s impossible, then don’t do it.

Isaac was likely just as scared of what was in front of us. I was so stunned I couldn’t even speak.

"Is Wadluth sensing... rot and depravity... the aura of taboo and blasphemy...?"

"Isaac! I think it’s talking about you."

The tone was strange—polite, even childlike. Yet every time it spoke, an immense pressure filled the air. With each word the head transmitted, sandstorms burst into life across the dune, as if the desert itself was wailing. Some of the swirling sands even dimmed the light, darkening the area in patches.

I managed to get Rubia moving.

Her face had gone pale as she nodded faintly. "So it was Isaac who provoked it..."

The statue sent its thoughts like a deep echo, resonating across the entire desert.

"The cursed aura... The defiled one has come near the temple... Then Wadluth must put an end to it... yes... it must end here..."

Two enormous legs pushed up through the sand, each as big as a back alley wedged between three-story buildings. At the tips of the toes, pitch-black flashes pulsed with lethal intent. Each of the ten visible claws was bigger than my greatsword.

Crackle...

I had no confidence I could block that darkness, which was deeper than my most powerful sword aura.

"Annoying... but there’s no choice but to destroy... utterly... until it screams in chaos and agony..."

It spoke in broken sentences, yet its power was unmistakable. What the hell had Isaac done? If not for him, we could’ve passed through peacefully, gotten the Lurium just as planned. But now, dark, shifting letters twisted through the air above the dune. I couldn’t read the language, but I felt its malice. A will to punish.

"Isaac! What do we do?!"

I pushed Rubia behind me and raised my sword, ready for anything. As the black glyphs aimed toward us, preparing to strike...

"Say you want to solve the quiz! Now!"

There was no time to hesitate.

"I’ll solve the quiz!" I shouted with all my might.

The storm around the statue stopped as if a switch had been flipped. The dark spells faded, slowly turning transparent. The sky, which had darkened moments before, cleared up again.

Isaac glided down near us, and I shot him a glare. "What the hell just happened?"

"The thing used to belong to the God of Riddles."

"The God of Riddles? Not a guardian of Yemera’s temple?"

"That god lost a game of twenty questions to a human and sealed himself away, even giving up his name. After that, this guy was dumped onto Yemera. But knowing that witch, she wouldn’t have played with him like a pet... Riddles though? That was a different story."

"How do you know all that?"

Before he could answer, a deep wave of sound echoed inside my head.

"Qu... iz? Are you really saying you want to do a quiz with Wadluth...? Just like the old days...?"

"Yes! I’ll answer your riddles!" I shouted again, then whispered to Isaac, "What happens if I get it wrong?"

"You get attacked again, obviously. Why are you even asking? Hang in there!"

"Right..."

The absurdly huge desert turtle-looking statue communicated in that same bizarre tone. The rules were simple: Rubia and I would take turns answering questions.

"No sharing answers... If you cheat, there’s no reason to play riddles in the first place..."

"I go first? Can’t this crow take the quiz instead?"

The turtle slowly shook its massive head.

"Why would you say something so foolish...? That crow has already experienced Wadluth’s quiz. And even if it answers correctly, I still can’t let it into the temple. The goddess’s sanctuary must not be defiled...!"

I was quiet.

"

Hehehe

. See? I told you I can’t help. You’re on your own. Even if I tried to whisper the answer, it would know. Good luck!"

"Two wrong answers in a row, and Wadluth will be sad... but everyone must die. Two right answers in a row, and... maybe I’ll let you pass."

A sudden quiz show. Honestly, I had no confidence I could solve anything.

"Don’t worry. We can do this."

Rubia encouraged me, but a sinking feeling told me this could be the end. What kind of questions would it even ask?

"Then... let’s begin. It has no hands, but it can stab. It has no feet, but it travels far. It holds truth... but also lies. What is it? I’m... curious...!"

Curious... Curious... Curious...

The desert itself seemed to hum with the question, vibrating inside my skull. Stabs without hands? Travels without feet? A stinger? An arrow? No... they didn’t hold truth and lies. How would something stab without hands and move without feet?

"Any hints...?"

The enormous turtle dropped its head low.

"Ohhh... I gave you the easiest one because you looked so dumb. If you can’t even get this... maybe death really is the better option... Ah... sorry. That was rude since you’re already dead...!"