...

    In the depths of the Plagued Lands, there was a group of players gathered inside a tomb. Their current appearance was neither of any races available to the public.

    They looked like an undead, but not at the same time.

    Some of them looked like a sick person and were on the verge of dying, while the others seemed to have been infected by a contiguous disease, making them look weak and would collapse at any time.

    But despite all of these, they looked quite intimidating and powerful, which was quite the opposite of their outer appearances.

    These players were the ones who had discovered this ancient tomb and disturbed the rest of the fallen king. Due to what they had done, they had been cursed with the plague and tasked to spread it and accumulate enough life force to resurrect the fallen king.

    This was a special quest or sort, which they had always wanted. But the ending was still not something that they had expected.

    The first time they had discovered the tomb, they were quite excited about it, thinking that they had found a treasure trove. But who would have thought that instead of discovering any treasures, they would become like this?

    "Our progress has been halted due to the involvement of the Righteous Churches. We can no longer expand as they have already set up the purifying outposts to block our advance," said one of these players, who seemed to be a zombified person.

    He had a decaying mouth, which looked quite hideous, especially when with those teeth that were being revealed due to his missing cheeks. One of his eyes was also almost popping out due to the lack of muscles and flesh surrounding it.

    There was a constant flow of black miasma coming out from different parts of his body, particularly from the gaps left by the decaying wounds all around him.

    There was a sheathed katana on his waist, which signified his previous class before he ''died''.

    "What can we do? It is to be expected, especially when we are somewhat close to the Divinity City. That is why I suggested earlier that we expand toward the opposite direction, towards the smaller city, since it is the much safer choice," this time, it was a woman with a pale face.

    She was sighing as her companions were not listening to her. Even if they had become somewhat stronger than their previous selves due to the class and racial conversion of the plague that swallowed them, she still knew that they were far from threatening such a massive Imperial City, especially when it was the capital of the Divine Empire.

    She was quite a beauty before she got ''sick''. Her face was like a fairy due to her smooth skin, particularly her emerald-like eyes that were as clear as water.

    Even if her face had lost its color due to the lack of blood, she was still quite gorgeous, especially with the current set of clothes that she was wearing. It was a dress that seemed to have been made from the finest fabrics and reinforced by some ancient magic used during the old era.

    She was also holding a long scepter that had a butterfly-like head, spreading its beautiful and majestic wings. The black gem attached to its tip was constantly releasing a black miasma, corroding the surrounding mana before it absorbed them.

    "But we have the time for that," said another member of the group, who looked like a ghost due to the black miasma that was covering his entire body.

    He was the previous leader of the team, who was now the ''trusted aide'' of the king.

    Even though he was pained to lose his brothers and sisters, who had been fighting with them since the start of their journey from the previous games that they played, he could not do anything since they lacked the power to resist.

    Aside from the fairy-like lady, his appearance was the most ''normal'' out of everyone in the room, as he was more of a ''human'' than the rest.

    Compared to the others, he was wearing quite luxurious clothing, which seemed to be used by the ancient kings. The red robe, particularly, was so majestic that it made him like a true ruler of ancient times.

    The golden embroidery that the robe also had a majestic feeling that was making him more of a noble rather than an ordinary person.

    It was also filled with invisible magic runes that were used by ancient magicians, who were loyal to the king.

    This king''s robe was without a doubt a powerful artifact, especially when it was constantly releasing a mighty aura that could force those before him to kneel.

    But despite all of these, Axion, the leader of the team, was not happy. It was because this robe was a cursed item that had been forced onto him by the spirit guarding the tomb of the king.

    It was meant to be given to the perfect vessel that the king could use when he finally descended back to this world and became fully resurrected.

    Axion knew that he was nothing but a sacrificial pawn that was meant to be the main ingredient for the resurrection of the fallen king.

    Even if he was unwilling, he could not do anything about it since his ''soul'' would instantly be devoured by the robe once he had any unfaithful thoughts against the king.

    He had already been cursed and destined to die in this game, but there was still a sliver of hope that he was desperately clinging on.

    So long as the king had successfully resurrected, his chances of survival would increase, which was quite ironic compared to the current situation.

    The personal quest he had received told him that he could still survive this predicament after the king''s revival.

    His ''soul'' would then get a new vessel, which would be specifically tailored just for him.

    If he was lucky enough to survive, then he would most likely become more powerful than his current self and even surpass most of the experts here in the Awakened Continent.

    "I just hope that we will survive until the very end of the event," he mumbled with a hopeful tone.

    ...