Genghis Khan, Leopold II, Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot…

『The response of the Orc revolutionary Bardug to the question: "Has there ever been an Earthling who helped the Orcs?"』

 

The brief conversation came to an abrupt end as all four of them fell silent.

Controlling their mana to prevent it from tangling within the Golden Imperial Seal was no easy task.

Fortunately, Yeomyeong and Soemiri’s mana were almost identical in nature, which prevented the magic from breaking down entirely.

The real problem was the sheer amount of mana being absorbed by the Golden Imperial Seal.

No matter how much mana they poured into it, the dimensional gate opened painfully slowly.

Reopening a collapsing gate without the Tainted Stone was akin to rebuilding a house with only its skeletal frame remaining.

Soon enough, the four of them were running dry—of mana, of strength, of will.

Seti was the first to falter. Blood trickled from her nose and eyes as her capillaries burst.

Yeomyeong followed, coughing up a mouthful of blood, while Soemiri’s trembling hands revealed her own limits.

Seongnyeo, the strongest of them for now, held out as their anchor. But even she had fought through too many battles.

They all knew she wouldn’t last much longer.

We’re all going to die here together.

That same thought surfaced in all four minds at once.

It was Seongnyeo who broke the silence.

“…Should we wake Jeon Yunseong?”

Seti, still panting for breath, shook her head weakly.

“No. That’ll… only make things worse.”

Her voice held firm conviction. Seongnyeo guessed there was more to the story but chose not to pry.

Instead, she dropped to her knees.

Keeping her left hand on the Golden Imperial Seal, she brought her right hand to her chest and began to pray.

“White Ulsbatish, your daughter humbly calls upon you. Shine your sun upon us and guide our steps beneath your shadow.”

It was a simple prayer any priest of Ulsbatish could recite.

But coming from the Saint herself, its power was extraordinary.

Flash!

The moment her prayer ended, a blinding white blessing surged from Seongnyeo, wrapping all four of them in its embrace.

Where the light touched, wounds healed and mana flowed back into their drained bodies.

It was a miracle even high-ranking priests struggled to perform.

But it still wasn’t enough.

The gate demanded far more.

Unfazed, Seongnyeo resumed her prayers.

“Black Mordak, grant us your dream.”

“Red Redox, lend us your gun.”

“Blue Benul, let your book plead for us.”

“Green Isaginok, may your flower watch over us.”

She prayed to all five gods.

And when that still wasn’t enough, she reached into her robes and pulled out her sacred relic, holding it tightly.

If you truly cherish me, my gods, do not let my love and the innocent be sacrificed.

As always, the gods did not respond with words.

They answered with silence, pain, a faint tickle of fragrance…

And blessings.

Fwoooosh!

The next moment, five lights burst from Seongnyeo’s body.

Her white hair rippled in the surging mana. The response of the gods.

Without hesitation, Seongnyeo poured the blessings into the Golden Imperial Seal. The sheer volume of mana warped the magic circle, but she didn’t stop.

She trusted Yeomyeong to handle the seal.

And as if responding to her faith, the magic circle expanded, spreading wider and wider until it engulfed both the dimensional gate and the stone altar.

Then—

FLASH!

The five lights merged, filling the space between the seal and the gate.

The black fissure began to glow gold, reshaping itself into the image of an actual door.

None of them needed an explanation to know what had happened.

Seongnyeo’s blessings had performed a miracle.

The one most excited by that realization was none other than Seongnyeo herself.

I really did it on the first try?

Panting and trembling from the aftermath, she puffed out her chest with pride.

“See? Did you see that? Especially you, Yeomyeong, you unbeliever! Witness the miracle of the gods!”

“…Yeah, I saw it.”

“Then clap already! Shout that the Saint is the greatest!”

Her teasing was met with a faint smile. Yeomyeong didn’t even bother wiping the blood dripping from his nose.

Laughter really was contagious. Seeing the gate open, Seti and Soemiri also relaxed, their lips curling into relieved smiles.

It was a fleeting moment of peace.

A brief lapse in vigilance.

And it was enough.

The short gap was all the Tainted Stone’s mana, lurking within the dimensional gate, needed.

Ssssaaaaaak…!!!

A sickening, slithering sound filled the air as the darkness moved.

Like living tar, viscous mana oozed from the gate.

“Everyone, get—!”

Seti shouted in alarm, and Soemiri began casting a spell, but it was too late.

