160 episodes
inside the cave.
There was a sage sent by the Dark Followers.
The bookkeeper was beating the desk with nervous gestures.
“Priest Ethan.”
Last time Green Death. And this time, even the curse of the beast was destroyed.
Even by only one Saint Candidate.
It was for that reason that Miles, who had been collapsing due to the scheming of the samurai, returned to stability.
“How was that possible?”
It had already passed.
Even if they found out the cause of the destruction of the ancient magic, there was no way they could do anything about it.
If he is a true bookkeeper, it is better to plan for the future.
But in reality he was a Plaguecaster.
It was a shock to see that the ancient magic, which had been hard-trained for a long time, was destroyed.
“It’s not even a trivial magic made privately by the private sector. But can only one priest do my ancient magic so easily?”
The bookkeeper clenched his fists with a groan.
Second, his self-esteem was hurt, and the plan went awry.
The collapse of Miles was the first step towards causing chaos on the continent.
‘It’s overshadowed by ranting that you can do it.’
I ran into a problem I never expected.
“I can’t help it. I’ll have to tell him that it’s better to rush the plan elsewhere.”
The bookkeeper made a decision.
I didn’t think I was going to lose.
However, for the great task of the clan, there were times when you had to make a decision even if your pride was crumpled.
At that moment, the sound of the wheel of the cart was heard from outside.
The bookkeeper stood up.
“Have the offerings arrived?”
* * *
Ethan’s party stopped the cart.
For the dark followers ahead stopped at the door.
Christopher was surprised to see the huge door in front of him.
‘Is there such a huge door made in a cave like this?’
The Dark Followers dragged their carts and entered one after the other whenever the door opened.
And when they came out, the cart was empty.
At first glance, it looked like a carcass of an animal was being sacrificed.
Dylan asked Ethan.
“What is in me?”
“Can I know?”
Well, that was it.
Dylan shrugged and scratched the back of the head.
Ethan, whom he had seen so far, did not know anything.
So, without knowing it, I asked such a question.
Ethan narrowed his eyes and continued.
“So I came to check it out with my own two eyes.”
Christopher and Dylan swallowed dry saliva.
“I will prepare just in case.”
I had no idea what was going to happen in that sentence.
Christopher had the momentum to put his hand on the hilt at any moment.
Dylan joined him too.
Ethan waved his hand.
“They didn’t notice us. Stop doing anything that makes you suspicious.”
At Ethan’s persuasion, the two knights hesitated.
“Ha, but… … .”
“Because not yet.”
Then, he was overwhelmed by Ethan’s eyes and crawled.
“All right.”
It was when Ethan was calming the two young knights.
bum bum.
footsteps sounded
It was a sound coming from a different passage than the one through which the cart entered.
With him, a foul odor began to emanate.
“… … !”
“Wow.”
Christopher and Dylan tried to cover their mouths with their hands as if they were going to vomit.
But Ethan shook his head.
“Hold on. We’ll be able to walk through the door soon.”
The cart in front of Ethan’s party had just entered.
The two knights looked at Ethan with shocked faces.
‘Hey, are you going to put up with this?!’
‘Are you saying you can’t even breathe?’
Meanwhile, the sound of footsteps drew closer.
Also, the smell got worse.
The knights’ faces became increasingly pale.
Soon, the owner of the footsteps appeared at the entrance to the passage.
He was a middle-aged man with a gloomy impression wearing a hood.
‘That’s him.’
Ethan recognized the bookstore at once.
He must have been a Plaguemaster.
The bookkeeper came closer and closer to the cart.
Ethan muttered to himself as he looked at the tightly closed door.
‘Hurry up, open quickly!’
Judging by the use of Green Death and the Curse of the Beast, this Plaguecaster was also a sly and intelligent man.
Kha’Zix, the plague mage that Ethan knew, was dead, but the one who inherited his research couldn’t be so stupid that he couldn’t tell the difference between Ethan and the knights in front of his eyes.
To learn ancient magic, you had to have some brains.
So Ethan hurriedly tried to enter the door.
I shouldn’t have revealed my identity to the bookkeeper now.
profit.
Then the heavy door opened.
Ethan beckoned to the two knights.
The two knights seemed to have doubts, but they obeyed Ethan’s words.
kuung.
As soon as the three entered, the door closed.
The two knights took a deep breath and enjoyed the stench-free air.
After a while, Christopher lowered his voice and asked.
“At first glance, that stinky bastard seems to be an important person, so why don’t we look into it more closely?”
“It’s okay because I already figured it out.”
The knights were surprised by Ethan’s rant.
As they were about to ask more, Ethan raised his hand.
I could hear the bookkeeper talking outside.
“Is this all you have to offer today?”
I heard the sound of checking the carcass inside the cart and then releasing it.
It sounded like the sound of a puppet being lifted.
“yes. That’s it for today.”
“Where did you get them from? You didn’t just pick up what was rotting from the field, did you? Everything you bring must be fresh, just dead.”
“Uh-huh, you call that a horse? Of course, I don’t bring anything rotten.”
Checking the quality of the corpse made it clear that he was a Plaguecaster.
‘Ancient witchcraft or those who use the materials are dirty.’
Ethan laughed at the bookkeeper inwardly.
Then I checked the inside of the room where the cart was brought in.
