[Translator - Night]

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Chapter 272

* * *

The ugly demon statue’s face was once again wrapped in cloth and sealed.

This time, I personally placed the sealing formation, not the cultists.

Naturally, their expressions twisted in dissatisfaction.

“A ruined castle in the middle of nowhere... I’ve heard the stories, but seeing it in person is a first.”

Once the capital of an ancient kingdom, this place now remained a forest ruin where no human dwelled.

“It’s the perfect background for a tale about a castle’s demon. Though, honestly, it’s probably just a rumor, nothing to take seriously.”

Isna smiled as if intrigued.

Unlike her relaxed demeanor as she casually stretched, Luna’s expression remained tense.

“It’s definitely here. Faint, but I can sense it from within the castle.”

We were close enough for Luna to pick up the traces as well.

“Nyala?”

“Definitely.”

I did my best to calm her, as she looked ready to charge in at any moment.

Killing Nyala here wouldn’t change anything anyway.

Besides, if we killed it in its current state, it wouldn’t truly die—just like Sullivan, the fallen king from another dimension, it would survive in some form.

“Even if we kill it here, it’ll just come back. Any way around that?”

“Impossible, for now. That’s how much their power is being suppressed.”

In other words, to truly kill them, either their complete form must fully cross over into this world—or I’d have to go to their dimension and slay them there.

“Any other options?”

“None confirmed. But they're not truly immortal. Any injuries they take here are amplified and transferred to the main body.”

In simpler terms, if we deal a heavy enough blow here, it would cause significant damage to their real form, making them hesitate to interfere again for a while.

“There might be a limit to how often they can do this, too. It's not an entirely one-sided advantage. In fact, for them, the losses might be severe.”

It's natural that attackers are at a disadvantage compared to defenders.

Unfortunate, but there was no better option at the moment.

The only silver lining was that the stronger they got, the more vulnerable they became.

I passed on our current location to the Holy Kingdom and the Elves, who had been following our route.

The cultists were busy planting sacrificial grounds around the castle, preparing to activate a curse formation.

From my perspective, it looked like utter nonsense.

But they probably saw it as a trump card.

How laughable.

When I lightly brushed against the sticky sensation of necromantic mana at my fingertips, the unstable flow wavered heavily.

With just a small gesture, I could have easily hijacked the control.

But this time, I didn't.

Instead, I infused their magic with my own necromantic mana to strengthen it and eliminate any unpredictable variables.

The cultists' necromancy is still laughably easy to hack.

Thanks to the constant sharing of coordinates, the Holy Kingdom’s paladins and the Rangers of the Great Forest were arriving much faster than planned.

Since they were sending elites rather than ordinary soldiers, their speed was almost alarming.

“Never thought I’d see the day. Elves and the Holy Kingdom—normally mortal enemies—joining forces with a cult to fight a common foe.”

“Those cursed bastards don’t have allies, do they?”

“Heheh, true enough.”

Just like Isna said.

Live long enough, and you’ll see everything.

Really... live long enough, and anything can happen.

[Based on your memories, if I estimate how long you’ve been alive—]

‘Librarian.’

[Confirmed.]

‘Shut up.’

I really don’t want to know.

Our objective is simple: wipe out the interdimensional creatures in the castle and rescue the Archangel Remiel.

Not that I particularly care about Remiel.

Maybe Luna feels differently, but to me, whether she lives or dies is irrelevant—so long as she doesn’t get in the way.

Harsh as that may sound, it’s the truth.

Archangel Remiel.

Although she’s said to be sealed within a suppression formation, I received word from Diablo while on the way here.

The suppression is weakening.

It might sound like her seal is breaking—but Diablo offered a different perspective.

Someone is corrupting the seal placed on her.

Whatever it is, it’s definitely not a good sign.

“My gods… what a grotesque spatial distortion… It seems the World Tree’s blessing is still protecting this place. A space like that would normally corrupt everything around it.”

The elves sent from the Great Forest were apparently from the Romila household, and seemed quite sensitive to anomalies.

Romila House… The head of that house didn’t think much of me at first, but in the end, he sacrificed his life to support me.

Well, it’s only natural that the elves would be extremely wary of interdimensional forces—those nearly brought ruin to the World Tree.

“I should inform the paladins to stack divine buffs. The enemy’s definitely preparing something serious on their end.”

The Holy Kingdom was no different.

Having their holy capital attacked had their paladins itching to tear the heretics apart.

“Leon Cascadia. There’s been a development.”

“What is it?”

“The enemies hidden inside the space are gathering en masse.”

That came from Diablo, the high priest who led the Holy Kingdom’s forces.

From the Elves, a high elf had arrived.

Originally, it was the World Tree’s priestess, Triana, who had been in contact with us—but apparently, internal discussions sent her to the rear lines again.

Frankly, that worked out better.

Triana wasn’t particularly useful in combat anyway.