The dark mana had already cast its long shadow over the four of them.

It was an unavoidable disaster.

And in that moment, Yeomyeong acted on instinct.

BOOM!

With a stomp, he shattered the stone altar beneath him, using Flash Step to unleash a shockwave.

The force propelled everyone off the altar—everyone except himself.

“Nooo!!”

Seti’s scream echoed as the dark mana swallowed Yeomyeong whole.

 

Falling to the sewer floor below, Seongnyeo stared blankly at where Yeomyeong had been.

All that remained atop the broken altar was the abandoned Golden Imperial Seal.

The black mana that devoured Yeomyeong seemed to vanish into the dimensional gate.

Seongnyeo bit her lip hard as she climbed back onto the ruined altar.

The Tainted Stone’s mana… it never disappeared.

It had merely hidden itself deep within the gate, waiting for the moment the barrier would collapse.

Under normal circumstances, it would have detonated once the gate fully closed, obliterating everything.

But the Golden Imperial Seal had forced the gate open, giving it an opportunity to strike.

The one small mercy was that the Tainted Stone’s mana lacked intelligence.

It was pure malevolence—seeking only to corrupt and destroy.

Yeomyeong, hold on just a little longer.

As Seongnyeo approached the gate, she spotted someone kneeling at its threshold.

“Soemiri? You…?”

Had she somehow avoided being thrown back?

Soemiri was crouched before the gate, gripping something tightly.

Peeking from beyond the glowing golden light was Yeomyeong’s right forearm.

Somehow, Soemiri had managed to grab his hand just before he was pulled in.

“…Thank goodness.”

At least there was hope.

Seongnyeo breathed a sigh of relief as she approached.

Then she saw what it had cost Soemiri to hold on.

Her ears were soaked with blood from ruptured eardrums, and her eyes leaked a mix of blood and viscous fluid.

Classic symptoms of magical backlash—overuse of unprepared acceleration and flight spells.

“Ah…”

Whether it was one spell or both, she had sacrificed her body to hold onto Yeomyeong.

The wounds were severe enough that she could die from blood loss.

Realizing this, Seongnyeo gathered her remaining mana and poured a healing blessing into Soemiri.

Soemiri, finally registering Seongnyeo’s presence, whispered hoarsely.

“Saint… please… call Seti. I… I can’t hold on much longer…”

Speak of the devil—

Before Seongnyeo could answer, Seti landed heavily in front of the gate with a thud.

She carried her hammer and a bundle of weapons on her back, ready to charge into the gate.

But she didn’t need to.

“Oh, you’ve got him… thank goodness…”

Her reaction mirrored Seongnyeo’s: relief, amazement, and concern.

Seti knelt and gently took Yeomyeong’s hand from Soemiri, who immediately collapsed, coughing up blood.

As Seongnyeo healed her, she turned to Seti.

“How is it? Can you pull him out?”

“…No. The harder I pull, the stronger the force pulling him in. At this rate, holding on is all we can do.”

“….”

“Saint, do you know what this monster—or rather, this mana that consumed Yeomyeong—is?”

The Saint nodded, then began to explain.

She detailed what the Tainted Stone was and the state of the mana that had just enveloped Yeomyeong.

As she spoke, however, she noticed something strange about Seti.

Seti was gnawing on her lip, her sharp gaze fixed on the dimensional gate.

“Seti? What’s wrong?”

“…The gate is mutating.”

“….”

True to her words, the gate they had forced open with the Golden Imperial Seal was slowly being consumed by a black corruption.

The phrase “out of the frying pan, into the fire” couldn’t have been more apt.

 

It wasn’t hard to figure out why the dimensional gate was destabilizing.

Without a doubt, it was the Tainted Stone’s mana, once again surging within.

What should I do?

Seti gripped Yeomyeong’s hand tightly, wracking her brain.

Use the Golden Imperial Seal to reopen the gate? That was Yeomyeong’s tool, and only he could wield it. Rejected.

Follow Yeomyeong into the unstable gate? That could very well lead to a double suicide. Rejected.

Pray for another miracle from the Saint? She was already past her limit. Rejected.

Reject, reject, reject…

As the endless waves of failed ideas threatened to drown her thoughts, a voice—quiet but commanding—echoed in her mind.

“First, consider what you can give for his sake.”

What can I give? Seti didn’t hesitate. Everything.

The voice chuckled in response, as if satisfied with her answer.

Was this a revelation? A suggestion?

