The dedicated Tower climbing room in the Seopangyo mansion.
"Today was totally a honey run!"
"I know, right? It was over before we even knew it."
"Momo! Teharam meat is ready to eat!"
"Mm! Totally ready!"
Kkancho and Momo's eyes sparkled fiercely.
The Kkanmo duo had asked Vayla to prepare the seasoning before entering the Tower.
They seemed ready to devour the seasoned grilled meat with gusto.
Of course, before that.
"Momo, eel grill, charging in!"
"Charge!"
I grabbed the heads of the two about to dash out.
No way.
Going out covered in mud like this.
Vayla would surely go on strike, and so would Boing Boing Units 3 and 4.
"Kkancho, you go there. Momo, you go there."
I dangled them and tossed them into the shower rooms located in the dedicated room.
"Imprisonment!?"
"You're imprisoned until you're all washed up."
"Understood! I'll wash up right away!"
The sound of water spraying from both shower rooms almost simultaneously.
"Woooooooh!!"
"Kuaaaaaaah!!"
Enormous shouts followed.
They must really want to eat.
Vrrrrrrrr! Bang!
Had about thirty seconds passed since the hairdryer turned on?
The right shower room door burst open roughly.
A fluffy version of Momo emerged from the steam.
She had even neatly put on her pajamas and started dashing off.
"Momo is going to eat it all!"
"What! How are you already out!?"
As expected, the fluffy Kkancho was bound to be slow.
Maybe I should ask the Magic Engineering Lab to make a full-body dryer?
"Where did you go!? You plump Doraymon!"
Kkancho, who had flung the door open, climbed up onto my shoulders.
She must have judged that her short legs couldn't keep up.
"Charging in! Commander-in-chief!!"
I gave the similarly fluffed-up Kkancho a piggyback ride and headed to the kitchen.
Up ahead, Momo, who had been running busily, suddenly slammed on the brakes for some reason.
She even started backing away hesitantly.
"Momo, what's wro— Oh, shoot."
I flinched and had to step back too.
Nia was lying alone on the wide table.
Vayla, holding a dagger, was looking down at Nia with a stoic face.
It felt like discovering a secret lab I wasn't supposed to see.
"Nia is being operated on!"
"What, Vayla! You're pulling a fast one!"
Why is 'pulling a fast one' coming up here?
No, forget that.
As I approached the table, Vayla bowed her head.
"Welcome back."
"What were you doing?"
"I discovered an interesting phenomenon."
Vayla brought the lamp she was holding close to Nia.
As it got near, the light bulb instantly went out.
It wasn't unplugged or anything.
The light itself just disappeared.
When she moved it away a bit, the lamp turned back on.
"What is it, what is it! It turns off and on!"
"Is it magic even while sleeping?!"
This time, Vayla brought the dagger she was holding.
It was a holy dagger that had been left in storage because it was awkward to sell and awkward to use.
After a moment.
"...!"
The holy power enveloping the dagger vanished.
This time, it didn't return even when she moved it away.
It seemed to completely devour the amount that currently existed.
The lamp, being continuously supplied with electricity, probably turned back on.
"Is it irrelevant what the medium is?"
"Not exactly."
Vayla lit a match she had brought from somewhere.
This time, it didn't disappear.
Neither the flame nor the light from the flame.
Still, erasing even the holiness imbued in an item... that's a brutal ability.
"Kkancho, be careful with your assault rifle. It'll just become a regular rifle."
"Eht."
Kkancho moved dodododo to secure a safe distance.
Camelia, who had approached, peered intently at Nia.
"The spirit dwelling within has changed, albeit very slightly."
"Oh?!"
"Vayla, how much light did you feed her?"
"This much."
Vayla walked over and opened a door.
A pile of holy trinkets came tumbling out.
She must have taken out everything stuck in storage and fed it to Nia.
"That couldn't have been a small amount, yet the change is only this much. Conventional methods are utterly hopeless."
"As expected, only Azrael's nourishing food will do."
Camelia nodded and pulled out Judas Iscariot's Inverted Cross from her bosom.
Then she brought it close to Nia.
Thump!
A strange resonance burst from the Inverted Cross and Nia.
It seemed to flow outside, as the friends in the garden started coming inside one by one.
Camelia curled the corners of her mouth.
"I had a feeling they were somewhat similar."
"That's strange. There was no reaction at all yesterday."
The Inverted Cross, which devours holy power, and Nia, a dark being with the sin of gluttony.
Thinking there might be some connection, I had tried holding the Inverted Cross up to her yesterday too.
There was absolutely no reaction, which was rather awkward.
"It's thanks to Vayla. A very small part, but the spirit dwelling in the body has awakened. At least enough to react to its own kind. Well done, Vayla."
The Jin-Kkan-Mo trio simultaneously gave Vayla a thumbs-up.
Vayla, eyes closed, gave a slight nod.
"But what do you mean by 'its own kind'? Is there a connection between the Inverted Cross and Nia?"
"I don't know the details either. However, when I obtained the Inverted Cross, I briefly encountered the remnant of its owner."
"Judas Iscariot?!"
"He is also known by various names. Traitor, Apostate, One Who Betrayed the Heavens, Enemy of Holiness, and so on. His remnant repeated the same words several times. He said the Inverted Cross has a given mission, and I must never lose it or let its existence be discovered. He said the moment it's discovered, all light will chase me to destroy the Inverted Cross."
"And you chose the Inverted Cross over the Pilgrim even after hearing such a dire warning?"
"As I said, I couldn't resist this charm. Anyway, I've finally met it after hundreds of years. The mission that Judas emphasized."