Keeping her out of danger is a relief.

The cultists were represented by Dobel, a black mage who seemed to be at least 6th Circle.

Finally, Luna and I were present as well.

“Our plan is simple. Since the Holy Kingdom and Great Forest are here, we’ll need their cooperation.”

[Translator - Night]

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“You’re saying we have to work with you filthy cultists?”

“I’m not thrilled either.”

As the high elf voiced his agreement, Dobel just shrugged.

“Then feel free to back out.”

“……”

The two faction leaders looked at me.

Do we really have to work with these goddamn degenerates?

They didn’t say it out loud, but I knew exactly what they were thinking.

“These guys might have garbage personalities, but they also have the most intel on the enemy. At least we share the same goal for now.”

I had set things up so that Muyeong would move the moment those bastards tried anything shady.

"You all remember this too. We joined hands under an agreement, but if you try anything sneaky halfway through, or if you try to shatter the balance of power once everything is over and stab us in the back..."

At the same time as my words, Dobel flinched.

That was because a shadow, like a snake coiling around his body, rose up from the ground.

And at the end of that shadow was Muyeong’s mouth, radiating a chilling murderous aura, as if ready to tear his throat out at any moment.

"Then alliance or not, all bets are off."

"Tch. Don’t be so smug. We’ve got our own circumstances to deal with, so we’re not in a position to pull anything for the time being."

It seemed whatever had happened with the extraplanar being had really messed them up.

They'd already taken heavy losses fighting the Moon Watchers, and then an outer entity tore through their organization — it made sense they were in this state.

Their founding ideology was about isolating threats to the world.

How did they end up like this...?

"Let me brief the operation. Leon Cascadia. There’s a barrier around the ruined castle. We have to break through it. It’s based on necromancy."

Necromancy?

Are they the ones using necromancy?

Or is someone who uses it now possessed?

As my thoughts reached that point, a certain hypothesis came to mind.

"Don’t tell me... one of your key members got possessed?"

"......"

Bingo.

"Breaking through the barrier will take some time."

"How long?"

"Shortest is five seconds. Longest, ten."

"That’s what you call ‘long,’ you lunatic?!"

He muttered in disbelief.

"One second on the battlefield is enough to take off seven or eight heads."

"You maniac… whatever. As soon as the barrier is broken, monsters will come flooding in. There won’t be a small number of them, so we’ll need everyone here to jump in and hold the line."

"Will that be enough? Cultist?"

"Everyone needs to do their part. Leon Cascadia, you take a small team and enter the castle. Bringing mediocre fighters will just get them slaughtered."

At that, members of the Holy Kingdom and the Great Forest looked visibly offended, but even I had to admit he had a point.

"Two people should be enough for infiltration... Deputy High Priest Dibl, will you come with me?"

"Certainly."

"Then we’re three."

"Um, Lord Leon. What about me?"

"Lady Isna, please, I’m begging you — stay somewhere safe. If you get hurt, your mother is going to twist my head off."

"Hmph..."

Isna pouted in dissatisfaction but didn’t protest further.

Once we enter, the monsters may try to fight the others here or retreat back into the castle.

The rangers from the Great Forest, the cultists, and the holy knights will focus on blocking their movement and suppressing their multiplication as much as possible.

"If we're decided, let’s move. The signal to destroy the barrier will be right after we finish placing the curse formation across the castle grounds. Any objections?"

"None."

"None here."

Diablo and the high elf of the Great Forest replied.

"We have no intention of causing internal strife before such a crucial enemy. But we are watching you, cultists."

"You pointy-eared bastards… You wanna go?!"

"Oh, perfect. Damn cultist scum. Hey, what about you bucket-heads over there?"

"Those who betray the Lord must be struck down immediately."

"Great. Then let’s go at it!!"

The scene was seconds away from breaking out into an all-out brawl.

I let out a sigh and was just about to step in and mediate when—

BOOM!!

Luna smashed a nearby boulder into powder with one hand.

"Keep acting like this and not cooperating? Y’all want to die?"

Her words were calm, but everyone froze instantly.

It was the ominous energy flowing from Luna that paralyzed them.

From Luna’s perspective, even she didn’t fully understand why she was so desperate to save Remiel.

Even after they’d fought, it seemed Remiel wasn’t someone she could just let go of that easily.

"Ahem..."

"Apologies."

The elves and holy knights stepped back, and even Dobel clicked his tongue and withdrew his aura.

"As everyone knows, the enemy is not to be taken lightly. I’m sure the holy knights and elven rangers understand that well."

At my words, everyone turned their eyes to me.

"I’ll leave behind a wraith, just in case. But please — try not to die."

At that, they closed their eyes briefly, then nodded.

"This cooperation is also about helping you. Our ranger unit will do our part."

"May the grace of the Lord be with you."

A cultist and a holy knight working together — a rare and bizarre sight indeed.

[Translator - Night]

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