Before Seti could ponder further, her eyes fell on something glinting beside the dimensional gate: a ceremonial dagger.

Was it coincidence? Fate?

She reached out, picking up the dagger. Its tarnished blade, stained with dried blood, reflected her face.

In its surface, she saw a freed animal, a sister consumed by vengeance… and his first offering—herself.

…Yes, an offering.

Seti finally understood the meaning behind the question: What can you give?

Gripping the dagger in reverse, she prayed silently.

My god, I offer myself as a sacrifice. So please… let Yeomyeong return safely.

That thought was the last thing in her mind as she raised the dagger to her throat.

But just as she prepared to strike, her right hand moved of its own accord, diverting the blade.

It didn’t stab her throat.

Instead, it nicked her left index finger.

Plop.

A single drop of blood stained the blade, a shallow wound that would heal in less than a day with her regenerative abilities.

“…My god?”

“Wasteful.”

“…What?”

Seti was so startled she froze, unsure how to process what had just happened.

Noticing her odd behavior, the Saint called out to her.

“Seti… what are you doing?”

Her voice was laced with concern, and rightly so—she had just witnessed Seti try to stab her own neck, only to end up cutting her finger.

Seti, at a loss for words, deflected.

“…It’s nothing.”

“…Really?”

“Really.”

Still holding the dagger, Seti stared at the blood-stained blade for a moment before tossing it into the dimensional gate.

It was a half-conscious action, devoid of expectation.

RUMBLE!!!

The gate reacted violently, shaking the entire chamber. Even Soemiri, who had just finished her healing, sat bolt upright in surprise.

“…What’s happening?”

Seti wanted to ask the same question.

Is there something special about the blood of a sacrifice?

Testing her theory, she pressed another drop of blood from her finger and flicked it toward the gate.

This time, the black spots marring the gate vanished entirely.

An awkward silence fell over the group.

Fortunately, it didn’t last long.

Soemiri, now steadier on her feet, broke it.

“Seti… as I thought, you’re of a special lineage, aren’t you?”

“….”

Special? Maybe. But not in a way that ever benefited her.

Seti offered a faint, ambiguous smile that could be interpreted as either agreement or denial.

Soemiri took it as confirmation, pondering for a moment before glancing at Yeomyeong’s hand.

“Yeomyeong… he’s still not budging, is he?”

Without answering, Seti gave his hand a firm tug, but it remained immovable.

“…Then let’s go in.”

“What?”

“You saw it, right? The gate stabilizes with your blood. There’s no risk of being transported to another dimension. Let’s go in, rescue Yeomyeong, and come back out on the other side.”

“Hmm…”

Seti was tempted by the idea, but the Saint interjected.

“Do you even know where this gate leads? What if we end up somewhere even more dangerous?”

“This gate was originally opened by a Cult of the End priest, right? Then it’s probably connected to our world. What’s the problem?”

“…Our world has dangerous places too!”

“Even the farthest reaches of our world are only a half-year journey from Earth. Isn’t Yeomyeong’s life worth more than six months of inconvenience?”

“….”

When Yeomyeong’s life was brought up, the Saint fell silent. She had no rebuttal.

Instead, she tried a different approach.

“Then I’m coming too.”

“No, you’re not.”

“Hey! Soemiri! Why can you go and not me?!”

“I’m not going either.”

“….”

“Only Seti and Yeomyeong can cross the gate. That way, we can keep this incident contained. You know what that means, don’t you, Saint?”

It was a political issue. The Saint chewed her lip, searching for an argument but finding none. Finally, she lowered her head in reluctant agreement.

“…Pointy ears.”

“That’s a slur, Saint.”

“Commie.”

“What?”

As the two bickered, Seti grabbed a hammer and a simple handgun—she couldn’t carry much while holding onto Yeomyeong’s hand.

Her preparations complete, she looked between the Saint and Soemiri, leaving them with a parting request.

“Take care of our siblings while I’m gone.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll keep the flock in line too,” Soemiri replied with an enigmatic smile.

Seti wondered how much Soemiri actually knew, but this wasn’t the time to ask.

“…I’ll come back as soon as I can. Clean up after us.”

With those words, she turned toward the gate.

But before she could step through, the Saint enveloped her in a tight hug, delaying her for thirty seconds longer.

“Come back soon…”

With that heartfelt plea, Seti finally stepped into the dimensional gate, never letting go of Yeomyeong’s hand.