CHAPTER 154: THE CELESTIAL GROUP’S SUSPICIONS, THE SWORD OF DARKNESS

Slash! Slash! Slash!

Sam cut through every monster around him with effortless precision.

Each one fell instantly, their bodies collapsing with a single slash of his primordial sword.

He didn’t absorb anything from them.

It wasn’t because he didn’t need the power, but because doing so would reveal far too much about him.

For the most part, he felt he blended in with the others.

At least, that’s what he believed, until he sensed it.

A sharp awareness pricked at him, and when he turned, he saw Seraphine staring straight at him.

"What are you doing, saintess? Let’s move before more monsters appear. I’m sure we can manage!"

Her companions were speaking around her, each of them locked in their own fights.

They managed to handle the monsters, though not without some effort.

Even so, Seraphine’s attention did not waver.

Her gaze stayed locked on Sam, her pupils glowing faintly with the unique light of elven power.

’It’s truly him,’ she thought, ’The Sam Walker from the [Battle Realm]. He has the same sword in his hand.’

’Incredible... is he really the one?’

Sam felt no comfort under that piercing look.

His expression hardened as he stared back at her.

[Anyone in our way, no matter who.]

The panel appeared before him, and he found himself agreeing.

Something about Seraphine’s gaze felt invasive, as though she had seen right through him.

If his identity became known this early, the elves would not hesitate to act.

They would keep his existence hidden until they could strike at the perfect moment.

They would find a way to let their most promising figure claim the kill, ensuring that person became a god and reached the final realm.

Seraphine was the saintess of the elven race, one of the strongest not only because of her natural class, but because of her rapid growth.

She was the perfect candidate.

’Well,’ Seraphine thought as she felt Sam’s cold, unflinching gaze, ’even if you are the one from the prophecy... I won’t trust the words of fate. I’ll decide with my own eyes.’

Without changing her expression, she turned away.

"Let’s go. There’s nothing else of importance here!" she called out.

The group nodded and began moving deeper.

"Let’s reach the barrier or whatever it is. It’s probably where the first mission is."

Everyone seemed to agree, and Sam assumed the same.

By now, about five thousand people had left the forsaken kingdom at the same time.

’These are the most motivated of all,’ Sam thought, ’I need to stay wary of them.’

’I also wonder... how many missions are there if this is just the first?’

The location of the [Seventh Layer] would be far from the forsaken kingdom, so Sam prepared to move quickly.

But then—

Fwish!

A heavy wave of pressure swept through the area, and everyone froze in place.

All heads turned toward the source.

At the very front, the main group of celestials, the one that had taken care of most of the monsters, was approaching someone. A human.

There were other celestial groups in the crowd, but they traveled alone or in pairs. Some were in groups of three to five.

That race seemed to like to work alone, and groups were extremely rare.

Yet this group moved as one, all fifteen members together.

And the human they approached was... Sam.

"Hey," the leader said, stopping directly in front of him.

His gaze dropped to Sam’s weapon, and he pointed toward it.

"What’s the name of your sword?"

Sam’s body froze for an instant before returning to a calm, neutral state.

Their auras met in a subtle clash, but Sam quickly regained full composure.

It was clear this wasn’t a casual question. They had come directly to him, specifically after seeing his blade.

That could only mean one thing, they suspected something.

’If they know about the primordial sword because of that prophecy... I’m in trouble. But how do they know what it is?’

He could see absolute certainty in the leader’s eyes.

Every celestial in the group had a weapon in hand, each of them poised for battle.

[The primordial sword is the most mythical weapon in existence =)]

He couldn’t reveal the truth. So he lied.

"The [Sword of Darkness]," Sam said flatly, "Why?"

"Does a weapon like that even exist?" the leader asked, tilting his head as a cold edge entered his expression, "Damon, check it."

"Of course."

A celestial stepped forward, carrying a strange floating book in his hand, the halo on top of his hand was brown with small pages spinning around it.

Instinctively, Sam opened his status panel.

---

[Name: Damon Celeris]

[Rank: Forsaken]

[Level: 10]

[Class: ???]

[Hell-Mode Analysis: Capable of using incredibly powerful magic. His book also allows him to view the description of any item.]

---

’Oh,’ Sam thought, ’I’m screwed.’

It was almost laughable.

He had conquered all six layers of the [Forsaken] realm in the [Lower Realm], killing every forsaken lord.

Each one had warned him that a day would come when he would face an opponent so overwhelming that his path would end.

And now, standing before this group of celestials, Sam felt the weight of those words.

If Damon identified his weapon for what it truly was, everyone nearby would turn on him in an instant.

They would all try to kill him.

But even then—

[=)]

A slow, sharp smile spread across Sam’s face as his aura ignited, wrapping around him and his blade.

If they attacked, he would not hesitate.

He would do whatever it took to survive, even if it meant killing every single one of them.

The celestial leader raised his hand and summoned a spear, ready to fight.

The air grew heavy. Sam’s vision dimmed, the world fading to black.

Only faint outlines remained, celestials before him, other awakeners watching from the shadows.

And in that darkness, crimson panels multiplied by the hundreds.

[Kill them.]

[End them now.]

[Be the first to strike.]

Again and again, the words flashed, urging him forward.

Sam’s eyes turned crimson.

[Who cares about them?]

[Kill them all, say it was self-defense.]

[If they don’t believe you, kill them too.]

His own determination surged through him.

Where others would collapse into despair, the last primordial would never waver.

He readied himself, his vision snapping back to reality.

But then—

"Huh," Damon said, scratching his chin, "He’s telling the truth. It’s the [Sword of Darkness]."

"Let me see," the leader replied.

After a moment of scanning a panel, he nodded.

"Sorry for the interruption. Let’s head deeper."

And just like that, they turned away. Sam stood still, his eyes wide in surprise.

"Huh."

Somehow, even Damon’s ability couldn’t pierce through the primordial sword’s true nature.

[Hell-Mode Analysis: The primordial sword can conceal itself =)]

’Makes sense.’

The celestials had backed off, but the feeling of eyes on him did not fade.

Even now, their group still carried a faint, cautious aura.

’I guess they still suspect me, even though I’ve done nothing.’

And why wouldn’t they? The sword alone was reason enough to be wary.

Short of fighting barehanded, there was no way for him to avoid their attention.

But for some reason... Sam had the feeling these guys would be the most annoying opponents of them all.

Still, Sam pushed the thought aside and steadied himself.

He had been seconds away from unleashing everything, but that disaster had been narrowly avoided.

Without wasting more time, he rushed forward toward the "barrier" and the place where the "first mission" awaited.