Camelia placed the Inverted Cross onto Nia's rising and falling belly.
Her face looked somehow relieved, as if she had fulfilled her role as a deliverer.
Ding!
[The Sky Reader, Camelia Sirin, has relinquished ownership of the Noble Phantasm 'Judas Iscariot's Inverted Cross' in accordance with the heavens' order!]
[What is emptied according to order is destined to be filled again! The threads of fate will lead her to a new Noble Phantasm!]
[This Noble Phantasm was inscribed on the Blank Card of Class Collector Eugene Hyeok! With Camelia Sirin's relinquishment of ownership, the inscribed Noble Phantasm is erased!]
Ding!
[The 'Blank Card – Normal' on which the Noble Phantasm was inscribed is reverted to the emptied 'Blank Card – True'! You can select one unique trait and one unique skill from the chosen Hero Card to inscribe!]
I covered my mouth.
How long has it been since I last saw a True Card?
It hadn't appeared for so long that I almost forgot its existence.
It's a shame the Inverted Cross is gone, but this is pretty nice in its own way.
"Bring it out generously! The Jamambo is hungry!"
"Got it!!"
Momo brought out a bundle of holy weapons I'd never seen before from the Infinite Storage.
When did she pack those?!
Momo, who had come out of the storage, had barely taken two steps.
A pitch-black mouth shot up from the Inverted Cross resting on Nia.
The Inverted Cross's mouth devoured Momo's holy weapon bundle in an instant.
The weapons themselves didn't disappear.
Just like before, only the holy power contained within was extinguished.
"The range has definitely widened."
I rubbed my chin as I watched Camelia gauging the range of the devouring.
With the addition of the Inverted Cross, it had improved compared to before.
But this wasn't enough.
I couldn't just place the sleeping Nia right next to the resurrecting Azrael.
For now, it's only the Pilgrims, but as the ritual progresses, who knows what dangers might pop up.
Hooooo.
Smoke billowed into my view.
The smoke seemed thicker than usual for some reason.
Camelia, eyes closed, let out a groan.
"Do I have to do this after so long? Hmm... I don't want to."
Camelia muttered in a conflicted voice.
This was the same woman who didn't hesitate even when abandoning the Path of the Pilgrim.
For her to be this conflicted, what on earth could be the reason?
Opening her eyes, Camelia spoke.
"Master. It seems I need to perform a shamanistic rite... Gahk!"
"What do you think you're doing, casually smoking in the kitchen! You old raccoon hag!!"
Kkancho, the Yordle Watchman, flew in from somewhere and slammed a dropkick into her side.
"This crazy raccoon again!"
Thwack thwack thwack thwack thwack thwack!!
They beat each other with a short pipe and a slingshot, pulling each other's hair for a while.
Camelia, thoroughly disheveled, returned to her spot.
"I think I need to perform a rite."
"Like the kind where you put a pig's head on the table and beat drums and gongs?"
"Hmm... It's not that different."
Camelia pointed her short pipe at Nia.
"I'll summon a spirit and connect it to Nia's devouring range. Then, by amplifying that spirit and linking it to the place where Azrael is resurrecting, we can feed this little sleepyhead holy light without exposing her to the enemy."
"Ohh."
"Of course, only the direct exposure will be hidden. I can't conceal the connection between the spirit I summon and Nia. The enemy will catch on quickly and respond."
"Then we'll need to divide roles again."
"That's right. We can't let the Pilgrims' resurrection ritual proceed smoothly either. The amount this sleeping Nia can devour is limited. If that Azrael or whatever resurrects first and starts causing real trouble before the little one wakes up, it'll be dangerous."
Properly causing trouble, huh. It doesn't fully sink in yet, but it doesn't matter.
If it needs to be done, I'll just find a way to do it.
"What do you need for the rite? Should I get a pig's head?"
"That's not necessary. However, I need ritual implements."
Camelia curled the corners of her mouth.
"Old ones, steeped in divine energy. As many as possible."
I gave a thumbs up.
Let's start making inquiries.
For ritual implements worthy of the shamaness Camelia Sirin.
* * *
A certain religious coalition in Seoul.
A woman with long, flowing hair walked up to a cross.
Then she clasped her hands together and closed her eyes.
As if waiting, a system message appeared.
[A being belonging to the Tower of Despair has requested an audience with the player. Will you answer the call?]
"Yes. Willingly."
The chapel distorted, and the location changed in an instant.
Yet the woman did not panic.
It was a place she had become familiar with after visiting dozens, hundreds of times.
As the space completed, the woman found herself standing on a circular platform.
The platform was surrounded by a dozen or so massive chairs.
"Your messenger has answered the call."
The kneeling woman bowed her head deeply.
It was impossible to dare look up.
That alone would be blasphemy.
One of those seated in the chairs leaned forward.
"A being we had sealed away is attempting to resurrect."
"Azrael, the Light of Splendid Tyranny."
"Executor of our voice, there is one in your land aiding that resurrection."
Min So-yul, the chairwoman of the coalition, furrowed her brow.
She didn't need to think long about who that was.
It was already a hot topic within the coalition.
The Runner who had made a deal with the Tower of Despair, reinforcing the entire 81st-floor section, and on top of that, merging four floors to create a floor that never existed before.
"Stop them."
"By any means."
"Spare no method or means."
"They must be stopped."
Min So-yul bowed her head even deeper.
Then she replied.
"I shall carry out the voice of the gods, even at the cost of my life."
Min So-yul, opening her eyes slightly, gritted her molars.
Going against the gods' will.
Runner.
This time, you've truly crossed the line.
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T/N:
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