The inside of the room was extremely dark.
However, no matter how dark it was, it could not hide the presence of living things inside it.
kuhoo.
The sound of breathing could be felt all the way to where Ethan was.
It was immediately known that a huge creature existed in this room.
“What is this?”
“I hear breathing.”
Ethan and the knights were alert and walked slowly into the room.
Soon, a huge creature appeared.
“Ugh!”
Christopher and Dylan took a small breath.
Ethan muttered quietly.
“Is it a contaminated egg?”
* * *
pounding. pounding.
The contaminated egg was beating, surrounded by a thin film and tentacles.
At first glance, it was a repulsive creature.
The egg moved its tentacles moment by moment to see if it wanted the corpses on the cart.
“Hey, what is this… … ?!”
“What is that, Priest?”
Christopher and Dylan held their breath in astonishment.
Ethan’s eyes narrowed as he recognized the identity of Al at once.
‘A tainted egg. I thought I was stupid, but I would have inherited this research.’
There were several ways to use ancient magic.
However, when the target of the curse was not one but a large scale, there were many cases where a single creature’s vessel was not enough.
A hundred years ago, Kha’Zix devised a way to pass the burden on him to other living beings.
The tainted egg was thus born.
The contaminated egg could not feel any pain.
It was just a living creature that only beats.
There was only appetite to get nutrients.
For convenience, it was expressed as an egg, and could not be hatched.
It continued to exist only as an egg.
However, it was a condition that suited the Plague Magician well.
This is because it can fulfill its role as a living being that takes over its subordinates only when it exists only in the state of a contaminated egg.
“It’s really disgusting.”
“How far has the rebels fallen?”
Christopher and Dylan were outraged.
Although he did not know the identity of the contaminated egg, he seemed to have noticed that it was an individual that was born through evil research.
“Move the carcass in the cart as close to that egg as possible.”
“All right.”
Two knights moved the carcasses from the carts near the contaminated eggs.
The contaminated egg then stretched out its tentacles and greedily devoured the carcass.
Even when I turned my back, I could hear the terrible sound of eating a corpse from behind.
Both knights were upset and frowned.
Christopher asked Ethan.
“What are you going to do now?”
They discovered what the rebels had been hiding in secret.
It was a shocking truth to the two knights who knew only a simple reconnaissance mission.
Dylan intervened.
“At first glance, it looks ominous. We will deal with it in advance.”
“It wouldn’t be bad either.”
But that didn’t fit Ethan’s temper.
“But it’s no fun if it goes like this, right?”
Ethan cleared his mind and smiled.
Luckily, I was able to see the plagueman’s face.
“I broke into someone’s house at will, so I should leave even a present as an apology.”
Ethan walked towards the tainted egg.
Christopher and Dylan flinched.
Ethan’s smile was terrifying to be called a priest.
I’d rather believe it’s a villain.
“Come on, it’s a present. Priest, I don’t know what you’re going to do, but quitting… … .”
The two knights hurriedly tried to stop him.
“Stop watching.”
But Ethan reached out.
* * *
Koo!
The door closed and Ethan and his party entered it.
At that moment, the bookmaster stared at the huge door, led by a strange sense.
More precisely, those who passed through the door.
“what?”
The back of his neck became cold as if he was nervous.
But I didn’t know what that feeling meant.
“Is there something wrong with the offering?”
asked the old man who had brought the Dark Followers.
“no. There is no problem with the offering.”
“I am glad that you are. In fact, before I come here, I do a pre-inspection. So you can stop worrying.”
The old man did everything he could to please the bookkeeper.
However, the bookkeeper lost his eyes as he returned to the sense he had just felt.
‘I must have misunderstood.’
The bookkeeper stopped the old man who continued to stutter.
“Anyway, you have to pay special attention to the sacrifices that go into it. To use a new spell, you need to be fully prepared.”
“Is there any possibility? Should we further increase the quantity of offerings here? In fact, for now, this is the best.”
The old man rubbed his hands together as if he had no face.
The bookkeeper frowned.
When the green death spread, it was easy to find a sacrifice.
Because people fled from the plagued village, many livestock were left in the village.
So, in the meantime, it was enough to rescue the abandoned livestock.
‘That saint candidate! That guy is the problem.’
The bookkeeper’s fists trembled.
But when the cure for the green death became known, the priests who had left Miles returned.
Moreover, in the name of escorting the priests, it became more difficult to obtain an offering as the knights wandered through the village.
There was also a limit to using the corpses of soldiers killed in battle.
‘The corpse offered as a sacrifice should be as fresh as possible.’
The bookkeeper sighed after calculating this and that.
When the curse of the beast was exposed, it was difficult to do something to be trampled on.
He decided not to brush up on the old man.
“If it’s hard to find more, just keep this line. It’s going to get in trouble if you’re just arguing and discovering this place.”
“All right.”
“Strictly enforce the enforcement of those who come.”
“Is there any possibility?”
After finishing the story, the bookkeeper tried to return to his place in the cave.
Suddenly, I remembered the feeling of a stiff back of my neck.
He glanced over the door where the tainted egg would be.
‘it’s okay. They don’t know about the existence of this place yet.’
The bookkeeper tried to comfort himself with such words.
He didn’t even know that what he felt was the future he would die.