152. Simulacre
The newly born old man ruminates on the past he has never experienced.
A lich, a false immortal born from a shaman who has risen to the highest level splitting his own soul. Even in the history of this world, only three liches survived a thousand years and received the title of Elder.
In the first place, the creation (創世). ‘Day’ opens, the three races fight, cooperate to stop the first demon king, and divide into numerous small kingdoms to wage war, until the empire appears and its current appearance is fixed.
There have been countless incidents and countless deaths, but the history of this world is less than a thousand years old. Even so, it was thanks to the instability of this world that those who walked around with the title of Elder could exist.
Cracks in space open all over the world. The flow of time twists and turns accordingly. Some beings are older than the new born world. He was like that too.
It was.
The existence that was once called the ‘Eternal Demon King’ slowly raised his consciousness to the surface.
[That energy, after all…]
The elder lich, Hargas, was summoned by someone and temporarily transferred his cerebral body to another place and returned. Originally, it would have been the priest of the Dark Church who called him.
However, the call came much sooner than the time of the promise. When Hargas perplexedly sang at the altar, what he felt was not the Dark Cult, but the presence of strangers.
The ritual itself was unstable, and it was an unstable program that used only a part of the soul, so much information could not be obtained. However, if his senses weren’t wrong, surely it was.
[But, does that make sense?]
Hargas spoke quietly, moving his human body. Some memories could be judged objectively because they were others.
And, if his judgment wasn’t wrong, that sign must have belonged to his old nemesis, the Battle Saint.
[Really, really…]
Unlike the appearance of a transcendent who has lived for over a thousand years, Hargas paced the cave with a nervous expression. Unbeknownst to him, a youthful expression appeared on his face.
Only one demon king can exist. The eternal demon king died a long time ago, and countless demon kings appeared after that. Even with the elder lich’s immortality, an undeniable annihilation.
Nevertheless, Hargas was standing there now. He didn’t just imitate his appearance, he wore a living human body with obviously hot blood running through it.
No matter how high-level witchcraft he practiced and how he faked his true identity, he was no longer an elder lich but a human. He only has one heart.
[Perhaps you, too, have witnessed the same transfer as me.]
Hargas sighed and looked back at his realm. A much smaller size than before, as evidenced by the reduced power. And, a large coffin in the corner.
The eternal demon king is dead. He cried out in despair at the reliquary that was broken one by one, and the war that would never end no matter how defeated he was. He eventually ended his life with the help of a warrior. It was a suicide, not a murder.
But before his death, the eternal demon king shared his own powers and memories. He formed a new body after his former self, and ended his long life awaiting the resurrection of another self that he would no longer be.
And what’s left. Hargath leaned against the massive coffin as if collapsing.
It’s rattled.
The coffin rattled with or without his movements. Hargas peered into his body. A youthful body that was strikingly similar to the one he was in life, but was never his.
This body was originally one of the Elder Lich’s test subjects. I can’t recall any more memories of the past, but I’m sure he was a normal, healthy young man before he got caught up in the tragedy.
However, the bloated memory of a thousand years swallowed up the ego. Despite being perhaps the greatest victim of his own atrocities, Hargath could hardly see himself as anyone other than Hargath.
The light slowly returns to the blurry eyes of the puppet, which is swayed by the spider webs it has spun itself.
[Heroes······. hahahaha, the warrior is coming.]
A faint, but unpleasant and distinct presence that can never be confused.
The disaster that had already put an end to his life was visiting him once again.
I wonder if it was the problem of trying to attack the Great War? However, the hero came too sooner than expected. Drops of blood trickled between his clenched lips.
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Hargas didn’t want to confront him either… No matter who the hero of the day is, he who has been born anew and has lost most of his power is not an existence that he can dare to oppose.
Nevertheless, he had to fight. As Hargas rose to his feet, the reality of the world shifted, and otherworldly laws began to overflow through the cracks.
[“Is this right?”]
[-.]
A raucous voice coming from beyond the studio, and a mental wave that I dare not eavesdrop on. A party of warriors is imminent.
Before the showdown, Hargas glanced briefly at the coffin he was leaning on. The driving force that allowed him to be resurrected as a different being even after he died. The price given after pledging to fight the hero.
One of the four holy relics that the evil spirit has sent down to the earth. ‘Coffin of Rest’.
[My old enemy. Will you pray for my defeat this time too? Or will you pray for this poor body that has forgotten who it is.]
The chains holding the coffin were pulled tight, and the coffin lid rattled and shook. It wasn’t until the brief disturbance subsided that Hargath turned around as if he had heard an answer.
*
After several days of running after the traces of the elder lich’s soul. We finally succeeded in finding its base.
A small crypt in the middle of the forest. At first glance, it looks like a small and meaningless place where rabbits or foxes have sold, but my eyes accurately captured the sense of heterogeneity within it.
– Name: Place where corpses are born
– Rating: □
As Choco, who transformed into a beast, dug up the ground, the small crypt that was just a camouflage quickly collapsed, revealing a passageway large enough for Choco, who had transformed into a beast, to enter.
An underground cave where large monsters such as sand worms seem to have dug through. After walking for about ten minutes along the shiny dirt floor, we were finally able to face the entrance of the dungeon.
As expected of an artificial dungeon created by someone’s intention, a huge and majestic iron gate blocked our way. The image of a ghost engraved on the door was enough to make even moderate adventurers feel numb.
[Ouch!]
Well, there’s no way anyone in our group would be so intimidated. Choco, who approached the door without hesitation even while looking at the bizarrely distorted ghost face, stretched out her front paw on the doorknob and quickly removed it.
Regardless of the guy’s will, the sacred power of the stars crackled at the part of the forefoot where the handle touched, and black burn marks were left on the handle that looked like ordinary iron. The backlash of divine power and ominous power.
Some otherworldly law was protecting the door to the dungeon.
[Simple. With the Holy Sword as it is…]
Others may have struggled a bit to break the laws of the other world, but we have a holy sword. She is usually incompetent, she is herself, but she boasts strength that is no different from a cheat key against enemies in the other world.
The inviolable authority of the holy sword can overwrite and erase the laws of the other world that are lower than it. Nothing to worry about. Let’s go ahead and deal with it.
[······Cream?]
Contrary to my thoughts, however, instead of drawing out the sword right away, Cream was examining the door with a meticulous gaze. Following her gaze, my head naturally turned.
The impact of the ghost’s face is so great. Unrecognizable language. I could hear Cream muttering something small.
The words sounded almost like a sigh because I couldn’t whisper them, so I sharpened my hearing. Soon, the words she muttered were clearly in my ears.
‘If you kill the person you love the most, the door will open.’
What? As if I wasn’t the only one paying attention to Cream, Choco came up to us with her ears perked up. Looking at his expression, it seems that he didn’t even hear the contents.
“Huh? What?”
“·······.”
Cream was silent. Sensing her uneasiness, I rushed to her.
[What are you procrastinating on? Let’s quickly open the door with the holy sword and enter.]
Even if there are texts in dungeons or ruins that look like hints, it is foolish to follow them as they are. Especially if the hint is explicit.
It’s not that we don’t have another way, there’s a universal key called the Holy Sword, so there’s no need to worry at all. Cream seemed to have made up her mind as well, so she immediately drew her sword from her belt.
“Carbal.”
[Huh?]
Not the holy sword, but me.
Cream’s gaze was cold. She was looking at me with eyes she had never seen before. She was momentarily enchanted by the starlight in those eyes, and realized the emotions contained in them belatedly.
Animosity.
“Where are you?”
Ppogak. The sword broke in two with a funny sound.